Kevin's Six Pack of Picks

Can you believe it? College football is back and the NFL is just around the corner. Today I bring you a special Thursday edition of my Six Pack of Picks. Normally these picks will be posted on Fridays during the football season.

To kick off the 2009 season I have a full slate of college picks for you. Remember, I will always pick the winner of the Penn State and Shippensburg games for the benefit of some of my most loyal readers. Much to the dismay of some of my friends, Shippensburg actually started their season last weekend with a loss at Shepherd.

Once the NFL gets started the Eagles will be my third regular pick.

Temple vs. #5 (FCS) Villanova (Thursday)
The Temple Owls are a team I expect see make a serious run at a bowl game in 2009. They open up their season tonight when they play Villanova, from the FCS, in the first annual Mayor's Cup game in Philadelphia. Temple features a number of question marks and young players but most of the young players already have playing experience behind them.

Temple should win this game over a very good Villanova team. Villanova should still have a solid season in the FCS ranks though so pay close attention to them.

#16 Boise State vs. #14 Oregon (Thursday)
If you stay up late enough tonight you will get to see one entertaining football game. Oregon visits Boise State in a game that will surely make you want to adjust your television's color settings. Boise State plays on a blue playing surface and Oregon is home of the zaniest color combinations known to college football, if not all of sports.

Boise State is a tough team to play at home and their defense should be better than Oregon's, so I am picking Boise State for a key early victory against a dark horse BCS team.

#8 Penn State vs. Akron
Penn State hosts Akron in the season opener at Beaver Stadium. Daryll Clark and Evan Royster will grab headlines for their offense but what about the wide receivers? How will the secondary hold up against what could be a decent passing offense from Akron?

Check out my preview on Examiner for more on this game, but it should be no secret that I am picking Penn State.

#15 Edinboro (1-0) vs. Shippenburg (0-1)
Poor Shippensburg. John Kuhn and Brent Grimes are all but memories now, and a shift to the PSAC East has not treated the Raiders kindly. Today they take on old PSAC West rival Edinboro up in the northwest corner of the state. Edinboro is so far away the Shippensbuurg radio station isn't even making the trip to broadcast the game!

Edinboro is tough once again, ranking in the Top 25 in D2 and should use a strong running game and stingy defense to send the Raiders to 0-2.

#11 Oklahoma State vs. #13 Georgia
This is one of the more intriguing games to start the season. Last year Georgia fell short of early expectations and Oklahoma State made a late surge in the Big XII. The Cowboys have the offense to cause problems for opposing defenses but they lack the defense that will get the job done against a team like Georgia.

I'll go with the Bulldogs in this week one headliner. Score one for the SEC.

#3 Oklahoma vs #24 BYU
The Cougers of BYU could play the role of BCS buster this season, but they will likely need to beat Oklahoma to fulfill that destiny. The Sooners start the season as a national contender and why not? Oklahoma is lead by the reigning Heisman winner, quarterback Sam Bradford. Their defense also is among the best in the nation.

Coming off a loss in the BCS championship game I expect Oklahoma to make a loud statement in the season opener against a pretty good BYU team.

When the NFL season starts next week I'll start giving my pick for any suicide pools you may be involved in. Let's get this football started!