Week 9 Card (Oct 25th-27th)

[Irish]

Kansas (-2.5) over texas a&m
the aggies average 419 yards of offense per game, they allow 400 yards per contest. they average 32 points a game and allow 20. they have a speed and power at rb. they have won against nebraska and oklahoma state...... and they have a big home field advantage. But Kansas is coming in averaging 489 yards per game and giving up only 256. the jayhawks average in the 40's per game and allow only 10 against them. they have wins against kstate on the road and colorado on the road. normally I do not like teams going into their third straight road game but I think Kansas call hold A&M. The only defensive test A&M have played was miami and they lost. the only true shoot out team they played was texas tech and they lost. texas a&m is 6-2 they play well at home but miami and texas tech gave mangini all the info on shutting down the aggie offense. you put lbs on the edge in contain and you put safety help in the box to shut down lane. you score early amd force a&m to play catch up and the ground and pound has to be aborted. both loses for the aggies the other team jumped out ahead and kept the throtle down. this is a huge game for kansas..... understand based on the luck of the draw kansas will not see oklahoma or texas. wins against a&m, mizzou, okla st are HUGE when looking at what kansas wants to do this season. one big reason I like this game is the secondary match up that favors kansas cbs over a&m recievers. kansas can play man on man and commit to playing run and still be effective in pass coverage. the speed kansas has at lb should help against any stretch or misdirection plays. My concern is the middle runs with lane. Kansas has not see a runner of his power yet but I believe the lb unit of kansas is a very underrated group and will rise to the challenge. Kansas also has all the tools on offense to pass or run of a team and that will keep a blitzing aggie defense on their heels. spreading the field will hurt texas a&ms ability to play power defense because they will be tired from running east and west. also i think mangini is twice the game planner franconi is and it should show on big calls. I see A&M as a good team but just not good enough in this match up. They in my opinion have struggled against the only decent teams they have faces. Kansas has not faced the toughest teams but they looked far better than A&M.

Cheers
Irish

 

[Irish]

Clemson (-3.5) over Maryland.
this is a bit of a wierd one. clemson has lost to really the only two decent teams they have played (i am not counting fsu) and now the go into turtleville giving 3.5. well to be fair gt and vt have very good defenses and that vt score would have been a lot different if special teams were not involved. maryland beat gt and rutgers but lost to wake, wvu and uva. this is where it gets odd.....uva, wake, wvu ran wild on maryland, but they held choice and rice in check. last week a true freshman and 4th string rb for uva had a hiesman type night against maryland. clemson needs the ground game.... spiller and davis both need to be featured to help harper. the good news is harper has a goom arm and given time can be dangerous, but when pressured he is not a good make things happen type of player. marylands starting qb is out so the offense is lattimore....thats it with a little heyward bay in on occasion. the aggressive clemson defense has to shut lattimore down. the tigers only allow 20 points and 289 yards per game. this defense will be key in the outcome of the game. marylands offense was just bad against uvas defense. in my opinoon i think clemson has a fast defense but need more production from the front four. i would love for bowden to be an actual coach and notice when uva's line played straight on man NOT in gap they confused the o-lineman and hurt the blocking scheme......but that is assuming bowden will do some coaching...figers crossed. if a freshman bench running back can get to the second level i would think the beef eaters on the clemson line should open holes and the abilty of davis and spiller make even bigger plays than an unexperienced rb with less speed amd power. screens will hurt maryland as they normally don't blitz and you can get linemen out on lbs or cbs and thats extra yards. i think the clemson defense focuses on lattimore....the offense runs the ball...harper makes some key playaction throws and clemson out plays this terp team.

world series play
bo sox (-1.5) over rockies
i have to think a long layoff for a team that won asomething like 20 out of 21 will hurt. should be a good one.

cheers
Irish

 

[tulah]

I like Clemson alot. I feel like Davis & Spiller will be very sucessfull Vs the Terps. Clemson opens a can on whoop-ass on the Terps this week.
Great write up.

