Alex Frank | Sports Director Zach Fries | Staff Reporter Joe Petrosino | Staff Reporter
Ethan Bastian | Staff Reporter Sean McMahon | Staff Reporter
One week into the college football season and there’s already been major changes in the rankings.
LSU’s upset win over then No. 8 Miami (FL) propelled them from No. 25 to No. 11 in the AP Poll and Florida State’s embarrassing home loss to Virginia Tech dropped them out of the top 25 completely.
After all the chaos of week one, here is a look at the standings in the #BattlefortheBoathouse
Alex: 10-6 Zach: 10-6 Joe: 10-6 Ethan: 10-6 Sean: 11-5
That means if the season ended today, Sean would be getting a Montgomery Inn dinner from everybody else. Talk about money just getting thrown around.
With that, here’s our week two picks (commentators in parentheses)
18. Mississippi State @ Kansas State – Noon E.T. on ESPN (Mark Jones, Dusty Dvoracek)
Alex: Mississippi State 31 Kansas State 21 Zach: Mississippi State 27 Kansas State 23
Joe: Mississippi State 33 Kansas State 28 Ethan: Mississippi State 28 Kansas State 21
Sean: Mississippi State 35 Kansas State 24
Ethan: Mississippi St vs Kansas State will be an interesting contest. SEC teams are always tough and with opponents such as LSU and Alabama coming up, Mississippi St can’t afford to lose this game. I got to roll with the Bulldogs this week.
Western Michigan @ 21. Michigan – Noon E.T. on FS1 (Justin Kutcher, DeMarco Murray, Petros Papadakis)
Alex: Michigan 34 Western Michigan 21 Zach: Michigan 31 Western Michigan 21
Joe: Michigan 45 Western Michigan 17 Ethan: Michigan 31 Western Michigan 17
Sean: Michigan 24 Western Michigan 17
Joe: With both teams coming off tough week one losses I like Michigan to be ready to play, knowing that they cannot afford to lose another game. Both the offense defensive lines will dominate leading the Wolverines to a win.
Arizona @ Houston – Noon E.T. on ABC/ESPN2 (Steve Levy, Todd McShay)
Alex: Arizona 35 Houston 28 Zach: Houston 33 Arizona 28 Joe: Arizona 27 Houston 20
Ethan: Arizona 35 Houston 34 Sean: Arizona 24 Houston 18
Alex: We saw last week Cincinnati go on the road to the Rose Bowl and knocked off UCLA. This week the Pac12 plays the role of visitor to the American Athletic Conference as Arizona travels to Houston. I think this one will be a different result, though, thanks to Arizona’s Heisman Trophy candidate quarterback Khalil Tate. They will bounce back from a disappointing season-opening loss against BYU.
Georgia Tech @ South Florida – Noon E.T. on ABC/ESPN2 (Adam Amin, Rod Gilmore)
Alex: Georgia Tech 30 USF 26 Zach: USF 38 Georgia Tech 30 Joe: Georgia Tech 24 USF 16
Ethan: Georgia Tech 24 USF 21 Sean: USF 35 Georgia Tech 30
Alex: This match-up could go either way. South Florida is in its first year after being led offensively by now former quarterback Quinton Flowers. Georgia Tech, on the other hand, likes to wear down defenses with their triple-option offense and I don’t think the Bulls defense will be up for that challenge. That’s why I like the Yellow Jackets in this one.
UCLA @ 6. Oklahoma – 1 E.T. on FOX (Gus Johnson, Joel Klatt, Jenny Taft)
Alex: Oklahoma 52 UCLA 28 Zach: Oklahoma 45 UCLA 20 Joe: Oklahoma 41 UCLA 20
Ethan: Oklahoma 41 UCLA 24 Sean: Oklahoma 48 UCLA 21
Sean: Chip Kelly and the UCLA Bruins got off to a rough start at home last week thanks to the Cincinnati Bearcats. Meanwhile, in Norman, Oklahoma, the Sooners handled their business with the FAU Owls. In the first week, we saw that UCLA has little or no response to an offense who can effectively run the ball and move the chains. Oklahoma’s quarterback Kyler Murray showed that he has plenty of speed and maneuverability but can also remain cool in the pocket. Oklahoma crushes UCLA and Chip Kelly.
3. Georgia @ 24. South Carolina – 3:30 E.T. on CBS (Brad Nessler, Gary Danielson, Jamie Erdahl)
Alex: Georgia 27 South Carolina 24 Zach: Georgia 34 South Carolina 21
Joe: Georgia 31 South Carolina 24 Ethan: Georgia 40 South Carolina 28
Sean: Georgia 28 South Carolina 27
Zach: Georgia is a coming off an easy win in their season-opener vs Austin Peay. This will certainly be a road test for Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs. As for the Gamecocks, Will Muschamp’s program is trending upward. Fresh off a solid performance in the season-opening rout of Coastal Carolina, South Carolina junior QB Jake Bentley will have his hands full against a terrific Georgia defense. I think Georgia’s offense will also cause problems for the Gamecocks defense as running back D’Andre Swift is poised for a breakout game.
