Oddswiz
Wake Forest vs. Baylor
Play: Wake Forest -12.5
The gap between Baylor and College footballs "good" teams remains large. Jim Grobe has built Wake Forest into one of those "good teams" which has us laying the big number here. The Wake Forest unorthodox offense should give Baylor fits. Defending against it is hard enough, but asking a team like Baylor to do it the first time they take the field this year, could prove to be overwhelming. We don't like to lay double digits but can't make a case for Baylor here.
UTEP vs. Buffalo U
Play: UTEP +3
This game opened Buffalo -3 and still sits at Buffalo -3. The Bulls look to be a team on the rise. They won 5 games a year ago, their highest win total this decade and return just about everyone from last years team. So hopes are high in Buffalo. After being the laughing stock of College Football ever since they became a division 1A team, it's now or never if this tem is ever going to get any respect. UTEP, unlike Buffalo, has tasted success this decade. They had 8 win seasons on three different occasions and went to 3 bowl games this decade. With no clear cut obvious edges either way in this one, we're inclined to take the field goal in a game that could go either way.
Northcoast Early Bird Play
South Carolina
Power Sweep Power Plays
4* Mia Ohio
4* So Carolina
Lucky Lester
Vanderbilt Commodores @ Miami-Ohio Redhawks (-4)
Vanderbilt loses their best player in wide receiver Earl Bennett. He was by far their most effective and productive offensive player. Their leading returning receiver is out with a stress fracture (George Smith). If that weren’t enough, the Commodores also said goodbye to their leading rusher from last year, as well as their entire starting offensive line - that’s the kicker. Miami has a stout defense with very talented linebackers. They may be a smaller college, but they can play football. The Commodores don’t have much cohesion right now, as new starters are still being decided. The starting quarterback for this Thursday’s game wasn’t decided by the weekend, leaving much to be answered in the four days before kickoff. While Vanderbilt has all the questions, Miami of Ohio looks to be full of answers.
Wake Forest Demon Deacons (-12) @ Baylor Bears
Wake Forest is the real deal. Despite winning 8 of their last 10 games and then spanking Connecticut in the 2nd half of their bowl game, the Deacons just can’t seem to get the credit they deserve. THe Deacons return their freshman quarterback sensation, Riley Skinner, and while they lose their top receiver from ‘07, Wake is full of young talent at receiver. Head coach Jim Grobe knows what he’s doing. The Deacons are off and on on the road, but they’ve been a darn good football team with Riley Skinner at quarterback. I expect them to start off the season hot, and ride their quarterback to the top of the ACC. Take them over the Bears by a couple touchdowns.
Oregon State Beavers (-3) @ Stanford Cardinal
The Oregon State Beavers seem like the forgotten Pac-10 team heading into the season. Everyone seems to forget that the Beavers won 7 of their last 8 games including an upset victory over Maryland in their bowl game. During the last 8 games of the season, the Beavers’ only loss came against USC in Southern California. Last year, when the Beavers played Stanford, a tough Oregon State defense held the Cardinal out of the end-zone, winning 23-6. The Beavers lost their talented tail-back, Yvenson Bernard, to graduation - but they have a nice offensive line and a couple new running backs that have impressed when given the chance. One player that should have a great bounce back season is Sammie Stroughter, the speed demon that was a 2006 3rd team All-American. With family problems and injury woes, Stroughter struggled in 2007, playing only 3 games. He was awarded a medical red-shirt, and now he has one more chance to prove himself in the Pac-10. Every time he touches the ball, touchdowns can happen. Look for the Beavers to out-talent the Cardinal all over the field, dominating this early-season conference match-up.
