09/22/2008 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The movie Good Will Hunting is on the TNT network almost constantly, so much so that I'm beginning to wonder whether Ted Turner might have a little crush on Gus Van Sant.
Anyway, it's a great film, and there's an exchange between Will (Matt Damon) and Skylar (Minnie Driver) that comes to mind as we attempt to identify the most positive developments of the first three NFL weeks.
Skylar: Maybe we could go out for coffee sometime?
Will: Great, or maybe we could go somewhere and just eat a bunch of caramels.
Skylar: What?
Will: When you think about it, it's just as arbitrary as drinking coffee.
In that spirit, we offer you not a top five nor a top 10 list of September superlatives, but a list of seven top stories from the first three weeks. In highly dramatic descending order:
7. J.T. O'Sullivan. Not long ago, it looked like O'Sullivan was a bad workout away from hitting up his alma mater, UC Davis, for a job as quarterbacks coach. Instead, the 29-year-old is the starting quarterback of a team that is off to a surprise 2-1 start, and has made the moribund 49ers fun to watch again. O'Sullivan, now with his eighth different organization, is 50-of-75 for 705 yards with three touchdowns and just one pick, for an impressive 104.6 passer rating. More importantly, the journeyman has San Francisco in the early hunt in the wide-open NFC West.
6. Falcons newcomers. The Atlanta Falcons are unlikely to make the playoffs or even finish with a winning record this season, but my, have they given a recently-tormented fan base a great deal of hope for the near future. Running back Michael Turner has been terrific, racking up a league-best 366 yards and five touchdowns in his first effort as a feature back. Matt Ryan has been as good as you can expect a rookie to look, throwing the deep ball pretty well and not making scads of mistakes. Also, give major kudos to first-year head coach Mike Smith, who has the Falcons believing they can win again after Bobby Petrino quit on them with three games left last year.
5. Dolphins 38, Patriots 13. What a way to end a winning streak. Miami went into Foxborough, where the Patriots hadn't lost since falling to the Jets there in 2006, and handed New England a Gillette Stadium-worst 25-point beat- down to end an NFL-record 21-game regular season run of victories on Sunday. The Dolphins, who have already matched their 2007 win total, ran it right at the Pats to the tune of 216 ground yards and four rushing touchdowns for Ronnie Brown. In giving head coach Tony Sparano and quarterback Chad Pennington their first wins with Miami, the Dolphins also single-handedly blew up suicide pools from coast to coast.
4. Titans defense. Lost amid the Vince Young controversy is just how good the Titans (3-0) have been defensively in September of 2008. Jeff Fisher's club, now a full two games up on the Colts and Jaguars in the AFC South, is allowing a shade under 10 points per game and has harassed the opposition into 11 sacks and eight turnovers thus far. Cornerback Cortland Finnegan's 99-yard interception return for a touchdown put Houston away on Sunday, and was Finnegan's NFL-best fourth INT of the year. Albert Haynesworth and Kyle Vanden Bosch have combined for five-and-a-half sacks. If there's a more feared defense in the NFL at this moment, let it step forward.
3. Broncos offense. Denver re-tooled its offense in the offseason to accentuate Jay Cutler and the passing game, and boy, has that worked out. Cutler has winged the ball over the football field during the Broncos' 3-0 start, throwing for 914 yards with eight touchdowns and just two picks. Top wideout Brandon Marshall already has 24 catches and over 300 yards with two scores in just two games, and rookie Eddie Royal looks like a star in the making with two 100-yard outings in his first three contests as a pro. We're not sure when or if the Broncos are going to start playing defense, but if Cutler and company keep playing like this, it isn't going to matter.
2. The NFC East. We knew this was going to be a pretty good division, and it has more than lived up to its billing so far. The Cowboys and Giants are both 3-0. The Eagles and Redskins are close behind at 2-1. In games outside the division, the four teams are a combined 8-0. It seems pretty likely at this point that the NFC's Super Bowl representative is going to come from this division, although you could also make a case that these four teams are going to beat the living daylights out of each other for the next 14 weeks and have nothing left once January gets here. Stay tuned.
1. The Buffalo Bills. Forget about national TV ratings and marketable stars a la Tom Brady or Peyton Manning, because the Bills have neither. What the Bills do have that the Patriots, Colts, and 25 other teams don't is a 3-0 record, marking the first time since way back in 1992 that Buffalo has done that. How have they accomplished it? Efficient offense, with Trent Edwards not making many mistakes and running back Marshawn Lynch keeping people honest. Defensively, they're playing bend-but-don't break, allowing four touchdowns versus seven field goals through the first three weeks. The special teams, from both a coverage and return standpoint, remain among the best in the league. All of which has put Buffalo in the driver's seat in the AFC East, an unfamiliar place for the team in the last decade or so but one which they might just occupy for a while.
