College Football Top 25: Week 13

Redshirt junior Kylen Towner and Western Kentucky reach the top 25 for the first time this year after a 60-6 trouncing of Marshall. (Marcus Constantino/Charleston Gazette-Mail)

1. Alabama (12-0)
2. Ohio State (11-1)
3. Clemson (11-1)
4. Washington (11-1)
5. Wisconsin (10-2)
6. Michigan (10-2)
7. Oklahoma (9-2)
8. Penn State (10-2)
9. Colorado (10-2)
10. Oklahoma State (9-2)
11. Southern Cal (9-3)
12. West Virginia (9-2)
13. Florida State (9-3)
14. Western Michigan (12-0)
15. Navy (9-2)
16. Virginia Tech (9-3)
17. Auburn (8-4)
18. South Florida (10-2)
19. Florida (8-3)
20. Louisville (9-3)
21. Stanford (9-3)
22. Boise State (10-2)
23. Nebraska (9-3)
24. Western Kentucky (9-3)
25. Pittsburgh (8-4)
Dropped: Houston (16), Tennessee (17), North Carolina (23), Utah (24); New/returned: West Virginia, Stanford, Western Kentucky, Pittsburgh

NFL PICKS! Week 12

Last week: 12-2
Year to date: 96-65 (.596)

(Home teams denoted in bold.)

Russell Wilson and the Seahawks are playing lights-out football in November. They take on Tampa Bay Sunday. (Dean Rutz/The Seattle Times)

Thursday, November 24 - Thanksgiving

Minnesota (6-4) 21, Detroit (6-4) 20
The Vikings are unbeatable when their defense plays at the level it did against Arizona. When their defense puts on an average performance or worse, the Vikings can't expect Sam Bradford to pick up that slack.

Dallas (9-1) 26, Washington (6-3-1) 26
Give Tony Romo credit, he's saying exactly what he needs to say during the #Dakstreak (is that a hashtag yet? If not, it is now). But you know it's going to kill him to have to sit on the bench during the Cowboys' Thanksgiving Day game, given Romo's propensity for big-time Thanksgiving performances.

Pittsburgh (5-5) 26, Indianapolis (5-5) 24
In the Thanksgiving nightcap, two teams who are struggling to find a winning routine will have a playoff mentality going into gameplay. Whichever team wins this game may find the boost it needs to rise to a division crown in December.

Sunday, November 27

New Orleans (4-6) 23, Los Angeles (4-6) 21
The Saints nearly came back in Charlotte last week. The Rams blew a 10-point lead at home with Snoop Dogg in the house. Mentioning Snoop Dogg serves absolutely no purpose, but the Saints will win in the Superdizzle on Sunday.

Tennessee (5-6) 24, Chicago (2-8) 20
The Titans are playing lights-out offense, with Marcus Mariota, DeMarco Murray and Delanie Walker all putting up Pro Bowl-caliber numbers (to say nothing of the vastly improved offensive line). They should roll over the Bears at Soldier Field.

Atlanta (6-4) 26, Arizona (4-5-1) 24
The Falcons' offensive attack has slowed ever so slightly, but not enough to affect the pummelling they should be able to put on an underperforming Cardinal squad.

Giants (7-3) 24, Cleveland (0-11) 19
This might be Cleveland's one win. The Giants are playing underratedly well, so a slip-up against the worst team in the league should not be out of the question. I'm still picking New York and its All-Pro caliber defensive line, though.

San Diego (4-6) 26, Houston (6-4) 23
Here's your weekly reminder that the Chargers are still outscoring their opponents despite their losing record. Also, a Texans loss would make the AFC South race still look way closer than it should be.

Buffalo (5-5) 26, Jacksonville (2-8) 20
If the Bills are going to end their playoff drought this year, they are going to have to play near-perfect football the rest of the way. The Jaguars are a good doormat to start from.

Baltimore (5-5) 21, Cincinnati (3-6-1) 20
Could Marv Lewis be on the hot seat? Sure, he's en route to just his fourth losing season in 14 years coaching the Bengals, but the last time the Bengals had a losing record they hadn't come off a streak of five straight first-round playoff exits. His contract is up after this year as well.

Miami (6-4) 26, San Francisco (1-9) 21
Don't look now, but Miami is on a five-game winning streak. I say don't look because if you did, you'd see the Dolphins haven't played a team that is currently better than .500 since a week two loss at New England. They should extend it to six straight against the league's second-worst team.

