Rec and Sports

Duke University is far from being a national college football powerhouse, but they’re no longer a team you can take lightly either. #6 ranked Virginia Tech found that out on Saturday, and what they expected to be an easy afternoon became a tightly contested affair. Ultimately, the Hokies would survive for a 34-26 road victory. Virginia Tech improved their record to 4-1, while Duke dropped to 2-3 on the 2009 college football season.

Despite the straight up loss, Duke won where it counted as they rewarded sports players who bet on college football with the ATS victory as +17 home underdogs. Duke evened their mark at 2-2 in their lined games, while the Hokies dropped to 2-3 against the spread. The 60 combined points scored went well OVER the posted total of 48. Virginia Tech has gone OVER in 3 of 5 games this year, while Duke has gone OVER in all three of their games with posted totals.

The Hokies were saved by the career day posted by their quarterback, Tyrod Taylor. Taylor threw for 327 yards on 17 of 22 passing and two touchdown passes with no interceptions. After the game, Taylor modestly downplayed his own impact on the outcome of the game:

“I know we have a lot of talent on the offensive side of the ball. It’s just my job to get the ball to them.”

Venerable Tech coach Frank Beamer saw his team defeat Duke for the ninth straight time, but noted:

“I don’t think that’s the old Duke football team.

Blue Devils coach David Cuttcliffe said his team is reaching the point where moral victories don’t provide enough satisfaction:

“We got close enough in the fourth quarter to go beat a great team. Once you taste that, you like it. I wouldn’t say we spit it out — it wasn’t a choke — but we just didn’t finish.”

Despite getting the win, Hokies coach Beamer was critical of his teams performance:

“Too many penalties and too many long plays. We weren’t as sharp as we would like, but I don’t think it was lack of effort. Part of it was Duke, and part of it was us. … Sometimes I think you’ve just got to win some games that’s not real pretty on the road, and this is probably one of those.”

Still, he praised his team for doing what they needed to do to preserve the victory:

“When we needed to run the football, and we did, and got points, that was critical to this ball game. They were going to take the run away, so you’ve got to be able to throw the ball.”

Virginia Tech will host Boston College next Saturday before traveling to Atlanta the following weekend for a game against Georgia Tech. Theyll enjoy a bye week before a nationally televised Thursday night game at home against North Carolina on October 29th. Duke will play at North Carolina State next Saturday before a bye week. Theyll return to action at home on October 24th against the University of Maryland and play on the road at Virginia the following week.

Ross Everett is a widely published freelance sports writer and respected authority on price per head. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sportsbooks and offshore bookmaking sites. He lives in Las Vegas with three Jack Russell Terriers and an emu. He is currently working on an autobiography of former interior secretary James Watt.

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The Baltimore Ravens are clearly responding to first year defensive coordinator Greg Mattison. In Mattison’s debut as an NFL coordinator the Ravens obliterated their regional rivals the Washington Redskins, completing a shutout by a final score of 23-0.

There had been some concern about the Ravens lack of depth at wide receiver, but on this night at least that wasn’t an issue. 15 different players caught passes and after the game backup QB Troy Smith said that Ravens signal callers had been instructed to get as many players involved in the offense as possible:

“It’s been drilled into both our heads to spread the ball around, to not have tunnel vision. The sky’s the limit for us.”

Starting QB Joe Flacco was pleased with the effort:

“As an offense, everything felt really good. I was happy with the way our receivers and running backs were moving. Our line did a heck of a job for being their first time out. I didn’t have to do anything but sit in the pocket and make throws.”

The Ravens defense, meanwhile, was simply stifling. Washington never got closer than the Baltimore 30 yardline, and 9 of their 12 drives failed to reach midfield. For that reason, new coordinator Mattison was awarded the game ball in his first NFL assignment. Head coach John Harbaugh joked about that fact afterwards:

“I don’t know how he’s going to do it, but he said he’s going to divide it up for every one of the 80 guys on the team.

