Book Review - Hamilton "Beyond Belief"

I read Josh Hamilton's autobiography which ran through the 2008 All-Star game when he put on the home run derby show.  Once again, a quick read.  Some things I took away from it:

• Up until draft month when he was a senior, it was hotly debated on whether he would pitch or play the field.  He was a first-round prospect either way, but once in a lifetime in the field.  His Dad tried to get him to take it easy on the mound so teams wouldn't insist that he pitch in the minors.
• He was always injury prone, even before the drugs, he had back, knee, elbow issues.
• When he was 18 he went to spring training with the Rays; Canseco was there and challenged him to a quick round of home-run derby; the young Josh promptly whacked 6 in a row out and left the rest of the team in awe (Canseco hit 3)
• At class A Bakersfield at the age of 20 he hit a homer that left the park and landed on a levee in the mud.  The team measured it at 549 ft.
• Getting inside the head of an addict makes you realize the hopelessness of it.  It's hard to understand how they can ever recover when they get that deep.
• He walked into the Reds clubhouse in 2007 having played a total of 8 class A games in the past 4 years and never having an at-bat above AA.  He hit .420 in spring training.
• After the trade to Texas, he trained back home in NC with football players from UNC and NC St.  He was timed at 4.5 in the 40 while running with the football players.  4.5!  His vertical was 32 in.
• It is fact that Michael Young, Ian Kinsler, and Hank Blalock came to his first press conf with the Rangers unannounced.  It left a huge impression on Josh and he has been close with Kinsler ever since.  The Rangers have a great clubhouse.
• He loves the movie "The Natural".  Go figure.

Tragedy and triumph.  We missed his prime and the combination of age, drugs, and injuries mean he'll never reach his potential.  We got to see 3 months of the best Hamilton had to offer last summer and it was breathtaking.  He is too injury prone to play center field now, robbing us of that pleasure.  Good pitchers can work him over because of his lack of plate discipline.  Watch enough and you get to see things only a few people ever could do.  But every day on the field is a miracle for him.  It makes for a great story (movie?).

S

Money Ball

I watched Money Ball last night and I loved it.

My respect for Beane and his brainy Assistant GM.
It is rare that I envy anyone, but there are points of genius in the things these guys did that are amazing.

The conversations were so similar to what you and I, s, discussed in the early 80's while reading the Baseball encyclopedia and Bill James books.

I wish someone would have been around to see some of the formulas you devised in late 70's and 80's comparing players.  S, You will enjoy this movie.

J.

Rangers-Rays

My heart is in Texas, but the Rays worry me to death.  They are MoneyBall all the way, with 220 hitters getting on base and scoring with pressure hits.

If Hamilton was healthy, I would be less concerned with the Rangers Defense. 

But this Rangers team seems to like each other again, so I will go with the Micheal Young factor of unselfish team players and pick the Rangers in 5.

J.

NYY-DET

Through out my life, I have come to believe that team with "THE ACE OF THE YEAR" and a special player always win in a short series. 

So with that thought in mind, I lean toward the upset of the Yankees and the 210-plus run number for the year.

Detroit has Verlander and Superman Cabrera, so I say Tigers in 4.
  My deciding factor was Fister has been untouchable of late.

J.

Red Sox and Braves.

I was pretty happy watching 4 games tonight and thinking I might get to watch a one game playoff.

Then the conclusion of the collapses.

The Braveless finished Sept 9-18 and the Red Sux at 7-18,  these teams have too much money to miss the playoffs by what I see as a lack of talent.

J.

5 Games I will watch Saturday.

1.  Hogs-Aggies-  Maybe Petrino pulled Wilson with 10 minutes left to avoid him getting hurt last week.
The Aggies need this one after that collapse, but I think the Hogs win again.

2. Baylor-KState-  There is no way the great Snyder allows RGIII to do what he did against TCU.  I hope he does, but it will not happen.  Baylor by 2.

3.  Fla-Bama -  Lets see how McCarron handles this speed. Florida has the talent all over the field.  But I am not sure they Florida offensive Line is equal to Bama and LSU.   Bama by 7.

4. Wisconsin-Nebraska    Lets watch Pellini explode.
Badgers by 6.

5.   VTech-Clemson-  The first test for my surprise team playing in title game.  I like Clemson as a team, but V Tech just wins. Beamer Ball!

Curious Games
-Auburn -S Carolina-  Auburn will score, everything depends on the Bi-Polar Garcia. Will he be Garcia against Bama or the one against GA and Navy.
-Horn-Cyclones   -  The disgust Coach Mack showed last year after this loss was legendary.  This is still part of the Chiznik recruits at Iowa State so they could play it close thru 3 quarters.
-Mississippi State at Georgia  -  Its funny that Mullen, who is mentioned to replace Richt,  has to come in with a totally depleted offensive and defensive line.  I really hope State gets rolling, I want this win to exceed 14 points.

J.

How did I miss this Quote from ND about Buckeyes?

Quote from Brian Kelly after sluggish start:

“Again, as you see the schedule, Ohio State is playing Toledo. I mean, teams are playing easy games early on in the schedule. We don’t get that luxury. We have to go play in front of 115,000 [at Michigan Stadium]. Those mistakes are more glaring against opponents that are physically pretty good, as well.


I just have to laugh! 
South Florida and Michigan are really scary.
j.

Reyes Removes Himself after Bunt for chance at Batting Title

I am really curious to know what you think on this subject.

Reyes told his manager before the game he wanted to come out if he got a hit in first at bat.

Maybe I should be mad at Reyes, but I am not, disappointed maybe.  I miss the drama.
If he wins the batting crown he gets his name in the record books and I cannot fault him for that.

So, Braum needed a 3 for 4 night to pass Reyes.  He is 0-2 as I type this.
 I really hoped he would get the hits.

J.

Wall Street Journal Article on SEC.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204422404576592773857297688.html?mod=WSJ_article_CollegeFootballHeadlines


The chant: The SEC will ask its fans to wait until game's end to start chanting "S-E-C!", after the TV cameras have been turned off and the defeated team's fans have filed out of the stadium. This provision was issue No. 1 on the non-Southern schools' agenda. "Our alumni all across the country say the same thing," said an official representing the other major conferences. "Make it stop."

j

Academic Standing by Conference

Everyone knows that I gag when some commisioner or AD's says that academics are the reason they didn't choose a specific team.  Notice the Big 10 accepting Nebraska and the rejection of Missouri.
This is from the Wallstreet Journal.
j,

Making the Grade

How each school fared in U.S. News & World Report rankings and federal research expenditures. Plus, the average ranking for each conference

CONFERENCE	AVG.
ACC Boston College (31, 203); Clemson (68, 132); Duke (10, 13); Florida St. (101, 90); Georgia Tech (36, 28); Maryland (55, 40); Miami (38, 62); UNC (29, 17); NC St. (101, 71); Virginia (25, 48); Virginia Tech (71, 69); Wake Forest (25, 66)	59.5
Big East Cincinnati (143, 46); Connecticut (58, 131); Louisville (164, 116); Pittsburgh (58, 12); Rutgers (68, 72); South Florida (181, 60); Syracuse (62, 189); West Virginia (164, 121)	102.8
Big Ten Illinois (45, 32); Indiana (75, 120); Iowa (71, 45); Michigan (28, 3); Michigan St. (71, 65); Minnesota (68, 18); Nebraska (101, 111); Northwestern (12, 34); Ohio St. (55, 21); Penn St. (45, 19); Purdue (62, 57); Wisconsin (42, 8)	50.3
Big 12 Baylor (75, 350); Iowa St. (97, 98); Kansas (101, 138); Kansas St. (143, 139); Missouri (90, 93); Oklahoma (101, 162); Oklahoma St. (132, 159); Texas (45, 23); Texas A&M (58, 38); Texas Tech (160, 209)	120.6
Pac-12 Arizona (124, 29); Arizona St. (132, 75); California (21, 37); Colorado (94, 47); Oregon (101, 134); Oregon St. (138, 86); Stanford (5, 4); UCLA (25, 10); USC (23, 20); Utah (124, 58); Washington (42, 2); Washington St. (115, 101)	64.5
SEC Alabama (75, 190); Arkansas (132, 174); Auburn (82, 136); Florida (58, 44); Georgia (62, 97); Kentucky (124, 64); LSU (128, 114); Mississippi (143, 169); Mississippi St. (157, 96); South Carolina (111, 100); Tennessee (101, 84); Vanderbilt (17, 22)	103.3
Independents Notre Dame (19, 123)	71

Vick- S, this is for you.

Vick Quote:

“My kids were killing me about that. That was a good one,” Vick said smiling. “That was a good one. I guess when you sit on the podium and you make excuses like that, then you’re going to be labeled a crybaby, so maybe I did deserve it.”

“Once again, I want to apologize for what I said. I think I was frustrated because I got hit late and I hurt my hand on that play and I couldn’t finish the game because of that,” Vick said. “That was one of the reasons I was frustrated.
“I don’t want any special treatment. All I want to do is go out and play my game. If they feel there’s a need to make a call, then they’ll make it, if not, then I won’t say anything about it.”

j

Miles compared to Jimmy Johnson- Really?

