I’ve been hearing whispers within the gambling community that Unk might be bachhhh??? After going 6-3 last week on my plays, I am here to tell you I have FINALLY figured Vegas out. For real this time. Thought I figured them out Week 1 after going 7-0, but the growing pains in between humbled me and forced me to reflect on what kind of handicapper I truly am. After much reflection, I stumbled upon three words to summarize the experience and what the future holds: UNK IS BACH, VEGAS IS FUCKED. I changed my mind. That’s seven words for you.  Also follow me on twitter @unktweets69 where you will receive additional winners, along with these guys. Lets get it.

12:00

East Carolina (-14) @ UConn

East Carolina hasn’t had the best season but they have reason to be optimistic. The offense is buzzing and Sophomore QB Holton Ahlers seems to be legit. They went toe to toe with SMU and Cincinnati in recent weeks losing by a touchdown and a field goal. Now they’ll head into East Hartford to take on the lowly Huskies. The records may be similar, but these teams are night and day. UConn has one of the worst defenses in college football and now have to face an offense that put up 51 on SMU and 43 on Cincinnati. East Carolina doesn’t really have that blowout victory on the resume yet (unless you wanna count their 48-9 win over Gardner-Webb) but they’ll get it this week. UConn is that bad.    P.S. I also like the OVER in this game if you wanna tease it with the spread and get a little frisky… or take it straight up… or parlay it… TBH I don’t really care what you decide to do with it. 

BYU (-40.5) @ UMass

Total is at 69 (nice) and BYU is getting 40.5… that means Vegas expects this UMass team to score 4 touchdowns. Last time they surpassed 4 touchdowns was against a pathetic UConn team. BYU is 6-4 and has an offense very capable of putting up points. Northwestern put up 45 points against them last week and they average 11.1 ppg. If Northwestern put up 45, BYU should put up 60, and if they put up 60, they’ll cover the spread. Take the Virgins. 

Northwestern (+13) vs. Minnesota

Honeymoon time is over for Minnesota. Last week’s loss to Iowa virtually ends their shot at the playoff and now they have to come back to reality to face a bad Northwestern team. PJ Fleck is gonna have a tough task getting his team all jacked up and ready to play in this one. I know from experience when my high school team got eliminated from playoff contention and went into overtime (where we won) against a winless Valley Forge team the following week. No one wants to play a meaningless game against a shitty opponent… man, high school was so fucking sick. Anyway, Minnesota may be 9-1 but I don’t think they’re that great of a football team. Northwestern may be 2-8 but many (including myself) suggest they are better than their record. Pat Fitzgerald will have his guys ready to compete in this one, and it wouldn’t shock me if they pull off the upset. 

Penn St (+18) @ Ohio St

Ohio St has been destroying every team they faced with their lowest margin of victory being 24 pts. They look like the best team in the country. They have no weakness. They are #1 in scoring offense (51.5ppg), #2 in scoring defense (9.8ppg), and are top 10 in a lot more areas. So why am I taking Penn St? The Buckeyes are due for a let down-ish game. 18 points is too much in a game of this magnitude. I get Ohio St has shitpumped every team they played, but they haven’t played a team nearly as good as Penn St. This is also a Penn St team who thought they were finished after losing to Minnesota, now control their own destiny with a very realistic chance at the Playoff if they can win this game. I don’t think they win, but history suggests the game will be close. 

3:30

Texas (+5.5) @ Baylor

Texas is better than their record suggests, and Baylor is worse than their record suggests. Baylor entered last weeks contest against Oklahoma undefeated, and then blew a 28-3 lead giving them their only loss of the season. Now they’ll have to face a Texas team constructed very similarly to Oklahoma that can score with any team in the nation. OU may have created the blueprint on this Baylor team. Texas putrid defense is starting to get healthy and it’s beginning to show the last two weeks. With Texas getting 5.5, I like them to take advantage of a team feeling down on themselves after blowing their shot at the Playoff.

7:30

Oregon (-14.5) @ Arizona St

Oregon is ranked #6 with a very realistic shot at the Playoff. This would be the first PAC-12 team to make the Playoff since Oregon did it 4 years ago. The PAC-12 needs this, and eventually I think Oregon will deliver when it all comes down to it. Beating the shit out of a team feeling down on themselves will go a long way in the committee’s decision. They will be battling with the likes of Penn St, Alabama, Georgia, Oklahoma, and Utah for the last two spots most likely. Margin of victory (especially for a PAC-12 team), again, is very important when the committee makes their decision. Oregon knows this, and they will be taking this game very seriously looking to make a statement. Also, Oregon is clicking on all facets while ASU is trending the complete opposite way. Oregon in a blowout.