Cincinnati vs South Florida Lines & Spread

Written October 14, 2009 by Rock Henderson

Big East supremacy is on the line when the eight ranked Cincinnati Bearcats travel south to take on the 21st ranked South Florida Bulls. Cincinnati is led by QB Tony Pike and explosive WR Marshwan Gilyard. The Bearcats have opened the season with five straight victories including impressive road wins at Rutgers and Oregon State. South Florida is one of the surprise teams in 2009 as they might have actually improved when starting QB Matt Grothe was lost for the season. Freshman BJ Daniels has stepped in for Grothe and led the Bulls to two road wins. The dual threat quarterback has used his arm and feet to put up impressive numbers that have USF fans hoping he is the answer to a dream season. Both teams are coming off their bye week and will look to get a head start on the automatic BCS bowl berth for winning the Big East with a victory Thursday night. Cincinnati is listed as a 3 point favorite according to our latest NCAA football lines.

After a disappointing end to the 2008 regular season that included losses in four of their final five games, South Florida bounced back with a 41-14 thrashing of Memphis in their bowl game that built momentum for the 2009 campaign. Returning starting QB Matt Grothe tore his ACL two games into the season and in stepped BJ Daniels. Daniels has been one of the best stories in college football this season as he has accumulated almost 900 yards of total offense and scored nine touchdowns in two and a half games. He made a name for himself when the Bulls defeated Florida State in Tallahassee for the first time in school history. RB Moise Plancher has carried the bulk in the running attack, carrying the ball 51 times for 239 yards and four touchdowns. The Bulls running game will be an important factor in this game as they will need to possess the ball and keep a Bearcat offense that is averaging 42 points per game off the field. South Florida’s defense is led by sack master George Selvie and an experience defensive backfield that returns two starters from a year ago. Jim Leavitt’s crew will look to win over the southern portion of Florida with an upset over a strong Bearcat team. If you plan on doing and NCAA football betting this season, you should sign up for a new account with BetUS today and take advantage of a $500 match bonus on your initial deposit of $500 or more.

Heisman dark horse Tony Pike will lead Cincinnati into another tough road environment this week. The fifth year senior has thrown for almost 1500 yards in five games and tossed 13 touchdowns with seven going to WR Marshwan Gilyard. Their spread offense installed under head coach Brian Kelly has given opponents fits. If you key on their aerial attack, running backs Jacob Ramsey and Isaiah Pead are more than capable of making you pay with their running ability. The two have combined for over 500 yards rushing and six touchdowns. Their defense returned only one starter from the Orange Bowl team that lost to Virginia Tech and was an area of concern coming into the year. The unit has exceeded expectations so far, allowing under 14 points per game and will have its hands full with the dual threat Daniels.

Cincinnati has been here before and shown the can win in a tough environment when they beat a tough Oregon State team handily. Tony Pike is making all the right decisions and viewers will be surprised how athletic the Bearcat defense is. The visitor is just 1-5 in this series, but Cincy has won the last three by an average of 12 points. BJ Daniels can’t keep up with the points Pike and company will put on the board. Play: Cincy -3

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