FAVORITE TEAMS

AAC: 0-1, OVERALL – 3-5

USF (1-2) vs. SMU– lost 48-21

• USF continues to struggle this season. Their offense is one of the worst in the conference and college football. No running back has reached 100 yards rushing this season and the quarterback rating for two quarterbacks combined is around 50%. They’re currently 1-9 after starting 7-0 last season.

 

TULSA (2-2)– BYE WEEK

 

ACC: 1-1, OVERALL – 9-1

#18 VIRGINIA (4-0) at #10 Notre Dame– lost 35-20

• Virginia’s now 0-3 against Notre Dame all time after Saturday’s loss. They stayed with them for the first half. Throughout the game though, they allowed eight sacks, 13 tackles for losses, and gave up five turnovers. What’s worse is Virginia finished the game with only four total rushing yards with “now” former team leading rushing quarterback Bryce Perkins gaining a -29 rushing yards. They have a bye week to figure out their ball control issues because they go on the road to turnover-forced-happy Miami.

 

WAKE FOREST (4-0) at Boston College– won 27-24

• The Demon Deacons are 5-0 for the first time since 2006. You know what happened to them that year…? Finished 11-3. They’re one win away from bowl-eligibility. After that, their last six games will be the toughest to finish their season.

BIG TEN: 2-0, OVERALL – 7-1

#20 MICHIGAN (2-1) vs. Rutgers– won 52-0

• Michigan bounced back with a retooling game against Rutgers. When you lose badly to Wisconsin, you must take it out on your next opponent, good or not. Now their next game is at home against #14 Iowa. Let’s hope there’s not a repeat of a beatdown again. Their loss would be the end of Michigan’s Big Ten title and playoff consideration.

 

MINNESOTA (3-0) at Purdue– won 38-31

• Minnesota won their fourth straight close game of the season. I’m not sure what to make of theem yet, but a win is a win. Their points for/points against ratio is a mere 20-point separation and they’re the only undefeated team with the smallest ratio. Their next game’s against Illinois and that team lost two close games this season. They also defeated Minnesota last year by 24 points last season, so don’t underestimate the Fighting Illini in this matchup.

 

BIG 12: 0-2, OVERALL – 5-3

#24 KANSAS STATE (3-0) at Oklahoma State– lost 26-13

• Kansas State goes into Big 12 play, struggles for most of the game. and lose. Oklahoma State running back Chuba Hubbard had a field day after running nearly 300 yards. The ‘Cats run defense were solid for the first three games before this one. They may have succeeded against Mississippi State on the road, but now it’s time to face reality in their conference. They must prepare better for any fast-paced offense that comes their way.

 

IOWA STATE (2-1) at Baylor– lost 23-21

• It was an expected low-scoring game since Iowa State plays hard-nosed football. But Baylor made life difficult for the Cyclones too. Iowa State fought their way back in the fourth quarter and were three minutes away from staying within the Big 12 race early, but Baylor prevented it with a game-winning field goal. The Cyclones will play competitive, but they must finish. Iowa State hosts TCU, and they won the last time they host the Horned Frogs.

 

C-USA: 0-1, OVERALL – 3-6

FIU (1-3) at Louisiana Tech– BYE WEEK

 

NORTH TEXAS (2-2) vs. Houston– lost 46-25

• North Texas lost by three touchdowns. No it wasn’t turnovers and they weren’t outplayed on time of possession. What hurt them was Houston’s run game, big plays on the ground, and special teams. What was worse was the Mean Green’s third down conversions was only 36%. Fortunately their still in the race for the C-USA West division after UAB’s first loss to Western Kentucky.

 

INDEPENDENT: 0-0, OVERALL – 3-1

ARMY (3-1)– BYE WEEK

 

MAC: 2-0, OVERALL – 5-5

MIAMI (OH) (1-3) vs. Buffalo– won 34-20

• As I said this past weekend, it’s Miami’s time to shine in the MAC conference, and they did! Despite trailing 14-3, Miami finished the game on a 31-7 run while their defense forced four turnovers. Buffalo ran for over 300 yards but struggled in the passing game and had 10 penalties to Miami’s two. In two weeks, the Redhawks play against my underrated MAC West pick, Western Michigan.

 

WESTERN MICHIGAN (2-2) vs. Central Michigan– won 31-15

• Central Michigan had opportunities throughout the game, but turnovers ruined it. Western Michigan is back in the winning record percentage. But their next three games are at Toledo and at Eastern Michigan and home game against Miami (OH). This will be an interesting run for the Broncos.

 

MWC: 1-1, OVERALL – 6-3

NEVADA (3-1) vs. Hawai’i– lost 54-3

• Nevada had a bad game. When I expected the snow, rain, and cold to work in their favor, Hawai’i played like they were fighting to stay warm on the field. Miscues on all phases was a horrible thing to witness. Hawai’i had a better squad and they were well prepared in bad conditions. Hawai’i’s head coach was a former coordinator for Nevada so he’s well aware of the conditions in Reno. Nevada has a week off to re-cooperate. After San Jose State in two weeks, they have two tough road games against Utah State and Wyoming.

 

AIR FORCE (2-1) vs. San Jose State– won 41-24

• Air Force bounced back in a big way and are now 3-1. Air Force battles Navy for control of the Commander-in-Chief trophy.. However, Air Force hasn’t won at Annapolis since 2012. A win against them would be huge, setting up an opportunity to win that trophy when they play Army on November 2nd.

 

PAC-12: 1-0, OVERALL – 7-2

ARIZONA STATE (3-1) at Cal– won 24-17

• Arizona State rebounds from an upset loss by booting Cal out of the Top 25. They’re now 2-0 against ranked teams this season. The Sun Devils played tough and Jaylen Daniels kept this team in the game, Eno Benjamin fought tooth and nail for three touchdowns, and the young defense endured all four quarters of the game. Now rest for a week before attempting a big run at the Pac-12 South title.

 

#13 OREGON (3-1)– BYE WEEK

 

SEC: 1-0, OVERALL – 8-1

MISSOURI (3-1)– BYE WEEK

#7 AUBURN (4-0) vs. Mississippi State– won 56-23

• Auburn won easily against Mississippi State and Bo Nix had a huge day with his first 300-yard passing game. Their next game is a big one at Gainesville against Florida before their bye week. This will be Nix’s third biggest (and third ranked) game. If the Tigers can win this one, they’ll be in a four-way SEC battle with #5 LSU, #3 Georgia, and #1 Alabama for an SEC title and playoff spot. And I mean this literally. That’s exactly how Auburn’s four of six remaining games after Florida is set up. The odd numbers of the remaining SEC teams could be in play.

 

SUN BELT: 2-0, OVERALL – 7-2

ARKANSAS STATE (2-2) at Troy– won 50-43

• This is an important win for Arkansas State after enduring injury after injury. After Georgia State, their next four of five games will be the most challenging games on their schedule yet.

 

APPALACHIAN STATE (3-0) vs. Coastal Carolina– won 56-37

• Appalachian State won big after just a 7-point lead before the weather delay. After their bye week, they play against the Lousiana teams of the Sun Belt (UL Monroe and Louisiana). There’s not many challengeing teams left on the schedule that could end their undefeated run. Rest well, Mountaineers.