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11/05/2007 - Bridgeview, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With a certain player in the lineup this season, the Chicago Fire are 10-4-8, while scoring 25 goals. Without this player, the team is 1-6-2 while scoring just six goals over that span.
With a certain player in the lineup, the Chicago Fire knocked off the top seed in the Major League Soccer playoffs to advance to the Eastern Conference final, scheduled to be played at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. on Thursday.
With a certain player in the lineup, the Chicago Fire are currently on a 10- game unbeaten streak, the second-longest in team history.
No, that player is not the team's designated player signing and Mexican superstar Cuauhtemoc Blanco, who helped the club to a 6-2-7 record since his arrival on July 29.
That player is American forward Chris Rolfe.
"As far as I am concerned, I think we have proved that we are not Cuauhtemoc Blanco's team," said Chicago coach Juan Carlos Osorio, who coached his first game for the fired Dave Sarachan in Blanco's first match with the team. "He plays on our team and we are more than happy with that, but we have many other tools now. Chris Rolfe's contribution has been crucial."
The Fire actually started the season as one of the hottest teams in the Eastern Conference, going 3-1-2 under Sarachan. But in that seventh league match on May 12, Rolfe injured his ankle and missed the next nine league fixtures.
At the time, Rolfe was tied with New England's Taylor Twellman for the league- lead in goals, with four after just six matches. After Rolfe's injury, the team went on a horrific slide, losing six of nine while collecting just one win in that span, costing Sarachan the job he'd held since 2003.
"It was very difficult," Rolfe said of his injury. "At the start of the season I was influential in some of the wins we had and I thought that I could help the team, obviously in an area that we were struggling, which was goal scoring. That is something that I thought I could have been helping with."
Since his return to the lineup on Aug. 4, however, the Fire have been one of the hottest teams in the league - with Blanco getting most of the credit for the turnaround.
"We had faith that we had a good group to start with," Rolfe said, "and we're bringing in some good players (Blanco, defender Wilman Conde and forward Paulo Wanchope) and a new coach (Osorio) and we were confident the whole time that we had a chance at this (a berth in the Eastern finals)."
For all the credit that Blanco gets, his four goals and eight assists in 16 starts since his arrival aren't as impressive as Rolfe's eight goals and three assists in 18 starts this season.
"That's great. Obviously that's great," Rolfe said. "That's something that I should be doing with the role that I have on this team. I should be scoring goals, so I'm just doing what I'm supposed to do really."
And while Rolfe's two playoff goals vs. D.C. were crucial in the team advancing to the Eastern final, 4-2 in the total-goals, home-and-home semifinal series, his defensive work from his forward position has also been key.
"I think for an offensive minded player, his contribution defensively is immense," Osorio said. "It's huge, and we all appreciate it very much in this team."
It's about time people outside the team started appreciating what this home- grown player is doing in MLS this season.
Namely, outclassing a legend.
<< Denver's Cutler has bruised leg
Englewood, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Denver Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler has
been diagnosed with bruised left leg.
An MRI on the leg came back negative, revealing no stress fracture of the
fibula. Head coach Mike Shanahan is hopeful
<< Bengals reinstate WR Henry
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cincinnati Bengals reinstated suspended
wide receiver Chris Henry on Monday.
Henry had been suspended by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell for the first eight
games of the 2007 regular season back in A
<< Reds face must-win contest against Besiktas
Liverpool, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Liverpool has its back against the wall
and must produce a win on Tuesday at Anfield against Besiktas to keep hope
alive of advancing in the Champions League.
The Reds entered Group A as favorites
<< Surgery likely for Rams' Little
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - St. Louis Rams defensive end Leonard Little
said Monday he expects to undergo surgery for a toe injury that forced him to
miss the team's last game and will likely cause him to miss the remainder of
the sea
Texans' Robinson likely gone for season >>
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Houston Texans cornerback Dunta Robinson
expects to miss the rest of the season with a knee injury, he said Monday.
According to the team's Web site, Robinson said he knew he wouldn't return,
after s
Cowboys activate Tank Johnson; Anderson to IR >>
Irving, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Dallas Cowboys activated nose tackle Tank
Johnson Monday following his reinstatement from an NFL-sanctioned eight-game
suspension.
