WEEK 3 TALK

Week 3 is here and hopefully the excitement continues to ratchet up. A few teams impressed me last week and several teams let me know this was going to be a long year. I am STILL not impressed with the SEC, but LSU did let me know they may be a legit contender now. And as close as they are to being one, Arkansas and Tennessee continued to show why they are nowhere close. Has anyone's offense looked better than Maryland? After dominating Syracuse, it's tough to find one. And oh Michigan...how lucky are thee...


LSU

The last few years I have tried to put LSU in that playoff contender status, but each year they let me down. 2 things you can always count on with the Tigers. A great defense, and a good running game. One thing that much tougher to count on it s quarterback. They have literally nailed almost every position on the field, but that one which is crazy when you think about they recruit. I expected Joe Burrow to be better last year when he transferred in from Ohio State...but he wasn't and not being able to keep the defense honest severely hampered LSU's playoff hopes. However, this Burrow ain't that Burrow. Joe Burrow has stepped up in a major way. In 2 games, he has already thrown his name on that Heisman watch list. He isn't playing scared like last year and doesn't mind throwing the ball into tight windows and looking for the big play. Coach O finally has a guy he can really go to war with and know he has a chance whenever he steps on the field. He just lit up a pretty good Texas defense, and considering he has another month before they play another contender I'm sure his confidence will continue to build. 


JIM HARBAUGH

I said in Week 1, I wasn't sure if Harbaugh would last the year. And if they don't get extremely lucky against a decent Army team, then he might not have! Michigan has underachieved since he has been the head coach. Great defense and a solid transfer quarterback in Shea Patterson, you would think they would look better. It's true I'm not a fan of his personally but I don't know if he gets the most out of his team. Michigan has been down for awhile and when I say down, I mean in a non contender type of way. This could very well be his last year there, as those fans aren't going to be very quiet if they don't improve or at least beat Ohio State. The very reason he was brought to Ann Arbor. He's lucky they get a week to prepare before they go to Wisconsin. Looking at the schedule, there are potential losses not only in that game, but also to Iowa, Penn State, Notre Dame, Maryland, and of course the 2 rival games with Michigan State and a Buckeyes that look like they won't miss a beat under new head coach Ryan Day. If he loses 3 of those games, it will be very hard for me to see him back next year. 


NOT ALOT TO TALK ABOUT THIS WEEK SOOOOOO>>>>PICKS


Arkansas State VS Georgia (3)

My Red Wolves are 1-0 since head coach Blake Anderson returned the sideline following his time away after the passing of his wife. The Georgia fans will actually be wearing pink in support of cancer to show their support to Arkansas State and Coach Anderson which is an awesome gesture! However, the support may not be the same on the field as the Bulldogs are expected to roll. The last time ASU played a gae against a major team it was Alabama last year in a game where they flat out played scared, unprepared and not ready for the moment. There were dropped passes and no efforts to even tackle someone on defense. I expect a MUCH better game tomorrow as the team continues to play inspired. Georgia with 2 Heisman candidates in the backfield will indeed be tough to stop but I expect Arkansas State to hang around for awhile.

GEORGIA 45 ASU 23

Alabama (2) VS South Carolina

Alabama returns to South Carolina for the first time since they lost in 2010. Obviously this is a much different team as that Gamecock team was led by Steve Spurrier and featured several NFL players. Not so much for this team. True Freshman don't always have the best luck against Nick Saban and Alabama but that's exactly what South Carolina brings in with Ryan Hilinski. I think the Gamecocks are talented and can make some plays, however Alabama may have more skill position talent than anyone and a quarterback who will likely be a high pick in next years NFL draft. I'll take Alabama but much closer than the experts think. 

Alabama 34 South Carolina 24

Clemson VS Syracuse

The only team to beat Clemson besides Alabama in the last 4 years is Syracuse and they also played them close 2 other times. But after watching the beatdown Maryland put on them last week, does anyone seriously think they have a chance? Syracuse is clearly and well coached and maybe they were looking ahead to this game but when you lose by 40 a week before playing the number 1 team in the country, it doesn't give me much hope. Clemson is extremely talented on both sides of the ball. They dominated Texas A&M and didn't play great to me. The fact that they can and will get better is scary. Syracuse may hang around for a half but it will just be a matter of time before the talent in the depth chart starts to show. 

CLEMSON 38 SYRACUSE 10

Oklahoma VS UCLA

Does anyone need a win more than Chip Kelly? He hasn't done anything since he arrived in downtown Los Angeles besides lose games and have fans questions anything he has ever done. Whatever magic he created in Oregon has clearly fallen by the wayside. And having Oklahoma roll the way they have so far this year is probably not the best way to get things on track. Oklahoma is too fast and too physical for a UCLA team that struggles to move the ball. Kelly needs to find consistency from the quarterback position immediately before the Bruins can even be challenging in this game. I expect Oklahoma to continue to dominate. Jalen Hurts is improving each week and tons of talent around him and Oklahoma's defense so far as at least an idea of how to stop someone. 

Oklahoma 48 UCLA 17