Big Ten recruiting roundup

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

Ohio State will learn Tuesday whether it will earn the services of standout prep quarterback Tajh Boyd. Defensive end Craig Drummond has, in fact, picked Mississippi after originally committing to Illinois. Iowa had a big weekend recruiting haul, while other Big Ten schools are racking up commits. 

Here's the latest from ESPN Scouts Inc.'s national recruiting director Tom Luginbill. 

ESPNU 150 Craig Drummond picks Rebels over Illini

Craig Drummond, DE

Chicago, IL

Morgan Park H.S.

Scouts Grade: 81

ESPN150 Rank: 99

Position Rank: 7

Defensive end Craig Drummond of Morgan Park (Chicago, Ill.), rated No. 7 nationally among defensive ends and No. 99 prospect overall in the Class of 2009, has chosen Mississippi.

The 6-foot-5, 260-pound Drummond had originally picked Illinois over Wisconsin, but was wavering on his choice.

Among others, Drummond was also offered by Miami-Florida, Tennessee, Ohio State, Southern California, Florida, Michigan State and Minnesota.

Drummond, who was an all-state and all-area selection as a junior after recording 22 sacks, did not play his senior season because of a foot injury.

---

ESPNU 150 Tajh Boyd to choose on Tuesday

Tajh Boyd, QB

Hampton, VA

Phoebus H.S.

Scouts Grade: 82

ESPN150 Rank: 59

Position Rank: 5

Tajh Boyd of Phoebus (Hampton, Va.), rated No. 5 among quarterbacks and No. 59 prospect overall in Class 2009, plans to make a final decision among Clemson, Oregon and Ohio State on Tuesday afternoon (Jan. 27).

Among many others, Boyd was also being recruited by Florida State, Boston College, Virginia and Penn State.

Boyd had first committed to West Virginia, but had second thoughts following the Mountaineers' offensive struggles early in the season. He then chose Tennessee, but decommitted following a conversation with newly hired coach Lane Kiffin who warned him that he might not be happy with the Vols' pro-style system.

As a junior, Boyd passed for 2,059 yards and 25 touchdowns, and also rushed for 500 yards and seven scores. He tore his ACL in the third game of his senior season and is set to have surgery next month.

Read more

Robinson Leads Bulls Past Miami 76-64

Andy Robinson led the way with 16 points and Buffalo made a big first-half lead stand in a 76-64 victory over Miami (Ohio) on Saturday.
Story By College Sports for NBC4i.com

Buffalo Beats Ohio 70-66

Calvin Betts scored 20 points and grabbed five rebounds as Buffalo snapped Ohios five-game winning streak with a 70-66 in Mid-American Conference play Saturday.
Story By College Sports for NBC4i.com

Attendance down, but several bowls setting records

Not that this is going to surprise anyone who has been watching the bowl games this year, but bowl game attendance is way down.

According to the Houston Chronicle, 18 bowls have suffered lowered attendance this season. Seven bowls didn’t even cross the 35,000 mark.

But the trend is not completely negative.

The Chron says attendance was up for this year’s Cotton Bowl by 15,000, bolstered by a compelling matchup and loyal fanbases within easy driving distance of Dallas and additional seating that was installed. The crowd of 88,175 is second only to the Rose Bowl (93,923) this year.

Ticket sales for the Hawaii Bowl were up nearly 43% thanks to Notre Dame.

The International Bowl (UConn-Buffalo), Emerald Bowl (Cal-Miami), New Orleans Bowl (Troy-Southern Miss) and the Champs Sports Bowl (FSU-Wisconsin) all set new attendance records, thanks in large part to teams making appearances for the first time in years and favorable drive-time proximities.

Just as the bowl organizers have always said… it’s all about the matchup.

© www.fanblogs.com

Comment on Attendance down, but several bowls setting records…

Story By Ohio State Football – Fanblogs.com

10 Top 10s For College Football: The Week Before the Bowls

Top 10 Teams

1) Utah-Still haven’t lost, does the Tide hand them one?

2) Boise- No BCS but personally I think their opponent, TCU, would beat Ohio State as well.

3) Texas-Third in the BCS, second in the Heisman voting, first in the Fiesta?

4) Oklahoma-Congrats Sam Bradford.

5) Penn State-Getting no respect.

6) USC-Based purely on their loss.

7) Texas Tech-Snubbed in the BCS and the Heisman race, will have something to prove on the second.

Florida-The only one loss team to lose at home.

