Congratulations, Joe BidenDennis Byrneon November 7, 2020 at 6:38 pm
Congratulations, Joe BidenDennis Byrneon November 7, 2020 at 6:38 pm Read More »
Christmas music officially hits Chicago radio stationson November 7, 2020 at 7:00 pm
Construction Season. Winter. Christmas Music season. That’s it for Chicago and this year it’s starting a little earlier than normal. With Halloween ending last week, it’s now time to get into the Holiday spirit and jam out to some Christmas tunes. Because why not?
On Friday, Chicago’s 93.9 LITE FM kicked off the festivities by flipping the switch to Christmas Music at 4 p.m. And it’s a tradition unlike any other here in the Windy City. Look, you either love Christmas music or you hate it. While it might seem like it’s a little early, we all need a little good Holiday vibes in our lives, especially this year.
Christmas Music Starts NOW! https://t.co/f8z5cZpsdR
— 93.9 LITE FM (@LITEFMChicago) November 6, 2020
This is the earliest that LITE FM have flipped the switch since 2006 when they did it on November 2nd. But they have a good reason why as program director Mick Lee noted to Robert Feder:
Christmas music officially hits Chicago radio stationson November 7, 2020 at 7:00 pm Read More »
Betting on college football: The only certainty is uncertaintyRob Miechon November 7, 2020 at 2:00 pm
Screens show sports and betting odds in the sports book as workers finish work at the Circa Resort & Casino, Thursday, Oct. 15, 2020, in Las Vegas. The casino is scheduled to open in downtown Las Vegas in October. | John Locher/AP
Coronavirus has brought us a season unlike any other — on the field and in Las Vegas,
LAS VEGAS — During the 2019 college football season, one or two games a month shifted significantly from the Circa Sports opening line to game day, or within 24 hours of kickoff.
Because of coronavirus questions and concerns that have made 2020 so murky, Circa operations director Mike Palm has watched the lines of several games a week move six to eight points.
‘‘It’s really an unprecedented time,’’ Palm says. ‘‘It’s the uncertainty. There are two to three instances a week that we open with the wrong favorite, the way the line ends up.
‘‘There is so much volatility to the market right now because of that uncertainty. I thought it was a bad thing at first, but it isn’t like we’ve been wrong on every one of those opening lines.’’
As an example of that turbulence, Circa Sports director Matt Metcalf and his team opened Air Force as a 1.5-point favorite over Navy when they unveiled their lines at 11 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 27.
Money flooded in from wise guys, the smart professionals who fly into Vegas every weekend to prey on Circa’s openers. An avalanche of cash and subsequent steam made Navy a seven-point favorite at kickoff on Saturday, Oct. 3.
Air Force won 41-0.
‘‘Air Force absolutely blew them out,’’ Palm says, ‘‘so the money was all the wrong way.’’
He doesn’t gloat, though, about getting the best of it in any single game. Neither do contemporaries, all of whom are dancing to strange tunes these days.
‘‘Hey, we’re ballerinas now,’’ South Point oddsmaker Vinny Magliulo says. ‘‘We’re having to move numbers quicker and in bigger increments . . . and is that a false move? My toes are definitely sore, but you always have to be on your toes in this business.’’
CLEMSON GETS CLIPPED
The South Point, like many shops, lists advanced lines on the biggest games of the season. A month ago, it pegged Clemson as a 7.5-point favorite Saturday against Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana.
Clemson has played in the last five College Football Playoffs, winning national championships in 2016 and 2018. It won its first six games of 2020, and the No. 1 Tigers would move to double-digit favorites against the No. 4 Irish at the South Point.
‘‘Just a monster. Ridiculous,’’ handicapper Dave Cokin called Clemson two weeks ago.
‘‘And with Notre Dame,’’ Magliulo said then, ‘‘you’ve seen some inconsistencies.’’
