BoiseStateFan's 2016 College Football Predictions

[BoiseStateFan27]

South Carolina Gamecocks

Preview: Last year was a terrible year for South Carolina. It didn't start out so bad as they took advantage of turnovers to stun North Carolina in a game that became more surprising as the year went on. South Carolina promptly plummeted after. There were a few close losses but rock bottom hit towards the end of the year when they lost to The Citadel. They gave Clemson a tougher battle than expected in an odd rivalry game to end the year with a 3-9 record. Now Will Muschamp takes over as head coach, I'm not sure if he was the right hire for the job but we will get an idea how it will go once 2017 rolls around. Basically what we're looking at here is South Carolina is almost completely starting over, stripped down to the foundation if you will. South Carolina's offense is dealing with uncertainty at QB, Perry Orth played most of last year as the starter he wasn't all that effective and with Lorenzo Nunez moving to receiver it's Orth against a lot of guys with no starting experience. RB Brandon Wilds is gone and the new starter is likely David Williams who was the 2nd leading rusher last year but so far hasn't shown much promise. The best receiving targets in Pharoh Cooper and Jerell Adams are gone as well as about everyone else who has caught a pass for South Carolina. South Carolina's offensive line struggled last year, it did go through some injuries and returns 4 players with experience but 3 are gone. When Spurrier's tenure at South Carolina started to fall apart the defense was the first to go in 2014, it wasn't much better last year. There's a lot of returning experience but not many of these players have played well so far. The highlight of this defense was supposed to be linebacker Skai Moore(who played a huge key in the North Caroline surprise last year) but he had a herniated disk in his neck and will miss the entire year. South Carolina's secondary was bad and made passing for opponents very easy, Greyson Lambert looked like a star against this secondary, even Missouri's passing game looked capable. South Carolina loses a few starters in the secondary but that can't be the worst thing with how bad they played. The schedule includes South Carolina's annual rivalry game with Clemson that is harder than ever, even a game against East Carolina will prove difficult this year, but UMass and Western Carolina should hopefully provide wins. South Carolina annually plays Texas A&M out of the west which isn't the worst thing but South Carolina hasn't had any success against them so far, they draw Mississippi State as the other opponent. This team is starting completely over and it's going to be a long year.

Predictions:

Sept. 1 @ Vanderbilt: This will be an ugly game to watch, there won't be much offense on either side but Vanderbilt will manage at least a few points against South Carolina's defense to win. L

Sept. 10 @ Mississippi State: Mississippi State's rebuild is nowhere near as bad as South Carolina's and South Carolina probably doesn't have much of a chance at winning this one. L

Sept. 17 East Carolina: East Carolina was a giant killing program under Ruffin McNeil but they fired him so I'm not sure how they will perform in this game, I'm going with South Carolina in a close one. W

Sept. 24 @ Kentucky: Even Kentucky will prove to be too much for South Carolina this year. L

Oct. 1 Texas A&M: This is one of the few games where Trevor Knight will perform well. L

Oct. 8 Georgia: This will be a blowout loss most likely, though Muschamp's last well coached game was against Georgia. L

Oct. 22 UMass: If South Carolina manages to lose this game after a bye week they are hopeless. W

Oct. 29 Tennessee: This will be a blowout loss. L

Nov. 5 Missouri: Another game South Carolina won't have much chance at winning. L

Nov. 12 @ Florida: Same for this game. L

Nov. 19 Western Carolina: Western Carolina was actually a solid FCS team last year, slightly worse than The Citadel, South Carolina could possibly lose this one. W

Nov. 26 @ Clemson: I know rivalry games can be weird and all but really...L

Predicted Record: 3-9(0-8)

 

[BoiseStateFan27]

Tennessee Volunteers

Preview: Tennessee was a young but very talented team last year. It definitely showed at times as they lost quite a few games they shouldn't have lost. In the 2nd game of the season they pretty much controlled most of the game against Oklahoma but in the 4th quarter everything fell apart Oklahoma stormed back and tied it up to bring it to overtime, in 2nd overtime Tennessee lost the game. Against Florida is surely looked like Tennessee would finally defeat the Gators but they blew a 27-14 lead in that one as they gave up a ridiculous go ahead touchdown to Florida on 4th and forever. They also blew a lead to lose to Arkansas, finally they reversed fortunes and made a comeback to beat Georgia. Then Tennessee did the same thing again, taking a late one point lead on Alabama only to let Alabama drive down the field and take the lead as well as the victory. Tennessee ended the year in dominant fashion most impressively the bowl destruction of Northwestern. The offense should be easily one of the best in the SEC as QB Joshua Dobbs returns, Dobbs struggles somewhat with accuracy but he's still one of the SEC's best QBs. Tennessee has one of the strongest RB duos in the country with Jalen Hurd and Alvin Kamara. Tennessee needs better receiver play as well to help the passing game but Josh Smith and Josh Malone should be solid targets. Tennessee should be very strong on defense as the defensive line returns a lot of talented and experienced players including star end Derek Barnett. Both starting linebackers are back and both are very talented, Jalen Reeves-Maybin is one of the best in the country. The secondary will be led by corner Cameron Sutton and returns quite a few corners with experience, both of last year's safeties are gone though so that could be a concern. The schedule includes a slightly tricky opener against Appalachian State, and other non-conference games against Virginia Tech, Ohio and a FCS team, Tennessee will always have the challenge of playing Alabama every year but they get them at home, they drew Texas A&M as the other West opponent. Tennessee has flashed potential under Butch Jones, but with one of the most talented and experienced teams in the country the time is now to show that Tennessee will be a contender in the SEC with Butch Jones as head coach.

