Thank God It's Thursday: Return of Mid-Week NFL & Predictions for NFL/NCAA

Welcome back Thursday Night Football. Those of us who have been following the Penn St. scandal greatly appreciate your presence, if only for a three-hour period.

Thursday night football ensures that there will be no longer than a couple of days off between games for the next 5-6 weeks. This excites me as a football fan and as a gambler.

The only unfortunate part is that the Thursday Night game usually ends up being a dud of a match up- whether it be that the teams scheduled suck or they don't really put on entertaining games. I can't recall a single Thursday night game being exciting. Probably didn't help that I was in school all of last fall on Thursday nights and thus, didn't really have a chance to watch many of the games from beginning to end.

Any who, there's tonight's game, which seems to fall into the category of "Ehhhh, I'll watch it since nothing else is on". I have a bet on it, which I'll touch base on in a minute.

Penn St Update

I wrote a Penn St. blog yesterday about an hour before the big news broke about Joe Paterno's firing. I am glad to hear that he was dismissed. While not 100% is known about the situation, I don't think this is a case where I need to know everything. Hell, who is to say that the stuff we don't know yet isn't more damning to the coach and especially Sandusky? Rumor is that Sandusky may have been pimping out kids to PSU donors - again, just a rumor, but if true, makes this sick story even more vomit-inducing.

I am not surprised about the reaction on the campus of PSU, although I wish those kids would take a step back from their idolization of Paterno and think about those victims and whether they could stomach their brother or sister, niece or nephew in those showers with a pedophile and have no one go to authorities about it.

I await to hear the rest of the story, but I don't know how well I will be able to stomach it.




Fools Gold, Week 10

Last week, we suffered a third straight loss, 5-4 now (4-3, +$10 when betting against the Fools Gold, with last week's $50 bet on the Niners being the inaugural fade of my FG read of lines).


Fools Gold Pick for the week - Jacksonville -3.5 at Indy - It seems shocking that Jacksonville can be a road favorite against anyone this year, but here we are. They are facing the worst team we have seen since the Detroit Lions 3-4 years ago. In the past, Indy would be about 10-14 point favorites with Manning as the starter here. Just goes to show you (a) how important Manning was to the Colts and (b) how much his presence was hiding other holes that the team had.

Like week 1, this is a week that I don't think I'll be betting the game, although the Fools Gold system play would be Indy +3.5. I'm actually leaning towards fading the system again. I don't know when Indy will have a better chance of winning a game this year, so this may be it for them. The FG pick is Indy +3.5


Week 10 action

San Diego -7 vs. Oakland - We got our first Thursday night game since the exciting opener between the Saints and Packers. I think the Chargers win by a couple touchdowns here. They had a great chance of being the first team to beat the Packers but dug themselves too big of a hole in the first quarter with a couple of Pick-6s. I think Rivers avoids interceptions tonight, which has been the problem all year for him. Palmer is still rusty - probably won't be himself (which is a slightly above-average QB at best) until next year.

NYG +3.5 at San Fran - I may not bet this one, but I have a bad feeling about my team this week against the Giants. This may be the game where the Niners need Alex Smith to lift the team on his shoulders. I hope I'm wrong, but I think the Niners win this game by 3 at the most and likely leave the game losers for the second time this year.

NYJ -1.5 vs. NE - If it wasn't for the Penn State stuff, ESPN would be saturating us with pre-game stuff about this game. NYJ has looked much better at home than on the road and are coming off of their best game of the season in their impressive road win at Buffalo. With news that Revis will exclusively cover Welker this week, I like the Jets' chances to overtake the Patriots in the division and send the Pats reeling to their 3rd straight loss. I don't think the Pats are the same team that we remember them as, so no, I don't expect them to automatically rebound from a loss like they may have in the past.

Buffalo +5.5 at Dallas - I think there's a slight over-reaction to Buffalo's loss last week that has this line a little higher than it should be. Buffalo has a great chance to cover here and a better than average chance of winning this game. Outside of its win against San Fran, Dallas has yet to beat a good team.

