Here are the games that I’m most interested in this week.

VIRGINIA TECH (-5) AT PITTSBURGH: Before I get started, how much quality Virginia “hempe” were they smoking when they decided that maroon and orange would look good together as school colors? I mean, the Hokies’s home unis look gawd-awful, like deer hunting on a Superfund site. Oh well. At least they aren’t trying to look like a cheesy corporate knockoff of Notre Dame.

Earlier this season, Virginia Tech Head Coach Frank Beamer called this the best team that he’s ever worked with. I believe him, insofar as this is the team that most closely adheres to Beamer’s particular philosophy of football — dubbed “Beamer Ball” by Tech’s media godparent ESPN. “Beamer Ball” — which emphasizes strong special teams, an opportunistic defense, and a slower-moving, ball-control offense — was executed to near perfection with sobering results in Virginia Tech’s rout of Miami last Saturday night.

Thus, when Virginia Tech has the ball, the Hokies are probably going to emphasize moving the ball on the ground as much as possible (against the Hurricanes, Tech rushed for 175 yards but passed for only 44). We’ll see a lot of their star running back (Chester, PA native and hall of fame Penn State tormentor) Kevin Jones (remember that hilarious press conference when he eschewed the Nittany Lions for Blacksburg?). Jones has been averaging 5.5 yards per carry, and is by far the best ball carrier that we’ll see this season (if not the best in the country). However, we’ll also see Tech’s quarterbacks Bryan Randall and (especially) Marcus Vick bolt out of the pocket from time to time. Will Pitt’s improving-but-still-average run defense be able to stop such a powerful running game backed up with the strongest offensive line in the conference? Of course not. But if Tech’s offense plays like it did against Miami and our defense plays like it did against Boston College and Syracuse, I think that we’ll be able to limit the Hokies’s offense to three or four touchdowns… not a big hole for our offense to dig out of, normally.

Thus, the outcome of this game will probably depend more on what happens when we have the ball. Last Saturday, Tech’s defensive line and linebackers skillfully pressured Miami’s quarterback (and more importantly, its coaching staff) into making one terrible decision after another. Tech’s secondary — featuring Eric Green, Vinnie Fuller, Jimmy Williams, and the absolute rocket DeAngelo Hall — then took full advantage of these bad decisions in spectacular fashion… including two of the prettiest scoop-and-score interceptions that I’ve seen all year. After they fooled the Hurricanes into thinking that they could neither pass nor pass protect, Tech’s defense then played lights out against the run (Miami only got 69 yards on the ground all day).

So we’re not going to be able to run much on these guys (not that we shouldn’t occasionally try). However, if our offensive line can protect Rod Rutherford, we should be able to complete some passes underneath to Kris Wilson and others. Plus, Larry Fitzgerald will always get his catches behind the secondary. Not even DeAngelo Hall can shut down Fitz all day (or in the second half, as it were), plus I’m betting that the Big East refs will keep Tech’s secondary mostly off of our receivers after last week’s scandal. So in the end, I think that our offense should be able to score three or (if our offensive line plays its best game ever) four touchdowns on Tech’s defense.

To me, the keys to this game for Pitt are mostly in the trenches. Our offensive line must pass protect, and our defense must slow down Tech’s running game and give the ball back to our offense. Plus, our special teams must not make any mistakes, because the Hokies will more than likely score on them. Do I think that we can accomplish all of that? Not for four quarters, I don’t. We haven’t played that flawlessly all year.

So I’ll take the Hokies to cover a seemingly small five point spread. But cheer up, fellow Panther fans, because I suck! My record against the spread for the season is only 17-20. You didn’t want me picking the Panthers anyways (incidentally, Matt Hayes at the Sporting News picked Virginia Tech to win but not cover, and the Associated Press picked Pitt to win outright).

WEST VIRGINIA (+3.5) AT BOSTON COLLEGE: Like I said last week, I’m not so sure that West Virginia’s domination of Virginia Tech on October 22 was entirely a fluke or exclusively just another example of Tech self-destructing in the face of adversity. I think that the Mountaineers are for real (and I know their coach is). The Hoopies can run the ball effectively with Quincy Wilson, pass adequately with Rasheed Marshall, and dominate an opponent’s offensive line and running game with that weird-assed 3-3-5 defense (just ask Virginia Tech). Boston College, on the other hand, couldn’t even stop Pitt’s measly running game (we got 124 yards), let alone our aerial attack (364 yards). But our defense — which isn’t nearly as sound as West Virginia’s — was able to slow the Eagles offense down to a crawl.

In conclusion, how the hell is Boston College even favored here? Give me the Hoopies and the points.

MICHIGAN STATE (+7) AT OHIO STATE: In shredding the hearts of most Central Pennsylvanians last Saturday night (Joe Paterno and his staff allegedly broke down in tears in the locker room after the 21-20 last-minute loss to the defending national champions… Paterno then allegedly couldn’t sleep for three nights), Penn State demonstrated two key truths about the mighty Buckeyes: (1) don’t even think about running against them, and more importantly, (2) the Bucks can be vulnerable to short, underneath passes when they blitz a lot. If anybody can take advantage of this weakness, it is Michigan State’s brilliant quarterback Jeff Smoker.

So do you think that Ohio State’s equally brilliant Defensive Coordinator Mark Dantonio (who, incidentally, masterminded Michigan State’s upset of the then top-ranked Buckeyes in 1998) is going to be so stupid as to blitz Michigan State as often as he did Penn State? Of course not. Last week, I correctly predicted that the Big Ten’s Cinderella would lose her slipper to Michigan. This week, she’s gonna lose her dress. Gimme the Buckeyes to cover a measly seven point spread.

So this week, I got the Hokies, Hoopies, and Buckeyes — two to cover and one dog.

———————————————————————————–

Incidentally, does anybody else find it ironic that in expanding to become a better football conference, the ACC forced the Big East into becoming the nation’s best basketball conference? I mean, the ACC used to pride itself on having the best hoops in the country. But now, a league boasting UNC, Maryland, and (face it, mostly) Duke is no match for a league boasting Syracuse, UConn, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame, Marquette, Cincinnati, DePaul, and Louisville. Talk about selling out your roots. Of course, maybe we should all be reading this as further proof of how much more profitable football is than basketball.

———————————————————————————–

In the wake of the Big East Football Conference’s adding Louisville, Cincinnati, and South Florida (“GO BULLS!”), I still haven’t seen anything genuinely new out there as to whether or not the Big East will retain its automatic BCS bid after 2005. Please let me know if any of you spot any real news first.

Once again, my hopes of retaining this bid directly (without having to compete with the Mountain West or the MAC on a year-by-year basis) are dim. But there’s still hope.

Hail to a nice cold Saturday in Pittsburgh