Baseball Betting

Panthers' Delhomme upgraded to probable

Football Betting Lines

12/28/2006 - Charlotte, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carolina Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme practiced on Thursday and was upgraded to probable for the team's regular season finale in New Orleans.

Delhomme, who also practiced on Wednesday, has missed the Panthers' past three games with a sprained right thumb.

"He made it through (Wednesday) just fine and had no setbacks," Panthers head coach John Fox said on Thursday. "He slung it around pretty good (Thursday)."

The game is a must-win for Carolina, which is still in the NFL playoff hunt despite a 7-8 record. Even if the Panthers beat the Saints, they still need losses by the New York Giants (against Washington on December 30) and Green Bay (against Chicago on Sunday night) to claim the final playoff spot in the NFC.

Delhomme hurt his thumb after his hand hit a helmet on a first-quarter touchdown pass to wide receiver Steve Smith in Carolina's 27-24 loss against the Philadelphia Eagles on December 4. He stayed in the game and went 22- of-37 for 269 yards with three touchdowns and a pair of fourth-quarter interceptions.

He has completed 240-of-404 passes for 2,598 yards in 12 games overall this season, with 15 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.

Chris Weinke has struggled while filling in for Delhomme, completing just 56- of-96 passes for 625 yards in three games, throwing two touchdowns and four interceptions. He has a 67.4 passer rating.


<< Terry undergoes successful surgery
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chelsea and England national team captain John Terry underwent successful surgery on a disc problem in his lower back according to a statement from the club Thursday. "Chelsea Football Club can con

<< Yao, James remain on top of All-Star voting
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Yao Ming of the Houston Rockets and Cleveland's LeBron James still lead their respective conferences in votes received after the second returns of the 2007 NBA All-Star balloting. Yao, who is

<< Hawks ink Medvedenko
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Hawks signed veteran free agent forward/center Slava Medvedenko on Thursday. Per team policy, financial terms were not disclosed. Medvedenko spent the past six years with the Los Angeles

<< Villarreal captures young talent from South America
Madrid, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Villarreal made its first signing of the winter break, introducing Chilean international striker Matias Fernandez from Colo Colo for an undisclosed transfer fee. The 20-year-old will not official

<< Report: Zito picks Giants
San Francisco, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Arguably the best free agent pitcher available this offseason, former Oakland ace Barry Zito has reportedly agreed to a deal with the San Francisco Giants. Numerous media outlets reported the deal

New England Revolution >>
Re-signed defender Joe Franchino and forward Pat Noonan.

How good is Gilbert Arenas? >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - All-Star guard Gilbert Arenas is playing like an MVP this season for the Washington Wizards. He has stepped up his game and belongs in the same sentence with the elite players in the NBA. Arenas, who led the Wizard

Ronaldinho opens school; Edmilson begins foundation >>
Porto Allegre, Brazil (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Five days after news that Ronaldinho would become a Spanish citizen early next year, the Brazil and FC Barcelona star showed the pride he has in his roots, as he announced plans to open a soccer

Noonan and Franchino staying with Revs >>
Foxborough, MA. (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - U.S. National Team forward Pat Noonan re- signed with the New England Revolution on Thursday. The 26-year-old has spent his entire Major League Soccer career in Foxborough after being drafted by the Rev

Pirates staying in Bradenton >>
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The city of Bradenton agreed Thursday to a new 30-year lease that will keep the Pittsburgh Pirates in town through the year 2038. The lease takes effect on February 1, 2008 following the completi

College Football Betting Tips From a Pro

While the NFL is the sport wagered on the heaviest, college football betting lines has become more and more popular as people realize it’s a game that can be beat. The NCAA football season gets longer each year with the addition of numerous bowl games and with that comes more opportunities for more money in your pocket, if handled correctly.

Betting on college football is not the same as with the NFL, so make sure you separate the two. Because of the vast number of teams, the parity between college football programs is slight and thus, you are going to see some high numbers in the NCAA. Teams favored by more than 40 points are not uncommon especially early in the season when teams playing their non-conference schedules.

The best advice when trying to tackle these enormous spreads and is to just stay away. A team that is favored by 40 points is favored by that many for a reason while teams getting 40 points are bad enough that they shouldn’t be touched. Set yourself a spread limit. Getting rid of these games will cut down on the number of contests that you need to handicap while staying away from backdoor or front-door covers.

What is a backdoor and front-door cover you ask? A backdoor cover is a team that is getting beat by more than the spread, but scores late to get within that number thus covering the spread. A front-door cover is just the opposite where the favorite scores late and covers the number they are favored by.

These front-door and backdoor covers are common when second and third string players enter games in college football and it can be the worst nightmare for some bettors. These players can also be your best friend, but ask any bettor and he will give you more instances on losing in this situation than winning. It just seems to work out that way even though everything evens out in the end.

