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I’ll start from the top. Iowa vs. Iowa State. For years, this matchup has pitted the bright young coach (Matt Campbell of Iowa State) against the stodgy, old veteran whose teams are consistent, but maddeningly boring (KIrk Ferentz of Iowa). I think it’ll be a close, hard-hitting contest, and one statistic stands out more than the others: The visiting team has won three years in a row. The game is at Iowa State, and I think that Iowa’s slightly changed offense will be effective enough to get the Hawkeyes the win. 

Duke football coach Manny Diaz is a defensive whiz. However, Illinois has the better defense, led by the Great Scotts (sorry, had to do that). These are safeties Xavier Scott and Miles Scott (not related). The safeties are critical to preventing Duke quarterback Darien Mensah from getting into a rhythm. This game will also provide more evidence that Illinois made a good choice by hiring Bret Bielema as head coach. 

Last season, it took UCLA abount a month to start clicking. The Bruins are in a similar situation this season, and it’s getting late early. 

Rich Rodriguez takes his West Virginia Mountaineers to Athens, Ohio to face the Ohio Bobcats. Rodriguez teams know how to score in bunches, but they don’t always know that much about ball security. Can West Virginia cut down on the turnovers? For Ohio, some changes are inevitable. Former coach Tim Albin is gone, and so are the three consecutive seasons of double-digit wins. New coach Brian Smith may be very good, but things are bound to be a little different. I think West Virginia wins, but it won’t be pretty. 

Louisville has a lot more talent than James Madison, but the Dukes are tougher on both sides of the ball–or at least tougher than they were on the orange juice trading floor! New JMU coach Bob Chesney is pretty good, and his charges will keep the game close. 

*-𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗽𝘂𝗿𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗯𝗲 𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗴𝗮𝗺𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴. 

Iowa 24, Iowa State 23 (ISU -3; O/U: 41.5)

Illinois 28, Duke 24 (I -3; O/U: 49.5)

UNLV 28, UCLA 27 (UCLA -2.5; O/U: 55.5)

West Virginia 33, Ohio 28 (WVU -3.5; O/U: 60.5)

Louisville 34, James Madison 22 (L -13.5; O/U: 55.5)

NO POINT SPREAD:

Slippery Rock 35, Franklin Pierce 10

Hamden-Sydney 30, Delaware Valley 18