Presley, Williams, Cushingberry, Bauman capture FCS weekly awards

NCAA Football Betting Lines

09/06/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Appalachian State quarterback DeAndre Presley, Gardner-Webb linebacker Jeffery Williams, Southern special teams performer Corey Cushingberry and Northern Arizona running back Zach Bauman have been named The Sportsbook Betting Lines/Fathead.com FCS National Players of the Week for the season-opening games which ended Sept. 5.

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

DeAndre Presley, Appalachian State, Junior, 5-11, 170, QB, Tampa, FL

Following the legendary Armanti Edwards as Appalachian State's No. 1 quarterback hasn't fazed Presley, who was scintillating in his season debut. He engineered a 42-41 comeback victory over Chattanooga. The third-ranked Mountaineers trailed 28-7 late in the third quarter before Presley guided the offense to 253 yards and five touchdowns in the final 17:29 of the game. Overall, he completed 22-of-29 passes for 340 yards and two touchdowns, rushed for 25 yards and two touchdowns, and was credited with a touchdown reception by picking up wide receiver Matt Cline's fumble and weaving 33 yards for the go-ahead touchdown with 6:05 left

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Jeffery Williams, Gardner-Webb, Senior, 6-0, 222, LB, Frisco City, AL

Injuries limited Williams last season, but the 2008 Big South Conference Defensive Player of the Week demonstrated in Gardner-Webb's season opener against Brevard that he is back at full strength. The hard-hitting linebacker collected 18 tackles, including nine solos, in a 28-14 victory. The Runnin' Bulldogs defense was on the field for 37 minutes, 18 seconds against Brevard's triple-option attack and Williams seemed to be everywhere. He had two tackles for loss, including a half-sack, and intercepted a pass to end a 12-play drive in Gardner-Webb territory. Williams became the eighth player in Big South history to surpass 300 career tackles, upping his total to 304.

SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Corey Cushingberry, Southern, R-Senior, 5-9, 175, WR/RS, Baton Rouge, LA

Southern trailed Delaware State throughout the second half of the MEAC/SWAC Challenge until Cushingberry's clutch punt return late in the game. He returned the punt 64 yards for a touchdown to erase Southern's 27-23 deficit. The Jaguars went on to give the SWAC its second win in the sixth annual game between conferences of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Cushingberry finished with 175 all-purpose yards, returning two punts for 71 yards and five kickoffs for 104 yards.

FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK

Zach Bauman, Northern Arizona, Freshman, 5-10, 200, RB, Chandler, AR

A true freshman, Bauman made it look easy in his first collegiate game, rushing for 167 yards and four touchdowns on 22 carries as Northern Arizona beat Western New Mexico, 48-0. He scored three times in the first half and then raced for a 66-yard touchdown in the third quarter, giving him an FCS- leading 24 points after the first week of action. Most of the preseason focus was on All-America quarterback Michael Herrick, but Bauman's emergence will help keep defenses honest. Bauman played for two state championship teams at Hamilton High in Chandler, Ariz.

Myspirtsbook NCAA Football Betting News

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Football Betting

NFL Football Betting Online

The San Francisco 49ers (5-11 SU, 5-10-1 ATS in 2007; 1-1 SU & ATS in pre-season) found some offensive life last week, and they will try to build some momentum on Thursday night as they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bears (7-9 SU & ATS in 2007; 0-2 SU, 0-1-1 ATS in pre-season) in an NFL matchup that is set to get underway at 8 PM ET at Soldier Field (natural turf) in Chicago.

Thursday, August 21

NFL betting odds: CHICAGO -3 (-120), Total 37

NOTABLE STAT: San Francisco was last in points, last in total offense in 2007
KEY NFL BETTING TREND: SF has lost its last seven SU on pre-season road

In the BetUS NFL pre-season football betting odds, the Bears are listed as a three-point favorite (laying -120), with the total posted at 37 points.

Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season):

* SF has lost 11 of its last 14 games SU
* SF has covered three of its last 11 games
* SF has lost six of its last seven road games SU
* SF has covered one of its last seven road games
* CHI has covered five of its last eight games
* CHI has played five of its last seven games OVER the total
* CHI has covered four of its last 13 home games
* SF has lost its last seven pre-season road games SU
* CHI has covered two of its last seven home pre-season games

Well, I guess we should congratulate the Bears on making their quarterback choice for the season's opening game, as they have designated Kyle Orton the starter against Indianapolis. The Bears obviously have lost patience with Rex Grossman, and what they do with him at this point is anybody's guess. But suffice it to say that there isn't a quarterback competition anymore, at least in training camp.

Meanwhile, the quarterback competition may also be settled in San Francisco, where the Niners bounced back from a lackluster 18-6 loss to the Raiders, in which they turned the ball over four times, to execute a 34-6 rout of the Packers last Saturday. However, coach Mike Nolan has stopped short of saying that, insisting that the job is still open. But J.T. O'Sullivan, the longshot of the trio of Niner signal-callers who opened camp, will start his third straight pre-season game here. Against Green Bay, O'Sullivan was only 8-for-17, and was intercepted, but he also threw for 9.1 yards an attempt, which included a 59-yard TD pass to Josh Morgan. The others struggled.

Some offensive cohesion is badly needed, in light of the Niners' dismal 2007 campaign, in which they were dead last in the NFL in scoring, with just 13.7 points a game. And O'Sullivan is the guy who is most familiar with offensive coordinator Mike Martz's exacting system, because he learned it last year in Detroit. O'Sullivan will go at least the entire first half and may even last longer. He'll be relieved by Alex Smith, with Shawn Hill doing the mop-up work. Three receivers who were out last week - Bryant Johnson, Ashley Lelie and Arnaz Battle - will miss this game too.

That may hurt a little here, especially since the Bears will be using a lot of their defensive starters. And it's the defense that has been keeping the Bears in games thus far. In fact, the defense and special teams were responsible for the first 19 points Chicago scored against Seattle last time out, as the offense really struggled with Grossman at the controls. But maybe the first-team offense has a chance to settle a little bit as it works more with Orton at the helm.

Certainly we have concerns about the Bears' offensive line, but we like the scenario for them here, especially if O'Sullivan doesn't make some bis plays. The Niners may have nowhere else to turn right now, and they have lost seven straight road games in the pre-season. Let's take Chicago, the three-point favorite in the NFL football betting odds.

CHICAGO -3 (-120) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)

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