COLLEGE FOOTBALL: WEEK TWO PREDICTIONS

The SEC didn’t exactly represent itself well in week one, with Missouri, Tennessee and Ole Miss all losing to non Power Five teams and Arkansas struggling to get a close win against an FCS squad. Week two has more compelling matchups, headlined by number six LSU traveling to ninth-rated Texas. The Aggies of Texas A&M will try to knock off top-ranked and defending national champion Clemson on the road. Wins in those game could help the SEC regain some swagger, at least at the top of the league. 

For the first time, since gambling is now legal nationwide, I’m including the point spread with each game. While I’m not specifically picking against the spread, you can figure it out by my final score prediction. 

Friday (from a previous post):

Marshall  (1 - 0) 21 @ (24)  Boise State (1 - 0) (-13.5) 31: It was hard to get much of a read on Marshall after week one, posting a 56 - 17 win against overmatched FCS member VMI. Boise State showed a lot of grit in their opener, coming from 18 points down to defeat Florida State in hot and humid Tallahassee. With that win, Boise jumps into the top Group of Five team conversation with UCF and a couple of others. I wouldn’t count Marshall out, however, as they are the favorites in Conference USA and are coming off a 9 - 4 season and a bowl win over South Florida. 

Saturday:

(12) Texas A&M (1 -0) 20 @ (1) Clemson (1 - 0) (-16.5) 38: This is one of the top games of the week, featuring former Florida State coach taking his Aggies into Death Valley to face the top-ranked Clemson Tigers. Based on Clemson’s opening week drubbing of Georgia Tech, it doesn’t appear the Tigers have missed a beat from last season’s national championship team. Fisher faced Clemson annually when he was in the ACC and should have an idea of how to play the Tigers. If this game was in College Station, I would give A&M a shot. But it’s not, and I have to go with Clemson.  

Cincinnati (1 - 0) 24 @ (5) Ohio State (1 - 0) (-16.0) 34: Cincinnati dusted UCLA for the second consecutive year in week one, setting up this very intriguing matchup at the Horseshoe in Columbus. The American Athletic Conference had a very good opening week and could make another big statement with a Bearcat win over Ohio State. 

Army (1 - 0) 17 @ (7) Michigan (1 - 0) (-22.0) 27: Army was 11 - 2 last year and its unconventional option offense is difficult to defend. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Cadets give Jim Harbaugh’s Wolverines fits, but I think Michigan’s size and athleticism on defense will eventually wear Army down. 

Rutgers (1 - 0) 17 @ (20) Iowa (1 - 0) (-20.0) 31: Rutgers snapped an 11 game losing streak last week with a big win over hapless UMass. There was promise in scoring 46 points after averaging less than 12 points a game in their final 11 games of last season.  They’ll need a much better effort against the Hawkeyes if they want to score a monumental upset. I like Iowa to hold on at home, but Rutgers should give them a little more challenge than they expect. 

(21) Syracuse (1 - 0) 30 @ Maryland (1 - 0) (-2.0) 27: I’m not quite sure how Maryland is the favorite in this game. They’ve shown very little consistency recently and they’re stadium hardly gives them much of a home field advantage. Meanwhile, Syracuse is coming off a breakthrough season where their only three losses were to national champion Clemson, Coastal Division winner Pittsburgh in overtime and CFP participant Notre Dame. Perhaps the oddsmakers know something I don’t, but I’m not buying it.

Northern Illinois (1 - 0) 14 @ (13) Utah (1 - 0) (-22.0) 37: The MAC is down this season and Northern Illinois isn’t even one of their top teams. Utah has a good chance at a playoff spot and I don’t think this game will be much of a problem for them, especially at home in Salt Lake City. 

Central Michigan (1 - 0) 6 @ (17) Wisconsin (1 - 0) (-35.0) 57: Wisconsin went down to Tampa and spanked South Florida 49 - 0 in hot and humid conditions. Meanwhile, CMU gave up 21 points to a bottom-feeding FCS team. This one could get out of hand early.

(25) Nebraska (1 - 0) (-4.5) 30 @ Colorado (1 - 0) 24: Nebraska wasn’t particularly impressive last week against Sun Belt member South Alabama, one of the ten weakest teams in the FBS. The ‘Huskers will need to step up against Colorado, which is coming off a drubbing of rival Colorado State. I picked Nebraska to win the Big Ten West, so I’ll stay with them to rebound from last week.

