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Posted 10/22/2009 at 05:40 PM
On to the free play for this week, and this one is in the MAC.
Temple is on a 4-0 run after starting the season with losses to Villanova and Penn State. The Owls are positioning themselves for a run at getting to the MAC title game, as they’re 3-0 in league play. The Owls will have to do without freshman sensation Bernard Pierce, their most dynamic offensive performer. The star freshman RB hurt his shoulder last week and is unlikely to see action this week. That’s a big blow to an offense that is workmanlike at best. But the real strength of this team is their staunch defense, which I believe is definitely the best unit in the MAC.
Toledo gets their starting QB back for this game. Aaron Opelt was hurt a couple weeks back in a disastrous effort by the Rockets against Western Michigan. Toledo bounced back for a nice win last week over Northern Illinois, despite missing Opelt and having his backup get hurt during that contest. But the Rockets were also very fortunate to win, as Northern Illinois basically gave the game away with blunders in the kicking game.
The number has shifted fairly dramatically on this contest. Temple opened as the favorite on Sunday night, but the money has come in on Toledo and it’s now the Rockets in the small chalk role. I’m sure that is mostly due to the Pierce injury, but it now looks to me like there’s some decent value on the Owls side. I’ve always been a fan of backing defensive dogs and Temple is the vastly superior team in that realm. So it’s Temple plus the points for this week’s free college play.
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