CFB
Maryland-West Virginia
AccessNorthGeorgia
There is an air uncertainty surrounding the Maryland
football team, which thus far has provided no evidence that it is capable of
defeating an elite opponent on the road.The Terrapins
are 2-0, but their victories neither of which was particularly impressive were
at home against Division I-AA William Mary and unheralded Middle Tennessee
State. The competition gets a whole lot harder on Thursday night, when the
Terrapins face No. 5 West Virginia on the road. The Mountaineers haven’t played
anyone of significance either, but they’ve beaten
and
the Terrapins beat William Mary by 13 points, they were outscored in the second
half. Middle
more yards than
dominated the clock before losing 24-10. Suffice to say the Terrapins are going
to have to lift their level of play if they hope to spring an upset against a
Virginia
including 353 on the ground. Bet the NFL now at -107 juice! Check out the latest odds at CanBet.
Kansas-Toledo
Kansan.com
Mangino‘s road
record in his first four seasons is a dismal 3-17 and only one of his three
victories was a conference game. That record won’t improve this season unless
Kansas does, which is a possibility. With sophomore cornerback Aqib Talib’s
return to help the pass defense and plenty of young players with room for
improvement, Kansas will likely be much better by the end of the season.But the
Toledo game is up next and Kansas needs this victory. By defeating Toledo
Mangino would prove that he has a clue about how to win on the road. It would
give Kansas a 3-0 record, which is halfway to a bowl game. Most of all it would
give the young team a much-needed confidence boost heading into the conference
season, where four road games wait: Nebraska, Baylor, Iowa State and Missouri. I
just don’t see it happening. The Rockets aren’t pushovers like the Jayhawks’
previous opponents. Despite their 0-2 record, they should be favored to win
because they don’t have a victory yet. They are desperate and at home for the
first time. Bet now through
the Greek, home of the 21 percent sign up bonus
Saturday,
September 16, 2006-09-12
Troy-Georgia Tech
CSTV
to the field after nearly upsetting No. 9 Florida State 24-17 in
including eight to Toris Rutledge for 105 yards and a
touchdown. The same day, the Jackets
defense held Samford to 11 yards rushing and just 163
total yards. Check out the approved sportsbooks at www.linetrackers.com
Miami-Louisville
CSTV
been unstoppable at home over the last two seasons and has cruised so far this
year. Continuing that success will require beating
for the first time in 11 tries. The 12th-ranked Cardinals put their
13-game home winning streak on the line Saturday when they face No. 17 Miami.
(2-0) has outscored opponents 710-217 during its 13 straight wins at home,
including a 59-28 victory over
in the 2006 season opener. The Cardinals’ streak is the nation’s second-longest
behind
home.
Hurricanes (1-1), who lead the all-time series 9-0-1, including a 41-38 victory
in their last meeting at the Orange Bowl in 2004.
has also won all four games in
but will be playing in Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium for the first time. The
Cardinals have been the ones overwhelming opponents in their first two games.
Following the victory over
62-0 last Saturday, the third-highest winning margin on the road in team
history. The Cardinals’ top-ranked offense in the nation finished with 671
total yards – the fifth-highest total in school history. A week after star
running back Michael Bush went down with a broken leg that will cause him to
miss the rest of the season, the Cardinals proved they
aren’t short on rushing threats. George Stripling and Sergio Spencer each ran
for two touchdowns and 72 yards last Saturday while Kolby
Smith rushed for 86 yards and a touchdown for the Cardinals, who finished with
312 yards rushing on 43 attempts.
dominated that game last Saturday, beating Division I-AA Florida A&M 51-10. The Hurricanes rebounded from a 13-10
season-opening loss to No. 9 Florida State during which they rushed. Bet now through Nine. Check
out the latest odds.
Ohio State-Cincinnati
CSTV
turned what was supposed to be the game of the season into its own personal
showcase last week. After their dominating display against
the top-ranked Buckeyes will have to guard against a letdown when they return
home to meet
Saturday. The first No. 1 vs. No. 2 regular-season game in 10 years hardly
lived up to the hype, as the Buckeyes (2-0) dismantled Texas 24-7 last
Saturday, proving to the defending national champion Longhorns and the rest of
the country they deserve their place atop the rankings.
to replace nine starters from last year – held
to a single touchdown, ending the Longhorns’ 12-game streak of scoring at least
40 points.
