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Welcome to Against All Odds: NCAA/NFL Picks- Super Bowl LII! From the opening weekend of the NCAA football season through Super Bowl LII, Mike Drakulich (PSN), the man behind Pittsburgh SportsNation, takes on his father, Michael J. Drakulich (MJD), in picking NCAA and NFL games against the Vegas spread.
Mike Drakulich covers both the Pittsburgh Steelers and Pitt Panthers during the season for NGSCSports.com!
To appease the taste buds of Pittsburgh’s local coverage area, Pitt, Penn State, and West Virginia, when they are playing, will always be on the docket among the NCAA games chosen, as will the Pittsburgh Steelers for NFL games.
Once Bowl Season arrives, we’ll bring you ALL 40 games and then continue throughout the conclusion of the NFL Playoffs.
Itchy vs Scratchy. Black Spy vs White Spy. Cheers vs Gary’s Old Towne Tavern. History is full of rivalries, but none are better than father vs son! Who will rise above the other this season and become the 2017-18 Against All Odds Champion?
Here we are, a few days before the end of the 2017-18 football season… hard to believe how fast it goes from the first edition of Against All Odds in September all the way through the first week in February.
After whipping me soundly the past two years in a row, I was able to get a little revenge this season against my dad, whom I will beat by either 19 games or 17, depending on the outcome of Super Bowl LII.
It was quite a rough year for him after he had one of the best records in the country last year against the spread. This year I had a blazing start to the season, once being 74-46 before the Bowl Season imploded my once stellar record.
I’d like to thank everyone for enjoying this year’s journey for both of us, and we both look forward to coming back strong next September when the first week of college football kicks off!
May God Bless you and all of your families… till Pitt vs Albany, as we Serbs say when it’s bedtime, “Laku noc!”.
Lines as of 2/2/2017
Super Bowl LII
Sunday, February 4th
#1 Philadelphia Eagles (15-3) at #1 New England Patriots (15-3)
6:30 pm | Line: New England -4.5
Pick- PSN: Philadelphia | MJD: New England
It seemed it was going to come down to either New England or Pittsburgh on who would represent the AFC in this year’s Super Bowl. The Steelers, however, chocked against the Jaguars, not giving the football world the much anticipated rematch in the AFC Championship Game. The Jaguars fought valiantly, ultimately blowing a game they had in hand, (with a little aid from the Stripes, no less) and here the Patriots are again, gunning to tie those same Steelers in Super Bowl victories with six.
When Carson Wentz went down to injury for the Eagles, no one, outside of the team and a few die-hard fans, gave them much of a chance to do anything in the playoffs, as despite being the #1 Seed in the NFC, they were home underdogs in both of their games.
Yet, the Eagles persevered through a top notch defensive effort, combined with superb play from back-up QB Nick Foles.
Though Philadelphia is only 4.5 point dogs here, I haven’t found many people anywhere giving them a snowball’s chance in hell of stopping Tom Brady and the Patriots from their 6th Title.
For a Pittsburgh fan, choosing between Philadelphia and New England is like choosing between being burned alive or eaten by a pack of hungry ferrets.
The more I keep thinking about this game, the more I keep trying to convince myself the Eagles can win this game.
Nick Foles will have to be mistake free, and if so, combined with a very good running game to control the ball and a tough as nails defense, I think they can pull this off and shock the world.
Unlike every team before them, if the Eagles do get the lead, they had better not sit on it and go conservative.
My dad is going with the favorites in New England, so we’ll see who takes this last game of the season between me and him. Perhaps if Philly does win, their meathead, knuckle dragging fans can refrain from fighting each other, the police, their horses, and just enjoy a moment for their football team that they’ll never experience as Flyers fans, as the curse of 1975 will live on forever, and ever.
Pick Results
PSN: Last Week: 1-1 | Overall: 105-96 — .522
MJD: Last Week: 1-1 | Overall: 87-114 -18 .432
Author Profile
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From Midland, "The Basketball Capital of Pennsylvania", located 35 miles NW of Pittsburgh along the Ohio River. This former steel town was home to storied athletes such as Dave Alston, Norm Van Lier, Simmie Hill, and the legendary 1965 Midland High School Basketball Team.
There's nowhere on earth that is more dedicated to its sports teams like Western Pennsylvania and the city of Pittsburgh. The passion and pride of Pittsburgh's fan base is second to no one. From the NFL, NHL, MLB, NCAA football and basketball, to W.P.I.A.L. high school sports, "The City of Champions" has it all!
As Editor of Pittsburgh SportsNation, Mike Drakulich provides top notch opinions and coverage of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Pittsburgh Pirates, Pitt Panthers football & basketball, Robert Morris Colonials basketball, and Duquesne Dukes basketball, as well as all sports teams that represent Western Pennsylvania, including WPIAL High School Football.
For a refreshing view of sports, mixed with humor and uncensored opinions, check out Pittsburgh SportsNation today on Facebook, Twitter @PghSportsNation and videos with over 1,000,000 views on YouTube!
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