Beilein confirms he's leaving WVU for Michigan

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

04/03/2007 -

Michigan hired John Beilein to coach its men's basketball team, a week after he led West Virginia to the NIT championship.

Beilein told his players of the decision Tuesday at a team meeting in Morgantown, W.Va.

``It was just the right thing for me to do at this time,'' Beilein said outside the WVU Coliseum. ``There's never a good time to leave.''

Beilein, who took a downtrodden program to two NCAA tournaments in five seasons, takes over a Michigan team that hasn't made the NCAAs since 1998.

Beilein's West Virginia teams made deep runs in the NCAA tournament the previous two seasons and the Mountaineers beat Clemson 78-73 for the NIT title last week. WVU, which won 22 games during the regular season, felt slighted when it wasn't chosen for this year's NCAA tournament.

There will be high expectations at Michigan, which fired Tommy Amaker in mid-March after the Wolverines went to the NIT for the third time in four years.

Beilein went 104-60 at West Virginia, including 27-9 this year despite losing his top four scorers from a year ago. Only one other team in school history amassed more wins - a Jerry West-led team that lost to California in the NCAA championship game in 1959.

The 54-year-old Beilein, under contract through the 2011-12 season, was to earn at least $740,000 per season with annual increases of $20,000.

Wherever he's coached, Beilein has been a success, taking teams without great talent to five NCAA tournaments and six NIT appearances in 29 seasons. His 1-3-1 defense gives opponents fits and his offense ranked second in the country averaging 10.3 3-pointers this season.

In only one of his five previous coaching jobs has Beilein stayed more than five years. He spent nine years at LeMoyne, then five apiece at Canisius and Richmond before coming to West Virginia, where he recently completed his fifth season.

In 2005, after taking the Mountaineers to the NCAA regional finals, Beilein received a contract extension to derail a possible courtship from Virginia.

Last year North Carolina State came calling, but a $3 million buyout clause in Beilein's contract derailed negotiations.

It will cost Michigan $2.5 million to buy out Beilein at West Virginia, plus his salary, which could run about $1 million per season in a multiyear contract.

``I am excited about this new opportunity at Michigan,'' Beilein said. ``I wouldn't go there if I didn't think they could win a national championship.''

---

AP Sports Writer John Raby contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

Wwwlnba NCAA Basketball Betting News

<< Gore has big goals to go along with big new contract with 49ers
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -Frank Gore has some big goals to go along with his big new contract with the San Francisco 49ers. The Pro Bowl running back hopes to improve on his breakout campaign last season and top 2,000 yards in 2007.Gore finished 2006 as t

<< Mitchell asks union for interviews
NEW YORK (AP) -Former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell finally asked to interview active baseball players as part of his steroids investigation and is awaiting a reply from the players' association.Union general counsel Michael Weiner said a M

<< Championship Gators return to rousing reception
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) - Florida center Al Horford raised the NCAA trophy high above his head and greeted appreciative fans after the men's basketball team returned on a charter flight from Atlanta on Tuesday with their second championship trophy in

<< Knicks coach fined for criticizing officials
NEW YORK (AP) -New York Knicks coach Isiah Thomas was fined $50,000 by the NBA on Tuesday for questioning the treatment Stephon Marbury is getting from referees.Thomas criticized the officials after the Knicks' 103-94 loss to the New Orleans Hornets

<< Nets recall Mile Ilic from NBA Development League
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) -The New Jersey Nets recalled rookie center Mile Ilic from the Colorado 14ers of the NBA Development League on Tuesday.Ilic will be out indefinitely after spraining his left ankle in the 14ers game against Sioux Falls on S

Championship game ratings up 16 percent from last year >>
NEW YORK (AP) -Florida's quest to repeat as NCAA champions was a hit with television viewers.Florida's 84-75 win over Ohio State on Monday night was watched by 13.59 million households, up nine percent from last year, when 12.31 million households t

Jones, Henry, union leaders all meet with Goodell >>
NEW YORK (AP) -NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and league officials met with Adam ``Pacman'' Jones Tuesday as the Tennessee Titans' cornerback attempted to avoid a long suspension following a series of arrests.Goodell and his staff also met with Cinc

Beilein leaving West Virginia for Michigan >>
It was planned to be a meeting where John Beilein told his West Virginia players how to prepare for offseason workouts. Instead, he told them goodbye.Beilein, who took the Mountaineers from mediocrity to two NCAA tournaments and an NIT championship,

Hawks guard Josh Childress out for season with foot fracture >>
ATLANTA (AP) -Hawks guard Josh Childress will miss the rest of the season with a stress fracture in his right foot.The team announced the injury Tuesday and said Childress, a first-round draft pick from Stanford in 2004, is expected to recover in fo

Heath: South Florida will win - and soon >>
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -Stan Heath is undaunted by South Florida's lack of success in basketball. He's been associated with winning programs everywhere he's coached and is confident he can transform the Bulls into one, too.``This is a great opportunity fo

Online Sportsbook Football Betting

The NFL preseason is approaching. Time for players, coaches and teams to turn over a new leaf. General managers have hired some new coaches, while coaches have added some offensive and defensive assistants to try and improve things. Here’s a look at some changes to look for in the preseason.

New York Jets: The Jets were one of the surprise teams in the NFL last season, making the playoffs under hard-driving first-year coach Eric Mangini. Mangini rebuilt the offensive line with rookies D'Brickashaw Ferguson (the No. 4 pick in the 2007 Draft) and Ohio State center (the 29th pick in the first round). This season he upgraded the defense with rookie linebacker David Harris (Michigan) while the secondary picked up a much needed top-notch corner in Pitt CB Darrelle Revis (No. 14 overall).

