Printing Counterfiet Money

This Week

No great games this week but I am sure I can find something to watch.

College Picks

1. Iowa -11 @ home over Iowa State
Iowa State good at home bad on the road. They are on the road. And only the people in Iowa care.

2. Louisville -7 @ Virginia
Louisville good everywhere. And yes Virginia, you do have a team and it is not very good. Better than last year though.

3. Tennessee +20 @ Oklahoma
Oklahoma is good. Really good. But 20 points better than a SEC team? Not sure.

4. Penn State -3 @ Rutgers
Penn State proved it can go to a different country–Ireland and win. But can they go to New Jersey? Yeah probably.

5.Stanford -28 @home over Army
Support our Troops. They are going to need it this week in Palo Alto against a mad Stanford team that should have won last week.

6. Utah State -14 @home over Wake Forest
I just like Utah State, don’t ask me why. Even though they lost their coach to a bigger school. They still have their QB, Chucky. And even the people in Utah may not care about this one.

NFL

7. Tennessee -3 @ home over Dallas
You cant go wrong beating against the Cowboys. And the Titans seem to be improved. This should be the best bet of the week.

8. Green Bay -3 @ home over the Jets
The Packers are good. Good and mad. And at home. That is 3 strikes against a Jet team that is improving, but not there yet.

9. Houston -3 @ Oakland
Houston good, Oakland bad.

10. New Orleans -6 @ Cleveland
New Orleans is also good and mad. Mad because they lost last week and mad because they have to go to Cleveland.

11. Tampa -3 @ St Louis
The Rams now have no QB and should just run the single wing the whole game. Their D is pretty good though so should be a low scoring game. Not exactly Must See TV.

Happy Vegging

Blog 2 Printing Money!

OK Let me explain. I usually pick 5 or 6 NFL games, and 5 or 6 College games every week. Just the ones that I like the odds on. And I am about to pick a few college games right now and then the NFL. But here is the deal.. Almost every NFL game seems like a great bet. The lines are easy pickings and I am sure I could make a killing, if I A. actually bet on the games, or B.. had $ to bet on the games. You can’t lose. Of course, people have said that before……like Wall Street Investors in Oct. of 1929. So, don’t bet the farm. But before I even get to the Easy Money part, there are several orders of business we have to take care of first. Starting with:

Super Bowl Picks

Seattle Over Denver.

I know, I know. The Superbowl winners never repeat and most don’t even make the playoffs. And now I am picking both of last years teams to make it back. Virtually impossible. But they are just so damn good. And the Broncos should be even better this year with a better D and better receivers. And who can challenge them in the AFC? The Pats, of course. The only sure things are Death, Taxes, and Brady and Bellicheck. I was all set to pick the 49ers to win it all, as they probably were the best team at the end of year, almost beating Seattle at home in the Conference Championship game. But now the 9ers have lots of Defensive Question marks. For example, which player will get the longer jail sentence. So I’ve got to go with the Seahawks to repeat. That is if they can make it out of their own division.

Last Week’s College Picks.

1 Win 3 Losses and 1 Tie. Lets not even go there.

This Week’s College Picks

1. Georgia Tech +10 @ Tulane.
Because I always go with the Engineer Nerds because of their high Tech, yet old school offense.

2. Ohio State +12 @ home over Virginia Tech.
These 2 teams have never played before and probably the Hokies will want to keep it that way. Even with their 2nd team QB, got to go with the Buckeyes at home.

3. UCLA +24 @ home over Memphis
UCLA good, Memphis bad. Plus UCLA looked bad last which doesn’t look good for Memphis this week.

4. Oregon State +11 @ Hawaii
Oregon State also looked bad last week which doesn’t look good for Hawaii.

5. Northwestern +7 @ home over Northern Illinois
Northwestern looked bad last week which.. well you know the rest.

6. Boise State +11 @ home over Colorado State.
Ditto.

7. Michigan State – 12 @ Oregon
Big Game of the year so far. OK here is the formula. Stanford is the Cryptonite for Oregon and barely beats them each year. So Stanford is greater than Oregon. Michigan State = Stanford. There for, Michigan State is greater than Oregon. Got it?

