Will Stafford be Lion King at NFL draft?

On Saturday it is expected that with the No. 1 overall pick, Detroit will select Georgia QB Matthew Stafford. Lucky for Lions fans that Matt Millen is no longer GM, because he may have drafted wide receivers Michael Crabtree or Jeremy Maclin instead. Currently, Stafford is the favorite at 1/5 to be the #1 overall pick. Some other players in the hunt to go #1 overall are Baylor OT Jason Smith (3/1), Virginia OT Eugene Monroe (6/1) and Wake Forest Aaron Curry (10/1).   There are only supposed to be 2 or 3 running backs taken in the 1st round of the draft. With so many NFL running backs having a short NFL career, general managers don’t want to invest too early with this position. In fact, don't be surprised if 20 selections go by and no running backs are taken. It looks like Ohio State's Chris "Beanie" Wells will be the first RB selected Saturday. A couple other RB's that may go in the 1st round are Georgia's Knowshon Moreno, and UConn's Donald Brown. We have a prop on the "Number of Running Backs taken in Round One" and it is 2.5 Under -160.   If you root for a team that needs some pass catchers, then this year's draft should provide help. The frontrunner to be the first wideout selected is Texas Tech's Michael Crabtree. He would be a sure fire top 5 selection if he didn’t have below average speed. Another player that will be drafted right around when Crabtree figures to go is Missouri's Jeremy Maclin. While Maclin doesn’t have the pass catching ability that Cra... [More]

Remembering Kalas & Mark "The Bird" Fidrych

On Monday, the sports world lost a pair of indelible figures in Harry Kalas and Mark Fidrych. Kalas, as you may know, was the voice for many NFL Films productions, a job he held since 1975. In addition to the NFL Films gig, Kalas was the play-by-play man for the the Philladelphia Phillies.

What set Kalas apart from his contemporaries was he had a unique of narrating. When he spoke, it was slow, almost methodical, yet gritty. I still have his voice imprinted in my head from when I was a 11 year old kid in the mid 1980s. This is when ESPN would constantly show NFL Films presentations with Kalas.

Mark "The Bird" Fidrych started his career in 1976 by winning the Rookie of the Year. He tossed a complete game 2 hitter in his first start.  He went on having a ridiculous 24 complete games in '76 and was the MLB leader in E.R.A. (2.34). Fidrych's career was cut short due to arm problems in 1977 and retired in 1980.

It's especially sad that both passings came unexpectedly. But we shouldn't stay upset for long. Both these men were grateful of the lives they lived, and that's why they were able to accomplish great things.

I wanted to pay my respects to Kalas by including a clip he did on Roger Craig back in the day.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOJZqdvGjAA

Michael Perry is an oddsmaker with ... [More]

I Bet the Law and the Law Lost

Monday morning, as I was glancing through the odds on "Most Outstanding Person" for the Final Four, I noticed that the odds for Ty Lawson were even money. I decided to put a couple on Lawson to win MOP. After Lawson's 22 point, 8 assist, 7 rebound effort against Villanova Saturday, it's looked as if he would be almost a shoe-in to win the "MOP" assuming North Carolina took care of business against Michigan State.

When Wayne Ellington was announced the "MOP",  I needed to to go the fridge to get some ice for my mouth after my jaw hit the table. Frustrated that I just missed out on what looked like an almost certainty, I decided to watch the game over again.

Right from the opening tap, Lawson got each of his teammates involved. When Carolina grabbed an early 10-5 lead, every starter had already scored. This did a world of good to confidence of the team, and a result UNC lead by double figures 5 minutes into the game, and coasted the rest of the game.

Yes, Ellington's shooting percentage was very impressive, especially from 3 point range, where he went 3/3 in the championship game and 5/7 on Saturday. Howevever, this is what he is supposed to do, this is his specialty. I could see Ellington winning the ward if he would have a high number of rebounds or assists against Michigan State, but he didnt. In fact, he didnt have a single assist against the Spartans.

Lawson was so spectactular, not only in the tournament, but for the entire season (winnin... [More]