Washington Nationals

The first unique aspect of Nationals Stadium that I noticed while walking to it was the centerfield entrance.  That is the main concourse of the stadium since it is the closest to the metro and faces the city.  The traditional home plate entrance has a facade that reminds me of the old Yankee Stadium.  The path leading up to it has a list of important years to the team (that I ignored).  This is all a complete waste because nobody uses this entrance.  I took this picture 10 minutes before the game began. 

The most impressive feature of the inside of the stadium is the large video scoreboard.  The Nationals website boasts that it is a 4,500 square foot HD screen.  The rest of the stadium, however, is fairly boring.  The design is "prototypical 21st century ballpark".  The background scenery includes the parking garage and a few nondescript buildings.  The placement is a curious decision because they would have a great view of the capital if the stadium would have been rotated 10-20 degrees counterclockwise.  Another overlooked feature is the centerfield lawn (the spot where Zimmerman's walk-off home run landed).  The lawn and the gap to the right of it look out of place.  The park as a whole seems fairly "cookie cutter".

The prices for tickets and food at the Nationals Stadium were high compared to other parks, but is understandable compared to the rest of D.C.  The biggest surprise from the entertainment department were the fireworks blasted off at the beginning of the game and after the win.  It was a great way to stir up excitement for the game.  Although, that energy was killed immediately by the boring, slow, out of place music between innings.  Outside of the logical "Oversized Head Presidents Race", they offered little else in terms of entertainment and promotions.  Overall, the ballpark and the stadium atmosphere was decent, but forgettable.

  

Music to your ears?

Saw this guy on Ellen today. You might wonder why he's singing in a weird Russian accent until the end. I love that he's wearing a Tiger's jersey.

Project Complete

I think one of the most satisfying things about owning a home is completing projects (and not having to hear babies cry at 3am or walk through geese poop everywhere). When we moved in, the flower bed by our deck was very incomplete. It was clear that the previous owners intended on working on it but stopped once they sold the house to us. In fact, they left a bag of mulch sitting in the middle of it.

Stacey and I renovated the garden over the course of two weekends. We started by raking up the existing mulch and evening the dirt out a little more. The next step unexpectedly took the longest - we found a stump on the right side. Instead of hiring someone to remove it, we dug it out. The problem was, one removed root lead to another, and another... I used every tool imaginable to get it out one piece at a time. I used my hand saw (thanks Mike), hedge clippers (thanks again), garden sheers, power drill, shovel, spade, a newly purchased hatchet - basically anything that would cut or dig. We finally got a satisfactory amount of it out, so we planted everything. The next step was placing the hexagonal stones (22lbs a piece) and digging enough ground out to make them level. After that, we spread this weed-preventing plastic sheet across the whole thing. Finally, we spread the old mulch with the new stuff on top of it.

When all was said and done, we got:
45 bricks
6 bags of mulch (to add to the one the previous owners left us)
wine rose plant
purple hybiscus bush
3 sets of lillies
spiral pine tree

We only spent $130-150, which I think is pretty good for a pretty sizeable gardening project.

BEFORE


AFTER

The Reaction

While the whole LeBron saga has been overblown and everyone's probably sick of it, I have a lot of thoughts on the situation that I wanted to discuss.

I am not sure if you're going to believe me, but right after the Cavs lost in the playoffs this year, I predicted he would land in Miami. I came to that conclusion because Wade seemed like the only one was going to recruit free agents to come to his team and the organization has a recently won a championship. Plus, it's freaking Miami beach.

As important as this announcement is for Miami, however, another critical question mark is who else will be on their team. Winning the championship is not going to be as easy as just showing up. You can't even pencil them into the Finals next year. The talent in the NBA right now is consolidating. In the East, I feel the current rank is Boston, Miami, Chicago, Orlando. In the West, it is the Lakers and then in distant second the Nuggets and Mavs. Should one of the three get injured for much of next year, the team's status would drop quite a bit. There is still a lot to learn about this team and how they will gel with their coach.

I don't feel too bad for the Cleveland fans. He gave them seven years and the team in return was not able to surround him with enough talent to win the championship. You can't blame him for leaving for "greedy reasons" because he would have made more money contractually by staying in Cleveland. Ultimately, his job and his goal is to win a title. His career is much more limited than the average person's due to physical limitations. If he has a better opportunity to win somewhere else, and accomplish his goal, it makes sense for him to leave. I'll allow you to be upset for the weekend about the public parade that he created to announce the decision - then get over that :) The people I do feel bad for is business owners near Quicken Loans Arena. They're going to lose a lot of business because of something they can't affect.

One writer on Sports Illustrated's website wrote a scathing article on ESPN's decision to produce a show for LeBron. He attacked the network's journalistic integrity and ridiculed how overblown the story has become. While I agree that parts of the show were questionable (allowing LeBron to hand pick his interviewer, calling him "King James" 10,000 times during the broadcast), they didn't shy away from the tough questions. They showed footage from Cleveland of people lighting his jersey on fire and asked for his reactions. If SI or any other sports news outlet was offered exclusivity to broadcast the event, there's no question they would've done it.

If Tom Izzo had gone the other way, what is he thinking tonight? It is kind of interesting that he left money on the table for a better chance at success and so did LeBron. Although, once LeBron starts winning championships, he is going to make way more money than he would have if he stayed in Cleveland and his championship drought continued.

What happens to the giant LeBron Nike billboard that is in Cleveland across from the arena? Is it still up? Did someone burn it down tonight?

NBA Superstar

Quick - who came in second to LeBron James in the MVP voting?

He also lead the NBA in scoring this year.

I don't pay attention to pro basketball either, so I was surprised to hear it was Kevin Durant. I am quickly becoming a KD fan.

I thought it was pretty cool to see him at the NBA Draft. He was genuinely excited to see how it would all play out and seemed to want to meet his new teammates immediately. And that's what makes him unique - he is a young talent who has been a great teammate. Today, he showed up at the Summer League game to cheer on his potential teammates. Nobody goes to the Summer League games! They only have one row of chairs!

His excitement for all things NBA is palpable and commendable. And the NBA has taken note. He has done a lot of outreach for the NBA and Nike recently, including going to China.

To juxtapose Durant's team-attitude with the prevailing "build me a team so I can win a championship" attitude from this year's free agency class would be an oversimplified comparison. However, you have to recognize that Durant's enthusiasm and devotion is rare. This comes from a person who was drafted by a lame-duck franchise that was moved to a small market in the midwest. I'm sold on Kevin Durant as one of the best players and one of the most admirable personalities in the NBA.

Pump It Up

I cannot believe I am defending Kim Kardashian, particularly when it comes to a "tweet", but here it goes. After all, Kim is famous for having a big ass and a sex tape (thanks Joel McHale). I don't remember the last time we had a breast feeding argument, so it's about time.

She is facing a large amount of public scrutiny for posting a message on Twitter criticizing a woman for breast feeding without a coverup and then changing her baby's diaper on the restaurant table.

The story reminded me of a segment on "What Would You Do?" that aired a month or two ago.


The segment set up a biased scenario since the cafe manager had a very loud and immature response ("eww! put your hooters away!") I disagree that this form of indecent exposure should be permitted in the name of women's rights and "nature". I understand that a woman has to feed her child regularly and often with little notice. I am certainly not proposing that women should have to hide in a bathroom for breast feeding. (I do, however, feel that changing its diapers should absolutely be done in a restroom since it is very unsanitary and unpleasant to other diners.) There is no reason women can't use a coverup to create some semblance of privacy. It is not harmful to the baby and you can still maneuver them to make sure everything is going correctly.

So, to answer the news segment's, title - I would never directly complain directly to a woman who is breastfeeding, but it would make me uncomfortable and I would probably find a way to move to another part of the store.

If you want to read a ton of opposing opinions, visit this article.

Most of the arguments in favor of public feeding entail include "it's healthy and natural... if you don't want to see it, don't look... they need to eat..."

Well, since we should be so tolerant... regular ejaculation can be helpful for men in preventing testicular cancer. So next time I am in the mall, maybe I should whip it out in the name of keeping myself healthy and if people don't want to see it, they should look away.

***The above comments don't make me sexist because Stacey agrees - except for the part about me masturbating in the mall***

Championship Run Begins Now

It's over! Yay! I had a ton of thoughts going through my mind during the Izzo press conference, so here's a few:

-Good job, Kev - you're right again.

-Glad to hear that what ultimately made him decide to stay is the players, because that is the main difference between the NBA and the NCAA and they will keep him here for years to come. Great to see the players supporting him so much and hugging him -there doesn't appear to be any tension and I think it's because, as he said, if they were offered a first round contract with that much guaranteed money, would they have returned? No.

-Can't ignore the absence of Chris Allen. Yes, I know Mike, he lives in Georgia. That reinforces the rumors that have been propogated by Roe's dad. I would be extremely disappointed if he left.

-One question that I don't feel was answered enough - if LeBron was there, would he have left? It seemed like the lack of a guarantee that LeBron would return is the real reason why he's still here.

-What an exchange between Izzo and Lynn Henning! I think Simon, Hollis, and Izzo took a few too many jabs at "the media" - they are going to get some push back eventually. However, after rereading the "It's Too Late for Tom Izzo to Return to MSU" article, I think Henning made some unfair criticisms. Is Izzo really obligated to give a daily briefing if he hasn't made up his mind yet? No. Had the situation grown "embarrasing"? No. He also speculated unfairly as to why Izzo would want to leave - that he is growing tired of recruiting. But if Izzo doesn't like this level of media scrutiny, why in the hell would he consider coaching in the NBA? If the past week of reports from the Cleveland Plain Dealer prove anything, it's that he would be given a very short wick before their writers explode.

