The 2010 NFL season is over. And before the post season begins, as we do every year, we now wonder which head coaches are going to be given another chance and who will be shown the door. Here is my take on the hot seats in the league (and as I wrote this paragraph I discovered that the Browns have fired Eric Mangini, so that makes my life easier).
Miami Dolphins – Tony Sparano:
It’s quite weird talking about Sparano getting the axe only two years after a playoff run. Sparano turned this team around very quickly, after finishing 1-15 in 2007 in Cam Cameron’s only year as head coach, winning the AFC East at 11-5 in 2008. The Dolphins have finished 7-9 the last two seasons, and won only one home game this season, but Sparano deserves another shot. Chad Henne’s struggles prove that he is not the quarterback of the future for this team, and the only argument I believe is valid for firing Sparano is that if this team does draft a new quarterback, an early career coaching change may stunt his development.
Opinion: Give him more time. The defense has improved greatly and they’re not too far from competing for a playoff berth.
Cincinnati Bengals – Marvin Lewis:
This decision is a two way street for both Lewis, if he wants to return, and owner Mike Brown. Lewis is clearly frustrated with Brown’s frugality, having the smallest scouting department in the NFL (which causes the coaches themselves to do off season scouting) and having no GM. Brown is a cheap knock off of Al Davis. At least Davis has had success as a decision maker, albeit that it was almost a decade ago that the Raiders made the playoffs. Brown is as clueless, cheap, and stupid as an NFL owner could be, and for that reason alone, Lewis shouldn’t want to come back, especially with an opportunity at the University of Pittsburgh. The Bengals have had only two winning seasons in 16 years, both of which have been under Lewis. However, there are going to be a lot of players leaving this team as well, and it’s time for Cincinnati to have a fresh start across the board.
Opinion: Leave Marvin… get out while you can. Mike Brown doesn’t deserve a good coach. There are good fans in Cincinnati, but the Bengals can’t win with that owner.
Jacksonville Jaguars – Jack Del Rio:
Del Rio is not a bad coach, but he is not a great one either. Facing a banged up Colts’ team, the Jags just could not pull out a win when they needed it. The fact is that if the Jaguars want to not only make the playoffs but get over the hump and compete for Super Bowls, Del Rio is not the guy. The AFC South is an underachieving division, and Jacksonville cannot afford to be left behind if Tennessee and Houston step up in the next year or two.
Opinion: Fired. Even though quarterback David Garrard did well this year, it’s clear that a new guy is going to be taken within the next year or two. If the Jags want consistency, it’s time to make the coaching switch now so that the players are more comfortable heading into an almost certain rebuilding mode.
Houston Texans – Gary Kubiak:
I know that the Texans have tried to make it clear that Kubiak will be back next year, but I don’t agree with this decision. I know that he led the team to it’s only winning season in franchise history in 2009, but during his tenure the Texans haven’t made the playoffs. The past two years, this team has had the talent to make a post season appearance, and both years they have failed. The defense has been horrendous and even adding Wade Phillips as defensive coordinator won’t be enough.
Opinion: Let him go. It’s time to find a defensive coach who can make this team great. The talent is there.
Tennessee Titans – Jeff Fisher:
He is the longest tenured coach in the NFL, with 16 seasons under his belt. However, owner Bud Adams made it pretty clear with his Christmas cards who he favors in the Fisher-Vince Young feud. It’s hard for any coach to remain at the helm for this long without players starting to get sick of hearing the same thing over and over. Whether VY is the quarterback of this team next year or not, it’s time for the Titans to start fresh. Fisher will have teams lining up to give him another shot, and he also deserves a chance to find a new home.
Opinion: A mutual split. It’s just time for a change.
San Diego Chargers – Norv Turner:
I don’t understand how this guy keeps getting head coaching jobs. He was awful in Washington and Oakland, and now he failed to make the playoffs with a team that many consider to be the most talented in the NFL. How can you fail to reach the post season with a top five offense and defense, and keep your job? Remember, GM AJ Smith fired Marty Schottenheimer after a 14-2 season because the team didn’t make the Super Bowl. The only reason Smith isn’t firing Turner this time is because he is in the hot seat as well after the Vincent Jackson debacle. Owner Dean Spanos has said he isn’t making any changes, but it’s not a good football move.
Opinion: Fire him. If you ask me, the only reason the Chargers have made the playoffs with Turner at the helm is because of how talented this team is.
Oakland Raiders – Tom Cable:
All morning I have read that Cable will be fired. Rumor has it that the veterans think that Cable lacks the discipline to keep his young players in line. Then again, Al Davis is crazy so we know that it wouldn’t be hard for him to get rid of Cable. The team made a lot of improvements and for most of the season was in contention. However, Cable may not be the guy for the long run.
Opinion: Give him another year. Cable turned this team into a contender and he needs one more shot with San Diego on the way down.
New York Giants – Tom Coughlin:
This is how ridiculous the NFL has become when the coach who beat the 16-0 Patriots in the Super Bowl is in the hot seat three years later after finishing 10-6. The Giants didn’t make the post season not because of Coughlin, but because Eli Manning turned the ball over 30 times. If they fire him, it will come back to haunt them, trust me.
Opinion: Keep him.
Monday, January 3, 2011
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Fair Weather Frenzy: the 2010 World Cup
Today, the United States was defeated by Ghana in the elimination round of the 2010 World Cup. All I can say is “Thank God.”
