Can Northern Illinois put the exclamation mark on its 10-win season with a victory over Fresno State in the Humanitarian Bowl? The betting decision will come down to whether or not you think Fresno state can stop the Huskies’ prolific ground attack.

Northern Illinois Huskies (10-3) vs Fresno State Bulldogs (8-4)

Saturday, December 18, 5:30 p.m. ET

Bodog.com favorite: Northern Illinois -3

Over/Under: 60

Northern Illinois was a force against the spread this season. It went 9-3-1 ATS for the year and went 9-1-1 ATS over its final 11 games. It sometimes struggles to cover against tougher competition, however; the Huskies are 2-9 ATS over their last 11 against teams with winning records. Thanks to their solid offense, the OVER was 8-5 over Northern Illinois’ 13 games this season.

Fresno State wasn’t as strong from a sports betting perspective, going 5-6-1 ATS on the year. However, it enters the Humanitarian Bowl 4-0 ATS in its last four bowl games as an underdog. The Bulldogs are 5-2 ATS over their last seven non-conference affairs. However, though Fresno State closed its season with two straight victories, its offense sputtered; the Bulldogs are 1-7-1 ATS over their last nine games when failing to reach 100 rushing yards the previous game. The total trends toward the OVER for Fresno State as well; it’s 4-1 over the Bulldogs’ last five bowl games.

On paper, Northern Illinois looks superior across the board. Offensively, the Huskies are 21^st in the country with 447.8 total yards per game. They field the league’s No. 7 rushing attack, averaging 266.7 yards per game. Their star runner, Chad Spann, leads the team with 1,293 rushing yards and 20 touchdowns. It’s no wonder the Huskies are 13^th in the country with 37.8 points per game. Quarterback Chandler Harnish was efficient this year, throwing 20 touchdown passes versus five picks, but this is a run-first team; Northern Illinois ranks 89^th in the nation with 181.2 passing yards per contest.

Defensively, the Huskies are no slouches, ranking 28^th overall (328.2 YPG), 35^th against the pass (202.1 YPG), 29^th against the run (126.2 YPG) and 16^th in points allowed (19.1).

Fresno State’s numbers don’t look as impressive to NCAA football betting players but the Bulldogs arguably had a much tougher schedule this season, having faced offensive powerhouses like Boise State, Nevada and Hawaii. Their defense still clocks in at 41^st with 342.7 yards allowed per game. They’re stronger against the pass (201.2) than the run (141.5). Fresno State struggled to keep opponents off the board this year, allowing 29.2 points per game and surrendering 49 or more points three times.

Fresno State’s underwhelming offense is 69^th in the country (375 YPG), including 67^th in passing (214.3) and 51^st in rushing (160.7). The Bulldogs’ go-to offensive weapon is Robbie Rouse, who ran for 1,097 yards and eight scores this year.

The real Matt Rivers of OffshoreInsiders.com has a free pick Saturday is on Texas A&M +2 to Washington.

Reason: Washington definitely is the more talented team when compared to the Aggies and probably has the better shot to go farther when all is said and done. I really like the offensive firepower that Thomas, Overton, Bryan-Amaning and Holiday bring to the table but and a bit but here, I just do not trust the Huskies traveling like this as Lorenzo Romar’s team never seems to be able to play nearly as well away from the state of Washington.

UDub is 6-2 thus far on the season and has been scoring like crazy. This team goes over the century mark routinely and has smacked everybody except for a pair of games in Maui when they did little in losses against Kentucky and Michigan State. Besides the win against Virginia on the big island the Huskies have been in their comfort zone throughout and now venture back out on the road down south to Aggieland against a pretty good A&M squad.

Mark Turgeon probably does not have his best team but Khris Middleton has been very good and at 8-1 along with being at home against a Washington squad that is sketchy at times on the road I can’t help but back the Aggies in this pretty much home dog spot.

This game may not turn out to be the instant classic that last season’s was but the Aggies in front of their fans are going to win this game more than they won’t and that statement means everything to me at this number.

The pick: Texas A&M +2.

For more information: Matt Rivers says pretty much the first college basketball only Saturday is here, save the Army-Navy game, and I’m more than ready. A pair of winners today led by this 400,000* from Mormon country involving Arizona and BYU. The Wildcats and Cougars are a pair of solid quality programs that are looking to bust through and make some noise once again in the college hoop landscape. One team will do just that. Bonus 200,000* in this in-state rivalry between VCU and Richmond.  Click now to purchase

College bowl previews and breaking injury and suspension information as it comes in are updated 24/7. But to the Friday night winning with a pick from the real Matt Rivers  of OffshoreInsiders.com Friday is on the LA Lakers -2 at Chicago.

