Willian vs. Farner vol. 2

Willian vs. Farner

Brent took it on the chin last week, dropping four of five games, including his double-shot pick of the week, Alabama -6.5. "this is a bad week to try to get back on track. A lot of tough games."

Let's see how we fare this time.

Starting off with the Thursday night special.

WVU (-10.5) vs South Florida:

Brent: Coming off a home loss to Syracuse, South Florida now must face arguably the best team in the Big East. Granted, the title of “best team in the Big East” isn’t much of a compliment this year. Nevertheless, Morgantown is always a tough place to play, and West Virginia is developing a nicely balanced offense, led by speedy back Noel Devine. I look for Devine to put up big numbers against a defense that gave up 139 rushing yards to a similar back, Florida’s Jeff Demps, in Week 2. This is my double-shot pick of the week. West Virginia 31, South Florida 17

Keith: South Florida has a history of knocking the couch burners out of the top 25 poll. Last year, the Bulls won 30-19, and in '06 and '07, South Florida knocked West Virginia out of the top 10. I don't see the Bulls pulling another upset, but they did hang with Florida for a half, and the lone win in their 1-4 record in their last five games against ranked opponents came against the Mountaineers. West Virginia 27, South Florida 21

Louisville (+2.5) vs Cincinnati:

Brent: Louisville is still trying to put pieces together in Charlie Strong’s first year, but it has looked noticeably better each week. A dominating 56-0 win over Memphis should be a big confidence boost heading into the conference opener. UC’s pass defense has been among the worst in the nation, which should open some doors for a steadily improving UofL passing game, led by JUCO transfer WR Josh Bellamy. On the flip side, UC is giving up only 84 rushing yards per game, which could neutralize UofL’s most dangerous offensive weapon, RB Bilal Powell. The key to this game will be whether UofL can run the ball, control the clock, and get the crowd into it early. The Keg of Nails returns to Louisville in a nail-biter. Louisville 24, Cincinnati 20

Keith: The teams have had a similar schedule: Easy wins last week that followed narrow losses against Oklahoma and Oregon State. The Bearcats' QB

Zach Collaros has a great TD/INT ratio: 12:1, and a couple of quality receivers to get the ball to. The stat I love is the Bearcats' run defense, which Brent mentioned. That'll put the game in Adam Froman's hands, and Cincinnati will take its chances.

The favorite is 10-3 in their last 13 meetings, while the road team is 4-1 ATS in the last five. Smell a trend? Cincinnati 24, Louisville 21

USC (-2.5) vs Cal:

Brent: USC has lost two straight Pac-10 games by a combined 3 points, both of which were decided by a last-second field goal. USC now sits at 1-2 in the Pac-10. Simply put, USC is in danger of joining the likes of Washington State at the bottom of the conference, and if Kiffin’s boys want to have any chance of saving their season, they must win this game with #2 Oregon in the on-deck circle. Cal’s defense has been solid this year, although it’s tough to forget the 52 points they gave up to Nevada a few weeks back. USC wins a close one. USC 27, Cal 24

Keith: After the Nevada debacle, the Golden Bears' defense has recovered and

linebacker Mychal Kendricks even leads the Pac-10 with four sacks. That defense held UCLA's running game to less than three yards per carry. USC is coming off of two grueling games against Stanford and Washington. USC gave up eight yards per play against Stanford. Meanwhile, t

he Golden Bears' memory of the Nevada game might be the score, but they averaged almost 8.5 yards per play. The Golden Bears are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 meetings in Southern California and the r

oad team is 5-1 ATS in their last 6 meetings. This is my double-shot pick of the week. Cal 31, USC 24

Arkansas (+3.5) @ Auburn:

Brent: At some point, the close calls have to catch up with Auburn, right? The Tigers put up 31 first-half points against Kentucky last weekend before letting UK come all the way back and tie the score at 34. Auburn has been decent against the run this year, but has shown great vulnerability against the pass. Enter Arkansas QB Ryan Mallett, who has thrown for almost 1,800 yards in five games. Mallett, along with a solid defense that has not given up more than 24 points in a game this season, will lead Arkansas to an important SEC road victory. Arkansas 34, Auburn 30.

Keith: Sure, Auburn has made a living with the close games, but don't underestimate another one, especially knowing arch-rival Alabama is beatable. The Tigers won't miss the chance to be undefeated for the Iron Bowl. What's more, don't get too caught up in Arkansas' near-upset of Alabama. The same Hogs almost lose to Georgia and barely got by Texas A&M. Cam Newton and the Auburn coaching staff will want to increase his Heisman candidacy, and no one has shown an ability to slow him down yet. Auburn 30, Arkansas 24

Wisconsin (+4) @ Ohio State:

Brent: I will admit that all signs seem to point to Ohio State in this one. They are #1, they have a Heisman candidate QB, and their defense has been among the best in the country thus far. But the Badgers have already lost to Michigan State, and a loss to the Buckeyes will make it tough to climb back into contention in the Big 10. In the end, that motivation likely will not be enough to overcome Terrelle Pryor. The Sweater Vest comes away with the victory in this one, but it will be close and OSU will fail to cover the spread. Ohio State 23, Wisconsin 20.

Keith: Another team looking to gain from the Crimson Tide loss last week, new No. 1 Ohio State. The Buckeyes are motivated by a chance to play for a national title and finally quiet down all of those SEC haters. The fact that OSU has largely played to the level of its competition this year will help in this game, with ESPN GameDay being on hand. The Bucks played well against Miami, yet struggled against Illinois and Indiana. Look for them to cover a big game here. Ohio State 30, Wisconsin 21