2010 College Football Picks: Top 25 ATS Power Rankings
September 7th, 2010 byThe best college football betting teams in the land don’t always put together the best performances for NCAA football picks. Here at Bankroll Sports, we have your ATS Top 25 rankings ready and raring to go following one week of play.
1. Boise State Broncos (1-0 ATS) – The Broncos clearly made a name for themselves by putting up a huge cover that totally went against the grain of popular belief last week. Virginia Tech went from a short dog to a short favorite in this de facto road game across the country. Give Boise credit. It certainly proved it was for real and definitely got our attention.
2. Arizona Wildcats (1-0 ATS) – On national TV in a standalone game, when you can basically hold your opponent scoreless on defense and put together 41 on your own in one of your most impressive offensive displays in decades, you’re going to turn heads. The Wildcats did just that, and they’re going to start the year as a team we watch for as an ATS hero.
3. Michigan Wolverines (1-0 ATS) – Welcome to the big time, Denard Robinson! Michigan has a new hero, and he is finally the vintage dual threat quarterback that Rich Rodriguez has been dying for. Robinson torched one of the best defenses in the Big East in the form of the UConn Huskies last week, and more covers like that against big time foes are going to have us wondering whether Rich Rod really has his team heading towards a huge bowl game.
4. Utah State Aggies (1-0 ATS) – When you can march into Norman and nearly come away with an outright victory as five TD underdogs, you’ve done something special. The Aggies were one of the top ATS teams in the land last year, and they are well on their way this year to doing the same type of thing. For whatever reason, the oddsmakers just have not caught up to this team yet.
5. Oregon Ducks (1-0 ATS) – The Ducks posted 72 points and 720 yards last week, so it’s no wonder that they absolutely pounded an already huge spread against the New Mexico Lobos. We clearly think that this is a team that can beat anyone in the nation, and as long as the oddsmakers are wondering how well these guys will cope without Jeremiah Masoli, we’ll continue to capitalize.
6. South Carolina Gamecocks (1-0 ATS) – Few coaches in the country know how to coach ’em up like good ol’ Steve Spurrier. He had never lost a game before, having gone a perfect 38-0 against non-BCS conference schools in his career. However, Southern Miss came to Columbia looking to take the bagel out of that category. There were suspensions to deal with and a ton of pundits picking the Golden Eagles, and what happened? Spurrier is now 39-0 all-time against non-BCS conference schools and his team picked up one of the most impressive covers of the season to date.
7. Oklahoma State Cowboys (1-0 ATS) – The Pokes got some great running from Kendall Hunter and used a tremendous offensive explosion to ditch Washington State at home over the weekend. We are really impressed with the way that this team is already coming together in the post Zac Robinson era, and this might be the start of a slew of covers for a feisty team.
8. East Carolina Pirates (1-0 ATS) – Style points certainly count for something. A Hail Mary to beat the Golden Hurricane last week really wasn’t necessary for East Carolina to pick up an already impressive ATS victory, but it did affirm that this team is significantly better than the oddsmakers think. We’ll hope that the Pirate ship leads us to some buried treasure all season long.
9. Ohio State Buckeyes (1-0 ATS) – The only blunder for the Buckeyes in the first week of the season was a blocked field goal returned for a touchdown. Aside from that, Terrelle Pryor played like a Heisman Trophy candidate and the defense that was billed as one of the best in the land lived up to expectations. A comfortable cover only added the cherry on top.
10. Minnesota Golden Gophers (1-0 ATS) – A seven point victory against a Sun Belt team is usually nothing to be impressed about, but we loved the way that the Gophers came together and took care of business in a very workmanlike manner against Middle Tennessee State on Thursday night. If Minnesota can get Duane Bennett running like this all season long, it might be able to contend for a bowl game in the crowded Big Ten.
11. Syracuse Orange (1-0 ATS) – Ok, so it was Akron… No big deal, right? Still, any covers for the ‘Cuse are still good ones, and few teams in the land did it by more points this week than they did. Syracuse might be able to sneak up on some teams this year and hit some backdoors, as the offense appears to be competent. This is a team to watch for certain.