There are certainly reasons why somebody would back the talented Bulls in this near pick-em spot at home but I’m just not going for that. Sure the Lakers have struggled of late, Derrick Rose is awesome and Carlos Boozer was a great addition to a team that is the odds on favorite to win their division but the Bulls are still up against the two time defending NBA champions.

Phil Jackson’s squad has not been nearly as good since jumping out of the gate 8-0. They’re 4-4 overall and a terrible 1-7 against the number in their last eight. You know what I say to that, blah, blah, blah. This is still quite possibly the best team in the entire NBA with the superstar of all superstars at a pick against a good Chicago team, but still far from a great Chicago team. This is just a good solid play, not the lock of 87 generations as Pau Gasol has not been great of late and the Lake Show has struggled but all in all it’s still the Lakers, at a pick, against the inferior Bulls.

Kobe, Gasol, Fisher, Odom and Artest are the champs and a team that has now been playing with each other for awhile. If they continue to play poor ball and lose today than so be it but in my opinon the visitors from Los Angeles walk off this court as the victor more times than not making the Lakers are solid value and good enough for a play.

For more information: It doesn’t get much worse than that, truly says Matt Rivers. I won’t say it was the worst beat that I have ever suffered but having the Colts last night was certainly up there. No pontificating here as I’m sure you saw how that thing went down. Great job not kicking a FG earlier Jeff Fisher, way to let the clock run completely out, genius! 300,000* Oklahoma City-New Orleans plus a 200,000* Miami-Golden State as I erase that despicable nonsense. Click now to purchase

The pick: LA Lakers -2 at BetUs

Sure, 2010 wasn’t the same for BYU and NCAA football betting sharps who wagered on them. The glory days of Max Hall are a thing of the past. But the Cougars can’t complain, really. They had a nice run. And they get their 29^th all-time bowl appearance when they battle the University of Texas-El Paso in the New Mexico Bowl. It’s not too early to make a betting pick!

BYU Cougars vs. UTEP Miners

Saturday, December 18, 2:00 p.m. ET

Sportsbook favorite: BYU -12

It’s not a huge surprise to see the spread at 12 points in BYU’s favor right now, as the Cougars definitely enter the New Mexico Bowl with more momentum. They closed out the season by winning four straight games and before coming within a hair of beating Utah on the road in their final game on November 27. The Cougars scored 40-plus points in three of those games; they also went 6-1 against the spread over their final seven games.

Defensively, BYU was respectable this season, ranking 38^th in the nation and 21^st against the pass with 187.8 yards allowed per game. The Cougars ran the ball pretty well with J.J. Di Luigi averaging 5.2 yards per carry and running for seven scores.

The Cougars’ passing attack was a liability early in the season when Riley Nelson and Jake Heaps split quarterbacking duties but Nelson’s season-ending injury was almost a blessing. Heaps seemed to find himself down the stretch, throwing 10 touchdown passes and just two interceptions over his final five starts. He hurt his shoulder against Utah but is expected to be ready for the New Mexico Bowl.

UTEP’s season was the inverse of BYU’s. The Miners won five of their first six games but lost five of their last six games. They struggled defensively, allowing 399.8 total yards of offense per game. Quarterback Trevor Vittatoe wasn’t horrible, throwing 19 touchdown passes versus 10 interceptions, but he’s simply not a difference maker. He topped 200 passing yards just once in UTEP’s last five games.

The Cougars may not have been too happy with their season but I still think they’re a class above UTEP. They’re a solid choice to cover the spread without much trouble.

Free pick: BYU -12

It’s part 1 of the annual bowl betting breakdowns for 2010-11 NCAA football picks in which we look at the New Mexico Bowl, Humanitarian Bowl, New Orleans Bowl, and St. Petersburg Bowl.

OffshoreInsiders.com takes a look at the football betting match-up using key numbers employed by professional gamblers.

We commence with the New Mexico Bowl: UTEP vs. BYU.

In comparing yards per rush on offense, the better numbers belong to Texas El Paso by .4.

As far as passing yards per completion on the offensive side of the ball, the upper hand is for UTEP by 1.9.

According to yards per point, the more efficient offense is UTEP by .6.

Defensively the more stingy team based on yards per rush is Brigham Young by .8.

The superior defense in terms of passing yards per completion is UTEP by 1.0.

The yards per point statistic used by the best sports handicappers says the superior defense is Texas El Paso, but by just .1

BYU’s turnover margin is four better.

Now sports betting experts look to the Humanitarian Bowl Northern Illinois vs. Fresno State.

