NCAA College Football 2008 Week 15 Picks late games

NCAA College Football 2008 Week 15 Picks - late games

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Fearless Rick's College Football Week 15 Picks - Late Games

Rick Gagliano | December 6, 2008

All times Eastern - Click here for early games.

4:30 pm USC Trojans (-33, 47 1/2) at UCLA Bruins - This has to be one of the most uneven clashes in this storied rivalry. The Trojans own the gridiron, while the Bruins have always been better on the hardwood. Of course, this is still a rivalry game, and USC needs a win to wrap up the PAC-10 and head to the Rose Bowl vs. Penn State, so there is ample motivation.

The one glaring difference in this game is between the two defenses. USC is the best in the nation, allowing 7.8 points and 210 yards per game, while UCLA offers little restraint, giving up an average of 29.1 and 324.6. There's also a scoring differential of 20 points on offense, so, despite USC not being an overwhelming scoring machine, they offer much more than the Bruins. Consider this: USC was a 30-to-33-point favorite last week against visiting Notre Dame. Even though QB Mark Sanchez threw three INTs, they still won and covered, 38-3. Can they do it two weeks in a row? Sure looks like it.

Prediction: Trojans 48 Bruins 10

8:00 pm Arizona State Sun Devils at Arizona Wildcats (-10 1/2, 49 1/2) - When the college football season kicked off in September, the Sun Devils were occupying their usual space in the lower echelons of the Top 25 rankings. It wasn't long before the bloom was off the rose, however, as, after winning their first two games, the Sun Devils dropped six straight.

Though they've since rebounded for three straight wins, they were against the bottom of the PAC-10 pecking order: Washington, Washington St. and UCLA. Meanwhile, the Wildcats have been toughing it out - and losing - to Oregon and Oregon State in their last two, dropping their record to a pedestrian 6-5. The line suggests that everything will go the Wildcats' way. The Arizona offense should be the difference, though covering the line may be dicey.

Prediction: Wildcats 30 Sun Devils 17

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8:00 pm Missouri Tigers at Oklahoma Sooners (-17, 79) - We'll just call this one the first of the late-night "no contest" games. The Sooners are clearly far superior than the Tigers, as was proven adequately in last year's romp over the Mizzou. Oklahoma has scored 58 or more points in each of their last five games, and a win here should result in a trip to Miami to play for the national championship.

Missouri has a high-quality team, but so did Texas Tech and Oklahoma State, until those two ran into the Sooners and lost by 44 and 20 points, respectively. All aboard the Sooner wagon, heading for Florida.

Prediction: Sooners 62 Tigers 38

11:30 pm Cincinnati Bearcats (-7 1/2, 50 1/2) at Hawaii Warriors - The Bearcats have already scored their 10th win of the season for the second straight year under head coach Brian Kelly. Their two losses - to Oklahoma and Connecticut - were lopsided, but besides those efforts, Cincy has been on the money all season long. They have beaten up non-conference opposition and finished off their Big east campaign last week with a dominating 30-10 victory over stumbling Syracuse.

The Warriors haven't been over the rainbow since that ugly loss to Georgia in last season's Sugar Bowl though they've been able to put up a marginally-winning record in 2008. They seem to be back to novelty status now and should not be in the same park as the Bearcats.

Prediction: Bearcats 34 Warriors 14

All times Eastern - Click here for early games

Copyright 2008, 2009, Rick Gagliano, Downtown Magazine. All rights reserved. Downtown Magazine is located in the Uinted States of America and is not affiliated with the National Football League or the NCAA. For more information, contact us here. Use of this site is for entertainment purposes only.

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