Month: September 2010 (Page 13 of 60)

      Big Ten strong in early part of brutal slate (insert sarcasm tag here)

      September 25, 2010 /
      LINCOLN, NE. - JUNE 11: Big Ten Conference Commissioner James Delany with University of Nebraska Athletic Director Tom Osbourne (R) speaks at a press conference for Nebraska accepting an invitation to join the Big Ten Conference June 11, 2010 in Lincoln, Nebraska. The university will begin integration immediately and start athletic competition as soon as 2011. (Photo by Eric Francis/Getty Images)

      The Big Ten is in the middle of a brutal stretch of games today. Of the 10 conference teams in action, eight of them play MAC schools. The other two play FCS opponents.

      Well done, Big Ten.

      It’s weekends like this that are embarrassing, and spit in the face of the anti-playoff “every week matters” argument. These weekends are even more embarrassing when a team loses (looking at you, Purdue). From some of the noise on Twitter this morning, it’s a money issue, and the conference needs these games to offset Title IX losses.

      Really? Sounds like a pathetic excuse to schedule a bunch of cupcakes, to me.

      To be fair to the conference, it’s not the only one that schedules like this, and some of its teams schedule some difficult games early in the season. This weekend is just so glaringly awful that it has to be pointed out. But as long as the BCS is around, nothing is going to change, and we can be sure to see more weekends like this throughout the country.

      College Football, External Sports

      Andrew Luck, Ryan Mallett have chance to make big impressions today

      September 25, 2010 /
      PASADENA, CA - SEPTEMBER 11: Andrew Luck of Stanford passes in the pocket against UCLA during the game at the Rose Bowl on September 11, 2010 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)

      Perhaps the only thing worse for Jake Locker than his atrocious performance against Nebraska last week, is the fact that he has an off week to think about said performance and so does everyone else.

      Locker was many expert’s favorite to be the top pick, or at least the top quarterback, in the 2011 NFL Draft because of his arm strength and mobility. The 4-for-20 stinker against Nebraska changed a lot of those minds, however, including Locker’s stalker biggest fan, ESPN’s Todd McShay.

      So who steps up in his place? We may find out today. The other top QB prospects this year — Arkansas’ Ryan Mallett and Stanford’s Andrew Luck — each have a big chance to showcase their talents this afternoon on a big stage.

      Mallett gets a chance to prove he can do what Locker couldn’t a week ago: Have a big game against an elite defense. The Razorbacks play host to top-ranked Alabama, and while it’s a relatively inexperienced secondary that he’ll be facing, carving up a Nick Saban-coached defense can do wonders for one’s draft stock. A win could vault Mallett to the top of draft boards, but he could also get there in a loss. Arkansas’ defense has never been looked at as a strength, so if Mallett has a strong game in a shootout, he should still get a lot of credit.

      Luck isn’t facing a defense near as good as the one Mallett will see today, but he is playing on a big stage. Stanford heads to Notre Dame, which — like it or not — is going to get him a lot of attention. The Irish secondary is nowhere near elite, but if Luck puts up huge numbers, he wouldn’t be the first quarterback to be elevated for it (see: Russell, Jamarcus).

      Stanford and Luck should have more success today, but it’s probably Mallett who has more to gain. Either way, all Locker can do is sit and watch.

      College Football, External Sports

      National title picture could change today … Or stay exactly the same

      September 25, 2010 /

      By the end of the day today, we could have a whole new look at the national title picture. Then again, you could say that any week in college football.

      This time, however, there’s actually a chance that things could get jumbled up. The top team in the country, Alabama, is facing by far its stiffest test of the season as it travels to Fayetteville to take on Ryan Mallett and Arkansas. No. 3 Boise State will play in its second — and probably last — “showcase” game of the year when it plays host to Oregon State.

      We know that if Boise State loses, a lot of the debate about who deserves what will go away, at least until we have to sort through a handful of one-loss teams at the end of the season (but we’ll save that for later). If the Tide lose and the Broncos win, is Boise all of the sudden in the driver’s seat for a spot in the title game? Probably not, actually.

