Extra Points from Woolard's Weekend Winners

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While Georgia Tech's offense garners a lot of attention the much improved defense under third-year coordinator Al Groh deserves some extra hugs. The Jackets rank 18th nationally in total defense, 14th in red zone defense, and has not allowed a rushing touchdown while giving up only 43 total points in three games. The Bee's defense will, no doubt, be tested by Miami's freshman RB Duke Johnson (gotta love that name) who is averaging 9.4 yards per carry and 10.6 yards per catch.

Al Groh putting sting into Jacket defense.

Another overlooked reason why GT continues to do well on the ground is the fact that four of the five starting linemen from 2011 are back and they are bigger, stronger, and smarter. They represent some of Johnson's earlier recruiting classes and it's starting to pay off. The success of the triple option begins and ends with the big boys up front.

Woolard's Weekend Winners....Week Four

We're hitting on 79% of our picks and this Saturday we look to improve that number big time. We didn't disappoint last week so hopefully you're flush with lots of cash to lay down on a few games.

 

Our fearless forecast for Saturday includes....

Michigan @ Notre Dame....this is one of the most promising games Saturday at the #18 Wolverines visit the #11 Irish. The key for Notre Dame is containing Denard Robinson who has schooled them the last two seasons. And the Irish should run well against Michigan's 80th ranked rush defense (allows 4.3 yds per carry).  But in another Upset of the Week, we're going with the Maize and Blue. Father O'Benowitz is not a happy camper.

Mizzou @ South Carolina...Both QB's are nursing shoulder injuries but that will not slow the #7 Cocks as they turn to RB Marcus Lattimore who's averaging 4.9 yards per carry. Meanwhile Spurrier has the 4th ranked rushing defense (only 1.6 yds per carry). Long night at Williams-Brice for Mizzou.

Rutgers @ Arkansas...I can't help but chuckle in knowing that the Razorbacks could have hired Philip Fulmer if they had only offered at least a two-year deal. But they went the cheap route and now the once #8 ranked team is in the basement looking up. The head Pig, John L. Smith, is a bit bizarre but look for Arky to win...BUT only if QB Tyler Wilson returns.
  
LSU @ Auburn...there's no Cam to help the Dying Oaks as Auburn is saddled with a quarterback (Kiehl Frazier) that isn't rated among the nation's top 100 passers. #2 LSU's Mettenberger makes his first SEC start but the Bayou Boys will pound the ball with one of the deepest backfields in the conference (they average 45+ carries per game). Mike the Tiger eats well Saturday night.
  
Miami @ Georgia Tech...Miami has won the last 3 games, outscoring the Bees 92-34, but this changes Saturday when the Canes venture into Historic Bobby Dodd with the Jackets averaging 374 rushing yards per game. Look for another solid outing from QB Tevin Washington and keep your fingers crossed with GT's special teams. It worked last week.

Vanderbilt @ Georgia...The Commodores may be shuffling quarterbacks but that's akin to shuffling chairs on the Titanic when they visit the #5 Bulldogs at Sanford Stadium. I'm not envious of the Vandy QB having to face the one-man wrecking crew, LB Jarvis Jones. And if safety Rambo and LB Ogletree emerge from the jailhouse, look out Commode-doors. Pups win big.

FAU @ Alabama...this will be another lopsided win for the #1 Tide but I'm taking FAU and the points (50). I'm counting on the Tide's first teamers wearing baseball caps by the second quarter so the damage to FAU might be restrained. Yes, Bama can score as evidenced by their 52 points against Arkansas, 41 against Michigan, and 35 versus Western Kentucky. But I'm one of the few that thinks Saban actually has a heart and will call off his Red Elephants early. Pretty please?

 George the Cat Returns....

After missing last week's BIG PICK of the WEEK, Elaine is taking some time off to re-calibrate her whiskers. She was last seen leaving the premises with the delivery boy from China Dragon. Meanwhile, George the Cat is back with this week's video pick and he could not have picked a more intriguing game than Clemson visiting FSU.

Here's the setup.

