WEEK 4

One of the great things about college football is that it’s impossible to predict what will grace the pages of this weekly recap. I sit down on Sunday morning with a blank canvas, never knowing which brush will be needed, often not even knowing a damn brush exists until I witness it with my own eyes the day before.

But even with those solidly reasonable expectations, I never would have predicted that the highlight of Week Four could have been Pat McAfee jumping three and a half stories off a diving platform, clad in nothing but a black speedo, the roar of the Hurricane faithful driving him towards the glassy water below. 

Maybe I’m just too easily entertained.

More importantly, order was restored to OTC, with 8 competitors posting scores in the 40s, a marked improvement from last week, when 28 was the top score. Yeesh.

KingBrutus was #2 on the week, but back to #1 overall, sitting at 143, two above dallas2697 and five above rylaw247. The only person to outduel the current king in Week Four? Kybow, edging out a one-point victory, scooting to 6th overall.

On the field, it was a week of dominance. Indiana, ranked 10 spots behind visiting Illinois, entered the game a mear touchdown favorite. Then walked out near eight touchdown victors. Talk about a smackdown. The Canes might as well have pushed the Gators off that 33-foot diving platform, leading to yet another colossal belly flop. Billy Watch has become my favorite early season story. Texas Tech stormed into a hostile Utah environment as 3.5-point dogs, only to win by 24. 

Blowouts galore.

A bit of drama existed outside the top 25, the Razorbacks blowing an 18-point lead, allowing Memphis a 4th quarter comeback that led to a 32-21 win and the biggest comeback in the FBS so far this season. In Baylor, the Bears evened things at 24 with a touchdown with less than two minutes to play. But the defending Big 12 champs were undeterred, with Jesus Gomez (emphasis on the Jesus) connecting on a 43-yard FG as time expired to elevate the Sun Devils. A lot of religious symbolism there, I know.

The Horned Frogs proved quicker than the Stallions, comfortably taking care of business against SMU. The Bill Belichick era continued its dismal start, with Tar Heels fans begging for basketball season to just tipoff already after a 34-9 loss to the UCF Knights. Duke won, and covered, in an in-state battle with the Wolfpack. And the Brigham boys, once a writer-favorite, moved to 3-0 with a Pirate slaying. Is it time to start getting excited about the Cougars again?!

Week 5 is going to be lit (do the kids still say that?). #4 LSU heads to the Grove to do battle with an undefeated #13 Ole Miss squad. #6 Oregon migrates waaaaay east for a showdown in Happy Valley against #3 Penn State. And a recovering #17 Bama team busses to Athens for a heated rivalry game with the #5 Dawgs. Buckle up, and in the words of the new sign off I’m trying this week… “Think you’re slick? Make that pick!” Let the commish know if you think it sucks or want to see it again. 

See you next week, gents.

                  VEGAS

#17 Texas Tech @ #16 Utah (-3.5)

Arkansas (-7.5) @ Memphis

SMU @ TCU (-6.5)

#21 Michigan (-1.5) @ Nebraska

UNC @ UCF (-7)

NC State @ Duke (-3.5)

Florida @ #4 Miami (FL) (-8.5)

#9 Illinois @ #19 Indiana (-6.5)

Arizona State @ Baylor (-2.5)

BYU (-6.5) @ East Carolina

WEEK 3

It’s rare that I don’t know where to start the weekly, recap, but yesterday left me shook. Week Three felt like rivalry week, with better weather. Holy football gods. Al Pacino’s words are living rent-free in my head this morning: “Football is a game of inches!”

Let’s start in South Bend. Marcus Freeman, undefeated coming off a bye week, was a lock at home, right? WRONG! After a back-and-forth from start to finish, the Fighting Irish crossed the goal line yet again to take a TD lead with 2:43 remaining. BUT WAIT! A bobbled hold. No XP. After the day we’d already seen, you had to know what was coming next. Aggies drove. 11-yard strike with 13 seconds remaining. No problems with their XP. Game A&M. First ranked win on the road since 2014, conveniently the same number of years as that 11-yard winning TD. ND needs TD Jesus more than ever after an 0-2 start that easily could have been 2-0.

And if you thought the Holy Spirits were broken in Indiana, let’s head further south to Knoxville, where the Vols were carrying an 8-game losing streak into their matchup with UGA. The fans showed up, as they always do, creating a meticulous orange and white checkerboard in the stands, one of the coolest images in sports. And the boys responded to the energy, going up 21-7 in Q1. Kirby Smart’s name, however, is no misnomer, and the dogs fought back, taking a 27-21 lead in the 3rd. From there, a game of cat and mouse to the finish, or what Rocky Top faithful sure hoped would have been the finish. Squared at 38 after a Georgia TD + 2-point conversion with 2:32 remaining. Football Joey leads his squad back down the field. 43 yards and the foot of a freshman kicker was all that stood between them and bedlam in Tennessee….Wide right. Dogs get it done in OT. Soul-crushing. The streak extends to 9…

FURTHER South we go, to Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, SC. I ask again: DID NOBODY WATCH ANY GIVEN SATURDAY: SEC THIS OFFSEASON?! Expectations were high for the #11 Gamecocks, at home. Sandstorm was blaring. And yet, the Goliaths played spoiler once again, in stunning fashion, dropping (the other) USC 31-7. Stop sleeping on Vandy, folks!

Might I add, all three of the above involved losses to ranked teams at home. Brutal.

