Birmingham, AL plays sponsor to the Compass Bowl on January seventh with the Pitt Panthers competing with the Mustangs. The Panthers come in following the 1-year Todd Graham experiment at head coach. Graham quit his post on December 14th to take the head coaching job at Arizona State. Defensive Coordinator Keith Patterson will put on the headset for the Panthers in this clash of titans. SMU comes into competition with the threat of the “Death Penalty” passed on in the 1980′s still being debated today. Former Nfl and Hawaii coach June Jones is already in his 4th year on the sidelines of Southern Methodist University. The betting line has this set at Pittsburgh (-3) with an over-under of 47 points.

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Pittsburgh comes into competition with a 6-6 record plus a 4-3 record in the Big East. Winning against #16 South Florida 44-17 on September 29th, they have had one competition against a rated adversary. Pittsburgh’s defense gives up 22.4 ppg, while their offense puts up 25.8 ppg. Junior Quarterback Tino Sunseri comes into the competition with 2,433 passing yards plus a passer rating of 124.8. Junior Running back Ray Graham has totalled 958 rushing yards and 9 Touchdowns to date this year. Sophomore Wide receiver Devin Street is Sunseri’s favorite target catching 48 receptions with 2 Touchdowns. Junior Wide receiver Mike Shanahan is an excellent 2nd target with 35 receptions and 4 Touchdowns.

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SMU comes in the match with a 7-5 record plus a 5-3 record in Conference USA. They’ve gone 1-2 against rated foes this year, winning over #20 TCU and losing to #8 Texas A&M and #11 Houston. The Mustangs offer up 24.5 ppg on defense while their offense averages 25.7 ppg. Depending on the run-and-shoot offense to put up substantial statistics in offense, June Jones has traditional had pass-heavy teams in the past. This Mustangs squad this year has a 1,000 yard rusher, a rarity in the Jones’ method. Senior Quarterback J.J. McDermott with 3,182 passing yards and 16 touchdowns lifts up the passing game. Junior Running back Zach Line has had an excellent year with 1,224 rushing yards and 17 Touchdowns. Senior Wide receiver Cole Beasley with 79 catches and 954 receiving yards and Junior Wide receiver Darius Johnson with 72 catches and 998 receiving yards steady the Mustangs receivers.

The Pittsburgh steelers are matched up vs the Denver broncos in the nfl Playoffs. The Pittsburgh steelers ended as a wild card with an impressive record of 12-4 in the AFC North division, whereas the Denver broncos concluded up with an 8-8 record narrowly claiming champions of the AFC West. The Steelers will be going to Denver to face off vs them at Sports Authority Field at Mile High.

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Denver has loved some success this season and a ton of media hype around qb Tim Tebow after he took over the starting position with the departure of Kyle Orton. They were able to grab some exciting comeback victories as his play in addition to their solid defense has held them in competition in a lot of matches this year.

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Tebow must have confidence and keep calm under pressure to progress in the playoffs and perhaps cement himself as the franchise qb for the Denver Broncos. Former Denver Broncos qb and current VP of operations John Elway has offered Tim Tebow some words of encouragement for the forthcoming game. It will be quite tricky to turn it around vs the solid defense of the Pittsburgh steelers if the Denver Broncos find themselves slipping behind early in this playoff match up. Both teams will count on their defense to keep themselves in the game and grant their offense an opportunity to step up and perform. Steelers qb Ben Roethlisberger has excelled this season and seeks to continue that success in the 1st round of the playoffs. Additionally watch for running back Isaac Redman to step up as Rashard Mendenhall is tending to a knee injury.

Tthe Steelers are scheduled as eight point favorites to progress in the playoffs, likely considering he Denver broncos aren’t going to have an simple time vs the juggernaut Pittsburgh steelers. The over/under on in total points in this game is 35.5.

It all comes down to this as the #1 rated LSU Tigers take on the #2 rated Crimson Tide in the BCS National Tournament Game at the Superdome in New Orleans, LA on January ninth. After winning the national championship in 2009 and furthermore winning it with LSU as a head coach in 2003, Alabama head coach Nick Saban is no stranger to this game. LSU head coach Les Miles is furthermore no stranger at this moment as he has won the national championship in 2007. Two great teams and head coaches clashing on a collision course in what is certain to be an awesome game. The odds makers now have this at Alabama (-1) with the over-under set at 40 points.

