NCAA Week 5

Clemson-VaTech is the must see

Several ranked teams are off this weekend but Clemson's trip to Blacksburg to face off with Virginia Tech will be the game to watch this week.

After going 19-6 in Week 4, I'm 81-19 for the season...

Ok, for Week 5...let's pick some games!!

Northwestern @ Wisconsin (10)

The Badgers are quietly getting better....

Wisconsin 31-20

South Florida (18) @ East Carolina

South Florida 40-17

Vanderbilt @ Florida (21)

A test for the Gators again this week...

Florida 30-26

Indiana @ Penn State (4)

Penn State 31-23

Georgia (7) @ Tennessee

Georgia 27-20

Murray State @ Louisville (17)

Louisville 47 20

Miami (OH) @ Notre Dame (22)

Notre Dame 34-17

Mississippi State (24) @ Auburn (13)

Auburn 28-20

Troy @ LSU (25)

LSU 38-10

Ohio State (11) @ Rutgers

Ohio State 41-7

Clemson (2) @ Virginia Tech (12)

The ACC showdown in Blacksburg could go down until the final possession...for some reason, I'm going to call an upset!!

Va Tech 24-22

Washington (6) @ Oregon State

Washington 45-17

Oklahoma State (13) @ Texas Tech

Ok St 38-24

Ole Miss @ Alabama (1)

Bama 37-13

Northern Illinois @ San Diego State (19)

SD St 27-19

North Carolina @ Georgia Tech

Ga Tech 30-21

Syracuse @ NC State

NC St 34-23

Houston @ Temple 

Houston 30-17

Memphis @ Central Florida

Central Florida 23-21

Baylor @ Kansas State

Kansas St 38-28

Maryland @ Minnesota

Minnesota 30-24

Iowa @ Michigan State 

Mich St 24-22

Rice @ Pittsburgh

Pitt 42-13

Colorado @ UCLA

UCLA 27-21

California @ Oregon

Oregon 30-14

Until next week...enjoy the games!

AFL Grand Final 2017

Many variables to consider

In a few short hours, Richmond will square off against Adelaide for the 2017 AFL title. For the Tigers it has been a long time between drinks but they have what is essentially a home field advantage.

Ok, let's pick the game!

2017 AFL Grand Final

Adelaide Crows vs Richmond Tigers

Long suffering Tiger fans are coming out of the woodwork and uniting today as their Tigers return to the ultimate match for the first time in over thirty years. In Round 6, the Crows slaughtered the Tigers in Adelaide, that will not be the case in this one as it is basically a home match for Richmond.

On the field, Richmond will be hoping to get full effort from their unconventional forward pack and look for the defence from the back line to pull them through. Adelaide meanwhile will be looking to stick to the formula that has gotten them through the season.

For the game, I'm tipping Richmond, for that tip to come to fruition, the Tigers will need to grab a lead in the early stages, hang on and keep the score low. Even with all of that, it could go down to the final seconds.

Prediction: Richmond by 8

Enjoy the match! NRL pick up overnight!

VHSL Week 6

Returning to High School picks

After an absence for illness and various other life got in the way in Australia, I'm back to pick some Virginia high school football games. 

I have a bit of catching up to do on previous weeks but will kick back off now...let's pick 'em!

Franklin County @ Magna Vista

Franklin County may pose a little bit tougher obstacle than usual but the Warriors should have enough at home.

Magna Vista by 8

Halifax County @ Bassett

Halifax by 4

Patrick County @ GW Danville

Could get very ugly!

GW by 64

Tunstall @ Martinsville 

Martinsville by 3

Galax @ Northside

Northside by 10

William Byrd @ William Fleming

Byrd by 5

Christiansburg @ Salem

Salem by 23

Blacksburg @ PH Roanoke

PH by 2

Chatham @ Appomattox County

Appomattox by 32

Pulaski County @ Hidden Valley

Pulaski by 26

Until next week...enjoy the games!

