Tigers battle Bulldogs in SEC action

NCAA Football Betting Lines

09/08/2010 - Starkville, MS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - SEC action begins on Thursday in Starkville as the Mississippi State Bulldogs welcome the 21st-ranked Auburn Tigers to town.

Auburn opened its season last weekend with a 52-26 victory over Arkansas State.

"It was good for our football team to get our first game under our belt," said Auburn head coach Gene Chizik. "Obviously if you watched the game, there were a lot of glaring things that weren't very good, but things that I think are very fixable and things I think we can build on."

The Tigers finished 8-5 a year ago under the guidance of Chizik, including an Outback Bowl victory over Northwestern. Still, the team was just 3-5 versus SEC opponents, and Chizik, now in his second season, fully expects better in- conference results considering the wealth of returning talent his team possesses.

As for Mississippi State, it is also under the guidance of a second-year head coach in Dan Mullen. The Bulldogs rolled past Memphis in the opener by a 49-7 final, as they were dominant on both sides of the ball.

"Really pleased coming out the way our team did," said coach Mullen. "We have got some things to clean up and we do not have a lot of time to do it with the short week this week."

MSU won five games a season ago, but there is reason to believe that this program is ascending.

Auburn owns a 58-23-2 series advantage over Mississippi State, including a 49-24 romp over the Bulldogs last season.

There is no question that Auburn fans were eager to see what Cameron Newton would do in his debut as the team's starting quarterback. A former Florida backup who spent last season at a junior college, Newton completed 9-of-14 passes for 186 yards and three touchdowns, and he also rushed for 171 yards on 15 attempts.

"As the game kept going on, I felt my feet settling in," Newton said. "There were a lot of times I thought I could make plays with my feet because of the man coverage."

Michael Dyer carried the ball 14 times for 95 yards and a score for the Tigers. Mario Fannin hauled in four passes for 65 yards and two touchdowns, while Quindarius Carr caught two passes for 87 yards and score.

Defensively, Auburn certainly has some room for improvement. The Tigers permitted Arkansas State to post 323 passing yards in the clash on 33-of-49 efficiency, and the defense failed to register an interception or a fumble recovery in the tilt. While Arkansas State did score a pair of rushing touchdowns, it should be pointed out that the Red Wolves only netted 43 rushing yards on 35 attempts, a credit to the Tigers. It certainly helped matters that they posted four sacks totaling 28 yards in losses.

Darren Bates led the way defensively with 10 total tackles, seven of which were of the solo variety. Antoine Carter was sensational, as he recorded 3.5 TFLs in the tilt, including 2.5 sacks.

Mississippi State's battle for the starting quarterback position in camp was so close that coach Mullen decided to use both Chris Relf and Tyler Russell last week. Of the two, Russell posted the more impressive numbers, connecting on 13-of-16 passes for 256 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions. Relf had one score and one pick.

"I feel very comfortable with both of them, and they work well with each other," says Mullen of his signal callers. "They listen to the coaches, and listen to what they are saying in between series and get ready for when their number is called again."

Brandon Heavens led the receivers with five catches for 112 yards and two scores, while Vick Ballard posted two rushing touchdowns for MSU. The Bulldogs finished the game with 569 total yards, and it will be tough to duplicate that feat this weekend.

The Bulldogs played strong defense against Memphis, holding the Tigers to 41 rushing yards and seven points in the tilt. The lone touchdown for Memphis came in the fourth quarter, long after the outcome had been decided. Mississippi State recorded a pair of interceptions in the contest and limited the Tigers to 2-of-15 success on third-down conversion attempts.

Wwwsportspage NCAA Football Betting News

<< Struggling Braves turn to Lowe in finale with Pirates
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pittsburgh Pirates sure have been enjoying their role of spoiler in this series and are now in position to sweep the Atlanta Braves for the first time in over 16 years. To do that they will have to solve Derek Lowe, wh

<< First-place Phils close out hard-fought set with Marlins
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It wasn't easy, but the Philadelphia Phillies now lead the National League East for the first time since late May. Cole Hamels will try to keep his squad there as he aims for a third straight victory in the finale of a fou

<< FCS championship game tickets to go on sale
Frisco, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tickets to 2010 Football Championship Subdivision title game will go on sale at 10 a.m. CT on Monday, Sept. 13. The championship game will be played Jan. 7, 2011 at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco. Tickets will be av

<< Padres go for sweep of LA
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Diego Padres were in serious danger of falling out of first place in the National League's West Division, but a couple of games against the fading Los Angeles Dodgers seems to have gotten the surprising squad back on

<< Rockies continue late playoff push against Reds
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With the Colorado Rockies making a belated push for a playoff spot, Carlos Gonzalez has been enhancing his credentials for a possible National League MVP Award with his performance over the past few weeks. Gonzalez puts a

Ranked SEC foes lock horns in Columbia >>
Columbia, SC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mark Richt leads his 22nd-ranked Georgia Bulldogs into an SEC battle with Steve Spurrier's 24th-ranked South Carolina Gamecocks in Columbia this weekend. "Our guys are focused on South Carolina right now," sai