I almost choked with laughter!  I am starting to understand some of the coaching decisions in the NFL.

Quote:

Mike Freeman of CBSSports.com writes that the perception some NFL executives have of the “wacky, Mad Hatter” persona of Les Miles “is changing drastically” and the LSU coach “will definitely be pursued by teams in need of a head coach at the end of the season.” NFL executives went so far as to intimate Miles is a 21st-century Jimmy Johnson; the current FOX pregame personality was a very successful coach at the collegiate level before transitioning to the NFL, winning two Super Bowls with the Dallas Cowboys in the mid-nineties.

“He’s the most intriguing coaching prospect I’ve seen in a long time,” one team executive told Freeman. “I think he has a great deal of talent and can deal with the modern athlete.”

j

LSU image

The day after our discussion about the Tigers acting like thugs on TV and in games, some of the player, Mathieu says they will be toning it down.   He said the Refs were noticing the classy crap.   I have a feeling Les got wind of the displays on the sideline from Saturday night.

This with the Jefferson/team brawl is not going to go over well with some of the LSU money men.

This is not as bad as the 4 Auburn players arrested for armed robbery or the 4 arrested in one week at Rice.
But it is something Lester better get control of, nothing he has done in the past suggest he will put up with too much.

J.

Jordan Jefferson

Now that Jefferson was charged with simple battery instead of the felony, I hope Miles and LSU will come out and say NO.
Johns had all charges dropped.

Jefferson's Attorney said the suspension was lifted at the same time. 
So maybe, Miles is caving for a reason I just don't understand.   Recruiting Maybe?
J.

I am sick of the entire story and the image problems it creates.

Bama Media image- Someone is after St Nick.

I commented a few months back about Sports By Brooks targeting Bama players for spending time in known Boosters company away from school functions to help sell suits and shoes.
  Some of his articles discussed Ingram and Jones and the vehicles they were driving while at Bama.
Well now Brooks and Travis have an article on Jr RB- Richardson.  His now the owner of  $40000.00 plus Yukon with Ga plates. . He was caught doing 85 in a 70 supposedly.  
Future Earnings they call the loan I believe.
Figure this out, 11 months ago Richardson owned a 2010 Yukon.

Travis even mentions Brooks in his article as a Bama antagonist.
Bama is in someones cross hairs.  
Do you think the War Eagle fans are feeding the fire to get back at the Cam investigation.
j

Rumor on SEC network.

Just a rumor, but Clay Travis' article is interesting and rings of something that has already started.
In an effort to avoid the Horn's Network jealous fits, Slive is supposed to have started talks and the rest is speculation.
This is similar to the successful Big 10, but with a more loyal and devoted fan base to sell. 
Especially if you know have at least Texas market and possibly another top 10 market coming.

Forget the extra money from tier 1 and 2 which is supposed to approach 26million, focus on the remainder.
The Tier 3 rights is what the Horn Network and Tiger Vision kick in...  LSU around 7.5 million.
Currently the SEC leaves these to local teams with Fla and GA over 10 million already but less than the 15 million tier 3 for Texas.

This is the fun part for the SEC!
Slive is supposedly shopping the entire network on Tier 3.
Estimated values start at 12million per team- Maybe more depending on where 14-16 come from. Especially if Missouri and a couple of strong ACC Basketball schools join in...  Basketball would fall under here also.   Crazy Money.

This type of deal would put a school like OLE MISS ahead of the Texas Longhorn and Ohio State Buckeyes in revenue.

I really don't blame the schools for doing the this, but I sure do miss the SWC and Big 8.
j

Artilcle on where starting college QB's are from.

59 of 120 - of the starting quarterbacks for FBS teams this season are from three states, and five states have produced almost two-thirds of the nation's starting quarterbacks.
Not surprisingly, California (25), Texas (19) and Florida (15) rank first through third in producing this season's starting quarterbacks. When Ohio (eight) and Virginia (seven) are added, that's 74 starters - or 62 percent. No other state has more than five, and, in all, 29 states have produced at least one starter.

When I look more closely I find 12 of the 19 from Texas at Big Programs.
9 from California  7 From Florida.   Virginia had 7 at big schools also.
http://collegefootball.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1270793
J.

Presidents Cup.

Couples chose Tiger and Haas for the team in November.
Rough choice on Haas over Bradley, I would have Bradley in my top 4 for player of the year and Haas nowhere close.

The media guys, said Haas from the beginning because of Couples relationship with Jay Haas, the Co-Captain, evidently they are very close.

I heard Freddy say that it wouldn't be fair to have the Presidents cup where people cannot watch Tiger.

Both picks are questionable, but I understand- Kind of.

If Tiger had any honor he would have withdrawn his name, but his entire history shows he has NONE-Zippo!
Forget what you read, Forget that he was the BEST, just think about how he has treated fans and people who don't
pamper his ass.  He is a bully that was born with gifts the rest of them didn't have.  It is ashamed he was raised to treat people so badly and allow his workers to be so aggressive toward fans.   No excuses! None!.

Expected a bowed up Woods during after his time off,  I heard he is saying he is lifting again.
I guess he found a new Doctor to give transfusions, while giving his other clients other chemicals.
j

Fed Ex Title

Watching Bill Haas and Hunter Mahan in playoff for over 11 million dollars was really great golf.
Bunches of players collapsed coming down the stretch and Haas finally survived after his recent last day failures.

Then Haas hits a shot out of the pond to about 18inches on 2nd playoff hole and finally won it on 3rd hole.

Good stuff, but tformula used in the FED EX Cup is not obvious enough to translate to easy TV viewing.
The players waiting in clubhouse and the announcers were confused about the possible outcome.

The PGA needs to fix the formula.

J.

Romo and the emotional explosion.

It was really out of character for Romo to be so demonstrative last night.

I only have one explanation:

Romo was changed by the effect of the pain pills.  What else would change a person's personality?
The uber-cool Romo has spent years being the same laid back cat, some would say to his on detriment.

I remember Bradie James comment on Romo after his first game with as the starter.
"Romo has always acted like he was cooler than everyone else, even when he was a nobody."
I may have missed few words in that quote years ago, but you get the jest.

j.

Aggies - Ready for the SEC.

I love the Aggies addition to the SEC, the SEC needed this and so did Texas A&M.
The SEC is sometimes too insular and this will help.

The Aggies will take a while, like Arkansas and SC, to move into contention, but unlike the Ark and SC the resources in College Station are at the top of the SEC. 

I sent a friend of mine that graduated from College Station a note and he was very happy to get away from what he called "The Big Texas Conference."  They may suffer through some problems, but at least the team coming in is more competitve that the 90's Hogs and Cocks teams.
-
In my note I mentioned in last 20 years the SEC has won 37% of National Titles (23) in the 3 major sports.

9-Football
8-Baseball
5-Basketball
(If I added another year they win another Baseball title in 90. GA)

Vick's Whining

Regarding Michael Vick and the Eagles whining about not getting calls; the NFL is creating this culture where QB's and receivers think they should be able to run free and do whatever they please without getting touched.  I'm on board with stopping head shots, but otherwise the league should send the message that if you want to protect your players, figure it out on the field.  If you want a mobile QB, you can't have it both ways.  Don't sign a running QB and field a porous O-line, and expect the league to protect you.  Figure it out!

S

Cy Young

I hope the voters look closely and award the NL Cy Young to Clayton Kershaw.  Halladay had a great year and plays for the better team, but Kershaw was slightly better in all categories.  I believe he ended up leading in the 3 triple crown categories of pitching.  Kershaw was in the news quite a bit while at Highland Park and has flourished quickly in the bigs.  He deserves the award despite playing for a poor team.

S

Parity

All right, so I miss the possibility of dynasties like we had in previous decades, but I have to admit how much fun it is to watch the NFL and know how quickly you can turn the corner (or crater).  Bills are a forgotten franchise?  Not so fast!  If you have a good GM/scouting and hire the right coach, you can get good quickly.  Likewise, you can be the darlings one year, and dogs the next (Chiefs).  It really is awesome as fans to know that the way the NFL is set up, you can get there with a couple of good drafts and the right coach.

S

Tigers #1

Let's celebrate the Tigers rising to #1 in the AP for the first time since 2007.  With the brutal schedule ahead, we might as well go ahead and enjoy it while we can.  I can't believe the start to this season!  Three wins against ranked teams, away from home, all on national TV.

My head is getting big with Allen ranked #1, LSU ranked #1, the Rangers heading to the playoffs.  It's all good!  Just need the Cowboys to get with the program.

S

Halftime Game 3. RGIII

Craziest stat I have ever seen, especially considering how many yards and attempts Baylor has.

Griffin has 12 incompletions all year and 12 TD's.  0 INT.  84 compl percentage.  860 yards.
Can he be this good?

J.

What happened to Plano football?

