Cassel, Moss help Pats top Niners
Football Betting Lines
10/05/2008 -
San Francisco, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Randy Moss caught five passes for 111
yards and scored one touchdown to lead the New England Patriots to a 30-21
victory over the San Francisco 49ers in Week 5 action.
Matt Cassel was 22-of-32 passing for 259 yards with a touchdown and two
interceptions for the Patriots (3-1), who improved to 11-9 following a bye
week and avenged their Week 3 loss to the Dolphins in New England that erased
the team's 21-game regular season home win streak. Kevin Faulk had seven
carries for 32 yards and a pair of scores in the win. Stephen Gostkowski
kicked three field goals.
J.T. O'Sullivan registered 130 yards, three touchdowns and three picks on 14-
of-29 passing for the 49ers (2-3), who have dropped two straight contests on
the heels of a two-game win streak. Frank Gore gained 54 yards on 12 touches
and hauled in four passes for 24 yards and a score. Isaac Bruce had three
catches for 49 yards with two going for TDs in defeat.
New England was forced to punt on its first drive of the third quarter, but
Rodney Harrison picked off O'Sullivan on San Fran's second play to give the
Pats a first down on the 49ers' 24.
"To win is all about having more points than the other team," said San
Francisco head coach Mike Nolan. "It gets down to staying on the field
offensively on third down and getting off on defense, and a lot of other
things but it's never one area."
The Patriots moved the ball until the team faced a 4th-and-goal from the two-
yard line. The team found paydirt as Faulk took a direct snap and hammered
his way up the middle and across the goal line for a 24-14 New England lead
with 5:25 left in the third stanza.
Gostkowski split the uprights on a 40-yard field goal to make it 27-14 with
just seven seconds gone in the fourth quarter.
The 'Niners took over at their own 20 and O'Sullivan orchestrated an 11-play,
80-yard touchdown drive that brought San Francisco within 27-21 with 10:22
left in the game. Bruce hauled in the five-yard TD pass at the back of the
end zone to put the finishing touches on the trek.
Gostkowski made it a two-possession game, 30-21, on New England's next series
as he capped a 10-play, 41-yard drive with a 49-yard field goal. The kick
improved Gostkowski to 10-for-10 on field goal attempts this season.
The Pats seemingly put the game away on San Fran's next possession, as on
4th-and-16 O'Sullivan threw an interception to Deltha O'Neal with just under
three minutes left. However, the 'Niners held the visitors to a three-and-out
series.
O'Sullivan and company took over with a 1st-and-10 at their own 28. The team
moved to the 45 as Josh Morgan hauled in a 17-yard catch. A few plays later,
San Fran was faced with a 4th-and-11 but as O'Sullivan dropped back to pass he
couldn't find an open receiver. The quarterback scrambled to the right and
unleashed a wild toss that came down incomplete.
New England took over on downs and was able to run out the clock.
"We just went out today flat. We went out flat as a team," said Gore. "We just
have to go out there and stick together and play hard. We can't give up. We
just have to keep playing hard."
Gore capped a four-play, 30-yard drive as he hauled in a 16-yard touchdown
pass which gave the 'Niners a 7-0 lead with 8:57 left in the first.
The Patriots, though, answered quick as Cassel hit Moss on a 66-yard TD
strike down the middle of the field to tie it up 82 seconds later.
"For our off week, we emphasized getting open, beating man coverage and being
spaced in our offensive passing game," Moss said. "Being able to connect on
that deep ball, I think it was good from an offensive standpoint because
that's something that we've been missing in our repertoire the past couple
weeks. It was a good thing."
O'Sullivan hit Bruce for a six-yard touchdown on San Fran's next possession,
which gave the 49ers a 14-7 advantage with 5:25 left in the opening stanza.
Gostkowski nailed a 35-yard field goal with just under 5 1/2 minutes left in
the first half to make it a 14-10 differential.
The Pats held the 'Niners to a three-and-out on their ensuing possession, and
New England got the ball back on its own 20.
"Three-and-outs are just not good enough," said O'Sullivan.
Cassel drove his team down inside the red zone and, facing a 3rd-and-six from
San Fran's 10 with 20 seconds left, was sacked for a loss of three yards.
However, a personal foul call on the 'Niners gave the Pats a new set of downs
and two plays later Faulk punched it in from two yards out to make it 17-14
heading into the break.
Game Notes
The Patriots won their first game in San Francisco (1-4) and has now won in
every NFL city except for Washington...The 49ers retired Hall of Fame
quarterback Steve Young's No. 8 jersey at halftime...The Patriots still have a
10-game winning streak on the road, with their most recent loss as the visitor
coming in the 2006 AFC Championship at Indianapolis...San Francisco holds a
7-4 edge in the all-time series with New England, but the Patriots have won
each of the last three head-to-head meetings...Since 2003, the Pats are 20-3
in October...The Pats won their third straight against San Francisco and 13th
consecutive game against the NFC...New England's Richard Seymour played in his
100th career game.