-Ok, we have to start thinking of Fantasy Football team names. A few quick ideas:
H To The...
MSU Coach 4 Life
Tom's Team
2011 NCAA Champs
6/12 = F4
...and so Mike can keep some of his namesake: CummingBack

-Unfortunately, I sense that the clock is ticking on Izzo's tenure and this past week moved the hour hand one step closer to midnight. I think he will step down in as little as 3 years, but very likely within the next 5 - especially if he wins another championship.

-Did anyone know his contract guarantees that he is paid an extra 5 years after he retires from MSU as a consultant? If we're talking about money, how can you give that up?

Voicemails

My Feelings

Fuck you Dan Gilbert. I'm taking back your MSU Fan card.

Sports Armageddon

Look at the date of my previous post and our comments - can you believe that was THREE days ago?! Every morning this week, I literally wake up and immediately turn the TV to Mike and Mike to see what the latest news on the Izzo situation is. I have watched far too much ESPNNews waiting to see "Breaking News..." scroll across the bottom. While the end of an era for Michigan State appears imminent, I feel like the sports world as a whole in the past month has completely blown up. I think there will eventually be a book written or a movie produced about this month in the sports world. Consider my power rankings of the most surprising, significant moments of the past month (or so) in sports.


1. Three perfect games are thrown in a period of a month. There had, of course, only been 18 previous perfect games in MLB history. Between 1922-1956 there were none.

2. The Big 10 had been hinting at expansion for a few months, which they said would be a long, thought out process. In a matter of days, an ultimatum laid out by the Big 12 has forced immediate defections. By next week, the Big 12 as we know it could be gone.

3. The biggest free agency period ever in any sport, one that has been anticipated for years, is on the horizon in the NBA. The top free agents are rumored to be meeting together to discuss a mutually beneficial plan.

4. The World Cup is here! I don't have any kind of exciting follow up, but it's rare and everyone else in the world is crazy about it!

5. Stephen Strasburg debuts to wild anticipation and throws 14ks - the second most ever in a major league debut.

6. USC, one of the biggest football programs of the last decade, is punished for violations. They may still have to forfeit the BCS Championship and the Heisman committee may decide to rescind Reggie Bush's Heisman. (Side note: How peculiar does Pete Carroll's timing look now?? He leaves USC during the investigation and a few months later the program is punished? And he says he wasn't knowledgeable about the violations?)

7. Weeks after saying that he wouldn't want to go to the NBA until he wins a second NCAA Championship, Tom Izzo is on the verge of ending his 27 year career at MSU and accepting the Cleveland Cavaliers' head coaching job... and who knows if LeBron will be returning.

8. Hockey is growing even stronger - Chicago wins their first championship in 41 years.

9. The biggest rivalry in the NBA continues with the Celtics and Lakers facing off in a rematch of the 2008 Finals.

10. College basketball icon John Wooden passes away.

Worried Again

Report: Cavaliers make offer to Michigan State coach Tom Izzo

I know that this happens all of the time, but this one makes me worried. Cavs owner, Dan Gilbert, graduated from MSU. Another article I read said that he is taking over the Cavs' front office moves and that is the reason why their GM, Danny Ferry, left the team. They said that "Gilbert, a staunch Michigan State man, is determined to hire away Tom Izzo. Unless [LeBron] James tells him he wants John Calipari, and then they’ll hire John Calipari." What I don't understand is how they think that hiring Izzo helps their chances of getting LeBron to stay. If there was any chance in the world that he went to college, he said he would go to Ohio State. OSU has even developed a "LeBron James inspired OSU jersey".

This raises an interesting question - if you're Gilbert and you own an NBA team, does your love and passion for all things MSU and Tom Izzo make you want to have him as your coach? Or do you not want to mess up your "other team", particularly before they have one of the best shots at winning the national championship in the country?

You Can't Do That on Television

I am definitely a TV junkie. I tried to cut down on the number of tv shows I regularly watched this year, but I think I just shifted the shows I watch. No more "Biggest Loser" or "24", but I picked up "Community" and "Flash Forward". Summer television is always a wasteland of shows that weren't good enough to air during the winter months, though. I am always surprised to learn some of the shows that they air over the summer. To exemplify this, I have designed a quiz - I have 8 descriptions for television shows. One of these shows is a fake - it's not airing this summer. Your job is to come up with the name for the show based on these descriptions and to spot the fake. Bonus point if you can prove that you have watched any of these shows before. The answers are posted in the comments.

#1
Charlotte Payne is looking for love and has rejected multiple marriage proposals -- but she has yet to meet Mr. Right. When she joins a popular online dating site, she gets a little help from her dating counselor, Andrew, who requires her to take a 100-question compatibility test. The questions aren't easy for Charlotte to answer, and each one requires her to recount a poignant and humorous time in her life. The test becomes a journey of self-discovery for Charlotte who begins to realize what she truly wants in a relationship.

#2
Seven strangers must come together to solve the puzzle of their lives. All of them have been taken from their everyday lives and have arrived in a deserted town with no recollection of how they got there. While being held hostage, the strangers are constantly watched by omnipresent "security" cameras with no idea who or what is behind them. Every attempt to leave is thwarted by unforeseen circumstances, which seem to derive from mysterious forces. At every turn, these strangers-turned-comrades are threatened physically, psychologically and emotionally. Their chance at survival is to rely on each other. But who can they trust in this vulnerable state - either behind those cameras or amongst themselves? Their decisions will have moral and ethical consequences, as alliances are forged and relationships brokered.

#3
Somewhere between the demands of her career, her ex's wedding and her kids' busy schedules, Dana James is noticing her tight-knit family starting to unravel. An unexpected offer to purchase her family's mountain property sets up a weekend road trip, which she hopes will bring her family back together. But when they arrive, they quickly learn that the mountain is much more than it seems. An ancient secret and a treacherous quest will test the family like never before. It's an edge-of-the seat thriller that reminds us that when times are tough, families don't run away from problems - they run back to each other.

#4
Can a family of small-time criminals go legit? This is the story of the Wests, who are forced to change their lifestyle after the man of the house gets sent to the big house. Crime is their business. Cheryl, loving mother and devoted wife, will do everything she can to keep her family together and on the straight and narrow.

#5
Five gorgeous females and five hot men will live together while they compete (they think) to become the "Face of Vegas." Unbeknownst to them, they'll be deliberately challenged by moral situations to see if they really are kind, generous and compassionate and have what it takes to be truly beautiful inside and out. The attractive contestants assume they're being judged solely on their physical attributes when, in fact, the episodes will showcase two sides of each person, one that displays outer beauty as well as one that exhibits inner beauty. One person will be eliminated each week based on their behavior and how well they ranked in each challenge. At the end, the person who has successfully demonstrated both inner and outer beauty will win $100,000 and will be featured in People magazine.

#6
Todd Donovan works for Mid America Novelties, which sells products like whoopee cushions, foam fingers, and wallets made of bacon. This is the stuff upon which the American way of life is built, but try explaining that to someone who lives on the other side of the world. Todd must do exactly that when he's sent to run the company's call center in India. Todd's culture shock leads to hilarious situations with his new employees

#7
This new action comedy explores what happens when an old-school cop and a modern-day detective expose the big picture of small crime. Dan Stark is a washed-up detective who spends most of his time drunk or re-hashing his glory days. A stranger to modern police work, Dan has the reputation as being a bit of a wild card. Dan's new partner, Jack Bailey, is an ambitious, by-the-book detective, but is sometimes a bit too snarky for his own good. He has a dead-end position in the department and is stuck solving annoying petty theft cases that nobody else wants. Worse, he's been given the thankless task of babysitting Dan, the drunk pariah who can never keep partners for long.

#8
This family comedy is about three brothers who hire a charming, wayward schemer to stand in as their father when their real one goes to prison. What begins as a simple business relationship evolves into a family like no other. The three brothers find their dad-for-hire, Ron Snuffkin, working at the local sporting goods store. Ron, a lovable slacker who can't catch a break, is forced to draw from an array of skills and dig into a vast bag of tricks as he steps into the role of patriarch to the boys of the Gunderson family.

Sports Update

The Arizona Diamondbacks acquired Dontrelle Willis from the Detroit Tigers today. In return, Detroit retains the rights to pay Dontrelle Willis the rest of his contract and receives a reminder that they got Miguel Cabrera for taking Willis off the Marlins' hands.

***BREAKING NEWS: LeBron Leaving for Florida***

Today's dose of unintentional comedy:
LeBron Leaving for Florida - Columbus Dispatch dispatch.com

Fads I Just Don't Get

I feel very old when I consider what's hot today in teenage pop culture. I just don't get it. As you can see by my list, I think our "youth culture" (another phrase that makes me look old) is very feminine-driven. When did teenage boys become pansies?? So here's my power rankings for things that I don't get (a.k.a. why I'm old).

