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College Pick 'Em is a pick-the-winner game with a twist: Players must rank their picks in order of confidence. It's not as easy as it looks, so I'll weigh in every week to help you make those tough decisions. Be sure to log in to the College Pick 'Em page on Tuesdays for the upcoming week's matchups and previews.

It looked like Clemson was finally going to break out of its old November habits, but the Tigers choked again, courtesy of some Matt Ryan magic. This team had been playing so well of late and had emerged as the clear favorite to represent the Atlantic Division in Jacksonville. The Tigers lost 41-23 to Virginia Tech in October (despite outgaining the Hokies by a whopping 161 yards), but they had destroyed all comers since that loss and looked like the best team in the ACC. Now? Let's just say it's a mighty long fall from an ACC championship and Orange Bowl berth to what seems like the team's 17th Peach Bowl invitation in the past 25 years. This Clemson team was on the cusp of an accomplishment that would represent the pinnacle of Clemson football since the 1981 national title season, and it all fell apart in about 90 seconds last Saturday. Yes, Steve Spurrier's Gamecocks have lost four straight. And no, they haven't been able to stop the run this year. The "ol' ball coach," however, has had a bye week to regroup and heal his team's wounds, while on the other sideline, the awful realization of a trip to the Fram Oil Filter Bowl is still setting in. I'll be surprised if favored Clemson is even competitive. South Carolina, 38-14

The Crimson Tide was one play away from beating LSU, but couldn't close the deal. Had Alabama pulled out that game, it would have needed only a win in Starkville the following week to advance to the SEC championship game. Now it's apparent that the psychological impact of the "Saban Bowl" loss has been substantial. Coaches have an adage about recovering from tough, heartbreaking losses: Don't let one team beat you twice. Well, LSU has beaten Alabama three times, as 'Bama was unable to do more than sleepwalk through ugly losses to Mississippi State and Louisiana-Monroe. An Iron Bowl defeat means that this team will be home for the holidays, a tough scenario for a team that was so close but fell short. It's officially crunch time for the Tide. It's difficult to understate the importance of this rivalry within the state's borders; had Alabama not surrendered two first-half turnovers in its own red zone last year, Mike Shula would still be roaming the sidelines at the Capstone. After notching a record fifth-straight win in the series last year, Auburn gloated about getting a "ring for the thumb," and Bama responded by running off its second coach in the past two decades because of that exact failing. Alabama plopped $5 million in Nick Saban's bank account this offseason in no small part because they wanted to regain its spot as the state's top team. Players who have been especially embarrassed in less significant games often show up to big games with a chip on their shoulders. This scenario applies to the entire Alabama team, but especially to the "Textbook Five," a group of five players, including four starters, who were suspended because of a minor academic scandal. These five players all missed the entire three-game November losing streak, but they have been practicing with the team and will be back for the Iron Bowl. Additionally, star wideout DJ Hall was suspended for the first half of last week's debacle, and he'll also be back. After losing to a Sun Belt team for the first time in school history -- at home on Senior Day, no less -- these key players are even more motivated by the idea of atonement than the rest of the team. A win here would go a long way in Tuscaloosa, and I can't recall a more obvious spot for a team to rally and play its best game of the year. Plenty of less-heralded coaches in similar situations get less-skilled teams sky-high for games like this, so if Saint Nick can't do the same, it may be time for Bama fans to rethink his title. Auburn wants to win, too, of course, but this year's Tigers are a not an unbeatable juggernaut. Like nearly all of Bama's opponents this season, the Tigers have had extra preparation time for this Jordan-Hare affair, and Tommy Tuberville will have his team ready to play well. Fundamentally, however, these teams are pretty evenly matched, and it's only a must-win for one of them. Auburn simply won't be able to match the desperation that Alabama will bring to the Plains on Saturday. Those readers who have browsed my bio will correctly interpret my desire to see Bama prevail as blatant homerism, but the few of us in the analysis business who are actually held accountable for our predictions are usually able to prevent loyalties from interfering with our senses. I've been on the right side of eight of the past nine Iron Bowls, and this year the Tide will make it nine of 10. Alabama, 28-17

