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09/03/2010 -
EUGENE, Ore. (AP) -Darron Thomas seems to have it easy, making his debut as Oregon's starting quarterback at home and with the No. 11 Ducks heavily favored.
But it's quite the contrary.
When Thomas takes the field on Saturday against New Mexico, all eyes will be on whether the sophomore can lift Oregon out of the Jeremiah Masoli debacle and whether coach Chip Kelly did right in choosing him to start over senior Nate Costa.
Thomas' response? Bring it on.
``It's a good thing, because now you're in the spotlight,'' he said. ``I'm happy for it. It's good not to be in the back. I'm prepared for it and ready to go.''
Thomas played in five games as a true freshman in 2008, completing 16 of 33 passes for 268 yards and three touchdowns. Called upon when Oregon was hit by a slew of injuries, Thomas came close to leading the Ducks on a come-from-behind victory against Boise State that season.
Thomas then redshirted the 2009 season.
Masoli led Oregon to a 10-3 record, the Pac-10 championship and a Rose Bowl berth last season. He was a possible Heisman Trophy candidate before his dramatic fall from grace.
Masoli was accused in the theft of a pair of laptops and a guitar from a campus fraternity house in January. He was suspended for this season after pleading guilty to a burglary charge, but was later stopped by police for a traffic violation and marijuana was found in the car.
As a result, Kelly kicked him off the team.
Masoli appealed to the NCAA to play as a walk-on this season at Mississippi, but he was turned down. The loss left Oregon without a clear starter. Thomas competed for the job against Costa throughout fall camp, before edging him in a scrimmage last week. While Costa is more of a traditional passer, Thomas is more of a threat on the ground, more in the mold of Dennis Dixon.
Adding to the pressure on Saturday will be the absence of running back LaMichael James, who is serving a one-game suspension after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor harassment charge stemming from an altercation with an ex-girlfriend.
Last season James rushed for a team-high 1,546 yards, setting a new record for freshmen in the Pac-10. He averaged 6.7 yards and added 14 TDs to earn the league's freshman of the year.
Fellow sophomore Kenjon Barner will start in James' place on Saturday. Also a return specialist, Barner had 1,553 all-purpose yards last season.
By all accounts, Barner had a productive fall camp. Oregon coach Chip Kelly says he is ``just scratching the surface of what he can be.''
But even with the few uncertainties - new QB, no star running back - Oregon remains a force, selected to repeat as Pac-10 champions this season.
``It's back in business and we're ready to go for New Mexico,'' Thomas said. ``I'm ready for it to be an exciting day on Saturday.''
In contrast, the Lobos aren't feeling a whole lot of pressure. New Mexico went 1-11 last season as the team dealt with its own off-field troubles, including then-first year coach Mike Locksley's altercation with a former assistant.
Now, like Oregon, the Lobos are eager to move forward.
``When you play a team like Oregon and they're ranked No. 11 in the country, there's really no pressure on us,'' Locksley said. ``I think it's going to be to our benefit to go up there, play loose, have fun, take some opportunities and take advantage of some opportunities against a real good team.''
New Mexico, which has a spread offense similar to Oregon's, will start sophomore B.R. Holbrook at quarterback. He leads a group dominated by fellow sophomores, who lack experience but will likely gain it considerably on Saturday. The Lobos have a 4-3 defense led by Carmen Messina, who led the nation with 162 tackles last season.
New Mexico is 7-43 against ranked opponents. But the last time they played a Pac-10 opponent, they beat Arizona 36-28 in 2008.
``As I told our team, we realize the challenge the reigning Pac-10 champions present us, but we also know that we have to make them beat us,'' Locksley said. ``We need to do the things that we've talked about since January to ensure that we make a Pac-10 champion team like Oregon beat us and not help them.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
<< WVU's Devine ready for senior year
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) -Noel Devine stayed in school just for this.Rather than take a chance on the NFL draft last April, Devine is returning for one final season in which he believes ``the sky is the limit.''Liftoff starts Saturday when No. 25 West
<< Roethlisberger's suspension reduced to four games
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has reduced the
suspension of Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger from six to
four games.
The NFL Network reported that the reduction came after Goodell me
<< JoePa, Royster on verge of milestones
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It's a milestone in itself that Penn State
icon Joe Paterno is still coaching in the twilight of his years. So it comes
as no surprise that the bespectacled legend is approaching 400 career wins.
His tra
<< First-place teams collide as Rangers visit Twins
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - While the Texas Rangers appear to be headed to their first
American League West title since 1999, the AL Central-leading Minnesota Twins
still have some work to do.
The two division leaders will square off tonight in the o
No. 7 Sooners seek entry into 800-win club >>
NORMAN, Okla. (AP) -The pictures on the walls and the old videos Bob Stoops shows to his players serve as a reminder that Oklahoma's program has been thriving for decades, since long before any of them were around.On Saturday night, Oklahoma can add
Newton set to debut as No. 22 Auburn's QB >>
AUBURN, Ala. (AP) -Quarterback Cameron Newton has been the talk of Auburn since his arrival on campus. He's big, he's mobile and he's a skilled leader who can direct Gus Malzahn's offense to even bigger numbers.That's the buzz, at least.Really, the
Penguins sign Mike Comrie >>
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pittsburgh Penguins have signed forward
Mike Comrie to a one-year contract worth $500,000.
