VCU's Success Shines Light on Towson University's Failures

Shame on Towson University!!!

The Final Four in the NCAA Men’s Basketball tournament awaits us. Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) from the Colonial Athletic Conference (CAC) beat Georgetown, Purdue, Florida State, and Kansas, all major conference teams, some considered national powerhouses to get there. George Mason, whose run to the Final Four elevated the CAC and mid-major conferences to a new, high degree of prestige won their first round challenge then were eliminated by #1 seed, Ohio State. Old Dominion also made the field as a #9 seed losing to Butler, a Final Four team, a #8 seed.

The implication is clear; the Colonial Athletic Conference is poised to be a major competitor in NCAA Men’s Basketball, but not for Towson University, Maryland’s second largest state university close to the same size as George Mason and Virginia Commonwealth. In the new millennium, Towson athletics is a study in failure aside from lacrosse where they’re hardly knocking down any walls. While fielding a competitive football program is a huge investment mindful that this conference contributed Joe Flacco from University of Delaware, quality basketball should be within Towson’s reach. How many other states’ second largest schools or schools with much smaller enrollments thrive in NCAA basketball?

The Towson Tigers did not win a single conference game this past season. Their record was 4-26 overall trailing William and Mary 4-14, 10-22 overall showing Towson pitifully buried in the cellar.

Team Record
2009-2010 8th, 6-12, 10-21 overall
2008-2009 10th, 5-13, 12-22 overall
2007-2008 9th, 7-11, 13-18 overall

Coach Pat Kennedy quit at season’s end after having been sought to be a leader who could advance the team to greater heights when hired for the 2004 season. Kennedy’s biggest contribution was stewarding Florida State into the ACC, coaching there from 1986-1997 with a total 202-131 record, much of it in the highly competitive ACC. Since then, his success hard to find, struggling at DePaul, a solid Big East team from 1997-2002, 67-85, and then Montana, a weak program, 2002-2004, 23-35 record.

The women’s program is not much better for this past season, a 3-14 conference record and 9-21 overall result.

A snapshot of their football program shows a team with only one win, not in conference for the 2010 season. What can be said of one program can be said of the other. Even in lacrosse which had once been a Towson stronghold, they’re buried far from tournament shape, with a 7-8 record.

Towson University is capable of being a competitive team in basketball and one of the nation’s top programs in lacrosse. Looking at the mother ship, University of Maryland, College Park whose football and basketball programs have struggled in recent years, certainly both schools’ struggles surely points to commitment at the highest level of the state university system. Since Maryland’s winning the National Championship in basketball, 2002, they’d reach the Sweet 16 the following year having never advanced past the tournament’s second round since. Of those nine seasons, Maryland made five NCCA appearances, three NIT appearances with little distinction. Their high points were winning the ACC tournament in 2004 and being the regular season champ in 2010. The 2010-2011 season marks a horrible embarrassment for the program not even achieving an NIT invitation after a late season total collapse.

In football, the Ralph Friedgen era began with great hopes for the 2001 season leaping out of the long run of mediocrity winning the ACC championship to reach the Orange Bowl. The following year, 2002, Maryland smashed Tennessee in the Peach Bowl. Since then, Maryland has made its share of lesser bowls but certainly has fallen below expectations.

In the Maryland system, College Park rules and the rest of the campuses are at each other’s throats for what remains. This is especially true in Division One athletics. The Baltimore area has five universities, four which participate in basketball, football far more limited. Towson, Morgan State, Coppin State, and UMBC are all Division One for basketball. Only Towson and Morgan field football teams, but UMBC boasts a dynasty in chess!

Additionally, these schools compete with Loyola Baltimore, a strong MEAC team coached by popular former Gary Williams’ assistant, Jimmy Patsos. The Washington DC area adds Georgetown, American University, George Mason, and George Washington University all competing for local talent with Philadelphia only 100 miles up I-95 to the northeast.

The Baltimore-Washington area is fertile ground for top basketball prospects scouted by top schools nationwide. With significant competition for talent, building a first rate program represents tremendous dedication, but the Baltimore-Washington area is not unique and certainly a state’s second largest university deserves far more commitment than state leadership affords a superb university whose story would be much better known nationwide if it had an athletics program that made headlines.

Today, the reputation of Maryland sports is poor. College Park dumped Ralph Friedgen and Gary Williams’ is dealing with his greatest disgrace during his distinguished tenure at College Park. While #1 gets the bulk of the attention, #2 is a cruel joke that shows nothing to be proud of in basketball and football. They’re an embarrassment, but since Towson seldom has gotten much attention for long standing mediocrity, few notice. Still, they were worthy of a limited radio schedule for the 2009-2010 schedule on Baltimore’s flamethrower AM radio station, WBAL.

Located in the affluent Towson/Northern Baltimore County area, Towson could be a fabulous cite for top sports. Plans move forward for a new arena, a must to be on the same level as George Mason and other CAC schools. We anxiously wait to see who is named the next coach and if they find a proven motivator who can build a program from nothing.

No doubt, many will say how can schools afford to upgrade athletic programs when funds are scarce; the economy is bad, and all the usual excuses. Good sports programs, particularly basketball can bring economic benefits to their schools. That a school is seen as a top athletic school where kids would want to wear school jerseys and colors not only helps the school enjoy some marketing funds but also stirs up a buzz that could attract more students to chose a school like Towson over other universities. Sports are one element of creating a stimulating quality college life.

Our message, while we want to see University of Maryland be a school mentioned in the same breath as University of North Carolina and Duke in basketball as they were at the turn of the century and their football team should be challenging for the ACC football title consistently, Towson University must become one of the jewels of the Colonial Athletic Conference. This is within Towson’s reach. Maryland has only one school in the conference while Virginia has five. Okay Virginia’s a larger state than Maryland but supporting Old Dominion, William & Mary, VCU, James Madison, and George Mason is a far more substantial commitment than what Maryland’s devoting to its schools.

Larger problems loom than simply the state’s academic operations that hurt athletics. Certainly, it’s hard to justify FIVE universities in the Baltimore area: Towson, Morgan State, Coppin State, University of Baltimore, and UMBC. Certainly, Towson and UMBC are thriving schools. Morgan deserves its standing as one of the nation’s top black universities, but certainly it would make sense to fold Coppin State within its structure as it would University of Baltimore into either Towson or University of Maryland. On the Eastern Shore Salisbury and University of Maryland, Eastern Shore are just 12 miles apart. Consolidating such resources makes sense. Greater focus could mean better athletic programs where schools like Salisbury and Frostburg could tear up their conferences. While St. Mary’s simply has never shown any interest in athletics and that’s fine, who knows what kind of sleeper Bowie State could be in Washington DC’s eastern suburbs.

It starts at the top. Bold thinking is required. Get University of Maryland where ESPN can’t avoid talking about them. Get Towson to where they’ll be there soon. Who knows what the rest of the system could produce if a spirit of winning sweeps the system?

Right now, it appears that try not to loose would be a step forward rather than the indifference the seems to emulate from Annapolis to the highest ranks of the University System, but the time it reaches the Athletic director’s level and coaching staffs, the damage is done.

Go Tigers!!!!




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2010 College Football: Week 1

As Hurricane Approaches Mid-Atlantic, Winds of Change Mark 2010 Season


Here comes College Football 2010 and wow has the landscape changed since New Year’s.

First, USC has gone from the penthouse to the s…house. Coach Pete Carroll bolted for Seattle in the NFL and quickly the skeletons fell from the closet concerning allegations concerning NFL star and former Heisman winner, Reggie Bush’s misdeeds while on the Trojans. He is banned from USC and the sanctions will make maintaining a nationally ranked program difficult. Meanwhile, one would think they could have done better than Lane Kiffin as their coach, who appeared brash and careless at Tennessee and was in way over his head at the helm for the Oakland Raiders.

We got a lesson in conference math were the Big 12 now has 10 teams and the Big 10 has 12 teams. Nebraska heading to the Big Ten. Colorado is heading to the PAC 10 – which by this new math will have 11 teams. Meanwhile, Brigham Young intends to move on as an independent signing a TV deal with ESPN and locking in future games with Notre Dame.

Tim Tebow is gone, grownup, and playing for the Denver Broncos. Who will be the face of college football now? Bobbie Bowden will no longer be patrolling the sidelines at Florida State after being unceremoniously dumped last year.

