Pirate Galaxy » has allowed them to compile as diverse a

Penn States upset of Ohio State was a shocker, but it did little to hurt the Buckeyes odds to win the College Football Playoff National Championship.Ohio State moved from 5-2 to 3-1 at the Westgate SuperBook and remains the second favorite behind Alabama at 8-5.Michigan is next at 5-1, followed by Washington and Louisville, each at 7-1, and Clemson at 8-1. Baylor and West Virginia, the two remaining undefeated teams in the Big 12, are each 40-1.The way things appear, Alabama or Ohio State could lose a game and still get into the playoff, Westgate head football oddsmaker Ed Salmons said.The Buckeyes, who fell to No. 6 in the AP Poll after the Penn State loss, are expected to be favored in the rest of their games, including at home against second-ranked Michigan on Nov. 26. The SuperBook had Ohio State listed as a 5-point favorite over the Wolverines on Monday morning.The Nittany Lions kicked off Saturday as 18-point underdogs and 8-1 to beat the Buckeyes straight-up. William Hills Nevada sportsbook took 37 money-line bets on the Nittany Lions at 8-1, the largest a $250 bet that netted $2,000.William Hill also took a $12,000 money-line bet on the Buckeyes at -1,200 that would have netted a $1,000. But it wasnt meant to be.Ohio States loss produced the second-largest win of Saturday for the SuperBook, behind only SMUs upset of Houston. The Mustangs were 23-point home underdogs to the Cougars and 8-1 to pull off the outright win at William Hill, which took only four money-line bets on SMU, none larger than $10. William Hill also took four money-line bets on Houston at -1,300, the largest a $444 bet that would have netted $34.15.No. 1 Alabamas 33-14 win over Texas A&M also was a big winner for Las Vegas sportsbooks. The Crimson Tide closed as 18-point favorites. The betting public thought the line was too high and piled on the underdog Aggies. The MGM sportsbook took twice as many bets on A&M as it did on Alabama.The crowd was going nuts when A&M took that lead, MGM Mirage sportsbook manager Jeff Stoneback said. They quieted down at the end. Roll Tide, I guess.Alabamas win produced the second-largest win of Saturday for MGMs sportsbook, behind only LSUs win over Mississippi. Stoneback said a large casino player placed a six-figure bet on the underdog Rebels. LSU won 38-21.The Golden Nugget sportsbook has opened betting on potential national championship game matchups. Alabama is listed as a double-digit favorite over every other contender, except Michigan. The Crimson Tide are listed as 9.5-point favorites in a potential matchup with the Wolverines.Fake Lakers Jerseys . -- James Young couldnt wait to apply those tweaks to his jump shot, and the first one he made against UT Arlington told him it could be a good night. Wholesale Lakers Jerseys . That left plenty of energy for pitching books and swatting away free agency questions. Anthony had 24 points and nine rebounds, and the Knicks avenged an embarrassing home loss with a rout of their own, beating the Boston Celtics 114-88 on Wednesday night for their third straight victory. https://www.lakersjerseycheap.com/ . The 15th-ranked Canadian men lost the opening two games of their European tour: 19-15 to No. 17 Georgia and 21-20 to No. Custom Los Angeles Lakers Jerseys . After slipping from the summit during the week, the Gunners overcame struggling Crystal Palace 2-0 on Sunday thanks to Alex Oxlade-Chamberlains second-half brace. Los Angeles Lakers Pro Shop . Olli Jokinen, Mark Scheifele, and Bryan Little each had a goal and an assist as Winnipeg won 5-2, handing Calgary its record-setting seventh consecutive loss on home ice.While Australia lurch through a wide range of selection conundrums ranging from resting bowlers to Steven Smith saying there is no-one banging down the door domestically and now the sudden stepping down of Rod Marsh, South Africa are seemingly spoilt for choice in a remarkable change of fortune from last summers struggles. Back then, it seemed South Africa were touching the bottom of their talent pool. Now, that bottom has been proven false and they have options in every discipline.Instead of delight in any schadenfreude, convener Linda Zondi remained mindful of the cycles that a selection committee can go through. One thing I have learned in this position as convener of selectors is that its a thankless job. You have to understand the position you hold. Either way, there will be issues. I dont want to get involved too much in the Australian selection but as long as we are happy where we are, I am comfortable. There will be hard times going forward. Im happy with the team, the environment, the players and the way they have performed for us. Its excellent, he said.Zondi was appointed in July last year, after serving on his predecessor Andrew Hudsons panel, and his first task was to pick the squad to tour India. On that trip, South Africa lost both Dale Steyn and Vernon Philander to injuries, prompting a revolving door of fast bowlers that were used through the summer. Kagiso Rabada made his first appearance in Mohali, Chris Morris and Hardus Viljoen debuted against England and Kyle Abbott yo yo-ed in and out of the side. At the other end of the team sheet, there was pressure to find an opening batsman when Stiaan van Zyl struggled and its not as though everything in between was settled.Dane Vilas was used that time after Quinton de Kock was not included in the India Test squad because of losing form earlier in the year. Like van Zyl, Vilas also battled. Instead of recalling de Kock immediately, the gloves were given to AB de Villiers who responded with complaints about workload. In addition to that, both Faf du Plessis and JP Duminy lost form and were dropped in turns, leaving the middle order lacking muscle.Before Zondi and his panel could begin to find a solution, ahead of the New Zealand series this August, they were hit by another requirement. They needed to meet transformation targets too. The system seemed set to fail but the selectors have come out smiliing with targets met and a winning team.dddddddddddd How did they achieve that?The board makes policy, and our role is to implement those policies, Zondi said. When we got to the stage where the policies were passed, we were in the position where the best represented South Africa, regardless of any target or colour. All the players deserve to be there and weve got young guys that are coming through to add to the senior squad.The panel was helped by the return of Steyn - albeit temporarily - and Philander, the second coming of Duminy, the ability of du Plessis to step up and the coming of age of de Kock, Temba Bavuma and Rabada - but theyve also made some brave calls. Dane Piedt was dropped for the Australia Tests for two rookie spinners and Morne Morkel, battling fitness concerns, has not yet been recalled.Those decisions were not easy but Zondi explained that they were made with the focus on combinations and conditions. We are looking at conditions and seeing how we feel, and how the players suit a particular role. The combination is important.Crucially for South Africa they have been able to toggle their combinations because they have enough players in each department. Their attack includes seamers who offer speed, swing and seam movement; they have an offspinner in Duminy, a left-arm spinner in Keshav Maharaj and a wristspinner in Tabraiz Shamsi plus they have attacking batsmen like de Kock and Rilee Rossouw to Bavumas more cautious style.That has allowed them to compile as diverse a squad as possible and, having studied the domestic set-up, Zondi believes the trend will continue.You can only make those decisions when you know you have a good enough back-up in whatever role you are looking at. Domestically, I am happy with what Ive seen. The stronger the franchise matches are, the better for South Africa A and the Proteas.We have a lot of guys, who are matric (final year or school) and performing at franchise level and guys that have been in the system for a while are dominating. Another benefit that I see is that weve got good coaches so its a good combination of the two. We are in a position where players in every single role is available. Its just a matter of us taking those guys to that next level and seeing how we move on. ' ' '