Ball State @ 8. Notre Dame – 3:30 E.T. on NBC (Mike Tirico, Doug Flutie, Kathryn Tappen)
Alex: Notre Dame 48 Ball State 17 Zach: Notre Dame 48 Ball State 10 Joe: Notre Dame 44 Ball State 13
Etahn: Notre Dame 35 Ball State 17 Sean: Notre Dame 52 Ball State 14
Alex: Notre Dame got a huge win in their season-opener over Michigan placing them in the top 10 this week. They should have no problem carrying that momentum over into this matchup against a Ball State team that has had four straight losing seasons.
Colorado @ Nebraska – 3:30 E.T. on ABC (Bob Wischusen, Brock Huard, Allison Williams)
Alex: Nebraska 27 Colorado 20 Zach: Nebraska 31 Colorado 23 Joe: Nebraska 36 Colorado 23
Ethan: Colorado 26 Nebraska 21 Sean: Nebraska 44 Colorado 28
Alex: After having their game postponed last week due to inclement weather, first-year head coach Scott Frost and the Cornhuskers will make their season debut today against former Big 12 rival Colorado. Both teams missed out on bowl games last year after both had stellar 2016 seasons including Nebraska suffering their worst season since 1961. But with 33 returning starters, I like the Huskers to win this one.
Iowa State @ Iowa – 5 E.T. on FOX (Tim Brando, Spencer Tillman, Holly Sonders)
Alex: Iowa 24 Iowa State 21 Zach: Iowa 24 Iowa State 14 Joe: Iowa 24 Iowa State 21
Ethan: Iowa 17 Iowa State 14 Sean: Iowa 24 Iowa State 22
Sean: There’s nothing quite like a good rivalry game. The only problem with this rivalry game; it’s a little one-sided in favor of the Hawkeyes. They’ve won three straight games against Iowa State. Although, five of the last seven meetings have been determined by less than a touchdown- I have a feeling this will be a back and forth game yet again- in the end, Iowa wins.
2. Clemson @ Texas A&M – 7 E.T. on ESPN – (Rece Davis, Kirk Herbstreit, Maria Taylor)
Alex: Clemson 31 Texas A&M 24 Zach: Clemson 38 Texas A&M 28 Joe: Clemson 42 Texas A&M 33
Ethan: Clemson 27 Texas A&M 14 Sean: Clemson 45 Texas A&M 28
Ethan: Clemson vs Texas A&M might have been a hard game to pick when they had quarterbacks Johnny Manziel and Deshaun Watson at their respective offensive helms. But this is a different era with two different teams, and I have to roll with Clemson this week.
Fresno State @ Minnesota – 7:30 E.T. on FS1 (Eric Collins, Ben Leber)
Alex: Minnesota 28 Fresno State 17 Zach: Minnesota 27 Fresno State 23
Joe: Fresno State 38 Minnesota 33 Ethan: Minnesota 27 Fresno State 14
Sean: Minnesota 15 Fresno State 7
Joe: I like Fresno’s offense in this one. They put up 79 points last week while forcing five turnovers on defense. I see a close game that is likely decided by a big special teams play.
13. Penn State @ Pittsburgh – 8 E.T. on ABC (Sean McDonough, Todd Blackledge, Holly Rowe)
Alex: Penn State 31 Pittsbrugh 20 Zach: Penn State 31 Pittsburgh 24 Joe: Penn State 35 Pittsburgh 28
Ethan: Penn State 38 Pittsburgh 31 Sean: Pittsburgh 21 Penn State 17
Alex: The chaos of week one was highlighted by Penn State nearly getting upset by Appalachian State. Quarterback Trayce McSorely and the Nittany Lions prevailed, though, just like I think they will do in this interstate battle Saturday night.
17. USC @ 10. Stanford – 8:30 E.T. on FOX (Joe Davis, Brady Quinn)
Alex: USC 30 Stanford 24 Zach: Stanford 30 USC 21 Joe: Stanford 20 USC 16
Ethan: Stanford 27 USC 24 Sean: Stanford 32 USC 28
Sean: This an iconic rivalry game in the PAC 12 every year. The Trojans and the Cardinal cannot stand each other. Both are in the top 25 this week with Stanford at No. 10 and USC at No. 17. Stanford has Heisman runner-up Bryce Love, who did not get off to a Heisman start last week and is looking to make a statement against the Trojans. I can see this game going either way but when all is said and done, I believe Stanford will come out on top
15. Michigan State @ Arizona State – 10:45 E.T. on ESPN (Dave Pasch, Greg McElroy, Tom Luginbill)
Alex: Arizona State 28 Michigan State 24 Zach: Michigan State 33 Arizona State 21
Joe: Michigan State 33 Arizona State 28 Ethan: Michigan State 31 Arizona State 17
Sean: Michigan State 33 Arizona State 20
Ethan: Michigan State vs Arizona State could be a high-scoring game, but I expect most of the scoring to come from the Spartans. They are an underrated team this week and I don’t expect them to lose a game this early before the meat of their schedule.