Breaking Down Big Ten Basketball Feb. 15, 2010 1:08 pm
It is crazy to believe that we are a month away from selection Sunday?YES! 27-days from know sports geeks all over the country will print out 37-bracket sheets and try to come up with the formula to turn $5 into $100. Before that though, the conference titles have to be decided; if anyone cares of course. The Big Ten is shaping up to be a great race with five teams within a game at the top. Here is a look at the top 5 and who is left.
Michigan State (10-3) @ Indiana (3-9)
Ohio State (10-3)
@ Purdue (9-3)
Penn State (0-12)
Michigan (5-7)
Opponents Record: 27-34 Ohio State (10-3) Purdue (9-3)
@ Michigan State (10-3)
@ Penn State (0-12) Michigan (5-7)
@ Illinois (9-4)
Opponents Record: 33-29
Purdue (9-3) @ Ohio State (10-3)
Illinois (9-4)
@ Minnesota (5-7)
Michigan State (10-3)
Indiana (3-9)
@ Penn State (0-12)
Opponents Record: 37-38
- Hardest schedule goes to Illinois: 3-match ups in the top 5 with a trip to Michigan also on the docket
- Next Hardest is Ohio State: 3 of top 5 in Big Ten left, Penn State gives them one softy
- Next is Purdue: Get two of the top 5 in Big Ten at home and still have Penn State
- Michigan State second easiest: Penn State skews strength but only 2 of the top teams left
- Wisconsin is easiest: Trip to Illinois the only game they won?t be favored. 4-sub .500 teams.
My prediction: Purdue wins it based on how they are playing. 14-4 will be their record.
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What is $1.55 Million Worth? Feb. 12, 2010 9:52 am
I woke up this morning and poured my Golden Grahams as I started my jaunt of sports sites to see what is the good word. When I strolled up on the Milwaukee Brewers Blog for JSOnline (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel), I was shocked to see that Brewer OF Corey Hart won his arbitration hearing this morning. After making $3.25 Million in 2009, the Milwaukee Brewers wanted to give Hart an increase of $900K but Hart was asking for a $1.55 Million increase. Baffling.
So what is $1.55 Million actually worth?
In 2008, Hart was an All-Star while clubbing 20 homers, stealing 20 bases, and driving in 91 runs. His 2009 numbers?well, lets start by saying he was injured so he played in fewer games. So let?s take a look at his performance in terms of statistic/at-bat; that should make it fair.
Games Played
2008: 157
2009: 115
AT-Bats
2008: 612
2009: 472
Average
2008: .268
2009: .260
Doubles per At-Bat
2008: 1 every 14.6
2009: 1 every 17.5
Homers per At-Bat
2008: 1 every 30.6
2009: 1 every 39.3
Strike-Outs per At-Bat
2008: 1 every 6
2009: 1 every 5.1
Wow?His on-base percentage did go up from .300 in 2008 to .335 in 2009 but his slugging and OPS both went down in 2009. And if your thinking the Brewers were a better team in 2008 than 2009 and that is why the numbers are skewed?The Brewers batted .253 with a .325 on-base percentage in 2008. In 2009, the numbers soared to .263 from the plate with a .341 OBP. I understand that there are more factors than this that go into the process, but this is pretty clear cut.
So let it be known. Less productivity = More Money. Thanks arbitration for setting that standard!
Let me add if you are getting a divorce, you might want to hire Corey Hart's agent!
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NFC 10/1 - New Orleans Saints
12/1 - Dallas Cowboys
12/1 - Green Bay Packers 12/1 - Minnesota Vikings
16/1 - Philadelphia Eagles
20/1 - New York Giants
30/1 - Atlanta Falcons
35/1 - Arizona Cardinals
35/1 - Chicago Bears
40/1 - Carolina Panthers
45/1 - Seattle Seahawks
45/1 - San Francisco 49ers
50/1 - Washington Redskins
100/1 - Detroit Lions
100/1 - St. Louis Rams
100/1 - Tampa Bay Buccaneers
AFC 13/2 - Indianapolis Colts
8/1 - San Diego Chargers
10/1 - New England Patriots
11/1 - Pittsburgh Steelers
20/1 - Baltimore Ravens
25/1 - New York Jets
25/1 - Tennessee Titans
30/1 - Cincinnati Bengals
35/1 - Houston Texans
45/1 - Miami Dolphins
50/1 - Denver Broncos
50/1 - Jacksonville Jaguars
100/1 - Buffalo Bills
100/1 - Cleveland Browns
100/1 - Kansas City Chiefs
100/1 - Oakland Raiders
HAPPY BETTING!!!!
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Watch the Super Bowl with Barry Sanders? Feb. 4, 2010 1:04 pm
I wish I would have seen this sooner but one of the best running backs in NFL history was offering a chance to watch this Sunday's big game with him. After 76-bids, Barry Sanders will be spending Super Bowl Sunday with someone who paid $17,000 to have him there. Talk about knowing you are wanted.
I love the questions asked in the auction for the contest...including my favorite:
Q: Do I need to own a TV? A: Yes. You are solely responsible for providing viewing capabilities of the respective highlighted game (which may require direct TV, satellite, etc?)
The money raised is going to a worthy cause: The V Foundation for Cancer Research
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This is pretty fun. Favre has had a great sense of humor through his entire ordeal. Come Super Bowl Sunday, this will be the latest installment in the "poking fun at myself" tour Favre is on.
JaMarcus Russell is the poster child for set rookie salaries in the NFL. Here is a guy that got a HUGE payday from the Oakland Raiders (could have been Brian Brohm if he did not go back to Louisville) and has been a disappointment since day number one. Does someone so terrible deserve to sport that much bling?
If only he spent as much time in the film room as he does in the jewelry store...EPIC LINE!
