It’s that time of year again, time for the annual Red River Rivalry, and once again, this one means a lot to both the Texas Longhorns and Oklahoma Sooners.
A win by Mack Brown’s team puts them squarely in control of the Big 12 South Division and solidifies their chances of not only playing for the Big 12 title the first Saturday in December, but for a spot in the BCS title game in January. For Bob Stoops’ Sooners, a win would make their season and take some of the sting out of a season that has seen the team decimated by injuries to key personnel, which has resulted in them playing the role of spoiler instead of national title contender.
Before we take a look at that game and a host of others, let’s review last week’s record. A 7-5 mark brought the season record to 30-26 (54 percent).
Now, onto this week’s games.
HIGH SCHOOL
Aldine at Atascocita: A key game in the District 19-5A schedule for Lionel Crawford’s Mustangs. Aldine opened league play with an upset loss to Humble, but followed that up with a convincing 42-21 win over Nimitz two weeks ago. In that game, running back Dontae Williams ran wild as he rushed for 270 yards and four touchdowns. Aldine will need another such performance from the talented senior running back as they take on an Atascocita team that won its first six games. My pick, Aldine 26, Atascocita 23
Nimitz vs. Eisenhower: Robert Toomer’s Cougars face another tall task as they take on Ray Evans’ Eagles who two weeks ago won their fourth straight game with a 37-0 win over MacArthur. Quarterback James Jones had another big game against the Generals and should be in store for another productive performance against the Cougars. My pick, Eisenhower 31, Nimitz 18
NCAA
Texas Tech at Nebraska: Mike Leach’s Red Raiders may be heading into a buzz saw when they trek to Lincoln to take on Bo Pelini’s much improved Cornhuskers. Pelini has returned the pride to the Nebraska faithful, along with stout defensive play. Look for the defense to give a young Tech offensive line fits all afternoon. Tech starting quarterback Taylor Potts was injured in his team’s 48-28 win over New Mexico two weeks ago in Lubbock, but reserve Steven Sheffield came off the bench to throw for 238 yards and three touchdowns. If Potts is unable to go on Saturday, Sheffield appears to be a capable understudy, but asking him to pick up a win in a hostile environment might be asking too much. My pick, Nebraska 34, Texas Tech 24
USC at Notre Dame: This is the game the Irish faithful have waited for since last year’s most recent lopsided loss to the Trojans. ND head coach Charlie Weiss has assembled a load of talent in South Bend, led by junior quarterback Jimmy Clausen, but USC has a boatload of talent itself. USC may be a bit down this year, but they are still a very, very good football team. If Notre Dame wants to take the next step of returning to the national stage, they have to win this game. That might be easier said than done. The Irish won four of their first five games and had an extra week to prepare for the Trojans. Clausen needs to be on, but the key to this game will be how well the ND defense does in slowing down ‘SC’s strong running game. Notre Dame has given up a lot of yards and points this year, but with an extra week to prepare for this one, maybe, just maybe, the magic returns to South Bend. My pick, Notre Dame 31, USC 30
Auburn at LSU: A battle of the Tigers in Baton Rogue in a key SEC Western Division game. Auburn has been one of the surprise teams in the country as Gene Chili has proven that maybe, just maybe, the powers that be in Auburn made the right choice in handing him the job, which did not go over all that well with Auburn alumnus. Auburn has a balanced offense led by former Tech QB Chris Todd, who in his first five games has passed for 1,230 yards and 12 touchdowns and running back Ben Tate (540 yards rushing, two touchdowns). LSU has a balanced offense of their own led by quarterback Jordan Jefferson and a stable of quality running backs led by burley Charles Scott. The Tigers picked up a huge road victory at Georgia two weeks ago and will be coming off a physical contest against Florida before taking on Auburn. Still, the home field advantage should be huge for the Tigers and be the difference in this one. My pick, LSU 26, Auburn 22
Texas vs. Oklahoma: The State Fair of Texas will be rocking come Saturday when the Longhorns and Sooners go at in their annual boarder skirmish. Heading into the season, this was one of THE games of the 2009 season as both teams were coming off BCS bowl games and possessed two of the top quarterbacks in the nation in OU’s Sam Bradford and Texas’ Colt McCoy. Bradford has not played since the first game of the season when he sustained an injury to his throwing shoulder in the first half against BYU. It’s not certain if Bradford will play against Texas, but if he’s healthy, expect the reigning Heisman Trophy winner to give it a go in the Cotton Bowl. McCoy has been steady, but not spectacular this year, but he knows a big performance against OU on national television would get him back on the Heisman landscape. The Sooners’ defense is loaded with speed and quickness so it would behoove the Longhorns to run right at the Sooners, which should soften them up for some deep, throws downfield. That strategy worked for Miami two weeks ago in their 21-20 win over the Sooners. This is a huge game for Texas because a win in the Cotton Bowl keeps their visions of bigger things to come very much alive. My pick, Texas 30, Oklahoma 23
