I’ll be giving my predictions for this weekend’s college football action more in-depth tomorrow, and Mark Scott will be around to give his weekly 12-pack of college football and NFL picks tomorrow as well, but I’m around to give my picks on Thursday and Friday’s games and tell you who you should put your money on.
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Colorado vs. #21 West Virginia
West Virginia is playing their first game after being dominated by East Carolina two weeks ago, and it’s a tough one, as the Mountaineers go to Boulder to face 2-0 Colorado, who begins a stretch of four games against teams who are currently ranked.
Key Stats
West Virginia’s Rushing Offense: 160.5 yards per game
Colorado’s Rushing Defense: 59 yards per game allowed
For most teams, West Virginia’s numbers on the ground would be pretty good, but the Mountaineers haven’t exactly been the dominant force you’d have expected thus far, with neither Pat White or Noel Devine having run for more than 100 yards in the first two games.
Meanwhile, Colorado’s run defense has done a very good job in the first couple of games, though this will be their toughest test yet. Something’s got to give.
Colorado’s Passing Offense: 237.5 yards per game, 4 TD
West Virginia’s Passing Defense: 254 yards per game allowed
The Big 12 is full of talented quarterbacks from top to bottom, and West Virginia faces a rising talent in Colorado’s Cody Hawkins, who has gotten off to a good start in the first couple of games.
The Mountaineers’ pass defense gave up a good amount of yards to Villanova in their season opener, and ECU’s Patrick Pinkney had his way with them (22 of 28, 231 yards, TD).
Final Verdict: I’m not particularly sold on West Virginia right now to take this one, but at the same time, Colorado is coming off of a close scrape against I-AA Eastern Washington. The safe pick would be to take West Virginia to rebound from their loss to ECU and cover the three points and then some, but this could be a bold upset special, and that’s the direction I’m going - Colorado wins it 31-27.
Connecticut vs. Baylor
Baylor is coming in hot after winning back-to-back games in blowout fashion on the arm and legs of true freshman quarterback Robert Griffin. However, the Huskies are 3-0 and coming off a 45-10 rout of Virginia.
Key Stats
Connecticut’s Rushing Offense: 297.7 yards per game
Baylor’s Rushing Defense: 95 yards per game allowed
Baylor’s Rushing Offense: 242.3 yards per game
Connecticut’s Rushing Defense: 66.3 yards per game allowed
Two very good rushing offenses going up against two solid run defenses. One thing to take into consideration is that Baylor didn’t have a good showing against their toughest opponent, Wake Forest, allowing 156 yards on the ground. The Bears have made improvements in the last couple of weeks, but they’re going to have their hands full with UConn’s Donald Brown, who has 566 yards and eight touchdowns in the first three games, and back-to-back 200-yard games (214 vs. Temple, 206 vs. Virginia).
As for UConn’s defense, the two people they have to worry about the most are Griffin and running back Jay Finley (119 yards), who accounted for 336 of Baylor’s 426 rushing yards in last week’s 45-17 win over Washington State.
Final Verdict: Baylor appears to be making some strides already, and they could play UConn close. They might have to pull away in the end to do it, but the Huskies will cover and win - UConn 38-21.
If you already happen to have an account with BetUS and want to make your picks on tonight’s games, go to their college football lines page, or if you don’t have an account, you can sign up and start making your bets.