One offshore book had Clemson favored by 14.5 points when, on Oct. 29, the program revealed that star quarterback Trevor Lawrence had contracted the virus. Within an hour, that book had removed the Clemson-Notre Dame game from its board.
Without Lawrence last Saturday against 24-point underdog Boston College, Clemson had to rally to win 34-28 behind stalwart tailback Travis Etienne and reserve quarterback DJ Uiagalelei.
Lawrence would have been able to play against Notre Dame if he tested symptom-free through Friday, but Clemson coach Dabo Swinney didn’t expect expedient test results and ruled Lawrence out for the game.
One offshore book immediately posted the 7-0 Tigers as 6.5-point favorites against the 6-0 Irish. On Sunday, Circa opened with Clemson favored by five points.
Had that number remained in double figures, the challenge for Notre Dame would have been daunting. In the last 40 years, it has been a double-digit home underdog nine times. It covered six times but outright won only once, a 28-20 victory against Michigan as a 12-point dog on Sept. 11, 2004.
Cokin says Notre Dame’s receivers do not possess elite speed.
‘‘That has really hurt them,’’ he says. ‘‘They’ve become pretty vanilla. They’re solid, very good defensively; they’re just not going to be explosive.’’
Palm grew up in Iowa and went to Notre Dame, so the upper Midwest is his college-pigskin wheelhouse. With a healthy Lawrence, Palm says nobody can stay within three touchdowns of Clemson.
But without the quarterback with the long blond locks? It’s just one more question in a season full of them.
FIRST DIBS AT CIRCA
For every college football weekend this season but the first one, handicapper Paul Stone has left his home in Tyler, Texas, late Friday morning to catch a flight to Vegas.
So when Circa reveals the industry’s first college football odds on Sunday mornings, Stone has been poised to digest them and bet, in no small sums, the most advantageous situations.
Totals are his forte, and his 17-8-1 record in that category has Paul Stone Sports ranked No. 1, by percentage, on a list of 40 handicapping services rated by the independent Sports Monitor of Oklahoma.
His soft-spoken manner and understated demeanor belie the loudmouth nature of the arena. On Sunday, Sept. 18, he quickly bet the under in Illinois-Wisconsin, a game whose opening total was 59.5. Two hours later, he flew back to Texas.
Less than 24 hours later, the total had been whittled to 50.5. Typically, that would have triggered Stone to act the other way, a bet of up to 50% of his original wager on the over, because a nine-point variance is manna to a professional.
Instead, he stuck with his main play. The game closed at 52.
Wisconsin won 45-7.
‘‘I do that quite often with these tickets that have a lot of value,’’ Stone says. ‘‘A day or two before a game — even day of — does present an opportunity to get favorable positions for a middle.’’
At home in Texas on Monday, Oct. 26, he learned of No. 10 Wisconsin’s woes and quickly took a position on Nebraska plus-7.5 points. The total was 55, and he bet the under. Both would become null and void when the game Oct. 31 got canceled because of a virus outbreak on the Badgers.
‘‘I’ve always said you have to be an amateur meteorologist in this business, and now you have to be an amateur epidemiologist,’’ Stone says. ‘‘But the more cluttered and muddled it gets, the more it becomes an advantage to the person who’s willing to work hard and the more I like it.’’
BETTORS, BEWARE
Professional handicapper Teddy Covers advises recreational bettors to wager deliberately and carefully. His volume is way down, as he has played only one or two games some Saturdays.
He had taken seven-point favorite Southern Mississippi against Louisiana Tech, which was missing multiple players, on Sept. 19. Southern Miss had played a game, but this was Tech’s first — and it rallied from a 17-point deficit to win 31-30.
‘‘Louisiana Tech was competitive,’’ Covers says. ‘‘This is a different season for casual bettors. What you see one week isn’t necessarily what you’re likely to see the next. Bettors need to be aware. Accept the uncertainty and reduce your unit size.’’
