Posted by ESPN.com’s Graham Watson
After another week of 6-4, I am 12-8 in picks so far this season. What’s funny is I resisted the urge to pick upsets last weekend after the beating I sustained the week before. I’m not going to make that mistake this week. I’m going with my gut and hopefully things work out.
1. Colorado State 28, Nevada 17: While I like Nevada, it’s hard to pick the Wolf Pack to win, especially on the road. Colorado State showed against Colorado that it can bottle up a running game pretty well, and CSU quarterback Grant Stucker can shred Nevada’s horrible pass defense. I think this game is a lot tougher for Nevada now than it was at the beginning of the season.
2. Utah 38, Oregon 24: Utah's subpar performance against San Jose State was an anomaly, and I think the Utes right the ship in a hostile Autzen environment this weekend. Oregon has been terrible on defense this year and Utah is one of the top offensive teams in the country. If new Utah quarterback Terrance Cain can stay cool, Utah should have little trouble.
3. North Carolina 14, ECU 10: I really wanted to pick the upset in this game, especially with a couple key UNC players out, but the Pirates have struggled so much on offense and finishing games, that it’s hard to like them on the road against a quality opponent especially without running back Dominique Lindsay. Still, knowing ECU’s history, I wouldn’t be surprised if it came away with the upset.
4. Boise State 34, Fresno State 21: There’s not a game on the schedule right now that I can see Boise State losing. While Fresno State has played well, is healthy, playing at home and has the athletes to compete with the Broncos, I just have a hard time picking them since the Bulldogs are rarely competitive in this contest. The Bulldogs have lost seven of the last eight by a margin of 24.3 points.
5. BYU 33, Florida State 28: Don’t let Florida State fool you. There was some hangover from the season-opening loss to Miami and that showed against Jacksonville State. The difference in this game will be BYU quarterback Max Hall and his ability to spread the ball around. He was great picking the OU defense apart, if he has a similar performance and doesn’t turn the ball over, the Cougars should be 3-0.
6. Southern Miss 35, Virginia 24: I wouldn’t call TCU an offensive juggernaut, so the fact that the Frogs put 30 on Virginia is telling about the Cavs' defense, which Southern Miss should be able to exploit. Also, Virginia has been able to get little going on offense and it has eight turnovers in two games. This is a game Southern Miss should take.
7. UNLV 30, Hawaii 21: Hawaii is 2-0, but against an FCS team and one of the worst teams in the FBS. UNLV will be a great test to see how much the Warriors have improved from a year ago. UNLV is coming off a tough loss to Oregon State, but I think it showed that the Rebels could play with some of the upper echelon of FBS teams. They vent their frustration against the Warriors this weekend.
8. Bowling Green 35, Marshall 14: Missouri was a tough loss for Bowling Green, but the past two games have made everyone acutely aware that the Falcons are a team to be reckoned with this season. The loss of safety P.J. Mahone to suspension is a hit, but shouldn’t be much of a factor against a Marshall offense that’s one of the worst in the country right now.
9. Colorado 31, Wyoming 20: In the past two seasons, Dave Christensen’s offense has outscored Colorado 113-10, but in both those seasons he had several NFL draft picks on his roster. Not the case this year, and while Wyoming is riding a wave of confidence, Colorado is pretty fired up to get a win. The Buffs have put points on the board in their losses and I’m not sure Wyoming can go score for score with them.
10. Ohio State 35, Toledo 17: Toledo is going to run into a pretty angry and motivated Ohio State team this weekend. The Rockets can put points on the board, but I think the defense is going to have trouble stopping quarterback Terrelle Pryor both in the running and passing game, especially in a hostile environment.




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