New Mexico State (0 - 1) 7 @ (2) Alabama (1 - 0) (-55.0) 66: I’m not sure when I last saw a 55 point spread, but I could argue that it might not even be high enough. The Aggies gave up over 40 points a game last year and there wasn’t anyone close to Alabama on their schedule. If this was a fight, they might call it after three quarters.

Murray State (1 - 0) 13 @ (3) Georgia (1 - 0) (-49.0) 56: Georgia, fresh off a conference win at Vanderbilt, takes a week off against a middling FCS foe. Why do they even bother?

Northern Colorado (0 - 1) 13 @ (22) Washington State (1 - 0) (-36.5) 52: Washington dusted New Mexico State, 58 - 7 and this could be even worse. At least the Cougars play a decent Houston team in week 3 or their non-conference schedule would be pathetic. 

South Dakota (0 - 1) 13 @ (4) Oklahoma (1 - 0) (-39.0) 59: Another one? Oklahoma was very impressive on both sides of the ball last week against Houston. Their speed on defense just might be the difference in getting them to the playoffs.

(18) UCF (1 - 0) (-11.0) 38 @ Florida Atlantic (0 - 1) 24: I’m not sure why UCF is only giving 11 points in this one. Florida Atlantic didn’t show up for a half last week at Ohio State and then made a move against the second teamers to make it respectable. UCF will be playing with a chip on its shoulder all season and will be looking to run it up on Lane Kiffin’s FAU team that is short on defensive skill.

(6) LSU (1 - 0) (-6.5) 28 @ (9) Texas (1 - 0) 24: LSU is one of my picks to get to the playoffs and this game will be instrumental when it comes to selection time. Texas is definitely headed in the right direction, but I look for LSU’s defense to give the Longhorns too for them to overcome. 

Tulane (1 - 0) 21 @ (10) Auburn (1 - 0) (-17.0) 31: Auburn escaped Arlington with a last second win over Oregon after being dominated all night. Tulane put up 41 points on Florida International, a bowl team from last season. The Green Wave should be no problem for the Tigers, unless they are Auburn suffers a bit of a letdown from last week. Auburn’s defense will be tested and freshman QB Bo Nix will need to step up his game to avoid the upset.

UT Martin (1 - 0) 6 @ (11) Florida (1 - 0) (-44.5) 49: Frankly, I’m tired of wasting effort on these unnecessary games.

Buffalo (1 - 0) 20 @ (15) Penn State (1 - 0) (-31.0) 56: Buffalo won ten games last year and played in the MAC championship game. Along the way, they defeated a Power Five team, but that was a one win Rutgers team. Penn State, coming off a 79 point performance against Idaho, presents a an entirely different challenge. 

Nevada (1 - 0) 20 @ (16) Oregon (0 - 1) (-24.5) 38: Oregon, as mentioned earlier, dominated Auburn for three and a half quarters only to see Auburn score the go ahead touchdown with nine seconds on the clock. Nevada defeated Power Five Purdue, but they’re not in the same class as the Ducks, who need to regroup after that disappointing loss. 

Western Michigan (1 - 0) 20 @ (19) Michigan State (1 - 0) (-15.5) 27: Western Michigan is one of the top teams in the MAC, but they’ll still be overmatched in this one. However, Michigan State is still a bit challenged offensively and Western Michigan can put some points on the board. If there was one possible MAC - Big Ten upset, this could be the one.

California (1 - 0) 17 @ (14) Washington (1 - 0) (-13.5): 30 The Pac-12 North is stacked this season, but Cal isn’t one of those top teams. I have to go with a much better Washington team here as they look to repeat as North champs and challenge for a playoff spot.

(23) Stanford (1 - 0) 20 @ USC (1 - 0) (-3.0) 24: Both of these teams will be without their starting quarterbacks for this game. In the case of USC, it’s for the entire season as J.T. Daniels suffered a torn ACL against Fresno State. True freshman Kedon Slovis, who was adequate but not sensational in the second half last week, will be facing a much sterner defense this week. I like USC’s skill players and will take the home team.

