Archive: 2008 Week Two NCAA Football Top 25 Previews
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Saturday, September 6, 2008
* These college football rankings are according to the official Bankroll Sports College Football Top 25 Rankings.
Ohio (0-1) @ #2 Ohio State (1-0)
Time: 12:00PM (EST)
Spread: Ohio State –34.5
Over/Under: 45.5
Preview: The Buckeyes, will most likely be missing star running back Beanie Wells for Saturday’s game against inter state opponent- Ohio. Ohio State had no problem last week with Youngstown State, and with nearly a five touchdown spread for week two pollsters don’t seem to think missing Wells will be much of a factor. The Buckeyes better not look ahead to next week, in which they will face the Trojans of USC, because you can rest assured the Bobcats will be chomping at the bit to get at the Buckeyes. Ohio fell last week at Wyoming 21-20.
Cincinnati (1-0) @ #3 Oklahoma (1-0)
Time: 3:30PM (EST)
Spread: Oklahoma –21.5
Over/Under: 53.5
Preview: The Sooners absolutely demolished Chattanooga in week one, 57-2. Cincinnati is also 1-0, after knocking Eastern Kentucky around the field 40-7. The Bearcats have been much improved over the past few seasons. Last season, the Bearcats scored 36 points a game, so the Sooners defense will have to be ready to go if they want to remain unbeaten.
Central Michigan (1-0) @ #4 Georgia (1-0)
Time: 3:30PM (EST)
Spread: Georgia -24
Over/Under: 56.5
Preview: The Bulldogs are coming off a 45-21 win over inter state opponent, Georgia Southern on Saturday. For week two, Georgia will battle a team from outside of the state. Central Michigan is coming off a 31-12 win over Eastern Illinois. The Chippewas racked up 389 total yards, including 217 in the air. For Georgia, their 535 total yards was led by 323 in the air. Knowshon Moreno ran for three touchdowns, proving himself as a premire back in the SEC.
Southeast Missouri State (1-0) @ #5 Missouri (1-0)
Time: 7:00PM (EST)
Spread: N/A
Over/Under: N/A
Preview: The Tigers are coming off a very emotion, exhausting, high scoring rivalry win over Illinois last Saturday. This week the hype, and the drama will not be as high, but expect the Tigers offense to continue to thrive. All American Jeremy Maclin could still play Saturday, after rolling his left ankle. Quarterback Chase Daniel threw for 323 yards, and is on a mission to compete for the Heisman. Their state rival, Southeast Missouri State are coming off an emotional overtime victory over Southwest Baptist 35-28. The Redhawks play a schedule loaded with 1AA teams, and will have their hands full when heading to Faurot Field.
Miami (1-0) @ #6 Florida (1-0)
Time: 8:00PM (EST)
Spread: N/A
Over/Under: N/A
Preview: The Hurricanes may not be the national power they have been in the past, but it’s never time to count the “U” out. Both teams are coming into Saturday’s game with a 1-0 record. This primetime battle on Saturday will feature the high powered Florida offense, and the athleticism of the Hurricanes. Miami and Florida have not played each other since 2004, in which they played in the Peach Bowl. Florida will see their running back Percy Harvin for the first time all season. Hurricanes quarterback Robert Marve will take his first snaps of the season. Marve, who broke many of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow’s high school records is a high regarded blue chipper.
#7 West Virginia (1-0) @ East Carolina (1-0)
Time: 4:30PM (EST)
Spread: West Virginia -8
Over/Under:
Preview: Both teams come in 1-0, East Carolina with the more impressive of the wins in week one. The Pirates are coming off a 27-22 upset win over Virginia Tech. The Mountaineers blew out Villanova 48-21. West Virginia was led by quarterback Pat White who threw for five touchdowns in the opener. For East Carolina quarterback Patrick Pinkney threw for 211 yards and a touchdown. This should be a good test for the Mountaineers, who will be taking the road at a team that is on the cusp of the top 25.
Troy (1-0) @ #8 LSU (1-0)
Time: 8:00PM (EST)
Spread: N/A
Over/Under: N/A
Preview: This game has been postponed due to Hurricane Gustav.
# 9 Texas (1-0) @ UTEP (0-1)
Time: 10:15PM (EST)
Spread: Texas –26.5
Over/Under: 58
Preview: The Longhorns absolutely drilled Florida Atlantic in week one, 52-10. This week they will face an inter state rival, and on the road- the University of Texas- El Paso. For UTEP, the Miners have fallen on hard times already in week one. They were blown out last week by Buffalo, 42-17, allowing 484 yards on defense. Quarterback Colt McCoy threw for 222 yards on 24 of 29 passing in week one. He looks for a repeat performance in week two, in what he hopes is a Heisman season.
