Which of them will fall flat on their faces first?

The 2010 March Madness bracket tournament has been set and the top four No.1 seeds have been announced, that being the Kansas Jayhawks, the Kentucky Wildcats, the Duke Blue Devils and the Syracuse Orange. That being said, basketball aficionados looking to score some major winnings will wait which No.1 seed will falter first since these guys know how big underdogs pay off.

So who’ll get the boot first? Let’s start with the Duke Blue Devils. Among all of the no.1 seeds in this year’s tournament, many people are expecting Duke to have the easiest matchup, well, at least in the first round. Duke has all the materials to go deep in this tournament and since the Tar Heels won’t be playing this March, not many people think otherwise.

Next we have the Kansas Jayhawks. Kansas has one of the best defenses in college basketball as they held opponents to 63.8 points, the best average in the Big 12, the very conference the Jayhawks dominated with a 15-1 record before claiming the conference tournament championship for the seventh time. Betting against these guys is pretty much, not a good idea.

We also have the Syracuse Orange. They will slug it out against the Vermont Catamounts in the first round of the 2010 NCAA tourney. Looking back at the history of these two teams, Vermont, champions of the America East Conference, beat Syracuse 60-57 in overtime in the first round of the 2005 NCAA tournament, a stinging loss the Orange have not forgotten. And if you’re looking for an upset in the first round, this matchup can very well give you one.

Syracuse had finished the 2004-05 regular season at 24-6 and…

Read More » The No.1 seeds of the 2010 March Madness Bracket

Heeere we go.

An intriguing game in the 2010 March Madness bracket tournament will be played on Thursday as 11^th seed Washington faces 6^th seed Marquette. This is the third straight year Marquette has been a number six seed in the NCAA tournament. Two years ago they beat 11^th seed Kentucky in the first round before losing to third-seeded Stanford in overtime in the second round. Last year, Marquette beat 11^th seed Utah State and lost to third-seeded Missouri in the second round. It is the fifth straight year the Eagles have made the tournament.

The Marquette Golden Eagles are 2-point favorites at SBG Global.

Not much was expected of Marquette this season since they lost three starters, but the Eagles really came together late in the season, winning 11 of their last 14 games. The Eagles don’t have much of a bench so the starters are a big key. Marquette had some nice wins this year over Villanova, Georgetown and Xavier so they are capable of making a little run in the NCAA tournament.

Lazar Hayward is their big scorer. He was named second team All-Big East this season. Marquette is a good shooting team, especially from long range. The Eagles averaged 72.9 points per game this season while they allowed 64.2 points per game.

The Washington Huskies, on the other hand, had what could be considered a disappointing regular season but they made up for it by winning the Pac-10 Tournament. Washington has some players who can make an impact including Quincy Pondexter who leads the team in scoring.

Marquette and Washington have met twice in history but it was a long time ago. Marquette won 75-74 in 1966 and 71-63 in 1978.

The Huskies are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 games overall but…

Read More » No.6 seed Marquette takes on No.11 Washington to kick off the 2010 March Madness Bracket Tournament

Since it’s that obvious anyway.

Arguably the greatest three weeks in sports are upon us with the 2010 March madness bracket tournament tipping off. And of course Bodog will have everything a basketball bettor could ever need.

Yes, it’s that time of year when even the most amateur sports fan becomes an expert in basketball with the men’s NCAA tournament here. From the play-in game through the 2010 NCAA Final Four in Indianapolis, Bodog will have it all covered with basketball news, odds, contests and more.

That’s right, the road to the Final Four runs through Bodog and you won’t find any gaming site with as many basketball betting options on the NCAA tournament than those guys. They’ve been doing this for 15 years and they should already know what bettors want when it comes to the Big Dance. From odds to news to brackets, you’ll find it all at Bodog.

This year’s NCAA men’s basketball tournament appears to be one of the most wide-open tourneys in recent year, and that could be good news for those basketball bettors. While the North Carolina Tar Heels were huge favorites going into last year’s Big Dance and came home with the title, the Heels are not even in the field this year.

The Kansas Jayhawks, the Kentucky Wildcats, the Syracuse Orange and the Duke Blue Devils are your four No.1 seeds in the bracket this year, but none of those four could be considered a lock Final Four team.

Last year’s tournament was very chalk, as for the first time since seeding began, all 12 teams seeded No.3 or better made it to the Sweet 16, and three No.1 seeds reached the Elite Eight for the third straight year.

