December 29, 2011

2012 BCS Bowl Series Handicapping Guide

2012 BCS Bowl Series Handicapping Guide

The college football Bowl Championship Series consists of the Rose, Fiesta, Sugar, and Orange Bowl games as well as the BCS Championship Game. The following is a brief guide to help you handicap each of the five games. All quoted lines are provided by BetOnline.

January 2, 2012

Rose Bowl- No. 10 Wisconsin Badgers (11-2) vs. No.5 Oregon Ducks (11-2)

Point spread: Oregon -6

Over/Under: 72

Wisconsin comes into this matchup with fourth highest scoring offense in the nation (44.6 points per game) and the sixth-ranked defense in points allowed (17 points per game). The Badgers are 5-2 against the spread in their last seven bowl games as underdogs. The total has stayed ‘under’ in five of their last six bowl games.

Oregon’s offense is even more prolific with an average of 46.2 points a game and is ranked fifth in the nation in rushing with an average of 295.7 yards a game. The Ducks are 1-4 ATS in their last five bowl games as a favorite and the total has stayed ‘under’ in five of their last six bowl games.

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Fiesta Bowl- No.4 Stanford Cardinal (11-1) vs. No. 3 Oklahoma State Cowboys (11-1)

Point spread: Oklahoma State -3.5

Over/Under: 74

Stanford’s passing game behind Andrew Luck is only ranked 26^th in the country in yards per game, while its running game is ranked 22^nd with 207.9 yards a game. The Cardinal are 7-0 ATS in their last seven non-conference games. The total has gone ‘over’ in 13 of their last 17 games as underdogs.

The Cowboys’ passing attack is ranked second in the nation with 386.3 yards per game and the offense is averaging 49.3 points a game. Oklahoma State is 3-1-1 ATS in its last five bowl games as a favorite. The total has stayed ‘under’ in five of its last seven bowl games.

January 3, 2012

Sugar Bowl- No. 13 Michigan Wolverines (10-2) vs. No. 11 Virginia Tech Hokies (11-2)

Point spread: Michigan -2.5

Over/Under: 50.5

Michigan has got it done the old-fashioned way with a running game that is averaging 235.7 yards per game to go along with a defense that is giving-up just 17.2 points a game. The Wolverines are 9-2 ATS in their last 11 non-conference games. The total has gone ‘over’ in 10 of their last 11 bowl games.

The Hokies only two losses this season came to the same team; the Clemson Tigers. Their defense has been equally as stingy this season; holding its opponents to 17.2 points a game as well. Virginia Tech is just 3-9 ATS in its last 12 games overall and the total has stayed ‘under’ in four of its last five games as an underdog.

January 4, 2012

Orange Bowl- No.23 West Virginia Mountaineers (9-3) vs. No.15 Clemson Tigers (10-3)

Point spread: Clemson -3

Over/Under: 61

West Virginia’s passing offense has been one of the most productive attacks in the nation with an average of 341.8 yards per game, but its defense is ranked 63^rd in the country in points allowed (26.3). The Mountaineers are 1-4 ATS in their last five bowl games and the total has gone ‘over’ in eight of their last 11.

The Tigers lost three of their last four regular season games before beating Virginia Tech in the ACC Championship. Clemson is 1-5 ATS in its last six bowl games and 0-5 ATS in its last five games against the Big East. The total has stayed ‘under’ in six of its last seven bowl games.

January 9, 2012

BCS Championship- No.2 Alabama Crimson Tide (11-1) vs. No.1 LSU Tigers (13-0)

Point spread: Alabama -1

Over/Under: 40

Alabama finished the regular season with a rushing attack that was averaging 219.8 yards a game and a defense that held its opponents to just 8.8 points a game. The Crimson Tide are 4-1 ATS in their last five games as favorites at a neutral site. The total has gone ‘over’ in their last five bowl games.

LSU is basically a mirror-image of the Tide with an offense that averaged 215.2 rushing yards per game and a defense that gave-up an average of 10.5 points a game. The Tigers are 5-1 ATS in their last six bowl games and 3-2 ATS in their last five games against Alabama. The total has gone ‘over’ in their last four neutral site games.

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Dave Schwab

DJ is a freelance writer that concentrates on his true passion in life; the world of sports. He produces a number of articles each week for BangTheBook.com as well as a select group of other websites that specialize in providing the most up-to-date information for the sports gaming industry. His goal is to write insightful articles on a wide variety of sporting topics that can provide an edge to today's sophisticated online player.