The NFL famously does not allow the Las Vegas Visitors and Convention Bureau to advertise during the Super Bowl. Why? Because the ad would attract people to a city where they allow wagering on NFL games.

The Washington Post reported that the NFL spent $2.8 million on a DC lobbyist over a four year period, and that lobbyist went on to work on behalf of the Bush White House on anti-gambling legislation that exempts fantasy football from any regulation The NFL receives royalties on fantasy football. The NFL’s advocacy is not unique, as the league has been involved in lobbying against legalized betting in Delaware and New Jersey in the past year, while consistently working to exempt fantasy sports from any regulation.

We could go on, but obviously, despite their substantial investment in fantasy football, the NFL takes a strong stand against all other forms of wagering on their games.

So what to make of the fact that the host of this Super Bowl, Tampa Bay Buccaneers owner Malcolm Glazer, has a partnership with a sports betting website that accepts bets on NFL games, including on and against his Tampa Bay Buccaneers?

Glazer, a billionaire industrialist and philanthropist, purchased British football dynasty Manchester United in 2005. A visit to ManU’s web site shows a quick and easy link to ManUtd Betting, billed as an “Official Partner Site” of Manchester United. The site offers betting on the NFL, though not to US residents (Turkey is the only other country exempted).

As the video above this story shows, during the season the site offers betting both on and against Glazer’s own Tampa Bay Buccaneers. So despite all their anti-NFL rhetoric, the Super Bowl is being hosted by an owner who is partners with a web site that accepts bets on NFL games, including the games of his own team.

Now let’s make an important point here. Though Glazer retains ownership, he has been in declining health and the franchise is being run by his sons, who made the decision to fire Jon Gruden this month.

There’s no suggestion here that the Glazers are doing anything wrong. It is accepted practice in the Premier League to use your brand on behalf of a bookmaker. When it comes to their NFL franchise, it is unimaginable that there would be any chicanery going on as a result of their betting partnership.

But the fact remains, that for all the NFL’s huffing and puffing against betting on their games, the owner of team hosting the Super Bowl partners with a wagering firm that books bets on the NFL, including Tampa Bay games.

Yesterday we touched on the illegal bookie trade,  which is thriving across the US as an unintended consequence of Bill Frist’s UIEGA legislation, which was designed to limit banks interaction with offshore betting sites.  Similar legislation had always failed before, so unable to pass the legislation on merit, then Senate Majority Leader Frist attached it as a last minute rider to the gargantuan Safe Port Act in the fall of 2006.

Now the effects of that legislation have have thrown a monkey wrench into, of all things, the New Hampshire State Lottery.   The Granite State (with the best state motto: “Live Free or Die”) can’t process renewals for lottery buyers who purchase season tickets via a credit card.  They also are unable to process credit card lottery transactions at their state-owned liquor stores.

According to the Manchester Union Leader, Rick Wisler, the Executive Director of the New Hampshire State Lottery, this is a seven-figure problem. Wisler tells the Manchester Union Leader, “it can amount to a million dollars a year or more to the Lottery if credit cards are not allowed.” 

New Hampshire Lottery profits benefit public education.  Ironically, while nanny staters often look to restrict gambling “for the children”, it is the schoolkids of  New Hampshire that are being denied funding as yet another unintended consequence of UIEGA.

The handle on last year’s ultra-hyped Giants/Patriots Super Bowl was projected to reach $100 million, so there was disappointment in the Nevada casinos that only $92.1 million was wagered.  Even more disappointing was that the casinos lost $2.6 million as public bettors were heavy on the Giants, especially on the money line.  That rare loss made the result of the last 18 years of Super Bowl betting Casinos 16, Bettors 2.

The worldwide recession is hitting the gaming industry hard, with casino profits down over 57% last year in Nevada. There is hope that the Super Bowl will provide a boost, but Nevadans realize that in the current climate it is unlikely that last year’s $92.1 million in Super Bowl wagering volume will be matched.  The consensus seems to be that they would be grateful for their busiest weekend in a while and a Super Bowl handle in the $85 million range.

In these recessionary times, one area of the economy that is thriving is the local bookmaking business.  These guys were on the ropes during the internet wagering boom, but legislation interfering with internet wagering companies ability to do business with American banks has put a damper on (though far from extinguished) the online sports betting business.

So what’s a sports bettor to do? He heads back to his local bookie.  Local bookies, many of whom were getting out of the business due to online competition, are going great guns once again.  And many of them are now using online services that provide all their back office needs, as technology firms servicing the offshore sports betting business have reacted to the marketplace by targeting local US bookies as their international business declines.   Local bettors can now bet online or by phone 24/7, so their only personal interaction with their bookmaker is meeting up to pay and collect.

Using these back office servcies and benefiting from US government action driving sports bettors back underground, your local bookie is likely making more money with less work than ever before.   So while Vegas casino folks have long faces, there’s good reason for the smile on the face of the local sports accountant working out of your neighborhood bar.

