WNBA BEST BETS !

[Udog]

Armadillo Sports

Monday’s 6-pack:
— Royals 6, Astros 5— Houston has lost 9 of last 12 games.
— Rangers 9, Mariners 8— Texas sweeps the three-game series.
— Padres 12, Cardinals 2— Juan Soto went 3-5 with four RBI.
— Arizona 7, New York 1— Zac Gallen tossed six shutout IP.
— Reds 4, Pirates 2— TJ Friedl homered, knocked in three runs.
— Phillies 5, Mets 2— Nick Castellanos hit his 29th home run.

Quote of the Day
“Obviously that was embarrassing … I’m at a loss for words. Every once in a while in the NFL you get your butt kicked, but this was different.”
Sean Payton, after Sunday’s 70-20 loss in Miami

Monday’s quiz
Which current NFL head coach was a replacement player for the Chicago Bears during the 1987 NFL players’ strike?

Sunday’s quiz
San Diego hosts the Holiday Bowl every December.

Saturday’s quiz
Jose Canseco was the first major leaguer to hit 40+ home runs and steal 40+ bases in the same season, in 1988.

*******************************

Monday’s Den: Wrapping up an NFL Sunday

Chargers 28, Vikings 24
— WR Allen caught 18 balls for 215 yards, also THREW a 49-yard TD pass.
— Vikings had ball on Chargers’ 6-yard line in last 2:00, didn’t score.
— Under Staley, Chargers are 6-2-1 ATS as a road underdog.
— Chargers scored 34-24-28 points in their first three games.

— Vikings lost first three games, by 3-6-4 points.
— Minnesota was 11-0 LY in games decided by 8 or less points.
— Cousins was 32-50/367 passing, with three TD’s.
— Jefferson caught seven passes for 149 yards and a TD.

Colts 22, Ravens 19 OT
— Kicker Matt Gay kicked FG’s of 31-54-53-53-53 yards.
— His 4th 50+-yard FG of the day ended the game in OT.
— Colts are 10-5 ATS in last 15 games as a road underdog.
— Moss carried ball 30 times for 122 yards.

— Ravens lost two fumbles on their first four drives.
— Jackson ran 14 times for 101 yards and Ravens’ only two TDs.
— Baltimore defense has allowed only three TD’s on 34 drives.
— Under is 9-1 in their last ten home games.

Packers 18, Saints 17
— Saints led this game 17-0 at halftime.
— QB Carr hurt his shoulder; backup Winston was 10-16/101 passing.
— Saints ran punt back 76 yards for their second TD.
— Saints’ first three games (2-1) were decided by total of five points.

— Packers in first half: 27 plays, 116 yards, no points.
— Packers in second half: 41 plays, 228 yards, 18 points.
— Saints in second half: 30 plays, 121 yards, no points.
— Saints missed a 46-yard FG with 1:05 left.

Lions 20, Falcons 6
— Detroit outgained the Falcons, 358-183.
— Atlanta ran ball 20 times for only 44 yards.
— Under Smith, Falcons are 5-8-2 ATS in games coming off a win.
— Under is 9-2 in their last 11 games overall.

— Goff threw a 45-yard TD pass for Detroit’s first TD.
— Detroit held the Falcons to 3.1 yards/pass attempt.
— Under Campbell, Lions are 13-9 ATS in games coming off a loss.
— Under Campbell, Lions are 25-11-1 ATS, 5-2 as home favorite.

Browns 27, Titans 3
— Tennessee ran 45 plays for only 94 yards.
— Derrick Henry carried ball 11 times for 20 yards.
— Tennessee has lost nine of its last ten games.
— Under is 8-2 in Titans’ last ten road games.

— Cleveland had 23 first downs, Titans had six.
— Watson was 27-33/289 passing, with two TD’s.
— Opponents have converted only 8-41 third down plays.
— First three games, Cleveland outgained opponents 1,099-501.

Texans 37, Jaguars 17
— Houston led this game 17-0 at halftime.
— Leading 17-10, Texans ran kickoff back 85 yards for a TD.
— Houston has now won 10 of last 11 series games (8-3 ATS)
— Last 2+ years. Houston is 6-1 ATS in AFC South road games.

— Jaguars in first half: 33 plays, 158 yards, two missed FG’s, no points.
— Texans were 9-15 on third down, Jaguars were 5-13.
— Jacksonville is only 11-37 on third down in three games.
— Jaguars are 12-24-1 ATS in last 37 games coming off a loss.

Patriots 15, Jets 10
— New England outgained the Jets, 358-171.
— Patriots were 8-19 on third down, Jets 2-14.
— Patriots’ only TD was a 58-yard pass to Pharaoh Brown.
— New England is 6-2-1 ATS in last nine games as a road favorite.

— Last 5+ years, Jets are 5-12 ATS in AFC East home games.
— First three games, Jets averaged 4.7/5.0/3.4 yards/pass attempt.
— Last two games, Jets are 3-24 on third down.
— Wilson is 8-16 as an NFL starter.

Dolphins 70, Broncos 20
— Miami won its first three games, scoring 36-24-70 points.
— Dolphins scored TD’s on eight of their first nine drives.
— Miami averaged 13.4 yards per pass attempt.
— since 2020, Dolphins are 11-4 ATS as a home favorite.