In comparing yards per rush on offense, the superiority from a statistical standpoint goes to Northern Illinois by a wide margin of 2.1.

Passing yards per completion is another gauge utilized by bettors. The advantage is possessed by Fresno State by .6.

Possibly the most utilized number by professional bettors is yards per point. From the offensive viewpoint the positive checkmark is in the column of NIU by .6.

Now go to the key numbers on the defensive side of the ball. The yards per rush guide says the better run defense is the Huskies by .4.

The superior passing yards per completion data on defense give the upper hand to Northern Illinois by .4.

In terms of yards per point, the better defense is Northern Illinois, forcing 5.6 more

Next up in the New Orleans Bowl between Ohio vs. Troy State.

The superior team in terms of rushing yards per attempt on offense is Ohio by a slim .1.

Also on offense, when it comes to yards per reception the figures give the eminence to Ohio by 1.7.

Vegas sharps exploit yards per point. Data says the more adroit team in that classification is the Bobcats by 1.7.

Defensively on yards per rush, the disparity favors Ohio by a large 1.3.

The better team at stopping the air attack according to passing yards per completion is also the Bobcats by .7.

Yards per point dictates the shrewder defense belongs to Ohio by 1.8.

In net turnovers, the preeminence is Troy by two.

Finally, insofar as Part 1, we peek at the St. Petersburg Bowl: Louisville vs. Southern Mississippi.

The team that is better running the ball according to rushing yards per attempt is Louisville by .2.

Passing yards per completion says the more productive passing squad is also the Cardinals by .7.

Betting specialists employ yards per point, a number that on the offensive side of the ball favors Southern Miss by 3.3.

Now it’s time to focus on the numbers that the betting counselors cherish from a defensive standpoint. Yards per rush says the tougher defense is the Golden Eagles by .4.

In juxtaposing yards per reception statistics, the margin on defense puts the positive checkmark in the column the Cardinals by 1.4.

The often overlooked yards per point defensive advantage is Louisville forcing four more yards per point.

The net turnover ratio edge belongs to Southern Miss by six.

For more information: The best premium betting service picks for 2010-11 college bowl betting is OffshoreInsiders.com

Yards per point is determined by diving total yards by number of points. Offensively a lower number is considered more efficient. On defense, a higher number is better.

Matt Rivers has a free pick Thursday is on the Orland Magic -2.5 at Portland.

The Rose Garden throughout the years has been a quality home court advantage and still is that but the Blazers are a banged up team that should not be saved by their home court tonight. Greg Oden is obviously once again done for the season, Brandon Roy is not near 100% and may come off the bench a lot more and Andre Miller and Brian Cook were just suspended for their parts in the altercation at the Clippers a few games ago. Miller should be back dishing the rock but I’ll still take my chances with Jameer Nelson in this matchup.

Dwight Howard and the Magic were just upset at home on Tuesday by the Hawks and should be a fairly angry team here going to the west coast. The road is never easy but the Magic are the superior and healthier team that will prevail in this game. Portland has snapped the six game losing skid with back-to-back wins back home but when push comes to shove I would rather back the 57 or so win Magic at close to a pick in this spot.

The Magic have now lost their last two to fall to 15-6 and have only averaged 80 points in those defeats but truly I’m just not that worried. Stan Van Gundy’s squad has risen to an elite status and become a squad that should be able to outclass an inferior opponent in a spot such as this one. These guys have come close to 60 victories in each of the past two seasons, went to an NBA finals and are already 9 game sover .500 a little over a month into the season.

This is game one of the four game west coast swing and my shekels are on the Magic being locked and loaded and ready to shake off this mini slump.

The pick: Orlando Magic at BetUs

For more information: To say that Matt Rivers misread the Missouri Tigers would certainly be accurate. They skunked me for a second time in a week last night and to make matters worse Mike Anderson’s squad won the game to rub salt in the wounds, awful, just absolutely awful. I’ll dust it off and get right back on that horse today with a 300,000* between the struggling Colts and Titans. Neither team is close to being a good football team right now. One will rebound though and find a little bit of the old magic. Who will it be? I’ll tell you! Click now to purchase Matt Rivers picks

Courtesy of OddsShark.com: Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: The Colts and Titans hit the gridiron in Tennessee, while the Trail Blazers play host to the Magic, and Georgetown goes up against Temple.

Colliding on the gridiron . . .

