Michigan AD Martin to retire in 2010

Chockey Betting Lines

10/21/2009 - Ann Arbor, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - University of Michigan director of athletics Bill Martin will retire from his position on September 4, 2010, he announced Wednesday.

Martin notified school president Mary Sue Coleman with a letter, indicating the two had discussed his retirement for a couple of years.

"For nearly a decade, Bill has shown truly outstanding leadership as Athletic Director at the University of Michigan," Coleman said in a statement. "He has not only done a superb job of attracting top coaches for the full range of Michigan sports, but he has also assembled an excellent management team to oversee all aspects of athletics operations."

Coleman also said Martin will remain as AD until a successor is in place, then will serve as a special advisor until he retires in September. Coleman said she will personally oversee the search for Michigan's next AD, which she expects to take "a number of months."

Martin has been in his position since August 2000, several months after he was named interim AD. He was initially given a five-year appointment, but remained in his role and helped steer the school's football stadium renovation project.

Bestonsports Chockey Betting News

<< Browns sign TE Gaines
Berea, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Browns have signed tight end Michael Gaines. Gaines was released by the Bears last week after seeing action in only one game this season. The sixth-year pro played in 16 games last year

<< Safin upsets Davydenko in Moscow
Moscow, Russia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Unseeded Marat Safin toppled top-seeded fellow Russian Nikolay Davydenko in opening-round action Wednesday at the $1.08 million Kremlin Cup tennis event. The former world No. 1 Safin, who expects

<< CFL Previews - Week 17 - October 23-24
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - HAMILTON TIGER-CATS (6-9) AT TORONTO ARGONAUTS (3-12) DATE & TIME: Friday, October 23, 7:00 p.m. (et). GAME NOTES: The Hamilton Tiger-Cats try to snap a six-game road losing streak on Friday nigh

<< Nationwide Tour adds new event in Jacksonville
Ponte Vedra Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Nationwide Tour has announced a new event for next season, adding the Winn-Dixie Jacksonville Open to the schedule for 2010. The event will be played in October on the Dye's Valley

<< Rays tab Shelton as hitting coach
St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tampa Bay Rays have named Derek Shelton as the team's new hitting coach. "Derek has proven himself to be one of the better minds in baseball when it comes to hitting," Rays executive vice pre

Wilkie suffers injury setback >>
Dundee, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dundee United captain Lee Wilkie has been rocked by suffering yet another injury setback. The 29-year-old was injured during training, with the Terrors fearing that Wilkie has damaged his knee as well

Pugh pens Potters extension >>
Stoke-on-Trent, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former Manchester United midfielder Danny Pugh has penned a one-year contract extension with Stoke City that will keep him at the Britannia Stadium until the summer of 2012. The 27-year-old accep

Bologna sacks Papadopulo >>
Bologna, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Struggling Bologna have fired coach Giuseppe Papadopulo after winning only one of their first eight Serie A games this season. Former player Franco Colomba has been named as Papadopulo's successor hav

Cardinals' Pujols has successful surgery >>
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - St. Louis Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols underwent a successful arthroscopic debridement of bone spurs in his right elbow Wednesday morning. The procedure, which also included the removal of bone c

Brees, DeCoud, Stroughter earn NFC weekly honors >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, Atlanta Falcons safety Thomas DeCoud and Tampa Bay kick returner Sammie Stroughter have been named the NFC's top players for Week 6 of the NFL season. Bree

Betting the NFL preseason

Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."

When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules. 

The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.

The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.

“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”

The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.

“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”

The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.

“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”

Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.

“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."

So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?

“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.

Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.

Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.

Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.

“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.

Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.

The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.

“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.

Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.