NCAA Football Week 2 Picks and Predictions From WhatIfSports

Each Monday morning, Whatifsports.com's NCAA college football simulation engine will provide you with game predictions for every D-1 FBS game that upcoming week. The college football simulation engine generates detailed information for each game including the home team's chances of winning (Home Win percentage) and the average points scored for both teams. Make sure to share the college football information you gained here with your friends by either checking out our NCAA football widgets on the WhatIf To Go page or clicking on the social networking share bar at the top and bottom of this article.

Check out our 2010 College Football Season-to-Date page to follow our accuracy week-to-week.

The statistical inputs to the thousands of college football simulations are based on rigorous analysis of each team's roster, depth charts, and statistically based player rankings. Roster modifications are made in cases of injury or suspension, and those players are removed from their team's game simulation for that week.

Game of the Week: Miami (FL) vs Ohio State

The 2003 Fiesta Bowl is still considered one of the greatest college football games of all time.

Miami, on a 34-game winning streak, was surely the favorite in what was also the 2002 Bowl Championship Series national championship game. The Hurricanes matched up with Ohio State, a team that matched the Hurricanes' undefeated season and were looking to put Jim Tressel on the map.

The game featured two overtimes, a controversial call, and one upset as the Buckeyes topped the Canes 31-24 to win the championship.

This week, they'll square off again for the first time since that memorable outing. And while it may not have the streaks, the hype, or the championship on the line, it's certainly an intriguing game featuring two quarterbacks with Heisman Trophy potential early on in the college football season.

Both teams opened their seasons last Thursday with unsurprising routs featuring nearly identical scores. For No. 2 Ohio State, it was a 45-7 drubbing of Marshall, while Miami throttled Florida A&M 45-0.

Miami didn't need to leave Jacory Harris in very long for him to put the Hurricanes in cruise control or for him to remind national pundits why he's a candidate for college football's most prestigious award. Harris completed 12 of 15 passes for 210 yards and three quick touchdowns before giving way to his reserves.

Miami racked up more than 400 yards of offense and averaged nearly 10 yards per pass attempt, but less than five yards per carry, somewhat troubling considering the opponent.

Meanwhile, Ohio State signal-caller Terrelle Pryor was busy matching Harris. Pryor needed a few more attempts to get there, but threw for 247 yards and three touchdowns of his own.

The Buckeyes amassed more than 500 yards of total offense and looked much better running the ball, going for more than six yards per carry.

It's that running game that helps Ohio State prevail once again in the 2002 title game rematch.

In this week's simulations, the Buckeyes don't quite get to five yards per carry, but they stifle the Hurricanes to just over 100 yards on the ground and an average of just 3.8 yards per touch.

As for the Heisman hopefuls, they just about put up matching numbers, but chalk one up for Pryor for being on the winning side.

His Buckeyes win the matchup more than 70 percent of the time by an average of eight points.

Game of the Week: Penn State vs Alabama

The nation's top-ranked team didn't need its Heisman Trophy-winning running back in the season opener.

Whether the Alabama Crimson Tide will have Mark Ingram this time around hasn't yet been announced. But even if he is cleared to play, should Alabama use him against Penn State? Or can they beat the Nittany Lions without him?

If there is one thing that Week 1 proved, and it surely wasn't a shock, it's that Trent Richardson doesn't present a significant dropoff from Ingram at running back.

Richardson ran the ball 10 times for 66 yards and two touchdowns as Alabama cruised to a 48-3 victory over San Jose State in the opener.

That said, it's certainly hard to gauge the prolific numbers that Bama put up. The Tide amassed nearly 600 total yards, ran for 6.3 yards per carry, and averaged more than 11 yards per pass attempt. Similarly, they held San Jose State to just 175 yards of offense, less than five yards per pass attempt, and just 3.1 yards per carry.

Clearly, the competition level wasn't there in what was basically a tune-up. A date with Penn State will be anything but—though the Nittany Lions' numbers from the first week hardly painted a clearer picture.

The Nittany Lions rolled to a 44-14 victory over Youngstown State, in which the Penguins tacked on a late touchdown and Penn State seemingly needed a first-half wake-up call.

It got it from true freshman quarterback Rob Bolden as he threw for 239 yards and a pair of touchdowns. It was the first time Joe Paterno had ever started a true freshman quarterback, and Bolden answered the call, though the numbers were far from as outlandish as those put up by Alabama.

Now, the rookie will likely make his second career start against the nation's top team. Can he spring the upset?

Not likely.

And Alabama could probably considering resting Ingram instead of risking bringing him back too soon.

The rushing numbers for the two teams—Bama without Ingram since they haven't confirmed he will play—are nearly identical.

And in all actuality, the Crimson Tide's passing game appears to give them the advantage. Alabama throws for an average of nearly 50 more yards per game, but more importantly needs fewer passing attempts to do it.

In this week's simulations, the nation's top-ranked team stays atop its perch easily. The Crimson Tide win more than 82 percent of the time by an average margin of more than two touchdowns.

