November 13th, 2009
Big 12 Picks
The sportsbook will be buzzing with the Pacquiao Cotto odds this weekend as the boxing event of the year takes place but there is
some good college football action on the day before it. Here's a
preview of a couple of key Big 12 games.
Texas Tech Red Raiders @ Oklahoma State Cowboys
So
both teams turned out to be disappointments this year. After so much
success last year, the Red Raiders were expected to take a step back
but head coach Mike Leach emphatically stated that they would be just
as good. Meanwhile, Oklahoma State was as high as No. 5 in the nation
this year but have now lost twice in ugly fashion and are out of the
BCS picture. Even so, this figures to be the most entertaining game in
the Big 12 this week.
The Red Raiders are at a bit of a
crossroads right now as quarterback Taylor Potts, who is still feeling
the effects of a concussion, has been playing poorly of late while
backup Steven Sheffield, who doesn't have the same talent, has been
filling up the stat sheets.
Regardless, the Cowboys offense
should be very efficient behind quarterback Zac Robinson and the potent
running game. This will be a shootout and Texas Tech's quarterback
situation figures to hamper them at some point in the game.
Sportsbook Review Picks: Oklahoma State -4
Texas Longhorns @ Baylor Bears
The
Baylor Bears were expected to be a team on the rise in the Big 12 this
year but it just hasn't turned out that way. The biggest issue has been
the fact that the Bears lost star quarterback Robert Griffin to an
injury and the team just hasn't been the same without him.
Baylor's
offense hasn't done anything whatsoever since Griffin went down with a
knee injury. This week, the No. 2 Longhorns come to town and Baylor
just doesn't figure to have much of a chance.
Texas put forth
a sluggish effort last week in a win against Central Florida and it's
unlikely they play half asleep two weeks in a row.
Longhorns
quarterback Colt McCoy can tie former Georgia quarterback David Greene
for the most career wins as a starting quarterback. He should have a
relatively easy time doing that as the Longhorns roll over the Bears
this week.
Sports Picks: Texas -23.5
November 12th, 2009
How Will The AFC North Shape Up?
While most people in the sportsbook will be focused on boxing betting with the Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto mega event, the people in the
North part of the country will be squarely focused on football. This
week, the AFC North division in the NFL will keep things in house as
all four teams play divisional games. The Cincinnati Bengals will
faceoff with the Pittsburgh Steelers for first place while the
Baltimore Ravens will try to pummel the Cleveland Browns on Monday
Night Football. Below is a preview:
Baltimore Ravens @ Cleveland Browns
The
Baltimore Ravens have had a rough time in the last month of the season.
The Ravens started the season 3-0 and appeared to be one of the best
teams in the league but since that time, they have lost four of their
last five games.
To be fair, the Ravens have had some tough
losses. The Ravens have lost twice to Cincinnati, who is atop the AFC
North and is clearly one of the better teams in the league, and also
Minnesota and New England, who are also division leaders.
On
Monday night, they'll have to play on the road but they get a softball
as they head to Cleveland. The Browns are one of the worst teams in the
league and while they are coming off a bye week, they have spent the
week off firing their general manager and questioning their head coach.
Most recently, running back Jamal Lewis suggested that head coach Eric
Mangini is wearing out the team.
The bottom line is that the
Ravens are the significantly better team in this matchup and shouldn't
have any problems disposing of the Browns.
Sports Betting Pick: Ravens -10
Cincinnati Bengals @ Pittsburgh Steelers
The
Cincinnati Bengals have already beat the Steelers once this season but
they may have a tough getting the season sweep. For starters, the first
matchup took place in Cincinnati and this one will be in Pittsburgh.
Beyond that, the Steelers have gotten healthier since then with the
return of Troy Polamalu to the starting lineup and they have developed
a rushing attack with Rashard Mendenhall.
The AFC North still
goes through Pittsburgh and the Steelers will make a statement this
week. The winner of this game takes control of the division and while
the Bengals have been doing well this year, they aren't good enough to
beat the Super Bowl champs on the road.
Sports Picks: Steelers -7
November 11th, 2009
UFC 105 Betting - Quick Picks
From Pacquiao Cotto betting to the NFL to UFC 105, we have a busy sports weekend ahead. Now is
therefore a good time to figure our your quick picks for UFC 105, which
takes place Saturday in England. Here's a parlay to try for the main
event.
Randy Couture -120 over Brandon Vera
Randy
Couture is ancient at age 46 and certainly past his prime but that
doesn't mean he can't overcome Brandon Vera. After three years fighting
giants like Brock Lesnar and Gabriel Gonzaga at heavyweight, Couture
returns to light heavyweight. If he could hold is own as a wrestler in
a higher weight class, he'll clearly be the stronger man battling Vera
at 205 pounds. Couture still always shows up for fights in great shape
and will attempt to tire out Vera, who still has a reptuation for not
training as hard as he should. Expect Randy to try and get inside
Vera's striking range and pin him against the cage for some Greco-Roman
wrestling and dirty boxing. Couture will make it his fight and win
ugly. Tom Brady may do the same in NFL betting on Sunday.
Sportsbook
heartbreak: If Couture tries to stand and trade with the speedy,
technically sound striker Vera, he's in trouble. Randy's chin isn't
great anymore after years of punishment.
Mike Swick -210 over Dan Hardy
Dan
Hardy is no slouch; he's a solid boxer who proved against Rory Markham
two fights ago that he does have significant power in his hands. But
Mike "Quick" Swick does the same things Hardy does and more. Swick can
win on the feet with his kickboxing or take the fight to the ground and
use his lanky frame to create leverage and set up submissions. Don't be
surprised if he goes for the takedown against Hardy. In the end, Swick
is the safest of the three main UFC sports picks; he's simply a more polished fighter than Hardy.
Sportsbook
heartbreak: Hardy will try and get Swick to brawl and trade punches,
hoping he can land a haymaker. If Swick gets into a streetfight, he
could get caught.
Michael Bisping -115 over Denis Kang
It's
hard to believe how quickly Michael Bisping's star has fallen; that
just shows how devastating Dan Henderson's knockout victory over him
was. In reality, though, Bisping's only losses are to Rashad Evans and
Dan Henderson -- two world-class fighters. He has a tough battle
against the versatile Kang but Bisping, a former light heavyweight, is
the bigger, stronger fighter. He'll be much more careful and likely
will control the fight with well-time strikes and perhaps takedowns.
Sportsbook heartbreak: Kang is definitely more of a finisher than Bisping -- he
wins most of his fights via knockout or submission. Bisping will thus
have to keep his chin tucked and avoid getting caught in bad positions
on the ground.
November 9th, 2009
Gamecocks Aim To Pull Out Upset Of Top-Ranked Gators
Online betting odds have the Gators listed as 15.5-point favorites, and they've won five of their last six trips to South Carolina, who are 5-0 at home this year. After losing two in a row on the road, the Gamecocks will be itching to get back home, and their defense will be the thing that keeps the Gators from covering the spread. The Gators' No.2 defense will keep the South Carolina off the board, but the Florida offense isn't as explosive as past seasons. Due to high expectations, college football lines for the Gators' games have been very high this year, and they're only 3-4-1 against the spread. Take Florida to win straight up in your NCAA football picks, but don't expect them to cover, especially away from home.