Looking ahead to Thursday night (Aug. 28), a date college football fanatics and gamble-a-holics have had circled on their calendars for months finally arrives. Three games between teams from BCS leagues are set to do battle including 23rd ranked (AP) Wake Forest (Demon Deacons) visiting Baylor University (Bears) in Waco, Texas. Also hitting the field this night is North Carolina State traveling to Columbia, S.C. for a game with South Carolina and out west, Oregon State visiting Stanford in Palo Alto, Calif. Also kicking off Thursday in non-BCS matchups Vanderbilt at Miami (Ohio), Troy State at Middle Tennessee State and UTEP on the road at Buffalo.
The most interesting game of the night has to be the “Baptist Wars,” between Baylor and Wake Forest, the two most prominent Baptist Universities in the land getting together down in Texas for a football game. Traditionally Baylor has had the most gridiron success of the two schools but in recent years, Wake Forest has emerged as a force in the ACC while Baylor has become the doormat of the BIG 12 South.
Wake Forest is projected to field perhaps its best football team in the schools history. The Demon Deacons will no doubt be looking to make a statement on a national stage in this nationally televised (FSN) contest.
Baylor will seek to make a different kind of statement. That is to show doubters, and there are many, that first year coach Art Briles has Baylor on its way back to respectability. Briles has brought his high-octane offensive approach to Waco from Houston where he experienced success in a similar situation. A win over Wake Forest would bring the team instant credibility.
Online oddsmakers at Sportsbook.com have installed the Bears home underdogs by a + 12 1/2 point chalk. That alone should provide plenty of incentive in this game.
Prediction: Wake Forest is better than Baylor but lots of Baptist pride at stake here. Baylor covers +12 ½.
The Oregon State Beavers travel to play the Stanford Cardinal in a rare opening week PAC 10 Conference battle that will be televised nationally on ESPN2 with kickoff set for 9 PM ET. Oregon State has won three of its last four road games within the league, including at No. 2 California and No. 18 Oregon last season. In fact, OSU has fared well in conference away games, posting an 11-6 mark over the last four years. The Beavers are listed at Sportsbook.com as -3 point favorites. Look for OSU to win SU and cover the -3-point line.
UTEP +3 @Buffalo
Vanderbilt + 3 1/2 @ Miami (Ohio)
Middle Tennesse State +6 1/2 vs. Troy (MTSU can be tough at home)