In years past, Cokin would be done for the week, picks selected, by Tuesday or Wednesday. This season has demanded more time.
‘‘I reluctantly wait more than I usually do,’’ he says. ‘‘There’s late information coming in every week, and then you see major movements.’’
In that Air Force-Navy game, the waiting paid off. He nabbed nearly seven points — providing extra security but ultimately unnecessary — with the Falcons.
‘‘Just a horrible overreaction,’’ Cokin says. ‘‘Navy stinks. I’m not sure where all that [steam] came from, but I’m glad they did it. Had Air Force been the favorite, I probably would have left it alone. One of the easier bets I’ll ever make.’’
At 2:30 p.m. last Saturday, just before kickoff, an announcement struck Cokin as typical for this atypical season when Boise State revealed virus-stricken starting quarterback Hank Bachmeier hadn’t traveled to Air Force.
‘‘Boise QB out,’’ Cokin tweeted. ‘‘Positive test. Just when I thought this day couldn’t get any worse.’’
But backup Jack Sears, a USC transfer, went 17-for-20 for 280 yards and three touchdowns in a 49-30 victory for 14-point-favorite Boise State.
Cokin didn’t have a good day, but the Broncos represented his highest-rated multi-unit play. His pragmatism has guided him to nearly a 60% success rate. He harbors the healthiest of tacks, dealing with stuff as it happens and moving on.
‘‘That’s life in general,’’ Cokin says. ‘‘[Expletive] happens. Nothing you can do about it anyway. If there’s a bump in the road, you try to get around it.’’
TWO FROM BIG TEN?
The Big Ten and Pac-12 canceling their seasons and then reversing course, when other conferences had formulated plans and protocols to play, made both leagues look foolish, like followers.
‘‘Why did they have to decide so quickly not to play?’’ Palm says. ‘‘They could have taken their time. I don’t think it was a great look.’’
The Pac-12, whose teams have six-game schedules, starts this weekend. Stone is keen to watch No. 12 Oregon’s quarterback battle between unproven sophomore Tyler Shough and versatile senior transfer Anthony Brown, who threw for 4,738 yards and 40 touchdowns at Boston College.
Legendary broadcaster Brent Musburger has made only one college football wager — on Alabama to win it all at +425 (bet $100 to win $425).
‘‘I will tiptoe back to the Big Ten to take a peek at Ohio State,’’ he says, ‘‘and I could hedge on Clemson if they play Alabama heads-up in a game.’’
A consensus has Clemson, No. 2 Alabama (6-0) and No. 3 Ohio State (2-0) in the playoff. Who will be the fourth semifinalist?
Notre Dame could help itself Saturday. If No. 5 Georgia (4-1) were to run the table, which would entail upending the Crimson Tide in the Southeastern Conference title game, Stone says the Bulldogs are ‘‘shoo-ins.’’
Magliulo had BYU power-rated higher than Notre Dame two weeks ago. On Sunday morning, he said the 5-0 Cougars were even with the Irish and would deserve playoff consideration should they remain unbeaten.
Purdue and Northwestern (both 2-0) play in Indiana next Saturday.
‘‘Some think, given its schedule, Purdue is very much alive,’’ Magliulo says. ‘‘Northwestern is getting some play, too. There’s always support for Northwestern. The Wildcats just play hard all the time.’’
Cokin doesn’t summarily dismiss a second Big Ten team from getting into the playoff, a scenario that would require Purdue or Northwestern to defeat Ohio State in the Big Ten title game.
Magliulo goes down another path.
‘‘If there ever was a year to expand the playoff, what about this year?’’ he says. ‘‘This is big business. They’ve lost a lot of games already, and they could gain a lot of revenue. We book those college playoff games like NFL playoff games [with high limits] because that’s how people bet them.’’
We reach a subdued conclusion.
Hopefully, in such college football chaos, the playoff actually will take place.
