College Picks, Week 9

That’s 9, as in 9 lives. Cats have 9 lives, and there are some college football teams that would like to have 9 lives, as well. Actually, with the chaos that is the 2007 season, there are plenty of one-loss teams with the possibility of redeeming themselves in the BCS National Championship Game.

Last Week: 12-8
Season: 105-55

Oklahoma vs. Open Date: This one doesn’t count, as the Sooners take the week off. Open Date has never won a game. Pick: OU

Kansas at Texas A&M: The Fighting Manginos are flying high at 7-0. The Aggies are 6-2, but you’d never know it. The Ags will be underdogs in their last four games, and the real estate agents are banging on coach Dennis Franchione’s door. The Ags aren’t that bad, but they aren’t that great. For now, this is the year of the Jayhawk. Pick: KU

Colorado at Texas Tech: The Buffs appear to have peaked with their upset over OU a few weeks back. Few teams go into Lubbock and win. It’s hard. It's savage. Give me the Red Raiders. Pick: Tech

Nebraska at Texas: The Cornhuskers are playing out the string. They got royally kicked last week at home by the Fightin’ Texas Aggies. They now head down to the Forty Acres to take on the Longhorns. Good luck with all that. Pick: Texas

Iowa State at Missouri: The Cyclones played really hard last week in a 17-7 loss to OU. Their murderers’ row of a schedule continues with a trip to Columbia. This game is for the Telephone Trophy. The Tigers have been whipping all comers at home. This one won’t be pretty. Pick: Mizzou

Baylor at Kansas State: Zzzz. One more week in the countdown to a coach search in Waco. K-State should handle the Bears with ease. Pick: KSU

USC at Oregon: The Trojans have a chance to jump back into the national consciousness with a win at Oregon. The Ducks have jumped to #5 in the BCS rankings. Autzen will be louder than ever on Saturday. Pick: Oregon

Cal at Arizona State: What has happened to Cal? The Bears had a chance to be #1 in the nation, and promptly dropped two games to Oregon State and UCLA. The Fighting Sun Devils are undefeated and #4 in the latest BCS rankings. Pick: Arizona State

Ohio State at Penn State: Toughest game and trip to date for the top-ranked Buckeyes. Saturday Night Football on ABC. Over 100,000 blue-and-white clad fans in Happy Valley. This is a crazy season. #1 won’t stay #1. Pick: Penn State

West Virginia at Rutgers: Mountaineers are cruising right along, and now have a chance to win a Big East championship thanks to Rutgers’ upset of South Florida. Rutgers isn’t quite what they were last year, and probably doesn’t have enough to pull two consecutive upsets. Pick: West Virginia

South Florida at UConn: Battle for first place in the Big East. UConn is the only undefeated team remaining in conference play. But, UConn’s 6-1 record has been greatly aided by missed calls in wins over Temple and Louisville. The Huskies could well be 4-3 at this point. USF is coming off of a loss at Rutgers, and is glad this game is not played in November. My gut tells me to go against the warm-weather team going north, but UConn has been doing it with smoke and mirrors all year long. The mirrors break this week. Pick: South Florida

Indiana at Wisconsin: Three weeks ago, Wisconsin was the #5 team in the nation. Two losses later, the Badgers aren’t ranked at all. Indiana is still looking for win #6, which would make them bowl-eligible for the first time in forever. A red team is guaranteed to win this game. Pick: Wisconsin

Boston College at Virginia Tech (Thursday): Eagles are #2 in the nation as they visit Blacksburg for an old Big East rivalry transported to the ACC. Hokies have bounced back with a vengeance after being slammed at LSU early in the season. Pick: VT

Boise State at Fresno State (Friday): WAC showdown, with the winner surviving to battle Hawaii for a conference championship. When we last saw Boise, they were trading points with Nevada in a 69-67 quadruple overtime win. Fresno is looking good this year. Advantage goes to Fresno for their green field. Pick: Fresno State

Georgia vs. Florida at Jacksonville: The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party resumes. The Gators are the best two-loss team in the country. Plus, no matter how good either team happens to be, the Gators find a way to win this one, at least in recent years. Pick: Florida

Clemson at Maryland: Two inconsistent teams that define an inconsistent conference. Clemson hung 70 on Central Michigan, but have stumbled against ACC teams. The Terps lost a heartbreaker to rival UVa last week. Pick: Maryland

South Carolina at Tennessee: Steve Spurrier vs. Phil Fulmer. Spurrier has Fulmer’s number, and always has. But, the Gamecocks committed the unforgivable sin of losing to Vanderbilt last week. Vols got spanked by archrival Alabama last week. Vols win in spite of the coaching matchup. Pick: Tennessee

Northwestern at Purdue: Purdue always beats teams like this. It’s the big boys in the Big Ten they have problems with. Pick: Purdue

Louisiana Tech at Utah State: This is an awful matchup. But, it’s an even matchup. Tech has won two games, while Utah State has not won a game in over a year. They’re charging money to see this one. Pick: Utah State

Michigan State at Iowa: Spartans are improved under new coach Mark Dantonio. Hawkeyes are struggling big-time. But, the game is in Iowa City, where the Hawkeyes shocked previously ranked Illinois two weeks ago. Pick: Iowa

Tiffin at Hillsdale: Did you know that Hillsdale College does not accept government aid of any kind? They won’t need any help on the gridiron this week. Pick: Hillsdale