Montreal Alouettes Vs. Toronto Argonauts – Grey Cup Berth
Even though they did win, 16-13 over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, the Toronto Argonauts may not have won decisively to make earn their chance to play for the Grey Cup. Led by Anthony Calvillo, the Montreal Alouettes earned a bye the first week of the CFL Playoffs and for the right to play in the Grey Cup, will now deal with the Toronto Argonauts.
Calgary Stampeders with 13 wins followed by the Montreal Alouettes with 12 wins was the best recod in CFL. Toronto and Montreal met for the last two game of the regular season and split them. While losing the last game of the season 30-4, Montreal winning the first of the two games 37-30.
Anthony Calvillo and his high powered offense will be gunning for Toronto in this game with the Grey Cup on the line now. With the Montreal Alouettes holding a 3-2 edge over the Argonauts, the Toronto versus Montreal series has been one of the closest and bitterest in the CFL this season.
In order to earn their way into the Grey Cup, Toronto has a slim chance. The much maligned quarterback of the Argo’s who has shown glimpses of greatness in big games is Cleo Lemon. Toronto has a punchers chance, if he can put together a big game this weekend.
This season, Cory Byrd is another factor that can contribute to a Toronto Argonauts trip to the Grey Cup. Byrd can be a game changer, who is a solid up and down running back. Look for Byrd to get more carries to grind out a win, if Lemon is ineffective at the quarterback position.
Broncos at Notre Dame – Preview – NCAA College Football
On Saturday (2:30 pm ET, NBC), the Western Michigan Broncos take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in NCAA College Football action at Notre Dame Stadium.
On Saturday, Western Michigan won easily 45-16 against Ball State. The total score of 61 went over the over/under total and they cashed as 5.5–point road underdogs.
On Saturday, Notre Dame picked up a 23-17 win against the Pittsburgh Panthers, with the score a push as the Fighting Irish had been a 6-point home favorite. Under the total went the score.
Against the point spread, Notre Dame is 3-3 straight up and 3-2-1 and it has started to salvage its season with two straight wins. Against the spread, Western Michigan is 2-3 outright and 1-3.
In October, Western Michigan is 5-5 SU and Notre Dame is 7-3 SU.
In the last six games, Western Michigan is 2-4 SU, and it has struggled even more on the road, going just 3-9 SU in its last 12 games away from home.
In the last 6 games at home, Notre Dame is 2-4 SU and is 3-7 SU in its last 10 games overall.
UCLA Bruins @ No. 7 Texas Longhorns – Preview – NCAA College Football
On Saturday, at Memorial Stadium (3:30 pm ET, ABC), the UCLA Bruins take on the No. 7 Texas Longhorns in College Football action
The Longhorns has the over/under total is 43 and they are a 16-point favorite.
Since Sept. 12, 1998, UCLA is 2-0 SU and ATS but the teams have not met in 12 years, when the Bruins beat the Longhorns 49-31. As an 8-point favorite, UCLA covered the spread and the score went over the total.
On Saturday, UCLA was a 31-13 winner against Houston, with the score going under the total and covering as a 3.5–point underdog
On Saturday, Texas beat state rival Texas Tech 24-14, cashing as a 3-point favorite, while the 38 combined points went under the total.
Texas is 3-0 SU; 1-2 ATS and UCLA is 1-2 SU, 1-2 ATS and have win 3 straight games.
UCLA is 4-13 SU in its last 17 games on the road and the total has gone under in 7 of UCLA’s last 10 games on the road.
In the last 5 games at home, Texas is 5-0 SU, but just 1-3-1 ATS in its last 5 games at home. In Texas’s last 5 games at home, the total has gone under in 4.
College Football: No. 8 Nebraska Cornhuskers vs. Washington Huskies
The No. 8 Nebraska Cornhuskers make a rare trip to the Pacific Northwest to take on the Washington Huskies in NCAA College Football action Saturday at Husky Stadium (3:30 pm ET, ABC).
The Cornhuskers are a 4-point favorite in NCAA football odds. The over/under total has not been set.
Nebraska is a perfect 2-0 straight up and against the point spread in the past two meetings, but the teams haven’t met in 12 years, since the Cornhuskers hammered the Huskies 55-7 on Sept. 26, 1998. Nebraska cashes as a 14.5-point home favorite.
Nebraska won its last game 38-17 against the Idaho Vandals on Saturday. Nebraska failed to cover in that game as a 27.5-point favorite, while the 55 combined points took the game over the total.
