“NFL Conference Championship Outlook”

Packer's Cornerback, #38 Tramon Williams (pictured above) has been outstanding all year long, and especially in the playoffs. With 3 interceptions in the postseason already, look for him to add to that total on Sunday.

We are getting closer to Dallas people.  To be exact, we are just over 2 weeks away from the big game.  The NFL is America’s most popular professional sport.  And the Super Bowl is the culminating event.  It has been another phenomenal year full of stellar on the field play, injuries, on/off the field issues, #4 shenanigans, and upsets galore.  Plus there is the looming issue with the CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement).

Well now we are down to the NFL’s version of the Final Four.  We have already heard our very own Wesley Kaminsky’s outlook for the two Conference Championship Games.  Now it is my turn.

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“Weekly Nickel”

Come next Saturday, Dick Vitale (pictured above) will be screaming at the top of his lungs with a plethora of big time matchups to cover. It should be "Totally Awesome Baby, with a capital A!"

I know there has been a brief hiatus from the typical “Weekly Nickel.”  But now it is back, and better than ever.  What a week of sports that we just had, and what a week we have ahead.  Lets jump right into the list.

“NFL Divisional Playoff Preview: Jets, Ravens, Packers, Bears Look For Revenge”

Wesley is a sports expert and journalist out of Philadelphia that writes for Bleacher Report.  You can check out all of his work at  http://bleacherreport.com/users/88810-wesley-kaminsky or follow his twitter @Wesley_Kaminsky

The common theme of the divisional playoffs this weekend is revenge. Every game this weekend features rematches from earlier this season, but will the results be different this time around?

Here are some questions to consider heading into the weekends games.

Can the Jets keep it close in New England?

Which defense plays better, the Steelers or Ravens?

Will the Seahawks win in Chicago for the second time this season?

Can the Packers win in Atlanta?

“NFL Week 15 Predictions”

Amid many major matchups this weekend, the Jacksonville Jaguars, led by running back Maurice Jones-Drew (pictured above), have a chance to all but shut the door on the Indianapolis Colt's playoff hopes. Can the Jags complete the season sweep on their divisional rival?

After this weekend, there are just 2 more fun-filled Sundays with a full slate of NFL games.  Where did the season go?  This week is full of big time matchups and boy is the NFL different at this point than it was at Week 15 last year.

The Colts with a loss and a little help could be eliminated from postseason play entirely.  Peyton not in the playoffs?  In the words of Shannon Sharpe, “Cmon Man.”  The Eagles and Giants have a royal rumble for NFC East supremacy.  Who foresaw the Cowboys not being in the thick of these race?  Instead, they are in the cellar.  Though everybody knew the NFC West was weak, did anybody expect there to be 0 teams with a 500 or better record?  Could a sub 500 team make the playoffs?  In addition, the Cincinnati Bengals, a team that many thought were a Super Bowl contender, are now in the cellar and in contention for the Andrew Luck/Cam Newton sweepstakes.  Lastly, Rex Grossman will be starting for the Redskins due to the benching of starter Donovan McNabb.  Could it be “Grossmania” in Washington?

Lets take a look at the Pick’em Scoreboard.

TheSportsKraze:   123                          CV3: 126

So I made up a game.  Sadly I got this week, and the next two to catch the NFL Expert that is CV3.  Hopefully this week I can continue on the upward climb back to picking supremacy.

TheSportsKraze Picks:

Lions at Buccaneers:  Detroit is coming off of a big win, but their year is over.  They are already looking ahead to next season.  Tampa on the other hand has a shot to nab a Wild Card.  This is a must win for them if they want a prayer at making the postseason.  When teams are playing for something, they tend to choke.  But I do not see Tampa choking this week.  They will find a way to win another close one as they have done all year.  The Bucs choke job will happen in their final game against New Orleans.  Bucs at home by 6.

