Sunday Morning QB

By Tom Hanson
WagerWeb.com Contributing Writer

The luck of the Irish is alive and well.

It wasn't exactly a sequel of the "Game of the Century" -- the 10-10 tie between No. 1 Notre Dame and No. 2 Notre Dame 40 years ago -- as the No. 12 Irish were supposed to beat unranked Michigan State on the road Saturday. But how Notre Dame rallied to seal the victory will be remembered for sometime. Call it the "Comeback of the Year."

Notre Dame, a WagerWeb.com 2 1/2 point favorite, trailed 31-14 after halftime. At the end of three quarters, the Irish were behind 37-21.

But Notre Dame head coach Charlie Weis remained cool. He didn't get upset when the Irish missed an extra point that would have put them within a field goal of tying. He didn't panic and waste all of his timeouts after the Irish moved within four with four minutes remaining.

It was as if Weis knew Irish cornerback Terrail Lambert was going to pick off a Drew Stanton pass and return it 19 yards for the game-winning touchdown. If was if Weis knew Michigan State was going to be its own worst enemy. What were the Spartans thinking throwing into triple coverage on third down, deep in their own territory, late in the game?

Michigan State head coach John L. Smith didn't think his team threw enough in the fourth quarter.

"Well, I thought we got conservative," Smith said. "But I don't know how comfortable Drew felt at that time, and after going through that ... Yeah, we got conservative. We probably should have come back and started to throw it earlier because (the rain) had let up a little bit."

It became the best comeback in Notre Dame history since the 1979 Cotton Bowl when Notre Dame trailed Houston 31-12 heading into the fourth quarter. In that one, Joe Montana threw the game-winning TD to Kris Haines as time expired. That game is known in South Bend "The Chicken Soup Game."

This win might be dubbed "The $8 Million Dollar Comeback." By improving its record to 3-1, Notre Dame stays alive for an at-large bid for a BCS bowl game.

Irish QB Brady Quinn reminded everyone of Montana on Saturday in East Lansing. After getting off to a shaky 2-of-8 first quarter, Quinn finished with five TD passes and 319 yards passing.

Quinn may have played himself right back into the Heisman Trophy race.

"When we went in at halftime, I said if we don't play 30 minutes of complete football we don't have a chance," Weis told the ABC sideline reporter after the game. "These kids have a lot of heart."

COMEBACK II: The Georgia Bulldogs started one freshman quarterback and turned to another one to lead them to a dramatic fourth-quarter comeback.

The ninth-ranked Bulldogs didn't come close to covering the WagerWeb.com -27 line. But at least they remained undefeated with a 14-13 win over Colorado.

Georgia trailed 13-0 heading into the fourth quarter. In comes Joe Cox for freshman Matthew Stafford, who struggled to the tune of 8-for-16 passing and 76 yards against a winless Colorado team.

Up for the challenge, Cox completed 10-of-13 passes for 153 yards.

Looks as if Georgia found a new starting QB. Bulldogs head coach Mark Richt wasn't too quick to make that announcement.

"We'll look at the film and try to be real certain about what happened," said Richt, dancing around the issue. "I imagine there'll be some computers blowing up with people hitting the Internet, speculating about who will play quarterback."

As for the Bulldogs barely beating a struggling Colorado team, Richt considers that the nature of a long season.

"You just know it's gonna happen," Richt said. "I don't care who you're playing, you're going to have a game where you're in trouble and you have to suck it up and you've got to get your guts checked and find out what you're about."

OUT OF LUCK: After winning back-to-back double-overtime thrillers, No. 20 Boston College found itself on the other end of a fantastic finish.

N.C. State sophomore QB Daniel Evans, making his first career start, engineered a fourth quarter 72-yard drive to propel the Wolfpack to 17-15 win over the Eagles, who were 7-point WagerWeb.com favorites.

With eight seconds remaining, Evans found John Dunlap for a 34-yard TD.

Boston College could only watch as its magic ran out.

"We've been living close to the edge," Boston College head coach Tom O'Brien said, "but it caught up to us. Once again, we had our chances but we didn't finish the game offensively or defensively."

Evans, the son of former Wolfpack quarterback great Johnny Evans, may have helped saved Coach Chuck Amato's job. N.C. State evened its record to 2-2 with the improbable victory.

"They never stopped believing," Amato said of his team and not about whether he'll keep his job.

HEISMAN LEADER: Oklahoma running back Adrian Peterson remains my leader to win the Heisman Trophy. Peterson only ran for 128 yards in the Sooners' 59-0 blowout of Middle Tennessee State. But Peterson scored three touchdowns and only played in one series in the second half.

Peterson and the Sooners now have an off week before facing Texas on Oct. 7. This will be a make-or-break game for Oklahoma and Peterson's Heisman hopes.

West Virginia running back Steve Slaton may have fallen off the pace with a dismal performance against the East Carolina Pirates. Slaton was held under 100 yards (80) for the first time this season. Slaton did have five catches for 110 yards and a touchdown.

MISSING IN ACTION: Joe Paterno, Penn State's 79-year-old head coach, had to leave the field in the first half of the Nittany Lions' matchup against No.1 Ohio State.

Paterno said he was battling a flu bug and did return until the fourth quarter.

When reporters asked about his illness, Paterno appeared to be his old self.

"Guys, can we talk about the game?" Paterno said of the loss to Ohio State. "Are you guys writing a medical journal? I always thought if I could read the Sunday paper after a loss, I didn't need a doctor. I'll see if I can read tomorrow's paper."

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NCAA Coaching Changes

By Jim Johnson
WagerWeb.com Contributing Writer

With the usual flurry of head coaching changes following the end of the 2005-06 college basketball season, the odds are that you probably missed a few of them. Here are the coaches who I think will have the biggest impact on the upcoming college hoops season.

Bob Huggins, Kansas State: Huggy Bear has already achieved his first goal -- his arrival in Manhattan has made K-State basketball relevant again. Season ticket sales are up more than 3,000 from last year, and the Wildcats are scheduled to make at least four national television appearances this season, more than during the past three years combined. The rumors also persist that prep star O. J. Mayo will spend his one year of college ball playing for Huggins. As for this season, Huggins does have some talent to work with. All five starters return from a team that went 15-13 and won at Kansas if suspended forward Carter Martin (18.0 ppg last year) is restored to the roster. Bet on that happening and keep an eye on freshman Jason Bennett, a 7-foot-3, 265-pound mountain who should help the Wildcats reach new heights, both literally and figuratively.

Mike Anderson, Missouri: As if Huggins’ arrival wasn’t going to shake up the Big 12 enough, Anderson rolls in from UAB bringing his version of former Arkansas coach Nolan Richardson’s “40 Minutes of Hell.� The Tigers stumbled to a 12-16 record last season and have missed the NCAA Tournament three years running. Anderson is being counted on to clean up the mess Quinn Snyder left behind, and the frantic style of play he coaches should do the trick. No player is more excited about picking up the pace than point guard Jason Horton, who should be more comfortable playing on the run than he was walking through Snyder’s half-court offense. With no returning double-digit scorer or stud incoming recruit, the Tigers will need to generate much of their offense with their defense. They might not win a lot of games this season, but opponents won’t enjoy playing them.

Mike Davis, UAB: It’s not often that a mid-major school loses an up-and-coming coach and replaces him with a higher-profile candidate, but that’s exactly what happened when UAB replaced Anderson with Davis, the former Indiana coach. Davis was never embraced by Hoosier fans (and was more than happy to whine about it), but the welcome mat has been rolled out for him as he returns to his home state. He won’t be the only unfamiliar face on the Blazers' sideline this year, however. Seven seniors from last year’s squad are gone, but Davis has already lined up some talented replacements. He’ll lean on guard Andre White, an incoming junior college star who knocked down 44.8% of his three-point shots last season, and a freshman class with three in-state players. UAB won’t come close to matching its 24-7 record from last year, but unlike the fans in Bloomington, the ones in Birmingham will patiently await better days to come. They likely won’t have to wait too long for them. Davis’ recruiting acumen will have the Blazers climbing quickly up the ladder in the watered-down Conference USA.

