College Football Week 7 Preview and Predictions

South Carolina quarterback Connor Shaw dissected the Georgia defense and will look to do the same to the LSU unit Saturday. (AP Photo)

5. #10 Oregon State (4-0) @ BYU (4-2) - 3:30 PM EST, ABC/ESPN3

Oregon State has experienced its share of good news and bad news this past week. The good news is that they are off to a 4-0 start and have their highest ranking since 2001. The bad news is that in last week's win over Washington State, quarterback Sean Mannion injured his left knee and is expected to miss anywhere from two to four weeks.

The Beavers will travel to Provo to take on BYU. The Cougars have had their share of question marks at quarterback as well. Senior quarterback Riley Nelson has been out with a back injury. Freshman Taysom Hill had been playing his place, but injured his left knee in their win over Utah State. He has been ruled out for the season. Nelson is expected to return as the starter, but the Cougars could be in trouble if he is unable to go.

In place of Mannion, Oregon State quarterback Cody Vaz is making his collegiate starting debut. He has a difficult task set before him with having to play on the road against a tough BYU defense at home. Vaz will benefit from his pair of playmakers at wide receiver, Markus Wheaton and Brandin Cooks. Speaking of the Cougars defense, they will need to play very well, especially as they are lead by linebacker Kyle Van Noy.

Prediction: BYU 13 Oregon State 12

4. #15 Texas (4-1) vs. #13 Oklahoma (3-1) - 12:00 PM EST, ESPN

This is still one of the biggest rivarlies in college football. It just has a bit of a different feel this year. Rather than battling for control of the Big 12 race, both teams are simply trying not to fall farther behind #5 West Virginia and #6 Kansas State in the standings. Neither team is ranked in the top ten of the polls for the first time since 1999. The loser will have two losses just two weeks into October.

Oklahoma is finally starting to play better football. Starting quarterback Landry Jones is beginning to play better and is able to lead his team to victory. His wide receivers are finally finding some continuity with him as  well. Freshman Trey Metoyer and juniors Kenny Stills and Justin Brown have emerged as Jones' top targets. Defensively, the Sooners pieced together their best performance of the season last week in a win at Texas Tech.

Texas will look to contain Jones with their solid defense. The defense is anchored by defensive ends Alex Okafor and Jackson Jeffcoat. On offense, the Longhorns will look to control the line of scrimmage to create rushing lanes for their deep backfield. When playing up to their potential, they can control the ball and clock very well.

Prediction: Oklahoma 31 Texas 27

3. #17 Stanford (4-1) @ #7 Notre Dame (5-0) - 3:30 PM EST, NBC

Even without former star quarterback Andrew Luck, Stanford hasn't really missed a beat offensively. The main reason why is the consistency of running back Stepfan Taylor. He is a workhorse who isn't afraid to get  into the trenches and pick up tough yardage. Quarterback Josh Nunes has improved over the course of the season. The Cardinal might see just how far along he is developed if the score is close near the end of the game.

Notre Dame is undefeated on the season, but has yet to receive some of the accolades of other teams in similar positions. One of the reasons might be that they aren't blowing teams out of the water, expect for last week's 41-3 blowout of Miami (FL). They grinded out their wins over Purdue, Michigan State and Michigan. However, wins are wins and that's what the Fighting Irish have been getting this season.

The Fighting Irish defense has been rock solid this season. They are led by linebacker Manti Te'o, who is having a fabulous season. If he and the rest of the defense can contain Taylor, they should be in good shape. The other aspect of Notre Dame's game that is starting to emerge is their rushing attack. Senior Cierre Wood just needed to get himself going after missing the first two games of the season due to suspension. Last week against the Hurricanes, he rushed for 118 yards and two touchdowns.

Prediction: Notre Dame 27 Stanford 17

2. #22 Texas A&M @ #23 Louisiana Tech - 9:00 PM EST, ESPNU/WatchESPN

Texas A&M was supposed to open their season at Louisiana Tech. However, Hurricane Isaac came through and postponed the game until now. When it originally happened, no one probably thought anything of it. But now both teams are ranked and the game has been thrust into the national spotlight. Both teams boast big time offenses, so this one has shootout written all over it.

The Aggies have improved drastically since their loss to Florida. Quarterback Johnny Manziel's emergence as one of the most exciting players in the SSC is a major reason why. His dual threat nature has kept opposing defense off guard and guessing all season long. Another Aggie who is starting to shine is freshman wide receiver Mike Evans. He has 32 catches for 412 yards on the season. Evans' size could create a matchup problem for Louisiana Tech.

