Tag Archives: College Football Review

NCAA Football Free Picks Review: Week 12 2009

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Well, I didn’t win them all, but I started out great and finished well enough to pull out a winning week. I was 7-5 and continued to bolster my NCAA football free picks record with mid-week games and afternoon games on Saturday. Something about those late games that I’ve figured out. Check back later in the week to see if I can continue.

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Buffalo Bulls (-1.5) @ Miami-Ohio Redhawks: (WINNER) I picked this one out early, and loved the odds going in. Like I said in my newsletter, the Bulls got a full week to prepare for the Redhawks while Miami-Ohio got just five days. You add up the fact that they are a better team, and you get a 42-17 Bulls-blowout.

Central Michigan Chippewas (-17) @ Ball State Cardinals: (WINNER) The Chipps are just too good. Ball State came in and, like everyone else, couldn’t stop Dan LeFevour. Central Michigan put up 35 points to the Cardinals’ 3, and that’s what you’ll call an easy cover.

Colorado Buffaloes @ Oklahoma State Cowboys (-14.5): (Loss) I thought Zac Robinson would play. There it is. I’m not positive he would have made all the difference, but I sure would like to think so. Regardless, I got my first loss of the week when Oklahoma State had to fight tooth and nail to pull out a 3 points win over Colorado.

Akron Zips (+13) @ Bowling Green Falcons: (Loss) Akron was keeping this close, and a 4th quarter touchdown with about 10 minutes left gave me a glimmer of cover-hope. That was crushed in less than 7 seconds as the Falcons went Joshua Cribbs on the Zips, returning a kick-off for a touchdown, going up 16, and the game would end there. Blast.

Boise State Broncos (-24.5) @ Utah State Aggies: (WINNER) Who in the SEC would blast the Broncos? Who is better than them? Maybe Alabama, maybe Florida? That’s it. I’m sorry, but this is not a National Championship – it is a big conference Championship – and that’s what it should be called. Boise State took it to a Utah State team that had played tough all year long. They put up 52 and won by 31. I’ll take it.

Ohio State Buckeyes (-12) @ Michigan Wolverines: (Loss) The Buckeyes didn’t help me out. They won by 11 in a game they should have dominated. Same old Buckeyes. I thought playing in a game that didn’t matter for much in the win column would have allowed them to open it up a little. Unfortunately for me, they kept it all in the sweater vest.

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North Carolina Tar Heels @ Boston College Eagles (-3.5) (Loss) The Heels just flat out whooped up on the Eagles, making me wonder what I was thinking. That Tar Heel defense is just tough. The Eagles didn’t have the guys to do much against that D, they were outmatched all day long.

North Carolina State Wolf Pack @ Virginia Tech Hokies (-19.5): (WINNER) Last time I checked, 38-10 was an easy 20 point spread cover. That’s what Va-Tech did to NC State. It was 24019 at the half. The Hokies scored 14 more in the 3rd while shutting the Wolf Pack out. The 4th quarter was scoreless for both teams as the Hokies ran out the clock effectively. Got a Hokies win just before Turkey-Day – you bet! Gobble flippin’ Gobble!

Connecticut Huskies (+6) @ Notre Dame Fighting Irish: (WINNER) I was pulling hard for the Huskies, no doubt. And they sure fought hard, and it was a great moment seeing them win. I must say, for the first time in a long time I was happier seeing Notre Dame’s opponent celebrate than I was watching the Irish fret. Might have been the first time ever.

Oregon State Beavers (-30.5) @ Washington State Cougars: (WINNER) Well, the Beavers killed WSU, obviously, that was going to happen. But would it be by enough? Ah, the 30 point favorite question. It was a 21-10 half time score, but I must say, I wasn’t too worried until it was only 28-10 after 3. But Jacquizz Rodgers would score his 2nd TD in the 4th, and with 5 minutes left, the Beavers stumbled into another rushing touchdown, getting the cover by a point and a half. Whew.

