Hearts hands Rangers first defeat of season

Soccer Betting Lines

09/15/2007 - Edinburgh, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hearts entered its contest with Rangers on Saturday having won just one of its first five games this season. However, the Edinburgh club stunned the previously unbeaten Glasgow side 4-2 at Tynecastle Stadium.

Rangers had gone a perfect 5-0 to start the campaign, but were not prepared for the effort that the home team put forward. Andrew Driver and Ibrahim Tall had the home side ahead 2-0 after 27 minutes, and after Daniel Cousin converted from the penalty spot for Rangers shortly after the break, Hearts answered back with two goals of its own.

Michael Stewart made the most of his spot kick, and Kestutis Ivaskevicius scored four minutes later to give Hearts a commanding 4-1 lead.

DaMarcus Beasley scored in the 74th minute to bring Rangers to within two goals, but another win was never in the cards for Rangers on this day, and they dropped their first points all season.

Marius Zaliukas tried to find Andrius Ksanavicius with a pass inside the box. However, defender Carlos Cuellar poked the ball away. It ended up on the foot of Driver, and he cracked a shot towards goal that took a deflection off Alan Hutton and found the net.

Tall then doubled the lead for Hearts when he picked up a loose ball 20 yards from goal and smashed it past keeper Allan McGregor.

Barry Ferguson earned a penalty kick for Rangers shortly after halftime, and Cousin converted to tighten things up.

However, Hutton's day got worse as he was whistled for a foul inside the area on Ivaskevicius. Stewart then struck the penalty low into the right corner to restore the two-goal edge for Hearts.

Ivaskevicius put it out of reach four minutes later, and Beasley continued his good start to the season by pulling one back for Rangers in the 74th.

In other action in Scotland on Saturday, Celtic took over the top spot in Scotland with a 5-0 pounding of Inverness, Motherwell stopped Aberdeen 2-1 at Pittodrie Stadium, Kilmarnock held off Gretna 2-1 and Falkirk and Hibernian split the points in 1-1 fashion.

The league will finish up on Sunday as St Mirren will try to move to .500 with a victory over fourth-place Dundee United.

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NCAA Football Betting

Many fans thought it was the best side in the nation by the end of last season. This year, the polls have built on Georgia's momentum and granted it the No. 1 preseason ranking, followed by Ohio State and USC. (The Associated Press has the Buckeyes at No. 2; USA Today took the Trojans.)

"To have people believing we have one of the best teams in the nation going into this thing, it's exciting for us," Bulldogs coach Mark Richt told the AP. "I don't think anything is guaranteed, but we certainly have put ourselves in position where at least the college football world thinks we're pretty good."

Georgia Bulldogs - 9.5 wins

There's no question they're good, but the Bulldogs have one of the toughest 12-game schedules in the nation, mostly because they play in the powerhouse Southeastern Conference. Away games at No. 15 Arizona State, No. 7 LSU and No. 10 Auburn loom large, with contests between the hedges versus No. 24 Alabama and No. 18 Tennessee as well as the World's Largest Cocktail Party in Jacksonville versus No.5 Florida.

Ohio State Buckeyes - 10 wins

Like the Bulldogs, the Buckeyes also have a number of tough road contests in 2008. After two scrimmages dressed up as real games versus Youngstown State and Ohio, it's off to face USC. Other tough away games include No.13 Wisconsin in October and No. 20 Illinois in November. Granted, it should be pretty easy sledding at the Horseshoe. In fact, the only ranked team that travels to Columbus is No. 22 Penn State, in October.

USC Trojans - 10.5 wins

A similarly light schedule awaits the Trojans of Southern California, which is why the oddsmakers' total is one win more and the over is currently commanding -150 odds. Pete Carroll's troops only play three ranked teams in 2008, and all of those games are at home. After what should be an easy trip to Virginia to start things off on Aug. 30, the Trojans get two weeks to prepare for Ohio State in Los Angeles. Their two other ranked opponents, No. 21 Oregon and No. 15 Arizona State, visit in consecutive weeks to start the month of October. After that, the competition eases up. Of course, this is the same highly-touted school that lost to Stanford in 2007 and Oregon State in 2006. And don't discount the fact that USC plays its biggest rivals, Notre Dame and UCLA, back-to-back to close out the regular season. On paper, the Trojans are far superior, but motivation will be high for the Irish and Bruins, especially if their historic foes are in national-title contention.

Odds to Win the Heisman Trophy

Tim Tebow, Florida - 7/2
He won it last year, so it's no surprise he's the favorite to do it again, making him just the second player to go back-to-back. Ohio State's Archie Griffin turned the trick in 1974 and 1975, and Tebow's coach, Urban Meyer, is pretty sure his star quarterback can match the Buckeyes legend.

"There has never been anyone quite like him," Meyer told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "I am very lucky to be his coach."

Chris Wells, Ohio State - 5/1

The man they call "Beanie" was a star recruit out of high school, so it's not like nobody knew who the star tailback was before he rushed for 576 yards as a freshman in 2006 and 1,609 as a sophomore. But perhaps his finest moment came last year versus Michigan when he rumbled for 222 yards and two touchdowns in the Buckeyes' 14-3 victory over the hated Wolverines.

Knowshon Moreno, Georgia - 8/1

If the Bulldogs are to live up to expectations, they'll need a huge effort from their sophomore running back. This might be the last year of college ball for Moreno, who rushed for 1,334 yards and for 14 touchdowns as a freshman, while adding 253 receiving yards on 20 receptions, so expect big things for the man from Belford, N.J.

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