Scott Rickenbach – Sports Handicapper

ESPN Smash Pass Top Play - Rickenbach MLB 10* OVER the total in Houston Astros vs Los Angeles Angels @ 8:05 ET - The Astros Lance McCullers has not been healthy for some time now. He has only made one start since late July and it was not "smooth" to say the least. Overall, McCullers has an 8.40 ERA in his last 3 starts and, as he is trying to work out the kinks before the post-season I would not be surprised to see him struggle against a solid Angels lineup. While it is true that McCullers has been solid against the Angels in recent meetings, this situation is different with him "tuning up" for the post-season and truly not 100% healthy. As for the Los Angeles starter, Tyler Skaggs, he recently faced the Astros and enjoyed success. However, that start was at home and now he faces them in Houston and I look for the Astros to enjoy success in what is a quick "second look" at Skaggs. Note that the Angels southpaw is winless in his 7 road starts this season. The over is 17-5 in Astros Sunday games this season and I look for another one here. Even though Skaggs gave up just 2 earned runs in his most recent start he only struck out 1 while allowing 8 hits in just 5 and 1/3 innings. In other words, he was quite hittable and wasn't missing many bats. Look for more of the same here. 10* OVER the total in Houston

Total Dominator - Rickenbach Sunday MLB 8* OVER the total in Oakland A's vs Texas Rangers @ 4:05 ET - This play embarrassed me yesterday as the game ended up being a 1-0 final. I'll come right back with it today and you can expect much different results in this one. This is an afternoon game and it will be quite warm this afternoon in Oakland with the wind blowing out to right field as well. As for the pitchers, the Rangers Martin Perez has a 5.40 ERA and has been hit at a .314 clip in day games this season. The A's Jharel Cotton has a 3-2 record since the All-Star break but note that he has a 6.85 ERA in those 9 starts and has been hit at a .293 clip during this stretch. The point is that both these pitchers are likely to struggle in this one. I know the Rangers bats haven't been getting the job done lately but Cotton has allowed 7 homers in his last 14 innings and he'll bring out the best in them today. Also, the A's bats (prior to yesterday) had certainly been red hot at home with averaging 8 runs per game in their 8 home games this month (prior to yesterday's 1-0 win). Look for the over to improve to 16-8 in A's home games this season. 8* OVER the total in Oakland

ESPN Smash Pass - Rickenbach Sunday CFL 8* Saskatchewan Roughriders (+) vs Calgary Stampeders @ 4 ET - Certainly Calgary is the hottest team in the league right now but Sasktachewan has also been hot as the Roughriders have won 4 of its last 5 games. Couple that with the fact that Regina is one of the toughest places for opponents to play and I like my chances here with the big dog. Of course Saskatchewan has big-time revenge on their minds here as they've been on a long losing streak in this series. However, what make this one have a little extra "tinge" of revenge is the fact that the Roughriders lost by 9 points the last time they hosted Calgary and that was even though Saskatchwan had a yardage edge and 23-17 edge in first downs. As you can see, the Roughriders deserved better and the other significance in that is that it is the only time the home team has not covered in the last 6 meetings between these clubs. On Sunday, I look for the home team dominance to continue as homers improve to 6-1 ATS in this series. The Roughriders are playing with more confidence than they have had in a long, long time and they appear poised for the upset win here. The unexpected BC loss Friday has given Saskatchewan a boost in terms of the race for a playoff spot and the beauty of this play is we don't have to get the straight-up win to get the cash. Grab the generous points available here with a dangerous home dog. 8* SASKATCHEWAN

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach Sunday CFB 8* East Carolina Pirates (+) @ Connecticut Huskies @ Noon ET - This game was originally scheduled for November 4th but got moved to a RARE Sunday date in late September due to the scheduling impacts of Hurricane Irma. As a result we get some RARE Sunday College Football here and I look for the underdog Pirates to respond after firing their defensive coordinator. Yes, East Carolina fired him BEFORE the Virginia Tech game and the Pirates still got throttled by the Hokies but that team is certainly at a much different level than the Huskies. Connecticut entered this season 14-35 the last 4 seasons! They only scored 20 TD's last year which was dead last in the nation. The Huskies averaged just 16 points per game on offense the last 3 seasons combined. Already this season they are struggling too as they only put up 27 in a win over Holy Cross - a team they should have blasted. The UConn defense has been giving up huge yardage too. While the same can be said of the Pirates defense, East Carolina has played the tougher schedule with games against West Virginia and Virginia Tech the past two weeks. In other words, this is the week for the Pirates to put it all together. They have the much better offense in comparison with the Huskies and I like the East Carolina D to respond here now that they've had some time since the DC was fired. Note that the Huskies are 0-7 ATS when they are at home after a non-conference game. Also, the Pirates are 9-0 ATS when they are a road dog of less than 6 points and they're coming off of a loss by double digits. Conference opener for both teams and a chance for winless East Carolina to have a fresh start. I look for them to take advantage and I certainly like the combined 16-0, 100% ATS factors in favor of the Pirates as detailed above. 8* EAST CAROLINA