Eagles at Giants:  This may very well be the game of the week.  Michael Vick and the Eagles have been rolling behind an electric offensive unit.  Behind an extremely balanced offensive attack, the Eagles are one of the major feel good stories in the NFL this year.  The Giants on the other hand finally seem to be righting their ship.  They have won 3 games in a row since falling to Philly in mid November.  The Giants started the trend of teams really getting at Michael Vick.  Expect them to show a perfected craft in this home contest.  I expect both of these teams to make the playoffs.  But I have the Giants winning this one in a thrilling fashion by 1 in front of a hostile home crowd.

Saints at Ravens:  This is another outstanding matchup.  Fire vs fire.  The Saints high-powered aerial attack versus the Ravens stout defense.  Lately though, the Ravens D has not looked so stout.  The Texans moved the ball at will vs Baltimore in the 4th quarter last Monday and really showed the age of Baltimore’s D.  Can the Ravens regain their swagger?  I think so.  The Saints are playing great football and have won 6 straight.  But this game is in Baltimore.  The conditions should play in the Ravens favor as they sneak by with a 1 point victory.

Cardinals at Panthers:  These are both pitiful teams.  Luckily for Arizona, no matter how bad they have looked at times, they are not nearly as bad as Carolina.  Besides, Arizona showed some offensive life last week in laying a butt whooping on Denver.  The Panthers are playing for Andrew Luck.  They have the inside track to the number 1 pick and what reason do they have to give it up.  There is no motivation for the Panthers to win.  They won’t throw the game by any means.  But there will be no fire to help lead them to their 2nd win of the season.  Cardinals by 7 on the road.

Chiefs at Rams:  Both of these teams are tied for first in their respective divisions.  They both have a lot on the line.  The Chiefs live on an outstanding rushing attack while the Rams live on a balanced offensive unit.  Can Sam Bradford take care of business in the biggest game of his NFL career?  I think so.  I am taking the home team to shock the Chiefs.  Sorry KC.  The Chargers will take over the division from here.  Rams by 3 at home.

Bills at Dolphins:  Both of these teams surprised many with victories last week, including me.  The Bills have a decent rushing attack, but they struggle at stopping the run.  Well, Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams should be ready to pound the rock come Sunday.  These two are a solid combination that should take advantage of a very weak Buffalo defensive front.  Also, they do not have to go to Buffalo and deal with the cold weather elements.  Buffalo will at least get to spend a few days out of the cold in Miami.  But they will go home with a cold feeling after losing a close one.  Dolphins by 3 at home.

Texans at Titans:  The Texans have ripped out the heart of Houston again.  Tennessee is also in the midst of a horrible year.  After a solid start, the Titans have now lost 6 straight games.  Expect it to be 7 after this week.  Sure Houston does not really have much to play for.  But Tennessee cannot stop the pass. Houston has an outstanding receiving corps and an elite QB.  Matt Schaub will have a field day come Sunday.  Texans by 10 on the road.

Jaguars at Colts:  The biggest game of the year for both of these squads.  I will admit I had the Jaguars coming in last in the AFC South back in September.  Boy was I wrong.  But Indianapolis has owned this division for over a decade for a reason.  Jacksonville will have to take on Peyton in his Indianapolis sanctuary. Good luck Jacksonville.  Look for Peyton to put on an MVP like performance in keeping his team alive.  Indianapolis does not miss out on the playoffs.  Colts by 7 at home.

Redskins at Cowboys:  The two bottom dwellers of the NFC East link up in Dallas.  America’s team has had a very odd season.  As have the boys out of the nation’s capital.  Rex Grossman gets the pleasure of taking on a Dallas team that has played much better football since the firing of former coach, Wade Phillips. The Skins were in the thick of things until their recent 3 game skid.  Dallas on the other hand has had nothing to play for since October.  Teams that have nothing to play for tend to play well.  Dallas has been no exception to this.  Cowboys by 6 at home.

Browns at Bengals:  The Battle of Ohio.  Sure neither of these teams are in contention.  Sure the Bengals will be blacked out on television again.  But this game is always a big one for both franchises.  Cincinnati can at least split with the Brownies with a home victory in this one.  Sure Cleveland has played very good football for the past couple of months.  But they showed some vulnerability in a loss to the Bills last weekend.  And for some reason, I still think the Bengals can win one more game this year.  What game would be better than a matchup against the rival Brownies, a team that is not “that much” better than them. Besides the Bengals have never lost more than 10 games in a row in franchise history.  The bleeding stops at 10 yet again.  Bengals by 3 at home.

