2004 NCAA Football Predictions [Weeks 1-9]

So, I missed Week 7 due to tragedy in the family, and Week 10 due to a busy work schedule. After missing two weeks so early in the season, I gave up my picks (which take a lot of time) and just left my previous posts up. Here are all my NCAA Football Prediction posts from 2004 merged together in one place [previously found on my now-defunct sports blog].

WEEK 9

Overall Record to Date: 256-70 (0.785)

Sorry, was out of town last weekend, so I never posted these. But I did do them, and here they are. I think I'm going to combine all these NCAA and NFL prediction posts into one post each when the seasons end, just to save space and make things more organized.

Picks are sorted alphabetically by home team. My picks are in BOLD CAPS. Correct picks are in red and incorrect ones are in yellow. Final score in [brackets]. And for your and my viewing pleasure, Yahoo's Rankings and Yahoo's Odds. Rankings are AP, I guess. And now, the picks:

Week 9 (Oct 21-Oct 23): Week 45-8 (0.849), Overall 256-70 (0.785)
BYU at Air Force [41-24]
Ball State at AKRON [23-35]
#7 CALIFORNIA at Arizona [38-0]
UCLA at #21 ARIZONA STATE [42-48]
#10 GEORGIA at Arkansas [20-14]
Kentucky at #3 AUBURN [10-42]
IOWA STATE at Baylor [26-25]
Fresno State at #19 BOISE STATE [16-33]
MEMPHIS at Cincinnati [10-49]
MARYLAND at Clemson [7-10]
Wyoming at COLORADO STATE [7-30]
Temple at CONNECTICUT [31-45]
#14 VIRGINIA at Duke [37-16]
San Jose State at HAWAII [28-46]
NEBRASKA at Kansas State [21-45]
Arkansas State at LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE [24-26]
UTEP at LOUISIANA TECH [44-27]
South Florida at #15 LOUISVILLE [9-41]
Troy State at #18 LSU [20-24]
Buffalo at MARSHALL [14-48]
UCF at MIAMI (OH) [7-43]
Idaho at MIDDLE TENNESSEE STATE [14-34]
Illinois at MINNESOTA [0-45]
#20 FLORIDA at Mississippi State [31-38] (wow.)
#22 OKLAHOMA STATE at Missouri [20-17]
Rice at NAVY [13-14]
Tulsa at NEVADA [48-54, 3OT]
San Diego State at NEW MEXICO [9-19]
#4 MIAMI (FL) at North Carolina State [45-31]
New Mexico State at NORTH TEXAS [26-36]
Boston College at #24 NOTRE DAME [24-23]
BOWLING GREEN at Ohio [41-16]
Indiana at OHIO STATE [7-30]
Kansas at #2 OKLAHOMA [10-41]
Washington State at OREGON STATE [19-38]
#25 IOWA at Penn State [6-4] (ugliest score in NCAAFB history!)
Rutgers at PITTSBURGH [17-41]
#13 MICHIGAN at #12 Purdue [16-14]
East Carolina at SOUTHERN MISS [10-51]
Oregon at STANFORD [16-13]
Houston at TCU [27-34]
Alabama at #11 TENNESSEE [13-17]
Colorado at #17 TEXAS A&M [26-29, OT]
#8 TEXAS at Texas Tech [51-21]
Central Michigan at TOLEDO [22-27]
UAB at Tulane [55-59] (defense?)
Washington at #1 USC [0-38]
UNLV at #9 UTAH [38-63]
Eastern Kentucky at VANDERBILT [7-19]
#5 FLORIDA STATE at Wake Forest [20-17]
Syracuse at #15 WEST VIRGINIA [6-27]
NORTHERN ILLINOIS at Western Michigan [59-38]
Northwestern at #6 WISCONSIN [12-24]


WEEK 8

Overall Record to Date: 221-62 (0.781)

In case you're wondering, last week's NFL and NCAA picks are noteably absent. My grandfather died last week, so I was out of town for a few days. Things are back to normal this week.

