Revenge Weekend for Texas Teams
It sounds funny to day Iowa State is a revenge game for Texas....but it is. And forget avenging last year's loss to Arkansas, can A&M exercise the demons from last week's epic second-half meltdown? And is this Wisconsin/Nebraska match up really all it's cracked up to be? That and much more, so let's get on with it...
Big game, or "Big game" for Texas?
I touched on this in our podcast this week, but this schedule is setting up nicely for this very young Texas team and here's why. First, you had BYU, a tougher-than-normal non-conference opponent, come in to Austin and gave this team a great game that they had to come from behind to win. Then, you go on the road and play a UCLA team that has owned the Longhorns since the 90s and put up a big whuppin' (and yes, I realize The Bruins are horrible, but work with me here). And now this team heads on the road again to face an Iowa State team that came in and beat up on this team in Austin last year.
This is great experience for this young team to build confidence from - winning on the road, avenging last year losses. It all sets up nice for the OU game (and no, I'm not suggesting here and now that Texas will beat OU, not by a long shot). It's all about improving and taking steps when you have a team this young with an entirely new coaching staff and scheme - and these Longhorns have done just that - showed that improvement week in and week out.
Now for this game - I'm taking the Horns in a route. Iowa State likes to turn the ball over and Texas likes to get takeaways and it's almost that simple. I think Manny Diaz will have this defense much sharper than even the UCLA game where they were quite sharp. Look for Texas to get at least 2 takeaways in this game. Offensively, look for Malcolm Brown to have his biggest game yet with 150+ yards. I'm a believer in this Texas team folks, big time.
Texas - 38
Iowa State 16
Winning is the Best Cure.
It's that simple for the Aggies. There are a lot of teams that would begin a downward spiral after a loss like that, and who knows, the Aggies may as well. But, this is setting up nicely for a bounce back game for them. Arkansas is riddled with some pretty key injuries right now - most notably their starting defensive ends (yeah, that's kind of important). That coupled with what appears to be a lack of a running game may spell a tough day for the Hogs.
But, not so fast my friends. If the Aggie coaching staff continues to mindlessly just stop running the ball than who knows how this plays out. Arkansas is capable of putting up some points through the air - and based on what I've seen, I'm just not sure how good that Aggie defense is. BUT, we know the Aggies can score points in a hurry. The combo of Gray and Michael on the ground is textbook for setting up play action. And with Swopes in the slot, the Aggies have a lot of offensive weapons.
At the end of the day, if Arkansas isn't without it's 2 starting pass rushers than I probably have this going another way, but as much as I don't have faith in Aggies just generally speaking, I do believe Sherman will have this team ready to play. I'm most interested in seeing how the Aggs react to an early turnover or mistake - will they just crumble like they seemingly did last week, or do they persevere?
Aggies - 36
Hogs - 31
The Great "On Paper" Game.
Does anyone really believe that this Florida team is ready to upset the likes of this Alabama team? I don't think so. I can see a very boring game here with Bama just simply wearing down this Florida team. What I will be interested to see is Charlie Weiss' schemes against this Bama defense. Can the great "offensive mastermind" throw enough wrinkles at this D. They've got a pair of really good running backs down in Gainesville, but it's going to take more than that against this front seven.
I don't think this will be a crushing defeat, but I'm definitely going with the safe pick here. Playing on the road is tough, especially in the Swamp, but this is Bama's best team in a long, LONG time by far.
Alabama - 27
Florida - 16
I Think I'm Alone on This One.
I just don't think Nebraska is going to hang with Wisconsin. The thing about the Huskers is this - they are capable of putting a really great game together and beating just about anyone, but that's like one out of 10 games...and I don't think this is one of those 10.
Wisconsin at Camp Randall is tough..very tough. And that's all I really have to say about that.
Wisconsin - 28
Nebraska 13
Other Quick Hits in CFB:
Enjoy the games - I'll try and get some NFL takes up by tomorrow afternoon. Peace out.
Big game, or "Big game" for Texas?
I touched on this in our podcast this week, but this schedule is setting up nicely for this very young Texas team and here's why. First, you had BYU, a tougher-than-normal non-conference opponent, come in to Austin and gave this team a great game that they had to come from behind to win. Then, you go on the road and play a UCLA team that has owned the Longhorns since the 90s and put up a big whuppin' (and yes, I realize The Bruins are horrible, but work with me here). And now this team heads on the road again to face an Iowa State team that came in and beat up on this team in Austin last year.
