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02/15/2012 - Mississauga, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Argonauts re-signed free agent linebacker Jason Pottinger on Wednesday, keeping him with the club through the 2013 season.
"We are happy to be able to keep Jason in his hometown of Toronto. His athleticism, intelligence and leadership make him a valuable asset to our team," said Argos general manager Jim Barker. "His dedication to the Argos was never more evident than last season, when he played through an ACL injury, where many others would have not have even attempted to play. He represents everything an Argo should be and it was important for us to keep him here."
Pottinger suffered that knee injury in the 2011 season opener but returned in Week 10. He finished with 34 tackles and a pair of forced fumbles.
The former second-overall pick of British Columbia in 2006, the 28-year-old has totaled 162 tackles and five sacks with the Lions (2006-08) and Argonauts (2009-present).
"It's about time we bring pride back to the Double Blue and a Grey Cup to our dedicated fans," Pottinger said. "It's great to be able to continue to play in front of my family and friends and nothing would be sweeter than competing for a Grey Cup on home soil this year."
<< Long-time Astros broadcaster Hamilton to retire after 2012
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Milo Hamilton, who has been the voice of the
Houston Astros since 1985, announced on Wednesday that he intends to retire
following the upcoming season.
Hamilton will close the books on a career which s
<< Sam Houston State to play Baylor, Texas A&M
Huntsville, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sam Houston State won't take the easy way as
it tries to return to the FCS national championship game.
The Bearkats, who finished 14-1 as the national runner-up this past season,
will make trips to two in-st
<< Calhoun to miss at least three more games
Storrs, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - University of Connecticut men's head
basketball coach Jim Calhoun will miss at least three more games as he
receives treatment for spinal stenosis, the school announced Wednesday.
Calhoun was
<< Gunners humiliated in Milan
Milan, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - AC Milan put Arsenal to the sword in
convincing fashion at the San Siro, cruising to a 4-0 win over the English
side in the first leg of the Champions League knockout round on Wednesday.
The Ital
No. 18 Indiana takes care of Northwestern >>
Bloomington, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Cody Zeller scored 23 points and grabbed
seven rebounds, as 18th-ranked Indiana avoided a fourth consecutive loss to
visiting Northwestern with a 71-66 victory at Assembly Hall.
Victor Oladipo and Ch
Cooley takes over, lifts Irish past Rutgers >>
South Bend, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jack Cooley scored 17 of his 22 points in
the second half, helping No. 23 Notre Dame pull away from Rutgers in a 71-53
decision at the Joyce Center.
Cooley also pulled down 18 rebounds to record his thi
Magic drain 15 3s in rout of 76ers >>
Orlando, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - If the Orlando Magic live and die by the three-
pointer, they not only lived on Wednesday night, they thrived.
Ryan Anderson scored 27 points on 7-of-10 shooting from beyond the arc and
Orlando drained 15 t
Ducks stay hot, down Penguins >>
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Teemu Selanne scored a tiebreaking goal in
the third period and Jonas Hiller turned away 25 Penguins shots, backstopping
the Anaheim Ducks to a 2-1 victory, their first in Pittsburgh in more than a
decade.
In any football or basketball game (the main sports that use point spreads) there are two teams playing against each other.
Those teams, though, are rarely exactly evenly matched – meaning that typically one team has a better chance than the other to win the game. If bettors were allowed to bet on who was simply going to win the game, smart ones would obviously bet on the better team (likely winning more than 50% of the time in the process).
If winning were that easy the Las Vegas and online sportsbooks would stop taking any bets! This is where the point spread comes in: the basic function of the point spread is to balance the likelihood of each team “winning” by adjusting the final score by the point spread. After this adjustment is made you get the Against The Spread result (ATS result for short).
Let’s look at Super Bowl XXXIX, New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles. Most people believed the defending champ Patriots to be the better team – so if betting were simply based upon which team would win the game, an uneven majority of people would have wagered on New England. But, by using the point spread, the bookmakers adjusted the terms of the bet, evening the proposition so about half the people believed the Pats to be the smart bet, while the other half considered Philly to be the smart bet.
New England Patriots -7 vs. Philadelphia Eagles
The better team, called the Favorite, is expected to win the game and must “give” or “lay” points to the weaker team. The favorite is listed with a minus sign and the number of points they are favored by (e.g., New England -7)
In the case of our example, New England must not only win the game, but they must win by more than 7 points for Pats bettors to have a winning ATS result. An Eagles bettor wins his bet either if:
There was also the possibility that the final score could land exactly on the spread number (for example, the Pats winning 28-21 when -7), which is called a “push” or “no action” and a refund is then issued to bettors of both teams.
The same game with the same point spread can be considered from the weaker team’s perspective: The Underdog (Philly in the case of our example) is not expected to win the game and online football betting thus receives or “gets” points given by the stronger team. When a game is stated from the underdog’s perspective the team is listed with a plus sign and the number of points they are underdogs by:
Philadelphia Eagles +7 vs. New England Patriots
Keep in mind that Philadelphia +7 and New England -7 is the same point spread on the same game, simply stated differently. The first is from the underdog’s perspective; the later is from the favorite’s.
Not a must, but for some a mathematical approach is insightful. You can determine the ATS winner by either:
Let’s look at the actual result of Super Bowl XXXIX: New England 24 Philadelphia 21
The favorite, New England, won the game but not by more than the point spread they were favored by (7), so the ATS result was a LOSS for Pats bettors.
Looking at it from the underdog’s perspective, Philly did not win the game, but they lost by less than the point spread (7), so the ATS result was a WIN for Eagle bettors.
Mathematically considered, 24 for the favorite Pats minus 7 equals 17, which is less than the 20 the Eagles scored, so the underdog Eagles win the ATS result (or you could figure 20 plus 7 equals 27 for the Eagles, which is more than 24 for the Pats).
Emily’s boyfriend understood the point spread and wagered $100 on the Eagles at +7. The Eagles may not have gotten a Super Bowl ring, but since they won the ATS result Emily’s boyfriend cashed his bet – giving him money to take her out to a nice dinner.
And now hopefully you understand how to read point spreads, putting you one step closer to joining the fun of sports betting.
To visit this internet sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting and World Series odds.
Academy Award Betting Odds for Best Picture Offer Great Value
If there is any category that is not an obvious win for any one nominee in this year's Academy Awards, it would be for Best Picture. Sure the Departed is a 5/7 favorite, but that's hardly anything when we look at Helen Mirren and her "out-of-reach" 1 to 40 odds (which means you would win a whopping $1 for every $40 bet).
For value, take a look at MySportsbook.com Oscars betting odds on my personal favorite, The Queen - a remarkable 12 to 1 long shot. The film hasn't won any pre-awards for Best Picture (compared to The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine), but there is a tremendous following and it is a strong enough film to warrant a surprise win.
TV Guide advises Oscar watchers should be cautioned not to discount the drama "Babel" with its strong social themes about overcoming communication gaps among people of different cultures.
"While 'Babel' lost several guild awards to 'Sunshine' and 'Departed,' it still enjoys loyal support, and historically Oscar voters favor dramas with social messages over comedies like 'Sunshine' and violent crime movies like 'Departed'."
"It hasn't done well in the guilds, which means there isn't much industry support," said Tom O'Neil of awards site TheEnvelope.com, "But several critics are expecting it to win, and that gets my attention." Babel had 7 to 2 odds at press time.
Who is to say independently produced Little Miss Sunshine won't be this year's Crash. Last year, Crash won for Best Motion Picture, shocking those who bet on gay cowboy flick, Brokeback Mountain, as the favorite to win.
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