— Miami had TD plays of 54-79-67-69 yards.
— Dolphins gained 726 yards on 71 plays. 726 yards!!!!
— Miami ran ball for 350 yards, threw for 376 more.
— Russell Wilson is 4-14 as the Broncos’ QB.

Bills 37, Commanders 3
— Bills in first half: 39 plays, 212 yards, one TD, three FG’s.
— Buffalo led 16-0 at halftime.
— Bills are 13-6-1 ATS in last 20 games on natural grass.
— Bills converted 21-41 third down plays in two games.

— Commanders were 1-9 on third down, Buffalo was 9-15.
— Washington turned ball over 4 times on 10 drives.
— Under is 12-4 in Washington’s last 16 games.
— Washington kicked 51-yard FG in last 2:00 to avert shutout.

Seahawks 37, Panthers 27
— Carolina ran ball only 14 times, for 44 yards.
— Panthers were 10-19 on 3rd down, Seattle 3-13.
— In three games, 0-3 Carolina has been outscored, 56-31 in 2nd half.
— Backup QB Dalton was 34-58/361 passing, with two TD’s.

— Seahawks in first half: 41 plays, 208 yards, four FGs (12 points)
— Seahawks in 2nd half: 31 plays, 213 yards, 3 TDs and a FG (25 points)
— Seattle gave up 984 passing yards in its first three games
— Seahawks won eight of last ten series games.

Chiefs (1-1), Bears (0-2) @
— Chiefs led this game 34-0 at halftime; TV took it off the air at that point.
— Bears are 9-28 SU/12-23-2 ATS the last 2+ years.
— Chicago averaged 3.5 yards/pass attempt.
— Fields is 5-23 SU as an NFL starter- they have a problem with him.

— Chiefs in first half: 46 plays, 318 yards, four TD’s, two FG’s.
— Kelce caught seven passes for 69 yards and a TD.
— KC had 12 penalties for 94 yards LW, only 3-15 in this game.
— Chiefs are 10-2 ATS in last 12 games vs NFC opponents.

Cardinals 28, Cowboys 16
— Arizona is 1-2, but led all three games at halftime.
— Cardinals in first half: 35 plays, 288 yards, 2 TD’s, 3 FG’s.
— Conner ran ball 14 times for 98 yards and a TD.
— Prater kicked a 62-yard FG with 0:04 left in first half.

— Dallas had five drives of 56+ yards, but scored only one TD.
— Cowboys were in red zone four times in second half, scored 6 points.
— Cardinals ran ball for 222 yards, were 5-10 on 3rd down.
— Dallas is 28-46 on third down in its three games.

Steelers 23, Raiders 18
— Steelers picked off three passes, were +3 in turnovers.
— Pickett averaged 7.9 yards/pass attempt.
— Pittsburgh is 7-2-1 ATS in last ten games coming off a win.
— Pitt is 27-14-1 ATS in last 42 games when spread was 3 or fewer points.

— First three games, Raiders scored 17-10-18 points.
— Raiders are 11-14 ATS in last 25 games when spread was 3 or fewer points.
— Last three years, Las Vegas is 10-15 ATS in games coming off a loss.
— Since 2017, Raiders are 10-12 ATS as a home favorite.

 

[Udog]

Playoffs resume tomorrow.

 

[Udog]

Armadillo Sports

Tuesday’s 6-pack:
Since 1966, the six QB’s the Chicago Bears drafted in the first round
— Jim McMahon
— Jim Harbaugh
— Cade McNown
— Rex Grossman
— Mitch Trubisky
— Justin Fields

Quote of the Day
“I didn’t take anything positive out of it. It was awful. You sit down? You sit down on a play? You go right down? What happened? I thought you’re trying to win and make plays. You quit on a play? What is going on? It’s disgusting. I wouldn’t keep him. I’ve seen enough of Zach Wilson.”
Joe Namath, talking about Jets’ QB Zach Wilson

Tuesday’s quiz
Jets have won the Super Bowl once; who did they beat in that game?

Monday’s quiz
Sean Payton was a replacement player for the Chicago Bears during the 1987 NFL players’ strike.

Sunday’s quiz
San Diego hosts the Holiday Bowl every December.

*******************************************

Tuesday’s Den: Nobody asked me, but……..​

Eagles 25, Buccaneers 11
— Eagles outgained Tampa Bay, 472-174.
— Philadelphia converted 10-16 third down plays.
— Philly ran the football 40 times for 201 yards.
— Eagles won their first three games, scoring 25-34-25 points.
— Buccaneers’ first 8 drives: 36 plays, 104 yards, a FG and a safety.
— Eagles had four drives in 2nd half: 75-46-55-68 yards.
— Buccaneers are 16-18-3 ATS in last 37 games coming off a win.
— Tampa Bay hasn’t been 3-0 since 2005.

Bengals 19, Rams 16
— Ja’Marr Chase caught 12 passes for 141 yards.
— QB Burrow is playing with injured calf; he was 26-49/259 passing.
— Bengals are 8-5-1 ATS in last 14 games as a home favorite.
— Cincinnati is 7-3-2 ATS in last 12 games vs NFC opponents.
— Rams have scored one TD on their last 19 drives.
— LA converted only one of 11 third down plays.
— Rams are 4-10-2 ATS in last 16 games vs AFC opponents.
— Under is 8-1-1 in their last ten road games.
Rams scored TD with 1:03 left to push the spread, second week in a row they scored in the last 2:00 to push the spread.

