McComas picks the best: week 2 By MATTHEW MCCOMAS >y MATTHEW SARVER, MORGAN RUPP MDM337@ P p°SU e EDU Staff Reporters « MDSSOII@PSU.EDU MLR3OS@PSU.EDU South Florida @ Rutgers: It’s amazing the Bulls haven’t been in the NCAA for long and already they are on the verge of winning the Big East. New Jersey HHHHH has been waiting to have something to cheer about, but unfortunately they will have to wait even longer. South Florida wins a close game in a sea of scarlet. Photos couresty of ask.com Hello fellow classmates. How is everyone doing now that the semester is half over? We hope well. We are here to give our opinions about the PSL) Sports either here at Harrisburg or our beloved football team up at University Park. First we would like to say good luck to the soccer, volleyball, cross-country, and ladies tennis. We know that everyone is excited to see how amazing our sport teams do in their first year as a Division 111 school. We would like to send a special good luck from the Capital Times to the ladies volleyball team who is one conference win away from making playoffs. Good luck to these ladies in particular; Beth Burchill, Jayme Michael, and Michelle Herb. Now we are going to talk about the recent performances from our Penn State football team. After a win over lowa (or as Kris Aumiller stated, St. Mary’s School for the Blind) I am beginning to think that our football team still has some hope for a Big Ten title. Obviously a lot of different scenarios would have to happen for this to become possible but look what forty-one point underdog Stanford did to USC. This is college football; anything is possible. As for the Nittany Lions, the suspension to Austin Scott appears to be a blessing because the running game is a lot more explosive without him. Red-shirt freshman Evan Royster and senior tailback Rodney Kinlaw destroyed lowa’s rush defense. Senior captain Anthony Morelli threw for a suitably impressive 233 yards while completing 18 of 31 attempts. Don’t let these numbers fool you; Morelli was his usual self, throwing two interceptions in the fourth quarter. Morelli, however, did show signs of improvement late in the game when with 5:42 remaining and the likelihood of being sacked looming, he wisely tossed the ball out of bounds... And the stadium went wild. It’s amusing that in a place called Happy Valley the happiest moments for fans seem to be in alternating between booing, and mocking their quarterback. At the same time, Junior QB Daryll Clark gained valuable experience; coming in on the last play to knee the ball. And yet we wonder why Penn State never has a QB that is able to lead past the tunnel. In other team news Paterno stated at his press conference Tuesday that there was nothing wrong with the program and “We’ve got a great bunch of kids”: this on the heels of reports that over the weekend several players were involved in a fight. Rod Kinlaw no longer appears to be a part of the program, his locker being cleaned out prior to the win over lowa. Although official reports are only that Kinlaw is suspended indefinitely for unspecified reasons, he is strangely absent from all aspects of Lions football. Paterno may have a great bunch of kids but until this team begins to do some serious performing on the field, their off the field transgressions will continue to dominate the press. When is Paterno going to get a grip on what’s going on under the coke bottles? It might be time for Joe Pa to give some of that verbal abuse he dishes out to the refs to his players. Maybe when that happens we will see a group of players that perform like champions; on and off the field. That’s all for now: We’re Auburn @ LSU: The Auburn Tigers have upset intentions on their minds once again. After beating Florida, Auburn gained a great deal of confidence and seems to have new life. However, LSU has also beaten the Gators in similar fashion. LSU is almost impossible to beat at home under the lights, so look for || f the purple and yellow “£>” to shutdown Auburn s offense on the way to victory of warm-ups for the Olympics. USA plays Mexico on Oct. 13 in St. Louis, Oct. I LrOI || I 17 in Portland and Oct. 20 in Albuquerque.g Florida, Auburn gained a great deal of confidence and seems to have new life. However, LSU has also beaten the Gators in similar fashion. LSU is almost impossible to beat at home under the lights, so look for the purple and yellow “D ” to shutdown Auburn Is offense on th e way to victory. Mr * mg MgmV Cal @ UCLA: The Bears’ offense