🏈 Blowout in Miami, CFB + NFL Weekend Previews + More!

Happy Friday, Blitzers!

We had TNF last night, and we have a big weekend of football ahead! So grab your coffee, pretend you're working, and let's dive right into things!

WTF Stat: Padres infielder Luis Arraez has gone 124 plate appearances without a strikeout. By comparison there are 64 players currently with 124 strikeouts or more on the season already. The record for most plate-appearances without a strikeout is held by Phillies Dave Cash in 1976. When Cash did it, however, it was a much different league, the strikeout rate in the 1976 season was 12.7%, this year that rate is 22.5%.

🏈 The Bills defeated the Dolphins 31-10, with RB James Cook scoring three touchdowns—one receiving and two rushing. Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa left the game in the third quarter due to a concussion.

Bills takeaways: How about that defense? 3 interceptions including a Pick 6, 10 tackles for loss, 2 sacks. They looked fast and aggressive even with all of their injuries. QB Josh Allen didn’t need to be the super hero in this one, they just needed a good running game (James Cook won’t be underrated anymore) and strong defensive play. That should be a winning formula, especially later in the season when they’re at home in the freezing cold and snow.

Dolphins takeaways: Yikes, that was like a bad dream. Sloppy play, beaten in both trenches, lots of check downs, and no explosive plays. Did Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle both get arrested before the game? I kid, I kid. The Tua injury looked scary, hopefully he is okay, but he is a guy that has experienced a number of concussions already so we may not see him for a while.

🏈 The Pac-12 is adding four Mountain West schools—Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, and San Diego State—to join Oregon State and Washington State as part of the conference's rebuilding efforts. These additions will become official on July 1, 2026. This move aims to maintain the Pac-12's status as a prominent FBS conference, requiring just two more schools to meet the NCAA's threshold.

• 🔥 Take: I completely forgot that Oregon State and Washington State were left on an island this year in the Pac-12. But why are they picking teams off from the Mountain West? Why not just combine the two conferences, then re-brand. Instead of just being another initial conference like the Pac-6 or PMW or whatever, just name your conference the “Tidal Wave Conference”, the “Wild Wild West” or “Point Break Conference“ and then just lean heavily into that theme. You’re not going to be the SEC, so separate yourself from everyone else. Have an in-conference tournament (like basketball) to end the season, start doing ridiculous NIL campaigns to do whatever you can to get top recruits, put sponsors on your jerseys to get more money, have an alumni all-star game and broadcast it, lean heavily into the social media age. Just be different. Trying to be like everyone will only make you maybe the 5th best conference.

Top College Football Games This Weekend

#20 Arizona at #14 Kansas State - TONIGHT 8:00 PM (FOX)

What’s At Stake:  With the Michigan loss, Arizona holds the longest active winning streak. Yes, you read that right. Also, this game was on the schedule before Arizona went into the Big 12 so it’s not a conference game…but it is between two Big 12 squads. Thanks, realignment. With a lot of star-power in this game, it’s a great measuring stick for both teams prior to jumping into “real” conference play.

The Pick: Arizona +7 - KState wins, but the visiting Wildcats cover.

#4 Alabama at Wisconsin - Sat. 12:00 PM (FOX)

What’s At Stake:  The Tide looked a little shaky against the South Florida Bulls at home last week and now go to a raucous atmosphere at Camp Randall against the Badgers. Wisconsin is looking for its first true signature victory in a while. They are 2-11 in its last 13 games against the AP Top 25 and haven’t beaten a top 5 opponent since 2016. The Big Ten has never beaten an SEC team ranked this high during the regular season. The Badgers will have to slow down QB Jalen Milroe and freshman sensation WR Ryan Williams, if Bama plays at their pace, this game could get ugly.

The Pick: Wisconsin +16 - Going with the underdog to cover again, QB Tyler Van Dyke does enough to keep it within two touchdowns.

#24 Boston College at #6 Missouri - Sat. 12:45 PM (SEC NETWORK)

What’s At Stake: BC is back in the Top 25 for the first time since 2018 after wins over Florida State and Duquesne, but it may be short-lived. Mizzou hasn’t played with its food so far this season, shutting out both Murray State and Buffalo. BC’s New coach, Bill O’Brien has the Eagles believing they can compete and they have the tools, a creative QB, solid running game, and stingy defense, to pull off another upset.

The Pick: Mizzou -16 - Having said that, Mizzou has some serious talent and the Eags won’t sneak up on the Tigers like they did FSU.

#9 Oregon at Oregon State - Sat. 3:30 PM (FOX)

What’s At Stake: The Civil War (don’t care if they don’t call it that anymore) is back, but for the first time it’s not a conference game and for the first time it’s being played in September. The Ducks are massive road favorites in this game and I, for one, don’t understand why. The Beavers have won two straight at Corvallis. This year’s Oregon has scraped by with two close wins. Upset alert!