Tampa Bay/Houston Under 45.5 - Houston has found itself in an unusual position as a franchise: having a strong run game and strong defense lead the way to victory. Wade Phillips' effect cannot be overstated. As I mentioned in August when dubbing Houston as a good value for their Super Bowl odds, Phillips is much better suited as a defensive coordinator. I expect this game to be ground-and-pound on both sides and a score in the mid/upper 30s, 20-16 for handicapping sake.

NCAA picks

Nebraska -3 at Penn State - I bet this when the scandal was just dominating the airwaves on Tuesday, figuring it would be a major distraction for the team. We'll see how much it holds come Saturday, but I like my chances.

Illini -1 - bounce back/revenge game

Iowa +2.5 - looking to build off of good effort vs. Michigan

Week 9	Week 10
NFL 4-2, $97.50	NCAA 3-7, -$104
Totals 1-1, -$7.50	Totals 1-4, -$95
MLs 0-0	MLs 0-0
Spreads 3-1, $105	Spreads 2-3, -$9
YTD: 35-27-3, $535.70	YTD: 18-26-1, -$268
Totals: 11-9-1, $212.10	Totals: 3-8, -$255
MLs: 4-2, $202.60	MLs: 0-5, -$260
Spreads: 20-16-2, $121	Spreads: 15-13, $247

From Penn State to the State Pen: Thoughts on the PSU Scandal

Many things in life have a gray area when it comes to ethical and moral standards.

For instance, do you steal a loaf of bread for your starving family if you have no means of paying for it?

Do you pull the plug on someone who is terminally ill and has no quality of life?

Things like these, among many others, can provide reasonable arguments on both side of the issue.

However, child molestation is not one of them. Being an accessory to it (seeing something and not reporting it) is just as bad as the act itself, perhaps even worse if the person who commits the act keeps on doing it to other youth as a result of the original acts not being reported.

This whole Penn State mess can (and probably will) have tons of books that cover this issue in a more in-depth manner. What I've just finished reading is a very disturbing account of the 8 victims of Jerry Sandusky's that were spoken of at the grand jury of the case in late 2010. Feel free to read it, but be warned that this report has graphic descriptions of acts that were committed: Sandusky case

There are several individuals mentioned in the testimony that directly observed the actions of the former Penn State defensive coordinator, including a graduate assistant for the football team. According to the grand jury report, the GA told Joe Paterno at his home about the incident and then later told some other higher-ups (to which those gentlemen have been charged with perjury for lying under oath about never having heard this information presented to them). However, one call was never placed - to the authorities.

Whether the authorities would take the allegations seriously (because of the power that Penn St. football has in the community) is a moot point. An effort has to be made by someone witnessing a crime of such horrible magnitude, especially one involving a helpless victim such as a child.

What's Happened Since the Scandal Broke

Many believe that the president of the university (mentioned in the report) will be resigning or fired from his post shortly. He has had only one comment on record since the news broke 3-4 days ago, and shockingly, it was a comment that put his unwavering support for the two gentlemen who committed perjury as they were doing all they could to save the face of Penn State football.

The grad assistant who saw the actions of one of the rapes is getting a lot of heat for not reporting what he saw to authorities, which I outlined above. While he reported the issue to the people above him, he failed to contact authorities. For this, I find his reaction (or inaction) to be despicable.

Joe Paterno has gone on record today saying that he will retire at the end of the year. He brashly stated that the Board of Trustees shouldn't waste their time on his status, seeing as though they had more important issues to deal with. His fate for Saturday and beyond is to be determined, but at the very least (assuming he doesn't pull a Favre), we will not see Paterno coach another college game after their presumed bowl game.

Joe's Role and What Should Be Done

There's no denying Joe Paterno's presence when you enter the Penn State vicinity. He has contributed nearly five decades of coaching to the program, providing tremendous amounts of time and money to the school. He's so revered, there was a statue built of him. From all accounts, outside of this incident, it appears that Joe Pa was the right face to represent the school.

