Welcome to Week 2 of the college football season. We have our first conference game in FIU and ODU, and it could be a must-win for the Monarchs. Let us call that our game of the week. BEIN is choosing that game, so they are giving it importance.
All times Central.
Air Force @ FAU 1pm CBSSN
Lane Kiffin has to get Chris Robison (presumed starter) out of his funk. That should be easier this week as Air Force does not have the calibre of athlete that the Sooners did.
Line: FAU -9
Pick: FAU in a rout.
App State @ Charlotte 5pm ESPN+
Charlotte had a quiet game last week. Brad Lambert and the 49ers will get much more attention if they begin the year 2-0 with a win over an impressive Mountaineer squad that gave Penn State a scare.
Line: Charlotte +14.5
Pick: App State by 20
EKU @ Marshall 5:30pm ESPN+
Marshall fans feel the Herd should be respected more than they are. They were picked to finish second in the division before the season and the stumble out of the gate by the Owls means that they could be favorites if things break right. We will not learn too much in this one.
Line: None Marshall -31
Pick: Marshall by 10
Baylor @ UTSA 6pm CBSSN on Facebook
The Baylor defense is still working on some things but they should be able to hold the anemic UTSA offense. Arizona State destroyed the Runner offensive line and sacked the QBs ten times. Neither UTSA QB looked comfortable and the run game was non-existent.
Line: UTSA +17
Pick: Baylor by 35
UAB @ Coastal Carolina 6pm ESPN+
If the Blazers performed as spectacularly as they did against an FBS foe, they would be the talk of CUSA. Alas, it was Savannah St. Still, everyone played well and Erdely was Pro Football Focus’ highest rated QB in the conference. This will be more of a challenge. Bill Clark talked about how good Coastal was moving the ball against South Carolina. The Blazers should be prepared.
Line: UAB -9
Pick: UAB by 13
Southern @ La Tech 6pm ESPN+
Jaqwis Dancy had a great day thanks to an offensive line that opened up some big holes for him. Southern should not be the challenge that South Alabama was, and that should be good for J’Mar Smith. Tech was only one of 12 teams nationally to go on the road and get a win, and so returning home should make things easier.
Line: None LT -34.5
Pick: Tech by 20
UT Martin @ MTSU 6pm ESPN+
UT Martin is not Vandy, and that should be enough to allow Kid Stock-still and company to move the ball well.
Line: None MTSU -19.5
Pick: MTSU by 25
ULM @ Southern Miss 6pm ESPN3
This is a good game between two squads that won last week. Jack Abraham looked good last week, but this will be more of a challenge and the windows will be a little smaller. This will be a good early test of USM’s new secondary.
Line: USM -7.5
Pick: USM by 10
FIU @ ODU 6:30pm BEIN
Old Dominion suffered an awful loss last week against a hyped-up Liberty team. Things were much closer for most of the game. Things should be better at home, where everyone can be calmer. The Monarchs are a different team in Norfolk.
Line: FIU -1
Pick: ODU by 3
Incarnate Word @ UNT 6:30pm ESPN+
Mason Fine threw for 444 against a pretty soft SMU secondary but it was the defense that impressed. SMU doesn’t look good, but good teams should beat up on bad teams, right? Incarnate Word is coached by former Texas Tech WR and OC Eric Morris. His team put up 566 on Bob Davie’s New Mexico and freshman QB Jon Copeland threw for 328. If NT is not paying attention the Cardinals can move the ball, if everything goes the way it should, NT could get 70.
Line: None NT -43.5
Pick: NT by 50
Maine @ WKU 6:30pm ESPN+
WKU had some bright spots in the loss to Wisconsin. Maine doesn’t have the defense of the Badgers so things should open op for Drew Eckels, who looked decent in Madison. I expect a better offense from WKU.
Line: None WKU -9
Pick: WKU by 10
UTEP @ UNLV 8pm AT&TSN/MWN
UNLV looked okay against USC and UTEP looked poor against Northern Arizona. The Rebels are heavy favorites and the Miner offense looks very poor. This is a long rebuilding process for Dana Dimel and things will not change this week.
Line: UTEP +24
Pick: UNLV by 35. I don’t know that UTEP gets more than 10.
Rice @ Hawaii 11pm Stadium App
Bloomgren says he wants to get to the point where they are competing with good teams and are unsurprised by that. While we should credit the Owls for their performance last week, a good portion of that was due to the fact that they had a game on Houston. Hawaii has been rolling and eviscerated Navy’s defense last week. Rice is not better than Navy.
Line: Rice +17.5
Pick: Hawaii by 20
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