So, should today’s rant focus on Friday the 13th or on Football Friday? I’ll go with a watered-down version of Football Friday. There were no selections last week, so the status remains the same as it has for a while. I think I have a pick or two for this week; we shall see.
The Linfield University Wildcats extended their record to 7-1 last week beating Puget Sound 77-3. Tomorrow, the Wildcats will travel to Salem, OR to take on the Willamette Bearcats in the final regular season game. Willamette enters the game with a record of 1-8 and that lone victory was back in September when they beat Pacific by a score of 6-3. A win this weekend will give Linfield an undefeated record in Northwest Conference games and will give then an entry in the Division III playoffs. Go Wildcats!
My “Sleeper Team” for the year is Florida and the Gators record now is 5-4 with all four losses coming in SEC games. The Gators are not going to be involved in the SEC Championship Game nor in the CFP, but one more win will make them bowl eligible. Here is the remaining schedule for Florida:
- At Kentucky – – Kentucky is a 3-point favorite this weekend
- Vs Vandy – – Florida should be favored
- At Florida State – – Huge rivalry game; betting favorite is unimportant
I did run across another great name in collegiate football players last week;, say hello to:
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- Goose Crowder QB Troy
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College Football Commentary:
Bob Chesney is the first-year coach at UCLA, and he has the Bruins as the surprise of the Big-10. UCLA is undefeated in 2026 with a record of 9-0 and ranked #4 in the country with three interesting games remaining:
- Vs Illinois – – Illini record is 6-3 so far
- At Michigan – – Wolverines are 5-4 overall and 4-3 at home
- Vs USC – – Rivalry game; USC is 7-2 so far.
The Bruins lead the Big-10 and hold a 0ne-game lead over Indiana and a two-game lead over both Iowa and USC in conference games. UCLA is a surprise team in 2026; their last season with a comparable record was in 1998 when they were undefeated in PAC-12 games and finished with a 10-2 overall record. Last year, the Bruins were a lackluster 3-9 overall and 3-6 in Big-10 games.
One problem with the program this year is game attendance. The Bruins play their home games in the Rose Bowl which seats 100,000 fans; notwithstanding the record, Bruins’ home attendance is around 25,000 and those folks rattle around in a stadium the size of the Rose Bowl. One factor in that “poor attendance” is simple geography; the Rose Bowl is in Pasadena and the UCLA campus in is Westwood; that is a 25-mile drive that can take more than an hour. Let me just say that is a sub-optimal geographical situation.
Chesney came to the Bruins after 6 successful years at Holy Cross and 2 more successful years at James Madison. Recall that Curt Cignetti took the Indiana job after 5 successful years at James Madison. Maybe we should start thinking of James Madison as the Latter-Day Cradle of Coaches?
Games This Week:
There are several games on tap that look interesting/important to me…
USC at Indiana – 8.5 (51): This is probably a CFP-elimination game for USC. I think this is going to be a defensive game because Indiana’s defense is very good and the Indiana offense is middling; I like the game to stay UNDER; put that in the Six-Pack.
Texas Tech at Oklahoma St. – 3.5 (73.5): This game will be a track meet. Oklahoma St has 3 conference losses and will not be part of the Big-12 Championship Game; Texas Tech has only one conference loss and needs to hold on to second place in the conference with the hopes of catching undefeated Utah in the Big-12 race. And yes, that is the Total Line for the game …
Texas at LSU – 4 (46): Texas is 4-0 this year against ranked opponents; LSU has lost its last three games to ranked opponents. The loser of this game is probably out of the CFP wild card race. I’m not sure the right team is favored here so let me take the Longhorns plus the points; put it in the Six-Pack,
Baylor at BYU – 7.5 (50): BYU is a serious possibility for the CFP if they win out; Baylor arrives with a 6-3 record and looks to be a spoiler.
Utah – 2.5 at Arizona (54.5): The Utes lead the big-12 and are unbeaten in 2026; Arizona is 7-2 overall and is undefeated at home this season.
Nebraska – 15 at Rutgers (52): Nebraska started out 5-0 and has now lost 4 games in a row. To become bowl eligible, the Huskers need this game against a sorry-assed Rutgers team with a 2-7 record because after this one they must play Iowa and Ohio State.
UAB at Temple – 2.5 (48): Temple is a bad football team and is favored here. What does that say about UAB?
Tulane at Rice – 2.5 (48,5): Rice is a bad football team and is favored here. What does that say about Tulane?
