The Undercard

No. 9 Cal at No. 23 Tennessee
Saturday, 5:30 p.m., ESPN
Neyland Stadium, Knoxville

Tennessee wideout Jayson Swain sounded downright indignant this week about the fact the Vols could be considered underdogs, at home, against Cal. "Personally, I'm mad," Swain told The Tennessean. "I'm mad that Tennessee could be counted out of any type of football game."

I am equally miffed. How could a Vols team coming off a 5-6 season be one-and-a-half-point dogs against some sissies from the Pac-10? How could a Tennessee squad that ranked 101st in scoring offense in '05 not be favored against the team with the Pac-10's best scoring defense, anchored by All-America candidate Brandon Mebane? Or an offense with a Heisman-caliber running back in Marshawn Lynch? Or a crop of wideouts -- led by DeSean Jackson -- that is as fast as any in the country? I mean, really, c'mon. Were these oddsmakers not aware that David Cutcliffe has returned to cure all the Vols' woes?

THE PICK: Cal by a touchdown, at least.

Sweating Out The Weekend

Four with something extra on the line ...

• Georgia Tech defensive coordinator Jon Tenuta. Does it get any better -- or scarier -- for a defensive coach than testing his mettle against Charlie Weis and Brady Quinn (8 p.m. ET, ABC, Atlanta) in Week One? An win would reinforce Tenuta's rep as a giant-killing defensive architect, stall Quinn's Heisman campaign and throw a wrench in ND's national title hopes. So ... there's sort of a lot riding on this one.

• Miami's new orange-and-white shoes. Coker revealed this week that, in addition to sporting orange shirts and white pants for the FSU game, "we've got these new shoes" that "we play very fast in." If the 'Canes get run over, will the kicks be shelved?

• USC's new quarterback, John David Booty. There's no pressure on you, Johnny. Other than the minute detail that the past two guys who have held your job won the Heisman. And you're opening on the road, in the SEC, at night (8:45 p.m. ET, at Arkansas, ESPN). Enjoy!

• Belligerent students at Autzen Stadium. Be paranoid. Watch out for anyone making a cell phone call. As part of Oregon's new Code of ConDUCKt to stamp out boorish behavior at Autzen, the university has set up a hotline (541-346-6148) individuals in the stands can call to report behavioral violations during the Ducks' tilt with Stanford. Feel free to call it from your couch Saturday, too, in case things get too rowdy in the living room.

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