Sports Betting Professor

George Schroeder has a thoughtful column here on Jeremiah Masoli’s first practice Tuesday as Oregon’s newly suspended quarterback.



He touches a lot of bases.



First, he divides folks into three camps: 1. Masoli still rocks, can’t wait until 2011! 2. Masoli is a criminal who should be in jail, not in college, much less practicing with the Ducks; 3. Masoli? Mixed feelings about him still being around.



Schroeder doesn’t write to the first two camps. He says that the third shouldn’t apologize for wanting there to be — eventually — a happy ending on the horizon. “If you’re among those undecideds, it’s time to root for Masoli’s redemption.”



He then considers two interesting issues: 1. What will 2011 be like with Masoli returning and will it be a positive thing? 2. And, really, how likely is it that Masoli will stick around?



Writes Schroeder: “It wouldn’t be surprising if, as time goes on, Masoli runs through his options and decides it makes sense to leave Oregon. I wouldn’t blame him. Even if he stays and does everything right from now on, there will be some who won’t ever forgive, and others who will always doubt.”



Bracket off for a second your emotions on this. Try to look at it like a novel or a movie. Or as if you are a sportswriter.



It’s certainly an unusual situation. Dare I say, it’s interesting?



If Masoli, who isn’t talking to reporters and might not for some time (more on that in a moment), opts to stick around, he could earn his college degree and — who knows? — he could re-earn the starting job and perhaps play his way into an NFL opportunity (which was far from certain even before the offfield issues).



But he is going to take tons of abuse for the next two years, first as a bystander, then as a quarterback for a visiting team. He will be pointed at and whispered about in public places. His story will be endlessly regurgitated. He will never — ever — leave it completely behind.



Feel ridiculous quoting myself, but Masoli’s situation is not unlike what I wrote about LeGarrette Blount back in September:



No matter what happens the rest of Blount’s life, that film will be a part of who he is. He could win the Nobel Prize and cure cancer and that clip would pop up again.



One day his children will see it.



From this day forward, every time he meets someone, reaches out to shake their hand and says, “Hi, I’m LeGarrette Blount,” odds are that person will go, “That’s the guy who punched someone after a football game.”



So know that Blount will suffer greatly for what he did. The least of his worries is a season-long suspension.



Masoli, of course, should feel fortunate that his thievery wasn’t caught on film, though that might have stopped him from lying about it to police and coach Chip Kelly for so long.



(And, by the way, no — one thousand times no — Kelly will not reduce Masoli’s suspension and reinstate him as he did with Blount. Just trust me on that).



Masoli’s situation, for one, is quite different from Blount’s.



How many of you out there have ever punched someone? Or at least come very close to it. No need to raise your hand. Hopefully, it’s not a particularly proud memory.



And, as bad as Blount’s actions were, how many of you at least understood why being taunted by Boise State’s Byron Hout — and subsequently the crowd — sent Blount into a meltdown after an emotional and embarrassing loss on national TV?



Not a good reaction, but everyone immediately knew Blount’s motive.



Now, premeditated burglary? Not the same thing. Going to venture a guess that the vast — VAST — majority of you reading this never even considered breaking into a house and stealing stuff.



What the heck was Masoli thinking?



I, for one, am eager to hear from Masoli an honest answer to that question — something more than, “I wasn’t.”



There’s a lot of “stay tuned” to this story.



The first chapter was Masoli deciding — at least at this point — to stick around. The next might be him being brave enough to face the fans he let down and explain himself.

A marginal signing within the AFC East usually isn’t worth a blog post. I particularly have a hard time getting inspired to write about a player who couldn’t find work the entire season before.



But Chad Jackson is a special case. He’s one of the division’s most notorious flameouts in the past decade.



The Buffalo Bills signed Jackson on Wednesday. Terms of his contract weren’t disclosed, but it’s safe to assume it’s a low-risk deal for Buffalo.



Bill Belichick, Mike Shanahan and Josh McDaniels couldn’t find a use for him, but maybe new Bills coach Chan Gailey will figure out how to extract production from a receiver who once was considered the most promising of his draft class.