#9 Clemson @ #4 Florida State....this game has upset written all over it as Dabo's underdog Tigers roll into Tally Town to face Jimbo's Noles. Clemson packs some offensive heat with QB Tajh Boyd, WR Sammy Watkins, and RB Andre Ellington. This is the first real test for FSU and George the Cat puts his purrfect record on the line with this call. Will George favor his feline friends? Let's roll tape.

 

Make Mo' Money with Mark (and George the Cat)

Drop us a line and let us know what you think. And be sure to look for daily updates.

Father O'Benowitz joins Woolard's Weekend Winners.

Father O adds devine insight.

They say it takes a village. So with that in mind we are delighted to report the addition of Father Ira O'Benowitz as an adjunct game picker.

From time to time, Father O'Benowitz will be stopping by HQ to help out with select game picks. His first game will be this Saturday's Michigan - Notre Dame game in South Bend. It may appear that Father O' might be a wee bit biased with this particular game but he's promised not to let that interfere with giving sound, strategic game advice.

Please join the staff in welcoming Father O'Benowitz to Woolard's Weekend Winners. Can I have an "AMEN?"

Winners or Whiners...Week Three Wrap Up  

If you ran with my Upset Pick of the Week - Pitt over Virginia Tech - then no doubt you've been busy shopping this week for some major bling because the Panthers embarrassed the Hokies 35-17. Pitt faithful have not been this happy since Johnny Majors led them to the promiseland in 1976 (undefeated season capped with a big Sugar Bowl win over UGA Dooley's Dawgs).

Majors led Pitt to '76 Nat. Championship

Overall, we went 6-2 again and our Season to Date tally sits at 79%. Still very very respectful, so no whining.
The weekend rewind includes Georgia Tech opening up a major can of whoop ass on the UVa Cavs, 56-20...the Longhorns making Rebel fans long for the return of David Cutcliffe...the Noles staking their claim to the ACC Atlantic division...Urban's chestnuts squeezing by Cal 35-28...and Bama making Arkansas regret not hiring Philip Fulmer (he was 11-6 over the Tide).

Making mo' money

Clunkers included Michigan State losing to the Irish and, not surprising, Tennessee choking once again on national TV to the Gators in our BIG PICK of the WEEK. Coach Orange Pants best be wearing some asbestos boxers because we see the Vols winning only two SEC games this season (KY and Vandy), and that, my friends, warrants a phone call to the Mayflower Moving people.

Milk, bread, cereal. What else do we need?

Week Four will feature some big match-ups including the BIG PICK of the WEEK (Clemson at Florida State), along with some other great contests like Michigan-Notre Dame, LSU-Auburn, and Mizzou-South Carolina. Be looking for more news as it develops.

Woolard’s Weekend Winners….Week Three

Week Two Wrap Up….we went 6-2 with a couple of clunkers keeping us from being perfect. The Corn Boys from Nebraska couldn’t get it done with the Westwood wizards, and Vandy came up short against Northwestern. So much for believing in the commode-doors.

Our picking performance after two weeks

George the Cat continued his winning streak with the BIG PICK of the WEEK video as he picked the Florida Gators to beat SEC newbie, Texas A&M. I had my own doubts but George made the purrfect pick.

George the Cat will be taking this weekend off with his sister, Lady Elaine, stepping in with the BIG PICK of the WEEK featuring #23 Tennessee-#18 Florida. Knoxville hasn’t been this geeked up since Trevor Bayne spun figure eights on Cumberland Avenue.

Week Three Winners…..

Virginia at Georgia Tech...with a loss to Virginia Tech in its season opener, this is a must-win for Johnson’s Jackets. These two teams have split the last four games with the Cavs winning 24-21 in Charlottesville last season. The boys from the Flats are averaging 330 yards rushing per game while Virginia is giving up only 74 yards per game. But special team play and turnovers will decide this outcome. For the money, go with the Jackets.

 

Va Tech at Pitt.... the Hokies are ranked 80^th nationally against the run having given up 192 yds to Georgia Tech and 159 yards to FCS opponent Austin Peay. So with the best stable of running backs in the Big East, the Panthers will run right at Beamer’s gobblers. For the upset, I like Pitt.

