Ohhhhhh…it’s Friday the 13^th!! Are you scared?? Do you need to be held gently and reassured that everything is going to be alright?? Well, if that’s the case you’ve come to the wrong place. Having said that though, we are feeling a little frisky so y’all are getting some bonus picks this week. As far as last week goes, Zach was an impressive 4-1, while I didn’t do so well with a 2-3 record.

My Season:        19-15

Z’s Season:        19-14

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TCU (-4.5)                    at      Kansas State
The Horned Frogs got a little help from the zebras while defeating my WV Mountaineers last weekend, so they come into this game 5-0 and hovering on the fringes of playoff contention. The Wildcats were getting some pre-season love but limp into this game at 3-2 after a double overtime loss to Texas. I never really bought into the hype anyway, and for that I am gad. From what I’ve seen…referees be damned…TCU is the real deal. I don’t expect them to get into the playoff, but I do think they’ll win this game easily. Zach agrees.

My Pick:     TCU

Z’s Pick:     TCU 

 

 

Auburn (-6.5)               at      LSU

What a roller coaster ride it’s been in Baton Rouge. A week after a shocking loss to Troy the Bayou Bengals got to 3-2 by upsetting Florida in The Swamp, so the questions about head coach Ed Orgeron’s job security are quelled…for now. Conversely, Auburn has gotten to 5-1 relatively unscathed…only a loss to defending national champion Clemson stains their record, and there’s no shame in that. So which LSU team will show up…the team that lost to the clearly inferior Troy, or the team that went into one of the most hostile environments in college football and scored a victory?? I’m going to assume it’ll be someplace in the middle, and that’s probably not going to be enough to win this one. Zach thinks it might be close, but Auburn will do just enough to cover.

My Pick:     Auburn

Z’s Pick:     Auburn

 

 

Northwestern (-3)       at      Maryland

I still sometimes forget that Maryland is in the Big Ten. The Terps come into this game 3-2 and appear to be a really inconsistent team. Northwestern is 2-3 and has also been inconsistent. If this game were taking place in Evanston, IL I might be tempted to pick the Wildcats, but since Maryland has the home field advantage it seems like a pretty clear choice to me, though the oddsmakers disagree for some reason. Zach doesn’t believe in Maryland at all and is siding with the folks in Vegas.

My Pick:     Maryland

Z’s Pick:     Northwestern

 

 

Ohio State          (-24)            at      Nebraska

The Buckeyes’ record stands at 5-1, with the only mark against them being a loss to Oklahoma, which is nothing for which they should hang their heads. Looking at the polls, one can see a definite pathway for Ohio St. to sneak back into the playoff picture. In my pre-season poll I opined “It is unlikely that any team gets thru their season unbeaten, and it’s entirely possible that a team with 2 or 3 losses sneaks into the playoff”. In retrospect that “2 or 3 losses” part might have been a bit overzealous, but certainly a couple of one loss teams could be in the four team field. The problem Ohio St. has is that there are about eight teams ahead of them right now, although atleast three of them will lose a game due to playing each other. At any rate, the present mountain to climb is the Cornhuskers, who are currently a rather mediocre 3-3. Could Nebraska pull the upset at home?? Sure. Will they?? I don’t know. Either way, the points give one pause. Because our total games are uneven since Zach forgot to pick a game a few weeks ago I’m going to let him fly solo on this one to catch up. He has an irrational disdain for Ohio St. and is picking the upset.

