I entered the week with the confidence befitting a man who is not chasing an even record by two games, one alarmingly self-assured in the two plays to make in the Ohio State-Penn State game in Happy Valley this weekend. I assured myself of a two-win weekend and inhibited the well-hidden certainty of a 3-0 record to satisfy my far-flung aspirations as a professional handicapper.

The plays of interest were just right, the over/under ideal. Arby’s here we come! Time to eat fat tonight! Three Orange Whips and a round of extra Horsey Sauce for the house. Not the drive thru. Generosity becomes boasting rather quickly.

Nice idea, mean reality.

How MyBookie toyed with such confidence, twirling it into the air only to fling it on the floor and trample it in one heavy-footed stomp. MyBookie doesn’t dance on one’s hopes. They trample.  

The spread made me wince. The over/under perfect.

Shaken at first that a site with scores and scores of research, algorithms, and updates in real time outfoxed a guy who believed the phrase to be “play it by ear” until he hit 16, I recovered in time to make picks for the week.

Sports Betting in Big Ten Country

There is big news coming to the upcoming 2022-23 Big Ten football season (and NFL season). Ohio online sports betting and Maryland sports betting are on the way.

21+ and present in OH. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER.

(All lines taken from mybookie.ag)

Author’s note: Lines may have shifted from when I pulled the number for the column. Lighten up gang.

Purdue vs. Nebraska (+4) o/u 56.5

The play: The Over

Illogical Reasoning: We knew Purdue had too much talent and big-play explosiveness to start out 0-4. Boston College came to West Lafayette and brought little to no offense in Purdue’s 30-13 win. In their victory the Boilermakers controlled the clock with a 15 minute advantage in time of possession. The team’s ability to score in explosive plays, thanks in large part to freshman receiver Rondale Moore whose longest reception in three of the team’s four games was over 30 yards should lead to some quick scores on the road.

Look for Nebraska to score with more ease than last week when Michigan flexed its muscle on defense and removed any sense of hope from a subservient opponent.

I’m banking on a lack of defense from both teams to spike the number over 56.5. Purdue needs to grab wins wherever the Boilermakers can if the team hopes to make it back to a bowl game this season. With back-to-back games against Ohio State and Michigan State after this weekend, Purdue will need to grab whatever good vibes from their first road contest of the season.

Ohio State vs. Penn State (+4.5) o/u 70

The Pick: Penn State AND the Over

Illogical Reasoning: Penn State really should have beat Ohio State last season in Columbus. The Buckeyes 39-38 win last year where they outscored Penn State 19-3 in the fourth quarter spoke more to Penn State’s inability to pick up first downs on the ground with running back Saquon Barkley than it did any sort of shortcomings from quarterback Trace McSorley.

I’m not sure if McSorley will be able to put together the sort of beefy numbers to woo Heisman voters away from the exacting efficiency of Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa or the matter-of-fact, no-frills execution from Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins. The two are front and center in the race, but by ground and by air McSorley will put up big numbers and big scores against an Ohio State secondary that wasn’t tested in the team’s first four games.

When McSorley heads to the sidelines, the attack of Haskins and running back J.K. Dobbins will prove too much for the Nittany Lion defense to handle as they’ll need McSorley to lead a game-winning drive in a case of last team with the ball wins.

Main event status as a prognosticator: The last two weeks left me off the A shows and toiling in the B towns against the likes of “Dangerous” Danny Davis and whichever one of the Bolsheviks freed themselves from Steve Allen.