Oklahoma State was unbeaten and a top ten team this season until the Cowboys suffered a 28-24 loss to Texas. What followed was a 36-point loss to Texas Tech and a 20-point defeat to Oklahoma, and teams like that wind up in places like San Diego for the Holiday Bowl.
BetUS NCAA Football Betting Odds: OKLAHOMA STATE -2.5, Total 76.5
Here are some of the NCAA college football betting trends as they relate to this matchup:
Neither of these teams come from a power conference; after all, Rice is part of Conference USA, while Western Michigan is a member of the Mid-American Conference. Neither team has stepped up in a very big way against upper-echelon competition, though it should be mentioned that Western Michigan beat Temple and Buffalo on the road and beat Illinois at Detroit, a neutral site, while Rice won its big regular season game in a 56-42 shootout over cross-town rival Houston.
Maryland was a Jekyll-and-Hyde act for much of the season. At home they beat California, North Carolina State and North Carolina, and shut out Wake Forest (26-0). Away from home it was largely a different story.
BetUS NCAA Football Betting Odds: NEVADA -1.5, Total 58
Here are some of the NCAAF betting trends as they relate to this matchup:
* NEV has won four of its last six games SU
Northwestern’s defense did a heck of a job this year. Only two teams exceeded 30 points against them (Michigan State and Ohio State) and the Wildcats limited capable offensive clubs like Minnesota, Illinois and Iowa to 17, 10 and 17 points respectively. All told, they allowed just 19.2 points per game.
BetUS NCAA Football Betting Odds: MISSOURI -12.5, Total 66
These are two hot teams as far as the point spread is concerned. Rutgers comes into the PapaJohns.com Bowl having covered its last eight games, while N.C. State has covered seven straight. During its surge, Rutgers ran up scores on some teams, beating Pittsburgh by 20 points, South Florida by 33, Army by 27 and Louisville by 49, for example.
Kudos to Jerry Kill, the first-year Northern Illinois coach who took a team that was 2-10 last year and turned it around somewhat, guiding the Huskies to a 6-6 record in the same year one of its alums, Michael Turner, became one of the most valuable players in the National Football League.
The Jets are going so bad right now that they managed to gain just 265 yards in last week’s pitiful loss at Seattle. Brett Favre, who’s been intercepted 19 times this season, was just 18 for 31 and suffered four sacks.
Miami Dolphins at New York Jets
BetUS NFL betting odds: N.Y. JETS -2.5, Total 42
Carolina Panthers @ New Orleans Saints (+3)
Last week, the Carolina Panthers were playing for the right to clinch the top seeding in the NFC. This week, if they lose, they can fall all the way down to the No. 5 seed in the conference.
The Panthers take their potent running game on the road to New Orleans as they try to topple a team that doesn’t have anything to play for. The Saints have been eliminated from postseason contention and aren’t playing for much more than pride and Drew Brees’ record.
BetUS Sportsbook bettors who follow pro football know that the New York Giants (12-3 SU, 11-4 ATS) have clinched home field advantage in the NFC playoffs. The Minnesota Vikings (9-6 SU, 6-9 ATS) can clinch a spot in the playoffs with a win when these two teams get together in Sunday’s NFL betting action that is scheduled to get underway at 1 PM ET at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome (artificial turf) in Minneapolis.
The Bears tried to kill themselves last week, showing even less imagination of offense than they normally do, but they stayed with it and took advantage of Packer mistakes to keep themselves alive for another week.
They also had some incredible luck.
Will that luck continue, as Chicago heads into the final week having to win, and hope for Minnesota and/or other teams to stumble?
Obviously the Chargers are a testament to the “never say die” attitude, as they looked well out of the division race but were playing hard anyway, just in case Denver would falter. The Broncos, not being a very good team, did just that. So that opens things up for a winner-take-all showdown that will decide the AFC West title, and will be the “Flex game” that NBC televises on Sunday night.
There is a lot of talk about the job Randy Shannon has done recruiting for the Miami program. Indeed, there are plenty of future pro players on both sides of the ball. Freshmen have been nice contributors on the defensive side, and Aldarius Johnson was the team’s leading receiver (30 catches).
This is the third straight trip to the Motor City Bowl for Central Michigan, which has been one of the MAC’s more consistent performers for years. It may or not be the last collegiate game for junior quarterback Dan LeFevour, who is a definite pro prospect. LeFevour, who can run (536 yards rushing) or pass, completed 66% of his passes this season with 19 touchdowns, and took care of the ball very well, with just five interceptions.
The Hawaii Warriors (7-6 SU, 6-5-1 ATS) will have the opportunity to host a bowl game, which is not a common occurrence, as they take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (6-6 SU & ATS) in the Hawai’i Bowl, part of NCAA college football online betting action that is slated to kick off at 8 PM ET at Aloha Stadium (artificial turf) in Honolulu.
The Carolina Panthers (11-4 SU, 8-6-1 ATS), fresh off a gut-wrenching defeat against the New York Giants, will have an opportunity to clinch the NFC South title on Sunday when they face off against the New Orleans Saints (8-7 SU, 10-4-1 ATS) in NFL pro football sports betting action that is set to get underway at 1 PM ET at the Louisiana Superdome (artificial turf) in New Orleans.
The St. Louis Rams (2-13 SU, 5-10 ATS) bring another painful season to an end on Sunday when they travel to the Peach State to take on the Atlanta Falcons (10-5 SU, 9-6 ATS) in NFL pro football sports betting action that is set to get underway at 1 PM ET at the Georgia Dome (artificial turf) in Atlanta.
