Glutton for punishment

The Week that was.....This weeks High School predictions

Another week that could have been prediction wise, in high school action, I went 21-5, taking me to 93-39 for the year at: http://www.roanoke.com/sports/highschool/varsitycast putting me even with expert Robert Anderson.

In the Piedmont District, I went 3-2 with Martinsville and Tunstall bucking my predictions.

NCAA wise I was 13-7, bringing me to 37-23 on the season. In my blog specials, I went 23-3. so not as bad as I thought.

Finally in the NFL....I had an ugly 8-8 week!!!!

Ok my high school picks for the week:

Magna Vista @ Halifax County

Warriors should get a quality road win by 8 or so.

Martinsville @ Franklin County

Eagles should be 3-0 against the Piedmont District after a 24 point home win.

Staunton River @ Tunstall

I will take a chance on the Trojans here by 4.

William Byrd @ Patrick County

Yes, Terriers can beat Cougars...by say 27.

Bassett

Bye Week.

Other games:

Pope John Paul the Great @ Carlisle

Randomly taking the Chiefs to finally get one by 3.

Pulaski County @ Amherst County

Amherst County by 13.

Salem @ William Fleming

Spartans by 12.

Hargrave @ North cross

Hargrave by 16.

Also on Thursday night.....two unbeatens meet when Texas A&M visits Oklahoma State, I'll go with OSU by 3.

Full slate of college game predictions tomorrow......enjoy this weekends high school action.

On a side note for any golfers out there....whether you are getting in the last rounds for the year or enjoying the links in a warmer climate check out: Everything Carts

for parts and such to fix up the course ride for next year.....tell EC that Chuck sent ya!!!

NFL Week 3

NFL Week 3 Picks

After last weeks 10-6 effort, I am 22-10 overall for this seasons NFL predictions. Now we are up to Week 3 so here goes.

Cincinnati @ Carolina

Bengals come in off of a win over Baltimore last week and should trump Carolina on the road. Bengals by 30-13.

Buffalo @ New England

Patriots 40-10.

San Francisco @ Kansas City

Odd pick but I am going with the 0-2 49ers on the road at 2-0 Kansas City. Niners by 28-20 score.

Tennessee @ NY Giants

Both teams had shockers last week, Giants should win at home but have an inkling that the Titans want it more so Tennessee by a score of say 24-20.

Cleveland @ Baltimore

Ravens will be too strong at home and win 30-17.

Pittsburgh @ Tampa Bay

An unexpected battle of the unbeatens here and I am jumping on the Bucs to win a close one 20-17.

Atlanta @ New Orleans

Saints will continue to do just enough for a 27-21 win.

Detroit @ Minnesota

Vikings finally get a win, beating Detroit 30-28.

Dallas @ Houston

Cowboys still looking for their first win but travel to a determined Houston and end up 0-3 after a 31-27 loss.

Philadelphia @ Jacksonville

Eagles will be 2-0 with Vick at QB when they win 30-20.

Washington @ St. Louis

Will have to go with the rejuvenated McNabb led Skins by 31-17.

Indianapolis @ Denver

Colts 35-20 in this one.

Oakland @ Arizona

Cardinals continue to improve with a 28-17 win.

San Diego @ Seattle

Chargers too strong for the Seahawks and run out to a 38-14 win.

NY Jets @ Miami

After all of the self promotion and hype how will the Jets cope with a 1-2 record Dolphins 24-14.

Green Bay @ Chicago

Packers escape with a 20-10 victory.

Ok, that will do it for this week....gotta get some sleep before 3am local time game starts here in Australia.

College picks are here.....now!!!

NCAA Weekend Predictions

After a pretty good week where I went 22-5, I am back to predict this weeks NCAA action. There are a few Top 25 games and other interesting matches as conference play cranks up.

Here goes:

Alabama (1) @ Arkansas (10)

The Tide rolls in to Fayetteville but may slink out licking their wounds.....I'll call an upset in this one...Hogs by 4.