Examining the Pre-Season A/P poll, four of the top five teams are quite predictable; the remaining team will surely raise eyebrows.

1. Alabama (SEC)
2. Ohio State (Big 10)
3. Boise State (WAC)
4. Florida (SEC)
5. Texas (Big 12)

Boise State, eh? Do not adjust your sets, yes their turf truly is deep blue which can really drive the viewer crazy after a couple quarters. Much debate focuses on whether the BCS process would ever let a team from a perceived lesser conference ever compete for a National Championship versus the well-established big boys.

Alabama looks like a team that could repeat even if Mark Ingram is missing in early games with a knee injury. Jim Tressel’s Ohio State Buckeyes must show more consistency and not let a clutch game get away from them which causes enough damage to move them out of the Championship scenario. Florida will have a fresh approach on offense putting more emphasis on running and the short game with Tim Tebow’s departure. They’re always a tough fight.

6-10 is a reasonably predictable lot too.

6. TCU
7. Oklahoma
8. Nebraska
9. Iowa
10. Virginia Tech

Oklahoma will certainly want to upset Texas’s applecart. If they dominate the Big 12 relative to other conferences’ play, they could be a championship contender. Iowa has been a giant killer the past two seasons ruining Penn State’s season two years in a row. Now they are one of the giants. Should Ohio State fail, Iowa could stand ready to step in.

Nebraska will certainly aim to exit the Big 12 in a blaze of glory showing the Big 10 what lies in store when they move for 2011. Virginia Tech is the ACC’s best bet as other ACC teams are improved for 2010.

Here’s the balance of the Top 25.

11. Oregon (PAC 10)
12. Wisconsin (Big 10)
13. Miami [FL] (ACC)
14. USC (PAC 10)
15. Pittsburgh (Big 10)
16. Georgia Tech (ACC)
17. Arkansas (SEC)
18. North Carolina (ACC)
19. Penn State (Big 10)
20. Florida State (ACC)
21. LSU (SEC)
22. Auburn (SEC)
23. Georgia (SEC)
24. Oregon State (PAC 20)
25. West Virginia (Big East)

Looking at these teams, one can’t help but notice the reemergence of the ACC with a total of five teams in the hunt. No surprise, the SEC leads with six seeds. That Florida State is back in the picture is noteworthy. One has to wonder given the turmoil in the land of the Spartans, how long will USC be on the charts?

Not in the chart, but some think this could be the breakthrough season is Notre Dame. With Brian Kelly and his record of success coming on board, much is expected; however, the proof will be in the play. Meanwhile, a short jog to the north east in Ann Arbor, life is not good for the Wolverines. Rich Rodriguez will take the blame for whatever happens on the field. Unpopular from the start coming from West Virginia where he put that program on the map, U of M insiders wanted someone with Michigan connections to coach their historic team. Les Miles was assumed to have been delighted for the opportunity to return to Michigan as someone who would seem a natural to replace Lloyd Carr. Surely, in the minds of the Wolverine faithful, somebody had to drop the ball not to attract their man. Nevertheless, Miles was very clear on his decision. Why would he want to bolt the successful program he’s running in Louisiana where he is respected and successful? (Maybe not enduring Michigan winters was an “X” factor too.) Michigan fans need to accept there have been serious organizational problems and it will take substantial rebuilding and rebranding to make Michigan an attractive team to recruit the nation’s top talent once again. Perhaps the greater exposure and growth of the Big 10 will be the right recipe.

Here in the Mid-Atlantic, what could be more perfect than Maryland playing Navy at the Ravens’ stadium to open the season? Baltimore will be hopping Monday night as a national audience watches what could become a great annual tradition if the two schools are sensible. Later, Boise State plays Virginia Tech at FedEx field. Football fans have to appreciate the attention this draws to our area that typically is all about Ravens and Redskins.

We’re following six games this week. This is the cupcake portion of the season, so finding good contests is difficult. Let’s see what bragging rights we have Tuesday morning.

Southern Mississippi @ South Carolina (-14)
Squeaky old Steve Spurrier is back at SC and should have little to fuss about after the Gamecocks win their first game convincingly.

Kentucky (-3) @ Louisville
A much more appealing basketball rivalry, but in case anybody wants pigskins to settle any scores, go with Kentucky.

Connecticut @ Michigan (-3)
Few teams need to start off the season with a win more badly than Michigan. Their program is in chaos. Playing in Ann Arbor, they should prevail.

Oregon State #24 @ TCU #6 (13 ½)
This is of the few games between ranked teams. TCU must win convincingly to maintain their top tier respect.

LSU #21 (-6 ½) @ North Carolina #18
The odds makers who reported in, give LSU the edge. Perhaps this is a generic pick SEC versus ACC. We’ll go with Carolina blue!

Navy (-6 ½) versus Maryland @ M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, Maryland
Navy has been coming on strong in football in recent years while Maryland has floundered. Maryland must step up significantly to restore honor to their program, but Navy’s discipline should prevail. It will be interesting to see how the crowd balances between the two schools.

Boise State #3 versus Virginia Tech #10 @ FedEx Field, Landover, Maryland
The team that plays on the weird blue carpet comes from Potato country to the Nation’s capitol to battle the ACC’s premier team for 2010. If Boise State loses, their place in 2010’s picture will shrink to a blip. Frank Beamer will have his men ready to pull what the national media would consider an upset.

USC Appoints Lane Kiffin????

Lane Kiffin departs the Tennessee Vols for the USC Trojans making us wonder, what is USC thinking?

Kiffin led the Vols to a 4-4 record in the SEC (7-6 overall) better than 3-5 (5-7) the previous year.

His tenure as Oakland Raiders head coach was miserable, but could Vince Lombardi succeed in Al Davis's world.

He came to Tennessee making a lot of noise including accusing Urban Meyers of Florida on his recruiting methods and generally coming across as brash and petulant. Was there a clear silver lining in his two win upgrade and one conference win improvement earning them their first bowl appearance, the Chick-Fil-A Bowl? For Tennessee fans, it was perhaps the first big hoorah since the days of Peyton Manning.

Still, he takes over perhaps the highest visibility program in the nation with the highest expectations. USC has been the established dynasty in the new millennium. Does Kiffin's experience along with his service as wide receivers coach and offensive coordinator at USC from 2001-2006 at USC create enough good vibes to deserve the job?

We'll see.

Mike Leach: Go Away and SHUT UP!!!

Fired Texas Tech football coach Mike Leach

is just the kind of fellow who's so easy to dislike.

Mike Leach is a world class idiot. To hear his excuses and attempts to pass the blame for his conduct, forcing player, Adam James into isolated confinement in a shed after suffering a concussion reflects a kind of irresponsibility and a bully mentality that has no place from any kind of leader in American society much less scholastic football where building character is one of a coach’s most important responsibilities. If a coach deems a player is not putting forth sufficient effort, there are plenty of forceful acceptable ways to handle the situation, but what kind of discipline can be justified of any sort when a player had just suffered a head injury no matter how mild or what circumstances led to the injury. Sports fans would have to be living under a rock not to know that concussions are very serious business in today’s world as witnessed by how the NFL has recently stepped up its attention to be sure players are not forced to play or practice until they are cleared by responsible medical professionals to resume.

Reports indicate that James was injured during team practice on December 16th. He reported to practice the afternoon of December 17th after being treated by a doctor for his concussion not dressed for practice at which time Leach directed James to be confined in an equipment shed. Two days later, James returned to practice dressed appropriately and then was confined to a media interview room. Leach was reported to have launched a tirade of obscenities in scolding James on both occasions. James was told if he were to leave his confinement he would be kicked off the team.

When the episode was reported to University officials, they directed Leach to take appropriate measures to correct his behavior including apologizing to James. He refused. Initially Leach was suspended, but for his absolute insolence and lack of cooperation the University fired him.

For some it is noteworthy that Adam James is the son of Craig James, currently an ESPN commentator and former NFL player. Craig James was involved in seeking remedy for how his son was treated.

