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| Friday, September 29 Oregon-Washington renew bitter rivalry By Rod Gilmore Special to ESPN.com | |||||
| No doubt about it, we are jumping into conference play with both feet. There are some very good matchups this week. Let's hope missed calls don't affect the outcome of these games and stir up more discussion about instant replay.
No. 6 Washington at No. 25 Oregon Let's get the soap opera aspect out of the way first. Yes, this is a true "border war." Oregon and Washington have had a good rivalry going for years. Washington used to dominate this rivalry, but it's been very competitive over the last decade. Now, the two schools even fight over recruits and bragging rights. Rick Neuheisel's presence has only added more fuel to the rivalry fire. Oregon Coach Mike Bellotti has never beaten Neuheisel.
If you watch nothing else this weekend, tune in and catch a little of the matchup between Michigan WR David Terrell and Wisconsin DB Jamar Fletcher. This will be good. They hooked up last year, and although Terrell caught seven passes, only two came against Fletcher. However, this matchup won't be the key to the game. The key is Wisconsin QB Brooks Bollinger. He finally gets his full compliment of receivers back this week when Chris Chambers and Nick Davis play together for the first time since training camp ended. (Suspensions and injuries kept Chambers out; suspensions kept Davis out). Bollinger appeared shaky the first part of the season. Barry Alvarez told me Bollinger was trying to do too much -- he overcompensated for the guys who were out. Although Chambers will be a little rusty, expect Bollinger to get the ball to him early to get him into the flow. Also, expect Bollinger to look more like the quarterback he was last season. Keep an eye on Drew Henson. He's never played a full game at Michigan. Check him out in the fourth quarter and see how he's holding up. No. 3 Florida at Mississippi State It is time for Florida to make a statement. Everyone is beginning to criticize the Florida defense, and everyone continues to praise Joe Lee Dunn's Mississippi State defense. There should be motivation for Alex Brown, Gerard Warren and company to prove they can play some serious defense. Expect the Bulldogs to pull a page out of Tennessee's attack and run a lot of draw plays and isolation plays off tackle. The Bulldogs won't want to dance and box with the Mighty Gators -- they'll want to slug it out. Slugging it out takes away the athletic ability of the Gators and turns this into a wrestling match. Watch Gerard Warren -- he's the key. If he gets blocked by two guys, then Florida will shut down the Bulldogs and put pressure on QB Wayne Madkin. I also think Jesse Palmer is in the "zone" right now. He's playing very well, and should put up points. But, rest assured, he will hear lots of noise from the most loquacious DB in college football, Fred "Smootsmack.com" Smoot. No. 5 Kansas State at Colorado This one looks like an ambush for the Wildcats. They're 4-0, and CU is a deceiving 0-3. The Buffaloes could be 3-0 and are playing at home. Their defense is physical and stingy (only 97 yards allowed rushing per game). Having RB Cortlen Johnson back should take some pressure off freshman RB Marcus Houston. One key for CU is LB Jashon Sykes. He is very athletic and likes to run. Expect K-State to run the ball right at Sykes. The Wildcats have the advantage in the passing game. Receivers Quincy Morgan and Aaron Lockett will get a chance to make "explosion plays" -- plays over 20 yards. Morgan is getting 20 yards a pop. K-State won't be ambushed this week. No. 23 South Carolina at Alabama We expected an undefeated team to show up for this game, we just didn't know it would be South Carolina. This game should have more momentum swings than most games. The last few weeks have been very emotional for both teams, but for different reasons. South Carolina is giddy with its start and believe it can do no wrong. On the other hand, Alabama is bumming. Coaches have talked about quitting, the dream of a national championship is gone, and no one can figure out how things got so bad so quickly. If things don't go well for Alabama early in this game, the crowd will turn on them and the Gamecocks could smoke them. Lou Holtz's squad plays good defense, and Alabama has played poor offense. Bad combination for the Tide. South Carolina will not have to worry about mid-range or deep passes with Tyler Watts at the helm. Expect the Gamecocks to load up against the run and dare Watts to throw. This game is likely to be decided by momentum early. No. 11 Tennessee at LSU Will the real starting quarterback (for either team) please stand up? It's late in the week, and we have no idea who will quarterback which team. Tennessee will go with youngsters Casey Clausen and A.J. Suggs, but opening-game starter Joey Mathews is also back. For LSU, Josh Booty got a spanking from Nick Saban after throwing a pick that gave UAB an upset win over the Tigers. Enter Rohan Davey. LSU should be embarrassed by losing last week and should be ready to play. However, the Vols are starting to put it together -- assuming they settle on a QB. Travis Henry should have a big day running the off tackle, and Donte Stallworth should feast on man-to-man coverage designed to stop Henry. Also, the Vol defense is terrific and should shut down LSU. Watch OLB Anthony Sessions. He should get a lot of Booty. | ALSO SEE Game Plan: No. 25 Oregon Game Plan: No. 6 Washington Fowler: A September to remember Ask the coaches: How to prepare to visit a loud stadium? | ||||
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