West Virginia Mountaineers vs. Cincinnati Bearcats
The West Virginia Mountaineers and the Cincinnati Bearcats will both be trying to pick up a win on Friday when they battle at Nippert Stadium.
Oddsmakers currently have the Bearcats listed as 9½-point favorites versus the Mountaineers, while the game's total is sitting at 56.
Jarrett Brown led West Virginia with one touchdown pass in a 17-9 win over Louisville in Week 10.
The Mountaineers just covered the 7.5-point spread, while the final score played well UNDER the day's posted total of 54.5.
Zach Collaros threw for 480 yards and Cincinnati pulled out a 47-45 win over Connecticut in Week 10. Cincinnati failed to cover the 17-point spread, while the 92 points sailed OVER the posted total of 51.5.
Collaros completed 29-of-37 for with a TD, while rushing for 75 yards and two touchdowns.
Current streak:
Cincinnati has won 9 straight games.
Team records:
West Virginia: 7-2 SU, 2-6 ATS
Cincinnati: 9-0 SU, 5-3 ATS
West Virginia most recently:
When playing in November are 7-3
When playing on turf are 9-1
After being outgained are 7-3
When playing within the conference are 7-3
Cincinnati most recently:
When playing in November are 9-1
When playing on turf are 10-0
After outgaining opponent are 9-1
When playing within the conference are 10-0
A few trends to consider:
West Virginia is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games
West Virginia is 18-7 SU in its last 25 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 5 of West Virginia's last 7 games on the road
West Virginia is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing Cincinnati
Cincinnati is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Cincinnati is 11-1 SU in its last 12 games at home
Cincinnati is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing West Virginia
Next up:
West Virginia home to Pittsburgh, Friday, November 27
Cincinnati home to Illinois, Friday, November 27
Temple Owls vs. Akron Zips
The fans at Rubber Bowl will be treated to a game between the Temple Owls and the Akron Zips when they take their seats on Friday.
Oddsmakers currently have the Owls listed as 4-point favorites versus the Zips, while the game's total is sitting at 44½.
Brandon McManus booted a game-winning field goal with seconds left, as Temple defeated Miami (Ohio) 34-32 in Week 10. Temple failed to cover the 17.5-point spread, while the 67 points sailed OVER the posted total of 45.
Bernard Pierce ran for 172 yards with three touchdowns to lead the way in that win for Temple.
Patrick Nicely passed for two touchdowns to lead Akron to a 28-20 win over Kent State in Week 10.
The Zips covered the 3.5-point spread, while the final score played UNDER the day's posted total of 42.
Current streak:
Temple has won 7 straight games.
Team records:
Temple: 7-2 SU, 6-2 ATS
Akron: 2-7 SU, 3-5 ATS
Temple most recently:
When playing in November are 4-6
When playing on turf are 5-5
After being outgained are 6-4
When playing within the conference are 8-2
Akron most recently:
When playing in November are 3-7
When playing on turf are 2-8
After outgaining opponent are 1-9
When playing within the conference are 3-7
A few trends to consider:
Temple is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Temple is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Temple's last 5 games
Temple is 6-2 ATS in its last 8 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Akron's last 5 games
Akron is 3-7 SU in its last 10 games at home
Akron is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games
Akron is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games
Next up:
Temple home to Kent State, Saturday, November 21
Akron at Bowling Green, Friday, November 20
TEMPLE (7 - 2) at AKRON (2 - 7)
Top Trends for this game.
TEMPLE is 21-10 ATS (+10.0 Units) in all games over the last 3 seasons.
TEMPLE is 21-10 ATS (+10.0 Units) in all lined games over the last 3 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
TEMPLE is 2-0 against the spread versus AKRON over the last 3 seasons
TEMPLE is 2-0 straight up against AKRON over the last 3 seasons
2 of 2 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
W VIRGINIA (7 - 2) at CINCINNATI (9 - 0)
Top Trends for this game.
W VIRGINIA is 1-9 ATS (-8.9 Units) when playing with 6 or less days rest over the last 2 seasons.
