This is the 4th meeting. The first two saw Indiana win 126-124 (at Indiana) and 128-119. The second of those was the Eastern Finals for the In-Season-Tournament, in Las Vegas. That loss didn't sit very well with the Bucks. With the third meeting being played at Milwaukee, they beat up the Pacers 140-126.

The Pacers have won 3 straight for the 3rd time this season. Each previous time they lost their next game. Each defeat came by 9 or more.

The Pacers are 7-9 ATS against winning teams. The Bucks are 8-4 ATS against winning teams. Lay the points with Milwaukee! **CENTRAL GOM**

The Ravens looked pretty convincing against the 49ers but the Dolphins are a different type of team. Miami averages more than 30 points a game and the defense has gotten progressively stronger.

Baltimore scores a lot but Miami scores more. Last season, the Ravens scored 38 against the Dolphins and it still wasn't enough. Miami won 42-38.

The Ravens are off that big statement win on National TV. That was on Monday night on the West Coast. They're now traveling back across the country to play an early game on a short week.

The Dolphins have something to prove and Baltimore linebacker Queen added fuel to the fire by talking about "teams being cute and playing basketball on grass."

The Dolphins have won 5 of their last 6 and the only loss came by 1. They will prove to the world that they aren't soft on Sunday. ***AFC GOY***

Off consecutive losses, the Cowboys really need this one. They are still fighting the Eagles for first place in the NFC East. The Lions do still want a first round bye but they are off consecutive wins and have already locked up first place in the division. In my estimation, this game is more important to the Cowboys.

The Cowboys are an entirely different team at home. They pounded the Eagles 33-13 last game here. They are outscoring teams 39.9 to 15.4 in games here. I played against them in the only game that they didn't cover here but the Cowboys are 7-0 straight up and 6-1 against the spread in their 7 home games.

Prescott has 20 touchdowns against only 2 interceptions in the games here, completing 74% of his passed. Coach McCarthy said this of the Cowboys' homefield advantage: "We've been able to get into a rhythm early and be able to just keep your foot on the gas. The crowds have been great."

Detroit gets a reality check and Dallas stays perfect at home. ***NFC GOM***

To these teams, home-court really matters. Little Rock is 6-3 at home but 1-3 on the road. Tennessee St is 5-1 at home but 1-5 on the road. The Tigers outscore visiting teams 84.5 to 67.3. The Trojans are 0-2 against the spread as away underdogs. They get outscored 81 to 75 on the road.

Last season, UALR won by 12 at Little Rock but the Tigers won by 25 when they played at Nashville. That game was also the final day of the calendar year, as it was played on New Year's Eve.

Tennessee State won 18 games last season. Little Rock only brought back 1 starter from last year's 10-21 team. The Trojans won't be ready for the Tigers on Saturday afternoon. ***Ohio Valley GOM***

These rivals almost always play close games against each other. The last three meetings were all ultra close. Stanford won by 1 and Arizona State won by 4 points, twice.

Six of the last 7 meetings have been decided by 5 or less. The lone exception was a 9-point ASU win. That allows you to conclude that none of the last 7 meetings have resulted in Stanford wins of greater than 5. An even closer look shows that Stanford only won 2 of those 7 games and that both of the victories were by 3 or less.

Stanford may have closed the gap on Arizona State a little but not enough to lay this many points. The Sun Devils won 23 games last year and went to the NCAA Tournament. Stanford was 14-19.

The Sun Devils thrive in this role. They are 5-0 against the spread the last 5 tries when they were road underdogs of 3.5 to 6. I'll take the points! ***PAC 12 GOY***

San Antonio won here last night. Portland won't let it happen again. Last night's game was over before it started. The Spurs were up 38-14 by the end of the first quarter. The Trail Blazers will get off to a better start tonight.

San Antonio's star rookie Victor Wembanyama had 30 points, six rebounds, six assists and seven blocks last night. He won't play tonight.

The Trail Blazers are 3-0 against the spread the last 3x they played 2 games in 2 days. The Spurs last 3 tries in a b2b spot all resulted in double-digit losses. They are 5-14-1 ATS their last 20 when playing 2 games in 2 days.

The Trail Blazers have a long road trip after this game. They can't afford to get swept by the Spurs. Portland wins big! ***REVENGE GOW***

Homecourt will make a big difference for this Horizon League battle. Last season, the Golden Grizzlies won by 3 at Oakland but the Vikings won by 16 in the game at Cleveland State. The Golden Grizzlies started out covering the spread every game but have cooled off. They got destroyed in their last 2 games and are 1-4 their last 5. That's straight up and against the spread. The Vikings started slowly but have since caught fire. They are off back to back big wins and have covered the spread in 4 straight. Grizzlies are 2-4 against the spread last 6 when playing with 7 or more day's rest. The Vikings play 4 of their next 5 on the road and will protect their homecourt on Thursday. ***Horizon League GOM***

Give me the points with the Warriors. Warriors lost by 3 points here in November and GSW is 55-38 against the spread in the revenge role last few years. Last 2 meetings have both been decided by 3 or less. Warriors are 5-2 against the spread last 7 visits here. Nuggets have won 4 in a row but they failed to cover the last game which brought them to 1-7 ATS after 3 or more straight wins. They are 18-34 against the spread their last 52 in that situation. In another close encounter, Warriors will move to 4-1 against the spread when off a win by 10 or more. **Western Conf GOM**

The Titans are dealing with injuries but they are still giving everything they've got. Seattle, which has its own injury problems, kept its hopes alive with a big win last week but that was by 3 points on the final play. The Seahawks had lost their previous 3 and are now playing on a short week. They are 2-5 on the road. The Titans are 4-2 at home. Since a 7-point win to close out November, the Titans have seen all 3 of their games decided by 3 or less. The Titans won the last meeting by 3 points, in OT. They are 15-6-4 against the spread their last 25 against AFC West opposition. This will likely be another close one. Grab the points.

This game will be played at Enterprise Center, in St. Louis. Illinois is 0-2 against the spread last 2 times it was a neutral court favorite of 6.5 to 9 points. Missouri is 2-0 against the spread as a neutral court underdog of 6.5 to 9 points. One of those games occurred on this very day, at this very venue, last year. Illinois was favored by 6.5 points for that December 22nd, 2022 game. Playing in front of a packed house, Missouri won by 22! At one point, the Tigers went on a 41-15 run. The Illini are only 4-9 against the spread their last 13 on a neutral court. All the Tigers' losses have been close. Give me the points. ***CBB UNDERDOG GOW***

Georgia Tech is happy just to be here and is looking to build on next year. The last time that the Yellow Jackets were in a bowl was 2018 and they got blown out. Coach Key said: "What I want to do is to be able to get as many opportunities as we can early on to keep our guys in shape to hone their skills so we haven't lost what we've been able to build through the season. Get guys a lot of situational football, a lot of third downs, red area, two-minute, four-minute-type situations." UCF is here to win. Senior quarterback John Rhys Plumlee returned from injury down the stretch and that coincided with the Knights' hot November. This will mark their 3rd Gasparilla Bowl win in five seasons. So, they're very familiar. We saw the Bulls thrive in their home state yesterday and this venue should also favor the team from Florida. UCF dominated GT in 2022 and also in 2020. The Jackets have improved but not enough. They've struggled outside of their conference with 3 wins in their last 12 tries. Lay the points! ***BOWL GOM***

This is it! The Pistons Christmas wish will be answered. In their final home game before the holiday, the Pistons get to face a Utah team which is terrible on the road and which is playing in a back-to-back situation. Well-rested and happy to be back home, the Pistons will extend a 13-8-1 against the spread record, after playing their previous 3 games on the road. Detroit covered the spread last game and has shown signs of fighting, despite playing much better teams than Utah. The Jazz are 2-13 on the road. This will be their 6th game in 9 days. Stop the presses. Detroit wins a game! ***Underdog GOY***