NFL Picks. (And now the the easy money.)

8.. Denver -7 @ home over Indy
The old Peyton Manning over the new One. The Colts had to choose really between their favorite son and Andrew Luck. And though it hurts to watch him play so well for someone else, their new guy is really, really good. But not good enough to beat Peyton in his new home.

9. St Louis -6 @ home over Minnesota
I must say sorry to my Viking fans. You might be better this year. And yes, the Rams have lost their QB yet again. However, they don’t win with their offense anyway. St. Louis wins with its D.

10. Pittsburgh -6 @ home over Cleveland
Yes I am pulling for Johnny Football. But he probably won’t play and for his sake, lets hope he doesn’t. The Steel Curtain is more like the Steel Wool Curtain and may not even be as good as the Browns D. But since the Steelers are at home with Big Ben, that should do it.

11. Cincy -2 @ Baltimore.
We have lots of questions regarding the Ravens. There is no question the Bengals are better. Cincy.. Good D and Good O. Good Bet.

12. Chicago -6 @ home over Buffalo
The Bills young QB seems to have taken a step backwards, while the Bears D should improve from last year, when it was the worse one they have ever had, but still not as bad as the D of….(wait for it)……

13. SF -3 @ Dallas
Last year the Cowboys had the 4th worse defense in the history of the NFL. This year, they go for No. 1. Poor Tony will have to score about 40 points a game to win.

14. New England -5 @ Miami
The Pats are kind of like the San Antonio Spurs. You know they are going to be good every year. Could be maybe the Coach?

15. Detroit -5 @ home over The NY Giants
Eli looked a little lost this summer as the Giants are putting in a new offense. The Lions aren’t putting in a new offense and why should they? They had one of the best last year. Both Ds are questionable and kind of cancel each other out. So go with the best O.

16. Philly -10 @ home over Jacksonville
No one is a 10 underdog at home in the NFL are they? Oh yes the Jags are, they are that bad. They should be a little better this year. The problem is so should the Eagles. No one has really figured out Chip Kelly’s college offense yet. Here betting Jacksonville doesn’t either.

Happy Vegging

Blog 1 And College Preview

It is that special and sacred time of the year again when we gather around our family and friends and bid them a fond adieu until next February. We have actual games coming up this week. Yeah! NFL fans have to wait another week but those of us committed to all things football can go ahead and start our hibernation.

College Preview

Death to the BSC! Oh yeah, it already died and we won’t have to argue about who should be No. 1 and No. 2. We can now argue about No. 3 and 4. Here is my top 4.

1. Florida State. Why? Everyone else picks them and why not? They won all their games last year by 30 points except for 2. They got the best QB and are loaded everywhere else and could be even better this year than last.

2. Alabama Why? Because they are Alabama. Best recruiting class every year. Maybe best coach. But they are in the Best Conference too, so there is hope for the rest of us.

3. Michigan State. Why? Well OSU lost it’s QB so they will be the best team in the BIg 10. And for me they are the new Wisconsin. Or should I say Green is the new Red. When every one else is spread out and running 100 plays a game, the Spartans remain some what old school. They run and play D. They are the opposite of Oregon and Baylor. Also I like them because when you see them, you can tell who they are from their uniforms. Not like Oregon and Baylor who have gone all high tech, Phil Knight, Nike on us. A major road block looms though, they got to play the Ducks in Eugene. But if Stanford, another old school type team can do in Eugene every year, , it so can MSU.

4. Oklahoma Why? Everyone who is picking them is doing so because of the last game, where they pounded Bama. But that could be an illusion. The Tide might have been so down from the Auburn game, that maybe they just didn’t show up. Same thing happened against Utah a few years back. Still the image of the Bama QB running for his life from the Sooner rush sticks in your head. And OU had a good schedule with most big games in Norman. And unlike the rest of the Big 12, they occasionally tackle people However, they may have to run the table to get in as the Big 12 Conference has no championship game to fall back. And they will have to beat every team in the Big 12…… That’s right all 10 of them.

