Gomer: Georgia Tech has won the last 4 meetings of these two ACC contenders and both teams have a real chance to take a firm grasp on the Division lead. GT is coming off a Thursday night thriller where the Yellow Jackets blew a huge lead in momentum and score to let Clemson retake the lead, only to escape with a win in the end. The Hurricanes have been able to rest and recover since the slugfest with the Seminoles on Labor Day night. I really like both of these teams as sleepers to make their way to the BCS National Championship game, and from what I've seen I have a hard time deciding which has the better defense. I trust Paul Johnson's coaching ability a little more than Randy Shannon's and I'll look for the option attack to manage the game and escape Miami with a win. GT: 24--UM: 20
Chief: This is the toughest game of the week to pick. Miami looked very good against FSU, but FSU seemed inept the following week against lowly Jacksonville State. I believe Jacory Harris will show up in this game, but I have to keep riding the Jacket wagon. The U requested this game to be on a Thursday to 'pay the Jackets back' for last years loss, but GT's option was unstoppable vs. Miami last year. Many say that Miami will work to stop the run exclusively, unfortunately, that's easier said than done. Nesbitt/Dwyer outscore Harris/Cooper in a photo finish. GT: 31--UM:30
Nebraska vs. Virginia Tech
Gomer: Too bad this isn't a night game, because this would be worth the trip to Blacksburg on a weekend lacking a premiere match-up. A night game is a must-see when the VT faithful get jacked up and they definitely will be for this game trying to make amends in the national spotlight for the game they had against Alabama. This will be Nebraska's Quarterback's first road start and that could spell bad news for the Huskers. Tech will roll in this one with conference pride helping push them to a strong showing for the natives. UN: 20--VT: 42
Chief: Beamer looks to bring his team back to the national stage after dropping a close one to Bama in the opener (closer than the score would seem). VT has a stellar ground game, but very little passing game. I don't think that will hurt them this weekend. The Hokies will rely on the defense and Tyrod Taylor's running ability to take care of the Huskers in Blacksburg. While the Cornhuskers are certainly improving following the Bill Callahan era, they're not there yet. The Hokies keep the Huskers in Bo Pelini land as they roll to victory. UN: 16--VT: 34
Gomer: Too bad this isn't a night game, because this would be worth the trip to Blacksburg on a weekend lacking a premiere match-up. A night game is a must-see when the VT faithful get jacked up and they definitely will be for this game trying to make amends in the national spotlight for the game they had against Alabama. This will be Nebraska's Quarterback's first road start and that could spell bad news for the Huskers. Tech will roll in this one with conference pride helping push them to a strong showing for the natives. UN: 20--VT: 42
Chief: Beamer looks to bring his team back to the national stage after dropping a close one to Bama in the opener (closer than the score would seem). VT has a stellar ground game, but very little passing game. I don't think that will hurt them this weekend. The Hokies will rely on the defense and Tyrod Taylor's running ability to take care of the Huskers in Blacksburg. While the Cornhuskers are certainly improving following the Bill Callahan era, they're not there yet. The Hokies keep the Huskers in Bo Pelini land as they roll to victory. UN: 16--VT: 34
Florida State vs. Brigham Young
Gomer: The once proud Seminoles were to be on the upward swing this season, but the offense has been inconsistent at best making me seriously question the hiring of "coach-in-waiting" Jimbo Fisher. I would definitely prefer to see FSU get the win here, but the defensive pressure the Cougars bring will be too much for Christian Ponder and the 18-game home win streak for BYU will prove too much in their home opener. FSU: 14--BYU: 31
Chief: Oh my Noles... They looked very sharp (not perfect) against a very underrated UM squad on Labor Day only to struggle with garbage on Saturday. Perhaps it was the lull game between the two huge games. I think the Noles show up to fight here, but Max Hall led BYU has certainly been firing on all cylinders lately. I don't think BYU beats OU with Bradford, but it's still very close. They rolled last week, but it's time for the midmajor to show they're a midmajor--can they handle the pressure of success. The Noles wake up and take care of business. Ponder breaks out and leads the Noles to steal one over Mendenhall and the Cougs in a close one. FSU: 31--BYU: 30
Cincinnati vs. Oregon State
Gomer: So far this season Cincinnati has been unstoppable destroying Rutgers and I-AA Opponent SE Missouri State. On the other side of the ball Oregon State has looked average beating up on Portland State and scraping by at UNLV. Both teams are young, but the key to this game will be the location... very very far away from southwestern Ohio. Cincy has lost their last 6 road games to non-conference BCS schools by an average of 21ppg. Another interesting stat: in the 2nd home game the Beavers have come up BIG, they have won 4 straight 2nd home games with an average score of 39-14... yes that does look like some stupid random stat, but I'll tell you why its important, 2 of the 4 victories have come against USC and Boise State, got your attention now? This might be the most underrated game of the weekend. UC: 29--OSU: 33
Gomer: The once proud Seminoles were to be on the upward swing this season, but the offense has been inconsistent at best making me seriously question the hiring of "coach-in-waiting" Jimbo Fisher. I would definitely prefer to see FSU get the win here, but the defensive pressure the Cougars bring will be too much for Christian Ponder and the 18-game home win streak for BYU will prove too much in their home opener. FSU: 14--BYU: 31