With an undefeated record, including wins over Houston, Illinois, and Virginia, Louisiana Tech has rightfully broken into the polls and national spotlight. The Bulldogs have legitimate BCS buster power. This makes the game against Texas A&M even more important. Quarterback Colby Cameron runs an efficient offense. His completion percentage of 68.3 and the fact that he hasn't thrown an interception are quite impressive. The other Bulldog to take note of is senior wide receiver Quinton Patton. He already has 34 receptions for 532 yards and five touchdowns on the season.

Prediction: Louisiana Tech 45 Texas A&M 42

1. #3 South Carolina @ #9 LSU - 8:00 PM EST, ESPN/WatchESPN

Steve Spurrier finally looks like he has a South Carolina team good enough to win the school's first ever SEC title. Last week, the Gamecocks slammed then-No. 5 Georgia 35-7. Life doesn't get an easier for them though as they have to travel to Baton Rouge to take on LSU at Tiger Stadium. The Tigers rarely lose at home and even more rarely lose two in a row, coming off a loss at Florida.

South Carolina is a balanced team from top to bottom. Offensively, they are led by two of the best players in the SEC. Quarterback Connor Shaw is a dual threat danger that is capable of taking over at anytime. His ability to read defenses and analyze what is taking place is another strength of his game. The other star player is running back Marcus Lattimore. He already has nine rushing touchdowns this season.

LSU is still in control of their own fate in the SEC schedule. The Tigers defense has been as solid as years past. Linebacker Kevin Minter has been doing it all for the Tigers. Last week, he set a new school-record with 17 solo tackles. The difference in this year's LSU team is that the offense continues to struggle. In two SEC games so far this season, they have only managed score a combined 18 points.

Prediction: South Carolina 17 LSU 9

RIT Comeback Spoils Home Opener for Michigan

It looked like another routine opener for the Wolverines. The air was cold in Yost and the fans were decked in maize and blue, leading rousing cheers of "Hail to the Victors" and banging their cowbells in rhythm with a resounding "Go Blue!" from the student section. The men on the ice for Michigan had put up three goals in the first period, and were settling in for a home-opening blowout of the visiting team from the Rochester Institute of Technology.

Michigan blew a 3-0 lead at home Thursday night. The Wolverines have lost 2 out of the last 3 home openers.

Michigan came flying out of the gate. Just two minutes into the game, Derek DeBlois buried a shot to put the Wolverines up 1-0 on the Tigers. Halfway through the period, Michigan tallied a second goal--this one on the power play--off the stick of Mac Bennett. Looking to salt the game away in the first period, Jason Trouba scored on the powerplay late in the period, putting Michigan up 3-0.

RIT finally found a bit of life at the end of the first period. Just 29 seconds after Trouba scored, the Tigers got a goal from Josh Mitchell, breathing a bit of life into the team. The score of 3-1 made the game manageable for RIT; but as the game entered the third period, the Tigers were starting to run out of time.

The squad from RIT scored three minutes into the final period thanks to Chris Saracino's first goal of the year. But the celebration was short lived. Michigan did what has becoming a trademark for them over the years--they squelched the hope of a comeback with a quick goal. Just two minutes after the Tigers pulled within a goal, Travis Lynch found the back of the net to keep the Wolverines' lead at two goals, 4-2.

Halfway through the third, the Tigers again pulled the lead within a goal. Elliot Raibl found the back of the net for RIT, making the game 4-3. Michigan still had the lead, but the three-goal cushion from the first period had disappeared.

But with only five minutes remaining in the game, the Tigers completed the comeback. Greg Noyes scored for RIT, tying the game 4-4 in front of a shocked Yost Arena. Michigan then took a penalty, giving RIT a chance to win the game in regulation. The Wolverines penalty kill took over, and managed to get the game into overtime tied 4-4.

It took all of 14 seconds for RIT to win the game in overtime.
Adam Hartley hit the twine for the Tigers, and the celebration ensued for the orange and black.

The loss was Michigan's second home-opening loss in the last three years.

Two Clutch Homers by Ibanez Lift Yankees Past Orioles

Yankees outfielder Raul Ibanez celebrates with his teammates after hitting his second homer of the game, a walk-off winner. (Alex Trautwig)

Playoff baseball has not disappointed this October. Tonight was no exception either. With the series tied at one game apiece, the New York Yankees and Baltimore Orioles had a crucial Game 3 to play tonight. With both team's pitching staffs playing well, one knew that runs would be at a premium.

