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Look to "The Line" for a simple breakdown of a number of featured games for the upcoming weekend along with our line on them. We'll also be sure to keep you posted on special game or sport-specific promos we're doing and show you why betED.com is your only choice for sports wagering featuring the best lines available, excellent customer service, and fast payouts! betED.com - why would you wager anywhere else?
GAME 1
College Football
Oklahoma @ Texas
Saturday Oct 8 - 12:00 PM EDT - (ABC)
Oklahoma (+13.5)
Texas (-13.5)
It's the 100th meeting between these two superpowers, and Texas hopes this marks the beginning of a new era in the series. Over the last five years, Texas has gone 0-5 against Oklahoma and 56-6 against everyone else. That being said, we have Texas as the 14 pt favorite at press time!
Everyone will focus on the matchup of Heisman candidates with Vince Young and Adrian Peterson getting all of the attention, but this game should belong to the defenses. Texas LB Aaron Harris isn't getting anywhere near the amount of publicity Derrick Johnson received last year, but he's having almost as strong a 2005 with 36 tackles with 2.5 sacks, two forced fumbles and six tackles for loss. Oklahoma's unsung star LB is Rufus Alexander, who leads the team with 33 tackles with a sack and six tackles for loss.
GAME 2
NFL
Tampa Bay @ New York Jets
Sunday Oct 9- 1:00 PM EDT - (CBS)
Tampa Bay (-3.5)
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers continued their impressive start last Sunday when they held off a late run by the Detroit Lions to win 17-13. With the victory, Tampa Bay moves to 4-0 on the season and is serving notice it will be a force to be reckoned with. Rookie Cadillac Williams, who had rushed for over 100 yards in each of the last three games, was held to just 13 yards on 11 carries before leaving the game late in the third quarter. But the rest of the offense picked up the slack. Quarterback Brian Griese tossed two TD passes to RB Michael Pittman and WR Joey Galloway and overcame three interceptions in leading his team to victory over Detroit (1-2). Griese finished 22 of 39 for 302 yards. "We have all kinds of weapons," RB Michael Pittman said. "Cadillac started off great the first three games. He was hurt today and really wasn't 100 percent, but we still went out there and played."
NY Jets (+3.5)
The Jets are certainly not the same without their starting quarterback Chad Pennington. And it showed on Sunday as the team struggled on offence in a 13-3 loss to the Ravens. With no Pennington, who is done for the season, or backup QB Jay Fiedler, who is most likely done for year as well, the Jets turned to third-string QB Brooks Bollinger against a stingy Ravens (1-2) defense. In just his second NFL game and first as a starter, Bollinger went 14-for-28 for 149 yards playing in a conservative Jets (1-3) offense that managed only eight first downs and 152 totals yards. "It's frustrating. I can't really put it into words. It's tough," Bollinger said. "I want to do well for these guys. I finally got an opportunity where I knew they were counting on me; it was my time to make a contribution. And I didn't do enough for us to win today." New York's only points came in the third quarter on kicker Mike Nugent's 21-yard field goal.
GAME 3
NFL
Indianapolis @ San Francisco
Sunday Oct 9 - 4:05 PM EDT - (CBS)
Indianapolis (-14.5)
Indianapolis piled up 360 yards of offense and defeated the Titans 31-10 last Sunday to improve its record to 4-0. The Colts got off to a quick start, as Peyton Manning hit Reggie Wayne for a 25-yard TD on their opening drive. Manning added to his TD total with an 11-yarder to Marvin Harrison in the second quarter, an 8-yarder to Edgerrin James in the third, and a 24-yarder to Harrison in the fourth. James finished with 90 yards rushing, while Manning completed 20 of 27 passes for 264 yards and four TDs.
