Seasons Greetings From Holiday Land - 12/4/07

by: Kendall Holiday

This week was good to us overall, but it can always be better….

The BCS is a mess, but would you have it any other way?  The most frustrating aspect of it is not the National Championship game.  Why can’t USC play Georgia?  Illinois and Hawaii would be a better football game than their match-up with SC.  There will be a lot of boring football games this BCS season, and hopefully they lose some cash, but we are stuck with this for the foreseeable future.  There will not be a college football playoff anytime soon, not gonna happen.

The landscape of baseball might be significantly different in one short week.  If Johan Santana, Erik Bedard, Dan Haren, and Miguel Cabrera change addresses, it will have a significant impact on baseball next season, provided each is healthy and performs at their prior levels.  We cannot imagine the Sox if they had Santana and Beckett and Schilling, and Dice K.  Good lord what a staff.  As a fan, you have to like the trade market heating up once again.  The offseason is less about dollars and more about talent and that is a good sign.  Now, if they could only agree on a salary cap.  Different topic, and like the one mentioned above, it will never happen.

We do not see the Patriots going undefeated this season and here is our logic.  You could argue that for the Pats to have beaten the Ravens last night, they needed a lot of things to go their way, and they did, thus winning the game and keeping the streak in tact.  That being said, Baltimore is not a good football team, regardless of their emotions.  NE will get everyone’s best shot, and the loss of Colvin will hurt their defense a good deal moving forward.  Pittsburgh has a great chance at beating the Pats outright.  They should be able to pressure Brady, which is ¾ of the battle when facing New England.  Randy Moss has struggled the last two weeks against physical corners, and it will be interesting to watch that come playoff time.

Nebraska AD Tom Osborne got his man, but there is some troubling, if you are a Husker fan, information coming out of Lincoln.  Seems Osborne has a lot of say as to whom Pelini hires as his assistants, and wants to make sure the majority of them have a tie to the program.  Says here, that in this modern era of college football, you get the best coaches you can regardless of their affiliation, and they had better be able to recruit all day every day, especially if you are trying to lure them to the land of Corn from Florida or California.  It sure sounds like Osborne has way too much power in this relationship, and if that is indeed the case, it will take a great deal of time for Pelini to find success in Lincoln.

Early Leans in the Bowl Games:

OU -6.5 vs. West Virginia – Get on this early, OU will stop the run here, and the loss to Boise State last season will keep the Sooners humble in this tilt, and looking for blood.  Off the cuff, this is our favorite match-up and looks like a blowout loss for the Mountaineers.

Arkansas +3.5 vs. Missouri – Will Missouri be fired up here?  They were slighted in a big way by the BCS.  They’ll have a very difficult time stopping Mr. McFadden and Co., but will put up some points.

Va. Tech -3.5 vs. Kansas – Kansas is not nearly as good as their ranking.  They did not face Texas, Oklahoma, or Texas Tech this season, and their OOC schedule was a joke as well.  They’ll find the going very tough against Tech’s defense and Special Teams.

Florida State +1 vs. Kentucky – Bowden’s teams always show up big in bowl games, and expect them to do that once again here.

Kendall Holiday Past Articles

Kendall Holiday Wagering News and Notes - 2/10/08
Alright folks, we are in the thick of it now, and teams are starting to show their weary faces. As I am typing this, UCLA is struggling against a relatively ... read more

Kendall Holiday Wagering News and Notes
Hope this finds everyone doing well, as it has been a while.Super Bowl Number…..who cares? The Patriots showed me a lot last weekend. This is the ... read more

Handicapping the Bowl Games - 2007
There are many things to take into account over the next three weeks when 32 football games will be played. The bowl season always presents wonderful ... read more

Late Season NFL Handicapping - and more
Wow, what a weekend. Attending mothers 60th birthdays, and heading to the airport to pick up out of towners in for the weekend. Must be bowl season. ... read more

Seasons Greetings From Holiday Land - 12/4/07
This week was good to us overall, but it can always be better…. The BCS is a mess, but would you have it any other way? The most frustrating ... read more