12. Florida State Seminoles (1-0 ATS) – It was a picturesque performance for the garnet and gold in Jimbo Fisher’s first game on the sidelines, and we think that that could really continue this week. The Noles might not beat the Sooners, but one thing is for certain, and that’s that they are going to give everything they’ve got to try to get back on the map. For a team that historically struggles with covering games, this could be the year it all changes.
13. Florida Atlantic Owls (1-0 ATS) – Do the Owls really have some spark in them this year in spite of the fact that Rusty Smith has finally graduated? We trust Howard Schnellenberger 100% in this case, and we can’t help by wonder if there are a ton of covers coming after FAU pulled the outright upset off at UAB last week.
14. Georgia Bulldogs (1-0 ATS) – Beating the Ragin’ Cajuns wasn’t really all that impressive, and neither was covering the spread. What got our attention Between the Hedges was the fact that the Dawgs did all of this without AJ Green. Green is a real difference maker in the lineup, and he could make this team very, very scary.
15. BYU Cougars (1-0 ATS) -It was one of the games that sort of flew under the radar last week, but the Cougars went on the road and took out U-Dub in what could be the first of a number of covers this year. BYU is sort of the forgotten team in the Mountain West and can change that this week against Air Force with another big win to start off the campaign.
16. Mississippi State Bulldogs (1-0 ATS) -For the first time in a number of years, the Bulldogs might finally have it going on this year. Ditching Chris Relf might be a great start for a team that has direly lacked quarterback play, and we think that the 49-7 win over Memphis might be the start of some great things in the deep south.
17. Miami Hurricanes (1-0 ATS) – The Canes could be incredibly underrated this season, and a stomping on Florida A&M probably didn’t sway the oddsmakers one way or the other. Still, Miami put together one of the most complete performances in the country last week, albeit against a team that will struggle to finish .500 in the FCS.
18. Iowa State Cyclones (1-0 ATS) – Does anyone realize that this has the potential to be a bowl team once again this year? ISU, behind Austen Arnaud, might really have a chance to contend in the Big XII North, and because the opening act against NIU really flew under the radar, this could be a great chance to hop aboard and start a good run of ATS results for the Cyclones.
19. Maryland Terrapins (1-0 ATS) – In a week where BCS busting was the theme, the Terps would have none of it against one of the best mid major programs in the country. Navy was sunk by Maryland thanks to some fantastic defensive play. If Ralph Friedgen can ever get his offense in gear, the Turtles could come out of their shell and post some ATS victories in a hurry.
20. Idaho Vandals (1-0 ATS) – Idaho came out of nowhere last season to impress and make a bowl game, and the same could be said this year. No one really thought that the Vandals were capable of beating anyone 45-0, but in spite of the fact that this was an FCS foe, it was impressive nonetheless.
21. Tennessee Volunteers (1-0 ATS) – Does Derek Dooley really have his ducks in a row? UT might not be such a bad spot right now to be, especially since the SEC is starting to look more and more open. Knocking off UT-Martin by a whopping 50-0 score is really, really impressive for a team that many were down on to start the year.
22. San Diego State Aztecs (1-0 ATS) – The ranks of the teams posting shutouts continues with San Diego State, who blanked Nichols State 47-0 to start off the season. The Aztecs are going to get a cupcake roadie before the fun really starts. That’s when we’ll see whether these guys are for real or not.
23. Alabama Crimson Tide (1-0 ATS) – We just couldn’t leave the Tide off of this list after rolling over San Jose State. Yes, the Spartans stink, and yes Trent Richardson is probably every bit as good as Mark Ingram, but when you take a Heisman Trophy winner out of the lineup and still win by 45 points, your accomplishment is worth noting.
24. Buffalo Bulls (1-0 ATS) -Ya think Turner Gill wants to trade places right now? His current team was just beaten by an FCS nobody. His former team posted a 31-0 shutout. That’s a major, major improvement for a club that missed a bowl game this year. The Bulls might be worth watching.
25. Central Florida Knights (1-0 ATS) – UCF isn’t getting all that much respect this year in Conference USA by the oddsmakers even though several accredited media people think that it is going to challenge for the conference crown. Starting off with a 38-7 win against South Dakota was good enough to cover a spread, but not so alarming as to catch the oddsmakers’ eyes.