Hilton’s fantasy football popular

Bob Cloud

Monday, Sept. 9, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

To a town which offers virtually every form of football betting, there now comes fantasy football wagering.

The Las Vegas Hilton SuperBook is in its second week of offering a matchup between two fantasy teams made up of players from various NFL rosters.

Each team is made up of two quarterbacks, four running backs and wide receivers, and a pair of kickers. Scoring is by touchdowns, field goals, conversions and extra points, with bonus points awarded for 100-yard efforts by running backs and 300-yard passing days by quarterbacks.

"So far there has been a very positive response," said Chuck Esposito of the SuperBook. "We had good interest in the first week, and we've gotten an even bigger handle for week two. I expect the handle to go up each week."

Esposito said the idea to offer fantasy football came out of a brainstorming session aimed at increasing customer traffic in the book.

"We were throwing around ideas to intrigue the bettors, and we thought of fantasy football," he said. "We try to make the teams as equal as possible. It's a fun thing for the customers, and it's another way to get people to come to the sports book."

Currently, the SuperBook offers the matchup as a straight (-110) bet.

"We look at all the rosters and try to find the most competitive combinations of players," Esposito said. "We change the teams from week to week to try to keep them even. It's just like any straight NFL bet, only we may put up a point spread depending on the money bet on each team."

This past weekend, Team A consisted of quarterbacks Brett Favre of Green Bay and John Elway of Denver, with Marshall Faulk of Indianapolis, Chris Warren of Seattle, Lawrence Phillips of St. Louis and Washington's Terry Allen at running back. San Francisco's Jerry Rice, Tim Brown of Oakland, Chris Carter of Minnesota and Isaac Bruce of St. Louis make up the receivers, with Cincinnati's Doug Pelfrey and Detroit's Jason Hanson as the kickers.

Team B was Steve Young of San Francisco and Miami's Dan Marino at quarterback, with Barry Sanders of Detroit, Rickey Watters of Philadelphia, Tim Biakabatuka of Carolina and Thurman Thomas of Buffalo at running back. The receivers were Herman Moore of Detroit, Carl Pickens of Cincinnati, Andre Reed of Buffalo and Robert Brooks of Green Bay, with Atlanta's Morten Anderson and Pete Stoyanovich of Miami the kickers.

Tickets will be paid starting at noon Tuesday, following tonight's Packers-Eagles game.

Esposito said as interest increases so will the possibility of adding more teams and matchups in future weeks.

"We hope to add more teams in the future," he said. "If it continues to be as successful as it has been, we could possible add four to six teams. I think that would make it even more exciting for the public."

Money on the Pack

Monday Night Football tonight pits Philadelphia at Green Bay, the Eagles' first visit to Lambeau Field in nearly 10 years. The Packers (1-0) come into the game as 8 1/2-point favorites after demolishing Tampa Bay 34-3 last week in Florida, while the Eagles (1-0) beat the Redskins 17-14 in Washington.

Rob Terry, race and sports book director at Boulder Station, said the Eagles are not drawing much attention against a Packer team many believe are Super Bowl-bound.

"Right now almost all of the play has come on the Packers," Terry said. "It should be a very good handle overall. It's the first time in 10 years there's been a Monday night game in Green Bay, and all the Cheeseheads are coming out.

"Right now in my mind, they're the team to beat for the Super Bowl. I think all eyes are on this team. For the past few years they've gotten better and better each year, and this season they look like the top contender."

The over/under for the game is 42, while at Boulder Station the Packers have been installed as a 4 1/2-point choice for first-half wagering. The first half over/under stands at 21.

Terry said the Packers have developed into a solid handle team recently, based in part to a large fan following and potent offense.

"They not only have a devoted following, but they're becoming a team the steady players are betting on," he said. "(Quarterback Brett) Favre is throwing a lot of touchdown passes and they're scoring points, so we're seeing a lot of bettors taking the Packers, giving the points and taking the over.

"It seems everybody is jumping on the Packers' bandwagon. It used to be just Dallas and San Francisco, but Green Bay is right there."

Odds and Ends

* NO LASTING EFFECT: Fan dissatisfaction with Friday's Mike Tyson -Bruce Seldon farce shouldn't translate into decreased bettor interest in future fights, according to Boulder Station's Rob Terry. "The people have probably already forgotten about it today," said Terry. "I've been in the business nine years now, and I'm sure the same people will go out and buy tickets and bet again. People may come away dissatisfied, but the interest remains." Terry said any bettor anger would come from smaller players who wagered on Seldon, a 22-1 underdog. "The average player is going to bet a small amount on the dog to try and make a killing, while the sophisticated player will go big on the favorite," he said. "That won't change. The people complaining are the small bettors, but the bigger ones will remain."