This is the first meeting of the season between these Atlantic Division rivals. The home team won all 4 meetings last season. The Knicks won by 24 and 18 points at Madison Square Garden. The Nets prevailed by 7 and 27 points when they where the host. Both teams were recently on the road against Western Conference opposition. Off 3 straight losses to close their trip, the Nets are going to be going all out to stop their losing streak. The only previous occasion where they lost 3 in a row saw the Nets respond with a 15 point win over Miami. The Knicks are 1-2 against the spread off an upset win. The Nets are 10-2-1 against the spread at home, 4-0 ATS at home when the total was 230 or more. Brooklyn gets it done! ***ATLANTIC DIV GOM***

Boston is good but this is too many points. The Celtics aren't as strong on the road as they are at home. Warriors are better at home. The Celtics were favored here last season but the Warriors won by 16. They also lost by only 3 at Boston. Warriors are 66-45 against the spread at home last 2 years. Celtics are already 0-2 against Western Conference opponents. They will have a difficult time again tonight. Grab the points! ***Underdog GOW***

Strong spot for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Cleveland scored 127 in Saturday's 8-point win over Atlanta. The Cavaliers had Sunday off. Not so for the Rockets. They played at Milwaukee on Sunday. The last time that the Rockets played 2 games in 2 days saw them lose by 10. The Cavaliers won by 17 points and by 18 points in last season's 2 games with the Rockets. Even dealing with some injuries, the Cavaliers, 4-1-2 against the spread in December, will win big again on Monday. ***NBA GOW***

Give me the points with Jacksonville. The Ravens are strong but Jacksonville plays best against good teams. The Jaguars are 5-2 against the spread against winning teams. It helps their cause against the Ravens that the Jaguars are the 4th best team in the NFL at stopping the run. They allow only 92.2 yards on the ground, per game. The offense is in good hands with an improving Trevor Lawrence. The Jax QB said this: "It's feeling better. Thankfully, I made out of the game pretty clean. I didn't re-aggravate it anymore. I'm just trying to keep getting better every day. Hopefully it feels even better this week. I was able to move around decent on Sunday, so that was positive." The Jaguars beat the Ravens by 1 point last year. That was an exciting 28-27 victory. This will be another close one and I look for the Jaguars to again get it done. ***SNF GOY**

The Knicks beat the Clippers 111-97 on November 6th, at MSG. They pulled away in the second half and spoiled the debut of James Harden. Six weeks later, the Clippers will have their revenge. The Clippers have won 6 straight games and they are 4-1 against the spread their last 5. They didn't play on Friday. The Knicks played last night at Phoenix. The Knicks are 2-3 against the spread when playing the second of back to backs. The Clippers won by 11 last meeting here. Look for NY to fall to 3-8 against the spread against winning teams. ***Revenge GOM***

This is a case of too many points, given the scheduling situation. The 76ers just destroyed the Pistons at Detroit. They will be over-confident tonight. With a Saturday road game to follow, they will take it easy late in the game. The Pistons are 2-0 against the spread when they were road underdogs of 12.5 or more points. They play with 2x revenge and will play with a chip on their shoulder. This season's first meeting was close, the 76ers winning by 8. This will be too. Grab the big points. ***Eastern Conf GOW***

I won with the over when these teams faced each other earlier this month. This time, the play is on Portland. The Jazz won yesterday but have dropped all 4 games when playing 2 games in 2 days. Their 3 road games in that situation all lost by double-figures. One of those was a 16 point setback at Portland. The Jazz are only 1-11 on the road overall, the worst road record in the league. The Trail Blazers are 9-5-1 against the spread their last 15 in a revenge situation. Lay the small number and look for a big win for the home team. ***Northwest Div GOM***

The Aggies blew out the Broncos at Utah State last year. Two totally different teams will face each other tonight but Santa Clara hasn't forgotten. The Broncos are a brilliant 18-9-1 against the spread their last 28 as underdogs, 13 of those resulting in outright victories. They already won outright at Stanford and beat Oregon. In both cases, they were getting points. The Aggies replaced every starter from last year's NCAA tournament team, as well as their coach. They are 9-14 against the spread their last 23 on the road, 0-2 this season. Give me the points. ***Underdog GOM***

Miami may be the flavor of the month but this is far too many points. The Titans manhandled this Miami team last season. Henry didn't even play and they still rushed for 198 yards. The Titans sacked Tua 4 times. He threw an interception and fumbled 3 times. Granted, that was in cold, rainy Nashville and this will be in much warmer Miami. The point remains that Tennessee matched up very well with Miami les than a year ago. This season, six of the Titans' 8 losses came by 14 or less. Vrabel's is liked and respected by the Titan players. They are well aware that is job could be in jeopardy. This is their chance to go out and play hard for him under the National spotlight, going all out for their first road win. This game will be close and I'm grabbing the points. ***MNF GOY***

I had a big win with Philadelphia in the first meeting. I remember that game well. So do the Cowboys, who will be thinking payback when they host the hated Eagles on Sunday night. Their loss at Philadelphia continued a disturbing trend for Dallas of losing against top teams. The Cowboys will be determined to change that and make things right. They want to prove to themselves and to the world that they don't just beat the bad teams. The setup is perfect. The Cowboys have had had some extra time to rest up and prepare, due to their Thanksgiving game. The Eagles just got a reality check out from the 49ers. Before that, they'd taken on the Bills and Chiefs. All those games against elite teams are going to take a toll. Dallas outscores teams by an average of 14 points. The Eagles outscore teams by an average of 3 points. Dallas is undefeated at home this season and is 7-2 against the spread last 9 as a home favorite of 3.5 to 7 points. Give me the Cowboys. ***Revenge GOY***

The Pacers have been scoring points at a high rate and have done very well to get this far. Lebron may be downplaying it but he is on a mission to add in-season tournament champion to his resume. James, Davis and the Lakers will not be denied. The Lakers have allowed only 89, 103 and 97 points over their last 3 games. Indiana will get more but not as many as it normally does. The Lakers superior defense will be on display on ABC TV and will separate them from the Pacers. ***Non-Conf GOM***

The Dukes are a good team with a national ranking but this will not be an easy game. Far from it. The stadium will be a white-out and the home team and crowd believes it can pull off the upset. "We're a marked team right now," James Madison coach Mark Byington said. "I'm anticipating that Old Dominion crowd being one of the toughest we play all year." Both JMU road games have been by 5 points or less. These teams had one common non-conf. opponent. Last game here, the Monarchs beat Radford. That same Radford team gave JMU real trouble in a 3-point game. The last 2 JMU visits here were decided by 5 and 2 points. The Monarchs, 4-2 against the spread their last 6 tries after 3 straight non-covers, hung within single digits at Arkansas. JMU coach Byington went on to say: "I know they've been excited about our game and it's a really good team, good coach. Great intra-state game. It's a little odd playing in December but here we go." Give me the points. ***Sun Belt GOY***

No Durant. No problem. Even though they're short-handed, the Suns will be bringing their best on Friday night. Remember, that Booker carried the load before Durant arrived and that he can still do so. With Durant out, we get the Suns as underdogs and don't have to worry about laying any points. The Kings are 4-8 against the spread as favorites and they're 3-6 against the spread the past 9 times that they played with 3 or more day's rest. The Suns are 74-31 straight-up their last 105 in this building. They score 118.2 at home compared to Sacramento's 112.9 on the road. Booker will have a monster game and the Suns will move to 12-8 against the spread their last 20 home games with a total of 230 or more. ***Pacific Div GOY***

