(Aaron Torres is a journalist whose work has been published by Sports Illustrated and syndicated by USA Today, AOL.com and Slam Online. To read all of his work, as well as the rest of his Week 12 picks and his thoughts on Ohio State-Michigan and LSU-Ole Miss, please click here or visit him at www.aarontorres-sports.com )

Mississippi State (+11.5) over ARKANSAS: 12:21 p.m.

See, this is what I love about the SEC. This is a game featuring two totally middle of the pack teams that I should have no interest in, yet both having compelling coaches and star power, and I’m more interested in this one than most of the other games on the national schedule.

Here’s why I like Mississippi State to keep it close: Look at their schedule. They’ve faced every single offense you can possibly go against over the course of the season: High-powered passing attacks (Houston is ranked No. 1 in college football in passing offense), a triple-option running game (Georgia Tech is the No. 2 rushing defense in college football), Florida’s spread option, a pro-style running game with some Wildcat mixed in (LSU) and even a power running game featuring a potential Heisman Trophy winner (Alabama).

So while I’m terrified to bet against Ryan Mallett and Arkansas’ offense (The Surgeon General has asked me to put in the following warning: Anyone who is pregnant, suffering from chest pain, or who has had an erection lasting more than four hours should seek immediate medical treatment before wagering on this game), the Bulldogs aren’t going to play scared. And after looking at that schedule, why should they?


TEXAS TECH (+6.5) over Oklahoma: 12:30 p.m.

College football is a funny game. Last year this was a primetime game, featuring two top-five teams playing for a Big XII South title. This year, these two are a combined 12-8, and this game is on Fox Sports 13, sandwiched between Chet Barclay’s Big Game Hunting Show , and a rerun of Roseanne . My how quickly the mighty fall.

Anyway, I was all set just to pick Oklahoma and move on, until I took a look at their box score from last week against Texas A&M.

Did you know the Sooners scored three early touchdowns off A&M turnovers? Yep, that’s right, one ended up being a fumble return for a touchdown, the other two setting up scoring drives of four plays and 22 yards, and the other five plays and 25 yards. In other words, A&M basically handed Oklahoma 21 points (By the way, that is a perfect example of the kind of hard-hitting statistical analysis that I’ve sacrificed my social life to bring to you, my fans).

Plus, if you’ve followed Oklahoma , they really haven’t played well in back-to-back games, basically all year (unless you include Idaho State and Tulsa…which I don’t).

All signs are pointing me towards Tech in this one.


NOTRE DAME (-6) over UConn: 2:30 p.m.

Believe it or not, I’ve probably seen these two teams more than any others this year (Why you ask? Well, I live in Connecticut, and Notre Dame is on TV every week. So like a psycho ex-girlfriend, I just can’t get away from these two even if I wanted to.).

My quick take? Even against Cincinnati, UConn hasn’t faced anything close to a passing attack like this. I don’t see any way that Notre Dame scores less than 30 points, or Jimmy Clausen throws for under 300 yards. Meaning, of course, that Charlie Weis gets to save face for another week, before his unofficial funeral at Stanford in seven days.


Cal (+7) over STANFORD: 7:30 p.m.

Alright, so don’t make fun of me, but while I sit on my couch for 12 hours every single Saturday watching endless amounts of football, I always keep a notebook. Dorky, I know.

I usually don’t write down anything too important in there, just things I notice, funny quotes, goofy haircuts, you know, stuff like that.

Anyway, the other day I was looking through my notebook from the season, and I noticed that on two separate occasions, I unknowingly praised Cal defensive tackle Tyson Alualu. After doing a little research on the kid, I realized that I’m not losing my mind and that’s he’s actually pretty good: Mel Kiper has him as a second-round pick in next spring’s draft.

And with Stanford having faced a smaller, quicker d-line against Oregon two weeks ago, and USC’s M.A.S.H. unit last weekend, I think they might not be ready for how physical Alualu and Cal’s defense is going to be. Plus, I’m feeling like there might be a little residual karma at Stanford, for trying to run things up on USC last weekend. You don’t dare cross Pete Carroll that way, you just don’t.

So what am I trying to say in all this? I’m thinking it’s going to be a big day for Tyson Alualu. Bet you’ve never heard that before.


TEXAS (-27.5) over Kansas: 8:00 p.m.

Has there ever been a college football saga that people cared less about than what’s going on at Kansas right now? Hmm, “Fat coach with low self-esteem berates players.” Never heard that one before. This one honestly rates right at about a 2.0 on the “Media Stories I Couldn’t Care Less About Scale,” somewhere between Heidi and Spencer, and whoever John Mayer is currently dating (OK, you caught me, that was my second John Mayer reference of the week, but what do you want from me? It’s been a long season!).

Getting back to the game, here’s what we know: It’s going to be Senior Day, and things are going to get a little misty-eyed in Austin. Especially when Colt McCoy and Jordan Shipley embrace in the man-hug to end all man-hugs.

I figure this one will stay close for about a quarter, before the Longhorns pull away and turn this one into a laugher. 37-6? 47-10?

Pick your number, just bring the tissues. And know that the man-hug is probably going to be the best part.


(To read the remainder of this preview, including Aaron's thoughts on Michigan-Ohio State, Oregon-Arizona and LSU-Ole Miss, please click here , or visit him at www.aarontorres-sports.com )