This week’s Thursday Night Football matchup will showcase of couple of struggling AFC South teams, as the Titans (5-7 SU, 5-7 ATS) play host to the Colts (6-6 SU, 6-6 ATS). Tennessee fell 17-6 at home to Jacksonville last week and has now lost five games in a row. Kerry Collins completed just 14 of 32 pass attempts for 169 yards for the Titans in that defeat, with no touchdowns and two interceptions. Chris Johnson was held to just 53 yards on the ground. Indianapolis is riding a three-game losing skid, falling 38-35 at home to Dallas last week as Peyton Manning threw for 365 yards with two touchdowns and four interceptions. Oddsmakers have the Colts pegged as 3-point road favorites for this Thursday night matchup, while the OVER/UNDER for the contest is set at 46 points.

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Tipping off on the hardwood . . .

There are three games on the NBA’s schedule for Thursday, with Boston at Philadelphia, New Jersey at Dallas, and Orlando at Portland. The Magic (15-6 SU, 7-13-1 ATS) were beaten 80-74 at home by the Hawks last time out, despite Dwight Howard returning from a stomach virus to pick up 14 points and 13 rebounds. Vince Carter tossed in a team-high 18 points for Orlando in that contest. The Trail Blazers (10-11 SU, 10-9-2 ATS) are coming off a 106-99 home win over Phoenix in which Wesley Matthews led the way with 24 points. Brandon Roy had 20 points for Portland that game.

As well, there are just two games involving ranked teams on the college basketball schedule for Thursday, with IUPUI at No. 2 Ohio State, and No. 9 Georgetown at Temple. The Hoyas (8-0 SU, 5-1 ATS) rolled past Utah State 68-51 last time out to remain unbeaten on the season; Chris Wright poured in 21 points for Georgetown in that contest. The Owls (5-2 SU, 4-2 ATS) are coming off a 64-61 win at Maryland in their last game. Ramone Moore led the way on offense for Temple with 16 points in that win.

Taking a trip around the rink . . .

Finally, the eight-game NHL slate for Thursday has the Islanders at Boston, San Jose at Buffalo, Philadelphia at Toronto, Florida at Washington, Columbus at San Jose, Minnesota at Phoenix, Calgary at Los Angeles, and the Rangers at Ottawa. The 16-12-1 Rangers and the 12-15-2 Senators just met in New York on Sunday afternoon, with Ottawa picking up a 3-1 road victory. Chris Kelly provided all the Senators’ scoring in that contest, netting a hat trick, while Pascal Leclaire stopped 25 of 26 New York shots. Brandon Prust had the lone Rangers goal, and Henrik Lundqvist was good for 22 saves.

Urban Meyer announced his resignation—again, as head coach of Florida. The Gators remain seven-point favorites over Penn State. Grandmaster Sports Handicapper Joe Duffy, CEO of OffshoreInsiders.com, the top sports betting site in the world says that it may push the Gators line up a bit.

“Many gamblers believe that Florida rode the emotion of his temporary resignation last year in their rout over Florida,” says the top sports betting expert of modern times.

Just as big of a story in the Vegas odds world is that Matt Rivers has a 500K pick in collegiate basketball tonight. He also has a Wednesday is on Arkansas getting 2.5 to Seton Hall. Rivers says:

Seton Hall may be a better overall team even with Jeremy Hazell gone for a while but we are going to see this Pirate team take time to re-establish itself. They immediately fell to Clemson and Xavier before outclassing St. Peter’s in that last game a full week and a half ago. The program fired Bobby Gonzalez at the end of last season and right now is in a bit of a state of flux after losing their star scorer and blue chip athlete. I’m not saying it’s the end all or that this team won’t find itself at some point but right now to be laying points on a neutral site in Kentucky like this against an Arkansas team that still has a little something seems a bit steep.

Herb Pope and Jeff Robinson are quality big men for the Hall and should hold their own. But they are up against John Pelphrey’s 5-1 Razorbacks who I admit are far from being an elite team or even a good team but Rotnei Clarke can shoot the ball with the best of them and I’m not sure that the Hall will adapt well to this spot just yet. Plus the Hogs have only lost once and it was against a decent enough UAB team by five points. These guys have also defeated Oklahoma by 10 and Troy by 15 so even if Pelphrey’s pupils are predicted to be in the bottom of the SEC they are good enough to take care of business against a banged up Pirate team that is struggling right now to stay afloat.

For more information: Rivers says I bombed away and nailed my biggest play on the Patriots on Monday night and have another one today. A 500,000* is back and coming from the hardwoods today in this non-conference clash between a pair of perennial top 25 teams in Vanderbilt and Missouri. Another outright or a burial just like the Jets and Pats and no in-between at all. Bonus 200,000* NC Greensboro and Maryland to round out the 2-0 sweep! Click now to purchase

Most of the major sportsbooks now have sides and totals up for all the bowl games, not just BCS and the National Championship Game between Auburn vs. Oregon.  Of course the top sports handicappers will have their premium picks on OffshoreInsiders.com

Here is the latest rundown.

