(Credit: AP Photo) Please note: The Hotline will have a new home, and new url, starting Monday. The address will be posted here. Thanks in advance for your understanding. Last week: 2-2-1Season: 7-7-1Five-star special: 2-1 All picks against the spread.Lines taken from vegasinsider.com (opening lines used) San Jose State (plus-6) at Iowa State: Tough kickoff time for the visitors (9 a.m. PT), who have a litany of issues and might have to lean on a freshman quarterback (Josh Love). But ISU is simply dreadful. Pick: San Jose State. Oklahoma State (plus-10) at Baylor: After Northwestern State, SMU and Rice, the Bears finally face legit competition. I expect the Cowboys, who were tested last week by Pittsburgh, to cover and to win the game outright. Pick: Oklahoma State. Arkansas (plus-2.5) vs. Texas A&M (in Arlington): The Hogs just might be the second-best team in the SEC West. If they win in College Station after the Fort Worth OT escape, it might be time to declare them the best … [Read more...] about College football picks of the week
Football
Cal football report card: Grading the win over Texas
(Bay Area News Group) The win becomes official and instantly we seek to define it: The signature victory for coach Sonny Dykes? Cal’s biggest upset since … since? As upsets go, this was moderate: The Bears were an eight-point underdog at home against the No. 11 team — a team they beat last year on the road, by the way. Major upsets require a double-digit underdog and/or an opponent ranked much closer to No. 1 (preferably in the top five). It’s not unreasonable to call it a signature win for Dykes, although one could argue that will only come when he beats one of Cal’s conference rivals (Stanford, Oregon or one of the L.A. schools). Certainly, it’s the most significant victory of the Dykes era … their most significant since the bottom fell out under Jeff Tedford … and a result that will provide fuel on several fronts. Front 1: It adds instant credibility each time the coaching staff walks into the home of a Texas recruit. The Lone Star … [Read more...] about Cal football report card: Grading the win over Texas
College bound: Non-football athletes who signed letters of intent
Meant to post this last week but got behind with high school and SAP Open men’s tennis coverage. My apologies. Anyhow, we gave a lot of attention to the local high school football players who signed letters of intent last week. In case you missed it, here is our football story. But we have not given a proper due to the non-football athletes who signed and will continue their athletic careers and educations at four-year colleges. So, here is what we have received thus far. (As I did in the fall, I will update as we receive more names): Field hockey Soccer Softball Boys volleyballMatthew Aguirre (Mitty) UC Merced Boys tennis Girls tennisMariska Chamdani (Mitty) Brown Cross country and/or track and fieldKylie Goo (Westmoor) Northern Arizona GolfMatthew Ashley (Valley Christian) San Jose State … [Read more...] about College bound: Non-football athletes who signed letters of intent
Week 11 football preview: A look at the weekend’s top matchups
Photo by John Medina: Bellarmine’s Kyle Macauley catches the winning touchdown pass from Troy Martig with 19 seconds left as Bellarmine College Prep edges Valley Christian 24-21 at San Jose City College on Nov. 6, 2015, in San Jose, California. There is plenty of intrigue as the football season enters its final week of the regular season. Some teams are fighting for league titles. Some teams are jockeying for playoff position. Some teams are battling to make the playoffs. Bellarmine College Prep is in great position Friday night to claim a piece of its 20th West Catholic Athletic League championship, an achievement made possible after the Bells pulled off an amazing drive lin the final seconds last week to beat Valley Christian 24-21. Late-game heroics are nothing new for Bellarmine, which always seems to find a way to win when games get really tense. Quarterback Troy Martig expressed last week what I have always thought mentally-tough teams possess when games are on the line. As … [Read more...] about Week 11 football preview: A look at the weekend’s top matchups
Football weekend recap: Palo Alto wins, Serra stumbles, East Bay powers roll
De La Salle’s Tre White runs against Amador Valley in the first quarter Friday night. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group) As midnight approached, Danny Sullivan still had the joy in his voice, the thrill of a man who had won his first game as a high school head coach. A decade ago, Sullivan threw passes for Los Gatos High under longtime and highly successful coach Butch Cattolico, then went on to play quarterback at Arizona State. Now, he leads the only football program from the Central Coast Section to have won a state championship, Palo Alto, and Friday night Sullivan guided the Vikings to victory over a Patterson team that won 11 of its 12 games last season. Palo Alto scored the game’s first 25 points — all before halftime — and went on to win 25-12. Sullivan said he was not surprised that his offense performed well, noting that his team was determined to not allow its up-tempo opponent to dictate the pace of play. But the coach raved about his … [Read more...] about Football weekend recap: Palo Alto wins, Serra stumbles, East Bay powers roll