The 2009 Bowl Season continues today and the pros at FiveStarPick.com have been working overtime to analyze the Meineke Car Care Bowl between the UNC Tar Heels and the Pittsburgh Panthers.  Las Vegas Sportsbooks list Pittsburgh as 3-point favorites with a total of 45.

Most Vegas books opened Pittsburgh (9-3 SU, 7-4 against the spread) as a two-point favorite with a total of 47.  As of today, most books had Pitt favored by 2.5 to as much as 3 with the total at 45. 

North Carolina (8-4 SU, 6-5 Against The Spread) was on a four-game winning streak both SU and Against The Spread until a 28-27 loss at N.C. St. as a 5-point road favorites.

This is Butch Davis’ 3rd year at the helm of UNC and today’s game will be his 2nd bowl appearance. The Tar Heels lost a heartbreaker 31-30 to West Virginia last year in the Meineke Bowl, but they did cover as two-point dogs. UNC is ranked first in the ACC in run defense and total defense.  They are giving up just 16.9 points per game.  UNC’s catalyst is Junior QB T.J. Yates.  Yates has a 12/14 TD-INT ratio this year, not so good.  When he is on he can be unstoppable, but when he is off he can be a major liability.

Pitt was 9-1 to start the season before losing in Morgantown to West Virginia 19-16 as one-point home favorites. Then Cincinnati came to town and won 45-44 at Pitt in the final minute. The Panthers did cash as 1.5-point home dogs, but it was an emotional let down for the Panthers to say the least.  The question is whether or not Pitt will be able to overcome such emotional losses to get up for this game.  If they are going to win today, QB Bill Stull will have to take over.  Stull had a great year this year, connecting on 64.6 percent of his passes for 2,470 yards with a 21/8 TD-INT ratio.

Now let’s talk trends…UNC has won outright in its last five games against ranked opponents. Pitt is 4-3 against the spread as a single-digit favorite this year.  Meanwhile, UNC is 3-1 against the spread as an underdog.  The Tar Heels won outright this year at Va. Tech, at BC and vs. Miami.

So who covers the spread in the Meineke Car Care Bowl?  It’s very easy to find out.  Try FiveStarPick.com tonight for just ($19.99) and see if our talent for picking college and pro football winners exceeds your expectations.  We are the only sports handicapping service in the business who documents wins and losses and displays them on our homepage for all to witness.  It’s because we have nothing to hide…we just win games against the spread.  Join our family today and start your winning streak tonight.

Rick Riley – FiveStarPick.com

Merry Christmas to all our members and friends. All we wanted for Christmas last night was another winner, and we got it as SMU torched the Nevada Wolfpack 45-10 for our 7th win against the spread in our last 8 games.  Today we will be giving our members the spread winner of the Titans and the Chargers. Las Vegas sportsbooks list the Titans as 3-point home favorites with a total of 47.

Tennessee is attempting to be the first team ever to start 0-6 and finish at least .500. Only five teams have ever begun a season 0-5 and ended with a record of .500 or better.

The Chargers, on the other hand, also looked suspect at the beginning of the season going just 2-3 in their first 5 outings.  But now San Diego is firing on all cylinders and has won nine straight. The Chargers are one victory away from locking up the second seed in the AFC playoffs. After beating Cincinnati last week, the Chargers are now 17-0 in December since 2006.

Tennessee’s found their groove with the 1-2 punch of Vince Young and Chris Johnson.  Johnson has been the most explosive player the NFL has seen in recent history and is the league’s leading rusher amassing at least 100 yards rushing in nine consecutive games, including 11 TDs. The Titans are now 5-3 against the spread in their last 8, but have failed to cover the spread in their last two games. Tennessee was up 24-6 on Miami until the Dolphins rallied to force overtime.  The Titans won 27-24 in OT, but the Dolphins cashed as 4.5-point road dogs.

These two teams met twice in 2007.  The first meeting was December 9, 2007 in Nashville. The Chargers beat the Titans, 23-17, covering as 1.5-point road favorites. The Titans then traveled to QualCom for a first-round playoff game. San Diego won 17-6 and covered the spread as 10.5-point home favorites.

Accoring to SportsBook.com, San Diego has seen 79% of the betting public back them today, but the Chargers have already clinched the AFC West, while Tennessee has to win out and get help from other teams for the final Wild Card spot.  The question is will San Diego rest some starters if Tennessee gets up on them early? We think we have the answer to that question.  

So who covers the spread in this Christmas night AFC matchup?  It’s very easy to find out.  Try FiveStarPick.com tonight for just ($19.99) and see if our talent for picking college and pro football winners exceeds your expectations.  We are the only sports handicapping service in the business who documents wins and losses and displays them on our homepage for all to witness.  It’s because we have nothing to hide…we just win games against the spread.  Join our family today and start your winning streak tonight.

