Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Upset Alerts
New Upset Alerts are ready for week 2....forgive me for the Oklahoma-Florida State pick...I know it isn't too much of an upset, but I needed a 3rd game.
College Football Week 1:
There is usually very little to learn from Week 1 in College Football when all the "good" teams schedule all the "cupcakes", but there are some things to been learned from Week 1.
What we learned:
-Maybe most importantly we saw that Boise State can at least play one game (like a BCS National Title Game, perhaps?) versus a top five caliber team. Virginia Tech, my dark horse for this year's BCS National Championship Game, all but handed Boise State a 17-0 lead, but when life hands you lemons, you need to make some goddamn lemonade.
-Almost as importantly, we saw that Boise State is not too good. Many people are looking at this as an upset where Boise proved they are forreal...they are #3, right? Boise State didn't play well at all after Va-Tech handed them 17 points with mistakes. A phantom call and phantom no-call gave Boise the opportunity to go ahead 33-30. Not to take too much credit away from the Broncos, but if anything, I am less impressed by the Boise.
-The Big-12 is not very good: Texas, my pick for this years National Champion, certainly didn't dominate. Oklahoma had to hold on against Utah State. Missouri, thought to be a strong Big-12 team, won by only 10 against Illinois, a Big-10 bottom feeder. Kansas lost to FCS North Dakota State. Nebraska looked strong...against #120 Western Kentucky.
-There is no Heisman favorite: Terrelle Pryor? He looked nice with 247 passing yards, but only rushed for 17 yards. Mark Ingram...he didn't play. Case Keenum even? Under 300 yards passing for the guy is supposed to eclipse 6,000. What about Ryan Williams? 21 rushes for 44 yards. Kellen Moore? only 215 yards. Moore may come out the winner, thanks to a (cough) big win and 3 TD's to no INT's.
-There is still hope for FCS teams: No one against the big time schools, but what about Jacksonville State beating Ole Miss? That was fun.
-Michigan is reviving: It may not be Ohio State, but Rich Rod gave the University a good reason to keep him around as Michigan dominated a good UConn team in the Big House. Denard Robinson made a showing for (gasp!) the Heisman.
-You can play better and still lose to a team you are better than: What in the world am I saying? Turnovers...turnovers...turnovers. Va-Tech gave away the ball to Boise State too many times and Navy owned Maryland, but neither could win because of problems keeping possession.
-Having fun is watching big points: Boise State-Va-Tech was no doubt the most hyped match-up of week 1. It was also the 2nd best game to watch. The only one better totaled 100 points as East Carolina def. Tulsa 51-49 in a game that featured a scoring drive on every possession in the 4th quarter, 1,117 yards, and 47 points in the 4th quarter alone.
In Conclusion: There is not much to say at this point, everyone who was supposed to win won..hehe, cept you, Ole Miss.
What we learned:
-Maybe most importantly we saw that Boise State can at least play one game (like a BCS National Title Game, perhaps?) versus a top five caliber team. Virginia Tech, my dark horse for this year's BCS National Championship Game, all but handed Boise State a 17-0 lead, but when life hands you lemons, you need to make some goddamn lemonade.
-Almost as importantly, we saw that Boise State is not too good. Many people are looking at this as an upset where Boise proved they are forreal...they are #3, right? Boise State didn't play well at all after Va-Tech handed them 17 points with mistakes. A phantom call and phantom no-call gave Boise the opportunity to go ahead 33-30. Not to take too much credit away from the Broncos, but if anything, I am less impressed by the Boise.
-The Big-12 is not very good: Texas, my pick for this years National Champion, certainly didn't dominate. Oklahoma had to hold on against Utah State. Missouri, thought to be a strong Big-12 team, won by only 10 against Illinois, a Big-10 bottom feeder. Kansas lost to FCS North Dakota State. Nebraska looked strong...against #120 Western Kentucky.
-There is no Heisman favorite: Terrelle Pryor? He looked nice with 247 passing yards, but only rushed for 17 yards. Mark Ingram...he didn't play. Case Keenum even? Under 300 yards passing for the guy is supposed to eclipse 6,000. What about Ryan Williams? 21 rushes for 44 yards. Kellen Moore? only 215 yards. Moore may come out the winner, thanks to a (cough) big win and 3 TD's to no INT's.
-There is still hope for FCS teams: No one against the big time schools, but what about Jacksonville State beating Ole Miss? That was fun.
-Michigan is reviving: It may not be Ohio State, but Rich Rod gave the University a good reason to keep him around as Michigan dominated a good UConn team in the Big House. Denard Robinson made a showing for (gasp!) the Heisman.
