Rice at Houston (-2.5) - 5:00pm Pacific
Cougar head coach Kim Helton is as likable as can be and has done a lot to help this football program. However, after back to back 3-8 seasons there may be a little sense of anxiety here. But Helton couldn't be feeling much better right now as he is returning 19 starters from last year! On offense the Cougars have one of the nations most exciting running backs in Ketrick Sanford who is now a senior and ready for a big season. New offensive coordinator promises to find more ways to get Sanford the ball. Helton is a former NFL offensive line coach and the offensive line is without question a strong point this year as four players return with starting experience and all 4 are very good. They have a huge weight advantage over Rice's defensive line. As well as run blocking they will be protecting up and coming junior QB Jason McKinley who threw for over 2400 yards last year. The Cougar defense held Cal, Minnesota, and UCLA to a COMBINED 127 rushing yards in their first three games last year before running into Tennessee and suffering some key injuries. They will be going with a new 4-2-5 defense this year aimed at pressuring the QB and preventing big plays. It should matchup well vs Rice's spread option/wishbone attack. The Cougars return 10 starters on defense and have even added some additional JC talent. More importantly, they have had ample time to prepare for Rice's unique attack. Rice is capable of putting up big numbers on the ground, but are very one dimensional as they only completed 39 passes in all of last year. Rice returned 9 starters on defense last year and still ended up 10th or worse in every WAC defensive category as they gave up 382 yards per game. This year they only return 5 starters on defense and could be in some real trouble. Rice is scheduled to start an unusually high 9 sophomores in this game! Owls have lost 6 of their last 7 road games dating back to 97. Cougars will be sky high for this nearby rival and they will be playing their first game in the newly renovated Robertson stadium. One minus is Houston lost their top returning wide receiver to injury in preseason practice. Everything else points to a Cougs win. Houston  2 UNITS   WIN 

Baylor (+4) at Boston College - 9:00am Pacific
We are looking for a mild upset here with the Bears. Kevin Steele is their third new head coach in the last four years. People cannot seem to say enough good things about him and word from Waco is that he has finally instilled some much needed confidence and unity in to this team. They have had some solid recruiting classes in recent years and there is definitely enough good talent to win here. Last year the offense struggled with rotating QB's and major offensive line shuffling throughout the season. This year they return 7 starters and two seasoned QB's who will both see action. The backfield is deep and talented and is now being coached by ex-Nebraska great Tommie Frazier. The Baylor defense was very inexperienced last year and gave up big numbers, but they return 10 starters this year! They are a speedy group and have a top notch CB in Gary Baxter (18 pass break ups last year). They will obviously be a much improved unit. It is important to note when looking at this teams record and stats on both sides of the ball that they played the nations #1 toughest schedule last year! Boston College lost just about everybody (8 starters, QB, top RB, top 2 WR's, 1st & 3rd round NFL picks from offensive line, etc...) from last years offense, yet they only scored 24.8ppg last year and had a 4-7 record to begin with. Their defense looks to be good on paper with 9 returning starters, but it was not very good to begin with either as they gave up 28.3ppg and leading tackler Brian Maye is gone from last year. The Eagles collapsed last year losing 7 of their final 8 games which is never a good sign. We look for an impressive opener and win from the new look Bears. Baylor  1 UNIT   WIN 

Louisville (-3) at Kentucky - 10:30am Pacific
After focussing on this game most of the week, we have determined that it will not be as easy of a game as it appears or as many handicappers have predicted. But, there is still just too much in favor of the Cardinals to not play them. If a heated instate rivalry was not enough, Louisville has built up 2 years of serious revenge motivation. In last years game they trailed UK 61-16 at one point and gave up 800+ yards in the grand opening of their new stadium. The year before they suffered a 38-24 setback that sent them tailspinning to a 1-10 season. Louisville returns 17 starters this year and most of them played significant roles in both games. Louisville scored almost 40 points per game last year and will start 5 all conference performers on offense including Heisman candidate Chris Redman at QB, All-American Ibn Green at TE, and speedy WR Arnold Jackson. It is obvious this team can and will score points. Defense has been a weakness, last year they were very young and suffered injuries throughout the season. This year they return 10 starters (Top 10 returning tacklers) and it will be their second year under coach John L. Smith. Improvement is expected. The secondary consists of two all conference performers which bodes well against pass happy Kentucky. Another positive is it will be their third time going up against UK's offense, they should be better prepared this time around. The Wildcats have lost QB Tim Couch and their offensive coordinator to the NFL. They also must replace 5 senior offensive lineman gone from last year and a pair of top notch receivers. None of which will be easy, especially this early in the season. Loss of projected starting WR Jimmy Robinson in the offseason will not help things either. The UK defense returns 8 starters, but regardless of what anyone says, defense is not a strong point of Hal Mumme coached teams. In Mumme's two years here the defense has given up an average of 32 points per game. Kentucky could give a good fight, but we see Louisville with advantages on both sides of the ball. With a very favorable schedule ahead, a win here could set the stage for a big year. Hunger, experience, and talent all in Louisville's favor. Cardinals get the job done. Louisville  1 UNIT  WIN