Week 8 College Football Predictions

Wednesday
Louisiana-Lafayette (+9) at Florida Atlantic: For how little I know about either team, I do know that Lafayette is 3-2 while playing some decent competition while Atlantic is 2-4 and have been trampled by the decent competition they've faced. Based on that factor alone, I'll have to go with the Rajun' Cajuns.
Louisiana-Lafayette 28 Florida Atlantic 14
Louisiana-Lafayette 6 Florida Atlantic 0 (1-0) (0-1)

Thursday
Bowling Green at Central Michigan (+7): After losing tough non-conference games against the likes of Boston College (by only 7), Michigan (by 24), and Kentucky (by 9), the Chippewas are ready to go 5-0 in the MAC conference with this win.
Central Michigan 31 Bowling Green 24
Central Michigan 31 Bowling Green 14 (2-0) (1-1)

North Carolina at Virginia (+6): Outside of Duke, these are the two worst teams in the ACC. Carolina has played one of the toughest schedules in all the country which has contributed to their awful 1-5 start. Virginia nearly fell to Wyoming and did lose to Western Michigan. For the simple fact that the game is in Charlottesville, I'm going with the Cavaliers, but not by the predicted spread.
Virginia 24 North Carolina 21
Virginia 23 North Carolina 0 (3-0) (1-2)

Utah (+6) at New Mexico: Utah is a very inconsistent team, who has beaten the likes of TCU and has fallen to Boise State by 33 points. They had one of their off weeks a week ago, so this team of mystery is due for their good week against the Lobos.
Utah 24 New Mexico 17
New Mexico 34 Utah 31 (3-1) (1-3)

Friday
West Virginia (+21.5) at UConn: The toughest part about picking West Virginia games is the question of will their defense hold the opposition enough to cover the spread. UConn does not have a very formidable offense, so I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that they do this time.
West Virginia 38 UConn 14
West Virginia 37 UConn 11 (4-1) (2-3)

Saturday
Texas (+6.5) at Nebraska: This will be the first true road test for redshirt freshman quarterback Colt McCoy. It'll be critical for NU to get off to a quick start to keep the sold-out crowd in the game. I don't see that happening. Texas has been looking stellar ever since their loss to top-ranked Ohio State. While the game won't be easy, I see the 'Horns getting the upper hand in this one.
Texas 35 Nebraska 21

Iowa at Michigan (+13.5): With the way Iowa got outplayed last week against typical Big Ten doormat Indiana, it'd be easy to look at this game and "assume" that it'll be a blowout in favor of the Wolverines. Not so fast, though. It's obvious that Iowa looked ahead last week to this very game. While I don't see them winning, I see them making it very close.
Michigan 28 Iowa 21

Kansas at Baylor (+3.5): Baylor is a favorite in a Big XII game? Wow. Kansas has caught the short end of a few conference games this year. Even though it makes me nervous to do this, I'm going with the Bears, but close, very close.
Baylor 24 Kansas 21

Kansas State at Missouri (+16): Missouri beat themselves last week in College Station. It'll be interesting to see how they respond. While I see the Tigers coming out victorious in this contest, I don't see them covering the spread.
Missouri 38 Kansas State 24

Colorado at Oklahoma (+13.5): This is actually a tough pick for me. Colorado started the year 0-6, but are coming off a 30-6 blow-out win over Texas Tech and OU is 4-2, but have lost star tailback Adrian Peterson for the rest of the regular season. Call me crazy, but with the 'Buffs stingy defense and their renewed confidence on offense, I'm going with the upset!
Colorado 24 Oklahoma 21

Texas A&M at Oklahoma State (+3): If you like points, this may be your type of game. I've been underestimating (not "misunderestimating" as someone might put it) TAMU all year, but with the game in Stillwater and the Aggies primed for a set-back after their upset win over Missouri a week ago, I'm going to potentially underestimate them again and go with the Cowboys.
Oklahoma State 38 Texas A&M 35

Texas Tech (+2.5) at Iowa State: Texas Tech is coming off a 30-6 blowout loss to Colorado, who was 0-6 at the time. ISU has not played very well all year. I don't see that trend changing this weekend. I'm going with the Red Raiders.
Texas Tech 31 Iowa State 24

Michigan State (+6.5) at Northwestern: It's tough for me to take the Spartans, considering the fact they've fallen apart, losing 4 in a row after their 3-0 start. Northwestern, however, has designated themselves as the conference doormat this year. No matter how poorly MSU is playing, they should beat the Tamecats.
Michigan State 24 Northwestern 17

