CFB Saturday 10* Top Play Penn State Nittany Lions +15.5 vs Ohio State Buckeyes @ Noon ET - Remember when Penn State was so awful against Michigan and got blasted by the Wolverines? Yes? Well, so does everyone else and that is impacting this line. You know who remembers it the most? These Nittany Lions! They are at home and with a chance to make up for that embarrassment. They know they are better than that. They are not Ohio State and they are HIGHLY unlikely to beat the Buckeyes here. However, in my opinion, they also are HIGHLY unlikely to lose this game by more than 2 TDs. In fact, I expect this game to be decided by a single score as PSU has something to prove here and is capable of playing tough hard-nosed football against a very strong OSU team here. 10* PENN STATE +15.5

Friday CFB 10* Top Play BYU Cougars -3 vs East Carolina Pirates @ 8 ET - This is as much a play against East Carolina as it is a play on BYU and, trust me, the Pirates are solid and respectable team. But I think the difference in the current level of these two programs is not being properly estimated by the betting markets here. Not only that, traveling West for a weekday game is not easy and is not something the Pirates are really use to either. They have been particularly spoiled by their early season schedule. That, to me, is one of the biggest keys here. I personally do not feel the AAC is a very strong conference. Yes, Cincinnati and UCF have had their moments in recent seasons but this is still not a Power 5 Conference like the SEC or Big 12 or Big Ten or ACC or Pac-12. So far this season East Carolina's toughest game had been versus NC State and though they fell just short that tight loss is becoming less impressive with each successive ATS loss that the Wolfpack continue to suffer. Now credit must be given for the Pirates beating UCF last week but that was a turnover-fueled win as the yardage and first downs were about equal. Plus East Carolina was at home for that one and the 21-point margin of victory is serving to give us line value here. BYU is an independent but has played a ton of tough match-ups. Tough game have included facing Baylor and Oregon and Notre Dame and Arkansas. Look for the battle-tested Cougars to bounce back and respond after an embarrassing loss at Liberty last week as they take advantage of home field here and stop their 3-game losing streak! 10* BYU -3

CFB Saturday 10* Top Play Penn State Nittany Lions -4.5 vs Minnesota Golden Gophers @ 7:30 ET - Penn State is certainly no powerhouse this season but the same holds true for Minnesota and yet if you factor in the home field edge for this one it is almost as if the line would be a pick'em on a neutral field and I disagree with that assessment and feel we have excellent line value here! Minnesota is 4-2 this season but the wins were against New Mexico State, Western Illinois, Colorado and Michigan State. Well NM St and Colorado are very bad football teams. Michigan St is having a down season and W. Ill is an FCS school. The Golden Gophers opened the season 4-0 but against those teams. They have since been absolutely been dominated by an Illinois team that is playing very well but is certainly no Michigan (that is who PSU just lost to) and and the Golden Gophers also lost at home by double digits to a Boilermakers team that Penn State defeated earlier this season at Purdue! Also, even though Auburn is down this season the Tigers are an SEC program and PSU crushed them by 29 points. Their schedule has been tougher than that of Minny. I know they have Ohio State on deck but they won't look past this game and they are angry after being completely manhandled at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball against the Wolverines. So this game means more to them than you might think and, after first loss of the season, the Nittany Lions bounce back and also send over-rated Minny to 3rd straight loss! 10* PENN STATE -4.5

CFB Saturday 10* Oklahoma State Cowboys +6 vs Texas Longhorns @ 3:30 ET - Stillwater is not an easy place to play. I know the Cowboys are going to be fired up after they let their game slip away at TCU last week. Yes that was a 2OT loss so you might think that OSU will have trouble bouncing back this week or could be spent physically and emotionally. However, the key is that this game is at home. If it was in Austin, I probably would not trust Oklahoma State here but being at home and angry off the loss to the Horned Frogs and getting 6 points here...it just all adds up to a lot of value. UT is absolutely a much better team under the new coaching regime. However, Texas has only played one true road game (the OU game was neutral site of course) and they lost outright at Texas Tech as a 7 point dog and they had to rally just to send that game to OT. By the way, that same Red Raiders team lost to this same Cowboys team by double digits! Love the home dog value here. When coach Gundy is off a loss he has only lost the money ATS 5 times the last 20 games. Also, the Cowboys have covered 9 of last 11 ATS as an underdog in conference action. 10* OKLAHOMA STATE +6

CFB Saturday 8* NC State Wolfpack +3 @ Syracuse Orange @ 3:30 ET - Like the fact that the Wolfpack already have a loss and that it came against a powerful Clemson team. I also like the fact they have a bye week on deck. Conversely, the Orange are undefeated but most of their schedule has been weak. I know Syracuse is off a bye week but they have a huge game at that same Clemson team on deck! The Orange two toughest games recently have been versus Purdue and Virginia. They hung on for the win in each but each were by 3 or less points. I like the fact we are getting the full field goal here and I love the scheduling situation. Yes the Orange will be focused her but they can't help but to be thinking "if we can just win this then we face Clemson as an undefeated team". I think Syracuse gets caught over-thinking it whereas this very strong NC State team already has that first blemish as noted above. So you have a situation where the Wolfpack are playing with less pressure and after their bye week they have a lousy Virginia Tech team on deck. So this means that NC State is fully focused here and I look for the Orange to finally get "peeled" for the first time this season! 8* NC State +3

CFB Saturday 10* Top Play Oklahoma State Cowboys +4 @ TCU Horned Frogs @ 3:30 ET - The whole world seems to be lining up on TCU in this revenge spot here. Revenge is over-played for sure in sports! It is a factor for sure but it is often over-valued. The result is you often can get value on the other side by playing against the revenging team. This is one of those cases. You don't think Oklahoma State is motivated too? Remember both these teams come in undefeated. The Cowboys want to stay that way just as bad as the Horned Frogs do. Also, the last 6 times that OSU has been in a game where both they and their opponent were ranked the Cowboys have won 5 of the 6 games and, keep in mind, we're getting 4 points to work with here too! I love the line value in this one because both defenses, deservedly, are much maligned BUT the Cowboys lead the Big 12 with 3.2 sacks per game. Also, Oklahoma State is leading the NATION (FBS) in tackles for a loss with 10.2 per game. So look for both teams to certainly enjoy some success on offense in this one but look for OSU to be the team making the key defensive plays that will be the difference in this game. Last, but certainly not least, note that Spencer Sanders rates the QB edge over Max Duggan in this game. I know both have strong career numbers and Duggan is also having a strong season again but how did he lose the starting job to Chandler Morris coming into this season. The coach saw something there, right? The only reason Duggan is back in there is Morris got hurt. Now I am most definitely NOT saying Duggan is not a good QB, I am just saying that there is a reason all that transpired and now, in the biggest of games, who would you rather be counting on? Sanders or Duggan? To me we have big edges in this game. 10* OKLAHOMA STATE +4

CFB Thursday 8* Central Florida Knights -23 vs Temple Owls @ 7 ET - This line was as high as 28 but is now down to 23 and I love fading line moves. The fact is the Owls just can not score points. They are 2-3 this season but the 2 wins were against a bad FCS team (Lafayette - PA) and an annually horrible FBS team (Massachusetts). You can practically throw the stats from those 2 games out the window. In their other 3 games, all losses, Temple has scored an average of just 6 points per game! I know it looks like they held Memphis in check in their 24-3 loss before a bye week last week. However, the Tigers had a big game on deck versus the Cougars and they were sleepwalking through the first half before they woke up and dominated the 2nd half. With UCF at home and off a big 2nd half versus SMU last week, I don't think we'll see sleepwalking here. Look for the Knights to be ready from the opening kick and they should win this one in a blowout. Of course Central Florida is going to win this game SU and that is worth noting as the Knights are scoring an average of 41 points per game in their 4 victories. So if Temple hits their average here of 6 points or even if fortunate enough to reach their highest point total (14) they have had in any loss this season, that still puts UCF with an ATS win even if the Knights just hit their scoring average. But truly this looks like a game that the Knights should even score closer to 50 than 40. Blowout time! 8* Central Florida -23 

CFB Wednesday 8* Marshall Thundering Herd -10 vs UL-Lafayette Ragin Cajuns @ 7:30 ET - Both teams have been solid defensively but have struggled offensively. However, the more I dug into this match-up it is a game in which the home team has a much better shot at getting the offense going. The Thundering Herd are at home and have the better weapons on offense. I also like the revenge aspect here as Marshall lost to Louisiana in their bowl match-up last year in December. Both teams did not play on Saturday of course because of this being a Wednesday game. Look for the Thundering Herd to benefit more from the time off as they have the better coaching and will be very prepared for this home game after some recent disappointment. This is a Marshall team that was able to rise up and beat Notre Dame earlier this season. The Thundering Herd were a 3 TD underdog in that one so it shows what this team is capable of. The Ragin Cajuns were favored by double digits in each of their two road games this season and yet lost both outright against weaker competition. I think this is the right spot for the Thundering Herd to have one of their best games of the season and for the Louisiana road struggles to again be a major issue. 8* MARSHALL -10

Saturday CFB 10* Top Play Iowa Hawkeyes +4 @ Illinois @ 7:30 ET - Love this spot for an underdog upset but happy to grab the points here too. Illinois just won their Game of the Year. The reason I say that is their head coach, Brett Bielema used to coach the Badgers. The Illini just went to Madison last week and beat Wisconsin convincingly on their home turf. Now watch this over-rated Illini bunch come out flat as a pancake for this game. First off, give credit for the win over Wiscy but Badgers nowhere near the team they use to be. Then look at who else this Illinois team has played this season. Wyoming is bad this season, Virginia is bad this season, the Indiana team that the Illini lost to just lost B2B games to Cincy and Nebraska by a combined score of 80 to 45. The other win Illinois has was over an FCS school. Now, I do know that Iowa is off a tough physical battle with Michigan last week. But I also know the Hawkeyes have a bye week on deck and they will go all out here coming off a loss. There is no quit in this physical Iowa team and they will be inspired to go hard for the win in conference action. They did throw for over 200 yards against the Wolverines in a game in which the stats were nearly equal. That is impressive as Michigan is one of the top teams in the country. Look for the Hawkeyes to be able to run and pass better than you would expect against this over-rated Illini defense that could come out flat here too. Iowa hungry off a loss and lets not forget the allowed an average of only 6 points per game first 4 games! That did include a 3 point loss to a solid Iowa State team. The Hawkeyes have only lost once in last 14 meetings with Illini and that includes 8-0 SU last 8. I fully expect that streak to reach 9 here but am happy to take the 4 points as added insurance too. 10* IOWA +4

Saturday CFB 10* Top Play Miami Hurricanes -3.5 vs North Carolina @ 4 ET - Remember when everyone was so down on Notre Dame earlier this season? You might be asking what that has to do with this play but, quite a lot actually, and I will explain. The Fighting Irish were on an 0-2 ATS run and 1-2 SU run and off a non-covering win versus Cal after an embarrassing loss to Marshall. Their next game was AT this North Carolina team. Even at Chapel Hill, the Tar Heels got embarrassed. The game was 38-20 entering the 4th quarter and, for the game the Irish outgained UNC 576 to 367. Keep in mind the game was 38-14 before UNC gained 230 yards and scored 18 points over the final 20 minutes of the game after it was already out of hand. The point is that the Tar Heels had one test this season and they failed miserably. Now they are on the road and facing a similar foe. This Hurricanes team is angry and off a bye week. Miami should have beat Texas A & M a few weeks ago - we had the Canes there and they dominated everything but the scoreboard. Then, after that demoralizing loss, Miami came out flat and lost to Middle Tennessee State two weeks ago as a big favorite. Then the bye week last week and now you have an angry Hurricanes team that, by the way, is playing their first ACC game of the season. They are the only team in ACC without a conference game yet. They can still, in theory, go undefeated in ACC. Of course I am not saying they will but the point is that this is the ideal perfect fresh start situation for Miami. Similar to Notre Dame, this Hurricanes defense will give the Tar Heels offense some trouble. As for the UNC defense, it is atrocious and will not be able to stop Miami. The Heels just dominated Virginia Tech but the Hokies are a very bad football team this season. Prior to that, UNC had allowed 40 points per game this season! The Hurricanes open up their ACC season with a big win here as the situation, the home field, and the much better defense all add up to a huge win. 10* MIAMI -3.5 

CFB Friday 10* Top Play Nebraska Cornhuskers -3 @ Rutgers Scarlet Knights @ 7 ET - Rutgers has lost 20 straight Big Ten home games and Nebraska is favored by only 3 points. There is your write-up. All kidding aside the fact is we certainly have history on our side here and I also like the fact that the Scarlet Knights have a big mess at the QB spot. I know they had some good defensive numbers before facing Ohio State last week and most certainly the Cornhuskers are nowhere close to the level of the Buckeyes. However, Rutgers played bad teams in the form of Boston College, Wagner, Temple and also an Iowa team known for its defense not its offense. The point is that the Scarlet Knights defense will be challenged a bit by a pretty solid Nebraska offense here. The other key is that the Huskers defense woke up after the firing of their defensive coordinator and they played very strong against Indiana last week. I know this is a road game on the east coast and it is hard to trust the Cornhuskers on the road but I feel strongly that last week's game against the Hoosiers is a sign of things to come. Also, how can anyone trust a Rutgers team that has lost 20 straight home games in conference action and that has a messed up quarterback situation with injuries, etc? I sure can not! Go Big Red! 10* NEBRASKA -3

