Columnist Jeff Haney: Gators’ bandwagon loading up with bettors

Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2005 | 9:13 a.m.

Jeff Haney's sports betting column appears Wednesday. Reach him at (702) 259-4041 or haney@lasvegassun.com.

If the early betting on big-time college football is any indication, gamblers will be placing a great deal of value on the Florida Gators of the Southeastern Conference this season.

Offshore sports book Pinnacle, based in Curacao, recently posted betting lines on the entire first week of college football as well as on a selection of marquee matchups from throughout the 2005 season.

Of the hundreds of wagering opportunities -- counting sides and over/unders from Week 1 and the games of the year -- none attracted more money than Florida, which welcomes new head coach Urban Meyer and boasts a roster packed with talent.

"We certainly underrated Florida," said Simon Noble of Pinnacle (pinnaclesports.com). "They have been bet (heavily) in every matchup we have them in."

Florida is favored by 23 1/2 points in its Sept. 3 opener against Wyoming, with an over/under of 58 1/2 points, according to Pinnacle odds.

In other key games for Florida:

"I don't know if it's because the players (bettors) like the strength of the team or if they saw what Urban Meyer did at (his previous coaching jobs with) Bowling Green and Utah and they expect that success to continue," Noble said. "But there has been a surprising amount of action on Florida."

Meyer, who chose Florida over competing suitor Notre Dame after a 12-0 season at Utah a year ago, compiled a record of 20-4 against the point spread in the past two years, according to the Gold Sheet.

His Gators are about a 3-1 shot to win the SEC championship and about 3-2 to win the SEC East, depending on where you shop.

Like other sports books that offer early betting lines, Pinnacle uses its summertime action to gauge which direction the number is heading and where it's likely to end up.

Pinnacle takes a maximum of $500 a game on its early lines -- much lower than its regular-season limits of multiple dimes (a dime is $1,000 to gamblers) -- and moves the number aggressively this time of year.

"With the early lines it's more like a father and son sitting around saying, 'Hey, how do you think Nebraska is gonna do this year,' " Noble said. "Basically it's guys handicapping the games themselves who are playing (betting). We pay attention to who they like, and it helps us move the line closer to the right number."

A core group of three oddsmakers from Pinnacle worked on setting the college football lines, Noble said.

In Las Vegas, the Hilton sports book also posted lines on a selection of marquee college matchups earlier in the summer.

The Hilton is expected to post lines on the entire Week 1 college schedule by early next week, according to Jeff Sherman, assistant sports book manager.

Sherman said the Hilton is receiving good two-way action on many of its college games of the year -- mostly from individual bettors who make their own power rankings and like to go mano a mano with the sports book, rather than from professional gambling syndicates.

Another SEC game that bettors jumped on at Pinnacle was the Week 4 matchup between LSU and Tennessee. Visiting Tennessee opened a 3-point favorite in the Sept. 24 showdown, but gamblers bet LSU all the way to a 3-point favorite.

"Our players (bettors) definitely think the changing of the guard, with Les Miles taking over as head coach, will make a big difference at LSU," Noble said.

A big line move also took place in the Texas-Oklahoma "Red River Shootout" (Oct. 8), in which the Longhorns went from a 1-point underdog to a 4-point favorite.

The over/under, or "total," that has garnered the most action at Pinnacle came in the Week 1 Boise State-Georgia game. The total opened at 54 points and has been bet up to 60.

Lee props

No major leaguer has won a Triple Crown since Carl Yastrzemski of the Boston Red Sox did it in 1967.

The last National Leaguer to turn the trick was Joe "Ducky" Medwick of the St. Louis Cardinals in 1937.

Chicago Cubs first baseman Derrek Lee, leading the NL in batting average and home runs and near the top of the RBI leader board, has become one of baseball's hottest stories with his bid to end the Triple Crown drought.

Oddsmakers at Caesars Palace aren't just talking about Lee's chances, though -- they have set betting lines on whether Lee will win the Triple Crown and, if he falls short, which particular titles he will capture.

The odds on Lee to win the Triple Crown opened at 50-1 at Caesars, but were quickly bet down to 25-1 and then to 15-1, where they stand.

The other betting line that moved was Lee to win none of the three Triple Crown categories (home runs, RBIs, batting average). "No titles" opened at 6-1 and has been bet to 3-1.

Other props on the board at Caesars:

Lee has a comfortable lead against current runner-up Miguel Cabrera in the batting average race, .360 to .349.

He's tied with Andruw Jones for the NL lead in homers, with 32.

And with 83 RBIs, Lee trails Carlos Lee (89) and Albert Pujols (85). Pujols and Derrek Lee have played one fewer game than Carlos Lee.

NHL prop

Caesars also posted one of the first NHL propositions for the 2005-06 season, asking bettors to predict how many points Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins will amass in his rookie year.

Crosby, a highly touted 17-year-old from Nova Scotia, was selected by Pittsburgh with the first overall pick of the NHL entry draft. He is being hailed as a rising NHL superstar.

Bettors at Caesars have 20 options to choose from at various odds, ranging from "0-5 points" to "96 or more points."

Among the favorites are 66-70 points (5-1 odds); 71-75 points (4-1); 76-80 points (9-2); and 81-85 points (5-1).

NFL opener

The Las Vegas Hilton will post first- and second-half betting lines on every NFL preseason game, with the exception of one game, sports book director Jay Kornegay said.

The lone exception is the NFL's preseason opener between the Atlanta Falcons and Indianapolis Colts early Saturday in Japan.

There will be no halftime wagering on that game, Kornegay said, for a pretty good reason: The game begins at 2 a.m. Las Vegas time, meaning halftime won't roll around until well past 3 a.m.

The Colts are favored in the game by 2 to 2 1/2 points in Las Vegas sports books.