Predictions:

Sept. 1 Appalachian State: Appalachian State could provide a decent challenge but most likely Tennessee should win this game pretty easily. W

Sept. 10 Virginia Tech (Bristol, TN): A very cool atmosphere for this game, this game will see a lot of defense but Tennessee's offense will make the most plays to win the game. W

Sept. 17 Ohio: Ohio should be a solid team this year but Tennessee should win this one. W

Sept. 24 Florida: I just can't trust Tennessee to beat Florida they've come so close these past few years but every time they've found a way to lose. I'm picking another loss here. L

Oct. 1 @ Georgia: I do think Tennessee will recover and beat Georgia on the road. W

Oct. 8 @ Texas A&M: Tennessee will force turnovers from Trevor Knight and end up winning this game pretty easily. W

Oct. 15 Alabama: Here's yet another big chance Tennessee hosting Alabama, once again I don't trust them enough to pull this one off though. L

Oct. 29 @ South Carolina: Tennessee will easily win this game. W

Nov. 5 Tennessee Tech. W

Nov. 12 Kentucky: Tennessee will easily blow out Kentucky in this one. W

Nov. 19 Missouri: This game won't feature too many points but expect Tennessee's offense to do enough to win. W

Nov. 26 @ Vanderbilt: Similar to the game against Missouri, Vanderbilt a team with a good defense but no offense puts up a fight but Tennessee wears them down late. W

Predicted Record: 10-2(6-2)

 

[BoiseStateFan27]

Texas A&M Aggies

Preview: Texas A&M is in quite the spot now, once again they got off to a strong start only to disappoint later in the year. They started out 5-0 but won only 3 games the rest of the way and those wins were over South Carolina, Vanderbilt and Western Carolina. The offseason was even worse the two talented QBs Texas A&M had battling for the starting job both transferred away. Sumlin and his coaching staff have been involved with several other controversies in the offseason as well. Things appear to be going downhill in a hurry, Texas A&M could stop falling and climb back up once football starts or start the windy trail to the end of the Sumlin era. The offense was a complete disappointment last year and the question marks remain. After losing their top QBs to transfers they got a transfer themselves in former Oklahoma QB Trevor Knight who occasionally shined brilliance mostly in a Sugar bowl win over Alabama, but he has had more struggles than anything last time he played he nearly lost Oklahoma the game against TCU. The running game needs to improve as well because it hasn't been too strong the past few years. Where there aren't questions is at WR where Texas A&M has a ridiculous amount of talent with Josh Reynolds, Ricky Seals-Jones, Speedy Noil and Christian Kirk all returning. The offensive line is a huge work in progress as it was a major disappointment last year and now 3 starters from that unit are gone. The defense played a lot better last season thanks to John Chavis. The defensive line is a strength, especially with perhaps the best and most talented defensive end in college football in Myles Garrett. The linebackers are the biggest question for this defense as they didn't have good play there and don't have much depth either. The secondary should be a strong unit as well despite the loss of some corners. Texas A&M has a lot tougher of a schedule this year with a non-conference game against UCLA and instead of Vanderbilt they get Tennessee from the SEC

 

[BoiseStateFan27]

I went to edit and finish the rest of it, then it tells me at the end I went past the time limit. Lost the whole prediction portion

 

[BoiseStateFan27]

Basically I'm picking Texas A&M to struggle and most likely this is the end of the Sumlin era. I had explanations for all these games but I lost it all so it will be just "Ws" and "Ls" now. How frustrating .