CFB Saturday 10* Top Play LSU Tigers -8 @ Auburn @ 7 ET - Laying 8 points on the road when in a rivalry game with a history of home team dominance? Must be crazy, right? No, in this case it makes all the sense in the world. LSU has Jayden Daniels at QB and his lower back strain is a minor one and he left last week's game because it was a blowout moreso than it being an injury concern. As for Auburn, the QB situation is much different and is ultra concerning. They ended up being down to their 4th string QB last week and barely got a win versus Missouri last week. Auburn's TJ Finley is listed as doubtful but likely to miss this game and was unable to practice. With Zach Calzada now out for the season, that means Robby Ashford gets the call here. He has 1 TD and 2 INT so far this season and now faces the toughest defense yet. I do not expect this to go well for Auburn given their injury situation at QB and LSU is also 3-1 just like Auburn. But LSU comes in rolling off 3 straight wins and their only loss was by a single point in week 1. Auburn comes in struggling with a blowout loss to Penn State two weeks ago and a nail-biter win last week. LSU has double revenge for home loss last season in this match-up and for ugly loss here at Auburn two years ago. This one is going to go a lot different for sure. Road rout here. 10* LSU -8

CFB Saturday 8* Oklahoma State Cowboys +2.5 @ Baylor Bears @ 3:30 ET - This is a tough spot for Baylor in my opinion. They started the season at home, then went all the way to Utah to face BYU, then home again, then north Iowa to face Iowa State, and now back home again. They face a talented Oklahoma State team that is coming off a bye week. Not only that, they have revenge on their minds from last year's Big 12 Championship Game loss to Baylor. They actually won the yardage battle by about 100 yards in that one but were done in by turnovers and they failed to win despite being favored by nearly a TD. That said, how do they do as a road dog? The last 7 times they have not lost the money a single time! One push and 6 covers as an away puppy and given they have the scheduling edge and the revenge, love the Cowboys in this spot. 8* OKLAHOMA STATE +2.5

CFB Friday 10* Top Play Washington Huskies -2.5 @ UCLA Bruins @ 10:30 ET - I know the Huskies are certainly not known for being Pac-12 road warriors but they are every bit deserving of their #15 ranking on the season. On that note, UCLA is 0-12 SU the last 12 times they have faced a team that is ranked #15 or higher and many of those games were at home just like this one is. Also, the Bruins also lost all 12 of those games by at least 3 points. So, with us laying 2.5 points, this is indeed a 12-0 / 100% SPOT in favor of the Huskies! Look for that streak to reach 13 in a row here. The Bruins did beat a #16 LSU team last year so I do want to note that but this other streak has been triple checked and I like it a lot! UCLA known for struggling to seal the deal in the biggest games. What I really like here is the way former Indiana QB Pennix has thrived in Washington. This is his 5th year so he is loaded with experience. Thompson-Robinson certainly commands respect for the Bruins as well but I feel we have the better overall team in this match-up. The Huskies have faced tougher teams the past two weeks with games against Michigan State and Stanford. Those match-ups certainly tougher than the Bruins facing South Alabama and Colorado. The fact is the Buffaloes are one of the worst teams in the Pac-12 while the Jaguars are a Sun Belt team who, by the way, nearly had the Bruins beat here at UCLA in that match-up! The hosts had to rally to win the game in the 4th quarter. So UCLA won the game by 1 point in a game in which the yardage was nearly equal and in which the Bruins trailed by 8 points going to the 4th quarter. Huskies have faced the tougher schedule and have looked better in doing so. I know those games have been at home but the Huskies can win on the road too and they are loaded with confidence right now. 10* WASHINGTON -2.5

CFB Saturday 8* Purdue Boilermakers -16 vs Florida Atlantic Owls @ 7:30 ET - Rarely ever do I lay big points but this is one I will make a rare exception on. Even if Purdue lets up late in this game I still have them winning this game by at least 3 touchdowns. The Boilersmakers do have a pair of Big Ten road games on deck but they are off a road loss at Syracuse and are angry after letting that game slip away. Purdue, after today, has only one home game between now and November. I don't see them holding back here. They will run up the score in this one. This team throws the ball a lot and they are in need of a big win. Remember they lost a tough tight one at home to Penn State in the waning minutes earlier this season. In between the tough tight late-game losses to the Nittany Lions and the Orange, the Boilermakers crushed Indiana State 56-0. Of course Florida Atlantic is not an FCS program like the Sycamores are BUT that still does not change the fact that the Owls are not a great football team and they play in the weak SunBelt conference. This line is saying that Purdue would only be favored by 13 on a neutral field but I don't buy that given the situation. The Boilers have put up some big numbers on offense this season and FAU just does not have the firepower to keep up. Yes the Owls put up some big numbers against lesser competition but they were finally a dog last week and scored just 14 points against UCF. The other teams FAU has faced are a combined 3-7 and included an FCS school also. The Boilers, a Big Ten off a loss and having played a much tougher schedule than the Owls, absolutely pour it on in this one! 8* PURDUE -16

CFB Saturday 10* Top Play Texas Tech Red Raiders +7 vs Texas Longhorns @ 3:30 ET - When people think of the Longhorns football program right now most just keep thinking about the game against Alabama two weeks ago which certainly was an ultra-impressive performance from Texas and they should be (and have been) commended for that. However, their first game of the season was against an out-classed UL Monroe team and then, after facing Crimson Tide, they faced a UTSA team that is set to be down some this season. Also, Roadrunners are not on the same level as the UT program yet actually hung much tougher with the Horns then the final score shows. UTSA had over 400 yards of offense and had 29 first downs compared to just 21 for Texas. Now further complicating this match-up for UT is, after getting hurt in the Alabama game, their starting QB still likely will not start this game. Ewers had a collarbone injury and even if he plays here I don't think he'll be 100% here. Either way, Card or Ewers making their first road start of this season and that is another big key here. UT has had a great early season schedule with 3 straight home games and their 2 wins over foes from much weaker conferences. Now the Longhorns finally go on the road and this is a big rivalry game and the Red Raiders would love nothing more to knock off their in-state rivals. Texas Tech has played very strong on defense this season and their loss at NC State last week was deceiving as they actually had a big yardage edge and first down edge and were simply done in by turnovers against the Wolfpack. All this has led to line value on the home dog catching a full touchdown here. The fact that UT has dominated this rivalry in recent years only adds fuel to the fire that will be burning for the team from Lubbock today. This is a fantastic home dog spot! 10* TEXAS TECH +7

CFB Saturday 10* Top Play Miami Hurricanes +6 @ Texas A & M Aggies @ 9 ET - The Aggies were upset 17-14 by Appalachian State last week even though they were at home. The 3-point loss (so tight on the scoreboard) must have been a fluke upset, right? Actually, not at all! The Mountaineers kicked the Aggies ass all over the field. The final stats were insane. App St 315 yards to 186 for Texas A & M. Additionally, the Mountaineers had 22 first downs compared to just 9 for the Aggies. Are you kidding me? This is embarrassing and now the Aggies host a talented Miami team. The Hurricanes got caught looking ahead to this game as last week they were sluggish in the first half versus Southern Miss. However, they took over in the 2nd half and dominated the Golden Eagles for a big win. The Canes have the QB edge in this match-up for sure and I like the defensive line additions Miami made heading into this season. If the Aggies can't control the line of scrimmage on offense, they will sputter on that side of that ball. They are not getting good QB play and will not be able to establish the run game. All that said, really feel that A & M is going to have a helluva time trying to just win this game let alone win it by at least a TD. Outright upset would not surprise me for sure and no hesitation in grabbing the 6 points for this one as added insurance. 10* MIAMI +6

Saturday CFB 8* Purdue Boilermakers +1.5 @ Syracuse Orange @ Noon ET - I was very impressed with the Boilermakers performance against Penn State in their season opener. Then they throttled an FCS school last week. Syracuse is getting a lot of love here because they beat Louisville by a big margin in week 1. However, the starts in that game show the final score was a bit of a phony final. Cardinals had a couple of a missed scoring opportunities. Also, the Orange then played a bad UConn team last week. Syracuse has beaten a Cardinals team that is now 11-16 since start of 2020 season and the Orange also beat a Connecticut team that is on an 11-54 run last 65 games. I am not sold on this Syracuse team just yet and the Orange are getting a little too much respect from the markets here. Yes, the dome in Syracuse is not an easy place for visiting teams to play but the Boilermakers play in the Big Ten. The Boilers are used to having to play in tough places and also against much tougher teams than this Orange team. O'Connell putting up big numbers so far for Boilermakers and has 6 TDs and 0 INTs too! Road team gets the win here! 8* PURDUE +1.5

CFB Saturday 10* Top Play BYU Cougars -2.5 vs Baylor Bears @ 10:15 ET - Both teams played weaker foes last week but, still, you could tell by the lines that the tougher tests wa for BYU on the road at South Florida and yet they completely steamrolled the Bulls including jumping out to a 38-0 lead! Baylor hosted an FCS Albany team so they were not tested at all. The Bears lost nearly half their defensive starters from last season and the Cougars return one of the most experienced teams in the country. Not only that, this game is at home in the thin air of Provo, UT and this is another factor favoring Brigham Young in a big way. The Bears beat the Cougars last season but that game was at Baylor and BYU was banged up on defense entering that one. This most certainly is not the case here and we get the more veteran team in an early-season game at home and laying a short number. Don't let the line fool you. Some may be surprised to see a top ten team getting a field goal playing a team that barely has cracked the top 25. Trust me, is not a mistake. Lay it! This is Cougars first home game of season and they only last ONCE at home the past two seasons combined! As for the Bears, they lost twice on the road last season and lost all 5 of their road games the year before. This is still a major test for them even though they have improved a lot since that 2020 disaster. Still too much to ask for them early in the season in this one and feel strongly that Cougars win this solidly at home. 10* BYU -2.5

CFB Saturday 8* North Carolina Tar Heels -7 @ Georgia State Panthers @ Noon ET - The Tar Heels are not getting much respect from the odds makers here because they gave up a bunch of late points at Appalachian State last week. Two comments to that. First off, lesson learned as UNC paid for getting too comfy with a huge lead and almost blew the game. Secondly, the Mountaineers have a very balanced attack as they can both run and throw very well. As for this Georgia State team that UNC will be facing this week, that is most certainly not the case. The Panthers were 7 for 29 throwing the ball against South Carolina last week. Yes Georgia State has a dangerous ground game but North Carolina can stack the box against the run and dare the Panthers to throw the ball. That being said, just can not see Georgia State being able to keep up here! The Tar Heels were already known last season for a dynamic offense and they certainly have not disappointed in that regard this season either. UNC is averaging 59.5 points per game this season and the Panthers will hang around for awhile in this one and are exciting to be hosting an ACC team. But the fact remains the Tar Heels offense is too much and they eventually pull away for the victory by much more than a TD in my opinion. 8* NORTH CAROLINA -7

Friday CFB 8* Louisville Cardinals +5.5 / 6 / 6.5 @ Central Florida Knights @ 7:30 ET - We are getting extra line value because Cards were bad at Syracuse last week. The Cardinals indeed did not fare well against the Orange at the Carrier Dome but this team will be better this season and I have a feeling they will surprise the Knights here. I am not saying they win outright (though that would not shock me) rather I am just saying this has high probability to be a highly competitive game so I love having the points here. UCF played an FCS school last week so let's not over-react to their big win last week. Also, Central Florida lost to Louisville last season and had trouble slowing them down in the eventual 42-35 loss. Just like the value here in fading a team that last season, based on yardage offensively, ranked in the middle of the pack and they are facing a Cards team that ranked in the top 25 last season on offense based on yardage production. Yes, last week the Cardinals were stopped on downs at the 2 yard line and threw an INT in the end zone and that had a lot to do with them finishing with just 7 points in a game in which they did total 334 yards. They will be better this week and they will score plenty against this UCF defense. 8* LOUISVILLE

CFB Sunday 10* Top Play LSU Tigers -3.5 vs Florida State Seminoles @ 7:30 ET - The SEC sure does look strong, as per usual. LSU is the only team yet to play and every other team won their games and there was quite a bit of domination thrown around. Now, as for the ACC, Clemson will meet Georgia Tech tomorrow but, other than that Florida State is the only team yet to play. However, 3 teams already lost games (granted a Louisville or Syracuse was inevitable) and the ACC (other than Clemson) just not on the same level overall as SEC teams overall. LSU is going to be much stronger under new head coach Brian Kelly and they are facing a solid ACC team here but still look at some of yesterday's results. NC State barely beat East Carolina, Louisville scored just 7 points, Boston College and Virginia Tech each lost their games. There is still a gap in levels between these two conferences and the Tigers are VERY hungry and rejuvenated with the Kelly regime now here. LSU is off a disappointing campaign so we are getting line value here. I look for the Tigers to be back with early momentum from the coaching change! The Seminoles also disappointed last season and a win over an FCS school in Week 0 might help confidence but this is not Duquesne they are facing this week! Mike Norvell, HC of FSU, has struggled in his tenure here so far. Keep in mind, HC Kelly was 34-6 with Cincinnati and then went 92-39 with Notre Dame. Florida State, ATS, does not have a good track record in recent games with teams from the Power 5 conferences. 10* LSU -3.5

CFB Saturday 8* Notre Dame Fighting Irish +16 @ Ohio State Buckeyes @ 7:30 ET - Yes the Irish have a new head coach but is not like he is new to the program. He was the defensive coordinator last season and helped transform that unit into a very strong defense. Of course Ohio State is annually one of the best programs in the country but the Irish will play their hearts out for this head coach. The players have responded very well to him and we saw already what he was able to do with the defense last season. That solid D will be a key here in keeping Notre Dame in this game because of course the Ohio State offense is fantastic. The ND offense, despite some personnel losses, is still ultra-talented and I feel the Irish are not being given enough respect in this the game. The line opened up at under 2 TD's but has since risen above that key number. I am happy to grab the extra line value here as the Fighting Irish have been solid in recent road openers and will be up to the challenge here. I would not be surprised to see this game decided by a one score margin as the Irish come in hungry and extremely motivated and are talented enough to keep this game interesting! 8* NOTRE DAME +16