I was actually embarrased for the Plano fans and kids last night.  Plano has one of the strongest football traditions in the state and their fans are terrific; no matter where we see Plano, the stands are full.  Last night this usually proud program should have been ashamed at their effort.  On homecoming night at Clark Stadium the Wildcats mustered 110 yards of offense and 6 first downs, trailing 44-7 when we bailed after 3 quarters.  That coaching staff has to go.  There is no excuse for Plano to ever get treated like that by anyone.  They did not play hard and looked confused most of the time.  This was once the best program in the state!  Just terrible coaching.  Terrible.

S

Rangers Win!

Outstanding job by the entire organization following up on the World Series year.  Daniels first delivers improvement at the catcher position where the team was better both offensively and defensively.  Then signs Beltre who despite injury played gold glove 3rd and had a fine year at the plate.  Washington juggled through injuries to Cruz, Hamilton, and Beltre, and Maddux got max production from the kids at the end of the rotation.

Playoffs - the rotation doesn't scare anyone, but neither does anyone else's in the AL.  I think the Rangers still lead the league in batting average and if healthy are dangerous throughout the lineup.  Bullpen is in pretty good shape.  They can make a run, but I still cringe when any of our starters are out there other than Wilson (who is going to get rich).  Right now, you have to love the organization as a whole.

S

College Day- Rolling Comment week 3.

-The early games are so bad, I had to watch Golf on Saturday during the day.
-Houston NUTT is getting worse.   GA sucks
-PITT-ND game in the Heinz Field had empty seats( and more than a few.)
   Football up North is just not the same if its not on campus or close to the Southern Regions. 
- Did you see that the former Pitt Board Member and Steel Tycoon donated 125 Million to the School.  That is how to fit into the ACC!
- I heard the Calling of the Hogs during the Kickoff - Love it, but I doubt it last.
- Bad sign for the Tide to start the game.- Offensive Line Penalty First Play-  None the year they won the NC.
- Saban with a fake FG is bad news for Arkansas, it means he thinks he could lose with conservative play. So they will come after Arkansas and both sides of the ball unless they get ahead by more than 14 in the 4th.
- OKLAHOMA STATE UNIFORMS are as BAD as HOUSTON NUTT Coaching.  They deserve to lose for wearing this.
- I am conflicted on Clemson-Fla State,  I don't know if I can pull for NOLES after the OKIE game.
- Tannehill really is accurate throwing on the move.
-Wilson fits Petrino better than Mallet.  Petrino will adjust.
-Why do LSU/Bama/Fla seem to have more 6-4 250 DE/LB's running 4.5 and lower than the rest of nation combined.
- I think the DLine in the Hog and Cowboy locker rooms at half will be thinking the same thing.  "Deep Down They Know"
-Clemson had 3 drives over 77 yards for TD in first half.
-Did you see the FG at Syracuse?  Brando toasted the Big East Official and Replay man.  Toledo won the game... Robbery.
-Difference, beside athletes, Aggies vs Alabama  -  Bama knows what to do when they get you in trouble.  Aggies are trying to learn.
-Petrino gets ripped for no defense against big schools.  I can live with his lack of defense, bad special teams is another issue.
-Bama is just too big and fast for these teams without serious talent.  Only 2 teams can stand up to them in my uninformed opinion.
- Aggies-  What are those Aggies jokes?  or did I say choked under the pressure.  Hate it, but it seems to be what happened.
I made a comment earlier this week Aggies wouldn't make 5 Turnovers.  4 against that non-defense.  Just ugly. 


j.

TV Markets for CFB. New York Times

Little surprise on numbers but I do find Birmingham's numbers on following college football amazing. 85%

The authors did make some probable errors on most popular teams saying Auburn ahead of other SEC teams.

We can guess on 3 things:

1. LSU has more fans per resident in a state that than either Alabama school. Has the same population and the state stops for LSU football on Saturdays.
2.  Ditto for Arkansas and probably even more die hard, .  The state is smaller but it is wild.
3. Bama owns the state of AL not Auburn.

I will leave Fla and Ga out of the conversation, even though we know because of the states being bigger they have more veiwers.   

The Aggies will probably jump way up the list... 10% of Texas is more than anyone in the SEC.  Add the SEC product and suddenly Aggies are really an important addition in Houston and Dallas.   Big 12 TV has to be concerned.
The SEC makes itself a player in 5 of top 10 markets by adding just the Aggies.
Looking at this does make you wonder if two Texas Teams would have been better.  But the top 20 includes the Mo. and North Carolina-VA markets.

It is interesting even if it is wrong.    They cannot really think the Irish have fallen this far.
It is like they forget ND fans are life long and just dormant, similar to Cowboy fans.

J.

Hogs-Bama

As much as I respect Petrino and his schemes, I do not think the Hogs will win this game.
The DLine and LB at Bama are just too strong,   Saban is well known for being the best DB coach in college football, so I see a problem for the Hogs.

I hope Arkansas comes out as hot as they did last year against Saban, but I doubt it will happen.

Saban can win this game without changing his method of slowly beating up the Hogs and winning it after the half.

J.

Aggies-Cowboys

When I initially saw this game coming, I was a strong OSU supporter in a win.
Then I started reading about some previous games and looked deeper. Last year 38-35 in Stillwater.

Aggies Defense is better than last year and so is the offense.  SMU and Idaho were pretty good tune-ups for the scheme that the Cowboys will throw at the Ag Defense.   Both teams try to spread the field.   Meanwhile, OSU played better competition in Washington and Tulsa, but Tulsa torched them on the ground.  359 yds rushing.   Not a good sign with Aggies next up,  Time of possession was lopsided last year in Stillwater and I doubt the Aggies will turnover the ball 5 times Saturday.

College Station will be rocking for this game.
  Aggies won the last two games against top 10 teams. (Okla and Neb)
I will pick the Aggies in this one.

I do expect them to lose next week to the Hogs.

J.

Allen Rises to #1 on Rivals Hot 100

A moment to recognize a bit of a milestone for the Allen football program.  This week they are ranked as the nation's top team on Rivals.com.  I moved to Allen 10 years ago and there was a lot of talk about the potential of the football program.  They hired Joe Martin who had won 5A state at Garland and they began to get noticed.  Before long it was mentioned as the best job in the state.  It's been building and building and certainly the national scouts are taking notice.  Morris will be their 4th straight QB to sign with a BCS school.  Achieving the #1 spot is just kind of cool for the community and the players.

Now, do I buy it?  Not really.  Most of these top Rivals programs have several titles to their credit.  Allen has 1.  They have dominated a tough district, but have a recent history of under-achieving in the playoffs outside of 2008.  The defense is usually shaky, although looks fairly stout this year.  They haven't shown a running game yet, which has been a trademark in big games in the past.  Only 3 games in, so much left to be seen, but I have a hard time looking at them as actually the best team in the entire nation.

S

LSU Defense.

I made a comment the other day that LSU is more aggressive than any team I have seen in college since the Hurricane monsters.

I found the line-up today for an age review.
The Tigers are going to be deadly for a few years.  Miles has recruited some serious talent.

Evidently they play 22 players.
5 Seniors
3 Juniors
12 sophomores
1 Freshman
The Seniors are definitely not the special ones.
** 8 DLine- 1 Sr, 1 Fr, 2 JR. ,4 sophomores.

J.

NBA TV Celtics and Larry Bird

I recorded the Larry Bird special on the NBA channel.

I had forgotten what Bird really was, he was the what other players are said to be.
He made his teammates better and if needed he could literally take over any game.  This statement is overused, but with Bird, I actually believe it.
I still remember the Hawk game where hit 60 from everywhere, and it is the only time I ever saw the opposing team cheering for an opposing player. They even show a clip of the game he played left handed- He evidently told the media and players he was going to do it for 3 quarters the day before the game. (He scored 27 on Kersey by the end of the 3rd. Left Handed)

My favorite memory of Bird isn't from the NBA, its what we saw at Indiana State.
I hated that Indiana State(Yankee) team when they made it through about 20 games undefeated.
 Then I finally saw Larry Bird and I started to change.
S, as you know, my favorite team was Arkansas and even after the game in which they beat the hogs to make the Final 4, I went outside and started shooting in the driveway trying to emulate what he could do. 
Sidney Moncrief was my favorite player until that day.

Indiana State had never made the NCAA tournament until that year he took them to the Finals.
Jabbar is the greatest College Player Ever, Walton was the greatest I ever saw, but Bird did more with a less talented team than any player I have ever seen.

j.

Dave Gavitt

What are the odds that Dave Gavitt dies the same weekend that two of the Big East founding members apply for the ACC.

Gavitt changed the way college basketball was viewed with the Big East.
The man was a pioneer in marketing and deserves every bit of credit he received.
As founder of the Big East basketball, I wanted to pay my respects for the great product he produced.

J.

Big 12

So BYU is the leading candidate to replace the Aggies.  Interesting, Texas now has another school with Big TV money to join them.   I cannot find fault with this as an addition.   Except the Travel.
SMU and TCU must be depressed knowing that the BYU is getting their spot.

The Pac 12 was pretty specific that they couldn't get Texas to share on the money, I side with Texas on this, keep it they earned it.  It seems no Texas acceptance - No Oklahoma.

