Week 3 NCAA REVIEW: Free College Football Picks Review

Week 3 turned out to be my best week of the year in either football leagues (NFL or NCAA) – I was just this close from being 10-1 or this close from being 8-3 so I guess my final mark of 9-2 is fair enough. It was nice going into the weekend 3-0 after sweeping the Thursday and Friday Night games, but even sweeter when a couple big boppers couldn’t cover the spread against my underdogs and the big favorites I picked ended up doing just enough to get me big wins. Here’s how it all went down.

NCAA Picks for Week 3
Cincinnati Bearcats @ North Carolina State Wolfpack (-1.5) (WIN)
The Wolfpack looked like the better team all night long. In the battle between Colleros and Wilson, the NC State product finished way ahead. He has a cannon, and Wolfpack coaches weren’t afraid to let him use it at home on Thursday Night – NC State won easily.

Kansas Jayhawks @ Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles (-8) (WIN)
Southern Miss nearly doubled the Jayhawks up, giving yet another small college conference team a big win over the “BCS Conference” guys. When will people realize the difference is smaller than they think?

California Golden Bears @ Nevada Wolf Pack (+3) (WIN)
The Wolf Pack got this kid Kaepernick to come to Nevada on a full ride. He was an under the radar signing. In Cal, 4 star recruit Kevin Riley was at the QB spot for the favored road team. This is why, folks, that big and small conference teams aren’t as different as you think they are. Nevada could not be stopped, as the Wolf Pack tallied two ball carriers going over 140 yards. Vai Taua went for 151 and a touchdown while All World College QB, Colin Kaepernick was 10 for 15 for 181 yards and two touchdowns through the air while carrying the ball 17 times for 148 rushing yards and three touchdowns. The Wolf Pack won by three touchdowns, scoffing at one of the Pac 10’s best.

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (+1.5) @ North Carolina Tar Heels (WIN)
The Heels just had too many injuries, and it only made sense that the Yellow Jackets would come out firing better than last week – they rarely have two off weeks in a row. GT got the W in Carolina.

Iowa State Cyclones @ Kansas State Wildcats (-3.5) (WIN)
It was closer than I thought it would be, but the Wildcats still won and covered and the public comes out victorious once again!

#15 Arkansas Razorbacks (+2.5) @ #19 Georgia Bulldogs (WIN)
“One of my strongest rules is to take the lower ranked favorite if he exists – that’s Georgia this week. But I also never do something without thinking, and somewhere along the line my thoughts have me going against my rules this week.” – Well, I love winning. I love winning most when the “experts” are against me. But second to that, I love winning when I go against one of my own rules because rules are dumb if you don’t break them from time to time when the feeling is right. The feeling was right, and I came away victorious after a late drive got Arkansas the victory.

East Carolina Pirates @ Virginia Tech Hokies (-19) (WIN)
“This is one of those times (scoff… as if they are few and far between) that I’m going against the experts and their “sure thing” pick for Saturday. Of the 12 experts going on one side or the other on the spread in the East Carolina/Virginia Tech game this Saturday, 11 of them took the visiting Pirates. Not only am I eschewing the “experts” but I’m also heading straight upstream against the flood of public bettors taking the visiting Pirates. 70% of the bets are rolling in on East Carolina, and boy are all those experts and individuals going to be upset when/if my predictions comes true.” – What can I say, either you’re with me or with them – this week, those with me ended up with a lot of wins!

#20 Air Force Falcons (+17.5) @ #7 Oklahoma (WIN)
I think I had it pretty well taken care of when I said, “It’s tough to destroy a tough-nosed Air Force team that runs the ball with great efficiency against each and every opponent they go up against.” – Oklahoma moved out to a lead, but Air Force just kept running the ball, eating up clock, and ended up losing by just a field goal.

#8 Nebraska Cornhuskers (-3.5) @ Washington Huskies (WIN)
Me, the public, the experts – we all came out victorious!!! What can I say, those three things don’t happen all that often, it’s a celebration! The Cornhuskers destroyed the Seattlites, demonstrating the hill UW still has to climb to get back to respectability.

USC Trojans (-12.5) @ Minnesota Golden Gophers (Loss)
I call BS on this one. The Trojans, who would have trouble stopping the Washington State Cougars (okay, maybe not) couldn’t halt the elite passing game of the Gophers in the last minute. Minnesota took advantage of a couple penalties to move down the field and score a “meaningless” touchdown with just a few seconds left. The word “meaningless” only works if you’re not a gambling man. Shoot, bang. The Trojans just missed a cover.

Baylor Bears (+21.5) @ TCU Horned Frogs (Loss)
The Baylor Bears couldn’t get anything together and TCU just scored on them at will. I kept hoping the Bears would get a stop and a touchdown – just a couple times, but it wasn’t to be and my last of my two losses finished in a TCU landslide.

Portland State @ Oregon Ducks (-52) (WIN)
69-0 means I covered by 17 points. One always has to be a little worried about a 50 point spread, but I was pretty calm when the Ducks were up 7-0 after 20 seconds or so. It turned out to be an easy one.

2010 NCAA Week 2 Free Football Picks REVIEW

It was all about crazy orders of things in Week 2. I was close to my .500 record of the NCAA Week 1 7-7 mark, but instead I finished one game up in Week 2. If I keep going that way, the end of the season is going to be real nice, real nice like Borat. Here’s how my small winner went – in short – win, loss, win, loss, win, win, win, win, loss, loss, loss, loss, win = 7-6… Want a little more detail, well, here ya go…

#23 Auburn Tigers (-2) @ Mississippi State Bulldogs (WIN): Auburn was just a little tougher than Mississippi State. The Bulldogs were solid, better defensively than I expected, especially in the 2nd half -  but the Tigers did just enough in the first half (scored all 17 of their points in the first two quarters) to sneak me out of my Week 2 opener with a 1 point cover, 17-14.

Central Michigan @ Temple Owls (-8) (LOSS): Central Michigan was decent, sans some turnovers, and maybe deserved to win. They couldn’t run the ball, but aside from those two picks, Radcliff threw it around pretty good – 25 for 35, just under 300 yards. But CMU ran the ball 33 times for 43 yards, in other words, ineffectively. Still, they cause me a loss.

West Virginia Mountaineers @ Marshall Thundering Herd (+13.5) (WIN): I thought Marshall would come out and play a lot better, finish some drives, and give the Mounties hell – and they did, for 3 quarters and 10 minutes. Then West Virginia did work. Up 21-6 with 5 minutes left, Noel Devine ran the ball in for a score to make it 21-13. A touchdown pass with 12 seconds and a 2-pt conversion that followed sent it to overtime, 21-21. In OT, the Mounties stopped the Herd and kicked a field goal to win it. Heartbreak central, but an easy cover.

