We’re back again people, its time again to see who knows college football the best by picking winners and losers each week. For those unfamiliar we have these pick articles we use the point spread pick provided by ESPN and each user can fill out the form at the end of the article to pick who will cover the spread one way or the other. I’ll keep track each week until the end of the regular season, naming a weekly champion each week and tracking who will be the regular season champion. There is also
a separate tournament for bowl season, so look out for that in a few months. Until then, fill out your picks and best of luck to everyone.
Week 1 is officially here and Georgia Tech has their first game of the season on the docket. I’m simultaneously anxious and excited. Georgia Tech fans have been riding high the past few years and we have big expectations for the team given the talent and the schedule the Jackets have this year. Generally Tech has done better as underdogs, so being favorites in matchups will be a scary prospect for some fans. Fact of the matter is, if you want to move up in the college football landscape you need to win when you’re expected to and I’m glad to have a team that I expect to play well in every game.
Coach Key probably won’t be happy with that though. Based on his interviews the team seems dead set on winning the ACC, and that goal is way loftier than mine. Why not though? This team has exceeded what we thought they were capable of every year under Brent Key. No reason to think they won’t do it again.
picks:
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (-4.0) @ Colorado Buffalo
Logan: If you’ve participated in these articles for the past few years, you should know I always pick Georgia Tech, so spoiler alert if you want to skip the rest of this text. This game stresses me out in a way that I haven’t felt in a while. By all accounts we should feel good about our chances. Colorado has had some bad info coming out about the status of their O-line. We tend to play well early in the season and with King at the helm its hard not to be positive about things. That said, we are going to a road environment with lower oxygen levels than home to play against a coach who just beat cancer and a bunch of players who are being told they aren’t as good as last year’s Colorado team, and we are favored. The whole narrative is just set up for us to lose. The Jackets need to keep calm and focus on sticking to their gameplan even if they get behind early. Colorado’s defense is their strong point so there will be some drives we don’t score on, but we need to trust the law firm of Haynes and Haynes to control the game tempo and score when needed. If our defense can get a few stops I think we can win by about a touchdown. I expect us to win, but this game will be more of a challenge than many of our fans are expecting.
Logan’s pick: Georgia Tech
Auburn Tigers (-2.0) @ Baylor Bears
Logan: Auburn is talented at pretty much every position this year, their one question is the QB. It’s this simple, if you believe Jackson Arnold is half decent then you should believe Auburn is going to win this matchup. Baylor is a good team, especially on offense, but Auburn seems more rounded overall. I’ll take Auburn, which feels weird to say given how they played last year, but Auburn seems to be the right pick here.
Logan’s pick: Auburn
Syracuse Orange v #24 Tennessee Uglier Orange (Volunteers) (-14.5) played in Atlanta GA, Mercedes-Benz Stadium
Logan: Both of these teams lost a bit in the offseason, although the Vols seem to be happy with the players they lost. I think Syracuse is simply going to be outmatched in this game given their losses on defense and breaking in a new QB early in the season. If nothing else Tennessee should be confident in their defense to keep Syracuse in check. If the Volunteer offense is halfway decent then Tennessee is most likely going to run away with this one.
Logan’s pick: Tennessee
Utah Utes (-6.5) @ UCLA Bruins
Logan: Speaking of transfers, here is that player the Vols lost. So, is Nico going to have a good year for UCLA? Probably, but he gets a tough Utah defense to prove himself against early on. Utah has struggled on offense the past few years, although injuries have played a big part in that so you can’t purely blame the coaching. Since Utah isn’t known for their scoring I think UCLA has a good chance to make this a close game at home.
Logan’s pick: UCLA
Cal Golden Bears @ Oregon State Beavers (-3.0)
Logan: Cal had a lot of turnover on players in the offseason. Oregon State may not be the best team in the league but at least they didn’t have to jump any serious hurdles this offseason. I need to see a week of Cal being cohesive before I can conjure much confidence in their program. I won’t be shocked if the Beavers run away with this one.
Logan’s pick: Oregon State
TCU Horned Frogs (-3.0) @ North Carolina Tar Heels
Logan: North Carolina and Bill Belichick get to start their season at home against a TCU team that struggled last season. I’m not sure what to think of TCU right now, but I do know that Bill Belichick should be talented enough to beat the Horned Frogs at home… otherwise we will be hearing about it for the next week. Either way, I’ll pick UNC to cover and either be happy with the win or happy hearing about how bad Belichick is.
Logan’s pick: UNC
#6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (-2.5) @ #10 Miami Hurricanes
Logan: I have no faith in Carson Beck after what we saw from him last season. Now he goes to a Miami team that lost most of their receiving core. If Miami can’t score I have a hard time picturing them beating Notre Dame. While Notre Dame also has a new QB in CJ Carr, I think the returning defense should give the Fighting Irish the ability to win by at least a FG.
Logan’s pick: Notre Dame
Viginia Tech Hokies v #13 South Carolina Gamecocks (-8.0) played in Atlanta GA, Mercedes-Benz Stadium
Logan: Really leaning towards ACC picks to start the season. I just refuse to learn my lesson from last year. South Carolina will probably win this game by a fair margin if their QB balls out, but I think VT has the potential do well against a depleted South Carolina defense. VT has a good chance cover in this game.
Logan’s pick: Virginia Tech
#9 LSU Tigers @ #4 Clemson Uglier Tigers (-4.5)
Logan: Clemson is really good… Like really good. Garret Nussmeier is currently the favorite to win the Heisman, but he will need to ball out if LSU is going to win this game. Getting this game at home will really help Clemson against LSU in this one. Assuming Clemson isn’t the FSU of this season, I expect Clemson to win this one by more that one score.
Logan’s pick: Clemson
#8 Alabama Crimson Tide (-13.5) @ Florida State Seminoles
Logan: Don’t pick against Bama, that’s my personal mantra. Regarding FSU, they are coming off one of their worst seasons in recent memory. I think the Seminoles will be better this year, but that doesn’t mean they’ll be playing anywhere near Bama’s level. Honestly this spread seems pretty small given how last year went for both these teams.
Logan’s pick: Bama
#1 Texas Longhorns @ #3 Ohio State Buckeyes (-2.5)
Logan: To Arch Manning or not to Arch Manning, that is the question. I’m not totally convinced that the Longhorns have what it takes to beat Ohio State in the Horseshoe. Ohio State gets this game at home which should give them a sizeable advantage in this matchup. Ohio State also has a new QB they are breaking in, but they return most of their talent on defense which should help things. Ohio State should be able to win by at least a field goal if they can keep Arch Manning in check. One thing is for sure though, whichever conference wins this game will be tweeting about how great they are until the post-season.
Logan’s pick: Ohio State
