Miscellaneous Articles

NFL Predictions: Patriots at Dolphins Week 15 Odds
by Alan Matthews - 12/12/2013

Off the top of your head, give me a list of the five most important non-quarterbacks in the NFL to their teams. My quick list would be Lions receiver Calvin Johnson, Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald, Bengals receiver A.J. Green and Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles. Five very good players. However, I purposefully left out the guy who might be the most important non-QB of all: Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski.

NFL Predictions: Seahawks at 49ers Picks and Week 14 Odds
by Alan Matthews - 12/5/2013

This may have been the toughest week of the season in determining which Sunday game to preview here at Doc's. You have Colts at Bengals, which is likely for the third seed in the AFC playoffs. The winner still has a shot at perhaps catching New England for No. 2, and the Bengals beat the Pats head-to-head. There's Browns at Patriots.

NBA Predictions: Hawks at Spurs Odds and Picks
by Dave Schwab - 12/2/2013

The Atlanta Hawks will try and take their record back over .500 this Monday night with a trip the AT&T Center to tangle with the San Antonio Spurs. Tip-off for this inter-conference clash is set for 8:30 p.m. (ET), and the game will be available on NBA League Pass.

College Basketball Predictions: Mercer at Oklahoma Odds
by George Monroy - 12/2/2013

The Oklahoma Sooners may not be a ranked team just yet, but the squad can score points in a hurry. Oklahoma has been held to fewer than 85 points only once this season, and that was in a loss to the No. 1 Michigan State Spartans 10 days ago—and even then, the team did manage to score 76 points. The Sooners average 87.5 points per game, which is ranked 18th in the nation, and are being led by senior guard Cameron Clark, who is averaging 18.8 points for the 5-1 Big 12 squad.

NHL Predictions: Flyers at Wild Odds and Picks
by George Monroy - 12/2/2013

The Minnesota Wild are hoping that a much-needed two-game homestand will be the cure to the team’s recent struggles. Minnesota has not won a game in over 10 days and is coming off consecutive matchups against a Western Conference power house, the Colorado Avalanche. The Wild just finished an extended road trip where they played five of seven games away from the Xcel Energy Center, and they only managed to earn two victories during that span.

College Football Predictions: Alabama at Auburn Odds and Picks
by Trevor Whenham - 11/29/2013

There are few games played every year packed with more history and hatred than the Iron Bowl. And that’s in a normal year. Alabama has a 42-34-1 edge in the series, but few of the 77 previous games have had stakes as high as this one. The winner of the game will win the SEC West and will be favored to win the SEC Championship.

NFL Predictions: Steelers at Ravens Odds for Week 13
by Alan Matthews - 11/26/2013

It's probably the best day of football every year in the regular season now that there are three games on Thanksgiving -- although I am usually fast asleep by the time the night game starts after consuming more calories in one day than in a normal week. So while you have the usual games in Detroit and Dallas this year, the 8:30 p.m. ET game is a very intriguing one with Pittsburgh visiting Baltimore.

College Football Predictions: Arizona State at UCLA Odds and Picks
by Trevor Whenham - 11/21/2013

There obviously aren’t divisional championship games in college football, but this is the next best thing. If Arizona State wins this game then they will clinch the Pac-12 South and a date in the Pac-12 Championship Game against likely Oregon or potentially Stanford. UCLA won’t clinch if they win, but as long as USC isn’t upset by Colorado, it would set up a battle for Los Angeles that would decide the conference champion next week.

NFL Predictions: Broncos at Patriots Week 12 Odds
by Alan Matthews - 11/20/2013

Let the hype begin for one of the NFL's best-ever individual rivalries -- and by far the best this century -- as Peyton Manning and Tom Brady face off for the 14th time in their Hall of Fame careers. Like any great rivalry in the U.S.A., this is a bit overhyped, but it's usually must-see TV. That's especially true this year, because who knows how many more times they will face off.

College Football Power Rankings: Ferringo 15
by Robert Ferringo - 11/20/2013

Due to circumstances beyond my control there was no Ferringo 15 last week. I thought about just taking the two-week record of the last crop that we had posted, but decided against it because technically there wasn’t anything “on the record”.