Old Dominion (1 - 0) 17 @ Va. Tech (0 - 1) (-28.5) 42: Last season, ODU pulled one of the big upsets of the year, taking advantage of a disinterested Hokie defense to shock 13th ranked Tech, 49 - 35. This time around, Tech is coming off a frustrating five turnover loss to Boston College and should be more focused. Old Dominion lost some key offensive starters off what turned out to be a pedestrian 4 - 8 team. A repeat of last year is doubtful. 

South Florida (0 - 1) 23 @ Ga. Tech (0 - 1) (-6.0) 31: Both of these teams were totally ineffective against respective top 25 teams: Georgia Tech to Clemson and South Florida to Wisconsin. South Florida won this matchup last season, but they are in the midst of a seven game losing streak and things don’t seem to be improving much under head coach Charlie Strong. 

Miami (0 - 1) (-5.5) 27 @ UNC (1 - 0) 24: After a disappointing loss to Florida, Miami has had a week to lick their wounds and get ready for ACC play. North Carolina erased a 20 - 9 fourth quarter deficit to South Carolina to grab a victory in Mack Brown’s first game back with the Tar Heels. I haven’t been sold on Miami, but I think they’re better than an improved UNC. 

West Va. (1 - 0) 27 @ Missouri (0 - 1) (-13.5) 38: Was Missouri’s loss to Wyoming a fluke or a sign that the Tigers aren’t all they were predicted to be following the transfer in of former Clemson QB Kelly Bryant? I’m giving them the benefit of the doubt as they gave up two 60+ yard runs and a defensive TD to fall behind by 17 points before falling just short in a fourth quarter comeback. 

Vanderbilt (0 - 1) 27 @ Purdue (0 - 1) (-7.0) 30: Purdue lost a close one to Nevada, Vanderbilt got soundly beaten by number 3 Georgia. It’s hard to take much from those games, so I’ll stay with Purdue at home.

Oregon St. (0 - 1) 31 @ Hawaii (1 - 0) (-6.5) 40: Hawaii took care of Pac-12 Arizona the opening weekend and should be able to dispatch the Beavers, too.  Oregon State gave up 52 to Oklahoma State in their opener and Hawaii is almost if not equally potent on offense. 

Arkansas (1 - 0) 27 @ Ole Miss (0 - 1) (-8.0) 24: Neither of these teams was impressive in week one. Ole Miss made the short trip to Memphis and went home with a loss. Arkansas had trouble at home with what should have been an overmatched Portland State from the FCS, squeaking out a 20 - 13 win. The Razorbacks struggled in the red zone, but the defense looked solid. I’m going with an upset.

Hear my recent interview with legendary sports agent Leigh Steinberg, where we discussed his agency, concussions, franchise relocation and philanthropy at http://thechtonsports.com/cold-hard-truth-sports-radio-show-1242017/

Also listen to our conversation with author and sports journalist Mike Carey, as we discussed his latest book "Bad News" about Marvin Barnes and reminisced about Mike's coverage of the Boston Celtics during their glory years with Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Danny Ainge and Robert Parish. http://www.blogtalkradio.com/golongmedia/2017/02/08/the-cold-hard-truth-on-sports-radio-show

Don't forget to check out my new book, "Offsetting Penalties - A PK Frazier Novel" at  Amazon.com .  Check out www.thechtonsports.com for our podcasts and live broadcast on Tuesday's at 9:00 pm EST. I can also be reached via email at kevin@pkfrazier.com.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL WEEK 2 PICKS

The SEC didn’t exactly represent itself well in week one, with Missouri, Tennessee and Ole Miss all losing to non Power Five teams and Arkansas struggling to get a close win against an FCS squad. Week two has more compelling matchups, headlined by number six LSU traveling to ninth-rated Texas. The Aggies of Texas A&M will try to knock off top-ranked and defending national champion Clemson on the road. Wins in those game could help the SEC regain some swagger, at least at the top of the league. 

For the first time, since gambling is now legal nationwide, I’m including the point spread with each game. While I’m not specifically picking against the spread, you can figure it out by my final score prediction.

Friday:

Marshall  (1 - 0) 21 @ (24)  Boise State (1 - 0) (-13.5) 31: It was hard to get much of a read on Marshall after week one, posting a 56 - 17 win against overmatched FCS member VMI. Boise State showed a lot of grit in their opener, coming from 18 points down to defeat Florida State in hot and humid Tallahassee. With that win, Boise jumps into the top Group of Five team conversation with UCF and a couple of others. I wouldn’t count Marshall out, however, as they are the favorites in Conference USA and are coming off a 9 - 4 season and a bowl win over South Florida.