Seattle (7-2-1) 24, Tampa Bay (5-5) 20
The Bucs may still sneak into the playoff picture, but Seattle is already playing postseason-quality football just past the mid-season point. Depending on the trajectory of each team, the next time they play each other could be a lot more meaningful - and this is far from a meaningless game.

New England (8-2) 26, Jets (3-7) 17
Another Sunday, another Patriots win in the AFC East. You think eventually they'll get tired of dominating this division, right?

Oakland (8-2) 26, Carolina (4-6) 24
As well as the Pats have been playing, Oakland currently holds the tiebreaker for first place in the entire American Conference. Wouldn't it be fun if the AFC Championship Game this year came down to a rematch of Tuck Rule?

Denver (7-3) 23, Kansas City (7-3) 21
Both of these teams have been playing exceptional defense. The defending champs still have the slight defensive edge, as well as home field advantage for the Sunday night showdown. Look forward to an exceptional primetime football game.

Monday, November 28

Philadelphia (5-5) 26, Green Bay (4-6) 21
It's P-A-N-I-C time in Titletown. Aaron Rodgers is still playing at around an A-minus level, but he is just about the only bright spot for a Packers team that has given up 40-plus points in two consecutive weeks, and at least 30 in five of their last six games.

NFL PICKS! Week 11

Coming in a little late with this one.

Last week: 9-5
To date: 84-63 (.571)

Home teams in bold. Bye week teams: San Diego, NY Jets, Denver, Atlanta

Pro bowler Delanie Walker and the Titans are trying to get above .500 by snapping an eight-game losing streak in Indianapolis. (Donn Jones/Associated Press)

Quick picks:

Carolina over New Orleans
Minnesota over Arizona
Buffalo over Cincinnati
Giants over Chicago
Pittsburgh over Cleveland
Kansas City over Tampa Bay
Dallas over Baltimore
Detroit over Jacksonville
Tennessee over Indianapolis
Miami over Los Angeles
New England over San Francisco
Seattle over Philadelphia
Washington over Green Bay
Oakland over Houston (game in Mexico City)

College Football Top 25: Week 12

Senior Justin Davis and USC are making a late push for the postseason. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times)

1. Alabama (11-0)
2. Ohio State (10-1)
3. Michigan (10-1)
4. Clemson (10-1)
5. Washington (10-1)
6. Wisconsin (9-2)
7. Louisville (9-2)
8. Oklahoma (9-2)
9. Western Michigan (11-0)
10. Colorado (9-2)
11. Penn State (9-2)
12. Auburn (8-3)
13. Oklahoma State (9-2)
14. Southern Cal (8-3)
15. Florida (8-2)
16. Houston (9-2)
17. Tennessee (8-3)
18. Nebraska (9-2)
19. Florida State (8-3)
20. Boise State (10-1)
21. Navy (8-2)
22. Virginia Tech (8-3)
23. North Carolina (8-3)
24. Utah (8-3)
25. South Florida (9-2)
Dropped: San Diego State (16), LSU (17), West Virginia (18), Washington State (23), Troy (24); New/Returned: Houston, Tennessee, Virginia Tech, North Carolina, South Florida

College Football Top 25: Week 11

Senior Zach Terrell and Western Michigan continue to shine as one of two undefeated teams left in FBS play. (David Dermer/Associated Press)

1. Alabama (10-0)
2. Ohio State (9-1)
3. Louisville (9-1)
4. Michigan (9-1)
5. Clemson (9-1)
6. Washington (9-1)
7. Wisconsin (8-2)
8. Oklahoma (8-2)
9. Western Michigan (10-0)
10. Colorado (8-2)
11. Penn State (8-2)
12. Auburn (7-3)
13. Southern Cal (7-3)
14. Oklahoma State (8-2)
15. Utah (8-2)
16. San Diego State (9-1)
17. Louisiana State (6-3)
18. West Virginia (8-1)
19. Florida (7-2)
20. Nebraska (8-2)
21. Florida State (7-3)
22. Boise State (9-1)
23. Washington State (8-2)
24. Troy (8-1)
25. Navy (7-2)
Dropped: Virginia Tech (13), North Carolina (15), Texas A&M (16), Arkansas (21); New/Returned: USC, LSU, Troy, Navy

NFL PICKS! Week 10

Last week: 7-6 (no ties!)
Year to date: 75-58 (.564)

Home team denoted in bold. Bye week teams (I remembered this time!): Oakland, Indianapolis, Detroit, Buffalo

Darren Sproles and the Eagles will try to get back on track against the NFC South-leading Atlanta Falcons Sunday. (Michael Perez/Associated Press)

Thursday, November 10

Baltimore (4-4) 26, Cleveland (0-9) 19
The AFC South has been getting a lot of grief in the past few seasons, but it's currently the AFC North that hosts four teams at .500 or worse. The Ravens will change that with a win over the pathetic Cleveland Browns.

