WR Cruz has become an instant success for Giants
Football Betting Lines
08/21/2010 -
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) -Just a couple of weeks ago, Victor Cruz was one of 80 players practicing with the New York Giants at training camp.
When workouts were over and he headed toward the locker room, few people recognized him. He was simply No. 3, as in, ``Hey, No. 3, can I have your autograph?''
A little more than two weeks later, Cruz has become an instant celebrity. It's the byproduct of catching three touchdown passes in a 31-16 preseason victory over the rival Jets in the first game at the New Meadowlands Stadium.
The anonymity is gone for the free agent wide receiver from the University of Massachusetts, via Paterson, N.J. ``Hey, Cruz give us your autograph!'' Or even better: ``Victor!'' Just like the other stars that fans call on a first-name basis, like Eli and Osi and Justin.
``I am still humble,'' Cruz said. ``I am still a rookie. Those guys (the veterans) still kick me around and stuff like that. I just want to take it day by day and stay consistent. I am just happy I got the opportunity to go out and show what I could do.''
What Cruz did is extraordinary. No Giants receiver had caught three touchdown passes in a game since Plaxico Burress in a loss against Dallas on Sept. 9, 2007.
The last time a Giant did it in a win was Dec. 22, 2002, when Amani Toomer had three in a win over the Colts.
``Whatever comes, I'll just take it in stride,'' Cruz said. ``I don't want it to stop here. I want it to continue and get better as the practices and games go on. I want to prove I belong in this league and move forward.''
Cruz will get a chance to do that on Saturday night when the Giants play their first home game in their new $1.6 billion stadium against Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers. Roethlisberger is excepted to play for the first time since drawing a six-game suspension.
Cruz just hopes to do his own thing.
``I wouldn't call myself a star just yet,'' Cruz said with a big smile. ``It feels good. It's about being consistent and going out to practice every day and just continue making plays and catching everything thrown my way.''
Cruz didn't show a lot in the first week of training camp, but he caught three or four long passes in the week leading up to the Jets game. His play was so good that coach Tom Coughlin singled him out after one workout.
Then came the game in which Cruz exceeded all expectations. He caught six passes for 145 yards against the Jets, highlighted by a one-handed grab with his left hand on a 64-yard scoring pass from Jim Sorgi. Cruz also had TD catches of 34 yards from Sorgi and 5 yards from Rhett Bomar. All three scoring pass came on fade patterns.
The one-handed catch with cornerback Dwight Lowery in great coverage was spectacular.
``I stuck my hand out the last minute and he dove and missed, and I just trucked it in and took it into the end zone,'' Cruz said. ``I couldn't believe it. I was smiling. I was like, 'Did I really just like grab it with one hand?' It was surreal when I got in the end zone. It was one of the happiest moments in my life to date.''
The other was seeing his mother Blanca crying her eyes out in the stands after the game.
Getting to the locker room was also interesting. Cruz had 182 text messages on his telephone and was stunned to hear that NBA superstar LeBron James had tweeted about his performance.
Cruz said he returned 90 percent of the texts, including about 70 from telephone numbers that he did not recognize.
``It meant a lot for me for everything to come together that way, especially being at home and having 20 of your friends in the stands,'' Cruz said. ``It was definitely one of the craziest moments in my life.''
The performance definitely will go a long way in helping Cruz make the Giants roster, but a spot is not guaranteed with veterans Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, Mario Manningham, Derek Hagan, Ramses Barden and Sinorice Moss all competing for spots.
``I hope it helps a lot,'' Cruz said. ``But you know I have no control over that. Those guys on top make that decision. I'm on the field making plays and running around.''
If he keeps running around like last game, he'll be on the Giants roster for the regular-season opener against Carolina.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.