Kelvin Sampson, Indiana: Despite a lukewarm reception from the Hoosier faithful and recruiting restrictions carried over from penalties incurred at Oklahoma, Sampson should get off to a good start at Indiana. The Hoosiers lost their top three scorers but bring back experience, depth, and a potential star if forward D. J. White (2004-05 Big Ten Freshman of the Year) can stay healthy. Sampson, as he did so often with the Sooners, dipped into the junior college ranks to add forwards Lance Stemler (a JuCo All-American last year) and Mike White. This should give Indiana a strong frontcourt, and the Hoosiers have a promising point guard in junior Earl Calloway, who finished last year strong. Sampson has won at least 20 games the last nine seasons and has a good chance of stretching that streak to 10.

Bobby Cremins, College of Charleston: You’ve got to love the irony of Cremins ending his retirement from coaching to step into the breech here following Gregg Marshall’s return to Winthrop University after only one day as the Cougars’ coach. Cremins did the same thing himself back in 1993 when he spurned his alma mater of South Carolina and returned to his job at Georgia Tech. Cremins, who hasn’t coached since stepping down from Tech in 2000, has already brought life back into the C of C program. The school expects to sell out its season tickets for the first time this decade. He’ll look to senior guard Dontaye Draper (18.5 ppg last year) and 2005-06 Southern Conference Freshman of the Year Jermaine Johnson to be the anchors of a squad that could be the best team in the South Division of the conference. Cremins has a chance to return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1996.

Other coaching moves of interest: Matt Doherty to SMU, Jeff Capel to Oklahoma, Sidney Lowe to NC State, Fran Dunphy to Temple, Mick Cronin to Cincinnati, and Bobby Gonzalez to Seton Hall.

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NHL Preview: Flames

By Rich Carlson
WagerWeb.com Contributing Writer

2005 record: 46-25-11 (103 points)

2005 offense rank: 28th (2.63 goals per game)

2005 defense rank: 1st (2.35 goals allowed per game)

Key Additions: LW Jeff Friesen, D Andrei Zyuzin, LW Alex Tanguay, LW Eric Nystrom, D Mark Giordano, G Jamie McLennan

Key Losses: G Brian Boucher, RW Shean Donovan, D Cale Hulse, C Mike Leclerc, D Jordan Leopold, D Brian Marchment, LW Chris Simon

Overview: How does a team that only scored 2.63 goals per contest (28th out of 30 NHL teams) win the Northwest Division with 103 points? Simple – you only allow 2.35 goals per game, which is exactly what the Calgary Flames did in 2005. Calgary’s lone offensive weapon in 2005 was Jarome Iginla, who led the team with 35 goals and 67 points. To help take some of the pressure off Iginla, Calgary signed Tanguay away from Colorado. Tanguay is a legitimate goal scorer who will immediately benefit the Flames' attack. Among the big disappointments on offense were veterans Tony Amonte (14 goals) and Daymond Langkow (25 goals). The Flames need Amonte and Langkow to step up their offensive output. Head coach Jim Playfair preaches defense first, and that philosophy carried the Flames to their first division title in 11 years. Robyn Regehr and Rhett Warrener are strong, physical defensemen who control the blue line, while Dion Phaneuf became only the third rookie defenseman in NHL history to score 20 goals in a season. G Miikka Kiprusoff was outstanding in 2005, winning the Jennings and Vezina trophies after recording 42 wins and a league-leading 2.07 goals-against average. One hole the Flames were looking to fill was a dependable backup goalie, and they accomplished that by signing veteran Jamie McLennan in the offseason.

WagerWeb.com Stanley'>http://www.wagerweb.com/sportsbook/betting-odds.cfm">Stanley Cup

Players to Watch: Even though Langkow scored 25 goals last season, he didn’t produce as much as the Flames had hoped, and the pressure will be on him to score more. D Roman Hamrlik was a big disappointment in 2005, fighting injuries and not producing on the power play when he was healthy. D Phaneuf needs to prove that his 20-goal season was not a fluke.

Outlook: The Flames succeeded last season on the basis of their defense, and their defense will once again determine how successful they are. Adding Tanguay gives the Flames another top-flight goal scorer, but the offense still has a long ways to go. The Flames will need to win a lot of 1-0 and 2-1 games, as they did last year, and that is tough to do. However, with Kiprusoff in net, and the addition of Tanguay to the offense, many sportsbooks are projecting another Northwest Division title for the Flames, and possibly a deep run into the playoffs.

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NHL Preview: Flames

By Rich Carlson
WagerWeb.com Contributing Writer

2005 record: 46-25-11 (103 points)

2005 offense rank: 28th (2.63 goals per game)

2005 defense rank: 1st (2.35 goals allowed per game)

Key Additions: LW Jeff Friesen, D Andrei Zyuzin, LW Alex Tanguay, LW Eric Nystrom, D Mark Giordano, G Jamie McLennan

Key Losses: G Brian Boucher, RW Shean Donovan, D Cale Hulse, C Mike Leclerc, D Jordan Leopold, D Brian Marchment, LW Chris Simon

Overview: How does a team that only scored 2.63 goals per contest (28th out of 30 NHL teams) win the Northwest Division with 103 points? Simple – you only allow 2.35 goals per game, which is exactly what the Calgary Flames did in 2005. Calgary’s lone offensive weapon in 2005 was Jarome Iginla, who led the team with 35 goals and 67 points. To help take some of the pressure off Iginla, Calgary signed Tanguay away from Colorado. Tanguay is a legitimate goal scorer who will immediately benefit the Flames' attack. Among the big disappointments on offense were veterans Tony Amonte (14 goals) and Daymond Langkow (25 goals). The Flames need Amonte and Langkow to step up their offensive output. Head coach Jim Playfair preaches defense first, and that philosophy carried the Flames to their first division title in 11 years. Robyn Regehr and Rhett Warrener are strong, physical defensemen who control the blue line, while Dion Phaneuf became only the third rookie defenseman in NHL history to score 20 goals in a season. G Miikka Kiprusoff was outstanding in 2005, winning the Jennings and Vezina trophies after recording 42 wins and a league-leading 2.07 goals-against average. One hole the Flames were looking to fill was a dependable backup goalie, and they accomplished that by signing veteran Jamie McLennan in the offseason.

WagerWeb.com Stanley'>http://www.wagerweb.com/sportsbook/betting-odds.cfm">Stanley Cup

Players to Watch: Even though Langkow scored 25 goals last season, he didn’t produce as much as the Flames had hoped, and the pressure will be on him to score more. D Roman Hamrlik was a big disappointment in 2005, fighting injuries and not producing on the power play when he was healthy. D Phaneuf needs to prove that his 20-goal season was not a fluke.

Outlook: The Flames succeeded last season on the basis of their defense, and their defense will once again determine how successful they are. Adding Tanguay gives the Flames another top-flight goal scorer, but the offense still has a long ways to go. The Flames will need to win a lot of 1-0 and 2-1 games, as they did last year, and that is tough to do. However, with Kiprusoff in net, and the addition of Tanguay to the offense, many sportsbooks are projecting another Northwest Division title for the Flames, and possibly a deep run into the playoffs.

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Trouble For Yanks, A's?

Trouble For Yanks, A's?

By Tom Brew
WagerWeb.com Contributing Writer

Making the playoffs isn’t all about popping champagne corks and hooting and hollering. For a couple of American League teams – the New York Yankees and Oakland A’s – it’s all about medical reports and worries about a couple of their pitchers.