Sunday Night Game of the Month - Rickenbach NFL 10* Top Play Oakland Raiders (-) @ Washington Redskins @ 8:30 ET - The Raiders showed a lot in their season opening win at Tennessee and then they were able to coast to a blowout win over the hapless Jets last week. That home win over the Jets certainly came much easier than what the Redskins went through last week. Not only did Washington have a tough divisional battle in Week 1 with the Eagles (and they lost badly and were outplayed significantly) they then had to go to battle with a Rams team in Los Angeles last week that was much tougher to "put away" then expected. The Redskins passing attack has not looked good this season whereas the Raiders overall offensive production has them ranked among the top teams in the league. Also, Oakland's aerial attack can take advantage of a Redskins pass defense that ranks among the worst in the league here in the early going this season. The Raiders are on a fantastic 13-3 ATS run in road games and QB Carr and WR Crabtree are proving to be a dangerous combo. Even though Oakland has a big divisional game on deck with Denver, they aren't going to overlook a Sunday Night game. Also, the Raiders are a "team on a mission" after getting ousted from the playoffs last season so quickly (because QB Carr had gotten hurt at the end of the regular season). Their "mission" continues Sunday night. 10* OAKLAND

Game of the Week - Rickenbach Sunday NFL 10* Top Play Cincinnati Bengals (+) @ Green Bay Packers @ 4:25 ET - Both teams are off of losses last week but, statistically, both were "right there" with their opponents even though the fell short on the scoreboard. That said, the difference is the Packers lost a very important game as they were seeking revenge against the Falcons for defeating them in the NFC Championship Game in January and preventing a Super Bowl trip for Green Bay. Though the Bengals are also off of a loss last week it wasn't nearly as "deflating" of a defeat and the fact is that Cincinnati, sitting at 0-2 on the season, comes into this one very hungry as a result. The Bengals defense has played well and the team as a whole hasn't played as bad as their results would indicate as they were done in by turnovers in Week 1 and then, in Week 2, they played out a "defensive struggle" with the Texans. Keep in mind the Packers were down by as much as 24 in their loss at Atlanta last week so they certainly did not impress overall. The Bengals are 5-1 ATS when they are off of a game where they held to less than 10 points. Also, Cincinnati is 6-1 ATS when they are a dog in the first of back to back road games. The Bengals do have another road game on deck next Sunday while the Packers are in a tough scheduling spot off of a big Sunday night game and with a Thursday night game on deck. 10* CINCINNATI plus the big points in late afternoon action Sunday

Divisional Dominator - Rickenbach Sunday NFL 8* Los Angeles Chargers (+) vs Kansas City Chiefs @ 4:25 ET - A lot of home dog value here because the Chargers have essentially blown both of their games as they lost by 3 points or less each time and the Chiefs have won big despite being involved in games that were very close very late each time. Kansas City certainly has impressive wins for their "resume" with a 15-point win over the Patriots and a 7-point win over the Eagles but the fact is those were close games that "turned on a dime" in the 4th quarter. That's not to say that won't happen again here but the fact is that Los Angeles has been "on the cusp" in each game and the Chargers are catching the Chiefs at the right time to "get over the hump". That was an emotional win for Kansas City in their home opener last week and I look for them to be "spent' after head coach Andy Reid led his troops to victory over a former protege (Eagles head coach Doug Pederson) and his former team (Philadelphia). The Chargers have been swept by the Chiefs each of the last 3 years and this is LA's first divisional home game. In other words, the Chargers have had this one circled! 8* LOS ANGELES CHARGERS in late afternoon action Sunday

Contrarian Crusher Early - Rickenbach Sunday NFL 8* Buffalo Bills (+) vs Denver Broncos @ 1 ET - Nice set-up here. The Broncos are off of a huge home win versus Dallas as they were up big in terms of emotions heading into that one. Now they travel for the first time this season and, not only that, Denver has a huge game on deck with division rival Oakland. This definitely looks like a "trap game" for the Broncos and, in addition, a "trap game" for the betting public. This line has been driven up from an opener of 1 to as high as a 3.5 as of Saturday evening. The Bills are on a 10-4 ATS run as a home dog and truly are "built" to be a dangerous home dog. That's because their defense ranks right up there statistically with Denver so far this season and Buffalo has a good ground game on offense. That rushing attack could surprise many by enjoying success against a Broncos run defense that, surprisingly, actually ranked among the league's worst last season. Don't be surprised if the Bills get the upset but certainly the available points are well worth the taking. 8* BUFFALO in early afternoon action

Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach Free Pick for NFL Sunday Chicago Bears (+) vs Pittsburgh Steelers @ 1 ET - Nice home dog spot for the Bears here. They catch the Steelers off of a win and cover against Vikings team without QB Sam Bradford. Also, Pittsburgh has their biggest rival, Baltimore, on deck. That makes this a "sandwich spot" for the Steelers as they were up for their home opener against Minnesota last week and they have a tough road trip to face the Ravens up next. The Bears were a turnover machine last week and that gave them no chance for success at Tampa Bay. However, at home in Week 1, Chicago truly played a solid game and gave the defending NFC Champion Falcons a run for their money. With that cover, the Bears are a solid 5-1-1 ATS the last 7 times they've been a home dog. I like them again here to get the job done in that role. Free Pick on Chicago plus the big points in early afternoon action Sunday. Best of luck, Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach Sunday NFL 8* OVER the total in Jacksonville Jaguars vs Baltimore Ravens @ Wembley Stadium in London @ 9:30 AM ET - The Jaguars are playing in London for the 5th straight year and, for the 5th straight time, I expect the Jacksonville game at Wembley Stadium to result in an over. The 4 games across the pond (all OVERS) for the Jags from 2013 to 2016 have averaged a total of 55.5 points per game. We're getting line value here because the Ravens defense is involved. The fact is that the vaunted Baltimore D may not be fully focused because they've got their biggest rival, Pittsburgh, on deck for next week! I also like the additional line value here as this total has dropped from it's opener of 40.5 points. Look for this situation to improve to a PERFECT 5-0 to the over. 8* OVER the total in Jacksonville ULTRA EARLY Sunday morning