The Atlanta Falcons had to have a victory last week against Carolina and won by 14 despite being outgained for the contest. They are still behind the eight ball in the divisional and conference playoff picture and need to get away from their win one, lose one pattern after six games.
The Chicago Bears won on Sunday night against a horribly troubled Minnesota Vikings team.. At 3-3 they are staying alive in the early NFC playoff picture but they have a lot of work to do if they want to challenge the NFC North leaders Detroit and Green Bay.
This is going to be a tough week for Marshall, especially on the road, but thanks to a home upset of Southern Miss, they are currently at the top of the Conference USA East division standings.
The No. 8 Ducks will try and spoil Colorado’s dream of grabbing its first PAC 12 conference win when they roll into Boulder on Saturday.
With the NFL Fantasy football into the bye weeks now we encourage you to be checking out our FANTASY FOOTBALL WEEKLY ARTICLES for all your rankings and analysis for the upcoming week.
Each week, Dave B will compile a list of Hot and Not Hot players based on their past performances and future matchups.
The ACC has emerged as an exciting conference this season. Even though the big names like Florida State and Miami have disappointed, the likes of Clemson and Georgia Tech have emerged as national contenders. North Carolina hasn’t been half-bad either.
Here comes Virginia Tech. After a humbling 23-3 loss to Clemson on October 1, their only defeat of the year, the Hokies have rattled off consecutive convincing wins over Miami and Wake Forest.
Arizona, fresh off of firing their head coach are set to take the field against the UCLA Bruins on Thursday night, and the Wildcats are the favorites in this one.
Two of the PAC 12’s most high powered offenses go head to head on Saturday when the #8 Stanford Cardinal (6-0, 4-0) take on the #25 Washington Huskies (5-1, 3-0) in Palo Alto.
Wisconsin vs Michigan St.
This Saturday night’s showdown in East Lansing is probably the biggest matchup in the Big Ten so far this year. Wisconsin has dismantled everyone they have played so far this year, but they have yet to play a game away from home.
Michigan State is unbeaten in the Big Ten, and they haven’t lost at home. The Spartans upset the Badgers last year.
Spartan Stadium
Saturday October 22, 8:00 PM EST
NCAA Football Odds from BetOnline
Moneyline: Off
College Football Spread: Wisconsin -7.5 (-115) Michigan State +7.5 (-105)
Over/Under: 49
It’s the #4 Badgers against the #13 Spartans under the lights this Saturday.
No team has looked more dominant than the Wisconsin Badgers so far this season. Russell Wilson transferred from North Carolina State in the offseason, and he seems to be the perfect fit for this Badgers offense. Wilson has completed an amazing 74% of his passes in 2011. In addition, he has thrown 14 touchdowns and just one interception. The biggest strength of this Badgers offense is still the running game. This offensive line is dominant and Montee Ball and James White are both very good running backs. Ball is averaging 6.1 yards per carry, and he already has a staggering 16 rushing touchdowns this year. Wisconsin is first in the nation in scoring at 50.2 points per game.
Wisconsin’s defense was supposed to be the question mark this year, but they have been terrific as well. The Badgers rank third in the nation in points per game allowed at just 9.7 per contest. Opponents are converting on just 31% of their third-down conversion attempts so far this year. If this defense continues to play so well, the Badgers will be very difficult to beat.
Michigan State ranks second in the nation in total defense, just a couple yards per game behind Alabama. Mark Dantonio’s team has shut down every offense it has faced this year. Notre Dame had the most success of anyone, but they still only had 275 total yards of offense. Jerrell Worthy is a dominant force in the middle of the defensive line. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Michigan State is allowing just 119 passing yards per game, which is the best mark in college football. The Spartans already have 21 sacks this season. Michigan State is holding opponents to just 27.5% on their third-down conversion attempts.
Kirk Cousins is the senior leader under center for Michigan State. Cousins is a very accurate passer who has a great understanding of this offense. Edwin Baker and Le’Veon Bell are the two primary running backs for the Spartans. Michigan State’s running game hasn’t been quite as good as last year, largely due to multiple injuries on the offensive front. If they are going to win this game, they must be able to run the football against the Badgers.
This should be a very interesting game. The Badgers offense will easily be the best offense Michigan State has played. At the same time, Michigan State’s defense will be far better than any of the defenses Wisconsin has gone against. In the end, I expect Wisconsin’s balance on offense to be too much for Michigan State.
