Oregon St at Colorado St – College Football Predictions
The Game
Here we go !
The college football season is upon us and billions of people everywhere are in a state of euphoria. The first game of the season features a BURGEONING JUGGERNAUT in the Colorado St Rams and a sneaky under-the-radar Oregon St Beavers squad that just might SHOCK the WORLD once or twice this season. And we all get to witness the opening of the Rams’ new on-campus football stadium. Two confident teams looking to start out the season on a winning note. Let’s roll !
The Details
COLORADO ST 3.5 OREGON ST (61)
MEGALOCKS LINE – Colorado St -5
“Vegas” Implied Projected Score: Colorado St 32.25 Oregon St 28.75
Massey Ratings Projected Score: Colorado St 34 Oregon St 31
The Match-Up
Colorado St offense vs Oregon St defense
The Rams’ offense was on SUPAH HOT FIRE to end the 2016 campaign as they pumped in 37+ points in each of their final six contests. QB Nick Stevens is set up to have a yuuuuge year with a loaded RB unit and some absolute STUDS in the WR group. The offensive line only returns 2/5 starters but those men include 2nd Team MW C Jake Bennett and LT Zack Golditch. The OL was fantastic last season and if they drop their performance just a notch in 2017 the offense should still be able to light almost anyone up this year. That includes the Oregon St defense who allowed 30 points per game last year and only bagged 18 sacks in 12 games.
The Beavers’ defense returns 8 starters to the mix this year and we feel they will take a step forward. Can they do it in week one against a really good offense ? Hard to say. What we do know is that Oregon St has an experienced DL with some size and some talent in the back 7. Their lack of ability to get PENETRATION may end up hurting them in this game.
Oregon St offense vs Colorado St defense
It is time to announce a new MEGALOCKS feature exclusively for QUARTER DIME NICKEL CLUB and FAKE CHARITY LATE PHONE RELEASE members. From time to time we will include some links to info or video that will make your viewing pleasure more INTENSE.
Here is a link to some Ryan Nall highlights. RB supreme. He is a MEGALOCKS favorite.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ixEddCsVYw
This is not meant to be an ESPN-style brainwash (wait. do they even cover sports anymore ?) but just to give you a look at some of the players you may not get a chance to see too often.
We have a really good feeling about the Oregon St offense. The RB group is deep and features the aforementioned Nall. The OL has nice size and the Beavers have increased their rushing yards per game in each of the past three seasons. New QB Jake Luton is a monster with a bit of mobility who will improve the passing game. The Rams have given up over 200 yards rushing in 5 of the last 6 seasons and we feel that Oregon St has a shot to impose their will. The Beavers’ passing game is a bit of an unknown right now but Colorado St was shredded to pieces on more than one occasion last year via the pass.
MEGA-MAZING TIDBITS
Oregon St is 0-11 in road games under HC Andersen……..CROWD WILL BE ROCKING GUY will be all over Colorado St due to the opening of their new stadium….That angle must be respected but our BOOTS on the GROUND tell us that it will not be a deciding factor in the outcome.
Summary
This is a great match-up to sink the handicapping teeth into to start the season. We feel that Colorado St can win the Mountain West. We also feel that Oregon St will take a step forward this year and pull at least one big upset. So what about week one ?
This is a tough one to call. We originally had planned on BANGING the RAMS (hello ?) but have come around to a more neutral view. Oregon St has the better defense and also has a running game that matches up well with Colorado St. New Beavers’ QB Jake Luton is the wild card, and frankly, that adds in an element of uncertainty that we are not comfortable with in terms of making a play on this game.
Conclusion
Official play: None as of yet.
Lean: Nothing to note. We will wait to see how the line moves this week. If the spread moves down to -3 (unlikely) we may take a look at the Rams. If the line moves up we may take a small ML taster on the Beavers. Stay tuned. Either way it appears as though an official play is not in the cards.