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03/11/2010 - Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 23rd-ranked Texas A&M Aggies are the fourth-seeded team in the Big 12 Conference Tournament, and they will play a quarterfinal-round game against the surprising 12th-seeded Nebraska Cornhuskers today.
Next up for the winner of this game is a semifinal clash with either top- seeded Kansas or ninth-seeded Texas Tech.
Not only did Nebraska manage to upset fifth-seeded Missouri yesterday, but the game was rather lopsided, as the Cornhuskers cruised to a 75-60 triumph. Nebraska has never won this tournament and owns a 6-13 record in the event all-time. The Huskers racked up a 12-3 record against non-conference foes during the regular season, but that mark was clearly overshadowed by a 2-14 record against Big 12 opponents. Still, the win in Wednesday first-round affair offers renewed confidence.
Texas A&M has only won three of the 16 Big 12 Conference Tournament games it has played, and the team is still in search of its first league crown. The Aggies are certainly playing with a great deal of confidence right now, as they closed out the regular season with three consecutive wins to move to 22-8 overall and 11-5 in conference. Last Saturday, they easily disposed of Oklahoma in a 69-54 final on the road.
The Aggies beat the Cornhuskers, 64-53, back in January, but Nebraska still owns an 11-7 advantage in the all-time series.
The Cornhuskers are a modest offensive team, averaging 66.3 ppg on 43.5 percent shooting from the floor heading into this tournament. Defensively, the Cornhuskers were permitting 65.8 ppg by the end of the regular season, and Ryan Anderson (11.0 ppg) was the only double-digit scorer on the roster. Brandon Richardson was the best player for Nebraska yesterday, as he scored 19 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the floor. Anderson also shot 6-of-8 from the field and finished with 16 points and nine rebounds. Both Jorge Brian Diaz and Lance Jeter scored 10 points in the triumph, and Jeter added seven boards and six assists. The Cornhuskers connected on 55.8 percent of their field goal attempts against Missouri, including an 8-of-14 effort from three-point range. They also shot 19-of-22 from the foul line, earned a 38-22 rebounding advantage and limited Missouri to 33.9 percent shooting.
When fans discuss the best players in the Big 12, Texas A&M's Donald Sloan is rarely mentioned. The fact of the matter is that while Sloan doesn't possess impressive numbers in assists, rebounds or steals, his 17.9 ppg have been a major key to the success of the Aggies this season. There is only one other active double-digit scorer in the lineup for A&M, as Bryan Davis provides an even 10.0 ppg. While Sloan, Davis and company are averaging 72.0 ppg, they are limiting opponents to 64.4 ppg on 40.4 percent shooting from the field. Against Oklahoma in the regular season the finale, the Aggies connected on 51 percent of their field goal attempts while limiting the Sooners to 36.2 percent. A 36-26 rebounding advantage also helped the cause.
<< Longhorns and Bears meet in Big 12 Tournament
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 21st-ranked Baylor Bears are seeded
third in the Big 12 Conference Tournament, and they will begin action in the
event tonight with a quarterfinal-round matchup against the sixth-seeded Texas
Longhorns.
