Author: Anthony Stalter (Page 290 of 1503)

      2010 College Football Week 7 Odds

      October 13, 2010 /
      MADISON, WI - SEPTEMBER 26: A general view of the field taken during the game between the Wisconsin Badgers and the Michigan State Spartans on September 26, 2009 at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

      No. 1 Ohio State at. No. 18 Wisconsin, 7:00PM ET
      Thanks to Alabama’s collapse at South Carolina last Saturday, the Buckeyes have moved into the No. 1 spot in the top-25. But there’s no time to celebrate with a trip to Madison coming up this weekend and a clash with fellow Big Ten foe Wisconsin. The Badgers have been tough to beat at home, going 40-4 at Camp Randall Stadium since the start of the 2004 season. They’ve also won 25 of their last 28 night games and this contest takes on extra meaning because one more loss will likely knock them out of the Big Ten title race. (They suffered their first loss to weeks ago at Michigan State.)
      Current Point Spread: Ohio State –3.5

      No. 12 Arkansas at. No. 7 Auburn, 3:30PM ET
      The Tigers have won three games this year by only three points, so obviously they’re accustomed to winning close games. That’s good, because they may have another tight one on their hands this Saturday when they host No. 12 Arkansas, who has beaten Auburn in three of the last four meetings. In October of last year, the Hogs crushed the Tigers 44-23 and they’ll be looking for a similar effort this Saturday in order to leapfrog into the top-10.
      Current Point Spread: Auburn –4

      No. 15 Iowa at. Michigan, 3:30PM ET
      The Wolverines had a golden opportunity slip through their fingers last weekend when they lost to Michigan State at home. But they get another chance to prove that they’re legitimate Big Ten contenders if they can knock off a well-rested Iowa team with one of the best defenses in the nation. The Hawkeyes are allowing a nation’s best 10.2 points per game, although they’ll face a unique challenge this week in talented quarterback Denard Robinson. The Spartans limited Robinson to a season-low 86 yards on 21 carries and also intercepted him three times last Saturday. He was also only 6-of-14 passing in the second half and that’s not going to cut it against the Hawkeyes’ stingy defense.
      Current Point Spread: Iowa –3.5

      No. 10 South Carolina at. Kentucky, 6:00PM ET
      All eyes will be on the Gamecocks this week after they knocked off previously No. 1 Alabama last Saturday. The Wildcats enter this weekend with a 3-3 record, but there’s no doubt they have enough talent to pull off an upset at home. That said, running back Derrick Locke is doubtful after he suffered a shoulder stinger against Auburn last week, so an upset will be harder to come by for Kentucky. South Carolina has lost six consecutive conference road games since it last beat the Wildcats in Lexington on October 11, 2008. Yet another road loss this weekend will certainly erase what the Gamecocks did last week at home against the Tide in terms of the top-25.
      Current Posting Spread: South Carolina –4.5

      2010 College Football Week 7 Opening Point Spreads:

      Continue reading »

      College Football, External Sports

      Cliff Lee is pretty decent in the postseason

      October 13, 2010 /
      Texas Rangers starting pitcher Cliff Lee throws against the Tampa Bay Rays during Game 5 of their American League Division Series MLB baseball playoffs in St. Petersburg, Florida October 12, 2010. REUTERS/Scott Audette (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT BASEBALL)

      Cliff Lee is a bad, bad mother when it comes to pitching the playoffs.

      Once again, he went the distance in a postseason start as the Rangers knocked off the Rays 5-1 in the decisive Game 5 of the ALDS. With the win, Texas advances to the ALCS to face the Yankees. With the loss, Tampa now advances to its couch to watch the Rangers take on the Yankees.

      Lee scattered six hits over nine innings while striking out 11 and walking zero batters. With his 11 Ks, he now owns the ALDS record with 21 strikeouts, surpassing the previous total of 16 held by the Big Unit (1995, 1997) and Mike Mussina (1997). Because he had to pitch on Tuesday night, he likely won’t start until Game 3 of the ALCS, while C.J. Wilson will start Game 1 and Colby Lewis Game 2.

