Barca signs forward Cuenca to extension

Soccer Betting Lines

01/31/2012 - Barcelona, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Barcelona signed forward Isaac Cuenca to a contract extension Tuesday that will keep the 20-year-old with the club until the summer of 2015.

Cuenca has made 12 appearances for Barcelona this season and scored four goals for the Spanish and European champions. Barca and Cuenca previously agreed to the new contract, but it was not finalized until Tuesday.

Barca also cut ties with Belarus midfielder Alexander Hleb, releasing him from his contract six months early. He played 35 matches for Barcelona in 2008-09, but spent most of the last few years on loan.

Wwwdallasnews Soccer Betting News

<< Everton acquires Jelavic from Rangers
Liverpool, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Everton acquired Croatian striker Nikica Jelavic from Scottish side Rangers on Tuesday, and signed him to a 4 1/2-year deal. Jelavic, 26, scored 36 goals in just 55 games for Rangers. Capped 17 times fo

<< Southern Illinois' Boemer wins Rimington Award
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Southern Illinois senior Bryan Boemer was named on Tuesday as the 2011 recipient of the Rimington Award, given to the top center in the FCS. Boemer earned All-Missouri Valley Football Conference honors for the

<< Holy Cross to play six home games in 2012
Worcester, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Holy Cross football will play its first three games at home and six of its 11 in a 2012 schedule announced on Tuesday. The Crusaders will open the season against New Hampshire on Aug. 30 in the second night g

<< Juve's match against Parma postponed
Parma, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Serie A leader Juventus had its match at Parma postponed Tuesday because of snow. Unbeaten Juventus leads AC Milan by one point, but could surrender first place when Milan visits Lazio on Wednesday. Juventu

<< Mainz signs striker Zidan from Dortmund
Mainz, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mainz signed Egypt striker Mohamed Zidan on Tuesday from Borussia Dortmund. Zidan, 30, played for Mainz from 2005-07, and returns for his second stint at the club on a deal through the end of the season w

United signs defender Veseli from City >>
Manchester, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Manchester United acquired 19-year-old defender Frederic Veseli from rival Manchester City on Tuesday. Veseli, a center back, plays for Switzerland's Under-20 side and captained the Swiss to the U-17 W

United go level atop EPL with Stoke defeat, City loss >>
Manchester, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Manchester United climbed back into a tie with Manchester City for the English Premier League lead on Tuesday after defeating Stoke City, 2-0, at Old Trafford. A pair of penalties helped the Red

Alouettes WR Watkins announces retirement >>
Montreal, QC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Montreal Alouettes wide receiver Kerry Watkins announced his retirement on Tuesday. During his eight-year career, Watkins caught 515 passes for 7,431 yards and 48 touchdowns. "We congratulate Kerr

Fulham signs Russian striker Pogrebnyak >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fulham signed Russian international Pavel Pogrebnyak from German side Stuttgart on Tuesday on a six-month contract. Pogrebnyak, 28, has played for Stuttgart since 2009, when he left Russian side Zenit. Po

Missouri's Tiguinho named MISL Player of Week >>
Tampa, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Missouri Comets forward Tiguinho was named the Major Indoor Soccer League's Player of the Week on Tuesday for Week 13. Tiguinho had two goals and five assists as Missouri rolled to a 33-12 win over the Syracus

MySportsbook.com Posts Heisman Trophy Odds

With 3,919 passing yards, 32 touchdowns and a mere seven interceptions last season, combined with a powerful South Bend Heisman legacy, odds makers at MySportsbook.com have given Notre Dame senior quarterback Brady Quinn the best Heisman Trophy odds at 5-2.

Quinn isn’t the only big man on campus this season.  Oklahoma junior running back and 2004 Heisman runner-up Adrian Peterson, listed at 7-2, rushed for a combined 3,033 yards in his first two years as a college player and will give Quinn a run for his money. 

This online sportsbook has also listed Troy Smith, Ohio State senior quarterback, as another strong favorite to win the 72nd Heisman Trophy.  A 7-1 bet, Smith threw for 2,282 yards last season and also led the Buckeyes to a convincing 34-20 victory over Quinn and the Fighting Irish in last season’s Fiesta Bowl.