Off a loss to Arizona, the Steelers are 3-3 over their last 6 games. All 3 of their wins came by 6 points or less. The Patriots lost by 14 at Miami in October. That's the only of their past 7 games which was decided by more than 6 points. Every other game has been ultra-close. The defense has allowed 10 points or less in 3 straight. That makes beating the Patriots by more than 6 points very difficult. The Patriots may score the fewest points but the Steelers aren't far behind. They average only 16 a game. A bad Steeler offense against a great New England defense. With the Steelers 0-5 against the spread the past 5 times that they were home favorites of 3.5 to 7, I'm happy to take the points. ***TNF GOM***

The Lakers have managed to win both of this season's games. That changes tonight. The Suns had Durant for the first 2 games but not Booker. Tonight, they'll have both. Booker is averaging 27.9 points, 5.8 rebounds and 8.4 assists through 11 games. Each of the first 2 games were very close. Adding Booker to the Suns makes them far more dangerous than the team that LA saw in those first 2 games. The Lakers are 0-3 against the spread on the season, after allowing less than 100 points in their previous games. In two of those instances, they allowed more than 130 points in losing the next game. Booker, Durant and the Suns will take this one. ***Pacific Div. GOM***

The Kings have been remarkable on the road but they won't be excited about a visit to Ohio. The Kings have played in Columbus 4 times the last 4 seasons. The Blue Jackets won the first by a 4-1 score. The last 3 games here all were tied after regulation. The Jackets ended up winning 2 of those. The last time that the Kings won a game here by more than 1 goal was back in 2017. The Blue Jackets have scored 18 goals in winning 3 of their last 4 at home. Columbus' Boone Jenner, who leads the team in goals said: "I think we've got to use the momentum when we have it." The Jackets will carry their home ice momentum into this one and have a strong chance of handing the Kings their first road loss. ***Non-Conf. GOW***

The Bengals struggled in Browning's first start. He's gotten his feet wet now and will be better from the experience. He also expects to have Tee Higgins back, a luxury he didn't have against Baltimore. Browning, who did complete 19 of 26 passes for 227 yards against the Ravens, said this of Higgins: "Tee's one of the top receivers in the NFL. I don't think can really put into words how important he is to this offense ... there's just something that Tee brings the table being as big, as fast and having the experience he does, where it's always nice to have him and Ja'Marr on the outside." The Bengals are 15-7 against the spread their last 22 as underdogs. The Jaguars won by 3 last game and have only won one of their last 5 games by more than 10. Grab the points! **NFL GOW**

San Jose State hosted North Dakota State last week and won 78-65. The Spartans have since played 2 road games, losing them both. They may have some tired legs. The Bison haven't played since the loss at San Jose State. They are 6-4 straight-up the last 10 times that they played with revenge from a road loss, 62-40 their last 102. They are also 5-2 straight-up their last 7 when playing with 5 or 6 day's rest in between games, 50-24 their last 74. They will be the fresher team. The Spartans are 6-24 straight-up their last 30 road games, 0-7 when the total was in the 135 to 139.5 range. They are 5-56 their last 61 in that spot. Bison will have their revenge! ***CBB Revenge GOY***

The Celtics humbled them 155-104 at the beginning of November and the Pacers haven't forgotten! Indiana is 9-4, both straight up and against the spread, its last 13 times in the revenge role. The Pacers lost by 4, in OT, the last time that they hosted the Celtics. The previous meeting here saw Indiana win decisively. The Pacers are averaging 128.8 points a game, most in the league. They just beat Miami 144-129 and they are 14-8 against the spread the past 22 times that they were off a game where they scored 130 or more. Grab the points! ***Eastern Conf. GOM***

These teams met in October, at Indianapolis. The Colts won. That's not surprising given that the Titans are 0-6 on the road. The Titans are an entirely different team here at home though. They're 4-1 in games at Tennessee. They have outscored teams by an average of 24.8 to 15 here. They are 4-1 against the spread the last 5 tries as a home underdog of 3 or less. The Colts recent wins have been against bad teams. They are 5-11 against the spread in divisional play their last 16. Give me Tennessee at home! **AFC South GOY**

Knowing that they got swept by them last season, the Bulldogs will be too much for the Bears this afternoon. Missouri State hasn't faced competition this good. The Bulldogs will be on of the top teams in the Missouri Valley Conf. again this season. They began conference play by crushing Valparaiso. Their 46-29 second half will act as a springboard into today's game. Bulldogs average 83 points at home. Bears average 68 points on the road. Drake wins by 10+! ***MVC GOM***

It's not easy to blow a team out two games in a row. Orlando hammered Washington a couple of days ago. It won't happen again! The Wizards have been at their best when off a bad loss. They're 71.4% against the spread when off a loss of 10 or more. Magic 12-15-1 against the spread last 28 when off a win of 10+. Washington coach Wes Unseld Jr: "We just have to get there with a little more urgency..." The Wizards will play with a sense of urgency and they will improve to 13-7 against the spread their last 20 tries after giving up 130+. **southeast GOY**

There's a big difference between the Pac-12 and the Big West. The Beavers will likely find things tough in their own conference. UC Davis may have more success within theirs. That makes winning this non-conference game a priority for the Beavers. They can't afford to squander opportunities against squads from lesser conferences. The Aggies are 0-3 against the spread the past 3 tries as road underdogs of 3 or fewer points. The last time that the Beavers were favored, they won by 10 points, when laying -2.5. They get it done again tonight! ***NOV GOM***

The Cowboys have been clobbering bad teams. The Seahawks aren't a bad team though and Dallas has far more trouble with better teams. Dallas is only 4-8 against the spread last 12 against winning teams. The Cowboys also have a very big game upcoming against the Eagles next week. Off their Thanksgiving Day romp and looking ahead to that game, Seattle could be overlooked. Seattle is 7-3 against the spread last 10 tries after losing 2 or more games in a row. Grab the points! ***NFC GOM***

I can understand that some bettors don't like taking a team like the Pistons. Personally, I don't like to pass up opportunities. The Pistons got blown out last night. That has allowed us to get a couple of extra points. Detroit doesn't mind playing 2 games in 2 days though. They have been in that situation 4 times this season. They won 1 game and the other 3 losses all came by 11 or less. They almost upset Denver. They are 17-13-1 against the spread in back to back situations the last 2 years. The Knicks have a division road game tomorrow night. They will be tested. Grab the points! ***Eastern Conf GOW***

The Grizzlies are going to really want this game. They're still winless at home and need to fix that. They're also 0-2 against Utah already this season. They're going to want to fix that, too. Adding to the revenge angle, the most recent of those games had some controversy. Memphis player Jared Jackson got ejected with a double-technical. Coach Jenkins said: "One of the most poorly officiated games I've ever seen," which led to him being fined $25,000 by the NBA. He went on to say: "Our team is competing their tails off, and this is what happens? The interaction right now with the officials, complete disrespect. It's unbelievable. ... I don't understand it." Grizzlies are 40-30-2 against the spread in the revenge role last 2 years, 12-8-2 against the spread when avenging a home loss. They will improve to 16-8 against the spread their last 24, after scoring 100 or less. ***Revenge GOM***

Stephen Austin has a very well-coached team and the program has a lot of pride. They beat Drake but then got blown out by Utah State. That won't sit well. Off its previous loss, SFA won its next game by 26 points. The Lumberjacks are bigger, stronger and more experienced than last year. Importantly, they're also healthier. Last season, they dealt with a lot of injury problems. That isn't an issue so far this season. The Lumberjacks are better than the Texans in the frontcourt and also in the backcourt. They're a team destined to finish near the top of the WAC, Tarleton State should finish near the basement. Texans are 1-7 against the spread last 8 tries when playing with 5 or 6 day's rest. Lay the points. ***WAC GOY***

