Colts use goal-line stand, lead Saints at halftime
Football Betting Lines
02/07/2010 - Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Super Bowl XLIV has been a tale of two very different quarters, but Indianapolis, vying for a second title in four years, has managed to hold a 10-6 lead at halftime on the New Orleans Saints.
The Colts used a Peyton Manning touchdown pass to cap a 96-yard drive in the opening quarter and then had a goal-line stand to stop the Saints in the final two minutes of the half.
Matt Stover kicked a 38-yard field goal midway through the first quarter, and Manning ended the Super Bowl's record-tying longest drive with a 19-yard scoring toss to Pierre Garcon with 36 seconds remaining in the same period.
The Saints, in the Super Bowl for the first time in franchise history, got a 46-yard field goal from Garrett Hartley in the early moments of the second quarter, but were thwarted on a fourth down run from the one with 1:49 left. Hartley split the uprights from 44 yards on the final play.
The Colts dominated the opening quarter, outgaining the Saints in yardage, 154-36. The Saints ran just 10 offensive plays in the period, but the Colts had just six in the second quarter. Indy was outgained 143-15 in the second quarter.
That stanza proved much different, starting with Hartley's 46-yard field goal to end an 11-play, 60-yard march with 9:34 left in the half. Hartley converted the kick after Drew Brees was thrown to the ground on a one-handed sack by the Colts' Dwight Freeney, who started despite an ankle injury.
New Orleans then forced a three-and-out, helped when Garcon dropped a sure first-down catch with plenty of open space.
Brees led the Saints' high-powered offense down the field. He converted a pair of third downs, once with a pass for 13 yards to Marques Colston and another with a 21-yard toss to Lance Moore, moving the ball to the 23. After Devery Henderson lost seven yards on an end-around play, Brees found Colston over the middle for 27 yards, advancing the ball to the three.
But the drive stalled. After a false start penalty, Pierre Thomas ran seven yards to the one, setting up third down. Mike Bell slipped down on a rush to the right; and then on fourth down, Thomas was stuffed on a run to the right.
Following a punt, New Orleans got the ball back at its own 48 with 35 seconds left. Brees threw 19 and six yards to Henderson. Reggie Bush ran for a yard out of bounds with five seconds left, setting up Hartley's kick.
Manning has connected on 10-of-16 throws for 97 yards in the first half with Joseph Addai rushing seven times for 60 yards.
Brees is 16-of-22 for 164 yards through the air with Colston making five grabs for 66 yards.
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Teams that should be in: Stanford
Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.
Should be in:
Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.
| Southeastern Conference odds | |
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.
Work left to do: Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney. Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson. Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable. Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile. |
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