Alabama still No. 1; Boise State gains first-place votes
NCAA Football Betting Lines
09/07/2010 -
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alabama remained the top team in the latest
Associated Press college football poll, but Boise State gained additional
first-place votes after its thrilling victory over Virginia Tech on Labor Day.
The Crimson Tide (1-0) opened the season with a 48-3 rout of San Jose State on
Saturday, but lost seven first-place votes from the preseason poll. Alabama
earned 47 No. 1 tallies this week, after garnering 54 in the first poll, and
received a total of 1,484 points from a nationwide media panel.
Ohio State (1-0), after a 45-7 thrashing of Marshall last Thursday, again held
the second spot with four first-place votes and 1,412 points.
Boise State (1-0) rallied for a 33-30 win over Virginia Tech on Monday and
solidified its hold of the No. 3 ranking. The Broncos originally picked up one
first-place vote in the preseason poll, but were awarded eight this week.
TCU moved up two spots to fourth and is followed by Texas, Nebraska, Oregon,
Florida, Iowa and Oklahoma. Texas also earned one first-place vote in the wake
of a 34-17 win at Rice on Saturday.
Oregon moved up four spots from 11th after a 72-0 shellacking of New Mexico,
while Florida's lackluster 34-12 win over Miami-Ohio dropped the Gators four
spots from fourth. Oklahoma, which had received one first-place vote in the
preseason poll, dropped three spots from seventh after a 31-24 triumph over
Utah State.
The second 10 consists of Wisconsin, Miami-Florida, Virginia Tech, Arkansas,
Georgia Tech, Southern California, Florida State, Penn State, LSU and Utah.
Virginia Tech dropped just three places from 10th after its loss to Boise
State, while Utah is one of three newcomers this week.
Auburn, Georgia, West Virginia, South Carolina and Stanford round out this
week's poll. In addition to Utah, South Carolina and Stanford are new this
week, while Pittsburgh, North Carolina and Oregon State dropped out of the
rankings.
Utah edged then-No. 15 Pittsburgh in overtime last Thursday, 27-24, in Salt
Lake City, while South Carolina moved in after a 41-13 victory over Southern
Miss. Stanford thumped Sacramento State, 52-17.
North Carolina was 18th and dropped a 30-24 decision to fellow ranked foe LSU
in Atlanta after learning that 13 players would be unable to play because of
an investigation into academic and agent-related issues, while Oregon State,
ranked 24th, also lost a neutral-site game with a 30-21 setback to TCU in
Arlington.
Four games this week feature matchups of ranked teams, highlighted by Penn State's visit to Alabama. Also, Florida State travels to Oklahoma and Ohio
State welcomes Miami-Florida, while a big early-season SEC matchup pits
Georgia at South Carolina.
<< Top 10 holds steady through Labor Day racing
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Champion mare Zenyatta continues at the top
of this week's NTRA National Thoroughbred Poll. There were no changes or
additions to the top 10 for the first time this year.
Zenyatta, 2008 and 2009 cha
<< Unexpected twist: Cincinnati's offense broken
CINCINNATI (AP) -An unexpected problem has Cincinnati revamping its offensive line after only one game.The Bearcats' offense evaporated during a 28-14 loss at Fresno State on Saturday night. A unit that is full of playmakers failed to score in the s
<< Kelly: Prepping for Mich QB Denard tough
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) -Notre Dame dealt with a mobile quarterback in beating Purdue last week. The Irish have a much bigger challenge this week.Coach Brian Kelly says there's a big difference between defending Purdue's Robert Marve, who could move i
<< Lithuania tops China to reach FIBA quarters
Istanbul, Turkey (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Linas Kleiza poured in 30 points and
grabbed nine rebounds, leading Lithuania to a 78-67 win over China and a berth
in the quarterfinals of the 2010 FIBA World Championship.
Martynas Gecevicius add
<< Roughriders trade OL Bates to Edmonton
Regina, SK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Saskatchewan Roughriders on Tuesday sent
offensive lineman Kelly Bates to the Edmonton Eskimos for an undisclosed 2014
draft pick.
Bates came to the Roughriders as a free agent in February, but was pl
Youzhny reaches Open quarters >>
Flushing Meadows, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former semifinalist Mikhail Youzhny
was a fourth-round winner Tuesday at the 2010 U.S. Open.
The 12th-seeded Youzhny handled former top-10 Spaniard Tommy Robredo 7-5, 6-2,
4-6, 6-4 at the USTA Billie J
Former UCLA stars ready to shine >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Labor Day has passed, the kids are back in
school and the leaves will soon begin to fall here in the northeast.
That means the calendar has flipped to September and most of America is gearing
up for footba
Dolphins GM Ireland takes over full club operations >>
Davie, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Miami Dolphins have announced that
general manager Jeff Ireland will assume full control over all aspects of the
football team and support staff, effective immediately.
Bill Parcells, who had be
Devils, Kovalchuk finally seal the deal >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It was anything but a smooth process, but
Ilya Kovalchuk and the New Jersey Devils were finally able to consummate their
long summer courtship in the early morning hours this past Saturday.
Two months afte
Montero helping Sounders FC across the river >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With a record of 12-7-11, a playoff spot as the Western
Conference's No. 3 seed, a U.S. Open Cup Championship, and almost half-a-
million in paid attendance, Seattle Sounders FC was coming off one of the
most successf
BILLS (+10) at Steelers SPORTSBOOK LINES
It's impossible to gauge how a team will react after something like the Steve Everett situation, and it probably doesn't matter. That being said, the Bills are going to lose several games this year where they keep things close but fall short in the end to superior teams. Ben Roethlisberger and company could have a field day against Buffalo's decimated defense, but I like the Bills to cover.
