Before the tut-tutting gets too loud over USC’s “weak Pac 10 schedule” let’s point out a couple of things about the Trojans. First of all, USC has had only 2 home games so far, while playing 5 road games. Unlike their BCS competition, USC did not schedule an automatic win. USC plays 4 non-conference games, with those opponents being at Hawaii (3 straight bowl appearances), Arkansas (6 bowl appearances in 7 years), at Notre Dame (bowls 2 of the past 3 years), and Fresno State (6 straight bowl appearances). There are no “paycheck games” on the USC schedule. Unlike Texas (Louisiana-Lafayette, Rice), Georgia (Louisiana-Monroe), Alabama (Middle Tennessee State, Utah State), and Virginia Tech (Ohio U), USC did not schedule an automatic win. Houston Nutt is under pressure from Arkansas fans, but it is worth noting that the Razorbacks have played top 5 undefeated teams USC, Alabama, and Georgia, with all three of those games on the road. Over 90% of teams in major college football would have gone 0-3 against those monsters.

Did you catch the Houston Texans box score from Sunday’s loss to the Colts? The Texans entered the game with a sensible game plan to keep the game close by running the ball, keeping the clock moving, and avoiding mistakes. It actually worked for a while, as the Texans were tied at the half 14-14 before self-immolating in the second half. But who ever thought a NFL team would ever throw only 9 passes in a game? They intended to pass a bit more than that but David Carr was sacked 5 times and scrambled a number of times, as his 5 running attempts were certainly not all designed runs for him. Who will be the freshest college football team on the November schedule? When Hurricane Wilma forced the postponement of South Florida’s home game against West Virginia it insures that the Bulls will have played only a single game in 34 days when they go to Rutgers on November 5th.

The Breeder’s Cup should be a tremendous event on NBC this Saturday but the average sports fan makes enormous mistakes when they bet on horse racing. Go to www.ConsumerBet.com on Friday morning and read the article entitled “How to Avoid Multi-Thousand Dollar Mistakes That Breeders Cup Bettors Commonly Make.” On Saturday morning we’ll have a free horse play and a free football play up for you on a recorded message at 770-618-8700.

It is tough to remember a team that has lost more “pointspread power” (for lack of a better phrase) than Oklahoma has this year. Last weekend the Sooners were favored by 14 over Baylor at home after being a 36½ -point pick over the Bears last year. Factor in a 3-point home field advantage for each team and that’s a 28½ -point change from last year. The Sooners were favored by 30 over Nebraska at home last year and this season are a 1½ point dog in Lincoln. Adjust for home field advantage and you’re looking at a 25½ difference in perception from last year. We don’t see a lot of pointspread value in noticing that, but it is interesting to see how quickly the Sooners have lost respect in the wagering world. Call 770-618-8700 for free weekend football previews on a recorded 24-hour voice broadcast. And visit www.Vegas5.com, where the combined efforts of ASA, Nelly’s Sportsline, Tom Stryker, Al McMordie, and yours truly have been red hot.

Tommy Bowden learned a great deal from his daddy when it comes to disciplining players. Clemson starting middle linebacker Anthony Waters was suspended for the Tigers 37-7 win over winless Temple last Saturday. Waters was suspended for his role in the brawl the Tigers had against South Carolina 11 months and 2 days before the Temple game. Tommy Bowden was able to announce the suspension after the brawl without mentioning that it wouldn’t be served until he found Clemson’s easiest opponent the following season. If the new 12-game schedule next year does nothing else, it will enable Clemson to schedule a game against Western Carolina or Appalachian State each year for the express purpose of having players serve one game suspensions.

When is a 37-7 win a negative sign for a defense? Clemson allowed winless Temple to notch 14 offensive plays where they gained 12 yards or more. A big part of the big plays for the Owls was the tackling by Clemson. The Tigers tackling was horrible, and after film study Tommy Bowden referenced nearly 20 missed tackles. Clemson defensive lineman Donnell Clark suffered a season ending knee injury, and his performance and leadership will be missed by the Tigers. Clemson has been held under 25 points only once all year and have allowed opponents to score 24 or more 4 times. In competitive conference games Georgia Tech passes the ball excessively. They threw 48 passes against North Carolina and 51 against North Carolina State. That leads to a lot of clock stoppage, more plays, and more points. Series has seen either 42 or 43 points scored each of the past three years (though 91, 59, and 87 the three years before that) but Clemson’s offense is a lot better this year and the Tigers are running no huddle exclusively, another factor that will lead to more plays. The opener of 44 seems low. Take this one over the total.

The news that Houston Astro Craig Biggio’s wife was slapped by a male White Sox fan at Game 2 of the World Series was no big surprise. The White Sox easily have the ugliest and worst behaved fan base in Major League Baseball. Think about the attack on the umpire and the attack on the first base coach in recent years. A Red Sox fan that attended one of the games in the White Sox/Red Sox series told us he was treated extremely poorly, saying that the experience made him long for the comparative civility of Yankee Stadium. Civility of Yankee Stadium? Yikes.

The Dolphins are heading to Baton Rouge to take on the Saints in the first game that New Orleans has played in the state of Louisiana this season. But their home base in San Antonio is relatively close to this site, as is St. Louis, where they played a competitive game last weekend before getting jobbed by the officials (not whining, we weren’t involved). They played in San Antonio the previous week so they’re probably a little less weary than they’ve been at other times this season thanks to modest recent travel. The Dolphins had been playing fairly well from the line of scrimmage in some of their losses but in their short notice game last Friday night they were thoroughly dominated by the Chiefs, getting outgained 462-286 as the Chiefs moved the chains at will, with 24 first downs to only 9 for the Dolphins. With emotion from the Louisiana crowd on their side, look for the Saints to play well on Sunday and get a win. Laying less than a field goal makes sense. Go with the Saints.

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Have a great weekend. Good luck and be careful.