Texas at Ole Miss…if you’re a Rebel fan, I suggest you stay in the Grove enjoying hoddy toddys because this game could be ugly; real u-g-l-y. #12 Texas has one of the best running games and the Horns will punish an undersized Ole Miss d-line (average advantage of 305 lbs vs 260).  Look for this game to be over by mid-3^rd quarter. Welcome to big boy football, Mister Freeze.

Wake Forest at Florida State…Upset Alert! The Deacs always find a way to beat the Noles, having won four of the last six games. Coming off a big upset of North Carolina, Wake could turn the league on its ear by beating #5 FSU. It will be entertaining but my money is on the Seminoles.

Notre Dame at Michigan State…this game features two of the best front-sevens in football and the game will be decided by which first-year starter QB plays best: MSU’s Andrew Maxwell or Notre Dame’s Everett Golson. No luck for the Irish in this one. Sparty reigns in Lansing.

Cal at Ohio State…the Buckeyes are ranked 96^th nationally against the pass (281 yds per game), so look for the Golden Bears to air it out with the arm of QB Zach Maynard. He has one of the best trios of receivers in the Pac12 so this could be a close game, but not close enough. Urban’s Buckeyes win.

Alabama at Arkansas….healthy or not, Tyler Wilson and the Hogs don’t have enough firepower to keep pace with the Tide who will be cruising by halftime, and showing the pollsters why they are number one.

Florida at Tennessee…I’ve been down this road before with Tennessee having the better team only to lose to the Gators. QB Tyler Bray has looked great being on target with his receivers, and the running game is greatly improved averaging 187 yards per game. This is one of three key games that the Vols must win. But despite having better numbers, I’m not ready to jump on the Coach Orange Pants bandwagon. He has yet to beat a ranked opponent and I’m still not convinced he’s an effective game-day coach. So, I’m sitting this one out while Lady Elaine makes her BIG PICK of The WEEK. Roll the tape, please.

 Make Mo Money with Mark

p.s. drop us line and maybe we'll feature your comments in our next edition.

Breaking news from Woolard's Weekend Winners....

                     You asked for it. You got it.

Elaine ponders her picks for her upcoming video.

Elaine, George the Cat's sister, will be making her debut this week as she makes the video BIG PICK of the WEEK featuring the #18 Florida Gators versus the #23 Tennessee Vols.

Once she got wind of ESPN's College GameDay setting up shop for the game on the Big Orange campus (first time in Knoxville since 2004), Elaine came to us and insisted that she get her chance to make the pick. This was not an easy decision given that George the Cat is a purrfect 2-0 in his BIG PICK of the WEEK videos. But, we are an equal opportunity college pick organization and we welcome Elaine to the brotherhood...er, hood.

So be looking for her BIG PICK of the WEEK later this week at Woolard's Weekend Winners.

Welcome to Woolard's Weekend Winners.....week two

We have a great slate of games for the second weekend of college football but let's first recap the action from last week.

Week One Wrap Up….not bad… not bad at all.

Woolard’s Weekend Winners went 7 and 1. So no doubt you made mo’ money with Mark…and George the Cat.

We came up short in only one game (hey, no one can be perfect, right?).

Although I hate to pick against Tennessee, my reverse motivation strategy paid off perfectly as the Vols took care of business and got the Georgia Dome monkey off its back. And, their solid performance gave Coach Orange Pants his first quality win. ESPNU actually recorded its largest viewing audience for a college game with over 1.4 million viewers. The only bad news is that viewership by college prospects was limited given that the game was played on a Friday night. And I know Dooley and staff were not fond of that so don’t expect to see too many non-Saturday games for the Big Orange.

George the Cat hit it big in his first video BIG PICK of the WEEK with the Tide trouncing the Wolverines of Ann Arbor. It was several days before George wiped the grin off his furry face because he knows anything crimson gives me nightmares.

 Curious About George?

Speaking of George the Cat, several folks have asked me about my partner in picks, who handles our video BIG PICK of the WEEK. Well, here’s some catnip.

