MaineRoad

If the money in the Hoffa Bowl keeps going where it has been going. Sparty is going to be a TD favorite by kickoff.  

In a story as old as time, your Horns got caught in the classic look-ahead-to-Vandy trap.  It's just so hard to focus with a trip to Nash Vegas in the offing. 

I'm assuming UVa -5 (vs. UNC) is just a little different from the pre-season line.  I might go back.  The Louisville game was a blast.  There were literally eight people in our section.  We're going to get together for Thanksgiving this year.     

At that number, and for the reasons you suggest, the entire civilized world (and parts of Arkansas) will be on the Hoosiers here.  Does that mean the entire civilized world (and parts of Arkansas) are necessarily wrong?  No, but, as a rule, I try and stay on the side of the folks who build casinos, not the folks who gamble in them.  That said, I felt the same way about Kansas (-5) last week, and they won by 73*, though I don't think they were quite as popular with the punters at IU will be.  Good luck whatever you do.  

*statistic not verified 

Very nice, sir.   

Just a note that the game is in New Jersey, not Annapolis.  Expect a 60/40-ish ND crowd.  I remember when Navy used to drive ND crazy when I was a kid, without ever actually winning. I was actually at the Vet when they missed a 2-point conversion to win it as a 30-point dog or so. Still stings. Then there was a stretch where Navy couldn't stop winning.  Got all sorts of ND coaches fired.  You're right, Navy really hasn't played anybody.  I suppose the best you can say is that they absolutely wrecked the trash they have seen.  Should be a good game to watch, but maybe a crappy one to bet - especially since I'd lean ND here and I'll clearly be rooting for the Mids. 

@WahooS

Will do.  Jeff and I go way back. I taught him the Redskins' (am I allowed to say that?) counter trey back in 97.  He owes me. A blowout here and I fear the Hoos' Playoff chances will be toast.     

UVa drew about 30,000 on Homecoming (we used to call it "Homecomings" back when I was in school, and we were really pretentious; I don't know if UVA is still like that, but I certainly am) last week, and it's Fall Break this week.  Let's just say that nobody will be confusing Scott Stadium with Death Valley (either of them) this Saturday.  If you watch, there's a decent chance my son and I will be the only people in our section - second section over from the left upstairs, above the student section (with no students; think of it as "the band section" this week). If you see me, please wave.  I dropped $8 each on these seats, so I plan to get my money's worth.  It's probably going to be around my 100th game at Scott Stadium; and, if I'm remembering correctly, this will be the second time I have ever paid to go in. USC was the other.  It was about 110 in the stands, and we lost by 50 or so.  My bourbon got so hot in my 10-year-old son's jacket (yes, I was not above using the boy as a mule; I'm still not) that I couldn't drink it straight and it melted all my ice if a mixed it.  Tough scene all around.      

OK, let's get back to lying about how much we bet, and how frequently we win.  

@TD21

 You have excellent taste.  

I am contemplating borrowing money and selling things to bet on Pitt -3.5 this weekend.  If Cal can show up for this one, god bless them; they can have my money.  I could hardly imagine a more soul-crushing loss than the one they suffered in Strawberry Canyon last Saturday (well after my bedtime).  

I am making a very (very, very) rare appearance in Charlottesville this weekend if you'd like to fly in and buy me drinks at Durty Nellies before the game.  It's fine if you don't want to; you can just Venmo me some cash.  Oh, and if Pitt doesn't cover, there's some chance I will need bus fare home as well.  You're gem, thanks.    

Wow.  I may need to stop by more often. 

 A legend's legend. 

Interesting you mention NU/Duke being a rivalry, because it is.  My nephew played at Duke, and they freaking hated Northwestern (and Army).  Something to remember for the future, perhaps.  Love the thread, by the way. 

Thoughts on the UVa/State total, presently sitting at 47?  Virginia's defensive efficiency is just awful, but they move the ball ok.  Pack D is decent, but nothing special.  Anyway, I would appreciate any insight.  

I'm still trying to wrap my brain around the concept of non-consensual phone sex. 

@TD21

If Uva wins four games, they ought to give you Livvy Dunne for a weekend of your choosing.  I'm not at all sure they're better than the Tribe, and I can't imagine they'll be favored in any other game, except maybe GT at home.  I actually have a bunch of folks who are pretty close to UVa Athletics - and many of them are decidedly of the "Glass Half Full" variety - and they are universally bearish on Elliott.  i asked one big VAF doner what he thought last year, and he told me that "the players hate him, the coaches hate him, the recruits hate him, the parents hate him.  If he has a dog, it probably hates him."  Super.  Let's just say UVa isn't the sort of program that can just absorb a miss in the coaching hire department.  Al Groh might have been nuts, but he basically knew what he was doing.  Mike London might have been something of an organizational disaster, but he was a nice guy who could recruit the talent-rich Tidewater.  I saw the lacrosse team held it first fall practice today.  Lax season can't get here soon enough for The University. 

I promised myself I would keep my money in my wallet for Week 1; and, against all odds, I basically did - small, emotional hedge wager on FSU cashed, but that was about it.  I was also stuck at Burning Man with limited Wifi access, and a bad case of Ebola, so following the in-game stuff was really tricky.  Tough scene all around. 

Is Dabo aware that Trevor and Travis aren't there anymore?  I feel like they've been running the same 3 or 4 plays for a decade.  i think maybe I'm not the only one who noticed.  

UTEP being favored at Northwestern will never not be funny. 

A little birdie told me that UVa, who blows anyway, came out of the UT game with a couple potential season-altering injury issues.  Considering the trajectory the season was on anyway, I'm not entirely sure what that means, so do with it what you will. 

GL, everybody, and Happy New Year. 

I suspect is “sitting around a bon fire talking about the crazy stuff we did” would basically involve sitting around a bon fire while you talked about the crazy stuff you did while I drank Genny Cream tall-boys.  As such, your terms are acceptable. Drop by any time. Still have a lax goal in the back yard, and mad amounts of netting. If Genny Cream is too fancy, there’s usually Lucky Streak (the official beer of slippery rock club lacrosse) around too. 

it has certainly been suggested, but I’m pretty much a “know your role, shut your mouth” guy, particularly on the road. The second time I got punched in Blacksburg, it was by some 50-ish-year-old surgeon, from behind, in Hokie Club seats. It made the paper in Christiansburg.  To the credit of the Tek fans, when the cops showed up, they all told the truth.  I was just sitting there. The only other place I recall encountering any trouble on the road - with UVa, or lsu, or Vandy, or Delaware - was at WVU, after a 1984 Hoos win in Morgantown.  I did try and fight a cop at Villanova once. Prolly should have gone to jail.  Still not entirely clear why I didn’t. 

Exactly.  Despite having been sucker-punched twice, and had ice thrown in my eye once, at Virginia Tek, I still feel like Tennessee fans were the worst I've ever encountered.  That said, I was really happy for them Saturday.  College football needs rivalries (and 23-team conferences, and 10am kick times, and really loud piped-in music so you can't hear yourself think, and Gus Johnson), but rivalries are only rivalries if the other team wins every now and again.  It's also just good for the sport when programs like Tennessee are relevant.  

You live long enough, you see everything. 

Assuming too meant “extra point,” I don’t have to imagine it, I lived it, as that’s exactly what LSU did against Florida State. 

There are times when going for two makes total sense. I just feel like going all-in to go up 1 with :48 still left against an elite offense is a crappy bet. Anyway, back to trying to watch the NFL.  It’s not easy. 

In fairness, they were really, really high at the time.