Washington beat the Syracuse Orange 41-20 in its last game on Saturday, cashing as a 13.5-point favorite. The score went under the total.
Nebraska (2-0 SU, 0-2 ATS) has won two straight games. Washington is 1-1 SU and 1-1 ATS.
Nebraska is 5-0 SU in its last five games on the road, and 8-1 SU in its last nine games overall.
Washington is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games at home, and 6-19 SU in its last 25 games overall.
Broncos vs. Spartans – Match Preview – NCAA Football
On Saturday, the Western Michigan Broncos will take part in a matchup against the Michigan State Spartans. With an old fashioned in state rivalry to kick things off, these two teams will start off the season.
To be a contender in college football, the Michigan State Spartans have never been able to consistently field the talent. They have not been able to field a solid team year in and year out in football, although they have been known for their athletics in other sports, such as basketball.
On the season, the Spartans managed a 6-6 record, last season. A 4-4 record is included in the Big Ten. In all of college football, the Big Ten is one of the top conferences and the idea of being a middle of the pack team in the Big Ten isn’t a bad one. In college football this season, the Spartans will be looking to reverse their tradition. A win would be a good start off the season.
Last season, Western Michigan managed a 5-7 record. Within the MAC last season, the Broncos played in the MAC-west and managed a 4-4 record. Despite the fact that Broncos have a new quarterback at the helm, they will hope to find success this season. Tim Hiller was through for more than 3000 yards and 20 touchdowns, last season. For the team, this will be difficult to replace. The new quarterback will really need to take control and step up the offense.
As these teams from Michigan try to get some respect within the state and in the CFB odds, this game should be a good one
NCAA Football: South Carolina St. vs. Georgia Tech
The South Carolina State Bulldogs will square off against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets for the opening game of 2010 for each team. These two teams are both coming off of stellar seasons in 2009 and look to duplicate their successes in 2010.
The South Carolina St. Bulldogs manage to win 10 games last season in the MEAC. In all of their conference play they did not even drop a game, going a perfect 8-0. The team did not run into a whole lot of top teams along the way. They did not play any games against top 25 teams. This year they will be tested early as they take on the Yellow Jackets who are ranked 16th in the nation.
This could be the toughest game on the schedule for South Carolina St. By winning this game they could go on a run that leads to an undefeated season. Last season they only lost 2 of their 12 games.
The Yellow Jackets are coming off of a solid 11-3 season. Last season the team was led by Dwyer. Dwyer rushed for nearly 1400 yards on the season. Unfortunately he will not be back to carry the load and they will need some help in their running game from their up and coming players.
Thomas was also a stellar receiver last year for the Yellow Jackets. He caught 46 passes for 1154 yards on the season. He was a great deep ball option as he averaged 25 yards per reception. That sort of production is difficult to replace, but the Yellow Jackets will be looking towards new help in 2010.
NCAA College Football: Texas Longhorns season preview
In his 12 seasons as head coach of the Texas Longhorns football program, Mack Brown has led his team to top 25 finishes every year (including six top 10 finishes). As he enters his 13th season as head coach, Brown has every reason to believe his team can continue their tremendous success and his Longhorns are strong candidates to play in the National Championship game.
The National Championship game is a destination not unfamiliar to the Longhorns. The 2009 runner-ups went undefeated until losing to Alabama in the championship game. They have lost a good deal of talent on both sides of the ball from that squad, but coach Brown and company have done a good job recruiting to fill those holes.
The biggest hit for Texas from last year to this year is the departure of quarterback Colt McCoy to the NFL. Over his four years with the team, McCoy won more games (45) than any quarterback in NCAA Division I history.
Fortunately for the Longhorns, they will be replacing McCoy with a quarterback who already has experience on college football’s biggest stage. Garrett Gilbert was McCoy’s replacement when he was injured in the first half of the 2010 BCS National Championship game. Although his stat line wasn’t great (15-40, 186 yards, two TDs, four INTs), he showed poise for his age and should benefit from that experience.
Texas’s defense, which was ranked third nationally in total defense in 2009, lost some key defenders in April’s draft. Defensive end Sam Acho will be back after recording nine sacks in his junior season. Texas boasts arguably the best secondary in the nation, with CBs Chykie Brown, Curtis Brown and Aaron Williams.
The consistently brutal Big 12 will make it anything but easy for Texas to repeat as conference champs. Key matchups include September 18 at Texas Tech, October 2 versus Oklahoma, October 16 at Nebraska (a rematch of the 2009 Big 12 Championship Game), and November 25 versus Texas A&M.
