College Oddities

Norm Chow has been an assistant coach for 39 years. Currently the offensive coordinator at Utah, Chow has been named the head coach of Hawaii. Perfect place for Chow to get his first head coaching job as he was born in Honolulu and started his career at Waialua High School on the North Shore of Oahu way back in 1970. Former Patriots and Steelers linebacker Mike Vrabel will remain on the Ohio State staff under Urban Meyer. Vrabel played 14 years in the NFL and immediately joined the Buckeyes last summer as a linebackers coach.

Penn State

If the ugliness surrounding the Nittany Lions wasn’t disgusting enough with the mess of Jerry Sandusky, more disturbing news came out of State College this week. Quarterback Matt McGloin was hospitalized with a concussion and seizures after getting into a fight in the locker room with wide receiver Curtis Drake. Backup QB Robert Bolden was pinched for stealing a Gatorade and 2 bags of chips from a campus store. Nothing but bad times for the Penn State football program right now.

NFL Oddities

The Colts won their first game of the season. The Packers lost their first game of the season. It was odd that both happened on the same day this late in the year. Arizona won their third overtime game in the last seven weeks. Aaron Rodgers threw his 40th TD pass; he has just 6 interceptions. Drew Brees threw for 412 yards and 5 TD passes while completing 32 of his 40 passes. Reggie Bush ran for a career-high 203 yards. Calvin Johnson caught 9 passes including 2 TD’s for 214 total receiving yards. The Jets & Eagles combined for 64 points and 8 turnovers. The Packers & Chiefs combined for 33 points and 0 turnovers.

Late Charge

While the Chargers have been known as notoriously slow starters, they have been tremendous in the cold months. Under head coach Norv Turner, San Diego is 20-2 SU in December and January games since 2007.

Taking the Good with the Bad

Cincinnati has been a prime example of a team that wins when it should and loses when it should. The Bengals have fashioned a 7-0 SU record when facing teams with a losing record this season. But when facing teams with a winning record, the Bengals have struggled, going a paltry 1-6 SU.

Late Season Futures

Still looking to get in a late season Super Bowl futures bet? Two teams that are sure to get a lot of action are the Packers and Patriots. In fact, there is a 51% chance that either Green Bay (33%) or New England (18%) wins the title this season.

Just Win and Cover in the NFL

In the NFL, teams that won straight-up last week went 13-1-2 ATS (92.9%). That brings the season total to 178-34-10 ATS (84%) so far this season. If you can pick the straight-up winner, you will also have plenty of pointspread winners in the NFL.

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