Redskins coach Jim Zorn remained upbeat:

“This is a tremendous tool for us to use. We look for these things, these learning situations.”

The Redskins will open the NFL regular season with a big divisional tilt against the New York Giants at The Meadowlands on Sunday, September 13 while Baltimore will host the Kansas City Chiefs.

Ross Everett is a freelance writer and noted authority on price per head. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sports news and offshore bookmaking sites. He lives in Las Vegas, Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and an emu. He is currently working on an autobiography of former energy secretary Donald Hodell.

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Oklahoma State had been riding high in the college football polls, fresh off a decisive victory over Georgia last Saturday. Perhaps for that reason, Oklahoma State didn’t come out with a whole lot of intensity and by halftime found themselves in a 24-7 hole to their opponents. State would rally in the second half, but Houston would eventually prevail for a 35-25 victory. The win was Houston’s first triumph over a top five opponent since defeating then #3 ranked Texas back in 1984.

College football betting enthusiasts who took the points with the Cougars as a +10 road underdog were rewarded with their outright victory. The victory by Houston broke form with a couple of pointspread trends”the Cougars had failed to cover in 7 of their last eight games played on turf. Oklahoma State, meanwhile, on a 10-3 ATS run as a favorite. The 60 combined points went well OVER the posted total of 35 and while it was something of a surprise that it exceeded that total by so much its worth noting that the previous two meetings between the teams also went OVER.

The Cougars got a number of lucky breaks in the game, but a win is a win. Second year coach Kevin Sumlin expressed what the victory means to the Cougar program in his postgame comments to the media:

“For us as a program, this is a big win because it legitimizes our university. It legitimizes our program. There’s no doubt that one win does not make a season. We’ve got a whole bunch of football to go. “But I think any time that you can go on the road and win and beat a Top 10 team, it really helps your confidence as a program and it helps your pride as a university.”

Cougars QB Chase Keenum threw for 366 yards and three touchdown, including the go ahead score. Keenum acknowledged the favorable bounces, but contended that his teams luck was a by-product of hard work:

“You can say it’s luck but when you’re working hard and working to get open and running full speed, that’s not luck. When you’re in position to make plays — no matter how they are — that’s not luck at all.”

Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant dismissed speculation that theyd taken Houston lightly:

“We didn’t overlook them at all. We practiced like we practiced for Georgia and any other team. We just made too many mistakes and they took advantage and made plays.”

Houston improved its straight up record to 2-0 and will enjoy a bye week next week before returning to action on September 26 at home against Texas Tech. Theyll make the short trip to El Paso for a game against UTEP the following Saturday. Oklahoma State has a couple of games against teams they should beat coming up, next weekend against Rice and the following Saturday against FCS Grambling. Theyll step up in class for an October 10th game on the road against Texas A&M before hosting Missouri the following week.

Ross Everett is a widely published freelance writer and highly respected authority on price per head. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sports news and offshore bookmaking sites. He lives in Southern Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and a kangaroo. He is currently working on an autobiography of former energy secretary Donald Hodell.

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NY Jets rookie QB Mark Sanchez struggled early, though recovered to throw a TD before he left the game for the night. Despite the score, the Baltimore Ravens held on to defeat the Jets 24-23. Baltimore improved to 2-0 on the NFL preseason while the Jets dropped to 0-2.

Sanchez, who is trying to win the Jets starting QB job threw an errant pass that was intercepted and returned for a touchdown on his first drive. After the game, he spoke of the play:

“Not obviously the way you want to start. I thought I was doing the right thing; I felt Ray come free on the right side from the protection. I was checking it down to the flat, perfect. Haloti just jumped right in front of the ball and made a really athletic play.”

Ravens defensive leader Ray Lewis said they took advantage of the young QBs inexperience:

“You put a young guy like Sanchez in there and you see our defense, it can be difficult. You saw his eyes get big, and he was jumping around in the pocket. Bottom line: We gave a lot of looks and disguises and we confused him a little bit.”