This Week’s Picks

1. Georgia -9 @ home over Clemson

Both teams replacing record setting QBs and have questions on offense. Last time we saw the Tigers, they were beating Ohio State in the Orange Bowl so they are pretty good. But the Bulldogs are at home and have the Girly Man at running back so got to go with Georgia in Athens.

2. Alabama -27 over West Virginia in Atlanta

The Tide breaking in a new QB too but last year, WV couldn’t play defense at all which is OK in the Big 12 as no one else can either. But not so much against Bama. Plus the Tide’s QB was on his way to stardom in Tallahassee until Winston beat him out. Of course, that is still a lot of points but I am thinking Alabama is pissed, and will be out to prove a point by scoring lots of them after they actually lost 2 games in a row last year.

3. Rice + 24 @ Notre Dame

OK the Irish are way better and at home. But they aren’t the kind of team that generally scores lots of points, so maybe they are happy to win by 3 touchdowns.

4. North Texas + 26 @ Texas

OK the Horns are way better and at home. But they aren’t the kind of team that generally scores a lot of points etc. Plus they got a new system and new coach so maybe it takes them a week or two to jell. And I get to pick my hometown team for the first time. Go Mean Green and lose by only 25.

5. LSU – 4.5 over Wisconsin in Houston

This is a tough one in that I was about to pick the Badgers as my surprise team of the year.. again. But can they beat a good but not great SEC team? Not sure. Both are old school run teams and they play good D too. Plus both have star running backs, although the LSU’s star is just out of High School. The thinking is that he is going to be so good it doesn’t matter. The Badgers always have a great O line.. they do again. The Bengal Tigers always have multiply NFL draft picks all over their roster but especially on D.. they do again. So going with the Tigers in a close one that is more like a home game for them. Houston being about 3 hours from Baton Rouge and about 15 hours from Madison.

Happy First Viewing. Tony

ONE AND DONE

LAST WEEK

Last week (which was really 2 weeks ago), was a microcosism of the whole system. I got 1 of 2 which pretty much left me at about 500 for the season which is about the best you can hope for in this line of work. Oh yeah it isn’t work since no one is paying me. But you know what I mean. You can’t beat Vegas. And maybe not Seattle either.

THIS WEEK

Seattle + 2 over Denver in Ole New York

First of all, this has the makings of a great Super Bowl. The Best Offense in league history versus the best D this year. Of course, we have had great match ups in the past that have turned into total duds. But in the last few years all the games have been close. So lets hope for the best.

The Broncos seem to be the team of destiny and how can you not root for Peyton? I know I am. But Seattle just seems to be the better team overall. And when you have the best O and against the best D, sometimes the game is decided by the other 2 units, the Broncos good but banged up defense against the Seahawks somewhat disappointing offense. Or maybe it will come down to the running game of both teams and again Seattle has a slight edge. Maybe they can play keep away from Peyton. The best case scenario, Denver wins by one point which would be a win/win for me.

I hope you have enjoyed the season. I know I have. The NFL was great of course & we might have had the best college season ever. I will now go into deep hibernation. Someone wake me up for the Draft.

Happy Trails, till next year, Tony

4 & O W A Y T O GO (ME)

LAST WEEK

Well someone has to congratulate me. Why not do it myself???

THIS WEEK

Now the games are dwindling down to a precious few…… 3 actually. So let’s enjoy while we can. The 2 this weekend should and could be classics.

1. Denver -6 @ home or New England

Of cours,e this isn’t easy. Two great QBs. Tom Terrific has a better play off record but Peyton has the better team and is at home. In fact, it is amazing the Pats made it this far. All their best receiver’s from last year and in Denver (but on the other team), are in rehab or in jail. Could it be, oh I don’t know, Satan? Just kidding Belichick isn’t that bad. Just a great Coach with a great QB. Hate to bet against them but got to with the Broncos at home.

