Congi kicks Saskatchewan over Hamilton
Football Betting Lines
07/31/2010 -
Regina, SK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Luca Congi made seven field goals and Wes Cates
added two short rushing touchdowns, as the Saskatchewan Roughriders pulled
away from the Hamilton Tiger-Cats for a 37-24 victory at Mosaic Stadium.
Congi was perfect in the game and one field goal shy of tying the CFL record,
as the Roughriders (4-1) rebounded nicely from a 40-20 loss at Calgary last
weekend. Cates scored twice in the second half from one-yard away, while
finishing the game with 66 rushing yards on 13 carries and 75 receiving on
five catches.
Saskatchewan forced three turnovers in the game, scoring nine points off those
mishaps on its way to defeating Hamilton for the 12th time in the past 13
meetings.
Kevin Glenn threw for 425 yards and three touchdowns, but was also intercepted
twice for Hamilton (1-4), which dropped its second game in a row. Arland Bruce
III had a career day in the setback, as he notched a CFL record-tying 16
catches for 272 yards and a pair of scores.
The scoring began with Saskatchewan's Eddie Johnson sending a 55-yard punt
into the end zone for a single.
The Ticats took the ensuing possession and drove 75 yards, capping the 10-play
drive with a 25-yard touchdown pass from Glenn to Bruce with under five
minutes left in the first quarter.
The Roughriders came right back and Congi converted a 37-yard field goal,
which was set up courtesy of a 33-yard circus catch by Cates.
On the last play of the first quarter, Saskatchewan's defense got involved, as
DE Luc Mullinder came up with an interception on a tipped ball that he
returned 25 yards to the Hamilton 40-yard line. The Roughriders were unable to
move the ball on the next two downs, but tied the game at 7-7 with a 40-yard
field goal by Congi.
Still early in the second quarter, the Ticats executed another 75-yard scoring
drive, as Glenn hit Dave Stala on a 11-yard touchdown pass to complete the
eight-play series.
The Roughriders controlled the remainder of the half, though they failed to
take full advantage of their opportunities. Saskatchewan moved the ball inside
the Hamilton five-yard line on two separate occasions, but managed only three
points. On the first visit, the team came up empty as Darian Durant was
intercepted in the back of the end zone on a 3rd-and-1 at the Hamilton four-
yard line. The second trip resulted in a Congi nine-yard field goal after Rob
Badd dropped a pass in the end zone on second down.
Congi made good on a 42-yard field goal with 35 seconds left in the half and
the Roughriders went into the break down, 14-13.
Saskatchewan didn't fall out of rhythm after the break and even found an
answer to its goal-line struggles. After a 35-yard catch by Andy Fantuz
brought the ball to the Hamilton one-yard line, Cates punched it in on first
down to give the Roughriders a 20-14 lead midway through the third quarter.
Following a blocked punt, the Roughriders had terrific field position, but
were unable to gain a first down. Congi was brought in once again and he was
true on a 35-yarder.
On the ensuing possession, Hamilton turned the ball over yet again, as Glenn
was intercepted by DB Lance Frazier, who took the pick 83 yards to the two-
yard line. The Roughriders though, failed to capitalize inside the five-yard
line once again and Congi converted a 15-yard field goal with under a minute
left in the third for a 26-14 lead.
The Ticats' offense finally showed some life early in the fourth quarter,
moving the ball down to the Saskatchewan 11-yard line before settling for an
18-yard field goal by Sandro DeAngelis,
Saskatchewan, however, put the game away when Cates plunged one-yard for a
touchdown with 3:54 to play. The score came following a pass interference in
the end zone after it appeared Hamilton had stopped the Roughriders on 2nd-
and-goal from the seven-yard line. Johnson then booted the kickoff into the
back of the end zone for a single, pushing Saskatchewan's advantage to 34-17.
Glenn hooked up with Bruce on a 36-yard scoring strike late in the fourth for
Hamilton, but Saskatchewan responded with another field goal from Congi, this
one from 19 yards out.
Game Notes
The Roughriders improved to 3-0 at home with the win...Saskatchewan now leads
the all-time series 37-36-4 (regular season since 1950)...Fantuz led the
Roughriders with eight catches for 100 yards...Hamilton has now come up empty
in three road dates...The Ticats have not won in Saskatchewan since 2000 and
are just 1-10 in Regina against the Roughriders since 1999.
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The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.
While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.
For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.
1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.
2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of online football betting possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.
How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.
Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.
Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.
How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).
Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.
Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.
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