Texas El Paso Miners (+20) @ Houston Cougars (LOSS): I thought UTEP could score with Houston, but in the end I was wrong. It was out of reach all game long as this one went into halve time 31-10. UTEP actually had great numbers through the air, but Houston ran it effectively while throwing it plenty, getting 300+ yards on the ground and through the air. What an offensive scheme in Houston.

Michigan State Spartans @ Florida Atlantic Owls (+28.5) (WIN): The Spartans aren’t that good, and the Owls aren’t that bad. Are they equal? No, but I thought those 4+ touchdowns were too high for this MSU team. FAU didn’t allow enough to get blown out as the Spartans needed all 4 quarters to even score 30 points. That Spartan defense didn’t pitch a shutout, so I covered easily.

#21 Georgia Bulldogs @ South Carolina Gamecocks (-2.5) (WIN): The Gamecocks were better, faster defensively, more physical on both sides of the ball. They played at home – they won by 11. Easy, breazy.

South Florida Bulls @ Florida Gators (+16.5) (WIN): The Gators continued their molasses paced starts by falling down early to the Bulls – but it started early in the 2nd half for the athletically rich Gators and they won easily over South Florida, forcing a bunch of turnovers from the Bulls’ talented quarterback, and running the ball with some big plays.

Idaho Vandals (+28.5) @ #9 Nebraska Cornhuskers (WIN): Like I said, it’s tough to cover a 4-touchdown spread against a team that can score the football on anyone. If we cut out the 2nd quarter, the Vandals win this game – but it’s a 4-quarter game, and Idaho gave up 28 in that quarter alone. They lost by 21 after a couple of 2nd half scores. Not too bad for the “other Idaho team”.

Michigan Wolverines @ Notre Dame Fighting Irish (-4) (LOSS): The question is, how many times will I bet against Mr. Robinson and his neighborhood? The answer is, not many more times if he wins games all by himself like he did this one. He made a Notre Dame D that looked quick last week against Connecticut look like they were playing in the mud at home this week. What a performance from Denard Robinson.

#20 Florida State Seminoles (+9.5) @ #8 Oklahoma Sooners (LOSS): The Seminoles were no match for anything the Sooners did. To my credit, they looked like a completely different team in Week 1, and Levi Jones looked amazingly accurate and calm in Week 2. This Sooners team lost a lot of guys, but boy, they still look legit.

#13 Miami Hurricanes (+3) @ #2 Ohio State Buckeyes (LOSS): The Canes had plenty of chances and the defense actually played pretty well early – but offensively the Canes were either outmatched, making poor decisions, dropping balls, or just flat out not ready to go up against a good defense. Either way, this pick ended up looking silly.

#14 Penn State Nittany Lions (+11.5) @ #1 Alabama Crimson Tide (LOSS): Alabama trounced the Nittany Lions, 24-3. Another 10 points from Penn State and it’s a cover, but Alabama was in complete control of this one from the start. It was 17-0 at the half, and quite honestly, it wasn’t that close. Trent Richardson was showcased again and showed how good he was by gashing a good Penn State defense for 144 yards on 22 carries. He scored as well. The Lions didn’t have time to run, and anything they did through the air was met with resistance. The freshman Bolden was a deer in headlights against that Tide D.

Colorado State Rams @ Nevada Wolfpack (-22.5) (WIN): In my final game, for all the marbles, the Wolfpack made me proud. I can’t say I didn’t expect a big win, but you never know. After watching both these teams play over the last couple years, and watching Colin Kaepernick do his thing against decent defenses, I figured he’d torch the Rams. Not too bad a day for him, after the game-clock ran out, 21 for 29 and 241 yards with two touchdowns through the air while running for a game high 161 and two touchdowns on just 11 carries via the ground. Dirty. He easily out-rushed the Rams all by himself, out passed them as well. 51-6 is Australian for “easy cover”.

NCAA Free Picks REVIEW: CFB Week 1 2010

Oh, I had to sneak a couple out, fight hard to come back, and I still just finished .500 with my opening week picks in the NCAAs. I was undefeated with my Pre-Season Week 4 NFL Picks, but I know that doesn’t mean much to you NCAA die-hards, so I’ll try to pick up the slack next week. So many bigs hammered the littles, and that didn’t always work out for me. As much as I hate to “TIE” I was wishin’ and hopin’ for a 7th win on Monday Night and it didn’t look good until Kellen Moore got the ball back with 2 minutes to go. Yahtzee! Here’s how the week went.

Marshall Thundering Herd (+28.5) @ #2 Ohio State Buckeyes (LOSS)
Southern Miss Golden Eagles (+14) @ South Carolina Gamecocks (LOSS)
#15 Pittsburgh Panthers @ Utah Utes (-2.5) (WIN)
#14 USC Trojans (-21) @ Hawaii Warriors (LOSS)
Arizona Wildcats (-14.5) @ Toledo Rockets (WIN)
Colorado Buffaloes @ Colorado State Rams (+12.5) (LOSS)
Purdue Boilermakers (+11.5) @ Notre Dame Fighting Irish (WIN)
Connecticut Huskies (+3) @ Michigan Wolverines (LOSS)
Washington State Cougars @ Oklahoma State Cowboys (-14) (WIN)
Washington Huskies (+3) @ BYU Cougars (LOSS)
#24 Oregon State Beavers @ #6 TCU Horned Frogs (-13) (LOSS)
#21 LSU Tigers (EVEN) @ #18 North Carolina Tar Heels (WIN)
Southern Methodist Mustangs (+14) @ Texas Tech Red Raiders (WIN)
#3 Boise State Broncos (-2.5) @ #10 Virginia Tech Hokies (+13.5) (WIN)

Marshall Thundering Herd (+28.5) @ #2 Ohio State Buckeyes: The Thundering Herd weren’t much of a match for Heisman hopeful Terrelle Pryor as the Buckeye passer through for just under 250 yards and 3 touchdowns, easily leading his Buckeyes to a big win. I guess I underestimated Pryor’s ability to throw the football. I thought they’d run it more, and the Herd would be solid there. But Pryor was throwing darts from the get go.

Southern Miss Golden Eagles (+14) @ South Carolina Gamecocks: (LOSS) The Gamecocks look pretty good, especially at quarterback. Defensively they didn’t look as lost as I thought they’d look without Norwood. This group will compete in a tough SEC.

#15 Pittsburgh Panthers @ Utah Utes (-2.5): (WINNER) The Utes were the better football team, and it was Pittsburgh that made it a game late with some big-time plays. When the Utes pulled it out an OT, it was a nice relief and something to be happy about on opening night, because lord knows the Trojans couldn’t even have stopped the freaking Seattle Mariners from scoring.

#14 USC Trojans (-21) @ Hawaii Warriors: (LOSS) Well, I expected the Trojans to score 40 points or so, I just surely didn’t expect them to give up 36 to Hawaii. The Warriors were better than I expected, but I learned on Thursday Night that the Trojans won’t be winning the Pac-10 Title.

