Adding:
Western Michigan Broncos +14
Last season was pretty dissapointing one for the Broncos as they went 5-7 last year and fell short of expectations. Look for this team to surpass expectations this year and that all starts with quarterback Tim Hiller. Who two years ago was the MAC freshman of the year and he couldn't find a rhythm last year although he ended with 20+ TD's and 3000+ yards. Brandon West will be in the backfield with him a man that gained over 2,000 all purpose yards last year. So look for him to get plenty of touches in this one. The best part of this team is that they return all 11 defensive starters from a year ago. A solid defense last year looks to continue their strong chemistry as they have plenty of All-Mac performers on this side of the ball.
Nebraska is in a rebuilding year after the removal of Callahan at coach and bringing back the best defensive coordinator Nebraska has had and install him at head coach. The head coach retained offensive coordinator and looks to continue a pretty good offense that averaged over 30 points a game last year. The defense is going to be average at best. They gave up a total of 455 points last year. This year they moved a running back to starting linebacker (interesting) so their looks to be growing pains for this defense. I like the Broncos to keep this one close and perhaps get a nice win outright in this one.
Western Michigan 24 Nebraska 27
Northern Illinois Huskies +8.5
This is a very strong team that the Huskies are going to be putting on the field this year. This team returns 9 starters on each side of the ball from a team that lost 5 games by a total of just 20 points. Putting in a new offense in a way that will feature more shotgun sets and spread principles. The whole line returns and they are happy to bring back tailback Justin Anderson who rushed for over 120o yards before injuring his PCL. The defense is really strong up front anchored by Larry English who had 10.5 sacks last year.
The Gophers are still rebuilding from a team that won only a single game last year. This is a team that is trying to adjust from a power running game to a spread it out air attack. They recruited some athletes but don't expect a few freshman to come in a change the game for the Gophers. The defense is pretty bad and will be handled by former Duke head coach. They have opened up every defensive spot for battle and expect them to still be sorting out who will play where during the game. I really like Northern Illinois to win this one outright, but I will still take the points in this game.
Northern Illinois 31 Minnesota 28
Texas Christian Horned Frogs -6
TCU is known for its defense and this year should not be much different. They return 6 starters on a team that led the league with 42 sacks. With the addition of James Voss who was suspended last year can only help strengthen an already great defense. The offense struggled with fumbles last year as they coughed it up 28 times and that has got to change if they want to regain that swagger they know they have. The o-line is all back and they will block for a talented running back in Aaron Brown who is a senior. This is a very opportunistic special teams unit that had 4 blocked punts last year which is very good and will be a big factor for them to get back on top in the conference.
The Lobos offense all start with all conference performer in Mr. Rodney Freguson but that is about it for this offense. The QB is back and he seems to be settling in but will have his struggles again this year. The best part about this defense is the secondary in which they have depth and athletes while their line is just returning one starter from a year ago. New Mexico can run the ball but TCU is great at stopping the run, while New Mexico will struggle to stop TCU's great rushing attack. I like TCU to run away with this game at New Mexico.
TCU 27 New Mexico 14
Still looking at some others and will add a little later ...