-You can play better and still lose to a team you are better than: What in the world am I saying? Turnovers...turnovers...turnovers. Va-Tech gave away the ball to Boise State too many times and Navy owned Maryland, but neither could win because of problems keeping possession.
-Having fun is watching big points: Boise State-Va-Tech was no doubt the most hyped match-up of week 1. It was also the 2nd best game to watch. The only one better totaled 100 points as East Carolina def. Tulsa 51-49 in a game that featured a scoring drive on every possession in the 4th quarter, 1,117 yards, and 47 points in the 4th quarter alone.
In Conclusion: There is not much to say at this point, everyone who was supposed to win won..hehe, cept you, Ole Miss.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
US Open 2010...The Tennis One (a.k.a. The Better One)
The US Open is one of America's more exciting sporting events. A bracket that 128 players, meaning the champion has to defeat 7 others in the sweltering New York heat during late August and early September. This year's US Open features one big time watch, Rafael Nadal trying to obtain his career Grand Slam. Nadal carries in momentum after winning the last two majors, but as always, people are trying to dethrone the world's number one. What does this year's tournament hold? Here is my preview:
The Favorite: Roger Federer...the greatest player of the past decade, and maybe of all-time, won the Aussie Open on hard courts this year in straight sets. He may be getting older, but he proved with a recent win in Cincinnati that he still has something left. He is still (probably) the better hard court player (this year) between himself and Nadal.
The Dark Horse: Andy Roddick...He has tried to compete competitively at the level he was once at for so long. He now gets an opportunity to play on what is probably his best surface. He has a great draw, even with #3 Novak Djokovic in his quarter....Roddick beat Djokovic on a hard surface in Cincinnati.
The Cinderella: John Isner...he has become the new hope for American tennis with Roddick's slow deterioration. He may not have as much natural ability, but he proved at Wimbledon in his marathon match he has the heart. Plus, on the hard courts, he has the big serve.
The Quarterfinals: #1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) def. #10 David Ferrer (ESP)...#2 Roger Federer (SUI) def. #10 Marin Čilić (CRO)...#9 Andy Roddick (USA) def. #3 Novak Djokovic (SRB)...#4 Andy Murray (GBR) def #18 John Isner (USA)
The Semi Finals: #1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) def. #4 Andy Murray (ENG)....Murray and Nadal were suspected to be the two best players entering this season. Federer silenced the critics a little with his win in Australia, but Nadal has since brought those critics back to life. If Murray wants to finally vanquish his own nay sayers in Good Ol' England, he will need to defeat the man with all the momentum and currently the best player in the world...but he won't, bloody hell!
#2 Roger Federer (SUI) def. #9 Andy Roddick (USA)...The Federer-Nadal rivalry has become the grandest in tennis, simply because they are so good and always meet in the finals of majors, but the Federer-Roddick rivalry may have more fuel on its fire. Roddick and Federer both claim mutual respect, but so do the players from Duke-North Carolina or Yankees-Red Sox (I don't mean to belabor) Roddick has always been critical of Federer, including his remarks after their great match in the 2009 which included two tie breakers (both won by Rogah!) and a 16-14 final set. Roddick will, unfortunately, fail to decimate the demons within and Federer will smugly move to the finals...a must watch match here.
AND THE WINNER IS:
Rafael Nadal (ESP) def. Roger Federer (SUI)...Rafa gets the nod because Federer is yet to prove he can beat the younger, quicker, more athletic Spaniard. Federer won this years Aussie Open...against Andy Murray. Nadal beat Federer on grass (2008, Wimbledon) and Hard Courts (2008 Aussie), finally he will prove he can win in America...oh, this match is, undoubtedly, a 5-set match.
The Favorite: Roger Federer...the greatest player of the past decade, and maybe of all-time, won the Aussie Open on hard courts this year in straight sets. He may be getting older, but he proved with a recent win in Cincinnati that he still has something left. He is still (probably) the better hard court player (this year) between himself and Nadal.
The Dark Horse: Andy Roddick...He has tried to compete competitively at the level he was once at for so long. He now gets an opportunity to play on what is probably his best surface. He has a great draw, even with #3 Novak Djokovic in his quarter....Roddick beat Djokovic on a hard surface in Cincinnati.
The Cinderella: John Isner...he has become the new hope for American tennis with Roddick's slow deterioration. He may not have as much natural ability, but he proved at Wimbledon in his marathon match he has the heart. Plus, on the hard courts, he has the big serve.
