12/29/08

Repeat GLI Champs

It just looks right. The Michigan Wolverines sign hanging from the GLI Tournament banner at the Joe. Michigan dominated this year after escaping last season with the trophy, beating up on Michigan State (again!) 5-1. MGoBlue.com has all the details.

Michigan is ranked #11 in the nation in hockey, #24 in basketball, and, oh, wait- never mind about the other sport.

12/28/08

It's official

As if there was any doubt, the Lions went up to Lambeau and completed the first 0-16 season in NFL history.

But you know what the difference between 8-8 9-7 11-5 and 0-16 is?

Better draft picks.

That's it.

And lots of them this year thanks to the trade of Roy Williams to Dallas. The most important off-season in Detroit Lions history, has begun.

I would like to give some credit where credit is due. The refs today in the 4 games I watched were very good. They got the calls right on the field for the most part, and if not, the replays were called correctly. The Lions lost today because they were by far not the better team. Which was the same for the other games I watched. I have a tendency to ream on these guys constantly, so I like to point out when they do things right, as well. Good job guys.

The Bet

My brother was telling us about a friend who laid down $200 on a 10,000-1 bet that the Detroit Lions will go 0-16. When the Lions lose today at Lambeau, that $200 will turn into $2 million.

But, he was offered $1 million to settle it prior to the game. So the question is, would you take the $1 million, or let it ride to the game today? I would let it ride, because the Lions have exactly 0% chance to win. So it's less a bet, more an investment with a guaranteed return. They argued the opposite. They said that $1 million is enough to live off of for the rest of their lives, if invested properly.

Any thoughts?

12/27/08

Michigan ranked!


For the first time in almost three years, Michigan basketball is ranked in the top 25 in the AP poll. They sit at 24, after starting the year beating two #4 teams, and hanging with a #3 team on their floor. Beilein has the Blue hitting 3-pointers, and playing a stout 1-3-1 defense, causing confusion for the opposition offense. They need to get better on the boards if they want to make a run in the tough Big Ten, and of they can, they could make a healthy run out of the first weekend in The Tournament.

Yup- I said The Tournament.

12/22/08

HISTORY!


One year ago, the New England Patriots were gearing up for what was to be a Super Bowl preview at Giants Stadium. The Patriots were hoping for a nice chunk of history, and pulled out a come-from-behind victory to seal up the first ever 16-0 season in NFL history.

When the NFL went to the salary-cap, the league in my mind started going downhill. I didn't hate the teams I once hated, I didn't really love the teams I once loved with the same passion, because every team was basically the same team, with few exceptions. It made every game basically a coin flip, and whichever team got the bounces and/or the calls, would win. When the Vikings went 15-1 in 1998, I remember thinking that this was as high a win total as anybody can get in the salary cap era. That team was not just one of the many average teams, but was a great team loaded with talent, and if they couldn't get to 16-0, nobody ever would. I even ran some statistical analysis on the records of every team in the league in 2004, I think. I found that there was no difference between putting 32 teams of exactly equal value on the field and where the records would end up, and the actual final records of the 32 teams (it was actually a lot more in depth than this, I am over-simplifying for the sake of time). People seem to think that if that was true, they would all be 8-8. Well, not really. There is luck, and that would skew the records of some higher than others, with 13-3 being the best realistic record of any team.

Then there was the 2007 New England Patriots. They weren't just beating teams, they were beating them soundly. It wasn't luck that was pushing them toward history, but a collection of talent and coaching that would put them far and away the best team in the league. I started re-thinking my opinion of the league as just a collection of 32 average teams, and started believing that the league was actually a group of great, good, bad, and terrible teams again. I still hate the salary cap and I still think it's communist in nature. If teams can't afford to compete with the higher echelon in the league, maybe they don't deserve to have a team.

Now, any thoughts of a 32 average team league has been absolutely shattered. Just one year later, we have our beloved Lions, the first 0-15 team in NFL history. For 51 years, this team has been mired in mediocrity, and those were the good years. Since their last NFL Championship in 1957, they have had exactly 17 winning seasons, and one playoff victory. Only one. There was little doubt, that as professional football teams go, at least in my lifetime, this one has been the worst run. But this year, they join the 2003 Detroit Tigers as record setting losers.
Will they go 0-16? Of course. They haven't won a game in Wisconsin since my sophomore year of high school. That was a while back. They have no quarterback, no offensive line, no defensive line, no linebackers, no DB's, a terrible coach, and their best player is a damn kicker. They have zero chance to win next Sunday, even with a short week for the Packers.

