Football Future-see 2015: Week Four

16-4 after three weeks isn’t too shabby, but what happened to Georgia Tech and Alabama last week? Tech simply could not seem to get rolling against Notre Dame. Alabama was caught off guard by a high-octane offense from Ole Miss. Maybe the Rebels are for real. Maybe Notre Dame can overcome the injuries plaguing them this year. But neither of them are on the list this week. We’ve got the obligatory Georgia pick, BYU traveling to the Big House, and three PAC-12 conference games.

RECORD

Week One	9-1
Week Two	4-1
Week Three	3-2
Week Four	2-3
Week Five
Week Six
Week Seven
OVERALL	18-7	.720

The Games:

22 BYU at Michigan (Saturday, Noon, Big Ten Network)

Who is BYU? They’re apparently a team that can hit it big in crunch time…or are they? They beat Nebraska with an amazing Hail Mary. They beat Boise State with a strong comeback. Then they lost to UCLA by one point. Now they go to Michigan, where the Wolverines have lost to Utah before scoring solid wins over Oregon State and UNLV. This game comes down to which Michigan team shows up. I think BYU is better than Michigan, and so I think they’ll pull out a close win in the Big House. Cougars over Wolverines.

Final Score: BYU 24, Michigan 20
INCORRECT: Michigan won 31-0

Southern at 7 Georgia (Saturday, Noon, SEC Network)

The Dawgs dropped 52 points on Steve Spurrier’s Gamecocks last week, adding fuel to the fire of his retirement rumors. Georgia QB Greyson Lambert set the NCAA FBS passing efficiency, completing 24 of 25 passes for 330 yards. That was against an SEC defense. It’s scary to think what Southern may be in store for this week. The only time Southern has faced an FBS team this year, they gave up 62 to Louisiana Tech. Georgia is better than LaTech, but Mark Richt is such a nice guy that he’ll take the foot off the gas once Georgia is up by three touchdowns. I’m thinking Georgia could score 70 if they wanted to (something they’ve not done since beating Northeast Louisiana 70-6 in 1994), but they’ll stop at just over 60. Dawgs win.

Final Score: Georgia 63, Southern 10
CORRECT: Georgia won 48-6

9 UCLA at 16 Arizona (Saturday, 8:00pm, ABC)

This game will deliver the frontrunner of the PAC-12 South. UCLA is still ranked in the top ten, but their QB, Jeff Rosen, didn’t look like the top-tier QB he’s been touted as. Arizona, meanwhile, is coming off a staggeringly good win over Northern Arizona. When the Bruins roll into Tucson, I think the Wildcats will be ready, and they’ll stop the roll UCLA is on. Wildcats win, but close.

Final Score: Arizona 27, UCLA 24
INCORRECT: UCLA won 56-30

18 Utah at 13 Oregon (Saturday, 8:30pm, Fox)

Oregon just hung more than 60 points on Georgia State. Okay, that’s not a really big accomplishment. The Ducks sit at 13 because of their close loss to Michigan State. Utah, on the other hand, defeated Michigan to start the season, then skated by Utah State before hammering Fresno State (but who hasn’t, right, Ole Miss?). The Utes will be looking for a big upset. Oregon will be looking to fully right the ship. You can’t give up over 400 yards of offense to Georgia State and expect to contend for a playoff spot. Oregon will win, but Utah will make it a fight.

Final Score: Oregon 32, Utah 28
INCORRECT: Utah won 62-20

19 USC at Arizona State (Saturday, 10:30pm, ESPN)

USC suffered a heartbreaking loss to Stanford that sent the Trojans tumbling in the rankings. They now have quite a hill to climb to regain supremacy in the PAC-12. The winner of UCLA-Arizona will be the frontrunner. Arizona State, who was a trendy pick at the start of the season, is beginning to look like a pretender after all. I’m thinking that USC goes to ASU with a lot of anger and frustration and they take it out on the Sun Devils. Trojans win going away.

Final Score: USC 38, Arizona State 17
CORRECT: USC won 42-14