Eastern Michigan @ Ohio St. (2)

Well, it is Michigan against Ohio but not the big one....Buckeyes by 41.

Oregon St. (24) @ Boise St. (3)

The Beavers bring a high octane, fast break offense into Idaho but the Broncos are solid and will get a needed Top 25 win by 12.

TCU (4)

As predicted, the Toads topped SMU on Friday night.

Oregon (5) @ Arizona St.

The Sun Devils were tough at Wisconsin and could put a scare into the Ducks but I'll pick the Ducks by 8.

South Dakota St. @ Nebraska (6)

Pretty much pick a margin between 38-50!!!

UCLA @ Texas (7)

Game two in the UCLA versus Texas series this season, the Bruins won't surprise the Longhorns as they did Houston last week. Texas by 26.

Oklahoma (8) @ Cincinnati

Sooners to get the road win by 30.

Kentucky @ Florida (9)

Gators will continue to show flashes of dominance and win by 24.

Austin Peay @ Wisconsin (11)

Badgers by 45.

South Carolina (12) @ Auburn (17)

Can the tigers survive another physical onslaught from a South Carolina team?? I think not this time. The Gamecocks will finish the job that Clemson did not by 4.

San Jose St. @ Utah (13)

Utah by 20 against a perky Spartan team.

California @ Arizona (14)

Arizona gets this PAC 10 game by 18.

West Virginia (22) @ LSU (15)

The Bayou Bengals will win this one at home by 13.

Stanford (16) @ Notre Dame

The Cardinal to beat The Irish by 8 on the road.

Ball St. @ Iowa (18)

Hawkeyes get back to their winning ways by a huge margin...say 38.

USC (20) @ Washington St.

Trojans by 22.

Bowling Green @ Michigan (21)

Wolverines roll on by 32.

Temple @ Penn St. (23)

The Owls are 3-0 and have their best chance in years to beat Penn St. but will fall short. Penn St. by 10.

Northern Colorado @ Michigan St. (25)

Spartans win easy at home by 33.

In other games:

N.C. St. @ Georgia Tech

Wolfpack to get an upset win in Atlanta by 3.

Va Tech @ Boston College

Hokies start ACC slate with a road win by 16.

VMI @ Virginia

Cavs by 38.

FCS (Division 1-AA) games:

Howard @ Morgan St.

Morgan St. to win backyard brawl by 6.

Drake @ Valparaiso

Good luck to the Crusaders and Eli Crawford but in reality Drake by 30.

N. C. A&T @ N. C. Central

Aggies by 8.

That will do it for this week...tune in to a few games or get out and support the teams in your area!!!!

Back for more...

Friday Night High School Football Picks

After a horrible week, I'm looking for a little redemption from this weeks slate of games throughout Timesland. I did go 8-3 in selected games involving Piedmont District schools and a few others . Currently I am 72-34 for the season, two games behind forecaster Robert Anderson from the Roanoke Times.

Ok, this week we have:

Franklin County @ Bassett

Bassett's Bengals face another tough AAA team and will be slightly over matched at home. Eagles by 18.

Halifax County @ Martinsville

The AAA Blue Comets are very much an unknown quantity but should get by Martinsville in a close one by 8.

Lord Botetourt @ Patrick County

This one could get ugly as the visiting Cavaliers should wear down the Cougars by 22.

William Campbell @ Magna Vista

Magna Vista by 14 or more at home.

Bluestone @ Tunstall

The Trojans come in reeling from a 50-0 shellacking at the hands of Gretna. Bluestone is unknown but I will take them over Tunstall by 12.

In other games of interest:

Amherst County @ Liberty

Minutemen by 6.

Blacksburg @ Patrick Henry-Roanoke

Patriots get by a pesky AA team by 8.

Carlisle @ Kenston Forest

Chiefs will still be searching for a first win after losing this one by 7.

Pulaski County @ William Fleming

Fleming finally gets a “W” in a close one by 4.