Marinelli has shown the same talent for being a head coach as Marty Morninwheg. Good coordinators who know their positions, but when it comes to being a head coach, they have no grasp of how to run a football team. When was the last time the Lions went into a 2-minute warning with three timeouts? How many yards have been called back because of illegal procedure calls? I can think of one touchdown from yesterday.

This off-season has the chance to be the best in Detroit Lions history. With the trade to Dallas of extremely talented but perpetually confused Roy Williams, the Lions have a host of high draft picks. The gut reaction will be to go out and get a QB. They can't until they shore up the O-Line. Not even Tom Brady could lead this offense to anything as it stands. They need O-line help first. Then, they need need D-line help, for the exact same reason. They can't get pressure on any other QB without blitzing, and this is the worst running D-line I have ever seen. They get blown off the ball at the start, in the middle, and at the end of every single game. My advice, for whatever it's worth, is to parlay those high picks into more picks in the 2nd-4th rounds. Make your hay now on the role players, get a solid base, and then go get your superstars. The Lions already have the receiver who is quickly becoming one of the best in the league, leave him there. Then, take the damn roof off the building. Make this a place where when opposing teams see @Detroit, they think "oh shit, not there," instead of thinking of it as a week off. Whoever gets installed as team president, go out and mingle with the fans before games. Talk to them, associate with them. Get them excited to be a Detroit Lions fan, and stoke that enthusiasm. This is the best fan base in all of sports. If it wasn't, Ford Field would be empty each and every week.

When the Red Wings win Stanley Cups, they get a million people downtown. When the Lions finally break through, there will be 20 million people downtown.

One more thing- Who is this guy?


Photos from detnews.com.

12/19/08

Anything you can do, I can do better

Not to be outdone by the "referees" in the NFL, the NHL referees decided to close their eyes and decide games themselves based on nothing they actually saw on the ice.

First, in Tampa, the Avs and Bolts went to a shootout. Tampa Bay shot first and missed their first two shots. Milan Hejduk was the second shooter for Colorado, and made a move to goalie Mike Smith's (WTF! This is hockey! This better be pronounced mi-shay smu-the-lay) right. Just before making the move, Smith reached out to poke check Hejduk, but he was still too far away. As Milan made his move, Smith followed, swinging his stick over as well, putting it in an awkward position. He reached up with his blocker to make the save, and dropped his stick in the process. Somehow, the refs gathered that he was throwing his stick, and awarded the goal to Hejduk. They awarded a game-winning goal to a guy who didn't score, and for a play that the referees could not have seen.

Then in overtime in Dallas, Manny Malhotra drove the net on Marty Turco, who made the save. The puck then caromed off Malhotra's skate and in. Again, somehow the refs saw a distinct kicking motion, and disallowed the goal. Disallowing a game-winning goal on a play they could not have seen. Dallas went on to win in a shootout. Even the reply refs blew this one.

At least the Wings game was never in doubt, much thanks to Evgeni Nabakov not being able to see the puck apparently. Wings win 6-0, and hopefully gain some confidence and momentum going forward on the defensive end. After the first 10 minutes completely in the Wings end, Franzen sent a normally inicuous shot toward the net that Nabakov reacted to much too late. That got the Wings going, and it was all Detroit from there on. The Sharks looked like they played an overtime game the night before. They just kinda looked sluggish. Good for the Wings to stick it to them while they were down.

I'll post the Youtube when it goes up, but Western Michigan alumni Joe Corvo got an OT winner that was unbelievable for Carolina as well against Florida. He held the puck on defense for about 6 and a half minutes, and had a wide open net to score in. Awesome.

Meanwhile in Pittsburgh, the Penguins keep showing why there is no less likeable team in sports. Hockey Jesus Sydney Crosby continues to whine and cry his way getting the benefit of damn near every call, actually takes a roughing penalty out of frustration, and Brooks Orpik. Brooks Orpik got run into by an Atlanta Thrasher from behind, after that Thrasher was knocked down by Orpik's defense partner, and he turns and starts throwing haymakers with his glove on. That's douche-tastic in and of itself, but in doing so, he left his assignment, and Atlants scored on the play. Nice work Brooks, keep up the good work. Just another douche on a completely douchey team, led by their constantly whining coach with his horrible French accent.

