Mill
Works USA
Major Hoople
'The Fearless Forecaster'
The
Tide takes on a Bayou Tiger this week. However, after a rather
lackluster average week, 12-7 , leaves room for improvement.
The
Major can be best described as being no genius. But, he does have an
opinion and wants it to be heard each week! His full name is Majot
Amos B. Hoople, considered to be the King of the Grumps for
outlandish college football predictions. It must have been with all
the retro television comeback shows like Murphy Brown, Hawaii Five O,
Magnum PI and McGyver that caused the Major's return.
The
'Major' first appeared as a cartoon character in a comic strip called
Our Boarding House. It ran in hundreds of newspapers across the
nation, from 1921 until 1984. The cartoon was so well received by the
public, that a weekly radio show ran for six seasons in the 1940s on
NBC.
The
syndicated college football prediction column started much later in
1968. The current Major Hoople writer remembers the column arriving
each week in his daily local newspaper sports section He used the
article as a preview for that week's slate of games. The people, back
then read newspapers where ink most of the time got on your hands
from turning the pages! A true contact sport of sorts...
The
writer of the column, Tom Peoples, the original Football Prediction
Wizard ended each column with :
Now
go on with my forecast. We will also...and enjoy the read.
You
know what they say about predictions? You can't be correct all the
time..but, egads, a 12-7 week means the guys with crooked noses be
after me to pay up from my loses! However, 26-10 overall the first
two weeks not that bad, not good either, Harumppph.....
Let's
review some of last week's picks and
my….wr...raaa...wronn...incorrect choices. Kaf-Kaff umm
selections.On the bright side, Georgia won big over Florida, Penn
State downed Iowa and Houston knocked off USF for the feature games.
But, the Eagles (in my own backyard) beat the Hurricanes of Miami.
The other notable wins for the Major were Kentucky, Notre Dame over
Navy in a big way, and Fresno State by a lot of points against the
Rainbows of Hawaii.
The
incorrect game predictions, (notice how I avoided the word losses?
Humm? Wait, I did use that loathsome word!) Stanford as the Cougars
of Washington State won by 3! SEC Rivals Mississippi State and Texas
A&M played a good game, Texas choked against Okie State, Purdue's
four game win streaked snapped by the Spartans of Michigan State.
Texas Tech climbed back into the Top 25 last week to then be over run
by Iowa State. The mild shocker of the week saw Arizona down Oregon
for the Ducks third loss of the year! Um-Kumph what a week!!!
Okay,
so the volatility of the records of many teams can be seen just like
the stock prices of companies on the New York Stock Exchange this
past month. Many highly regarded conferences already have most teams
with multiple losses in league play.
It
is funny as I write those past two sentences I realize I am watching
the country western movie, The Good the Bad and the Ugly with
actors Eli Wallach and Clint Eastwood. I imagine Wallach's character
now yelling out, “Blondie, who are the bad and ugly teams this
week?” The teams eliminated from the Mill Sports Top 25 Poll were
Iowa, Purdue, Texas Tech, USF, Texas A & M
and Oregon. However, Eastwood would strike a match off the top of a
tombstone, as he announces the good or new teams this week: Penn
State, Utah, Syracuse, BC, Army and Buffalo. The iconic actor looks
back and says, “Well, punk do you feel lucky, pull that trigger,
and make my day.” Maybe just the flashbacks I still receive from
the war..as I was in my dorm room most of the time in the 1960s hiding under the covers. I
dunno, or maybe from all those hits when I saw stars because maybe I
played without a helmet?
Here
are the movers in the poll by two or more spots. Ohio State,
Washington State, West Virginia, Kentucky, Houston, Utah State
(Egads...6 spot bump up!), UAB, Fresno State and UVA. While Texas
dropped 15 spots to #20 and Florida #22, from eleventh. Ouches all
around to them...One must wonder what happens this week as more teams are
dropping every week faster than flies at a horse barn...
Now
go on with my forecast:
#1
Alabama (8-0) visits #5 LSU (7-1), in what can be
considered an SEC elimination game for the Tigers. You youngsters
probably don't remember the Tide's dynamic duo QB's from the 1960s,
Namath and Stabler, well, the current signal callers Tagovailoa and
Hurts might be better! Tago has 25 passes for scores and no picks!!
