by Chris Asbrock
The college football landscape is certainly starting to take shape as we head into this ninth week of the season. There have been a number of stunning upsets and fantastic finishes. With the past two weeks seeing two highly ranked teams falling at the hands of a special teams blunder as time expired, will there be another team that falls victim?
As been the case the past couple of weeks, another week and another coach gone from their post. This time it was Al Golden being let go from Miami and we also saw George O’Leary retire after his UCF Knights started 0-7. Is there another coach on the chopping block who is on the verge of being let go? After this weeks games, we shall see. As we have every week, myself and my FTI colleague Jin Kim look ahead and make our picks for some of this week and weekends biggest games.
1. Notre Dame at Temple will be a sneaky good game
The ninth ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish head to Philadelphia to take on the 21/22 ranked Temple Owls in a game that has the potential to be one of the best of the weekend. Both teams come into this game a combined 13-1 on the season. Temple is currently 7-0 and sitting atop the American Athletic Conference East Division. With Temple running away with the East Division, the Owls can focus on this nationally televised game with Notre Dame. The biggest win on the season so far for Temple, was a victory on the road, at Cincinnati. A win over Notre Dame could go a very long way in garnering respect for the AAC and a solid Temple team.
This is also a massive game for Notre Dame because if the Fighting Irish win out, they will certainly be in the college football playoff. Notre Dame has survived losses to their starting quarterback and running back, to have a top 10 ranking and a possible playoff spot in the future. With so much on the line for both of these teams, you can expect this game to be very good
2. How will the Hurricanes fare after the firing of Al Golden?
With the firing of Al Golden, the Hurricanes and their fans are much happier than what they were during the 58-0 beating they took at the hands of Clemson. Interim coach Larry Scott has his work cut out for him as the Hurricanes now head up the coast to take on the 22nd ranked Duke Blue Devils. Many names have been tossed around in terms of successors to Golden, but the most important thing at hand is the game versus Duke.
3. Can the AAC continue to make noise nationally?
The American Athletic Conference currently has three teams in the top 25 and those three are undefeated currently. Temple and Houston host power five teams in Notre Dame (independent/ACC) and Vanderbilt respectively. Memphis hosts a Tulane team that they are expected to destroy. Regardless, the AAC has wins over numerous teams in power five conferences with Miami, Ole Miss, Louisville, Penn State, Kansas, Syracuse and Virginia Tech being victims.
Wins over Notre Dame and Vanderbilt will go a long way in showing the AAC is a solid conference and deserve a little more respect nationally. The AAC has certainly done a lot so far this season and some solid wins this weekend can only help.
1. Baylor vs 4. Ohio State
2. LSU vs 3. TCU
Top 10 Power Rankings:
2. LSU
3. TCU
4. Ohio State
5. Alabama
6. Clemson
7. Michigan State
8. Stanford
9. Notre Dame
10. Oklahoma State
Chris’ Heisman Trophy Finalists:
1. Leonard Fournette
2. Trevone Boykin
3. Corey Coleman
Jin’s Heisman Trophy Finalists:
1. Trevone Boykin
2. Leonard Fournette
3. Ezekiel Elliott
Ole Miss over Auburn
USC over California
Florida over Georgia
Oklahoma State over Texas Tech
Duke over Miami
Michigan over Minnesota
Tennessee over Kentucky
Notre Dame over Temple
Jin’s game picks (29-16 overall, 1-4 upset)
North Carolina over Pittsburgh
Ole Miss over Auburn
USC over California
Florida over Georgia
Texas Tech over Oklahoma State
Duke over Miami
Michigan over Minnesota
Kentucky over Tennessee
Notre Dame over Temple
Chris Asbrock is a staff writer and analyst for FTI Sports and can be followed on Twitter Follow @iamchrisasbrock
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