Longhorns and Hawkeyes square off in Alamo Bowl
NCAA Football Betting Lines
12/27/2006 - San Antonio, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With losses in their final two regular season games, the 18th-ranked Texas Longhorns were eliminated from any shot of repeating as national champions. Instead, they must settle for an appearance in the Alamo Bowl, where they will take on the Iowa Hawkeyes from the Alamodome in San Antonio. The Longhorns had an 87-game streak of going without back-to-back losses before they were knocked off by Kansas State (45-42) and Texas A&M (12-7) to close out the regular season. The setbacks not only ruined the team's chances at a national title, but it also kept it from representing the South Division in the Big 12 championship game. Still, at 9-3, Texas has had another successful year that it would like to cap off with its third straight bowl win. The Longhorns are 22-21-2 all-time in bowls game, which includes a 41-38 triumph over USC in the 2006 Rose Bowl. The school's 45 total bowl appearances is tied for second most all-time. As for Iowa, its season started off with so much promise, but things took a turn for the worse following a 31-28 setback to Indiana on October 14th. That loss started a domino effect, as the Hawkeyes dropped five of their last six regular season games en route a 6-6 ledger. Still, this will be Iowa's sixth straight bowl appearance and its 22nd overall. The Hawkeyes hold an 11-9-1 all-time bowl record, including a 2-1 mark in the Alamo Bowl. Iowa and Texas have met on just one previous occasion, with the Hawkeyes posting a 55-17 triumph in the inaugural Freedom Bowl in 1984.
The Longhorns' offense is extremely versatile and potent, and they enter the game averaging a hardy 36.8 ppg and 392.6 total ypg. The team has displayed a good deal of balance between the run (170.3 ypg) and the pass (222.2 ypg), with 23 touchdowns coming on the ground and 29 through the air. Freshman quarterback Colt McCoy, who was cleared to play after sustaining a severe pinched nerve in his neck in the season finale versus Texas A&M, has been the key to this team's success all season long. A semifinalist for the 2006 Davey O'Brien Award (nation's top QB) and the consensus Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year, McCoy has completed an efficient 68.7 percent of his throws for 2,262 yards with 27 touchdowns against just seven interceptions. His main target has clearly been Limas Sweed, who tops the squad in catches (43), receiving yards (731) and touchdowns (11). As for the ground attack, it is paced by the duo of Jamaal Charles and Selvin Young, whom have played a big part in the team rushing for over 2,000 yards thus far. Charles heads the squad with 805 rushing yards and seven touchdowns, while Young checks in with 580 yards and six scores.
Defensively, Texas has been every bit as good as its offense, limiting its opponents to just 17.8 ppg and only 291.9 total ypg. The Longhorns have been especially tough against the run, allowing their foes a mere 58.8 ppg and just seven touchdowns on the ground. The unit however, has proven to be a bit vulnerable to the pass (233.1 ypg) and that is an area Iowa will surely try to attack. Still, this unit has fared well in creating big plays and that is evident in the 35 sacks and 30 turnovers it has recorded thus far. Leading the way for this defense is Michael Griffin, who has a team-high 116 tackles to his credit to go along with four interceptions. Aaron Ross is another player opposing quarterbacks must keep an eye out for, as he has a team-best five interceptions on the season. Tim Crowder has been counted on to get into the backfield and he has done so successfully, posting team-highs of 19 TFLs and 10.5 sacks.
The Hawkeyes have lacked consistency on the offensive side of the ball, although they are still averaging a solid 23.8 ppg and 385.0 total ypg. The biggest problem for this unit, which is gaining 148.0 ypg on the ground and 237.0 ypg though the air, has been mistakes, committing 29 turnovers, including 18 interceptions. Quarterback Drew Tate has accounted for 12 of those interceptions in just 10 games, although he has also thrown for 2,349 yards and 16 touchdowns during that stretch. Dominique Douglas and Scott Chandler are his top two targets and they have combined for 90 catches, 1,169 yards and eight touchdowns. Albert Young is the team's primary ball carrier and he has rushed for a team-high 715 yards and six touchdowns. He is also a threat in the passing game, ranking fourth on the team in catches with 30. Damian Sims did a nice job filling in for Young when he was injured and expect him to see some touches after rushing for 638 yards and six scores during the regular season.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Hawkeyes are surrendering 20.2 ppg and 340.0 ypg, and this unit struggled down the stretch. The defense hasn't been anything special against the run (138.9 ypg) or the pass (202.0 ypg), and has posted just 21 sacks thus far. The unit has fared well in picking off 14 passes, although the miniscule five fumbles it has recovered leaves a lot to be desired. Mike Klinkenborg is currently the team's leading tackler with 129 stops, and he also has five TFLs to his name. Edmond Miles ranks second to him with 93 stops, while Bryan Mattison heads the squad in sacks (6.5).
Texas is clearly the better football team here and with McCoy healthy and ready to go, it should have no trouble putting away an Iowa team that hasn't shown much fight in the second half of the season.
Sportsbook Betting Lines Predicted Outcome: Texas 38, Iowa 17
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Colts give the ‘D’ its due
The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.
They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.
"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."
Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.
New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.
Not so sound on the ground
If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.
Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com
“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.
Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.
Brees says bring it on
Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.
Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.
Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.
"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."
SportsBooks ready for a shootout
Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.
“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”
New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.
The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.
“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”
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