WEEK 11
November 7th, 2013
By Mike Nowoswiat and Brett Ciancia
By Mike Nowoswiat and Brett Ciancia
OKLAHOMA at BAYLOR
Thurs. Nov. 7th. 7:30. FOX Sports 1. AT Floyd Casey Stadium
Just 2 years ago, Robert Griffin III put the Baylor Football program on the map, beating Oklahoma for the first time in school history (0-20 previously) and earned the school's first Heisman Trophy. Many felt that Baylor would fall back to mediocrity and its long-time spot in the Big12's cellar. Coach Art Briles had different plans. The 2013 Baylor Bears lead the nation in scoring (64 points a game) with their point-a-minute attack. Behind the arm of Bryce Petty the Bears also lead Division 1 in passing yards per game. Before Baylor can join serious BCS debates, they must beat a worthy opponent, and that opportunity is presented tonight. In the early kickoff of what is easily the Greatest College Football Thursday of All-Time - the 10th ranked Oklahoma Sooners come to Waco. Both teams enter off of a bye week, but Oklahoma is much more battle tested, having played the likes of Notre Dame, Texas Tech, and Texas. Baylor on the other hand has yet to play anyone with a pulse. While the Bears will surely be held under their season average, I think the offense is still too powerful for Blake Bell and company to keep up with. Expect a classic Big12 Shootout in Baylor's biggest football game in school history to date. In front of a crazed Baylor Bearmada, look for the home team to stay perfect. Also look for Mr. Petty to join serious Heisman discussion... Baylor 41 Oklahoma 34
OREGON at STANFORD
Thurs. Nov. 7th. 9:00. ESPN. AT Stanford Stadium
Back in July, I dubbed this the "Greatest Thursday Night College Football Game of All-Time." I figured both powerhouses would enter undefeated but Utah had other plans. Still, we have here the #3 and #5 BCS teams, with heavy BCS implications. It is the irresistible force (Oregon's offense) vs. the immovable object (Stanford's defense). Last season, Stanford stifled the Duck attack, and escaped Autzen Stadium with a 3-point win. I debated this matchup ad nauseam this summer, and I am sticking with my gut feeling. When Oregon has the matchups in its favor, they score at will. But once a team matches them up-front, with a strong (elite) front seven...its a level playing field. Like we saw last year, Stanford earned a win because of advantages in the trenches. The Cardinal front is going through a line change of sorts - Ben Gardner is out for the season (pectoral) while star DE Henry Anderson returns. It is worth noting that Oregon's rush defense has been outstanding. But at the end of the day, no one can out-muscle Stanford. The Cardinal defense will make Mariota more human, and perhaps force his first INT of the year. Fans in Tallahassee and Columbus will rejoice, as Coach Shaw wins the heavyweight bout on the Farm tonight. Stanford 27 Oregon 24
BYU at Wisconsin
Sat. Nov. 9th. 3:30. ESPN. AT Camp Randall Stadium
This is an intriguing matchup, to say the least. BYU has looked very impressive in most of its outings this year, and will look to defeat Gary Andersen for the fourth time in five years. Andersen, Wisconsin's new coach, is from Utah State and is very familiar with Bronco Mendenhall's squad. Last year, BYU defeated Utah State 6-3 in a game of defensive marvels. This year, Andersen has more weapons at his disposal, including Heisman-hopeful Melvin Gordon. The Badgers, as I mentioned last week, should only have one loss to the nation's fourth best team, Ohio State. Wisconsin lost in dramatic fashion to Arizona State after the game officials failed to spot the ball in a timely manner as the Badgers lined up to kick a game-winning field goal. Regardless, two losses in eight games is nothing to complain about especially considering there hasn't been one bad loss. BYU has played very well after starting off the season poorly, which included two bad losses to Virginia and Utah. Right now, both of these teams are playing like top-15 teams, maybe top-10. Both teams feature very strong rushing offenses and stout defenses. However, I expect the Cougar defense to struggle to contain this physical Badger attack. Wisconsin is averaging an unbelievable 6.67 yards per carry and an even more impressive 7.5 yards per carry in home games. I might be tempted to pick the upset if the Cougars had the Badgers in Utah. But this game is in Camp Randall...Wisconsin 35 BYU 25
Houston at Central Florida
Sat. Nov. 9th. 7:00. ESPN2. AT BH Networks Stadium