Oklahoma wants Beebe removed and it seems it will happen, funny thing is that Texas evidently didn't want Beebe when the Big 12 picked him.

TX AD Dodd comments say that he considers the Aggies already being part of the SEC. 

Busy week.
j

Dunta Robinson

Why doesn't the league make an example of someone like Dunta Robinson and suspend him for some games?  Guys like Robinson flaunt the rules and gladly pay the fines.  I happened to catch part of a show this week about great hitters in football history and they were talking about Steve Atwater.  Watching the old clips it is plain that guys like Atwater delivered big hits but did not lead with their head and try to spear people.  He had his head up and ran through people.  They were monster hits but usually chest high.  A plain difference from guys like Robinson that are trying to be missiles.  It makes me mad that these dirty players just ignore the fines and keep trying to kill somebody.

S

A 16 year Old Girl is Special.

Lexi Thompson won here first LPGA event this weekend in Alabama by 5 strokes becoming the youngest ever at 16(18 was the previous record)
In case you haven't seen her or read the story on her, here is a quick summary.

She is what Wie was supposed to be. 
 Her family is golf crazed, one brother is on nationwide tour and one is a frosh at LSU golf.

She has played in men's small tour events, but unlike Wie, she went in and tried to qualify.
Her father was criticized by some on tour for complaining about the way the courses were set up
in women's events.  They play the course too often where the length of people like Wie and Lexi are
nullified by the placement of the tees.

The LPGA created the problem by not giving her a membership because of her age, they want to wait until she is 18.
The stink is getting bigger with people like Inkster saying it is making the tour look bad.

J

My favorite Manager has to be Joe Madden.

After this past offseason, I didn't expect the Rays to get close to the big spenders in New York and Boston.
With Joe Madden pulling his magic again, they are 1 1/2 games out as I type.

I have no idea how they win so many close games and score so many runs when it matters.

Great Coach.
I do not see a way for them to pass the Red Sox with 7 games left out of 10 against the hated Yankees, but anything could happen.

J.

Justin Verlander

25 wins is possible! I really didn't think I would see it anytime in the near future.
24-5  2.29 ERA.  I am impressed and I love his interviews.

J.

The Original Sugar Ray

Today at lunch I was reading a story about Floyd Mayweather and his seeming obsession with his undefeated record. While putting Floyd’s 42-0 record into context, the author mentioned something that I think bears repeating. I think I’ve posted on this before, but we shouldn’t forget as time marches on. 

Flash back to the new year 1951. Sugar Ray Robinson was embarking on the 2nd phase of his career, moving up to middleweight. As he stood ready to fight old foe Jake LaMotta for the middleweight title, he was 29 years old and had a professional record of 120-1-2. He had held the welterweight title for 4+ years and was in the midst of an 82 fight unbeaten streak (with 2 draws). During the heyday of boxing, fighting in the glamorous welterweight division, from 1940-1950, Robinson fought 123 times and was beaten once (by LaMotta who Robinson then beat 5 consecutive times).

In 1951 and 1952 he won the middleweight crown, lost it, won it back, and defended it twice more. After knocking out the great Rocky Graziano to defend the title, he stood 131-2-2 for his career at 30 years old. After fighting the light heavyweight champ and retiring after 14 rounds due to heat exhaustion (leading on points), he retired for the first time. In 1955 he came back as a 34-yr old and won the middleweight crown 3 more times before retiring again in 1958 at age 37.

There is little room for doubt in my mind that Robinson was the greatest fighter ever. He was untouchable as a welterweight and outstanding as an aging middleweight. He fought everyone of note including several hall of famers. He once reeled off 91 fights in a row without a loss. Mayweather and his paltry 42-0 record don’t even make a dent.

S

Hamilton

I find myself checking the Box Scores ever day, hoping Hamilton will get hot in last few games.
I want the 300 average and 100 RBI's.

I know he has to be hurt with that flipping of the bat swing, I miss the explosive hip turn in his at bats.

j.

NFL - SANS COWBOYS.

- Fred Jackson for Buffalo has impressed me again.  A Fort Worth born kid, that played Div III ball at Coe, always goes forward when he is hit.  6.5yds per carry so far.
- Matty Ice finallly showed me the Zip on his ball I heard he had..
- Vick is never going to play 16 games, but Reids offense will still win the East. 
- Eagles still miss the deceased Defensive genius J Johnson.
- Cam Newton was 5th player ever with back to back 400 plus games. Brady was sixth later in the day.
- I cannot even explain Cam Newton, but I enjoy watching it.
- Brady is on fire, but I still think 3 teams in NFC are better.  Saints, Packers and Eagles.
- Why are Saints players mad at Rodgers for mocking the media about Packers lack of off season team training.
- Vikings need an overhaul in coaching department.
- Redskins, 8-8 at best.
- Did the Packers DB's get old over night?
- Norv Turner is not Belicheat.
- Colts front offense and coaching isn't so special now that Manning is gone.
- KC loses Charles and Berry, Haley is going to aleinate the entire team before this year is over.
- Steve Smith isn't too old, 23.9 yds per catch.  334 yds.
- Breea and Rodger have no int thru 2 games.   They will play for Super Bowl.
- Chris Johnson 2.3 yds per rush.
- Its good to see McFadden healthy at 5.3 yds per carry and 2nd in yards rush.  Peterson is still the best.

LSU - Bama Road to Superdome.

The more I look at LSU and Bama schedules the more impressed I am.
After going to Happy Valley, Bama gets ARK, Tenn and LSU at home. 
On the road for FLA, MState and Auburn.
LSU
They have already had Oregon and Mstate on the road.
Next up W VA, Bama, and Tenn on the road.
Home- Fla, Auburn and Arkansas.

LSU has looked better than Bama, but I still lean toward Saban at home.
Florida is still a big concern. If Bama gets by Arkansas this week, they travel to Fla the next.
LSU schedule is brutal, but it is not really tougher than Alabama's.
If either team can make it through with one loss and get to title game, they will make is 6 NC's in a row for SEC.
On the flip side, OKLA has OKIE STATE away and Texas in Dallas.  Aggies at home.
Not quiet the same patch of quicksand as the other two, but good schedule none the less when you throw in Noles win.
I would worry about Sooners, except they have won 8 in a row against Cowboys.

After watching Big 10 teams play, I just don't see who will beat Wisconsin.  Toughest game is OSU away.
I think Stanford will lose more than one game.

If Sooners, Wisconsin or VTech make it through undefeated I think the SEC team with one loss will be removed from title game with one loss, even if both teams are better than the competitors.
Then the playoff or plus one talk will really pick up.

j

College FB summary of weekend- Sans LSU

- Robert Griffin III-  He has 8td and only 8 incompletions thru 2 games. .Never have I seen that before!!!! 624yds  - 0 int 83.7 completion percentage.  90.9 this weekend. 20-22. Wow
-Texas Tech QB- Seth Doege 40-44 401 yds. last weekend.  90.9 .  Wow twice in Big 12.
-Ohio State has more issues than I realized.   Maryland lit up that Miami Defense.  Out of top 20 first time since 2004.
-Texas finally impressed me, I am glad the world of Football is coming back in line. McCoy and Shipley families have the "it" factor.    Diaz Defense will be the key, they improved week to week.  Coach Brown has the SEC mindset on what he wants.   Malcolm is running harder than I expected and I saw him make someone miss Saturday.
-Mullen has been 2nd guessed to death the last 2 weeks.  Unfair in my opinion, LSU is just better and Auburn at home is a load.
- Speaking of Auburn, if Chiznik is a defensive specialist he may want to get involved.  I don't see the preparation.
-Pac 12 supposedly has told Texas they will fit the Horns Network into existing deal.  So long Baylor!
-ACC added Pitt and Syracuse to put a nail in Big East Football. There goes Duke and NC for SEC, I think.
-Baylor in top 20.  Really?  I love RGIII, but please.
-Gamecocks and Garcia give new meaning to playing to level of competition.
- Oklahoma dominated Fla State Offensive Line.   Landry looked great when it mattered most.
- La Tech choke job ruined my night.
- I tried to stay up to watch OK ST - Tulsa  -  330am is too late, but the transfers to Pac 12 need to get used to it. 
- Michigan ahead of Miss State in Polls seems wrong- Didn't Dogs put up 50 on them 8 months ago.
- I still think Irish are better than the 2 teams that beat them.
-Ron Zook in top 25 again, I wonder when the NCAA will put them on probation.
-Aggies and Okie State-  Last year Aggies swooned under Offensive Pressure... Big Game.
- Trent Richardson avg 15yds per carry against mean green. He was bigger than the LB's.
- I want to see Wisconsin play someone.
- Pac 12 has to be better than I think.  Stanford Arizona game was hard to stomach.

Ole Miss and Houston Nutt

Where do you start after losing to BYU and Vandy 30-7..

More on My QB Rant

Following up on my rant from this weekend regarding QB's.  Money and pressure are at the root of the problem as I see it.  Coaches are under too much pressure from waffling owners to win right away.  It's absurd to hire a young coach like Josh McDaniels and not let him have to time to get the players coached up to run his system, and bring in the players he needs.  Young QB's suffer the most, especially those making lots of money.  Tim Tebow's career is in trouble for these exact reasons.