Hear my recent interview with legendary sports agent Leigh Steinberg, where we discussed his agency, concussions, franchise relocation and philanthropy at http://thechtonsports.com/cold-hard-truth-sports-radio-show-1242017/

Also listen to our conversation with author and sports journalist Mike Carey, as we discussed his latest book "Bad News" about Marvin Barnes and reminisced about Mike's coverage of the Boston Celtics during their glory years with Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Danny Ainge and Robert Parish. http://www.blogtalkradio.com/golongmedia/2017/02/08/the-cold-hard-truth-on-sports-radio-show

Don't forget to check out my new book, "Offsetting Penalties - A PK Frazier Novel" at  Amazon.com .  Check out www.thechtonsports.com for our podcasts and live broadcast on Tuesday's at 9:00 pm EST. I can also be reached via email at kevin@pkfrazier.com.

POWER FIVE CONFERENCE ANALYSIS: DIVISION BREAKDOWN

This piece will compare each of the divisions in the Power Five (the Big 12 will be treated as a division) and see how they look against each other. It’s generally considered that the SEC is the strongest conference, yet fans of the Big 10 tend to differ with that assessment. There have been times in the recent past when the ACC attempted to make a case that it was the top power conference. I conducted an extensive study based on rankings in Lindy’s Sports College Football preview. Granted, it’s just based on a single publication, but my past experience with Lindy’s has led me to believe it’s as credible as any of the others. The results of this study don’t generally predict that the winners of those higher ranked divisions (or the Big 12) will necessarily be in the playoffs. The downside for a tough division or conference is that cannibalization within the league can diminish the champion’s chance of emerging as a national title contender.

I’m going to break down each division in reverse order, beginning with the worst, at least statistically and assess the chances of the champion to have a good regular season run and have an opportunity to get into the playoffs. Some of this logic might seem counterintuitive, but stay with me and it’s possible you’ll begin to see where I’m headed.

ACC Coastal

The highest ranked team in this division is Miami, and their 19th place by Lindy’s is dubious at best. This is a team that so underperformed that it prompted the retirement of head coach Mark Richt. New head man Manny Diaz bailed on Temple after accepting the job and hiring a staff. To say that uncertainty surrounds the Hurricane program is a gross understatement. And this is the cream of Coastal crop? You’re probably starting to understand why this is the worst division in Power Five football. But the news isn’t totally negative. Because of the weakness of the division, there is a real possibility that a team could emerge with a single loss, or even undefeated, to challenge what most people surmise will be defending national champions Clemson for the conference championship. The top three teams in the division have three of the easiest schedules in the Power Five. Virginia Tech leads the way, mostly because of an embarrassing non-conference slate. But they also avoid the top teams from the Atlantic division, meaning their season basically comes down to the two road contests at Miami and Virginia. Throw into the mix that they return eight starters on defense for nationally recognized coordinator Bud Foster’s last season and you can figure things could be magical for the Hokies. And as a Tech alum, I can’t help but point out Virginia hasn’t defeated the Hokies since the George W. Bush administration. It comes down to October 6 in Miami for the chance to take on Clemson. PICK: Virginia Tech

ACC Atlantic

There’s Clemson and then...okay, I have to give Syracuse some love here. But given the relative weakness of Clemson’s conference schedule, the Orange’s only hope is to take down the Tigers when they visit the Carrier Dome. Syracuse had Clemson on the ropes last year in Death Valley after an injury to freshman sensation Trevor Lawrence, but let them off the hook. Clemson and Syracuse both dodge Miami, Virginia Tech and Virginia. Clemson faces Georgia Tech and North Carolina, arguably the bottom feeders of the worst division in the Power Five, while Syracuse takes on Pittsburgh and Duke, slight upgrades over the Tigers’ non-division slate. Without the power of Clemson, this division would be the laughing stock of college football. They don’t schedule anyone and internally are mediocre at best. Florida State made a bad hire in Willie Taggert and his team demonstrated that by quitting on their coach in embarrassing fashion down the stretch last season. ‘Noles have to meet Miami and Virginia, tying them with Louisville for the toughest non-division schedule in the Atlantic. If Florida State can’t resurrect their program, the ACC’s in big trouble, especially since a similar situation presented itself at Louisville, when the Cardinals dropped their final nine games and gave up over 50 points in six of those losses. The big question is whether the playoff committee will take the weakness of the conference into consideration when making their picks for the semifinals. PICK: Clemson

