Organized by time and then alphabetical order. All times EST, once again displaying my East Coast Bias. All rankings are mine, once again displaying my Me Bias. Oh, and since it has to go somewhere, my Week 1 record was 64-9, or 87.7%.
THURSDAY
7:30 PM
Oregon State (1-0) @ Boise State (1-0)
Thoughts: Oregon State looks improved, but Boise State almost always looks great at home. A mediocre mid-major team coming visiting a WAC power? I've seen this before.
The Pick: Boise State
Confidence (out of 5): 3
FRIDAY
8:00 PM
Pittsburgh (1-0) @ Cincinnati (1-0)
Thoughts: As always, I have nothing to say about Cincinnati, except that they're worse than the Virginia team that Pittsburgh beat on the road.
The Pick: Pittsburgh
Confidence: 4
SATURDAY
12:00 PM
Akron (0-1) @ NC State (1-0)
Thoughts: NC State last week didn't impress me at all, especially QB Marcus Stone. Akron QB Luke Getsy had a bad game against Penn State, and despite the NC State defense stifling Appalachian State, I would imagine here is where he (and the Zips) rebound.
The Pick: Akron
Confidence: 2
Central Michigan (0-1) @ #9 Michigan (1-0)
Thoughts: Michigan is much better than Boston College. Central Michigan may or may not be better than Vanderbilt.
The Pick: Michigan
Confidence: 5
Duke (0-1) @ Wake Forest (1-0)
Thoughts: After playing Syracuse, it's about time Wake faces a real offense. I mean, it can't be anyone worse, can it? Wait. A field goal for Duke would be a victory here.
The Pick: Wake Forest
Confidence: 5
Illinois (1-0) @ Rutgers (1-0)
Thoughts: I'd say this is no contest, but Illinois actually managed to win this game last year. Both rushing offenses looked good last week, but Rutgers played a decent UNC team, while Illinois played a directional I-AA.
The Pick: Rutgers
Confidence: 4
#13 Louisville (1-0) @ Temple (0-1)
Thoughts: Temple has a chance if one of two things happen:
1) The Temple "home field advantage" at Lincoln Financial Field lulls Louisville to sleep.
2) Broken legs for everyone.
Even then, just a chance.
The Pick: Louisville
Confidence: 5
#19 Virginia Tech (1-0) @ North Carolina (0-1)
Thoughts: As said above, the Rutgers running game looked great against UNC. UNC's a decent team, but I have a feeling I'll be replacing "Rutgers" with "Virginia Tech" in that sentence next week.
The Pick: Virginia Tech
Confidence: 4
12:30 PM
#7 Auburn (1-0) @ Mississippi State (0-1)
Thoughts: Mississippi State looked horrible against South Carolina's defense. Admittedly, South Carolina's offense didn't fare much better, but if Auburn scores a field goal, this game should be out of reach for MSU.
The Pick: Auburn
Confidence: 5
Mississippi (1-0) @ Missouri (1-0)
Thoughts: Ooh, an intriguing one. Ole Miss RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis ran all over Memphis, and there's some definite potential on the Rebels, but QB Brent Schaeffer struggled somewhat. Missouri QB Chase Daniel also looked excellent, but against I-AA Murray State. I'm 50/50 on this one, but the Ole Miss-Memphis game being at Mississippi and this one being at Missouri sway me towards the Tigers.
The Pick: Missouri
Confidence: 1
1:00 PM
Kent State (0-1) @ Army (0-1)
Thoughts: Both teams looked horrible last week, although Kent State played a BCS conference team, while Army played the defending Sun Belt champions. I thought Army could be decent before the season, and they're at home, so I'm clutching onto my last few scraps of cautious optimism.
The Pick: Army
Confidence: 1
Miami of Ohio (0-1) @ Purdue (1-0)
Thoughts: Purdue's win against Indiana State should've been closer, but Miami of Ohio only put up 3 points against a perenially suspect Northwestern D. I doubt Purdue will bounce back like people predicted in the preseason, but I still like them over what appears to be a down RedHawk team.
The Pick: Purdue
Confidence: 2
Eastern Washington @ #11 West Virginia (1-0)
Thoughts: If three teams go undefeated and West Virginia is the one left out, they have nobody to blame but themselves.
The Pick: West Virginia
Confidence: 5
1:30 PM
Massachusetts @ Navy (1-0)
Thoughts: The spectre of that recent freaky loss to Delaware still hangs in my mind regarding Navy, but if they can beat a thoroughly decent ECU team, I think they can pull this off.
The Pick: Navy
Confidence: 4
Nicholls State @ #21 Nebraska (1-0)
Thoughts: If this is even close, the Big 12 North is cursed.
The Pick: Nebraska
Confidence: 5
2:00 PM
New Hampshire @ Northwestern (1-0)
Thoughts: Part of me wants to predict the big letdown, but I can't. Maybe if Northwestern had been on the wrong end of that 21-3 score last week.
The Pick: Northwestern
Confidence: 4
3:00 PM
Buffalo (1-0) @ Bowling Green (0-1)
Thoughts: Buffalo won the battle of the probably worst teams in I-A last week, so that's not a strong 1-0. BGSU was underwhelming as expected against Wisconsin, and despite bringing back a suspended QB, I can't go against them at home against Buffalo.
The Pick: Bowling Green
Confidence: 3
3:05 PM
Ohio (1-0) @ Northern Illinois (0-1)
Thoughts: There's always a weird MAC result or two each year, but if Ohio State can't stop NIU RB Garrett Wolfe, I doubt Ohio's defense will fare any better.
