Italics indicate my pick.
(7) LSU at Mississippi State
Fresno State at (14) Cincinnati
(22) North Carolina at Georgia Tech
Michigan State at Wisconsin
Arkansas at (3) Alabama
(6) Cal at Oregon
Wake Forest at Boston College
Rutgers at Maryland
Pitt at NC State
Toledo at Florida International
(15) TCU at Clemson
Texas Tech at (17) Houston
New Mexico State at New Mexico
Iowa at (5) Penn State
Last year left a real sour taste in Penn State fans' mouths. Riding high off an emotional win at Ohio State, the Nittany Lions headed to Kinnick Stadium with a chance to jump into one of the two slots for the National Championship. Starting quarterback Daryl Clark was knocked out late of the showdown against the Buckeyes and was not 100 percent in this one. All-American tailback Shonn Greene ran for triple digits and after a controversial pass interference call on safety Anthony Scirrotto, the Hawkeyes' back-up kicker knocked in a field goal with one second remaining and knocked Penn State out of the National Championship picture.
Now the Nittany Lions can get revenge. The offense has been shaky - in my opinion - and would really benefit from a hot start here. The defense looks like one of the top crews in the country; even though they have faced Akron, Syracuse and Temple so far. Junior tailback Evan Royster finally got going last week against the Owls and another triple digit game could really put the pressure on the Iowa offense. Iowa comes in a lot better than they were in week one, when they had to block two field goals just to preserve a win against FCS squad Northern Iowa. Ricky Stanzi is looking like one of the top five quarterbacks in the Big Ten, and right now the Nittany Lions haven't faced a good quarterback. Yes, Greg Paulus hasn't reached "good" yet. If Stanzi can make some plays with his arm against this inexperienced secondary, Iowa might be looking at another game like that October night in 2008.
The fans will be riled up for this one. College Gameday will be in State College and ABC has the game slotted for their prime-time broadcast. Rain is expected in the forecast, but no matter - the student section will be ready. Oh, did I mention that there might be some white in the crowd? Yes, Penn State is bringing out the "whiteout" t-shirts, in hopes of putting added pressure on Iowa. Penn State opens up the offense in this one and gets 200+ yards and two touchdowns from Clark, while Royster adds 100+ and a score on the ground.
Penn State 27, Iowa 14
(22) North Carolina at Georgia Tech
If it wasn't for that "other" game, this would be the premier matchup this week in the ACC. North Carolina comes off of a nice win over the Pirates of East Carolina, while the Yellow Jackets are coming off a bad loss against the Miami Hurricanes in which they were dominated for most of the game. TJ Yates found a new favorite receiver last week in freshman Erik Highsmith, who had over 100 yards and a touchdown receiving. Georgia Tech bases their offense around that elusive option attack, led by junior quarterback Josh Nesbitt and junior runningback Jonathan Dwyer. With this one being in Atlanta, I give a very slight edge to the Yellow Jackets. Dwyer and Roddy Jones both have nice games on the ground as Tech jumps back into the Top 25.
Georgia Tech 21, North Carolina 20
(9) Miami, FL at (11) Virginia Tech
Here's that "other" game. Quick, raise your hand if you had Miami playing like a top 10 team this season. Am I the only one with my hand raised? I love this Miami squad and predicted them to do big things in the ACC this year. Jacory Harris is the conference's best quarterback and he's only a sophomore. The running game has two starting capiable runningbacks in junior Graig Cooper and senior Javarris James. The receiver core is very, very deep and don't even get me started on that defense.
On the other side is the Virginia Tech Hokies. They were predicted by many publications to win the ACC, and I thought they would take down an - still in my eyes - overrated Alabama team. However, that game didn't go the Hokies' way and also raised some concerns about the secondary.
I bet Harris is licking his chops right now.
A big win over the Marshall Thundering Herd sent VT into Lincoln to face the Cornhuskers. Down 15-10 with seconds remaining, junior quarterback Tyrod Taylor scrambled for an extended period of time and found an open Dyrell Roberts in the endzone to keep the Hokies in the top 15. Redshirt freshman Ryan Williams has stepped in just fine for last year's leading rusher Darren Evans, who was lost in the pre-season with a torn ACL. Other than some shaky secondary play (which has improved during the last few games), the defense looks like a Frank Beamer coached squad; good.
This one is in Lane Stadium, a place that is always tough for opponents. However, like I said before, I love this Miami squad. I don't expect them to go undefeated, but I am a believer in their chances to win the ACC. Harris puts his name officially for the Heisman and Miami marches on.
Miami 24, Virginia Tech 20
Enjoy your Saturday folks.
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