GL

 

[Irish]

big play
VT(-3.5) over BC
lets look a bit deeper at the number 2 team in the country. they have a tremdendous qb who has been a very good field general this season. they are undefeated and average 455 yards per game while scoring 34 points per contest. ryan has tossed 17 touchdowns this season and callender is a good enough running back to take it the distance every play. the eagles know how to stop teams as well allowing 46 rushing yards per game.....thats tough. these stats come against 7 teams and after looking them over you will see that only 2 are decent teams. i do not want to take anything away from 4-3 bowling green, 6-1 umass but then you have army, nc st and nd. now you look at vt and they have impressive defensive stats but the offense for lack of better terms is rubbish. glennon comes in during the duke game and looks like tom brady but against lsu he looked like a scared girl. ty taylor has come in to lift the offense with his feet but those scrambling plays have done nothing for the overall productivity of a rubbish offense. now there is a question of who will start because taylor is banged up. i will tell you who should start....taylor....for some reason when glennon comes off the bench he feels less pressure and just plays football. he has talent but as soon as he feels pressure or makes a mistake he starts thinking and then he is neck deep in the quicksand. bc is not an overly aggressive team, they will blitz but not by hanging the secondary out to dry. if vt does this ryan is far too good....any vt pressure must get home in less than 2 seconds or he will hit the hot route. still this is blackburg, on a thursday night no less, against the 2 team in ncaa. remember vt went to the then ranked #2 lsu and got hammered...don't you think they want to avenge that loss. special teams and defense advantage to vt, offensive advantage to bc because of ryan. player that need to step up brendon ore.... this will be a gut check for bc in a hostile enviorment. i am a firm believer that swagger makes a big difference in how a team performs and in this situation vt will have that chip on their shoulder. i see this game a lot like the texas am/ miami game a few weeks ago....am was ranked getting 3 against a poor offense of miami in their house and miamis defense just closed them off letting the iffense do whatever them wanted because they had faith a mistake would not cost them. imo tonight vt has that attitude and i would like to see some life from the vt offense and i think just like in the clemson game the defense makes it easy for them.

small play
bo sox (-1.5) over rockies
i think last night the bad bounce might play havoc with a teams mind thats used to getting those breaks during their 21 out of 22 wins.

cheers
irish

 

[Blackman]

Best of luck this weekend Irish.

 

[Irish]

VT/BC UNDER (9.5) 1st quarter

Cheers
Irish

 

[trolln4walii]

GL this week Irish. With you on Kansas and the Hokies. Like that Clemsen play too :mj06:

 

[Irish]

I have to take a second and really collect myself after last night. VT had the perfect defense set up in this game. they were blitzing well getting home quickly and confusing linemen. WHY if you call a punt with 4 mins to go instead of going for a 45 yard fg.....you start playing prevent against an all american hiesman nfl qb that has been out of rythem all game. terrible congrats to BC backers...they played the whole game.

now
fresno (+3) over boise
fresno coming off a san jose shut out. the buldog have been playing solid defense. they also have lost the only two real tests this season. but boise is a bad road team, they lost to washington and la tech game them a scare. nevada showed this team has a weakness and it is on the defensive line. a good o-line can dominate this group. so do the buldogs have that o-line to push boise around..... I do not think so. They are good enough to give Bradster some time and he will make good throws. i think matthews could be the hero tonight if he runs hard. The old style of fresno running back straight forward and through people. the fresno defense gets a break with johnson set to miss this game. I know boise has talent but that will be a big blow to thier mind set. plus this is going to be a huge fresno crowd on national tv making it a hard place for boise to get comfortable. looking over all the positions boise has an edge in o-line that will be evident. The buldogs hammered sjs qb last week and I am not sure they can generate that type of heat tonight. a little revenge off last years drumming, at home, getting some chalk is good enough for me. I think fresno plays meaner and I think they win but I'll take the 3.

Cheers
Irish

 

[Irish]

Small play
Fresno/Boise UNDER (64.5)

Cheers
Irish

 

[Morris]

On Fresno with you Irish. GL tonite!!

 

[Irish]

Morris... GL to us tonight and to you this weekend. Thanks for the words T4W, BM and Tulah

Oregon (-3) over USC
The ducks have the home field and the better offensive firepower. They should IMO be giving about 6 in this game but because they hammered Notre Dame the trojans have been given a lot of credit on offense. That win, players getting healthy and years of tremndous play have made USC a tough team to play against even more so when they are getting points. USC's defense is No. 4 nationally against the run and allowing just 16 points a game. Oregon is No. 3 nationally on the ground, just behind the Mounties, and No. 2 in scoring. The ducks are a very good and fast team and the home turf will give them some advantage. HOWEVER USC has the talent and speed to match Dixon and Stewart. I think the O-line for oregon is underrated. They are one of the best units in the nation and IMO the top unit in the PAC-10. That unit will be tested this week but I still think they will open up lanes for the running game and hold the rush to give Dixon some time. The ducks have talent at WR to make the secondary pay for miscoverage. Dixon is playing extremely well but he has a tough time in big games. He was able to lead the ducks to productive drives against cal all game until the pressure of the big game led to 2 picks. Mark Sanchez is starting for USC and is off a fantastic game against the Irish but just 2 weeks ago he struggled and even though the Ducks don't have the best offense they have talent in the secondary and when they get into a shoot out they have the secondary to be opertunistic and cause some turnovers. This will be a big game and I think that there is cause for both sides and it may just come down to the team that makes the most special plays. I like the ducks being at home for that reason, they play very well and should be able to make some big plays. Dixon will HAVE to scramble for big things. I also think the eye/vision training stewart has been doing will pay off against this secondary, if he gets to the second level. The ducks should have a few years of revenge on their minds and they have the better football team at this moment.

