Big Ben rallies Steelers over Jags

Football Betting Lines

10/06/2008 - Jacksonville, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ben Roethlisberger racked up 309 yards passing, including the go-ahead eight-yard scoring strike to Hines Ward with 1:53 left in the fourth quarter, leading the Pittsburgh Steelers to a 26-21 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Roethlisberger completed 26-of-41 passes, had three touchdown tosses and was picked off once. Mewelde Moore rushed 17 times for 99 yards for the Steelers (4-1), who snapped a four-game skid against the Jaguars, most notably getting revenge for last season. That included two losses to the Jaguars, one in the first round of the playoffs.

"I knew he (Moore) would be able to come in and be just fine," said Roethlisberger. "We all had confidence in him that he could get it done and he showed it tonight. It was fun to see and watch him work."

Nate Washington hauled in six balls for 94 yards and a score while Ward had seven receptions for 90 yards to move past 9,000 for his career. Heath Miller also had a touchdown catch.

David Garrard tallied 200 yards and a TD on 18-of-32 passing for the Jags (2-3), who were coming off a 30-27 overtime win over the Texans last week. Maurice Jones-Drew had a rushing touchdown and Marcedes Lewis had reception for a score in defeat. Mike Walker led all receivers with six catches for 107 yards. Fred Taylor had 19 rushing yards, which leaves him 53 shy of 11,000 for his career.

The Jaguars embarked on a drive that bridged the final two quarters and gave the team the lead for the first time since the opening quarter.

Garrard and Co. took over at their own 24 and Walker caught a nine-yard pass to begin the drive. After a short run by Taylor, Walker caught a 32-yard pass to move the team into Pittsburgh territory. The trek concluded as Garrard hit Lewis on a 24-yard TD strike with 14:05 left to make it 21-20 in favor of the Jags.

Both teams punted on their next possession and the Steelers eventually took over on their own 20. Pittsburgh made its way down the field thanks to a 27- yard run by Moore and a great play from Roethlisberger, in which he seemed wrapped up but still found a way to get Ward the ball for an 18-yard gain on 3rd-and-8 to move the chains to the Jacksonville 13.

Roethlisberger then hit Ward on a fade route to the right corner of the end zone with 1:53 left in the game. Up 26-21, the team went for the two-point conversion but Roethlisberger's pass went just out of the reach of Miller.

"It was great," said Roethlisberger. "You have to give a lot of credit to those guys - up front, the tight ends, receivers, everybody. We ran the no huddle without even using the count and without me even talking."

Jacksonville took over at its own 26 and quickly found itself facing a 4th- and-9. Garrard hit Matt Jones for a 10-yard gain and new set of downs. The Jags, though, were unable to get another first down and the Steelers took over and ran out the clock.

"We played hard, tough but one of the biggest differences is they did a good job of clogging things up," Jacksonville head coach Jack Del Rio said. "We weren't able to do that and their quarterback was outstanding at the end."

On the opening drive of the game and facing a 3rd-and-18 from the Jacksonville 44, Roethlisberger threw a pass for Santonio Holmes. Rashean Mathis, though, stepped in front of it and returned the ball 72 yards to the end zone just over two minutes into the contest.

Roethlisberger responded by leading the Steelers on a 12-play, 71-yard drive that culminated with a one-yard TD reception by Miller with 5:18 left in the first.

With the Jags on the Steelers 40, Garrard went deep down the middle of the field for Jones. The pass was incomplete, but Ike Taylor was called for pass interference which gave Jacksonville 1st-and-goal from the one-yard-line.

Jones-Drew punched it across the goal line on the next play. The seven-play, 74-yard drive gave the Jaguars a 14-7 lead with just under 2 1/2 minutes left in the first.

Jeff Reed's 38-yard field goal brought Pittsburgh within 14-10 with 12:38 left before the intermission.

The Steelers held the Jags to a three-and-out before Roethlisberger gave his team a 17-14 lead as he hit a wide-open Washington on a 48-yard TD bomb down the left sideline with 9:20 on the clock.

