Against All Odds: NCAA/NFL Picks Week 7

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Welcome to Against All Odds: NCAA/NFL Picks Week 7! From the opening weekend of the NCAA football season through Super Bowl LII, Mike Drakulich (PSN), the man behind Pittsburgh SportsNation, takes on his father, Michael J. Drakulich (MJD), in picking NCAA and NFL games against the Vegas spread. 

Mike Drakulich covers both the Pittsburgh Steelers and Pitt Panthers during the season for NGSCSports.com!

To appease the taste buds of Pittsburgh’s local coverage area, Pitt, Penn State, and West Virginia, when they are playing, will always be on the docket among the NCAA games chosen, as will the Pittsburgh Steelers for NFL games.

Once Bowl Season arrives, we’ll bring you ALL 42 games and then continue throughout the conclusion of the NFL Playoffs.

Itchy vs Scratchy. Black Spy vs White Spy. Cheers vs Gary’s Old Towne Tavern. History is full of rivalries, but none are better than father vs son! Who will rise above the other this season and become the 2017-18 Against All Odds Champion?


It was a roller coaster type of week for yours truly. Saturday I started off 4-0 before watching team after team fail me, going 1-5 the rest of the way. So at 30-20 for the season, I still have a five game lead over my dad, who also posted a 5-5 record for the week. For now, the NCAA seems easy to pick. It’s the NFL that is a jumbled mess where I’m not sure who will win, spread or no spread.

This week we have some interesting games in the fold. I’m pretty confident in finishing with seven or more wins this week after doing a little extra studying on certain teams. My dad and I differ on five games this week, so the standings could go either way by the end of Sunday.

Enjoy this weekend’s games and catch you all next week!

 

Lines as of 10/13/2017

NCAA Football

Saturday, October 14th

#20 North Carolina State Wolfpack (5-1) at Pitt Panthers (2-4), 12:00 pm | Line: NC State -11.5

Pick- PSN: NC State | MJD: Pitt

Right now, I have zero confidence in this Panther team. They lack an identity on offense, and though the defense played better last week, they folded at the worst possible time in a loss to Syracuse that was there for the taking.  Knowledgeable Pitt fans knew this would be a transition year, but few expected it to be this bad. Ben DiNucci takes over as full time starter for Pitt at QB now that Max Browne had surgery on his shoulder. Since I’m taking NC State, look for them to upset them, lol.

#24 Texas Tech Red Raiders (4-1) at West Virginia Mountaineers (3-2), 12:00 pm | Line: WVU -2.5

Pick- PSN: West Virginia | MJD: Texas Tech

It’s tough to come to Morgantown and walk away a winner, so even though the Red Raiders are playing solid ball right now, I think the Mountaineers will rebound from last week’s tough loss to TCU and send Mountaineer fans home to burn a few couches.

 #8 TCU Horned Frogs (5-0) at Kansas State Wildcats (3-2), 12:00 pm | Line: TCU -5.5

Pick- PSN: TCU | MJD: Kansas State

TCU is playing some stellar ball right now. It’s always a rough going playing at KSU, but I like what I see from the Horned Frogs, who will continue their trek towards the Top Five.

#17 Michigan Wolverines (4-1) at Indiana Hoosiers (3-2), 12:00 pm | Line: Michigan -6.5

Pick- PSN: Michigan | MJD: Michigan

Michigan, coming off a hugely disappointing loss to Michigan State, looks to rebound against Indiana, a team that plays their hearts out, but always come up short in the end.

 

#12 Oklahoma Sooners (4-1) at Texas Longhorns (3-2), 3:30 pm | Line: Oklahoma -7.5

Pick- PSN: Texas | MJD: Oklahoma

Speaking of hugely disappointing losses…. Oklahoma was ranked #3 in the Nation and was a 31point favorite at home against Iowa State. As you see, the Sooners aren’t #3 no more…ouch! 7.5 is a bit much for me heading into Texas against the Longhorns who play hard till the final bell.

 

 NFL

Sunday, October 15th

New England Patriots (3-2) at NY Jets (3-2), 1:00 pm | Line: New England -10.5

Pick- PSN: New England | MJD: New England

Play time is over for the Jets, right? After winning three straight, the jig is up when they face Tom Brady and the Patriot’s high scoring offense.

