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THE PROPHET SPEAKETH
College Football's Place for Foolishness on the Internet
© 2003 P. Chamlis/The Prophet Speaketh, All Rights Reserved
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Another pothole on the information superhighway,
conveniently located at
http://workmanpoll.cnchost.com/prophet
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/theprophetspeaks

THE PROPHET'S RECORD FOR THE 2003 SEASON, through 11/29/03, is
GAMES FORECAST 481
GAMES CORRECT 359
PCT CORRECT 74.6%
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Last weekend's rivalry contests were good to the Prophet, perhaps as
a little Thanksgiving bonus from the Football Gods. I went 16 for
20 on the big weekend, which is always nice this late in the
season. OK, let's wind up the regular slate of contests, as well as
a few championship games with this final, pre-bowls issue of the
Prophet.

Thursday, December 4, 2003
The Mid-America Conference Championship Game
Miami(OH) at Bowling Green
Remember how everyone was all fired up about Northern Illinois
perhaps crashing the BCS? What were we going to do when the Huskies
went undefeated? Well, things just have a way of working themselves
out, don't they? Northern Illinois will spend Thursday night
watching the MAC championship game on TV, like the rest of us. :)
Speaking of BCS crashers, they've come and gone this year. Northern
Illinois, TCU....all pretenders. A lot of people say that the Red
Hawks of Miami are the best non-BCS team in the land. Now having
watched a few Boise State games, I'd disagree. But there's no
denying that Miami(OH) is a mighty fine football team. This
championship game will determine two things. First, it'll decide
who gets the MAC championship, and the accompanying trip to the GMAC
Bowl in Detroit. And more importantly to the fans in Miami and
Bowling Green, it'll prove who is the best MAC team in the state of
Ohio. In this battle of non-BCS birds, I see the Red Hawks ruling
the skies, even on the road in Falcon territory. Miami(OH) by 5.

Saturday, December 6, 2003
Notre Dame at Syracuse
OK, I fell into my own trap. One of the few games I missed last
weekend was the Orangemen's loss to Rutgers. I did, however, make a
big point of saying how I couldn't understand how Lee Corso (or
anyone, for that matter) could think SU was anything approaching a
good football team. I suppose I didn't realize how right I really
was. SU is a mediocre lot, stumbling aimlessly towards bad. On top
of that, I believe that they've rung up the big "Q", as in "quit"
for the season. So, I suppose that I'll "quit" beating this dead
Orange horse and just say that I see another win for Ty Willingham's
Fighting Irish. Last Saturday night, Notre Dame looked like they
still wanted to play a little football this year. Look for Syracuse
to play big orange punching bag for Ty's Irish lightweights on
Saturday. Let's call this one Notre Dame by 10.

Boise State at Hawaii
June Jones' Warriors rang up a big-name win last Saturday, drowning
the Alabama Crimson Tide in the Oahu surf. Mind you, I said that it
was a big NAME rather than a big GAME win. Alabama has proven on at
least nine occasions this year that they're far removed from the
days of the Bear. So, Hawaii had best remember that they were
fortunate to have scheduled that game during "low tide", so to
speak. THIS week, the BSU Broncos from potato territory gallop onto
the islands. And, these guys are horses of an entirely different
color. (Not to mention their horrendous blue football field back
home in Boise) As Hawaii's timing goes from good to bad, look for
the Idaho herd to go on stampede in Honolulu. Boise State by 12.

Army vs Navy
This has been an excellent year for football at the Naval Academy.
The Midshipmen are actually going bowling this holiday season, and
are hoping to claim the "Commander in Chief" trophy in this game.
Considering that the West Pointers have been pointing in the wrong
direction for most of 2003, I see no reason to believe their
gridiron retreat will halt on Saturday. It might, in fact, be time
to get out the old white flag. Navy by 14.

Oregon State at USC
The path to New Orleans seems clear for the Men of Troy. They need
only dispatch their pals from Oregon State, and the chance at the
brass ring is probably theirs. Now, this isn't any second rate
skanky Beaver battalion that Pete Carroll's Trojans are looking to
bang on Saturday. But, considering what's at stake, I see no reason
to doubt that SC will find a way to snatch one more conference "W"
to cement that holiday hookup on Bourbon Street. Trojans by 12.

The SEC Championship Game in Atlanta, Georgia
LSU vs Georgia
This, to my knowledge, is the first time in the long history of the
SECCG that a rematch has actually occurred. Earlier in the season,
Georgia lost to the Bayou Bengals, partially due to an inability to
kick field goals. One would believe that a sharp fellow like
Bulldog coach Mark Richt would have learned enough in the ensuing
weeks to insure revenge in Saturday's championship contest. But
when it comes to learning, the determining factor in what happens in
Hotlanta Saturday involves LSU's education. The Tigers have now
learned, or are slowly realizing, that the numbers are not going to
add up in such a way that would allow them to play in the Sugar
Bowl. But, that's not going to stop LSU from hashing and
recalculating all angles of this cryptic BCS business. But while
the Tigers are punching buttons on their calculators, look for the
Dawgs to be punching THEIR ticket into the BCS with an upset
championship game win. Getting even while helping to clear the
title game murkiness, call this one Georgia by 2.

The Big XII Championship Game in Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas State vs Oklahoma
Oklahoma has been so impressive this year that most people agree
that the Sooners will still find their way to New Orleans EVEN if
they were to somehow lose this championship game. I guess
mathematically it adds up, but I see no reason to re-examine any BCS
numbers. Kansas State started the season with a great deal of
optimism, thinking perhaps that THEY could taste some Louisiana
sugar in January. Due to injuries, things haven't quite gone as
well as was hoped for Bill Snyder's Cats. However, they're now
playing their best football of the season, and find themselves
representing the northern division of the Big XII in this huge
game. There's nothing to suggest that K State can't "play" with
Oklahoma except for this.....OU isn't playing around. Bob Stoops is
as serious a big game coach as you'll ever find. I fully expect the
Wildcats to show up and play a fine football game. Unfortunately
for State, I see the Sooners bringing their "A" game to the dance,
too. Oklahoma by 10.

OK, that does it for the regular season. I'll probably have some
picks out on the lesser bowls in a week or so. Until then, have a
great holiday season.