While the way Leach treated James was absolutely unacceptable by any measure, the university appeared to give him every opportunity to resolve the incident and make amends. Once dismissed, Leach’s statements reveal a personality and attitude reflecting total lack of character accepting no responsibility whatsoever for his behavior, viciously trashing the student athlete, and assailing Craig James as being a meddlesome parent using his status to throw his weight around to influence the school’s decision making. He went on to accuse James of demanding preferential treatment for his son and insists that the school fired him so they could escape continuing his contract which would have continued if he reported to work the following week.

Leach is no stranger to being in the hot seat for shooting off his mouth when earlier in the year assailed his players after losing to Texas A&M for “listening to their fat little girlfriends.”

He accused James of being “lazy” and having “a sense of entitlement” who’d fall back on having his father intervene on his behalf. Through the course of the interview Leach had harsh words for both Craig James and the university. He continued his inflammatory statements to other media outlets including the New York Times, again taking swipes at Craig James.

Meanwhile, James denied all special relationships with the university and refused to get embroiled in the controversy other than to point out what happened to his son.

Making matters worse for Leach are statements from others including the team’s trainer that denied the fired coach’s contentions.

Mike Leach is a world class moron on several accounts. First, his failure to take the matter of head injuries seriously and treating an injured player the way he did is an extremely grave matter. Coaches on all levels must put health concerns paramount above all else.

The contemptuous attitude, sarcasm, and mocking tone of Leach’s remarks about a college student on his team, the student’s father, and the school administration show a lack of self control and serious character lapses indicating he simply does not have the emotional makeup or character to be deserving of a leadership position.

Leach also presents a contemptible pseudo-tough guy image, a kind of distorted macho impulse that serves as a terrible example to the young men on his team not only in his comments from the Adam James incident but also statements like “fat little girl friends” from earlier in the year. While some bravado might be appropriate in the heat of battle, there is a kind of sickly chauvinism displayed here that should not be tolerated.

It’s sad to note that the university clearly wanted to give Leach a chance to make amends for his behavior and continue to serve as coach. Not only did Leach burn his bridges, he bombed the city to which the bridge led. It’s hard to imagine as such he’s likely to get a job coaching in a major football program again. However, in this competitive world, if some team sees hiring him as a coordinator or assistant coach, he could resurface again.

While we would generally mock the concept of sensitivity training, if there were ever a person for whom such a program would seem desirable, Mike Leach is the man. Unless and until he shows some contrition for his behavior, he deserves the banishment from sports he has forced upon himself.

NCAA '09 Football:A Look Ahead to the Major Bowls

Which team will be the National Champ?

Are you ready for this? The 2009-2010 College Football Bowl season is already upon us as some of the more obscure contests are already under way. The competition goes into full gear on Saturday with most of the action still, thankfully reserved for its traditional slot on New Years.

Here’s a summary of the BCS bowls and some others we find interesting.

Saturday, December 26, 2009
Meinke Car Parts Bowl, Charlotte, NC , 4:30 pm, ESPN
Pittsburgh versus North Carolina

Emerald Bowl, San Francisco, 8:00 pm, ESPN
Boston College versus USC (#24)
(Played at the Baseball field, go figure!)

Sunday, December 27, 2009
Music City Bowl, Nashville, TN, 8:30 pm, ESPN
Clemson versus Kentucky

Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Champs Sports Bowl, Orlando, FL, 8:00 pm EPSN
Miami #15 versus Wisconsin #25

Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Holiday Bowl, San Diego, CA, 8:00 pm, ESPN
Arizona #20 versus Nebraska #22

Thursday, December 31, 2009 (New Years Eve)
Sun Bowl, El Paso, TX, 2:00 pm, CBS
Oklahoma versus Stanford #21

Texas Bowl, Houston, TX, 3:30 pm, ESPN
Navy versus Missouri

Chick-a-fil Bowl, Atlanta, GA, 8:00 pm, ESPN
Virginia Tech #11 versus Tennessee

Friday, January 1, 2010 (New Years Day)
Gator Bowl, Jacksonville, FL, 1:00 pm, CBS
West Virginia (#16) versus Florida State

Capitol One Bowl, Orlando, FL, 1:00 pm, ABC
Penn State #13 versus LSU #12


BSC Bowls
Friday, January 1, 2010 (New Years Day)
Rose Bowl, Pasadena, CA, 4:30 pm, ABC
Ohio State #8 versus Oregon #7

Sugar Bowl, New Orleans, LA, 8:30 pm, FOX
Florida #5 versus Cincinnati #3

Saturday, January 2, 2010
Cotton Bowl, Dallas, TX, 2:00 pm, FOX
Oklahoma State #19 versus Mississippi

Monday, January 4, 2010
Fiesta Bowl, Glendale, AZ, 8:00 pm, FOX
Boise State #6 versus TCU #4

Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Orange Bowl, Miami, FL, 8:00 pm, FOX
Iowa #10 versus Georgia Tech #9

Thursday, January 6, 2010
BCS Championship Game@ the Rose Bowl, Pasadena, CA, 8:00 pm, FOX
Texas #2 versus #1 Alabama

The BCS Bowl System: Like It or Hate It -- Look What Congress is Getting its Fat Nose into Now!!!

As sure as the college football regular season comes to a close and it’s closing in on just two weeks left of Christmas shopping comes the annual fury about the bowl system and how the national champion is chosen.

This is nothing new. In the past, debates flourished. Was it the Orange Bowl or the Rose Bowl that truly established a national champ? Since the BCS was initiated in 1998 growing out of the Bowl Alliance and Bowl Coalition which started earlier in the decade, rather than legitimizing the selection of a true champion by having a precisely defined system to rank teams providing for a face off between #1 and #2, the debate appears to have gotten louder.

The current system selects the top teams from the five elite national conferences: the ACC, Big East, Big 10, Big 12, Pac 10, and SEC. Additional slots are awarded to “at large” teams that may include teams outside the five major conferences.

The BCS uses an elaborate system of carefully defined metrics, polling results, and all kinds of data stuffed into computers to determine their rankings. Are they any better than the AP Writers’ Poll or USA Today’s Coaches poll is hard to determine?

In establishing a rotating location for the grand finale at the site of the great traditional bowls, those famous bowls once held on New Years Day have lost some of their prestige, and that the bowls are spread out for maximum TV exposure, sure reduces the quality of what games are played on New Years Day. The major bowls, removing the corporate naming conventions are: The Orange Bowl, Miami Florida; the Sugar Bowl, New Orleans, Louisiana; the Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California; and the Fiesta Bowl, Glendale, Arizona. While they are all subject to the BCS process, the Rose Bowl, for instance, will typically feature teams from the Pac 10 facing the Big 10.

Aside from teams and conferences feeling they’ve been slighted if they don’t achieve what they would consider proper consideration from the system, for decades the major bowls have provided great football and the debates on which teams are truly reflective of the legit contenders and who the number one team is perhaps adds to the interest. Sports fans never shy from a good debate.

The current method of determining the National Champion is far from scientific or objective despite all the efforts made to develop a sophistication selection process. Many are proponents of a playoff system. Some of them are politicians. One is the President of the United States who has stated on numerous occasions including an interview on ESPN, he would like to see a playoff system instituted. There’s nothing wrong with politicians having their preference one way or another. Likewise, though many of us would love not to hear their posturing and bloviating, they have every right to express their stance on the issue knowing full well they have a unique position for their views to become well known.

What is totally unacceptable is Congress thinking that how college athletics and the NCAA determine the national champion is their official business. Only if there were some substantial scandalous institutional corruption where public money is involved could they get their foot in the door to act. Even if the system is unfair, it’s not their business if the conduct is legal. Organizations in a free society must have the freedom to determine their own rules and policies.

How bad is it?

While congressmen and senators have been banging their chests on this issue for a long time, now it’s getting way too serious. The House Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection approved legislation to allow the Federal Trade Commission to prevent any bowl from identifying itself as a “national championship” unless the game is the final game of a single elimination playoff system.

The bill was written and is sponsored by Rep. Joe Barton (R – Texas). Radical rep, Bobby Rush (D – Illinois) is a key supporter. The next step would be a full house vote, senate action, and then how would the President respond when he is already on record wanting that playoff system.

If enacted, the FTC would be empowered to assess costly fines against any organization promoting a “national championship game.” The law is designed to take effect and cover the 2011 season.

Thankfully, this insane legislation is not without strong opposition including senators Orrin Hatch and John Cornyn.