College Football Week 2
Matchup	Win %	Avg Score
James Madison Dukes	5.0	6
@ Virginia Tech Hokies	95.0	66
Presbyterian Blue Hose	5.0	5
@ Clemson Tigers	95.0	61
Morgan State Bears	5.0	8
@ Maryland Terrapins	95.0	44
Kent State Golden Flashes	14.0	11
@ Boston College Eagles	86.0	28
Duke Blue Devils	57.9	26
@ Wake Forest Demon Deacons	42.1	25
New Hampshire Wildcats	5.0	6
@ Pittsburgh Panthers	95.0	64
Indiana State Sycamores	5.0	7
@ Cincinnati Bearcats	95.0	63
Texas Southern Tigers	5.0	7
@ Connecticut Huskies	95.0	58
Eastern Kentucky Colonels	5.0	8
@ Louisville Cardinals	95.0	47
Iowa State Cyclones	5.0	10
@ Iowa Hawkeyes	95.0	38
Southern Illinois Salukis	5.0	9
@ Illinois Fighting Illini	95.0	47
South Dakota Coyotes	5.0	6
@ Minnesota Golden Gophers	95.0	41
Illinois State Redbirds	5.0	8
@ Northwestern Wildcats	95.0	52
Western Illinois Leathernecks	5.0	8
@ Purdue Boilermakers	95.0	49
San Jose State Spartans	5.0	12
@ Wisconsin Badgers	95.0	48
Florida Atlantic Owls	12.3	31
@ Michigan State Spartans	87.7	46
Miami (FL) Hurricanes	29.8	26
@ Ohio State Buckeyes	70.2	34
North Dakota Fighting Sioux	5.0	9
@ Northern Illinois Huskies	95.0	46
Nicholls State Colonels	5.0	10
@ Western Michigan Broncos	95.0	32
Gardner-Webb Runnin' Bulldogs	5.0	8
@ Akron Zips	95.0	34
Liberty Flames	8.8	9
@ Ball State Cardinals	91.2	31
Central Michigan Chippewas	12.3	15
@ Temple Owls	87.7	34
Toledo Rockets	19.3	20
@ Ohio Bobcats	80.7	34
Eastern Michigan Eagles	45.6	17
@ Miami (OH) RedHawks	54.4	20
Northern Arizona Lumberjacks	5.0	7
@ Arizona State Sun Devils	95.0	44
Citadel Bulldogs	5.0	6
@ Arizona Wildcats	95.0	65
Montana State Bobcats	5.0	10
@ Washington State Cougars	95.0	35
Colorado Buffaloes	8.8	21
@ California Golden Bears	91.2	38
Virginia Cavaliers	19.3	19
@ USC Trojans	80.7	35
Stanford Cardinal	56.1	34
@ UCLA Bruins	43.9	33
Syracuse Orange	86.0	33
@ Washington Huskies	14.0	24
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers	5.0	8
@ Kentucky Wildcats	95.0	38
Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks	7.0	26
@ Arkansas Razorbacks	93.0	45
South Florida Bulls	7.0	21
@ Florida Gators	93.0	39
Penn State Nittany Lions	17.5	14
@ Alabama Crimson Tide	82.5	30
Georgia Bulldogs	63.2	30
@ South Carolina Gamecocks	36.8	28
Oregon Ducks	86.0	33
@ Tennessee Volunteers	14.0	19
Auburn Tigers	91.2	36
@ Mississippi State Bulldogs	8.8	19
LSU Tigers	95.0	32
@ Vanderbilt Commodores	5.0	9
Idaho State Bengals	5.0	6
@ Utah State Aggies	95.0	47
Colorado State Rams	5.3	18
@ Nevada Wolf Pack	94.7	46
San Diego State Aztecs	93.0	31
@ New Mexico State Aggies	7.0	13
Georgia Southern Eagles	5.0	7
@ Navy Midshipmen	95.0	48
Michigan Wolverines	33.3	28
@ Notre Dame Fighting Irish	66.7	36
Hawaii Warriors	75.4	32
@ Army Black Knights	24.6	23
McNeese State Cowboys	5.0	9
@ Missouri Tigers	95.0	51
Wyoming Cowboys	5.0	7
@ Texas Longhorns	95.0	37
Missouri State Bears	5.0	8
@ Kansas State Wildcats	95.0	50
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs	19.3	22
@ Texas A&M Aggies	80.7	37
Buffalo Bulls	24.6	22
@ Baylor Bears	75.4	32
Idaho Vandals	31.6	29
@ Nebraska Cornhuskers	68.4	36
Troy Trojans	36.8	23
@ Oklahoma State Cowboys	63.2	30
Florida State Seminoles	61.4	39
@ Oklahoma Sooners	38.6	38
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets	95.0	48
@ Kansas Jayhawks	5.0	21
UTEP Miners	5.0	26
@ Houston Cougars	95.0	51
Prairie View A&M Panthers	5.0	8
@ Southern Miss Golden Eagles	95.0	53
Memphis Tigers	17.5	19
@ East Carolina Pirates	82.5	36
UAB Blazers	26.3	29
@ Southern Methodist Mustangs	73.7	40
Bowling Green Falcons	40.4	25
@ Tulsa Golden Hurricane	59.6	28
North Carolina State Wolfpack	49.1	30
@ UCF Knights	50.9	34
West Virginia Mountaineers	86.0	33
@ Marshall Thundering Herd	14.0	22
Mississippi Rebels	87.7	38
@ Tulane Green Wave	12.3	21
UNLV Rebels	5.0	12
@ Utah Utes	95.0	41
Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles	5.0	5
@ TCU Horned Frogs	95.0	69
Brigham Young Cougars	40.4	22
@ Air Force Falcons	59.6	26
Texas Tech Red Raiders	95.0	39
@ New Mexico Lobos	5.0	11
Austin Peay Governors	5.0	9
@ Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders	95.0	46
Rice Owls	42.1	26
@ North Texas Mean Green	57.9	30
Arkansas State Red Wolves	64.9	23
@ Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns	35.1	20
Rutgers Scarlet Knights	95.0	36
@ Florida International Golden Panthers	5.0	9