Big Willy Style's week 4 recap

• It's no coincedence that the the remaining undefeated teams in the league (titans, bills, giants) all possess dominating defenses. The best being tennessee's, they have absolutely slaughtered opposing offenses. Ask their most recent victim, Gus Frerrotte's Minnesota Vikings.
• Brian Griese was terrible, but the Bucs still won by 9 points. Their defense has also been as impressive as anybody's, and was the reason for their big victory over the Packers who are suddenly reeling after 2 straight embarrassing losses.
• Before Kurt Warner entered the NFL, he was apparently bagging groceries at a local supermarket. I wonder how many gallons of milk and cartons of eggs he dropped while trying to put them into bags, because if his performance on Sunday was any indication (i counted about 34 fumbles) he had alot of unhappy customers.
• Drew Brees had yet another fantastic game, leading his squad to an easy victory over San Fran. Just imagine what he'll be able to do when Marques Colston comes back, so a guy named Lance Moore isnt his number one target
• The Broncos better figure out how to play defense one of these days or they are going to spoil a tremendous offense and a chance at a division title. The freaking Chiefs of all teams hit them up for 33 points, and Larry Johnson may have eclipsed 1,000 yards in one game, I gotta double check that one.
• Although they made Matt Schaub look like a pro bowler, the Jags prevailed in OT in what would have been a devestating loss at home. The poor Texans have played so well in the last two games but have nothing to show for it, when are they going to learn how to win.
• I guess somebody had to win the Browns-Bengals game. Derek Anderson stunk again, but his defense bailed him out against the horrid Bengals offense which is supposed to be one of the league's best. Paging Brady Quinn, time to take the field.
• The Panthers took care of Atlanta easily forcing Matt Ryan to throw the ball over 40 times. That's all you need to know to figure out that it wasn't Atlanta's day.
• The Rams played their best half of football of the season.... and lost the game by 17 points. At least they resembled a professional sports team for at least one day. The Bills are 4-0 since the great Bills AFC dynasty of the early 90's.
  
• The raiders blew another game they had a chance of winning, and now Lane Kiffin is fired. Just when the team was starting to be consistently competitive they lose their coach. But it seems it had nothing to do with football, I guess you gotta do what you gotta do.
• All of a sudden the Skins are 3-1 and made the "juggernaut" cowboys look very vulnerable. Their defense looks very shaky, and we all know that is the key to success in the NFL.
• The Bears were staring their 3rd loss of the season and came up with an enormous goaline stand to win the game. Granted it was against a very banged up Eagles squad, but impressive nonetheless.
• The Steelers were getting absolutely manhandled at home on Monday night, I get out of the shower and suddenly their up 4 points after being down 10. Joe Flacco looks legit, he has a cannon for an arm, Baltimore may have finally found their QB of the future after about 15 years of searching.

Big Willy Style's Football Friday

Welcome to another edition of Big Willy Style's Football Friday. This weeks version will be short, sweet, and to the point. The "boring explanation of winners with fancy statistics and matchup breakdowns that are better suited for the nerds on espn.com than a blog" approach has not been working for me as of late. On to your winners:

College Football

4* Auburn (-6.5) over Tennessee - Phil Fullmer is fat, Auburn is pissed, Auburn is home, Auburn wont lose 2 in a row there.

3* Maryland (+11) over Clemson - Maryland looks to be hitting their stride. Clemson is still hitting themselves after that ugly loss to Bama. I'll take these points thank you very much

3* Georgia (-7) over Alabama - Speaking of Bama, Georgia is wearing black jerseys for a reason, its the funeral for Alabama's national championship hopes. YEAAAAAA IM SO CLEVER.

2* Ole Miss (+22) over Florida - The rebels have not been showing their cards in anticipation for this one in the swamp. I mean, why else would they call them rebels???

2* UCLA (+7) over Fresno St. - Does anybody have a clue about either of these teams this year. Does either of these teams have a clue about each other? I'm taking the team that has at impressed me at least once this season.


Pro Football

4* Titans (-3) over Vikings - A wise man once asked me "Gus Frerrote sucks, how has he lasted this long in the NFL?" I think his career ends in the 2nd quarter of this one when Albert Haynesworth lays him out as he is trying to chase down Cortland Finnegan on his way to the endzone after picking off one of his passes.

3* Ravens (+5.5) over Steelers - If Joe Flacco does not turn the ball over in this game, they will win by 10 points. It is a personal guarantee.

3* Panthers (-6.5) over Falcons - I'm going to bet against Matt Ryan on the road until he proves to me he wont act like a scared little girl in the pocket against a tough defense.

2* Rams (+9) over Bills - If there are people that read what I have to say on this blog out there, they know I love the Bills. They also know that everything I've loved this season has gone to shit basically. Rams figure out a way this week.

2* Cowboys (-11) over Redskins - The skins have no shot against teams who dont shoot themselves in the foot like their last two opponents. The boys save their bedshitting for December and January.

College Football YTD (10-10) -1.8 units
Pro Football YTD (6-7-1) -7.2 units
Pending: Bears (1-2) under 7.5 wins (5 units) and Titans (3-0) over 8 wins (2 units)

Beans' Weekly Winners: Week 5

Navy at Wake Forest (-16), 3:45pm
As Yogi said, "it's deja vu all over again". Taking Wake Forest and fading Navy. We're going to keep pushing the anti-Navy play, as much as some people (you know who you are) disagree with the strategy. We all know how Navy gets it done -- on the ground. The Demon Deacons will surely welcome the Middie's one-dimentionalness (is that a word? it is now) being that Wake only allows 3.2 yards per carry and just around 100 yards per game rushing. Wake Forest QB Riley Skinner isn't flashy and won't steal any Heisman votes from Chase Daniel and company, but the kid knows how to win games. But the biggest factor at play here is the Navy defense. We all saw how Mike Teel made them look like the '85 Bears, but in reality they're closer to the '81 Colts (look it up). Skinner picks apart the Navy defense in a 20+ point blowout.

Tennessee at Auburn (-6.5), 3:30pm
Yep, another familiar face. Tennessee was pathetic last week. Florida took it to them in their own backyard. Phil Fulmer looked like a man who is losing more than football games. His body language has been off-the-charts bad, approaching something out of the Manning family's playbook. If you told us his wife was cheating on him, his son recently came out of the closet and his 14-year old daughter got knocked up by the local gas station attendant -- all at the same time -- we'd believe it in a heartbeat. There is no way a team led by this coach can compete with a really good Auburn team on the road. Auburn took a major step forward last week even in defeat. The new offense is starting to come together for a program who has beaten the Vols three straight years. The Tigers take down Tennessee for the fourth straight season, in convincing fashion.

Alabama at Georgia (-7), 7:45pm
For the second straight week we're taking the marquee SEC game. Has Georgia impressed anybody yet? A win is a win, but at some point they're going to need to put it all together and look like the national championship contender that "experts" tout them to be. This could be that week. Nick Saban has brought Alabama back to the front of the national picture more quickly than anyone could have imagined, but they are just too green to tackle the daunting task of going on the road to beat a veteran Georgia club. The ATS trends are impressively in Georgia's favor. The Dawgs are 6-0 ATS in their past six against teams with a winning record, 4-0 ATS in their last four home games and 6-0-1 ATS in their past seven games overall. Saban and the Tide are almost there, but they're still a year away. Georgia RB, and New Jersey native, Knowshon Moreno has been able to avoid the dreaded sophomore slump thus far in 2008, he will lead the Bulldogs to a two touchdown win Between the Hedges against this young Tide squad.

South Florida (-9.5) at North Carolina State, 7:30pm
NC State is coming off of a big win against a previously unbeaten in-state rival. That spells hangover. The biggest issue for the Wolfpack is that QB Russell Wilson is injured. That doesn't bode well going up against the fastest defense that the 'Pack has seen this season. South Florida played about as poorly as it could and still managed to pull out a few wins, underwhelming as they may have been, but wins nonetheless. It's about time for the Bulls to pull it all together and win a game in convincing fashion. The 'Pack has had a tough time taking care of Big East opponents (that's a rare statement when it comes to Big East football) going 1-4 ATS in their last five games against teams from that conference. The trouble will continue on Saturday evening as Weekly Foe Matt Grothe will gut out a double digit victory.

Good Luck. Many Hundos.

Week 5: The Ticket Strikes Back

*4 Penn State (-16) over Illinois. It's a White Out! Happy Valley is going to be bumping, with the start of Big Ten play. The HD Offense, or whatever gimmick they are calling it is in full effect, and the Defense gets their two best D-linemen back from suspension. O Happy Day in Happy Valley. 16 is a lot, but with Juice Williams not playing like the mad man he was last year (presumably because he doesn't have Rashard Mendenhall to take the load off) and Penn State back in the national spotlight, look for Joe Pa to continue to run up the score on opponents.

*3 Auburn (-6.5) over Tennessee. Auburn's defense is absurd. If you were on the edge of your seat last week against LSU, you weren't the only one. It took a few gadget plays to get a score against the Auburn Defense. This week, Tennessee rolls in beaten and no longer overrated. Jonathan Crompton has proven to not be the QB he was in spring ball, and it is obvious why Ainge started ahead of him last year. Tennessee is a sinking ship and the 6.5 wont keep them afloat.

*3 Wisconsin (-6.5) over Michigan. Wisconsin is not the type of team that blows out the other opponent. But Michigan isn't the type of team that can stop Wisconsin this year. Rich Rodriguez's offense needs a QB to run this offense. They don't have it. Their defense is good, but PJ Hill will pound the ball away early, keep the defense on the field and slowly beat up Michigan. Michigan will not be ale to recover, and Wisconsin will have its way in the second half. Give the 6.5 and enjoy PJ Hill and the corn fed farm boys he has up front.

