Who to Bet

2008 BCS National ChampionshipHere we finally are, nearly 4.5 months since the opening kickoff of College Football, and all we have is one more game to go.  It's a sad time for most college football fans, but we have one final game to go....so turn those frowns upside down.  Whether you like the BCS or not, this is our national championship game, unless the AP poll decides to give Utah the title, which I might add they deserve.  You don't beat 4 ranked teams, including Alabama in the Sugar Bowl, and not deserve to win it.  If Utah had that type of win prior to the BCS selections, then they would be playing tomorrow instead of Florida or Oklahoma.  However, here we are, with another SEC team going for the title, but this time instead of easily being able to roll over a weak and slow Big 10 team, they get a quick Big 12 team, and I can't wait to see the results.

GMAC BowlBall State was looking good coming into the MAC Championship game a few weeks ago.  They were ranked #12 in the country, were 12-0, and facing a 7-6 Buffalo team.  What could go wrong right?  Well, everything.  With 4 Turnovers and a mess on defense, Ball St. gave up 42 points and lost for the first time all season.  In the GMAC Bowl, they get to face Tulsa, who is second in the nation with 565.0 yards a contest and is led
by QB David Johnson. The senior is second in the nation with a 179.6 passer rating,
completing 64.8 percent of his attempts for 3,866 yards and 43 TDs against 11
INTs in his first season as a starter.  Geez, sounds like Big 12 type of numbers, and we all know how they did ATS this Bowl Season.

On The Prowl...Congratulations Panthers on the VERY long climb to the #1 perch in the land.  It took 101 years to get there...let's make it 101 days staying there.  I look forward to making some Big Monday picks involving Pittsburgh later this season.  The official Big Monday schedule tips off next Monday night...be sure to check every Monday morning for the LA Big Monday prediction.

Big Monday Picks from LA Tips Off Today

Missing Monday Night Football?

ESPN's Big Monday can help.  And with LA's help, you can start the New year off right...just like LA's beloved Pittsburgh Panthers will later today when they are named the #1 college basketball team in the land. A new series of picks, and a weekly blog, from LA tips off now.

2008 Fiesta BowlTexas and Ohio State square off in the fourth of the BCS games, and in what some consider will be a blowout.  However, if the Utes proved anything in the Sugar Bowl, it's that anyone can win, no matter the odds.  The Big 12 comes into this game reeling from a stunning loss by Texas Tech to Ole Miss.  The mightiness of these top Big 12 teams has fallen by the wayside in the bowls as Missouri had to go to OT to beat Northwestern, and Texas Tech just got handled.  So, what will happen to the Longhorns?  Will they be stymied by a slower Big 10 team like Northwestern did to Mizzou, or will they play like USC and just dominate.  Some speculate that USC didn't dominate throughout, but when you are up 31-7 at the half, it's hard to keep motivated.  9 points are sitting out there on the table, and it's a tough call.

2008 Sugar BowlWelcome to the BCS party Utah!  It wasn't but a few years ago that Boise State shocked the world with an upset of Oklahoma in what could have been the best college football game ever played.  I'm not quite certain that Utah will be able to measure up to that Boise State and upset Alabama, but with 10 points sitting out there, it's a tempting offer.  The Sugar Bowl actually has the best combined record of its two teams (24-1) than any other bowl, and as much I normally don't care for mid-conference teams, I am looking forward to seeing this game and how the Utes can do against the mighty SEC.

2008 Cotton BowlThe Cotton Bowl is one of the classics, and somehow it has managed to find itself no longer on New Years Day, but somehow finds itself with a top tier team in Texas Tech.  The Red Raiders are the forgotten bunch of the Big 12 South after getting blown out by Oklahoma.  There was ton of speculation as to whether the Big 12 could really have some many top notch teams, and thus far they are 3-1 in the Bowls...not too shabby.  Mississippi is no stranger to knocking off top teams, as they beat down Florida 31-30 early on in the season, and also played well against Alabama.  As a matter of fact, they have lost by a combined 18 points in their 4 losses...less than 5 points on average.  Funny enough, that is the spread for this game, so what do we do?

Liberty BowlEast Carolina stormed into the top 25 with huge wins against Va. Tech and West Virginia to start off the season.  People were amazed and everyone was thinking they could be the BCS Buster after they started of 3-0, but then reality set in, and they proceeded to lose the next 3 in a row.  Kentucky came into the season without too many expectations, but started 4-0 and were looking strong.  Unfortunately, once the SEC schedule came into play, they were only able to win 2 of the next 8 games.  So, which team is going to come into this game playing like they did to open the season?