Bruins and Trojans add another chapter to fierce rivalry

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11/23/2011 - Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With the Pac-12 South Division title on the line, cross-town rivals UCLA and USC meet in the Los Angeles Coliseum on Saturday night.

UCLA has the requisite wins to earn a bowl bid, but the season on the whole has been something of a disappointment to fans of the program. All that of course would be remedied with a win over its fiercest rival this week, and the division title that would come along with it. The Bruins are fresh off a 45-6 rout of visiting Colorado last Saturday, and coach Rick Neuheisel's squad has bounced back from a season-opening span of seven games in which it alternated losses and wins, to claim victory in three of its last four outings.

Due to NCAA sanctions, USC isn't eligible to win the Pac-12 or go to a bowl game, but that hasn't stopped coach Lane Kiffin's club from turning in an impressive season as the team comes into this contest at 9-2 overall, and 6-2 in conference. The Trojans have won three in a row and six of their last seven, the most recent of which was a thrilling 38-35 triumph at No. 4 Oregon last weekend, which snapped the Ducks' national-best 21-game home winning streak.

The winner of this clash is awarded the "Victory Bell", and USC owns a 45-28-7 advantage in the all-time series. The Trojans have won the last four meetings, and 11 of the last 12 overall.

UCLA is far from an offensive force, but that's not to say the Bruins aren't capable of chewing up yards and putting points on the board. Through 11 games, the team is averaging 25.3 ppg behind a balanced attack that produces 199.5 ypg rushing and 194.3 ypg passing. They have scored a total of 36 TDs, 22 of which have come on the ground, and Johnathan Franklin heads the charge with 857 yards and five scores. Derrick Coleman has scored eight rushing TDs. Kevin Prince and Richard Brehaut have both lined up under center this season, but they've completed roughly 56 percent of their passes with a combined 14 TDs and six INTs. Actually, all the picks belong to Prince. Nelson Rosario is the team's top pass catcher with his 48 grabs for 890 yards and two scores. Joseph Fauria has six receiving TDs.

The Bruins have had their moments on defense this year, but the overall effort hasn't been good enough to help the team avoid defeat in some games. Foes are putting up nearly 30 ppg and averaging just under 400 total ypg. Andrew Abbott has four INTs to his credit, while Sean Westgate and Tevin McDonald have three apiece. Pat Parimore is the team's top tackler with 67 stops, and 50 TFL have been recorded by the unit as a whole.

Prince had arguably the best game of his career last week against Colorado, completing 15-of-19 passes for 225 yards and four TDs, two of which wound up in the hands of Fauria. Rosario led all receivers in the game with six catches for 102 yards and a score. Franklin powered his way to 162 yards and a TD on only 15 totes, posting an average of 10.8 ypc, as UCLA controlled nearly every aspect of the game.

The Buffaloes were limited to 229 total yards, which included a mere 87 net rushing yards. The UCLA defense swarmed to the ball all game long, with Abbott coming up with a pair of picks, and Westgate getting one as well.

Coach Neuheisel was clearly happy with the outcome of last week's home finale, and he praised his team's resiliency after beginning the year so awkwardly, "I'm very pleased with the ability that our team has shown over the course of the season, that we have been able to respond and come back to work and not point fingers. We have played complete games the next time out. We find ourselves at 6-5 and, more importantly, with a chance to win the South Division. There weren't very many people in this room who believed that to be possible at the start of the season."

Few question how good USC QB Matt Barkley is, but if there were any detractors still out there they had to change their tune after his 323-yard, four-TD performance last week at Oregon. Marqise Lee led all receivers in the game with eight catches for 187 yards and a TD, while star wideout Robert Woods finished with seven grabs for 53 yards and a pair of scores. Curtis McNeal led the Trojan ground attack with 94 yards on 20 carries.

The USC defense allowed Oregon to amass 474 total yards, and nearly watched on in horror as the Ducks battled back from a big deficit. Fortunately for Kiffin's crew, they came up with enough big stops to help preserve the victory. USC was credited with three sacks and a pair of turnovers, and the team was led in tackles by Hayes Pullard who made 12 of his game-high 14 stops by himself, two of which were sacks.