Pac-12 South

The Pac-12 is an extremely unbalanced league: I’m talking about the respective divisions not the coaches or players. Unlike the North, the South has only one ranked team. When you get past Utah, I just don’t see anyone else with a shot at winning the division, primarily because USC, the other contender, has a brutal conference schedule. They also have a very tough non-conference slate, so I have a hard time seeing the Trojans building any momentum in their season. Utah will benefit from the fourth easiest non-division conference schedule as well as unimpressive non-conference games. The Utes dodge both Oregon and Stanford and have games against Cal and Oregon State, the two bottom feeders in the North. Other than Utah and USC, we’re probably looking at an array of teams just trying to make it into a bowl game. This division only had two bowl teams last season and it appears they may be able to increase that by one if USC can navigate their difficult schedule. UCLA, in Chip Kelly’s second season, might be able to get to six or seven wins because they don’t have to face Oregon or Washington. Their problem will be dealing with a road game against Cincinnati to open the season and then a home contest with Oklahoma in week three. Arizona State coach Herman Edwards has a favorable schedule to get his Sun Devils into a second consecutive bowl game. Colorado has almost no chance. They face the top four teams from the North, giving them the most difficult non-division schedule in the conference. PICK: Utah

Big 12

This is the only conference in the Power Five that plays a round robin league schedule because they are not split into divisions. The conference would rate out much higher except for getting dragged down by Kansas’ 94th ranking. Oklahoma’s number four serves to offset the Jayhawks’ weakness, but for the most part it’s a fairly well balanced league. There are four new coaches in the Big 12, some of them fairly high profile moves for different reasons. Longtime Kansas State leader Bill Snyder finally stepped down after a quarter century in Manhattan in two stints. Without Snyder, K-State was barely competitive and it will be interesting to see if Chris Klieman can replicate his success at FCS North Dakota State where he won four national championships in five years. My guess is it’ll be tough. At in-state rival Kansas, Les Miles will bring his unique style and grass eating quirk to Lawrence hoping to do something few have done there: build a consistent winner. My sense is that with the backing of former PIttsburgh and Arkansas athletic director Jeff Long, he has a chance. And in one of the strangest occurrences in recent memory, Texas Tech fired coach Kliff Kingsbury who ended up as the head guy of the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals. Say what? But at the end of the season, the Big 12 will most likely belong to Oklahoma once again, but it won’t be easy. Defensive minded Texas and Iowa State will challenge the Sooners. Texas lost eight defensive starters, so they may need to more consistently show the kind of offense they displayed in a 48 - 45 win over Oklahoma if they’re going to challenge for the title again. The Longhorns will also have the opportunity to grab some early season love if they can take down LSU in week two. The same can be said for Iowa State, a tough defensive team that had three games where they scored less than 15 points last season. That just won’t get it done in the high scoring Big 12. At the end of the season, I still believe in Oklahoma, but I wouldn’t sleep on Texas. PICK: Oklahoma

Big Ten East

With four teams in the top 26 and the other three in ranked between 58 and 100, this is perhaps the most top-heavy division in the power five. The big question will once surround Michigan’s ability to defeat rival Ohio State for the first time in Wolverine coach Jim Harbaugh’s five year tenure. With a new coach in Columbus and the game at Michigan, perhaps the home team has its best chance in many years to advance to the Big Ten championship game.  If so, the Wolverines will have to overcome a tough non-division schedule in the conference. They travel to Wisconsin and host Iowa, the top two teams from the West. Harbaugh’s squad also hosts Notre Dame, translating into the sixth most difficult Power Five schedule. Can Harbaugh reload on defense, where he lost seven starters? Ohio State, Michigan’s primary challenger, face the second toughest non-division schedule in the conference. Besides travelling to the aforementioned Michigan to end the regular season, the Buckeyes also travel to Nebraska and Northwestern and host Wisconsin. Michigan State could challenge, but they have to visit Wisconsin and Northwestern, so none of the top three in the east get much of a break. Penn State faces just one of the top teams from the west, so they may have a slight advantage in the non-division schedule, but they have a new quarterback that will facing stout Gig 10 defenses. Overall, I have to give Michigan the edge, but it’s slight and depends greatly on that last game in the Big House. PICK: Michigan