Indiana at Ohio State (+31): All I can say is OSU better not look past Indy like Iowa did last weekend. Ahh, forget it. Even if they did, they'd still win this one. But, I don't expect them to cover the large spread.
Ohio State 35 Indiana 14

Illinois at Penn State (+17.5): PSU fought Michigan tough for sixty minutes last Saturday in their disappointing 17-10 loss to the unbeaten Wolverines. PSU is now 4-3 and needing some wins to become bowl eligible and be invited to a potentially decent bowl game. JoPa and his troops should feed off the disappointment from last week to pound the Illini at home.
Penn State 35 Illinois 10

Wisconsin (+6) at Purdue: Possibly the most unimpressive two-loss team in the country is Purdue. If they beat the Badgers here, then I'll be proven wrong, but I don't see that happening. How's life after Barry Alvarez? The BAH-gers are 6-1 with the 10-year senior quarterback John Stocco at the helm. I honestly don't know how good Wis-CON-sin is yet, but for how little I know, I must say, I'm becoming more and more impressed by the week.
Wisconsin 28 Purdue 17

Air Force (+14) at San Diego State: What happened to SDSU? They've been a pain in the backside for Big Ten schools such as Ohio State, Michigan, and this year, Wisconsin. Yet, they're 0-5 and regressing on a weekly basis. Air Force, meanwhile, is playing their style of football and looking good doing it. The Falcons should have no problems in this one.
Air Force 31 San Diego State 14

Miami (Ohio) at Akron (+8): Miami has found a way to lose the close ones. I could see them coming away with the upset here, but am going to give the slim home field edge to the Zips.
Akron 24 Miami (Ohio) 21

Marshall at UAB (+7): Chad Pennington is gone. Byron Leftwich is gone. Randy Moss is long gone. What's left? I don't know anymore. It should be close, but I'm going with the Blazers.
UAB 24 Marshall 21

Stanford at Arizona State (+23): Let's see here. The Cardinal is 0-7. They've played one of the toughest schedules in the nation thus far, but still, they're winless. While I don't see 3-3 Arizona State covering the large spread, I see Stanford falling to 0-8. How much time are they going to give Walt Harris to turn the team around?
Arizona State 28 Stanford 10

Ole Miss at Arkansas (+19): Ole Miss has been improving as the year has progressed. They've especially looked decent on the defensive side of the ball. If they can mature on offense, they may become respectable again. A respectable defensive showing isn't going to be enough to beat the 'Hogs at home, though.
Arkansas 24 Ole Miss 7

North Texas at Arkansas State (+11): The Mean Green aren't looking very mean anymore. They represented the Sun Belt conference how many consecutive years in the New Orleans Bowl? Last year, Arkansas State snapped that streak. Look for the Indians to know out North Texas again.
Arkansas State 24 North Texas 14

Tulane at Auburn (+32): Yeah, Auburn might be a little hung over from their big win against Florida, but that shouldn't matter against Tulane. Auburn wins big.
Auburn 38 Tulane 14

UNLV at BYU (+28.5): The only question I have is, can the Cougars cover over a 4 touchdown spread? They'll probably be a tad rusty from the outset, coming off the bye week and all, so I'm going to say no to that question, but they should still win the game.
BYU 31 UNLV 17

Boise State (+21) at Idaho: Boise State had no problem scoring last week against New Mexico State, but had problems stopping their opponent. I don't think they'll have as much a problem with that in this game. Broncos win big.
Boise State 38 Idaho 17

Washington at Cal (+22.5): Ouch! The Huskies, who are 4-3, aren't getting any love, are they? Yeah, Cal will win the game, but not by over three touchdowns.
Cal 28 Washington 17

Rice at Central Florida (+5.5): I'm not confident with this pick, because UCF has not played nearly as well as they did a year ago. But, I'm going with the home team.
Central Florida 24 Rice 21

Georgia Tech at Clemson (+7.5): The ACC game of the year is typically Florida State vs. Miami or Miami vs. Virginia Tech. Not this year. Georgia Tech and Clemson are playing the best football of all 12 ACC teams and the winning team will definitely hold an advantage the rest of the way in the conference. Rarely do I pick against Calvin Johnson, but Clemson may have too much offensive punch for the Jackets to counter.
Clemson 28 Georgia Tech 24

