Jeff Benton
The Lakers went on a monster end-of-game run to miraculously cover the big number against the Clippers last night, giving us a free-play winner. For Thursday, we’ll turn to College Football and play the Virginia Tech-Maryland game UNDER the total.
Pretty small number here, especially given the fact the first three weekday games this week have easily hurdled over the total. However, there are several key indicators that suggest a low-scoring game in Blacksburg, Va., tonight. First off, Maryland has scored a grand total of 34 points in three road games, all of them going under with combined point totals of 31, 37 and 38. In fact, if you go back to last season, the under is 7-0 in the Terps’ last seven road games, with none of those seven contests featuring more than 40 total points.
Meanwhile, if you go back to 2005, Virginia Tech has played 18 home games against Division I-A foes, and 14 have stayed under the total, including both lined games this year against Western Kentucky (27-13) and Georgia Tech (20-17).
Lastly, when these squads play in these nationally televised Thursday night contests, points historically have been hard to come by. Consider: The under is 7-0 in Virginia Tech’s last seven Thursday games and 8-2 in Maryland’s last 10. Add it all up, and there’s only one way to look at this contest, and that’s UNDER the posted total.
(based on a 1 to a 10 ? Rating)
5? Maryland-Virginia Tech UNDER
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Scott Delaney
Two straight NBA winners right here, and the third time is a charm so let's bank the Rockets in Portland.
After last night's seven-point loss in Salt Lake City, I don't expect Portland to be ready to step on the floor and challenge the rejuvenated Rockets, who had the night off and will be looking to avenge their loss to Boston two nights back.
With nine of Houston's next 11 on the road, the Rockets need to seize an opportunity to gain some momentum on this current West Coast jaunt, which includes trips to L.A. for a clash with the Lakers, and a stop over in Phoenix.
Nevertheless, the Rockets have been one of the best road teams in the league over the past two seasons, posting back-to-back identical marks of 24-17 away from home. And going back to last season the Rockets have covered 19 of 28 road games.
They've also covered 19 of their last 27 that came after one days rest.
This is a win and cover with the road team that is far more talented.
HOUSTON ROCKETS
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Jake Timlin
Your complimentary Thursday selection is the Utah Utes.
At home under the light I say take the Utes plus the points. Yes, while I feel that TCU is the best non-BCS team despite their one loss I don’t like the Horned Frogs laying road points in Salt Lake City. Not when TCU is playing back to back road games and do so on a short week and doing so against a Utah team that has won 4 of the 5 all-time meeting, including the Utes 27-20 outright win last year in Ft. Worth. Meanwhile, before you get too caught up in all of the press about the Horned Frogs defense don’t over look that the Utes also have a top 10 defense that is very physical. So in a huge league battle I look for the Utes to prevail at home as they keep their BCS dream alive.
All Utah!
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Karl Garrett
The G-Man has gone 24-16-1 my last 41 comp picks.
Going to go with Virginia Tech tonight as the small home favorite, as I really don't see the Hokies losing their third in a row in this spot. The last time Tech lost 3 in a row in the regular season was back in 2002, so expect a prideful effort from these Hokies tonight under the home lights.
True, V-Tech has a pair of QB's dealing with ankle sprains, but senior Sean Glennon is listed as probable for this one, and that is good enough for me.
The Hokies have won 25 of their last 28 homes games straight up, and with this price being so small, all we pretty much have to do is win this game for us to cover.
Maryland is just 5-10 against the spread their last 15 on the road, and I think they are due for a road loss in this one tonight. The last time these teams met was back in 2005, Va Tech scoring a 28-9 win at Maryland as the 10-point favorite.
Similar result tonight from Blacksburg. Take the Hokies minus the number.
1? VIRGINIA TECH
(on a 1? to 5? basis)
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Drew Gordon
2-0 Bonus Play sweep came and went Wednesday, as the Timberwolves coverd against the Spurs 129-125 AND the Cavaliers routed the Bulls 107-93! More of the same Thursday...
