11/15/2008 - Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A controlling interest in the Pittsburgh Steelers will reportedly be sold to current team chairman Dan Rooney and his son, Art II, the team's president.
According to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, four of the sons of club founder Art Rooney Sr. have agreed to sell their stakes to the fifth brother, Dan, and his son, for close to $750 million after business debt is subtracted.
The deal will reportedly include $280 million in loans with Dan Rooney needing to also secure several equity partners. The team itself will reportedly be used as collateral against the loans.
The Tribune-Review reported the four brothers selling their stakes would like to complete the deal before a board meeting in December.
The five Rooney brothers own 80 percent of the Steelers, with each controlling a 16 percent stake. The other 20 percent is owned by the McGinley family. Art Rooney Sr. founded the franchise in 1933.
<< Yankees offer Sabathia six years, $140 million
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Yankees offered free agent pitcher
CC Sabathia a six-year, $140 million contract on Friday.
Yankees co-chairman Hal Steinbrenner confirmed the offer in a story on the
team's Web site. The deal
<< Wallace, Pistons send Lakers to first loss
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rasheed Wallace notched a season-high 25
points and grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds as the Detroit Pistons captured a
106-95 win against the Lakers, sending Los Angeles to its first loss of the
season.
<< Stoudemire's jumper, block help Suns edge Kings in OT
Sacramento, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Amare Stoudemire hit the game-winning jumper
with 4.5 seconds left in overtime and blocked the final shot attempt, and
Shaquille O'Neal recorded 29 points, 13 rebounds and six assists, as the
Phoenix
<< Hamhuis gives Preds overtime win over Ducks
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dan Hamhuis scored with 2:43 remaining in
overtime and the Nashville Predators earned a rare 4-3 road win over the
Anaheim Ducks.
J.P. Dumont, Ryan Jones and Joel Ward also scored for the Pred
No. 17 Miami opens season against Florida Southern >>
Coral Gables, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 17th-ranked Miami-Florida Hurricanes
will play host to the Florida Southern Moccasins on Saturday night in Coral
Gables.
While this game represents the season opener for Miami, Florida Southern
alread
No. 10 Gonzaga hosts Montana State-Billings in season opener >>
Spokane, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 10th-ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs are set to
host the Montana State-Billings Yellowjackets in the season opener for both
teams.
For Montana State-Billings, there is no where to go but up under the guidance
of f
No. 14 Tennessee opens season at home versus Chattanooga >>
Knoxville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The defending Southeastern Conference
Champion Tennessee Volunteers begin their quest for a repeat, as they tip off
the 2008-09 season against the visiting Chattanooga Mocs of the Southern
Conference.
Chatta
Top-ranked Tar Heels host Quakers in season opener >>
Chapel Hill, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The much-anticipated season opener in
Chapel Hill will finally take place this afternoon, as the top-ranked North
Carolina Tar Heels hit the Smith Center floor against the Penn Quakers.
Roy Williams' team e
While the NFL is the sport wagered on the heaviest, college football betting lines has become more and more popular as people realize it’s a game that can be beat. The NCAA football season gets longer each year with the addition of numerous bowl games and with that comes more opportunities for more money in your pocket, if handled correctly.
Betting on college football is not the same as with the NFL, so make sure you separate the two. Because of the vast number of teams, the parity between college football programs is slight and thus, you are going to see some high numbers in the NCAA. Teams favored by more than 40 points are not uncommon especially early in the season when teams playing their non-conference schedules.
The best advice when trying to tackle these enormous spreads and is to just stay away. A team that is favored by 40 points is favored by that many for a reason while teams getting 40 points are bad enough that they shouldn’t be touched. Set yourself a spread limit. Getting rid of these games will cut down on the number of contests that you need to handicap while staying away from backdoor or front-door covers.
What is a backdoor and front-door cover you ask? A backdoor cover is a team that is getting beat by more than the spread, but scores late to get within that number thus covering the spread. A front-door cover is just the opposite where the favorite scores late and covers the number they are favored by.
These front-door and backdoor covers are common when second and third string players enter games in college football and it can be the worst nightmare for some bettors. These players can also be your best friend, but ask any bettor and he will give you more instances on losing in this situation than winning. It just seems to work out that way even though everything evens out in the end.
College football betting has some of the softest lines of any sport and it’s being able to find these lines that will make you a successful college football handicapper. The NFL and NBA have the tightest lines around and while those sports can be beat by looking at situations and systems, college football doesn’t quite work that way. It’s much more manual, but when done correctly, it’s much more gratifying as well.
Getting into the nuts and bolts of college football means looking at the many stats in order to beat the number. As opposed to pro football, college football is less dependent on situations and angles and more on certain statistics. Rushing offense and defense, pass efficiency offense and defense and turnover margins are huge. These are vital in the NFL, but even more so when it comes to college football.
Being able to run the ball in college football has always been a key factor in the overall success of a team. The same adage also goes for teams who have the ability to stop the run. Putting these two factors together can produce some positive results in a team’s record both straight up and against the spread. These numbers show huge differences in teams and the spread may not take those into effect, which is where the value comes into play.
Passing yardage numbers both for and against can be a misinterpreted statistic. However, pass efficiency has always been one of the best ways to look at a teams’ passing game ability both offensively and defensively. But is it really a true indication of how they perform? I wouldn’t say so since they are raw passing numbers with nothing else taken into consideration.
I use pass efficiency ratings when doing my handicapping but I adjust my numbers based on a number of factors including power ratings, strength of schedules, personnel and injuries. This gives a much better picture of a team’s ability to pass effectively and also being able to defend the pass. Tweaking pass efficiency stats instead of raw passing yards is the key.
Turnovers are the single most frustrating, and at times the most gratifying, aspect of a college football lines, mostly because they are so unpredictable. They are part of the game and most of the time nothing can be done to control them. However, turnovers are contagious and they can carry over from game to game and season to season.
It’s important to know how to forecast these unforeseen events and how to use them to your advantage. You can find ways to give yourself an edge by looking at past histories of teams and coaches and how they have fared in turnover wars in the past. Instead of turnovers hurting you at the wrong times, find ways to use them to your advantage.
As you can see, college football handicapping is very labor intensive and isn’t just based on where teams are ranked in the AP and coaches polls. Experience, coaching and match-ups are all important since unlike the NFL, college teams turn over much more often with new personnel at most positions every single year. Keeping current on this information is vital.
Betting NCAA football can be lucrative if done correctly, but more importantly, it’s just plain enjoyable because it can be beat. College football is one of the best sports to watch with some of the best rivalries taking place in all of sports. The only downfall is that a championship isn’t decided on the field but on a computer-based system that is the Bowl Championship Series. That will change someday and we will all be better off for it.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your NCAA college football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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