All Kendall Holiday Past Articles

Kendall Holiday Recent Past Picks

MLB Baseball

Colorado Rockies @ Los Angeles Dodgers Tuesday June 3, 2008 10:10 pm
Gotta strike while the iron's hot here, and going against the Rockies would have made you a ton of loot over the past three weeks.  Penny has done well against Colorado in the past and he faces a lineup that is weaker than in years past tonight.  The Rockies will welcome ... read more

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MLB Baseball

Colorado Rockies @ Los Angeles Dodgers Monday June 2, 2008 10:10 pm
You simply cannot side with the Colorado Rockies right now, especially on the road.  This is a lineup decimated by injury, and their starter Reynolds, walked eight in his last outing.  A nice spot for a bounce back here in Chavez Ravine but the Rockies have been losing ... read more

Kendall Holiday Bio and Picks | Articles By Kendall Holiday

MLB Baseball

Colorado Rockies @ Chicago Cubs Friday May 30, 2008 2:20 pm
The dismal Rockies turn to their only bright spot this afternoon at Wrigley as Cook takes the hill facing Ted Lilly.  Colorado looked good last night until Matt Herges sprung another leak allowing the Cubs to take command of the game and get the series opening win.  Ted ... read more

Kendall Holiday Bio and Picks | Articles By Kendall Holiday

MLB Baseball

San Francisco Giants @ Arizona Diamondbacks Wednesday May 28, 2008 9:40 pm
The Giants beat the first place Diamondbacks last night on the back of Benjie Molina's three run home run, which ended up being the difference. This Giants team is a shadow of their formal selves, and while the Diamondbacks bats have cooled considerably after their torrid start, ... read more

Kendall Holiday Bio and Picks | Articles By Kendall Holiday

MLB Baseball

Pittsburgh Pirates @ Cincinnati Reds Wednesday May 28, 2008 7:10 pm
Now, Bruce is not going to bat 1.000 all year long but he sure looks a lot like a young Larry Walker which makes the Reds lineup downright nasty. Bronson Arroyo goes tonight and the Reds are looking for the their fourth win in their last five games. After starting slowly, Arroyo ... read more

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MLB Baseball

Colorado Rockies @ Philadelphia Phillies Wednesday May 28, 2008 7:05 pm
Have to side with the Phillies here, who are tearing the cover off the ball while the majority of Colorado's best players reside on the DL. Colorado's lineup resembles their AAA affiliate right now, and it is showing. Healthy or not, there guys are not hitting right now, and the ... read more

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MLB Baseball

San Francisco Giants @ Florida Marlins Friday May 23, 2008 7:10 pm
Florida has been one of the surprises of the early season, but maybe we should not be so surprised. Two years ago, this team almost made the playoffs when their rookies played lights out. As often happens, rookies struggle a bit in their second season, and then rebound once again ... read more

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MLB Baseball

Seattle Mariners @ Detroit Tigers Thursday May 22, 2008 1:05 pm
We side with the Tigers and the run line this afternoon as Bonderman goes and he looks to continue righting his ship, and that of the hapless Tigers. Coming into this season, there were high expectations for the Tigers and MAriners and both have failed to live up to the lofty expectations. ... read more

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MLB Baseball

San Francisco Giants @ Colorado Rockies Tuesday May 20, 2008 8:35 pm
Aaron Cook has yet to lose at Coors Field this seaosn and has held hitters under .200 there as well. Colorado is finally showing some signs with Torrealba getting a big two out hit last night, something this team simply has not done to date this season. With Cook on a bounce back, ... read more

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MLB Baseball

Cincinnati Reds @ Los Angeles Dodgers Monday May 19, 2008 10:10 pm
Cincy comes into this one perhaps the hottest team in baseball, while the Dodgers have cooled considerably after their fast start. The Reds come into this series off a sweep of the Cleveland Indians in dramatic fashion as Dunn went deep to end the game yesterday. Penny has been ... read more

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All Kendall Holiday Past Picks