Falcons at Seahawks:  The Falcons are arguably the best team in football.  And without question the top dog in the NFC.  Seattle on the other hand still finds themselves in the hunt in the NFC West.  Sadly for the Seahawks, the Falcons are still looking to clinch down their division.  With the Saints playing great football, the Falcons are highly motivated to continue their winning ways.  Expect Roddy White to have a field day against a depleted Seahawk’s secondary. Falcons by 10 at home.

Jets at Steelers:  Another stellar matchup.  Can Mark Sanchez and the Jets get it together?  Not exactly the ideal game for a struggling Jets offense that has not scored a touchdown in their past 2 games.  Great teams thrive under adversity though.  The Jets play like the old school Steeler’s teams.  They run the ball well.  And their defense is tenacious in every way.  The Steelers on the other hand sit atop the AFC North and are riding a 4 game winning streak.  In addition, they stop the run better than any team in the League.  Though I think the Jets are a great team who I picked to win the Super Bowl, I do not see them figuring things out in a must win game at Heinz Field.  The Steelers will be just too tough and win at home in a brutal battle by 3.

Broncos at Raiders:  An old school rivalry in the AFC West.  Denver has lost 4 in a row and cannot stop the run.  Oakland on the other hand can really run the rock.  Too much Darren McFadden in this one.  Raiders by 7 at home.

Packers at Patriots:  The Packers are fighting for their playoff lives while the Patriots are on cruise control, looking to lock up home field advantage.  If I were the rest of the AFC, I would pray that the Patriots do not clinch home field advantage throughout the duration of the playoffs.  Nobody wants to play in a cold Foxborough Stadium in a playoff atmosphere.  Sadly for the AFC, Rodgers suffered a concussion last week and is the motor that makes this lethal Green Bay offense go.  Whether he plays or not, he will not be full strength.  Though Green Bay defends against the pass at a high level, can anybody stop Brady and the Pats aerial attack?  Look for the Patriots to make it 6 in a row in Foxborough.  NE by 9 at home.

Bears at Vikings:  A Monday Night Affair that many had circled before the season even started.  Much has changed since September.  The Vikings are out of playoff contention and have been for some time now.  Brett Favre’s mythical streak has ended.  And the Bears are in first place.  Did anybody envision any of this 3 months ago?  Either way, when these teams take the field at the University of Minnesota’s field, god knows who will be playing QB for the Vikings.  But it will not matter.  Bears by 6 on the road.

CV3 Picks:

Bengals over browns by 7
Dallas over washington by 13
Houston over Titans by 3
Jags over Colts by 3
Chiefs over Rams by 7
Bills over Dolphins by 10
Giants over Eagles by 6
Bucs over Lions by 1
Cards over Panthers by 6
Saints over Ravens by 6
Falcons over Seahawks by 14
Raiders over Broncos by 14
Steelers over Jets by 10
Pats over Packers by 21
Bears over Vikings by 3

So there you have a look at this week’s NFL slate.  Some great matchups that hold heavy playoff implications.  Can the Colts and Jets stay alive?  Will Baltimore make a statement against the Saints?  And who will reign supreme in the NFC East (Eagles or Giants)?  We will know a lot more after Week 15 concludes.

Stay tuned for the next edition of TheSportsKraze.

-TheSportsKraze

“NFL Week 4 Predictions”

Future Hall of Fame Linebacker, Ray Lewis (pictured above), looks to lead his Ravens to a big time road victory over bitter divisional rival, Pittsburgh.

 After this week, most teams will be done with a fourth of the games already.  Boy does time fly by.  But this is the time of year where many of the pretenders start to get weeded out and the contenders show that they are in fact the real deal.  