However, you cannot ignore this incident and cannot ignore Joe Pa's inaction to the incidents at hand. To report this matter to your higher ups and no one else, especially when you're the face of the college (maybe even of the state), sets a bad precedent for the entire school.

No one at PSU is bigger than Paterno. He IS Penn State football. Hell, he IS Penn State to many people.

This is why he should never coach a single down of football at the school ever again. He is a symbol of what went wrong with this state institution. To let him coach Saturday and the remaining regular season and postseason games would be a slap in the face to the victims, particularly Saturday's home game against Nebraska. He'd likely have 100K strong on his side as his seniors play their last game at Beaver Stadium.

But what about the football players? Getting rid of the coach wouldn't be fair to them...Guess what? Their coach did something immoral. I feel bad for the players, who won't get to enjoy their Senior Day like many others across the nation get to. But when a clear violation of ethics is committed, you can't reward the violator by letting him dictate the terms of his dismissal - players or not. There's plenty of incidents in college sports where a current regime of players (currently USC) pays for the mistakes of previous coaches/players' mistakes. I don't think they should punish the current players by cancelling their games, but the person leading them in those games should NOT be Coach Paterno.

Some Final Thoughts

This whole story disgusts me, and it should disgust you too. I'm disgusted by not only the actions of Sandusky and those around him that failed to report the incidents in a timely matter, but also the people who can completely ignore the incident and sweep it under the rug because of how they've turned Paterno into a God at the college. Reactions by people who fully support Penn State, its coaches and staff after this incident are either people who have no kids (and thus, could not understand what it would be like to think of their kid being raped) or are completely blinded by someone they built to be a dictator of morality and everything else at Penn State.

I don't see how there could be gray area on this subject. While I do not have any children, I think of my younger cousins and young people around me and couldn't imagine how angry I would be if they were raped or molested. I think of how I might be as a father and how I might be in prison right now if someone did this to my kid.

I hear former players and some coaches spewing a bunch of crap on the matter and they all seem to support Joe Pa to the point where they think he should finish the season out. This is the typical response from athletes in controversial matters involving one of their own. If their kids had been the ones to be molested and Paterno failed to report it, you better believe they would be up in arms about him being able to finish out his coaching career in 2011.

Many alumni and fans of the team are unsure what to make of this. I have a few PSU fans - both regular readers of the blog - and they both expressed disgust over the matter. One of them just went to Beaver Stadium on Halloween weekend to watch PSU's 3-point win over Illinois, and he seems to still be processing the information and where he should go from here with his fandom. I can't blame him for this and wonder myself how I would react if this happened to my school (Illinois) or perhaps with one of the professional teams that I consider myself a fan of.


I'll leave you with one final thought: If you're wondering how you should react to this story (as if there should be a way other than complete disgust), just think - how would you feel if this was your nephew or niece, son or daughter?

Crucial Taunt - More B-Bo NCAA Ramblings & Football picks for Week 9

I hate that taunting is a penalty...wait, let me be more specific...I hate that it is a penalty in NCAA that can actually take points off the board. It's a new rule this year that if a guy showboats before reaching the endzone (at least by the ref's descretion), they get flagged for a personal foul and lose the touchdown. Here's an example of it from last month above. Keep it the way it was before - 15 yard penalty on the kickoff. While I hate showboating in general, I don't think it should strip away someone's score.

The unofficial play-in game for the BCS title game is going on this weekend...LSU heads to their rival Alabama's home field for a Saturday night tilt that will decide who goes to the championship game. This is dependent on the winner not slipping between now and then - but for all intents and purposes, the winner will have a chance to extend the SEC's dominance in the title game. Oddsmakers currently have Bama tabbed as a 5 pt favorite with an O/U of 41. I have no idea what side to play, so I shouldn't. If anything, I think I'd like the Under in this battle. Watch for Les Miles to do something crazy that will make or break LSUs chances of going into January undefeated and going for the crown.