The Rebels are 3-0 at home, 5-0 overall. The WolfPack are playing their first true road game. They are only 7-13 their last 20 away games, 0-4 SU in road games with a total of 145 to 149.5. The Rebels are finding a way to win close games. Three straight wins of 3 points or less. Wolfpack just gave up 95 points in a loss against BYU. They are 7-13 last 20 times after giving up 80 or more. Rebels keep on winning! **Tuesday Takedown**

Orlando has been rolling but Charlotte is also a lot better than people realize. Myles Bridges has made a big difference. The Hornets are off back to back victories, of those coming against Boston. LaMelo Ball is playing his best. Ball had 34 points, 13 assists and eight rebounds last game. That's 7 times in 9 games that he's scored 30 or more. Bridges said this of Ball: "He's playing at an unbelievable level. He's made the leap into being a superstar. He was an All-Star, but now he's a superstar. If he's not on any of the All-NBA teams I'll be surprised. He's a winner." The Hornets are 5-1 against the spread the past 6 times that they played with 3 or more day's rest. Grab the points. ***Southeast GOM***

Ridder is back and he will have learned from his time on the sideline. The Atlanta QB commented: "You get a different perspective of not only yourself but the offense as a whole. There are a lot of things where I'd like to have gone back and done better. I could've protected the ball better, but there are a lot of (instances) where I could've done things to not be in those situations, whether it's footwork or your reads or your progressions." The Falcons are 3-1 at home this season with Ridder starting. Last season's games were both decided by 3 or less and the game here at Atlanta was decided by a single point. The Saints are only 7-15-1 against the spread their last 23 as favorites, 2-5-1 as road favorites of a field goal or less. Falcons are already 2-0 within the division. Homefield will make the difference. ***NFC South GOM***

Baylor is playing for pride. Its the Bears' last game and it means a lot. West Virginia is already guaranteed a bowl. Baylor coach Dave Aranda knows that the Bears and their fans can really use a victory: "For the team, it would be a relief. It would be validation for working hard. When anything negative happens, you fight the attachment to all the negative things of the past. We're fighting that fight right now, and to get a win would be a victory over that." The Mountaineers have been road favorites four times the last few seasons. They were 1-3 against the spread. They were road favorites once this season and lost outright at Houston. Grab the points and look for the Bears to bring it! ***Big 12 GOM***

Texas needs to take care of business. No leaving anything up to anyone else. The Longhorns will punctuate a strong regular season with a statement blowout. They lost at Lubbock in Overtime last year and will get revenge from that game. Red Raiders are 2-5 against the spread last 7 tries on the road with total of 49.5 to 56. Texas is 3-0-1 against the spread last four tries at home with a total of 49.5 to 56. Longhorns are also 4-2 against the spread last six as home favorites of 10.5 to 21 points, 3-1 in that role this season. Texas wins big! **REVENGE GOW**

Getting extra value with the Jets due to the QB situation. The reality is that the QB change should only help. Wilson was terrible! Boyle has something to prove. The Jets defense is better than Miami's defense. The Jets are 6-3 against the spread the last 9 times that they were off a division loss. Last meeting was decided by 5 points. Three of last 4 meetings all decided by 7 or less and the other was a big NY win. Grab the points! **AFC EAST GOW**

The Rams have their number but the Seahawks will bounce back with a big effort on Thanksgiving! Seattle has won 8 of the past 10 home meetings against San Francisco. The two losses came by an average of 6.5 points. Pete Carroll likes Geno Smith's chances of starting: “"They’re taking a look at it but they pretty much know what’s going on there. It’s just see how soon it settles down. Like I said, it’s a good sign that he’s functional so that’s not the issue, so it’s just how sore he is. He’ll make it back." SF, which has a revenge game against the Eagles on deck, is 3-2 on the road. Seattle is 4-1 at home. The 49ers might fare better in the Dec. 10th rematch but Seattle is the right way to go on Thursday. Good luck and Happy Thanksgiving!

Detroit fans have been waiting for a long time for this. A Thanksgiving Day game where they've got a good team and where they can count on a big win. That day is here! The Lions are the real deal. The Packers are not. I've had this opinion from Day 1. This is what I said prior to Detroit's 34-20 win at Lambeau in September:

Its early but this game will likely go a long way in ultimately determining the division champion. After years of suffering, Detroit and its fans desperately want this. You can't always get what you want but in this case, the Detroit faithful will finally be rewarded. The Lions have been stockpiling talent over the years and now have a better team than the Packers. That's why they're small favorites, despite the game being played at Lambeau. You may be surprised to learn that the Lions are 10-2 ATS their last 12 divisional games. They're also 3-0 ATS their past three Thursday night games. The Lions, who already won at Arrowhead, have arguably faced stiffer competition than the Packers. They'll find a way to win this game and to seize early control of the division. ***NFC North GOY

Now the Lions get to complete the sweep in front of the entire country. Their time has come. They are 16-6 against the spread their last 22 home games. They had a 211-27 edge in rushing yards in the first meeting! As they were in September, they will be too much for the Packers to handle! ***NFC North GOM

After playing 3 games in 4 days, the Hawks got a nice break. They are coming in rested and ready to go. After this comes Brooklyn and then a long stretch on the road. It's imperative that the Hawks make hay while the sun is shining. The Pacers can't be trusted on the road. They are getting outscored by an average score of 132.7 to 121.7 in their away games. The Hawks scored 143 against them last meeting here! They will drop a massive number on this defensively challenged team once again. Indiana will score a lot, just not enough. Let's go Hawks! ***Eastern Conf. GOM***

Last week, I won with Eastern Michigan Over the total, an easy 30-27 final score against Akron. This week, I will look to fade Eastern Michigan on the road. The Eagles are only 2-4 against the spread as underdogs. Eastern Michigan, 5-1 at home but 0-5 on the road, gets outscored by an average of 28 to 13 in away games. The Bulls beat this team 50-31 last year. The Eagles want that 6th win but they won't get it. The Bulls will show they've still got some pride and close out their season with a big win. ***MAC GOW***

The Chiefs won when it really counted but the Eagles will exact a little revenge tonight. The Chiefs are only scoring 23.1 points a game this season. The Eagles score 28. The Eagles have only lost once all season. They were winning that game entering the 4th quarter and had a big edge in yards and first downs. The Chiefs have two losses and they've had a few close wins. Remember, the Eagles were ahead 27-21 entering the 4th quarter in the Super Bowl. They've been waiting for this day. They're 7-3 against the spread the last 10 times they were off a division win. This night will belong to them! ***MNF GOM***

The Aztecs are always good. Last year, they had a deep NCAA Tournament run. They're going to be a solid again. They're not unbeatable though and they're a team that doesn't always score that many points, which leads to close games. Who could forget their dramatic 1-point wins in last year's tournament. The Huskies followed up a close loss to Nevada with a close win against Xavier. Off that victory, Washington coach Mike Hopkins said afterward: "Sometimes shots don't fall, sometimes foul shots don't fall, but you got to keep fighting," "We won this game because we were tough. We rebounded. We got stops when we had to get stops and that's why we won. That's why I was so proud of these guys. They kept fighting. It wasn't perfect, but they just kept fighting." This one likely gets decided at the final buzzer. Grab the points! ***Tournament GOM***

Portland rested yesterday. OKC played against the Warriors. This will be the first time this season that the Thunder play a "road" game after having played the previous night. The Thunder got destroyed in their only previous division game. The Thunder won all 4 meetings last season. All four games were won by 9 or fewer points though and 3 of them were decided by 6 or less, 2 by 3 or less. Really close games from these division rivals! Portland has a great chance of winning this game and will at least keep it close again. Grab the points! **Northwest Div. GOY**

The Bills really shot themselves in the foot last week. What were they even doing in that close a game in the first place? Rest assured, they will emerge stronger from the experience. The Bills will be a team on a mission this week. Nobody will get in their way. Not the stumbling Jets, who scored 18 combined points in losing their last 2 games. The Jets average 16 points a game, the Bills average more than 26. The Jets are 1-4 against the spread (0-5 straight-up) in five tries when the total was between 35.5 to 42. The Bills are 5-2-1 against the spread (7-1 straight up) last 8 when up against an opponent with a losing record in the second half of the season. This will not be a friendly environment! Bills win big!