Now that's a Hoople Heisman Hopeful Candidate. They also have four
backs with at least 55 carries this year. The reason because many
games are over at half time. Also the fact that Head Coach Saban known to rest
starters because of the talent on the bench.
The
Tigers defense will scratch and claw all game, but, alas their one
dimensional offense led by mediocre QB Barrow (53.8% completion rate)
will be Rolled over Saturday night, 26-10. Booyah..in the Bayou...
In
another SEC “Steel Cage WWE style Death Match” Georgia
visits Kentucky, as the Bulldogs offense needs to demonstrate
it can be up to the task. However, again we like the Wildcat chances
to win this game with athletic signal caller Wilson having a good
season with a completion percentage of 65%, 950 yards passing and
over 400 yards on the ground. They also have super back Snell (In the NFL
next year) with over 950 yards rushing behind a solid line. But, the
dogs from Georgia bully their way over the Wildcats, 38-27.
In
another elimination type of game in the Big 12 Conference, West Virginia with another
Hoople Heisman Hopeful Candidate, QB Will Grier with his 71%
completion average, 2200+ yards thrown and 25 TDS should handle the
rather at times inconsistent Texas Long Horn team. Ehlinger at
QB has 1877 yards through the air and 13 scores with only two
picks!!! The talented Long Horn gunslinger also has two wide outs with
each over 600 yards-Johnson and Humphery!!! “Holy Swann and
Stallworth, Batman...” Wrong comic book series, Commissioner
Gordon, as the Major's upset special has Texas over the Mountineers
45-42...
In
the fourth title bout,
Penn State #18
meets #4
Michigan at
the Big House. Plain and simple this game is about the Wolverine's
head man's ability to finally bring home the bacon for the Ann Arbor
based school. If, Captain Comeback's (His nick name in the NFL) team
can win out the rest of the year, why not become the version of
Seattle's Pete Carroll and bankroll another NFL head coach gig, maybe
in Cleveland? His team would make the playoffs, behind their only
loss to a maybe undefeated ND Irish team. The Wolverine's do not
disappoint this week with a high scoring affair, 38-30.
Here
are the other Top 25 Mill Sport USA poll game score predictions:
Miami
(OH) 36 @ (25) Buffalo 42
Temple
35 @ (6) UCF 31
Pitt
28 @ (17) UVA 34
Houston
(13) 39 @ SMU 27
Syracuse
(21) 30 @ WF 31
Nebraska
12 @ (9) Ohio State 45
Missouri
14 @ (22) Florida 19
BC
(23) 28 @ VT 24
Oklahoma
(8) 52 @ Texas Tech 36
ND
(3) 36 @ Northwestern 23
CAL
28 @ (10) Washington State 31
Utah
(19) 41 @ Arizona State 28
Louisville
13 @ (2) Clemson 56
UTSA
13 @ (15) UAB 45
Fresno
State (16) 42 @ UNLV 14
Utah
State (14) 58 @ Hawaii 24
MILLWORKS
USA.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL/TOP 25 POLL
Week 10
Team/Record/LR
- Alabama 8-0 1
- Clemson 8-0 2
- ND 8-0 3
- Michigan 7-1 4
- LSU 7-1 7
- UCF 7-0 6
- UGA 7-1 8
- Oklahoma 7-1 9
- Ohio State 7-1 11
- Washington State 7-1 13
- West Virginia 7-1 14
- Kentucky 7-1 15
- Houston 6-1 16
- Utah State 7-1 20
- UAB 7-1 21
- Fresno State 7-1 22
- UVA 6-2 24
- Penn State 6-2 NR
- Utah 6-2 NR
- Texas 6-2 5
- Syracuse 6-2 NR
- Florida 6-2 11
- Boston College 6-2 NR
- Army 6-2 NR
- Buffalo 7-1 NRHonorable Mentions: Troy, NIU, Northwestern, BSU, Mich St., LT, and Cincinnati.
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