Sanchez agreed:

“Oh, they were flying. They were flying around. You practice for it and you see it on film. These guys were doing it. You’re trying to keep one eye on Ed Reed and one eye on Ray Lewis and a D-lineman gets you.”

Jets head coach Rex Ryan talked about his QB’s play after the game:

“I’m proud of the way he responded. It ain’t going to be perfect; sometimes you have these type of nights. You’ve got to give credit where credit is due, and most of that goes to their defense.”

The Jets will continue their preseason slate as they take on their local rivals the New York Giants next Saturday night. Baltimore will travel to Carolina for a game against the Panthers. The Jets will get the NFL regular season underway on Sunday, September 13th as they travel to Houston to play the Texans. The Ravens will host the Kansas City Chiefs.

Ross Everett is a freelance sports writer and respected authority on price per head. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sportsbooks and offshore bookmaking sites. He lives in Southern Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and a kangaroo. He is currently working on an autobiography of former interior secretary James Watt.

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Despite the fact that neither their starting QB Carson Palmer nor his Indy counterpart Peyton Manning saw action, the Cincinnati Bengals will take their wins however and whenever they can get them. For that reason, they had to be heartened by their NFL preseason ending 38-7 home rout of the Indianapolis Colts. The Bengals rushing game put 296 yards on the board and Cincinnati trounced Indianapolis in every significant offense statistical category. The Bengals evened their NFL preseason record at 2-2, while the Colts dropped to 1-3.

The Bengals easily covered as a -3 home favorite, evening their NFL preseason record against the spread at 2-2. The Colts ATS mark also matched their SU record, dropping to 1-3 on the exhibition season.

Peyton Mannings backup, Jim Sorgi, put up a solid performance in limited playing time after missing much of the preseason with a hamstring injury. Sorgi threw for 119 yards on 11 for 19 passing and a touchdown. After the game, he gave a generally upbeat assessment of his play:

“I thought it was pretty solid. I got a little winded out there but all in all, I thought I saw everything real good and got us into the right plays. The hamstring responded pretty well tonight.”

The Colts first year head coach Jim Caldwell agreed:

“He hasn’t had much playing time. I thought he found his way out there. He put a pretty good game together and showed some flashes of what he can do.”

Despite the game being a battle of reserve players, Bengals coach Marvin Lewis was still happy with getting the win:

“You can’t control who you play against. It was good to let our guys break a sweat and get out there and go.”

Bengals starting QB Carson Palmer, who has sat out much of the preseason with an ankle sprain, said that hes anxious to get back in the game. Palmer will enter his regular season without much preparation, having thrown only 11 passes in exhibition play:

“It’s a tease. It’s just good to know that I’m that much closer. It’s a week away. I’m excited.”

Indianapolis will start their NFL regular season schedule on Sunday, September 13th as they host the Jacksonville Jaguars at Lucas Oil Stadium. Theyll head out on the road for their next contest, playing the Miami Dolphins in south Florida on Monday, September 21. The Bengals will host the Denver Broncos in their 2009 NFL season opener, with a road game on tap for week #2 as they head to Green Bay for a game against the Packers on Sunday, September 20.

Ross Everett is a widely published freelance writer and respected authority on pay per head. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sports news and per head betting sites. He lives in Northern Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and a kangaroo. He is currently working on an autobiography of former energy secretary Donald Hodell.

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It wasn’t a game for the ages by the Buffalo Bills, as they blew much of a 17 point lead to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Still, they did what they had to do and put some offense on the board en route to a 33-20 National Football League victory. The Bills shot out to a 17-0 first quarter lead before Tampa Bay answered with 14 of their own in the second quarter.

