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THE PROPHET SPEAKETH
College Football's's Place for Foolishness on the Internet
© 2004 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 2004 SEASON

GAMES FORECAST 232
GAMES CORRECT 171
PCT CORRECT 73.7%

I had an average performance last weekend, folks. I did nail the
Notre Dame upset of Tennessee, and I was damned close on some of my
point spreads. But as always, Michigan State diddled me, which
remains par for the course. You may notice that Prophet is coming
out early this week. That's because your humble Prophet is headed
west to sunny California in search of enlightenment and love. OK,
the truth...just a business trip. But, hopefully being in Pac Ten
territory might improve my view of the left coast. We will see, but
until then, have a good week, kids.

91 = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = 91

Thursday, November 11
Florida State at N.C. State
Logic dictates that FSU is going to get themselves murdered this
Thursday night up in Raleigh. The Seminoles have been about as far
from road warriors as you can get this year. The ever-emotional
Chuck Amato can be counted on to have his Wolfpack howling at the
Thursday night moon when his old boss and team come into town. This
supposedly permanent change to Wyatt Sexton at QB for FSU tempts me
to think in a more positive fashion. But when I wipe away all my
hopes and dreams, I realize that "FSU on the road" continues to look
at lot like Yasser Arafat. And since ol' Yasser seems to be circling
the drain, let's call this another close FSU loss. NC State by 3.

Friday, November 12
Southern Miss at Memphis
Both the Eagles and Tigers found themselves on the short end of high
scoring games last week. Conference USA is fast becoming an east of
the Mississippi version of the wild and wacky WAC. How convenient
that these two freewheeling conferences hook up at year's end for the
Liberty Bowl. If a game isn't going to mean anything, it might as
well be entertaining, right? And speaking of games that won't mean
anything, other than pride of course, THIS one qualifies. Since we
all know that Louisville will be the Liberty Bowl rep for CUSA, we
can still expect and enjoy an entertaining game when Memphis and
Southern Miss beat each other's brains out for a shot at the
Independence Bowl. Seeing as how this one is being played close to
Beale Street, look for the Hattiesburg flock to get the Memphis Blues
again, as the Tigers leave the boys from Southern Miss "all shook
up". Memphis by 6.

Hawaii at Fresno State
Hawaii QB Timmy Chang will leave school as the all-time NCAA passing
yardage leader. A few weeks ago, he barely missed setting the record
on a trip to Boise State. That's the good news. The bad news is
that the Warriors lost that game by 66 points. I guess our
grandparents were right when they said something about defense and
clock management winning championships. ESPN2 is just hoping that
wild, gun-slinging offense will be enough to win viewers, at least on
this Friday night. Chang will fly into town ready to pass, pass,
pass. But look for the hometown Bulldogs to give him another dose of
that Boise State brand of lovin' down in the Valley on Friday night.
FSU-West by 12.

Saturday, November 13
Texas at Kansas
The Longhorns spotted Okie State a huge lead last weekend before they
finally kicked into high gear and roped a big win. They'd best not
do the same rabbit out of a hat crap this weekend in Larryville. Big
Mark Mangino's club has enough offense to make a mighty tall hill for
Texas to climb, should they choose to fool around for a while. And,
the home crowd at KU won't be anywhere near as much help as the
Austin faithful were last weekend. Look for Mack Zook to survive
another week's horrors. Texas by 12.

Northwestern at Michigan
Northwestern has been one of the surprise clubs in the Big Ten,
winning game after game with a tough and tenacious style of
football. They'll need every ounce of gridiron resilience to come
away from Ann Arbor with another conference "W" this Saturday. In
truth, I see this being the end of what has been, up until now, a
very pleasant road for Northwestern. Then again, I'm never really
surprised at anything the boys from Evanston cook up. Wildcats can
do the strangest things. But...no upsets in the Big House on
Saturday. Michigan by 10.

Ohio State at Purdue
OK, I screwed up last weekend. Some of you think that I do extensive
research on all of my picks. But, the truth is that I sometimes just
pull `em out, so to speak. (And you know where I'm pulling them out
of, too.) Last weekend, I did NOT realize that Purdue QB Kyle Orton
was injured and would not play against Iowa. Therefore, my lack of
information led to a poor decision in naming Purdue a winner. As for
this weekend, I don't think it matters. Ohio State should come away
with a victory, even on the road in West Lafayette. And considering
the savagery of the Buckeye defense, Mr. Orton might want to phone in
sick for another week. Ohio State by a bruising 8.

