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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 has been obvious for a couple weeks now that having Evan Sharpley under center gives Notre Dame the best chance to win, and now coach Charlie Weis has succumbed to the pressure to win a game soon rather than continue feeding Jimmy Clausen to the sharks, er, developing him. Notre Dame has shown progress on the scoreboard, while USC is a bubble-burst team that will continue to fall short of expectations. This year's Trojans edition is afflicted with ailments on the offensive side of the ball. However, USC's defense is still very strong, so this is not a team Notre Dame can get healthy against, even with Sharpley taking the snaps. The Irish logged only 140 total yards in the UCLA win and have scored only seven offensive touchdowns this season. Sharpley is an improvement in the immediate term, but the offensive problems run a lot deeper than Jimmy Clausen, and the quarterback change won't pay dividends until the schedule lightens up. A demoralized USC team may just go through the motions in this game, but that will be more than enough. USC, 27-3

To beat the Gators, opposing teams must have a great run defense to slow the Tim Tebow Express and/or a great passing offense to capitalize on Florida's youth in the secondary. Auburn and LSU both played great run defense against Florida, but Kentucky doesn't have the ingredients to follow that recipe. Both Auburn and LSU also had unusually strong offensive outputs against the Gators, with Auburn logging its biggest passing day of the year and LSU becoming the only team to run the ball on Florida this season. Led by Andre' Woodson, Kentucky has the requisite firepower, but the defense is unlikely to hold up enough for the Wildcats to pull a second straight upset. The tough opponent alleviates concerns of a post-upset letdown somewhat, but the Cats have to be drained after going three overtimes in their third comeback win of the year. Urban Meyer's offense should execute well after its bye week, and the Wildcats' defense will not have enough answers. Woodson and the offense deserve respect, but all-purpose back Rafael Little will be missed badly this week, and the Gators are fresher. Florida, 41-24

Like Kentucky against Florida, Auburn holds half of the formula required to topple LSU. The "Bengals" give up nothing on the ground, so teams that score on them must do so through the air, not exactly a strong suit for the "Plainsmen." The Auburn run defense, however, also is formidable enough to hold the host's offense in check, setting this up as another hard-fought SEC slugfest. If LSU is hungover from its first loss, Auburn will win. If Les Miles has his players properly focused, Brandon Cox won't be able to guide the visitors to the end zone quite enough. With the favorite coming off an upset loss and the underdog building momentum after a slow start, this game has the same texture as the Oklahoma-Texas clash. That's why I'm calling for the same final score. LSU, 28-21

Since the Bears' revival under coach Jeff Tedford, the knock on this team has been its inability to get that one big win that gets its over the hump and to that coveted and mysterious "next level." Well, last Saturday the Bears had the chance to become the No. 1 team in the country. And they blew it. How could it get any worse? I seriously doubt California will show up in Pasadena with fire, while the Bruins have had a bye week to recover from the sting of being Notre Dame's first victim. They'll be fresh and ready to start their season anew by avenging last year's two-touchdown loss in Berkeley. Both teams face uncertainty at quarterback. Cal's Nate Longshore is questionable because of an ankle/knee injury, while UCLA had to use its third-stringer versus the Irish. But there's help on the way for the Bruins; semi-injured backup Pat Cowan is expected to start this week, and there's not much difference between him and injured starter Ben Olson. As long as Cowan plays, the Bruins will have the firepower to keep the chains moving against an average Cal defense. As for the UCLA stop unit, it has been dominating on occasion, although inconsistent. The entire UCLA team under coach Karl Dorrell has been inconsistent, a real Jekyll-and-Hyde team. This team wins when it is properly motivated but loses focus too easily in other games. The home team has won seven straight in this series, and this shapes up as a game the Bruins will be highly motivated to win. Since Cal is likely to face the "bubble-burst effect," I see the Bruins winning easily, provided there's at least some production from the quarterback position. UCLA, 37-24

These high-flying one-loss teams scored a combined 76 points in their lone defeats, so expect lots of fireworks. Neither team has really been threatened during its victories, and both have been statistically dominant. The Tigers acquitted themselves fairly well in Norman last week, leading Oklahoma in the fourth quarter before succumbing. Quarterback Chase Daniel will spend most of the day throwing to his outstanding receiving corps, but the Missouri running game provides the balance that Tech doesn't have. That balance isn't necessarily a big edge, though, as the Red Raiders will have no trouble throwing against a Missouri defense that has allowed a whopping 265 passing yards per game. Expect around 1,200 yards of offense, seriously, and the team that finishes drives best, avoids turnovers and makes its field goals will win. At home, with better personnel in the trenches, that team should be the Tigers. Missouri, 41-37

