TONY STOFFO
Matchup: Vanderbilt at LSU
Pick: LSU -14.5
Sharps were all over the Tigers as this line was posted and I can see why as Quarterback Jordan Jefferson looked awesome throwing for 172 yards and 3 touchdowns against Washington on Saturday night. While the defense looked much improved from a yard ago as Linebacker returned an interception 29 yards for a touchdown. So with a game under their belts I look for a blowout game at home against this Vanderbilt team tonight who has some major holes to fill defensively.
Johnson is 1-8 ATS off a home win by 17 points or more as the coach of Vanderbilt.
Matchup: Vanderbilt at LSU
Pick: LSU -14.5
Sharps were all over the Tigers as this line was posted and I can see why as Quarterback Jordan Jefferson looked awesome throwing for 172 yards and 3 touchdowns against Washington on Saturday night. While the defense looked much improved from a yard ago as Linebacker returned an interception 29 yards for a touchdown. So with a game under their belts I look for a blowout game at home against this Vanderbilt team tonight who has some major holes to fill defensively.
Johnson is 1-8 ATS off a home win by 17 points or more as the coach of Vanderbilt.
Asa 5-tn, 4-n tx, 3-w mich
ben burns 10-ohio st, pur over, 9-pst, 8-mn
big money utah
blazer 4-e car, c mich, 3-duke, stan, smu, w mich
carolina sports 5-s miss, 4-nd, 3-e car, w mich, unlv
doc enterprises 6-uab, 5-fresno, kent st, 4-oh st under, c mich, buff, unlv
dr. Bob op: Io st, army, tulane, mich, bc
gameday 3-aub, s miss, 2-io st, kent st, s jose st
inside info 3-e car, 2-vandy
joe d 25-n dame, 20-wash, s jose st, 15-wf, duke
lt profits 5-conn, 3-usc, 2-af
nationwide (goldst) top: N tex, reg: Unc under, c mich, s car, buff, mizz
northcoast 4-unlv, smu, nd, 3-pst, s miss, aub
pointwise 4-aub, af, 3-e car, n tex, s car, vandy, c mich, s miss
private players 5-army, s miss, 4-e car, aub, vandy, 3-tn, tulsa
ness 25-tn, 20-s miss, ore
rt. Angle 1-wf, midd tn, 2-lalaf under, 1-neb under, pitt under, bc under, tcu over, wash st over
ben burns 10-ohio st, pur over, 9-pst, 8-mn
big money utah
blazer 4-e car, c mich, 3-duke, stan, smu, w mich
carolina sports 5-s miss, 4-nd, 3-e car, w mich, unlv
doc enterprises 6-uab, 5-fresno, kent st, 4-oh st under, c mich, buff, unlv
dr. Bob op: Io st, army, tulane, mich, bc
gameday 3-aub, s miss, 2-io st, kent st, s jose st
inside info 3-e car, 2-vandy
joe d 25-n dame, 20-wash, s jose st, 15-wf, duke
lt profits 5-conn, 3-usc, 2-af
nationwide (goldst) top: N tex, reg: Unc under, c mich, s car, buff, mizz
northcoast 4-unlv, smu, nd, 3-pst, s miss, aub
pointwise 4-aub, af, 3-e car, n tex, s car, vandy, c mich, s miss
private players 5-army, s miss, 4-e car, aub, vandy, 3-tn, tulsa
ness 25-tn, 20-s miss, ore
rt. Angle 1-wf, midd tn, 2-lalaf under, 1-neb under, pitt under, bc under, tcu over, wash st over
Chris Jordan Saturday's Tripleheader...
200♦ STANFORD CARDINAL - Not sure how much I'm geared toward playing on Stanford, or against the Demon Deacons. Most certainly, it's a little bit of both. I like this redshirt freshman quarterback for Stanford, Andrew Luck, who was eerily effective in his first college start, throwing for 193 yards and a touchdown last week at Washington State.
Now, first thing I might think is this his first game outside the Pacific Time Zone against a rugged ACC team; but Wake Forest's defense returns only one starter in its back seven, and I'm not so sure the rather soft defensive line can pressure Luck. With enough time on the majority of his drives, this kid will pick apart the Demon Deacons' inexperienced secondary. He has plenty of talent to turn to, as his skill-position players are all upperclassmen.
Honestly, the Cardinal could make it to its first bowl game since the 2001 season, and this is a game that would weigh heavy in certain bowl committee members' eyes. I'm grabbing the field goal or then some, and looking for the Cardinal to aim for the outright win.
200♦ EAST CAROLINA PIRATES - Revenge, I know. But you know what, East Carolina is going to do everything possible to not let the Mountaineers use that revenge factor from last season's 24-3 thumping that ended WVU's 14-game non-conference win streak.
ECU, the defending Conference USA champion, beat Appalachian State, 29-24, last week and has nine starters back on offense and eight on defense from that team that stymied West Virginia. And all due respect, while the Pirates eked out their win over Appy State - which is always a tough team in non-conference play - the Mountaineers let Liberty put 20 points on the board last week in a 33-20 win.