California Golden Bears  @ Stanford Cardinal (-7): (Loss) Cal went and won outright. Not sure how it happened, maybe it was Stanford getting a little too pass-happy, being a little too young, or just being a little too happy about the things they had done over the last couple weeks. Whatever it was, the Bears took advantage and got a big win on the road.

Nevada Wolf Pack (-31.5) @ New Mexico State Aggies: (WINNER) 63-20. That was the final score in this one – and it wasn’t that close. This one was 28-3 after the 1st, then 42-6 after the 2nd quarter. The 3rd quarter saw two more  Wolf Pack touchdowns as the lead grew to a 50-point margin. The Aggies tried to make it respectable, but since that was impossible, they just settled for two 4th quarter touchdowns to get it within 50. Winner, winner, Sunday College Football chicken dinner!

NCAA Football Free Picks Review: Week 8 2009

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Well, 7-6 this week for my college football picks, not great but at least I finished up. I had a couple really tough games that I really feel should have covered, Cal against WSU, Army turning into a fumbling problem against Rutgers and falling just short of a cover, and Duke straight dukeing me with their 4 point win as a 4.5 point favorite. Ugh. But like I said, I had more wins than losses despite some tough games – can’t hate that too much. Here’s my review.

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Oklahoma Sooners (-7.5) @ Kansas Jayhawks: (WINNER) “This is one of those fantastic situations that shows you how much Top 25 rankings really mean. The Sooners are missing at least 2 First Round NFL Draft picks, one of which won the Heisman Trophy last season, Sam Bradford, and was pretty universally listed as the Top NFL Prospect in all the land heading into the season. They are heading into 6-1, 21st ranked Kansas to play the Jayhawks, and who’s favored? The Sooners, by a touchdown, and get ready for this, they are a good bet. Rankings are a joke, it’s too bad they mean anything at all. I’ll take the unranked road favorites here. Believe it.” And the Sooners killed Kansas, weird. Rankings… JOKE!

Washington State Cougars @ California Golden Bears (-35): (LOSS) This one should have been a cover, easily, but the Bears fell asleep, and lightening struck, all in the same 5 minute portion of this game. After WSU threw a 68 yard touchdown pass, Cal did absolutely nothing as promptly as possible on the next series, giving WSU just enough time to toss another TD before the half. In the 2nd half, the Bears had no reason to hurry, they scored just enough to not get a cover, I hate both these teams. There it is.

Rutgers Scarlet Knights @ Army Black Knights (+10): (LOSS) A great thing about Army is that they rarely turn the ball over. They don’t make dumb throws, they run the ball hard and gain yardage the tough way. And they did that on Friday Night, they just couldn’t hold onto the ball. A couple tough fumbles stopped drives deep in Rutgers territory, and Army doesn’t have a chance if that happens. Playing from behind – not their strength. Still it was just 20-10 after three quarters, and Army definitely had their chances to cover. Rutgers did enough, and I got the loss.

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Oregon Ducks (-8.5) @ Washington Huskies: (WINNER) This one was just too easy. In fact, take this advice, if the Huskies are facing a prolific rushing attack, they are a great fade! Oregon mauled the Dogs, and I was pretty impressed with everything the Ducks did offensively in the second half. In the first half this one was close, but they took to running the ball and finding wide open places in play action, never looking back after an early 3rd quarter score.

Iowa Hawkeyes (+2) @ Michigan State Spartans: (WINNER)  “The Hawkeyes have gotten by in ugly fashion, sure, and they are probably due for a loss, but their fights have shown me how resilient they are, and that alone is worth a small bet to me, especially against a Spartan team that is also due to have a tough go of it after three straight wins. Against my normal system play (unrated favorite over ranked dog is almost always a bet on the favorite) but I like Iowa’s chances on the road.” Obviously the Hawkeyes probably have no place in the Top 5 in the Nation, but they do find a way to win, and while it is almost always ugly, there’s something to be said about getting a win despite all odds against you. This was what I expected it to be, to the last minute, the one where Iowa got the W.

