• Home
• RPJ Intro
• Live Odds
• Matchups

Auburn Tigers

2009-2010 Winning Bowl Picks: We pick winners for the rest of the bowl season!

We are sitting here a pissed off 3-7 in this very short bowl season. There are still 24 games to go and we are extremely ticked off. This is a big time repeat of last year when we sucked it in the early games and then scrappy Jonesed it for the rest of the season barely making a living. Our analysis is no longer worth writing and we are going to break down the remaining games in one of three ways:

1) RPJ special sauce - These are our magic special sauce picks. Our secret bread and butter. The way we pick these are proprietary and we do not share how we pick them. You won’t give a damn anyways because our bowl picks have been terrible. Your best bet is to pick against us. These picks are now 2-4 on the season.

2) Statistical picks - We base these picks purely on math. When one team is statistically better in every single category we track, we pick that team to win the game. So far this type of pick is 0-1 on the season with Nevada blow it for us.

3) The Defense running pick - This is when we pick the underdog to cover when that underdog gives up less than 100 yards rushing on defense and the favorite does not. These picks win outright 70% of the time on a historical basis. On the season these picks are 1-1, with Central Florida losing and UNC covering.

We will probably come at you with some detailed analysis on some of the bigger games but for now we will show you our picks and the lines we took them. On with the Picks…..

Monday December 28, 2009

Independence Bowl: Texas A&M versus Georgia (-7) - RPJ Pick takes Texas A&M to cover! (loss 3-8)

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Eagle Bank Bowl: UCLA (-3.5) versus Temple - RPJ Pick takes UCLA to win and cover (Win 4-8)

Champs Sports Bowl: Wisconsin versus Miami (-3.5) - Defense Run pick selects Wisconsin to cover! (Win 5-8)

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Humanitarian Bowl: Bowling Green (-1) versus Idaho - RPJ pick takes Bowling Green to win and cover! (Loss 5-9)

Holiday Bowl: Nebraska versus Arizona (-1) - Defense Run pick selects Nebraska to cover! (Win 6-9)

Thursday, December 31, 2009

Armed Forces Bowl: Air Force versus Houston (-4.5) - RPJ pick takes Houston to win and cover! (Loss 6-10)

Sun Bowl: Stanford versus Oklahoma (-10) - RPJ pick takes Stanford to cover! (Win 7-10)

Texas Bowl: Navy versus Missouri (-6.5) - RPJ pick takes Missouri to win and cover! (Loss 7-11)

Insight Bowl: Iowa State versus Minnesota (-2.5) - RPJ pick takes Iowa State to cover! (Win 8-11)

Chik-Fil-A Bowl: Tennessee versus Virginia Tech (-5) - RPJ pick takes Va. Tech to win and cover! (Win 9-11)

Friday January 1, 2010

Outback Bowl: Northwestern versus Auburn (-7) - RPJ pick takes Northwestern to cover! (Win 10-11)

Gator Bowl: Florida State versus West Virginia (-2.5) - RPJ takes WVU to win and cover! (Loss 10-12)

Capital One Bowl: LSU versus Penn State (+2) - Stat pick takes Penn St. to win and cover! (Win 11-12)

Rose Bowl: Oregon (-4) versus Ohio State - Defense run pick takes Ohio St. to cover! (Win 12-12)

Sugar Bowl: Cincinnati versus Florida (-12.5) - Stat pick takes Florida to win and cover! (Win 13-12)

Saturday, January 2, 2010

International Bowl: Northern Illinois versus South Florida (-7) - RPJ pick takes N. Illinois to cover! (Loss 13-13)

Papa Johns Bowl: UCONN versus South Carolina (-4.5) - RPJ pick takes UCONN to cover! (14-13)

Cotton Bowl: Ole Miss (-3) versus Oklahoma State - Defense Run pick takes Ok. St. to cover! (loss 14-14)

Liberty Bowl: Arkansas (-7.5) versus East Carolina - RPJ pick takes Arkansas to win and cover! (Loss 14-15)

Alamo Bowl: Michigan State versus Texas Tech (-8) - RPJ takes Texas Tech to win and cover! (Win 15-15)

Monday January 4, 2010

Fiesta Bowl: Boise State versus TCU (-7) - Stat pick takes TCU to win and cover!

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Orange Bowl: Iowa versus Georgia Tech (-3.5) - RPJ takes Georgia Tech to win and cover!

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

GMAC Bowl: Troy versus Central Michigan (-3.5) - Stat pick takes C. Michigan to win and cover!

Thursday, January 7, 2010

BCS National Championship Game: Texas versus Alabama (-4) - RPJ takes Texas to cover!

NCAA Football Week 9 Picks: Go with the flow: Chicks and Picks part 2!

We were a solid 6-3-1 last weekend and we are now 53-49-2 on the season. We have a ridiculous amount of picks this week. We are excited for all of the freaks that will be out at NCAA games this weekend. Halloween night at Autzen might be the most insane place on earth Saturday night. We can not wait. We are back mentioning our clean sweep strategy. What this means is we have numerous stats that we look at that impacts a team’s ability to control the ball on both sides of the ball. Based on our historical analysis of this aspect of our betting algorithms, these clean sweep games provide tremendous opportunities to win bets.

Friday, October 30, 2009

West Virginia (-3) at South Florida - Love love love kicking off the week with this game. South Florida has come back to earth. For the third consecutive season, an undefeated, nationally ranked USF team has fallen off its perch and into a mid-year skid. West Virginia is winning. Why is this line where it is? This should be a 7-10 point line. This line opened at -3 and has creeped up to -3.5 in some places. Majority of the money is on West Virginia and that has us slightly nervous. We think this is an easy bet to kick off the week. No ATS numbers to speak of but check this out. We have a virtual clean sweep. West Virginia is better rushing the ball, yards per rush, offensive 3rd down conversion percentage, stopping the run (total yards and yards per rush) and defensive 3rd down percentage. We love these types of games. West Virginia wins and covers easily!

Saturday, October 31, 2009

Rutgers at UCONN (-7) - UCONN remains the best cover team in the country with a record of 7-0 ATS. Betting can be simple and who are we to say UCONN breaks their streak. When you combine this with the fact that Rutgers is 0-6-1 ATS in their last 7 against UCONN, you start to get excited. Start your Halloween off right and bet UCONN. UCONN wins and covers!!!

Cincinnati (-15) at Syracuse - This game should be haunted house frightening. Cincy is a beast right now and this game meets a lot of our clean sweep requirements. This will make you feel a lot better. Cincy rushes for more yards and at a better yards per rush basis; they control the clock better on offense; are significantly tighter against the run and protect the QB a lot better. Tony Pike is not going to play but Collaros has filled in just fine. We are betting Cincy to win and cover!

Cincinnati

• Bearcats are 7-1 ATS in their last 8 conference games.
• Bearcats are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games after allowing less than 20 points in their previous game.
• Bearcats are 6-2 ATS in their last 8 games on turf.
• Bearcats are 6-2 ATS in their last 8 games following a ATS win.
• Bearcats are 5-2 ATS in their last 7 road games.
• Bearcats are 5-2 ATS in their last 7 games overall.
• Bearcats are 5-2 ATS in their last 7 games after scoring more than 40 points in their previous game.

NC State at FSU -8: If you followed us all season, you know we have loved NC State and their QB. You would also know that we like ganing up on FSU and Bobby Bowden. This week, however, we think FSU takes it. The ATS numbers are pretty god for FSU, but that is not why we like them. We like them mosltly because they are playing inspired football ever since Bowden came under fire. We think they will be up for this game and ready to roll. Plus, FSU just has much, much more talent than NC State does. Take the Seminoles and give the points.

Ole Miss at Auburn +4.5: This is a HUGE game for both teams. Both teams need this winn to save some credibility for their seasons and to keep Bowl chances alive. We have always thought both team are overrated. The Rebels have been hit-or-miss all season, and Jevon Snead does not look like the QB he was last year. The edge in this game, despite being on the road, goes to the Rebels. Chizik is not a good coach and Snead can get the win on the road. We love that Vegas is giving Auburn no respect at home. Take the Rebels and give the points.

Georgia (+15) neutral location versus Florida - Does Florida look right to anybody out there? The Florida defense looks good but not dominating. Tim Tebow looks terrible since his concussion. Florida’s offense is not dynamic enough, is relying too much on a not right Tebow and is not focused on getting the ball in the playmakers’ hands. Something is not right with the Gators. Florida is coming off two less than inspiring efforts and Georgia righted the ship last week with a solid and needed win at Vanderbilt. The Bulldogs are still a bit miffed at the Florida coach for calling two timeouts in the final minute of last year’s 49-10 blowout, a ploy that Meyer described — apparently with his tongue firmly planted in his cheek — as merely a way to get a few extra carries for a little-used running back.  The picture of Urban Meyer calling a timeout hangs all over Georgia’s training facility. The Bulldogs get to see it when they’re changing into their uniforms, when they’re lifting weights, when they’re heading off to meetings. Not sure Georgia has the horses to win this game outright but the combination of revenge and Florida sucking of late has on on the side of the Dawgs. We are betting Georgia to cover!

Georgia

• Bulldogs are 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games as an underdog of 10.5 or greater.
• Bulldogs are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 neutral site games.
• Bulldogs are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 neutral site games as an underdog.
• Bulldogs are 3-1-1 ATS in their last 5 games following a SU win of more than 20 points.
• Bulldogs are 6-2 ATS in their last 8 games as an underdog.

Penn State (-17) at Northwestern - This is another clean sweep game and a blatant one at that. Not even worth going into how inferior this Northwestern team is. Penn State is on a roll. 4 straight wins, 4 straight blowout wins and 4 straight covers. Northwestern is spotty at best. 17 points is a lot but expect a better performance than the Michigan performance last week and that was 35-10 on the road. Penn State wins and covers!!

Penn State

• Nittany Lions are 5-0-1 ATS in their last 6 games as a road favorite of 10.5 or greater.
• Nittany Lions are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 games overall.
• Nittany Lions are 6-1-1 ATS in their last 8 games as a road favorite.
• Nittany Lions are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 conference games.
• Nittany Lions are 15-4-2 ATS in their last 21 games in October.
• Nittany Lions are 7-2 ATS in their last 9 games after allowing less than 170 yards passing in their previous game.
• Nittany Lions are 6-2-1 ATS in their last 9 road games.
• Nittany Lions are 5-2 ATS in their last 7 games following a ATS win

• Wildcats are 16-34-1 ATS in their last 51 games following a S.U. win.
• Wildcats are 2-5 ATS in their last 7 games overall.
• Wildcats are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games on grass.
• Wildcats are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 home games vs. a team with a winning road record.
• Wildcats are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 home games.

USC (-4) at Oregon - This is the game of the week and one of the biggest games in the history of Oregon football. The nation will probably not give a crap but consider this…. USC is a top 5 BCS team so a win on the road against a top ten team elevates them against the one loss teams and the no loss teams. If Oregon wins, they will certainly jump into the mix for top 5 BCS standings. We all know that November is a mess for BCS leaders and any upset is possible. Whichever of these teams wins out, if they win out, will have an edge over the Bama/Florida loser if both pay undefeated and will have the edge over every one loss team. Now onto the game, which is what we are here to do. USC is 2-4 straight up in Oregon in their last 6. Forget the spread, Autzen is brutal. If you have never been there you just do not get it. It has the smallest space in all of NCAA football in terms of fans from the field. Fans are literally vertical straight up from the outline of the field. Now add the freak show that is the Eugene Oregon hippies and this is going to be an amazing scene in terms of freaks and noise. Regardless of USC’s record the last few years, they have struggled the last three seasons in the BCS and are only covering 35% of the time. Now we know Barkley won in South Bend and Columbus, but this is another animal. Sorry Golden Homers and Horseshoers, Autzen is a special animal. Mark Sanchez choked there two years ago filling in for the injured Booty. USC contained Dixon but could not make up for Sanchez’s mistakes. We love betting teams we think will win straight up when they are underdogs and Oregon is that animal this week. You know we are USC homers but we love making money as well. Oregon is a no brainer this week. Take Oregon to cover!