*2 Colorado (+5.5) over Florida State. I have to admit, I know little about Colorado, but what I do know is that Dan Hawkins is building a hell of a program. Lest we forget, he was the one who built up Boise State, before they were prominent. He is doing the same thing at Colorado. They play hard and they are getting 5.5. This game will be on national TV and Coach Hawkins will have his team ready to beat a Florida State team that has fallen from grace. Florida State was able to run up the score against perennial powerhouses Western Carolina, and Chattanooga, but their stellar offense couldn't score more than 3 against Wake Forest. I think they will score more than 3 on Saturday, but Colorado will be able to pull it out, or at least keep it close.

*3 Denver (-10) over Kansas City. The two worst teams in the league are in the state of Missouri. Show me a reason why Kansas City will stop Denver. There are none. Kansas City has a Journeyman QB that was originally beaten out for the No.2 job by a QB from Coastal Carolina. Their line is abysmal. Larry Johnson doesn't look like a superstar without a Pro Bowl Offensive line opening up holes that Big Baby can run through. Their defense gave away their only good player to Minnesota. They can't stop anyone and they can't score on anyone. The only reason the point spread is 10 and not 17 is that Kansas City has played Denver tough at home as of late. But that was before Jay Cutler's rise to Glory. This game is over at the half.

*2 Green Bay (+1) over Tampa Bay. Brian Grieve can't throw 60 times again this week, which is what he is going to need to do to outscore Green Bay's offense. Make no mistake about it, Green Bay has a lot of weapons, and can move down the field and score. The loss of Al Harris is concerning, but Tramon Williams is going to open some eyes. He is young, but he is fast and can cover well. He won't shut anyone down, but look for him to be serviceable in Al Harris' absence. Take the one point and watch Green Bay win outright.

*3 San Diego (-7.5) over Oakland. The House of Davis is in disorder. Run DMC was limited in practice on Thursday, as it appears his toe has gotten worse. LT on the other hand had his first full practice on Thursday. Phillip Rivers is on fire, and should continue to be on fire against the 26th ranked pass defense. Oakland is also the type of team that will fold if you go up on them early, which is what San Diego is going to try and do.

*3 Dallas (-11) over Washington. Dallas can score on the Redskin's defense the same way the Giants did. They will run hard and then go deep. The absence of Jason Taylor doesn't mean much but Demetric Evans' 9.5 sacks over the 80 games he played shouldn't scare Flozell Adams. Give the 11 and Watch Demarcus Ware terrorize Jason Campbell.

Big Willy Style's week 3 recap

• Dont get too excited about the Redskins 2-1 record, Arizona made too many mistakes in key spots that put the game on a platter for the Skins. Such is the growing pains for a talented team learning how to win tight games.
• The Titans defense is the reason they are 3-0. Kerry Collins will do just enough to win games and their running game is very underrated with rookie Chris Johnson. Many are surprised by their 3-0 start but not this guy, this is a good football team.
• The Giants didnt play their best game on Sunday but still found a way to win the game as championship teams do. There are not many players more clutch than Eli Manning when the game is on the line, you just know hes gonna come through.
• Ok what the hell happened in Foxboro this weekend. Ronnie Brown became Walter Payton, the Dolphins did to the Pats what the Pats were supposed to do to the Dolphins, and Bill Belichek gave credit to an opponent after the game. Just when I think I have this league figured out...
• The Vikings saved their season for now by a spirited effort by their defense that was spotty in the previous two weeks. They still have major issues on the offensive side of the ball, one being the name Frerotte on the back of the jersey of the guy taking snaps from the center.
• The Bears blew it... again. I didnt think they could top last week's debacle in Carolina but they pretty much doubled it at home against the Bucs. For 3 straight weeks teams have tried their best to hand them victories and we're only able to accept that gift once, just imagine when a team plays well against them.
• In another great comeback this week, Trent Edwards put the team on his back and the Bills escaped a scare from the Raiders and moved to 3-0. Edwards along with his team is fa real folks.
• The 8 people in the metropolitan area that watched the Atlanta-Kansas City game were treated to another great performance by Michael Turner who has been one of the league's best kept secrets his whole career.
• Another week, another anal drubbing taken by the Rams, and now we're hearing Trent Green is replacing Mark Bulger to turn the season around. If I we're them id investigate improving a defense that has given up somewhere in the neighborhood of 450 points in the first 3 games, but who am I to tell them what to do.
• In an extremely close 2nd to the pathetic Rams as NFL's worst team, we have the Lions. I'm sorry I don't have any advice, other than maybe bringing Scott Mitchell, Barry Sanders, and Herman Moore back out of retirement so at least they'll be good in a video game (an unreal trio in Madden 96 for Super Nintendo)
• Jay Cutler is quickly becoming my favorite QB in this league (who isnt a reigning superbowl MVP), and the Broncos are becoming my favorite team to monitor (who arent reigning super bowl champions). If they can just learn to stop someone on defense they may become the best team in the AFC.
• In my opinion, the best team in the AFC (Steelers) lost to the 3rd best team in the NFC....East (eagles). The score does not justify how lopsided this one was, maybe the Eagles will actually play meaningful games after Thanksgiving this year since superbowl 39.
• The Jags saved their season with an enormous come from behind win in Indy. When they run the football well they are as good a team as anybody to go along with that defense. Once I thought the Colts would take off after their win last week they go ahead and pull that at home. Maybe they should move back to the RCA dome.
• The Browns are 0-3 and look nothing like a competitive football team. Maybe its time for Brady Quinn to show what he can do, they have nothing to lose at this point.
• Yea yea the Cowboys won easily in Lambeau and are now 3-0 and now every NFL analyst on ESPN can talk about how unstoppable they are. Here's a healthy reminder how it always ends for them every year....http://z.hubpages.com/u/284238_f260.jpg
• What a job by Brett Favre last night. It was a Wills Reed'esque type performance playing through that gimpy ankle and trying to bring his team back from a tough deficit (which he had nothing to do with it was all his WR's fault running the wrong routes of course). I mean the man can do no wrong can he.

Beans' Weekly Wrap: Week 4

How does LSU do it? Les Miles must make some great adjustments or give great halftime speeches because no program in the nation consistently turns it on in the second half quite like the Bayou Bengals do... Florida beat Tennessee for the fourth straight year, and it was a blowout for the second straight year. At what point does Phil Fulmer need to go? He looked and acted like a desperate man on the sidelines Saturday night... Javon Ringer is not only going to be a Heisman candidate, he's going to be a star at the next level... You read it in this space last week, East Carolina wasn't going to go undefeated... Vandy is 4-0 and don't tell Phil Fulmer now but they may be the best team in the state... We're going to see a lot of Terrelle Prior this year and you won't hear too many people outside of the Boeckman family complaining about that... Wake Forest is looking like the class of the ACC... The way Nick Saban has turned Alabama into a contender so quickly is borderline unbelievable... Really nice win for Colorado on Thursday night over what was supposed to be a very good West Virginia team. The Buffs could be a Big XII contender next year, right now they are young and talented but are going to take some lumps in conference... Does anyone other than USC play football in the Pac-10?... Rutgers has totally fallen apart. They're 0-3 and now Mike Teel is swinging at teammates on the sideline. It's not going to get any prettier either, as they have the toughest schedule in the Big East from here on out. They may not even win four games... Good job by our own Big Baby Dean as he went 5-0 in his college picks this past weekend...

Week 4: A New Hope for The Ticket

NFL:

*2 Denver (-5.5) over New Orleans. Anyone who watches football can see that Denver has been playing well this season. They beat up on the Raiders and played a great game against a San Diego team that proves the old adage that it is better to be lucky than good. Denver is home. Denver is a tough place to play, and New Orleans is not physical enough. Deuce seems to be on Sean Payton's shitlist, which means that New Orleans is going to attempt to air it out on Dre Bly and Champ Bailey with Devery Henderson and thus far unproven Robert Meachem. I like Denver's odds in shutting down the passing game.

*5 Carolina (+3) over Minnesota. Carolina's defense is silently becoming one of the best in the league again. Minnesota has Adrian Peterson possibly out and a new starting quarterback, so how many points is Minnesota getting? WRONG! They are giving 3 because they are at home. Look for this to be a slam dunk as Minnesota goes 0-3. O yeah, and Steve Smith is back, and ready to dominate.

*3 Washington (-3) over Arizona. Washington is giving three, because they are home. I am not going to lie, those three scared me. But then I thought about the two teams the Cardinals dominated. The 49ers and the Dolphins. Awful. The Dolphins have the worst secondary in the league, and the 49ers are nothing to be impressed with. Washington's defense is pretty decent (despite what you saw on the Thursday night opener) and Jason Campbell looked somewhat comfortable last week. Add in the fact that Clinton Portis is going to be running angry after what Brian Mitchell said about him on the John Thompson radio show and I think Washington shows the rest of the league that the Cardinals are what we thought they were.

*3 Tennessee (-4.5) over Houston. Tennessee's defense is awesome. I don't know how they get it done, but Jeff Fisher has them ready to play every week. Kerry Collins looks like he has this offense ready to score. I look for Houston to still be a little woozy after the hurricane last week, and Tennessee to be prepared to make Houston's offense miserable. I know everyone is high on Steve Slaton in the zone blocking offense, but lets not forget that when keyed, he was shut down his senior year at WVU. If he puts up decent numbers in the first half, then I look for him to be shut down the second half. Take Tennessee.

College:

*3 Florida (-7.5) over Tennessee. Give the 7.5. Florida is just about to hit their stride, and they always get up for the Tennessee game. After watching Tennessee struggle in the last few weeks, and the fact that Jonathan Crompton is a little banged up, I think Florida runs up the score on the vols.

*3 Georgia (-7) over Arizona State. Arizona State was beat by UNLV last week. Nothing against UNLV, but they are not Georgia, and Arizona State is not going to know what to do with Knowshon Moreno (MIDDLETOWN SOUTH!). The dogs lay the touchdown and win by three touchdowns. GO DAWGS!

*2 Rutgers (-5.5) over Navy. Rutgers looks awful thus far. But they still have a lot of talent on that team. They have two WRs that will play in the NFL in a year or two, and a powerful offensive line. Look for Rutgers' defense to hold Navy's offense (which lost its pop when their coach went to GA Tech), and Rutgers to put up a few TDs. It will be enough to win by 5.5 points.

