Georgia's late cover among worst 'bad beats' of the weekend
Rob Nelson
ESPN Staff Writer
Rob Nelson of ESPN Stats & Information revisits the worst bad beats from the weekend's gambling action.
Note: Closing lines are courtesy of Westgate Les Vegas SuperBook and pick percentages are via Wunderdog Sports.
Friday
Northwestern State Demons at Baylor Bears
Closing line: Baylor -50.5
Baylor was the only ranked team favored by 50 points or more this weekend, and 71 percent of the bets were on the Bears to cover.
Baylor scored on each of its first nine possessions and led 55-0 early in the third quarter. At that point, Northwestern State not only couldn't stop the Bears, but had been unable to muster any sort of offense. With 11 minutes and 13 seconds left in the third quarter, the Demons had twice as many offensive drives that ended with negative yardage (4) than they had first downs (2).
But Northwestern State was able to find the end zone late in third quarter when Brooks Haack punched it in from 3 yards out. Combine that score with Baylor being held scoreless in the final 26 minutes, and the underdog ended up covering. The Bears finished the second half with their fewest yards (105) and first downs (5) after halftime in a game since 2010.
Final score: Baylor 55, Northwestern State 7 (Northwestern State covers)
Saturday
Georgia Bulldogs vs North Carolina Tar Heels
Closing line: Georgia -3.5
SEC favorites went 3-7 against the spread this weekend, but it could have been worse if it weren't for Georgia's late rally.
The Bulldogs -- favored by more than a field goal -- trailed by 10 with just over 16 minutes to play. They closed the third quarter with an Isaiah McKenzie 17-yard touchdown catch and added a safety two plays later. Georgia took a two-point lead on William Ham's 29-yard field goal with 5:27 left in the fourth, but the 41 percent of bettors who took North Carolina were still covering. Less than two minutes later, Nick Chubb broke the game open with a 55-yard touchdown run that put the Bulldogs up by nine and, unfortunately for Tar Heel backers, that margin would hold. Georgia ended up scoring the final 19 points of the game.
Final score: Georgia 33, North Carolina 24 (Georgia covers)
Fresno State Bulldogs at Nebraska Cornhuskers
Closing line: Nebraska -29.5
In a day full of upsets, Fresno State tried to pull a shocker of its own. Two Power 5 teams lost as four-touchdown favorites on Saturday (Mississippi State and Washington State), but Nebraska -- favored by 29.5 -- would have been the largest favorite to go down.
The Cornhuskers allowed the Bulldogs to score the final 10 points of the first half, and took a slim 14-10 lead into halftime. The 43 percent who took Fresno State to cover the big spread had to be feeling pretty good, but what followed was a 30 minutes to forget for those folks. Nebraska outscored the Bulldogs 29-0 in the second half, including a 22-0 edge in the fourth quarter.
The 29-point advantage for the Cornhuskers after halftime marked their best second-half scoring differential in a game since September 2007.
Final score: Nebraska 43, Fresno State 10 (Nebraska covers)
Northern Arizona Lumberjacks at Arizona State Sun Devils
Closing line: Arizona State -27
This marked the last game to kick off Saturday night -- aka, the last chance for bettors to improve/salvage their day. It turned out to be an exciting finish in regard to the spread, unless you were one of the mere 16 percent who took Northern Arizona +27.
Halfway through the third quarter, Arizona State led 10-6 before scoring the next 16 points to go up 20. But when Northern Arizona's Elijah Marks scored on an 87-yard touchdown catch to make it 26-13 with 10:39 left, the Lumberjacks looked prime to cover. The Sun Devils however, would score the final 18 points of the game, including a spread-covering 12-yard touchdown run by Nick Ralston with 2:46 left.
Arizona State's 24 fourth-quarter points were tied for its most in a game in 15 seasons.
Final score: Arizona State 44, Northern Arizona 13 (Arizona State covers)
Rob Nelson
ESPN Staff Writer
Rob Nelson of ESPN Stats & Information revisits the worst bad beats from the weekend's gambling action.
Note: Closing lines are courtesy of Westgate Les Vegas SuperBook and pick percentages are via Wunderdog Sports.
Friday
Northwestern State Demons at Baylor Bears
Closing line: Baylor -50.5
Baylor was the only ranked team favored by 50 points or more this weekend, and 71 percent of the bets were on the Bears to cover.
Baylor scored on each of its first nine possessions and led 55-0 early in the third quarter. At that point, Northwestern State not only couldn't stop the Bears, but had been unable to muster any sort of offense. With 11 minutes and 13 seconds left in the third quarter, the Demons had twice as many offensive drives that ended with negative yardage (4) than they had first downs (2).
But Northwestern State was able to find the end zone late in third quarter when Brooks Haack punched it in from 3 yards out. Combine that score with Baylor being held scoreless in the final 26 minutes, and the underdog ended up covering. The Bears finished the second half with their fewest yards (105) and first downs (5) after halftime in a game since 2010.
Final score: Baylor 55, Northwestern State 7 (Northwestern State covers)
Saturday
Georgia Bulldogs vs North Carolina Tar Heels
Closing line: Georgia -3.5
SEC favorites went 3-7 against the spread this weekend, but it could have been worse if it weren't for Georgia's late rally.
The Bulldogs -- favored by more than a field goal -- trailed by 10 with just over 16 minutes to play. They closed the third quarter with an Isaiah McKenzie 17-yard touchdown catch and added a safety two plays later. Georgia took a two-point lead on William Ham's 29-yard field goal with 5:27 left in the fourth, but the 41 percent of bettors who took North Carolina were still covering. Less than two minutes later, Nick Chubb broke the game open with a 55-yard touchdown run that put the Bulldogs up by nine and, unfortunately for Tar Heel backers, that margin would hold. Georgia ended up scoring the final 19 points of the game.
Final score: Georgia 33, North Carolina 24 (Georgia covers)
Fresno State Bulldogs at Nebraska Cornhuskers
Closing line: Nebraska -29.5
In a day full of upsets, Fresno State tried to pull a shocker of its own. Two Power 5 teams lost as four-touchdown favorites on Saturday (Mississippi State and Washington State), but Nebraska -- favored by 29.5 -- would have been the largest favorite to go down.
The Cornhuskers allowed the Bulldogs to score the final 10 points of the first half, and took a slim 14-10 lead into halftime. The 43 percent who took Fresno State to cover the big spread had to be feeling pretty good, but what followed was a 30 minutes to forget for those folks. Nebraska outscored the Bulldogs 29-0 in the second half, including a 22-0 edge in the fourth quarter.
The 29-point advantage for the Cornhuskers after halftime marked their best second-half scoring differential in a game since September 2007.
Final score: Nebraska 43, Fresno State 10 (Nebraska covers)
Northern Arizona Lumberjacks at Arizona State Sun Devils
Closing line: Arizona State -27
This marked the last game to kick off Saturday night -- aka, the last chance for bettors to improve/salvage their day. It turned out to be an exciting finish in regard to the spread, unless you were one of the mere 16 percent who took Northern Arizona +27.
Halfway through the third quarter, Arizona State led 10-6 before scoring the next 16 points to go up 20. But when Northern Arizona's Elijah Marks scored on an 87-yard touchdown catch to make it 26-13 with 10:39 left, the Lumberjacks looked prime to cover. The Sun Devils however, would score the final 18 points of the game, including a spread-covering 12-yard touchdown run by Nick Ralston with 2:46 left.
Arizona State's 24 fourth-quarter points were tied for its most in a game in 15 seasons.
Final score: Arizona State 44, Northern Arizona 13 (Arizona State covers)
