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MCLA Fan Upset of the Week

With the MCLA season well underway, we have a good picture of who will be a top dog and who will have to fight for every scrap they can get. Each week through the end of the regular season, we will pick one major upset for each division in the MCLA, then ask you which upset you think will be most likely to happen.

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Last week I went 1-1, but was oh so close on the Pitt over Michigan State pick. Michigan State was able to hold a Pitt comeback and took the game 10-9. Grove City came out in frightening fashion and beat #6 Dayton 11-5. Grove City’s defense shut down the Flyers in both the 2nd and 4th quarters in the win. Did Dayton’s big win over Butler the night before get them complacent? Who knows, but the Wolverines came out hungry and got the big upset.

This week in the Top 10 was much the same story as last week, except for one part but we’ll get to that a little later. Colorado State took down Brigham Young in intimidating fashion 16-5. Colorado also beat BYU, while not as big, but still took home the win 11-9.

On the MCLA D2 side of things, it was just the same, a lot of expected wins and one major upset in #15 Grove City taking #6 Dayton.

Readers’ Choice

Apparently I need to take some more tips from you guys, great pick on #10 Sonoma State over #6 Stanford. The Seawolves brought out a HUGE 2nd and 4th quarter to beat Stanford 13-7.

On to week five!

MCLA D1

This week the slate of great games continues with all sorts of top 25 match-ups. #18 Grand Canyon takes on #3 Arizona State, #7 Sonoma State takes on both #20 Cal Poly and #6 UCSB, #13 Michigan State battles #23 Virginia Tech, #22 Georgia tries to upset the top dogs Colorado State, and #24 Pitt takes on #14 Davenport. Whew, any of those could be great match-ups.

It’s also worth noting that #10 Boston College played host to #17 UConn last night and won 11-7. I was about to pick that as a possible upset so I’m glad they already played.

As the title of this post says, there has to be at least one team primed and ready for upset this week though, and I am picking Davenport as that team. I know, I know, I’ve talked about how much they are on the rise this year and they definitely are, there is no doubt about it. #24 Pitt over #14 Davenport.

As much as I would love to pick Georgia over Colorado State and see the movement it creates in the polls, I think the Rams are just scary good right now. Anyways, back to the upset…

Pitt may not have gotten the job done last week, but I see that game putting them in a very dangerous position. If they respond to that loss as I hope they will, they will be out to show they deserve a higher ranking and are a better team than just the 24th best in the nation.

Davenport is currently on a six-game winning streak and doesn’t show any signs of slowing down, notching their last three wins against current #19 Simon Fraser (11-9), #23 Va Tech (13-8), and Clemson (16-12). So why will Pitt be any different?

Pitt has lost only four games this season by a total of five goals (thanks to former LaxAllStar, Peter Tumbas for that one) and still really needs to get that big win under their belt, especially if it means getting any sort of nod for an at-large bid for the National Tournament. This is their chance. They need to be hungry and show that they can get a big win over a solid opponent.

MCLA D2

In the world of MCLA D2, the top teams are out to prove they belong in D1. Concordia played Utah to the tune of 13-14 in a loss while on their trip through the state. This week Westminster plays host to Brigham Young, Missouri Baptist takes on Kansas, and Sam Houston State battles Texas State. I love games like this. Nothing to lose, a lot to prove. The D1 teams need to show they belong in D1 and the D2 teams are out to prove they can play with D1. Absolutely NOTHING against the MCLA D2, I think everyone knows that’s the mentality and there is no reason to cover it up and as numerous MCLA D2 have already shown, they CAN play and beat MCLA D1 opponents.

This week in D2, #16 Cal State Fullerton hosts #4 Concordia, #13 NDSU takes on #3 St. John’s, #8 Elon plays #5 Liberty, #18 Indiana Tech plays host to #10 Dayton and #14 Grand Valley State, and #17 Briarcliffe  takes on the #7 U.S. Coast Guard Academy.

This week, we are heading to sunny California and an upset of #16 Cal State Fullerton over #4 Concordia. Why? Still working on that, wait… got it. The Titans are riding an 8-game win streak right now and get the Eagles at home. Even more importantly, this game will most likely decide which team gets the conference bid to the National Tournament.

This should be a fantastic game and winnable for both teams. If Cal State continues to ride the wave, I can see them upsetting the #4 Eagles and coming out on top with the SLC D2 bid for the Greenville.

Know of a better upset? Tweet it at me @KriegShawLAS. Now it’s your turn, which of these upsets do YOU think is most likely to happen?