A New Year, but an end?

November 20th?!? Hard to believe it has been that long since a post. Well, for anybody who has become a loyal reader of the blog, I hate to say it, but the experiment just isn't going to work. The demands of actual day jobs just isn't allowing for the creative juices to flow consistently enough to promote this blog the way we would have hoped...

Beyond that, there is a larger issue. As the authors of this blog are both 1) a coach of college athletes and 2) a play-by-play announcer, the ability to voice strong opinions in such a public forum has proven difficult. I hate to sound conservative, but you have to be smart about what you write. We can ill-afford to write something that would jeopardize our careers. As I (the announcer) view it, I can't be Bill Simmons and Mike Tirico at the same time. To be the former only burns possible bridges for the latter. (It's why Kirk Herbstreit abstains from picking the winner of the game he is covering)

So, this isn't the pulling of the plug of Cover Two. I think there will be times where both of us want to flex our writing muscles and put something up for our own growth and benefit. But, it's time for Cover Two to retire to a life with lowered expectations.

Thanks for reading! And, if you didn't listen to my advice, and wagered a nickel on college football this fall, you're welcome for the profit I made for you!

Sorry fans

It's been a whirlwind few weeks of work. Tomorrow, NCAA 2nd round soccer match between Butler and Michigan State. Monday, I've got the pleasure of calling the NCAA Cross Country championships, which you can watch on NCAA.com. Couple that with other jobs, and blogging just hasn't been a priority. But, I am dedicated to the picks.

This week, we are gearing up to the big matchups over Thanksgiving, not to mention conference championship games in the subsequent weekends. Will there be a BCS party crasher? I say yes, because Auburn will fall to either Alabama or their own spotlight of the did-you-pay-your-QB saga. Get some online shopping done today and watch some football...

#16 Virginia Tech @ #24 Miami (+2) - I like the home team with points here: Canes 27, VA Tech 21

#13 Arkansas @ #21 Mississippi State (+3.5) - At some point, the karma of being the Cam Newton whistleblower will haunt an okay SEC team: Hogs 35, Starkville 24

#9 Ohio State @ #20 Iowa (+3) - Another home dog I like. Why? Because Iowa has ruined a perfectly good season, so they might as well ruin another team's. Hawkeyes 20, Buckeyes 10

#8 Nebraska @ #19 Texas A&M (+3) - The Huskers still don't know how they lost to Texas. Corn 36, Aggies 24

Last week: You can tell the distractions are getting to Cover Two. 2-1 on winners; 1-2 on Vegas (and a perfect push on the first bball game prediction)

Season: 39-14 and 32-22; looks like a FAKE profit will be turned though!

Off go the Crimson Glasses

So much for my claim that Alabama deserved a shot in the national championship. And, despite the defensive prowess, I still will never pick LSU in a top 25 matchup. Fortunately, after a so-so week (3-2 picking winners, 2-3 against the number; season: 37-13, 31-20) of predictions, I've been eye-deep in more soccer (you know you want to watch it) and the start of the college basketball season... which, by the way, shouldn't have polls until the first week or two of games are played. Lots to still learn.

Unfortunately, thanks to that crazy schedule, we need to fly through this week's picks of relatively lame games...

#23 South Carolina @ #22 Florida -6.5

I really have no idea on this game. The Gamecocks have been the ultimate good SEC team this year. Capable of pulling off really good victories, but then victimized by other good SEC teams. Spurrier can clinch the division AND beat his former team in their own place. According to all of the "experts," the Gators were supposed to keep getting better as the season went along, because of their youth. Yeah, and they said the same thing about Texas. Advantage: Swamp

Florida 31, South Carolina 24

#24 Kansas State @ #17 Missouri -13.5

Almost a two-touchdown spread! You know why? Because of Baylor last week at Oklahoma State. Pretender Big 12 school goes to play a more proven Big 12 school. The number is big, but the butt whopping will be bigger...

