25 Hunches for Week 9 in College Football

Here we go.

After the upsets from last week, it's as if the college football season is finally upon us in earnest.

There is a full slate of games coming up, starting this Tuesday night, with plenty more opportunities for thrillers and movement in the polls.

Dig in...

("Sconnie national champs" paraphernalia available on clearance in aisle three, as well as "Sooners Big 12 Champs" T-shirts)

25. Colorado Solidifies Their Status as Worst Team in the Pac-12

So Colorado has officially been eliminated from bowl eligibility with their 45-2 loss to Oregon.

Things don't get any better this week.

The Buffs, who play a brutal 13-game schedule without a bye week, must travel to Arizona State this weekend to take on Vontaze Burfict and the stout ASU defense.

Sun Devil quarterback Brock Osweiler is going to have a career day against the team that is 117th in the country in points allowed.

Fortunately for Colorado, after a meeting with USC, the rest of the Pac-12 schedule is against teams that are nearly as awful as they are.

24. Navy's Streak Ends

I think it's now safe to anoint the Fighting Irish the most turnover prone team in football.

Every time it has looked like they might do something good in the redzone this season, they seem to find a way to screw it up.

If this team were even a little bit disciplined, they would still be in the running for a BCS game.

However, Navy has been struggling.

They have lost five straight, and their only wins came against Western Kentucky and FCS Delaware.

The Midshipmen have won the last two meetings between these teams, but the streak will end there.

23. TCU Jumps Back into the Rankings

The Horned Frogs have pretty much disappeared from the public consciousness after suffering losses to both Baylor and SMU.

However, Gary Patterson's squad still have a shot at the MWC title, and have worked themselves into position to break into the rankings again soon.

Next week, they face a BYU team that has had some serious issues this season.

Expect this to be a battle of stout defenses that the Horned Frogs pull out at home.

22. Utah Gets a Win

The Utes have struggled mightily in their inaugural season in a BCS conference, sitting at 3-4 overall, with an 0-4 record in the conference.

Enter Oregon State.

The Beavers got their second conference win this week, but this game is at Utah.

The Utes have had a few tough ones, coming up just short against some conference foes.

Those experiences will help them going into this one.

21. Seminoles Continue Streak

The 'Noles are making a midseason run.

They have won their last two games, and their next opponent, N.C.State does not exactly strike fear into the hearts of coaches everywhere.

With E.J. Manuel back at quarterback, and some renewed confidence, this team will win this weekend, and is poised for a late-season run.

20. Case Keenum Puts Up Ridiculous Numbers

Case Keenum leads the nation in passing yards, and is third in yards per attempt, and is completing 73 percent of his passes.

This week, his Houston Cougars get to face a Rice team that is allowing 254 yards through the air per game.

Keenum is not getting much hype, since Houston's schedule is even weaker than Boise State's, but he is doing some incredible things again this year in his sixth season of eligibility.

19. Washington Creeps Back Toward the Top 25

Keith Price has been absolutely phenomenal, other than a collapse against Stanford last week.

He's only a sophomore.

The Huskies were embarrassed, and will be out for blood next week.

Sadly, their opponent is Arizona, who is coming off of a win, but is still going to get the living daylights beat out of them by a tough UW sqaud.

18. Montee Ball Will Score at Least Twice

The Wisconsin Badgers may have suffered a tough loss last week, but Montee Ball just kept on rolling.

He scored a rushing touchdown in the first quarter, and caught the tying score in the fourth, to bring his total on the year to 20, including one passing.

The Bagders' next game is at Ohio State, and while the Buckeyes' defense has been pretty good, Ball and the Badgers will be coming into this one with a chip on their shoulder.

Ball will find paydirt more than once in Columbus.

He has scored at least twice in every regular season game dating back to last November 6th.

17. West Virginia Rolls at Rutgers

Last week, Rutgers and WVU both suffered tough losses on the same night, leaving Cincinnati all alone atop the Big East.

This week, the two squads face each other.

The Mountaineers need a win to stay in the conference title chase, and Rutgers has yet to face an opponent near the level of Dana Holgorsen's squad.

Expect Geno Smith to have a big night, and folks in Morgantown to relax a little bit after this one.

16. Texas A&M Squeaks by Mizzou

Texas A&M is an extremely balanced team.

They rank 20th in the country in passing yards per game at 2,992 yards per, and 14th in rushing at 230 yards a game.

They seem to have figured out how to play for four quarters, and have handled their last three opponents with relative ease.

Missouri just can't get over the hump against a solid team.

They have now lost to four ranked teams, and every game was fairly competitive.

A&M will win, but it will be a close one.

15. Tajh Boyd Tosses Three More

Tajh Boyd is hot.

Over his last two games, he has tossed nine touchdowns, rushed for one more, and only thrown one pick.

Georgia Tech is trending downward after starting the season off all "gangbusters."

The Yellow Jackets have been pretty stout on defense against the pass, especially at home, but they have yet to see an offense like Clemson's.

14. Wolverines Get Back on Winning Track

The last image we have of the Wolverines is their dejection after a fourth consecutive loss to Michigan State.

It's been two weeks, and these guys will be hungry for a "W" to get the bad taste out of their mouths.

Enter Purdue.

In spite of a win over a solid Illinois team last week, the Boilermakers are not exactly the cream of the conference crop.

Michigan will find them a tougher out than was expected, but the fighting Denards emerge victorious in this one.

13. Duke Scares Va. Tech

While the Blue Devils' football program is definitely not a national power just yet, coach David Cutcliffe has them heading the right direction.

Couple this with Tech's seeming inability to put away lesser opponents early, and you have a close game...for one half.

David Wilson and Logan Thomas will eventually be too much for Duke, but the Devils will hang around longer than you might expect.

