It’s another Friday, and you know what that means here at Crystal Ball Run: It’s time to make our picks on the 12 biggest games of the weekend!
As always, we’ve given each of our staff writers two games to give you a quick preview of, with everyone else chiming in on their winners.
And remember, whether you agree or disagree with the picks, share your thoughts in the comments section below, or by hitting us up on Twitter @CrystalBallRun.
Now let’s get to the picks!
No. 18 West Virginia at Maryland: Saturday, 12:00 p.m. ESPNU
Tom Perry’s Take: Here we go with a trap game for WVU. The Mountaineers host No. 3 LSU next week, so it would be easy to overlook Maryland. However, the Mountaineers realize this is a tough game on the road, and the Terps would like to avenge last year’s 31-17 loss in Morgantown. Randy Edsall is a good coach and has more experience in big games like this compared to his counterpart Dana Holgorsen, but Edsall has always struggled against the Mountaineers. This game features two standout quarterbacks, but WVU’s defense is a more talented group.
West Virginia 31, Maryland 21
Everyone Else’s Take:
Aaron Torres: Maryland 24, West Virginia 21
Allen Kenney: Maryland 30, West Virginia 24
Kevin McGuire: West Virginia 23, Maryland 17
Matt Yoder: West Virginia 31, Maryland 17
Michael Felder: West Virginia 27, Maryland 20
Iowa vs. Pittsburgh: Saturday, 12:00 p.m. ESPN2
Kevin McGuire’s Take: The Pitt Panthers are off to a 2-0 start under new head coach Todd Graham, but the high octane offense still has some work to do before proving to everyone that the Panthers will be a legitimate Big East threat. Winning on the road against a Big Ten team known for defense like Iowa would certainly help, even if the Hawkeyes are not quite up to par this season. I look for Iowa to come out with a strong defensive performance after giving up 44 points in a loss to the Iowa State Cyclones, but I think Ray Graham leads the Panthers to a low-scoring victory, sending Pittsburgh in to next week’s big game against Notre Dame with a 3-0 record.
Pitt 20, Iowa 14
Everyone Else’s Take:
Aaron Torres: Pittsburgh 23, Iowa 17
Allen Kenney: Iowa 31, Pittsburgh 17
Matt Yoder: Iowa 17, Pittsburgh 14
Michael Felder: Pittsburgh 27, Iowa 20
Tom Perry: Pittsburgh 24, West Virginia 21
No. 21 Auburn at Clemson: Saturday, 12:00 p.m. ABC
Michael Felder’s Take: Auburn gave up a ton of yards against Mississippi State and to put it bluntly they aren’t a very good football team on defense. The problem here? Clemson’s defense isn’t much better. Expect new offensive coordinator Chad Morris’ unit to put up some points using their quick passing and screen game while Gus Malzahn wears out the Clemson defense with his blend of runs and timely passing.
In the end Clemson’s offense will come up short, their lack of a straight ahead run game won’t take advantage of Auburn’s primary weakness on defense, disengaging from drive blocks. Auburn, again, will find away to win.
Auburn 42, Clemson 31
Everyone Else’s Take:
Aaron Torres: Auburn 21, Clemson 17
Allen Kenney: Clemson 38, Auburn 30
Kevin McGuire: Auburn 38, Clemson 30
Matt Yoder: Clemson 28, Auburn 27
Tom Perry: Clemson 35, Auburn 30
Washington at No. 11 Nebraska: Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ABC
Allen Kenney’s Take: Extracting some payback for an embarrassing loss in last year’s Holiday Bowl, Nebraska’s defensive front manhandles Washington in the trenches. Meanwhile, UW’s defense struggles to keep speedy NU quarterback Taylor Martinez in check, as he rushes for more than 100 yards and multiple touchdowns. Some pissed-off Cornhuskers put the wood to young Washington in what seems like the 18th time these two teams have played in the last 12 months.