Picks are sorted alphabetically by home team. My picks are in BOLD CAPS. Correct picks are in red and incorrect ones are in yellow. Final score in [brackets]. And for your and my viewing pleasure, Yahoo's Rankings and Yahoo's Odds. Rankings are AP, I guess. And now, the picks:

Week 8 (Oct 12-Oct 16): Week 37-12 (0.755), Overall 221-62 (0.781)
#24 SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI at Alabama [3-27]
TROY STATE at Arkansas State [9-13]
Arkansas at #4 AUBURN [20-38]
Ball State at BOWLING GREEN [13-51]
MIAMI (OH) at Buffalo [25-7]
Wyoming at BYU [13-24]
UCLA at #8 CALIFORNIA [28-45]
Utah State at CLEMSON [6-35]
Iowa State at COLORADO [14-19]
#17 WEST VIRGINIA at Connecticut [31-19]
Middle Tennessee State at #22 FLORIDA [16-52]
#6 VIRGINIA at #7 Florida State [3-36] (hah, that's what I get)
Vanderbilt at #12 GEORGIA [3-33]
Duke at GEORGIA TECH [7-24]
LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE at Idaho [25-38]
#14 MICHIGAN at Illinois [30-19]
#25 Ohio State at IOWA [7-33]
#2 OKLAHOMA at Kansas State [31-21]
MARSHALL at Kent State [27-17]
SOUTH CAROLINA at Kentucky [12-7]
North Carolina State at MARYLAND [13-3]
Tulane at MEMPHIS [24-49]
#18 Louisville at #3 MIAMI [38-41] (sheesh)
#19 MINNESOTA at Michigan State [17-51] (huh?)
#13 TENNESSEE at Mississippi [21-17]
NOTRE DAME at Navy [27-9]
Baylor at NEBRASKA [27-59]
RICE at Nevada [10-35]
Central Michigan at NORTHERN ILLINOIS [10-42]
#23 Texas A&M at #16 OKLAHOMA STATE [36-20]
Arizona at OREGON [14-28]
BOSTON COLLEGE at Pittsburgh [17-20, OT]
#10 WISCONSIN at #5 Purdue [20-17]
Temple at RUTGERS [6-16]
COLORADO STATE at San Diego State [21-17]
LOUISIANA TECH at SMU [41-10]
Army at SOUTH FLORIDA [42-35]
Missouri at #9 TEXAS [20-28]
OHIO at Toledo [13-31]
#21 BOISE STATE at Tulsa [45-42]
TCU at UAB [25-41]
AKRON at UCF [26-21] (sorry sis, 0-6 for the Knights)
New Mexico at UNLV [24-20]
#15 Arizona State at #1 USC [7-45]
North Carolina at #11 UTAH [16-46]
HAWAII at UTEP [20-51]
OREGON STATE at Washington [29-14]
STANFORD at Washington State [23-17]
EASTERN MICHIGAN at Western Michigan [35-31]

There's some tough ones in there. Louisville sure gave Miami a run for their money.


WEEK 6

Overall Record to Date: 184-50 (0.786)

Picks are sorted alphabetically by home team. My picks are in BOLD CAPS. Correct picks are in red and incorrect ones are in yellow. Final score in [brackets]. And for your and my viewing pleasure, Yahoo's Rankings and Yahoo's Odds. Rankings are AP, I guess. And now, the picks:

Week 6 (Sep 27-Oct 2): Week 40-13 (0.754), Overall 184-50 (0.786)
Navy at AIR FORCE [24-21]
SOUTH CAROLINA at Alabama [20-3]
TCU at Army [21-17]
SMU at #23 BOISE STATE [20-38]
UCF at Buffalo [20-48]
KENT STATE at Central Michigan [21-24]
UAB at CINCINNATI [30-27]
BYU at COLORADO STATE [31-21]
Pittsburgh at CONNECTICUT [17-29] (where's Larry Fitzgerald now?)
Idaho at EASTERN MICHIGAN [45-41]
Arkansas at #16 FLORIDA [30-45]
North Carolina at #9 FLORIDA STATE [16-38]
#13 LSU at #3 GEORGIA [16-45] (dammit, the Dawgs look good.)
#4 Miami at GEORGIA TECH [27-3] (my morals won't let me pick [SC]UM)
Tulsa at HAWAII [16-44]
#19 MICHIGAN at Indiana [35-14]
Michigan State at IOWA [16-38]
Ohio at KENTUCKY [28-16] (huh?)
#17 FRESNO STATE at Louisiana Tech [21-28] (WAC title: gone. BCS game: gone.)
East Carolina at #22 LOUISVILLE [7-59]
Miami (OH) at MARSHALL [25-33]
Houston at MEMPHIS [14-41]
Penn State at #18 MINNESOTA [7-16]
Arkansas State at MISSISSIPPI [21-28]
Colorado at MISSOURI [9-17]
Kansas at NEBRASKA [8-14] (ugly score)
#14 UTAH at New Mexico [28-7]
Wake Forest at NORTH CAROLINA STATE [21-27, OT]
Middle Tennessee State at NORTH TEXAS [21-30]
Akron at NORTHERN ILLINOIS [19-49]
#7 OHIO STATE at Northwestern [27-33, OT] (I love it!)
#15 PURDUE at Notre Dame [41-16] (I love this too!)
Texas Tech at #2 OKLAHOMA [13-28]
Iowa State at #25 OKLAHOMA STATE [7-36]
#21 ARIZONA STATE at Oregon [28-13]
#10 CALIFORNIA at Oregon State [49-7]
RICE at San Jose State [63-70] (holy shit. can we get some defense?)
SOUTHERN MISS at South Florida [27-20]
Washington at STANFORD [13-27]
Rutgers at SYRACUSE [31-41]
BOWLING GREEN at Temple [70-16]
#8 Auburn at #10 TENNESSEE [34-10] (I admit, AU's tops in the SEC)
Baylor at #5 TEXAS [14-44]
Kansas State at TEXAS A&M [30-42]
Ball State at TOLEDO [14-52]
Utah State at TROY STATE [21-49]
San Diego State at UCLA [10-33]
Nevada at UNLV [13-48]
New Mexico State at UTEP [0-45]
Mississippi State at VANDERBILT [13-31] (good job, Commodores)
#6 WEST VIRGINIA at Virginia Tech [13-19] (Mountaineers suck every year)
Illinois at #20 WISCONSIN [7-24]
Louisiana-Monroe at WYOMING [10-31]

Things of note: I hate Miami, but damn GT made them look good by playing like shit. That's two godawful games in a row for GT. Congrats to Navy for moving to 5-0, and to UCF for losing to possibly the worst team in Division IA football and falling to 0-4. It's going to be a long time before the Golden Knights see a W, I'd bet. Good job Northwestern Wildcats - NU is a team I always love to see do well in the Big Ten (Eleven?) because if NU is doing well, Michigan, Penn State, Ohio State, and the other overrated teams are struggling. Keep it up, Cats. Ole Miss almost lost to a cupcake, but Fresno State did. Kiss those BCS dreams goodbye, Bulldogs. Congrats to Rice for putting up 63 points and subsequently giving up 70 in Division IA's highest scoring regulation game. Way to go, Owls. Whoo. Congrats to KSU and WVU for choking, and to Vanderbilt for actually winning an SEC game.


WEEK 5

Overall Record to Date: 144-37 (0.796)

Picks are sorted alphabetically by home team. My picks are in BOLD CAPS. Correct picks are in red and incorrect ones are in yellow. Final score in [brackets]. And for your and my viewing pleasure, Yahoo's Rankings and Yahoo's Odds. Rankings are AP, I guess. And now, the picks:

Week 5 (Sep 19-26): Week 35-10 (0.778), Overall 144-37 (0.796)
WASHINGTON STATE at Arizona [20-19]
Oregon State at #22 ARIZONA STATE [14-27]
Alabama at ARKANSAS [10-27]
WESTERN MICHIGAN at Ball State [14-41]
NORTH TEXAS at Baylor [14-37]
BYU at #21 BOISE STATE [27-28]
Army at CONNECTICUT [3-40]
#23 MARYLAND at Duke [55-21]
CINCINNATI at East Carolina [24-19]
Kentucky at #16 FLORIDA [3-20]
Clemson at #8 FLORIDA STATE [22-41]
#4 MIAMI at Houston [38-13]
#15 PURDUE at Illinois [38-30]
MICHIGAN STATE at Indiana [30-20]
TEXAS TECH at Kansas [31-30]
Akron at KENT STATE [24-19]
MIDDLE TENNESSEE STATE at Louisiana-Lafayette [17-24]
Arkansas State at LOUISIANA-MONROE [28-21]
Mississippi State at #13 LSU [0-51]
Iowa at #18 MICHIGAN [17-30]
Northwestern at #19 MINNESOTA [17-43]
Vanderbilt at NAVY [26-29]
NEW MEXICO at New Mexico State [38-3]
#24 LOUISVILLE at North Carolina [34-0]
Bowling Green at NORTHERN ILLINOIS [17-34]
Washington at NOTRE DAME [3-38]
Buffalo at OHIO [0-40]
Idaho at OREGON [10-48]
Nevada at SAN DIEGO STATE [10-27]
San Jose State at SMU [13-36]
Troy State at SOUTH CAROLINA [7-17]
#1 USC at Stanford [31-28]
South Florida at TCU [45-44, OT]
Louisiana Tech at #11 TENNESSEE [17-42]
Rice at #5 TEXAS [13-35]
Temple at TOLEDO [17-45]
SOUTHERN MISS at Tulane [32-14]
MEMPHIS at UAB [28-35]
Utah State at UNLV [31-21]
Air Force at #14 UTAH [35-49]
Syracuse at #12 VIRGINIA [10-31]
N.C. State at VIRGINIA TECH [17-16]
Boston College at WAKE FOREST [14-17]
Penn State at #20 WISCONSIN [3-16]
MISSISSIPPI at Wyoming [32-37] (missing Eli yet?)

Things of note: When did Washington become such a joke of a team? And can somebody take note that I actually picked UL-Monroe AND Southern Methodist to win a game? Every time I have to pick a Pac-10 game, I feel like it's a crapshoot if USC isn't involved. Nobody plays defense at all (sans USC) and the teams are as inconsistent as they get (see Oregon State and Arizona State).


WEEK 4

Overall Record to Date: 109-27 (0.801)

Picks are sorted alphabetically by home team. My picks are in BOLD CAPS. Correct picks are in red and incorrect ones are in yellow. Final score in [brackets]. And for your and my viewing pleasure, Yahoo's Rankings and Yahoo's Odds. Rankings are AP, I guess. And now, the picks:

Week 4 (Sep 12-18): Week 38-9 (0.809), Overall 109-27 (0.801)
#20 WISCONSIN at Arizona [9-7]
#16 IOWA at Arizona State [7-44] (ouch!)
#5 LSU at #14 AUBURN [9-10]
Connecticut at BOSTON COLLEGE [7-27]
#1 USC at BYU [42-10]
North Texas at COLORADO [21-52]
#22 MINNESOTA at Colorado State [34-16]
TOLEDO at Eastern Michigan [42-32]
UAB at #8 FLORIDA STATE [7-34]
Marshall at #3 GEORGIA [3-13]
Army at HOUSTON [21-35]
WASHINGTON STATE at Idaho [49-8]
Northern Illinois at IOWA STATE [41-48]
Louisiana-Lafayette at KANSAS STATE [20-40]
INDIANA at Kentucky [32-51]
ARKANSAS at Louisiana-Monroe [49-20]
Louisiana Tech at #4 MIAMI [0-48]
San Diego State at #17 MICHIGAN [21-24]
Ohio at MIAMI (OH) [20-40]
NOTRE DAME at Michigan State [31-24]
Vanderbilt at MISSISSIPPI [23-26, OT]
Ball State at MISSOURI [0-48]
Buffalo at NEVADA [13-48]
TROY STATE at New Mexico State [18-22]
GEORGIA TECH at North Carolina [13-34] (sweet mother of god.)
#9 OHIO STATE at North Carolina State [22-14]
Kansas at NORTHWESTERN [17-20]
Oregon at #2 OKLAHOMA [7-31]
SMU at OKLAHOMA STATE [7-59]
New Mexico at OREGON STATE [7-17]
UCF at PENN STATE [13-37]
NEBRASKA at Pittsburgh [24-17]
HAWAII at Rice [29-41] (Tommy Chang? Overrated.)
Kent State at RUTGERS [21-29]
South Florida at SOUTH CAROLINA [3-34]
#10 CALIFORNIA at Southern Miss [POSTPONED TO 12/4/04]
Cincinnati at SYRACUSE [7-19]
#11 Florida at #13 TENNESSEE [28-30]
CLEMSON at Texas A&M [6-27]
TCU at Texas Tech [35-70] (wow.)
#24 LOUISVILLE at Tulane [POSTPONED TO 12/4/04]
Navy at TULSA [29-0]
Air Force at UNLV [27-10]
#15 UTAH at Utah State [48-6]
#23 BOISE STATE at UTEP [47-31]
Akron at #12 VIRGINIA [0-51]
Duke at VIRGINIA TECH [17-41]
UCLA at Washington [37-31]
#21 Maryland at #7 WEST VIRGINIA [16-19, OT]