Missouri 45, Kansas State 24

#19 Mississippi State @ #12 Alabama -13

Make no mistake... Alabama WILL beat Auburn in the final week of the regular season. So, TCU will make the national championship game. But, does that mean the Tide really care about Mississippi State? What have we learned from this blog, last week's results and this week's news? Two things:

1. Pretender teams whose schedules are back-loaded get abused on the road by better teams.
2. Mississippi State didn't pay $200,000 for the services of Cam Newton. They should have.

Alabama 34, Mississippi State 17

And, to close, in honor of the start of the college basketball season (and as the advocate of the Horizon League), I would strongly consider Detroit (+9) at New Mexico tonight. The Titans could surprise some good teams out of the box.

Rush to Judgement

It's one of those weeks (and months) where the candle is being lit on both ends. If you are a big fan of women's soccer, boy do I have the weekend for you.

But, it's meant that the analysis of college football just isn't as thorough as I would like this week. So, despite the continued success (4-0 on winners; 2-2 versus Vegas last week), we have to rush to judge this week's slate of contests...

#18 Arkansas @ #19 South Carolina -4.5

I've gone against South Carolina too many times this year. They can run. They can catch. The only wildcard? Consistency. I like them at home against Arkansas.

Gamecocks 31, Arkansas 24

#21 Baylor @ #17 Oklahoma State -9

Big number. But, despite beating up on a terrible Texas team, Baylor is a beneficiary of good circumstances this season. Spotlight. Road game. No contest.

Oklahoma State 45, Baylor 28

#15 Arizona @ #13 Stanford -8

I don't see Stanford losing this game, mainly because I still view Arizona as a pretender. But, I think this is a good Pac-10 battle (meaning, 8 points is too steep of a spread)

Stanford 34, Arizona 28

#6 Alabama @ #10 LSU +6.5

The Tide are now the best option, 1-loss team with the outside hope of a BCS Championship Game appearance. That's a big deal. For the amazingly-large-number week in a row, Bama gets another team off a bye week, and on the road (See: South Carolina game). BUT, the Tide roll in off their own bye. Oh, and did I mention they might be motivated. AND, they get the #1 team in the country at home to close the season.

Alabama 24, LSU 17

#3 TCU @ #5 Utah +5

I am not at all surprised to see the Utes getting points at home. TCU's defense has been stellar this season. I haven't watched enough of Utah to have any rational, credible, logical reason for stating this: I think TCU has a team more than capable of completely handling Utah.

Frogs 28, Utah 22.5

Season: 34-11; 29-17 (I don't know how, but this is a really good weekend of games that seems to have gone overlooked. Sneak away from your plans and catch some afternoon games)

Did I say Rangers in 6?

I thought I was walking the party line by taking the easy 'Rangers in 6' line the other day. Just goes to show that you need to stick to your guns when picking sports outcomes. And my guns (the last two weeks especially) have been college football games. Vegas didn't see it coming last week, but we took those top-25 matchups and rocked the spread. 3-1 (no thanks to Okie State's stellar defense) against the number and a road-scared 2-2 picking winners.

But, this week is when it gets interesting because the whole BCS Rankings could (cue the Fresh Prince) get flipped, turned upside down. The top 5 ranked BCS teams playing this weekend all go on the road this weekend, and while I am not too concerned about some (relax Auburn and TCU fans), this whole thing is setting up to be a jumbled, garbled mess of scary come Halloween night. And, I have reached that point with the BCS (is there an echo on this blog?)... Blow it up.

Now, to my tease from earlier this week: Lou Holtz said something I really agree with on Mike & Mike a few days ago. That, in itself, is a bit of an amazement. The coach is in the same league as Lee Corso, and should get their own network sitcom, played by William Shatner, because the sh!$ they say is hilarious. ESPN knows this, which is why actual, researched, level-headed analysts flank them on every show. (And, to be fair to Corso, he doesn't have NCAA violations following him from every coaching job like a lost puppy)

Anyways, Holtz made the remark that the simple fix to the national championship dilemma is simple. Play all of the games the way they are right now, with BCS bowls, etc. Just play all of the big ones on New Year's Day, like the old-school way. Then, run the polls again, take your top 2, and play 'em together one week later to get your champion. Of course, changes would be tweaked. You'd have BCS #1 playing #4 or something in one New Year's Day game. (We've got time to figure it all out, people) But, the BCS still makes money, you and I get an and-1 game and less fussing over who got left out.

