Five-a-Side: Sam Houston State's Timothy Flanders

NCAA Football Betting Lines

12/26/2011 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - What Andre Ware saw is what Timothy Flanders had been thinking already.

While Sam Houston State beat Montana in the FCS semifinals on Dec. 16, Ware described as an announcer on the ESPN broadcast that Flanders' moves as a running back are similar to what Barry Sanders once provided for the Detroit Lions.

Ware, the 1989 Heisman Trophy winner, did not have a prior conversation with Flanders, but seeing was believing.

Had they talked, Ware would have learned Flanders' all-time favorite player is Barry Sanders.

That Flanders was zigging and zagging his way to a school-record 287 yards on 26 carries was worthy of lofty comparisons. In taking over the game, Flanders propelled Sam Houston State to its first appearance in the FCS championship game.

The No. 1-seeded Bearkats (14-0) will play No. 2 North Dakota State (13-1) on Jan. 7 at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas, about 200 miles from their campus in Huntsville. After their holiday break, they will rejoin as a team on Tuesday to continue preparations for the title game.

North Dakota State's defensive focus will begin with Flanders, the 2011 Southland Conference Player of the Year who is filling Sam Houston State's record book. The 5-foot-9, 210-pound redshirt sophomore transfer from Kansas State, whose flip touchdown against Stephen F. Austin earlier this season might be the most sensational play of the FCS season, has rushed for 1,560 yards and scored 24 touchdowns.

In Five-a-Side - In the FCS Huddle's monthly feature of "five questions, five answers" with an influential person in the FCS - Flanders discusses the Bearkats' unbeaten season.

Let's kick off:

TSN: Obviously, you went from gaining 38 yards against Montana State (in the FCS quarterfinals) to 287 against Montana. Were you extra motivated during those six days between games?

TF: I felt the same (as) I did every week. I thought each game was going to be harder when we played. I only had 38 yards (against Montana State), but Montana was playing us the same exact way. It was just a lot of different read keys, a lot more give and stuff like that.

TSN: How does your team deal with having three weeks off before the championship game?

TF: I'm pretty sure we're motivated. I mean, I'm pretty sure that everybody is doing what they can to stay ready. I know everybody's excited. But I'm pretty sure most of our team will be good when we get back.

TSN: Your team has come from 6-5 last year to 14-0 this year. What has your team done to skip a step in that building process?

TF: Coach (Willie) Fritz always told us we want to go from being average to being great. We skipped the 'good' part. We went 6-5 last year and we had a winning record. But some teams usually go 6-5 and next year they'll go 10-2 or something like that. But now we skipped that good mark and we're trying to go for great.

TSN: What does the offense do so well that makes it tough to defend against?

TF: It starts with blocking. Our offensive line does a very good job of blocking, the receivers do a good job of blocking downfield. Then we have all the option game and we come from different angles, different formations any way we can. And then on top of that, we have the play-action pass.

TSN: From an offensive mindset, can you break down what your team's defense does so well?

TF: They do a real good job running to the football - a very good job. That's why they're good against the rush defense and they're getting better each game with the pass defense. I mean, those guys help (the offense) a lot, they give us good field position each game.

Jzzsports NCAA Football Betting News

<< Delaware to play seven home games in 2012
Newark, DE (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The University of Delaware football team will play seven home games in 2012, including three straight to open the season. The schedule kicks off with the final match-up in Delaware's long-time series with Divisi

<< Changing of the guard; Paul shines in Clippers' debut
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chris Paul paid immediate dividends for the Los Angeles Clippers. Acquired in a trade from New Orleans earlier this month, Paul scored 20 points, dished out nine assists, and hit three big shots late

<< Packers top Bears, clinch NFC's No. 1 seed
Green Bay, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Aaron Rodgers threw for 283 yards and a career-high five scores on 21-of-29 passing as the Green Bay Packers wrapped up home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs with a 35-21 win over the Chicago

<< Durant leads Thunder past Magic
Oklahoma City, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After falling short of an NBA Finals appearance last season, Kevin Durant and the Thunder started the 2011-12 campaign determined to advance to the next level. Durant, the NBA's scoring leader

<< Rose a thorn in Lakers' side; Bulls rally in LA
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ahead by 11 points with 3:44 remaining, the Lakers appeared to have their Christmas wish granted with a season-opening win over the Bulls. But Chicago scored the final seven points Sunday, as Luol Deng c

Saints, Brees have goals in reach in huge bout with Falcons >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A division title could be secured and a cherished individual record has a chance to be broken when the Atlanta Falcons and New Orleans Saints square off at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in a marquee Monday night matchup with ve

