Welcome to the 7th week of the college football season, which you can say the half-way mark. Last week I finished with another 3-2 record making my overall record drop to 22-13. My overall winning percentage drops from 63.3% to 62.9% in the process. I’m hoping that I can get back on track this week and still inch closer to that 70% winning percentage mark. This week I’ll be predicting six games, which includes a pair of top-10 match-ups. Let’s get this thing started!!
We start off in the SEC in what could be a match-up for the SEC Championship in December. The top ranked Alabama Crimson Tide visits the 9th ranked Tennessee Volunteers. As expected, Alabama has cruised through their schedule and look just as good as ever. This will be the biggest test to date for Freshman OB Jalen Hurts, how will he respond to the rowdy crowd in Tennessee? On the other hand, Tennessee is coming off a tough loss last weekend in College Station in a great game against the Aggies. The Volunteers did all that without their star RB Jalen Hurd, who’s expected to return for this game. Tennessee almost pulled off the upset last year and they’ll get close again this year, but I’m going with the Tide by a hair.
Alabama Win 31-30
We head to the Big 10 conference for the other game featuring top-10 teams. The 2nd ranked Ohio State Buckeyes will visit the 8th ranked Wisconsin Badgers in what could be a Big 10 championship preview. The Buckeyes have looked like the best team in the country with their relentless defense and instant offense. Can they continue that dominance against one of the more physical teams in Wisconsin? The Badgers have played great throughout the year, even holding the Michigan offense to 14 points in the Big House in a losing effort. With home field advantage, plus it being a night game, can they pull off the upset? I’m still going with the Buckeyes to narrowly escape with the win.
Ohio State Win 23-21
We head back down to SEC country for this match-up between a pair of top-25 teams. The 12th ranked Ole Miss Rebels visit the 22nd ranked Arkansas Razorbacks in a key SEC West game. The Ole Miss Rebels offense has looked like the Atlanta Falcons offense thus far, but they have also looked like the Falcons defense also. Can they continue that trend against the tough Razorbacks defense? Arkansas is coming off a tough loss at home against the Tide where their defense was torched. Can they rebound from a tough game and stop the Rebels high-octane offense? This is another tough one to pick, but I think the Razorbacks take care of business at home.
Arkansas Win 41-31
This is the first of three ACC games I’ll be predicting for this week. We have the N.C. State Wolfpack visiting the 3rd ranked Clemson Tigers in a key Atlantic division match-up. The Wolfpack come into this game with a 4-1 record after beating the Fighting Irish in a horrible game last week. If the Wolfpack are going to gain some respect, they would have to pull off this huge upset in Clemson. After playing a pair of mediocre games at the start of the season, Clemson is looking like a national championship contender. Can the Tigers continue their great play in this early game? I think they will eventually blow out the Wolfpack.
Clemson Win 42-24
Could the Wake Forest Demon Deacons be returning to prominence this year? They have started the season 5-1, which includes a nice road win in Indiana earlier in the season. Now they must travel to face the 14th ranked Florida State Seminoles. The only loss they have this season was on the road against the N.C. State Wolfpack. Can they pull off a shocker in Tallahassee? The Florida State Seminoles are coming off of playing their best defensive game this year last week against Miami. Can they continue that trend? Can Dalvin Cook continue to look like the best back in the nation? The Seminoles should win, but expect a scare for the first three quarters.
Florida State Win 38-24
The final game of the weekend has the North Carolina Tar Heels visiting the 16th ranked Miami Hurricanes. The Tar Heels are coming off an embarrassing loss last week against the Virginia tech Hokies. North Carolina dropped out of the national rankings in the process, but could turn around their fortunes with a win in Miami. Can the Tar Heels defense rebound from that loss? On the other hand, the Miami Hurricanes loss because of a blocked extra point last week against rival, Florida State. Can they pick up the huge win and remain in contention in the Coastal division? I’m going with Miami to avenge their loss and beat North Carolina.
Miami Win 30-24
What do you think about my predictions? What’s your top game of the week? What game do you see being an upset? Head to the comments section below and give me some feedback.
