LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — The college football card is not complete, but it’s getting there.
The Southeastern Conference joins the party with seven league games Saturday, while the Big 12 also has all 10 teams playing league games.
With the novel coronavirus postponing Notre Dame’s game with Wake Forest until the first Saturday in December, the Atlantic Coast Conference will be limited to five league games — plus Boston College hosting Texas State.
The race to the top of the WDRB Against the Spread competition has gone to the dogs — Ruby, a Labrador retriever who makes selections by letting a coin roll off her back, is tied for the lead with sports director Aaron Matas at 7-5 after two weeks.
"The competition is fierce through two weeks, and Ruby really seems to know how to sniff out an upset," Matas said. "But I am not underdog and don’t see Ruby’s success lasting now that SEC play is starting."
Stay tuned.
Sep 19, 2020; Louisville, Kentucky, USA; Louisville Cardinals running back Javian Hawkins (10) runs the ball against Miami Hurricanes linebacker Bradley Jennings Jr. (44) during the first half of play at Cardinal Stadium. Jamie Rhodes-ACC Pool
1. Louisville at Pittsburgh (-3 1/2); Saturday, noon; ACC Network; Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, Pa.
How good is Pittsburgh? That’s the question to chew on while trying to pick this game … Louisville’s defense certainly looked shaky in the loss to Miami last week, which was alarming considering the way the Cards struggled on defense last season … but does Pitt have enough offense to take advantage of the Cards' issues? The Panthers’ opener against Austin Peay was a throw-out, and they huffed and puffed to put together 342 yards of total offense at home against Syracuse last week … against Austin Peay and the Orange, Pitt averaged only 3.5 yards per rush … if Louisville can’t stop the run Saturday, red lights will flash … defense is Pitt’s calling card. Pat Narduzzi made his name as a defensive coordinator, and the Panthers have most of their top performers back from a unit that ranked third in the ACC in total defense last season.
Eric Crawford: U of L 28, Pitt 24
John Lewis: Pitt 27, U of L 24
Aaron Matas: U of L 38, Pitt 28
Tom Lane: U of L 27, Pitt 24
Annice McEwan: Pitt 28, U of L 24
Rick Bozich: U of L 21, Pitt 20
Ruby: Pitt
Kentucky running back Asim Rose (10) runs with the ball during the first half of an NCAA college football game against UT Martin, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2019, in Lexington, Ky. (AP Photo/Bryan Woolston)
2. Kentucky at Auburn, (-9); Saturday, noon; SEC Network; Jordan-Hare Stadium, Auburn, Ala.
The Wildcats survived life without Benny Snell and Josh Allen; now can they succeed without Lynn Bowden Jr. … with an offensive line generally considered one of the 10 best in America and three experienced running backs that he trusts, Mark Stoops is convinced that quarterback Terry Wilson will be able to move the football … in the last four seasons, Auburn has ranked fourth, sixth, fifth and third in the SEC in rushing defense, so expect this to be a solid test for the UK running game … Gus Malzahn hired former Arkansas head coach Chad Morris to work with quarterback Bo Nix, who completed only 57% of his passes as a freshman … Auburn will allow 17,490 fans, most of them students, to attend the game.
Eric Crawford: UK 24, Auburn 21
John Lewis: Auburn 30, UK 17
Aaron Matas: Auburn 24, UK 20
Tom Lane: Auburn 24, UK 20
Annice McEwan: Auburn 35, UK 17
Rick Bozich: Auburn 27, UK 20
Ruby: UK
Florida quarterback Kyle Trask (11) throws a pass over Auburn defensive end Nick Coe (91) during the first half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2019, in Gainesville, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
3. Florida at Ole Miss (+13); Saturday, noon; ESPN; Vaught-Hemingway Stadium; Oxford, Miss.
Welcome, Lane Kiffin. The Rebels have entrusted Kiffin with the task of making Ole Miss relevant against Nick Saban, Ed Orgeron and Jimbo Fisher … Eleven starters return from a 4-8 Ole Miss team that lost five of its last six games … quarterback Matt Corral started four games, throwing six touchdown passes with three picks … Florida is a consensus top-10 pick that at least one preseason publication picked to make the national playoff in Dan Mullen’s third season … quarterback Kyle Trask took over against Kentucky went on to throw 24 touchdowns last season, making Trask the top-ranked QB in the SEC … led by former U of L defensive coordinator Todd Grantham, the Gators return many important pieces from a unit that led the SEC in sacks.
Eric Crawford: Florida 35, Ole Miss 21
John Lewis: Florida 40, Ole Miss 20
Aaron Matas: Florida 34, Ole Miss 23
Tom Lane: Florida 28, Ole Miss 13
Annice McEwan: Florida 31, Ole Miss 14
Rick Bozich: Florida 35, Ole Miss 10
Ruby: Ole Miss
4. Mississippi State at LSU (-18 1/2); Saturday 3:30 p.m.; CBS; Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, La.