How come college programs don't get penalized for leaving conferences...and yet, players who dare transfer these same college programs to other college programs have to sit out a year (unless they have special circumstances)? I think a good deterrant for these teams would be to enforce the same rules that they have for the players - if they decide to switch conferences, they have to sit out a year. That'd really make WVU reconsider leaving the Big East. While I think my idea is slightly drastic, I hate that the NCAA continues to spew these double standards where multi-million dollar coaches can switch programs w/ no problem, teams that can switch conferences at will, yet unpaid players who want to switch teams have to miss a season. Sounds fair to me. F you, NCAA.



Fools Gold Pick of the Week (NFL Week 9)

Last week, we suffered another loss, 5-3 now (4-3, +$10). This week presents a different twist on the Fools Gold platter.

San Fran -3.5 at Washington - Washington is coming off a few sloppy losses, including a shutout at the hands of the Buffalo Bills - who aren't exactly known for their stout defense. Meanwhile, you have San Fran coming into town. The Niners boast one of the best defenses in the NFL, including an amazing stat of no rushing TDs allowed in the team's first seven games.

Normally this year, I would either avoid this game or bet against the deceiving line. However, I already threw some money on San Fran in this game. I can't even say it's a homer bet. I just don't see where Washington gets their points in this game. Alex Smith has been fantastic in managing the games (only 2 picks thrown this year) and the team continues to utilize Gore in the running game. I recommend not betting this game because of the deceiving line, so do as I say, not as I do.

Fools Gold Pick: Washington +3.5 (betting opposite of this for the first time this year)

Other NFL picks this week I am considering (follow me @brianbolek on Twitter for a full blast of games)

NYG (+9) at NE - I have already bet NYG. They always play up to the level of their competition. I expect their pass rush to give Brady fits. I expect this game w/in a touchdown either way.

SD (+5.5/6) vs. GB - I consider SD a buy-low candidate here. They're usually a good home team. I'd like to see SD go to +7 but doubt it. Haven't bet it yet.

Chi +8 at Phil - Too many points to spot the Bears. They contained Vick well last year, and Forte vs. the Eagles presents a big advantage to the Bears. Also might consider the under of this game as well (total of 47)

NCAA picks for Saturday
Iowa +4 vs. Michigan - play of the day
Washington +17 vs. Oregon
LSU/Alabama under 41
Ohio St/Indiana over 52
Wake Forest +13.5 (maybe catch it at 14)

Week 8	Week 9
NFL 5-3, $104.10	NCAA 5-4-1, $165
Totals 1-2, -$60	Totals 2-1-1, $60
MLs 1-1, -$5.90	MLs 0-2, -$90
Spreads 3-0, $170	Spreads 3-1, $195
YTD: 31-25-3, $438.20	YTD: 15-19-1, -$209
Totals: 10-8-1, $219.60	Totals: 2-4-1, -$160
MLs: 4-2, $202.60	MLs: 0-5, -$260
Spreads: 17-15-2, $16	Spreads: 13-10, $256

Brian is an Angry Andy - Plus Week 8 NFL/Week 9 NCAA Picks

NFL stuff on my mind....

Please please please Detroit....destroy the Broncos this week! I can't take this Tebow stuff much longer. The media spend too much time talking about a fullback playing quarterback for a team that will get about 4-5 wins this year. The Broncos were smart in having his first start be against a shitty team. Trust me, they weren't gonna have him embarrass the franchise against a team like the Packers.

If the Niners don't win the NFC West, I will murder someone. With the lack of talent in this division and any of these teams lucky to reach 6 wins, the Niners should clinch this division around Week 12 or 13. The only question we should have to worry about is whether we could get a bye. As crazy as it sounds, there's an outside shot of the Niners getting the #2 seed, assuming they can run through the NFC West as they should and some of the Saints' tough division games result in a few more losses.

This Andrew Luck talk ("Suck for Luck") is getting annoying - Phil Simms had to open his fat mouth on the subject, saying that Peyton Manning would not allow for the drafting of Luck. Sorry, but a guy who is entering the twilight of his career coming off of his second surgery is in no position to dictate future moves of the franchise. If Andrew Luck turns out to be the next Rodgers or Manning and the Colts let him go, they'd be setting their franchise back for many years to come. Actually burying the lead on this: the Colts aren't guaranteed to be the first pick!!!