The Yankees, who have clinched the AL East and are fighting for home-field advantage in the AL, had some good news Monday with an easy 16-1 win over the Devil Rays.

But the bad news was really bad. Really, really bad.

Randy Johnson was scratched from his final regular season start, scheduled for Thursday, because of back spasms. Johnson said he’s been battling the back problem for his past three starts.

Yankees manager Joe Torre probably will now have to go with Chien-Ming Wang in Game 1 of the AL Division Series and slide Mike Mussina into the second spot. Certainly, the Yankees can live with that, because Wang has been great at Yankee Stadium all year and this would confirm that both of his starts (if necessary) would be at home.

But what if Johnson, a 17-game winner, isn’t available for Game 3? That could really be a mess for the Yankees, especially if they hit the road tied or, God forbid, down 0-2 to either the Tigers or Twins.

Torre isn’t overly concerned about Johnson, and views the missed start as more of a precaution. But if Johnson can’t go in the playoffs and the Yanks are forced to rely on an erratic Cory Lidle, that might be enough to shake that favorite tag off New York.

"It's a situation now that gives me the flexibility to miss a regular-season start that has no bearing on me statistically or the team, really," said Johnson, who is 17-11 but sports a 5.00 ERA in 33 starts. In his last three outings, he has given up 24 hits and 15 earned runs in 17 2/3 innings (7.64 ERA).

Johnson has always claimed that he prefers to stay on a rigid schedule of four days' rest between starts. But if he pitches Game 3 on Oct. 6, he will be working on 12 days of rest.

"I would rather have 12 days rest and feel good than go out there on my regular start and feel the way I do," he said. "I have back spasms. I am not injured."

OAKLAND’S STREET STRUGGLING
Because they had won 15 games in a row against the Seattle Mariners this year, the Oakland A’s were all set to inch closer to clinching the AL West title Monday night, and when they opened a six-run lead early, a win seemed to be a foregone conclusion.

The A's held a three-run lead in the bottom of the ninth, but closer Huston Street gave up four hits in a row to start the inning, and Greg Dobbs tied the game with a two-out base hit to left.

In the 10th, Willie Bloomquist came up with two outs and two on and cracked a 2-2 pitch to left center to score Ichiro Suzuki and give the Mariners an improbable 10-9 victory to snap their stumbles against the A's.

Meanwhile, for Oakland, the specter of spectacular collapses past began to emerge: the 1964 Phillies, the 1978 Red Sox. The A's lead by five games with six to play.

It was Street's 10th blown save of the season, second-most in the league, and his second in as many appearances. He has allowed 11 runs in his past 21 innings of work.

The A’s have to be concerned about Street, who missed three weeks earlier this month with an elbow injury. He hasn’t been all that effective since he returned, and he has been roughed up two outings in a row now.

The A’s lead the Angels by five games with six to go, so they’d like to get this thing wrapped up before starting a four-game series with the Angels this weekend. There’s no sense in giving them extra hope.

But the A’s need Street to do that. And they’ll definitely need him in the playoffs if they plan on sticking around more than a few days. For the A’s to succeed, it’s usually done by winning close, low-scoring games.

That won’t be happening if your closer is getting shelled every night.

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NHL Preview: Avalanche

NHL Preview: Avalanche

2005 record: 43-30-9 (95 points)

2005 offense rank: 4th (3.41 goals per game)

2005 defense rank: T-14th (3.06 goals allowed per game)

Key Additions: D Jordan Leopold, C Tyler Arnason, RW Mark Rycroft, LW Wojtek Wolski, D Ken Klee

Key Losses: D Rob Blake, LW Alex Tanguay, D Bob Boughner, RW Dan Hinote

Overview: Colorado surprised many NHL fans by reaching the second round of the playoffs in 2005, but that excitement was tempered during the offseason when defensive mainstay Rob Blake and second-leading scorer Alex Tanguay left via free agency. Although losing Tanguay’s scoring will hurt the Avalanche offense, Colorado has five other players who scored 20 goals or more last season, including Marek Svatos (32 goals), Milan Hejduk (24 goals) and Andrew Brunette (24 goals). Colorado ranked 4th in the NHL last season in goals scored, and should continue to light the lamp on a frequent basis. Blake was Colorado’s best defenseman, and it will be up to Leopold and Patrice Brisebois to fill Blake’s shoes. Colorado’s lack of speed was exposed by Anaheim in the playoffs, and the aging Avalanche roster has many fans concerned – Joe Sakic is 37 and isn’t getting any younger, while C Pierre Turgeon, LW Brad May and Brisebois are all at least 35. Former Vezina and Hart Trophy winner Jose Theodore came to Colorado from Montreal in midseason, but was a disappointment in net. With an average defense in front of him, Theodore needs to play much better if the Avalanche are to have a successful 2006 campaign.

WagerWeb.com odds: +2200 to win the Stanley Cup

Players to Watch: Svatos scored 32 goals in 61 games before injuring his shoulder, and the Avalanche need his goal-scoring to replace the departed Tanguay. Arnason needs to step up and prove he can be the team’s No. 2 center. Sakic led the team with 32 goals and 55 assists, and must continue to produce at age 37, which isn’t a guarantee.

Outlook: Colorado’s offense should be able to make up for the loss of Tanguay, but the defense may not be able to survive losing Blake. The Avalanche enter the season without a true No. 1 defenseman, and somebody needs to step into that role in a hurry. With a young, inexperienced defense in front of him, Theodore needs to return to his Vezina Trophy-winning form. With Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver in their division, the odds don’t favor Colorado challenging for the division title, and many sportsbooks have projected the Avalanche to finish in the middle of the pack

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Waiver Wire Week 4

Waiver Wire Week 4

By Chris Goudey
WagerWeb.com Contributing Writer

After Weeks 1 and 2, where there were many players who seemingly came out of nowhere to produce great fantasy numbers, Week 3 in the NFL didn’t give us many surprises. This should be a relatively quiet week on your waiver wire, except for two players who everyone will rush to get. Let’s break them down game by game and see what’s out there for you to pick up:

Tennessee-Miami
What an ugly game this was. Miami QB Daunte Culpepper sure doesn’t look like the Culpepper we used to know in Minnesota. This was one of his best matchups of the year, and he couldn’t even throw a TD pass. For the Titans, starting RB Chris Brown sat out and Travis Henry took his place. Henry wasn’t great however, rushing for just 60 yards. If Brown is out for a significant period, then Henry would be worth owning, but you’ll need to pay attention to the injury reports and see how that plays out. Tennessee TE Bo Sciafe had his second strong week in a row and could be picked up as a bye-week fill-in.

Jacksonville-Indianapolis
Indianapolis had to count on its defense in this one, as the Jags’ defense did a real nice job of slowing down Peyton Manning and friends. The only significant player in this one for our purposes was Jacksonville RB Maurice Jones-Drew. It looks like Jones-Drew will be sharing the RB duties with Fred Taylor going forward, as he put up a very solid 135 total yards and scored a TD on a reception. If you have Fred Taylor, you should have already had Jones-Drew, but if not, make sure he’s your first acquisition this week.

