College Football Week Nine Previews and Predictions

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Remember Thursday, September 3^rd ?

That was the night that Oregon lost at Boise State, LeGarrette Blount shocked the sports world and everyone and their Nike swoosh jumped off the Ducks’ bandwagon.

So much for a magical season. A season in which the Ducks expected to challenge USC for a Pac-10 title and play in a BCS bowl. Just like that, it all seemed to have come to a crashing halt.

Well, what a difference eight weeks makes.

Since that devastating opening night for new coach Chip Kelly, the Ducks have won six games in a row, including impressive wins against ranked opponents Utah and Cal.

Suddenly, Oregon is 6-1 (4-0 in the Pac-10) and nearly all of their goals remain firmly intact.

For that, you have to give Kelly and his staff a ton of credit. Things easily could have unraveled after that opening night debacle in Boise. A tumultuous season would have been understandable, if not expected.

Instead, the Ducks have grown together as a team and have looked better each week.

This week, in comes USC. Oregon’s chance to turn a nightmare beginning into a storybook finish rides on this matchup with the No. 5 Trojans.

If USC loses here, they will have two conference losses and be all-but eliminated from Pac-10 contention. No team has had such a clear knock-out blow on the West Coast powerhouse in years (perhaps “knock-out blow” is a pour choice of words.)

You could make the case that with an Oregon win this weekend, Kelly would deserve National Coach of the Year honors.  

But with a loss Saturday, what could be the story of the year in college football will turn back into another dominant season for USC, and another missed opportunity for the Ducks.

Either way, it’s pretty amazing that this game means as much as it does considering where Oregon was not too long ago.

Don’t expect that feeling to be lost on the Ducks. After all, just eight weeks ago, no one thought they’d be here.

Where will they be eight weeks from now?

To week nine we go...

Five games you can’t miss this weekend:

5. No. 12 Penn State at Northwestern (Sat. 4:30 EST, ESPN)

Darryl Clark is starting to click at the right time for the Nittany Lions, who have looked impressive in their last four games since losing to Iowa. You’ve almost got to wonder what would happen if the two teams faced again.

This week, Penn State gets a slightly dangerous road trip at Northwestern. Senior quarterback Mike Kafka leads the Big 10 in passing yards. The Nittany Lions will need to keep him contained and force him into a few turnovers. Kafka threw three picks against Indiana last week.

Prediction: Penn State 29, Northwestern 17

4. No. 21 West Virginia at South Florida (Fri. 8:00 EST, ESPN)

South Florida was my pick to win the Big East this season, but after back-to-back losses to Cincinnati and Pittsburgh, that pick looks to be long, long gone. So, what do the Bulls focus on now? Ruining the seasons of their rivals, of course.

Two years ago, West Virginia’s national title hopes were upended by a loss at South Florida. Though the Mountaineers don’t have quite as much to play for this season, the pressure will be on. And you better believe South Florida will be happy to play spoiler again.

Prediction: South Florida 24, WVU 23

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