Chief: Oh my Noles... They looked very sharp (not perfect) against a very underrated UM squad on Labor Day only to struggle with garbage on Saturday. Perhaps it was the lull game between the two huge games. I think the Noles show up to fight here, but Max Hall led BYU has certainly been firing on all cylinders lately. I don't think BYU beats OU with Bradford, but it's still very close. They rolled last week, but it's time for the midmajor to show they're a midmajor--can they handle the pressure of success. The Noles wake up and take care of business. Ponder breaks out and leads the Noles to steal one over Mendenhall and the Cougs in a close one. FSU: 31--BYU: 30
Cincinnati vs. Oregon State
Gomer: So far this season Cincinnati has been unstoppable destroying Rutgers and I-AA Opponent SE Missouri State. On the other side of the ball Oregon State has looked average beating up on Portland State and scraping by at UNLV. Both teams are young, but the key to this game will be the location... very very far away from southwestern Ohio. Cincy has lost their last 6 road games to non-conference BCS schools by an average of 21ppg. Another interesting stat: in the 2nd home game the Beavers have come up BIG, they have won 4 straight 2nd home games with an average score of 39-14... yes that does look like some stupid random stat, but I'll tell you why its important, 2 of the 4 victories have come against USC and Boise State, got your attention now? This might be the most underrated game of the weekend. UC: 29--OSU: 33
Chief: UC has looked phenomenal in their quick start (granted against questionable competition--but that's their whole schedule in the Big East). The Beavers have always played well at home but Jacquizz is a little banged up. The last time I saw the Beavers, they were in the biggest snoozer of a bowl game ever (3-0 victory in the Sun Bowl). Lyle Moevao and the Rodgers brothers are very good, but I think Tony Pike and the Bearcats continue their run. Two teams with little to no defense but a heck of a lot of offense. Ohio's only Orange Bowl losing team comes away victorious. UC: 42--OSU: 38
Tennessee vs. Florida
Gomer: I would peg this game as highest potential to be a laugher this weekend. Florida is favored by 28.5 and I would not be surprised if they won by more than that. Of course a Florida victory means another round of hearing how great Tim Tebow is especially after beating up on the vaunted Tennessee Defense, the same vaunted defense that was unable to secure a win against a lowly Pac 10 team like UCLA. Florida will win, by a lot, and Tebow will have 6 touchdowns. UT: 9--UF: 62
Chief: I wanted to talk about this one because it's going to happen. Everyone has been talking about how Urban Meyer, Tim Tebow, and 'Gaytor Nation' have circled this game as revenge to take out Lane Kiffin. Not so fast my friend! Kiffin in his eminent wisdom, threw the game vs. UCLA to lull the gators into a false sense of security. Crompton will toss all over that 'vaunted defense' for 5 TDs while the Monte Kiffin defense shows the nation the Eric Berry is clearly the best defensive player in the nation and knocks Tebow out of the Heisman race. Wait...the Vols are terrible. UT: 6--UF: 42
Gomer: I would peg this game as highest potential to be a laugher this weekend. Florida is favored by 28.5 and I would not be surprised if they won by more than that. Of course a Florida victory means another round of hearing how great Tim Tebow is especially after beating up on the vaunted Tennessee Defense, the same vaunted defense that was unable to secure a win against a lowly Pac 10 team like UCLA. Florida will win, by a lot, and Tebow will have 6 touchdowns. UT: 9--UF: 62
Chief: I wanted to talk about this one because it's going to happen. Everyone has been talking about how Urban Meyer, Tim Tebow, and 'Gaytor Nation' have circled this game as revenge to take out Lane Kiffin. Not so fast my friend! Kiffin in his eminent wisdom, threw the game vs. UCLA to lull the gators into a false sense of security. Crompton will toss all over that 'vaunted defense' for 5 TDs while the Monte Kiffin defense shows the nation the Eric Berry is clearly the best defensive player in the nation and knocks Tebow out of the Heisman race. Wait...the Vols are terrible. UT: 6--UF: 42
Ohio State Buckeyes vs. Toledo Rockets
Gomer: The Bucks could be in for a real big emotional let down this week. I don't need to re-hash the offensive struggles from last week's heart-breaker, but if the Terrelle Pryor led offense isn't clicking, the Bucks will still win, but it could mean bad news bears down the road in the Big Ten. The other worry here is that the Rockets could expose some sort of weakness in the pass defense, because they will move the ball, but it will be a matter of when the Bucks force a turnover or other big defensive stop. Toledo won't be out of the game until late unless the Bucks come up with some early quick strikes, it'll be a better game than anyone expects. OSU: 39--UT: 20
Chief: After throwing all they had emotionally, physically, and mentally against the Trojans and coming up short (due to horrendous playcalling), the Bucks look to rebound against a surprising Toledo Rocket team. The Silver Bullets returned last week and I believe are here to stay. This is a major turning point game for the season...lie down and take it or stand and fight. I believe the Buckeyes have too much pride to quit now. I saw the pride last week and I think they fire out of the gate this week. Toledo smashed Colorado and put some points up on Purdue (while giving up a ton). OSU will put the hammer down in this one early. At first, I thought the letdown would keep it close, but the pride of the Buckeyes will not allow a fallback. Bucks continue to roll against Ohio teams. OSU: 41--UT: 10
Other games...
Boise State vs. Fresno State: Gomer: Boise Chief: Boise
USC vs. Washington: Gomer: USC Chief: USC
Michigan State vs. Notre Dame: Gomer: ND Chief: ND
Arizona vs. Iowa: Gomer: Iowa Chief: Iowa (close)
Navy vs. Pittsburgh: Gomer: Pitt Chief: Navy
Northwestern vs. Syracuse: Gomer: Syr Chief: NW
Texas Tech vs. Texas: Gomer: UT Chief: UT (BIG)