Georgia Tech hasn't beaten the Bulldogs since Jim Donnan coached between the hedges, but the last three games have been decided by a touchdown or less. The Yellow Jackets have suffered through a difficult year, finishing 4-4 in the ACC. They sit at 7-4 overall, and rumors are swirling that coach Chan Gailey, never popular with the fans, will be asked to step down. The Jackets can heal a lot of wounds with a win over the Bulldogs, and with star running back Tashard Choice finally healthy, they're plenty capable of just that. Statistically, the Jackets have been superior to Georgia in nearly every category all year, albeit against a slightly weaker schedule. Oddly, that hasn't shown up on the scoreboard despite the fact that Georgia Tech boasts the No. 1 special teams unit in the country. Tech has been honed in on this game mentally for some time, and after surviving lackluster showings against Duke and North Carolina, the moment has arrived. As for Georgia, the Bulldogs have really turned their season around after a 35-14 beatdown in Knoxville back on Oct. 6. Since then, Georgia has reeled off five straight wins, including impressive floggings of Florida and Auburn. This team's focus, however, has been on winning the SEC East and earning a spot in the title game to match up against LSU. That's still likely to happen, as Kentucky likely will beat Tennessee this weekend (thus breaking a 22-game losing streak to the Vols). Either way, Georgia players are going to be scoreboard-watching before and during this game because Tennessee and Kentucky play at 12:30 p.m. ET and the Dawgs and Jackets kick off at 2:30 p.m. ET. Whether Georgia receives good or bad news on the Vols-Cats tilt, the distraction won't help with the matter at hand. The bottom line is that these are teams with similar capabilities, but the home team obviously wants this one more. Brilliant defensive coordinator Jon Tenuta will craft a game plan that Gailey can't screw up, and the Yellow Jackets will prevail despite another fine day from future Heisman candidate Knowshon Moreno. Georgia Tech, 24-10

Virginia hasn't beaten the Hokies since 2003. Last year's loss, in which the Cavaliers amassed only 112 total yards, cost the team a bowl berth. The 9-2 Cavs are going bowling this season regardless of the outcome, yet this year's Virginia Tech clash is even more important than last year's. The winner claims the Coastal Division title and advances to the ACC championship game to face Boston College. Virginia hasn't made a major bowl appearance since 1990, and this is the Wahoos' most accomplished team since that Sugar Bowl squad. Unfortunately for Virginia, the stakes are just as high for Tech, and the Blacksburg invader is clearly the better team right now. Since allowing the miraculous comeback to Boston College and Matt Ryan, the Hokies have dedicated their season to getting another shot at the Eagles. In the three games since that Thursday night meltdown, the Hokies have played like a team on a mission, dismantling Georgia Tech, Florida State and Miami by a combined score of 111-38. Even more telling than the final scores are the yardage margins in Tech's games since the B.C. loss. Coach Frank Beamer's club is known for generating points off defense and special teams, and the Hokies have a habit of winning games in which their pedestrian offense was badly outgained. The three games since the Boston College heartbreaker do not fit that pattern, however. Tech outgained those foes by a combined 484 yards, cruising to victory in each behind a resurgent offensive attack that has increased its average output to 411 yards and 19 first downs per game during that span. If those numbers aren't filling you with awe, consider that this is a team that previously failed to manage more than 278 yards or 16 first downs in any single contest against a BCS school not named Duke. Recent Hokies squads have had genuinely bad offenses but one of the nation's best defenses and special teams units. No longer is that the case. Better offensive line play, a healthy Branden Ore back at tailback and the success of the two-quarterback system have changed Tech's offensive outlook. Miami, FSU and Georgia Tech have had their own well-documented offensive issues this year, but all three are rock-solid defensive teams, and Virginia Tech moved the ball with relative ease on all of them. It's hard to discount a highly motivated home underdog like the Cavaliers in a rivalry game, but in games where the stakes are just as high for the favorite, the cream tends to rise to the top. This a team consumed by a revenge mission, a fact that should not be forgotten when it comes time to pick the winner of the ACC championship game. The Old Dominion finale will be a defensive struggle as anticipated, and the Cavs have had the benefit of an extra week to prepare, but it's unlikely that the host will be able to move the chains here, while the Hokies have been showing us that they can. Virginia Tech, 20-7