Arizona Wildcats (-14.5) @ Toledo Rockets: (WINNER)  “You can’t take one thing away from the Wildcats and be safe, which makes it tough for teams like Toledo to have an honest chance at pulling off the upset. Toledo lost a whole lot of umph from last season’s strong offensive team. Aaron Opelt, their QB with 4 years experience has graduated. With him went one of college football’s most dynamic receivers, Stephen Williams.” Well, the Wildcats couldn’t be stopped and the Rockets couldn’t get started. In all honestly, I didn’t expect my preview to be that extremely correct, but I’ll take it. 41-2 is a pretty easy win.

Colorado Buffaloes @ Colorado State Rams (+12.5) (LOSS): I thought the Rivalry would be close. I’m usually right as they usually are. The Rams just couldn’t put points on the board on Saturday.

Purdue Boilermakers (+11.5) @ Notre Dame Fighting Irish: (WINNER) The Irish got out to a big lead, looked really good, so good that I wrote this one off for dead and turned to another game I was having a hard time stomaching. But I’m watching the highlights and I notice that the Boilermakers fought back with 9 in the 4th quarter to lose by 11. Victory! Shoot, I’ll take it!

Connecticut Huskies (+3) @ Michigan Wolverines: (LOSS) Boy the Wolverines looked really good, namely their stud quarterback, but they weren’t bad other places either. Will they take the Big 10 title? No, but they might keep Rich-Rod employed. Still, the Huskies moved the ball throughout the game, they just made some big mistakes and didn’t capitalize when they got into Michigan territory.

Washington State Cougars @ Oklahoma State Cowboys (-14): (WINNER) “I am not too fond of the Cowboys. I think they will be a pretty mediocre team in the Big 12 this season, but that doesn’t mean they won’t destroy one of the worst “big college” division 1 programs in all of college football. The Washington State Cougars have been on a reverse roll over the years, and it doesn’t look like anything aside from a giant impenetrable cast-iron wall is going to stop them – and they seemingly get to hit a new wall every single week. I hope you took the free money on Tuesday, but if you didn’t -17 still looks like a money-maker.” Easiest bet all week. I was counting my money when I made the bet.

Washington Huskies (+3) @ BYU Cougars: (LOSS)  Polk played well. Jake Locker played all right. But again, the Huskies aren’t all that good in many places. The Cougars are well coached and they play smart football. The Heisman is gone for Jake, but the Huskies will still win some games this season.

#24 Oregon State Beavers @ #6 TCU Horned Frogs (-13) (LOSS): TCU did a good job shutting down the Beavers’ rushing attack early, and that helped them hang on late. This game was closer than I thought it would be, obviously, as I lost ATS. Blast.

#21 LSU Tigers (EVEN) @ #18 North Carolina Tar Heels (WINNER): The Tar Heels looked tough late, fighting tooth and cleat to get back in this one. But LSU’s downpour was too much early, and UNC was fighting more than just the Tigers – that always makes it tough. I was lucky to take the right side here.

Southern Methodist Mustangs (+14) @ Texas Tech Red Raiders (WINNER): Down 28-7 and then 35-14 midway through the 3rd quarter, I realized a 14 point difference was gonig to be tough for SMU to attain. Luckily for me they poured it on late, putting up 20 points in the last 23 minutes to get with-in a score. They were close to tying it up, but TT pulled it out. The 35-27 score was good enough for me, though!

#3 Boise State Broncos (-2.5) @ #10 Virginia Tech Hokies: What a game, folks. If you missed it, watch the highlights. You’ll see two really good teams going at it, taking turns dominating the game, first the Broncos punched the Hokies in the mouth, then the Hokies landed what looked to be the knock-out haymaker. But out of nowhere, Kellen Moore pulled his Broncos off the turf and shut the door with a straight left hand in what was easily one of the best opening week games I’ve seen in a long time. As a small consolation, they won by 3, covering by a half a point, bringing me to 7-7 on the week. That’ll have to do!!!

NCAA Free Football Picks Review: Week 14 2009

And it was a very nice week to end my free NCAA football picks on. It started nice and finished even better. I wish both Alabama and Florida would have lost, but since that was impossible, I guess I’ll settle for the Gators getting upset in their bid for a repeat of the National Championship. Lots of good teams barely got by this week, but some nice underdogs made looking for the upset bid very profitable. Here’s how 7-3-1 looked…

Arkansas State Indians @ Western Kentucky Hilltoppers (+7) (WINNER) The Indians needed fourteen 4th quarter points just to win, but it wasn’t by enough to make me a loser – the Hilltoppers looked like the better team throughout, and I was definitely right about these two teams being more equal than the records suggested.

Oregon State Beavers (+10) @ Oregon Ducks (WINNER) The Beavers gave it a shot, and they had some chances. But the normally accurate Canfield couldn’t get some key completions late, and the Ducks offense ended up being just too tough to stop. Oregon completed two 4th downs on their final drive to seal the victory. But OSU covered in a game that was very close.

Ohio Bobcats (+12) @ Central Michigan Chippewas (WINNER) The Bobcats continued to do what they’ve done all year, keep it close against good teams. They were underrated coming in, and while Dan LeFevour was too much for them to pull the upset, a solid defensive performance got me a close cover.

West Virginia Mountaineers @ Rutgers Scarlet Knights (+2.5) (Loss) Just by the hair on my chubby chin chin. The Mountaineers pulled out a 3-point victory over a Scarlet Knights team that was their own worst enemy early. A late comeback fell just short, and Rutgers go me a rare loss in the last week of the season.

Cincinnati Bearcats (-1) @ Pittsburgh Panthers (Push) Well, this was one hell of a game. I can’t believe the small mishaps went the way the did, the unbelievable performances the Bearcats got from key players to stay undefeated, and the overall amazingness from this game. I thought the Panthers had it all wrapped up, but apparently they had it “all but wrapped up” as the Bearcats did what they needed to do, just like thy had all year. The 1 point win wasn’t enough for me, though, as Cinci’s win just got me a push. Amazing.

Fresno State Bulldogs (+1) @ Illinois Fighting Illini (Winner) This was another great game, and while it didn’t have an undefeated or a National Championship on the line, it had two teams playing solid football at the end of the year. As close as Rutgers loss was, this win was equal. The Bulldogs went for two to win it, and a tipped pass ended up in a lineman’s hands, and he took it in for the game winning conversion. Amazing.

Arizona Wildcats (+7.5) @ USC Trojans (Winner) The Wildcats beat the Trojans. Yeah, just like I predicted. Just like I said, the better team won this game.

Florida Gators (-5.5) @ Alabama Crimson Tide (Loss) The Gators got stomped, rolled, beaten, battered, destroyed, embarrassed, and Tim Tebow cried, and I’m okay with that. But I must say, it was fun to be a part of, even if I had picked the Gators.