LSU visits Vanderbilt in SEC lidlifter >>
Nashville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Vanderbilt Commodores are coming off a highly-disappointing week-one loss, and they will open SEC play on Saturday against the 19th-ranked LSU Tigers, who are fresh off a drama-filled victory. LSU took on

Hurricanes blow into Columbus to battle Buckeyes >>
Columbus, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A much-anticipated matchup between the second- ranked Ohio State Buckeyes and the 12th-ranked Miami-Florida Hurricanes will ensue in Columbus on Saturday afternoon. As expected, Miami cruised to victory over F

Idaho hits road for test against No. 6 Nebraska >>
Lincoln, NE (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fresh off a 49-10 thrashing of Western Kentucky in last week's season opener, the sixth-ranked Nebraska Cornhuskers figure to be challenged a bit more this Saturday as they welcome the Idaho Vandals to Memorial St

Instate rivals clash as ninth-ranked Hawkeyes take on Cyclones >>
Iowa City, IA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bitter rivals clash at Kinnick Stadium this weekend, as the ninth-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes do battle with the Iowa State Cyclones. The Hawkeyes took care of business in their opener last weekend, as they tallied

2007 NFL Football Betting Preview


“You play to win the game!”

Those are the words of notoriously intense head coach Herman Edwards. Unfortunately, from a bettors’ perspective, most coaches don’t feel that way about the NFL preseason. August is a time to evaluate young players, finalize the depth chart and pray your star players stay healthy.

The trick to making money during the exhibition schedule is identifying coaches – like Edwards – who can’t stand losing even when there's nothing on the line.

The New York Jets betting won 15 of 21 preseason games and went 14-7 against the spread (ATS) during Edwards’s five-year tenure with the club. In his first season as the Kansas City Chiefs field boss, the team improved from 0-4 to 2-2.

Identifying win-a-holics like Edwards is a good start if you plan betting the preseason – even though most say you shouldn’t ... but what the hell do they know anyway?

Here’s a brief rundown of two teams that have a habit of winning during the second-stringers’ season, and another club that has a good chance of exceeding this year.

New York Giants betting lines

Playing in the media hub of North America can be stressful but the press can’t write anything negative about the way Tom Coughlin’s boys play in the preseason. The Giants won and covered all four games last summer, improving their record to 7-1 both straight up (SU) and against the spread over the last two years.

Coughlin has shown he’s not afraid to give his starters more time in the second preseason game than most of his colleagues, no doubt one of the reasons his team has been so dominant.

Dallas Cowboys betting lines

Bettors can count on America’s team early on. The Cowboys are 14-6 both SU and ATS since 2002 in warm-up contests. Former coach Bill Parcells, the coach of the team the last four years, has an intimidating, in-your-face presence – surely a reason Dallas has had so much early success.

The Big Tuna won’t be strolling the sidelines with looks of disgust, but new coach Wade Phillips will be anxious to make a good first impression for owner Jerry Jones.

Dallas plays the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos before things get serious. They then face the Houston Texans in their third contest (the game starters see most game time) and finish off with the Minnesota Vikings.

Expect a Dallas team able to walk away with another 3-1 preseason record.

Oakland Raiders betting lines

This team scored a league-worst 12 offensive touchdowns last season, so the rookies and veterans each have something to prove. There’s a bounty of first-unit jobs up for grabs and plenty of bodies competing for those slots.

First-time head coach Lane Kiffin will be eager to impress an owner who employs the philosophy, “Just win, baby!”

The 32-year-old Kiffin has to command respect from a locker room full of players older than him. All of these factors should lead to purpose in preseason. 

Don’t forget: before playing like a team that belonged in NFL Europe, Oakland went 4-1 (both SU and ATS) in exhibition games.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football wagering needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.

NFL Football Office Pools : NFL Football Contests

NFL Football Office Pool Printable Schedules

Welcome to our free football office pool page. Run your own NFL Football Office Pool. Create your own pool, invite your friends to join. Compete with your with co-workers, friends or family for bragging rights every week. Exchange some hard hits without risk of injury -- Trash Talk with your fellow co-workers.

Football Pickem Pools: Your basic office pool format, where you pick the winner of each game, either against the spread or straight up. Spice up your pool by using confidence ranks, key picks, and other options. Pick 5 pools available. You can print NFL Football Office Pools here. Custom ranks available. Custom point spreads. Use Pro and/or College games, even D1AA games can be included. Many many other options.

Football Survivor Pools: Also known as Knockout, Suicide, Eliminator, Survival and Loser pools. Pick one team each week. If they win you advance to the next round. If they lose, you're out. The catch: You can only pick a team once. Many options like Pick a Team Only [Once,Twice,Unlimited], [1,2,3,4,5] Strikes and You're Out, Double Picks, Bye Weeks, Alias Entries and more. Very easy to set up and manage.

Football Share Pools: Pick college and/or pro football game winners using Vegas odds in our own unique Share Pool format. Accumulate points by picking pointspread and over/under winners. Risk as many points as you want on any game. The person with the most points (shares) at the end wins. Perfect for the Playoffs and Bowl Seasons.

Fantasy Football Pools: Fantasy football pool managers love our easy to use interface and custom settings. Points and head to head leagues, custom points, offline drafts, live scoring, waiver wire, trades and more. Live customer service by email or phone. $50 flat fee.

To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.