Here's what I'm paying attention to this weekend:
- 71. Oregon vs UCLA – For two teams with Pac 12 and playoff dreams this is the 2nd highest point total in Vegas this weekend. These two teams are the highest ranked teams at the bottom of the defensive rankings in college football. UCLA is ranked 89th in yards, Oregon is 104th. Whoever loses is eliminated from CFB playoffs. But neither plays enough D to be a factor.
- (weird things) Auburn @Miss State and Ole Miss @Texas A&M – The Brandon Adams Theorem. For years a co-host of mine in Atlanta has sworn by the SEC theory that an emotional win is regularly followed by a loss the next weekend. Look at 2013 Auburn as an example. The win at home in the final minute against Mississippi State, only to go on the road the next week and get whipped by LSU. In 2012, Alabama gets a come from behind victory over LSU and follows that up by laying a first half off vs. Texas A&M. That game was a loss and won the Heisman for Johnny Manziel. Watch for the road let down games today!
- 93 - TCU @ Baylor. Over the last three seasons, top 25’s have gone to die in Waco. The Bears have been 6-0 at home vs top 25 teams including Oklahoma, K-State, TCU, Texas, and Oklahoma State. Last year Baylor outscored two top 25 opponents at home by a total of 49 points. Over the past six games, that’s 93 points.
- 58 - Cowboys @ Seahawks. Which Seahawks run defense will show up on Sunday? The Seahawks are giving up only 58 rushing yards per game on average so far at home. Green Bay is ranked 25th in the NFL in rushing yards per game, Denver 29th, so the Cowboys will be a better challenge as they’re 2nd in the league in rush yards per game. During 2013, the Seahawks gave up an average of 100.9 rushing yards per game at home. The Cowboys must go over that. The only loss in the past 18 games for Seattle was Arizona, who rushed for 139 and won time of possession.
- 7 - Giants @ Eagles. The Eagles have been bailed out by their defense and special teams over the past two weeks. The Eagles have turned the ball over 7 times over the past two games managed to split those games. 3 of those were Nick Foles interceptions, after 3 straight 300 yard passing games to open up the season, Foles is only averaging 202 yards per game over his past 2 ball games.