Gretna @ Radford

Should be a thriller, picking the Hawks by 8 on the road.

Northside @ Salem

Salem taking this marquis game by 3.

Ok, not branching out too much this week. College games coming up!!!

There is a Friday night game featuring TCU (4) @ SMU where I will take TCU by 20.

Quick Review

Looking back at last week

The thud that you heard last week was none other than myself falling back to earth prediction wise!! In high schools, I went a woeful 13-14 on: http://www.roanoke.com/sports/highschool/varsitycast , NCAA Wise, I went a reasonable 13-7 at: http://roanoke.com/forecasters. In my general ChuckPicks for NCAA games I was 24-5 so maybe not such a bad week. My NFL week was 10-6.

Among last weeks excitement was the unreal finishes at Auburn where the Tigers won a thriller over Clemson and Michigan State's gutsy fake field goal win over Notre Dame.

I will be doing my major predictions later today but first up for Thursday's NCAA...I mistakenly had Miami visiting Pitt predicted for last week so I'll just transfer it to this weeks picks:

Miami, Fla. (19) @ Pitt

'Canes bounce back in their second tough away game, winning by 6.

Ok, I'm off to get ready for some football!!!!!!!

Rounding out the weekend.....

And Now, the NFL

Before I actually get into my NFL picks, how about the Clemson @ Auburn and

Notre Dame @ Michigan State games in the NCAA?? Yes, football season is in full swing. Also good to see Va Tech get in the win column.

Ok, now the NFL, I'm looking to follow last weeks 12-4 start with another strong showing. Here we go:

Baltimore @ Cincinnati

Ravens to follow on from last weeks win in New York by 21-13.

Chicago @ Dallas

Tread carefully Cowboys, an 0-2 start would start the implosion, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. Cowboys 24-20.

Philadelphia @ Detroit

Vick to start quarterback debate after leading Eagles to 27-10 win.

Arizona @ Atlanta

Falcons lost a toughie last week but will bounce back by winning 27-17.

Kansas City @ Cleveland

Chiefs will prove last week was no fluke on the road and beat the Browns 31-21.

Buffalo @ Green Bay

Weird that these two face each other in relatively warm weather. Packers by 40-10.

Pittsburgh @ Tennessee

Steelers will need a little more than just defense in this one, Titans 24-10.

Tampa Bay @ Carolina

The Bucs off to 2-0 start?? Hmm...ok, Tampa Bay 21-10.

Miami @ Minnesota

Viking will continue to struggle but will just get by at home 20-17.

St. Louis @ Oakland

The battle of Los Angeles!! Rams will find going tough in Oakland. Raiders 27-17.

Seattle @ Denver

Seahawks go for win on the road against the Broncs and get it in a close one 30-27.

Houston @ Washington

The 'Skins will be 1-1 versus Texas after this one with the decider in Dallas later in the year. Texans 23-20.

New England @ NY Jets

The Jets are still talking a good game that belies an 0-2 start, Pats 24-14.

Jacksonville @ San Diego

Ok Bolts, time to bounce back, let's do it by say 28-17.

NY Giants @ Indianapolis

Little brother to send big brothers team reeling from an 0-2 start. Giants 27-21.

New Orleans @ San Francisco

Another “lesson” for the 49ers, Saints by 20-7.

Ok, I'm off to catch a few winks before the games come on here at 3am local time.

College Footy weekend!!!

My NCAA picks for the week

This week I'm looking to improve on last weeks NCAA picking. So, I'll cut to the chase and get to it. Last week, I went 11-9 in picks at: http://roanoke.com/forecasters/ , hopefully I'll be slightly better this week but may be stumped by lack of knowledge where schools from Division 3 are concerned. But here we go with this weeks look:

Alabama (1) @ Duke

I can't foresee anything good for the ACC in this one...if only it was on the hardwood. The Tide should roll through Durham easily by at least 38.

Ohio @ Ohio St. (2)

Buckeyes too good in this state rivalry. Ohio State by 45.