      It’s a big slate today, so find a spot on the couch by the mid-afternoon games and settle in for some good football. Continue reading »

      College Football, External Sports

      Mikey’s MLB power rankings

      September 25, 2010 /

      Things have shifted a lot in MLB since I took a hiatus last weekend. Wow, have they ever shifted. The Rockies have now lost 5 in a row and are fading out of the race. The Phillies have won 11 in a row to take over the top spot. The Rays are ahead of the Yankees now in the AL East and the Twins are as hot as the Phils. The Braves are whopping 7 games back of the Phillies now. Damn, this is getting fun.

      1. Philadelphia Phillies (93-61)—Peaking but maybe too soon. Still, when you have Halladay, Oswalt and Hamels, it’s not really fair. And everyone else is getting healthy now.

      2. Tampa Bay Rays (92-61)—They finally overtake the Yanks, but have company up here. Still, they’ve been consistent all year and they have David Price at the top of their rotation.

      3. Minnesota Twins (92-61)—Even without Justin Morneau, this is a very dangerous team. But are they peaking too soon as well?

      4. New York Yankees (92-62)—When I heard the New York sports talk guys being all gloom and doom after a split with the Rays this past week, I didn’t understand it. But when you look at the remaining schedules of both teams, you get it. A loss to Boston last night probably didn’t do much for Yankees fans’ confidence.

      5. San Francisco Giants (87-67)—Making for one of the most compelling pennant races, because the winner will move on while the loser may not even take the wild card.

      6. San Diego Padres (86-67)—Looking back, that long losing streak came at the right time, and the wrong time, at the same time.

      7. Cincinnati Reds (86-68)—The magic number is 3. I wonder if Brandon Phillips will get a Christmas card from the Cardinals’ organization this year.

      8. Atlanta Braves (86-68)—Now trailing in the wild card race by a half-game. This is another compelling race that shouldn’t have been so compelling, but seriously, how do you hold off the Phils and that pitching staff?

      9. Texas Rangers (85-68)—Magic number is 2, will they be the second team to clinch?

      10. Boston Red Sox (85-68)—I don’t think they’ve officially been eliminated yet, but it’s getting very, very late. And what a shame for a team that really is as talented as most of the teams on this Top 10 list.

      External Sports, MLB

      Dwight Freeney thinks Peter King should do more research

      September 24, 2010 /
      MIAMI GARDENS, FL - FEBRUARY 07: Dwight Freeney #93 of the Indianapolis Colts warms up on the field prior to the start of Super Bowl XLIV between the against the New Orleans Saints on February 7, 2010 in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

      Dwight Freeney is a little hacked off at SI.com’s Peter King, who released a “five most fearsome pass rushers for 2010 and beyond” and left Freeney’s name off the list.

      From the Indianapolis Star:

      “When you put Brian Orakpo — and nothing against the guy, he is 24 — but mention him over me, that hurts your credibility as an analyst,” Freeney said. “I know who Peter King is. But to mention (Orakpo) over me? For him not to mention me in the top five, that is an insult.”

      The list included the context, “They’ll chase and drop quarterbacks for the next half decade.” DeMarcus Ware of Dallas was No. 1, Minnesota’s Jared Allen second and Houston’s Mario Williams third.

      Perhaps Freeney got edged out because he’s 30. But it still didn’t sit well with him.

      “So I guess it’s over?” he said, shaking his head.

      Freeney is curious to know who NFL foes would prefer to face, him or Orakpo? “Would you rather see him or would you rather see me?”

      “What he needs to do is ask the people around the league in a poll, all of the offensive coordinators and all of the offensive tackles. Ask them: ‘Give me the top five pass rushers.’ If I’m not mentioned in the top five by almost all of those guys, then I’m wrong.”

      “Tell (King) to do more research and ask around before he publishes that,” Freeney said. “He should be better than that.”

      Ah, is there anything more clichéd then telling a sports writer to do more research? If I had a nickel…

      In fairness to King, most defensive ends suffer a decline by the time they reach 31 and older. So if King’s piece was centered on the next wave of pass-rushers, he has reason to omit Freeney based on trends and history when it comes to the defensive end position.

      That said, if offensive linemen (and quarterbacks for that matter) do think Freeney is in the top 5, then the Colts’ DE has every right to complain about King “not doing his research.” After all, the opinions of offensive linemen and quarterbacks should be the only ones that matter here unless King was doing an opinion piece entitled, “the next generation of pass rushers.”

      In this case, the devil is in the details (of a sports title).

      External Sports

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