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Rex Ryan: Breath of Fresh Air or Moron? Feb. 1, 2010 12:38 pm
New York Jets Head Coach Rex Ryan made a huge impact in his first season as a lead man in the NFL. His Jets made it into the playoffs in his first season while boasting the league's top defense. The work on the field has definitely spoken for itself as the Jets topped Cincinnati and San Diego in the playoffs before bowing out in the AFC Championship to the Indianapolis Colts.
On top of the on field success, the mouth of Rex Ryan has come to the forefront. His brash words and arrogance have been a breath of fresh air to some but to others...he is starting to look like a moron. Packer fans are well aware of his exploits due to his comments about Charles Woodson winning the NFL Defensive MVP instead of Jets CB Darrelle Revis. Ryan didn't stop there. Over the weekend while enjoying some MMA, he ran into a Miami Dolphin fan who he greeted with one-fingered hand gesture.
His brutal honesty is something to marvel. In a day where coach speak is so repetitive and mundane, someone that speaks his mind is nice to hear. But Rex Ryan has gone beyond that line on more than one occasion. At his current rate, he will be right up there in sports lore with Mike Tyson, Dennis Rodman, John Rocker and the other great characters of sports world.
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Defense Makes Championship Games Jan. 24, 2010 8:53 am
Why is everyone talking only about the offenses today? Outside of the New York Jets, no one has given even a whisper to the defensive side of the football this week. That's a very dangerous non-thought this time of year when predictions are being made with lots of money thrown around. I am going to tell you who wins today...not because of their QBs who WILL get ALL (disgustingly I will add) the love, but because of their defenses that are living in the shadow...like Ashlee Simpson behind Jessica Simpson; Ashlee is way better, but everyone LOVES Jessica.
AFC Championship Game So because I am picking defenses obviously you're thinking I am going with the Jets here. Well, you're wrong. Nobody is talking about the Colts defense. No one is talking about the team that when playing their starters on defense the entire game went 14-0. Will someone please remember the Colts were 8th in the NFL in points allowed? Last week they held the Ravens to just 3-points in their Divisional Playoff victory. Down the stretch when everything was locked up, the Colts gave up 31, 29, and 30 points...go back to when it mattered though the first half of the season; they gave up 20 or more points just twice in the first 8-games...in fact before they clinched the division, the Texans, Patriots and Dolphins were the only teams to pop more than 20 on this defense.
Peyton Manning is going to get his, we know that. By name alone, he is good for a couple of scores. Can the Jets offense muster up enough points on this Colts defense? That's a no in my book. Mark Sanchez has handled the full-court pressure of being a rookie in the playoffs so far, but will it continue? The Colts will be stacking the box to answer that question for themselves. Dallas Clark goes off for the Colts as does Dwight Freeney...and like the Colts by 11 to make it back to the Super Bowl.
Colts over the Jets 24-13
NFC Championship Did you hear Brett Favre had as many TD tosses last week as the number he wears on his jersey? Did the Vikings run up the score? Has Brett Favre finally proven the Packers wrong? The answer to all those questions is WHO CARES! With the Vikings drubbing of the Cowboys last week 34-3 all anyone wants to focus on is the 34 which has allowed the 3 to go virtually unnoticed this weeks. In their 4-losses this season, the Vikings have given up just under 30-points per game...in their last 6-wins (including last week) the defense has allowed a mere 8.2-points per game.
When the defense has shown up, so have the Vikings. It reminds me so much of 1996 when a stellar season from Brett Favre hid the body of work of the NFL's #1 defense that season. Favre has had his best year in the NFL this year (so much that I wonder if that really is Favre in that jersey) and gets all the praise as a QB does in this league. But when the Vikings win today it will be about the defense. The Saints have averaged about 32-points a game on offense this season. Defensively, not so good; they gave up just over 21-points good for 20th in the league. Drew Brees and this offense is going to score but can the New Orleans defense stop the Vikings? Not like the Vikings defense can stop the saints. I am thinking shootout, but 2-more stops by the Vikings defense makes the difference in this track meet.
Vikings over Saints 34-24
When everyone is raving about the Peyton Manning-Brett Favre Super Bowl this year, remember the defenses that paved the way for the glory for these quarterbacks.
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Over the past few years I have noticed an increase in the resentment towards officials in sports. I am not just focusing on the pro level either, I have noticed this at all levels; college, high school and even younger. Why is it? Has the body of work of the officials become that much worse? Have players, coaches, and media indisposition opened the eyes to everyone creating this avenue of hatred? Both splendid possibilities though I will go in a different direction?technology.
The way we watch games and cover our sports teams has changed drastically in the last 20-years. The multiple camera angles give us extra eyes so we can see things over and over again so nothing is missed. Computer trackers can tell you whether a pitch is a ball or a strike and has even been instituted in tennis to make the right call on the line when human eyes fail. We see things live in ways that sports fans past could only dream of. The problem is now we have blogs and message boards to continue the displeasure and keep it festering for long periods of time. We hear an idea we like and run with it.
This annoyance at the pro level has trickled down to every level of action including the high school and pre-teen world. Parents will sit in the crowd and lambaste the game officials because of a missed call; or maybe more accurately a call that does not go the way of their child or team. Perfection is expected and anything less is unacceptable. In the past, perfection was unknown but technology has created this ideal that everyone that dons a referee or umpire uniform now must live by.
Officiating is not going to get better because it?s done by humans and perfection, or a perception of, is now impossible. As the ?sports pop-culture? continues to embrace a poor representation of officials, the more we will continue to take the easy road and blame them. Don?t get me wrong, I love technology as much as the next ?Generation X? member and have seen some obvious bad calls over the years, but lets be realistic here and stop blaming the popular scapegoat every time we don?t get our way.
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