<< Yankees' Matsui to have knee surgery
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Yankees outfielder/designated hitter
Hideki Matsui is scheduled to undergo arthroscopic surgery on his balky left
knee Monday evening.
The procedure will be performed Dr. Scott Rodeo at the Hospital fo
<< Texas TE Irby out for season
Austin, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - University of Texas tight end Blaine Irby will
miss the rest of the season after undergoing surgery to repair a dislocated
right knee.
Irby suffered the injury in Texas' 52-10 win over Rice on Saturda
<< Romo leads Cowboys to first-ever win in Green Bay
Green Bay, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Wisconsin native Tony Romo went 17-of-30
passing for 260 yards with one touchdown and an interception, as the Dallas
Cowboys bested the Green Bay Packers, 27-16, to record their first-ever win at
histori
<< Bronx Bombers close out Yankee Stadium with one last win
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Yankees closed out their residence
at iconic Yankee Stadium with one final victory, a 7-3 win over the Baltimore
Orioles.
Since christening the stadium on Opening Day, April 18, 1923 with a 4-1
Royals begin set with Tigers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Kansas City Royals hope to move out of the basement in
the AL Central this week, as they open a three-game series with the Detroit
Tigers at Comerica Park.
The Royals come into this series residing in last place in the
Beckett aims to pitch Boston into postseason against Indians >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Josh Beckett hopes to pitch the Boston Red Sox into the
postseason for the fifth time in the last six years this evening when they
open a four-game series with the Cleveland Indians at Fenway Park.
Boston needs just a win
Webb goes for win No. 22 in test with Cards >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brandon Webb takes aim at win No. 22 this evening when the
Arizona Diamondbacks open a four-game series with the St. Louis Cardinals at
Busch Stadium.
Arizona, of course, comes into tonight's contest 2 1/2 games back of th
Hantuchova rolls; Mauresmo loses in Beijing >>
Beijing, China (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Seventh-seeded Slovakian Daniela
Hantuchova posted a first-round win, while former world No. 1 Amelie Mauresmo
came up a loser Monday at the $600,000 China Open.
Hantuchova handled Argentine Gis
Will Ohio State continue to run the table in College Football betting odds?
MySportsbook.com favors Buckeyes, Fighting Irish and Golden Bears in this weekend's big games.
NEW YORK, NY, Sept. 21 - My Sportsbook NCAA football fans: things are beginning to get really interesting on college football's national stage. Following last weekend's "Separation Saturday", which included five teams ranked in the top 15 dropping games, the BCS Championship picture is beginning to take shape - with Ohio State leading the charge. And, according to odds makers at MySportsbook.com, the number-one-ranked Buckeyes will continue their winning ways this weekend.
Revenge will be the name of the game in Columbus this Saturday, as Ohio State looks to even the score following last season's loss to Joe Paterno's Nittany Lions. Although Penn State are listed as 16.5 point underdogs, they are 11-10 all-time versus the Buckeyes. Paterno and the Lions, however, will have to shut down Heisman Trophy favorite Troy Smith who has thrown for 769 yards and seven touchdowns this season.
Speaking of revenge, Notre Dame will be out for some against Michigan State, following last year's 44 - 41 overtime loss to the Spartans in South Bend. The thirteenth-ranked Irish, listed as a 3-point favorite, will also be looking to avenge last Saturday's thrashing from the Michigan Wolverines. The Spartans, meanwhile, have won seven of the last nine match-ups against Notre Dame and are coming off an impressive 38-23 victory over Pittsburgh.
Out west, 22nd-ranked Arizona State will be battling for their first victory over 21st-ranked California since 2000. Although the Golden Bears are listed as 7.5-point favorites, the Sun Devils are 3-0, lead the nation in sacks with 18 and possess the Pac-10's leading passer in sophomore quarterback Rudy Carpenter.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Visa needs.
