Beating Vegas…

By Staff     Nov 4, 2007

Some of you KU football fans out there may have started betting with your hearts from week one and letting it ride through week nine.To you guys, I ask: Can I borrow $100?Obviously, those who have saddled up to the Jayhawks and bet on them every week are feeling fat pockets these days. Kansas has covered the spread every single week, with the exception of the Southeastern Louisiana game because there was no spead (though I imagine it would have been less than -62). The Jayhawks have demolished it at certain points (beating Central Michigan by 45 when the spread was -8) and have squeaked by it at other times (beating Colorado by five when the spread was -4).But they’ve always given those who trusted them a little extra cash in Las Vegas. Every single time.Along with other, more important perspectives, Kansas is chasing recent Vegas history as well. According to [Phil Steele’s][1] jam-packed college football preview, no team has gone undefeated against the spread this decade. As of right now, Kansas is the only team in 2007 with a chance to become the first.Here, according to Steele’s magazine, are the top teams against the spread since 2000 (regular season games only):Louisville (2004): 10-1 Maryland (2001): 10-1 Rutgers (2003): 10-1-1 Texas (2005): 10-2 USC (2003): 10-2 LSU (2003): 10-2 East Carolina (2006): 10-2 Nevada (2006): 10-2 Central Michigan (2006): 10-2-1 Navy (2003): 9-1Seven other teams have gone 9-2 against the spread and eight more have gone 9-3.What do those teams have in common? Nothing, really. There are three national champions among the top eight (Texas, USC and LSU). But the 2003 Rutgers team went just 5-7.For Kansas, being 8-0 against the spread is a distant last place behind being 9-0 overall and the slew of other milestones it’s reached this season. But it is a good argument to counter those who say KU’s schedule is the reason it’s gotten as far as it has.After all, the Jayhawks are playing consistently better than what even the Las Vegas experts could have guessed. And for anyone who’s ever cursed at a sportsbook in southern Nevada during a warm fall afternoon, you know that those experts are pretty darn good guessers. [1]: http://www.philsteele.com

PREV POST

The Fifth Quarter: Kansas 76, Nebraska 39

NEXT POST

26199Beating Vegas…