Ariz St (-3) over Cal
Cal has been playing bad lately and I am not sure they will be ready for the offense of Ariz St. This is a huge game for the sundevils and they get to play it at home. It will be a big test for Erickson, these big games are the reason they invested in a coach like Erickson. The Sun Devils, who have played five of their first seven games at home, have not yet faced a ranked opponent and the combined conference record of the four Pac-10 opponents they've played is just 4-13. They have the offense to score with Cal but they will not stop Cal. This will be an offensive shoot out and I think when push comes to shove the passing game will fail Cal when trying to keep up. A huge key is to get pressure on Longshore, he has a bad ankle and pressure will cause him to throw bad passes. Against Oregon St he was rushed and threw 3 picks. That is what they have to do in Arizona if they want to be the winner here. Forsett is also a big option for the Cal Bear, however Cal is not a rush only team and they need the pass to keep pace. Still looking at Cal in the past two games they just are out of sorts and I am not sure they get all that back on the road against a fine offensive team. I would like to see the devil defense step up but thats doubtful. Carpenter HAD to have circles this game after playing on of his worst games as QB against the bears last year. They have the talent and gameplanning to win this game and home they should be focused and ready on the bears and this is going to be a statement game.

Ohio St (-4) over Penn St
DEFENSE, DEFENSE, DEFENSE..... I like the OSU defense a lot more than the PSU defense even with the lions as the home team. OSU did not play well last week in the second half and I think that will change. They have talent on offense and they need to take advantage of the WR edge. Both WR for ohio st are BIG and fast and should have mismatches against the smaller PSU secondary that likes to be involved with stopping the run. PLAYACTION will play big dividends when it comes to OSU offense. Getting going running the ball is not going to be easy but taking advantage of the early desire of PSU to stop the run will open a big pass play early. PSU IMO just does not have the QB play they need in this game. Morelli is ok at best but is a statue in the pocket at times. OSU blitz package should cause him problems and lead him into turnovers as he showed against Ill. This will be a close game but I like the intagibles OSU brings to the table and I think after almost giving the Mich St game away the buckeyes come out and show they are the number 1 team. PSU is not a good place to play is your a buckeye but they are a humble group and this is a blue coller game for them. Tressle is a good coach and he knows that PSU is a dangerous spot and will have the guys ready. I like all of what OSU brings into this game but as a former LB I cannot wait to watch the Conner/Laurenittis match up. Should be a good game but I think the O-line for OSU exerts themselves early and gives time to a QB that may be green in playing time but not in time in the system.

Cheers
Irish

 

[Irish]

OUCH... last night was a burnout

Pitt (+10.5) over L'Ville
Wins....NC STate by 19, Cincy by 4, UConn a loss by 3, Kent loss by 6, Cuse loss by 3, and Utah loss by 9. Not the most impressive win/loss card.What is even less impressive is Pitt. They lost by double digits in the last few games with the exception of Mich st and Navy. A big confidence gainer last week winning against Cincy. Still they are not a good team and they are going into a rough enviorment against a team that is pissed about the Uconn game. What is working in my favor is WVU, SFla and Rutgers on the doorstep and zero defense. Pitt will not stop L'Ville but I am not sure L'Ville will stop Pitt. McCoy is a good running back and the panthers should ride him all afternoon. They have to avoid getting into a passing showdown with louisville but Bostic will have to throw to keep some pressure off McCoy. This is where Turner will come into play, he has the best advantage against the secondary. Brohm and his WR crew will have open field all day but the running game of McCoy the lack of l'ville defense should keep pitt on the field and that means less louisville points off the board.If Pitt wants to win this game the MTS game should have been on in the coaching offices all week, That is the running game that needs to be present to win. However Wanstad is a joke and he will more than likely try to throw all day so this might get ugly. Still they have the tools to keep it close.

UVA (-3) over NC St
UVA is 7-1 and the far better coached team compared to NC St. The problem is this is an away game, in conference, UVA is down to its 3rd string RB (he did have a huge game against Marylad), the QB is banged up and they have been bipolar on offense. Still they are the better team and the defense should shut down what NC St is going to try to do all day. I am hoping Sewell can go and if he can he should have an easier task against the NCSt defense compared to the speedy terp defense. UVA allows only 19 points per game but have squeaked through the last fews games. NC St allows 28 points per game but score only 21. So if both teams play to potential UVA should excape again with a cover.

