Here are some game notes....
*UL LAFAYETTE - ARKANSAS ST*
Sun Belt Conference foes meet in Jonesboro on Thursday night, as the Arkansas State Indians welcome the UL-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns to town. ULL has already suffered a pair of two-game slides this season, separated by the team's lone win, a 49-28 decision over Division I-AA Northwestern State three weeks ago. The Ragin' Cajuns were most recently in action last Thursday as they dropped a 28-10 decision to Florida Atlantic. The team has scored 44 combined points in its four losses, five points less than it scored in its only victory. As for Arkansas State, it has rotated wins and losses in its five outings so far. The Indians have been idle since October 1st when they dropped a 31-27 decision to UL-Monroe on the road. UL-Lafayette holds a 17-15-1 edge in the all-time series with Arkansas State, including two straight victories over the Indians.
UL-Lafayette is averaging 18.6 ppg and 343.6 total ypg this season, and those numbers would be even worse if not for the fact that the team beat up on an overmatched Northwestern State team. The Ragin' Cajuns have turned the ball over 12 times, and those miscues have been a major factor in the poor start. They are at their best when running the ball, as they are currently averaging 185.4 ypg on the ground on 5.0 ypc. Of the 12 touchdowns that the offense has scored, nine have been rushing tallies. Tyrell Fenroy has been the backfield's top performer, as he has racked up 369 yards while averaging a stellar 6.0 ypc. Abdule Levier has reached the end zone four times, and he also showed some burst with a 59-yard run. On the outside, Derrick Smith leads the receivers with 18 catches for 209 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He has caught balls from both Jerry Babb and Mic Desormeaux. Babb has been the much more effective of the two, as he has completed 62.8 percent of his throws for 568 yards and three touchdowns. Desormeaux has connected on a mere 45.8 percent of his passes, and he has been picked off five times without a single touchdown strike. Babb missed the Florida Atlantic game with a shoulder injury, and Desormeaux completed just 6-of-18 attempts for 47 yards with a pair of interceptions in his place. It is unclear if Babb will be healthy enough to play this week.
Generating offense against UL-Lafayette has proven to be easy for opponents, as they are racking up 34.2 ppg and 446.8 total ypg against the hapless Ragin' Cajuns. Teams have scored 24 offense touchdowns in five games, with 11 on the ground and 13 through the air. ULL is surrendering 220.2 rushing ypg and 4.6 ypc, numbers that must be improved immediately. Also, opposing quarterbacks have only tossed three interceptions against the 13 touchdowns. Opponents are moving the chains on almost half of their third down conversion attempts against the Cajuns, who just can't get off the field. Mark Risher leads the defense with 38 tackles, including 3.5 for loss. UL-Lafayette actually led Florida Atlantic 10-7 heading in the fourth quarter last Thursday, but the defense surrendered three touchdowns over the final 15 minutes after playing so well for the first three stanzas. For the game, the Cajuns surrendered 430 total yards and failed to register a single takeaway.
Arkansas State owns impressive offensive numbers for a team with a sub-.500 record, as the Indians are averaging 35.2 ppg and 403.4 total ypg this season. They have been a tremendous rushing team, as they are posting 215 ypg on the ground on 5.5 ypc, and 14 of the 21 offensive touchdowns have come on runs. Antonio Warren leads the club with 524 rushing yards and four touchdowns, and his average of 8.7 ypc is simply remarkable. Shermar Bracey has been a force as well on the ground, as he has posted 328 yards and three scores while racking up 7.3 ypc. Quarterback Nick Noce only has to provide a solid balance with his passing skills, and he has completed 60.9 percent of his throws for 892 yards with six touchdowns and only three interceptions. Joe Smith has been on the receiving end of three of the touchdown passes and has emerged as a serious threat in the red zone. Noce connected on 22-of-32 passes for 275 yards with one passing touchdown and a pair of rushing scores in the loss to UL-Monroe.
Opponents are averaging 25.2 ppg and 406.0 total ypg against the Indians, who have yet to put it together on the defensive side of the ball. Sure, the team did hold Tennessee-Martin to seven points in the second game of the season, but it is hard to give a great deal of credit for that effort against a lackluster opponent. Arkansas State can take pride in the fact that it has forced 14 turnovers, but those big plays made are offset by some big plays surrendered. Devrett Wade is the defense's top performer, as four of his team- high 41 tackles have resulted in losses, including a pair of sacks. Tyrell Johnson has two interceptions to his credit, and he returned those for 112 combined yards. Several penalties and 13 missed tackles doomed ASU in the most recent loss to UL-Monroe. Arkansas State grabbed a late lead on a field goal in that game, but ULM took over on offense at its own 32 with 1:22 left and put together a six play, 68-yard drive that consumed just 46 seconds.