NFL sports betting enthusiasts who took the Bills as -4 home favorites cashed their tickets with the pointspread cover. Despite a 1-1 straight up record, Buffalo improved to 2-0 against the spread. Tampa Bay has lost both of their 2009 NFL games straight up and against the number for a 0-2 mark in both categories. The combined 53 points put on the scoreboard went OVER the posted total of 41.

Terrell Owens capped the game with a long touchdown reception in the fourth quarter. Quarterback Trent Edwards expressed his excitement and seeing T.O show some of his ability to be a deep threat for the team:

I was excited and he was excited. I don’t really recall what was said, but I’m honestly hoping that that continues to happen. I think that’s why we have him.”

“We learned our lesson from last week and it’s a valuable lesson we’re going to need throughout the season. We have to finish games and that’s what we did today.”

Lee Evans also caught a touchdown pass from Edwards, and after the game praised his quarterback:

“It comes down to opportunities. I think Trent wasn’t afraid to take any chances. You always have to have that threat of the deep play. I think we put it on the table today that we would.”

A team long known for its suffocating defenses, Tampa Bay has struggled to stop opposing offenses in the first two NFL regular season games under new head coach Raheem Morris. The Bucs allowed over 900 yards of offense this season, a fact that defensive stalwart Ronde Barber stressed was unacceptable:

“They dialed up some things on us that we should have stopped but we didn’t. Ask the coaches that. I’m not willing to make a statement on that. It’s really unacceptable. Good defenses are good tackling defenses.”

Morris, meanwhile, tried to project an aura of calm:

“I’m not worried about their confidence but these guys got to play better.”

The Bills now host the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, with Buffalo installed as +6 home underdogs. The total for the game has been set at 52. Buffalo will travel to Miami the following Sunday to play the Dolphins before returning home on 10/11 to take on the Cleveland Browns. Tampa Bay faces three tough NFC East opponents in the coming weeks, beginning with a Sunday home game against the New York Giants. The Bucs are +6 home underdogs in that game with the total set at 44.

Ross Everett is a widely published widely published freelance sports writer and noted authority on pay per head. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sports news and per head betting sites. He lives in Las Vegas with three Jack Russell Terriers and a kangaroo. He is currently working on an autobiography of former energy secretary Donald Hodell.

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The New York Giants jumped out to a 17-0 lead against their NFC East rivals from Washington, and were never threatened as they went on to beat the Redskins by a final score of 23-17. Defensive stalwart Osi Umenyiora returned from a serious knee injury and scored a touchdown on a fumble return, while the Giants offense controlled the ball well and completely dominated the time of possession. The Giants held a lopsided edge of 36:08 to 23:52 in that department, which helped them overcome a couple of turnovers. Eli Manning played well, throwing for 259 yards and a touchdown to counteract one interception.

NFL sports betting enthusiasts who took the Redskins as +5 road underdogs were likely not heartened by the near miss on a backdoor cover. The Redskins scored a touchdown with 1:30 left to get within a ” point of the spread but the Giants still got the cover by the slimmest of margins. The Skins dropped to 13-17 ATS over the past three years with the setback, while New York improved their pointspread mark to an impressive 27-11 against the number. NFL totals players also witnessed a late game change of fortune due to the Skins touchdown, with the 7 points pushing the point total OVER the posted 37.

None of the Giants players were as elated with the victory as defensive end Umenyiora. Hed missed the entire 2008 season due to a knee injury, and was happy to not only be back on the field but contributing to a victory:

“It was unbelievable and now all that is in the past. I can’t even explain it to you, when something like that is taken away from you. Last year I missed it. I was happy I was able to come back in there.”

His touchdown return came in the second quarter, when he knocked the ball away from Redskins QB Jason Campbell and headed for the endzone:

“To be honest, I don’t know what happened. That’s the way most plays are made. You just go out there and sometimes good things happen. They always get on me about knocking the ball out and not picking it up. When I saw it, I just picked it up.”

Campbell chalked it up to a simple mental lapse that resulted in him holding onto the ball too long:

“Osi made a great play on the ball. It’s something you have to understand as a quarterback you have to feel it more or slide up in the pocket.”