USC

• Trojans are 5-14 ATS in their last 19 games in October.
• Trojans are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games following a S.U. win.
• Trojans are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games after scoring more than 40 points in their previous game.
• Trojans are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games after allowing more than 450 total yards in their previous game.
• Trojans are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games as a favorite.
• Trojans are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 road games vs. a team with a winning home record.
• Trojans are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games overall.
• Trojans are 1-6 ATS in their last 7 games as a road favorite.
• Trojans are 1-6 ATS in their last 7 conference games.
• Trojans are 1-6 ATS in their last 7 road games.

NCAA Football Week 7 Picks: Picks, Chicks and a Salute to Texas RPJ $tyle!

We are 39-39-1 heading into the weekend while waiting for the outcome of the PITT/Rutgers game. So far we are 1-1 on the week. We are very, very afraid this week because we love a ton of games. We usually end up with 3-8 games but this week we are unleashing the fury Mitch!!! When these weeks come, when all of our models and opinions sync up, we hammer the games. This week we are going to discuss some of the marquee matchups and then sling picks for the obvious games. Enjoy the picks. May your wallets be stuffed, your beer fridge full and your girl’s face on your (insert noun here)! It is Red River rivalry and USC/Notre Dame week. We are fired up.

These teams do not need any detailed analysis Games: These picks are pretty straight forward and are set up as either a good team versus a bad team or a bad team versus a horrific team. We are not going to go into detailed analysis to save our carpel tunnel syndrome. Feel free to use our website and our free matchup tools. Click here to stroll through our free data! Just click on this link, find the game you want to analyze and click away on the matchup, supergrid and or preview functions. There is tons of free data for you to use on your own. Bodog has been an awesome partner for us and if you like our picks, which you should of late, help us out by clicking on one of the banner advertisements to sign up for a Bodog account and to get free money.

Kent State at E. Michigan (+6.5) - Give us some credit, you have to respect anyone that is going to drop any sort of knowledge on a Kent State-EMU game!!!! Sometimes we just make it easy for you. Eastern Michigan is one of the worst cover teams and teams in the country, sitting at 1-4 ATS and 0-5 on the season. So do not be deceived that Eastern Michigan almost beat Northwestern. Other than that, they have been pounded by the likes of Army and Temple to name a few of the teams they lost to. They also lost to Michigan and Central Michigan but that was expected. We expect Kent State to rebound from the horrible loss to Bowling Green last week. The favorite in this series is also 5-2 ATS in their last seven. We are betting Kent State to win and cover!!!

Hawaii at Idaho (-8) - Do you know who the best cover team is in the country right now? We do and it is the Idaho Vandals. Idaho is 5-1 overall and 6-0 ATS. Their lone loss came at Washington and this team actually won at Northern Illinois and Colorado State. Very impressive. Who are we to bet against them. We love any opportunity to bet on the Vandals!! We are betting Idaho to win and cover!!!

Central Michigan at Western Michigan (-6.5) - Central Michigan is one of the best cover teams in the nation sitting at 5-1. With their lone ATS loss at Buffalo by 1.5 points or so, depending on where you got the line. We also have a bizarre man crush on Dan LeFevour and we are unlikely to bet against him. We have been lucky that he rewarded us nicely two years ago when he was 100% healthy and has rewarded us again this year. We are betting Central Michigan to win and cover!!!

Houston at Tulane (-17) - Well Toolame burned us last week but we are persistent. Houston will run and gun and sling it all over the place. Toolame is not that good and still have the swine flu lingering around campus. Never a good combo..bad football and swine flu. Our boy Case Keenum is going to put 50 on these guys. We are betting Houston to win and cover!!!

BYU (-17) at San Diego State - Another battle of the shit show matchups. BYU has talent. San Diego State does not. BYU = 4-2 ATS. San Diego State = 1-4 ATS. San Diego State basically loses to who they are supposed to lose to. See losses to UCLA, Idaho and Air Force and they beat who they are supposed to beat most of the time. BYU will beat San Diego State and they will beat them easily. We are betting BYU to win and cover!!!

Kentucky at Auburn (-13.5) - If you have not picked up on it yet, bet against Kentucky every week you can in the SEC. They snuck one in on us at South Carolina last week but we got nice covers with Alabama and Florida. We are going to ride the anti-Kentucky bandwagon once again. We still have no clue as to how this program is in any Div 1 conference. They are terrible even for SEC standards. Auburn wins and covers!!!

Ohio State (-13.5) at Purdue - Another certainty, Ohio State is the best team in the Big Ten and covers most of the time. Just keep riding the wave. This is not rocket science. Ohio State has covered every Big Ten game this year (3-0) and Purdue has lost all of them (0-2). Ohio State is also 5-1 ATS on the season. Purdue is in a major transition year. New coach. New players. New offensive philosophy. They have been playing games hard, but they just don’t have the talent and cohesion OSU has. This game may be close in the first half, as the Boilermaker faithful will be out in full force and going bananas. However, OSU will pull away in the 2nd half. We are betting Ohio State to win and cover!!!

Illinois (-3) at Indiana - We love this game!! Runny has been to it in person a couple of times. It is like a battle of the two worse state fairs you can think of!!! These teams hate each other. The Hoosiers have been a HUGE surprise this year. The fact this team has even won one game is shocking. The Illini have also blown our minds with some of the worse play in college football (we picked this team to beat Mizzou outright in week one!!!!). Juice is a huge bust. Benn is having a terrible year. So, what will give in this sideshow of a game??? The Illini will give. They are favorites based on the rep and promise over the past few seasons. This team is not the team that played SC in the Rose Bowl. The Hoosiers will win outright. Take Indiana at home with the points.

Louisville at UCONN (-13)- Big East match-up with implications. The Huskies are looking to show their program is no fluke and the Cardinals are trying to salvage some respectability at home. UConn’s pogram IS solid. They are similar to Cincy. They are well coached and play hard. They will be stoked at home. The cover will be close, but the Huskies will still pull it out. This is another one of the brainless picks. UCONN is 5-0 against the spread. Always bet into strength. This line seems awfully high but bet it with confidence. Take the Huskies and give the points.

Iowa at Wisconsin (-3) - This game is a trap!! Beware!!! There is absolutely no logical reason to justify why the Hawkeyes are the dogs in this game. The Hawkeyes are arguably the best team in the Big 10. Wisconsin is having a down year. Although the Badgers are at home in Madison where it is extremely tough to play, this team is just not that good and they are certainly not playing to the level of Iowa right now. Further proof of the trap comes from the numbers: 68% of the money is on Iowa and the line opened Iowa -1. The line should have gone up, not down to the Badgers as favorites. VEGAS KNOWS!! Don’t fall for it!! Take Iowa to win and cover!

Washington at Arizona State (-6.5) - Is it us, or does ASU break your hearts every freakin’ year? Every year this team has the promise of being good, and every year, we bet them and bet them only to get left at the alter. Not this time!! The Huskies have an entirely new lease on life. After beating USC, they have shown they have some swagger and the guts to hang in there against anyone. They played the Irish super tough in the South Bend, so they have shown that road trips do not scare them. They will be ready for the PAC-10 game. ASU may win, but it will be within a TD. Take the Huskies and the points!

Stanford at Arizona (-4.5) - Very similar game to the Washington-ASU game. Stanford gets the edge for us despite being on the road. They are really well coached (Harbaugh may be one the best coaches in Div 1 football). Harbaugh gets more out of talent than any coach in the country (except for maybe Chris Peterson in Boise). They are a smart team. Zona is solid, too, but Stanford will be ready and they are playing with a chip on their shoulders for some national respect. Take the Cards and the points.

Arkansas at Florida (-25) - This game has “let down” written all over it. Everyone has anointed the Gators as national champs despite having half the season left to go. The Gators are in cruise control. They will be at home. They have not looked dominating at all. Not at all. The Razorbacks having nothing to lose and they will pull out all the stops. They have a solid QB in Ryan Mallett. He can straight sling it!!! The gators have not faced a QB this good all year. Remember Ole Miss last year? The Razorbacks could do the same thing. Plus, don’t underestimate Petrino. He is a good coach, and we know he can play dirty (just ask Arthur Blank and the Falcons). Look for Petrino to pull an Arkansas sweathog move and knock Tebow out of the game! Take the ‘Backs and the points.

Not the Red River Rivalry but the next best game of the week!

Southern California (-10) at Notre Dame - For months people (i.e. the media and dumb Domers) have been touting the Irish as a legit BCS championship contender and one of the best teams in the country. Guess what? Another year proves yet again that they are probably the most overrated program in all of sports. If they were in the SEC they would probably be ranked #5 in the country, but we know they are a joke. Michael Floyd is out for this game so that means the only threat they have is Golden Tate. That is not enough against this SC Defense. USC comes in with tons of swagger knowing that they have stomped this team in recent years. They also are playing inspired ball from rallying behind their fallen comrad, Stephon Johnson. USC relishes playing opponents on the road under the spotlight. Barkley knows he is the man for this team, and he is grasping control of the offense more and more each week. They destroyed Cal in Berkley two weeks ago, and that team had WAAAAAAAY more talent on both sides of the ball than this Irish team. This game will not be close. Look for a HUGE game from Taylor Mays as Clausen tries to test fate and go deep on this team. Mays will get him. Now that we got our USC homerness out of the way you really need to think about this game logically. Look at the line and what do you see? USC is favored, on the road, against the 25th rated team in the country, against the QB with the best QB rating in the country, a team with multiple 4th quarter comebacks and USC is playing a true freshmen. Did you just follow that sequence of logic? Makes you want to bet Notre Dame right? Well we always say that Vegas knows and Vegas set this line at ten points because Vegas knows all of the Notre Dame idiots will easily bet this game at USC -10. That line speaks volumes. If Notre Dame was any good the line would not be USC -10. Be safe, be smart and listen to Vegas. Plus, look at the picture below….could you feel remotely safe betting on a team with that guy leading the charge?What the hell does the “CC” stand for on the banana hammock on the dude on the left? How is he not getting crushed in the papers for this? Take USC and gladly give the points.

USC

• Trojans are 9-1 ATS in their last 10 games as a road favorite of 3.5-10.0.
• Trojans are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 vs. INDEP.
• Trojans are 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games following a bye week.
• Trojans are 21-6 ATS in their last 27 non-conference games.
• Trojans are 16-5 ATS in their last 21 games as a favorite of 3.5-10.0.
• Trojans are 15-6 ATS vs. a team with a winning record.
• Trojans are 11-5 ATS in their last 16 games after accumulating more than 450 total yards in their previous game.

Red River Rivalry Game of the week!

Oklahoma at Texas (-3) - The Sooners need this game more, but Texas is just too good right now. Bradford is not close to 100% and Stoops cannot win big games. McCoy is primed for a huge game. He will get it this week against the Sooners. Oklahoma is another one of those early season teams that had uncertainty on their O-line. This has not been solved due to injuries and Texas is going to bring a nasty defense to the Texas State Fair. If you watched last week’s game, Sam Bradford is not ready to go and one more week of practice will help but will certainly not make him comfortable. These teams look very similar on paper but we think the difference will be QB and O-line and Texas wins both of those matchups. And how could we forget Big Game Bob Stoops. Big Game Bob is 0-4 ATS in his last 4 in this series and we expect the pain to continue. We are betting Texas to win and cover!!!

Oklahoma

• Sooners are 8-1 ATS in their last 9 games after allowing less than 100 yards rushing in their previous game.
• Sooners are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 conference games.
• Sooners are 11-2 ATS in their last 13 games after allowing less than 275 total yards in their previous game.
• Sooners are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games as an underdog of 0.5-3.0.
• Sooners are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games as an underdog.
• Sooners are 11-3 ATS in their last 14 games following a S.U. win.
• Sooners are 6-2 ATS in their last 8 games after accumulating more than 280 yards passing in their previous game.
• Sooners are 9-3 ATS in their last 12 games following a SU win of more than 20 points.
• Sooners are 10-4 ATS in their last 14 games after allowing less than 20 points in their previous game.
• Sooners are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 neutral site games.
• Sooners are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games in October.

