The Degenerate Digest v.131

Good effort Indiana. Sike! Indiana has arguably been the most obnoxious fan base this season. Couple that with Curt Cignetti, who is seemingly just a pompous ass, and you have the recipe for a totally overhyped program thanks to a cupcake schedule. I feel so bad for South Carolina today. The Gamecocks deserved a chance. Hell, I’d even say Alabama should be in after watching the Hoosiers buckle quicker than my ACL on the 3rd floor of Pearson/McGonigle Hall in 2013. But I digress, credit to the Irish (even though I’m pretty sure they suck to).

The college football playoff is alive and well. We have non-stop action from noon to midnight. It’s so sick. Before getting to today’s games, a quick programming note moving forward as this is our last Saturday slate. Basically, I will be alternating my strategy and posting a blog before each round moving forward. So even though most of the games for the quarterfinals will be taking place on New Year's Day, I will get a blog out on the 31st to include the Boise State matchup. I hate doing this because lines move so much leading up to kickoffs, but I feel like it’s the best format to get as many picks out there to close the season. It's an alternative, but we’ll be just fine.

Speaking of alternatives, that’s today’s theme. Alternative Line Saturday. I’ve been dabbling with these recently, and I think with how crazy some of these lines are for the first round of the playoffs, it’s the perfect opportunity to display my logic behind them to the world. 

(11) SMU @ (6) Penn State: Alternate Line Parlay, Penn State -2.5 + U60.5 (-110 odds)

I want to take Penn State -8.5 straight up so badly, but you truly just never know what version of this team you’re going to get any given week. I do think they’ll come out on top and advance to the next round, but SMU probably should have beaten Clemson in the ACC championship game and if you were to give us Clemson vs. Penn State, you know this line would be drastically different, potentially favoring Clemson. I just think 8.5 is too much. What I don’t think is too much is the temperature Mother Nature is providing in State College today. A frigid 22 degrees. I’m going to guess this SMU squad, in its current form, has not played in sub 50. This, along with the white-out environment in Happy Valley, makes me think they’re not going to be getting much done offensively. The cold affects everyone though, and so Drew Allar’s grip, Singleton’s willingness to get hit, etc. could mean just as tough times for the Nittany Lions offense. Buy a couple points on this under and let’s parlay this high nooner.

Final Score: Penn State 27, SMU 21

(12) Clemson @ (5) Texas: Alternate Line Parlay, Texas -6.5, Under 60.5 (-120 odds)

The line movement on this game is wild. Texas opened as 10.5 point favorites, and the O/U opened at 54.5. Easy decision to go with another alt line parlay. I think the strength both of these teams have in common is on the defensive side of the ball. The only way Clemson stays in this game is taking advantage of some Quinn Ewers mistakes and forcing turnovers to get their offense, which can struggle against good defenses, in better field position to keep the score close. I do think the Longhorns will pull away eventually, so I’m comfortable with both buys on these lines. 

Final Score: Texas 31, Clemson 21

(9) Tennessee @ (8) Ohio State: Alternate Line Parlay, Tennessee +4.5, U60.5 (+151)

Let’s get you bozos some juicier odds to close this card, shall we? Everything from a public v sharp money perspective is completely opposite of this. Sharps seem to be all over Ohio State and the over. But my gut tells me the injuries to the Buckeyes offensive line are going to be too much for already shaky Will Howard to handle the best part of this Volunteers team, their defensive front. I think it will be a game of offensive struggles, one of which might see Ryan Day exiting the playoff earlier than expected in what would be a total collapse of a season for Ohio State. Rocky Top, you’ll always be home sweet home to me.

Final Score: Tennessee 24, Ohio State 23

PS: Because these are parlay's, they will only count as 3 total picks against my running record. The running record remains supreme, suck it Vegas.

Oh, and Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, all that shit. 

Running Record: (297-261-7)