DFC VII Week Four

All Picks Have Been Received

Here is who has used their TB drop: (Wk 1) Mark Gainey, Ryan Sherman, Jon Osborne (Wk 2) Tyler Campbell, Jason Barnette, Justin Glenn, (Wk 3) Michael Nipp, Gina Williams, Zack Graves, James Hawbaker, Scott Latta, Tommy McLeod, Gary Eubanks, Tommy McLeod, Matt Latta, Tom Johnson, Ken Mackey, David Mark Osborne, Jason Turnbow, Tad Roose, Tim Wasyluka

From a week that saw some of the best games in a while transpire to a week that actually made me consider a Hawaii/Boise State game for lack of games, here goes Week Four in the DFC.

The Crimson Tide of Alabama (3-0) take on The Razorbacks of Arkansas (2-1), 230pm, CBS
This rivalry has a history of being physical, even by SEC standards, which, as we saw at Auburn last week, are a notch above most (ask California about its trip to Knoxville). It will be difficult to find anyone outside of either state who believes this is for anything other than third in the SEC West.

But it is an interesting game because of the youth of the respective teams. The Razorbacks' two offensive stars are sophomore tailback Darren McFadden and freshman quarterback Mitch Mustain. The Crimson Tide's inexperience on offense is evident in its record in the red zone: four touchdowns in 14 trips.

The Tide once again has a formidable defense. Alabama leads the SEC in turnovers forced with nine, and in turnover margin at plus-5. There's only one school in Division I-A that hasn't forced a turnover yet -- Arkansas. The Razorbacks are at minus-7, last in the league and next to last in the nation. That is reason enough to think that Alabama can win in Fayetteville for only the second time in five trips.

Crap O'the Week!
The Bulldogs of Mississippi State (0-3) visit the Blazers of University of Alabama-Birmingham (1-2), 6pm
All I know is, if Mississippi State gets throttled by UAB, we are totally pickeing the MSU/Jax St game in a few weeks. Welcome to the crappiest game you'll see this weekend.

The Bruins of UCLA (2-0) visit the Huskies of Washington (2-1), 6pm, TBS
I'll be honest with ya... I am hoping this game is on TBS, because this mght be a really good game. Go you Huskies.

The 12th Ranked Fightin' Irish of Notre Dame (2-1) visit the Spartans of Michigan State (3-0)
The 40th anniversary of the 10-10, "Tie One For The Gipper" Game doesn't carry the same gravitas, but it has become especially important for the Irish after their washout loss to Michigan last week.

This one will test Irish coach Charlie Weis, even if he will coach in the comfort of someone else's home (Weis is 6-0 on the road, 5-3 at home, and 0-1 at a neutral site). Michigan State has a passing game that bedeviled the Irish last season, just as it has nearly everyone on the Spartans' schedule. Senior quarterback Drew Stanton is living up to the expectations placed on him before the season. Stanton is one of Brady Quinn's greatest rivals to become an early first-round selection in the 2007 NFL draft.

Michigan State sputtered for a couple of weeks before the engine kicked in against Pittsburgh in the second half last Saturday. There's no doubt that the engine will start up immediately against Notre Dame. It always does. The Spartans have won seven of the nine games since the schools began playing annually in 1997.

Michigan exposed the same flaws in the Notre Dame pass defense that appeared to have been corrected in the opening wins over Georgia Tech and Penn State. Even if we didn't have overtime, it's safe to assume this game wouldn't finish 10-10.

NFL Games
Chicago Bears (2-0) at Minnesota Vikings (2-0), 12pm Fox
The Bears are playing well in all phases of the game. They have a dominant defense, an explosive offense that is averaging 30 points a game and an impressive special teams unit that has returned a punt for a touchdown. Minnesota has done a great job of being disciplined, sticking with and executing its game plans while grinding out two tough victories. This matchup puts an elite NFC team (Bears) facing a talented, mature team (Vikings). One of these teams will finish Sunday undefeated and in the NFC North driver's seat.

Carolina Panthers (0-2) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-2), 12pm Fox
Although both teams entered the season with high expectations, they now find themselves in a must-win situation in this weekend's NFC South showdown. Bucs head coach Jon Gruden must find a way to improve the decision making and production of QB Chris Simms and his offensive system. Defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin's vaunted defense is playing more on reputation than production at this point in the regular season.

Panthers head coach John Fox has made a habit in recent years of digging his teams out of early season holes. They were 1-2 last year and still made it to the NFC title game. Look for the Panthers to incorporate a combination of RB DeShaun Foster and DeAngelo Williams in their power running game to set up the play-action pass against a Buccaneers defense that is allowing 326.5 yards per game.

Cincinnati Bengals (2-0) at Pittsburgh Steelers (1-1), 12pm CBS
Even though the Steelers are not undefeated, this is the first of two battles for AFC North supremacy, with the rematch coming in Cincinnati on the last week of the season. In their three meetings last season, the road team won each game. The Steelers face a short week after their loss to Jacksonville, but they should be ready for this one and now need a win to keep pace in the division.

These teams didn't like each other even before their Wild Card game last season when Carson Palmer's knee was shredded early in the game. Now, they really don't like each other. The Pittsburgh crowd will be very loud. This game features two very good coaches, outstanding young quarterbacks and plenty of talent up and down both rosters. This has all the makings of a great football game. (tiebreak game)

New York Football Giants (1-1) at Seattle Seahawks (2-0), 315pm Fox
The Giants came from behind to beat the Eagles in overtime. Has Eli Manning arrived as a quarterback? The Giants will have their hands full this week against the third-ranked Seahawks' defense. Matt Hasselbeck could put up some big numbers against a weak Giants' secondary. This game should see the debut of WR Deion Branch, who could have a breakout game against the Giants.

Tiebreak Game:
Cincinnati at Pittsburgh, total points scored