Als seek return to win column in clash with Tiger-Cats
Football Betting Lines
09/08/2010 -
Hamilton, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Montreal Alouettes continue to compete
without the services of quarterback Anthony Calvillo as the team challenges
the Hamilton Tiger-Cats this weekend at Ivor Wynne Stadium.
Calvillo, who suffered a chest injury several weeks ago and sat out last
week's loss to British Columbia, says he is on the mend and feels better, but
the coaching staff has decided that sitting the superstar signal-caller would
be the in best interest of everyone involved, especially with the second half
of the season being so critical.
With Calvillo taking a seat again the Als are set to go with a backup, but
instead of letting Chris Leak handle the action it will be Adrian McPherson
who himself is fresh off the injured list after getting cleared to play
following a torn MCL suffered during training camp.
McPherson had some solid efforts for Montreal late last season and finished
2009 with six touchdown passes and a completion percentage of 68.1. More
importantly, as long as he is not tentative in the pocket and slowed too much
by a knee brace, his mobility at the position is more than the team is used to
with Calvillo. McPherson gained 351 yards on the ground, averaging close to
six yards per attempt a year ago and that's something the Tiger-Cats have to
plan for, even if the Montreal coaches want to limit how many times McPherson
puts himself in harm's way.
Last week the Als hosted British Columbia, one of the weakest clubs in the
league with just a single win at the time, but it just so happened that the
Lions picked that week to put together a strong effort on both sides of the
ball to come away with the overwhelming 38-17 victory at Montreal. Leak
started at quarterback for the Als, hitting 15-of-27 passes for 135 yards,
but he was sacked three times and intercepted twice, prompting the team to
insert Ricky Santos.
Santos, a former Walter Payton Award winner, stepped in and converted 10-of-12
passes for 93 yards and a pair of majors, but by then the help was too little,
too late for a Montreal squad that lost for the second time in the last three
outings and is just hanging on to first place in the Eastern Division over
both Hamilton and Toronto which enter this week with identical records at 5-4.
As for those Tiger-Cats, winners of three of their four home games this season
and a solid 5-2 within the division, they managed to take care of the Toronto
Argonauts last week by a final of 28-13 at home, even though the visitors held
them to a paltry 34 yards rushing on 14 attempts. While the run game was
stalling, Hamilton turned to Kevin Glenn to get them through and he didn't
disappoint as he hit on 27-of-33 passes for 313 yards and a score, shaking off
an interception and a sack along the way.
Defense was a mixed bag for Hamilton as the group allowed Cleo Lemon to light
up the airwaves for 350 yards, but at the same time the Tiger-Cats held the
opposing gunslinger without a major, sacked him three times and also picked
off a trio of passes.
Aside from making interceptions, Hamilton's pass defense is one of the weakest
in the league at the moment, allowing opponents to complete 65.8 percent of
their attempts, a mark that is second-to-last behind only Toronto (70 percent)
which has had trouble stopping everyone this year. Were it not for the three
INTs last week by Hamilton, the group would be even further off the pace in
the league given that they are bringing up the rear in that department with a
mere seven interceptions through nine games. Nevertheless, Hamilton is still
third in the league at the moment in terms of turnover margin with a plus
four.
Ahead of the Tiger-Cats in the turnover department is Montreal which is a plus
eight, mainly because Calvillo has been so careful with his throws this season
and has but three picks in 288 attempts. Unfortunately for the Als, they'll
have to wait at least one more week to get Calvillo's magic arm back in the
lineup.
The loss of Calvillo against BC shouldn't have brought down the Als, but maybe
the Lions saw the opportunity to score a huge victory and took advantage of
the situation. Even though McPherson is coming off the injured list and is
somewhat inexperienced, at this juncture he gives the Alouettes their best
chance at winning, despite what Santos was able to accomplish in mop-up duty
last week. Unfortunately for the signal-callers available for the Als this
weekend, not one of them has yet to even attempt a pass against Hamilton and
that can't be a good omen.
Montreal's lack of experience at the QB spot against Hamilton might also mean
the Tiger-Cats won't be ready for what the Als throw at them this time around.
It should also give Avon Cobourne reason to think he might gets his hands on
the ball more for Montreal as well, after gaining just 57 yards on 13 attempts
last week. One of the most dominant runners in the CFL a year ago, Cobourne is
currently seventh in the league with just 460 yards and three TDs, averaging
less than five yards per attempt.
With respect to the all-time series between these two clubs, Montreal owns an
84-74-7 in the regular season dating back to 1950. The Alouettes have taken
five in a row against Hamilton and 13 of the last 14 encounters, including a
37-14 romp in Montreal back in July.
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Familiar foes do battle in Winnipeg >>
Winnipeg, MB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - For the second time in as many weeks the
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Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fresh off a huge upset win against the
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Mets to wrap up long trip with matinee against Nats >>
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Washington Nationals' thing.
