Rutgers @ UNC
We all know now how North Carolina got all that talent on defense after last season's suspensions, etc. But there is still plenty this year as well. Quinton Coples could be top defensive player taken in the draft and 3 more will follow on day 1-2.
UNC 34 Rutgers 14
Cincinnati @ Tennessee
This is a very underrated game between two teams that could end up anywhere anywhere from 3 to 8 wins. Look for the winner to be closer to the eight, while the loser fights for bowl eligibility. I think Tyler Bray will be the difference.
Tenn 38 Cincy 24
21BYU @ 19Texas
Normally, a Texas offense would be perfectly suited to take advantage of BYU's biggest weakness, the defensive secondary. However, this UT team may lean more on Malcolm Brown and the running game, which is Bronco Mendenhall's specialty. Plus, consider this stat: Under Mendenhall, 14.5 ppg in season openers and 32.4 ppg in 2nd games (vs FBS).
BYU 34 Texas 28
3Alabama @ Penn St
Last season, Penn St went to Tuscaloosa not set on a QB and ended up starting a freshman on his first road start. Sound familiar? Bama QB's AJ McCarron and Phillip Sims combined for 1 TD and 4 INT's against Kent State. The Crimson Tide defense will need to dominate this game and maybe even score a TD or two. I think they'll do both.
Bama 31 Penn St 28
11South Carolina @ Georgia
Georgia looked completely outmatched vs Boise St. Stephen Garcia is not Kellen Moore, but I don't see Georgia stopping this USC offense. Marcus Lattimore ran wild for 182 yds and 2 TD's last year vs Georgia. Look for a similar result.
South Carolina 24 Georgia 17
TCU @ Air Force
TCU's defense was supposed to be the strength and cover up for all the losses on offense. I trust Gary Patterson to fix at least some of the problems. Plus, no way Air Force throws the ball around like Baylor and scores 50. TCU rebounds with a big road conference win.
TCU 31 Air Force 20
Notre Dame @ 18Michigan
First game under the lights at the big house. The Michigan defense showed improvements from last season and ND's offense turned the ball over across the board. If Michigan can take advantage of Notre Dame's mistakes and get Denard Robinson the ball as many times as possible, UM will win.
Michigan 34 Notre Dame 28
17Mississippi St @ Auburn
Auburn isn't very good.
Miss St 38 Auburn 14
Utah @ USC
Neither team was overly impressive last week, especially on offense. Was it opening game jitters or a sign of things to come? Jordan Wynn showed a lack of arm strength last week after shoulder surgery during the offseason. The USC defense is probably a little quicker than Montana St. The Utes running game will have to be very good to stay in it.
USC 27 Utah 17
Friday, September 9, 2011
Monday, September 5, 2011
Week 1 Top 25
1. Oklahoma (1-0)
2. LSU (1-0)
Best win so far this season, so they move up. That defense will have to bring it every week through the SEC schedule.
3. Alabama (1-0)
4. Boise St (1-0)
Boise's offense was unstoppable when they went to the hurry up. I don't see any team left on the schedule that can beat the Broncos.
5. Stanford (1-0)
6. Oregon (0-1)
I can't push Oregon too far back after one game. We need to see how good LSU is before we decide how bad the loss is.
7. Wisconsin (1-0)
8. Florida St (1-0)
9.Oklahoma St (1-0)
10. Arkansas (1-0)
11.South Carolina (1-0)
South Carolina shouldn't be blamed for Spurrier's poor decision on the starting QB. After Stephen Garcia came in, 56-14 run.
12.Nebraska (1-0)
13.Tex A&M (1-0)
Struggled to put away SMU early, but I'm excited to watch this team against some better competition. OK St ON Sept 17 will do, I guess.
14.Florida (1-0)
15.Virginia Tech (1-0)
16.Ohio St (1-0)
17.Mississippi St (1-0)
18.Michigan (1-0)
Pretty impressive performance by that defense that was simply abysmal in 2010.
19.Texas (1-0)
The Texas offense needs to take advantage of the BYU secondary where Ole Miss couldn't. However, I'm not sure they can.
20.Baylor (1-0)
21.BYU (1-0)
Yes, I am biased.
22.West Virginia (1-0)
23.Pitt (1-0)
24.Houston (1-0)
25.Arizona St (1-0)
Other considered:
USF (1-0)
TCU (0-1)
Tennessee (1-0)
Arizona (1-0)
Hawaii (1-0)
Notre Dame (0-1)
Louisville (1-0)
Utah (1-0)
2. LSU (1-0)
Best win so far this season, so they move up. That defense will have to bring it every week through the SEC schedule.