Texas

• Longhorns are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games on fieldturf.
• Longhorns are 7-2 ATS in their last 9 neutral site games.
• Longhorns are 2-5 ATS in their last 7 conference games.
• Longhorns are 3-9-1 ATS in their last 13 games as a favorite of 0.5-3.0.
• Longhorns are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games following a S.U. win.
• Longhorns are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games after accumulating less than 100 yards rushing in their previous game.
• Longhorns are 1-5 ATS vs. a team with a winning record.
• Longhorns are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games as a favorite.
• Longhorns are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games overall.
• Longhorns are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 games following a SU win of more than 20 points.

Get the latest Sports Wagering Odds at Bodog Sportsbook

Flash Flash and Runny Pelvis

NCAA Football Preview Spectacular - Celebrating 140 years of College Football

Our most favorite time of year is finally upon us…NCAA FOOTBALL. There really is nothing better. The purpose of this post will be to share our thoughts, ideas, predictions, etc… in 140 different ways as we celebrate 140 years of NCAA Football. Print now because this is some great work bathroom reading. We promise this will occupy your dump time for at least 10-15 minutes.

We want to thank all of our loyal readers and welcome any new readers. If you are not familiar with us, here is the scoop. Every single bet we post on this blog, we bet with our own money. We are not here to screw around or lose money. We want to win every bet we place and we want YOU to win every bet you place alongside us. When we list the lines alongside our picks, these are the lines we placed our bets at. NO EXCEPTIONS. Also, we are always here for our readers. You can email us at rpjsyndicate@gmail.com if you want to remain private or you can post to our Facebook page by searching within Facebook for RPJ Betting Syndicate.  Also, our website has some great analysis tools that we have access through our partnership with Bodog. We have live lines as well as matchup analysis tools. These are free for you to check out anytime. Let us know if you want us to Twitter. We think the jury is still out on whether or not Twitter is relevant but we are open to suggestions.

If you like what you see, like our picks and like our free analysis tools, we would appreciate it if you signed up through our website to use Bodog as your betting vehicle of choice. We love Bodog and have never had any issues getting our money out. The same can not be said for BetUs, Sportbook and other sites so bettor be warned!!!

Long known as one of the best online sportsbooks, Bodog does it all:

It’s easy to bet on every game – they have every major sport & league covered, their software’s a cinch to learn and they have some nice extras, like live betting and tons of fantasy leagues. This is a big part of why they’re always ranked so highly at sportsbook review sites.

Useful help is always available – if you ever have to call customer service, they’ll handle your problem quickly and without any hassles.

Your money and your information are safe – they have a perfect security, privacy & payout record since they started up in 1994.

Bodog has its head office, and is licensed in, the Caribbean nation of Antigua. The Bodog group of companies (www.bodog.com) offer a host of entertainment services, including online gambling, which includes Poker, Casino and a suite of other world-class products.

Bodog is operated in North America under License by Morris Mohawk Gaming Group.

In honor of 2009 being the 140th College football season, we are going to make 140 observations, predictions, bets, historical references, Notre Dame jokes, USC homer statements, etc…

2009 NCAA Football Season Predictions, Analysis, Trends and Observations

140 - The number of pounds that Charlie Weis’s left man boob weighs.

139 - Adding the numbers equals 13….will be the minimum amount of points Ohio State will lose by to USC on September 12. Yep, you heard it hear first… USC wins by at least two TDs at Columbus.

138 - The number of rushes it took LeGarrette Blount, RB Oregon, to reach 1,008 yards rushing last season. Good for a 7.3 yard average per rush. We are looking for big things out of the Oregon backfield this season. Early season test at Boise State.

137 -  1+3+7=11…USC averaged 86,793 in attendance last year for 11th in the country. We road tripped for the OSU game last year. Let us tell you, USC knows how to party for big games! Great fans. Best Buy had a tent. Their home schedule is weak this year, so the key to their national championship dreams will come down to their road performance with big games in Columbus, South Bend, Berkley and Eugene. Look for USC to be in very close games. Jump on the lines accordingly. We’ll be watching!!

136 - The number of wins Bill Snyder had as a coach of Kansas State. Sorry Bill, you are old and well past your prime. You will be lucky to have 140 career K State wins by the end of the year.

135 - San Jose State Coach Dick Tomey’s career losses. Dick is actually the 7th winningest active coach right now with a record of 181-135-7. Dick opens the season at USC and at home against Utah. Those 135 career losses will start climbing pretty fast in 2009.

134 - The yards passing per game USC’s D gave up last year. Tops in the nation. Next closest was TCU at 170 tards/game. It will be interesting to see how USC’s D holds up this year. They lost a ton of starters over the offseason. We’ll see how the “rebuilding” goes..the last time this happened was 2007 and they did just fine. See you in Columbus on 9/12!!!!

133 - The number of points scored in 2008 by Missouri Kicker Jeff Wolfert. You know you care about that.

132 - The yards rushing per game Buffalo gained (actually 132.71. Big things are expected out of the Bulls this year. We loved rooting for them last year and will do this same in 2009. Go Bulls!!!! On a sad note, Senior RB James Starks is injured and will miss his senior season.

131 - The number of points TCU’s defense gave up last year, which was good for #2 in the country. Keep reading and you will see the #1 team and their sub-100 point season.

130 - The number of pounds of food Mark Mangino eats every day for breakfast. We love us some Coach Mangino. Kansas is the 4th or 5th best team in the Big 12 but the Conference is stacked. We hope Mangino and Reesing can pull off a big time upset.

129 - Amount of seasons before Michigan suffered its first 9 loss season. It took Bo Schembechler 7 seasons to lose 9 games. Rich Rodriguez did go 9-4 his second year at West Virginia and that followed a 3-8 debut for the Mounties. Notre Dame in week 2 will be a good indication and a home revenge game. Michigan returns 16 starters from last year and 11 on Offense.

128 - The number of pounds of undigested lard that were sucked out of Charlie Weis’s belly during his botched tummy tuck surgery. We hope the Heart Attack Grill was able to buy some of the lard on the cheap.

127 - Yards per game improvement by Nebraska on defense last season. Their rush defense was the most improved in the nation. Bo Pelini showed he can coach but will he be able to improve on a 9-4 record?

126 - NC State rushing yards per game in 2008. This team was a cover machine last season at 9-2-1. One of the best teams to bet on in the country. Big opening game against Spurrier’s Cocks in week 1 and a revenge game at home.

125 - North Carolina rushing yards per game in 2008. Is this the year Butch Davis’ team breaks out. We are not so sure. He recruits well but he still needs to get past Va. Tech and a nasty, improving Georgia Tech team.

124 - Colorado rushing yards per game. Will the Hawkins father son duo make some noise this year or will the powers that be in the Big 12…Texas and Oklahoma State eat Buffalo burger this season? We think the later.

123 - 1+2+3 = 6 and there were 6 turnovers in the Boise State vs. Oregon game last season. 4 by Oregon and 2 by Boise State. We do not see Masoli throwing three picks in this game. This is one of our two prime time games for opening weekend. Stay tuned for our week 1 predictions.

122 - The number of tackles for loss generated by Oregon for tops in the nation. This team is legit and has a very solid chance of winning the PAC-10. We love or Trojans, but it will be a tall order beating this team in Eugene. If they beat SC, they have to be considered for the national championship game.

121 - Cincinnati rushing yards per game in 2008. Senior QB Tony Pike is back in 2009 and these city boys put a scare or two into somebody each year. We will know this team early as they open at Rutgers on 9/7/2009 and then head to Oregon State on 9/19/2009. A win at either place will be impressive.

120 - Central Florida’s offensive ranking last season. 120 out of 120. What does this distinction look like you ask? 229.5 yards of total offense per game, 113 yards rushing with a 3.0 yards per carry mark, 116 yards passing per game and 16.6 points per game. On the bright side, they really have no place to go but up.

119 - 1+1+9 = 11 and Tulsa had 11 wins last season, which was the first time a Conference USA team had 11 wins since 2004. The biggest change this offense will incur is under center, as David Johnson is now gone after accounting for 49 touchdowns in 2008. Jacob Bower, last year’s backup, has the edge in the quarterback race, but he is being pushed by Texas transfer G.J. Kinne, and incoming freshman Shavodrick Beaver. The player that emerges with the job will get a terrific opportunity to build a name for himself behind this powerful attack.

118 - Tulane’s average yards rushing per game. How about some Conference USA love? Back to back C-USA news items. Gotta love it!

117 - Kansas State’s Defensive ranking last season. Bill Snyder is a hero but will he leave town as a goat this time around. This is asking for a lot.

116 - Amount of offensive yards Washington State gained against USC last season. Keep reading…Notre Dame did even worse.

115 - Tennessee’s Offensive ranking last year. That was 115 out of 119. An improvement in this number will show Vols fans that Kiffin can coach. We know Monte can but the jury is still out on Lane.

114 - 114 fans showed up to Temple’s Fourth Annual Fan Fest on August 26. No we were not there, we just heard it was definitely 114 fans.

113 -Mississippi State’s offensive ranking last season. Man that SEC is stacked from top to bottom with zero easy games ever. Yeah right!!!!

112 - Centuries that must pass before Notre Dame wins another national title. God told us. Lou Holtz is on crack with his Florida/ND BCS title game prediction this season. How do we bet against this? Holtz should back himself as a prop bet.

111 - Add a 5 to 111 and you get 5,111 passing yards for Graham Harrell last season; the first back to back 5,000 seasons in NCAA history. Texas Tech had a story book season last year and Coach Leach finds new QBs for his system every year. The Red Raiders will not sneak up on anybody this season but they still have talent and might be able to pull off some major upsets. We will find out pretty quickly how good this team is after they travel to Austin on 9/19.

110 - The number of career wins for Nick Saban. He has a career record of 110-50-1, 5th best winning % among active coaches. Saban has talent at BAMA this season but they spanking Utah gave them could provide one long, nasty hangover. Huge first game against Virginia Tech will be telling. Also, keep in mind that Saban has never won ten games back to back. Now combine that with breaking in a new QB and revamped OL and we see trouble ahead.

109 - The amount of yards per game LSU’s defense deteriorated last season. We knew they had QB issues but the Tigers D was terrible. Maybe Les Miles should have taken the Michigan job after all. Lots to work on in Baton Rouge.

108 - Miami (Ohio) average yards rushing per game in 2008. Check out this fantastic team marketing….Fans looking for premium savings and ideal seat location get the best of both worlds by purchasing RedHawk season tickets. Season tickets–including the game against Kentucky– are only $120. Prices are even more affordably priced for Miami faculty and staff ($105), senior citizens ($110), and youth under 18 ($100). What a bargain!!!

107 - 107,000 seats. The size of Michigan’s Ann Arbor football stadium. Hopefully they get to see more than 4 wins this season.

106 -Kentucky’s offensive ranking last season. We are seeing a trend here. Why is the SEC the best conference in the country when 5 teams finished worse than 100 in total offense last season.

105 - Number of yards USC Freshman De’Von Flournoy had in their last scrimmage. 105 yards on three catches with 1 TD. This is not one of USC’s 5 star recruits but this kid is tearing up camp and has been even more impressive than Barkley. Put Flourney and RoJo on the field at the same time and zero secondaries will be able to cover these guys. USC rebuilding, yeah right!

104 - Auburn’s Offensive ranking from 2008. We know Gene Chizik has his hands full. Chizik was only 5-19 at Iowa State. Welcome to the SEC Gene!!!