Washington-Houston
‘Skins fans must be relieved this week, as the team finally looked like it was supposed to look this year. QB Mark Brunell set an NFL record for consecutive completions at the start of the game, so now the question is which Brunell are we going to see this year -- this guy or the one who threw for under 100 yards in Week 2? I wouldn’t rush out to pick Brunell up, but you could do worse as a backup. RB Clinton Portis returned for this one and looked like the Portis of old, with 2 TDs. He didn’t have a full workload this game, as backup Ladell Betts came in and got the same amount of carries. Betts actually looked better than Portis, with 124 yards and a TD. If you own Portis you should already have Betts, but if not, like Jones-Drew, make sure he’s your first pickup this week. For the Texans, it looks like Ron Dayne is going to be their starting RB, as he had 14 carries to Sam Gado’s one. If you own Wali Lundy, it’s time to cut bait with him as he didn’t have a single carry. Dayne could do well in this system, so if you need RB depth go ahead and pick him up. QB David Carr had another solid week and is really starting to live up to what people thought he’d be. He’s a great guy to get for a bye-week fill-in.

Green Bay-Detroit
This game went as expected – an aerial shootout with almost no defense. At QB, Brett Favre and Jon Kitna were great and both threw for over 340 yards and at least 2 TDs. I wouldn’t start either guy on a weekly basis but they will be fine with a good matchup. At RB, Detroit’s Kevin Jones finally had a good game, so if someone got frustrated and dropped him, he’s worth picking back up. Hopefully you listened to my advice last week and/or in the pre-season and picked up Pack WR Greg Jennings. He showed he’s a true deep threat with 101 yards and a TD on only 3 catches. With the Pack likely to be behind most of the year, Jennings should remain a viable target as they pass to catch up. Most of Detroit’s receiving damage came from their stud WR, Roy Williams. Mike Furrey, the Lions' 2nd WR, only had an OK game, so he’s not worth picking up yet.

N.Y. Jets-Buffalo
The Jets are playing very well so far this year under new coach Eric Mangini and have surprised many pundits, including me, who thought they’d be awful. Anyway, they had no real fantasy surprises this week. QB Chad Pennington is probably gone off your waiver wire now after throwing for over 300 yards each of the first two weeks, and WRs Laveranues Coles and Jerricho Cotchery should be gone as well. For Buffalo, QB J.P. Losman had a nice game yardage-wise with 328, and WR Lee Evans finally got off the schneid and put up 107 yards. Evans is another guy who might have been dropped after a horrid Weeks 1 and 2, so if he’s out there snap him up immediately as he’s a top-20 WR. The Bills’ 2nd-year WR Roscoe Parrish had a career-best 101 yards and a TD, but I’d like to see him do it again before I picked him up. The Bills are a running team at heart, and other than Evans I don’t think any of their WRs are viable yet.

Cincinnati-Pittsburgh
The only player in this game that had should be available and had fantasy ramifications is Cincy WR Chris Henry. Even with the return of 2nd WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Henry had 5 catches and 2 TDs, so it looks like the Bengals might actually have 3 WRs worth playing on a weekly basis in TJ, Henry, and of course Chad Johnson. The entire Steeler offense was the running of Willie Parker, but of course he’s gone in your league.

Carolina-Tampa Bay
Not much fantasy relevance to report in this game, other than the return of stud WR Steve Smith. Smith was his old self, with 117 yards, and made Jake Delhomme a weekly starter again. Delhomme went for 272 yards and a TD and he even made Keyshawn look good! The only news on the Tampa side is the injury/spleen removal of QB Chris Simms. Simms had been awful all year so he was likely on your waiver wire, but he’ll be out for likely the season now. Rookie Bruce Gradkowski takes over the starting role, and if you want to win a fantasy league, you shouldn’t be starting a rookie QB. Tampa TE Alex Smith looked good, with 4 catches for 72 yards, so he could be a good bye-week guy for you.

Chicago-Minnesota
I’m sure someone in your league jumped on the Rex Grossman train last week, so he’s probably gone now but if not and you need a QB, he’s the one to get. Everyone else in this game did about as expected, except Vikings WR Travis Taylor did better than he has all year. He could be picked up as WR depth but isn’t worth starting yet, as he’s most likely the #2 WR now behind Troy Williamson.

Baltimore-Cleveland
If you haven’t listened to me by now and picked up Browns WR Braylon Edwards, then it’s your loss. Against one of the top defenses in the game, all Edwards did was go for 116 yards and a TD. He’ll definitely be gone after this week so get him now! QB Charlie Frye actually had a great game and is almost looking like a decent play on a bye week. For the Ravens, it was more of the same on offense: Steve McNair, Jamal Lewis and Derrick Mason. 2nd WR Mark Clayton had a nice game with 8 catches for 74 yards, so he could be a decent bye-week guy to target as well.

N.Y. Giants-Seattle
I don’t know why the Giants don’t just play no-huddle the whole game. The last two weeks QB Eli Manning has gone nuts as soon as they started playing it and he looks so comfortable. By now you’ve probably heard that the Madden curse has struck again and RB Shaun Alexander is out indefinitely with a broken foot. If you’re a smart Alexander owner, you already have Maurice Morris as his backup, but if not, the race to the waiver wire begins ... NOW! Morris will be the target of every player in your league so make sure you get him first. For Seattle, the 4-headed WR law-firm tandem of Jackson, Engram, Burleson, and Branch looked very strong. As I said last week, it’s going to be hard to get a weekly play out of that group other than Darrell Jackson. Now that Alexander is out they will probably throw more, so just see who breaks out and target him.

Philadelphia-San Francisco
This was probably the best game to watch from a fantasy perspective, unless you were a Donte’ Stallworth owner. The Eagles WR pulled up lame in warm-ups and sat this one out, frustrating owners across the land and leaving many a goose-egg on the weekly box score. This was good news, however, for his running-mate, Reggie Brown, as he caught a 50-yard flea-flicker pass on the first play and just kept it up from there. Brown ended up with 106 yards, and if Stallworth stays out of the lineup that will continue. The rest of QB Donovan McNabb’s passes were spread out evenly. For the 49ers, I’m now aboard the Alex Smith train. Smith faced a heavy pass rush from the Eagles all day and was very impressive, throwing for 293 yards, a TD, and more important, NO interceptions. He also rushed for 39 yards, looked very poised in the pocket and spread the ball around to 7 different receivers. Fantasy star RB Frank Gore was only decent in this game and then left with bruised ribs in the 4th quarter. It looks like Gore will play this week, so keep him in the lineup. The RB to target this week is Gore’s new backup, Michael Robinson. Robinson, a rookie who was converted from QB, ran very hard and had 2 goal-line TDs in Gore’s absence. Robinson looked really strong and Gore has been very injury-prone previously, so should he go out, Robinson should step in and do well. At TE for the Niners, their rookie stud Vernon Davis has a broken leg and will be out at least 4 weeks. Their TE from previous seasons, Eric Johnson, stepped in and put up 82 yards and a TD against the Eagles, so he’s someone to target as a bye-week guy and/or a starter now that Smith is turning into a reliable QB.

St. Louis-Arizona
Here is where the other race to the waiver wire will take place. Rumors are rampant that Arizona coach Dennis Green is about to make a QB switch and put hotshot rookie Matt Leinart in the lineup ahead of Kurt Warner. If ever a rookie QB was going to do well, Leinart would be the guy to do it. He has all-world WRs in Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin and a RB to take pressure off him in Edgerrin James. Leinart is definitely worth picking up but don’t be surprised if he struggles. Ben Roethlisberger is the only rookie QB in recent memory to do well and part of the reason is because he was only asked to throw a handful of times per game. Leinart will be asked to do much more than that. He definitely has the pedigree to do well, but if you do get him I wouldn’t put him in the lineup just yet. Other than this news there was nothing of relevance as far as the waiver wire is concerned from this game.

Denver-New England
For whatever reason, Denver just handles the Patriots with ease almost every time they play. Jake Plummer looked very good and cemented his starting role for now, as did RB Tatum Bell. WR Javon Walker did what the Broncos brought him in to do – be the home-run threat. The Patriot rush game was shut down by the Broncos, and Tom Brady ended up throwing the ball 55 times in an attempt to catch up. When the Pats picked up WR Doug Gabriel in the preseason, it was thought that he would immediately step in and become the #1 guy. It took 3 weeks but it now looks like Gabriel has assumed that role and should be picked up immediately. Brady will continue to spread the ball around amongst Gabriel, Troy Brown, Reche Caldwell, TE Ben Watson and all of his RBs, but Gabriel should be the guy he targets most often.

