NGT - Week 9 College Thread

[DaveBrown74]

No truly marquee games today, but still plenty to sink your teeth into. Here is what I am keying on:


Notre Dame at the Cuse: Definitely the game I'm most interested in today as I'm (1) an ND fan and (2) interested in this Syracuse run this season. The line in this is Syracuse by only 1.5, so this is expected to be a good close game.

Ohio State at Penn State: This isn't expected to be very close, but you never know. Two huge rivals. I just feel like OSU has been unstoppable since Smith-Njigba has gotten healthy. The game is in Happy Valley though so you never know.

Ok St at K St: Good big 12 matchup here. No Big 12 team has looked truly dominant this year, but there are a number of B+ teams, including both of these. A win by Ok St on the road here would make them look like a bona fide top 10 team in the nation.

Kentucky at Tennessee: Probably the best game of the week. Great SEC matchup here and an intriguing matchup between two of the top college QBs in the country. Can UK pull the upset here? I highly doubt it, but that would be huge for Levis if they did.

USC at Arizona: Not a marquee game by any means, but USC had that heartbreaking loss in Utah a couple weeks back and are coming off the bye in a conference road game here. USC needs to win this game by 2-3 scores minimum to look like a top 10 team. Are they up for it, or did the loss in Provo take the wind out of their sails?

[Philosophers]

Penn St matches up better against OSU than Michigan due to their CBs versus their rush defense.  May be closer thrab many think though OSU should win handily.

Michigan State always plays with hair on fire against Michigan.  Record never matters.  Michigan needs to match intensity.

[Jolly Blue Giant]

I'm watching the SU/ND game as I type. Syracuse started out about as bad as you can by throwing a pick-6 on the first snap of the game. But they've come back to tie it up at 7-7. As a huge Orange fan, this is my college game of the week to watch

I agree that the Kentucky/Tennessee game should be a great one. I'm sure Giants' scouts are at and all over this game evaluating players. I'm also sure that they are at the OSU/PennSt game as well as scouting Michigan

[uconnjack8]

Penn St has some really good players in that front 7.  Surprised they are up at the half after Clifford threw 2 INTs on the 1st 2 drives.

CJ Stroud has made some poor decisions but has been pretty solid throwing the ball when he has time.

[DaveBrown74]

Rough outing for Cuse so far. There is still time to turn it around, but this isn't a case of a team being up 21-7 because of a few lucky breaks. ND has thoroughly dominated this game so far.

I'm an ND fan and I don't think they're very good this year, so this isn't a great look for the Cuse at the moment. They needed to be able to do better against an unranked team in their own building if they are to be taken seriously.

[jimv]

On the ND team I like the TE # 87.  Not as good as a previous ND TE that came to the Giants.  BUt, good enough to draft I think.

[DaveBrown74]

On the ND team I like the TE # 87.  Not as good as a previous ND TE that came to the Giants.  BUt, good enough to draft I think.

Jim,

I agree. He's not Bavaro, but he's a really good player and definitely one of the best TEs in the country. Mocks have him expected to go in the first round or certainly by the second round. He is not as good as the tight end at Georgia (Brock Bowers), but he is likely the next best, and he is the best in the draft class that is coming out this year.

[uconnjack8]

Abdul Carter is a guy that is worth following.  He's a Freshman and flashed some ability. 

[DaveBrown74]

I know he's on the road against a top opponent, but I can't say I'm that blown away by Will Levis tonight. He's certainly not looking like a top 10 pick or even a first rounder tonight.

[madbadger]

I know he's on the road against a top opponent, but I can't say I'm that blown away by Will Levis tonight. He's certainly not looking like a top 10 pick or even a first rounder tonight.

On the other hand Hendon Hooker is inching closer to the Heisman and being a top 10 pick.

[Jclayton92]

Hendon Hooker will be 25 in January. Think that scares some teams off.


As for Levis he's got talent but yeah there is just no talent at Kentucky. They don't have the team they had last year, and this means Levis might make it to the late 1st or 2nd instead of top 15.

[Philosophers]

Michigan took apart Michigan State in the 2nd half.  Continuous 3 and outs killed their offense.

Blake Corum is a fantastic RB.  He hits holes decisively, gets extra yards once getting tackled and always falls forward.  Has over 1,000 yards rushing in only 8 games.  Ascending player for 2023 NFL Draft.

I think JJ McCarthy will be at a minimum one of the top QBs in 2024 draft.  Rifle arm and throws a gorgeous football with great mechanics and size.

Penn State did what I thought which was to play OSU tight for most of game then lost at end.  Their pass D matched up well against OSU.  Also OSU's D is not nearly as good as its stats indicate. 

[katkavage]

In an not important or big game in terms of national ranking, UConn beat BC 13-3 for the first time in their history. UConn has been one of the worst fbs college football teams in the country the past several years. They opted out of 2020 and last year they were 1-11, their only win against Yale. They hired Jim Mora as the head coach and now are 4-5 with a true freshman QB, and almost a dozen starters out for the year with injuries. The job Mora has done with UConn is almost as celebratory as the job Brian Daboll is doing with the Giants. 

[Jclayton92]

Ole miss barely survived at Texas am

[DaveBrown74]

Hendon Hooker will be 25 in January. Think that scares some teams off.


As for Levis he's got talent but yeah there is just no talent at Kentucky. They don't have the team they had last year, and this means Levis might make it to the late 1st or 2nd instead of top 15.

Good point on Hooker's age. I agree that that can work against him as far as the draft and his scouting profile. It's a big deal to be more than 2 years older than almost everyone else you're playing against.