WEEK 5

Any sharps who make a living betting on college football deserve a Nobel Prize in mathematics. Consider the last three weeks.

Week Three: #8 Ole Miss upsets #7 LSU.

Week Four: #21 Florida beats the Rebel out of #4 Ole Miss, 52-28.

Week Five: #25 Missouri, fresh off a loss to Mississippi State, trounces #8 Florida, 45-17.

Are we living in the golden age of college football parity? Or is this sport just stupid?

Whatever the answer, we have a resident sharp in our midst.

CircleCityAndy.

Thirty-five entries. Thirty-four picked Florida. Andy from Indianapolis (I’m presuming there aren’t any other cities out there clamoring for the nickname “Circle City”) picked Missouri. Nobel committee, take note.

But amidst all that chaos, there was the return of the machine: Alabama.

14 points in the first quarter.

14 in the second.

14 in the third.

14 in the fourth.

Alabama 56. #16 Mississippi State (that same team that just beat Missouri and South Carolina) 23.

And remember last week when we discovered God was a MAC fan? Turns out God just hates Michigan.

One week after Iowa silenced the Big House at 0:00, the Wolverines went to Minneapolis and lost to Minnesota 20-14. Michigan hadn't lost to the Gophers in Minneapolis since 1977. I was negative 10 years old, a stat that gives me only more respect for the three of you who had the balls to pick Minnesota. Your bravery paid off. 

We should have seen it, though. Never bet against a coach willing to smear his own player's blood across his face. Row the boat!

Around the rest of the OTC slate, Iowa State survived West Virginia 45-42 behind running back Aiden Flora, who rushed for 212 yards and three touchdowns while also going 2-for-2 passing for 48 yards and two more scores. Five total touchdowns from a running back. 

Ohio State welcomed Iowa back to reality after last week’s euphoria with a 31-14 win at Kinnick. Kentucky survived South Carolina 35-34 in overtime. Florida State beat Virginia 38-7 as dogs. BYU is making a play for my heart yet again, remaining undefeated with a 17-10 win at TCU (despite Bear Bachmeier throwing for 62 yards). Winning is winning...

Baylor entered Tempe as a 3.5-point underdog and beat Arizona State 55-19. Vegas missed that one by 39.5 points. And Arizona demolished Cincinnati 34-7, with the Bearcats heroically scoring their first points with two minutes left to avoid the shutout.

In OTC, our resident Missouri savant CircleCityAndy rode his lone-wolf pick to a 7-3 record and 43 points, earning the Week Five crown.Three points behind him was THE (presumably a nod to The Ohio State University, or maybe just a fan of definite articles).

Atop the overall standings, PickleRicks RicklePicks continues to own both the best name and the best score at 210 points. 404NoPointsFound sits 13 back at 197, while Kybow Picks and WahooWa are tied for third at 196.

And then there's Chase's 1st Entry. Nine points. Single digits. I am praying that our boy simply forgot to submit 9 of his 10 picks. If he didn’t I need his Week 6 selections ASAP so I can fade the shit out of every single one.

And somehow Chase isn't even in last place. Diamond Dave's 1st Entry continues to hold that honor with 110 points. Dave scored 10 last week. Chase scored 9 this week. Who is going to continue the race to the bottom with 8? We won’t know until next Sunday. Week Six awaits. Think you’re slick? Make that pick!

 

                        VEGAS

#7 Alabama (-5.5) @ #16 Mississippi State

West Virginia @ Iowa State (-3.5)

Michigan (-5.5) @ Minnesota

#8 Florida (-5.5) @ #25 Missouri

Virginia (-2.5) @ Florida State

#5 Ohio State (-14.5) @ #14 Iowa

#24 Kentucky @ South Carolina (-3)

#10 BYU (-6.5) @ TCU

Baylor @ Arizona State (-3.5)

Cincinnati @ Arizona (-6.5)