1. Twilight - is it almost over??
2. Everything else "vampire inspired"
3. Two high school boy fashion trends - the long hair in your face and tight pants - when did looking like a girl become cool?
4. Justin Bieber - is he part of the reason for #3? How is he collaborating with Ludacris and Sean Kingston?? Does this not take away every bit of their street cred?
5. Glee - I enjoy some acapella now and then and I love hearing NPH sing, but come on
6. Twitter - again, nobody cares about your mundane everyday life
7. Teenage Mom shows - I thought that teenagers who got knocked up were outcasts. Is this because of Juno or because of Sarah Palin's daughter?
8. Dancing with the Stars - It's ballroom dancing!! There's nothing cool about ballroom dancing!!

Changes

As Stacey can attest, I don't deal with change that well. In the past six months, my office has had 5 new hires and added 3 new positions. Our office dynamic has swung so much I think I'm sea sick. I have been having to take more of a leadership position to keep things together and I'm glad I can step back now.

In regards to change I have implemented myself, I am very happy with how well painting our basement has turned out. It definitely wasn't a selling feature of the house. It is 1/3 finished, 1/3 laundry room, 1/3 crawl space. The part that is finished is modestly sized - big enough to hang out in but not enough to supplant our "family room". It has wood paneling, which gives me a "parents baseroom" vibe, even though my parents never had wood paneling. We decided to paint it an off-white color. The y-chromosome in me says it's white, but apparently it is off-white enough to appease Stacey. It brightened up the room nicely and makes the basement look a little larger than before. With the temperatures jumping past 80 recently, I could see myself spending more time down there to save a little on our energy bill. I think I want to take it one step further and add track lighting to really brighten it up. Now I need to study up on electrical maintenance.

Lost

I know neither of you watch Lost, but I am very excited for the end. How could you not be intrigued by this?? (It's not an actual promo, but was created by some fan with a lot of time on their hands).

King of the City

Chris Broussard's article on LeBron's recent MVP acceptance ceremony highlights what makes him different than a lot of other superstars (i.e., Kobe). Many people have looked for deeper meaning in his words about Akron; some say they indicate he's staying while others believe it was a farewell acknowledgement. I am not taking this either way, but I do appreciate LeBron for his attitude.

Since he gained nation-wide attention as a high school junior/senior, LeBron has been doing all the right things. He has been saying the right things, surrounding himself with the right people, and demonstrating the right balance of maturity and personality. I am not saying LeBron is a "good person". In a "post Tiger/Letterman/Roethlisberger/etc" world, nobody is willing to make strong value judgements about someone's character. But I do think he is fairly selfless, genuinely interested in his teams' success rather than his own (because he knows making his team better will lead to his own success), and is appreciative of his roots and the people who helped him get where he is. I think he appears to have better character and is a better teammate than Michael, the person who he is compared to most.

I am in the small minority of people who believe he will be returning to Cleveland. I don't think it will have anything to do with winning or losing a championship this year. I believe, through this event and many of his other actions, that he has a deep connection to Northeast Ohio. He is going to get a max contract no matter where he goes. I don't see him benefitting any more from a "marketing standpoint" by being in LA or NYC. I think he actually appreciates not having to deal with as much paparazzi in Cleveland. And, while having a good support group of teammates is necessary, I don't think he would be tempted by the opportunity of an "All Star Lineup".

I remember when he completely took over the 4th quarter series-clinching game against us in the playoffs a few years ago. He took his game to another level and everyone outside of Michigan was in awe of his performance. Now that the Pistons are in the crapper, I can appreciate LeBron a little more. I am by no means jumping on the Cavs bandwagon, but he is enjoyable to watch. I appreciate him thanking his hometown fans and acknowledging his teammates while winning an individual award.

Guess They Are Doing Something Right

NEW YORK -- U.S. viewership of the NHL playoffs increased 24 percent from 2009, the league's highest average first-round audience in 10 years.

The NHL said Friday that NBC and Versus combined to average 742,000 viewers per telecast. That's the most since ABC/ESPN/ESPN2 had 750,000 in 2000.

Versus averaged 595,000 viewers, a 35 percent increase from 2009 and the league's best showing on cable since ESPN/ESPN2 in 2001 (608,000). Versus averaged a .7 rating, up 75 percent from 2009.

NBC averaged 430,000 viewers for its four broadcasts, an 18 percent increase over 2009. Its 1.1 average rating was the best since 2006 and up 10 percent from last year.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/playoffs/2010/news/story?id=5152366

Food Coma

For the first time in almost a month, I have a non-sports related post. I have been on an unhealthy kick lately. If someone can be a "health nut", what would an unhealth person be? A "health Milk Dud?" I'm not depressed or anything, but I definitely think I treat food as something that is comforting. I attach positive feelings towards food, which I know is bad. I think a lot of people wrestle with the same thing and that is why some people overeat or eat the wrong things. I am by no means in serious trouble at this point and I could only stand to lose 5-10 pounds. I think my main problem with health right now stems more from inactivity than from food. I am hopeful once we get our kayaks and spend more time doing yard work, I will be exercising more often (than never). So here's the items that have been giving me trouble lately - my "power rankings of junk food".

1. Doughnuts - my all-time favorite food and favorite vice. Power rankings of doughnut places - Honey Dip, Buckeye Donuts (I'm sorry guys, they're good so it's worth it), Tim Horton's TimBits (not their actual doughnuts though)

2. Taco Bell - my fourth-meal consists of the cheesy gordita crunch, steak quesadilla, fiesta potatoes, or the steak chalupa supreme

3. Cheetos - I find it humorous that on the back of the bag is a photo of corn. Is that because they want you to think that Cheetos are a natural food and aren't completely chemically produced? Because I'm fine either way - they're really good

4. City Barbeque beef brisket sandwich and mac & cheese

5. Burger King A-1 Steakhouse XT - A mix of steak sauce, fried onion strings, and beef that tastes great and leaves a bomb in my stomach to detonate 30 mins later

6. Sushi-KO rolls - doesn't necessarily sound like junk food, but the ones I like most are fried

7. Doritos - were recently bumped down the list by Cheetos - I'm a regular nacho cheese loyalist. Has anyone tried the cheeseburger ones? It tastes exactly like the different layers of a cheeseburger, but will make you vomit

8. Kid's cereal - Fruit Loops, Golden Grahams, Cinnamon Toast Crunch - I don't usually eat breakfast, but I've recently been eating cereal before I go to bed on nights where I'm still hungry

9. Potato salad

10. Smore Pop Tarts (yeah, you heard me Mike)

A Quiz and A Poll

Rank these teams in order of how important a championship run would be to you:
MSU Hockey
MSU Basketball
MSU Football
Detroit Lions
Detroit Redwings
Detroit Tigers
Detroit Pistons

The lack of the football championships in our lifetimes probably make them more meaningful. Here's my list:

1. MSU Football - College Football is my favorite sport and I am convinced this is the only one I will not see in my lifetime. Yes, that means I think the Lions are closer to winning the Super Bowl than the Spartans are to that ugly crystal football. I think college football lacks parity and offers a distinct advantage to about 15 prestigious programs. We are in that group of the other 100.

2. Detroit Lions - Again, this is artificially inflated because we're so far from it. I do believe that the roster moves in the past few years are leading us in the right direction. Then again, I remember how excited I was for "Harrington to Rogers" to light up our offense that I made it my fantasy team name one year.

3. Michigan State Basketball - I am excited for this one because I think it can, and probably should, happen next year. Yes, I am "one of those" people that are putting high expectations on them. We are returning 3 core people who have been in the Final Four the past two years, so I think it is fair to say they should win it.

4. Detroit Red Wings - Even though this is the most successful team of the group, winning the Stanley Cup doesn't ever get old to me. I have watched the entirety of almost every game (except for the one that wasn't on TV outside Detroit). I love hockey and we should win it every year.

5. Detroit Tigers - I will always contend that the baseball season is too long, but I can always get up for the Fall Classic. The lack of playoff teams in baseball makes winning the Division or Wild Card even more special. Unless you are the 90s Braves.

6. Michigan State Hockey - Hockey is my second favorite sport, but the NCAA hockey playoffs lack excitement. It doesn't get a lot of publicity, so I don't know much about the teams outside the CCHA. I was really excited when we won the championship, but it lacks the "remember when" factor in hindsight. For example, I can recall the Game 7 the Wings played against the Avs when they destroyed them (like 7-1) and Roy let in an "own goal" when he tried holding a gloved puck up high in the air. I remember the crazy goal that McCarty had while falling down against the Flyers in 97. I can't tell you who MSU played that year except for BC in the finals.

7. Detroit Pistons - I can remember sitting together leaned in close to the TV for every game when we were good. We yelled at every foul or missed free throw and celebrated every basket. I think LeBron killed my NBA spirit in 2007 with his ridiculous 4th quarter performance in the final game of the Eastern Conference Finals.

My fairweathered interest in the Pistons sparked an idea to create a quiz to see how much you really know about the team anymore. The questions are things I think you should know about "your team". My guesses and answers are in the comments. I fully anticipate that I will fail.

1. Who is the current coach of the Pistons?
2. Who lead the team in scoring?
3. Who lead the team in rebounding?
4. Where did they finish in the Division?
5. What draft pick do they have coming up in the NBA draft?
6. What is their starting 5?
7. Name the last player that they traded for.

Scars & Stitches

I've decided every post should be named after a Guster song. I had Keep it Together a few posts ago and now I'm making it a permanent trend. I have really enjoyed the Red Wings series against Phoenix, particularly the 2nd period of game 7 and the craziness of game 2.