Umenyiora affirmed that it couldnt have been a better return to the NFL:

“Not only was it a W, but it was against an NFC East opponent. It was a great game.”

The Redskins will have a great opportunity to cash in their first win of the season this week as they step down in class to host the lowly St. Louis Rams. The Skins are a -10 home favorite with the total set at 36. The Giants have another big game on Sunday as they head to Dallas to face the Cowboys in the first regular season game in the new Cowboys Stadium. The Giants are a +3 road dog with the total set at 44. New York will carry a couple of amazing ATS runs into the game”the Giants are 12-3 against the spread as an underdog over the past three years, and have a 15-3 mark on the road.

Ross Everett is a freelance sports writer and respected authority on pay per head. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sports news and per head betting sites. He lives in Southern Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and a kangaroo. He is currently working on an autobiography of former energy secretary Donald Hodell.

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The NFL couldn’t have scripted a better ending to the first nationally televised Monday Night Football contest of the preseason. New York Giants rookie Tommie Hill returned a fumble 18 yards for a touchdown with 0:00 on the clock to break a deadlocked game and give his team a 24-17 victory over the Carolina Panthers in NFL preseason action at The Meadowlands.

Carolina’s fourth string QB Hunter Cantwell was in a position where he just had to take a knee and run out the clock on first and 10 from his eighteen yard line. Instead, he tried to throw a pass only to have his arm hit forcing a fumble. Hill grabbed the loose ball and headed to the endzone for the shockingly bizarre finish and a Giants victory.

Afterwards, Hill spoke about his game winning touchdown return:

“I’ve never seen a game end like that, not that way. I’m just a rookie trying to make the team. Anything like that that helps the team win in turn helps me. It was just a fortunate situation and I made the most of it.”

Hill, an undrafted rookie out of Colorado State had already become a favorite of Giants fans due to his tenacious, high impact playmaking. His touchdown”the first hes scored since high school”will only help his efforts to make the NFL roster.

Carolina coach John Fox sounded bemused at his teams unusual loss:

“Kind of an interesting ending. Both sides have a lot of work, but we have time. We have three weeks to do it

Giants QB Eli Manning, who recently became the NFLs highest paid player, put a positive spin on his short night of work:

“We ran the ball really well, hit a couple passes and we got a touchdown. That is always the goal. We did a nice job with it, so I thought we were effective as the first group.”

Carolina will travel to Miami for a game next Saturday against the Dolphins. The Giants will head to Chicago to face Jay Cutler and the Bears.

Ross Everett is a widely published freelance writer and noted authority on pay per head. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sportsbooks and per head betting sites. He lives in Las Vegas with three Jack Russell Terriers and an emu. He is currently working on an autobiography of former interior secretary James Watt.

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The New Orleans Saints used a 14 point fourth quarter to defeat the Indianapolis Colts 31-17 on Sunday to win their first Superbowl in franchise history. Drew Brees broke open a tight game midway through the final quarter with his touchdown pass to Jeremy Shockey, and Tracy Porter scored on a 74 yard interception return as the Colts were driving on the next series to secure the victory. Brees was named Superbowl MVP on the basis of his 288 yard, 2 touchdown, 0 interception performance.

After enthusiasts had come in early on the favored Colts, a good deal of buyback on the Saints had pushed the line to -4′ and the New Orleans backers were enriched by their team’s outright victory. The underdog has now covered three straight Superbowls and taken the money in five of the last seven games. The 48 points scored stayed well under the posted total of 57, which was the highest over/under number in Superbowl history.

In his postgame comments, a fabulously elated Brees gave much of the credit to the city of New Orleans:

“We play for so much more than ourselves. We played for our city. We played for the entire Gulf Coast region. We played for the entire Who Dat nation that has been behind us every step of the way. It means everything. We’re here because of their strength and everything they fought through here the last few years. They’ve given us so much support, so we owe it all to our fans.”

