11/11/2008 - Miami, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - One of only five undefeated teams remaining at the Football Bowl Subdivision level, the 14th-ranked Ball State Cardinals will try to keep their perfect campaign going versus the Miami-Ohio RedHawks in a Mid-American Conference battle at Yager Stadium on Tuesday night. The Cardinals enter the contest fresh off another convincing victory, as they defeated Northern Illinois, 45-14, last Wednesday.
"Obviously it was a good win and a good conference win for us last night," stated head coach Brady Hoke after the contest. "It was a really good team win."
With the victory, BSU improved to 9-0 on the year, matching the best start in school history. The Cardinals have won each of their games by at least 12 points this season. At 5-0 in the conference, BSU is tied with Central Michigan atop the MAC's West Division standings and the two teams are set to square off on November 19th.
As for Miami, it hasn't enjoyed much success this season, posting just two wins against seven losses. The team was last in action a week ago when it dropped a 37-17 decision at Buffalo. It was the second loss in a row for the RedHawks, who fell to 1-4 in conference. This will be Miami's first game against a nationally-ranked foe since 2005 and the program is in search of its first victory over a Top-25 opponent since defeating Bowling Green, 33-10, in 2003.
Tuesday's game marks the 27th meeting between Miami and Ball State on the gridiron, with the ReHawks holding a 16-9-1 edge in the series. Miami won last season's meeting, 14-13, but BSU came out on top the previous year, 20-17, in Oxford.
The Cardinals are effective as well as efficient on offense, as they are averaging 38.3 ppg behind 458.4 total ypg. BSU has displayed good balance between the run (194.1 ypg) and pass (264.3 ypg), and has done a great job in protecting the ball, committing just eight turnovers. In their last outing, the Cardinals dialed up 529 yards of total offense, including 219 on the ground, in a thumping of NIU.
"I thought we did well offensively," stated coach Hoke. "From an offensive perspective you are playing the number one ranked defense in the conference in every category and ninth nationally against the score which gets your blood pumping a little bit. If you are any kind of a competitor you don't want to listen to that all week."
Quarterback Nate Davis was simply sensational in picking apart NIU's stout defense, completing 18-of-22 tosses for 300 yards and four touchdowns. He also had a rushing touchdown. It was another strong effort from Davis, who has completed 68.0 percent of his pass attempts for 2,358 yards, with 19 touchdowns and only five interceptions this season. Louis Johnson was his main target with six catches for 165 yards and a touchdown, but Davis has done a good job in spreading the ball around this season. In the backfield, MiQuale Lewis put together another solid performance last week, rushing for 119 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries. With that effort, Lewis cracked the 1,000-yard plateau (1,108) for the season and he has also scored an impressive 15 touchdowns.
Defensively, BSU has done a great job in keeping opposing clubs off the scoreboard and the team hasn't allowed a foe to score over 20 points in any of its last six outings. Overall, the Cardinals are giving up just 15.3 ppg for the season despite allowing 342.6 total ypg. In its prior contest, BSU put forth another solid effort on defense, limiting NIU to just 275 total yards and only two touchdowns. The Cardinals forced two turnovers and recorded a pair of sacks, while allowing NIU to convert just 3-of-12 third down chances. Sean Baker had six stops and a forced fumble for BSU in the win. He has been outstanding for the program this season and paces the team with 70 tackles and four interceptions.
The RedHawks have had some struggles on offense this season, as they come into the game producing just 18.3 ppg and 326.1 total ypg. The offense hasn't had all that much success running or protecting the ball, averaging just 116.0 ypg on the ground with 20 turnovers, including 12 lost fumbles. Miami managed 383 total yards, but committed two turnovers in a 37-17 loss to Buffalo the last time out. Redshirt freshman Clay Belton threw for 178 yards and rushed for a score to pace the RedHawks. He, however, was injured in the game and replaced by Daniel Raudabaugh, who passed for 63 yards on eight completions. With Belton ruled out for this game, Raudabaugh will take over as starter and he has plenty of experience, passing for 1,252 yards and four scores on the season. The RedHawks don't have a go-to receiver, so expect Raudabaugh to utilize all of his options. In the backfield, Thomas Merriweather (482 yards), J.R. Taylor (328) and Andre Bratton (261) are the primary options for Miami. With Merriweather out of action last game, Taylor led the way with 69 yards and a score on 16 carries, while Bratton checked in with 59 yards on seven attempts.
