We’re getting down to the wire on the season of football picks here on Matt vs. Matt. With tonight’s BCS title game clash, the NCAA season will be over and including the Super Bowl, after this week, we’ll have only two total weeks of NFL playoffs left before the season is officially over with. Ugh.
Matt and I finished a decent 6-4 and 7-3 respectively in last week’s picks. I was just glad to be over .500 after roughly a two month slump. Good thing is, at this point, both Matt and I are over .500 overall and each of us has 100 or more wins:
Matt: 100-93-1
Matty J: 104-89-1
Let the games begin:
Thursday night:
BCS National Title Game
Florida (-3.5) vs. Oklahoma. What a matchup. I can’t say I ‘like’ either team, but I’ll tell you this. I’m rooting for the Gators. I never have been an Oklahoma fan and frankly they are similar in BCS bowls to Ohio State: They just haven’t been that successful in recent years. Anyone remember them getting smoked by WVU 48-28 in last year’s Fiesta Bowl? That game proved if you get in Bradford’s face, it’s going to wreak havoc on the Sooners’ offensive game plan. They also lost to Boise St. before that and frankly I can’t remember the last bowl game Oklahoma actually won.
So, being the true journalist that I am, I went ahead and looked at BCS history past and found that Oklahoma last won in 2002-03 vs Washington State 34-14 in the Rose Bowl. Since that time, OU has lost to LSU 21-14 (2004 BCS title game), to USC 55-19 (2005 BCS title game), N/A in 2006, to Boise St, 43-42 (ot) ( 2007 Fiesta Bowl) and to WVU 48-28 (2008 Fiesta Bowl).
That said, I believe the Sooners will come out similarly to the way Ohio State approached their game vs. Texas three nights ago: loose, focused and attempting to get a huge monkey off their backs. However, I think Florida will have too much for them to handle overall. Florida 34, Oklahoma 27.
NFL Playoffs
Saturday
Baltimore at Tennessee (-3). zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Is this game over yet? Is it seriously being televised? Wow. All insomniacs please watch. This will be your cure. I’m going to go out on a limb and say Tennessee might even win this game, but Baltimore beats the spread.
Arizona at Carolina (-10). Here’s yet another one of those huge spreads. Last time I picked a 10 + pt spread, it was the Packers over the Lions and I lost. I’m done with big spreads. Carolina wins, but ‘Zona beats the spread here.
Sunday
Philadelphia at NY Giants (-4). This is probably the hardest game to predict at this point. The Eagles barely lost at home to the Giants in mid-season and then they came to the Meadowlands late in the year and won pretty convincingly (despite the score not showing it). I can see this game going either way. The real question will be whether the Giants are focused and healthy and whether the Eagles show up to play like they did against the Cowboys two weeks ago. (Okay, so that’s more like two or three questions, but still…) Giants won by 5 in Philly, Eagles won by 6 in NY. Coin flip please! This is a toughie, but since I believe the G-men will come out more focused than last time around, I’m taking the Giants to cover.
San Diego at Pittsburgh (-6.5). San Diego is hot. Real hot. Who else in the league can say they have a back-up running back who can account for 320+ all purpose yards in the absence of your lead guy? That said, SD already lost at Pittsburgh once this year. The Steelers’ D will be ready and waiting. Steelers win a close one. SD beats the spread.
Thursday night:
BCS National Title Game
Florida (-3.5) vs. Oklahoma. This game is mildly interesting. Maybe. I’m not a fan of either team, so I can’t really seem to get excited about this game. I’m leaning toward Florida, aren’t you? I know their loss was worse, but they were stellar late in the season. I think I’m going to take FL to cover the 3.5. I think the Oklahoma starts a “the big 12 can’t compete with the sec” meme with this game. Good freaking luck with that.
NFL Playoffs
Saturday
Baltimore at Tennessee (-3). I don’t know if I’m mentioned how horribly boring these playoffs are, but if I haven’t lemme say that these playoffs are really horribly boring. I emailed the other Matt that it’s a bad sign that I’m looking forward to the pro bowl more than the super bowl. It’s a bit like playing golf and starting to wonder about lunch long about hole number 2. I like football and I’ll miss it, but these teams are so yawn-a-riffic I can’t help but think about the 2009 Hall of Fame game. I guess I need to pick this game, huh? I’ll take Tennessee to cover. I know they ended the season sputtering, but the whole rookie on the road against a darn good Tennessee team makes me skew that way. Plus I like Jeff Fisher and Steve McNair (see what I did there?), so if I had to hope for a team to make the Super Bowl it’s probably be the Titans.
Arizona at Carolina (-10). Good grief. Good freaking grief. How can Vegas do this to me? They toss out a 10 point spread and lure guys like me into considering a Cardinals pick. I don’t wanna pick the Cardinals, and I wouldn’t do it straight up, because I think Carolina wins. But 10 points is an enormous spread – especially in the playoffs. I actually just sighed and shook my head because I’m so disgusted at this matchup. 10 points? I can’t seem to type the words… Okay, okay – the Cardinals (I just got shivers… this is gross) beat the spread.
Sunday
Philadelphia at NY Giants (-4). Man I rode the Giants all season, but Philly is playing their best ball right now. If laughing and loose McNabb shows up with a healthy 150 all-purpose-yard Westbrook, I easily take the Eagles. But if he-needs-benched McNabb shows up and I-got-an-ouchie-on-my big-toe Westbrook shows up, I think the Giants cover. So which team shows up? I’m saying McNabb beats the spread here and we reflect back on a season that saw the giants shooting themselves in the foot (or the thigh, I guess, in this case) too many times to prevail.
San Diego at Pittsburgh (-6.5). Man, the Chargers actually impressed me last week. I’m surpised the spread didn’t close more. That said, I bet the weather will be cold and the Pittsburgh D always stands up a home. Of course, the Steelers need to score a TD to cover the spread, and that’s no sure thing with Big Ben in the backfield. I just started to write that I’m taking the Chargers, but that cold weather game on the road keeps stopping me. I guess I’ll go with my gut and take the Steelers to cover. Wow. Nothing in the preceding paragraph would have indicated that pick. Go figure.
I just picked the Cardinals and Steelers… it’s no wonder this post season absolutely disgusts me.
