College Football-Week 6 Preview

#1 Florida heads into Baton Rouge to take on #4 LSU

Written by: D. Wash


#1 Florida at #4 LSU

Perhaps the biggest factor in this matchup is still an unknown until game time tomorrow.  Will Heisman winner Tim Tebow play in this game? I doubt Tebow or head coach Urban Meyer knows, and if they do they’re not going to disclose any information before game time. With Tebow, Florida will be able to beat LSU even if they do make a few mistakes. The defense can allow LSU running back Charles Scott to get away on a big run if Tebow is ready and waiting to lead the fast Florida offense onto the field to answer. Receivers can drop a few balls if Tebow is there to chew them out and make sure they catch everything the second time. However, if Tebow doesn’t play everything changes. The Gators can still win.  After all, they do still have one of the best defenses in the country and one of the fastest groups of running backs ever assembled, but no Tebow equals no margin for error. Rainey and Demps can’t hesitate too long on runs and set up 3^rd and long situations. The defense can’t show any weaknesses. If mistakes are made and Tebow isn’t there to make up for them, then LSU will be able to topple the number 1 ranked team in the nation. The Tigers haven’t lost in 32 straight night games at Baton Rouge and I doubt that they will if Brantley starts at QB for the Gators.

#3 Alabama at #20 Ole Miss

With the talent on Mississippi’s roster and the obvious dominance of Alabama, many people expected this matchup to be one of unbeatens. Unfortunately, Ole Miss’ loss in South Carolina ended those dreams, but this matchup still appears to be somewhat entertaining. It’s in Mississippi, which will hopefully make quarterback Jevan Snead more comfortable. Snead, who has thrown 3 interceptions and less than a 50% completion percentage the past two weeks, needs to rebound if the Rebels want a chance at winning on Saturday against one of the top teams in the nation. This Alabama team has done something that the Crimson Tide hasn’t done in over 100 years. They’ve scored over 30 points in their first 5 games of the season, quite an impressive feat for a team that is usually defensively minded. Don’t think though that just because they can now put points on the board, it means that Bama isn’t gonna stop people defensively. Bama has, and always will, be a team that prides defense over just about everything else. They are still one of the better defensive teams in the nation, and should be able to stress out Jevan Snead to force him into a few mistakes. Mark Barron, CB, will probably have a chance to snag an interception in this game if Snead throws it his way. Ronaldo Mcclain will be able to slow the run of the Rebel’s attack, and the combination of subpar passing and stuffed running will make the normally prolific offense of Ole Miss sluggish. And that’s what’s gonna seal the easy victory for Alabama.

Baylor at #19 Oklahoma

Just because Oklahoma is officially out of the national title picture, it doesn’t mean that Sooners, or their fans, should give up on the year. Remember, they haven’t started their Big 12 schedule yet, so despite the two losses early, they can still come away Big 12 champs. If they plan to contend, they need to right the ship at home against Baylor. Sam Bradford will make his first start since the season opener in this game, and will have a chance to remind Heisman voters why he owns perhaps the single greatest piece of hardware any individual athlete could own (In my mind, the Heisman trophy ranks only behind an Olympic medal). Sooners leading wide receiver Ryan Broyles is out for this game, but being a top recruiting team, you know that they always have depth behind him. Demarco Murray and Chris Brown will be the biggest parts of this offense in the game, as it is only Bradford’s first game back from injury. They should be able to run all over Baylor’s defense, which has allowed 168 yards per game this year on the ground. Offensively, Baylor is without their greatest threat (Robert Griffin) for the rest of the season due to a knee injury, but the return of RB Jay Finley should spark some optimism. Unfortunately for Bear fans, that optimism will be short lived as OU’s defense is one of the best in the nation, allowing only 8.7 PPG and 253 YPG. It’ll be an easy Sooner victory, and Bradford should be able to finally get his first win as a starter this season.

Michigan at #12 Iowa

Michigan’s dream season ended last week with a loss at their hated rival, the Michigan State Spartans. Though the loss deflated the Wolverine team and fans, they have to get it out of their mind when they travel to Iowa to play the Hawkeyes. Iowa, though still undefeated, has shown a tendency to play down to teams worse than them. The loss by Michigan may bring out a Hawkeyes team that struggled against Northern Iowa (where they BARELY squeaked out a 1 pt win). We could also see the same team that beat Penn State by 11 points earlier this year.  If Iowa plays down to this Michigan team, then Tate Forcier (who I still believe is one of the top impact true freshman in college football this year) will be able to take control of the game and run the Michigan offense to perfection. For Iowa to win this game, they need to pull ahead early and destroy any hopes Michigan may have of rallying. For Michigan to come away from this still a one-loss team, they’ll need to keep the game close going into the fourth quarter, where they are used to winning games.


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