There are 3 teams that are currently still undefeated.  Those teams are the Chicago Bears, the Kansas City Chiefs, and the Pittsburgh Steelers.  I have none of these teams making the playoffs and they are truly demonstrating how amazing the parity in the NFL can be. 

After 3 weeks in the pick’em challenge, the scoreboard reads: 

TheSportsKraze:  30                                    CV3:  28 

TheSportsKraze Picks: 

49ers at Falcons:  An underachieving San Francisco team versus an Atlanta team that is flying high after a big win over the defending champs.  Conventional wisdon would say to pick the Falcons in this one.  The Falcons have ridden a phenomenal offense, that features one of the game’s best rushing attacks to first place in the NFC South.  The 49ers have been very Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde like, showing glimpses of a playoff caliber team at times.  If this game was on the west coast, I will give the 49ers a chance.  The 49ers were the “it” pick in the NFC West.  Sadly they will fall to 0 and 4 with a 10 point loss to the Falcons. 

Bengals at Browns:  The Battle of Ohio.  Always a fun game where the stats get thrown out the window.  The Cincinnati offense has looked anemic and many have been calling for a quarterback change, or at least, re-evaluation.  Fortunately for Cincinnati, they are taking on a Cleveland team that is winless for a reason.  They have not gotten the job done from an offensive or defensive standpoint.  Well the Who Deys have owned this series throughout the Marvin Lewis era and I expect a similar outcome on Sunday.  Look for the Bengals to move to 3 and 1 with a 13 point victory against an overmatched Cleveland squad. 

Jets at Bills:  I will admit the Bills surprised me with their effort against New England last week.  They showed some guts and even dare I say, moxy (whatever that is).  But it will not be enough against arguably the best team in the AFC.  The Jet’s stats are misleading due to a horrible offensive performance in Week 1.  Mark Sanchez is finally starting to look more comfortable out there as is the Jets rushing attack.  And good luck to Buffalo in putting up points against these outstanding Jet’s defense whether Revis plays or not.  Buffalo sports the worst overall offense in the League thus far for a reason.  Look for the Jets to run away with this one on the road by 13. 

Seahawks at Rams:  Two teams that each pulled off surprise victories in Week 3.  Seattle has looked very solid in 2 of their 3 games, while St. Louis appeared to finally awake from a preseason hangover against the Redskins.  Do I think either of these teams are serious playoff contenders?  Not really.  But anybody has a shot in the very weak NFC West, that the Seahawks are currently leading.  Neither of these teams rank too well offensively or defensively from a stats standpoint.  But I see the Seahawks demonstrating some poise down the stretch and following the lead of their veteran Matt Hassleback to their 3rd victory of the season.  It will be close, but a costly Bradford interception down the stretch will help Seattle prevail by 3 on the road. 

Broncos at Titans:  An underachieving Broncos team heads to the music city to take on a Tennessee team that has had 2 awesome games, and one against Pittsburgh that they would like to forget.  Though Denver has been solid against the run this year, it will not be enough to stop Chris Johnson and Co.  Look for CJ to be the difference in this game as Tennessee saves face at  home with a 7 points victory. 

Lions at Packers:  The Try’n Lions head to Lambeau to take on the Cheeseheads.  The Packers are coming off of a heartbreaking Monday Night loss to their bitter rival, Chicago.  I feel bad for Detroit is all I have to say.  I would not want to play arguably the most talented team in the League, coming off of a loss on the road.  Though Detroit has had a legitimate chance to win 2 of their 3 games, they have not faced off with a team that has an offense like Green Bay.  The Lions have one of the worst defenses in the League and struggle to stop the run or pass.  Look for Aaron Rodgers to light up the scoreboard as the Packers come out with a vengeance.  This one will be a laugher with the Packers coming out on top by 17. 

