Big East adds Navy for football

NCAA Football Betting Lines

01/24/2012 - Providence, RI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Big East has announced that Navy will join the conference for football only, effective for the 2015 season.

Navy's addition will give the Big East 11 football schools. In December, the league brought in Central Florida, Houston and SMU as full members to go along with Boise State and San Diego State as football members to help offset the eventual losses of Syracuse, Pittsburgh and West Virginia.

"America's first national football conference is adding a program with true national appeal," Big East commissioner John Marinatto said in a statement on Tuesday. "Navy's decision to make the Big East its first football conference home after over 100 years of independence demonstrates the value of our new expansion model and the long-term viability of our football product. The Big East is truly proud to be associated with one of the most prestigious academic institutions in the country and one of the most storied programs in college football."

Navy has played as a football independent since the program began in 1879. The academy, located in Annapolis, Maryland, has produced Heisman Trophy winners in Joe Bellino and Roger Staubach, as well as one national championship team.

"After careful consideration, we believe this affiliation to be in the best interests of the Naval Academy, our athletic programs and the Brigade of Midshipmen," said Naval Academy Superintendent Vice Admiral Michael Miller, USN. "While our independent status has served Navy football well to date, Big East conference affiliation will help ensure our future scholar-athletes and athletic programs remain competitive at the highest levels for the foreseeable future."

The Big East is still planning to add one more football school to reach 12, creating two divisions to stage an annual conference championship game.

Syracuse and Pittsburgh decided to leave the Big East for the ACC in September, while West Virginia announced its departure for the Big 12 in October. TCU, which had agreed to leave the Mountain West for the Big East, decided instead to join the Big 12.

In 2015, the Big East football playing members will consist of Boise State, Central Florida, Cincinnati, Connecticut, Houston, Louisville, Navy, Rutgers, San Diego State, South Florida and SMU.

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MySportsbook.com and Kentucky Derby Offer Bonuses
The 2008 Kentucky Derby has announced a $1-million bonus for this weekend’s 134th ‘Run for the Roses’ and MySportsbook.com is doing the same.

Well, not quite $1 million, but MySportsbook.com is offering a 75% rebate for Kentucky Derby lines. Check out the exclusive horse racing bonus for all the details.

According to MySportsbook.com, the favorites for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky are: Curlin (+250); Street Sense (+500); Scat Daddy (+700); Circular Quay (+750); and Nobiz Like Shobiz (+800).

Derby organizers announced this week that there will be a $1-million bonus at the 2007 Kentucky Derby odds if the first-place horse wins by more than 6 1/2 lengths – the margin of Barbaro's victory last year. The bonus would be divided Saturday among the winning trainer, jockey, owner and a charity, with each receiving 25 percent. The designated charity is the Barbaro Memorial Fund.

''It's certainly creative, it's certainly fun and it has something for the horsemen, which we always want to embrace,'' Churchill Downs president and chief executive Robert Evans said at a news conference. ''What's really cool is it will force us to remember Barbaro.''
    
Meanwhile, the Derby favorite – Curlin – is going against the odds this year. It's been 125 years since Apollo won after skipping his 2-year-old season, and not since Regret in 1915 has such a lightly seasoned horse worn the blanket of red roses.

Arkansas Derby winner Curlin – unbeaten in three career races – tries to overcome both those obstacles in Saturday's 133rd Derby.

''We're not running against history,'' trainer Steve Asmussen said Monday. ''We're running against who they load up.''

Six other horses have run in the Derby without benefit of 2-year-old races and with three or fewer starts. The best any of them managed was a sixth-place finish by Showing Up last year.
   
Asmussen dismissed suggestions that Curlin's lack of racing experience could keep him from the winner's circle.

”He exudes confidence and he's got a great presence about him,'' the trainer said. ''I feel great about the position we're in. He's not worried about anything, why should you be?''
   
The Kentucky Derby is at 4:04 p.m., ET Saturday.

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