*2 UNC (-3) over Virginia Tech. Butch looks a year ahead of schedule on his rebuilding campaign. They are giving 3, at home, which is standard. VA Tech has been shaky on special teams, which is usually a staple for them, and their QB situation is shitty to say the least. UNC knows they need to beat VA Tech to be the team and get some national attention. UNC plays solid football, and fundamentals win this game as they grind it out on Saturday.

Big Willy Style's Football Friday

College Football

4* Auburn (+2.5) over LSU - Both these teams seem to be mirror images of each other, inexperienced QB's, dominating defenses, superior coaching. The home field advantage factor is huge in this game as the last 8 meetings have had the home team come out on top. Although past trends and results mean nothing tomorrow night, it is hard to go against Auburn at home, getting points, with that defense and big game Tommy against anybody. Take the Tigers but the ones wearing black tomorrow night.

3* Arizona (-3) over UCLA - Both teams are coming off humiliating losses last week against a team from a mid-major conference. UCLA came severly back down to earth after that massacre they suffered at the hands of BYU. Arizona is a much better team than what they showed last week in their loss to New Mexico and have one of the more explosive offenses in the Pac-10. They have showed consistency over the last 3 weeks which tells me they should have no problem keeping up the trend tomorrow by rolling over a reeling UCLA defense. The Wildcats get back on track tomorrow.

3* Fresno St (-7) over Toledo - We'll roll with the Bulldogs again as we expect them to play with a chip on their shoulder this week after blowing it against Wisconsin last week. Toledo's squad is not what it has been in past seasons, and Fresno has too much senior leadership on that team to have a down week and get upset. I expect Pat Hill's squad to be angry and come out fast and never look back with an easy 2 TD victory at least.

2* Air Force (+9.5) over Utah - Upset alert for the Utes here. Air Force is at home and has built momentum early this season and ALWAYS has giving Utah trouble year in and year out. Air Force has been know for their great running game, but the difference in this game will be their underrated defense which has allowed 12.6 points per game this season that will hold Utah down. Don't think those previous debacles vs. the Falcons will be running through the heads of Utah once Air Force gets a lead. This one will be a battle.

2* East Carolina (-7) over NC State - East Carolina's defense held down powerhouses Virginia Tech and West Virgina with relative ease. So how on earth is NC States pathetic offense going to be able to gain a yard in this game.... how? East Carolina can play defense blindfolded in this one if they want because there is no chance NC State's putrid offense will muster any more than 7-10 points. Not to mention the wolfpack is ravaged with injuries and the Pirates are gaining more and more steam and confidence with every week.... Take the Pirates, ARRRRGHHHHHH


Pro Football

5* Broncos (-5.5) over Saints - I think the Broncos go for 80 in this one. They are playing with serious momentum over last week's gutsy last second victory over their division rivals in San Diego, who they put up 39 on. Their opponent is down in the dumps after blowing a game to the lowly Redskins, and their secondary is banged up. Yes the same secondary that has to deal with suddenly the leagues most explosive passing game at mile high, a place the Saints havent visited since 1994. Jay Cutler will have his way all game long in this one and move his team to 3-0 and the dominating force in the AFC west.

3* Titans (-4.5) over Texans - The titans will continue their winning ways this weekend by dispatching division rival Houston, a team in disarray. The Texans simply dont have enough firepower to compete with Tennessee's dominating defense, and will struggle to move the ball all game long. Kerry Collins just wins football games, and should have no problem moving his team down the field against a Houston defense that struggles to put pressure on the quarterback, which is the only time Kerry runs into trouble. Look for Tennessee move to 3-o after a convincing 2 TD victory.

3* Panthers (+3) over Vikings - I've been hearing all week on ESPN that the Vikings are desperate and no way they lose this one at home as they are too good a team to start 0-3. Somebody tell me why Minnesota should be an elite NFC power. Their passing game is atrocious (and if someone out there thinks Gus Frerotte will improve that, kindly leave), their secondary is a joke, oh and on top of that Adrian Peterson may not play, and if he does wont be anywhere near himself. Couple this with a 2-0 team that is getting the best WR in football back this week to go with a now healthy Jake Delhomme and the Vikes are going to have issues. Take Carolina.

2* Falcons (-6) over Chiefs - The Falcons should have no problem dispatching the struggling Cheifs. I dont think Herm Edwards' classic rants can save his squad this year, as they have shown no signs of being a competitive football team this year. Yes even the Falcons can beat down on them. KC gave up 300 yards rushing to the Raiders last week, so (fantasy alert) expect Michael Turner to be able to backpedal his way to 100 yards rushing. Matt Ryan will get over his poor performance last week in the friendly confines of the Georgia Dome.

2* Bills (-9.5) over Raiders - Alrite I'll admit it, I have a hard-on for the Bills. Look the freak out for this team this year and look for them to win by 20 in week 3. Darren Mcfadden wont come near the success he had this week because well, hes not playing the Chiefs (see above). The Bills defense is as good as it gets and Trent Edwards is slowly becoming the best QB in the league you've never heard of (mainly because hes not starting for a fantasy team because QB rating isnt a fantasy category). Watch the Bills pull away in the second half and move to 3-0, I cant wait for them to take on the Pats.

College Football YTD (8-7) +3.1 units
Pro Football YTD (4-5-1) -3.4 units
Pending: Bears (1-1) under 7.5 wins (5 units) and Titans (2-0) over 8 wins (2 units)

Beans' Weekly Winners: Week 4

LSU at Auburn (+2.5), 7:45pm
The balance of power in the SEC West is usually at stake in the Tiger Bowl, as the winner of this game has gone on to win five of the past seven SEC West crowns. The home team has won the past eight meetings, so getting Auburn as a home dog looks great. We know a baseball game broke out at what was supposed to be the Auburn-Mississippi State football game last week, but a win is a win, even if the score is 3-2. The Auburn defense is as tough as its ever been, and the offense is still working some of the kinks out after moving to the ever popular spread this past off-season. We tend to believe that Tubberville has some offensive tricks up his sleeve that we didn't see in the Mississippi State game. Both teams are inexperienced at the QB position, which doesn't bode well for the visitors. Taking an inexperienced QB on the road in the SEC, against a defense like this spells trouble. Auburn knows all about winning big games as they have taken down nine of the last 12 against Top 10 teams. Meanwhile, LSU is 1-6-1 against the spread [ATS] in their past eight SEC games. The Weekly sees a hard hitting, tight football game that Auburn squeaks out.

Wake Forest (+5) at Florida State, 7pm
Are the Seminoles going to be prepared to play in this game? Maybe, but they certainly won't be as prepared as the Demon Deacons. Florida State has the softest 2-0 record in the nation by beating Western Carolina and Chattanooga by a combined score of 115-7. While the 'Noles were beating up on a couple of nobodies, the Demon Deacons went out and scheduled some decent competition. They beat Baylor on the road and found a way to win against a much improved Ole Miss team at home. It's not like they beat USC and Oklahoma, but at least they're games that will get them ready for their ACC schedule. In each of the past four meetings Wake has covered as an underdog, winning the past two straight up. The Demon Deacons are 4-1 ATS in their last five conference games, 4-1 ATS in the past five road games, as well as 8-2 ATS in their last ten games overall. On the other hand the 'Noles are 0-5 ATS in their last five games after scoring 40 or more points in their previous game, which leads us to believe that scheduling those cupcakes really doesn't do much good for anyone involved. Oh, and we refuse to be bitten by the bad kicker bug this week since Wake has one of the top kickers in the nation in Sam Swank. The Demon Deacons go into Tallahassee and become only the 2nd ACC team to beat FSU in three consecutive seasons.

Notre Dame at Michigan State (-8.5), 3:30pm
Irish fans want to get excited about the 2-0 start, but we aren't about to let that happen. Barely holding on to beat lowly San Diego State and having Michigan hand them the game last week is really nothing to get excited about. Meanwhile, the newest addition to The Weekly Favorites, Michigan State RB Javon Ringer, had a field day last week in the rain, carrying 43 times for 282 yards. How can a workhorse like that not be a Weekly Favorite? Notre Dame beat Michigan last week on the strength of six -- count 'em -- six Wolverine turnovers. The Spartans won't be careless with the football this week, especially because they'll be feeding Ringer the ball all day long. Following an opening day loss to Cal, Michigan State has rebounded well by beating Eastern Michigan and Florida Atlantic. Unless the Irish find a way to create six more turnovers (which they won't), the inconsistency of QB Jimmy Claussen will finally come back to bite the Irish as Ringer and the Spartans literally run away with this one.

Rutgers (-5.5) at Navy, 3:30pm
We predicted a down season for Rutgers, but not this far down. It could turn out that the first two games Rutgers played were against top teams. Fresno State is very good, despite the loss to Wisconsin, and some people think UNC is primed for a run at the ACC title. We like to pick on Rutgers QB Mike Teel, but is he really as bad as the 1 TD and 5 INTs he's thrown in the first two games? We're starting to think that he was just going up against some tough defenses. Even Teel should be able to pick apart this Navy defense, which is coming off a week where they allowed 41 points to Duke. The Scarlet Knights still have talented WRs in Kenny Britt and Tiquan Underwood who can break a game open. Navy is 0-2 and may be in for a long year with former coach and Weekly Favorite Paul Johnson at Georgia Tech. Look for Rutgers to spread it out and put a whole bunch of points up on a porous Midshipmen defense.

Good Luck. Many Hundos.