9) Alabama-It may get ugly against the Utes.

10) Cincinnati-Underrated as they played the bulk of the season with their fourth string QB.

Top 10 Players of 2008

1) Tim Tebow-Got the most first place votes for the Heisman and gets mine as well.

2) Terrance Cody-The difference maker in Tuscaloosa.

3) Colt McCoy-There were times I thought he would never have another incomplete pass.

4) Rey Malalgua-Unbelievable talent.

5) Sam Bradford-The Heisman winner.

6) Janoris Jenkins-If you saw the Gators play this year you heard his name more than Tebow.

7) Shonn Greene- Single handily resurrected a program and saved a coaches job.

Ian Johnson-A lifetime achievement award.

9) Aaron Curry-One of the best in the country.

10) Knowshawn Moreno-Is there anything he doesn’t do well?

Top 10 Big Games of 2008

1) USC 35, Ohio State 3-Most people thought the title game was going to happen in September this year.

2) Alabama 41, Georgia 30-It was over by the end of the first quarter.

3) Texas 45, Oklahoma 35-Not sure what this really meant.

4) Oklahoma State 28, Missouri 23-Missouri was ranked No. 3 at the time.

5) TCU 32, BYU 7- It wasn’t as close as the score.

6) Penn State 13, Ohio State 6-How the Big Ten was won.

7) Texas Tech 39, Texas 33-Also one of the most exciting games of the year.

Oklahoma 65, Texas Tech 21- The style points put the Sooners in the title game.

9) Oregon 65, Oregon State 38-103 points later the Trojans were in the Rose Bowl.

10) Florida 31, Alabama 20-Last but not least.

10 Upsets That Shaped The 2008 Season

1) Alabama 34, Clemson 10-Clemson was a five point favorite, what a joke.

2) Oregon State 27, USC 21-The Trojans were 23 point favorites.

3) Alabama 41, Georgia 30- The Tide were getting seven in this one.

4) Mississippi 31, Florida 30-Ole Miss was 2-4 against teams with a winning record this year, this was one of the two; they were 25 point dogs in The Swamp as well.

5) Texas 45, Oklahoma 35-Sooners were favored by seven.

6) Texas Tech 39, Texas 33-Knocked the Horns from the title game.

7) Iowa 24, Penn State 23-One point separates the Lions from the title game; they were favored by eight.

Georgia Tech 45, Georgia 42-Made even the most die hard SEC fan think twice about the strength of the conference.

9) Buffalo 42, Ball State 21-We didn’t have to worry about Ball State and the BCS as the 15 point favorites went down hard.

10) East Carolina 27, Virginia Tech 22- How soon we forget.

Top 10 Things I Hope We Don’t See In 2009

1) Stoppage after every play-Every fumble, reception, Interception, etc is a tive minute stoppage, and people wonder why the game takes too long?

2) OJ Simpson-This guy’s act is so stale, let’s just leave him in his jail cell for a while.

3) The BCS- Wishful thinking.

4) Brent Musburger-Talk about stale acts.

5) Bad Rule Changes-The clock rules were a joke, see No. 1.

6) 6-6 teams going to bowl games-This is a huge part of the problem and why there is no playoff.

7) 1-AA teams on the schedule-These games shouldn’t count as one of the 12 games; we’re going to see a lot more of these as less teams from major conferences qualify for bowls.

Bad Officiating-Maybe it’s time to hold these guys accountable for changing outcomes through horrible calls.

9) Inconsistency-Watch five games at once, a penalty in one game is a no call in others, especially regarding celebrations and sideline infractions.

10) Media Spin-Take away these guys vote and poll while we’re at it too, they are clueless and obviously only support whomever their employer has an interest in.

Top 10 Things That Defined The 2008 Season

1) The Spread Offense-Will be the answer to a trivia question someday.

2) The Horse Collar- Making it illegal made it a mainstream word.

3) The Big 12- Had the game of the year almost every week.

4) Tim Tebow’s Speech-Was good to his word after the loss to Ole Miss.

5) BCS Controversy-Part of every season it seems.

6) Tommy Bowden-The fraud finally held accountable, no wonder they started winning once he was gone.

7) Weeknight Games-Not just one here and there, multiple games almost every night.

Impact Freshman-They are playing right away everywhere, leaving even faster.

9) Weather Postponed Games-Seems to be happening more and more.

10) ESPN-I don’t watch their pregame or postgame stuff but from what I’ve learned what they say seems to be more important than what happens on the field.