*LET`S GIVE THE OVER A SHOT*
BET ID=126216322
Straight Wager 10/13/05 14:26 ET
200.00/181.82 Result: Pending
ULLafayette
ArkansasSt 10/13/05 (19:30 ET)
Over 51
*CLEMSON-N.C. STATE*...
Thanks to a questionable call by Chan Gailey, the Pack survived a Georgia Tech comeback and notched its first ACC win of the season in a dramatic 17?14 sudden victory win over The Ramblin? Wreck last Thursday. It snapped a six-game conference losing skein for NC State (2?2, 1?2) as head coach Chuck Amato finally breathed a sigh of relief.
?They found a way to win,? Amato said. ?They found a way to win a close football game, away from home. There?s no quit in our kids, there really isn?t. Success breeds success. Maybe this will do it. They?ve got a taste of it,? he went on to further elaborate.
Clemson has won three of its last five games on this field, with the two losses by a combined six points. Particularly disturbing is the fact NC State was outstatted in last week?s win, losing the total yardage 443?286. This by a team that had previously outgained each of its last 13 foes. They have now lost the stats in each of their last two frays.
Another last second defeat sent Clemson (2?3, 1?3) reeling to its third straight loss when the Tigers fell 31?27 to Wake Forest. That loss was on the heels of back-to-back overtime home defeats to Miami and Boston College. The task at hand for Clemson coach Tommy Bowden is to get the Tigers back up off the mat as quickly as possible.
?At some point, we just have to win the damn game,? quarterback Charlie Whitehurst said. ?Yeah, we?re a good team. Yeah, we?ve got good players. Yeah, we?ve got a good scheme. We have to start winning football games.?
Don?t trust the Wolf Pack as a favorite, especially not with this perfect trend against them ? NC State is 0?12 ATS laying two or more in ACC play, with seven losses in straight-up fashion. Clemson should be able to live up to Whitehurst?s expectations this week.
*LET`S GO WITH THE DOG*
BET ID=126217606
Straight Wager 10/13/05 14:41 ET
200.00/181.82 Result: Pending
Clemson
NCState 10/13/05 (19:50 ET)
Clemson +4
*UL LAFAYETTE - ARKANSAS ST*
Sun Belt Conference foes meet in Jonesboro on Thursday night, as the Arkansas State Indians welcome the UL-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns to town. ULL has already suffered a pair of two-game slides this season, separated by the team's lone win, a 49-28 decision over Division I-AA Northwestern State three weeks ago. The Ragin' Cajuns were most recently in action last Thursday as they dropped a 28-10 decision to Florida Atlantic. The team has scored 44 combined points in its four losses, five points less than it scored in its only victory. As for Arkansas State, it has rotated wins and losses in its five outings so far. The Indians have been idle since October 1st when they dropped a 31-27 decision to UL-Monroe on the road. UL-Lafayette holds a 17-15-1 edge in the all-time series with Arkansas State, including two straight victories over the Indians.
UL-Lafayette is averaging 18.6 ppg and 343.6 total ypg this season, and those numbers would be even worse if not for the fact that the team beat up on an overmatched Northwestern State team. The Ragin' Cajuns have turned the ball over 12 times, and those miscues have been a major factor in the poor start. They are at their best when running the ball, as they are currently averaging 185.4 ypg on the ground on 5.0 ypc. Of the 12 touchdowns that the offense has scored, nine have been rushing tallies. Tyrell Fenroy has been the backfield's top performer, as he has racked up 369 yards while averaging a stellar 6.0 ypc. Abdule Levier has reached the end zone four times, and he also showed some burst with a 59-yard run. On the outside, Derrick Smith leads the receivers with 18 catches for 209 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He has caught balls from both Jerry Babb and Mic Desormeaux. Babb has been the much more effective of the two, as he has completed 62.8 percent of his throws for 568 yards and three touchdowns. Desormeaux has connected on a mere 45.8 percent of his passes, and he has been picked off five times without a single touchdown strike. Babb missed the Florida Atlantic game with a shoulder injury, and Desormeaux completed just 6-of-18 attempts for 47 yards with a pair of interceptions in his place. It is unclear if Babb will be healthy enough to play this week.