The fact that I am not a soccer fan does not play any part of my opinion of the average American soccer fan. I have ADD which gives me the super power of being able to tune out anything I want and completely forgetting what I have been talk… Oh, look a tree.
The aggravating part about the average American soccer fan is how fair weather he/she is. For one month every four years they are soccer aficionados, claiming to know all about the sport and love it with a passion. That would be fine and dandy, if they actually were soccer aficionados and did love the sport with a passion.
Here’s a few brain teaser to test any friend to see if they are really a soccer fan;
Question One: Who won the last World Cup?
This might not be the hardest question (I even know the answer to this one) but considering that the average American sports fan has the attention span of a dust mite, it will wean out those who really don’t know shit about soccer.
Question Two: Who won the MLS Cup?
I don’t know if that is the actual name of the MLS championship game but I’m taking a guess at it. If the person corrects you and tells you that it is called something else, he or she is probably right and you might as well not wait for their actual answer.
Question Three: Who won the European Cup?
Like Question Two, I don’t know the name of Europe’s soccer championship. I think they have like five a year so I’m just going to go with that.
Question Four: Name five MLS teams.
This might be the stumping question. Many soccer fans don’t follow American soccer because it is not the best that the world has to offer (hint: anyone that has called you un-patriotic for not cheering for Team USA in the World Cup can suck on this one).
Question Five: What the hell does Real mean or FC stand for?
FC is pretty obvious, but I still don’t know what Real means. Yes, a good journalist finds that out for himself. But I have better things to do with my time like breathing, farting and World of Warcraft.
So to all the real soccer fans out there, I have no problem with you. Nobody should tell you what you can or cannot like.
My problem is with the ignorant people who claim to love soccer, and the second that the World Cup is over or Team USA is eliminated, they don’t give a damn about it anymore.
If so many Americans love soccer so much, then why is the MLS struggling so badly in attendance and financially? Why don’t they and all of their soccer fanatics go to the games?
Want to know why? It’s because they are all fair-weather fans. When it’s cool to like soccer, they love it. But once something shinier pops up, the biggest question once again will be “Who the hell is Landon Donovan?”
Friday, June 4, 2010
The New BCS
This week, rumors have emerged that the PAC 10 Conference is looking to expand. Their main target has been reported as six Big XII schools; Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, and Colorado.
While the move makes sense, there is no doubt that several of these teams would not fit well geographically in the PAC 10 conference, or whatever it would be renamed.
In addition, the Big Ten has been looking to expand. The four schools they have targeted are Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, and Syracuse. Also, there have been rumors that the Big Ten has been in contact with Texas and Missouri.
The negotiations and changes required would be astronomically impossible to figure out at this point, but we (I) here at Devil of Sports decided to take some time and figure out how the college leagues would change if anything were to actually happen, and what scenarios could actually play out.
This map assumes that with the other conferences looking to expand, the Big XII and Big East would be dissolved and absorbed into the other four. While the Big East is primarily a basketball conference, with another eight teams participating in all other sports except football, I would say that the conference would actually go on, but as a weaker non-football league.
PAC 10 - 16 schools
East: Arizona, Arizona State, BYU, Colorado, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, TCU, Utah
West: Cal, Oregon, Oregon State, Stanford, UCLA, USC, Washington, Washington State
The PAC 10 Conference is the reason that all of this has come to light so I will start with discussing them. The main reason that the conference wants to expand is because of marketability. While they do have two of the nation’s largest markets in Los Angeles and the San Francisco/Oakland area, all of their schools play in the Pacific Time Zone, except for Arizona and Arizona State.
The issue of timing makes it difficult for the conference to sell and broadcast itself to markets on the East coast, which are three hours ahead.
This leads to the main reason that the PAC 10 is chasing the Texas schools; a conference cable network. Making a west coast cable network would not be very easy to sell to places on the east coast. However, by adding central schools, it allows them to cover a greater portion of the country with one of the nation’s largest schools in the University of Texas.
But it would not be a good move for the Longhorns to go to the PAC 10. For starters, geographically it would be a mess for the three Texas schools to have to travel to the Pacific Northwest, even with divisions. Plus, the PAC 10 would not be able to get the same type of coverage that conferences like the Big Ten or SEC have.
With that said, the PAC 10 would have to look elsewhere, to different markets. Texas Christian University (TCU) would be a great fit. It is located in Ft. Worth and would in draw the metroplex area. After being snubbed out of a chance to play for a National Championship in an undefeated regular season, the chance for TCU to move up into the BCS would be an offer that they couldn’t refuse.
Also, if Texas does not go to the PAC 10 it can be safe to bet that its in-state rivals, Tech and A&M, would not follow and would look to stay with the Longhorns. The consolation prize for those schools could be Brigham Young University (BYU) and Utah. Both teams are a good fit both geographically and market-wise. Like TCU, they are both nationally renowned college football programs that play in non-BCS conferences.
The other three teams from the Big XII, Colorado, Oklahoma, and Oklahoma State, I believe would actually go to the PAC 10. While both Oklahoma schools could get offers from the SEC, I believe that it would want the three Texas schools, with their larger markets over the smaller Oklahoma markets. Not wanting to make the conference too large, the SEC would probably not take all six schools from both states, especially when the PAC 10 has no interest in Baylor, and the SEC would accept them as a package.
Big Ten - 18 schools
East: Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, Rutgers
West: Illinois, Iowa, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Wisconsin
Of all the BCS conferences, the Big Ten is the wealthiest. The reason is simply because they have partnered with Fox to create the Big Ten Network. This brought each school an estimated $22 million in 2008. It is the whole reason why other conferences are talking about expanding.
