Pumpin' for Thursday: Week 14

This is the final PFT for the 2007 season, but worry not problem gamblers, "Bertuci's Bowling for Bowls" begins Thursday, December 20. I don't know what I'm missing here but it looks like the oddsmakers are giving us a Holiday present for this the final edition of a pick segment that has had mediocre results at best...

Rutgers (+2.5) at Louisville, Over/Under 60

Vegas Algebra says: Louisville 31.25 , Rutgers 28.75

Thoughts: Rutgers is undefeated midweek and having already accepted a bid to the International Bowl (below preseason expectations) is looking for a statement conference win to the end the year, its Pitino season in Louisville and the team isn't healthy and Steve Kragthorpe has been shooting down coaching rumors the past two weeks.

Suggestion: I like Rutgers, Ray Rice, and Ray Rice's mom huge over a Louisville team which may mail it in. Rutgers likes to run first and throw when necessary so I can't expect them to light up the Louisville secondary the way others have, which is why I like the Under

Pumpin For Thursday: Week 11

Louisville at West Virginia -15, over/under 63.5

Vegas Algebra says: West Virginia 38.75 Louisville 23.75

Derek Says: Take Louisville and the under. It seems Derek is trying to make something happen by taking these inflated numbers and going against his normal picking strategy. Two good offensive teams, one who plays zero defense, playing on Thursday night, usually a recipe for a lot of points, we'll see.

You Make the Call...

During Friday Night's Louisville-UConn game with the game tied 7-7 :

this play happened

Now the wave happened...whether or not it was a proper 'fair catch' wave seems to be the issue for debate but the players pulled up (for if you tackle a player after calling fair catch its a penalty) and Larry Taylor ran the return the rest of the way for a touchdown but I agree with all Sean McDonough's points (which I usually do, except for one).

So should this have been a reversed call or not?

A Leopard Can't Change His Spots

Linebacker Willie Williams was kicked off the Louisville football team after being arrested earlier this week. He was pulled over by the cops (after pursuing him several blocks) who found him attempting to hide/destroy marijuana by chewing on it. They found pot elsewhere in the car and charged him with misdemeanor possession, misdemeanor driving without a license, and a felony for tampering with evidence.
You may remember that on a recruiting trip to the University of Florida, a few years ago, Williams hugged a female student without her permission, hit a man at a bar and set off three fire extinguishers in his hotel, all in a span of five hours.
That prompted a review of Williams's background which showed that he had been arrested 11 times starting when he was only 14 years old.
Williams enrolled at Miami (who took him because hey, what's one more criminal on the roster), redshirted one year, played sparingly in another, then asked for his release.

Syracuse beats Louisville: Five Thoughts

In what is being coined "The Biggest Upset in Big East History" by those that saw it. Syracuse upset Louisville 38-35. Luckily for me the game was carried locally here on the abc station. I guess us New England Orange alum still have some pull. Onto the five thoughts:

1) Syracuse could not stop any pass in between the linebackers and secondary. Why Louisville ran the ball or passed up the sidelines is beyond me especially late in the game. I am sure Steve Kragthorpe is going to get torched locally in Louisville.

2) As an alum, I was proud to get the win but Syracuse did everything they could to give this game away, including Andrew Robinson doing his best Jerome Bettis impression in the Louisville red zone when the game was set to be iced.

3) The announcers were right, it was unrealistic to hope for a national championship from a team with a secondary like Louisville's. If I played Fantasy College Football I'd start whatever quarterback played them each week. South Florida especially should whoop on them too.

4) "The Ville" is a lame nickname for a city, especially when so many towns and cities end in "ville". KFC buys advertising at Papa John's stadium. I don't know what the obesity rate is in Louisville but I'm guessing its above the national average.

5) Syracuse football is newsworthy for the first time since switching nicknames to "The Orange". So it'll be fun to see what media outlets are slow to come around. Espn.com has already screwed this up (Update: ESPN has figured out their error, less likely from this blog, more likely from the 1500 alumni who work there)

As you can imagine the people at Card Chronicle aren't taking it well and my friends at Troy Nunes is an Absolute Magician are taking it probably too well

Projected Postseason Top 25: #13 Louisville

One of the more encouraging trends in college football in 2007 is that even without a playoff system, more teams, it seems have realistic National Championship expectations going into the season. While college football does still have its dominant favorites, and we’re getting to them, 13 teams have a visible road to New Orleans and a handful more than that think they do. Louisville is the first of 13 teams I can picture in New Orleans in early 2008 playing for a National Championship. Now holes on the defensive and tough games at places they haven’t played well in the past stand in Brian Brohm and the Cardinals’ way, but Louisville and every team profiled after is a legitimate National Championship contender.

Projected Record and Bowl Result: 11-2 Beat Oregon in Sun Bowl

Who they’ll beat: Murray State (Home), Middle Tennessee (Home), Kentucky (Road), Syracuse (Home), NC State (Road), Utah (Home), Cincinnati (Road), Connecticut (Road), Pittsburgh (Home), Rutgers (Home), Oregon (El Paso, TX)

Who’ll beat them: West Virginia (Road), South Florida (Road)

When they Pass: Brian Brohm is so gifted, conspiracy theorists have Bobby Petrino tanking games just for the right to take him with the #1 overall pick in next year’s NFL draft. Brohm has had shoulder, knee, and thumb injuries during his career at Louisville but if he can stay healthy he could put up Playstation-like numbers throwing to two superb receivers in junior Mario Urrutia and senior Harry Douglas. If the Cardinals passing attack sounds scary, it is.

When they Run: Sophomore Anthony Allen will have to run for touchdowns behind an entirely new right side of the offensive line, the entire left side and center return however. Fullback Brock Bolen is also capable of carrying the football.

When their Opponents Run: The loss of Amobi Okoye will be felt here, without a doubt. All-name Defensive end Peanut Whitehead returns as does Earl Heyman at tackle. Malik Jackson returns at Sam (strong side) linebacker, Preston Smith returns at the Willie (weak side).

When their Opponents Pass: Woodny Turenne, a junior college transfer could start away for a secondary that needs help and playmakers. Free Safety Latarrius Thomas is the only returnee from the nations 80th ranked passing defense.

When they Kick: Art Carmody won the Lou Groza award last year and is considered the nation’s best kicker going into this year. Corey Goettsche starts his second year as the team’s punter.

When they call Timeout: Steve Kragthorpe comes over from a successful tenure at Tulsa to take over for Bobby Petrino. While there isn’t a dropoff in coaching talent, one must worry about how long any transition could take. Defensive coordinator Mike Cassity is a future head coach.