Staying in-state, is it safe to say that Clemson might actually suck this year? I’m still reading about how Divine Dabo has turned around bad starts before, but woof, 1-2 with a loss to unranked GA Tech is ugly. This team should not have a number in front of their name come Monday.

And despite all the above, the biggest Vegas upset of the day amongst out Pick ‘Em games? The Mountaineers took issue with my affront to country roads last week, and handed a dangerous Pitt team (and seven point favorite) a loss in Morgantown in OT. I’ll bet the moonshine was flowing in WV last night, and possibly in the living rooms of OTC competitors, given not a single one of us picked against the Panthers.

Ok, what else, what else. Memphis trucked Troy. North Texas throttled Washington State (making the PAC-2 an abysmal 0-2 in Texas this week after Oregon State also lost to Texas Tech). Southern Miss picked up a W against App State, stumping the entire OTC league for a SECOND winless game of the week. Tulane held off the Blue Devils. And Cal sunk the visiting Gopher boats.

It was a shitshow in OTC, with the high score of the week going to 404PointsNotFound (frontrunner for best name) with a 28. I need an ESPN intern, but I’m pretty sure that’s the lowest weekly high score ever. 

Things tightened at the top, and we now have a 3-way tie for top dog between RecordSetter 98, dallas2697, and KingBrutus (who should be kicked out of the league after posting a 17, and actually trying).

The good news? It’s only up from here folks. If the rest of the season is anything like what we saw yesterday, the NCAA championship and the OTC pot are anyone’s. It’s all up for grabs!

           VEGAS

Memphis (-4.5) @ Troy

#12 Clemson (-3) @ Georgia Tech

#6 Georgia (-3.5) @ #15 Tennessee

Washington State @ North Texas (-6.5)

Pittsburgh (-7) @ West Virginia

Appalachian State (-3) @ Southern Miss

Vanderbilt @ #11 South Carolina (-3)

#16 Texas A&M @ #8 Notre Dame (-6.5)

Duke @ Tulane (-1)

Minnesota (-2.5) @ California

WEEK 2

Football has always been a game of sweat. But this week, it’s become a game of… spit? Following in the footsteps of the bodily-fluid-filled NFL Opener, Florida DT Jalen Carter hocked a loogie of his own, with arguably far more consequence. The ensuing unsportsmanlike conduct and 15-yard penalty bailed out a USF team on the ropes late and became the precursor to a walk-off FG, giving Rocky the Bull and his 18-point underdog squad a massive upset. I guess gators are just wired to take the bait. What’s ahead for the Swamp creatures? LSU, Miami (FL), Texas, Texas A&M, Mississippi State, Georgia, Kentucky, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Florida State. Can we get a side pot going for when we say “Bye, bye Billy” this season? My money is after A&M, with a 1-5 record to his name.

Elsewhere in upset land, though far from the biggest of the day, I simply can’t forget our the mighty West Virginia Mountaineers traveling to Athens, OH as mere 3.5-point favorites, only to LOSE to the Ohio Bobcats. Now, I love me some MAC football more than most, but ouch. Bumpy country roads in Morgantown these days…

After being the beneficiaries of a first round playoff bye in 2024, the 12th-ranked Sun Devils, falling victim to the SEC again, this time not under the bright 2OT light of a New Year’s Day bowl game, but as the largest favorites (-5.5) on the Pick ‘Em spread to lose, a few time zones east in Starkville, MS.

Vegas clearly hadn’t watched Any Given Saturday: SEC Football this offseason. If they had, there’s no chance in hell the Hokies would have been favored to win this game. After being down 20-10 at halftime, the Commodores won the second half 34-0, winning the game 44-20. Never offend Diego Pavia.

And in Norman, the Sooners dropped the Boomer on the maize and blue, more than covering as 4.5-point favorites, even while ranked three spots behind the troubled Wolverines.

Rapid fire: Cyclones outdueled Hawkeyes in a classic 16-13 (State of) Iowa football game. ‘Cuse outlasted the Huskies in OT. Duke finally got relegated to a basketball school, falling 45-19 to the Fighting Illini (possibly the most unoriginal name in all of college sports, I might add). SMU is likely on the market for a new kicker after falling to Baylor in 2OT. NC State overcame a 24-14 halftime deficit to fend off the invading UVA Cavaliers. And Missouri won the border war after a scare, giving up 21 in Q1.

Some might say a sleepy week in the grand scheme of the college football season, but every point matters in OTC. We had ourselves a 3-way tie for the Week Two crown: RecordSetter 98, PSU 1996, and KingBrutus shared the top honor with 36 apiece. KingBrutus remains his namesake, king of the Hill, with 83 points overall, five ahead of dallas2697. With 13 weeks to go, we’re bound to see a surge. Will it be you? Only one way to find out. Study up. Get those picks in. And for the love of God, please don’t spit on anyone this week.

              VEGAS

Iowa @ #16 Iowa State (-3.5)

Connecticut @ Syracuse (-7)

#11 Illinois (-2.5) @ Duke

Baylor @ #17 SMU (-2.5)

Virginia @ NC State (-3)

Kansas @ Missouri (-5.5)

West Virginia (-3.5) @ Ohio

#12 Arizona State (-5.5) @ Mississippi State

Vanderbilt @ Virginia Tech (-2.5)

#15 Michigan @ #18 Oklahoma (-4.5)