Today's College Football Picks

Kansas State unveiled a statue of Bill Snyder before losing to North Dakota State.  That does not seem right.  As a program that has feasted on out-of-conference opponents over Snyder's reign the least they could do would be defeat the Bison but the visitors are a good opponent with a lot of motivation.  I do not understand why programs like KSU book teams like North Dakota State.  they get no credit for the win but a lot of bad press when they lose.
I went 2-1 last night and while my one loss, SMU getting points was lopsided at the end they were covering entering the fourth quarter.  Today I love dogs again as you'll see.
Purdue +10 against Cincy
Toledo +23 at Florida
La Tech +14 at NC State
FIU +23 at Maryland
Central Michigan +31.5 at Michigan
Notre Dame -28 hosting Temple
Washington State +14 at Auburn
TCU +5 against LSU.
As far as the big game tonight, Georgia-Clemson, I am picking the Tigers but without much confidence.
Good luck.

Today's Picks

The teams that suffered the most yesterday were North Carolina, who bombed in a prime-time showdown with the real USC, and Vandy, who choked against Mississippi as the program tried desperately to move away from an off-season dominated by rape allegations against multiple players.  Having a rough night without even playing was Louisville, whose schedule was considered a joke before conference mate UConn lost convincingly to FCS member Towson State.  It did not help that Rutgers squandered away a chance for a nice road upset of Fresno State (still dragging after watching that in the wee hours).  Then again UConn and Rutgers could have each won by 50 and regular fans would not have cared.
As for my picks I went 2-2 with easy wins by Rutgers and the over in that game but a narrow loss in the Utah State-Utah game and a near back-door cover in UNC's loss to South Carolina (reached SC 1YL in closing seconds).  Tonight I went with Western Michigan getting 28 from MSU, SMU getting 5 from Texas Tech and the over of 60 in that game.

Today's Picks

The game of the day is in Columbia where South Carolina hosts UNC.  The spread to me is too high at 11.5 as the Tar Heels are an experienced bunch with the best QB (Bryn Renner) on field.  I also like that superstar DE Jadeveon Clowney of SC is getting too much attention and that the Gamecocks have Georgia scheduled for week 2.  I can easily see this game tied in the fourth quarter.
My other picks for tonight are Utah State getting three at Utah and Rutgers getting 11 at Fresno.  I also like Vandy getting 3 from Ole Miss but chickened out on that one.  I also took the over (55) in the Fresno state game.  enjoy.

Manziel Suspended One Half

Okay, so I was not going to be happy with this one.  It smells like the Cam Newton situation in which the NCAA was not going to be bothered actually searching for evidence in a high profile case involving an SEC QB who was needed for ratings etc.  Cam denied knowing that his Dad tried to sell him to Mississippi and said that he took no money from Auburn and so he was allowed to continue starring for Auburn despite a lot of circumstantial evidence.  The NCAA could not find any actual evidence of money changing hands, however, although there are questions as too how hard they looked.  We have a similar situation here, except that Manziel clearly signed a lot of autographs.  He denied receiving payment however and therefore did so as a huge favor to some sports memorabilia professionals.  But why was the NCAA in a rush to get the guy back on the field?
Yeah, I know.  Evidence, evidence.  There was evidence against USC in the Bush et al case and OSU in the free tattoos plus case.  But again, evidence was not going to appear without actual investigating.
My other problem with this case is that there are way too many pundits and fans clamoring for players to be paid.  That Texas A&M, the SEC and the NCAA have all profited from Manziel's fame and so why shouldn't he?  But, name more than ten Aggies in the school's sometimes illustrious, sometimes awful history of playing college football that were worthy of profiting from their celebrity.  But each of thousands of Aggie players have received free schooling lodging, food, etc and the famous ones received training that helped them reach the NFL or were able to use their A&M celebrity to sell homes, run for office, marry well, etc.  Who the hell feels sorry for college football players?

The Wait Is Almost Over

It is the final day before college football begins and justifiably it is raining.  I wouldn't mind getting some things done but they can wait.  My mind is focused on football and that in mere hours the season will commence.  If the weather cooperates I plan on going to Fordham's beat-down of Rhode Island, although it is tempting to stay home and watch the battle of the Carolinas.  Either way it is college football and I will be happy.
I never did pick a national champion but will do so now with Alabama.  The team has a ridiculously easy schedule and will be motivated by a desire to be undefeated national champions and to achieve everlasting glory by three-peating.

Poll Voting Copycats

Let me get this straight.  A group of coaches voted for the USA Today preseason poll earlier this summer.  Then a group of sportswriters, choosing from the same scores of possible college football programs, voted on their own preseason top 25.  And the two polls came out virtually the same.  How is that possible?
Up top I can understand because certain teams get a great deal more hype--and, well, talented players, than others.  Agreeing on Alabama as the top team in the nation is no cause for alarm.  Ditto Ohio state at 2 and even Oregon, Stanford and Georgia at teams 3-5.  I personally would have it Stanford, Georgia and then Oregon but that's not quibbling about.  The AP voters then "punished" Texas A&M one spot for Johnny Football's weekly shenanigans, flipping South Carolina ahead of them to differ from the coaches' poll.  Clemson, Louisville and Florida then round out the top ten in both polls.
Teams numbered 11-14 are the same in both polls but their order is moved around.  What was ND, FSU, LSU and Okie State in USA Today became FSU, LSU Oklahoma State and Notre Dame to the writers. 
That both polls have the same 14 teams ranked in the top 14, although in slightly different order, is odd but what comes next defies belief.  Texas, OU, Michigan, Nebraska, Boise, TCU,UCLA, Northwestern, Wisconsin, USC and Oregon State are in that exact order in both polls to fill out 14-25.  That my friends is hard to do.  How busy were the AP voters?  Did they just pick up the coaches' poll, make a few adjustments and then mail it in? Sure seems like it.  If it is some sort of protest against having preseason polls, then I am all for it but it screams more of laziness than resistance.
shake it up boys.  It will get boring fast if there is too much agreement.

Savage to the Rescue?

The Pitt Panthers have officially turned to the oft-travelled Tom Savage to lead them at QB as they transition into the ACC.  And why not?  Savage was once--seemingly decades ago--a top prospect and now that he has had months of training under the Panther offense he should be ready to tap into some of his potential.  Although the team did lose its leading passer, rusher and receiver from last season there is enough talent back to build on a successful second half of the season that saw Pitt become bowl eligible with victories over Buffalo, Temple, USF and Rutgers.  They also played Notre Dame as tough as anyone during the regular season.  And head coach Paul Chryst has had success with transfer QBs before, although expecting Savage to be as successful as Russell Wilson was at Wisconsin when Chryst was the offensive coordinator is too much of a dream.
While it is a good thing that Savage is getting another chance, he will need to be at his best if Pitt has any chance in game one versus Florida State.  I would like their chances for a home upset if the situation with talented RB Rushel Shell had not blown up when he first asked to transfer and then decided to stay.  I agree that he should have been shown the door--and he is now waiting out a year at UCLA--but there is no back on the roster that will keep the FSU pass rushers honest.  As excited as Savage is to be back leading a team, he could be in for a long night on September 2.