Current betting odds Heisman trophy are:

Brady Quinn (QB, Notre Dame)
Adrian Peterson (RB, Oklahoma)
Troy Smith (QB, Ohio State)
Michael Bush (RB, Louisville)
Steve Slaton (RB, West Virginia)
Brian Brohm (QB, Louisville)
Chris Leak (QB, Florida)
Mike Hart (RB, Michigan)
Ted Ginn (WR, Ohio State)
Darius Walker (RB, Notre Dame)
Drew Tate (QB, Iowa)
Marshawn Lynch (RB, Cal)
Kenny Irons (RB, Auburn)
Chad Henne (QB, Michigan)
Kyle Wright (QB, Miami)
Drew Stanton (QB, Michigan State)
Kenneth Darby (RB, Alabama)
JaMarcus Russell (QB, LSU)
Drew Weatherford (QB, Florida State)
Blake Mitchell (QB, South Carolina)
Reggie Ball (QB, Georgia Tech)		 5-2
7-2
7-1
10-1
10-1
12-1
12-1
18-1
18-1
20-1
30-1
35-1
35-1
40-1
50-1
50-1
60-1
60-1
60-1
60-1
60-1

For complete NCAA Football odds visit MySportsbook.com.

FOOTBALL BETTING : Crabtree's base deal: six years, $32 million

Football Betting

In the wake of the news that the 49ers have signed receiver Michael Crabtree after an extended holdout, there has been not a hint of the dollars to be paid to Crabtree.

And since this means that his agent hasn't leaked the numbers, it means that his agent feels no specific motivation to do so.

Possibly because his agent isn't all that thrilled to have his name on the deal.

So the numbers will come from sources other than Crabtree's agent. And we've gotten our mitts into them.

Per a league source, Crabtree has signed a six-year, $32 million contract. (The total includes guaranteed money, base salaries, and the one-time incentive based on achieving minimum playing time.)

The deal also includes $17 million in guaranteed money.

As reported elsewhere, the deal can void to five years based on performance triggers, wiping out a final year base salary of $4 million. But they won't be easily reached.

The source tells us that, in his first four seasons (including 2009), Crabtree must either qualify for two Pro Bowls, or he must qualify for one Pro Bowl in one year and he must participate in 80 percent of the offensive snaps in a separate year in which the team makes the playoffs.

In other words, if in 2010 he qualifies for the Pro Bowl and the team makes the playoffs and he participates in 80 percent of the snaps, he'll still need to make it to the Pro Bowl or achieve the 80-percent/playoffs in another season.

Since the chances of Crabtree making the Pro Bowl or participating in 80 percent of the offensive snaps this year is roughly zero percent, he'll have three years to get it done.

And it won't be easy. Frankly, he'll be hard pressed to make it to one Pro Bowl in three years with the likes of Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson, Anquan Boldin, Steve Smith, the other Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, DeSean Jackson, Johnny Knox, Percy Harvin, Greg Jennings, Roddy White, T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the same conference for sportsbook betting.

So, by all appearances, it's a six-year deal. And at $17 million in guaranteed money, the per-year guarantee is a tepid $2.83 million per year.

There's another problem with the deal -- it has no mid-tier incentive package. Instead, the additional $8 million that Crabtree can earn (pushing the max value to six years, $40 million) requires the kind of unrealistic, mega-star performances that no rookie is likely to ever achieve.

So while the contract paid to Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji covers five years and pays $22.5 million, he has the ability (if he's a solid player) to make up the difference between his base deal and Crabtree's five-year, $28 million haul via the mid-tier incentive package in Raji's deal.

And unless Crabtree meets the performance thresholds necessary to void the sixth year, he'll be stuck under contract for another year at a base salary of only $4 million.

There's one other area of concern with the deal. Crabtree, per the source, received no option bonus. Instead, he has significant money tied to a fairly new device known as a "discretionary salary advance," which unlike an opition bonus is subject to forfeiture if Crabtree decides in a year or two that he wants to hold out for a better deal. (We're also told that the 49ers have included language that would make certain escalators subject to forfeiture, too.)

Meanwhile, the deal falls well short of the mark for which Crabtree and agent Eugene Parker were aiming -- the five-year, $38.25 million contract paid by the Raiders to receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey, the seventh overall pick in the draft.

Even if Crabtree successfully voids the final year, he'll make more than $2 million per year less on average than Heyward-Bey.

Thus, as we explained earlier in the day, this is a deal that Crabtree could have done in July, which would have given him a much better chance of making a contribution to the 49ers during his rookie year.

So while the final outcome can be described as win-win, the broader view suggests that it's really a lose-lose situation.

NFL Betting Lines

To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your college football betting needs.