CFB Saturday 8* Arkansas Razorbacks -6.5 vs Cincinnati Bearcats @ 3:30 ET - The Razorbacks are an SEC team that lost to Alabama by just 7 points last season while Cincinnati got rolled by the Crimson Tide by 21 in the playoffs. The Bearcats also lost 8 players to the NFL draft so that is a lot of talent now gone from the roster. Arkansas also lost some starters but definitely have the experience edge here plus they have a powerful ground attack that will give the Cats defense some trouble here. This Cincinnati team just not going to be as strong as they were...not even close. The Hogs wear down the Bearcats as this game goes along and get the home win by a double digit margin. 8* ARKANSAS -6.5

Thursday CFB 10* Top Play Penn State Nittany Lions -3.5 @ Purdue Boilermakers @ 8 ET - So the Lions finished 7-6 last season and got hammered in their bowl game loss to the Razorbacks by a two-TD margin. The Boilermakers went 9-4 last year plus beat Tennessee in the Music City Bowl. Purdue also is at home for this game. The Boilers also return more starters than PSU. Also, though Clifford is a very solid veteran QB for the Nittany Lions, Boilermakers QB O'Connell is probably the 2nd best QB in the conference behind Ohio State's Stroud. So all that said you have Penn State FAVORED by 3.5 points here. You think the odds makers do NOT know what they are doing? The Lions are favored here for a reason DESPITE all the above and a big key is because the Boilers offense lost their top two receivers from last season as one of them was ruled ineligible due to academics while the other one, Bell, is now a Cleveland Brown in the NFL! As for Penn State, no such problems. Not only do they bring back RB Lee, they also have WR Washington back plus they brought in a transfer from Western Kentucky (Tinsley) who had phenomenal numbers for the Hilltoppers last season. PSU has the better defense in this match-up and I know there are some questions about the offensive line for the Lions but that is an area they have filled in nicely despite departures from last season. O'Connell the better QB but Clifford is very solid and led PSU to a 5-0 start last year before he got hurt against Iowa. This Lions team is on a mission this year and they play in the tough east and rank behind only Ohio State and Michigan whereas Boilers play in the weaker West and I would rank them about 4th in Big Ten West. Roll with the road favorite here as they win by at least 7 and, more likely, double digits. 10* PENN STATE -3.5

CFB Situational Slaughter Tuesday 10* Top Play LSU Tigers +7 vs Kansas State Wildcats @ 9 ET - The Wildcats scored a COMBINED total of just 27 points in their last two games of the season and that included one against a Longhorns team that had a bad season. The Tigers scored 27 points in EACH of their last two games of the season and that included an outright upset win over a solid Texas A & M team which made sure LSU got their 6th win and is the reason they are playing in a bowl game. I look for them to make the most of the opportunity. Kansas State has gone from being a -2.5 favorite to now being favored at a full -7 as of game day. Yes there are reasons for the line move but long-time followers know I love to fade line moves and grab the value on the other side. Certainly the Cats played a respectable schedule as they play in the Big 12 but the Tigers and the SEC schedule was even tougher. Too much value to pass up on with the big points being offered here. 10* LSU +7

CFB Game of the Year Saturday 10* Top Play Ole Miss Rebels -1 vs Baylor Bears @ 8:45 ET - Ole Miss has the more dynamic offense in this match-up. Also, could Baylor QB Gerry Bohanon be impacted by the fact he has missed some recent game action with a hamstring injury? I believe the answer to that will prove to be yes. Keep in mind, the Rebels allowed an average of only 18 points per game over their last 4 games. The Bears are off a tight 21-16 win over Oklahoma State in the Big 12 Championship Game but did allow 24 or more points in 6 of 9 games heading into that one. Also, in their win over the Cowboys they actually were outgained by nearly 100 yards but were the beneficiary of 4 Oklahoma State interceptions in that game. That is not happening again here as Mississippi QB Matt Corral threw only 4 all year and plus threw for 20 touchdowns. Also, the Rebels have an excellent ground attack so they have a balanced offense and a tremendously solid defense! The Bears are in trouble here and are over-rated in my opinion and the SEC foe how had only 2 losses this season will get it done. One of their only two losses was to mighty Alabama and the other one was to a very solid Auburn team that had almost beaten the Crimson Tide this season. 10* OLE MISS -1

CFB Contrarian Crusher Saturday 9* Top Play Ohio State Buckeyes -3.5 vs Utah Utes @ 5 ET - This is a contrarian play here. The common viewpoint on this game is that Ohio State is disappointed to be here. Lets not forget this is the Rose Bowl! Yes the Buckeyes were playing for the national championship last year and this year they will not be. However, this is an Ohio State team that is angry after losing badly at Michigan to finish their regular season off. The Buckeyes want to erase the bitter taste of defeat from their mouths here and they also want to get some redemption against a Pac-12 foe as their only other loss this season came at the hands of Oregon. That is the same Ducks team that the Utes manhandled twice this season. However, Ohio State is coming to play here and Utah does not have the explosive offense that the Buckeyes have. Look for that to be a key difference maker here and the favorite pulls away as this game goes on. They are far more motivated for this game than most realize. 9* OHIO STATE -3.5

CFB Game of the Month Sunday 10* Top Play Georgia Bulldogs -7.5 vs Michigan Wolverines @ 7:30 ET - The Wolverines are known for struggling in big games. I know Michigan finally came up big in their big game versus Ohio State and also won the Big Ten Championship over Iowa. However, that does not change the fact that the Wolverines have lost 4 straight bowl games both SU and ATS and now they face a team that might be the best team in the country. I know Georgia lost to Alabama but this Bulldogs team is really something else. They had allowed only 7 points per game in 12 straight wins before the loss to Alabama in the SEC Championship Game. Now we get a chance to take one of the best teams in the country off a loss and laying only about a TD and we can fade a team with a poor recent bowl history under Harbaugh...I'll take it! Lay the points for a big play here. The Bulldogs defense will be the difference in this one. The Wolverines allowed 23.6 in their 5 games away from home before the Big Ten Championship. The Bulldogs never allowed more than 17 points this season until the loss to Crimson Tide. Michigan allowed 17 points or more in all 5 of those games away from before beating Iowa. The Dawgs D rules the day here. 10* GEORGIA -7.5

CFB Contrarian Crusher Friday 9* Top Play Alabama Crimson Tide -13.5 vs Cincinnati Bearcats @ 3:30 ET - The Bearcats are undefeated and yet nearly a two TD underdog against a Crimson Tide team that has one loss on the season. Big mistake by the odds makers, right? Hardly! In typical contrarian fashion, laying the big points in this one! Look for Alabama to crush Cincinnati here. The Tide played a tougher schedule, have the much better passing attack and the much better run defense. All signs pointing to a blowout here as the Bearcats finally find out what it is like to take a major step up in class in terms of the high level of opponent they are now facing. They finally got their wish of being a part of the national title discussion and having that chance to prove that a smaller program can get it done on the big stage. Unfortunately for Cincinnati though, this story does not have a good ending. 9* ALABAMA -13.5

Peach Bowl Blowout Thursday 10* Top Play Pittsburgh Panthers +3.5 vs Michigan State Spartans @ 7 ET - The Panthers have the better numbers overall this season and I definitely like their edge on defense in this match-up in particular. Yes there are some opt-outs for this game but that is effecting both teams. I also know the Spartans have the better recent bowl history but feel we have value with the defensive-minded physical underdog in this match-up. The Panthers hold the edges in pass defense and I like their ground game too. Strong rushing team and with a solid defense and they are an underdog. This one has all the right ingredients that equate to value. Also, Pat Narduzzi is Pittsburgh's head coach and he was the defensive coordinator at Michigan State from 2007 to 2014. The Spartans are coached by Mel Tucker and this is the first ever bowl game he has coached in. Grab the points! 10* PITTSBURGH

CFB Bowl Insider Wednesday 10* Top Play Oklahoma Sooners -6.5 vs Oregon Ducks @ 9:15 ET - The Sooners are the much better overall team in my opinion. Yes they have lost a couple games recently but they only trailed Baylor by 3 entering 4th quarter of the defeat that ended a 17-game winning streak for Oklahoma. Also, the Sooners other loss was by just 4 points to another strong team, Oklahoma State. That said, take a look now at the Ducks losses: lost to a Stanford team that has since lost 7 straight games and finished the season 3-9. Also, Oregon lost twice to Utah by a combined score of 76 to 17. The fact we can still get Oklahoma in the TD range for this game has me rating this play with my top play rating as I feel we have the much stronger team here at a bargain price and the Ducks have shown on 3 different occasions this season that they are fully capable of really disappointing in a game. They do it again here and the Sooners roll. 10* OKLAHOMA -6.5

CFB Earliest Blowout Monday 10* Top Play Nevada Wolf Pack +7 vs Western Michigan @ 11 AM ET - In the regular season the situation here for Nevada would be devastating. But, in bowl time, when a team has extra time to prepare for a game things can be managed much better. Nevada has a number of opt outs for this game but nearly the entire defense is intact and it is made up of veteran players. On offense yes they are starting an inexperienced QB but the 6'9 signal-caller has had extra time to prep with this team and they are going against a MAC defense. The MAC has not performed well overall in these bowls thus far. So, what about the MWC? They are a perfect 4-0 and that includes beating a Pac-12 team (Ore St) and a team (UTSA) that nearly finished with a perfect record in the regular season. This line has gone from Nevada -3 or -4 to now the Wolf Pack being a +7 underdog. More times than not these line moves never work out like the betting masses think they will. A 10 point swing here? A MAC team favored by 7 over an MWC school? I know that Nevada also has an interim head coach for this one but he has this team believing and viewing this is as their "one game season" together. Practices have been spirited and you are going to see a spirited effort from the Wolf Pack come game time too. Look for the defense, mostly intact other than being without one top player, to absolutely be the dominant force in this game! 10* NEVADA +7

CFB Perfection Play Saturday 10* Top Play Ball State Cardinals +6 vs Georgia State Panthers @ 2:30 ET - Value with the points here. Feel we are getting extra value in this line simply based on the fact that the Panthers went 8-4 ATS this season while the Cardinals went 4-8 ATS this season. There is really not a lot that separates these two teams and yet Ball State is getting about 6 points in this one. Yes, they come from the MAC and that conference has struggled in these bowls but Georgia State is from the Sun Belt Conference and that is certainly not a powerhouse conference. The Cards have had extra bowl prep time to prepare for a Panthers offense that is rather ground-heavy while I feel strongly that the Cardinals have the better passing attack and that will ultimately prove to be the difference in this one. 10* BALL STATE +6

CFB Game of the Week Thursday 10* Top Play Central Florida Knights +7 vs Florida Gators @ 7 ET - Too many points. Florida has not covered 6 straight games. Central Florida, in this match-up, is like the little brother facing the big brother, an SEC team from the same state. That said, the more motivated team to (no offense intended) to be playing in the Gasparilla Bowl rather than a bigger bowl closer to (or on) New Year's is going to the Knights. They will prove to be the team that wants this more. UCF has won 5 of 6 games SU and here they are getting a full 7 points. Florida's only 3-5 SU last 8 games and one of those wins was by just 3 points and the other 2 were against Samford and a bad Vanderbilt team. The Gators just have not shown us much this season and I expect more of the same in this bowl game. 10* UCF +7

CFB Daytime Dominator Tuesday Top Play 9* Wyoming Cowboys -3.5 vs Kent State Golden Flashes @ 3:30 ET - The Golden Flashes are a MAC school facing a stronger MWC team here. Don't be fooled by their 6-6 record. Wyoming got better on offense as the season went on and the defense, as per usual, has been the consistent backbone for this Cowboys team. That will be the key again here as Kent State struggles to score and also eventually gets worn down by their opponents ground game. 9* WYOMING

CFB Daytime Dominator Monday 10* Top Play Tulsa Golden Hurricane -8.5 vs Old Dominion Monarchs @ 2:30 ET - Both these teams are 6-6 but Tulsa is the vastly superior team and played a much tougher schedule. Also, check out their performances against some quality teams and tell me if you think the Monarchs could have duplicated such efforts. Tulsa lost at Oklahoma State by just 5 and were leading that game in the 4th quarter. Also, the Golden Hurricane hung around with Ohio State until the Buckeyes finally pulled away convincingly over the final 5 minutes. Tulsa also nearly beat Cincinnati outright on the road. I can not imagine Old Dominion coming anywhere close to duplicating those efforts. Also, the Monarchs did not even play last season - covid - but the Golden Hurricane did and went 6-0 in their conference games but then lost their bowl game last season. Most of those players returned this season and their motivation level is very high to close this season differently! Last year they faced an SEC team in the bowls and this season they face a CUSA team. Huge difference and they should win this handily by a solid double digit margin. 10* TULSA -8.5

CFB Game of the Week Saturday 10* Top Play BYU Cougars -6.5 vs UAB Blazers @ 3:30 ET - I know this UAB team is respectable for sure and I know the location of the Independence Bowl in Shreveport, LA also favors them. However, the line move on BYU from 8.5 to 6.5 has helped to raise this one to top play level for me. BYU started the season with 5 straight wins and ended the season with 5 straight wins. The two losses were in the middle of that were against Boise State and Baylor. No shame in losing to those two teams. Conversely, the Blazers were a 23.5 points dog versus Georgia and lost by 49 points. Also, UAB lost to Liberty by 24 and also got upset by Rice even though they were favored by 24 points in that one! Yes the Blazers should not have lost their game with UTSA and the Roadrunners did have a great season but the fact is UAB did lose it and they play in the CUSA which is certainly resulted in them playing a much weaker schedule than the 10-2 Cougars did! Look for Brigham Young to prove to be too much in this one. 10* BYU -6.5