Atlanta-New Orleans
For all the hoopla surrounding the Saints’ return to the Superdome, this really was a pretty boring game. The Falcons couldn’t get their ground game going, and when that happens they are going to be hard-pressed to do anything offensively. Michael Vick has shown by now that he’s not a NFL-caliber passer and this game showed that when he has to throw, he struggles. The Saints played some strong defense, ran the ball well with Reggie Bush and Deuce McAllister, and WR Marques Colston continued his emergence as a top-shelf player. I’ve been telling you for 3 weeks now to pick up Colston and this is the last chance you’ll get. Hopefully you already either have him or can get him now.

Hopefully Week 4 will be a bit more exciting than Week 3 and we can get some more QBs and RBs to become waiver-wire pickups. There are always going to be some WRs you can pick up on a weekly basis, but when injuries in the backfield happen, that’s when the fun begins!

Horses to watch

Horses To Watch

Handicapper/racing writer Greg Melikov compiled this list of horses who should improve in their next outing.

BELMONT PARK

Bronxdale: Stumbled at start, bumped, dropped back to last, raced seventh more than 6 ½ lengths behind after a half-mile, came wide into stretch, made up more than 2 ½ lengths and lost by a head on Sept. 23.

CALDER

Pitch a Penny: Broke on top, raced fourth early, dropped back steadily to last on far turn more than 4 ½ lengths behind after six furlongs, angled out six wide for drive, rallied from sixth in stretch to make up more than 2 ¼ lengths and lost by three-quarters of a length at 1 1/16 miles on a good turf course Sept. 22.

HAWTHORNE

Legs Diamond: Squeezed back to last at break, rushed up to 10th 11 ½ lengths behind after a half-mile, rallied from sixth in stretch to make up more than 3 ¼ lengths and gained second by a length at six furlongs on Sept. 22; ran final quarter in 24 4/5.

LOUISIANA DOWNS

Third N Home: Raced eighth more than 11 ½ lengths behind after a half-mile, rallied along rail from fifth to make up nearly five lengths in stretch and lost by a nose and a half-length at a mile and 70 yards on a good surface Sept. 24.

PHILADELPHIA PARK

Love Comes First: Broke alertly, led early, taken back to second two lengths behind after a half-mile, dropped back to fourth on far turn, came again outside in stretch, made up nearly three lengths and lost by a neck at 7 ½ furlongs on the turf Sept. 23.

RETAMA PARK

Bay Hero: Broke a bit awkwardly, moved up inside, steadied, blocked from seven-sixteenths pole to three-sixteenths marker, angled in and lost by a neck and 1 ¼ lengths at seven furlongs on Sept. 20.

WOODBINE

Poachers Moon: Raced ninth more than 4 ½ lengths behind after a half-mile, closed four wide on the turn from fifth, made up more than 4 ¼ lengths in stretch and lost by a nose and a head at a mile and 70 yards on Sept. 24.

Money Player: Broke last, trailed by 11 ½ lengths after a half-mile, angled from rail to four wide on turn, made up more than 5 ¼ lengths in stretch and was nosed out at seven furlongs on Sept. 23.

sports betting

Gambling and the Law®:
New York 'Anti's' Blow It

N.Y. 'Anti's' Blow It

By I. Nelson Rose
WagerWeb.com Contributing Writer

The opponents of legal gambling, the "anti's," in New York were given a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to outlaw the forms of betting they hate most. They managed to get their case heard by the highest court in the state. And they blew it -- big-time.

Any decent gaming lawyer could have won their case in less than five minutes.

The two main legal issues were whether the state could enter into compacts to allow tribes to open casinos and whether tracks could get a decent share of the revenues of Video Lottery Terminals (VLTs). Many, if not all, of the state's racetracks would have to eventually close if they could not install gaming devices.

The anti's big mistake can be found in a footnote, number 4:

"... there is a conflict in the interpretation of IGRA -- whether a state must negotiate with tribes concerning all forms of Class III gaming when it allows any type of Class III gaming, or whether it must only negotiate for the specific games permitted in the state. We do not address this issue as the plaintiffs have challenged the authority to enter into tribal-state compacts in general, rather than the authority to negotiate for particular games."

Anyone who knows anything about Indian gaming knows:

1) Congress passed a statute called the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act ("IGRA");

2) IGRA divides all gaming into three classes; and

3) Tribes can offer Class III games only if that form of gambling is permitted in the state and there is a tribal-state compact.

Somehow, the lawyers for the anti's missed the point. They argued that the state did not have the authority to enter into compacts at all.

The anti's went on and on about the state's public policy against "commercial casinos." But the proper legal response is, "Who cares?"

The U.S. Supreme Court held that the only public policy issue on whether a tribe can operate a form of gaming is whether the state permits it for non-Indians. If a state allows charities to run bingo games, it shows that the state does not have a public policy against gambling in general and bingo in particular. And tribes can then open high-stakes commercial bingo halls.

The anti's based their entire case on the theory that the state does not have the power to enter into compacts. So, the only question is whether the state permits any form of Class III gaming.

Now, let's see: Does New York state law permit any form of Class III gambling? Is it possible the anti's did not know that New York has a state lottery, parimutuel betting on horse races and charity casino table games like roulette -- all Class III?

The amazing thing is that all the anti's had to do was ask the right question -- Does New York state permit slot machines? The answer is clearly, "No."

But this would have required conceding that tribes could have some forms of Class III gaming, including those casino table games.

The tracks were as lucky as the tribes.

Here's how the Court found video Keno to be a lottery, even though lotteries require "multiple participation:": "players compete against one another for prizes ... by choosing a series of keno numbers, colors or symbols from a finite pool in the hope that they, as opposed to other players, will have matched those colors, numbers or symbols later drawn ..."

It's clear that the justices never played keno.

New York judges know how much the state needs gaming revenue.

With a Court this much on the side of more gambling, the anti's might have lost anyway, even if they had known what they were doing.

© Copyright 2006. Professor I Nelson Rose is recognized as one of the world's leading authorities on gambling law. His latest books, Gaming Law: Cases and Materials and Internet Gaming Law, are available through his website, www.GamblingAndTheLaw.com

Sports Betting

NFL Football Handicapping
NFL Selections -
Last week I bounced back by going a perfect 4-for-4 on my picks. Baltimore, Indianapolis and San Diego all easily covered and, like I said would happen, Denver came nowhere covering the hefty spread versus Kansas City. This week I'm going with four visiting teams. Home-field advantage won't mean very much in these four games. Here are my four picks for Week 3: Chicago at Minnesota (+3)Both the Bears and Vikings are 2-0 but only one will be undefeated and in first place in the NFC North when the gun goes off on Sunday. It's not hard to figure out that it will be the Bears. Chicago has only allowed seven points in two games this season. That's not that surprising, but what is surprising is the fact that they've scored 60 points. Unless Rex Grossman gets hurt, and I'm crossing my fingers he doesn't, the Bears should have this one in the bag, easy. Take Chicago -3. Carolina at Tampa Bay (+3)The Panthers and Buccaneers are both winless, but at least Carolina has actually scored a touchdown this season. I see Carolina getting better a lot faster than Tampa Bay, especially if this is the week that Steve Smith finally returns. Tampa Bay has forgotten where the end zone is. Whether Smith is in the lineup or not, the Panthers should not have any trouble mauling the pathetic Bucs. Take Carolina -3. Baltimore at Cleveland (+6.5)The Ravens came though for me last week as an 11.5-point favorite, and I expect them to cover again versus the Browns. The Baltimore defense has been spectacular this season, allowing a league-low six points in two games. With Steve McNair at the helm, the Ravens' offense is finally firing on all cylinders. There's a reason the Browns are 0-2; they're not very good. They couldn't beat New Orleans and Cincinnati, and there's no way they'll beat Baltimore. Take Baltimore -6.5. Cincinnati at Pittsburgh (-2.5)This is the game Carson Palmer has been waiting for since being carted off the field in last year's playoffs. The Bengals will finally be able to show what they could have done versus Pittsburgh last season if Palmer was leading the offense. The Steelers got Ben Roethlisberger back last week, but it didn't mean much as their offense was shut out. Even if Big Ben gets back on track this week (and I really don't think he will), there's no way the Steelers will keep up with the Bengals on the scoreboard. Take Cincinnati +2.5. Season record:Straight Up: 6-1ATS: 5-2