Who's my Red Wing? Justin Abdelkader. The guy won State a National Championship and now he provides them with a great spark in our lesser lines. It was a great idea for Babcock to insert him into the lineup after game 1 to provide us with some checking and toughness. Whenever I see that number 8 come off the bench I get excited. The only think I don't like to see is the number of penalties. I didn't realize this until looking at the box scores, but he has 23 penalty minutes this series?! That's a whole game's worth of action and he didn't even play game 1!

Who's not my Red Wing? Todd Bertuzzi. He's got 4 assists, but there is just something I don't like about him. He seems to blow a lot of chances by whiffing on his shot or putting it wide of the net. (And of course 2 minutes after I typed that he scored on a rebound to make it 5-1 in game 7.)

What is going well
Scoring from Zetterberg and Datsyuk. Penalty killing in every game except 1 and 6. Crisp passing and getting the puck far up the ice in 3 passes. Jimmy Howard when the pressure isn't on him and he isn't forced to win the game for us. Scoring in the 2nd and 3rd periods. Datsyuk playing good defense and stealing pucks away. Poke checking.

What is not going well
Getting shots from in front of the net. Draw a triangle from the faceoff circles to the net - we're not seeing a lot of action in that zone. Holmstrom needs to do a better job of getting in front of the net and we need to corral rebounds better as a team. Faceoffs. Producing goals when the pucks aren't bouncing our way. Dan Cleary - he has been invisible. He's playing 15 minutes per game, has 9 shots, and 0 points. Lapses in energy to start some of the games.

Series-Altering Event Shane Doan's injury in Game 3. He had a goal and an assist in the action that he saw. Phoenix is a team with limited talent and losing their captain was a crushing blow.

How badly can it hurt you to not convert on a 5-on-3? Very early in game 6, Detroit had a powerplay, followed by a 5-3, followed by another powerplay, during which Phoenix scored a shorthanded goal. The momentum swing was very apparent. We were all over them in the beginning in what looked like a carryover from game 5. After the SHG, Phoenix was in control. Towards the end of the second period in game 7, Phoenix had a 5-on-3 for a minute followed by a powerplay. After we killed off both, Stuart came rushing out of the box, found the puck at center ice on a breakaway and scored to give us a comfortable 4-1 lead.

Looking Ahead
I predicted before the playoffs began that we would lose in the second round and I stand by that more than ever knowing that San Jose awaits. Their series was close in the beginning with Colorado taking game 1 and games 2-4 going into overtime. The Sharks found their stride and won games 5 & 6 handily. They have the advantage of rest and from traveling. This is where being in the Western Conference puts Detroit at a disadvantage. San Jose had to travel 1300 miles to Denver while Detroit's commute to Phoenix was 2000 miles. Keep in mind they played game 5 until 12:30am Saturday in Phoenix, game 6 at 2pm on Sunday in Detroit, and game 7 on Tuesday. That's traveling 4000 miles in 4 days. What did the Sharks have to do during that timeframe? Fly home to San Jose after finishing off Colorado Saturday night. I think that their defense and Nabokov's experience will be too much to handle. Outside of a wild game 2, San Jose held Colorado to 2 or less goals in every game. We allowed Phoenix to score 3 or more in 4 of the 7 games. Although we were 3-0-1 against San Jose during the regular season. Still, I predict Sharks win in 6.

WWJD - Who Would Jesus Draft?

http://jay-mariotti.fanhouse.com/2010/04/20/antidote-to-nfl-crime-tebow-in-first-round/?synd=fanhouse

Tim Tebow has certainly been a divisive personality. Many people praise his righteousness and purity and consider him a shining example of what a sports role model should look like. Others despise his evangelical ways and would like to see nothing more than Tebow to fail or to slip up and get into trouble. For Mariotti to call him "the perfect anti-toxin for what ails the NFL" is ridiculous. I know Mariotti and his "Around the Horn" cohorts are prone to exaggeration to sell themselves, but I completely disagree.

I am pretty indifferent on Tebow - he seems like a genuine, nice guy and I don't want him to fail, but I think he needs to cool it with the evangelizing. I didn't like seeing a new bible verse on his eye black every week and I think he will probably rub his a lot of his new teammates the wrong way. I also think that Roethlisberger probably got off lucky from a legal standpoint. I think a 4-6 game suspension was appropriate given that he was never charged with a crime. It was an important stance for the league because it proved they are willing to be tough with a high profile player. As one analyst said, "it's easy to suspend a Cincinnati Bengal, but what do you do with a 2 time Super Bowl winning Quarterback?"

I don't see a high draft spot for Tim Tebow erasing the Ben Roethlisberger situation from a PR standpoint for the NFL, however. Many teams have reasonable questions about Tebow, who threw from the shotgun formation, relied heavily on scrambling, was surrounded by tremendous blocking and receiving, and has recently adjusted his throwing motion. As a general manager, I wouldn't give him the benefit of the doubt on these issues just because of his character. The NFL dealt with the Roethlisberger situation appropriately for the amount of information we know. Should anything more be revealed, they should and would take more action.

Why the NHL is the Best and Worst League

First of all, let me say fuck you to the NHL for being the worst run league in professional sports.

The Stanley Cup Playoffs are the best of any of the four major sports. They allow enough teams into the playoffs for it to matter to a wide variety of its fan base (unlike football and baseball) without watering down the talent level (like the NBA). For example, the first two NHL teams in each conference that missed the playoffs this year had records of 38-33-11 and 40-32-10. In my opinion, OT losses in hockey aren't the same as regular losses because of the shootout. Having player vs. goalie is a scenario that doesn't demonstrate who was the better team that night. It benefits teams that have a goalie that can exceed against better shooters or teams that have a number of better shooters/stick handlers. Some examples of the shootout records for teams this year including their spot in the overall standings:
1. Washington Capitals 5-6
2. San Jose Sharks 7-6
5. Vancouver Canucks 4-4
26. NY Islanders 8-6
29. Toronto Maple Leafs 4-4
30. Edmonton Oilers 8-6

I think I have made my point that OTL should be considered differently than regulation losses, but I don't want to get off track. If you still don't agree, I'll concede that the Montreal Canadiens technically had a losing record of 39-43 when combining losses and OT losses, but they were the only .500 or lower team.

The NBA, on the other hand, waters down the first few rounds with poor teams. This year's playoffs were a rarity because only one team (the Chicago Bulls) had a non-winning record. However, every other season since 2005 has included 3 playoff teams that ended the regular season .500 or worse (every one of which was in the Eastern Conference).

The NHL playoffs are also different in the sense that a hot goalie can propel a team deep into the bracket. Lesser teams are also more likely to pull off upsets by working harder than their opponents. In the NBA, an all-star player can disguise a lack of team effort for at least the first round or two.

Many sports writers and analysts, even those that aren't hockey fans, agree that the Stanley Cup playoffs are some of the most exciting games in sports. This year has already offered a number of close games, surprises from unexpected teams, and exciting action. The Coyotes and Wings scoring 5 goals in 5 minutes in game 2? Ridiculous. So why in the hell is the league still begging NBC (the worst run network on TV today) and Versus to play its games?

I was disappointed, but not extremely surprised, to find tonight's game 4 was not on TV here. I checked the NHL website to see if I could watch the game from my new laptop. After all, CBS is willing to stream every March Madness game online for free even though they did not make money on this year's tournament. What I found is that I can watch each of tonight's four games... for $19.95. That's not a "playoff pass" - that's just for 4 games.

The NHL has tried to regain the tremendous amount of respect, money, and fanbase that it lost with the boring "trap era" games (thanks New Jersey Devils!) and the lockout. They have instituted a number of great changes, including the rule changes to increase scoring and the Winter Classic. However they will not be able to grow any more unless they put their product out there for people to watch. ESPN will show almost anything and has made a huge push to buy the rights to more sporting events (MNF, early Masters coverage, bidding for the NCAA tournament) so why wouldn't they be willing to show the NHL playoffs. This would fill a significant void they have in a time of the year without college football or basketball. As I type, they are currently showing a movie about fantasy baseball, SportsCenter, and an NFL Draft Preview. Hockey may be a niche sport, but I can't believe their ratings wouldn't improve if they were airing the Stanley Cup playoffs right now instead.

Keep It Together

Is anyone else nervously checking the various sporting websites daily to see if Durrell Summers is going pro? I think we are going to be crazy good next year, but I think his tournament performance is going to play a big part in that.

When I saw the list of Kentucky players jumping early, I had the biggest smile on my face. I hate Calipari and this is what they deserve.

Would you like peanuts or a soft pillow?

I was up late last night when this story broke. Of course, in today's "report it now and ask questions later" environment, the story originally read "terrorist tries to light shoe bomb on Denver airplane". Well, let's give them credit that there was an airplane involved and it was headed to Denver. Those facts are close enough, right?

Once they received more information, CNN revealed that this person was a diplomat from Qatar and that he was actually smoking on the plane. They reported that when confronted, the man made a remark about a shoe bomb and the passengers responded. The topic of "diplomatic immunity" came up. Apparently, international diplomats cannot be charged with a crime in the U.S., although it can be revoked.

