Around the CFL: Burris feels Stamps must win Grey Cup to get respect

Football Betting Lines

11/21/2008 - Montreal, QC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Henry Burris wasn't a happy camper at the CFL's awards banquet Thursday night.

After both he and Calgary Stampeders kicker Sandro DeAngelis were snubbed for individual awards, a rather testy Burris greeted reporters at Casino de Montreal.

"Let's get this over with," Burris fumed. "We've got a dag-gum game to play, and if we're going to keep getting robbed like this..."

It seems Burris and the Stampeders figure the only way to earn respect in the CFL is to win the Grey Cup by downing the hometown Montreal Alouettes despite finishing the regular season with the league's best record at 13-5.

"I've always said this, so the media here, please listen to this...there's one thing you can never take away from a team, and that's a championship," Burris continued.

John Hufnagel, the former NFL assistant coach who's in his first year as Calgary's head coach and GM, certainly has the Stampeders positioned right to earn their first Grey Cup title since 2001, which incidentally came at Olympic Stadium.

Hufnagel is certainly familiar with Canadian football, He played 12 seasons as a CFL quarterback with Calgary, Saskatchewan and Winnipeg from 1976 to '87, then served as the Stampeders' offensive coordinator from 1990 to '96 before heading to the Arena Football League.

Then Hufnagel spent seven seasons as an assistant coach in the NFL with Cleveland, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, New England and the New York Giants before returning to Canada.

During Hufnagel's time in the NFL, he worked with the likes of Peyton and Eli Manning as well as New England superstar Tom Brady.

Burris has certainly flourished under Hufnagel, setting career highs this year in passing yards (5,094) and touchdowns (39). Burris was also the CFL's top rushing quarterback with 595 yards to earn his first nomination for the CFL's outstanding player award - won by Montreal's Anthony Calvillo.

Burris also has quite a supporting cast as Calgary's offense also includes the league's top rusher (Joffrey Reynolds, 1,310 yards) and receiver (Ken-Yon Rambo, 100 catches, 1,473 yards, eight touchdowns).

However, Rambo isn't Burris' only option on passing downs. Nik Lewis added 87 catches for 1,109 yards and 10 touchdowns while Jeremaine Copeland (52 catches, 764 yards, seven touchdowns) still remains a dangerous receiver despite sub-par stats - by his standards.

With all the offensive firepower, Calgary finished the season tied with Montreal for tops in average time of possession (32:09) and first in field goals (50) while finishing second in scoring (32 points per game), average yards per game (412), average gain per rush (6.4 yards), touchdowns (58), passing TDs (39) and yards allowed (356 per game).

Last year, Calgarys defense was the CFL's worst, but with the offseason hiring of Chris Jones from Montreal, the unit has transformed into the league's best.

The Stampeders were the toughest team to score against, allowing a league-low 21.5 points per game. They also gave up just 90 yards rushing per game, 24 touchdowns and 11 rushing touchdowns, all tops in the CFL.

Calgary's defense also finished second overall in takeways with 50 (19 interceptions, 19 fumbles and 12 on downs). As a team, the Stampeders were tied with B.C. with the top giveaway-takeaway ratio at plus-20.

Linebacker Shannon James was the defense's leader, posting a team-high 73 tackles. Safety Wes Lysack was the club's top pass defender with four interceptions, returning one for a touchdown.

DeAngelis had a solid season, leading the CFL in scoring with 217 points while connecting on 50-of-58 field goals. Punter Burke Dales finished fourth overall with 46.1-yard average.

Bigno Football Betting News

<< Gibson leads USC past Chattanooga
San Juan, PR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Taj Gibson poured in 17 points and added nine rebounds as 19th-ranked USC bounced back from its first loss of the season with a 73-46 win over Chattanooga in the second round of the Puerto Rico Tip- Off Cla

<< Around the CFL: Montreal trying to win big one at home
Montreal, QC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Montreal Alouettes will definitely have home-field advantage for the Grey Cup. The Alouettes will have the support of 60,000-plus rabid supporters on Sunday when they take on the Calgary Stampeders at

<< Rampage winger Lisin rejoins Coyotes
Glendale, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Phoenix Coyotes recalled right winger Enver Lisin from their American Hockey League affiliate, the San Antonio Rampage, to replace Daniel Winnik, who was placed on injured reserve, it was announc

<< Let's make a deal: Knicks trade away Crawford, Randolph
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Knicks made a couple of big trades on Friday, including a trade of guard Jamal Crawford to the Golden State Warriors for forward Al Harrington. Later on Friday, the Knicks announced t

<< Red Bulls, Crew both gunning for first MLS Cup
Carson, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - When the dust settles on the Major League Soccer title game at The Home Depot Center on Sunday, one of the two combatants - the New York Red Bulls or the heavily favored Columbus Crew - will be hoisting their r

Aboya leads UCLA past Southern Illinois >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alfred Aboya finished with 22 points and eight rebounds, as fourth-ranked UCLA rebounded to top Southern Illinois, 77-60, and win third place at the 2K Sports Classic Benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer.