BENGALS (-7) at Browns SPORTSBOOK LINES
All you can ask out of your NFL team is that it has a plan. You may not always agree with it as a fan, but as long as it appears the organization is going in some sort of direction, you have to go with it. Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. You flip a coin to determine whether Chuck Frye or Derek Anderson should start the preseason opener. You start Frye in Week 1, but pull him in the first half. And then you deal him to the Seahawks for a sixth-round pick? Hmm... the Bengals could get six turnovers again this week.
COLTS (-7) at Titans SPORTSBOOK LINES
Tennessee signed ex-Colts cornerback Nick Harper in the offseason so that should help slow down Peyton Manning. Just ask Jason David and the Saints. Oh wait... One of these weeks, I'm going to learn to not pick against Tennessee, which has won seven of its last eight games. But it's not happening against Indy.
TEXANS (+6.5) at Panthers SPORTSBOOK LINES
Houston's Mario Williams, the first pick in the '06 draft, has more touchdowns than Reggie Bush after one week. Somehow I don't see that lasting. Meanwhile, Carolina bottled up what was expected to be a pretty high-octane offense in St. Louis in Week 1. Could this be the Panthers' defense everyone expected last year? Maybe. This feels like a 20-16 Carolina win.
RAMS (-3) vs. 49ers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Absolutely love this game. Everyone's favorite pick for this year's surprise team -- the 49ers -- laid an egg on Monday night (not that anyone was watching with the game ending in the middle of the night for those of us on the East Coast). St. Louis wasn't much better, delivering a lackluster effort against the Panthers that included two Steven Jackson fumbles and panic from his fantasy owners. Jackson rebounds this week, and the Rams get their first win.
PACKERS (+1.5) at Giants SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Do you really trust this guy to win an NFL game if Eli Manning can't go? I say no. I'd feel alot better about this Packers team if it had any semblance of a running game, but I still think Green Bay's defense is good enough to give it a 2-0 start.
JAGUARS (-10) vs. Falcons SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Does it scare me to pick Jacksonville to cover a double-digit spread after it scored just 10 points last week against the Titans? Absolutely. But can I bring myself to pick Atlanta under any circumstances? No. Check out this poll on ajc.com. It asks what Atlanta's most urgent deficiency is: offense, defense, specials teams or all of the above. "All of the above" has 57 percent of the votes. Ouch.
SAINTS (-3) at Buccaneers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
I'm picking way too many road teams this week. Oh well. New Orleans has had some time to reflect on its lackluster showing in the opener, and the Buccanneers just aren't a very good football team. Anyone else surprised Tampa Bay hasn't made a move to sign Byron Leftwich? I thought that's what they do.
VIKINGS (+3) at Lions SPORTS BETTING LINES
Run the ball and stop the run. Minnesota can do both, and that will keep them in a lot of games this season. Even though it was only one week, Adrian Peterson looks like he was a steal at No. 7 in last year's draft. Not only will he produce, but Peterson delivers excitement to what otherwise would be one of the league's most boring teams.
DOLPHINS (+3.5) vs. Cowboys SPORTS BETTING LINES
Lost in the Tony Romo lovefest is just how bad the Cowboys' defense was last week. I know they're banged up, but Dallas' 'D' allowed 438 yards to the Giants' offense, and backup running back Derrick Ward averaged 6.8 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Cam Cameron's decision to split carries between Ronnie Brown and Jesse Chatman sounds about as can't-miss as Larry David's plan to show up to Marty Funkhouser's party a night late. Still, gotta go with Miami to cover at home.
SEAHAWKS (-2.5) at Cardinals SPORTS BETTING LINES
I'm probably missing something, but this game seems too easy. Arizona blew Monday night's game against the 49ers in typical Cardinals fashion, and the Seahawks beat Tampa Bay by two touchdowns. Love Seattle in this one.
BRONCOS (-9.5) vs. Raiders SPORTS BETTING LINES
Special teams was a major story line in Week 1. Take a look at the Broncos. They had to rush on to the field to get a Jason Elam field goal as time expired against the Bills. Denver drove into Buffalo territory on eight of 10 drives but came away with just a pair of field goals and a touchdown. Look for more scoring from the Broncos this week against an Oakland defense that gave up 36 points to Detroit in Week 1.
BEARS (-12) vs. Chiefs SPORTS BETTING LINES
Everyone talks about Rex Grossman when dissecting the Bears' offense, but Chicago's quarterback got no help in last week's loss to the Chargers. Meanwhile, Kansas City confirmed what we all thought while watching Hard Knocks: The Chiefs are going to stink this year. It could be a rough first month for Larry Johnson fantasy owners. Kansas City's RB was limited to 43 yards on 10 carries in Week 1, and the Chiefs face the Bears, Vikings and Chargers the next three weeks, all formidable run defenses.
RAVENS (-10) vs. Jets SPORTS BETTING LINES
A big dose of Willis McGahee and a usual sound defensive effort will give the Ravens their first win. According to Football Outsiders, no team in the NFL rushed only three defenders on pass plays last year more than the Jets. And according to my special Jets correspondent Ben Stauber, New York did the same in Week 1. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Ravens should have all day to throw.
PATRIOTS (-3) vs. Chargers
Friends and I were discussing how Bill Belichick goes about paying his $500,000 fine for cheating. Does he just write one check to the NFL? Do you need some sort of clearance to make such a monstrous financial transaction? I guess I shouldn't complain about the security deposit I have to put down on my new apartment. Anyway, two of the league's best teams square off in what should be a good one Sunday night. The Patriots always respond well just when you think they're in trouble. And their offensive attack was the story in Week 1.
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting.
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