Gambling on betting

And it’s not just an NBA problem. International soccer has been dealing with players gambling on their sport for years. Again, no surprise, considering a majority of teams in England’s Premiere League are sponsored by betting sites. There are currently a couple NFL players suspended and we all remember the late Pete Rose kicking this all off with his gambling on baseball in the 1980s and 1990s.

This is precisely what owners in previous generations were afraid of. But manipulating the outcome of games has been going on way longer than legalized sports gambling. But as soon as the U.S. Supreme Court took the handcuffs off sports betting, professional sports team owners have jumped in with both feet with gambling endorsements. Heck, every major professional sport has some kind of sponsorship deal with a gambling outlet. And there is shock and outrage when the players themselves participate as well?

Despite the rise of legal sports gambling, the American Gaming Association said there is still $84 billion spent on illegal gambling — in addition to the $150 billon wagered legally.

Gambling is part of the American culture. Why should we be surprised that athletes like to gamble as well? And making it even easier for them to do so?

Sports gambling is likely going to get more sordid in the coming years — bet on it.

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The Central Coast Section playoffs start this week.

Let me repeat that: the Central Coast Section playoffs start this week with the first round of the various volleyball brackets.

It’s going to be super busy these next couple of weeks with league playoffs and play-in games being contested, but every sport, except football, will be in postseason play over the next two weeks.

The volleyball regular season ends Tuesday, the CCS seeding meeting is Thursday and first-round matches begin Saturday with the CCS finals slated for the following Saturday, Nov. 8.

CCS’ inaugural flag football playoffs are right behind volleyball. The flag football regular-season ends Wednesday, with the CCS seeding meeting taking place Thursday, with bracket play beginning Monday, Nov. 3. The first flag football champions will be crowned Saturday, Nov. 8, at Santa Clara High School.

The rest of the sports have league championships and final CCS spots to be earned. Tuesday, the Peninsula Athletic League has its girls’ individual golf championship at Poplar Creek Golf Course in San Mateo.

The CCS tournament is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 4, at Laguna Seca Golf Ranch in Monterey.

Also Wednesday is the semifinals of the PAL girls’ tennis CCS play-in tournament when top-seeded Aragon hosts Ocean Division champion and fourth-seeded Woodside. In the other match, second-seeded Burlingame hosts Bay Division fourth-place finisher and No. 3 seed Menlo-Atherton.

Those winners play Wednesday for the the PAL’s second automatic team bid into the CCS tournament, which begins Monday, Nov. 10.

Friday at 4 p.m., PAL water polo takes center stage with its CCS play-in matches, which pits the third-place team against the Ocean Division champion. As things stand Monday afternoon, the Sequoia boys are tentatively looking at hosting Ocean champ Aragon. The Dons can wrap up the spot outright with a win over second-place San Mateo Wednesday. On the girls side, it looks like Aragon will host Burlingame.

CCS water polo brackets begin play Saturday, Nov. 8.

This Saturday sees the PAL cross country championships taking place at the Crystal Springs Cross Country Course in Belmont, with the varsity boys going at 10 a.m., followed by the varsity girls at 10:30 a.m.

The CCS cross country championships are scheduled for the following Saturday, Nov. 15, also in Belmont.

Meanwhile, there are still two weeks left in football’s regular season.

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While the fall sports season is coming to its conclusion, the winter sports teams can begin official practice next Monday, Nov. 3.

And while its still more than a month away, the pairings for the 48th annual Burlingame Lions Club tournament hosted by Burlingame High School have already been released and it features a strong, eight-team field that begins Dec. 9.

First round games are as followed:

CCS powers Half Moon Bay and Sacred Heart Prep open the tournament at 3 p.m. Two other perennial CCS contenders, Valley Christian and Priory meet in the third game; Leigh and Peninsula power Palo Alto play in the fourth and the nightcap features host Burlingame taking on Hillsdale.

Nathan Mollat has been covering high school sports in San Mateo County for the San Mateo Daily Journal. since 2001. He can be reached by email: nathan@smdailyjournal.com.