The Jets have added balance to the offense for QB Chad Pennington with RB Thomas Jones, essentially stolen from the Bears. He will upgrade a New York ground game that was 20th in rushing with a weak 3.5 yards per carry. They have their first true feature back since Curtis Martin. Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer prefers ball control, like his father Marty. In preseason, behind Pennington you’ll see second-year QB Kellen Clemens and mobile newcomer QB Marques Tuiasosopo.

Jacksonville Jaguars: The heat is on Jack Del Rio in Jacksonville as the Jaguars flopped last season despite a ton of talent. Keep in mind that under Del Rio the Jaguars have been outstanding in preseason with a 12-4 SU, 11-5 ATS August mark. online football betting Their defense is loaded, it’s the offense that has been stuck in first gear the last few years.

Enter a new offensive coordinator in Dirk Koetter, the former Boise State and Arizona State pass-happy coach. He will try and upgrade a passing game that ranked 24th last season. Del Rio has criticized wide receivers and Matt Jones this summer, both of whom have battled injuries. It will be interesting to watch the “new” Jaguars passing game in preseason.

Arizona Cardinals: Word out of Arizona is that the players like new coach Ken Whisenhunt, who was the Steelers offensive coordinator last year. We think of Arizona as all-passing because their running game has been awful of late because of a poor offensive line. However, keep an eye on the running game in preseason as they’ve made a lot of changes.

The new coach brings in Russ Grimm to coach the offensive line (Grimm did a marvelous job building the Steelers line). They took Penn State OT Levi Jones in the first round and signed two offensive linemen, Mike Gandy and Al Johnson, to provide depth. Reggie Wells was moved from right tackle to left guard and they want more speed out of the offensive line for pulling and traps, a Pittsburgh staple under Bill Cowher.

Atlanta Falcons: While all the attention has been focused on QB Mike Vick’s off-field problems, new coach Bobby Petrino is revamping the Falcons from an all-running team to a more balanced one. Petrino likes the experience of backup QB Joey Harrington and he has veteran backup Chris Redman, who used to play for Petrino at Louisville and knows his offenses better than anyone. Petrino wants Vick to be more of a pocket passer.

The addition of FB Ovie Mughelli is a sign Petrino wants a power rushing attack behind a physical fullback and newcomer WR Joe Horn should upgrade what was a below average wideout corps. Petrino is changing their old zone-blocking scheme to a more traditional in-line blocking scheme and the offensive line is bigger. Rookie DE Jamaal Anderson was grabbed in the first round and the secondary got younger with former Auburn cornerback David Irons, who the Falcons think was a steal as a sixth-round pick.

Cleveland Browns: The 2007 Browns look like a double-edged sword. There was the excitement of the offseason, trading for RB Jamel Lewis, upgrading the offensive line with Wisconsin’s Joe Thomas (the No. 2 pick in the draft) and free agent LG Eric Steinbach, then trading for Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn when he fell to No. 22. GM Phil Savage and head coach Romeo Crennel feel they have a talented, balanced offense with these new pieces, plus TE >Kellen Winslow and WR Braylon Edwards.

However, were these moves made in desperation? And were they foolish ones? The Browns gave up their 2008 first-round pick for Quinn and we all know QBs take time to develop. And even first-round QBs can be busts (Joey Harrington, Akili Smith). We also don’t know if the offensive line is that much improved (31st in rushing in 2007) and they did nothing to improve a defense that was awful against the run (142 yds pg allowed).

The Browns have a new offensive coordinator in Rob Chudzinski. This is a young offense and Quinn looked tentative, indecisive and inaccurate early in camp. Crennel will play Charlie Frye, Quinn and Derek Anderson in preseason. And there is a mixed bag for rookie QBs receiving significant starts: Tim Couch (14), Kerry Collins (13), Ben Roethlisberger (13), Vince Young (13), Joey Harrington (12), Matt Leinart (11) and Kyle Boller (nine). While all the focus will be on the Browns new-look offense, I’m more concerned with the defense.

Carolina Panthers: Coach Jon Fox loves the ground game, but Carolina has made some interesting changes for 2007. Fox fired offensive coordinator Dan Henning and brings in Jeff Davidson to run the offense. Davidson has brought in zone-blocking schemes to the Panther offense, a dramatic change for a system that's been built around a power-running style.

In zone-blocking, offensive linemen are responsible for blocking any defender who appears in their zone, instead of focusing on one defender. The Broncos and Falcons have had success with the system, which features smaller, more athletic offensive linemen and can create running lanes on the inside and outside. Keep an eye in preseason on how Carolina adjusts as it will take time to learn the system. Fox has been one of the top coaches in preseason, with a 15-5 SU, 12-7-1 ATS August record.

Dallas Cowboys: WR Terrell Owens is still here, but QB Drew Bledsoe and Bill Parcells are gone. New head coach Wade Phillips takes over, replacing Parcells. He ran the Chargers defense last season. Phillips was chosen by teary-eyed owner Jerry Jones partly because he is one of the best 3-4 coaches in football and the Cowboys have loaded up on players for that scheme.

Remember that Phillips was blitz-happy with the Chargers last season and early reports out of the Dallas camp have mentioned how the Cowboys have been blitzing a lot, a departure from Parcells. The theme of the 2007 Dallas defense appears to be one of attack.

MySportsbook is considered one of the finest football sportsbooks according to several surveys performed by independent industry analysts considering such factors as payout accuracy and timeliness, overall quality of website, and bettor satisfaction.

MySportsbook is a large company with strong financial backing. Considered the best sportsbook for betting football online You will find their customer service is second to none and their web site is extremely user friendly and easy-to-use. All major professional sports games are available. Once you signup with MySportsbook, you may never use another online sportsbook again.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your nfl football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.