Boise St. (3) @ Wyoming

The Broncs will buck their way to a win over the Cowboys by 23.

Baylor @ TCU (4)

Though Baylor comes in with a 2-0 record, the Frogs should notch an all important win over a BCS school by 12.

Portland St. @ Oregon (5)

Let the quacking commence, Ducks by 50.

Texas (6) @ Texas Tech

Could be a tricky one for the Horns against the Red Raiders...Texas by 8.

Air Force @ Oklahoma(7)

The Falcons will look to keep it respectable in this one. Sooners by 24.

Nebraska (8) @ Washington

Ok, out on the limb I go, Huskies by 6.

Iowa (9) @ Arizona (24)

Tough task on the road for Iowa, they may wilt in the desert, Arizona by 2.

Florida (10) @ Tennessee

Gators get an important conference win by 12.

Arizona st. @ Wisconsin (11)

Another PAC 10/Big 10 clash, Badgers to take this one at home by 17.

Arkansas (12) @ Georgia

Razorbacks look to hand Bulldogs loss #2 at home....hmm...Bulldogs bounce back by 4.

Furman @ South Carolina (13)

No trouble for the Gamecocks here by say, 30 or so.

Utah (14) @ New Mexico

Utes look to put up Oregon type numbers against Lobos, Utah by 55.

Mississippi St. @ LSU (15)

LSU by 6.

Clemson @ Auburn (16)

Auburn's version of the Tigers to win this one by 8.

Miami, Fla. (17) @ Pitt

'Canes bounce back in their second tough away game, winning by 6.

USC (18) @ Minnesota

Advantage to the PAC 10 in this one. Trojans by 32.

Wake Forest @ Stanford (19)

Cardinal to avenge last years loss in Winston-Salem by 19.

UMass @ Michigan (20)

Wolverines get an easy one at home by 33.

Maryland @ West Virginia (21)

Mountaineers too strong for the Terps in this border battle. Mountaineers by 10.

Kent St. @ Penn St. (22)

Could be a close one in this Ohio/Pennsylvania battle. Penn State by 4.

Houston (23) @ UCLA

Ahh...for a Lew Alcindor/Elvin Hayes battle on the hardwood.....oops, might be a decent football game too...Houston by 6.

Louisville @ Oregon St. (25)

Beavers by 13.

Other interesting matchups:

Georgia Tech @ North Carolina

Carolina by 3 at home.

East Carolina @ Va Tech

Hokies finally get a win by 7.

BYU @ Florida St.

Seminoles by 13.

Northwestern @ Rice

A team wearing purple will win this one!! Lets make it the Northwestern shade by 9.

Some FCS games include:

Elon @ Richmond

Richmond by 4 at home in a battle of two Top 10 FCS teams.

William&Mary @ Old Dominion

W&M by 31.

Grab your snacks and remotes, have a good weekend!!!

Friday Night Lights!!!

High school football time

Yep, Friday is upon us and that means high school football time so lets turn to Virginia's Timesland again to see what's in store. Firstly in the Piedmont District where Magna Vista is off to an impressive start.

This weeks games include:

Christiansburg @ Bassett

The Bengals face another tough task at home and will be looking to upset the Blue demons but apparently Christiansburg is the real deal this season so I pick them to beat the Bengals by 21.

Gretna @ Tunstall

Gretna is pretty much an unknown quantity to me this season but may win this Pittsylvania County matchup by 12.

Liberty @ Martinsville

I was wrong about the 'Dogs last week but they face a tougher task this week but should make a game of it. Liberty by 8.

Magna Vista @ Franklin County

This should be a doozy...expect the Warriors to sneak by in a close one by 4.

Patrick County @ Staunton River

The Cougars are still searching for a “W” and will continue their search after this one which they will lose by 10 or more.

Other games of interest include:

Carlise @ Virginia Espiscopal

I will go with the safe pick of the home team in this battle of the winless by 3.

Amherst County @ G.W. Danville

Going with the Eagles to spring one on the Lancers by 6.

