5* SEC CONFERENCE GAME OF THE YEAR -- Saturday
At 12:20 pm, our selection is on the Arkansas Razorbacks + the points over South Carolina. The Gamecocks are one of the more over-rated teams in the country (with or without Jadeveon Clowney in the lineup, as he has just 12 tackles and 2 sacks on the season). After winning 27-10 vs. North Carolina (as an 11-point favorite) to open their season, the Gamecocks have failed to cover their following four games. In week 2, they lost by 11 at Georgia, as a 3-point underdog. And then, in Games 3, 4 and 5, they failed to cover vs. Vandy, Central Florida and Kentucky (though they won outright in each of those games). Moreover, South Carolina's lone ATS win this season (vs. North Carolina) doesn't look all that impressive in the rear view mirror, given that the Tar Heels are 1-4 SU and ATS this season, with their only straight-up and pointspread win came when they won by 20, as a 19.5-point favorite vs. Middle Tennessee. The Tar Heels even lost straight-up as a 12.5-point favorite at home vs. East Carolina! This will be a difficult game for South Carolina as they now have to face a desperate Arkansas team coming off of three straight losses. But the Razorbacks were underdogs in all three of those games, including double-digit dogs in the last two, so the fact that the Razorbacks lost all three is not all that surprising. I would be surprised if Arkansas lost here, at home, in this "Homecoming" game. Indeed, college football home dogs of +3 or more points, off 3+ losses are 59-33 ATS vs. conference foes off 3+ pointspread defeats, including 10-1 ATS since Nov. 1998 if our home dog's win percentage is better than .250. More good news for Arkansas: since Nov. 1990, it is a super 13-6 ATS at home vs. conference foes if it lost its previous two games. And, finally, college football road favorites are a dreadful 0-for-9 since Nov. 1991 off 3 straight wins, but 3 straight ATS losses, if they're matched up against a revenging foe off a SU/ATS loss. The Razorbacks lost in Columbia last season, but have dominated the Gamecocks in Fayetteville, with wins in six of the last seven, including the last three by 15 ppg. Arkansas has also covered its last five games as single-digit home underdogs. Make it 6 in a row here. Take the Razorbacks + the points. Good luck, as always...