Rick Riley – FiveStarPick.com

The 2009 Bowl Season continues tonight and the pros at FiveStarPick.com have been working overtime to analyze tonight’s Hawaii Bowl between the SMU Mustangs and the Nevada Wolfpack.  Las Vegas Sportsbooks list Nevada as 13-point favorites with a total of 72.

Nevada (8-4 SU, 7-5 Against The Spread) has been lighting up the scoreboard this year thanks to a solid running attack out of the Pistol Offense.  Nevada QB Colin Kaepernick has run for 1,160 yards and 16 touchdowns in front of two of the nation’s top running backs in Luke Lippincott and Vai Taua. Lippincott has accounted for 1,034 yards on the ground this season, while Taua has gained 1,345 yards. These two speedsters have scored 19 touchdowns on the season.

This Pistol offensive attack of Nevada leads the country in rushing with an average of 362.3 yards per game, but both Lippincott (toe injury) and Taua (academic issues) are both out for tonight’s game. That means the Pack will hit the ground with their backups who have tallied just 851 yards and 13 touchdowns on the year combined.

SMU (7-5 SU, 6-4-1 Against The Spread) is making its first trip to a bowl game since getting nailed by the NCAA in 1987 and it’s due mostly to the hiring of coach June Jones.  The Mustangs have won four of their last five games and would have played for the Conference USA title if it weren’t for a 34-31 loss at Marshall back in November.

While Nevada runs the Pistol Offense, SMU runs the Run ‘n Shoot.  The Mustangs have the 28th best passing attack in the country, accounting for 267.2 YPG through the air. What’s interesting is that true freshman QB Kyle Padron is running this complicated offense.  Padron has completed 64 percent of his passes for 1,462 yards with eight touchdowns to just four picks. His main receiver is Emmanuel Sanders who caught 91 passes this season for 1,215 yards and six scores.  Couple SMU’s passing attack with the fact that Nevada is has the 119th best pass defense in the nation giving up 283.4 YPG and you have a real reason to watch on Christmas Eve.

Now let’s talk trends…in the postseason, Nevada is just 1-3 Against The Spread in its last four bowl games. June Jones, as the Hawaii head coach, was 3-3 Against The Spread in his six career bowl appearances.  In addition, Jones’ Mustangs are 6-1 Against The Spread as an underdog this year.  Nevada is 6-3 Against The Spread in 2009 as favorites and the five times they were listed as double-digit favorites this season they went 4-1 Against The Spread.

So who covers the spread in the Hawaii Bowl?  It’s very easy to find out.  Try FiveStarPick.com tonight for just ($19.99) and see if our talent for picking college and pro football winners exceeds your expectations.  We are the only sports handicapping service in the business who documents wins and losses and displays them on our homepage for all to witness.  It’s because we have nothing to hide…we just win games against the spread.  Join our family today and start your winning streak tonight.

Rick Riley – FiveStarPick.com

Bowl Season continues tonight and the pros at FiveStarPick.com have been working overtime to analyze tonight’s Poinsettia Bowl between the Utah Utes and the California Golden Bears.  Las Vegas Sportsbooks list Cal as 3-point favorites with a total of 52. The weather will not be a factor tonight as the Poinsettia Bowl is in San Diego (44 degrees and no wind).

California (8-4 straight up, 5-6 against the spread) has the playmakers, while Utah (9-3 SU, 5-7 ATS) has the big men.  History says that you can’t argue a play on Utah tonight, afterall this is a program that stunned the Crimson last season in the Sugar Bowl and they are also 8-0 SU and 6-2 against the spread in their last eight postseason games.  But you could have made that same argument last night as Oregon State was 5-0 SU and against the spread in their last 5 bowl appearances, then got stomped by BYU (another FiveStar Bowl win).  In other words…don’t pull the trigger just yet. In Vegas, handicappers don’t put much value on a team’s bowl history when formulating a line. That’s for the betting public to do. 

Vegas’s line opened at 3.5 for one reason only, Utah’s offense is struggling. They’re going into their fifth straight game with true freshman Jordan Wynn under center and they rank 45th running the ball (169.4 yards per game) and 55th throwing it (220.2 YPG).  Wynn has completed 55 percent of his passes for 991 yards and five touchdowns, but the offense seems to sputter late in games against quality opponents.

What Utah does have is a stud at running back.  Eddie Wide has lead the Mountain West in rushing with 1,032 yards and 12 touchdowns.  The Golden Bears are going to have to focus on limiting Wide’s yards if they want to control this game.

The Golden Bears have some great playmakers on the field, but they got embarrassed by both Oregon and USC.  QB Kevin Riley has completed 55 percent of his passes for 219.7 YPG, 17 scores and just six picks. But in his last four games, Riley has thrown 4 TDs and 4 INTs.