2. San Francisco + 3 @ Seattle

Seattle is great at home and just great period. However, the 9ers are on a roll and actually have just a little more over-all talent. In fact, these are the 2 best teams in the league period, and the winner has to be a favorite to win it all. SF has better receiver’s, a better front 7 on D, and a better.. well that is about it. But that should be just enough.

Lets enjoy it while we can Tony

1 & 3 That’s Not Like Me (OK Sometimes)

LAST WEEK

Lets pretend it didn’t happen.

THIS WEEK

The teams with the 2 best record should always win in the playoffs as they have a huge advantage. First they get a week off while the other teams play. Secondly, they get home field for one or both of their games. That means the teams without the by have will have to play an extra game, and probably go into the home field of the best 2 teams in their conferences AND win on the road. That means if you get the by, then all you have to be is the best team to get to the Super Bowl, but if you don’t get the by, then you have to be the Way better team to overcome that. Yet almost every year some one does just that, i.e. Baltimore last year. So should I go with the home team teams or not? Duh.
Either way, this is the best NFL week of the year and Way better than Superbowl week which is mostly for tourists! But not us hard core fans with no other apparent life. We like the Semi Finals week.

1. Seattle -7 @ home over New Orleans
This is the easiest pick of the week. Are the Saints capable of marching into Seattle and springing an upset? Definitely. But the odds and the crowd and the Seahawks personnel say no.

2. New England -7 @ home over Indy
Ditto! Colts and Andrew Luck are more than capable but why pick against Tom Brady at home?

(Now it gets tougher as the next 2 games I wouldn’t pick if I didn’t have to.)

3. San Francisco -1 @ Carolina
A really close call here. The Panthers are at home and well rested. And they were playing the best ball in the League at the end of the season. But the 9ers are just an All Star team with the beat players in NFL, so got to go with San Fran.

4. San Diego + 9.5 over and @ Denver
This is a total toss up. The Broncos are probably going to the Super Bowl, but the Chargers are the only team to kind of shut down the high flying Broncos. And they usually fly even higher in Mile High Stadium. (Or whatever they are calling it now.) My guess, and that is what it is, just a guess.. the Broncos win but SD keeps it close.

Happy Vegging. and enjoy as we only got 3 games Left!
Tony Stone

7 & 5 In Football Heaven I Am Still Alive

LAST WEEK

In my last full week of games, I did pretty well and ended on a high note. Meaning that I am going to break even for the season, and end up with the same 50/50 as the Dallas Cowboys. The good news is that while breaking even is not good when playing football, it is about as good as you can do predicting football. So Las Vegas wins again! That is the one thing you can bet the farm on every year.

NEXT WEEK
Now reality has set in and I am only going to have 5 games to pick from this week and progressively less each week until the Super Bowl. After that I will have no excuse but to spend more time with family and friends.

Bowl Games

1. Florida State – 8 over Auburn in the BSC championship game

Yes, the Tigers seem to be the team of destiny and why should I pick against destiny? Because the Seminoles are the better team. Of course we could say the same thing about Alabama right? In FSU’s last game, I saw them shut down Duke. The same Duke that just scored 48 against A&M. Now anyone could score against the Aggies, but still, I think the Seminoles D is probably going to be the difference.

NFL

2. Philly -2.5 @ home over New Orleans
With the playoffs all bets are off. But since I don’t bet, I will go with the obvious. The Eagles are on a roll, and the Saints don’t play as well outside, on the road in a hostile environment. I used to live in Philly and they take pride in being hostile.

3. Cincinnati -6 @ home over San Diego
Again the playoffs are different. Some team will rise up and surprise everyone, and it might be the Chargers. But the Bengals are better and at home in the Jungle. Should it be called a jungle when it will probably be 20 degrees?