Giants Burress to extension >>
East Rutherford, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Giants wide receiver Plaxico Burress is suffering from a right hamstring injury and is considered a game- time decision to play Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals. Burress, who was hurt

Giants' Burress game-time decision >>
East Rutherford, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Giants wide receiver Plaxico Burress is suffering from a right hamstring injury and is considered a game- time decision to play Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals. Burress, who was hurt

Habs' Komisarek out at least a month >>
Montreal, QC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Montreal Canadiens defenseman Mike Komisarek will miss at least a month with what the team is calling an upper-body injury. The 6-foot-4, 243-pound Komisarek, the seventh overall selection by the

Collins leads No. 17 Miami past Southern Miss >>
St. Thomas, VI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dwayne Collins scored 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead the 17th-ranked Miami Hurricanes to a 70-60 win over Southern Miss in the Paradise Jam opener. Jack McClinton and Lance Hurdle added 13

NFL ODDSTop Football Betting Free Agents to Change Teams

NFL Betting

It’s time to see how the biggest NFL free agent signings will perform for their news teams. Some will work out and could be the difference that makes a difference in the win column.

We look at the best off-season signings and if they should influence your NFL betting this season. Julius Peppers – Peppers was the biggest prize available on the 2010 NFL free agent market and the Chicago Bears opened the bank to bring his talents to the south side.

Peppers is explosive, he can get around blockers and cause quarterbacks to lose their minds. We all remember the classic Peppers game last year against the Vikings where he hounded Brett Favre into his worst game of the season. Peppers joining the Bears could be the reason Favre retired for good Tuesday morning. In addition to Peppers, the Bears added Chester Taylor to back up Matt Forte, Forte didn’t have the same intensity in 2009 compared to 2008 and bringing in Taylor will challenge Forte to bring it every game or he’ll risk losing carries to Taylor.

Betting on the Bears is a good option this season because of Julius Peppers and to a lesser extent Taylor. Antonio Bryant and Terrell Owens – The Cincinnati Bengals signed two former number one wide receivers to line up with Chad Ocho Cinco. Antonio Bryant had a huge season in 2008 catching 83 passes for over 1200 yards but regressed last season. Playing for the Tampa Bay Bucs last season was a large part of the regression, everyone was bad in TB last season.

Bryant should have a bounce back season if he can win the number two spot from Terrell Owens. If Bryant wins the number 2 WR spot, it will open up a completely new set of problems for the Bengals. If Owens is forced to the bench in favor of Bryant, his attitude will create trouble for Carson Palmer and head coach Marv Lewis. If Owens is the number two receiver, it means Bryant can’t live up to his past numbers and the Bengals are still limited in the passing game. NFL bettors should be wary of laying their money down on what could potentially be the biggest gong show in the league in 2010. 2010 football betting lines for this can be found at this top online sportsbook. Karlos Danby – The Miami Dolphins have a great running back tandem in Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown, a good young QB in Chad Henne and now the Bill Parcells regime is building a solid defense.

NFL bettors should be wary of laying their money down on what could potentially be the biggest gong show in the league in 2010. Karlos Danby – The Miami Dolphins have a great running back tandem in Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown, a good young QB in Chad Henne and now the Bill Parcells regime is building a solid defense. They signed away the Arizona Cardinals top linebacker Karlos Danby. In the past two seasons, Danby has totaled 228 tackles, 5 sacks, 3 interceptions and 3 forced fumbles. The Dolphins are the forgotten team of the AFC East with the second longest odds to win the division but with the addition of Karlos Danby and a trade for WR Brandon Marshall makes the Miami Dolphins legitimate contenders in the AFC East and in the NFL’s Eastern Conference.

The Dolphins will make NFL wagering fans a lot of money this season, get in early and enjoy the cash.

NFL Wagering

To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your college football betting needs.