I was shocked when I woke up to hear that they decided not to charge this guy with a crime. The story, which had been "breaking terrorism news" at midnight had been brushed under the rug so quickly in 8 hours that it was buried on cnn.com's website (Tiger's return to Augusta, of course, was the featured article). The story evolved even more to say that he was "possibly" smoking on the plane. I was also appalled at the Embassy's reaction to the incident. In his statement, the ambassador didn't even come close to an apology. His statement was basically "Yep, he's cool. Don't worry about it - he works for me and I say he's fine." He even criticized the response and warned against "reckless judgements or speculation".

Today I expected interviews with some of the passengers, a debate on "diplomatic immunity" and a discussion on the response from Qatar. What I got was a poll on the new Tiger Woods Nike ad and a countdown until he teed off.

Say It Ain't SIzzo

Really Oregon?? Five days before we play in the Final Four and you are going to publicly announce that you are going to offer to make Izzo the highest paid coach in college basketball? Is this because we rejected Nike's proposed new logo and Phil Knight wanted revenge?

And come on Tom. This gets published and your response is "I haven't been contacted... I'm happy with the job I have"? That's like saying "I'm trying to lose weight" when asked if you want ice cream. That doesn't mean you're not going to end up eating it. We all think we know Tom Izzo. I know the arguement is "he has ties to the team and M-I-C-H-I-G-A-N is his State". He "cares more about making MSU an elite program than money". But then again, wasn't Tiger Woods the picture-perfect role model? A few years ago, wasn't Peyton Manning someone who always choked in the playoffs? And since then, wasn't he considered a sure thing?

This goes back to my age-old question: why doesn't this happen to Roy Williams and Coack K? You don't hear Mississippi State thinking they can lure one of them away from UNC or Duke.

And finally, come on MSU. Pay him $4 million a year and let's move on.

We're Final

Tom Izzo is 26-3 against teams that are seeded lower than MSU.

"I want them to tear down the statue of Sparty and put up Izzo. Forget the Spartan logo, I want Izzo's face on the 50 yard line of the football stadium too!" - Rece Davis

Our combined margin of victory, 13, is the lowest of any team to ever get to the Final Four.

Whatever we pay Izzo isn't enough. We don't just wake up the week the NCAA Tourney begins and decide to get serious. He has managed this team all year to come together at precisely the right time and has made adjustments like a skilled chemist.

I used to think, how good could we have finished if Kalin Lucas didn't get injured against Maryland? After all, he was the catalyst for our team in the first 1.5 games. Now I wonder, would they be this far if it weren't for Kalin Lucas' injury? Summers has taken his game to the next level, and a few more, and is producing arcade numbers each game. And Delvon Roe has ignored any pain his knee has given him and was a defensive force against Tennessee's taller forwards. Would Summers have risen above if it weren't absolutely required? Would Roe be playing with as much heart if Kalin wasn't on the sidelines in 100 times more pain than he is?

The field has been wide open this year. We have had to deal with a variety of playing styles and I think anyone left has a shot to win the championship. I am ecstatic about Izzo's 6th Final Four, the most of any coach in Big 10 history. But I really think this is our opportunity to win the whole thing. (Which I know I shouldn't say due to my penchant for being wrong.)

Maddening Thoughts

-There is only one region with three of the top four seeds still remaining: the South. How is it that the region that most people called "the weakest" still has Purdue, Duke, and Baylor? I still really like St. Mary's chances of making the Final Four among this group.

-On the contrary, the undisputed toughest region, our Midwest, only has 1 of the top 4 remaining (stupid Buckeyes). They now have a chance at making the Final Four without playing anyone seeded better than 6 (or at the very worst a 5).

-With West Virginia losing their point guard for the tournament as well, I propose that everyone else follow suit. No more starting PGs in the tournament.

I would rank the Sweet 16 teams in liklihood of making the Elite 8 and the Final Four as such. That means I think the top 8 will win this round and the top 4 are the Final Four. Yes, I know I am putting all of the #1 seeds left into finals. After all, they say the first weekend is about Cinderella and the second is for the top teams. I rank Cuse ahead of Kentucky because I don't think they face as tough of competition.

1. Syracuse
2. Kentucky
3. Ohio State
4. Duke
5. Baylor
6. Kansas State
7. West Virginia
8. Michigan State
9. Xavier
10. St. Mary's
11. Northern Iowa
12. Tennessee
13. Purdue
14. Cornell
15. Butler
16. Washington

-Call me crazy, but I am more concerned about losing Chris Allen against Northern Iowa than Lucas. Kalin has had some off-games and we can have other people provide the scoring (Summers, Raymar, even Lucious). All indications are that this will be a low scoring, half court offense game. Our defense, particularly keeping Fahroukmanesh in check, will be key and that falls on Allen. (Who would have written that sentence one week ago??) I'm really interested to see if Izzo comes out with the press at all. We aren't a press-team, but N. Iowa looked TERRIBLE against Kansas' full course pressure.

-My only hope for the Elite 8 is that OSU is a familiar opponent and it is tough to beat a Big 10 team twice in one year. With 2 days to prepare, I would rather have Izzo than Matta.

Get Us Some Respect
# Big 12 Teams left: 2
# Big East Teams left: 2
# Big Ten Teams left: 3

-Did anyone else think the silver lining in Lucas' injury is that there is no way he can go in the NBA Draft now?

-How many of the Sweet 16 teams would lose to UConn Women?

-Stacey asked me earlier tonight who was the last Big 10 team to win the title. Naturally, I figured MSU, but to confirm my guess I made a list of every championship team and their opponent for the past 10 years. I got every champion except for one and I correctly named the complete games from 05-09. Can you come up with this list?

Bracket Recap

Conference I've Overrated: Big 12
There's a lot of temptations with Kansas, Baylor, and Kansas State receiving high seeds. Plus, with weak South and West regions, it is easy to move several of the teams higher.

Conference I've Underrated: Mountain West
They have four teams in, but I only picked New Mexico to win in the first round. In a close second, I picked two of the A-10 teams to get upset in the first round, but I showed Xavier some love and put them into the Sweet 16.

Injuries I Just Don't Know About: Syracuse, Purdue, Notre Dame
Injuries to their key players have made them big question marks. For the most part, I gave them the benefit of the doubt and moved them on pretty far.

Team That Would Make Me Look Smart: St. Mary's
On paper, they look pretty good and I don't feel confident about their opponents.

Stats I'm Overrating: A strong center, how they finished the season, the strength of their conference

Stats I'm Underrating: Previous tournament history, defense, free throw shooting/three point percentage

Chalk Region: Midwest

Upset Region: West

Strongest Seed Number (besides #1): 3 - Pitt, Georgetown, New Mexico, Baylor

Weakest Seed Number: 4 - Maryland, Purdue, Wisconsin, Vanderbilt

Game I Would Really Want To See That Won't Happen: OSU vs. Kentucky

Giving Thanks

Thank you, Michigan State Spartans, for saving me from watching basketball all weekend by losing to Minnesota on Friday night. Your actions were generous on many levels. It allowed fans like myself more time to catch up on the Real World: DC (Will that Andrew guy ever get laid? Any why doesn't Callie get more attention from guys?) This was a prime example of "taking one for the team": their loyalty to the Big 10 lead them to give Minnesota a better shot at getting into the NCAA tournament thereby giving our conference a larger representation. Finally, they didn't want Chris Allen to feel left out. You have to follow through with the commitments you've made to your teammates, especially when it comes to including them in the victory celebration. "No man left behind," right?

Even though winning the game may have helped your chances of earning a better seed, you've been able to "turn on the switch" for the NCAA tourney. Remember last year when you, as the top seed, lost by 12 to the #5 seed Ohio State? And in 2005, you lost your first game to #7 seed Iowa! Neither of those losses prevented you from being able to make the Final Four (is what I have told myself over and over since Friday morning). And even though you watched Minnesota go on to defeat Purdue by over 20 points, that doesn't mean you would have beaten them too, right? Right?

Plus, you deserve the opportinity to take a little time off. It's been a tough season. You had difficult games against Florida, Texas, and North Carolina, all of whom were ranked in the Top 11 early in the season, and look how good those teams are now! I know you'll be successful despite your 5-5 record in the last 10 games. After all, this is the same team that made it to the National Championship game last year, except for Goran Suton who was consistently a leader on offense and defense. And having Travis Walton on the bench this year is just as good as having him on the courst last year, right?

Keep in mind, we were without Kalin Lucas for much of that time due to his foot injury. We were also without Korie Lucious for the Penn State road game due to his academic injury. And against Minnesota, we were without Chris Allen due to his teamwork injury. We also lost Durrell Summers and Derrick Nix in the second half due to their effort injuries which Tom Izzo himself diagnosed. After the game, a disappointed Nix said, “I’m mad he didn’t play me. There’s nothing I could do.” I know how left out you felt when the team was shooting 18-34 from the line. That's normally your job, Mr. 21.4%!!

So bring on Ohio, Cornell, or whichever #13 (or 12, or maybe even 11) seed the NCAA Tournament is going to throw at us first! Because at least North Carolina is in the NIT!

Sadness Revisited

On Wednesday, December 21, 2005, I wrote a post entitled "Sadness", which is copied below.


Johnny Damon is a Yankee. A little bit of my sports passion just died.
And this made me vomit a little in my mouth.