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The LSU Tigers come into play unbeaten at 13-0 with an 8-0 record in the SEC. They’ve furthermore gone an incredible 8-0 against rated teams with victories over number 3 Oregon, #25 Mississippi State, #16 West Virginia, #17 Florida, #20 Auburn, #2 Alabama, #3 Arkansas, and #14 Georgia. This game is a rematch of the classic November fifth game at Alabama with the LSU Tigers winning in overtime over the Tide 9-6. The LSU Tigers have an awesome offense rated 12th in the country with 38.5 ppg scored. LSU’s real weapon is their defense which is rated 2nd in the country with merely 10.5 ppg permitted. Senior Quarterback Jarrett Lee with 1,306 passing yards as well as a 152.0 rating mans the LSU Tigers passing attack. With each tabulating over 700 yards on the ground, the tandem of sophomores Michael Ford and Spencer Ware pace the LSU running attack. CB Tyrann Mathieu ended fifth in the Heisman contest whilst nabbing 6 interceptions and gaining 173 yards off of those picks which rate 1st in the country.

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The Alabama Crimson Tide come into this game attempting to avenge their loss to LSU back in November. The Tide has gone 11-1 overall with a 7-1 record in the SEC. They’ve gone 4-1 against the Top 25 this year with victories over #23 Penn State, #14 Arkansas, #12 Florida, and #24 Auburn. The aforementioned game against LSU in November was their merely loss. The Tide has averaged 36.0 ppg on offense with a stellar running game. As great as LSU is on defense, the Tide are even greater at it standing 1st in the country merely giving up a mindboggling 8.8 ppg. The Tide place the offense in sophomore Quarterback AJ McCarron’s hands, McCarron has 2,400 passing yards and a 149.8 passer rating. Junior Running back Trent Richardson ended 2nd in the Heisman while gaining 1,583 rushing yards and 20 td’s on the ground.

When it comes to scheduling, maybe the Lions just are unlucky. First, they complete their regular season against their division foe Green Bay Packers, who also boast the league’s greatest record. They then follow that up by getting the New orleans saints in the 1st round of the playoffs.

Sportsbook

The Jan 7 – Lions against Saints game will be the 2nd meeting of the two squads this season. New Orleans won the 1st match in New Orleans 31-17. This is maybe part of the reason New Orleans is a 10.5 point favorite to beat Detroit this week.

Sportsbook

Another is that New Orleans is on a roll. They have won eight contests in a row coming into this week’s game with Detroit, defeating three other playoff squads during that stretch. Following kicking an enemy competitor with his cleats, defensive celebrity Ndamukong Suh was suspended for two contests, but Detroit managed to pull things together. They won 3 out of their last 4 contests of the season, simply losing a tight game to 15-1 Green Bay. When they last faced New Orleans, they were without Suh, and Detroit is intending the return of his presence to the defensive line is the change they need to stop Drew Brees and the powerful New Orleans offense.

Sadly for Detroit, that New Orleans offense has been amazing for the 2nd half of the season. They have scored more than 40 points in their last three contests, and gone over 40 in four of their last 6. A while back this year in New Orleans they dropped 62 points on Indianapolis, and they are 8-0 in their home stadium this season.

Detroit has had trouble this year against higher quality competition, going 1-5 against playoff squads (simply defeating Denver). Their offense has the potential to be high-flying, and thus it will be up to their defense to keep them in this match. If Suh will make amends for his two-game suspension, this is the time.

After finishing with the greatest record in the league a year ago, and getting terminated in the first round by the Packers, the Atlanta Falcons hope that slipping into the playoffs undetected in 2012 will offer them better results. Atlanta concluded 10-6 this season, earning them a first round wild-card game with the NFC East winning New york giants (9-7).