Early games

Picking the Packers, USC and The U for early wins

The NFL offers Chicago-Green Bay on Thursday night while on Friday night, NCAA Football gives a doubleheader to football fans.

Without a lot of hype....here we go with some picks.

NFL

Chicago @ Green Bay

The Bears surprised Pittsburgh last week and  are seemingly always a chance against the Packers. Though suffering a few injuries, the Packers are slight favourites in this one at home.

Though Green Bay will be challenged, they should have enough in the tank to pull off a win.

Packers 30-23

NCAA

Miami (14) @ Duke

Lately, this one has been close and this season with both undefeated, it should be no different. The Hurricanes are looking to move up in the rankings and a quality road win might do the trick.

The key will be to get ahead and try to wear the Blue Devils down.

Miami 27-22

USC (5) @ Washington State (16)

This ranked clash in the Pac 12 could solidify reputations as the season advances. The Trojans obviously need to avoid the jeopardy of the road along with turnovers against the high octane Cougars.

USC will need to keep it from becoming a shootout so will depend a bit more on the ground game.

USC 31-26

Back with the rest of the weeks picks in a day or so...enjoy the games!

NFL Week 3

Early measuring stick games this week

Week 3 will have a few games that will tell the tale of how teams are stacking up so far for the 2017 NFL season. Atlanta-Detroit, Houston-New England and Dallas-Arizona will be amongst the key ones.

I finished at 11-5 for Week 2 so I'm currently 20-11 for the season. Ok, let's pick 'em for Week 3!

Baltimore @ Jacksonville

Ravens 28-23

Denver @ Buffalo

Broncos 31-21

Pittsburgh @ Chicago

Steelers 27-17

Atlanta @ Detroit

This one could well be the game of the week...can the Falcons grab the road win...cold go down to the wire!

Falcons 30-28

Cleveland @ Indianapolis

Colts 30-27

Tampa Bay @ Minnesota

Another "measuring stick" one...especially for Tampa Bay!

Vikings 24-20

Houston @ New England

Won't it look good to see the Pats at 1-2?

Houston 27-24

Miami @ NY Jets

Jets 17-13

NY Giants @ Philadelphia

Giants 30-28

New Orleans @ Carolina

Panthers 23-17

Seattle @ Tennessee

Seahawks 16-10

Cincinnati @ Green Bay

Packers 33-20

Kansas City @ LA Chargers

Time to Bolt Up!

Chargers 28-27

Oakland @ Washington

Raiders 34-24

Dallas @ Arizona

A big one in the desert...neither wants a loss....going with the home team!

Cardinals 24-20

That covers this week...enjoy the games!

NCAA Week 4

Looking forward to TCU-Oklahoma State

The NCAA football season enters Week 4 which is the stage where fans start to look for surprise contenders. That being said, this week, games between TCU-Oklahoma State and the battle of the Bulldogs, Mississippi State-Georgia could thrust the winners into the spotlight.

Currently, i'm 62-13 on the season and looking for a solid week pick wise....so... let's pick 'em!

UNLV @ Ohio State (10)

Ohio State 42-10

North Carolina State @ Florida State (12)

Will be a close one for the 'Noles 

Florida State 27-23

Kent State @ Louisville (19)

Louisville 41-17

Old Dominion @ Virginia Tech (13)

Va Tech 48-13

Alabama (1) @ Vanderbilt

There's realistic hope for the Commodores in this one but 'Bama prevails...

Alabama 28-24

Boston College @ Clemson (2)

Clemson 44-6

USC (5) @ Cal

USC 40-12

TCU (16) @ Oklahoma State (6)

The Big 12 gets the national spotlight for a while...the Cowboys should be strong enough at home.

OK St 34-28

Toledo @ Miami (14)

Miami 27-17

Michigan (8) @ Purdue

Michigan 30-21

Nevada @ Washington State (18)

Washington St 51-17

Oklahoma (3) @ Baylor

Oklahoma 38-24

Mississippi State (17) @ Georgia (11)

Yep, the Bulldogs will win but it will be close so the home Dawgs are the pick!

