The Camping World Bowl will provide one of the most intriguing postseason match-ups when the no. 16 West Virginia Mountaineers meet the no. 20 Syracuse Orange in Orlando, Florida. Both the Orange and Mountaineers have produced somewhat breakout seasons, but will WVU be able to make up for the absence of starting QB Will Grier? NCAA football handicapper tackles that question and more with his analysis and Camping World Bowl betting forecast.
The South Carolina Gamecocks will meet the Virginia Cavaliers in the 2018 Belk Bowl on December 29th in the Queen City at Bank of America Stadium. Both the Gamecocks and Cavaliers finished at 7-5 SU on the season including profitable ATS records (South Carolina 7-5 ATS/Virginia 8-4 ATS). The Gamecocks are currently listed as slight 4 point favorites but carry a disappointing mark of 3-6-1 ATS in their last 10 games as favorites dating back to the 2017 season.
Two mid-level clubs from the Big Ten and the SEC will battle it out in the 2018 Music City Bowl. Both teams have shown flashes throughout the season putting together win streaks in conference play, but slumped at times and find themselves in a lower bowl game. The Boilermakers may be the better focused club after a good run at the end of the season beating a good Iowa team and losing in triple OT to Wisconsin. Check out Horne’s take on the game and get his ATS selection.
The College Football Playoffs SemiFinal match-ups will take place on Saturday, December 29th which will decide the two teams that will move on to play in the CFP National Championship Game. Headlining the primetime game will be one of the most exciting match-ups of the season when the no. 4 Oklahoma Sooners meet the no. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide in the Capital One Orange Bowl. Read on to see who Jay is predicting and why.
The Indianapolis Colts kept their playoff hopes alive last week with an impressive 24-21 road victory over the Houston Texans. The Colts offense overcame a stout Texans defense behind the arm of Andrew Luck, who threw for 399 yards with 2 touchdowns and a pick. WR T.Y Hilton shined in the performance with 9 grabs for 199 yards as the Colts snapped Houston’s 9 game winning streak. It will take a similar effort vs the Cowboys. Jay Horne has the NFL Prediction!
Let’s just look at how fast things have turned for Baltimore in the last several weeks. Following the home loss to the Steelers, the Ravens were just 4-5 and largely an afterthought in the AFC North. On top of those factors, starting quarterback Joe Flacco had suffered a hip injury and the Ravens were forced to turn to rookie quarterback Lamar Jackson who many considered would never make it as an NFL quarterback. Yet 3 weeks later, the Ravens have amassed 3 straight wins and climbed back into the playoff hunt. Can the Ravens keep the momentum and give the sportsbooks an underdog outright winner?
In today’s NFL, we rarely see many games where defenses shine throughout a full 60 minutes of football. Perhaps that is why Jacksonville’s shutout last week against one of the better offenses in the NFL was thoroughly surprising. However, low scoring in Jags games is expected. There have been only 5 games this season in the NFL that have closed with a over/under below 40, the Jaguars have been involved in 3 of those 5 games. Obviously Jacksonville has become a defensive minded team under Head Coach Doug Marrone which was part of their breakout success in 2017. Will they slow the 4.5 point favorite Titans? Horne has an NFL pick.
The historic and prestigious rendering of the Army-Navy Game will be rekindled this weekend for the 119th time when the Navy Midshipmen travel to Lincoln Financial Field for a meeting with the Army Knights. The Knights are enjoying an impressive season at 9-2 SU and are on the verge of just their 3rd 10 win season in school history. On Saturday, Army will be 7 point favorites as they seek their 3rd straight victory over the Midshipmen and 2nd straight claim at the outright Commander in Chief Trophy that includes all 3 teams in the U.S. Military Academy.
One of the reasons that Cleveland and Houston have found success in recent weeks is the elevated play of both defenses. Houston’s defense had a rough start to the year but they have regrouped nicely holding opponents to just 16.2 points per game since week 5. For the Browns, despite the statistical concerns, the Browns have played better with each passing week specifically against the pass where they rank 4th in DVOA rankings. Despite the Defense’s trajectory the sportsbooks have the Brown as 6 point underdogs. Jay Horne looks at the match-up and shares his value pick.
Late Saturday night the no. 2 ranked Clemson Tigers will look to maintain supremacy in the ACC when they seek their 4th straight ACC Championship against the Pittsburgh Panthers at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte. The Tigers have clearly been the class of the ACC this season and will be 25 point favorites to earn their 4th straight trip to the College Football Playoffs. For Pittsburgh, the Panthers had a 4 game winning streak snapped at the hands of Miami last week in a disappointing 24-3 loss. Despite the loss, the Panthers have been playing well and perhaps they can bounce back with a strong effort this weekend to make this ACC Championship Game entertaining at the least.