NCAAF Pick 'Em: Week 2

Opening week was a wake-up call for many of college football's top teams. Florida struggled against Miami (Ohio) in their first game sans Tim Tebow. Oklahoma barely came out on top against Utah State playing without Sam Bradford. More disastrous was Ole Miss' loss to FCS opponent Jacksonville State. The guru got off to a slow start as well, but he is expecting improved results in the second week. Good luck to all pick 'em contestants.

Note that the number in parentheses denotes the spread.

Wake Forest (-6) vs Duke     Wake Forest
Georgia Tech (-14) at Kansas     Georgia Tech
South Carolina (-3) vs Georgia     South Carolina
Army (-3) vs Hawaii     Army
Florida (-15) vs South Florida     Florida
Oklahoma (-7) vs Florida State     Florida State
Iowa (-13.5) vs Iowa State     Iowa
Ohio State (-8.5) vs Miami (Florida)     Miami (Florida)
California (-10) vs Colorado     California
Notre Dame (-4) vs Michigan     Michigan
Air Force (-1) vs BYU     Air Force
Washington (-13.5) vs Syracuse     Syracuse
Oregon (-12) at Tennessee     Oregon
LSU (-9.5) at Vanderbilt     LSU
Alabama (-12) vs Penn State     Penn State
Texas A&M vs Louisiana Tech     Texas A&M
Central Florida (-3) vs NC State     NC State
Ole Miss (-20.5) at Tulane     Ole Miss
Southern California (-19.5) vs Virginia     Southern California
Stanford (-6) at UCLA     Stanford

Wake Forest is without Riley Skinner and the Blue Devils are missing Thaddeus Lewis. The Demon Deacons win at home in the new QBs first ACC game...Turner Gill will turn his new team around after a 6-3 loss to North Dakota State in his debut, but recall the Jayhawks surrendering 4.0 YPC in 2009. Not helpful against Georgia Tech's triple-option attack...The Bulldogs may be ranked higher than the other USC, but expect the Gamecocks to come out on top. It seems as though Steve Spurrier has finally implemented the high-scoring offense he was famous for at Florida...The Black Knights do one thing offensively, and that is run the football. The Warriors surrendered 246 yards on the ground last week (7.0 YPC) and 2,624 yards in 2009 (4.9 YPC). Expect Army to pound the ball with success almost every snap. Plus, Hawaii can't be happy about playing in West Point...Florida certainly struggled offensively in Week 1, fumbling eight times en route to 25 total yards of offense after three quarters. But the athletes the Gators have are just too much for USF to handle...After allowing 341 passing yards to Utah State, expect Oklahoma to have trouble containing FSU QB Christian Ponder, who went 12-14 on Saturday. Don't sleep on the Seminoles this week in Norman...With one of the nations' premiere defenses, Iowa should have no trouble handling their in-state rival Cyclones, whom they have held without a touchdown since 2006, a streak currently at 14 quarters. QB Ricky Stanzi (18-23 last week) will keep things moving offensively to cover the spread...The premiere game of the weekend will be the battle between Ohio State and Miami (Florida). Playing in Columbus, Terrelle Pryor will likely lead his Buckeyes to victory, but the 8.5 point spread may be too much to overcome...The Irish defense answered questions about their supposes lack of speed against Purdue, but Michigan QB Denard Robinson will give them headaches. Wolverines upset Notre Dame in South Bend...BYU looked impressive in their win against Washington, but Air Force is an entirely different opponent. Expect the Cougars to struggle containing the Falcons' option offense...Washington will likely win the game, but won't outscore Syracuse by two touchdowns...Oregon brings their ultra-explosive offense to Knoxville this weekend, where Volunteer fans are missing NFL first round draft picks Eric Berry and Dan Williams. The Ducks win comfortably on the road...Vanderbilt played well against Northwestern in their opening game, but LSU is too good for a 9.5 point spread...Alabama will be without Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram, but backup Trent Richardson has the goods to pick up the slack. The Tide, who lost three cornerbacks to the NFL, will be victorious, but not by 12 points...

NCAAF Pick 'Em: Week 1

College football season is upon us and for those dedicated fans who partake in weekly pick 'em competitions, the first weekend is as crucial as they come. Fortunately, the guru is here to share his predictions on the opening week, along with some short commentary to explain his thinking. Enjoy.