The Big Ten is interested in Rutgers and Syracuse because they have a market in New York City. However, I cannot see both of them leaping over to the Big Ten just yet. Syracuse is a smaller school and most likely would not be a good fit, primarily because the school prides itself on its basketball program, which would draw huge interest from the ACC. On the other hand, Rutgers would welcome the chance to increase revenue and play in a more competitive football conference.
While Ohio State would refuse to let another school from in-state join, in Cincinnati, Penn State has reportedly welcomed the challenge. That is the cause for Pitt to be getting attention from the conference. However, like with Syracuse, the ACC would probably throw a pitch that could make it one of the dominant football programs in the conference with a basketball league that no other conference could compare to. Plus, Pittsburgh would not want to risk ruining its Backyard Brawl rivalry with West Virginia, whom the conference has no interest in acquiring.
Although the Big Ten has more to offer than any other conference, with a network already strong and in place, the next schools to join would not be their first choices. Missouri is on the Big Ten radar and has been reportedly interested at looking at conferences outside of the Big XII. Should the Big XII fall apart, which this article assumes, Kansas, Kansas State, Iowa State, and Nebraska would also be looking for new homes. Geographically these schools make perfect sense, as their locations would make the establishment of two divisions easier to create.
The biggest piece of the puzzle is Notre Dame. The Big Ten has invited the Irish to join multiple times. However, Notre Dame makes more money on its own with contracts with NBC and competing with schools all over the country than it would by joining a league.
The Irish pride themselves on being one of the top athletic programs in America. If the Big East folds as a football conference and all that are left are the small schools for basketball, Notre Dame would likely be looking to move its other athletic programs to another conference. However, at this point, no other conference is going to accept Notre Dame without its football program, forcing them to eventually join the Big Ten.
Southeastern Conference - 18 schools
East: Cincinnati, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisville, LSU, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vanderbilt
West: Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Baylor, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech
With the Big XII folding, the four Texas schools would most likely be more interested in joining the SEC over the PAC 10. From a competition stand-point, the University of Texas would relish the chance to be a member of the best conference in college football today.
It would also allow the creation of a SEC network that could match the marketability of the Big Ten.
Geographically, this is a great fit. A large concern about joining the PAC 10 would be students traveling and arriving home at odd hours only to have to attend class in the morning or a day later. Joining the SEC allows the Texas schools to keep their travel cost and time low, and only have a one hour time difference with some of the other schools in the league.
However, one drawback for Texas would be the academic standards of the SEC schools, which is lower than that of those of the Big XII. While the Big Ten is interested in Texas, the Longhorns would not abandon their in-state rivalries and would require Texas A&M, Texas Tech, and Baylor to accompany them, which the Big Ten would not want.
The other two schools in the mix are Louisville and Cincinnati. Kentucky and Louisville are in-state rivals, and both would love to be able to play each other, in football and basketball, every year, with the kind of stakes that only an in-conference game could provide. Should Louisville show interest, it would quickly draw Cincinnati into the equation.
Cincinnati is located only about 100 miles from Lexington, so geographically it fits well in the SEC. However, its main pull would be because Louisville and Cincinnati have been in-conference rivals since 1929, with the creation of the Keg of Nails. Both were founding members of Conference USA and leapt to the Big East together. If one goes, the other will follow.
Cincinnati would also give the SEC a presence in the north, which would give it the chance to compete, head to head, for the Southern Ohio market with Ohio State.
Atlantic Coast Conference - 17 schools
North: Boston College, Connecticut, Maryland, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Virginia, Virginia Tech, West Virginia
South: Clemson, Duke, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Miami, North Carolina, North Carolina State, South Florida, Wake Forest
With the dissolving of the Big East, arguably the strongest basketball conference in the NCAA, the remainder of the Big East schools would find a welcoming home in the ACC. Syracuse, UConn, Pitt, and West Virginia all possess four of the premier basketball programs in the country. The chance to be able to match them up against the likes of Duke and North Carolina on an annual basis would draw in more money than any other conference could.
In addition, these are both currently seen as two of the weaker football conferences. With Louisville and Cincinnati joining the SEC and Rutgers the Big Ten, the remainder of the programs will be required to fill in the lost spots. The ACC would be able to add West Virginia and Pittsburgh, absorbing a popular and historic football rivalry.
South Florida would be enticing, as they have a quickly up and coming football program as well.
The combination of the remaining Big East schools with the ACC would also make a conference that could entirely dominate all of the Atlantic Coast markets. While the creation of its own television network would be difficult to sell from a pure football standpoint, the basketball revenue could be enough to generate one, especially if they could convince the basketball teams of Georgetown and Villanova to follow.
A New College Playoff Format
With these four new Super Conferences, the creation of a playoff system would be quite simple. Each conference would now have to hold a conference championship game. And, with now only four conferences instead of six, a plus-one game would be very easy to establish. Of course there would still be questions and scrutiny about barring non-BCS teams from the competition. However, BCS expansion to schools like Boise State would become much easier, giving schools with the talent the ability to compete.
Last year, five teams in the FCS finished with perfect regular seasons; Alabama, Texas, Cincinnati, TCU, and Boise State. However, only two of them got to play for the National Championship. Every year there is an outcry for a college football playoff system. With the reduction of the number of leagues and increased revenue generated from TV networks and larger markets, the establishment of a plus-one playoff would be more acceptable to the NCAA and the BCS.
