Week two figures to be uneventful
September 8, 2006
The first weekend in college football was pretty uneventful in the Big 12, and that figures to be the case again this weekend with most games foregone conclusions, with one very big exception.
Last week, I went 10-2, banking too heavily on the Baylor Bears to come up with a win.
Without further ado, the picks.
Mississippi (1-0) at Missouri (1-0)
The Chase Daniel era got off to a great start in Columbia last weekend after the Tigers thumped Murray State 47-7. Daniel, who is replacing four-year starter Brad Smith, completed 23-of-32 passes for 320 yards and five scores.
Mississippi beat Memphis by a field goal last week and showed it is improved from last year’s struggles, but the passing game still isn’t there and won’t be able to keep up with Mizzou.
The pick: Missouri
Nicholls State (1-0) at No. 21 Nebraska (1-0)
The Huskers took care of Louisiana Tech in the opener and will have a cake walk this week against Nicholls State. Look for Nebraska to keep tweaking the offense and getting everything in sync before their showdown with USC.
The pick: Nebraska
Washington (1-0) at No. 15 Oklahoma (1-0)
The Washington defense was torched last week by San Jose State quarterback Adam Tafralis for 323 yards and three scores, but the Huskies did pull out a 35-29 victory.
Unfortunately for the Sooners, they probably won’t be able to take advantage of the Huskies secondary with quarterback-turned-receiver-turned-quarterback Paul Thompson back calling signals. UAB hung with the Sooners and could’ve won the game last week if not for Adrian Peterson’s 139 yards rushing. It will be up to Peterson again to carry Oklahoma to a closer-than-expected victory.
The pick: Oklahoma
Colorado (0-1) at Colorado State (1-0)
That thud you heard last week was Colorado running head-first into unstoppable powerhouse Montana State (note the sarcasm). Colorado went down in shocking fashion, 19-10, at home, against a Division 1-AA team. Not a good first impression for new head coach Dan Hawkins.
Now the Buffaloes take on their rivals in Fort Collins, which has been a sticky game for them in recent years.
Somehow Colorado is still favored in this game, but they aren’t going to win.
The pick: Colorado State
UNLV (1-0) at Iowa State (1-0)
The Cyclones really appreciate the extra two days off they got for playing Toledo on a Thursday night last week. Three overtimes is enough to wear the team out, and they had plenty of things to work on after surrendering 350+ yards through the air.
UNLV isn’t as terrible as its last year’s 2-9 record would make you think, now that transfers from USC, UCLA and Oklahoma have been infused into the program. The offense should be able to move the ball some on Iowa State – especially if last week’s problems aren’t fixed – but the Rebels defense probably won’t be able to stop Iowa State more than occasionally.
The Cyclones have the firepower to run away from UNLV and will build a lead in the first half before holding serve in the second half and getting ready for next week’s showdown with the Hawkeyes.
The pick: Iowa State
Northwestern State (0-1) at Baylor (0-1)
The Bears did some good things last week against TCU and had a chance to score the victory, but the offense was just a little too sloppy at times to get things done. The Bears continue to improve under Guy Morriss and will roll over Northwestern State as they take care of business during the light part of their schedule, as they try to become bowl eligible for the first time in the Big 12.
The pick: Baylor
Louisiana-Lafayette (0-1) at Texas A&M (1-0)
There’s nothing too special about this game that’s even really worth mentioning so we won’t dwell on it, but the Aggies can use this game to polish up the offense and continue to break in new quarterback Stephen McGee, who is replacing standout Reggie McNeal as signal caller.
The pick: Texas A&M
Louisiana-Monroe (1-0) at Kansas (1-0)
The Kansas defense that was a major strength last year gave up a good chunk of yards to Northwestern State last week and needs to fine tune against UL-Monroe this week. Also, Jayhawk quarterback Kerry Meier needs to figure things out quickly after last week’s shaky 8-of-18 performance for 110 yards with two touchdowns and an interception.
The pick: Kansas
Oklahoma State (1-0) at Arkansas State (1-0)
The Cowboy offense put up some nice numbers against Missouri State last week, but that isn’t much of a barometer on the Cowboys’ season. Neither will be this week’s game against Arkansas State. The Cowboys should and will win this game, but they need to look good doing it before they hit a three-game road trip in two weeks.
The pick: Oklahoma State
Florida Atlantic (0-1) at Kansas State (1-0)
The Wildcats barely survived Illinois State last week, winning by a single point. Fortunately for Kansas State, it gets Florida Atlantic this week, who was blown off the field by Clemson. The Wildcats aren’t good enough to make this a walk in the park, but they can’t afford the embarrassment of a loss either if the program has plans of a quick return to competitiveness.
The pick: Kansas State
No. 24 Texas Tech (1-0) at UTEP (1-0)
Don’t you just love Texas Tech non-conference games? Fire up the XBox and see how close you can come to the Red Raider statistics. Remember, UTEP gave up 27 points to San Diego State last week.
The pick: Texas Tech
Game of the Week: No. 1 Ohio State (1-0) at No. 2 Texas (1-0)
Can Texas-OSU II live up to last year’s classic? That’s a pretty lofty expectation, but I would be shocked if it wasn’t close to that level.
With both teams putting their National Title hopes on the line, and Troy Smith getting his first chance to get a leg up in the Heisman Trophy race, don’t look for either team to come out flat.
Texas doesn’t have Vince Young to direct traffic on the offensive side of the ball this time around, but Ohio State is out nine defensive starters from last year’s Fiesta Bowl squad. Expect both Longhorn quarterback Colt McCoy and the OSU defense to struggle at times in their first real tests of 2006.
I see Troy Smith coming out and putting on a show early as the Buckeyes build an early lead and quiet the crowd, but the fact that the Bucks are in a hostile environment against the defending national champions (as well as Texas’ new 134 ft.-by-55 ft. HDTV jumbotron) will rattle the OSU defense and allow a late Texas comeback.
The pick: Texas
-ÿBrett McIntyre is a junior in meteorology and journalism and mass communication from Fort Dodge.
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Week two figures to be uneventful