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Sports Betting
Weekend Sports PreviewGolf's Ryder Cup takes center stage this weekend, with baseball's pennant races, the Chase for the Nextel Cup, and lots of gridiron action also worth your sporting attention. The United States will be looking to take the Ryder Cup away from Team Europe in Ireland this weekend, with the event teeing off on Friday with four foursome matches and four fourball matches. That schedule repeats on Saturday, with singles matches taking place on Sunday. Team Europe won the 2004 Ryder Cup by a score of 18.5 - 9.5 at Oakland Hills, and Vegas oddsmakers have them as a slight favorite this time as well. Back across the Atlantic, baseball's pennant races continue over the next few days. The New York Yankees will cruise into the postseason as the AL East champs, and they take on the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on the road this weekend. The Oakland Athletics play an important home set against the Los Angeles Angels - a strong result by the A's would knock their rival out of the AL West playoff picture once and for all. And in the AL Central the Tigers, Twins, and White Sox continue to jockey for position, with the Tigers in Kansas City, the Twins in Baltimore, and the fading ChiSox getting visited by Seattle.

Over in the National League, the New York Mets and the St. Louis Cardinals are sitting pretty in their respective divisions; they take on Houston and Washington, respectively, this weekend. Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres are still battling for the NL West title, with the Padres hosting Pittsburgh and the Dodgers hosting Arizona. Wild-Card contender Philadelphia plays a home series versus Florida. Fresh off a Monday night victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Jacksonville Jaguars will get another big test this weekend when they play a road game against Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts (-7). The Steelers (-2.5), meanwhile, will find themselves playing another tough opponent when the Cincinnati Bengals come to town. The Carolina Panthers (-3) and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will each be trying to pick up their first win when they meet in Florida on Sunday, while the Chicago Bears (-3) will be trying to go to 3-0 by topping the undefeated Vikings in Minnesota. Also on tap for Sunday afternoon are Tennessee at Miami (-11), the New York Jets at Buffalo (-5.5), Washington (-4) at Houston, Green Bay at Detroit (-6.5), Baltimore (-6.5) at Cleveland, St. Louis at Arizona (-4.5), the New York Giants at Seattle (-3.5), and Philadelphia (-6) at San Francisco. The Broncos battle the Patriots (-6.5) in New England Sunday night. In college action, the top-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes are matched up against the No. 24 Penn State Nittany Lions on Saturday, with the Buckeyes hovering around 16.5-point favorites at home. No. 2 Auburn, on the other hand, is expected to blast unranked Buffalo on Saturday, with the tough Tigers currently pegged as huge 42-point favorites. In other Top 10 action it's Wisconsin at No. 6 Michigan (-14), No. 8 Louisville (-14) at Kansas State, Colorado at No. 9 Georgia (-27), Iowa State at No. 7 Texas (-25), No. 4 West Virginia (-21) at East Carolina, Kentucky at No. 5 Florida (-23.5), No. 3 Southern Cal (-21) at Arizona, and Tulane at No. 10 LSU (-36). As well, No. 12 Notre Dame (-3.5) plays at Michigan State, while No. 22 Arizona State takes on No. 21 California (-7.5). Week 15 of the Canadian Football League schedule kicks off on Friday night with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats at the Edmonton Eskimos (-12). On Saturday the Calgary Stampeders (-6.5) get a visit from the Toronto Argonauts, while Sunday features Winnipeg at Montreal (-7) and British Columbia at Saskatchewan (pick'em) to finish off the weekend. And finally, the Chase for the Nextel Cup continues this weekend with Sunday's Dover 400. Kevin Harvick raced out to an early Chase lead with last weekend's victory in the Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire. Matt Kenseth won at Dover International Speedway earlier in the year in the Neighborhood Excellence 400; he's now third in the standings.
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NFL Football Handicapping
NFL Week 2 Recap
After getting whipped by the underdogs in the opening week, the favorites struck back in Week 2 of the NFL season. Spread bettors had a tough time if they placed their money on favorites in Week 1, but they would have been rewarded in Week 2 if they stuck with them (all Week 2 stats exclude Monday night game). In Week 2, favorites were 11-4 ATS, a big improvement over the 6-10 ATS mark from Week 1. The favorites were even better straight up with a 12-3 record. Again, it was an improvement on Week 2, which saw the favorites end up 9-7 SU. The Week 2 rebound has put the favorites ahead on the season with a combined ATS mark of 17-14 for Weeks 1 and 2. The overall straight up record is even better at 21-10 combined through Week 1 and 2. The favorites' ATS improvement was nothing compared to the turnaround home teams made in Week 2. Back in Week 1, home teams were an abysmal 3-13 ATS and an equally bad 5-11 SU. Things changed dramatically in Week 2 as home-field advantage began to mean something again. In Week 2, the home team was 10-5 ATS and 11-4 SU. The overall season marks still have some catching up to do if they want to look as good as the favorites. The combined record from Week 1 and 2 for home teams is 13-18 ATS and 16-15 SU. Total bettors would have found their pockets a little lighter if they stood by the over/under results from Week 1. Unders ruled in Week 1, which had an over/under record of 4-12. The scores were up in Week 2 and as a result so were overs. The over/under mark for Week 2 came in at 7-6-2. There were 580 points scored in 15 games in Week 2 for an average of 38.6 points per game. Scoring was up in Week 2 as only 571 points were scored in 16 games in Week 1. The average over/under total for these games was 39 points. The average points scored may be slightly lower, but the two pushes kept the Week 2 over/under results almost split down the middle. For the season so far, the overall over/under record still favors the unders at 11-18-2.