CFB SEC Rout - 10* Top Play Alabama Crimson Tide +6.5 vs Georgia Bulldogs @ 4 ET - Getting this many points with a high-quality team like Alabama that is in a rare dog role and 4-1 ATS last 5 as an underdog means I am in! Yes Georgia is having an incredible season but this is now Alabama's Super Bowl for the season per se and I just don't see them being denied here. I am not saying the Tide will indeed win outright but they should keep this close enough to at least get the cash. Two fantastic defenses and the Bulldogs do rate an edge there but, statistically, the Crimson Tide rate a bigger edge on offense. Look for that to be a difference maker in this one in a game that is likely to go down to the wire and that means having the points is a huge edge for us as an outright upset would not surprise me here. Grab the the points for added betting value. 10* ALABAMA +6.5

CFB MWC Blowout - CFB 8* Utah State Aggies +6 vs San Diego State Aztecs @ 3 ET - So many of the Aztecs wins are tight wins. San Diego State just does not have the offense to win games by huge margins and I feel the Aggies will keep this one close. Utah State has the better offense in this match-up and in games against common foes, the Aggies were more impressive statistically. Don't be surprised when, in this one, it translates to at least an ATS win and possibly even an outright upset win. Grab the points in this one. 8* UTAH STATE +6

CFB Pac-12 Game of the Month - 10* Top Play Oregon Ducks +3 vs Utah Utes @ 8 ET - This is a chance at right back revenge after the Utes got the better of the Ducks two weeks ago in a game played at Utah. That game was at Utah. This one is at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas as it is a neutral site game for the Pac-12 Championship. Oregon is 4-0 SU all time in the Pac-12 Championship while Utah is 0-2 SU all time in this game. All those games occurring since 2014 so this is not ancient history by any means. I look for the Ducks to keep that trend going as they will be much more relaxed in the rematch after playing with "playoff pressure" in the first meetings as they still had hopes, at that time, of making the CFP group of four. Look for the Ducks offense to be much better in this rematch and to do enough for the outright win but we'll grab the points as added insurance. 10* OREGON +3

CFB Bedlam Blowout - 10* Top Play Oklahoma Sooners +4.5 @ Oklahoma State Cowboys @ 7:30 ET - I know the Cowboys defense has been incredible this season but the Sooners offense can be special and that is particularly true in this rivalry game that always seems to bring out the best in Oklahoma. The Sooners have actually won each of the last 6 meetings and need a win here to make sure they make the Big 12 title game! Of course Oklahoma State has no shortage of motivation either but can the Cowboys not only win but also cover this spread? I do not think so and an outright upset would not surprise me in the least but seeing this line up to +4.5 means even more value with the underdog in this one. The Sooners just always seem to find a way to ruin everything for the Cowboys in this match-up. Keep in mind, Oklahoma State was a dog of an average of 10 points in the past two meetings but lost those games by an average margin of 23 points! The Sooners do it again as they have the better passing attack in this match-up and that will end up being the difference here. Oklahoma State has ended up over-valued in this game because they are on a miracle 9-0 ATS run. That run ends here! 10* OKLAHOMA +4.5

CFB Earliest Cash - 8* Texas Tech Red Raiders +14.5 @ Baylor Bears @ Noon ET - Red Raiders off a home shutout loss to Oklahoma State. However, they have performed well off a loss this season and have not suffered back to back ATS losses all season. Texas Tech is known for playing the Bears tough and they have actually gone 8-1 ATS last 9 visits to Waco! Overall, it is a 5-2 ATS run for the Red Raiders in this series. Yes, Baylor is a rock solid team and has Big 12 Championship Game aspirations still alive. However, the Bears are 5-2 SU last 7 games in conference action but only 1 win by more than a 14 point margin. The Red Raiders bounce back off their shutout loss. Their defense will bounce back too after allowing 52 points at Oklahoma in most recent road game but allowing only 17 points per game in the two Big 12 road games before that. 8* TEXAS TECH +14.5

AAC Game of the Year - CFB 10* Top Play East Carolina Pirates +14 vs Cincinnati Bearcats @ 3:30 ET - The Pirates opened this season with a loss by 14 points. Since then, East Carolina has not had a loss by more than 7 points. Overall, the Pirates have won 7 of last 9 games SU and had covered 6 in a row before last week's 3-point SU win fell just short of the cover. East Carolina is catching the Bearcats off a huge 48-14 win over SMU last week. Cincinnati finally had that dominating win everyone was waiting for as their perfect season (11-0 SU) continues. However, the Bearcats entered that game on an 0-4 ATS run and I expect this road game against a confident Pirates team to be one of their toughest games of this season. This looks like a very tricky spot on the schedule to wrap up the regular season. 10* EAST CAROLINA +14

CFB Rivalry Dominator - 10* Top Play Ole Miss Rebels +2.5 @ Mississippi State Bulldogs @ 7:30 ET - The Rebels defense has improved some over original expectations and actually allowing only 16.8 points per game last 3 games. On the other side of the ball, Ole Miss is averaging over 515 yards of offense per game and that includes 232 yards on the ground! Compare that to a Bulldogs offense that is averaging only 61 yards per game on the ground on the season! So you have an underdog that should dominate the ground game in this one and whose defense has played better in recent games. I like my chances with the points here as I also point back to the recent crazy game with the Aggies where the Rebels had about 400 yards of offense in the first half but less than 20 points to show for it. I know what this offense is capable of doing and, in a rivalry game that is the final game of the regular season, I look for Ole Miss to bring it. Yes this will be their 9th straight week with a game but the situation for Mississippi State is not much different as this is their 7th straight week with a game. Also, in a rivalry game with so much at stake for each team, neither will be flat or playing tired here. Give me the points with an underdog that can run all over the favorite. 10* OLE MISS +2.5

Pac-12 Game of the Year - 10* Top Play UTAH -3 - Love the set up here. All the pressure is on Oregon as they are trying to retain their top four positioning in the CFP rankings. Not only that the Ducks are on the road here and facing a Utah team hell bent on revenge after losing the 2019 Pac-12 Championship Game to Oregon by double digits. Look for the Utes to take advantage of home field here and playing more pressure-free than the Ducks. Of course there is a reason that Utah is favored by 3 even though the Ducks are ranked much higher in the top 25 than they are. Not going to say the odds makers are setting a trap intentionally but will say this line is set this way with good reason. Note Ducks are on a 4-8 ATS run as a dog away from home and the Utes have covered 68% of their last 25 games in Pac-12 action. The Utes were done in by turnovers the last time these teams met but the first downs were nearly equal in that match-up. Ducks averaging 28 points per game their last 3 on the road. Utes averaging 41 points per game last 6 games. Look for the hosts and their brand of physical football to wear down Oregon as this game goes on and they will pull away in the latter stages of this one for a solid home victory. 10* UTAH -3

CFB Afternoon Annihilation - 8* SMU +10 - The Bearcats have failed to cover 4 straight games. Those games were against weaker competition too. Now Cincinnati has to step up and face a tougher foe. Certainly the undefeated Bearcats have the much better defense in this match-up but SMU has a very dangerous offense and their only two losses this season were each by single digits. Last year Cincinnati rolled the Mustangs at SMU but the final score of 42 to 13 hides the fact that the losing team actually had a 22 to 17 edge in first downs! I feel this Mustangs offense, especially with RB Bentley now back in the lineup and off a strong game, is absolutely going to give the Bearcats all they can handle here! Mustangs averaging 42 points and 500 yards per game this season. Cincinnati may finally see their unbeaten season come to an end but, if not, definitely expecting this one to be decided by only a single score because the SMU defense will be fired up about facing the undefeated Bearcats and should have one of their best games of the season. Note that the Mustangs have allowed more than 28 points only 3 times in 10 games this season. In those other 7 games they have allowed an average of 19.6 points per game. This one goes to the wire! 10* SMU +10

Primetime Punisher - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #310 Wednesday 10* Top Play Buffalo Bulls +1.5 vs Northern Illinois Huskies @ 7 ET - Huskies off another tight win and that has been the key for them this season but their luck runs out here. I know Northern Illinois needs just one more win to clinch the MAC West but I also know this is the home finale for Buffalo plus the Bulls need to win this game and their season finale next week to get to 6 wins to be bowl eligible. You also know the Bulls would love to play role of spoiler here against the Huskies. Buffalo does not want them clinching MAC West on their field! The Bulls averaged 36.4 ppg at home and allowing 28.2 ppg while Northern Illinois averaging 28.0 ppg and allowing 38.8 ppg on the road this season. 10* BUFFALO +1.5

MAC Game of the Year - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #301 Tuesday 10* Top Play Western Michigan Broncos (-) @ Eastern Michigan Eagles @ 7:30 ET - Why is Western Michigan favored by nearly a full TD over a team that shares identical records (overall and MAC) with them? Particularly one can ask that question when you consider that the Broncos are on the road for this one too! Well the fact is that Eastern Michigan is the much weaker team defensively. This includes the Eagles struggling against the run and the Broncos offense is the much better ground game in this match-up. Indeed there is a match-up issue here for Eastern Michigan and I look for Western Michigan to take full advantage! The Broncos seek revenge here for losing to the Eagles each of the last two seasons as well. Do not let the line fool you here. It is set this way with good reason and the road team has the edges on both sides of the ball in this one. As a result, look for a road rout here. 10* WESTERN MICHIGAN -5.5

Big 12 Game of the Year - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #179 Saturday 10* Top Play Texas Tech Red Raiders +10.5 vs Iowa State Cyclones @ 3:30 ET - This is a horrible scheduling spot for Iowa State. The Cyclones are off a huge home win last week versus Texas and have a massive game at undefeated Oklahoma on deck. That said, laying double digits at Lubbock, where the Red Raiders are known for being tough to play, is almost never a good idea. This will be the first home game for Texas Tech since they fired their head coach. This is also expected to be the first game for starting QB Tyler Shough (collarbone) since late September. Even if he did not play, which honestly would shock me if he did not, Donovan Smith was solid in the loss two weeks ago at Oklahoma when he replaced Henry Colombi who is now out for the Red Raiders due to illness. So you have the Cyclones in a bad scheduling situation and Texas Tech coming off a bye week and ready to win their first home game played since they have gone to an interim head coach. I know the Red Raiders are only 2-2 this season at home but one of those losses was by a single and, given the situation here, I absolutely expect this game to go down to the wire and feel we have fantastic line value with the big points. 10* TEXAS TECH

Earliest Punisher - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #149 Saturday 8* Oklahoma Sooners -5 @ Baylor Bears @ Noon ET - The Sooners have won 23 of the last 26 meetings with the Bears. That said, I also look for Oklahoma to cover this rather small number as they continue the long-term domination in this series. Baylor has lost 2 of its last 5 games both SU and ATS and prior to last week's loss at TCU was fortunate in rallying from a big deficit to knock off Texas. That said, I feel the Bears are still a little over-valued here and the Sooners pull away as this one goes on to not only remain undefeated on the season but to win this game by an impressive double digit margin. Baylor offense won't be able to keep up as they have been held to 31 or less in 4 of last 6 games while Sooners have scored 52 or more in 3 of last 4 games. 8* OKLAHOMA

CFB Earliest Cash - 10* Top Play Cincinnati Bearcats -23 - Everyone is down on the Bearcats now because they have failed to cover 3 straight games as big favorites. You know what that means. This is the perfect time to back them. This South Florida team is not a good football team. They did get QB McClain back from injury last week but he threw 2 picks. Remember he also threw 2 picks in season opening loss to NC State by a count of 45-0. Last week the Bulls gave up 54 points to Houston. If they give up anywhere close to that point range here they are not covering this game because I look for an angry Bearcats defense to have their ears pinned back for this one as they look to make amends for last week's dismal effort against the Tulsa ground game. This is going to be a statement game for Cincy and they need style points for the CFP Playoff rankings and I look for them to finally get them this week. 10* CINCINNATI -23

ESPN Punisher - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #115 Thursday 10* Top Play North Carolina Tar Heels +7 @ Pittsburgh Panthers @ 7:30 ET - The Tar Heels are off a huge come back win but they sure as hell will not be flat here. Pittsburgh is at the top of the ACC Coastal Division which is where UNC also resides. The Panthers have just one ACC loss while the Heels sit at a disappointing 3-3. That said, I don't foresee the Tar Heels being denied here and love the value with the move on this one up to a +7. North Carolina has played the tougher schedule. That said, the Panthers have some statistical edges but some of this is also based on the teams they have faced. By the way, Pittsburgh is only 3-2 SU at home this season. Yes one of those wins was an impressive win over Clemson but the Tigers are really down this season. The Panthers other two home wins were against Massachusetts and New Hampshire! So the fact Pittsburgh lost outright at home to Miami and Western Michigan shows they can be beat here for sure. Panthers have moved into the top 25 rankings too which you can bet North Carolina is aware of as well. So in the lone game going Thursday in CFB this game takes center stage and the Tar Heels will have their ears pinned back going hard for the upset win on the road. They may fall just short of that but I am not doubting this potent UNC offense in terms of backdoor cover potential as well, especially getting a +7 now. The fact is an outright upset would not surprise me in the least as the tougher schedule they have faced is the hidden edge here that the markets may not be properly adjusting for. 10* NORTH CAROLINA +7