Example, why would Carolina spend a 3rd round pick on Clausen, throw him out on the field with a bad team, and then decide after about 6 starts that they need to move on?  That's a poor organization.  Now the media piles on Clausen and say he's a bust.  That's totally ridiculous.  What kind of chance did he have?  And that is a common story.

Now look at the young guys starting this year: Dalton, Gabbert, Newton.  Will they get the time to develop under a stable coaching staff?  Or will they experience rookie struggles, see their coaches fired, and then be labeled busts?  And the media makes me sick how they feed into it.  If you're not an immediate sensation, you can see your career derailed quickly with little hope of rebounding.  That's why I'm happy for Grossman to get another chance.

It takes a strong owner and GM to find the guy they want, give him good coaching, and be willing to take the pain as the whole thing develops.  Sadly, that is missing too often in the NFL today and many talented guys who might be able to turn into very good players are thrown on the scrap heap much too soon.

S

Cowboys

When I posted the 4th quarter stats for Romo this morning, I had no idea what would happen today.
Even I am amazed at what happened in the 4th quarter after his fractured ribs.
As Romo was getting pulled off the field by team Dr after the half, was when I thought the game was over.

Maybe, just maybe, the national media will slow down on blaming Romo for the failures at crunch time.
20-33 345yds-2td overall and he continued to get hit during the entire 4th quarter.

Defense played good again and was led by Sean Lee in tackles- 8 tackles to his 17 last week... not a bad start for a player Wade kept on the bench.
Felix Jones hurt again, I like Murray better than Choice.
The OLINE is not good-  At All.  No running room for backs and  Romo spends the first two games on his back after he throws.
Holley is better than Ogletree, at least he hustles and is big enough to block downfield.

Important game for Romo and the depleted Cowboys, it seems the entire team is injured.

Next up the 2-0 Redskins and that tough defense.

J.

QB reputation is about?

2007-2010 QB Rating in 4th quarter
1. Romo     30td 12 int  102.9
2. Brady     23td 7 int 99.2
3. Mannin  28 td 10 int 98.5
4. Ben        22td 10 int 96.3
5. Rodgers  22td 9 int 95.7
6. Rivers     31 td 13 int 95.3
7 Brees        32 td 22 int 90.8

Win a Super Bowl and people forget mistakes?
j

Rex and NFL QB Situation

I wanted to post that I was actually happy for Rex Grossman this past week.  A large pet peeve of mine is the way the sports media treats QB's.  They have this pile-on mentality and when any QB struggles for any period of time, they can't wait to classify him as a bust and turn them into these tragic figures deserving of our shame and pity.  I hate it.  Not everyone will be great.  Rex Grossman played for a historically poor offensive team and scheme and he struggled and all of a sudden he was the poster child for futility and nearly laughed out of the league.  He is not alone.  Chad Henne was a bright prospect for Miami hardly more than a year ago.  Now the media treats him like he couldn't play division 2.  Jimmy Clausen gets about 6 games before they label him a bust.  Derek Anderson is 2 years removed from an all-pro year, now he's a laughingstock.  And these guys are mean about it too.  They don't let up.  Never mind how hard it is to play QB in the NFL.  Never mind how the owners change coaches like laundry and no one has any stability.  If you don't deliver, and right away, you're a moron, a weakling.  It's brutal.  So, good for Rex.  He stayed around, found a team, and for one week, delivered the goods.  Next week he might be a moron again.  Such is life in the NFL.

S

Adam Dunn's Record Futility

Adam Dunn's march to one of, if not the worst, year by a hitter in major league history hit a new low this week when his strikeout total actually caught up to his batting average!  Dunn now has 161 strikeouts and a matching .161 batting average.  A player on a seemingly methodical march to 500 homers has been derailed by a historic hapless year.  In 380 AB's, he has just 11 dingers and a .282 slugging avg, yes slugging avg.  He is striking out nearly 40% of his plate appearances.  It is the 2nd time in the long history of MLB that a player's strikout total has caught up to his BA after more than 35 at-bats.  Dunn is only a .244 career hitter but has averaged over 35 homers with just over a .500 slugging %.

S

Longhorn Network Vs SEC Team Deals.

We have been hearing about the $15 million annually signed for Texas by ESPN for a while now.
Some are actually reporting closer to 11 million up to 20 million until the expense and growth is completed.  
Either way it is a lot of money when added to the Big 12 Deal.   Better yet it will give them a national exposure.
This new deal is 5 million more than Horns made in 2010.  Previous contract for Texas was 9.4 million a year.

Then we were flooded with info that the Big 10 gets more money than the SEC schools with Big 10 Network.
Rumored to be up to 22million vs 17 million in old SEC contract.

What I didn't know was the SEC allows for Regional deals and the teams keep the money.
Yes, The SEC can negotiate and keep the regional TV money.
And they have some big deals.

So here is something I found shocking.

(Top Money Making Regional School Contracts. 2010)
1.  Georgia.  11.6 million   added to SEC pool money of 18.3 million  equals about 30 million.
2.  Ohio State 11...Shared money with conference.
3. Florida  10 Million.
4. Bama 9.44 Million
5. Texas 9.4
6. Neb 8.65
7. Tenn 8.34
8.Kent  8 Mil     Uconn 8mil
10 NCarl 7.5.
11. LSU 7.45   
 12  . Ark  7.3.

Now add what will be a new SEC TV Deal which likely will be above 25Million and the money gets nuts.
Texas should join the SEC, they can keep the 15 million and be by far the richest team.
The Big 10 and Pac 12 make teams share the revenue.   The ACC is like the SEC , but just not as big on TV demand.

J.

College Day Thougths

- How long can OLE MISS keep Nutt in Oxford, this is embarrassing. 21-0 halftime at Vandy!
- Auburn is the most exciting team in College Football.  Every games is a 4th quarter decision.  Tied at half again. They have to lose eventually.
- It is early, but the LSU defense is as aggressive as those great Miami defenses. Maybe 3rd NC in a row for Tigers in Dome.
-Paterno needs to retire- Down again against Temple in 3rd.  It was obvious to me Saban called off the dogs last week.
-It looks like the WV woke up against these hideous Maryland uniforms.
-I know we all like Iowa's coach, but what has he really done.   We give him the credit for not getting talent, so he is a better coach. 
-What happened in the world of football to cause Notre Dame to be unable to play defense.
- How did Houston score that many points against UCLA.  New Dcoord needs work.   If Texas wins this game I see 9 wins coming. 
-I am debating driving over to Ruston to watch Houston-La Tech game, missing Noles and OU is hard to do.  Last year they took a top 10 Boise State to the end before losing. 
-TCU playing Northeast Indians on TV is fun for me (oops  Louisiana Monroe WarHawks) I hope NLU keeps it respectable.  Jimbo Fisher gave the ULM coach props for the diversity of his offense in week one.
- Malcolm Brown is looking better than I expected.  I am changing my attitude, but it will have to be against someone that Houston hasn't beat down.
-McCoy is definitely the QB-  I know why Ash looked good in practice, I worry Texas Defense is still a work in progress.
- I am liking my preseason prediction for 10 wins for Horns in Big 12.
- After watching another Pac 12 team, it is obvious why OU and Texas talked to the Pac 12.  Pitiful.
-Florida Defense is a swarm of speed.  -20 yds rushing with 7min left in 4th.  UT cant move them.
-The offense is improving.  Maybe they will sneak a win against Ark/Ala/LSU and get to conference championship.
-Fighting Irish are 1-2 and should be 3-0.  A little Defense is all this team needs to handle the Big East and Big 10.
-VA Tech has been to 18 bowls in a row.   That new QB (soph-Logan Thomas) is a monster. 6'6" 254lbs.  He is still weak on the passing, but is a beast.
-ESPN 360 with HDMI cable is great. 
Screen 1.  La Tech playing Houston tight so far.
Screen 2  Arkansas
Screen 3 Bama
Screen 4 SC pukes.
-S. Garcia is really a mess, he is either great or terrible.  Spurrier has no chance with this guy.
-TECH 20-7 at half with the best colored uniforms in America.
-Lattimore 200 yards and counting in a UGLY UGLY game.  Can't stand this team.
- How shocked were you to hear " Thats Jack Nicklaus's grandson" on the recption for Fla State.
- If Noles can just keep it close... Stoops will blink and Sooners will start to whine.
-How can Ohio State really be this bad on offense?
-I hope I didn't jinx Tech.. Up 34-7 with 5 min in 3rd,  I told the wife " Cougs will probably score 50 now.
-Saban teams just really do not look good against bad teams like North Texas.
=== I hate it the Jinx...Cougars scored 28 straight points..35-34 Houston.  1:31 left...17yr old QB has to repeat last weeks miracle in last few seconds.  
No miracle in Ruston, just a collapse.
j.

ACC football.

They are coming!