The Pirates are going to bring the heat against a newly built offensive line and pressure Jarrett Brown the entire game. And in case you were unaware, that loss to East Carolina a year ago, West Virginia allowed the Pirates to tackle them 11 times for a loss for minus-32 yards. I see a lot of that taking place all over again. Add in a bit of lookahead with a trip to Auburn on deck for the Mounties, and it's easy to see why I like the Pirates to pull off another upset.
200♦ UNDER Tcu/Virginia - Don't be surprised to see a 13-10 ball game here. Who wins? I don't know, and that don't mean to take th underdog. But the fact is Virginia is as defensively sound as the Horned Frogs. I was quite surprised by the point spread the oddsmakers made on this one.
So why not take the Cavaliers? Well, there's gotta be a reason TCU is laying the price it's laying, right? I'd much rather count on a defensive tussle, as the Cavs boast the best secondary during Al Groh's tenure at Virginia, and have an experienced and talented front line to apply the pressure. The only question mark, admittedly, will be the new faces at linebacker in this 3-4 front. But once this game gets physical, the linebacking crew will catch on quickly.
As for Texas Christian, we're talking about the reigning No. 1 stop unit in the nation. And while just about everyone else started last week, the aggressive Horned Frogs start their season tonight. The 16th-ranked Frogs should be able to take advantage of a Virginia offense that struggled against William & Mary's defense in its opener. Gary Patterson's infamous 4-2-5 defensive alignment uses three safeties, and shuts down spread offenses. It allows him to utilize speed in the secondary, and get this, he still has defensive end Jerry Hughes putting O-Lines on blast; the 6-foot-3, 255 pound senior led the nation in sacks last season with 15. Stay away from the side in this one, it comes down to defense.
200♦ STANFORD CARDINAL - Not sure how much I'm geared toward playing on Stanford, or against the Demon Deacons. Most certainly, it's a little bit of both. I like this redshirt freshman quarterback for Stanford, Andrew Luck, who was eerily effective in his first college start, throwing for 193 yards and a touchdown last week at Washington State.
Now, first thing I might think is this his first game outside the Pacific Time Zone against a rugged ACC team; but Wake Forest's defense returns only one starter in its back seven, and I'm not so sure the rather soft defensive line can pressure Luck. With enough time on the majority of his drives, this kid will pick apart the Demon Deacons' inexperienced secondary. He has plenty of talent to turn to, as his skill-position players are all upperclassmen.
Honestly, the Cardinal could make it to its first bowl game since the 2001 season, and this is a game that would weigh heavy in certain bowl committee members' eyes. I'm grabbing the field goal or then some, and looking for the Cardinal to aim for the outright win.
200♦ EAST CAROLINA PIRATES - Revenge, I know. But you know what, East Carolina is going to do everything possible to not let the Mountaineers use that revenge factor from last season's 24-3 thumping that ended WVU's 14-game non-conference win streak.
ECU, the defending Conference USA champion, beat Appalachian State, 29-24, last week and has nine starters back on offense and eight on defense from that team that stymied West Virginia. And all due respect, while the Pirates eked out their win over Appy State - which is always a tough team in non-conference play - the Mountaineers let Liberty put 20 points on the board last week in a 33-20 win.
The Pirates are going to bring the heat against a newly built offensive line and pressure Jarrett Brown the entire game. And in case you were unaware, that loss to East Carolina a year ago, West Virginia allowed the Pirates to tackle them 11 times for a loss for minus-32 yards. I see a lot of that taking place all over again. Add in a bit of lookahead with a trip to Auburn on deck for the Mounties, and it's easy to see why I like the Pirates to pull off another upset.
200♦ UNDER Tcu/Virginia - Don't be surprised to see a 13-10 ball game here. Who wins? I don't know, and that don't mean to take th underdog. But the fact is Virginia is as defensively sound as the Horned Frogs. I was quite surprised by the point spread the oddsmakers made on this one.
So why not take the Cavaliers? Well, there's gotta be a reason TCU is laying the price it's laying, right? I'd much rather count on a defensive tussle, as the Cavs boast the best secondary during Al Groh's tenure at Virginia, and have an experienced and talented front line to apply the pressure. The only question mark, admittedly, will be the new faces at linebacker in this 3-4 front. But once this game gets physical, the linebacking crew will catch on quickly.
As for Texas Christian, we're talking about the reigning No. 1 stop unit in the nation. And while just about everyone else started last week, the aggressive Horned Frogs start their season tonight. The 16th-ranked Frogs should be able to take advantage of a Virginia offense that struggled against William & Mary's defense in its opener. Gary Patterson's infamous 4-2-5 defensive alignment uses three safeties, and shuts down spread offenses. It allows him to utilize speed in the secondary, and get this, he still has defensive end Jerry Hughes putting O-Lines on blast; the 6-foot-3, 255 pound senior led the nation in sacks last season with 15. Stay away from the side in this one, it comes down to defense.
