Alabama-Georgia Preview and Other Week Five Predictions

Sterling Blodgett — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 17:16:03 -0400

Another big week of college football. It is only Tuesday and I cannot wait. I have a feeling a lot of things are going to be shaken up in the top 25 with conference play beginning for many of the major teams. Sorry Red Raider fans, can't make fun of you until next week.

TOP 25 SCHEDULE

No. 1 USC @ Oregon State

ESPN made a big mistake airing this game because the second half ratings are going to be ridiculously low.

USC 45, Oregon St. 13 (This is very generous for the sake of Beaver Nation.)

No. 24 TCU @ No. 2 Oklahoma

QB Andy Dalton leads potential BCS buster Texas Christian into hostile Norman. TCU handed the Sooners their last loss at home (2005, a down year for OU) and will look to do it again. Oklahoma had a new QB in Paul Thompson at the time who was making his first collegiate start, but this time the Sooners are not down and have gunslinger Slammin' Sammy Bradford at QB.

Look for TCU to keep it close for a quarter and a half but then feel the wrath of the deepest team in college football.

Oklahoma 42, TCU 17

GAME OF THE WEEK

No. 8 Alabama @ No. 3 Georgia

A college football fan could not have asked for a bigger game on a bigger stage than 'Bama vs. Georgia. I look forward to watching two SEC heavyweights duel it out between the hedges in Athens. Georgia has won three in a row over Alabama and is looking to make it four.

If you are a big uniform guy like me (I agree with Bobby Bowden—"If you look better, you play better"), Georgia has announced that the 'Dawgs will be wearing their black jerseys, which gave them an added spark in two of last year's games.

The Bulldogs wore black last November against Auburn and again in the Sugar Bowl against Hawaii. Georgia won big in both games.

Look for the 'Dawgs to come out strong and ready to play.

On the other side of the spectrum is the Alabama Crimson Tide, who have done nothing but exceed expectations in their first four games of the season. Winning against a talented Clemson team in Atlanta and a drumming of conference rival Arkansas, the Tide are riding a wave of confidence into Athens.

Alabama head coach Nick Saban says he is not worried about the black jerseys at all and is more concerned with the talent level of the Bulldogs. This being said, Alabama actually matches up well on both sides of the ball with the seven-point favorite Bulldogs.

We all know about Georgia's all-everything RB Knowshon Moreno and the young Alabama defense, but I think the game is going to come down to who can make the bigger plays in the passing game.

Georgia has a much more talented QB in Matthew Stafford (62-102, 919 yds, five TDs, zero INTs), who is coming off a spectacular sophomore campaign and has been nothing short of brilliant once again this season, but lesser known Alabama QB John Parker Wilson has been excellent in big game environments for 'Bama. The two will be looking to their star wideouts (both wearing No. 8), Georgia's A.J. Green and Alabama's Julio Jones.

In the end, I think Georgia's big game exposure on a national level and home-field advantage is too much for the young 'Bama D. The Bulldogs in their black jerseys win it on a down to the wire last minute TD.

Georgia 28, Alabama 21

Ole Miss @ No. 4 Florida

Ole Miss is a much improved team, but we have yet to see the Timmy Tebow of last season. This should be the game he comes out.

Florida 35, Ole Miss 10

Mississippi State @ No. 5 LSU

The Tigers are bigger, faster, and more athletic—and oh yeah, defending national champs.

LSU 31, MSU 3

Arkansas @ No. 7 Texas

An old SWC rivalry brought back. The game was supposed to be played on the 13th but our friend Ike must have been an Oklahoma fan, giving Texas no bye week before Big 12 season starts. Mack will have the 'Horns ready to play in the new 90,000-plus stadium.

Texas 42, Arkansas 14

No. 9 Wisconsin @ Michigan

Why is Wisconsin only favored by seven? They seem to be the better team in all aspects of the game. Michigan is supposedly good at home I guess. I am not buying into Rich Rodriguez just yet.

Wisconsin 29, Michigan 15

No. 22 Illinois @ No. 12 Penn State

Big Game. Joe Paterno has been questioned over and over again, but he is still one of the best coaches around, and you can bet his boys will be ready for Juice Williams and the Illini. I say Penn State in a close one.

Penn State 27, Illinois 21

No. 13 South Florida @ NC State

South Florida has been tested now. A big win over Kansas two weeks ago may have been the game that proved South Florida to be a legit competitor on a nationwide level. NC State has been disappointing but is coming off a big win over East Carolina. I look for them to upset South Florida and continue to improve.

