NCAAF: Profitable Bears big faves
The California Golden Bears were picture-perfect at home this season and Sportsbook.com bettors have taken notice heading into Saturday’s Emerald Bowl.
The matchup between California and the Miami Hurricanes will be played on a neutral field, but it may as well be a home game for the Bears as they simply make the 25-minute trek from campus to AT&T Field on Saturday.
Oddsmakers list the Golden Bears as eight-point favorites and Sportsbook.com members have been jumping all over them for this matchup, in large part due to California’s perfect 7-0 straight up and against the spread (ATS) record at home this season.
The Golden Bears beat Michigan State, Colorado State, Arizona State, UCLA, Oregon, Stanford and Washington in front of their hometown fans this season and they’ll get the chance to impress against a young Miami team.
And, not only were the Bears iron-clad at home, they were one of the most profitable teams in the country this season, going 9-3 ATS in their 12 regular season contests.
Led by sophomore running back Jahvid Best’s 1,409 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns, Cal averaged 184.9 rushing yards per game which ranked them 30th in the nation. While the passing attack lacked and averaged just 194.3 yards per game, Cal still managed to put up a pile of points. Their average of 33.3 points per game ranked them 22nd in the NCAA this season.
California will rely on Best to beat a Miami defensive unit that ranked 24th in total defense, giving up just 312.9 yards per game. The Hurricanes excelled in stopping the pass, ranking 13th with 169.3 yards through the air but they did have trouble against the run.
Miami’s defense allowed 143.6 yards per game on the ground and were ripped apart by Georgia Tech in November. Georgia Tech rushed for 472 yards in that game with four rushers eclipsing the 75-yard mark.
In their last game, the Hurricanes gave up 219 rushing yards to North Carolina State and earlier this season they allowed rival Florida State to rack up 283 yards via the ground game.
If Best, and freshman back Shane Vereen can get the ground game rolling, it could be hard for Miami’s offense to keep pace as they ranked 88th in total yards at 327.2 and 47th in points scored at 27.9. Freshman running back Graig Cooper was the team’s leader with just 780 rushing yards and his five touchdowns also led the team.
A lack of offensive production has been a problem all season for Miami and playing the 25th-ranked defense in the land isn’t going to help.
For the season, Miami was an unimpressive 5-6 ATS. More importantly, they didn’t travel well and went just 1-4 away from home.
