Busy weekend of football and sports overall. Just a number thoughts on these:
First of all, Black Monday in the NFL. I generally am not surprised by some of the names I see that went on the chopping block. The Bears, Falcons, Jets and 49ers will all be looking for new head coaches. I'll get to the other three in a moment but first a thought on the Harbaugh situation.
As most sports fans may have heard already, not even 24 hours after agreeing to part ways with the Niners, Jim Harbaugh is already set to take the vacant head coach position at the University of Michigan, his alma mater. You could see it was going to happen when he was hugging his players on the sidelines at the end of the San Francisco/Arizona game Sunday.
How this impacts the 49ers will be interesting. There are still a lot of good players on the team, and Harbaugh left a great foundation, but replacing a guy like that will be very tough. The Niners are very committed to winning, so I am sure they will hire the best man for that position.
As far as how that affects Michigan and the Big Ten, I would say this as far as the rest of the Big 10, including Ohio State is concerned; be afraid, be very afraid. Harbaugh walks that line a lot in so far as being as fiery as Bo Pelini is, and sometimes crosses it. But there is no question the man can coach at a very high level and I see no reason to believe that he can't do it in Ann Arbor.
Especially with the talent Hoke left him. Hoke could recruit but lacked ability to coach. That will not be a problem with Harbaugh; he is going to give Urban Meyer heartburn on a yearly basis. Ohio State still has a great program do not get me wrong, but things are going to get tougher for them immediately.
Elsewhere, I see that Rex Ryan and general manager Izdik were both let go by the Jets. I am not surprised, but I feel bad for Rex Ryan. He was never really given a chance to develop an offense due to a terrible front office in New York, and kept the Jets competitive due to his great defensive background. He will land on his feet somewhere.
On the Bears? No surprise there. Trestman is not a very good coach; I remember when he was coaching Jake Plummer for three years way back when both of them were with the Cardinals and he stunk then too, and he still stinks now. Way in over his head as a head coach.
As far as Mike Smith in Atlanta, not surprised there too. The Falcons with the exception of a couple of seasons have underachieved greatly and barely made it to the NFC Championship a couple years ago. They have gone downhill ever since.
As far as some other conclusions from the National Football League in week 17:
The Texans did well to go 9-7, especially since they ended up playing a fourth string quarterback because Fitzpatrick was terrible, and Mallett and Savage got hurt. Both JJ Watt and Bill O'Brien did a great job to get the Texans to a winning record. They are one quarterback away from returning to the playoffs IMHO.
The Chiefs did well to go 9-7 too, especially since they did not have A SINGLE touchdown catch by a wide receiver this year. Seriously, that is an outrageous stat. Much like O'Brien in Houston, Andy Reid did a tremendous job with the Chiefs this year. The Chiefs need a home run receiver, badly. DeAnthony Thomas is nice, but not a reliable home run threat right now.
Buffalo beat New England in Week 17 which may not sound like much since the Patriots were obviously disinterested, but two things this did; one, it gives Buffalo a winning season, even though no playoffs. Two, it breaks a 14 year losing streak in Foxboro.
The Vikings beat the Bears in Trestman's last game 13-9, which got them their seventh and final win of 2014. It may not be that significant, but Bridgewater did a heck of a job coming in and helping them get to seven wins. He needs more help around him, but did fine for his rookie season.
Regarding the first round of the playoffs, I'm taking every home team except Baltimore. The Cowboys should win, the Colts will win (after all, the Bengals never win playoff games these days) and the Panthers will beat an Arizona team that limps in with Ryan Lindley as its starting QB. Baltimore and Pittsburgh should be a great game but because of the experience of Flacco and Suggs and the question of LeVeon Bell's availability, I think the Ravens can win this game.
Now, on to the college scene...
On the Nebraska bowl loss to USC, I am proud of the effort the players gave. They left it all on the field and gave themselves a chance to beat a very talented team. That having been said, there are no moral victories at Dear Old Nebraska U. When we hit the field, we should play to win and have the pride and passion necessary to win.
Now, I mentioned Jim Harbaugh earlier. How does this relate to Nebraska? It means this, and let's be honest, Nebraska peeps: Things are going to get a lot tougher for the Big Red in coming years. Nebraska had a certain window of opportunity when it entered the Big 10 with Ohio State dealing with sanctions and Michigan searching for an identity.
It had an opportunity to gain a foothold, and some respect. It has done little of either; indeed, Nebraska has become much more like Wisconsin, Iowa or Minnesota than Ohio State. Those teams aren't all that talented but with Pelini as the coach at UNL, they all did the little things better than Nebraska did.
With Harbaugh going to Michigan, things become much tougher. Wisconsin has a good program, as we sadly have found out first hand. Minnesota has a program on the rise. Ohio State is still Ohio State, and Michigan will come back under Harbaugh. Penn State is a program on the rise as well. Let's just put it this way: we're here (puts hand at certain level), Minnesota and Wisconsin are up here (points up a notch or two) and Ohio State and Michigan will be way up here (points about one or two notches more).
Not only does Riley have this to deal with, and not only does he have to do a hell of a job recruiting to keep Nebraska somewhat afloat in today's college football, maybe the most concerning thing to me is that he has to get the Pelini poison out of the players' heads. I don't know what Bo did to them, but they were fiercely loyal to him and Riley is going to have a tough time getting them to listen to him. I was really struck by a story I saw last Saturday prior to the Holiday Bowl where the players left a seat for Pelini as if he were still coaching. I think Riley CAN do it, but whether he WILL is no guarantee.
As far as the other bowl games, my biggest takeaway is that the Big 12 is not a very good conference. 0-3 and the two biggest flagship names of the conference, Texas and Oklahoma, got annihilated Monday night. Texas I guess I can somewhat understand, they were completely outmanned and Arkansas cares a lot more about beating Texas than Texas does about beating Arkansas (for those who don't live down here and are not familiar, that's an old Southwest Conference rivalry that is somewhat dormant, but older Arkansas fans still see Texas as their most disliked team by far, even though the Hogs have spent over 20 years in the SEC).
But Oklahoma, good gracious. Losing by 40, to a mediocre team from a mediocre league in Clemson. With a backup QB, too. I respect, but have never liked Oklahoma and never will (seeing Sooner Magic too many times would do that to any Husker fan). I pretty much root against them no matter who they play. But I almost felt sorry for Sooner fans Monday night. I almost wonder if Bob Stoops is just mailing it in these days. How in the world did this team beat Alabama about a year ago?
And look at what's coming down the pike for Big 12 bowl teams: Ole Miss, a very good SEC team with a tough "Landshark" defensive unit. Michigan State, a tough, physical Big 10 team (good thing for Baylor that this game is in Arlington). A very good Pac-12 team in UCLA, and a beatable but Chris Petersen coached Washington squad. Yes, Baylor and TCU should be motivated. And they will need to be.
Couple of last basketball notes: Not surprised Kentucky beat Louisville in college basketball's Bluegrass battle. Louisville has a good squad but I'm surprised they don't just call the season at this point. Kentucky is so deep and so talented that if they don't win the title this year it will be quite a shock to most fans who follow the sport. They may lose a game or two, but it will be a regular season game where their heads aren't in the game (and that does happen in sports). When UK is focused, no one will beat them.
As far as the Rockets, they are a good team, but they still have some issues to fix that could prevent a deep run in the playoffs. They are a good team, but not the kind of team I would predict to go deep in the playoffs, not yet anyways. I will touch on that in another post soon.
Until next time....
Tuesday, December 30, 2014
Wednesday, December 24, 2014
Christmas Eve Sports Thoughts
Before we get to the brass tacks of this past football weekend and a few other items, I'd like to say this: Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to the readers of this blog. Hopefully all of you have a safe and wonderful holiday season.
That having been said...
Man how about that performance by the Texans and JJ Watt last Sunday? Quite simply, they were better prepared, better coached and played harder than the Baltimore football team who looked like the last thing they wanted was to be at NRG Stadium this past weekend. They still have a shot at the playoffs, but regardless of whether they get in or not, if they beat Jacksonville this Sunday and go 9-7, I consider this a successful season.
I consider it a successful season if 9-7 especially when you think about Andre Johnson being largely invisible, no Foster for large parts of the year, fourth string quarterback and they still might get to the playoffs with a win and some help. O'Brien and Watt have done an amazing job with this team. Oh and by the way, tell me a more deserving candidate than JJ Watt for Most Valuable Player. Tell me a man who is more valuable to his team than JJ Watt is to Houston. Oh but that's right, I forgot, the MVP award always goes to an offensive player. Shame.
Let's be real guys, Seattle's the team to beat, at least through the NFC if they win Sunday and get home field. I'll repeat something that Jim Rome said on his radio show Monday which I wholeheartedly agree with; if you thought that Seattle's 12th Man was obnoxious before, then buckle up because they will be insufferable if they win Sunday and end up with home field. Because honestly, who's going to beat them in that building on the way to the Super Bowl? The Packers are dangerous, I agree, Detroit's got a great defense and the Cowboys are much improved and beat them there already. But Seattle hasn't played this well all season.
Believe it or not, the Broncos have not locked up a first round bye yet, they have to beat the Raiders this Sunday. And even if they survive Sunday and get a first round bye, they are very, very vulnerable to get beat by either Cincinnati or Pittsburgh in round 2 of the playoffs. Peyton Manning may yet get his groove back, but things do not look good right now.
No matter what happens, it's going to be a great Week 17. Three games to decide division championships (AFC North, NFC South and NFC North, plus Seattle can clinch their division also), plus the playoff race will be decided in the AFC, and first round byes in both conferences are up for grabs.
Regarding the beginning of the college bowl season, I've caught what I can of the games so far and I have three observations:
1. Colorado State is going to go downhill fast. Not only did they lose McElwain, they hired Mike Bobo to replace him. I think the SEC East fleeced CSU on these two deals, the first deal being that McElwain is one of the game's elite coaches and that the Gators will put the entire SEC, as well as FSU, on notice. The second part of this is that Bobo has NEVER been a college football head coach in his entire career, and throughout his time as OC at UGA, he came under fire from UGA fans for his (at times) perplexing play calls.
For example, in the Georgia/South Carolina game this year, Georgia was down three points late and got a turnover at the South Carolina 4, first and goal. He called a peculiar first down pass play that fell incomplete, and UGA eventually missed a chip shot field goal and lost by three. He had an All-American running back (Gurley) and chose to throw on first down instead which absolutely baffled me. He has much less resources to work with than he had at UGA, he's head coach for the first time and CSU in the bowl game looked lost without McElwain. They have talent there but I am skeptical that Bobo will do well there.
2. That BYU/Memphis game was a great game...what happened after that game and the fight that ensued, not so much. It's a shame that such a thrilling game had to be tarnished by that fracas at the end of the game.
3. Rakeem Cato capped off a great career at Marshall with a bowl game win over Northern Illinois; as to whether he will be successful in the pro game, it will be interesting to see who takes him if anyone and where. I think he can be successful but mainly as a long-term project type of player.
On basketball real quick, the Big 10 is not very good in that sport this year. Down year it looks like for the Big 10. Just this year, in out of conference play, Big 10 teams have lost to: NJIT (that's New Jersey Institute of Technology, for those unaware), Eastern Michigan, St. Peter's, St. Francis, Central Michigan, Incarnate Word (ugh, that was the ugly loss Nebraska had), North Florida, Eastern Washington and Texas Southern.
Meanwhile, the Big 12 is a very strong conference in basketball this year, 6 (or 7, depending on which poll you prefer) teams in the top 25 so far even though Texas lost to Stanford last night.
On the NBA, Damian Lillard of the Portland Trail Blazers is a special, special player. He proved it against the Rockets last year in the playoffs, but is cementing it even more this year. In the past week, he's outdueled BOTH of last year's Western Conference finalists, scoring 43 against the Spurs last Friday in a triple overtime win, and scoring 40 last night in Oklahoma City against the Thunder in an overtime win there. I don't think he's the BEST point guard in the Association, but I'd put him no worse than fourth or fifth and he will only get better.
Until next time....
That having been said...
Man how about that performance by the Texans and JJ Watt last Sunday? Quite simply, they were better prepared, better coached and played harder than the Baltimore football team who looked like the last thing they wanted was to be at NRG Stadium this past weekend. They still have a shot at the playoffs, but regardless of whether they get in or not, if they beat Jacksonville this Sunday and go 9-7, I consider this a successful season.
I consider it a successful season if 9-7 especially when you think about Andre Johnson being largely invisible, no Foster for large parts of the year, fourth string quarterback and they still might get to the playoffs with a win and some help. O'Brien and Watt have done an amazing job with this team. Oh and by the way, tell me a more deserving candidate than JJ Watt for Most Valuable Player. Tell me a man who is more valuable to his team than JJ Watt is to Houston. Oh but that's right, I forgot, the MVP award always goes to an offensive player. Shame.
Let's be real guys, Seattle's the team to beat, at least through the NFC if they win Sunday and get home field. I'll repeat something that Jim Rome said on his radio show Monday which I wholeheartedly agree with; if you thought that Seattle's 12th Man was obnoxious before, then buckle up because they will be insufferable if they win Sunday and end up with home field. Because honestly, who's going to beat them in that building on the way to the Super Bowl? The Packers are dangerous, I agree, Detroit's got a great defense and the Cowboys are much improved and beat them there already. But Seattle hasn't played this well all season.
Believe it or not, the Broncos have not locked up a first round bye yet, they have to beat the Raiders this Sunday. And even if they survive Sunday and get a first round bye, they are very, very vulnerable to get beat by either Cincinnati or Pittsburgh in round 2 of the playoffs. Peyton Manning may yet get his groove back, but things do not look good right now.
No matter what happens, it's going to be a great Week 17. Three games to decide division championships (AFC North, NFC South and NFC North, plus Seattle can clinch their division also), plus the playoff race will be decided in the AFC, and first round byes in both conferences are up for grabs.