103 - Wake Forest’s offensive ranking in 2008. This stat was shocking but I guess really shows how great their defense was last season. Wake will test itself early as it opens at home against Baylor and Stanford. Two teams on the rise and looking to prove themselves. We will probably stay clear of this team early until we get to see what they have under the hood.

102 - Amount of points Conference USA’s leading scorer scored last season. Any guess as to who it was? RB Bryce Beall of Houston.

101 - Duke’s offensive ranking in 2008. Dukie fans were actually impressed with 4 wins last season under Coach Cutcliffe. At some programs, a four-win season would be considered mediocre or disappointing. But at Duke, the accomplishment earned first-year head coach David Cutcliffe third place in the ACC Coach of the Year voting and helped trigger a change in perception of the Blue Devils. Although Duke fans may be happy, we are not sure where Duke will show improvement this season. A tough ACC schedule (Duke was 1-7 last season in the ACC) and a road game at Kansas might make 4-8 a pipe dream this season.

100 - Yards per game drop in Arizona State’s offense on a per game basis last year. The Sun Devils had a 6 game losing streak at home last season. We think it is time for ASU to send Erickson packing.

99 - Ralph Friedgen has dropped nearly 100 pounds since October with an improved diet and exercise. Kudos to you Coach. Maybe Charlie Weis can learn something from you. Hard work and exercise set a better example then stomach stapling surgery you lazy fat oaf!!!

98 - The number of Georgia Bulldog wins the last ten years, which is good for best in the SEC. Where is their national title? It certainly will not come this year when Oklahoma State shows this SEC team who is boss this season.

97 - The number of starts by Notre Dame’s Offensive Line. This just shows that experience does not always matter cause Notre Dame still stinks.

96 - 9+6=15 and 15 is Aaron Corp’s jersey number. USC needs this guy under center, not Barkley if they want to make it to another BCS title game. Barkley might be the QB of the future but Corp is the QB of now.

95 - Average yards passing per game for Georgia Tech last year. One of only 4 teams under 100 yards per game. No surprise that Army, Navy and Air Force were the other 3.

94 - Number of times we laughed looking at the following picture….

93 - The number of points USC’s defense gave up last year. Sick!!! All the sports banter going across the airwaves now is calling this USC D suspect because of how many starters it lost at the end of the year. Coach Carroll faced a similar ”rebuilding” in 2007. Didn’t seem to bother him or the team one bit. OSU will not score more than 14 points on September 12.

92 - 92,000 seats at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge.

91 - Amount of yards Notre Dame gained against USC’s defense last year. And people actually think Weis is an offensive genius.

90 - The number of times Jimmy Clausen will be sacked in his career at Notre Dame.

89 - The number of days it took us to write this blog post. Just kidding but not by too much!

88 - Texas A&M rushing yards per game in 2008. We thought Mike Sherman would run first, pass second last season but we were wrong. He had Javorskie Lane, the 300 pound RB and he could still not move the pile. Sherman just names Jerrod Johnson his starting QB but we do not see how there will be much to smile about. By the end of last season, the Aggies had fallen to the bottom of the Big 12 South. They want to make certain that last-place finish was just an aberration, not a reflection of a sagging program. Mike Sherman has already addressed locker room issues that divided last year’s team. This year’s group seems to have bought in. That’s only part of any possible turnaround story. Despite a solid recruiting class, the Aggies are young, lack depth at key positions and may find it difficult to improve last season’s 4-8 record. More competitiveness against Texas and Oklahoma (or even Baylor) would be a sign of progress.

87 - Amount of rushing yards per game USC’s defense gave up last year.

86 -Number of career receptions for Ole Miss hybrid player Dexter McCluster. Dexter is a physical specimen and Ole Miss is going to try and put the ball in his hands 20 times a game. The 5-foot-8 McCluster played at 162 pounds last season, but he’s up to 170 pounds entering this season. He’s incredibly strong for his size and bench-presses 340 pounds and squats more than 400 pounds. This guy is going to be fun to watch.

85 - 85,000 seats at Nebraksa’s Memorial Stadium.

84 - Receptions by Eric Decker, WR Minnesota, for tops in the Big-10 last season. Minnesota WR, Eric Decker returns for his senior season. Gopher fans get to enjoy Mr. Decker in their new stadium this season, TCF Bank Stadium, which looks awesome. We will be there when USC comes to town in a few years.

83 - The number of wins by Ohio State Coach Jim Tressel over the last 8 seasons. Optimism is high in Columbus with Pryor under center but this team only returns 38 lettermen, 11 starters and 4 on offense. If OSU can get past USC on 9/12 the might roll undefeated into Happy Valley on 11/7. Hopefully we do not get to witness another Big 10 team in the national title game this decade. We know that end result.

82 - Number of wins USC has over the last 7 seasons to go along with 7 Pac-10 titles, two national championships and end of season top 5 rankings. USC’s dominance has inspired dismissive references to the conference as the “Pac-1″ and the “Lack-Nine” among fans from other regions. A lot of experts are predicting this is the season USC drops a notch. It will all come down to A) Aaron Corp being healthy or B) Matt Barkley’s ability to play college ball. If A is the case then Trojan fans have nothing to worry about. B is the X factor.

81 - Seconds of fame for the Florida State girls. Slightly more than a minute but less than 2.

80 - The number of STDs that were passed in this picture…

79 - Passing yards by Cal QB Nate Longshore against USC last season. Well Nate has moved on and Jeff “Turd Sandwich” Tedford is backing Kevin Riley. Keep in mind, Kevin Riley was 4 for 16 for 59 yards 0 TDs and 1 INT last season against USC. Cal really needs a QB to show up this year if they want to compete in the Pac-10. Jahvid Best is the man but when you can put 8 in the box, he is shut down. We love and hate betting for or against Jeff Tedford’s Bears. He usually burns us and 21 points against Maryland in game #1 is a big number to overcome. We will probably be on the CAL sidelines until we can figure out what this team is really about.

78 - Florida gators defense… out of 78 starts at the three LB positions the last two years, every start was made by a LB that returns this season. The Gators depth and experience on Defense will be sick this season.

77 - Reason #77 to love USC TRojans…

76 - Nick Howell, OT USC Trojans. Just one of 8 linemen with experience that will protect Corp or Barkley. This is why USC is still ranked in the pre-season top 5 with an inexperienced QB. Offensive line depth is the key to early season trouble games like 9/12 in The Shoe.

75 - This is the 75th anniversary of the Heisman trophy. Will Bradford or Tebow match Archie Griffin as the only two time winner or will Colt McCoy or a darkhouse candidate make a splash like Houston’s Case Keenum. Last year Keenum passed for 5,020 yards, 44 TDs with only 11 picks. Houston and the OVER anyone?

74 - Dan LeFevour’s career passing TDs. Our man crush gets to continue for one more season. The Fever has a brutal early schedule but he should be able to get his points. We love you DAN!!! His 11,702 total yards are the most among any active player, and if he averages 300 yards of offense a game this season (his career average), he’ll end his college tenure ranked third in FBS history in total offense.

73 - USC’s margin of victory of Notre Dame the last two seasons. Thats right folks. The combined score was 76-3. It won’t get any better this year. Claussen cursed himself when he said he would beat USC and the curse lives on.

72 - Combined bowl wins for Middle Tennessee State’s coaching staff. Where else can you get a stat on Middle Tennessee State? If you are not impressed with this then you do not deserve to read on.

71 - The ranking for sacks allowed/game for Texas. They allowed 2 sacks per game and are at the bottom of the pack for D1 teams. It didn’t seem to bother them too much last year-they arguably should have been playing Florida in the title game last year. However, this stat is telling because it may be a sign of trouble for Colt McCoy. They need to impove on this to keep Colt healthy and their teams hopes alive.

70 - Colt McCoy’s career completion percentage. Colt will be this seasons Tim Tebow, meaning he will be the most motivated man in the land. We expect big things from Colt. Potential Heisman winner and BCS title game participant.

69 - Use your imagination…

68 - Butch Lewis, OT USC. Another one of the experienced bunch that the Trojans will march out this season.

67 - You are more than halfway through our reasons and we are running out of reasons.

66 - After USC plays San Jose State in their opener, 66 is the number of games USC’s new linebackers will have played at USC. That is right, Chris Galippo, Michael Morgan and Malcolm Smith have played in 63 games at USC. So even though USC lost 4 LBs to the FIRST ROUND of the NFL draft, their replacements have serious experience.

65 - Todd Reesing TDs the last two seasons. Todd is 20-6 as a starter and Kansas may be 6-0 when Oklahoma comes to town on 10/24.

64 - RPJ Betting Syndicate’s career winning percentage before we started publishing this blog. Blog was a curse but it is fun. Not like we need reasons to watch and bet on NCAA football and stare at hot arse every week.

63 - Not since 1946 (63 years ago) has the top 3 Heisman vote getters returned to play the next season.

62 - 62 minus 1 = 61 and that is Troy’s pre-season USA Today rank. They received 1 vote.

61 - The number of yards New Mexico State improved on defense last season and this is before new Coach DeWayne Walker arrived on campus. Walker can really coach a defense and look for him to turn this program around quickly and launch himself to a better program. They could even be 6-0 or 5-1.

60 - Jimmy Clausen’s completion percentage last season; 60.9% to be exact. As a sophomore last year, Clausen had the third-most prolific passing season in school history. He completed 268 of 440 passes (60.9 percent) for 3,172 passing yards and 25 touchdowns. He had the second-best sophomore season by a quarterback in school history, behind only Brady Quinn. Optimism is high in South Bend with 4 seniors on the OL and 10 offensive starters back.

59 - Boise State is 40-17-2 against the spread in their last 59 home games. The Oregon/Boise State game on September 3 is going to be a battle.

58 - Number of first place votes Florida received in the pre-season AP poll. 58 out of 60 for a record 96.7%. The previous record holder was USC who received 62 out of 65 votes in 2007. USC did not play for the national title that year. Only ten teams that were ranked the pre-season #1 have won the national title. USC was the last team to do it in 2004.

57 -The number of TDs Matt Barkley, USC QB, threw in high school. With Aaron Corp injured and Mitch Mustain sucking, the Trojans season could come down to an 18 year old freshman. This story is worth watching. Will Barkley be able to win at Ohio State, Cal, Notre Dame and Oregon? Not likely.

56 - Tennessee is ranked 56th in the USA Today pre-season poll.

55 - Navy is ranked 55th in the USA Today pre-season poll.

54 - Number of teams that received votes in the AP Pre-season Top 25 poll. Nearly half of the FBS population (54 of 120) received at least one 25th-place vote. The biggest surprise? Colorado, a legit Big 12 North dark horse, got no votes, as in one fewer than Troy.

53 - Navy has 53 wins against the spread in their last 75 road games.

52 - Personal fouls committed last year by Syracuse QB, Greg Paulus as a PG for Duke baseketball. Huh? Yes, you read that right. Syracuse’s starting QB this year played for the Blue Devils for 4 seasons. We know Coach Doug MArrone is excited to be at Cuse but c’mon now, a PG at QB? This will end terribly wrong.

51 -Amount of votes Rutgers received in the USA Today top 25 pre-season poll. One thing to remember, Rutgers returns their entire starting offensive line from last season. Rutgers opens at home against Cincy and this will be a big test. Cincy is tough and is changing their D from a 4-3 to a 3-4 so they might not be in game shape on the defensive side of the ball. If Rutgers wins they will be on their way to an easy 3-0 start before traveling to Maryland.

50 -Zero Big 12 teams finished in the top 50 in total defense last year and 9 finished worse than 78. If the Big 12 really wants to pass the SEC in national prominence the conference needs a handful of teams to play D.

49 - Washington Huskies defensive 3rd down percentage was 49 last season. The Huskies brough in Steve Sarkisian and hope a healthy Jake Locker can turn things around. These guys were 0-12 last season and 1-11 ATS. Not much to smile about. The Huskies do start with three home games but they are against LSU, Idaho and The Trojans. They then go to Stanford and Notre Dame and we think Irish eyes will be smiling. Sark has to work miracles to get this team moving in the right direction this season.

