College football picks, Week 5: We're taking Louisville over Clemson... barely

The Red Cup crew went all in on Ole Miss against UGA, and the Rebs rewarded us by beating the spread by 23.5 points. So we're going back to the well for another Rebels cover, this time against a heftier 14.5 points in a home tussle with an unproven Memphis squad. Who have the Tigers played? A trio of teams that sounds like a gourmet dish at a local Wichita vegan cafe. I'll have the free-range SEMO Kansas Bowling Green salad, please. With a fresh coach and the departure of Paxton Lynch, look for Ole Miss to roll again.

The biggest matchup of the weekend comes from the ACC, where No. 5 Clemson is a home dog to No. 3 Louisville in Death Valley. We at the Cup are torn, 6-5, in favor of Louisville. The line has fluctuated from 1.5 to up to 3, so it looks like a lot of people are throwing some money on this game. I'll take current Heisman front runner Lamar Jackson to put Louisville in the driver seat for a Playoff spot.

Can UGA bounce back after the wheels came off in Oxford? Most of us are reluctantly riding the Vol bandwagon, picking them to cover the 3.5 points between the hedges. NOT ME! A common theme in the sports betting world is for teams that got embarrassed the week prior (Georgia) to bounce back while teams coming off an emotional and historical victory (Tennessee) to have a bit of a hang-over. This matchup is the perfect storm in both regards so I'm looking for the Dawgs to cover in Athens.

The RCR squad is pretty split on many games this week as it's shaped out to be some great matchups in and outside of the top 25. The one outlier is USC fanboy Zach Berry taking the Cocks to keep it within 17.5. Yes it's a lot of points, but the second-half fireworks that A&M put on against Arkansas last weekend leads me to believe the Aggies should roll again.

One last note on the Wisconsin-Michigan game. I am a YUUUUUGE fan of Colin Cowherd, who has come out to say his college football LOCK OF THE YEAR is Michigan -10.5 at home against the Badgers. I originally had Wisconsin penciled in but had to change it to Michigan due to my loyalty to the Herd. If the game misses, maybe I'll only listen to his full show podcast every OTHER day.

Week 5 picks

Last week

I'll be honest, I was hesitant to put Stanford (-3.5) at UCLA on the pick 'em sheet for last week. The spread seemed wacky and I assumed it would be (and it was) a unanimous pick for Stanford. Well, if you followed that game into the night, what unfolded is sure to be one of the craziest back-door covers you'll ever witness. With Stanford up three with time expiring, the ball was stripped from UCLA QB Josh Rosen's hand and returned for a touchdown. Chris Fowler even acknowledged the crazy ending when he said "A significant play to some!" on the call. Never change Fowler.

If you hd UCLA +3.5/3 you may need to quit forever https://t.co/1hgIc5vSqq

— Big Cat (@BarstoolBigCat) September 25, 2016

Will caught some grief for being the only one going with Auburn on the Plains, but it paid off as the Gus Malzahn's Tigers held on in one of the most Les Milesian nutso time management finishes you could imagine. A lot of people look at the final snap, but it was the prior play and the lack of urgency and planned follow up play which led the clock to tick all the way down. The ideal scenario now? Mark Stoops loses out and gets the boot at Kentucky, leaving the Wildcats to hire Les Miles. Not only do we get to keep him in the SEC, but Miles stays a thorn in MSU's side as their SEC East rival. I hear Les loves eating bluegrass, too.

As for the other big SEC bout, nine of the Cuppers looked to lock up Florida +9.5 as they led 21-3 at half. However, Florida pulled an Ole Miss and left their first-half mojo in the locker room as Tennessee rallied to score 35 unanswered.

Here are the latest standings with last week's record in parentheses.

• 13-6 (68%): Jeff (6-4) and Will (7-3)
• 12-7 (63%): Ghost (7-3) and Juco (5-5)
• 11-8 (58%): Smeargle (7-3)
• 10-9 (53%): Gray (3-7), TwoYards (5-5), and Zach (4-6)
• 9-10 (47%): Whiskey (4-9)
• 7-12 (37%): Alex (3-7) and Borkey (5-5)

Shout out to Alex for her sympathies towards Borkey as she joins him in the cellar of the RCR pick 'em pool.

What are your picks and musings on some of the matchups this weekend? See y'all on the other side!