College Football

This is the first posting for PlayActionPass, a blog dedicated to all things college football. 

Tonight's highly anticipated Big East clash between West Virginia and South Florida will go a long way in determining the Big East champ.  The Mountaineers are looking to avenge last season's 24-19 loss in Morgantown to the Bulls.  Expect high scoring with Pat White and Steve Slayton running at will against the South Florida defense and Matt Grothe passing through WVU's weak secondary.  40 points will be needed to win this shootout. In the end, South Florida's run in the Top 25 will be short lived as WVU's offense will prove too much for the Bulls as White runs for two 4th Quarter touchdowns. Nonetheless, Jim Leavitt's squad will show why they are the 2nd best team in Florida. 

Saturday preview:

Although this weekend's match up's are not even close to next week's clashes, there are some interesting games that could surprise some people.

Cal v. Oregon is the obvious game of the week.  Expect a shootout with the team holding the ball last winning.  Dixon should show why he is a darkhorse candidate and Jackson will prove why he should be a frontrunner.  Cal will get their first big road victory of the year.

Wisconsin v. Michigan State will not light up the scoreboard, but will showcase why Big 10 football is power football.  Michigan State's resurgence under first year HC Mark Dantonio is one of the stories of the year (so far) and his squad will give the Badgers all they can handle in Madison.  Turnovers and field position will determine the outcome and the home team will escape with a narrow victory.

Auburn v. Florida will be a lot closer than most expect.  Tuberville's teams always play their best when expectations are low.  Florida showed some vulnerabilities last week and Auburn OC Al Borges will look to exploit them throughout the game. If Auburn can hold onto the ball and run effectively while mixing in some short passes, this could be the upset of the SEC season.  Florida may be looking ahead to their showdown with LSU next week.  I predict a close Gator victory, 27-21.

Rutgers v Maryland.  Don't laugh.  Rutgers has not been tested and Maryland is desparate for a win.  In addition, Rutgers has a revenge game next week versus Cincinnati.  Rutgers will pound the ball with Rice getting his usual 15 yards, but Maryland will have some key stops.  Rutgers will win this game by coming from behind in the 4th quarter. 

Alabama v Florida State.  Enough has been written about Bowden's ties to the State of Alabama, but it is interesting that the winningest coach in Division 1A history has never played Alabama.  Saban will try to regroup his team after the heartbreak OT loss to Georgia last week.  As if the Bowden/Alabama story wasn't juicy enough, Saban will be going against his former OC, Jimbo Fisher.  Look for Saban's squad to win this defensive slugfest, 21-17. 

Other intriguing match-ups:

Navy v Air Force.  Round One for the Commander-In-Chief trophy.  Navy will win.

Penn State v. Illinois.  Can Penn State recover from last week's offensive debacle to take on the much improve Illini?  Yes, but the game will be close.

UCLA v Oregon State.  Both teams have embarrassing losses already this season.  The loser has a Sun Bowl ticket waiting for them.  The winner still has an outside shot at the Holiday Bowl.  UCLA will win this high scoring shootout.

Texas v. Kansas State.  Revenge or looking ahead.  The annual Red River Shootout looms next week.  Can the mighty Longhorns temper their passion to exact some revenge on their late season loss to the Wildcats last year?  The Longhorns have been anything but steady this year, but McCoy will be pumped and lead his team to a decisive victory in Austin. 

That's it for now.  Enjoy the games.