Jackson is the Patriots’ greatest draft failure on Belichick’s watch. They overvalued the University of Florida receiver and kicker returner enough to move up 16 spots and draft him 36th overall four years ago.



He was the second receiver drafted that year, 11 picks after the Pittsburgh Steelers selected Santonio Holmes, but the Patriots cut him after two seasons. Jackson has 14 career receptions for the Patriots and Denver Broncos.



“Talking to people in the organization, they misjudged how important football was to him,” said former NFL linebacker Steve DeOssie, who hosts a Patriots postgame show on Boston sports-radio station WEEI. “I don’t think he worked as hard as they anticipated him working.



“A receiver in that offense has to make some reads. He had to do a little more homework than with some other offenses, and he wasn’t ready to put in the work. It wasn’t a physical-skills scenario. He wasn’t putting in the effort the Patriots expect, especially out of their top picks.”



Jackson ran the 40-yard dash in 4.32 seconds. He was supposed to be the replacement for Super Bowl hero Deion Branch, who departed via free agency.



Hamstring and groin injuries limited Jackson’s rookie season to a dozen games and 13 receptions. Then he suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in the AFC Championship game. He didn’t return to the field until Week 10 of the 2007 season. He finished that season with zero catches and was released at the end of 2008 training camp.



Denver picked him up a month later. He played in four games, catching one pass. Denver cut him at the end of training camp last year, and he couldn’t find a new employer until Wednesday.



“Overcoming injuries is all a part of work ethic,” DeOssie said. “The guys who work hardest from rehab are the ones who come back best. If you choose not to work hard at rehab, especially a guy whose livelihood depended on speed, you don’t stick around.



“Injuries weren’t the reason. Hopefully, that’s a lesson he’s learned. I’ve seen it click before. Maybe he’s one of those guys. Sometimes, you think differently at 25 or 26 than you do at 21 or 22.”

A marginal signing within the AFC East usually isn’t worth a blog post. I particularly have a hard time getting inspired to write about a player who couldn’t find work the entire season before.



But Chad Jackson is a special case. He’s one of the division’s most notorious flameouts in the past decade.



The Buffalo Bills signed Jackson on Wednesday. Terms of his contract weren’t disclosed, but it’s safe to assume it’s a low-risk deal for Buffalo.



Bill Belichick, Mike Shanahan and Josh McDaniels couldn’t find a use for him, but maybe new Bills coach Chan Gailey will figure out how to extract production from a receiver who once was considered the most promising of his draft class.



Jackson is the Patriots’ greatest draft failure on Belichick’s watch. They overvalued the University of Florida receiver and kicker returner enough to move up 16 spots and draft him 36th overall four years ago.



He was the second receiver drafted that year, 11 picks after the Pittsburgh Steelers selected Santonio Holmes, but the Patriots cut him after two seasons. Jackson has 14 career receptions for the Patriots and Denver Broncos.



“Talking to people in the organization, they misjudged how important football was to him,” said former NFL linebacker Steve DeOssie, who hosts a Patriots postgame show on Boston sports-radio station WEEI. “I don’t think he worked as hard as they anticipated him working.



“A receiver in that offense has to make some reads. He had to do a little more homework than with some other offenses, and he wasn’t ready to put in the work. It wasn’t a physical-skills scenario. He wasn’t putting in the effort the Patriots expect, especially out of their top picks.”



Jackson ran the 40-yard dash in 4.32 seconds. He was supposed to be the replacement for Super Bowl hero Deion Branch, who departed via free agency.



Hamstring and groin injuries limited Jackson’s rookie season to a dozen games and 13 receptions. Then he suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in the AFC Championship game. He didn’t return to the field until Week 10 of the 2007 season. He finished that season with zero catches and was released at the end of 2008 training camp.



Denver picked him up a month later. He played in four games, catching one pass. Denver cut him at the end of training camp last year, and he couldn’t find a new employer until Wednesday.



“Overcoming injuries is all a part of work ethic,” DeOssie said. “The guys who work hardest from rehab are the ones who come back best. If you choose not to work hard at rehab, especially a guy whose livelihood depended on speed, you don’t stick around.