Cheers
Irish

 

[Irish]

WVU (-6.5) over Rutgers
Solely a play on WVU's ability to outscore rutgers. They will have to go 2 for evedry one TD. The loss to Sfla makes WVU suspect and they need to come out ready to play every week or they will not get to where they want to be. This is another statement game considering rutgers come off a big win over Sfla. I think WVU can use that to their advantage and get some more votes for them is they win comfortably. The WVU offense NEEDS to pass, they get so caught up in how much talent at RB, they fail to realize they get one v one coverage almost all game and hitting passes early will make it easier for the running game to dominate. I think this is going to be tough to spot the 6.5 but WVU both teams have a ton to play for and WVU needs to forget about where they are playing but rather show up and dominate with misdirection and playaction. White and slayton are not the players that need to step up, I think Reynaud and Scmitt are the players to make a difference. So much attention on White and Slayton that those two players will be able to make some big plays. Also it would be nice to see a total speed formation with White, Slayton, Reynaud, Devine and sanders on the field. That formation would be too much for anyteam but heaven forbid Coach Rod tries to get all his talent and speed on the field at the same time. This will be a good game but I like WVU to outscore in a game that should not be decided by defense. Also the 3-3 defense should stop the underneth crossing routes which is ALL Rutgers has in the passing game.The LBs need to fill the middle zone and they should be in position to make some plays. Wick and Andrews need to step up and hold that middle is Rice is going to go in between the tackles. This game is easy to game plan is you are WVU... stop the Rice up the middle and stretch and hold the underneath crossing routes and drives will stop.

Cheers
Irish

 

[Irish]

Org St (-14) over Stanford
The beavers at home are tough, this is a homecoming game. The Oregon State University Department of Athletics is asking ?Beaver Nation? to help those affected by the wildfires in Southern California by making a donation at this Saturday?s game at Reser Stadium against the Stanford Cardinal. The stands with be PACKED and thats gonna be tough for Stanford to deal with today. The Cardinal have won three of their last four conference road games, including this season?s victories at USC and Arizona. Oregon State has won five of the last six meetings and seven of nine, including last year?s 30-7 decision at Stanford Stadium. The Cardinal?s one win in the streak was 20-17 in Corvallis in 2005. OSU running back Yvenson Bernard had 168 yards on the ground in last year?s game, his third-highest total as a Beaver. This is a lot of chalk but Corvalis is where the beavers play their best foorball. This shoulkd continue the trend because in a normal look ahead spot stanford has to be focused on and the Beavers should be ready.

Cheers
Irish

 

[Irish]

New Mex St (+29.5) over Hawaii
I am a warrior follower and have lost a lot of money watching hawaii sputter against teams that decide not to quit. Chase Hollbrook is gonna be that guy tonight. These teams have the same type spread pass happy offenses. I think the warriors win, they play better at home but they will give up some points. A looming showdown in the WAC is coming down and they might not be a 100% focused on the task at hand.

how about those panthers>>>> hahaha, Louisville just has zero heart for a football team, Brohm try showing some emotion your like wallpaper out there... your team would respect you for it.

Cheers
Irish

 

[Irish]

Oregon (0) over USC 2nd quarter

Cheers
Irish

 

[Irish]

Oregon (-.5) over USC 2nd half
Cheers
Irish

 

[Irish]

Tenn (-3) over S. Carolina
This is a home field play. Both teams are playing well enough but you have to remember this Tenn team dismantled a pretty good georgiia team at rocky top. I think this will be a hard faught SEC game but the big T shows enough productivity on offense to out play a good but not great SC defense. I think the SC offense is good but the home field will help the Tenn defense come up big.

Cheers
Irish

 

[Irish]

Re-hit
Ariz St (-3) over Cal
yeah... I am steamed as a clam!!!!!!!!!!!!!:Kid1: :fit01:

:drinky: :drinky: :drinky: :drinky: :drinky: :drinky: :drinky: :drinky:

Cheers
Irish

 

[Irish]

S.Miss (-3) over CF
The golden nights hit ulsa last week and they looked good at home they are playing pretty well but S.Miss is getting healthy, they have a fast defense and the home field. They hammered Marshall in their last outing and they should look to shut down the knights offense. The last time these two meet it was a 19-14 S.Miss win and I think it will be around the same number tonight. The knights are 1-2 on the road and the home team can lay the chalk, even though this will be a tough game S.Miss is the better team and they are used to the sunday night game something UCF might struggle against.

Cheers
Irish