At the time, my Red Sox fandom was hurt by the fact that the lovable, cavemanesque Damon shed his trademark beard and went to the rival Yankees. Now, I don't want any part of him. Not because many label him a "traitor" for leaving the Sox, but because we traded a 24 year old, fast, outfielder who was adored by the community for one that is 36, slow, and has a poor arm. I get that we also got pitching out of the trade and the enjoyment of watching Mark Schlereth wearing the old English D everytime he shows up on Mike and Mike. And I understand that Granderson may have left us soon anyway. But I hate buying an expensive guy that is past his prime.

And in 4 months, I'm sure I'm going to be writing the third post in this series: Why I Love What Johnny Damon Brings to the Tigers.

Interesting Thought

After last night, isn't "What if the 2006 Dolphins had pursued Brees instead of stupidly going after Daunte Culpepper?" undeniably the best football "What If?" of this decade? If Miami gets Brees, the Saints don't win Super Bowl XLIV; Nick Saban doesn't flee Miami as quickly as he did, or at the very least, doesn't go to Alabama (now we're swinging this year's NCAA title as well); the AFC would have the four best QBs (Brees, Rivers, Brady and Manning); Miami's future is obviously altered; and the Saints are almost definitely playing in San Antonio right now. Good golly. -Bill Simmons

I think this is an excellent point. Taking it one step further, if the Saints don't have Brees going into the 2006 Draft, wouldn't they likely have taken Vince Young over Reggie Bush? Can you imagine how different both teams would be right now?

Remember when?

Let's see how much you were paying attention last year.

1. Which movie won the Oscar for "Best Picture"?
2. Name the top 5 top grossing movies that came out last year.
3. Who had the top grossing album?
4. What did Joe Wilson, Representative from South Carolina, shout during Barack Obama's September speech on health care reform?
5. Who won American Idol in May?
6. We all know Matt Stafford was taken #1 in the NFL Draft. Who was taken #2 and which team drafted him?
7. Who was drafted first overall in the NBA Draft?
8. Where did the Pistons, Lions, and Redwings rank among their Conference? Where did the Tigers rank among the American League? (Note: For each team, except the Lions, consider the season that ended in 2009)
9. What was the most searched term on Yahoo?
10. Place these events in chronological order.
a. Tiger Woods' infamous car accident
b. US Airways plane makes miraculous landing on the Hudson River
c. Kanye West interrupts Taylor Swift's acceptance speech
d. A-Rod admits to using steroids
e. Kate Gosselin from "Jon & Kate Plus 8" files for divorce
f. Olympia Snowe makes a key vote to pass health care bill from Senate Finance Committee

Up In The Air

I was inspired to see "Up In The Air" partially due to all of the Golden Globe awards it has been nominated for (Best Actor, Supporting Actress (2), Picture, and Screenplay). Plus, I don't feel like there are too many interesting movies out right now.

Overall, I feel it was a very poignant movie "given our current economic climate" (I hate that term by the way, it is very overused). George Clooney's character travels the U.S. for a company that takes care of firing people. He travels constantly (at one point, he reveals he spent 46 days "at home" last year). Without giving too much away, the overall theme of the movie is "what is really important in life". While it was kind of uncomfortable to literally see like 50 people get fired, I enjoyed it. Stacey didn't like the ending and gave it 1/2 thumbs up. I don't need a "neat and tidy" ending as much, so I gave it 3/4 thumbs up.

On the way home, I had to think how I would handle being fired. Right now, I think I have as much job security as anyone could have. Our center's business is doing very well, especially G.O.C.E.C., and I am the only experienced person working there. But if I were ever fired, I think I would cry a little, try to ask why, and then quietly leave. I don't think I would be borderline violent, yell, or try to negotiate. I think understanding the relative importance of things is critical to keeping oneself grounded. To every life shattering problem, "there's a billion Chinese who don't care" ...or something. It may take a little while, it may take a long while, but everyone eventually moves on. Not just from losing your job, but from everything. And I think that developing that perspective, being able to understand how trivial some problems really are and to move on, is the way I've grown up most in the past two years.

If Mike played college basketball

...his name would be Mark Titus. Enjoy: http://clubtrillion.blogspot.com
(Especially the video he posted).

Strangely enough, I didn't hear about him on local news or around campus. I read about him on Sports Illustrated's website.

Help

I can't believe it has almost been two years since I signed my car lease. I was looking back at my posts when I first got it and had a few laughs...

"I am actually more excited for Dontrell Willis than Miguel Cabrera." (Yes, I actually fucking said that).

In response to my criticism of the Atlanta Falcons cutting a ton of people on their roster:
"I love what the Falcons are doing! Get rid of all that garbage and let's build something new. Roddy White turned out to be the first decent receiver they've had in years, and if they get a Matt Ryan in the draft they'll have a Ryan/Turner/Norwood backfield. A young backfield, but it's something to build upon. I think they're taking the necessary steps." - Mike (frickin' genius)

My first reaction to the Sentra:
"So tonight I test drove my first car, the Nissan Sentra. The car handles very well - it has some revolutionary transmission so you can't feel it shift. I love the look of the Sentra - especially in black."

My next post:
"I am still really happy with my new car. That's all I have to say in this paragraph - I love it."

...and now I treat it like crap and it's covered in salt.

Anyway, I need to figure out what to get by March 1st. I don't want a new Sentra, I can't get a Scion tc because that is what Stacey drives. And I probably don't want to spend more than $20,000 (though I am looking to lease). I need suggestions!

Annual BCS Post

(Note: Most of this was written before the bowl season began, so at that point Florida hadn't obliterated Cincinnati. When you read this, consider the overall picture of the BCS and try not to get caught up in a specific situation.)

We all know that the BCS is monopolistic, unfair, biased, inept, etc. I am sick of sportswriters using the late November/early December timeframe to write their own variation of the same column each year. However, it is too interesting of a sports story to ignore it. I want to focus on this year's rendition and a point that I have never heard from a single sportswriter. College Football this year, as it has in recent years, has given an unfair advantage to teams in the Big 12 and the SEC.

National Championship Games By Conference
When you look back at the history of the BCS National Championship, you have to throw out 2003 because there was not an undisputed champion and the top two teams didn't play in a BCS Championship game. Besides teams in the SEC and Big 12, only 5 teams have ever played in a national championship game (Miami, Virginia Tech, OSU, USC, Florida State). Below is a breakdown by conference of the number of teams represented.

Pac 10 2
Big 10 3
Big East 3 (Miami and Virginia Tech were B.E. teams at the time)
ACC 3
SEC 5
Big 12 6

People this season have been treating the SEC like the Big 12 was last year - as a power conference with several great teams. Last year, Texas, Texas Tech, and Oklahoma were truly exciting to watch week in and week out. It is a shame that only one of them could participate in the National Championship even though they each only lost to each other. Oklahoma State, Missouri, and Nebraska were strong teams as well, so it was understandable that one spot in the National Championship game was reserved for the winner of the Big 12 even though USC and Penn State each only lost one game as well.

This year, the BCS voters and the media had the same attitude for the winner of the SEC championship game even though Cincinnati finished undefeated as well. Outside of Florida and Alabama, however, LSU has 3 losses, Mississippi has 4, and a whole bunch have 5. That is hardly the competitive level of a "power conference" that deserves an "automatic pass" to the national championship game. When you consider how the different conferences have performed this bowl season, the Mountain West Conference is 4-0, Big East is 4-1, and the Big 10 is 3-2 while the Big 12 is 3-3 and SEC is 4-4 (As of post time - 7:30pm on 1/2). Those hardly indicate the strength of the Big 12 and SEC this year.

Looking at the list of national championship competitors, you'll notice that none of the current Big East teams have ever made it there. I think this is a major reason why Cincinnati wasn't ever seriously considered for the the National Championship game this year. (Again, I agree Alabama and Texas are probably the two best teams. However, there is something wrong when Cincinnati was never really considered.)

Teams Benefit/Hurt From BCS Voting By Conference
I think it is important to look deeper into the history to consider situations where controversial BCS voting has benefitted teams in certain conferences and hurt others. To define the terms of "benefit" and "hurt", I have used the following criteria:
-A team benefits if they had the same record at the end of the regular season as another but made it into the championship game. The contrary team(s) are considered hurt by the system.
-I don't consider a team "hurt" if they lost to one of the teams in the championship game.
-The same is true if they lost to another team with same number of losses as themselves because they have less of an argument to be there.
-While I respect TCU, Utah, and Boise State, I am only considering BCS Conference teams because those are the competitive conferences and those 6 conferences are supposed to be on equal footing. I think the system should be changed to allow them to participate more, but that is a whole 'nother post.

Using that criteria, here's a look at the history of the BCS championships. The rankings used are the final regular season AP rankings.

