Top 10 College Football Games – Week 4

This weekend finds the best games of the week involving SEC teams and an SEC team-to-be. A crucial SEC West showdown in Tuscaloosa tops the list, while quite possibly a future ACC conference game rounds out my top 10 games to watch.

1. Arkansas/Alabama: One of seven FBS games, per ESPN, between unbeaten opponents, as both teams are 3-0. Alabama has won 19 consecutive SEC openers, per ESPN, and the Crimson Tide is 22-1 at Bryant-Denny in its last 23 games (only loss was to Auburn last year). IMHO this might be the jerk bowl coaching match-up, Saban versus Petrino. Arkansas will start two freshmen at offensive tackles. One kid's name is Smothers and I believe Alabama smothers & covers the Hawgs Saturday afternoon.

Prediction: Alabama BBQs the Razorbacks 37-16.

2. Oklahoma St/Texas A&M: The T.Boone Pickens’ “cowpokes” stampede into “Rick Perry” Field down in College Station for a good ole western shootout. The Cowboys will bring an aerial circus deep in the heart of Texas while the Aggies will be looking to add to their FBS leading 10 QB sacks total.

Prediction: The SEC-to-be Aggies corral the Cowboys 34-31.

3. LSU/West Virginia: The Bayou Bengals will be prowling the Appalachian hills looking for Mountaineers. Last time I checked, West Virginia was voted “Not-SEC-Worthy” by the 12 university presidents. WVU has a sensational QB in Geno Smith, and he will earn his stripes in prime time if WVU can pull off an upset against a very talented LSU defense.

Prediction: LSU is king of the mountainEERS Saturday night 27-17.

4. Florida State/Clemson: No longer the Bowden Bowl, now we have Dat-boy versus Jimbo. I can’t think of another place in America more appropriate for two coaches named Dabo & Jimbo to coach a football game than in Pickens County, SC.

Prediction: Clemson tomahawks the QB-less Seminoles 31-17.

5. Southern Cal/Arizona State: The Fighting Kiffins finally leave Southern California and head to the Valley of the Sun where a guy with a pitch fork awaits. The experts picked these two teams to emerge from the Pac-12 South Division (that sounds weird to say!) and play Oregon in the Pac-12 Championship game… oops, forgot Southern Cal is on double secret proBushion!

Prediction: Sun Devils stick a fork in the Trojans, 35-24.

6. Vanderbilt/South Carolina: The Commodores drop anchor in Williams-Brice Saturday night in a showdown of unbeatens in the SEC East (how often has this been said of a USC/Vandy game?). The Dores hope to break on through to 4-0, but the forecast in Columbia all week for Vanderbilt has been Clowney with a chance for pain (not original sorry!).

Prediction: USC sinks the Commodores 30-20.

7. UNC/Georgia Tech: The mountain goats migrate to the ATL to try & slow down the ground game of the fighting Paul Johnsons. The blue bellies and bees are both 3-0 in the A-She-She. Georgia Tech amassed over 700-plus yards of offense versus Kansas last weekend. UNC will be a bit stiffer test on defense for the Yellow Jackets.

Prediction: Georgia Tech continues the ground pound strategy (Donkey Kong Country Returns reference for all you Wii players out there) and beats UNC 33-23.

8. San Diego State/Michigan: Big Blue hosts the Aztecs in the Big House on Saturday. This game is the Brady Hoke Bowl, as Michigan’s current head coach was the head coach at SDSU last year. It shouldn’t be too bitter sweet for Hoke, especially when your QB is named Denard Robinson.

Prediction: The Maize & Blue gives a chilly reception to the boys from sunny San Diego; Michigan wins 34-24.

9. Georgia/Ole Miss: What is being dubbed, the Hot Seat Bowl, as whichever head coach (UGA’s Mark Richt or Ole Miss’ Houston Nutt) loses this game will ultimately find a pink slip in his locker on Monday morning.

Prediction: Georgia’s Mark Richt avoids termination as the Dawgs take a bite out of Houston Nutt & Ole Miss, 35-17.

10. Notre Dame/Pittsburgh: Could this possibly be foreshadowing of a future ACC Conference match-up? At the rate the ACC is gobbling up former Big East affiliates, there will be nobody left to play football in the Big “L”East. Last time I checked, DePaul and Marquette weren’t walking into Notre Dame Stadium to play like a champion.

Prediction: The Fighting Irish outlast Pittsburgh, 41-38.

My next blog will be Monday evening as Spurspective recaps the USC/Vanderbilt contest and looks ahead to Carolina/Auburn, October 1st.

Go Gamecocks!