Leonardfan
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Just looking ahead to this weekend's slate of games - plenty of big matchups that have the potential to shake up the college football landscape.
Thursday Night - UVA vs Miami - The ACC is up for grabs. Brennan Armstrong has started the season on a tear and it getting next to no national recognition. Miami SHOULD have a QB controversy at this point because D'Eriq King has not been great this year and the Hurricanes have failed again to return to national prominence. Tyler Van Dyke would make the Hurricanes at least a little interesting to watch if he were to be named started.
Friday Night - #5 Iowa vs Maryland - Iowa boasts a top 3 defense in college football and if Petras can provide balance in the offense to open up the running game they should win. Maryland has actually been a surprise this year - very good team offensively.
Saturday Early Games:
#8 Arkansas vs #4 Georgia - Arkansas has one of the other top defenses in college football but inconsistent/erratic QB play will probably doom them. UGA has one of the country's best QBs in JT Daniels and two dynamic offensive stars - Brock Bowers who is the 2nd best TE in the country already and WR Ladd McConkey which makes UGA much more bearable than most other SEC teams. They also have a top defense in the country. I feel they are primed to dethrone Alabama this season.
#14 Michigan vs Wisconsin - Michigan is rolling so far and have abandoned the spread passing game. Per @Phall the Wolverines boast a snow plow OL and have been dominant in the running game. This team has much more in common with the Stanford teams that Harbaugh fielded a decade ago. Aidan Hutchinson has the look of a 1st round talent and Cade McNamara has provided steady QB play. Wisconsin would look alot like Michigan if they had the aforementioned steady QB play. They have been buoyed by a great defense (with White athletes everywhere) but Graham Mertz has not provided the spark needed on offense. This should be a fun game to watch.
#7 Cincinnati vs #9 Notre Dame - Another game that will provide some clarity. Luke Fickell has essentially turned the Bearcats into the Buckeyes lite. Notre Dame has a struggling o-line but Coan sounds like he will get the start after reports that his injury is not considered serious. Michael Mayer is the best TE in the country and the Irish boast a snow patrol LB corp.
Saturday Afternoon Games:
#12 Ole Miss vs #1 Alabama - This has the potential to be an upset. Matt Corral gets a chance to pass by the media's already chosen heisman winner - the Alabama black quarterback. Ole Miss just seems like a more complete team on both sides of the ball. This game can surely shake up the college landscape if Ole Miss comes away with the win.
#3 Oregon vs Stanford - Another came with upset potential. I do not think the Ducks are as good as the record indicates. The win vs Ohio St looks less impressive after seeing how close Tulsa played them the following week. Stanford may have finally found their QB as well.
#11 Ohio St vs Rutgers - I feel the Buckeyes are primed for the upset here. Rutgers played Michigan tough last week and the Wolverines steamrolled through the first three games. I think this may be the shocker of the day and will have some implications within the Buckeyes program.
Not that much intrigue in the later games. I expect PSU to steamroll Indiana and ideally the Hoosiers quota struggles again. Sparty should jump to 5-0 vs Western Kentucky. BC may be able to pull out a victory and hopefully DJ Oggabooga's struggles continue. Northwestern faces Nebraska and it looks like Ryan Hilinski will be the Wildcats starter going forward. I'll have to root for the Wildcats as long as Martinez is continually gifted the starting job for the Huskers.
Thursday Night - UVA vs Miami - The ACC is up for grabs. Brennan Armstrong has started the season on a tear and it getting next to no national recognition. Miami SHOULD have a QB controversy at this point because D'Eriq King has not been great this year and the Hurricanes have failed again to return to national prominence. Tyler Van Dyke would make the Hurricanes at least a little interesting to watch if he were to be named started.
Friday Night - #5 Iowa vs Maryland - Iowa boasts a top 3 defense in college football and if Petras can provide balance in the offense to open up the running game they should win. Maryland has actually been a surprise this year - very good team offensively.
Saturday Early Games:
#8 Arkansas vs #4 Georgia - Arkansas has one of the other top defenses in college football but inconsistent/erratic QB play will probably doom them. UGA has one of the country's best QBs in JT Daniels and two dynamic offensive stars - Brock Bowers who is the 2nd best TE in the country already and WR Ladd McConkey which makes UGA much more bearable than most other SEC teams. They also have a top defense in the country. I feel they are primed to dethrone Alabama this season.
#14 Michigan vs Wisconsin - Michigan is rolling so far and have abandoned the spread passing game. Per @Phall the Wolverines boast a snow plow OL and have been dominant in the running game. This team has much more in common with the Stanford teams that Harbaugh fielded a decade ago. Aidan Hutchinson has the look of a 1st round talent and Cade McNamara has provided steady QB play. Wisconsin would look alot like Michigan if they had the aforementioned steady QB play. They have been buoyed by a great defense (with White athletes everywhere) but Graham Mertz has not provided the spark needed on offense. This should be a fun game to watch.
#7 Cincinnati vs #9 Notre Dame - Another game that will provide some clarity. Luke Fickell has essentially turned the Bearcats into the Buckeyes lite. Notre Dame has a struggling o-line but Coan sounds like he will get the start after reports that his injury is not considered serious. Michael Mayer is the best TE in the country and the Irish boast a snow patrol LB corp.
Saturday Afternoon Games:
#12 Ole Miss vs #1 Alabama - This has the potential to be an upset. Matt Corral gets a chance to pass by the media's already chosen heisman winner - the Alabama black quarterback. Ole Miss just seems like a more complete team on both sides of the ball. This game can surely shake up the college landscape if Ole Miss comes away with the win.
#3 Oregon vs Stanford - Another came with upset potential. I do not think the Ducks are as good as the record indicates. The win vs Ohio St looks less impressive after seeing how close Tulsa played them the following week. Stanford may have finally found their QB as well.
#11 Ohio St vs Rutgers - I feel the Buckeyes are primed for the upset here. Rutgers played Michigan tough last week and the Wolverines steamrolled through the first three games. I think this may be the shocker of the day and will have some implications within the Buckeyes program.
Not that much intrigue in the later games. I expect PSU to steamroll Indiana and ideally the Hoosiers quota struggles again. Sparty should jump to 5-0 vs Western Kentucky. BC may be able to pull out a victory and hopefully DJ Oggabooga's struggles continue. Northwestern faces Nebraska and it looks like Ryan Hilinski will be the Wildcats starter going forward. I'll have to root for the Wildcats as long as Martinez is continually gifted the starting job for the Huskers.
