Last week: 11-0
Percentage: 1.000%

Season total: 11-0
Percentage 1.000%

Last week was a good week for the ol’ prediction department, but truth be told, a blind monkey could have probably done the same thing. Last week’s slate of games was supposed to have been lopsided, but someone forgot to tell Memphis and Appalachian State, who nearly pulled off miraculous upsets. This week, things aren’t much better. Only one intra-conference matchup is taking place, and of the remaining games, only Idaho-Auburn should be even remotely close. Still, this is football, not science.

CENTRAL FLORIDA AT FLORIDA

Even though Florida opens with two patsies, you’ve got to give Steve Spurrier credit for taking a chance with an in-state upstart who has looked decent in previous seasons. Florida showed some weaknesses last week, letting Western Michigan score a bunch and get rather close before finally putting them away. Central Florida won’t threaten like that, but their defense is improving and they play with a lot of heart. Florida will still roll in this one, but they would do well to work on the stop troops before Tennessee comes calling September 18^th. If Central Florida scores more than 20 in this one, you’ll know the Gators have problems.

Florida 50
UCF 17

SOUTH CAROLINA AT GEORGIA

Lou Holtz gets his first SEC test with a trip to Athens, and the timing couldn’t be much worse. The Gamecocks fought hard against N.C. State, but still looked inept on offense for most of the affair. Granted, the game was played, literally, in a hurricane, but some of the problems South Carolina have can’t be chalked up to inclement weather. Namely, they don’t have the horses to keep up with the Bulldogs. Phil Petty may not be the answer to the Gamecocks’ quarterback question; the problem is, that question isn’t multiple choice. USC has to find someone N-O-W. Georgia, meanwhile, breezed past Utah State and won’t be tripped up by a program in the infant stages of rebuilding.

Georgia 34
South Carolina 17

CONNECTICUT AT KENTUCKY

UConn is in the process of moving up to 1-A, and they still might have a better defense than Kentucky does. It would be hard to think of them having a worse offensive line, too. Kentucky looked terrible against Louisville, but they should still find the going easy against the Huskies. Kentucky can’t count anything for granted this year, though, as graduation has hurt this team terribly. Anything could happen in this scorefest, but the smart money says the Cats get their first W of the season.

Kentucky 44
UConn 24

NORTHERN ILLINOIS AT VANDERBILT

Even though Vanderbilt suffered another tough loss to Alabama, they showed that maybe, just maybe, good things lie ahead in Nashville. Vanderbilt has a strong linebacking corps and Greg Zolman looks like the best Commodore quarterback in ages. At first blush, that might seem like damning Zolman with faint praise, but the fact is that Vanderbilt has improved by leaps and bounds over 1998. Meanwhile, MAC also-ran Northern Illinois doesn’t have an offense, which is a bad problem made worse by Vanderbilt’s respectable defense. The Commodores have a chance to do some real damage to the visiting Huskies—and likely will.

Vanderbilt 31
N. Illinois 10

HOUSTON AT ALABAMA

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IDAHO AT AUBURN

The Tigers very nearly became the butt of a season-long joke by nearly losing to Appalachian State, having to skate past them the final minute to claim victory. Now, they face a team which beat Southern Mississippi in the Humanitarian Bowl last year. This is not what Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville needs—a strong, unheard-of team that most fans view as a patsy. If Tuberville loses this one, the pressure could build to a boil. The Vandals, meanwhile return 18 starters including their quarterback and entire offensive line, and should contend for if not win the Big West conference title. Still, this game is being played at Jordan-Hare stadium, where Auburn is tough to beat. It would be unlikely to pick an upset, but not unthinkable. Which begs the question: Who would be upsetting whom? All jokes aside, look for Auburn to pull it out in a close one.

Auburn 27
Idaho 24

NORTH TEXAS AT LOUISIANA STATE

Before last week, I would have picked the Bayou Bengals to romp over the Eagles, but after dumbing themselves down to San Jose State’s level, nothing is certain anymore for LSU. These things about North Texas, however, do bear mentioning: They will probably finish at the bottom of the Big West conference this year, they have little offense to speak of, and this game is in LSU. All that won’t make one whit of difference, though, should the Tigers show up disinterested and unconfident. LSU coach Gerry DiNardo has got to start putting some of these lesser opponents away, or he will be spending his Christmas vacation typing resumes.

LSU 34
North Texas 13

ARKANSAS STATE AT MISSISSIPPI

With the advent of high-powered offenses and with parity making waves on signing day, one would have thought we’d seen the last of 3-0 football games. Not so, it seems, as the Ole Miss Rebels undershot everyone’s expectations by playing a struggling Memphis program to a 50’s-era score. Fortunately for Ole Miss, they get to play a team even less worthy than Memphis this week. Poor Arkansas State has struggled for years to recruit in a state that produces little homegrown talent. Over the last two recruiting seasons, they have put together better results, but nothing that should rival Ole Miss. Arkansas State will score, but it is unlikely they can even slow down Romaro Miller, much less stop him. The Rebels could use this chance to develop some depth—and confidence, which must be shaken after the performance against Memphis.

Ole Miss 31
Arkansas State 19

MEMPHIS AT MISSISSIPPI STATE

Memphis has never been afraid of playing anyone, witness this year’s non-conference schedule—Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Tennessee, and Missouri. Memphis started running this gauntlet last week when they held Ole Miss to a single field goal, but still lost. Memphis defensive coordinator John Thompson was brought in from Southern Miss, and it’s a safe bet that he had these first two games circled in red, wanting to take out frustrations on his former in-state rivals. The problem for the Bulldogs is this: Their offense isn’t as good as the Rebels’, and Ole Miss managed only three points. It would be foolish to predict another 3-0 game, but to say the Bulldogs will breeze through this one would be unwise. Memphis has a shot in this game, but it is very slim.

Mississippi State 17
Memphis 13