College football Week 12 betting review
College football Week 12 betting review
The polls remained virtually unchanged for once on the college football scene as favorites went 38-12 SU in Week 12, including a 15-3 mark for ranked favorites. But it was a different story at the pay window as favorites went just 24-26 ATS to put them at 282-283-10 ATS on the season. The Florida Gators were one of the faves that cashed in a big way, routing Steve Spurrier and South Carolina 56-6.
Is this the calm before the storm?
The college football rankings didn’t get their usual dose of carnage in Week 12. Teams in the Top 25 were 15-3 SU and 9-9 ATS last week against opponents outside the polls; favorites of all stripes were 38-12 SU and 24-26 ATS to continue their war of attrition with the betting odds at 282-283-10 ATS on the season.
There was only one game that saw two teams in the polls go head-to-head, and it was a doozy. Steve Spurrier went back to his old stomping grounds in Gainesville with his then-No. 24 South Carolina Gamecocks getting 21 points against the No. 3 Florida Gators. He needed more; Florida blasted the Gamecocks 56-6 and drove them out of the Top 25.
The story was even worse for the former No. 25 team from Tulsa. Saturday’s 70-30 defeat at the hands of Houston (+3½) was an absolute disaster; Cougars QB Case Keenum threw five of his career-high six touchdowns in the first half as the two C-USA teams easily blew out the 80½-point total. The Golden Hurricane were rolling along quite nicely at 8-0 (6-1 ATS) to start the season, but they’ve now been upset twice in a row on the road.
The other two shockers from Week 12 came from the weak ACC, where just about anything is possible these days. Maryland (+3) beat visiting No. 17 North Carolina 17-15, while Boston College (+7) went into Doak Campbell Stadium and escaped with a 27-17 victory over No. 20 Florida State. The Seminoles dropped out of the rankings; the Tar Heels are clinging to life at No. 25.
Things went much better at the other end of the charts, where the Top 16 remain unchanged on the AP poll. Florida is No. 3 behind the only two undefeated clubs left from the major conferences. Special teams kept the Alabama Crimson Tide (-21) in the No. 1 spot in an otherwise pedestrian 32-7 win over Mississippi State, as the Tide got a safety on a blocked punt and an 80-yard punt return from Javier Arenas. No. 2 Texas Tech (10-0 SU, 5-2-1 ATS) was idle.
All three of our BCS buster candidates stayed on course, although not without bleeding some red ink on the way. On Tuesday, No. 14 Ball State (-17½) was a 31-16 winner at Miami-Ohio. And the No. 9 Boise State Broncos (-36) had one too many mouthfuls of chalk to eat against the Idaho Vandals, winning 45-10 on the road. That leaves the No. 8 Utah Utes (-28), who bagged the cash with a 63-14 drubbing of San Diego State and reinforced their alpha position among the mid-major contenders for a BCS bowl.
Down at the bottom of the barrel, the reign of error in Syracuse is over. After the Orange got pureed 39-14 by UConn (-10) at the Carrier Dome, coach Greg Robinson was given his walking papers. Syracuse is 2-8 (3-6 ATS) this year and 9-36 (18.25-1 ATS) since Robinson took over from Paul Pasqualoni in 2005. Athletic director Daryl Gross waited until the end of senior week to make the announcement; the last two games for the Orange are at Notre Dame and Cincinnati. Robinson will coach those contests.
If the Orange need some cheering up, they can always look at the Blue and Maize. Michigan lost 21-14 to Northwestern as 3-point home faves to secure the worst season in Wolverines history – all 129 years of it. UM is now 3-8 SU and 2-9 ATS; never before had this venerable Big Ten program lost eight times in a single year. That leaves just one game for Michigan: at No. 10 Ohio State, where the Buckeyes will be laying 19 points. OSU beat Illinois 30-20 on the road last week, cashing in as 8½-point favorites to keep hope alive in the hunt for a major bowl berth. Yes, the Buckeyes again.
