Pacers' Season Preview Minus Granger

Although the Indiana Pacers had a few question marks to answer before the season began, this was still a team expected to win the Central Division and claim a top four seed in the playoffs. Today it was announced that Danny Granger is out “indefinitely” due to a knee injury. Granger’s absence from the roster is going to significantly alter the way the team operates and will likely cost them wins. Granger led the team in points scored and minutes played last season and has always been considered the captain of the team. 
The starting rotation, as of today:

Center-Roy Hibbert

Power Forward- David West

Small Forward-Gerald Green

Shooting Guard- Paul George

Point Guard- George Hill

-players in bold were on the Pacers last season

Hibbert was an All-Star last year but he still has areas of improvement. Everybody is expecting Paul George to have a breakout season and elevate his game. With Granger out, it will be necessary for George and Hibbert to make up for his absence. George Hill will also need to produce more offensively. He was given a big contract in the offseason and he needs to prove he was worth the money. Green played in 32 games for the Boston Celtics last season and averaged 5.2 points per game. Obviously he will have to score more points as a starter. He needs to establish himself as a weapon to draw defenders away from his teammates. David West was solid last season and he should continue to be a solid foundation and quiet leader for the team.

The bench is where the Pacers made huge upgrades in the offseason. 
Here is how the backup rotation currently sits:

Center- Ian Mahinmi, Miles Plumlee (rookie)

Power Forward- Tyler Hansbrough, Jeff Pendergraph

Small Forward- Sam Young, Danny Granger (injured)

Shooting Guard- Lance Stephenson, Orlando Johnson (rookie)

Point Guard- D.J. Augustin, Ben Hansbrough

-players in bold were on the Pacers last season

Ian Mahinmi is a fifth-year player who will be a great substitute for Hibbert. Mahinmi is 6’ 11”, 230 lbs. and has great athletic ability. Hansbrough plays brilliantly at times but needs to be more consistent with that play. Sam Young is a player known for his defensive skills. Lance Stephenson continues to be a work in progress but if he can improve his game this season that would seriously help the Pacers. D.J. Augustin has been impressive in preseason practices and games. Hansbrough is a former Notre Dame player and somebody I am a huge fan of although I’m not sure if he will be able to compete in the NBA. Orlando Johnson and Miles Plumlee are the Pacers’ 2012 Draft Picks and I doubt they will see a lot of significant minutes this year.

Like I said earlier, the Pacers had high expectations from themselves, from fans, and from the national media. They are expected to compete against the Bulls for the Central Division Championship and home-court advantage in the Eastern Conference playoffs. I have high expectations too but we are nowhere near the level of the Miami Heat or L.A. Lakers. We may be there next season but not this year. I am predicting somewhere between 45-50 wins for the team and a trip to the second round of the playoffs. I’m setting the bar low because this team has too many unanswered questions. How long is Granger out? Who will step up in his absence? Will Paul George prove to be an elite player? Will Hibbert have another big season? How will the bench players perform?

Upcoming Games

10/31- at Toronto Raptors

11/2 - at Charlotte Bobcats

11/3 - vs. Sacramento Kings

11/5 - at San Antonio Spurs

11/7 - at Atlanta Hawks

11/9 - at Minnesota Timberwolves

11/10- vs. Washington Wizards

The Pacers have 16 games in October/November and 10 of those are on the road. 6 games are against teams that had winning records last season. In the first stretch of games I listed only two teams had winning records last year and are the only two the Pacers should lose. That would be the San Antonio Spurs and Atlanta Hawks. Indiana should start the season at 5-2 or 4-3 at the very least. I will have another Pacers article after this stretch of games is completed.

Sooner Showdown

It seems like every week that the Irish remain unbeaten the stakes get higher and the pressure to win mounts. Nobody expected Notre Dame to beat Michigan State on the road but they did. Nobody expected them to beat Michigan under the lights at Notre Dame Stadium but they did. Even when they hosted Stanford, there were some who doubted the Irish but they won. Now they travel to Norman, Oklahoma to take on the #8 Oklahoma Sooners. The Irish are ranked #5 but are 11-point underdogs. Everybody exclaimed that Notre Dame was “back” after beating Stanford, but the true test comes Saturday night. If the Irish can leave the Sooner State with a victory, they will have a great chance to finish undefeated.

Keys to Victory

Everett Golson: This is the game of the sophomore’s short career. Golson has shown signs of brilliance a few times this season, now it’s time to be brilliant for an entire 60 minutes. Oklahoma has a good defense, but nowhere near as talented as Stanford or even BYU. Golson will have to spread the ball around to all of the receivers and not be afraid to take deep shots down the field. The biggest positive factor for Irish fans is that Golson seems to play his best games on the road. In away games, Golson has thrown one interception and two touchdowns. At home, Golson has thrown two interceptions and two touchdowns. In fact, Golson said he was more nervous for the home opener against Purdue then he was for the season opener against Navy in Ireland.

Don’t Get Beat Deep: Notre Dame’s cornerback unit have played well above preseason expectations but they have not faced a unit like Oklahoma’s all season. Sooner quarterback Landry Jones is one of the best in the country and has really improved since losing to Kansas State a few weeks ago. Jones knows that the weak spot in Notre Dame’s defense is the secondary. He will challenge them all game and the cornerbacks and safeties will have to step up.

Run, run, run: Notre Dame’s trio of running backs ran for a combined 270 yards last week against BYU. I doubt they reach that number this weekend, but if they can consistently gain three to five yards a carry, they can take a lot of pressure off Golson and the pass game. Theo Riddick had a monster game against BYU and has become a fantastic runner. He can run up the middle or around the edge and breaks tackles like it’s nothing. He has to continue performing at a high level.