— So far this season, NFC West teams are 7-0-1 ATS outside their division.
NFC North teams are 2-7 ATS outside their division.
NFC East teams are 4-5 ATS outside their division.
AFC West teams are 3-7 ATS outside their division.
League-wide, home favorites are 2-6 ATS in divisional games.
League-wide, home underdogs are 3-4 ATS in divisional games.

— College football conference trends:
Nationwide, home favorites in conference games are 15-9 ATS.
Nationwide, home underdogs in conference games are 14-12 ATS.
AAC teams are 14-23 ATS outside the conference.
ACC non-conference favorites are 11-7 ATS.
Big X non-conference road favorites are 2-6 ATS.
Big 14 teams are 13-19 ATS outside the conference.
Pac-12 non-conference favorites are 13-7 ATS.
Mountain West non-conference road underdogs are 12-4 ATS.
SEC teams are 2-7 ATS in non-conference games away from home.
Sun Belt non-conference favorites are 8-5 ATS.

— Word of the Day: Patience— the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset.
Remember, you can’t be a doctor without patience.

— Jonathan Weitz is Clemson’s kicker; he was the backup kicker for four years, but this year he was studying for his Masters’ degree in Data Science and Analytics online at Clemson while living in Charleston— he wasn’t on the football team.
But Robert Gunn III missed three field goals and an extra point in the Tigers’ first three games this year, and Dabo Swinney came calling.
Weitz missed a 30-yard FG with 1:45 left Saturday against Florida State and the score tied. Clemson lost in overtime; Weitz has a job lined up in New York City in December. It isn’t as a kicker.

— Virginia’s kicker is a 34-year old ex-Marine. Matt Ganyard spent more than a decade as a Cobra helicopter pilot before returning to Charlottesville to pursue his MBA- he is married with two kids.

— Texas Longhorns have a kicker named Bert Auburn; you’d think the kid would go to school in the SEC. Imagine if he kicked at Alabama?

— Chicago Bears had $100,000 worth of equipment stolen from Soldier Field last week; the thieves tore down a security fence and drove the equipment out of a garage.
If the thieves had stolen Justin Fields’ helmet/shoulder pads, then they would’ve at least been helping the ball club.

— Sunday in Miami, the Dolphins were the first team to score 14+ points in every quarter of a game since the Detroit Lions in the 1957 NFL Championship Game vs Cleveland.
Yes, the Lions once played the Browns for the NFL title. Long time ago, though.

— From 2017-23, Mike Trout has played in 678 of the Angels’ 1,032 games, when he was 25-31 years old. One of the most important abilities is availability, which Trout doesn’t have a lot of.

— Sunday night in Las Vegas, the Raiders had a 4th-and-4 at the Pittsburgh 8-yard line with 2:25 to play, trailing 23-15; they kicked a field goal, wound up losing 23-18.
Since the 2-point conversion started in the NFL in 1994, the Raiders are the only team to kick a field goal in the last 3:00 of a game when they trailed by 8 points, when they had 4th down and 5 or less yards to go.
Passing up a 4th-and-4 doesn’t show a lot of faith in your offense.

— Happy 90th birthday to Hubie Brown, the great basketball coach who was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2005.
Coach Brown has been an excellent TV analyst for decades now; he still does 15 games a year for ESPN. Long, long time ago, fall of 1984, I met coach Brown before an exhibition game in Glens Falls— his Knicks were playing a game against the Bulls and a rookie named Michael Jordan.
I was an assistant high school coach back then, an analytics-based guy, and I asked coach Brown some questions about what numbers he used in coaching. He was very polite to me and gave me a few minutes, which I always appreciated.

Happy birthday, coach!!!

 

[Udog]

WNBA
Dunkel

Tuesday, September 26

WNBA

Tuesday, September 26

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Connecticut @ New York
Connecticut
Connecticut is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Connecticut's last 5 games on the road
New York
New York is 17-3 SU in its last 20 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of New York's last 6 games

Dallas @ Las Vegas
Dallas
The total has gone OVER in 15 of Dallas's last 17 games
Dallas is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games
Las Vegas
Las Vegas is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Las Vegas is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

[CNOTES]

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26​

Game	Time(ET)	Pick	Units
CON at NY	08:00 PM	CON +9.0 U 159.0	+500 +500
DAL at LV	10:00 PM	LV -10.5 O 175.0	+500 +500

 

[CNOTES]

Completed Picks​

Past Completed Picks

Date	W-L-T	%	Units	Record
09/26/2023	1-2-1	37.50%	-600	Detail
09/24/2023	1-1-0	50.00%	-50	Detail
09/20/2023	2-0-0	100.00%	+1000	Detail
09/19/2023	3-1-0	75.00%	+950	Detail
09/17/2023	2-2-0	50.00%	-100	Detail
09/15/2023	2-2-0	50.00%	-100	Detail

 

[CNOTES]

WNBA PLAYOFF BEST BETS !