Heisman Trophy hopeful Troy
Smith continued his stellar play, throwing for 269 yards and two touchdowns.
Smith has thrown for 1,208 yards and eight touchdowns in his last four games,
three of which have come under intense pressure – against rival
Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl, and last Saturday’s contest in
The senior star is 15-2 as a starter and has never lost a game at Ohio Stadium
that he started. The Buckeyes have won nine straight, tied with
Virginia
behind TCU’s 12 in a row.
ranked teams. The Bearcats went 1-5 on
the road last season and were outscored 215-107.
has lost 14 of its last 17 away from home. This is the Bearcats’ second meeting
against a top-ranked team. They lost 45-13 to
in 1986.
all-time series 12-2, including a 10-0 record in
the NFL now at -107 juice!
Check out the latest odds at CanBet.
Iowa State-Iowa
CSTV
Drew Tate was not around for the end of
game last season with
He hopes to be available for the start of this one. A week after seeing his
team barely escape with a win over an inferior opponent, the star quarterback
hopes to return to the field as he and the 16th-ranked Hawkeyes look
for some revenge Saturday against the Cyclones. This contest, possibly the
biggest annual sporting event in the state of
could be missing its biggest star if Tate is unable to play for a second
straight game. An abdominal muscle strain which has bothered the senior since
the preseason forced him to sit out last Saturday as
(2-0) needed two overtimes to win 20-13 at
which has lost 11 consecutive games.
Manson could not figure out what
season’s meeting as then-No. 8
was upset 23-3 in
10-of-31 for 117 yards with an interception after replacing Tate, who was
knocked out of the game midway through the second quarter with a concussion.
coach Kirk Ferentz currently has Tate and Manson
listed as co-starters on the depth chart. The Hawkeyes held the
to 280 total yards after limiting Division I-AA Montana to 144 in a 41-7
season-opening victory. They allowed 382.7 yards per game last season.
seeking its first 3-0 start since beginning 2003 with four straight wins, faces
an
offense which has managed only 12 second-half points through two games. The
Cyclones (2-0) nearly blew double-digit leads in both games this season. They
needed three overtimes to defeat
45-43 in the opener, and only won last week after a controversial call
nullified what would have been a UNLV touchdown on
the game’s final play. The Cyclones had lost two straight to the Hawkeyes
before winning last season, and trail the all-time series 35-18. Bet this game now through BetUs. Check out the
lines now
Texas
CSTV
TCU puts the longest Division
I-A winning streak on the line Saturday when it hosts Texas Tech in the first
regular-season matchup of ranked teams at Amon Carter
Stadium since 1984. The 20th-ranked Horned Frogs (2-0) defeated UC Davis 46-13 last Saturday for their 12th
straight win. That streak became the longest in the nation after
21-game run ended with a 24-7 loss to No. 1 Ohio State later that night. Brown
and the Horned Frogs may have trouble running against Texas Tech, which has not
allowed more than 120 yards on the ground this season. The Red Raiders are also
strong on offense, with quarterback Graham Harrell leading the way. The
Division I-A’s second-ranked passer, Harrell has completed 73.3 percent of his
passes (74-for-101) for 718 yards and seven touchdowns with just two
interceptions this season. Bet
now through Nine. Check out
the latest odds.
Baylor-Washington State
Press Notes
WSU will be making its fifth
appearance at the home field of the Seattle Seahawks. The series started in
2002 with WSU hosting
in the first football game played in the new stadium. WSU
beat the Wolfpack and have also defeated
(2003) and Grambling (2005) in
with their only setback a loss to
in 2004. The Cougars evened their season record at 1-1 last Saturday by
defeating
straight season. Bet now
through the Greek, home of the 21 percent sign up bonus
BYU-Boston
College
CSTV
Despite spending all of last season in the Top 25,
took the Eagles just two weeks to change that. No. 23 Boston College (2-0)
looks to back up its ranking and make Tom O’Brien the winningest
coach in the history of the program when it hosts BYU
on Saturday at Alumni Stadium. O’Brien improved his career record at BC to
68-42 with last Saturday’s double-overtime, 34-33 victory over then-No. 18
Clemson – the Eagles’ first home win over a ranked opponent in O’Brien’s 10
years as coach. O’Brien is tied with Joe Yukica
(1968-77) for the most wins in school history.
for the second consecutive season to defeat Clemson. The Eagles rallied from
10-0, 17-7 and 24-17 deficits in regulation before finally forcing the extra
sessions. After finishing with only 24 rushing yards in a 16-13, season-opening
loss at
ran for 227 yards to defeat
49-24 last Saturday. Bet
the NFL now at -107 juice!