That a measure like this would even be debated reflects badly on the state of today’s congress which in this case is truly bipartisan madness. Most obviously, this represents a blatant attempt for congress to once again stick its nose where it does not belong regardless of what bogus reasons they use to justify. There is no fraud or sinister purpose in the current bowl system. It’s truly a disagreement on what method should be used to determine a championship. The member schools and their representative organizations have decided one way. Many others have a different idea.

Given that many of the top BCS programs are from major state universities and states have a huge investment in the BCS bowl system, one would think state legislatures would go on record on this issue if they thought their schools were slighted by an unfair system.

As long as the bowls enjoy huge attendance, rake in substantial sponsorship and advertising dollars, and gather strong television ratings, where is there any motivation to change?

If fans were outraged by the BCS system and found the games illegitimate, they’d stop watching. When the economy is sputtering, unemployment massive, and many important issues being left unresolved, it is insulting that members of congress would waste public time to intervene on an issue that is governed by the appropriate interscholastic authorities against which no charges of corruption or malfeasance have been indicated.

To drive this point home, consider that Congress is currently attempting to pass legislation that would have the government seize control of all aspects of modern medicine aside from the sacred cows exempted for the sake of their special interest status largely due to their financial contributions to the benefit of our elected leaders. The public is well aware than many elected officials have not found it necessary to read this legislation which impacts well over a trillion dollars in the near future just as they did not read measures rushed through spending billions of dollars that were supposed to provide an economic stimulus to a faltering economy funding hundreds of entitlements and federal mandates rewarding more special interests supportive of such congressional action. The cost of the so-called stimulus was at the cost of fattening up a Federal deficit now in the trillions of dollars.

When trillions of dollars are at stake and some elected officials have gone so far as to ridicule the notion that they would study and read health care and stimulus legislation, how on earth can they justify spending the people’s time designed to establish a playoff system to determine a national football champion?

While sports fans can and should debate such a change to the college football landscape that what should be a conversation for the guys over a beer or two, that our elected leaders would consider the topic as official business shows their incapability to responsibly set their priorities and behave responsibly. Take all these measures collectively, the public sees an institution drunk on power and its sense of importance clearly out of touch with reality failing miserably to execute the public trust bestowed upon them.

Big government is so pervasive now it is messing with how sports conduct themselves. What next?

Farewell to a Legend

Bobby Bowden did the right thing. He retired as coach of the Florida State Seminoles football team. His legacy is enormous having won two national championships and leading one of the dominant NCAA football programs including almost a total lock on the ACC from the time the team entered the conference for over a decade.

While his demeanor was always friendly and folksy, there was no denying his passion for the game and winning football.

Recent history has not been kind as a handful of player scandals and inability to find the winning formula has seen the Seminoles fall into mediocrity. It was looking like Bowden might been one of those fellows who did not accept his time was up forcing a bitter farewell, but as the pressure was beginning to mount, he realized he had done all he could possibly dream of giving his university.

All football fans should wish this wonderful man the best of everything in his retirement.

NCAA '09 Football: Week 13 -- Reflections on a Surprising Season as the Regular Schedule Completes

The final weekend of November, 2009 is the last hurrah for a full schedule for college football with some conferences finished for the year such as the Big 10. Others are playing their conference championship. While other games feature great rivalry games.


It’s interesting to go back and look at the AP Top 25 to start the season. Sure enough as expected, Florida is #1. Texas was ranked 2nd and many would argue they should be ranked higher than ‘Bama who claimed the second spot. One thing’s for certain. If Texas continues winning, after next weekend’s action they will be at least #2 as either Florida or Alabama will have suffered one loss. Oklahoma was ranked 3rd. Where are they now? State rival Oklahoma State stands 12th in the BCS. The Sooners are goners not even in the top 25.

Shockers of shockers, what happened to USC this year? They were ranked 4th but some argued they were slighted, but with a 7-3 record including an embarrassing home loss to Stanford, they’re way down in 20th rookie quarterback and all.

Alabama started in 5th, perhaps slighted a bit as they are now the bridesmaid, but Ohio State at #6 had a mighty tough season leading them to 10th.

We’d have to get technical talking about the ACC in 2009. Technically, the conference was seen as weak not fielding a true championship team. If they had one, it would come from Virginia Tech who was ranked 7th. Well, they got the Tech part right but it’s Georgia Tech who was ranked 15th but pulled all the way up to 7th.

Mississippi looked great as #8, but they’re hanging on the edge of the cliff in 25th.

Oklahoma State was supposed to put two Okie teams in the top 10 sharing 9th place with Penn State. They finished close to where they were predicted, 12th, but no one expected them to be the real pride of Oklahoma.

Could Joe Paterno guide the Nittany Lions to a championship? Once again, the bubble was burst initially by Iowa who beat them on a horrible rainy night in central Pennsylvania. The team with the most ordinary uniforms landed in 13th while Ohio State turned in at 10th and the upstart Iowa Hawkeyes are in 11th.

The top ten has some uninvited guests with TCU in 4th, ranked 17th in August. The same can be said of Boise State in 6th but started in 14th.\

Perhaps seeing Oregon in 8th helps fill the void left by USC’s absence. They were only in 16th.

Other teams on the board the beginning of the year included Georgia in 13th. Had that held, imagine how that would stir up this weekend’s grand cocktail party in Jacksonville.

Dark clouds and vultures hover over two of the most historic and accomplished programs in college football history who were both supposed to return to being significant respected powers in 2009. Florida State started in the 18th slot while Notre Dame stood in 23rd.

Though they played a classic intense game against their rival, Miami to open the season, the Seminoles lost 38-34. Losses mounted and Bobby Bowden’s tenure erupted into hot controversy as they lost to South Florida, Boston College, Georgia Tech, and Clemson. One surely sees Bobby Bowden’s days as a factor in the highest echelon are over. It’s tragic to see a once great figure still hanging in there after the magic is gone. His trip to Gainesville could be his last. Meanwhile, Miami mounted a significant comeback taking what perhaps was supposed to be their ACC Florida rival securing 17th.

The chill of winter was felt early in South Bend Indiana. What could have been proved to be worse that wishful thinking? Though ranked at 23rd when the season began, the Notre Dame Publicity machine and their vast network of dedicated fans had much higher hopes such as BCS bowl competition or even a shot at the championship. So what changed from last year to make them that much better? Nothing really. QB Jimmy Clausen could not carry the team and coach Charlie Weiss’s effectiveness was questioned through out. At 6-5, the Weiss regime never accomplished what they were hired to do, but the fighting Irish have not been much of a factor since Lou Holtz charmed the sidelines. Sure, they’ll get some minor bowl bid, but they have so little to show for it as they were almost certainly be slaughtered by Jim Harbaugh’s team at Stanford.

One more team deserves so much praise, the US Naval Academy who should run the table and finish their season at 10-3. Not only did they beat the Fighting Irish in South Bend, they also beat Louisiana Tech, and SMU as a couple of their most noteworthy wins. They lost to Ohio State in Columbus by just four points. The whole nation should be proud of these wonderful young men.

Week 13 Picks:

Alabama #2 (-10) at Auburn
Sweet home Alabama will be rocking as the Auburn Tigers are no match for the much more powerful Crimson Tide. Auburn will need to improve as an organization to reinvigorate this classic rivalry.

Pittsburgh #9 (-1) at West Virginia
West Virginia isn’t quite strong enough to hold off a superior Pitt.

Florida State at Florida #1 (-24)
What a sad game this will be. How much restraint can Florida afford to show when they’re competing for a BCS championship? Though it will come as no surprise, Florida State’s loss to Florida will be a very heartbreaking loss as it might be the end of one of the greatest tenures in all sports, the brilliant career of Bobby Bowden.

Utah #21 at Brigham Young #19 (-7 ½)
Two closely matched teams compete for being second best to TCU in the Mountain West. Brigham Young shows a slight edge, perhaps not the touchdown plus advantage those bad boys down the road in Vegas project.

Georgia versus Georgia Tech #7 @ Jacksonville, FL (-8)
Just because both teams aren’t in the upper ranks of the BCS doesn’t mean the Georgia family feud won’t be a wild one. Had the original AP poll rankings held, this game would be white hot. Nevertheless, Georgia Tech needs this win to finish as high in the national rankings as possible perhaps a top 5. Georgia is looking for bragging rights for a season that fell apart.