There are some very tough games this week.


WEEK 3

Overall Record to Date: 71-19 (0.789)

Picks are sorted alphabetically by home team. My picks are in BOLD CAPS. Correct picks are in red and incorrect ones are in yellow. Final score in [brackets]. And for your and my viewing pleasure, Yahoo's Rankings and Yahoo's Odds. Rankings are AP, I guess. And now, the picks:

Week 3 (Sep 7-11): Week 35-10 (0.777), Overall 71-19 (0.789)
Middle Tennessee State at AKRON [31-24]
Mississippi at ALABAMA [7-28]
#17 UTAH at Arizona [23-6]
#7 TEXAS at Arkansas [22-20]
LOUISVILLE at Army [52-21]
Oregon State at BOISE STATE [34-53]
Penn State at BOSTON COLLEGE [7-21] (tough pick)
SYRACUSE at Buffalo [37-17]
New Mexico State at #12 CALIFORNIA [14-41]
MIAMI (OH) at Cincinnati [26-45]
GEORGIA TECH at #20 Clemson [28-24] (was there ever a doubt?)
Duke at CONNECTICUT [20-22]
WAKE FOREST at East Carolina [31-17]
Eastern Michigan at #11 FLORIDA [10-49]
UCLA at Illinois [35-17]
Iowa State at #16 IOWA [10-17]
Toledo at KANSAS [14-63]
Fresno State at #13 KANSAS STATE [45-21] (KSU sucks. Every. Year.)
Louisiana-Lafayette at LOUISIANA TECH [20-24]
Temple at #23 MARYLAND [22-45]
#4 FLORIDA STATE at #5 Miami [10-16, OT] (ugh.)
Central Michigan at MICHIGAN STATE [7-24]
#18 AUBURN at Mississippi State [43-14]
SOUTHERN MISS at Nebraska [21-17] (hah!)
TEXAS TECH at New Mexico [24-27]
Arizona State at NORTHWESTERN [30-21]
#8 MICHIGAN at Notre Dame [20-28]
Marshall at #9 OHIO STATE [21-24]
Houston at #2 OKLAHOMA [13-63]
Tulsa at OKLAHOMA STATE [21-38]
Indiana at #24 OREGON [30-24]
Ohio at PITTSBURGH [3-24]
Ball State at #25 PURDUE [7-59]
#3 GEORGIA at South Carolina [20-16]
BYU at STANFORD [10-37]
SMU at TCU [0-44]
Wyoming at TEXAS A&M [0-31]
#19 MISSOURI at Troy State [14-24] (wow)
#10 WEST VIRGINIA at UCF [45-20]
Colorado State at #1 USC [0-49]
Idaho at UTAH STATE [7-14]
North Carolina at #15 VIRGINIA [24-56]
Western Michigan at VIRGINIA TECH [0-63]
Colorado at WASHINGTON STATE [20-12]
UNLV at #21 WISCONSIN [3-18]

And no, I will never pick against Georgia Tech. That's just not right. The Texas Tech pick is a tough one too. Oh, and there was no way in hell I would've picked Troy to pull the upset this week. Congrats Trojans, that's a huge huge win for your program. Marshall last week, ranked Mizzou this week - where in the hell is TSU coming up with these wins? Oh, and with all the upsets, I'm getting slaughtered here.