California Golden Bears (-6) @ Washington Huskies (Loss) Well, it’s rare when I miss a Huskies cover, but I sure did exactly that this Saturday. The Huskies straight stomped the Bears, even though Cal had two weeks to prepare for the Dawgs. I stand surprised and impressed, and I’m back to being disgusted with Cal.

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (-2.5) @ Clemson Tigers (Winner) The Yellow Jackets needed a last minute touchdown to get the win over a game-Clemson team. C.J. Spiller showed the Nation why he’s labeled “one of the most dynamic football players in the country” and he almost single handily won the ACC Crown. But Jonathan Dwyer made a case for why he might be the best pro-style running back in college football, using his strength and speed to get the game winning score. What a week in college football.

Texas Longhorns @ Nebraska Cornhuskers (+13.5) (Winner) The Longhorns were out-played by the Cornhuskers, and again didn’t look like a National Championship level team -but they managed a win out of the situation, and that’s good enough to get them there. A 46 yard field goal won them their Big 12 crown and a spot in the BCS Title game. But I still easily covered.

NCAA Free Football Picks Review: Week 13 2009

Well, not a great week, but 7-6 is a winning week, and while I haven’t had many big college winners this year, I’ve been pretty consistent over the last 8 or 9 goes at it, and a good run every week, plus a great read on a couple teams week in and week out, should be giving you a good chance to make some money. A tough 1-4 start wasn’t too big of a hole for me to climb out of after all. Here’s how I won one more than I lost.

Ball State Cardinals @ Western Michigan Broncos (-10) (Loss) Well, the Cardinals came out and beat the Broncos in this one. I really can’t believe it, but it happened. Ball State just played a better game, and never even worried about a cover.

Texas Longhorns (-22.5) @ Texas A&M Aggies (Loss) The Aggies exposed a Longhorns defense that was lucky to have Colt McCoy in control of their offense, or the Aggies might have just pulled the upset. This was one hell of an offensive game, and the Aggies came away with an easy cover in a tight contest. McCoy was awesome, but I think any team in the Big 12 would have a lot of trouble with better defenses and downright tough run-games. We’ll see during the bowl season.

Rutgers Scarlet Knights (-4) @ Louisville Cardinals (WINNER) Tom Savage did what he’s done almost all year long, got the win while looking confident and throwing the ball with accuracy and consistency. The Knights are tough to beat behind their young gun slinger.

Pittsburgh Panthers (-1) @ West Virginia Mountaineers (Loss) The Panthers folded, not handling being the favorites in a big game, and West Virginia thrived as the upset minded team coming in late to down the Panthers. A turn of the tables, indeed.

Alabama Crimson Tide (-12) @ Auburn Tigers (Loss) Alabama got the win, but Auburn came to play and gave the Tide all they could handle. Down late, Alabama scored a short touchdown on a pass, and despite having trouble finding running room, got a big win heading into the SEC Championship with Florida.

Illinois Fighting Illini (+18) @ Cincinnati Bearcats (WINNER) The Illini put up plenty of yards and scored plenty of points, and while they couldn’t stop the Bearcats, a late touchdown was just enough to get me the cover for the road team. Can Cincinnati be beat? Pitt will give it a shot next week!

Nevada Wolf Pack (+12) @ Boise State Broncos (WINNER) Nevada put up tons of yardage and scored lots of points against Boise, proving a tough offense to stop, and giving the Broncos a scare. Boise won, but by just enough to keep me on the winning side of things.

Clemson Tigers @ South Carolina Gamecocks (+3) (WINNER) Clemson looked overwhelmed by the Gamecocks’ attacking defense, getting out-matched just about all game long. South Carolina looked too fast, and with Georgia’s win over the Yellow Jackets as well, the ACC looked like a 2nd tier conference on Saturday.

New Mexico Lobos (+43.5) @ TCU Horned Frogs (WINNER) New Mexico held the Horned Frogs out of the end-zone late, and that just barely got me a big cover. Haha. I was sweating it, nothing like sweating that 9th touchdown win late, you’re probably the only guy with an eye on a game like this, but hey, this is the bettor’s life.

Arizona Wildcats (-2.5) @ Arizona State Sun Devils (WINNER) They won by just 3, and I’m lucky I got them at 2.5 when I did. The Wildcats were the better team, but the Sun Devils came to play and luckily for me, couldn’t find a way to get it done.

Florida State Seminoles (+23) @ Florida Gators (Loss) This one was very close, and I thought I might get a late score to give me a miracle cover. But I didn’t and the ‘Noles didn’t, and to think, that might have been Bobby Bowden’s last game on the sideline.

Washington State Cougars @ Washington Huskies (-24) (WINNER) You can’t argue much about my knowledge and feel for the Huskies and Cougars – but this one almost didn’t work out. Still, the Cougars couldn’t do anything offensively, and the Huskies did just enough. I predicted a 29 point win for UW, and they won by 30. Right on the money.

Georgia Bulldogs @ Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (-7) (Loss) I should have left this game alone. I didn’t think anybody would out-rush the Yellow Jackets the rest of the season, but Georgia came out and pushed the Jackets around, and stopped Tech’s rushing attack enough early to force them into some things they weren’t comfortable with. And the ACC took another hit.

NCAA Football Free Picks Review: Week 12 2009

Well, I didn’t win them all, but I started out great and finished well enough to pull out a winning week. I was 7-5 and continued to bolster my NCAA football free picks record with mid-week games and afternoon games on Saturday. Something about those late games that I’ve figured out. Check back later in the week to see if I can continue.

Buffalo Bulls (-1.5) @ Miami-Ohio Redhawks: (WINNER) I picked this one out early, and loved the odds going in. Like I said in my newsletter, the Bulls got a full week to prepare for the Redhawks while Miami-Ohio got just five days. You add up the fact that they are a better team, and you get a 42-17 Bulls-blowout.

Central Michigan Chippewas (-17) @ Ball State Cardinals: (WINNER) The Chipps are just too good. Ball State came in and, like everyone else, couldn’t stop Dan LeFevour. Central Michigan put up 35 points to the Cardinals’ 3, and that’s what you’ll call an easy cover.

Colorado Buffaloes @ Oklahoma State Cowboys (-14.5): (Loss) I thought Zac Robinson would play. There it is. I’m not positive he would have made all the difference, but I sure would like to think so. Regardless, I got my first loss of the week when Oklahoma State had to fight tooth and nail to pull out a 3 points win over Colorado.

Akron Zips (+13) @ Bowling Green Falcons: (Loss) Akron was keeping this close, and a 4th quarter touchdown with about 10 minutes left gave me a glimmer of cover-hope. That was crushed in less than 7 seconds as the Falcons went Joshua Cribbs on the Zips, returning a kick-off for a touchdown, going up 16, and the game would end there. Blast.