Scott Ferrall
NFL Pre-Season WEEK 4 (Thursday's games)
Eagles -3 to Jets--the game is in Ferralladelphia, which makes it automatic for the Birds--OVER 35.5
Giants -2 Pats--New England acts like we don't know they throw games that don't count--UNDER 36.5
Bills -2 to Lions--Detroit can't win in Orchard Park--UNDER 34
Ravens -3 to Falcons--Baltimore gets Troy Smith rolling and they win easily over crappy Atlanta--UNDER 33.5
Jags +3 from Redskins--Washington has looked like shit and Jax is flat out better--OVER 34
Colts -3.5 to Bengals--Cincy is a mess as usual--OVER 35
Panthers +3.5 from Steelers--This one is a sucker bet and the panthers have been looking sharp--UNDER 36.5
Browns PK over Bears--Chicago chokes in Cleveland--OVER 38.5
Cowboys -2.5 to Vikings--Minney looked lousy against the Steelers and it won't get better in Dallas--OVER 35.5
Texans -3 to Bucaneers--Houston at home does it up for their fans to tune up for the season--UNDER 36.5
Rams +4 from Kansas City--I'm betting against the Chiefs a lot this yr because they blow--UNDER 34
Saints -3 to Dolphins--New Orleans gets it done on Bourbon St against the Phins--OVER 35
Packers +5 from Titans--Hey, the game is in Green Bay and they are getting points, so what the hell ? OVER 36
Scott Ferrall
UTEP +3 from Buffalo--they both blow
Wake Forest -12.5 to Baylor--I like the Deacons, even in Waco--they keep getting better and better
Oregon St -3 to Stanford--The Beavers are for real this year, as usual, under Mike Riley
FAO Sports
UTEP over Buffalo
UTEP is 3-0 the first game of the season the L3Y, outscoring their opponents by 9.33 PPG.They are not necessarily the best road team,but will have enough to beat this Buffalo team.Buffalo is 1-2 the first game of the season the L3Y. They have been outscored by their opponents by 22.33 PPG.The only team they beat was the Temple Owls in 2006 9-3 at home.
Fairway Jay
4* South Carolina
WINNING POINTS
PREFERRED
Buffalo* over U.T.E.P. by 14
Lou Diamond
NC State and So Carolina
North Carolina State Under is 6-1-2 in Wolfpack last 9 non-conference games. Under is 5-1 in Wolfpack last 6 Thursday games. Under is 5-2-1 in Wolfpack last 8 road games. Under is 18-8-2 in Wolfpack last 28 games on grass. South Carolina Under is 4-1 in Gamecocks last 5 vs. ACC.
Bryan Leonard
Vanderbilt at Miami OH
Vanderbilt is returning only 10 starters this season including just three on the offensive side of the football. They lost three players to the NFL draft including wide receiver Earl Bennett who had been a fixture in the end zone. The Commodores do have depth at the quarterback position and the running attack has talent. But the receiving corps has a lot of work to do to make up for Bennett's departure. The offensive line loses all five starters but they do have some experienced players stepping in. Defensively the strength will be in the backfield, led by cornerback DJ Moore who was first-team All-SEC a year ago.
Miami is coming off a divisional championship season despite ranking 108th in the country in scoring. We expect more of the same from the Redhawks this season as the quarterback and running back combination looks weak. They do have a solid receiving corps if the man behind center can find his teammates a little more often than a year ago. The defense returns nine starters including one of the best linebacking corps in the country. Clayton Mullins was the MAC Defensive Player of the Year last season and he looks to continue his success.
Despite returning just three offensive starters the Commodores still have the better offensive unit. But with the Miami defense returning virtually intact they will still hold the upper hand in that matchup. Vanderbilt beat Miami 24-13 in Nashville a year ago. With the offense being down a bit for the Commodores we can see this game being another very low scoring affair.
PLAY UNDER
Terron Chapman
Oregon State vs. Stanford
Play: Stanford
Jim Harbaugh begins his second season as head coach of the Stanford Cardinal with an opening game against an old friend. Mike Riley will bring his Oregon St.Beavers to Palo Alto Thursday evening as the two teams kick off their respective seasons with a conference clash.
Harbaugh was quarterback under Riley when Riley was the head coach of the San Diego Chargers from 99-00. In his first season as coach, Harbaugh and the Cardinal made national headlines upsetting then #2 ranked USC. The Cardinal return 16 starters from last seasons squad and will look to avenge a 23-6 loss to the Beavers in Corvallis last year.
