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NFL Fading Has Beens and First College Championship Game
by Mike Neri
It’s official! The Raiders (3-7 SU/4-6 ATS) have packed in the season, although that’s not front page news. There performance on Thanksgiving day was just awful, getting steamrolled by Dallas. QB JaMarcus Russell (2 TDs, 9 picks) has been benched and QB Bruce Gradkowski (3 TDs, 3 picks) is running the offense. They come off a Thanksgiving Day disaster at Dallas, a 24-7 no-show loss, giving up 494 yards (195 rushing).
The Raiders' locker room was quiet afterward, most of the players speaking quietly. Playing in front of a national Thanksgiving Day television audience, they shrank dramatically, downsizing themselves from the team that had upset Cincinnati just four days earlier. "It's disappointing and it's embarrassing also," cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha said. "We're all pretty embarrassed with how the game ended up. Trying to win two (straight) games, for us, has been like trying to climb Mount Everest. It's been very difficult. We're trying to get two wins at some point in the year, and it always never happens."
With a new quarterback bringing fresh energy to the huddle, the Raiders had more reason to hope than after their wins over Kansas City and Philadelphia - each followed by three straight losses. The offense still looked better than it had under the command of JaMarcus Russell, though Bruce Gradkowski rang up only 42 yards passing in the first half. They are 24th in total defense, while battling the Browns for last place in total offense. Even in that 20-17 comeback upset over the Bengals, the run defense, allowed 177 rush yards to a Cincy team without its top back. The Raiders have lost five of the last nine games by at least 17 points and failed to reach 200 yards of offense in four of them. In one victory, 13-10 at KC, they were outgained 409-166!
Detroit also looked terrible on Thanksgiving day, getting flattened at home by Green bay. This offensive line is awful: They allowed 7 sacks to the Steelers, Green Bay had 7 sacks in two games, the Rams and Seahawks had 2 more apiece, and 3 more to Cleveland. Detroit is 2-32 SU, 10-23 ATS its last 33 games. Rookie QB Matthew Stafford (12 TDs, 18 INTs) and NY Jets QB Mark Sanchez (10 TDs, 17 INTs) are putting up some dreadful numbers, showing how hard it is for rookie quarterbacks at this level.
The first college conference championship game goes this week as Ohio and Central Michigan square off in Detroit for the MAC title game. Ohio (9-3 SU/8-3 ATS) didn’t even know it was going to be here until last week, when as an underdog to red-hot Temple, the Bobcats exploded for a 35-17 win.
Ohio likes a balanced offense under Coach Frank Solich, averaging 206 yards in the air and 26 ppg. Senior QB Theo Scott (19 TDs, 10 picks) was 17 of 21 passing with 324 yards and three touchdowns against Temple. Scott also ran for 69 yards and two touchdowns before leaving because of an ankle injury. Coach Frank Solich is 29-14 ATS the last three-plus years. The Bobcats lead the nation in turnovers forced, picking up 3 more against Buffalo and 3 more the last game against Temple.
But that defense gets a huge test against this Central Michigan (10-2 SU, 9-2 ATS) offense under Coach Butch Jones and senior QB LeFevour (25 TDs, 5 picks), 8-0 in the MAC. He is a terrific running QB (650 yards), and has top targets in senior WR Bryan Anderson (646 yds) and junior WR Antonio Brown (954 yds). The offense is averaging 34 points, 176 yards rushing and 244 passing.
They lost the opener at Arizona, but since then the Chippewas are on a 10-1 SU/9-1 ATS run, including an upset of Michigan State, 29-27. The defense has been vastly improved, allowing just 17.8 ppg despite playing Pac 10, ACC and Big 10 teams. LeFevour is 2-0 SU/ATS in MAC title games, beating Ohio (31-10) and Miami (35-10) in 2006 and ‘07.
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