Free College Football Pick: Wisconsin -7.5
Score Prediction: Wisconsin 31 Michigan State 17
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Penn State has been bit by the injury bug this year. In hindsight, it should have been a sign of things to come when Joe Paterno was injured in August practice.
The Nittany Lions are without some of their best players as they head to Evanston to take on the Wildcats. Northwestern had high expectations for this season, but they sit at just 2-4.
Ryan Field
Saturday October 22, 7:00 PM EST
NCAA Football Odds from BetOnline
Moneyline: Off
College Football Spread: Penn State -4 (-110) Northwestern +4 (-110)
Over/Under: 47.5
Pat Fitzgerald’s team really needs to start putting some wins together if they are going to go bowling this year. I expect this to be a very good game.
Matt McGloin and Rob Bolden have been sharing the quarterback duties for Penn State. Bolden has been starting the last few games, but McGloin has come in and taken a lot of snaps on a weekly basis. McGloin has put up better numbers overall, but neither quarterback has been tremendous. Derek Moye is the team’s best play maker offensively, but he will miss this contest with a foot injury. Silas Redd has done a solid job as the Nittany Lions primary ball carrier, but backup Brandon Beachum is listed as questionable for this game.
The Nittany Lions defense is the strength of this team. Unfortunately, they haven’t been able to avoid the injury bug. Michael Mauti was the heart and soul of this defense from his linebacker spot, but he will miss the rest of the season with torn ligaments in his knee. Still, this is a defense that is one of the best in the conference, especially against the pass. Despite the front seven not generating much of a pass rush, the secondary is giving up just 161 passing yards per game.
Dan Persa is one of the best quarterbacks in the nation when healthy, but he hasn’t been completely healthy this year. Persa has shared time with Kain Colter because of his injury issues, but Persa is getting the majority of the snaps at this point. Persa is completing 75% of his passes this year, and he has all the tools to pick apart a defense. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Jeremy Ebert already has 39 receptions and six touchdowns on the season. Starting running back Mike Trumpy is out for the season with a torn ACL, and the Wildcats need to get some improved production from the tailback spot in order to take pressure off the quarterbacks.
The Wildcats have really struggled defensively in 2011. Northwestern is currently ranked 101st in the nation in total defense. They have been beaten by power running teams as well as opponents who simply air it out offensively. It would really help this defense if they could find some kind of a pass rush. The secondary is being forced to cover their man for far too long right now. This defense must improve if Northwestern is going to reach a bowl game this season.
Northwestern jumped out to a 21-0 lead in Happy Valley last year before the Nittany Lions scored 35 straight to win 35-21. The Wildcats really need this game, and the night game in front of the home crowd should really help them.
Free College Football Pick: Northwestern +4
Score Prediction: Northwestern 24 Penn State 21
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The Cornhuskers will travel to Minnesota Saturday afternoon to take on the Golden Gophers for the first time since 1990. Nebraska sits at #11 in the polls right now, while Minnesota is 1-5 on the season.
There isn’t much to cheer about right now for Minnesota fans, but they are hoping new coach Jerry Kill can change that over time. Nebraska hasn’t been impressive so far this year, but they are still a dangerous team.
Nebraska vs. Minnesota
TCF Bank Stadium
Saturday October 22, 3:30 PM EST
NCAA Football Odds from BetOnline
Moneyline: Off
College Football Spread: Nebraska -24.5 (-110) Minnesota +24.5 (-110)
Over/Under: 56.5
Nebraska’s Taylor Martinez is one of the best running quarterbacks in the nation. Martinez has 100 rushing attempts this year, and he has already picked up 584 yards. Martinez struggles when he has to throw it too often. Rex Burkhead isn’t the fastest or strongest player you’ll see, but he works as hard as anyone. Burkhead is averaging 5.9 yards per carry this season. No Cornhuskers wide receiver has more than 13 catches so far in 2011. Nebraska’s running attack is terrific, but against top teams they’ll need to have a little more balance offensively.
The primary reason most people haven’t been impressed with Nebraska’s play this year has been the Cornhuskers defense. Jared Crick was the team’s best player on defense, but he is now out for the season due to a torn pectoral muscle. This front seven was expected to be good against the run, but they are allowing 168 yards per game on the ground. Lavonte David is a very talented linebacker, but this unit as a whole just isn’t performing up to expectations. If Nebraska is going to finish strong this year, the defense must improve.
