Red Dog Sports
Michigan vs. Rutgers
Play: Rutgers -3
Michigan has played poorly so far in 2014. Brady Hoke is still the coach of the Wolverines as they head to New Jersey to face the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. QB Gary Nova has led the way for Rutgers. It is odd to see Rutgers in the Big Ten and odd to see them as field goal favorites against a program like Michigan but I think Rutgers wins by 7 to 10 points so take the -3.
Ray Monohan
Memphis vs. Cincinnati
Play: Cincinnati -3½
All that last weekend proved was that the Bearcats are not as good as the Buckeyes...but we already knew that. Back home I expect them to play very well against an emerging Memphis team. The Tigers have played pretty well for chunks of this season but they are still just 2-2 and more potential than not. I will take Gunner Kiel over Paxton Lynch any day of the week. Look for the Bearcats to win by a TD or more.
Jeff Alexander
Pittsburgh +6
Pittsburgh clearly didn't get up for Akron last week. It was still feeling the effects of a loss to Iowa where it blew a 10-point lead. After losing by double digits at home to a team it was favored by 20.5 against, I'll be shocked if the Panthers don't come ready to play. Plays on road underdogs of 3.5 to 10 points in conference games that are off an upset loss as a double-digit home favorite are 39-11 ATS since 1992. Virginia has covered the spread in 7 straight games going back to last season and is being overvalued here as a result. It was a dog in 5 of these covers so laying points against a quality opponent is new territory. The Cavaliers are 0-7 ATS as a home fave of 7 points or less under coach London and have lost these games by an average of 9.4 points.
Joseph D'Amico
LSU vs. Auburn
Play:Auburn -7½
LSU has their frosh backup QB, Harris starting again here. He played a good game last week vs. New Mexico State but now has to face a stout and athletic Auburn defense that allows just 16.2 PPG, has 7 INT's, and yields a mere 2.7 YPC. Auburn play-caller, Nick Marshall is a stud with a 6/1 TD/INT ratio and 273 YR and 2 more scores on the ground. LSU has problems with savvy QB's as they showed once again in their meltdown vs. Mississippi State, getting lit up by Prescott for 373 yards. UA has a 12-game home win streak and in this series, the home team has won 12 of the L14 meetings. Lest not forget, RB Artis-Payne (468 YR and 5 TD's) to make this Auburn offense the best that LSU has gone up against this year. The Home Team is 4-1 ATS the L5 meetings in this series. LSU is 1-5-1 ATS their L7 games played at Auburn and 1-4 ATS their L5 Conference games. Auburn is 9-1 ATS their L10 games played at home and 9-0 ATS their L9 Conference games.
Bill Biles
Oklahoma vs. TCU
Play: Oklahoma -4
Oklahoma is proving so far that is it ready to make that step into being a legit Championship team. They are very balanced as they are in the top 10 in points for and top 20 in points against. If they want to make the playoffs they have to win this game. This will be a test for them, but they will prevail to go to 5-0.
Doug Upstone
Georgia Southern vs. New Mexico State
Play: Georgia Southern -17½
Play On teams like Georgia Southern after gaining 6.25 or more yards a play in three consecutive games, returning 8 or offensive starters and the quarterback, against opponent returning five or less defensive starters. What this system understands is not only are their many offensive players back, but they really move the pigskin. New Mexico State is is a bad team to start with and toss in them having to face the Georgia Southern ground attack, good night nurse. In the past five years this CFB system is a sweet 27-5, 84.4%!
Steve Williams
Wake Forest vs. Florida State
Play: Florida State -37½
A Winner is a Winner. That's why we have no problem laying the points in this matchup. To begin, Florida State dropped to # 2 in some of the polls despite winning last week. That won't make the defending champs happy. Last 2 games in this series Seminoles have won by a total score of 111-3. FSU 4-1 ATS last 5 in this series.
Demon Deacons talking about how tough they have it playing on road against FSU in local media reports. True Freshman QB John Wolford will have his hands full leading the Wake offense against a Seminole defense that gave up 41 last week. Seminole defense looking to show that was a fluke. They are better than that. Add a young offensive line for Wake and we're looking at a shutout by the Seminole defense.
This one will get ugly early and if it doesn't it will be ugly by the final horn. Florida State ends up with the blowout and near shutout. Florida State 66-10. Lay the points with the home standing Seminoles.