Top 10 Impact Freshmen of 2008

1) Julio Jones-All he was billed to be and then some.

2) Sean Spence-Hits like a Mack Truck.

3) AJ Green-Even made Matt Stafford look good from time to time.

4) Janoris Jenkins-May have been what was missing for the Gators.

5) Robert Griffin-Mr. Excitement.

6) Terrelle Pryor-Will he bring the Buckeyes a title?

7) Jacquizz Rodgers-Would anyone complain if I put him No. 1?

Kellen Moore-Didn’t look like a freshman.

9) DeAndre Brown-If he’s at a bigger school more people know who he is.

10) Marcus Forston-Going to be a force.

Top 10 Ways I Plan On Fighting College Football Withdrawal

1) Working on my book-I don’t think this will make me rich but that isn’t the point of it.

2) Expanding my site into a network of Sports Sites-Exciting stuff already in the works; NFL, MLB, CBB, NBA, NHL, etc., going to have it all.

3) Interviewing Writers-Going to need a lot of fresh content, can’t do it myself.

4) Working with my Tech Guy-I don’t know anything about this stuff but I’ve seen the mock ups for the new sites and get ready for some jaw dropping stuff.

5) Integrating more with my Blogging community-Things have happened so fast I’ve put off a lot of requests.

6) Take a vacation-I’ve been going full speed for months on end.

7) Get back in good shape-I’ve spent a lot of time sitting and eating the past few months, time to work it off.

Learn how to text message-Been on my list for years, not really that interested.

9) Clear off the TIVO-No idea how long that stuff will stay but I haven’t watched most of it.

10) Relax-Something I probably don’t do enough.

10 Things I Learned When I Converted My Newsletter To A Blog

1) Spammers are everywhere-I get a spam comment every six minutes on average; very thankful for spam blocking software.

2) College Football fans are everywhere-I read every email and comment, sometimes over 500 a week; thanks for all of them (at least  most of them).

3) Having a community is a great thing- I enjoy having hundreds of thousands of people to talk college football with.

4) There are some mean people out there-Some ignorant and spineless ones as well.

5) There are websites built on stolen content-And they don’t credit the author or the source either.

6) There are a lot of people who know a lot about college football-Pretty amazing how regional coverage really works.

7) Traffic is the most important thing-You can be a great writer or picker or whatever but if no one reads it what’s the point.

Most people prefer facts and analysis-While my 10 top 10’s is my most popular Bleacher Report series, it is far and away the least popular series as far as traffic at The College Football Place.

9) If you build it and provide quality, they will come-I went from a standing start to over 350,000 monthly visitors in five months, I thank everyone for being part of it all.

10) Short is sweet-I know my videos are too long, at least my paragraphs aren’t what they used to be; the Internet reader is a different breed.

10 Odd Things In College Football

1) Firing Tommy Tubberville-It’s been a week and I still don’t get it.

2) Hiring Gene Chizik-Not sure if he’s Head Coach material, his Iowa State team didn’t look to be going in the right direction.

3) Contract extensions for Head Coaches-It seems these guys get one right before a horrible season.

4) People who pick games without point spreads-There’s a reason there are so many college football games that have double digit point spreads, this isn’t the NFL where anyone can really beat anyone.

5) The vote of confidence-Is it really the kiss of death?

6) What is a reviewable play-The worst calls aren’t reviewable because no one could have dreamed up they would have happened.

7) No Coach accountability for players who get in trouble-Don’t they promise parents to take care of their kids?

A win against a 1-AA team counts as much as beating a ranked team-When did this happen? Teams were always penalized for these games.

9) Some conferences have championships and others don’t-Is this record padding?

10) There is less talk of a playoff than ever-Everyone seems to be afraid of upsetting someone.

Visit Mitch anytime at The College Football Place

Go to Source

College Postseason: The Miseducation Of Lisa Horne

Lisa Horne wrote an article expressing that the dominant conferences were weaker than the Big XII Conference. Then people wanted to know what she was basing this off of. Was it because they didn’t have enough BCS NC possible teams in the show? Was it in regards to the Heisman? Or is it because there wasn’t as much controversy in those conferences as there is in the Big XII Conference?

After watching her try to defend her defense of the Big XII Conference, I wanted to let the B/R Nation decide. But I did some quick research on this season’s bowl games and found something interesting.