Predictions:

Sept. 3 UCLA: L
Sept. 10 Prairie View A&M: I actually had something funny to say about this but I lost it, won't get so lucky next time Prairie View A&M! W
Sept. 17 @ Auburn: L
Sept. 24 Arkansas: W
Oct. 1 @ South Carolina: W
Oct. 8 Tennessee: L
Oct. 22 @ Alabama: L
Oct. 29 New Mexico State: W
Nov. 5 @ Mississippi State: L
Nov. 12 Ole Miss: L
Nov. 19 UTSA: W
Nov. 26 LSU: L

Predicted Record: 5-7(2-6)

 

[BoiseStateFan27]

Vanderbilt Commodores

Preview: After falling apart in Derek Mason's first year Vanderbilt found some improvement at least on one side of the ball. They were involved in some unwatchable games on their way to a 4-8 record last year. Mason needs to show improvement this year or he could find himself on the hot seat if he isn't already and there is opportunity. Florida is bad offensively, Georgia also has offensive issues and has a new head coach for the first time in a while, Missouri as well and South Carolina is bad just about everywhere, this is a good time for Vanderbilt to possibly make some noise in the SEC East. Their offense is a major issue though, last year they seemingly just tried to stay out of the defenses way, running the ball and only passing in passing situations. Johnny McCrary started a lot of the year and the offense actually ran better with him but he turned the ball over a lot throwing 12 picks to 6 TDs, Kyle Shurmur a highly regarded recruit but was a true freshman took over as started and the offense was incapable of doing anything but he didn't turn the ball over near as much, McCrary transferred and now the job is Shurmur's. Vanderbilt is hoping he will improve obviously he did the majority of his passing in passing situations so a lot of times the defenses knew what was coming. RB Ralph Webb ran for over 1000 yards last year but he carried the ball a lot to get there only averaging a little over 4 yards/carry and he wore down later in the year. The receivers have some potential Trent Sherfield had a good year last year, and there's some other potentially good weapons back, the offensive line loses 3 starters but brings back 6 players with starting experience. If Kyle Shurmur plays better and Vanderbilt becomes less predictable this offense could make a solid improvement, which since it was one of the worst in college football last year means it might just simply not suck. Vanderbilt's defense improved significantly last year and with a ton of experience back this will be a defense a top SEC team would have. 5 of the top 6 defensive linemen are back, 7 of the top 9 linebackers are back including Zach Cunningham and Nigel Bowen who was lost to injury last year. The secondary returns almost everyone and it was one of the best secondary's in the SEC last year. The schedule is tricky, they have non-conference games against Mid Tenn State, Georgia Tech and Western Kentucky the latter two on the road conceivably Vanderbilt could very well win or lose all 3 of those games, they draw Auburn in addition to Ole Miss from the West this year. It is possible for Vanderbilt to improve this year, but their biggest issue is they run an offense who's goal is to just stay out of the way of the defense, we saw that fail for Will Muschamp at Florida and he had better athletes than Vanderbilt does. Vanderbilt's defense will give them a shot at a lot of games I'm just not sure if they can even win enough of them for a bowl bid.

Predictions:

Sept. 1 South Carolina: Vanderbilt does start off the season strong as they win the opener over South Carolina. W

Sept. 10 Middle Tennessee: This game proves to be a low scoring one and Vanderbilt pulls off a close win here. W

Sept. 17 @ Georgia Tech: Vanderbilt stops the option for most of the game but with their offense going nowhere Georgia Tech eventually wears down Vanderbilt's defense late grinding their way to a late game winning drive. L

Sept. 24 @ Western Kentucky: Vanderbilt actually nearly beat a strong Western Kentucky team last year, Western Kentucky won't be quite as good this year and I think Vanderbilt takes this one. W

Oct. 1 Florida: This will be another one of your unwatchable low scoring Florida/Vanderbilt classics with Florida winning close again. L

Oct. 8 @ Kentucky: Vanderbilt finds enough offense in this one to win. W

Oct. 15 @ Georgia: Georgia will beat Vanderbilt in this one without too much trouble. L

Oct. 22 Tennessee State: A bad FCS opponent will provide Vanderbilt an easy win. W

Nov. 5 @ Auburn: Auburn wears down Vanderbilt late to win this one. L

Nov. 12 @ Missouri: Should I mention that it's very well possible that we go the entire regulation of this game without a single score? It's possible. L

Nov. 19 Ole Miss: Vanderbilt puts up a fight but loses. L

Nov. 26 Tennessee: Vanderbilt simply doesn't have enough to beat Tennessee who wore them down last year. L

Predicted Record: 5-7(2-6)

 

[BoiseStateFan27]

SEC Predictions
​

East

1. Tennessee Volunteers 10-2(6-2)
2. Georgia Bulldogs 9-3(6-2)
3. Florida Gators 8-4(5-3)
4. Missouri Tigers 6-6(3-5)
5. Vanderbilt Commodores 5-7(2-6)
6. Kentucky Wildcats 5-7(2-6)
7. South Carolina Gamecocks 3-9(0-8)

West

1. Alabama Crimson Tide 12-0(8-0)
2. Louisiana State Tigers 10-2(6-2)
3. Arkansas Razorbacks 8-4(5-3)
4. Auburn Tigers 8-4(5-3)
5. Mississippi Rebels 6-6(3-5)
6. Mississippi State Bulldogs 6-6(3-5)
7. Texas A&M Aggies 5-7(2-6)

SEC Championship Prediction: Alabama over Tennessee - SEC championship is chalk almost every year so can't pick against Alabama.

 

[OregonDucks]

Absolutely unprecedented amount of wasted time spent on FCS schools.