CINCINNATI is 31-15 ATS (+14.5 Units) in weeks 10 through 13 since 1992.
Head-to-Head Series History
CINCINNATI is 1-0 against the spread versus W VIRGINIA over the last 3 seasons
CINCINNATI is 1-1 straight up against W VIRGINIA over the last 3 seasons
1 of 2 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
WEST VIRGINIA vs. CINCINNATI
West Virginia is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games on the road
West Virginia is 18-7 SU in its last 25 games on the road
Cincinnati is 11-1 SU in its last 12 games at home
Cincinnati is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
TEMPLE vs. AKRON
Temple is 6-2 ATS in its last 8 games
Temple is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Akron is 3-7 SU in its last 10 games at home
Akron is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games
TEMPLE at AKRON
TEMPLE: 8-0 ATS off home game
AKRON: 8-2 Over as home underdog
W VIRGINIA at CINCINNATI
W VIRGINIA: 1-9 ATS playing with 6 or less days rest
CINCINNATI: 31-15 ATS in weeks 10 through 13
NCAAF
Friday's games
Temple won its last seven games, its best win streak since '74, but last two wins were by combined total of five points; Owls are 3-2 as a fave this season. Akron upset rival Kent State last week, ending seven-game skid; they're 3-4 as an underdog this year. Akron converted just five of last 33 third down plays. Last four Temple games went over the total; four of Zips' last five games stayed under. Six of seven Akron losses are by 12 or more points.
Underdog is 4-1-1 vs spread in West Virginia-Cincinnati games, with the visitor winning five of six; WVU won its last three visits here by 3-38-5 points, but Bearcats are 9-0 this year, covering three of last four games- they're 1-2 as home favorite after giving up 35 second half points in last week's 47-45 win over UConn. Mountaineers' two losses are both by 11 points. Five of last seven Cincinnati games stayed under the total.
West Va. at Cincinnati
By Brian Edwards
Back in August, most pundits were dismissing Cincinnati’s chances to repeat as Big East champs because the school only had one starter returning on the defensive side of the ball. At the time, I suggested that bettors not concern themselves too much with that factoid because Brian Kelly was the best coach in the conference and Tony Pike was the best QB.
But never – ever, ever – did I imply that Cincinnati (9-0 straight up, 6-3 against the spread) was going to be this good. Going into Friday’s showdown against West Virginia, the Bearcats are unbeaten and very much in the thick of the national-title picture.
They’re good enough to lose a Heisman Trophy candidate (Pike) and not miss a beat. Not only that, but Pike might not be able to get his job back now that he’s healthy again.
They’re good enough to win by 32 at Rutgers, by 17 at South Florida and by 10 at Oregon St. Make no mistake, this Cincy squad is for real.
Las Vegas Sports Consultants opened Cincinnati as an 8 ½-point favorite with a total of 56. As of late Thursday afternoon, most books had the Bearcats favored by nine with the total in the 54-55 range. Gamblers can garner a huge plus-280 payout by backing the Mountaineers to win outright (risk $100 to win $280).
Pike broke his forearm in a 34-17 win at USF back on Oct. 15. The senior signal caller was completing 64.3 percent of his passes for 1,633 yards with an excellent 15/3 touchdown-interception ratio. Since then, redshirt sophomore QB Zach Collaros has been dynamite, connecting on 76 percent of his throws for 1,229 yards with a 10/1 TD-INT ratio.
Pike can certainly relate. He only became the starter in 2008 after Ben Mauk was ruled ineligible and Dustin Grutza was injured. Now that Pike is back and ready to play this week, Kelly has announced that he’ll play but that Collaros will start.
Collaros enjoyed a monster performance last week, throwing for 480 yards and one touchdown without an interception. In addition, he had 75 rushing yards and a pair of TD runs in a 47-45 win over UConn. The Huskies took the cash as 16 ½-point road underdogs.
No matter who is under center, he’ll have the luxury of throwing to one of the nation’s premier wide receivers in senior Mardy Gilyard. He had 12 receptions for 172 yards in last week’s win over UConn. For the season, Gilyard has 65 receptions for 908 yards and eight touchdowns.