ONline sports betting

For the Jan 8 – Falcons versus New York Giants game, nonetheless, New York appears to have the momentum going into the playoffs. Sportsbooks have acknowledged this, and made New York a 3-point favorite. This is maybe a surprising position for a team that lost 4 matches back to back in November-December. In order to offer them an opportunity to get to the playoffs, the New York Giants had to depend on huge errors by their division foe Dallas Cowboys. A win over Dallas in week 17 secured them the division title.

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New York competitors could assert that their losing streak this season came when starting running back Ahmad Bradshaw was wounded. Which is a legitimate argument, as 3 of 4 losses in that streak came when Bradshaw was on the sideline. Now that he is back the New York Giants have appeared as if a changed team, winning two must-win matches back to back over difficult tournament (New York Jets and Dallas).

Atlanta has struggled all season against winning squads, though Atlanta won 3 of their last 4 matches arriving into the playoffs. Vs squads that concluded over .500, Atlanta is only 2-4. Just two weeks ago, they were eliminated by the New orleans saints, 45-16.

Both squads are led by quality qbs, the New York Giants by Eli Manning and the Falcons by Matt Ryan. The change in this game, nonetheless, might be in qb strain. The New York Giants defensive line can get to the qb, and registered 48 sacks this year, great for 3rd in the league. The game will be determined by how well Matt Ryan and the Falcons offensive line can resist the strain of the Giants’ defensive front.

The Bengals will be competing against the Houston Texans in the nfl playoffs. The Bengals will travel to Reliant Stadium in Houston for the competition. Cincinnati concluded their year with a record of 9-7 and attained the playoffs this year as a wild card in the AFC North division. After coming out ahead as the leading team in the AFC South this year, Houston concluded with a record of 10-6.

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Both teams have still had their fair share of battles this year with the Bengals losing each and every game against playoff caliber teams and the Houston Texans having serious injuries to qbs Matt Schaub and Matt Leinart. Both qbs were lost for the year with their injuries and rookie T.J. Yates has gotten control. Houston has additionally seen big injuries to linebacker Mario Williams as well as wide receiver Andre Johnson. The two teams have already faced one another in the course of the regular season and the Houston Texans made a last effort comeback attempt with a match winning touchdown pass captured by wide receiver Kevin Walters with mere seconds left on the clock.

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The Bengals will need to try and stay with what has worked for them this year which has been their extraordinary run game with running backs Cedric Benson and Bernard Scott. If they might accomplish this they could have the edge and finally beat a playoff team and advance past the first round for the first time in only over 20 years.

This may come down to the wire yet again as it is going to be a tight one. The Houston Texans are minor faves in spite of a number of injuries to a lot of key celebrity competitors. The over/under for total in total points for this specific game is 38. The line is set with the Houston Texans as three point faves at their home field to the long shot Bengals.

The Seahawks (7-8) will be going to challenge the Arizona Cardinals (7-8) in an NFC West divisional competition. There is a little bit of reason that a victory will allow either squad a winning record despite the fact that each particular squad has dropped just shy of playoff contention this year as they were looking for a wild card berth. Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll has yet to lose a game against the Arizona Cardinals in his stint, but Arizona quarterback Kevin Kolb could return and start for his squad after recouping from a concussion.

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Arizona will have to stop the formidable run game from the Seahawks with foremost rusher Marshawn Lynch seeking to continue to add to his impressive career high of 1,118 yards. Lynch has furthermore scored a td in a squad record eleven contests.

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Both teams are preparing as if this were any other game and would adore to finish strong with a winning record. They both have prospective bright odds ahead with many players being obtained to the Pro Bowl roster including Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald and defensive players Adrian Wilson and Patrick Peterson. Seattle Seahawks safety Earl Thomas was furthermore picked for the Pro Bowl squad and all these leading players should be playing this final battle with the exception of Peterson who’s doubtful with an injury to his left Achilles’ tendon. Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch almost certainly feels he ought to have been chosen for the Pro Bowl honors also and after being left out probably will need to prove why he genuinely does belong there.

This competition will be an interesting one to see who is able to end on a great note and claim a winning record for the 2011 year. The Arizona Cardinals are a favorite over the underdog Seahawks with a spread of -3. The over/under for overall points in this game is 40.5.

