CFN Fearless Prediction: Cincy 26 USF 21

[Jim Johnson]

By Richard Cirminiello

CollegeFootballNews.com

Posted Oct 15, 2009

Alright, so which one is for real? It's unbeaten South Florida against the critics' choice team, Cincinnati. The winner will hover around the national title chase, while the loser will have to fight in the Big East title chase.

Cincinnati (5-0) at South Florida (5-0),7:30 EST, ESPN, Thursday, October 15

Why to watch: You might have to go back to the days when Miami and Virginia Tech were in the league to find a bigger Big East game than the one being staged in Tampa Thursday night. Cincinnati and South Florida are both unbeaten through five weeks, entering the showdown ranked and eager to take early control of the conference race. Although the Bearcats are the defending champs, few expected a team gutted by graduations to be even better than a year ago. They are. And the Bulls have been equally difficult to rationalize. Of all times to stun Florida State in Tallahassee, they did it a week after losing heart-and-soul QB Matt Grothe to a season-ending knee injury. Go figure. Whoever leaves Raymond James Stadium 6-0 will be labeled a fringe national championship contender for as long as it remains perfect.

Why Cincinnati might win: While the Tony Pike-to-Mardy Gilyard hook-up will be a huge concern for South Florida, solving the Bearcat D might be even tougher. With 10 new starters, Cincinnati has exceeded all expectations, allowing just 13 points a game and leading the nation in tackles for loss. The contributions aren’t limited to just a few players, though DE Alex Daniels and DT Derek Wolfe have been particularly ornery in recent weeks. While redshirt freshman B.J. Daniels has been terrific in Grothe’s absence, he’s still surrounded by an inconsistent ground game and an average offensive line. When the Bulls have the ball, the edge at the line of scrimmage goes to the Bearcats.

Why South Florida might win: The defensive talent has always been there for the Bulls, but now the production is finally matching it. Blessed with speed everywhere, South Florida has given up just 47 points all season, ranking No. 5 nationally in scoring defense. This is easily Pike’s biggest challenge of the year, trying to avoid the rush of linemen George Selvie, Terrell McClain, and Jason Pierre-Paul, while not getting robbed by CB Jerome Murphy and FS Nate Allen. No one in the league has more takeaways than USF. It’d be foolish to discount the importance of the home crowd, which is going to be electric for one of the biggest games in school history.

Who to watch: Gilyard has a most unique story. Lightly-recruited and, for a time, homeless, he left the state of Florida to become the king of the Queen City. One of the truly dynamic athletes in the country, he returns to the Sunshine State looking to make a statement on offense and special teams. South Florida is one of the few teams in the country that can match his burst, and the duel with Murphy will be sensational.

What will happen: In a huge game, take the team with the better combination of quarterback and head coach. In both cases, the edge goes to Cincinnati. Jim Leavitt is an icon, but give Brian Kelly almost two weeks to prepare and he’ll find the soft zones in the South Florida defense. While it certainly won’t be easy, the Bearcats are playing like a team on a mission, especially now that the defense is no longer a question mark. Pike will outplay Daniels, tossing a pair of touchdown passes and beefing up his resume for postseason individual honors.

CFN Prediction: Cincinnati 26 … South Florida 21 ... Line: USF -3

Must See Rating: (Bored To Death 5 … My Monkey Baby 1) … 4.5

http://cfn.scout.com/2/909330.html

[MikeG]

a 4.5 rating where 5 equates to "bored to death"?

uh huh

actually-- I prefer these goofballs pick us to lose because they are seldom right about much of anything. I didn't read the write up from the Cuse game-- did they also expect us to lose that one-- and maybe FSU too?

screw em-- pound the Bearkitties

[Guest]

Mike: Bored to Death is a new HBO series that is supposed to be pretty good: http://www.hbo.com/boredtodeath/

[The_Reaper]

FUGGUM!!!

[BJ]

Tthis isn't even the biggest BE game for USF in the past 5 years, let alone for the whole Big East

I don't mind the actual analysis, but that comment was dumb

[MikeG]

oh- ok-- that makes sense now but not everyone who reads this is going to figure it out-- they might just read the bottom with the expected result and game rating (I do that sometimes) and go-- "what a clunker"

anyway-- the main point was them picking against us typically is a good thing

[MikeG]

some notes--- now that I read the whole thing (told you I skip to the bottom)

-- completely whiffed on talking about DC Tresey and his impact with the defense.

-- while patting Cinci's defense on the back-- which is perfectly fine-- they failed to talk about the points they gave up to a weak Miami team.

-- for as much praise as they lay on Pike, 26 points? OK, maybe respect for our defense. We've had the same two weeks to scheme against them.

-- Saying that Pike is better than Daniels-- we'll  see who wows the crowd with feet and arm.

I know this will be a tight game. I am wary of making predictions.

[MarketingGuy]

I don't buy the "HBO Bored to Death" rating.. given the other choice, a monkey baby. I mean, who doesn't want to see a monkey baby?

He's calling the game boring. Just my opinion. And he's an idiot.

[BJ]

I don't buy the "HBO Bored to Death" rating.. given the other choice, a monkey baby. I mean, who doesn't want to see a monkey baby?

He's calling the game boring. Just my opinion. And he's an idiot.

That was my initial reation

[subflea]

I don't buy the "HBO Bored to Death" rating.. given the other choice, a monkey baby. I mean, who doesn't want to see a monkey baby?

He's calling the game boring. Just my opinion. And he's an idiot.

They often use television shows to rate how watchable games are.  My Monkey Baby is a reality show about a couple who are raising a baby monkey as though it were their child.  It has been beaten down by critics.  So yes, he is saying this is a must watch game.