College Football Wagering Warfare – California at Maryland
The California Bears (2-0 SU & ATS) are off to a fast start. On Saturday they will come all the way east to take on the Maryland Terrapins (1-1 SU, 0-1 ATS) in a rare bi-coastal NCAA football matchup that is set for a Noon ET kickoff at Byrd Stadium (natural turf) in College Park, MD.
Saturday, September 13
BetUS NCAA Football Betting Odds: CALIFORNIA -15
Here are some of the NCAA college football betting trends as they relate to this matchup:
* CAL has covered three of its last ten games
* CAL has won 17 of its last 25 games SU
* CAL has played four of its last five games OVER the total
* CAL has lost four of its last five road games SU
* CAL has covered one of its last five road games
* CAL has played nine of its last 11 road games UNDER the total
* MD has lost six of its last nine games SU
* MD has won 11 of its last 15 home games SU
You know, the game may not have passed Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen by, but this particular game may be at too fast a pace for him. Friedgen’s quarterback combo of Jordan Steffy and Chris Turner has thrown a total of one touchdown pass and five interceptions against Delaware and Middle Tennessee State. We admit that we don’t think we can put a sufficient spin on that.
But alas, there might be hope. The Terps’ running game has at least been operating at some level of efficiency, with sensational soph Da’Rel Scott (320 yards thus far) averaging 8.6 yards a carry. And as most people know, Maryland has a potential game-breaker at the wide receiver spot in Darrius Heyward-Bey, a Biletnikoff Award candidate who has not had a lot of touches, but has averaged 23 yards a catch.
Speaking of “spin,” you can’t argue too much with a Cal offense that has run up 104 points in its two games thus far. But quarterback Kevin Riley has had precious few college starts, and in his road debut he was just 6 for 14 against Washington State. California is one of those teams who, despite last week’s romp against a Wazzou team that is clearly in the midst of a major offensive transition, has not always brought its “A” game on the road. They have covered just six of their last 19 games as a traveler, and Friedgen has been known to have an innovative offensive mind.
Most importantly, what we’re looking at with this poor-traveling California team is an inflated line (due to the lopsided result last week), and don’t underestimate the effect on the body clock either, where the team from the west coast is playing at noon Eastern time. This is a lot of points, and we’ll take ’em with the Terrapins, the 15-point underdog in the BetUS college football betting odds.