In college football headlines, California RB Jahvid Best appears to have only suffered a concussion with his frightening injury against Oregon State. It’s official that the 2009 SEC Championship Game will be Alabama vs. Florida.

Franklin Field is the oldest college football stadium, but it’s OffshoreInsiders.com that has the handicappers who have been winning the longest. There is no posturing about it.

Incredible sports handicapper Matt Rivers in on one heck of a roll. He’s had winning days 9-of-11 and his clients cost the sportsbooks an estimated $1.1 million in Vegas, and $2.6 million offshore, all sports in 2009.

What is truly scary for the oddsmakers is that he say the Sunday NFL week 9 picks are just as easy.

This was his insight Saturday.

Your Saturday winners are on:

1.   200,000* Arizona State

2.   75,000* Stanford

3.         50,000* Indiana

1.         USC is laying right around 10 points today. My question is why? Is USC even a good football team, seriously? Pete Carroll has had epic success over the years but maybe, just maybe they are well overrated right now? After all the Trojans have played one real solid game all season and that is it, literally. Plus that win at Cal was against a Golden Bears’ team that was still shellshocked from getting obliterated the week before in Eugene against Oregon.

Matt Barclay certainly may be pretty good eventually and Joe McKnight is a playmaker but the wide receivers truly, and this includes Damian Williams, do not scare me all that much as this USC team is plodding and very very far from even being a good offensive club. Reggie Bush and Matt Leinart and Carson Palmer and LenDale White and on and on and on are long gone. There is none of that right now. Yes they won at Ohio State earlier in the season but that really does not look nearly as good right now as the Buckeyes are blah.

The USC defense is also obviously living on reputation as we have seen over the past month or so. Without Clay Matthews and Ray Maaluga Caroll’s boys are beyond struggling right now. They just allowed a putrid 47 points at Oregon and I don’t care how good Jeremiah Masoli and that offense has been of late, 47 points is beyond inexcusable. Before that at home SC was atrocious against Oregon State and previous to that was sucking wind late at Notre Dame in a game they were a few yards away from possibly losing in despite being up 20 in the second half.

If you look back even further the Trojans were outpossessed by one of the worst teams in the country in Washington State. The Cougars held onto the ball for more times than the Trojans, hard to believe but 100% true. That was a 27-6 final so it’s not like there were all that many quick strikes either so that excuse goes out the window. I watched that game and the home boys did a whole lot of nothing against the Cougars in a pedestrian victory and non-cover.

USC has covered two games all season and come into Tempe today allowing an amazing 110 points in their past three games, yes three games, not three seasons.

Arizona State is mediocre and not a squad that will march up and down the field against many teams so I am not saying that USC will for sure lose this game as well. But Dennis Erickson is a quality coach who has seen everything. Thomas Weber is one of the best kickers in the nation and the Sun Devils have one of the better defenses in the Pac-10. This is not the Arizona State team from years’ past that would play 47-44 games every week. These guys can grind which will keep this thing tight for sure.

ASU has playmakers on the defensive side of the ball and seem to rise up when playing better competition. They are a team that never should be laying a lot but also never should be getting a lot either. Their games are more times than not close and with the SC swagger pretty much a thing of the past I see nothing different today as the intimidation factor is gone.

USC needs a win right now any win. They have lost two conference games on the road (Washington and Oregon) and this thing is going to be far from a cakewalk. To ask the Trojans to win going away is just flat out silly, period, end of story.  

2.         Oregon is awesome right now and as hot as any team on the planet. Jeremiah Masoli has that offense cooking and it’s almost as if they really do not need LaGarret Blount back.

I tip my hat to Chip Kelly because after the Boise State debacle and the lucky win and non-cover against Purdue at home things appeared as if they were going South in a hurry. But Kelly righted the ship in a big-time way and things are as good as they have ever been for the Ducks.

With the above said, Stanford is a team that not many people are talking about but yet are extremely dangerous. The Cardinal are only 5-3 but with a bounce of the ball here or there could easily be 7-1 and in the top 15 or so. The loss at Oregon State was a complete egg but Jim Harbaugh’s team completely blew sizeable leads at both Wake Forest and Arizona.