48 - Wake Forest is the 48th ranked team in the USA Today preseason poll.

47 - The total number of sacks garnered by VaTech’s D for 2nd in the country behind only GaTech (who knew!?!?!?). VaTech always overacheives and may have the country’s best head coach. He does more with so little than anyone in the country. HUGE opener against Bama. We think they have a very legit shot of beating the Tide outright. We are watahing this line like crazy.

46 - The Central Michigan Chippewas are 30-13-3 against the spread in their last 46 games.

45 - Mark Mangino, Kansas coaches career wins (45-41) and ATS wins (45-35) record. Kansas returns 15 starters and 42 lettermen. Legit Big 12 North title contenders. Rock Chalk Jayhawk!!!

44 - The number of seasons Joe Pa and Bobby Bowden have coached.

43 - Stanford defensive 3rd down conversion percentage in 2008. Jim Harbaugh had his team close to a bowl berth last season. The Cardinals definitely play hard but they do not have the talent to stack up against USC, Oregon and CAL. Their first 5 games in 2009 are favorable so this team might gain confidence with games @ Washington State, @ Wake Forest, and home against San Jose State, Washington and UCLA. 5-0 is possible and 4-1 is a definite possibility.

42 - Home wins Iowa has the last 8 years. Hawkeyes are 42-9 over this span. Too bad they have Penn State, Ohio State, Wisconsin and Michigan State all on the road this year. Schedule is likely to impede their Big-10 championship aspirations.

41 - Average yards rushing for SMU last year, which was the lowest in the nation by almost 30 yards per game. SMU averaged a staggering 2.29 yards per rush. Also, 41 inches is Taylor Mays’ vertical leap.

40 - This is to pay tribute to one of college football’s and our country’s all time greats, Mr. Pat Tillman. He wore #40 for the Arizona Cardinals (#42 for ASU) and he gave his life for our country. Thanks, Pat.

39 - Amount of points Miami scored against Florida State last season in a 39-41 loss. Miami has some insane talent on defense but they open their 2009 schedule at Florida State, Georgia Tech, at Va Tech and against Oklahoma. This team might easily be the best 0-4 team ever. These 4 teams won 40 games last year. Randy Shannon might not be able to improve much on his 12-13 career record with this kind of scheduling.

38 - The number of TDs for Oklahoma State players Zac Robinson, Dez Bryant and Kendall Hunter. This Oklahoma State team is explosive with explosive probably being an understatement. Georgia rolls into Stillwater on 9/5 and the Big 12/SEC conference debate will be settled in week 1. All three of the Cowboys’ losses last season were to teams ranked 1, 2 or 3. With their core coming back this season, the Cowboys will be a tough matchup for any team this season.

37 - Number of wins by former Missouri QB Chase Daniel over the last 4 years. Chase is gone and the team only returns 9 starters. Coach Gary Pinkel has 22 wins the last two seasons, which ranks third to USC and Okahoma but we think Illinois will expose this team in week 1.

36 -Last season, 5 of Jeff Demps’s 7 rushing TDs were for longer than 36 yards. His lone reception was 61 yards. Demps is actually faster than Percy Harvin and Percy had a run of 15 TDs in 15 games. Demps might be too small to really carry the load but he will always be a factor when he steps on the field.

35 -The minutes per game TCU had the ball (34.55.62 to be exact) for tops in the nation. Solid numbers. They play outstanding D. They won $ for us quite a bit last year. We will be watching them again this year. Go Horned Frogs!!!!!

34 - The national ranking for tunrovers forced by Bama. They forced 24 turnovers for a .31 turnover ratio. That is freakin’ terrible!!! We think Bama is in the top 5 for most overhyped teams going into the season. We’ve heard a ton of talk about the Tide having the best D in the country. Eventhough they have a cakewalk for a schedule, don’t believe the hype!!!

33 - Michigan’s bowl streak that ended last season.

32 - The number of wins Texas has since winning the national championship 4 years ago. Texas has not even played for a Big 12 title during this time.

31 - The amount of points Houston gave up on defense per game last season. The defense this year might play 6 freshmen. Remember folks….Houston and the OVER, Houston and the OVER, Houston and the OVER. Say it three times before you go to bed every night. Also, Washington State’s average margin of defeat last season. Can you say Coach on the hot seat? We can!

30 - The age of Clemson’s Offensive Coordinator, Billy Napier. Dabo Swinney will have his hands full this year. Clemson will disappoint again. Phrase of the piece = Have his hands full. Full of what we wonder?

29 - “I’ve never seen so much optimism,” said columnist Rick Cleveland, a Mississippi native who has covered sports at the Jackson Clarion-Ledger for 29 years. It has been 46 years since Ole Miss won the SEC.  To put things into perspective. 46 years ago there were zero African american players in the SEC and Steve Spurrier was a freshman.

28 - The number of football national championship Princeton has won, the all-time leader.

27 - Stan Parrish’s current winless streak as a head coach. Stan was Kansas State’s coach before Bill Snyder and now takes over a Ball State team that was 12-2 last season. How the hell did this guy get a job? Probably because Muncie, IN could never be confused with San Diego or any SEC city.

26 - Road wins by TCU over the last 6 season, which is better than both Florida and Oklahoma. TCU even beat Oklahoma on the road in 2005. TCU has 5 ten win seasons the last 7 seasons and they are 30-2 in games when they hold opponents under 333 yards. Both losses were to Utah.

25 - Damion Fletcher, Southern Miss RB. Best RB you have never heard of. Has career stats of 4,287 yards and 36 touchdowns. If he repeats his three year average he will go down stat wise as one of the 5 best RBs of all time.

24 - Number of seasons Nevada Coach Chris Ault has patrolled the sidelines for the Wolf Pack. He is 193-84-1 over his career and returns 14 starters for his 25th season. Ault is the 6th active winningest coach in the country. The Wolf Pack open at Notre Dame in what could be an awesome week 1 upset. We can dream.

23 - Notre Dame’s pre-season AP rank. We think AP voters are literally on crack. Don’t do meth!

22 - Tribute to Runny’s favorite player of all time…Emmitt Smith, RB Florida Gators.

21 - The number of losses Charlie Weis has in 4 years as head coach of Notre Dame. More than 5 per season. The number of losses Ty Willingham had as head coach of ND was 15 after three seasons. Charlie is no better than Ty and of course he is ten thousand times fatter.

20 - Days until Week 1 of the NFL season is over. We bet NFL games too so get ready for a busy weekend.

19 - The 19th day of September is the day Lane Kiffin brings his Vols to the Swamp. Look for Urban Meyer to not only pummel the Vols but to run up the score as much as possible. Remember, Kiffin accused Meyer of recruiting violations this year. We know what Meyer will do when disrespected. Just ask Georgia.

18 - The number of starters Paul Johnson’s Georgia Tech team returns this season. GT was 9-4 last season and was blown out by LSU in their bowl game. However, Paul Johnson’s triple option offense showed off in some impressive games and we look for them to improve on last year’s season in 2009. GT we are watching you.

17 - Iowa State’s current road losing streak. The longest in the nation. Kent State on 9/19 is the first opportunity to bust the streak. Also, the number of games the Pac-10 and SEC have played against each other since 2000 and the Pac-10 LEADS the series 10 to 7. Interesting that the SEC’s label as the best conference in football is 3 games under .500 versus the Pac-1, oops, Pac-10.

16 -Jarrett Brown, QB West Virginia. Will Brown be able to fill in for Pat White? Brown was White’s understudy for the last three years so he has learned from one of the best. Brown is 6′4″ and 223 pounds and wants to be the man in Morgantown. Big East is weak this year so maybe Brown can pull a Tee Martin and replace a legend and carry WVU to the title game.

15 - Tim Tebow. As much as we hate the Gators and Tim Tebow, you can not overlook them. Tebow has not lost since his Ole Miss debacle last season and his immortal words are now permanently displayed at the Swamp. Tim can elevate his elite NCAA status to legendary status with another BCS title and/or Heisman. SEC fans look out.

14 - Boise State’s pre-season AP rank. This is the highest ranking by a non-BCS team this year.

13 - We are superstitious and will not mention any teams or players at this spot.

12 - Colt McCoy. The man who beat Oklahoma and did not play Florida for the national title. McCoy spent last season playing second fiddle in the Big 12 to Oklahoma and Sam Bradford. We have a feeling that this is Colt’s year. Top to bottom we think Texas is a better team (remember last season) and Colt has extra motivation. If they run the table with their schedule, we think they are better than Florida and will beat them in the BCS final.

11 - The number of years the BCS has been in existence. This system needs to be changed ASAP. Fans want a playoff, the players want a playoff and we say lets start with an 8 team playoff. Enough of this crap.

10 - The number of seniors on Steve Spurrier’s South Carolina team. Steve is 7-11 since 2007 and hired 6 new coaches for this season. South Carolina plays 8 teams that went to bowl games this season. They don’t make Steve Spurrier teams like they used to. The SEC caught up to Steve really fast.

9 - Number of TDs thrown by UCLA QBs last season. And Neuheisel thinks a redshirt QB will fix his offense. The joke will be on him!

8 - The number of starters Penn State returns to a team that went to the Rose Bowl. Big Ten is wide open this year. Ohio State will be down, Penn State will be down, Michigan is still down. There are lots of opportunities for a surprise Big Ten winner. Iowa and Illinois have the early edge for dark horse contender.

7 - Notre Dame has lost 7 in a row to USC. That’s the longest losing streak for ND against anyone since losing eight straight vs. Michigan State from 1955-63. You know our opinion on ND this season.

6 - The number of secondary NCAA violations committed by Vols Coach Lane Kiffin. All this before the season even started. Welcome to the SEC Kiffin. You thought working for Al Davis was hard, try playing in the SEC and in front of 100,000 fans. Will Kiffin be able to turn it around or will he continue the mediocrity?

5 - The amount of teams the Big 12 put in the top 25 in the final AP poll. SEC only had 4. The SEC’s hype as the most dominant conference in the nation was challenged last year and will be challenged again this year.

4 - The amount of offensive linemen that started for Oklahoma last year that are no longer on the team. Oklahoma is the “bettor beware” team of 2009. Almost every single poll has Oklahoma in the top 3. Remember Georgia last year? The “so-called” experts picked Georgia #1 in many polls and we know the story. The reason? Changes in the O-line. Last year Georgia had an inexperienced starting OL and this year Oklahoma only returns one starter on their OL. That is right. Oklahoma is replacing 4 OL starters. Top that off with the departure of two starting WRs from last year and you can see where this is going. Oklahoma will definitely be a favorite pick for a lot of bettors but we are saying be very, very careful. Texas will take this team out and we are expecting Oklahoma to finish the season with 3-4 losses. The Sooners are vulnerable. On a side note, Penn State graduated 3 Big Ten starting OL and Oregon lost its All American Center and starting left tackle. This cases are not as extreme as Oklahoma but they are worth mentioning.

3 - The SEC has won three straight NCAA titles. Not since the AP started polling in 1936, has one conference won the title 4 years in a row.

2 - Taylor Mays’ number. The best college football player to step on the field this season. 6′3″ 230 pounds and a near 4.2 40 time. INSANE!!!! Look for Mays to run the defense and play closer to the line this year. 4 LBs went to the pros last year and 2009 is the year of Mays! Dark horse Heisman candidate if he can make some big plays and score TDs on returns. Also, the folks in Columbus are talking about Pryor’s supposed 4.3 40 yard time. Well guess who is the one player that ran Pryor down from behind last year? Mr. Mays!

1 -Texas will be the #1 team in the country when all games are played this season.

We hope we provided you with some good bathroom reading. Stay tuned for our week 1 predictions. Gotta love this time of year!!!

Flash Flash and Runny

Week 12 Free NCAA Football Winning Picks: Throwing the Kitchen Sink of Tits and Ass at These picks!