Miami hasn't had that much success in stopping opposing clubs either, allowing 30.9 ppg and 358.9 total ypg. The unit has really struggled against the run, surrendering 178.0 ypg and 18 touchdowns. Creating big plays has also been an issue for the RedHawks, who have forced a mere 10 turnovers and recorded only 11 sacks. In its last contest, Miami was abused for 476 total yards, including 216 on the ground, in a loss to Buffalo. The defense failed to generate a turnover and came up with just one sack, while watching Buffalo hit on 9-of-15 third down opportunities. Clayton Mullins paced the team in defeat with 11 stops, while Joey Hudson was limited to just three tackles. On the season, though, Hudson tops the roster with 83 tackles and Mullins is a close second with 77.
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(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The undefeated Los Angeles Lakers kick off a short two-game
road swing Tuesday when they travel to North Texas to face the Dallas
Mavericks.
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Knicks pay a visit to San Antonio >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The surprising New York Knicks open a quick two-game road
trip Tuesday when they travel to San Antonio to face the injury-ravaged Spurs.
The Knicks won their third straight game when Jamal Crawford had a game-high
32
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versus the Golden State Warriors.
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Nuggets hit the road to Charlotte >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Denver Nuggets open a three-game road trip in Charlotte
on Tuesday when they take on the Bobcats at Time Warner Cable Arena.
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The San Francisco 49ers (5-11 SU, 5-10-1 ATS in 2007; 1-1 SU & ATS in pre-season) found some offensive life last week, and they will try to build some momentum on Thursday night as they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bears (7-9 SU & ATS in 2007; 0-2 SU, 0-1-1 ATS in pre-season) in an NFL matchup that is set to get underway at 8 PM ET at Soldier Field (natural turf) in Chicago.
Thursday, August 21
NFL betting odds: CHICAGO -3 (-120), Total 37
NOTABLE STAT: San Francisco was last in points, last in total offense in 2007
KEY NFL BETTING TREND: SF has lost its last seven SU on pre-season road
In the BetUS NFL pre-season football betting odds, the Bears are listed as a three-point favorite (laying -120), with the total posted at 37 points.
Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season):
* SF has lost 11 of its last 14 games SU
* SF has covered three of its last 11 games
* SF has lost six of its last seven road games SU
* SF has covered one of its last seven road games
* CHI has covered five of its last eight games
* CHI has played five of its last seven games OVER the total
* CHI has covered four of its last 13 home games
* SF has lost its last seven pre-season road games SU
* CHI has covered two of its last seven home pre-season games
Well, I guess we should congratulate the Bears on making their quarterback choice for the season's opening game, as they have designated Kyle Orton the starter against Indianapolis. The Bears obviously have lost patience with Rex Grossman, and what they do with him at this point is anybody's guess. But suffice it to say that there isn't a quarterback competition anymore, at least in training camp.
Meanwhile, the quarterback competition may also be settled in San Francisco, where the Niners bounced back from a lackluster 18-6 loss to the Raiders, in which they turned the ball over four times, to execute a 34-6 rout of the Packers last Saturday. However, coach Mike Nolan has stopped short of saying that, insisting that the job is still open. But J.T. O'Sullivan, the longshot of the trio of Niner signal-callers who opened camp, will start his third straight pre-season game here. Against Green Bay, O'Sullivan was only 8-for-17, and was intercepted, but he also threw for 9.1 yards an attempt, which included a 59-yard TD pass to Josh Morgan. The others struggled.
Some offensive cohesion is badly needed, in light of the Niners' dismal 2007 campaign, in which they were dead last in the NFL in scoring, with just 13.7 points a game. And O'Sullivan is the guy who is most familiar with offensive coordinator Mike Martz's exacting system, because he learned it last year in Detroit. O'Sullivan will go at least the entire first half and may even last longer. He'll be relieved by Alex Smith, with Shawn Hill doing the mop-up work. Three receivers who were out last week - Bryant Johnson, Ashley Lelie and Arnaz Battle - will miss this game too.
That may hurt a little here, especially since the Bears will be using a lot of their defensive starters. And it's the defense that has been keeping the Bears in games thus far. In fact, the defense and special teams were responsible for the first 19 points Chicago scored against Seattle last time out, as the offense really struggled with Grossman at the controls. But maybe the first-team offense has a chance to settle a little bit as it works more with Orton at the helm.
Certainly we have concerns about the Bears' offensive line, but we like the scenario for them here, especially if O'Sullivan doesn't make some bis plays. The Niners may have nowhere else to turn right now, and they have lost seven straight road games in the pre-season. Let's take Chicago, the three-point favorite in the NFL football betting odds.
CHICAGO -3 (-120) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)
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