Sunday in Week 13 of NFL betting was a day of smashmouth football. It’s fitting, then, that we saw a pileup of major injuries.

Don’t worry about: Ben Roethlisberger (nose)

Brett Favre, Vikings: SHOULDER

We almost need to set up a separate article just for Favre injury news, don’t we? It’s becoming difficult to keep up. The latest malady is a sprained SC joint in his throwing shoulder, which knocked him out of Sunday’s win over Buffalo. He was scheduled for a Monday MRI. Could this be the injury that finally ends his consecutive starts streak? It’s a nice window for Favre to walk away from the game and not be called a quitter.

Max Hall and Derek Anderson, Cardinals: SHOULDER, CONCUSSION

Let the John Skelton era begin. Derek Anderson went down with a concussion, supposedly. It’s just as likely that Ken Whisenhunt hooked him because, you know, he stinks. Max Hall dislocated his non-throwing shoulder and could be out multiple weeks if not the rest of 2010. That means Skelton will probably be thrown into the fire next week.

Dez Bryant, Cowboys: FIBULA

That’s game, set, match for Dez Bryant’s season. Sorry, fantasy football players. The standout rookie wideout already had surgery Monday to repair his fractured right fibula and is out for the season.

Heat Miller, Steelers: CONCUSSON

Miller beats out Derek Anderson and Darren Sproles for Concussion of the Week honours because the shot he took was so vicious. Of course, the referees missed the hit on a very defenseless Miller and didn’t even throw a flag. How do you think Miller’s teammate, James Harrison, felt about that?

Flozell Adams, Steelers: ANKLE

The Steelers’ offense line can’t stay healthy and may keep letting teams break Big Ben’s foot, nose and other body parts as a result. Flozell Adams aggravated an ankle injury in Pittsburgh’s Sunday night betting upset over Baltimore and went for X-rays. His status for Week 14 is unknown.

Aqib Talib, Buccaneers: HIP

This is without a doubt the week’s most crushing injury. The Bucs lost Talib, their top corner, for the season after he tore a tendon off his hip bone. Without him, I can’t see Tampa making the playoffs.

Brandon Flowers, Chiefs: LOWER BODY

The status of Kansas City’s shutdown corner is cloudy. He was carried off the field yesterday but claims he only had cramps. Other whispers suggest he aggravated his old hamstring injury. We’ll have to wait and see which news is correct before speculating on his availability for a crucial NFL bettingtilt with San Diego next week.

Cullen Jenkins, Packers: CALF

Another week and another key part of Green Bay’s defense goes down. Jenkins aggravated his calf injury and could very well miss Green Bay’s next game, weakening the Pack’s pass rush.

ESPN Monday Night Football, the New York Jets take on the New England Patriots. The NFL odds on this contest has New England -3.5 with a total of 44.5. The Jets are 9-2-0 straight up and 7-4-0 against the spread, while the Pats are 9-2-0 outright and 6-4-1 where it counts. New York is 5-0-0 straight up on the road and 4-1-0 to the sportsbooks, while New England at home is 5-0-0 straight up and 2-2-1 spread wise.

Here is the official betting preview. As far as points per game, the teams are very evenly matched. The Jets 24.0-17.0 is actually a notch better than the Patriots 30.4-24.2 points per game mark. In fact, with New York playing so well on the road, the splits are close. The Jets on the highway outscore teams 28.4-19.4, while at home New England outscores foes 31.6-24.0.

The Jets have better numbers overall on offense getting 148.1 rushing yards per game, 212.4 passing yards per game, and 360.5 total yards per game.  Compare this to the Patriots offensively at 112.5 rushing yards per game, 236.7 passing yards per game, and 349.2 total yards per game.

Rex Ryan’s boys are significantly better on defense allowing 86.3 rushing yards per game, 210.6 passing yards per game and 296.9 total yards per game. That’s much better than New England at 110.6, 288.5, and 399.1 respectively.

Top expert pick on this game: Matt Rivers is ready to make you rich. A monster 500,000* Monday night Game of the Year is here from New England. I’m not going to win all of my highest rated monster plays, case in point Oregon State two days ago failing to cover by half a point, but I will cash that ticket with most of them and this game is going to prove just that. One play on the gridiron, a 500,000* burial against that number as either the J-E-T-S Jets, Jets, Jets, win outright or Tom Brady and the Patriots take care of business going away. Click now to purchase