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Wednesday FEPO: West Virginia/TCU, Ole Miss/Auburn, Tulane/Memphis

It's humpday. Let's all relax and have a giggle, shall we?

Yeah, like getting rid of Mark Mangino is going to help Paul Rhoads solve the Texas defense.
Yeah, like getting rid of Mark Mangino is going to help Paul Rhoads solve the Texas defense.
John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports

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Thursday, 6:30 p.m. Amon G. Carter Stadium, Fort Worth TX
West Virginia +14
at
TCU

JM: Here, have some easy fake money. West Virginia is without their best player on defense, heading into the buzzsaw that is TCU. The Mountaineers, simply put, can't stop anyone. They're not stopping TCU either. Frogs cover.

LT: It's true West Virginia can't stop anyone, but the Horned Frogs haven't been so great at stopping capable offenses themselves. Say what you will about the Mountaineers, but they can score. WVU is averaging better than 31 points per game in its three Big 12 losses, although it's worth noting two of those still came by more than 14 points. Still, I think with a bye week to prepare Holgo will draw up some fancy things for quarterback Skyler Howard and wide receiver Shelton Gibson. TCU wins, but West Virginia covers.

Saturday, 11:00 a.m. Camp Randall Stadium, Madison WI
Rutgers +20.5
vs
Wisconsin

JM: This is a horrible thing to do, but I couldn't resist. Wisconsin has only allowed more than two touchdowns twice this season: against Alabama, and at Nebraska. But even if they hit their average scoring defense in this game, the Badgers still have to score 32 points to cover. Guess how many teams not named "Miami (OH)" they've done that against this year? Guess how many really had teams other than Miami they've played? They only beat Troy by 25 and Hawai'i by 28 and Purdue by 17. Sconnie wins, but Rutgers covers.

LT: I love how so many national commentators spent a good chunk of last weekend gushing over Ohio State and how Urban Meyer's brilliant decision to start J.T. Barrett finally woke up an occasionally dormant Buckeyes offense. They played Rutgers. This team is absolutely awful, an incredible fourth-quarter comeback at Indiana not withstanding. Still, this is B1G football and Wisconsin is deliciously bad this season, so give Rutgers the cover.

Saturday, 11:00 a.m. Jordan-Hare Stadium, Auburn AL
Mississippi -7
at
Auburn

JM:

bwahaha
It's like nobody in Vegas has been paying attention to Auburn this year. Ole Miss covers.

LT: I mean, at some point they have to realize the Tigers are terrible, right? Someone has to be watching the games, or at least seeing the scores. Plus, Ole Miss still controls its own destiny in the SEC West, so this game means a lot. Rebels cover.

Saturday, 7 p.m. Jack Trice Stadium, Ames IA
Texas -6.5
at
Iowa State

JM: Texas still has questions to answer, and we're not fetishizing them after beating K-State. That would be dumb. But Iowa State is such a train wreck that Mark Mangino is out as offensive coordinator largely, per scuttlebutt, because Paul Rhoads is so desperate that he wanted to change quarterbacks while Mangino didn't. One of these two men is a quality offensive mind, and the other is a moron. Longhorns cover.

LT: There's a lot of logic in that pick, but then again, the same process led us both to go terribly wrong with USC, another team with the same color scheme. Add to that the fact that Paul Rhoads' teams have a tendency to every once in a while pull off an absolute stunner in Ames and I just have a gut feeling about this one. Cyclones win.

Saturday, 7 p.m. Liberty Bowl, #Menphis TN
Tulane +30.5
at
Memphis

JM: Thassa big line, innit? Well, Tulane lost at home to Duke by 30, lost at Georgia Tech by 55, lost at Temple by 39, lost at home to Houston by 35. But hey, they managed to only lose to Navy by 17! Memphis has only beaten one team by 30 points this year. That was on the road at Kansas. Tulane's not much better. Memphis covers, as they gear up for the three weeks that will define their season.

LT: Well, I also watched Memphis utterly destroy Missouri State, but yeah, I can see why you wouldn't count that one considering the Bears also lost 70-7 at Arkansas State and haven't gotten within 28 of FCS competition this season. In Tulane's defense here, it has played quite a tough schedule for an AAC team. But the Green Wave don't seem to have much of an offense, and Memphis showed against Ole Miss it can actually stop offenses on occasion. So long as the Tigers take this one seriously, they should roll. Memphis covers.