My Pick:     n/a

Z’s Pick:     Nebraska

 

 

Oklahoma          (-7.5)           vs.    Texas

I still call this the Red River Shootout because I’m politically incorrect and get amusement out of ruffling feathers. Will this game be worthy of its moniker? The 4-1 Sooners are probably still stunned that Iowa St. beat them last week, but I wasn’t that surprised. Because of lack of respect for the Big 12 they are most likely out of the playoff conversation unless a lot of dominoes fall just right , but that doesn’t matter when it comes to this game. The Longhorns have shown signs of life, though a mediocre 3-2 record might not fully indicate that. Let us not forget that they lost a heartbreaker in double overtime at USC a few weeks back. This is a neutral site game being played at the old Cotton Bowl in Dallas, which is just shy of 200 miles away from both Austin, TX & Norman, OK. This series has remained fairly even thru the years, with each team occasionally winning 4 or 5 in a row only to see the other come back and do the same thing, so it is a somewhat unpredictable game. Essentially one either has to believe that Oklahoma is down and that last week’s loss was a harbinger of doom, or that the loss was merely an unlucky hiccup that’ll just have them fired up. Most seem to be on the same page with Texas…they’re headed in the right direction but probably aren’t where they need to be quite yet. Having said all of that, I like Texas to keep it very close, and if they lose it’ll be by less than a touchdown. Zach also likes the Longhorns and believes they’ll win outright.

My Pick:     Texas

Z’s Pick:     Texas

 

 

Miami                        at          Atlanta (-11)

People may have forgotten that the Falcons were in the Super Bowl back in February. Sure they blew a huge lead and choked on the big stage…but they were there. They had picked up right where they left off until a couple of weeks ago then were upended by the surprising Buffalo Bills. The Dolphins are 2-2, which is right about where most expected them to be. Atlanta has the home field in their shiny new stadium, but the question is whether or not they can cover a double digit spread. I think they can, unless the entire Dolphins team snorts blow during pre-game warm-ups. Zach is picking Atlanta to roll to an easy victory.

My Pick:     Atlanta

Z’s Pick:     Atlanta

 

 

Chicago                  at           Baltimore (-6.5)

This should be called the Gun Control Bowl. They definitely cannot take a page out of the Oklahoma-Texas playbook…people in these two cities might have an actual shootout. At any rate, the 1-4 Bears got their only win a few weeks back over my Pittsburgh Steelers, and are already giving up on QB Mike Glennon. Enter rookie signal caller Mitch Trubisky, who has demonstrated some talent in limited playing time. This opportunity comes a little sooner for him than most expected, but it’s a smart move in my opinion. Meanwhile, the Ravens are 3-2, which sadly is good enough to have them tied atop the AFC North. Baltimore is getting a really generous home field advantage, but I’m not buying it. I watched Trubisky a little bit in the pre-season and it was immediately evident to me that the young man has…it. I don’t know if he’ll be able to spin that talent into anything tangible, and I’m not sure if a great team will ever be assembled around him, but I think he’ll flash that potential for all to see and get his first win. Zach likes Trubisky well enough but thinks that right now Baltimore is the better team.

My Pick:     Chicago

Z’s Pick:     Baltimore

 

 

Tampa Bay (-2.5)        at      Arizona

It is telling that the Bucs are favored by the oddsmakers despite being on the road, especially since they are a rather pedestrian 2-2. That would lead me to believe that the 2-3 Cardinals are even worse than the record indicates. I do know that Arizona was desperate enough to trade for RB Adrian Peterson, which would’ve been a brilliant move…four years ago. Now?? I can’t imagine he has much left in the tank. Who knows though…maybe he can flip a switch ;-). The Vibes are telling me that this won’t be very close or competitive, that the favorites will win handily. Zach likes Peterson to have a big game with his new team, but believes Tampa will cruise to an easy win.

My Pick:     Tampa Bay

Z’s Pick:     Tampa Bay

 

 

Indianapolis                at      Tennessee (-5)

This is the Monday night game, but the folks at ESPN have to be a little disappointed. No Andrew Luck. Marcus Mariota might be out as well. Both teams are 2-3 and trail Jacksonville…yes, Jacksonville…in the AFC South. In my season preview I had Tennessee with 11 wins and they still might get there, but it’s going to be tough. I had Indy going 7-9 WITH a healthy starting quarterback, so without him they are…well…out of Luck. Anyway, if Mariota plays the Titans should win easily, but even if he doesn’t I think they’ll grind out a low scoring, tedious victory and cover the points. Zach concurs.

My Pick:     Tennessee

Z’s Pick:     Tennessee