09/26/2023.......................1 - 2 - 1.....................33.33%.................- 6.00
09/24/2023.......................1 - 1...........................50.00%.................- 0.50
09/20/2023.......................2 - 0........................100.00%.................+10.00
09/19/2023.......................3 - 1.........................75.00%...................+ 9.50
09/17/2023.......................2 - 2.........................50.00%...................- 1.00
09/15/2023.......................2 - 2..........................50.00%...................- 1.00
09/13/2023.......................2 - 2 ........................50.00%....................- 1.00

TOTALS..............................10 - 9 - 1..................52.63%....................+ 10.00

 

[Udog]

Armadillo Sports

Wednesday’s 6-pack:
— Mariners 6, Astros 2— Seattle trails Houston by half-game for last AL Wild Card slot.
— Phillies 3, Pirates 2— Phillies clinch a playoff spot.
— Orioles 1, Nationals 0— Kyle Bradish tossed 8 shutout IP.
— Braves 7, Cubs 6— Atlanta scored twice on dropped fly ball in 8th inning.
— When the Cubs lost, Milwaukee clinched the NL Central.
— Arizona 15, Chicago 4— Christian Walker homered twice, had 6 RBI.

Quote of the Day
“I’ve been around this long enough to know that people are impatient. I’m impatient. The honeymoon is going to last a certain amount of time, and then it’s going to be on us and on me.”
Washington Commanders’ owner Josh Harris

Wednesday’s quiz
In the old TV show Las Vegas, what well-known actress played James Caan’s mother?

Tuesday’s quiz
Jets have won the Super Bowl once; they beat the Baltimore Colts 16-7 in that game- the Colts were in the NFL back then, the Jets in the AFL, before the leagues merged.

Monday’s quiz
Sean Payton was a replacement player for the Chicago Bears during the 1987 NFL players’ strike.

********************************************

Wednesday’s Den: Mid-week musings…….

— NC State is going to unveil a statue of basketball great David Thompson outside its arena on December 6; he led the Wolfpack to the 1974 national title, was a three-time All American, and wound up playing in the ABA/NBA for nine seasons.

Put it this way; when Michael Jordan was a kid, Thompson was his favorite player, and he was a lot like Jordan, but dunking was illegal back in those days, and ESPN didn’t exist yet, so a lot of his accomplishments fell thru the cracks a little, but he was a great, great college player.

— Ohio State was a 3-point favorite at Notre Dame last week; Buckeyes trailed 14-10, but scored on a 1-yard TD with 0:01 left to win the game- they led 16-14, with 0:01 left.

At that point, only two ways they can lose the game:
1) Notre Dame runs the ensuing kickoff back for a TD

2) Notre Dame blocks the PAT, runs it back for 2 points and a tie, which forces OT.

It is coaching malpractice to even try the PAT; you a take a knee and go home 16-14 winners, which would be a bad beat for anyone who bet on Ohio State.

But Ohio State kicked the PAT and won 17-14, bailing out Buckeye backers.

— In his great career, Rams’ DT Aaron Donald has sacked 51 different quarterbacks.

— Cleveland Browns might be an underrated team; so far this season, the Browns have 64 first downs, their opponents 21. Only game Cleveland lost, their offense gave up two TD’s to the Steelers’ defense in a 26-22 loss- they allowed 3 points in both of their wins.

— Kelce brothers are all over TV now; their mother is even in a couple commercials.

— Dallas Cowboys on their first drive of the third quarter:
35 plays, 197 yards, a TD and two FG’s.

Cowboys’ opponents on their first drive of the third quarter:
13 plays, minus-1 yard, 3 punts.

Dallas coaches are doing a good job at halftime.

— Chicago Bears on their first drive of the third quarter:
12 plays, 7 yards, 3 punts.

Bears’ opponents on their first drive of the third quarter:
31 plays, 228 yards, 3 touchdowns

Bears coaches need to make better adjustments at halftime.

— Term of the Day: hedge fund- A hedge fund is a limited partnership of private investors whose money is managed by professional fund managers who use a wide range of strategies, including leveraging or trading of non-traditional assets, to earn above-average investment returns.

— Whatever happened to Jon Gruden? Few years ago he was everywhere on TV, then he went to coach the Raiders and that didn’t go well. You’d think he would’ve wound up back on TV, but he hasn’t. He did some consulting work with the Saints/Derek Carr this summer, but you’d think a coach who has won a Super Bowl would be able to get another coaching job, or a TV job.

I guess suing the NFL/Roger Goodell over the leaking of e-mails Gruden sent a long time ago wasn’t a great idea.

— Pittsburgh Pirates started the season 20-8; they’re 33-29 in their last 62 games. Not bad.

Problem is, in between there, the Pirates went 21-46. Do they have enough talent to become a contender next year?

— Cincinnati Reds led Pittsburgh 9-0 Saturday, wound up losing 13-12, a horrific loss for a team trying to make an unlikely playoff run. Reds should’ve added pitching at the trade deadline, maybe they’d be happier this week.

— Jets finally signed a third QB, Trevor Siemian; he’s started 30 NFL games in his career, going 13-17 in those games. His last win came back in 2017, playing for the Broncos. He was also on the Jets on 2019, starting one game, against Cleveland.

