Narwhal College Football Pickem: Week 5

Week 4 Recap: Week 4 of the college football season is in the books, and again, we saw some big movers in the standings. Tom Russell led the pack with an impressive 7-2 weekend, catapulting him up from a tenth place tie to tied for third. Andrea Walker also had a great weekend picking up 6 wins. Andrew still leads the pack, but he has company at the top as Jonathan “Banjo” McKay has strung together some solid weeks and positioned himself nicely as we head into week five.

Player of the Week: Tom Russell, 7-2 ats

Current Standings:

• First place tie (18): Banjo and Andrew
• Third place tie (17): Sam, Tom, Melissa
• Sixth place tie (16): Andrea, Ben, John, Tuck
• Tenth place (15): Hicks
• Eleventh place tie (14): Don and Natalie
• Solo thirteenth (13): Seeb

Week 4 matchups of note:

Oklahoma @ Kansas State

Another week, another surprisingly poor offensive performance by Spencer Rattler and the Sooners. 16 points was just barley good enough to beat West Virginia at home. Can Oklahoma’s offense do enough to beat a 3-1 Kansas State team in the Little Apple (Manhattan, Kansas)? The office is still holding out hope that Lincoln Riley can turn it around.

Auburn @ LSU

Just like everyone anticipated, last Saturday’s contest was a fiercely competitive and wildly entertaining game between Auburn and Georgia…… State. I could write pages on this one. Auburn was simply outplayed through three quarters of the game. It took a massive special teams play, the benching of your three-year starter at quarterback, and a 98-yard touchdown drive in the final minutes of the game for Auburn to avoid the most embarrassing loss in program history. A close call with a team you are clearly more talented than is bad enough, but when that near disaster is paired with a newfound quarterback controversy, the outlook for the rest of the year begins to look a lot more ominous. Auburn doesn’t have any time to sort things out, they head to Death Valley on Saturday to try and right the ship against a talented LSU team. A fun stat that makes this situation even more bleak is that Auburn hasn’t won in Baton Rouge since 1999. Can Auburn break the streak? The office thinks they will at least keep it close.

Georgia vs Arkansas

Nothing says “top 10 SEC showdown” quite like a noon kick. Melissa’s mighty Bulldogs welcome 8th ranked Arkansas to Athens this weekend. While the noon kick is disappointing, there should still be plenty of buzz in the air. Not only is college gameday in town, but the Razorbacks are led by beloved former Georgia offensive line coach Sam Pittman, which will bring an extra element of excitement to the matchup. Georgia boasts arguably the best defense in the country and an offense that seems to be rounding into form, while Arkansas brings with it a strong defense of its own and some elite weapons at wide receiver. While Georgia was tested early against a Clemson team that seems to be a shell of its former self, they have walked through the next three games with little resistance. Arkansas has two quality wins already this year and seems to be a legitimate SEC west contender, but this is a different animal this week. The office likes the Razorbacks +18.5, but I’m not so sure. I’ve experienced it firsthand too many times; an athletic Georgia defense fueled by a Sanford Stadium crowd is a scary sight. Despite the 18.5 I still like the Dawgs to cover.

Texas @ TCU

I’m all for the yearly Texas hate that comes after a full offseason of hype collides with an embarrassing loss, but I think we may have jumped the gun a little bit this year. After seeing things play out over the last few weeks, its clear that the Arkansas team that routed them in week 2 is much more formidable than we all anticipated. Outside of that loss, Texas has handled their business, and last week seemed to take the next step offensively by hanging a 70 piece on Texas Tech. They will have to get the job done this week on the road against Jonathan Hick’s beloved Horned Frogs of TCU, which won’t be a gimmie. I’m not saying that Texas is back, I just think we need to give it some time before we make the final verdict.

Michigan @ Wisconsin

While the matchup has lost a little bit of its luster after Wisconsin was bullied by Notre Dame, this is still a big week for Michigan. They have been the heavy favorite in their first four contests, but a road game against a desperate Wisconsin team is no easy task. A win here has Michigan in a great spot going forward, but a bad loss will only bring more chatter about Jim Harbaugh. The odds makers have this one as a tossup, but the office feels good about Michigan.

Alabama vs Ole Miss

A game that few had circled on their calendar to start the year is looking more and more like the game that could decide the SEC west. Heisman hopeful Matt Corral has been impressive through three games, and though the Rebels haven’t been tested, they certainly have shown the ability to put points on the board. Alabama seems to be a much more known commodity at this point after surviving a big test in the swamp, but questions still remain about their defense. Those questions will be addressed in a hurry by Lane Kiffin and the Ole Miss offense on Saturday. Kiffin is an offensive genius and will undoubtedly have some tricks up his sleeve. Can he be the first Saban assistant in 23 tries to beat the former boss? The office thinks Nick will keep that streak alive.