Regarding the beginning of the college bowl season, I've caught what I can of the games so far and I have three observations:
1. Colorado State is going to go downhill fast. Not only did they lose McElwain, they hired Mike Bobo to replace him. I think the SEC East fleeced CSU on these two deals, the first deal being that McElwain is one of the game's elite coaches and that the Gators will put the entire SEC, as well as FSU, on notice. The second part of this is that Bobo has NEVER been a college football head coach in his entire career, and throughout his time as OC at UGA, he came under fire from UGA fans for his (at times) perplexing play calls.
For example, in the Georgia/South Carolina game this year, Georgia was down three points late and got a turnover at the South Carolina 4, first and goal. He called a peculiar first down pass play that fell incomplete, and UGA eventually missed a chip shot field goal and lost by three. He had an All-American running back (Gurley) and chose to throw on first down instead which absolutely baffled me. He has much less resources to work with than he had at UGA, he's head coach for the first time and CSU in the bowl game looked lost without McElwain. They have talent there but I am skeptical that Bobo will do well there.
2. That BYU/Memphis game was a great game...what happened after that game and the fight that ensued, not so much. It's a shame that such a thrilling game had to be tarnished by that fracas at the end of the game.
3. Rakeem Cato capped off a great career at Marshall with a bowl game win over Northern Illinois; as to whether he will be successful in the pro game, it will be interesting to see who takes him if anyone and where. I think he can be successful but mainly as a long-term project type of player.
On basketball real quick, the Big 10 is not very good in that sport this year. Down year it looks like for the Big 10. Just this year, in out of conference play, Big 10 teams have lost to: NJIT (that's New Jersey Institute of Technology, for those unaware), Eastern Michigan, St. Peter's, St. Francis, Central Michigan, Incarnate Word (ugh, that was the ugly loss Nebraska had), North Florida, Eastern Washington and Texas Southern.
Meanwhile, the Big 12 is a very strong conference in basketball this year, 6 (or 7, depending on which poll you prefer) teams in the top 25 so far even though Texas lost to Stanford last night.
On the NBA, Damian Lillard of the Portland Trail Blazers is a special, special player. He proved it against the Rockets last year in the playoffs, but is cementing it even more this year. In the past week, he's outdueled BOTH of last year's Western Conference finalists, scoring 43 against the Spurs last Friday in a triple overtime win, and scoring 40 last night in Oklahoma City against the Thunder in an overtime win there. I don't think he's the BEST point guard in the Association, but I'd put him no worse than fourth or fifth and he will only get better.
Until next time....
Thursday, December 11, 2014
The College Football Coaching Carousel and More
With the college football regular season and championship games having drawn to a close and only the bowl games left, the coaching carousel that happens every offseason has begun to spin. Here are a few thoughts to chew on for now:
The biggest news in major college football coaching the last 24 hours has obviously been the news that Wisconsin coach Gary Andersen is heading West to coach Oregon State, replacing the departed Mike Riley who was hired by Nebraska almost a week ago (more on that in a moment).
The thing about this Wisconsin deal is this: Barry Alvarez is a Nebraska guy, he played for Bob Devaney in the late 60s (66 to 68, as a matter of fact). I had respect for the way he built Wisconsin up in the 90s and into the 2000s. But as of late, he's too much like Jerry Jones for my liking. The guy is too hands on in the athletic director's chair and he just needs to let coaches coach.
Take, for instance, something I noticed in Yahoo Sports' Pat Forde's latest column, posted last night. In it is a quote by Alvarez, which was said after Bret Bielema left Wisconsin a couple of years ago to take the Arkansas job:
"Bret used my gameplan to win," he said. "The coach I hire will have to understand who we are and how we go about our business."
Does that sound like someone who wants to let his coaches coach? It doesn't to me. It sounds to me like someone who wants to take all the credit and glory for the Wisconsin program's success.
On that note, Andersen wanted to install his zone read offense at the beginning of the year. But midway through the season, they went back to being ground and pound Wisconsin, which is what Alvarez prefers. It sounds to me like these two never really were able to co-exist.
It also wouldn't totally surprise me if that 59-0 whitewashing by Ohio State in the championship game last week had something to do with the Wisconsin coaching situation. In particular, it wouldn't totally shock me if it comes out later that Andersen already knew he was leaving and just packed it in.
As to who Wisconsin will hire? I'm not a betting man generally but if I were in the business of prediction making I'd say it will be current Pittsburgh coach Paul Chryst. Chryst is from Madison, played at Wisconsin in the late 80s and spent seven years as Wisconsin's offensive coordinator.
Regarding the hiring of Mike Riley to Nebraska, I am cautiously optimistic about the move even though Riley was not my first choice. He certainly is the opposite personality wise of Pelini, which is one thing the program needs. He is also doing a heck of a job trying to salvage the current Nebraska recruiting class. In general, Nebraska fans need to put down the pitchforks and give the man a chance to win...or lose...our trust. Speaking of Nebraska athletics...Incarnate Word? What the hell was that awful basketball performance? How did a good team get so crappy over several months? Any way you slice it that Cinderella story...long gone.
The guy I wanted in particular though, Jim McElwain, ended up at Florida. I think that's a great coaching hire by the Gators. Missouri has won the SEC East twice in a row but with McElwain in charge I'd say that little streak is in serious jeopardy.
Regarding the playoff matchups, be real. Alabama is the team to beat. Meyer is a good coach, Florida State is the defending champ and Oregon is perennially good but I really love Alabama's chances to win the whole thing. They have been trending upward for the past month, Sims is getting better with each game and Cooper's peaking right at the end of the season.
The scary part about Alabama in 2015 is that Blake Sims will be even better with a full offseason of development even though he loses Cooper...and LSU and Auburn will both be licking their wounds after down years. The only way I can see Auburn beating Bama next year is if they somehow get Muschamp. That could be an equalizer. And as for Lane Kiffin...Dead wrong about that one. Thought they would bust with his ego coming in. Not so.
As for the Big 12 teams being left out, the Big 12 did it to themselves in my opinion (and Ohio State played pretty well last game too). I have nothing against TCU or Baylor as I have many great friends from both schools, although I will say this: When you pay over $400,000 for the branding of the slogan "One True Champion" as the Big 12 did, then you name TCU and Baylor co-champs, get out of here with that. It's not Baylor or TCU's fault that they got left out, both had tremendous seasons. They should blame Big 12 commish Bob Bowlsby and Big 12 administration for this one. Too bad because TCU could have played Alabama toe to toe.
One final Rockets thought: Team is 16-5 but still has a ways to go. 16-5 sounds good but only gets you tied for 4th in the Western Conference at that point...West is just ridiculous. 7th place team in the West is 17-7. Rockets need to get guys back healthy and beat the teams they are in contention with fairly regularly. 3-4 against the top 6 in the West this year isn't going to cut it...50 wins might only get you an 8 seed. Interestingly enough, the Rockets, even though they've made the NBA Finals four times and won two titles, have never won more than 58 games in a single season.
Until next time....
The biggest news in major college football coaching the last 24 hours has obviously been the news that Wisconsin coach Gary Andersen is heading West to coach Oregon State, replacing the departed Mike Riley who was hired by Nebraska almost a week ago (more on that in a moment).
The thing about this Wisconsin deal is this: Barry Alvarez is a Nebraska guy, he played for Bob Devaney in the late 60s (66 to 68, as a matter of fact). I had respect for the way he built Wisconsin up in the 90s and into the 2000s. But as of late, he's too much like Jerry Jones for my liking. The guy is too hands on in the athletic director's chair and he just needs to let coaches coach.
Take, for instance, something I noticed in Yahoo Sports' Pat Forde's latest column, posted last night. In it is a quote by Alvarez, which was said after Bret Bielema left Wisconsin a couple of years ago to take the Arkansas job:
"Bret used my gameplan to win," he said. "The coach I hire will have to understand who we are and how we go about our business."
Does that sound like someone who wants to let his coaches coach? It doesn't to me. It sounds to me like someone who wants to take all the credit and glory for the Wisconsin program's success.
On that note, Andersen wanted to install his zone read offense at the beginning of the year. But midway through the season, they went back to being ground and pound Wisconsin, which is what Alvarez prefers. It sounds to me like these two never really were able to co-exist.
It also wouldn't totally surprise me if that 59-0 whitewashing by Ohio State in the championship game last week had something to do with the Wisconsin coaching situation. In particular, it wouldn't totally shock me if it comes out later that Andersen already knew he was leaving and just packed it in.
As to who Wisconsin will hire? I'm not a betting man generally but if I were in the business of prediction making I'd say it will be current Pittsburgh coach Paul Chryst. Chryst is from Madison, played at Wisconsin in the late 80s and spent seven years as Wisconsin's offensive coordinator.
Regarding the hiring of Mike Riley to Nebraska, I am cautiously optimistic about the move even though Riley was not my first choice. He certainly is the opposite personality wise of Pelini, which is one thing the program needs. He is also doing a heck of a job trying to salvage the current Nebraska recruiting class. In general, Nebraska fans need to put down the pitchforks and give the man a chance to win...or lose...our trust. Speaking of Nebraska athletics...Incarnate Word? What the hell was that awful basketball performance? How did a good team get so crappy over several months? Any way you slice it that Cinderella story...long gone.
The guy I wanted in particular though, Jim McElwain, ended up at Florida. I think that's a great coaching hire by the Gators. Missouri has won the SEC East twice in a row but with McElwain in charge I'd say that little streak is in serious jeopardy.
Regarding the playoff matchups, be real. Alabama is the team to beat. Meyer is a good coach, Florida State is the defending champ and Oregon is perennially good but I really love Alabama's chances to win the whole thing. They have been trending upward for the past month, Sims is getting better with each game and Cooper's peaking right at the end of the season.
The scary part about Alabama in 2015 is that Blake Sims will be even better with a full offseason of development even though he loses Cooper...and LSU and Auburn will both be licking their wounds after down years. The only way I can see Auburn beating Bama next year is if they somehow get Muschamp. That could be an equalizer. And as for Lane Kiffin...Dead wrong about that one. Thought they would bust with his ego coming in. Not so.
As for the Big 12 teams being left out, the Big 12 did it to themselves in my opinion (and Ohio State played pretty well last game too). I have nothing against TCU or Baylor as I have many great friends from both schools, although I will say this: When you pay over $400,000 for the branding of the slogan "One True Champion" as the Big 12 did, then you name TCU and Baylor co-champs, get out of here with that. It's not Baylor or TCU's fault that they got left out, both had tremendous seasons. They should blame Big 12 commish Bob Bowlsby and Big 12 administration for this one. Too bad because TCU could have played Alabama toe to toe.
One final Rockets thought: Team is 16-5 but still has a ways to go. 16-5 sounds good but only gets you tied for 4th in the Western Conference at that point...West is just ridiculous. 7th place team in the West is 17-7. Rockets need to get guys back healthy and beat the teams they are in contention with fairly regularly. 3-4 against the top 6 in the West this year isn't going to cut it...50 wins might only get you an 8 seed. Interestingly enough, the Rockets, even though they've made the NBA Finals four times and won two titles, have never won more than 58 games in a single season.
Until next time....
Tuesday, December 2, 2014
Football and Other Misc. Sports Thoughts Dec. 2, 2014
Can't believe we are winding down yet another football season. Just a few thoughts to ponder on for this evening:
- I saw the new College Football Playoff rankings and all I can say is this: Regardless of what TCU does this weekend, if Baylor beats K-State (a top 10 team, by the way) then Baylor should be ahead of them in the final playoff rankings, period end of story. In my world, head-to-head victories should still count for something. Bottom line is this: Teams might finish with the same conference record, same overall record, virtually the same rankings wise and TCU's schedule isn't a whole lot greater than Baylor's. And by hook or by crook, Baylor won that game.
- As far as some predictions, here are some to chew on for this week: First off, Oregon won't lose to Arizona again. Oregon is hot, healthy and peaking and Arizona will have their full attention after losing the first time.
On Georgia Tech/FSU, I think the Noles win another close one but they better buckle up. Georgia Tech is another team that's peaking right at the end of the season and with their triple option they have the capability of keeping Jameis on the sidelines. This is as good an opportunity as Paul Johnson's team will have against an elite team like FSU so they will come out flying and confident, or they should anyways after beating UGA.
Wisconsin should take care of Ohio State, not just because of the third string QB deal but because Ohio State has trouble stopping the run and Gordon is the best back in the country. Too tough to ask Ohio State to win that one with all the factors working against them.
- Texans beat Tennessee to get to 6-6 and JJ Watt scores ANOTHER touchdown. Can we get him to play quarterback, by chance? Yeah I know Fitz had a great game but it was against Tennessee for Pete's sake.
Team better not go to sleep in Jacksonville by the way, who just beat the Giants this last week.
- Big game of the NFL this week is obviously Eagles/Seahawks, with both teams playing very well. I do think that Seattle, as I figured they would at some point, is starting to look more and more like the defending champions. That win in San Francisco last Thursday night was enormous.
- Finally, on the Nebraska situation, my thought is that situation is a damned if you do and a damned if you don't deal. Pelini was winning his games at a .700 clip, so it seems ridiculous on the surface and a damned if you do situation. But then again, it's a damned if you don't situation when you consider this was a coach who constantly got humiliated in big games (by 30 to 40 points) and constantly embarrassed himself on the sidelines like he did in that Badger game.
It would be different if he had made changes to his coaching staff, but it's year 7 and he never did.
My final thought on that situation is this: National championships don't grow on trees and it's a tough sell to think Nebraska can be a national championship contender in the future especially with the way the game is now. Not everyone can be Alabama, or FSU, or Oregon, or Ohio State. But it's not too much to ask to win a conference championship once in a while and not get embarrassed in games that matter. I understand the anger and the frustration from players and former players as Pelini was very close with the players. But they need to understand that programs such as this one absolutely cannot get embarrassed constantly in big games. One last parting thought: Eichorst did the right thing in pulling the trigger but the announcement on the next coach needs to come quickly.
