Proverbs and Point Spreads

For want of a nail the shoe was lost.

For want of a shoe the horse was lost.

For want of a horse the rider was lost.

For want of a rider the battle was lost.

For want of a battle the kingdom was lost.

And all for the want of a horseshoe nail.

There was no point spread to deal with when that proverb was penned.

Our investments weren't all that closely decided, but it was a Saturday thrillfest that featured the thinnest margins of victory and defeat.  One point differences made Texas and Cincinatti winners and the Illini a loser this day.  We at Four Star Football were down for a staggering third consecutive week.

'Bama beat up the Gators on Saturday afternoon, how 'bout that?  Florida looked overmatched, as the red shirts just kept coming all day long.  It was a great defensive performance by the Tide, and Florida appeared bewildered.  I admired the job that Alabama did, even as it cost me my Four Star Preseason wager, said wager being another SEC championship for Florida. Simply a great job by the new #1!

**** TEXAS -14 @ NEBRASKA LOSE
FINAL : TEXAS 13, NEBRASKA 12

When I was in college, I worked nights on the loading docks at the big UPS package sorting facility on Jefferson Street in Chicago.  It was an atmosphere that is best described in polite company as ribald.   One of my co-workers, a rotund, jovial black guy whose first name was Curtis and whose last name is somewhere in the many years between then and now, would prattle on, all night, every night, in a loud, bell clear voice, about whatever was on his mind, frequently repeating himself in a sing-song fashion. One of his favorites, voiced randomly, was 'you know what the people say, every dog has got his day'.  From all those years ago, Curtis' voice rang out in my mind, singing about the dogs,  around mid fourth quarter of this game Saturday night.  It had become evident early in the fourth quarter that we were not going to get a cover from the Longhorns. Nebraska brought an absolutely voracious, smothering defense to the Big 12 Championship game in Dallas.  Colt McCoy, Heismann Candidate, became Colt McCoy, run for your life or get thrown to the turf like a rag doll.  With Nebraska ahead and time running out, Colt McCoy rolled right and wasted precious seconds before throwing the ball away.  It required an official review to determine that there was one tick left on the clock, time enough for a 46 yard field goal attempt.  With a berth in the BCS on the line, Texas kicker Hunter Lawrence ascended to his 15 minutes of fame and knocked it through the wickets for a game winner and a trip to Pasadena.  It will have to be another day for underdog Nebraska, whose play was absolutely valiant, and a lifetime of second guessing for the Nebraska kicker whose out of bounds kickoff set in motion the events that brought about the dramatic finish. 
***CINCINNATTI -1 @ PITTSBURGH  PUSH
FINAL : CINCINNATTI 38, PITTSBURGH 37
This was like the football version of a heavyweight championship fight, last man standing.  These two teams pounded each other mercilessly in chilly Pittsburgh as the snow fell throughout.  It looked like Pitt had put Cinci away in the first half when lame blocking effort by the Bearcats on a punt set up an short Pitt TD.  On the ensuing kickoff , a return for a TD by Mardy Gilyard reinvigorated the Bearcats. Gilyard had 230 yards of kick returns by the early part of Q4, plus a long TD catch. It came down to a missed extra point by Pitt and a thrilling comeback--the kind of comeback by which champions are measured-to give Cincinnatti the win and a perfect 12-0 for the year.  Two Gun is in the habit of reminding me that the LVSC has some of the best minds in the world, and they showed it again, perfectly handicapping this one.
**FRESNO STATE @ ILLINOIS OVER 59 1/2  WINNER
FINAL 105 POINTS
They put up 49 points by halftime!  Fresno State has traveled over 23,000 miles this year to play games in 5 of the 6 U.S. time zones.  That has nothing to do with the outcome, but I found it interesting when they flashed it on the screen. This one paid off in the third quarter and kept on running, eventually breaking 100.  Very entertaining, as long as you're not a big fan of defense, and for this wager we surely were not.
*FRESNO STATE +3 @ ILLINOIS WINNER
I expected the Illini to play well enough to lose, and they did.  The final play hung the "L": a 2 point conversion by Fresno State that was batted back into the enormous paws of a behemoth offensive lineman who toppled across the goal line like a felled giant oak for the winning margin with :02 on the clock. Alternate, optional analogy to the giant oak: "dropped like the Desperate Housewives extortionist who was hit by the airplane on Wisteria Lane". For the record, Juice's final desperation pass was intercepted, a poingnant punctuation mark to a sad season for Illinois.

PS:  While this space is dedicated to the successful pursuit of the art and science of wagering on college football, it is no secret that when it's time to cheer, we are a Purple House.  It is great news for 'Cat Nation (yes, there is one, and it is growing, and you are all invited to jump on the bandwagon, good seats still available) that Northwestern has accepted an invitation to play on New Year's Day in Tampa in the Outback Bowl.  Go 'Cats!
PPS: Listening to Lou Holtz (who was on the selection show on ESPN Sunday night) gets harder the more you listen.  Last night's lishpfesht featured this gem, offered in re the Georgia Tech option offense facing the excellent Iowa defense : "they never see the option in the Big Ten...Iowa is going to be amazed when they see it". 

What a dope.