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Derek Carr has stormed out the gates and is second in the nation among quarterbacks with 361 passing yards per game. It’s that type of offensive production that has fueled the Bulldogs and landed them a No. 23 ranking after an impressive 4-0 start — their best start since the 2001.
The Aztecs will look to get back in the win column when they host the Wolf Pack at Qualcomm Stadium on Friday night. Nevada arrives in San Diego fresh of a 45-42 win over Air Force.
The New York Giants will arrive at Arrowhead Stadium looking for their first win of the 2013 season against an unbeaten Kansas City Chiefs team on Sunday.
The New York Jets are coming off an exceptional Week 2 win behind a pair of franchise firsts, but will have their work cut out when they take on Tennessee team that will be riding high after a come-from-behind victory over San Diego last time out.
Two of the NFL’s worst teams will be represented in jolly ole England on Sunday as the winless Pittsburgh Steelers square off against the 0-3 Minnesota Vikings at Wembley Stadium.
After a big win at Pittsburgh on Sunday night, the Chicago Bears arrive in the Motor City this weekend to go head to head in a tough NFC North rivalry battle with the 2-1 Detroit Lions at Ford Field.
Texas Christian will look to get back into the win column when it takes on SMU this weekend. Arriving in Fort Worth, the Mustangs are hoping to put their last outing behind them after a 42-13 rout at the hands of Johnny Manziel and Texas A&M last Saturday.
The South Florida Bulls will aim to avoid a 0-4 start when they host the No. 15 ranked Miami Hurricanes at home this weekend. Miami arrives in Tampa after destroying Savannah State 77-7, last Saturday night.
The Running Rebels arrive in Albuquerque riding a two-game win streak, and will try to make it three in a row when they visit the Lobos who are 0-1 at home this season.
Central Florida has sprinted out to an impressive 3-0 start to the 2013 campaign and will look to improve their record with a win over No. 12 ranked South Carolina at home on Saturday.
The No. 25 Fresno State Bulldogs have hit the ground running this season, jumping out to a 3-0 start and breaking into the top 25 after a big win over Boise State on Saturday.
The Washington Redskins will try to avoid an 0-3 start with its first win of the 2013 NFL season when they host the Detroit Lions who slipped to 1-1 after last week’s loss at Arizona.
The Miami Dolphins head back to the sunshine state looking to go 3-0 after posting a pair of early road wins to start the season, when they host the 1-1 Atlanta Falcons on Sunday.
Two of the best of what the SEC has to offer will square off against each other this weekend as No. 8 LSU host the Auburn Tigers in Baton Rouge.
Auburn (3-0) vs. No. 8 LSU (3-0)
Date: Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013
Time: 7:45 p.m. EST
Venue: Tiger Stadium
City: Baton Rouge
O/U Odds: 56
Spread: LSU -17 1/2
Both teams arrive at Saturday’s contest undefeated, with the Tigers as a 17.5-point favorite over an Auburn team off to a solid start under first-year coach Gus Malzahn.
The Tigers rallied behind quarterback Nick Marshall to knock off Mississippi State last week and improved to 3-0, but a trip to Death Valley will be by far their toughest test so far.
Marshall has completed 61.4 percent of his passes with four touchdowns and two interceptions while rushing for 102 yards this season.
Defensively, the Tigers have three interceptions, a fumble recovery and four sacks, but they are allowing 433.7 yards per game.
LSU meanwhile, will play their first SEC opponent of the year, just one week after improving to 3-0 following a 45-13 winner at home against Kent State.
Offensively, the Tigers are ranked No. 12, scoring 46 PPG and will run up against an Auburn defense that ranks No. 32 at 17.7 PPG. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
LSU quarterback Zach Mettenberger has completed 65.2 percent of his passes with nine touchdowns without throwing an interception to lead the Tigers passing attack, which has averaged 269.3 yards per game.
But the Tigers aren’t just good at passing the ball, they’re good at running it too, as Jeremy Hill put on a clinic as he ran straight through the Kent State defense for 117 yards last time out.
He will be assisted in the backfield by Terrence Magee, who is averaging 8.1 yards per carry with three touchdowns.
In the meantime, the defense has one interception, six sacks and two fumble recoveries and is allowing less than 268 yards of offense per game.
One important factor to take into consideration here is that LSU has won five of six over Auburn, squeaking out a 12-10 win at Auburn last season as an 18-point favorite.
Auburn is 1-9 within the conference are while LSU is 7-3.
LSU is the better team here but not by much.
Auburn isn’t going to be a pushover and can stand up physically along the defensive line which should keep it closer than the spread dd makers have set.
I expect this one to be close with the home team coming away with their perfect record still intact.
LSU 31, Auburn 28
The Wolverines looked winded after one of their worst performances at the Big House, and will aim to solidify their No. 11 ranking when the travel to East Hartford to take on a struggling Connecticut Huskies team that is still searching for their first win of the 2013 season.
Indiana will aim to keep their momentum up after winning its last outing, a 42-10 result against Bowling Green on September 14.
Missouri (2-0) vs. Indiana (2-1)
Date: Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013
Time: 8 p.m. EST
Venue: Memorial Stadium
City: Bloomington
O/U Odds: 70 1/2
Spread: Missouri -2
The Hoosiers have really started to turn things around with Kevin Wilson at the helm, and now will face their toughest challenge the year at home against a Missouri Tigers team that arrives at Memorial Stadium with a perfect record after beating Toledo 38-23, last weekend at home.
Mizzou had a week off to prepare for Indiana’s up-tempo offense, which ranks No. 6 in the country, averaging 50 PPG.
It will be team’s biggest challenge thus far, especially guarding against a Hoosiers aerial attack, which is averaging 339 yards per game.
Freshman quarterback Nate Sudfeld throttled the Falcons defense in his team’s most recent action, throwing for 335 yards and two scores.
The ground game for Indiana is also solid, as the Hoosiers picked up 266 yards on the ground versus Bowling Green.
However, the defense has had its share of problems, giving up 28.7 per game. The Falcons rolled up 400 yards against the Hoosiers last weekend. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Not good news if you’re facing a Tigers’ offense that is also lighting up the scoreboard, as Missouri is averaging 48 points per game this season, ranking the Tigers No. 10 in the nation in scoring offense.
Quarterback James Franklin has remained healthy, becoming the Tigers main offensive weapon i 2013. The senior threw for 212 yards and a touchdown against the Rockets, while also rushing for 77 yards on the day.
Meanwhile defensively, Missouri is much better than the Hoosiers, giving up an average of just 18.5 points per game.
Indiana leads the series 6-2-2, but the teams have not met since 1992.
Both offenses are fairly balanced, though the Tigers tend to be a better running team while the Hoosiers lean heavily on the arm of Sudfeld.
The Tigers are much better defensively too, but with an offense like the Hoosiers have, they can afford to be giving up a few more points than other teams. But not too many, as playing catch up against Missouri will not likely play to their favor.
Indiana will get theirs, but in the end I expect Missouri’s talent to come out on top as the Tigers spoil the party on Saturday, winning this one by a touchdown.
Missouri 45, Indiana 38
