09/25/2008 - Elmont, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Curlin, 2007 Horse of the Year, will attempt to garner his second consecutive victory in Saturday's $750,000 Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont Park. A win in the 1 1/4 mile race is worth $450,000 and would make Curlin the first $10 million horse in thoroughbred history.
The two-time Eclipse Award winner will face eight challengers with a victory giving the winner automatic entry into the Breeders' Cup Classic. Curlin has drawn post five with Robby Albarado in the saddle.
Trained by Steve Asmussen, Curlin currently has career earnings of $9,796,800, second to all-time leader Cigar's record of $9,999,815. Skip Away is third with $9,616,360.
"That would be an outstanding achievement," assistant trainer Scott Blasi said about Curlin earning more than Cigar. "Cigar was an unbelievable horse. One of the goals from early in the year was to beat Cigar's record. To win this race for a second year in a row and to be compared to those horses would be a great honor."
Owned by Stonestreet and Midnight Cry Stables, Curlin won the Gold Cup last year as a three-year-old and began a streak of five straight stakes victories. The streak was stopped when the colt was second on the turf to Red Rocks in the Man o' War Stakes.
"He tends to come around in the fall," continued Blasi, "and he's pretty sharp right now. He loves the cool weather."
Curlin has won seven of his last eight starts, including last year's Breeders' Cup Classic and Dubai World Cup. Overall, he has 10 wins in 14 races.
If Curlin repeats in the Gold Cup, he will be the eighth horse to win back-to- back runnings of the event. The last horse to achieve the feat was Skip Away, the winner in 1996 and 1997. The other two-time winners were Mad Hatter (1921-22), Dark Secret (1933-34), Nashua (1955-56), Kelso (1960-64), the mare Shuvee (1970-71), Slew o'Gold (1983-84) and Crme Fraiche (1986-87). Firethorn won in 1935 and in 1937.
Mambo in Seattle, trained by Neil Howard, is expected to be the second favorite in the nine-horse field. The three-year-old is coming off a second place finish to Colonel John in the Travers Stakes.
Recent Hall of Fame inductee Edgar Prado picks up the mount since Robby Albarado is committed to ride Curlin. The pair will start from the far outside post.
"We understand what a tall order it is to go against a champion like Curlin," said Howard, who won the Jockey Club Gold Cup in 2003 with Mineshaft. "And it is always a big step up when a three-year-old goes up against older horses. We had the Super Derby in Louisiana as an option, but we had a feeling that Mambo in Seattle would love Belmont Park and would love to train here. Plus, it gave us another week after a tough race like the Travers."
Owned by Mrs. William Kilroy and William S. Farish, Mambo in Seattle has won three of six starts this year, including a minor stakes victory at Saratoga, for $323,229. He lost the Travers by the smallest of margins after a rally from 11th.
Here is the complete field for the Gold Cup in post position order: Ravel, Rafael Bejarano; Merchant Marine, Cornelio Velasquez; Timber Reserve, Kent Desormeaux; Wanderin Boy, Alan Garcia; Curlin, Robby Albarado; Angliana, Rajiv Maragh; A. P. Arrow, Ramon Dominguez; Stones River, Gabriel Saez and Mambo in Seattle, Edgar Prado.
The Jockey Club Gold Cup will be televised live on ESPNEWS. It will be the 10th race on an 11-race card, with a scheduled post-time of 5:52 p.m. (et).
<< Fraser, Lundberg share lead at The Belfry
West Midlands, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marcus Fraser and Mikael Lundberg
both opened with rounds of five-under-par 67 Thursday to share the lead after
the first round of the British Masters.
Fraser's lone tour win came at the 2003 Ru
<< Cardinals DE Berry out for game vs. Jets
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Cardinals defensive end Bertrand Berry will
miss Arizona's game against the New York Jets on Sunday with a groin tear.
