Which NCAA Bubble Team Will Dance?

ESPN's Joe Lunardi is a self-proclaimed "bracketologist"...a major that I wish was an option during my days at Ball State & IPFW. I'm not going to call it Bracketology, because it's ridiculous. Say all of that, his to-the-minute, NCAA tournament guessimations are up. Here are the teams that he lists as being the "Last Four In".

Northwestern: I really don't see them getting in without a winning conference record. The Big Ten is considered the best conference in the country, but a few upsets in major tournaments could easily knock them out. They need at least two wins in the Big Ten tournament to assure their spot. A side note, I'm full aware of the amount of white boys that fill their bench, I would be excited if they made it, since they've never made the tournament.

Seton Hall: Many of the same reasons that I don't like Northwestern's chances, Seton Hall has them all. Their conference record was 8-10, added with a few bad losses earlier in the year. The Big East can start devouring each other in their long conference tournament. A few mid-majors deserve to be in the mix, they've had their shot.

Drexel: This team didn't lose a game from January 2nd, until they lost a close game against VCU. I think they deserve a shot at the NCAA Tournament more than Northwestern & Seton Hall. You can easily make an argument that they don't deserve to be in, because they played one of the easiest schedules of all of the bubble teams. I think the tournament committee has proven that they like to give mid-major teams a chance to shine.

Xavier: They definitely have the best player out of this group, Tu Holloway. He didn't have as strong of a season this year, but he'll end up in the NBA. They are a little disappointing, since they were favored to win Atlantic 10 this year. They need to at least make their conference final to have a shot.

Some of the other teams that are on the bubble are Texas, Tennessee, Oregon, Miami (FL), Arizona, and Iona (who has a great shot at sneaking in). Most of the bubble teams come from power conferences. I've seen a lot of games this year and Tennessee has the best shot of leapfrogging all of these teams. The Vols played up to their opponents abilities and even sweeped Florida this season. If they can win a few games in their conference tournament, they will be dancing. Iona has the second best shot, because they are a talented team who had a bad game in their conference championship game.

...but I'm not a "bracketologist".

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NCAA Football - Week 3 Betting Picks

Week 2 was a pretty difficult week and a lot of upsets happened, but I still have faith in the system. My betting picks against the spread for Week 3 have a lot of teams that cover and a few underdogs that I pick to win the game. Here are my college football picks against the college football lines for Week 3.

How did you do in Week 2? The consensus is that people lost money by betting on Oklahoma State, USC to cover, and Notre Dame, who saw that coming? This week will be much better and I think everyone will make their money back and much more.

Arizona (+5.5) at Iowa (-5.5) - My pick is Iowa

Iowa laid it to Iowa State last week and Arizona kept up their winning ways as well. Arizona relies on their rushing attack and Iowa can stop the run. The Wildcats need to get their quarterback situation under control if they expect to keep winning. I like Iowa by a touchdown in this game.

Indiana (+5) at Akron (-5) - My pick is Akron

I don't normally pick a MAC team over a Big Ten team, but Indiana is very bad. Akron should be able to control this game and win easily at home. Indiana will have trouble winning any more games this season.

San Diego State (-3.5) at Idaho (+3.5) - My pick is San Diego State

The Aztecs should roll over the Vandals in this one. Out of all of my football picks, I like this one the best. Brady Hoke came from Ball State and they have a pretty good offense in San Diego. Idaho is a decent team and should keep it within 10 points, but San Diego will cover in this game.

Connecticut (+10.5) at UConn (-10.5) - My pick is Baylor

Uconn played well against North Carolina, but their offense isn't clicking just yet. Baylor can put points up very easily and UConn will have trouble keeping up. I like Baylor in this game by two touchdowns, their offense is just too good.

West Virginia (+7) at Auburn (-7) - My pick is West Virginia

Auburn has looked great under their new coach, but 7 points is just too much of a point spread against West Virginia. The Mountaineers have won both of their games and their offense is clicking. I think this game will be close and Auburn will win by a field goal. Give me West Virigina with the points, I wouldn't be surprised if they came out the winner.

Georgia (+1) at Arkansas (-1) - My pick is Georgia

I like this line a lot, since I think Georgia will win this game. Arkansas played LSU very well their first game and they knocked Missouri State against last week. Georgia lost to Oklahoma State in Week 1, but they won against South Carolina last week, which has a tough defense. Mark Richt will have the Bulldogs playing well and come out a winner against the Razorbacks this week.

Northwestern (-3.5) at Syracuse (+3.5) - My pick is Northwestern

Neither of these teams have looked very good this year, but Northwestern is a better team. Syracuse got blown out by Penn State last week and Northwestern barely squeaked by Eastern Michigan. Both of these teams will be playing hard and up to their ability. If this line goes down to 3 points, I really like Northwestern, but I could see this game being a 28-24 type of game. I like Northwestern in a close one.

Florida State (+7.5) at BYU (-7.5) - My pick is BYU

BYU have looked great this year and the Seminoles are barely keeping their heads above water. They did lose a close game against Miami, but they barely got past Jacksonville State last week. BYU is the one non-BCS team that has a shot at the Championship game if they win out, I like BYU to win this game by at least 10 points.

Cincinnati (-1) at Oregon State (+1) - My pick is Cincinnati

This line has moved over the last 24 hours, since Oregon State was initially the favorite in this game. I like the Bearcats to win this game on the road, since Tony Pike looks like the real deal for Cincinnati. Oregon State will make noise in the PAC-10 this year, but they won't be able to handle the best from the Big East.

Navy (+7) at Pittsburgh (-7) - My pick is Navy

Navy is a hard team to get ready for and their triple power option offense can really throw a team off of their game. You saw an example of that when they played Ohio State earlier this season. Pittsburgh has looked great this year, but you have to respect Navy and think that this game will be closer than a touchdown.

Ohio State (-20.5) at Toledo (+20.5) - My pick is Toledo

This game is being played at a neutral location and Browns Stadium isn't the Horseshoe, but many Buckeye fans will make their way up to attend the game. Toledo has a pretty good offense and I am not sold on Ohio State being a very good offensive team yet. Ohio State will win the game, but this line is too high, I'll take the points and pick Toledo.

I hope you enjoy our picks. They are for entertainment purposes and please bet responsibly.