Money Bet of the Century | Week #5

We started out the blog this week with a simple image. An image of a solitary cup of coffee.
As everyone who watched 'Glen Gary Glen Ross' knows, Coffee is for closers ONLY , and once again....last week....the staff here at Money Bet of the Century helped you 'close' another winning bet out. We are now 2-1 after a slight hickup in week 3.

Last week was about the most exciting game of the year.Oklahoma State was down 20-3 at halftime. Texas A&M is a tough place to have to wipe out a deficit, and not many teams successfully do it. You have to go back to November, 7th 2009 to find a game where an opponent came back from a halftime deficit to beat Oklahoma State at Kyle Field. That team was Colorado, and Quarterback Tyler Hansen was sacked 8 times during that game--and even despite those 8 tough sacks, they still came back to win by a point.

Tyler Hansen now has the fulltime job at Colorado where he has thrown for 9tds and 1150 yards in the first 4 games of the season. He has a total of 3,972 throwing yards at Colorado and he's sure to surpass the 4,000 mark against the Cougs this weekend. That might sound like a big number, but it's not. The career leader in total yards thrown in FBS history is Timmy Chang out at Hawaii who threw for 17,072 yards in his time as a Warrior...er Rainbow....or whatever.

Speaking of throwing the ball out their on the islands, there should be a lot of points scored in the Hawaii vs Louisiana game this weekend. The Over/Under is sitting at 60.5, and La Tech is favored by 1.5. Anytime you get kids from 'The Bayou' out to Hawaii, there's a good chance they won't be on the plane when it takes off on Sunday morning. I can't imagine living in a place like Louisiana, seeing Hawaii, and then ever being able to go back home again.

Let's talk Money Bet.
This week there are a couple great games, but I like the Alabama vs. Florida game. Sure, Florida is playing in 'The Swamp', and there are many reasons to catch a game in this stadium. Not only is this a legendary college football stadium, the Gators are also known for their legendarily hot women (see below for picture of Gator Alum, Playboy girl) Kelly Carrington (or click on her name to see more photos, but don't be surprised if you don't come back to read the rest of the blog...). Additionally, there is an 8pm start affixed to this game, so it's gong to be an exciting one.

The quarterbacks in this matchup are almost exactly a watch. AJ McCarron has thrown for 779 yards of passing so far this season, while John Brantley has thrown for 752. They both have 4 TDs and two interceptions. There is only a .7% completion percentage difference between them! Basically, you are at a wash at QB.

Both schools only use their main Wide Receiver targets sparingly. Marquis Maze has really only hooked up with McCarron once this year for a touchdown, but has amassed 226 yards on 20 receptions. Here, Chris Rainey has pulled down 11 receptions for 214 yards and two touchdowns.

RB Trent Richardson @ Alabama is the go to man this year. Alabama has utilized this weapon well in the Red Zone, as he has carried the ball 67 times for 441 yards, but has amassed 8 touchdowns along the way. Chris Rainey (yes, the same receptions leader from above) has put up similar numbers on rushes, but done it in half the carries. That's mainly because Florida hasn't played any defenses yet this year.

Until Saturday night.

Florida is the #9 team in the country in rushing yards, and they've had great success in the run. They'll be amped up to play a night SEC game in front of a home crowd, but Alabama will come ready to play. After a 38-14 pounding of #14 Arkansas, Alabama is definitely feeling confident. This game will be won on the ground as they will continually utilize Trent Richardson in the Red Zone to grind down Florida's defense.

Although Alabama is only favored by 4, the line started at -6 before Florida hopefulls started grinding it down. The good money lies on bama by a touchdown, as the Tide rides high over the head of the Gators. That's the call of the week, YOU CAN LAY A BET ON IT!!

Money Bet of the Century | Week #4

Ouch, Money Betters.

Last week, is the week I call Night of the Long Knives . The reason why I say so? It was brutal for all of my central sports teams. We are used to it here in Seattle, it's an annual occurrence in which we realize where we are going to once again have a bad football season.

First up was University of Washington, who traveled to Nebraska to take on the Cornhuskers. Not such a great outing for them, although they started off looking pretty good. I have to laugh....I already think Keith Price looks better than Jake Locker, however....that goes against anything that any sports announcer will ever tell you. At game time, I think I heard one of the announcers say "This year, University of Washington doesn't have their Quarterback Jake Locker, who was probably the best Husky quarterback EVER!!". ha ha ha. One things for certain, Jake Locker has the best public relations firm I've ever seen. Feel free to sort 'UW's Best Quarterbacks" on your own Right Here by any stat you choose and be your own judge (Wikipedia put that together at the behest of the MBOC Staff, so thanks for your contribution to the MBOC, Wikipedia).