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NFL Gameday: September 17Will the Giants fare better when out of the Manning Bowl spotlight? Can the Chiefs do anything without Trent Green? Can Terrell Owens avoid controversy for a second straight week? Here's a look at three of the best matchups on the NFL schedule today: N.Y. Giants at Philadelphia (-3) 1:00 PM ETThe Giants had a tough matchup in Week 1 - Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts - and as a result they picked up a 26-21 loss and started the season with an 0-1 record. The Eagles, on the other hand, got creampuff Houston in their season opener last week, and they rolled to a 24-10 victory. New York will be looking to even both teams' records at 1-1 by picking up a victory on Sunday afternoon as road underdogs. Last season the Giants had Philadelphia's number, as they swept the two-game series. New York started by picking up a 27-17 home win over Philly in November, then they edged the Eagles by a score of 26-23 down in Philadelphia in December. The teams split the ATS results last year though - Philly covered as a home dog in the December matchup. The combined scores of both those games went OVER the day's posted total. On the injury front, the Eagles have RB Brian Westbrook (knee) listed as probable, but he missed some practice time this week. LB Jeremiah Trotter (ankle) is also probable. LB LaVar Arrington (knee) and TE Jeremy Shockey (ankle) are probable for the Giants. Kansas City at Denver (-10.5) 4:15 PM ETThe Chiefs and the Broncos both suffered disappointing losses in Week 1 - Kansas City was defeated at home by the Cincinnati Bengals 23-10, while Denver fell 18-10 on the road versus the St. Louis Rams. That means the division rivals will both be looking for their first win of the season this week - with the Chiefs (who are missing starting quarterback Trent Green) pegged as big underdogs in Denver. Kickoff is 4:15 PM ET. The home team went 2-0 in the Chiefs/Broncos series last season. Denver rolled to a 30-10 win over Kansas City in September, while the Chiefs returned the favor with a 31-27 victory in December. Both teams managed to cover the spread in their respective victories, while the combined score of only the December game went OVER the total. Green (head) is obviously out for Kansas City this week, so Damon Huard looks to be the team's starting quarterback barring a last-minute addition to the roster. WR Eddie Kennison (back) was added to the Chiefs' injury report on Friday after missing practice, but he's probable. For the Broncos, RB Mike Bell has a finger injury, but he's listed as probable for this week. K Jason Elam (hip) is also pegged as probable on the report. Washington at Dallas (-6.5) 8:15 PM ETAnother two teams looking to taste victory for the first time this season meet on Sunday night (8:15 PM ET kickoff) when the Washington Redskins take on the Dallas Cowboys. The 'Skins floundered on offense in a 19-16 loss to the Minnesota Vikings at home last week, while the 'Boys fell 24-17 on the road to the Jacksonville Jaguars in their opener. Washington had a lot of success against Dallas last season - they won 14-13 on the road in September, and 35-7 at home in December. Both were also ATS wins for the Redskins, with the September matchup an UNDER and the December one an OVER. The Redskins are probably going to be playing without Clinton Portis on Sunday though - the running back scored a touchdown in Week 1, but he's listed as doubtful with a sore shoulder for Week 2. In fact, Joe Gibbs has gone as far as ruling Portis out for the game (a decision which came as a surprise to the back). CB Shawn Springs and S Pierson Prioleau are also out for Washington, while Dallas has no significant injuries to report.
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Sports Betting

Sports Betting
Weekend Wagering PreviewBaseball and football (both pro and college) continue to share the sports spotlight this weekend, with the launch of NASCAR's Chase for the Nextel Cup also on the schedule. Oddsmakers are expecting a lot of one-sided affairs in the NFL this weekend, as no fewer than five games feature double-digit spreads as of this writing. The biggest favorites are the Colts, who are giving up 13.5 points at home to the Texans on Sunday afternoon. The Ravens are favored by 12 versus the Raiders, the Chargers are favored by 11.5 versus the Titans, the Bengals are favored by 10.5 versus the Browns, and the Broncos are favored by 10.5 against a Chiefs team that'll be missing QB Trent Green. There are also several road favorites on the board for Sunday, with Carolina (-1.5) at Minnesota, New Orleans (-2) at Green Bay, St. Louis (-3) at San Francisco, and New England (-6) at the New York Jets. Elsewhere this weekend it's Buffalo at Miami (-6.5), Detroit at Chicago (-9), the New York Giants at Philadelphia (-3), Tampa Bay at Atlanta (-5.5), Arizona at Seattle (-7), and Washington at Dallas (-6) in the Sunday night game.
On the college scene, top-ranked Ohio State isn't expected to get much of a challenge this week - they're listed as 29.5-point home favorites against Cincinnati. Texas, who fell to No. 8 in the rankings after losing to the Buckeyes last week, are also big favorites in their Week 3 contest; the Longhorns are giving up 32 points on the road against Rice. Those likely blowouts aside, there are many marquee games on the college football schedule this week, with ranked teams going against each other. No. 6 LSU plays at No. 3 Auburn (-3), No. 15 Oklahoma has a road game versus No. 18 Oregon (-4.5), No. 12 Louisville (-4) hosts No. 17 Miami, No. 20 TCU gets a visit from No. 24 Texas Tech (-1.5), No. 7 Florida (-3.5) is at No. 13 Tennessee, No. 4 USC (-18.5) hosts No. 19 Nebraska, and second-ranked Notre Dame (-6) hosts a game against No. 11 Michigan. And for those that can't get enough of the pigskin, the Canadian Football League has three games on tap this weekend. The Blue Bombers and the Stampeders get things going on Friday night, with Calgary listed as a 6-point home favorite. Then on Saturday it's the Edmonton Eskimos (-6.5) playing a road game against the Hamilton Tiger Cats, followed by the British Columbia Lions (-9.5) getting a visit from the Montreal Alouettes. On the diamond, the big series this weekend was supposed to be the Red Sox at the Yankees, but Boston's struggles have taken most of the interest out of that set. Instead, the AL's best weekend series will probably take place out in Oakland, where the Athletics will host the White Sox. Also on the slate are Baltimore at Detroit, Minnesota at Cleveland, Tampa Bay at Toronto, Los Angeles at Texas, and Seattle at Kansas City. Over in the National League the biggest series also takes place on the west coast, as the Los Angeles Dodgers play host to the San Diego Padres in a battle for top spot in the NL West. Philadelphia is at Houston this weekend, while San Francisco is at St. Louis and Florida plays in Atlanta. As well, it's Cincinnati at Chicago, Milwaukee at Washington, Colorado at Arizona, and the league-leading NY Mets at the lowly Pirates. On the track the Chase for the Nextel Cup gets underway this weekend at the Sylvania 300 in New Hampshire. Ten drivers have qualified for the Chase again this year: Matt Kenseth, Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Harvick, Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Mark Martin, Jeff Burton, Jeff Gordon, and Kasey Kahne. Kenseth goes into the Chase as the leader, while Tony Stewart failed to qualify for NASCAR's '06 postseason
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Football Betting

NFL Football Handicapping
NFL Week 1 Recap
Week 1 of the NFL season went to the dogs. The so-called favorites turned out to be chumps against the spread in the opening week, which means if you bet solely on favorites on Sunday, your sportsbook account is probably hurting. If you count the Thursday opener as well as Sunday's games (Monday night results are excluded), the favorites were a pathetic 5-9 ATS. This of course means the underdogs were a profitable 9-5 ATS. This looked a little better straight up, with emphasis on the word little. The favorites were 8-6 straight up in Week 1, so if you stuck to picking favorites straight up you would have made out okay. If you like to root for the home team, then your betting account really took a hit in Week 1. The home team was just plain awful ATS, posting a 3-11 record in Week 1. They weren't much better straight up either with a 5-9 mark SU. That means home field advantage meant very little in Week 1, as the visitors were 11-3 ATS and 9-5 SU. Despite the home team performing so badly in Week 1, the oddsmakers have stuck by them in early Week 2 lines. Out of the 16 games scheduled for Week 2, the oddsmakers have deemed the home team the favorite in 12 of them. The only visitors to be labelled the favorites are Carolina at Minnesota, New Orleans at Green Bay, St. Louis at San Francisco and New England at the New York Jets. High scores were few and far between in Week 1, which led to a ton of unders. The over/under mark for Week 1 was a rather lopsided 4-10. There were 509 points scored in 14 Week 1 games, for an average of 36.4 per game. The average over/under total for Week 1 was set at 39.7. Now that teams have the opening week jitters behind them, expect some more scoring in Week 2. If the oddsmakers lower the over/under total this should mean a few more overs, but make sure you check out what the totals look like before placing your bets.