“Injuries weren’t the reason. Hopefully, that’s a lesson he’s learned. I’ve seen it click before. Maybe he’s one of those guys. Sometimes, you think differently at 25 or 26 than you do at 21 or 22.”

Joe Paterno opened his news conference Wednesday afternoon by apologizing for delaying his pre-spring meeting with reporters.



Then, in classic Paterno fashion, he muttered, “I’m here. Unfortunately, so are you.”



Yes, we missed you, JoePa.



We haven’t heard much from the Penn State head coach since the Capital One Bowl, though his vision surgery and the auctioning of his famous glasses kept Paterno in the spotlight. Paterno addressed a number of topics in Wednesday’s media session, and here are a few takeaways:

• There’s no timetable on a decision to name a starting quarterback. Paterno is open to modifying the offense so it fits the players’ strengths. “We want to get them comfortable, see what they can do, and not do more than what they can handle,” he said.
• Paterno reiterated that former walk-on Matt McGloin is very much in the mix at quarterback, while wide receiver Brett Brackett hasn’t been working with the signal callers this spring. Paterno is making the rounds in spring ball and hasn’t seen much of early enrollee Paul Jones. JoePa is happy with the way Kevin Newsome handles himself in the huddle, saying Newsome “has made a lot of progress.”
• Wide receiver Chaz Powell is getting a look at cornerback this spring. Powell ranked fourth on the team in receptions with 28 last fall. He also served as the team’s primary kickoff return man and finished second in all-purpose yards (67.8 ypg). Powell played both defensive back and wide receiver in high school and was a standout on special teams. “I’m not sure Powell’s going to be a corner,” Paterno said. “Obviously, Powell’s a good athlete. He could play offense or defense.”
• Asked about the situation at offensive tackle, Paterno jokingly asked reporters if they had a big sheet of paper with them. Penn State is auditioning several players at the tackle spot, including DeOn’tae Pannell and redshirt freshman Eric Shrive. “We argue every morning, can so-and-so handle the pass protection?” Paterno said. “For me to make any kind of statement on where guys will play is ridiculous right now.”
• Starting safety Drew Astorino (shoulder) and linebacker Michael Mauti (knee), who many project as a starter in 2010, are out for the spring with injuries. Reserve running back Brandon Beachum (knee) will only do some light running this spring. Paterno didn’t sound too concerned about the linebacker position and likes what he has with Bani Gbadyu, Nate Stupar and Chris Colasanti.
• Paterno doesn’t expect starting running back Evan Royster to do too much this spring, as he has little to prove to the coaches. Backup Stephfon Green and Shaine Thompson, a former walk-on who recently received a scholarship, will be in the spotlight there.
• The jury is still very much out on defensive tackle Brandon Ware, who has struggled with academic issues and weight problems. “I think he’s still a little too heavy,” Paterno said. “But he’s got a long road to go academically before I’m going to think about him playing.”
• Doug Klopacz is back for a fifth year and will back up Stefen Wisniewksi at center. Running back Brent Carter and defensive tackle Tom McEowen are no longer with the team.

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama junior receiver Julio Jones says he’s bigger, stronger and faster.



Better yet, he also says he’s completely healthy for the first time in a while.



“Without a doubt, I think this will be my best season, and it should be,” Jones said. “I think it will be for the entire offense. The sky’s the limit.”



When the 6-4 Jones says he’s bigger, he means it. He’s up to 220 pounds and has bulked up noticeably in the upper body. He said he actually got up to 228 earlier in the offseason.



“But I feel good. I’m not fatigued and feel like I’ve gained speed because I’m healthy now,” Jones said. “They gave me a body fat test recently, and I only had 4 percent body fat.”



Jones’ receiving numbers dropped off some last season after a sensational freshman season. He suffered a knee injury in the second game that plagued him the whole first half of the season. He couldn’t cut the way he wanted to, couldn’t get in and out of his routes the way he wanted to and admits he had trouble getting open at times.



As it turns out, Jones said another one of his problems last season was that he didn’t have the strength he needed to fight off defenders, which was his forte as a freshman.