The polls remained virtually unchanged for once on the college football scene as favorites went 38-12 SU in Week 12, including a 15-3 mark for ranked favorites. But it was a different story at the pay window as favorites went just 24-26 ATS to put them at 282-283-10 ATS on the season. The Florida Gators were one of the faves that cashed in a big way, routing Steve Spurrier and South Carolina 56-6.
Is this the calm before the storm?
The college football rankings didn’t get their usual dose of carnage in Week 12. Teams in the Top 25 were 15-3 SU and 9-9 ATS last week against opponents outside the polls; favorites of all stripes were 38-12 SU and 24-26 ATS to continue their war of attrition with the betting odds at 282-283-10 ATS on the season.
There was only one game that saw two teams in the polls go head-to-head, and it was a doozy. Steve Spurrier went back to his old stomping grounds in Gainesville with his then-No. 24 South Carolina Gamecocks getting 21 points against the No. 3 Florida Gators. He needed more; Florida blasted the Gamecocks 56-6 and drove them out of the Top 25.
The story was even worse for the former No. 25 team from Tulsa. Saturday’s 70-30 defeat at the hands of Houston (+3½) was an absolute disaster; Cougars QB Case Keenum threw five of his career-high six touchdowns in the first half as the two C-USA teams easily blew out the 80½-point total. The Golden Hurricane were rolling along quite nicely at 8-0 (6-1 ATS) to start the season, but they’ve now been upset twice in a row on the road.
The other two shockers from Week 12 came from the weak ACC, where just about anything is possible these days. Maryland (+3) beat visiting No. 17 North Carolina 17-15, while Boston College (+7) went into Doak Campbell Stadium and escaped with a 27-17 victory over No. 20 Florida State. The Seminoles dropped out of the rankings; the Tar Heels are clinging to life at No. 25.
Things went much better at the other end of the charts, where the Top 16 remain unchanged on the AP poll. Florida is No. 3 behind the only two undefeated clubs left from the major conferences. Special teams kept the Alabama Crimson Tide (-21) in the No. 1 spot in an otherwise pedestrian 32-7 win over Mississippi State, as the Tide got a safety on a blocked punt and an 80-yard punt return from Javier Arenas. No. 2 Texas Tech (10-0 SU, 5-2-1 ATS) was idle.
All three of our BCS buster candidates stayed on course, although not without bleeding some red ink on the way. On Tuesday, No. 14 Ball State (-17½) was a 31-16 winner at Miami-Ohio. And the No. 9 Boise State Broncos (-36) had one too many mouthfuls of chalk to eat against the Idaho Vandals, winning 45-10 on the road. That leaves the No. 8 Utah Utes (-28), who bagged the cash with a 63-14 drubbing of San Diego State and reinforced their alpha position among the mid-major contenders for a BCS bowl.
Down at the bottom of the barrel, the reign of error in Syracuse is over. After the Orange got pureed 39-14 by UConn (-10) at the Carrier Dome, coach Greg Robinson was given his walking papers. Syracuse is 2-8 (3-6 ATS) this year and 9-36 (18.25-1 ATS) since Robinson took over from Paul Pasqualoni in 2005. Athletic director Daryl Gross waited until the end of senior week to make the announcement; the last two games for the Orange are at Notre Dame and Cincinnati. Robinson will coach those contests.
If the Orange need some cheering up, they can always look at the Blue and Maize. Michigan lost 21-14 to Northwestern as 3-point home faves to secure the worst season in Wolverines history – all 129 years of it. UM is now 3-8 SU and 2-9 ATS; never before had this venerable Big Ten program lost eight times in a single year. That leaves just one game for Michigan: at No. 10 Ohio State, where the Buckeyes will be laying 19 points. OSU beat Illinois 30-20 on the road last week, cashing in as 8½-point favorites to keep hope alive in the hunt for a major bowl berth. Yes, the Buckeyes again.