CBS Betting Sheridan Is Right Man

Danny Sheridan is a rarity. He makes a good living off point spreads. Not betting them, but talking and writing about them.

When it comes to point spreads, Sheridan, a slick-talking Southern gentleman from Mobile, Ala., is a guru. As a senior at the University of Alabama in 1969, he told everyone the New York Jets would beat the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III.

These days, he writes books and newspaper columns about point spreads, puts out a newsletter and has his own 900 number. The last nine years, he was a regular on CNN’s “College Preview Show.”

Now CBS, which on Sept. 7 gets back into college football regularly for the first time since 1991, has hired Sheridan to work on its college football studio show with Pat O’Brien and analyst Craig James, formerly of ESPN.

Sheridan’s job, however, is to break stories, not talk about point spreads, says CBS.

But Leonard Shapiro of the Washington Post called this a bad gamble on CBS’ part, an unfathomable fumble. Wrote Shapiro: “It’s a dreadful reflection on CBS, a hire that never should have been made.”

Conventional wisdom says that gambling and college sports are not compatible, and that any appearance of a connection between them is wrong.

So what was CBS thinking when it hired a guy best known for point spreads? Was it looking for another Jimmy the Greek?

Rick Gentile, the executive producer of CBS sports, said, “Danny will not have the same role Jimmy the Greek had. He will not pick games. In fact, we’ll bend over backward to make sure he doesn’t pick games. When he’s on the air--and he’s only scheduled for six appearances--he’ll be there to provide inside information.”

But aren’t there plenty of other people not associated with gambling who could do the same thing?

“We looked around,” Gentile said. “[Senior producer] Eric Mann and I made up the search committee. We talked to other guys. We felt Danny is well connected--he knows everybody--and was the best guy for the job.”

Said Sheridan, “I am not an oddsmaker, I am not a bookmaker. I don’t even bet. I don’t smoke, I barely drink and I’m not involved in any illegal activities. Don’t I have the right to work for CBS if they want me?”

Said Gentile: “It’s not like we are unaware of who Danny Sheridan is or what he does, but we really don’t think it is much of an issue. Why [Shapiro] made it an issue, I don’t know. Maybe it was a slow week.

“I’m not trying to be cavalier. We are concerned about our image. But we think we have a guy who people will want to watch because he offers good information.

“We’re sticking with Danny Sheridan. Maybe we’ll end up making a change, I don’t know. But at this time I see no need to do that. We’ll see what happens.”

Said Sheridan, “Before I was hired, I told Rick if what I do is going to be a problem, I’d be happy to stay with CNN. But I just don’t see why it should be a problem. Just about every newspaper in the country runs football odds. Point spreads and office pools have become a part of everyday life.”

But point-shaving scandals and other unsavory things associated with gambling have not.

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Fantasy facts: The gambling aspect of sports is everywhere, but there is a big difference between betting point spreads with a bookmaker and being in a fantasy league.

TNT, aware of the fantasy league craze, will offer pertinent statistical information on a crawl that will run continuously on the bottom of the screen during its one-hour “Pro Football Tonight” shows at 4 p.m. Sundays.

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Recommended viewing: An excellent two-hour documentary on Muhammad Ali will be shown three times on TNT next Tuesday--at 5, 7 and 9 p.m.--plus the following Friday at 5 p.m., Sunday at 9 p.m. and Monday at 10 p.m. . . . The second of the five-part series on the Brooklyn Dodgers, entitled “The Original America’s Team” and being carried by ESPN, will be shown Tuesday at 6 p.m. It focuses on Jackie Robinson. The producer, director and writer of the series is Mark Reese, son of Pee Wee Reese, who was featured in the first segment.

For those who can get the Classic Sports Network, another one of its outstanding original programs, “Those Who Changed the Game,” will be televised tonight, 5-6:30, and will be repeated at 8. It will also be shown Sunday at 4 and 8 p.m., and Thursday at 6 and 10 p.m. The show focuses on Joe Namath, Wilt Chamberlain, Bobby Orr and Lou Brock and offers plenty of rare footage.

TV-Radio Notes

With the start of the NFL season Sunday, two things to keep in mind are that NBC’s pregame show has been expanded to an hour, to go head to head with Fox, and that ESPN’s pregame show has been renamed “NFL Countdown” and will begin at 8:30 a.m. . . . Fox will preview the NFL season in a one-hour special Saturday around 4 p.m., after baseball. . . . Rick Garcia’s NFL postgame show, “Fox Overtime,” begins its third season on Channel 11 Sunday at 4 p.m. . . . ESPN’s “Outside the Lines” series today at 4:30 p.m. takes a look at young athletes and the obstacles they face as they make the transition to the next level. Keyshawn Johnson, Kerri Strug and new Laker Kobe Bryant are among those featured.

Odd coincidence: Danny Sheridan’s replacement on CNN’s “College Preview Show” is Dick Sheridan, former North Carolina State coach. They are not related. . . . Golf ratings need a boost so, from that standpoint, this is a good time for Tiger Woods to turn pro. The three major networks are averaging only a 3.2 rating for golf this year, a drop of 11% from last year. . . . Recommended listening: “Golfers’ Guide on the Air,” carried by KWNK (670) Wednesdays 4-6 p.m. The co-hosts are Dave Mills and Michael Clark. . . . For the record: The company that is buying KWNK was misspelled here last week. It is Lotus Communications, not Lodis. . . . The Mighty Ducks have named a new radio announcing team. Doing play-by-play will be Brian Hamilton, who comes from the Baltimore Bandits, the Ducks’ American Hockey League affiliate. The commentator will be former King Pat Conacher. They replace Matt McConnell and Charlie Simmer, who left for the Pittsburgh Penguins and Phoenix Coyotes, respectively.

NBC, which angered a lot of viewers with its Olympic coverage, has the pro beach volleyball set upset these days. Last Saturday, NBC left the competition at Hermosa Beach before a semifinal match with the score 11-11, and this weekend NBC is covering Saturday’s competition at the AVP Tour Championships in Chicago but not Sunday’s. . . . Some of the members of the U.S. women’s Olympic gymnastics team--Shannon Miller, Dominique Moceanu, Amanda Borden and Jaycie Phelps--will take part in a taped special on Fox Tuesday at 8 p.m. They’re involved in a U.S.-versus-the-world competition in Houston on Monday. James Brown and Mary Lou Retton are the co-hosts of the special. Brown is a busy man these days, working both Fox’s baseball and NFL pregame shows.

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What Los Angeles Is Watching

A sampling of L.A. Nielsen ratings for sports programs Aug. 24-25.

SATURDAY

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Event Ch. Rating NFL: Green Bay-Indianapolis 11 5.7 College Football: Texas A&M-BYU; 7 5.2 Little League World Series 7 4.9 Baseball: Mets-Dodgers 11 4.0 Baseball: Angels-Orioles 9 2.4 Pro Beach Volleyball 4 2.5 Golf: U.S. Amateur 4 2.4 Special: Paralympics 2 1.9 World Series of Golf 2 1.8 Women’s Tennis: Toshiba Classic 4 1.6

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SUNDAY

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Event Ch. Rating College Football: USC-Penn State 7 8.1 Golf: U.S. Amateur 4 6.0 (final quarter-hour: 10.4) Soccer: Tampa Bay-Washington 34 2.2 Baseball: Angels-Baltimore 9 2.1 Special: Paralympics 2 1.8 Pro Beach Volleyball 4 1.8 Women’s Tennis: Toshiba Classic 4 1.7 World Series of Golf 2 1.4

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