No. 2 Southern California Trojans (1-0SU,0-1ATS) vs.Syracuse Orange(0-1SU,0-1ATS)
College Football Week2
Date/Time:Saturday, September 8th, 2012/3:30 p.m. EST
Where:MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, N.J.
TV:ABC/ESPN2
byBadger,Football Handicapper, Predictem.com
Point Spread:Southern Cal -27/Syr +27
Over/Under Total:59
The 2nd-ranked USC Trojans travel away from the Coliseum for the first time in 2012 this Saturday, paying a visit to where many of them could be playing in the future on Sundays, MetLife Stadium, when the Trojans do New York in a neutral-site tilt versus the Syracuse Orange Saturday on ABC.
USC dropped a spot in the AP polls this week to No. 2 when Alabama had its impressive win over Michigan and leapfrogged them to No. 1, and Bama still jumped them despite the Trojans impressive 49-10 victory over Hawaii in their opener last week. Quarterback Matt Barkley threw for 372 yards and four touchdowns and the Trojans ran back an interception for a score and added a kickoff return for six points to dominate in every phase over the Warriors.
On the other sideline, Syracuse was its own worse enemy in its, 42-41, heartbreaking loss to Northwestern in the opener last Saturday. Orange QB Ryan Nassib threw for 470 yards and rallied the Cuse to a 41-35 lead with just over 2:40 to play in the fourth quarter, but Northwestern scored the go-ahead score with just 44 second remaining to crush the Orange hopes of the comeback win. Of course, 12 penalties, givingup a punt return for a score and a fumble lost for a score were several of the reasons the Orange had to stage a 28-point second half surge in the first place, mistakes that they cant make to even sniff a chance against the Trojans.
Oddsmakers and just about everyone on the planet are giving Syracuse little chance in this game, as the opening point spread for this game started at USC favored by 26-points. Since it opened at 26 just about all of the money has come in on Southern Cal, causing it to go up to minus -26.5 or -27 at most offshore sportsbooks. Keep in mind that last week the Trojans closed as 44.5-point favorites, so even a silly number like 27 could be enough to get USC fans (and the public in general) to hit the hip and walk to the window for some action on SoCal.
The over/under total has only been released at a few of the offshore sportsbooks this early in the week, with those few books setting the total at 59.
If you watched the Trojans in the opener there wasnt much you didnt like. Barkley threw bombs all over the place, new running back Silas Redd busted off a few big runs, the defense was stiff and they ran it up to 35-0 before half and graciously called off the dogs a little in the second half. I, along with just about everyone else here, dont expect Syracuse to mount much of a challenge for the Trojans on either side of the ball in this game.
These two played this same time last season, a 38-17 win for the Trojans at home in the Coliseum. The Orange was able to amass 331 total yards on the Trojans, but they had trouble stopping them to the tune of 501 yards and a 28-point lead early in the fourth quarter. The game ended with a USC cover (as 17-point favorites) and the final score of 55 was well over the closing total of 50. In fact, USC covered and went over in their 34-16 win over Syracuse in 1990 too, so they are 2-0 both SU and ATS and the over is 2-0 in the short series.
If you need more betting trend proof, the Trojans are a perfect 4-0 ATS in their last four neutral-site games. The over is also a solid 5-1 in USCs last six neutral-site games, while the over is also 6-0 in Syracuses last six non-conference games.
Badger’sPick to Cover the Point Spread:Im not a fan of four scores or even 27-point spreads, so Ill probably watch this one from afar. But that said, its hard not to like USC to roll big time in this game. Take USC minus the points.
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