Bucks have finally gotten it going. Mavericks are at the end of a road trip. Bucks swept last year's 2 games. and they won by 9 in their home game. Bucks coach Adrian Griffin said the following after last night's big victory: "I love how we shared the ball and moved the ball and we're looking for each other. That's something we've been stressing in the last probably week or so." Mavericks are only 24-38-4 against the spread last 66 in Non-Conf action. The Bucks will get this done! ***Non-Conf GOW***

This game is bigger for the Red Wolves than it is the Bobcats. Texas State is already bowl eligible, for the first time in nine seasons. With a win on Saturday afternoon, Arkansas State will become bowl eligible for the first time in four seasons. Doing so against a Texas State team which lately always seems to narrowly defeat them will be extra sweet. The Red Wolves have been playing their best football the past few weeks. They lost at South Alabama last week. With an advantage in first downs, they covered the spread in that game. Before that, they'd won 2 games in a row by 10 and 20 points. The last 3 meetings have all been by 3 or less., each by Texas State. Arkansas State led 10-3 going into the 4th quarter last year but found a way to close. Not this year. It's payback time! ***Revenge GOY***

It would have been the hottest ticket in town if these teams faced each other earlier in the season. Colorado was the talk of the league and Washington State was also red hot. Everything changed. Both teams got brought down to size. Both teams will still really want this one though. Each is anxious to get back on track. That will make for a good game. Colorado still gets the hype because of Sanders. The Cougars are at home though and are the superior team. WSU quarterback Cameron Ward took some responsibility for last week's loss after he fumbled three times and had two returned for TDS. (He also threw for 358 yards and three touchdowns.) "I feel like I've grown in ball security, especially these two years once I first got here to Washington State but it showed up again that it's something that I gotta continuously work on. Any time you put your team in a situation like I did, it's hard to fight out of, and we did. We did end up doing that. But we didn't execute enough plays as a whole to win this game." Colorado is only 2-13 its last 15 road games. Ward will clean up the fumbles tonight and he will lead his team to a win and cover! ***pac 12 GOW***

The Celtics are definitely playing well but they've got a few question marks for tonight. Brown and Porzingis are questionable. Horford is probable but not 100%. Those are 3 important players to this team. Even if all 3 go, they could play at less than their usual potential. Regardless of what lineup the Celtics ultimately settle on, they are going to face a very competitive Toronto team. The Raptors just got blown out by the Bucks. They are 20-14 against the spread their past 34 times they were off a loss of 10 or more points, 21 outright wins. Over the same period, they are 49-42 against the spread in the revenge role, 54-40 against teams with a winning record. Boston is only 30-39 against the spread against losing teams over that time. Both the Celtics losses have come on the road. The Celtics allow 108.7 points on the road and the Raptors allow 108.8 at home. The last time Boston played here, it was a 2-point game. The time before that, it was a 4-point Toronto win. Grab the points! ***Atlantic Div GOY***

Pittsburgh being favored in game tells us a lot. The Panthers have been bad all season. Pittsburgh coach Pat Narduzzi will have his worst year. So, what are the Panthers doing favored? Boston College is a fraud, that's why! The Eagles were exposed last week. They got outgained by a 600 to 262 yardage mark! That was against Virginia Tech - not a team like Georgia or Michican. Eagles are 3-9 against the spread last 12 times they were off a conf. loss. Narduzzi is 7-3 against the spread last 10 in November. Panthers will play their best game and salvage some price. ***ACC GOM***

If you look at the points scored and allowed, the overall numbers are pretty close. Both teams score the same amount of points. The Chargers allow about 1 more point per game. Detroit does come in fresh, as last week was a bye. The Chargers are playing their best football now though and the Lions are playing thousands of miles away from home. They were obliterated their last road game. The Charger defense has especially improved of late. They will keep rolling and pull off the upset this afternoon! ***Non-Conf GOM

Air Force just blew its undefeated season with a 23-3 loss to Army last week. Off that disappointing result and now having traveled thousands of miles, it will be hard to get up for this game. Having a big game against UNLV up next makes things even more challenging. The Warriors are off a 27-14 win and feeling better about themselves. Warriors are now 6-2-1 against the spread their last nine November games. They will provide a tough test for the Falcons tonight. ***MWC GOW

The line has climbed and we're getting a lot of points with a very competitive North Texas team. Since a bad loss back in Week 1, before they really got their feet on the ground, the Mean Green have been in every game. Since that Week 1 loss, their other 5 losses have all come by 8 points or less. They could easily have won some of those and are better than their record indicates. After some big wins, the Mustangs had trouble with Rice last game, winning by only 5. The Mean Green aren't as good as SMU on defense. They do score 34.8 points a game though and have shown that they can keep up with just about anyone. They're 12-5 against the spread their last 17 road games and that includes a 2-0 against the spread record as road underdogs of 14.5 to 21 points. Overall, they are 5-2 against the spread their last 7 tries as an underdog of 10.5 to 21 points. Better yet, the Mean Green are 8-1 against the spread the past 9 times that they were off a conference loss. With a big game at Memphis on deck, SMU could be looking ahead. Give me the points! ***AAC GOY

Both teams won last night. The Bucks won a close one and the Pacers won a blowout. Milwaukee is better suited to play two games in two days. The Bucks' only against the spread victory came the only previous time that they played the second back-to-back games. The Pacers lost outright to Charlotte when they previously played the second of back-to-back games this season. It's only November 9th but this will already be Indiana's 6th game this month. The Bucks have played one less this month and this season. In this back-to-back situation, that extra game will contribute to Indiana's tired legs. The Bucks are 6-2 against the spread their last 8 against the Pacers, a perfect 4-0 in games played at Indiana. Go Bucks! ***Central Div GOY

The Kings are the much better team and they will blow out the TrailBlazers tonight. They beat Portland 138-114 last meeting and 120-80 the previous meeting. The one before that was a 17-point win for Sacramento. Portland is a terrible 43-68 against the spread in the underdog role the last 2 years. Kings are 18-7 against the spread their last 25 times that they were off 3 or more losses in a row. Sacramento in a blowout! ***western conf. GOW

I am grabbing the points with Central Michigan. The Chippewas scored 37 points to beat Northern Illinois in their last game. They've won four of their last 6. The Broncos are also off a win. Each of their previous wins has been followed by a bad loss and a 3-game losing streak. Western Michigan is bad defensively. The Broncos allow 32.8 points a game. That's tied with Kent State for the most points allowed per game in the MAC. The Chippewas won 42-30 the last time they played here. They're 6-2 against the spread their last 8 games in November and 10-4 against the spread the last 14 times that they were underdogs. They still need to win to become bowl eligible but Western Michigan realistically gave up dreaming about a bowl weeks ago. Go CMU! ***mac GOY