The Quarterfinals: #1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) def. #10 David Ferrer (ESP)...#2 Roger Federer (SUI) def. #10 Marin Čilić (CRO)...#9 Andy Roddick (USA) def. #3 Novak Djokovic (SRB)...#4 Andy Murray (GBR) def #18 John Isner (USA)
The Semi Finals: #1 Rafael Nadal (ESP) def. #4 Andy Murray (ENG)....Murray and Nadal were suspected to be the two best players entering this season. Federer silenced the critics a little with his win in Australia, but Nadal has since brought those critics back to life. If Murray wants to finally vanquish his own nay sayers in Good Ol' England, he will need to defeat the man with all the momentum and currently the best player in the world...but he won't, bloody hell!
#2 Roger Federer (SUI) def. #9 Andy Roddick (USA)...The Federer-Nadal rivalry has become the grandest in tennis, simply because they are so good and always meet in the finals of majors, but the Federer-Roddick rivalry may have more fuel on its fire. Roddick and Federer both claim mutual respect, but so do the players from Duke-North Carolina or Yankees-Red Sox (I don't mean to belabor) Roddick has always been critical of Federer, including his remarks after their great match in the 2009 which included two tie breakers (both won by Rogah!) and a 16-14 final set. Roddick will, unfortunately, fail to decimate the demons within and Federer will smugly move to the finals...a must watch match here.
AND THE WINNER IS:
Rafael Nadal (ESP) def. Roger Federer (SUI)...Rafa gets the nod because Federer is yet to prove he can beat the younger, quicker, more athletic Spaniard. Federer won this years Aussie Open...against Andy Murray. Nadal beat Federer on grass (2008, Wimbledon) and Hard Courts (2008 Aussie), finally he will prove he can win in America...oh, this match is, undoubtedly, a 5-set match.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Upset Alerts
Weekly upset alerts are available on the right side of the screen.......I am not predicting these teams to lose, just saying they need to be ready....I will be keeping my record of my Upset Alert, however.
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Team Hoyt
Everyone has things that inspire them. Everyone sees things which make them "wow". People love to see an athlete do something amazing. Usain Bolt running a record 100m sprint, LeBron James throwing down a windmill 360 dunk, or Chris Johnson running for 2,006 yards in a season make us shake our heads at their dominating athleticism. There is something that goes beyond any type of achievement in sports. No dynasty, no dunk, no rush, no sprint, no "Miami Super Team" deserves the honor and "wow" that Richard Hoyt and his son Rick have earned. Many people know who they are, but I feel the Hoyts have the right to become the most famous athletes in the world. Team Hoyt runs, bikes, and swims triathlons, one of the world's most grueling sports. The Hoyts have never won an event they have competed in. The Hoyts are 0-958 in their endurance races, including 25 Boston Marathons.......Team Hoyt consists of Dick/Rick Hoyt, a father and son. Rick is 48 and was diagnosed with cerebral palsy out of the womb because his umbilical cord wrapped around his neck, cutting off oxygen flow to his brain. Dick is 70 and decided at age 37 he wanted to start running. He ran 5 miles with Rick in a wheelchair ahead of him. Rick told his father, "Dad, when I’m running, it feels like I’m not handicapped." After this, Dick began training, and team Hoyt has been training ever since. I would love to keep talking about the Hoyts, but I feel a video would do more than my meager words could ever do to describe the incredible father/son tandem.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJMbk9dtpdY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJMbk9dtpdY
Friday, August 20, 2010
Conference Previews: SEC
SEC | Conf. | Overall |
East | ||
Florida | 7-1 | 11-1 |
Georgia | 4-4 | 8-4 |
Tennessee | 4-4 | 7-5 |
Kentucky | 3-5 | 7-5 |
South Carolina | 3-5 | 6-6 |
Vanderbilt | 0-8 | 2-10 |
West | Conf. | Overall |
Alabama | 7-1 | 11-1 |
Arkansas | 6-2 | 10-2 |
LSU | 4-4 | 8-4 |
Auburn | 4-4 | 8-4 |
Ole Miss | 3-5 | 7-5 |
Mississippi | 2-6 | 5-7 |
Conference Previews: PAC-10
Pac-10 | Conf. | Overall |
Oregon State | 8-1 | 9-3 |
Oregon | 7-2 | 10-2 |
USC | 6-3 | 10-3 |
Washington | 6-3 | 8-4 |
Stanford | 6-3 | 9-3 |
Arizona | 5-4 | 7-5 |
California | 3-6 | 5-7 |
Arizona State | 2-7 | 4-8 |
UCLA | 2-7 | 3-9 |
Washington State | 0-9 | 1-11 |
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