Stay away from the ACC. Remember stay away from the ACC. That’s what the ‘Eer is doing this week. He will not try to think he knows anything about the ACC (thanks Wake Forest). So here it goes, best picks of the week that don’t include the ACC.
Nebraska (-17.5) over Iowa StateThe Cornhuskers still control their own destiny in the Big 12 North, and Bo Pelini will have his team out to erase the embarrassment of last week’s 31-10 loss to Texas Tech. Look for a steady dose of Roy Helu Jr., who should be healthy for Saturday. The Cyclones ended a two-game skid last week with a 24-10 win over Baylor.
Pick: Nebraska 36, Iowa State 14Northern Illinois (-11.0) over Miami of OhioThe RedHawks are battling Eastern Michigan and Ball State for worst of the worse in the Mid-American Conference this year. Does anyone remember when Miami was the class of the conference? The Huskies should bounce back in a big way after losing to 20-19 last week. Only concern for Northern Illinois is the possible loss of starting QB Chandler Harnish, who may miss Saturday’s game with a knee injury.
Pick: Northern Illinois 27, Miami of Ohio 9Arizona (-7.5) over UCLAThe Wildcats seem to be the new darling of the Pac-10 after good wins over Stanford (43-38) and Oregon State (37-32), and you could argue they shouldn’t have lost to Washington (36-33). QB Nick Foles has solidified the offense. He’s thrown for 1,209 yards and nine TDS, while completing almost 74 percent of his passes. UCLA has not shown much improvement in Rick Neuheisel’s second year as coach. After opening the season 3-0, the Bruins have dropped three straight, including a 45-26 loss to Cal.
Pick: Arizona 30, UCLA 17Arizona State (+6.5) over StanfordI considered this as the upset pick of the week, and this game should be very close so the home team should win. However, the Sun Devils looked better in last week’s upset of Washington so I think the game will be decided by a late field goal. The difference in this game will be the balanced attack of Stanford with RB Toby Gerhart and QB Andrew Luck. Even in last week’s loss to Arizona, Luck completed 21 of 35 for 423 yards and three TDs.
Pick: Stanford 32, Arizona State 30Upset of the Week
Colorado (+4.5) over Kansas StateI haven’t hit an upset all year, so don’t follow my advice here. However, I’m going with Colorado because Dan Hawkins finally pulled the plug on weak-armed son Cody at QB and turned the offense over to Tyler Hansen. The new signal caller was convincing in his debut going 14 of 25 for 175 yards with a TD and a rushing score. Kansas State is playing better than many expected and the Wildcats were impressive in last week’s 62-14 thumping of Texas A&M, but that was the Aggies.
Pick: Colorado 24, Kansas State 20Last Week: 3-2
Season Record: 19-16
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