Big Baby Dean's Pickslip 9/18 - 9/20

5* Michigan State (-8.5) vs Notre Dame 3:30pm

This is my NCAA pick of the week. Notre Dame on the road versus a physical Michigan State team??? I like Michigan State big in this game and there is no hurricane this week to stop them from rolling Notre Dame. Javon Ringer and the Michigan State defense will be too much for Notre Dame this weekend in East Lansing. Pick: Michigan State (-8.5)

3* Arizona (-3.5) @ UCLA 3:00pm

Once PAC 10 doormats, Arizona will be one of the surprise teams in the conference this year. And why not get it started at UCLA in the first conference game on the road. I think it is going to take UCLA a few more weeks to bounce back from the loss. Also, Willie Tuitama is a Senior this year and has looked good early. This Arizona team has too much offense in which the Bruins cannot match. Go against the home dog in this one.
Pick: Arizona (-3.5)

2* Virginia Tech (+3.5) @ North Carolina 3:30pm

Just like my Colorado pick on Thursday Night, here is another upset you can circle this week. I am fading last week's Thursday winner UNC who demolished Rutgers. This is an important game for both teams and I think we will see a little Beamer ball to get it done. North Carolina will struggle this game as they finally play a real team this year. Take the points and make sure you get the hook. Pick: Virginia Tech (+3.5)

1* Wake Forest (+5) @ Florida State 7:00pm

I can see this game going to overtime and someone losing by 3pts. Wake Forest plays everyone tough and I am not sold on Florida State yet. They need to prove something first. Riley Skinner knows how to win on the road and Wake Forest has had FSU's number lately. Take the points.
Pick: Wake Forest (+5)


3* West Virginia @ Colorado (+3) Thursday, 8:30PM

This is one upset game I have been eying this week. It may be just a hunch, but it is the same hunch I got when picking ECU over both Va Tech and WVU. I do not like West Virginia on the road facing a BIG 12 opponent - especially in the high altitudes of Boulder, Colorado. This is Colorado's only HOME game on Thursday night of the year and it will be BLACKOUT night at Folsom Field. It will be an insane atmosphere. Colorado gets experienced TE Riar Greer back tonight and he will help Cody Hawkins out in the passing game. Cody Hawkins is a gamer and knows how to win. Look for the Freshman RB combo of Darrell Scott and Rodney Stewart to keep the chains moving and tire out the WVU defense. Pat White and Noel Devine need to get going early in this game. The WVU rushing game has looked out of sync the last few games. They did have a long time to prepare for this game, but I do not think this is WVU's night. If the big guys up front for Colorado can slow down White and Devine, Colorado will win this game outright. Let the tanking begin in Boulder!
Pick: Colorado (+3)

Enjoy this weekends college games as this is when the real fun will start. There are so many crazy divisional matchups and it will only get better. Look out for my NFL Picks later on Saturday.

Good Luck!

Beans' Ballot: Week 3

(This weekly spot will show who would be on my Heisman Ballot if I had a vote, which I don't.)

1. Chase Daniel, QB, Missouri: It's going to be really tough to dethrone Tim Tebow but Chase has been nearly perfect, literally almost perfect, in his first three games. He has led his team to 52, 52 and 69 points in his three games, while throwing for 973 yards, 10 TDs, a 72.2% completion rate and just 1 pick. Daniel is also the only guy on the list with a win over a ranked rival in Illinois.

2. Mark Sanchez, QB, Southern Cal: Sanchez thrusted himself into the mix by putting on a show in the most anticipated game of the young season. Coming into 2008 he was a question mark, nobody really knowing what the Trojans would get out of him. Now it seems the only question mark is how high the ceiling is for this Trojan offense, due in large part to the emergence of Sanchez.

3. Sam Bradford, QB, Oklahoma: It's the year of the quarterback. Bradford has put up ridiculous numbers early on (882 yards, 12 TDs, 2 INTs). Back to back five touchdown performances against BCS conference schools Cincinnati and Washington (not powerhouses, but not cupcakes either) puts Bradford right up there with Sanchez and Daniel. Oklahoma and Missouri don't play during the regular season but could meet in the Big XII title game where not only a spot in the national title game would be at stake, but possibly the Heisman Trophy as well.

4. Knowshon Moreno, RB, Georgia: The kid can flat out play. He hasn't piled up the stats yet, but he will. Watching him somehow weasel a way into the end zone to score what ended up being the game winning touchdown against South Carolina was a thing of beauty, and impressive enough to get him into this week's top five. If the Dawgs are going to be successful this year they'll need Moreno to perform since their receiving corps have underperformed so far.

5. Tim Tebow, QB, Florida: The incumbent hasn't had a monster game just yet. This could be the week for him to breakout though. Tebow was going to be left off the first Ballot, but then we caught wind of The Bet. Tebow and country singer Kenny Chesney, who is a big Tennessee fan, bet on this weekend's Florida-Tennessee game. If Tennessee wins Tebow has to sing "Rocky Top", Tennessee's famously annoying fight song, and if Florida wins Chesney has to sing "It's Great To Be A Florida Gator" while doing the Gator chomp. That's cool enough to boost Tebow into this week's Top 5.

On The Radar: Jeremy Maclin, WR, Missouri (Daniel's sidekick is as explosive as it gets.), Max Hall, QB, BYU (If they keep winning he'll keep climbing the rankings. Six first half touchdowns against UCLA was a head turner.), Michael Crabtree, WR, Texas Tech (We'll talk about him when he goes up against some stiffer competition.), Javon Ringer, RB, Michigan State (Can't ignore his 43 carry, 282 yard performance just because it was against Florida Atlantic. Michigan State needed every one of those 282 yards.)

Off The Radar: Pat White, QB, West Virginia (May have killed his chances by only scoring 3 points in a loss to ECU), Chris "Beanie" Wells, RB, Ohio State (Can't win if you don't play)

Big Willy Style's week 2 recap

• The Redskins finally figured out how to play offense this week, after a miserable pre-season and week 1. It remains to be seen if they can consistently compete in the league's best divison
• No Osi, no Strahan, no problem. Justin Tuck is quickly becoming the league's most feared defensive force. Look for plenty of double and triple teams coming his way as the league picks up on it
• The Colts incredible rally in the 4th quarter against Minnesota may have saved their season. As I said before this team is at its best when they are up against it
• Darren Mcfadden offically introduced himself to the NFL in week 2, and with Justin Fargas getting banged up, look for more of the same
• I'm telling you the Buffalo Bills are legit, they will only go as far as Trent Edwards will take them however, and from his performances the first two weeks, the sky is the limit.
• Is there a worse franchise in sports than the Detroit Lions? Even after an impressive rally in the 4th quarter by taking the lead, they still manage to lose by 20 plus, unreal.
• You think Vince Young was depressed before? He doesnt seem to have the support from his fans and most importantly his coach, as they clearly have more confidence in Kerry Collins at this point in time.
• The Panthers played the worst first half you can possibly play in the NFL against the Bears, and still won, a sign of resilient, solid football team.
• The Bears cannot possibly have success this season until they figure out the art of the forward pass.
• Welcome back to earth Matt Ryan. He got his first dose of playing a solid defense on the road in the NFL and failed miserably.
• The seattle seahawks are 0-2 and just gave up 33 points to the 49ers of all teams, yuck. Their reign in the NFC west is over.
• Hate to admit it but there wasnt a bigger statement in week 2 than the one made by the Pats against the team they kept hearing was going to overtake them in the AFC East.
• You'll be hard pressed to find a better game this season than the Chargers/Broncos thriller. Much congrats to Mike Shanahan with a ballsy call that paid off with that 2 point play, what a treat to watch.
• The Arizona Cardinals are 2-0 for the first time since in what seems their entire existence. Kurt Warner continues to play well this good be a dangerous squad.
• The Steelers defeated the Browns yet again and you gotta wonder why the Brownies have so many damn national TV games, that was a mistake.
• What an incredible Monday night game we had last night, but both the Eagles and Cowboys have to be concerned about their pass defense that they both invested much money in improving in the offseason.
  

Beans' Weekly Wrap: Week 3

How good is USC? Right now, they're the best team in the country. It's tough to envision anyone denying them a berth in the national title game, especially since every currently ranked opponent on their schedule will be traveling to the Coliseum... USC has now won its past eight games against Big Ten competition, all by double-digits and by an average of 24.9 points... The only bright side for Ohio State is that Freshman QB Terrelle Prior is going to be the real deal... Outside of USC, the Pac-10 was terrible this week, going 0-4 against Mountain West competition... BYU 59 - UCLA 0. Wonder how Phil Fulmer feels about that score... From the same game comes our "Inexplicable Coaching Decision of the Week": down by 59 points late in the 4th quarter UCLA attempted a field goal from the BYU 10 yard line -- and missed. You don't deserve to make a field goal when you're down by 59... Missouri QB Chase Daniel has thrown more touchdowns (seven) than incompletions (six) in his past two games -- that's insane... The Big XII is putting up wild offensive numbers and the league as a whole is closing the gap on the SEC... Speaking of the SEC, the conference made a bit of history this week as its schools occupied half of the AP Top 10... The SEC is so good that every week looks like a huge week, this week: Florida-Tennessee, LSU-Auburn, Alabama-Arkansas... We're still waiting on Georgia to have a really impressive win, which makes Arizona State's upset loss to UNLV that much more disappointing... By losing to Georgia, South Carolina kept the CBS curse alive -- the Gamecocks have never won a game televised by CBS... Auburn won 3-2, in football... Duke is getting better... Rutgers is not... East Carolina isn't going undefeated... Fresno State missed opportunity after opportunity Saturday night in what would have been a statement game...