Notre Dame at Stanford (-10 ½)
Stanford returns home ten feet tall after their historic smashing of the USC Trojans last week. Meanwhile, it’s an unhappy locker room for Notre Dame with coach Weiss’s fate dangling in the wind. Much more was expected of his tenure, but that tenure almost certainly is coming to an end despite the ridiculous long term contract the Notre Dame brass committed to. Stanford should dominate this game convincingly.

Navy (-9) at Hawaii
How wonderful it is that the Midshipmen should be able to journey to Hawaii to prepare for their annual battle with Army the following week. Aloha men! They’ll surf to a sure victory while getting ready for a bigger win against Army next week.

NCAA '09 Football: Week 12

The 2009 college football season is beginning to wind down as the first of some of the great traditional end of the season games are being played. The real issue is for teams fighting for conference leads and bowl bids. In a year where the mighty have fallen and the upstarts slaughtered by the improbable teams with high hopes at the beginning of the season are left asking “why?” while some of the less likely are asking “why not?”

Two of the great historic programs, USC and Notre Dame, perhaps are best illustrations of how the mighty have fallen. There has never been a season where early on USC is not seen as a possible National Champion, but mired in fifth place in the PAC 10 standings reeling after being slaughtered by Stanford after earlier losses to Washington and Oregon. For Notre Dame, the picture is uglier. 2009 was supposed to be the Fighting Irish’s return to glory. Anything less than a BCS bid would be a failure. Well, forget about the BCS bowl, can they do better than the trip to Hawaii they won last year. Perhaps their first loss of the season, 38-34 against Michigan would have seemed legit, the Wolverines are not a threatening team who’ve lost against all Big 10 rivals besides Indiana looking timid and weak in most of those losses. USC beat them, but they are USC, aren’t they? Their next loss was a home loss to Navy, a team Notre Dame is supposed to beat with ease but lost 23-21. Last week, they lost to Pittsburgh ranked 12th. Pittsburgh’s a good team, but teams worthy of a major bowl win those games. With Connecticut this week and then a trip to California to play Stanford, talk about Charlie Weiss not returning next year is mighty loud in South Bend. Does anyone believe he’s the coach to lead Notre Dame back to the Promised Land?

Alas, then there was Iowa, the Cinderella team who looked destined to oust the Big 10’s most powerful having ruined Penn State’s dream of a National Championship? Iowa’s still having a respectable season ranked at #12, but after achieving a 9-0 record, they lost to the lowly Northwestern then fell to Ohio State in overtime.

The ACC’s story is one that is apparent to a lesser extent in some other conferences giving the appearance of achieving some kind of parity as there is no clearly dominant team unless Georgia Tech’s achievements would qualify them as such. Clemson leads the Atlantic division at 5-2, 7-3, overall, with Boston College at 4-2. All the rest of the Atlantic division has losing records including Florida State at 3-4 with calls demanding Bobby Bowden retire hastening the governor of Florida weighing in he should be allowed to stay. The Coastal conference appears more muscular with Georgia Tech at 7-1, 10-1 over all, with Virginia Tech at 4-2 and Miami at 4-3. Miami appears to have taken great strides toward being the great team they once were. North Carolina will enjoy a bowl bid despite having only three ACC victories stands at 7-3 overall, but the Tar Heels have gotten stronger as the season progressed. A win against FSU would secure their argument.

Our games this week feature a mixed bag of hopefuls, rivals, and good stories.

Oregon #11 (-6) at Arizona
This is a must win for Oregon to remain in the upper reaches of the Top-25. They should beat Arizona, a team appearing to be lost in a late season fade.

Ohio State #9 (-12) at Michigan
Given years of recent futility and little sign of a change in the near future, a radio commentator argued this historic matchup can hardly be called a real rivalry any longer since Michigan is not upholding its roll as a worthy competitor. The “Big House” will be laid silent by the Buckeyes.

Maryland at Florida State (-19)
What a sad game this is, a team that really sucks versus a team that should be doing much better. Since this game in being played in Tallahassee amidst all the controversy, Florida State must win big or the 2009 season’s end will be a campus wide nightmare. Having only one quality win versus Clemson and losing five straight, Maryland’s mailed it in. That they would rally their forces and beat Florida State seems most unlikely.

Penn State #13 (-3) at Michigan State
Michigan State cannot be taken lightly as Penn State must give their maximum effort to try to work in to the top ten to finish their season.

LSU #10 at Mississippi (-4)
LSU will prove the odds makers insane and likewise convince the world they belong in the top 10 by winning against Mississippi in grand fashion.

Oklahoma (-6 ½) at Texas Tech
Both teams are motivated to put in a good showing to show the world they belong in the same conversation as Texas and Oklahoma State so this should be one heck of a toughly fought game. Oklahoma should prevail with Tech making them earn it.

North Carolina at Boston College (-3.5)
Here’s a great chance for UNC to dismiss their sluggish start and show that they are a team building into a proven winner by upsetting the favored Boston College, that weird school so far removed from the rest of the ACC geographically.

NCAA '09 Football: Week 11

Week 11 finds teams scurrying to become “bowl eligible” as the pressure intensifies with conference rivals facing each other. Some teams are feverously working to get back in the picture. Others are playing for pride. Here are this week’s matchups.

Michigan at Wisconsin #21 (-8 ½)
Michigan started better than expected then fell to below expectations. One has to wonder how much ammunition they have left. Clearly, those old labels of “rebuilding” and “team in transition” apply. They need to show more results than shown so far but their effort won’t beat predictions for a Wisconsin win.

Virginia Tech #20 at Maryland
To think Virginia Tech was the ACC’s candidate for a possible championship at the start of the season, a loss to Georgia Tech showed who the commanding Tech team in the ACC was but then a loss to North Carolina rendered Virginia Tech just good enough to remain in the top 25. They’re playing to do better than a bid to the Kellogg’s Corn Flakes Bowl in Battle Creek. Maryland will provide a nice foil for them to crank out a big win that will inflate their stats.

Florida #1 (-14 ½) at South Carolina
Yip-yip, yap-yap, Steve Spurrier will be hosting his former team who will come in to the South Carolina campus eat all their food, drink all their beer, bust up all their furniture, and seduce all their co-eds. In other words, the mild-mannered South Carolina Gamecocks coach will have to wonder whatever tempted him to take that miserable job with the Redskins as he struggles to make South Carolina a winner again. His bank account with those Redskins’ millions might make the struggle not so bad except during game time.

Iowa #15 at Ohio State #10 (-16 ½)
Iowa has been at least the Big 10’s Cinderella team if not the whole nation’s. For the second year in a row, they ruined Penn State’s title bid and have masqueraded as a championship team themselves. In much the fashion they upset other bigger fellows, they suffered the same fate thanks to Northwestern dropping them out of the top 10 to 16th. Well, the eyes have it as the Buckeyes will defeat the Hawkeyes as Ohio State moves up to being the Big Ten’s toughest team.

Utah #16 at TCU #4 (-20)
The Mountain West conference gets little notice in the east but has much to be proud of as showcased by the matchup of these top 25 teams with TCU 4th nationwide a position coveted by many more renowned football conferences (Big 10, PAC 10, and ACC as examples). This is TCU’s sweetheart season. They should be almost three touchdowns stronger than a good Utah team.

Notre Dame #11 at Pittsburgh #13 (-7)
Notre Dame’s anticipated loss at Pitt this weekend will cinch the deal that will throw the Fighting Irish into the organizational chaos that dogged them through their miserable 2008 season. With such high expectations with a star quarterback leading the way, this was supposed to be the year Notre Dame returned to being a genuine BCS competitor. The mob will be demanding coach Weiss’s tale after this loss and the cacophony will continue as next year’s team will be more of a work in progress than the team that can’t close the deal this year.

Texas Tech at Oklahoma State #17 (-4)
Here’s a game showing just how strong the Big 12 is once again in 2009. While not nationally ranked, Texas Tech is a strong program facing a team that wants to stay in the spotlight despite the exploits of Texas, supposedly one of the two contestants for the BCS title. This should be a hard fought battle giving Oklahoma State the slight edge.