William Fleming @ E.C. Glass

An early season rematch that sees Fleming looking to avenge a loss in Roanoke and get their first win. Fleming by 10.

Northside @ Blacksburg

Vikes by 20.

Patrick-Henry Roanoke @ Cave Spring

Patriots by 6.

Salem @ William Byrd

Salem by 24.

Ok, get out and support the local product, if I was in the area I would. Good luck to all.

Looking back to last week...

Weekly Review

First up....looking back at my high school picks from last week, I went a surprising 10 right one wrong on my blog and 18-9 at:http://www.roanoke.com/sports/highschool/varsitycast which makes me 59-20 overall back in Timesland.

The one surprise of the week was the Martinsville Bulldogs 37-7 dismantling of Morehead, NC. Bassett was far better than predicted in beating Jefferson Forest and Magna Vista looked strong against AAA school William Fleming.

In my NCAA picks last week, none of my upset specials really panned out although I did get Air Force over BYU, Michigan over Notre Dame and South Carolina over Georgia. Unfortunately, I was way off base in picking Va Tech, Ga Tech, Miami and Florida State. Oh well we always can depend on ACC basketball for dominance.

My new ChuckPack Top 10:

1. Alabama (2)
2. Ohio State (5)
3. TCU (6)
4. Oregon (-)
5. Texas (8)
6. Florida (1)
7. Boise St. (7)
8. Oklahoma (9)
9. Iowa (10)
10. Nebraska (-)

Dropped out:

Va Tech

Miami, Fla.

Finally in the NFL, I went 12-4, wrongly guessing victories for Dalls, San Francisco, Atlanta and my beloved Chargers...oh well we shall bounce back. But, I was brazen enough to predict the Texans over the Colts and the Ravens over the Jets.

This weeks predictions will be up in the next day or so.

NCAA Time

Interesting games on Saturday slate

Saturday's NCAA football slate is full of interesting games that may have a say as to who goes where in the BCS games at seasons end. Among the more enticing matchups are Florida State @ Oklahoma, Penn State @ Alabama, Georgia @ South Carolina, Michigan @ Notre Dame and BYU @ Air Force.

Here is my current ChuckPack (Top 10)

1. Florida (2)
2. Alabama (4)
3. Miami, Fla. (3)
4. Ohio State (5)
5. Va Tech (1)
6. TCU (6)
7. Boise St. (7)
8. Texas (8)
9. Oklahoma (9)
10. Iowa (10)

Weekend predictions:

Rankings in parenthesis are from the Associated Press Top 25.

Alabama (1) over Penn State by 8

Miami (12) upsets Ohio St. by 4

TCU (4) by many … say 48 over Tenn Tech

Texas (5) destroying Wyoming by 36

Nebraska (6) showing no mercy to Idaho Huskers by 46

Oregon (7) by 17 at Tennessee

Florida (8) over South Florida by 23

Iowa (9) over in state rival Iowa St. by 19

Florida St. (17) upsetting Oklahoma (10) by 2

Va Tech (13) by 45 over James Madison

Arkansas (14) beating LA-Monroe by 28

Ga Tech (15) 36 better than Kansas

USC (16) over Virginia by 30

LSU (18) beating Vanderbilt by 18

Utah (19) over UNLV by 26

South Carolina (24) over Georgia (22) by 8

Stanford (25) beating UCLA by 12

Michigan over Notre Dame by 3

West Virginia over Marshall by 30

Air Force beating BYU by 6

Washington over Syracuse by 20

Ok...have a good weekend and settle in for some action, enjoy.

High Scool Football time.....

Friday Night Football Time

It is Friday, time for some high school football. And of course I will be tracking the Roanoke Times for the latest from Timesland and the Piedmont District.

Ok, straight to the Piedmont:

Bassett @ Jefferson Forest

The Bengals come off of a competitive loss to Patrick Henry (Roanoke) last week and could be dangerous for Jefferson Forest. I'll take the Bengals by 6.