Boise State Broncos (-24.5) @ Utah State Aggies: (WINNER) Who in the SEC would blast the Broncos? Who is better than them? Maybe Alabama, maybe Florida? That’s it. I’m sorry, but this is not a National Championship – it is a big conference Championship – and that’s what it should be called. Boise State took it to a Utah State team that had played tough all year long. They put up 52 and won by 31. I’ll take it.

Ohio State Buckeyes (-12) @ Michigan Wolverines: (Loss) The Buckeyes didn’t help me out. They won by 11 in a game they should have dominated. Same old Buckeyes. I thought playing in a game that didn’t matter for much in the win column would have allowed them to open it up a little. Unfortunately for me, they kept it all in the sweater vest.

North Carolina Tar Heels @ Boston College Eagles (-3.5) (Loss) The Heels just flat out whooped up on the Eagles, making me wonder what I was thinking. That Tar Heel defense is just tough. The Eagles didn’t have the guys to do much against that D, they were outmatched all day long.

North Carolina State Wolf Pack @ Virginia Tech Hokies (-19.5): (WINNER) Last time I checked, 38-10 was an easy 20 point spread cover. That’s what Va-Tech did to NC State. It was 24019 at the half. The Hokies scored 14 more in the 3rd while shutting the Wolf Pack out. The 4th quarter was scoreless for both teams as the Hokies ran out the clock effectively. Got a Hokies win just before Turkey-Day – you bet! Gobble flippin’ Gobble!

Connecticut Huskies (+6) @ Notre Dame Fighting Irish: (WINNER) I was pulling hard for the Huskies, no doubt. And they sure fought hard, and it was a great moment seeing them win. I must say, for the first time in a long time I was happier seeing Notre Dame’s opponent celebrate than I was watching the Irish fret. Might have been the first time ever.

Oregon State Beavers (-30.5) @ Washington State Cougars: (WINNER) Well, the Beavers killed WSU, obviously, that was going to happen. But would it be by enough? Ah, the 30 point favorite question. It was a 21-10 half time score, but I must say, I wasn’t too worried until it was only 28-10 after 3. But Jacquizz Rodgers would score his 2nd TD in the 4th, and with 5 minutes left, the Beavers stumbled into another rushing touchdown, getting the cover by a point and a half. Whew.

California Golden Bears  @ Stanford Cardinal (-7): (Loss) Cal went and won outright. Not sure how it happened, maybe it was Stanford getting a little too pass-happy, being a little too young, or just being a little too happy about the things they had done over the last couple weeks. Whatever it was, the Bears took advantage and got a big win on the road.

Nevada Wolf Pack (-31.5) @ New Mexico State Aggies: (WINNER) 63-20. That was the final score in this one – and it wasn’t that close. This one was 28-3 after the 1st, then 42-6 after the 2nd quarter. The 3rd quarter saw two more  Wolf Pack touchdowns as the lead grew to a 50-point margin. The Aggies tried to make it respectable, but since that was impossible, they just settled for two 4th quarter touchdowns to get it within 50. Winner, winner, Sunday College Football chicken dinner!

College Football Betting: NCAA Week 11 2009 Review

I put together another winning Week in NCAA football, and it’s all starting to come together. This week I took games from Tuesday to Sunday, and I found a lot of winners in big conference match-ups, finishing 9-6 overall. What will a crazy Week 12 bring? Lets check out the review for Week 11 first. Here goes!

Ohio Bobcats (+3) @ Buffalo Bulls: (WINNER) The Bobcats may have needed a late field goal to get the win, but they outplayed the Bulls – and that’s why they got the win. It’s always good to start out with a victory.

Toledo Rockets (+16) @ Central Michigan Chippewas: (Loss) This is what I get for picking against the Chipps. CMU put up 28 points in the 2nd quarter alone, tying the Rockets totals for the entire game. Toledo just couldn’t get it going, got some tough breaks, had a couple dropped balls, and just flat out couldn’t stop Dan LeFevour. The Chipps won by 28. That was 13 too many for me!

Bowling Green Falcons @ Miami (Ohio) Redhawks (+3) (Loss) This was tied at halftime, 14-14. That didn’t last too long into the second half as Bowling Green came out throwing, and defensively shutting down the Redhawks. 21 unanswered points later, the Falcons took me down, ousting Miami-Ohio 35-14. Sorry about this one.

South Florida Bulls @ Rutgers Scarlet Knights (+1): (WINNER) The Scarlet Knights dominated this game. Face it, with Tom Savage at quarterback, these Knights are very efficient, look how they’ve played since he became the starter. They are 7-1 with just a loss to Pittsburgh. They deserve more credit, until they get that, they have nice value.

West Virginia Mountaineers (+10) @ Cincinnati Bearcats: (WINNER) West Virginia battled all night with the Bearcats. Some will say that WVU had a late and seemingly meaningless score, ha, they played the Bearcats tough all game long, and were in it from start to finish, just like I said, 10 was too much.

Clemson Tigers (-7) @ NC State Wolf Pack: (WINNER) C.J. Spiller: best college football player I’ve seen this year. He almost outscored the Wolf Pack all by himself, throwing, rushing for, and catching a touchdown, Spiller was responsible for 3 TDs – the Pack scored just 23. If it was just C.J. versus the Pack, it would have been close, but Spiller got to use his teammates to help on Saturday, proving to be too much for N.C. State.

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (-10) @ Duke Blue Devils: (WINNER) The Yellow Jackets annihilated the Blue Devils, showing that while the Duke program is improving, they have a long way to go. GT just had too much power and swag, dominating this contest all the way through.

Michigan Wolverines (+10) @ Wisconsin Badgers: (Loss)The Wolverines weren’t looking so bad going into half, down just 21-17, but the Badgers did work in the second half, scoring 24 points to the Wolverines’ 7. One has to wonder how long Coach Rodriguez will have that job in Michigan. Maybe Notre Dame will hire him?

Kentucky Wildcats @ Vanderbilt Commodores (+3): (Loss) After being up 13-10 going into the half, the Commodores remembered how they collected those first 8 losses on the season, and sure enough, the managed to duplicate the feat and give up 14 points in the 2nd half while scoring none. When you pick teams that lose, sometimes they manage to show you exactly why they do so.

Arizona Wildcats (pk) @ California Golden Bears: (Loss) The Cats really ruined a chance for a big match-up further down the line, and a chance to really take their program up a notch when they just flat out didn’t make big plays against the Bears. Cal played like they wanted it more, if was definitely a tough one to stomach, despite the competitiveness of the game and the close score, I think this Arizona team should beat the Bears 8 of 10 times they play. This was one of those two…

Washington Huskies @ Oregon State Beavers (-11): (WINNER) I said the line wouldn’t matter here, and I was dead on, just like I wrote, the Beavers were the Huskies worst nightmare, further proving that while the Huskies can hang around against throwing teams, these running powerhouse’s just dominate the Dawgs.