San Francisco (+14.5)
At first, it looked like the defense would carry the 49ers to victory in the first NFL regular-season game held in Mexico. But after taking a 14-0 lead in the first quarter on two fumble returns for touchdowns, the 49ers collapsed and lost 31-14 to the Arizona Cardinals. San Francisco stopped Arizona on its first five possessions, but then the Cardinals scored on eight consecutive drives. Meanwhile, the 49ers offense never got beyond the Cardinals 45-yard line. Seven of their 13 possessions ended in punts, and they committed four turnovers. Brandon Lloyd had seven catches for 102 yards, but as a team, the 49ers were limited to 168 total net yards. "It was exciting to play the game for both teams today," 49ers coach Mike Nolan said of the NFL-record 103,467 fans who attended the historic contest, "and they certainly latched on to the team that was ahead at the end, because early on, we had them on our side."
GAME 4
NFL
Cincinati VS Jacksonville
Sunday Oct 9- 8:35PM EDT - (ESPN)
Cincinati (+2.5)
There was some talk this week about the Bengals and how the team would respond in a close game. The answer didn't figure to come against a Texans team that had looked awful in its first two games, but Cincinnati still found itself nursing a 13-10 lead late in the fourth quarter. The Bengals came through with flying colors, forcing a turnover late, tacking on a late field goal for a six-point cushion, and sacking David Carr on the final play of the game to finish things off, 16-10. The turnover was a play in question. Carr was hit by Justin Smith while his arm was cocked, making the ball fly out of his hand as he started an awkward throwing motion. John Thornton fell on the ball, and referee Larry Nemmers upheld the call on review, costing the Texans their final timeout. From there, the Bengals added their final field goal, and the Texans never really threatened again. The Bengals made things hard on Carr, sacking him seven times, while Carson Palmer (25 of 34 for 276 yards) and T.J. Houshmandzadeh (eight catches for 105 yards) excelled on offense. "It was a tough game," Houshmandzadeh said. "But hey, we're winning, man. I'm happy about that, just to be 4-0."
Jacksonville (-2.5)
The Jaguars' seesaw season continued Sunday, as Jacksonville failed to post back-to-back wins once again, following up last week's win with a 20-7 loss to the Broncos. Byron Leftwich threw for 240 yards and one touchdown, a 45-yard connection with Jimmy Smith, but he was sacked twice and committed three turnovers, while RB Fred Taylor ran eight times for 14 yards as the Jaguars were held to a franchise-low 12 yards rushing. "It was just an ugly day," Jaguars right tackle Maurice Williams said. "It looked like a franchise-low everything. We can't be the type of team we want to be playing like this." The Jaguars' usually stalwart defense also struggled, yielding 175 yards rushing. The Jaguars (2-2) finished with four turnovers and 15 penalties for 119 yards, including six false starts.
GAME 5 - MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL
NFL
Pittsburgh @ San Diego
Monday Oct 10 - 9:05 PM EDT - (ABC)
Pittsburgh (+3)
The Steelers lost a rough one to New England 2 weeks ago, as they saw Tom Brady carve up their defense in the fourth quarter and Adam Vinatieri hit one of his patented game-winning field goals. The 23-20 loss was the first regular season loss of Ben Roethlisberger's career, and the Steelers got to stew over the loss for two weeks with their bye week occuring this past weekend. It's not all doom and gloom however. Roethlisberger enters the bye with the best quarterback rating in the league, Willie Parker has invigorated a running game Sunday VS The Chargers which will be fortified by the return of Jerome Bettis shortly, and the defense has done its usual stellar job. What the Steelers will have to work on is their consistency -- the thing that bit them against the Patriots.
San Diego (-3)
So New England is the defending Super Bowl champs and had won 21 consecutive games at home. So what? The Charger offense took full advantage of a depleted Patriots defense en rout to a dominating 41-17 victory last weekend. Drew Brees was 19 of 24 for 248 yards and two touchdowns, and his offensive line gave him plenty of protection. And Brees had the success because LaDainian Tomlinson and the running game had a great day. L.T. went for 134 yards and two scores, and Michael Turner added 44. Turner would have had a 46-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, but that was nullified by a penalty. The offense seemed to have an easy time with a Pats defense that featured several injury replacements.
*all lines posted here are subject to change
Get your NFL, NHL & NCAA future bets in! Odds are now available at betED.com!