Georgia 30-28

San Diego State (22) @ Air Force

SD St 27-24

Syracuse @ LSU (25)

LSU 38-20

Penn State (4) @ Iowa

Could be tricky...

Penn St 24-20

Auburn (15) @ Missouri

Auburn 34-27

Florida (20) @ Kentucky

Florida 31-17

Washington (7) @ Colorado

Let's throw in an upset!

Colorado 23-21

Oregon (24) @ Arizona State

Oregon 28-13

Pitt @ Georgia Tech

Ga Tech 27-17

Texas Tech @ Houston

Houston 40-28

Central Florida @ Maryland

Maryland 31-27

Rutgers @ Nebraska

Nebraska 38-23

Wake Forest @ Appalachian State

Wake 34-30

Until next week...enjoy the action!

Thursday night NFL

Rams visit San Fran

Los Angeles @ San Francisco

The Rams travel North looking to bounce back after dropping a game to Washington. The 49ers are just looking for positives in the game tonight. LA will use their ground game to hopefully pull and stay ahead.

In the end, LA should get this one.

Rams 30-20

NFL Week 2

Green Bay-Atlanta clash set to highlight schedule

Green Bay's visit to Atlanta highlights the Week 2 Schedule with a few other teams looking to bounce back after opening week losses.

I finished 9-6 last week...let's get 10 this week...let's pick 'em!

Cleveland @ Baltimore

Ravens 27-10

Buffalo @ Carolina

Panthers 31-21

Arizona @ Indianapolis

Cardinals 30-17

Tennessee @ Jacksonville

Jags 31-27

Philadelphia @ Kansas City

Chiefs 28-21

New England @ New Orleans

Both need a bounce back win!

Pats 34-31

Minnesota @ Pittsburgh

Another big one...

Steelers 30-24

Chicago @ Tampa Bay

Buc's 31-28

Miami @ LA Chargers

Chargers 28-23

NY Jets @ Oakland

Raiders 34-24

Dallas @ Denver

Cowboys 27-24

Washington @ LA Rams

Rams 28-21

San Francisco @ Seattle

Seattle 30-17

Green Bay @ Atlanta

Who will take the favourites for the conference after this one?

Falcons 31-30

Detroit @ NY Giants

Giants 23-20

Until next week, enjoy!

NCAA Week 3

Clemson visits Louisville to highlight week

It won't be as big as last week bu the ranked clash between Clemson and Louisville highlights the Week 3 schedule.

I finished 21-4 last week and now sit at 43-7 on the season...let's pick 'em

Air Force @ Michigan (7)

Michigan 31-20

Oklahoma State (9) @ Pittsburgh 

OK St 27-20

UCLA (25) @ Memphis

UCLA 34-17

Wisconsin (10) @ BYU

Wisconsin 35-21

Virginia Tech (16) @ East Carolina

Va Tech 38-10

SMU @ TCU (20)

TCU 40-18

Tennessee (23) @ Florida (24)

SEC ranked clash to home team

Florida 28-24

Mercer @ Auburn (15)

Auburn 50-6

Army @ Ohio State (3)

Ohio State 42-13

Oregon State @ Washington State (21)

Wash St 38-17

Colorado State @ Alabama (1)

Bama 40-7

LSU (12) @ Mississippi State

LSU 24-17

Georgia State @ Penn State (5)
Penn State 51-10

Samford @ Georgia (13)
Georgia 47-7

Kansas State (18) @ Vanderbilt
Kansas St 31-24

Clemson (3) @ Louisville (14)
Early road test for defending champions
Clemson 30-21

Texas @ USC (4)
USC 34-20

Fresno State @ Washington (6)
Washington 45-10

Stanford (19) @ San Diego State
Stanford 28-17

Until next week....enjoy the games!