Nebraska 42, Washington 10
Everyone Else’s Take:
Aaron Torres: Nebraska 27, Washington 17
Kevin McGuire: Nebraska 29, Washington 10
Matt Yoder: Nebraska 24, Washington 14
Michael Felder: Nebraska 31, Washington 10
Tom Perry: Nebraska 28, Washington 14
No. 15 Michigan State at Notre Dame: Saturday, 3:30 p.m. NBC
It is so easy for me to pick Michigan State in this game, and I honestly feel they are the better team from top to bottom. They have a solid defense and a strong running game, plus a quarterback in Kirk Cousins who has shown signs of not being fearful in the spotlight (never mind that whole Capital One Bowl thing). But my gut tells me that Brian Kelly will find a way to ensure that his team plays all four quarters this week at home to avoid going 0-3. I certainly don’t expect this one to be pretty, but when all is said and done I think the Irish finally pick up a win. They will certainly earn it if they can beat Michigan State.
Notre Dame 26, Michigan State 24
Everyone Else’s Take:
Aaron Torres: Michigan State 31, Notre Dame 24
Allen Kenney: Notre Dame 31, Michigan St. 20
Matt Yoder: Michigan State 34, Notre Dame 31
Michael Felder: Notre Dame 31, Michigan State 27
Tom Perry: Michigan State 27, Notre Dame 21
Tennessee at No. 16 Florida: Saturday, 3:30 p.m. CBS
Michael Felder’s Take: This is a game I’ve had my eye on for awhile given my personal “Team Saban” allegiance. While many have pointed to the Florida-Florida State match up as the big meeting of Saban proteges this SEC East contest has all the makings to be a rivalry that heats back up in the years to come. Tennessee hasn’t beaten Florida since 2004 and Derek Dooley has his team playing confident football as they enter The Swamp and we’ll get to see just how much they have improved from a season ago.
Muschamp’s team is talented and they have playmakers on both sides of the ball. Tennessee will play them tough but in the end Weis and this Gators offense will be too much for Tennessee’s still young team to overcome.
Florida 27, Tennessee 20
Everyone Else’s Take:
Aaron Torres: Tennessee 31, Florida 27
Allen Kenney: Florida 28, Tennessee 14
Kevin McGuire: Florida 28, Tennessee 20
Matt Yoder: Florida 30, Tennessee 13
Tom Perry: Tennessee 27, Florida 24
No. 23 Texas at UCLA: Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ABC
Allen Kenney’s Take: In what could turn out to be a match-up of future Pac-XX teams, Texas finds out Garrett Gilbert wasn’t the only issue with an offense that is still learning its way under coordinator Bryan Harsin. Youthful mistakes from QB duo David Ash and Case McCoy hamstring the Longhorns all game, in effect handing UCLA an ugly win.
UCLA 20, Texas 17
Everyone Else’s Take:
Aaron Torres: Texas 24, UCLA 13
Kevin McGuire: Texas 20, UCLA 13
Matt Yoder: Texas 14, UCLA
Michael Felder: Texas 24, UCLA 13
Tom Perry: Texas 18, UCLA 17
No. 22 Arizona State at Illinois: Saturday, 7:00 p.m. Big Ten Network
Aaron Torres’ Take: Full disclosure, I’m still mad at Arizona State. Arizona State was so much better than Missouri last week, that the wacky, wild, overtime win they got over the Tigers should’ve been over by halftime. Instead, I stayed up until after 2:00 a.m. EST watching that game, and I’ve had a sore throat since. Damn you, Dennis Erickson!
Still, that’s kind of my thing with this game. No, not the sore throat, but that Arizona State plays undisciplined, and lets inferior teams stay in games with them they shouldn’t. Combine those two unflattering characteristics with a natural let down after a big win last week, and I think we see an upset here.
All hail Ron Zook!
