The Wiesguy is a newcomer to the handicapping scene. Hailing from Toronto, Canada he is always sweet on the underdogs and you can often find his thoughts, musings and picks at moneydogs.blogspot.com.
I have to admit that I am bullish on Miami this season. I didn’t get to see a ton of their opener against Boston College but they won in hostile territory and that is what this program needs wins…they just need to get their confidence back – the swagger.
Duke really impressed me last week with their throttling of Florida International last week. I really liked FIU as an upset candidate but they beat the Golden Panthers by 20 points in a game that might not have even been that close.
You have to love a team called the Governors right? But what you can’t love is that this team was just spanked by Western Kentucky – a team that is not even expected to compete in the Sun Belt this season.
Except for the whole scandal thing coach Butch Davis did a fantastic job at UNC. Under his watch the Tar Heels cranked out NFL talent and there is still plenty left on the roster a couple of years later.
The Ball State Cardinals opened the season with a solid home victory against Eastern Michigan. I know it didn’t make national headlines from the opening weekend but it gave them a head start towards competing in the MAC.
The East Carolina Pirates emerged from Week 1 unscathed, collecting an easy win against Appalachian State (at least score wise). They always schedule up in the non-conference so it is no surprise to see them making the short trip to South Carolina.
From the moment that someone (Vince Young uggh!) declared the Philadelphia Eagles the “Dream Team” seemingly everything went downhill last season.
Given what a dud Alabama/Michigan was this could easily be the best and certainly the most important game of the opening week. Georgia Tech is always in the mix in the ACC and whoever wins this one will have a leg up both in the conference and in confidence.
The Bowling Green Falcons are returning a lot of talent from last year’s 5-7 team. Their 17 starters are among the most in the nation but it still may not be enough to rise to the top of their division in the MAC.
The last time we saw Clemson they were getting one of the worst beatdowns in BCS history in the Orange Bowl at the hands of West Virginia. Some games just get away from you but don’t be lulled into thinking they didn’t deserve their shot to be there.
It is hard to know that much about FCS squads but here is what we do know about the Jacksonville State Gamecocks. They finished 7-4 last year and in a game against another SEC team – Kentucky – handled themselves fairly well losing 38-14.
It has been a steady slide since Turner Gill left Buffalo for Kansas (that didn’t go so well). When Gill was at the helm they were having success and it looked like they were a program on the rise in the MAC, now they are skimming the bottom as other programs have ascended.
The expectations are always sky high in Big D and you can bet that owner Jerry Jones is still smarting from how the New York Giants worked their way into the playoffs and then captured another Super Bowl (stings).
The Oklahoma Sooners are expecting another very good season. Almost all polls have them in the top 5 as this talented team is returning a lot of experience too. Oklahoma is always in the argument but hasn’t won a championship in a while.
The expectations for these Wyoming Cowboys is to finish in the middle of the pack in the Mountain West…again. A couple of years ago it looked like this program might turn a corner but the transfer of QB Austyn Carta-Samuels set the program back a bit.
It is still amazing to see how far the Hurricanes program has fallen. There is talent on this roster (there always has been) but this program is so snakebitten they don’t know what to do with themselves.
