Will Rogers

At 7:45pm ET, my SEC Game Of The Month is on LSU. From an ATS perspective, Vanderbilt has had a great season. LSU has not. The Tigers are still the better team though and tonight they will make sure everyone knows it! The Tigers are off 3 straight losses and they have Oklahoma on deck for their regular season finale. They need to restore order! Things aren't as bad as they might seem. Two of their last 3 losses were on the road and the other was versus Alabama. The Tigers are still 4-1 at home, 3 of those wins coming by 17 or more points. The Commodores are off a 28-7 loss last week. They were no match for South Carolina and they won't be able to keep up with LSU. The last 2 meetings saw the Tigers win 41-7 and 66-38. Lay the points.

At 7:30pm ET, my Total of the Year is on Notre Dame/Army under. Before I was even born, this used to be the biggest game of the year, Army versus Notre Dame from Yankee Stadium! They once had a No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup, the second “Game of the Century” of the post World War II era. It ended in a 0-0 tie! They'll get more points than that today but defense will still rule the day. Notre Dame allowed only 15.9 points per game last season and 276 yards. The Irish returned 9 starters from that unit and have picked up right where they left off. Notre Dame is allowing only 11.4 points per game and has allowed 14 or fewer points in five straight games! Only 2 teams are allowing fewer points per game than the Irish and one of them happens to be Army! The Black Knights are conceding only 10.3 points per game, tied with Ohio State for the best in the nation. Both teams rank in the top 6 for yards allowed per game. Enjoy the game and go with the under!

At 7:07pm ET, my Central Division Game Of The Month is on Nashville. The Predators have home ice advantage. That's important because the Jets have been tough on the road but even better at home in Winnipeg and because it allows Nashville the ability to match lines with the home team getting the last line change. The Predators also benefit from a scheduling advantage. The Jets are off a 4-1 win at Pittsburgh yesterday. This is the first time all season that they played 2 games in 2 days. They lost by a combined score of 8-0 the last 2 times that they played in that situation last season. Play on Nashville.

At 5:30pm ET, my MLS Playoff Game Of The Year is on the New York Red Bulls. New York City FC and the New York Red Bulls have faced each other 29 times since 2015. This will be the first time they face each other in the playoffs. The Red Bulls lead the series, 15-10-4, across all competitions: 11-9-4 in MLS, 3-0 in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and 1-0 in the Leagues Cup. If getting a win with the draw, as they are here, the Red Bulls would be 19-10 in those matches. New York City FC is tough here but having a spot in the Eastern Finals on the line is going to bring out the best in the Red Bulls. Though they lost both matches in the regular season against NY, the Red Bulls just swept the reigning MLS Cup champions to get here. They are coming in full of confidence. Both are off shootout wins in their last match and it won't be at all surprising to me if this one is tied after 90 minutes.

At 4:00pm ET, my Slam Dunk Club is on Wake Forest. The difference in class between these programs will be on clear display this afternoon. The Demon Deacons won 21 games last season and this year's team is better. In my opinion, they are one of the top 5 teams in the ACC and they will be going to the NCAA Tournament. Detroit is a team which went 1-31 last season! Their only victory was at home against IU Indy. The good news for Detroit fans is that their team has a new coach and has already surpassed last year's number of victories. The bad news is that they are still a very weak team which is going to take time to grow. They're improved but they aren't ready for a team like Wake Forest. Lay the points and enjoy the blowout.

At 12 ET, my Early Riser is on UNC. The Eagles still need another win to become bowl eligible. They will have to wait and try and get it against Pittsburgh next week though as North Carolina is coming in red hot. The Tar Heels are playing their best football and want to keep the momentum going. They are off three straight wins. Their last 2 road games resulted in victories of 35-11 and 41-14. Off a 10-point loss last week, the Eagles have dropped 4 of their last 5. Both teams run the ball a lot but North Carolina is better at doing so. The Tar Heels have defeated the Eagles 5 straight times. Make it 6 in a row on Saturday afternoon. Lay the points.

My UFC Fight Of the Week is on Su Young Yu. A heads-up that Saturday's fights come from Macau, China. That means that the first prelims start at 3am ET and the main card is at 6am. I'm supporting the South Korean fighter in this all-Asian matchup. Su Young Yu is the #48 ranked MMA fighter in the Asia Pacific region. Balgyn Jenisuly is the #77 ranked MMA fighter in the Asia Pacific region. A look at the records of their opponents shows that Su Young Yu has fought much tougher fighters. Jenisuly doesn't mind going to the ground but that will favor "Yu-jitsu" and will help to neutralize Jenisuly's height and reach advantage. Jenisuly has been submitted a couple of times and Yu has 5 submissions wins and 0 submission losses. Yu just defeated and up-and-coming Chinese fighter (Daermisi Zhawupasi) who was 9-1. He started strong but learned that he needs to be stronger in the final round. Yu may not see the 3rd round though as he could well win this one inside the first round. If this one does go the distance, he'll be ready and should be comfortably ahead on the scorecards, thanks to ground control time. Play on Su Young Yu.