Eastern Conference

This could end up being a banner year for the Eastern Conference. It looks like the requirements to get into the playoffs in the East have just gotten a little stricter. Currently, the top eight teams in the East are all at least .500 ball clubs. That is something that could not have been said the last few years at the end of the regular ...  read more

I've analyzed the last five years of the mid-February mid-major hoops orgy known as Bracket Buster Weekend to see if I could establish any useful betting angles or trends. Instead of working over every single "official" Bracket Buster game I squared my focus on the ones that featuring the mid-major conferences that were routinely wagered upon. That includes the ...  read more

It was another great NFL betting season at Doc’s Sports and I couldn’t leave it without a wrap-up of thoughts on another excellent Super Bowl. So here is a special edition of the Ferringo Report on Super Bowl 44:

- Whenever I talk to people before the Super Bowl they still all say the same thing, “I just hope it’s a good game.” It’s as if the blowouts of ...  read more

Drew Brees Saints quarterback

Apparently, defense isn’t allowed in the NFL anymore.

This January we have seen a dizzying display of offensive artistry as points have been a-plenty through the 10 games that we’ve witnessed. And the two teams that have survived the splurging are – not surprisingly – the two best offensive clubs in the NFL, Indianapolis ...  read more

I'm a fan of the NBA, but it's not a sport that I follow as closely as others, and I don't handicap it very often. When there are sports that I'm not avidly following I find that I like to have little rules in my mind that I can use to quickly get a sense of how a team is performing - a snapshot of where they are at.

In the NFL, for example, I can get a sens ...  read more

We are well into college basketball conference play now, so teams have played more than enough games for us to get a sense of what they really are and how we should be dealing with them. Here's a look at 10 teams that have proven themselves trustworthy on totals so far this year - the ones that most consistently stay ‘under’ or go ‘over’. (‘over/under’ record follo ...  read more

Unlike the situation in the NFC, the AFC playoff picture is completely up in the air. Six AFC teams are on the outside looking in right now but each of those teams is well within striking distance. In the NFC, however, only three teams have a chance of crashing the playoff party. Besides the Colts, who not only have a playoff spot locked up, but also the divi ...  read more

Loyalty can be one of a gambler’s worst enemies. That’s why bettors should never – or at least rarely – wager on their favorite teams. They lose objectivity and are sometime blinded by their feelings about their teams.

Well, no time on the sports betting calendar puts loyalty to the test like college bowl season. This time of year I’m certain that colleg ...  read more

A - Ageless. Brett Favre just keeps getting it done. I fully expected him to be disappointing this year - last season with the Jets all over again. Instead, you don't even have to exaggerate to say that he is probably playing the best football of his career. He was virtually flawless on Sunday, completing 22 of 25 passes and connecting on four touchdowns as his V ...  read more

It used to be in the NFL that if you could run the ball you could dominate your opponent. The teams atop the NFL rushing leaders list were the same team atop the NFL rankings. Things have certainly changed.

The top four rushing teams in the NFL are the New York Jets, Tennessee Titans, Carolina Panthers and Miami Dolphins. All four teams are exactly 4-5 ...  read more

Game: Miami Dolphins (3-4, 3-4 ATS) at New England Patriots (5-2, 4-3 ATS)

Spread: Patriots -11.

Sure, the Patriots have looked like their old selves of late, friendly to backers and brutal to opponents against whom they have no reservations about running up the score until coach Bill Belichick is satisfied.

New England has won its past two games b ...  read more

LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavs.

After a long summer, the NBA gets underway again this week. For those of you who are hardcore fans and bettors of the league these are happy times. I, too, am happy to have it back, but the league doesn't particularly change my life. I'll put it this way - it would kill me to go 10 minutes without knowing what's going on ...  read more

A - Alabama. The Tide came into Saturday looking like the best team in the country. They still looked the same when the day was done. Their offense wasn't overwhelming against South Carolina - other than running back Mark Ingram - but it rarely is. Their defense was just as potent as always, though, and made for another easy win. The AP voters took note, and did ...  read more

The number of unbeaten teams in college football, currently at nine, will for sure dwindle by at least one on Thursday when Big East contenders Cincinnati and South Florida face off in Tampa. The Bearcats are currently 3.5-point favorites.

It’s a little hard to figure out what to make of either of these teams yet. Neither one has played a team currently r ...  read more

The most offensively impressive and dominant team in the NFL so far this year has clearly been the New Orleans Saints. We knew that they were going to be offensively strong, but they have so far been even better than expected, and they have been competent on defense as well. The bandwagon for this team is quickly getting crowded, and that means that the betting pu ...  read more

There’s no second-guessing which premier matchup takes the cake in college football’s second week. Southern Cal travels to Columbus to take on Ohio State at the Horseshoe, so there will be enough coverage of this Top-10 collision.

With that said, we’re going to take a peek at another key tilt, our matchup of the week pitting Notre Dame against Michigan ...  read more

As we head into the NFL regular season, it's a good time to remind ourselves of the importance of injuries to our NFL handicapping. A key injury can turn a good bet into a bad one if it changes the complexion of the team, or it can make a good bet a great one if the public overcompensates for the injury and moves the betting lines in your favor. Here's a look at te ...  read more

We're about to enter an inner circle of hell - the last two NFL preseason games. I suppose that there are a couple of good reasons why these last two games exist, but by far the biggest is that it allows NFL owners to charge full price for two more games.

From a football perspective, the importance of these games range from reasonably slim to absolutely none ...  read more

Every year in college football, a few high-profile teams go well over their projected win total and a few fall well short. This probably isn’t really news to you. With the season about to kick off, however, I’m here to give you a bit of advice on which teams are trending upward or downward. So I will pick one team to focus on as the best value. All odds are cour ...  read more

Thursday

Connecticut (-7) vs. Purdue - Strong defense tends to thrive in the tournament, and both of these teams have top-rate defenses - in the Top 5 by defensive efficiency. The difference here is going to be the pace of play. UConn plays a far more up-tempo style that capitalizes on their size advantage over virtually everyone they play. Purdue will need ...  read more