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) -As far as the Green Bay Packers are concerned, bland is the new blitz - at least when it comes to the preseason.Entering their second year in defensive coordinator Dom Capers' 3-4 scheme, the Packers are facing a far more gentl
<< Red-hot! Cincinnati wins seventh straight, expands NL Central lead
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Homer Bailey pitched seven effective
innings and Brandon Phillips had three hits and drove in all of Cincinnati's
runs in a 3-1 win over Los Angeles, as the Red snapped a 12-game skid at
Dodger
<< Manuel: Bay may be back after all
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Mets manager Jerry Manuel initially
indicated he did not expect Jason Bay to return to the team this season due to
the concussion he suffered in late July, then retracted that assessment after
a 7-2 vi
<< A's rally past Rays thanks to error
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kevin Kouzmanoff scored the go-ahead run on an
error in the eighth inning, helping the Oakland Athletics come back for a 5-4
win over the Tampa Bay Rays in the second of four games at Oakland Coliseum.
Kouzma
<< D'Backs rally to beat Rockies in 10 innings
Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Justin Upton singled in the 10th and raced
around from first on Kelly Johnson's gap hit to left-center, finishing off
Arizona's 4-3 come-from-behind win over Colorado in the first of three games
at Chas
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) -Archie Griffin knows that one day he won't be the only multiple Heisman winner.``Somebody's going to do it three times,'' the former Ohio State star said. ``It's not going to be an easy deal, but somebody out there can get it
FBI tracked desegregation suit against Bryant >>
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) -Forty years ago, Alabama football fans watched Southern California and a black running back named Sam Cunningham trounce coach Paul ``Bear'' Bryant's Crimson Tide in a game widely credited with helping start the integration of
AP Preseason No. 1 Teams >>
2009-Florida2008-Georgia2007-Southern Cal2006-Ohio St.2005-Southern Cal2004-Southern Cal-x2003-Oklahoma2002-Miami2001-Florida2000-Nebraska1999-Florida St.-x1998-Ohio St.1997-Penn St.1996-Nebraska1995-Florida St.1994-Florida1993-Florida St.-x1992-Mia
AP National Football Champions >>
2009 - Alabama2008 - Florida2007 - LSU2006 - Florida2005 - Texas2004 - Southern Cal2003 - Southern Cal2002 - Ohio State2001 - Miami2000 - Oklahoma1999 - Florida State1998 - Tennessee1997 - Michigan1996 - Florida1995 - Nebraska1994 - Nebraska1993 - F
AP Poll Board >>
NEW YORK (AP) -The voters for the 2010 Associated Press college football poll:Mark Anderson, Las Vegas Review-Journal; Greg Archuleta, Albuquerque (N.M.) Journal; Bob Asmussen, Champaign (Ill.) News-Gazette; Jack Bogaczyk, Charleston (W.Va.) Daily M
SPORTS BETTING
NFL Football Betting OnlineIn terms of sports wagering, the NFL is "the most popular game in town." The explanation behind that is easy.
It is called the "pointspread."
Many years ago, NFL games, as well as the more popular college games, used straight odds as a vehicle for betting. For example, if the Bears were playing the Giants, and it shaped up as a competitive contest, the Bears might be, say, a 7/5 favorite. If they were playing an also-ran, it might be 10/1. Well, there is a point where a line becomes prohibitive, as far as betting the favorite. And who would waste money betting an underdog that has virtually no chance? Such a setup did not contribute to promoting betting action.
But in modern sports betting, a "pointspread" is used.
A NFL pointspreads are exactly that, a pre-established point difference between the two sides that will, for all intents and purposes, create a handicap that evens things out, and in doing so, produces comparable wagering activity on both sides of that proposition. So in lieu of a odds figure in which to bet the team to win outright, the Bears might be a three-point favorite over the New York Giants, and a 17-point favorite over the also-ran. Now that the team that is the underdog can "get" points, there can be equal action on both sides.
In sportsbooks, this is usually done with efficiency by charging the losing bettors 10% extra - in effect, bettors are laying 11/10 on those games. So they are actually betting $110 to win $100. If they lose, they pay the "vig." If they win, they simply collect.
The establishment of the pointspread as the corner stone around which team sports like football can be wagered upon was truly what brought gridiron betting into the stratosphere for online football betting .
Don't believe it? Just take a look at what happens around the Super Bowl.
Stay with us here as we take you through the best in NFL action on a consistent basis, with advice columns as well as handicapping selections. If you're looking for college football betting, that's in our NCAA section, which you can reach by clicking here. And if you're looking for a different kind of football, such as the Canadian Football League, which we'll deal with occasionally, or the Arena Football League, which we really like, you can find it in our Miscellaneous section by clicking
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting odds .
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook betting credit cards
SPORTS BETTING - Tennis is an underrated and under-utilized bettors' sport.
Ten years ago, at just about this time, I called Alan Boston in Vegas and left him a voicemail that went something like this (abridged version): "Hey Alan, Chad Millman from ESPN The Magazine calling. I want to do a book about wise guys, you in?"
A couple weeks later I got a message back (abridged version): "I don't know, maybe," Boston said. "Call me and we'll talk about it. But not later today. I got $1,000 on Andre Agassi to win the French Open at 40-1, and he's in the finals."
Here's what happened next (abridged version): Agassi won his tourney. Boston won his $40,000. I wrote sportsbook.
In the ten years since, how much has been wagered on the big-time tennis events? Put it this way: The Nevada Gaming Commission doesn't even track the number year by year because it's so small.
"Tennis makes up about one-tenth of one percent of our take," says Lucky's bookmaking boss Jimmy Vaccaro. "The last big golf major we probably had $100,000 worth of bets. In tennis, we might have written two big tickets."
Tennis' lack of popularity amongst the American bettoratti is no surprise, really. For starters, the biggest sports betting holidays -- the Super Bowl, the NCAA tourney -- are must see TV. People, at least the degenerates I know, plan vacations around watching those events in Vegas sports books.
But Wimbledon? Doesn't exactly reel in the whales. "Seriously, it's the nuts as an event," says Boston. "But who even knows when it's on?"
Here's another reason that helps explain why golf gets traction, something I call "The Bubbe Theory." My Bubbe is pushing 95 and has cataracts so bad that, to her, even the most crystalline Chicago day is mostly cloudy. But she still listens to the Cubs games, and she still calls me in a fit if she disagrees with something Rick Telander writes in the Chicago Sun Times. She's a sports fan. If she doesn't know you, you're just filling a niche. And niche players, even historically good ones like Roger and Raf, don't drive betting volume. Only the highest profile names attract square money, which inflates wagering totals like a shot of saline to the lips. Bubbe, and the public, loved Agassi, tennis' last cross-the-rubicon, mainstream draw. She also has a crush on Tiger. She's given me standing orders to put a sawbuck on the big cat whenever I walk through a sports book (or mistakenly tap into one via my Internet machine.) That explains why the Masters is getting $100K in action at some books while the four tennis majors might not get that combined this year.
This isn't a case of tennis being a difficult sport to bet. In fact, in Europe, it's probably the second most popular sport for gambling after soccer. Granted, as the WSJ football betting last week and The Mag's Shaun Assael examined in even greater depth last year, that might be because gamblers across the pond see it as an easy game to fix. But it could also be because, over there it holds the kind of sway the big two do over here.
Street corners in Spain are peppered with public courts and kids doing their best Raffy impressions. In some war torn parts of Eastern Europe poverty-stricken kids view tennis as an escape route, like football or basketball here. A couple years ago The Mag's Lindsay Berra wrote a great piece about Belgrade's Jelena Jankovic, Ana Ivanovic and Novak Djokovic. They learned the game as kids while bombs were raining down on their homeland. They practiced in drained swimming pools. Not exactly Nick Bolletierri conditions.
In the United States, casual fans think tennis is played four times a year. But on the tightly packed European continent, national interest in homegrown talent runs deep every weekend. Of the ATP's current top 20 players, only two, tennis betting and James Blake, are American. Fourteen are from Europe, representing six different countries.
No wonder fans from Lisbon to Bhudapest get jacked up for the net game, whether it's Wimbledon or a low-level tourney like the Estoril Open in Portugal (congrats to Spain's Albert Montanes for winning that one, btw). Chances are good that someone representing their flag will not only be playing, but have a shot at winning.
And that's all any bettor can ask for.
To visit this sports book go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.