West Virginia (7-2 SU, 2-6 ATS) has been a money burner with four consecutive non-covers and six ATS losses in its last seven games. The Mountaineers bounced back from a 30-19 loss at South Florida two Fridays ago by beating Louisville 17-9 last week. However, the Cardinals covered the number as 16 ½-point road underdogs.
The ‘Neers could only produce 273 yards of total offense against the ‘Ville, but their defense limited the Cards to just three field goals.
Jarrett Brown, a fifth-year senior, has been fairly solid in replacing WVU legend Pat White at the QB position. Although his 10/8 TD-INT ratio won’t impress too many, he has led the school to a 7-2 ledger. Plus, Brown can make plays with his legs, rushing for 332 yards and four TDs.
Noel Devine is WVU’s big-time playmaker who has the speed to take it to the house on any given play. Devine has 167 times for 1,010 yards and 10 touchdowns, which is good for 6.0 yards per carry. He’s also a threat to catch the ball coming out of the backfield. Most of Cincy’s defensive focus will be on containing Devine and not letting him explode for huge plays when he gets into open space.
WVU has only been an underdog once this year, losing 41-30 at Auburn as a seven-point puppy. Cincy, which is 2-2 ATS in four lined home games, has taken the money in both games as a single-digit favorite in 2009.
When these teams squared off in Morgantown in ’08, Cincy emerged with a 26-23 victory in overtime as a 6½-point road underdog. In ’07, WVU won a 28-23 decision at Cincy as a 5½-point road favorite.
The ‘over’ is 5-3 overall for WVU, 2-1 in its road assignments. The ‘under’ is 5-4 overall for Cincy, 2-2 in its home games.
ESPN2 will provide television coverage at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
**B.E.’s Bonus Nuggets**
The ‘under’ is 10-4 in Cincy’s last 14 home games.
The guess here is that Thursday’s early-morning events in Knoxville might wipe that prissy smirk off of Lame Chafin’s face. After all, two of the culprits (Nu’Keese Richardson and Janzen Jackson) were recruits that Chafin’ talked into de-committing from Florida and LSU, respectively, and then bragged about it to no end. This is what we call poetic justice. And remember, Chafin’ is essentially banned from Richardson’s high school in Pahokee that’s produced NFL players like Fred Taylor, Reidel Anthony and Johnny Rutledge (just to name a few). Two weeks ago, Chafin’ stated that the UT program was getting some “street cred” after Lil’ Wayne wrote a lyric about Chafin’ “talking sh__” in a rap song. I guess the Vols have even more street cred now.
LVSC opened Temple as a seven-point favorite for its Friday game at Akron. As of late Thursday afternoon, most books had the Owls adjusted to 4 ½-point ‘chalk.’ They go into this game against the Zips with a 6-2 spread record.
Notre Dame is in the midst of a 1-7 ATS slide. The Irish, who are seven-point underdogs at Pitt this week, are 0-3 ATS when leaving South Bend this year. They failed to cover in a pair of road games (at Michigan and at Purdue) and their “home” game against Washington St. in San Antonio.
Since getting smoked at Florida by a 56-6 count in Week 2, Troy has won seven straight games and compiled a 6-1 ATS record in the process. The Trojans are 13 ½-point ‘dogs Saturday at Arkansas. Remember, Larry Blakeney’s team nearly pulled a late-season upset at LSU last year, but the Tigers rallied from a 31-3 deficit to capture a 40-31 win in come-from-behind fashion.
What Bettors Need to Know: Friday Night Football
By Lee Kostroski
West Virginia Mountaineers vs. Cincinnati Bearcats (-9, 55)
Line Movements
The line opened with Cincinnati as a 9.5-point home favorite and rose quickly to 10 before dipping to 8.5 on Thursday. It sat at an even 9 as of Thursday evening. The total opened at 53.5 and rose one point to 54.5.
Hobbling Stars
West Virginia QB Jarrett Brown and RB Noel Devine are both hampered by ankle injuries that have limited them in the past two games. Devine, after rushing for 912 yards and 10 touchdowns in the first seven games of the season, has rushed for 95 yards and no touchdowns during the past two games.