While the move makes sense, there is no doubt that several of these teams would not fit well geographically in the PAC 10 conference, or whatever it would be renamed.
In addition, the Big Ten has been looking to expand. The four schools they have targeted are Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, and Syracuse. Also, there have been rumors that the Big Ten has been in contact with Texas and Missouri.
The negotiations and changes required would be astronomically impossible to figure out at this point, but we (I) here at Devil of Sports decided to take some time and figure out how the college leagues would change if anything were to actually happen, and what scenarios could actually play out.
This map assumes that with the other conferences looking to expand, the Big XII and Big East would be dissolved and absorbed into the other four. While the Big East is primarily a basketball conference, with another eight teams participating in all other sports except football, I would say that the conference would actually go on, but as a weaker non-football league.
PAC 10 - 16 schools
East: Arizona, Arizona State, BYU, Colorado, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, TCU, Utah
West: Cal, Oregon, Oregon State, Stanford, UCLA, USC, Washington, Washington State
The PAC 10 Conference is the reason that all of this has come to light so I will start with discussing them. The main reason that the conference wants to expand is because of marketability. While they do have two of the nation’s largest markets in Los Angeles and the San Francisco/Oakland area, all of their schools play in the Pacific Time Zone, except for Arizona and Arizona State.
The issue of timing makes it difficult for the conference to sell and broadcast itself to markets on the East coast, which are three hours ahead.
This leads to the main reason that the PAC 10 is chasing the Texas schools; a conference cable network. Making a west coast cable network would not be very easy to sell to places on the east coast. However, by adding central schools, it allows them to cover a greater portion of the country with one of the nation’s largest schools in the University of Texas.
But it would not be a good move for the Longhorns to go to the PAC 10. For starters, geographically it would be a mess for the three Texas schools to have to travel to the Pacific Northwest, even with divisions. Plus, the PAC 10 would not be able to get the same type of coverage that conferences like the Big Ten or SEC have.
With that said, the PAC 10 would have to look elsewhere, to different markets. Texas Christian University (TCU) would be a great fit. It is located in Ft. Worth and would in draw the metroplex area. After being snubbed out of a chance to play for a National Championship in an undefeated regular season, the chance for TCU to move up into the BCS would be an offer that they couldn’t refuse.
Also, if Texas does not go to the PAC 10 it can be safe to bet that its in-state rivals, Tech and A&M, would not follow and would look to stay with the Longhorns. The consolation prize for those schools could be Brigham Young University (BYU) and Utah. Both teams are a good fit both geographically and market-wise. Like TCU, they are both nationally renowned college football programs that play in non-BCS conferences.
The other three teams from the Big XII, Colorado, Oklahoma, and Oklahoma State, I believe would actually go to the PAC 10. While both Oklahoma schools could get offers from the SEC, I believe that it would want the three Texas schools, with their larger markets over the smaller Oklahoma markets. Not wanting to make the conference too large, the SEC would probably not take all six schools from both states, especially when the PAC 10 has no interest in Baylor, and the SEC would accept them as a package.
Big Ten - 18 schools
East: Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, Rutgers
West: Illinois, Iowa, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Wisconsin
Of all the BCS conferences, the Big Ten is the wealthiest. The reason is simply because they have partnered with Fox to create the Big Ten Network. This brought each school an estimated $22 million in 2008. It is the whole reason why other conferences are talking about expanding.
The Big Ten is interested in Rutgers and Syracuse because they have a market in New York City. However, I cannot see both of them leaping over to the Big Ten just yet. Syracuse is a smaller school and most likely would not be a good fit, primarily because the school prides itself on its basketball program, which would draw huge interest from the ACC. On the other hand, Rutgers would welcome the chance to increase revenue and play in a more competitive football conference.
While Ohio State would refuse to let another school from in-state join, in Cincinnati, Penn State has reportedly welcomed the challenge. That is the cause for Pitt to be getting attention from the conference. However, like with Syracuse, the ACC would probably throw a pitch that could make it one of the dominant football programs in the conference with a basketball league that no other conference could compare to. Plus, Pittsburgh would not want to risk ruining its Backyard Brawl rivalry with West Virginia, whom the conference has no interest in acquiring.
Although the Big Ten has more to offer than any other conference, with a network already strong and in place, the next schools to join would not be their first choices. Missouri is on the Big Ten radar and has been reportedly interested at looking at conferences outside of the Big XII. Should the Big XII fall apart, which this article assumes, Kansas, Kansas State, Iowa State, and Nebraska would also be looking for new homes. Geographically these schools make perfect sense, as their locations would make the establishment of two divisions easier to create.
The biggest piece of the puzzle is Notre Dame. The Big Ten has invited the Irish to join multiple times. However, Notre Dame makes more money on its own with contracts with NBC and competing with schools all over the country than it would by joining a league.
The Irish pride themselves on being one of the top athletic programs in America. If the Big East folds as a football conference and all that are left are the small schools for basketball, Notre Dame would likely be looking to move its other athletic programs to another conference. However, at this point, no other conference is going to accept Notre Dame without its football program, forcing them to eventually join the Big Ten.
Southeastern Conference - 18 schools
East: Cincinnati, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisville, LSU, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vanderbilt
West: Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Baylor, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech
With the Big XII folding, the four Texas schools would most likely be more interested in joining the SEC over the PAC 10. From a competition stand-point, the University of Texas would relish the chance to be a member of the best conference in college football today.
It would also allow the creation of a SEC network that could match the marketability of the Big Ten.
