Spartans vs Cardinal NCAAF Betting + Handicapping Picks
Well, the Cardinal are a ranked team, but they have big shoes to fill since Andrew Luck and TE Coby Fleener are gone. Josh Nunes won the QB battle, but he has not thrown a pass for Stanford since the 2010 season.
Venue/ Stadium: Stanford Stadium, STANFORD, CA
Time/Date: 10 PM EST Friday, August 31, 2012
NCAAF Odds From: Bovada
Moneyline: OFF
Spread: Stanford -25.5
Over/Under: 50.5
San Jose State Spartans vs. No. 21 Stanford Cardinal Preview
San Jose State was only 5-7 last season and while they had a good passing offense they had a weak rushing attack and a less than stellar defense. NCAAF odds have Stanford as big 25.5-point favorites with a total of 50.5.
Last season these 2 teams met in the season opener at Stanford and the Cardinal laid a 57-3 beat down on the Spartans.
The Spartans also lost their starting QB from last season and David Fales will be the new starter. At least he will have San Jose State’s top 2 targets from last year, as WR Noel Grigsby and TE Ryan Otten return and last season each averaged at least 10 yards per reception and combined for over 1,600 receiving yards.
Last season the Spartans ranked 110th in the nation in rushing yards per game and on top of that leading rusher Brandon Rutley is gone. I mean it’s pretty bad when the leading returning rusher is a QB, who rushed for 111 yards last season.
Stanford ranked 4th in the nation last season in run defense, but only 95th in pass defense, so if Fales can get protection he may have a big game. Still Seven starters are back on a defense that ranked 2nd in the Pac-12 in scoring and in total defense. They have some sold. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Nunes not only lost star TE Fleener, but 2 offensive linemen were also lost to the NFL. He has some solid TE’s coming in and a decent WR corps, but his main weapon will be RB Stepfan Taylor, who rushed for 1,330 yards with 10 TD last season.
Stanford did have to replace 2 key guys in the line, but they are still solid. Their main goal in this game will be to keep SJSU DE Travis Johnson, the preseason Western Athletic Conference defensive player of the year, out of the backfield and off their inexperienced QB. Last season Johnson had 9.5 sacks.
In some betting trends for this non-conference match up San Jose State is 4-0 ATS in their last 4 non-conference games, 5-1 ATS in their last 6 road games, and they have an Under record of 5-2-1 in their last 8 games on grass.
Stanford is 8-0 ATS in their last 8 non-conference games, 20-7 ATS in their last 27 home games, and they have an Over record of 13-4 in their last 17 home games.
Jason’s Pick: The favorite is 4-0 ATS in the last 4 games between these 2 teams and while Stanford lost a lot they still have a lot of talent and they will have no problem winning and covering the spread.