ACC: 10 Postseason Representatives

• Wake Forest (Eagle Bank Bowl vs. Navy)
• North Carolina (Meineke Car Care Bowl vs. West Virginia)
• Florida State (Champs Sports Bowl vs. Wisconsin)
• Miami (Emerald Bowl vs. Cal)
• NC State (PapaJohns.com Bowl vs. Rutgers)
• Maryland (Roady’s Humanitarian Bowl vs. Nevada)
• Boston College (Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl vs. Vanderbilt)
• Georgia Tech (Chick-Fil-A Bowl vs. LSU)
• Clemson (Konica Minolta Gator Bowl vs. Nebraska)
• Virginia Tech (Orange Bowl vs. Cincinnati)

SEC: 8 Postseason Representatives

• Vanderbilt (Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl vs. Boston College)
• LSU (Chick-Fil-A Bowl vs. Georgia Tech)
• South Carolina (Outback Bowl vs. Iowa)
• Georgia (Capital One Bowl vs. Michigan State)
• Ole Miss (AT&T Cotton Bowl vs. Texas Tech)
• Kentucky (AutoZone Liberty Bowl vs. East Carolina)
• Alabama (Sugar Bowl vs. Utah)
• Florida (BCS National Championship vs. Oklahoma)

Big XII: 7 Postseason Representatives

• Missouri (Valero Alamo vs. Northwestern)
• Oklahoma State (Pacific Life Holiday Bowl vs. Oregon)
• Kansas (Insight Bowl vs. Minnesota)
• Nebraska (Konica Minolta Gator Bowl vs. Clemson)
• Texas Tech (AT&T Cotton Bowl vs. Ole Miss)
• Texas (Fiesta Bowl vs. Ohio State)
• Oklahoma (BCS National Championship vs. Florida)

Big Ten: 7 Postseason Representatives

• Wisconsin (Champs Sports Bowl vs. Florida State)
• Northwestern (Valero Alamo Bowl vs. Missouri)
• Minnesota (Insight Bowl vs. Kansas)
• Iowa (Outback Bowl vs. South Carolina)
• Michigan State (Capitol One Bowl vs. Georgia)
• Penn State (Rose Bowl vs. USC)
• Ohio State (Fiesta Bowl vs. Texas)

Big East: 6 Postseason Representatives

• South Florida (St. Petersburg Bowl vs. Memphis)
• West Virginia (Meineke Car Care Bowl vs. North Carolina)
• Rutgers (PapaJohns.com Bowl vs. N.C. State)
• Pitt (Brut Sun Bowl vs. Oregon State)
• UConn (International Bowl vs. Buffalo)
• Cincinnati (Orange Bowl vs. Virginia Tech)

Pac 10: 5 Postseason Representatives

• Arizona (Pioneer Las Vegas Bowl vs. BYU)
• Cal (Emerald Bowl vs. Miami (FL))
• Oregon (Pacific Life Holiday Bowl vs. Oklahoma State)
• Oregon State (Brut Sun Bowl vs. Pitt)
• USC (Rose Bowl vs. Penn State)

And this is just the main conferences. How do you think the smaller conferences did this seaason?

Mountain West: 5 Postseason Representatives

• Colorado State (New Mexico Bowl vs. Fresno State)
• BYU (Pioneer Las Vegas Bowl vs. Arizona)
• TCU (SDCCU Poinsettia Bowl vs. Boise State)
• Air Force (Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl vs. Houston) 
• Utah (Sugar Bowl vs. Alabama)

WAC: 5 Postseason Representatives 

• Fresno State (New Mexico Bowl vs. Colorado State) 
• Hawaii (Sheraton Hawaii Bowl vs. Notre Dame)
• Louisiana Tech (Independence Bowl vs. Northern Illinois)
• Nevada (Roady’s Humanitarian Bowl vs. Maryland)
• Boise State (SDCCU Poinsettia Bowl vs. TCU)

So when you do the simple mathematics of who is in the bowl games, the Big XII is not as dominating as Lisa wants them to be. She gave so much credit to Colt McCoy, Sam Bradford and Graham Harrell (who royally got the shaft in the Heisman) but none to Mack Brown, Mike Leach or Bob Stoops. It’s always good to be the quarterback, but you can’t be a great QB without a great coach to teach you the fundamental basics.

But it was a team effort that got a majority of these teams into their respective bowl games. But to just single out one player or position as the reason of their success is downright dumb. In regards to the SEC being dominant, I’m surprised no one threw former Tennessee Quarterback Peyton Manning’s name in the mix if you’re going to do name dropping.