Until next time....
- I saw the new College Football Playoff rankings and all I can say is this: Regardless of what TCU does this weekend, if Baylor beats K-State (a top 10 team, by the way) then Baylor should be ahead of them in the final playoff rankings, period end of story. In my world, head-to-head victories should still count for something. Bottom line is this: Teams might finish with the same conference record, same overall record, virtually the same rankings wise and TCU's schedule isn't a whole lot greater than Baylor's. And by hook or by crook, Baylor won that game.
- As far as some predictions, here are some to chew on for this week: First off, Oregon won't lose to Arizona again. Oregon is hot, healthy and peaking and Arizona will have their full attention after losing the first time.
On Georgia Tech/FSU, I think the Noles win another close one but they better buckle up. Georgia Tech is another team that's peaking right at the end of the season and with their triple option they have the capability of keeping Jameis on the sidelines. This is as good an opportunity as Paul Johnson's team will have against an elite team like FSU so they will come out flying and confident, or they should anyways after beating UGA.
Wisconsin should take care of Ohio State, not just because of the third string QB deal but because Ohio State has trouble stopping the run and Gordon is the best back in the country. Too tough to ask Ohio State to win that one with all the factors working against them.
- Texans beat Tennessee to get to 6-6 and JJ Watt scores ANOTHER touchdown. Can we get him to play quarterback, by chance? Yeah I know Fitz had a great game but it was against Tennessee for Pete's sake.
Team better not go to sleep in Jacksonville by the way, who just beat the Giants this last week.
- Big game of the NFL this week is obviously Eagles/Seahawks, with both teams playing very well. I do think that Seattle, as I figured they would at some point, is starting to look more and more like the defending champions. That win in San Francisco last Thursday night was enormous.
- Finally, on the Nebraska situation, my thought is that situation is a damned if you do and a damned if you don't deal. Pelini was winning his games at a .700 clip, so it seems ridiculous on the surface and a damned if you do situation. But then again, it's a damned if you don't situation when you consider this was a coach who constantly got humiliated in big games (by 30 to 40 points) and constantly embarrassed himself on the sidelines like he did in that Badger game.
It would be different if he had made changes to his coaching staff, but it's year 7 and he never did.
My final thought on that situation is this: National championships don't grow on trees and it's a tough sell to think Nebraska can be a national championship contender in the future especially with the way the game is now. Not everyone can be Alabama, or FSU, or Oregon, or Ohio State. But it's not too much to ask to win a conference championship once in a while and not get embarrassed in games that matter. I understand the anger and the frustration from players and former players as Pelini was very close with the players. But they need to understand that programs such as this one absolutely cannot get embarrassed constantly in big games. One last parting thought: Eichorst did the right thing in pulling the trigger but the announcement on the next coach needs to come quickly.
Until next time....
Monday, November 3, 2014
Football + World Series Aftermath
Back with a few thoughts after another week of football + the finish of the World Series, and the start of the offseason for baseball:
Leading off, so to speak with the finish of the World Series. Props to the Giants for finishing things off; the better team did win that series and Bumgarner is an October legend amongst mortals. Two wins, plus a five inning save for the first win by a road team in a World Series game 7 in over three decades. Of course, knowing the Giants, this is an every other year thing so we'll probably see them again in 2016.
As far as the Royals are concerned, it would have been a storybook ending to win that seventh game, but honestly, the better team won the series. I do think there may have been a thing or two that could have been done differently (namely, not having Escobar bunt in the fifth inning plus they could have used Willingham at some point), but bottom line is after the fifth inning, they weren't hitting Bum.
I did see that the Royals declined the 12.5M option on Billy "Country Breakfast" Butler. I would blame them for not picking up the option, but I really can't. I honestly watch Butler and he's a good hitter, but I'm not sure he commands that much money on the market. He is mainly a DH and nothing more than that. The Royals do however need to get James Shields signed, he is arguably the heart and soul of that team.
As far as a super-early prediction for 2015, my gut hunch is that the Cardinals are a good bet to at least make the World Series next year. Much like the Giants go to the World Series or win every other year (they've won every time), the Cards at least go every odd numbered year. Plus they have a lot of salary cap space to spend on signing their players, plus picking up a major free agent.
On to football. First order of business, Auburn/Ole Miss; as far as that game goes, I felt really bad for Ole Miss fans when that Auburn/Ole Miss game ended on Saturday night. If my team lost a 35-31 game to a team on the level of Auburn, at home, and my team lost Ameer Abdullah to that type of injury on the deciding play at the goal line that lost the game, I would be crushed. I have nothing against Auburn, after all, Ameer grew up an Auburn fan in Birmingham and I like Gus Malzahn, but I still felt really bad for Ole Miss Saturday night.
Speaking of #8 on Nebraska, talk about a huge scare on Saturday and a collective fanbase holding its breath, that was Nebraska fans as the team had to deal without Ameer against a scrappy Purdue outfit. 35-14 win, but obviously the bye week could not come at a better time for the Big Red. A good time to get rested up and ready to go for the stretch run because starting when we go to Madison, every game is important.
On the Texans, not a new revelation but Fitzpatrick still sucks. He sucked at the beginning of the season and he sucks now. You can tell that Andre Johnson is frustrated; he spoke with the media Monday and insinuated he wanted to get as far away from here as possible during the bye week. I am glad that Andre has voiced his support for Ryan Mallett, at least according to Ian Rapoport. We need to get Mallett in there and see what he can do.
The worst part about that game is that we made Jets castoff Mark Sanchez look like a really good quarterback. The fact that Clowney isn't playing regularly isn't exactly helping matters on the defensive front.
On Broncos/Patriots, I have said this all along; if Gronk is healthy, they're a Super Bowl team period because you can't stop their offense with him in there. The problem is, he's not always there, but when he is they are near unstoppable offensively. Sorry, Broncos fans, but if Gronkowski is healthy I don't see anything keeping the Patriots out of Phoenix for the Super Bowl.
Watch for the Saints to be 7-4 after the next three weeks with a struggling Niners team, the Bengals and the struggling Ravens in the next three. The big key here is, all of them come to New Orleans. The Saints might well be ready to make a playoff push.
Once 6-1, the Dallas Cowboys are now 6-3 and facing serious issues; namely, that their offensive line that I've been touting all year has been springing leaks and the obvious one, that Tony Romo has back issues and will be out until at least after the bye. Dallas faces a very important game Sunday against Jacksonville to at least get to the bye at 7-3.
Hard to figure out what's going on with the Niners and Chargers; the first one has been to three straight conference championship games and a Super Bowl yet sits 4-4 and going to New Orleans, and the other one has lost three straight and got blasted 37-0 by the Dolphins.
One last NFL note; the only division in the National Football League with every single team above .500 is...
the AFC North.
On the college football playoff poll, one thing I notice is that for the most part, one loss teams are ahead of two loss teams. That is fine, as long as the committee sticks with that. If you're going to establish that precedence, fine, but stick with it.
Until next time....
Leading off, so to speak with the finish of the World Series. Props to the Giants for finishing things off; the better team did win that series and Bumgarner is an October legend amongst mortals. Two wins, plus a five inning save for the first win by a road team in a World Series game 7 in over three decades. Of course, knowing the Giants, this is an every other year thing so we'll probably see them again in 2016.
As far as the Royals are concerned, it would have been a storybook ending to win that seventh game, but honestly, the better team won the series. I do think there may have been a thing or two that could have been done differently (namely, not having Escobar bunt in the fifth inning plus they could have used Willingham at some point), but bottom line is after the fifth inning, they weren't hitting Bum.
I did see that the Royals declined the 12.5M option on Billy "Country Breakfast" Butler. I would blame them for not picking up the option, but I really can't. I honestly watch Butler and he's a good hitter, but I'm not sure he commands that much money on the market. He is mainly a DH and nothing more than that. The Royals do however need to get James Shields signed, he is arguably the heart and soul of that team.
As far as a super-early prediction for 2015, my gut hunch is that the Cardinals are a good bet to at least make the World Series next year. Much like the Giants go to the World Series or win every other year (they've won every time), the Cards at least go every odd numbered year. Plus they have a lot of salary cap space to spend on signing their players, plus picking up a major free agent.
On to football. First order of business, Auburn/Ole Miss; as far as that game goes, I felt really bad for Ole Miss fans when that Auburn/Ole Miss game ended on Saturday night. If my team lost a 35-31 game to a team on the level of Auburn, at home, and my team lost Ameer Abdullah to that type of injury on the deciding play at the goal line that lost the game, I would be crushed. I have nothing against Auburn, after all, Ameer grew up an Auburn fan in Birmingham and I like Gus Malzahn, but I still felt really bad for Ole Miss Saturday night.
Speaking of #8 on Nebraska, talk about a huge scare on Saturday and a collective fanbase holding its breath, that was Nebraska fans as the team had to deal without Ameer against a scrappy Purdue outfit. 35-14 win, but obviously the bye week could not come at a better time for the Big Red. A good time to get rested up and ready to go for the stretch run because starting when we go to Madison, every game is important.
On the Texans, not a new revelation but Fitzpatrick still sucks. He sucked at the beginning of the season and he sucks now. You can tell that Andre Johnson is frustrated; he spoke with the media Monday and insinuated he wanted to get as far away from here as possible during the bye week. I am glad that Andre has voiced his support for Ryan Mallett, at least according to Ian Rapoport. We need to get Mallett in there and see what he can do.
The worst part about that game is that we made Jets castoff Mark Sanchez look like a really good quarterback. The fact that Clowney isn't playing regularly isn't exactly helping matters on the defensive front.
On Broncos/Patriots, I have said this all along; if Gronk is healthy, they're a Super Bowl team period because you can't stop their offense with him in there. The problem is, he's not always there, but when he is they are near unstoppable offensively. Sorry, Broncos fans, but if Gronkowski is healthy I don't see anything keeping the Patriots out of Phoenix for the Super Bowl.
Watch for the Saints to be 7-4 after the next three weeks with a struggling Niners team, the Bengals and the struggling Ravens in the next three. The big key here is, all of them come to New Orleans. The Saints might well be ready to make a playoff push.
Once 6-1, the Dallas Cowboys are now 6-3 and facing serious issues; namely, that their offensive line that I've been touting all year has been springing leaks and the obvious one, that Tony Romo has back issues and will be out until at least after the bye. Dallas faces a very important game Sunday against Jacksonville to at least get to the bye at 7-3.
Hard to figure out what's going on with the Niners and Chargers; the first one has been to three straight conference championship games and a Super Bowl yet sits 4-4 and going to New Orleans, and the other one has lost three straight and got blasted 37-0 by the Dolphins.
One last NFL note; the only division in the National Football League with every single team above .500 is...
the AFC North.
On the college football playoff poll, one thing I notice is that for the most part, one loss teams are ahead of two loss teams. That is fine, as long as the committee sticks with that. If you're going to establish that precedence, fine, but stick with it.
Until next time....
Monday, October 27, 2014
The World Series, NFL and ESPN/SEC Bias
Just a few thoughts while I have them on a Monday night....
Regarding the World Series, I know it's hard to count out the Royals, but I think the Giants are in good shape. Before we go anywhere else with this, let's be real: Bumgarner is absolutely nasty. Kershaw may have been baseball's version of Sandy Koufax during the regular season, but Bumgarner takes it to another level in the playoffs. The Royals had no chance last night.
As far as the last two games, as I said, the Giants are in good shape. However, I think the Giants best chance would be in game 6. If you go to game 7, there may be too much karma at the K for the Giants to handle. Keep in mind also that there have been nine teams to go home down 3-2 in World Series since 85...seven have won the title. And no team has won a seventh game of a World Series on the road since 1979.
Texans game thought: Zach Mettenberger learned a valuable lesson. When you're making your first career start, against the most fearsome defensive player of our time, you don't show off your selfie habit. That's just fuel for JJ Watt's fire. JJ Watt made that quite clear when he clowned Mett during that game. I think Mett has talent, but he learned a very valuable lesson.
As bad as those games in New York and Pittsburgh were, the Texans are in decent shape at 4-4, still with a playoff spot within reach especially since they play Jacksonville twice and Tennessee once, and that Baltimore and Cincinnati still come to Houston. 9-7 at least is a very good possibility. I don't trust Fitz and that is well known but he's got a good team around him. Should never have lost in Pittsburgh though.
Arizona is for real...might be the best team in the NFC. Like I've said all year, that is a physical, nasty, vicious football team. And the once interception-happy Carson Palmer is making plays and not throwing picks...eight TDs and one INT for the season. The only bad thing about the Cards is that ESPN is going to tell us for months on end that no team has hosted a Super Bowl in their home stadium...this year, Arizona has it. Yes, we know.
Oh the Dallas Cowboys...America's biggest sports soap opera takes another turn. Romo gets dinged and they lose to Washington in OT. Cowboys are pretty funny. Every time I think they've turned a corner (Seattle win), then they go lose a game like that to a third string QB. I get that it's the NFL, but that's so very Cowboys. I was reminded of that tonight. Now they get Arizona coming in...very possibly a second loss in a row. Then again, Jerry had eyeballs on his team tonight, so I guess he wins again, right?
Big win for the Saints Sunday night. Take a look at their upcoming schedule...at Carolina Thursday then three straight Dome games where they just refuse to lose. A win in Carolina might put them at 7-4 after the next four games. This isn't as good a Saints team as they've had, but they're still in the mix.
Don't look now, but Tom Brady is probably the best quarterback in the league right now and Gronk is healthy. Chicago can certainly attest to that. And what do you know, it's just in time for another Manning/Brady showdown on Sunday afternoon in New England.
