November 4th Picks

November 3rd results:

22 points or more- Loss (17)
LA Galaxy win- Win (2-1)

Blog record for the month 4-3

   Sorry such a late post. Power went out last night and my internet was down for a while. I ended up passing in both picks last night after I took 3 or more players to score a touchdown. After the risk payed off, it put me at W5 and so I obviously decided to pass on 22 points or more because FSU had put up such a big lead (I figured they would slow down and BC couldn't score), and LA I just passed because I had my win for the day and I wasn't to sure of their gameplan.

Pick #1 No: CMU doesn't score on its first possession

    CMU ranks 93th in points per game, averaging about 23 (22.8). Kent State's defense ranks 58th in points against, giving up about 26 points a game (26.4) and ranking 32nd in defense nationally. Kent State's defense seems very good for a 2-6 team. It's mainly thier offense that is the weakness of the team ranking near the bottom of the nation in passing yards (117th), rushing yards (117th) and scoring (119th). I think if CMU starts with the ball, this will be a very good pick. If Kent State starts with the ball and doesn't capitalize to somehow spot CMU with great feild position, No picks might be in trouble. The coinflip may greatly influence this prop.

Pick #2 USC wins by 25+

  Aside from Arizona State and Minnesota, USC has played very well this season. They played like a top 10 team against Stanford, and hopefully they do so tonight. Kiffin likes to score as many points as he can. Though only averaging about 32 points a game as a top 25 team, USC is really coming together since Arizona State. Blowout wins to rivals California and Notre Dame on the road, as well as coming short of beating Stanford in 3 OTs, should tell you USC is different from the team that opened the year with an ugly 19-17 victory over Minnesota.
   To add to that, Colorado is a pretty bad team. They sit at 1-8, 0-5 in the PAC-12, and rank 110th in points for, 117th in points against; and 100th in total defense and 98th in total offense. It may or may not be close, but I think USC wins between 20-30 (which is vague, I know). I would feel better about going with 25 or more.

Pick #3 Dallas Stars


 No writeup, but it is a little hard to go against them at home in this scenario. Could go either way, but I would take Dallas if you made me choose.

Good Luck whatever you do tonight


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November 3rd Picks

November 2nd results:

Manchester City: Win (3-0)
Colorado Avalanche: Loss (4-1)
Seattle Sounders FC: Win (2-0)

Record for Day 2-1
Record for month- 3-2

I have a couple for now and I may have more tonight...

Pick #1 22 points or more

We have to evaluate the first half a little bit, but both teams (especially FSU) has shown the ability to score at times. Though Boston College has struggled at putting up points overall this season, only averaging about 20 points a game, at home they have been able to produce a little better. Coming off a 28-17 road win over Maryland, Boston College has scored 100 points in 4 home games and 59 points in 4 road games, with a home score difference of 41. FSU averages about 36 points points a game (35.6 officially), but has blown unranked teams out (such as Duke in a 41-16 road win, who beat Boston College) besides Wake Forest, by a combined total of 212-42. FSU's low scoring games came to pretty good teams (Oklahoma, Clemson and Wake Forest).

Defensive note: FSU allows about 17 points a game, ranking 12^th on defense nationally. Boston College allows about 25 point a game ranking 52^nd nationally.

Still have to see the first quarter, but I like 22 points or more at a glance.

***Update: With FSU up 28-0 at halftime you have to be careful. I don't think it will be 22+ unless Boston College gets motivated to make a comeback or something. FSU probably won't score 22+ alone in the second half, this pick needs some support from Boston College. I personally would stay away if you have a good streak. Good luck whatever you do.

Pick #2 LA Galaxy win (MLS Soccer)

This one will either be an easy pick, or a really frustrating pick depending on what LA decides to do with their gameplan. LA only needs to draw to advance, but it wouldn't surprise me if they tried to score to create a 1 or 2 point cushion. With them at home, and being the most dominant team so far in MLS play, they may be the pick. The Red Bulls go into this game 10-16-8 with a 6 goal difference and 46 points. The Red Bulls have have not looked that great against solid MLS teams on the road. They have done pretty well coming up with draws (for the most part) this year on the road, and that certainly won't be out of the question tonight since LA doesn't have to win. LA goes into this game 19-10-5 with a 20 goal difference and 67 points, coming off a 1-0 road win over the Red Bulls a few days ago. So to conclude, it really just comes down to what LA decides to do. With them at home they may want to put on a show for the home crowd. Good luck whoever you choose.


Possibly more to come


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November 2nd Picks will be finalized by the afternoon

November 1st results:

Arsenal win- Loss (0-0 draw)
Vancouver Canucks- Win (5-1)

Record for month- 1-1

   I made 4 picks today and the one I felt best about was the only one I lost. Ironic. I'll get full writups and picks up by tomorrow afternoon since the first pick doesn't start until 1:00pm eastern. For now though...

Pick #1 Manchester City win

   I'll put more up on the game tomorrow, but basically Man City has been dominating and a struggling Villarreal has some significant injuries. I have a lot I want to write on this game, and I just cant stay awake to post tonight.
**11/2/11 Update** Manchester City will go into this game with an impressive 9-1-0 record in Premier League play, a 28 goal difference and 28 total points. Villarreal is 2-4-4 in Spanish league play (La Liga) with a -8 goal difference and 10 points this season. Villarreal is in desperate need of a win, but being plagued by injuries will really hinder their chances.

