Wednesday, November 22, 2006

CBB

Butler-Tennessee

Press Notes

Tennessee improved to 4-0 on the season with a 99-65 victory over Coppin State Sunday in Knoxville. The Vols are averaging 86.8 points per game while forcing their opponents into committing 26.8 turnovers. Each of Tennessee’s opponents has turned the ball over at least 20 times, including 32 errors by UNC Wilmington. Entering the 2006-07 season, six of UT’s 11 scholarship players had never played in a Division I game before. UT is faced with replacing more than half of its scoring (54 percent), rebounds (51.8) and minutes played (51.3%) from the 2005-06 squad.  Approved sportsbooks are at www.linetrackers.com   

Gonzaga-North Carolina

Press Notes

Gonzaga University has had remarkable success against the Atlantic Coast Conference, the Bulldogs 7-1 all time against ACC competition, including seven straight winners. The Bulldogs are averaging 87.0 ppg through four games.

Thursday, November 23, 2006

CFB

Boston College-Miami Florida

Sun Sentinel

If Miami loses Thursday to the Eagles (9-2, 5-2), its season will end at 5-7, which would be UM’s worst record since going 3-8 in 1977. A win would put the Hurricanes at .500 for the year, and could help them earn a bid to the MPC Computers Bowl, which is played Dec. 31 in Boise, Idaho. Coker was noticeably troubled by his team’s lack of effort during Saturday’s 17-7 loss to Virginia. Quarterback Kirby Freeman said before Sunday’s practice Coker addressed his team and asked players who were too emotionally drained to compete for a win to sit out Thursday’s game. Freeman said players who were no longer fit to bring the focus and effort needed to earn the Hurricanes a bowl bid were asked to, “Be a man about it and step aside. ... physically remove yourself.” Joe Duffy’s sports betting selections are at www.GodsTips.com   

Friday, November 24, 2006

CFB

Texas A&M-Texas

Houston Chronicle

Record-setting freshman quarterback Colt McCoy and Rotary Lombardi finalist Justin Blalock have been cleared to return to practice and will start for the No. 11 Longhorns against rival Texas A&M on Friday, coach Mack Brown said Monday. McCoy suffered a pinched nerve in his neck and shoulder area on a quarterback sneak on the first possession of the Longhorns’ 45-42 loss to Kansas State and did not return to the game. He did not practice last week preceding Texas’ open date.

Blalock, the Longhorns’ right guard, also has been cleared to play after injuring his left knee against K-State. He has started 49 straight games at guard or tackle, tying the longest streak in school history. Texas (9-2, 6-1) can clinch the Big 12 South and a rematch with Nebraska in the league’s championship game with a win against Texas A&M. The A&M game will mark the final contest for Texas’ senior class. The group has a 43-6 record and needs two more wins to tie the best four-year stretch of 45-6 set by last year’s UT seniors.  Stevie Vincent’s BetOnSports360.com is pioneer in forensic handicapping and part of OffshoreInsiders.com    

Star-Telegram

Texas defensive end Brian Robison took little solace Monday in being part of the nation’s top-rated run defense. That’s because the Longhorns’ rise to the top of the charts has been offset by a record-setting plummet in pass defense. Texas heads into Friday’s showdown against Texas A&M ranked 111^th nationally in pass defense and already in possession of one unwanted school record: most passing yards allowed in a season (2,739). Two others will fall if the Longhorns maintain their current pace of allowing 249 yards per game, combined with an opponents’ completion mark of 58.3 percent. The aerial onslaught has reached a point that Robison declined to rule out the possibility A&M could become the sixth Big 12 opponent to throw for more than 300 yards

Saturday, November 25, 2006

Notre Dame-USC

LA Times

Split end Dwayne Jarrett did not practice Monday because of a concussion suffered while making a touchdown catch against California, but the All-American said he would play on Saturday against Notre Dame.

Oklahoma-Oklahoma State

News Oklahoma

A Monday scan of Oklahoma running back Adrian Peterson’s broken collarbone revealed reason to keep him sidelined, ruling him out.

Louisville-Pittsburgh

Post Gazette

The Cardinals were sure to provide the Panthers with a stiff test regardless of the circumstances, but they now have more incentive to win than they did a week ago. That’s because Louisville jumped back into the driver’s seat for the Big East championship and BCS berth Saturday when Cincinnati upset Rutgers, 30-11. Pitt raced to a 6-1 start but has lost its past four games and has looked almost powerless on defense against its past two opponents, Connecticut and West Virginia. Joe Duffy’s sports betting selections are at www.GodsTips.com   

UAB-Central Florida

Orlando Sentinel

UAB’s season has in a lot of ways mirrored UCF’s and both teams have identical overall and conference mark’s at 3-8 and 2-5. The Blazers lost for the seventh straight time to Southern Mississippi Saturday, 25-20. This weekend’s matchup could be on either end of the scoring spectrum. The Blazers and Knights are 11^th and 12^th respectively in Conference USA in scoring offense, but give up 24.2 and 29.4 points on defense.

Florida-Florida State

Orlando Sentinel

Florida State QB Drew Weatherford, who completed only five of 10 passes for 34 yards against Western Michigan this past weekend, will start on Saturday in the Florida game. Xavier Lee, who was 9-of-13 for 144 yards and two touchdowns in relief, will come off the sideline again because that is when he plays best, Bobby Bowden said Monday.

Times-Union

The Seminoles (6-5) can certainly play the spoiler against the Gators (10-1), ruining their slim national championship hopes by winning in Doak Campbell Stadium. “It makes them a dangerous team,” UF linebacker Brandon Siler said.

It’s a situation that has happened many times in the series between the schools. UF and FSU have each spoiled the other’s season with upset victories, dating to 1971, when a 0-5 Florida team upset 19^th-ranked and 5-0 Florida State 17-15 in Gainesville. The Gators did it again the following season. Unranked Florida beat 14^th-ranked FSU 42-14 in Tallahassee. In 1982, the unranked Gators beat the 15^th-ranked Seminoles 13-10 on Jim Gainey’s 22-yard field goal with 3:23 to play. Lorenzo Hampton rushed for 138 yards and Neal Anderson had 103. Florida’s defense powered the fifth-ranked Gators to a 14-9 victory at Florida Field in 1991, giving them the first 10-win season in school history. The third-ranked Seminoles failed to score on three trips inside UF’s 15-yard line, the last time coming in the final three minutes. MasterLockLine.com has the top plays from the top sports service in their highest ranked sports.    

Cincinnati-Connecticut

Cincinnati Post

As important as Saturday’s victory over then-No. 7 Rutgers was for the University of Cincinnati football team, this week’s game against Connecticut could be just as crucial to the Bearcats’ bowl hopes. Currently the Bearcats (6-5, 3-3 Big East) are one of 69 bowl-eligible teams competing for 64 bowl slots. There are 11 other teams still alive to become bowl eligible. Dantonio said Dustin Grutza will practice this week. Grutza didn’t practice last week because of several injuries, but chiefly an injury to his shoulder. Stevie Vincent’s BetOnSports360.com is pioneer in forensic handicapping and part of OffshoreInsiders.com    

Kentucky-Tennessee

Tennessean

Tennessee sophomore linebacker Jerod Mayo is expected to miss Saturday’s regular-season finale against Kentucky with what’s feared to be a fractured kneecap.