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ESPN College Pick Em Picks For Week 4

By Mike Marteny

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ESPN College Pick Em rolls on into week 4. Last week, I missed the ten point game (USC-Stanford), but hit everything in the middle. I ended up with a total of 36 points to bring my season total to 113. According to ESPN, that is better than 78% of entries. Take that for what its worth.

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There are some more tough ones on the docket for this weekend. Who am I most confident in? Let’s take a look at my ESPN College Pick Em picks for week 4. The games are listed in order from most confident (10) to least (1) for those of you that play the confidence version of the game.

10. Tennessee over Florida:

The Gators have a superb defense, but Tennessee’s is no slouch either. Florida had close calls with both East Carolina and Kentucky, and both at home. Tennessee is better than both of those teams combined. This time Florida finally takes a home loss. Their offense won’t be able to get enough against the Tennessee defense.

9. Georgia Tech over Duke:

I am a fan of what David Cutcliffe has done at Duke, but this is a really tough matchup. Georgia Tech has a solid defense and a really good offense. Last week’s loss was more indicative of how good Notre Dame’s front seven is as opposed to Georgia Tech not being as good as we thought. They are closer than you think. Georgia Tech’s defense is at least as good as the Northwestern unit that gave Duke fits last weekend.

8. UCLA over Arizona:

Welcome to another Pac 12 shootout. The thing that swings this in UCLA’s favor is Arizona is still likely going to be without Scooby Wright. The Wildcats have given up yards and points by the bushel with him out. This will be Josh Rosen’s first real road test, but if he struggles, the Bruins can always run the ball. Arizona can’t stop that either.

7. TCU over Texas Tech:

Tech’s win over Arkansas was a bit of a surprise. The Red Raider defense is better than it has been, but they still won’t be able to stop TCU. TCU’s defense has taken it on the chin in recent weeks as well, allowing 37 points to SMU, and allowing 17 to a Minnesota team that only scored ten against Kent State. Tech will rack up the points, but it comes down to quarterback play. Trevone Boykin will likely make less mistakes than Patrick Mahomes. TCU in a close one.

6. Mississippi State over Auburn:

The Bulldogs don’t have the elite ground game that LSU does, so the Tigers will be able to stay in this one. The change of QB at Auburn can only help as well. That is why this game is “down” at six. It would have been at least a nine before. Auburn’s offense isn’t all that bad. The defense, particularly the rush defense, has been the issue. Dak Prescott can run, and run well. He could have a huge game in this one.

5. USC over Arizona State:

Kevin Hogan needed a nearly flawless game to beat the Trojans. Can Mike Bercovici pull it off for the Sun Devils? I have my doubts. Arizona State’s run defense has not been great either. USC was able to rip off chunks of yards against a pretty good Stanford unit. They could gouge Arizona State. Look for the Trojans to rebound this week.

4. BYU over Michigan:

BYU has a good enough defense to make Michigan throw. That is a sure way to beat them. Jake Rudock has thrown five interceptions already, and the Wolverines spent most of the last two games running the ball. Until they get better QB play, they will struggle against teams that can stop the run. BYU is one of those teams.

3. Oregon over Utah:

Vernon Adams should be back for the Ducks since he likely could have played last week had they needed him. That said, Utah is the kind of team that could beat Oregon. The Utes are physical on defense. The problem is that Utah is not a great offensive team. They might not need to be since the Ducks have given up 101 points over three games. Two of those three games were against Eastern Washington and Georgia State. Utah could win this, but I still am not convinced that the offense can pull it off.

2. Oklahoma State over Texas:

This will be Oklahoma State’s first test of the season. Their defense has looked dominant so far, but they haven’t faced anyone with the talent level that Texas has. Jerrod Heard has sparked the stagnant Texas offense. The defense is still a wreck, but the offense can keep them in it. That said, I still think Texas falls short, likely because of the defense.

1. Northern Illinois over Boston College:

The Huskies put quite a scare into Ohio State. To say Boston College hung with Florida State would be unfair. The offense was never a threat to the Seminoles. The Eagles defense was outstanding, but the offense was as bad as the defense was good. They didn’t cross midfield until the second half. NIU has a good enough defense to handcuff them to. They don’t have the athletes that Florida State does, but they are good enough to hold the Eagles under 20. That should be low enough for Drew Hare to lead the offense to a win.

Stay tuned for FanDuel picks for the NCAA and NFL, along with every college game picked against the spread!

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