Big Ten West

The primary difference between the Big Ten divisions is that the West only has one team ranked worse than 50th, while the East has three. Even though the East has two top ten teams, the West is a little deeper and more balanced. While this may look like a battle between Iowa and Wisconsin, the non-division schedules will probably play a big role in letting Nebraska into the hunt. Wisconsin has the third most difficult non-division schedule in the entire Power Five, taking on Michigan, Michigan State and Ohio State, the three top teams from the East. Talk about the luck of the draw. Meanwhile, Iowa meets Rutgers, Michigan and Penn State. And finally there’s the Cornhuskers’ non-division slate of Ohio State, Indiana and Maryland. Advantage Nebraska. I like Scott Frost’s chances in his second season at the helm of the Cornhuskers. They won four of their last six games after dropping their first six. The last one of those six was an overtime loss to Northwestern that they should have pulled out. The other two losses down the stretch were close ones at Ohio State and Iowa. I like Nebraska’s chances this time around to at least get to the Big Ten championship, based primarily on the schedule. Iowa and Wisconsin might be slightly better teams, but Nebraska hosts them both and probably owns a game advantage in the non-division. PICK: Nebraska

Pac-12 North

If the Pac-12 South is underwhelming, the North is downright exciting. Oregon , Washington, Stanford and Washington State will be on the national radar for most of the season. With the exception of Washington, they all play compelling non-conference games. Oregon opens with SEC member Auburn, Stanford boasts the country’s toughest non-conference schedule and Washington State travels to Houston to give an AAC team a shot at a Power Five upset. If Oregon State was predicted to be more competitive, this could have been in the running for the toughest division in college football. Even as it stands, it’s going to be a dogfight. Just like in the Big Ten West, it may come down to who gets to dodge South favorite Utah. Washington hosts the Utes, while Washington State has to travel to Salt Lake City. Neither Oregon nor Stanford will have to deal with Utah. I’m not yet sold on Oregon because of that mediocre defense. I like Stanford, but their schedule might wear them down by the end of the season. Washington State has road games with Utah, Arizona State, Oregon and Washington which leads me to question whether they can prevail in the North. Based on the schedule, I like Washington to repeat, but it may come down once again to the season finale against archrival Washington State. PICK: Washington

SEC East

All SEC haters are going to refute these rankings, but it’s pretty clear that the strongest conference in the land is the one currently ruled by the Alabama Crimson Tide. Even though it’s close, the SEC East falls just short of the West. The strength of the division is predicted once again to be the Georgia Bulldogs, even though they lost eight offensive starters. The key is that Jake Fromm returns at quarterback. The Florida Gators, most likely because they return eight starters off a unit that ranked 20th in points given up in 2018, is also highly regarded. In terms of scheduling, South Carolina has by far the most difficult one in the division. Not only is the SEC East tough, but the Gamecocks also play number two Alabama and number 13 Texas A&M from the West. To make matters worse, they also face top ranked Clemson to end the season. That all adds up to half of their schedule against top 25 teams. Compare that with Missouri, which plays just two top twenty-five teams and gets to take on Ole Miss and Arkansas from the West, the two worst ranked teams in the division. They also face no one higher than 63rd in their non-conference games. That’s quite an inequity for two teams playing in the same division.  Georgia plays at Auburn and hosts Texas A&M, but despite the tough schedule they’re still my pick for the division. PICK: Georgia

SEC West: 

Could this be the year that someone unseats Alabama and keeps them from the college football playoffs? In 2017 they tied for the division crown, didn’t make the SEC championship but still won the national title. This season, the SEC West is statistically the toughest division in college football. With Alabama, Auburn, LSU and Texas A&M all ranked in the top 15, the winner will need to navigate a very difficult schedule just within the division. Alabama sports the second easiest non-division schedule and the second easiest non-conference schedule, so they’re path to title is among the softest in the conference. In stark contrast, Auburn must play Georgia and Florida, giving it the most difficult non-division schedule in the Power Five conferences. That’s an inequity of great proportion and something the SEC needs to address, most likely by moving to a nine game conference schedule. But that’s not happening anytime soon, and certainly not in time to help Auburn this season. They also take on Oregon to open the season. LSU also faces an easier non-division slate, hosting Florida and traveling to Vanderbilt, but the Tigers will be heading to Tuscaloosa in what might be the game of the season in the SEC West. Even though the Crimson Tide have a favorable schedule, I just have a feeling that this might be the year that Alabama fails to meet expectations. Someone has to end up in the championship game in Atlanta, but they might very well have a couple of losses. I like LSU, primarily because they finally have a quarterback in Joe Burrow to go with a defense that returns eight players from a pretty good defense. We’ll get to see pretty early when the Tigers travel to Texas in week two. PICK: LSU