I get that the focus in Kansas City for right is that the Royals are two games from a potential World Championship and rightly so, but Andy Reid is very quietly doing a good job at Arrowhead this year. Derrick Johnson, out for the year. Jamaal Charles...been hurt. Alex Smith, dinged up the last game but will probably go Sunday, not to mention all the other injuries they've had and yet they are still 4-3 and have beaten some of the best in the league.
Hell, if you really think about it, they're the team that won the game against the Pats on Monday night that started Kansas City's giant killer run (and since that point, the Royals and Chiefs have slain Moneyball, the team with the most wins in MLB, a powerful Orioles team, an explosive San Diego Charger team, and are two wins away from denying San Fran a third World Title in five years). They not only beat the Pats in that game, they embarrassed them.
The Raiders might be the second team to go 0-16 for a single season, the first being the 2008 Detroit Lions. Seriously, I see one game on the rest of their slate that they might win...at St. Louis. The rest, chalk em up as losses. I'm no Raider fan, but we've already seen 0-16 before. I've seen that movie once in 2008 and I don't want to see it again. I hope they can find at least enough courage and effort to grab one win.
Last thing, since a lot of my Nebraska peeps are spouting stuff about the SEC these days, I want to comment on this. For my readers that don't necessarily follow Nebraska, Husker coach Bo Pelini was asked in his press conference last Monday about ESPN and its relationship with the SEC. For those who may not be aware, The Four Letter and their Disney cohorts recently unveiled a new network devoted to not just SEC Football, but SEC Athletics in general. Considering what a lot of college football fans outside the southeast think of that conference, you can imagine the feathers that were ruffled when that happened.
Anyways, Pelini was asked about ESPN's relationship with the SEC and he said, and I quote, "I don't think that kind of relationship is good for college football, but that's just my opinion."
But, oh, did that set off a firestorm between Big 10 fans and SEC fans, and even between the Four Letter and Pelini. Chris Fowler, whose work I greatly respect, came out on Twitter and said that nothing would be better for ESPN than Big 10 success. He even got a little defensive on College GameDay when talking about the alleged bias ESPN has towards the SEC.
Keep in mind, you're reading the blog of a guy that wanted Bo Pelini gone after the Iowa/Nebraska game in 2013 and I stand by how I felt at the time, but that's besides the point. If ESPN isn't biased towards the SEC then why does Chris Fowler feel the need to get into this? Why does he feel the need to be so chippy if the Big 10 is such an irrelevant conference and Nebraska lacks relevance themselves (and for the record I think we have a good team this year). If it was nothing, then he would have said nothing or disagreed with Pelini's opinion and kept moving. He should be better than that.
Instead, he and the rest of the folks at the Four Letter like Paul Finebaum have to rip into Pelini themselves during their shows. My message to the folks at the SEC Network, Fowler, Finebaum and the rest of SEC fans who may stumble across this: Mind your own damn business and we'll mind ours. Pelini was just responding to a question, no need to be so defensive about it. Oh and one other thing: Nebraska won the last time they played an SEC team, not even a calendar year ago. We'll see what happens if Nebraska meets an SEC team this January.
Until next time....
Regarding the World Series, I know it's hard to count out the Royals, but I think the Giants are in good shape. Before we go anywhere else with this, let's be real: Bumgarner is absolutely nasty. Kershaw may have been baseball's version of Sandy Koufax during the regular season, but Bumgarner takes it to another level in the playoffs. The Royals had no chance last night.
As far as the last two games, as I said, the Giants are in good shape. However, I think the Giants best chance would be in game 6. If you go to game 7, there may be too much karma at the K for the Giants to handle. Keep in mind also that there have been nine teams to go home down 3-2 in World Series since 85...seven have won the title. And no team has won a seventh game of a World Series on the road since 1979.
Texans game thought: Zach Mettenberger learned a valuable lesson. When you're making your first career start, against the most fearsome defensive player of our time, you don't show off your selfie habit. That's just fuel for JJ Watt's fire. JJ Watt made that quite clear when he clowned Mett during that game. I think Mett has talent, but he learned a very valuable lesson.
As bad as those games in New York and Pittsburgh were, the Texans are in decent shape at 4-4, still with a playoff spot within reach especially since they play Jacksonville twice and Tennessee once, and that Baltimore and Cincinnati still come to Houston. 9-7 at least is a very good possibility. I don't trust Fitz and that is well known but he's got a good team around him. Should never have lost in Pittsburgh though.
Arizona is for real...might be the best team in the NFC. Like I've said all year, that is a physical, nasty, vicious football team. And the once interception-happy Carson Palmer is making plays and not throwing picks...eight TDs and one INT for the season. The only bad thing about the Cards is that ESPN is going to tell us for months on end that no team has hosted a Super Bowl in their home stadium...this year, Arizona has it. Yes, we know.
Oh the Dallas Cowboys...America's biggest sports soap opera takes another turn. Romo gets dinged and they lose to Washington in OT. Cowboys are pretty funny. Every time I think they've turned a corner (Seattle win), then they go lose a game like that to a third string QB. I get that it's the NFL, but that's so very Cowboys. I was reminded of that tonight. Now they get Arizona coming in...very possibly a second loss in a row. Then again, Jerry had eyeballs on his team tonight, so I guess he wins again, right?
Big win for the Saints Sunday night. Take a look at their upcoming schedule...at Carolina Thursday then three straight Dome games where they just refuse to lose. A win in Carolina might put them at 7-4 after the next four games. This isn't as good a Saints team as they've had, but they're still in the mix.
Don't look now, but Tom Brady is probably the best quarterback in the league right now and Gronk is healthy. Chicago can certainly attest to that. And what do you know, it's just in time for another Manning/Brady showdown on Sunday afternoon in New England.
I get that the focus in Kansas City for right is that the Royals are two games from a potential World Championship and rightly so, but Andy Reid is very quietly doing a good job at Arrowhead this year. Derrick Johnson, out for the year. Jamaal Charles...been hurt. Alex Smith, dinged up the last game but will probably go Sunday, not to mention all the other injuries they've had and yet they are still 4-3 and have beaten some of the best in the league.
Hell, if you really think about it, they're the team that won the game against the Pats on Monday night that started Kansas City's giant killer run (and since that point, the Royals and Chiefs have slain Moneyball, the team with the most wins in MLB, a powerful Orioles team, an explosive San Diego Charger team, and are two wins away from denying San Fran a third World Title in five years). They not only beat the Pats in that game, they embarrassed them.
The Raiders might be the second team to go 0-16 for a single season, the first being the 2008 Detroit Lions. Seriously, I see one game on the rest of their slate that they might win...at St. Louis. The rest, chalk em up as losses. I'm no Raider fan, but we've already seen 0-16 before. I've seen that movie once in 2008 and I don't want to see it again. I hope they can find at least enough courage and effort to grab one win.
Last thing, since a lot of my Nebraska peeps are spouting stuff about the SEC these days, I want to comment on this. For my readers that don't necessarily follow Nebraska, Husker coach Bo Pelini was asked in his press conference last Monday about ESPN and its relationship with the SEC. For those who may not be aware, The Four Letter and their Disney cohorts recently unveiled a new network devoted to not just SEC Football, but SEC Athletics in general. Considering what a lot of college football fans outside the southeast think of that conference, you can imagine the feathers that were ruffled when that happened.
Anyways, Pelini was asked about ESPN's relationship with the SEC and he said, and I quote, "I don't think that kind of relationship is good for college football, but that's just my opinion."
But, oh, did that set off a firestorm between Big 10 fans and SEC fans, and even between the Four Letter and Pelini. Chris Fowler, whose work I greatly respect, came out on Twitter and said that nothing would be better for ESPN than Big 10 success. He even got a little defensive on College GameDay when talking about the alleged bias ESPN has towards the SEC.
Keep in mind, you're reading the blog of a guy that wanted Bo Pelini gone after the Iowa/Nebraska game in 2013 and I stand by how I felt at the time, but that's besides the point. If ESPN isn't biased towards the SEC then why does Chris Fowler feel the need to get into this? Why does he feel the need to be so chippy if the Big 10 is such an irrelevant conference and Nebraska lacks relevance themselves (and for the record I think we have a good team this year). If it was nothing, then he would have said nothing or disagreed with Pelini's opinion and kept moving. He should be better than that.
Instead, he and the rest of the folks at the Four Letter like Paul Finebaum have to rip into Pelini themselves during their shows. My message to the folks at the SEC Network, Fowler, Finebaum and the rest of SEC fans who may stumble across this: Mind your own damn business and we'll mind ours. Pelini was just responding to a question, no need to be so defensive about it. Oh and one other thing: Nebraska won the last time they played an SEC team, not even a calendar year ago. We'll see what happens if Nebraska meets an SEC team this January.
Until next time....
Friday, October 10, 2014
15 Predictions - Friday, October 10
Wasn't in last weekend, mainly because I wanted to let last football and baseball weekend simmer down a bit with all the upsets, and with the Royals advancing. But I think today's a good day to offer some predictions for how this weekend is going to go. So...off we go. As per usual, my predictions are for entertainment purposes only.
15. First, baseball. I'm going with the Royals in 6 and the Giants in 7. In the AL, I think the Royals can win tonight with Shields, win two in Kansas City (three and five probably) and then go back to Camden Yards and close things out. The reason they are here is because they are peaking at absolutely the right time and their best players are playing well right now, when it matters. I think they carry the momentum. In the NL, I'm going with Houston's old friend Bruce Bochy and his Giants...even numbered year magic.
14. Captain Obvious, but without Todd Gurley Georgia will not beat Mizzou this weekend. If you haven't heard, Gurley was suspended indefinitely while an investigation takes place into whether Gurley signed autographs for cash. In games like this, you need players like Gurley and without him I don't see Georgia winning on the road. A Mizzou win may well lock up the SEC East although I guess Kentucky is still in the mix.
13. Speaking of Mizzou, I will also predict that with the Tigers, Royals and Cards playing back to back to back tomorrow, there will be some heated discussions in some bars in Columbia when the baseball teams are playing. Could we see an I-70 Series? As I said I'm picking the Royals and Giants (would be the second all-Wild Card World Series, the first also involved the Giants in 2002), but an I-70 rematch of 1985 is very possible.
12. Texas will play Oklahoma closer than the experts think. What is the spread, like 14.5 or something like that? Weird stuff happens in this emotional rivalry (see last year when Texas demolished an OU team that went on to beat Bama). I don't like either team but if I were going to Vegas, I'd pick Texas to cover that point spread. Wouldn't be surprised to see this be a swing point game for Charlie Strong even though they may not win.
11. Boomer Esiason was on Jim Rome a while ago talking about Andrew Luck...and said he'd be just fine even though the Colts got a scare at NRG last night. I predict Boom is right, and furthermore I predict that Andrew Luck will win multiple Super Bowls before his career is over. The guy just has "it," whatever "it" is, and a knack for making big plays when needed. Very generous of him to let JJ Watt score last night, hehe.
10. Ole Miss will not beat Texas A&M this weekend. It's too tough a spot for the Rebels. I'm not sure Ole Miss got out of the clouds by Wednesday after beating Alabama (which I was happy to see, really can't stand Bama), and if they didn't there is no way they will go to Kyle Field and win.
9. Demornay Pierson-El will be playing wideout for Nebraska at some point this season, not sure when but I think he's got to. The guy is just too explosive, too electric to keep him out of being a wide receiver. Especially with Kenny Bell week to week on whether he's going to play or not, it makes sense to put DP-E in as an additional threat. Nebraska needs players who can stretch the field with Bell hobbled every other week.
8. Dallas will play Seattle close in Seattle. Yeah, you heard me right. I think Dallas plays them close because their offensive line is great. Not good, great. Been saying that all year. Seattle will win because they are just too tough at home, but Dallas will push them provided Romo has time to throw and time to hand it off to DeMarco Murray.
7. Arizona loses to USC this weekend. Another upset special from last weekend bites the dust. Much like Ole Miss I'm not sure Arizona got out of the clouds after last weekend. USC goes there and wins.
6. The Nebraska Overreactionists will be eating their words when the Huskers earn their rematch with Michigan State in December. And this is coming from a guy who has been more than critical of Pelini and some of his losses, but that loss was not a bad loss. Team showed character in coming back and nearly pulling out the win. I respect Jason Peter's credentials and the blood, sweat and tears he gave for that program (hell I grew up in that era), but his opinion from Big Red Wrapup earlier this week was completely misguided.
The good thing is, Nebraska can see them again, and in a rematch, on turf, in a domed stadium knowing that MSU has trouble defending the deep pass I'd like their chances...a lot. Nebraska fans who thought this team was a top four playoff team just aren't living on Planet Earth. The goal is the Big 10 Championship and getting rid of that damned conference title drought...always has been.
5. NY Giants over Philly on the road on Sunday night. Philly really hasn't beat anyone aside from Indy and they needed a meltdown by the Colts to win that one.
4. LSU looks terrible right now but it's the middle of the season. Ask me about them at the end of the year. I predict they'll get better and Brandon Harris will get better as he gets more snaps. I wouldn't be surprised to see them only lose to Alabama the rest of the way with Texas A&M being 50/50 as well.
3. If Auburn gets out of Starkville with a W this weekend they will go undefeated. South Carolina is terrible and has to go to Auburn, Bo Wallace at Ole Miss is too inconsistent for me to pick them to beat Auburn, Texas A&M goes to Auburn, Georgia may still be without Gurley when Auburn comes to town which leaves the Iron Bowl...and I've long said that Auburn will win that one because Saban hates playing their offense. And if they get to Atlanta they'll hammer the winner of the East which would put them in the playoffs undefeated. That leaves this Saturday as the biggest game of the season for #2 Auburn.
