Sam Houston State hires Ruse as offensive coordinator
NCAA Football Betting Lines
02/15/2012 - Frisco, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Doug Ruse helped Western Illinois to a seven-win improvement and a berth in the FCS playoffs in his first season as its offensive coordinator in 2010.
It would seem hard to improve much upon Sam Houston State's offense after it reached the national championship game this past season, but Ruse is anxious to try to make the Bearkats climb higher.
Ruse has taken over at Sam Houston State as offensive coordinator under head coach Willie Fritz. The Southland Conference champion was 14-1 this past season, reaching the No. 1 ranking and losing only to North Dakota State in the national championship game.
They were the FCS scoring leader heading into their final game, but their 17-6 loss dropped them to a fourth-place finish at 36.9 points per game.
Ruse spent the last two seasons at Western Illinois. The Leathernecks finished 8-5 in his first season as offensive coordinator following a 1-10 finish the year before. They were 2-9 this past season.
He also has been an offensive coordinator at Northwest Missouri State, his alma mater, as well as Northwestern State and Arkansas State.
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The United States Men's National Team will be heading to Florida for two crucial matches in the coming months, it was announced Wednesday. The U.S. Soccer Federation revealed that Jurgen Klinsmann'
<< Twins sign Casilla to one-year deal
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Minnesota Twins signed infielder Alexi
Casilla to a one-year contract on Wednesday, thereby avoiding arbitration.
Casilla will earn $1,382,500 million in 2012.
In 97 games with the Twins last seaso
<< Azarenka rolls; Wozniacki falls in Doha opener
Doha, Qatar (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - World No. 1 Belarusian stalwart Victoria
Azarenka was an easy second-round winner, while former top-ranked star
Caroline Wozniacki was among Wednesday's second-round losers at the $2.168
million Qatar Open.
<< Blue Bombers re-sign OL January
Winnipeg, MB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Winnipeg Blue Bombers have re-signed
offensive lineman Glenn January.
January started every game at right tackle for the Blue Bombers last season
and was named an East Division All-Star. He mis
<< Champion mare Havre de Grace works on Wednesday
New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Horse of the Year Havre de Grace took to
the Fair Grounds track Wednesday morning for her second workout of the year.
The five-year-old mare is wintering at Fair Grounds Race Course with the rest
of trai
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A moral victory in professional sports borders on being a contradiction, at least until you actually see one. There are no participation trophies when the big boys play, only the cold, hard reality of wins
Argonauts ink WR Barnes >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Argonauts inked wideout Jason
Barnes, signing the fleet receiver through 2013.
Barnes, who was plucked from the Edmonton Eskimos, will be reunited with
former Esks quarterback and curren
Marsh, Phillips agree to terms with Lions >>
Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The British Columbia Lions signed defensive
backs Ryan Phillips and Dante Marsh on Wednesday.
Phillips returns for his eighth season with the defending Grey Cup champions
and was eligible for free agenc
Five-a-Side: Ivy League's Robin Harris >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The big question with Ivy League football
often centers around the school presidents keeping the league champion on
the sidelines during the FCS playoffs.
This week, another important issue develop
Eskimos sign WR Koch >>
Edmonton, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Edmonton Eskimos found a replacement for
the departed Jason Barnes on Wednesday, signing wide receiver Cary Koch.
"Cary missed much of 2011 with an injury, but within the football fraternity
his talen
MySportsbook.com and Kentucky Derby Offer Bonuses
The 2008 Kentucky Derby has announced a $1-million bonus for this weekend’s 134th ‘Run for the Roses’ and MySportsbook.com is doing the same.
Well, not quite $1 million, but MySportsbook.com is offering a 75% rebate for Kentucky Derby lines. Check out the exclusive horse racing bonus for all the details.
According to MySportsbook.com, the favorites for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky are: Curlin (+250); Street Sense (+500); Scat Daddy (+700); Circular Quay (+750); and Nobiz Like Shobiz (+800).
Derby organizers announced this week that there will be a $1-million bonus at the 2007 Kentucky Derby odds if the first-place horse wins by more than 6 1/2 lengths – the margin of Barbaro's victory last year. The bonus would be divided Saturday among the winning trainer, jockey, owner and a charity, with each receiving 25 percent. The designated charity is the Barbaro Memorial Fund.