Ravens at Steelers:  One of the best rivalries in football here.  The Edgar Allen Poes head to Heinz Field looking to gain back a throne that many expected them to hold atop the AFC North.  The Steelers have shocked everyone, including myself, by starting out 3 and 0 without Big Ben.  This Steelers’s team has looked solid, living on their phenomenal defensive unit.  Pittsburgh’s offensive unit may be ranked dead last in the NFL, but they are also 1 of only 3 undefeated teams heading into Week 4.  The big question mark for a Baltimore team that many expect to possibly win the AFC was their cornerback position.  Well the Ravens are the top rated team against the pass in the NFL.  So they are doing something right.  I see Joe Flacco continuing to demonstrate his ability to make big plays with Anquan Boldin, as the Ravens steal a very close one on the road.  The Ravens will have just a little bit more offensive firepower in this matchup of two of the game’s best defensive units.  I got the Ravens by 1. 

Panthers at Saints:  Sorry Carolina.  Things are about to get worst as you head to Bourbon Street.  This is a similar scenario to which the Lions find themselves in this week.  Playing a very talented team coming off of their first loss of the season on the road.  Good luck.  Drew Brees and the Saints, even though their offense is ReggieBushless, will put up some numbers.  And their defense will feast on whatever young quarterback Carolina puts out there.  New Orleans may not possess a running game, but their aerial attack is one of the best in the game.  Carolina corners better make plays when opportunities are presented to them, unlike they did last week, or this game will be over fast.  I got the Saints by 14 at home. 

Colts at Jaguars:  Peyton Manning heads down to Jacksonville.  The Jags have looked terrible since Week 1.  And they have a major issue in this matchup.  They do not stop the pass.  And they are going up against Peyton Manning, possibly the greatest pocket passer of all time.  Pick your poison in this one.  All directions put to the Jaguars losing a game that shouldn’t even be close to Indy.  I got the Colts by 10 in this one. 

Texans at Raiders:  Houston finally got their wake up call.  The Cowboys took Houston “Back to life, back to reality.”  Well this week, they come back to a good reality.  As they match up with a pretty abysmal Oakland team.  Now I will admit Oakland’s D has been pretty solid so far.  But they also have not faced top-tier offenses like Houston has.  If Oakland clogs the run, look for Andre Johnson and Matt Schaub to hook up early and often.  If Oakland decides to not stack 8 in the box, look for Arian Foster to have a field day.  Either way, Oakland does not possess the horses to score enough points to keep up with the Texans exciting offensive attack.  I got Houston by 13 on the road. 

Redskins at Eagles:  This is quite possibly the most exciting matchup of the week.  Mentor vs Mentee.  Speed vs speed.  Righty vs Lefty.  You name it, the VickNabb show will be fun to watch.  Sadly for Washington though, they do not possess the overall team yet to compete with an Eagles squad that has gelled very quickly.  Now when these two teams match up again on Monday Night Football in November, it will be a completely different story.  But Donovan and this offense have not clicked in any way yet, and will not be able to put up enough points to support a defense that will struggle all day to contain the most athletic player in football.  It will be close, but I got the Eagles by 6 at home. 

Cardinals at Chargers:  Two teams that have surprised for different reasons are matchup up in San Diego.  The Cardinals are an unexpected 2 and 1, while the Chargers have surprised many with a rough 1 and 2 start.  Well the Chargers always start off the year slow.  This is a pick me up game where they get the ball going.  Look for Phillip Rivers to put up some big numbers and lead San Diego to a much-needed victory at home. This will begin a winning streak for the Chargers as they head into a very easy stretch on their schedule. Chargers by 7  in this one. 

Bears at Giants:  Da Bears looked awesome Monday Night.  The Giants on the other hand continued to disappoint and show their lack of consistency.  I got the Bears behind their phenomenal run defense taking care of business on the road and moving to 4 and 0.  Eli will have to have a big day in the air for the Giants to have any prayer.  And I just do not see it happening this week.  Bears by 6 on the road. 

Patriots at Dolphins:  What a great Monday Night Game folks.  Two bitter divisional rivals, looking to make an early statement.  These are two very different teams.  New England lives and dies on their vaunted aerial attack which features Tom Brady, Randy Moss, and Wes Welker.  The Dolphins really survive on a very solid defense led by Jason Allen and Yeremiah Bell.  Monday Night Football Games are very tough to predict in that the underdog commonly walks away the victor.  But for some reason, I expect Brady, who always performs well on the big stage, to lead the Patriots to a huge divisional victory by 1 on the road.  Patriots by 1. 

