Search

ARCHIVES
CONTACT US
WORLD NEWS

Staff Picks

	No. 3 Arizona at No. 4 Penn State Penn State favored by 4.5 points	No. 12 Miami (Fla.) vs. No. 9 Ohio State Ohio State favored by 6 points	Kansas at No. 18 Notre Dame Notre Dame favored by 17 points	North Carolina State at No. 16 Texas Texas favored by 8.5 points	Louisiana Tech at No. 1 Florida State Florida favored by 35 points
DAN ROSEN sports editor	Canidate, Northcutt, Smith, Arrington, Short and Macklin. These are all names that the nation will hear on Saturday. A great opening game ö too bad that one team has to lose. Sorry Penn State, the Wildcats are no pushover this season. Arizona 17, Penn State 16	Without Edgerin James in the backfield the ĪCanes are vulnerable. But, they should be good enough to ensure that Ohio State again doesnāt have a chance at the national championship. Give it up Coop, itās not gonnaā happen. Miami 31, Ohio State 24	Take Kansas and the points, because Notre Dame isnāt that good. They should win, but in typical Bob Davies style, at the end of the game on a winning field goal. The Irish will suffer again this season. Notre Dame 34, Kansas 24	No Ricky Williams, but hello Major Applewhite. Perhaps the most underrated quarterback in the nation will lead the ĪHorns to a great season and it would be fitting if they win big in their opener. Chris Simmsā time has yet to come. Texas 49, North Carolina State 13	Bobby Bowden has only one national champion with all the great teams he has had in Tallahasee ö that makes him the greatest underachiever in college football. No underachieving here as the Seminoles take their first step to New Orleans on Jan. 4. Florida State 51, Louisiana Tech 10
BRYAN ROSENBAUM asst. sports ed.	Arizona goes into Happy Valley in the biggest game of the season. Big Ten teams traditionally start slowly, while Arizonaās offense should be running well. Watch for Desert Swarm to make a comeback, mostly because commentators will be saying it all game long. Arizona 21, Penn State 13	Iāll never be able to forgive Miami for beating UCLA last year, even though the Bruins deserved what they got. The Hurricanes are a touch overrated, while for once, the Buckeyes are a little underrated. The Bucks reign in Jersey. Ohio State 42, Miami 24	Notre Dame warms up for Michigan with the same teams they play every seasonö mediocre teams who want easy money. But isnāt that the most important thing anyway? See you in the Insight.com Bowl Irish, because you arenāt making the BCS. Notre Dame 19, Kansas 11	Not having Ricky Williams around will help the Longhorns, or at least I hope it will, because Iām a Detroit Lions fan who will be suffering from a similar loss of a key running back. Texas 27, North Carolina State 14	Louisiana Tech lost some of the potency from one of the nationās most prolific passing attacks but is still danger-ous. Theyāll throw for 500 yards and wreak havoc with Bobby Bowdenās de-fense, and still lose to the ĪNoles by 50. Florida State 63, Louisiana Tech 13
KATE LONGWORTH asst. sports ed.	Arizona opens the season with all eyes on them, but they wonāt be fighting their way to the top as the underdog this year. Instead, I predict theyāll come out and show the east coast how we do it over here on the westside. Arizona 21, Penn State 17	Although the Buckeyes are having trouble eyeing up whoās right for each position, with the wind at their back theyāll be strong enough for the Hurricane. A close one, but no cigar for Miamiö this win is hanginā with Mr. Cooper. Ohio State 31, Miami 27	I know theyāve been sliding, but I still gottaā side with the Irish ö not to mention theyāve got the homefield advantage. Plus, when was the last time Kansas came through in the clutch for a big game? Itās cheers to the Irish. Notre Dame 35, Kansas 31	He may be a minor still, but Major Applewhite will take command of the ĪHorns this weekend. Williamsā absence a problem? Nah, I think not, theyāll still ćpassä right by the ĪPack. Texas 35, North Carolina State 14	Theyāre number one and theyāll prove why by starting the season with a high score on the boards. Itāll be a brutal battle as the Seminoles prove why Lousiana should just stick to its technology and head to the buses at halftime. Florida St. 49, Lousiana Tech 7
CHRIS JACKSON sports reporter	Penn Stateās got a suffocating defense, but they have a slight problem. Namely an offense thatās one dimensional. Considering how UA did in stopping the run last year, and with Northcuttās ability to dominate PSUās cornerbacks, and... uh-oh, upset time. Arizona 17, Penn State 13	To hell with the Big Easy, er, East. This conference smeared the BCS last year, and this year Miami is supposed to be a legitimate team. Yeah, right. Those big Ohio boys put the future cast of Americaās Most Wanted back in their place. Ohio State 28, Miami 10	Most Irish eyes are on the NCAA and whatās going to happen to their program in the wake of all the recent news about booster problems. Luckily for them, being distracted for this game wonāt hurt. Notre Dame 35, Kansas 17	The perennially overrated Longhorns face the perennially underrated Wolfpack. Everyone gets to see who from Texasā No. 1 recruiting class can play in this one. Thatās about the only reason to watch, too. Texas 27, North Carolina State 16	Oh, please. Like thereās any doubt regarding this game. Bobby Bowden usually doesnāt schedule cupcakes, but heās guilty here. The only question is will the Seminoles beat the spread? Hereās the answer... Florida State 72, Louisiana Tech 3
BRIAN WAHLUND sports reporter	To make this respectable, they asked someone to volunteer to pick Penn State, so I said I would. Besides, since when has the Psychic Friends Network been wrong? Penn State 24, Arizona 17	Ohio State has to blow their national title hopes sometime, so it may as well be against a talented Hurricane team. The Buckeyes depleted talent pool suffers from a lack of Tiffin, Ohio recruits. Miami 21, Ohio State 20	Potato-Eating Irishmen vs. Bread Basket Farmersö It seems like a give-take relationship but the Irish are too much. Drink a pint of Caffreyās, eat some Lucky Charms and dance a jig. Notre Dame 30, Kansas 14	Texas quarterback Applewhite has a cool name and a good arm, and wideout Kwame Cavil is faster than a pizza boy on ritalin. NC State canāt handle the passing attack. Texas 35, North Carolina State 14	Not fair, like Mike Tyson vs. a circus midget riding a unicycle. Louisiana Tech loses in a ear-biter. Flordia State 98, Lousiana Tech 3