Big Baby Dean's NFL PickSlip Week 2

3* New Orleans Saints @ Washington Redskins (+1) 1pm
A few reasons why I like the Redskins as a home dog:
-Washington is coming off 10 days rest and the Saints are banged up (missing 3 defensive starters and Marques Colston)
-Even though the Skins maybe 4th in the division, I feel the NFC East is one of the top divisions in the NFL
-Saints are the sexy public sucker bet this week and after a week a lot of favorites won, I think the dogs will do a lot better in Week 2

Look for Clinton Portis and the Washington O-Line to control this game early and win the TOP battle and keep Brees and company off the field. I think this game will be close, but I am going with Washington.
Pick: Washington Redskins (+1)
Start 'em: Brees, Bush, Shockey, Portis, Cooley

2* Chicago Bears @ Carolina Panthers (-3) 1pm
This game will be a battle and I think both offenses will struggle at first. I think whoever's run game does better will win this game. Therefore, I will go with DeAngelo Williams and rookie Jonathan Stewart to wear out the Bears defense. Also like the more experienced Delhomme over Kyle Orton in this game. Carolina has the edge in QB, RB, and OL in this game. Neither teams have impressive WRs with Steve Smith suspended and I think both defenses are very good with Chicago getting the slight edge. I am also fading the Bears after a road victory on National TV vs Peyton Manning and the Colts. Pick: Carolina Panthers (-3)
Start 'em: Matt Forte, Bears Defense, Deangelo Williams, Jonathan Stewart, Carolina Defense

2* Tennessee Titans (+1) @ Cincinnati Bengals 1pm
It was hard for me to put this game on the Slip because this line just looks weird, but Tennessee is a team that has my eye this year. With the Jags and Colts struggling, I can really see Tennessee making the playoffs again this year. Cincinnati is a terrible team even with their great wide receivers. Head Coach Marvin Lewis cannot even control this team and to me are one of the laughing stocks of the league. Jeff Fisher will out coach Marvin in this game. Also, Tennessee will win this game in the trenches, just like Baltimore did last week. Cincinnati will not be able to stop the 1-2 duo of LenDale White and Chris Johnson. Kerry Collins is a vet and will look good if the OL can protect him. Cinci will give up again in this game. Also, is it me or is Carson Palmer overrated?? If he played in NY he would have been run out of town already. Pick: Tennessee Titans (+1)
Start 'em: Chris Johnson, Lendale White, Tennessee Defense, Carson Palmer, Chad OchoCinco, TJ Houshmenzadah

Good Luck and Lets Go Giants!

Big Willy Style's Football Friday

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

4* Georgia (-7.5) over South Carolina - I've tried talking myself out of this one all week because it could be a classic trap game, but after much debate there is no way Georgia screws this one up in South Carolina. The Bulldogs have an obscene amount of talent as everyone knows and South Carolina shouldn’t belong on the same field as them. Yes the gamecocks romped NC state, but scored all their points off of turnovers, and not to mention NC state belongs in the FCS. Then they go ahead and lose to SEC doormat Vanderbilt. I cannot see the old ball coach's offense scoring any more that 10-14 points in this game at max against Georgia's stout defense. I don't care about the dangers of laying chalk on the road in the SEC, these teams just don’t compare to each other. Go Dawgs!

3* Baylor (-3.5) over Washington St. - The cougars are the worst BCS conference team in the country. They have proven to be pathetic on both sides of the ball, and have lost their first two games by a combined score of 105-16. I love Baylor QB Robert Griffin running the option up and down the cougar defense all night long with ease and the defense should have no problem shutting down a wazzou offense that is ranked last in passing in the country.

3* Oregon (-8) over Purdue - The ducks have way too much firepower for Purdue to handle, even at their home field. Look for them to pull away in the 2nd half after a high scoring first half. The Oregon defense is also very underrated as well and should be able to slow down Curtis Painter and his offense just enough to come out of West Lafayette with an easy double digit victory.

2* Kansas (+3.5) over South Florida - In a rare Friday night ESPN game that pits two top 25 teams, we'll take the Jayhawks to go into Raymond James Stadium to pull off the upset. The Bulls offense is too inconsistent, and almost gave one away last week to central florida late. Kansas is loaded with talent on both sides of the ball, and their defense has allowed 10 points combined in two games (yes it has been against two mid-majors, but impressive nonetheless). I look for a high scoring game with Todd Reesing's high powered offense pulling away late. Rock Chalk Jayhawk KKKKKUUUUUUUU.

2* Fresno St (+2) over Wisconsin - A rare home national TV game for Fresno in primetime against a BCS opponent spells the definition of home field advantage for the bulldogs on Saturday night. Tom Brandstader leads an explosive offense against a Wisconsin team that got off to a shaky start last week against Marshall, and have traditionally struggled on the road. I see Fresno getting off to a blazing start in this one riding the emotional tidal wave that will be too much for the Badgers to overcome. Pat Hill's squad has had two weeks to prepare for this one and what better time to show off his "anywhere anytime" motto. The bulldoggies roll at home.


PRO FOOTBALL

5* Colts (-2) over Vikings - May be a surprise to people that I'm going back to the Colts after they dicked me over last week, but which QB in this game has a better shot at avoiding an 0-2 start after a disappointing week 1. I thought so. The Colts are at their best when their backs are against the wall, as they certainly are this week staring an 0-2 start in the face. Tony Dungy's defense will force the Vikings to be one dimensional on offense, the key to winning football games in the NFL. If they make Tavaris Jackson beat them with his trash right arm, the Vikes have no shot. Take the Colts to bounce back on Sunday.

5* Panthers (-3) over Bears - The Panthers probably pulled off the most impressive upset of week 1 stunning San Diego on the road on a rare walk-off TD in regulation. Now they come into their home opener riding high with momentum playing a Bears team that just caught the Colts still in preseason mode last Sunday night. I don't forsee the Bears rushing attack with Matt Forte having the same success against Carolina, a defense that held the leagues best back in Ladanian Tomlinson down under 100 yards last week. The Panthers are a completely different team with Jake Delhomme under center. Also, winning back to back road games (as the bears are attempting to do) is brutally difficult in the NFL when your team name is not the New York Giants. Panthers take this one down.

3* Falcons (+7) over Bucs - Don't understand why this line is so big. Divisional game, Falcons looked great, bucs looked average and are now missing their starting QB. When your QB is Brian Griese with a mediocre offense to begin with you have issues. Besides, now Matt Ryan is leading a revamped offense all of a sudden, and the defense actually played tough and physical as well last week, matching up perfectly with Tampa Bay. I think Atlanta has a great shot of winning this game and moving to 2-0.

2* Saints (-1) over Redskins - The redskins are an absolute joke on offense right now. They can't run it, cant throw it, cant protect. The saints defense pressured Jeff Garcia all day last week, and look for more of the same on Jason Campbell on Sunday, which will force him into bad decisions and turnovers. Drew Brees still has more than enough weapons at his disposable even without #1 WR Marques Colston, which will prove the difference as the Saints move to 2-0 after this one.

2* Eagles (+6.5) over Cowboys - This is the game of the week in the NFL on Monday night. Two explosive teams coming off convincing victories last week. I think this line is inflated because everyone sucks off the Cowboys for some reason, a franchise that hasn’t won a playoff game in 12 years. The Eagles have enough guns this year to stand toe to toe with the boys, and it goes into my betting theory of ALWAYS taking the points in a divisional Monday night football game, always. As a giants fan I'm rooting for a tie, giving the eagles an easy cover.

College Football YTD (6-4) +8 units
Pro Football YTD (2-3) -4.9 units
Pending: Bears (1-0) under 7.5 wins (5 units) and Titans (1-0) over 8 wins (2 units)

Beans' Weekly Winners: Week 3

Penn State (-27.5) at Syracuse, 3:30pm
It's nice to see Penn State and Syracuse renewing an old rivalry. The two schools met every season from 1922 to 1990, but the series ended when Penn State joined the Big Ten. At that time Syracuse was a perennial bowl-bound program. To put it nicely, things have changed. In losing their first two games to powerhouses Northwestern and Akron, the Orange have yielded 72 points. Numbers like that against teams like those does not bode well for the Orange. Amidst all sorts of controversy, this Nittany Lion team is currently firing on all cylinders, coming off a 45-14 drubbing of Pac-10 fairy Oregon State. College sports are strange -- sometimes teams in the middle of crazy circumstances, like having multiple players dismissed from the team, can re-focus and energize an entire team. JoePa has managed to turn this negative into a positive for the players who remain on the team. Taking games with such a big number can be a crap shoot, but the perfect storm of Penn State playing well and Syracuse being so bad is too good to pass up.

Wisconsin at Fresno State (+2), 10:30pm
After beating up on two cupcakes at home, Wisconsin is taking it to the road where they'll meet a very good Fresno State team and a frenzied Fresno State crowd ready to welcome their Bulldogs for the first time. The Badgers bring a very inexperienced quarterback to the west coast with them in first year starter Allan Evridge. Evridge was not tested in either of the first two games as RB PJ Hill put the Badgers on his back. Fresno State is going to pack eight and nine men in the box and force Evridge to put the ball in the air. Despite only sacking Rutgers QB Mike Teel once in the opener, Fresno State put enough pressure on Teel to force him into making mistakes. Look for the Bulldog defense, along with a wild crowd, to force Evridge to make some bad decisions and turn the ball over. The Fresno State offense is too talented to let those opportunities slip away. Wisconsin had issues on the road last season, going just 2-3, and the Bulldogs see this as a statement game. Look for Fresno to begin to state their BCS case with a double-digit win.

Iowa State (+13.5) at Iowa, 12:05pm
Yes, it's back. The annual Cy-Hawk Trophy game has been a pillar of success for The Weekly. The Cyclones are the underdog for the third straight year, and for the third straight year The Weekly is all over them. After losing 15 straight contests from 1983 to 1997, the Cyclones have bounced back to win 7 of the past 10 meetings. Iowa State has covered against Iowa in each of the past four seasons and has won the game outright as a double digit underdog twice. This is a heated rivalry between two programs which have been disappointments in recent years. A Weekly rule of thumb is to take points in rivalry games, this is one of those games. Cyclones cover for the fifth straight year.