NBA Predictions: Grizzlies at Warriors Odds and Picks
by Aaron Smith - 11/19/2013

The Memphis Grizzlies made it to the Western Conference Finals last year. The Golden State Warriors lost to the San Antonio Spurs one round earlier. Both of these teams are doing their best to advance a little bit farther in this year’s playoffs. The Western Conference is loaded with high-quality teams, but both of these teams are legitimate contenders.

NBA Predictions: 76ers at Mavericks Odds and Picks
by Dave Schwab - 11/18/2013

The Philadelphia 76ers will try and get back to .500 on the season when they square off against the Dallas Mavericks this Monday night at the American Airlines Center. Tip off for this inter-conference clash is set for 8:30 p.m. (ET), and the game will be available on NBA League Pass.

College Basketball Predictions: Citadel at Tennessee Odds
by George Monroy - 11/18/2013

Many NCAA experts believed that the Tennessee Volunteers were a Top 25 team entering the college basketball season. Last year the team was eliminated in the first round of the NIT tournament in a disappointing loss to the Mercer Bears. This season, however, the Volunteers are expected to improve based on the strength of a very good recruiting class over the summer.

NHL Predictions: Ducks at Penguins Odds
by George Monroy - 11/18/2013

Monday night’s slate of hockey games will feature a marquee matchup between two of the best squads in the NHL when the Anaheim Ducks face off against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Ironically, both teams will be entering their matchup on a bit of a slump with a combined 1-7 record over the last eight games. The Penguins have lost four of their last five, while the Ducks are on a three-game skid of their own.

College Football Predictions: Utah at Oregon Odds and Picks
by Trevor Whenham - 11/14/2013

All eyes will be on the Ducks here. They were humiliated last weekend — their six-point loss at Stanford wasn’t nearly as close as the score would suggest. It shattered their National Championship hopes, and it probably ended their Pac-12 Championship dreams as well. However, to maintain any further chance of success at all this year, they need to win here and win big.

NFL Predictions: Colts at Titans Odds and Week 11 Picks
by Alan Matthews - 11/12/2013

The Tennessee Titans clearly were looking past the winless Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday and toward this big game Thursday night with Indianapolis as the Titans were stunned 29-27 at home by the Jaguars, who seem to have Tennessee's number. So instead of going into this game tied for the final wild-card spot in the AFC and just a game behind the Colts in the AFC South, now it's almost a desperation game for the Titans (4-5), and they will have to win it with their backup quarterback.

NHL Predictions: Kings at Sabres Odds and Picks
by George Monroy - 11/12/2013

The Buffalo Sabres are about to finish up a brutal Western Conference trip where they faced three of the conference’s top teams five times in a 10-day span. The Sabres did not fare so well during that period and lost three of the first four matchups. However, if there was a bright spot for the team, it was that they beat the San Jose Sharks on the road to earn their third victory of the season.

NBA Predictions: Nuggets at Jazz Odds
by Dave Schwab - 11/11/2013

This Denver Nuggets and the Utah Jazz will face off against one another this Tuesday night at the EnergySolutions Arena in a battle of two Western Conference teams trying to shake off a disappointing start to the new season. Tip off for this Northwest Division clash is set for 9 p.m. (ET), and the game will be broadcast nationally on NBA TV.

NFL Predictions: Cowboys at Saints Week 10 Odds
by Alan Matthews - 11/7/2013

Week 10 might be the best of the season so far in terms of intriguing matchups, making it difficult to choose which Sunday game to preview. You have an NFC North first-place matchup in Chicago with the Lions visiting and looking for a rare season sweep of the Bears. How about the Packers on a short week trying to get Seneca Wallace a firm grasp of the offense facing an Eagles team that comes off an offensive explosion in which Nick Foles threw for seven touchdown passes?

College Football Predictions: Houston at Central Florida Odds and Picks
by Trevor Whenham - 11/7/2013

It isn’t getting nearly the attention of the big three games this week — Oklahoma at Baylor and Oregon at Stanford on Thursday night, and LSU at Alabama on Saturday — but in terms of intrigue and potential, Houston’s trip to Central Florida ranks right up there with the best of the week. It’s not just a potentially exciting game, either — it’s a very important one.