The Steelers’ defense is obviously the strength of their team.  They rank 1st or 2nd in just about every meaningful defensive statistic.  Meanwhile their offense only generates 22 points per game, 5.2 yards per play, and 3.7 yards per rush, ranking between 20th and 29th in those important categories.

But the Steelers offense should not be classified as mediocre.  They played a few bad weather games that naturally held down their offensive production.  More importantly, they played a schedule loaded with stellar opposing defenses.

The Steelers were the #1 scoring defense in the league.   The 2nd through 8th best scoring defenses were the Titans, Ravens, Eagles, Giants, Redskins, Colts, and Patriots.  Pittsburgh played every one of those teams, facing off against the Ravens three times.

All told, the Steelers played 9 of their 18 games against the next 7 best scoring teams in the league.  Consider the fierce competition before being too critical of Pittsburgh’s lack of offensive production this season.

From 2004 through 2006, current Cardinals head coach Ken Whisenhunt was the Steelers offensive coordiantor, and Dick Lebeau was the Steelers defensive coordinator, a job that he continues to excel in to this day.

In those roles, the two men self-scouted each other pretty frequently. Whisenhunt and his offensive staff spent a lot of time  analyzing the Steelers defense saying “here’s the way I’d attack us…” with Lebeau and his defensive coaches mock game planning to defend the Steelers offense and then sharing the results with the offensive coaches.

The many hours these men and their staffs spent together probing the weaknesses of their respective units leaves them very familiar with their philosophies and tactics.  The element of surprise is a key Super Bowl weapon. With two weeks to prepare for this game, don’t be surprised if there both the Cardinals offense and the Steelers defense have some wrinkles up their sleeves that don’t appear on film.

The familiarity doesn’t exist only when the Cardinals have the ball.  Whisenhunt’s assistant head coach is Russ Grimm, the Steelers’ offensive line coach during those years.  Grimm and Whisenhunt coached many of the current Steelers offensive personnel.  And they doubtlessly have some well-formed opinions on where on the offensive line they want to attack and how to contain Pittsburgh’s offensive weapons.  We’ll be seeing quite a chess match in Tampa on Super Bowl Sunday.

Eagles at Cardinals: Proof that the networks are the tail that wag the dog, this game in the desert, two time zones west of Pittsburgh, with the game to be played indoors to enhance the home crowd’s influence, is the early game.  Enjoy the wintry nighttime air, Steelers fans.

This has nothing to do with the game, but Dan Bickley’s column on Jake Plummer has multiple interesting items.  Bickley mentions Plummer doing door-to-door campaigning when the Cards were looking for government help to build their stadium.  Then Plummer admits to being pleased upon hearing of Mike Shanahan’s firing.

Have the Cardinals really improved that much defensively, or was it just a case of horrific performances by Matt Ryan and Jake Delhomme?  Can ancient Kurt Warner withstand the pressure of the Eagles and Jim Johnson’s aggressive schemes?

Do the Cardinals have the heart to get this done?  After all, it’s safe to say that we’ll never again see a team that loses four times by 21 or more host a conference championship game.   One of those games was a devastating Thanksgiving night crushing at the hands of these Eagles.  But can we throw that game out based on the Eagles short week and long trip?

And remember that the Eagles were at their low point and desperately in need of a win on Turkey Day night.  Donovan McNabb was off of his Baltimore benching following the Bengal tie and the Eagles badly needed that one.  Incidentally, if the Cardinals didn’t have so much money invested in the QB position, we’d here rumors of McNabb to this franchise, with Phoenix being McNabb’s offseason home.

Will the Eagles offense get the job done?  Surprisingly, in their 13 possessions in their win over the Giants, Philly failed to gain 10 yards on 9 of those drives.  Now those possessions included taking knees at the end of each half.  But still, it wasn’t an avalanche of offensive production from the Eagles.

Two surprising teams make for an intriguing matchup.  Read on for some additional impressive numbers numbers on the Eagles defense.

Ravens at Steelers:  Defense is obviously the name of the game in this one.   These two, along with the Eagles, were in the top four in the NFL in the defensive categories of scoring defense, total defense, yards per play, opponent’s 3rd down conversion percentage, passing yards, yards per pass attempt, rushing yardage, and TD runs allowed.  Obviously these two (along with the Eagles) have the ability to shut down both the run and the pass.

Ravens rookie Joe Flacco has been famously efficient this year, but his two outings against this Steelers D were far from stellar. In those two games Flacco was 27 for 59 for 307 yards.  That’s only 5.2 yards per pass attempt and Flacco was intercepted twice and sacked 7 times, while notching only a single TD pass.  Yet the Ravens lost by just a smidge in each outing, one in OT, and one decided by a replay official differentiating between being on the goal line and being on the six-inch line.

It’ll be cold in Pittsburgh, with temps around 24, but light winds and the potential of light snow showers.  No big deal, as they each won in similar conditions last week.  With the series history and Baltimore’s well-earned reputation as a hard-knocking underdog, they’re a tempting proposition.  Remember, this team was in must win situations down the stretch.  Can their banged up defense rise up yet again against a Steelers offense that is running on all cylinders?  Can their poor-tackling corners take down a fresh Willie Parker when he gets to the outside?  Will that injury-riddled secondary a couple of big pass plays?

