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War Damn Eagle / Re: Pre-Dick-Shuns Week Treze
« Last post by The Six on November 20, 2024, 08:35:40 PM »5 Indiana @ 2 Ohio St. (-13.5)
I think Ohio State wins this. Do I think they are basically two touchdowns better than Indiana? I do. Ohio State's schedule may not be filled with tons of iron to sharpen against, but I believe it's better than what Indiana has faced. The Hoosiers have mowed down the chaff all year, but even so have hit a snag recently. Stepping this far up against a more experienced team and coaching staff leads me to pick Ohio State.
14 BYU @ 21 Arizona St (-3)
Riding on the razor's edge finally caught up with BYU last week and it still took a myriad of strange, fluky mistakes for Kansas to finally beat them. Arizona State has overachieved this season, but they are also more volatile. Having finally absorbed the loss and knowing what they have to do to play in the tournament, I expect the Cougars will bring their A-game to Tempe. Give me BYU.
19 Army @ 6 Notre Dame (-14.5)
The Army story is a great one. Coach Monkin and staff should be commended for this long streak of wins going back to last year. The match up here is bad on a size variance. Navy was on a roll until they hit the wall against Notre Dame and haven't been the same since. The Irish don't do anything special on offense in the passing game. They can run the ball effectively. On defense, the Irish continue to play with discipline more and more since the NIU snafu. Still, that's a lot of points for two teams that Notre Dame wins, but Army keeps it respectable.
15 Texas A&M (-2.5) @ Auburn
I don't know what Vegas sees here. The Auburn offense is mediocre on a good day and is easy to stuff in a locker. Texas A&M's defense can be a real problem (outside of getting worked over by South Carolina). The Aggies offense can be frustrating at times, but they are far more consistent than the competition. I also don't buy any talk about the road environment mattering at all. Auburn has checked out on this season, Hugh looks miserable, and that team is subpar in talent compared to Texas A&M. Give me Texas A&M to cover and smother, word to the mutha.
7 Alabama (13.5) @ Oklahoma
Speaking of checked out, Oklahoma is in the midst of what I expect will be many staff changes as Venables scrambles to save his job next year. Oklahoma's offense is hard to trust in any scenario. Their defense has sprung leaks down the stretch as well. Alabama's offense knows what it can do best and they should continue to lean into those things. The defense is making strides and all that youth in the back end now has experience. Give me Alabama by a bunch.
9 Ole Miss (-10.5) @ Florida
Billy not only saved his job, he's laid out a great blueprint for what this Gators' era can be. They had a brutal schedule and no one thought they'd be at this point during the season. Ole Miss has taken care of "bad" teams on their schedule and they got a big one against Georgia. The Florida defensive line destroyed what was left of LSU's leaky OL. Anyone who has watched Ole Miss will tell you they have struggled in pass pro all year. The key to beating the Rebels is to force Jaxon Dart off schedule. He may not give you turnovers, but he will miss guys when facing heat. I'm taking Florida here.They are playing the hot hand and I don't think Ole Miss can go on the road and do a thing.
I think Ohio State wins this. Do I think they are basically two touchdowns better than Indiana? I do. Ohio State's schedule may not be filled with tons of iron to sharpen against, but I believe it's better than what Indiana has faced. The Hoosiers have mowed down the chaff all year, but even so have hit a snag recently. Stepping this far up against a more experienced team and coaching staff leads me to pick Ohio State.
14 BYU @ 21 Arizona St (-3)
Riding on the razor's edge finally caught up with BYU last week and it still took a myriad of strange, fluky mistakes for Kansas to finally beat them. Arizona State has overachieved this season, but they are also more volatile. Having finally absorbed the loss and knowing what they have to do to play in the tournament, I expect the Cougars will bring their A-game to Tempe. Give me BYU.
19 Army @ 6 Notre Dame (-14.5)
The Army story is a great one. Coach Monkin and staff should be commended for this long streak of wins going back to last year. The match up here is bad on a size variance. Navy was on a roll until they hit the wall against Notre Dame and haven't been the same since. The Irish don't do anything special on offense in the passing game. They can run the ball effectively. On defense, the Irish continue to play with discipline more and more since the NIU snafu. Still, that's a lot of points for two teams that Notre Dame wins, but Army keeps it respectable.
15 Texas A&M (-2.5) @ Auburn
I don't know what Vegas sees here. The Auburn offense is mediocre on a good day and is easy to stuff in a locker. Texas A&M's defense can be a real problem (outside of getting worked over by South Carolina). The Aggies offense can be frustrating at times, but they are far more consistent than the competition. I also don't buy any talk about the road environment mattering at all. Auburn has checked out on this season, Hugh looks miserable, and that team is subpar in talent compared to Texas A&M. Give me Texas A&M to cover and smother, word to the mutha.
7 Alabama (13.5) @ Oklahoma
Speaking of checked out, Oklahoma is in the midst of what I expect will be many staff changes as Venables scrambles to save his job next year. Oklahoma's offense is hard to trust in any scenario. Their defense has sprung leaks down the stretch as well. Alabama's offense knows what it can do best and they should continue to lean into those things. The defense is making strides and all that youth in the back end now has experience. Give me Alabama by a bunch.
9 Ole Miss (-10.5) @ Florida
Billy not only saved his job, he's laid out a great blueprint for what this Gators' era can be. They had a brutal schedule and no one thought they'd be at this point during the season. Ole Miss has taken care of "bad" teams on their schedule and they got a big one against Georgia. The Florida defensive line destroyed what was left of LSU's leaky OL. Anyone who has watched Ole Miss will tell you they have struggled in pass pro all year. The key to beating the Rebels is to force Jaxon Dart off schedule. He may not give you turnovers, but he will miss guys when facing heat. I'm taking Florida here.They are playing the hot hand and I don't think Ole Miss can go on the road and do a thing.