Cincinnati allowed 462 yards and 45 points to the UConn Huskies last week and showed that their defense is vulnerable to quick-strike offenses. UConn RB Jordan Todman ran 26 times for 162 yards and four touchdowns.
Brown and Devine will need to be at the top of their games to pull off the road upset against the No. 4 team in the country.
Quarterback Controversy
There are a lot of college coaches out there that wish they had the same quarterback problem that Bearcats head coach Brian Kelly has on his hands. Cincinnati has two outstanding QBs in Tony Pike and Zach Collaros. Tony Pike led the Bearcats to six straight wins while throwing for 272 yards per game with 15 TDs and just three picks prior to being injured against South Florida on Oct. 15.
Pike's injury promoted redshirt freshmen Zach Collaros as the starter. Collaros has exceeded all expectations completing 76 percent of his passes for 10 touchdowns and just one pick in three starts. He has also rushed 44 times for 288 yards and four touchdowns.
Pike is now available to play this week but Kelly says he’s sticking with the red-hot Collaros for this Friday night game.
Bearcats rolling a high-octane offense
Cincinnati racked up 711 total yards and 47 points against UConn last week. Their 482.6 yards per game ranks third nationally and their 40 PPG ranks 5th nationally.
Trends
Cincinnati is just 2-9 SU (straight up) versus the Mountaineers since 1980 (0-7 SU at home in that same span) yet still come into this game as a healthy 9-point favorite. The Bearcats are 8-2 ATS in their last 10 conference games and 6-2-1 ATS in their last nine games in November.
West Virginia is just 2-6 ATS this season, however, the underdog and road team is 4-1-1 ATS (against the spread) in the last six meetings between these two.
West Virginia has finished ‘over’ in its last seven games as an underdog and 17 of its last 23 games in November. Cincy has finished ‘under’ in 10 of its last 14 home games and 13 of its last 19 games as a home favorite.
Temple Owls vs. Akron Zips (+4, 43.5)
Line Movements
Akron opened as a 4-point home dog and that is where the line currently stands. The total has opened at 44 and stood at 43.5 as of Thursday night.
No longer losers
With a 7-2 record, Temple has clinched its first winning season since 1990 and is bowl eligible. After starting the season 0-2, the Owls have won seven straight games by an average of 10.8 points per game.
They are now 5-0 in the MAC East and in uncharted territory as road favorites – a situation they’ve been in just three times since 2002. They now have a target on their back and the rest of the MAC would love to knock them off their perch.
The Owls blew a 31-13 lead to Miami (Ohio) last week and needed a last-second field goal to pull off the 34-32 victory (-17). They now go on the road for the third time in four weeks to face the Zips, who played the spoiler last week and defeated Kent State to end a six-game losing streak. Akron is now playing its second straight home game after playing 4 of their previous 5 on the road.
Running Attack
Bernard Pierce has carried the Owls with 1,211 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns this season. In the last three games alone he has accumulated 657 yards and eight touchdowns on a 6.0 yards per carry (ypc). average.
The Zips have had a stout run defense this season, allowing just 3.1 ypc and two touchdowns in their four home games this season. Last year they held Temple to just 3.4 ypc and went into the fourth quarter tied 6-6 before allowing 21 points in the final quarter.
Trends
Temple is 3-25 SU in its last 28 November and December road games but is 7-2 ATS in its last nine games overall and 17-7-1 ATS in their last 25 conference games. Akron is 19-8-2 ATS in its last 29 games as a home underdog but just 2-5 ATS in its last seven games overall. The Zips are 2-6 ATS in their last eight conference games.
The Owls have finished ‘over’ in their last four games and the Zips jumped ‘over’ in eight of their last 11 at home.
West Virginia (7-2, 2-6 ATS) at (5) Cincinnati (9-0, 5-3 ATS)
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The Bearcats will be shooting for their first 10-0 start in school history when they welcome the Mountaineers to Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati for a Big East matchup between two of the top three teams in the conference.
