College football is set to kickoff on Saturday for the 2019 season, although technically Miami-Florida gave us a taste last weekend.
This weekend, we’ve already seen Clemson crush Georgia Tech, UCLA look terrible against a strong Cincinnati team and Utah defeat BYU in the so-called “Holy War” rivalry game. I can’t pretend that I correctly predicted the UCLA-Cincinnati game, but Matt and I both forecasted Clemson and Utah as winners.
Here are our best guesses at the top games this weekend:
Georgia at Vanderbilt-Traveling to Nashville is hardly a daunting task, as there will likely be more Georgia fans than fans for the home team. Georgia head coach smartly paid respect to Vandy’s Ke’Shawn Vaughn. Vaughn actually had more rushing yards last season than Georgia running back D’Andre Swift, although Swift had his share of injuries. That said, I don’t see Vanderbilt giving Georgia a serious challenge.
Erich: Georgia 45, Vanderbilt 20 (Matt: Georgia)
Alabama vs Duke-Alabama will be without several starters, some for just a half due to suspension and some due to injury. However, this is Duke we’re talking about and a rebuilding Duke no less.
Erich: Alabama 45, Duke 17 (Matt: Alabama)
Oregon vs Auburn-This is far-and-away the game of the week. Oregon probably has one of the best offensive lines in the country, but Auburn’s offensive line is one of the better units in the nation as well. The Auburn defensive line is strong, which will make things challenging for the Oregon offense, even an offense led by quarterback Justin Herbert. Still, I’ll take Herbert over a true freshman quarterback (Bo Nix), even if it is a very talented true freshman.
Erich: Oregon 27, Auburn 20 (Matt: Oregon)
South Carolina vs North Carolina-The pupil faces the teacher as Will Muschamp leads South Carolina and Mack Brown and the UNC Tar Heels. I do believe Mack Brown can turn around UNC, but rebuilding jobs take time.
Erich: South Carolina 31, UNC 21 (Matt: South Carolina)
Boise State at FSU-In some ways, it is absolutely crazy to pick Boise State here. The Broncos lost in lopsided fashion the last time they faced an ACC team and the team is starting a true freshman. However, Boise State has a strong defense and an outstanding offensive line. Meanwhile, FSU’s defense is suspect at best.
Erich: Boise State 38, Florida State 35 (Matt: FSU)
Northwestern at Stanford-Interesting matchup of two teams that play physical football with methodical, long-tenured head coaches (David Shaw at Stanford, Pat Fitzgerald). The big x-factor here is transfer quarterback Hunter Johnson for Northwestern. I’m going to take the surer bet with the more consistent Stanford team.
Erich: Stanford 31, Northwestern 24 (Matt: Stanford)
Famousmen 