NCAA Football betting lines (home team in CAPS)
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Date Favorite Opponent Point Spread
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Sept 21 GEORGIA TECH Virginia 17
Sept 22 NEVADA Northwestern 6.5
Sept 23 MICHIGAN Wisconsin 14
Sept 23 Minnesota PURDUE 3
Sept 23 SYRACUSE Miami (Ohio) 6.5
Sept 23 MISSOURI Ohio 21.5
Sept 23 Louisville KANSAS STATE 14
Sept 23 TENNESSEE Marshall 22
Sept 23 CLEMSON North Carolina 16.5
Sept 23 FLORIDA Kentucky 24
Sept 23 Iowa ILLINOIS 20.5
Sept 23 FLORIDA STATE Rice 30.5
Sept 23 AUBURN Buffalo 41.5
Sept 23 BOWLING GREEN Kent 7
Sept 23 NAVY Tulsa 4.5
Sept 23 VIRGINIA TECH Cincinnati 27
Sept 23 BYU Utah State 29
Sept 23 OHIO STATE Penn State 16.5
Sept 23 TEXAS Iowa State 25
Sept 23 Washington State STANFORD 10
Sept 23 CALIFORNIA Arizona State 7.5
Sept 23 UCLA WASHINGTON 3
Sept 23 INDIANA Connecticut 1.5
Sept 23 Central Michigan EASTERN MICHIGAN 4
Sept 23 WYOMING Air Force 1
Sept 23 UTEP NEW MEXICO 9.5
Sept 23 West Virginia EAST CAROLINA 21
Sept 23 Boston College NORTH CAROLINA STATE 7
Sept 23 GEORGIA Colorado 27
Sept 23 ARKANSAS Alabama 1.5
Sept 23 BAYLOR Army 11
Sept 23 WESTERN MICHIGAN Temple 28
Sept 23 MISSISSIPPI Wake Forest 2.5
Sept 23 KANSAS South Florida 5.5
Sept 23 TEXAS A&M Louisiana Tech 23.5
Sept 23 UAB Mississippi State 9.5
Sept 23 LSU Tulane 36
Sept 23 Utah SAN DIEGO STATE 6.5
Sept 23 BOISE STATE Hawaii 15
Sept 23 Notre Dame MICHIGAN STATE 3
Sept 23 USC ARIZONA U 22
Sept 23 Oklahoma State HOUSTON 1
Sept 23 OREGON STATE Idaho 23
Sept 23 OKLAHOMA Middle Tennessee State 29
Sept 23 MARYLAND Florida International 18.5
Sept 23 AKRON North Texas 17.5
Sept 23 SOUTH CAROLINA Florida Atlantic 29.5
Sept 23 NEBRASKA Troy 23
Sept 23 SMU Arkansas State 6
For complete NCAA football odds and World Series odds please visit MySportsbook.com
Mayweather picked to beat De La Hoya
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA -- Golden Boy Oscar De La Hoya and his rival Floyd Mayweather Jr. arrived at the MGM Grand here Wednesday amid the pomp and pandemonium befitting two of the biggest stars in the sport who are about to duke it out for the WBC super welterweight crown this Saturday (Sunday in Manila).
As of Wednesday, MySportsbook.com closed its book with Mayweather a favorite to defeat De La Hoya at -170 (a $100 bet wins $70), while De La Hoya is a +140 underdog (a $100 bet wins $140).
Mayweather arrived at about 11:30 a.m. on a big truck with his face and a big "World's Best Pound-for-Pound" sign scribbled across the vehicle. He was accompanied by his entourage made up of rappers and his training team.
A crowd of close to 3,000 eager fans packed the MGM Grand lobby, with their cameras in tow, all trying to vie for position to get a good angle at Mayweather, who is acknowledged as the world's best fighter pound-for-pound.
Eric Gomez, Golden Boy Promotions vice-president, described the fan turnout as "amazing" and swore he had never seen anything quite like this event.
"The crowd was fantastic. Everybody was just too eager to see the two fighters," said ALA manager Michael Aldeguer, who was among those who waited at the lobby together with his ward Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista and AJ Banal.
De La Hoya made his own grand entrance at the hotel lobby at around 12:30 p.m. accompanied by GBP chief executive officer Richard Schaefer and trainer Freddie Roach.
The same group of fans who trooped to see Mayweather also lingered around to get a close look at De La Hoya, who has been secretly working out at a Las Vegas gym for days after arriving from his main training camp in Puerto Rico.
The golden boy then took part in a closed-door afternoon workout with Bautista and Banal. The two, along with Aldeguer and wife Christine, as well as an HBO crew were the only ones allowed inside the gym.
De La Hoya and Mayweather take part in today's final press conference before the official weigh-in this Friday.
Ring Magazine, the acknowledged bible of boxing, reported in its June 2007 issue that 12 out of 20 boxing experts it interviewed have favored Mayweather to defeat De la Hoya, with only 8 favoring the latter.
But Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao said in a recent interview with The Freeman's Emmanuel Villaruel that De La Hoya will win by unanimous decision over Mayweather.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on boxing needs.
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