3. Alabama (1-0)
4. Boise St (1-0)
Boise's offense was unstoppable when they went to the hurry up. I don't see any team left on the schedule that can beat the Broncos.
5. Stanford (1-0)
6. Oregon (0-1)
I can't push Oregon too far back after one game. We need to see how good LSU is before we decide how bad the loss is.
7. Wisconsin (1-0)
8. Florida St (1-0)
9.Oklahoma St (1-0)
10. Arkansas (1-0)
11.South Carolina (1-0)
South Carolina shouldn't be blamed for Spurrier's poor decision on the starting QB. After Stephen Garcia came in, 56-14 run.
12.Nebraska (1-0)
13.Tex A&M (1-0)
Struggled to put away SMU early, but I'm excited to watch this team against some better competition. OK St ON Sept 17 will do, I guess.
14.Florida (1-0)
15.Virginia Tech (1-0)
16.Ohio St (1-0)
17.Mississippi St (1-0)
18.Michigan (1-0)
Pretty impressive performance by that defense that was simply abysmal in 2010.
19.Texas (1-0)
The Texas offense needs to take advantage of the BYU secondary where Ole Miss couldn't. However, I'm not sure they can.
20.Baylor (1-0)
21.BYU (1-0)
Yes, I am biased.
22.West Virginia (1-0)
23.Pitt (1-0)
24.Houston (1-0)
25.Arizona St (1-0)
Other considered:
USF (1-0)
TCU (0-1)
Tennessee (1-0)
Arizona (1-0)
Hawaii (1-0)
Notre Dame (0-1)
Louisville (1-0)
Utah (1-0)
Friday, April 15, 2011
NBA Playoff Pick 'em (East First Round)
Jason Robinson
Bulls vs Pacers
I see no reason why the Pacers would be able to contend in this series (except Psycho T, of course). The Bulls are hungry and will plow through this first round.
Bulls in 4
Heat vs 76ers
The 76ers have impressed me this season. Evan Turner hasn't done much so basically they have the same team and just player better than previous years. Unfortunately, they're just flat outmanned in this one.
Heat in 5
Celtics vs Knicks
Awesome stats from sportsnation yesterday-- The top players in the league in +/- are Paul Pierce (+17 per 100 possessions) and Kevin Garnett (+16). On the other end are Amare (+.14) and Carmelo (-.75). Competitive and entertaining series, yes, but no way the Celtics let this one get away.
Celtics in 5
Magic vs Hawks
Both teams in this series fought to rediscover their identity this season as the Heat and Bulls took all the headlines. The Hawks were the young, up-and-coming team for a couple years, but nothing ever happened. They just kind of fizzled out. Joe Johnson averaged under 20 ppg for the first time in Atlanta and shot under 30% on 3's for the first time in his career. The Magic made 3 huge trades to stay competitive. At the end of the day, Dwight Howard is having his best season and nobody in Atlanta can come close to stopping him.
Magic in 5
Bulls vs Pacers
I see no reason why the Pacers would be able to contend in this series (except Psycho T, of course). The Bulls are hungry and will plow through this first round.
Bulls in 4
Heat vs 76ers
The 76ers have impressed me this season. Evan Turner hasn't done much so basically they have the same team and just player better than previous years. Unfortunately, they're just flat outmanned in this one.
Heat in 5
Celtics vs Knicks
Awesome stats from sportsnation yesterday-- The top players in the league in +/- are Paul Pierce (+17 per 100 possessions) and Kevin Garnett (+16). On the other end are Amare (+.14) and Carmelo (-.75). Competitive and entertaining series, yes, but no way the Celtics let this one get away.
Celtics in 5
Magic vs Hawks
Both teams in this series fought to rediscover their identity this season as the Heat and Bulls took all the headlines. The Hawks were the young, up-and-coming team for a couple years, but nothing ever happened. They just kind of fizzled out. Joe Johnson averaged under 20 ppg for the first time in Atlanta and shot under 30% on 3's for the first time in his career. The Magic made 3 huge trades to stay competitive. At the end of the day, Dwight Howard is having his best season and nobody in Atlanta can come close to stopping him.
Magic in 5
Thursday, April 14, 2011
NBA Playoff Pick 'em
Spurs vs Grizzlies
A few weeks ago, I would have been tempted to pick the Grizz here, but I've meandered off the Memphis bandwagon. They can still keep it close, and win a game (maybe two), but the Spurs will take care of business in this first series.