Johnson will fill the roster spot of fullback Deon Anderson, who t
Spartans lose Jefferson for season >>
East Lansing, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Michigan State junior forward Aisha
Jefferson will miss the entire 2007-2008 season after tearing the anterior
cruciate ligament in her right knee.
The native of Dayton, Ohio suffered the inju
Johnson transferring from UConn >>
Storrs, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Junior forward Marcus Johnson is transferring
from the University of Connecticut.
Johnson asked head coach Jim Calhoun on Monday for permission to speak to
other schools. He will complete this academic
MySportsbook.com Favors Fighting Irish to win College Football betting odds
According to odds makers at MySportsbook.com, on January 8, the Fighting Irish faithful may be toasting their 14th national title in Arizona – Notre Dame’s first national championship in close to 20 years.
Although MySportsbook.com has listed Notre Dame as the 5-1 favorite to win thecollege football College Football betting, fans in Columbus do not need to cancel their tickets to Glendale just yet. The Ohio State Buckeyes, listed right behind the Irish at 7-1, are also heavy favorites to win college football’s most coveted prize, while West Virginia, USC and the 2007 National Champion Texas Longhorns - all listed at 8-1 – are strong contenders as well.
MySportsbook.com has also posted gambling odds on the conference championships for the ACC, Big 12 and SEC. In the ACC – it could be anyone’s title, particularly for the two schools from the Sunshine State. Florida State and Miami, both listed at 2-1, are favored to win the ACC Championship Game odds, with the ‘Noles hoping to finish in the nation’s top 10 for the first time in five years, and the ‘Canes looking to avenge their 10-7 loss against FSU in last year’s ACC Championship betting.
Moving west to the Big 12, MySportsbook.com has betting lines listing Texas as 7-5 favorites to repeat as conference champions, even though the Longhorns lost their national championship-winning quarterback Vince Young to the NFL. In the south, the Auburn Tigers – led by Heisman-hopeful senior running back Kenny Irons – have been given the best odds to win the SEC Championship odds at 5-2.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Visa needs.
| Notre Dame Ohio State West Virginia Texas USC Florida California Auburn Oklahoma Iowa Louisville Florida State Michigan Miami (FL) LSU Penn State Virginia Tech Nebraska Tennessee Georgia Arizona State Oregon Clemson Texas A&M Texas Tech Alabama Arkansas Boston College Michigan State Maryland South Carolina Colorado Purdue Georgia Tech TCU UCLA Arizona Pittsburgh Iowa State Wisconsin North Carolina State Virginia North Carolina Fresno State Hawaii Northwestern BYU Oregon State UNLV Field (Any Other Team) |
5-1 7-1 8-1 8-1 8-1 12-1 15-1 15-1 18-1 20-1 20-1 20-1 20-1 20-1 25-1 40-1 40-1 50-1 60-1 60-1 60-1 70-1 70-1 100-1 100-1 100-1 100-1 100-1 150-1 200-1 200-1 200-1 200-1 200-1 250-1 250-1 300-1 300-1 300-1 300-1 300-1 300-1 400-1 500-1 500-1 500-1 500-1 1000-1 1000-1 40-1 |
| Miami (FL) Florida State Virginia Tech Clemson Georgia Tech Boston College Maryland Virginia North Carolina State North Carolina Wake Forest Duke |
2-1 2-1 3-1 7-1 15-1 15-1 15-1 30-1 30-1 30-1 50-1 500-1 |
| Texas Oklahoma Nebraska Texas Tech Colorado Iowa State Texas A&M Kansas State Missouri Kansas Baylor Oklahoma State |
7-5 9-5 9-2 12-1 14-1 15-1 15-1 30-1 30-1 35-1 100-1 100-1 |
| Auburn Florida LSU Georgia Tennessee Arkansas Alabama Mississippi South Carolina Mississippi State Kentucky Vanderbilt |
5-2 11-4 4-1 6-1 7-1 7-1 9-1 20-1 28-1 75-1 100-1 300-1 |
For complete NCAA football odds please visit Mysportsbook.com.
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