Farewell to Cowher, NCAA & NFL Picks

Bill Cowher is hanging it up. That is a sad day in sports, especially for Steeler fans. Not only was Cowher a very good coach, but he added an intense personality to the proceedings, and always made things more interesting. And the chin. Oh, the chin. One of a kind. My personal favorite Cowher moment came on Monday Night football against the Jags, when Pittsburgh went for a game winning field goal, only to have it blocked and returned for a touchdown by the Jags to seal it. As the Jacksonville player ran down the Pittsburgh sideline to the end zone and victory, you could see, as he went by Cowher, that it took every morsel of self restraint the coach had not to jump on the field and tackle the guy himself. In other words, he was really close to being the next Woody Hayes. But that moment rang true for me, because it showed that Cowher cared about what was happening on the field to his team every bit as much as his fans did. And that is a rarity these days.

We are getting down to the nitty gritty on the gridiron. The NFL begins the playoffs this weekend, as college football winds down its season with its last three games, culminating with the game with no title Monday night. So let’s get down to some picks...

NCAA (Last Week: 6-4; Overall: 47-40, 54%)

Since there are only three games left, I guess I better pick them all, so here goes….

Western Michigan (+7) vs. Cincinnati. Cincinnati has a new coach in his first game, which will be difficult to bring together smoothly in time for a bowl game. Western Michigan, despite missing their best running back for at least the first half, should keep this one close.

Southern Miss (-6) vs. Ohio U. Conference USA has not done well in the bowl season (thanks for the choke job, Houston), but Southern Miss has too much experience and talent for an Ohio team that I watched in the MAC Championship game and was just horrible.

Florida (+7.5) vs. Ohio State. Ohio State has had an incredible year, and on paper seems like they will just be too much for the Gators. However, Florida’s defense has been great all year, and should keep their team in the game. Also, Urban Meyer is an offensive guru who will have a wrinkle or two that will be effective. And finally, Florida has played two weeks more recently than the Buckeyes which may lead to a bit less rust. Bottom line is that Florida will make this a great game, and may just steal it outright. But take the points, just in case.

NFL (Last Week: 3-2; Overall 54-43, 56%)

Kansas City (+7) at Indianapolis. As soon as this pairing was announced, Brian Getson said “Larry Johnson will get 400 yards in a playoff game.” And it does look like a bad matchup for Indy on paper. But as the week has gone on, I like KC less that I did at the outset. First, Indy is tougher at home. Second, they get Bob Sander back, which should help against the run. Third, KC’s offense has struggled away from Arrowhead. All that being said, I still think a touchdown is too many points for Indy to be giving against a team that runs the ball this well.

N.Y. Jets (+9) at New England. Jets have fought the Pats tough twice this year, including beating them in Foxboro. Not sure the Jets can pull off the win, but there is no way I can turn down this many points in this match up.

Seattle (-3) vs. Dallas; OVER 46.5. Neither team can stop the pass with Seattle getting secondary guys off the scrap heap for this one and Dallas’ safeties not being able to cover anything on which they have to go backwards. So there will be lots of points. Ultimately, the edge in the game goes to Seattle as they have the more experienced quarterback, the more well rounded offense, and the home field advantage, which is big in that stadium.

Eagles/Giants Over 46. The Eagles are playing great ball right now, the Giants are not. While I think the Birds very well could and should cover, the better play is over 46. Hopefully there is a team going to New Orleans from this game, not to Chicago. But as Philadelphia fans, we are bred to expect the worst, so we shall see. Our Philadelphia Eagles, Put Your Hands Up…..

Have a great weekend. Go Birds.