UCLA Bruins (+18) @ Washington State Cougars: (WINNER) The Bruins did everything I thought they’d do, dominate the Cougars from snap to end game, and they did it a lot of ways. In my write up I said, “just because teh Bruins only average about 20 points a game doesn’t mean they won’t put up 30+” and I couldn’t have called it better. I also mentioned that if the game was “any closer than 35-10 I would be absolutely stunned”. Not stunned.

Miami Hurricanes @ North Carolina Tar Heels (+3.5): (WINNER) I really liked the Tar Heels chances with capitalizing on Miami mistakes, and just like I predicted, that became a huge part of this game. The Heels didn’t keep it as low scoring as I imagined, but that’s because they put up tons of points against the Canes. A nice upset on the road for a growing Tar Heel program.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish (+7.5) @ Pittsburgh Panthers: (WINNER) The Irish were outmatched and out-manned in this one, but they fought back late to get me the cover. An Irish loss, a cover for me – it couldn’t get much better. What did I learn from this game? If Charlie Weis has a job in football next season, he has Golden Tate to thank, because without that guy’s turbo button, I think the Irish wouldn’t have made a bowl game this year.

East Carolina Pirates @ Tulsa Hurricane (-5.5): (Loss)Tulsa not only lost, they got smacked around. Favored by 5 against an East Carolina team that couldn’t seem to muster an ounce of offense last week was too much for them. ECU’s defense scored more than Tulsa’s offense – never a good sign. Sunday NCAA loss for me.

College Football Free Picks Review: Week 10

9-3-1: You have to like slamming home 75% of your bets – this was my best college week of the year. I had previously thought college ball to be a little easier than the NFL, but the start to the season has been 50/50 and it was nice to get a big week out of my College picks. It was a big week for all my picks, winners everywhere! Here’s the review!

Bowling Green Falcons (+3.5) @ Buffalo Bulls: (WINNER) “I just think Bowling Green plays well on the road. They lost to Missouri and Marshall away from home, 7 points separated them in each loss. They recently won at Kent State, be it by just a single point, before beating Ball State by two touchdowns on the road. They’ve done this all through the air, using their passing attack to efficiently move the ball and create big plays. The Bowling Green Falcons have out-passed every opponent outside of Boise State so far this season. Now, they have been out-rushed in almost every game, so they definitely go how their passing attack goes.”

So their passing attack didn’t really hit the gold until the 4th quarter, but that was enough for Bowling Green as they snaked out another one-point win this season. They couldn’t run the ball, but when it came down to it, they sure could throw it. A big stop late gave the Falcons a chance, and they cashed it in. Big win to start the week!

Miami (Ohio) Redhawks (+14) @ Temple Owls: (WINNER) “Alright, it’s your lucky day, the Redhawks have moved from a 13 point dog to open, to a 14 point dog when I made my pick, to a 17 point dog right now. That’s a huge move, and it might be because 67% of the public likes the Owls. It also might be because the Redhawks have their fair share of injuries while Temple is basically injury free, healthy as a night owl, if you will. It also might be because people are realizing Miami’s 1-8 record to start the season. You could say they are the favorite. But 14 points? (17 points for you if you’re betting now)? The Owls haven’t been a two touchdown favorite since 2001. Now, they covered in that game, but as you can see it has been a long time. It’s almost 2010.”

The Redhawks made it tough on me, waiting until the last quarter of each half to get their game right. After 19 straight and unanswered points to grab the lead late in the 4th, Temple hit a last second field goal to secure the win. What a game of swings. I still got my win, though, and I know you got yours. Nobody said it would be easy, but the points were too much for a team that hadn’t been a big favorite in, well, just under forever.

Purdue Boilermakers (+4) @ Michigan Wolverines: (WINNER)  “Luckily for you, this spread has made a change for the better since Monday Night when I made my selection. I have the Boilermakers at +4 but they are already getting +6 at almost every book. Still, 75% of the public likes Michigan to cover at home in this one. Fortunately, I think the public is confused, and the man is happy as a clam at high tide about the whole thing. See, the public (or so I guess) sees 5-4 Michigan hosting 3-6 Purdue, and they think, “favored by less than a touchdown, give me that football powerhouse, Michigan” – but that’s where they’re all wrong. Sure, the Wolverines got the Fighting Irish when they were on the other side of that luck thing, and that was a good win. But their other four wins have come against less than stellar competition, Delaware State, Western and Eastern Michigan, and good old Indiana. How’s that 5-4 resume looking now? And Michigan has really struggled lately, losing 4 of their last 5, including a beat down last week at the hands of Illinois, of all teams. Purdue may have 6 losses, and on any given day they can play like piss, but aside from last week, they’ve been very competitive against some pretty good teams. Purdue has lost by more than a touchdown just twice this season, losing to Notre Dame and Oregon by 5 points combined. They got kicked around last week by Wisconsin, but that puts them in a good place to come out and fight hard against Michigan. I’ll take Purdue, the better team of the two.”

A lot of you thought I was full of it when I labeled Purdue the better team of the two – but I’m not looking so silly now am I? Neither team is what one would call good, but Purdue’s tough schedule makes them an interesting team to look at every week, while Michigan’s patty-cake start has them close to aut0-fade status.

Washington Huskies (+4.5) @ UCLA Bruins: (WINNER)  “The public actually slightly likes Washington in this one, and that kind of surprises me, but I’m proud of them, maybe they see what I see. I see that UCLA has a pretty good defense, but they can’t get anything working on offense. They have quarterbacks that can’t seem to step into any throws, and a rushing attack that doesn’t produce much. They’ve been out-rushed in each of their last 5 games, all losses. Washington can play with any team that can’t efficiently run the ball, or won’t commit to running the ball early and often, and in all those cases they are a good bet to cover.”

The Huskies managed to lose this game, but that’s what the Huskies do. They covered the spread nicely though, and that’s the perfect recipe for me. After all, it’s not like I need a win to get a win, you know? And one for the public! Go team!

Oregon Ducks @ Stanford Cardinal (+5.5): (WINNER) “Stanford is one of the best teams in the Nation that nobody knows about. What does that mean to you? It means they are a great bet. They’ve had a couple tough losses over the last three games, going just 1-2 during that stretch. But this spread is not right. First of all, it’s even better (for Stanford side) now than it was when I made the pick. The Cardinal are now getting a full touchdown at home. They are a physical team that matches up well with Oregon, and the Ducks are just coming off a huge emotional high after upsetting the Trojans. Regardless, the value is in Stanford’s corner. Andrew Luck is a very good quarterback that nobody knows. The Cardinal have a very physical offense line that should give Oregon’s defense lots of trouble. Both these teams run the ball very well, Stanford doesn’t have as many big plays, but they get first downs, shorten games, and end up on top more often than not.”

