Penn State pays tribute to Paterno
NCAA Football Betting Lines
01/26/2012 - University Park, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - If there was a common thread for Thursday's public memorial service for Joe Paterno, it's that he was much more than a football coach.
He might have recorded 409 victories during a 46-year tenure as the Nittany Lions' head coach, but he was also a major proponent of academics and achieving success with honor, not merely winning.
Everybody who spoke -- former players from across the decades, the dean of Penn State's College of the Liberal Arts, students, Paterno's son Jay -- stressed the effect Paterno had on their lives off the football field, right up until he died Sunday from lung cancer at the age of 85.
The praise of Paterno's integrity ran counter to the criticism he faced in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky child-sex abuse case -- that he didn't do enough to stop the alleged abuse. The school's trustees fired Paterno in November over the phone.
But most of the praise indirectly served as a reminder that Paterno was a man of generosity and integrity. Nike chairman Phil Knight, on the other hand, directly addressed and challenged criticism of Paterno, a man he said was his hero.
"In the year in question it turns out he gave full disclosure to his superiors, information that went up the chain to the head of the campus police and the president of the school," Knight said. "The matter was in the hands of a world-class university and by a president with an outstanding national reputation.
"Whatever the details of the investigation are, this much is clear to me: there is a villain in this tragedy, and it lies in that investigation, not in Joe Paterno's response to it."
Knight then received a standing ovation from the crowd at Penn State's Bryce Jordan Center. Jay Paterno later said his father left the world with a "clear conscience."
Paterno's firing was extremely controversial and polarizing, prompting some to staunchly defend the former head coach and blame the trustees for succumbing to pressure, while others saw the firing as justified. Still others saw Paterno as a good man who made a grave mistake.
Knight was referring to how Paterno, after being told in 2002 by an assistant that he saw Sandusky sexually abusing a young boy in the university showers, brought the matter to his Penn State bosses.
Paterno, in the Washington Post interview published January 14, said he didn't know how to handle hearing the report and wasn't sure he would have been able to comprehend the graphic details, if the assistant -- Mike McQueary -- had described them. Paterno said he was unsure of how to handle the information he had, and backed away after turning over the information.
Sandusky, an assistant coach at Penn State from 1969-99, faces more than 50 counts of charges that he sexually abused young boys, as recently as 2009.
The scandal changed how some judged his career and, coming so close to his death, affected Paterno's decades-old legacy as one of Pennsylvania's most admired public figures.
But Thursday's memorial was not only a chance for family and friends to remember Paterno, but to burnish his legacy.
Former players Kenny Jackson, Todd Blackledge, Charlie Pittman, Jimmy Cefalo, Chris Marrone and Michael Robinson were among the speakers, each representing a decade of Paterno's coaching career. Current linebacker Mike Mauti also spoke.
Each described the affect Paterno had on their lives. Pittman told a story about how Paterno once pushed him so hard he was in tears, and wanted to return home. But Pittman's father talked him out of it, and Pittman played for Penn State's undefeated teams in 1968 and '69.
"Joe wasn't trying to build perfection," said Pittman, whose son later went on to play for the Nittany Lions. "He was bit-by-bit building a habit of excellence. He was building a proud program for the school, the state, and the hundreds of men he looked over for a half century."
Paterno's program came to be known as the 'Grand Experiment,' which included the pursuit of athletic and academic success.
Cefalo, a Penn State receiver in the 1970s, told a story of how he finished his degree during his junior year, and was going to enjoy his senior year after finishing the football season.
He recalled Paterno saying, "Look at this class schedule! This is beneath you."
Each tribute described how Paterno changed people's lives for the better, and most featured a specific moment when the speakers realized Paterno's influence.
It was Blackledge being encouraged to stick with the team despite having a bad roommate, with whom he later won a national title. It was Cefalo walking into his parents' house to tell them he had decided to attend another school, only to see Paterno sitting there, eating pasta and drinking wine. It was Robinson not knowing much about Paterno before sitting down with the coach, and realizing Paterno wasn't lying to him, wasn't promising anything more than a chance to play and a quality education.
It was Susan Welch, dean of Penn State's College of Liberal Arts, recalling a breakfast when Paterno stressed the importance of the school's classics department. It was Lauren Perrotti, a Paterno fellow at Penn State, remembering how the former head coach thanked her after she thanked him for funding she received through the fellows program.
Jay Paterno gave the final speech of the service, an emotional tribute that went from describing Joe's love for his wife, Sue, to Joe's drive to make an impact on people's lives.
"Fame and power never touched his soul," Jay said, "In the end, he takes his integrity with him forever."
On Sunday, Jay Paterno kissed his father and whispered into his ear that he had won, he had done enough and could go home now.
And on Thursday afternoon, as a lone trumpeter closed the service by slowly playing 'Hail to the Lions' before tens of thousands of people in honor of Joe Paterno, it was clear where home was.
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Sportsbooks to bet on football
Recently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it.
He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games.
"Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote.
He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games.
Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk.
Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible.
Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines.
Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy.
With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season.
Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas).
And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.)
The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors.
While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger.
Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under.
One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it.
Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami.
What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5.
That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well.
MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple.
"The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money.
"At the end of the day, we liked the home team."
So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams.
In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish.
MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover.
The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing.
Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed.
MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash.
To visit this online football betting got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
MySportsbook features easy-to-use online betting software that’s the most reliable in the industry. If you’re looking to bet underdogs, then this Sportsbook is the place - we have the best betting lines in the business. MySportsbook is your one-stop shop for all your betting needs - sports betting, poker, casino, and horse racing . MySportsbook offers every bet type with lightning fast settlement of wagers. Take advantage of free statistical analysis - including against-the-spread and straight-up trends - in MySportsbook’s game previews section. With MySportsbook there are unlimited free deposits and payouts - and no transaction fees!
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.