The Chopping Block: Week 3 picks
By BRANDON HURLEY
Sports Editor
Well, it’s here. The most intense week of talk and buildup of each football season in the state of Iowa.
The annual Cy-Hawk Series, Iowa State vs. Iowa is Saturday and should set up to be a doozy. What many call “Hate Week” is in high gear.
Being a die-hard Hawkeye fan myself, this is often the most stressful week of the season for me. I never am fully confident the Hawks will win, but I definitely expect them to win. At the same time, I know there’s always a chance they come out and play terrible, lose and derail any possibility of a special season.
This version of the Cy-Hawk game is a rarity – it will played under the lights of Kinnick Stadium with a kick-off time of 6:30 p.m. Night games in Iowa City - there’s nothing comparable within several hundred miles.
The story lines are plentiful each and every year.
Iowa’s coming off a 12-0 regular-season and maintains a top-20 ranking while ISU is under a new coaching regime and 0-1 on the season after dropping their season-opener to UNI.
This is where my anxiety creeps in. It always seems when Iowa State has it’s most down years they somehow find a way a win to win, so to say I’m nervous would be an understatement. I look forward to this game all year and often leads to some of the best trash-talk all fall.
With that being said, we have another trio of winners for the Bee’s weekly Football contest for week two.
Congrats to first place winner, (BOLD) Amy Van der Meer of Jefferson who picked 14 correct winners and only missed three games. She won in a tie-breaker over (BOLD) David Skalla of Jefferson by predicting a total game score of 892, which was just off the actual total of 920.
Skalla’s 14-3 record earned him second place while (BOLD) Paton’s Pat Fields picked 13 correct games to capture third-place. Fields won in a three-way tie-breaker picking the closet total score (802).
I’ve had a pitiful start to the season and actually was below .500 this past week (8-9) and am now dragging far behind. So let’s see if we can turn things around.
Here are the picks:
SEASON RECORD: 19-14
*Winners are in bold
HIGH SCHOOL
1. Dallas Center-Grimes (1-1) @ Greene County (0-2)
I’ve picked the Rams the last two weeks and they’ve lost, so in an attempt at reverse psychology, I’m going with Dallas Center-Grimes.
2. Iowa Falls-Alden (2-0) @ Boone (1-1)
Boone picked up a big win last week against Bondurant-Farrar and had the offense running. They keep it going in their home-opener.
3. Perry (2-0) @ Ballard (2-0)
Who would’ve thought this would be a matchup of undefeated teams going into the season? Perry struggled to say the least last year. With that being said, Ballard is just a little more veteran and a bit more talent. The Bombers take it.
4. #8 Webster City (2-0) @ Gilbert (2-0)
Another Class 3A district two matchup between undefeated teams. This is basically a toss-up. I’m going with Gilbert just because they are at home and Webster City hasn’t been tested.
5. #7 Carroll (2-0) @ #9 Glenwood (2-0)
I honestly don’t know a thing about Glenwood besides the fact they put up points (40-plus points in their first two games). But this is an early season top 10 matchup. Carroll is riding high off a big win over Bishop Heelan in week two but it’s asking a lot for the Tigers to drive two hours south and play as well as they need to. Glenwood wins.
6. Shenandoah (1-1) @ Kuemper Catholic (1-1)
Shenandoah can’t score (they’ve only pushed across 20 points in two games), so Kuemper shouldn’t have too much trouble in a bounce-back game.
7. South Central Calhoun (1-1) @ Southeast Valley (1-1)
This should be a fairly high-scoring game. The Titans go as Kody Case goes and Southeast Valley has a gun-slinger at the quarterback position. Without knowing much about SEV’s opponents so far, I’m taking SCC with the slight edge.
8. #6 Coon Rapids-Bayard (2-0) @ #3 Audubon (2-0)
A monumental top-10 matchup in eight-man. The Wheelers receiver their first real test after making the move from 11-man. Both teams feature potent offenses loaded with weapons. I’ll give Audubon the edge here, but just barely.
COLLEGE GAMES
9. Iowa State (+15) @ #16 Iowa
Ugh. This is the toughest game to pick all year. It might as well be a pick ‘em. Iowa didn’t cover last week and I see no reason why they would this week. Iowa State is coming off a dismal performance against an FBS opponent, but that never matters. The ‘Clones cover but Iowa wins.
10. Arkansas @ TCU (-7.5)
This line has already jumped 3.5 points, which means the public were all over the the Horned Frogs. I have to take TCU here, they can put up A LOT of points and should do it again.
11. North Carolina (-9.5) @ Illinois
UNC lost in a nail-biter to Georgia last week and I don’t think Illinois is ready for the prime time just yet. Tar Heels cover.
12. Akron @ #10 Wisconsin (-24.5)
Riding high off a big-time victory over then No. 5 LSU, the Badgers show off their defense and put the hurt on Akron.
13. Wyoming @ Nebraska (-24.5)
I didn’t trust the Huskers last week, so hopefully this doesn’t come back to bit me. The Huskers may be a special team this season.
14. Indiana State @ Minnesota (no line)
The pickings are slim this week for quality games. Minnesota rolls after squeaking out a nail-biter in week one.
15. UCF @ #5 Michigan (-35.5)
This is a fairly large line but Jim Harbaugh doesn’t let his team fail to cover. The Wolverines win big.
16. Virginia Tech (+11.5) vs. Tennessee
The public is still all over the Volunteers even after a pathetic performance against Appalachian State. Virginia Tech may have a fairly considerable down year this fall with a new coach, but they can still cover when they want. The Hokies may not win but they can cover the 11-point spread.
17. Penn State @ Pitt (-5)
The Pennsylvania rivalry has recently been restored as it should be. The Panthers have a spectacular running back who battled back from cancer. There’s no way Pitt doesn’t cover here.
Good luck everyone. Here’s to hoping I do a little better this week.
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