Week 3 Predictions

It was a rough weekend in the Big 10 especially if you are a fan of Michigan State, Ohio State or Michigan who all came out on the losing end this past weekend. It was the first time that all three teams lost on the same day since 1988. The Buckeyes took a 14 point loss at the hands of Virginia Tech, Oregon literally ran away with their game against Michigan State scoring the last 28 points in a second half rout and Notre Dame shutout Michigan.  Steve Spurrer's Gamecocks avoided disaster at the hands of East Carolina and finally, Clemson took care of business at home against South Carolina State posting their highest point total in 33 years and freshmen QB Deshaun Watson continued to impress.  Not too many eye-catching match ups on the slate this weekend but one in particular has caught my attention and has major SEC and playoff implications. Lets take a look!


#21 Louisville at Virginia 

Louisville will have their first road conference game as a member of the ACC Saturday when they head to Charlottesville. The Cardinals have been solid on offense thus far averaging nearly 50 points through the first two weeks. UVA is the definition of "the struggle is real"..the Cavs have lost 11 straight against FCS opponents including 5 straight against top 25 competition. Can London's squad bring it all together this week and pull the upset against the new kid on the block? Maybe...just maybe. As for me and my prediction...forget about it!

The Pick: Louisville 

#4 Oklahoma vs Tennessee 

The last time I watched Oklahoma play they were giving the business to Alabama in the Sugar Bowl. This year they look poised to make a run at a National Championship behind a stingy defense that has played lights out so far in this early season and have lit up the scoreboard averaging 50 points per game heading into this weekend. Tennessee is much improved on defense this year and hopes to slow down the Sooner offense Saturday but will have its hands full with Trevor Knight and company. Not really buying the hype of the Vols just yet but if they can somehow do the unthinkable this weekend or at least keep it interesting, they have an extra week to prepare for their next game...a road trip to Athens. We should know very soon if the Vols are a contender or pretender.

The Pick: Oklahoma

#12 UCLA vs Texas

UCLA continues to drop in the polls after opening the season with two unimpressive wins over Virginia and Memphis. Will that continue this week or will the Bruins finally begin to play like a top 15 ranked team? To be fair, the defense did its job last week despite giving up 469 yards of total offense by forcing two interceptions that were returned for TDs as well recording a fumble return TD on the afternoon. The offense though was a struggle behind Bret Hundley. Texas hasn't had an overnight turnaround and continues to struggle but can they find a way to get it done this weekend? I'd say probably not but the verdict is still out on just how good this UCLA squad truly is. Charlie Strong will get things together but its going to take some time.

The Pick: UCLA


East Carolina @ #17 Virginia Tech 
The Hokies pulled the upset last week on the road and took down the Buckeyes convincingly. That means that in the last two meetings with ACC teams, the Buckeyes are 0-2. (Hashtag ACC) And while optimism is flying high in Blacksburg they will need to come back down to earth quickly with East Carolina coming to town. Last year the pirates fell just short to the Hokies 15-10 and present another serious challenge this season. Michael Brewer appears to be a focused and talented leader and Beamer typically does a good job of having his team ready. They should get the job done...although it might be closer than they'd like.

The Pick: Virginia Tech

#6 Georgia at #24 South Carolina  

So begins another chapter of this SEC-East rivalry that always meets early in the season...you know...typically when Georgia still has players suspended. Don't get mad at me, facts are facts. Heck, Spurrier even mentioned this himself over the summer. The Gamecocks defense has been shaky to say the least thus far and its young secondary is still licking its chops after week 1's woodshed beating and a less than stellar performance last Saturday against ECU. And while defending the pass is an issue, the Gamecocks will be losing sleep over the Bulldogs running game when they go to bed Friday night. Georgia is coming off a bye week but showed the nation they have the deepest and most talented backfield possibly of all time in their week one victory over Clemson. With Todd Gurley leading the way, the Dawgs also have Keith Marshall, Nick Chubb, and Sony Michel to look to when Gurley needs a rest. But hold on! South Carolina has a pretty good running back themselves in Mike Davis. And hope to get some production out of David Williams and Brandon Wilds. Just as it was in the Clemson-UGA game, the trenches will be where the game is lost and won. The Gamecocks continue to look for some type of pass rush with the departure of Quarles and Clowney. That should worry the garnet and black and be a serious concern as Clemson's defense and pass rush, which is regarded as better and led by one of the best in the nation in DE Vic Beasley, was kept quiet for much of the game in week one.The Bulldogs had a perfect game plan and got the ball out of the hands of Mason quickly nullifying the pass rush almost completely. The key for South Carolina on defense is obviously to get pressure and slow down the rushing attack. Its kind of a pick your poison situation if you are Gamecocks DC Lorenzo Ward. It'd be good to make Mason prove he can beat you with his arm...but your secondary is still learning. What do you focus on more if you are South Carolina?

I think despite South Carolina's shortcomings on defense, Spurrier knows how to play to Thompson's strengths and this game might be much more interesting than people think. That being said, Georgia DC Jeremy Pruitt knows how to exploit weaknesses. It's never easy to win in Williams-Brice stadium and although the nations leading streak has been snapped, it still gets loud in there and rest assured they will not be friendly to Huston Mason and the UGA offense. All this aside, for me, this game is very hard to pick. South Carolina's defense has been far from great but is this the week things start to gel? Is this a trap game for Georgia? Only time will tell. I wouldn't be surprised if Georgia runs away with this one like they did against the Tigers. At the same time, I have a strange feeling this one will be closer than people think and as crazy as it might sound, an upset wouldn't surprise me. College football can be weird sometimes. As for the pick, gotta play it conservative.

The Pick: Georgia