After last week both week 0 and week 1 picks have been completed. The pick results are here and one person made my job of announcing the winner very easy. donkeygoatrunner dominated week 0 and week 1 missing only 3 game picks over the course of both weeks. They currently sit at a 86.36% correct pick percentage on the year so they may want to go to Vegas this week before they cool off. Other notable pickers were Ramblinrocketman, Gtbadcarma, and dakota bull who all had strong showings.
This week tends
to have the most corrections as we often see usernames that are slightly off (a missed letter or space make a big difference) so check to make sure you are correctly listed on the spreadsheet this week and let me know if any corrections are required.
Considering how bad things started, Friday night couldn’t have gone much better for the Jackets. Going into the weekend only 7.8% had won with a -3 turnover margin. That fact didn’t seem to matter much to Haynes King, who took some big hits on the way to earning the win. Penalties, turnovers, and struggles to pass the ball against man coverage seemed to be the most obvious issues our team struggled with. The Jackets have clearly got to clean some things up before ACC play, but the defense and offense both executed when they needed to get a good win. Good vibes going forward for how gritty this team is.
You know who doesn’t have good vibes? Alabama. At this point is clear that DeBoer is not Saban and Alabama fans aren’t happy about it. The season is long, so we will see if Bama gets a better performance in SEC play. Clemson also had a rough start to the season with a loss to LSU where the Clemson offense was kept on lockdown. Cade Klubnik is one of many starting QBs who disappointed last week, and we will see in the next few weeks if he is as good as people claimed in the offseason.
picks:
Gardner-Webb Bulldogs @ Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (No spread given)
Logan: No spread provided for this game so this is a straight pick of who you think will win. Gardner-Webb had an impressive showing last week in a big comeback win. Gardner-Webb may be a FCS team, but we should still take them seriously given GT’s history against FCS teams over the past decade. GT should be alright but I do want to see us clean up on the turnovers and show that we can pass the ball in this game. Georgia Tech also needs to get ahead early so we can rest Haynes King going into our big week 3 matchup against Clemson. Let’s avoid some major injuries.
Logan’s pick: Georgia Tech
Vanderbilt Commodores (-1.5) @ Virginia Tech Hokies
Logan: Vandy playing Charleston Southern tells me nothing. Virginia Tech lost to a much tougher opponent last Sunday and gets this game on a short week but gets the Commodores at home. My one take away from Virginia Tech is that they couldn’t seem to find consistency on offense despite their defense playing well for most of the game. I do think this is a game Virginia Tech can and probably should win, but after last week I’m not sure I can trust VT to contain a scrambling QB and for Kyron Drones to effectively run the offense. Vandy will probably win by an FG if VT can’t make some changes on offense.
Logan’s pick: Vandy
Army Black Knights @ Kansas State Wildcats (-17.5)
Logan: Army got embarrassed last week against an fcs team and Kansas State barely dodged the same fate. This game will be important for both teams to avoid going in the wrong direction the rest of the season. I think Army should cover in this game, I have to believe they were looking ahead to this matchup after their loss last week.
Logan’s pick: Army
The Border War: Kansas Jayhawks @ Mizzou Tigers (-6.5)
Logan: This will be the first big challenge for both these teams. I don’t have a lot to go on for either of these teams, so I decided to look at the S&P+. Kansas, despite not being a football school, is currently ranked at #25 with 13.6 which is the same a Clemson. Mizzou is ranked at #16 with a 16.8. This is obviously skewed as neither team has played anyone, but based on the rankings this should be a close rivalry game. Why not take Kansas to at least manage to lose by less than a touchdown if this is going to be a hard fought rivalry game?
Logan’s pick: Kansas
Baylor Bears @ #16 SMU Mustangs (-3.0)
Logan: This is a important matchup for ACC schools. After Auburn beat down Baylor last week SMU needs to have a similar performance. If SMU loses this matchup expect some jawing from SEC fans. I’m not convinced that SMU is as good as last year, but they need to be good enough to win this game if they want to be taken seriously this year.
Logan’s pick: SMU
#21 Ole Miss Rebels (-10.5) @ Kentucky Wildcats
Logan: Ignore what happened last year. It’s Ole Miss. Kentucky is not ready for this Ole Miss team. Ole Miss needs to show up and prove they are going to be a competitor for the SEC championship. If Ole Miss does not decimate Kentucky in this game then Lane Kiffin needs to wear a clown outfit to all his remaining games this year.
Logan’s pick: Ole Miss
#11 Arizona State Sundevils (-6.5) @ Mississippi State Bulldogs
Logan: Arizona State struggled more than expected at home last week against an FCS opponent. Mississippi State looked better than I expected against Southern Miss last week considering how their 2024 stint went. I think the X-factor here is the road environment of playing at Mississippi State. Those cowbells are loud, and despite the ranking next to Arizona State’s name these teams may be closer in talent level than most think. I think Mississippi State can cover at home.
Logan’s pick: Mississippi State
Memphis Tigers (-13.5) @ Georgia State Panthers
Logan: Time to check in on our neighbors down the road. Georgia State got absolutely demolished by Ole Miss last week, which is not unexpected. Memphis beat an FCS program handily, so that was also pretty much what we thought would happen. In spirit of things going as expected for these teams I will go with what I know. Memphis has consistently been a pretty good team, especially on offense. I think Memphis should cover the large spread and be Georgia State. Sorry Panthers fans.
Logan’s pick: Memphis
The Cy-Hawk Series: Iowa Hawkeyes @ #22 Iowa State Cyclones (-3.5)
Logan: Iowa State has faced more challenges this year and get this Iowa team at home for a rivalry game the fans are sure to be pumped for. I’m not going to overthink this one and just go with Iowa State.
Logan’s pick: Iowa State
#12 Illinois Fighting Illini (-2.5) @ Duke Blue Devils
Logan: Again, not alot known about these teams early in the season. Duke faced more adversity against their FCS opponent as they struggled to get going in the first half but showed a dominating performance in the second half. Illinois has high expectations this year, Duke on the other hand is playing with house money at home. Duke may have the edge on nerves and that may be the difference here. I expect Duke to win.
Logan’s pick: Duke
#14 Michigan Wolverines @ #18 Oklahoma Sooners (-2.5)
Logan: I like how Michigan looked last week. There were some strange penalties, but the offense looked amazing and the defense seemed to lock things down when New Mexico got close to the end zone. Michigan finally found the offense they were missing in 2024, I think the Wolverines could be scary for most ranked teams this year. I’ll take Michigan.
Logan’s pick: Michigan