Alabama at LSU
During last weekend's Alabama-Mississippi State telecast, one of the
announcers said that "if Alabama had not lost Brodie Croyle, they'd
be a BCS team". Are you completely nuts, Bill? (I think it was Bill
Curry) The Tide is doing better this season, and they are bowl-
eligible now. But the truth is that they haven't beaten a single
good team. Not one. And even if Brodie Croyle were taking snaps
Saturday night in Baton Rouge, the Tide would've come up short. Look
for Alabama to flash their "slightly above average at best"
credentials for this Saturday encounter on the bayou. LSU isn't in
the running for the Orange Bowl this year, but they're still pretty
solid. And more importantly, their fans are numerous, loud and
extremely drunk on Saturday nights. It's a bad combination for Mike
Shula and company, I'd say. LSU by 14.

South Carolina at Florida
When Gator boss Ron Zook was unceremoniously dumped a couple of weeks
ago, USC coach Lou Holtz was among the most outspokenly sympathetic.
And at the time, there were some Gamecock fans who thought maybe
Holtz should join the Zooker in the unemployment line. There is,
after all, a "fire Lou Holtz" website, right? But last Saturday's
win over Arkansas proved that the old goat still can chew a few
cans. But, I hope he ate his share in the Razorback game. Look for
the hometown Gators to kick Lou's can as they win another one for
rappin' but rejected Ronnie. Florida by 7.

Texas Tech at Texas A&M
If they hadn't been so damned generous with the ball in their own
territory last weekend, the Aggies would have celebrated a huge upset
of mighty Oklahoma. And although Sooner coach Bob Stoopes might
disagree, the close OU win has much less to do with Sooner character
than it does slippery Aggie fingers. This weekend, look for Dennis
Frangione to remind his boys of the importance of holding onto a
football, especially within spitting distance of one's own goalpost.
As for this game, every sense of my being screams that A&M will
experience a letdown after coming so very close. And, that IS a
distinct possibility. But a more likely scenario is that the
turnover tables may be turned on Saturday, with Texas Tech being the
generous party. Another game is going to slip away on Saturday in
College Station, but it's going to be slipping away from the visitors
and towards the Aggies. A&M by 3.

Kansas State at Colorado
I read where six different teams have a chance at winning the Big XII
north title, and that HAS to be wrong. CU is not going anywhere,
other than to criminal court, after this season is over, right? So,
if six teams are still in the running for the trip to the title game,
some of them must be in other conferences. Look for Bill Snyder's
Wildcats to claw a little further up on the north pole this
Saturday. This seems to be my week for Wildcats. K-State by 8.

Clemson at Duke
After huge wins over Maryland and Miami, this weekend's encounter AT
Duke is just the sort of meaningless game that can get a shaky-status
coach fired. Losing to the Blue Devils would erase all memory of the
O.T. win in the Orange Bowl in the minds (using that term with a
grain of salt) of your average Tiger fan. But, not to worry. Duke
is pesky but not that all-fired dangerous. Their only win of 2004
came over the Citadel, a school that hasn't won a meaningful battle
since they opened fire on Fort Sumter back in 1861. Clemson by a
sloppy 14.

Boston College at West Virginia
Rich Rodriguez and his Mountaineers have BCS destiny in their own
hands. All they have to do is win out, and it's a nifty trip to
Tempe or New Orleans on New Year's Day. And there's one other little
factor that should guarantee a home hillbilly victory on Saturday.
The Big East conference WANTS West Virginia to win. Why? Because
crowning the Mountaineers conference champs would give the Big East
something in 2005 that they don't have now, namely a defending
conference king. The Big Least doesn't want to see the last three or
four conference titles playing over in the ACC, you know. West
Virginia by 6.

Utah at Wyoming
Ever hear of the term "a win-win" situation? Well, it does not apply
for Urban Meyer and his Utah Utes on Saturday. They'll win big up in
Laramie, but will continue to lose ground in the BCS standings, due
to that niggling little "strength of opponents" problem. But, the
knowledge that even a win is a loss won't stop Utah from winning this
round of Cowboys and Indians. UU by 24.

Arizona at USC
When this game ends, it'll seem like New Year's deja vu for Arizona
coach Mike Stoopes. At the end of last year's Sugar Bowl, he watched
the best team in the country (...OK, Fred...ONE of the best teams in
the country) celebrating a big win. Same scene in a different locale
on Saturday. Arizona limps into LA to get bashed by Pete Carroll's
Trojans, and they'll get a good look at the number one team in
America. Someday Mike's sideline may again be celebrating....but not
anytime real soon. USC by 17.