Check out the latest odds at CanBet.
Clemson-Florida State
Tallahassee
DL Paul
is out for the year for FSU.
a junior-college transfer who played at Pensacola High, started FSU’s opening two games. He tore his left ACL on the third
play of the game against
tackling Gary Banks on a trick play. Haggins praised
for his play against
is expected to take place in two weeks. The junior can apply for a medical
hardship, which means he would still have two more years of athletic
eligibility.
January. FSU is expected to play a lot of 3-4 defense to counter the loss of
for the season and the absence of backup Emmanuel Dunbar almost certainly for
at least the Clemson game.
Redshirt freshman Kendrick Stewart will likely start at noseguard with true freshman Budd Thacker behind him. A
balanced Clemson team will bring a challenge to every FSU defensive player. All
five starters return on the offensive line.
Bet now through Nine. Check
out the latest odds.
2006
NFL
Giants-Eagles
Delco Times
One week into the season, the Eagles are without their top
playmaking cornerback in Lito Sheppard, and their
best kickoff returner in Bruce Perry. It’s the price
they’re paying for keeping 20 linemen — 10 on each side of the ball.
Perry was cut Tuesday to make roster room to re-sign
Dexter Wynn, the 2004 sixth-round Eagles draft pick axed a few weeks ago
because he wasn’t quite good enough to play corner and return kicks. Wynn
provides insurance in the secondary and might get a chance to return kicks
because Sheppard is out indefinitely with a sprained right ankle and running
back Reno Mahe is nursing a high ankle sprain that
sidelined him for the Eagles’ 24-10 season-opening victory over the Houston
Texans. Sheppard has a team-high eight interceptions the past two seasons, two
of which he returned for touchdowns. Andy Reid is 2-3 versus Tom Coughlin,
getting swept last year after sweeping his counterpart two years ago. The other
loss came when Coughlin coached
triumphed in their first seven games after adding Terrell Owens. Bet this game now
through BetUs. Check out the
lines now
Panthers-Vikings
Sports Illustrated/CNN
Llinebacker Dan Morgan will
not play in Sunday’s game at
as he recovers from a concussion.All-Pro receiver Steve Smith
and center Justin Hartwig also missed practice Wednesday and
were listed as questionable for the game.
Drew
Carter started in place of Smith last Sunday and had five catches
for 62 yards. But without having to worry about the league’s top receiver last
season, the Falcons focused on stopping the run and held
to 65 yards rushing and 215 yards of total offense. Hartwig,
who has a groin injury, is another concern for the Panthers’ offensive line. On
Sunday,
tackle Travelle Wharton was
lost for the season when he tore the anterior cruciate
and medial collateral ligaments in his left knee. Bet this game now through BetUs. Check out the
lines now
2006
Steelers-Jaguars
Post Gazette
The ball is in Ben Roethlisberger’s
lap. Cleared medically 10 days after his appendectomy, Roethlisberger will
start at quarterback for the Steelers Monday night in
provided he feels up to it and he can perform properly in practice this week,
starting today. Coach Bill Cowher listed Roethlisberger as questionable for the
game, which supposedly means he has a 50 percent chance of playing.
Roethlisberger did some work two days ago and threw the ball yesterday. He has
four practices to show he’s ready to resume his starting role.As
further evidence that Roethlisberger will be ready,
the Steelers released rookie quarterback Omar Jacobs from the practice squad
yesterday. Roethlisberger, in his first two seasons, has a reputation for
healing quickly, which was enhanced by his remarkable recovery from a June 12
motorcycle accident that broke his jaw, nose and orbital bone. He cheered on the
sideline Thursday as backup Charlie Batch directed the Steelers to a 28-17
victory against
Field. Batch completed 15 of 25 passes for 209 yards and three touchdowns.
After the game, Batch said if Roethlisberger feels fine, the job is his. Roethlisberger,
24, is the youngest quarterback to win a Super Bowl and has a 27-4 record as a
starter in the regular season and postseason.
Bet the NFL now at
-107 juice! Check out the latest odds at CanBet.