NCAA '09 Football: Week 8

NCAA Week 8

In the years we’ve predicted football, never have we had a worse week than what we posted with our picks versus the spread but managed to go 4-3 straight up. We got a little carried away on wishing for upsets as in picking South Florida to knock off Cincinnati. Picking Maryland is lethal but we’re good Marylanders even if Virginia is the other Chesapeake state. At least we had lots of company in Virginia Tech losing to Georgia Tech. Oh those pesky Yellow Jackets. Who wouldn’t have expected the Hokies to win?

Week 8 appears devoid of classic matchups and there’s not much to chose from with top 25 teams going against one another, but the top teams need to stay the course and keep winning because one loss (or one more for some very elite teams as in USC) and it’s over for top honors when the National Championship is the goal. While the picks might be too obvious, we’ve found seven games that should be fun to follow for a number of reasons.

Florida State at North Carolina (-2 ½)
Both teams were rated in the Top 25 at the start of the season, Florida State, 18th and North Carolina, 21st. While such rankings are not the makings of BCS contenders, they do indicate substantial respectability. North Carolina’s program has been mired in mediocrity for years until Coach Butch Davis came along. Since his arrival, the Tar Heels moved toward respectability growing each year. While marching through some non-conference games including an impressive squeaker over Connecticut, when North Carolina hit ACC competition, they hit the wall against Georgia Tech, their 4th game, losing 24-7 looking sloppier than the rainy weather in Atlanta. Next it was hosting Virginia, a team they should have handled with ease but their 16-3 loss made them look feeble and confused. Now after a breather against Georgia Sothern they host Florida State and somehow manage to be a slight favorite, 2 ½ points, largely a concession for home field advantage.

Florida State’s turmoil is a national not just an ACC story. Things are so bad that a Florida State director publicly stated it was time for coaching legend, Bobby Bowden, to retire and perhaps that time has come. Florida State was the dominant program going into the new millennium and things looked lined up for a team that has not lived up to its reputation recently to be back on the move for 2009; however, after a tightly contested battle in their traditional opener against Miami losing 38-34, the season has been a full-fledged disaster apart from an impressive 54-28 win against top 10, Brigham Young at their house. Nobody’s going to give them any credit for a 19-9 win against Jacksonville State. Their losses have been embarrassing beyond belief perhaps best noted by a 17-7 loss to South Florida, a game no one would expect them to lose. They were surely supposed to top Boston College but lost 28-21 in Boston, but then came Georgia Tech, a 49-44 loss at home last week. Tallahassee is not a happy place as their proud Seminole legacy is in disarray.

What a game these two hapless teams face Saturday. A victory for either team could be the boost needed to salvage respectability for the remaining season. Losing will wreak havoc for the vanquished. Florida State would probably face a 2-3 record, four straight against ACC teams assuming they’d beat NC State and Maryland but lose to Clemson, Wake Forest, and then go down miserably against Florida who could be Championship Bowl bound by then.

North Carolina could go 2-3 also assuming wins versus Duke and NC State, though Duke is not the Duke of old. Virginia Tech, Miami, and Boston College should thump them.

Picking a winner in this game is murder. Florida State has performed better against tougher competition than Carolina, so this pick has to go to the Seminoles.

South Florida at Pittsburgh #20 (-6 ½)
South Florida is a team ready for its next upset. They’re a team hell bent on establishing their place in the Big East and a state with the big guys, Florida, Miami, and Florida State. Pittsburgh was picked to be the top team in the Big East this year but so far Cincinnati has trashed those plans. Still, playing at home at Heinz Field, Pitt’s going to win this one.

Maryland at Duke (-5 ½)
Talk about no respect, Duke is favored over Maryland? Considering how many times the Terps have shown up exhibiting lackadaisical play, it’s little wonder. There’s talent on the team for sure, but they don’t play effectively as a team. One has to wonder when a team appoints a “head coach in waiting” how that affects the team. With James Franklin serving yet another year in that roll with no retirement date established for Ralph Friedgen, how does that affect a college team? Where does that put the other coordinators, perhaps some of whom might have coveted that position? How do players perform towards the team’s authority knowing they could be answering to Franklin in the future? They were good enough to beat Clemson but not good enough to win against Virginia with so many turnovers. Duke is thankful just to win a game, but this year’s a little more intense probably just enough for the Blue Devils to beat Maryland.

Penn State #13 (-4 ½) at Michigan
Since Penn State is a fairly recent addition to the Big Ten in 1993, Penn State and Michigan have yet to be established as big time rivalry despite the tremendous history of both programs. Nothing could make this season look on the right track better than Michigan beating the legendary Penn State in their “big house.” While both teams have historic rivalries against Ohio State, this year they’re both cursing Iowa who for the second year in a row upset Penn State and then created agony for Michigan. Penn State will win this game. They’re too deep, the organized, and too talented. Michigan would have to get off to a hot start and keep it going for four quarters to pull the upstart.

Wake Forest at Navy (-3)
Wake Forest is no longer an ACC doormat becoming a respectable program capable of tangling with the big guys. Navy has shown some of its best teams in years recently pulling upsets and fighting powerhouses to the bitter end in other games. Navy has the edge in this one in Annapolis. It’s hard not to root for Navy unless your team is their adversary.

TCU #8 (-2 ½) at Brigham Young #16
Here’s a proud game for the Mountain West Conference that gets them notice back east. This is the only matchup between two top 25 teams and it’s a good one. The TCU Horned Frogs fight for recognition in the BCS rankings but surely will get ripped for not having the strength of schedule other contenders do. Brigham Young has one more conference win but one loss to Florida State. The game will surely be a hard fought battle with TCU having the slight edge over Brigham Young. This would make a great upset pick, but we’ve been so bad at that this year, we’ll go with the favorite.

Boise State #6 (-25) at Hawaii
Just how good can life get for the team that plays on that funky looking blue phony turf when they play at home? Having gone undefeated so far and making it to number four in the first BCS rankings now they get a weekend in Hawaii where they are a massive favorite to beat Hawaii even if those Hawaiians do that demonic dance before their games. A 25 point spread is hard to maintain but they’re good enough to do so. If they miss the spread, well that drives Vegas crazy, and that’s a good thing. When they arrive back in Idaho, the folks in Boise will see some blearied-eyed fellows with great big smiles.

NCAA '09 Football: Week 2

Week two of the college football season features most major schools playing cream puff ball with lesser schools to chalk up easy wins while gearing up for conference rivalries later in the season. While it's great for the small schools raising money, it's not good for competition.

All eyes will be on two games: one steeped in tradition, the other being one with BCS implications. Michigan hosting Notre Dame while their arch rival Ohio State hosts USC are the most interesting games this weekend. Here are the games we're tracking.

Clemson @ Georgia Tech (-5.5)
ACC battle Dixie style, but Georgia Tech should be strong enough to hold off Clemson at home in Atlanta.

North Carolina @ Connecticut
It’s nice to see Carolina football matters again. Going north to Connecticut to take care of business is one more building block toward becoming an ACC force once again. Carolina should cover the Huskies in black gooey tar.

Stanford @ Wake Forest (-2.5)
Stanford is not the nationally rated program it once was and Wake Forest, once considered too small to be a football school is improving as the darlings of the Greensboro/Winston-Salem area. Stanford won’t be able to digest the Carolina style home cooking and head back west with a loss.

Notre Dame (-3.5) @ Michigan
This great traditional rivalry finds both schools and their head coaches under the microscope with the Fighting Irish fielding its best team in years. Still they’re heading to the big house in Ann Arbor, and we’re hoping the Wolverines will be hungry enough to pull the upset.

Louisiana Tech @ Navy (-7.5)
Whoa, did the world see what Navy almost did to Ohio State last week? These sailors and Marines are pretty darned good and will defend the ship in Annapolis for sure this weekend.

South Carolina @ Georgia (-7)
The upstart Gamecocks under cranky coach, Steve Spurrier, will give the Bulldogs all they can handle, but Georgia’s talent playing at home should suffice to push South Carolina back over the state line with a loss.

USC (-7) @ Ohio State
Neither team started the season the way they would have hoped in less than stellar debuts. This could be a preview of January’s Rose Bowl matchup if neither team doesn’t wind up fighting for the National Championship which is possible for either team. With a rookie quarterback, the Trojans are not quite as fearsome as they would be in many recent years. Ohio State will be on a mission to undo the shame of last week’s near loss and at home in Columbus they should get the job done.