Interesting Moutain West match up here, as two teams with a lot to prove come into this contest. Fact is, I'm not sold on Utah, who's played next to no one this season, and looked pretty damn shaky at New Mexico last week. A return home should do a lot for the Utes high-powered offense, however if a 4-6 Lobos team can hold them to just 13 points, imagine what the Horned Frogs vaunted stop-unit will do!
Look guys, Utah can trade scores with anyone in the nation, but that's not the problem. The problem is stopping at Texas Christian offense that's firing on all cylinders right now, especially when you know the TCU defense will get a stop here and there. Andy Dalton may not have the numbers Brian Johnson has, but he commits far fewer turnovers, and his last game was a perfect example, completing about 55% of his passes for 3 TDs and no picks at UNLV (not amazing, but more than enough to compliment a balanced TCU run attack).
Now let's talk about the Horned Frogs defense, which is as good as anyone in the country. Their lone loss came on the road at powerhouse Oklahoma, and even then, the defense did an admirable job against the Sooners run game (36 rushes for 25 yards or 0.7 yard per carry average), only to get punished by QB Sam Bradford (no shame in that, he's damn good). Look guys, not only will TCU completely shut down the run, but star DE Jerry Hughes (14 sacks) and the stud Horned Frogs d-line will have Johnson running for his life all game long.
Finally, going back to the New Mexico game, I strongly believe the Utes were exposed in that contest. Brian Johnson had almost identical numbers to the Colorado State game (which the Utes won going away 49-16), but what was the difference? Against Colorado State, they were able to run the ball at will, racking up 327 rushing yards on a gaudy 8.8 yard per carry average. Make no mistake, they won't get ANYWHERE near that number tonight, and fact is, the Utes offense doesn't run nearly as efficiently when they can't run the ball. In the end, the defense is the difference, as the Horned Frogs win and cover a close hard-fought road game tonight in Salt Lake.
Take Texas Christian over Utah in this college football match up.
2? TEXAS CHRISTIAN
On a 1? to 5? Scale
ENOUGH CHIT CHAT MORE FADE MATERIAL!
The Lakers went on a monster end-of-game run to miraculously cover the big number against the Clippers last night, giving us a free-play winner. For Thursday, we’ll turn to College Football and play the Virginia Tech-Maryland game UNDER the total.
Pretty small number here, especially given the fact the first three weekday games this week have easily hurdled over the total. However, there are several key indicators that suggest a low-scoring game in Blacksburg, Va., tonight. First off, Maryland has scored a grand total of 34 points in three road games, all of them going under with combined point totals of 31, 37 and 38. In fact, if you go back to last season, the under is 7-0 in the Terps’ last seven road games, with none of those seven contests featuring more than 40 total points.
Meanwhile, if you go back to 2005, Virginia Tech has played 18 home games against Division I-A foes, and 14 have stayed under the total, including both lined games this year against Western Kentucky (27-13) and Georgia Tech (20-17).
Lastly, when these squads play in these nationally televised Thursday night contests, points historically have been hard to come by. Consider: The under is 7-0 in Virginia Tech’s last seven Thursday games and 8-2 in Maryland’s last 10. Add it all up, and there’s only one way to look at this contest, and that’s UNDER the posted total.
(based on a 1 to a 10 ? Rating)
5? Maryland-Virginia Tech UNDER
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Scott Delaney
Two straight NBA winners right here, and the third time is a charm so let's bank the Rockets in Portland.
After last night's seven-point loss in Salt Lake City, I don't expect Portland to be ready to step on the floor and challenge the rejuvenated Rockets, who had the night off and will be looking to avenge their loss to Boston two nights back.
With nine of Houston's next 11 on the road, the Rockets need to seize an opportunity to gain some momentum on this current West Coast jaunt, which includes trips to L.A. for a clash with the Lakers, and a stop over in Phoenix.
Nevertheless, the Rockets have been one of the best road teams in the league over the past two seasons, posting back-to-back identical marks of 24-17 away from home. And going back to last season the Rockets have covered 19 of 28 road games.
They've also covered 19 of their last 27 that came after one days rest.