We already know that 2nd behind the SEC in Talent for NFL rosters is the ACC.
With a influx of quality coaches like Fisher, I expect Mia, Clem to eventually become special programs.

The Big 10 and Pac 12 can point to catching the SEC, but when the coaches improve in the ACC, they will be far ahead of the other conferences outside of the SEC.

Big Day for Clemson and Florida State.
All of the National media has almost ruled out the Noles winning tonight. 
I would be surprised if Okla is number 1 after tonight.
Clemson with Auburn
Mia and Ohiotoos.

And I already predicted VTech playing for a NC against Bama. 

J.

ACC Applicants.

Pitt and Syracuse applying for ACC was a great move for the conference.
I was starting to think that the ACC was going to get picked over by the big boys and let the Big East swallow them up, if and when we go to the super conferences.

This following rumors of Texas entering the discussion for the ACC.
 (I want to address Texas MESS later.)
An ACC entry with Texas, would bring Texas Tech or TCU back into the discussion for the ACC.
Definitely TCU has the resources to catch up with Texas Tech in an all around athletic department, but currently I find Tech more appealing on a national stage.  (Barely. )

But what if the ACC kept going through the Atlantic coast to reach 16 teams.
West Virginia and Rutgers would be my main targets.  WV is national in Football and Basketball, Rutgers get NY market.
I do not think South Florida would be acceptable for Fl State nor Miami.
UConn has the ESPN butt kissing to add to the TV dollars.
This would be an interesting 4 division conference.
I suppose Fla St and Miami will still be separated to match the mess they have now in ACC divisions.
SYRC  
PITT  
RUT
BC

VT
VA
WV
GT

MIA
GT
NC
DUKE

Fl ST
CLEM
WAKE
NCST

I am glad the ACC jumped ahead of the Big East, I like the history.

J

Under the Radar Star

Who is the NL outfielder who is completing his 5th year in the majors and has totalled more than 150 homers and 500 rbi, plays for a division leading team, and this week joined the 30/30 club?  The answer is Ryan Braun of Milwaukee.  A classic great player in a small market who gets no pub.  His career avg is .311 to go with a .561 slugging avg and .931 ops.  With very similar career at-bats, he actually has slightly superior career numbers to Josh Hamilton.  I look forward to seeing him in the playoffs.

S

Dueling Aces

Are you watching the duel between Halladay and Lee in Philly?  Free agent signings often turn out to under-perform, but not these 2.  Combined this year they are 34-12 with a 2.36 era.  But look at how close they are as they push each other every week to be better:

             HAL     LEE
Starts     30        30
IP         219      219
ER         57        58
BA       .241     .225
K/BB    7.0       5.3
ERA     2.34      2.38

Halladay has more wins 18 to 16, but Lee has 6 shutouts and has taken 2 others into the 9th.  One earned run separates them after 30 starts.  Halladay has allowed 228 baserunners, Lee 223.  They are both surgeons!

But, neither might win the Cy Young; young lefty Clayton Kershaw (of Highland Park) is 19-5 with a 2.30 era and 236 K's in 218 innings.  Verlander could win 25 in the AL.  If you love great pitching (which I do), it's a feast.

S

The Swinger (Book Review)

Just finished The Swinger about Tiger Woods/Not Tiger Woods.  It's a quick read, and funny, and has lots of great historical golf references that J will appreciate.  I didn't like the ending.  What I got from the book other than some shaking my head and some laughs is that we should fight the tendency in today's culture to make everything black and white.  It's like our culture is on a mission to stamp out gray.  We have to put everything in a neat little bucket.  Everything must be categorized.  Good/bad, best/worst, black/white.

I never was on board with J's theory that Woods was the evil anti-christ and I still don't.  Maybe he is.  I doubt it.  What this book made me think about is what would happen if you were raised by parents who told you that you were different from everybody else from childhood.  Then you had nothing but unbroken success at every level.  People fawned over you and told you how great you were.  Then, you got fabulously rich and famous and powerful.  You're raking in over $100 million a year.  Boats, planes, you name it, its yours.

So, Tiger Woods has major character flaws.  He's a little warped from our view.  He considered the tour players adversaries and didn't care to be friends.  He was too focused and single-minded to notice the fans or care.  His ego ran away and he felt entitled to do whatever came to mind.  He broke his marriage vows many times over.  He thought he could change coaches without consequences.  This is the world he and his parents and his success created.  How could he do wrong or go wrong?  If you know nothing but success, how do you consider failure?

I don't think Tiger Woods is evil.  He is the ultimate creation of the celebrity culture; mega-talented, driven, flawed, but mostly interesting.  He got full of himself (how could he not), felt he was indestructible, and rushed into his Waterloo without ever thinking it could happen.  But, he probably loves his kids, probably loved his parents, is probably fun to be around if you know him, and has made a huge difference in many kids lives through his foundations and schools.  He's not black, or white, he's just an interesting color of gray.  He's done lots of bad and lots of good.  He's just a person who had big success and big failure.  He'll have to figure out the rest of his life like everybody else.  But, not the anti-christ.

And, if you ask me, I would say the world is not a better place now that Tiger Woods has fallen.  I miss the dominance, the skill, the focus, the confidence, even the f-bombs, even the glares, even the lack of sportsmanship.  He was better, he was arrogant, he carried the sport.  Now what?

S

LSU-STATE

Gametime in 5 min.
= Will Miles play it so close to the vest agian that he gets beat again?
= MSU is better prepared than Oregon for LSU athletes.  The talent level is just higher up front.
=Mullen is just a better coach than Miles, if he goes to GA the SEC East will get real tough.
=Lets see how long it takes MSU to stack the line against Ware up the middle.
===
First Half.
Lee really appears better than Jefferson. 
LSU offense is still hard to watch, but MState is wearing down.
Miles time management... 22 seconds left...MSU has to punt... Miles forgets to call timeout until 15seconds remain.
I am shocked LSU held the ball more time than the Dogs in first half...that is a good thing for Tigers.
==
LSU DLINE 2 soph, 1 jr and a frosh in 3rd.  Crazy.
Randle is coming along nicely.
This LSU team is really young, Mile is going to be good for another 3 years at least.
=====================
Final comment on LSU.
48 yards rushing for Dogs.  Isn't it funny how well LSU does against a power spread team.
LSU 36 min time of possession.  This offense is just better with Lee and the new OC.
 Last year it seemed the other team had the ball most of the game.

Ware was a bull tonight, he really plays well against teams in Maroon.  Maybe we can get Bama to change colors.
State get La Tech in a revenge match up next weekend.  My Alma Mater is going to get a beat down.
=======================

Next Up.  West Virginia in Morgantown.  
Which reminds me of on the WV game ending tradition.
  It is great and they will sing it win or lose. 
I wish I was going to see this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bsx666C7hk&feature=related




J.

Matt Millen - Whats the worse thing you have heard an announcer say?

When I first heard his comments Saturday, I laughed.
I missed many of them but I found a link to some his comments.

-Chances of Richt being fired tonight: 90%
-South Carolina QB Stephen Garcia looks like an out of shape frat boy… actually; he looks like an out of shape 37-year-old mechanic.
-Slow start for both teams. Georgia QB Aaron Murray is constantly under pressure, and Garcia is still trying to shake off the 13 High Lifes he had in his hotel room last night while listening to Molly Hatchet.

-Stephen Garcia looks like the Customer of the Month at a Long John Silver’s.
-Chances of Richt being fired tonight: 95%
-Garcia squeezes in one more INT before the half, but he escapes with a 1-point lead. He looks like the kind of guy that has knocked up a stripper.
-Spurrier just took his shirt off and cracked open a Busch Light. Garcia strolls over, smoking a cigarette and high fives the coach. These two are magic together.
-Stephen Garcia looks like 2nd rate Wrestler from the early 80’s.


-On Lattimore-He’s so good that Stephen Garcia, who looks like the kind of guy who will pull up next to you at a gas station and offer you a deal on a home stereo system, can go 11/25, 1 TD, 2 INT and the Gamecocks can still win a big game on the road.
To End the Telecast:
-Steve Spurrier’s disappointment as he shakes hands with Mark Richt is obvious. He wanted to be the guy who ended Mark Richt. If I had to guess the guy that will end Richt’s career, I’m leaning towards Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen.
-The good news is whoever takes over for Richt will have some talent on the roster to work with.

j


http://www.saturdaydownsouth.com/2011/uncensored-play-by-play-georgia-vs-south-carolina/

NFL Week Thoughts.