Early Punisher - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #111 Wednesday 10* Top Play Ball State Cardinals -2.5 @ Northern Illinois Huskies @ 7 ET - The Cardinals are favored even though they are on the road and the Huskies have the better overall record and the better record in MAC games. What does that tell you? Exactly! In my opinion Ball State is indeed the better team and they have the edge at head coach. Keep in mind the Huskies have overachieved a bit this season and I believe last week's loss to Kent State is a sign of things to come. Was tough to see their star QB Lombardi get knocked out last week. I know he is expected back this week but NIU has other injury concerns too. The Cards are the healthier team heading into this one and they did make the mistake of looking past Akron last week and very nearly lost the game as a result. Ball State got caught looking ahead to this big showdown with the Huskies. But those kinds of things happen and what I like now in this match-up is having the better defense and the Cardinals and head coach Neu have beaten the Huskies and head coach Hammock in each of the latter's first two seasons in DeKalb. That trend continues here. 10* BALL STATE

Early Punisher - Rickenbach CFB Tuesday 10* Top Play Miami-Ohio Redhawks -7.5 vs Buffalo Bulls @ 7 ET - The Redhawks disappointed me last week but I will come right back with them this week. Last week Miami-Ohio fell short versus Ohio University but they will now take advantage of a Buffalo team with a banged up quarterback and a questionable defense. The Bulls allowed 56 points last week and that was at home. Though they had a solid defensive effort in most recent road game that was against a very bad Akron team. Prior to that, Buffalo allowed 37 points per game in 3 prior road games. Yes the Redhawks D struggled last week but this was after allowing just 18 points per game 5 prior weeks. Also, they recently welcomed back their QB Brett Gabbert from injury and he threw for nearly 500 yards and for 5 touchdowns last week. 10* MIAMI-OHIO -7.5

SEC Game of the Month - Rickenbach CFB Saturday 10* Top Play Kentucky Wildcats +1.5 vs Tennessee Volunteers @ 7 ET - I know this is a revenge game for Tennessee but the line has gone from Kentucky -3 to now the underdog in this match-up is the Wildcats! In typical contrarian fashion I am fading the line move. The Wildcats have the better defense in this match-up plus the Volunteers continue to be over-valued by the betting markets. Kentucky did lose last week at Mississippi State but were 6-1 ATS this season prior to that non-covering loss. Tennessee is off a bye last week but the Vols are off B2B ATS losses and also have lost 2 of 3 road games SU and ATS. Long-term Tennessee has dominated this series so, just like last season, the Wildcats are certainly looking for more payback like they got with the 34-7 win in 2020. Note that one of the Volunteers road losses was at Florida by 24 points and that is the same Gators team that UK beat by a TD as a TD underdog this season! If you look at the line on that game in fact that means the Cats would be about a 10 point dog against Florida on a neutral field while the Vols would be about a 16 point dog to the Gators on a neutral field based on the 19 that was posted at Florida. As you can see comparing the 16 to a 10 there is a 6 point variance between the Wildcats and Volunteers and plus the Cats are at home so one could argue the line should be a 9 here and yet the markets are so in love with Tennessee here that the Wildcats, after line movement, have become a dog. I'll take it! 10* KENTUCKY +1.5

National TV Blowout - Rickenbach CFB Saturday 8* TCU Horned Frogs +7 vs Baylor Bears @ 3:30 ET - The Bears are off huge rivalry win over Texas last week in Waco. Now they go on the road to face a TCU team that has underachieved so far this season and now looks at this game as a fresh beginning without head coach Patterson. The Horned Frogs have a respectable offense and I would not be surprised to see the Bears be a little flat in this one after the big comeback win over the Longhorns last week. TCU has won 5 of the last 6 meetings and I fully expect them to get at least the cover here based on the situational edges and the fact this offense was putting up plenty of points prior to its last two games. Baylor has allowed 24 points or more in 4 of last 5 while the Horned Frogs, other than the Oklahoma and SMU games, have allowed an average of 26.3 points per in their other 6 games. Look for the home dog to surprise in this one. 8* TCU +7

Friday Thrasher - Rickenbach CFB Friday 10* Top Play Virginia Tech Hokies -3 @ Boston College Eagles @ 7:30 ET - The Hokies and Eagles are both 4-4 on the season and Boston College is at home so some may be surprised to see Virginia Tech as the favorite in this one. Don't be though as the -3 should prove to be a solid bet in this one. The Hokies and Eagles have both been struggling of late but the BC offense has been a major concern and will likely be their downfall again here. The Boston College offense has been so bad that they turned to frosh Moorhead in place of Grosel last week but the offense still sputtered when he came in. The Eagles, in fact, have been held to 14 or less point in 4 straight games and now they face a Virginia Tech team that has only been shut down on offense once in last four games as they averaged 30 points per game in the other 3. On the season the Hokies also have played the tougher schedule. 10* VIRGINIA TECH -3

ESPN Smash Pass - Rickenbach CFB Thursday 10* Top Play UL Lafayette Ragin Cajuns -12 vs Georgia State Panthers @ 7:30 ET - Georgia State is off a big win over rival Georgia Southern and that was a road game on Saturday. That means the Panthers are on short rest after knocking off the rival Eagles and also means they are on the road for a second straight week. How good has UL Lafayette been at home? 4-0 with the last 3 of those victories being ultra impressive by a combined score of 135 to 27. That means average victory margin of 36 points per game. I know the Panthers have been a covering machine of late but this is a horrible spot for them and the Ragin Cajuns have the better defense and better offense and more balanced offense. I know the points are steep here but consider that Georgia State's four losses have been by 28.5 point average margin. Also, one of those four losses was to Appalachian State by a count of 45 to 16 and Louisiana beat that same Mountaineers team 41 to 13. Big difference! One won by 28 and the other lost by 29 points! I don't often lay big points but this is one of those spots too good to pass up. This match-up and including the situation has blowout written all over it. 10* LOUISIANA -12 

ESPN2 Smash Pass - Rickenbach CFB Wednesday 10* Top Play Kent State Golden Flashes (-) vs Northern Illinois Huskies @ 7 ET - Northern Illinois has won 10 straight games against Kent State but much of that history is dated for sure. The Huskies have regressed from where they use to be and the Golden Flashes have improved a lot from where they were. I know Northern Illinois has won 5 straight but their schedule has been more favorable than that of Kent State. The Golden Flashes have won 3 of 4 and do have the better passing offense in this game. I love the fact that the line has dropped a couple points from its opener. Extra value on the home favorite. I will take it. 10* KENT STATE -3.5

Contrarian Crusher - 10* Top Play Miami-Ohio Redhawks -7.5 @ Ohio University Bobcats @ 7:30 ET - I am aware that the Bobcats have a knack for playing close games in MAC action. Seems like they just don't lose games by more than 7 points or at least that has been a pattern now for a number of years. However, this Bobcats team is struggling badly this season and has played a weaker schedule so far this season than the Redhawks and the odds makers know what they are doing by having Miami-Ohio favored by slightly more than a TD here. The Redhawks have just 1 loss last 4 games while the Bobcats only have 1 win this entire season! Unlike typical encounters, this one will not be close and the odds makers are correct on this one while the betting markets likely to end up pounding the underdog. Contrarian spot and I love situations like these. 10* MIAMI-OHIO -7.5

Primetime Punisher - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #189 Saturday 10* Top Play Penn State Nittany Lions +19.5 @ Ohio State Buckeyes @ 7:30 ET - The Nittany Lions are off back to back losses (both very tight defeats) while the Buckeyes have won 5 straight and are 6-1 on the season. That sets this one up perfectly and the points are just too much. Of course Ohio State has the much better offense in this match-up but this Penn State defense is very strong. Also, the Buckeyes recent blowout wins and strong defensive performances have been helped by facing 3rd and 4th string quarterbacks. This will be the toughest test that Ohio State has had in quite some time and I look for the Nittany Lions defense to be a difference maker in this game - at least in terms of the ATS cover. Keep in mind that Penn State was on a 3-0 ATS run as a road dog before coming up just short of the cover at Iowa earlier this season. But the Nittany Lions did lead that game 17-3 before QB Clifford went out with an injury in the eventual 3-point loss. They likely would not have lost if he did not get hurt. Also, prior to Ohio State getting the cover at Beaver Stadium last season, the Nittany Lions had covered 4 straight against the Buckeyes. These games tend to be tight hard-fought battles and I feel we are getting extra line value here because of recent results and those results certainly have been impacted by QB injury issues as noted above. So the value is now the massive underdog in this one and it is my top side play for Saturday. 10* PENN STATE +19.5 

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #193 Saturday 8* Texas Longhorns +2.5 @ Baylor Bears @ Noon ET - Baylor is ranked and at home and has two less losses than Texas this season. However, the Bears are a very small favorite here. Looks easy, right? You know what means! Back the underdog in this one! UT has played the tougher schedule and that is part of the key here. I feel strongly that Baylor is now over-rated as a result and we'll take advantage by grabbing the Longhorns here as they get payback for losing here in Waco in their last visit in 2019. With UT off B2B losses, this is a great spot to back them! 8* TEXAS +2.5

Primetime Punisher - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #114 Friday 10* Top Play Tulsa Golden Hurricane -11 vs Navy Midshipmen @ 7:30 ET - I know Navy has been covering recent games and Tulsa has not but this line is set at double digits for a reason. The Midshipmen have been very fortunate to get the covers they have been getting as their offense has been really bad this season. Also, they enter this game off a hard-fought loss to Cincinnati last week. They are on short rest here as a result. Tulsa, on the other hand, is coming off a bye week. The Golden Hurricane are rested and ready here. Tulsa does enter off SU wins in 3 of their last 4 and they have also been reminded of the fact that the last time the Midshipmen paid a visit here the Golden Hurricane got blasted 45 to 17. I look for the hosts to get some payback for that one as they also are a little healthier than they were 2 weeks ago. Rested, ready, motivated are the Golden Hurricane and they are hosting a Navy team that truly left it all on the field in that hard-fought loss to the Bearcats Saturday. 10* TULSA -11

Pac-12 Game of the Year - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #373 Saturday 10* Top Play Utah Utes (-) @ Oregon State Beavers @ 7:30 ET - The Utes offer line value here because they are on the road so we can lay a small number to have the better team essentially just to win this game with the line at -3. Utah has won 3 straight games and has played a slightly tougher schedule too. Oregon State is off a loss and has lost 2 of their more challenging game this season. The Beavers lost at Washington State and at Purdue and each of those defeats were by 7 or more points. Utah has won 8 of the last 11 meetings and that includes a 45 point blowout win in their last visit to Corvallis. Lay the short number here as the Beavers certainly have improved and are absolutely not the doormat of the Pac-12 that they once were but, Oregon State is still not at the level Utah is. Also, the Utes are undefeated in conference games and, as the only team in the Pac-12 able to stake that claim, they are highly motivated to stay that way. The edge the Beavers have over some Pac-12 teams in terms of being strong in the trenches and a physical team against some of the softer more finesse Pac-12 teams, they just don't have those same edges against a tough Utes team that likes to play a physical brand of football. The road team gets it done here. 10* UTAH -3

Afternoon Annihilation - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #343 Saturday 8* Clemson Tigers +3.5 @ Pittsburgh Panthers @ 3:30 ET - The Tigers offense, as the whole world knows, has struggled badly this season. Also, Clemson is still winless ATS on the season. However, getting them now in a range of +3 to +3.5 points now Saturday at Pittsburgh is an incredible value. The Tigers offense has made headlines for struggles but their defense has been incredibly good. Clemson allowed 27 points at NC State but, other than that, the Tigers have given up only 9.6 points per game in their other 5 games. The Tigers did not allow more than 14 points in any of those 5 games. Now let's talk about Pittsburgh. The Panthers just caught the Hokies off a tough 3-point loss to Notre Dame. So give the Panthers credit as they held Virginia Tech to just 7 points in that game but, again, it was a horrible spot for the Hokies. Prior to that game Pitt had great defensive gems against Massachusetts and New Hampshire but who wouldn't? Exactly! So, that being said, note that the Panthers allowed an average of 33 points in their other 3 games this season when they actually faced decent respectable teams. Now, consider all of the above PLUS the fact that Clemson has played a TOUGHER schedule than Pittsburgh this season! So the point is I can tell you without a shadow of a doubt who the better defense is in this match-up. Also, the Panthers are ranked and at home and this is the first time the Tigers have been an ACC dog in over a decade. Clemson is aware of all this of course. They are underdogs and they are the unranked team and the Panthers are ranked. Watch how the Tigers respond this week given all of the above. 8* CLEMSON +3.5

ESPN2 Smash Pass - Rickenbach CFB Wednesday 10* Top Play Coastal Carolina Chanticleers -5 @ Appalachian State Mountaineers @ 7:30 ET - We can lay a short number here to have a team that has won nearly 20 regular season games in a row. I'll take it! Yes I know Coastal Carolina has played a weak schedule but this is essentially the same Chanticleers team we saw last season and they knocked off a pair of ranked teams last season as part of their undefeated regular season. Coastal Carolina's toughest game this season was at Buffalo and they won by just 3. However late in the game the Chanticleers had a 1st and goal and were getting ready to make the score 35 to 17 to put the game away. Then it was the one and only interception that CC has had this season and the Bulls then drove 92 yards for a 14 point swing on the scoreboard. Honestly that one turn of events is simply serving to give us great line value here. Again, it is the only INT that Coastal has this season and this is a very strong running team with a QB with a 14-1 ratio as well! They are up against an Appalachian State team that is banged up at the RB position and off a blowout loss at UL Lafayette. The Mountaineers have turnover issues and that was the case in last season's loss to Coastal Carolina as well. In summary, the Chanticleers should have beaten Buffalo by a double digit margin and every other win they have this season has been by 27 points or more. Appalachian State simply will not be able to keep up in this one. 10* COASTAL CAROLINA

