ESPN College Football

Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Griffin

Oh, so close to perfection last week.

I came close to my first perfect week of the season, missing only on Texas Tech’s late collapse at Houston.

I’m hoping for better luck this time around with an abbreviated schedule of six games that will only feature seven Big 12 teams in action.

Here are my picks:

West Virginia 34, Colorado 17: The Mountaineers will be intent on gaining revenge for their loss last season in Boulder, along with bouncing back from their recent loss at Auburn. The Buffaloes should have Darrell Scott and Rodney Stewart close to 100 percent, although they should struggle against West Virginia’s imposing run defense. West Virginia quarterback Jarrett Brown is looking for some retribution after he was knocked out of the Auburn game after earlier contributing five turnovers. Look for the Mountaineers to try to dictate tempo by running Noel Devine (16th nationally in rushing) against a weak Colorado rush defense (103rd nationally). West Virginia has too many weapons to keep this from being very competitive.

Iowa State 27, Kansas State 24: The winner of "Farmageddon" at Arrowhead Stadium will take an early step to staying out of the Big 12 North cellar and perhaps contending for a bowl berth. Austen Arnaud has played better in recent games and Alexander Robinson's cutback style has emerged in Tom Herman’s running attack. The Cyclones will face an underrated Kansas State defense that ranks among the top 26 teams in each of the major statistical categories of rush defense, pass defense, total defense and scoring defense. In order to be successful, Arnaud will have to make some plays and stay away from turnovers. But in the end, this game will be settled in the special teams. Kansas State needs to get Brandon Banks involved and Iowa State hopes that Mike Brandtner’s directional punting keeps the Wildcats bottled up. I like Iowa State by a small margin because it has better kicking with Grant Mahoney over Josh Cherry.

Texas Tech 56, New Mexico 20: “The Dysfunctional Bowl” will feature two programs that have been featured in the headlines for reasons off the football field. New Mexico coach Mike Locksley scuffled with his assistant J.B. Gerald while Mike Leach banned Twitter usage among his players after some critical comments were made about him by players after their tough loss at Houston last week. The Red Raiders have way too much offense in this one. Taylor Potts and the Tech offense should be able to pile up the points and yards -- particularly if the Red Raiders’ running game emerges again. The weak New Mexico defense ranks 111th on the ground and 107th or worse in the other three major defensive categories. Everything will be peachy for the Red Raiders after a big win in this one.

Baylor 34, Kent State 14: It will be interesting to see how the Bears approach this game after losing quarterback Robert Griffin to a season-ending knee injury and backup Blake Szymanski’s uncertain status with a bruised shoulder. The Bears still have enough offensive weapons to win, particularly against a Kent State defense that allowed 552 yards last week, but produced five turnovers in a 29-19 victory over Miami (Ohio). I’m expecting Baylor to lean on its rushing attack keyed by Jarred Salubi and Terrance Ganaway to dictate the game for the Bears. The loss of Griffin will hurt, but Baylor still has too many weapons to worry in this one.

Texas A&M 35, Arkansas 34: Texas A&M hasn’t faced a top-notch defense and has posted some monster offensive and defensive numbers attributable to its weak competition. That won’t be the case in this one as the Aggies will face a potent Arkansas passing offense keyed by Ryan Mallett and Greg Childs. In the end, Jerrod Johnson, Ryan Tannehill and Uzoma Nwachukwu should be able to exploit a weak Arkansas pass defense that has played better teams, but still ranks 119th nationally in pass efficiency defense.

Oklahoma 24, Miami 14: The big question all week is whether we will see Sam Bradford back in the lineup. The Sooners likely don’t need him -- particularly if backup Landry Jones shows the form he employed in his record-breaking start against Tulsa. And he has a playmaking Oklahoma defense that has been responsible for 12 sacks and nine takeaways primed for the challenge. Miami is coming to the end of the nation’s toughest four-game scheduling gauntlet to start the season. Virginia Tech's defense showed some cracks in Miami's offense as Jacory Harris struggled through a miserable game. And it won’t be any easier this week when the Sooners bring one of the nation’s best defenses to Land Shark Stadium.

Last Week: 9-1 (90 percent)

Season: 35-9 (77.3 percent)

Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Griffin

With Iowa State taking a 31-10 lead over Army late in the the fourth quarter, all of the early-evening games are turning into boat races.