SMU at East Carolina (+6.5): ECU disappointed me last week in their 31-10 loss to Tulsa. It's hard for me to see them play that poorly two consecutive weeks. SMU will play it close, though. Don't be shocked if the 'Stangs upset the Pirates.
East Carolina 24 SMU 21

Toledo at Eastern Michigan (+1.5): An 0-6 MAC team is a favorite this week. Why? Because it's a home game? If Toledo loses this one, whew, that'd be embarrassing. I'm going with the ::gulp:: underdog Rockets.
Toledo 28 Eastern Michigan 17

Boston College at Florida State (+7): Knowing BC the way I think I do, expect them not to get blown out. They played it close up until two weeks ago when they beat Division I-AA Maine 22-0. They went from there to beat Virginia Tech 22-3. BC quarterback Matt Ryan is a question mark going into this game. But, I really don't care if the guy plays or not. Tom O'Brien is going to have his kids ready to play. This is a club who has already beaten the likes of Clemson and Virginia Tech. Add Florida State to that impressive resume'.
Boston College 21 Florida State 17

Mississippi State at Georgia (+18): Can I pick MSU here? Ehhh, allright, I won't do that. How low with UGA be following their home loss to Vandy last week? I don't know. I have no idea what to expect from UGA anymore. MSU might be able to prevent the Bulldogs (the other ones) from scoring much, but it's difficult for me to see MSU scoring much at all against UGA.
Georgia 17 Mississippi State 3

Hawaii (+18.5) at New Mexico State: NMSU is 2-4 this year, but those two teams are of the Division I-AA variety. They can put up a few points as they illustrated last Sunday night against Boise State. But, regardless of how many points they score on Saturday, Hawaii will score more.
Hawaii 49 New Mexico State 24

UTEP at Houston (+6): Houston has lost three tight games in a row after starting the season 4-0. This game should be close, as well, but for some reason- call it a hunch- I'm going with Houston.
Houston 38 UTEP 35

Fresno State at LSU (+32.5): On an average year, I'd probably look at this as a potential upset. Just last year, Pat Hill's Bulldogs lead USC in the 4th quarter before losing the game late. That was a Fresno club that believed in themselves. This Fresno club is 1-5, losers of five straight (including a loss to Utah State), and showing no signs of pulling it back together. LSU should have no problems here.
LSU 45 Fresno State 21

Utah State at Louisiana Tech (+6): I showed faith in the Bulldogs last week against Idaho, since they had played one of the toughest schedules to that point. But, no, they lost. A home game against Utah State? Again, I'm going to put a little faith in the University that produced such NFL stars (note of sarcasm) as Tim Rattay and Troy Edwards.
Louisiana Tech 21 Utah State 14

Louisville (+17) at Syracuse: Head coach Bobby Petrino can't be content with his offense's performance a week ago against Cincinnati. With a week under his belt, quarterback Brian Brohm should be a little more crisp in this game. Don't look for Syracuse to get blown out, but don't look for it to come down to the last play like it did last week either.
Louisville 28 Syracuse 14

NC State at Maryland (+3): Mediocre teams in the mediocre ACC duking it out for rights to a mediocre bowl game. Even though Maryland comes in with the better record, NC State has beaten the better teams and should play with a sense of urgency, enough to pull out the victory on the road.
NC State 24 Maryland 21

Miami (Florida) (+18) at Duke: Miami is just an 18 point favorite over Duke? It'll be interesting to see how the team responds following the brawl last week. Duke should pose no challenge to the 'Canes, but don't expect the biggest blowout in the world either.
Miami (Florida) 24 Duke 3

Middle Tennessee State (+4) at Louisiana-Monroe: Flip a coin on this one. Heads- Blue Raiders. Tails- Indians. Okay, it's a heads. I'm going with MTSU, but close.
Middle Tennessee State 24 Louisiana-Monroe 21

Temple at Northern Illinois (+34): How bad is Temple? They're a 34-point underdog to a team with a record of 4-3. Garrett Wolfe is set to rebound at home following his disappointing performance last week against Western Michigan. Expect him to run and run successfully against the Owls' horrendous D.
Northern Illinois 42 Temple 7

San Jose State at Nevada (+13): The spread on this one is pretty surprising, given the fact that SJSU comes into this game at 4-1 and Nevada at 3-3. San Jose State's wins have come against below average (that's being nice) competition, but their one loss was a six point defeat to the improved Washington Huskies. Nevada is well rested after a bye and should pull out the victory at home, but I'm not buying the large spread.
Nevada 28 San Jose State 24

