HOME-BOUND COACH STILL INVOLVED
ST. LOUIS, Missouri (MSNBC)...You just can’t keep a good coach down and the Rams’ Mike Martz proved that this past Sunday. After the coach, recovering at home from a heart problem, had his attempted call to his offensive coordinator, Steve Fairchild, thwarted by team president John Shaw during Sunday’s game against the Saints, he decided he would not be denied. Within minutes, Martz dialed up famous forecaster Vegas Vindicator and told him to select the Texas Longhorns as his "lock" pick this week against Oklahoma State. An excited Weber Kid confirmed the call had been made, noting "Coach certainly knows offense and I couldn’t argue with the choice." Vindy later phoned Martz, who is reportedly a fan of Weber’s weekly forecast, and asked, "Can you cheer me now??!" Shaw explained to reporters that Martz’ call had been intercepted simply because "Steve would’ve exceeded his cell phone minutes and those overage charges are killers!"
Weber attributes the success of his 13-5 Week 8 (62-74, .456 season) to the forecast implants he got recently, making his picks bigger and more attractive!
THE WEBER KID’S 2005 WEEK 9 FORECAST
THURS. OCT. 27
#3 VIRGINIA TECH over #13 Boston College giving 13: With Hokies’ win and cover last Thursday night, Tech is now 11-0 outright and 10-1 ATS on Thursdays. Can’t buck that record here. Tech has taken care of business thus far. Eagles at 6-1 SU are only 8 total points away from 4-3 and were fortunate to get past Clemson and Wake Forest...VT 41 BC 20
SAT. OCT. 29
#1 USC over Washington State giving 30: Coogs have endured three consecutive tough losses...to Stanford by 3, to UCLA by 3 and at Cal by 4...and have four straight defeats altogether to keep them winless in the PAC-10. Trojans’ D is still its weak point, but it was Leinart’s back-up who tossed the INT that cost USC the cover last week...Troy 54 WSU 17
#2 Texas over OKLAHOMA STATE giving 36 ½: "LOCK OF DA’ WEEK". Cowboys can’t possibly stop this offense and even Texas Tech’s scoring machine couldn’t stay close to the Steers. Vindy finally yields to Mighty Longhorns. (Besides...Mike Martz said so!)...Texas 62 OKSU 6
#4 Georgia over #16 FLORIDA (at Jacksonville) taking 4 ½: Florida’s new "No Retreat Law" allows individuals to "stand their ground and meet force with force" should they decide that’s necessary. Guess that means Gators’ Chris Leak can now operate outta’ the shotgun...literally. (That oughta’ cut down on those blitzing linebackers, huh?) ‘Dawgs Shockley is out and Joe Tereshinski, formerly the punter’s personal protector, will step in at quarterback ... Joja’ 19 Florida 16
Utah State over #5 ALABAMA taking 34: Tide could be a bit flat following very lucky victory over Tennessee. Lack of third-down pass protection won’t be an issue here and the schedule-makers were kind to ‘Bama, but Aggies won’t be a complete push-over...Tide 34 USU 6
North Carolina over #6 MIAMI taking 20: Tough pick. Tarheels have held their own against the quality teams on their slate (except in demolition at Louisville). ‘Hurricanes will be rested but maybe a tad rusty having not really been challenged in over a month...Miami 24 UNC 10
North Texas over #7 LSU taking 44: Not unlike Alabama, Bengals needed a breather after back-to-back close wins. Not-so-Mean Green couldn’t come in at a better time for LSU. Vin considered layin’ the lumber, but there’s a good chance of a backdoor cover unless State pitches a shutout...Tigers 45 North Texas 7
STANFORD over #8 Ucla taking 7 1/2: This might be an overreaction to Stanford’s recent success, but the Cardinal has quietly strung together a three-game win streak. Undefeated Bruins have given up only four turnovers in seven games and aren’t likely to stumble entirely, so let’s say...UCLA 27 Stanford 24
#9 Notre Dame: IDLE (next vs. Tennessee)
Maryland @ #10 FLORIDA STATE: OFF