It was what I thought it was. They were who I thought they were. And nobody let anybody off the hook. The Cardinal came out and did what they do. They ran the ball with great success, as Toby Gerhart got the ball 38 times, rushing his team to victory with 223 yards and three touchdowns. Both teams did their thing, and Oregon tried to fight hard late to get the win, but they came up just short in stopping Gerhart, and a late field goal by Stanford sealed the deal. The Cover was rarely in question, as Oregon couldn’t stop Stanford’s powerful run game, and QB, Andrew Luck was solid as usual.

Kansas Jayhawks (-3) @ Kansas State Wildcats: (LOSS) “64% of the gambling public agrees with me, they’re taking Kansas. Not the greatest feeling when you’re betting on a team that has lost 5 straight against the spread yet they’re still getting public love, but it is what it is.” Yeah, so, like I said, not the greatest feeling. The Wildcats pretty much shut Kansas down from the get go. A 2nd quarter touchdown and a very late field goal made it a 7 point game, but K State didn’t really make any mistakes, and Kansas wasn’t good enough to create for themselves. Missed this one.

Illinois Illini (+7) @ Minnesota Golden Gophers: (WINNER)  “Once again, I love these late season games where 2-6 teams that have struggled but are still better than 5-4 teams finally get a chance to try and make things right. I’m a strong believer that when Illinois travels to Minnesota to play the Gophers, that’s exactly the type of game they’ll be playing. Illinois has stunk this year, no doubt about it. But despite their stinking, they had lost 3 games by two touchdowns or less before beating the piss out of Michigan last week, 38-13. That was their second straight win against the spread, and probably the first game they played up to their talent level.”

The Illini continued to play the football many expected them to be running from the beginning. I had this was spot on, as Illinois looked like the much better team from the get-go. I wonder why it took so long, but no matter, hopefully they continue getting good numbers from the books.

Navy Midshipmen @ Notre Dame Fighting Irish (-11): (LOSS)  “I normally don’t think much of Notre Dame’s chances to cover double digit spreads. They play heaps of close games, are greatly overrated, and spend way too much time throwing the ball, which, if you’ve noticed, is a good way not to cover spreads against lesser teams. Now, Navy is a run-centered team, they hardly ever throw the ball and use the ground and pound style to shorten the game and get tough yards. That’s good for covering double digit spreads as well.”

Why in the hell I just ignored this is beyond me. I know, the QB injury, well he played and he ran – 31 times for 100+ yards, and while his yards per carry weren’t much, that grind it out styled kept the Irish off the field. That Notre Dame defense couldn’t stop anything the Midshipmen ran at them. It was glorious. What did I learn here? A couple things; 1 – ever if I pick Notre Dame, I love it when they lose. And 2 – I need to listen to myself, and when I have an overrated favorite with many reasons to go against them, I definitely need to follow that reasoning!

Virginia Tech Hokies @ East Carolina Pirates (+13): (PUSH) This was a push. What more is there to say? The reasons I went with the Pirates were there. The reasons I should have gone with the Hokies were there. It was a push. I hate ‘em, but they rear their ugly heads from time to time. The Hokies really shut down that Pirate offense, putting their offense in good places to succeed. They rarely did, but a late field goal was enough to push. Blast!

Nevada Wolf Pack (-12.5) @ San Jose State Spartans: (WINNER) This one wasn’t even as close as I thought it could be. Nevada dominated from the coin flip, what can you say, tails never fails! It was nice to get a big Sunday win to top off a very nice week. Yay us! Winning is good! How close was this? San Jose scored their first points in the 4th. Four Nevada players rushed for at least 112 yards, 5 rushed for at least 1 touchdown. Believe it.

LSU Tigers @ Alabama Crimson Tide (-8.5): (WINNER) I definitely was sweating this one out. The Crimson Tide had to ride a 2nd 4th quarter comeback to cover my spread, and they did it just by the slimmest of margins. Those half points can certainly come in handy from time to time. If you got this game late, you likely had a little more room to spare, but you still needed that last push from the Tide. I’m sure glad we got it!

Boise State Broncos (-20.5) @ Louisiana Tech Bulldogs: (LOSS) What should have mattered to me here was Louisiana Tech’s solid play to start the season, especially when going up against big favorites. Boise State did enough to win, and it looked like an easy cover after the first half, but the Bulldogs came out fighting like, well, bulldogs, and they made the Broncos sweat it out a bit indeed. This was one of a couple losses on the day, and it could have gone either way.

Oregon State Beavers (+7) @ California Golden Bears: (WINNER)”This one is a little weird to me, because when you break down these two teams, I think it’s overwhelming that the best team between the two is Oregon State. I know the Beavers are on the road in this one, but they’ve played well away from Beaver-town this season, losing by a score to USC and beating up ASU outright. They’ve only lost to good teams like USC, Cincinnati, and Arizona. Cal’s wins are unimpressive, that’s the bottom line. The best team they’ve beaten is either Arizona State or Minnesota – maybe UCLA?”

If you watched the game you saw that Oregon State was better, everywhere. It didn’t help the Bears when their best player had to be carted off the field (Jahvid Best was released from the hospital with a concussion, but it looked bad). The Beavers didn’t have that feared rushing attack working at it’s best in the first half, but with Canfield completing just under 75% of his passes, taking advantage of the Bears shaky defense, the Beavers were running the show in Cali, just as I imagined.

Week 9 NCAA Football Picks Review

7-6: Just like my NFL record this week. Hopefully next week I can rocks some high winning percentages but a couple winners on a tough weekend, can’t be too upset about that. Here’s the review for how my Week 9 College Football Picks went down.

Texans Longhorns (-8.5) @ Oklahoma State Cowboys: (WINNER) “I like the Cowboys, like their confidence and numbers, I just don’t think it’s real. Not against good teams anyway. The Cowboys are 6-1 but they’ve had to fight a very easy schedule for wins, Baylor, Texas A&M, Rice, and Grambling don’t strike fear into my heart, and you should consider that when you’re looking at those 6 wins. 6 wins, sure, looks nice, but against who? The Cowboys’ best win? I’d say a marginal Missouri team. Texas, on the other hand, they haven’t looked like a Top team in the nation this year either, but they have won, and they’ve had to go through Oklahoma, Texas Tech,  at Missouri, and a decent Colorado team. They are the better team here, no doubt in my mind, and with Dez Bryant suspended for the season, and more importantly this game, that game breaking presence isn’t going to help bail the Cowboys out. This game could be over quick, or it could take a little while, either way there will be a time when Oklahoma State has their spirits broken, and that’s a good sign for a Texas cover.”

As it turns out, this one was over quick, so option one. The Longhorns jumped all over the Cowboys, and it seemed like OK State’s spirits were broken earlier rather than later. It wasn’t much of a contest, the 41-14 score at the end doesn’t really do it justice. Up 41-7 in the 3rd, the Longhorns didn’t bring out the billy-club in the 4th and the Cowboys finally won a quarter. A little too late, indeed. Perfect for me, and the Longhorns for that matter.