2. Even if Baylor survives this weekend they will not go undefeated. Playing at Oklahoma, on grass, in November in a game that may well decide the Big 12 title...not a good recipe for the Bears. They're a turf team, and more specifically a Waco team, get them out of that environs and they won't survive. Not to mention they still have to play K-State as well....
1. O'Brien will lace into the Texans after that horrendous start last night, and I'm sure he and the team will be working overtime to get ready for Pittsburgh. Down 24-0 and the boo-birds were out. I'm not even sure it will matter that they almost came back and won, you can't start a football game like that and expect to win at that level. I'm no Fitzpatrick fan, but the team got gashed at the start of the game and didn't come prepared.
So there it is, 15 predictions for you to note....
Until next time....
15. First, baseball. I'm going with the Royals in 6 and the Giants in 7. In the AL, I think the Royals can win tonight with Shields, win two in Kansas City (three and five probably) and then go back to Camden Yards and close things out. The reason they are here is because they are peaking at absolutely the right time and their best players are playing well right now, when it matters. I think they carry the momentum. In the NL, I'm going with Houston's old friend Bruce Bochy and his Giants...even numbered year magic.
14. Captain Obvious, but without Todd Gurley Georgia will not beat Mizzou this weekend. If you haven't heard, Gurley was suspended indefinitely while an investigation takes place into whether Gurley signed autographs for cash. In games like this, you need players like Gurley and without him I don't see Georgia winning on the road. A Mizzou win may well lock up the SEC East although I guess Kentucky is still in the mix.
13. Speaking of Mizzou, I will also predict that with the Tigers, Royals and Cards playing back to back to back tomorrow, there will be some heated discussions in some bars in Columbia when the baseball teams are playing. Could we see an I-70 Series? As I said I'm picking the Royals and Giants (would be the second all-Wild Card World Series, the first also involved the Giants in 2002), but an I-70 rematch of 1985 is very possible.
12. Texas will play Oklahoma closer than the experts think. What is the spread, like 14.5 or something like that? Weird stuff happens in this emotional rivalry (see last year when Texas demolished an OU team that went on to beat Bama). I don't like either team but if I were going to Vegas, I'd pick Texas to cover that point spread. Wouldn't be surprised to see this be a swing point game for Charlie Strong even though they may not win.
11. Boomer Esiason was on Jim Rome a while ago talking about Andrew Luck...and said he'd be just fine even though the Colts got a scare at NRG last night. I predict Boom is right, and furthermore I predict that Andrew Luck will win multiple Super Bowls before his career is over. The guy just has "it," whatever "it" is, and a knack for making big plays when needed. Very generous of him to let JJ Watt score last night, hehe.
10. Ole Miss will not beat Texas A&M this weekend. It's too tough a spot for the Rebels. I'm not sure Ole Miss got out of the clouds by Wednesday after beating Alabama (which I was happy to see, really can't stand Bama), and if they didn't there is no way they will go to Kyle Field and win.
9. Demornay Pierson-El will be playing wideout for Nebraska at some point this season, not sure when but I think he's got to. The guy is just too explosive, too electric to keep him out of being a wide receiver. Especially with Kenny Bell week to week on whether he's going to play or not, it makes sense to put DP-E in as an additional threat. Nebraska needs players who can stretch the field with Bell hobbled every other week.
8. Dallas will play Seattle close in Seattle. Yeah, you heard me right. I think Dallas plays them close because their offensive line is great. Not good, great. Been saying that all year. Seattle will win because they are just too tough at home, but Dallas will push them provided Romo has time to throw and time to hand it off to DeMarco Murray.
7. Arizona loses to USC this weekend. Another upset special from last weekend bites the dust. Much like Ole Miss I'm not sure Arizona got out of the clouds after last weekend. USC goes there and wins.
6. The Nebraska Overreactionists will be eating their words when the Huskers earn their rematch with Michigan State in December. And this is coming from a guy who has been more than critical of Pelini and some of his losses, but that loss was not a bad loss. Team showed character in coming back and nearly pulling out the win. I respect Jason Peter's credentials and the blood, sweat and tears he gave for that program (hell I grew up in that era), but his opinion from Big Red Wrapup earlier this week was completely misguided.
The good thing is, Nebraska can see them again, and in a rematch, on turf, in a domed stadium knowing that MSU has trouble defending the deep pass I'd like their chances...a lot. Nebraska fans who thought this team was a top four playoff team just aren't living on Planet Earth. The goal is the Big 10 Championship and getting rid of that damned conference title drought...always has been.
5. NY Giants over Philly on the road on Sunday night. Philly really hasn't beat anyone aside from Indy and they needed a meltdown by the Colts to win that one.
4. LSU looks terrible right now but it's the middle of the season. Ask me about them at the end of the year. I predict they'll get better and Brandon Harris will get better as he gets more snaps. I wouldn't be surprised to see them only lose to Alabama the rest of the way with Texas A&M being 50/50 as well.
3. If Auburn gets out of Starkville with a W this weekend they will go undefeated. South Carolina is terrible and has to go to Auburn, Bo Wallace at Ole Miss is too inconsistent for me to pick them to beat Auburn, Texas A&M goes to Auburn, Georgia may still be without Gurley when Auburn comes to town which leaves the Iron Bowl...and I've long said that Auburn will win that one because Saban hates playing their offense. And if they get to Atlanta they'll hammer the winner of the East which would put them in the playoffs undefeated. That leaves this Saturday as the biggest game of the season for #2 Auburn.
2. Even if Baylor survives this weekend they will not go undefeated. Playing at Oklahoma, on grass, in November in a game that may well decide the Big 12 title...not a good recipe for the Bears. They're a turf team, and more specifically a Waco team, get them out of that environs and they won't survive. Not to mention they still have to play K-State as well....
1. O'Brien will lace into the Texans after that horrendous start last night, and I'm sure he and the team will be working overtime to get ready for Pittsburgh. Down 24-0 and the boo-birds were out. I'm not even sure it will matter that they almost came back and won, you can't start a football game like that and expect to win at that level. I'm no Fitzpatrick fan, but the team got gashed at the start of the game and didn't come prepared.
So there it is, 15 predictions for you to note....
Until next time....
Monday, September 29, 2014
20 Football Thoughts - Sept. 29
Just like last week, here are 20 football impressions from this weekend and going forward:
20. As proven by the Bills benching EJ Manuel and going and getting Kyle Orton, Manuel is not the answer to Buffalo's problems...and by the way, Kyle Orton is not the answer either. Orton is a journeyman throughout his career and always will be.
Oh and Texans fans, don't be fooled by that win Sunday, Fitzpatrick still sucks. If he's the answer at QB then I don't want to know what the question is.
19. Good Lord the Raiders are bad. The Dolphins aren't all that good and the Raiders still blew them out. Do the Raiders even pretend to try anymore?
18. Steve Smith Sr. torches the Panthers after they cut him and the Ravens send the Panthers limping back home. You know what they say about revenge...a dish best served cold.
17. Bridgewater played a good game on Sunday and Minnesota beat Atlanta, but let's see how he does when he plays a few games and teams get film on him.
16. Speaking of Atlanta...and New Orleans...can EITHER of these teams win outside their domed stadiums? Sure doesn't seem like it.
15. People mouthing off about Aaron Rodgers not having it anymore and the Packers maybe not being the same team that they have been...what does 38-17 over Cutler and a trendy Bears team tell you?
14. Nebraska readers, please cut the crap about how the four letter network hates Nebraska just because they aren't going to MSU for GameDay (they are going to Bama/Ole Miss even though I might have picked LSU/Auburn for the GD spot also). That's a load of bollocks. I like Mike Welch and was listening to Drop the Mike on 93.7 The Ticket out of Lincoln this afternoon...enough with the BS about how ESPN hates Nebraska, Mike. What exactly has Nebraska proven over the first five games to say they are worthy of a GameDay spot?
I will never understand the dislike Nebraska fans have for Herbstreit either. That's still alive and well Sure, he miffed Nebraska fans during that best team ever show years ago to get a reaction. So what? It's been seven years, get over it already. It's not like Nebraska has given him anything positive to talk about.
13. That said, Ed Cunningham is one of the worst football analysts on television. Straight up. This guy said that Minnesota is a favorite to win the Big 10 West on Saturday. That makes me heartily chuckle.
12. Michigan's firing of Brady Hoke I am sure cannot come soon enough for most Michigan fans. I know a couple of Detroit connections and Michigan fans have about had it with him. He gets Michigan better than Rich Rod did, but that said he isn't doing anything with his recruits even though he gets them to Ann Arbor.
11. Pittsburgh is the most schizo team in the National Football League. Beat Cleveland, play terrible against Baltimore. Beat Carolina, then somehow lose to Tampa Bay with Mike Glennon at the controls.
10. A big surprise for the Huskers to me has been the re-emergence of an offensive line that is actually blocking for our running game. Ameer is putting up the huge numbers, but his o-line is doing a lot of the work. They will, however, face a much stiffer test against the Spartans on Saturday. Chances are if Nebraska is even or better in turnover margin they have a good chance to win...only lost three times in the Pelini era in that scenario (Texas 2009 CCG, Northwestern 2011, UCLA 2013).
9. I think for the first time possibly ever, Father Time might be catching up on Brees. That's a team he normally owns, the Cowboys, but he did absolutely nothing except for a five minute stretch in the early part of the fourth quarter.
8. San Francisco 26, Philadelphia 21, but Philly really got dominated for much of that game. They didn't even score an offensive touchdown, gave up 407 total yards and didn't have a single play in the Niners end of the field for much of that game. The Niners began to maybe show flashes of the team they still could be.
7. FSU beat NC State coming from behind, but I'm not all that impressed with them quite yet. This does not look like the same Florida State team as last season. They can be had by somebody before the season ends (Notre Dame possibly in a couple weeks).
6. Arkansas should never have lost that game against A&M. Somehow, Arkansas secondary lets not one but TWO huge plays in the fourth quarter get behind them. That should be the first rule defensively in playing with a lead...NO big plays over the top.
This begins a brutal stretch for A&M...that game begins a stretch of four straight games vs SEC West opponents (at Mississippi State this week, Ole Miss at home the week after and then at Bama).
5. Ole Miss is by far the most overrated team in the top 10...in the top 20 for that matter. A prime example of why polls until the middle of October are beyond stupid. They only were ahead of Memphis 7-3 entering the fourth quarter and 10-3 with 9:34 left. For that matter, they only pulled away from BSU late and BSU isn't very good either. I'm not completely sold on Nebraska's team quite yet, but I know this; I'd take us to beat Ole Miss.
4. Texas beat an awful Kansas team 23-0, has Baylor this week and suddenly John Harris of UT has the nerve to pop off about Baylor who has beat them three of the last four years. Check out this quote, "I mean, they're still Baylor." He then went on to say, we are who we are, we're still Texas, yada yada yada.
Normally I let Longhorn attitude and arrogance roll off my back and it's not even newsworthy to me simply because that's who they are, and they'll never ever change but this makes me laugh. Sure, John...you're still Texas, they're still Baylor, and you've lost three of the last four years to Baylor. In my world, you win on the field before you run your mouth. Considering that Charlie Strong enforces discipline whenever someone doesn't play by his rules, I'm sure he is not amused.
3. Speaking of Kansas, Charlie Weis gets canned. Talk about a revolving door. Turner Gill lasted just two years there (absolute disaster), and now Weis doesn't even make it through season three (disaster #2).
2. Last week, I sort of laughed at how Jerry Jones was popping off about the Cowboys good start. This is no laughing matter now because they absolutely mugged the Saints from the word go last night. I think for those who watched that game last night, what they found is what I've said last week, Dallas has its best offensive line in years. That's what happens when you have three offensive linemen starting who were drafted in the first round.
Now what happens is that Tony Romo has much less of a chance of getting creamed on every play, DeMarco Murray has much less of a chance of getting hurt either and their offense is rolling. Are they really a Super Bowl contender...probably not, but they are definitely overachieving.
1. Logic would say Brady wins tonight, but going back to that whole offensive line thing, his offensive line is terrible. That's not a good recipe in such a hostile environs like Arrowhead, you have to be a cohesive offensive line to be able to function in that building where you can't hear anything. In addition, the Chiefs have Tamba Hali and Dontari Poe who can relentlessly pressure Brady and force him into mistakes. The Chiefs also get a boost tonight because Jamaal Charles is apparently probable. I say Kansas City wins tonight.
Until next time....
20. As proven by the Bills benching EJ Manuel and going and getting Kyle Orton, Manuel is not the answer to Buffalo's problems...and by the way, Kyle Orton is not the answer either. Orton is a journeyman throughout his career and always will be.
Oh and Texans fans, don't be fooled by that win Sunday, Fitzpatrick still sucks. If he's the answer at QB then I don't want to know what the question is.
19. Good Lord the Raiders are bad. The Dolphins aren't all that good and the Raiders still blew them out. Do the Raiders even pretend to try anymore?
18. Steve Smith Sr. torches the Panthers after they cut him and the Ravens send the Panthers limping back home. You know what they say about revenge...a dish best served cold.
17. Bridgewater played a good game on Sunday and Minnesota beat Atlanta, but let's see how he does when he plays a few games and teams get film on him.
16. Speaking of Atlanta...and New Orleans...can EITHER of these teams win outside their domed stadiums? Sure doesn't seem like it.
15. People mouthing off about Aaron Rodgers not having it anymore and the Packers maybe not being the same team that they have been...what does 38-17 over Cutler and a trendy Bears team tell you?
14. Nebraska readers, please cut the crap about how the four letter network hates Nebraska just because they aren't going to MSU for GameDay (they are going to Bama/Ole Miss even though I might have picked LSU/Auburn for the GD spot also). That's a load of bollocks. I like Mike Welch and was listening to Drop the Mike on 93.7 The Ticket out of Lincoln this afternoon...enough with the BS about how ESPN hates Nebraska, Mike. What exactly has Nebraska proven over the first five games to say they are worthy of a GameDay spot?