 

[BoiseStateFan27]

Up next are my Pac-12 picks sure to go wrong because that league is hard to predict

 

[BoiseStateFan27]

Arizona Wildcats

Preview: When talking about the Pac-12 race you shouldn't forget about Arizona. Last year turned about to be a very disappointing year for the Wildcats, they started out 3-0 but it wasn't a convincing start against a rather weak non-conference slate, they struggled to beat UTSA in the opener but it was almost right from the beginning of the year that Arizona started getting hit with injuries. Their initial collapse happened in back to back games against UCLA and Stanford where they were blown out. They won 2 games in a row after but it was against the bottom of the Pac-12. Then came the 3 game losing streak where things really fell apart, the worst of which was a 49-3 blowout loss to Washington. They still found their way into a bowl game thanks to a double overtime upset win over Utah, they finished with a 7-6 record in a year where injuries impacted almost every position. The offense had it's issues at times the backup QBs who had to play when starter Anu Solomon had concussions weren't awful but Solomon is clearly the star of this group if he can stay healthy this offense should thrive. Arizona primarily ran with 2 RBs last year Nick Wilson and Jared Baker, Wilson was the more steady runner while Baker was the big play threat, Baker is gone so it will likely be all Wilson this year. Arizona will miss WR Cayleb Jones but Nate Phillips, Samajie Grant are back as well as perhaps the best of the group Trey Griffey returns after missing half of last year due to injury. The offensive line loses 2 good starters but returns 5 players with starting experience. Jeff Casteel was often Rich Rod's right hand man when it came to coaching the defense and it usually worked, but last year when injuries hit the defense was terrible and Rich Rod decided to go in a new direction bringing in Marcel Yates to coach the defense. Yates runs an aggressive defense that tries to force negative plays and turnovers, but it is very vulnerable to giving up big plays. There's some returning experience and perhaps some players who are better fitted to Yates' scheme who could break out, the best playmakers Arizona had in Reggie Gilbert and Scooby Wright are both gone. The linebackers should be a stronger position if every starter doesn't get hurt there again like it did last year. Arizona's secondary struggled badly last year but it remains to be seen how it will play if there's actually pressure on the opposing QBs, there is a lot of experience back so it could improve. Arizona's schedule features an interesting opener against BYU in Glendale, they have to face Washington and Washington State but they get the benefit of also getting Oregon State from the North division. I think Arizona is in for a bounce back this year.

Predictions:

Sept. 3 BYU (Glendale): No BYU hail mary miracles this time, I think Arizona comes out in the opener and proves they are ready to return towards the top of the Pac-12 beating BYU. W

Sept. 10 Grambling State: Easy win. W

Sept. 17 Hawai'i: As you'll see later this is part of a ridiculous schedule to start Hawai'i's season, Arizona wins easy. W

Sept. 24 Washington: UPSET!!! Since this is the Pac-12 I'm going to just occasionally pick upsets that don't make a whole lot of sense because stuff like this happens in the Pac-12. W

Oct. 1 @ UCLA: Mora Jr has absolutely had Rich Rod's number every year, I believe this would be the 3rd year in a row that Arizona receives their first loss from UCLA. L

Oct. 8 @ Utah: On the contrary Rich Rod has had a lot of success against Utah, so Arizona wins this one. W

Oct. 15 USC: Crazy stat since 2007! every game between these 2 teams have been decided by one score, so you know this will be thrilling, USC won the majority of those contests so I'll go with them. L

Oct. 29 Stanford: Arizona I'm sure is glad to finally have a bye week in the middle of the year, I don't think they win this game though. L

Nov. 5 @ Washington State: Arizona pulls off the win here in a tight offensive battle that's honestly hard to predict since this is in November and both teams have QBs with concussion histories. W

Nov. 12 Colorado: Arizona wins this one by a comfortable margin. W

Nov. 19 @ Oregon State: It's going to be a long road back for Oregon State, Arizona wins easily. W

Nov. 26 Arizona State: This game is completely impossible to predict, both teams have defenses focused on causing big plays while also vulnerable to big plays, and Arizona State's offense is geared around big plays and ridiculously inconsistent at least I have a 50% chance but who knows which one will hit the big plays or if both do. W

Predicted Record: 9-3(6-3)

 

[BoiseStateFan27]