Boston College clinched a berth in the ACC title game with a thrilling comeback at Clemson on Saturday, and this game is an obvious flat spot for the Eagles because it doesn't carry much significance now. Boston College coach Jeff Jagodzinski has resorted to trying to motivate his players by reminding them that B.C. hasn't defeated the Hurricanes since the famous Doug Flutie Hail Mary play in 1984. Jags is also spouting the usual coach-speak about what a milestone it would be for the Eagles to win 10 regular-season games. He'll have a hard time getting his players to buy into it, though, and while the coaches aren't going to give Miami a free pass by benching all the team's starters, you can be assured that the staff will be more careful with regard to potential injuries. Miami, meanwhile, is simply looking for a win to avoid the school's first losing season since 1997, and only its second since Howard Schnellenberger succeeded Nick Saban's uncle Lou in 1979. The Canes required an upset win over B.C. in last year's finale just to clinch a berth in the Humanitarian Bowl in Boise, and the situation is similar this year. How much that means to Miami players is a big question that won't be answered until they step on the field, but there's no doubt that the stakes are fairly low for their Beantown host. The Hurricanes certainly have the defense to keep this one close, but the atrocious passing attack is ill-equipped to take full advantage of the porous Eagles secondary. Penetrating that pass defense is a must against a Boston College defense that has been among the nation's best against the run all year. After back-to-back blowout embarrassments at the hands of Virginia and Virginia Tech, I expect Miami to show up more prepared for this game and keep it close throughout, but I don't think they'll have enough firepower to pull out a win unless the defense plays its best game of the season. Boston College, 24-17

If you're a college football fan, it's hard not to look forward to this one. Unbeaten Kansas and 10-1 Missouri passed all the November tests, and now the players can finally stop trying not to think about what may be the most anticipated matchup ever in the longest-running series west of the Mississippi. Kansas is unbeaten and in the driver's seat for a berth in the national title game. Missouri is 10-1, the lone loss coming at Oklahoma in a game the Tigers led in the fourth quarter. The winner takes the Big 12 North and earns a first-time appearance in the Big 12 title game in San Antonio. Both teams average right at 500 yards per game of total offense, and both quarterbacks are Heisman candidates. Kansas has played better defense but also has faced a weaker slate of opposing offenses. Don't expect either team to stop the other's juggernaut offense too often Saturday night. Missouri uses its lethal combination of NFL-caliber tight ends Martin Rucker and Chase Coffman to create matchup problems that no team can solve. Kansas counters with a balanced spread attack. The thunder-and-lightning style backfield duo of Brandon McAnderson and Jake Sharp, along with the mobility of quarterback Todd Reesing, has produced a ground assault that averages 210 yards per game and more than five yards per carry. The Missouri defense has little chance to contain the Jayhawks' many weapons, but the same can be said of the Kansas defense. Quarterback Chase Daniel and his talented tight ends get most of the credit, but Missouri has an impressive group of wideouts and a running back corps that has produced a nifty 172 yards per game on the ground. Both of these teams are very impressive, and this looks like an evenly matched game. My slight lean to Kansas is primarily because of superior balance. The Jayhawks have the better rush defense and are more likely to be able to turn the opponent one-dimensional offensively. I think there will come a time in the game when it's obvious that Missouri has basically abandoned the running game, and while the Tigers do throw well enough to win without balance, I'll call for that to be the most decisive factor. Kansas also has more special teams weapons, and Reesing can turn to more options than Daniel if his offense struggles with any particular matchup. In short, I think the Jayhawks might have a better plan B and C on which to rely if something goes amiss. Of course, Missouri is the team that's actually experienced a close game or two, and the Tigers are the far less penalized squad. (It's obviously a close matchup when you have to mention penalty yardage in a writeup of only a few hundred words.) This should be a fantastic football game, and it may well be one of those "whoever-has-the-ball-last" affairs. Kansas, 45-41