Nebraska is racing to a 55-0 victory over Louisiana-Lafayette. Cody Green has come off the bench for a solid start in place of Zac Lee. The most intriguing statistic to me in the Cornhuskers' easy triumph is that their 23 completions have been divvied among 14 different receivers.

Backup Jeremy Smith has raced for more than 150 yards as Oklahoma State has raced to a 56-6 lead over Grambling State late in the game.

Baylor is chasing Northwestern State out of Floyd Casey Stadium and has a 68-10 lead over the Demons late in the third quarter. In the last two quarters, the Bears have outscored Northwestern 54-3 as Robert Griffin has thrown for three touchdowns and Terence Ganaway has rushed for three scores.

And Texas A&M has clicked on 13 of 15 third-down plays -- an 86.7 percent ratio that I've never seen as high for a full game -- to completely dominate UAB in a 56-18 lead. Jerrod Johnson has rushed for three touchdowns and passed for three more.

These complete triumphs mean that a Texas Tech victory later tonight would complete a 10-0 weekend for the conference.

Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Griffin

Baylor Bears 2008 overall record: 4-8 2008 conference record: 2-6 Returning starters Offense: 9, defense: 9, kicker/punter: 2 Top returners QB Robert Griffin, TB Jay Finley, WR Kendall Wright, C J.D. Walton LB Joe Pawelek, LB Antonio Johnson, S Jordan Lake Key losses T Jason Smith, T Dan Gay, DE Leon Freeman, DT Vincent Rhodes, DB Jake La Mar. 2008 statistical leaders (* returners) Rushing: Jay Finley* (865 yards) Passing: Robert Griffin* (2,091 yards) Receiving: Kendall Wright* (649 yards) Tackles: Joe Pawelek* (128) Sacks: Leon Freeman (4) Interceptions: Joe Pawelek* (6) Spring answers 2009 Schedule Sept. 5 at Wake Forest Sept. 19 Connecticut Sept. 26 Northwestern State Oct. 3 Kent State Oct. 10 at Oklahoma Oct. 17 at Iowa State Oct. 24 Oklahoma State Oct. 31 Nebraska Nov. 7 at Missouri Nov. 14 Texas Nov. 21 at Texas A&M Nov. 28 Texas Tech (at Arlington) 1. Robert Griffin: His freshman season was one of the most memorable in Big 12 history and he's back for more. Griffin was sharp in the spring, passing for 310 yards and three TDs in the spring game. And he's intent on honing his football skills after giving up track, adding weight and boosting his strength to be ready to play in his sophomore season. Big 12 defensive coordinators should consider themselves warned. 2. Skill-position strength: Griffin will have most of his weapons back from last season, including leading rusher Jay Finley, top receiver Kendall Wright and the depth provided by valuable runner/receiver Terence Ganaway, a transfer from Houston who should provide immediate depth. 3. Phil Taylor: The Bears need some help in the trenches after the loss of starting linemen Leon Freeman and Vincent Rhodes. Taylor, a massive 340-pound transfer from Penn State, will provide all of that and more. Coach Art Briles unabashedly talks about Taylor having All-Big 12 talent. If he plays that way, he could be the missing piece leading the Bears into a bowl game. Fall questions 1. Help along the flanks: It's a risky proposition protecting Griffin with two new offensive tackles. The Bears will switch from Jason Smith, the No. 2 pick in the NFL draft, to former Canadian fireman Danny Watkins. Briles is also sorting through his options on the right side where Dan Gay graduated. Obviously, protecting the Bears' franchise quarterback will be a prime task this season -- perhaps the biggest facing the team. 2. Punt returns: The Bears were looking for help returning punts after struggling all of 2008 with the lack of a breakaway special-teams threat. Baylor ranked next-to-last nationally, producing only 25 yards all season long on punt returns and a long return by Joe Crawford of 11 yards. Baylor needs a big upgrade and should have some productive playmakers like Wright and David Gettis ready to contribute. 3. Breakthrough needed: For all of the talk about closing the gap with the challengers in the Big 12, Baylor needs to step up and beat a highly ranked team. The Bears have lost 19 straight games to ranked teams and are 2-45 against ranked foes in the history of the Big 12. Seven of last season's eight losses came to ranked opponents. The Bears need an upset or two if they are to emerge as legitimate bowl threats.