College football is back! Or at least NU students are finally back for college football so Ryan Field won’t be as empty anymore.

College football also means the return of Gameday and Fearless Forecasters.

And now stand up and make some noise for your 2007 Fearless Forecasters.

First there’s me. I think the BCS works and love the bowl system. I know Miami was robbed of the 2002 National Championship against the Cheateyes. And I’m the only experienced member of this panel, as I’m 9-3 in my Fearless Forecasting career.

Next is Matty P, The Daily’s managing editor. He likes hockey (Go Senators!). He’s from Canada, which is probably why he likes hockey. But I’ve taught him a lot about football so he could be my top competition for the Fearless Forecasters’ crown. He’s also my roommate, so college football Saturdays could get very tense around the apartment if he manages to get lucky.

Then there’s D-Mo. He’s pretty good at singing theme songs for fast food chains owned by Northwestern coaches. He likes the Marlins. So do I, so we get along. He’s also in his second quarter as sports editor, which means he’s a little tired. That will probably hurt his prognostication skills, making him a longshot for the title.

The final two spots this week are taken by assistant sports editors DWade and Murray (which is his last name, but the name you’re supposed to call him first). Normally, the final spot on the Fearless Forecasters panel will be held by one of you – more on that later. But this week, DWade and Murray will have a showdown to see who stays on the panel and who is the weakest link, goodbye.

Now back to you, the reader. Every week a loyal Gameday reader makes the illustrious Fearless Forecasters’ panel. All you have to do is e-mail me ([email protected]) by Friday at midnight with your picks from each week’s games. You don’t need to pick the scores, only which team will win the game. There will be a reader winner every week, meaning your face could be in The Daily seven days from now!

Finally, this column space is taken up by the winner of Fearless Forecasters from the previous week – aka you’ll be hearing from me a lot this quarter. It generally turns into a forum for shoutouts to friends at some point of the season, so I apologize in advance.

Reach Abe Rakov at [email protected]