Maybe I can skip my Cowboy Rants for this.
= Cam Newton-  That guy throws bullets with a flick of the wrist.  I am still shocked AZ gave up 422 to him yesterday.
= Patrick Peterson maybe great as a shut down guy one day, but Smith had him on his heels yesterday.
= RB Jackson for Buffalo was pushing Chief LB down the field.
= KC needs better LB. 
= Redskins were just meaner than Giants- I think the NYG offensive scheme kills that team.  They do not have the Defense to support it anymore.
= Detroit- Tampa Bay- I was happy for Stafford, but I still do not know if they are any good.
= Saints, I still will feel better for picking them to win SB if thost fat Dlineman stand someone up.
= McNabb ran out of Juice after SD started hitting him in the 2nd half.
= Rivers is fun to watch.
=Ed Reed has anyone ever been better.
= Do you think that people will realize who was the MVP the last decade after watching the Colts?
=Matty Ice did little to change my opinion. (Ditto on Bradford)
= Directtv NFL package is fabulous.
= Am I wrong about Colt McCoy or are the Browns that far behind in talent and coaching.
j

Cowboys

Romo is killing the team and fans with his moments of absent mindedness.    He maybe my favorite player in the league and it is hurts me to watch. I love to watch the guy play, and will admit he is the main reason Dallas has a chance most games,  but this is getting ridiculous.   It doesn't matter how many times he make the spectacular play if he doesn't change his ability to slow down the mental issues while under duress.
( 342 yards against the Jets is crazy stuff with 3 new lineman, but he blew it. )

-Dez looked great until he was injured again.  Miles is supposed to be hurt also.
-Jones looked OK, it seemed he had people on him as soon as he touched the ball. 
- O Line- Not great, but appeared as good as last year and Romo is still alive....Somehow
- Defense- I really do not know what to think, everyone is hurt in the DB area and they stayed close kept agressive.
.   I am not sold yet overall, because Sanchez and the Jets really are bad.

Special Teams-  Please, Please tell me how they can be so bad!  How does this coach have a job.
Someone tell me why Dez is returning kicks when he has a history of injuries.   (Red Jesus needs to address) 
Why is Buehler on this team?   GM Jerry needs to get out of this.    Maybe an extra DB would have helped last night since they knew Jenkins was hurt, Newmann out again!

Garrett-  The offense and defense were every bit as good if not better than the highly rated Jets.   I see improvement.
Ryan-  It was better than last year, I hope that Ryan can deal with the handicap he has in the secondary.
            I have to give some love to Ryan for starting Sean Lee.  Thank goodness.  Lee proved his worth.  Should it have been Brooking or James that was on the bench.  (I will pass on that answer)

j

Overreaction Monday

I don't like to post the day after a disappointing game because of the tendency to overreact.  But, I have to say I'm going to have to resign from the Romo defenders club.  At 31 and in his 6th year as a starter, if he doesn't value the ball, he never will.  I no longer want to expend my energy defending his casual attitude when it comes to turnovers.  With his experience, we should have easily salted that game away last night, but we didn't, and he's the one getting paid the most to make sure it happens.  Why can't he get it?  So incredibly frustrating to watch him perform so well, and then have those mental breakdowns.  I guess the Favre comparisons are true; he just won't change.

S

More Game Day Thoughts

Good idea; I'll throw in a few....

• Where Georgia is right now is where I expected LSU to be.  After the 2 sub-par years Miles somehow got the mojo back last year and has some momentum.  I really thought he would lead us into medocrity like Richt has done.  How can GA suck that bad?
• I don't want to go there, believe me, but I have to give Boise credit.  They have been willing to schedule whoever will take them on, and they keep winning.  Starting the last 3 years with wins over Oregon, Va Tech, and Georgia has earned by grudging respect.
• Alabama's offense looks eerily like LSU's.  Painful at times.  For our sake, I hope it stays that way for a while.  The O-line looks shaky as does McCarron.
• Is Denard Robinson as fast as he looks playing these midwestern teams?  He looks like lightning every time I see him.
• (From yesterday) Allen might be really good.  Still early, but dominating Longview over there is impressive.  QB Morris was 25-35 for 368 with 5 TD's, no picks.  Now district.  Plano & Marcus undefeated so far.  They will be tough as will Hebron.  Eagles might have a defense this year.
• It looks like Lake Travis will be the favorite to make it an unprecedented 5 in a row before possibly moving to 5A next year.  They are indeed a beast.
• Desoto routed Cedar Hill tonight.  This after CH beat Guyer last week.  Desoto is scary.

S

How about a Game Day Thought Post.

Similar to blogs on the big outlets, I wanted something to post little things during the day in one post before I forget to tell you when we talk.

* Auburn or LSU which team wins more games they should lose.
* I know Mullen has groomed and wants to see his QB Relf as a Tebow.  Well, Tebow would never have went down short of the goal line when a little DB hit his legs.
* The Bulldogs have really improved physically, but I wonder if they will survive the SEC West with less than 4 losses after the injuries keep coming.  I still do not like the D talent, Mullen will fix it, if he doesn't end up in Georgia next year.
* West Va looked lost today, out of sync.  I hope they stay that way until LSU leaves town.
* Ohio State struggled big time with Toledo, but its early in the year so lets forget that... My question...Why brag about 44 game winning streak against In-State Schools.   Cincinnati and who?  Oh wait I forgot the Akron Zips!
Toledo out gained the Buctoo's, but had 14 penalties compared to 2 against OHIO.
* It was nice watching Dooley let his offense continue to push the ball down the field.  Bray looked good.
* Judging Andrew Luck against Duke was useless.  Both Schools seem slow and smaller tha what I am used to.
* I still love to hear them sing "Rocky Top" in Knoxville.
* Saban quote after fake punt went something like this...He missed the hole. If he runs where he was supposed to it would have been big. We just got lucky to get a first down.----  Saban is always the perfectionist.
* South Carolina just looks very average to me again this year, I still thing SEC East is Florida's for the taking.  Too Bad Florida is the only team playing the powers of the West.
*I never thought it would be so painful to watch a Spurrier coached offense.
* Bama is a work in progress and I felt that Saban called off the dogs again against Paterno.
* Was it me that said Va Tech would be undefeated when they play Fla State in ACC finals.  Tied at 10 with E Carolina.
*I have too many channels.  Did you know that Colorado State and Northern Colorado have the same color schemes.  I didn't and I am glad I never knew. 
* So BYU beats Ole Miss who may not win an SEC game this year and I am worried about them beating Texas...How did this happen?
*The Hogs look scary, I cringe thinking about Petrino being overlooked for Miles.
*Penn State had 125 yard offense on first drive 54 and last drive 71(trash time.)  The remainder of the game 126 total yards.
*A miracle - Ole Miss has 28 points on the board in the first half...  Wait Southern Illin, famous for a BBall player named Collins...
* Why does Gilbert still look confused...
*  oop Gilbert Pick...
*Alshon Jeffery is too good to have Garcia as a QB.
*Gamecocks really upset me.  They make Ga look decent.   Would SC be 6th in SEC West , I say yes... LSU, Bama,Ark, Aub, Miss State.
*  Watching Norm Chow at Utah coaching against Kiffin at USC makes me laugh.  Chow never got the respect he deserved there.
* Surreal-  Flipping thru Big 10 network, I see Nebraska... Then reality.  I flip to see Fresno winning and Pelini screaming at refs.
*God, I want South Carolina to win this game...
* I want to see the throwback uniforms for ND and Michigan. I want to see a cloverleaf on the golden domers.
* The announcer just said Texas better athletes to cover BYU?  Wow...
*LSU wears these Purple Uniforms and I get depressed...Why can't they find a better purple?  Seriously it is a bad purple.
*Why does Ga need a new coach...2:03 left 3rd and 3 SC has the ball and Richt ... Lets clock run... SC get first down at 1:16.   Crazy decisions for his first year, I cannot believe he is still in Athens.
*The just interviewed Wendell Davis during LSU game.  Another Shreveport guy that did well, hard to forget his injury to both knees while with Bears.
*J. Lee still looks below average in his decision making. His stats will be good tonite but even NSU tricks him on blitzes.
*I admit surprise to see Vandy up 14-3 over UCONN at half.  Even I give the Big East too much credit.
*All week I heard people say Michigan would beat ND, and maybe they will, but I think ND is better.  I still feel the South Florida game was a fluke... But I admit, I saw the Coach dropping F Bombs last week and felt that it epitomized the school.
*How did Auburn fall out ot top 25 and Texas get in last week?  Auburn wins by multiple TDs. Even on bad day.
*Gilbert should transfer.  Ash and McCoy seem to have the teams emotions.
*My first viewing of Malcom Brown... He runs up to line, no adjustments slows down when he hits a crowd. At least his belly doesn't jiggle like it did at end of High School Career.  With that power he will average nearly 5 yards a carry in Big 12.
*Mettenberger first snap- first completion...ditto on 2nd play... much quicker release than Lee and JJ.   3rd play... 3 for 3.  4-4.  Nice improvement...Been years since LSU had a QB that could throw.
*After Ford made jokes about Ware tiring out Oregon last week, I think miles was pissed, he really ran Ford first and up the middle a bunch tonite.  He is still the best RB, Ware is a pusher with speed.
*Michigan and ND fight songs.  They are just great.
*Nathan Dick is tied up against La Tech tonight.  I need him to throw a pick..he has 370 yds passing already.



j.

Peyton Manning

With this 3rd surgery on his neck, I am really sad and protective of Manning.
After watching the Bob Costas piece on Manning before the Saints-Packers game, I was fuming.

With all the greatness that Manning displayed, NBC comments on his lack of more than one Super Bowl and a feeling of not accomplishing enough.    The media some days repulse me when they grade greatness on titles. 

