The New Year ushers in the first-ever College Football Playoff leading up to the National Championship Game on Jan. 12, while the NFL Playoffs get underway this weekend leading up to Super Bowl XLIX. Doc's Sports has you covered with a wide variety of selection packages for all the major sports. We have been putting together these winning packages for the last 43 years, and with the help of some of the top expert handicappers we continue to lead the way in the sports betting industry. Another leader in his field for the past eight years with Doc's has been none other than the former Vegas Sports Informer Raphael Esparza.

He was able to work his way up the ranks as an expert handicapper during a long and illustrious career behind the counter of some of the biggest sportsbooks in Las Vegas. Raphael was also able to climb to the top of that profession to the prestigious position of Director of the Race and Sports Book for MGM Grand's Aria until his retirement in 2013.

He may be retired from the sportsbook industry, but he continues to work hard at developing and expanding an already vast network of relationships with some of the biggest and most influential Las Vegas insiders in the sports betting industry today. These professionals know the gaming world like the back of their hands, and Raphael has been able to use this "insider's edge" to help savvy bettors make a small fortune over the past several years with his picks.

The main point of difference with his expert handicapping service is selection packages for less mainstream sports such as the WNBA, horse racing, boxing, professional tennis and soccer leagues all around the globe. Recently, he has gone as far as to release picks for professional wrestling, high school football and high-profile award shows in the field of entertainment. It is safe to say that if Las Vegas posts odds for it, he will handicap it.

Doc's and Raphael started up a weekly Q&A awhile back to delve deeper the Las Vegas betting scene as well as to discuss some of the hottest trending sports betting topics of the day. We have found that there is no better source than someone that is a true "insider" in the undisputed sports gambling capital of the world. The following is this week's conversation.

Doc's Sports: In the past we have talked about the Las Vegas betting action slowing down over the Thanksgiving and Christmas Holidays, but I would imagine that the New Year's holiday is a whole other ball game in town when it comes to betting on the games. Just how big is this time of the year for the books?

RE: The New Year's holiday is one of the biggest draws in town with a ton of new faces up and down the strip, but it does not really translate to a proportionally higher take by the sportsbooks. The gaming tables and slots may get a bit of a lift, but this crowd is mainly in town to take advantage of the extravagant parties that each of the major casinos throws each year.

Doc's Sports: This season's Rose Bowl will host the first national semifinal playoff game between Oregon and Florida State. Now that this matchup is right around the corner, can you give us any last-minute thoughts on which way this one goes?

RE: My sources are telling me that the majority of the early money is going towards Florida State, so I would not be surprised to see this spread drop from nine to possibly as low as 7.5 points by kickoff. I am still going with Oregon as my straight up pick since I had the Ducks winning it all before the season started.

Doc's Sports: You had mentioned in a recent conversation that you will sometimes look to go against the Big Ten in bowl games. Does that mean you are leaning towards Alabama minus the nine points against Ohio State in the other national semifinal in this season's Sugar Bowl?

RE: This game has me torn. The back of my mind keeps reminding me of Ohio State's past failures against the SEC, but I am not ready to pull the trigger on the Tide. The fact that the Buckeyes have a head coach that is very familiar with the SEC style of play tells me this contest is going to be a much tighter than expected.

Doc's Sports : All season long in your blog, Straight Bet Talk, you have been tracking how well the betting public has fared against the Las Vegas sportsbooks when it comes to wagering on the NFL. At one point in the year the books had a huge advantage, but now that the NFL regular season is complete, what was the final tally?

RE: I do not have any hard and fast numbers for December, but the Nevada Gaming Commission recently released a report that the state's sportsbooks made $32.2 million in the month of November, and I would venture to guess that the majority of the profit came out of the hides of people betting on the NFL. To put this number in perspective, craps brought in $23.7 million and roulette made $19.7 million. Needless to say, the books definitely got the best of it this NFL season.

Doc's Sports: Turning to this weekend's Wild-Card Round of the NFL Playoffs, can you give us an underdog that has the best shot at pulling off the straight up upset?

RE: The injury to Pittsburgh running back Le'Veon Bell could be a game-changer. This would enable Baltimore's defense to make the Steelers very one-dimensional on offense. I also like Cincinnati's chances to go into Indianapolis and get a SU win given just how shaky the Colts have looked lately.

Click here to visit Raphael Esparza's Insider's Page at Doc's Sports for more information on his amazingly-profitable sports handicapping picks. Also, get $60 worth of Esparza's member's picks absolutely free - no obligation, no sales people - you don't even have to enter credit card information. You can use this $60 credit for any sport Esparza handicaps. Click here for $60 worth of free picks from Raphael Esparza . Also be sure to follow him on Twitter @VSIDocsports.