NCAA '09 Football: Week 1

College football 2009 starts tonight with a full state of games and by Sunday night there will be folks already crying their season’s ruined and in truth one loss can cost a team a chance at BCS Bowl so it might be a little more justified than some would think.

First, our disclaimer, we profess no expertise on college pigskins. We’re only in it for the fun. Second, there are some network big shots who are going to be every bit as off target as this humble amateur presentation. So strike up the band, smile for the cheerleaders, and let the games begin.

We’ve picked seven games this week. Here are our picks and a little commentary.

Oregon State (#16) at Boise State (#14) [-3]
Do not adjust your set, this is for real. Bronco stadium really does have blue artificial turf and it’s very annoying when watching a game. The game will be televised nationally on EPSN tonight. We’ll go with the dominant mascot theory and consider Broncos stronger than Ducks, but the home field advantage should prevail enough to give Boise the slight edge.

Towson at Northwestern
Hooray for the local alma matter, Towson, playing a big conference, the Big 10, but a team not figured to go anywhere. No point spread is posted for this game. We’ll go with the Towson Tigers because we love ‘em.

Georgia (#13) at Oklahoma State (#9) [-5 ½]
This is a hot one matching the SEC against the Big 12. Oklahoma State got lost in the shuffle with Oklahoma and Texas last year and should prevail over a good band of Bulldogs.

Brigham Young (#20) at Oklahoma (#30) [-22 ½]
Oklahoma will win this game with ease seen as a possible contender for the National Championship, but they’re not three touchdowns plus better than a decent Brigham Young.

Virginia Tech (#7) at Alabama (#5) [-6]
Virginia Tech is the ACC’s best hope for a BCS bid this year and Frank Beamer is one heck of a resourceful coach up against the dominant defense of ‘Bama. We’ll give the Hokies the upset win.

Maryland at California (#12) [-21]
This is the kind of game that Maryland usually falls down on playing but occasionally looks brilliant. While they should beat the three touchdown spread, California wins this.

Miami FL at Florida State (#18) [-6]
This is the game conference brass were dreaming of when the ACC raided the Big East expanding to 12 teams with Miami, Virginia Tech, and Boston College. Since moving to the ACC, Miami has lost its Mojo and Bobby Bouton’s boys have been far from dominant as well. It used to be Florida State and everyone else in the ACC. Not any more. While both programs try to establish their dominant ways, Florida State is clearly better than Miami and will win by a touchdown at least.

House Committee Demands Answers on College Football Playoff System: WHAT!?!?!?

AARGGHH!!!! Former Black Panther and jailbird, Illinois Rep, Bobby Rush, is part of this mad inquisition.

The image of the fall of the Roman Empire is often represented by Emperor Nero playing his fiddle while Rome burned around him. On May 1, 2009, the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee is holding a hearing to determine why a playoff system hasn’t been implemented to determine the annual college football championship. Their ire is directed at the BCS Bowl system, its methodology, and why non BCS conference teams are frozen out of the competition.

The crowning of the national college football champion has been the subject of debate for ages. What else is new?

Barack Obama was interviewed on ESPN before his election. In another blatant example of the entertainment industry rallying behind Barack Obama and further blurring the distinction between hard news and entertainment reporting, in this instance a sports network, a story segment clearly designed as a touchy-feely promotional presentation bordering on free advertising, Obama spoke of his sports interests perhaps angering a large segment of his Chicago base clearly indicating he was a White Sox fan not a Cubbies fan. He made no bones about it, the one thing he would change if he had the chance would be to implement a playoff system to determine the NCAA football champ.

Should we be surprised his lackeys in Camp Pelosi would take up such an issue and try to come of with some shabby justification to make yet another aspect of American life the government’s business by conducting this ridiculous hearing?

Just the sight of Illinois Congressman, Bobby Rush, one of the stupidest morons clueless on everything but his commitment to an extreme left wing agenda, the former founder of the Illinois Black Panther party who spent six months in jail on firearm charges in 1969, sitting in the power chair talking down to those summoned to this arbitrary hearing is enough to make any rational citizen furious.

The immediate question that comes to mind is don’t these idiots have better things to do?

Maybe given the direction the Democratic led House of Representatives on Nancy Pelosi’s watch has for their big spending habits, attempts to grow government, sell-out to the unions, and meddle in our daily lives, the more distracted they are, the better. The only problem is, it would be a real tragedy if their pressure became the catalyst for some new structure for NCAA football post season play.

No one will argue that the competition for television money is the hottest issue in charting the direction of the championship structure. The networks are interested in programming the most entertaining kind of competition that draws the most viewers and hence provides them with the greatest ad revenue. In turn, the amount of money the consortium of major football programs can receive in return.

Regardless of what one’s feelings are on how the college post season should be structured, this is a matter for the NCAA, its schools, and the television networks to solve. Given many of the universities involved are state schools, political forces already have a tremendous amount of influence.

Now who has the guts to tell these morons on Capitol Hill to mind their own business? WE DO!!! Unfortunately, we’re just average citizens who surely rate being on the Napolitano terrorist list in some capacity.

WHOOPEE!!! We’re more concerned whether our beloved ACC will be in the championship hunt versus the SEC and Big 12 next January. The hell with the politics!!!

It's Bowl Season!!!

Welcome to Bowl Season

The news is that if your favorite school fields an NCAA Division I football team, and your school isn’t going to a bowl, you must from Duke. We’re expecting that next year the California Medicinal Marijuana Growers will announce their sponsorship of the Bong Bowl to be held somewhere around the San Francisco Bay. Yes, it’s almost getting that bad. While the argument remains that the means of selecting a National Championship is arbitrary and unfair no matter how the BCS gang tries to tweak its formulae, there will be plenty of whining even in seasons where there seem to be obvious contenders. Regardless, the final matchup between Florida and Oklahoma features two strong teams that could create an incredible matchup for the grand prize.

Barack Obama has thrown his weight behind a playoff system for college football. That is his number one sports issue. Watch ESPN or listen to sports pundits across the land, and it would appear the media favor a playoff system.

Here’s how the argument works and could play out. First, the argument about adding extra games is mute. Most players are used to playing more games at the high school level so the additional games would only bring NCAA football more in line with the pros and high school. Second, there is the lag time between the end of the season around Thanksgiving and New Years providing ample time to have a decent playoff bracket system play out.

Here’s what would appear to be the solution. The playoffs would likely consist of the nation’s top eight teams and follow the conventional bracket format where the seedings would be #1 vs. #8, #2 vs. #7, #3 vs. #6, #4 vs. #5. That would lead to a four game second round that would be roughly analogous to today’s big bowls, Orange, Sugar, Rose, and Fiesta Bowls, but at this point, these games would lack the gravitas and glamour those bowls have today and they would probably be played in mid-December. If this round could be deemed suitable for the traditional bowls, then that would place the championship game in Mid-January that would put it up against the NFL Playoffs and would compromise the college campus environment which would be in the heat of the college basketball season by then. How would the teams be selected? Just go with the appropriate top eight rated teams using the BCS type of system or poll and seed the top eight teams? Go with the champions of the power eight conferences? The arguments would persist. The second possibility would preclude independent schools like Notre Dame when and if they become a national powerhouse again and the less powerful conferences.

The old bowl system is full of tradition and while the format might not accurately present a true championship, the intrigue and debate itself was part of the appeal. Suppose the top Big 12 team played the ACC in the Orange Bowl, and the SEC played another conference in the Sugar Bowl this year. Mostly likely, Florida and Oklahoma would win. Who’d be the champ? Those situations played out in the past and created a lot of buzz on the sport even if it was not accurate.

The argument, like practically everything else in sports, comes down to money and the power of the television networks as the driving force. The sponsorship groups for each bowl have way too much at stake to give up the elite status they have now. The only thing that made the BCS Championship possible was the guarantee that it would rotate each year between the four big bowl facilities in Miami, New Orleans, Phoenix, and Pasadena. The four traditional bowls then are essentially runner-up bowls allowing some semblance of the old traditions to be maintained such as the Pac-10 facing the Big-10 in the Rose Bowl.

So far, when the playoff concept is discussed, what is never accounted for is the operational side of making it work. Consider the logistics: selection, scheduling, location, and oversight, even something as simple as the traditional elimination bracket isn’t as simple as it appears to be.