and special teams has looked impressive so far this year. And their defense is good enough to win close games. Luckily this game shouldn’t be close, so Cal can rely on their scoring ability against the depleted Bruins. Michigan State @ Ohio State: The Buckeyes played better than even the biggest OSU fans might have thought. Their defense is suffocating and their offense ■ is powered by the running game with big play potential on the outside. Once again, the Spartans started undefeated, but are no longer without a loss. OSU 1 continues to roll inside the horseshoe. Oregon @ Washington: The “experts” are always on watch for the Huskies to upset teams. Why? I’m not sure. Washington has been unable to do so this year, so don’t expect the Huskies to start this weekend. The Ducks offense will eventually become too much for Washington to contain. Oregon will be quacking all m ' the way back to Autzen Stadium. r C USC @ Notre Dame: Believe it or not, I’ve actually heard someone put USC on upset al.ert. Are you kidding me? The Irish are pitiful on offense and the Trojan defense is their strong point. USC could probably outscore Notre Dame in this game without putting their offense on the field, which is good because John David-Booty and the Trojan offense are highly overrated. Still, USC wins and wins large in South Bend and makes the gold and blue wish they still had Lou. t(fU» Florida @ Kentucky: The Wildcats have been a great story and the Gators have already lost more games than they did all of last season. Sounds like a perfect time for another upset in this crazy year of college football. However, as Lee Corso would say, “Not so fast.” Florida may be young, but they are still good J fJiSSSsk - really good. The Gators are going to chomp down on the Wildcats' high-powered offense and show Kentucky how to run-up the score. t Cincinnati @ Pittsburgh: The Bearcats have been one of the surprise teams of the year. As for the Panthers, you could put them in the disappointing category. Cincy is out to prove they are no longer a doormat in the Big East. And speaking of doormats, Pittsburgh should have one laid out for the Bearcats in this f* l 5L H ‘SAtf I Michigan (w. Illinois: Champaign will be ready for the Wolverines, painted in orange and yelling so loud Ann Arbor can hear them. The Illini weren’t expected li nl\y[jy% to compete for the Big Ten title and Michigan was all but a lock. How the times have changed in the world of predictions. Even Mike Hart won’t be able to carry "Big Blue ”as Illinois will leave the Wolverines feeling nothing but blue. Kansas % Colorado: These two teams have had solid seasons, each with a big win. Kansas won at Kansas State and Colorado beat Texas at home. This contest '4k has ma J° r Big 12 implications. Look for Kansas to score just enough to squeak by the Buffalo. Miami r a>, Florida State: FSU has been far from impressive, yet they continue to win. And the Hurricanes are about as easy to predict as, well, any game this season. Bobby Bowden continues to keep pace with Joe Pa by adding another “W”, which allows him to remain atop the all-time wins list. '•p> H II ~ §1 lpyilf <3 PnnnSmm Texas Tech @ Missouri: Being in “Big Ten Country” I hardly get a chance to see Big 12 games. But if you get a chance, watch Missouri. The Tigers are fundamentally sound and can score points quickly. Usually the Raiders are known for that type of offense, but look for Texas Tech to get a taste of their own medicine and Missouri to keep pace for a spot in the Big 12 championship game. Tennessee fa) Alabama: At the beginning of the year, these two programs appeared to be heading in opposite directions. The Tide was on their way up and the Vols on a downward spiral. Now, with recent wins by Tennessee and losses by Alabama, the tide has shifted. The Vols are poised for a SEC title run and the men in Crimson are thinking about big plans for next year. This should be an exciting game in Tuscaloosa with the Volunteers ’Ainge out-shooting Bama s Parker. Penn State @ Indiana: I’m taking the Nittany Lions, but they better be careful. These Hoosiers are not the typical cupcake team they’ve been in recent years. Any interceptions by Morelli or fumbles by PSU backs will put the Lions in severe danger of losing this Big Ten match-up. In the end I think it will be Penn State s defense that allows their offense to get away with scoring so few points. For NFL Picks visit www.myspace.com/pigskinpicks
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