Arizona State Sun Devils

Preview: Arizona State entered last season with the majority of their starters back from a team that won 10 games the year before and the possibility of a special season was really high entering the year and instead they regressed completely. It all started with a bad performance in the opener against Texas A&M and it really continued most of the year, Arizona State was very uneven. They had an easier time beating UCLA on the road than Cal Poly at home, they were blown out by USC and Utah yet beat Washington. They also lost to Oregon at home in a ridiculous 61-55 shootout. They ended the year blowing a lead against Utah, then in the bowl game against West Virginia they took a 41-36 lead late and instead of going for two to get a 7 point lead they kicked the extra point, West Virginia then drove down the field and won by 1 point. Arizona State's offense was terribly inconsistent, there were games where it started slowly and didn't play well until the 2nd half, or it would start fast and fade late you just didn't know what you were going to see from them, the closest to a complete game it put up was the win over UCLA. For better or worse QB Mike Bercovici is gone, the problem though is he threw every single pass last year, so the new QB will be a complete mystery as no one that has thrown a pass returns. RBs Demario Richard and Kalen Ballage are both back and they both are very capable of big runs at any time. Arizona State loses Devin Lucien and DJ Foster but Cameron Smith another big playmaker is back after missing all of last year. There's a lot of potential in the young receivers as well. Arizona State loses almost everyone on the offensive line so that's a big concern. Arizona State's defense had no depth whatsoever they avoided issues with injuries but the defense simply wore out in the 2nd half of games. The defensive line is once again a concern only 4 players had any playing time there last year and one of those players is gone. The linebackers though are a strength on this team, Salamo Fiso is perhaps one of the best linebackers in the country and Christian Sam is a great one as well, depth is expected to be strong at this position as well. Arizona State's secondary is an interesting case for the most part it defended the pass well, but when it didn't it give up a lot of big plays, it was hit with injuries last year also and now a lot of experience is gone from this unit, who knows what to expect. Arizona State's schedule is highlighted with a non-conference game against Texas Tech, they draw Cal, Oregon and the Washingtons from the North which isn't the easiest of draws. Arizona State is a huge guessing game for me, their offense could hit big plays like they want while the defense could force turnovers and lead Arizona State to a great year, or none of that could happen and they can drop to the bottom of the Pac-12, or they could just be all over the map basically anything can happen with this team.

Predictions:

Sept. 3 Northern Arizona: Easy win here. W

Sept. 10 Texas Tech: Surprise here but I'm going with Texas Tech, I think they have an offense capable of hitting big plays against Arizona State. L

Sept. 17 @ UTSA: This should be an easy win. W

Sept. 24 California: Might regret this but I'm going with Arizona State despite the fact that Davis Webb torched them last time they met. W

Oct. 1 @ USC: I think this game goes to USC. L

Oct. 8 UCLA: The road team has won the past few matchups between these two, that's about the only thing that gives me an idea what to expect here. L

Oct. 15 @ Colorado: I think Arizona State will beat Colorado in this one. W

Oct. 22 Washington State: Arizona State hits the big plays they need to in order to win this game. W

Oct. 29 @ Oregon: Arizona State hasn't beaten Oregon in a while so I'll take Oregon here. L

Nov. 10 Utah: Bye week helps as Arizona State beats Utah. W

Nov. 19 @ Washington: Arizona State has had Washington's number for a while now. W

Nov. 26 @ Arizona: As I said before with the styles these two run there's no telling what will happen in this game. L

Predicted Record: 7-5(5-4)

 

[BoiseStateFan27]

California Golden Bears

Preview: Cal finally had the breakthrough they needed under Sonny Dykes, as they had an experienced team that rolled to a 5-0 start. Unfortunately Cal hit a midseason slump losing 5 of the next 6 games with the only win being over the struggling Oregon State, Cal did finish with two more wins to end the year with an 8-5 record and now the challenge is what's next? Cal is going to be starting over in a lot of areas. Gone is QB Jared Goff who was the starter each of the last 3 years and was the #1 pick in the NFL draft, now enters former Texas Tech QB Davis Webb, he's used to running the airraid system so he should fit well into the offense. RB Daniel Lasco is gone but he was injured for some time last year and that allowed 3 other RBs to get a lot of carries so that committee approach will likely exist this year. Cal's receiving corps is an interesting case, gone are Cal's top SIX receivers from last year, and yet Dykes has a very talented but very inexperienced group of reinforcements including 5 star WR Demarcus Robinson who signed in May, a drop off probably will happen in the passing game with so many new pieces but wow the future certainly looks bright here. The offensive line was steady last year and returns a lot of starters so this is about the one sure thing the offense has. Cal made significant improvements last year on defense, of course with how bad the defense was in 2014 that meant it finally didn't suck so bad, but now they're losing almost everyone. It was hit with injuries last year but despite that Cal's defensive line only returns 4 players with experience, Cal took a huge hit at linebackers when Hardy Nickerson Jr the best player on the defense graduated and transferred to Illinois to play for his dad. There will be a lot of young players up front. The secondary wasn't great last year but Pac-12 secondary's always have the toughest tests thanks to all the good passing teams in the league. Cal's secondary definitely has a lot more experience and depth than the other areas of the defense. For a young team the schedule Cal plays is absolutely brutal, they play Hawai'i in Australia, go on the road to last year's Mountain West champ San Diego State, and host what should be an improved Texas, that's just the non-conference. Cal has the misfortune of drawing Arizona State, Utah, UCLA and USC from the South that's probably the hardest draw possible. I mean just look at their last 6 games below, all six of those teams could be in the top 25. This definitely isn't the schedule for a team with all new parts, it would be an amazing coaching job by Sonny Dykes if he can get this team back to a bowl.