Because of his mounting injuries as a freshman, Jones said he went the rest of that year without doing any bench-pressing or squats in the weight room and didn’t start back on the bench until this past January.



Following his freshman season, he underwent three different surgical procedures on his left wrist, his left shoulder and one for a sports hernia.



While rehabilitating, he wasn’t able to immerse himself in the weight room like he wanted to.



“I was only doing 95 pounds on the bench when I started back in the Fourth Quarter program this year,” Jones said. “I was struggling to get that up because of my shoulder.”



It didn’t take Jones long, though, to regain his strength. And when he did, his numbers soared.



Just prior to the start of spring practice earlier this month, he maxed out at 405 pounds on the bench press and can tell a huge difference now on the practice field, which probably isn’t good news for opposing cornerbacks in the SEC next season.



One of the refreshing things about Jones is that his approach never wavered last season just because his production dropped off some. Defenses were shadowing his every move, and his teammates knew he wasn’t close to 100 percent.



And when Alabama really needed him, he was there. Remember his catches in the game-winning drive against Auburn? And what about the 73-yard touchdown against LSU that turned that game around?



Moreover, his intensity on the practice field never waned, and he was the ultimate team guy.



“I just want to make everybody match my intensity and go out there with a positive attitude every day and let it rub off on them,” Jones said. “Everything I do, I take a lot of pride in. It doesn’t matter what I’m doing. That’s just the way I was raised.”



Alabama coach Nick Saban joked with local reporters last week that he might move Jones over to safety to help his young secondary.



“Put me at safety, and I’ll play it to the best of my ability. They can put me at tackle,” said Jones, his smile widening. “I’ll be ready for that, too.”



Well, maybe not, but here’s betting you see the version of Jones in 2010 that you saw as a freshman.



“All I can go by is how I feel out there on the practice field, and I feel great right now,” said Jones, who definitely has spring fever.



He was sporting an electric blue Polo shirt Wednesday with some Bermuda shorts that featured a little yellow, a little red, a little orange and a little blue.



And his shoes?



A pair of electric blue PF Flyers high-top canvas sneakers.



Saban took one look at him and cracked, “Do you know where I can find an outfit like that for me?”

Joey Porter’s arrest will result in nothing more than embarrassment after prosecutors decided against filing charges.

Porter

That’s great news for Porter and good news for the Cardinals.



Porter should now escape any meaningful league sanction, although the NFL can take action without charges or a conviction.



“While criminal activity is clearly outside the scope of permissible conduct and persons who engage in criminal activity will be subject to discipline, the standard of conduct for persons employed in the NFL is considerably higher,” the NFL’s policy on personal conduct states. “It is not enough simply to avoid being found guilty of a crime. Instead, as an employee of the NFL or a member club, you are held to a higher standard and expected to conduct yourself in a way that is responsible, promotes the values upon which the league is based, and is lawful. Persons who fail to live up to this standard of conduct are guilty of conduct detrimental and subject to discipline, even where the conduct itself does not result in conviction of a crime.”



Porter doesn’t have a history of arrests, to my knowledge. That should work in his favor.

Joey Porter’s arrest will result in nothing more than embarrassment after prosecutors decided against filing charges.

Porter

That’s great news for Porter and good news for the Cardinals.



Porter should now escape any meaningful league sanction, although the NFL can take action without charges or a conviction.



“While criminal activity is clearly outside the scope of permissible conduct and persons who engage in criminal activity will be subject to discipline, the standard of conduct for persons employed in the NFL is considerably higher,” the NFL’s policy on personal conduct states. “It is not enough simply to avoid being found guilty of a crime. Instead, as an employee of the NFL or a member club, you are held to a higher standard and expected to conduct yourself in a way that is responsible, promotes the values upon which the league is based, and is lawful. Persons who fail to live up to this standard of conduct are guilty of conduct detrimental and subject to discipline, even where the conduct itself does not result in conviction of a crime.”



Porter doesn’t have a history of arrests, to my knowledge. That should work in his favor.

On paper it looks like BYU has a lot of rebuilding to do, but with several players returning from their missions, the losses might not be as great as they seem. Most of the focus is on finding a quarterback to replace three-year starter Max Hall, but there also are holes to fill at fullback and all over the defense.