Cincinnati sits atop the Big East at 9-0, including 5-0 (4-1 ATS) in conference action. The Bearcats rallied to beat Connecticut on Saturday, winning 47-45 but failing as 16½-piont home favorites. Backup QB Zach Collaros will be making his fourth straight start for the injured Tony Pike, who has recovered from a broken non-throwing forearm and is also expected to see some action tonight.
Cincinnati’s offense is third in the nation at 482.6 yards per game and fifth at 40 points per game and has excelled with either QB under center. Pike threw 15 TDs and just three INTs in six starts this season while Collaros has added a running dimension to the position. In Saturday’s win over the Huskies, Collaros racked up 480 passing yards, 75 rushing yards and three TDs, helping the Bearcats to a school-record 711 total yards. However, the stout Cincinnati defense yielded a season-high in points – more than they had given up in the previous three games combined – and let UConn rush for 201 yards and four scores.
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The Mountaineers sit in third place in the Big East at 3-1 (1-3 ATS) against conference foes. West Virginia is coming off a 17-9 home win over Louisville on Saturday, coming up well short as a 17½-point favorite. Star RB Noel Devine, second in the Big East with 1,007 rushing yards, injured his ankle in the victory but is expected to suit up tonight. The Mountaineers defense has allowed 24 points or less in five of their last six games, but in their two toughest road games (at South Florida and at Auburn), they yielded season-highs of 30 and 41 points.
The road team, and underdog, has won five of the last six meetings (4-1-1 ATS) between these two, including Cincinnati’s 26-23 win in West Virginia last year, cashing as a seven-point ‘dog. Prior to last year, the Mountaineers had won three straight and eight of nine in this rivalry, but they’re 1-3-1 ATS in the last five series clashes. West Virginia has won seven in a row in Cincinnati and was the last visiting team to win at Nippert Stadium, as it went there as the nation’s fifth-ranked team in November 2007 and scored a 28-23 victory over the 21st-ranked Bearcats, but failed to cover as a 5½-point road favorite. Since that game, Cincy has won 11 consecutive home games.
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West Virginia has failed to cash in four straight games and is on additional ATS slides of 6-14 overall, 1-4 on the road, 1-5 in Big East games, 1-4 on Fridays and 0-4 against teams with winning records. The Bearcats are on ATS streaks of 8-2 in conference action, 6-2-1 in November games, 6-2 against winning teams and 6-1 at home against opponents with winning road records.
The Mountaineers are on “over” runs of 17-6 in November, 5-2 on the road, 7-0 as an underdog and 5-1 against teams with winning records. Conversely, Cincinnati is on “under” streaks of 5-2 overall, 10-4 at home, 13-6 as a home favorite and 5-1 in November games. Finally, the last two meetings between these teams at Nippert Stadium stayed low.
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ATS ADVANTAGE: CINCINNATI
Temple (7-2, 6-2 ATS) at Akron (2-7, 3-5 ATS)
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The Owls head to the Rubber Bowl for a Mid-American Conference showdown with Akron, looking to maintain their slim lead in the MAC’s East Division with their eighth straight victory.
Temple saw its division lead dip to one-half game when second-place Ohio went to Buffalo on Tuesday and scored a three-point win. The Owls have won seven in a row (5-2 ATS), but the last two were nail-biters, as they got a field goal with three seconds left last Thursday to edge Miami (Ohio) 34-32, but failing to cover as 17-point favorites, after getting past Navy 27-24 on Oct. 31 as a 6½-point road ‘dog. Temple has scored 24 points or more in each of their seven straight wins, but the defense has yielded 24, 24 and 32 points in the last three after surrendering an average of 14.3 ppg in the previous four.
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The Owls are averaging 27 ppg this season, despite managing just 319.2 yards per contest. They do rush the ball for 168.9 ypg, and they’ve won the rushing battle in six of their last seven contests.
Akron snapped a six-game losing streak (1-5 ATS) with Saturday’s 28-20 win over Kent State, cashing as a four-point home ‘dog. QB play has been shaky for the Zips with the trio of Patrick Nicely, Matt Rodgers and Chris Jacquemain combing to throw eight TDs and 10 INTs. The Zips manage just 18.4 point, 291.6 total yards and 105 rushing yards a game while allowing 25.8 points, 357.2 yards and 166.3 rushing yards per contest.