4. San Franscisco – 2 @ Green Bay
It will be 20 degrees in GB also and Rogers and the Pack are back. But one more time I go with the obvious choice. Because the 49ers are just better all the way around.

Happy Vegging

5 OUT OF 10 AGAIN!

THIS WEEK

There are so many Bowl Games to choose from that it almost seems like a college regular season week. And it is the last NFL regular season week. In short, this is my last week with lots of games to choose from. How sad. But there are some great ones so we go out with a bang.. Almost every NFL has some significance and playoff implications so it should be a great week over all.

Bowl Games

1. North Carolina -3 over Cincinnati in the Belk Bowl
Both teams about even but the game is in Charlotte so got to go with the “home team”.

2. Michigan +3.5 over Kansas State in the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl
Even though I am a Big 12 kind of guy, I think Michigan has a lot more fire power, so Hail to the Victors.

3. Georgia Tech -3 over Mississippi in the Music City Bowl (actually some kind of Mortgage Company Bowl)
I always take Tech if the teams are close to being even. I don’t think the Rebels have faced a true spread offense like the Engineers run all year.

4. UCLA – 7 over Virginia Tech in the Sun Bowl
The Hookies are a little down this year and the Bruins are better than advertised. Also I don’t think that the boys from LA will be distracted by the bright lights of EL Paso. Just saying..

5. Texas A&M -12 over Duke in the Chick Filet Bowl
The Blue Devils having one of their best years ever, still it’s Duke, OK.

6. South Carolina – 1 over Wisconsin in the Capital One Bowl
The one Big Ten team I like each year is Wisconsin. But this year, Michigan State out Wisconsined the Badgers. . And while I still like the Badgers running game, they will be running into Mr Clowney and friends.

7. LSU – 7.5 over Iowa in the Outback Bowl
This is my lock of the week. Yes, the Hawkeyes had a nice season but this is LSU we are are talking about. The Bengal Tigers take them out back.

8. UCF +16.5 over Baylor in the Fiesta Bowl
Again, I am a Big 12 kind of guy. But I think the Knights find a way to keep it close and only lose by 14.

NFL

9. Cinncinnati -5 @ home over Baltimore
The Ravens more desperate but the Bengals have something to play for and are the better team. Especially at home where the Red Rifle is deadlier.

10. Indy – 5 @ home over Jacksonville
Ditto. Plus Jacksonville has nothing to play for. Of course that could mean they are loose and win the game but I don’t think so.

11. Miami – 6.5 @ home over the Jets
More DItto Miami desperate and the Jets long past that.

12. Detroit + 2 @ Minnesota
Neither team has anything to play for but the Lions are a little better and embarrassed because of last week.

13. Tennessee -6 @ home over Houston
The Texans are long past being embarrassed. And the old Houston team, the Titans, are better than the new Houston team.

Happy Pigging Out on Football…… one more week before Reality sets in. Tony

12/25/13

5 OUT OF 10 THAT’S CONSIDERED A WIN!

LAST WEEK

I am on pace to break even for the season. In this line of work that is good. Oh yeah, this really isn’t work as no one is paying me.
And now we start with the minor bowls. They no longer have my favorite, the Poulin Weed Eater Bowl. Or rather, it has changed names to the Advocare Bowl. How can I make fun of that? Oh, but we still have the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. Thank God for that.
Here we go.

THIS WEEK

EARLY BOWL GAMES (Which no one cares about except Las Vegas, including the Las Vegas Bowl.)

1. Washington State – 4.5 over Colorado State in the New Mexico Bowl
Of course, no one from NM plays in this game. They may be desperate for good teams but not that desperate! Leach has turned the Cougars into Texas Tech West which should be good enough to beat the Rams.

2. Southern Cal -5 over Fresno State in the Las Vegas Bowl
Oddly enough this is the one game you cant bet on in Vegas because it is..in Vegas. But if you could, I would go with the Trojans to win and cover in that they still have more talent overall. Though Dave Carr’s little brother is pretty good for the Bulldogs.