This is a win and cover with the road team that is far more talented.
HOUSTON ROCKETS
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Jake Timlin
Your complimentary Thursday selection is the Utah Utes.
At home under the light I say take the Utes plus the points. Yes, while I feel that TCU is the best non-BCS team despite their one loss I don’t like the Horned Frogs laying road points in Salt Lake City. Not when TCU is playing back to back road games and do so on a short week and doing so against a Utah team that has won 4 of the 5 all-time meeting, including the Utes 27-20 outright win last year in Ft. Worth. Meanwhile, before you get too caught up in all of the press about the Horned Frogs defense don’t over look that the Utes also have a top 10 defense that is very physical. So in a huge league battle I look for the Utes to prevail at home as they keep their BCS dream alive.
All Utah!
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Karl Garrett
The G-Man has gone 24-16-1 my last 41 comp picks.
Going to go with Virginia Tech tonight as the small home favorite, as I really don't see the Hokies losing their third in a row in this spot. The last time Tech lost 3 in a row in the regular season was back in 2002, so expect a prideful effort from these Hokies tonight under the home lights.
True, V-Tech has a pair of QB's dealing with ankle sprains, but senior Sean Glennon is listed as probable for this one, and that is good enough for me.
The Hokies have won 25 of their last 28 homes games straight up, and with this price being so small, all we pretty much have to do is win this game for us to cover.
Maryland is just 5-10 against the spread their last 15 on the road, and I think they are due for a road loss in this one tonight. The last time these teams met was back in 2005, Va Tech scoring a 28-9 win at Maryland as the 10-point favorite.
Similar result tonight from Blacksburg. Take the Hokies minus the number.
1? VIRGINIA TECH
(on a 1? to 5? basis)
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Drew Gordon
2-0 Bonus Play sweep came and went Wednesday, as the Timberwolves coverd against the Spurs 129-125 AND the Cavaliers routed the Bulls 107-93! More of the same Thursday...
Interesting Moutain West match up here, as two teams with a lot to prove come into this contest. Fact is, I'm not sold on Utah, who's played next to no one this season, and looked pretty damn shaky at New Mexico last week. A return home should do a lot for the Utes high-powered offense, however if a 4-6 Lobos team can hold them to just 13 points, imagine what the Horned Frogs vaunted stop-unit will do!
Look guys, Utah can trade scores with anyone in the nation, but that's not the problem. The problem is stopping at Texas Christian offense that's firing on all cylinders right now, especially when you know the TCU defense will get a stop here and there. Andy Dalton may not have the numbers Brian Johnson has, but he commits far fewer turnovers, and his last game was a perfect example, completing about 55% of his passes for 3 TDs and no picks at UNLV (not amazing, but more than enough to compliment a balanced TCU run attack).
Now let's talk about the Horned Frogs defense, which is as good as anyone in the country. Their lone loss came on the road at powerhouse Oklahoma, and even then, the defense did an admirable job against the Sooners run game (36 rushes for 25 yards or 0.7 yard per carry average), only to get punished by QB Sam Bradford (no shame in that, he's damn good). Look guys, not only will TCU completely shut down the run, but star DE Jerry Hughes (14 sacks) and the stud Horned Frogs d-line will have Johnson running for his life all game long.
Finally, going back to the New Mexico game, I strongly believe the Utes were exposed in that contest. Brian Johnson had almost identical numbers to the Colorado State game (which the Utes won going away 49-16), but what was the difference? Against Colorado State, they were able to run the ball at will, racking up 327 rushing yards on a gaudy 8.8 yard per carry average. Make no mistake, they won't get ANYWHERE near that number tonight, and fact is, the Utes offense doesn't run nearly as efficiently when they can't run the ball. In the end, the defense is the difference, as the Horned Frogs win and cover a close hard-fought road game tonight in Salt Lake.
Take Texas Christian over Utah in this college football match up.
2? TEXAS CHRISTIAN
On a 1? to 5? Scale
ENOUGH CHIT CHAT MORE FADE MATERIAL!
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