2022: 7
2021: 6
2020: 7
2019: 5
2018: 5
2017: 6
2016: 7
2015: 7
2014: 9
2013: 1
2012: 10
2011: 7
Those are my results for the first week every year. That is an average of 6.42. And you know what? I have won this thing six times, so there is no need to panic. Guess how many I got last week? 5. Yikes, slightly below average. Also brings my average down to 6.31.
Sean was the best with 8, followed by Gideon and Jason with 7, then Jon with 6. No one was all that impressive, which means I can catch up after week two.
Underdog Special: Las Vegas Raiders (+9.5)
Yeah, I was wrong last week about the Steelers. The Raiders beat the Broncos, who some people think will be good this year. We all saw the Bills against the Jets. I do not think the Raiders defense is on par with the Jets, but I also think Josh Allen will try to do too much, and make mistakes. The Bills will win, but it will only be by one touchdown.
Underdog Special Record: 0-1 (-$5.00)
Steelers Prediction: I think the Browns win this game. The Steelers offense was awful in week one, they need to figure things out. I feel like we need to combine Kenny Pickett and Josh Allen. Hear me out a second. Josh Allen throws an interception, he comes back out and has no problem throwing it deep. Pickett makes a mistake, and it feels like he becomes timid, starts throwing the shorter more sure passes. Or maybe this is all on the OC.
The first rant of the season has to deal with college football. Specifically fans complaining about teams playing FCS schools. I understand the frustration. This past week Penn State played Delaware. It is not fun watching your favorite team just destroy some small school that is nowhere near the level of a big FBS program.
Personally, I like these games. But under certain conditions. If you only get three non-conference games, I think having one FCS game is a good tune-up for the season. But, you need to have it within the first three weeks. I hate when SEC teams have their FCS games toward the end of the season. That is like an extra bye week, where they can rest guys who are hurt. There is no preseason in college football, so a FCS game is a great opportunity to try things.
I love seeing players who may not get a chance all year, get in the game and make plays. Good time to give a third string QB some reps. And you know what? Every so often, a ranked team loses to one of those teams. *cough cough Michigan cough cough*
These games are important to those FCS schools. They get money to play a big school. Youngstown State receives $800,000 to play Ohio State. The last numbers I could find on the YSU Athletic Department budget puts that at about 5% of the entire sports budget. Definitely worth it for those FCS schools. That game probably pays for one sport’s entire year.
Also, this is an opportunity for the kids to play in a big-time stadium. Delaware’s stadium holds 22,000 fans. It has to be a cool thing to play in front of 108,000 people. Plus, the bands get to travel to these big schools and showcase their talents (I think, Delaware’s website says they took the volunteer pep band, whatever that means).
So yeah, I will not complain about Penn State playing Delaware, Georgia beating up UT-Martin, or Pitt winning against Wofford. And hey, three FCS teams so far have won these matchups this year.