Predictions:

Aug 27 Hawai'i (Sydney, Australia): Feels different typing August, we get some early football here with this game, I have 20 days to finish this thing, where did time go? Anyways Cal will win this one. W

Sept. 10 @ San Diego State: On paper this should be a really difficult game but that paper doesn't take into account how badly San Diego State always plays OOC. Cal wins. W

Sept. 17 Texas: Cal will likely lose this game, I think Texas will take a step forward this year. L

Sept. 24 @ Arizona State: I don't have Davis Webb shredding Arizona State like he did last time. L

Oct. 1 Utah: Calling upset here, Cal wins. W

Oct. 8 @ Oregon State: Cal may be starting over but they're still miles ahead of where Oregon State is. W

Oct. 21 Oregon: Extra time to prepare but Cal hasn't beaten Oregon in a long time so I don't see it happening. L

Oct. 27 @ USC: As you can see the brutal stretch has started, Cal gets blown out. L

Nov. 5 Washington: Cal loses another blowout here. L

Nov. 12 @ Washington State: The battle of coaches who pass the ball as much as they can, so far Dykes has had the edge on Leach so I have Cal with the upset. W

Nov. 19 Stanford: Cal hasn't won "The Big Game" in a while, maybe they'll win the stare down. L

Nov. 26 UCLA: I don't see Cal winning this game either. L

Predicted Record: 4-8(2-7)

 

[Rebel]

Oct. 15 @ Arkansas: Another tough game as Arkansas' defense leaves Kelly with no room to breathe in this one, without any support Ole Miss loses in a collapse for their offense. L

LOL

 

[tducey]

Many thanks for sharing your thoughts, interesting perspective you have.

 

[nddulac]

Absolutely unprecedented amount of wasted time spent on FCS schools.

Perhaps you should do your own previews where you can place the emphasis where you would like to see it placed?

Thanks to Boise State Fan for the effort it takes to do these previews!

 

[BoiseStateFan27]

Perhaps you should do your own previews where you can place the emphasis where you would like to see it placed?

Thanks to Boise State Fan for the effort it takes to do these previews!

I actually would want to see his previews, they would provide us with a great laugh

Especially because he will have Oregon beat every opponent 53-21

Thanks sir

 

[BoiseStateFan27]

Many thanks for sharing your thoughts, interesting perspective you have.

Thanks sir, I have fun doing these, even if I put myself in a box this year by starting so late LOL

 

[BoiseStateFan27]

Colorado Buffaloes

Preview: When Mike MacIntyre took over this job he was faced with one of the nations toughest rebuilding jobs, not only was the program a complete mess but it plays in a conference where 10 teams every year have the potential to be top 25 teams, and if they aren't top 25 they're usually still quite good, climbing up in the Pac-12 is hard. What this rebuild didn't need was more challenges and yet that's exactly what Colorado has been facing. Last year could have been a year where they maybe would take a step forward but instead they got hit hard by injuries and it completely decimated the team. In only year 3 it may have been possible to have a decent roster but not a deep one and that's what Colorado didn't have. They didn't help themselves by dropping an odd opener to Hawai'i, but still were off to a strong 3-1 start. They still showed some promise, they hung in with Oregon at home for a while before fading late, lost by only a touchdown to Arizona, beat Oregon State, once again nearly beat UCLA, and they jumped off to a fantastic start again USC but then QB Sefo Liufau suffered an injury that took him out of the rest of the year, they also lost the USC game by 3. The Liufau injury could carry over into this year, as it remains to be seen if he can play at the start of the year. Davis Webb was originally going to come here and allow Liufau to redshirt and have the full year to recover but Webb changed his mind and went to Cal. If Liufau misses any action Colorado will have a lot of trouble as none of the other QB options look promising. Colorado's running game struggled last year but most of the running backs that saw significant time are back so perhaps improvement can be made. Colorado will miss WR Nelson Spruce as he caught 90 passes last year and was by far the most reliable receiver, all the other receivers are back though. Colorado had an offensive line that constantly changed week to week but that means they bring back 8 players who started at least a game last year, it showed some promise of being a solid line also. Colorado's defense had a lot against it last year, it lacked size, depth and got hit hard by injuries. The good news is it should be better, almost the entire front 7 from last year is back. The secondary is one promising unit for Colorado it was decimated as well by injuries last year but corner Chidobe Awuzie is secretly one of the top corners in college football, if this unit can keep it's starters from getting hurt it could be quite good this year. Colorado's schedule is once again a brutal one, they have their annual toss up rivalry game against Colorado State, but on top of that they have to go on the road to play Michigan. They draw Oregon State from the North which is their only break as the other 3 from the North are Oregon, Stanford, and Washington State. Colorado really needs to catch some lucky breaks to finally make a bowl this year, but so far lucky breaks haven't existed in this rebuild.