NFL
Houston at Cincinnati: So, which Texans team shows up this Sunday in Cincinnati? The one that sleep walked through a 31-24 loss at home to the Jaguars three weeks ago, or the one that thoroughly dominated the Raiders (OK, it was the Raiders!) two weeks ago en route to a 29-6 win. Guess we’ll find out on Sunday. One thing is for sure, Gary Kubiak’s team has to know it’s can’t take any team for granted, especially a Bengals team that won three of its first four games and is playing pretty solid defense thus far in the 2009 season. Houston has to hope running back Steve Slaton is on his way to getting untracked. He scored on the ground and through the air against the Raiders and if he’s on, the Texans offense is much more difficult to stop. Defensively, the Texans will need to keep Cinci quarterback Carson Palmer in check. He’s 100 percent healthy and that’s a good thing for the Bengals. A win by the Texans on the road would really give them a shot in the arm. My pick, Houston 23, Cincinnati 20
Baltimore at Minnesota: An intriguing inter-conference match up as the Ravens pay a visit to the Metrodome to take on Bret Favre and the Vikings. Favre looked like a 30-year old two weeks ago when he led the Vikings to a 30-23 win over his former team, the Green Bay Packers. He had plenty of zip on the football and threw for two scores. This week, he’ll face one of the best defenses in the league when Ray Lewis and Co. Come calling. The Ravens dropped a 27-21 decision at New England two weeks ago, but this is a team that is ready and willing to play any team, anywhere at any time. This game will also feature two of the league’s top defenses, so the running game should be the difference in this one, meaning the team that runs the ball the most effectively should come out on top. Considering the Vikes have the league’s best running back in Adrian Peterson, the men in purple get the nod this week. My pick, Minnesota 23, Baltimore 21
New York Giants at New Orleans: The NFC’s top two teams meet in the Big Easy and both should be undefeated when they hook up on Sunday. The Giants have perhaps the deepest team in the NFL and are getting excellent play from their young corps of wide receivers. Steve Smith is emerging at Eli Manning’s go-to guy as evidenced by the two-touchdown performance he turned in two weeks ago at Kansas City. The Saints have a pretty fair quarterback themselves in Drew Brees, who also has a host of talented wide outs to throw to. This should be a high-scoring game in the Superdome, so the team that does the best job of protecting the football will come out on top. It says here the Saints continue their roll, but barely. My pick, New Orleans 34, New York 31
Chicago at Atlanta: A pretty good one for Sunday Night Football pits the Bears against the Falcons in a key NFC game for both teams. The Bears are very happy with their new quarterback, Jay Cutler, whom they acquired in the off-season from the Broncos, while the Falcons continue to flourish with their second-year signal caller, Matt Flynn. Chicago exploded for 48 points two weeks ago in their win over the Lions, while the Falcons had the week off. The Falcons will look to running back Michael Turner to do the heavy lifting in this one as they count on him to chew up the clock with his sturdy legs. The Bears have a decent running back of their own in Matt Forte, who finally had a big day with 131 yards rushing and a touchdown against the Lions. With two strong-armed quarterbacks going at it, this one could turn into a high-scoring affair, but the Falcons have proven to be tough at home, so go with them in this one. My pick, Atlanta 30, Chicago 27
Denver at San Diego: Don’t look now, but the Broncos are a pretty good football team. When the season began, most experts expected Denver to struggle this year considering they traded their stud QB Jay Cutler and first-year head coach Josh McDaniel pretty much revamped the roster. Four weeks into the season, the Broncos have one of the top defenses in the league (just ask the Cowboys), a steady quarterback in Kyle Orton and a talented rookie running back in Knoshown Moreno.
The Chargers split their first four games and almost pulled off a remarkable comeback two weeks ago at Pittsburgh when they rallied from a 28-0 deficit in the fourth quarter before falling 38-28. Quarterback Phillip Rivers is having an outstanding season. He should give the Broncos a real test on Monday night at home, which should be enough to lead his team to a key AFC West victory. My pick, San Diego 26, Denver 20