Martinsville @ Morehead, NC

The Panthers should account for the Bulldogs by 12 at home.

Patrick County @ Floyd County

The Cougars are still searching for their first win of the season. The search will continue next week. Floyd County by 20.

Tunstall @ Chatham

Another backyard Pittsylvania County battle for the Trojans who should manage to get into the win column by 8.

William Fleming @ Magna Vista

A big one for the Warriors who look to go to 3-0 on the season. Fleming is coming off of a tough home loss to E.C. Glass but Magna Vista should get by in a close one by 4.

Other notable games include:

Fuqua @ Carlise

The Chiefs are still looking for a win but will lose by at least 10.

G.W. Danville @ E.C. Glass

The Eagles should win in Lynchburg by 12.

Pulaski County @ Patrick Henry-Roanoke

The Patriots by 14.

William Byrd @ Brookville

The Terriers go to Brookville for a pounding by at least 30.

Carroll County @ Christiansburg

Christiansburg by 6 in a close one.

Cave Spring @ Northside

Always an intense battle but taking the Vikings by 3.

Have fun out at the games and if anyone has any pics that they don't mind me posting send them my way.

Now the NFL

NFL Season Kicks off

After an exciting start to high school and college seasons around the country, the NFL kicks off its season on Thursday night (Friday morning Aussie time). Will the Saints be able to repeat?? Will the Colts bounce back?? Will the Cowboys return to glory?? Can the Chargers or Jets get over the hurdle into the Super Bowl?? Are the Steelers doomed??

The answers will start to come clear with the action kicking off on Thursday night. In a rematch of last seasons NFC Championship match, Brett Farve's Minnesota Vikings will visit NFL Champs New Orleans. Other interesting first week matches will see Cincinnati @ New England, Indianapolis @ Houston, Atlanta @ Pittsburgh, Green Bay @ Philadelphia, Baltimore @ NY Jets and San Diego @ Kansas City.

Here is my prognostication as to how the season may pan out:

AFC East

New England 9-7 x

NY Jets 9-7

Miami 9-7

Buffalo 2-14

AFC North

Baltimore 10-6 x

Pittsburgh 10-6 *

Cincinnati 7-9

Cleveland 3-13

AFC South

Indianapolis 13-3 x

Tennessee 13-3 *

Houston 9-7

Jacksonville 8-8

AFC West

San Diego 10-6 x

Denver 8-8

Oakland 5-11

Kansas City 4-12

NFC East

Dallas 11-5 x

NY Giants 11-5 *

Washington 6-10

Philadelphia 5-11

NFC North

Green Bay 11-5 x

Minnesota 10-6

Chicago 8-8

Detroit 2-14

NFC South

New Orleans 13-3 x

Atlanta 12-4 *

Tampa Bay 4-12

Carolina 3-13

NFC West

Arizona 10-6 x

San Francisco 8-8

Seattle 6-10

St. Louis 5-11

Note:

Teams marked with an x are predicted conference winners and the * denotes predicted Wild Card teams.

Predicted Conference Champions:

AFC – Tennessee

NFC – New Orleans

Super Bowl Winner:

Tennessee Titans

Ok, I'm sure there are lots of differing opinions but I have put my predictions out there for all to see.

Week 1 Game Predictions:

New Orleans 31-Minnesota 20

Jacksonville 30-Denver 27

Tennessee 41-Oakland 13

New England 21-Cincinnati 10

Tampa Bay 17-Cleveland 7

Houston 24-Indianapolis 23

Chicago 31-Detroit 10

Atlanta 27-Pittsburgh 10

Miami 40-Buffalo 10

NY Giants 30-Carolina 13

Green Bay 28-Philadelphia 14

Arizona 24-St. Louis 10

San Francisco 24-Seattle 20

Dallas 27-Washington 17

Baltimore 17-NY Jets 13

San Diego 24-Kansas City 20

Ok, that is all for now....more High School and college on the way tomorrow.