3. Oregon State – 2 over Boise State in the Hawaii Bowl
Another battle between the big boys on the Pac 12 and the little boys of the Mountain West, I got to go with the big conference again. Especially since the Beavers almost beat the Ducks in their last game.

NFL

4. Carolina -3 @ home over New Orleans
Big game! The winner probably gets the division crown. And if it keeps the Saints from having home field advantage in the championship game, then it is huge. Right now it looks like Carolina vs Seattle for all the NFC marbles. Plus NO doesn’t play well with others on the road.

5. Cincinnati -7 @ home over Minnesota
The Bengals are up and down . Last week they were down and lost, and I lost with them. So this week they should be up. Kind of the same thing with the Vikings. And last week they were way up so you know what happens this week.

6. Dallas -2.5 @ Washington
I know, I know. Again how could I pick the Boys to beat anyone anywhere? Especially after last week’s debacle. But I am going to say that the pathetic Cowboys beat the even more pathetic Redskins. Though I do like the Skins back-up QB from Michigan State.

7. Kansas City -6.5 @ home over Indy
Another big game. The Chiefs are now in the hunt for the Western Division title with the Broncos fading a bit. The Colts just trying to improve play off position so may not be as motivated as KC. Both teams pretty good.

8. Cleveland + 2 @ NY Jets
This might be a misprint. The Jets favored over anyone? And the Browns really aren’t a bad team. The Jets really aren’t a good team. Easy call.

9. San Diego – 7.5 @ home over Oakland
You can’t go wrong picking against the Raiders. Got to go with the Super Chargers and Rivers who is on fire. (Not to be confused with Cleveland when their river was on fire.)

10. SF -12 @home over Atlanta
The Falcons have fallen off a cliff. The Niners play by a Cliff. And are really good at home.

Happy Pre-Holiday Vegging, Tony

8 AND 5 I AM THRU WITH MY DIVE

THIS WEEK

COLLEGE GAMES (Sadly None)

NFL

1. Indy -5.5 @ Houston
The Colts looking to rebound, the Texans to just bound. Andrew Luck coming home is a good side bar.

2. New England -1 @ Miami
The Pats have been reduced to a shell of their former selves. And Miami is better than they have been and might be real good next year. But still it’s Tom Brady so got to go with NE.

3. Philly -4.5 @ Minnesota
The Vikings can be tough at home but probably won’t have Adrian Peterson. They are not a bad team, but still it’s Nick Foles. OK that doesn’t sound right, but the rookie QB and the rookie coach are on a roll.

4 Seattle -7 @ NY Giants
The Seahawks aren’t as good on the road, but still it’s the Giants.

5. San Francisco -5 @ Tampa Bay
Tampa is playing much better and at home, but still it’s the 49ers. Maybe the next best team in the league next to Seattle. A downside is that SF doesn’t have much to play for as they probably can’t win the division and are going to be the highest rated wild card team anyway.

6. Kansas City -4.5 @ Oakland
Used to be a blood bath back in the day. Now one of them is way better than the other. Guess which one?

7. Buffalo – 1 @ Jacksonville
Jacksonville playing better, but still, it’s the Jags. Buffalo not too bad.

8. Cowboys -7 @ home over Green Bay
It’s December so why I am picking the Cowboys over any one? Because Rogers isn’t playing. So the ‘Boys can win the only way they know how, by outscoring the other team. They sure ain’t going to stop anyone.

9. New Orleans -6 @ St. Louis
The Saints aren’t nearly as good on the road either. But the Rams are fading without their QB and they play in a Dome. Breas like domes. No breeze in a dome.

10. Cincinnati -2.5 @ Pittsburgh
Bengals playing really well. Steelers.. not so much….but always tough at home. I think they can stay within 2 points of Cincy, but not 2.5.

Happy Vegging, Tony

In memoriam…. Got to mention my dad who passed away this week. Great Guy, Great Friend, Great Football Fan. Actually was kind of watching a game when he passed.