Cleveland Browns (0-5) at Houston Texans (2-3), 1:00 pm | Line: Houston -10.5

Pick- PSN: Houston | MJD: Houston

Another year, another trip to the Top Five of the NFL Draft for the Browns. Houston and Deshaun Watson are suddenly an offensive juggernaut, and that trend should continue vs the lowly Browns.

Chicago Bears (1-3) at Baltimore Ravens (3-2), 1:00 pm | Line: Baltimore -6.5

Pick- PSN: Baltimore | MJD: Chicago

It seems the Steelers are the only team the Bears can figure out how get a victory against. Baltimore, even though they were clubbed by both Jacksonville and those same Steelers, will display enough offense to dispatch of the Bears who have started the Mitch Trubisky Era at QB.

LA Rams (3-2) at Jacksonville Jaguars (3-2), 4:05 pm | Line: Jacksonville -2.5

Pick- PSN: LA Rams | MJD: LA Rams

Here we have two unpredictable teams that one never knows what team will show up. I am more comfortable going with the team with the better offense, in this case, that being the Rams, led by Todd Gurley. To boot, Leonard Fournette is one helluva RB for the Jags, but I like Jeff Goff more than I do Blake Bortles.

Pittsburgh Steelers (3-2) at Kansas City Chiefs (5-0), 4:25 pm | Line: Kansas City -4.5

Pick- PSN: Pittsburgh | MJD: Pittsburgh 

The Jekyll and Hyde Steelers head into Arrowhead Stadium, where few prevail. Since the Chiefs aren’t 0-5 instead of 5-0, this is exactly the type of game the Steelers come in a blow away KC–cause that’s what this team does to it’s fans and the people who cover them. They specialize in losing to inept teams and then winning games no one expects them to win after such loss occurs a week before. I’ve read this script before. The Steelers will hand the Chiefs their first loss of 2017.


Pick Results

PSN: Last Week: 5-5 | Overall: 30-20   —    .600

MJD: Last Week: 5-5 | Overall: 25-25  -4    .500

 

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Mike Drakulich

From Midland, "The Basketball Capital of Pennsylvania", located 35 miles NW of Pittsburgh along the Ohio River. This former steel town was home to storied athletes such as Dave Alston, Norm Van Lier, Simmie Hill, and the legendary 1965 Midland High School Basketball Team. There's nowhere on earth that is more dedicated to its sports teams like Western Pennsylvania and the city of Pittsburgh. The passion and pride of Pittsburgh's fan base is second to no one. From the NFL, NHL, MLB, NCAA football and basketball, to W.P.I.A.L. high school sports, "The City of Champions" has it all! As Editor of Pittsburgh SportsNation, Mike Drakulich provides top notch opinions and coverage of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Pittsburgh Pirates, Pitt Panthers football & basketball, Robert Morris Colonials basketball, and Duquesne Dukes basketball, as well as all sports teams that represent Western Pennsylvania, including WPIAL High School Football. For a refreshing view of sports, mixed with humor and uncensored opinions, check out Pittsburgh SportsNation today on Facebook, Twitter @PghSportsNation and videos with over 1,000,000 views on YouTube!
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Mike DrakulichYour source for Pittsburgh sports!
From Midland, "The Basketball Capital of Pennsylvania", located 35 miles NW of Pittsburgh along the Ohio River. This former steel town was home to storied athletes such as Dave Alston, Norm Van Lier, Simmie Hill, and the legendary 1965 Midland High School Basketball Team.

There's nowhere on earth that is more dedicated to its sports teams like Western Pennsylvania and the city of Pittsburgh. The passion and pride of Pittsburgh's fan base is second to no one. From the NFL, NHL, MLB, NCAA football and basketball, to W.P.I.A.L. high school sports, "The City of Champions" has it all!

As Editor of Pittsburgh SportsNation, Mike Drakulich provides top notch opinions and coverage of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Pittsburgh Pirates, Pitt Panthers football & basketball, Robert Morris Colonials basketball, and Duquesne Dukes basketball, as well as all sports teams that represent Western Pennsylvania, including WPIAL High School Football.

For a refreshing view of sports, mixed with humor and uncensored opinions, check out Pittsburgh SportsNation today on Facebook, Twitter @PghSportsNation and videos with over 1,000,000 views on YouTube!

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