We are 6-7 games into a 16 game season, with 3 teams that have failed to win a game so far. Let the season play out before we have these talks. Everyone (i.e. ESPN) is so quick to annoit the team that gets the first pick that they're not allowing the season to just take its course.

Final fantasies: I have a combined 2-19 record in my 3 money leagues, with the two wins coming in one of the leagues. That means I am pulling an 0-fer in the other two leagues. Funny enough, I'm not horribly disappointed with this, as my real life team (San Fran) is headed towards its first playoff berth since 2002. I'll gladly trade any fantasy football success for success for my team.


Fools Gold
I ran into my first loss with betting an underdog in this column, with Arizona losing to Pittsburgh by a couple scores. That moves my record to 5-2 (4-2, +$60 when betting it).

Week 8 game: Cincy (-2.5) at Seattle: Cincy enters this game well-rested after a bye week followed two wins. Meanwhile, Seattle looked like a turd against the Browns (these puns write themselves, I love it).

I may lay off of betting this game, but I think this is a sucker line. I'll be more likely to pull the trigger if Tavarus Jackson and/or Marshawn Lynch return to the lineup. The Bengals usually suck when going out west. I remember betting them in a pool when they faced the Raiders a few years back and Palmer took a fat turd. I think Dalton, although solid for a rookie, will face his toughest road test in terms of crowd noise. This should result in some false starts and other penalties that will favor the Seahawks. I see a 20-17 Seahawks win.

Other potential Week 8 bets:

KC +3.5/4 vs. San Diego- I really love this one. I don't think SD is as good as its record shows. KC ended up easily covering as 14 point dogs against the Chargers a week before going on their 3 game winning streak. I think KC will win this one straight up and join the Chargers and Raiders atop the AFC West division.

New England -2.5 at Pitt - Brady and Belichick seem to have the Steelers' number, and I think that continues. The Steelers have won 3 straight against 3 teams that they should beat. With the Ravens next on their schedule, I wouldn't be surprised if there was a slight look-ahead to that game, although I don't think Tomlin will let them do that. Either way, the Pats should cover.


NCAA Bets I'm looking at

Nebraska -4 against MSU - MSU coming off of two emotional wins (against rival Michigan and an upset win against Wisconsin), a natural letdown spot if there ever was one.

Minnesota +16 against Iowa - Tim and I have made a tradition of fading Iowa on Halloweekend for some reason, so this year's flush of money is the Gophers.

Indiana/NU Over 61.5 - NU has allowed over 30 points in all 4 of its Big Ten matchups. After watching Indiana's game last week against Iowa, I saw their freshman QB move the ball well in the first and last quarters of the game. IU has no defense either, so I expect the teams to have some fun running the ball up and down the field.

Week 7	Week 8
NFL 1-3 -$97.50	NCAA 1-0, $50
Totals 0-0	Totals 0-0
MLs 1-0, $122.50	MLs 0-0
Spreads 0-3, -$220	Spreads 1-0, $50
YTD: 26-22-3, +$334.10	YTD: 10-15, -$374
Totals: 9-6-1, +$299.60	Totals: 0-3, -$220
MLs: 3-1, $208.50	MLs: 0-3, -$170
Spreads: 14-15-2, -$154	Spreads: 10-9, $61

Reviving America's Pastime: The Amazing 2011 World Series

You like low scoring games? There's been 4 of those.

You like video games scores? There's been a couple of those, including the most exciting end to a playoff game (given what was on the line - elimination of the Cards) since Game 7 of the 2001 World Series.

You like superstars getting their big numbers? Does Pujols hitting three bombs in Game 3 satisfy your appettite? (probably not if you're a Rangers or Cubs fan)

You like unknowns (at least to the mainstream) making splashes? Mike Napoli and David Freese have played that role perfectly.

9th inning lead changes? Two of those as well, one by each team.

How about serieses that go to the max? First one since the 2002 Series won by the Angels.

Close games? There's been 5 games of 6 decided by 1 or 2 runs.