The Vols have gotten on a roll, winning three straight in comfortable fashion after getting blown out by Florida in the Swamp. The defense has allowed 386 yards per game and an unsightly 4.6 yards per rush, but John Chavis' unit has been playing better of late. Alabama's wins, meanwhile, have been anything but comfortable. The Tide have now played five consecutive games that were decided in the final minute, and it's not unreasonable to wonder how much this squad has left in the tank. Like the Vols, who have lost only to Cal and Florida, Alabama doesn't have any bad losses on its résumé, dropping close games with Georgia and Florida State. But Bama's best win was a nail-biter over an Arkansas squad that's practically eliminated from the SEC race, and the team has been outgained on offense in four straight contests. All in all, Tennessee has been more impressive to date, but this is a crossroads-type game that Bama desperately needs. These teams usually bring out the best in each other, and home field looms large in this series. The Tide's receivers can cause Tennessee some of the same problems that Cal's and Florida's did, and Bama has a secondary capable of keeping Erik Ainge under control and a pass rush that's at least showing signs of life. Just as Georgia showed against Alabama and Tennessee showed against Georgia, the team that really needs a big win the most is the one that usually takes these SEC heavyweight bouts. Alabama is an ascendant program, while the best days of the Phillip Fulmer era have passed. Alabama, 34-27

Could Ohio State's stay atop the rankings be short-lived? There's some evidence to suggest that it might. This team has padded its point totals with defensive and special-teams scores against weak opposition, and those are rolls the Buckeyes likely can't count on against quality teams, a classification in which I'm willing to include the Spartans. The Michigan State players have really bought into Mark Dantonio's philosophy, and they're eager to prove themselves and shed the "choker" label with which they were saddled during the last two years of the John L. Smith era. Yes, the new No. 1 team boasts a dominating defense, but Michigan State's defense has been rock solid itself. The Buckeyes are a capable offensive team but not a powerful one, and they don't present any matchup problems for the Spartans. MSU, meanwhile, has a balanced, potent attack with plenty of weapons, and the visitor has plenty of momentum after proving against Indiana it could get off the mat after a tough loss. This shapes up as a close game between teams that are more evenly matched than most think, and the hungry Spartans have the element of surprise. In the end, the Bucks' defense will earn a key stop, and they'll hold on to win. Ohio State, 21-18

This is a land mine game for Penn State, as the Lions have Ohio State on deck and might overlook the Hoosiers, who were destroyed by Michigan State last week. The Nittany Lions are feeling good about themselves after comfortable wins over Iowa and Wisconsin and need to stay focused here in order to avoid an upset at the hands of an offense that's very similar to the Illinois scheme that gave the Lions trouble. On offense, the Hoosiers are nearly identical to Penn State statistically, but the visitor has the far better defense. Unfortunately for the Hoosiers, Penn State hasn't won on the road yet this season, which has made the team more aware of this tilt as a potential "trap game." Indiana should keep this close for a while, but ultimately the Penn State secondary will come up with too many plays, and the Lions' offense will pound away on the ground in the second half. Penn State, 31-24

Those who thought Michigan was fully recovered after beating Penn State had to be surprised by lackluster victories over Northwestern and Eastern Michigan but feel vindicated when the Wolverines thumped a solid Purdue team last weekend. The Michigan defense answered critics who claimed it couldn't handle spread offenses, and now it gets another shot, taking on an Illinois team that might have been looking ahead to this game when it was upset at Iowa. This is a tough game to call, as the Illini's run defense matches up well with the banged-up Mike Hart, but the return to health of Chad Henne might be more than the Illinois pass defense can handle. This is another big game for an Illinois team that answered big challenges when Penn State and Wisconsin came to town, but it's hard to pick against Michigan's momentum right now. Illinois has been outgained on offense in its past four contests and won't be able to force enough turnovers to win this one against a senior quarterback who threw only eight interceptions last year and a star running back who never fumbles. Michigan, 31-26

This Sunshine State rivalry features two statistically identical ACC squads. Florida State and Miami both have stout defenses that surrender only 318 and 319 yards per game, respectively, and both have struggling offenses. Miami has been dogged by inconsistent quarterback and wide receiver play, and consequently the Canes are passing for a miserable 181 yards per game. That's not good news against a Florida State defense that allows fewer than three yards per carry in turning most teams one-dimensional. The Seminoles, however, can't run at all, and have also gotten shaky play from the quarterback position. These ACC rivals have averaged 26 combined points per game in their past five meetings. Look for more of the same this year, with both offenses struggling to move the chains. Miami ranks near the bottom nationally in net punting, a serious special-teams deficiency in what likely will be a defensive battle that will depend greatly on turnovers and field position. I'll call for a carbon copy of last year's game, right down to the final score. Florida State, 13-10