Though they’re comfortably in position for a playoff berth of some sort, the Boston Red Sox still need to be at their best every game in September if they want to retake the American League East from the New York Yankees.
After being demolished by the Stanford Cardinal in the first week of the season, the San Jose State Spartans will head south to face the UCLA Bruins who will be trying desperately to stop from falling to 0-2 for the second time in as many seasons.
The ACC’s Boston College Eagles will try and bounce back from a tough opening day loss when they take on the Central Florida Knights, out of Conference-USA this Saturday night. The game is slated to kick-off at 8 p.m. and it will be available on ESPN3.com.
The UAB Blazers, out of Conference-USA, kick-off their 2011 season with a trip to Gainesville to tangle with the SEC’s Florida Gators this Saturday night. Kick-off is slated for 7 p.m. and the game will be available on ESPN3.com.
The Connecticut Huskies and the Vanderbilt Commodores square off this Saturday night in a non-conference matchup between the Big East and the SEC. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. and it will be available on ESPN3.com.
Nebraska is coming off a 33-point win in their opening game and they face a Bulldogs team that lost their opening game and has lost 6 straight games to teams ranked in the top 10 in the nation.
Texas and QB Garrett Gilbert passed their first test in winning their opening game, as there was a lot of pressure on the Longhorns, who are coming off an embarrassing 5-7 season.
The Washington Huskies and the Hawaii Warriors will meet in Seattle this Saturday in a matchup of teams trying to prove that they deserve a spot in the top 25. The Huskies are favored going into the game, and have the advantage of playing host, but will that be enough?
After an impressive first game, the Stanford Cardinal will head to North Carolina to face the Duke Blue Devils in a matchup between two teams on very opposite ends of the football spectrum.
There certainly hasn’t been this much buzz about the Detroit Lions in a while. This team was a big winner at the book last season even though they finished 6-10. Now many believe they can finish at .500 or better and challenge for a Wild Card out of the NFC North.
The New York Jets have been a model of success in the two seasons since head coach Rex Ryan took over, advancing to the AFC Championship game in consecutive years.
A glut of marquee match-ups greets the college football world in the second week of the season; one of the games that stand out is Alabama vs. Penn State.
Week 2 in the college football world gives us a tasty SEC match-up between a team on the rise and the home side Auburn Tigers, with a target on its back and lots to prove after a paltry effort in the opening week.
A week after their BCS Championship hopes could have very well been swept out of the door, Oregon will face the Nevada Wolf Pack, who finished 13-1 in 2010, and wants to come out in their first game of the season with a bang. A win over Oregon could be the bang they are looking for.
The only positive thing you can say about UTEP’s performance against Stony Brook is that they didn’t give up. The Miners were down 24-10 in the third quarter but managed to force overtime and eventually win it.
UTEP Miners vs SMU Mustangs
Gerald J. Ford Stadium – Dallas, Texas
Saturday September 10 – 7:00PM
Moneyline: SMU -1200, UTEP +925
Spread (ATS): SMU -20
Over/Under: 53
Odds courtesy of 5Dimes
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UTEP
They were lucky to even still have a chance to win it given that they rushed for a paltry 36 yards and turned the ball over 4 times…Although maybe it should not have been a surprise.
The Miners struggles on offense were a result of the fact that they are breaking in an almost entirely new offense, even still their performance against Stony Brook was pitiful. The only saving grace was they may have found their QB for the next couple of seasons in JC transfer Nick Lamaison. Hopefully he and the rest of the team might be a little sharper for their first conference test against SMU.
The Miners have had success against SMU – 6-2 since 2003 – including a win as a +6 dog at home last year. This year, as you can tell by the spread, these teams are much further apart. The only advantage for the Miners might be that the Mustangs had their hat handed to them by Texas A&M last week in a game that they were trying to prove the program was inching up the status board. SMU might have trouble getting off the mat.
SMU
I have to admit that I was one of those that thought SMU was ready to take another step this season…but after watching them melt against Texas A&M they appear that they might just be Conference USA good, as opposed to just good. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Perhaps the Aggies were geeked up about heading to the SEC but regardless the Mustangs got nothing done after closing the gap to 20-14, eventually losing 46-14. As much as anything they seemed to lose their confidence.
The Mustang offense is supposed to be formidable but it was pretty meek against Texas A&M. This was supposed to be the year Kyle Padron put it all together but after throwing interceptions on the first two possessions coach June Jones pulled him out of there for backup J.J. McDermott, who breathed a little life into the attack, but it was short-lived.
The question is who gets the nod against UTEP because they may make him look good.
The defense wasn’t expected to be overly stout but with 8 starters returning a better effort was. They were gashed on the ground by A&M’s lethal RB duo and sliced and diced through the air by QB Ryan Tannehill, who looks like a Heisman candidate after that outing.
UTEP is the perfect opponent to get healthy on both sides of the ball so the Mustangs may not be as good as they appear to be after Saturday.
UTEP are 2-6 ATS in their last 8 games overall.
UTEP are 8-21 ATS vs. a team with a losing record.
Over is 13-6 in UTEP last 19 road games.
SMU are 3-7-1 ATS in their last 11 games overall.
SMU are 3-7 ATS in their last 10 home games.
ATS Pick: SMU -20
Over/Under Pick: Over 53
Score Prediction: SMU 45 – UTEP 21
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It was a shame that TCU lost their opener at Baylor – it was a hell of a game. Their defense was a mess throughout the contest but with Casey Pachall at the controls they showed amazing determination to get back in the game before losing it late.