Geographically, this is a great fit. A large concern about joining the PAC 10 would be students traveling and arriving home at odd hours only to have to attend class in the morning or a day later. Joining the SEC allows the Texas schools to keep their travel cost and time low, and only have a one hour time difference with some of the other schools in the league.
However, one drawback for Texas would be the academic standards of the SEC schools, which is lower than that of those of the Big XII. While the Big Ten is interested in Texas, the Longhorns would not abandon their in-state rivalries and would require Texas A&M, Texas Tech, and Baylor to accompany them, which the Big Ten would not want.
The other two schools in the mix are Louisville and Cincinnati. Kentucky and Louisville are in-state rivals, and both would love to be able to play each other, in football and basketball, every year, with the kind of stakes that only an in-conference game could provide. Should Louisville show interest, it would quickly draw Cincinnati into the equation.
Cincinnati is located only about 100 miles from Lexington, so geographically it fits well in the SEC. However, its main pull would be because Louisville and Cincinnati have been in-conference rivals since 1929, with the creation of the Keg of Nails. Both were founding members of Conference USA and leapt to the Big East together. If one goes, the other will follow.
Cincinnati would also give the SEC a presence in the north, which would give it the chance to compete, head to head, for the Southern Ohio market with Ohio State.
Atlantic Coast Conference - 17 schools
North: Boston College, Connecticut, Maryland, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Virginia, Virginia Tech, West Virginia
South: Clemson, Duke, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Miami, North Carolina, North Carolina State, South Florida, Wake Forest
With the dissolving of the Big East, arguably the strongest basketball conference in the NCAA, the remainder of the Big East schools would find a welcoming home in the ACC. Syracuse, UConn, Pitt, and West Virginia all possess four of the premier basketball programs in the country. The chance to be able to match them up against the likes of Duke and North Carolina on an annual basis would draw in more money than any other conference could.
In addition, these are both currently seen as two of the weaker football conferences. With Louisville and Cincinnati joining the SEC and Rutgers the Big Ten, the remainder of the programs will be required to fill in the lost spots. The ACC would be able to add West Virginia and Pittsburgh, absorbing a popular and historic football rivalry.
South Florida would be enticing, as they have a quickly up and coming football program as well.
The combination of the remaining Big East schools with the ACC would also make a conference that could entirely dominate all of the Atlantic Coast markets. While the creation of its own television network would be difficult to sell from a pure football standpoint, the basketball revenue could be enough to generate one, especially if they could convince the basketball teams of Georgetown and Villanova to follow.
A New College Playoff Format
With these four new Super Conferences, the creation of a playoff system would be quite simple. Each conference would now have to hold a conference championship game. And, with now only four conferences instead of six, a plus-one game would be very easy to establish. Of course there would still be questions and scrutiny about barring non-BCS teams from the competition. However, BCS expansion to schools like Boise State would become much easier, giving schools with the talent the ability to compete.
Last year, five teams in the FCS finished with perfect regular seasons; Alabama, Texas, Cincinnati, TCU, and Boise State. However, only two of them got to play for the National Championship. Every year there is an outcry for a college football playoff system. With the reduction of the number of leagues and increased revenue generated from TV networks and larger markets, the establishment of a plus-one playoff would be more acceptable to the NCAA and the BCS.
Sunday, May 16, 2010
The Definition of Apathy
Webster’s defines the word “apathy” as a lack of feeling or emotion. If you take the time to look it up, you may actually see a picture of Lebron James.
Well, maybe in the 2010 Cleveland edition that is.
On Thursday night, James and the Cavs were eliminated in the second round of the NBA playoffs after losing to the Boston Celtics 94-85 in Game Six. While he did have a triple double, any basketball fan could tell that during the last two games of the series, James was disconnected and didn’t care.
He is the self proclaimed “King” of basketball. But what exactly has he become the king of? He hasn’t won any rings, so he doesn’t have the jewelry. He has almost as many haters as he does fans, so he doesn’t have the court.
The King of quitting. The King of being spoiled. The King of nothing.
Say what you will about Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson, and Michael Jordan’s personalities. Whether you love them or hate them, they all share one thing in common. They have heart.
James doesn’t have heart. Instead, the passion that should be driving him towards a championship is void and replaced with greed and ego.
For as much flack as he has taken over the past week for his performance in Game Five, I would bet that he hasn’t heard a word of criticism from his A-Team of yes-men. He has been ripped and shredded for not hustling down the court, not paying attention during huddles, and not caring about the fans around him that were about to burst into tears, which led to the worst home loss in Cavaliers playoff history and losing the last two games in Cleveland by over 50 points combined.
After Game Six, Lebron spoke to the media, unlike last year where his sour-ness decided to not shake hands with the Orlando Magic or address the public after losing in the Eastern Conference Finals. He said that “his team” would take care of things. He wasn’t talking about the Cavaliers. He was talking about his suck-ups. His chumps. The guys that would give up a limb just to be able to stay in his close inner circle.
To him, they are the media. They are a shield from the real world and the reality that he has been uncovered as an un-coachable phony.
Could the Cavaliers have done things differently as a team? Of course.
Mike Brown is going to be fired, and deservedly so. He has no idea how to handle an offense or make adjustments. A team that has clinched the number one seed in the East two years in a row should be the one forcing the other team to change, not the other way around.