West Virginia Mountaineers (-3) @ South Florida: (LOSS) The crazy Big East, South Florida came out and fed it to the Mountaineers from the get go. After going up with a field goal late in the first quarter, the Bulls never relinquished the lead. It was very close throughout, 20-19 in the 3rd quarter, but South Florida never folded, kept coming after the Mounties rushing attack and got the home win. And they needed it bad!

South Carolina Gamecocks (+6.5) @ Tennessee Volunteers: (LOSS)  “I know that I always take the unranked favorite over the ranked dog, but this one is going to be different.” Famous last words and I don’t know why in the nuts I go against my number one rule ever. I guess I don’t believe in absolutes, but apparently it can get you in a crushing vice if you know what I mean. The Gamecocks got kicked around by the unranked home favorites. Stupid me!

Washington State Cougars @ Notre Dame Fighting Irish (-27.5): (LOSS) A 26-point win by the Irish? I hate Notre Dame.

UCLA Bruins (+10.5) @ Oregon State Beavers: (WINNER) “I think these two teams are awfully close talent-wise, and despite losing 4 straight games (also 0-4 ATS in those games), the Bruins aren’t out of it. They have some solid players, and defensively they should be a little bit of a challenge for Oregon State’s run-game. I know the Beavers have played well lately, even going to the wire with USC, but the Bruins have had some tough luck and I feel like that’s about to change. Football karma definitely goes around. As a 10.5 point underdog, the value is pretty good. The Bruins have played pretty solid teams in their 4 straight Pac-10 losses, and I think they’ll be ready for this game because of those. The Beavers are solid, no doubt, but UCLA is being underrated here, the value is with them.”

It was a value bet for sure. I still like Oregon State going forward, and a win here should help them keep their confidence going into next week. These two teams were very even on Saturday, and I still think they are. Both could do some more damage in the Pac-10.

Kansas Jayhawks @ Texas Tech Red Raiders (-6): (WINNER) First of all, rarely do Texas Tech Red Raider games come down to 6 points, so if you think the Raiders are going to win, a 6 point spread shouldn’t worry you at all. And it doesn’t worry me. I know Kansas had a nice run to start the season, but you saw how out-matched they were last week when Oklahoma absolutely blew them out of the water. Texas Tech isn’t Oklahoma, but they do have the offensive ability to crush the Jayhawks. What makes me like the Red Raiders even more are the words from Mike Leach’s mouth about how the Raiders are playing like piss because of their fat little girl friends. Awesome. If that doesn’t get their attention, nothing will. After beating up on Nebraska, the Red Raiders fell to Texas A&M, and they fell hard. I think Leach’s antics and just being a better football team gets them back on track this week at home, then Jayhawks just happen to be the team in the way. Texas Tech has taken each of the last 3 meetings with Kansas, and 6 out of the last 7. Last year the Red Raiders smoked the Jayhawks, 63-21. They can put up some points, and since Kansas has yet to slow down any reasonable offense whatsoever, I can’t see them doing anything to slow one of the most dynamic offenses in college football.

Missouri Tigers @ Colorado Buffaloes (+4): (LOSS) It was 33-3 at half time – needless to say I wasn’t stoked about my chances to cover. But it was 33-17 after 3 and I got a glimmer of hope. Maybe it was a glimmer of poop, though, because the Buffs played the rest of the game as if they had Buffalo droppings for a snack prior to the 4th quarter beginning. This was a swing and a miss, and as always, I apologize for that!

California Golden Bears (-6.5) @ Arizona State Sun Devils: (LOSS) Oh Cal. The Bears really haven’t looked good against anybody worthwhile. I didn’t think ASU was, but they impressed me a little bit in this one. Well I don’t know if they impressed me as much as Cal disappointed me. The Bears are in for an interesting end to the season, I can tell you that much – a few more losses will trickle down to Cali.

Georgia Bulldogs @ Florida Gators (-15): (WINNER) “The Bulldogs have played some decent football at times this year, but overall I think they’re overrated. The Gators haven’t really moved the ball well or played mistake free football over the last three weeks, their defense has been winning them football games – so yeah, needless to say, a team that talented is due for a breakout offensive performance. I know the Gators have had a lot of injuries on the defensive side of the ball, and a lot of those guys are still questionable headed into Saturday’s SEC showdown with the 5-2 Bulldogs, I know that. But I also know that the back-ups on defense have been solid, that Georgia’s offense will have one hell of a hard time doing anything against the Gators back-ups, and that Tim Tebow and company shouldn’t find the same frustrations in moving the ball against that very giving Georgia defense. These teams are not equal, don’t get it twisted. Ignore the Gators recent struggles, this is a team that will turn it around soon, better to be ahead of that curve!”

I’m basically going to leave it to my crystal ball preview above. Not much I missed here. The only thing that surprised me was Georgia making it a game early in the 2nd quarter. After that it was “sonturi time”, or Tebow time in this grand country. There was no question which team as better, the Gators slapped it on thick with an interception return late.

North Carolina Tar Heels (+17) @ Virginia Tech Hokies: (WINNER) “I like the match-up problems Carolina’s stout run-defense has against a normally talented rushing game from Virginia Tech. I know UNC isn’t going to throw the ball a lot, they aren’t a passing team, but they have been known to grind out yards on the ground, and any team that can run and stop the run, is a nice value bet at +17. If you look at Virginia Tech’s losses, and games where they struggled – they got out-rushed. If the Heels can commit to stopping that Hokies run game, and put up some yardage on the ground themselves, an upset could happen. Either way, a cover seems likely.”

You bet! I hope you did anyway. The Tar Heels posed the exact problems I talked about in my preview/write up. It may have taken a last second field goal to get the win, but hey, they got 17 points in my book – this one was over early. The Heels out-rushed the Hokies, once again showing the weakness in Tech’s attack. North Carolina looked like the better team throughout. It’s always nice when they win outright!

Cincinnati Bearcats @ Syracuse Orange (-15): (LOSS) Well, it was 7-7 after the first quarter, but from then on out it just got methodically more painful to follow. After two it was 14-7. Still Covering. After three it was 21-7, still covering. But a few minutes into the 4th, the Bearcats got in the end-zone again, and it was a no-cover day for Lucky in Syracuse. The Orange had just 78 yards on 5 drives in the 2nd half – that’s not going to do it. This was very close, though, one big play gets a guy a cover. Shishkabob!

East Carolina Pirates (-4) @ Memphis Tigers Pick: (WINNER) The Panthers kicked the Tigers around to start my week off right. Those mid-week picks continue to help me out. East Carolina did what everyone expected them to do against Memphis, score early and often and generally make this game a blowout early in the 3rd quarter. Thanks for the free money Vegas!!!