On the mound for the Yankees was Hiroki Kuroda. He pitched very well, but Baltimore made him for his few mistakes. In the top of the third, second baseman Ryan Flaherty hit a solo home run to put the Orioles on the board first. With the score level again in the fifth inning, third baseman Manny Machado took Kuroda deep again for a solo shot. When all was said and done, those were the only two runs Kuroda gave up in 8 1/3 innings of work.

His counterpart, Miguel Gonzalez, had a quality start as well. The only trouble he ran into was in the bottom of the third. Yankees catcher Russell Martin doubled to deep left. The next batter, Eric Chavez, grounded out to first base, but the runner advanced to third. With a man on third base and two outs, legendary shortstop Derek Jeter stepped into the batter's box.

On a two ball, two strike count, Jeter tripled to deep center over the head of Orioles center fielder Adam Jones. This tied the score up 1-1 then. Gonzalez threw seven strong innings of one run ball. In the bottom of the eighth, Orioles reliever Darren O'Day successfully bridged the gap with a scoreless inning of work to protect their 2-1 lead.

This brought Orioles closer Jim Johnson into the game to try and record the final three outs. Yankees left fielder Ichiro Suzuki led off the frame with a liner to left field, but it was caught by Orioles left fielder Nate McLouth for the first out. Next up was supposed to be the scuffling and much maligned third baseman Alex Rodriguez.

Instead, Yankees manager Joe Girardi decided to pinch hit with outfielder Raul Ibanez. On the second pitch of the at-bat, Ibanez got a hold of the ball and deposited in the short porch in right field. That's all the scoring the Yankees got in the inning, but it was enough to send the game to extra innings tied 2-2.

The next time Ibanez came up to bat was to lead off the bottom of the 12 inning with the score still the same. The very first pitch he saw was crushed as the ball ended up in the right field bleachers once again. Ibanez had not only tied it in the ninth inning with a solo home run, but he won the game with one in the 12th.

The Yankees team couldn't be happier afterwards, including Rodriguez. Despite being the highest-paid player in baseball and one of the greatest power hitters of all-time, he was benched with the game on the line. However, there was no bitterness expressed by Rodriguez after the game. He told Girardi, "Joe, you gotta do exactly what you gotta do."

The Yankees gave it their all and played like a team tonight. They were rewarded with the win they deserved. Now, the Bronx Bombers are one win away from advancing to the ALCS. They will try and get the job done in Game 4, which is tomorrow night at 7:37 pm EST.

Giants and Athletics Win to Live Another Day

Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Brett Anderson threw six scoreless innings of two-hit ball. (Ezra Shaw)

October baseball is in the air folks. When it's the playoff, it ain't over until the fat lady sings. Neither the San Francisco Giants or Oakland have heard any singing as of yet. Both trailing 2-0 in a best of five series, they both won a must-win Game 3 to force at least one more game. My blog post recaps both teams' Game 3 performances.

Giants 2 Reds 1 (Final in 10)

The Reds had no problems scoring runs in the first two games in San Francico. However, at home, they found themselves in a pitcher's duel in Game 3. The Reds did get on the board first in the opening inning. Right fielder singled to right to allow shortstop Zack Cozart to score, making it 1-0. The Giants got the run back in the third inning. Center fielder Angel Pagan hit a fly ball deep enough in center to plate left fielder Gregor Blanco.

Those were the only runs surrended by the starting pitchers on the mound.  Giants veteran right-hander Ryan Vogelsong allowed only three hits in five innings of work, before being lifted for a pinch hitter. The Reds countered with Homer Bailey, who was absolutely superb. In seven innings of work, he allowed just one hit, while striking out 10 Giants batters. Both bullpens pitched excellently as well. This meant we were headed to extra innings tied 1-1.

In the top of the 10th inning, the Giants had men on second and third with two outs. Up to bat for the second time was backup shortstop Joaquin Arias. He hit a slow ground ball down the third base line. The home crowd to see what would happen at first base. As it turned out, that didn't matter because Reds veteran third baseman Scott Rolen bobbled the ball, giving Arias enough time to beat the throw to first base.

In the bottom half of the frame, Giants reliever Sergio Romo shut the door on the game with a 1-2-3 inning. Game 4 will be tomorrow afternoon at 4:07 pm EST.

Athletics 2 Tigers 0

Trailing the Tigers two games to none, the Athletics wasted no time getting their offense on the board early. In the bottom of the first, Coco Crisp lead off with a single. He was followed by shortstop Stephen Dew, who walked to bring rookie left fielder Yoenis Cespedes to the plate in a dangerous situation. Cespedes singled to center, but it was only enough to score one run.