It has been a long year for us here at RPJ. We are 36-42-2 on the season. Flash Flash is 18-11-3 on the season and Runny is 23-24-1 on the season. Flash has been money but the collective that is known as RPJ has flat out sucked it. We are losing money for you and we are losing money for ourselves. We are seeing signs that we are coming back though and we are excited for this weekend. Our college picks went undefeated on Wednesday and Thursday and we look to carry that momentum into the weekend. We know we blow, you have posted comments and you have sent emails but we have held true to our system and to full disclosure. We are honest and we always will be. Second, we bet every single game we post so we are feeling the pain along with you. One thing is for certain, we remain 100% confident in our models, we have remained disciplined and we will win our money back. We are not going to hit you up with ads this week or extra clicks or links or any of that bullshiznit. We are coming back to our roots with picks and girls. Straight up!

RPJ $yndicate Picks (35-42-2 on the season)

We have been quiet the last two weeks. The games were just not there for us but this week we have a ton of games for you.

Purdue at Iowa (-18) - Last week was Iowa’s season. They beat an undefeated Penn State and they won their 6 th game, which means they are bowl eligible. We have no idea why this line is so high. Last time we checked, Iowa was still a one dimensional team (running) and Purdue is led by a senior QB. Purdue played last week and lost to Michigan State by 14 points on the road. The Spartans are a lot better than Iowa and we see no reason why this spread is so high. We will say it again. Why the hell is this spread 18.5 points. We are no buying the Iowa hype because they beat the #3 team in the country last week. The Big 11 is not good so beating an undefeated Penn State team is not impressive. Here are the ATS numbers:

Purdue

• Boilermakers are 7-1 ATS in their last 8 games after accumulating less than 170 yards passing in their previous game.
• Boilermakers are 10-4 ATS in their last 14 games in November.
• Boilermakers are 5-2 ATS in their last 7 games after accumulating less than 275 total yards in their previous game.

Iowa

• Hawkeyes are 3-7 ATS in their last 10 games following a ATS win.
• Hawkeyes are 5-13 ATS in their last 18 games following a S.U. win.
• Hawkeyes are 3-8 ATS vs. a team with a losing record.
• Hawkeyes are 2-6 ATS in their last 8 games in November.
• Hawkeyes are 2-9 ATS in their last 11 games after allowing less than 170 yards passing in their previous game.

Head-to-Head

• Favorite is 4-1 ATS in their last 5 meetings.
• Home team is 4-1 ATS in their last 5 meetings.

This has been the week of opposites. We tweaked our models slightly and it has led to victories. In the past we would have blindly selected Northern Illinois to beat Central Michigan based on what our models say but with our new tweaks we stayed away and successfully bet the Chips. This is the same situation. Our models used to say take Iowa but with our new tweaks we are all over Purdue. This is simply way too many points. We are taking Purdue to cover!

UNC at Maryland (+3) - This comes down to one thing and one thing only. You do not eff with Maryland at home. Maryland is undefeated at home and UNC’s 2 losses were on the road (one to UVA) and they only have one road win and that was their miracle comeback against Miami. North Carolina’s defense has conceded 349.2 yards a game this season, and has allowed 454.6 yards per contest in its last five matchups versus Maryland (6-3, 3-2) - a span in which it lost four in a row from 2001-05 before emerging with a 16-13 home victory on Nov. 3, 2007. Maryland is perfect in its five home games this season, outscoring opponents 153-82. Maryland has defeated all three Top 25 teams it has faced thus far by an average of 12.3 points. The Tar Heels are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 meetings in Maryland and the Tar Heels are 1-7 ATS in their last 8 meetings. The ATS numbers support us as well but they are not needed. Maryland probably wins but will certainly cover!

Notre Dame at Navy (+4) - It pains us to actually bet Notre Dame but when a moneymaking opportunity arises we have to step in. Not gonna get into too much detail here but The Fighting Irish are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 meetings in Navy and the Road team is 12-1 ATS in their last 13 meetings. Charlie Weis is potentiall fighting for his job or at least that is what the media is saying and this is a significant revenge game for Notre Dame. The Irish come ready to play and win by more than 4. Take the Irish to win and cover!

Miss State at Alabama (-22) - Alabama at home against the SEC has produced some interesting results. Alabama 24 and Ole MIss 20. Alabama 17 and Kentucky 14. And this is SEC game number three but we think you can see the trend. Check out these ATS numbers:

• Bulldogs are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 meetings in Alabama.
• Bulldogs are 10-3 ATS in their last 13 meetings.
• Underdog is 5-2 ATS in their last 7 meetings.
• Road team is 6-1 ATS in their last 7 meetings.

Got it. Miss State owns Alabama and we think Bama is one of the most overrated teams in the country. Bama will be looking ahead to Auburn and has been hearing for two weeks how they will face Florida in the SEC title game so they are basically playing for nothing. Mississippi State will take advantage and can keep this game close like they always do.

Check out these scores:

2007 - Miss St. 17/Alabama 12

2006 - Miss St. 24/Alabama 16

2005 - Miss St. 0/Alabama 17

2004 - Miss St. 14/Alabama 30

See the trend. Close games. We think Miss. St. covers in this game!

Georgia at Auburn (+10) - We are not sure why we are coming back to the Georgia well after they disappointed last week at Kentucky. However, we are able to look past the SEC media bias and we 100% understand that Auburn sucks! Yes they suck!!! The ATS numbers:

Georgia

• Bulldogs are 6-0 ATS in their last 6 games after allowing less than 170 yards passing in their previous game.
• Bulldogs are 4-1-1 ATS in their last 6 road games.
• Bulldogs are 7-2 ATS in their last 9 games after allowing more than 200 yards rushing in their previous game.
• Bulldogs are 7-3-1 ATS in their last 11 games following a S.U. win.

Auburn

• Tigers are 17-35-1 ATS in their last 53 games after allowing less than 100 yards rushing in their previous game.
• Tigers are 2-5 ATS in their last 7 home games vs. a team with a winning road record.
• Tigers are 0-4 ATS vs. a team with a winning record.
• Tigers are 0-5 ATS in their last 5 games on grass.
• Tigers are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 games following a S.U. win.
• Tigers are 0-8 ATS in their last 8 games after accumulating more than 450 total yards in their previous game.
• Tigers are 0-6 ATS in their last 6 conference games.
• Tigers are 0-6 ATS in their last 6 games after accumulating less than 170 yards passing in their previous game.
• Tigers are 0-8 ATS in their last 8 games overall.
• Tigers are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 home games.

As we said, we are going back to the well. We think Georgia wins and covers!

Tulsa at Houston (+4 and Over/Under 80) - We have been enticed, teased and ultimately burned by these games that appear to be 110% guaranteed for the Over. Lets look at the ATS numbers:

Tulsa

• Golden Hurricane are 7-0 ATS in their last 7 games after accumulating more than 280 yards passing in their previous game.
• Golden Hurricane are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 conference games.
• Golden Hurricane are 7-2 ATS in their last 9 games overall.
• Under is 7-0 in Golden Hurricane last 7 games on grass.
• Under is 5-0 in Golden Hurricane last 5 games following a S.U. loss.
• Under is 12-2 in Golden Hurricane last 14 games after accumulating more than 450 total yards in their previous game.
• Under is 5-1-2 in Golden Hurricane last 8 games after allowing less than 100 yards rushing in their previous game.
• Under is 9-3 in Golden Hurricane last 12 vs. a team with a winning record.

Houston

• Cougars are 17-35 ATS in their last 52 games following a ATS win.
• Cougars are 7-15 ATS in their last 22 games after allowing less than 275 total yards in their previous game.
• Cougars are 3-7 ATS in their last 10 games after accumulating more than 280 yards passing in their previous game.
• Cougars are 3-7 ATS in their last 10 games on grass.
• Cougars are 4-10 ATS in their last 14 games after allowing less than 20 points in their previous game.
• Cougars are 2-6 ATS in their last 8 home games.
• Cougars are 3-10 ATS in their last 13 games overall.
• Cougars are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games after accumulating more than 450 total yards in their previous game.
• Cougars are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games after accumulating more than 200 yards rushing in their previous game.
• Cougars are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games in November.
• Cougars are 1-5 ATS vs. a team with a winning record.
• Cougars are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games after scoring more than 40 points in their previous game.
• Cougars are 1-7 ATS in their last 8 games following a S.U. win.
• Cougars are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 games following a SU win of more than 20 points.
• Cougars are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 games after allowing less than 100 yards rushing in their previous game.
• Under is 6-0 in Cougars last 6 games after accumulating more than 200 yards rushing in their previous game.
• Under is 5-0 in Cougars last 5 games in November.
• Under is 5-1 in Cougars last 6 home games.
• Under is 8-2 in Cougars last 10 conference games.
• Under is 4-1 in Cougars last 5 games after allowing less than 100 yards rushing in their previous game.
• Under is 7-2 in Cougars last 9 games following a S.U. win.
• Under is 6-2 in Cougars last 8 games after scoring more than 40 points in their previous game.
• Under is 10-4 in Cougars last 14 games overall.

We think those numbers say it all. We are coming at you with our Conference USA two play. Take Tulsa to win and cover and take the UNDER!

USC (-24) at Stanford - This might be our pick of the year and we apologize in advance if we arenot going to sit here and throw out ATS numbers and detailed reasons for this game. This game is no different than Florida versus Georgia this year. USC circled this game on their schedule and have looked at it for one whole year. We would probably take this line up to 40. Stanford’s RB Gerhart is injured and Stanford is already a one dimensional team. Sorry we said no analysis was needed. USC Effs up Stanford, wins and covers easily!

Runny Pelvis the Fat Picks (23-24-1 on the season)

Indiana at Penn State (-35): This game will not be close. Penn State is still nursing their wounds from Iowa last week. They will take out their revenge on a TERRIBLE IU squad. IU gave-up 50+ points last week at home during their parent’s weekend. If they can’t play for their folks, no way they play well on the road this week. They may not score a point. Take Penn State and give the points.

Minnesota at Wisconsin (-13.5): This is Wsiconsin’s final Big 10 home game. The Golden Gophers have come back to reality. Minnesota will not play well out doors. Wisconsin rolls easy. Take the Badgers and give the points.

Wake Forest at NC State (+3.5): Wake knows they need to finish strong to get a decent Bowl. They cover. Take the Deacons and give the points.

UCONN at Syracuse (+10): It pains me to say it (I’m a HUGE CUSE fan), but the Orange are terrible. Although they play Big East teams decently at home, UConn will not have trouble with them this week. Take the Huskies and give the points.

Texas A&M at Baylor (-8): Baylor is not beating anyone by 8 points. Take A&M and the points.

Toledo at Western Michigan (-15.5): Toledo can score and Western Michigan will be looking ahead to next week. Western wins, but Toledo covers. Take Toledo and the points.

Missouri at Iowa State (+27): The Cyclones play well at home. MIZZOU will be looking shead to next week. The Tigers win, but will not cover. Take the Cyclones and the points.

BYU at Air Force (+5.5): This line is low for a reason. Air Force can score and BYU will be looking ahead to next week. BYU does not travel well. Take Air Force and the points.

South Carolina at Florida (-22.5): The Ol’ Football Coach wants nothing more than to damage the Gators’ run to a national championship. A win in this one will do just that. The Gamecocks have no business being in this game, but the SEC is overrated. The Gators may lose outright. Take the Cocks and the points.

Boise State at Idaho (+36.5): Idaho is terrible and should not cover, but Boise won’t run-up the score. Plus, the Vandals players are probably rejects from Boise State, so they will be playing with chips on their shoulders. Take the Vandals and the points at home.

Oklahoma State at Colorado (+17.5): This game will get ugly in a hurry. The Buffalos just don;t have the horses to score with the Cowboys. Cowboys win by at least 3 TD’s. Take the Cowboys and give the points.

Washington State at Arizona State (-36.5): The Cougars could be the worse team in the NCAA of any division. They can’t cover on the road. Take the Sun Devils and give the points.