WEEK 2

Overall Record to Date: 36-9 (0.800)

Picks are sorted alphabetically by home team. My picks are in BOLD CAPS. Correct picks are in red and incorrect ones are in yellow. Final score in [brackets]. And for your and my viewing pleasure, Yahoo's Rankings and Yahoo's Odds. Rankings are AP, I guess. And now, the picks:

Week 2 (August 30-Sep 6): Week 35-9 (0.745), Overall 36-9 (0.800)
#13 CALIFORNIA at Air Force [56-14]
Utah State at ALABAMA [17-48]
UTEP at ARIZONA STATE [9-41]
New Mexico State at ARKANSAS [13-63]
Louisiana-Monroe at #17 AUBURN [0-31]
BOSTON COLLEGE at Ball State [19-11]
Idaho at BOISE STATE [7-65]
NOTRE DAME at BYU [17-20]
WAKE FOREST at #15 Clemson [30-37, 2OT] (upset pick-o-the-week)
Colorado State at COLORADO [24-27]
Buffalo at EASTERN MICHIGAN [34-37]
Middle Tennessee State at #11 FLORIDA [POSTPONED TO 10/16/04]
Central Michigan at INDIANA [10-41]
Kent State at #19 IOWA [7-39]
TULSA at Kansas [3-21]
NEVADA at Louisiana Tech [21-38]
Kentucky at LOUISVILLE [0-28]
Oregon State at #4 LSU [21-22, OT]
Troy State at MARSHALL [17-15]
Northern Illinois at #23 MARYLAND [20-23]
#5 FLORIDA STATE at #6 Miami [POSTPONED TO 9/10/04]
Miami (OH) at #8 MICHIGAN [10-43]
Toledo at #25 MINNESOTA [21-63]
MEMPHIS at Mississippi [20-13]
Tulane at MISSISSIPPI STATE [7-28]
DUKE at Navy [12-27]
WASHINGTON STATE at New Mexico [21-17]
Cincinnati at #9 OHIO STATE [6-27]
Bowling Green at #2 OKLAHOMA [24-40]
Akron at PENN STATE [10-48]
Syracuse at #24 PURDUE [0-15]
HOUSTON at Rice [7-10]
MICHIGAN STATE at Rutgers [14-19]
TEXAS TECH at SMU [27-13]
San Jose State at STANFORD [3-43]
Northwestern at TCU [45-48, 3OT]
#16 VIRGINIA at Temple [44-14]
UNLV at #14 TENNESSEE [17-42]
North Texas at #7 TEXAS [0-65]
Baylor at UAB [14-56]
OKLAHOMA STATE at UCLA [31-20]
PITTSBURGH at USF [POSTPONED TO 12/4/04]
Texas A&M at #20 UTAH [21-41]
SOUTH CAROLINA at Vanderbilt [31-6]
Fresno State at WASHINGTON [35-16]
East Carolina at #10 WEST VIRGINIA [23-56]
UCF at #21 WISCONSIN [6-34]

And what the hell is up with NINE teams changing places in the rankings, despite not playing a game? What is that shit?


WEEK 1

Okay, after a .734 season last year, I'm back picking the winners of NCAA football games. I'm going to try to pick every single game with two I-A teams, but things like Tuesday and Wednesday games might throw me a curve later in the year.

Oh, and while I'm thinking of it, join my free Yahoo! College Football Pick'Em league. League number is 6654, password is 'andscrewuf'. It's a fun little competition me and my friends have every year, and even though I always win, they enjoy playing and getting beat. And the trash talking is usually pretty good too.

Now, for the picks. They're sorted alphabetically by home team. My picks are in BOLD CAPS. Correct picks are in red and incorrect picks are in yellow. Final score in [brackets]. And for your and my viewing pleasure, Yahoo's Rankings and Yahoo's Odds. Rankings are AP. And now, the picks:

Week 1 (August 28-29): Week 1-0 (1.000), Overall 1-0 (1.000)
Virginia Tech at #1 SOUTHERN CAL [13-24]