CV3’s Picks:

There is a distinct possibility that there could be 5 winless teams left in the NFL after week 4. Will those teams fight for a win to avoid the embarrassment of being winless? Also, there are some upset opportunities with the Raiders and Bills looking to shock some teams that are considered on their way to the elite class. Should be an interesting week to watch.

 Falcons over 49ers by 3- If we are following a trend here it is time for San Fran to play well this week. Even if they do, they will still have to overcome a good-looking Atlanta team at home. I take the chances of the Falcons playing well over the chance of San Fran coming out like they did against the Saints.

Packers over Lions by 10- Green Bay should trample the Lions at Lambeau. The Pack has proved that their D is strong and they will eliminate the mistakes made last week against Da Bears. Best should be in the line-up this week but he will be limited by the backers in green and yellow.

Jets over Bills by 8- I want to say the Bills are going to upset the Jets after competing with the Pats last week but I don’t think it is going to happen. The one way it could happen is if the Bills can pressure Sanchize. Again, I don’t think this will happen but I would love to see the J E T S go down this week to a 0-3 team.

Rams over Seahawks by 5- Seahawks have lost the last 16 of 19 on the road. Rams are energized this year with Bradford running the show. Look for them to impress the home crowd.

Titans over Broncos by 3- Chris Johnson is scary but so is Denver’s #1 passing offense. Kyle Orton can have a big day against the Titan’s secondary starting a rookie in place of an injured corner. I still have to go with the Titans because in the NFL you still have to be able to run the ball and the Broncos have too much trouble on the ground. 

Steelers over Ravens by 1- Everyone knows that this will be a low scoring SLUGFEST. If you do not like defense, do not watch this game but you will see some of the hardest hits all season during this game. Steelers take this round at home in this fight.

Saints over Panthers by 14- Notre Dame sucks, so does Jimmy Clausen. Saints win! (Take that BK) 

Colts over Jags by 7- These two seem to play each other tough. In their last 5 match-ups the winning team has won by 7 points or less. This one swings in favor of the Colts with Peyton’s boys clicking. 

Texans over Raiders by 10- The Raiders will prove to be a big match-up problem for Houston. With the Best corner in the league limiting Andre the Giant to 5 catches and 94 yards in their last three meetings, the Texans will need to find another way to get the job done. Either Houston clicks and blows through Oakland or they lose in an upset caused by one the NFL’s top defenses.

Chargers over Cardinals by 7- Phillip Rivers and Antonio Gates. As long as these two are still on the field Sunday, San Diego will win the game.

Eagles over Redskins by 6- Michael Vick. 

Bears over Gmen by 9- The Bears offense is catching up to its D. The Giants lost last week at home, look for it to happen again with a pass happy Bears team rolling into town. Don’t kick it to Devin Hester, Gmen. Then maybe you have a chance.

Patriots over Dolphins by 3- Another Monday night thriller is ahead of us with an emerging team taking on the perennial Goliath in the division. The Patriots offense will be too difficult to stop and they will disappoint Miami fans who think they can hang in the division. Sorry Dolphins, you’re number 3, the first two spots are taken.

Bengals over Brownies by 8- D’Natti is making a trip to Cleveland, who will not win a championship in any sport in the foreseeable future. Zimmer will smother the Browns on offense and the Cleveland fans will still remain without hope for their Browns, Cavs and Indians. Hopefully Cincinnati fans get to see some life from Carson Palmer who hasn’t clicked with his new weapons at tight end and receiver yet. WHO DEY

So there you have both my and CV3’s picks.  A lot of very good matchups mixed in with some very lopsided looking affairs.  But the NFL is always unpredictable and fun.  Upsets are inevitable. It is very hard to pick which ones they will be. 

Enjoy the games folks. 

Stay tuned for the next edition of TheSportsKraze. 