Welcome, Mike Leach, A former assistant to Hal Mumme at Kentucky as well as the former head coach at Texas Tech and Washington State, Leach brings the Air Raid attack to Starkville, Mississippi … Leach’s teams have averaged more than 394 yards per game passing since 2001 … a dozen starters return for the Bulldogs, but at quarterback Leach is expected to start K.J. Costello, a transfer from Stanford, or true freshman Will Rogers … LSU has major holes to fill. Not only will the Tigers be without nine offensive starters and eight on defense, they have also replaced passing game coordinator Joe Brady and defensive coordinator Dave Aranda … Myles Brennan is expected to replace Joe Burrow at quarterback. Brennan completed 42 of 70 passes for 600 yards and two scores as Burrow’s backup last season.
Eric Crawford: LSU 31, MSU 14
John Lewis: LSU 37, MSU 14
Aaron Matas: LSU 49, MSU 20
Tom Lane: LSU 31, MSU 14
Annice McEwan: LSU 38, MSU 10
Rick Bozich: LSU 28, MSU 10
Ruby: MSU
5. Duke at Virginia (-6); Saturday, 4 p.m.; ACC Network; Scott Stadium, Charlottesville, Va.
The Blue Devils have started slowly, scoring only 19 points while losing to Notre Dame and Boston College. This will be Virginia’s first game … the Cavaliers have switched to lefty Brennan Armstrong at quarterback and will try to open ACC play with a win for the fifth time under Bronco Mendenhall … Mendenhall is 4-0 against Duke David Cutcliffe, with an average margin of victory of 17.3 points.
Eric Crawford: Virginia 28, Duke 21
John Lewis: Virginia 17, Duke 7
Aaron Matas: Duke 28, Virginia 24
Tom Lane: Virginia 27, Duke 20
Annice McEwan: Virginia 21, Duke 7
Rick Bozich: Virginia 24, Duke 10
Ruby: Duke
West Virginia quarterback Garrett Greene (11) looks to pass against Eastern Kentucky during an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 12, 2020, in Morgantown, W.Va. (William Wotring/The Dominion-Post via AP)
6. West Virginia at Oklahoma State (-8); Saturday, 3:30 p.m.; ABC; Boone Pickens Stadium, Stillwater, Oklahoma.
The Cowboys had to scramble to score 13 points in the fourth quarter to defeat Tulsa in their home opener last weekend … halfback Chubba Hubbard, a first-team all-American as well as a preseason Heisman Trophy candidate, ran for 93 yards on 27 carries, with a long run of 20 yards … The Mountaineers were off last weekend after defeating Eastern Kentucky, 56-10, in their season opener … WVU halfback Leddie Brown leads the nation with 12.3 yards per carry … OSU has won five straight in the series, although three of the wins have been by a touchdown or less.
Eric Crawford: OSU 31, WVU 21
John Lewis: OSU 28, WVU 24
Aaron Matas: OSU 38, WVU 28
Tom Lane: WVU 21, OSU 20
Annice McEwan: OSU 27, WVU 21
Rick Bozich: OSU 24, WVU 17
Ruby: WVU
FILE - In this Sept. 21, 2019, file photo, Alabama defensive back Patrick Surtain II (2) waits for a play during the team's NCAA college football game against Southern Miss in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Two of the Alabama defense's big names-- Surtain and linebacker Dylan Moses--are back, along with potential stars like Ray and linebacker Christian Harris. (AP Photo/Vasha Hunt, File)
7. Alabama at Missouri (+28); Saturday, 6 p.m.; ESPN; Memorial Stadium, Columbia, Missouri.
Nobody has done a better job in opening games than Nick Saban has done at Alabama. He’s 13-0 with an average margin of victory of 29.5 … that is a streak that includes opening games against Duke (2019), Louisville (2018), Florida State (2017), USC (2016) and Wisconsin (2015) … eight Alabama players were named first-team all-SEC in a preseason coaches’ vote … quarterback Mac Jones returns. Jones completed 97 of 141 passes for 1,502 yards and 14 touchdowns after replacing the injured Tua Tagovailoa last season … it’s Game 1 for Eliah Drinkwitz at Mizzou. Drinkwitz went 13-1 in his only season at Appalachian State, where he replaced Scott Satterfield … the Tigers return 13 starters, but neither quarterback (Connor Bazelak, a redshirt freshman, or Shawn Robinson, transfer from TCU) threw a TD pass last season.
Eric Crawford: Alabama 45, Missouri 14
John Lewis: Alabama 50, Missouri 7
Aaron Matas: Alabama 45, Missouri 0
Tom Lane: Alabama 42, Missouri 10
Annice McEwan: Alabama 49, Missouri 10
Rick Bozich: Alabama 31, Missouri 0
Ruby: Alabama .
Last Week
Aaron Matas, Ruby: 5-2.
Eric Crawford, Rick Bozich: 4-3.
Tom Lane, John Lewis: 3-4
Annice McEwan: 1-6.
Season Totals:
Aaron Matas, Ruby: 7-5, .583
Eric Crawford, Rick Bozich: 6-6, .500
Tom Lane: 5-7, .417.
Annice McEwan, John Lewis: 4-8, 333.
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