Danny Ferry has tried hard to build a team around Lebron. For the most part he succeeded, at least on paper. However, Jordan had Pippen and Kobe has Gasol. While both “side-kicks” are/were good defenders, they can/could also score. Antwan Jameson and Shaq were good pickups, but neither one can take the pressure off James offensively. Ferry is notoriously non-aggressive and seems to take what he can get. If trading JJ Hickson would have led to the acquisition of Amare Stoudemire, who CAN score, he should have taken it. Jameson was an overpriced and over the hill consolation prize. It was about as useful as a gift certificate to Bennigan’s.
It was unfair for James to have to carry the weight of the Cavs on his shoulders, but he should not have quit. He doesn’t get paid millions of dollars from Dan Gilbert or any of his sponsors to quit.
It doesn’t matter whether he got into a fight with Brown or his teammates. It doesn’t matter if he wanted to turn Cleveland against him, making it easier to leave his home town of nearby Akron. The reasons he tanked it are irrelevant.
He stabbed Cleveland in the back and in the end he is going to have the last laugh. At 25, he’s smart enough to know that he has at least a decade of good ball left in him. That’s plenty of time to get a ring or two. That’s the most frustrating part of all of this.
As for Cleveland, whether he stays or goes doesn’t matter now, at least for the 2009-2010 season. Getting home court throughout the entire playoffs doesn’t come easy and is hard to repeat for three years in a row. And because of his apathy, he threw it all away. I could care less about how Lebron feels about not earning a championship this year, because I doubt he cares either.
So buyer beware: Lebron James is a quitter, backstabber, thief, fool, phony, pompous, asshole who doesn’t deserve anything. He deserves what every other apathetic quitter deserves; nothing. Not the food on his table, the cars in his garage, the clothes on his back, or the shoes on his feet.
Assuming that he leaves, Lebron will have cemented his place in Northeast Ohio history as the greatest failure and quitter the area has ever seen.
Then again, I bet he doesn’t even care about that.
Friday, April 23, 2010
Brady Quinn Owes Jimmy Clausen Money
With the second round of the 2010 NFL Draft only hours away, two of the looming questions are both surrounding Notre Dame quarterback Jimmy Clausen: Why did he slip out of round one and where will he land?
After Oklahoma QB Sam Bradford was taken first overall by the St. Louis Rams, Clausen was expected to be the next passer taken. Some of the possible destinations that were being thrown around were Washington at four, Kansas City at five, Seattle at six, Cleveland at seven, Oakland at eight, Buffalo at nine, Jacksonville at 10, and Minnesota at 30.
The Redskins and Jaguars can both be ruled out because of their current quarterback situations, with Washington acquiring Donovan McNabb less than a month ago and Jacksonville still having confidence in David Garrard. The Chiefs were reportedly willing to take him, probably because former Irish coach Charlie Weiss is now their offensive coordinator, but taking safety Eric Berry was a bigger need for them. And the Seahawks swapped second round picks with the Chargers in exchange for Charlie Whitehurst, who looks to be the successor to Matt Hasselbeck.
So what about the Browns, Raiders, Bills, and Vikings?
In Cleveland, team president Mike Holmgren came out and said that he wished he liked Clausen more. That’s a sure indication that they weren’t (and probably still won’t be) going after him.
Oakland would have made sense because Al Davis doesn’t make sense. Then again, taking Clausen would be Davis finally admitting that Jamarcus Russell is the biggest draft bust of all time.
Buffalo would have been a great fit for Clausen, but taking RB CJ Spiller was a good move.
And it was supposed to be very unlikely that the Vikings would even have a chance at Clausen, but with Favre probably returning and the coaching staff having confidence in Tavaris Jackson, passing on him and trading the pick was more appropriate.
Not to mention that Clausen has been bashed by analysts and the media lately. Now this doesn’t mean that NFL scouts and front offices are agreeing with the critics and leaking information, but if the first round is proof of anything, it’s that there is at least some truth behind their skepticism.
Issues like the size of Clausen’s hands and his “lack” of leadership were the two big knocks on him that were being publicized primarily. However, I like to think about another quarterback that came out of the same system and had very similar qualities and attributes to Clausen. That man is Brady Quinn.
Coming into the league in 2007, Quinn was said to be “the most pro-ready quarterback” that could be “thrown onto the pro-field immediately” because “he played in a pro-style offense at Notre Dame.”
Although fans and the media don’t seem to remember this, NFL teams do. Quinn serves as a precautionary tale to all teams interested in Clausen. Now presumably buried on the Denver depth chart behind Kyle Orton and last night’s surprise pick Tim Tebow, Quinn shows that quarterbacks that succeed in “pro-style” offenses, don’t always pan out in the NFL.
As for where will Clausen land? That will be answered tonight. I would put my money on Cleveland not being his new home though. That wound is still pretty fresh.
But if I were Jimmy Clausen, I’d be calling Brady Quinn asking him for some money, because his failure may have cost Clausen millions.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Final 2010 NFL Mock Draft
With the NFL Draft only three days away, I thought I'd let my three loyal followers in on my final mock board. I know that I have three of the first five picks hailing from Oklahoma, but hey, they have some good guys coming out. Anyhow, enjoy.
