Big second half lifts No. 16 West Virginia over Connecticut

NCAA Football Betting Lines

10/08/2011 - Morgantown, WV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Geno Smith threw three of his four touchdown passes in the third quarter, and the 16th-ranked West Virginia Mountaineers used a dominant second half to beat the Connecticut Huskies, 43-16, at Milan Puskar Stadium.

Smith finished with 450 yards while completing 27-of-45 tosses for West Virginia (5-1, 1-0 Big East), which held a narrow 10-9 lead at halftime.

A key play by the Mountaineers defense spurred the offensive surge. Quarterback Johnny McEntee fumbled on the Huskies' initial drive of the third quarter and West Virginia linebacker Jewone Snow returned the ball 83 yards down the right sideline to the UConn 12.

It took West Virginia just two plays to cash in on the turnover as Smith hit Tavon Austin for a touchdown. On the first play of the Mountaineers' next series, Smith and Stedman Bailey hooked up for an 84-yard scoring strike.

After McEntee was sacked in the end zone for a safety, Brad Starks made a leaping grab for a 22-yard touchdown.

The Mountaineers' lead ballooned to 43-9 in the fourth quarter on a Tyler Bitancurt 33-yard field goal and Bailey's second touchdown reception.

Paul Millard entered the game for West Virginia and was picked off by Ty-Meer Brown, who returned the ball 48 yards to the end zone, capping the scoring with 7:54 to play.

Bailey totaled 178 yards on seven catches for the Mountaineers, while Dustin Garrison gained 80 yards on 18 carries with one touchdown.

McEntee completed 21-of-37 passes for 193 yards as the Huskies (2-4, 0-1) suffered their second straight loss.

The opening drive of the contest ended with UConn's David Teggart missing a 42-yard field goal as the ball hit the left upright.

West Virginia took the lead when Bitancurt connected on a 31-yard kick, but the visiting Huskies tied the game on a 40-yarder by Teggart.

Ivan McCartney lost a fumble on West Virginia's second drive and Teggart drilled a career-long 53-yarder on the first play of the second quarter to put UConn in front.

The Mountaineers regained the lead when Garrison finished a seven-play drive that began in UConn territory with a 14-yard dash to the end zone. Teggart nailed a 22-yard field goal as the first half expired.

Game Notes

West Virginia leads the all-time series, 7-1...UConn had won its last five conference games...Lyle McCombs amassed 73 yards on 20 carries for the Huskies...McEntee was sacked five times.

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Six teams enter the week still looking for their first win, with a seventh, Tampa Bay, on a bye week. The prospect of dropping another game would not bode well for a potential playoff run. Since 1990, just three teams -- the 1992 Chargers, 1995 Detroit Lions and 1998 Buffalo Bills -- have overcome losing their first three games of the season to earn a postseason berth. And only the Chargers managed to accomplish the feat after starting 0-4.

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MySportsbook.com: NFL draft - The NFC South


In part two of MySportsbook.com’s draft preview, we’ll take a look at a division that was extremely disappointing last season: the NFC South.  Many “experts” predicted the Panthers to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, of course they could not even make the playoffs in an extremely weak NFC.  The Saints definitely made up for the disappointing seasons of their NFC South brethren by exploding out of no where en route to the NFC Championship game.  For the avid NFL gambler, it is imperative to pay attention to the NFL draft.  Although free agency gets a ton of publicity, the successful franchises build their teams around the draft.

1. New Orleans Saints
Who would have thought this time last year that the Saints would be the favorites to win the NFC South for the 2007 campaign?  New Orleans is loaded with firepower on the offensive side of the ball but with the exodus of Joe Horn they will most likely look to draft a WR on Day 1.  Despite having the NFL’s 3rd ranked pass defense last season, the Saints will most likely upgrade their CB’s with one of their first two picks. Other possibilities for the Saints will be TE and DT.  Because of where they will be selecting (27th), the Saints could go the “best available player” route which could net a LB.

Key additions: Eric Johnson TE, Troy Evans LB, David Patten WR
Key loses: Joe Horn WR,
Team needs: CB, WR, TE, LB, DT
Possible draftees: Aaron Ross CB Texas, Darrelle Revis CB Pitt, Ted Ginn Jr. WR OSU, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Chris Houston CB Arkansas, Greg Olsen TE Miami

2. Carolina Panthers
Carolina was one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL last season.  With the signing of David Carr, expect the very first quarterback controversy to come out of Carolina if Jake Delhomme doesn’t rebound quickly from an average 2007 season. With veteran safety Mike Minter getting up there in age, they will look to draft a safety on Day 1 but probably not in the first round.  LB is another need with the loss of Chris Draft to go along with Dan Morgan’s concussion problems.  If TE Greg Olsen is still on the board, he might be too good to pass up despite their needs on the defensive side of the ball.

Key additions: David Carr QB
Key loses: Chris Draft LB
Team needs: LB, TE, S, OT
Possible draftees: Greg Olsen TE Miami, Patrick Willis LB Ole Miss, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Levi Brown OT PSU

3. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were another NFC South team to have a disappointing 2007 season.  The Falcons have been plenty busy during the off season with plenty of players coming and going including a new head coach.  The Falcons were able to improve their draft position with the trade of coveted backup QB Matt Schaub.  High on the list of Day 1 needs will be a defensive end to replace Patrick Kerney and a hard hitting safety since Lawyer Milloy is nearing the end of his career.  With an additional 2nd round pick, the Falcons could attempt to trade up to acquire local product WR Calvin Johnson. 

Key additions: Joey Harrington QB, Toniu Fonoti OG, Joe Horn WR
Key loses: Justin Griffen RB, Patrick Kerney DE, Matt Lehr OG, Ashley Lelie WR, Matt Schaub QB
Team needs: DE, S, OT, WR, DT
Possible draftees: LaRon Landry S LSU, Amobi Okoye DT Louisville, Levi Brown OT PSU, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas, Alan Branch DT Michigan

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Age really caught up to the Bucs last season.  The Bucs still have plenty of household names on defense in Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks but the one thing those three have in common is unfortunately age.  It is imperative for the Bucs to get much younger, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Despite having bigger needs on the defensive side of the ball, WR Calvin Johnson is the most likely pick if he is still available when the Bucs pick at the four spot.  This would suit Bucs’ faithful just fine as Johnson is widely considered the top talent in the draft and it is a position of need for the Bucs.

Key additions: Jeff Garcia QB, Kevin Carter DE, Torrie Cox CB, Cato June LB
Key loses: Dewayne White DE, Sean Mahan OG
Team needs: WR, LB, DE, CB (Youth on defense!)
Possible draftees: Calvin Johnson WR Georgia Tech, Gains Adams DE Clemson, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas

It is never too early to start betting on the NFL. Log on to MySportsbook.com to checkout all of the NFL futures for the upcoming season.  On the clock: the NFC North

Odds to win the NFC South:
New Orleans Saints 8-5
Carolina Panthers 2-1
Atlanta Falcons 12-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-2    

Odds to win the NFC:
New Orleans Saints 13-2
Carolina Panthers 7-1
Atlanta Falcons 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-1

Odds to win the Super Bowl:
New Orleans Saints 18-1
Carolina Panthers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75-1

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