Alex Smart
Stanford vs. Notre Dame
Play: Under 45½
Both these teams fortes are their defenses. Stanford allows just 6.5 ppg and 195 ypg. Meanwhile Notre Dame, has not allowed any of their three opponents to breach the 17 point plateau on offense. All three of those Irish tilts failed to eclipse the number. Considering this is an annual rivalry game, and there is potential play off births on the line, I am betting it will be a hard nosed affair, with points being hard to come by. It must be noted Stanford has seen 10 of their L/12 go under the total.
Jesse Schule
LSU vs. Auburn
Play: LSU +7½
Two weeks after being shocked by Mississippi State in a 34-29 loss, the Tigers head out on the road to face last year's SEC champions Auburn. LSU will start freshman QB Brandon Harris this week, and he's been impressive in limited action so far. Harris has completed 73% of his passes and thrown six TDs and just one pick. "Harris has some ad-lib to his game which is very, very positive," Miles said. "He is really fast and can really throw the ball. He can extend a play so really good things can happen."
LSU defeated Auburn by a score 35-21 at Baton Rouge last year, and it's won six of the last seven meetings outright. The lone loss came by a score of 24-17 at Auburn in 2010, and the bookmakers are giving LSU more than a TD to work with here on the road this week.
Auburn's offense has sputtered the last two weeks, sneaking away with a victory in a close game at Kansas State, and failing to cover at home against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs last Saturday. It took a whole lot of luck for Auburn to make it to the SEC Championship Game last year. Along the way there were home wins over Washington State, Mississippi State, Georgia and Alabama, and all of those games were decided by seven points or less.
There is every reason to expect this to be a close game, and I still think that Auburn is grossly overrated after getting more than it's fair share of luck in 2013.
Freddy Wills
Stanford vs. Notre Dame
Play: Stanford -2½
Notre Dame, a top 10 team right now is a joke in my opinion. This team has been all defense against terrible offensive opponents along with Everett Golson, but it's about to get real on Saturday. Notre Dame has the 98th ranked strength of schedule as they have played the worst of the Big Ten while Stanford has played a couple of tough opponents out of the Pac 12.
Notre Dame can't get a running game going especially in this game and Stanford's pass defense is ranked #1 with 3.7 yards/att allowed. Notre Dame continues to re-shuffle the offensive line and it's about to come back and bite them in this match up. This offense has played mediocre defenses with the exception of Michigan whose defense has played well ranking 10th in yards/play allowed. Notre Dame did win that game 31-0, but hidden in that game is the fact that Michigan held them to 280 yards, but turned the ball over 4 times. It's not in Stanford's nature to turn the ball over.
Stanford is just the more balanced offense although their running game is not as effective so far compared to previous years. Keith Hogan has just as good numbers as Golson. He also faces a ND squad whose defense has only 3 starters from the last year's meeting. This Irish defense has played well over their head and I think it's about to catch up when they face a QB that can actually beat them with his arm.
Stephen Nover
Wake Forest vs. Florida State
Play: Florida State -38
Florida State got a scare last week nearly blowing its season before getting past North Carolina State, 56-41, on the road. Two weeks ago, the Seminoles had to beat Clemson in overtime at home to remain unbeaten. They achieved that victory without suspended Jameis Winston.
Winston won't have any distractions this week and the Seminoles need a kill spot to start restoring some luster again with the pollsters. That should come here against a horrible Wake Forest squad that has dropped seven consecutive road contests. The Demon Deacons have the worst rushing attack in the country and a turnover-prone freshman quarterback, John Wolford. They're facing an angry Seminoles defense on the road.
Wolford has been picked off 10 times already and been sacked 24 times. He won't have injured Matt James, the team's third-leading receiver.
Florida State buried Wake Forest, 59-3, last year on the road. This year should be even worse.
Bruce Marshall
South Alabama at Appalachian St
Pick: South Alabama
There are some unique team trends that require added attention. Such as the road team in games involving South Alabama, now 4-0 SU and against the number this season. USA has been covering poinTspreads for a while, as HC Joey Jones' Jaguars are now 10-5 vs. the spread their last 15 on the board, and 6-2 their last eight away. USA QB Brandon Bridge back in gear last week in easy win at Idaho, and Mounties might not have picked the best year to move up to Sun Belt. Fair price on Jags.
