Tweet
Week 1 Numbers
Thanks to The Golden Nugget in Las Vegas, we’ve had an idea on a bunch of Week 1 lines since early June. However, we now know the numbers for every opener on the board after a slew of offshore betting shops released lines Wednesday morning (8/4).
The Nugget opened North Carolina as a three-point favorite for its showdown against LSU at the Georgia Dome, but the game is now a pick ‘em at most spots. In fact, a few books have the Tigers as one-point ‘chalk.’
I expected that adjustment even before a pair of UNC players got caught up in off-the-field episodes. Senior linebacker Quan Sturdivant was arrested for possession of marijuana and DE Marvin Austin is being investigated by the NCAA for potential contact with an agent. Both players are listed as first-team preseason All-Americans in nearly every magazine on the shelf. Punishment (if any) for those players has yet to be announced.
The total for LSU-UNC is 40 ½.
Boise St. is either a two or 2 ½-point favorite for its trip to the Eastern time zone to face Virginia Tech at FedEx Field in Washington D.C. The Broncos, who are coming off a 14-0 season and return every key player with the exception of All-American cornerback Kyle Wilson, haven’t lost a regular-season game since Colt Brennan led Hawaii past BSU in the 2007 regular-season finale.
Frank Beamer’s team finished 10-3 last year, thumping Tennessee by a 37-14 count in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. The Hokies return eight starters on offense, not to mention RB Darren Evans, who rushed for 1,265 yards in ’08 before tearing his ACL last summer. They have only four starters back on defense, but coordinator Bud Foster always has this unit ready to compete at a high level.
I have as much respect for Chris Petersen and his program as anybody, and I certainly think the Broncos are legit national-title contenders this year. With that said, I’m still a tad surprised to see them favored over Va. Tech in a game being played in the Hokies’ neighborhood. Granted, the travel factor isn’t in play as much for a season opener, but my early lean is certainly to the short underdog.
This game will be aired on ABC in the prime-time slot Monday to wrap up Week 1. Most books have the total at 51.
There are seven games on the board for Thursday and six of them will be televised for bettors. The action starts at 7:30 p.m. Eastern with South Carolina hosting Southern Miss as a 14-point home favorite on ESPN.
This is a make-a-break year for Steve Spurrier, who I think will retire if the Gamecocks don’t win at least eight regular-season games. With Florida, Georgia and Tennessee breaking in new quarterbacks, the SEC East has never been this ripe for the taking.
Don’t sleep on the Golden Eagles, though. Larry Fedora is a rising star in the coaching profession and he has a pair of QBs in Austin Davis and Martevious Young who combined for a sensational 26/5 touchdown-to-interception ratio last season. No matter who is under center, the favorite target will be junior WR DeAndre Brown, who had nine TD grabs in ’09 and was a huge recruiting coup for So. Miss when he chose it over LSU.
Most books have tabbed Ohio St. as a 28-point favorite against Marshall on the Big Ten Network. The total is 45 for Doc Holliday’s head-coaching debut for the Thundering Herd.
While most betting shops have Alabama as the favorite – in the plus-400 range – to repeat as national champs, Sportsbook.com has Ohio St. as the plus-450 ‘chalk’ (risk $100 to win $450). The offshore book has the Crimson Tide with 6/1 odds.
This space always has doubts about the Buckeyes, perhaps due to that 0-for-LIFE-against-the-SEC thing, but we will give props to Terrelle Pryor and Co. for taking my money and proving me wrong in impressive wins over Penn St. and Oregon late last season.
Also on Thursday, Utah will host Pitt as a three-point home favorite on Versus. The total is 50. This is a rematch of the 2004 Fiesta Bowl when the Utes thumped the Panthers 35-7 to complete their perfect season.
Although ESPN has been chafin’ me beyond belief with its recent coverage of LeBron and Favre, we have to give the World Wide Leader kudos for spreading out the Thursday games perfectly for the gambling community. Right on cue following the South Carolina-So. Miss game, Hawaii will play host to Southern Cal.
Most spots have installed the Trojans as 18 ½-point favorites with a total of 51. Kick-off is scheduled for 11:00 p.m. Eastern.
USC has won all six meetings against the Warriors, including a 63-17 triumph in the 2005 lid-lifter. The Trojans are 2-7 versus the number in their last nine games as double-digit favorites. Hawaii is 4-4 ATS as a home underdog under Greg McMackin, who is on the hot seat going into his third year since replacing June Jones.