-TheSportsKraze 

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“College Football Week 4: We Want Some More”

Boise State star receiver, Austin Pettis (pictured above), looks to help lead Boise to another big time victory on Saturday and keep the Broncos National Championship aspirations alive and well.

The 4th week of this College Football season is already upon us.  Yes, we will be a 3rd of the way through the regular season after this weekend.  Hard to believe, but the intrigue continues to mount.  And we all love the excitement.  After last weekends, “Dud Saturday,” the excitement is back with many big time matchups.  So as usual, I am going to give you my thoughts on a few of the primetime showdowns.

Miami (FL) at Pittsburgh:  These are two teams that are still really looking to prove themselves.  Many experts saw both of these teams as definite BCS Contenders, and even possibly as National Title Game Sleepers.  Though neither of these teams really have a chance at playing in Arizona come January 10th, they both have a lot to look forward to.  For Miami, they have had an extra week to clear their heads out for yet another big time road test.  After Jacory Harris demonstrated his old ways, tossing 4 Interceptions against a very good Ohio State team in Columbus, the U looks to make amends.  Pitt is still recovering from an opening night road loss to Utah.  And I think their reeling period is going to continue, as the overall speed and athleticism of the U bombards the Panthers at Heinz Field.  Though it is hard to pick against a good team at home,  I got the U by a touchdown in this one.

Alabama at Arkansas:  Welcome to the SEC folks.  And both of these teams are already in for big time showdown even with it only being the 4th week of the season. For Alabama, this game will be the first of three consecutive against top 12 ranked foes. Can Ryan Mallett, and the explosive offense of the Razorbacks handle the defending National Champs?  Sadly, I do not think so.  Though Arkansas has made tremendous strides and has looked very tough, Bama is at full strength now with Mark Ingram and just look to be “rolling.”   Also take note that Arkansas has lost 4 of 5 to top 25 ranked opponents.  I feel like not only will Mark Ingram at full strength be a difference maker, but the Alabama defense as a whole will play an intricate part in this one.  The game will come down to which defense can get stops.  And though Nick Saban is sporting a young defensive unit, I give them the edge over the Razorbacks D.  Look for Bama to nab a big road win in a shootout type of game by 7.

South Carolina at Auburn:  This may be the best matchup of the whole weekend in my eyes, though there are many great ones.  A good old-fashioned SEC brawl.  We are fortunate enough to have 2 of these top-tier SEC matchups already in a fun-filled Week 4.  But the difference in this one will come down to Auburn’s home field advantage.  I will state that South Carolina sports probably the most exciting freshman talent in the country in Marcus Lattimore.  But after watching the Gamecocks exhibit some flaws in their game last week against a less than flattering opponent in Furman, I have jumped off the bandwagon a little.  Auburn, though it has not been pretty, has learned to win close games.  Winning by 3 each of the last 2 weeks against quality opponents.  I expect them to utilize that resiliency and the home field advantage to edge a Gamecocks team that has lost 5 straight conference road games by a large margin.  Look for Auburn to win by 3.

Oregon State at Boise State:  Oregon State has practiced on a blue field all week in preparation for a monumental matchup against a very talented Boise team.  Boise has been a main topic of conversation throughout College Football all year and will continue to be until they lose a game (which may not happen).  Chris Petersen’s squad has shown that they can really play football despite their somewhat lackluster schedule.  This is probably the toughest game the Broncos have left, and luckily for them, it is at home.  Oregon State has already dropped a game against a tough TCU team this year.  They got blown out on the blue field 42 to 14 in 2006.  And though the Rodger’s brothers are a lethal tandem, it will not be enough.  Boise is too good all around.  Look for Kellen Moore, Titus Young, and Austin Pettis to have another field day on National Television.  I got Boise in this one by 14.  Do not expect it to be close.

So these are 4 of the marquee games of the weekend.  I realize there are other major matchups such as West Virginia at LSU, Oklahoma at Cincinnati, Kentucky at Florida.  So sit back, enjoy, and watch as many of the games as you can.

Week 4 will be one to remember in the College Football Stratosphere.

Stay tuned for the next edition of TheSportsKraze.

-TheSportsKraze

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