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach CFB 8* Rice Owls +17.5 @ UTSA Roadrunners @ 6 ET - UTSA is starting to wear down some. I know they are still undefeated on the season but this will be their 7th game in 7 weeks and they have been on the road twice in past three weeks and had to battle hard for victories. This is a banged up Roadrunners team that is starting to tire out. The Runners should still get a win here but, keep in mind, each of their last 3 wins have been by 7 or less points. Now UTSA faces a rested Rice team that has played the tougher schedule. Granted the Owls are not a strong team but they are off back to back wins plus a week of rest so this sets up well for them to stay inside the big number posted on this one. 8* RICE +17.5

ESPN Smash Pass - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #122 Friday 10* Top Play Oregon Ducks -13.5 vs California Golden Bears @ 10:30 ET - The Ducks off an OT loss preceding their bye week. Oregon will bounce back strong at home here. They are vastly superior to this Golden Bears team. Also, the Ducks lost at California last season so this is a revenge game for Oregon. The Golden Bears are off a 21-6 loss two weeks ago (also off a bye like the Ducks are) and Cal just does not have the offense to keep up in this one. The Golden Bears only scored well in 1 of their 4 games against FBS opponents this season. In the other 3 games California averaged only 16 points per game. Oregon is averaging 40 points a game in their home games this season and will pull away to win this one by a big margin as they are angry off a loss and have had extra time to think about the defeat too. This will be an angry Ducks team in front of their home fans on a Friday night and this is surely to be domination as a result against a Cal team that has only 1 win this season and it was against an FCS school. 10* OREGON -13.5

ESPNU Annihilation - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #112 Thursday 10* Top Play South Alabama Jaguars -3 vs Georgia Southern Eagles @ 7:30 ET - I know the Eagles have played the tougher schedule. But I also feel strongly that the Jaguars are in an ideal bounce back spot and will respond. Why is South Alabama favored over a Georgia Southern team that has won 7 straight meetings with them? Exactly! Don't let the line fool you. The Jags are going to get it done finally and put an end to that losing streak versus the Eagles. Georgia Southern is allowing 487 yards per game while South Alabama is allowing only 311 yards per game. After blowing their game against Texas State last week and losing in 4 overtimes, I expect the Jaguars to come up big this week and respond huge. South Alabama is off back to back losses by 2 points each and will get back to winning ways here. The Eagles have lost 4 of last 5 games and their pass defense is a weakness and the strength of the Jaguars offense is the passing attack. This will help key this home win so lay the short number. 10* SOUTH ALABAMA -3

Sun Belt Game of the Year - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #108 Tuesday 10* Top Play UL-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns +5 vs Appalachian State Mountaineers @ 7:30 ET - Coastal Carolina is undefeated on the season and ranked #15 in the nation. What does that have to do with this play? Well, Appalachian State plays in the same division of the Sun Belt Conference along with the Chanticleers and they are hosting them next week. It is hard to imagine the Mountaineers overlooking a 4-1 UL Lafayette team but, if there was a spot for that to be the case, this is it! I like the fact that the Ragin' Cajuns lone loss came against a Texas team that showed again on Saturday (versus Oklahoma) that they have an incredible offense. Also, ULL played UT much tougher than the final score reflected. Appalachian State is a very good football team in the Sun Belt but so are the Ragin's Cajuns and this line has gone from a 3 to a 5 and is offering exceptional home dog value! ULL won last year's meeting and the year before they lost but outgained App State by nearly 100 yards! The last time the Cajuns hosted the Mountaineers they fell short and now they get some payback for that home loss Tuesday. In fact, prior to winning the match-up in December, ULL had lost 8 straight meetings with Appalachian State. Suffice to say some home payback is still on order! As a dog, the Ragin Cajuns have only lost the money 4 times the last 14 games when getting points! 10* UL-LAFAYETTE +5

Game of the Month - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #394 Saturday 10* Top Play Western Kentucky Hilltoppers -3 vs UTSA Roadrunners @ 7 ET - I have been waiting for the right spot to fade UTSA and I believe we have that right here! Long-time followers know I am a contrarian and so it will not surprise you to see me making this bet. Western Kentucky is 1-3 this season while UTSA is 5-0 plus the Roadrunners have the much better numbers on defense and yet the Hilltoppers are favored. Looks funny does it not? Of course it does and you know that a situation like this is screaming "trap line" and I love the home team in this spot. UTSA has played the much weaker schedule and their luck runs out here. They had a dramatic come from behind victory at Memphis two weeks ago which was a game the Tigers gave away and had no business losing. Then last week the Runners barely got past a bad UNLV team. Now the Roadrunners are on the road and facing a Western Kentucky team that has played the tougher schedule and also is averaging over 500 yards of offense per game. The Hilltoppers defense is certainly not a strength but they will step up here at home in what is their first conference game of the season. On the other side of the field I just do not see UTSA as being able to get enough stops against the potent WKU offense. 10* WESTERN KENTUCKY -3

Afternoon Annihilation - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #358 Saturday 8* Auburn Tigers +15 vs Georgia Bulldogs @ 3:30 ET - Of course I have plenty of respect for the #2 team in the nation but this is just too many points in my opinion. Auburn has a lot of momentum after rallying for the win at LSU last week and have won 4 of 5 games this season. The Tigers lone loss was a game where they actually played Penn State very well in a game that, as the stats show, could have gone either way and that was on the road. At home for this battle, I look for Auburn to come up big against a very tough Georgia team. Keep in mind, the Bulldogs only other true road game was at Vanderbilt and so this is going to be first tough road test of the season for Georgia. The Bulldogs impressive win over Clemson earlier this season was a neutral site game and also has become less impressive because of the way Clemson has been underachieving this season. Just like that game, look for these Tigers to also put up quite a fight before ultimately falling short by just a single score. I like the value here as even a 2TD loss would still cash our ticket and I look for this to be tight throughout. The Tigers defense is quite good and the offense growing with confidence after sorting some things out at the QB spot. Grab the generous points being offered to the home dog as this one was a major mover from the early lines this season. Value! 8* AUBURN +15

SEC Game of the Year - Rickenbach CFB 10* Top Play Auburn Tigers (+) @ LSU Tigers @ 9 ET - I lost a lot of respect for this LSU team when they lost at UCLA early in the season. I know they ended up getting the win last week against Mississippi State but LSU was outgained in that game and it was a very fortunate win. So the Bruins and the Bulldogs were the only two tough games that LSU has had this season and they should have lost both games. I am well aware of the fact that Auburn lost their big game at Penn State earlier this season but that was a strong game from them! The stats were roughly equal in that game and Auburn is a perfect 3-0 on the season and could very easily be 4-0. Of course LSU is out for revenge after getting blasted by Auburn last season but revenge tends to be over-played. The fact is Auburn is the much better defense in this match-up and, on offense, has the vastly superior ground attack. I love taking road underdogs that play solid defense and can run the ball on offense. I know this is a night game in Baton Rouge and being played with revenge, etc. but this is not the same level of LSU teams we have seen in the past. I feel we have excellent line value here with the road team getting a full field goal. I also like the fact that QB Finley is a former LSU players and if Nix plays I also look to him be better after being benched last week. That was a wakeup call for him and this is a well-coached Auburn team capable of punching LSU in the mouth all night long. 10* AUBURN +3

Reichenator Rout - Rickenbach CFB Friday 10* Top Play Maryland Terrapins +3.5 vs Iowa Hawkeyes @ 8 ET - When a team is favored by a field goal it is not quite the same as being a pick'em but the point is most games are decided by 3 or more points in football. The reason I mention that here is because I find it quite interesting that a team ranked #5 in the nation is favored by such a small number here. That said, the public is likely to be enticed to play Iowa here. Don't be fooled by this line! Yes, the Hawkeyes have played the tougher schedule so far this season but do not underestimate these Terrapins. They are undefeated on the season, just like Iowa, and statistically their defense has not been that far behind that of the Hawkeyes. The key statistical variance in looking at these two teams is actually on the other side of the ball where Maryland has been the much stronger team. The Terrapins offense, based on yardage, ranks among the best in the nation while the Hawkeyes offense production ranks among the worst. Iowa does hold the defensive edge but I am expecting a big game from Tagovailoa here and the QB helps lead the way to a home win in this one. If they do fall short I expect it to be by the slimmest of margins so I am grabbing the points here. 10* MARYLAND +3.5

Reichenator Rout - Rickenbach CFB Thursday 10* Top Play Miami Hurricanes -5.5 vs Virginia Cavaliers @ 7:30 ET - The Hurricanes are playing their first ACC game while this is the 3rd one for the Cavaliers. However, I expect this actually to work to Miami's edge in this case. That's because Virginia is 0-2 in ACC action already and the handwriting is on the wall early for them this season. As for the Canes, they are expected to perform well in the ACC this season and enter this one at 0-0 with everything in front of them. Yes, they have two non-conference losses but they were to Michigan State and Alabama - a pair of 4-0 teams. Note that Miami just thrashed an FCS school last week which is a big confidence boost heading into this game. Also, D'Eriq King should be back after sitting that one out and his shoulder has improved. He was solid on the ground and through the air when the Canes beat a solid Appalachian State team a few weeks ago. I feel we are getting good value here with the better team and the home team and we get that value because they have two losses but to two undefeated teams. The Cavs defense has simply been atrocious this season and the Canes better defense at home will be the difference maker here even if King did not play or was limited but I do not expect any issues with that here. Either way, 10* MIAMI -5.5

CFB Saturday 10* Top Play USC Trojans -10.5 - The Trojans lost their most recent home game to Stanford and it got their head coach fired. Still shell-shocked from that, USC traveled to Washington State and spotted the Cougars a 14-0 lead. Their response? Southern Cal, let by interim coach Donte Williams, rattled off 45 straight points in the huge 45-14 win! That was against the same Cougars team that won at Oregon State by double digits last season and that was the only win Washington State had in their shortened 4-game season. The point is that the Beavers are not a great football program. They have gotten a little better but still they particularly are lacking on defense and I expect USC to have a huge day on offense as they are rolling with confidence after how last week's game played out. The Trojans have won 23 straight games at Memorial Coliseum when hosting the Beavers. That said, of course we still must cover the spread here but I love the fact that the line has dropped from 13 to near 10 now and QB Kedon Slovis is back for the Trojans here and pronounced 100% ready to go after dealing with a neck injury. Southern Cal just has too much talent and too many weapons at the skill positions for Oregon State to be able to keep up in this one. Yes the Beavers are off to a 1-2 start but they lost their only challenging game (at Purdue) and the Trojans have played the tougher schedule. Also, USC is hell bent on making up for their embarrassing home loss in their last game here so I look for the Trojans to keep their foot on the gas throughout this game and win by at least a 3 TD margin! Lay the big points and look for a home blowout in this one. 10* USC -10.5

CFB Saturday 9* TOP Mississippi State Bulldogs +2.5 - Revenge game for LSU on the one hand as the Bulldogs beat the Tigers in Louisiana last season. However, lets not forget what happened the year before than when Mississippi State was the host and lost by 23 points despite the first downs in the game being equal. The point is that the Bulldogs have been reminded of that home loss beatdown heading into this game and I feel we have the stronger team at home and in a great spot. Mississippi State is off a loss at Memphis that never should have happened as they outgained those Tigers by more than 200 yards! Now they get a chance to dominate these Tigers and I do feel LSU is a little over-valued right now. The Bulldogs have played the tougher early season schedule and the Tigers are of back to back wins but against Central Michigan and McNeese State. In the only tough game LSU has had they lost to UCLA by double digits. Simply put, this is not the LSU teams of old and they are facing an up and coming Mississippi State team that has impressed early this season and won't make the same mistakes this week at home which they made last week on the road. 9* MISSISSIPPI STATE +2.5

CFB 10* Top Play Appalachian State Mountaineers -7 vs Marshall Thundering Herd @ 7:30 ET - Revenge game from last season as the Mountaineers lost 17-7 at Marshall despite having an edge in first downs in the game. Look for payback to be delivered here as Appalachian State has played the tougher early season schedule and also has been the stronger defense early this season. When the Mountaineers played East Carolina they dominated and the final score could have been even more dominant as the Pirates simply got some late meaningless scoring. That same East Carolina team just faced Marshall and the late scores were far from meaningless as the Pirates got the 42-38 upset win by rallying in the 4th quarter. The way each of these teams fared against East Carolina says a lot and I like the fact that Marshall just gave up 42 while the Mountaineers are allowing an average of only 19 points per game this season. Home team rolls here and wins this one by double digits. 10* APPALACHIAN STATE -7

CFB Saturday 10* Top Play Penn State Nittany Lions -5 - Not only has Penn State won at Wisconsin, the big win they had over Ball State means they did defeat the MAC Champions of a year ago quite handily. Granted Auburn is a very strong SEC team but this game is at Happy Valley where PSU is known for being a tough team to face. The Nittany Lions hold a key edge here too and that is the fact that the Tigers QB has struggled on the road. While the Auburn QB has solid overall numbers in his career, the positive production has come at home whereas on the road Bo Nix has thrown as many picks as touchdowns. It is no wonder the Tigers have had some road struggles during his time under center. Long term this Auburn team has only covered 32% of the time the last 25 times they have been a road dog. Look for Penn State to carry momentum from their strong start to the season right into this game. This is a night game at Beaver Stadium and the crowd will be roaring with the ESPN cameras on hand. The Nittany Lions defense returned the majority of key contributors from last season's team and I look for this D to make things very tough on Nix and the Tigers offense as his long-term road struggles continue. The line from a 7 down to a 5 is leading to solid line value here as well! 10* PENN STATE -5