Temple has won each of the last two (2-0 ATS) against Akron, including last year’s 27-6 home win as a 2½-point favorite. The last time they were in Akron in 2007, the Owls got a 24-20 victory as 12-point underdogs. Prior to that, the Zips had won six straight in this rivalry – five by double digits – going 5-1 ATS. The SU winner has covered in each of the last 10 meetings dating to 1987.
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The Owls are on positive ATS streaks of 14-5 overall (7-2 last nine), 4-0 on the road this year, 17-7-1 in MAC games, 7-2 overall, 6-2 after a straight-up win and 4-1 on Fridays. Akron is 19-8-2 ATS in its last 29 as a home underdog, but the Zips are on a plethora of negative ATS runs, including 3-9 overall (2-5 last seven), 2-6 in MAC games, 1-5 against teams with winning records and 0-3-1 on Fridays.
Temple is on “over” runs of 4-0 overall and 4-1 in November, but it has stayed below the total in eight of 10 after an ATS loss, 13 of 19 conference games and nine of 13 against losing teams. Akron has stayed below the posted number in four of five overall, but it is on “over” streaks of 10-4 in MAC play, 8-3 at home, 9-2 as a home ‘dog, 5-1 in November and 3-0 after a straight-up win.
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ATS ADVANTAGE: OVER
South Florida Vs Rutgers Preview
By: Vernon Croy
At this point of the year, the conference battles in college football are really starting to heat up. This Thursday night's game between the South Florida Bulls and the Rutgers Scarlet Knights should be no exception.
The Bulls and Knights have had some good battles in the last few years, with Rutgers recently coming out on top. In fact, the Knights beat the Bulls handily when they squared off last season.
This time around, the Bulls have revenge on their mind as they hope to avenge the loss of a season ago. So what should we expect in this one?
The Rutgers Scarlet Knights come into this game with a 6-2 record. However, their conference record of 1-2 has nearly eliminated them from the Big East title race, as powerhouses such as Cincinnati and Pittsburgh are vying for the title. Rutgers has a solid team and is good enough to compete with anyone, which is evident in their victories over South Florida the past few years.
Two years ago, the Bulls were ranked as high as second in the country with a record of 6-0. That very week, it was the Scarlet Knights that handed them their first loss of the season. Rutgers beat them very handily in their only matchup last year as well.
Even though the South Florida Bulls are ranked in the top 25 this week, you should not sleep on Rutgers.
The South Florida Bulls have had a roller coaster of a season. They started off great until the Big East's all-time leader in offense, Matt Grothe, went down for the season. At that point, freshman quarterback B.J. Daniels came in and picked up where Grothe left off. He managed to lead them to a win over then No. 18 Florida State and later won against Syracuse.
South Florida managed to beat No. 20 West Virginia recently and they are a very talented team that has the ability to beat Rutgers. However, this should be a close game that will likely be decided in the fourth quarter.
Cincy, WVU ready for action
By AllStar.com
The University of Cincinnati football team plays host to No. 23 West Virginia Friday at Nippert Stadium in UC’s annual Ring of Red game. The Bearcats, one of six undefeated teams in the nation, have a 10-game winning streak at Nippert Stadium, and a 15-game regular-season winning streak. The Mountaineers are 7-2, 3-1 in BIG EAST play on the year. The Bearcats and Mountaineers have met 17 times with WVU holding a 14-2-1 advantage in the all-time series. WVU has a seven-game winning streak at Nippert Stadium, but UC knocked off WVU 26-23, in a 2008 overtime thriller in Morgantown.
The fifth-rated Bearcats have one of the most explosive offenses in the country. Four times Cincinnati has scored 40 or more points in a game this year (they scored 70 in one game against Southeast Missouri State) and is ranked third in the country in total offense averaging 482.6 yards per game.