This series has everything a common baseball fan should want. So it makes sense that the ratings are higher for this series than most recently that didn't involve the Red Sox or Yankees.

Despite the sloppy start to Game 6, it still has to be considered among the top games of my lifetime in terms of excitement and intensity of the moment. So many firsts were set from that last game: first time there's been 10 innings of one team scoring at least a run, first time a team came back from defecits in the 9th and 10th inning, first time a guy tied a game in the 9th and then won it in extra innings, among others.

I doubt we will see the eyes glued to baseball the way we're seeing them now for a while. Baseball has lost its appeal to the common fan as NFL has overtaken it as the most popular sport in America. I've heard some people say baseball could go the way of boxing, but I don't think it'll dive off into that type of obscurity.

The problem with baseball's showcase series is that it hasn't really been competitive in the past decade. Unlike the Super Bowl, which has seen 7 of its last 12 winners triumph by a touchdown or less, the World Series has only seen 5 of its last 12 series go 6 or more games, with this being the 3rd sudden death game in that span. This means that seven series either ended in sweeps or another team only able to capture one game. That's not a good way to promote your sport.

Hopefully we will see more competitive series in the future. I'm writing this as the seventh game is going on, but I can already say that it's the most exciting series I've ever watched as a baseball fan (obviously the White Sox was my favorite ever as a homer). Here's my favorites in order:

(1) 2011 Rangers/Cards - (all but one game has been competitive)
(2) 1991 Twins/Braves - (one of the first series I remember watching as a kid. I was hopelessly rooting for the Braves in this series)
(3) 2001 Yanks/Dbacks (hard to not like this series, especially for anyone who hates the Yanks)

Enjoy Game 7 if you read this right away. If you read this later, I hope you enjoy the game and the series.

If you didn't, shame on you.

DirecTV Impact: My Introduction to the NFL Package & Picks for Week 7

For much of my adult life, I have known about the NFL package, but never got it for several reasons - (1) we never had DirecTV and (2) I never felt the need to fork up the dough to watch a mediocre Niners team even if we did have it. Also, there was the 4 years of Sundays where I was at college and the NFL package would have been useless.

Welcome to the NFL Package, Mr. Bolek

In previous years, I have gone to a local bar and spent anywhere between a games-worth and 2 games-worth of time watch the full slate of NFL action on different TVs. Funny thing is, you end up spending more money over the season at the bar for drinks and food than you ever would just ordering the package.

Enter 2011 - and I am the proud co-owner of an NFL package with a friend of mine. And it's been great being able to focus on 3 games with the three TV setup that he has in his basement. I've been able to catch all of my Niners games - and shockingly they've been watchable games from a Niners perspective.

More importantly, as a gambler, it's allowed me the chance to watch certain teams and see how they play better than reading a stat sheet ever could. Seeing box scores can tell you a story of a game, but how something happened (i.e. a receiver getting yards because his defender fell down rather than earning it against a standing defender) allows you to see more of a complete story.

That's not to say that I never took notice to these things before - it's just that I've been able to focus on these games better in a setting that wasn't as distracting as a bar. These mental notes I've taken of the few teams I've watched has allowed me to handicap some of these games better.

Hopefully I'll continue to see great Niners results and sharpen my handicapping skills at the same time.


Fools Gold & Week 7 Picks

Last week, Tampa Bay did just as I predicted - a 26-20 upset win over the Saints. This moves Fools Gold to an impressive 5-1 record, with all 5 winners actually winning straight up.

A couple of games stand out on the schedule as far as deceiving lines go, so I'll narrow it to one.

Pittsburgh (-4) at Arizona - Coming off a pair of home wins, including an ugly one against the lowly Jaguars, the Steelers are laying only 3.5 points against another opponent with only one win (Arizona's only win was in Week 1 against Carolina).

Pittsburgh enters the game beaten up. Polomalu will play after passing his post-concussion test, Mendenhall will play after sitting out a game due to injury. The offensive line has been dealing with injuries all year.