With Barkley (273-of-404, 3,105 yards, 33 TDs, seven INTs) at the controls, the Trojans are averaging 34.5 ppg on the strength of 446.3 ypg. The run accounts for 163.8 ypg, with McNeal pacing the club with 881 yards and five scores. Robert Woods is a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award, and he has 99 receptions for 1,179 yards and 13 TDs. Lee isn't far off the pace, having logged 60 catches for 919 yards and nine scores.

Dion Bailey (76 stops) is USC's top tackler on the year, but Pullard (72) is right behind him. Nick Perry has 9.5 of the team's 27 sacks, and no other Trojan has more than three.

Despite some tense moments in the second half, Kiffin was proud of the way his team performed in such a hostile environment last week, "It's the hardest place to play against that team in the country," He continued, "We're just really excited first of all by our fans. They've been through so much. So much has been taken away from them. And second of all for our players. They're a lot of young guys. There are very few seniors on the roster. I think half our roster has never played college football before this year. For these guys to come together like they have over the last five or six weeks has been great to see...We're very excited for our fans and for our players."

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Problem with Bears?

Chicago, IL - New Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler and star linebacker Brian Urlacher shot down reports of a rift, saying they're simply not true.

"There's nothing between us," Cutler said Thursday, when he reported to training camp. "I just want to put that to rest. There never has been anything between us."

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Urlacher added: "I never said what I was quoted as saying and that's it. I have a lot of respect for Jay. I think Jay knows that."
Former Bears receiver Bobby Wade caused a stir when he told Minneapolis radio station KFAN-AM that Urlacher used a profanity while questioning Cutler's manhood during a conversation in Las Vegas last weekend. Wade, who now plays for the Vikings, said Urlacher used a profane version of the word "wimp" during the interview that had to be edited out.
go radio station WSCR-AM also reported that Urlacher had to be restrained from confronting Cutler during organized team activities.
"I wouldn't go face-to-face with Brian, anyway," Cutler said. "No, that's never happened. I've hung out with Brian away from the facility numerous times and we've always gotten along."
Urlacher, noting he was limited by a groin injury, denied the reports in an interview with the Chicago Tribune and did it again when he reported to camp.
"I didn't practice this summer, so I don't know how I would fight the guy if I didn't practice," Urlacher said. "We have no problems. I'm excited about football starting. I'm excited to have him as our quarterback."
Why would Wade say that?
"I don't know," Urlacher said. "Maybe he's jealous because we have a good quarterback now."
Cutler said the first he heard of any friction was when he got a call from Urlacher to clear the air. Urlacher, however, said he had already taken several calls from teammates wondering if the reports were true when Cutler phoned.
"He called me and I said, What's up (expletive), what are you doing?'" a grinning Urlacher said, uttering the same word he allegedly used with Wade. "It's so dumb to me that this even got to this point, but it did and then here we are."
better place after going 9-7 and missing the playoffs for the second straight year. They have a franchise quarterback for the first time in decades after acquiring Cutler in an offseason trade with Denver. But there are questions about his attitude following a fallout with Broncos management and new coach Josh McDaniels.
His critics include former Bears coach Mike Ditka and former Indianapolis and Tampa Bay coach Tony Dungy, one of Smith's mentors. Smith, however, said Cutler has been a model teammate so far while denying any animosity with Urlacher.
"There's no issue with Jay and Brian, except Brian and Jay are both excited about being teammates for our club this year," coach Lovie Smith said. "No more than that. We can't spend a whole lot of time on something that isn't true. I have talked to the players. Whenever something comes out, you have to address it, but it's a non-issue."
In some ways, Cutler is getting a second chance in Chicago, an opportunity to repair his reputation.
Smith said another quarterback - Michael Vick - deserves one, although he doesn't see it happening with the Bears, who lack an experienced backup. The former Atlanta Falcons star, who served a 23-month sentence for running a dogfighting ring, said Thursday he is getting close to signing with a pro football team.
"A second chance, like everyone in society who has paid their debt to society," Smith said. "He deserves a second chance. As far as we're concerned, we like this team that we have right now."
Particularly the new quarterback.
"Me and Brian have been on a good relationship since I've been here, and I expect it to continue that way," Cutler said.

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NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.


That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.

A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."

It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.

The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.

So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."

Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.

Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.

Seriously.

The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.

The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.

Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."

The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.

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