Chad Henne turned down a chance to be a backup for the Jets; he’s started 54 games in his NFL career, but only one since 2014. Henne was Patrick Mahomes’ backup in Kansas City the last three years, which got him a Super Bowl ring and a Subway commercial.

— Chargers’ WR Mike Williams tore his ACL, is out for the year.

— Kentucky beat Vanderbilt 45-28 last week; their DB Maxwell Hairston scored two TD’s on pick-6’s, a pretty good day for him.

— Was disappointed that HBO pulled the plug on their show Winning Time, which was about the Magic Johnson-era Lakers. They did it at a weird time in the show, right after the Lakers lost a Finals series to the Celtics, you’d think they’d at least end it on a bright note.

— San Diego Padres are amazingly 0-12 in extra innings this season, 7-22 in one-run games; they’re expected to cut $50M off their payroll next year, meaning Hader/Snell are both going to bolt to other teams, plus Juan Soto is likely to be traded.

— RIP to the great third baseman Brooks Robinson, who passed away at age 86. He played with the Orioles for 23 years, helping them win four AL titles and two World Series. A tremendous fielder, he also hit 268 home runs. RIP sir.

 

[Udog]

Playoffs resume Friday.

 

[CNOTES]

Thursday’s 6-pack:
best matchups for ACC-SEC basketball challenge in late November:
— Tennessee-North Carolina
— LSU-Syracuse
— Florida-Wake Forest
— Miami-Kentucky
— Duke-Arkansas
— Clemson-Alabama

Quote of the Day
“That’s why I’m going to shut it down. … I’m going to go get my body patched up again for about the 80th time and I’m going to try to go get healthy and I’m in no rush.”
Terry Francona

Thursday’s quiz
When Michael Jordan played minor league baseball for the Birmingham Barons, what number did he wear?

Wednesday’s quiz
In the old TV show Las Vegas, June Lockhart played James Caan’s mother.

Tuesday’s quiz
Jets have won the Super Bowl once; they beat the Baltimore Colts 16-7 in that game- the Colts were in the NFL back then, the Jets in the AFL, before the leagues merged.

********************************************

Thursday’s Den: Doing some thinking out loud……..​

— Wednesday was the Cleveland Guardians’ last home game this season, the last home game for manager Terry Francona, who is retiring after this season.
Francona has had a great career as a manager; he seems to be universally loved by people who cross paths with him, especially the Cleveland TV guys. I’d like for him to get job at FOX or ESPN, so we can learn from him over the next few seasons.
Francona’s managerial career:
1997-2000— Phillies 285-363, not so good
2004-11— Red Sox— 744-552, won two World Series
2013-23— Indians/Guardians— 919-755, won AL pennant in 2016
This is a Hall of Fame career; hopefully, he’ll get voted in.
Oh yeah, he also managed the Birmingham Barons the year Michael Jordan played for the Barons. That had to be quite an experience.

— It is early in the season, but here is so info on how NFL teams are doing on drives that start 75+ yards from the goal line— both offense and defense.
Lot of times, teams score on short drives or on defensive TD’s, but can an offense drive 75+ yards for a TD? That way, a team can still score points, even if they don’t get lot of turnovers.

— Offenses with best points/drive on drives that start 75+ yards from goal line:
Dolphins 4.23
Chargers 3.12
Cowboys 2.93
Mariners 2.60
Vikings 2.54

— Defenses with best points/drive on drives that start 75+ yards from goal line:
Browns 0.04
Steelers 0.54— Defensive TD’s count towards these numbers.
Bills 0.68
Cowboys 0.69
Patriots 0.81

— Offenses with worst points/drive on drives that start 75+ yards from goal line:
Jets 0.22
Giants 0.67— They gave up a defensive TD and a TD on a blocked FG.
Commanders 0.73
Browns 0.77— Gave up two defensive TD’s to the Steelers
Jaguars 0.89

— Defenses with worst points/drive on drives that start 75+ yards from goal line:
Broncos 3.61— They’ve given up 105 points in last two games.
Chargers 3.13
Raiders 3.00
Bears 3.00
Seahawks 2.83

— Chargers won 28-24 in Minnesota Sunday, despite losing field position by 16 yards; you almost never see a team win a game with such a disadvantage in field position.

— Word of the Day: Impasse— a situation in which no progress is possible, especially because of disagreement.

— Was reminded Monday night that when the Rams lose, I need to stay away from social media, because there are a lot of front-running, disloyal jerks out there.
Rams lose to the Bengals 19-16 Monday night, and all of a sudden, there are a lot of geniuses on Twitter ripping Sean McVay for various things, because hey, they know more about football than he does.
Oy.

— There was a big trade in the NBA Wednesday:
Milwaukee got Damian Lillard— he is 33 and has $200M left on his contract.
Portland got Jrue Holiday and DeAndre Ayton- they figure to trade free agent-to-be Holiday.
Phoenix got Jusuf Nurkic
Does this trade make the Bucks the preseason favorite for this year?

