2012 NCAA Football Betting Futures- Big East Season Preview
As the landscape in college football continues to move from six majors to just four power conferences, the Big East is clearly one of the two that finds itself on the outside looking in.
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West Virginia has already departed for the Big 12 and both Pittsburgh and Syracuse are set to jump ship next season for the ACC. In their place is the addition of a few quality programs from the mid-major conferences starting with Temple for 2012.
The following is a look at a few of the top contenders to win the Big East this season along with their current odds as provided by Bovada.
Louisville Cardinals 9/4
When you think of Louisville you automatically think of basketball, but head coach Charlie Strong and his staff have done an excellent job at upgrading the Cardinals’ football program over the past two seasons. They earned a share of the Big East title last season with a 5-2 record in conference play but went on to lose to North Carolina State in the BELK Bowl. Louisville should be right back on top again this season with eight starters back on offense and nine starters back from a defense that ended-up ranked 17th in the nation in points allowed.
Cincinnati Bearcats 5/2
With the exception of a 4-8 record in 2010, the Bearcats have established themselves as one of the better programs in Division IA over the past four seasons. Last season they finished with an overall record of 10-3 including a 31-24 victory over Vanderbilt in the Liberty Bowl. Cincinnati may have trouble duplicating this success with the loss of seven starters on offense including quarterback Zack Collaros and running back Isaiah Pead. It does return seven starters from a defense that was also stingy; giving-up an average of 20.3 points a game. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
South Florida Bulls 7/2
South Florida was well on its way to building one of the more respectable programs in the conference before suffering a major setback in 2011. The Bulls finished 5-7 on the year and managed to win just one of seven games in the conference. Head coach Skip Holtz is confident that this was just a blip on the radar and with nine starters returning on offense including quarterback BJ Daniels, is more than confident his team can compete for a title this year. Daniels threw for 2,604 yards in 2011 and proved to be a double-threat with another 601 yards on the ground.
Pittsburgh Panthers 13/2
What was once the pride of the Big East comes into its last season in the conference as just the fourth-favorite to win this year’s title. The fall from grace has been swift and fast for the Panthers with an overall losing record of 6-7 in 2011. They finished the season ranked 77th in passing behind quarterback Tino Sunseri, who should once again lineup as the starter on opening day. They may have a shot if Sunseri can return to the form he displayed in 2010 when he completed 64.5 percent of his passes for 16 touchdowns verse just nine interceptions as opposed to only 10 TD’s and 11 picks in 2011.
The odds to win the conference for the other four teams in the Big East are Rutgers at 13/2, Syracuse and Temple at 20/1, and Connecticut at 25/1.
Complete ACC Odds
Louisville 9/4
South Florida 7/2
Cincinnati 5/2
Rutgers 13/2
Pittsburgh 13/2
Syracuse 20/1
Temple 20/1
Connecticut 25/1
CappersPicks.com brings you the only college football handicapping guide you’ll need.
Use the College football previews for the 2012 NCAA football season to help you with your college football handicapping at our top sportsbooks online this season.
Here are the 2012 Odds from BOVADA / BODOG (Canadians)