I will never understand the dislike Nebraska fans have for Herbstreit either. That's still alive and well Sure, he miffed Nebraska fans during that best team ever show years ago to get a reaction. So what? It's been seven years, get over it already. It's not like Nebraska has given him anything positive to talk about.
13. That said, Ed Cunningham is one of the worst football analysts on television. Straight up. This guy said that Minnesota is a favorite to win the Big 10 West on Saturday. That makes me heartily chuckle.
12. Michigan's firing of Brady Hoke I am sure cannot come soon enough for most Michigan fans. I know a couple of Detroit connections and Michigan fans have about had it with him. He gets Michigan better than Rich Rod did, but that said he isn't doing anything with his recruits even though he gets them to Ann Arbor.
11. Pittsburgh is the most schizo team in the National Football League. Beat Cleveland, play terrible against Baltimore. Beat Carolina, then somehow lose to Tampa Bay with Mike Glennon at the controls.
10. A big surprise for the Huskers to me has been the re-emergence of an offensive line that is actually blocking for our running game. Ameer is putting up the huge numbers, but his o-line is doing a lot of the work. They will, however, face a much stiffer test against the Spartans on Saturday. Chances are if Nebraska is even or better in turnover margin they have a good chance to win...only lost three times in the Pelini era in that scenario (Texas 2009 CCG, Northwestern 2011, UCLA 2013).
9. I think for the first time possibly ever, Father Time might be catching up on Brees. That's a team he normally owns, the Cowboys, but he did absolutely nothing except for a five minute stretch in the early part of the fourth quarter.
8. San Francisco 26, Philadelphia 21, but Philly really got dominated for much of that game. They didn't even score an offensive touchdown, gave up 407 total yards and didn't have a single play in the Niners end of the field for much of that game. The Niners began to maybe show flashes of the team they still could be.
7. FSU beat NC State coming from behind, but I'm not all that impressed with them quite yet. This does not look like the same Florida State team as last season. They can be had by somebody before the season ends (Notre Dame possibly in a couple weeks).
6. Arkansas should never have lost that game against A&M. Somehow, Arkansas secondary lets not one but TWO huge plays in the fourth quarter get behind them. That should be the first rule defensively in playing with a lead...NO big plays over the top.
This begins a brutal stretch for A&M...that game begins a stretch of four straight games vs SEC West opponents (at Mississippi State this week, Ole Miss at home the week after and then at Bama).
5. Ole Miss is by far the most overrated team in the top 10...in the top 20 for that matter. A prime example of why polls until the middle of October are beyond stupid. They only were ahead of Memphis 7-3 entering the fourth quarter and 10-3 with 9:34 left. For that matter, they only pulled away from BSU late and BSU isn't very good either. I'm not completely sold on Nebraska's team quite yet, but I know this; I'd take us to beat Ole Miss.
4. Texas beat an awful Kansas team 23-0, has Baylor this week and suddenly John Harris of UT has the nerve to pop off about Baylor who has beat them three of the last four years. Check out this quote, "I mean, they're still Baylor." He then went on to say, we are who we are, we're still Texas, yada yada yada.
Normally I let Longhorn attitude and arrogance roll off my back and it's not even newsworthy to me simply because that's who they are, and they'll never ever change but this makes me laugh. Sure, John...you're still Texas, they're still Baylor, and you've lost three of the last four years to Baylor. In my world, you win on the field before you run your mouth. Considering that Charlie Strong enforces discipline whenever someone doesn't play by his rules, I'm sure he is not amused.
3. Speaking of Kansas, Charlie Weis gets canned. Talk about a revolving door. Turner Gill lasted just two years there (absolute disaster), and now Weis doesn't even make it through season three (disaster #2).
2. Last week, I sort of laughed at how Jerry Jones was popping off about the Cowboys good start. This is no laughing matter now because they absolutely mugged the Saints from the word go last night. I think for those who watched that game last night, what they found is what I've said last week, Dallas has its best offensive line in years. That's what happens when you have three offensive linemen starting who were drafted in the first round.
Now what happens is that Tony Romo has much less of a chance of getting creamed on every play, DeMarco Murray has much less of a chance of getting hurt either and their offense is rolling. Are they really a Super Bowl contender...probably not, but they are definitely overachieving.
1. Logic would say Brady wins tonight, but going back to that whole offensive line thing, his offensive line is terrible. That's not a good recipe in such a hostile environs like Arrowhead, you have to be a cohesive offensive line to be able to function in that building where you can't hear anything. In addition, the Chiefs have Tamba Hali and Dontari Poe who can relentlessly pressure Brady and force him into mistakes. The Chiefs also get a boost tonight because Jamaal Charles is apparently probable. I say Kansas City wins tonight.
Until next time....
Friday, September 26, 2014
10 Things I Want to See This Weekend in Sports
With the weekend ahead of us, good time for me to list 10 things I want to see this weekend with the Ryder Cup in full swing, baseball races going right down to the end and football heating up.
10. More of Jordan Spieth at the Ryder Cup, please, Tom Watson. This kid is a stud already at his young age and while I am not the biggest golf expert, to me it was a mistake by U.S. Captain Watson to sit him out in the afternoon session...predictably the red white and blue only got half a point in the afternoon session.
Oh and even worse was having Phil and Keegan out there and Spieth sitting out...and while I respect what Phil has done, he and Keegan got smacked by Dubuisson and Graeme. We're going to need all the help we can to beat the Europeans so the guys who give us the best chance to win need to play.
9. Texas Tech football to stop committing silly penalties. What did they have, like five million penalties in that game last night? I'm a huge fan of Kliff, but they showed why they lead the Big 12 in penalties.
8. The Astros to win at least two more games at Citi Field this weekend. They've already avoided 100 losses, but I'd like to see them finish strong with two wins against the Mets.
7. For Seattle to grab the last AL Wild Card spot and the A's to miss entirely. Simply because the A's eschewed their moneyball strategy and tried to be something they are not to go after a championship. You can't be something you're not.
6. For Drew Brees to shut Jerry Jones' obnoxious mouth. The Cowboys are 2-1 and he is already popping off two days before New Orleans comes to town. Want proof? I've got your proof right here: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/jerry-jones-on-dallas-cowboys--2-1-start--don-t-discount-us-200525418.html
Hey Jerry, you may not be so cocky after Brees goes for 500 and the Saints win. Then again, as long as the Cowboys get headlines and we're all talking about you, I guess you still win so congrats on that.
5. For Nebraska's defense to have a solid game in their final test before going to Michigan State next weekend. I'd like to see some more turnovers forced, some pressures on the quarterback and if possible hold Illinois to less than 20.
4. For the real San Francisco 49ers to please stand up and decide whether you're still a contender or not. They are 1-2 but have talent out the wazoo...and they better start playing like it because Chip Kelly and the boys are going in there feeling real good about themselves. The Niners do not want to start 1-3. Might as well say the same thing about Green Bay. Big games for both teams.
3. The Arkansas/Texas A&M football game. Like I said earlier this week, I'm intrigued by who controls the tempo in this game...the Hogs ground attack or the Aggies run and gun, NASCAR paced offense. And can anyone keep the other guy under 30 points in this game by chance?
2. For Jameis Winston to take Ameer Abdullah's advice. If you haven't seen it, read this: http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/11570167/ameer-abdullah-nebraska-cornhuskers-says-jameis-winston-florida-state-seminoles-grow-up
I agree with every word said and the best part about it is that Ameer didn't pop off. It seemed like friend to friend advice as Ameer and Jameis both know each other from their Birmingham days. Right now, it seems to me that Jameis is a young man that feels he can get away with everything, so I can only hope as a fan of the sport that he takes Ameer's advice.
1. For the Kansas City Royals to end 29 years of playoff-less frustration. If you're an Astros fan, or any other fan, reading this you are probably asking yourself why am I putting this at #1 instead of football? And why no mention of Jeter?
First of all, Jeter had a great moment. Walking off in your final game with a base hit is an amazing way to go out. But the Kansas City Royals chasing a playoff spot deserves, in my view, just as much respect. And I love football, but this could be history in the making.
Try and walk a day in a Kansas City fan's shoes. Think about an entire region that once saw good baseball (yes, it is hard to imagine but the Kansas City Royals have had championship caliber teams. Many reading this are probably too young to have seen them at their peak but they did have good teams) that is starved for anything to cheer about. And this is a region that has seen some horrendous baseball over this current drought.
This is a franchise that, for now, currently holds the longest playoff-less drought of anyone in the four major North American sports and it isn't even close. The next closest team is the Toronto Blue Jays who haven't been to the playoffs in 20 years (also the last time they won a World Series).
It's a franchise whose fans saw the team trade Carlos Beltran, Jermaine Dye and Johnny Damon (two of which won World Series later). It's a team that, in the 2000s, had four 100 loss seasons in five years. It's a team that lost 19 games in a row one season. They've even had a guy drop a pop fly to lose a game during one of those seasons.
Even during these good times, they have Ned Yost running the show. A guy who got fired during the Brewers pennant race in 2008....also, a guy who doesn't use his pitching staff that well and a guy who could quite frankly manage the Royals out of a critical win down the road.
Yet, the impossible dream may come true tonight. With a win over the White Sox at any time this weekend, Kansas City will see at least one game of playoff baseball next week, against either the A's or Seattle with a chance to go to Anaheim for the divisional round. That is something I would definitely like to see.
Until next time....
10. More of Jordan Spieth at the Ryder Cup, please, Tom Watson. This kid is a stud already at his young age and while I am not the biggest golf expert, to me it was a mistake by U.S. Captain Watson to sit him out in the afternoon session...predictably the red white and blue only got half a point in the afternoon session.
Oh and even worse was having Phil and Keegan out there and Spieth sitting out...and while I respect what Phil has done, he and Keegan got smacked by Dubuisson and Graeme. We're going to need all the help we can to beat the Europeans so the guys who give us the best chance to win need to play.
9. Texas Tech football to stop committing silly penalties. What did they have, like five million penalties in that game last night? I'm a huge fan of Kliff, but they showed why they lead the Big 12 in penalties.
8. The Astros to win at least two more games at Citi Field this weekend. They've already avoided 100 losses, but I'd like to see them finish strong with two wins against the Mets.
7. For Seattle to grab the last AL Wild Card spot and the A's to miss entirely. Simply because the A's eschewed their moneyball strategy and tried to be something they are not to go after a championship. You can't be something you're not.
6. For Drew Brees to shut Jerry Jones' obnoxious mouth. The Cowboys are 2-1 and he is already popping off two days before New Orleans comes to town. Want proof? I've got your proof right here: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/jerry-jones-on-dallas-cowboys--2-1-start--don-t-discount-us-200525418.html
Hey Jerry, you may not be so cocky after Brees goes for 500 and the Saints win. Then again, as long as the Cowboys get headlines and we're all talking about you, I guess you still win so congrats on that.
5. For Nebraska's defense to have a solid game in their final test before going to Michigan State next weekend. I'd like to see some more turnovers forced, some pressures on the quarterback and if possible hold Illinois to less than 20.
4. For the real San Francisco 49ers to please stand up and decide whether you're still a contender or not. They are 1-2 but have talent out the wazoo...and they better start playing like it because Chip Kelly and the boys are going in there feeling real good about themselves. The Niners do not want to start 1-3. Might as well say the same thing about Green Bay. Big games for both teams.
3. The Arkansas/Texas A&M football game. Like I said earlier this week, I'm intrigued by who controls the tempo in this game...the Hogs ground attack or the Aggies run and gun, NASCAR paced offense. And can anyone keep the other guy under 30 points in this game by chance?
2. For Jameis Winston to take Ameer Abdullah's advice. If you haven't seen it, read this: http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/11570167/ameer-abdullah-nebraska-cornhuskers-says-jameis-winston-florida-state-seminoles-grow-up
I agree with every word said and the best part about it is that Ameer didn't pop off. It seemed like friend to friend advice as Ameer and Jameis both know each other from their Birmingham days. Right now, it seems to me that Jameis is a young man that feels he can get away with everything, so I can only hope as a fan of the sport that he takes Ameer's advice.
1. For the Kansas City Royals to end 29 years of playoff-less frustration. If you're an Astros fan, or any other fan, reading this you are probably asking yourself why am I putting this at #1 instead of football? And why no mention of Jeter?
First of all, Jeter had a great moment. Walking off in your final game with a base hit is an amazing way to go out. But the Kansas City Royals chasing a playoff spot deserves, in my view, just as much respect. And I love football, but this could be history in the making.
Try and walk a day in a Kansas City fan's shoes. Think about an entire region that once saw good baseball (yes, it is hard to imagine but the Kansas City Royals have had championship caliber teams. Many reading this are probably too young to have seen them at their peak but they did have good teams) that is starved for anything to cheer about. And this is a region that has seen some horrendous baseball over this current drought.
This is a franchise that, for now, currently holds the longest playoff-less drought of anyone in the four major North American sports and it isn't even close. The next closest team is the Toronto Blue Jays who haven't been to the playoffs in 20 years (also the last time they won a World Series).
It's a franchise whose fans saw the team trade Carlos Beltran, Jermaine Dye and Johnny Damon (two of which won World Series later). It's a team that, in the 2000s, had four 100 loss seasons in five years. It's a team that lost 19 games in a row one season. They've even had a guy drop a pop fly to lose a game during one of those seasons.
Even during these good times, they have Ned Yost running the show. A guy who got fired during the Brewers pennant race in 2008....also, a guy who doesn't use his pitching staff that well and a guy who could quite frankly manage the Royals out of a critical win down the road.
Yet, the impossible dream may come true tonight. With a win over the White Sox at any time this weekend, Kansas City will see at least one game of playoff baseball next week, against either the A's or Seattle with a chance to go to Anaheim for the divisional round. That is something I would definitely like to see.
Until next time....
