MTSU should be playing some guys their own size this week. So, maybe that offensive line that Coach Stockstill was pleased with (I cannot believe he said that with a straight face) can look halfway decent. MTSU fans better hope so.

I think there is some real opportunity here for Middle as well. First there's the opportunity to protect Brent Stockstill. Tavares Thomas should be able to mow his way to a good game and through him Middle can eat the clock and prevent Stock from taking unnecessary hits. That’s why I have Middle scoring only 24. If you don’t count Stock’s 14 rushes, most were the for-his-life type, MTSU ran it 22 times against Vandy. I’d like to see that number hit at least 40 attempts. They have the backfield to do it.

Beware of this game, though, because UTM isn’t a pushover here. Some people want to drop this in the gimmie bucket and I just can’t. If the Skyhawks win this game, it would not shock me. I’d raise an eyebrow, though. UTM got slaughtered by Missouri, but that was expected. I don’t think anyone should be saying the same thing for this match up. MTSU is the better team, has better players, has a better coa… well, I won’t go that far. But, they’re better than the Skyhawks, period. They should win. They’re going to win. Probably. Possibly. Maybe.

Pound the ball. Save your QB. That should be the modus operandi for the Blue Raiders in games like this.

After losing in a blowout in the season opener, the Blue Raiders will enter the win column in their home opener. The win, however, won’t come easy. The Skyhawks are a well-coached team with the talent to win this game and will keep the game close in the first half before Middle Tennessee pulls ahead after halftime.

Led by Brent Stockstill’s 300 yards and 3 touchdowns, the Blue Raider offense will make their first real appearance of the season. I also believe you’ll see a the Blue Raider rushing attack cross over 150 yards in this one as well.

On the other side of the ball, the Blue Raider defense will force two turnovers and I expect the front seven to generate around four sacks while also slowing down the Tennessee-Martin rushing attack just enough to make the Skyhawk offense one-dimensional.

The Blue Raiders win this game by a final score of 38-17.

First off, I have to admit that I am a mark. I believed that the Raiders would finally get over the hump and overcome the obvious size disadvantages against Vandy and ultimately start crafting their story for the year.

I was wrong. Dead wrong. I believed the hype and for that reason, I'm a mark.

But mark's can redeem themselves! And I'll get off the schneid this week.

The Blue Raiders are going to trounce UTM this Saturday. That much I feel pretty good about. The old saying is you see the best improvement in your team from Week 1 to Week 2, and I think that adage will ring true for MT, although it won't be that hard given their performance in the season opener.

Look for Brent Stockstill to be able to stretch the field against a Skyhawk secondary that gave up just under 400 yards in their opener against Mizzou. No, MT is not that prolific right now, but Stockstill should be able to push the ball down the field for some big plays. I expect he'll challenge for at least 250 yards through the air while Tavares Thomas performs his best wrecking ball impersonation on the ground.

Defensively, MT played pretty good against Vandy. They'll have plenty of confidence to aid their shutdown of the Skyhawk attack and I would imagine Scott Shafer putting together a more aggressive gameplan to get after the QB.

Middle wins this one going away, but a late Skyhawk score will soften the margin of victory.

I was dead wrong with my prediction for MTSU to take down the Commodores of Vanderbilt. MTSU got run out of the building last Saturday. Their opponent for this week, UT Martin, also got lit up by a SEC school, Missouri. The Skyhawks were lit up by Mizzou signal caller, Drew Lock. I think MT will be able to protect Brent Stockstill more, permitting him ample time to make his throws. The Skyhawks do not have the defensive front that Vandy has.

Look for Stockstill to sling it all over the yard. UT Martin’s quarterback Dresser Winn is a game manager and I expect the Skyhawks to pound the rock with LaDarius Calloway, Joe Hudson and Peyton Logan.

It will be intriguing to see how each of these teams responds after getting annihilated during week one of the season. I’m banking on Tavares Thomas assisting Brent Stockstill out by being productive in the rushing game. I’ll speculate that Stockstill throws for 275 plus yards while Tavares chips in 85 plus rushing yards.

I think this will be a solid rebound game for the Blue Raiders. I think they get off the mat and take care of business.