In the FCS Huddle: Stony Brook intriguing on, off the field

NCAA Football Betting Lines

07/15/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - When the NIT came to Stony Brook in March, the Seawolves' football players were in attendance. Similarly, when Stony Brook hosted NCAA men's lacrosse in May, the football players were there.

The Seawolves, no doubt, have a thirst for postseason play.

Had the Big South Conference's new automatic bid to the FCS playoffs been in place last season, it would have belonged to the Seawolves.

This season, Stony Brook has to overcome the loss of 26 seniors to win the Big South title again, and secure the first-ever automatic playoff bid that goes with it. Whether they get there or not, the Seawolves are one of the FCS' more intriguing programs, replenished on the field by a number of transfers and attractive off the field by the growth surrounding them in their athletic program.

Head coach Ray Priore has been asked, "Why the Big South?" since Stony Brook's football program went to full scholarships and joined the conference in 2008 following a departure from the Northeast Conference. Its campus is located on the North Shore of Long Island, about 55 miles east of Manhattan, so it doesn't fit geographically with a conference whose other schools are in Virginia and the Carolinas. But the Big South is glad to have the Seawolves as a member, and perhaps someday, considering all the changes and potential changes across the college football landscape, another conference could be home to the growing program.

The attractiveness of Stony Brook is helped by the nearby market in New York, although the nation's most populated city will always be a pro sports city. But seventh-year athletic director Jim Fiore has helped build a successful athletic program, with upgrades in facilities, branding and improved revenue- generating, a body of student-athletes whose collective grade point average is at least 3.0 grade in each of the past four school years, and recent success in higher-profile sports like men's soccer, men's basketball and men's lacrosse.

Is football next? That's what Priore is banking on, especially now that he can dangle the carrot of the FCS playoffs to his players. The Seawolves shared last year's Big South title with Liberty, and based on their 36-33 win over the Flames would have advanced to the playoffs if the conference had its automatic bid then.

"We're coming off a Big South championship. The excitement in the offseason was a little bit more than obviously (in the past)," the 50-year-old Priore said. "Their understanding of what it takes is there. We've got the full complement of scholarships now. We had a lot of kids in the program that are going to be playing this fall (who were) there during spring football. And I think the other thing that becomes important is every kid in the program now has been recruited by this staff and myself particularly. There's a point of everybody's really pulling in the same direction. It's a good group of kids."

Stony Brook has finished either 6-5 or 5-6 for five straight seasons, including four under Priore, whose record, not surprisingly, is 22-22 overall. To him, .500 is not acceptable, so with the Big South expected to be improved - led by a veteran Liberty squad and dangerous squads in Charleston Southern and Coastal Carolina - Priore filled some holes in the lineup by bringing in transfers.

He brought in nine in January and four more this summer. The demise of Hofstra's program has benefited the Seawolves, providing players of impact like running backs Brock Jackolski and Miguel Maysonet, offensive guard Armand Poole and defensive tackle Andrew Nelson. Former Rutgers cornerback Al- Majid Hutchins is projected to be a starter, Sheldon Armstrong (Utah State) is in the mix for the other cornerback spot and Kyle Essington (Fullerton College) could be the backup to starting quarterback Michael Coulter.

Although the Seawolves lost a lot of key players, they have hopes as big as 6- foot-8, 350-pound redshirt freshman tackle Michael Bamiro. The returning mix features Coulter and workhorse tailback Edwin Gowins as well as defensive leaders Arin West (strong safety), Ryan Haber (defensive tackle) and Joe Kirkpatrick (defensive end). Coulter threw for a conference-best 15 touchdowns last fall, while Gowins rushed for 890 yards and nine TDs despite being slowed by a foot injury. He was the Big South Freshman of the Year in 2008 when he rushed for 1,310 yards and 11 touchdowns on an incredible 9.4 yards per carry.

"We got hit pretty hard by graduation and we were able to get some kids who had some college experience, that played in the CAA (Colonial Athletic Association) or played at a higher level, and can help us immediately," Priore said.

"We've got to be able to perform and we've got to be better than a 6-5 team, a 5-6 team. Certainly, if you said what is the one goal for me as a football program, is we have to hit that seven-win mark, hit that eight-win mark. That's what recruiting is all about. Hopefully, the playoffs are attached to that now that we have an opportunity."

Stony Brook's season-opening visit to Big East program South Florida on Sept. 4 is a daunting start to the season. The other non-conference games are against Lafayette, Brown, Massachusetts and American International.

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Horse Betting

(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).

The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.

"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."

Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.

"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."

When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:

CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.

DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.

PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.

You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.

"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."

Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.

(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)

Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."

But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."

Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."

Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."

All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.

In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.

"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."

To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.