Round One
1. St. Louis Rams – Sam Bradford, QB. Oklahoma
2. Detroit Lions – Ndomukong Suh, DT. Nebraska
3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Gerald McCoy, DT. Oklahoma
4. Washington Redskins – Russell Okung, OT. Oklahoma State
5. Kansas City Chiefs – Trent Williams, OT. Oklahoma
6. Seattle Seahawks – CJ Spiller, RB. Clemson
7. Cleveland Browns – Eric Berry, S. Tennessee
8. Oakland Raiders – Jason Pierre-Paul, DE. South Florida
9. Buffalo Bills – Jimmy Clausen, QB. Notre Dame
10. Jacksonville Jaguars – Dez Bryant, WR. Oklahoma State
11. Denver Broncos (via Chicago Bears) – Joe Haden, CB. Florida
12. Miami Dolphins – Rolando McClain, LB. Alabama
13. San Francisco 49ers – Earl Thomas, CB. Texas
14. Seattle Seahawks (via Denver Broncos) – Bryan Bulaga, OT. Iowa
15. New York Giants – Ryan Mathews, RB. Fresno State
16. Tennessee Titans – Derrick Morgan, DE. Georgia Tech
17. San Francisco 49ers (via Carolina Panthers) – Anthony Davis, OT. Rutgers
18. Pittsburgh Steelers – Mike Iupati, OG. Idaho
19. Atlanta Falcons – Everson Griffen, DE. USC
20. Houston Texans – Bruce Campbell, OT. Maryland
21. Cincinnati Bengals – Jermaine Gresham, TE. Oklahoma
22. New England Patriots – Taylor Mays, S. USC
23. Green Bay Packers – Charles Brown, OT. USC
24. Philadelphia Eagles – Sergio Kindle, LB. Texas
25. Baltimore Ravens – Jarred Odrick, DT. Penn State
26. Arizona Cardinals – Brandon Graham, LB. Michigan
27. Dallas Cowboys – Maurkice Pouncey, C. Florida
28. San Diego Chargers – Jhavid Best, RB. California
29. New York Jets – Demaryius Thomas, WR. Georgia Tech
30. Minnesota Vikings – Tim Tebow, QB. Florida
31. Indianapolis Colts – Devin McCourty, CB. Rutgers
32. New Orleans Saints – Sean Witherspoon, LB. Missouri
Round Two
33. STL – Arrelious Benn, WR. Illinois
34. DET – Jerry Hughes, LB. TCU
35. TB – Patrick Robinson, CB. Florida State
36. KC – Kareem Jackson, CB. Alabama
37. PHI (via WAS) – Dan Williams, DT. Tennessee
38. CLE – Colt McCoy, QB. Texas
39. OAK – Navorro Bowman, LB. Penn State
40. SD (via SEA) – Terrence Cody, DT. Alabama
41. BUF – Golden Tate, WR. Notre Dame
42. TB (via CHI) – Kyle Wilson, CB. Boise State
43. MIA – Brian Price, DT. UCLA
44. NE (via JAX) – Greg Hardy, DE. Ole Miss
45. DEN – Damian Williams, WR. USC
46. NYG – Rodger Saffold, OT. Indiana
47. NE (via TEN) – Mardy Gilyard, WR. Cincinnati
48. CAR – Carlos Dunlap, DE. Florida
49. SF – Linval Joseph, DT. East Carolina
50. KC (via ATL) – Brandon LaFell, WR. LSU
51. HOU – Dexter McCluster, RB. Ole Miss
52. PIT – Nate Allen, S. South Florida
53. NE – Jimmy Graham, TE. Miami (fl)
54. CIN – Jon Asamoah, OG, Illinois
55. PHI – JD Walton, C. Baylor
56. GB – Jonathan Dwyer, RB. Georgia Tech
57. BAL – Jamar Chaney, LB. Mississippi State
58. ARI – Chris Cook, CB. Virginia
59. DAL – Alex Carrington, DE. Arkansas State
60. SEA (via SD) – Geno Atkins, DT. Georgia
61. NYJ – Ben Tate, RB. Auburn
62. MIN – Morgan Burnett, S. Georgia Tech
63. IND – Vladimir Ducasse, OT. Massachusetts
64. NO – Reshad Jones, S. Georgia
Round One
1. St. Louis Rams – Sam Bradford, QB. Oklahoma
2. Detroit Lions – Ndomukong Suh, DT. Nebraska
3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Gerald McCoy, DT. Oklahoma
4. Washington Redskins – Russell Okung, OT. Oklahoma State
5. Kansas City Chiefs – Trent Williams, OT. Oklahoma
6. Seattle Seahawks – CJ Spiller, RB. Clemson
7. Cleveland Browns – Eric Berry, S. Tennessee
8. Oakland Raiders – Jason Pierre-Paul, DE. South Florida
9. Buffalo Bills – Jimmy Clausen, QB. Notre Dame
10. Jacksonville Jaguars – Dez Bryant, WR. Oklahoma State
11. Denver Broncos (via Chicago Bears) – Joe Haden, CB. Florida
12. Miami Dolphins – Rolando McClain, LB. Alabama
13. San Francisco 49ers – Earl Thomas, CB. Texas
14. Seattle Seahawks (via Denver Broncos) – Bryan Bulaga, OT. Iowa
15. New York Giants – Ryan Mathews, RB. Fresno State
16. Tennessee Titans – Derrick Morgan, DE. Georgia Tech
17. San Francisco 49ers (via Carolina Panthers) – Anthony Davis, OT. Rutgers
18. Pittsburgh Steelers – Mike Iupati, OG. Idaho
19. Atlanta Falcons – Everson Griffen, DE. USC
20. Houston Texans – Bruce Campbell, OT. Maryland
21. Cincinnati Bengals – Jermaine Gresham, TE. Oklahoma
22. New England Patriots – Taylor Mays, S. USC
23. Green Bay Packers – Charles Brown, OT. USC
24. Philadelphia Eagles – Sergio Kindle, LB. Texas
25. Baltimore Ravens – Jarred Odrick, DT. Penn State
26. Arizona Cardinals – Brandon Graham, LB. Michigan
27. Dallas Cowboys – Maurkice Pouncey, C. Florida
28. San Diego Chargers – Jhavid Best, RB. California
29. New York Jets – Demaryius Thomas, WR. Georgia Tech
30. Minnesota Vikings – Tim Tebow, QB. Florida
31. Indianapolis Colts – Devin McCourty, CB. Rutgers
32. New Orleans Saints – Sean Witherspoon, LB. Missouri
Round Two
33. STL – Arrelious Benn, WR. Illinois
34. DET – Jerry Hughes, LB. TCU