George and his sister, Elaine, were found abandoned at Tanger Outlet Mall in Bluffton, SC near Hilton Head Island. George never knew his father, and his mother struggled to make ends meet. He missed out on a lot in those early days: no peewee ball, no ESPN, no prom dates. But George the Cat is a survivor and he promised his sister that better days were ahead. Fast forward to two kind souls, Sarah and Roland, adopting both George and Elaine. He now has access to DISH satellite and NetFlix, hotlines to Vegas and Atlantic City, and an unlimited supply of treats and afternoon catnaps. He quickly went to work learning the game of football and sharpening his game-picking skills.

He’s honored to be a part of Woolard’s Weekend Winners, although he is pushing to rename it George the Cat’s Weekend Whiskers.

When not chasing a red laser dot, you can find George the Cat at the local dog track where he and Elaine find it absolutely hilarious that the mutts can never quite catch the rabbit.

Week Two Winners.....

Georgia vs Mizzou…the SEC East race starts to take shape in Missouri’s SEC debut. Of all the Saturday’s matchups, this game poses to be the best in what some consider to be a coin toss. As the line has tightened throughout the week, I really think Richt’s pups will put an “old man’s” sock in Sheldon Richardson’s mouth and show the Show Me State tiggers what big boy football is all about. Welcome to the SEC.

LSU vs Washington…this is a night game in the Bayou and anything could happen, except the Huskies pulling an upset. LSU is 28-0 against non-conference foes under The Hat, Les Miles. If you’ve never been to Death Valley in Red Stick, add it to your bucket list. And tag it on to a side trip to Bourbon Street where Tiger fans will be celebrating a 20+ point victory Saturday night.

Mississippi State vs Auburn…nothing sounds worse than 55,000 clamoring cowbells (unless you’re a visitor to Neyland Stadium and hear Rocky Top played 189 times in just the first quarter), and the Auburn Tigers/War Eagles/Plainsmen are going to hate them too before the final gun. Mullen’s mutts will be ready despite never beating any SEC West team other than Ole Miss. By the way, Chizik is 16-11 W.C. (Without Cam).

Vanderbilt vs Northwestern…I normally never care about the Commode-doors but something is happening in the Music City and I’m not talking about Minnie Pearl’s hat. Vandy dandy James Franklin actually has Commodore fans feeling good about their team despite starting the season with a 17-13 loss to South Carolina. And their trip to the Windy City should be a good one as they cruise past the Wildcats. Don’t be shocked to see Franklin split for greener pastures at season end.

Nebraska vs UCLA…..the Huskers, ranked #16, hope to make this the first of two trips to Pasadena. Nebraska is led by the much improved California native Taylor Martinez who threw for 354 yards and 5 TDs last week against Southern Miss. He’ll post similar numbers as the boys from Lincoln skin the Bruins despite a good effort by tailback Johnathan Franklin who racked up 214 yds last week against Rice.

Stanford vs Duke…you won’t meet a nicer guy then Coach David Cutcliffe. At Tennessee, he was the hammer for Phillip Fulmer, and his resume of developing outstanding quarterbacks is without peer having developed talent like the Manning brothers, Heath Shuler, Tee Martin, etc. And, before Ole Miss had a brain fart and ran off Cutcliffe, he was the SEC Coach of the Year while in Oxford. Duke’s 9-3 victory at Stanford in 1971 remains its last road win against a ranked opponent, and Cutcliffe is hoping this will motivate the Dookies. Not gonna happen against the #25 Cardinal.

Notre Dame vs Purdue…no Dublin hangover here as the #22 Irish host the cross-state rival Boilermakers at another great venue and a must-see for any real college football fan. The Boilers have not won at Notre Dame Stadium since 2004. And that streak continues as the Golden Domers beat the Boilermakers, the first of three straight Big Ten opponents for Notre Dame in September.

Florida vs Texas A+M…there’s a lot of “newness” with this game for the Aggies: new head coach, new quarterback, new conference, first time ever hosting the Gators in College Station. The Aggies are favored by 1 but here again, this could be a coin toss. 

George the Cat and I don’t see eye-to-eye on this game, but I’ll respectfully defer to his judgment since he’s 1-0 in his picks. So, with that in mind, let’s roll the video of George the Cat's BIG PICK of the WEEK....

 Make Mo Money with Mark (and George the Cat).

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