Chat with the guys from HeavyMMA.com during the big UFC 121 event! Also, be sure to check out the weigh in highlight video as well.
UFC 121 Weigh In Highlight Video:
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For once this season, the noon slate of games gave us something to follow.
Notre Dame was whooped by Navy, Texas lost to Iowa State and Michigan State survived a close matchup with Northwestern.
Let’s start with the Spartans, who for the second time this season, were aided by a fake kick in a big situation. This time, however, it was a fake that I, you and everybody watching the game except for Northwestern, apparently, saw coming. The Spartans pulled off a nice fake punt in the fourth quarter, and one play later, scored a touchdown to pull within a score. After a Northwestern field goal, the Spartans drove down the field again to score the go-ahead touchdown.
People around me here in Michigan think the Spartans are in the middle of a special season, and stuff like that — which had gone against them for years — is now starting to go their way. It’s tough to argue that, considering the way MSU has won a couple of its game. But at the same time, they soundly beat Wisconsin and Michigan, meaning they could just be good. Next week’s the biggest test of the season, of course, as they travel to Kinnick to play Iowa. If you asked me to put money on it, I’d put quite a bit on Iowa right now. But I’m nowhere perfect on “putting money on it” games.
Texas, meanwhile, is going through the kind of season you would expect a team to go through every few years. After four years of having Colt McCoy at the helm, the Longhorns are learning that without a dynamic run-pass threat at quarterback, they’ll need other weapons. Garrett Gilbert is a talented kid, but he’s young and he’s not getting much help.
Even so, this is a team that just shut down Taylor Martinez and Nebraska. A team that looked like it was starting to trend up after the bye week. Now the Longhorn faithful will have to deal with a non-10-win season. God forbid.
Brian Kelly is still in the first year of his contract, so he won’t be fired. That might be the only way he finds a way to get to sleep tonight.
His Notre Dame team is getting absolutely dominated by Navy. Not just having an off day and getting beat, but getting absolutely dominated. By Navy.
One of the reasons Charlie Weis didn’t last in South Bend, and there were many, was that he was unable to beat the teams that Notre Dame should be beating on a consistent basis. Losses like Navy (twice), Syracuse and UConn at home were the black marks on the Weis era that stung the ND faithful worse than any blowout loss at the hands of USC or Michigan.
One thing Weis never did, however, was get blown out by Navy, and that’s what’s happening to Kelly’s first Notre Dame team. On national television, no less.
The Midshipmen did whatever they wanted on the ground in this one, whether it was Alexander Teich on the fullback dive or Ricky Dobbs on a keeper. Navy averaged at least 113 yards a play in gashing the Irish, and if it wasn’t for a few select plays from stud linebacker Manti T’eo, it would have been 120 per play.
But getting gashed by Navy’s offense is something that happens, even if you spend extra time preparing for it. The option — run at its best — is tough to duplicate. It’s the fact that Notre Dame’s offense has struggled as much as it has that is probably the most disturbing thing for Notre Dame fans. Dayne Crist threw two horrible interceptions at completely inopportune times, and the offensive line struggled to get a push despite averaging about 100 extra pounds per man. Or protect Crist, for that matter.
What Notre Dame is displaying right now is a lack of heart and intensity. It’s something that plagued Weis’ teams often, and apparently Kelly hasn’t been able to get rid of that. He’ll get a pass this year, and maybe even next. But ND fans don’t put up with losing, no matter how much of it they’ve had to deal with in the past few years. And they definitely don’t put up with losing to Navy in a blowout fashion.
UFC 121: Lesnar vs. Velasquez takes place Saturday night from the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. featuring a monumental main event for the UFC Heavyweight Championship. Here is my take on the card and who will win the main card bouts.
UFC Heavyweight Championship – Brock Lesnar (5-1) vs. Cain Velasquez (8-0): This is the biggest heavyweight bout the UFC could put together right now and Velasquez has a great chance to win the belt. The key will be for him to be able to stop the takedown attempts and keep the fight standing, where he has better striking and faster hands. Lesnar showed that he can be hurt in his last fight against Shane Carwin, but I think Velasquez has the endurance to see the victory through.
UFC Welterweight Bout – Jake Shields (25-4-1) vs. Martin Kampmann (17-3): Shields is making his UFC debut and many are penciling him in as the next to challenge Georges St. Pierre for the welterweight title, but I actually like Kampmann in an upset here as he has an all-around and aggressive style that can give Shields problems. Kampmann has only lost to strikers in his career, and Shields is far from an elite striker. I like Kampmann to win by decision in this one.
UFC Welterweight Bout – Diego Sanchez (23-4) vs. Paulo Thiago (13-2): Thiago has beaten some solid contenders in the welterweight division, but he has struggled with superior grapplers, losing to Jon Fitch and Kampmann. Sanchez got dominated in his last two fights and is desperate for a win, and I think he will come out motivated and looking to control the fight from the start with his pacing and wrestling. I like Sanchez to squeak out a decision against Thiago.
UFC Light Heavyweight Bout – Tito Ortiz (16-7-1) vs. Matt Hamill (10-2): Ortiz hasn’t won a fight since 2006 and while Hamill is lacking in some key areas, I think he has a better all-around game than Ortiz, who is pretty one dimensional with wrestling as his strength. Look for Hamill to move around and work kicks before scoring some late takedowns to get a decision win over Ortiz.
UFC Heavyweight Bout – Brendan Schaub (7-1) vs. Gabriel Gonzaga (11-5): Schaub has a lot of promise and is an up-and-comer while Gonzaga is still holding on to a little bit of relevance, but has lost four of his last seven fights, with all of the losses coming by TKO. Schaub has won his last two fights by quick KO, so this fight should have plenty of fireworks. Look for Schaub to get the win as he has the quicker hands and is the better technical striker.
Mark Dantonio has been coaching his Michigan State team from the press box for the past few weeks after suffering a heart attack following the Week 3 win against Notre Dame.
With Dantonio in the box (or not even there in two instances), the Spartans were 4-0, and looking like a legitimate Big Ten title contender. But now, with Dantonio back on the field, the Spartans are in a world of hurt early against Northwestern, trailing 17-0 in the second quarter.
There’s still a lot of time left in this one, and I doubt Dantonio’s sideline presence is really having that much of a negative impact, but it’s quite a coincidence. Offensive coordinator Don Treadwell has had a lot of success running things down there, and it’s been Michigan State’s offense that’s been so anemic today. Also on upset alert early on, Notre Dame getting gashed by the Navy option and trailing 14-10, and Texas struggling with Iowa State.
Could be an interesting set of noon games, for once.
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