Monday, September 22, 2014
Four Weeks of Football: Where We're At
Man, it's been some time since I updated this bad boy. But we are now in football season, four weeks in as a matter of fact, so I think it's a good time to reset what's been going on. 20 points for all you football fans to ponder on after four weeks...and keep in mind I'm going to stick mainly to what's going on on the field.
The one thing I will say about the off-field stuff is that the NFL and college football for the most part are fortunate that the leagues and the games sell themselves otherwise there would be an even bigger problem. That said...away we go.
20. Never count out a Steeler football team, ever. People left them for dead after that awful performance against Baltimore but Steeler pride more often than not shines through. They proved that on Sunday night by demolishing a pretty solid Carolina Panther football team.
19. Saints got their first win of the year against a hapless Minnesota squad without Peterson. If there is ever a team that could come from 0-2 to make the playoffs, it's a team led by Drew Brees. Watch for more huge numbers for Drew against Dallas, which he does routinely.
18. The Redskins offense is a different offense when Kirk Cousins is in the game. It's too bad because I really liked RGIII coming out of college, but it's obvious Wash is a better football team with Cousins manning the snaps. They're not great still, but better with Cousins behind center.
17. The Cowboys offensive line is the best offensive line they've had in quite some time. On my way to doing something on Friday morning, I was listening to Mike and Mike and I think they said the Cowboys had three first round offensive line picks in their rotation. That is helping their offense be what it is right now. They can't stop anyone but they can score a lot of points.
16. Buffalo comes back to Earth. Unlike Chicago (sorry, they have Cutler and he'll never sniff that trophy) and Miami, San Diego is a legitimate Super Bowl contender and they smacked around Buffalo pretty good.
15. The Patriots are 2-1 but it's obvious Brady isn't what he used to be. They just barely scratched by Oakland and now they have to go to Kansas City on a Monday night, then play a really good Cincinnati squad six days later. Tough stretch.
14. Speaking of Kansas City, big win at Miami (where they rarely win in the first place) to keep them from 0-3. They play New England at home next Monday, then go to the Niners and San Diego. If they can somehow get to 3-3 after those first six, they have some winnable games after that.
13. Hoke has got to go at Michigan. Did anyone see how empty that stadium was in the fourth quarter with Michigan down 26-10?
12. Auburn beat K-State by six, but barely squeezed by. A win is a win, but K-State is going to be kicking themselves for the rest of the season after losing that one the way they did. Oh and as someone from a Nebraska family I don't want to hear that the flyover states can't compete with the great and mighty SEC. That is complete bollocks.
In the last year, Missouri won the SEC East (yes you read that right), Oklahoma beat Alabama in the Sugar Bowl and Tennessee about a week ago, Nebraska beat Georgia in its bowl game and K-State took Auburn (for the record, my national title pick) to the wire.
11. Alabama gets 645 yards on Florida. Yaaaaaaaay. Florida is a lame squad this year and Muschamp will likely be gone following the season so excuse me if I'm not impressed yet...Bama hasn't even played a ranked team yet. A&M, Mississippi State, LSU, Auburn have all beat at least one ranked team and three of those four teams won true road games. The best team Bama played was West Virginia who isn't ranked and only lost to them by 10...and Oklahoma by the way scored more points against WVU (on the road too) than Bama did.
10. Ryan Fitzpatrick is still not a very good NFL quarterback and for those Texans fans who say that he's anything more than decent...well, you can have your opinion and I'll disagree with it. They're going to be better than they look this year, but no playoffs.
9. If anyone has a panic button in San Francisco, now might be a really good time to hit it. That Ferrari they are running around with is 1-2 and got lapped in the second half each of the last two weeks. By the way, the Niners are getting outscored by a cumulative 52-3 in the second half of their games this year. Oh, and Arizona's for real. That's a physical, nasty, vicious football team.
8. I guess you can try and clean up a program as much as you can, but you can never really take the chippiness out of the Miami Hurricanes. Nice win for the Huskers, game that looked a little bit like old-school power football. Oh and that roughing the passer call on Nebraska was horrendous in that game. I know about the new roughing the passer rules in college, but if you watched the play the Miami player blocked our guy into the quarterback and the hit wasn't even below the knees.
7. Cal was up 31-13 at Arizona starting the fourth quarter but somehow manages to lose 49-45 on the last play of the game on a Hail Mary. How in the world does that happen?
6. Ravens kicked a game winning field goal to squeak by the Browns, but I like where the Browns are headed. They beat a New Orleans team that's pretty good and have been competitive in all of their first three games.
5. Sad weekend for LSU fans as they got upset by Mississippi State; first win in Baton Rouge for State since 1991. LSU's offense without Mettenberger is in a bad way this year.
4. Arkansas vs A&M is this week's most intriguing matchup. A&M started out as a double digit favorite but that line is now 8.5 points from what I see. Who's going to control the tempo...A&M's high powered, turbo charged attack or the Hogs rushing attack which ground Tech into the dust?
3. Very quickly regarding Winston...I find it as sort of weird that he got suspended, yet he was still on the sidelines. I'm not going to read anything into it more than that, I'm just saying, like Kirk Herbstreit mentioned on twitter, that it's just bizarre.
2. On another note, I think that game Saturday was FSU's best chance to lose. Now that they survived that game without Jameis, they should run the table easily to the four team playoff.
1. Denver may have lost to Seattle, but I think they showed well and it seems to me they are more equipped to beat the Seahawks than they were back in January. I remember saying right here back in January that Seattle was better because they could run the ball and they could play defense much better than Denver could. There is no longer a significant gap in those two areas. Seattle isn't going to be able to push Denver around anymore and I think when the playoffs start this year, Denver will be in much better position to win a title than they were last season. Remember, they're playing all the NFC West this year, so when the playoffs start, they will be mentally tougher than a year ago.
Bonus thoughts: The Kansas City Royals might make the MLB playoffs for the first time in 29 years, but it will be in spite of Ned Yost not because of him. There's a reason Milwaukee fired him in the middle of a pennant race when he was there...I'm looking forward to the Ryder Cup this weekend, but we are probably going to get hammered...Regardless of what happens with the Astros in the last week of the season, this season is significant progress...69 wins with still the possibility of avoiding 90 losses....The Rockets should have fired McHale after they lost to Portland in the playoffs. Keeping him will be a big mistake...And as far as a World Series prediction, Dodgers over Halos in 5.
Until next time...
The one thing I will say about the off-field stuff is that the NFL and college football for the most part are fortunate that the leagues and the games sell themselves otherwise there would be an even bigger problem. That said...away we go.
20. Never count out a Steeler football team, ever. People left them for dead after that awful performance against Baltimore but Steeler pride more often than not shines through. They proved that on Sunday night by demolishing a pretty solid Carolina Panther football team.
19. Saints got their first win of the year against a hapless Minnesota squad without Peterson. If there is ever a team that could come from 0-2 to make the playoffs, it's a team led by Drew Brees. Watch for more huge numbers for Drew against Dallas, which he does routinely.
18. The Redskins offense is a different offense when Kirk Cousins is in the game. It's too bad because I really liked RGIII coming out of college, but it's obvious Wash is a better football team with Cousins manning the snaps. They're not great still, but better with Cousins behind center.
17. The Cowboys offensive line is the best offensive line they've had in quite some time. On my way to doing something on Friday morning, I was listening to Mike and Mike and I think they said the Cowboys had three first round offensive line picks in their rotation. That is helping their offense be what it is right now. They can't stop anyone but they can score a lot of points.
16. Buffalo comes back to Earth. Unlike Chicago (sorry, they have Cutler and he'll never sniff that trophy) and Miami, San Diego is a legitimate Super Bowl contender and they smacked around Buffalo pretty good.
15. The Patriots are 2-1 but it's obvious Brady isn't what he used to be. They just barely scratched by Oakland and now they have to go to Kansas City on a Monday night, then play a really good Cincinnati squad six days later. Tough stretch.
14. Speaking of Kansas City, big win at Miami (where they rarely win in the first place) to keep them from 0-3. They play New England at home next Monday, then go to the Niners and San Diego. If they can somehow get to 3-3 after those first six, they have some winnable games after that.
13. Hoke has got to go at Michigan. Did anyone see how empty that stadium was in the fourth quarter with Michigan down 26-10?
12. Auburn beat K-State by six, but barely squeezed by. A win is a win, but K-State is going to be kicking themselves for the rest of the season after losing that one the way they did. Oh and as someone from a Nebraska family I don't want to hear that the flyover states can't compete with the great and mighty SEC. That is complete bollocks.
In the last year, Missouri won the SEC East (yes you read that right), Oklahoma beat Alabama in the Sugar Bowl and Tennessee about a week ago, Nebraska beat Georgia in its bowl game and K-State took Auburn (for the record, my national title pick) to the wire.
11. Alabama gets 645 yards on Florida. Yaaaaaaaay. Florida is a lame squad this year and Muschamp will likely be gone following the season so excuse me if I'm not impressed yet...Bama hasn't even played a ranked team yet. A&M, Mississippi State, LSU, Auburn have all beat at least one ranked team and three of those four teams won true road games. The best team Bama played was West Virginia who isn't ranked and only lost to them by 10...and Oklahoma by the way scored more points against WVU (on the road too) than Bama did.
10. Ryan Fitzpatrick is still not a very good NFL quarterback and for those Texans fans who say that he's anything more than decent...well, you can have your opinion and I'll disagree with it. They're going to be better than they look this year, but no playoffs.
9. If anyone has a panic button in San Francisco, now might be a really good time to hit it. That Ferrari they are running around with is 1-2 and got lapped in the second half each of the last two weeks. By the way, the Niners are getting outscored by a cumulative 52-3 in the second half of their games this year. Oh, and Arizona's for real. That's a physical, nasty, vicious football team.
8. I guess you can try and clean up a program as much as you can, but you can never really take the chippiness out of the Miami Hurricanes. Nice win for the Huskers, game that looked a little bit like old-school power football. Oh and that roughing the passer call on Nebraska was horrendous in that game. I know about the new roughing the passer rules in college, but if you watched the play the Miami player blocked our guy into the quarterback and the hit wasn't even below the knees.
7. Cal was up 31-13 at Arizona starting the fourth quarter but somehow manages to lose 49-45 on the last play of the game on a Hail Mary. How in the world does that happen?
6. Ravens kicked a game winning field goal to squeak by the Browns, but I like where the Browns are headed. They beat a New Orleans team that's pretty good and have been competitive in all of their first three games.
5. Sad weekend for LSU fans as they got upset by Mississippi State; first win in Baton Rouge for State since 1991. LSU's offense without Mettenberger is in a bad way this year.
4. Arkansas vs A&M is this week's most intriguing matchup. A&M started out as a double digit favorite but that line is now 8.5 points from what I see. Who's going to control the tempo...A&M's high powered, turbo charged attack or the Hogs rushing attack which ground Tech into the dust?
3. Very quickly regarding Winston...I find it as sort of weird that he got suspended, yet he was still on the sidelines. I'm not going to read anything into it more than that, I'm just saying, like Kirk Herbstreit mentioned on twitter, that it's just bizarre.
2. On another note, I think that game Saturday was FSU's best chance to lose. Now that they survived that game without Jameis, they should run the table easily to the four team playoff.
1. Denver may have lost to Seattle, but I think they showed well and it seems to me they are more equipped to beat the Seahawks than they were back in January. I remember saying right here back in January that Seattle was better because they could run the ball and they could play defense much better than Denver could. There is no longer a significant gap in those two areas. Seattle isn't going to be able to push Denver around anymore and I think when the playoffs start this year, Denver will be in much better position to win a title than they were last season. Remember, they're playing all the NFC West this year, so when the playoffs start, they will be mentally tougher than a year ago.
Bonus thoughts: The Kansas City Royals might make the MLB playoffs for the first time in 29 years, but it will be in spite of Ned Yost not because of him. There's a reason Milwaukee fired him in the middle of a pennant race when he was there...I'm looking forward to the Ryder Cup this weekend, but we are probably going to get hammered...Regardless of what happens with the Astros in the last week of the season, this season is significant progress...69 wins with still the possibility of avoiding 90 losses....The Rockets should have fired McHale after they lost to Portland in the playoffs. Keeping him will be a big mistake...And as far as a World Series prediction, Dodgers over Halos in 5.
Until next time...
Wednesday, March 12, 2014
More NFL free agency
Back with another blog post, as a couple of big pro football signings have happened plus I will make a correction on something.
First thing's first, the correction. I said last night the Texans still have Garrett Graham; I guess that may end up being true, but I would like to point out he is an unrestricted free agent. So, with them cutting Owen Daniels, and Garrett Graham being a free agent, the Texans depth chart has thinned out at that position considerably. Ryan Griffin is probably the leader of that group at this point.
As far as other pro football news, the big free agent signing since I last posted is Aqib Talib becoming a Denver Bronco. Obviously, the Patriots still have Brady and Belichick but that is a crushing blow. And it's a crushing blow to the Patriots because they not only lost a key player to the team they are competing with to get to the Super Bowl for the second straight year. No, this was crucial also because Talib, much like Ware was in Dallas, was a leader for that defensive unit.
The other big signing since I last posted is Jairus Byrd going from Buffalo to New Orleans. What strikes me about this one is that the Saints really, really needed that free agent signing and not just because the NFL is q quarterback/passing driven league now. No, more than that to me it's that the Saints have been losing key players, especially on defense. Will Smith, Jabari Greer, Roman Harper, Malcolm Jenkins...all gone and that doesn't include Lance Moore and Darren Sproles on offense.
They seem to be looking for a younger, faster group and Byrd is only 27. Now the one thing I will say; he's only 5'10 which will make it interesting when he goes up against some of the bigger wide receivers in that division like Julio Jones, for example who is 6'3. Granted, it's not like it will be the first time he's giving up a height advantage, but still to me it will be interesting to see how it plays out.