<< Miners open C-USA Tournament play against Knights
Tulsa, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Winners of 14th straight games, the top-seeded
and 25th-ranked Texas El Paso Miners set their sites on a C-USA Tournament
championship, starting with tonight's quarterfinal-round matchup against the
ninth-seeded UCF
<< TCU seeks upset of BYU in Mountain West quarterfinals
Las Vegas, NV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A rematch of the regular-season finale has
14th-ranked and second-seeded BYU taking on the seventh-seeded TCU Horned
Frogs in the quarterfinals of the 2010 Mountain West Conference Tournament
tonight at the Thom
<< Falcons face tall task in Mountain West Tourney tilt with Lobos
Las Vegas, NV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Less than 24 hours after picking up just
their second win all-time in the Mountain West Conference Tournament, the Air
Force Falcons are back on the hardwood of the Thomas & Mack Center in Las
Vegas as they
Orange and Hoyas clash in Big East quarterfinals >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The third-ranked and top-seeded Syracuse
Orange make their much anticipated debut in the Big East Tournament today, as
they lock up with the 22nd-ranked and eighth-seeded Georgetown Hoyas in the
quarterfinals at
Wildcats and Golden Eagles square off in Big East Tourney >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two teams that have a history of playing close
games meet in the quarterfinal round of the Big East Tournament today, as the
fifth-seeded Marquette Golden Eagles battle the fourth-seeded and 10th-ranked
Villanova
Surging Irish set sights on Panthers in tournament play >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After a surprising regular-season showing, the
16th-ranked and second-seeded Pittsburgh Panthers now begin their run in the
Big East Tournament tonight against the seventh-seeded Notre Dame Fighting
Irish in the
Thrashers try to end slide in Columbus >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Thrashers will be out to halt a poorly-timed
three-game losing streak in tonight's matchup with the Columbus Blue Jackets
from Nationwide Arena.
Atlanta had put itself in the Eastern Conference playoff mix with
In the wake of the news that the 49ers have signed receiver Michael Crabtree after an extended holdout, there has been not a hint of the dollars to be paid to Crabtree.
And since this means that his agent hasn't leaked the numbers, it means that his agent feels no specific motivation to do so.
Possibly because his agent isn't all that thrilled to have his name on the deal.
So the numbers will come from sources other than Crabtree's agent. And we've gotten our mitts into them.
Per a league source, Crabtree has signed a six-year, $32 million contract. (The total includes guaranteed money, base salaries, and the one-time incentive based on achieving minimum playing time.)
The deal also includes $17 million in guaranteed money.
As reported elsewhere, the deal can void to five years based on performance triggers, wiping out a final year base salary of $4 million. But they won't be easily reached.
The source tells us that, in his first four seasons (including 2009), Crabtree must either qualify for two Pro Bowls, or he must qualify for one Pro Bowl in one year and he must participate in 80 percent of the offensive snaps in a separate year in which the team makes the playoffs.
In other words, if in 2010 he qualifies for the Pro Bowl and the team makes the playoffs and he participates in 80 percent of the snaps, he'll still need to make it to the Pro Bowl or achieve the 80-percent/playoffs in another season.
Since the chances of Crabtree making the Pro Bowl or participating in 80 percent of the offensive snaps this year is roughly zero percent, he'll have three years to get it done.
And it won't be easy. Frankly, he'll be hard pressed to make it to one Pro Bowl in three years with the likes of Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson, Anquan Boldin, Steve Smith, the other Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, DeSean Jackson, Johnny Knox, Percy Harvin, Greg Jennings, Roddy White, T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the same conference for sportsbook betting.
So, by all appearances, it's a six-year deal. And at $17 million in guaranteed money, the per-year guarantee is a tepid $2.83 million per year.
There's another problem with the deal -- it has no mid-tier incentive package. Instead, the additional $8 million that Crabtree can earn (pushing the max value to six years, $40 million) requires the kind of unrealistic, mega-star performances that no rookie is likely to ever achieve.
So while the contract paid to Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji covers five years and pays $22.5 million, he has the ability (if he's a solid player) to make up the difference between his base deal and Crabtree's five-year, $28 million haul via the mid-tier incentive package in Raji's deal.
And unless Crabtree meets the performance thresholds necessary to void the sixth year, he'll be stuck under contract for another year at a base salary of only $4 million.
There's one other area of concern with the deal. Crabtree, per the source, received no option bonus. Instead, he has significant money tied to a fairly new device known as a "discretionary salary advance," which unlike an opition bonus is subject to forfeiture if Crabtree decides in a year or two that he wants to hold out for a better deal. (We're also told that the 49ers have included language that would make certain escalators subject to forfeiture, too.)
