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27 December 2010
I'll be honest, I haven't watched a single bowl game yet. There is nothing about two mediocre teams playing that gets me excited. If watching average football is your thing, more power to you, but I'm not going to waste my time watching Florida International and Toledo playing for extra Hot-N-Ready pizzas. Thankfully, there are some games worth watching coming up this week, and next week and the National Championship will be played sometime before the 2011 season starts (hopefully). When college football is being played, you need to be gambling on the games. That's why I'm here with 15 picks not guaranteed to make you any money. Gamble anyway, what the hell else are you going to spend all that Christmas cash on?
East Carolina +7 vs. Maryland; Anytime you can get points against a team that is forcing its fat head coach out the door and just lost its offensive coordinator, you take them. I couldn't tell you a player on ECU's roster, but I know that Maryland won't be up for this game. How much is Ralph Friedgen going to want to be outside coaching when he's already been canned? The Pirates will beat the Terps, so look at the +240 on the moneyline as a great investment.- Illinois +1 vs. Baylor; This is the Texas Bowl! When ranking Texans' favorite football teams, where would Baylor rank? I'd guess there are 2 NFL teams, 14 college teams and 4 high school teams that have a better following than Baylor. It will be an embarrassment when there are more Illinois fans than Baylor fans in the crowd. Also, for some unknown reason, Ron Zook's squad has been pretty good against the number this year. I'll take the Illini by a touchdown.
- Oklahoma State -5 vs. Arizona; Arizona comes into this game having lost their last four games of the season. When they take the field on Wednesday, they won't have won a game since before Halloween. I wouldn't exactly call that a "winning environment." Oklahoma State has a man for a coach and should be able to pass the ball all over Arizona's porous secondary. Bet the Cowboys to win big in this one.
- Tennessee +1.5 vs. North Carolina; This seems like easy money to me. The game is being played in the state of Tennessee and Tennessee finished the season really well. They won their last four games (all by double digits) and found their QB of the future in Tyler Bray. That young team has had a month to get better, while UNC has had a month to think about all the places where things went wrong this season. Plus, North Carolina beat William & Mary and Duke by only a combined NINE points. That's just embarrassing. The Volunteers will roll in this one.
- Miami -3 vs. Notre Dame; Miami should roll over ND in the This Game Mattered When The First George Bush Was President Bowl. In all seriousness, Notre Dame is slow and Miami is fast. The Hurricanes will win by a touchdown.
- Georgia -6.5 vs. UCF; After an abysmal start without AJ Green, the Bulldogs finished the season winning 5 of their last 7 games. I know that people sometimes talk about "SEC speed" too much and act as if the only fast people in the world play football at SEC schools, but I can tell you this: Georgia's football team is faster than UCF's football team. The Knights will be completely out-classed and will lose by double digits.
- Florida State +3 vs. South Carolina; Remember what happened the last time South Carolina played in the Georgia Dome? If you don't, you need to watch more football. Auburn did whatever they wanted to Spurrier's Gamecocks on the first Saturday in December. By the middle of the third quarter, SC had quit and Spurrier was on a golf course in his mind. I'll take Jimbo Fisher and the Seminoles over the Cocks. Bet the 'Noles on the moneyline for a bigger profit return.
- Texas Tech -9.5 vs. Northwestern; Northwestern probably has the highest academic prestige of any of the bowl teams. Thus, their football team actually had to spend the first half of the month studying for finals. Texas Tech, on the other hand, gives their final exams in coloring books. All this to say, Texas Tech got to spend the month practicing a lot more football than Northwestern did. I like Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald, but he's got his hands full with the Red Raiders. I'll take Tech by 2 TDs.
Florida -7.5 vs. Penn State; First of all, let's all thank the Outback Bowl for ending their stupid tradition of starting the game at 11AM on New Year's Day. Whose eyes can function well enough to watch a football game that early on January 1? Thankfully, we now have an extra 2 hours before we have to see Joe Paterno's face in HD. Secondly, Urban Meyer is NOT losing his last game at Florida. There's just no chance of that happening. Next year, I'll be referring to Penn State football games as "Weekend at Bernie's." Because Joe Paterno may be dead. Florida wins this game going away and covers easily.- Alabama -10 vs. Michigan State; You are a moron if you think that Nick Saban is going to lose to a team he formerly coached. Hell, I think 'Bama could beat the Dolphins this year, even with their three losses. Michigan State had a fine season, but outside of Wisconsin, who did they beat? They lucked out and didn't have to play Ohio State and got embarrassed by Iowa. Also, by law, I am required to mention SEC speed somewhere when talking about this game. The Crimson Tide will throttle the Spartans by 20+.
- Mississippi State -4 vs. Michigan; As of Christmas morning, it had officially been 3 months since Michigan covered the spread in a football game they played. Sadly, Santa didn't bring me what I wanted; Rich Rodriguez being fired. Thankfully, there's still time for this to happen. This game features two teams going in different directions. Dan Mullen has the Bulldogs playing really well (until he leaves for a better job) and RichRod has the Wolverines playing as poorly as any Michigan team of my lifetime. Also, have I mentioned SEC speed?!? Michigan won't play hard for their lame duck coach and Mississippi State will beat them by 2 TDs+.
- Wisconsin +3 vs. TCU; This may be my favorite bet of all of the games. Wisconsin is one of the best teams in the country and they get to play against a team whose signature win came against Utah (who was humiliated by Notre Dame the next week). People keep talking about TCU's defense as if they are the Steel Curtain. Give me a damn break. Kentucky's defense would have looked good against the teams on TCU's schedule. I fully expect the Badgers to win by 10 points or more. Bet Wisconsin on the moneyline and start counting your winnings.
- Stanford -3 vs. Virginia Tech; I don't hate the BCS as much as most people, but I do have a big problem with Virginia Tech being able to play in this game. If we're going to be stuck with the BCS for the next couple years, there should be a rule that if a team loses to a 1-AA team (like VT did to James Madison), it forfeits the right to play in a BCS game. Sure, VT has won 11 games in a row and they played well at the end of the season, but that still doesn't discout the fact that they couldn't beat James Madison (or Boise State, for that matter). Andrew Luck is far and away the best player in this game and should throw for a ton of yards. The Cardinal will win by a touchdown in what is hopefully Jim Harbaugh's last game as Stanford head coach.
LSU -1 vs. Texas A&M; I love this game almost as much as I love the Wisconsin game. LSU is going to annhilate TA&M. Have I mentioned SEC SPEED!!!! LSU will win by a bunch in this one.- Auburn -3 vs. Oregon; This game opened with Oregon as a 3 point favorite. Within 12 hours, the line had shifted and Auburn was a 3 point favorite. That means that the people who know things in Vegas are very high on the Tigers. What's not to love about Auburn? They have the best player in college football on their team and they have SEC speed. With a combo like that, how could they be beaten? Plus, Auburn has been unbelievable against the spread this year. And, the SEC doesn't lose in the BCS Championship game. Great effort, Oregon, you'll be relevant again in about 20 years. Auburn 45 Oregon 31.
