ANN ARBOR, Mich -- There's a buzz about No. 10 Michigan this year. There's talk of the Michigan defense leading the Wolverines back to the top of the Big Ten and the Rose Bowl. Or, for the truly optimistic UM fan, somehow carry Michigan to their first national championship since 1997.

But let's take a step back here. Michigan's pass defense over the last three years was ninth in the Big Ten allowing 227 yards per game. Obviously, there are concerns about the Michigan secondary and that's not a good thing when No. 9 Washington is visiting Saturday.

Upset Specials

Auburn over USC We keep hearing about USC's new and improved attitude. We'll believe it when we see it. Auburn has enough talent and experience to travel out to the Coliseum and upset the Trojans. Miami (Ohio) over North Carolina Miami's slogan this week should be Remember 1998. That's when Miami went into Chapel Hill and beat UNC 13-10. The Tar Heels better not underestimate the RedHawks and QB Ben Roethlisberger.

There was a time when the Huskies could not stretch the field vertically, but those days are gone. Rick Neuheisel's offense is very athletic and loves to attack. With WRs Reggie Williams -- who set UW and Pac-10 freshman records in receiving yards (973) and receptions (55) -- Paul Arnold, Charles Frederick and RB Rich Alexis, this is a team that is balanced and dangerous. And that's not even mentioning QB Cody Pickett, who completed 56 percent of his passes last year and is one of the better throwing QBs around.

But there is hope for the Wolverines and it comes in the form of CB Marlin Jackson. UM has been hurt in the past by the size of their cornerbacks in man coverage and Jackson gives them a tall (6-1), athletic player who can match up with Williams. The Jackson and Williams matchup will be one to watch and is one of the keys to the game.

Offensively, the Wolverines are getting back to basics. UM struggled running the ball last season and the fact the Wolverines were eighth in the Big Ten in rushing with just 139 yards per game is downright embarrassing in the land of three yards and a cloud of dust. Terry Malone, formerly UM's offensive line coach, takes over as offensive coordinator and you can be sure this group will be physical. B.J. Askew moves to fullback and junior Chris Perry and sophomore David Perry sharing the load at tailback.

And, let's face it, stopping the run is not exactly Washington's strength. The Huskies were ninth in the Pac-10 in rush defense and while Neuheisel has made a commitment to get bigger up front and faster in the secondary, that's a tough trend to change overnight.

The bottom line here is you're looking at strengths vs. weaknesses on both sides of the ball. How will Michigan's secondary handle U-Dub's high-flying offense and Reggie Williams? How will the Huskies stop the Wolverines new and improved rushing attack? And another question is how will Washington play on the road. The Huskies were a terrible road team last year. They allowed 43 points a game on the road while just 19 at home. Will they be able to play better in front of over 100,000 fans in the Big House?

Tune in for my pick on Saturday's GameDay show from Ann Arbor.

Clemson at No. 12 Georgia
This should be the moment Willie Simmons has been dreaming about. He gets his first career start and it's against a Georgia team that is breaking in a new secondary and notched just 23 sacks last year. That's pretty appetizing for a guy like Simmons who loves to attack. Problem is, he's missing some of his biggest weapons. WR Roscoe Crosby is out for the year and WR Derrick Hamilton may not be 100 percent. How this affects the play calling and Simmons is one of the biggest questions for the Tigers.

Also, this isn't exactly the dream way for first-year Clemson defensive coordinator John Lovett to start. He inherits a team that gave up 241 passing yards per game -- a school worst -- and had just 20 sacks. In the Tigers defense, they were very young and return just about every starter from last year. But that's good news or bad news, depending on your view. They will be tested by SEC Freshman of the Year QB David Greene and WRs Terrence Edwards and Fred Gibson, one of the better duos in the conference.

Also, watch how Georgia coach Mark Richt uses freshman QB D.J. Shockley. Richt's seen Shockley's explosiveness in practice. He's seen his arm, his ability to improvise and create. It wouldn't be a shock to see Shockley get playing time against the Tigers.

Colorado State vs. No. 6 Colorado

	RB Chris Brown is just one option in Colorado's explosive offense.

Colorado State has the advantage of having played a game already and the most improvement a team makes is between the first and second game. They were able to win a big game on the road and that will give CSU another advantage.