— Miami Marlins are contending for a playoff spot, the Mets have had a dismal season and right now, the Marlins are steamed because their game in New York Tuesday was rained out, because the Mets’ ground crew didn’t put the tarp on the field at Citi Field Saturday and it rained a lot, so the field was supposedly still unplayable Tuesday.
Miami wanted to use P Braxton Garrett Tuesday and then again Sunday, the last day of the season, but now they won’t be able to, unless he goes on three days’ rest Sunday. Not ideal.
The Mets say they just made a mistake, nothing intentional about it.

— Bill Dickey was a Hall of Fame catcher a long, long time ago; he lived in Little Rock, AR, where for a while, his paperboy was a young man named Brooks Robinson.

— The father of Diamondbacks’ OF Alek Thomas was the strength coach for the White Sox for like 20 years, so had to be weird this week for Thomas to be playing against the Pale Hose, like coming home again.

— Michigan State officially fired football coach Mel Tucker, which should keep lawyers for both sides busy for a while. Tucker was making $9.5M a year; they fired him for cause, ‘cuz they do not want to give him any more money.

— Glad to hear that the writers’ strike in Hollywood is over; now TV shows/movies can resume production.

 

[Udog]

Playoffs resume tomorrow.

 

[CNOTES]

Friday’s 6-pack:
Thru three weeks, NFL leaders in passing yardage:
1,075— Kirk Cousins, Minn
1,024— Tua Tagovailoa, Miami
939— Justin Herbert, LAC
910— Matthew Stafford, Rams
906— CJ Stroud, Hst
819— Jared Goff, Det

Quote of the Day
“I love mankind…….Its people I can’t stand.”
Linus, from the Peanuts comic strip

Friday’s quiz
Last time the Baltimore Orioles made the playoffs, who was their manager?

Thursday’s quiz
When Michael Jordan played minor league baseball for the Birmingham Barons, he wore number 45.

Wednesday’s quiz
In the old TV show Las Vegas, June Lockhart played James Caan’s mother.

*********************************************

Friday’s Den: Wrapping up a busy Thursday​

— Miami Marlins scored two runs in top of ninth Thursday, led Mets 2-1 when rain delayed the game; after a delay of 3:17, they suspended the game around 1:00 am, which complicates things.
Marlins lead the Cubs by half a game for last Wild Card slot; if Thursday’s game needs to be finished to impact the playoff race, Marlins will return to New York to finish the game Monday.
If the game doesn’t impact the playoff race, the score reverts back to the 8th inning, the game won’t be completed, and the Mets will win the game, 1-0.

— Lions 34, Packers 20
Detroit in first half: 42 plays, 259 yards, 27 points.
Green Bay in first half: 23 plays, 54 yards, 3 points.
Detroit is 11-3 ATS in last 14 games with spread of 3 or less points.
Under Campbell, Lions are 26-11-1 ATS.
Last two games, Green Bay was outscored 44-3 in first half.
Total yardage: Detroit 401, Green Bay 230
Lions are 11-2 ATS in last 13 games vs Green Bay.
Detroit has beaten the Packers four times in row for first time since 1983.

— In their first three games, Cleveland Browns have allowed only one TD on 33 drives, and that TD was a 71-yard TD pass by Pittsburgh.

— Jacksonville State 35, Sam Houston State 28 OT
Jax State tied game on a 28-yard TD pass/2-point conversion with 0:13 left.
Sam Houston led game 21-7 at halftime.
JSU RB Jackson carried ball 13 times for 129 yards and a TD.

— Tulsa 48, Temple 26
Tulsa ran for 289 yards, converted 9-15 on third down.
Temple QB EJ Warner was 27-49/269, with two TD passes.

— Western Kentucky 31, Middle Tennessee 10
Hilltoppers led 23-3 at halftime.
WKU converted 10-19 third down plays.

— Only two baseball players EVER have hit:
.300+ career batting average
500+ home runs
3,167+ hits
1,800+ RBI
600+ doubles
Henry Aaron and……..Miguel Cabrera

— Word of the Day: Serendipity— A chain of events that occurs in a favorable way.

— Ronald Acuna stole his 70th base Wednesday, making him the first player ever with 40+ home runs, 70+ stolen bases in the same season.

— Happened to be watching the Pirates-Phillies game last night when Angel Hernandez called Bryce Harper out on a check swing, a truly horrible call— it wasn’t close, and I didn’t care who won the game, it was just an awful call.
Harper went on tilt, walked down to 3B while he yelled at Hernandez. At first I thought he was getting tossed on purpose, since the Phillies are already in the playoffs, but you could tell he was genuinely ticked off. Replays showed what a bad call it was.

— Baltimore 2, Boston 0— Orioles win their 100th game, clinch the AL East title.
Orioles signed a new 30-year lease at Camden Yards, good for the fans in Baltimore.

— Braves 5, Cubs 3
Atlanta clinched home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.
Cubs fell a half-game behind Marlins in the Wild Card race.

— Mariners 3, Rangers 2— JP Crawford’s 2-run double in bottom of the ninth moved Seattle within a game of the Astros for the last playoff spot in the AL.

— USFL/XFL are going to merge, a smart move that will make spring football prominent for years to come. Details haven’t been announced yet, but this is a good move.

— A reminder that this Sunday, the last day of baseball’s regular season, every game starts at 3:00 Eastern time.