Ohio State at Southern Cal (-11.5), 8pm
These are the two most talented rosters in college football, coached by two of the best coaches in college football but there are too many question marks for the Buckeyes as they head to the west coast. RB Beanie Wells is doubtful, now he's ok, now he's doubtful again. Is this Jim Tressel or Bill Belichick? We have no idea what to expect the Buckeyes to get out of Wells and anything less than 100% won't be enough to lift the Buckeyes. Ohio State QB Todd Boeckman has not fared well against ranked opponents in his career, seven TD passes and seven INTs in just four games. The super-fast USC defense will cause Boeckman problems like he's never seen before. Even worse for Ohio State is that the offensive line has underperformed in its first two games and can ill afford to have that happen again or else you're going to see LBs Rey Maualuga and [you know we had to do it... ex-Bergen Catholic star] Brian Cushing in the backfield all night long. For those of you thinking you're going to see a lot of Diaper Dandy Terrelle Pryor, think again. Tressel has been very, very cautious in his use of Prior in the early goings, claiming he isn't ready. If he wasn't ready for the Ohio game, we can't see him getting significant time in the Southern Cal game. At best you're going to see him used the way Urban Meyer used Tim Tebow during The Stud Muffin's freshman year. USC has won its last seven meetings versus Big Ten opponents by an average of 28 points. We don't expect a huge Trojan blowout, but we do see them winning handily.

Good luck. Many Hundos.

Week 3: Bet Pros Before College Hoes...

The Ticket Rebounded in Week 2, but he still has to keep digging himself out of the hole he dug in college football during Week 1.

College Football:

I don’t really see any great games this week. My urge to continue to be employed by the Pickslip outweighs my urge to bet a whole lot of points on a team or two to dig myself out of the rut I am in. That being said, here are my four picks.

*3. Baylor. I will take the 2 for Baylor. Baylor is a much improved program and Wazzou looks pitiful. Wazzou’s defense gave up 39 and 66 already and Baylor’s offense was able to get the ball rolling, putting up 51 on Northwestern State. Give the 2 and take Baylor.

*3. Georgia. They are giving seven against the Gamecocks, but the Gamecocks don’t look as good as advertised on Offense. A highschool team could have put up 34 agaisnt NC St. and they couldn’t get it going last week against Vandy. With Knowshon Moreno (MIDDLETOWN SOUTH!) jumping over people, I think the Dawgs continue to roll on to an SEC championship this week.

*1. Michigan over Ole Notre Dame. The fact that Michigan is getting a point is absurd, regardless of Notre Dame being at home. If you watched the San Diego State game last week (hopefully with a huge smile on your face, like had), then you know the Irish are awful. Clausen may end up being a good QB, but he isn’t right now. Michigan is still getting used to the Rodriguez’s offense, but they played tough against a tough Utah team, and were able to get it going against Miami (Ohio). Add in the fact, that stupid Charlie Weiss has been talking sh*t about Michigan, since Rodriguez took the job, and I think you have a hungry pack of Wolverines ready to roll into South Bend and let the Irish know who is the winningest program of all time and who is the second winningest.

*1 UCLA. I learned my lesson in week 1. UCLA comes to play. BYU is overrated, and barely beat Washington last week (it took a ridiculous celebration penalty and a blocked extra point to put the game away). I like UCLA to cover the 7.5 and maybe pull out the victory. BYU better have their lunch pale and hard hat ready, because UCLA is much better than Washington.

NFL:

*5. New Orleans is going to cremate the Redskins by more than one point for sure. Even with Marques Colston injured, the Saints have plenty of weapons on offense to dominate the shoddy Redskins defense. Shockey and Deuce were barely used, and will have bigger games now that the ball isn’t going Colstons way. Not to mention, last years first round pick Robert Meachum will be a formidable replacement as a deep threat for Colston. In addition, Jason Campbell looked as if he had no idea what to do in Jim Zorn’s version of the West Coast Offense. Look for a Big Win for the Big Easy.

*5. Green Bay looked like a well oiled machine on Monday night. From the defensive secondary picking the ball, to the front seven holding Adrian Peterson to 103 rushing yards, and a late touchdown, the Packers D looked legit. The Offense ran on all cylinders with Aaron Rodgers able to understand the gameplan and move the ball. Detroit on the other hand, looked awful. Their Defense may be the worst in the league. Michael Turner is a nice back, but a gamechanger he is not, and Detroit’s D allowed him to dictate the game to them. Detroit’s Running game looked pretty decent, and the receiving game is always good, but that wont be able to overcome Green Bay’s combined offense and defense.

*5. Pittsburgh looked better than advertised on Sunday, and Cleveland looked the way Cleveland always looks. Cleveland was overmatched by the Cowboys, but they weren’t even getting the fundamentals correct. Pittsburgh has four legitimate receiving threats, plus two legitimate runningbacks, and a quarterback who is looking to have a huge year. Their defense was not really challenged by Houston, but they looked good nonetheless. Look for Pittsburgh to beat up on Cleveland, as they have over the past years. The last time Ben Roethlisberger started a game in Cleveland, he threw for 161 yards and four touchdowns. At home last season, Big Ben threw for 278 yards and two TDs and also scored a touchdown on the ground.

*1. San Diego. The Chargers are better than they played on Sunday. LT never starts off hot, because he doesn’t play in the preseason, but look for him to have a great second game, now that the kinks are out. Denver looked great on Monday night, but they were playing Oakland, and Shanahan always has his team amped up for Oakland. I am sure he will get his team amped up this week, but I don’t see a performance like Monday night coming. Selvin Young was under used, but a runningback guru like Shanahan might have been under using him for a reason. Maybe he isn’t everything they hoped he would be. The passing game looked great against a tough Raiders secondary, but I’ll take Cromarte and Jammer over Asmougha and DeAngelo “Cry Baby” Hall any day.

Big Baby Dean's PickSlip for 9/13

I am posting my college picks early this week because I will be busy on a weekend trip. This weekend's games will be much better than last weeks. Look for my NFL picks sometime Saturday night. Enjoy the picks.

4* Georgia (-7.5) @ South Carolina 3:30pm
Even though the Gamecocks upset the Bulldogs last year in Athens, this Georgia team is too talented to lose again. Georgia's defense will be able to stifle Spurrier's offense. On the offensive side of the ball, Stafford and Moreno will be too much for South Carolina. Look for Georgia to run up the score on this one. Pick: Georgia (-7.5)

4* California (-15.5) @ Maryland 12:00pm
I know I know... Cal is on the road here and are laying 2 td's... But they are playing Maryland and they are not the same anymore. The ACC is very weak this year in my eyes. Cal looks like it's on a mission and I look for them to put up a lot of points this week and don't think Maryland will be able to get near them. Cal will open up a big lead early, just hope that we don't get a backdoor cover on this one. Pick: California (-15.5)

3* USC (-10.5) vs Ohio State 8:00pm
The matchup everyone has been waiting for has arrived. The Pac-10 powerhouse vs The Big Ten powerhouse. I can't wait to watch this game. It looks like Beanie Wells will play but we will see how effective he will be against the mighty Trojan defense. There will definitely be some big hits in this game. The wild card in this game is Mark Sanchez. He cannot make mistakes and if they can get some long drives it will tire out OSU's defense. Pete Carroll was game planning all summer for this game and I think he is a better coach than Tressel. The line is 10.5 which scares me a little but I feel USC will seize the opportunity and stomp the Buckeyes out. Pick: USC (-10.5)

Good Luck

Big Willy Style's week 1 recap

• The Giants started fast on offense Thursday night and had their defense preserve the victory late, get used to that formula.
• Titans defense + rookie Chris Johnson - Kerry Collins/Vince Young = still at least 10 wins and a playoff berth
• Dont want to rush to judgements after one week, but the Steelers could be the team to beat in the AFC
• The Eagles looked tremendous on Sunday against Amherst college
• Drew Brees will be an MVP candidate this year
• Devestating injury for Tom Brady, the patriots, the NFL, and one fantasy team in each league around the country, thank god I have Jon Kitna!!!!
• My favorite part of the NFL weekend... the Patriots raising of the 16-0 regular season banner
• The Jets defense won the game on Sunday, not their QB, i forget his name sorry.
• I love the Bills chances even more now this season after the events of week 1
• How about rookie QB's Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco with victories in their NFL debuts, and finishing with better stats than Peyton Manning
• 2nd favorite moment of the NFL weekend, Tony Romo getting hammered helmet to chin, followed by the closeup of his grimacing face on the ground for about 10 seconds, my thank you letter to fox is already in the mail.
• The Colts made Matt Forte look like Walter Peyton, and Kyle Orton look like... well Kyle Orton, but boy did they look awful
• The reason why the Packers moved on with Brett Favre.... was proved last night with Aaron Rodgers' perfomance, now if ESPN can get over the fact that Brett Favre left the team a month ago, we may be in good shape
• Eddie Royal looked like Jerry Rice last night, and for some reason I dont think its going to be a one week wonder type performance

Beans' Weekly Wrap: Week 2

(The Weekly Wrap will contain random thoughts from the week that was, and the week that will be in college football.)

The top story this week has to be East Carolina, they simply took it to West Virignia. ECU looks like a legitimate BCS-buster... Speaking of the Pirates, doesn't East Carolina QB Patrick Pickney remind you of another former ECU QB -- current Jaguars QB David Garrard?... Here's to hoping that Ohio State was just looking past Ohio on Saturday. If that same Buckeye team shows up this Saturday in Los Angeles, they're in for a long day... Miami should have let us know it was turn back the clock night so we all could have watched something else. The Canes offense looked like something out of the 1970's as they relentlessly pounded the ball in between the tackles with poor results: 37 carries, 61 yards and just 3 points... If San Diego State doesn't fumble on the 2 inch line with 10 minutes to go in the game, they would have walked out of South Bend with a win. It's sad that we've come to expect such futility from Notre Dame... Oklahoma really impressed us on Saturday, beating up on Cincinnati 52-26. Cincy scored a special teams touchdown and a touchdown as time expired, so the game wasn't even as close as the 26 point margin of victory suggests... Is Cal back? Maybe. Beating Washington State 66-3 definitely opened some eyes... Which league is worse: ACC or Big East? Pretty tough to say right now... Georgia Tech needs to learn how to hold onto the ball if they're going to be successful in Paul Johnson's offense... Don't sleep on Auburn... The officials got the call in the BYU-Washington game right. What need to be looked at are the overly strict celebration rules... Arkansas State scored 83 points... More impressively, the Big XII went 12-0 this weekend...