Here’s a look at the strongest and weakest positions for BYU this spring:



Strongest position: Quarterbacks



Key returners: Junior Riley Nelson (completed 7-of-10 passes, 99 yards, one touchdown)



Key departures: Max Hall (completed 67.2 percent of passes, 3,560 yards, 33 touchdowns, 14 interceptions)



The skinny: Even though three-year starter Max Hall is gone and the Cougars probably won’t name their starting quarterback until the fall, coach Bronco Mendenhall has to be happy with the amount of talent he has at this position. Riley Nelson, Jake Heaps and James Lark all are capable enough to run this offense, which has to inspire confidence regardless of when a starter is named. It also helps that whoever plays quarterback also will have the benefit of some stellar running backs to help out in the backfield.



Weakest position: Defensive line



Key returners: Senior Vic So’oto (10 tackles, one sack, four tackles for loss), junior Matt Putnam (six tackles, one sack, one tackle for loss), junior Romney Fuga (40 tackles, one sack, three tackles for loss)



Key departures: Jan Jorgensen (56 tackles, six sacks, 10.5 tackles for loss), Brett Denney (41 tackles, two sacks), Russell Tialavea (11 tackles)



The skinny: The Cougars lose all three starters off the defensive front, but have capable backups with playing experience stepping in. The problem is going to be the depth behind them. There are several freshmen and returning missionaries coming in, but none of them have a lot of experience. Eathyn Manumaleuna, who blocked the potential winning field goal against UCLA in the Las Vegas Bowl in 2007, will be back in the fall, but there’s no telling whether he’ll be able to be ready after being away for two years on his mission.

Hey, remember that quarterback battle at Texas Tech I told you about the other day?



Might have to hold off on that for a bit.



Texas Tech quarterback Steven Sheffield, in tight competition with Taylor Potts for the starting job, will miss the remainder of spring after undergoing surgery on his injured foot, a team spokesman confirmed this afternoon.



Sheffield missed time for an injury to the same foot last season.



Sheffield suffered the injury on Monday, two days after outplaying Potts in a scrimmage on Saturday.



He accounted for 222 yards and two touchdowns on 18-of-25 passing and also ran for a score. Potts completed 13 of 25 passes for 141 yards and a touchdown.



Now, the opportunity for Potts to take at least a slight lead in the race for the starting job heading into the fall seems imminent. He’ll have more reps in coordinator Neal Brown’s new offense, which runs at a faster tempo than the system both quarterbacks performed in last season. Potts and Sheffield were receiving equal reps before the injury, but the likely scenario is for Potts to take control of the majority of the practice snaps, ahead of Seth Doege.



Red Raiders coach Tommy Tuberville was expected to comment further on the injury after today’s practice. The surgery shouldn’t force Sheffield out of any practice in the fall.

I’ve been covering women’s basketball for the past few days, but I wanted to make sure I got this out there.



Navy quarterback Ricky Dobbs, who had surgery Jan. 21, was on the field for the Midshipmen’s first spring practice Monday.



Dobbs had surgery to remove a bone chip from his knee that had been floating around since his senior year of high school. He re-aggravated the knee against SMU on Oct. 17, but missed just one other game before coming back to lead the Mids to a 10-win season.



Dobbs said that doctors expected him to be back by the end of March, but he wasn’t sure how much he was going to participate in spring football. Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo said he expects his starting quarterback to do almost everything during the Mids’ 15 practices.

“Except get tackled,” Niumatalolo said. “When we interact against each other he’s out, but everything else we do he will be there. He needs to be out there.”

Dobbs led the Midshipmen with 1,203 rushing yards and 1,031 passing yards. His 27 rushing touchdowns set an NCAA record for touchdowns by a quarterback.



Dobbs told The Washington Post that while he’s eager to be back in the flow of football, he has to be cognizant that he’s still recovering from and injury.

“It’s going to require me making sure I listen to my body,” Dobbs told the paper, “and that’s the main thing, listen to my body, and when I get those sharp pains to take a step back and like I said not overexert myself because I’ve just got to keep it in mind what’s most important.”