FBS Football: Agent-Gate 2010

NCAA Football Betting Lines

07/28/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Throwing the word "Gate" behind subject matter gives the impression of impropriety, and in turn draws a line in the sand for those trying to decide what to make of an issue.

At SEC Football Media Day earlier this month, Alabama head coach Nick Saban described unscrupulous sports agents as "pimps." While I'm sure there are some people out there, especially among the collegiate coaching ranks, that believe that comparison gives pimps a bad name, is Saban really serious? I mean, in watching his press conference it was hard not to think that Ashton Kutcher was going to walk out at some point and let us all know we were being punked.

Saban's comments may have been a knee-jerk reaction to the recent discovery that one of his top players, defensive end Marcel Dareus, is under investigation by the NCAA for attending a party in South Beach funded by an NFL agent. More absurd and transparent comments would come later, when Saban suggested that Alabama may be best served to sever its ties with the NFL.

Are you kidding me?

Cutting ties with the NFL for Alabama would be tantamount to program suicide. Saban himself would soon be looking for another job if he wasn't able to go into recruits' living rooms and tout the successful transition from the University of Alabama football program to the NFL.

For a lot of college recruits, the NFL carrot determines where they will go to school. For many, such a career is all that matters. Escaping their current situation and becoming a savior to their family and friends is the only incentive needed to make a decision, and the promise of an NFL salary certainly tips the scales.

What sports agents are doing is no different than what collegiate coaches do in courting high school kids. The only real difference is that the NCAA actively investigates the first, while all but turning a blind eye to the below-board things that happen with the latter.

The programs themselves often look the other way in regard to their own boosters, who lavish gifts on the truly talented players, yet the same schools are crying foul when sports agents do the very same thing?

The argument against such activity is that the student-athlete receives a first-class education at little to no cost, and that should be sufficient reward. The reality, however, in the case of top football programs, is that the student-athlete generates far more revenue for the schools than benefits received, and what the school gets out of the relationship monetarily far outweighs what the player attains.

The task of bridging that gap has fallen on the sports agent. In all professions there are good and bad practitioners. While some agents will go to any extreme to get their hooks into a potential client and exploit their current situations, there are plenty of others that follow the rules to the letter of the law.

College football at the highest level, is a money-making machine. Everyone in the process seems to get a piece of the pie, from gamblers to universities to the coaches they employ. However, the NCAA says that the only ones "not allowed" to get in on the action are the young men who actually play the game.

We can't have it both ways. If college football at the FBS level is a business, why are we outraged that student-athletes are starting to make business decisions?

South Carolina, Georgia and Florida have joined the group of SEC programs under NCAA scrutiny for what it deems to be improper contact with agents.

In the wake of all the press given to Reggie Bush's transgressions at USC, expect similar stories across the nation to pop up as the 2010 season approaches and throughout the year.

This particular problem has always been here, and until the NCAA lessens the restrictions on the student-athlete, Agent-Gate isn't going away anytime soon.

Wsbgglobal NCAA Football Betting News

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2007 Academy Award Betting : Oscars odds

The 79th Annual Academy Awards odds , which will air February 25th, is sparking an interest throughout the nation with the announcement of its nominees. As the public chooses their favorites, sportsbooks are creating odds for one of the biggest entertainment betting nights of the year.

Whether its at a “Oscar Party” or in an on line sportsbook, entertainment gambling on award shows represent a huge increase in betting. As the public speculation mounts, MySportsbook.com, the largest and most respected sportsbook on the web, posted odds on who is going home with a “Golden Best Friend.”

“ We see a majority of our entertainment wagers come from the Academy Awards,” said MySportsbook.com spokesperson, Tim Dalton. “This is a competition that applies to everyone. These are the people that entertain us on a daily basis and you want to see them win.”

