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01/26/2012 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The ink seemingly wasn't dry on a contract that would send Greg Schiano from Rutgers to the head coaching job with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and already there was potential fallout:
Delaware coach K.C. Keeler's name came up as a potential successor to Schiano at Rutgers.
Not surprisingly, either.
Keeler's hiring at Rutgers would be one of those rise-through-the-ranks-and- take-the-next-step stories.
It was just over a year ago that Keeler was considered to be a candidate at another Big East program, Connecticut.
Keeler, 52, has the track record to be in the conversation, having taken Division III Rowan and Delaware of the FCS to a combined eight national championship games in 19 seasons as a head coach.
He has the East Coast connections, and New Jersey ties, which would be attractive to Rutgers' decision-makers. He also thinks outside the box and has a terrific understanding of what goes into building and developing a program.
The glaring negative, of course, is Keeler has never coached on the FBS level, even as an assistant.
While Keeler seemingly has the ability to make the jump successfully, a leap to Rutgers, even with the Big East having slipped in the last decade, would have him skipping the lower tier of the FBS to a job which would pay well over $1 million annually, although surely less than Schiano's salary there.
Keeler is one of a small handful of FCS head coaches who have never been a FBS head coach to appear ready to lead a program on that level - the kind the FBS school would pursue as much as the coach will go after it.
FCS head coaches like Appalachian State's Jerry Moore or Villanova's Andy Talley would land in the FBS anyway if their schools move there.
Other highly regarded FCS head coaches don't factor here because they have past experience as FBS head coaches, such as Georgia State's Bill Curry, Harvard's Tim Murphy and Jacksonville State's Jack Crowe.
Still others who haven't been FBS head coaches seem more like perfect fits for their current schools, or whose age might be a concern to schools on the higher level, are Montana State's Rob Ash, 60; James Madison's Mickey Matthews, 58; and New Hampshire's Sean McDonnell, 55.
While Keeler seems ready to make that jump to the FBS level, here are five other coaches who have the resume to become a FBS head coach for the first time:
Beau Baldwin - The 39-year-old might have to become an offensive coordinator first on the FBS level, but he's a young coach on the rise, having already won a FCS championship at Eastern Washington. He's flip-flopped enough at EWU and Division II Central Washington that he fits best for a FBS program in the Pacific Northwest.
Craig Bohl - One has to believe this incredibly serious, driven coach, at 53, would be interested in one more big challenge now that he's taken North Dakota State to the FCS level and then the national title. He was defensive coordinator at Nebraska and has plenty of other FBS experience as an assistant.
Willie Fritz - The Sam Houston State mentor was said to be a candidate for Tulane when that job was vacant this offseason. At 51, he's been coaching for nearly 30 seasons, but may not have enough Division I experience without becoming a defensive coordinator first. Still it's hard to ignore the Bearkats' 14-1 run in his second season.
Jeff Monken - It would take the right school at the right time - perhaps a program that is overmatched and willing to run an option to lessen its gap - but the 44-year-old has highly sought-after values and the recommendation of Paul Johnson, whom he assisted at Georgia Southern, Navy and Georgia Tech.
Bobby Wilder - Don't be fooled by the 10-year contract that Old Dominion gave its 47-year-old coach in December. The long-time Maine assistant has shown an uncanny ability to build a program from scratch, seemingly overnight. ODU is 27-8 through three seasons and already a success in competitive CAA Football.
<< Guadalajara names Ambriz new manager
Guadalajara, Mexico (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Guadalajara named Ignacio Ambriz its
new manager Thursday, as the former Mexican international takes charge of his
third different club in his native country.
Ambriz, 46, made 64 appearances for Mex
<< Gronkowski to miss practice time
Foxboro, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski
is expected to miss practice time this week in preparation for next Sunday's
Super Bowl because of the ankle injury he sustained during last Sunday's AFC
Champio
<< Nationals add Lidge to bullpen
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Nationals have agreed to terms with
reliever Brad Lidge on a one-year contract.
Lidge, 35, has been a closer for much of his career, but has struggled with
injuries and ineffectiveness in recen
<< Lille adds Argentine Cetto on loan from Palermo
Lille, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Lille acquired defender Mauro Cetto on loan
for the rest of the season Thursday from Italian club Palermo.
The 29-year-old Argentine started his career with Rosario Central, but later
played in France wit
Glenn restructures deal with Stamps >>
Calgary, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Calgary Stampeders and newly-acquired
quarterback Kevin Glenn have worked out a restructured contract.