Back to this season... We are setting ourselves up to have at least one of the following scenarios play out:

1. At a minimum, a very good one loss team gets hosed (Alabama, Michigan State, Oregon, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Ohio State, Missouri, Auburn, Stanford and TCU/Utah fit this bill, potentially)
2. Somehow, a Boise State - TCU undefeated showdown happens again, with the power conferences left out of a title shot
3. An undefeated Boise State or TCU doesn't get a chance... AGAIN

I am still convinced that a rested Crimson Tide team is, hands-down, better than anybody in the country. Almost as convinced that what Oregon does on offense is illegal in some capacity. But, will the polls punish teams who get punished the most in scheduling? If not, we punish a mid-major program that can't control it's situation. I am Switzerland and side with both. For now, we just enjoy the games and see how it all plays out... Oh, for the record, I think scenario #1 up there is coming, and coming fast, starting this weekend...

#8 Utah @ Air Force +7

This is a perfect example of the difference between the mid-major conferences and the power conferences. Air Force is a good Mountain West team. Their option offense will create some confusion and some problems. But, Utah will win. In fact, Utah will cover. It won't be easy early, but 60 minutes is more than enough time for a team like Utah to pull out the game. Air Force is the 4th best team in the MWC. If this was the SEC, the exact same comparison would be Alabama (2nd best team, in record) going to South Carolina (4th best team). We know how that turned out. Advantage, corrupt system.

Utah 38, Air Force 24 - With the TCU date looming the following week

#2 Oregon and USC +7

Wow! Getting a touchdown at home. I hope the house for Reggie Bush's parents was crib-tastic! Oregon is a facsimile of themselves away from home, and this game is on grass, not recycled tire grass. But, the Trojans just aren't striking the fear into anybody right now. I like their offense, and it's hard to pick against a Monte Kiffin defense, but USC is not built to guard the spread. Their dominant teams recently always got shocked by a team like Oregon. And those two deep safeties and linebackers just can't cover the Ducks' speed. This is really a tough one, because Oregon has to lose one game this season. It is going to happen. Is it in the Coliseum? I'm hedging...

Oregon 42, USC 38

#5 Michigan State @ #18 Iowa -6.5

I neither have anything creative or factual to back this up, except for the fact that, in this wild season of college football, the Spartans have to lose this game. They aren't good enough to be an undefeated Big Ten team, and Iowa is better than a 2-loss team. Oh, and the Hawkeyes are pissed about last weekend.

Iowa 27, Michigan State 20

#6 Missouri @ #14 Nebraska -7.5

I feel even more strongly about this one than the Michigan State loss. For every reason that I KNEW the Tigers would beat Oklahoma last weekend, they will get destroyed in Lincoln. I still don't know how the Huskers got beat at home by Texas, but this team is on a mission, and the black shirts likely got scolded for the 40-spot they gave up against Okie State. The spread says it all. Even Vegas knows this will get ugly for a top-10 team.

Nebraska 38, Missouri 14

And, come early next week, we will sort it all out. Season: 30-11 picking winners; 27-15 against Vegas (Don't bet; just have fun)

Transition Week

Football in full swing. Baseball to tip off a championship. The NBA to throw out the first games. Alright, so maybe I am bit cluttered in the sports brain. But this week is the total transition. With the World Series kicking off (there I go again) tonight, we will soon be hunkered down inside, longing for a bowl of chili and the winter sports that have swept to the top of the ratings.

