Daytona 500 entry list includes 49
Autoracing Betting Lines
02/16/2012 - Daytona Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Forty-nine teams are on the preliminary entry list for this year's Daytona 500. NASCAR released the list on Thursday.
Former NASCAR Cup champions Terry Labonte and Bill Elliott have been added to the list within the past couple of days. Labonte will drive the No.32 Ford for FAS Lane Racing, while Elliott will be behind the wheel of the No.97 Toyota for NEMCO Motorsports.
The top-35 from last year's owner points are guaranteed a starting position for the February 26 Sprint Cup Series season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway. The remaining 14 teams will race for the last eight spots.
Sunday's qualifying at DIS will determine the front starting row for the Daytona 500. The remainder of the 43-car field will be decided in the February 23 Gatorade Duels at Daytona -- the twin 150-mile qualifying races.
Last year's Daytona 500 included 48 teams. Twenty-year-old Trevor Bayne won the race in just his second Sprint Cup start.
Daytona Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - From Trevor Bayne's stunning win in the Daytona 500 to Tony Stewart beating Carl Edwards for the championship in a tiebreaker, NASCAR indeed had an unforgettable season in its premier series in 2011.
<< Flyers acquire Grossman
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Flyers have acquired
defenseman Nicklas Grossman from the Dallas Stars in exchange for two draft
picks, the team announced Thursday.
Grossman has five assists in 52 games this seas
<< Eskimos ink WR Carr
Edmonton, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Edmonton Eskimos signed wide receiver Greg
Carr on Thursday.
Carr caught 46 passes for 648 yards and four touchdowns last season with the
Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
"We're very pleased to sign Greg," Es
<< Lions agree to terms with Byron Parker, Stu Foord
Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The BC Lions agreed to terms with defensive
back Byron Parker and running back Stu Foord on Thursday.
Parker earned his third All-Star selection last season, tallying a career-high
50 tackles to go with
<< United's Valencia out four weeks with hamstring injury
Amsterdam, Netherlands (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Manchester United winger Antonio
Valencia injured his hamstring Thursday in a 2-0 Europa League win at Ajax,
and will be sidelined four weeks.
The 26-year-old Ecuadorian was injured as he set
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose will miss Thursday's game against the Celtics with a sore back. Rose will sit out his fourth straight game due to the ailing back, though an MRI on Monday reveale
Trio on top at Bogota Open >>
Bogota, Colombia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Australia's Peter Lonard and Americans
Brian Smock and Billy Horschel each posted five-under 66s on Thursday to share
the first-round lead of the Bogota Open, the 2012 season-opener on the
Nationw
Sharks acquire Moore from Lightning >>
Tampa, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Jose Sharks have acquired forward Dominic
Moore and a seventh-round selection in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft from the Tampa
Bay Lightning in exchange for a second-round selection, previously acquired
from Mi
Wofford to host five, visit South Carolina >>
Spartanburg, SC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Wofford College's football team will play a
particularly tough road schedule this year, including a season-ending road
trip to the University of South Carolina.
In addition to the Nov. 17 game in Columbia,
Tennessee State to play five home games in 2012 >>
Nashville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tennessee State football team will play
five home games this season, including the 50th all-time meeting with Florida
A&M.
TSU will open the season against Florida A&M at LP Field in the 14th
ann
Teams that should be in: Michigan State, Indiana
Work left to do: Illinois, Purdue, Michigan, Iowa
Behind the big two, the pecking order might be in a bit of flux. Has Michigan State passed Indiana after handling the Hoosiers in East Lansing? Where is Illinois in that mix? What looked like a four-big league last week could be morphing into five -- and even six is not unthinkable at this point if everything breaks right.
Should be in:
Michigan State [21-8 (8-6), RPI: 20, SOS: 15] The Spartans made it four-for-four on the homestand, a gigantic accomplishment that leaves them in extremely good shape. MSU is only 1-6 on the road and is at Michigan and at Wisconsin to close things out, meaning the date with the Wolverines on Tuesday looms very, very large. Beating Texas early will hold up well, as will the rout of Bradley and the win over BYU, but will 8-8 be enough? It very well could be, as the computer numbers are good, but why chance it?
Indiana [18-9 (8-6), RPI: 24, SOS: 32] Hmm ... good thing the last two are at Northwestern and home to Penn State, because IU might want to get both to feel completely safe after dropping its third in the last four, fading after halftime at Michigan State. Who knew the best nonconference win would be over Southern Illinois, which is a gift that keeps on giving for the Hoosiers. The win over Wisconsin also looks good on the mantel.
Work left to do:
Illinois [21-9 (9-6), RPI: 31, SOS: 25] A good performance at Penn State leaves the Illini in pretty good shape. Can they go to Iowa and take care of business to really look on their way? That's a huge game, as there is a possible cluster of teams that will end at 9-7. Illinois beat Bradley, but has lost to Xavier. A 9-7 mark and a semifinals trip in Chicago could be enough with the computer profile hanging in there, but it would be better not to mess around, clinching at least a tie for third.
Purdue [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 47, SOS: 28] Couldn't get it done at Iowa, but did win at Northwestern to put 9-7 squarely in sight. Where does that leave the Boilermakers, though? Even if they beat Minnesota and Northwestern at home, that won't help the computer numbers. Nonconference wins over Virginia, DePaul and Oklahoma are solid, but not spectacular. The Boilers very well might need an upset in the B10 quarters to have a legit claim.
Michigan [19-10 (7-7), RPI: 55, SOS: 53] Well, Michigan did what it needed to do, winning at Minnesota to take control of its fate. The Wolverines have Michigan State and an already-wrapped-up-the-league Ohio State at home to close, so the chances are there. Win both and we can talk. There is no marquee win yet in the profile, and the Wolverines were splattered in several games against name opponents. A mediocre computer profile fueled by a lack of road wins isn't helping, either.
Iowa [16-12 (8-6), RPI: 80, SOS: 64] For the sake of being complete, we'll add Iowa, this season's Stanford. It's plausible that the Hawkeyes could get to 10-6 (at Penn State, vs. Illinois left), but where does that leave them after a gruesome nonconference performance where the best win was over ... Toledo? Iowa State? Cornell?? If they get to 10-6, we can start to look at what they need to do in the B10 tourney, although my gut sense is that they would need to make the final and have knocked off Ohio State or Wisconsin on the way to have any real claim.
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