Washington vs.
Notre Dame: Washington
Steve Sarkisian and
Nick Holt are very familiar with Notre Dame, and I think they understand how to
beat them. The question is whether they
have the personnel to pull it off – but we have seen them beat better teams than
the whining Irish already this season.
More importantly, I want to see Lou Holtz cry because he cursed the
‘Canes last week by jumping on our bandwagon.
FSWho vs. Boston
College: FSWho?
Thanks a lot,
FSWho, for your representation of the ACC! Yeah, that’s right,
FSWho? The nation doesn’t know who they
are anymore because of the egg they laid, at home, against an unranked
opponent. Frankly, I don’t think the ‘Noles know who they are
either. Their team has a case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Who are
opponents going to get this week? I’m going to go with an every other game
theory. I think they bring it this week, just to fall apart with their
next opponent. FSWho, we know you have a good team. We saw it against us and BYU. Pull yourselves together!
7 USC vs. 24 Cal:
Cal
Cal looks to redeem
themselves after being embarrassed by Oregon last week against a USC team
struggling for offensive identity between rotating QBs. Cal QB Kevin Riley and
Jahvid Best were largely ineffective last week because of a poor performance
from the o-line – they will need to step it up against USC’s D or it will be a
long night. Cal hasn’t lost a game at
home since 2007 – against USC. I see Cal
keeping the streak alive and pulling out a W in a very close game.
4 LSU vs. 18 UGA:
UGA
LSU looked
unimpressive against a mediocre Mississippi State team last week and had to
resort to a goal line stand to eek out a W. I think they might be looking
ahead to Florida and could let this one slip in the 4th after a close game. UGA’s offense against South Carolina and
Arkansas looked good and I think LSU’s defense is soft. I smell an upset.
8 Oklahoma vs. 17
Miami: Miami
Now for the main
event! You might notice my analysis on
other games is a little sparse. Well, that is due in part to the fact
that I am dictating this article in an orange and green straight jacket from the
Palm Beach Home for Sad Super Fans. I was committed around 8 PM last
Saturday night after the Palm Beach ‘Canes Club game watch party (that's me below with LT#36 and Ben's Mom).
I won’t
go into a lot of detail, there were some jello shots, my formerly lucky game
day dress, frozen turkeys, and a bonfire involved and some said they
heard me singing the Aerosmith classic “Tell Me What it Takes to Let U
Go.”
On the bright side, I am not alone. My puppy, Sebastian, had
to join me after learning that I was fibbing when I told him his hero “Jacowy
Hawwis” threw for 400 yards and 6 touchdowns against VA Tech. Thanks a
lot to 86 for making him face the truth, spiraling my pup down into a deep depression
with me – Sebastian is the one who created the “Jacory for Heisman” website and
is heartbroken.
I also have a nice
roommate here at The Home who cracked after Tebow went down and is currently
bidding on EBAY for the bag in which Saint Timmy tossed his cookies, which
seems unnecessary given that the seller of said bag is committed down the hall,
but I digress. Sebas and I have been going through daily counseling (“so,
Mary, how did you feel when the punt was blocked?”) and intravenous orange and
green Kool-Aid treatment three times daily. Doctors are optimistic that I
will be released by Thursday morning so I may begin my tailgate food and
beverage prep on schedule.
Just kidding!
I think most of us took this loss much harder than we have in years
because we bought into the hype and had such high expectations for our
‘Canes. I think the team is just as guilty of that. The beat down
by VA Tech can’t be blamed on a single factor (rain, hype, Jimmy Graham) and
there are no excuses. It’s time to make like Steven Tyler and let the U’s
loss go.
I think this is a
tremendous opportunity for growth for the young ‘Canes and I think they can
turn their performance at VA Tech into a motivational tool. Here’s why:
(1) The U thrives
on being the underdog – we are going to have some focused, hungry ‘Canes on the
field seeking redemption;
(2) The game is at
night, at home;
(3) Oklahoma lost
to the only ranked team they played this season – their “impressive” scoring
average is against cupcakes;
(4) Their DBs are
not as good as our WRs – and to quote Solar’s awesome photo “It ain’t rainin’
today is it ____,”
(5) OU’s weak
offensive line.
Are there reasons
for concern? Sure, the lack of sacks and turnovers from Miami’s D and
OU’s D-line ranks 4th in the nation in
sacks averaging 4 per game and VA Tech’s less impressive front 4 made our boys
look like turnstiles.
Hold on for a
moment while I chug some orange and green Kool-Aid . . .
Ooooh, that’s good
stuff. Once it hits your lips . . .
Miami wins in a shoot
out.
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