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By Marc Lawrence
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Friday, Dec 5 |
In a surprising turn, Kansas State coach Chris Klieman has retired after seven seasons with the Wildcats, and school legend Collin Klein will take over.
After leading Kansas State for seven seasons with considerable success at NDSU, Klieman announced his retirement on Wednesday.
He finished with a 54-34 record with the Wildcats and a 3-2 record in bowl games.
Kansas State already has a succession plan in place, with Klein, a 2012 Heisman Trophy finalist and the current Texas A&M offensive coordinator, chosen as his replacement. The Kansas State icon will be responsible for guiding his team to the next level.
Then there are those of us who will miss Klieman in the betting community, where he was 45-35-2 ATS with KSU, including a perfect 6-0 ATS as a dog of more than 12 points.
He is expected to coach the Wildcats in their bowl game later this month.
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ON TODAY'S SCORECARD
Limited Action Jackson
After a miserable start to the season, the Ravens have orked their way back to the top of the AFC North standings, but something seems off.
For starters, superstar quarterback Lamar Jackson simply hasn't looked the same since returning from a hamstring injury.
Baltimore is 4-1 since Jackson returned, but his production has taken a clear dip. That's especially true in the running game:
• 194.4 pass yards per game
• 19.6 rush yards per game
• 5 total TDs (all passing)
• 3 INTs
Jackson clearly isn't himself right now. We all expect the MVP-caliber version of Jackson to return, but when?
The Ravens would love for Jackson to play closer to his peak this weekend as they host the Steelers with first place on the line in one of the five biggest games of the weekend. |
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GRINDING OUT THE PROFITS
$how Me the Green
From the Playbook Football Newsletter
TULANE over North Texas by 6
Unlike Lane Kiffin, whose claim that he wants to coach Ole Miss through the playoffs is being disputed by his former players, both Jon Sumrall and Eric Morris will remain with their teams until their seasons’ end. Tulane may be 20th in the latest CFP rankings, but the Green Wave is projected 12th in the bracket, and with North Texas at 24, it appears likely the AAC title game winner will claim a spot. Tulane is riding a four-game win streak, and UNT has grabbed six wins in a row, all by at least 14 points. The Green Meanies are led by a guy who wasn’t good enough to start for his varsity team, Drew Mestemaker, the RS-freshman whose inboxes and DM’s are no doubt filled with messages from “well-wishers” offering a better life away from North Texas. Mestemaker has thrown for 3,835 yards and 29 touchdowns, leading the FBS in pass yards and tied for 4th in TDs. In his last three games, he’s thrown for 1,136 yards, but what makes the Mean Green so hard to stop is an additional weapon in RB Caleb Hawkins, #13 in the nation with 1,216 yards. Tulane moves the ball too behind senior Jake Retzlaff, the former BYU QB, who leads the nation’s 33rd-ranked offense in total yards. The trick with Retzlaff is not just his arm (2,717 yards), but his wheels, which have accounted for 561 yards and 14 rushing TDs in 10 of 12 games, including four against a possible ACC champion, Duke. North Texas gives up more than 24 PPG, and in the AAC title game, those teams giving up 22.9 ppg or more are just 1-5 ATS. On the road versus .750 or better teams, North Texas is a mere 3-7 ATS, and The Well-Oiled Machine cranked out this spicy nugget; underdogs in this title game that allow more than 21 PPG on the season are 0-5 SU and 1-4 ATS all-time. The hiring of Jon Sumrall has drawn some criticism from Florida Gators fans disappointed that the Lane Train skipped the Gainesville station, but Sumrall is 42-11 SU, 32-17-1 ATS as an FBS head coach with a 30-5 SU and 24-10-1 ATS mark in conference games. Toss in 2-0 ATS as a home dog, and we suspect Sumrall’s moving van will have to wait at least one more game. |
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TRENDING TODAY
For the Brass Ring
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The race for the Heisman Trophy is as close — and exciting — as humanly possible, with the winner likely decided this weekend by the two quarterbacks of the nation's last two undefeated teams… who happen to be facing off in the Big Ten Championship.
Sayin vs. Mendoza: Ohio State sophomore Julian Sayin and Indiana junior Fernando Mendoza are co-favorites to win the award (+165 at BetMGM), and it's not hard to see why given their similar résumés and the fact that whoever wins on Saturday will enter the CFP as the No. 1 seed.
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Sayin: 3,065 yards on a 78.9% completion rate (currently the best mark ever); 30 TDs against 5 INTs; 184.8 passer rating (leads FBS); 27 rush yards
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Mendoza: 2,758 yards on a 72% completion rate; 32 TDs (leads FBS) against 5 INTs; 183.7 passer rating (second in FBS); 243 rush yards and 6 TD
The third horse in the race: There remains an outside chance that Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia (+200) could win instead. His stats are comparable (3,192 yards, 71.2% completion rate, 27 TDs, 8 INTs, 171.5 RTG; 826 rush yards, 9 TD), but his Commodores didn't make the SEC title game, so he won't get the chance to make a final statement like Sayin and Mendoza will. |
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BETCHA DIDN’T KNOW
Hot Rod Lincoln
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USC inked the No. 1 class on National Signing Day -- a first for a non-SEC team in the modern era.
Say what you will about Lincoln Riley's tenure in L.A., but the future is very bright for the Trojans. Riley and USC snapped the SEC's 17-year streak of landing the No. 1 recruiting class.
It's headlined by 5-star OT Keenyi Pope and includes a whopping 18 4-star recruits.
On the other end of the spectrum, Penn State's everlasting coaching search created an unprecedented disaster on National Signing Day.
Louisville’s Jeff Brohm is the latest coach to reject Penn State.
Meanwhile, with former Lions head coach James Franlin now at Virginia Tech, the Hokies' recruiting class is their best in at least 13 years, moving up from No 124 to No. 22. |
QUOTE OF THE DAY |
"Man is fond of counting his troubles,
but he does not count his joys. If he counted them up as he ought to, he would see
that every lot has enough happiness provided for it.”
- Fyodor Dostoevsky |
STAT OF THE DAY
57.2 Million |
The Cowboys' win over the Chiefs on Thanksgiving drew a staggering 57.2
million viewers on CBS, making it
the
most-watched regular-season NFL
game ever. It shattered the previous
record of 42.1
million viewers in 2022.
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