Next up, the Cougs 'Couged' it. Ah yes, A Faulkless San Diego State Aztec squad kept the game close into the fourth quarter before putting the Cougs away. Ronnie Hillman put up a monstrous 32 carriers, 191 yards and 4 touchdowns despite the fact that Lobbestael was able to throw for 386 yards and 3TDs. This was disappointing for me, because I thought this might be the year we could start off 4-0 (after we throttle Colorado next week in Boulder). You have to tip your hat to SD State, though, because they are now 3-0 going into their big game against Michigan. Michigan better be ready, because this San Diego State team looks good and can really move the ball.

Finally, The M's continued their losing ways, narrowly avoiding being swept by the yankees, and the Seahawks allowed themselves to get shutout against Pittsburgh.

At least Penn State eeked out a victory over Temple. That was my only saving grace.

A collective *sigh* was heard being exhaled from football fans around Seattle on Sunday. This year we can't joke about 'At least the Storm will win the world championship' this year....

Picking up our heads, as we've done so many times before in the past, we'll put the weight of shitty football on our shoulders and soldier on ahead. Ugh.

This week brings a matchup I'm excited about. And everyone in the country should be excited about this matchup.....hell, it should be The College Gameday game of the week instead of the West Virginia vs. LSU game. This is a game that pits two 'top ten' ranked teams in a GIANT stadium...the first time this has happened in this stadium since 1975! If this team wins, it will be their 4th straight win in a row versus this school. Finally, this is a conference opener for both teams, so expectations and drama will be high.....because this might be the last year of this conference. This game, my fellow bettors, is the Oklahoma State vs. Texas A&M game. Take a look at the tale of the tape on these two teams so far this season:

Quarterbacks:

OSU--Brandon Weedon, 1154 for 8 Touchdowns
A&M--Ryan Tannehill, 583 for 4 Touchdowns
Advantage-- OKLAHOMA STATE!

Running Backs:

OSU--Joseph Randle, 378 for 7 Touchdowns
A&M--Cyrus Gray, 233 for 4 Touchdowns
Advantage-- OKLAHOMA STATE!

Receivers:

OSU--Justin Blackmon, 329 for 3
A&M--Ryan Swope, 183 for 2 Touchdowns
Advantage-- OKLAHOMA STATE!

Offensive Power--
OSU-- 52.3 PPG
A&M-- 40.5 PPG
Advantage-- OKLAHOMA STATE!

Defensive Power--
OSU-- 27.0 Allowed PPG
A&M-- 10.5 PPG
Advantage-- A&M!

The only reason this game is going to be close is because it's being played at the 29th biggest sports stadium in the world: The intimidating 82,600 person Kyle Field. They have some traditions at this stadium. One being, when Texas A&M Scores-- you have to kiss a girl (awesome). The other....well, I'm not so sure about that:


Well friends, you can bet one thing on this game. And that's a Cowboy victory.

Oklahoma State has been in the hunt the last few years, but has come up short. Fellow Penn State Alumni and Oklahoma State undergrad Carlos Ponce-Ramirez GUARANTEES a victory and sends in this photo as his proof that Co-eds at Oklahoma State are 'LEGIT'. Cowboys win by a field goal despite being 4.5 underdogs. YOU CAN LAY A BET ON IT!

(don't forget to vote in the upper right hand corner)

The Money Bet of the Century, 2011- Week #3

Money Bettors-
I have four words for you this week.
WE-TOLD-YOU-SO.

The MBOC is off to another exciting start as we witnessed a wild one under the lights in Ann Arbor last week. Last week, we predicted that Michigan would come out dressed to impress in front of their home crowd. Denard Robinson started off the game slow. But Rich Maloney must have lit a fire under his ass at half time, because Denard came out of the locker room wish his H A I R O N F I R E , putting up mind-boggling second half stats. After it was all said and done, 114,000 fans at The Big House witnessed a 4TD Effort by #16, good for 338 yards of passing and 108 yards of rushing. (If you remember correctly, I predicted 280 yards passing and 120 yards rushing in my post). I also told you Michigan would win by 10 (they won by 4), and if they would have covered the fumble on the last play of the game, they'd have won by 11.