Look to "The Line" for a simple breakdown of a number of featured games for the upcoming weekend along with our line on them. We'll also be sure to keep you posted on special game or sport-specific promos we're doing and show you why betED.com is your only choice for sports wagering featuring the best lines available, excellent customer service, and fast payouts! betED.com - why would you wager anywhere else?
GAME 1
College Football
Oklahoma @ Texas
Saturday Oct 8 - 12:00 PM EDT - (ABC)
Oklahoma (+13.5)
Texas (-13.5)
It's the 100th meeting between these two superpowers, and Texas hopes this marks the beginning of a new era in the series. Over the last five years, Texas has gone 0-5 against Oklahoma and 56-6 against everyone else. That being said, we have Texas as the 14 pt favorite at press time!
Everyone will focus on the matchup of Heisman candidates with Vince Young and Adrian Peterson getting all of the attention, but this game should belong to the defenses. Texas LB Aaron Harris isn't getting anywhere near the amount of publicity Derrick Johnson received last year, but he's having almost as strong a 2005 with 36 tackles with 2.5 sacks, two forced fumbles and six tackles for loss. Oklahoma's unsung star LB is Rufus Alexander, who leads the team with 33 tackles with a sack and six tackles for loss.
GAME 2
NFL
Tampa Bay @ New York Jets
Sunday Oct 9- 1:00 PM EDT - (CBS)
Tampa Bay (-3.5)
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers continued their impressive start last Sunday when they held off a late run by the Detroit Lions to win 17-13. With the victory, Tampa Bay moves to 4-0 on the season and is serving notice it will be a force to be reckoned with. Rookie Cadillac Williams, who had rushed for over 100 yards in each of the last three games, was held to just 13 yards on 11 carries before leaving the game late in the third quarter. But the rest of the offense picked up the slack. Quarterback Brian Griese tossed two TD passes to RB Michael Pittman and WR Joey Galloway and overcame three interceptions in leading his team to victory over Detroit (1-2). Griese finished 22 of 39 for 302 yards. "We have all kinds of weapons," RB Michael Pittman said. "Cadillac started off great the first three games. He was hurt today and really wasn't 100 percent, but we still went out there and played."
NY Jets (+3.5)
The Jets are certainly not the same without their starting quarterback Chad Pennington. And it showed on Sunday as the team struggled on offence in a 13-3 loss to the Ravens. With no Pennington, who is done for the season, or backup QB Jay Fiedler, who is most likely done for year as well, the Jets turned to third-string QB Brooks Bollinger against a stingy Ravens (1-2) defense. In just his second NFL game and first as a starter, Bollinger went 14-for-28 for 149 yards playing in a conservative Jets (1-3) offense that managed only eight first downs and 152 totals yards. "It's frustrating. I can't really put it into words. It's tough," Bollinger said. "I want to do well for these guys. I finally got an opportunity where I knew they were counting on me; it was my time to make a contribution. And I didn't do enough for us to win today." New York's only points came in the third quarter on kicker Mike Nugent's 21-yard field goal.
GAME 3
NFL
Indianapolis @ San Francisco
Sunday Oct 9 - 4:05 PM EDT - (CBS)
Indianapolis (-14.5)
Indianapolis piled up 360 yards of offense and defeated the Titans 31-10 last Sunday to improve its record to 4-0. The Colts got off to a quick start, as Peyton Manning hit Reggie Wayne for a 25-yard TD on their opening drive. Manning added to his TD total with an 11-yarder to Marvin Harrison in the second quarter, an 8-yarder to Edgerrin James in the third, and a 24-yarder to Harrison in the fourth. James finished with 90 yards rushing, while Manning completed 20 of 27 passes for 264 yards and four TDs.