If Manning cannot do what he did before the injury, I hope he retires. 
The last thing I want to see is Manning lack the zip on a 20 yard out pattern and remember him like some people that play too long.

J.

Herbstreit "Classic"?

The Herbstreit "Classic" as it's called was a major letdown.  Why did they pit large 5A Texas schools against much smaller opponents?  Skyline played Cocoa, FL, which has won the last two 2A FL championships.  Desoto played OK Douglass, which the paper said would be 3A if they were in TX with an enrollment of just over 500.  Neither game was competitive, similar to Trinity smashing Shiloh Christian last year.  The Desoto game was really embarrassing, while the Skyline game score looked way closer than the quality of the teams.  They need to do a much better job pairing teams or this thing will become a joke.

S

Tough Task in East Texas

Worried about the Eagles going to Longview tonight.  I've seen those Lobo fans travel.  They will make it a wild environment in the piney woods tonight.  Long bus ride for the Eagles and good athletes to face.  Our fans can't make it over there unless they leave work early.  Suffice to say this test will say a lot about just how good this Allen team is.  Our Missouri-bound tailback has been out with back spasms and the ground game has been missing.  We need the old balance tonight or say goodbye to #1.

S

QB Clinic

Does it get any better than what Rodgers and Brees demonstrated last night?  Over 800 yards and 6 TD's with no turnovers.  The melding of great coaches with QB's who have the recognition and accuracy to put it all together.  In today's game it's hard to decide who gets the credit, coach or QB; they are a tandem who have to be on the same page.  When they are, it's a thing of beauty.  Last night was a clinic.  I'd like to think Garrett and Romo can look like that, but with that O-line Romo will be ducking and chucking.

S

Dallas Cornerbacks.

Interesting article.. I posted a portion.

There weren't many, if any, worse cornerback tandems in the NFL last season. According to Stats Inc., Jenkins allowed the second-most passing yards (935) in the league, as opponents averaged 10.7 yards per attempt when throwing his way. Newman's numbers weren't much better. He allowed 871 yards, the sixth most in the league, and 9.3 yards per attempt. Oh, and Jenkins led the NFL in pass interference penalties with six.

 OUCH, I guess the kicking game is not the only thing Dallas is the worst at.

J.
http://espn.go.com/dallas/nfl/story/_/id/6942295/the-dallas-cowboys-depth-cornerback-merits-major-concern

Saints - Packers

Great game to start the season, but I really wish it was about 8 games in, so we could see them at full flow.

Two coaches, who I think are the best in the NFL,  Belicheated cannot be recognized.

It will be curious to see if Rodgers does a better job handling the off season fame than Bree's did last year. Appearance says he did, but his on the field demeanor will show us more.

j

Aggie Info

Enrollment now being reported at 50000 and they have made a concerted effort to continue growing..(Only Fla has more at 51000)
Texas A&M is a Member of the arrogant Am Academics group.( Yes these ratings are more messed up than the AP poll)
The Aggies bring the SEC and Big 12 to both 3 Universities in the 64.

The Aggies endowment fund exceed all of the SEC teams combined... Yes, it appears combined!
Only Texas and Michigan are ahead of the Aggies in funding for public schools.  

Aggie's record against the Longhorns in last 30 years - 15-15.           Last 20 years- 9-11.
Fact is the Horns and Aggies have been closer than most want to admit the last few decades. 
Texas got a title, so we give the edge.

I am glad they are in the SEC, but I hope they leave the whining attitude that is rampant in the Big 12, in the past.
I see no reason that the Aggies cannot grow through the years into a equal of some of the historic SEC schools.

J.

Salt in the Wound

The Morning News had to remind us today of the Cowboys' ridiculous draft history.  27 players drafted in the last 3 years; 13 active, 13 released, 1 on IR.  At most 4 of the 13 still around will start.  Ouch!  They have almost as many non-drafted free agents on the roster (11) signed during these 3 years as they do draftees.  Of the 2009 draft, 12 players were taken, 4 remain of which 2 are 3rd string, 1 is 2nd string, and 1 is our kick-off specialist.  Ugh.  In today's NFL it goes without saying that you cannot produce at most 4 starters out of 3 full drafts.  It's just downright terrible and embarrassing.

S

Tiger Era

Some thoughts on the LSU-Oregon game and the Tigers in general.  Interesting the comments from the Oregon coach about the Tiger D-line.  Will Muschamp was quoted this past week saying the difference in the SEC is the D-line.  The size and athleticism and depth.  Herbstreit said the same during the LSU game.  I thought we should win if we didn't give up big plays or turnovers.  Lee was really terrible and will have to play better.  Our tailbacks are just great.  But, we have to get our wideouts some touches.

Now let's talk about the amazing era for the Tigers we're living in.  Can you remember just 11 short years ago where this program was when Saban was hired?  Total mediocrity.  Now we play on the big stage, we get the national respect.  We're coming off 2 big routes at Cowboy Stadium on national TV in the span of 9 months.  We get talked about with the Alabamas, Floridas, and Oklahomas.  I have to pinch myself and make sure I'm not dreaming about this lofty status we've attained.

Since 2000, LSU is 110-33, 8-3 in bowls, 4-0 in BCS bowls.  Les Miles is 29-1 in non-conference games including bowls.  We've won 3 Sugar Bowls plus the BCS Championship game.  We're now a perenial top 10 program with top 10 recruiting classes and the NFL players to prove it.  Amazingly we averaged 10-3 in the Saban era, and now 10-3 in the Miles era.  It's a frustrating ride with Miles to be sure, but we're in the game and I sure appreciate nights like this past Saturday.

S

Rumor Rumor

The Big 12 went hard at Arkansas to come join after Aggies word of departure went public.
Supposedly throwing huge money at the Hogs.
Interesting! They would have won the Big 12 last year and I believe beat them this year.

J.

An Article on SEC Expansion.

This was written last week by Travis Clay and is interesting,

He said the SEC would take Oklahoma, everyone said Sooners wanted SEC last year, but the Oklahoma government makes them take OKIE ST, so the SEC is not interested.   He also commented about the fact that Slive himself admitted to swimming like a duck, calm is only above the water.

Rumors- TTech over Missouri.   Duke has been discussed to help with reputation and not just stack up on football powers.
Here is his top five candidates and may explain why the PAC 12 leaked the calls being made to get Horn and Sooners with OKIE ST and TTech.

"Again, this could fluctuate every day, but if I had to rerank the SEC expansion candidates based on my conversations yesterday, I'd rank them thusly:"
1. Texas A&M
2. Virginia Tech
3. State of North Carolina team  (NC State was mentioned with Duke)
4. Texas Tech
5. Missouri

J.

I still cannot believe that Texas and Oklahoma would move to Pac 12 with time zone problems and scheduling of classes for kids in other sports.

View of Tiger Nation from the outside

Our good friend Bubba sent me this article on LSU-Oregon.
You really should read it,  some of the article will make you cringe and laugh.
But the guy obviously has some respect for LSU and its fans.

http://outkickthecoverage.com/lsu-oregon.php

J

LSU - Oregon

I didn't know how to comment on the game, so I will post part of the Duck's coach interview.

"They've got a little bit different athlete running around out there right now. Looking at their D-line, standing next to them, walking off the field, they don't look like the kind of guys we see. That's the common trait, the trait you saw in the Auburn game."

Maybe later in the week I can comment on my feelings about LSU.
 Here is a glimpse-
Does any think that 3 of the Ducks players would get on the field at LSU? 
I know Bama and Florida do, so I am worried about this offensive scheme.  They will not wear out the SEC teams and eventually all of them will follow Petrino's pattern and go after them.

j.

Phil's New Putter

I am sure he will not pull it out immediately, but I think Pelz is finally getting through to Phil on his putting.
Pelz has made many comments about the stability it provides and we know that Phil has lost many majors with short putts.

Here is Phil with a Belly Putter in the practice round, yesterday.

Coaching Community on the Sideline

Last night, I watch Byrd beat West Monroe in a game that had over 90 rushing attempts.
Byrd won 30-23 with 12 yards passing.  
At one point, WM ran between the tackles 11 consecutive times after a 30 yard run to the outside.
Maybe the Rebel Reign is finally over in Louisiana, or at least until they change systems and are not so predictable.

The reason for my post:
I counted 25 people on the sideline for West Monroe in Red Coaching shirts.
Then Shows and a coordinator had on Blue.
In the press box they had at least 5 more in Red.
I assume these are unpaid-volunteers, similar to what I do with golf.

J

Time for Final Football Predictions Before Season.

This may take me a few days to go through the conferences.

Here is my surprise team of the year.
Va Tech will be undefeated going into the ACC championship and beat Fla State to play for NC.

Reasons:
Schedule:
Appl State. East Carolina, Ark St, Marshall, Clemson(H) Miami(H)  Wake, Boston C, Duke, G Tech, N Carolina, Va.
--
Athletes -  A new big QB that is a beast and a talented RB.
Coaches- Beamer just wins and his teams get better as the year goes on.