Big Baby Dean's NFL PickSlip Week 1

4* Kansas City @ New England (-15.5) 1pm
All over NE in this one. How can YOU not be? Yes, they looked like crap in the preseason and are coming off a SB loss. But, they still have the best QB/WR combo and are going against one of the worst teams in the league. They are also playing at Gillette today. Bill Bellicheat will outcoach Herm Edwards bigtime in this game. With all the smack talk going on against the Patriots this preseason, I wouldn't be surprised if the Pats ran up the score in this one. Pick: New England (-15.5)
Fantasy Start'em - Brady, Moss, Maroney, Larry Johnson, Tony Gonzalez, Dwayne Bowe

2* Cincinnati @ Baltimore (+2) 1pm
Here is my UPSET special of the week. This is a huge rivalry game and Baltimore still has its defense. I don't trust the Bengals rushing attack and I think they will start to tee-off on Palmer. On Baltimore's offensive side of the ball, your guess is as good as mine. Lets hope Flacco can impersonate a professional QB this week and hopefully not make many mistakes and let the running game and defense do the work. Pick: Baltimore (+2)
Fantasy Start'em - Carson Palmer, Tj Houshmenzadah, Chad Ocho Cinco, McGahee, Heap, Derrick Mason, Baltimore Defense

2* Detroit @ Atlanta (Over 41) 1pm
I don't like both defenses in this game and the game is in the Georgia dome, so weather cannot be an issue. Kitna will look for Roy and Calvin all day. I think Atlanta will put up a decent amount of points this game too. Their running game with Michael Turner will be a big improvement from last year. Pick: Det/Atl (Over 41)
Fantasy Start'em - Kitna, Roy Williams, Calvin Johnson, Kevin Smith, Michael Turner, Roddy White

1* NY Jets @ Miami (+3) 1pm
Did you know that the last seven teams to finish 1-15 all won their season opener the following year? And that all of them did it as underdogs? Yeah, it's true. The Carolina Panthers were the last team to do it. They went 1-15 during the 2001 season and then in Week 1 of the 2002 regular season they opened at home as underdogs to Baltimore and won the game straight up, 10-7. Also in this game you have Pennington going for revenge against the NY Jets. Pick: Miami (+3)
Fantasy Start'em - Favre, Thomas Jones, Jericho Cotchery, Ricky Williams, Ronnie Brown, Ted Ginn Jr

1* Jacksonville @ Tennessee (+3) 1pm
I loved Jacksonville last year, but this year something has changed. I feel they have taken some steps back and almost became the new Bengals with all of their player arrests in the offseason. Also, one of their top rookies, did not sign a contract til about a week ago. Jeff Fisher knows how to play the Jaguars and should be a good battle. Take the points in this game. Pick: Tennessee (+3)
Fantasy Start'em - Jones-Drew, Fred Taylor, Garrard, Marcedes Lewis, Chris Johnson, Lendale White, Vince Young

1* Arizona (-2.5) @ San Francisco 4:15pm
Arizona is my pick to win the West division this year and I think they get started on the right side by beating San Francisco on the road. It should be a close game, but I think Arizona will win by at least a FG.
Pick: Arizona (-2.5)
Fantasy Start'em - Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin, Kurt Warner, Frank Gore, Edgerin James

DIRTY WEASEL TO KEEP SNEAKING UP...

It is not even a question that this week’s college games are by far the worst games of the year. Week 2 is never a pretty sight… unless you are like myself working 7 days a week and know that this is the week to make some cash and exploit the weak teams after week 1. The dirty Weasel has several interesting games this week…

3* Mississippi (+8) at Wake Forest

If it is not obvious to many already… The ACC conference is not even comparable to the SEC. So continuing with the trend, the Dirty weasel will yet again be taking a SEC team over an ACC team to cover. Just ask Clemson or NC State last week. Wake is coming off a big win over Baylor where they posted nearly 400 yards, but the yardage is a little misleading considering a 98 yard punt return and a fumble return to the house. And let’s face it… Baylor is not one of the elite teams in the Big 12. The dirty Weasel looks for transfer QB Snead to be throwing well… take the rebels in this one!

3* Minnesota (+5.5) at Bowling Green

Another great spot in which Bowling Green is coming off a big win against Pittsburgh in which Pitt out gained the falcons 393 yards to 254 in a deceiving 10 point loss. Hosting a very improved Golden Gophers team is no cupcake game. This team is improved and looking to compete in the Big 10 this year. These teams played each other last year in a thriller in which Bowling Green won in overtime… look for this game to be tight again and do not be shocked if Minnesota sneaks a win out on the road.

3* Buffalo at Pittsburgh (-13.5)

Everyone is dogging on Pittsburgh after last week’s debacle… well the Dirty Weasel loves it and sees great value in a game which Dave Wannstedt needs to keep his job. Buffalo is not the pass happy Bowling green that shocked Pittsburgh last week. Pittsburgh will plan to run their stud running back LeSean McCoy after only managing 71 yards last week. Buffalo is just no match for Pittsburgh at home… take the panthers and do not look back on this one.

4* BYU at Washington (+9.5)

This is a very important game for Willingham and his huskies… With a lot at stake and a big spread in this one… The Dirty Weasel will go with Washington in this one. Do not be so fast in judging Washington after last week’s poor performance. This one is at home where Washington is very competitive against a non BCS team where they are nearly getting 10 points… Cougars have a respectable team but laying nearly 10 points on the road against a Pac 10 teams seems to be a little too much, especially with what is on the line for Coach Willingham and his squad. Take Washington in this close game.

6* Northwestern (-6.5) at Duke

Is it a little to early to come out with a big star game??? Not in Dirty Weasel’s opinion. Not when I see great value on the board!!! Northwestern has been waiting a whole year to get back at Duke. Last year the Wildcats were embarrassed 20 – 14 by the blue devils. That win broke a Devil’s 22 game losing streak and Northwestern was mocked for losing to such a scrub team. You may think this one might be a bias pick in some regard as a brother of mine is a Wildcat alum, but I just look at it as inside information on an easy road game for the Wildcats. The Wildcats are a very respectable team this year in the Big 10 and need every out of conference game. Northwestern looked very impressive in a big way against Syracuse. The x factor in this one will be Tyrell Sutton as he looks to punish the defense of the blue devils. This is not basketball ladies in gentleman. Northwestern is for real this year with QB C.J. Bacher and a potential heisman winner in Tyrell Sutton. This kid is for real… Tyrell Sutton is a monster and is a big key to Northwestern’s success this year after missing a majority of last year. With Duke still learning a new system, look for the wildcats to jump all over this one early and enjoy a little redemption from last year. Go with the under rated wildcats in this one and look for them to put this one in the books by the first half!!!

Big Baby Dean's PickSlip for 9/6

After a 4-1 (+7.7 units) opening weekend, I am going to play a bunch of small games this week. Tread carefully this week as a lot of favorites won last week and some teams are over/under valued.

Looking at the lines earlier in the week, nothing really jumped out at me. So I looked at the totals and these 2 games caught my attention. These are my best plays for college this week and I expect them to be high scoring affairs. Keep an eye on the weather reports and wait til right before kickoff to put these bets in as the totals may drop a little.

2* Cincinnati @ Oklahoma (Over 52) 3:30pm
2* West Virginia @ East Carolina (Over 49) 4:30pm

A few members of The Pick Slip and many other cappers are all over West Virginia this game. I agree with them that ECU may be overvalued from last week, but everywhere I look everyone is on West Virginia. Vegas will not get there asses handed to them again. This is not a spite pick but I really like ECU. WVU is not the same when they are on the road (PITT and South Florida last year). I think Pat White will still have a good day, but ECU has a much better defense than Villanova. ECU also has a good offense and I don't think WVU's defense compares to Va Tech's from last week. Ultimately I think WVU will win, but it will be much closer than people think. This is Big Baby Dean's sucker bet of the week in college football.

1* West Virginia @ East Carolina (+7.5) 4:30pm

Although a rivalry game, I am going with South Florida here. Get the line now before it goes back up. Look for Matt Grothe and the ground game to help South Florida to beat Central Florida.

1* South Florida (-13.5) @ Central Florida 7pm

The motto of these picks were to find decent teams playing historically bad teams. I cant believe these lines were all under 10. Since I am going against 3 home dogs, I will play it safe and just put 1 unit on all of these games.

1* BYU (-9) @ Washington 3:10pm
1* UCONN (-6.5) @ Temple 12pm
1* Northwestern (-6.5) @ Duke 7pm


Look for my NFL picks tomorrow night.

Good Luck to All.

Big Willy Style's Football Friday

College Football

3* Southern Miss (+17.5) over Auburn – The Eagles have always given BCS teams fits. They are loaded at the skill positions and the Auburn offense is still going through growing pains… watch out.

3*Ohio (+33.5) over Ohio State – It’s the Bobcats super bowl here, a classic chance to catch the Buckeyes looking ahead to next week against their showdown with USC. Beanie wells is out, and I think there’s enough going on here for Ohio to keep this competitive.

3* West Virginia (-7.5) over ECU – Last week we took the Pirates over Va Tech and it was a success, this week we are going against them as they are still hungover. The Hokies have nowhere near the firepower West Virginia does, and if you watch that game last week ECU really didn’t play that particularly well, they got the breaks when they needed it. Take the Mounties to win easily.

2* BYU (-9) over Washington – A lot of people are viewing this as a test for BYU, I see it as a layup. Washington looked bad against Oregon last week and BYU’s firepower on offense will be too much for them to handle, even at home. Cougs by 20.

1* Nevada (+10) over Texas Tech – This is going to be a fun game to watch. Nevada has more than enough firepower to hang with Texas Tech, not to mention Texas Tech’s D struggled with Eastern Washington last week. The key will be Nevada slowing down the combo of Harrell and Crabtree just enough to potentially pull off the upset.

Pro Football

5* Colts (-9.5) over Bears – As I have stated in my NFL preview the Bears are going to completely suck this year. I don’t care that Peyton Manning missed all preseason with his that bursa sac thing injury, he will go back to business as usual with 3 TD passes. Oh yea did I mention that Kyle Orton is the Bears QB going up against a underrated Colts defense? Yikes.