Predictions:

Sept. 2 Colorado State (Denver): This game proves to be a tight back and forth battle with Colorado barely taking the win, I'm making this pick on the assumption Liufau plays, so this could be subject to change. W

Sept. 10 Idaho State: Idaho State gave up 80 points to UNLV last year, should be no issues here. W

Sept. 17 @ Michigan: Unfortunately for Colorado if Kordell Stewart makes an appearance it will be on the sideline so he won't be able to throw a miracle hail mary this time around, even if Colorado does throw one for old time's sake they won't be close enough to win because of it. L

Sept. 24 @ Oregon: Not much hope for Colorado to win this one. L

Oct. 1 Oregon State: Colorado's rebuild is ahead of one other rebuild and that would be Oregon State's. W

Oct. 8 @ USC: Colorado won't have near the opportunity to upset USC that they had last year. L

Oct. 15 Arizona State: How inconsistent Arizona State is means Colorado always has a shot in this one, I don't see it happening though. L

Oct. 22 @ Stanford: Colorado gets blown out in this game. L

Nov. 3 UCLA: For whatever reason Colorado has been very close to beating UCLA the past few years, with how close they've been I'll pull the trigger on this big upset. W

Nov. 12 @ Arizona: Colorado won't be able to come as close to beating Arizona as they were last year. L

Nov. 19 Washington State: UPSET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! W

Nov. 26 Utah: I never really considered this a rivalry game but Colorado actually seems to take this pretty seriously, Utah still wins in close fashion though. L

Predicted Record: 5-7(3-6)

 

[VFL1995]

Colorado Buffaloes

Preview: When Mike MacIntyre took over this job he was faced with one of the nations toughest rebuilding jobs, not only was the program a complete mess but it plays in a conference where 10 teams every year have the potential to be top 25 teams, and if they aren't top 25 they're usually still quite good, climbing up in the Pac-12 is hard. What this rebuild didn't need was more challenges and yet that's exactly what Colorado has been facing. Last year could have been a year where they maybe would take a step forward but instead they got hit hard by injuries and it completely decimated the team. In only year 3 it may have been possible to have a decent roster but not a deep one and that's what Colorado didn't have. They didn't help themselves by dropping an odd opener to Hawai'i, but still were off to a strong 3-1 start. They still showed some promise, they hung in with Oregon at home for a while before fading late, lost by only a touchdown to Arizona, beat Oregon State, once again nearly beat UCLA, and they jumped off to a fantastic start again USC but then QB Sefo Liufau suffered an injury that took him out of the rest of the year, they also lost the USC game by 3. The Liufau injury could carry over into this year, as it remains to be seen if he can play at the start of the year. Davis Webb was originally going to come here and allow Liufau to redshirt and have the full year to recover but Webb changed his mind and went to Cal. If Liufau misses any action Colorado will have a lot of trouble as none of the other QB options look promising. Colorado's running game struggled last year but most of the running backs that saw significant time are back so perhaps improvement can be made. Colorado will miss WR Nelson Spruce as he caught 90 passes last year and was by far the most reliable receiver, all the other receivers are back though. Colorado had an offensive line that constantly changed week to week but that means they bring back 8 players who started at least a game last year, it showed some promise of being a solid line also. Colorado's defense had a lot against it last year, it lacked size, depth and got hit hard by injuries. The good news is it should be better, almost the entire front 7 from last year is back. The secondary is one promising unit for Colorado it was decimated as well by injuries last year but corner Chidobe Awuzie is secretly one of the top corners in college football, if this unit can keep it's starters from getting hurt it could be quite good this year. Colorado's schedule is once again a brutal one, they have their annual toss up rivalry game against Colorado State, but on top of that they have to go on the road to play Michigan. They draw Oregon State from the North which is their only break as the other 3 from the North are Oregon, Stanford, and Washington State. Colorado really needs to catch some lucky breaks to finally make a bowl this year, but so far lucky breaks haven't existed in this rebuild.

Predictions:

Sept. 2 Colorado State (Denver): This game proves to be a tight back and forth battle with Colorado barely taking the win, I'm making this pick on the assumption Liufau plays, so this could be subject to change. W

Sept. 10 Idaho State: Idaho State gave up 80 points to UNLV last year, should be no issues here. W

Sept. 17 @ Michigan: Unfortunately for Colorado if Kordell Stewart makes an appearance it will be on the sideline so he won't be able to throw a miracle hail mary this time around, even if Colorado does throw one for old time's sake they won't be close enough to win because of it. L

Sept. 24 @ Oregon: Not much hope for Colorado to win this one. L

Oct. 1 Oregon State: Colorado's rebuild is ahead of one other rebuild and that would be Oregon State's. W

Oct. 8 @ USC: Colorado won't have near the opportunity to upset USC that they had last year. L

Oct. 15 Arizona State: How inconsistent Arizona State is means Colorado always has a shot in this one, I don't see it happening though. L

Oct. 22 @ Stanford: Colorado gets blown out in this game. L

Nov. 3 UCLA: For whatever reason Colorado has been very close to beating UCLA the past few years, with how close they've been I'll pull the trigger on this big upset. W

Nov. 12 @ Arizona: Colorado won't be able to come as close to beating Arizona as they were last year. L

Nov. 19 Washington State: UPSET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! W

Nov. 26 Utah: I never really considered this a rivalry game but Colorado actually seems to take this pretty seriously, Utah still wins in close fashion though. L

Predicted Record: 5-7(3-6)

Agree with everything you said about Colorado. Only differences are I have them getting upsets against Arizona and Arizona State. I think they could be an underrated football team this year but I think their schedule keeps them from getting into a bowl this year. Sefo Liufau is one of the most unappreciated QB's in College Football in my opinion.

 

[BoiseStateFan27]

Oregon Ducks

Preview: Last year was an odd one for Oregon and certainly was well below their new expectations. It didn't start out so bad, sure their defense struggled but they were off to a 2-1 start with a very acceptable 3 point road loss to Michigan State, Vernon Adams was hurt but surely the backup Jeff Lockie who barely lost out on the starting job would keep things rolling just fine against Utah. That sure didn't happen in one of the most surprising games of the year Oregon got destroyed, housed, blown out whatever words you can find to describe the 62-20 beating Oregon took at home, and that's when it was realized that things weren't quite right. Oregon struggled for a while before putting away Colorado, then got taken down in overtime by Washington State. Finally they righted the ship beating Washington, winning a wild 61-55 game over Arizona State. It got even better later as Oregon went on the road and beat Stanford who had been dominating the Pac-12, as well as blowing out USC, they gave up 42 in a shootout against Oregon State but it appeared they were back. Then came the bowl game everything went right for Oregon in a 31-0 start against TCU but then Vernon Adams went down with an injury and Oregon lost the game. Oregon's cause for concern is Vernon Adams is now gone, and now former Montana State QB Dakota Prukop will take over. Oregon will have to find out did Adams make everyone around him better or does Lockie just suck? It looks like the latter cause there is a lot of talent on this roster. RB Royce Freeman is an underrated running back he ran for nearly 2000 yards last year, Oregon has 3 other big play weapons at RB as well. Darren Carrington and Dwayne Stanford are two very talented receivers both average a ridiculous amount of yards per catch, TE Pharaoh Brown is back after being hurt last year. Oregon's offensive line will lose some good starters but there's 5 other players who have started games for Oregon at some point, they also brought in Zac Morgan a grad transfer from the University of Dayton. Oregon's defense was awful last year though injuries didn't help, they now brought in Brady Hoke as the defensive coordinator. Oregon will be almost completely rebuilding what was a pretty bad front 7 with exception of DeForest Buckner who is in the NFL now, at least Hoke can basically pick and choose who he wants to start but this is a major weakness. Oregon's secondary was bad early in the year but showed signs of improvement as the year went on despite injuries and now this unit returns a ton of experience. The schedule will be challenging Oregon hosts Virginia, but the big non-conference game will be on the road against Nebraska. Oregon draws USC, Arizona State, Utah and Colorado from the South so that's not the worst draw. Last year brought some uncertainty to Oregon's program but make no mistake they will be a Pac-12 contender once again.

Predictions:

Sept. 3 UC Davis: I really should do a full analysis on UC Davis here and just leave it at that just to piss OD off LOL. W

Sept. 10 Virginia: No Bronco Mendenhall won't suddenly make Virginia good enough to beat Oregon overnight. W

Sept. 17 @ Nebraska: This one I had a tough time with I flipped back and forth on this one and decided on Oregon. W

Sept. 24 Colorado: Oregon should easily win this one. W

Oct. 1 @ Washington State: UPSET!! Washington State has been on Oregon's nerves lately I'll have them stunning Oregon here. L

Oct. 8 Washington: Oregon has a long winning streak going in this one, as a rule I following the trend until it breaks. W

Oct. 21 @ California: Oregon wins this game without much trouble. W

Oct. 29 Arizona State: Oregon has had Arizona State's number for a while, so I have them winning this game. W

Nov. 5 @ USC: USC occasionally plays to their immense talent against Oregon, I feel like this will be one of those times allowing for USC to pull the upset. L

Nov. 12 Stanford: An odd rivalry this has become, for several years Oregon dominated Stanford, suddenly two years in a row Stanford found the solution to beating Oregon, now Oregon is winning against them again. I'm going with Oregon in this one. W

Nov. 19 @ Utah: After Utah did such inhumane things to Oregon last year I think Oregon will be well prepared and motivated to win this one. W

Nov. 26 @ Oregon State: Rivalry games can be weird sometimes but Oregon has beaten their rivals so many years in a row now it's hard to see them losing. W

Predicted Record: 10-2(7-2)