The "Fighting" Irish haven't shown much heart this year, but even the downtrodden have their limits, and last week the Domers finally said, "Enough is enough. We are not losing to Duke." Congratulations are in order, not only for the big-time win, but also for being installed as an underdog of only four points against "mighty" Stanford. The Cardinal have little left to play for this year themselves, but part of Notre Dame's problem this year has been the fact that no team on the Irish schedule wants to miss out on the fun. Good teams are normally the ones that have the biggest targets on their backs, but this year every Irish opponent has realized that this season has presented a golden opportunity for a big win that might otherwise be improbable. Teams like Purdue and Michigan State, which have beaten Notre Dame with some regularity in recent years, concentrated on really pouring it on, while other teams like Navy and Air Force just wanted to make sure that the best opportunity for victory in South Bend in many moons didn't pass them by. In short, everybody wants to kick Notre Dame while it's down, and the Irish have drawn nearly every opponent's A-game. Stanford should be no exception, and new coach Jim Harbaugh will be playing the "if not now, then when?" card deployed by numerous other opposing coaches of Notre Dame this year. That said, this shouldn't be a cakewalk. Notre Dame's offense is finally showing signs of life, and the defense is, um, less bad than Stanford's. Neither team can run the ball, even against the other side's lousy run defense. So success through the air should decide this one, and while the Dame's Jimmy Clausen has made great strides recently, the Cardinal boasts the better receivers. Stanford, 41-37

The Seminoles have had another disappointing year, but there are signs that Bobby Bowden's team is fired up for their trip to the Swamp against the heavily favored Gators. Linebacker Geno Hayes has boldly predicted that Florida quarterback Tim Tebow is "going down," and the matchup with the Heisman frontrunner is sure to bring out the best in a Florida State defense that has carried the team all year. Bowden called Tebow a "big, strong, tough kid who doesn't mind going up in the briar patch," and the Gators sophomore has indeed been fearless this year. But Tebow is wearing a bigger target than ever before. After seeing what happened to Oregon and Oklahoma -- psychologically as well as fundamentally -- when their heralded signal-callers went down with injury, it's even more apparent that Florida would be in serious trouble if the physical Seminoles defense were able to knock Tebow out of the game, even temporarily. The three straight losses to Florida represent Florida State's worst streak in this series since the mid-1980s, and FSU players seem determined to erase the disappointment of another mediocre season with an all-out showing in Gainesville. The Gators have been on fire recently, lighting up the scoreboard to the tune of 47 points per game since an early October loss in Baton Rouge, but the Seminoles have what is easily the toughest defense Florida has faced since then. The visitor also matches up extremely well on offense. The Noles haven't run the ball effectively in what seems like years; nearly all of the team's offensive production has come from the passing game once again this year. That's all right this week, however, as Florida doesn't allow opposing backs any daylight anyway, while the young Gators secondary has been torched several times this season. This one should be a nail-biter, and I'll lean toward the downtrodden guest in an outright upset. Florida State, 27-24

