Pigskin Picking, Week 3

After badly misinterpreting what would happen in Athens last weekend and picking the right type of outcome but the wrong winner in the Auburn-South Florida game, I'm back to give it the old college try again. Even with those two significant miscalculations, I went 10-3 and boosted my season record to 21-4. Here's how this week's games of interest should unfold:

Tonight

No. 3 West Virginia (2-0) at Maryland (2-0)
The Mountaineers have too much speed on offense with TB Steve Slaton, QB Pat White and newcomer Noel Devine.
Prediction: West Virginia 42, Maryland 24

Friday

Oklahoma State (1-1) at Troy (0-2)
Troy's defense looked awful against Arkansas and Florida, two offenses that will make many other opponents look dreadful.
OSU can score a lot of points, but the Trojans seem to bring their A game when a Bowl Championship Series conference opponent makes a rare visit to their stadium.
Prediction: Oklahoma State 38, Troy 34

Saturday

Southeastern Conference games

No. 16 Arkansas (2-0) at Alabama (2-0)
If you're not a big fan of forward passes, this game could be for you. Alabama will try to establish RB Terry Grant, who has been impressive in his first two games. Arkansas features the explosive tandem of Darren McFadden and Felix Jones. Who knows? You might even see McFadden throw a pass or two out of the ''Wildcat formation.''
Prediction: Arkansas 23, Alabama 21

Mississippi State (1-1) at Auburn (1-1)
Auburn QB Brandon Cox has looked miserable in the first two games, throwing four interceptions and demonstrating a continued lack of poise. But if he wants to feel better about himself, he should talk to MSU starter Michael Henig, who tossed six INTs in an opening loss to LSU.
Prediction: Auburn 28, Miss. State 10

Western Carolina (0-2) at No. 23 Georgia (1-1)
Georgia should work out the many offensive kinks it showed last week while working out the scoreboard.
Prediction: Georgia 52, Western Carolina 6

No. 22 Tennessee (1-1) at No. 5 Florida (2-0)
Florida QB Tim Tebow faced little resistence in opening wins against Western Kentucky and Troy. Fortunately for the Gators, Tennessee's defense hasn't been any better than the first two it faced. Look for Florida receivers Percy Harvin and Cornelius Ingram to have big games.
Prediction: Florida 41, Tennessee 30

South Carolina State (1-1) at No. 17 South Carolina (2-0)
Maligned South Carolina QB Blake Mitchell had an efficient outing against Georgia last week, but he should have a comfortable bench seat by halftime of this one.
Prediction: South Carolina 45, S.C. State 7

No. 9 Louisville (2-0) at Kentucky (2-0)
NFL scouts will take note of what Louisville QB Brian Brohm and Kentucky QB Andre Woodson do in this one. Louisville's defense took a night off last week in a 58-42 win over Middle Tennessee State, but the Battle of the Bluegrass should capture their interest.
Prediction: Louisville 38, Kentucky 31

Middle Tennessee State (0-2) at No. 2 LSU (2-0)
MTSU scared the feathers off Louisville last week. The Blue Raiders' spread offense is hard to stop, but so is LSU defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey.
Prediction: LSU 56, MTSU 13

Ole Miss (1-1) at Vanderbilt (1-1)
Vanderbilt QB Chris Nickson got knocked around and injured against Alabama last week, but his backup played well.
Prediction: Vanderbilt 17, Ole Miss 13

Atlantic Coast Conference games

No. 21 Boston College (2-0) at No. 15 Georgia Tech (2-0)
This will reveal two things: 1. How good is Georgia Tech? 2. Can Taylor Bennett be effective throwing the ball if an opponent loads up to stuff the run?
Prediction: Georgia Tech 27, Boston College 17

Florida State (1-1) at Colorado (1-1)
Take the second half of the Clemson and UAB games, put them together and Florida State's offense doesn't look so miserable.
Prediction: FSU 21, Colorado 13

Furman (1-1) at No. 20 Clemson (2-0)
Yeah, Clemson players have heard about the Appalachian State-Michigan game. There won't be a repeat if Clemson running backs James Davis and C.J. Spiller take control early.
Prediction: Clemson 45, Furman 14

Ohio (2-0) at No. 18 Virginia Tech (1-1)
The Hokies are favored by 20 1/2 points, even after last week's 48-7 humiliation at LSU. I'm not convinced this offense can score 20 1/2 points on anyone right now.
Prediction: Virginia Tech 20, Ohio 3

Virginia (1-1) at North Carolina (1-1)
Remember when folks said Virginia would be the league's surprise team this year? Remember when everyone said Al Groh would bring NFL toughness to Virginia?
Still waiting for evidence of either.
Prediction: UNC 17, Virginia 13

Army (1-1) at Wake Forest (0-2)
Wake Forest has been the ACC's hard luck team, losing close games to Boston College and Nebraska, but RB Kenneth Moore should help bring a close to the skid.
Prediction: Wake Forest 31, Army 17

Florida International (0-2) at Miami (1-1)
Miami players ought to be mad enough to swing their helmets at somebody after last week's 51-13 pummeling at Oklahoma.
Prediction: Miami 49, Florida International House of Pancakes 7

Wofford (1-0) at N.C. State (0-2)
If N.C. State keeps playing as poorly as it did the first two weeks, Wolfpack fans may invite Chuck Amato to come back.
Prediction: N.C. State 28, Wofford 13

Duke (0-2) at Northwestern (2-0)
Duke officials probably thought that scheduling Northwestern would prevent an 0-for-2007 from happening. Sorry, guys.
Prediction: Northwestern 27, Duke 14

National games of interest

No. 1 USC (1-0) at No. 14 Nebraska (2-0)
The last time a No. 1 team visited the Children of the Corn was 1978. Top-ranked Oklahoma lost 17-14 that year. USC should win, but it may lose its No. 1 ranking to LSU if the margin isn't wide enough.
Prediction: USC 31, Nebraska 21

Notre Dame (0-2) at Michigan (0-2)
Michigan RB Mike Hart guaranteed victory over Notre Dame. Unless the Irish have installed the Statue of Liberty play that Oregon used to flummox the Wolverines last week, his guarantee should be as safe as a sunrise.
Prediction: Michigan 38, Notre Dame 14

No. 10 Ohio State (2-0) at Washington (2-0)
Tyrone Willingham is slowly improving Washington, but the Huskies aren’t ready for a breakout win just yet.
Prediction: OSU 24, Washington 14