Football Handicapping Services - January 02, 2008
After a rough New Year's Day, we sit at 8-8-1 on the Bowl season now. We look to get back into the positive column with a win tonight...
Today's NCAA Football Picks:
Game: W. Virginia vs. Oklahoma (Wednesday 1/02 8:00 PM Eastern)
Pick: 3 units on W. Virginia +7.5 (-105) (risk 3 to win 2.9)
It's hard to overlook the fact that West Virginia was an upset loss away from playing in the BCS title game. Now suddenly they are better than a TD underdog to Oklahoma. Sure, their coach is gone and they looked horrible vs. Pittsburgh. But, is this team all of a sudden that much worse than the Sooners? The Mountaineers offense has two game breakers in White and Slayton who can score from anywhere on the field. The biggest secret however may be Noel Devine who rushed just 60 times for 519 yards, and may be better than both Slayton and White. It would not be shocking if West Virginia, with the extra practice time, did some things in this game to get devine more touches. Oklahoma is led by QB Sam Bradford who has exceeded expectations, but he is only a freshman and this will be his first Bowl game. Neutral-field favorites with a new QB at the helm in non-conference games are just 28-66 (30%) ATS over the past ten seasons. That includes a 12-42 ATS record if the two teams are from major conferences, as we have here. Bradford will be facing a W. Virginia defense that has thrived on turning the opponent over, which they have done 33 times this season. These teams are pretty even on both sides of the ball and special teams. So, getting 7.5 points, we will ride the West Virginia veteran players that have more explosiveness vs. the inexperienced QB in Bradford.
NCAA Football Picks Resources:
Check out the last five NCAA Football Picks Newsletters:
NCAA-Football-Picks-January-01-2008
This is a matchup of two teams that have gotten here by offense - both teams can move the ball. Tennessee comes in at 9-4, which sounds fairly impressive considering the rigors of the SEC. But this te...
NCAA-Football-Picks-December-29-2007
The Huskies had an unexpected but great season heading into the final game with a chance to secure a BCS bid, but were never in the game against West Virginia. The success of this team comes from a qu...
NCAA-Football-Picks-December-18-2007
The Bowl season gets underway with the Poinsettia Bowl as Navy faces off vs Utah. Utah has been on a roll after a slow start. Most of what they accomplished this season was on the defensive end. The U...
NCAA-Football-Picks-November-30-2007
This game is for all the marbles in the Sun Belt, with the winner moving on to the New orleans Bowl vs Memphis. Florida Atlantic comes in with valuable experience gained in games vs South Florida, Okl...
NCAA-Football-Picks-November-29-2007
This has been a very disappointing season for Louisville. What was thought to be National Champion contender has fallen far below expectations. Rutgers is probably right where they should be, although...
