I am admittedly one week late with this, as I didn't get the memo that most other teams in college football were actually playing meaningful games last week.

As an Oklahoma Sooner fan, I can honestly say that I enjoyed our open scrimmage last week since most fans got to see absolutely nothing through most of spring and fall due to closed practices. However, now I'm ready for a true game.

On Fridays I'm going to start using this little space to talk college football, using NCAA Football 09 and my own logic to come up with some predictions for some of the bigger and more interesting games of the upcoming weekend. As such, you can defend your teams, call me crazy, and generally be a good fan.

I'm also going to use this column to try to point out some things that NCAA Football 09 could do better by using examples from the real game, because we all know the greatest form of flattery is imitation.

So are we ready? All right, lets go!

Miami at Florida
Line: Florida -21.5

First off, wouldn't it be great to get some sort of an odds system in NCAA? I know the NCAA is very much against gambling, but something more than Lee and Herbie picking the games would be awesome.

Anyways this matchup is going to be fun to watch if for no other reason than it being an in-state rivalry, which we don't get to normally see. NCAA Football 09 points heavily to Florida winning this one in a closer than expected (at least according to the line) game. I actually tend to agree with this logic as I think Miami isn't as bad as they were last year, but they definitely aren't the Miami of the earlier part of this decade.

The Swamp is one of the toughest places to play in NCAA Football 09 and in the real game. Miami is going to have some trouble and if they get down by a couple of touchdowns early, Florida will pour it on. I'm predicting something in the middle of the line and what NCAA wants me to believe.

Pick: Florida 38 Miami 21

Georgia Tech at Boston College
Line: Boston College -7

Since my dynasty team was Georgia Tech and since this game was one of the more memorable games I played in my dynasty, I am going to pick this game. Georgia Tech is still trying to get the option game working while Boston College is having a few offensive issues of their own without Matt Ryan at the helm (sputtering against Kent State?).

My game in NCAA was a topsy-turvy wild game that came down to the final minute. Do not expect anything less. I'm agreeing with the line, my dynasty game and the experts.

Pick: Boston College 28 Georgia Tech 21

Cincinnati at Oklahoma
Line: Oklahoma -22

What's a week without me breaking down a game my Sooners will be playing in? NCAA Football 09 presents a lopsided affair and the Sooners are nearly unbeatable at home in live action as well as on your nearest console. Call me overconfident, but I'm picking the Sooners to cover this week in a game that gets out of reach early.

Pick: Oklahoma 45 Cincinnati 21

Random Musings

-Despite Appalachian State losing big to LSU, we still need FCS teams in NCAA Football 2010, it'd also be great to be able to play an actual dynasty with said teams.

-Speaking of FCS teams, Ohio State coach Jim Tressel is real-to-life proof that coaches climb the ladder of success quite frequently. His game against his former team Youngstown State last week kind of drives home the point I want to make here: Why can't we get some kind of advanced career mode as a part of dynasty mode where you start out as a no-name coach hired on at a school to manage the offense or defense, and you work your way up the ladder based upon your reputation? To quote a presidential campaign (no official leanings from this article though), "It's time for change."

-Does anyone else think that due to the 12 games teams have no incentive to schedule tough opponents all that often? A team wanting to win a National Championship who plays in the SEC, Big XII, Pac-10, etc., would be better off scheduling four teams from the Sun Belt, WAC and MAC and obliterating them than scheduling anyone from a power conference. You say the strength of schedule will catch up to them? It has happened before, but several teams who have played in the National Championship in the past decade have followed this model and succeeded, and the fans miss out on great games in the process.

-Georgia wins and gets dropped from the #1 spot in the poll? For those that cry about non-realistic results in dynasty mode this is a little reminder that funny things do happen in real life and sometimes the game is closer to reality than we think in some respects.

-What was that? You mean USC is off this week? Regardless, what a machine Pete Carroll has running out in Los Angeles these days. However, UCLA could be rather good in the coming years as well if the folks in charge can keep the program's nose clean. The future of the Pac-10 sure is interesting.

What? You mean I have nothing else? Well be sure to give me your random thoughts about the article in the comments area so I can tweak future iterations of this feature. From here on out I will pick some of the best random comments to be included in this article from week to week. Also, someone is going to get an e-brownie for pointing out the biggest irony found each week in the stat-lines of games across the country which would make you want to hit the submit post button here at OS complaining about broken stat engines.  Comment away!