Oregon vs Auburn – 2011 BCS Championship Game Early Odds & Predictions: Discussion around the sports bar Sunday night was mostly spent speculating about the January 10, 2011 BCS Championship game to be played between No. 1 Auburn and No. 2 Oregon. I thought Auburn would get the nod by oddsmakers, probably by a 3-chalk. Well, sure enough, when Sportsbook.com posted its odds on Monday, Auburn was indeed a 3-chalk favorite. I'll admit, the 74 total caught me off guard. I thought the total would post in the mid-sixties. It's obvious oddsmakers expect multitudes of points to be scored when these two teams get together.
This game should really be exciting. Oregon has the second ranked offense in NCAA FBS, a unit that churns out 537.5 yards of total offense per game. Auburn has the seventh best average, covering 497.69 yards per game.
There is plenty of star-power on these teams with two finalists for the 2010 Heisman Trophy; Cam Newton for Auburn and running back LaMichael James of Oregon. James is the top rusher in NCAA FBS with 1682 net yards in 11 games. James averaged 152.91 rushing yard per game and scored 21 rushing touchdowns.
The Ducks rank fourth in team rushing averaging 302.55 yards per game while Auburn is sixth covering just over 287 rushing yards per game. Oregon throws the ball more than Auburn, ranked 48th as compared to the 69th ranked Tigers. The Ducks completed 220 of 354 passing attempts for 2804 yards for a completion percentage of 62.15. Oregon connected for 29 touchdown strikes through the air. However, Auburn is good at making it count when they do throw. Newton leads the nation with a quarterback rating of 188.16. In 13 games he completed 165 of 246 passing attempts for 2,589 yards, resulting in 28 touchdowns and only six interceptions.
With all this offense, no wonder oddsmakers set the bar high for total's bettors. Oregon was ranked nationally with the 25th best defense while Auburn often had to outscore opponents because of their No. 54 defense.
We have over a month to break this game down and all sorts of things can happen by then. Having the hot hand to finish a regular season doesn't always translate into showing up in a bowl, or in this case, the BCS Championship Game.
If I had to make a prediction on the BCS Game's outcome, I would go with Auburn because of one factor – Cam Newton. He is a difference maker and Oregon has not seen anything like him. I think overall the SEC is a better league than the Pac-10 and nobody had an answer for Newton there either. Of course Oregon will have a month to prepare; if that makes any difference.
Have you ever heard the cliche'; defense wins championships? Probably not this time.
The best online odds can be found on our BEST COLLEGE FOOTBALL LINES page. Just follow the link and start wagering the 2010-11 Bowl Season today.