Meanwhile, the deal falls well short of the mark for which Crabtree and agent Eugene Parker were aiming -- the five-year, $38.25 million contract paid by the Raiders to receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey, the seventh overall pick in the draft.
Even if Crabtree successfully voids the final year, he'll make more than $2 million per year less on average than Heyward-Bey.
Thus, as we explained earlier in the day, this is a deal that Crabtree could have done in July, which would have given him a much better chance of making a contribution to the 49ers during his rookie year.
So while the final outcome can be described as win-win, the broader view suggests that it's really a lose-lose situation.
To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your college football betting needs.
The San Francisco 49ers (5-11 SU, 5-10-1 ATS in 2007; 1-1 SU & ATS in pre-season) found some offensive life last week, and they will try to build some momentum on Thursday night as they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bears (7-9 SU & ATS in 2007; 0-2 SU, 0-1-1 ATS in pre-season) in an NFL matchup that is set to get underway at 8 PM ET at Soldier Field (natural turf) in Chicago.
Thursday, August 21
NFL betting odds: CHICAGO -3 (-120), Total 37
NOTABLE STAT: San Francisco was last in points, last in total offense in 2007
KEY NFL BETTING TREND: SF has lost its last seven SU on pre-season road
In the BetUS NFL pre-season football betting odds, the Bears are listed as a three-point favorite (laying -120), with the total posted at 37 points.
Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season):
* SF has lost 11 of its last 14 games SU
* SF has covered three of its last 11 games
* SF has lost six of its last seven road games SU
* SF has covered one of its last seven road games
* CHI has covered five of its last eight games
* CHI has played five of its last seven games OVER the total
* CHI has covered four of its last 13 home games
* SF has lost its last seven pre-season road games SU
* CHI has covered two of its last seven home pre-season games
Well, I guess we should congratulate the Bears on making their quarterback choice for the season's opening game, as they have designated Kyle Orton the starter against Indianapolis. The Bears obviously have lost patience with Rex Grossman, and what they do with him at this point is anybody's guess. But suffice it to say that there isn't a quarterback competition anymore, at least in training camp.
Meanwhile, the quarterback competition may also be settled in San Francisco, where the Niners bounced back from a lackluster 18-6 loss to the Raiders, in which they turned the ball over four times, to execute a 34-6 rout of the Packers last Saturday. However, coach Mike Nolan has stopped short of saying that, insisting that the job is still open. But J.T. O'Sullivan, the longshot of the trio of Niner signal-callers who opened camp, will start his third straight pre-season game here. Against Green Bay, O'Sullivan was only 8-for-17, and was intercepted, but he also threw for 9.1 yards an attempt, which included a 59-yard TD pass to Josh Morgan. The others struggled.
Some offensive cohesion is badly needed, in light of the Niners' dismal 2007 campaign, in which they were dead last in the NFL in scoring, with just 13.7 points a game. And O'Sullivan is the guy who is most familiar with offensive coordinator Mike Martz's exacting system, because he learned it last year in Detroit. O'Sullivan will go at least the entire first half and may even last longer. He'll be relieved by Alex Smith, with Shawn Hill doing the mop-up work. Three receivers who were out last week - Bryant Johnson, Ashley Lelie and Arnaz Battle - will miss this game too.
That may hurt a little here, especially since the Bears will be using a lot of their defensive starters. And it's the defense that has been keeping the Bears in games thus far. In fact, the defense and special teams were responsible for the first 19 points Chicago scored against Seattle last time out, as the offense really struggled with Grossman at the controls. But maybe the first-team offense has a chance to settle a little bit as it works more with Orton at the helm.
Certainly we have concerns about the Bears' offensive line, but we like the scenario for them here, especially if O'Sullivan doesn't make some bis plays. The Niners may have nowhere else to turn right now, and they have lost seven straight road games in the pre-season. Let's take Chicago, the three-point favorite in the NFL football betting odds.
CHICAGO -3 (-120) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)
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