Much like the Rutgers BCS bandwagon, this picks column continues to roll on; another 4-1 set last weekend upped my record to 67 percent winners.
And let's talk about Rutgers. As you know, there are three teams in the Big East that are undefeated. The Scarlet Knights are 8-0, West Virginia is 7-0 and Louisville is 7-0, as well.
If Rutgers wins out, they have a shot at the national title game, as they will be one of two undefeated schools from major conferences.
But that's not as much fun to discuss --instead, what if each of three schools finishes 11-1 and 1-1 against each other? Can Rutgers make a BCS bowl under that scenario? Possibly; let's discuss.
West Virginia and Louisville play this Thursday, while Rutgers has yet to face either team. Presently, Rutgers is ranked No. 12 in the BCS standings. WVU is No. 3 and Louisville is No. 5.
Let's say West Virginia knocks off the Cardinals. When Rutgers faces Louisville next weekend, the Scarlet Knights also suffer their first loss.
Assuming all teams win the rest of their games, going into its final game of the season, Rutgers will be 10-1 and will be squaring off against an 11-0 West Virginia.
If the Scarlet Knights go into Morgantown and Ray Rice goes absolutely wild and runs up 200 yards and an easy win against the Mountaineers, then we could have ourselves a fun situation.
But here's where the rankings come into play (and kill Rutgers). The Big East tiebreaker for the conference's BCS berth is the final BCS regular season rankings.
It would be doubtful that Rutgers could still salvage a top ranking even with just one loss and a win over West Virginia. The likelihood of the Scarlet Knights leapfrogging both Louisville and the Mountaineers with one win in the final week of the season is not great. Believe me, I just spent the past hour trying to come up with scenarios where a one-loss Rutgers team could pass Louisville and WVU (including one in which those three are the only one-loss teams in the country thanks to a slew of upsets), but it doesn't look like it will come to pass.
My advice to Rutgers is to go 12-0, huff and puff about still being left out of the national title game (maybe contact Tommy Tuberville about good strategies) and then nail down Greg Schiano before he bolts back to Miami.
Some quick picks:
Maryland +16 @ Clemson
Maryland is playing well enough to cover this spread, even on the road. Clemson is pretty much through the tough part of its schedule now, with three home games left on the slate. The Tigers will cruise to a 35-16 win.
Kentucky +7 vs. Georgia
From a betting perspective, Georgia is to the SEC what Michigan State is to the Big Ten. There is no reason why this disoriented Bulldawgs team should be giving seven points on the road against a feisty Wildcats team.
USC -28.5 @ Stanford
The Cardinal is back after another layoff. There's really nothing left to say about the Cardinal, other than whether or not coach Walt Harris and his staff can survive an 0-12 season.
UTEP -8.5 vs. Rice
I refuse to believe that Rice can keep up with this team. It's about time the Owls hit a second-half-of-the-season wall. UTEP wins 45-23.
Hawaii -28 @ Utah State
The nation's most prolific scoring offense against a dreadful Aggies team. It's too bad Timmy Chang can't come back just to see how many yards he could throw up in Logan.
Last week: 4-1
Season 24-12-4
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