3* Bills (-1) over Seahawks – I always enjoy betting against a west coast team playing on the east coast at a 1PM eastern start. It’s a tough adjustment to make for the Hawks. Add that with the fact Seattle is banged up on the offensive side of the ball and the Bills defense is one of the best around you get an easy victory for Buffalo.

3* Jaguars (-3) over Titans – Yes it goes against my Titans over 8 wins play this season, but they do not match up very well against the Jags. I can see David Garrard breaking out in a big way in this one, as hes always run an efficient and turnover-free offense. I think it will take Tennessee a few weeks to get into their groove, and the Jags take it to them on Sunday.

2* Cardinals (-2.5) over 49ers – My sleeper pick in the NFC West will start their season with an easy victory over the lowly niners. All you have to look at is the QB matchup, Kurt Warner and his plethora of receivers vs. JT O Sullivan and……36 year old Issac Bruce. Take the cards.

1* Texans (+6.5) over Steelers – Upset special, I have a hunch on this one. The Texans are much improved and are looking to build on their franchise best 8 wins last season. I just feel they have more momentum than the Steelers coming into the season as Pitt laid an egg last year. This could be your week one shocker right here.

Those are your winners for this week. Enjoy the games and the first NFL Sunday. Going to be weird not having the Giants play on Sunday, but I guess it could be worse. They couldn’t be reigning super bowl champions and they couldn’t be 1-0 after a 16-7 win over the Washington Redskins last night. What you gonna do……

College Football YTD (4-1) +8.6 units
Pro Football YTD (0-0) 0 units
Pending: Bears (0-0) under 7.5 wins (5 units) and Titans (0-0) over 8 wins (2 units)

Beans' Weekly Winners: Week 2

West Virginia (-7.5) at East Carolina, 4:30pm
The Weekly sees great value in this line thanks to East Carolina's upset over Virginia Tech last week. We hate to break up the party in Greenville, but lightning doesn't strike twice. The Pirates played a great game against Virginia Tech and still needed a late punt block which was returned for a touchdown to pull out the win. This week they're playing a team whose talent level is far superior to that of the Hokies. People around the West Virginia program claim that this year's edition of the Mountaineers is better than last year's despite the loss of a few key players, namely Steve Slaton. By last November it was pretty clear that Slaton was disinterested and his absence can be viewed as addition by subtraction. What's really scary about Slaton's departure is that when sophomore RB Noel Devine takes Slaton's place, the Mountaineers will be even more talented, not less. West Virginia returns all five starters on an offensive line which powered a rushing attack that ranked third in the nation in 2007. We'll be seeing more out of the WVU passing game, as the coaches seem to be willing to lift some stress off the running game and let QB Pat White take what the defense gives him. Last week Villanova stuffed nine guys in the box all day and White went off for five touchdowns through the air. Last year the Mountaineers played very poor hosts to the Pirates, dishing out a 48-7 whipping. The Weekly sees a lot more where that came from as White, Devine and company hang at least a half-a-hundo on the Pirates.

Texas Tech (-10) at Nevada, 9pm
We know, we know -- two road favorites. Road favorites are the scariest proposition in gambling, but these numbers are just too enticing. The Nevada defense is going to have their hands full on Saturday. Tech QB Graham Harrell can be forced into mistakes by applying pressure, but the Wolfpack will have to create that pressure with their front four. If they can't apply pressure with the front four look out, because what makes Harrell so good is that he gets rid of the ball extremely quick and just one poorly timed blitz could be an instant six for Tech. Nevada will constantly need seven guys in coverage to defend against the Red Raiders' big play ability. That's where the Pack is really going to run into trouble. The Red Raiders receivers have a huge athletic advantage over the Nevada secondary and Weekly favorite Mike Leach is a brilliant game-planner. Everyone knows all about Tech WR Michael Crabtree, but the solid receiving corps goes five deep with Eric Morris, Edward Britton, Ryan Hale and Detron Lewis all contributing. All the talk surrounding Texas Tech is about their improved defense but don't let that fool you, this team is about offense. Tech lights up the scoreboard in a fun, but lopsided affair.

Mississippi (+8) at Wake Forest, 3:30pm
The Rebels are one of this year's Weekly sleeper teams. During the off-season Ole Miss brought in Houston Nutt, a creative, salty veteran head coach who is no stranger to life in the SEC. More importantly for this Rebel team, they'll have a legitimate threat at quarterback in sophomore Jevan Snead. Snead sat out last season after transferring in from Texas, where he displayed all the talent but was a questionable decision maker. Under Nutt's tutelage Snead should flourish. What may be an early indicator of how Nutt and Snead have instantly elevated the program is the way they took care of business in Week 1. This was the Rebel's fourth consecutive opening day win over Memphis, but the first time they truly dominated the Tigers. Throughly unimpressive in their Week 1 win over Baylor, Wake seems very vulnerable at the moment. We've seen how these SEC-ACC games have been going this year, and we'll ride that until something tells us otherwise. In what will be their first bowl bound season since the Eli Manning era, Ole Miss will upset Wake Forest on the road.

Buffalo at Pittsburgh (-13.5), 6pm
Another line that we see a lot of value in thanks to a Week 1 upset. Even though Pitt lost two separate ten point leads in an opening day loss to Bowling Green, the season is not lost for the Panthers. Hopefully last weekend was a serious wake-up call for this team, who was touted as a sleeper to contend in the Big East. If you take a look at the numbers from last week, it's a miracle that Bowling Green was even in the game, forget about winning it. They were outdone by Pitt in every statistical category except one -- turnovers. This week's opponent, Buffalo, is simply over-matched. Head Coach Turner Gill has done a nice job in making the Bulls competitive in the MAC, but they are hardly ready to compete on the big stage. Look for Pittsburgh to come out refocused and motivated as they hold onto the ball and win this one going away.

Good luck to all. Many hundos.

Week Two: Redemption

OK. The Ticket wasn't so hot week one. It's not The Ticket's fault that College Football has no Exhibition season. Nonetheless, that was The Ticket's warm up. It ended up being an expensive warm up because The Ticket did Mortgage his penthouse on Park Ave on the Tennessee game. What a blunder. How could a third string QB with a new coaching staff beat Tennessee!?!?! Merda di Bullia! To compound that, The Ticket bet his wife's weeks spending money on Oregon State; Ticket Jr.'s Diaper money on Clemson, and The Ticket's Beer money on Colorado State (luckily The Ticket prefers vino). So after The Ticket went 0-4 in week one, what does he do? Like a person with a true gambling problem he goes double or nothing in week 2. Here are The Ticket's picks:

NFL:

The Ticket really likes two games this weekend, but The Ticket always play four. The Two games The Ticket is willing to put 5 units on are Dallas over Cleveland (-5.5) and Philly over St. Louis (-7.5). Cleveland's defense is horrible, and the Cowboys are going to be ready for Showtime in week one. In addition, Cleveland's stellar offense has not looked that stellar in the preseason. If there is one thing Wade Phillips knows, its defense, and he will have his D ready for a banged up Derek Anderson, an aging Jamal Lewis.

The reason The Ticket likes Philly, is because word out of Lehigh University is that Donovan has had his best training camp in years. Add a rejuvenated special teams and the fact that St. Louis just is not that good, and you have your mortgage re-paid in no-time.

If you are like me and have to play four games, then here are two more games that The Ticket will bet 1 Unit each on. Jacksonville should be able to outscore Tennessee by three points. Tennessee's offense under new offensive coordinator Mike Heimerdinger has looked awful this preseason. They cut their leading WR from last year, Roydell Williams and Justin Gage and Justin McCariens do not seem in sync with VY. The Ticket would bid more points on this game, if The Ticket weren't so perplexed by Jacksonville's passing game. Tennessee is going to put 8 in the box, and David Garrard is poise and accurate, but Jacksonville's passing game is like Harvey Dent.

Lastly, The Ticket will give the Four against the Redskins on Thursday night, hoping that emotions will be running high at Giants Stadium and that the Redskins aren't as comfortable with the West Coast offense as they will be later in the season.

Synopisis: Dallas (-5.5), Philly (-7.5), Jacksonville (-3), Giants (-4)

College Football:

Notre Dame cannot beat ANYONE by 20. Whenever you look at a Notre Dame line, you have to assume that it is giving more points to the other team than they would normally to even out the betting. Every Catholic in America likes to bet Notre Dame. The Ticket thinks Note Dame will be able to pull one out at home, but not by 20. The Ticket bets 5 Units.

Connecticut will beat Temple by more than 7. Connecticut rolled Hofstra on College football opening night. Big deal. But it is a big deal that Connecticut has a soft schedule and knows that when it plays a cupcake, it has to dominate that cupcake to get national attention and continue to build their program after winning the Big East last year. Connecticut isn't great, but they can beat up on sorry opponents. They will push around Temple up front and control the game. The Ticket bids 1 unit on Connecticut.

Rice will beat Memphis outright. The Ticket has to admit, he knows very little about Rice. But The Ticket watched them beat a re-building Southern Methodist team convincingly on Friday. The Ticket likes their passing game, but more importantly doesn't like Memphis. Memphis was relevant in football for two years when DeAngelo Hall ran all over Conference-USA. They weren't relevant before and haven't been relevant since. Rice looked decent last year, and seems to be continuing their competitive trend this year. The Ticket likes Rice to win, but The Ticket will take the three points anyway and bet a unit.

Arkansas will cover the 13 on UL-Monroe. Arkansas is an SEC school. UL Monroe is in the Sun Belt Conference. That alone is worth giving 13. But Bobby Petrino needs to make a splash in his first game. They already lost a recruit due to Petrino being painted as untrustworthy by the entire Atlanta Falcons organization, and he needs to give the kids in Arkansas a reason to not play for Ole Miss and old Arkansas coach Houston Nutt. The Ticket will throw a point on it to better his win total after last weeks debauchery

Synopsis: San Diego State (+21), Uconn (-7), Rice (+3), Arkansas (-13)