2021 Week 2 Picks Recap
2021 All Picks Recap
College Football Top 5 Week #3
5. Michigan State vs. Miami
Early kickoff (12:00 PM EDT) from Miami, Florida. Everyone has now seen the cat with nine lives from the Hurricanes game against Appalachian State last Saturday (9/11/21). Incredible team work by the season ticket holders and student section catching the cat. Miami was coming off a shellacking by Alabama in Week #1 and ended up clawing their way past Appalachian State 25-23. Spartans have put together two victories over Northwestern and Youngstown State using a revamped running game (Kenneth Walker III) and a game manager at QB. Hurricanes are favored at Hard Rock Stadium, but the Spartans have a chip on their shoulder to wipe away bad 2019 and 2020 memories.
Prediction: Michigan State puts plenty of pressure on D-Eriq King and runs a ton of power sweeps to a 10 point victory
4. Fresno State vs. UCLA
Late kickoff (10:45 PM EDT) from the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, CA. UCLA and the PAC-12 are the early darlings of the 2021 college football season due to easily beating LSU in Week #1, and Oregon’s road win at Ohio State in Week #2. Bruins have chemistry cooking under Chip Kelly and its awesome to see the Rose Bowl crowd finally into games for the first time since 2014. Bulldogs have a talented senior QB (Jake Haener) and they’ve only lost to Oregon by 7 points in Week #1. Last time these teams met was in 2018 and Fresno State rode a dominate second half to win 38-14. The offensive firepower on display in this game will be worth watching late into the evening.
Prediction: UCLA continues to use their 1-2 punch at RB and TE crossing patterns in the red zone to win by 9 points
3. Nebraska vs. Oklahoma
Early kickoff (12:00 PM EDT) from Norman, OK. Hard to believe its been fifty years since the Game of the Century (#1 ranked NU #2 beat #2 ranked OU 35-31 in 1971). The alumni for both of these teams from 1971-2010 is impressive. Huskers have had Johnny Rodgers, Dave Rimington, Mike Rozier, Turner Gill, Tommie Frazier, Eric Crouch and Ndamukong Suh all wear the scarlet and cream uniforms. Sooners have had Lee Roy Selmon, Billy Sims, Tony Casillas, Keith Jackson, Josh Heupel, Jason White, Adrian Peterson and Sam Bradford all wear the crimson and cream uniforms. A rivalry that used to send the winner to the Orange Bowl from the Big 8 Conference, both teams stopped playing each other after the 2010 season due to conference moves.
Prediction: Oklahoma is favored by 3+ touchdowns and will coast to a 28 point victory
2. Auburn vs. Penn State
Primetime evening kickoff at 7:30 PM EDT from University Park, PA and where the ESPN Gameday crew will be analyzing all games prior to 12:00 PM EDT kickoffs across the country. Auburn hasn’t played at a Big Ten school in ninety years (since 1931) and they also haven’t played a formidable opponent yet this season. Penn State continues to flourish under head coach James Franklin, and all of the rumors about him moving to USC in 2022 will discussed over the course of the 2021 season. Auburn’s QB, Bo Nix, seems to have been playing for at least six seasons, but he’s in his junior year. Penn State’s senior QB, Phillip Clifford, is a wise game manager at the line of scrimmage. Time for the Big Ten to get a little respect from the SEC.
Prediction: Will be a game of field position and situational play calling. Penn State is playing better team ball right now and wins by 6 points.
1. Alabama vs. Florida
Mid-afternoon kickoff at 3:30 PM EDT from The Swamp in Gainesville, FL. Rematch of the 2020 SEC Championship Game that the Crimson Tide won 52-46. Dan Mullen coached teams always seem to matchup well against Nick Saban. That’s the main reason Saban was bashing his own team during Week #2 practices to set the expectation bar even higher. Gators will use two QBs (passer Emory Jones and runner Anthony Richardson), which will keep the Tide on their heels for a good 20-30 minutes of game time. Tide will continue to roll out unflappable Bryce Young at QB and let him run a big play offense. This game will showcase the SEC at its finest in September.
Prediction: Hard game to predict after the high scoring championship game in 2020 and the two headed QB monster that Florida is utilizing. Tie game at halftime will lead to big adjustments by both teams and Alabama wins by 10 points.
College Football Top 5 Upsets that might happen
5. Virginia Tech vs. West Virginia
Hokies are off to a nice 2-0 start, currently ranked #15 and will be one of the comeback programs of the 2021 season. Mountaineers are trying to hold onto the Big 12 conference, which is hemorrhaging and expanding at the same time thanks to the SEC. If the Hokies play disciplined football on the road in Morgantown, they’ll be 3-0 headed into ACC conference play. Mountaineers have nothing to lose and their offense will be a thorn in the Hokies side all game long.
4. Virginia vs. North Carolina
Is it basketball season yet? Two historical powerhouses meeting on Tabacco Road…whoops this is college football and the Cavaliers are headed to Chapel Hill, NC to take on the Tarheels. Cavaliers are off to a 2-0 start and Brennan Armstrong is playing at a high level for QB, but the running game needs to catch up in a hurry. Tarheels were a pleasant surprise in 2020, but 2021 is starting to prove that they are over-rated and maybe its time for Mack Brown to head back to the announcers booth. Go Hoos and enjoy being 3-0 before heading into the meat of their ACC schedule.
3. Utah State vs. Air Force
Picked against Air Force in Week #2 assuming that Navy would be ready to play for the Commander-in-Chief’s trophy. I was wrong. Two undefeated teams play at Falcon Stadium in Colorado Springs, CO and at an elevation of 6,621 feet above sea level. Utah State practices and plays at 4,710 feet above sea level. It’ll take 30-40 minutes of game time action for the Aggies to get their legs and lungs due to the thin mountain air. They’ll hang with the Falcons into the fourth quarter and then anything can happen due to turnovers and special teams. I’m probably wrong again but have a feeling this will be close to the wire.
2. Tulane vs. Ole Miss
Tulane has been on an extended road trip since Week #1 due to Hurricane Ida. Ole Miss is staying below the radar in the SEC and Lane Kiffin hasn’t made any headlines or audio clips yet. Just a matter of time until the Rebels take a week off or upset Alabama like they did in 2014 and 2015. You never know what you’re going to get at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, MS. Green Wave will keep the score close early in the second half and the outcome will depend if they have any gasoline left in the tank.
1. ASU vs. BYU
Sun Devils are currently ranked #19 and a member in the suddenly robust PAC-12 conference. BYU was impressive last week in beating Utah 26-17. Something has to give at LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo, UT on Saturday night. Sun Devils are favored by 3.5 points and the program has a good trajectory since Herm Edwards became head coach in 2018. BYU is trending even faster and the home crowd advantage will be a huge factor for a season defining win by the Cougars.
Same bat time, same bat channel next week. I’ll review the results of College Football exciting top 5 week #3 and try again in week #4.
Never walk away from the table when you’re on a heater in Vegas!
Want to find this beer near you? Check out this article that tells you how to locate great beer near you.