Think the 2020 season is crazy? College football in 1918 was a little wacky, tooRob Miechon November 7, 2020 at 2:00 pm
The 1918 Great Lakes Bluejackets football team. | Sun-Times
That was the year the Great Lakes Bluejackets beat Navy and played a bowl game in Pasadena
On Nov. 23, 1918, in Annapolis, Maryland, former Illinois schoolboy star Harry “Dizzy” Eielson grabbed the loose football near the Navy end zone and took off rambling for the other end zone.
Great Lakes trailed the Midshipmen 6-0, so this late stunner would tie it. As Eielson reached midfield, however, Navy coach “Gloomy” Gil Dobie barked, “Get him! Go get him!”
An obedient Bill Saunders bolted from the Navy sideline and tackled Eielson at the 25. In the ensuing mayhem, Bluejackets halfback George Halas took a swing at Saunders and an admiral brandished a sword to try to restore order.
“I just let [Saunders] tackle me,” Eielson said, “and then, boy, oh, boy, the fun started.”
The most peculiar college football season — in the words of Walter Camp, considered to be the father of American football — included one of the zaniest scenes in its history, in a game in which the winner would play on New Year’s Day in Pasadena, California.
Fun was a vague concept in 1918, as it is in 2020. In April 1917, the United States had entered the Great War in Europe, triggering a push to end the conflict. Spanish flu then spread across the world.
In the Chicago area, the virus first hit the Great Lakes Naval Training Station in Lake County. Outbreaks ruined schedules, resulting in postponements, cancellations and schedule scrambles.
Florida played once that season, losing to Camp Johnston from Jacksonville. Michigan went 5-0, Illinois 5-2, Northwestern 2-2-1, Notre Dame 3-1-2, Penn State 1-2-1, Wisconsin 3-3 and Marquette 2-0-1. The 351 games played in 1917 were nearly halved in 1918.
To boost morale, the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association arranged to have its East-West football game, the precursor to the Rose Bowl, pit the nation’s two best military squads from opposite halves of the country against each other.
In Vallejo, California, the Mare Island Marines (10-0) outscored foes 454-28 to land in Pasadena on Jan. 1, 1919.
When four players at Michigan Agricultural College — now Michigan State — contracted the virus, the Aggies canceled their game against Northwestern less than 48 hours before kickoff. Great Lakes filled in and played host, but sloppy conditions resulted in a scoreless tie.
In 2020, such late maneuvering is frowned upon. Chattanooga agreed to fill in for Wisconsin and play at Nebraska last Saturday, but the Big Ten nixed the plan 48 hours before kickoff.
The Bluejackets also tied Notre Dame 7-7 when first-year Irish coach Knute Rockne had freshmen George Gipp and Curly Lambeau on his roster, and the Lambeau-Halas rivalry would last their lifetimes.
Two years earlier, the 6-2 Eielson set a state pole-vault record at Springfield High and helped the Senators win a state basketball title.
In 1917, he enrolled at Northwestern and captained the freshman football team. When he answered his country’s call and enlisted in the U.S. Navy, he was assigned to Great Lakes.
Navy fullback Bill Ingram had lost that ball deep in Bluejackets territory, the catalyst to the ensuing craziness. Capt. Edward W. Eberle, the Naval Academy superintendent who would rise to chief of naval operations, had been a stickler for decorum and fairness, reported authors Herb Michelson and Dave Newhouse.
They quoted Eberle, who gathered confused officials, as saying: ‘‘I said it was a touchdown. I run this place, and a touchdown it is.” Hugh Blacklock booted the extra point for the 7-6 victory.
Great Lakes was 5-0-2 when it went to Pasadena and defeated Mare Island 17-0 before 26,000 fans at Tournament Park. (The Rose Bowl stadium opened in 1922.)
That was the first season of Great Lakes football. The Bluejackets would field a team in the next war starting in 1942 and would play for four seasons. They lost to Notre Dame only once in five meetings, and they beat the then-No. 1 Irish 19-14 in 1943 in Chicago.