Penn State Nittany Lions (-4) @ Michigan Wolverines: (WINNER)  “In two games against decent teams this season (Iowa and Michigan State) the Wolverines were out-gained in total yardage. They lost both of those games. Penn State has out-gained every single opponent they’ve played so far this season. I’m just saying.” It’s things like this, that when I find them, it makes me wish I could find that great statistic headed into every match-up. Some teams need that ball control to win games, the Wolverines need to keep their defense off the field. If you out-gain them, you have a great chance of winning. Easy victory here.

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Boston College Golden Eagles (+8) @ Notre Dame Fighting Irish Free Pick: (WINNER) The Eagles struggle when teams have the ability to run the ball with speed and power. That’s not the Irish. Sure, they have some talent, and some big boys up front, but when it comes right down to it, they are a foo-foo offense that likes to throw the ball when going gets tough, or right off the bat for that matter. That should allow the discipline Golden Eagles to stay in this game, and cover that 8 point spread against a Irish team with a defense that just can’t get stops. ND might win, with the luck of the Irish and all, but I like the Eagles to cover.

Florida State Seminoles (+3) @ North Carolina Tar Heels: (WINNER) Florida State made it tough, getting stymied early in this one, struggling offensively, and not stopping the Heels when they needed to. But all evened out in the second half, and that electric Seminole offense that I expected to play well got it together in just enough time to win outright in Carolina, giving me a much needed Thursday Night victory.

South Florida Bulls (+7) @ Pittsburgh Panthers: (LOSS) “The Panthers don’t blow good teams out, they aren’t that kid of squad.” One way or another, I was certainly wrong here, maybe every way possible, hell, I don’t know. Pittsburgh is either a lot better than I thought, the Bulls are not as good as I thought, the cards didn’t fall the way I expected, or all three of those things were infinitely true in this one. Either way, I lose, the Panthers jumped all over the Bulls early, and my quote haunts me…

Arkansas Razorbacks (+6.5) @ Mississippi Rebels: (LOSS) Arkansas had their chances to keep this game close, and even more chances to get back in it, but they never could make that stop, and Jevan Snead was on his game on Saturday. The Razorbacks couldn’t move the ball at all in the 4th quarter, and found it increasingly difficult to get off the field on defense. This is the Ole Miss team people expected to see through the first 7 weeks… Nice of them to show up here.

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UConn Huskies (+7.5) @ West Virginia Mountaineers: (WINNER) “The Connecticut Huskies are as good as any team West Virginia has played thus far, and the Mountaineers haven’t impressed me with their ability to step on the gas.” This was basically it. UConn is a pretty darn good team, and they played hard from start to finish. A lot of things West Virginia did went well, but they just don’t know how to step on it against a good team. Both teams played well, the Huskies came up a little bit short, but covered easily.

Maryland Terrapins @ Duke Blue Devils (-4.5): (LOSS) How about Duke covering easily in the 3rd quarter up 17-6, Maryland doing nothing offensively all day long – perfect. But wait, this is Duke, and I’m Lucky Lester, and Duke and Lucky Lester don’t go hand in hand. So then Dukes gives up a 67 yard touchdown pass on 3rd and 19. Seriously, they don’t write it better than this. So Duke’s up only, what, 4, yes a point not enough. But wait, Duke is driving in the 4th, in sure to score and cover zone at the 9, and what now? Oh, perfect, a Duke turnover, a 4 point win, no cover for me. Perfect freaking day, Duke wins, I bet on Duke, I lose. Ugh. By a point.

Tulsa Golden Hurricane (-7.5) @ UTEP Miners: (LOSS) Tulsa played one quarter in this game, the 3rd, and hell, maybe their single quarter of play leaked into the 4th, at which point they were up 11 and looking like they finally figured it out, and on the path to a big win and easy cover. But they forgot they had one more quarter. In that quarter, they allowed 15 points, they scored none, they not only failed to cover, but lost the game altogether. Serves them right!