On the mound for the Athletics, starting pitcher Brett Anderson was dominating the Tigers lineup. He worked six strong innings, allowing just two hits on only 80 pitches thrown. The home side added an insurance run in the fifth inning when designated hitter Seth Scott hit a solo shot to deep center to make the lead 2-0.

Unlike in Game 2, the A's bullpen was back to it's masterful ways. Ryan Cook threw a scoreless seventh inning. Sean Doolittle struck out the side in the eighth. Closer Grant Balfour wasted little time in the ninth. He induced Tigers first baseman Prince Fielder to ground in to a game-ending double play.

The Athletics got the job done when they needed to. Game 4 will be tomorrow night at 9:37 pm EST.

Colgate Hockey Throttles Niagara

It was a crowd of barely over 700 fans. But gosh, did they get treated to an offensive explosion.

Colgate opened up the regular season tonight with a game against Niagara University and made the most of the home opener. The Raiders throttled the Purple Eagles by an incredible score of 10-2.

The Raiders made use of seven different goal scorers during the course of the game and put up a total of 35 shots. Colgate opened the scoring just over a minute into the game with a goal by Darcy Murphy.  The Purple Eagles tied the game off the stick of Giancarlo Iuorio halfway through the first period, but trailed 2-1 after the first period.

Colgate added three goals within the first four minutes of the second period, sealing the game away. Niagara goaltender Colby Drost was pulled just two minutes into the second period, with his team down 4-1. He was replaced for the remainder of the game by teammate Cody Campbell.

Colgate kept up its offensive attack on the new goalkeeper. Goal-scorer Billy Rivellini would add his second goal of the period at 10:51 of the second to put the Raiders up by four goals. The Raiders led 6-1 heading into the third period.

The Raiders added another onslaught of goals in the third period--four more, to be exact. Niagara made it a 10-2 hockey game late in the period on a powerplay goal by Michael Benedict. Little consolation for the Purple Eagles, as the hometown Raiders celebrated their 10-2 season opening win. Robbie Bourdon, Kurtis Bartliff, and Rivellini all had double goals for Colgate.

Colgate gets a road test this weekend, as they travel to Miami (OH) to take on the Redhawks in Oxford, Ohio. Niagara plays host to the Mercyhurst Lakers on Saturday night.

Fans Cheering Cassel Getting Injured is Abombinable

Some fans of the Kansas City Chiefs cheered as their quarterback Matt Cassel lay on the ground at Arrowhead Stadium. (John Ringer)

I am as big of a sports fan as most anyone I know. I have to admit that there have been times were I have crossed the line morally when cheering for my teams. My love for a certain team has for instance caused to feel a sense of joy when a player on a team I dislike is injured or struggles. Let me be clear. That is wrong, and I shouldn't feel that way. However, as humans we are competitive by nature. This isn't an excuse. This is merely a factual statement about our depravity as human beings. We must do our best to overcome that to love another as we would want to be loved ourselves.

I know that I am not alone in my weakness. There have been well known instances where fans have openly cheered an injury or misfortune of an opposing player. A famous example would be when Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Michael Irvin lay motionless on the field in Philadelphia in 1999. Eagles fans cheered the whole time. The then Mayor of Philadelphia Edward Rendell described it as "in terms of bad taste was as bad as it gets."

Sadly fans took it one step further Sunday. Arrowhead Stadium, home of the Kansas City Chiefs, has long been considered one of the NFL's most difficult venues to play in because of the passion and loudness of the home crowd. That home crowd turned against one of its own Sunday. Quarterback Matt Cassel has never been endeared by Kansas City sports fans. They booed him when he threw out the first pitch at the MLB All-Star Game in July.

Sunday, the fans found a new way to express their disdain for Cassel. In the game, the quarterback stepped back in the pocket to throw. He got leveled by Baltimore Ravens defensive tackle Haloti Ngata. As Cassel lay motionless on the ground, many Chiefs fans began to loudly cheer and clap. They were openly happy that their own player was seriously injured on the football field.

This I simply cannot comprehend. I was born a New York Yankees fan. Few Yankees players have frustrated me as much as A.J. Burnett did. His inconsistency was a thorn in the side of the team for the duration of his stint. However, I never doubted the effort he gave. I always cheered for him to pitch well. After all, he was a Yankee. The Yankees are my team to cheer for. That means he is my player to support as well.

This season Burnett had an excellent year for the Pittsburgh Pirates. I couldn't be happier for him. I know how much he wanted to put up those kind of numbers in the Bronx. His game and temperament simply were not suited for life in the Big Apple. I hope he continues to succeed in Pittsburgh. I believe he is capable of helping to lead the Pirates to a playoff berth within the next few years.