#10 Texas Tech (1-0) @ Nevada (1-0)
Time: 9:05PM (EST)
Spread: N/A
Over/Under: N/A
Preview: The Red Raiders will take their offensive powerhouse on the road for week two. This team, a formidable Wolfpack squad will greet them. Texas Tech won week one over Eastern Washington 49-24 while Nevada ripped through Grambling State 49-13. Nevada was able to accumulate 629 total yards in week one. Nevada plays a very unique style offense, so the Red Raiders will really have to gear it up defensive. This game has the makings for a prime town shoot-out.
Stanford (1-0) @ #11 Arizona State (1-0)
Time: 10:00PM (EST)
Spread: Arizona State -14
Over/Under: 52.5
Preview: Time for a little Pac Ten football. The Sun Devils and Cardinals both come into this game 1-0, both with nice wins last week. Stanford was able to knock off Oregon State 36-28, while Arizona State defeated inter state opponent Northern Arizona 30-13. Both teams have second year coaches that seem to have their programs on the upswing. For Stanford Jim Harbaugh’s team is flying high from their upset victory, while Arizona State’s Dennis Erickson seems to have his Sun Devils on the brink of a BCS contender.
Oregon State (0-1) @ #12 Penn State (1-0)
Time: 3:30PM (EST)
Spread: N/A
Over/Under: N/A
Preview: Pac Ten meets Big Ten. Oregon State, disappointed from their week one loss to Stanford, while Penn State continuing their Joe Paterno tour coming off a monstrous win over Coastal Carolina 66-10. This is the first meeting between the two schools. The Nittany Lions come in with a 22-11 all time against Pac Ten foes. Beavers quarterback Lyle Moevao threw for 404 yards last week on 54 pass attempts, with 34 of them being completed.
Southern Miss (1-0) @ #13 Auburn (1-0)
Time: 12:30PM (EST)
Spread: Auburn –17.5
Over/Under: 43
Preview: Auburn coming off a shut-out of Louisiana-Monroe last week will look to continue the stellar defense, this time against Southern Mississippi. Auburn only threw for 85 total passing yards last week. For Southern Mississippi, Damion Fletcher ran for a career high 222, and also got himself in the end zone twice in a 51-21 win over Louisiana-Lafayette. First year coach Larry Fedora leads Southern Mississippi. These two schools have met 21 times with Auburn taking 16 of those contests.
Louisiana Tech (1-0) @ #14 Kansas (1-0)
Time: 7:00PM (EST)
Spread: N/A
Over/Under: N/A
Preview: After an excellent offensive season in 2007, the 2008 edition came out with a few kinks in the armor for the Jayhawks. Head coach Mark Mangino hopes to iron them out this week against Louisiana Tech. The Jayhawks won 40-10 over Florida International, lost a fumble on their first possession, and running back Angus Quigley only ran the ball for 47 yards. For Louisiana Tech, they come in feeling great, after a 22-14 upset of Mississippi State. That was the Bulldogs first win over a BCS school since 2003. The Bulldogs compiled just 269 yards of total offense last week.
Eastern Washington (0-1) @ #17 Colorado (1-0)
Time: 3:30PM (EST)
Spread: N/A
Over/Under: N/A
Preview: Coming off an impressive pounding of rival Colorado State, the Bufs’ are riding high. Their week two opponent- Eastern Washington is coming in- the opposite direction- a 49-24 thumping at the hands of Texas Tech. What a start for the Eagles. For Colorado, quarterback Cody Hawkins was impressive for his dad, head coach Dan Hawkins. Colorado will need to take advantage of the lesser talented Eagles, because after this; West Virginia, Florida State, Texas, and Kansas come calling. Eastern Washington will need to shore up their pass defense; which gave up 536 total passing yards last week.
Tulane (0-0) @ #18 Alabama (1-0)
Time: 7:00PM (EST)
Spread: Alabama -30
Over/Under: 44
Preview: What a week one start for the Crimson Tide. Nick Saban looks to have Alabama back as a possible power from the SEC. Their 34-10 win over Clemson in week one, was arguably the most impressive win in college football. Their running game, led by Mark Ingram, and Glen Coffee, both rushed to nearly 100 yards. Their week two opponent, the Tulane Green Wave, who will be making their 2008 debut. This is the 41st career battle for these two teams. Alabama leads the overall series 26-11.
