Week 1 is officially behind us with the kickoff of week 2
tonight. The only game on the Thursday
docket this week is Louisiana Tech at Western Kentucky. On Friday we get 2 more games with Miami FL
at Florida Atlantic and a rivalry game with Utah State visiting in state foe
Utah. Most games are on Saturday, so I
won’t have as many posts this week as there were in a stretched out week
1. Out of those 3 games, I actually like
2 of them. I will discuss all 3 games
though.
Louisiana Tech (-1) @ Western Kentucky:
If you read my Thursday column last week you know that I
wasn’t a fan of Western Kentucky. Sure
they ended up winning against Vanderbilt, but there was nothing they did in
that game that instills confidence in me to back them. Vandy gave the game to WKU, throwing not 1
but 2 interceptions in the end zone, a dropped td pass that caused Vandy to
settle for a field goal and a missed field goal by Vandy. Add to that list the fact WKU had to stop
Vandy’s 2 point conversion with 33 seconds left to win the game and you
understand why I’m not a fan, and upset that was a push and not a win. La Tech had a much easier opener, trouncing
Southern 62-15, and actually making Florida QB transfer Driskell resemble an
FBS QB. My computer says that La Tech is
the better team by about 1 point, but after adding in home field for WKU, it
says they should be favored by 2 (WKU -2), which is actually where the line
opened at. Since then it has steamed the
other way, crossing over 0 and crowning a new favorite. I’m not a fan about going against my computer
projections, especially after it’s week 1 results, but I have to here. La Tech is just too talented on offense.
Miami FL (-17.5) at Florida Atlantic:
This game is interesting.
Not sure FAU should get home field advantage points here as Miami campus
right around the corner and I’m sure their backers will be in the stands. My computer has this game pegged right at
17.5 point in favor of Miami FL, so it says there is no value to be had in this
game. Last week FAU had to mount a come
back at Tulsa in order to force over time, and they still lost. Miami FL had a running clock in the 2nd
half against an FCS foe. I’m pretty sure
that Miami FL will blow this FAU team out of the water, but I’m not willing to
put my money on it. Maybe you are though.
Utah State @ Utah (-13)
This is the 2nd game out of these 3 that I
like. Last week against Michigan, Utah
got lucky with an interception return for 6 when UM was driving and only down a
td. Even then Michigan didn’t give up
and it took everything Utah had to hold on and win. Utah State had some trouble of there own last
week, but against a much lower quality team in Southern Utah. The Utah State offense did basically nothing,
generating 7 points from a punt return td and blocking an extra point and
returning it for 2. Other than that just
a field goal. I know this is a rivalry
game, but I’m pretty sure Utah’s defense is head and shoulders above Southern
Utahs. My computer agrees with me, it
actually has Utah as a -14 point favorite if this was a neutral site game. Once you add in a few points for home field,
this should be around -17, -18 depending on how much value you give the Utes at
home. Anyways, Utah seems like a good
play to me, so I’m backing them.
So that’s how we’re starting the week. Calling for Louisiana Tech to get the road
victory and cover and Utah to continue it’s run at home. Make sure to check back later for updates on
the weekend games, and be sure to look at the matchup blog for a complete
view of every game.
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