— If the baseball playoffs started today (they start Tuesday):
NL: Braves, Brewers, Dodgers. Wild Cards- Phillies, Arizona, Marlins
AL: Orioles, Twins, Rangers. Wild Cards- Rays, Blue Jays, Astros

 

[Udog]

WNBA
Dunkel

Friday, September 29

WNBA

Friday, September 29

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

New York @ Connecticut
New York
New York is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games on the road
New York is 18-3 SU in its last 21 games
Connecticut
Connecticut is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
Connecticut is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games when playing at home against New York

Las Vegas @ Dallas
Las Vegas
Las Vegas is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Las Vegas is 15-2 SU in its last 17 games when playing Dallas
Dallas
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Dallas's last 5 games at home
Dallas is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

[CNOTES]

Saturday’s 6-pack:
Best NFL teams in the red zone this season (thru 3 weeks):
6.20— Ravens (62 points/10 drives)
6.00— Chiefs
5.93— Dolphins
5.89— Packers
5.75— Chargers
5.60— Bears (only five drives)

Quote of the Day
“Hope it’s up to your standards. I didn’t know I was a poor man’s anything.”
Jared Goff Thursday night, after Ryan Fitzpatrick called him “…..a poor man’s Matt Ryan”

Saturday’s quiz
Where did Jared Goff play his college football?

Friday’s quiz
Last time the Baltimore Orioles made the playoffs was in 2016; Buck Showalter was their manager.

Thursday’s quiz
When Michael Jordan played minor league baseball for the Birmingham Barons, he wore number 45.

***********************************************

Saturday’s Den: Random stuff with the weekend here……​

— Marlins 4, Pirates 3
Miami trailed 3-0 in 8th inning, scored four runs in top of the 8th.

— Brewers 4, Cubs 3 (10)
Cubs tied game after trailing 3-0 in 8th inning.
Carlos Santana got the game-winning hit.
Cubs/Reds are tied, 1.5 games behind the Marlins for the last playoff spot.

— Astros 2, Arizona 1
Jose Urquidy got a spot start, threw six scoreless IP.
Jose Abreu’s two-run double was the game-winning hit.

— Mariners 8, Rangers 0— Seattle stays within a game of Houston in the Wild Card race; Texas leads the Astros by a game in AL West.

— Royals 12, New York 5— Carlos Rodon faced eight batters, threw 35 pitches, gave up six hits, walked two guys— all eight hitters scored. It was the worst start by any MLB pitcher since 2019, when Stephen Matz faced eight guys, and they all got on base.
Rodon is in the first year of a six-year, $162M contract. Yikes.

— San Francisco Giants fired manager Gabe Kapler Friday, two years after his Giants went 107-55; the other three years he managed the Giants:
2020— 29-31
2021— 107-55
2022— 81-81
2023— 78-81

— Texas Rangers have 30 saves this year; they’ve blown 33 saves. No bueno.

— Louisville 13, NC State 10
Wolfpack led 10-0 at halftime.
Cardinals outgained NC State 306-201; Wolfpack had only 9 first downs.
Louisville kicked a 53-yard FG with 5:32 left for the winning score.

— Oregon State 21, Utah 7
Beavers outgained Utah, 358-198
Utah’s starting QB still hasn’t played this season.
Both teams are 4-1 now.

— Louisiana Tech 24, UTEP 10
Tech led 17-7 at halftime.
Neither team completed half their passes
Tech was 3-11 on third down, UTEP 3-18.

— BYU 35, Cincinnati 27
First score of game was a pick-6 for BYU.
BYU QB Slovis threw TD passes of 22-59 yards.
Bearcats outgained BYU, 498-295

— Word of the Day: Quagmire- an awkward, complex, or hazardous situation.

— Los Angeles Chargers have their bye next week, in Week 5; the last nine years, Chargers are 1-8 ATS in the game before their bye.

— Chicago Bears QB Justin Fields is 5-23 SU/9-18-1 ATS as an NFL quarterback; Bears host Denver this week, a team that lost 70-20 last week, but Denver is favored by 3.5 points.

— Green Bay’s Jordan Love is 2-3 in his first five NFL starts.
Aaron Rodgers was 2-3 in his first five NFL starts; so was Brett Favre.

— 21 of the 32 head coaches in the NFL are in their first NFL head coaching job; guys who get fired in the NFL are more likely to go off to college jobs (Matt Rhule, Jim Mora Jr, Lane Kiffin, Nick Saban come to mind).
How come no one has given Dan Quinn another shot at being a head coach? Few years ago, the guy was winning a Super Bowl 28-3. You’d think he would get hired by someone.

— Only one 0-4 NFL team made the playoffs that year: the 1992 San Diego Chargers.

— Thru Thursday’s games, 1,137 baseball games went over the total this season, 1,136 games stayed under the total.

— Minnesota Twins have struck out 1,629 times this season, the most by any team, ever.

— A reminder that this Sunday, the last day of baseball’s regular season, every game starts at 3:00 Eastern time.

— Best college football teams against the spread:
4-0 ATS: Liberty, Oklahoma, Oregon, Penn State, UNLV
3-0-1 ATS: Rutgers, Syracuse

— If the baseball playoffs started today (they start Tuesday):
NL: Braves, Brewers, Dodgers. Wild Cards- Phillies, Arizona, Marlins
AL: Orioles, Twins, Rangers. Wild Cards- Rays, Blue Jays, Astros

 

[Udog]

Playoffs resume tomorrow.

