WEEK 5, Saturday Oct. 2

5 Games to See
Washington vs. Notre Dame- The battle of the QB’s who are fast climbing the NFL draft boards. Jake Locker of Washington has exploded into the national scene (but if you search back you will see this Blogger was talking about Jake Locker 2 years ago). Obviously the Huskies had a huge letdown against Stanford, but that was expected (again, called by yours truly). Notre Dame has been less than impressive the last 3 times out (loss to Michigan and close losses to MSU and Purdue) and needs to prove themselves this week. If Washington pulls off the upset the Charlie Weis hotseat will hear up.


#8 Oklahoma vs. #17 Miami (FL)- Supposedly Sam Bradford is possibly ready to play, but Stoops has decided not to dress him. Landry Jones will be at the helm for the Sooner offense. Miami is coming off a butt whooping at the hands of conference foe Virginia Tech and now we will see how good they are on the rebound. If the Canes come out of this first month gauntlet 2-2 that is still not bad, though after winning the first two people expected more. The Sooner defense has allowed only 2 TD’s in three games. This offense lead by Jacory Harris will be their toughest test. It think the Canes win a close one.


Texas A&M vs. Arkansas- The Aggies are off to a 3-0 start but haven’t played the toughest competition. They have solid running game with two very good backs. Arkansas hasn’t shown the ability to play good defense but they can light it up on offense. QB Ryan Mallet is big and has a huge arm to match. Arkansas would like to get into a shootout but A&M has a ground game that control the clock and that will be there best way to win the game.


#22 Michigan vs. Michigan State- We all now know about the legend that is Tate Forcier, well there is a little chink in the armor. Forcier struggled a little in what should have been a loss to Indiana. The Spartans may be the best 1-3 team in the country. They have lost three tight games in a row. Sophomore QB Kirk Cousins is proving to be one of the better QB’s in the Big 10 throwing for 7 TD’s and only 2 picks. Michigan fans better not expect a walk in this one.


#25 Georgia Tech vs. Mississippi State- An interesting intra-conference match-up between the ACC and SEC. Georgia Tech has been as enigmatic as anyone in the country. Everyone knows they can run the football under Paul Johnsons’s triple option system. New Bulldogs coach Dan Mullen has them playing much better football and they had a chance to knock off LSU last week. If Mullen can pull off this upset it will be a great win in his first year in Starkville.


4 Players to Watch
Greg McElroy, QB Alabama- In my opinion McElroy has been one of the two most impressive QB’s in the country this year (Case Keenum of Houston the other). McElroy has an impressive arm, both on the deep ball and on the out routes where you need zip on your passes. He has a multitude of weapons who he isn’t afraid to use and he is averaging over 10 yards per pass completion which is ridiculous.


Jahvid Best, RB California- Explosive is the one word that encapsulates Mr. Best. Last season he average over 8 yards a carry while rushing for 1500+ yards. This season he already has 8 TD’s more than half his total form last season, including 5 in a win at Minnesota a few weeks ago. We all know Southern Cal has a fast defense and this will be Bests biggest test.


BJ Daniels, QB South Florida- Daniels is replacing the best player in the short history of USF football Matt Grothe who suffered a season ending injury two weeks ago. Daniels is a phenomenal athlete at the QB position. Last week back in his hometown of Tallahassee and lead the Bulls to a huge win by throwing for over 200 yards and rushing for over 100. Look for him to continue that dynamic play at Syracuse this weekend.


Kellen Moore, QB Boise State- The signal caller for the BCS busting Broncos is as steady as the come. He completes almost 70% of his passes and has 10/1 TD/INT ratio. Moore is a good athlete and a smart player who will always keep his team in games, he strikes me as a surprise NFL prospect.