Larry Ness
Michigan at Rutgers
Pick: Michigan
It’s been a L-O-N-G week for Michigan’s football team, its athletic department and the school as a whole. The entire institution has been mired in a mix of inconsistency, injuries and controversy. The Wolverines travel to New Jersey for the first time in more than EIGHT decades on Saturday night (Michigan has only played in New Jersey twice - in 1931 with a 21-0 win at Princeton and in 1881, a 13-4 loss at Princeton), when they take on Rutgers. Michigan is desperate for a bounce-back performance, coming off back-to-back home losses, first to Utah in a rain-soaked 26-10 defeat and then to Minnesota, 30-14. It was in the Minnesota game in which head coach Brady Hoke (and others in the program and school) have come under fire this week for the handling of QB Shane Morris, who suffered a concussion against the Gophers but later returned to the game.
Michigan ended last season on a 2-6 run and has now lost three games before October for the FIRST time in school history (Wolverines are 2-3, with the wins coming over Appalachian State and Miami-Ohio). Michigan managed just 88 passing yards against Minnesota and weren't any better on the ground, rushing for 83 yards on 3.0 YPC. The embattled Devin Gardner will return at QB against the Scarlet Knights and Hoke would rather focus on the future than dwell on the past. "I'm getting ready to play Rutgers, that's what I've been doing. Getting ready to play Rutgers. Getting the staff and the team ready to go play Rutgers -- that's what I've been doing," he said.
Rutgers is quietly off to a nice start this season with only a three-point loss to Penn State separating the Scarlet Knights from a perfect record. However, therein lies the rub. Rutgers has run the football well despite the season-ending injury to James, entering with a 176.2 per game average (4.2 YPC / 9 TDs) but senior QB Gary Nova has yet to prove he’s “ready for primetime!” Sure, he’s completed 69.1% for 251.3 YPG through the air with 10 TDs and two INTS vs the likes of Washington St, Howard, Navy and Tulane but in Rutgers’ marquee showdown at home vs Penn St, he ‘laid an egg!’ Rutgers took a 10-0 halftime lead over the Nittany Lions (Nova scored the lone TD on a run) but NEVER scored in the second half of that 13-10 loss (Nova had FIVE interceptions!).
The Scarlet Knights have been outgained in THREE of five games this season (including one against Howard from the FCS), while Michigan (with ALL its problems) had outgained its first FOUR opponents before the Minnesota game last Saturday. You trust Rutgers LAYING points to Michigan? Not I!
AC Dinero
Florida vs. Tennessee
Play: Tennessee -2.5
It's been a long time coming for the Vols to beat the Gators. Tennessee is a young team, probably ayear away, but a tested team with games against Oklahoma and Georgia. Florida played one team in Alabama and got their doors blown off. The question about Florida at the beginning of the year was is this the resilient team on 2012 or the one that gave up in 2013. It looks like the one of 2013 so far. They are coming off a bye, but the offense is still plain vanilla and Florida still commits a ton of penalties. Not to mention they stink on 3rd down. Conversely, Tenn is very good defending 3rd down, giving up a stingy 21%. In addition, Tenn is more productive in the redzone. This line opened Florida -1, but quickly moved to Tennessee. Get this as early as possible, as it will likely go to 3 or more.
SPORTS WAGERS
West Bromwich Albion +1 +126 over LIVERPOOL
Two key facts have been established, West Bromwich can win games on the road against top-flight competition, as Tottenham found out in the 1-0 defeat they suffered at the hands of the Baggies just weeks ago. In fact, this victory has sparked Alan Irvine's squad to erupt in quality form, as they are now riding a two-game winning streak and charging up the tables of the Premiership.
Conversely, the Reds of Liverpool have also proven that they are unreliable at Anfield, where this match will take place. After a 2-1 victory over a Southampton team that was in a period of duress and uncertainty, the Reds have not won at a game at their home pitch since. The Reds were blanked against Aston Villa, 1-0 and followed up with a draw against Everton in the Merseyside Derby. Furthermore, Liverpool has lost two of their last three and has not won since an impressive road win at Tottenham on Aug 31st. West Brom is capable of pulling off the upset here and offer some pretty sweet value taking back a goal and some juice and that’s precisely how we’ll play it.