College Football Pick 'Em: Week Seven

I was unable to get my picks posted last week due to some technical difficulties, but I'm back at it this week! On a personal level, the season has been a pretty big disappointment for me as Georgia has shown very little to get excited about and the team has quickly fallen into the dreaded category of "rebuilding." On a broader level, there have been very few teams that have really stood apart as dominant and elite, which should make to an exciting end to the season. And this weekend could features some teams that could emerge as legitimate contenders, or fall into the ever-growing lump of pretenders.

#1 Florida vs. Arkansas: If people could ever shut up about Tim Tebow, we might talk about how the Florida defense is playing at a level that could make them one of the best of all-time. Yes, I just went Kanye West on Tim Tebow? Arkansas is known for putting up points, but they're going against a defensive unit that is full of future NFL players. Florida will pound the ball with their running game and roll to another victory.
#2 Alabama vs. #22 South Carolina: The Tide appear to be improving every week, which is scary for the rest of the SEC west. My only concern with Alabama is that they could peak too early in the season and struggle down the stretch, similar to last season. But, I don't expect them to stumble this week and I think they'll overpower the Gamecocks.
#3 Texas vs. #20 Oklahoma: The game that decides the Big 12 South every season has a lot of questions going into tomorrow. Will Sam Bradford be comfortable with the Sooner offense after missing so much time? Will Texas be able to establish any sort of running game? Which injury will prove most costly for either of these teams? I haven't seen Texas play this season, and I feel like no one has really seen an Oklahoma team led by Sam Bradford. It should be an interesting game in the Cotton Bowl, and I'm going to take the Longhorns because I don't expect Bradford to be comfortable with his receivers yet.
#4 Virginia Tech vs. #19 Georgia Tech: From a personal perspective as a fan, I really don't like Virginia Tech - their fans, their stadium, their players, any of it. From a perspective of trying to figure out the best teams in the country, I really like Virginia Tech. I think they match up well against Georgia Tech and I think their speed on defense will present problems for Georgia Tech's option attack. And, I think they'll be able to control the ball with their own rushing game and keep the Yellow Jacket offense off the field. Hokies get a big ACC win.
#5 Boise State vs. Tulsa: Played Wednesday night. Boise State won 28-21.
#6 USC vs. #25 Notre Dame: Since this game is being hyped up, I'll take USC to win. USC seems to show up in every big game and play well, and it's usually the pushover game where they struggle. The Trojans' defense will get after the Notre Dame offense and I don't expect this game to be a shoot out, which hurts the Irish. Similar to the Ohio State/USC game, I would take Notre Dame if this were a battle of QB's because Jimmy Clausen is better than Matt Barkley. But, I think USC has the advantage at nearly every other position and they'll get the victory.
#7 Ohio State vs. Purdue: As boring as it is to watch Ohio State, they're a model of consistency when it comes to success. They play great defense and control field position and they don't beat themselves, which means they win the games they're supposed to win. Naturally, they'll take care of Purdue.
#8 Cincinnati vs. #21 South Florida: Played Thursday night. Cincy won 34-17.
#9 Miami (FL) vs. Central Florida: Check out the ACC with two teams in the Top 10! The 'Canes will roll against UCF and have a good shot at winning out.
#10 LSU vs. Idle
#11 Iowa vs. Wisconsin: I'm going to keep throwing rocks at the Iowa bandwagon until they lose and then I can scream "I told you so!" This plan works beautifully unless they go undefeated and win the Big 10 and the National Championship. So of course, I'll take Wisconsin to ride the momentum of the home crowd and pull off the upset in Madison. Go Badgers!
#12 TCU vs. Colorado State: TCU should win this game, but they need to be careful about looking ahead to the big game against BYU next weekend. I think the scare against Air Force last weekend will have this team focused and ready to take care of business against Colorado State.
#13 Oregon vs. Idle
#14 Penn State vs. Minnesota: The Penn State defense seems to be really strong, and they still have some playmakers on offense. Minnesota is a good team but they still don't have enough playmakers to beat the best teams in the Big 10 (that's really not saying much). I like the Nittany Lions to win.
#15 Nebraska vs. Texas Tech: For the first time in a long time, the Nebraska defense is probably underrated. They might have the best defensive tackle in the country and they're one broken play away from being undefeated. Their defense has another chance to shine against the high flying offense from Texas Tech, and I think they'll be up to the challenge. Huskers win.
#16 Oklahoma State vs. Missouri: I'll take Missouri in this game. I think Oklahoma State is dealing with the distraction of Dez Bryant (How ridiculous does the Dez Bryant for Heisman talk seem now?) and Missouri is looking to bounce back after their loss to Nebraska. It'll be tough for them to win on the road in Stillwater, but I think Mizzou can do it.
#17 Kansas vs. Colorado: Kansas will win this weekend, but then their season will really start. After Colorado, they play @ Oklahoma & @ Texas Tech. Let's see where they're ranked then.
#18 Brigham Young vs. San Diego State: BYU could probably look ahead to next week and still beat San Diego State. They'll win this weekend and then move on to next week against TCU.
#23 Houston vs. Tulane: Uhhh....Tulane is BAD and they give up a lot of points. I'm wondering if Houston can score 100.
#24 Utah vs. UNLV: I like Utah to win this because I know nothing about UNLV and I'll go ahead and assume Utah is better.