College Football at its Finest

Tonight is a big night in college football. Maybe even bigger than Saturday. And this is with only 2 games. For a college student like myself, this is the type of day when I get zero work done. Zilch. Nada. I'm all in on sports today (actually typing this in class). As my friend and I say, you're either all in or all out.

Baylor v. Oklahoma is a bigger game than most people believe. Baylor is ranked No. 6 in the BCS standings with an offense that could take out a city. Oklahoma is a top-10 team (by virtue of being exactly No. 10). A win for Baylor here would be huge, as it not only keeps their hopes alive for a possible shot at the championship but sets them up well for for a tough finishing stretch. A loss would drop them down in the rankings quite a bit, and would not be a good way to enter the homestretch (with the potential to leapfrog Ohio State later in the year for No. 4). Oklahoma, on the other hand, is just good. They're not elite this year, but they are very good. I've only watched them play once, but I think they have enough to give Baylor a fight.

The only "real" teams Baylor has faced have been Kansas State and West Virginia. Both teams exposed some problems with the Baylor team: West Virginia, as a team with a half-decent offense of its own, dropped 42 on the Bears. And Kansas State, known for being fundamentally sound on defense, held the Bears to a season-low 35 points. I would gamble that Oklahoma has an offense that can put up 40+ on Baylor, and a defense that can hold Baylor to less than 50 points. Basically, this has the potential to be a very exciting, high-scoring game.

I don't know if I can say more about Oregon v. Stanford than has already been said. The Ducks can score with the best of them. Stanford has a very sound team all around. Both are top-5 teams, which means this has very direct consequences for the National Championship. If Stanford wins out, they still have a shot at the Natty (though very, very slim). A loss to Oregon would not be the end of the world for the Cardinal, but it would destroy Oregon's hopes for the season. The Ducks came in hoping for a chance at the Natty, and if they win out they get to go. But winning out is the essential part, and Stanford on the road is easily the most difficult game left on their schedule.

So what will happen? As someone who comes from the West Coast and is a Duck fan, I think the Ducks will put up around 40 points. I don't think Stanford will score 30. Stanford just doesn't have the offense to stand up to a very underrated Oregon defense. Stanford thrives on running the ball and play action passes off of an established run game, but Oregon's D-Line matches up with with the Stanford O-Line. On the other side of the ball, with a week to rest and a finally healthy group of offensive terrors (Mariota, DAT, Marshall, Tyner, Addison, Huff, etc.), I don't think Stanford will make it through the second half. Like most Stanford-Oregon match ups, I predict a close game at the half but a quick Oregon run halfway through the third quarter to put the game out of reach.

I'm excited!