We'll wait until Friday to really talk about college football and the intrigue that is the NFL... Here's a side bet: Which gets better ratings: The London drama of the 49ers and Broncos this weekend, or any World Series game? I'll go a step further... Does an ABC sitcom do better than Game 1 tonight? I think it's entirely possible, which is sad.

So, who wins? Pitching dominates in the postseason, and the Lincecum-Lee dual will be compelling enough to watch two, maybe 3 games. The Rangers have seemingly been the only team to make it past 162 and hit over the month of October. Don't discount that. Beyond Lincecum (and Lee), who do you like to shut down a game on the mound? Yep, me either. So, let's go with the team that can mash it better. Outside of game 1 and game 4, I think the series lacks real drama... Rangers in 6

I want to go on the record and side with two people I normally don't: Random talk-show emailer and Lou Holtz. First, to the random emailer of "Mike & Mike" a few weeks ago who suggested that all baseball playoff games be on weeknights, away from football. I am all for it. Why? Because the World Series didn't make a dent in the sports landscape in the 24 hours leading up to it. What did? Lebradeosh making their debut and the ankle/shoulder of Favre/Romo. The World frickin Series.

(As for Lou Holtz and his momentary genius, we will get to it on Friday)

Oh, and a quick analysis of the ballyhooed Miami heat debut: Are we sure that wasn't the Cleveland Cavs playing the Celtics. LeBron got his 30, controlled the ball and rendered another guard and big man to being a lesser percentage of their actual ability. Well, except for Bosh. His contract will be an anchor around that franchise by the middle of next season. Amare, Boozer or even Shaq would have been better values.

I'd write more, but I need to post this so my Rangers prediction looks legit...

If I blame the computers...

How can I blame a computer for ruining college football, when everything that makes this forum possible is done thanks to the magic little box. Okay, it's not really the computer's fault, but how much do the trustees, or bosses, or whatever the greedy folks behind the BCS are called LOVE the NFL this week? If it weren't for the pussification of professional football (that's harsh; I actually agree with everything the league is doing, yet reserve the right to judge in a couple weeks when punishments become regular), the big story all week would have been the joke of the BCS standings.

[That, and baseball, which has been REALLY good to watch. Pre-World Series blog coming after it's decided this weekend]

I have paid a TON of attention to college games this season. I've got a good feel for the teams. I've even watched three complete games played by Oklahoma. And I will admit: I actually had to check to see that they were undefeated when the BCS standings came out and they were on top. I thought to myself, 'surely this team lost a game,' and, 'wait, didn't Cincinnati beat them?'

But, it's Friday, it's nice out and I don't want to go on a rant about the BCS when so many well-qualified writers did an eloquent job this week. What I do want to talk about is my comeback in picks. After providing a much-needed lesson a week ago, Cover Two nailed the picks, going 5-0 against the number and 4-1 picking winners (including two upsets; should've had the stones to pick Texas). I'm going to go ahead and give myself a quick 1 victory against Vegas for an impromptu blog advice last night: Mrs. Half of Cover Two and I went to a little party of R-rated pumpkin carving and upon arrival found some gentlemen inquiring about the betting lines of Oregon-UCLA. I wasn't happy with the spread, but the over/under of 61 seemed like a no-brainer. I risked the fine reputation of this blog and endorsed the move (again, kids, no gambling here; well, except for the fact that I was aiding in somebody who was gambling; but, that doesn't mean I support it), and Oregon almost covered the over by themselves.

So, on the season now... 28-9 picking winners and 24-14 against Vegas

This week... When you are on a roll, there is no need to justify your picks. You just do it!

#16 Nebraska, 24 @ #14 Oklahoma State (+6), 31

#13 Wisconsin, 14 @ #15 Iowa (-6.5), 17 - BOB

#6 LSU, 24 @ #4 Auburn (-6), 31

#1 Oklahoma, 35 @ #11 Missouri (+3), 38

Yes, I like home teams. Especially when all of the road teams coming in are puckering a little bit...