NCAA Football Picks Review: Week 6

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Just like the NFL, .500 rears it’s ugly head! A bounce off the foot for a last minute pick 6 did me good in a game that shouldn’t have been close to begin with. I didn’t get a lot of luck going my way, that’s for sure, but such is the way it goes, and at least a couple times the scores landed in the right slot. Here’s my Week 6 review…

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Nebraska Cornhuskers (-3) @ Missouri Tigers: (WINNER) Speaking of a little luck actually going my way, how about this one? A tough beat for Tiger-backers, that’s for sure. Up 12 nil going into the 4th quarter, the Tigers get the brunt of four 4th quarter Cornhusker touchdowns while not scoring once. Nebraska finally pulled their collective heads out and easily covered despite going scoreless for 3 quarters and being down 12 with just 15 minutes to play on the road. Thursday’s are crazy!

Auburn Tigers @ Arkansas Razorbacks (+3): (WINNER) “There’s a certain time where hype hits down week and down week hits reality. That might be this time around for the Tigers. After finally smashing into the Top 25 after a 5-0 start to the season, a solid Razorbacks team hosts Auburn in an early Saturday Morning showdown. Now the road team has won 6 of the last 7 between these two programs, but I’m taking the home dog here. I think Arkansas puts up enough points, and sooner or later the luck runs out on the Tigers.” The luck ran way out on the Tigers, Arkansas walked over Auburn from the beginning, got three 3rd quarter touchdowns to get to within 11, only to see Arkansas fight back to open up the margin yet again. Got this one right on the button.

Michigan State Spartans (-4) @ Illinois Illini: (WINNER) “I don’t think the Spartans are good, or even worthy of being favored on the road, this line doesn’t have great value or anything, but the Illini are bad. Even after a big win over their “in state big brother” program, I still think the Spartans have enough in the tank to get a double digit win in Illinois.” You know it’s bad when you really don’t like a team, don’t think they are worth much, and still take them as a favorite on the road in a Big 10 match-up. I was onto something, the Spartans easily took this one.

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Oregon Ducks @ UCLA Bruins (+6.5): (LOSS) The Ducks were down 3-0 at the half, but needed just 13 seconds to get a lead after the 3rd quarter started. That 100 yard TD return set the table for a second half that would go all Oregon’s way. Injuries and question marks led me to believe Oregon wouldn’t produce much offense. They didn’t need to, a couple non-offensive touchdowns made it 14-3 and Oregon never looked back.

Alabama Crimson Tide @ Mississippi Rebels (+6.5): (LOSS) I expected Jevan Snead to come out and play good football after laying an egg last time he saw a decent defense come to play. I mean, this guy has been rated as a Top 3 QB in the upcoming NFL draft by some scouts that I respect. But after watching this game all the way through, he makes bad reads, doesn’t use his feet well, lacks accuracy, has no big-game push, and basically looks like an MLB closer not named Mariano Rivera, scared for his life when it matters most. My fault on this one.

Indiana Hoosiers (+7) @ Virginia Cavaliers: (LOSS)  I couldn’t have been more wrong about a game. Took a huge loss here.

Duke Blue Devils (+15) @ North Carolina State Wolfpack: (WINNER) “I think Duke has one of their best teams ever, now that being said, they are still not all that good. That being said, neither is NC State. Duke’s coming off a pretty good game against Va Tech last week, and I think they’re a nice value getting more than two touchdowns. The last three games in this match-up have been very close contests, and 6 of the last 7 have been NC State wins, but by a touchdown or less. I think that trend continues, if Duke doesn’t upset outright.” Yeehaw! It’s rare that you call a Duke football upset could be brewing, and it actually happens. Craziness! Gotta love it!

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Arizona State Sun Devils (-20) @ Washington State Cougars: (LOSS) This game was a bad beat. The Sun Devils score 3 touchdowns but miss one PAT and get another blocked to be up only 19 in the third quarter, and I knew that would come back to haunt me. The Cougars get a lucky 99 yard touchdown late in the 4th after the Sun Devils go for 2 to at least get the push. I get a loss here. Tough one. The Cougars had -54 yards rushing in this one. WSU is still a joke, I’ll get them soon enough!

