Game of the Week: Welcome to the Jungle

The game of the week features two squads that are fresh off big wins against decent opponents. The Bengals and Jets square off at Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati. The Jest beat the Patriots last week off of a personal foul call that will most likely be changed at the end of the season. The Bengals have narrowly won their last 2 games on the road and are excited to be back home. AJ Green has been terrific this year hauling in 5 TD. Andy Dalton and him are really clicking. The Jets' run defense has been very stout this season, only allowing 77 yards a game. Their running game on offense has not had that big numbers. The Jets have been very inconsistent this season. They have not won two straight games the whole year. Their margin of victory has been 4.3 points per win. The Bengals are sitting atop the AFC North, while the Jets are one game behind the Patriots for 1st in the AFC East. I am not a believer in this Jets team, and I really don't think they can do what they have been doing for much longer.                                   

My Pick: Bengals 30 Jets 10

Season Record: 4-3

Saturday Slate: Too Many Games!

This weekend is filled with games of high caliber teams with big offenses. I am 13-11 with my picks this season. I will be giving you an analysis and prediction with all of the 3 most interesting games going on. The layout will be one PAC-12 game, one SEC game, and one Big 12 game. The most under the radar game of the week comes from the Big 12 between #10 Texas Tech and #15 Oklahoma. Tech is undefeated and tied for 1st in the Big 12 with Baylor. The Big 12 is rather weak this season, though. 

#10 Texas Tech vs #15 Oklahoma

3:30 PM

Texas Tech has a high powered offense averaging 41 PPG. The Sooners only blemish on their record comes from a loss to Texas in the Red River Rivalry. Their biggest win came against Notre Dame. Texas Tech has split time at QB with Baker Mayfield and Davis Webb. Mayfield did not play last week because of a knee injury. They have combined for 21 TD and 10 INT. Blake Bell has been starting at QB for the Sooners. I think that the Red Raiders will have a tough time scoring against the stout Oklahoma defense. 

My Pick: Oklahoma 24 Texas Tech 13

#21 South Carolina vs #5 Missouri

7:00 PM 

Missouri has been the most surprising team this season. Even without starting QB James Franklin, the Tigers have been terrific with backup Matty Mauk. They have had some big wins against Georgia and Florida. South Carolina is without QB Connor Shaw. They are in a very tough position. Jadeveon Clowney and Chaz Sutton haven't been as effective on the D-line as they were hyped. This game will be close, but I am going with Missouri to get the job done. 

My Pick: Missouri 38 South Carolina 35

#12 UCLA vs #3 Oregon

7:00 PM

College Gameday is in Eugene for the game and you know that the Duck fans will be very loud. It is an extremely hostile environment. Oregon has arguably the best offense in the country. They have scored 45+ points in all of their 7 games. Marcus Mariota has been electrifying this season and is a Heisman front-runner. UCLA has two very special players on their defensive front 7 in Eddie Vanderdoes and Anthony Barr. Barr is a projected top 5 pick in the NFL Draft. Bralon Addison and Josh Huff have been big targets for the Ducks. I suspect that Brett Hundley will haves tough go of it with the Oregon pass rush. 

My Pick: Oregon 52 UCLA 30

2013 World Series Preview

The World Series is finally upon us and the two teams that have taken a grueling road to get here are the Red Sox and Cardinals. Game 1 will be played in Boston at Fenway Park tonight. The Red Sox beat the Tigers in six games. The play that changed the series came at the hands of Big Papi, David Ortiz. Ortiz cracked a grand slam to tie the game up in Game 2 of the series. Detroit was about to go up 2-0 in the series until that play. The Cardinals took care of the Dodgers last series. Allen Craig is back in the starting lineup tonight. He suffered a sprained foot and hasn't played since September 4. He won't take the field, but will be the DH since the game is in Boston. Jon Lester is on the mound for the Sox, while Adam Wainwright is the starter for the Cards. Mike Napoli has been huge for the Red Sox as he hit 2 HR in the ALCS. Everyone has chipped in for St. Louis. Carlos Beltran has been on a tear in this Postseason. He has accounted for 10 hits for 12 RBI. Shane Robinson has also been solid for the Cards in just 4 games. This should be a very close series, bit I am going with the Cardinals in 7 games. 

Follow me on Twitter @MM8sports for more updates.

Game of the Week: Indy Reunion

The game of the week features one of the greatest Quarterbacks of all time going back to his old team that dropped him for a young QB that has been stellar in his two seasons in the NFL. Peyton Manning is going back to Indy as him and the Broncos try to take down the Colts and stay perfect. The Broncos are 6-0, while the Colts are 4-2. The Broncos have won 17 straight regular season contests. Andrew Luck has had another terrific season like last year. Newly acquired RB Trent Richardson hasn't had the effect that the Colts were hoping for.
Richardson Richardson has only rush for 3.2 yards per game. The Colts are coming off of a tough performance against the Chargers. The 19-9 loss came at a surprise to most. The Broncos had an unimpressive win by their standards against the winless Jaguars.
My Pick: Broncos 34 Colts 24
Season Record: 4-2

ACC Top 5 Showdown

Tonight, is probably the biggest game of the year in the ACC. The matchup between #3 Clemson and #5 Florida State showcases two major Heisman candidates and two top five teams. They are two of the three undefeated teams in the ACC. Miami is the only other ACC team without a blemish on their record. the other two matchups I am picking come in the PAC-12 and SEC. After a 3-0 week, I am 12-9 with my season picks.

