BCS Championship Game: Auburn Tigers vs Oregon Ducks NCAA Football Picks and Predictions

Auburn Tigers vs Oregon Ducks
Monday, 1/10/11, 8:30 PM EDT, TV: ESPN
Opening Point Spread: Auburn -3
Current Betting Line: Auburn -1.5
Opening Total: 74
Current Total: 72.5

Oregon Ducks Running Back LaMichael James — The Oregon Ducks are slight underdogs in facing off against the Auburn Tigers in the BCS Championship Monday night

Auburn and Oregon meet for the first time with the BCS National Championship on the line on Monday night at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. “Our football team has been probably one of the most resilient groups of young men I’ve seen in 25 years of doing this,” said Tigers head coach Gene Chizik. This season’s bowl appearance marks the 36th time the Tigers have played in a bowl game, which is the 16th-highest total of any school. The program has compiled a 20-13-2 record in those games, including a 15-6-1 mark since the 1974 Gator Bowl. Tonight’s contest also marks the second bowl game for Chizik as the lead man of a program, tallying a 38-35 win in overtime last year over Northwestern in the Outback Bowl. Auburn is 17-19 ATS over the past three years and currently a slight favorite on the college football lines page.

The Tigers have only played eight games in their history against Pac-10 opponents, owning a 5-3 record. Auburn’s last victory over the conference came in a 40-14 blowout of Washington State in the 2006 season opener. All eyes will be on Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Cameron Newton tonight when the Tigers have the ball, rushing for 1,409 yards and 20 touchdowns, while connecting on 28 scores and throwing just six touchdowns through the air. His 10.52 yards per attempt led the country and also helped him become the nation’s top-rated passer. The program has an all-time record of 3-9 against teams ranked No. 2 in the Associated Press poll, which breaks down to an 0-7 record when unranked and 3-2 when ranked at kickoff.

Oregon is seeking to win its first national title in the sport of football and also improve its record to 5-4 all-time against Southeastern Conference schools. “We’re not happy with just going to it, we wanna go and win it now,” said wide receiver Jeff Maehl. “We put too much hard work and time into it to not go there and play well.” The Ducks 12-game winning streak is the longest in school history, betting an 11-game win streak in 2001-02. The program defeated Colorado, 38-16, in the 2002 Fiesta Bowl, which was its only other postseason trip to Arizona. The Ducks have won three straight games in the Grand Canyon State. Oregon is 37-16 ATS when the line is +3 to -3.

The Ducks have certainly dominated opponents this season and have tallied a 16-0 record when leading after halftime under Chip Kelly the last two years. Since 1999, Oregon is 9-9 against top 10 opponents, including wins in five out of the last seven. The team leads the nation in scoring offense (43.3) and ranks second nationally in total offense (537.5). With one game left to play, the 2010 Oregon Ducks have already set a new school record for scoring by putting up 592 points.

Bettors will likely back the Tigers due to their 7-1-1 ATS mark as a favorite of 0.5 to 3.0 points, while the Ducks are 3-7 ATS versus teams with a winning record.