On Friday, most books are listing Arizona as a 14 ½-point favorite at Toledo. The total is ranging from as low as 57 to as high as 58 ½. Kick-off is slated for 8:00 p.m. Eastern on ESPN.
The action starts at noon Eastern on Saturday with a pair of mismatches. Michigan St. will host Western Michigan as a 21-point favorite, while Florida is listed as a 34-point ‘chalk’ vs. Miami (OH.).
Later in the day, I smell a (minor) upset at The Big House. We’ve seen App St. and Utah go into Ann Arbor and win outright in recent season openers, and we’re thinking the same thing when Randy Edsall brings his UConn bunch to Michigan.
Most books are listing the Wolverines as short 2 ½-point favorites.
There will be hype galore for the debut of Brian Kelly at Notre Dame. The Irish will take on Purdue as a 10 ½-point home favorite at 3:30 p.m. Eastern on NBC.
Also in the 3:30 Eastern time slot, Charlie Strong will make his head-coaching debut for Louisville. The Cards are listed as three-point home underdogs against arch-rival Kentucky, which has handed over the reigns to Joker Phillips, the second African American head coach in SEC history (assuming you don’t count Strong’s one game as interim coach at Florida between Ron Zook and Urban Meyer).
Competing for an audience with UNC-LSU, TCU and Oregon St. will collide at Cowboys Stadium for a 7:45 p.m. Eastern start on ESPN. The Horned Frogs are 13-point favorites at most spots.
When UNC-LSU goes final Saturday night, bettors can turn their attention to a pair of late-night matchups. Fresno St. will take on Cincinnati at 10:00 p.m. Eastern in a pick ‘em affair on ESPN2. The Bulldogs are looking to replace Ryan Mathews, who led the nation in rushing last season. Meanwhile, the Bearcats have a new head coach in Butch Jones, who replaces Kelly after his departure to Notre Dame.
Even though Tony Pike is gone, Cincy has an outstanding QB in Zach Collaros, who exploded on the national scene with a breakout performance in a 34-17 win at South Fla. on ESPN last year. Filling in for an injured Pike, Collaros completed 75 percent of his passes with a 10/2 TD-INT ratio. He also rushed for four TDs and averaged 6.0 yards per carry.
On Versus at 11:00 p.m. Eastern, Wisconsin plays at UNLV (ding-ding!). Yeah, the matchup that makes veteran gamblers ill. Remember the night the lights went out at Sam Boyd Stadium? That would be in 2002 when the Badgers were trouncing the Rebels by a 27-7 count at the 7:41 mark of the fourth quarter.
Depending on when a wager was placed, bettors on the Badgers were laying anywhere from three points to possibly as much as seven. Whatever the case, a winner was in the bag. However, a power outage left Sam Boyd Stadium dark and the game was called. This cancelled all bets due to an obscure sportsbook rule that all football games in both college and the NFL must go 55 minutes to be official. Alas, the lights went out two minutes and 41 seconds too early (unless you were on the home underdogs).
Anyway, back to this year’s contest, most books have Wisconsin favored by 19 ½ with a total of 58. Not necessarily laying this big number on the road, but I’m bullish on Wisconsin in general this year. The Badgers, who get Ohio St. at Camp Randall on Oct. 16, have 10 starters back on offense and six on defense. They finished ’09 with a 10-3 record after beating Miami 20-14 at the Champs Sports Bowl (in Florida).
**B.E.’s Bonus Nuggets**
--The fifth game on Thursday that we failed to mention: No. Illinois at Iowa St. The Cyclones are three-point home favorites with a total of 47. FSN will have the telecast.
--The two ‘added games’ on Thursday to complete the card: Minnesota at Middle Tennessee and Fla. Atlantic at UAB. The Gophers are actually 4 ½-point underdogs against the Blue Raiders from out of the Sun Belt Conference. ESPNU will have television coverage at 7:30 p.m. Eastern. Finally, the Blazers are 12-point favorites with a total of 55.
--Northwestern is a three-point 'chalk' at Vandy in the debut for Robbie Caldwell, who had his ‘interim’ tag removed from his head-coaching label last week. Caldwell is replacing Bobby Johnson, who retired a few weeks ago after guiding the Vandy program for eight years.
--We mentioned Oregon State’s Week 1 game against TCU at Cowboys Stadium. The Beavers also play at Boise St. this year, so we have to give them props for a non-conference schedule that features a pair of road games against the two premier ‘mid-majors’ in college football. They also played at Utah two seasons ago.
--Best game I didn’t mention: Washington at BYU. The Cougars are three-point home favorites.
--Here's a pretty good take on the aformentioned UNLV-Wisconsin game from 2002.
