Johnson granted sixth season at Eastern Washington

NCAA Football Betting Lines

02/07/2012 - Cheney, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Eastern Washington linebacker Zach Johnson has been granted a medical waiver by the NCAA for a sixth season, Eagles head coach Beau Baldwin announced Tuesday.

Johnson has lost 19 games due to a chronic knee injury, all 12 games of the 2009 season and the final seven games last season, when he was a senior co- captain.

The 6-foot-1, 215-pound Johnson, from Tumwater, Wash., earned All-Big Sky Conference second-team honors in 2010 when he started all 15 games of EWU's FCS championship-winning campaign. He has 260 tackles in his career.

"It's exciting and we're happy for Zach," Baldwin said. "He's worked hard since the day he got here and has been a hard worker all his life. He deserved to get a sixth year based on the injuries he suffered and what he's gone through. We couldn't be happier to have Zach back with us."

Eagles wide receiver Tyler Hart also is filing a similar appeal for a sixth season. He has been approved by the Big Sky Conference and needs approval from the NCAA.

Ww5dimes NCAA Football Betting News

<< Briere returning to Flyers lineup Tuesday
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren revealed that forward Danny Briere will be in the lineup when Philadelphia hosts the New York Islanders on Tuesday. "I feel ready. I feel like it's time,"

<< An A for Eli...and Indy too
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Before Peyton Manning's future become dissected and over-analyzed to tiresome Favrethian degrees over the next month, it's time to give his little brother some very big credit. If there were any lingering

<< Spurs waive Malcolm Thomas
San Antonio, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Antonio Spurs have waived forward Malcolm Thomas. A rookie from San Diego State, Thomas has appeared in just three games this season. He has totaled one point, one assist and three rebounds.

<< Defensive backs lead FCS contingent going to NFL Combine
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Defensive backs from Football Championship Subdivision schools will be on display at the 2012 NFL Scouting Combine. Half of the 22 FCS players who have been invited to the Feb. 22-28 showcase at Lucas Oil

<< UC Davis switches date of 2012 opener
Davis, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The UC Davis football team's 2012 season opener against Azusa Pacific has been changed to Thursday, Aug. 30 at Aggie Stadium. The game was originally scheduled to be played on Saturday, Sept. 1. The Aggies are

Bears bring in Jeremy Bates to work with QBs >>
Lake Forest, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Bears on Tuesday reached an agreement with Jeremy Bates to become the team's quarterbacks coach. Bates is familiar with Chicago starter Jay Cutler, having worked with him for three seasons

Santana to replace Luxemburgo at Flamengo >>
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Flamengo announced Tuesday that it has hired Joel Santana to replace Vanderlei Luxemburgo, who was relieved of his managerial duties last week due to a reportedly rocky relationship with star pl

Sevilla names Michel new coach >>
Seville, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sevilla named former Real Madrid and Spain midfielder Michel its new manager Tuesday, one day after Marcelino was fired. Michel, 48, spent almost his entire club career with Real Madrid, playing for the S

Southern Illinois gets new opponent >>
Carbondale, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Southern Illinois University football team will play at Miami University on Sept. 8 in the first meeting between the programs. The game replaces canceled meetings for both schools against Missouri, which

Pekka a Rinne-stone Cowboy in Nashville >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Those not convinced that the Nashville Predators are in it to win long term need to look no further than the massive contract that general manager David Poile dished out to goaltender Pekka Rinne back in Nove

Horse Betting

(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).

The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.

"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."

Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.

"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."

When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:

CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.

DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.

PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.

You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.

"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."

Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.

(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)

Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."

But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."

Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."

Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."

All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.

In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.

"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."

To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.