Glenn was dealt to the Stampeders on January 3 in a trade with Hamilton that
sent Henry Burris
Hawks waive Sloan >>
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Hawks have waived rookie guard
Donald Sloan.
The Texas A&M product appeared in five games for the Hawks and averaged 1.2
points with 1.0 rebound in 4.0 minutes per game.
Sloan signed
Red Sox sign former NLCS MVP Ross to one-year deal >>
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Red Sox signed outfielder Cody Ross
to a one-year contract on Thursday.
Ross batted .240 with 14 home runs and 52 RBI over 121 games with San
Francisco last season.
An in-season acquis
Kilmarnock signs striker Van Tornhout >>
Kilmarnock, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kilmarnock signed Belgian striker
Dieter van Tornhout from Cyprus side Nea Salamis on Thursday on a deal through
the summer of 2013.
Van Tornhout, 26, becomes the fourth winter signing for Killie,
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Ten years ago, at just about this time, I called Alan Boston in Vegas and left him a voicemail that went something like this (abridged version): "Hey Alan, Chad Millman from ESPN The Magazine calling. I want to do a book about wise guys, you in?"
A couple weeks later I got a message back (abridged version): "I don't know, maybe," Boston said. "Call me and we'll talk about it. But not later today. I got $1,000 on Andre Agassi to win the French Open at 40-1, and he's in the finals."
Here's what happened next (abridged version): Agassi won his tourney. Boston won his $40,000. I wrote sportsbook.
In the ten years since, how much has been wagered on the big-time tennis events? Put it this way: The Nevada Gaming Commission doesn't even track the number year by year because it's so small.
"Tennis makes up about one-tenth of one percent of our take," says Lucky's bookmaking boss Jimmy Vaccaro. "The last big golf major we probably had $100,000 worth of bets. In tennis, we might have written two big tickets."
Tennis' lack of popularity amongst the American bettoratti is no surprise, really. For starters, the biggest sports betting holidays -- the Super Bowl, the NCAA tourney -- are must see TV. People, at least the degenerates I know, plan vacations around watching those events in Vegas sports books.
But Wimbledon? Doesn't exactly reel in the whales. "Seriously, it's the nuts as an event," says Boston. "But who even knows when it's on?"
Here's another reason that helps explain why golf gets traction, something I call "The Bubbe Theory." My Bubbe is pushing 95 and has cataracts so bad that, to her, even the most crystalline Chicago day is mostly cloudy. But she still listens to the Cubs games, and she still calls me in a fit if she disagrees with something Rick Telander writes in the Chicago Sun Times. She's a sports fan. If she doesn't know you, you're just filling a niche. And niche players, even historically good ones like Roger and Raf, don't drive betting volume. Only the highest profile names attract square money, which inflates wagering totals like a shot of saline to the lips. Bubbe, and the public, loved Agassi, tennis' last cross-the-rubicon, mainstream draw. She also has a crush on Tiger. She's given me standing orders to put a sawbuck on the big cat whenever I walk through a sports book (or mistakenly tap into one via my Internet machine.) That explains why the Masters is getting $100K in action at some books while the four tennis majors might not get that combined this year.
This isn't a case of tennis being a difficult sport to bet. In fact, in Europe, it's probably the second most popular sport for gambling after soccer. Granted, as the WSJ football betting last week and The Mag's Shaun Assael examined in even greater depth last year, that might be because gamblers across the pond see it as an easy game to fix. But it could also be because, over there it holds the kind of sway the big two do over here.
Street corners in Spain are peppered with public courts and kids doing their best Raffy impressions. In some war torn parts of Eastern Europe poverty-stricken kids view tennis as an escape route, like football or basketball here. A couple years ago The Mag's Lindsay Berra wrote a great piece about Belgrade's Jelena Jankovic, Ana Ivanovic and Novak Djokovic. They learned the game as kids while bombs were raining down on their homeland. They practiced in drained swimming pools. Not exactly Nick Bolletierri conditions.
In the United States, casual fans think tennis is played four times a year. But on the tightly packed European continent, national interest in homegrown talent runs deep every weekend. Of the ATP's current top 20 players, only two, tennis betting and James Blake, are American. Fourteen are from Europe, representing six different countries.
No wonder fans from Lisbon to Bhudapest get jacked up for the net game, whether it's Wimbledon or a low-level tourney like the Estoril Open in Portugal (congrats to Spain's Albert Montanes for winning that one, btw). Chances are good that someone representing their flag will not only be playing, but have a shot at winning.
And that's all any bettor can ask for.
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