Thursday's Pick
5 Dime - Cincinnati
Cincinnati has reeled off five consecutive covers in the series, pulling three outright upsets along the way. Last year the Bearcats rolled 24-10 at home behind quarterback Tony Pike's 20-for-28, 281-yard, 2 TD effort. What makes Pike's performance all the more impressive is that he was playing with a soft cast on his throwing arm to protect six screws and a metal plate that had been recently inserted to prompt the healing of a broken bone. And rather than work out of Cincy's normal no-huddle attack, he had to take snaps from under center throughout the game.
Pike is healthy this season and has thrown for 1,493 yards and 13 TDs while completing 67% of his passes to guide Cincinnati to a 5-0 start that's included road routs of Rutgers (47-15), Oregon State (28-18) and Miami of Ohio (37-13).
South Florida is also 5-0 despite losing senior starting QB Matt Grothe earlier in the season. But redshirt freshman B.J. Daniels has stepped in and guided the Bulls to consecutive road wins against Florida State (17-7) and Syracuse (34-20).
The upset of the Seminoles in Tallahassee is South Florida's "signature" win this season, but in retrospect how big was it considering Florida State followed that game with losses at Boston College, 28-21, and at home versus Georgia Tech, 49-44.
South Florida is currently ranked fifth in the nation in scoring defense, allowing less than 10 points a game, and the Bulls are yielding a Big East low 263 yards total per game. But other than Florida State, their opposition has been spotty at best, and they certainly have not faced a spread offense clicking on all cylinders like Cincinnati's - ranked fourth nationally in scoring - under Pike's direction.
NOTE: The line for this game is currently floating anwhere between 1 1/2 to 3 in favor of Cincinnati. If your number is 3, go ahead and buy the 1/2 point down to 2 1/2 points so you get the victory should Cincinnati only prevail by a field goal.
BOUGHT, PAID, AND CONFIRMED BY ME!!