Toby Gerhart is a complete monster who could rumble for 200 yards today and I wouldn’t bat an eye. The guy is phenomenal and could keep that Oregon offense off the field. Andrew Luck is a quality young quarterback with a high ceiling as well. Ryan Whalen leads a decent enough receiving corps and in the end to get a touchdown at home against anybody is a must play in my opinion.

The Ducks will come in loaded and ready to flex their muscles but I do see another loss on their schedule as they are playing a bit above themselves and without a doubt this could be that loss.

3.         I watched the entire Indiana game last week at Iowa and still will go on record saying that the Hoosiers were screwed in a major way in that thing by the officials and crazy breaks and all in all without a doubt were the better team for the first three quarters for sure. That does not necessarily translate into this game but back home you have got to believe that Bill Lynch will once again have his boys fired up and ready to compete.

Wisconsin is the better overall team and did just bludgeon Purdue last week 37-0 but that game was in Madison and we have all seen throughout the years how the Badgers are much better at Camp Randal. It’s just one of those intangible things where you cannot put all that much stock in how they perform when then going on the road. The Badgers are not a team full of blue chip athletes that will just fling the ball all around and normally win in blowout fashion.

The Hoosiers are 4-5 and have been competitive all season long. This team is a lot better than people seem to believe. Ben Chappell can make plays and this team has hung toe to toe in the Big House when Michigan was good, should have won at Northwestern and Iowa the last few weeks and has been solid in every single game except for the one in Virginia when the whole team was sick with the flu.

Wisconsin has only played two games on the road this season and will be out of sorts a bit here away from their comfort zone. Scott Tolzien is clearly nothing to be afraid of and in the end the Badgers may lose this game so sure I’ll grab this barking home dog.

For more information: Fantastic handicapper Matt Rivers has had winning days 9-of-11 led by a Saturday sweep of ASU, Stanford, and Indiana.

A sweet pup roars with conviction on Sunday NFL as it’s the Monster 150,000* Dog of the Month in the NFL among two underdogs. Superstar Matt Rivers has so much insight on these games, it’s almost not fair. Just read the analysis and you will see why Matt Rivers was the winningest handicapper ever on a large network of handicapping sites before being promoted to The Show. Click now to purchase

One of the top handicappers in the world is blistering hot. Matt Rivers says take the Lions plus the 10 points in Seattle at BetUs Sportsbook
 
Sure Detroit is not a very good football club but I have seen less than nothing from Matt Hasselbeck and the Seahawks of late and for them to be laying right around 10 or so points with possible inclement weather in Seattle is fairly preposterous.
 
Jim Mora is a joke of a coach and this Seattle team is becoming a joke of a team. They looked terrible in Dallas last week and besides somehow thumping Jacksonville have been a ball of turd throughout the season. There are pieces there as Hasselbeck is a former All-Pro and TJ Houshmandzadeh could be pretty good but all in all the ‘Hawks are a terribly banged up team that may never get Walter Jones back and are way too hefty of a chalk today. Shoot, the Seahawks could lose this game and I would not really be all that shocked.
 
The Lions are not good and I’m not acting as if they are but with Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson and Kevin Smith at least there is a nucleus of a squad with potential. Johnson may very well be a top five receiver in the NFL and Stafford has that rocket arm and a definite upside.
 
Losing to St. Louis was as bad as it comes for sure but today’s visitors do have a win under their belts this season, courtesy of the Redskins, and are much improved from the 0-16 dreck from last season. Throw in some possible inclement weather and the boys from the Great Northwest are just not worthy of laying such a price, period.

For more information: Fantastic handicapper Matt Rivers has had winning days 9-of-11 led by a Saturday sweep of ASU, Stanford, and Indiana.

A sweet pup roars with conviction on Sunday NFL as it’s the Monster 150,000* Dog of the Month in the NFL among two underdogs. Superstar Matt Rivers has so much insight on these games, it’s almost not fair. Just read the analysis and you will see why Matt Rivers was the winningest handicapper ever on a large network of handicapping sites before being promoted to The Show. Click now to purchase