Last week against Connecticut, the Bearcats finished with a school-record 711 yards of offense. Backup quarterback Zach Collaros threw for 480 yards, the second-highest total in school history during a 47-45 win over Connecticut on Saturday night. Starter Tony Pike warmed up before the game but didn't play continuing to rest the injury to his non- throwing arm. Head Coach Brian Kelly is starting Collaros against WVU on Friday but claims Pike will see some action against the Mountaineers. Collaros has completed 76 percent of his passes for 1,229 yards, 10 touchdowns and one interception. He has also run for 311 yards and four touchdowns.
West Virginia rebounded from its second loss of the season with a 17-9 win against Louisville last Saturday .The Mountaineers are 1-2 on the road this season, with a win at Syracuse and losses at Auburn and USF. WVU scored at least 30 points in each of its first five games; West Virginia has scored between 17 and 28 in each of its last four games. West Virginia’s offense has been stuck in idle after a 34-13 win at Syracuse on Oct. 10. After the Syracuse win West Virginia was averaging 449.5 yards per game. In its last four games the average has dipped to 324 yards per game. Last Saturday against Louisville, the Mountaineers managed a season-low 273 yards in a 17-9 victory over the Cardinals.
The 2009 season marked Jarrett Brown’s arrival as WVU’s starting quarterback.
Through nine games, he has amassed 1,993 yards of total offense and an average of 221.4 yards per game. He’s thrown for 1,661 yards with 10 touchdowns and eight interceptions on 140-216 passing with 332 yards rushing on 79 attempts and four scores, two of which came at USF.
Cincinnati’s running game is effective with sophomore Isaiah Pead leading the team with 512 yards and an average of 6.2 yards per carry. Whenever defenses get too concerned with Gilyard on the outside or Collaros scrambling, that’s when Kelly slips the ball to Pead or Jacob Ramsey on a counter. Pead has a 67 yard run to his credit while Ramsey has ripped off a 62 yard run.
WVU Junior tailback Noel Devine has been better than advertised this season. When the game is on the line, no one steps up more than Devine. Through nine games this year, Devine is second in the BIG EAST in rushing yards per game at 112.2 per contest, which is good for 13th nationally. Devine enters Friday's game with 1,010 rushing yards. A turned ankle limited Devine to just 56 yards on 13 carries against Louisville. WR Jock Sanders stepped in and gained 66 yards on 12 attempts. Devine and Jock Sanders are vital parts of the Mountaineer offense and can be counted on for at least one combined touchdown each game. This season, Devine and Sanders have accounted for 15 of the Mountaineers’ 33 touchdowns. The mark surpasses the dynamic duo’s combined TD total (13) from one season ago, when WVU went 8-0 when just one of the two scored.
Mountaineer QB Brown has kept the receiving corps happy in 2009; he has spread the ball around, completing passes to 9 different players for a total of 1605 yards. Five receivers nabbed passes in the Louisville win and Jock Sanders scored on an eight-yard toss. The team is using an average of 6.56 receivers per game this season. The Mountaineers have steadily increased receiver participation over the past four seasons, with an average of 5.08 receivers per game.
Bearcat WR Mardy Gilyard has eight touchdown receptions this season and 22 for his career, tying him for UC’s all-time lead. Gilyard leads the BIG EAST with 7.2 receptions per game. He has 65 receptions for 908 yards and eight touchdowns and also leads the BIG EAST in all-purpose yards (184.3 yards per game). Armon Binns, a 6-foot-4, 200-pound junior from Pasadena, Calif., has stepped up at the other receiver spot to give the Bearcats a lethal one-two punch. Binns shows 39 catches for 631 yards and seven touchdowns. If that were not enough, D.J. Woods has caught 30 passes for 440 yards and a touchdown. Gilyard, Binns and Woods are all averaging more than 14 yards per catch.
The Five receivers nabbed passes in the Louisville win and Jock Sanders scored on an eight-yard toss. The team is using an average of 6.56 receivers per game this season. The Mountaineers have steadily increased receiver participation over the past four seasons, with an average of 5.08 receivers per game.