Arizona head coach Ken Whisenhunt told the team's web site on Thursday that
Berry h
<< Pitt extends Dixon for three years
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Pittsburgh has signed head basketball coach
Jamie Dixon to a three-year contract extension that runs through the 2015-16
season.
Dixon is beginning his sixth season as head coach of the Panthers, and
<< Golf Tidbits: Grading the Ryder Cup captains
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former television mates Paul Azinger and
Nick Faldo battled last weekend in the 37th Ryder Cup, with Azinger besting
Faldo - again.
Azinger captained the United States team to its first win since 1999, and
Houston attempts another comeback with Knicks >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sweet-shooting but oft-injured guard Allan
Houston has signed with the New York Knicks and will attempt another comeback
with his former team.
Houston, who is fourth on the Knicks' career scoring list, si
Blue Jays sign Gaston to extension through 2010 >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Blue Jays announced a contract
extension on Thursday for repeat manager Cito Gaston, who has done well enough
in his stint this season to earn the job through the 2010 season.
Gaston, 64, enter
Rays bungle chance to clinch AL East in loss to Tigers >>
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ramon Santiago homered twice, and the Detroit
Tigers prevented the Rays from clinching the first division title in franchise
history with a 7-5 win over Tampa Bay in the opener of a four-game series.
Ben Zob
Kings sign Garcia to extension >>
Sacramento, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Sacramento Kings and swingman
Francisco Garcia reached an agreement in principle on a multi-year contract
extension Thursday.
"We are all gratified we were able to reach an agreement in
The NFL preseason is approaching. Time for players, coaches and teams to turn over a new leaf. General managers have hired some new coaches, while coaches have added some offensive and defensive assistants to try and improve things. Here’s a look at some changes to look for in the preseason.
New York Jets: The Jets were one of the surprise teams in the NFL last season, making the playoffs under hard-driving first-year coach Eric Mangini. Mangini rebuilt the offensive line with rookies D'Brickashaw Ferguson (the No. 4 pick in the 2007 Draft) and Ohio State center (the 29th pick in the first round). This season he upgraded the defense with rookie linebacker David Harris (Michigan) while the secondary picked up a much needed top-notch corner in Pitt CB Darrelle Revis (No. 14 overall).
The Jets have added balance to the offense for QB Chad Pennington with RB Thomas Jones, essentially stolen from the Bears. He will upgrade a New York ground game that was 20th in rushing with a weak 3.5 yards per carry. They have their first true feature back since Curtis Martin. Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer prefers ball control, like his father Marty. In preseason, behind Pennington you’ll see second-year QB Kellen Clemens and mobile newcomer QB Marques Tuiasosopo.
Jacksonville Jaguars: The heat is on Jack Del Rio in Jacksonville as the Jaguars flopped last season despite a ton of talent. Keep in mind that under Del Rio the Jaguars have been outstanding in preseason with a 12-4 SU, 11-5 ATS August mark. Their defense is loaded, it’s the offense that has been stuck in first gear the last few years.
Enter a new offensive coordinator in Dirk Koetter, the former Boise State and Arizona State pass-happy coach. He will try and upgrade a passing game that ranked 24th last season. Del Rio has criticized wide receivers and Matt Jones this summer, both of whom have battled injuries. It will be interesting to watch the “new” Jaguars passing game in preseason.
Arizona Cardinals: Word out of Arizona is that the players like new coach Ken Whisenhunt, who was the Steelers offensive coordinator last year. We think of Arizona as all-passing because their running game has been awful of late because of a poor offensive line. However, keep an eye on the running game in preseason as they’ve made a lot of changes.
The new coach brings in Russ Grimm to coach the offensive line (Grimm did a marvelous job building the Steelers line). They took Penn State OT Levi Jones in the first round and signed two offensive linemen, Mike Gandy and Al Johnson, to provide depth. Reggie Wells was moved from right tackle to left guard and they want more speed out of the offensive line for pulling and traps, a Pittsburgh staple under Bill Cowher.
