Mid-Week Reading Material

Published on Thursday, 9/25/14, at 12:13 p.m. Eastern.

ESPN Insider’s Vegas Rankings (subscription required) compiled by myself, Phil Steele and Bruce Marshall. Alabama is the new No. 1 this week.

My Quarterly Report filed to VegasInsider.com on Wednesday.

My Read-Option column for Week 5 over at The Linemakers.

–Sports betting legend Billy Walters just sold one of his fat pads for $13 million.

–You can follow the NFL SuperContest standings by clicking here.

What the hell was Dabo Swinney thinking in using the shotgun on fourth and inches in OT?

What the hell was Dabo Swinney thinking in using the shotgun on fourth and inches in OT?

–Vandy WR Jordan Cunningham has left the team for personal reasons, although he remains in school and plans on finishing the semester. Also, RB Brian Kimbrow has been suspended indefinitely for conduct detrimental to the team. Kimbrow, Vandy’s second-leading rusher in 2013, had one carry for negative six yards and lost a fumble in his only touch of the season. QB Patton Robinette remains ‘questionable’ Saturday at Kentucky after suffering a concussion in a 48-34 home loss to South Carolina. The Commodores are 17-point underdogs at UK.

–ESPN has suspended Bill Simmons for three weeks after he took aim at NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell in a podcast. He also dared the network to discipline him for blasting Goodell — and they did.

–Since 2008, Northwestern is 13-6 ATS as a road ‘dog. The Wildcats are catching a double-digit number at Penn St.

–Ole Miss owns a 7-3 ATS record as a home favorite under Hugh Freeze. The Rebels host Memphis in Oxford this weekend in a vintage look-ahead situation with Alabama on deck.

–Va. Tech is an abysmal 6-13-1 ATS as a home favorite since 2011. The Hokies get Western Michigan at Lane Stadium on Saturday when they try to avoid dropping a third straight game since stunning Ohio St. at The ‘Shoe.

–TCU is 1-6 ATS in its last seven as a road ‘chalk.’ The Horned Frogs play at winless SMU in another look-ahead spot with Oklahoma looming next weekend.

–Texas Tech is 2-8 ATS in its last 10 games as a road underdog. The Red Raiders are 14-point ‘dogs tonight at Oklahoma St.

–There are three teams with 4-0 ATS record: Virginia, Ga. Southern & East Carolina.

BE Sports had mid-week viewing material, too, in the form of Devin Brugman.

BE Sports had mid-week viewing material, too, in the form of Devin Brugman.

–Three schools are 0-4 ATS: UNLV, UConn, & Utah St.

–Finally, and I’ve been waiting to blast this since late Saturday night: I don’t give a shit what your offensive philosophy is or that you run more than 90 percent of your plays out of the shotgun, how on earth do you run a fourth-and-inches play out of the Pistol formation in overtime? Please answer me that (Clemson OC) Chad Morris and/or Dabo Swinney!

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