PICKIN’ ON THE BIG XII: 8/30 EDITION

Once again this season, everybody says the Big XII is the best conference in the country, which means that, once again this season, the national champion will come from some other conference. This is the Big XII’s 8th season, and so far they’ve exactly matched the Big Ten in national champs. And, despite the vaunted Texas football traditions, that’s exactly how well the old Big Eight would have done in the same time period. Yep, this here experiment’s working out real well.

It’s a big weekend, with several teams playing meaningless matchups against technical colleges and American Legion posts that needed the money. Oh, and there’s two games that are just too strange for words. So let’s get the party started:
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PICKIN’ ON THE BIG TEN, 8/30 EDITION

One of the most traditional college football institutions was destroyed in a brief, blinding flash last night. I’m talking, of course, about the MACrifice, that guaranteed win that major-conference teams pencil on to their schedule when they find a team from the MAC that needs the money badly.

It was inevitable that one of these MAC teams would step up and take a game one day. Last night, they did. Northern Illinois beat #15 Maryland 20-13 in overtime. And all of a sudden, athletic directors in the Sun Belt conference are getting a better class of phone call.

It’s a light Big Ten schedule this week, with only four games on tap. But they involve the conference’s heavy hitters, so interest will be high. (Except for the Central Michigan/Michigan game; the Chippewas have about as much chance in that game as a chihuahua has of impregnating a Great Dane.) But otherwise, we’ve got two teams that will contend for the conference title facing quality opponents, and one inexplicably-ranked team facing a supposed MACrifice. So, on with the picks!
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