San Antonio in 5
Lakers vs Hornets
This is the biggest mismatch of the western playoffs. The Hornets are missing David West and, therefore, have no secondary scorer or leader. Carl Landry can be that guy but he's not 15 ppg player--he's a 25-points-one-night-and-5-points-the-next-night kind of guy (and yes, that's my term I just made up). I'd be surprised if the Hornets won a game in this series.
LA in 4
Mavericks vs Trailblazers
These two split the regular season series and I expect a similar type of fight in the playoffs. The Trailblazers continue to overachieve despite injuries, year after year. Plus, the addition of Gerald Wallace adds another scorer and one extremely hard worker. His defense, especially, will help against Dirk, letting Aldridge focus more on scoring. The Mavericks win solely because Dirk's late game heroics will win at least two games in this series.
Dallas in 7
Thunder vs Nuggets
This will be the most fun match-up to watch in the first round. The Nuggets are leading the league in scoring since the 'Melo trade because of the depth they added. They have a lot of shooters and athletic point guards who love to run. However, since the trade, OKC beat Denver in both meetings because they play above average defense and can also beat you with speed. Durant and Westbrook will be the two best players in this series and its too difficult to win 4 games against a team like that.
OKC in 6
A few weeks ago, I would have been tempted to pick the Grizz here, but I've meandered off the Memphis bandwagon. They can still keep it close, and win a game (maybe two), but the Spurs will take care of business in this first series.
San Antonio in 5
Lakers vs Hornets
This is the biggest mismatch of the western playoffs. The Hornets are missing David West and, therefore, have no secondary scorer or leader. Carl Landry can be that guy but he's not 15 ppg player--he's a 25-points-one-night-and-5-points-the-next-night kind of guy (and yes, that's my term I just made up). I'd be surprised if the Hornets won a game in this series.
LA in 4
Mavericks vs Trailblazers
These two split the regular season series and I expect a similar type of fight in the playoffs. The Trailblazers continue to overachieve despite injuries, year after year. Plus, the addition of Gerald Wallace adds another scorer and one extremely hard worker. His defense, especially, will help against Dirk, letting Aldridge focus more on scoring. The Mavericks win solely because Dirk's late game heroics will win at least two games in this series.
Dallas in 7
Thunder vs Nuggets
This will be the most fun match-up to watch in the first round. The Nuggets are leading the league in scoring since the 'Melo trade because of the depth they added. They have a lot of shooters and athletic point guards who love to run. However, since the trade, OKC beat Denver in both meetings because they play above average defense and can also beat you with speed. Durant and Westbrook will be the two best players in this series and its too difficult to win 4 games against a team like that.
OKC in 6
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Really??
"You gotta be careful setting up a playoff where every undefeated team qualifies." --Bill Hancock, BCS executive director on college football live.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
College Football Pick'em Week Two
I know this is a little late, but our new couches were delivered a little earlier than we expected. Then, of course, I had to try them out for an hour or so, but now it's time for business.
Georgia @ South Carolina
This is the year that Stephen Garcia won't have to see the old ball coach throwing his visor and ripping out his hair..at least not yet. South Carolina should have beaten georgia last year between the hedges, but this year they get it done at home.
USC 27 Georgia 17
Michigan @ Notre Dame
Michigan showed last week how to run Rich Rodriguez's offense, but Notre Dame's defense with Manti Te'o at linebacker won't be nearly as easy. Plus, watch for Notre Dame to make plays against the Miichigan defense that UConn couldn't.
Notre Dame 31 Michigan 28
Maimi (FL) @ Ohio St
The Big Ten as a whole has struggled recently against the speed of the SEC and some of the ACC. But this team has the speed and an overwhelming advantage in the trenches. Watch for the OSU d-line to make things very difficult for Jacory Harris.
Ohio St 38 Miami (FL) 21
Florida St @ Oklahoma
If this game was decided by how these two teams played last week, Florida St would win by 40. Oklahoma will keep it close on the legs of Demarco Murray, but I'm not convinced that Landry Jones is championship quarterback; Christian Ponder is.
Florida St 35 Oklahoma 28
BYU @ Air Force
Neither of these offenses is good enough yet to dominate a game like this. So look for the defense that makes the big plays to make the difference as BYU forced no turnovers last week and Air Force only one against FCS Northwest State.
BYU 27 Air Force 20
Penn St @ Alabama
I'm very tempted to pick Penn St, just one a feeling, but I can't do it. Alabama is too good on offense and the Nittany Lions, with a true freshman quarterback, won't be bale to take advantage of the young defense of the Crimson Tide.