Missouri (-12.0) vs Illinois     Missouri

Colorado (-11.5) at Colorado State     Colorado

Kansas State (-1.5) vs UCLA     Kansas State

Michigan (-2.5) vs Connecticut     Connecticut

Texas (-30.5) at Rice     Texas

Kentucky (-3.5) at Louisville     Louisville

Notre Dame (-11.0) vs Purdue     Notre Dame

Virginia (Off) vs Richmond     Richmond

Syracuse (-8.5) at Akron     Syracuse

Mississippi State (-21.0) vs Memphis     Mississippi State

BYU (-2.5) vs Washington     Washington

Northwestern (-4.5) at Vanderbilt     Vanderbilt

TCU (-13.5) vs Oregon State     TCU

LSU (-6.5) at North Carolina     LSU

Fresno State (-2.5) vs Cincinnati     Cincinnati

Wisconsin (-20.5) at UNLV     Wisconsin

Tulsa (-7.5) at East Carolina     Tulsa

Texas Tech (-13.5) vs SMU     Texas Tech

Navy (-6.0) at Maryland    Navy

Boise State (-2.0) at Virginia Tech     Boise State

Illinois prepares to play its first game in the post- Juice-Williams-era against Missouri. The Fighting Illini enter the game minus two starters in what was already a shaky secondary, not a problem you want to have against Missouri...Colorado attempts to avenge last year's opening week upset against in-state rival Colorado State. Look for the Buffs to pressure true freshman QB Pete Thomas from the first snap...Playing without four starters on the offensive line, look for UCLA to have trouble getting settled offensively against Kansas State. It doesn't help that the Bruins are traveling half way across the country to play in a different time zone...Self-proclaimed experts are writing off UCONN's chances because of their inability to handle the pressure of playing in the recently expanded Big House, but those clowns fail to note that the Huskies won on the road in South Bend last year and that their five losses in 2009 came by a total of fifteen points...While Texas won't score at the same rate they have over the past few seasons, look for the Longhorns defense to shut down Rice. Garret Gilbert should be able to accumulate 35 points against the young Owls...Look for Louisville to upset Kentucky in the Governor Cup. The Cardinals will have an entirely different look on both sides of the ball this season under new head coach Charlie Strong, formerly employed as the defensive coordinator at Florida...Have faith in the hurry-up offense of new Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly. If the Irish can execute the new system, overcoming an 11 point spread should not be too difficult...Don't sleep on Richmond in their upcoming game against Virginia. The Spiders, FCS National Champions in 2008, won't be an easy win for the Cavaliers...After holding Akron's offense to 50 yards in the second half last season, Syracuse should have no trouble overcoming an 8.5 point spread against the Zips...After going 2-10 in 2009 while playing in Conference USA, Memphis will struggle on the road against SEC foe Mississippi State...BYU will be a tough test for Heisman candidate Jake Locker and Washington, but the guru foresees the Huskies winning in Provo, which would be their first road win since 2007...Northwestern may be without QB Mike Kafka, but the Wildcats should be able to outscore Vanderbilt by five points...Playing in Cowboys Stadium will be one heck of a debut for Oregon State QB Ryan Katz, who will make his first collegiate start against sixth-ranked TCU. On the other side of the ball, QB Andy Dalton needs one more victory to become the winningest signal caller in Horned Frog history. Fourteen extra points will be tough for the Frogs to muster, but take a gamble on them covering the spread...Distracted by a recent investigation and without at least one dozen players, UNC will be at a serious disadvantage against LSU this weekend...The Cincinnati Bearcats are without coach Brian Kelly and QB Tony Pike, but Zach Collaros proved himself as a passer last season. Fresno State will be missing Ryan Mathews, the nation's leading rusher in 2009. In what will likely become a shootout, give the edge to the Bearcats...Assuming the Badgers can avoid the temptations of Sin City, #12 Wisconsin should be able to dispatch UNLV with ease...Expect the high-octane Golden Hurricane offense to pounce on the Pirates of East Carolina. Tulsa covers the spread without difficulty...While Texas Tech may not have the obscene passing statistics from 2008, they are still Texas Tech and SMU is still SMU. Enough said...Maryland will certainly improve on a disastrous 2009, but they will struggle to stop the triple-option attack of Navy's Ricky Dobbs...Virginia Tech will be a tough opponent for Boise State, but we all know how the Broncos perform in big games. With 20 returning starters, the men of the blue turf will be too much for the ACC-favorite Hokies.