#24 Auburn vs #7 Texas A&M

3:30 PM Kyle Field

Auburn has been a surprise team in the SEC at 5-1. There only loss came against LSU this season. Texas A&M is also 5-1 and have been playing very good football. Their only loss came against Alabama. Johnny Manziel has been putting up beast numbers this season and is contention for the Heisman Trophy. Mike Evans has been Johnny Football's main target this season. Evans has hauled in 5 TD and 737 yards this season. Auburn is lead on offense by Junior RB Tre Mason. This game should be pretty interesting. I am looking forward to seeing if Auburn is for real. I think TAMU will just put up too many points for the Tigers to try and match. 

My Pick: Texas A&M 38 Auburn 27

#9 UCLA vs #13 Stanford

3:30 PM Stanford Stadium

Stanford is coming off an upset loss to Utah. It will be interesting to see how they bounce back. UCLA has quietly snuck up into the Top 10. Running their offense is Brett Hundley at QB. Hundley has put up very good numbers this season. He is an under the radar Heisman candidate. UCLA RB Jordon James is questionable for today's game with an ankle injury. Ty Montgomery and Devin Cajuste have been Stanford's best WR this year. This has big implications on the PAC-12 Championship Game. A loss for Stanford digs themselves into a very big hole. This is a rematch of last year's PAC-12 Championship where Stanford won handily. 

My Pick: Stanford 30 UCLA 24

#5 Florida State vs #3 Clemson

This is the game of the year in the ACC. It has been a relatively strong year for the conference thanks to these two schools. Clemson boasts QB Tajh Boyd and electric WR Sammy Watkins. FSU's QB isn't too shabby either. Jameis "Famous" Winston. Winston is just a Freshman and has even tearing it up. He has thrown for 17 TD this season and has rushed for 2 more. The Seminoles have not faced a team like Clemson though. There only big games came against Maryalnd. FSU destroyed them 63-0. Clemson's biggest win of the season came against Georgia in Week 1.

My Pick: Clemson 31 FSU 21

Game of the Week: NFC East Showdown

The game I am picking this week probably isn't the most exciting game, but it already has major Playoff implications. The Redskins and Cowboys are near the top of the NFC East with records of 1-3 (Redskins) and 2-3 (Cowboys). The NFC East is the worst division in the NFL, so it is anyone's game. The Giants are last with an 0-6 record and the Eagles are 3-3 and 1st in the division. Robert Griffin III has not had the type of season he has wanted. The Cowboys are coming off tough loss to Denver in the final seconds. Tony Romo played very well, but threw a costly INT in the final minutes. My key to the game is Demarco Murray. If he can get going, Dallas will be in luck.
My Pick: Redskins 30 Cowboys 24

College Football Pick 'Em

There is some very intriguing matchups in college football today. I am now .500 with my predictions. my season record is 9-9. I am picking the three best games of the day. Two of the games are from the SEC while one is from the PAC-12. Two of the games I am choosing consist of undefeated teams.

#25 Missouri (5-0) vs #7 Georgia (4-1)

Missouri has been the surprising team in the SEC this year. They have had an easier schedule, but their next three games are against ranked teams. Georgia has had to scrape and claw just to get to where they are now. They have won four straight and is coming off a thriller against Tennessee. Aaron Murray has thrown for over 1,500 yards this season and 14 TD for the Bulldogs. Mizzou has a good QB in James Franklin. He has thrown for 13 TD and just over 1,400 yards. He has terrific targets in Dorial Green-Beckham and L'Damian Washington. The Tigers offense is very balanced and puts up plenty of points. They have also ran for 16  TD. Georgia does have the home-field advantage, though. 

My Pick: Missouri 38 Georgia 30 

#17 Florida (4-1) vs #10 LSU (5-1)

Both of these two teams are near the top of the standings in their SEC Divisions. Florida is tied with Georgia and Mizzou atop the East while LSU is 2nd in the West behind #1 Alabama. Zach Mettenberger has been exceptional for LSU this season. He is a dark horse in the Heisman race. With Jeff Driskel injured, backup QB Tyler Murphy has stepped up huge for the Gators. Florida has won their last 3 since a loss to Miami. LSU bounced back last week with a drubbing of Mississippi State after their loss to Georgia. Jeremy Hill has been a beast for LSU with 9 TD. Odell Beckham and Jarvis Landry have been Mettenberger's favorite WR. It will be tough to score on this Florida defense that only gives up 12.2 points a game. 

My Pick: LSU 23 Florida 14

#2 Oregon (5-0) vs #16 Washington (4-1)

College Gameday is in Seattle to watch two of the top teams in the PAC-12. Washington is coming off a heartbreaking loss to Stanford off of a questionable call. Keith Price has been terrific this season. Oregon has just steamrolled every single one of their opponents. This matchup showcases at least two Heisman candidates in Marcus Mariota and Keith Price. Mariota has been an absolute beast this season.  Washington will have a very tough time slowing him down. The X-factor for the Huskies is RB Bishop Sankey. He takes such a load and puts up huge numbers. It is always tough to go on the road and beat Washington, but I think Oregon will get it done.
My Pick: Oregon 49 Washington 45