Each week of the season, Doc’s Sports will take a look at some of the biggest college football highlights that took place over the previous weekend. Here’s where to look to find out who covered in the big games, where the big line moved, and which teams were hot against the total.
Texas A&M defeated No. 10 Texas on Saturday, 12-7.
No, the final punctuation is not a typo. This rivalry game was all about defense and neither team had 300 total yards. Sportsbooks, on the other hand, believed this game was going to be all about offense, scoring a staggering 56 points. Bookmakers know that the public loves to bet on Texas and such. The Horns finished the season 5-6 against the total. The reason this stat suffers is due to the fact that the lines are always too high, as the bookmakers shaded them. Another reason the over is suffering with the Longhorns is the fact that Texas has been underperforming. During the last five weeks of the year, Texas was 1-4 ATS. This season was disappointing not only for Texas, but for the Longhorn players as well.
No. 8 LSU defeated No. 5 Arkansas on Saturday 31-26.
The lineup for this game showed slight movement during the day before kickoff. The lineup started nearly even and by Saturday LSU was a two-point favorite. Either way, the Tigers covered the spread and won the game in impressive fashion. Although Arkansas is 10-2 this season, they have a poor 4-7 ATS. After some unexpected losses, LSU found a way to fight back to a strong position in BCS. They finished the regular season 10-2 overall and 7-4 ATS. The great LSU bowling game can find them as favorites.
No. 4 Florida defeated Florida State on Saturday 21-14.
Florida pulled away in the first half of this game only to allow Florida State to get back in. Florida State had plenty of late-tying opportunities, but just didn’t make it. Of course, when it comes to FSU this season, execution isn’t a piece of cake. The Seminoles finished the season 5-7 ATS, finding themselves highly inconsistent. During the course of the season, Florida State never went on a three-game winning streak. Florida also continued its betting trends. Once again, the Gators failed to cover the spread leaving them a horrible 3-8 ATS for the season.
No. 3 USC defeated No. 5 Notre Dame on Saturday, 44-24.
This game was USC’s only chance to prove to the BCS that they are a champion team. The Trojans not only dominated this game, they showed the world that Notre Dame is not a top 10 team. John David Booty trashed Notre Dame’s poor secondary play after play. USC also shut down Quinn’s potent offense, proving that his defense is something to be reckoned with. Over the course of the last five weeks, USC is 5-0 ATS. Some bettors may have believed that putting up nine points against Notre Dame was too much. If bettors couldn’t pick a side, I think the strongest trend in this game was the total. Punters must have thought that no matter who won the game, they would have to put a lot of points on the board to make it. Playing with the Trojans and the Irish usually does not go wrong.
No. 25 Hawaii defeated Purdue on Saturday 42-35.
Can you believe it? Hawaii stayed below 50 points during this game for the first time in six weeks. Purdue entered the half of this game for two touchdowns. Midway through the third quarter, the Boilermakers found a way to fight back to nearly steal this game. If you bet on Hawaii this season, you picked the right team. Hawaii finished the season 8-2 ATS and also finished 9-2 to the over. In many games Hawaii played, they covered everything for themselves. When a quarterback throws more than 60 touchdowns in a season, the over is money in the bank. I wonder if Hawaii will be able to increase the total to 100 next year.