That may be the only one the Rams have. From a personnel standpoint, Colorado has the clear advantage and is a team to keep an eye on in the national picture. CU QB Craig Ochs is fired up. He had a tough time dealing with the injury last season and watching Bobby Pasavento lead the Buffs to the Big 12 title. It's like watching your best friend and your girlfriend out on a date having a great time right in front of you. It hurts. He was happy for the team, but it was his team and another guy was running it. But healthy and ready to have a big year. Everyone knows about the running backs, but CU has really improved at wide receiver. They four or five deep with Derek McCoy, John Donohoe, D.J. Hackett, Oregon State transfer Ron Monteilh and Jeremy Bloom. They're bigger and faster and that will help make them a much more balanced and dangerous team.

CSU's Cecil Sapp is obviously back. His 178-yard, 2 TD performance against Virginia shows he's healthy and confident. Watch the matchup between him and the CU front seven, especially LB Sean Tufts, a 6-3, 230-pound wrecking ball with a NFL future.

Colorado will score a ton of points with Ochs under center and Colorado State's only chance is if QB Bradlee Van Pelt is picking apart the CU secondary and matching the Buffs scores. I don't see it happening. I like Colorado -- big.

Notre Dame vs. No. 20 Maryland
Both teams have plenty of incentive heading into this game. Notre Dame wants to start the Tyrone Willingham era with a win. Maryland wants to show last year's ACC championship was not a fluke and the thumping it took against Florida in the Orange Bowl was.

It will be interesting to see if ND runs Willingham's traditional pro style, west coast offense or if he adapts to QB Carlyle Holliday -- more of an option QB -- and his strengths and athletic ability. Either way, the Irish don't have much proven experience at wide receiver and running back.

That plays right into Terps plans. Maryland's defense is aggressive and good. The Terps were second in the nation with 24 interceptions last season and they will do everything they can to confuse, pressure, frustrate, hassle and simply get Holliday out of his rhythm.

It almost doesn't matter who Maryland starts at QB because it's guaranteed Ralph Friedgen will have him ready. Scott McBrien may have a slight edge over Chris Kelley simply because the West Virginia transfer played against ND in 2000. There's something to be said for that because it sometimes takes a while to get over the mystique of playing the Irish. They'll miss Bruce Perry, last year's 1,200 yard rusher who is out with a groin injury, and will rely on youth in the backfield. But remember, the Terps were fourth in the nation in turnover margin, so they'll play smart.

Don't underestimate Friedgen in his second year with Maryland. Even with all the questions at QB and RB, I think the Terps will spoil Willingham's debut and win by a field goal.

No. 14 LSU at No. 16 Virginia Tech
A lot of people expect LSU to have a great year, but this is a tough way to start the season -- on the road at Lane Stadium, which is one of the most hostile places to visit. Expect Blacksburg to be rocking.

LSU QB Matt Mauck demonstrated his athletic ability when he led the Tigers over Tennessee in the SEC Championship game. But now he'll have to prove he can throw the ball. Teams will catch on to his scrambling ability and the running of star LaBrandon Toefield (back from an ACL injury) and the dependable Domanick Davis.

Watch for Tech to put everyone at the line of scrimmage. The Hokies realize running the ball is LSU's strength and it will be interesting to see how Toefield does against an attacking defense. But Mauck will have to throw the ball for the Tigers to win. He has the weapons in Michael Clayton and Jerel Myers. There will be battles outside between Clayton and Myers with Virginia Tech's lockdown corners Vincent Fuller and DeAngelo Hall. Watch Clayton and Hall go at it. Hall is one of the best young cover guys in the country.

One more fun tidbit: watch third down plays. LSU was second in the nation on third down efficiency offensively while the Hokies led the nation in third down defense.

Virginia Tech has a bit of a QB situation themselves with questions about how long Grant Noel's knee will hold up and the limited experience of Bryan Randall. But with Lee Suggs looking healthy and strong and Kevin Jones, who may be the best RB on the team to start with, the Hokies are have some offensive firepower.

I expect Virginia Tech to win this game and look good doing it. A lot of people are underestimating the Hokies and they are anxious to prove they're a really good team. They'll do it against a quality LSU team this weekend.

Kirk Herbstreit is an analyst on ESPN's College GameDay.