Sunday, November 13

Kansas City (6-2) 24, Carolina (3-5) 23
The outlook for Carolina is significantly less bleak than it was two or three weeks ago. The Panthers have a long road ahead if they're trying to get back to the playoffs this year, though.

Denver (6-3) 27, New Orleans (4-4) 24
The Broncos will rebound easily from the Monday night loss in Oakland by picking up a crucial road victory in the Superdome.

Los Angeles (3-5) 21, Jets (3-6) 20
The Rams' slide will stop, but that doesn't mean Fisher should keep sticking with Case Keenum. Speaking of quarterback controversies, the Jets desperately need their week 13 bye - which, by the way, is ridiculously late in the season, #ThanksGoodell - to figure out what they're doing with Ryan Fitzpatrick.

Green Bay (4-4) 26, Tennessee (4-5) 24
The Packers *must* find some semblance of rhythm. It might not come with a one-score win over the notedly improved Titans.

Philadelphia (4-4) 27, Atlanta (6-3) 26
The Eagles desperately need to get on track if they have any hope of staying competitive in a division whose worst team is .500, and best team is the 7-1 Cowboys. An upset win over the Falcons could give Philly just the momentum boost it needs to jumpstart the second half of the season.

Minnesota (5-3) 21, Washington (4-3-1) 20
When the Redskins win the week before an election, the incumbent party wins on Tuesday. When the Redskins lose, the opposition party wins. When the Redskins are on a bye the week after tying in London, Donald Trump happens. #ThanksGoodell.

Houston (5-3) 21, Jacksonville (2-6) 20
I'm not saying the AFC South is bad; I'm saying a one-point win by the division's best team over the division's worst is highly probable.

Chicago (2-6) 24, Tampa Bay (3-5) 23
Throughout the first half of the season, I was calling the Buccaneers a surprise playoff contender. Now I'm saying they'll lose at home to two-win Chicago. Funny ol' world, ain't it?

San Diego (4-5) 26, Miami (4-4) 24
The Chargers, who - thanks in large part to Jacksonville - have been outscoring opponents on average despite holding a losing record, will finally hit that .500 mark they've been craving all season.

Arizona (3-4-1) 27, San Francisco (1-7) 19
Apparently Colin Kaepernick neither voted in this year's election, nor cared about the result. I'm no expert, but I think to be a political activist you actually have to take part in the political process. Otherwise you are a whiny, overpaid douchebag who is barely good enough to play quarterback at the top professional level.

Dallas (7-1) 24, Pittsburgh (4-4) 20
A win at Heinz Field already doubles the Cowboys' 2015 win total with almost an entire half of a season left to play. What a difference a couple of draft picks sometimes makes.

New England (7-1) 23, Seattle (5-2-1) 19
If it's a goal-to-go situation late and the game is close, Pete Carroll won't even think about throwing. Belichick knows this and will stop the run, making the Patriots victorious over Seattle yet again.

Monday, November 14

Giants (5-3) 23, Cincinnati (3-4-1) 21
Don't look now, but Eli(te) Manning and the Giants are starting to make a serious playoff push under first-year head coach Ben McAdoo. We'll call this one the Return of the Mac. Maybe.

College Football Top 25: Week 10

Sophomore Saquon Barkley and Penn State proved they belong in the top 15 with a 41-14 beatdown of Iowa. (Brett Carlsen/Getty)

1. Alabama (9-0)
2. Michigan (9-0)
3. Clemson (9-0)
4. Washington (9-0)
5. Ohio State (8-1)
6. Louisville (8-1)
7. Auburn (7-2)
8. Wisconsin (7-2)
9. Oklahoma (7-2)
10. Western Michigan (9-0)
11. Colorado (7-2)
12. Penn State (7-2)
13. Virginia Tech (7-2)
14. Oklahoma State (7-2)
15. North Carolina (7-2)
16. Texas A&M (7-2)
17. San Diego State (8-1)
18. West Virginia (7-1)
19. Utah (7-2)
20. Florida (6-2)
21. Arkansas (6-3)
22. Nebraska (7-2)
23. Boise State (8-1)
24. Florida State (6-3)
25. Washington State (7-2)
Dropped: Baylor (12), Louisiana State (19), Wyoming (23); New/Returned: San Diego State, Arkansas, Washington State

NFL PICKS! Week Nine

(Midseason update: I predicted the Steelers to beat Atlanta in the Super Bowl as part of my midseason assessment. I had previously chosen the Vikings to beat Pittsburgh in my quarter-season assessment. Check back for my homestretch championship pick on December 7.)