Cincinnati’s defense is very similar to West Virginia’s giving up roughly the same amount of points and yards per game. But the Bearcats were stung for 462 yards and 45 points by Connecticut last Saturday including 21 points in the fourth quarter to make the game much more interesting than it really should have been.
West Virginia’s speedy defense has been successful at doing what every coach preaches creating turnovers. WVU carried an 11-game streak of garnering at least one interception or fumble recovery in each game dating back to the Mountaineers’ 35-21 victory over Louisville on Nov. 22, 2008. DE Julian Miller is second in the Big East with 8.5 sacks and 11.5 tackles for loss this season.
UC leads the nation in passing efficiency (171.84) and tackles for a loss (8.9), while
ranking third in total offense (482.6), sacks (3.3), and turnover margin (1.4), and sitting fifth in scoring offense (40.0), and sixth in passing offense (324.7).
UC K Jake Rogers is the top-scoring kicker in the Big East at 8.4 points per game.
WVU P Scott Kozlowski is the Big East's leading punter at 45.5 yards per punt.
The Series:
The schools have met 17 times with WVU holding a 14-2-1 advantage, including a 7-0 mark at Nippert Stadium.
The last team to really slow down Cincinnati’s offense was West Virginia in Morgantown last year. The Bearcats, with Pike under center, managed only 260 total yards (222 yards fewer than Cincinnati’s average this year) in a 26-23 overtime victory. Pike was 16 of 30 for 178 yards and the Cincinnati running game managed just 82 yards on 33 carries. The difference was Gilyard’s 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to begin the game. Cincinnati had just 12 first downs against West Virginia’s defense.
On the other side, the Mountaineers also had trouble moving the ball against Cincinnati’s defense, running for only 98 yards on 42 carries.
Injuries:
WVU – QB Jarret Brown (Ankle), Probable; RB Noel Devine (Ankle), Probable; DL Chris Neild (Back), Probable; DB Sidney Glover (Shoulder), Probable; DL Josh Taylor (Back), Questionable.
Cincinnati – QB Tony Pike (Forearm), Probable – Will Not Start; LB Robby Armstrong (Knee), Out;
Betting Trends:
WVU is 0-4 ATS against a team with a winning record
WVU is 0-4 ATS in their last four games
Cincy is 8-2 ATS in their last 10 conference games
The ROAD TEAM is 4-1-1 in the last six meetings between the two teams
The OVER is 5-2 in WVU’s last seven road games
The UNDER is 10-4 in Cincy’s last 14 home games
Tips and Trends
West Virginia at Cincinnati
West Virginia: West Virginia will be playing only their 2nd game as an underdog this year. The Mountaineers have lost 6 of their last 7 games ATS. West Virginia has been held under 20 points in their 2 most recent games. Part of the problem is the health of QB Jarrett Brown and RB Noel Devine. Devine will be counted on to lead this offense on clock eating drives, to keep the potent Bearcats offense off the field. However, Devine has struggled of late, as he's been held under 100 YDS rushing combined in his past two starts. This pass defense needs to play better, as they have the 3rd worst passing defense in the Big East.
West Virginia is 1-5 ATS last 6 conference games.
Over is 5-0 last 5 games as a road underdog.
Key Injuries - DL Chris Neild (back) is questionable.
DB Sidney Glover (shoulder) is questionable.
PROJECTED SCORE: 27
Cincinnati (-9.5, O/U 55): Undefeated Bearcats put their championship hopes on the line tonight against a nationally ranked team. A big reason they are undefeated is their offense (3rd nationally with 482 YPG; 5th nationally with 40 PPG) Freshman QB Zach Collaros has filled in admirably for Tony Pike, as he's accounted for 14 TDs to only 1 turnover. The Bearcats defense has only allowed 2 teams to score more than 20 points this year. This is the first home game this year the Bearcats aren't double digit favorites.
Cincinnati is 8-2 ATS last 10 conference games.
Under is 10-4 last 14 home games.
Key Injuries - QB Tony Pike (forearm) is probable.
LB Robby Armstrong (knee) is out.
PROJECTED SCORE: 34 (OVER - Total of the Day)