Maddux Sports Blog

Tulsa (-7) at Arkansas - This one is simple. If Tulsa wins this one they will be in the driver’s seat to go 13-0. This is their last big test, and it is only a test because it is an SEC team. The Golden Hurricane should be fine here, and if they are then they could be a headache for BCS fans. They’ll be undefeated and they’ll want into the party. It will be interesting to see if they are allowed to play. It will be esppecially fun if these guys and Utah and Boise State were all to make it through unscathed.

Florida (-6.5) vs. Georgia - The World’s Biggest Outdoor Cocktail Party is always fun, and especially now that these teams are both good, desperate for a win, and truly hating each other. I am not generally a huge fan of the style of football the SEC plays - I respect it but hate to watch it - but this game should be a joy to watch. The winner is likely heading to the SEC Championship game. The loser is playing for next year.

Washington (+46) at USC - This will be a terrible game, but it will be fun to watch in a train wreck sort of way. Washington is unbelievably awful. Their QB is hurt, their coach is a lame duck, and they have no talent anywhere on the field. This one could get really, really, really ugly. I hope so.

Utah (-7.5) at New Mexico - This sets up as a potential trap game for the Utes. New Mexico is a pretty solid team, especially at home. Utah needs to be on their toes to get through this one, and they may not be if they are looking ahead to a huge Thurday night game against TCU. The Utes obviously can’t afford to lose, so the stakes are very high.

Texas (-3.5) at Texas Tech - This is, in my opinion, the most interesting game of the year so far. You have the two extremes - an established, proven, conventional program, and an upstart team with a screwball offense that has gradually earned respect. Both teams can score like crazy, and neither plays much defense, so this will be a fireworks show. On top of that, the game is the biggest sporting event ever to be played in Lubbock, and the implications are huge - the winner is the temporary king of the brutal Big 12, and the loser has to lick their wounds. We don’t really know what we have in Texas Tech - they have played very well, but their biggest games are ahead of them. We know exactly what we have in Texas - a lot. They have been brutalized by a very rough schedule, though, and they wouldn’t be blamed if they were hurting physcally and mentally by now after the gauntlet they have had to run. If they win here and beat top 11 teams four weeks in a row they will be only the second team ever, and first in more than 60 years, to do so. This game has everything going for it, and could be an instant classic.

Another week, another set of simulations from the PS2. It’s not the best way to pick games, but then it has probably at least as much merit as the methods used by most of the betting public. That’s why sportsbooks make lots of money.

Ohio State at Michigan State - I am surprised by what happened here, but in a very pleasant way. I really, really hate Ohio State, so any time they lose it is a good thing. That makes this a great thing. Michigan State jumped out to a quick lead when Javon Ringer broke a long TD run, and they never really looked back. The final score was reasonably close - 35-31 - but Michigan State never gave up their early lead, and Ohio State made it respectable only by scoring the last ten points. Terrelle Pryor was just okay, not putting up any of the eye-popping numbers that we are going to have to get used to in coming years unfortunately.

Missouri at Texas - I think my machine has a man-crush on Chase Daniel. That’s the only way I can explain what happened here. Daniel threw for seven touchdowns. Yes, seven. Colt McCoy had a pretty gaudy day himself, but it was nothing next to the Mizzou super-stud and, if the game has anything to say about it, future Heisman winner. Needless to say, Missouri was able to pull out the win behind that showing, coming out 59-35. The PS2 doesn’t have much respect for either of these defenses. My favorite stat to come out of ths one was that Daniel was bombing so much that he was making his defense work - the Longhorns won the time of possession battle by quite a bit.

Michigan at Penn State - I simulated this game because I obviously don’t like myself much. As a Michigan fan, I know that this one is going to go badly, but I wanted to see just how badly. Pretty bad as it turns out. As we have seen before from Michigan, they got out to a good start, opening up a 10-0 lead. Like they did against Illinois, though, they pretty much stopped there. Penn State scored, scored, and scored some more, and ended up winning a wild one 48-24. The only saving grace was that Michigan didn’t turn the ball over 15 times in the game like they seem to be so fond of doing this year. Still, not good.

So, there you go. The machine has spoken, and it has said Michigan State, Missouri, and Penn State.

My PlayStation prognostications got off to a terrible start in the first week, going 0-3, but it rebounded very nicely this week with a 2-1 mark. If you haven’t been following it, I am having my PS2 simulate three college games each week using NCAA 09. Let’s see what happens this week. The machine is feeling a little cocky.

Texas (+6) vs. Oklahoma - The Red River Rivalry is one of my four or five favorite games of the year. I don’t have a particular tie to either team, but as a general rule I hate Oklahoma less. Given that, the results of the simulation worked very well for me. Texas couldn’t get much going, and Colt McCoy made more mistakes than expected, as Texas lost to Oklahoma 38-14. Sam Bradford is my favorite QB in the country right now, and he showed why in this game, throwing for four touchdowns and running for a fifth. Texas turned it over four times, including two picks by McCoy. This game is such a big one, because it probably effectively ends the season of the losing team. Those stakes on top of the screaming, divided crowd should make this one a classic. My machine says Oklahoma will cruise to the easy cover.

Penn State (-6) at Wisconsin - My first thought when I saw this spread was that it didn’t give Paterno’s boys enough credit. My PS2 agrees. The spread HD has been a potent offense this year, and the prowess continued. Wisconsin got out to a strong early start, and was actually up 14-0 in the second quarter, but then the wheels fell off. Penn State had 31 unanswered points, and ended up winning it 45-24. Evan Royster was again a big part, adding 112 yards and two touchdowns. Daryll Clark had two interceptions that he probably wishes he could have back, but he made up for it with five TD passes. Paterno continues to prove that you don’t have to be able to walk or stay up past 6:00 p.m. to coach well.

LSU (+6) at Florida - The machine was loving the favorites so far, but the trend ends here. This was a hard fought battle that was more defensive than some might have expected, and in the end the Tigers lost, but just by a field goal - 17-14. Tim Tebow ran and passed for a TD, but turned it over twice as well. A further blow for the Heisman defense. Jarrett Lee passed for both LSU scores. Showing how realistic these simulations can be, the incredibly fragile and overrated Percy Harvin was injured in the game.

So, there it is. Covers by Olahoma, Penn State, and LSU - so says the wise machine.