Flash Flash for the Cash Picks (18-11-3 on the season)

Northwestern at Michigan (-3.5) - Gonna make this short and sweet. Northwestern has a better run defense, better run offense and they turn the ball over less per game. Michiga is terrible at home against the spread. The ATS numbers:

Northwestern

• Wildcats are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 games following a ATS loss.
• Wildcats are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games following a S.U. loss.
• Wildcats are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games after scoring less than 20 points in their previous game.
• Wildcats are 13-3 ATS in their last 16 games following a double-digit loss at home.
• Wildcats are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 road games vs. a team with a losing home record.
• Wildcats are 16-5 ATS in their last 21 games after allowing more than 40 points in their previous game.

Michigan

• Wolverines are 2-7 ATS in their last 9 games on turf.
• Wolverines are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 conference games.
• Wolverines are 1-5 ATS in their last 6 games overall.
• Wolverines are 1-6 ATS in their last 7 home games.

Not gonna use rocket science here but Michiga is not good at home and as I pointed out have only covered once and that was against Wisconsin in their miracle comeback. I think Northwestern comes out of here with a win and with a cover at a minimum. Take Northwestern to cover!

Utah State at Lousiana Tech (-14) - I pick the freak show games and I love betting against Utah State. Utah State can not stop the run, La. Tech loves to run and Utah State turns the ball over more. La. Tech is undefeated against the spread at home this year and the streak will continue. La. Tech wins big and covers in this game!

RPJ $yndicate Arse Shot of the Week!

Good luck with your picks!

Flash Flash and Runny Pelvis

Week 12 SEC NCAA Football Picks - Backwoods Southern Lawyer’s Redemption Song!

Greetings and salutations to all.   BSL here, back with another installation of my razor sharp SEC picks this year.  Yours truly has had to make with the color commentary as of late because the picks themselves have been garbage.  No, make that garbage with diarrhea on top of it.  In any event, with each passing week comes a chance at sweet redemption and so, without further ado, I humbly present the following for your consideration:
Georgia (minus 10) at Auburn.  Bulldogs are better than Auburn.  Much, much better.  Auburn is coming off an unimpressive victory over div. I-AA competition, which made it painfully clear that the AU Tigers are just trying to get the season over with as quickly as possible so they can start thinking about how to right the ship for next year.  In all likelihood, their loss to Florida knocked Georgia out of the BCS picture, and was a major blow to the team psyche.  Still, the Bulldogs pulled it together enough to win a nail-biter at Kentucky, and I think UGA wins this one by at least 2 TDs.

Ole Miss (minus 22.5) vs. UL-Monroe.   Ole Miss has done very little in terms of winning by daylight this year, and they are playing a UL-M squad with a penchant for keeping things reasonably close.  I think Ole Miss wins this one by 21 points, and since that’s less than 22.5, I’m taking UL-M in this one.

Florida (minus 22.5) vs. South Carolina.  Follow this logic if you can:  Ole Miss beats Florida, South Carolina beats Ole Miss, and now that South Carolina is playing Florida, the Gamecocks are 3-TD dogs. Apparently the transitive laws do not apply in the SEC, and quite frankly, in this case they shouldn’t.  The Gators have been absolute world beaters since their loss to Ole Miss.  They are, in my humble opinion, the best college football team in the universe right now.  South Carolina, on the other hand has been taking care of business against lesser teams (but not blowing them out).  Still, 22.5 points is an awful lot to give Spurrier and the Gamecock defense, and the Gators can’t blow everyone out for the rest of the year (can they?).  I think Florida wins comfortably, but not by more than 20, so I’m going to play with the ‘Cocks.

Miss St. (minus 22) at Alabama.  What’s the deal with the 22-point lines in the SEC this weekend?  Jerry Seinfeld wants to know.  I think Miss. State has stopped believing that they can win.  Alabama, fresh off an OT scare at LSU last week, will be able to get their playmakers (namely, Julio Jones and Glen Coffee) into open space, and that means touchdowns.  Also, Miss St may not score.   I see this as a 31-0 type of job.  So, take Bama to win and cover.

Troy (minus 17) at LSU.  A battle of 6-3 teams, except one LSU’s losses have been to Alabama, Georgia and Florida, while Troy is a Sun Belt team that lost to UL-Monroe two weeks ago.  All the wise guys are picking Troy in this one.  Fuggetaboutit.  LSU (it appears) has finally figured out how to play defense, and I think the Tigers roll in this one by at least 3 TDs.  Take LSU to win and cover.

Vanderbilt (plus 4) at Kentucky.  Vanderbilt was at 5 wins a month ago and they still are.  Somewhere along the way, they lost their direction and belief that they can win.  Meanwhile, Kentucky has looked pretty decent these last few games and is playing for a fairly respectable bowl game.  I like the Wildcats to win by a comfortable margin in this one.  Take UK.

And those are the picks, folks.  Thanks again to Runny, Flash and everyone at the Syndicate for sticking with me, and good luck to everybody this weekend.

BSL

Week 7 NCAA Free Football Picks (10/11/2008): - The Backwoods Southern Lawyer Picks SEC Winners

BSL here.  My picks for the last two weeks have gone off about as well as my last deposition.

After another crap-the-sheets, 2-2 performance last week, I’m hovering just above .500 and ready to make something happen.  I just so happen to have a 5-star, blistering hot, balls deep mortal lock for this weekend, which I absolutely love: take LSU and Miss St. on a money line parlay and laugh all the way to the bank. 
 
LSU (plus 6) at FLORIDA.  In case you’ve missed it, the news in: Florida is just not that great of a football team.  I’ve felt uneasy about this Gator squad all year; something is just not right in Gainesville.  They were 9-4 last year and will end up near that mark again this year.  LSU is simply better on both sides of the ball and will win this one outright (perhaps by double digits).  LSU, by the way, will win (or at least come awfully close to winning) the national championship this year. 
 
MISS. STATE (plus 3) vs. VANDERBILT.  When it comes to Vanderbilt, I’m the jerk at the table with a stack of black on the “Don’t Come” line.  With the exception of the Ga Tech game, MSU has been performing better each week and is sitting on a big effort.  MSU’s new QB is sitting on a big effort, and Vandy will bounce after last week’s emotional upset of Auburn.  Also, all of the fan money is on Vandy, which makes me feel great about the Bulldogs.  MSU wins this one outright.
 
This is your cure for the looming financial crisis.  I feel very strongly about this play.  $100 wins you $550.  Add a zero to those figures and you’ve got Sizzler money.  Cha-ching.

The only play I’m making this weekend is what you see above.  However, for those of you of with enquiring minds, here are my other SEC picks for this weekend

TAKE GEORGIA (minus 13) vs. TENNESSEE.  Georgia is a good football team, and Tennessee is a very bad football team.    
 
TAKE SOUTH CAROLINA (-1.5) AT KENTUCKY.  Another tough call.  Both have great defenses.  After Smelly’s big week last time out, I give South Carolina the edge on offense. 
 
TAKE ARKANSAS (plus 18.5) AT AUBURN.  There are very few teams that Auburn is capable of beating by 19 points, and none of those teams is in the SEC.  Arkansas hung with Florida for three and a half quarters last Saturday and is certainly getting tired of having their ass handed to them on a weekly basis.  Now they can their offense coorfdinator.  Please.  Tubberville never bought into Tony Frankin’s spread offense and really never gave it a chance.  I blame Tuberville for failing to commit to an offense he bought into when he brought Franklin on board.  Random Prediction: Petrino leaves Arkansas in disgrace within 3 years (possibly 4).

 

Thanks to the boys at RPJ for giving me a place to spew my SEC venom. The website looks great.

Yours Truly,

Backwoods Southern Lawyer

Week 6 NCAA Free Football Winning Picks (10/4/2008): How We Got Senate to Vote on Bailout

Well last week was a mixed bag of tricks. RPJ $yndicate was 6-3 last week and is now 18-15-1 on the season. Flash was 0-2 last week and is now 5-3 on the season. Runny was 2-5 last week and is now 13-14 on the season. We are questioning our experiment to post our own personal picks. Not sure it is bringing much value to our readers because we know our RPJ picks are on a roll after back-to-back solid weeks. If you want all of our picks let us know by posting a comment or shoot us an email at rpjsyndicate@gmail.com. We are here to make you money so we will try and contribute to your wallets as many ways as possible.

This week we are helping the U.S Government deal with the economic crisis and we have two words for you…..More Cowbell!!!!

If only Congress and Wall Street had more cowbell we would not be in our current predicament. We also are proposing legalized sports betting across all 50 states. Let the government set the lines and keep the vig. That has to be worth a few billion with all the degenerates in the good Ole US of A.

And yes of course we are going to show you some hot ass and ass in thongs and bring back some new pictures of Keyra Augustina (sorry Heidi Klum fans, but the Keyra fans have spoken in mass)….

RPJ $yndicate Picks of the Week

Iowa at Michigan State (-6.5) - This is another trust us game. The same exact model that helped us find the UCLA/Fresno State winner last week is rearing its winning head in this game. This is a huge Big 10 match-up. These teams need this win. The photo below alone should show you who to take!!! Gotta love strategically placed Hawkeye stickers!!!

FACTS: Iowa is 7-0 ATS in the game before IU, MSU is 1-5 ATS in their last 6 head-to-head meetings with Iowa and MSU is 1-8 ATS as home favorites of 24 or less off a straight-up win. We think MSU will win this game, but it will be close. Take Iowa +6.5.

Texas at Colorado (-13)- Texas has been lights out this year. Now they get a Big 12 rival on the road. Colorado has been good, but they got smoked last week against an overrated FSU team. They will not fair much better at home this week. Texas will look to make a statement with this game. FACTS: Texas is 5-1 ATS in their last 6 against Colorado (3-0 ATS in Colorado) and Colorado is 0-5 ATS in the game before Kansas and when they lose a game (which they will this week), they are only 5-33 ATS. When they lose, they lose big!!! Now throw in the fact that Texas, a team that leads D-1 football in sacks with 16, rolls into Boulder to face a Buffs line that just lost two more starting linemen so they are now down 4 on the season. Ugly Ugly Ugly possibilities. Texas is 4-0 ATS this season and will continue their roll. Take the Longhorns -13.

Nevada at Idaho (+24) - Idaho has been TERRIBLE all year. They have been blown out in nearly every game. They have not looked competitive. Nevada has not been great, but they can score. They should be able to put up a lot against the Vandals. FACTS: Idaho is 0-6 ATS as conference underdogs of 21 points of more. They can’t cover against big teams in their conference. They will not do it here either. Take Neveda -24.

Western Kentucky at Virginia Tech (-28) - WKU may be the worse DIV-1 team. They are terrible. Although they are 2-3, their two wins have come against non DIV-1 teams. In their games against DIV-1 teams, they have been outscored 113-23. This does not bode well for them heading into Blacksburg to face the Hokies. Blacksburg is one of the toughest places to play. They will get trounced again. FACTS: VaTech is 11-1 ATS off a straight-up underdog win. They may never stop scoring this week, and WKU may never start. Also, we are 3-0 combined on 28 point spreads. Keeping the juju working. Take VaTech -28.

Penn State at Purdue (+13.5)- Another big Big 10 game. Penn State is off their defeat at home of Illinois. Purdue was embarrassed against the Irish. No way Purdue was looking past the Irish-they are just disappointing. Penn State is not. Their D is outstanding and they have a great offense. Penn State will be looking to keep their Big 10 authority. FACTS: PSU is 7-2 ATS in their last 9 against Purdue and Purdue is 1-9 ATS as underdogs following a double digit ATS loss. Penn State rolls. Take Penn State -13.5.

