No. 6 Huskers' Martinez to measure self vs. Idaho

NCAA Football Betting Lines

09/10/2010 -

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) -After passing his trial run as Nebraska's starter, Taylor Martinez can strengthen his grip on the quarterback's job with another strong outing Saturday against Idaho.

Martinez won over his teammates, not to mention the fans, in last week's 49-10 season-opening win over Western Kentucky. Now the redshirt freshman is poised to establish himself as the sixth-ranked Cornhuskers' clear starter going into next week's test at Washington.

``I just feel like now he knows it's his huddle, and he's going to run the show,'' receiver Mike McNeill said. ``He's got a lot of confidence.''

Martinez ran for 127 yards and three touchdowns and passed for 136 yards against a Western Kentucky team that has lost 21 straight. He should get a better measure of himself against Idaho, which beat Bowling Green in the last seconds of the Humanitarian Bowl last year and opened with a 45-0 rout of North Dakota.

Nebraska's quarterback shuffle has gone as smoothly as offensive coordinator Shawn Watson could have hoped. Martinez beat out 2009 starter Zac Lee, a senior, and top backup Cody Green, a sophomore.

Watson said Lee and Green have offered their help to Martinez in film study and on the practice field.

``I'm proud of what they've done because both Cody and Zac wanted to have that opportunity,'' Watson said. ``Those guys have put the team first, which is part of our culture here.''

Watson told the quarterbacks the pecking order five days before the opener. To that point, Green said, Watson had updated the three almost daily about where they stood in the competition.

``That's all you can ask for,'' Green said. ``It would be a lot worse if everything was secretive and then, bam, here is the starter. It wasn't like that. We knew (Martinez) was starting, and we knew the reason why he was starting.''

Lee declined an interview request, as did Martinez.

Watson said Martinez, who was clearly uncomfortable speaking with reporters after last week's game, reluctantly accepts all that comes with being a Nebraska quarterback.

``I see that he knows he is getting attention,'' Watson said. ``I think he would really like it to all go away and let him do his thing.''

His thing is running the ball, not his mouth.

McNeill said he and his teammates have witnessed Martinez's explosiveness since last year, when Martinez was on the scout team. The fans got their first glimpse of Martinez in the spring game, which put him in position to make a bid for the job in preseason practice.

``A lot of time people get hyped up during camp or spring ball, and you never really know what you're going to get,'' McNeill said. ``But we all knew, that kid can flat out run. I knew he was going to run the ball well, but I was just impressed with the clock management and the play calls.''

Though his team is a four-touchdown favorite against Idaho, coach Bo Pelini said the Vandals present a bigger challenge than the Hilltoppers did.

The Vandals had the nation's second-best turnaround last year, going from 2-10 in 2008 to 8-5. NFL prospect Nathan Enderle, a North Platte, Neb., native, returns to his home state after passing for 333 yards and two TDs against North Dakota.

Idaho coach Robb Akey said his players should soak up the Memorial Stadium atmosphere and the 85,000-strong ``Sea of Red.'' But he said the Vandals won't just show up just to collect their $800,000 guarantee.

``Nobody is going to pick us to win this game,'' he said, ``so there's no way we can go in there and screw it up. I believe this: If we play as fast as we can, as hard as we can and as long as we can, and if we execute things better, we give ourselves some opportunities. We'll see what that will do when we read the scoreboard at the end of the ball game.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

Webmiilion NCAA Football Betting News

<< Report: NCAA looks into Tennessee basketball program
Knoxville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The NCAA has reportedly looked into the Tennessee men's basketball program as part of an overall investigation into the school's athletics program. The Knoxville News Sentinel reported Thursday,

<< No. 11 Wisconsin on 14-game home opener win streak
MADISON, Wis. (AP) -Wisconsin wants to shoot down any comparisons with another top ranked team that could be made Saturday when the 11th-ranked Badgers take on San Jose State.The Spartans lost 48-3 to No. 1 Alabama last Saturday and San Jose State c

<< Wyoming, mourning death of player, faces Texas
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -The Wyoming football teams says they will play this weekend in honor of a fallen teammate.The Cowboys play at No. 5 Texas on Saturday night. Before the game, Ruben Narcisse's photo will grace the giant stadium scoreboard screen a

<< No. 9 Iowa understandably wary of Iowa St
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) -The rivalry between Iowa and Iowa State has become predictable.The Hawkeyes are usally expected to pound the underdog Cyclones - and it usually doesn't happen.Iowa State has made life miserable for the rival Hawkeyes, winning s

<< LSU's versatile Shepard sees himself as play maker
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) -Russell Shepard's career at LSU isn't turning out quite as he had envisioned, and that might be the best thing that ever happened to him.The Tigers' quarterback-turned-wide receiver has remade his game in the mold of dynamic p

Funk among leaders in South Korea >>
Songdo, South Korea (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tradition winner Fred Funk, Michael Allen and Jay Don Blake each posted rounds of three-under 69 on Friday to share the opening-round lead of the Posco E&C Songdo Championship. This was th

Wisconsin riding 14-game home opener win streak >>
MADISON, Wis. (AP) -Wisconsin wants to shoot down the No. 1 comparison that's sure to be made Saturday when the 11th-ranked Badgers take on San Jose State: How would Wisconsin fare against Alabama?The Spartans lost 48-3 to the top-ranked Crimson Tid

No. 7 Oregon, Tennessee meet for 1st big test >>
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -Justin Wilcox had to stop and rewind the tape on Oregon running back LaMichael James a few times to make sure it was playing at regular speed.The Tennessee defensive coordinator thought for a moment he was watching on fast-for

2010 World Basketball Championship update - September 10th >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - CLASSIFICATION ROUND Spain vs. Slovenia, 11 p.m. Russia vs. Argentina, 2 p.m.