In that game, the Cardinal commited four turnover's while rushing for -8 yards on 25 attempts. They were a putrid 1-13 on 3rd down, yet the Beavers only had three more first downs than the Cardinal.
The Beavers led the NCAA in rush defense last season at (70.6 ypg) but must replace their entire defensive line and linebacking corps. They do return three starters on O-line. The Cardinal on the flip side return four starters on the O-line and five players with starting experience on the D-line and should hold the edge in the trenches this go around. Whoever controls the line of scrimmage will be on their way to a victory and the way the Cardinal got pushed around at times in last year's game they should be anxious to return the favor.
I'm not too sure about the Beavers who have lost their last five road openers. Their losses on defense are heavy and they still have uncertainty on the offensive side of the ball. They must break in a new running back and who's to say if standout wide reciever Sammie Stroughter can return to his 2006 form. The Cardinal on the other hand appear to be a team on the rise this year. They return a solid starting quarterback and should have a much improved defense. Throw in the home field advantage and we like the Cardinal to pull off the slight upset. Play on the Stanford Cardinal for 2 units.
PPP
4% South Carolina -13
3% Oregon St.-3
Pupsnchalk Sports
Oregon State vs. Stanford
Play: Stanford +3
Jim Harbaugh begins his second season as head coach of the Stanford Cardinal with an opening game against an old friend. Mike Riley will bring his Oregon St.Beavers to Palo Alto Thursday evening as the two teams kick off their respective seasons with a conference clash.
Harbaugh was quarterback under Riley when Riley was the head coach of the San Diego Chargers from 99-00. In his first season as coach, Harbaugh and the Cardinal made national headlines upsetting then #2 ranked USC. The Cardinal return 16 starters from last season and will look to avenge a 23-6 loss to the Beavers in Corvallis last year.
In that game, the Cardinal commited four turnover's while rushing for -8 yards on 25 attempts. They were a putrid 1-13 on 3rd down, yet the Beavers only had three more first downs than the Cardinal.
The Beavers led the NCAA in rush defense last season at (70.6 ypg) but must replace their entire defensive line and linebacking corps. They do return three starters on O-line. The Cardinal on the flip side return four starters on the O-line and five players with starting experience on the D-line and should hold the edge in the trenches this go around. Whoever controls the line of scrimmage will be on their way to a victory and the way the Cardinal got pushed around at times in last year's game they should be anxious to return the favor.
I'm not too sure about the Beavers who have lost their last five road openers. Their losses on defense are heavy and they still have uncertainty on the offensive side of the ball. They must break in a new running back and who's to say if standout wide reciever Sammie Stroughter can return to his 2006 form. The Cardinal on the other hand appear to be a team on the rise this year. They return a solid starting quarterback and should have a much improved defense. Throw in the home field advantage and we like the Cardinal to pull off the slight upset. Play on the Stanford Cardinal for 2 units. Good luck to all.
John Ryan
Wake Forest vs. Baylor
Play: Baylor +12
Ai Simulator 3* graded play on Baylor - AiS shows a 68% probability that Baylor will lose this game by 12 or fewer points. Love these early season DOGS that have 9 or more returning offensive starters along with the QB. That is the case for Baylor as they return 9 including the QB and this will be a dominant factor in this game. Wake Forest also has a history of not being a solid double digit favorite either noting they are 2-10 ATS (-9.0 Units) as a favorite of 10.5 to 21 points since 1992. Supporting this graded play and the returning starter phenomenon is a strong system posting a 75-36 ATS mark for 68% since 2002. Play on home dogs of 10.5 to 21 points with an experienced QB returning as starter. Don't laugh either as I strongly believe taking a 1* unit on the money line is a solid bet as well. I have seen this line at +450 and offers a great opportunity. We are not going to win a high percentage of these ML plays, but if we hit between 43 and 48% (last 5 seasons) then it will make a significant contribution to the bottom line.