      The Rangers and Yankees split eight games during the regular season, which including a three-game sweep for Texas at home in September. Lee has beaten the Bronx Bombers twice in the postseason already, with both of those wins coming in the World Series last year.

      And whether or not he beats them in the ALCS, he’ll likely be in pinstripes by December. He’s a free agent at the end of the year and Brian Cashman probably has wood just thinking about signing Lee to a seven-year, gazillion dollar contract.

      External Sports, MLB

      Fredi Gonzalez to replace Bobby Cox in Atlanta?

      October 12, 2010 /
      Atlanta Braves Bobby Cox is lifted up by his players while celebrating after clinching the National League wild card in Atlanta, Georgia, October 3, 2010. The Braves clinched after the San Diego Padres lost their game to the San Francisco Giants. At left is the Braves Matt Diaz. REUTERS/Tami Chappell (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT BASEBALL IMAGES OF THE DAY)

      Ken Rodriguez of FOX 5 in Atlanta is reporting that former Marlins’ manager Fredi Gonzalez will be named the Braves’ next manager.

      Bobby Cox managed his last game in Atlanta on Monday as the Giants eliminated the Braves in Game 4 of the ALDS. He said before the season started that he would retire at the end of the year and it’s been long rumored that Gonzalez would eventually take his spot.

      Gonzalez was Atlanta’s third base coach in 2007 before he was hired by the Marlins. He was let go not too long after he butted heads with star shortstop Hanley Ramirez, who failed to hustle after a ball that he booted into the outfield during a regular season game. Even though the media lauded him for the way he handled the situation, Florida eventually decided to move in another direction and Gonzalez was replaced.

      Despite his struggles in Florida this year, he’s a solid manager and is well respected in Atlanta. He’s the perfect candidate to take over a team that has some budding young stars, but who generally needs an overhaul at the position spots. Assuming he is named their next manager (Cox’s farewell press conference is held for Wednesday, so Atlanta may make an announcement soon thereafter), it would be a good move for the Braves.

      External Sports, MLB

      Will the fate of Smith and Singletary be sealed soon?

      October 12, 2010 /
      San Francisco 49ers head coach Mike Singletary (R) talks on the sidelines with quarterback Alex Smith during their NFL football game against the Philadelphia Eagles in San Francisco, California October 10, 2010. REUTERS/Robert Galbraith (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT FOOTBALL)

      It’s usually not advantageous to put too much on one game. After all, if the 49ers lose to the Raiders on Sunday, it’s not like they’ll be eliminated from the playoffs.

      But lose to the Raiders and Mike Singletary and Alex Smith could be stuck in the unemployment line together sooner rather than later.

      Team president Jed York gave Singletary the dreaded vote of confidence last Sunday before the Niners went out and lost their fifth game in a row (a 27-24 barn-burner to the Eagles). Singletary then turned around on Monday and said that he was sticking with Smith, despite the quarterback’s 6:10 touchdown-to-turnover ratio.

      Something has to give. Some people still believe that the 49ers can turn things around because of the division they’re in. But as Bill Parcells once said: You are what your record says you are. And the Niners’ record says they’re playing like gorilla feces right now.

      Smith has shown signs that he can command the offense (most notably on the final drive against the Saints and the opening drives in losses to the Falcons and Eagles the past two weeks), which is why Singletary has decided to stick with him. But he can’t continue to turn the ball over and hope to retain his job. He’s fortunate that David Carr is behind him, or else Singletary may have made a change by now.

      San Francisco fans are clamoring for Carr to get a start, but as the faithful in Houston, Carolina and New York can attest, he’s not the answer. Just because he was a former No. 1 overall pick doesn’t mean he can play the game (just look at Smith) and while I understand that fans would rather see a 67-year-old Jeff Garcia take the snaps than Smith, Carr is a back up on his fourth team for a reason.

      It’s now or never for this team. Lose to Oakland to fall to 0-6 on the year and consider all hope lost. Beat the Raiders behind a consistent Smith and then maybe this team can start talking about a comeback.