   Taken directly from ESPN soccernet "Villarreal have suffered yet another injury blow ahead of this week's Champions League visit of Manchester City with the news that defender Cristian Zapata is also facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines. Colombia international Zapata, a summer signing from Udinese who has started 14 matches this season, has sprained the ligaments in his right knee and is set to miss around five weeks, according to the Primera Division club's website. The loss of Zapata comes after yesterday's news that Cani, Marco Ruben and Marcos Senna will all be unavailable for Wednesday's clash with City after suffering injuries during Saturday's 2-0 win over Rayo Vallecano. Cani will be out for around six weeks after also suffering a sprained right knee, Ruben has an adductor injury which could see him miss next weekend's game with Espanyol as well, while Senna felt a twinge in his hamstring and will be rested as a precaution. Javier Camunas is also a doubt for midweek due to a lower leg injury sustained against Rayo as the headaches continue to mount for Villarreal coach Juan Carlos Garrido, who was already without star strikers Giuseppe Rossi and Nilmar. Rossi will be out of action for around six months after suffering a serious knee injury against Real Madrid last week, while Nilmar is still on the comeback trail after undergoing an operation to remove a knee cyst at the start of the month.Villarreal's injury problems have coincided with a poor start to the season with the win over Rayo only their second in the league this season to lift them out of the relegation zone. Garrido's side have also lost all three of their Champions League pool matches and are four points adrift at the bottom of Group A."
     In their last appearance on the road against Manchester City, Villarreal stood their own though losing 2-1. Scoring the first goal 4 minutes into the game, Villarreal then scored a goal for Manchester City (just to make it interesting of course) and eventually ending with Manchester City winning on a goal in the 90th minute. Despite such a good game, Villarreal had most of their squad in the match. If Villarreal didn't have so many injuries, I would take them at home for a draw. I just don't know if a team so plagued by injuries can pull it out, but we will see...

I think Man City pulls it out by 1

Quick Picks (shorter than normal writeups):

Pick #2 Colorado Avalanche

Mainly because of them being at home. A slightly better team in my opinion, Colorado (7-4-0) has a pretty good opportunity to win at home tonight against the Coyotes (5-3-2). The Coyotes do have a pretty good offense, ranking 5^th in the NHL in goals per game (3.0). Colorado ranks 15^th in goals against (2.6) and 13^th in goals per game (2.6). Colorado by 1.

Pick #3 Seattle Sounders FC win

I've learned my lesson picking teams that have nothing to play for. Tonight, Real Salt Lake is one of those teams. Even with a loss they can advance and they have to go on the road. Plus, Seattle has had a pretty good year, going 18-9-7 with a 19 goal difference and 63 points. Salt Lake is 15-8-11, 8 goal difference and 53 points. I don't think Salt Lake will just give up points, but I do see Seattle attacking a lot in this game and diligently finding as many opportunities to score as possible.

More to come


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November 1st Picks

Pick #1 Arsenal win

  Arsenal looks good. They've already beaten Marseille on the road in a 1-0 win on October 19th and they have looked significantly better at home. At home, they are 2-0 in the champions league, and 8-0-1 overall (at home). Arsenal's total record stands at 5-1-4, -1 goal difference and 16 goals. Marseille goes into this game 3-6-3 with 1 goal difference and 15 goals this season. They are 1-3-3 on the road from what I've seen. Arsenal to me looks good not great. I think they are pretty likely to win...

*UPDATE: Arsenal has a few players out. Aside frome some injuries I've heard they may bench a couple players as well. I'm trying to find the details (if there are any) but here is a link to thier injury report http://www.arsenal.com/team-news

I still think Arsenal is the pick, but I dont think a draw is out of the question.

Confidence Rating: 70%

Pick #2 Vancouver Canucks

I don’t feel great about this game, but I did say I would post more. The Canucks have looked less than average on the road (2-3), the Flames have looked less than spectacular at home (2-3). Vancouver has looked a bit better on paper, and ranks a little higher in goals per game, power play and penalty kills. Vancouver in general has dominated Calgary in their last 10 games (8-0-2), and has played a tougher schedule in my opinion. Knocking off teams like Washington recently, and maybe most impressively Edmonton on the road. Vancouver is favored for a reason and I think everything above contributes to that conclusion. It will be close, but I would pick the Canucks to win by 1.

Confidence rating 60%

Thats probably all for today. Nothing else I like a lot. More tonight for November 2nd.

Last Post of the Month/blog will be back October 31st, October record 32-22 (108-41 overall)

   Its that time of the month again. I really hate to end the blog for October on such a low note, but I'm not aware of any good streaks of my followers. So traffic is pretty low right now, and I don't think there is really a point. It was a rough month seemingly for most people. Last I checked, the leader was only at a W21. Not trying to discredit anyone or anything, because that is a great streak, its just a little lower than it has has been the last 5 or 6 months, considering its near the end of the month. With Torino choking to Gubbio today, this blog finished 32-22 for October, which is hardly spectacular compared to August (45-10) and Septeber (31-9). I had more losses this month than the other two combined. This has probably been the worst month this year for me on a personal note as well. I did manage a W9, but with an October record of 38-27 (EDIT* 41-28 to end the month), it doesn't get you far.

   Hopefully next month will be a lot more successful. Enjoy your next few days off, and may you be free of Streak for the Cash controlling your life. Until November 1st that is...

Thanks for following, be sure to check back November 1st for a fresh set of picks, as well as a fresh month.

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Overall record (August through October) - 108-41


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