NCAA Football - 8 years ago

FREE CONTEST: USC Trojans at California Golden Bears (Over $50 in Amazon gift cards!)

UPDATE: THE WINNER OF THE $25 AMAZON GIFT CARD IS shan*****@hotmail.com CONGRATULATIONS!

Oct 27, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; USC Trojans quarterback Sam Darnold (14) drops back to pass against the California Golden Bears in the first quarter at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports
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Prizing:

1st Place: $25 Amazon gift card

2nd-5th Place: $10 Amazon gift card

Top 5 winners

1. Shane Byra
2. Tom Gacki
3. scoobysnack***@yahoo.com
4. donjones***@gmail.com
5. Jack Smith

Overview:

On Saturday, September 23rd, the (3-0) USC Trojans will be on the road to take on the (3-0) California Golden Bears.

The Crowd:

“The Crowd” projects a final score of USC 37.2 – California 25.3 with an over/under of 62.4.

2017-18 Statistics (130 total teams):

Passing offense: USC 334.0 YPG > California 266.3 YPG

Rushing offense: USC 203.3 YPG > California 166.7 YPG

Scoring offense: USC 39.3 PPG > California 31.7 PPG

Scoring defense: California 22.0 PPG > USC 27.5 PPG

Passing defense: USC 133.0 YPG > California 338.3 YPG

Rushing defense: California 137.3 YPG > USC 216.5 YPG

Turnover Margin Per Game: California +1.0 > USC -0.3

Strength of schedule:

USC is (3-0) with wins over Western Michigan, Texas, and Stanford.  California is (3-0) with wins over Ole Miss, UNC, and Weber State.

Summary:

USC was able to just narrowly defeat Texas 27-24 in a double overtime thriller.  USC outgained Texas 468-366 in total yardage.  Sam Darnold was 28-49 for 397 yards with 3 touchdowns and two interceptions.  The Trojans had no success with the running game averaging just 1.9 yards on 37 carries.  USC’s defense played very well holding Texas to 24 points in 6 periods of play and forcing 4 turnovers.  USC ranks 13th in total yardage (537.0) and 30th in points per game (39.3).  The Trojans rank 77th in points allowed (26.3).

California is coming off a 27-16 home victory over Ole Miss.  California was outgained by Ole Miss 416-399 in total yardage.  Ross Bowers was 24-47 for 236 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions.  The running backs combined for 163 yards on 40 carries.  California’s defense continues to struggle against the pass but have done a good job stuffing the run.  California ranks 57th in total offense (433.0 YPG) and 62nd in points per game (31.7).  The Golden Bears rank 52nd in points allowed (22.0).

Bottom Line:

California’s defense is allowing 338.4 yards per game through the air so Sam Darnold should have a field day against that secondary.  Darnold will need to limit his turnovers as his (7/6 TD/INT) ratio is not all that impressive.  After some early season struggled the Trojans defense is coming around.  I like USC by double digits on the road.

Contest Rules:

To be eligible to win a prize in any contest at The Crowd’s Line, you must be at least 18 years old and a resident of the United States or Canada. You must also submit your score prediction on our official prediction tool (blog widget), and include a valid email address. Contest winners are determined according to The Crowd’s Line scoring methodology. If more than one entrant has the same winning score, final contest rankings and prize winners are selected by random draw. Only one entry per person is allowed for each contest; multiple entries from a single player will be deemed invalid. There are no prize substitutions or exchanges available from The Crowd’s Line. All contest prizes will be sent by email within 5-7 business days after the conclusion of each contest.

USC wins 36-21

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