The Brothel Defense Award:
Here are the contenders for this year’s Brothel Defense Award:
- Stanford gives up 37.3 points per game
- UNC-Charlotte gives up 38.3 points per game
- Colorado St. gives up 44.8 points par game [They will be hard to catch]
The SHOE Tournament:
Here are the 12 teams I have under examination as of this week for the SHOE Tournament in alphabetical order:
- Akron – – 1-9
- Ball St. – – 3-7
- Bowling Green – – 3-7
- La-Monroe – – 2-8
- Northern Illinois – – 0-9
- Rice – – 1-8
- Rutgers – – 2-7
- Sam Houston – – 1-8
- Temple – – 2-7
- UNC-Charlotte – – 1-8
- UTEP – – 1-8
- Washington St. – – 1-8
NFL Commentary:
The schedule for this week has “bad bookends”. Last night the week began with Commanders/Giants which was an interesting game because it was close throughout but neither team stood out in terms of excellence. The final game this weekend will be on MNF and will be Chargers/Ravens; that game looked as if it might be interesting/important back in August …
As of now, the four teams in the NFC South all have records with 3 wins; two of the teams have 5 losses and the other two have 6 losses. Could the division champ this year have a 7-9-0 record and make the playoffs?
And speaking of the playoffs, it is possible that all three wild card teams in the NFC could come from the NFC North. If that happens and if the Niners continue to roll in the NFC West, it would be that both the Rams and the Seahawks will miss this year’s playoffs. That was an unthinkable outcome back in August…
It looks as if three rookie QBs will make their first NFL starts this weekend. I cannot recall a weekend in the middle of an NFL season where that has been the case.
- Carson Beck will start for the Cards against the Rams
- Kyle McCord will start for the Dolphins against the Colts
- Fernando Mendoza will start for the Raiders against the Seahawks.
This Week’s Games:
Four te4ams have a BYE this week:
- Bears: They lead the NFC North at 7-2-0
- Broncos: They lead the AFC West at 7-2-0
- Bucs: Their record is 3-6-0 and they are in the mix for the NFC South title. Even with that record, their point differential is +24.
- Eagles: This is a respite for the team on its way to a last place finish in the NFC East.
Pats vs Lions – 3 (50): This is the international game for this week in Munich, Germany. The Lions have won 4 in a row, and their defense has looked competent in recent weeks.
Bills – 8 at Jets (51): Unless the Bills are looking past the Jets, the winner here is obvious.
Jags – 11 at Titans (47): I hate double-digit spreads in NFL games.
Dolphins at Colts – 4 (38.5): The spread opened at 1 point and jumped to this level quickly. I think this is the Dog-Breath Game of the Week; the combined record for these two teams is 3-14-0.
Chiefs – 3 at Falcons (47): I cannot figure out the Falcons; usually they look stunningly mediocre and in other games they look pretty good.
Texans – 4.5 at Browns (40): The Texans have left themselves almost no margin for error if they want to be in the playoffs in 2026. Here are two ominous stats for Browns’ fans:
- Deshaun Watson has been sacked more times than any other NFL QB in 2026 even though he missed a game.
- The Texans lead the NFL in sacks in 2026.
Panthers at Saints – 2 (49): The spread opened with the Panthers favored by 1 point. I thought about this one as the Dog-Breath Game, but it is a division game so that makes it better than the Colts/Dolphins game. The Panthers have lost 3 in a row; this could be their “get-right game”.
Vikes at Packers – 3 (42): This is the Game of the Week. The Packers offense has been rolling lately; the Vikes’ defense is still awfully good. The Packers’ defense is improving steadily which should pose an interesting challenge to the newly acquired Kirk Cousins.
Seahawks – 6 at Raiders (41): This is not an easy way for Fernando Mendoza to begin his NFL career. The Seahawks only allow 168 yards per game so far this year. Here are stats I ran across this week regarding the first start for QBs taken overall #1 since 2003:
- Straight up record is 1-15-1
- Record against the spread is 3-14-0
I think the Seahawks are going to win comfortably here; I’ll take them to win and cover; put it in the Six-Pack.
Rams – 10 at Cards (39): The Rams will play without both Davante Adams and Puka Nacua; some other pass-catcher needs to step up…
Niners – 3.5 at Cowboys (56): Here is a chance for the Cowboys to gain a game on the Giants in the NFC East race… Can the Cowboys’ offense keep up with what the Cowboys’ defense is likely to allow in this game? I think not; I’ll take the Niners to win and cover here; put it in the Six-Pack.
(Sun Nite) Steelers at Bengals – 3.5 (50): This was my runner-up for Game of the Week; the winner here will be in sole possession of first place in the AFC North with a record of 7-2-0
(Mon Nite) Chargers at Ravens – 4.5 (38.5): One of these weeks, the Chargers are going to snap out of their doldrums and beat the pants off someone. Could this be the week…? Not only are the Chargers 0-8; they are 0-8 against the spread in 2026.
So, let me review the Six-Pack for this week – — even though there are only 4 selections:
- USC/Indiana UNDER 51
- Texas +4 versus LSU
- Niners – 3.5 over Cowboys
- Seahawks – 6 over Raiders
And just for fun here are two Money Line parlays:
- Niners @ minus-210
- Seahawks @ minus 270 $100 wager to win $102
And …
- Chargers @ +185
- Dolphins @ +180 $25 wager to win 175
Finally, these words from Ara Parseghian:
“Getting to the top of the mountain is a heck of a lot easier than staying there.”
But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………