Delaware success sends Rocco to Gulfstream >>
Hallandale Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Coming off a riding crown in 2011 at Delaware Park veteran jockey Joe Rocco Jr. has moved his tack to south Florida and Gulfstream Park. "This year at Delaware is the best I'd ever done, so it just

Nets tip off in nation's capital vs. Wizards >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New Jersey Nets will have to get used to playing on the road at the start of the 2011-12 season because they're scheduled as the visitor for six of the first eight games, starting with tonight's opener against the Washing

Jackson, Bucks visit Charlotte >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Charlotte Bobcats have made the postseason just once in the franchise's existence. They're counting on a few new additions to change the losing atmosphere and will kick off a condensed season tonight versus the Milwaukee

Rockets open McHale-era in Orlando >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kevin McHale will get his coaching career in Houston underway when the Rockets pay a visit to Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic this evening from Amway Center. McHale took over for Rick Adelman in May after the Rockets f

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.


Online Sportsbook Football Betting

Why Sports Betting is so much fun?

Betting Sports

The most popular sports to bet on are NFL and college football along with NBA and NCAA basketball. There are multiple betting opportunities within those sports, beginning with the basic wager on a game’s outcome (also called betting the side). College Football Point spreads are used in both football and basketball in an attempt to even the attractiveness of each team in a match-up. ( See our article detailing how and why point spreads are made)

But you could also simply bet on the money line, or straight-up winner of the game. Oddsmakers use the money line so that more money must be risked on the favorite or expected winner and less money on the underdog to balance the action on both sides. While money line gambling is an attractive option for football and basketball bettors who only care about picking a winner, it is the primary option for those bettors who enjoy wagering on MLB baseball and individual sports like boxing, tennis, golf and racing events such as NASCAR. ( More details on playing the Money Line)

Points (or Runs) Scored

Another bet across all major team sports including football, basketball, baseball, and hockey involves wagering on the amount of scoring in a game, called an Over/Under total. For example, the Over/Under total on Super Bowl XXXIX was 48, which means a bettor could wager whether there would be more or less than 48 points scored by both teams combined in the game.

The final score of Super Bowl XXXIX was 24-21; the scoring of both teams added up to 45, which means the game went Under . So Under bettors won, and Over bettors lost.

Future Bets

Sports gambling doesn’t end there. Betting sides and totals are the most common wagers available everywhere, but many sportsbooks also offer future bets on big upcoming events like who will win next year’s Super Bowl and what movie will win Best Picture at the Academy Awards.

The main advantage of futures is that you can get appealing odds by betting far in advance. For example, with NFL futures you often can get much higher odds on a team by betting before the season even starts. A NFL future bet on a team to win the Super Bowl odds might be 20/1 in the preseason; but by midseason, their odds might decrease to 10/1 if they turn out to be legitimate championship contenders.

Proposition Bets (or Prop Bets)

Proposition bets , also known as prop bets, focus upon the more exotic aspects of a game and are generally reserved for events that are widely televised. Prop bets are extremely popular when it comes to wagering on the Super Bowl in Las Vegas. The Imperial Palace Casino’s sportsbook is well-known for the enormous number of prop bets offered. For example, you can bet on:

Types of Bets

Straight Bet

Involves one individual wager, whether it be on your team to cover the point spread, to win the game straight-up on the money line, or to go over/under the total.

Sports Betting Parlays

A parlay is a single bet that links together two or more individual wagers and is dependent on all of those wagers winning together. The benefit of the parlay bet is much better odds than placing each individual bet separately since the difficulty of hitting it is much higher.

Standard payoffs on a two-team parlay are 13/5; while a three-teamer pays 6/1; and a four-teamer 10/1.

Parlay cards are also fairly common in sportsbooks and popular with bettors, as they are released early in the week with set odds that do not change in return for a slightly lower payoff.

Round Robin Betting

Adventurous bettors who enjoy betting parlays sometimes put together a series of parlays called a Round Robin . A three-team Round Robin consists of one three-team parlay and three two-team parlays. For example, Joe likes teams A,B,C – with a Round Robin he has a three-teamer with ABC, and two-teamers with AB, AC, and BC.

Betting Teasers

Similar to a parlay, a teaser bet is a single bet that links together two or more individual wagers, but is different in that the point spread is adjusted to your advantage on each individual wager. In exchange for the points, you get less of a return on your bet compared to a parlay. For example, a 6-point teaser would move the line on a 7-point favorite from -7 to -1, meaning the team would have to cover 6 less points. Each of the individual wagers must win or the bet is a loss.

These are the main types of sports bets available today. But as sports betting continues to grow, sportsbooks will continue to develop new and creative ways to bet. We’ll continue to track these changes to the sports gambling landscape, so check back often and we’ll tell you all about it!

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.