San Francisco (+14.5)
At first, it looked like the defense would carry the 49ers to victory in the first NFL regular-season game held in Mexico. But after taking a 14-0 lead in the first quarter on two fumble returns for touchdowns, the 49ers collapsed and lost 31-14 to the Arizona Cardinals. San Francisco stopped Arizona on its first five possessions, but then the Cardinals scored on eight consecutive drives. Meanwhile, the 49ers offense never got beyond the Cardinals 45-yard line. Seven of their 13 possessions ended in punts, and they committed four turnovers. Brandon Lloyd had seven catches for 102 yards, but as a team, the 49ers were limited to 168 total net yards. "It was exciting to play the game for both teams today," 49ers coach Mike Nolan said of the NFL-record 103,467 fans who attended the historic contest, "and they certainly latched on to the team that was ahead at the end, because early on, we had them on our side."
GAME 4
NFL
Cincinati VS Jacksonville
Sunday Oct 9- 8:35PM EDT - (ESPN)
Cincinati (+2.5)
There was some talk this week about the Bengals and how the team would respond in a close game. The answer didn't figure to come against a Texans team that had looked awful in its first two games, but Cincinnati still found itself nursing a 13-10 lead late in the fourth quarter. The Bengals came through with flying colors, forcing a turnover late, tacking on a late field goal for a six-point cushion, and sacking David Carr on the final play of the game to finish things off, 16-10. The turnover was a play in question. Carr was hit by Justin Smith while his arm was cocked, making the ball fly out of his hand as he started an awkward throwing motion. John Thornton fell on the ball, and referee Larry Nemmers upheld the call on review, costing the Texans their final timeout. From there, the Bengals added their final field goal, and the Texans never really threatened again. The Bengals made things hard on Carr, sacking him seven times, while Carson Palmer (25 of 34 for 276 yards) and T.J. Houshmandzadeh (eight catches for 105 yards) excelled on offense. "It was a tough game," Houshmandzadeh said. "But hey, we're winning, man. I'm happy about that, just to be 4-0."
Jacksonville (-2.5)
The Jaguars' seesaw season continued Sunday, as Jacksonville failed to post back-to-back wins once again, following up last week's win with a 20-7 loss to the Broncos. Byron Leftwich threw for 240 yards and one touchdown, a 45-yard connection with Jimmy Smith, but he was sacked twice and committed three turnovers, while RB Fred Taylor ran eight times for 14 yards as the Jaguars were held to a franchise-low 12 yards rushing. "It was just an ugly day," Jaguars right tackle Maurice Williams said. "It looked like a franchise-low everything. We can't be the type of team we want to be playing like this." The Jaguars' usually stalwart defense also struggled, yielding 175 yards rushing. The Jaguars (2-2) finished with four turnovers and 15 penalties for 119 yards, including six false starts.
GAME 5 - MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL
NFL
Pittsburgh @ San Diego
Monday Oct 10 - 9:05 PM EDT - (ABC)
Pittsburgh (+3)
The Steelers lost a rough one to New England 2 weeks ago, as they saw Tom Brady carve up their defense in the fourth quarter and Adam Vinatieri hit one of his patented game-winning field goals. The 23-20 loss was the first regular season loss of Ben Roethlisberger's career, and the Steelers got to stew over the loss for two weeks with their bye week occuring this past weekend. It's not all doom and gloom however. Roethlisberger enters the bye with the best quarterback rating in the league, Willie Parker has invigorated a running game Sunday VS The Chargers which will be fortified by the return of Jerome Bettis shortly, and the defense has done its usual stellar job. What the Steelers will have to work on is their consistency -- the thing that bit them against the Patriots.
San Diego (-3)
So New England is the defending Super Bowl champs and had won 21 consecutive games at home. So what? The Charger offense took full advantage of a depleted Patriots defense en rout to a dominating 41-17 victory last weekend. Drew Brees was 19 of 24 for 248 yards and two touchdowns, and his offensive line gave him plenty of protection. And Brees had the success because LaDainian Tomlinson and the running game had a great day. L.T. went for 134 yards and two scores, and Michael Turner added 44. Turner would have had a 46-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, but that was nullified by a penalty. The offense seemed to have an easy time with a Pats defense that featured several injury replacements.
*all lines posted here are subject to change
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