Carolina and Peppers fail to reach long-term deal

Football Betting Lines

07/15/2009 - Charlotte, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Carolina Panthers and defensive end Julius Peppers failed to reach a contract agreement before the NFL's 4 p.m. deadline for negotiating long-term deals with franchise players.

Peppers, who signed his franchise tender on June 24, will now play the 2009 season under a one-year deal worth close to $16.7 million. His agent, Carl Carey, was quoted by the Charlotte Observer as saying the two sides attempted to reach an agreement but ultimately could not. The two sides won't be able to discuss a new contract until the end of the season.

The second overall pick in the 2002 NFL Draft has made four Pro Bowl appearances over his seven-year career with Carolina, but in the offseason had expressed a desire to play elsewhere.

In 2008, the 29-year-old, who switched from left to right defensive end, recorded a career-high 14 1/2 sacks and 51 tackles. In 106 career games with the Panthers, the North Carolina product has compiled 70 1/2 sacks and 344 tackles.

Wwwstratlv Football Betting News

<< Taylor moves on at Publinx
Norman, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Canada's Nick Taylor cruised to a 6 & 4 win over Craig Cyr, advancing to the second round of the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship on Wednesday. After losing the opening hole, Taylor, 21, squared the ma

<< Coyotes ink LW Korpikoski to two-year deal
Glendale, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Phoenix Coyotes signed newly acquired left wing Lauri Korpikoski to a two-year contract on Wednesday. Per club policy, financial terms of the deal were not released. Korpikoski came over in a

<< Thrashers re-sign G Lehtonen
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Thrashers re-signed restricted free agent goaltender Kari Lehtonen on Wednesday. Per club policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed. Lehtonen, 25, posted a 19-22-3 record with three shuto

<< Soderling, Robredo move into Bastad quarters
Bastad, Sweden (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - French Open runner-up Robin Soderling and reigning champion Tommy Robredo were among Wednesday's second-round winners at the Swedish Open. The second-seeded Swedish favorite Soderling, rank

<< Around FCS: Can Weber State stop Montana's streak?
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It is never unwise to select Montana as the title favorite when you are predicting the order of finish in the Big Sky Conference. The Grizzlies came within a play or two of seeing their 10-year run of winn

Szetela joins D.C. via allocation draft >>
Washington, D.C. (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - D.C. United acquired midfielder Danny Szetela via its #2 allocation ranking on Wednesday. Szetela joins United after spending two-plus years in Spain's La Liga and Italy's Serie B. The 22-year

RSL duo added to All-Star roster as commissioner's picks >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Major League Soccer commissioner Don Garber selected the Real Salt Lake midfield duo of Kyle Beckerman and Javier Morales as his two "commissioner's picks" for the 2009 MLS All-Star Game. Beckerman and M

UEFA reduces bans for Chelsea duo >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chelsea duo Didier Drogba and Jose Bosingwa have had their suspensions cut by UEFA following their behavior after last season's Champions League semifinal second leg clash with Barcelona. Drogba will

Gibson extends United contract >>
Manchester, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Republic of Ireland international Darron Gibson hopes to establish himself in the Manchester United first team after agreeing to a three-year contract extension with last term's Premier League

Former NFL RB Henry sentenced to three years in prison >>
Billings, MT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former NFL running back Travis Henry was sentenced Wednesday to three years in prison stemming from federal cocaine trafficking charges last October. Henry was arrested in October after a multi-kilo

MySportsbook.com is the Internet’s largest online sportsbook site serving customers in more than 80 countries worldwide. Founded in 1997, MySportsbook.com was the first sports book to introduce reduced margin wagering, using a -105 pricing model that gives bettors up to 50% better value on wagers than traditional bookmakers. With low minimum bet requirements and the highest maximum limits on the Web, MySportsbook.com has earned an industry leading reputation for providing consistent value to the player, professional customer service and the quickest payouts online. Fully licensed and regulated in Antigua and the UK, the company offers a secure environment for sports betting, horse racing and online casino games.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts credit cards needs.

How did changes to college football betting rules affect bettors?

The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.

While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.

For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.

1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.

2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of online football betting possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.

How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.

Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.

Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.

How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).

Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.

Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on college football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.