<< Danks, Wise help ChiSox stay alive against Rays
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - DeWayne Wise hit a two-run double in Chicago's
three-run fourth, and the White Sox staved off elimination with a 5-3 win over
the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 3 of their American League Division Series.
Tampa Bay s
<< Cowboys tested but keep Bengals out of win column
Irving, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tony Romo threw for three touchdowns, including
two in the fourth quarter, to lead the Dallas Cowboys to a 31-22 victory over
the Cincinnati Bengals at Texas Stadium.
Romo completed 14-of-23 passes for 17
<< Williams, Panthers maul Chiefs
Charlotte, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - DeAngelo Williams ran for two touchdowns and
caught a scoring pass in Carolina's 34-0 drubbing of the listless Kansas City
Chiefs.
Williams gained a career-high 123 yards on 20 carries for the Panthers (4-
<< Bills' Edwards leaves with concussion
Glendale, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Buffalo Bills quarterback Trent Edwards was
forced to leave Sunday's 41-17 loss to the Arizona Cardinals with a
concussion.
Buffalo started the game with the ball and Edwards completed three s
<< Giants remain perfect, clobber Seahawks
East Rutherford, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brandon Jacobs gashed the Seahawks
defense for 136 yards and two touchdowns on just 15 carries, as the New York
Giants remained perfect on the young season after a 44-6 rout of Seattle.
Eli Mann
Broncos edge Buccaneers >>
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Matt Prater nailed all three of his field goal
attempts, including a 55-yarder, and Brandon Stokley accounted for Denver's
only touchdown, as the Broncos grinded out a 16-13 victory over the Tampa Bay
Buccane
Bucs QB Griese leaves game against Broncos >>
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Brian Griese
left in the third quarter of Sunday's 16-13 loss to the Denver Broncos with a
shoulder injury.
Griese, who was drafted by Denver in the third round of the 199
Orton, Bears rout Lions >>
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kyle Orton threw for a career-high 334
yards and two touchdowns as Chicago routed Detroit, 34-7, in the latest
installment of their 79-year-old rivalry at Ford Field.
Orton completed 24-of-34 pa
Manning, Colts rally to stun Texans >>
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Peyton Manning's five-yard touchdown pass to
Reggie Wayne with just under two minutes to go capped a furious Indianapolis
comeback as the Colts stunned Houston, 31-27.
Trailing 27-10 late in the fourt
Hornets' Chandler hurts ankle >>
New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New Orleans Hornets center Tyson Chandler
left Sunday's 106-103 preseason-opening victory over the Golden State
Warriors in the first quarter with a sprained right ankle.
The injury occurred un
Pacific-10 Conference odds
Teams that should be in: Stanford
 Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.
Should be in:
Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.
| Southeastern Conference odds |
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State
 It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.
Work left to do:
Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney.
Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson.
Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable.
Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile. |
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Mayweather picked to beat De La Hoya
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA -- Golden Boy Oscar De La Hoya and his rival Floyd Mayweather Jr. arrived at the MGM Grand here Wednesday amid the pomp and pandemonium befitting two of the biggest stars in the sport who are about to duke it out for the WBC super welterweight crown this Saturday (Sunday in Manila).
As of Wednesday, MySportsbook.com closed its book with Mayweather a favorite to defeat De La Hoya at -170 (a $100 bet wins $70), while De La Hoya is a +140 underdog (a $100 bet wins $140).
Mayweather arrived at about 11:30 a.m. on a big truck with his face and a big "World's Best Pound-for-Pound" sign scribbled across the vehicle. He was accompanied by his entourage made up of rappers and his training team.
A crowd of close to 3,000 eager fans packed the MGM Grand lobby, with their cameras in tow, all trying to vie for position to get a good angle at Mayweather, who is acknowledged as the world's best fighter pound-for-pound.
Eric Gomez, Golden Boy Promotions vice-president, described the fan turnout as "amazing" and swore he had never seen anything quite like this event.
"The crowd was fantastic. Everybody was just too eager to see the two fighters," said ALA manager Michael Aldeguer, who was among those who waited at the lobby together with his ward Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista and AJ Banal.
De La Hoya made his own grand entrance at the hotel lobby at around 12:30 p.m. accompanied by GBP chief executive officer Richard Schaefer and trainer Freddie Roach.
The same group of fans who trooped to see Mayweather also lingered around to get a close look at De La Hoya, who has been secretly working out at a Las Vegas gym for days after arriving from his main training camp in Puerto Rico.
The golden boy then took part in a closed-door afternoon workout with Bautista and Banal. The two, along with Aldeguer and wife Christine, as well as an HBO crew were the only ones allowed inside the gym.
De La Hoya and Mayweather take part in today's final press conference before the official weigh-in this Friday.
Ring Magazine, the acknowledged bible of boxing, reported in its June 2007 issue that 12 out of 20 boxing experts it interviewed have favored Mayweather to defeat De la Hoya, with only 8 favoring the latter.
But Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao said in a recent interview with The Freeman's Emmanuel Villaruel that De La Hoya will win by unanimous decision over Mayweather.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on boxing needs.
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