Are you ready for some Spartan Football!! After canceling the season and then seeing other conferences steal the spotlight (and rake in the dough) the Big Ten reversed course and decided to play after all. It's an eight game, all Big Ten, no cupcakes allowed (other than Rutgers) season with the championship on December 19th in Indy. Amazingly the championship game is the day before the CFP selection. Go figure.
Now they did give a nod to player safety with stricter testing protocols than the other conferences and sharing of testing data with the conference. Bottom line, if a team can't play at least six games, they are out of the championship game.
And for the Big Ten kickoff the Sax Man sent this along - 14 Big Ten universities, ranked by annoyingness. We do not come out all that well. Bruce, Northwestern takes a hit too.
mooncrew.substack.com/p/14-big-ten-universities-ranked-by
Now they did give a nod to player safety with stricter testing protocols than the other conferences and sharing of testing data with the conference. Bottom line, if a team can't play at least six games, they are out of the championship game.
And for the Big Ten kickoff the Sax Man sent this along - 14 Big Ten universities, ranked by annoyingness. We do not come out all that well. Bruce, Northwestern takes a hit too.
mooncrew.substack.com/p/14-big-ten-universities-ranked-by
Make way for your 2020 September, make that October, Heisman winner Joe Milton! So what to expect in the Big 10. Well, the usual for Michigan. Overrated and with the newest September Heisman QB.
The East will be decided on Halloween when Ohio State visits Happy Valley. The West will be decided over Thanksgiving when Minnesota visits Camp Randall. Graham Mertz looked fantastic last night
Iowa will upset someone as will Northwestern and Indiana. And as I write this I see that they all play State. Arrrgh!
Purdue gets Rondale Moore back on Oct 31 and will be a tough out. Illinois, Maryland and Rutgers will be free spaces. Nebraska will disappoint.
As far as State, Let's just call it a year in transition. 4-4 would be a success. We return only 10 starters, the least in the Big Ten. The key will be finding a QB (I doubt it will be Rocky), getting the offense to work (expect to see a ton of Elijah Collins) and maintaining a solid defense. All tall orders.
If by the end of the season you are seeing signs of these against Ohio State and Penn State then the table is set for 2021.
Mel is bringing energy to the recruiting trail so if the system is being installed then better years will be ahead. Just don't expect too much this fall.
And thanks to Sully for this idea
What better way to kick off the season that with your Spartan Marching Band!!
The East will be decided on Halloween when Ohio State visits Happy Valley. The West will be decided over Thanksgiving when Minnesota visits Camp Randall. Graham Mertz looked fantastic last night
Iowa will upset someone as will Northwestern and Indiana. And as I write this I see that they all play State. Arrrgh!
Purdue gets Rondale Moore back on Oct 31 and will be a tough out. Illinois, Maryland and Rutgers will be free spaces. Nebraska will disappoint.
As far as State, Let's just call it a year in transition. 4-4 would be a success. We return only 10 starters, the least in the Big Ten. The key will be finding a QB (I doubt it will be Rocky), getting the offense to work (expect to see a ton of Elijah Collins) and maintaining a solid defense. All tall orders.
If by the end of the season you are seeing signs of these against Ohio State and Penn State then the table is set for 2021.
Mel is bringing energy to the recruiting trail so if the system is being installed then better years will be ahead. Just don't expect too much this fall.
And thanks to Sully for this idea
What better way to kick off the season that with your Spartan Marching Band!!
Grayson McCall is the frosh QB of the year - so far That always gets the juices flowing!
As far as betting, no way am I betting conference teams in week 1. Most years it's kind of a crap shoot but this year it's a total shot in the dark. If you think you know what is going on I give you BYU 55 Navy 3
So I'll keep my picks to teams that have a few games under their belts starting with:
Coastal Carolina -5.5 vs Georgia Southern - Color me impressed with Coastal Carolina's win over UL Lafayette. The Chanticleers are now the lone undefeated team in the Fun Belt.
Graham Mertz might have something to say about it by the end of the year but the best freshman QB so far is Grayson McCall. McCall has tossed at least two TD passes in all four games, passed for 930 yards along and has an 11:1 TD to INT ratio.
Georgia Southern comes in on a two game win streak but they victories were over the two worst FBS teams, UL Monroe and UMass. They also struggled to get by 1AA Campbell. The Eagles will challenge CCU's rush defense that can give up some yards. But the balanced Coastal offense will be more than the GSU can handle
Coastal's magical season continues at home. I'll put a Mega Bet on them.