 

[CNOTES]

Sunday’s 6-pack:
Worst NFL teams in the red zone this season (thru 3 weeks):
3.82— Texans (42 points/11 drives)
4.00— Jets, Titans
4.10— Vikings, Commanders
4.25— Raiders, Buccaneers
4.27— Cowboys
4.45— Broncos

Quote of the Day
“We’re not the hunted, because we’re going to stay on the hunt. If you’re hunting us, you won’t have to look far. We’re gonna be on your front porch.”
Lions’ coach Dan Campbell

Sunday’s quiz
Who was manager of the Astros, before Dusty Baker?
Hint: he manages another MLB team now

Saturday’s quiz
Jared Goff played his college football for the Cal Bears.

Friday’s quiz
Last time the Baltimore Orioles made the playoffs was in 2016; Buck Showalter was their manager.

****************************************

Sunday’s Den: Wrapping up a sports Saturday…….​

— Baylor 36, UCF 35
UCF led 35-7 with 4:00 left in third quarter.
Down 35-26, Baylor scored on 72-yard fumble return with 6:02 left.
Baylor kicked game-winning field goal with 1:21 left.

— Ole Miss 55, LSU 49
These teams need to recruit A LOT OF defensive players this winter.
Total yardage in game: Ole Miss 706, LSU 637
Rebels had 11 penalties for 120 yards, still scored 55 points.
Ole Miss scored two TD’s in last 5:09 to get the win.

— Georgia 27, Auburn 20
Auburn led 17-10 with 2:00 left in third quarter.
Georgia threw 40-yard TD pass for game-winning score with 2:52 left.
Dawgs’ TE Bowers caught 8 passes for 157 yards and that TD.

— USC 48, Colorado 41
USC led this game 34-7 at one point.
Colorado was 9-18 on third down, Trojans 3-9
USC QB Williams was 30-40/403 yards, with six TD passes.
Colorado QB Sanders was 30-45/371 yards, with four TD passes.

— Notre Dame 21, Duke 14
Notre Dame drove 95 yards, scored game-winning TD with 0:31 left.

— Marshall 41, Old Dominion 35
ODU led 21-3 with 10:00 left in second quarter.
Both teams turned ball over three times.
ODU lost despite running ball for 339 yards (10.9 yards/attempt).

— Appalachian State 41, Louisiana-Monroe 40
App State kicked a 54-yard FG at the gun for the road win.
App State was 7-13 on third down, ULM was 3-11.

— Word of the Day— Loyalty— Giving or showing firm and constant support or allegiance to a person, group of people or institution.

— Upsets of the Day:
Bowling Green (+21) 38, Georgia Tech 27
West Virginia (+13) 24, TCU 21
Baylor (+8) 36, Central Florida 35
Buffalo (+3) 13, Akron 10, OT
South Florida (+3) 44, Navy 30

— 12 teams for the baseball playoffs are set; AL West hasn’t been decided yet, with Rangers trying to clinch with a win Sunday.

— Marlins 7, Pirates 3
Miami clinches its first full-season playoff berth since 2003.
Because of this, Mets win Thursday’s game vs Miami, 1-0 in 8 innings- the score reverts to the 8th inning— the ninth inning won’t be finished Monday.

— Rangers 6, Mariners 1
Rangers are in playoffs, need one more win to clinch AL West.
Mariners have been eliminated.

— Astros 1, Diamondbacks 0
Astros are in playoffs, can still win AL West.
Diamondbacks also clinched playoff spot Saturday.

— Padres 6, White Sox 1
San Diego is 81-80; when they won Friday night, it put them at .500 for first time since May 11, when they were 19-19.

— Bowling Green 38, Georgia Tech 27— ACC teams aren’t supposed to lose to MAC teams; losses like this get coaches fired.

— Penn State 41, Northwestern 13
PSU led 34-13 with 2:20 left; they were favored by 26 or 27 points.
Nittany Lions threw a 30-yard TD pass with 2:20 left. On a first down play.
QB took snap, faked taking a knee, then stood up and threw to a wide-open receiver.
Coaches are trying to cover spreads now; be advised if you like to bet on dogs.

— If the baseball playoffs started today (they start Tuesday):
NL: Braves, Brewers, Dodgers. Wild Cards- Phillies, Arizona, Marlins
AL: Orioles, Twins, Rangers. Wild Cards- Rays, Blue Jays, Astros

 

[Udog]

WNBA
Dunkel

Sunday, October 1

WNBA

Sunday, October 1

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

New York @ Connecticut
New York
New York is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 7 of New York's last 8 games
Connecticut
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Connecticut's last 6 games when playing at home against New York
Connecticut is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

[CNOTES]

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 1​

Game	Time(ET)	Pick	Units
NY at CON	03:00 PM	NY -5.0 U 160.5	+500 +500

 

[CNOTES]

Completed Picks​

Past Completed Picks

Date	W-L-T	%	Units	Record
10/01/2023	0-2-0	0.00%	-1100	Detail

 

[CNOTES]

On to the WNBA CHAMPIONSHIP.......