Generating offense against UL-Lafayette has proven to be easy for opponents, as they are racking up 34.2 ppg and 446.8 total ypg against the hapless Ragin' Cajuns. Teams have scored 24 offense touchdowns in five games, with 11 on the ground and 13 through the air. ULL is surrendering 220.2 rushing ypg and 4.6 ypc, numbers that must be improved immediately. Also, opposing quarterbacks have only tossed three interceptions against the 13 touchdowns. Opponents are moving the chains on almost half of their third down conversion attempts against the Cajuns, who just can't get off the field. Mark Risher leads the defense with 38 tackles, including 3.5 for loss. UL-Lafayette actually led Florida Atlantic 10-7 heading in the fourth quarter last Thursday, but the defense surrendered three touchdowns over the final 15 minutes after playing so well for the first three stanzas. For the game, the Cajuns surrendered 430 total yards and failed to register a single takeaway.
Arkansas State owns impressive offensive numbers for a team with a sub-.500 record, as the Indians are averaging 35.2 ppg and 403.4 total ypg this season. They have been a tremendous rushing team, as they are posting 215 ypg on the ground on 5.5 ypc, and 14 of the 21 offensive touchdowns have come on runs. Antonio Warren leads the club with 524 rushing yards and four touchdowns, and his average of 8.7 ypc is simply remarkable. Shermar Bracey has been a force as well on the ground, as he has posted 328 yards and three scores while racking up 7.3 ypc. Quarterback Nick Noce only has to provide a solid balance with his passing skills, and he has completed 60.9 percent of his throws for 892 yards with six touchdowns and only three interceptions. Joe Smith has been on the receiving end of three of the touchdown passes and has emerged as a serious threat in the red zone. Noce connected on 22-of-32 passes for 275 yards with one passing touchdown and a pair of rushing scores in the loss to UL-Monroe.
Opponents are averaging 25.2 ppg and 406.0 total ypg against the Indians, who have yet to put it together on the defensive side of the ball. Sure, the team did hold Tennessee-Martin to seven points in the second game of the season, but it is hard to give a great deal of credit for that effort against a lackluster opponent. Arkansas State can take pride in the fact that it has forced 14 turnovers, but those big plays made are offset by some big plays surrendered. Devrett Wade is the defense's top performer, as four of his team- high 41 tackles have resulted in losses, including a pair of sacks. Tyrell Johnson has two interceptions to his credit, and he returned those for 112 combined yards. Several penalties and 13 missed tackles doomed ASU in the most recent loss to UL-Monroe. Arkansas State grabbed a late lead on a field goal in that game, but ULM took over on offense at its own 32 with 1:22 left and put together a six play, 68-yard drive that consumed just 46 seconds.
*LET`S GIVE THE OVER A SHOT*
BET ID=126216322
Straight Wager 10/13/05 14:26 ET
200.00/181.82 Result: Pending
ULLafayette
ArkansasSt 10/13/05 (19:30 ET)
Over 51
*CLEMSON-N.C. STATE*...
Thanks to a questionable call by Chan Gailey, the Pack survived a Georgia Tech comeback and notched its first ACC win of the season in a dramatic 17?14 sudden victory win over The Ramblin? Wreck last Thursday. It snapped a six-game conference losing skein for NC State (2?2, 1?2) as head coach Chuck Amato finally breathed a sigh of relief.
?They found a way to win,? Amato said. ?They found a way to win a close football game, away from home. There?s no quit in our kids, there really isn?t. Success breeds success. Maybe this will do it. They?ve got a taste of it,? he went on to further elaborate.
Clemson has won three of its last five games on this field, with the two losses by a combined six points. Particularly disturbing is the fact NC State was outstatted in last week?s win, losing the total yardage 443?286. This by a team that had previously outgained each of its last 13 foes. They have now lost the stats in each of their last two frays.
Another last second defeat sent Clemson (2?3, 1?3) reeling to its third straight loss when the Tigers fell 31?27 to Wake Forest. That loss was on the heels of back-to-back overtime home defeats to Miami and Boston College. The task at hand for Clemson coach Tommy Bowden is to get the Tigers back up off the mat as quickly as possible.
?At some point, we just have to win the damn game,? quarterback Charlie Whitehurst said. ?Yeah, we?re a good team. Yeah, we?ve got good players. Yeah, we?ve got a good scheme. We have to start winning football games.?
Don?t trust the Wolf Pack as a favorite, especially not with this perfect trend against them ? NC State is 0?12 ATS laying two or more in ACC play, with seven losses in straight-up fashion. Clemson should be able to live up to Whitehurst?s expectations this week.
*LET`S GO WITH THE DOG*
BET ID=126217606
Straight Wager 10/13/05 14:41 ET
200.00/181.82 Result: Pending
Clemson
NCState 10/13/05 (19:50 ET)
Clemson +4