Thanks to The Golden Nugget in Las Vegas, we’ve had an idea on a bunch of Week 1 lines since early June. However, we now know the numbers for every opener on the board after a slew of offshore betting shops released lines Wednesday morning (8/4).
The Nugget opened North Carolina as a three-point favorite for its showdown against LSU at the Georgia Dome, but the game is now a pick ‘em at most spots. In fact, a few books have the Tigers as one-point ‘chalk.’
I expected that adjustment even before a pair of UNC players got caught up in off-the-field episodes. Senior linebacker Quan Sturdivant was arrested for possession of marijuana and DE Marvin Austin is being investigated by the NCAA for potential contact with an agent. Both players are listed as first-team preseason All-Americans in nearly every magazine on the shelf. Punishment (if any) for those players has yet to be announced.
The total for LSU-UNC is 40 ½.
Boise St. is either a two or 2 ½-point favorite for its trip to the Eastern time zone to face Virginia Tech at FedEx Field in Washington D.C. The Broncos, who are coming off a 14-0 season and return every key player with the exception of All-American cornerback Kyle Wilson, haven’t lost a regular-season game since Colt Brennan led Hawaii past BSU in the 2007 regular-season finale.
Frank Beamer’s team finished 10-3 last year, thumping Tennessee by a 37-14 count in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. The Hokies return eight starters on offense, not to mention RB Darren Evans, who rushed for 1,265 yards in ’08 before tearing his ACL last summer. They have only four starters back on defense, but coordinator Bud Foster always has this unit ready to compete at a high level.
I have as much respect for Chris Petersen and his program as anybody, and I certainly think the Broncos are legit national-title contenders this year. With that said, I’m still a tad surprised to see them favored over Va. Tech in a game being played in the Hokies’ neighborhood. Granted, the travel factor isn’t in play as much for a season opener, but my early lean is certainly to the short underdog.
This game will be aired on ABC in the prime-time slot Monday to wrap up Week 1. Most books have the total at 51.
There are seven games on the board for Thursday and six of them will be televised for bettors. The action starts at 7:30 p.m. Eastern with South Carolina hosting Southern Miss as a 14-point home favorite on ESPN.
This is a make-a-break year for Steve Spurrier, who I think will retire if the Gamecocks don’t win at least eight regular-season games. With Florida, Georgia and Tennessee breaking in new quarterbacks, the SEC East has never been this ripe for the taking.
Don’t sleep on the Golden Eagles, though. Larry Fedora is a rising star in the coaching profession and he has a pair of QBs in Austin Davis and Martevious Young who combined for a sensational 26/5 touchdown-to-interception ratio last season. No matter who is under center, the favorite target will be junior WR DeAndre Brown, who had nine TD grabs in ’09 and was a huge recruiting coup for So. Miss when he chose it over LSU.
Most books have tabbed Ohio St. as a 28-point favorite against Marshall on the Big Ten Network. The total is 45 for Doc Holliday’s head-coaching debut for the Thundering Herd.
While most betting shops have Alabama as the favorite – in the plus-400 range – to repeat as national champs, Sportsbook.com has Ohio St. as the plus-450 ‘chalk’ (risk $100 to win $450). The offshore book has the Crimson Tide with 6/1 odds.
This space always has doubts about the Buckeyes, perhaps due to that 0-for-LIFE-against-the-SEC thing, but we will give props to Terrelle Pryor and Co. for taking my money and proving me wrong in impressive wins over Penn St. and Oregon late last season.
Also on Thursday, Utah will host Pitt as a three-point home favorite on Versus. The total is 50. This is a rematch of the 2004 Fiesta Bowl when the Utes thumped the Panthers 35-7 to complete their perfect season.
Although ESPN has been chafin’ me beyond belief with its recent coverage of LeBron and Favre, we have to give the World Wide Leader kudos for spreading out the Thursday games perfectly for the gambling community. Right on cue following the South Carolina-So. Miss game, Hawaii will play host to Southern Cal.
Most spots have installed the Trojans as 18 ½-point favorites with a total of 51. Kick-off is scheduled for 11:00 p.m. Eastern.
USC has won all six meetings against the Warriors, including a 63-17 triumph in the 2005 lid-lifter. The Trojans are 2-7 versus the number in their last nine games as double-digit favorites. Hawaii is 4-4 ATS as a home underdog under Greg McMackin, who is on the hot seat going into his third year since replacing June Jones.
On Friday, most books are listing Arizona as a 14 ½-point favorite at Toledo. The total is ranging from as low as 57 to as high as 58 ½. Kick-off is slated for 8:00 p.m. Eastern on ESPN.