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Red Sox, Rays ready for rubber match at Fenway >>
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After getting blown out in the opener of this set
SPORTS BETTING - Tennis is an underrated and under-utilized bettors' sport.
Ten years ago, at just about this time, I called Alan Boston in Vegas and left him a voicemail that went something like this (abridged version): "Hey Alan, Chad Millman from ESPN The Magazine calling. I want to do a book about wise guys, you in?"
A couple weeks later I got a message back (abridged version): "I don't know, maybe," Boston said. "Call me and we'll talk about it. But not later today. I got $1,000 on Andre Agassi to win the French Open at 40-1, and he's in the finals."
Here's what happened next (abridged version): Agassi won his tourney. Boston won his $40,000. I wrote sportsbook.
In the ten years since, how much has been wagered on the big-time tennis events? Put it this way: The Nevada Gaming Commission doesn't even track the number year by year because it's so small.
"Tennis makes up about one-tenth of one percent of our take," says Lucky's bookmaking boss Jimmy Vaccaro. "The last big golf major we probably had $100,000 worth of bets. In tennis, we might have written two big tickets."
Tennis' lack of popularity amongst the American bettoratti is no surprise, really. For starters, the biggest sports betting holidays -- the Super Bowl, the NCAA tourney -- are must see TV. People, at least the degenerates I know, plan vacations around watching those events in Vegas sports books.
But Wimbledon? Doesn't exactly reel in the whales. "Seriously, it's the nuts as an event," says Boston. "But who even knows when it's on?"
Here's another reason that helps explain why golf gets traction, something I call "The Bubbe Theory." My Bubbe is pushing 95 and has cataracts so bad that, to her, even the most crystalline Chicago day is mostly cloudy. But she still listens to the Cubs games, and she still calls me in a fit if she disagrees with something Rick Telander writes in the Chicago Sun Times. She's a sports fan. If she doesn't know you, you're just filling a niche. And niche players, even historically good ones like Roger and Raf, don't drive betting volume. Only the highest profile names attract square money, which inflates wagering totals like a shot of saline to the lips. Bubbe, and the public, loved Agassi, tennis' last cross-the-rubicon, mainstream draw. She also has a crush on Tiger. She's given me standing orders to put a sawbuck on the big cat whenever I walk through a sports book (or mistakenly tap into one via my Internet machine.) That explains why the Masters is getting $100K in action at some books while the four tennis majors might not get that combined this year.
This isn't a case of tennis being a difficult sport to bet. In fact, in Europe, it's probably the second most popular sport for gambling after soccer. Granted, as the WSJ football betting last week and The Mag's Shaun Assael examined in even greater depth last year, that might be because gamblers across the pond see it as an easy game to fix. But it could also be because, over there it holds the kind of sway the big two do over here.
Street corners in Spain are peppered with public courts and kids doing their best Raffy impressions. In some war torn parts of Eastern Europe poverty-stricken kids view tennis as an escape route, like football or basketball here. A couple years ago The Mag's Lindsay Berra wrote a great piece about Belgrade's Jelena Jankovic, Ana Ivanovic and Novak Djokovic. They learned the game as kids while bombs were raining down on their homeland. They practiced in drained swimming pools. Not exactly Nick Bolletierri conditions.
In the United States, casual fans think tennis is played four times a year. But on the tightly packed European continent, national interest in homegrown talent runs deep every weekend. Of the ATP's current top 20 players, only two, tennis betting and James Blake, are American. Fourteen are from Europe, representing six different countries.
No wonder fans from Lisbon to Bhudapest get jacked up for the net game, whether it's Wimbledon or a low-level tourney like the Estoril Open in Portugal (congrats to Spain's Albert Montanes for winning that one, btw). Chances are good that someone representing their flag will not only be playing, but have a shot at winning.
And that's all any bettor can ask for.
To visit this sports book go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.
Barry Bonds Watch: Giants Slugger Says He'll Be Back
With only 21 home runs standing between him and Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds is indeed planning on coming back for more in 2007. At least, that's what his agent told the Los Angeles Times.
"Barry's going to play in 2007," Jeff Borris of Beverly Hills Sports Council told the Times on Tuesday. "I've had many discussions with Barry and he's going to play. My intentions are to see to it he's in a big-league uniform next season. Those are my marching orders."
Contract negotiations could get started as early as next week. Let's see which team has the deeper pockets. Will MLB baseball betting lines despite allegations of steroid use? Bet On It at www.MySportsbook.com .
Get all your baseball betting lines, MLB lines and MLB team props at the My Sportbook.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your baseball sportsbook needs.
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Bonds nearly hits HR 751, SF wins
4 and drove in
a pair of runs, and Barry Bonds nearly hit homer No. 751 as San Francisco beat
1, in the middle contest of three at AT&T Park.
6) allowed five hits and one run over 6 2/3 innings, fanning
eight and walking three.
game slide.
Bonds, who came within five homers of Hank Aaron's record on Friday, went
1 with three walks, an RBI double and scored twice. The double ...
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