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West Virginia had become the most bet on College Football team heading into Saturday morning. The matchup - West Virginia vs. East Carolina - featured a line of -7 ½ on the visiting Mountaineers.
This line briefly opened at West Virginia -9 but has mainly been hovering between -8 and -7 ½ as of late Friday night. Pinnacle Sports, which does not accept US customers, had taken this one all the way down to -7.
The idea that odds makers are encouraging action on the Mountaineers speaks volumes that they must believe East Carolina can cover or even win within the 7 point margin. Over 75 percent of betting action was coming in on West Virginia at press time. BetOnline.com, which offers either reduced juice or a 20 percent signup bonus, was offering this one at West Virginia -7 ½.
Nearly 80 percent of betting action was also on the East Carolina money line with a payout potential of $260 for every $100 bet if East Carolina were to win outright.
East Carolina is grabbing some deserved attention after shocking Virginia Tech last weekend during the opener. Doc's Sports had this to say about East Carolina:
Well, right about now there is a pretty special buzz ringing through the corridors of East Carolina University as the team prepares for West Virginia this weekend. Again, the Pirates are underdogs. And again they are playing with the benefit of a favorable crowd that can add extra fuel to their fire. And, finally, again they are playing a madly overrated team that is not nearly as good as they were when the clubs met in 2007.
Last year West Virginia absolutely dominated ECU in Morgantown, winning, 48-7, as 24-point favorites and outgaining the Pirates, 600-150, in total yards. Yes, that read 600-150. However, ECU actually played the Mountaineers pretty tough in 2005 and 2006, covering both games as huge underdogs. In 2005 they lost by just five points at home as a 22-point dog and in 2006 they lost 27-10 on the road as 21-point puppies. This ECU team looks a little older and a little wiser. They actually have more returning starters (16 to 12) than West Virginia and have a tremendous edge on defense. ECU welcomed back a ridiculous 18 of its top 20 tacklers from last year, while WVU returned just four of its top 13. Further, this game is on grass, which may seem like a small detail but is definitely a more familiar and advantageous surface for ECU.