Bama has too many weapons for Tennessee Alabama -21.0 @ Tennessee - Tennessee showed their true colors against Kentucky. Bama is coming off a high from taking down UGA but the offense is just too good. I'll put a Mini Mega on the Tide
Kentucky -5.5 @ Missouri - Kentucky's defense is clicking. They've allowed a combined nine points over the last two weeks, wins over Tennessee and Mississippi State. The Wildcats control the Tiger offense for a third straight win. I'm in for a quatloo.
Kansas State -20.5 vs Kansas - Kansas has been so bad through the first four games that their best player Pooka Williams decided to take the rest of the season off. It may be a rivalry game but I'm laying a Mini Mega on the Wildcats over a pathetic Jayhawk squad.
South Alabama -15.0 vs UL Monroe - Betting against bad teams on the road can be profitable. The Warhawks are next level bad. I'll take the Jags for a quatloo.
Georgia State -2.5 @ Troy - GSU piqued my interest when they hung tough with UL Lafayette using a strong run game. Troy is not the Troy of old. They may be 3-1 but the wins were over Hole level teams. They barely got by Div 1AA Eastern Kentucky 31-29. I'll take the Panthers for a quatloo.
West Virginia -3.0 @ Texas Tech - The Red Raiders have yet to beat a Div 1A team. The defense is next level bad. West Virginia's defense has shined so far this year. Put me in for a Mini Mega.
Kentucky -5.5 @ Missouri - Kentucky's defense is clicking. They've allowed a combined nine points over the last two weeks, wins over Tennessee and Mississippi State. The Wildcats control the Tiger offense for a third straight win. I'm in for a quatloo.
Kansas State -20.5 vs Kansas - Kansas has been so bad through the first four games that their best player Pooka Williams decided to take the rest of the season off. It may be a rivalry game but I'm laying a Mini Mega on the Wildcats over a pathetic Jayhawk squad.
South Alabama -15.0 vs UL Monroe - Betting against bad teams on the road can be profitable. The Warhawks are next level bad. I'll take the Jags for a quatloo.
Georgia State -2.5 @ Troy - GSU piqued my interest when they hung tough with UL Lafayette using a strong run game. Troy is not the Troy of old. They may be 3-1 but the wins were over Hole level teams. They barely got by Div 1AA Eastern Kentucky 31-29. I'll take the Panthers for a quatloo.
West Virginia -3.0 @ Texas Tech - The Red Raiders have yet to beat a Div 1A team. The defense is next level bad. West Virginia's defense has shined so far this year. Put me in for a Mini Mega.
Rodgers will be in full FU mode after last weeks beat down Iowa State +3.5 @ Oklahoma State - This could be a preview of the Big 12 championship game. I'll take a surging Iowa State and their defense over a Okie State team that hasn't played in three weeks and is rotating QBs. Put me down for a quatloo.
Buffalo -9.5 @ NY Jets - The Jets are an abomination. The have no offense, barely have a defense and the HC is driving them into the abyss. All the Jets losses have been by double digits except for one, a nine point loss to a banged up Denver. Buffalo will have the cover by half. I'll put a Mega Bet on the Bills.
Green Bay -3.5 @ Houston - Aaron Rodgers in FU mode with a short spread. Good enough for me. Houston has lost by at least a TD every game this season save a win over the hapless Jags. I'm in for a Mega Bet on the Pack
LA Chargers -7.5 vs Jacksonville - Speaking of the Jags, they are just as awful as we thought they would be at the beginning of the season. They just got blown by the Lions for crying out loud. Justin Herbert has been superb so far this year. Only the hook keeps this from being a larger bet. Chargers for a Mini Mega.
And for all the games, spreads, picks and much much more here is your 2020 Week 8 Bettors Guide.
Buffalo -9.5 @ NY Jets - The Jets are an abomination. The have no offense, barely have a defense and the HC is driving them into the abyss. All the Jets losses have been by double digits except for one, a nine point loss to a banged up Denver. Buffalo will have the cover by half. I'll put a Mega Bet on the Bills.
Green Bay -3.5 @ Houston - Aaron Rodgers in FU mode with a short spread. Good enough for me. Houston has lost by at least a TD every game this season save a win over the hapless Jags. I'm in for a Mega Bet on the Pack
LA Chargers -7.5 vs Jacksonville - Speaking of the Jags, they are just as awful as we thought they would be at the beginning of the season. They just got blown by the Lions for crying out loud. Justin Herbert has been superb so far this year. Only the hook keeps this from being a larger bet. Chargers for a Mini Mega.
And for all the games, spreads, picks and much much more here is your 2020 Week 8 Bettors Guide.
| 2020_week_8_bettors_guide.xlsx |
GO GREEN!!!!!