The action starts at noon Eastern on Saturday with a pair of mismatches. Michigan St. will host Western Michigan as a 21-point favorite, while Florida is listed as a 34-point ‘chalk’ vs. Miami (OH.).
Later in the day, I smell a (minor) upset at The Big House. We’ve seen App St. and Utah go into Ann Arbor and win outright in recent season openers, and we’re thinking the same thing when Randy Edsall brings his UConn bunch to Michigan.
Most books are listing the Wolverines as short 2 ½-point favorites.
There will be hype galore for the debut of Brian Kelly at Notre Dame. The Irish will take on Purdue as a 10 ½-point home favorite at 3:30 p.m. Eastern on NBC.
Also in the 3:30 Eastern time slot, Charlie Strong will make his head-coaching debut for Louisville. The Cards are listed as three-point home underdogs against arch-rival Kentucky, which has handed over the reigns to Joker Phillips, the second African American head coach in SEC history (assuming you don’t count Strong’s one game as interim coach at Florida between Ron Zook and Urban Meyer).
Competing for an audience with UNC-LSU, TCU and Oregon St. will collide at Cowboys Stadium for a 7:45 p.m. Eastern start on ESPN. The Horned Frogs are 13-point favorites at most spots.
When UNC-LSU goes final Saturday night, bettors can turn their attention to a pair of late-night matchups. Fresno St. will take on Cincinnati at 10:00 p.m. Eastern in a pick ‘em affair on ESPN2. The Bulldogs are looking to replace Ryan Mathews, who led the nation in rushing last season. Meanwhile, the Bearcats have a new head coach in Butch Jones, who replaces Kelly after his departure to Notre Dame.
Even though Tony Pike is gone, Cincy has an outstanding QB in Zach Collaros, who exploded on the national scene with a breakout performance in a 34-17 win at South Fla. on ESPN last year. Filling in for an injured Pike, Collaros completed 75 percent of his passes with a 10/2 TD-INT ratio. He also rushed for four TDs and averaged 6.0 yards per carry.
On Versus at 11:00 p.m. Eastern, Wisconsin plays at UNLV (ding-ding!). Yeah, the matchup that makes veteran gamblers ill. Remember the night the lights went out at Sam Boyd Stadium? That would be in 2002 when the Badgers were trouncing the Rebels by a 27-7 count at the 7:41 mark of the fourth quarter.
Depending on when a wager was placed, bettors on the Badgers were laying anywhere from three points to possibly as much as seven. Whatever the case, a winner was in the bag. However, a power outage left Sam Boyd Stadium dark and the game was called. This cancelled all bets due to an obscure sportsbook rule that all football games in both college and the NFL must go 55 minutes to be official. Alas, the lights went out two minutes and 41 seconds too early (unless you were on the home underdogs).
Anyway, back to this year’s contest, most books have Wisconsin favored by 19 ½ with a total of 58. Not necessarily laying this big number on the road, but I’m bullish on Wisconsin in general this year. The Badgers, who get Ohio St. at Camp Randall on Oct. 16, have 10 starters back on offense and six on defense. They finished ’09 with a 10-3 record after beating Miami 20-14 at the Champs Sports Bowl (in Florida).
**B.E.’s Bonus Nuggets**
--The fifth game on Thursday that we failed to mention: No. Illinois at Iowa St. The Cyclones are three-point home favorites with a total of 47. FSN will have the telecast.
--The two ‘added games’ on Thursday to complete the card: Minnesota at Middle Tennessee and Fla. Atlantic at UAB. The Gophers are actually 4 ½-point underdogs against the Blue Raiders from out of the Sun Belt Conference. ESPNU will have television coverage at 7:30 p.m. Eastern. Finally, the Blazers are 12-point favorites with a total of 55.
--Northwestern is a three-point 'chalk' at Vandy in the debut for Robbie Caldwell, who had his ‘interim’ tag removed from his head-coaching label last week. Caldwell is replacing Bobby Johnson, who retired a few weeks ago after guiding the Vandy program for eight years.
--We mentioned Oregon State’s Week 1 game against TCU at Cowboys Stadium. The Beavers also play at Boise St. this year, so we have to give them props for a non-conference schedule that features a pair of road games against the two premier ‘mid-majors’ in college football. They also played at Utah two seasons ago.
--Best game I didn’t mention: Washington at BYU. The Cougars are three-point home favorites.
--Here's a pretty good take on the aformentioned UNLV-Wisconsin game from 2002.
Comment