It’s hard to find anything positive to say about Minnesota right now. The Golden Gophers lost to Michigan 58-0, and then last weekend they were drubbed by a poor Purdue team by a count of 45-17. MarQueis Gray is expected to be back under center this week, which is a bit of good news. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Gray is the team’s best play maker, but he really hasn’t developed as a passer. Da’Jon McKnight is a talented receiver, but the Gophers simply don’t get him the ball very often. Expect Gray to use his legs as often as possible in this one.
The Minnesota defense is allowing 35 points per game so far this season. The defensive line is typically manhandled by opponents, and the secondary gets beat deep far too often. They won’t have to worry about Nebraska airing it out very often this week, but they will have to find a way to stop the Cornhuskers running game. Expect the Golden Gophers to stack the box with eight or nine players.
Nebraska should run all over Minnesota in this game. Michigan carved up this Minnesota defense a couple weeks ago, and I expect Nebraska to do the same this weekend. The Cornhuskers defense isn’t very good, but they’ll probably be able to shutdown a very weak Minnesota offense.
Free College Football Pick: Nebraska -24.5
Score Prediction: Nebraska 44 Minnesota 10
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Illinois is coming off a disappointing home loss to Ohio State last weekend. The Fighting Illini still have a chance to be a player in the Big Ten Leaders Division, but they must get back on track right away.
Purdue fought hard, but came up short against Penn State in Happy Valley last week. The Boilermakers will look to pull off a big upset at home this week.
Illinois vs. Purdue
Ross-Ade Stadium
Saturday October 22, 12:00 PM EST
NCAA Football Odds from 5Dimes
Moneyline: Off
College Football Spread: Illinois -4 (-110) Purdue +4 (-110)
Over/Under: 47
The Illinois offense was really shut down by Ohio State last Saturday. Illinois didn’t score until there was six minutes left in the contest. The running game barely mustered 100 yards, which was less than half their average per game. Nathan Scheelhaase is a much improved quarterback, but he had a poor game last week. The Fighting Illini turned the ball over three times last week, and that was simply too much to overcome. Scheelhaase is one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in the nation, and I expect him to bounce back nicely. A.J. Jenkins already has 54 catches, but the team needs to find a reliable second option in the passing game.
The Illinois defense has been a real area of strength this season. Illinois is currently ranked 12th in the nation in total defense. This is a defense that really rallies to the football well, but they are slightly vulnerable against a power running attack like Ohio State’s. Can this unit use their team speed to shut down the Purdue offense?
Purdue has had more trouble with serious injuries than just about any other team in the nation in the last year. Rob Henry was going to be the starter under center for the team this year, but he tore his ACL just days before the season started. Caleb TerBush has seen most of the playing time at quarterback this year, but Robert Marve has also taken some snaps under center. The passing game has never really gotten on track this season. The Boilermakers are averaging ust 194 passing yards per contest. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Ralph Bolden and Akeem Shavers give Purdue a nice one-two punch in the backfield. Both running backs are averaging more than five yards per carry this season. If Purdue is going to win this game, they will have to establish the running game early and often.
The Purdue defense has some very talented players, but they also have some major holes. Ryan Kerrigan was a beast at the defensive end spot last year, and the Boilermakers clearly miss him. Ricardo Allen is a play maker in the secondary, and most opponents try to throw the ball to the other side of the field rather than challenge Allen. Purdue’s rushing defense has struggled this year.
Neither offense is particularly strong, but Scheelhaase gives the Fighting Illini a clear advantage at the quarterback spot. Illinois beat Purdue 44-10 last year. This one should be a whole lot closer, but I still think Illinois covers this small number.
Free College Football Pick: Illinois -4
Score Prediction: Illinois 27 Purdue 17
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After navigating some tricky spreads over the last couple of weeks, I’m pleased to say that there are several spreads I really like this week. Hopefully that means it’s easy sledding in NFL Week 7.
The odds makers gave us a bit of breathing room last week as eight favorites verse just four underdogs covered against the spread. The same trend held true for the home and away teams as just four road teams won ATS. The ‘under’ was the play of the week with 10 of 13 games staying ‘under’ the total line.
