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Posted 10/19/2006 at 10:55 PM
Before we look ahead to this weekend, a few thoughts on Week 7 in college football.
I was surprised how ineffective Virginia Tech's offense was last Thursday night at Boston College when the Hokies only managed 3 points. QB Sean Glennon wasn't helped by his receivers but is still clearly learning on the job in his first season under center…My Maryland (-3) play ended up just coming up short as the Terps beat Virginia 28-26 in a wild one. The Cavs actually led 20-0 at the half before 28 un-answered by Maryland gave me hope of pulling out a win. However, UVa scored late and then couldn't convert on the two-point conversion which sealed my fate…Obviously all the talk in South Florida centered around the Miami / Florida International brawl in the Orange Bowl. It will be very interesting to see how the 'Canes play on the road this weekend in Durham against a horrible Duke team. I wouldn't be surprised to see them really let out some frustrations - in a legal way - against the Blue Devils…Another impressive win by Rutgers as the Scarlet Knights (6-0) destroyed Nay 34-0. Ray Rice's streak of seven straight 100-yard rushing games was snapped but trust me, coach Greg Schiano was thrilled to see his QB Mike Teel have a solid game with a career-high three TD passes. Rutgers will need a passing game to hang with Pittsburgh this weekend…What has happened to Fresno State? Pat Hill has lost this year's squad - especially on defense as last weekend Hawaii posted 68 on the Bulldogs at home - a venue that for years was considered a very challenging environment to play in. Fresno dropped to 1-5…What an entertaining game between Auburn and Florida. Wouldn't you just love to know what Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville said to his team at the half? He obviously pushed the right buttons as the Tigers were a much different defensive team in the second half. The big play was of course the fumble call against UF's Chris Leak. Tough call - I don't doubt Leak was trying to stop from throwing the ball and so in that sense it was a fumble but the way the rule is written, that shouldn't have mattered. His arm was clearly going forward so I can sympathize with Gator fans who felt that should have been ruled an incomplete pass.
Things I'm looking at for this weekend: I've already locked plays on Wisconsin/Purdue, Alabama/Tennessee, Ole Miss/Arkansas, Georgia Tech/Clemson and Rutgers/Pittsburgh. However, there are still a number of games I am looking at and let me share my thoughts on those:
I'm taking a good look at Southern Miss this weekend getting 18 at Virginia Tech. I've already talked about the offensive woes for the Hokies and I'm just not sure they can pull away from a pretty capable team from Hattiesburg. My one area of concern is that the leading rusher for the Golden Eagles, RB Damion Fletcher has already been ruled out for this game with a knee injury. It's a significant loss considering that Fletcher leads C-USA and ranks eighth in the nation with 113.5 yards per game.
Weather Watch: The forecast for the big Texas/Nebraska game is calling for a good chance of rain and temperatures in the 40's and wind gusts up to 20 mph. I don't play totals a lot but if that weather comes through then I might have to taste the under which currently sits at 49.5.
Stock Market Play: I think it might be time to buy some of the Toledo Rockets. This is a team that was again expected to compete for the MAC title after a bowl victory last season and that's even with the departure of three-year starting quarterback Bruce Gradkowski.. Obviously at 2-5 and 0-3 in conference, it's not a stretch to say this season hasn't worked out the way coach Tom Amstutz expected. However, part of the problem has been that starting QB Clint Cochran has missed the last three games with an injury and the Rockets could only produce 37 points total in those games. The good news is Cochran should be back under center this weekend at Eastern Michigan, a team that has lost six straight games to start the season. At PK, it might be time to invest in the Rockets.
Worth Reading: CBS SportsLine.com's Dennis Dodd has an interesting piece on the undefeated Southern Cal Trojans - a team many feel will lose any game now. SI.com ranks the top 15 college QB's complete with photos. Chad Henne of Michigan gets my vote for most underrated at #8. Finally, the SportingNews.com predicts a one-loss team from the SEC will make it to the national championship game.
Late Breaking News…Virginia pasted North Carolina 23-0 on Thursday night. The Cavs easily covered the number (-6) and it's always good to start the weekend with a W!
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