MySportsbook.com posted the following odds for Academy Awards:

Odds to win the Achievement in Directing:

Alejandro González Iñárritu "Babel": 8/1

Martin Scorsese "The Departed": 2/17

Clint Eastwood "Letters From Iwo Jima: 4/1

Stephen Frears "The Queen": 12/1

Paul Greengrass "United 93": 15/1

Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role:

Leonardo DiCaprio in "Blood Diamond": 11/1

Ryan Gosling in "Half Nelson": 20/1

Peter O’Toole in "Venus": 16/5

Will Smith in "The Pursuit of Happyness": 16/1

Forest Whitaker in "The Last King of Scotland": 1/11

Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role:

Penélope Cruz in "Volver": 18/1

Judi Dench in "Notes on a Scandal": 15/1

Helen Mirren in "The Queen": 1/50

Meryl Streep in "The Devil Wears Prada": 10/1

Kate Winslet in "Little Children": 20/1

Best Animated Feature Film:

"Cars": 1/3

"Happy Feet": 2/1

"Monster House": 20/1

Best Foreign-Language Film of the Year:

"Water" – Canada: 22/1

"The Lives of Others" – Germany: 7/2

"After the Wedding" - Denmark: 24/1

"Days of Glory (Indigenes)" – Algeria: 23/1

"Pan's Labyrinth" - Mexico: 1/10

Odds to win the Best Live-Action Short Film:

"Binta and the Great Idea (Binta Y La Gran Idea)": 6/5

"Eramos Pocos (One Too Many)": 7/2

"Helmer & Son": 5/2

"The Saviour": 6/1

"West Bank Story": 7/2

Odds to win the Best Original Screenplay:

"Babel": 7/4

"Letters From Iwo Jima": 3/1

"Little Miss Sunshine": 21/20

"Pan's Labyrinth": 11/4

"The Queen": 5/4

Best Motion Picture of the Year:

"Babel": 11/4

"The Departed": 1/2

"Letters from Iwo Jima": 15/2

"Little Miss Sunshine": 17/10

"The Queen": 20/1

Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role:

Alan Arkin in "Little Miss Sunshine": 11/10

Jackie Earle Haley in "Little Children": 10/1

Djimon Hounsou in "Blood Diamond": 9/1

Eddie Murphy in "Dreamgirls": 2/5

Mark Wahlberg in "The Departed": 5/1

Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role:

Adriana Barraza in "Babel": 14/1

Cate Blanchett in "Notes on a Scandal": 11/1

Abigail Breslin in "Little Miss Sunshine": 2/1

Jennifer Hudson in "Dreamgirls": 1/8

Rinko Kikuchi in "Babel": 11/1

Film To Win Most Oscars:

Dreamgirls: 2/3

Pans Labyrinth: 6/5

The Departed: 6/1

The Queen: 11/1

Babel: 15/1

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest: 11/1

Little Miss Sunshine: 15/1


Additional sports and entertainment odds can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.

NFL Football Betting : Odds on NFL Division to Win the Super Bowl

NFL Super Bowl Betting

The AFC South and the NFC East are the favorite divisions to have the next Super Bowl champ among them in the NFL betting odds. But more down to the point, these football odds are in favor of the Indianapolis Colts, by far the strongest team in the AFC South, and the Dallas Cowboys of the NFC East.

Most sports fans would agree that these two teams top the list to win it all before the season even begins. In the BetUS Sportsbook football futures, the Colts are +800 in the odds to win the Super Bowl, while the Cowboys are sitting at +1000 and the Super Bowl XLIV champions New Orleans Saints at +900. In the AFC South, the Colts won the division for five straight years after the 2002 realignment, before the Tennessee Titans won it in 2008. But the Colts came back strong in 2009 to win the division again en route to the Super Bowl. The Cowboys are the favorite to win the NFC East, as well as to advance far into the post season. The Cowboys won the division last season before their horrendous loss in the NFC Divisional playoff to Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings. But the ‘Boys will take that loss humbly and be ready for the playoffs this time around.

The NFC South is also very strong, at +600 in the NFL futures, considering that it is home to the defending Super Bowl champions. However, some predictions have the Atlanta Falcons with possibilities of claiming the divisional title this season in place of the Saints, as no team has won back-to-back division championships since the division realignment took place. Let’s not overlook the AFC North at +500. As TO goes to Cincinnati to join Chad OchoCinco and Adam “Pac-Man” Jones, this team looks to claim the division title again. And it is likely they will do so. The Bengals lost in the AFC Wild Card spot in a hard-fought battle against the New York Jets last season. Lest not forget the Pittsburgh Steelers, the XLII Super Bowl Champions… All these teams present interesting odds and matchups for the upcoming season, but the safest and surest bet seems to be with the Colts in the AFC South and the Cowboys in the NFC East. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win.

To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.