1998 - #1 Tennessee (0 losses) over #2 Florida State (1 loss)
Other 1 loss: OSU, UCLA, Kansas State, Arizona (lost to UCLA), Wisconsin (lost to OSU),

1999 - #1 Florida State (0 losses) over #2 Virginia Tech (0 losses)

2000 - #1 Oklahoma (0 losses) over #3 Florida State (1 loss)
Other 1 loss: Miami (Beat FSU), Washington, Oregon State (lost to Washington), Virginia Tech (lost to Miami)

2001 - #1 Miami (0 losses) over #4 Nebraska (1 loss)
Other 1 loss: Oregon, Maryland, Illinois

2002 - #2 OSU (0 losses) over #1 Miami (0 losses)

2003 - #2 LSU (1 loss) over #3 Oklahoma (1 loss)
Other 1 loss: USC, Michigan
(Although, remember we are throwing out 2003 since there was a split national championship)

2004 - #1 USC (0 losses) over #2 Oklahoma (0 losses)
Other 0 loss: Auburn

2005 - #2 Texas (0 losses) over #1 USC (0 losses)

2006 - #2 Florida (1 loss) over #1 OSU (0 losses)
Other 1 loss: USC, Louisville, Wisconsin, Michigan (lost to OSU)

2007 - #2 LSU (2 losses) over #1 OSU (1 loss)
Other 1 loss: Kansas
Other 2 losses: Oklahoma, Georgia, Virginia Tech, USC, West Virginia, Arizona State (lost to USC), Missouri (lost to Oklahoma)

2008 - #1 Florida (1 loss) over #2 Oklahoma (1 loss)
Other 1 loss: USC, Penn State, Alabama (lost to Florida), (Texas, Texas Tech, and Oklahoma each lost to each other)

2009 - #1 Alabama (0 loss) meets #2 Texas (0 loss)
Other 0 loss: Cincinnati

Of the 12 years, there have been 3 without controversy among BCS conference teams. That brings the final "Benefit vs. Hurt" tally to:

Benefit:
SEC 4
Big 10 1
Pac 10 1
Big 12 4
Big East 0
ACC 2

Hurt:
SEC 2
Big 10 4
Pac 10 6
Big 12 3
Big East 4
ACC 2

The system has clearly helped the SEC and Big 12 whenever one of their teams has an equal record as a team from another conference because of a perceived superiority among voters. The Big East, Big 10, and Pac 10 have been slighted as a result. When teams play a 12 game schedule, roughly 75% of which is comprised of conference games, how can we truly compare the skill level of the BCS conferences against one another? I think it is not surprising that the Pac 10 has been hurt the most and demonstrates the East Coast bias in college football (particularly against teams not named USC). Consider another aspect of the 2009 college football season, the Heisman Trophy race.

The Heisman Race
RB A: 1736 yards, 26 TDs, 5.6 yds/carry
RB B: 1542 yards, 15 TDs, 6.2 yds/carry
RB C: 1145 yards, 11 TDs, 5.7 yds/carry

Quick - if you chose a RB to give your Heisman vote to, which one is the best based on their regular season stats??

Ok, this one was obvious. If you've been following college football closely enough this season, you can guess that A was Toby Gerhart and B was Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram. Running back C was CJ Spiller, who finished 6th in Heisman voting and received 26 first place votes despite finishing 28th in the NCAA in rushing yards and tied for 38th in rushing TDs. The Heisman race, in my opinion, has been rendered completely irrelevant since Jason White, Chris Weinke, and Eric Crouch won the award. Recently, it has been awarded to the best player on the best two teams, as evidenced by the fact that only 2 people in the past 10 years have won the award without making an appearances in the national championship game (Tim Tebow and Carson Palmer). Predictably, half of the last 14 Heisman trophy winners have come from the SEC or Big 12.

The Bowl System Defense
The bowl system has become a complete farce. College presidents and other BCS proponents argue that it is a great tradition in sports. You tell me what is really involved when the Flomax Bowl Update provides all of the scores from Capital One Bowl Week games, including the Chick-Fil-A Bowl. They have watered down the system to the point where we have mediocre teams playing games in mediocre cities (Toronto, Birmingham, St. Petersburg) sponsored by mediocre companies (I'm talking to you, Beef O'Bradys and San Diego County Credit Union). The rule used to be that teams must have a winning record to be bowl eligible. Now, you can go 6-6 (You can watch the Insight Bowl that features two of them!). Our very own Michigan State even has a losing record against Division I-A teams! Some teams don't even seem to want to go to a bowl game. Notre Dame declined any invitation because of their "unique circumstances" and rumor had it that MSU was privately campaigning for a trip to the Pizza Bowl to save on costs and increase revenue possibilities. Consider also the number of players that are ineligible for bowl games due to academic and disciplinary reasons (again, MSU boasts 8 plus the ones we kicked off the team earlier this season). Add that to the coaching carousel that occurs at the end of the season and you have many teams that appear to be shells of their regular season rosters. Of the 40 bowl games this season, I feel there are only a solid 10-15 that appear to be interesting games.

Of all of the factors that could lead to a playoff system (pressures from Congress, undefeated teams like Cincinnati being shut out, growing dissatisfaction from fans), I feel that the aspect that is most likely to lead to a playoff system is the current economic climate. After all, money is the major reason why we have so many bowl games. Companies are starting to pull back expenses everywhere and one of the first things to be cut are sponsorships. This year, Pepsi has cut all of their Super Bowl ads. Car companies, some of the most heavily invested brands in sports advertising, have been forced to drop most of their sponsorships (including the Motor City Bowl). Fans with less discretionary spending are less likely to make the trip and buy tickets to a game that is considered a disappointment for their team. The answer for athletic departments and college presidents could be a smaller number of bowls and a small playoff system. While there will always be a debate over who was left out no matter the size of a playoff, giving more teams a chance at the championship will reduce the level of controversy and will reduce the conference bias that favors the 24 teams in the SEC and Big 12. An 8 team playoff would allow the 6 BCS-Conference Champions and two additional teams an even playing level for the title without causing a serious disruption to the current system.

Coming soon....

Since we don't live in Knob Hill anymore, I think it's time to change our fantasy league name. In light of our performance in recent years, Stacey and I would like to invite you to participate in the Glatz Family Invitational Fantasy Footall League in 2010! To answer your question, no, I am not going to stop enjoying this.

Anyway, I am excited to announce that I have been working on a post about the BCS and the bowl system for about a month. This will be a completely new argument about the BCS that I have never heard before. It will be very long, full of statistics, and make you question how I spend my free time. It will be legen...

2009 - The Year of the Zoo

Although I was disappointed I didn't make the finals of our fantasy league, I was happy for Stacey and Kevin to have some success. It was exciting to see the finals come down to OT and Kevin standing a 40 yard Adrian Peterson TD away from victory. Since we live far apart, I wanted to share a little bit of Stacey's victory. But first, I want to take a look back at Mike's analysis of her team after the draft.

Zoo Tycoons
1) Are McNabb and Roethlisberger reliable enough? Both play in reasonably difficult divisions, and both have strong defenses with capable running games. The chances for 300+ yard games with 3 TDs are less with both of these guys, but they do have some decent receivers to throw to. Can they do it consistently?
Yes, they ended up being the #11 and #9 QBs this year respectively. Roethlisberger's 30 in Week 15 and McNabb's 23 in Week 16 were huge difference makers during the playoffs.

2) Will DeAngelo and MJD produce as top-5 backs? There are differing opinions on both. There are questions (time shares, workload concerns) about both, but at the very least they should be decent. If they are top-5, however, watch out…
Yes and no. MJD was the #2 fantasy back this year, but Williams was 12th and surprisingly ended up slightly worse than teammate Jonathan Stewart due to periodic injuries. MJD produced 9 double digit games, including 3 performances of 20+ points.

3) After Andre Johnson…who will step up? Antonio Bryant has been hurt and Tampa seems to be going towards a ground attack. Avery is in St. Louis with a dismal offense. Colston is in a great offense, but the ball gets spread around to everyone. Will there be enough touches for him? Can she get legit production from these guys?
Johnson finished as the #3 WR, but Marques Colston stepped up as a solid #2 with 1000+ yards and 9 TDs. Stacey's #3 WR position was definitely one of her weakest positions on the team. Also, Visanthe Shiancoe didn't get a ton of yards, but he finished with the 3rd most TDs among TEs.

Stacey didn't make a lot of moves this season, but she had a strong draft (As did Kevin with Adrian Peterson, Aaron Rodgers and Frank Gore). Her QBs held up through most of the season and MJD and Andre Johnson produced consistently. Even though she squeaked into the playoffs in week 14, I think she had a pretty solid team.

In the end, Adrian Peterson's fumble cost Minnesota the game and Kevin the championship.



I think she was equally excited to see Brett Favre lose the game and look very solemn.



And here's the 2009 Knob Hill Fantasy Champion, Zoo Tycoons! And the belt is staying in my house!! It was a fun season and I'm looking forward to next year.



I love the look on Boo's face, by the way. She's like "ooo - what's that?!"

Bowl Predictions Sure To Go Wrong

Ranked in order from games I'm most confident to least confident.

USC over BC
Ohio over Marshall
Texas Tech over Michigan State
Nevada over SMU
Pitt over UNC
Houston over Air Force
Nebraska over Arizona
Arkansas over E Carolina
Miami over Wisconsin
Clemson over Kentucky
Auburn over Northwestern
Oregon State over BYU
Fresno State over Wyoming
UCF over Rutgers
Florida over Cincinnati
Central Michigan over Troy
Middle Tennessee State over Southern Miss
Oregon over Ohio State
LSU over Penn State
Utah over Cal
Oklahoma over Stanford
Georgia over Texas A&M
Navy over Missouri
Minnesota over Iowa State
South Carolina over UConn
BGSU over Idaho
Temple over UCLA
Virginia Tech over Tennessee
Southern Florida over Northern Illinois
Oklahoma State over Ole Miss
Florida State over WVU
Iowa over Georgia Tech
TCU over Boise State
Texas over Alabama

Where Fantasy is Won and Lost

I've been working on this one for a while. Mike made a pretty good argument for the best draft moves and the worst draft moves, but I think the season is really won and lost in free agency moves. Here's a look at what I think are the best 5 moves for this season.