There are probably about 20 or so teams that have a real shot at…

Read More » This is an article asking you to bet on the 2010 March Madness Bracket Tournament with Bodog Sportsbook

For whatever its worth, he really really wants to.

Former England team captain David Beckham is eager to represent his country in the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He got a deal with AC Milan, allowing him to stay in game shape in Italy over the next few weeks during Major League Soccer’s off-season.

England team manager Fabio Capello will decide whether or not he will name the Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder to his 23-man roster for this year’s World Cup in South Africa. Capello has publicly stated that Beckham must be playing first-team soccer at the highest level in the buildup to the World Cup to even be considered for the English national team this summer.

Beckham has made a handful of appearances for AC Milan and figures to be a regular starter for the Rossoneri as they attempt to chase down city rivals Inter Milan, currently in first place in Serie A, for the Italian league championship. But will that be enough to get him a spot in the England national team?

”He is a leader and an inspiration to his teammates. Equally, he is feared and respected by all of his opponents. He’s vastly experienced on the international stage. He’s a big-game player who doesn’t get intimidated by anyone,” CBC Sports soccer commentator Nigel Reed said.

David Beckham was sent to exile when he earned a red card during…

Read More » Should England get David Beckham for the World Cup?

It looks like the Jets have once again signed a big name superstar who’s trying to prove something coming to the new season.

Yes, LaDainian Tomlinson will be playing for the New York Jets in the 2010 NFL football season. L.T. will be the Jets’ latest high profile superstar, joining the likes of Brett Favre, Bart Scott, Braylon Edwards and Antonio Cromartie who the Jets have signed the last few years, all were looking then to salvage what’s left of their playing days in the Big Apple.

But since LaDainian Tomlinson is joining the very team that ranked first in the league in rushing offense last season, there shouldn’t be any problems for L.T. to get going for New York right? After all, he made a career out of running the ball for years, even winning him the league MVP back in ‘06.

Well, if he was five years younger, there wouldn’t be any problems alright. But at 30, that’s a little hard to say for sure. Still, Tomlinson’s age hasn’t fazed his confidence one bit and he feels his marriage with the New York Jets will equate to a Super Bowl title. He wouldn’t be there if he thought otherwise.

”He wanted to go to a team that he thought had a chance to compete for the championship,” Tomlinson’s agent Tom Condon said in an interview. ”He wanted to go somewhere where he had a chance to have a significant role, and so with the Jets he also was going to be very familiar with the offensive system.”

With the $5.1 million the Jets are paying Tomlinson, he’s got to be ”familiar with the system” alright. The Jets signed Tomlinson to a two-year contract and if it turns out that Tomlinson still got it…

Read More » LaDainian Tomlinson signs with the New York Jets

Like Tomlinson, Westbrook has began looking for teams to play for.

With the 2010 NFL football season still more than a couple of months away, guys like Tomlinson and Westbrook have more than enough time to find a new place to call home where they try to salvage what’s left of their playing career.

In case you haven’t heard, the Philadelphia Eagles decided to part ways with their all-time leading rusher by releasing Brian Westbrook a few weeks ago. Westbrook, who has a history of injuries, missed eight games in 2009 after suffering ankle injuries and two concussions.

In his eight-year career with the Philadelphia Eagles, he never played a full season. This seems to be part of the reason why Philadelphia didn’t want to bring him back in 2010. He was also due to make $7.25 million.

Now that he’s a free agent, Westbrook may have to accept the fact that he will most likely be signed by a team for a limited role as a no.2 (or even no.3) running back. Here are just some teams that may consider signing Westbrook now that he is no longer with the Eagles.

The Minnesota Vikings may be a good choice for Westbrook since…

Read More » Which team will Brian Westbrook play for next?

Well, it’s a little too early to answer that.

The fact of the matter is, it’ll be awfully hard for the Philadelphia Phillies to recapture the form they had when they won the National League coming to the 2010 MLB baseball season.

STILL, with the Philadelphia Phillies adding Roy Halladay, you can’t help but accept the fact that these guys are still the team to beat in the NL. They are still serious contenders to go all the way in 2010. Not only does the addition of arguably the best pitcher in baseball enhance their chances, but have you seen their line-up lately?

Aside from the addition of Roy Halladay, the Phillies’ roster this season consists of Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorimo, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Raul Ibanez, Jayson Werth, Placido Polanco, and their only real hole besides the pitcher hitting, Carlos Ruiz.

