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CFB
Tennessee at Florida (-16-) 3:30 ET CBS
5* Florida -16-
The Florida offense in no way resembles the explosiveness of the Oregon attack unit that demolished Tennessee last week. In the Vols 59-14 decapitation, the Flock gained 687 yards. Now Tennessees problem is on the opposite side of the ball, where Defensive Dandy Florida will neutralize the veteran OL of the Vols much like last year. In the 37-20 Florida beatdown in 2012, the Gators won the line of scrimmage with a 336-83 overland advantage. Florida has had 2 weeks to seethe following a Miami loss in which they outgained the rival Hurricanes 413-212. The -4 net TO advantage by Miami was the major difference in that game. Combined with the Vols +6 net TO margin for the year, it gives us our biggest net TO DIFF advantage of the week, a situation that most always points out a winner. QB Florida Driskel and a trio of OL injured v. Miami, all should be at 100% for this bounceback effort by the Gators. Florida has won 8 straight v. Tennessee, covering 6 of those, with the last 6 by double digits. Lone reason for caution is the 1-8 ATS record of HC Muschamp when laying double digits. This week the TOs turnaround and Florida wins going away.
UFC 165: Jon Jones (-900) vs. Alexander Gustafsson (+700)
Jones (18-1) is the best mixed martial artist in the world and he is the reigning and defending UFC light heavyweight champion.
Currently riding a nine-fight win streak since a controversial DQ loss to Matt Hamill in 2009, Jones can break the record for 205-pound title defenses if he gets through Gustafsson this weekend. And the 26-year-old American really should, as he’s just a more complete fighter than Gustafsson at this point in time with his unique mix of unorthodox strikes, crafty submissions, and a ridiculous reach that makes it nearly impossible for opponents to hit him.
Against Gustafsson, Jones will be taking on the tallest opponent of his career and the UFC is marketing the fight on the strength of that angle, but it doesn’t matter how tall Gustafsson is because Jones is just that damn good.
Gustafsson (15-1) is one of the top light heavyweights in the sport and earned his title shot with wins over the likes of Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, Thiago Silva and James Te Huna.
The 26-year-old has good boxing, he circles very well in the cage with his top-notch footwork, and he also has a nifty submission game. He’s big, strong and young and he trains alongside Phil Davis — the only man to ever defeat him — which has really helped improve his wrestling.
But against Jones, Gustafsson is walking into a trap, because outside of a fluke punch or an in-fight injury to Jones I don’t think he has what it takes to dethrone the champion. Although I am a big fan of “The Mauler,” I really believe this is a terrible matchup for him and I don’t think he has what it takes to win. But we’ll see on Saturday night if he does.
Jones will take the fight to the ground and then he will beat Gustafsson’s face in with his elbows, possibly even opening up the cut that caused the Swede to miss his fight against Gegard Mousasi earlier this year.
I think eventually he’s going to get the submission win, but it wouldn’t surprised me if he wins by TKO either. Regardless, Jones will win this fight, and it will be bloody.
Larry Ness' 10* Non-Conf Rivalry G.O.Y. (85% since 2009)
My 10* Non-Conference Rivalry G.O.Y. is on BYU at 10:15 ET.
The Utes opened the 2013 season with THREE straight home games. They escaped with a 30-26 win over Utah State (kicked a ‘covering’ FG with 19 seconds left), despite allowing 487 yards, then manhandled overmatched Weber St, 70-7. However, the third time was NOT the charm, as in Utah’s Pac-12 conference opener, the Utes lost 51-48 in OT to Oregon St. Now let’s throw out the Weber St game and note that the Utah defense has allowed 77 points and 978 yards in just two games. Utah St ran for 173 yards on the Utes plus QB Keeton threw for 314 yards with two TDs and not a single INT. As for the Beavers, they didn’t bother running, as QB Mannion threw for 443 yards with five TDs and no INTs.
Utah now heads out on the road with a pass D, that in two games vs FBS schools, has allowed 757 yards, seven TD passes and zero INTs in 85 pass attempts (OUCH!). Awaiting Utah is hated rival BYU, in a series which first began in ‘96 (that’s 1896!). Think the BYU faithful will be “up” for this contest? Considering Utah has said it is ending the ”Holy War,” I think it’s safe to say the answer is a resounding YES! The two schools were competitors in the same conference for 113 years, before the Utes moved to the Pac-12 in 2011 and BYU became an Independent.
Now historically, BYU has been known for its passing offense and QBs but just two Saturdays ago, the Cougars gashed Texas for 550 yards rushing in a 40-21 win, eclipsing a 55-year-old team record. It was also the most yards rushing Texas has ever allowed. BYU was led by QB Taysom Hill in the Texas game, as he ran for 259 yards, the second-most rushing yards for any player in BYU history.
Utah has beaten BYU three straight times and with the announcement it is ending the series, BYU head coach Bronco Mendenhall may be willing to amend his claim (not that I believed him anyway), that he does not believe in getting his team higher for one game over another and treats them all the same (give me a break!). Here’s what I do know from a little research. Mendenhall is as good as it gets when his team has extra preparation time. Going back to the beginning of the 2009 season, in season-openers, games off a bye week (like here) or in bowl games, Mendenhall’s BYU teams are 13-1 SU and a MONEY-MAKING 11-2-1 ATS, an 85% winning rate. Lay the points!
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