12. Gamecocks Falter

Uh-oh.

South Carolina is in trouble.

Stephen Garcia is gone, Marcus Lattimore is injured and Tennessee is not a pushover.

In a tough SEC road game, the Gamecocks see their season start to fall apart.

Tennessee has some talented skill players, and running back Tauren Poole will have some success, especially in the second half as SC struggles to slow the Vols.

11. Illinois Hits the Trifecta

If anyone can find a way to throw a monkey wrench into Penn State's season, it would be Ron Zook.

The man consistently does just enough to remain employed.

The Nittany Lions are all alone atop the Big Ten's Leaders division, and seem to have finally found some continuity on offense.

The Illini are coming off two straight losses, and will hit the trifecta with this one, falling by a touchdown in Happy Valley.

10. Georgia...That Is All

Forget the brutal 0-2 start to the season, the Dawgs are now cruising along with their sights set on the SEC title game.

The recent turmoil at rival South Carolina may open the door for the Bulldogs to seize control of the division, but first they must beat Florida.

The Gators are struggling, having lost their last three games, and cannot consistently pass or run the ball, meaning the Dawgs have a great shot at this one.

Aaron Murray has been solid, and Mark Richt is feeling better about his job.

Now, Georgia just needs to handle their business in Jacksonville.

9. Texas Wins, with a Vengeance

The 'Horns are coming off a bye week, and they get to face one of the worst teams in FBS.

Life is good.

Kansas has lost their last five in a row, and has yet to beat an FBS team this season.

Even though Mack Brown can't make up his mind about a quarterback, the Longhorns should have a much needed field day in this one.

If they can get things figured out over the next two weeks, the season could still end up being very good for Texas.

8. Arkansas Falters

The razorbacks have only played three games away from home.

They have won two of them by a combined nine points, and lost the third.

Their slow starts are beginning to be a concern, as they struggled to beat lowly Ole Miss last week.

Against an opportunistic Vandy defense, they will have to be disciplined, consistent and limit mistakes or they will find themselves with another conference loss.

7. You Will Watch College Football for Five Consecutive Days

This week we are treated to a veritable cornucopia of college football.

Starting Tuesday with Troy at FIU, there is at least one game televised every night this week, culminating in the usual Saturday slate.

At this point, if you follow the NFL as well, you have the ability to watch football every day starting last Thursday night, and running through November 21.

Non-football fans be warned.

6. Oklahoma Struggles, but Rebounds

Who would you pick in this one if your life depended on it?

An Oklahoma team, that while less dominant on the road, has yet to lose away from Norman, and is just coming off of their first loss?

Or would you rather take the Kansas State team that has beaten nobody who is currently ranked?

Take the Sooners.

They might struggle a little bit, but this team is too good to stay down after a loss, and the Wildcats have yet to play anybody of note.

Colling Klein will be contained for the first time this season by the Sooners, and the Wildcats don't have the guns to hang...

It's been a fun ride, but it's over, Wildcats.

5. Sconnie Bounces Back

The Badgers jumped out to a 14-0 lead before their special teams imploded, allowing a blocked field goal and a blocked punt.

They wound up losing a heart-breaker to Michigan State on a last second "Hail Mary".

Poor Ohio State.

The Badgers now travel to Columbus, and will be focused heading into the game.

They have to win to remain close to Penn State in the Big Ten's Leaders division.

Russell Wilson and Montee Ball will continue to roll against a Buckeye defense that is stout, but got steam-rolled by the Badgers last year.

On a side note, how does Oklahoma get owned from kickoff at home by an unranked team and drop only from third to ninth, while Wisconsin loses on the road to a ranked opponent on a "Hail Mary" and drops from sixth to 15th? 

4. The Ducks Put Up 50

Look, with or without LaMichael James and Darron Thomas, the Ducks will put up points as long as they don't play an SEC or Big Ten opponent.

Somehow, the Pac-12 has yet to figure out how to slow them.

Anyway, the Ducks are now playing Washington State and embattled coach Paul Wulff.

It will be nasty.

The Cougars gave up 44 to Oregon State last week, and 44 to Stanford the week before.

If the Ducks haven't scored 35 by halftime, they should be ashamed of themselves.

3. USC Can't Slow Stanford

Stanford is rolling.

USC is 6-1, but their best win is against an incredibly suspect Notre Dame squad, and they lost to the only decent team they have faced.

The Trojans offense has struggled immensely at times, and the defense has shown a propensity to allow opponents to move the ball.

Andrew Luck and company must take to the road, but will have little trouble dispatching the Men of Troy.

2. Spartans Handle Huskers

Nebraska and Michigan State meet this weekend in a contest that will determine who has control of the Big Ten's Legends division.

The Spartans are in the middle of one of the best Octobers by any team in recent memory, while Nebraska is still trying to adjust to their new conference.

The game is in Lincoln, but the Spartans have shown they can win on the road, defeating Ohio State with their stout defense.

The Huskers also knocked off OSU, but it was at home, and they struggled immensely.

MSU beat Wisconsin, while Nebraska was absolutely destroyed by the Badgers. Even if you leave out common opponents, the Huskers have been inconsistent on offense, and MSU's defense will terrorize Taylor Martinez all day long.

Should be a good one, but the 'Huskers are going to struggle against the mean green of Sparty.

1. Oklahoma State Proves, Once Again, They Are Legit

I'll admit it.

I was one of those that doubted the legitimacy of this Oklahoma State team.

And yet, they are undefeated, sit in the top three of the BCS standings, and have answered every challenge anyone has thrown their way.

This weekend, they will once again obliterate a pretty solid opponent, cementing their status atop the polls.

The way things sit, the Cowboys now have the inside track to the BCS title game, and Bedlam will mean more than it has in recent memory.