Big battle in Philadelphia! This is a heated rivalry and both teams come in hot. The Eagles have the significant advantage of playing at home. They're 3-0 here. Dallas is 2-2 on the road. The home team won both meetings last year. Cowboys by 6 at Dallas. Eagles by 9 at Philadelphia. The Cowboys are good at beating on the weak and mediocre teams. The last time they played a team currently with a winning record, they got destroyed! Heck, this team even lost by 12 at Arizona! The Eagles lost a close one against a really good Jets defense but otherwise have had no such slip-ups. Last time they took on a top level team, they throttled Miami. This season's seven wins have come by an average of more than eight points. Six of the wins were by 5 or more points and all 6 came by at least a field goal. Lay the points with the Eagles! ***nfc east goy

The Bruins have been waiting for this game as they have a score to settle. Last year, the Wildcats came to Pasadena and scored a major upset. The Bruins were ranked #12 at the time and the loss effectively eliminated any chance that they might make the College Playoff. This year's Bruins are arguably better on both sides of the ball. Arizona has a reasonably good defense but UCLA's defense is on another level. The Wildcats allow 21 points a game. The Bruins allow 15 points a game. Arizona allows 342.1 yards a game. UCLA allows an average of only 277 yards a game! On offense, UCLA averages 467.4 yards a game. Arizona averages 441.4 yards. The Bruins are a dominant 7-1 against the spread the past eight times that they were listed as road favorites. Their superior defense will be the difference. ***pac 12 goy

The Cowboys are an entirely different team at home than they are on the road. They've won all five at home but lost all three on the road. Those road games came at Boise, Air Force and Texas. None of those are easy places to win. Off consecutive road games, the Cowboys will be thrilled to be back home! They've beaten some decent teams here, including Texas Tech, App State and Fresno State. They will have no trouble disposing of a weak CSU club. I did back the Rams against UNLV but they've followed that up by getting crushed. They won't be ready for this difficult venue! The Cowboys won by 14 points last time they hosted CSU and by 10 before that. They win big again tonight! ***mwc gom

This is what I said before Cleveland's last game: "The Knicks beat up on the Cavaliers last night in Cleveland. As they say, turnabout is fair play. With a chance to immediately right that wrong, the Cavaliers will elevate their intensity for the rematch ... They start the new month with an upset." Sure enough. The Cavaliers delivered me an upset victory, holding NY to 89 points. Once again, they get an early chance to exact some revenge against a team which has already beaten them. The Pacers caught them in a back-to-back situation the first game but that's not happening this time. The Cavaliers won by 19 last time they were on this floor and they'll win again tonight! ***eastern conf gow

This is a bad spot for the Spurs. They just stunned the Suns a couple of days ago. The Suns let them hang around and the Spurs took advantage with a last second victory. Rest assured, the Suns won't make the same mistake twice. It's a new month and these teams are going to go in opposite directions, starting tonight. The Spurs were 10-18 against the spread the past two Novembers, winning only five games straight-up. The Suns were 20-11 against the spread the past two Novembers, 26 of those resulting in outright victories. The Suns have been at their best off an upset loss the last 2 years. They're 21-11 against the spread in that situation. Expect a decisive victory! ***nov gom

Much of the talk will focus on the quarterbacks. That's obviously important. Things like the Steelers getting back Cameron Heyward are also very important but will be mostly glossed over. He makes their run defense better. TJ Watt said this: "He's a difference-maker. He really is. He's been doing it for a long time. A guy that's played in this matchup more than a few times himself, and anytime you can plug in a player like him, it's going to make a difference, no matter what." Back to the QB's. The Titans' rookie had a big debut but he will find things more difficult on a short week, on the road, at Pittsburgh. The Titans are only 1-5 against the spread their last 6 games against teams from the AFC North. The Steelers are 13-6-1 against the spread the past 20 times that the played with a line ranging from +3 to -3. The Steelers are also 4-0 their last four against against the Titans. They continue their Tennessee dominance tonight! ***tnf goy

This was a game which South Alabama had circled as soon as the schedule game out. The Trojans have owned the "Battle Of The Belt" rivalry for five years and the Jaguars are determined to put an end to that. This is an experience South Alabama team. They aren't where they want to be but a win here will go a long way. Don't forget that they went on the road and won 33-7 at Oklahoma State. The Jaguars score 33.5 points a game. The Trojans score 27.1. The Trojans are 0-2 against the spread when playing a home game with a total in the 42.5-49 point range. They are only 7-14 against the spread their last 21 in that situation. Last year's game was close the whole way. Give me the points! ***sun belt gom

Raptors fought really hard only to lose by a point to the Bulls last night. It was a game that they had seemingly locked up. Blowing the lead will hurt their play today. Philadelphia rested. The 76'ers won the last three meetings. Last game in Canada resulted in a 112-90 victory for the visiting 76'ers. The 76'ers are 91-34 from a straight-up perspective the past 125 times that they were favored. They're more talented than the Raptors and they'll have much fresher legs. With their coach looking to get back at his former team, the 76'er will improve on that record while also covering the pointspread. *Atlantic Div GOM

On a losing streak, the Bulldogs are exactly who the Tigers want to see. Auburn has dominated the Mississippi State in games here. Last time here, the Tigers won by 9. The previous game here, the Tigers won by 23. The game before that, the Tigers won by 39. Before that, they won by 8. The common theme is Auburn home wins of greater than a touchdown. Tigers are 18-12 against the spread the last 30x they were home favorites of 3.5 to 7 points. Bulldogs pulled off an upset last week but are still only 1-3 ATS as underdogs. Playing back-to-back road games for the first time this season will showcase their weaknesses. Last week's scores might say otherwise but the Tigers boast the better defense. They'll win this game by more than a touchdown. *SEC GOY

An extra +1.5 goals is the way to go on Friday night in New Jersey. The Sabres are 3-3 last 6 with 2 of the losses coming by 1 goal. The Devils have played five 1-goal games in their last 7. Five of 10 meetings in the series were 1-goal games. Sabres off a 6-4 win. The Devils off a 6-4 loss and the Sabres are 5-0 against the money-line in their last 5 when their opponent allows 5 goals or more in their previous game. Go with Buffalo on the puck-line. *GOW

We played against the Lakers in their Opening Night loss. That was at Denver, Jokic and the defending champions were getting their rings. A home game against a Suns team expected to be without Beal is a different story. Phoenix is only 30-41 ATS last 71 after allowing 105 points or less. Lakers beat the Suns by 14 last meeting here. The home team won all four meetings by double-figures. Lebron and the Lakers get it done in front of the home fans. *Western Conf. GOM

The Pacers haven't won a season opener since 2020. That changes this evening. The Wizards beat the Pacers here in last year''s opener. This year, Washington has gone through a major rebuild and won't be ready to compete the entire way with Indiana in this one. Wizards only 34-45-3 ATS last 82 on the road. Pacers lost the opener against the Wizards but are still 36-14 SU the last 50 meetings and they won by 10 the last time they hosted the Wizards. I've got them taking advantage of the favorable matchup and winning this one by at least that many. *Eastern Conf GOM

Really like that the division-leading Lions got crushed yesterday. Combine that with the Packer loss and the Vikings should have a little boost. A win tonight now has them with the second most wins in the division and with the Lions looking vulnerable. San Francisco is good but not invincible. The 49'ers are off a tough loss. They're dealing wih the injuries and playing their second straight on the road. The Vikings are off a win, their second in three games. The lone loss came by a touchdown against the Chiefs. Since a bad New Year's Day loss at Lambeau, the Vikings have played eight games. None of those eight games resulted in a loss of more than 7 points. One big Minnesota win and another Minnesota win by eight points. The other six were all decided by seven or less. Give me the points.