UCLA at Notre Dame (+13.5): UCLA went into Autzen Stadium last week at 4-1 and with on e of the top defenses (statistically speaking) in the country. That number was skewed given the fact they played high school teams. Notre Dame will further illustrate that UCLA's defense isn't much to write home about.
Notre Dame 28 UCLA 17

Buffalo at Ohio (+17.5): Husker madness right here! It's Turner Gill against Frank Solich! Buffalo's coming off a tough seven point loss to then winless Miami (Ohio). Ohio, meanwhile, is coming off an upset win over Big Ten Illinois. With the momentum from that and the win two weeks ago against Western Michigan, I'm going to have to go with the Bobcats.
Ohio 35 Buffalo 14

Oregon (+4) at Washington State: I've got a lot of respect for Washington State. They were one possession short of pulling off the upset against USC. They played it tough with Cal for three quarters after a dreadful start. They played Auburn tough for a half, before the Tigers pulled away. But, Oregon is quick and loaded on offense and should have enough to outscore the Cougars.
Oregon 28 Washington State 21

Oregon State (+2) at Arizona: OSU may be 3-3, but they have not impressed me much this season. They were blown out of the building against Boise State and have a Division I-AA win to their credit. Arizona beat BYU early on and have two losses against the likes of USC and LSU. With the game in Tucson, I'm going with the upset here.
Arizona 21 Oregon State 17

Rutgers at Pittsburgh (+6.5): Unbeaten Rutgers was an underdog last week to Navy and what'd the Scarlet Knights do? They shut out the Midshipmen on their home field 34-0. I don't believe they will blowout the Panthers like that, but do believe they'll be too physical in their running game for the undersized Panther defense.
Rutgers 28 Pittsburgh 24

South Carolina (+3) at Vanderbilt: Vandy is coming home on cloud nine following their upset win over Georgia a week ago. That will hurt them early in this game and they'll be unable to come back enough late to come out victorious.
South Carolina 24 Vanderbilt 17

TCU (+12) at Army: Army has been very inconsistent this year and TCU is struggling, having lost two straight. It's hard for me to think TCU will cover this spread, for how ineffective their offense has been thus far. But, at the same time, it's difficult for me to see Army win the game.
TCU 21 Army 17

Alabama at Tennessee (+11.5): The 'Vols are playing great football, especially on the offensive side of the ball. If it wasn't for their one point setback to Florida, they'd be right up there with the likes of Ohio State, USC, and Michigan. 'Vols should win this one against the mediocre 'Bama offense.
Tennessee 28 Alabama 17

Tulsa (+12.5) at Memphis: Watch out for the Golden Hurricane! Tulsa is 5-1 and with a win in this game, become bowl eligible. Memphis has to their credit just one win on the season and following a heartbreak last week to Arkansas State, they'll play mopey in this one and this all plays to Tulsa's advantage.
Tulsa 38 Memphis 10

Southern Miss at Virginia Tech (+17): The Hokies, who have lost two straight, following a 4-0 start are favored by 17? What? They have scored a combined 30 points in those two losses and fourteen of those points came in junk time. While I see the Hokies winning this one at home, there's no way I see them covering the spread.
Virginia Tech 24 Southern Miss 17

Western Michigan (+3.5) at Ball State: WMU shut Garrett Wolfe down to under 30 yards last week. If they can do that to Wolfe, I don't want to even know what they can do to the backs and offense at BSU. Western should win this one.
Western Michigan 24 Ball State 10

Colorado State at Wyoming (+4): Following four tough losses to start the season, Wyoming has won three straight, including their 31-15 victory over Utah last week. Now that they've discovered they can win and have the confidence needed on Saturdays to pull through, I'm going with the Cowboys.
Wyoming 28 Colorado State 24

Sunday
South Florida at Cincinnati (+1.5): Cincy may be 3-4, but three of their four losses have come on the road to such clubs as Ohio State, Virginia Tech, and Louisville. They gave the Buckeyes a scare for a half, VTech a scare for three quarters, and the Cards a scare until the final play of the game. But, coming so close a week ago to beating undefeated Louisville and failing to do so may lead to a slight hangover for the Bearcats and South Florida is playing better each and every week. I like the Bulls in this one.
South Florida 24 Cincinnati 21