Upon the 25th anniversary of the Annapolis shenanigans, Eielson gave the Illinois State Journal his “oh, boy” line. He said he saw Saunders but didn’t alter his route because legitimate Navy players might have tackled him.
After being taken down by Saunders, Eielson stood beside Blacklock and “calmly walked out of the crowd and went off down the field and over the Annapolis goal for the touchdown that was allowed to tie the game.”
Eielson returned to Springfield to work in the family lumber business. He was elected to various offices, including mayor (1947-51). In 1950, he returned to Pasadena to portray Abraham Lincoln in the Tournament of Roses parade float.
He died in 1983 at age 86. His son, Harry Jr., had said his father believed his most glorious sporting endeavor was playing in Pasadena that New Year’s Day.
Without the most preposterous of runs in the most preposterous of seasons, though, the Great Lakes Bluejackets never would have boarded that train to California.
Chicago Bears: Nick Foles has no excuses in matchup vs. Titanson November 7, 2020 at 1:00 pm
Nick Foles and the Chicago Bears are out of excuses this weekend against the Tennessee Titans.
This is the game the Chicago Bears have to get right, or else the wheels just might fall off all together. In a game against the 5-2 Tennessee Titans, head coach Matt Nagy has a tall task in front of him. Chicago cannot afford to lose three straight and risk a downward spiral.
A tall task, sure. But, these Titans are beatable. After starting 5-0, Tennessee is now losers of two in a row, like the Bears. Something has to give. One team will leave Sunday afternoon losers of three straight. The other, meanwhile, will have gotten back on track.
Play calling was a bit better last week against the New Orleans Saints. It still wasn’t perfect, but Nagy called a better game and it was much more suitable for a quarterback like Nick Foles, especially considering his lack of protection up front.
If Nagy continues to call quick passes often, mixed in with a variety of other styles, Foles should thrive against this Titans defense. We saw Foles get rid of the ball quickly against New Orleans on many occasions (others, not so much). On those plays, Bears receivers were able to get their hands on the ball right away and Chicago gained bits and pieces of yardage at a time.
Frankly, it was great just to see the offense moving at all. On those few plays where Foles had the time to throw the ball deep, we were able to see what guys like Darnell Mooney and Allen Robinson could do — and it seemed like it had been forever since we saw a play or two like that.
Against Tennessee, Foles should have a bit more time to throw. He’s also going up against the league’s 27th ranked pass defense in the Titans. Mike Vrabel‘s defense is allowing quarterbacks to complete 66.5 percent of passes while giving up the fourth-most passing touchdowns in all of football this season (17). Fans are, well, a little fed up.
Looking at how often Foles has been under duress this season, it hasn’t been pretty. But, the Titans are second-to-last in sacks this season with just nine.
The table is set for Foles not only to have more time in the pocket, but he’s throwing on one of the worst pass defenses in the league, all things considered. For Nagy, it’s going to be about scheming his guys open as usual — but can he call the correct plays in each situation? That’s what it’s come down to in many games this year. Situational football hasn’t been Nagy’s strength.
If Chicago is going to come away snapping their small losing streak, it’s going to have to be due to a strong game from Foles. Everything is laid out before him to have maybe the best game of his season thus far, and if he doesn’t, then the Bears will have one of the roughest weeks they’ve had all year following the loss.
Beabadoobee travels through alt-pop time on Fake It FlowersSalem Collo-Julinon November 6, 2020 at 9:00 pm
British singer-songwriter Beabadoobee is only 20 years old, but on her debut album, Fake It Flowers, she’s written songs that sound like alt-pop favorites from the decade before she was born—mostly the Sundays with a hint of Tanya Donelly. To my ears, her music’s combo of sugary sweetness with a hint of bile defines the “alternative” era’s pop songwriting as precisely as a flannel shirt signifies its rock fashion.…Read More