2019 Week 8 Preview

Week 8, here we come! The biggest takeaway from week seven was South Carolina’s huge upset win over third ranked Georgia between the hedges. LSU was able to run away from Florida and show they are a real contender this season. Week 8 features some interesting games, the biggest being Michigan at Penn State. There are also some big games in the Pac 12 and Big 12, so let’s jump in.

Notable Games
16Michigan at 7Penn State
Iowa made both of these teams looks a little rough, but that is just what Iowa does. Michigan’s offense is not great, and I don’t think they will do well in the White Out environment. For the Wolverines to have a chance they have to take care of the ball. I expect Penn State to really show how good they are in this game. I think it will be close for a while but the Nittany Lions will take over in the second half.
I am picking Penn State

12Oregon at 25Washington
This should be a fun game. Oregon is the Pac 12’s best chance to make the playoff and even that might be a long shot. Both teams are coming off big wins last week and they seem to have evened out. This will be Oregon’s toughest opponent since playing Auburn way back in week one. This game being in Washington should make it a close one, but Justin Herbert has been playing a lot better than Jacob Eason. This should be a Pac12AfterDark game, but it will be in the afternoon.
I am picking Oregon

17Arizona State at 13Utah
This is another really interesting Pac12 game. Both of these teams have played well this season. Utah’s loss is a weird one to USC where they committed a ton of penalties and the defense didn’t play as well as normal. Herm Edwards has Arizona State contending in this conference. Utah being at home gives them an advantage. I think this will be a very close game.
I am picking Utah

Temple at 19SMU
Temple pulled a big upset by beating Memphis last weekend. They have been extremely tough at home but struggled a bit on the road with their only loss coming to Buffalo. SMU was off last week, but pulled off a huge comeback to beat Tulsa in triple overtime the week before. The Mustangs are undefeated and are playing well. It has been a very long time since SMU has been relevant. This should be a hard fought game.
I am picking SMU

Iowa State at Texas Tech
These are two big contenders in the Big 12. Texas Tech nearly handed Baylor their first loss of the season last week. Iowa State got a big win over West Virginia last week. I think this game will get a little bit crazy just due to the nature of the teams. The Red Raiders are at home and that is the reason I am picking them to win, but this one has a good chance of coming down to the wire.
I am picking Texas Tech

North Carolina at Virginia Tech
The ACC hasn’t been good this season. It is Clemson and everyone else. UNC and Virginia Tech are fighting to try to get out of their division for the chance to play Clemson in the ACC Champ game. I don’t expect this to be a very good game, but it could be a close one. I went back and forth on this one, so I picked VT because they are at home.
I am picking Virginia Tech

11Auburn at Arkansas
Not much to say here. Arkansas had another bad game against Kentucky when it comes to QB play. They also knew Kentucky would run the ball 90% of the time and they still couldn’t stop it. I don’t have high hopes for this game.

Top 25
Tennessee at 1Alabama
2LSU at Mississippi State
3Clemson at Louisville
4Ohio State at Northwestern (Friday)
West Virginia at 5Oklahoma
6Wisconsin at Illinois
16Michigan at 7Penn State
8Notre Dame BYE
9Florida at South Carolina
Kentucky at 10Georgia
11Auburn at Arkansas
12Oregon at 25Washington
17Arizona State at 13Utah
14Boise State at Hawaii
Kansas at 15Texas
18Baylor at Oklahoma State
Temple at 19SMU
20Minnesota at Rutgers
Tulsa at 21Cincinnati
22Missouri at Vanderbilt
Purdue at 23Iowa
ULM at 24Appalachian State

Other Games
TCU at Kansas State
Southern Miss at Louisiana Tech
Duke at Virginia
Florida State at Wake Forest
Arizona at USC
Air Force at Hawaii