Marshall (1-0) @ #19 Wisconsin (1-0)
Time: 12:00PM (EST)
Spread: N/A
Over/Under: N/A
Preview: The Badgers quietly look to continue rolling through their non conference schedule, before the start of their Big Ten slate. Week one was a 38-17 win over Akron, in which P.J. Hill ran for 210 yards. It was the second career 200+ yard game for Hill. Quarterback Allan Evridge went 7-10 for 75 yards, and a touchdown for the Badgers. For Marshall, they are coming off a 35-10 win over 1AA Illinois State. Running back Darius Marshall rushed for 115 yards and a touchdown as the Thundering Herd ran for a total of 229 yards. Marshall and Wisconsin will meet for their first ever meeting.
#20 Brigham Young (1-0) @ Washington (0-1)
Time: 3:00PM (EST)
Spread: BYU –9.5
Over/Under: 54.5
Preview: BYU will look to continue the nation’s longest winning streak. One way to lose that streak is fumbling four times in a half, like the Cougars did last week against Northern Iowa. Quarterback Max Hall went 34 of 41 for 486 yards and two touchdowns. Receiver Dennis Pitta came up with a career high 213 yards. For Washington, they are coming off a 44-10 blow out loss at the hands of Oregon. Tyrone Willingham is 11-26 in his career as the Huskies head coach. His quarterback Jake Locker went 12 of 28 for 103 yards last week. After this, Washington gets a visit from Oklahoma.
#21 South Florida (1-0) @ UCF (1-0)
Time: 7:00PM (EST)
Spread: South Florida -14
Over/Under: 52
Preview: After surging to as high as #2 in last years BCS standings, South Florida looks to continue its climb in the collegiate ranks. Last week, USF dominated Tennessee Martin 56-7, after taking a quick 28-0 lead after one quarter. For the Bulls, 12 different players rushed for a combined 300 yards. Quarterback Matt Grothe only attempted 8 passes, completing 6 for a total of 96 yards and two touchdowns. Their week two opponent, the UCF Knights are Conference USA Eastern Division preseason favorites. They struggled a little offensively last week, only scoring 17 points, but shutting out South Carolina State. USF has beat UCF in all three meetings between the two.
Eastern Illinois (0-1) @ #22 Illinois (0-1)
Time: 12:00PM (EST)
Spread: N/A
Over/Under: N/A
Preview: The Fighting Illini are coming off a high scoring, tough loss to Missouri. Week two should be a little less daunting as they face 1AA Eastern Illinois. Quarterback Juice Williams showed signs of breaking through as an impressive quarterback throwing for 451 yards against the Tigers. Will Judson caught five passes for a total of 177 yards, and two touchdowns. Their opponent, Eastern Illinois went 8-4 last season, and started this season with a 31-18 loss at Central Michigan. Eastern Illinois is 4-22 all time against BCS opponents. The Illini are 80-33-5 in home openers.
The Citadel (1-0) @ #23 Clemson (0-1)
Time: 3:30PM (EST)
Spread: N/A
Over/Under: N/A
Preview: The 2008 season could not get any worse for the Clemson Tigers. In what was dubbed as a primetime game to start the season, the Tigers failed to compete. Alabama drilled the Tigers 34-10. Clemson was held to zero yards on 14 rushing attempts. Another huge stat for the Tigers was their –18:33 in time of possession. Citadel is coming in 1-0, after blasting Webber International 54-7. Quarterback Bart Blanchard threw for two touchdown and 137 yards, along with a 87 yard touchdown pass.
Louisiana-Monroe (0-1) @ #24 Arkansas (1-0)
Time: 7:00PM (EST)
Spread: N/A
Over/Under: N/A
Preview: Arkansas survived quite the scare in a week one win over 1AA Western Illinois. It took two touchdowns in the final eight minutes to come away with a 28-24 win. The Razorbacks lost two fumbles, and also threw an interception. Offensively, Arkansas gained 394 yards, but allowed 262 against the 1AA foe. Louisiana Monroe is coming off a 34-0 loss at the hands of Auburn. Part of the Warhawks problem were converting on third down- they did that just 2 of 18 times on Saturday. Louisiana Monroe also allowed 321 yards on the ground.
Mississippi (1-0) @ #25 Wake Forest (1-0)
Time: 3:30PM (EST)
Spread: Wake Forest –7.5
Over/Under: 47
Preview: The Demon Deacons look to bring some respect to the Atlantic Coast Conference who have taken a beating after week one results. Wake Forest beat Baylor in impressive fashion 41-13. Wake Forest gained 376 total yards, including 220 in the air. Quarterback Riley Skinner completed 27 of 36 passes, along with three touchdowns. For Mississippi, Wake Forest is one of six ranked opponents on the schedule. The Rebels won Houston Nutt’s debut by knocking off Memphis 41-24. Mississippi and Wake Forest have only met once, with Wake Forest winning 27-3 in 2006.
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