Staff Picks

Wildcat staff picks	#21 Arizona at Stanford Arizona favored by 7.5 point	#18 Syracuse at #14 Michigan Michigan favored by 10.5 points	#22 Texas at #7 UCLA UCLA favored by 10 points	#11 Notre Dame at Michigan St. Notre Dame favored by 7 points	#15 Arizona St. at BYU ASU favored by 6.5 points
SETH DORIA SPORTS EDITOR	Stanford lost at home last week to San Jose State. I really don't need to say anything else. Arizona 35 Stanford 10	Coming off opening week chokes, both teams will be up for this one. Michigan looked very beatable against Notre Dame, but in Ann Arbor, the error prone Orangemen don't stand a chance. Michigan 31 Syracuse 28	UCLA QB Cade McNown has heard his name tossed around a lot this offseason as a Heisman Trophy contender. Now he gets to prove it against Heisman hopeful, UT running back Ricky Williams. UCLA will win. UCLA 41 Texas 24	Autry Denson is officially a dark horse Heisman candidate, and Michigan State has looked horrible so far in losses to Colorado State and Oregon. The Spartan defense will get up for the Irish, but not nearly far enough. Notre Dame 28 Michigan State 7	ASU barely lost last week to Washington at home and will probably try to make a statement against the Cougars this week. BYU, on the other hand, is looking at a possible 0-3 start with a road trip to Seattle next week. Arizona State 49 BYU 23
CHRIS JACKSON SPORTS REPORTER	San Jose State was the doormat of the WAC. Yes, even worse than Hawaii. That can only mean good things as - gasp! - the Wildcats win two straight road games. Arizona 28 Stanford 13	Two teams coming off very bitter losses, one at home and one on the road. But if history serves right, the Wolverines will use that behemoth crowd of theirs to remind everyone the difference between Big Ten and Big East football. Michigan 35 Syracuse 16	The Longhorns want revenge after last year's blitzkrieg in Austin. Guess what? They're not going to get it, but at least they'll keep the Bruins under 50 points this time around. UCLA 48 Texas 20	All right, so I underestimated the Irish last week. Not this time around as the suddenly woeful Spartans allow ND to sweep the Michigan schools. Notre Dame 34 Michigan State 17	The Scum Devils are fired up after choking against Washington last week. BYU had moments of brilliance and moments of sheer ineptitude against Alabama. What else can one expect from a WAC team? In this case, how about an upset? BYU 31 Arizona State 28
MATTHEW MUHM SPORTS LAYOUT	I don't know if it was Arizona's win over Hawaii or Stanford's schooling by San Jose State, but I have a inclination that Stanford will buckle again. Arizona 24 Stanford 10	Last week both teams looked bad, but Syracuse looked worse. Both teams will be looking for a win after narrow loses last week and it's tough to win in Ann Arbor, or anywhere if you're an Orangeman in my opinion. Michigan 28 Syracuse 7	Heisman hopeful Cade McNown has been hyped and he'll perform. Texas will show up with something to prove after last year's waxing and the Bruins will show them that it's not enough. UCLA 31 Texas 10	I was impressed by the Fighting Irish in last week's game against the Wolverines and I think they will still play on that level. The Spartans have looked weak so far this season and mercy is for the weak. Notre Dame 17 Michigan State 6	I was happy they lost last week, but the Sun Devils can play better than they did. BYU has lost two straight, but I'd still pick ASU even if they were 2-0. Arizona State 24> BYU 17
BRIAN BARKER SPECIAL PROJECTS	It's really hard to pick Arizona after that impressive win at Hawaii last Saturday. Unfortunately Stanford lost last week to San Jose State - enough said. Arizona 38 Stanford 14	It's tough being an Orangeman - after a heartbreaking loss at home to Tennessee, Syracuse is rewarded with a game against an angry, embarrassed Michigan team in Ann Arbor. They'll be juiced again. Michigan 28 Syracuse 21	Finally we'll get to see the ultra-hyped UCLA team, commonly known as Cade McNown. Texas will try to ride running back Ricky Williams to the very end, but he should collapse with the weight of a whole state on his back. At least UCLA won't score 66 points. UCLA 35 Texas 17	Here we go again, I hear the approaching roar of an overrated bandwagon - and they're Irish. Notre Dame might have scored an impressive win against Michigan last week, but that was a godsend. It took Jarius Jackson a whole half to learn how to put the football in his receivers hands - where they can catch it. Still, Michigan State got blown out by a team named the Ducks. Notre Dame 27 Michigan State 3	Another shootout between two teams who's idea of defense is seeing how many passes the opponent drops. But I'm sure ASU coach Bruce Snyder has advised his secondary to mug-grab- tackle the receiver before he can catch a game-winning 63-yard bomb during the last 60 seconds of a game. Arizona State 35 BYU 30