Friday, October 07, 2016

Benster and D Pick Your Games -- Politics Free Zone

You will not find any political stuff here, in fact I recommend you watch football this weekend instead of the debates.

I'm not going to argue with you. At this point, I think the only way to view this campaign is in a hazmat suit.

That's right, Geritol Fan! All your suits look like hazmat suits anyway, so you'll be right at home!

You're not exactly an expert on fine tailoring, young fella. 

That's true, too, but you know what? I'm not trying to pretend otherwise. But the main point is to keep the politics out of this particular feature.

Make it a "Safe Space?"

I go to a liberal arts school, old dude. That's all we have! But it's fine. I mean, we all know that Trump is going to Trump, and Hillary is going to Hillary, and I like to not try and antagonize either our conservative or liberal readers.

We do have both. Sometimes it even turns out that liberal readers are still reading!

I think most of them are literate. So, it is time to unleash the HYYYYYPPPPPPPPEEE!, and watch me work.

Iowa Hawkeyes (+1) vs. Minnesota Golden Gophers. Iowa has been a major disappointment this year. A lot of folks thought they would repeat in the West, but they lost at home to North Dakota State, which is not an upset at all, but still makes the Big Ten as a whole look very bad. Minnesota is still figuring things out a bit, but they are looking like a team that in about 2 years should be getting a fuller trophy case, if you get my drift. This game should be close, but I figure that Minnesota can win since the game is in Minneapolis. Gophers 31, Iowa 17.

I agree -- the Gophers can win this game. In fact, they need to win this game to be taken seriously as a contender. Iowa is vulnerable. Now or "wait 'til next year," gentlemen. Gophers 21, Iowa 17.

Knox College Prairie Fire (NL, despite the fact that someone might want to bet on it) vs. Grinnell College Pioneers. Both these teams are looking like bottom feeders in the conference. Knox has a lot of great kids who are game, it is just that in terms of football, Knox does other things better. Grinnell is not as strong as in basketball, and there is no full line changes in football. I figure that Knox should win at least one game, right? Knox 17, Grinnell 0.

A few weeks back, my beloved Beloit Buccaneers edged Grinnell 72-17. Grinnell is awful. Knox will win this one. Knox 34, Grinnell 21.

Tennessee Volunteers (+7) vs. Texas A&M Aggies. Since the Badgers are taking the week off, we had to find a replacement. The Volunteers have been looking a lot like a team of destiny, coming back off the mat against Florida and throwing the Hail Mary last week down in Athens against Georgia. Texas A&M has been a huge surprise in the SEC, since Trevor Knight has looked very good after transferring from Oklahoma. The concern if you are the Vols is that you just had to come off two very emotional wins and still have to play Alabama later on. Aggies 37, Vols 7.

College Station is a tough, tough place to win. The Vols are coming back, but this test is a bit much. Texas A&M 31, Tennessee 22.

Houston Texans (+7) vs. Minnesota Vikings. I know that Mrs. D must really enjoy watching the Vikings as of late, and she is right about that. The Vikings have been a very pleasant surprise, and that defense and running game have looked great. The Texans are without J.J. Watt, and the jury is still out on Brock Osweiler. The one concern I have about the Vikings is that they still have issues in the kicking game, and that they are now the hunted team instead of the hunter, and I want to see how they respond to some adversity. Texans 24, Vikings 23.

The breaking news is Stefon Diggs will not play. Is it time to unleash Laquon Treadwell? Even without Watt, the Texans can play defense. I'd take the under. Vikings 14, Texans 9.


New York Football Giants (+7.5) vs. Glorious Green Bay Packers. The Packers come out of the bye week with some extra prep time, and will get Clay Matthews back, although Sam Shields is still on the concussion protocol. The Packers are not going to go away, and the Giants are coming off a short week against the Vikings. I have not been impressed with how the Giants looked offensively lately, and Eli Manning is looking like he may have lost a step or two. I think that the Packers need to win all these home games coming up, to keep the pressure on the Vikings. Packers 37, Giants 24.

Not sure how this is going to work. The Giants have a lot of firepower and the Packers are short a few defensive backs, especially with Shields still unavailable. I think Odell Beckham will have something to prove. This could be a wild one. Packers 38, Giants 34.

Bear Down Chicago da Bearz (+5) vs. Indinapolis Colts. Chicago still looks like a trainwreck, but they did finally get a win at home last week against the LOLions. As things stand, I think John Fox might get another year, but he has to show improvement, and quite frankly that has been tough with all the injuries. If Smokin Jay can't go, then Brian Hoyer will have to prove that he is better than Craig Krenzel, or Jim "I'm Emotional" Harbaugh. Colts 97, da Bearz Still Suck 0.

Uh, no. Somewhere, Peter Tom Willis is wondering what the heck is going on. Hoyer looks fairly competent and while the Bears defense is still short a few guys, Fox is starting to figure things out on that side of the ball. I think this one could get interesting. I would like to request two touchdowns apiece from Zach Miller, Alshon Jeffrey, and T.Y. Hilton. For my fantasy team, of course. Bears 35, Colts 28.

And a quick note about the weather this weekend down in Florida. If you live down in Florida, or anywhere in the path of the hurricane, please do the right thing and get out. I know that it is tempting to stay, but you can always buy a new home or a new truck. You don't get to buy another life. Hope everyone in the path of Hurricane Matthew is safe, and you are in my thoughts and prayers this weekend. Ben out!

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