Teddy Covers’ Handicapping Experience and Achievements:
Ted Sevransky, better known as Teddy Covers, burst onto the Vegas handicapping scene in 1998 and immediately earned a reputation for covering the spread. A Universityof Michigangraduate, Teddy Covers turned his propensity for numbers into the well respected sports service Whocovers.com in 1998 before joining Sportsmemo.com in 2003.
Since 1998 Teddy Covers has had numerous No. 1 finishes at The Sports Monitor in college and pro basketball as well as back-to-back No.1 rankings in arena football in 2005 and 2006 and finished No. 1 in the NFL in 2008. Adding to a long list of accolades, Teddy Covers has also won both the Vegas Sportswire Invitational and the Alatex Football Contest, had a top-10 finish in the Hilton NFL Super Book Contest and was a semifinalist in the prestigious Stardust Invitational.
Teddy Covers has carved out a niche in sports handicapping with his back-to-back No.1 finishes at the Sports Monitor in arena football, but Teddy’s true love and passion is handicapping college football and basketball.
Teddy Covers’ Blogs:
Teddy Covers’ affinity for blogging about handicapping theories and prevailing trends that are different from historical norms has distinguished Teddy as an industry insider who brings unique insights of the sports-betting world to readers nationwide.
Teddy Covers’ Favorite Sports Writers:
As with all the Sports Memo Handicappers, Teddy Covers finds the most valuable information from a variety of beat and local writers. These writers usually know the individual teams on a more intimate level than syndicated writers. However, Teddy does put Peter Gammons in a category of his own as a talented and insightful baseball writer as well as Bill Simmons of ESPN for humor writers.
Teddy Covers’ Picks for Sharp Announcers:
As an East Coast native, Teddy Covers grew up listening to Marv Albert calling the Knicks games on the radio. “Yessssssssss, and it counts,” is still to this day one of Teddy’s favorite catch phrases.
Teddy Covers’ Handicapping System:
Teddy Covers uses a combination of handicapping systems including fundamental (breaking down the matchups on the field/court), situational (finding great “spots” for blowouts and/or upsets) and technical (angles and trends that exist for a reason).
Teddy Covers Reliving The Good ‘Ole Days:
Recalling the game like it was yesterday, Teddy Covers describes his favorite sports betting moment:
“It was the day after Christmas 2003. Cal and Virginia Tech were meeting in the Insight.com Bowl. I had Calplus the points as a 20* Big Ticket Play, and I needed the Bears to cover the spread to clinch my victory in the Alatex Sports Handicapping Contest. Tech had a two touchdown lead in the fourth quarter, but Calcame storming back to win outright, 52-49 on a 49-yard field goal as time expired. As the kick went through the uprights, I went nuts – Teddy Covers doesn’t dance often.”
Teddy Covers’ Football Season Game Day Ritual:
Teddy Covers has a complete blog of his game day ritual, but in brief, here is Teddy’s game day ritual:
6 AM- Teddy Covers wakes up, grabs a quick shower, a bite to eat and a cup of tea so that he can get to his computer by 7 AM.
7 AM- Teddy Covers eagerly works on his SEC Preview Column for Insiders Football News. This includes a lot of research mostly focused on statistical information and updates and information from local writers.
9 AM- Teddy Covers finishes shopping around for the best numbers on the early games that he has put off betting in hopes the line will move in his favor on game day.
10 AM- Teddy Covers is ready for some football. Seated in his La-Z-Boy with his laptop on his lap and three televisions going, Teddy watches a total of six games and focuses on halftime betting opportunities, taking notes for his Team Notes Column and the games that are his “official” plays.
1 PM- Teddy Covers shops around again before the afternoon games kick off to see if he can find any last minute betting opportunities with value.
2 PM- Teddy Covers looks for more halftime betting opportunities on the late games and continues to take notes for his Team Notes Column.
4 PM- Teddy Covers starts to edit down his notes for his column for the Sports Memo Blog section and starts checking out the Stardust lines for next week's games in an effort to try to get in some early bets before the lines move.
5 PM- Teddy Covers spends the evening catching the late games, working on his college football power ratings and finishing all of his articles for the Sports Memo Blog.
10PM- After all deadlines have been met, Teddy Covers tunes into the Stardust Line Radio Show and starts taking some more notes for next week’s games and his “Every Game on the Board” article.
12AM- Exhausted, Teddy Covers heads to bed to catch some sleep before waking up the next day to start his handicapping ritual all over again.
When Bad Things Happen To Good People-Teddy Covers’ Worst Beat of the Year:
A brief synopsis of Teddy Covers’ blog on his worst beat of the year can be found below.
“Teddy Covers was red hot in baseball through the first three weeks of June, and he came out with a strong 20* Big Ticket on the Orioles-Marlins UNDER 9 on a Thursday night. At the bottom of the eighth, the score was tied at 1-1 with the two teams combining for just eight hits and three walks between them. That’s exactly what Teddy looks for when he bets games UNDER the total – pitchers for both teams excelling, hitters from both teams struggling.
“The Orioles were 30-0 when leading after eight innings. Closer Chris Ray hadn’t blown a save in 18 previous chances. But Baltimoremanager Sam Perlozzo didn’t bring Ray into the game in a non-save situation. He brought in LaTroy Hawkins.
“With a four-run lead in the ninth inning, infielders are supposed to protect against the extra-base hit, inching closer to the foul lines. Unfortunately, the Marlins’ Jeff Conine seemed to forget that as Miguel Cabrera ripped a hard single down the line in right, right where Conine should have been.
“We still had three runs to spare in the ninth. Not for long, however, as Ray came into the game with runners on first and third with one out.
“Ray gave up a 400-foot sacrifice fly to his first batter. The score was now 5-2. We had two outs and a runner on first, not exactly the most dangerous situation.
“Two outs. Two strikes. Then it got ugly. Fast. Joe Borchard bombed one to right, gone, goodbye. Next pitch: Wes Helms bombed one to left. Whether you had an UNDER 9 or an UNDER 9.5, this 1-1 pitchers’ duel had just exploded into a nightmare.”
Teddy Covers’ Vote For Sports Analyst Who Should be Voted Off The Island:
Without question, Teddy Covers would vote off Trev Alberts and is grateful that ESPN has let him go.
Teddy Covers’ on Pop Culture:
Teddy Covers is an expert in nearly every aspect of any sport, but if you ask him who he thinks is hotter, Catherine Zeta-Jones or Jennie Garth, he’ll have to ask you who they are first.