Atlanta Falcons: While all the attention has been focused on QB Mike Vick’s off-field problems, new coach Bobby Petrino is revamping the Falcons from an all-running team to a more balanced one. Petrino likes the experience of backup QB Joey Harrington and he has veteran backup Chris Redman, who used to play for Petrino at Louisville and knows his offenses better than anyone. Petrino wants Vick to be more of a pocket passer.
The addition of FB Ovie Mughelli is a sign Petrino wants a power rushing attack behind a physical fullback and newcomer WR Joe Horn should upgrade what was a below average wideout corps. Petrino is changing their old zone-blocking scheme to a more traditional in-line blocking scheme and the offensive line is bigger. Rookie DE Jamaal Anderson was grabbed in the first round and the secondary got younger with former Auburn cornerback David Irons, who the Falcons think was a steal as a sixth-round pick.
Cleveland Browns: The 2007 Browns look like a double-edged sword. There was the excitement of the offseason, trading for RB Jamel Lewis, upgrading the offensive line with Wisconsin’s Joe Thomas (the No. 2 pick in the draft) and free agent LG Eric Steinbach, then trading for Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn when he fell to No. 22. GM Phil Savage and head coach Romeo Crennel feel they have a talented, balanced offense with these new pieces, plus TE >Kellen Winslow and WR Braylon Edwards.
However, were these moves made in desperation? And were they foolish ones? The Browns gave up their 2008 first-round pick for Quinn and we all know QBs take time to develop. And even first-round QBs can be busts (Joey Harrington, Akili Smith). We also don’t know if the offensive line is that much improved (31st in rushing in 2007) and they did nothing to improve a defense that was awful against the run (142 yds pg allowed).
The Browns have a new offensive coordinator in Rob Chudzinski. This is a young offense and Quinn looked tentative, indecisive and inaccurate early in camp. Crennel will play Charlie Frye, Quinn and Derek Anderson in preseason. And there is a mixed bag for rookie QBs receiving significant starts: Tim Couch (14), Kerry Collins (13), Ben Roethlisberger (13), Vince Young (13), Joey Harrington (12), Matt Leinart (11) and Kyle Boller (nine). While all the focus will be on the Browns new-look offense, I’m more concerned with the defense.
Carolina Panthers: Coach Jon Fox loves the ground game, but Carolina has made some interesting changes for 2007. Fox fired offensive coordinator Dan Henning and brings in Jeff Davidson to run the offense. Davidson has brought in zone-blocking schemes to the Panther offense, a dramatic change for a system that's been built around a power-running style.
In zone-blocking, offensive linemen are responsible for blocking any defender who appears in their zone, instead of focusing on one defender. The Broncos and Falcons have had success with the system, which features smaller, more athletic offensive linemen and can create running lanes on the inside and outside. Keep an eye in preseason on how Carolina adjusts as it will take time to learn the system. Fox has been one of the top coaches in preseason, with a 15-5 SU, 12-7-1 ATS August record.
Dallas Cowboys: WR Terrell Owens is still here, but QB Drew Bledsoe and Bill Parcells are gone. New head coach Wade Phillips takes over, replacing Parcells. He ran the Chargers defense last season. Phillips was chosen by teary-eyed owner Jerry Jones partly because he is one of the best 3-4 coaches in football and the Cowboys have loaded up on players for that scheme.
Remember that Phillips was blitz-happy with the Chargers last season and early reports out of the Dallas camp have mentioned how the Cowboys have been blitzing a lot, a departure from Parcells. The theme of the 2007 Dallas defense appears to be one of attack.
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MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined
Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting.
"They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over."
Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.)
According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26.
As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines).
Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday.
Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind.
Less possessions means a better chance the game will be decided by three or seven points. For example, what might have been a 20-10 final score in 2005 may end at
17-10 in 2007. Granted, a 24-17 game last year might end at 21-17 these days, but the former - a three- or seven-point advantage being preserved as opposed to created - is the most likely scenario.
*UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007
New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers
By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results.
"We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games."
While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season."
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