Illinois 24, Arizona State 17
Everyone Else’s Take:
Allen Kenney: Illinois 27, Arizona St. 24
Kevin McGuire: Illinois 31, Arizona State 30
Matt Yoder: Arizona State 34, Illinois 30
Michael Felder: Arizona St. 35, Illinois 17
Tom Perry: Arizona St. 33, Illinois 28
No. 17 Ohio State at Miami: Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ESPN
Matt Yoder’s Take: Has anyone come up with a clever name for this game yet? Ah, the ineligi-bowl… so clever. All righty then, moving on.
While all the focus is on the off-field drama, one shouldn’t forget what happened on the field last year in Ohio State’s 36-24 victory at the ‘Shoe. Most notably, Jacory Harris’ four INTs. Is it really that great for The U to have him be starting? Yes, the Buckeye offense has lost a lot since that game due to tattoo-gate, but their defense is still formidable. Ohio State is undergoing a lot of turmoil at the moment, but fortunately for them, so are the Canes. Even though it’s on the road and Joe Bauserman is still the starting QB, I’m picking the Bucks.
Ohio State 24 Miami 17
Everyone Else’s Take:
Aaron Torres: Miami 27, Ohio State 24
Allen Kenney: Miami 24, Ohio St. 20
Kevin McGuire: Ohio State 32, Miami 17
Michael Felder: Miami 24, Ohio State 20
Tom Perry: Ohio State 30, Miami 20
No. 1 Oklahoma at No. 5 Florida State: Saturday, 8:00 p.m. ESPN
Tom Perry’s Take: So Florida State says it has improved on defense enough that we should all ignore last year’s 47-17 loss at Oklahoma? Hey, Jimbo Fisher is doing a great job with the Seminoles, but not that good. The Sooners still have Landry Jones and about 47 other weapons, and that’s just on offense. FSU keeps it a little closer because the game is at Doak-Campbell Stadium.
Oklahoma 38, Florida State 21
Everyone Else’s Take:
Aaron Torres: Florida State 23, Oklahoma 20
Allen Kenney: Oklahoma 27, Florida State 23
Kevin McGuire: Florida State 24, Oklahoma 23
Matt Yoder: Oklahoma 31, Florida State 28
Michael Felder: Oklahoma 34, Florida State 24
Utah at BYU: Saturday, 9:15 p.m. ESPN2
Aaron Torres’ Take: The only thing stranger than Bronco Mendenhall’s affinity for wearing sweaty t-shirts on the sidelines is the idea that this game is now being played in Week 3. What? This game should, and needs to be played the weekend before the conference championship game. Make it happen Pac-12!
Anyway, on the field, I’ll go ahead and take BYU. Neither team’s offense has really impressed me much…actually that’s an understatement. Neither team’s offense has impressed me period. But BYU’s defense can play. They might be the most underrated unit in the country.
BYU 13, Utah 6
Everyone Else’s Take:
Allen Kenney: BYU 14, Utah 7
Kevin McGuire: BYU 29, Utah 27
Matt Yoder: Utah 27, BYU 26
Michael Felder: Utah 21, BYU 17
Tom Perry: Utah 24, BYU 14
No. 6 Stanford at Arizona: Saturday, 10:45 p.m. ESPN
Matt Yoder’s Take: Andrew Luck’s Heisman campaign should get in full swing this week as the Cardinal visit a reeling Arizona. Justin Blackmon and the Pokes’ offense tore apart the Wildcat secondary last week and there’s no reason to believe the #1 pick in waiting won’t do the same. Nick Foles has been great, but he’s doing it by himself in the desert. Luck is simply better and so is Stanford.
Stanford 38 Arizona 20
Everyone Else’s Take:
Aaron Torres: Stanford 31, Arizona 20
Allen Kenney: Stanford 28, Arizona 21
Kevin McGuire: Stanford 33, Arizona 28
Michael Felder: Stanford 41, Arizona 31
Tom Perry: Stanford 38, Arizona 29