Illinois @ Michigan (-2): Illinois stayed with Penn State last week, but when the pressure got on, Juice folded. Can that guy not turn the ball over?!?!? Very bad QB. He makes bad decisions and Illinois cannot come from behind with him managing the game. He gets another tough road test in Ann Arbor. Michigan is not good either, but they are playing with a lot of confidence. Their comeback last week became an instant classic. Rodriguez is proof positive that coaching in college football makes a HUGE difference. FACTS: Illinois is 0-11 ATS away after allowing 35 or more points and Michigan is 4-1 ATS in their last 5 meetings with Illinois. Take Michigan -2.

Flash Flash Picks

South Carolina at Ole Miss (-2.5) - Ole Miss is going to be in let down mode and USC really needs to get going again. Also, chalk one up to the Sports Illustrated curse, which was nice enough to feature Ole Miss on their cover this week.

I love the fact that the road team in this matchup is 4-0 ATS in their last 4 and I think USC comes ready to play. They have a great defense and now need to work that Spurrier magic to get the O going. I am taking USC to cover and might throw some dough on the moneyline if it is profitable enough.

Maryland at Virginia (+13.5) - Virginia is really a mess. They should play a tournament with Syracuse, Western Kentucky and Idaho to see who the worst team is in D-1 with the loser getting tossed down to D-III so they can play NESCAC games against the likes of Hamilton and Bates in front of 10 fans in -32 degree weather. Now I would watch that Battle Royale. Look at the ATS numbers…

Virginia
Cavaliers are 2-5 ATS in their last 7 games following a SU loss of more than 20 points.
Cavaliers are 2-6 ATS in their last 8 games after scoring less than 20 points in their previous game.
Cavaliers are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games on grass.
Cavaliers are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 home games vs. a team with a winning road record.
Cavaliers are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 conference games.
Cavaliers are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games overall.
Cavaliers are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 home games.

Where are the positive UVA items you ask? They are in Ralph Friedgen’s belly….

Maryland wins this game big!!!!

Ohio State (-1) at Wisconsin - The Buckeyes own the Big 10. Own it own it own it. Got that…Let me say it again….BUCKEYES OWN THE BIG TEN. Beanie Wells is back, Pryor is at QB and Ohio State is still motivated because they know they can run the Big Ten table (remember they own it) and still lay claim to being the best team in the land because their one loss will be when they were minus Beanie, on the road against the then #1 team in the country and still getting Pryor involved with the offense. Throw in the fact that Ohio State can stop the run on defense and turns the ball over a lot less than Wisconsin and you can see where this is going. The ATS numbers:

Ohio State
Buckeyes are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 games in October.
Buckeyes are 13-3 ATS in their last 16 road games vs. a team with a winning home record.
Buckeyes are 22-8 ATS in their last 30 conference games.
Buckeyes are 11-4 ATS in their last 15 road games.
Buckeyes are 17-8 ATS in their last 25 games after allowing less than 275 total yards in their previous game.
Buckeyes are 0-4 ATS vs. a team with a winning record.
Buckeyes are 0-5 ATS in their last 5 games following a S.U. win.
Buckeyes are 0-5 ATS in their last 5 games overall. (scary stat but one that will reverse)

Wisconsin
Badgers are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games following a S.U. loss.
Badgers are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 home games.
Badgers are 2-7 ATS in their last 9 conference games. (Remember the Big 10 is bad)

This game is basically a pick the winner game. Wisconsin played the typical look ahead game last week and blew a 19 point lead in The Big House. That is terrible. This team also should have lost at Fresno State, thanks to the Fresno kicker. Defense and turnovers win ball games and that favors Ohio State. Ohio State wins and covers!

Runny Picks

Indiana @ Minnesota (-7): IU has been extremely disappointing this year. We thought they would play better for Hep, but they have been terrible. Off the field issues have plagued them and maybe it has effected their play. Who knows? What I do know is they suck. Minnesota has been surprisingly decent. I gave them no credit coming into the season, but they have shown me wrong. Huge cover for them last week. I think they continue that momentum this week at home. FACTS: Minn is 6-0 ATS in their last 6 against IU and 9-1 ATS against teams that are .400 or worse. IU has a great ATS road record in the Big 10 (10-1 in their last 11), but I don’t think it matters this week. This is their first game outside of Bloomington. Take Minnesota -7.

Texas Tech @ Kansas State (+7); OVER 66: Two picks for the price of one here. This line is pretty low considering how much Tech can score. Crabtree may be the best player in NCAA. Tech has  dominated this series ATS in recent years (4-0 ATS in their last 4). However, they go on the road this week to a rival that is good at home. To me, that is why the line is so low. That and because KState can score, too. I think Tech wins, but it will be a close shootout. I’m taking KState +7 and the OVER 66.

Kansas @ Iowa State (+11.5): My first Mangino bet of the year!! I’m lovin’ it!! The Cyclones usually put up a good fight at home. However, hurricane Magino is coming to town this week!!!! FACTS: Kansas is 7-1 ATS in their last 8 conference games, 4-1 ATS in their last 5 against Iowa State, 4-0 ATS in their 4 as road favorites and 7-1 ATS with rest. They cover. Take Kansas -11.5.

Ball State @ Toledo (+7.5), OVER 64: Another two-for-one special. Ball State is riding high, despite their HUGE loss of Love. Tragic injury and we hope for the best. They get a tough MAC road game this week. Toldeo can score. Both D’s are bad. I think this game will be high scoring and they should hit the over easily. In regards to the line, I think this is Ball State’s year. I’m riding them until they prove me wrong. FACTS: Ball State is 3-0 ATS in their last 3 meetings with Toledo and they are 6-1 ATS in the 1st of back-to-back road games. I’m taking Ball State -7.5 and the OVER 64.

We could not agree on the Auburn at Vanderbilt game so we will just show you a sweet pic…

Good luck, may your wallets be full and your whores STD free.

Flash Flash and Runny

Week 6 NCAA Free Football Picks (10/4/2008): Redemption - The Backwoods Southern Lawyer Picks SEC Winners

Well the Backwoods Southern Lawyer wilted under the pressure last week posting a 1-3 record. He sent me the following email and is back for another week…..

An off weekend brought yours truly dangerously close to .500 for September. The philosophical question for college football fans after last week is whether Ole Miss’ upset of Florida shows that the SEC is strong top to bottom or just weak at the top….. and while you ponder that, chew on these picks for this week:

Take FLORIDA (minus 24) at ARKANSAS. After last weekend’s setback against Ole Miss, Tim Tebow gave a teary-eyed apology to the Gator Nation and swore: “But I promise you one thing: a lot of good will come out of this. You have never seen any player in the entire country play as hard as I will play the rest of this season, and you’ll never see someone push the rest of the team as hard as I will push everybody the rest of this season. And you’ll never see a team play harder than we will the rest of this season. God bless.” I, for one, believe him. Even though Florida is banged up and Arkansas is due to show up sometime (and I am loathe to give away 24 in any SEC match-up), I just have a feeling that Florida will take out their frustrations on the hapless Razorbacks and roll to a 5 TD victory.

Take OLE MISS (minus 2.5) vs. SOUTH CAROLINA. I usually look for teams to bounce after emotional wins like the one Ole Miss had over Florida last week, but I think this is a tale of two teams going in opposite directions. Ole Miss is a couple of plays away from being 5-0 right now. They’ve been re-energized by their new coach and the team and fan base is starting to believe (especially after last week). South Carolina is starting to wonder whether Spurrier is what they thought he was when they hired him, and the switch to Andy Garcia, while necessary, may cause some growing pains. I look for Ole Miss to win by 9+ points.

Take KENTUCKY (plus 15.5) at ALABAMA. The vogue pick this weekend is to take Alabama because Kentucky hasn’t played anyone, ‘Bama is the hottest team in the country and Saban is better than Bear Bryant, Vince Lombardi and Jesus put together. However, I’m here to tell you my friends that Kentucky is a quality club. They beat Western Kentucky worse than Alabama did, and Alabama threw in a stinker after their big game with Clemson, just like they might do this week after their big win in Athens. I think Kentucky battles valiantly and keeps it within 2 TDs.

TAKE AUBURN (minus 4) at VANDERBILT. Yes, Vandy is 4-0 and Auburn is 1-4 ATS this year, but the fact remains that one team is Vanderbilt and the other is Auburn. Order will be restored in the SEC this weekend, and Vandy will realize that any school with incoming freshmen averaging 1,400 points on their SAT scores has no business atop the SEC East. Besides, Vandy’s strength is in its running game, which Auburn will stuff. Auburn’s offense is due for a break out game and will find a way to put at least three scores on the board. I like Auburn by 10.

That’s the night the lights went out in Georgia
That’s the night that they hung an innocent man
Don’t trust your soul to no back woods Southern lawyer
Cause the judge in the town’s got bloodstains on his hand

Bonjour Mes Amis,

Backwoods Southern Lawyer

Week 5 NCAA Free Football Picks (9/27/2008): Introducing the Backwoods Southern Lawyer, AKA SEC Genius!!!

Flash and Runny have reached out to another guest writer. Mr. SEC lawyer as we named him is picking at an 80% clip for SEC games. He told us not to bet the Miss St./Auburn game, he told us not to bet the Georgia/South Carolina game and he has been dead spot on all year. Well Mr. SEC Lawyer has agreed to guest post for us and he will now be referred to as BSL or Backwoods Southern Lawyer. BSL loves NCAA football, specifically SEC football. He lives and breathes SEC football and we have found him to have the best pick ideas related to SEC football in the country. We are privileged to serve as his voice.

From BSL:

I believe it was Reba McEntire who sang “Don’t trust your soul to no backwoods Southern Lawyer”, but my faithful clients can trust their dollars and be well rewarded. The verdict is in — yours truly is a blistering 80% on SEC games in September and back with more winners this week. Have you or your pocketbook been injured by college football misfires? Well, strap on your neckbrace, stick with me and we’ll laugh all the way to the bank.

Be forewarned. Runny and Flash have crunched the numbers eight ways to Sunday; they work a reliable system and grind out impressive results year after year. I’m more of a “feel” guy. I get my picks from having been born and raised 3 doors down from the gates of one of the premier SEC campuses (literally being able to hear the roar of the crowd from my room); from worshiping names like Herschel Walker and Bo Jackson and Archie Manning; from tailgates that start on Thursday; from being one fo the first ones in and the last to leave the stadium; and most importantly, from living and breathing SEC football for well nigh 30 years now. The law may be my profession, but SEC football is my passion, and I’m just here to share the love and — above all — I’m here to make a dollar and a cent in this business. So, without further ado, let’s get to the picks….

Call it the weekend of the home favorite in the SEC. With the exception of Ole Miss, that’s who I’m going with:

TAKE OLE MISS +22 AT FLORIDA. Houston Nutt knows how to get up for big games (i.e., Hogs upsetting LSU in last year’s regular season finale). Gators have been playing the offense playcalling close to the vest. Expect another vanilla showing and a 17-point Florida victory.

TAKE LSU -24 VS. MISS. ST. Auburn beats MSU by 1 point. The next week, LSU beats Auburn by 5 points. So, what does Vegas say — opening line is LSU over Miss St. by 24 points. They are on to something. For one reason or another, LSU owns Miss. St.– like 15 of the last 16 owns. And, lately, it hasn’t been close. The win over Auburn has got LSU primed for a big game, not a let down. If LSU gets up early, this one will not be within 5 touchdowns.

TAKE AUBURN -6.5 VS. TENNESSEE. The wheels are falling off Fulmer’s bus, which makes me question this pick because last year, just when you thought he was a beaten man, Tennessee went on a run and made it to the SEC Championship Game. HOWEVER, Tennessee just doesn’t have the dogs for this hunt. Auburn rolls in a low-scoring affair.

TAKE GEORGIA -6.5 VS. BAMA. Georgia was ranked number one to start the season for a reason. They are loaded and are going to make this a statement game at home. John Parker Wilson (or whatever his name is) is an average quarterback and will show it this weekend.

Enjoy the picks. I will be back next week for more action.

Yours truly,

BSL Esquire

Copyright RPJ Betting Syndicate | Theme by DailyBlogTips