12/18/08

Sharks - Red Wings

The Sharks have the best record in hockey. By far. They are doing everything right. New coach Todd McClellan has them playing smart hockey, not just the Ron Wilson "go out and try to outscore the opposotion" hockey. They are the best offense in the league, and the third best defense.

Meanwhile, the Red Wings are cruising along at a nice clip if you look at only their record. But they have struggled mightily this year at the aspect that has been their forte. They rank 23rd in defense, with a penalty kill under 20%. That is bad for any team, but for this one, it is horrible. Since Scotty Bowman arrived in 1993, the emphasis has always been on the defensive end. With the second ranked offense, right behind the Sharks, they have been able to win a lot of close games so far. But falling behind 2-0 in the first, and losing three goal leads in the third adds up quickly, and they will start losing a lot of these games at some point.

Tonight's game will be a nice test for them, to see if they can bounce back from a bad, bad 3-2 loss at home to Colorado. San Jose played an OT game last night in Hell Columbus, so the Wings should jump on them early. It's very early in the season, and there is plenty of time to fix what's ailing them. Hopefully it starts tonight.

12/7/08

67 years ago

Thanks to DP for the reminder. . .

NCAA Football Playoff

Those who know me, know that I have NEVER advocated a playoff system for NCAA Football. I hate the BCS, as it professes to be a panacea for what fans perceived to be a failed Bowl system. I would rather have the old bowl system than the BCS, and also a playoff system than the BCS. The BCS has failed, year in and year out, and the rule makers try to change the rules to overcome a problem from that year, only to have another problem creep up the following year. Personally, I believe the entire season is a playoff, and the old bowl system created the best thing in sports: the argument. I love talking to Nebraska fans about how the speed of the Michigan linebackers would have dismantled Scott Frost and the option, not to mention "the kick" against Missouri that kept their season alive and the Tom Osbourne sympathy votes to create a split championship.

This year is different. As every year is different. I think there are five teams with a legitimate claim to face off against Florida for the National Championship.

Oklahoma: Will get the shot, won the toughest conference this season.
Texas: Some would say were robbed of the opportunity to play for the Big 12 Championship.
Alabama: Already had their shot at Florida, but having your only loss against the best team in the country is a good argument.
Penn State: Were one bad week from being undefeated in an improved Big Ten season. Florida had one bad week too, remember?
USC: Another dominant team with one bad week in their results.

With all this in mind, there is a way to keep the best of both worlds. I am not the first to come up with this idea, but this is how I'd like to see it:

Take the 11 conference champs.
Then take 5 at-large teams.

Done.


Now, the rankings are from my ranking system (see below), but there will always be the arguments for who should have and should not have made it in. Just like the Basketball tourney. But the first round is played at the higher-ranked team's home field, then you move out to the bowl venues. Second round the week before New Years, national semis New Years Day, and the National Championship on January 8.

This solves my problem with dumping the Bowl system altogether, solves the problem of including everyone who "deserves" a shot, and even gives the smaller conferences a chance at the title, which is what everybody wants right?




Ratings through games of December 12
Team W-L Rating Conf
1 Florida 12-1 97.4 SEC
2 Texas 11-1 96.5 B12
3 Oklahoma 12-1 96.4 B12
4 Southern Cal 11-1 96.1 P10
5 Alabama 12-1 95.1 SEC
6 Penn State 11-1 94.9 B10
7 Ohio State 10-2 93.6 B10
8 Boise St 12-0 92.6 WAC
9 Utah 12-0 91.6 MW
10 TCU 10-2 91.1 MW
11 Texas Tech 11-1 89.8 B12
12 Iowa 8-4 86.5 B10
13 Ball St 12-1 84.4 MAC
14 Missouri 9-4 83.7 B12
15 Oklahoma St 9-3 83.4 B12
16 Cincinnati 11-2 82.8 BigE
17 Pittsburgh 9-3 82.6 BigE
18 Mississippi 8-4 81.7 SEC
19 Oregon 9-3 81.5 P10
20 California 8-4 80.8 P10
21 Georgia 9-3 80.0 SEC
22 Florida St 8-4 79.4 ACC
23 Michigan St 9-3 78.8 B10
24 Brigham Young 10-2 77.3 MW
25 Oregon St 8-4 77.0 P10

It's Great, To Be, A Michigan Wolverine



First a quick update: I predicted a 30-24 win for Florida. Final score, 31-20 Florida. Very close, but I ended up on the wrong side of the line. Fail. I thought Florida was the best team in the nation, and Alabama found that out.

