Iowa State looks to snap TD drought against Iowa

NCAA Football Betting Lines

09/07/2010 -

AMES, Iowa (AP) -Former Iowa State quarterback Bret Meyer's second-quarter touchdown run gave the Cyclones a 14-3 lead over Iowa back in 2006, and it looked as though Iowa State was set to stun its rival yet again.

Little did anyone know, that would be the last TD the Cyclones would score against the Hawkeyes - in that game or since.

No. 9 Iowa (1-0) hasn't let up a touchdown to Iowa State in 14 quarters, a stretch that's spanned four years and three coaches; Dan McCarney, Gene Chizik and now Paul Rhoads. The Cyclones head back to Kinnick for Saturday's matchup with the Hawkeyes knowing they will need more than field goals to pull off the upset.

``We have to limit our turnovers and obviously, execute,'' Iowa State running back Alexander Robinson said. ``They're a good defense regardless, but especially in the red zone.''

Rhoads knew going into the season that Iowa State (1-0) was going to have to score more than the 20.5 points it averaged a year ago if it was going to have a shot at another bowl game.

The Cyclones still have work to do on offense, but they were productive enough to get by Northern Illinois in the opener.

Iowa State totaled 403 yards of offense in last Thursday night's 27-10 win over the Huskies. But although the Cyclones rushed for three TDs, two by Alexander Robinson and one by quarterback Austen Arnaud, they averaged less than four yards per carry. Nearly half of those yards came on Robinson's 63-yard score early in the second quarter.

Arnaud also had a 53-yard rush for a score called back on a penalty, though, and Rhoads said Monday that Northern Illinois stacked the box in attempt to keep the Cyclones from establishing the run.

``They were going to make us beat them with the passing game, and Austen and the rest of the offense did that,'' Rhoads said.

Arnaud, who spent the offseason tweaking his mechanics in an effort to be more accurate, was certainly on target against the Huskies, completing 27 of 36 passes for 265 yards. But he didn't throw a touchdown pass and had two of his throws picked off - including a brutal misread deep in Northern Illinois territory in the third quarter, when the Cyclones looked poised to bury the Huskies.

It was the kind of throw Arnaud made all too often last season against Iowa, when he tossed four picks in Iowa's 35-3 win in Ames.

``I played terrible,'' Arnaud said of last season's loss. ``It's something that I hope to not do again going into this year, but I can't think about it, let it hang over my head.''

Rhoads was pleased with Arnaud's first effort of this season, although he noted there is still room for improvement with his senior quarterback.

``He threw two bad interceptions, and they were bad decisions on his part and bad balls on his part. But he threw for 75 percent accuracy with 36 thrown balls, which is something he didn't do a year ago,'' Rhoads said. ``He did a great job of executing and running the offense. He did a nice job running the football.''

The Cyclones could find it tough to break their touchdown drought against the Hawkeyes, who return eight starters from a defense that allowed just 15.4 points per game last season and beat Eastern Illinois 37-7 in their opener.

Iowa held the Panthers to just 157 yards, and Eastern Illinois needed a perfectly executed fake punt and long pass play to set up their lone touchdown.

Iowa State did beat Iowa in 2007 without scoring a touchdown, winning 15-13 in Ames on a late field goal. But the Cyclones were outscored 52-8 in the last two meetings between the heated rivals, notching just two field goals and a late safety in a 17-5 loss in 2008.

``They're not a flashy team by their own account. They've got a front four that's as good as any front four in the country,'' Rhoads said. ``There's something to be said for doing something over and repeatedly and doing it really well. That's the University of Iowa.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

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MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined

Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting.

"They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over."

Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.)

According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26.

As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines).

Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday.

Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind.
Less possessions means a better chance the game will be decided by three or seven points. For example, what might have been a 20-10 final score in 2005 may end at

17-10 in 2007. Granted, a 24-17 game last year might end at 21-17 these days, but the former - a three- or seven-point advantage being preserved as opposed to created - is the most likely scenario.

*UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007

New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers

By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results.

"We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games."

While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season."

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