Bringing this back to Cassel, as badly as Burnett played at times, I never hoped he would get hurt. It is so morally wrong for one to hope that another would get injured for one's one benefit. I loved how Chiefs offensive tackle Eric Winston stood up for his quarterback. If you haven't seen the video, you need to watch it.

One of the main points Winston made was that, "It's 100 percent sickening. I've never, ever -- and I've been in some rough times on some rough teams -- I've never been more embarrassed in my life to play football than that moment right there. Matt Cassel hasn't done anything to you people."

Winston was embarrassed to play the sport he loved. I am embarrassed as a fellow sports fan that this could happen. The problem is that this is a morally deeper problem than simply sports. The incident manifested itself in sports, but sports is not in and of itself the root cause for it. Sports is merely the avenue through which it was brought to life.

President Barack Obama is strongly liked and disliked by many people. If he were to be assassinated, I believe that there would be people that would be openly pleased by this. In fact, I don't just believe it from prior experience, but I can almost certainly guarantee it. This is truly tragic. We have been so morally corrupted as human beings. We look at our own interests before the well being of others in so many ways.

My plea to you is this: Don't applaud the misfortunes of others and don't allow others to do so unprovoked. This is not morally accepted behavior. I know that as humans we are not perfect, but that does not mean we cannot try to do what is right. Matt Cassel deserves to receive thousands of apologies from those who cheered for his injury. I must seek to do the same in my life. I have to live to a higher moral standard and help those around me to do the same.

Breaking Down the Top Stories From the AP Poll for Week 7

What state has two teams in the AP Top 10? That's right, it is Oregon. The Beavers have joined the Ducks in center stage. (Getty Images)

With six weeks of college football in the books, the first teams are becoming bowl eligible. This means it is definitely time to start talking about bowl games and top stories to follow. Three of the top five teams were upset on Saturday. Therefore, we knew that the new AP Poll would be full of intrigue. Below the rankings, I will look at what I believe to be the three stories to follow as a result.

2012 NCAA Football Rankings - AP Top 25 Week 7 (October 7) (Photo Credit: ESPN.com)

Oregon State Joining Oregon in the Top 10

The dominance of the Oregon Ducks doesn't really come as an surprise. Their spread offense is operating as a machine right now. Through six games, they have averaged 52.3 points per game and given up only 20.0. That means their winning by an average of 32.3 points per game. They have beaten two previously ranked teams (Arizona and Washington) by 49 and 31 points respectively. Best of luck to any one trying to slow the Ducks down right now.

Oregon State, on the other hand, has come out of nowhere to join the Top 10. The Beavers haven't blown anyone out yet this season, but they are a perfect 4-0. That includes 2-0 against ranked opponents (Wisconsin and UCLA) and 3-0 in conference play. Sophomore quarterback Sean Mannion is set out to prove that he is the best quarterback in the state. If Oregon and Oregon State are both able to keep this up, the Civil War might turn out to be one of the biggest games of the season.

Is Louisiana Tech a BCS Buster?

Yes, that is Louisiana Tech ranked #23 in the latest AP Poll. Check out their resume. The ranking is deserved. The Bulldogs have won on the road at Houston, at Illinois, and at Virginia. Quarterback Colby Cameron is a senior with all of the tools needed to lead his team to an undefeated season. His favorite target, Quinton Patton, already has three 100+ yard receiving games. Additionally, running backs Ray Holley and Kenneth Dixon are both coming off 100+ yard rushing games last week against UNLV.

The real test comes this coming Saturday when the Bulldogs play the team directly ahead of them in the polls, Texas A&M. The Aggies have been solid thus far in their first season in the SEC. However, they must be careful not to overlook Louisiana Tech. The Bulldogs know just how important this game is to their season. If they upset the Aggies, all that stands between them and what is likely a BCS bowl is six WAC games.

Life Doesn't Get Any Easy for South Carolina

In a Top 10 matchup last week, South Carolina came out and throttled Georgia 35-7. The Gamecocks' strong play started from the very beginning, leading 21-0 after the first quarter. Junior quarterback Conner Shaw has been superb all season long. Last week against the Bulldogs, the duel-threat quarterback had 240 total yards and three touchdowns.

The win over Georgia was a total team effort with offensive explosiveness, a 70-yard punt return for a touchdown, and smothering defense. They will need that those types of performances the next two weeks as well. The Gamecocks play at a pair of Top 10 teams the next two weeks consecutively. This coming Saturday they must play at LSU. They week after they play at Florida. The Gamecocks will likely have to win both games to keep their national champion aspirations alive.