35. TB – Patrick Robinson, CB. Florida State
36. KC – Kareem Jackson, CB. Alabama
37. PHI (via WAS) – Dan Williams, DT. Tennessee
38. CLE – Colt McCoy, QB. Texas
39. OAK – Navorro Bowman, LB. Penn State
40. SD (via SEA) – Terrence Cody, DT. Alabama
41. BUF – Golden Tate, WR. Notre Dame
42. TB (via CHI) – Kyle Wilson, CB. Boise State
43. MIA – Brian Price, DT. UCLA
44. NE (via JAX) – Greg Hardy, DE. Ole Miss
45. DEN – Damian Williams, WR. USC
46. NYG – Rodger Saffold, OT. Indiana
47. NE (via TEN) – Mardy Gilyard, WR. Cincinnati
48. CAR – Carlos Dunlap, DE. Florida
49. SF – Linval Joseph, DT. East Carolina
50. KC (via ATL) – Brandon LaFell, WR. LSU
51. HOU – Dexter McCluster, RB. Ole Miss
52. PIT – Nate Allen, S. South Florida
53. NE – Jimmy Graham, TE. Miami (fl)
54. CIN – Jon Asamoah, OG, Illinois
55. PHI – JD Walton, C. Baylor
56. GB – Jonathan Dwyer, RB. Georgia Tech
57. BAL – Jamar Chaney, LB. Mississippi State
58. ARI – Chris Cook, CB. Virginia
59. DAL – Alex Carrington, DE. Arkansas State
60. SEA (via SD) – Geno Atkins, DT. Georgia
61. NYJ – Ben Tate, RB. Auburn
62. MIN – Morgan Burnett, S. Georgia Tech
63. IND – Vladimir Ducasse, OT. Massachusetts
64. NO – Reshad Jones, S. Georgia
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Steeler Nation Hates Women
With all of the Big Ben rumors and speculation going on, focusing on his sexual assault case in Georgia, Pittsburgh Steelers’ fans have ultimately proved, once again, they are dumb-asses.
On Friday, it was reported by ESPN’s Kelly Naqi that Ocmulgee (Ga.) Judicial Circuit District Attorney Fred Blight will most likely not be pursuing charges against the Steelers’ quarterback for his alleged sexual assault on a 20-year old college student in a bar on March 5.
Plus, he has already dodged criminal charges of rape from an incident in Nevada last year.
Being a Browns’ fan, and having nothing but hatred for Ben Roethlisberger and everything he does, I have been following the story on ProFootballTalk.com quite closely. One of the reasons writer Mike Florio believes that charges won’t end up being filed is because Blight would have to assemble a “Dream Team” of lawyers if he has any hopes of beating Big Ben and his high priced attorney. Remember, Blight doesn’t have any major cities in his jurisdiction, so facing a trial like this would presumably be unprecedented for him.
Now, the reason I am targeting Steelers’ fans on this is not because of how crooked this sounds. Rapistberger is a monster. You don’t get accused of sexual misconduct twice within a year without some sliver of truth behind it. Hell, he even admitted he was fooling around with the girl in the bathroom of the bar (while his cop buddy played lookout).
After the news broke that charges probably would not be filed, Steelers’ fans started posting all over ProFootballTalk.com on how now they forgive their quarterback and that they will now win the Super Bowl.
Dear Steeler Nation, we already know that you’re not the brightest of people, but this takes the taco.
First off, the Steelers didn’t even make the playoffs last year, losing several of their final games to the Oakland Raiders, Kansas City Chiefs, and Browns. By the way, all of those teams have top eight picks in the upcoming draft. That has to sting a bit.
Second, while I do appreciate the fact that the fans weren’t supporting him because even they believed he is a sexual deviant, doing a complete 180 before the actual news is announced, on Monday, that he won’t be charged is very foolish. I can’t blame any of them for wanting to root for their Super Bowl winning quarterback. However, treating him as a god after this only says to Rapistberger that no matter what he does, in the end, the fans will stand behind him.
And third, just because charges aren’t filed doesn’t mean the dumb-ass is innocent. The guy still did something wrong here and will continue to break the law and mistreat women until he can stop buying his way out of trouble. Personally, it’s that fact that makes me most disgusted of all. He reminds me of that yellow-dude from "Sin City," never getting in trouble because of his wallet. His lawyers and police entourage have given him better protection than his own offensive line!
So no, I can’t blame Steelers’ fans for a corrupt judicial process and a possible cover-up.
However, I can blame them for being obnoxious about their quarterback going free, not because of his innocence, but because he has the deep pockets to do so. I can blame them for accusing the guy of being a criminal and then suddenly forgiving him for his offenses. And I can blame them for completely forgetting that this kind of behavior encourages others with money to go out and commit similar horrors to women.
Steeler Nation, ignorance is the worst kind of dumb-assery.
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