Enjoy this pair of fascinating games on Sunday.

Over the long college basketball season, strength-of-schedule becomes less and less of a factor as teams all play the same conference competition.  But early in the campaign, there can be instances where schedule strength can be meaningful.

Syracuse is a better team than Rutgers, and they deserve to be favored over the Scarlet Knights.  But when you’re comparing these two teams, realize that the schedule has certainly favored the Orange so far.

Syracuse is 3-0 in conference play, with wins over Seton Hall, South Florida, and Depaul.   None of these three teams has won a conference game.

Rutgers is 0-3 in conference play, with losses to Pitt, Connecticut, and Marquette.  None of these teams has lost a conference game.  Throw in Rutgers last non-conference game against North Carolina and you see three games against Top 10 teams, including the #1 team (Pitt) and the team that Pitt replaced at #1 (North Carolina).

The RAC is a tough place to play, and Rutgers has benefited from that home court advantage in their two home court conference games, losing to Marquette by only 5 and Pitt by only 6.  Led by freshman guard Mike Rosario, coach Fred Hill has gathered some talent at Rutgers.  But the recent level of competition has masked the improvement.

With archrival Georgetown on deck, Syracuse may not be as focused on Rutgers as they could be.  Assuming enough Rutgers fans trudge through the snow to the game tonight, RU should enjoy a solid home court advantage and are talented enough hang around for a good long while if the Orangemen don’t have their mind on business tonight.

The Panthers and Cardinals meet in Charlotte in the NFL Playoffs this evening and rain looks likely. There are three hours on the hour-by-hour forecast that call for “rain” and not just showers.  They are 9PM, 10PM, and 11PM.  The game starts at 8:30PM EST.

The wind doesn’t look all that bad, around 10 MPH or so.  But the likelihood of steady rain is something you may want to consider as you analyze tonight’s game.  And if the rain factors in your handicap it is never a bad idea to watch the initial moments of the telecast to see what the actual conditions are as the game kicks off.

Pretty big game in the NBA tonight, as the Celtics travel to Cleveland in a potential Eastern Conference Finals preview.  The Celtics attribute their recent 2-6 slide to poor defense, but their offense has been no great shakes, either, as they’ve scored fewer than 90 points in 5 of those games.  Slumping Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo had a only a single assist in the first 3 quarters in Wednesday’s home upset loss to Houston.  Rondo has been sloppy, with recent games in which he committed 7 and 9 turnovers.   He’s been doing a poor job both distributing and scoring during this tough stretch.

Cleveland’s Zydrunas Ilgauskas is more involved in his team’s offensive flow than most big men, and his ankle injury isn’t good news for a Cleveland team that can expect peak defensive intensity from Boston.  These are the #1 and #2 teams in the league in defensive efficiency, and with reason to think that their offenses will not be at a peak, as well as with playoff-level intensity, the under may be the way to go in Cleveland tonight.

Oklahoma and Florida meet in Miami for the BCS Championship, and facts and figures are flying around about these teams.  The different styles of ball that these teams play makes it a fascinating matchup.  But those different styles mean that you’re crazy if you use any raw numbers to analyze this game statistically.

Each team played 13 games. Florida ran 800 offensive plays this year.  Oklahoma ran 1036 plays.  So Oklahoma’s raw yardage numbers should be nearly 30% greater than Florida’s.  This game is the poster child for the need for “yards per” analysis.  236 more plays for OU shows why using yards per play, yards per rush, and yards per pass is much more accurate from a predictive standpoint than using raw yardage numbers.

The number of plays for each team is a direct result of the style of ball played in their conferences.  The SEC is much more defensive-minded and didn’t have much in the way of quarterbacking this season.  The Big 12 South was the complete opposite.  Interestingly, the #1 defensive team in the Big 12 statistically was Texas.  They allowed 339 yards per game in conference play.  That would have made them the 12th best defense statistically in the SEC.  Not because the ‘Horns weren’t any good on defense, but because the style of play in their conference led to more plays, more passing, less rushing, and therefore more yardage. You see the pitfalls of using raw stats?

There’s more.  Florida held 12 of 13 opponents to 21 points or less.   Their last 7 opponents all scored fewer than 20 points. All of Oklahoma’s last 8 opponents scored 21 or more.  But on the other side of the ball Oklahoma’s lowest yardage output was 435 yards whle Florida’s offense failed to reach that mark in 6 of their 13 games.

Raw numbers make it appear that Oklahoma’s offense is clearly superior to Florida’s attack, while Florida’s defense is clearly better than Oklahoma’s D.  While that may prove to be the case, the raw numbers are mainly the result of having so many more plays (both offensive and defensive) in Oklahoma games, and facing opponents that threw the ball a lot more often.

One figure is set in stone however, and it has had Sooner and Gator backers smiling all fall.  These two have combined for a 22-3-1 pointspread mark this season.

Enjoy the game tonight.