Date: September 25
Time: 6 pm EST
Venue: Paul Brown Stadium (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Vegas Line: OU -14

With Texas on deck, who knows where the Sooners' heads are for this one?

I have a feeling that OU may be treating this one more like a dress rehearsal for Texas, in which case the Sooners won't show much that they haven't already put out for the world to see.

However, given OU's recent struggles in away games, Bob Stoops' squad definitely could use a blowout win to chase away the road jitters. While the atmosphere at Paul Brown Stadium won't be anything like what OU will face next weekend in the Cotton Bowl, just getting out of Norman should provide a decent stress test.

Cincinnati has had plenty of problems so far this year, which makes it tough to tell what OU has to worry about this week alone. So, keeping next week in mind, pay attention to:

(Continue...)

A quarter of the way through the season, the race for the chocotini is heating up. Of course, the "race" looks more like a geriatric walk-a-thon than a sprint at this point. Neither Homerism nor The Skinny have generated much momentum to this point, but the season's still young.

(Continue...)

Homerism is in the market for a handicapping guru for a weekly podcast. Crick from BankruptBookie.com drops in for an audition, breaking down a bad beat from last weekend before we move on to this week's card of games.

Crick and I cover:

• the big Alabama-Arkansas matchup;
• Oklahoma's use, or underuse, of diaper dandy receiver Kenny Stills;
• the Sooners' value after the first three games of the season;
• some of this week's big line moves;
• North Texas' hobbled quarterback; and
  
• one horrific piece of Heisman propaganda for Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett.

Last week's ballot garnered some scorn and ridicule from the peanut gallery, which was to be expected.

I could just follow the crowd and summarily move Alabama and whatnot up to the top of charts with a bullet. But here's where I make my stand.

Look, I don't like this any more than you do.

Correction: I don't like the outcome of this any more than you do.

Louisiana State isn't close to being the best team in the country. If the Bayou Bengals were playing Alabama tomorrow on a neutral, I'd make the Crimson Tide a 10-point favorite.

However, if I really do intend to reward teams based on achievement, I have to keep teams like LSU up near the top of the poll for playing winning three games against BCS conference teams, two of which were away from Tiger Stadium.

You have to respect the process, though. Anyway, we're three weeks into the season; we still don't know much about these teams' resumes. So chill, because all will be revealed in due time.

The haters probably will appreciate me dropping LSU from No. 1, though, in favor of Ohio State. While I'm not impressed by the fact that the Buckeyes have played three games at home, I think OSU's dismantling of The U constitutes the best skin on any team's wall. Plus, North Carolina's home loss to Georgia Tech really hurts the Tigers' case.

You can bet your bottom dollar that the winner of Arkansas-Alabama will be on top next week.

On to the ballot...

(Continue...)

When who spend a lot of time around the influence industry in Washington, you learn pretty quickly that the release of a "white paper" by a lobbying group should put you on red alert.

To be fair, many of these analyses are well-researched, comprehensive articulations of the position for or against Name Your Cause.

Far too often, though, the strategy consultants build a straw man for their cadre of "experts" to tear down with ivory tower-ish mumbo jumbo. All that rigorous analysis typically yields a document that sounds like the nail in the opposition's coffin – especially to the client. That is until someone takes a couple minutes to actually think about what the report says.

Homerism will leave it up to his loyal readers to decide where to put this little nugget from law firm Arent Fox, which represents Boise State and the Mountain West Conference, on the "myth" behind the BCS. Personally, I think the distinguished gentleman from Georgia does a pretty nice job eviscerating the argument being put forward by these legal eagles, but allow me to pile on.

(Continue...)

With Texas and the start of conference play just around the corner, the Air Force Falcons gave Oklahoma plenty to think about in the Sooners' 27-24 win:

(Continue...)

I have no interest in going back to calculate it, but I'd guess that Oklahoma's median margin of victory during its current 32-game home winning streak is somewhere in the neighborhood of three touchdowns.

The closest win during that streak? Saturday's three-point victory over Air Force.

Much like OU's opening win against Utah State, I expect the reaction in Sooner Nation to look something like:

(Continue...)

A few thoughts while basking in the deliciousness of a 7-11 donut...

(Continue...)

no comments

If you love mediocre handicapping, you've come to the right place. Homerism and The Skinny are treading water after two weeks, and, contrary to the wisdom of High School Harry sitting next to you at the blackjack table, pushing ain't really winning.

(Continue...)

Date: September 18
Time: 3:30 pm EST
Venue: Owen Field (Norman, Okla.)
Vegas Line: OU -17

Know what should scare a top-tier college football squad? A scrappy team that is actually excited to have a shot at beating it.

And what if said underdog runs a funky offense that you'll see once every nine years? And what if said underdog runs a defense that blew up your 2009 season? And what if said underdog's roster consists of warriors – not in the metaphorical sense, but actual warriors?

I'm not talking about Air Force or anything.

While you're taking in Saturday's intriguing matchup between the Cadets and Sooners, it might help to watch...

(Continue...)