Comrie spent last season with Edmonton and registered 13 goals with eight
assists for 21 points in 43
Nationwide to end tour sponsorship in 2012 >>
Dublin, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Nationwide Insurance has closed one door and
opened another.
The company said Friday it will no longer sponsor the PGA Tour's developmental
circuit when its contract runs out after the 2012 season. B
“You play to win the game!”
Those are the words of notoriously intense head coach Herman Edwards. Unfortunately, from a bettors’ perspective, most coaches don’t feel that way about the NFL preseason. August is a time to evaluate young players, finalize the depth chart and pray your star players stay healthy.
The trick to making money during the exhibition schedule is identifying coaches – like Edwards – who can’t stand losing even when there's nothing on the line.
The New York Jets betting won 15 of 21 preseason games and went 14-7 against the spread (ATS) during Edwards’s five-year tenure with the club. In his first season as the Kansas City Chiefs field boss, the team improved from 0-4 to 2-2.
Identifying win-a-holics like Edwards is a good start if you plan betting the preseason – even though most say you shouldn’t ... but what the hell do they know anyway?
Here’s a brief rundown of two teams that have a habit of winning during the second-stringers’ season, and another club that has a good chance of exceeding this year.
Playing in the media hub of North America can be stressful but the press can’t write anything negative about the way Tom Coughlin’s boys play in the preseason. The Giants won and covered all four games last summer, improving their record to 7-1 both straight up (SU) and against the spread over the last two years.
Coughlin has shown he’s not afraid to give his starters more time in the second preseason game than most of his colleagues, no doubt one of the reasons his team has been so dominant.
Bettors can count on America’s team early on. The Cowboys are 14-6 both SU and ATS since 2002 in warm-up contests. Former coach Bill Parcells, the coach of the team the last four years, has an intimidating, in-your-face presence – surely a reason Dallas has had so much early success.
The Big Tuna won’t be strolling the sidelines with looks of disgust, but new coach Wade Phillips will be anxious to make a good first impression for owner Jerry Jones.
Dallas plays the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos before things get serious. They then face the Houston Texans in their third contest (the game starters see most game time) and finish off with the Minnesota Vikings.
Expect a Dallas team able to walk away with another 3-1 preseason record.
This team scored a league-worst 12 offensive touchdowns last season, so the rookies and veterans each have something to prove. There’s a bounty of first-unit jobs up for grabs and plenty of bodies competing for those slots.
First-time head coach Lane Kiffin will be eager to impress an owner who employs the philosophy, “Just win, baby!”
The 32-year-old Kiffin has to command respect from a locker room full of players older than him. All of these factors should lead to purpose in preseason.
Don’t forget: before playing like a team that belonged in NFL Europe, Oakland went 4-1 (both SU and ATS) in exhibition games.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football wagering needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
Albert Pujols to be This Year's Home Run Champ Says Online Sportsbook
Barry Bonds is a 50-1 long shot to be this year's home run champ odds. The favorite to be this year's home run champ is none other than Albert Pujols, however.
Now that Barry Bonds is signed and in Giants camp, it is on to his pursuit of all of sports most prestigious records: the all-time home run mark. Bonds sits just 21 homers shy of tying Hank Aaron for the career mark at 755. Word out of Giants’ camp is that Bonds is the healthiest he has been in a few years. Bonds is just two seasons removed from his injury riddled 2005 campaign where he played in only 14 games and hit only 5 home runs. He did come back last year and had a solid season hitting .270 with 26 bombs. All eyes will be on Bonds this spring and summer not only because of his home run chase but his highly publicized steroid abuse allegations. If and when Bonds breaks the record, he surely will not get the positive attention one should for breaking a record that was once thought of as “unbreakable”. Despite Bonds decent season last year, he is just 50-1 at MySportsbook.com to lead the MLB in long balls this season.
Not surprisingly, the favorites to go deep the most times this season are Albert Pujols 5-1, Ryan Howard 6-1, David Ortiz 8-1 and Alex Rodriguez 12-1. With 49 homers, Pujols finished second in the National League behind Howard (58). Pujols is considered the favorite due to the consistent power numbers that he has posted since breaking into the league in 2001. Also one must consider the fact that he played in 16 fewer games then Howard did due to an injury. Howard smashed 58 homers in his first complete season of big league play en route to the National League MVP odds award. He silenced his critics by successfully hitting left-handed pitching. Howard also displayed the ability to use his power to the opposite field. Two attributes which should keep Howard amongst the league leaders in long balls for years to come. From the American League representatives, David Ortiz leads the field. Ortiz was second in the majors last year with 54 home runs. Except for 1999 when he only played in 10 games, Ortiz has improved on his home run numbers each year he has been in the majors (1997).
Be sure to log onto online sports betting site MySportsbook.com to check out the odds for who will lead the MLB in home runs this season. Below is just a sample of the players listed. With the highest credit card rates in the industry, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on baseball this summer.
World Series odds
Adam Dunn 15-1
Albert Pujols 5-1
Alex Rodriguez 12-1
Alfonso Soriano 15-1
Andruw Jones 25-1
Barry Bonds 50-1
Carlos Delgado 40-1
David Ortiz 8-1
Jermaine Dye 40-1
Ken Griffey Jr. 100-1
Lance Berkman 40-1
Manny Ramirez 20-1
Richie Sexson 40-1
Ryan Howard 6-1
Travis Hafner 20-1
Vladimir Guerrero 40-1
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.
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