Florida Gators (-9) @ Louisiana State Tigers: (WINNER) This one was just by the hair on my chin. The Gators dominated defensively, allowing nothing more than an LSU field goal. LSU did fine work on the defensive end as well, but Florida’s TD and two field goals were just enough. That late 4th quarter field goal to ice it was huge!

Arizona Wildcats (-3) @ Washington Huskies: (LOSS) Screwed. The Huskies played well against the Wildcats running game, but gave up tons of passing yardage, and really got outplayed all night long. But they just hung around, then a ball gets kicked into the air, lands right in the husky’s paws and they return it for a game winning touchdown. Ridiculousness. But hey, the Huskies deserved some good ju-ju after getting Irished last week at Notre Dame. Now I need some good ju-ju, for goodness sakes!

NCAA Football Free Picks Review: Week 4

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5-6 yet another yawner, and I didn’t even get a push. The Husky game really surprised me in how much of a lopsided battle that was. Historical close games didn’t repeat in Week 4, as there were some big blowouts. Tim Tebow got blasted, hospitalized, and the Gators still romped over the Wildcats… Here’s how the games went…

Mississippi Rebels (-3.5) @ South Carolina Gamecocks: (LOSS) This was Thursday Night, so only crazy could happen – but still, when you consider how poorly Mississippi moved the ball on the Gamecocks, and how poor a very good quarterback played, to be a 6 point game at the end is just crazy. South Carolina came to play and dominated a pretty good offensive line. I started off with a loss.

North Carolina Tar Heels @ Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (-2.5): (WINNER) Yet another example of what rankings mean: The Tar Heels busted into the Top 25 last week, and Georgia Tech got pushed out… Yet here they were, favored, and pummeling the Tar Heels on the ground. Accruing fewer penalties and rushing for 317 yards on the Tar Heels. Easy win for me, and the Jackets.

Indiana Hoosiers (+21) @ Michigan Wolverines: (WINNER) “Michigan’s one win over Notre Dame makes them a 21 point favorite? That’s a little much for me. They are bigger, faster, and stronger than Indiana, no doubt, but the separation between these two teams isn’t three touchdowns,” and I was right on the button there. Michigan has the athletes, but these two teams were very even, close enough for Michigan to need a score with 2 minutes left to finally pull ahead for good. The Hoosiers lost by 3, I won by 18…

Miami Hurricanes @ Virginia Tech Hokies (+2): (WINNER) “Hokies as an underdog at their own place seems like enough for them to play with a chip firmly planted on their shoulders. That should be enough to hand Miami their first loss. I almost always, always, bet on the lower ranked favored team, but nothing is always right, and I think this one goes the other way.” When the feel of the game gets you to bet against your own little kind-of-system, you just have to go and do it. Sure enough, the Hokies came out and were riled up, using that excitement to beat up on the Canes in every facet of the game. Hokies win big, Miami comes back to reality a little bit.

TCU Horned Frogs @ Clemson Tigers (-2.5): (LOSS) This was one heck of a battle, and it could have gone either way. C.J. Spiller was a beast, leading the team in rushing and receiving. What finally got the Tigers was their trouble to convert on 3rd and 4th downs. They were up heading into the 4th, but failing to get it done on three consecutive 4th downs was too much in the end, and the Horned Frogs kept their stellar season going.

Arkansas Razorbacks (+17) @ Alabama Crimson Tide: (LOSS) The Razorbacks played pretty well against Alabama’s rushing attack, holding them to 3.3 yards per carry, a pretty low number for the Tide. However, the Razorbacks shot themselves in the foot early, and after they cut it to 14-7 early in the 3rd, the Tide tossed an 80 yard touchdown pass that really broke those Razor-backs, as Bama went on to cruise.

Akron Zips (+16) @ Central Michigan Chippewas: (LOSS) “This game is actually a nice little rivalry between a couple solid small college programs. I still think these two teams always play it close, and I like that to stay the same this weekend.” What can you say, I was wrong here. This game was all Chippewas from the outset, dominating on offense and keeping the Zips from gaining any sort of yards. SOB!!!

Kentucky Wildcats @ Florida Gators (-21.5): (WINNER)  “I know, the flu is going around Florida’s squad, and things are looking slowed down a bit after Tennessee played them close, but Kentucky isn’t going to run clock, and Tim Tebow doesn’t have sickness, he’s made of antibiotics. I think Florida wins by four scores, proving a point this week after a mediocre performance against the Vols.” The Gators won easily, and Tebow may be made of antibiotics, but he’s not immune to getting concussed on a huge blind side hit, I know that for sure. Florida didn’t miss a beat when Tebow headed to the hospital, as they dominated the Wildcats to the tune of 41-7.

Boise State Broncos @ Bowling Green Falcons (+17): (LOSS) Boise State is just too good. I keep waiting for them to slow down, but their new #5 ranking shows what the polls think of them. I might have to agree, this defense is way better than I ever thought they’d be, and they are led by one hell of a quarterback talent. Moore has amazing touch. Still, I thought I was sitting pretty after the 1st quarter as the Broncos had yet to score and the game was tied at 0. Silly, me, it was 28-0 after the first half and 4 2nd quarter scores – I had lost my spread by halftime.

Iowa Hawkeyes (+10) @ Penn State Nittany Lions: (WINNER) “Iowa has taken out the Nittany Lions 6 of the last 7 meetings, that’s gone past coincidence in my book, so I have to go against my gut and hopes and heart and take Iowa.” As a Penn State fan (as much as I’m a fan of any football team), this one was tough to stomach. But I certainly got into this one in the right way, the Hawkeyes did the Lions dirty for the 7th time in the last 8 meetings.

Washington Huskies (+7) @ Stanford Cardinal: (LOSS) I still can’t believe this was a 34-14 beating. The Huskies aren’t that bad and the Cardinal aren’t that good. Maybe I just underestimated the effect Stanford’s great offensive line and running attack would have on the Huskies poor rush defense. I think that is obviously the case as Toby Gerhart ran for 200 yards and the Cardinal put up 320+ on the Huskies.

Free NCAA Picks REVIEW: Week 14

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4-5 in Week 14, and I have one more week to boost my record before the Bowl games – stay tuned. Here’s the review for Week 14. 

Washington State Cougars @ Hawaii Rainbow Warriors (-28): (Loss) Hawaii just didn’t try to do much in the 2nd half – this game was weird. I lost, that’s one thing I know for sure. 

Notre Dame “Fighting” Irish @ USC Trojans (-30): (Winner) The Trojans were almost covering by half time. The Irish flipped in a 4th quarter field goal just to make my shut out prediction wrong. Still, I won this one and I needed it. 

Oregon Ducks @ Oregon State Beavers (-3): (Loss) The Beave struggled with a chance to make the Rose Bowl – all for the better I guess, now they don’t have to get the crap kicked out of them by the Penn State Nittany Lions for the 2nd time this year. 

Oklahoma Sooners @ Oklahoma State Cowboys (+7.5): (loss) The Sooners won by 20 but this game was close into the 4th quarter, back and forth from 10 to 3 points, but like so many games, the last 10 minutes got me a fat loss here. 

Auburn Tigers (+14.5) @ Alabama Crimson Tide: (Loss) Alabama came to play, they weren’t caught with their pants down thinking about next week. In turn I took it pretty good here. 

Houston Cougars @ Rice Owls (+3): (WINNER) The Owls won outright, showing everyone else what I already knew, they were the same team as Houston, but with a strong home field advantage. 

Florida State @ Florida Gators (-16): (WINNER) This was free money. 

Kansas Jayhawks (+16) @ Missouri Tigers: (WINNER) I like when the 16 point dog I pick wins outright – that was the case here. Now if Missouri beats Oklahoma, the Sooners will look really bad. 

South Carolina Gamecocks (+1) @ Clemson Tigers: (Loss) What do you know, Steve Spurrier tricked me again. I’m pretty sure I’ve said this 3 or 4 times over he past couple years, but I am never picking for or against Steve ever again.