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NFL Kickoff GamedayThe NFL season gets underway Thursday night as the Miami Dolphins debut new starting quarterback Daunte Culpepper in Pittsburgh versus the defending Super Bowl Champion Pittsburgh Steelers. While the Dolphins addressed their quarterback questions during the offseason the Steelers saw their quarterback situation take a major hit last week. Ben Roethlisberger battled back from injuries sustained in an offseason motorcycle accident, but a surprise appendectomy this past Sunday will keep him out Thursday night. That means the Steelers will start Charlie Batch at quarterback. Batch filled in for Roethlisberger twice last season and despite throwing no touchdowns went 2-0 in those starts. For Batch to get the Steelers' offense going he'll probably need some help from star wide receiver Hines Ward and running back Willie Parker. Ward sat out the preseason with a strained hamstring, but he did practice this week and is expected to take the field Thursday. Ward may not be 100 percent, but he's still the number one target in Pittsburgh's passing game. Parker shared the running duties with Jerome Bettis last season, but the Bus has been parked so Parker will be the No. 1 back this year. If Parker can repeat his success from last season, he'll at least take some of the pressure off of Batch this week.
The Dolphins finished off last season on a high with six straight wins, and the addition of Culpepper has some people thinking they could challenge the Patriots for first place in the AFC East. Culpepper was having a horrible season in Minnesota last year before he had his knee torn apart. After having his knee surgically repaired, Culpepper was told he might not even play this season. Instead, Culpepper was ready by training camp and the knee appears to be a non-issue. Culpepper still has a strong arm, but it's his decision-making that caused him problems last season. Culpepper has a pretty good bunch of receivers in Miami that includes a speedy deep threat in Chris Chambers. Marty Booker is a good No. 2 receiver, while tight end Randy McMichael could become Culpepper's go-to-guy when he gets into trouble. Like Pittsburgh last season, Miami shared the running back duties. Ricky Williams was banished to Canada after another positive drug test so Ronnie Brown will shoulder the full rushing load this season. Miami grabbed Lee Suggs off waivers earlier in the week, but Brown shouldn't have to worry about losing his job unless he gets injured or has trouble carrying the load by himself. On the defensive side of the ball, both teams appear to match up pretty well. Miami boasts a strong front seven that includes Vonnie Holliday, Jason Taylor and Kevin Carter on the line, and veteran Zach Thomas leading a string group of linebackers. The Miami secondary could be vulnerable after losing stalwarts Sam Madison and Lance Schulters. The Steelers' defense led the AFC in total yards allowed last season and returns all of their key personnel. Standout safety Troy Palomalu and cornerback Ike Taylor lead a talented secondary, while Joey Porter and James Farrior will make it difficult for teams to run against Pittsburgh again this season. The Steelers opened as a 5-point favorite in this game, but that all changed once Roethlisberger went down. Most books now have the game listed as a pick'em, while the total was set at 34.5.
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Football Betting
CFL Betting Lines - Week 12 Game PreviewsWeek 12 in the CFL gets started as usual on Friday night, but thanks to the Canadian Labour Day holiday on Monday, the action gets stretched out an extra day. On Friday night, the two best teams in the league will battle when the B.C. Lions visit the Montreal Alouettes. On Sunday night, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers will try to get back on track against the Saskatchewan Roughriders. The annual Labour Day Classic doubleheader on Monday gets started with the Edmonton Eskimos and Calgary Stampeders in the afternoon, followed by the Toronto Argonauts and Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the evening. B.C. at Montreal - Friday, 7:30 pm EDTThe Lions and Alouettes clash Friday night in a battle of the best in the west versus the best in the east. B.C. was idle last week after edging Edmonton 30-28 as an 8.5-point favorite back in Week 10. Buck Pierce got the start for an injured Dave Dickenson in that contest and threw for 274 yards with a touchdown. Dickenson's ankle injury has him listed as probable for this week's game, so he should be back behind center on Friday night. Montreal has hit a bad streak recently and has lost three games in a row after a 7-0 start. The Als got hammered by Calgary last week 41-23 as a 4.5-point favorite. Anthony Calvillo had a mediocre game, passing for 289 yards, with a touchdown and an interception, while running back Robert Edward was limited to only 16 yards on eight carries with a costly fumble. This is the first meeting between these two teams this season after they met up twice last year. Montreal barely won both games last season, 46-44 (-3) and 27-26 (+7). The Lions are favored this time around after opening as a 2-point road favorite. Winnipeg at Saskatchewan - Sunday, 7:30 pm EDTThe Winnipeg Blue Bombers' injury troubles continued last week in an 18-15 loss to Toronto as a 2.5-point underdog. The Bombers were missing both quarterback Kevin Glenn and star receiver Milt Stegall once again to injury. Backup QB Mike Quinn passed for only 92 yards with two touchdowns and a costly interception late in the game. Running back Charles Roberts rushed for 120 yards on 21 carries in the loss. The Bombers will be without Glenn (knee) again this week, but Stegall is listed as probable with cracked ribs. The Roughriders' offense flourished last week, despite having two quarterbacks sidelined with injuries. Saskatchewan slammed Hamilton 51-8 as a 5-point favorite behind third-string QB Rocky Butler, who passed for 191 yards with three touchdowns. Matt Dominguez was Butler's favorite target as he hauled in six passes for 119 yards and two touchdowns. Butler will get the start again this week with Kerry Joseph (knee) and Marcus Crandell (elbow) both still sidelined. Winnipeg and Saskatchewan are meeting for the first time this season after clashing three times last year. The Roughriders won all three games and were able to cover the spread in two out of three games. The Roughriders are a 4-point favorite in this game. Edmonton at Calgary - Monday, 3 pm EDTThe battle of Alberta will be reignited Monday afternoon as Edmonton takes on Calgary in Game 1 of the Labour Day Classic doubleheader. The Eskimos were off last week, which they probably needed to try and get out of the West Division basement. Edmonton's last game was a 30-28 loss to B.C. as an 8.5-point underdog back in Week 10. Ricky Ray threw for 312 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions, while Troy Davis rushed for 35 yards and a pair of touchdowns on nine carries. Edmonton has scored a league-low 173 points in nine games this season. The Calgary Stampeders are rolling right now, having won three straight after blasting Montreal 41-23 as a 4.5-point underdog last week. Henry Burris had another solid game versus Montreal, passing for 295 yards with three touchdowns and an interception. Joffrey Reynolds rushed for 50 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries and Ken-Yon Rambo caught four passes for 95 yards and two touchdowns. Edmonton hosted Calgary way back in Week 2 and came away with an 18-14 win as a 5.5-point favorite. The Stampeders are a 7.5-point favorite in the rematch. Toronto at Hamilton - Monday, 6 pm EDTOntario rivals Toronto and Hamilton renew acquaintances Monday in Game 2 of the Labour Day Classic. The Argonauts staged a fourth-quarter comeback against Winnipeg last week to come away with an 18-15 win as a 2.5-point favorite. Damon Allen carried the team on his back in the fourth quarter with a pair of touchdown passes, as he finished the game with 277 passing yards and the two scores. John Avery had a strong game, rushing for 90 yards on 14 carries, but he could be on the sidelines this week after being listed as questionable with an ankle injury. The Tiger-Cats' woeful season hit a new low last week, as they were ripped by Saskatchewan 51-8 as 5-point underdog. Jason Maas got the start, but he was ineffective after completing only 16-of-27 passes for 118 yards with an interception. His replacement, Kevin Eakin, wasn't any better, as he completed 6-of-14 passes for 70 yards with a pair of interceptions. Hamilton's eight points in the game came on three conceded safeties and two punt singles. Hamilton has not scored an offensive touchdown at home in three games. Toronto and Hamilton have already faced off twice this season with each team winning a game apiece. Hamilton defeated Toronto 27-17 as a 3-point underdog in Week 2, while Toronto beat Hamilton 20-2 as a 4-point underdog in Week 9. Toronto is a big 7.5-point road favorite in the rubber match.
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