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When I mess up, I say I mess up.  Well this past week I MESSED UP!  Could have been worse, I suppose.  Riding back-to-back stellar weeks of picking games (9-2), I boldly stated that 2 undefeated teams would fall this past weekend.  West Virginia made it close, but the # 5 Cincinnati Bearcats held them off 24-21, for their 10th victory to stay unbeaten, and # 4 TCU racked up 3 touchdowns in under 3 minutes in the 2nd quarter, en-route to keeping their season perfect by crushing the # 23 Utah Utes 55-28.  The luck of the Irish officially ran out (although it was close...) in a 27-22 loss to the # 12 Pitt Panthers, and Illinois let me down losing to Northwestern 21-16.  I did notch a few wins with a not too surprising # 10 Ohio State dropping  # 13 Iowa, and a nice road upset for Missouri over Kansas State.  With a few weeks left in regular season play, my record sits at a downright bland .500 (18-18).

Despite the inevitable  #1 Florida,  or # 2 Alabama, and # 3 Texas bound for Pasadena, there are still some interesting scenarios playing out in many of the conferences including the Big-12 and the Pac-10, which we'll focus on today.

Like the Cats they are named after, the University of Arizona football team quietly snook (sneaked?) up on the national scene with a # 17 ranking, before promptly falling out of grace with a tough loss to CAL this past weekend.  That pain could all go away with a simple home victory over the incoming Oregon Ducks.  Did I say simple?  This won't be an easy task by any means.  Oregon RB, LaMichael James, brings in his 1,000+ yards, and 7.0 yards per carry average, and will be very tough to stop.  ESPN will be in town with the College Game Day show (a first for Tucson), and QB Nick Foles will need all the home support he can get.  One factor the Oregon coaching staff is probably not taking into account, is the momentum swing coming into town via Los Angeles.....Yes, Original Retro Brand Founder, and UA alum Marc Herman will be in town for an ORB trunk show at the UA Bookstore (details here).  Herman has been known to inspire all those that come in contact with him to do great things.  His karma alone will inspire the Wildcats to victory.  Then all they'll need to do, is win out on the road against arch rival Arizona State and USC to take the PAC -10 crown!  Herman will need to go on the road too, me thinks...  Arizona 28, Oregon 24.

More Cats....Another surprise this year has been the Kansas State Wildcats.  They can clinch at least a tie for the Big-12 North, and win it outright by virtue of a head-to-head win over the Nebraska Cornhuskers this Saturday in hostile  Memorial Stadium.  Again - easier said then done.  Nebraska does not like losing at home (does anybody?) on Senior Day, and winning the division will bring them a step closer to national prominence once again.  The Wildcats are coming off a home loss trouncing at the hands of Mizzou, and it just may be too tough a mountain to climb back on the road.  Nebraska wins this one going away. Cornhuskers 41, Wildcats 24.

4 more: # 14 Penn State takes on a Michigan State team that is much better than their 6-5 record.  Every loss was a close game (never lost by more than 8 pts.).   I invoke the old "Kill, Bubba, Kill" yell on this game.  Sorry Jo-Pa.  Spartans 24, Nittany Lions 20.....# 25 Cal takes on a red hot "Big Red" # 17 Stanford Cardinal, with back-to-back huge wins over Oregon and USC at Stanford Stadium.  Lights out for Cal. Cardinal 45, Bears 21......Air Force played #4 TCU & # 23 Utah extremely tough in losses, and will fly high vs. # 22 BYU in an upset. Falcons 28, Cougars 24.....and finally I still believe West Virginia will hand # 12 Pitt their first Big East loss of the season at Mountaineer stadium. Mountaineers 21, Panthers 20.

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