''It's certainly creative, it's certainly fun and it has something for the horsemen, which we always want to embrace,'' Churchill Downs president and chief executive Robert Evans said at a news conference. ''What's really cool is it will force us to remember Barbaro.''
Meanwhile, the Derby favorite – Curlin – is going against the odds this year. It's been 125 years since Apollo won after skipping his 2-year-old season, and not since Regret in 1915 has such a lightly seasoned horse worn the blanket of red roses.
Arkansas Derby winner Curlin – unbeaten in three career races – tries to overcome both those obstacles in Saturday's 133rd Derby.
''We're not running against history,'' trainer Steve Asmussen said Monday. ''We're running against who they load up.''
Six other horses have run in the Derby without benefit of 2-year-old races and with three or fewer starts. The best any of them managed was a sixth-place finish by Showing Up last year.
Asmussen dismissed suggestions that Curlin's lack of racing experience could keep him from the winner's circle.
”He exudes confidence and he's got a great presence about him,'' the trainer said. ''I feel great about the position we're in. He's not worried about anything, why should you be?''
The Kentucky Derby is at 4:04 p.m., ET Saturday.
For complete odds on the Kentucky Derby, visit MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
Elite 8 NCAA Tournament Betting at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com
In what should be an outstanding Saturday of March Madness betting action, the top four teams in the South and West Regions square off in what should be extremely close match-ups. Three of the four teams are coming off extremely close games on Thursday evening, only UCLA won semi comfortably over Pitt 64-55.
Ohio State is coming off their second game in a row where in all reality they should have lost. Of course that doesn’t matter now since the name of the game is “survive and advance” but as the tournament continues, they can’t afford to keep getting down to their opponents early. Kansas also avoided a scare by holding off a scrappy Southern Illinois squad. In the third thrilling game of the evening Memphis pulled off the minor upset (+3.5) despite being the higher seed to Texas A&M.
Although the spreads are fairly small for Saturday’s games, MySportsbook.com continue to bet against the underdogs. Despite OSU’s two scares, 86% of the “betting public” feels the Buckeyes (-1.5) have what it takes to make the Final Four. In fact, so much of the early money is on OSU that the line has already moved from -1 to -1.5. In the second game of the doubleheader, Kansas and their high-powered offense are 2 point favorites as they take on UCLA and their effective defense. About 63% of the early money thus far is once again backing the favorites. If those percentages stay that high, don’t be surprised if this line moves as well. If you like Kansas (-2) you might want to jump on it early.
Memphis vs. Ohio State
Both squads were involved in thrillers on Thursday evening and should come out fired up. OSU can ill afford to get behind early like they did versus their previous two opponents (Xavier, Tennessee). Greg Oden needs to stay out of foul trouble; the Buckeyes are a completely different team when he is on the court. Memphis definitely has the athleticism and length to match-up with OSU. Of Memphis’ five leading minute earners, the shortest of the bunch is 6’5”. Each team has a very effective defense; Memphis surrenders 62.3 PPG whereas the Buckeyes give up only 61 PPG. With those type of numbers, it isn’t surprising that Memphis covered the UNDER almost 69% of the time this season. As a favorite, OSU has covered the UNDER almost 66% of the time over the last three seasons. The major concern for Memphis which is magnifies this time of the year is their brutal foul shooting (62%). This season, OSU is 17-11 ATS versus teams with a winning record and 7-2 ATS in all tournament games. Memphis has been an extremely reliable cover in tournament play in recent years with a 23-8 ATS record over the last three seasons.
UCLA vs. Kansas
In the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader, UCLA will play in a role which they are very unfamiliar with that of the underdog. Only twice this season have they been getting points from the handicappers and both times they covered. Over the last three seasons UCLA is a reliable 23-7 ATS in this unfamiliar role. UCLA has not fared well against Big 12 opponents recently going 1-7 ATS since 1997. Giving up only 59.6 PPG, UCLA will definitely look to do what they do best: keep this game as low scoring as possible. Their defense has been especially tough during the tournament. UCLA opponents have been able to muster up only 48.7 PPG while shooting a combined 34.5% from the field. UCLA definitely has a challenge at hand with a Kansas team that is capable of putting points on the board in bunches. As a team, they average 79 PPG and shoot an impressive 49.6% from the field and 39.4% from beyond the arc. During the tournament Kansas has been “lights out” from the field having shot 56.2%.
With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action. Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”. By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.
To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards