#7 USC at #24 California - Listen carefully. Do you hear that sound? It's the sound of both of these teams still choking. Cal got destroyed 42-3 at Oregon last week, with star running back Jahvid Best managing just 55 yards on 16 carries. Meanwhile USC stumbled through a 27-6 win over Washington State after an embarrassing loss to Washington the previous week. I don't care what anybody says, USC just doesn't have the kind of talent they've had in the recent past. On top of that, QB Matt Barkley has been banged up, and then RB Stafon Johnson had a strange and very nearly tragic weightlifting accident. Cal, on the other hand, faced high expectations like this once before. In 2007, they started the season 5-0, and were on the verge of claiming the top spot in the polls, but, thanks to then-freshman QB Kevin Riley's failure to pass the ball or run out of bounds while trailing with no time outs (he ran up the middle and got stuffed), they missed an opportunity to kick a last-second game-tying field goal in a 31-28 loss to Oregon State. From there, they collapsed, going 1-6 down the stretch before winning their bowl game. Will history repeat itself? The Golden Bears are at home, and badly in need of redemption after last week's mauling, but I'll take USC.#22 Michigan at Michigan State - Even though Michigan State is 1-3, they've been scoring points - 27, 30 and 30, respectively, in their 3 losses. The problem is their defense isn't very good. Michigan's defense isn't very good either (they are 89th in total defense). While they are 4-0, they've had the benefit of playing those first 4 games at home. Now, they have to hit the road. Michigan has won the last three times in East Lansing, but lost to the Spartans at home last year (then again, who didn't beat Michigan last year?). So who will win? I have no idea. but I'm so tired of hearing about Michigan QB Tate Forcier that I will be rooting for Michigan State (even though I hate them). Forcier is bound to play like a freshman one of these days. I think it will be Saturday.
#4 LSU at #18 Georgia - This is a tough game to call. Both teams have been sometimes shaky on offense and often disappointing on defense. LSU is clearly over-ranked, but they are 4-0. Georgia has been schizophrenic - scoring a combined 93 points in their two games against SEC opponents, and 37 points in their two non-conference games. LSU has two receivers that will tower over the Georgia secondary (Brandon LaFell at 6-3 and Terrance Toliver at 6-5). If QB Jordan Jefferson has a good day getting the ball to them, the Dawgs won't be able to keep up. Since 2001, Georgia is 20-5 against teams from the SEC West, but something tells me that LSU will pull this one off.
#8 Oklahoma at #17 Miami - Last week, Miami, for the first time this season, ran into a team with a living, breathing defense. The result was a 31-7 shellacking at the hands of Virginia Tech. Oklahoma, at least in theory, has a much better defense than the Hokies. They are #1 in scoring defense and #1 against the run. In their upset loss to BYU, they gave up just 14 points. In the two games since then, they have given up none. Even without Heisman Trophy-winning QB Sam Bradford, the Sooners are formidable. Once he got past the BYU loss, back-up QB Landry Jones has performed well. Miami QB Jacory Harris was fun to watch in their first two games. Last week, against the Hokies, he stunk, completing just 9 of 25 passes for 150 yards. I think the Oklahoma defense will be too much for the 'Canes to handle.
Texas A&M vs Arkansas (at Arlington, TX) - Neither of these teams is ranked, but this promises to be a very entertaining game. Arkansas is 4th in the nation in passing offense. Texas A&M is tops in total offense (#6 passing, #7 rushing). Add to this the fact that neither defense is particularly good, and you have the makings of fast-paced shootout. On paper, the Aggie offense is fairly balanced, while the Hogs live by the pass, and have a running attack that is only slightly more effective than having me carry the ball. If you listen to ESPN's Mark May, you would think Arkansas QB Ryan Mallett is the greatest thing since the invention of the forward pass. The fact is his team is 1-2, and about to be 1-3. When in doubt, go with the team that runs the ball better. In this case, it's clearly Texas A&M.
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