Pittsburgh again forced a punt and drove 66 yards before the drive stalled at Jacksonville's five-yard-line. Reed then hit a 23-yard field goal to give the Steelers a 20-14 lead, which would hold up until the break and through the third stanza.

Game Notes

Mathis' interception runback was the second-longest in Jaguars history. Mathis now has six interceptions in his last five games against Pittsburgh including the playoffs and his team is 13-7 when Mathis has a pick...The Jags lead the overall regular season series, 11-9...The Steelers won despite being without the services of running backs Willie Parker (knee) and Rashard Mendenhall (shoulder), guard Kendall Simmons (Achilles' tendon) and defensive linemen Casey Hampton (groin) and Brett Keisel (calf)...The Jaguars were without two starters in the secondary, as cornerback Drayton Florence (groin) and Reggie Nelson (knee) did not play.

Honestead Football Betting News

<< Canucks sign Hodgson
Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Vancouver Canucks signed center Cody Hodgson, their top draft choice from this year, to an entry-level contract on Sunday. The 18-year-old Hodgson, the 10th overall pick, was a member of the Onta

<< Warner and Cardinals deal Buffalo first loss of season
Glendale, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kurt Warner threw a pair of touchdown passes and Tim Hightower scored twice, as the Arizona Cardinals cruised past the previously unbeaten Buffalo Bills, 41-17. Warner hit on 33-of-42 pass attempts for

<< Hornets' Chandler hurts ankle
New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New Orleans Hornets center Tyson Chandler left Sunday's 106-103 preseason-opening victory over the Golden State Warriors in the first quarter with a sprained right ankle. The injury occurred un

<< Manning, Colts rally to stun Texans
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Peyton Manning's five-yard touchdown pass to Reggie Wayne with just under two minutes to go capped a furious Indianapolis comeback as the Colts stunned Houston, 31-27. Trailing 27-10 late in the fourt

<< Orton, Bears rout Lions
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kyle Orton threw for a career-high 334 yards and two touchdowns as Chicago routed Detroit, 34-7, in the latest installment of their 79-year-old rivalry at Ford Field. Orton completed 24-of-34 pa

Danks, Wise help ChiSox stay alive against Rays >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - DeWayne Wise hit a two-run double in Chicago's three-run fourth, and the White Sox staved off elimination with a 5-3 win over the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 3 of their American League Division Series. Tampa Bay s

Angels win Boston marathon, stay alive in ALDS >>
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Erick Aybar singled in Mike Napoli in the 12th inning to boost the Angels to a 5-4 win over the Red Sox, as Los Angeles remained alive in its American League Division Series. Francisco Rodriguez, who s

White Sox try to force fifth game against Rays >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago White Sox try to stave off playoff elimination this evening when they play Game 4 of the best-of-five American League Division Series against the Tampa Bay Rays at U.S. Cellular Field. Chicago lived to play a

BoSox attempt to finish off Angels and advance to ALCS >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Red Sox try to advance to their fourth American League Championship Series in the last six years this evening when they play Game 4 of the ALDS against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim at Fenway Park. Boston fa

Hurricanes' Walker undergoes surgery >>
Raleigh, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carolina right wing Scott Walker had successful surgery on his left hand Monday morning. The procedure was needed to repair a torn ligament in the injured hand. The 35-year-old Walker registered 14 goals a


Numerous College Basketball teams take final big step to March Madness betting

So, what turned on the lock spigot? Well, after what felt like weeks of teams treading water and slipping back into the bubble muck, a bunch of them finally decided to say "to heck with parity" and won games that should put them into the Big Dance.

Disagree with some of these? Then here's the challenge. Take all of the "should be ins" and make a legit case that each should be ahead of the team that's a lock. Then find 10 more teams that also should be placed in the bracket ahead of that lock team. Not so easy, is it?