Yes money bettors....all went according to plan, and if you threw your hard earned duckets on the Money Line (ND was -3), you'd have a little extra change in your pocket then your friends who wimped out took the +3 spread.Field Correspondent Paul Rodriguez had this amazing link to share from the game:
http://www.mgoblue.com/michigan-fancam

This is one of the craziest photos I've ever seen. You can zoom in on any fan in the stadium, and actually tag yourself in the photo. We've moved beyond Megapixels and have entered the realm of Gigapixels.

Enough of last week, lets continue the streak.
This week there are a lot of good bets to be had. It's too bad the Money Bet can only be one bet. Field Correspondent Dustin Schnaitman eagerly plunked down money on both Oklahoma (@ -3) as well as Boise State (yes....he got in at BSU -16...and so many people were there with him that the line moved to -20). I think Boise can put up a 3 touchdown margin on almost any team in the country, at almost any location, but as the saying goes "That's why we play the game". Chris Petersen could potentially be the best coach in college football right now.

Washington State University, alma mater of MBOC's Co-Founder's, Marc Cooperstein and Dave Noreen, is a 5.5 point dog to San Diego State!?!?! How did this happen. Doesn't everyone know that Marshall Faulk left long ago? The Cougs currently are running the number one offense in the country with 6'3", 215 pound QB Marshall Lobbestael dropping 591 yards for 7 touchdowns in the first two games of the season. (god it feels great to once again be able to brag about the Cougs).

But nope, we're going to another game. Another game that I feel has been absolutely and astonishingly overlooked by the casinos. After the MBOC is published, I'm sure there will be some movement in the line.

Big Brock Osweiler measures in at a whopping 6'8", 240 and hails from Kalispell, Montana (don't get Contributing Editor and Field Correspondent Jeff Wood going about Flathead High School cranking out NFL Talent like Lex Hilliard .) With a 6'8" frame, this Sun Devil can can see over most of the commotion that happens at the line of scrimmage. Advantage- Brock. That type of visibility is allowing him to see targets like Aaron Pflugrad, who he has hit for 4 touchdowns and 230 yards in two games. All 3 of ASU's top receivers have had catches of 40+ yards because Osweiler can see over the noise and accurately hit targets down field. And finally, to quote Rogers Highs School 1996 graduate and ASU alum, Grant Ruby "ASU babes are hot....". I had a plethora of great photos to choose from in this week's post. One of the tougher parts of finishing this blog each week is deciding on what photos I will use. It's a tough job, but I do it without complaining.

Illinois comes into this game putting up some pretty good numbers so far. But you have to remember that they have played a couple of patsies--Arkansas State and South Dakota State. But the main problem with Illinois is that they don't have Juice Williams anymore....the 'juice got loose' and is now playing Arena Football for the Chicago Slaughter. They are also missing Muhammad Abdullah, a one time rising prospect with the program. Nathan Scheelhaase (who) is now the QB at Illinois, and he's been making some great usage of his two receivers in the first part of the season. A.J. Jenkins has already put up 219 receptions on 16 catches for 1 touchdown. His second target, Darius Millines has 8 receptions for 157 yards. Look for Scheelhaase to utilize these targets in their attack against Arizona State, because their rushing game has been weak (even against these small potato opponents).

What the odds makers are not figuring in is that ASU's corner back, Omar Bolden, is going to have a Senior game to remember. Illinois has started off the season against some smaller, slower opponents, but Bolden has 7 picks in his career so far at ASU. He'll be looking to add a couple more if possible; as the air game will play a major factor on whether Illinois will be able to get it done. They'll be ready.

Arizona State starts off slow on the road but is the one cracking the champagne at the end of this game in Champagne Urbana. Sparky sticks it to the Fightin' Illini by 7.

YOU CAN LAY A BET ON IT!!!!

Am I right? Am I off base? Comments below and don't forget to vote in the upper right hand corner!!

The Money Bet of the Century, 2011- Week #2

Fellow Money Bettors-

After having a 'bye' in week one of the college football season (The Co-Founder of MBOC was off getting drunk and enjoying the Katie Neary & Scott Wood wedding in Wyoming), the MBOC kicks off the season in week two.

And let me tell you, there are definitely some high hopes for the MBOC in its 9th year of publication.

