— For the first time in six years, I’m spending Christmas in Las Vegas; been here for a few days already, things are quiet before Christmas. Has been fun watching games in the SuperBook at the Westgate Casino.
One of the best parts of being here is having conversations with total strangers in sportsbooks; we have more in common than what separates us.
Was talking to a guy Sunday who worked in the equipment room for the Cal Bears while Aaron Rodgers/Marshawn Lynch were playing there; he said Lynch was an awesome guy, talked to everyone. The guy’s brother had just won a ring in a WPT poker tournament; that was pretty cool to see.
Anyway, Las Vegas is fun; I’m waiting for everything to ramp back up Thursday; their great breakfast buffet and the NFL theater were shut down this weekend, though Sid’s Cafe is open, and that is also really good. Casinos do lot of repairs/renovations this time of year, when there are fewer guests around.
— Packers 34, Saints 0
This was the first shutout in the NFL this season.
Packers’ first three drives: 33 plays, 226 yards, 21 points.
Green Bay led 21-0 at the half; they clinched a playoff spot.
Packers won nine of last 11 games (5-0 ATS last five).
Green Bay is 10-0 when they allow less than 24 points.
Saints were outgained 404-196.
New Orleans is 3-3 SU/ATS since their coaching change.
Saints are 0-9 when they give up 20+ points.
#2 QB Rattler is 0-5 as a starter this year.
Saints are 1-3 SU/0-4 ATS in outdoor games this year.
— Myrtle Beach Bowl
Tex-San Antonio 44, Coastal Carolina 15
Coastal looked like Wily Coyote chasing the Roadrunners around.
UTSA ran ball for 257 yards (8.3 yards/carry)
Roadrunners won four of their last five games.
Chanticleers lost six of their last eight games, after a 4-1 start.
Favorites are 4-1 ATS in this bowl.
— Idaho Potato Bowl
Northern Illinois 28, Fresno State 20 OT
Fresno State led 13-3 at halftime.
Both teams played backup QB’s in this game.
Huskies are 6-0 if they score 24+ points, 2-5 if they don’t.
Fresno lost four of its last five games.
Loss snaps Fresno’s 5-bowl winning streak.
— Fresno State’s QB this year, Mikey Keene, didn’t play in the bowl game Monday because he has bolted to Michigan. Keene has thrown for 8,245 career yards and 65 TDs in a college career; he played for Central Florida and Fresno.
— Conference bowl records (SU/ATS)
AAC 2-1 SU/2-1 ATS
ACC 0-3 SU/0-3 ATS
Big 18 2-1 SU/2-1 ATS
Big X 0-1 SU/0-1 ATS
C-USA 1-2 SU/1-2 ATS
MAC 2-1 SU/2-0-1 ATS
M West 1-1 SU/1-1 ATS
SEC 2-1 SU/2-1 ATS
Sun Belt 2-2 SU/1-2-1 ATS
Favorites: 9-3-1 ATS
Totals: over 7-6
— Jets’ owner Woody Johnson is 77 years old; he has two teenage sons, because there are really rich guys out there with much younger, attractive wives- go figure.
Jets were trying to make a trade with Denver for WR Jerry Jeudy, but Woody Johnson put the kibosh on the deal, apparently because Jeudy’s ranking in the Madden video game wasn’t high enough— that knowledge came from Johnson’s 18-year old son, who is a freshman in college.
Denver traded Jeudy to the Browns instead; he’s caught 72 passes for 1,072 yards this year.
If you’re wondering why the Jets haven’t been in the playoffs since 2010, look no further than a team having to get its trades approved by an 18-year old who plays video games.
Oy.
— Famous birthdays, December 24:
John D’Acquisto, 73
Paul Pressey, 66
Matt Passmore, 51
Ryan Seacrest, 50
Kevin Millwood, 50
Davante Adams, 32
William Contreras, 27
Masaya Nakamura, the guy who invented Pac-Man, would’ve turned 99 years old today.
I missed a birthday yesterday; Georgia football coach Kirby Smart turned 49.
— P Walker Buehler signed a one-year deal with the Red Sox for $21.05M; Buehler has made only 28 starts the last three years, but he helped the Dodgers win the World Series last season.
He is 30 years old, has a career record of 37-22, 3.27 in 122 career starts.
— OF Joc Pederson signed 2-year deal with the Texas Rangers for $37M; Pederson has already played for five teams in his 11-year career- he hit .275 for Arizona last year, with 23 home runs and a .908 OPS.
— Pittsburgh Pirates re-signed OF Andrew McCutchen for one year, $5M; 11 of his 16 MLB seasons for Pittsburgh. He hit .232 last year, with a .739 OPS. His OPS hasn’t been over .800 since 2019.
— Tampa Bay Rays signed OF Eloy Jimenez to a minor league deal; it would be stunning if he didn’t make the big club this spring. Jimenez made $31M playing for the White Sox the last three years, but he only hit .238 with a .626 OPS last year, so he has to prove himself next year before he starts making the big bucks again.
— When they give NFL stats on TV, time of possession isn’t as important as plays run. If a team runs a no-huddle offense, their time of possession won’t be as good, but they’re putting more pressure on the opposing defense by not allowing them to huddle between plays.
— When they announce the 2025 inductees for the 2025 Baseball Hall of Fame next month, I sure as hell hope Ichiro Suzuki is a unanimous pick- he deserves it.
There has been only one unanimous pick ever (Mariano Rivera) which is ludicrous; think about all the great ballplayers— Aaron, Mays, Ted Williams, Gibson, Mantle, Rickey Henderson- they also should’ve been unanimous choices, so we’ll see.