Meanwhile, Arizona comes off the bye. They are 1-1 at home but very well could be 2-0 if not for a controversial call going against them late in the game of their 31-27 loss to the Giants a few weeks back. They do play better at home and outside of their Week 5 game against the Vikes, have played competitive games in the first quarter of the year.

I anticipate a good effort from Arizona this week, a good game from Beanie Wells, and an upset win for the Cardinals.

Fools Gold Pick for Week 7: Arizona +4
Fools Gold (YTD: 5-1 (4-1, +$115 when betting it))

Other Week 7 Plays and Leans

StL +13 at Dallas - I caught the line at +13 when news broke that Bradford might play. I figured I'd take a chance that he would play. Even if he doesn't, I think this is too many points for Dallas to lay. All 5 of the Cowboys' games this year have been decided by 4 points or less (dating back to last year, it's 11 straight games decided within that amount). Another angle I'm playing here - according to a stat I found in one of my gambling forums, teams who have lost 5 straight games against the spread (as the Rams have) are 24-1 ATS in the 6th game. I'm not sure how far the trend dates back, but I'm willing to take the chance. Already booked at 13, may put more on it as long as it stays in the 12-13 range.

Tampa Bay +1.5 vs. Chicago - This game is being played 5 time zones to the east. While Tampa Bay has already settled into the time zone change, the Bears are probably flying over there as I type this (Thursday night). Learning from a previous London trip in which they were walloped by the Patriots - with many players admitting that they didn't adjust to the time change well, Tampa decided to fly out there early this time. I think Tampa might be a better team anyways, but having this bit of knowledge puts me firmly on the side of the Bucs.

KC +6 at Oakland - I think Palmer may have an adjustment period. KC coming off of a bye and a 2-game win streak. I expect Jackie Battle to have a good game for the Chiefs and help them keep within the number in this rivalry game.

Leans: Seattle +3, NYJ +2, Ind/NO Under 48, Car/Wash Over 43.5
Keep yourself updated on Twitter @brianbolek or www.twitter.com/brianbolek

Week 6	Week 7
NFL 5-2, $250	NCAA 1-1, $45
Totals 1-1, $45	Totals 0-0
MLs 0-0	MLs 0-0
Spreads 4-1, $205	Spreads 1-1, $45
YTD: 25-19-3, +$431.60	YTD: 9-15, -$424
Totals: 9-6-1, +$299.60	Totals: 0-3, -$220
MLs: 2-1, $86	MLs: 0-3, -$170
Spreads: 14-12-2, $66	Spreads: 9-9, $11

As always, good luck to your fantasy teams, your bets and especially your teams!

30 Days & Not Confused (Chapter 7)

It's only been a month, but it feels like it's been a lot longer.

Of course, the first pictures have to be completely goofy.

I speak of the budding relationship I am in currently. It feels like the relationship has been going on for a few months - but in a good way. When you talk to someone consistently for a 30 day period, that's what will cause that feeling.

The conversations span from texts to calls, and of course, in person. They are conversations that are all over the place too - from sports to our pasts, from music to food and pretty much everything in between.

It's been a while since I've had such a wide base of conversations, especially with a g/f. I don't know if others look at that aspect of a relationship as much as I do. Looks are important, sure, but what good is a good-looking girl to date if you have nothing to talk about. Communication is the key to any relationship we develop in life, whether it be a business relationship or a personal one.

It's because of this good and open communication that I find myself more and more optimistic about what will come out of this relationship. Plans of Halloween parties and Halloween-related activities will be followed by a great birthday weekend for the lady (taking her to her first Bears game in November). There are also plans of not one but TWO! Thanksgiving dinners together (one with her family, one with mine).

(At this point, she and others of you reading this can tease me about my liking of having plans set. While I realize this is part of a self-diagnosed OCD, I attribute it more to having something to look forward to. And as you've read in the above paragraph, there's plenty to look forward to)

It's been as great of a 30-day start as one could expect to a relationship, and as you can see, the next 30 days and beyond have a lot to offer.

If you haven't had the chance to meet the lady yet, you're definitely missing out and I hope that changes soon.