Hear my recent interview with legendary sports agent Leigh Steinberg, where we discussed his agency, concussions, franchise relocation and philanthropy at http://thechtonsports.com/cold-hard-truth-sports-radio-show-1242017/

Also listen to our conversation with author and sports journalist Mike Carey, as we discussed his latest book "Bad News" about Marvin Barnes and reminisced about Mike's coverage of the Boston Celtics during their glory years with Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Danny Ainge and Robert Parish. http://www.blogtalkradio.com/golongmedia/2017/02/08/the-cold-hard-truth-on-sports-radio-show

Don't forget to check out my new book, "Offsetting Penalties - A PK Frazier Novel" at  Amazon.com .  Check out www.thechtonsports.com for our podcasts and live broadcast on Tuesday's at 9:00 pm EST. I can also be reached via email at kevin@pkfrazier.com.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL: OPENING WEEK PREDICTIONS

After a one year hiatus, my college football prediction blog is back. As in the past, I will be picking games that involve teams ranked in the top 25 in the coaches poll and any inter-conference matchups. The FBS season begins today with two games, both in tropical environments. Eighth ranked Florida takes on instate rival Miami just a few miles from Disney World and Pac-12 hopeful Arizona will travel to the islands to meet Hawaii.

(8) Florida 24 vs. Miami  13(Orlando, Florida): The Florida Gators are coming off a successful season under first year head coach Dan Mullen. After a week two lass o Kentucky, they went on to win nine of their next 11 games to finish with a 10 - 3 record, capped by a 41 - 15 drubbing of Michigan in the Peach Bowl. The strength of the team is on the defensive side of the ball, where they return eight starters off a solid unit. They are expected to challenge Georgia for the SEC East title. Miami, following the unexpected retirement of Mark Richt, have a new head coach in former defensive coordinator Manny Diaz. The Hurricanes return just four starters from an offense that was one of the worst in the Power Five last season, so they will probably need to play solid defense if they’re going to have a chance to upset the Gators. I believe Mullen has Florida headed in the right direction while Diaz has a tough task in front of him to bring Miami back to prominence. If this game was a couple of weeks later, I’d like Miami’s chances better.

Arizona 41 at Hawaii 31: Kevin Sumlin, former Houston and Tezas A&M coach, begins his second campaign with Arizona. The Wildcats’ 5 - 7 record was a little deceiving as the losses to UCLA and Arizona State were both by a single point. The offense, which returns eight starters, was inconsistent at times but scored 40 points or more in three of their last four games. They’ll be taking on a Warriors team that excels in the passing game, finishing ninth in the FBS a season ago while going 8 - 5 with a loss to Louisiana Tech as the host in the Hawaii Bow.. Arizona ranked in the bottom ten in pass defense, so they’ll either need to find improvement or take full advantage of Hawaii’s porous run defense. This isn’t a great matchup for Arizona, but they have more talent and should be able to win in what could be a shootout.

Hear my recent interview with legendary sports agent Leigh Steinberg, where we discussed his agency, concussions, franchise relocation and philanthropy at http://thechtonsports.com/cold-hard-truth-sports-radio-show-1242017/

Also listen to our conversation with author and sports journalist Mike Carey, as we discussed his latest book "Bad News" about Marvin Barnes and reminisced about Mike's coverage of the Boston Celtics during their glory years with Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, Danny Ainge and Robert Parish. http://www.blogtalkradio.com/golongmedia/2017/02/08/the-cold-hard-truth-on-sports-radio-show

Don't forget to check out my new book, "Offsetting Penalties - A PK Frazier Novel" at  Amazon.com .  Check out www.thechtonsports.com for our podcasts and live broadcast on Tuesday's at 9:00 pm EST. I can also be reached via email at kevin@pkfrazier.com.