Thursday Night NFL

Houston-Cincy in Thursday spotlight

Houston @ Cincinnati

The Texans travel to Cincy looking to pounce on the Bengals and send them to an 0-2 start. The Bengals were embarrassed last week in a 20-0 loss to Baltimore. The will be looking to put points on the board this week but it they will be facing an even tougher defense.

The Texans looked the contender part in opening with a 29-7 win over Jacksonville. Houston should be able to pick up a win on the road this week.

Texans 24-13 

2017 NFL Week 1

NFL kicks off for 2017

The 2017 NFL season goes full swing on Sunday with all teams hoping for success to open the season. With New England getting handled by Kansas City on Thursday night, there is renewed hope that there may be a chance of someone other than the Pats topping the list for the 2018 Super Bowl title.

No need for lots of fanfare, let's pick some games!

NY Jets @ Buffalo

The Jets may be improved but the Bills are also better and fresh to start the season.

Bills 24-14

Atlanta @ Chicago

The NFC target team will be Atlanta this season and their first test will be on the road in Chicago.

Falcons 31-21

Baltimore @ Cincinnati

Tough Divisional Duel for these two, giving the slight edge to the home team!

Bengals 27-24

Pittsburgh @ Cleveland

Steelers 35-17

Arizona @ Detroit

Tricky road trip for the Cardinals.

Cardinals 24-20

Jacksonville @ Houston

Defense will carry Houston throughout the season, they just need a little offense to win in this one.

Texans 23-10

Oakland @ Tennessee 

Raiders 28-24

Philadelphia @ Washington

Could be last possession wins!

Eagles 30-28

Indianapolis @ LA Rams

Rams 27-20

Seattle @ Green Bay

A traditional bruiser to open the season. Both will be looking to remain healthy for the rest of the season after this one is done.

Packers 23-21

Carolina @ San Francisco

Carolina 34-24

NY Giants @ Dallas

Another opening week bruiser with the Cowboys trying to break the Giant hoodoo.

Giants 34-30

New Orleans @ Minnesota

Vikings 28-24

LA Chargers @ Denver

Yep, my beloved Chargers are back in Los Angeles and may pull a few surprises this season!

Chargers 31-30

Until next week, enjoy the games...

NCAA Week 2

Oklahoma-Ohio State headline week

In a week that features a few early season Top 25 clashes along with the cancellation of games involving Florida schools, the Oklahoma - Ohio State clash in Columbus is the top pick for the weekend.

Among the other big clashes, there will a battle of the Tigers when Clemson hosts Auburn, Georgia visiting Notre Dame in South Bend and USC hosting Stanford.

My record to kick off the season is 22-3...so looking for another good week.

Ok, let's pick 'em!

Cincinnati @ Michigan (8)

Michigan 34-23

Florida Atlantic @ Wisconsin (9)

Wisconsin 38-17

Louisville (17) @ North Carolina

Louisville 30-20

Charlotte @ Kansas State (19)

Kansas State 48-13

Fresno State @ Alabama (1)

Alabama 40-8

Pitt @ Penn State (4)

Could be closer than one would think.

Penn St 34-24

Delaware @ Virginia Tech (18)

Va Tech 42-7

TCU (23) @ Arkansas

TCU 28-24

Indiana State @ Tennessee (25)

Tennessee 50-12

Auburn (13) @ Clemson (3)

Clemson 30-17

Oklahoma (5) @ Ohio State (2)
Playoff implications in Week 2? Will have to give advantage to home team.
Ohio State 27-24

Chattanooga @ LSU (12)

LSU 35-6

Georgia (15) @ Notre Dame (24)

Bulldogs for the win on their first trip to South Bend!

Georgia 28-24

Montana @ Washington (7)

Washington 45-10

Stanford (14) @ USC (6)

Trojans need a win in ranked clash.