It’s a modern day ”Murderer’s Row.” Halladay and the rest of the Phillies staff will have a lot of run support. If Cole Hamels can get back to his 2008 self, he and Halladay will be one of the best pitching tandems in all of baseball. Switching to the National League should be more advantageous for Halladay since there won’t be a DH. Plus, his experience pitching to teams like the Yankees and the Red Sox should make pitching against any NL team easy.

But if there’s one team who can challenge Philly in the National League, it would have to be the St. Louis Cardinals.

This team flat out knows how to get things done, consistently plugging…

Read More » Who will challenge the Philadelphia Phillies in the NL?

Well, what do you expect?

With still more than a few months left before we get to see what the 2010 NFL football season has in store for us, Brett Favre ain’t budging yet when asked on what exactly are his plans for his imminent future in the NFL.

You see, Brett Favre said that he still hasn’t decided yet on whether he’ll play again next season, and doesn’t expect to make an announcement anytime soon. Well, we can’t say we haven’t heard something like this from him before.

Appearing on NBC’s ”The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” Favre, who played for the Minnesota Vikings last season, politely balked when host Jay Leno asked for his thoughts on returning for the 2010 season.

”Well Jay, it’s only been a month, and I know now that I’m just not going to say anything anytime soon, just going to kind of sit back, relax, enjoy the offseason,” Brett Favre said in his first public appearance since the Minnesota Vikings lost in the NFC championship game at New Orleans back in January 24.

The pride of Kiln, Miss., Favre is the NFL’s career leader in nearly every major passing category. Hell, the guy’s a three-time league MVP too. The former star quarterback of the Green Bay Packers had one of his best seasons ever after doing what was once unfathomable, playing for Green Bay’s rivals, the Minnesota Vikings.

The Vikings were rewarded with 33 touchdowns and the lowest…

Read More » Brett Favre is still not telling if he’ll come back or not

With Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui no longer part of the Yankees, can these guys return to the World Series this year?

That is the question most Yankee fans are asking themselves as we kick off the brand new 2010 MLB baseball season. Will the key additions of Javier Vasquez and Curtis Granderson be enough to fill the holes Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui left on the roster?

Without a shadow of a doubt, both Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui were keys in the Yankees’ World Series run in 2009. Hell, Matsui was the 2009 World Series MVP for crying out loud. Thankfully, the Yankees are deep enough on both offense and with pitching that they can probably afford to lose out on those key elements on their title run heading to the season.

While some will remember Vazquez’s bad first go-around with the New York Yankees, things will be drastically different in that he won’t be counted on to be the ace or even second-best pitcher on the team. He’ll be the fourth starter behind CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, and Andy Pettitte. There is no questioning Vazquez’s stuff and the second tour on duty with the Bronx Bombers should be a lot smoother.

Granderson can do a lot of things on offense, but would be so much better if he could hit lefties (.210 career batting average). Yet, in a lineup that includes Derek Jeter, Mark Teixeira, Alex Rodriguez, Robinson Cano, Jorge Posada, and newly (re)-acquired Nick Johnson, Granderson will be alright.

And so will the Yankees as they have a great shot to…

Read More » Can the NY Yankees win the 2010 World Series without Johnny Damon and World Series MVP Hideko Matsui?

And by ”they” we mean those NFL folks watching Colt McCoy take himself out of the BCS championship game with a broken shoulder.

Suffering an injury in a championship game is a frightening experience for any athlete but things like that do happen and in this year’s BCS national championship game, we saw exactly that as Texas Longhorns quarterback Colt McCoy suffered a shoulder injury during his final game for the ‘Horns against eventual BCS champs, the Alabama Crimson Tide.

In case you missed it, it was just four minutes into the game when the unfortunate injury happened. Texas Longhorns quarterback Colt McCoy ran the ball on a keeper, only to get stuffed.

Before the play was over, Marcell Dareus of Alabama had slammed into McCoy’s shoulder, causing a pinched nerve and knocking McCoy out of the game, the final one of McCoy’s college career.

Many experts see McCoy as a first round pick in the upcoming 2010 NFL Draft but with this injury, McCoy’s stock might go down a bit. McCoy would have to convince the rest of the NFL that his arm would be strong and healthy enough to throw the types of passes that work best at the pro level, both in terms of bullet passes over the middle or deep balls.

Perhaps the worst part about McCoy’s injury, assuming that he recovers fully, is the fact that it denied him a chance to play the bulk of the minutes in college football’s showcase game, a game in which many NFL types were likely watching.

A good performance on the big stage could have boosted…

Read More » Will they still take Colt McCoy in the 2010 NFL Draft?