First off, obviously, is NC State hosting Georgia Tech at noon on Saturday. Records don’t mean everything in this one, as the Bees are perhaps the worst 2-0 ACC team in recent history. Plus, Sendek has owned Paul Hewitt (especially at home), even during some otherwise turbulent times. Expect this one to get ugly early, and stay that way. Pack wins in a walk. Prediction: NC State 82, Georgia Tech 60.
But let us turn our sights to what, for my money, is typically the best sports viewing weekend of the year – the Divisional Semifinal Round of the NFL playoffs. Leading off is the underrated, underreported Seattle Seahawks. Expect them to challenge the Redskin defense much more than the Bucs, having both the best running AND passing game of any NFC contender. It’s hard to defend against that kind of varied attack, and you can expect far fewer mistakes from Matt Hasselback than Chris Simms. And the Seattle crowd will actually provide a hostile environment, unlike the Pirate Ship in Tampa. Mark Brunell was a poor QB before he got hurt, and an awful one now. Expect a decent (if unspectacular) Seattle D to focus their efforts on stopping Clinton Portis, to some success. Prediction: Seattle 31, Washington 13.
The nightcap offers the best game of the weekend – if only there were snow in the forecast. Sadly, the game is being played 2 days too early for that. Still, Mile High will be rocking, although my beloved Broncos can’t be looking forward to getting their asses handed to them yet again by Indy. Mike Shanahan needs to get the playoff monkey (no wins since Elway) off his back, and he’ll have to stop a QB who has never lost in a playoff start. Maybe I’m nuts, but I think Denver has the horses and emotional surge to pull it off. Prediction: Denver 27, New England 23.
Sunday leads off with a potential blowout – Indy handled the Steelers quite nicely in a regular season MNF matchup. But it was Big Ben’s first game back from injury, and his timing was clearly off. It could be the Colts shaking off some rust this time around, having not played a meaningful game in over a month. It’s also an open question how much the tragic Dungy family situation has sapped emotional energy from both coach and players. For those reasons, I don’t see a throttling here, but still a comfortable win and cover. Prediction: Indy 30, Pittsburgh 17.
Now, the matchup with the most local (and arguably most national) interest – Panthers at Bears. I have learned to love the Panthers almost as much as the Broncos, and when the “good” Panthers team shows up, they can beat pretty much anybody. And they have momentum on their side, having fully exposed the unwarranted Eli Manning hype and playing perhaps the perfect John Fox game – extreme ball control, defense, and no mistakes. But can the inconcsistent Panthers play a third straight inspired game? Can DeShaun Foster fight off his toe injury and also pull of the trifecta? Unfortunately, I don’t like the matchup (the Bears have the personnel and scheme to thwart the Carolina offense) or the venue (as hostile as they come). I like this one to come down to the wire, but sadly be decided on a late Robbie Gould FG. But I do have hope, which I wouldn’t have said 3 weeks ago. Prediction: Chicago 16, Carolina 13.