Thanks to Oregon quarterback Dennis Dixon's season-ending injury and the Ducks' resultant collapse in Tuscon, this game is not really on the national radar. It might barely be on the Ducks' radar after the Arizona loss robbed the team of its opportunity to play in the title game. Experienced observers of the college landscape have long understood the impact of the bubble-burst syndrome that I've described so many times in this space this season, but the BCS system has really crystallized the significance of such situations in recent years. There's not much reason to think that Oregon will succeed in playing well in the same spot where Michigan, Louisville, USC, California, Oklahoma, Boston College and South Florida all failed. However, the one team that succeeded in overcoming a "bubble-burst" loss this year might have something in common with Oregon. Ohio State played extremely well against Michigan despite having been "dismissed" from the national-title race the week before. Of course, the Buckeyes are among the best-coached teams in the nation and were also playing a hated rival. Neither of those applies to Oregon here, but the one thing the Ducks do have in common with Ohio State is the possibility of a conference championship, which is a pretty hefty consolation prize. If USC beats Arizona State on Thursday, Oregon will be back in the driver's seat, only needing wins over UCLA and Oregon State to clinch a Rose Bowl berth. If Arizona State wins, the Ducks would need the Sun Devils to lose at home to Arizona, an unlikely scenario. As for UCLA, the Bruins have been hit harder by injuries this year than any team in the country, with the possible exceptions of Maryland and Northern Illinois. This squad has shown a lot of fight this season, rebounding to play well against California and Arizona State despite prior losses that took a heavy toll on the Bruins' goals. Karl Dorrell's squad played its best game following its last bye and reportedly has practiced well this past week. Key performers in the UCLA passing game are returning to health, and this team is poised to make one more run at a winning season despite a remaining schedule that offers only Oregon and USC. The passing game will be the key for both sides. UCLA is solid against the run and will force backup quarterback Brady Leaf and his banged-up receiving corps to execute very well in order to win. The Oregon defense, meanwhile, is also a decent run-stopping unit, but it's extremely vulnerable through the air, so UCLA will need to execute through the air to stand a chance. After the demoralizing loss to Arizona and loss of Dixon, I doubt Oregon can win this game regardless of its place in the standings. A Trojans win on Thanksgiving Day would breathe new life into this club, however. But if Arizona State prevails, I look for a disinterested Ducks squad to get blown out here. Make no mistake about it: The motivation of the Rose Bowl or the disappointment of a Sun Devils win is the difference-maker here in terms of how well Oregon plays. Since USC is a slight favorite, I've ranked this game where it would fall in my list if the Trojans are victorious Thursday. If Florida State wins Thursday: UCLA, 27-24. If ASU wins Thursday: UCLA, 38-17.

Both teams have identical 4-7 records, so neither of these Evergreen State schools is going bowling. The Huskies, however, still have a date with unbeaten Hawaii on the schedule, while the Cougars finish their season with Saturday's Apple Cup. It's worth noting that Washington State coach Bill Doba is expected to be fired after the game, win or lose, and that could have some impact on the Cougs' motivation, either as a distraction or as a rallying point. Otherwise, this is a WSU team with far less momentum than their Puget Sound rival. The Cougs have had some locker-room dissension this year, and the finger-pointing really got bad the week prior to a blowout loss at Oregon. A bye week followed, during which the Cougars circled the wagons. The team responded by whipping UCLA, playing well in defeat at Cal, then pounding Stanford before coming unglued again against Oregon State to log that bowl-denying seventh loss. Washington, meanwhile, was outgained by triple-digit yardage margins in five straight games following their win over Boise State. A home loss to Arizona was the last straw, and the team rebounded to paste Stanford the following week. After a hard-fought loss to Oregon State that saw starting quarterback Jake Locker carried away on a stretcher with a neck injury, the team rallied again to destroy California at home behind 332 rushing yards. New signal-caller Carl Bonnell, a former starter, threw for only 109 yards on 7-of-19 passing but managed the game well and tossed a key 12-yard touchdown pass right before the half. The win capped a four-game stretch during which the Huskies outgained every opponent. Bonnell likely will go the distance again, but he's not likely to remind anyone of Wazzu ace Alex Brink. The Cougars have lost their leading rusher to injury and appear likely to throw the ball as much as possible Saturday, while the Huksies will again commit to the run. Past performances suggest the Cougs have a better shot at stopping the run than the Huskies do the pass, and it's hard to fade a quarterback like Brink in favor of an unproductive backup like Bonnell. However, the host has favorable momentum and better team chemistry. Louis Rankin and the U-Dub rushing attack are in high gear right now and should be able to limit Brink's possessions. Additionally, Locker figures to be a useful cheerleader, even if he can't play. The underdog has gotten the better end of this series lately, but Washington is the choice provided Doba doesn't tell his kids he's being canned in a tear-jerking pregame speech. Washington, 44-40

Will Harris is a fantasy baseball and college football analyst for ESPN.com.