Last week: 8-5 (Counting the Cincinnati-Washington tie as a prognosticatory loss. Lots of sisters have been kissed recently.)
Year to date: 68-52 (.567)

Amari Cooper and Derek Carr may not be all smiles after the Broncos defense comes to town Sunday night. (Kim Klement/USA TODAY Sports)

Thursday, November 3

Atlanta (5-3) 30, Tampa Bay (3-4) 24
The Bucs are a team on the rise, but their playoff hopes for 2016 are beginning to dwindle. If they win at home tonight, I'll probably go back to calling them my dark horse wild card candidate.

Sunday, November 6

Minnesota (5-2) 21, Detroit (4-4) 19
The Vikings need to figure out what's going on, and figure it out fast. Three straight losses, including two within the NFC North, could sink the ship quickly in Minnesota.

Pittsburgh (4-3) 23, Baltimore (3-4) 20
As Daveed Diggs once said (OK, he actually sang it, and eight times a week for about a year at that): "The sun comes up and the world still spins." This will be yet another bloodbath in what is probably the best rivalry in the NFL.

Miami (3-4) 23, Jets (3-5) 21
I'm not really sure what's going on in the AFC East, except for the Patriots kicking ass and taking names of everyone else in the league. Whichever team wins this game will cruise to a comfortable 8-8 record as a rung on New England's step ladder.

Dallas (6-1) 28, Cleveland (0-8) 19
My official prediction is Dallas will win. But this has all the indications of an upset. The Browns have no business even being competitive against the Cowboys, which is code for "they'll come out of nowhere." It also sounds quite like the sports gods to give Cleveland an essentially meaningless win against the best team in the NFC immediately after taking game seven of the World Series away from the Indians. So while my mantra is "never pick the Browns," don't be surprised when they win.

Kansas City (5-2) 26, Jacksonville (2-5) 20
The word out of Northeast Florida is that it's all downhill for the Jags. They have no skis, no padding, and no snow, and have lost all sense of balance so they're hitting every body part, hard, multiple times on the fall down.

Philadelphia (4-3), 23 Giants (4-3) 17
The Cowboys team that Philly lost to last week is legit. The Washington and Detroit squads that beat the Eagles three and four weeks ago, respectively, are decent. Still, Wentz and Co. are 1-3 since their early bye. In a division clearly owned by Dallas right now and a wide-open wild card race, any Eagles loss needs to be considered as huge.

Carolina (2-5) 24, Los Angeles (3-4) 23
Jeff Fisher used to be unbeatable coming out of the bye. Now he's looking like a mediocre coach who just had a really good team in Nashville 12 to 17 years ago but is past any semblance of his prime. The Panthers aren't good, but they are coming off a big win against Arizona. That should give them just a bit of confidence heading into a winnable contest.

New Orleans (3-4) 30, San Francisco (1-6) 26
These are the league's two worst scoring defenses so expect a whole lot of points on the board at Candlest...er, Levi's. And if the Bucs can win against Atlanta, the Saints would suddenly be tied with Tampa just half a game out of first place in the NFC South.

San Diego (3-5) 26, Tennessee (4-4) 24
Welcome to the "Our Signature Win Of 2016 Came Against The Lowly Jags" club. Population: these teams. This game gives the Titans a chance to go above .500 for the first time since the first game of last season, but the Chargers will keep that from happening.

Green Bay (4-3) 27, Indianapolis (3-5) 24
Moving on to the "Not Living Up To Expectations At All" club, the Packers and Colts have both regressed since appearing in their respective conferences' championship games two short years ago. The Colts have clearly regressed more, and with the Vikings struggling a win at Lambeau puts Green Bay right back in the thick of the NFC North race.

Denver (6-2) 26, Oakland (6-2) 21
Are the Raiders actually one of the four best teams in the NFL, as their record suggests? Maybe, but they have to prove themselves against one of the most underrated defenses of all time (Do the Broncos even have someone playing quarterback this year? That's how good that defense is.) at home in prime time in order for me to believe it.

Monday, November 7

Buffalo (4-4) 21, Seattle (4-2-1) 20
If the Bills can beat last year's two conference runners up in back-to-back weeks, anything is possible. Including the fact that I may be relying far too much on those two games in my assessment of the Buffalo Bills thus far in 2016.