Harry Bondi
Eastern Michigan (+7.5) over Northern Illinois
This looks like a “look ahead” game for Northern Illinois who have a monster MAC showdown with Toledo next week. Eastern Michigan has lost 5 in a row but they have battled everyone tough losing those 5 contests by a combined 20 points! Huskies buried Bowling Green last week but that was an anomaly for this years Northern Illinois squad that is not nearly as talented as last years edition. Husky’s won previous 3 games by a total of 12 points and barely squeak by the Eagles tonight.
Dr Bob
Toledo @ Ball St.
Toledo starting to flex their muscles defensively against the weaker MAC teams they’re now facing (just 15 points and 4.6 yards per play allowed in league play) and Ball State went from bad to dreadful offensively since losing starting quarterback Riley Neal. Experienced backup Jack Milas, a former starter, is also out and unknown Zack Blair takes over tonight. I doubt that Blair can be much worse than Milas has been, and he possibly could be better, and I’ll lean with Toledo and veteran quarterback Logan Woodside to put up enough points to cover a big number, even without top receiver Cody Thompson.
Stanford @ Oregon St.
This game depends on if Stanford star running back Bryce Love, who should be the runaway leader for the Heisman Trophy, plays or not. Love has 1387 yards at 10.3 yards per run and there is no argument anyone can make that any other running back is better than him. If he does not play due to a sprained ankle then the Stanford offense is much, much worse. It’s not that Cameron Scarlett (5.3 ypr) is not a capable back but coming close to replacing Love is impossible and it is not an exaggeration to say that Love is worth 9 ½ points based on what he’s done so far this season. My model only favors Stanford by 23 points with Love playing so if you have to play this game without knowing Love’s status then take the points and hope Love doesn’t play or has limited carries.
OC Dooley
Dallas / Edmonton Over 6
This is one of those wagers where I feel the oddsmakers have helped tip off a particular wager posting a very high total (6 goals) in hockey even though host Edmonton has scored only "four" goals in the past 3 games combined. In fact the Oilers have scored the "second fewest" goals in the entire NHL but it should be pointed out that their average shots on goal per contest (37.8 ) are the SECOND MOST among all teams. It was a few night's ago when Edmonton visited Pittsburgh (in a matchup featuring hockey superstars Sidney Crosby of the Penguins and 20 year old Oilers phenom Connor McDavid) which stayed well below the number, but McDavid did snap a lenghty scoring drought which tells me he is about to explode. In the past TWO YEARS after being held to "two or less" goals in 3 consecutive games Edmonton has gone a resounding 10-1 OVER the total. The coach of visiting Dallas has just gone public calling for more BALANCE on what has been a top-heavy OFFENSE