The first one falls...

Louisville mercifully ended the Steve Kragthorpe era today, letting the formerly hot coaching name go after three years of really bad football.

He wasn't alone as Akron ditched J.D. Brookhart, who never seemed to transfer his recruiting prowess from Pitt to NE Ohio.


While driving I heard ESPN's Pat Forde, a Louisville resident, give the preliminary list of potential replacements being discussed by the Cardinal brass. Houston coach Kevin Sumlin and Florida defensive coordinator Charlie Strong were mentioned. Then the list went into typical Louisville "we think way more of our football program than anyone else does" with Gary Patterson at TCU, Bronco Mendenhall of BYU and Kyle Whittingham of Utah.

Okay guys, sure. Too bad Jon Gruden signed that MNF contract or he'd be dying to coach at Papa Johns Stadium.

Nice video, weak schedule

I guess if you have this weak of a home slate you have to put together a video to promote it. I guess Iowa and clearly Ohio State are good games. But some of these other ones are embarrassing.

Don't stretch yourself too much to start the season ... Akron (Sept. 5), Syracuse (Sept. 12) and Temple (Sept. 19) Really Penn State. You can't fit Pitt into the schedule Pitt? It would be a much better match up and rebuild the rivalry.

Picks of the Week

Even after going 4-1 and picking the Rutgers upset at South Florida, 'Eer is still looking to get back to .500 on the season. Let's hope he makes some sound picks (and gets a little luck). Here we go again:

Ohio State (-20.5) over Michigan
Don't tell me that in all rivalries you throw out the records because anything can happen. I've seen it happen, but there is no way the Wolverines can go into Columbus and beat the Buckeyes. Jim Tressel owns Michigan to the tune of 6-1. Rich-Rod doesn't respect this game and UM is lacking in talent.
Pick: Ohio State 48, Michigan 8

Akron (-2.5) over Ohio
Staying in the state of Ohio, the Dennis Kennedy-led Zips come into Peden Stadium and take down the underachieving Bobcats. Akron would be bowl eligible with a win at 6-5 and remain in second in the East Division of the Mid-American Conference. OU is trying to avoid its ninth loss.
Pick: Akron 37, Ohio 14

Rice (-9) over Marshall
Turning my attention just up the Ohio River is where we find Marshall. OK, actually they'll be in Texas playing Rice. The Thundering Herd must win its last two games to get bowl eligible and possibly save Mark Snyder's job in Huntington. Not going to happen. At 5-1 in the West Division, Rice is playing for a Conference USA championship.
Pick: Rice 31, Marshall 20

Boise State (-5.5) over Nevada
The Wolf Pack are tough at home, but Boise is 10-0 and will make a BCS bowl if they can win out. Chris Petersen will not let the Broncos lose focus as they travel to Reno. No. 9 Boise State is led by a balanced offense that includes running back Ian Johnson (539 rushing yards and nine TDs) and quarterback Kellen Moore (2,637 yards and 20 TDs).
Pick: Boise State 28, Nevada 20

Upset of the Week
Pittsburgh (+5) over Cincinnati
Maybe this is more my heart than head. What? Yeah, a Mountaineer rooting for Pitt. Well, that's what it takes for WVU to have a shot at the Big East title. But I actually believe the Panthers are better than the Bearcats and LeSean McCoy is going to run crazy. Even Wannstache has figured it out that it's just good job security to keep feeding McCoy.
Pick: Pittsburgh 27, Cincinnati 24

Last Week: 4-1
Season: 21-24