UNLV Rebels Visits Fiery Arizona State Sun Devils

The Arizona State Sun Devils (2-0 SU, 1-0 ATS), who romped in last week's game, will try to continue their good fortune on Saturday when they tackle the Runnin' Rebels of UNLV (1-1 SU, 0-1-1 ATS) in an NCAA inter-conference football matchup that is set to get underway at 10 PM ET at Sun Devil Stadium (natural turf) in Tempe, AZ.

Saturday, September 13

BetUS NCAA Football Betting Odds: ARIZONA STATE -23

Here are some of the NCAA college football betting trends as they relate to this matchup:

* UNLV is 0-4-1 ATS in its last five games

* UNLV has lost nine of its last ten games SU

* UNLV is 1-4-1 ATS in its last six road games

* UNLV has lost its last six road games SU

* ASU has won 12 of its last 15 games SU

* ASU has won nine of its last 11 home games SU

Arizona State showed some cool efficiency on offense last week, getting 345 yards passing from Rudy Carpenter and 472 yards overall as they ran and hid from Stanford in the fourth quarter for a 41-17 win. And Keegan Herring has been joined by Dimitri Nance as ASU embarks on developing an effective running game after Ryan Torain, who was injured last season, left for the Denver Broncos.

Yes, the Sun Devils started out the season with questions bout its offensive line, which lost its anchor, Mike Pollak, to the second round of the NFL draft. But UNLV, thin on its front seven as it was, has now lost linebackers Ronnie Paulo and Starr Fuimaono to injuries that will keep them out indefinitely. This is the green light for Arizona State, as UNLV allowed 35 unanswered points in the second half against Utah, turning a competitive game into a rout.

This is admittedly a dicey scheduling situation for Arizona State; a program that is trying to reach the upper echelon, the Sun Devils, who are ranked 13th in the coaches' poll and 15th in the AP rankings, will play host to #2 Georgia next week in a game that may hold the key to their BCS hopes, in the event they don't win the Pac-10. So looking ahead is going to be a worry. But ASU has done a good job as the "bully"; they have covered ten of their last eleven outings as double-digit home underdogs. And generally their M.O. has been to use their high-powered offense to run up the score against the lesser lights, and fail, usually in miserable fashion, against the true class programs. Will that be Dennis Erickson's legacy in Tempe?

Maybe. But let's not forget where the Rebels (ranked 87th in offense) and dink-and-dunk quarterback Omar Clayton (less than six yards an attempt) reside - squarely in that "lesser light" category. With little ammunition to support UNLV in the role of the visitor (0-6 SU, 1-4-1 ATS in last six), we can imagine Erickson's team letting it all hang out in this tuneup. We will lay the points with ASU, the 23-point favorite in the BetUS NCAA college football betting odds.

JAY'S PLAY: ARIZONA STATE -23 **

(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)

(Charles Jay of www.ebookies.com gives it more than the old college try as a contributor to the BetUS Locker Room)