#11 PENN STATE over Purdue giving 15: Though Purdue’s defense is not living up to expectations, the O takes the heat for last week’s loss as the Boilers drove deep twice into Wisky territory only to have two interceptions returned 62 yards and 84 yards for touchdowns. Still, we can’t see them covering this many in Happy Valley...PSU 37 Purdue 13
#12 Ohio State over MINNESOTA giving 4: Buckeyes can stop the run, but can they do it for four quarters? Gophers D has more leaks than the CIA. State should post enough points to hold off late Minny charge...OSU 27 Gerbils 20
#14 Oregon: IDLE (next vs. Cal)
ILLINOIS over #15 Wisconsin taking 19: Curious line that seems to reflect Badgers’ luck more than Illini’s futility of late. Suspicious of the number, we’ll try...Wisky 36 Ilinois 20
#17 Texas Tech over BAYLOR giving 11: No faith in this call. Bears have lost last four in this series by average score of 57-15. Not this time. Baylor is 5-1 ATS and at 4-3 straight up, could go bowlin’ with a victory here or at Mizzou then over Oklahoma State later in the season. Bears haven’t faced this kind of passing game...Tech 35 Baylor 20
#18 West Virginia: IDLE (next vs. Connecticut 11/2)
#19 AUBURN over Mississippi giving 20: Rebels have been competitive this season and before 2004's Auburn win by 21 points, previous four games between these clubs were decided by 8, 6, 7 and 4. Rebels lost by 17 at Tennessee. Tigers missed five (that’s right, sports fans...five!) field goals in three-point OT loss to LSU...Auburn 34 Ol’ Miss 10
#20 Texas Christian over SAN DIEGO STATE giving 6: Aztecs, though improved, are hosting Toads team looking to win at least a share of yet another conference (having already done so in the now-defunct SWC, the WAC and Conference USA) in its first year...TCU 24 SDSU 14
#21 NORTHWESTERN over #25 Michigan taking 3: Wildcats are rolling and look like they want a conference title. Could be Lloyd Carr’s swan song for Michigan team that looks like Big Ten version of bi-polar Georgia Tech Bees...NW 19 Wolverines 16
#22 Fresno State over HAWAII giving 12 ½: Home on the Islands or not, ‘Bows defense, allowing 37 points per game (including shutout of Idaho), is no match for the Bulldogs...FSU 42 Hawaii 17
#23 TENNESSEE over South Carolina giving 14: Vols just can’t catch a decisive break. Gamecocks have a little momentum with three wins in last four. Tennessee special teams are in absolute disarray. A better job by the suicide squads and a reduction of stupid penalties would allow Vols to win and cover here...Rocky Top 34 South Carolina 14
#24 California: IDLE (next @ Oregon)
BETWEEN THE HASHMARKS
First 10,000 Lions fans thru the gate at Beaver Stadium this week get a lovely set of Joe Paterno nesting dolls!
Vikes’ coach Mike Tice plans to punish "Love Boat" participants by forcing THEM to scalp his World Series tickets this year!
Elsewhere in Vikings’ news, troubled RB Onterrio Smith has been accused of sexual battery. The alleged victim never saw the player’s face, but identified distinguishing features on Smith’s Whizzinator during a recent line-up!
With 39 yards on 17 touches, Ricky Williams’ return to the Dolphins hasn’t exactly been a stellar one. And now, this public service announcement... "Go ahead. Tell your quarterback you forgot to pass-protect for him because you were getting stoned. He’ll understand."
Even before Weber’s unique NHL marketing strategies were announced, an ice rink was already under construction at Fenway Park. If they can move the visitors’ dugout to left center field, they could have the world’s largest air hockey table!
"Locked in a Box?": Holy cow! Mark it down! Weber grabs his second "lock" victory behind Northwestern’s upset of Michigan State and stands at 2-6 (.250).
Shoppe Talk: With the Gators idle and Virginia falling to UNC as predicted, the Florida State Injuns have the taxidermy shoppe all to themselves this week at 0-6 following a 31-point decision over Duke (+30).
Vindy’s Week 9 Best Bets: Last Week: 1-1-1 Season: 12-14-1 (.461)
Ohio -3 over BUFFALO, WESTERN MICHIGAN -3 over Kent State, Navy +6 over RUTGERS