Saturday Sept 29 college football pick'em

Below are my picks for 12 games for college football this Saturday. Come out to Zona Zoo's tailgate this Saturday between 4-6 to hear KAMP sports breakdown the game live where you can come and talk on the radio about the upcoming game. Also, EA Sports will be giving away free things, including games, and if you pick more games correct than I do you will be entered to win an EA giveaway, which inlcudes EA Sports NCAA College Football '08. Good Luck.

Arizona vs. Washington St.
Arizona wins this one in a must-win for the Mike Stoops coaching era. This game will feature a shoot-out of two offenses that like to go to the air. Much has been made of the Arizona defensive struggles and this would be a great chance for them to turn things around. Last year’s win in Pullman sparked a three game win streak for the Cats, and this year’s win will give some greatly needed momentum. Wildcats get the best of the Cougars again, Arizona wins 45-38.

Cal at Oregon
Another match-up of two offensive powers and two heisman candidates in Cal’s DeSean Jackson and Oregon’s Dennis Dixon. Mike Bellotti’s Ducks are known for starting fast and finishing slow and today start’s the slowing down. With Rose Bowl aspirations for both teams this game becomes a must-win. ESPN’s Gameday crew will be at Autzen Stadium and the crowd is sure to be raucous, which will help Oregon stick in it. However, despite an unproven defenses for Cal who is dealing with injuries they pull it out on the road. Bears take down the Ducks, Cal wins 35-31.

Michigan St. at Wisconsin
Both teams come in undefeated in a wide-open race for the Big-10. Michigan State is under the direction of new coach Mark D’Antonio and his reign has started out well as he has added a new level of toughness to this team. Wisconsin continues to be strong as they have the nation’s longest current win streak at 13 games. The untested Spartans will drop a tough road game as Wisconsin will have a better performance after squeaking out a win vs. Iowa last week. Look for the crowd to be a big factor. Despite the fact that my Mom is a Spartan alum, Wisconsin wins 21-17.

Alabama at Florida St.
Nick Saban continues his conquest of college football by visiting Bobby Bowden’s Florida State Seminoles. Saban’s group has two fourth quarter comebacks in the last two weeks, winning one and falling short in OT against Georgia. They will play in Jacksonville so no real decided home field advantage. These two teams haven’t played in 33 years as it’s old-school coaching in Bowden vs. new-school coaching in Saban. The young get the old in this one. Go ‘Bama Roll Tide, Alabama wins 35-21.

Brigham Young at New Mexico
Interesting match-up of Mountain West teams that both beat Arizona this season. BYU’ has a new quarterback in Max Hall but he is more productive and is better than the Lobo’s Donovan Porterie. New Mexico’s defense causes problems but can give up a lot of points and BYU will take advantage of this. BYU wins on the road, 42-31.

UCLA at Oregon St.
A non-favorable scenario for the Bruins at QB as they keep flip-flopping between Ben Olson and Patrick Cowan due to injury. This week Olson is back in as Cowan is out for three weeks with a knee injury. Oregon St. has been up and down all year after winning 10 games last year. The key for the Bruins is to keep Olson healthy, if Olson gets hurt in the game then the QB role falls to walk-on McLeod Bethel-Thompson. Bruins do this and win in Corvalis, UCLA wins 38-27.

Clemson at Georgia Tech
Tommy Bowden has his Tigers on a roll this year but go to Tech where the Yellow Jackets have dropped two in a row. Tech has the ability to score points but their defense will be ineffective against the Clemson attack. Clemson wins again to continue its best start in 7 seasons. Clemson takes it 30-14.

Iowa St. at Nebraska
Nebraska should have dropped one to Ball St. last week but Ball St. blew two chances in the last minute. Iowa St. is trying to prove they are getting back to bowl team status. Last week’s problem for the Huskers were a direct result of being destroyed by USC. With this as a conference game Nebraska rolls easily. Nebraska wins their 15th straight over the Cyclones 52-21.

Notre Dame at Purdue
The Irish’s struggles have been well documented and it doesn’t help when you go to a team that is 4-0. The Boilermakers have scored 45, 45, 52, and 52 in their games this season and Norte Dame has given up at least 31 points every game, expect the same. Purdue rolls 55-10.

Penn State at Illinois
Not as much of a pushover as it may seem on paper. Penn State showed some offensive flaws by only scoring 9 points at Michigan and Illinois is looking better under the direction of Ron Zook and his recruiting abilities. Penn State will struggle against the run led by Illini’s Rashard Mendenhall’s 8th best rushing stats in the country. Even though it is in Champagne the Nittany Lions have a history of destroying Illinois. It won’t be a destruction but Jo Pa’s team wins again. Penn St. wins again 27-21.

Air Force at Navy
Another match-up of 2 military academies in the U.S. Both teams rely heavily on the run game. Air Force is coming off a loss against BYU where the passing game beat them, however, Navy’s air attack won’t do much against the Falcons. Air Force wins 28-17.

Kansas St. at Texas
Kansas St. effectively ended the Longhorn’s national title bids last year when Texas lost 45-42 on the road. This year the Colt McCoy led Longhorns get their revenge in a game that will only be close when it’s 0-0 during pre-game warm-ups. Longhorns get their revenge and Texas wins 40-21.