CFB Saturday 8* Purdue Boilermakers +7.5 - I am not sold on this Notre Dame team. Not at all. They barely hung on to beat Florida State in their season opener. Keep in mind the Seminoles then lost to Jacksonville State last week so that Fighting Irish tight win over the Noles looks even more concerning right now. Then last week, even though at home, the Irish barely hung on to beat Toledo. While the Rockets are generally a respectable program, that is still a MAC team. Now ND renews an old rivalry with Purdue. Generally speaking, I like having the points in rivalry games if I feel the programs match-up quite well. In this case, I certainly like the fact that Notre Dame has been struggling to win games and the Boilermakers are off to a solid start. Yes the Boilers played a bad UConn team last week but they faced a respectable Oregon State team in their prior game. Boilermakers QB Jack Plummer has been playing very well and not making mistakes. This Irish team going to have trouble pulling away in this one and I look for it to go down to the wire. 8* PURDUE +7.5

CFB Friday 10* Top Play Louisville +7 - The Cardinals lost to an Ole Miss team in week 1 that has certainly looked very sharp early this season. I feel we have great home dog value here as a result. Yes the Rebels proved very tough on the Louisville defense in week 1 but they were one of the best offenses in the nation last year. Yes the Knights are a fantastic offense too but the Cards were more competitive in week 1 than the final score showed. They had chances to put points on the board early and did not and the game got away from them after that. I don't see that happening again here. Central Florida is not the exact same powerhouse when they are on the road and this game is going to be a challenge for them. I would argue that Louisville has the better defense in this match-up plus the better special teams units overall and when you add that to home field edge plus getting about a full TD here as a dog I like my chances with the hosts here. Look for UCF to drop to 4-8 ATS that last dozen times they have been a road favorite. It has not shown up yet from an ATS standpoint but this Cardinals team is improved this season but flying under the radar due to an 0-2 ATS start. The result is line value in this spot. 10* LOUISVILLE +7

NCAAF 10* Top Play Louisiana -20 - The Bobcats are a mess as long-time veteran head coach Frank Solich stepping down over the summer really seemed to hurt this program. While Tim Albin already was with the program, the head coaching experience here is new to him and Ohio University has really struggled. After a season-opening home loss to Syracuse by a 20 point margin the Bobcats should have been ready to respond. The fact they then lost again at home, and this time to an FCS program, speaks volumes about the state of this team right now. Certainly I also know that UL Lafayette did not look good last week and were also facing an FCS opponent. However, the difference is that the Ragin' Cajuns came into this season as a ranked team and were off a demoralizing loss at Texas to open the season. Louisiana was still getting over that defeat when they barely edged Nicholls State last week. That said, I look for ULL to finally play a complete game here and they will not take their foot off the gas here. The Bobcats have been particularly bad on defense early this season and ULL will pound away all game long. Also, Ohio U only scored 9 points in their only game against an FBS school this season. The stats of the ULL game at Texas show that the Cajuns were not as bad as the final score shows. That being said, we truly have value here even with this big number. I expect the home team to win by 4 to 5 touchdowns in this one as the Bobcats continue to suffer some early season growing pains under Albin. 10* LOUISIANA -20

10* Top Play Michigan -6.5 - The Wolverines lost star WR Bell to a season-ending injury last week but the situation at WR for the Huskies is much much worse right now! When you look at who was expected to be the top 3 wide receivers on the depth chart all 3 are out right now! Of the 2nd teamers another guy is out as well right now. No wonder QB Dylan Morris threw 3 picks last week. How can the Huskies be in sync on offense when all the guys they thought they would be relying on to catch the ball are all out? Making matters worse, last week's game was a home game for Washington and was against an FCS school. Now they go on the road to the Big House and take on a Wolverines team hell-bent on having a better season this year. Michigan already pounded out a win over Western Michigan last week. Yes that is a MAC school but it was an impressive win nonetheless and these Wolverines are much more in sync right now on both sides of the ball than the Huskies are. Keep in mind, Washington played only 4 games last season and that was with a first year coach. Compare that to coach Jim Harbaugh, who love him or hate him, is now in his 7th season in his current tenure as Michigan's head coach and he is now 50-22 after last week's win. The retooled coaching staff under him has already implemented some positive changes for this season and I look for this very hungry team to "bring it" again on Saturday night and win this game by a margin of 2 to 3 touchdowns as the Huskies problems in the passing games are a major concern because they can not turn to the ground game for an alternative. Last week they were outgained 127 to 65 on the ground by Montana. The Wolverines only have Northern Illinois on deck so they were fully focused on this game as their toughest one in the first few contests of the season. That is bad news for Washington. This one gets ugly! 10* MICHIGAN -6.5

8* East Carolina +2.5 - The Pirates opened up as a 2.5 point favorite here and have now swung around to being a 2.5 point dog. That is because they are facing a team from the might SEC. However, South Carolina is far from being a mighty team and just because they are in the SEC does not mean they go on the road and win this game. There are going to be struggles for the Gamecocks this season because they have a new head coach and new systems and they do not have much at the skill positions either. This East Carolina team is going to be much improved in their 3rd year under coach Houston. Pirates off 14-point loss but faced a respectable Appalachian State team on the road. The Gamecocks are off a 46-0 win, albeit against FCS opponent Eastern Illinois. The point is that the pubic is all over the SEC school in this match-up and you look at last week's results and it makes it seem the odds makers do not know what they are doing here. Long time followers know how I feel about that! A lot of respect for the odds makers and they had it right when they had the Pirates favored in this one. I am fading the line move and taking advantage of the line value. 8* EAST CAROLINA +2.5

10* KANSAS +26.5 - I know the Jayhawks have been a horrible team but Lance Leopold is a great coach. Granted he got a late start with this team as he was hired later than most new coaches are hired coming into a season. However, he is still - especially with help of coaching staff he brought over from Buffalo - going to get more out of this team than his predecessors have been getting here. They did struggled to run the ball against an FCS foe last week but I like how the defense performed. I also like the fact that, even as bad as the Jayhawks have been the last two seasons, they won the yardage battle against Coastal Carolina last season and the yardage battle was nearly equal in the 12-7 loss the year before that. The point is that there is not such a great separation between these programs as you would be led to believe by the huge spread posted on this game. I look for the Jayhawks to still lose this game by a couple touchdowns but that still gives us some cushion with this line at nearly four touchdowns! This team is going to play hard for Leopold and his staff and last week's game against an FCS foe was a good chance for the team to work through some early season issues. No overnight miracles here with these Jayhawks but I expect a competitive effort here and feel the Chanticleers will also be content to turn to their ground game and just start running clock once they do have a big lead. 10* KANSAS +26.5

ESPN Smash Pass - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #225 Monday 10* Top Play Louisville Cardinals (+) vs Ole Miss Rebels @ 8 ET - I have plenty of respect for the coordinators for the Rebels but they could have their hands full without their head coach (Lane Kiffin covid) here and facing a Cardinals team that is on a mission for big improvement under head coach Scott Satterfield this season. The key about the Rebels is they have a very bad defense. The Cards are going to score points here. The other thing is that, is a good as that Ole Miss offense is, I expect the Rebels to get caught trying to do a little too much here. What I mean by that is mistakes offensively because, without Kiffin on the sidelines, the play-calling will not be quite the same. There will be pressure on offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby to call a great gameplan here but will this hurt the rhythm of the offense? Keep in mind Rebels QB Matt Corral had some great numbers last season but if you look at their non-home games last season (this is a neutral site match-up) the Rebels went just 3-2 and two of the three wins were by 6 or less points with one of the wins in OT. Also, Corral threw 11 of his 14 interceptions on the season in two of those road games - at Arkansas and LSU. The road game that was an OT win was at Kentucky. The other tight win was the bowl game against Indiana. We all just saw the Hoosiers get smoked by Iowa Saturday. As for Arky, LSU, and Kentucky - none of the 3 teams had a winning record last season! I am not saying the Rebels will not win this game but I feel hanging onto any type of margin will prove difficult. The porous Ole Miss defense also gives the Cardinals great backdoor cover potential should we need it. Tremendous respect for the Rebels capabilities on offense but also note that Louisville had the #1 pass rated defense in the ACC last season and ranked 17th nationally as they allowed only 189.2 yards per game through the air. This game should be a battle all the way to the end. Grab the big points. 10* LOUISVILLE +10

Money Line Marquee - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #224 Sunday 10* Top Play Florida State Seminoles Money Line +240 vs Notre Dame Fighting Irish @ 7:30 ET - No points needed here. We already saw a few upsets in Week 1 of CFB involving top 25 teams and we are going to see another one here in my opinion. This game is the chance to put Florida State back on the map in College Football. Why are they are only a TD underdog to a team that went 10-0 in the ACC regular season last year while the Seminoles went 2-6 in ACC action? Precisely! This Notre Dame team, of course, is still going to be a quality team this season. However, the Fighting Irish had so much turnover from last season's team. Particularly concerning are major losses on offense and they lost nearly their entire offensive line. That is bad news against a Seminoles defense hell-bent on playing much better this season. They added some key players through the transfer portal and this FSU defense is going to be much better this season. At home, with the nationally televised cameras rolling and being the only game on the big board, watch the Noles step up very big here and shock an over-rated Notre Dame team still living off last year's successes. This team is really a shell of its former self and is going to be knocked off right away here in game one. The Seminoles have a different look and different attitude coming into this season and have two quarterbacks available now with returning starter Jordan Travis and senior transfer McKenzie Milton both an option to start. ND has a new defensive coordinator who certainly comes in with a strong resume (was with Cincinnati!) but the loss of Clark Lea at DC and some key players on the defensive side of the ball that spearheaded the D before could certainly hurt. Keep in mind, in the first year under FSU head coach Mike Norvell, there were a lot of leftover players from the Fisher and Taggart days. A lot of those players, many unhappy, were dragging down the ship last season. Those guys are gone and there is a lot of strong talent happy to be here that is ready to step right in. I feel the Noles are going to surprise here in week one right away and Notre Dame lost more than half their starters from last year! Upset alert! 10* FLORIDA STATE +240

Bulldog's Best - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #213 Saturday 10* Top Play LSU Tigers -2.5 @ UCLA @ 8:30 ET - The Bruins have the edge of a game under their belt. Trouble is that game was against a Hawaii team that certainly did not look too good! This is the same UCLA team that only had 3 wins last season and the teams they beat went a combined 3-10 for the season. I still do not trust the Bruins QB against top tier competition. UCLA head coach Chip Kelly is going to have to prove to me that he can win a big game like this before I would hesitate to fade him. His Bruins just are not quite ready and this Tigers team comes into this game angry. Remember they just won the national championship but now are coming off a disappointing 5-5 season. Their defense was bad and they can not wait to make up for that. The process of the turnaround begins right here in Pasadena in Game One of the season and this highly talented SEC team goes on the road and makes a statement in their first game of the season. Love the fact that the line opened up in the -5 range over the summer but now is a -2.5 on gameday morning. We are getting great value here and keep in mind LSU projected to have a big bounce back season in a very tough SEC while the Bruins also play in a solid conference for sure but still UCLA nowhere close to the top tier programs like Oregon and USC in the Pac-12. Most of the rest of that conference nowhere close to SEC level and we have got great value with the Tigers here because everyone still remembering their disappointing campaign last season. 10* LSU -2.5

NOTE: Match-up now going EARLY Saturday instead of Thursday EVENING so the write-up below just slightly modified for the schedule change: Earliest Dominator - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #229 Saturday 8* Temple Owls (+) @ Rutgers Scarlet Knights @ NOON ET - The Scarlet Knights were about an 11 point favorite when lines first were released on this match-up. Now Rutgers is favored by 14.5 points as of very early Friday morning. I am grabbing the points with Temple. Since 2014 (the last season Rutgers went to a bowl) the Scarlet Knights have only two wins over an FBS school by more than 11 points. Those two wins were over UMass in 2019 and Texas State in 2018. Annually those are two of the worst football programs in the country. Now I am well aware of the fact that the Owls are certainly not a football factory by any stretch of the imagination. However, Temple was one of the teams most hurt by the covid-19 restrictions last season and have a relatively new head coach compared to Greg Schiano who was beginning his 2nd stint with the Scarlet Knights after already spending a decade here through 2011. The Owls head coach is Rod Carey who was only in his 2nd season here at Temple after 7 years as head coach at Northern Illinois. The Owls have enough skill and athleticism on offense to keep this game closer than many are expecting. Temple is also strong enough in the trenches to go "punch for punch" with a physical Scarlet Knights team. This game will play out as a bit of a war and I really expect the Knights to struggle to pull away and expect this game to be decided by just a one score margin. Great value with this line moving past the +14 key number. 8* TEMPLE +14.5

