THE PICKS ARE IN: Dawg Post Gives You Our Picks for This Weekend in College Football
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ATHENS - The Georgia Bulldogs and coach Kirby Smart are getting ready for the 2022 SEC Championship Game with the LSU Tigers. Meanwhile the rest of college football’s championship weekend looms.
Matt’s Picks:
Here we go. Championship Week. Let’s get rolling.
As much as I’d love a little chaos, I expect the current Final 4 to stay that way come Sunday.
I like the Trojans over Utah and to cover the -2.5. I thought their defenst finally played well against Notre Dame, and the offense, led by your likely Heisman winner Caleb Williams, is really clicking. On a neutral field, I think USC takes this one and punches their ticker to the Playoffs.
Here’s where I see an upset. I’ve liked Kansas State. Have all year. They have something to prove and I expect them to come out swinging against the Horned Frogs. I think State wins a CLOSE game at the end, giving TCU their first loss of the season. Even with a loss, I think TCU ends up in the Playoffs. I’ll take Kansas State +2.5.
Michgain will takee care of Purdue, but I think it will be closer than most think. Wolverines get an impressive two-score victory , but I like Purdue to cover the +17.
Clemson and North Carolina. Nobody cares. Might be an ugly game. I’ll take Clemson -7.5.
Give me Tulane -4 over UCF. Riding the Green Wave untill the end.
Now for the big game. The SEC championship.
As I said in Final Feelings, I’m taking Georgia 28-13 in the ballgame. So I think LSU covers the +17.5. They’ll give everything they have in the 1st half, then Georgia will run thee clock out with a comfortable win as the game moves along.
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Ryan’s Picks
I think USC wins and covers the three points. I have got to find where I wrote or said before the season to watchout for USC possibly squeezing into the playoff. If it is not in writing I definitely thought it. What has happened has not surprised me at all. Caleb Williams and Lincoln Riley are a deadly offensive combination. I think it is hard to beat a really good team twice. The Utes beat them on a 2-point conversion at home in a thriller a few weeks ago. I think the Trojans get revenge, and likely get a date with the Dawgs in Atlanta.
I am going chalky this weekend. Give me TCU. I think that the four top teams right now all take care of business this week. I think the Horned Frogs will win by about 7-10 points and then go on to get demolished in their semifinal game.
I wrote in Final Feelings that I am predicting 34-9 as the score for the SECCG. That means I think Georgia will cover. I think it will be a slow burning domination.
The ACC Championship? Boring. Snoozefest. The game isn’t meaningless, but it isn’t very meaningful. I don’t like watching Clemson. Not this particular group at least. I do think Drake Maye is a baller, and because of him I think North Carolina not only covers the 7.5, but will win straight up.
Michigan has it easier than any other top team this weekend. Purdue is the only team in the Power 5 conference championship matchups that is not ranked. They are 8-4 in a conference that is certainly overrated at the moment. I think the Wolverines will win by about 20 points in a really boring game, so I’ll take them to cover.
I have not watched Tulane or UCF this season, so it is hard for me to say. My gut says Tulane.
Give me Army over Navy. They usually have sick uniforms.
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Dean’s Picks
I picked Georgia to take out LSU in Final Feelings.
USC is a narrow favorite to topple Utah in Vegas. The Pac 12 made some strategic decisions a while back to put its two “best” teams in the Pac 12 title game. That move allowed Utah to face USC this weekend - saving the league’s ability to send someone to the CFP. In the past Utah would have represented the South in the title game because of its win over the Trojans at home thanks to a late two-point conversion.
I’ve got the Trojans (-2.5) winning Friday night, and taking a lot of the air out of the balloon heading into Sunday’s announcement from the CFP. I think this is probably going to be the easiest Sunday folks have had in a long time - unless they are in Columbus.
Should the Trojans falter - here come the Buckeyes.
Kansas State is in a very good position - it will head to the Sugar Bowl no matter what happens Saturday. The Wildcats either go as conference champions of the Big 12, or as a replacement for TCU.
This is probably the game that’s the tightest out there and hardest for me to call. I think TCU is going to get into the CFP should they win or lose - provided that loss is not stunning. But I think TCU (-2.5) wins and covers Saturday.
I have Michigan (-16.5) beating Purdue, which is the only non-ranked power five team participating in championship Saturday.
In the battle to avoid the Cheez-It Bowl, North Carolina and Clemson try to pick of the pieces of seasons that looked much better about four weeks ago. That was before the duo combined to lose to Notre Dame, Georgia Tech, NC State and South Carolina.
We can talk all we want about DJ Uiagalelei’s failures this season. But the responsibility for the failures at Clemson rest squarely with Dabo Swinney. The fanbase is uneasy, and they should be. Losing to Carolina would be a punch in the guy after getting punched in the face a week ago by the Cocks.
Surprisingly, Ohio State has let it be known that it would prefer to skip the Rose Bowl this season. That means if the Buckeyes miss on the CFP they will play the winner of this game in the Orange Bowl - pushing Tennessee from what seemed like a lock to play in South Florida a few days ago.
No telling what will happen in the Orange, but the last time Clemson played Ohio State it wasn’t pretty. Then again, the Taters don’t exactly have a great track record outside of the ACC dating back to the 2019 CFP National Championship Game. The good news is that UNC is falling apart. I will take the Taters to win and cover (-7).