“Just to think of the road we’ve all traveled, the adversity we’ve all faced. It’s unbelievable. I mean, are you kidding me? Four years ago, whoever thought this would be happening? Eighty-five percent of the city was under water. Most people left not knowing if New Orleans would ever come back, or if the organization would ever come back. We just all looked at one another and said, ‘We’re going to rebuild together. We are going to lean on each other.’ That’s what we’ve done the last four years and this is the culmination in all that belief.”

Peyton Manning had little to say after the game particularly about the decisive interception return:

“Made a great play. Made a great play. Corner made a heck of a play. Certainly disappointing, very disappointing. Disappointing.”

Saints’ coach Sean Payton made a bold call at the beginning of the second half when he called for an onside kick. New Orleans linebacker Jonathan Casalis suggested it was a game changing play:

“We were really excited when he made the call. That changed everything.”

Payton explained the unusual decision:

“We’re going to be aggressive. We’d seen the onside kick all week and guys executed it well. It turned out to be a big change of possession.”

The city of New Orleans will celebrate their team’s victory with a parade. With Mardi Gras celebrations already scheduled to begin shortly thereafter, it could be quite some time before New Orleans returns to business as usual. New Orleans is usually as fabulous as flamboyant skater Johnny Weir emerging out of a gold Faberge egg, but will be even more so now.

Ross Everett is a widely published widely published freelance sports writer and respected authority on price per head. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sports news and pay per head sites. He lives in Southern Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and a kangaroo. He is currently working on an autobiography of former energy secretary Donald Hodell.

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While not a vintage performance by their lofty standards, the University of Southern California Trojans overcame a number of mistakes to make big plays when they counted to prevail in a come from behind victory over Ohio State. Stafon Johnson capped a late game drive by scoring the game winning touchdown with just over a minute remaining as the Trojans won by a final score of 18-15. It was the first time the Trojans held the lead since early in the first quarter. The USC victory moved their record on the college football season to 2-0, while the Buckeyes dropped to 1-1.

Ohio State did cash tickets for college football bettors, however, covering the spread as a +7 home underdog. USC won and covered last year, but the pointspread setback this year dropped the Trojans to a still impressive 13-5 ATS against the Big Ten conference since 1992. It was also only the second non-cover by a USC team in a non conference game in their last ten opportunities.

19 year old freshman Matt Barkley engineered the game changing comeback drive good for 14 plays and 86 yards. After the game, he spoke of the Trojan tradition of victory:

“We’re Trojans. That’s what we do. This is what we dreamed of, coming back like this. Doesn’t matter where we are in the score. We found a way. I love this.”

Tailback Joe McKnight sarcastically dismissed suggestions that Barkley was ’scared’ by a Buckeye defense that had shut the potent Trojan offense down for the entire game:

“He was scared, really. No, he came in with the same composure he had the whole game. He was calm. He made plays.”

USC coach Pete Carroll commended Barkleys composure in such an intense and challenging environment:

“He’s not 19. He’s our quarterback. I’m not worried about how old he is. Numbers mean nothing.”

Ohio State linebacker Greg Rolle said his defense was playing at a very high level”until the final drive:

“It’s very frustrating, but we knew eventually they’d make plays. The last drive was heartbreaking. Give McKnight lots of credit on that last drive, he was good. The last drive was definitely, you go back and you think about, and you think about how close you came to winning.

Ohio State will travel to Toledo for a non-conference game before starting their Big 10 schedule at home against Illinois. USC now faces three straight Pac 10 games, starting next weekend on the road at the University of Washington. Theyll return home the following weekend for a game against Washington State.

Ross Everett is a widely published freelance sports writer and noted authority on pay per head. His writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sports news and per head betting sites. He lives in Las Vegas with three Jack Russell Terriers and an emu. He is currently working on an autobiography of former interior secretary James Watt.

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