College football betting has some of the softest lines of any sport and it’s being able to find these lines that will make you a successful college football handicapper. The NFL and NBA have the tightest lines around and while those sports can be beat by looking at situations and systems, college football doesn’t quite work that way. It’s much more manual, but when done correctly, it’s much more gratifying as well.

Getting into the nuts and bolts of college football means looking at the many stats in order to beat the number. As opposed to pro football, college football is less dependent on situations and angles and more on certain statistics. Rushing offense and defense, pass efficiency offense and defense and turnover margins are huge. These are vital in the NFL, but even more so when it comes to college football.

Being able to run the ball in college football has always been a key factor in the overall success of a team. The same adage also goes for teams who have the ability to stop the run. Putting these two factors together can produce some positive results in a team’s record both straight up and against the spread. These numbers show huge differences in teams and the spread may not take those into effect, which is where the value comes into play.

Passing yardage numbers both for and against can be a misinterpreted statistic. However, pass efficiency has always been one of the best ways to look at a teams’ passing game ability both offensively and defensively. But is it really a true indication of how they perform? I wouldn’t say so since they are raw passing numbers with nothing else taken into consideration.

I use pass efficiency ratings when doing my handicapping but I adjust my numbers based on a number of factors including power ratings, strength of schedules, personnel and injuries. This gives a much better picture of a team’s ability to pass effectively and also being able to defend the pass. Tweaking pass efficiency stats instead of raw passing yards is the key.

Turnovers are the single most frustrating, and at times the most gratifying, aspect of a college football lines, mostly because they are so unpredictable. They are part of the game and most of the time nothing can be done to control them. However, turnovers are contagious and they can carry over from game to game and season to season.

It’s important to know how to forecast these unforeseen events and how to use them to your advantage. You can find ways to give yourself an edge by looking at past histories of teams and coaches and how they have fared in turnover wars in the past. Instead of turnovers hurting you at the wrong times, find ways to use them to your advantage.

As you can see, college football handicapping is very labor intensive and isn’t just based on where teams are ranked in the AP and coaches polls. Experience, coaching and match-ups are all important since unlike the NFL, college teams turn over much more often with new personnel at most positions every single year. Keeping current on this information is vital.

Betting NCAA football can be lucrative if done correctly, but more importantly, it’s just plain enjoyable because it can be beat. College football is one of the best sports to watch with some of the best rivalries taking place in all of sports. The only downfall is that a championship isn’t decided on the field but on a computer-based system that is the Bowl Championship Series. That will change someday and we will all be better off for it.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your NCAA college football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.

MySportsbook.com Posts Heisman Trophy Odds

With 3,919 passing yards, 32 touchdowns and a mere seven interceptions last season, combined with a powerful South Bend Heisman legacy, odds makers at MySportsbook.com have given Notre Dame senior quarterback Brady Quinn the best Heisman Trophy odds at 5-2.

Quinn isn’t the only big man on campus this season.  Oklahoma junior running back and 2004 Heisman runner-up Adrian Peterson, listed at 7-2, rushed for a combined 3,033 yards in his first two years as a college player and will give Quinn a run for his money. 

This online sportsbook has also listed Troy Smith, Ohio State senior quarterback, as another strong favorite to win the 72nd Heisman Trophy.  A 7-1 bet, Smith threw for 2,282 yards last season and also led the Buckeyes to a convincing 34-20 victory over Quinn and the Fighting Irish in last season’s Fiesta Bowl.

Current betting odds Heisman trophy are:

Brady Quinn (QB, Notre Dame)
Adrian Peterson (RB, Oklahoma)
Troy Smith (QB, Ohio State)
Michael Bush (RB, Louisville)
Steve Slaton (RB, West Virginia)
Brian Brohm (QB, Louisville)
Chris Leak (QB, Florida)
Mike Hart (RB, Michigan)
Ted Ginn (WR, Ohio State)
Darius Walker (RB, Notre Dame)
Drew Tate (QB, Iowa)
Marshawn Lynch (RB, Cal)
Kenny Irons (RB, Auburn)
Chad Henne (QB, Michigan)
Kyle Wright (QB, Miami)
Drew Stanton (QB, Michigan State)
Kenneth Darby (RB, Alabama)
JaMarcus Russell (QB, LSU)
Drew Weatherford (QB, Florida State)
Blake Mitchell (QB, South Carolina)
Reggie Ball (QB, Georgia Tech)
5-2
7-2
7-1
10-1
10-1
12-1
12-1
18-1
18-1
20-1
30-1
35-1
35-1
40-1
50-1
50-1
60-1
60-1
60-1
60-1
60-1

For complete NCAA Football odds visit MySportsbook.com.