The wins haven't come but the Broncos have shown signs of life. My feeling is that they will break through with a victory this afternoon. The Packers are off back-to-back losses and have dropped three of four. The only win was by a single point. Green Bay coach La Fleur summed it up: "It's just a lot of inconsistent play. It's been very choppy. We haven't been able to get into a consistent rhythm." Wilson has an 0-4 record (54.3 QB rating) at Lambeau but he's 3-0 with a 107.6 QB rating against the Packers at home. Broncos win. *Non-Conf GOW

The Atlanta offense is showing real signs of life and we can expect Desmond Ridder to pick up his first road win. The result was disappointing but the Falcons dominated time of possession and racked up more than 400 yards against Washington. They had a 25-12 edge in first downs and outgained the Commanders 402-193! They also statistically dominated Houston the previous game. My feeling is that Atlanta is a team on the rise and that Tampa is likely going the other way. The Bucs got dominated last game and their only home win was against the Bears. Tampa is 2-5-1 ATS its last eight as a home favorite of a field goal or less. Atlanta is 3-1 ATS its last four as a road underdog of a field goal or less. Grab the points. *NFC South GOY

The Rebels have been lining the pockets of bettors this season. That comes to an end Saturday. UNLV's ATS success has led to us getting extra line value with Colorado State. The Rams have beaten UNLV four straight times. They're 17-3 the past 20 meetings. Two of those three Rebel wins were by only a field goal. Not only is this always a difficult opponent for the Rebels but this is also a challenging scheduling spot. They just beat instate rival Nevada and they've got a big showdown against Fresno State up next. That game is a big deal due to both teams having such strong records. The Rams have won 3 of 4 and just beat Boise last game. Rebels 3-6-1 ATS last 10 as a home fav in the -7.5 to -10 range. Give me the points. *MWC GOY

I wasn't at all surprised that the Bengals beat Arizona last week. It was a break-out game for Burrow, Chase and the Bengal offense. On the other side, the defense also elevated its play. Cincinnati will carry that confidence into Sunday afternoon's home game against Seattle. The Seahawks are off a bye. That's not always helpful! The Seahawks are 0-2 ATS their last 2 off a bye. Long-term? They're 12-23 ATS with a push, the last 36 times they were off a bye. Even off the bye, the Hawks aren't entirely healthy. The Bengals have won 15 of their last 21 home games and we don't have to worry about laying a big number. Arizona was a losing team but the Bengals are also 16-4 straight-up and 15-5 against the spread against winning teams. They''ll get back to .500 and add to those stats Sunday afternoon. *NFL GOY

Grabbing points with the Bruins. The Beavers are a good team and I know they've got a great home record. UCLA remains under-rated though. The Beavers allow 19.7 points each game. OSU has given up 38 or more points in two of their last three games.The Bruins only allow 12.2. No team has scored more than 17 against them. That makes it difficult to beat the Bruins by more than a field goal. Grab the points with the better defense! *Pac 12 GOM

I feel that Fresno State is a far stronger team than Utah State. Both teams score but the Bulldogs also prevent teams from scoring. They allow an average of 18.2 points each game. The Aggies give up 32.2 points per game, a full extra two touchdowns. The Bulldogs have covered six of the past 10 as road favorites. A well-coached team, the Bulldogs are also 3-0 against the spread the past three times they were off a conference loss. They'll win this game by a touchdown or more. *MWC GOW

The last two seasons have seen the Chiefs go 3-7 against the spread in Week 5 to Week 9. KC will have its hands full. The loss to the Jets was costly but Denver has shown signs of life in back-to-back games. As bad as the Broncos record is, they've been competitive in every game but one. The loss to Miami was ugly but the all four of the other games were decided by 10 or less, three of them by three or less. The Chiefs have also been playing close games. They messed up Chicago but their other four games were all decided by eight points or less. Four of the past five meetings were decided by six or less including each of the past three. This will be another close one. Grab all those points! *Thursday Night Football GOM

I was against the Raiders last week, when they lost their road game versus the Chargers. At home against a Green Bay team which looked terrible last week, Las Vegas will achieve a more favorable result. I happily cashed my ticket against them but the Raiders did some things that impressed me. They finished the game with more first downs (22-16) than the Chargers, as well as an advantage in terms of time of possession. That was with a rookie, making his first start at QB. Now the Raiders get Garoppolo back. Jimmy said this: "Feeling good. I think we're in a good spot. We had a good practice out there, had a good rhythm and a good tempo to us." Remember that Garoppolo has former Packer Davante Adams to throw to and that the star receiver tends to thrive under the national spotlight. Facing his old team, don't be surprised when Adams becomes the first player in NFL history to go over 100 receiving yards five times in a row on Monday night. That will pave the way to a Raider victory. *MNF GOM

The two best teams meet again. New York has taken three of the past four meetings dating back to a memorable 99-61 blowout back in early August. The Aces are still the class of the league though. They won by 13 the last time that the teams played here in Vegas. They're 19-1 on this floor. Liberty are 2-10 ATS their last 12 road games against the Aces. Vegas is 4-1 ATS the last 5 times it played with 3 or more day's rest. All 10 of the last 10 meetings have been decided by more than 5 points. Most were blowouts. So, I'm not going to worry about laying this small number. *WNBA Playoff GOY

Baltimore crushed Cleveland last week. Pittsburgh got pounded by Houston. So, why play on the Steelers? The NFL is a funny league and it's important not to over-react to the previous week's games. It's also important to understand that those results are helping to get us some extra points with Pittsburgh. The fact is that the Ravens are now playing their second straight divisional road game and third divisional road game in the past four weeks. Their injuries are mounting, too. Even with the win over the Browns, they're still an awful 9-17 ATS their last 26 as favorites. After their previous divisional road win, the Ravens lost outright to the Colts in their next game. The Steelers are 15-10 ATS as underdogs, during the same time period. Tomlin's team responded to it first loss by bouncing back with an upset of a divisional rival. The plan is for Pittsburgh to win this game outright. Getting points in this rivalry is always nice though. The last four meetings were all decided by three or less! The last six meetings were all decided by five or less. In what will likely be another close encounter, grab the points. *AFC North GOY

This game is essentially a must win for the Horned Frogs, if they want to stay in the hunt in the Big 12. For such a situation, the Frogs draw the perfect opponent. The Cyclones had a really good defense last year. TCU still dropped 62 points on them! This year's Iowa State defense isn't nearly as talented. The offense is punchless, too. Remember that the Cyclones got hit by scandal before the season. That's had a negative impact on them. The Frogs have had trouble here in the past but that will change Saturday. TCU still has a talented defense. In four games since the Colorado debacle, the Frogs are allowing an average of 15 points. ISU will have trouble scoring. TCU (34.8 ppg) should have no problem doing so. The Cyclones were shredded for 50 points and more than 500 yards last week. They're now 2-6-1 ATS their last nine as underdogs. The Frogs, 5-1-1 ATS their last seven as road favorites, will be too much for their hosts. A motivated TCU team puts it all together and wins by double-digits. *Big 12 GOY

The record isn't there but Edmonton has played much better than many people realize. Since their tough start, the Elks have won 4 of their last 7 games, a streak which coincides with Tre Ford taking over at QB. The 3 losses all came by single digits. Their last 3 road games have resulted in 2 outright wins and a 4-point loss. QB Ford, who ranks among the CFL leaders in terms of passing accuracy (70.1%), QB rating (108.7) and rushing yards (514), has been a big difference. He'll face a Toronto team with a banged-up secondary. The Elks are coming off a bye and inspired to try and make a late playoff push. They've won their last two visits to Toronto. Off a loss to Winnipeg and having already locked up top spot in the East, the Argos could easily look past the Elks. Edmonton will come to play. Grab the points! *CFL GOY

The Gamecocks have the better record. Yet, the Blue Raiders are favored. Given that setup, it's not all that surprising that money came in on the underdog which brought the line down a little. Middle Tennessee was installed as the favorite for a reason, as this is a good matchup for the Blue Raiders.

