2018 Six Pick Week 12

Blech. What an awful week for games, as almost the entire SEC schedules cupcakes right before rivalry week. That means I had to add the VT-Miami game below, but I'm definitely not happy about it.

Honorable mentions for last week go to "Justin Lane," "Samuel Boyce," and Popbrmo for pulling out 5-0-1 weeks. The Clemson-BC game ended up being a push, unfortunately.

Make your picks at http://keyplay.football.cbssports.com/opm.

November 17


h/t Troy Nunes is an Absolute Magician
Syracuse
Notre Dame (-10)
(game at Yankee Stadium)

Fun Fact #1: Remember way back in 2016 when a highly-ranked VT team was embarrassed in the Carrier Dome? Two years later, Dino Babers actually has Syracuse in the top 15. Can't say I saw that coming. Hopefully Cuse fans will see it coming when Babers leaves for a better job this offseason.
Fun Fact #2: Notre Dame is pulling a uniform stunt where they'll be wearing Yankees-inspired logos, with the ND backed by pinstripes. The funny thing about that is Syracuse already did this last summer

PICK: This is a good Cuse team that will hang with the Domers for a while. But New York has an inexplicably high number of sidewalk alums, making this a sort-of home game for ND. I'll take them to cover.


Missouri (-6)
Tennessee

Fun Fact #1: Missouri's offensive coordinator Derek Dooley will make his return to Neyland Stadium in this game. Don't know that I'd bring him if I were Mizzou, it's not like he has a history of winning there, though he was an innovator with his incredible 9-4 defensive scheme.
Fun Fact #2: Meanwhile, in Jeremy Pruitt's first year at the head of Tennessee, they'll have to either pull the upset against Mizzou this week or break a two-game losing streak to Vandy to avoid missing a bowl.

PICK: Tennessee's actually playing well down the stretch, and I like them to win outright here.


Miami (-4)
VT

Fun Fact #1: As bad as VT has been this year, Miami's been almost as disappointing. They've lost 4 straight, and 6 out of the last 7 ATS.
Fun Fact #2: It'll be the stoppable force vs. the movable object when Miami has the ball, as the 69th-ranked offense goes up against Bud's miserable 93rd-ranked defense (per S&P+).

PICK: I can't in good conscience pick VT to win another football game this year. Sounds like it should be cold (advantage VT), but that will keep attendance down (advantage Miami). I'll take Miami in a blowout.


USC (-3.5)
UCLA

Shaw doesn't just coach, he can do crappy magic tricks

Fun Fact #1: While Clay Helton's definitely on the hot seat after USC was eliminated from Pac-12 South contention, it may not even matter. USC AD Lynn Swann (the second AD in a row with no previous administrative experience) extended Helton and raised his buyout to $15 million. I'm not sure they can afford to fire him.
Fun Fact #2: UCLA's 2-0 when they score 30 points or more this season. The problem is, they're 0-8 when they don't.

PICK: Why the hell is this line so close? I get that it's a rivalry game, but UCLA is teh suk under a washed-up Chip Kelly. USC runs up the score on them.


Separated at birth
Stanford (-2)
Cal

Fun Fact #1: I know I haven't been able to bring myself to watch much college football this year, but did you notice Stanford's lost 4 of their last 6? I can't remember a David Shaw team struggling this much down the stretch before.
Fun Fact #2: There's actually a significant risk of this game being cancelled because of air quality issues caused by the ongoing wildfires in California.

PICK: A fading Stanford team plus a motivated Cal squad = upset here. Cal wins outright.


Not the most intimidating mascot animal you could pick
Cincinnati
UCF (-7)

Fun Fact #1: Cincy RB Michael Warren II set the single-season school record for TD's already, and there are still two games to go in the regular season.
Fun Fact #2: Meanwhile, the Gameday-hosting defending national champs have the likes of Nate Silver arguing they're not even as good as Fresno State or Utah State.
PICK: Cincy is better than they're being given credit for, but as somebody who saw the Luke Fickell era at Ohio State I know not to trust him in big games. Still, I do like Cincy to cover while losing outright.

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DRINK OF THE WEEK

Don't know how the USA chose pilsners as their "American" beer (i.e. Budweiser), but there are actually good pilsner beers out there if you're willing to import. Dayton hosts a big indoor festival every summer where folks set up little stands featuring their countries of heritage. The Czech and German stands are usual stops for me, since those are the two that have beer. I tried Warsteiner there for the first time, and it turns out pilsner beer doesn't need to taste like piss.

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Now finish up them taters; I'm gonna go fondle my sweaters.