This game between the Pittsburgh steelers and the Browns will highlight 2 teams who have distinct goals for the last 2 contests of the year. The Steelers are now in the playoff competition and are simply only getting set for the playoffs. Alternatively, the Cleveland browns are only attempting to save their year with a few more wins following having had a quite negative year. Both teams however will be competing hard even with the difference in their records. It will be a quite near game if both teams play hard.

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The Steelers are now 11-4 and have only come off a huge win vs the St. Louis Rams. The Steelers beat the Rams 27-0 and shown incredible defense whilst the Cleveland browns have lost 5 consecutive contests. The Cleveland browns last game vs the Ravens demonstrated just how difficult it is for the Cleveland browns to score and they’re certainly going to have a tough time with the Steelers defense. However, a quality chunk of the game will rest on the team’s stars and how they are going to play under pressure. Watch for both teams finish with a flurry since the regular season is nearly done.

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The Cleveland browns will hope that Hardesty will control the ground game whilst the Steelers are focusing on Big Ben to drive the squad for major passes that will lead to several touchdowns. The Cleveland browns however will have to come together as a unit to manage to defeat the Steelers as the talent is certainly on Pittsburgh’s side. Both teams will look to play hard and keep it a minimal scoring game but watch for a major performance by Big Ben and the Steelers. The Cleveland browns will just have an opportunity if the Steelers entirely break down offensively but this is highly dubious.

The Philadelphia Eagles (7-8) are going to visit the Redskins (5-10) in an NFC East divisional match in their final game. Both teams are at the bottom of the division rankings and have been removed from playoff contention this year. Philadelphia had a ton of media hype prior to the start of the year being tagged the dream team with their impact in the free agent market.


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However, they have not quite lived up to the especially high anticipations and have had their fair share of challenges this year with injuries to essential players such as quarterback Michael Vick. Due to the fact Eagles head coach Andy Reid is potentially on the hot seat for remaining the squad’s coach next year, they still have something to play for.


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With an injury to his toe, Redskins running back Roy Helu is sketchy to play once again. With essential Eagles defensive players doing well such as defensive ends Jason Babin and Trent Cole, their absence of depth at the running game combined with their weak offensive line will be tough to get over. It’ll be up to Redskins quarterback Rex Grossman to have an awesome passing game for them to have any kind of chance. The Eagles are averaging about 400 yards on offense per game and you are able to anticipate them to do just as well with the pair of a well Michael Vick at quarterback and running back LeSean McCoy. Philadelphia cornerback Asante Samuel isn’t likely to compete with a hamstring injury.

In spite of both teams not earning a playoff spot for the 2011 year, they still would like to end on a good note and come out at the top for the final game of the year. The Philadelphia Eagles are favorites in this particular game to the underdog Redskins with a line of -9. The over/under for points is at 46.5.

Week 17 of the nfl Season is often full of trap games. The game between the Lions and Green Bay Packers in Green Bay is one such game.

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The Lions have had a renaissance season. Not only do they have a winning record, yet they have already qualified for the postseason with a victory over the San diego chargers this last week. Having said all that, nevertheless, the Lions pale by comparison to the Packers who are 14-1 and already beat the Lions 27-15 in Detroit earlier in the season. One has to wonder why odds makers are making the Lions a 3 point favorite in the game despite the fact that everything says this should be a Packers win. The reason is…

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The Packers come into this match with the seed in the NFC for the playoffs. Win or lose, they are going to be the seed so the Packers have nothing to play for. Given this, all signs are the squad will rest key players on its offense and defense. For instance, stud quarterback Aaron Rodgers could play merely the 1st quarter. As the squad tries to get rest for its battered offensive line, this is specifically accurate. Overall, the Packers appear to be set to sleepwalk through this match.

The Lions take a different approach. Although the squad has qualified for among the 2 wild cards in the division, it is now seeking to get the highest seed [5th] possible. The edge of this higher seed means the Lions would play a less strong choice of division victors depending on the results of the other games in week 17. That can be the difference between being one and done in the playoffs or having a deep run. The Lions will be highly enthusiastic for this match all in all.