The Pick: Oregon State ML - Fortune favors the bold

Other Games I’m Keeping an Eye On

#16 LSU at South Carolina - 12:00 PM (ABC)

#18 Notre Dame at Purdue - 3:30 PM (CBS)

Texas A&M at Florida - 3:30 PM (ABC)

Washington State at Washington - 3:30 PM (PEACOCKED)

West Virginia at Pittsburgh - 3:30 PM (ESPN2)

NFL Week 2 Preview

Sunday’s Most Intriguing

Seattle (1-0) @ New England (1-0) - 1:00 PM (FOX)

Spread: SEA -3.5

O/U: 38.5

The View: The Patriots went into Cincinnati and shocked everyone by bringing a dubb back to Foxboro. Giving New England fans the dreaded thought, “Could we be good this year?” Meanwhile, Seattle didn’t inspire anyone with their victory by a whisker against the Bo Nix led Broncos. Vegas ain’t buying the Coach Mayo hype though, making the Pats 3.5 point dogs at home. What does Vegas know? All aboooooard! 🚂 

Pick: Pats +3.5

New York Jets (0-1) at Tennessee (0-1) - 1:00 PM (CBS)

Spread: NYJ -4

O/U: 41.5

The View: Good news: QB Aaron Rodgers survived the game. Bad news: Aaron Rodgers had a similar stat line to Zach Wilson. This is a good bounce back test for the Jets offense, the Titans are not a good football team and if this game is close, red alert in Gotham. At the very least, the Jets can count on QB Will Levis handing them the game on a silver platter.

Pick: Jets -4

Tampa Bay at Detroit - 1:00 PM (FOX)

Spread: DET -7.5

O/U: 51.5

The View: Detroit reminiscence tour continues this week taking on another team they defeated in the playoffs last season. Next up: QB Baker Mayfield and the Bucs. Baker utilized all of his weapons and carved up the Commanders in Week 1. The Lions grinded out a victory against the Rams and have been money at home over the past two years.

Pick: Lions -7.5

Cleveland (0-1) at Jacksonville (0-1) - 1:00 PM (CBS)

Spread: JAX -3

O/U: 41.5

The View: Both of these teams disappointed in Week 1. The Jaguars continued to follow their MO, start strong then fade down the stretch, getting shutout in the 2nd half after launching out to a 17-7 lead. The Browns got dominated in every facet of the game against the Cowboys. This game has early must-win vibes for two QBs that are getting paid a lot of money and have not returned value.

Pick: Browns +3

Cincinnati (0-1) at Kansas City (1-0) - 4:25 PM (CBS)

Spread: KC -3.5

O/U: 48.5

The View: The Bengals, simply put, looked bad. Real bad. You can’t bleach your hair like Slim Shady and then lay an egg against one of the worst teams in the league. QB Joe Burrow is facing questions about his surgically repaired wrist and hasn’t looked himself since 2022, which coincidentally is the last time the Bengals beat the Chiefs. KC is rolling along and have home field advantage.

The Pick: Chiefs -3.5

D-Man’s Gambling Corner

If you were riding the Colts with us last week I hope you enjoyed the first real sweat of the NFL season. The Colts closed as a 2.5 point underdog so we cashed our tickets by a hairsbreadth. After basking in the glory of a winning week let’s take a minute to stress to ourselves the importance of getting the best line possible for every bet. That line was everywhere from +1 to +3 so when you decide to place your bet make sure to shop around for the best line.

With that in mind let’s move onto week 2. We’re going back to the Colts, but this time we’re looking at the other side. Do I think QB Malik Willis is a good QB? No. Do I think this line should have moved 7 points because QB Jordan Love is out? Absolutely not. Indy runs a basic defense that Matt LaFleur should be able to game plan against very well. They have the talent around Willis that they can put him in a position to succeed. A lot of trends bode well for the packers here as well…home dog, week 2 dog under 6 points, colts defense spent 40 of the 60 minutes in week 1 on the field (most in NFL), backup QB in his first start. We know it’s ugly, but this week we’re backing the Pack! If you’re scared take the Cowboys at -6.

Week 1 Audit

D-Man: 1-0

Jean Machine: 2-2

Full NFL Schedule click here

MLB - Top Games

• Yankees 2, Red Sox 1: Solid pitching from both sides on this one, as both starters let up 1 run, and the bullpens held firm until the 10th, with Juan Soto walking things off.

• Rockies 4, Tigers 2: The Rockies were able to spoil another strong start from Tarik Skubal, as they scored two in the top of the 9th to end Detroit’s 4-game win streak. Great play by Riley Greene here though:

• Rangers 5, Mariners 4: In his major league debut, Kumar Rocker went four innings striking out 7 and allowing one run. The Rangers rallied back from down 3 to pull out the victory.

• Brewers 3, Giants 0: Frankie Montas and the Milwaukee bullpen blanked the Giants, striking out 15 in total. While rookie Jackson Chourio hit his 20th HR of the season (joining Mike Trout and Vada Pinson as the only 20-year old’s to hit 20 HRs and steal 20 bases).

See the full MLB scoreboard here and the current standings here

On this day in 1971, Frank Robinson hits his 500th home run. Robinson would finish his career with 586 home runs, and a lifetime .294/.389/.537. In my opinion, he is one of the most underrated players in MLB history, probably because he played for five different teams and his prime seasons were with Cincinnati and Baltimore, two smaller markets.

Friday’s Trivia Time Answer

Which defensive player has the most Pro Bowl selections?

D.  Merlin Olsen - Surprising, right? The defensive tackle for the Rams made the Pro Bowl the first 14 years of his 15 year career. He finished with 91 sacks. Reggie White (13), Junior Seau (12), Ray Lewis (12), Champ Bailey (12) are all up there as well from the defensive side.

Check back on Monday for today’s trivia answer and more info!