EIU ready for Sean Payton ceremony >>
Charleston, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fresh off Thursday's season-opening win, Super Bowl-winning coach Sean Payton of the New Orleans Saints will have his jersey number retired by his alma mater, Eastern Illinois University, during the Panthers' h

Will Ohio State continue to run the table in College Football betting odds?
MySportsbook.com favors Buckeyes, Fighting Irish and Golden Bears in this weekend's big games.

NEW YORK, NY, Sept. 21 - My Sportsbook NCAA football fans: things are beginning to get really interesting on college football's national stage. Following last weekend's "Separation Saturday", which included five teams ranked in the top 15 dropping games, the BCS Championship picture is beginning to take shape - with Ohio State leading the charge. And, according to odds makers at MySportsbook.com, the number-one-ranked Buckeyes will continue their winning ways this weekend.

Revenge will be the name of the game in Columbus this Saturday, as Ohio State looks to even the score following last season's loss to Joe Paterno's Nittany Lions. Although Penn State are listed as 16.5 point underdogs, they are 11-10 all-time versus the Buckeyes. Paterno and the Lions, however, will have to shut down Heisman Trophy favorite Troy Smith who has thrown for 769 yards and seven touchdowns this season.

Speaking of revenge, Notre Dame will be out for some against Michigan State, following last year's 44 - 41 overtime loss to the Spartans in South Bend. The thirteenth-ranked Irish, listed as a 3-point favorite, will also be looking to avenge last Saturday's thrashing from the Michigan Wolverines. The Spartans, meanwhile, have won seven of the last nine match-ups against Notre Dame and are coming off an impressive 38-23 victory over Pittsburgh.

Out west, 22nd-ranked Arizona State will be battling for their first victory over 21st-ranked California since 2000. Although the Golden Bears are listed as 7.5-point favorites, the Sun Devils are 3-0, lead the nation in sacks with 18 and possess the Pac-10's leading passer in sophomore quarterback Rudy Carpenter.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Visa needs.

NCAA Football betting lines (home team in CAPS)
--------------------------------------------------

Date Favorite Opponent Point Spread
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sept 21 GEORGIA TECH Virginia 17
Sept 22 NEVADA Northwestern 6.5
Sept 23 MICHIGAN Wisconsin 14
Sept 23 Minnesota PURDUE 3
Sept 23 SYRACUSE Miami (Ohio) 6.5
Sept 23 MISSOURI Ohio 21.5
Sept 23 Louisville KANSAS STATE 14
Sept 23 TENNESSEE Marshall 22
Sept 23 CLEMSON North Carolina 16.5
Sept 23 FLORIDA Kentucky 24
Sept 23 Iowa ILLINOIS 20.5
Sept 23 FLORIDA STATE Rice 30.5
Sept 23 AUBURN Buffalo 41.5
Sept 23 BOWLING GREEN Kent 7
Sept 23 NAVY Tulsa 4.5
Sept 23 VIRGINIA TECH Cincinnati 27
Sept 23 BYU Utah State 29
Sept 23 OHIO STATE Penn State 16.5
Sept 23 TEXAS Iowa State 25
Sept 23 Washington State STANFORD 10
Sept 23 CALIFORNIA Arizona State 7.5
Sept 23 UCLA WASHINGTON 3
Sept 23 INDIANA Connecticut 1.5
Sept 23 Central Michigan EASTERN MICHIGAN 4
Sept 23 WYOMING Air Force 1
Sept 23 UTEP NEW MEXICO 9.5
Sept 23 West Virginia EAST CAROLINA 21
Sept 23 Boston College NORTH CAROLINA STATE 7
Sept 23 GEORGIA Colorado 27
Sept 23 ARKANSAS Alabama 1.5
Sept 23 BAYLOR Army 11
Sept 23 WESTERN MICHIGAN Temple 28
Sept 23 MISSISSIPPI Wake Forest 2.5
Sept 23 KANSAS South Florida 5.5
Sept 23 TEXAS A&amp;M Louisiana Tech 23.5
Sept 23 UAB Mississippi State 9.5
Sept 23 LSU Tulane 36
Sept 23 Utah SAN DIEGO STATE 6.5
Sept 23 BOISE STATE Hawaii 15
Sept 23 Notre Dame MICHIGAN STATE 3
Sept 23 USC ARIZONA U 22
Sept 23 Oklahoma State HOUSTON 1
Sept 23 OREGON STATE Idaho 23
Sept 23 OKLAHOMA Middle Tennessee State 29
Sept 23 MARYLAND Florida International 18.5
Sept 23 AKRON North Texas 17.5
Sept 23 SOUTH CAROLINA Florida Atlantic 29.5
Sept 23 NEBRASKA Troy 23
Sept 23 SMU Arkansas State 6

For complete NCAA football odds and World Series odds please visit MySportsbook.com