ESPN Smash Pass - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #154 Friday 10* Top Play Northwestern Wildcats (-) vs Michigan State Spartans @ 9 PM ET - The earliest numbers that came out on this game showed the oddsmakers set Northwestern as a 7.5 point favorite and the Cats now are all the way down to a -3 as of very early Friday morning. That means the betting markets are saying these teams are even on a neutral field and the Wildcats are essentially still getting the normal 3 points teams are often considered to have as a home field edge. I am not buying that. The Wildcats lost last season's game with the Spartans courtesy of 4 turnovers. It was their only loss of the regular season and is the first time in nearly a decade that they have lost back to back meetings with Michigan State. Northwestern will get some payback here. First off they are extremely well coached and have an excellent coaching staff put together. Secondly they are a system based team. They can not get the same talent that the bigger Big Ten schools are able to attract and bring in with their top recruits but it is their systems, smarts, hard work, and execution that make them a tough team. The problem with Michigan State (my pick to battle Rutgers for the worst spot in the Big Ten East) is that they have a head coach (Tucker) in his 3rd year overall as a head coach (2nd year with the Spartans) and he is trying to implement his systems but with many veteran players left over that were Dantonio recruits. The Spartans only other win last season, other than upsetting the Wildcats, was winning their annual biggest game of the year (versus rival Michigan). Other than that the Spartans had 5 losses and were outscored by a combined 202 to 70. Yes that works out to an average score of 40 to 14. I am not necessarily expecting that big of a margin here but this one will get ugly for Michigan State fans. The Spartans may get better as the season goes on but this team still trying to adjust to Tucker and his systems. 10* NORTHWESTERN -3

ESPN Annihilation - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #907 Wednesday 10* Top Play UAB Blazers -15 vs Jacksonville State Gamecocks @ 7:30 ET - The Blazers are a strong CUSA team. The Gamecocks are a solid program but are an FCS team. This is a step up in class for them. Remember last year Jacksonville State faced Florida State and jumped out to a 14-0 lead partially benefitting from an INT return for a touchdown. The Seminoles, who only won two other games last season by the way, stormed back for a blowout win. This UAB team is rock solid on both sides of the ball and very strong in the trenches. The Blazers defense looks particularly solid this season. As for the strength along the O-line and D-line that is where UAB will get the keys to this victory. Jacksonville State does have a solid QB, he was formerly a back-up at Clemson, but if his teammates are getting beat everywhere else on the field there is not much he can do. UAB begins the season with 4 games away from home (this is a neutral site game) so I expect them to be fully focused here and am expecting them to wear down Jacksonville State as this game goes on. The Blazers can wear teams down on the ground and the Gamecocks might be able to hang around in the first half but eventually UAB is just too strong and has the big talent edge and will eventually pull away and win this game by 20+ in my opinion. 10* UAB Blazers -15

Game of the Month - Rickenbach CFB Rotation #299 Saturday 10* Top Play Nebraska Cornhuskers -7 @ Illinois Illini @ 1 ET - Certainly Bret Bielema at head coach is an upgrade over Lovie Smith at head coach for Illinois. However, that improvement is going to take some time to show up on the field. It will not be overnight and this is simply not a very good football team. I am certainly not high on Nebraska either. But, as it stands right now, this Cornhuskers team is certainly superior to the Illini. Additionally, they are out for revenge from an embarrassing home loss to Illinois last season. I also love the way we have seen the line react on this game. It opened up at nearly double digits and yet has since dropped to as low as a 6.5 but then every time it gets down to 6.5 the Huskers get market attention and it goes right back to 7. So, as of overnight Friday heading into Saturday what I am telling you is as follows: The Huskers opened up as a big road favorite for a reason. The odds makers are not stupid. The line dropping to 6.5 from nearly 10 but then always getting bet back to 7 is an indication that many believe, just as I do that, that the Cornhuskers win this game by at least 7 points and I am expecting a win by a double digit margin. The Huskers and Illini return plenty of defensive starters. I know the Nebraska offense is not a strength, especially through the air, but lets go back to those defenses for a minute. The Illini return plenty of guys but allowed 35 points per game and ranked as one of the worst defenses in the nation for yardage allowed. As for the Huskers, other than the Illini debacle and getting destroyed (like most teams do) by Ohio State, they allowed only 24 points per game in their other 6 games and never allowed more than 27 in any of those other 6 games. Do not be surprised if the better defense prevails in a big way in this match-up. Even including the beatdown against Ohio State in their numbers, the Huskers defense ranked 50th nationally in yardage allowed out of 130 teams. The Illini did NOT face Ohio State last year and still ranked 115th nationally in yardage allowed. The Huskers have their problems, but they are the better overall team and they have not forgotten what happened last year in Lincoln either. There is no better way to avenge a home loss than by getting payback on enemy turf and returning the favor. I fully expect the Cornhuskers to get their revenge in Champaign on Saturday. 10* NEBRASKA -7

Bowl Game of the Year - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach CFB Rotation #499 Monday 10* Top Play Ohio State Buckeyes (+) vs Alabama Crimson Tide @ 8 ET - Of course it is not easy to argue against a team that is 11-0 on the season but that argument is made a little easier when you're playing on a team that is 7-0 this season plus catching nearly double digits in points in the match-up. The fact is that Ohio State is a high quality program and there were a few times this season that Alabama's defense certainly was made to look susceptible. That said, with a potent ground attack and the dynamic Justin Fields at QB, I am looking for the Buckeyes to be in this game all the way. The Crimson Tide caught a break with facing an over-rated Notre Dame last week while Ohio State was very impressive facing a Clemson team that only struggled this season when Trevor Lawrence was not available at QB. That said, the Buckeyes huge win last week over the Tigers should do more than raise a few eyebrows. What it does is validate that Ohio State is not only strong enough to trade scores with Alabama, they just might be strong enough to get the upset win too. That said, there is no way I am passing up on taking more than TD in points here. The Buckeyes allowed 22 points per game this season. The Crimson Tide have also put some impressive numbers together this season (of course) but did allow an average of 35.5 points per game in their games against Texas A & M, Ole Miss, Georgia, and Florida. This should be a great game and I expect it to be decided by just a single score either way. Yes an upset would not surprise me in the least. That said, give me the big points. 10* OHIO STATE

Bowl Punisher - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach CFB Rotation #496 Saturday 10* Top Play Iowa State Cyclones (-) vs Oregon Ducks @ 4 ET - The Cyclones have all the edges here in my opinion. They are the stronger team in the trenches on both sides of the ball. Iowa State also has the coaching edge with Campbell over Cristobal. The Cyclones are stronger at skill positions like QB and WR and also have the better overall defense. Iowa State allowed an average of only 13.3 points per game over their final 4 games of the season and just 18.1 points per game over their final 8 games of the season. As for the Ducks, they only played in 6 games this season and they allowed an average of 30 points per game over their final 5 games of the season. The Cyclones also faced a tougher overall schedule than Oregon did. Battle-tested Iowa State is also happy to be making their first- ever trip to the Fiesta Bowl while the Ducks have been here often plus, being a Pac-12 team, already play in plenty of games in Arizona on an annual basis. The situation here simply creates a hungrier team on the Cyclones sideline and given that plus the edges they have all over the field, I expect them to cover this number rather easily as they establish their ground game with Breece Hall leading the way. The fact the Ducks have to give a lot of respect to Iowa State's potent ground game of course means that things will be open for some solid opportunities through the air for veteran QB Brock Purdy. The result is a blowout win here as the Cyclones defense will also hold the Ducks in check here and that allows the favorite to pull away as this game goes on. 10* IOWA STATE

Game of the Month Primetime Punisher - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach CFB Rotation #333 Friday 10* Top Play Ohio State Buckeyes (+) vs Clemson Tigers @ 8 ET - Of course I am well aware of the fact that Ohio State played only a half dozen games this season while Clemson will reach the dozen mark in games by playing in this one. While some look at that as a disadvantage for the Buckeyes or that they don't belong here, the fact is it actually may be a big edge. Ohio State could prove to be the fresher team plus they also are heavily playing the revenge angle and underdog mentality and the disrespect card heading into this one. That disrespect card comes, in part, from Tigers coach Swinney ranking Ohio State 11th in the nation because they only played 6 games. Look for Ohio State to use this as additional motivation here and I expect a valiant effort from the revenge-minded underdogs in this one. Of course Clemson is a fantastic team but the fact they barely beat Boston College and lost to Notre Dame (when the Tigers were without Lawrence) shows that if the Buckeyes do a decent job limiting big opportunities for QB Lawrence in this one, they will be more successful than most are expecting. I love all the revenge and motivational edges here plus the fact we are getting more than TD with the underdog Ohio State in this one. Prior to being held to 22 points by a very strong Northwestern defense, the Buckeyes averaged 46.6 points per game in their first 5 games this season. QB Fields and company can give this solid Clemson defense trouble and I am expecting an upset win here which means I certainly am comfortable grabbing the points. If the Buckeyes do fall short I expect it to be by only a single score. 10* OHIO STATE

Earliest Punisher - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach CFB Rotation #328 Friday 8* Georgia Bulldogs (-) vs Cincinnati Bearcats @ Noon ET - This one should get ugly. Why is a 2-loss Georgia team favored over an undefeated Cincinnati team? Exactly! I have been patiently waiting for this one and now look forward to the onslaught. The Bearcats played such a weak schedule that is laughable. Even with that they only won their last two games by 3 points apiece but again my point is they might have won half their games if they played the same schedule Georgia did. The key word there is might! As I noticed in some of my prior write-ups in successfully going against the Bearcats, they were actually outstatted in a couple of their big wins but most don't look at that, most just look at the scoreboard finals. That is what is also helping to give us line value here in going against the Cats. I know Georgia has to win this by more than a TD for us to cash this ticket but I do fully expect that. They are the better team in all facets of the game and in their true road games this season they allowed 16 points or less in 4 of 5 games. The Bearcats had more defensive struggles in some of their bigger games than what showed up on the scoreboard but even just looking at their final two games they did allow 28.5 points per game to Tulsa and Central Florida. That said, Georgia would be a double digit favorite if facing either one of those teams. Given all of the above, I do expect the Bulldogs to take this one by double digits as well. 8* GEORGIA

Bowl Punisher - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach CFB Rotation #211 Thursday 10* Top Play West Virginia Mountaineers (-) vs Army Black Knights @ 4 ET - The Mountaineers played a much tougher schedule than Army. Also, West Virginia is off a loss in their regular season finale but went 3-0 SU / ATS this season when entering a game off a loss. Coach Brown will be coaching West Virginia in a bowl game for the first time and I fully believe there is some extra incentive for him to get the win in this one. The line was as high as a 7.5 as it opened up and now it is down to a 6.5 as of game day morning. I feel this is giving us excellent line value in this spot as it crossed the key number of 7. Of course Army fits the classic role of a run-heavy underdog and they have a tendency to perform well in this role. However, Brown was previously the coach at Troy where current WVU DC Koenning was also the defensive coordinator. Brown and Koenning, as a result of experience in the Sun Belt Conference faced the option from time to time. Of course they also have had extra time to prepare for it here with this being a bowl game. That said, Army's offense is likely to struggle more than people realize here and they scored an average of only 16 points their last 4 games of the season. The Mountaineers are very solid defensively, especially considering some of the tough Big 12 offenses they faced, and they will hold Army's one-dimensional attack in check here. When West Virginia has the ball look for an all-out aerial assault as they averaged 277 passing yards per game. Also, coach Brown is 3-0 SU and ATS in bowl games and I look for him to make it 4-0 ATS in bowls while the Mountaineers also make it 4-0 ATS for the season when entering a game off a SU loss. This one is a blowout for the favorite. 10* WEST VIRGINIA

Contrarian Crusher - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach CFB Rotation #315 Wednesday 10* Top Play Florida Gators (+) vs Oklahoma Sooners @ 8 ET - Of course I am well aware of all the issues that are impacting the Gators passing game for this one. However, this line is now all the way up to a +7 and this is a proud SEC team that enters this game off back to back losses to end the regular season. That was preceded by a 3-game stretch in which Florida won all 3 games and did not allow more than 19 points in any of the 3 victories. The Sooners ended the season on a red hot winning run and I know their numbers on defense have looked great. However, Oklahoma did face a lot of struggling and weak offenses to close out the season. Keep in mind, in games against Kansas State, Iowa State, and Texas the Sooners did allow a ton of points. Even with all the missing players, there is certainly hope for this SEC offense against that Sooner D and, at the same time, I definitely expect a bounce back effort from the Gators defense. They allowed 44.5 points per game over their past two games of the season and both were losses. Bounce back time here and, in terms of the big line, note that the Gators have not lost a game by more than 6 points all season. Grab the big points here as we go contrarian and fade the line move. 10* FLORIDA

Bowl Punisher - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach CFB Rotation #298 Tuesday 10* Top Play Texas Longhorns (-) vs Colorado Buffaloes @ 9 ET - the buffaloes entered their season finale with a chance to play for the pac-12 title...instead, colorado blew a 21-10 lead and lost 38 to 21 to utah...after that disheartening loss i am looking for the buffaloes to get slaughtered here...yes, i know the longhorns had some defensive players opt out of this game but there are others behind them who have been waiting in the wings and chomping at the bit to get in there...watch the new blood on defense really step up in this game with an inspired effort...not only that, the strength of this horns team is its offense anyway and they will put on a show for the hometown faithful in this one...yes this game is in san antonio rather than austin but there is a huge contingent of longhorns fans in san antonio plus many will be driving down from austin for this game...the alamodome, even with restrictions due to covid, will still be loaded with texas fans...under coach herman, this is a 4th straight bowl trip and they were dog in each of the first three but not only covered those but won them outright...coach herman takes the bowls seriously and will again have his team ready here...they make it 4 in a row both straight up and against the spread with another big win here...last season the horns beat utah 38-10...yes it was the utes that just blasted the buffaloes in their final game this season and they are in for a rude awakening here as texas rolls...unlike ut, colorado is in a bowl for the first time in 4 years and they got blasted in that one by a 38-8 count and that was right here in this bowl...maybe things will change with head coach dorrell now calling the shots?...unlikely as he went 1-3 ats in bowls as head coach of ucla...this one is all longhorns to the delight of the home state faithful who will pack as many as they can into the alamodome in san antonio...with the line all the way down to a -7 after opening up near two touchdowns, the value is off the charts with this one...10* TEXAS