Chapter 2

Humility. Looking back at my first blog post, I can see I have a lot to improve on. Sure, the picks did not go well at all. I made ten college football picks and only had three of them correct. There are two things wrong with this, I was unreliable and I spent time trying to guess too many games. My NFL picks? HA! I didn’t get any of them correct.
All in all, I am not even disappointed with the picks not going my way. What I am disappointed in is the writing. My grammar has never been my strength, my sentence structure has always been sub-par, and my adjectives tend to be elementary. If I am going to make Kowal’s Korner a weekly blog, I have to put in the effort on the content. I am sure all of you know I am an amateur at the picking, so I might as well make a strong impression on the writing aspect.

While having a glass of wine on my back porch, it hit me. The Korner’s picks have to come from both the head and heart. I was throwing games out there last week, but this week I am only focusing on games I want to see. I cover a variety of noon, midday and evening games, while leaving out the late night action. By that time we would have left the Korner so I tend to shy away from the PAC12 and MWC.
Before we go any further, I want to throw something out there. Betting is an extremely dangerous activity. We all go to work and earn money. That money that we earn shouldn’t all get put on the line from a guess of what team will win, in something we have no control over. If we are going to bet money, please bet responsibly. Or, watch a game with some buddies and find one that will bet you a dinner on the game. At least you get to enjoy some food even though you might have to pay for your friend. Betting is a thrill, it takes you on a high and it takes you on a low. There are ways to avoid the lows though.
I am going to throw out a challenge right now. I want someone to pick five games, just like I am about to do in the paragraphs below. Whoever gets more right, between my five picks and your five picks, wins a couple of slices of pizza next time we hang out. This offer is only valid for the first person who sends me their five picks. So good luck to all! I hope someone takes me up on this offer because I am craving a nice chicken bacon ranch slice from Plum Tomato!

Georgia Missouri Over 63.5 – **Source Alert** After speaking with a family friend who was a Georgia Bulldog basketball player and still is involved with Georgia athletics, I feel fairly confident in this one. Missouri is led by future NFL quarterback Drew Lock, and Georgia is prepared for Lock to sling the ball around. Georgia has a great quarterback themselves with Jake Fromm. Both teams are averaging 40 points but both teams have been going against inferior opponents. I will trust my source on this one that Georgia’s game plan will be to keep the shootouts going and let the quarterbacks dual it out. Georgia 45 Missouri 31.

Buffalo -4.5 at Rutgers – This one is painful to write. This is where I really have lost all hope. I have said since the beginning of the year that Buffalo and their prolific offense will give Rutgers trouble. Now Buffalo is 3-0 and Rutgers lost by 40 to … Kansas. Tyree Jackson, the quarterback on Buffalo could end up playing on Sunday’s, and with Rutgers down their best corner, Blessuan Austin, it will be even more difficult to slow down Buffalo. A shoot out is the last thing Rutgers wants to get in. Their offense just isn’t there. Jackson comes in to the game` averaging four touchdowns, expect four more. Buffalo 28 Rutgers 17.

Navy -6 at SMU – SMU might be the best 0-3 team in the nation, and are home hosting Navy. I still believe the discipline Navy team will wear down SMU. SMU just had to play two extremely physical teams in TCU then Michigan. Now they will host a Navy team that does not turn the ball over, get penalties, and battles in the trenches. I feel bad for SMU because this is not a team you want to play after getting beaten up the prior two weeks. Navy 31 SMU 20.

Oklahoma -30 vs. Army – Army football is coming off a 10-3 season and continuously improving. They run the ball every single play and constantly get four yards. Army can compete with almost every team in the nation, but they cannot compete with the super-teams. Oklahoma has a solid defense and a loaded offense. Their defense will be able to slow down the running attack and their offense will outclass Army’s defense. This is not a good matchup at all for Army. Oklahoma 49 Army 10.

Wisconsin -3 at Iowa – Wisconsin will roll over Iowa, this one I am sure of. Wisconsin was a dark-horse to reach the playoffs before they blew it against BYU last week. On top of that, experts were pegging this game, which Iowa is hosting, would be Wisconsin’s slip up. Wisconsin is angry from their slip up and focused because this should be one of their tougher tasks. This sounds like a disaster in the making for Iowa. If Wisconsin’s run game gets going early the crowd will get knocked out early. Wisconsin 34 Iowa 24.

Bonus Guest Pick!
North Texas -12 at Liberty – #DantesKorner ! For those who don’t know, Dante and I lived together at Rutgers for my final two years. More than that, I call him a best friend. We rarely agree on sports, but we do agree on our love for Mario Kart, Disney and Selena Gomez. That being said, I agree with him on this pick.
He has been on North Texas all year it seems. He had North Texas over Arkansas last week, which they won 44-17. Now they go on the road again, but this time they don’t play an SEC team, they play a small independent in Liberty. Liberty is no push over, but they can’t even compete with Army, who they lost to 38-14. North Texas is red hot, and this can be the year they make a run at 10 wins. It continues Saturday, with a dominating road win vs. Liberty. North Texas 35 Liberty 17.

Bonus NFL Play!
Rams -7 vs. Chargers – The Rams offense is pure class. They are extremely balanced and deep. They have three good receivers, a good quarterback and the best running back, there are no weaknesses on offense. The Chargers will be without Joey Bosa, who is already a top three pass rusher in the NFL. That is a big deal that he is not playing. The Rams will put on a show in the battle of Los Angeles. Rams 38 Chargers 24.

Best of Luck everyone!
Goose