Why not keep things the way they are or revert to something more like the good old days? It makes every bowl interesting and the debates are part of the fun too. Besides that, anything that can screw up the odds makers in Las Vegas is a good thing from our perspective.

Here are some interesting bowls to watch this year.

West Virginia (-2 ½) v. North Carolina (Meineke Car Care Bowl, Charlotte, NC, 12/27/08, 1:00 pm., ESPN)

This game represents a bit of disappointment for West Virginia but is the first step toward regaining respectability for North Carolina whose football program has been dormant for years. It’s hard not to like Carolina’s chances playing in their backyard in Charlotte.

Wisconsin v. Florida State (-6) (Champs Sports Bowl, Orlando, FL, 12/27/08, 4:30 pm. ESPN)

The former ACC powerhouse has fallen on hard times as they attempt to regain national status in Bobby Bowden’s twilight years. They’ll win this game, but this is hardly a bowl that matters much.

Miami (FL) v. California (-10), (Emerald Bowl, San Francisco, CA, 12/27/08, 8:00 pm., ESPN)

So what happened to the great Miami Hurricanes? In the late 80's and early 90's, they represented the kind of dominant power many ascribe to USC today. Years later, they moved to the ACC where they were supposed to contend with Florida State for which team would go into the Bowl scene to contend for the National Championship. This year, Miami is just a middle of the pack ACC team. At least they're not banished to the "Smurf Turf" but they will be playing in AT&T Park in San Francisco where the short porch in right field would form one of the end zones. Today's baseball only stadia are not designed for football. Catch a little bit of this one on television and see for yourself. Miami will surely lose to their west coast rival.

Maryland v. Nevada (-2). (Humanitarian Bowl, Boise, ID, 12/30/08, 8:00 pm., ESPN)

This is the fate Maryland earned for falling apart in the last weeks of the regular season. The good news is they play in a Bowl. The bad news is they are banished to Boise, Idaho to play on the “Smurf Turf.” Who knows how this game will turn out. If the boys show up and mean to play, they could win this game. Given Maryland’s character recently, this looks like Nevada’s.

LSU v. Georgia Tech (-4), (Chick-Fil-A Bowl, Atlanta, GA, 12/31/08, 7:30 pm., ESPN)

LSU comes into this game feeling they’re not getting much success. Perhaps the most dominant team in the SEC since 2000, they are regrouping in 2008 but did beat Florida for the Gators’ only loss. This is a home game for Georgia Tech. We give the Yellow Jackets the nod.

Penn State v. USC (-9.5), (Rose Bowl, Pasadena, CA, 1/1/09, 4:30 pm., ABC)

Surely, there are many football fans who’d dream of this game being the National Championship game. If there is an “Evil Empire” in college football, it’s Pete Carroll’s Trojans of USC. Meanwhile, good old Joe Paterno, is football history still guiding one of the nation’s top programs. Hearts were broken all around the country outside of Iowa when Penn State’s run at perfection was upset. The Rose Bowl is close to a home game for USC, and they probably should be the favorite, but how can we not pick Penn State, their ugly uniforms, and all their tradition?

Cincinnati (-2) v. Virginia Tech, (Orange Bowl, Miami, FL, 1/1/09, 8:30 pm., FOX)

Virginia Tech’s Beamer Ball proved to be the ACC’s best afterall in 2008 securing the ACC Championship in a year where several teams were running for top honors going into November. We feel they’ll have just enough extra power to beat Cincinnati, but we confess to knowing nothing about Big East football.

Mississippi v. Texas Tech (-4.5), Cotton Bowl, Dallas, TX, 1/2/09, 5:00 pm., FOX)

Here’s more proof of how much the Big Twelve and SEC dominated the 2008 College Football season. Texas State has arrived as a major contender in the Big Twelve and has beaten some tough teams. Give them the edge over Mississippi.

Utah v. Alabama (-10), (Sugar Bowl, New Orleans, LA, 1/2/09, 8:00 pm., FOX)

Facing the top team in the PAC-12 this year, has to be a minor letdown for the Crimson Tide fans who maintained a perfect season going into the SEC Championship game against Florida where Florida proved the better team. This was a magical season aside from that for ‘Bama and they should win easily close to home in New Orleans.

Ohio State v. Texas (-8), (Fiesta Bowl, Glendale, AZ, 1/5/09, 8:00 pm., FOX)

This might have looked like the likely match up for a National Championship beginning the season, but it turned out to be the Bride’s Maid Bowl instead. Given the intense competition Texas faced in the Big Twelve and that many think them superior to Oklahoma who competes for the Championship and that Ohio State played a rather week Big Ten this year, the Fiesta Bowl looks like it belongs to Texas big time.


Ball State (-2.5) v. Tulsa, (GMAC Bowl, Mobile, AL, 1/6/09, 8:00 pm., ESPN)

Ball State’s Cinderella season was broken when they played for their conference championship and were wiped out in Detroit to Buffalo. Here’s a chance for their amazing team to take a curtain call playing in a minor bowl opposite the big game on another network.

Florida (-3) v. Oklahoma, (BCS Champtionship, Miami, FL, 1/6/09, 8:00 pm., FOX)

The way Florida handled its opponents looked far more convincing a look at this year’s possible champ than the big shootout in the Big Twelve southern conference. This could be one hard fought game, but given the proven leadership Gators’ QB, Tim Tebow, provides, the Gators should win this game and playing in their home state will help their cause too. This could be a close game or a Florida blowout. Watch the game and find out!

Notre Dame hasn’t won a bowl since 1993. Eighty-nine teams have won bowls since Notre Dame’s last win! Does something seem fishy that the Mackerel Snappers would accept an invitation to play Hawaii in the Sheridan Hawaii bowl? Call it audacity. No one would question that this year was a disgrace for Notre Dame, so voyaging to the tropics for a Christmas Eve playing an absolutely non-contending team, this is supposed to make everything right? A win spares them from a losing season. It would break their long streak of failure in bowl competition. Let’s face it. These are all contrived solutions putting lipstick on the pig (as a popular 2008 expression would describe it) to conceal the obvious, what was once the team that defined college football success is a dysfunctional program sinking into irrelevance.

The world of college football has changed tremendously since Lou Holtz led the Fighting Irish into contention and quality bowl bids every season. The power conferences have become stronger where the battle for conference supremacy overtakes the significance of many of the legendary rivalries from through out the years. Being an independent was a badge of honor, a team good enough to line up games with the toughest competition nationwide and still have a near perfect record. However, another great legendary independent program, Penn State, saw the wisdom of conference play and joined the Big Ten where they would have to earn their reputation with teams already having a storied history like Ohio State and Michigan. Who could Penn State play that would create the prestige and rivalry of the Michigan/Ohio State game?

Perhaps it is time for Notre Dame to seek membership in one of the power conferences. It would make for sloppy math for them to become the eleventh team in the Big Ten, but they surely could add substantial gravitas to the Big East still reeling from being raided by the ACC for football powerhouses, Miami, Virginia Tech, and Boston College. The Big East will be the a lesser entity in the power conference scheme until they once again have ten committed teams fielding football programs in a world where the SEC and Big Ten, for instance, have negotitated very lucrative national television contracts.

It’s time for Notre Dame to step up and deal with the reality that they are playing in the 21st century and the rules for success have changed. How quickly conversation will become, "Notre Dame was one of those great teams before the turn of the century." Time marches on and South Bend, Indiana is no longer the incubator it once was for the NFL. Aside from Brady Quinn, what big name players have come to the pros since 2000? They have immediate needs that must be addressed before they can look at some of the bigger picture issues like conference play. Charley Weiss is a failure as a head coach. Still, the Notre Dame brass have decided to give Weiss one more year to get his house in order. Notre Dame also needs live bodies on the field who can play. That’s pretty much the head coach’s responsibility to sell the program.

The clock is ticking. Big improvements are long overdue. Realistically, the Fighting Irish might have two or three more years to get their program headed in the right direction before they become totally irrelevant and “win one for the Gipper,” “touchdown Jesus,” and all the other Notre Dame legends become ancient history with no relevant connection to modern times. Winning an irrelevant bowl on Christmas Eve is hardly a token gesture toward getting their football program headed in the right direction.

One more thing, Hawaii is no push over.