Cappers Buzz

When handicapping sports, it is important to be able to identify which teams are improving as the season progresses. Some teams are young, others have made lineup changes or welcomed back players from injury, and some simply play for a coach whose teams are known for improving. These teams will exhibit value as the public will stay off of them, remembering only past performances. Below I have isolated 3 college football teams that I believe fit this category as we head to the second half of the season.

Virginia Cavaliers- I may be just a tad late with this one, as the Cavs are off of a 31-0 shutout vs. Maryland, and a 35-20 beatdown of East Carolina, but the Cavs may still have an upset or two left in the tank down the home stretch. Many wrote Wahoo off early due to some offseason attrition and horrible performances early on against USC, Uconn, and Duke. However, they have seemingly awakened from the grave, with two straight impressive home performances. They have rid themselves of the Peter Lalich distraction, and his replacement SO QB Marc Verica is improving with every start. A healthy Cedric Peerman has provided a big boost in the backfield as well. After such a poor start, UVA is playing with a bit of an attitude and could spring another upset or two down the stretch. Remember, Al Groh is 14-4 ATS as a home dog, and this team has went bowling 5 out of the last 6 seasons.

Baylor Bears- Art Briles did an excellent job turning around the Houston Cougars’ program in a short period of time, and it appears that he’s off to a pretty good start at Waco. After struggling early on with a veteran Wake Forest team at home, Briles made FR phenom Robert Griffin the full-time starter and he has not dissapointed. Griffin is already one of othe Big 12’s best players averaging 8.7 yards per pass and an amazing 5.0 yards per rush. His rushing stats key Baylor’s ground dominance as the Bears hold a +1.2 net ypr over 1A foes on the season. Their loss to Oklahoma was closer than it looked, and they gave Uconn everything they wanted in Storrs. The schedule down the stretch is not easy, so a bowl may be out of the question, but BU could put a real scare into a few teams down the stretch as a nice-sized dog.

Army Black Knights- Army appears to have made nice strides in Stan Brock’s second year as head coach. After a 4 TD loss to a decent Temple team in a game where they outyarded the Owls but allowed 2 non-offensive T’s, and a somewhat competitive loss to Akron, the Black Knights are 2-1 SU/3-0 ATS with 2 of the covers coming by 23 and 48.5 points. They are a team that the public perceives as being bad, but rush for 4.7 yards per rush while allowing only 3.9 ypr against 1A opponents. Those teams can be very profitable as big dogs, as their offense chews up clock, and the defense can somewhat stop teams from moving the chains and stretching a lead. This team had only 8 returning starters, so they should definitely improve as the season progresses.