USC 30-24

Boise State @ Washington State (20)

Washington St 28-24

Indiana @ Virginia

Indiana 38-30

Northwestern @ Duke

Northwestern 27-23

East Carolina @ West Virginia 

WVa 30-24

Houston @ Arizona 

Houston 26-24

Iowa @ Iowa State

Iowa State 23-21

San Jose State @ Texas

Texas 40-14

Towson @ Maryland

Maryland 48-3

Nebraska @ Oregon

Oregon 35-27

South Carolina @ Missouri

Missouri 31-27

Until next week...enjoy the games!

Early picks for NCAA and NFL

NFL kicks off on Thursday night

The 2018 NFL season kicks off in Foxboro on Thursday night with defending champions New England hosting the Kansas City Chiefs in a showcase opener.

The rest of the teams jump into action on Sunday with a Monday nigh doubleheader closing out the first week.

There are also a couple of ranked NCAA football teams in early actin this week so let's pick some games...

NFL

Kansas City Chiefs @ New England Patriots

The Chiefs hit the road to kick off the season against New England and will face a hungry Patriots squad.

The New England crew should start the season on a positive in their quest to return to the Super Bowl.

Patriots 31-21

NCAA

Oklahoma State (11) @ South Alabama

The Cowboys travel to Mobile but shouldn't be in much bother with the Jaguars in this one as long as they are not looking ahead to Pitt next weekend.

Oklahoma State 47-17

South Florida (21) @ UConn

The Bulls are looking for an early conference road win before facing Big 10 foe Illinois next weekend. The Huskies could be a tricky prospect on the road but South Florida should prevail.

South Florida 38-20

Back with picks for Virginia high schools, NCAA games and NFL games in the next few days.

Enjoy the games and for those in the South, stay safe and batten down with the weather as it is.

NCAA Weekend 1

NCAA Week 1 continued

With the first week of the NCAA season covering two weeks basically, here are the rest of my picks for Week 1.

Bethune-Cookman @ Miami (18)

Bigger things expected this season!

Miami 48-6

Western Michigan @ USC (4)

Bigger things also expected from USC

USC 41-13

Kent State @ Clemson (5)

Clemson 44-12

Akron @ Penn State (6)

Penn St 38-3

Maryland @ Texas (23)

Texas 30-14

UTEP @ Oklahoma (7)

Oklahoma 45-14

Michigan (11) vs Florida (17)

Big one in Texas, though slightly undermanned, the Gators could cause trouble.

Florida 27-23

Stony Brook @ South Florida (19)

South Fla 53-6

Appalachian State @ Georgia (15)

Georgia 31-20

Central Arkansas @ Kansas State (20)

Kansas State 40-7

Georgia Southern @ Auburn (12)

Auburn 3-10

Louisville (16) @ Purdue

Louisville 37-17

Florida State (3) vs Alabama (1)

Major clash to start the season, will the ACC sink 'Bama again?

Florida State 30-28

BYU vs LSU (20)

LSU 31-21

Montana @ Washington State (24)

Wash St 52-12

William & Mary @ Virginia

Virginia 30-24

West Virginia (22) vs Va Tech (21)

Border Battle to start the season will be a bloodbath!

Va Tech 27-22

Tennessee (25) vs Ga Tech

Tough test for the Vols

Tenn 24-20

Until next week....enjoy!!

High Schools Week 2

Week 2 VHSL Picks

After kicking off this years campaign with an 8-2 record, I'm looking to go equal or better for Week 2 action.

Not much fanfare, just straight into the picks.

Floyd County @ Patrick County

Floyd by 17

Magna Vista @ Jefferson Forest

The Warriors seem to be back and on a mission this season. A road win will serve them well.

MV by 8

Franklin County @ Salem

Salem by 20

GW Danville @ Amherst

Amherst by 4

Dan River @ Bassett

Dan River by 12

Tunstall @ Gretna

Tunstall by 3

Staunton River @ Cave Spring

Staunton River by 17

Hidden Valley @ William Byrd

Byrd by 11

Northside @ Heritage

Heritage by 3

Lord Botetourt @ Blacksburg

Blacksburg by 6

Good luck to all and stay dry!