The big story for Cal tonight is that they are going to be without Jahvid Best. Best suffered a concussion against Oregon State on November 7th and is done for the year.  So in steps Shane Vereen in his place and without missing a beat, he is averaging 148.0 rushing YPG with four touchdowns.

Riley might have to depend on Vereen a lot tonight if Utah keeps up their pass defense stats. The Utes are giving up just 172.8 YPG through the air, which ranks them 14th nationally. They’ve also intercepted 15 passes this season, so Riley will need to be confident with his throws.

Now let’s talk trends…These two teams have split their last two meetings both SU and against the spread. In their last meeting back in 2003, the Utes won 31-24 as one-point home favorites. Utah is 5-5 SU and 6-4 against the spread as an underdog against teams from the Pac-10 since 1996, but just 1-3 SU and against the spread in the last four games as dogs against the Pac-10. The Golden Bears are 5-3 SU and 3-5 against the spread against Mountain West opponents since 1996, but are on a 5-0 SU and 3-2 against the spread in their last 5.

So who covers the spread in the Poinsettia Bowl?  It’s very easy to find out.  Try FiveStarPick.com tonight for just ($19.99) and see if our talent for picking college and pro football winners exceeds your expectations.  We are the only sports handicapping service in the business who documents wins and losses and displays them on our homepage for all to witness.  It’s because we have nothing to hide…we just win games against the spread.  Join our family today and start your winning streak tonight.

Rick Riley – FiveStarPick.com

Bowl Season continues tonight and the pros at FiveStarPick.com have been working overtime to analyze tonight’s Las Vegas Bowl between the BYU Cougars and the Oregon State Beavers.  Las Vegas Sportsbooks list Oregon State as 2.5-point favorites with a total of 58.5.

Both of these teams expect to win tonight, but BYU(10-2 SU, 5-6 against the spread) is not getting much love from the betting public. However, several of our colleagues here in Vegas are questioning Oregon State’s (8-4 SU, 7-4 against the spread) heart in this game considering they were just a win away from going to the Rose Bowl. The Beavers lost to Oregon, 37-33, on December 3rd and are now playing here in Vegas, instead of Pasadena. We know the BYU boys will be staying close to the hotel room at night, but the big question for us is how will the Beavers react to the distractions this town brings? Seamless Gentlemen’s Club can be very tempting to a young man, and an old man for that matter, but I digress.  

If you want to know why the public likes Oregon State so much, look no further than Beaver QB, Sean Canfield (21 TDs, 3,103 yards). Canfield was a stud this year in the Pac 10 and with the help of running back Jacquizz Rodgers (1,377 yards, 20 TDs), opposing defenses have had there fair share of problems. Rodgers older brother, wide receiver James Rodgers, is another offensive weapon for OSU. James led the Beavers in receptions (87), yards (1,007) and receiving touchdowns (9) this season.

If you need additional reasons to back Oregon State tonight, their offense averaged 32.4 points per game this year and only turned it over eight times, the best in the nation.  In addition, the Beavers are 5-0 SU and 4-1 against the spread during Mike Riley’s tenure. The Beavers closed the year with a 7-1 record against the spread.

BYU has been no stranger to the desert. This will be the fifth straight year that the Cougars will play in the Las Vegas Bowl.  The team has gone 2-2 during this stretch, which includes last year’s setback to Arizona (21-31). This season, BYU has quarterback Max Hall (3,368 yards and 30 TDs) who is completing 67.5 percent of his passes. Hall also has a solid running back in Harvey Unga (1,016, 10 TDs), but tight end Dennis Pitta (57 catches, 784 yards) has been Hall’s goto guy for the 3rd down conversion.

The knock on BYU this year has been their defense against quality opponents. Florida State tourched the Cougars 54-28 in Provo on September 19th and TCU put up 38 on the Cougars on October 24th in Fort Worth. The bright spot for the Cougar defense was a 13-point effort against Oklahoma in Week 1.

Now let’s talk trends…The Pac 10 is 3-0 against the spread in head-to-head meetings against the Mountain West Conference during the regular season. Dating back to 2000, OSU is 7-1 SU and 5-3 against the spread versus schools from the MWC.  BYU is 5-4 against the spread in its nine meetings against Pac 10 opponents. The Pac 10 went 4-1 against the spread in bowl games last year and 10-1 against the spread in the last two postseasons.

So who covers the spread in the Las Vegas Bowl?  It’s very easy to find out.  Try FiveStarPick.com tonight for just ($19.99) and see if our talent for picking college and pro football winners exceeds your expectations.  We are the only sports handicapping service in the business who documents wins and losses and displays them on our homepage for all to witness.  It’s because we have nothing to hide…we just win games against the spread.  Join our family today and start your winning streak tonight.

Rick Riley – FiveStarPick.com