First, we must give props where props are due. The college season is well underway on September 10th, 2011, but lets not forget the brave men and women of the Fire Departments and Police Stations that gave their lives 10 years ago on September 11th. I remember living in the Green Lake neighborhood with fellow MBOC Field Correspondent and sometime-guest-writer Jeff Wood. It was a sunny morning and it seemed like everything in the world was right. A lot changed on that day, and it would be remiss to not start off this year's blog with a nod in their direction. Thanks for your bravery on that day. 10 years later, we will always remember you and you will always be missed.

Let's get this season off with a B I G W I N ! ! like the MBOC always does. Looking back over the data from the past seasons, the MBOC is at its best in the first few weeks of the season, and this year will be no different.

We have some major conference changes this year. The off-season brought Nebraska to the Big 10, and saw Utah and Colorado come to the Pac-10 (now the Pac-12). Major shakeups in the future are guaranteed, with Texas A&M most likely leaving for the SEC. I've also heard talk of the Pac-12 becoming the Pac-16. Anyway it turns out, excitement and controversy are just around the corner. We'll all have something to get in heated arguments over beers about soon. Woohoo!

For this year's selection, we head out to BIG 10 country (er, Big 12?). Half of me wanted to take a look at the Penn State (For the glory!!!!) vs. Alabama game. Alabama is coming to Happy Valley without Julio Jones and Greg McElroy. Playing in State College is a challenge for any team when 100k Penn State fans have been marinating in the Big Game Environment (and $1 Big Easy well drinks) for a couple days. But I think another game looks even stronger....

Michigan comes into 'The Game of the Week' off of a 34-10 win over the Broncos of Western Michigan. It was probably the most strange game in College Football I can remember. Michigan was blanked in the first quarter, before ripping 20 on Western Michigan in the 2nd quarter. Into the fold came lightning and rain, that caused both teams to call off the rest of the game with 1:24 left in the 3rd quarter. But not before Michigan was able to put up another 14 unanswered points! Fitgerald Toussaint (neither Irish or French, mind you) had a strong first outing at Running Back, locking down 11 carries for 80 yards and two touchdowns in the first 3 quarters of the game. Denard Robinson, last year's phenom Sophomore QB only mustered a shockingly low 98 yards of passing in his first outing. The passing game for Michigan, which has been historically very strong, never really got a chance to get going before the game was called off.

Notre Dame started off the year falling victim to a suprisingly strong looking South Florida squad by a score of 20-23. Lately, the coaching job at Notre Dame has been something of a curse. Starting with Tyrone Willingham's second season, the team compiled a record of 11-12. ND dropped Willingham to pick up Charlie Weis. The Weis era initially looked very promising, with a 9-3 season and a commanding Fiesta Bowl 34-20 win over the Ohio State Buckeyes, but Weis proved to be a dud over the long haul. Weis then looked good before going 3-9, 6-6, 6-6 in his last 3 seasons. Many diehard Irish fans will remember 'The Navy Game' that Notre Dame lost in 2009 (23-21). This was the second loss to Navy in 3 years, at a time where ND has beaten Navy 43 straight years before this streak. That loss proved to much for the Irish Faithful and Weis was shown the door.

Brian Kelly came over after great accomplishments at a normally mediocre Cincinnati program. No matter what you think about Kelly, it's easy to see that he was lucky to have one of my favorite underdog quarterbacks Tony Pike at the helm. I can't tell you how many times that guy helped out my college fantasy team....

Sophomore QB Tommy Rees will get the start for Notre Dame as they travel to the Big House for Michigan's first ever Night Game start. Ticket sales are ripping, with Michigan Athletic Director Dave Brandon saying "I wish I had 50,000 extra tickets to sell for this game". You can bet that the Big House will be bumping as a nationally televised Michigan/ Notre Dame game gets underway. Denard Robinson will come out blazing, running for 120 yards and passing for another 280. The line on this game favors Notre Dame by 3 points, but don't be fooled money betters. The smart money rides on Michigan, MONEY LINE, to carry the Day. Wolverines put the bite to the Irish by 10.....you can lay a BET ON IT!

As always DON'T FORGET TO VOTE IN THE UPPER RIGHT HAND CORNER FOR YOUR SELECTION!

From all of us at The Money Bet of the Century, have a great college football weekend. We'll see you back here next week with a 1-0 record!!!