Alabama 31 Penn St 17
Oregon @ Tennessee
72 points last week + the return of LaMichael James - New Mexico's terrible defense.. (why am I doing math? It's Saturday...) Oregon wins, big.
Oregon 45 Tennessee 21
Stanford @ UCLA
UCLA QB Kevin Prince last week 9/26 with 2 INT's. Stanford QB Andrew Luck last week 17/23 over 300 yards, 4 TD's o INT's. All you need to know.
Stanford 31 UCLA 24
Note--For those of you (which I know includes like 0 out of 4) who were looking for my top 25 poll this week, it will be bi-weekly. So look early next week for my newly minted top 25, and enjoy your weekend of football.
Georgia @ South Carolina
This is the year that Stephen Garcia won't have to see the old ball coach throwing his visor and ripping out his hair..at least not yet. South Carolina should have beaten georgia last year between the hedges, but this year they get it done at home.
USC 27 Georgia 17
Michigan @ Notre Dame
Michigan showed last week how to run Rich Rodriguez's offense, but Notre Dame's defense with Manti Te'o at linebacker won't be nearly as easy. Plus, watch for Notre Dame to make plays against the Miichigan defense that UConn couldn't.
Notre Dame 31 Michigan 28
Maimi (FL) @ Ohio St
The Big Ten as a whole has struggled recently against the speed of the SEC and some of the ACC. But this team has the speed and an overwhelming advantage in the trenches. Watch for the OSU d-line to make things very difficult for Jacory Harris.
Ohio St 38 Miami (FL) 21
Florida St @ Oklahoma
If this game was decided by how these two teams played last week, Florida St would win by 40. Oklahoma will keep it close on the legs of Demarco Murray, but I'm not convinced that Landry Jones is championship quarterback; Christian Ponder is.
Florida St 35 Oklahoma 28
BYU @ Air Force
Neither of these offenses is good enough yet to dominate a game like this. So look for the defense that makes the big plays to make the difference as BYU forced no turnovers last week and Air Force only one against FCS Northwest State.
BYU 27 Air Force 20
Penn St @ Alabama
I'm very tempted to pick Penn St, just one a feeling, but I can't do it. Alabama is too good on offense and the Nittany Lions, with a true freshman quarterback, won't be bale to take advantage of the young defense of the Crimson Tide.
Alabama 31 Penn St 17
Oregon @ Tennessee
72 points last week + the return of LaMichael James - New Mexico's terrible defense.. (why am I doing math? It's Saturday...) Oregon wins, big.
Oregon 45 Tennessee 21
Stanford @ UCLA
UCLA QB Kevin Prince last week 9/26 with 2 INT's. Stanford QB Andrew Luck last week 17/23 over 300 yards, 4 TD's o INT's. All you need to know.
Stanford 31 UCLA 24
Note--For those of you (which I know includes like 0 out of 4) who were looking for my top 25 poll this week, it will be bi-weekly. So look early next week for my newly minted top 25, and enjoy your weekend of football.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
What Does BYU's Independence Mean For....?
By now everyone has heard the big news this week that BYU has made it official and will go independent in football. I, for one, never thought this would work out since the defection of Fresno State and Nevada from the WAC, because, well.. seriously? The West Coast Conference?! But I've been convinced this is absolutely the best move for the school as a whole and the football team, especially. But what does this move mean for everybody else?
What does BYU's independence mean for...
The Mountain West Conference--They have now lost the two teams that were the center of this conference geographically, financially and basically carried the MWC since it began. The addition of Boise State will ease the pain, but every sport besides football will hurt. Badly.
Utah--The recruiting battle in Utah almost changed dramatically when Utah received the invite to the Pac-10. But the promise of having every game be on national television is a huge hook for out of state recruits (see Manti Te'o) where Utah had an immense advantage, while BYU has generally won the in-state recruit battle. So, throw in BYU playing in Texas, vs Notre Dame and against Pac-10 schools every year and I see a big change coming unless Utah can really play well in its first couple years as a Pac-12 school. Everyone thinks Utah will be getting a huge load of money with a new Pac-12 deal-- not so much. The Utes minimal share (they don't get a full member share until 5 years) will pale in comparison to BYU's ESPN deal for football and basketball.
ESPN--To be honest, no much. But Dave Brown, ESPN VP of broadcasting, made it sound like they just secured the biggest cash cow in the nation, which he should do of course to advertise this deal.