Until next time....
Erich
First thing's first, the correction. I said last night the Texans still have Garrett Graham; I guess that may end up being true, but I would like to point out he is an unrestricted free agent. So, with them cutting Owen Daniels, and Garrett Graham being a free agent, the Texans depth chart has thinned out at that position considerably. Ryan Griffin is probably the leader of that group at this point.
As far as other pro football news, the big free agent signing since I last posted is Aqib Talib becoming a Denver Bronco. Obviously, the Patriots still have Brady and Belichick but that is a crushing blow. And it's a crushing blow to the Patriots because they not only lost a key player to the team they are competing with to get to the Super Bowl for the second straight year. No, this was crucial also because Talib, much like Ware was in Dallas, was a leader for that defensive unit.
The other big signing since I last posted is Jairus Byrd going from Buffalo to New Orleans. What strikes me about this one is that the Saints really, really needed that free agent signing and not just because the NFL is q quarterback/passing driven league now. No, more than that to me it's that the Saints have been losing key players, especially on defense. Will Smith, Jabari Greer, Roman Harper, Malcolm Jenkins...all gone and that doesn't include Lance Moore and Darren Sproles on offense.
They seem to be looking for a younger, faster group and Byrd is only 27. Now the one thing I will say; he's only 5'10 which will make it interesting when he goes up against some of the bigger wide receivers in that division like Julio Jones, for example who is 6'3. Granted, it's not like it will be the first time he's giving up a height advantage, but still to me it will be interesting to see how it plays out.
Until next time....
Erich
Tuesday, March 11, 2014
Nebrasketball, NFL free agency, The Saban Rule and other Husker notes
It’s a great time for Husker athletics, and it’s the start
of NFL free agency, so I think with that going on plus the Super Bowl having
been contested a while ago, I think it’s time for a blog post. For the Huskers fans who are reading this, I’ll get to Nebrasketball in
a minute. That said, I’m a football guy, so I have to start with NFL free
agency plus talk about “The Saban Rule.”
Quick thought on the Super
Bowl rout; let’s be real, the best team won it all. I remember on this blog
saying it would be 34-20 Seattle, that the defense and running game would take
over but I never dreamed they would shut down Peyton Manning’s offense like
they did. I remember one thing Boomer Esiason said on the Westwood One broadcast
that really stuck out; the speed of the Seattle defense was what really gave
Denver’s offense issues. Denver’s offense is used to utilizing their speed
offensively but they couldn’t do that against Seattle because Seattle could run
with them.
Also, Seattle did a great job of playing physical. The one
play that stuck out; early in the game, Denver’s second offensive possession (I
think it was the one after the safety on the botched snap), they did a typical
Denver play by running about a five yard slant to Demaryius Thomas I think it
was. He got blasted right as he came across the middle. The second I saw that
play I knew Denver was in for a long evening.
One final thought about the Super Bowl; the NFC West is the
new NFC East. Does anyone remember in the early 90s when the NFC East won four
straight Super Bowls and five of six? The NFC West is the new version of it.
You had a Super Bowl champ in Seattle, a team in San Francisco that would have
won it all had they won the NFC title game (my opinion but I think they would
have), and even Arizona finished 10-6 but missed the playoffs. Even St. Louis
gave a lot of teams issues.
Free agency in the NFL started today and the big news
obviously around here in Texas is that the Cowboys cut DeMarcus Ware. Look, I
get that it saves them money against the salary cap (I think I heard tonight
that it saves them about seven million) but in this case, I really think you
have to pay the man his money. He’s only the all-time sack leader in franchise
history. He has been the linchpin of that defense for quite some time and they
are going to miss him greatly. I admit, I’m a defensive guy. I think defense
wins championships. You do not cut the leader of your defense even if he saves
you money against the cap.
Here in town, the Texans released Owen Daniels and Brice
McCain. I’m really not surprised about the Daniels release; the Texans also
have Garrett Graham who is pretty solid and it saves them some money against
the cap as well. For those reading this blog who aren't Texans fans and
wondering when Matt Schaub will be cut (and in my opinion he almost certainly
will be), the Texans save money against the cap if they cut him after June 1 so
I expect him to be released this summer.
Quick thought on the Saban Rule (as Steve Spurrier called it). For those who don't follow college ball, it was a rule proposal advocated by Nick Saban and Bret Bielema that was tabled which would have kept notable hurry up no huddle offenses such as Auburn, Oregon, Ole Miss, Texas A&M and others from snapping the ball within the first 10 seconds of college football's 40 second play clock. I'm not real sure anyone is fooled by Saban's backing of this rule; in my view was almost predictable considering what happened to Bama against Auburn and Oklahoma's hurry up offenses. And Saban has been complaining about hurry up no huddle offenses since 2012.
His attempts at backing this rule were rather hilarious also. To wit, when confronted with there being no direct evidence that hurry up offenses are more dangerous for the sport (Saban was talking about player safety a lot with this proposal, he says that, "I guess you have to use some logic...If you smoke one
cigarette, do you have the same chance of getting cancer if you smoke 20? I
guess there’s no study that specifically says that."
Really, Nick? His ridiculous attempt of trying to compare no huddle offenses to smoking cigarettes was laughable. Thank goodness this rule got tabled; there needs to be a serious discussion about this rule before it even has a chance to be enacted. I personally think coaches should run whatever kind of offenses they want to run.
Now, as far as this winter in Nebraska athletics, it’s been
a hell of a ride. It’s March 11, spring football is underway and I’m friends
with many Husker fans on Facebook…and most of us are talking NCAA tournament
instead of spring football. It really is remarkable. Connie Yori’s women’s hoops program has been a consistent winner over the last several years and just won
the Big 10 women’s conference tournament for the first time ever; their success
is not surprising.
But what Tim Miles has done in Lincoln has been nothing
short of remarkable and shocking all at once. It really is a Cinderella, fairy
tale season because at one point the team was 0-4 and then 3-6 in conference
play and we all thought we’d have to wait another year to contend.
But they started playing better, gathered some momentum and
now here they are at 11-7 and on the verge of an unlikely journey to the NCAA
Tournament for the first time since 1998. The new arena the team has in the Haymarket district of Lincoln has helped and the crowd definitely helped them win the game
against Wisconsin Sunday, but I knew Miles would make them a contender eventually
having watched the team last year. With him at the helm they are just a fundamentally sound team. I just didn't think it would happen so fast,
especially when they started 0-4 in conference play.
The future is very bright for Tim Miles’ team as all three
of Terran Petteway, Shavon Shields and Walter Pitchford are just sophomores and
the team has a defense that can frustrate anybody. I want to see how they do in
Indianapolis but I think this team can make some noise in the Big Dance. I feel
especially wonderful for all those people who went to the old Devaney Sports
Center and saw some miserable basketball over the past 15-some odd years and
now are getting the chance to see this remarkable run.
Couple of other Husker notes before I end this blog post; I
like what Darin Erstad’s baseball program has this year. They struggled a bit
out of the gate as Kyle Kubat, considered the ace of the pitching staff, was
dealing with injury but they still beat Oregon State in a preseason tournament
down in Arizona when the Beavers were No. 1 in the country and the team is
starting to hit its stride a bit with UC-Irvine coming to town.
Also, I find it curious that Bo Pelini’s squad has Jamal
Turner taking snaps…at QUARTERBACK…in spring football. This is a three year
wide receiver that is now making a transition to quarterback. I question this;
why would they make the switch so late in Jamal Turner’s career?
I'll get to the Rockets in a future blog post although they have been playing very well until tonight also. Until next time....
Erich
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
Ten Things I Learned Over the Last Year
Hello, my friends,
Sorry I haven't been with you in some time, it's been what, almost a year? But in 2014, I'm going to look to get back into this blog a bit more. So it is that I come to you from a freezing, yes a freezing, Gulf Shores, Alabama. That is unbelievable in and of itself and I will touch on that in this fairly brief blog post. There will be more blog posts coming about this past year in general including some experiences I had at Reliant Stadium of all places. But for now, here are ten things I learned over the last year or so:
1. I will never, EVER, EVER badmouth someone from the South again for not being able to handle cold weather, especially for people from the South who do not know how to handle icy roads. I come from the Midwest so I saw ice and snow a lot during my youth and saw it again during college. But this ice storm that has hit the deep Southeastern U.S., well...it exposes just how inexperienced people down here are at these driving conditions. You have to feel for them honestly and you can't say anything too bad because they just don't know how to handle it. I apologize if I have ever offended any Southerner for not being able to handle icy road weather. It's tough, it really is. When this region gets even a bit of ice, everything shuts down and you can't honestly blame them.
2. There are good people in this world, very good people in fact and especially some of those within the Texans organization. My thanks to Amy Palcic and those associated with the Houston Texans and Lone Star Sports and Entertainment for giving me the opportunity to write about some events at Reliant Stadium (and not just Texans games). I will touch on that in a future blog post.
3. Officiating in football and basketball is atrocious, especially college basketball. I watched a Michigan State-Iowa basketball game recently where a team shot 40-something free throws (Iowa I think it was). That should never happen.
4. The Huskers are still mediocre as ever. Never mind the win over UGA, they still struggled to win nine games with a schedule that called for 11 wins minimum. But they lost three home games and the Iowa game especially was a huge black eye for Husker football.
5. I am not Gary Kubiak's biggest supporter, but appreciate the time he took to thank the Houston fans in a Chronicle full page ad after the Texans removed him as coach.
6. Make no mistake, the 1971 Game of the Century is still the greatest college football game ever played. Yes it was way better than that Texas/USC national title game. However, I am willing to consider the 2013 Iron Bowl in the conversation. It was a classic game with a classic ending.
7. I do not like Texas (or Texas A&M for that matter) but I think if the hotheaded Texas boosters stay out of Charlie Strong's way he will make them a winner again. He is a tough coach who will ruffle feathers but that is exactly what Texas needed. Texas did not need a yes-man for a coach, they need a tough hombre who will instill discipline and make them a winning program again.
8. Speaking of winners, Gus Malzahn capturing the Bear Bryant Coach of the Year award (irony of the day right there, a third Auburn coach winning the Bryant award) does not even begin to tell the story of what he did in ONE year at Auburn. Alabama fans better get used to losing some games to Malzahn. Auburn is for real. I also think Saban panicked by bringing aboard the lightning rod Lane Kiffin to run his offense. That is the first time I've seen Saban panic since he got to Bama.
9. My guess is that Goodell (Roger Goodell for those who don't know) will never again hold a Super Bowl in a place like New York. That whole week is more than just a football game.
10. Seattle wins the game Sunday. 34-20 I think. I am for Denver because I am tired of hearing about how great Seattle fans are but I think Marshawn Lynch and their defense win the game.
Until next time....
Erich
Sorry I haven't been with you in some time, it's been what, almost a year? But in 2014, I'm going to look to get back into this blog a bit more. So it is that I come to you from a freezing, yes a freezing, Gulf Shores, Alabama. That is unbelievable in and of itself and I will touch on that in this fairly brief blog post. There will be more blog posts coming about this past year in general including some experiences I had at Reliant Stadium of all places. But for now, here are ten things I learned over the last year or so:
1. I will never, EVER, EVER badmouth someone from the South again for not being able to handle cold weather, especially for people from the South who do not know how to handle icy roads. I come from the Midwest so I saw ice and snow a lot during my youth and saw it again during college. But this ice storm that has hit the deep Southeastern U.S., well...it exposes just how inexperienced people down here are at these driving conditions. You have to feel for them honestly and you can't say anything too bad because they just don't know how to handle it. I apologize if I have ever offended any Southerner for not being able to handle icy road weather. It's tough, it really is. When this region gets even a bit of ice, everything shuts down and you can't honestly blame them.
2. There are good people in this world, very good people in fact and especially some of those within the Texans organization. My thanks to Amy Palcic and those associated with the Houston Texans and Lone Star Sports and Entertainment for giving me the opportunity to write about some events at Reliant Stadium (and not just Texans games). I will touch on that in a future blog post.
3. Officiating in football and basketball is atrocious, especially college basketball. I watched a Michigan State-Iowa basketball game recently where a team shot 40-something free throws (Iowa I think it was). That should never happen.
4. The Huskers are still mediocre as ever. Never mind the win over UGA, they still struggled to win nine games with a schedule that called for 11 wins minimum. But they lost three home games and the Iowa game especially was a huge black eye for Husker football.
5. I am not Gary Kubiak's biggest supporter, but appreciate the time he took to thank the Houston fans in a Chronicle full page ad after the Texans removed him as coach.
6. Make no mistake, the 1971 Game of the Century is still the greatest college football game ever played. Yes it was way better than that Texas/USC national title game. However, I am willing to consider the 2013 Iron Bowl in the conversation. It was a classic game with a classic ending.
7. I do not like Texas (or Texas A&M for that matter) but I think if the hotheaded Texas boosters stay out of Charlie Strong's way he will make them a winner again. He is a tough coach who will ruffle feathers but that is exactly what Texas needed. Texas did not need a yes-man for a coach, they need a tough hombre who will instill discipline and make them a winning program again.
8. Speaking of winners, Gus Malzahn capturing the Bear Bryant Coach of the Year award (irony of the day right there, a third Auburn coach winning the Bryant award) does not even begin to tell the story of what he did in ONE year at Auburn. Alabama fans better get used to losing some games to Malzahn. Auburn is for real. I also think Saban panicked by bringing aboard the lightning rod Lane Kiffin to run his offense. That is the first time I've seen Saban panic since he got to Bama.
9. My guess is that Goodell (Roger Goodell for those who don't know) will never again hold a Super Bowl in a place like New York. That whole week is more than just a football game.
10. Seattle wins the game Sunday. 34-20 I think. I am for Denver because I am tired of hearing about how great Seattle fans are but I think Marshawn Lynch and their defense win the game.
Until next time....
Erich
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