Another small key is for the Fighting Irish to score first. They have scored first in every game so far. They could really build momentum and quiet the Sooner fans by scoring first.

Prediction: Notre Dame-20. Oklahoma-17.

I could really see this game going either way. Both teams are so good and Oklahoma may pick apart Notre Dame’s secondary. Unfortunately, if Notre Dame loses there will be no positive reactions from outsiders. Many think the Irish are overrated and will lose this game by a lot. So if they do, all those haters will consider themselves right. Even if the Irish lose by a field goal, that will still be enough for everybody to point out how overrated they are.

National Preview and Picks

Finally got back to a winning record on picks last week as I went 7-3. That puts me at a season record of 55-25 (Stewart Mandel is 50-30 although we don’t pick the same games). This Saturday is definitely the day you want to stay inside all day and watch football.  There are four matchups of Top 15 teams that will have huge impacts on the national championship picture.

Games are in order of scheduled kickoff time. Predicted winners in bold.

Iowa Hawkeyes (4-3) at Northwestern Wildcats (6-2)

North Carolina State Wolfpack (5-2) at North Carolina Tarheels (5-3)

UCLA Bruins (5-2) at Arizona State Sun Devils (5-2)

#2 Florida Gators (7-0) at #10 Georgia Bulldogs (6-1)

#14 Texas Tech Red Raiders (6-1) at #3 Kansas State Wildcats (7-0)

#9 USC Trojans (6-1) at Arizona Wildcats (4-3)

Ohio State Buckeyes (8-0) at Penn State Nittany Lions (5-2)

#5 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (7-0) at #Oklahoma Sooners (5-1)

#22 Michigan Wolverines (5-2) at Nebraska Cornhuskers (5-2)

#11 Mississippi State Bulldogs (7-0) at #1 Alabama Crimson Tide (7-0)

Either the Hawkeyes or the Wildcats could use a win and jump to third in the Big Ten Legends Division. They are chasing the Wolverines and Cornhuskers. Arizona State and UCLA are in similar positions as they are second and third in their division behind USC. Georgia was destroyed by South Carolina and Florida destroyed South Carolina. That should equate to a blowout victory for the Gators, right? Texas Tech is a dangerous team whose only loss is to Oklahoma. The Ohio State-Penn State game would be epic if the teams weren’t banned for postseason play. Mississippi State is easily the most overrated team in America as they have not beaten one ranked opponent all season. Alabama will blow them out.

Notre Dame-BYU Preview

After an academic war last Saturday, Notre Dame will battle in a Holy War this week. The #5 Fighting Irish host the Brigham Young University Cougars, a Mormon-based school in Utah. The Cougars enter the game 4-3 but it has been a roller coaster ride for them all season. They are a senior-laden team and they had high expectations before the season began. BYU is similar to Notre Dame in the sense that they rely on their talented defense to win games but their offense has been explosive at times. In their four wins, BYU has outscored opponents 128- 22. However, in their three losses, they have been outscored 73-54. This has resulted in BYU ranking 72^nd in total offense and 5^th in yards allowed nationally.

Keys to Victory

Attack BYU’s Secondary- Throwing the ball deep is how Oregon State racked up 42 points against BYU last weekend. If Notre Dame wants the same result, they will need to take shots downfield. This could be a chance for young receivers, like Chris Brown and Davonte Neal, to show their speed and ability. The biggest concern right now is the starting quarterback situation for the Irish is in question. Everett Golson suffered a concussion last week and may not be 100% ready by game time. This means Tommy Rees may get the start. It is also important to establish a run game. This allows for play action and one-on-one coverage on receivers.

Pressure Riley Nelson- Nelson is a senior and starting quarterback for the Cougars. He has struggled this season as he has thrown six touchdowns but eight interceptions. He has also been sacked 12 times, one less than his entire total last year. Last week against Oregon State, Nelson racked up 300 passing yards but he also threw three interceptions. Notre Dame’s front seven should have no problem forcing Nelson to make mistakes.

Don’t Fall into the Trap- This game is being considered a “trap game” because of its place on the schedule. Last week was a huge home matchup against Stanford and next week is an even bigger road trip to Oklahoma. It’s possible that the players are still celebrating the Stanford win or could be looking ahead to Oklahoma. I seriously doubt this will happen for this Notre Dame team. Brian Kelly and the coaching staff are one of the best in the country and will keep the team focused on the BYU game and only the BYU game. Plus, Manti Te’o will also do his part to keep everybody in check.

My prediction: Notre Dame-23 BYU-7

UPDATE 10/20/2012: Everett Golson will not start the game after suffering a concussion last week against Stanford. Tommy Rees will get to start. Andrew Hendrix may get playing tine too.

National Preview

Skipping the preview and just getting to the picks since I’m running late on posting this.

Games are in order of scheduled start time. Predicted winners in bold.

#6 LSU Tigers at #18 Texas A&M Aggies

Virginia Tech Hokies at #19 Clemson Tigers

#24 Iowa State Cyclones at Oklahoma State Cowboys (side note: Cowboys’ next six opponents are in the BCS Top 25)

#7 South Carolina Gamecocks at #2 Florida Gators

BYU Cougars at #5 Notre Dame Fighting Irish

#17 Texas Tech Red Raiders at #23 TCU Horned Frogs

Nebraska Cornhuskers at Northwestern Wildcats

Michigan State Spartans at Michigan Wolverines

#4 Kansas State Wildcats at #13 West Virginia Mountaineers

#21 Cincinnati Bearcats at Toledo Rockets