If you want more evidence that these locks should be good to go, check out what our research department dug up. Since the NCAA Tournament went to 64 teams in 1985, only six teams from a "big six" conference have had a record of 10-6 or better in conference play and not been selected: Colorado (2004) and Nebraska (1999) from the Big 12, Boston College and Seton Hall (both 2003) from the Big East, Indiana (2005) from the Big Ten and UCLA, which somehow went 12-6 in the Pac-10 in 1988 and still missed out. (Note: Five teams went 11-7 and didn't get in, the latest being last season's Stanford team, which had a brutal nonconference run.)

Yes, 10 conference wins doesn't always mean what it used to because of unbalanced schedules, but this season, it should be plenty good in all but the extreme cases (see: Iowa).

In a way, this is a welcome development, because this is a bubble watch, not a lock watch. We can finally be done with teams like Maryland and Virginia Tech and start really bearing down on at-large battles such as Syracuse-West Virginia and Appalachian State-Georgia Tech.

Interestingly, all the shifting of teams into lock status appears to be more administrative than impactful. The number of remaining available at-larges didn't change one iota. The only difference is that teams on the bubble now have a clearer idea of which team(s) they are competing with for those precious bids.

The Bubble Breakdown
CONFERENCE LOCKS SHOULD BE INS AT-LARGES TAKEN
(assuming no auto bid outlier)
ACC Betting Odds 6 0 5
Big East Betting Odds 5 0 4
Big Ten Betting Odds 2 2 3
Big 12 Betting Odds 3 0 2
Pac-10 Betting Odds 5 1 5
SEC Betting Odds 4 0 3
MVC Betting Odds 1 1 1
MWC Betting Odds 2 1 2
TOTAL 28 5 25

As always, I've tried to be as inclusive as possible while only including teams that would have a reasonable chance of at least being discussed if this were Selection Sunday. If your team's not on here, there's probably a good reason (or three) -- start with the RPI and SOS numbers and work your way down.

(Please remember, per selection committee criteria, that records displayed are Division I only. Next update: Feb. 28)

If you have a legitimate grievance, or just like talking bubble, send an e-mail. Polite ones with fact-based arguments have a much better chance of receiving a response. I apologize in advance if I can't get back to all of you.

Atlantic Coast Conference

Work left to do: Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech

The ACC moves to six locks as BC, Va Tech and Virginia all got their 10th ACC wins, which should be more than enough this season, and Maryland rallied past North Carolina to get the final piece the Terps needed. After that? It could end there unless FSU, Ga Tech or Clemson picks things up in a hurry.

 

Work left to do:

Clemson [19-9 (5-9), RPI: 41, SOS: 42] The Tigers are closer to locking up the collapse of the year award (in a good battle with OK State) than they are to grabbing an at-large. Clemson's been very competitive, but there's no really positive way you can spin nine losses in 11 games. They now cannot get to .500 in ACC play and still must head to Virginia Tech in the season finale (after hosting Miami). Unless the Tigers win both and/or do some serious work in the ACC tourney, they very well could be left out. There are no great nonconference wins, but ODU, App State, Miss. State, South Carolina and Georgia are all respectable W's.

Florida State [18-11 (6-9), RPI: 48, SOS: 14] The Noles got thrashed at Maryland to run their losing streak to five, but then pounded NC State at home to set the table for what likely is an elimination game at Miami. You can at least make a case for the Seminoles at 7-9 in ACC play (and some work in the ACC tourney), but 6-10 is not going to cut it. Wins at Duke and over Florida will resonate, but the computer numbers remain questionable. Beyond Florida, FSU thrashed bubble buddy Providence, but there's not a ton beyond those two games that will help. They didn't show well in big-time opportunities against Pitt and Wisconsin (before the Florida win).

Georgia Tech [18-10 (6-8), RPI: 51, SOS: 46] The Jackets beat Wake on Wednesday but couldn't get it done at UVa on Saturday, which could be a crucial loss with UNC and BC (both at home) remaining and 8-8 almost a certain need for at-large consideration. A nonconference win over Memphis helps, but the RPI and SOS are not at-large quality right now; if you combine those with a sub-.500 ACC mark, that could spell NIT for GT.

For more College Basketball betting lines go to MySportsbook.com

Additional basketball lines can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.