The Pick: Northern Illinois
Confidence: 4
3:30 PM
Vanderbilt (0-1) @ Alabama (1-0)
Thoughts: Vandy's facing another good defense, which means QB Chris Nickson should fumble like he was playing NCAA Football 07. If Alabama can stop Hawaii's Wacky Pass Offense, this shouldn't be a problem.
The Pick: Alabama
Confidence: 5
#17 Clemson (1-0) @ Boston College (1-0)
Thoughts: The BC defense looked pretty bad against Central Michigan, and Clemson is hopefully a lot better than Central Michigan. The only worries are the game being at BC and the possibility that another star Clemson defender could go down with a knee injury.
The Pick: Clemson
Confidence: 3
Eastern Michigan (0-1) @ Michigan State (1-0)
Thoughts: Michigan State is always prone to crazy implosions, but I'd like to think they wouldn't do so against a team that couldn't beat Ball State. It seems more likely if/when they play a Purdue or a Northwestern, perhaps even an Illinois or Indiana.
The Pick: Michigan State
Confidence: 4
Samford @ Georgia Tech (0-1)
Thoughts: If Georgia Tech was playing this game with 7 wins, there might be a chance they'd lose for consistency's sake. Instead, no contest.
The Pick: Georgia Tech
Confidence: 5
#12 Iowa (1-0) @ Syracuse (0-1)
Thoughts: Iowa crushed Montana, a top I-AA team, last week. Here, they likely face a worse offense, even if Cuse will likely score 7 just being at home.
The Pick: Iowa
Confidence: 5
#20 Penn State (1-0) @ #5 Notre Dame (1-0)
Thoughts: I think UND should be motivated, and will look a lot better on offense than they did last week. I might choose the upset if this was at Penn State, but with the inexperienced Morelli starting, I can't see him winning here.
The Pick: Notre Dame
Confidence: 3
Washington (1-0) @ #4 Oklahoma (1-0)
Thoughts: Washington barely beat San Jose State last week, so normally I'd think they have to chance to keep it close here. Of course, I thought the same about UAB, and still think UAB is worse than Washington, at least for the time being. I don't think Washington can stop Peterson, however, and if Adam Tafralis can have a huge passing day against the UW secondary, I'd hope Paul Thompson can.
The Pick: Oklahoma
Confidence: 4
Wyoming (1-0) @ Virginia (0-1)
Thoughts: This is a sexy upset pick, which normally means that it won't happen. Wyoming should be at least decent this year, but I'm giving Virginia's offense the benefit of the doubt 9for the time being) and blaming their performance last week on Pitt's D.
The Pick: Virginia
Confidence: 2
Western Illinois @ Wisconsin (1-0)
Thoughts: Wisconsin should win this. They looked good against BGSU. There's never much to say about I-AA games most of the time.
The Pick: Wisconsin
Confidence: 5
3:45 PM
Idaho (0-1) @ Washington State (0-1)
Thoughts: Idaho hung in there against Michigan State, so they could do the same here against what appears to be a mediocre Pac 10 team. However, Wazzou was a snakebit team last year, and I think in more familiar confines than Auburn they should rebounds.
The Pick: Washington State
Confidence: 4
4:00 PM
Tulsa (1-0) @ BYU (1-0)
Thoughts: Looks like an even matchup. Tulsa had a big game, albeit against a I-AA, while BYU lost a winnable game at Arizona, partly due to lost fumbles. In terms of performance last week, I would ever-so-slightly favor BYU and QB John Beck (286 yards on 76% accuracy), and this game being in Provo solidifies that.
The Pick: BYU
Confidence: 1
4:30 PM
Hofstra @ Marshall (0-1)
Thoughts: I thought they would come out firing against their hated rivals last week, but they failed to. Maybe that big loss will help them come around.
The Pick: Marshall
Confidence: 4
5:00 PM
Colorado (0-1) @ Colorado State (1-0)
Thoughts: Colorado State looked good against a I-AA team. Colorado...not so much. As much as I want to write Colorado off, I'd hope they have enough motivation to pull out a win here.
The Pick: Colorado
Confidence: 2
6:00 PM
Central Florida (1-0) @ #6 Florida (1-0)
Thoughts: UCF was outgained by Villanova last week. The offense should be more potent than Southern Miss's was against Florida, but I can't imagine Florida's margin of victory being around the same.
The Pick: Florida
Confidence: 5
Troy (1-0) @ #10 Florida State (1-0)
Thoughts: Troy's new offense looked good last week. I doubt this trend will continue. Hopefully FSU will at least string some plays together.
The Pick: Florida State
Confidence: 5
Texas State @ Kentucky (0-1)
Thoughts: On the surface, this seems like a fine prospect for Attack Of The I-AAs to strike, but I doubt it. The Kentucky offense actually scored a few on Louisville despite star RB Rafael Little being shut down, so that's cause for as much optimism as you can have about Kentucky football.
The Pick: Kentucky
Confidence: 5
Middle Tennessee State (1-0) @ Maryland (1-0)
Thoughts: MTSU is supposed to have the most talent in the Sun Belt, but only beat FIU at home due to a missed extra point. Star MTSU QB Clint Marks didn't look that good, either. Maryland was underwhelming last week, as well, but an underwhelming ACC team should usually beat an underwhelming Sun Belt team.
The Pick: Maryland
Confidence: 4
Stanford (0-1) @ San Jose State (0-1)
Thoughts: SJSU looked surprisingly good against Washington, especially QB Adam Tafralis. On the flip side, Stanford lost surprisingly easily to Oregon. I feel Stanford is a better team that Washington, however, and Cardinal QB Trent Edwards still looked good in the loss.
The Pick: Stanford
Confidence: 3
Part two cometh most likely tomorrow.
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