California at Washington
The Bears fly north to Seattle, and they'll face the fear of every
good-weather offense-minded club... rain and cold. Will the
Washington weather do in Cal's chances of a BCS date? Maybe it will,
but then again...the weather up north may be rotten, but the Husky
football team literally reeks. Washington simply isn't good enough
to take advantage of Mother Nature's help. When it rains it pours,
so look for Cal to pour on another Pac Ten win. Bears by 14.

Penn State at Indiana
Most people up in State College, Pennsylvania still agree that Joe
Paterno should be allowed to leave on his own terms. The old man
should get to pick the time and date, regardless of how much worse
the PSU program becomes. Now mind you, I said "most", but
not "all". Look for quite a few more folks to switch sides on that
debate after another embarrassing loss on the Big Ten road. Hoosiers
turn up the heat on old Joe, call it Indiana by 3.

UCLA at Oregon
Autzen Stadium may be nicknamed the "Duck Pond", but it's also
reputed to be a real bear trap for the likes of UCLA. The Bruins
have been stumbling to an early hibernation recently, as evidenced by
last weekend's foldo against Washington State. Look for this
Saturday's contest to be more compelling evidence that it's bedtime
in Westwood. Oregon by 9.

Wisconsin at Michigan State
After what they've done to me all year, I can only wish the very
worst for John L. Williams and his damned Michigan State Spartans.
Folks, if I'd just not picked any MSU games this year, my percentage
would be at least 1-2% higher. The green machine has literally
killed me with their schizoid play and last minute chokes. So, I'm
going to call this one for Wisconsin by 14 points. But in my heart,
I hope it's much, much worse. OK, I admit it...I do carry a grudge.
Go Badgers.

Nebraska at Oklahoma
Nebraska and Oklahoma have played some unforgettable contests. Back
in my childhood, I still remember the epic 1971 meeting at Norman,
which propelled the Huskers to another national title.
Unforgettable. I'd love to say that this meeting could produce some
similar vein of drama, but I just CAN'T forget that this NU team lost
just last week to Iowa State. Iowa State?? Jeez, Louise. I don't
know if Bob Devaney is dead, but if he is, he's turning in his
grave... and if he isn't, last week might have damn-near killed him,
assuming the 70 point game against Texas Tech didn't. This game used
to be more fun when OU had a coach who talked about machine guns,
that lovable cad Barry Switzer. But for this week, we'll just have
to watch the Sooners maul Nebraska while Coach Bob Stoopes keeps
telling us how almost losing at Texas A&M makes his team so great.
OU by 14.

Miami at Virginia
The Hurricanes are now finding out that the ACC isn't quite the
cakewalk that it seemed to be only three weekends ago. Two
consecutive conference losses have the `Canes looking at vacation
plans in the Jacksonville or Atlanta area, rather than Miami or New
Orleans. As for this pick, let's first remember this... Nobody has
more talent than Miami. And when they are focused and fired up,
you'd better get out of their way. But I do believe Miami is now
infected with a little virus of self-doubt, based on the appearance
of symptomatic finger-pointing down in Coral Gables. Believe me when
I say that nobody can do a better job of exploiting shattered
confidence than an old pro like Wahoo coach Al Groh. If Miami looked
at any film of Florida State's unlikely crushing of Virginia three
weeks ago, they'd best forget what they saw. UVA is a better
football team than recent Hurricane-conquerors Clemson and North
Carolina combined. And, we haven't even discussed how much Miami
will love playing in cooler weather. Three in a row? Sure, it can
happen. Virginia by 5.

Georgia at Auburn
After comparing Auburn and Georgia's relative performances against
Tennessee, it seems like a slam dunk to call this one a Tiger rout.
But before we do, one must remember that Mark Richt and the Bulldog
offense are among college football's best. Georgia QB David Greene
didn't set the NCAA record for starting signal-caller wins last
weekend just with his good looks, you know. So if any of you Auburn
fans are planning on another 30 point drubbing, you'd best readjust
your thinking. But, there is good news for the folks on the Plains.
Georgia IS a fine offensive football team, but.... They like to
score quickly and in striking fashion. The Tiger running attack is
the sort to gobble up yards and clock, leaving the talented Dawg
offense sitting on the sideline for long periods of time. That will
lead to the football equivalent of performance anxiety, namely trying
to do too much, too fast. And, that's the reason Georgia limps out
of Auburn with another SEC loss. Closer than you'd think, but Auburn
stays undefeated. Tigers by 4.