NC State 38, South Florida 35

Minnesota @ No. 14 Ohio State

A new slate for the Buckeyes with the start of Big Ten play. The return of Beanie Wells lights a spark in the Buckeyes and their fans.

Ohio State 38, Minnesota 14

Tennessee @ No. 15 Auburn

Auburn, coming off a tough loss at home against the defending national champion LSU Tigers, rebounds against a struggling team that can't seem to find a rhythm.

Auburn 28, Tennessee 10

Navy @ No. 16 Wake Forest

Navy is always that scrappy bunch that nobody likes to play, but Wake Forest's defense looked awesome last week against Fla St.

Wake Forest 35, Navy 10

Weber State @ No. 17 Utah

I don't know, I guess...

Utah wins big

Maryland @ No. 20 Clemson

Big ACC game. Clemson is looking to climb back up the rankings after a disappointing start to the season for them. Maryland looked good against Cal two weeks ago and should be able to keep this close, but the edge goes to Clemson with overall team speed and home field advantage. Should be interesting.

Clemson 24, Maryland 21

Houston @ No. 23 East Carolina

East Carolina bounces back and proves they still deserve to be ranked.

East Carolina 28, Houston 17

No. 25 Fresno St. @ UCLA

UCLA comes out with a sense of urgency, but Fresno State is too solid for the young rebuilding Bruins.

Fresno St. 21, UCLA 10

Just Another Year in Lubbock, Texas

Sterling Blodgett — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 18:47:30 -0400

We are approaching Week Five in this wonderful college football season and for some reason I still see Texas Tech lurking around the top 10. I still cannot see how this season in Lubbock is any different than the rest of the years where they finished well behind Texas and Oklahoma?

Ok, I get it. Mike Leach is a genius. The offense is great. You can't stop the attack being led by QB Graham Harrell (120-186, 1573 YDS, 12 TD) and WR Michael Crabtree (29 for 457 and 6 TD) but was BJ Symons not putting up ridiculous Nintendo numbers four games into the season? Were Wes Welker, Danny Amendola and Jerrod Hicks not doing the same as Crabtree (I'll admit, much less flashy)?

The Tech defense which was supposed to be so much more improved, is still giving up over 300 yards per game on average to teams like SMU, UMASS and Nevada.

The special teams have been suspect in the SMU and Nevada games.

Here is my opinion (take it as such) on the results of the remaining Red Raider games.

Oct 4- @ Kansas St.- The defense will be tested to the brink in Manhattan but the offense will get them out of a tough one in a shootout. Tech 51, Kansas St 45.

Oct 11- Nebraska- The much improved Cornhuskers coming off a tough loss at Missouri show up with defense and enough offense to upset Tech. Bo Pelini gets his first Big 12 win. Nebraska 45, Tech 35.

Oct 18- Texas A&M- I'm not clowning on you that bad red raider fans. Tech wins easy in an empty Kyle Field (just kidding). Tech 56, A&M 21.

Oct 25-@ KU- Two similar teams. The only thing is Kansas can play a little bit of defense and can eat more time off of the clock offensively. Kansas 42, Tech 31.

Nov 1- Texas- A big game at home for the Red Raiders. Texas will be coming off a tough stretch which included Oklahoma and Missouri and will be hungry for a Big 12 win over a "solid" opponent.

Mack Brown has Mike Leach's number and it's always hard to put it past the talent that the horns have year in and year out. Although the one weak part to the Texas team is the secondary Mack Brown's bend but don't break philosophy works out in the hands of the Horns once again making it the 8th straight over Tech. Texas 42, Tech 35

Nov 8-Oklahoma State. Two good offenses but Tech has just enough fire power to get past them in the annual shootout. Tech 63- OSU 59.

Nov 22-@ Oklahoma. Actually I think this could get interesting. Not really. OU is too much for anyone to handle. OU 42, Tech 19.

Nov 29- Baylor. Baylor, pick a number zero through 21. Tech you pick one 40 to 90.

2008 Texas Tech Red Raiders. 8-4 (4-4).

Another year in Lubbock, Texas.

Bleacher Report - Articles by Sterling Blodgett

Alabama-Georgia Preview and Other Week Five Predictions

Just Another Year in Lubbock, Texas