The picks are in for Week 1 of college football: USC yes, UCLA no
UCLA at Cincinnati: Cincinnati 27-24
The schedule-makers did the young Bruins no favors with this opener.
Utah at Brigham Young: Utah 31-16
The Holy War will go to the Utes for the ninth straight time thanks to the running of Zack Moss.
Utah State at Wake Forest: Wake Forest 30-24
The Demon Deacons will be a team to watch in the ACC with Jamie Newman at quarterback.
Mississippi at Memphis: Memphis 41-35
The Tigers will outscore the Rebels in their first game with Rich Rodriguez calling plays.
Northwestern at Stanford: Stanford 20-17
A low-scoring game will be won late on the leg of Stanford kicker Jet Toner.
Virginia Tech at Boston College: Boston College 24-20
The Eagles will grind the clock behind talented running back AJ Dillon and trust their defense.
Boise State vs. Florida State: Florida State 28-23
The Seminoles’ skill wins out with Boise State starting a true freshman quarterback.
Auburn vs. Oregon: Auburn 27-21
The Tigers’ defense will hold Oregon long enough for true freshman quarterback Bo Nix to find his sea legs.
Virginia at Pittsburgh: Virginia 29-21
The Cavaliers are trying to take the next step this year, and they survive a tricky ACC opener.
Fresno State at USC: USC 38-17
Things may start slow for the Trojans in the Air Raid, but they will overwhelm Fresno State eventually.
J. Brady McCollough looks at the biggest storylines in college football ahead of the 2019 season.
McCollough’s 2019 postseason picks:
College Football Playoff:
Peach Bowl: 1 Clemson (13-0) vs. 4 Georgia (12-1)
Fiesta Bowl: 2 Alabama (12-1) vs. 3 Michigan (12-1)
CFP championship: Georgia over Alabama
Power Five Conference championship games:
Atlantic Coast Conference: Clemson over Virginia
Big Ten Conference: Michigan over Nebraska
Big 12 Conference: Texas over Oklahoma State
Pac-12 Conference: Utah over Washington
Southeastern Conference: Alabama over Georgia
New Year’s Six bowl games:
Rose: Utah (11-2) vs. Ohio State (10-2)
Sugar: Texas (11-2) vs. Texas A&M (9-3)
Orange: Virginia (10-3) vs. Louisiana State (10-2)
Cotton: Notre Dame (10-2) vs. Central Florida (10-2)
J. Brady McCollough picks the winners of every Power Five game in 2019 and predicts who will win the College Football Playoff.
Go beyond the scoreboard
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