The Gamecocks are 1-1 on the road. They got beaten badly at Coastal Carolina and they needed OT to win at Sam Houston State. That came against the BearKats who were previously 0-3 and had been scored only 10 points, while giving up 65. Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium is a far more difficult venue.

Look for the Blue Raiders to play their best game as they bounce back and improve to 6-3 ATS the past nine times that they were coming off a conference loss. *CUSA GOY

The Marlins have played the Phillies tough this season. They're 7-5 the past 12 meetings. The majority were close. Since we're getting an extra +1.5 runs with the Marlins today, I will point out that the games between these teams have been close. Five of those 12 games were decided by one run and that another four were decided by two runs. All three of Wheeler's starts against the Marlins were 1-run games. Miami won two of them. Luzardo has made five starts against the Phillies in his career. He's got a 3.27 ERA in those games with 37 strikeouts in 30.1 innings. Luzardo's teams were 4-1 in those games and the lone loss came by 1-run. Every run will be important in this game and I'm happy to grab an extra +1.5 of them with Luzardo and the Marlins. *NL East GOM

Both teams are 1-2. The winner will be back in the thick of things. The loser will be in big trouble. It's my opinion that the Chargers are the real deal and that the Raiders are not. Chargers lost a pair of close ones and easily could have won both. Raiders got destroyed last road game and followed it up by losing to Pittsburgh in primetime. LA is much better offensively. Chargers averaging 416.7 yards per game. Raiders averaging 287.7. Chargers averaging 28.7 points, Raiders averaging 15. Problem for the Raiders is that the Chargers are probably also better defensively. Then, there's the Raiders QB issues with Jimmy G in concussion protocol. Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels commented: We're at the mercy of the testing and all the rest of it. He'll go through the normal set of tests. We'll see if he clears." Garoppolo may well play. Even if he does, or if its Hoyer or O'Connell, it's not going to make a difference. Chargers big. *AFC West GOY

With essentially no pointspread to worry about, we can just focus on picking the winner. With that being the case, I'll gladly back Illinois. The Boilermakers did win at Virginia Tech. That's not as impressive as it sounds though. The Hokies aren't very strong this season. Since then, the Boilermakers have suffered b2b blowout losses. This is an inexperienced team with a coach in his first year. After Purdue scored the big upset at Champlain last year, the visitor is 4-1 SU and ATS in this series. Bret Beilema knows how costly last year's loss to the Boilermakers was. He can't afford to let the same thing happen. The Illini are 8-3 ATS their last 11 on the road. They'll build momentum off last week's victory and avenge last year's loss. *Big Ten GOY

I always like getting points with the superior team. Even more when my team is playing at home. These teams are both new to the Big 12 this season. Both came up short in their conference opener. The ground game may have struggled but the Cougar passing attack is clicking on all cylinders. Expect another big day through the air against an inexperienced and vulnerable Bearcat secondary. This is not an easy place to play. The Cougars have outscored opponents 41-15 in going 2-0 here so far. They're 11-3 straight-up their last 14 here, 3-0 when the total fell in the 42.5 to 49 range. The Bearcats have played pretty well but they're still a team which lost a lot from last year and which has a new coach. It catches up with them in Provo, Fright night. BYU scores the minor upset in its Big 12 home opener! *Big 12 GOM

The series is tied 1-1. The Sun covered both meetings at New York and got the straight-up split. The Liberty know that they need to reclaim homecourt advantage. With this game now being played at Connecticut, the line is much lower on NY than it was for the first two games. If they win, as I believe that they will, they don't have a big number to worry about covering. Each of the past seven meetings was decided by five or more points. The Liberty were 17-3 on the road this season. That was the best road record in the league. In fact, both these teams had better records away from home. The Liberty are the better team and they'll show it. Lay the points. *WNBA GOM

The Steelers looked better than the Raiders last week. They were at home for the second straight week though. The Raiders were playing a road game against one of the best team's in the NFL, their second straight on the road. This time, it's the Raiders who will benefit from being at home. The Raiders are 4-1 ATS the past five instances where they were home favorites of three or less. During that time, the Steelers are 2-3 ATS when off a divisional win. Off their win over the Browns and playing on a short week (Remember, Pittsburgh's last game was on MNF.) the Steelers will struggle. They won a close on against the Raiders at Pittsburgh last meeting but the Raiders are still 5-1 ATS the past six meetings. They'll be fired up for the home opener and will come away with the win and cover. *NFL GOW

The talent gap between these teams is a lot less than many realize. A few weeks ago, Pittsburgh might have been favored for this game. The Tar Heels are tough but the Panthers are better than their 1-2 record suggests. Speaking of Pittsburgh's 1-2 w/l mark, the Tar Heels are 0-6 ATS The past six times that they faced a team with a losing record. The Panthers gave the Tar Heels all that they could handle each of the past two meetings here. Both went to OT. Both were won by Pitt. In fact, the home team is 4-0 ATS the past four in the series. With the Tar Heels just 3-9 ATS the past 12 times that they were road favorites in the 9.5-12 range, grab the points with the home underdog Panthers. *ACC GOY

Home field means a lot for both of these squads. The Broncos won 35-13 on the blue turf last year. However, the last time (2021) the teams played here at San Diego, the Aztecs won 27-16. Including those results, SDSU is 6-2 ATS when facing Boise in MWC play. The Broncos are loaded on offense but a little inexperienced on defense. Through three games, they're allowing 30.7 ppg. They got crushed in their only road game this season. In fact, they're only 1-2 overall. The Aztecs 13-5 SU L3 years at home, are 6-1 their last seven against teams with a losing record. Granted, the Broncos aren't a typical losing team. my point is that they haven't yet hit their stride though, their only win coming at home against North Dakota. Going through a tough scheduling stretch, the Aztecs know they need to step up and score an upset. This one should be close. Grab the points!

The road team has enjoyed recent success in this series. That will change Thursday night though. The Chanticleers didn't just win last year's game, (at Georgia State) they dominated the Panthers. A 272-78 advantage on the ground and a 268-231 edge through the air. Time of possession was more than 40 mins for Coastal Carolina and less than 20 for Georgia State. This year's Chanticleers are even stronger on defense. Having already played at UCLA, the Chanticleers are battle-tested. They held their own for much of that game (1 point game in 4th quarter) and dominated their next two opponents. The Panthers haven't been tested yet. They've got an inexperienced offensive line and that will catch up with them against their first difficult opponent. Chanticleers are 10-1 SU and 7-2 ATS in September last few years. They're also 5-0 SU and 4-1 ATS on Thursday football. Superior defense, homefield and an advantage in the trenches leads to another big win for Coastal Carolina!

Seattle is still scrapping for a spot in the postseason while Oakland has been eliminated for a long time.  Probable starter Castillo for the M’s has been on fire lately with a 4-0 record in his last 5 starts and a 1.60 ERA.  Two of his last 5 starts had more than 6 innings of shutout ball.   Probable starter Blackburn for the A’s has a 5.73 ERA and an abysmal 2.09 WHIP in his last 3 starts, where he has only averaged 3.7 innings pitched. 

Castillo also has a superior bullpen to support him when he comes out after his 6 or so innings. 

Head-to-head this season the Mariners hold a 9-1 edge in their last 10 against the A’s, where the average run differential in the Mariners’ wins is +4.  Lay the runs on this one and take the Mariners.