BYU-TV--ESPN told BYU they could re-broadcast every BYU sporting event in their archives as many times as they want. This is huge! One reason BYU athletic leaders disliked the TV deal with the Mtn so much is that they were promised the authority to re-broadcast games, but Craig Thompson didn't deliver. Dick Harmon of the Deseret News discusses the financial benefits for BYU-TV at Harmon's Halftime. (It doesn't let me post the link.)
BYU football--A lot. Besides the whole national exposure and big financial jump, it puts BYU in a situation where they have to schedule big teams to make this a legit move, and they are good enough and talented enough to hang with Texas and beat the rest of the teams they already have scheduled in the next few years (Notre Dame--which will be much more difficult in 3-4 years, Oregon St, Boise St, and reportedly the likes of Texas Tech, Clemson and I'm sure we'll see some more Pac-12 schools on the docket pretty soon). Expect big things in th enext 5-10 years from BYU football.
Notre Dame--This puts pressure on Notre Dame, even though I don't think it's something they're worried about now. They have struggled the last couple years, and if BYU beats them the first couple match-ups and basically beats Notre Dame at their own game (independence), Notre Dame fans will be furious. They are special. Other teams are not supposed to be able be a consistent winner as an independent anymore, because they aren't Notre Dame!! But if BYU does, look out...
The Rest of College Football--If BYU succeeds as we just discussed, do similar programs try to follow in their steps? Texas was reportedly close to giving it a try earlier this summer. And what if Florida, USC and Alabama find a way to double their tv deal dollars and keep their BCS access, and their conferences can't match it? I don't see this happening, to be honest. Texas was probably just bluffing because they got less money each year than all the other big programs, but the Big 12 gave in and made special concessions. It would definitely be an interesting sequence of events though.
What does BYU's independence mean for...
The Mountain West Conference--They have now lost the two teams that were the center of this conference geographically, financially and basically carried the MWC since it began. The addition of Boise State will ease the pain, but every sport besides football will hurt. Badly.
Utah--The recruiting battle in Utah almost changed dramatically when Utah received the invite to the Pac-10. But the promise of having every game be on national television is a huge hook for out of state recruits (see Manti Te'o) where Utah had an immense advantage, while BYU has generally won the in-state recruit battle. So, throw in BYU playing in Texas, vs Notre Dame and against Pac-10 schools every year and I see a big change coming unless Utah can really play well in its first couple years as a Pac-12 school. Everyone thinks Utah will be getting a huge load of money with a new Pac-12 deal-- not so much. The Utes minimal share (they don't get a full member share until 5 years) will pale in comparison to BYU's ESPN deal for football and basketball.
ESPN--To be honest, no much. But Dave Brown, ESPN VP of broadcasting, made it sound like they just secured the biggest cash cow in the nation, which he should do of course to advertise this deal.
BYU-TV--ESPN told BYU they could re-broadcast every BYU sporting event in their archives as many times as they want. This is huge! One reason BYU athletic leaders disliked the TV deal with the Mtn so much is that they were promised the authority to re-broadcast games, but Craig Thompson didn't deliver. Dick Harmon of the Deseret News discusses the financial benefits for BYU-TV at Harmon's Halftime. (It doesn't let me post the link.)
BYU football--A lot. Besides the whole national exposure and big financial jump, it puts BYU in a situation where they have to schedule big teams to make this a legit move, and they are good enough and talented enough to hang with Texas and beat the rest of the teams they already have scheduled in the next few years (Notre Dame--which will be much more difficult in 3-4 years, Oregon St, Boise St, and reportedly the likes of Texas Tech, Clemson and I'm sure we'll see some more Pac-12 schools on the docket pretty soon). Expect big things in th enext 5-10 years from BYU football.
Notre Dame--This puts pressure on Notre Dame, even though I don't think it's something they're worried about now. They have struggled the last couple years, and if BYU beats them the first couple match-ups and basically beats Notre Dame at their own game (independence), Notre Dame fans will be furious. They are special. Other teams are not supposed to be able be a consistent winner as an independent anymore, because they aren't Notre Dame!! But if BYU does, look out...
The Rest of College Football--If BYU succeeds as we just discussed, do similar programs try to follow in their steps? Texas was reportedly close to giving it a try earlier this summer. And what if Florida, USC and Alabama find a way to double their tv deal dollars and keep their BCS access, and their conferences can't match it? I don't see this happening, to be honest. Texas was probably just bluffing because they got less money each year than all the other big programs, but the Big 12 gave in and made special concessions. It would definitely be an interesting sequence of events though.
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