5. 9/14 - Add Percy Harvin, Drop Chris Henry (ipresstoocoolbuttons) and 10/20 - Add Percy Harvin, Drop Terrell Owens (Kevinvidious)
At the beginning of the season, many expected Henry to be the heir to Housh's production in Cincinnati. Grace caught on with Harvin for a few good weeks in the beginning of the season and Kevin took him over after a few week drought.
4. 10/30 - Add Vince Young, Drop Shaun Hill (Kevinvidious)
Ok, we were all wrong about VY this year. Kevin needed a solid number two QB and selected him before week 8. What has he done since? Scored double-digit fantasy points each week.
3. 10/18 - Add Miles Austin, Drop Roy Williams (Boston Massacre)
When I returned from my honeymoon, I figured that the guy who had a break out, 24 point game would be off the board. When I saw him still there, I found a reason to finally get rid of the very disappointing Roy Williams (who was one of my draft mistakes). Despite very limited playing time through the first quarter of the season, Austin has become the #4 WR overall.
2. 9/30 - Add Vernon Davis, Drop John Carlson (Boston Massacre)
After achieving 3.6 points in weeks 1 & 2 combined, Davis exploded for 16 points in Week 3. Since then, he has become the #1 TE this year.
1. 8/28 - Add Brett Favre, Drop Cedric Benson (Cumming From Behind)
It's not every year that the #3 player at the end of the year isn't drafted. Mike found a diamond in the FA rough and exploited it to 220+ points. I think this was the most important decisions anyone made all season.

On one final note, Mike applauded himself for drafting Brent Celek and called it the 10th best draft move. I agree Celek was a surpise at TE and kudos to him for picking up on that. However, Mike dropped him before the season began (9/1). After Celek put up 7.85, 5.20, and 11.20 in weeks 1-3, Mike picked him back up on 9/30. He had Celek for week's 5 (2.90) and 6 (3.75) before dropping him on 10/19. Celek only had .4 in week 7, but put up 9.05 and 7.95 in weeks 8 & 9. Mike began Celek's 3rd reign on his team on 11/12 and Celek scored 8.35 in week 10 (while on the bench). Weeks 11 (1.75) and 12 (1.65) forced Mike to drop him on 12/1. The next week, Week 13, Celek scored 6.8 points. Therefore, Celek's average while in 7 games of FA is 6.9 while his average for the 5 games Mike had him was 3.68 (in which he scored above 4 points only once). What I am getting at is this: smart move in drafting him, but you didn't stick with him through the bad times (which I assume is because you have the top TE for the past few years on your roster as well).

Glimpse into the Past

Just for perspective, a sampling of news bits from when Charlie Weis was hired as Notre Dame's head coach.

"A widely-respected disciple of professional coaching standouts Bill Parcells and Bill Belichick, Weis currently is the highly-regarded offensive coordinator of the New England Patriots (under Patriot head coach Belichick). He has played an integral role in New England's victories in two of the last three Super Bowls - and the Patriots currently own the best record in the NFL in 2004 at 12-1."

"Weis has been a winner everywhere he has coached - and he has received widespread notice as one of the most creative and innovative offensive coordinators in football."

"All along the way, Weis has displayed the ability to develop successful offensive players."

"Current New England Patriot wide receiver David Givens (he played for Notre Dame in 1998-2001) on Charlie Weis: "He's been a teacher and coach of high school kids and he's got so much experience coaching NFL players like myself. There's no doubt in my mind he would be an outstanding recruiter because he relates so well to young people. I can say this because I've played for Charlie and I played at Notre Dame. I understand the pressures of playing and the pressures the coaches had coaching us at Notre Dame. They're all things Charlie would do very well with."

"Former Notre Dame All-America quarterback and current ESPN analyst Joe Theismann on Charlie Weis: "I think Charlie Weis in the right man for the right job at the University of Notre Dame. He understands throwing the football. That's what this era of college football is today - the ability to put it in the air. He's been a student at Notre Dame so he knows the culture of the University. He's worked on a big stage, having been part of World Championships two of the last three years with the Patriots. He's very inventive - his offenses have included defensive ends at fullback and linebackers at tight end. He's inventive as well as creative. He's a man who will bring a quiet discipline to the program. I think it's a great hire."

http://www.und.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/121204aae.html

I have nothing against Charlie Weis. I am not pretending I thought he was going to fail. He was the hottest head coach prospect for college OR the NFL in 2004 and it was a clear choice for Notre Dame to make. I bring this up because I think it is ridiculous that anyone is blaming him completely for their recent disappointments. Their program is broken because they've lost the prestige of playing for the Irish. High school players aren't impressed by Knute Rockne, Touchdown Jesus, or the Golden Dome. Brian Kelly has done well in three seasons at Cincinnati. But don't forget his success came with players that Mark Dantonio recruited.

Glimpse into the Future

Irish No Longer Kelly Green December 11, 2013
After four tumultuous seasons, Notre Dame is once again looking for a new head football coach. Weeks of speculation of his ouster was confirmed when Brian Kelly was fired early Wednesday morning with one year remaining on his contract. The decision was made after Notre Dame's disappointing 7-5 season.

Kelly came to Notre Dame after leading Cincinnati to an undefeated 12-0 season in 2009. He was characterized by his skilled offenses and his ability to develop quarterback talent. He failed to bring turn the Fighting Irish into an offensive machine, however. Notre Dame ranked 64th this season in total offense.

In his four seasons as head coach of the Irish, Brian Kelly amassed an overall record of 26-23. His best season came in 2011 when he lead Notre Dame to a 9-4 record. He failed to carry this momentum into the 2012 season when Notre Dame finished with a disappointing 6-6 record. Notre Dame officials expect to begin interviewing candidates immediately.

Huh?

Can someone who watched the game explain this?

Bench:
Raymar Morgan, F 9min 0-4FG 0-4FT 1OREB 1REB 1AST 1STL 0BLK 1TO 2PF 0PTS
Delvon Roe, F 13min 0-2FG 5PF 0PTS

In Draymond Green and Derrick Nix I trust.

Nix: 15MIN 14REB 11PTS
(You're right, though, Mike - he needs to improve FT (1-5)

In other news...
"Curtis Granderson remains the talk of the town -- actually, the talk of the majors.
Newsday's Ken Davidoff reported Friday that the Angels are the latest team said to be in communications with Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski about a potential deal for the centerfielder. The Yankees, who have outfield openings with Hideki Matsui and Johnny Damon as free agents, quickly leapt to the top of the list coming out of the GM meetings this week. But Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune reported Friday "there's no question the Cubs have interest in the homegrown Granderson" who is from Chicago. Rogers said, however, it was unclear what kind of talks the Cubs have had with Dombrowski, who would not confirm reports about any specific players." - freep.com

What the heck is this??? Why are they going to get rid of Granderson? Apparently, young, homegrown talent isn't important anymore. Did Illitch decide he wants to stop investing in the Tigers? Ooo - maybe we can get an aging, slow, overpriced LF Johnny Damon in FA instead!! I don't care who the Tigers get rid of except for Granderson. Just like Tayshaun with the Pistons - feel free to clean house, but don't touch his room.

The Blind Side

This is the movie based on the book I was telling you guys about - "The Blind Side".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYC1ulLHD6Y

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khtBvQdxta4

I like the concept and Sandra Bullock's character, but I'm worried that it is a large dramatization of his life. I know Michael Oher said there were some things that were exaggerated in the book, so a second-hand rendition is going to be even further from the truth. (For example, I don't remember a part where she goes "down to the hood" and threatens some guy). Still, I know I'm going to see it soon after it comes out. My favorite part of the movie is going to be seeing Nick Saban in LSU gear - he'll do anything for money.

Quick thoughts

-I was probably a little too quick to label "typical Spartans". Afterall, with a new quarterback and running back, expectations to maintain the performance of last year's team may have been too high. For the most part, we are a young team. I feel that I was dead on in declaring that the 3 game set against Wisconsin, Michigan, and Illinois would set the tone for the rest of the season. Cousins emerged as the starting (and finishing) QB and they won two of the three. I think the Michigan game really gave them the confidence that they needed for the rest of the season.

Here are my very unorganized thoughts on the Minnesota game:
-They were completely screwed by a horrible officiating crew. They issued the most penalities against Minnesota in a Big 10 game since 1957. Then, they awarded them the game by overturning a called completed catch and fumble by Minnesota with 6 minutes left to an incomplete pass. The game was 35-31 at that point and we would have had the ball in Minnesota's territory. Do the poor calls on both sides of the ball negate each other and create a "fair game"? Hell no. I think Chris L Rucker is getting a reputation as a dirty player because for the second week in a row he laid a receiver out by leading with his head. The biggest disappointment that I am seeing from the team in general is taking costly penalties that keep drives alive. The defense stopped them with less than 3 minutes to go to give us one last chance to win the game. Then the highly avoidable roughing the kicker penalty on the punt ended the game. We need more Keshawn Martin.

-After reading Mike's fantastic MSU basketball preview post, I am pretty worried about our schedule this season. It could act to challenge us so we're "battle ready" for the tournament. Or it could expose all of our weaknesses and pound them down. Florida, UNC, Gonzaga, Texas?? Who does that?