Meanwhile, up in Hell East Lansing, Travis Turnbull put the finishing touches on a weekend home-and- home sweep of Sparty, netting a hat-trick in a 5-3 comeback win at Munn. Caporusso put the finishing touches on by scoring the game winner with 1:36 to go in the game. This is one night after a 6-1 drubbing in front of the Yost faithful. Michigan is ranked #14 right now, not where they want to be by any stretch, but MSU is unranked, far from the Sparty hockey teams of the last few years. Miami is the class of the CCHA, but Red has the boys working their way up to greet them. They are off until the GLI fires up Dec. 27. Speaking of working their way up the ranks...



Pure awsomeness. Michigan beats the #4 team in the country for the second time this season. First it was then #4 UCLA, now Dook. Too bad this one doesn't count for the Big Ten-ACC Challenge, it would have tied it up. Beilein has these guys playing well, both offensively and defensively. DeShawn Sims scored 28, and Michigan outrebounded Duke 35-34, something that was missing and probably cost them the Maryland game the other night. I'm not going to go into the details of this game beyond that, I just want to mention one thing. College basketball fans "storm the floor" waaaaaaay too much. The fans will run onto the court for anything any more. But I think for a team that hasn't been to a Tourney in 10 years, has been the fourth or fifth best team in the STATE for many of those years, to beat the #4 team in the country, to beat DOOK, at home, well, I think this one was OK.



As the local Kalamazoo sports guy Andy Pepper said, "After the football season these guys endured, I'm surprised they didn't take the hoops home with them."

12/6/08

Fail

Because a) Western couldn't beat Ball State in the season finale, b) Buffalo(!) could in the MAC Championship game, and c) Western couldn't beat a dead horse in Mount Pleasant, Western will be home for the holidays, despite winning 9 games. Because Buffalo beat previously undefeated Ball State at Ford Field, they will be taking the spot previously taken by the Broncos most probably against UConn in Toronto in the International Bowl.

Good work Ball State. Nice job Broncos.

UPDATE: Uh, Western is going to the Texas Bowl against Rice. Not sure how I missed that. It must be finals time.

Tigers Hot Stove

The latest rumors have Dumb-rowski chasing Kerry Wood from Cubs fame to backstop the bull pen. Just what they need -- another guy to fill up the M*A*S*H unit back there.

Pittsburgh is looking at Matt Joyce and Jeff Larish in return for Jack Wilson. Wilson is no better then Renteria at the plate, but can wield a mean glove in the 6 hole. The Tigers don't need offense, they need defense and pitching, so I don't hate this move. They are also reportedly looking at Adam Everett from the 'Stros. A little better at the plate, but loses a little as a shortstop. Renteria has a reputation as a solid defensive shortstop, but the Tigers didn't see it last year. He was an error machine. Everett wouldn't be bad, depending on how much scrilla DD is going to throw at him.

More to come from Las Vegas.

The Weekly Game of the Century


Just thought I'd take time out from studying to preview this week's Game of the Century. Despite the SEC sort of dropping back to the field as far as conference strength goes, they are still the top conference in the nation, and the top two team in th conference square off today.

The polls have them 1 and 2, so they make the Game of the Century for this week. The line is 9 1/2 for Florida. 9 1/2 is a lot of points, for a matchup on a neutral field between two teams that match up against each other very well. Alabama's front seven will try try and confuse and get to Te-God much like Michigan did almost a year ago. Florida has a lot of speed on the outside, but will Te-Jesus have the time to get the ball out to them? On the other side of the ball, will Florida be able to stop Coffee enough as Alabama shoves him down their throat play after play after play, only then going outside to Jones for a big play?

The keys to watch for:

Alabama needs Te-bitch to look like this during the game.


Watch Florida to run the bubble screen and a lot of quick slants to offset the blitz packages Saban throws at them. Urban wants them running, not thinking.

Prediction:
I hate predictions. They aren't worth the pixels they are written on. That said, Alabama slows down the offense pretty well today, but the Gator defense picks them up with a JP Wilson mistake. Florida 30, Alabama 24.