      External Sports, NFL

      2010 NFL Power Rankings Week 6

      October 12, 2010 /
      PITTSBURGH - SEPTEMBER 02: Ben Roethlisberger of the Pittsburgh Steelers drops back to pass against the Carolina Panthers during the preseason game on September 2, 2010 at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)

      We’ll officially name this week: The week were Anthony starts from scratch because the Packers are a walking infirmary and I don’t trust the Colts as far as I can throw them.

      There are always a couple of weeks where you have to start from scratch and because there is no clear-cut team in the league right now, this is one of those weeks.

      Let’s get nasty!

      Check out Week 5’s Power Rankings

      1. Pittsburgh Steelers
      Previous Week: 4
      Do I really believe the Steelers are the best team in the NFL? I don’t know, maybe. Their secondary is still a concern and I wonder if they’ll ditch the run now that Big Ben is back, but this team has the best front seven in football and managed to win three out of four games with Dennis Dixon and Charlie Batch. So yeah, I guess they’re the best team right now. I guess.

      2. Indianapolis Colts
      Previous Week: 2
      Peyton Manning was completely held in check for four quarters by a vastly improving Kansas City defense, but kudus to Indy’s run defense for finally showing up. Their second half effort allowed the Colts to win on a rare off day by Peyton.

      3. Baltimore Ravens
      Previous Week: 3
      The Ravens win over the Broncos last Sunday was more impressive than you think. They were coming off two straight divisional games, including an emotional last-minute victory over the Steelers in Pittsburgh and had to face a non-divisional opponent at home. I thought for sure we would see a letdown from this team, but instead they put together a rather complete victory.

      4. New York Jets
      Previous Week: 7
      Last year, the Jets relied on their running game and defense to win games and held their breath hoping Mark Sanchez wouldn’t screw things up. This year, they’re still running the ball well (LaDainian Tomlinson looks G.R.E.A.T.) and playing good defense, but now Sanchez is no longer a liability. He’s really making strides in his second year.

      5. Atlanta Falcons
      Previous Week: 5
      Don’t expect this team to blow opponents out every Sunday because it’s not going to happen. They love to methodically wear teams down and then break their backs in the fourth quarter when the games on the line. And as of right now, Mike Smith’s squad is executing that strategy to perfection.

      6. Green Bay Packers
      Previous Week: 1
      It’s not the loss to the Redskins that causes this team to drop – it’s the number of injuries that continue to pile up. Morgan Burnett, Nick Barnett, Ryan Grant, Jermichael Finley, Clay Matthews and now Aaron Rodgers may miss this week? Not good.

      7. New England Patriots
      Previous Week: 8
      We’ll see what kind of team this is without Randy Moss. The Deion Branch acquisition helps solid, but he can’t do what Moss can do on a field. It’ll be interesting to see whether or not Bill Belichick changes his offensive approach (i.e. switching to more two-tight end sets instead of going three-wide) from here on out.

      8. New Orleans Saints
      Previous Week: 6
      I’ll say it last week and I’ll say it again: The Saints are just going to have to get by until they can get healthy. They repeatedly shot themselves in the foot last Sunday in Arizona and it cost them a win against a team that was starting an undrafted rookie QB. This team needs Reggie Bush and Pierre Thomas back soon.

      9. Chicago Bears
      Previous Week: 10
      Major kudus to Mike Martz, Matt Forte and the defense in last Sunday’s win against the Panthers. The Bears could have accepted their fate with Todd Collins at quarterback and they didn’t. Instead, they put together a complete game and dominated an opponent that didn’t belong on the same field as them. Now here’s to hoping no Chicago fan has to endure another snap of Collins the rest of their lives.

      10. Philadelphia Eagles
      Previous Week: 11
      For at least one week, Kevin Kolb put a cork in his critics. But will Michael Vick return to face his former team this Sunday? You know he’s going to try and do everything he can to face the Falcons.

      Continue reading »

      External Sports, NFL

      « Older posts Newer posts »

      © 2026 The Scores Report – The National Sports Blog

      Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