This is the perfect time of year to plan your strategy for another profitable season of wagering on the games. Watch for any developments that might have a major impact on a particular team’s odds for a run to a conference championship and a BCS national title.
To help you
along, the following is a look at this week’s most interesting news and notes from
the world of college football.
Consensus reached on new BCS playoff
system
Much of the
talk this offseason has revolved around ‘the powers to be’ in college
football’s decision to revamp the current BCS system for its national title
game, which has been in place since 1998. While most of the speculation focused
on a switch to a four-team playoff system, this was finally confirmed last week
when the BCS Commissioners and Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick
fully endorsed this proposal. There are still a few obstacles to clear, mainly
a crucial vote by the BCS presidential oversight committee which is scheduled
for June 26 in Washington DC, but most experts believe the new system is on a
clear path to be in place for the 2014 season.
One of the
main of the stumbling blocks to a change to a playoff system was exactly how
the four participating teams would be selected. Each major conference voiced
their own personal preferences but in the end the decision was made to form a
selection committee, similar to the process that is used to select the field
for the NCAA Basketball Tournament. Another major obstacle that was ironed out
was where and when would the games be played. The two semifinal contests will
remain a part of the current BCS bowl game schedule and will switch sites on a
rotating basis. The national championship game will be awarded to a particular
location based on a bidding system.
Auburn quarterback arrested for
public intoxication
Freshman
quarterback Zeke Pike has started his career with the Auburn Tigers on shaky
ground after getting arrested for public intoxication this past Saturday night.
Pike enrolled with the school in January and competed this spring with redshirt
sophomore Kiehl Frazier and redshirt junior Clint Moseley for the starting job,
but is currently listed as third-string on the depth chart.
Pike was
previously suspended for his high school’s 2011 season opener his senior season
as a result from getting ejected from a playoff game as a junior. He also
created a name for himself by using Twitter to agitate Alabama fans before the
start of his senior year. The 6-foot-6, 229 pound signal callers was ranked by
ESPN as the No.38 quarterback in the class of 2010.
Penn State wide receiver leaves team
Devon Smith
has decided to leave Penn State for personal reasons, leaving a void at one the
starting wide receiver positions on the team. As a starter in 2011, he ranked
third on the team in both receptions (25) and receiving yards (402) and figured
to play an even bigger role this season in new head coach Bill O’Brian’s
offensive scheme.
It is still unclear whether or not Smith’s
departure had anything to do with being arrested this past March for possession
of marijuana and other drug paraphernalia. He had already applied for the school’s
Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition program in relation to the charges.