Cincinnati at Pittsburgh Football Odds - 2009 Big East Championship

The 2009 Big East championship and a BCS bowl berth will be on the line as #15 Pittsburgh hosts #5 Cincinnati on Saturday in a game that can be seen on ABC. The Bearcats could also slip into the national title picture if they win and Texas loses to Nebraska. "I wouldn't say it was easy to get to 11-0, but 11-0 is not going to matter if we lose to Pittsburgh, and the guys know this," said wide receiver Mardy Gilyard, "If we take care of business, the rest is up to the voters and the computers whatever else is out there, to figure out what we do with the postseason."

Cincinnati is a 2-point favorite in college football odds at online sportsbooks for the 2009 Big East championship with a betting total of 58. Cincinnati comes into this game unbeaten at 11-0. Head coach Brian Kelly is rumored to be the frontrunner for the Notre Dame head coaching job, but he is focused on getting Cincinnati past Pittsburgh. "It's championship week," Kelly said, “As a coach, it doesn't get any better than this, when you're playing for a championship. There's nothing that gets you more excited than being in this kind of environment, with a championship this week." Pittsburgh is coming off a last second loss to West Virginia 19-16.

While the loss hurts, it really didn’t mean much since Pittsburgh can still win the Big East and get a BCS bowl bid if they defeat Cincinnati. "At the beginning of the season, we talked about winning the Big East championship," coach Dave Wannstedt said. "We can accomplish that next week, so we'll turn the page on this week fast." Last season quarterback Tony Pike threw for 309 yards and three touchdowns as the Bearcats defeated Pittsburgh 28-21. Cincinnati has been very good in road games as they are 4-1 ATS as a favorite in college football odds for their last 5 road games.

The Bearcats have also been solid in the Big East as they are 8-3 in their last 11 conference games. Pittsburgh has also been solid in Big East games as they are 6-2 ATS in their last 8 conference games. The Panthers are 5-2 vs. the college football odds in their last 7 home games. The Over is 13-6-1 in the Bearcats last 20 road games. The Under is 6-1 in the Panthers last 7 games overall.

Lanning's College Football Picks: To be completely honest, I'm surprised Pittsburgh made it this far under the brainiac they call Wannstedt. They lost last week and count on them to lose again this weekend. My college football pick for the 2009 Big East Championship on ABC is to take the Bearcats laying the points to the UNDER in a close call parlay. Vegas odds at Caesars sportsbook have the Cincinnati Bearcats -2 favorites against the Pittsburgh Panthers in college football odds with a betting total of 58.