Central Florida continues to impress after a 62-17 blowout against UConn. Blake Bortles is playing some of the best football in the nation, but his lack of overwhelming statistics and soft conference schedule will exclude him from any postseason awards. Fortunately for the Knights, Bortles brand of football is conducive to winning, not just aimlessly putting up big numbers. He has only thrown four interceptions all year and has a 67.2% completion percentage. He is also a sneaky-good athlete. He does not run often, but has fantastic elusiveness in the pocket. Bortles should do well against a Houston defense that is only giving up 22.7 yards/game, but has not played many offenses of UCF's caliber. Houston gave up 47 points to BYU in its only loss of the season--albeit Houston's high-powered offense scored 46 on a good defense. Similar to Bortles, Houston QB John O'Korn has only thrown four interceptions on the year. O'Korn is leading this well-balanced attack to 265 yards through the air and 162.3 yards on the ground per game. Houston is an intriguing matchup because we really don't know what we have. UCF has beaten Penn State in Beaver Stadium, nearly defeated South Carolina at home, and stole Teddy Bridgewater's show when they took down the Cardinals in primetime. Simply put, we know that UCF is a very good team. I'll take a very good team at home against an unproven team nearly every time. Central Florida 42 Houston 30
Virginia Tech at Miami
Sat. Nov. 9th. 7:00. ESPN. AT Sun Life Stadium
The battle for the Coastal Division essentially comes down to this one game. Georgia Tech has an outside shot at forcing a three way tie if Virginia Tech were to win, but that would require the Yellow Jackets to beat Clemson. I should stop speculating because, in this division, even if Georgia Tech were to beat Clemson, it probably wouldn't shake out as planned. Miami comes into this game wounded after getting embarrassed by cross-division, in-state rival Florida State while losing their star running back in the process. Still, Miami is ranked 11th in the nation and is could earn its revenge in the ACC Championship game against the Seminoles. Stephen Morris struggled against FSU, and while the Hokies are nowhere near the team that the 'Noles are, their defense is just as talented. Miami's only points came off Florida State turnovers, and Morris threw for only 192 yards with two interceptions. Virginia Tech is coming off two straight losses to Duke and Boston College after entering the top-15. Logan Thomas has struggled, but the defense has been stout. I expect the Hokies to slow up this Duke Johnson-less offense and the Hurricanes defense to slow up the Logan Thomas-led offense. Thomas has thrown for two touchdowns and seven interceptions in the three losses, despite racking up nearly 400 yards against BC. Thomas must improve his decision-making. While Miami's defense is not elite, it is underrated and good enough to stifle Thomas in Sun Life Stadium...Miami 20 Virginia Tech 16
LSU at Alabama
Sat. Nov. 9th. 8:00. CBS. AT Bryant-Denny Stadium
Has there been a more exciting annual matchup than this one in the past two years? No. There hasn't. First, the two teams met in Alabama for "Game of the Century," after it was extremely obvious that there was a distinct talent-gap between them and the rest of the nation. LSU won. Then, after much debate, Alabama crept its way back into the National Title Game to square off with LSU yet again, except this time the National Title was truly on the line. Alabama won. And last year, LSU was not the second-best team in the nation, but still a top-10 team loaded with talent. The Tigers had the Tide on the ropes in Baton Rouge before TJ Yeldon scampered for a 28 yard touchdown in the final minute, which, of course, helped Alabama win its third title in four years. Now, the two teams meet in a similar fashion to last years matchup. LSU is not competing for a National Title, but its SEC Title hopes are still alive. Not to mention, simply beating Alabama will surely mean more than an average victory, and will pay dividends in the constant recruiting battles that both schools participate in. Alabama's offense has taken a step back after losing some key cogs along the offensive line, but the defense is still elite. Over the past six games, Alabama has given up only 26 points. LSU will come in with the best offense this unit has seen since being shredded by Johnny Drama in College Station, but is a comparable offense to Ole Miss, whom the Tide shut out. Odell Beckham and Jarvis Landry should have success against this Alabama secondary, but Zach Mettenberger may not have much of a run game to rely on. Mettenberger struggled against Florida and Mississippi after starting off the season sizzling hot. I don't anticipate another 9 completion, 0 touchdown performance like he had against Florida, but I would be surprised if he tops 250 yards through the air. Expect a game that reminds you of 2011. Lots of defense, lots of punting. Alabama wins at home. Alabama 23 LSU 13