Follow The Money | August 11, 2026 | Hour 2

**Pauly Howard** (0:02)
That's what I always say, you always follow the money.

**Marc Malusis** (0:10)
Pauly and Marc Malusis all week, VSiN eSports betting network, Mitch on vacation, Ralph Vacciano to talk NFL coming up at the bottom of the hour, Frank Isola in an hour to talk NBA and the mess in Portland and this Kawhi Leonard situation and the NBA schedule. We also have numbers, we'll get to opening night and the Christmas Day schedule. We'll get to those later in the show as well. We roll on with our conference previews with Paul Stone. Paul Stone Sports on X, that's the website as well. He's on the Progressive guest line. We're down to the Mac and Conference USA. Today, it's Conference USA and I like what you're doing here. Paul, where have you gone? Chris Holt, how bad this Nevada program has been since he left and week one, you want to go with a play fading Nevada. Take it away with your Conference USA preview with selection number one, Mr. Stone.

**Paul Stone** (1:00)
Yeah, this week one matchup, Western Kentucky traveling west to play Nevada there at Mackey Stadium in Reno. Of course, a rematch from last season. And if you remember that game from 2025, Western Kentucky ultimately wins 31 to 16, but it wasn't easy. Nevada led at the end of the second quarter. Nevada led at the end of the third quarter.
Western Kentucky started pulling away in the fourth quarter, but Nevada, they kick a field goal with a little bit under 30 seconds remaining, I believe, to cut it to eight points. They're going to go for the onside kick. Nevada people, they're getting nine points, so they're going to get the money. But the onside kick bounces.
Many will remember this. Western Kentucky recovers it on the run. They take it 48 yards for the touchdown. Western Kentucky wins the game 31-16.
And more importantly to some, gets the cover as well. I had Western Kentucky in that game. Very fortunate. I still feel bad about it. Not really, but you got to take those when you get them. Yeah, boy. But now, you know, the Nevada people, I mean, it was the right side. That was just a brutal beat. But looking forward to this year, certainly that was then and this is now.
But about a month ago, maybe a little over a month ago, Draft Kings opened Western Kentucky as a four and a half point favorite in this game at Nevada. But the Wolf Pack has taken money. You know, first of all, dipped below four points. Now it's gone below three. Seeing this morning, Western Kentucky minus two and a half, it minus 115 juice there at Caesars William Hill. And I'm just not, I'm not supporting the line move. It's a line move with which I disagree. I like Western Kentucky laying less than the field goal. And as is often the case in this particular situation, it's more a bet against Nevada, as you kind of alluded to, Pauly, than it is a bet on Western Kentucky. First of all, a couple of things I do like about Western Kentucky. First of all, their head coach, Tyson Helton, he's entering his eighth season there in Western Kentucky. I believe he is the Dean of Conference USA coaches. I could be wrong there. So we have that continuity at the head of the program, certainly like that, but more importantly, and one of the main reasons that I'm supporting Western Kentucky here is Western Kentucky's incredibly daunting schedule to open the season. They open the season with three straight road games. First of all, of course, they travel cross country or mostly cross country to Reno to play Nevada. Then they come home, week two, they go to Athens, Georgia. They play the Georgia Bulldogs, a pretty good football team there in week two. Then they return home, heal a few bumps and bruises. Week three, they go to Bloomington, Indiana to play the defending national champion, Indiana Hoosiers. And all this just to point out that even though they're not going to concede those games necessarily to Georgia and Indiana, they are going to be more than a 30-point underdog in both games barring injury. Even though, they're not going to concede those games, they know in the back of their mind, in the deep recesses of their brain, they know if they lose to Indiana guys, we are starting the season 0-3.
And even though that would still keep their Conference USA title aspirations undisturbed and on the table, and this, that and the other, they don't want to start out 0-3. They don't want to have that tenor of the season there. So they're certainly going to put, I think, even more into this game than they normally would. And now we'll just hit on a quick few points regarding Nevada. And to be brutally blunt, none of them good.