This is great experience for this young team to build confidence from - winning on the road, avenging last year losses. It all sets up nice for the OU game (and no, I'm not suggesting here and now that Texas will beat OU, not by a long shot). It's all about improving and taking steps when you have a team this young with an entirely new coaching staff and scheme - and these Longhorns have done just that - showed that improvement week in and week out.
Now for this game - I'm taking the Horns in a route. Iowa State likes to turn the ball over and Texas likes to get takeaways and it's almost that simple. I think Manny Diaz will have this defense much sharper than even the UCLA game where they were quite sharp. Look for Texas to get at least 2 takeaways in this game. Offensively, look for Malcolm Brown to have his biggest game yet with 150+ yards. I'm a believer in this Texas team folks, big time.
Texas - 38
Iowa State 16
Winning is the Best Cure.
It's that simple for the Aggies. There are a lot of teams that would begin a downward spiral after a loss like that, and who knows, the Aggies may as well. But, this is setting up nicely for a bounce back game for them. Arkansas is riddled with some pretty key injuries right now - most notably their starting defensive ends (yeah, that's kind of important). That coupled with what appears to be a lack of a running game may spell a tough day for the Hogs.
But, not so fast my friends. If the Aggie coaching staff continues to mindlessly just stop running the ball than who knows how this plays out. Arkansas is capable of putting up some points through the air - and based on what I've seen, I'm just not sure how good that Aggie defense is. BUT, we know the Aggies can score points in a hurry. The combo of Gray and Michael on the ground is textbook for setting up play action. And with Swopes in the slot, the Aggies have a lot of offensive weapons.
At the end of the day, if Arkansas isn't without it's 2 starting pass rushers than I probably have this going another way, but as much as I don't have faith in Aggies just generally speaking, I do believe Sherman will have this team ready to play. I'm most interested in seeing how the Aggs react to an early turnover or mistake - will they just crumble like they seemingly did last week, or do they persevere?
Aggies - 36
Hogs - 31
The Great "On Paper" Game.
Does anyone really believe that this Florida team is ready to upset the likes of this Alabama team? I don't think so. I can see a very boring game here with Bama just simply wearing down this Florida team. What I will be interested to see is Charlie Weiss' schemes against this Bama defense. Can the great "offensive mastermind" throw enough wrinkles at this D. They've got a pair of really good running backs down in Gainesville, but it's going to take more than that against this front seven.
I don't think this will be a crushing defeat, but I'm definitely going with the safe pick here. Playing on the road is tough, especially in the Swamp, but this is Bama's best team in a long, LONG time by far.
Alabama - 27
Florida - 16
I Think I'm Alone on This One.
I just don't think Nebraska is going to hang with Wisconsin. The thing about the Huskers is this - they are capable of putting a really great game together and beating just about anyone, but that's like one out of 10 games...and I don't think this is one of those 10.
Wisconsin at Camp Randall is tough..very tough. And that's all I really have to say about that.
Wisconsin - 28
Nebraska 13
Other Quick Hits in CFB:
- Anyone else buying the "LSU should be careful this week" talk with Kentucky visiting Death Valley? Me neither, but hey, stranger things have happened.
- Very intriguing game with Baylor visiting Kansas State. At some point RGIII is going to come to earth just a bit - could this be that game? Kstate is a tough game for just about anyone (especially if you're a Longhorn), especially at home. If Baylor can continue their run with a big win in Manhattan today, than put them on the "for real" radar. However, ultimately it's going to be the Bear defense that does this team in.
- Five undefeated matchups today - with good teams/names too.
- I don't know who Ray Graham of Pitt is, but that dude can run the ball.
- News out of Knoxville, from their AD, is that SEC won't stay at 13 teams and will look to add a 14th. Yeah dude, we knew that even when you guys were denying it. We're not stupid.
- I don't know what Jefferson's status is on the LSU team now that his ban has been lifted (whatever that means) - but I'm telling you here and now, it ain't broke so don't try and fix it. Trying to input him into your offense now would be a monumental mistake by Les Miles. I think he knows that, but I'm just saying....Jarrett Lee is doing just fine. And there are probably more than a few Tiger fans out there who probably owe his ass an apology.
Enjoy the games - I'll try and get some NFL takes up by tomorrow afternoon. Peace out.
posted by The Bearden Wonder at 8:57 AM
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