Regardless, the Big XII is in as much trouble this bowl season as everyone else. And even though no one has flat out said that Oklahoma will slaughter Florida or vice versa, you have to know that someone wants to start the fireworks.

It’s good that you know stats and everything, Lisa, but the facts do not support your main argument. You called the SEC weak this season, but really didn’t give a reason to their weakness. You just went on about how great the quarterbacks of the Big XII look in their uniforms. But the numbers aren’t the only thing that people look at. They look at who has proven themselves to be a leader.

In all honesty, all four quarterbacks involved in the Heisman Chase have proven themselves to be leaders. But after tonight, only one will hold up the Heisman…and Tebow would much rather have a National Championship. And we all know about the Heisman Curse.

So here’s a better poll question: Who has been the stronger conference and who has been the weaker conference this year?

Go to Source

Do You Have What It Takes To Be The Champion? B/R Bowl Games Pick’em Contest

Think you have what it takes to pick ALL the winners from all 34 bowl games this season?

Here’s your chance to compete with anyone and everyone on Bleacher Report!

 

The rules are as follows:

1. One set of picks per person

2. ALL bowl games must be picked and submitted (posted in the comments section below) no later than 10:59AM, December 20th prior to kickoff of the EagleBank Bowl

3a. In the event of a tie in the standings, I will use your predictions on total combined points in the 5 BCS Bowls.

3b. When you submit your picks, you will want to post the total points you think will be scored per game…for example, if you think USC is going to beat Penn State 45-10, you would put Rose Bowl – 55 points

(If you have questions, post a note on my page.)

4. The games are broken down into five levels with each level worth from one to five points.

 

Here are the games and point values per game.

1-point games:

Independence Bowl, Louisiana Tech (7-5) vs. Northern Illinois (6-6), Dec. 28

Motor City Bowl, Central Michigan (8-4) vs. Florida Atlantic (6-6), Dec. 26

New Mexico Bowl, Colorado State (6-6) vs. Fresno State (7-5), Dec. 20

St. Petersburg Bowl, Memphis (6-6) vs. USF (7-5), Dec. 20

New Orleans Bowl, Southern Miss (6-6) vs. Troy (7-5), Dec. 21

Liberty Bowl, East Carolina (9-4) vs. Kentucky (6-6), Jan. 2

Music City, Boston College (9-4) vs. Vanderbilt (6-6), Dec. 31

Hawaii Bowl, Notre Dame (6-6) at Hawaii (7-6), Dec. 24

Papajohns.com Bowl, N.C. State (6-6) vs. Rutgers (7-5), Dec. 29

2-point games:

EagleBank Bowl, Navy (8-4) vs. Wake Forest (7-5), Dec. 20

Emerald Bowl, California (8-4) vs. Miami (7-5), Dec. 27

Armed Forces Bowl, Air Force (8-4) vs. Houston (7-5), Dec. 31

International Bowl, Buffalo (8-5) vs. Connecticut (7-5), Jan. 3

Humanitarian Bowl, Maryland (7-5) vs. Nevada (7-5), Dec. 30

Insight Bowl, Kansas (7-5) vs. Minnesota (7-5), Dec. 31

Gator Bowl, Clemson (7-5) vs. Nebraska (8-4), Jan. 1

3-point games:

Champs Sports Bowl, Florida State (8-4) vs. Wisconsin (7-5), Dec. 27

Alamo Bowl, Missouri (9-4) vs. Northwestern (9-3), Dec. 29

Outback Bowl, Iowa (8-4) vs. South Carolina (7-5), Jan. 1

Texas Bowl, Rice (9-3) vs. Western Michigan (9-3), Dec. 30

Chick-fil-A Bowl, Georgia Tech (9-3) vs. LSU (7-5), Dec. 31

Las Vegas Bowl, Arizona (7-5) vs. BYU (10-2), Dec. 20

Meineke Car Care Bowl, North Carolina (8-4) vs. West Virginia (8-4), Dec. 27

GMAC Bowl, Ball State (12-1) vs. Tulsa (10-3), Jan. 6

Cotton Bowl, Ole Miss (8-4) vs. Texas Tech (11-1), Jan. 2

Sun Bowl, Oregon State (8-4) vs. Pittsburgh (9-3), Dec. 28

Capital One Bowl, Georgia (9-3) vs. Michigan State (9-3), Jan. 1

Holiday Bowl, Oklahoma State (9-3) vs. Oregon (9-3), Dec. 30

Poinsettia Bowl, Boise State (12-0) vs. TCU (10-2), Dec. 23

4-point BCS games

Sugar Bowl, Alabama (12-1) vs. Utah (12-0), Jan. 1

Orange Bowl, Cincinnati (11-2) vs. Virginia Tech (9-4), Jan. 1

Rose Bowl, Penn State (11-1) vs. USC (11-1), Jan. 1

Fiesta Bowl, Ohio State (10-2) vs. Texas (11-1), Jan. 5

5-point BCS NC game:

BCS National Championship Game, Florida (12-1) vs. Oklahoma (12-1), Jan. 8

 

 

As the games are played, I’ll add the standings to the article as often as I can.

GOOD LUCK! 

Go to Source

College Football Bowl Games Are Boring

Bowl games are boring. BCS bowl games are also boring. College football experts put entirely too much emphasis on these games, especially the BCS games.

 

If you are Alabama, what’s there to play for? You had national title aspirations a week ago and watched your season go down the toilet with a loss to Florida in the SEC Championship Game. What’s next? Utah. Oh boy!

 

If you are Texas, why would you be motivated for Ohio State? The Longhorns feel they should be in the national title game playing Florida. Instead, it’s off to Arizona to play Ohio State for the third time in four seasons. Ho-hum.

 

Can’t wait to watch USC beat Penn State by 50 in the Rose Bowl—that is if USC feels like it. USC is in the Rose Bowl for the fourth straight season. Wouldn’t it get old after while? Why not travel at least to Northern California for the Emerald Bowl? It’s not like USC has to travel for its trip the Rose Bowl.

 

Penn State won’t score on USC if USC doesn’t want them to.  If you feel this is an intriguing matchup, you’re either a homer or have too much time on your hands.

 

The International Bowl? In Canada? On January 3? Where does Canada get off by playing its game in a sacred month anyway? Good teams play in January… Buffalo and UConn don’t fit the bill. Wonder if when Turner Gill took the Buffalo job he considered the possibility of needing passports for his players?

 

Will this game be played on a 110-yard field? Will forward motion on offense be allowed? Will Gill go for the first down on third and one, or will Buffalo punt?

 

Wait, the GMAC Bowl is on January 6? The nerve. Does Ball State get to play two days before the national championship game because it was highly-ranked due to a process of elimination? Isn’t there a law against this sort of activity? This game deserves to be on December 6, not two days before the title game.

 

These college football experts love to put these BCS bowl games on a pedestal. Why? Just because a committee that shouldn’t exist designates a few bowl games that shouldn’t exist as BCS bowls, why are these more important? Like the BCS committee should go to jail for putting Cincinnati and Virginia Tech into a BCS game.

 

Oh, okay. I guess a million payout could be a good reason. Why isn’t the Cotton Bowl a BCS bowl? Especially after the Cowboys open their new digs. Why does Texas Tech have to play in a bowl with a million payout when it beat Texas? What did Georgia and Michigan State do to warrant more of a payout in the Capital One Bowl than Texas Tech and Ole Miss in the Cotton?

 

Just like I loved the option, the wishbone, and 5-2 defenses, I loved the bowl tie-ins. I loved watching Nebraska and Oklahoma duke it out in November with a spot in Miami on the line. A lot of frozen oranges flying out of the stands at random players from the opposing team.

 

On January 1, we would wake up early in the morning to watch wall-to-wall football, capped off by the Orange Bowl at night on the painted grass in Miami. Some of my fondest college football memories took place in the Orange Bowl.

 

Remember those halftime shows at the Orange Bowl? No wonder more people did drugs back then. I would imagine you could trip out pretty severely while watching one of these halftime shows in the 1970’s or early 1980’s. And this was before the Orange Bowl became the FedEx Orange Bowl. It was more pure back then.

 

I watched a re-run of the 1980 Orange Bowl between Oklahoma and Florida State on local television a few weeks back. I don’t touch foreign substances, but I was tripping out by watching the halftime show myself. Did they actually think this was cool back in 1980?

 

Now the Orange Bowl isn’t even at the Orange Bowl. The Cotton Bowl won’t even be at the Cotton Bowl next year. Chick-fil-A bought out the naming rights for the Peach Bowl. Now it’s just the Chick-fil-A Bowl. There is a bowl game on a blue field in Boise, Idaho… outdoors! Have you ever been outdoors in the Rocky Mountain region in December? Have you ever felt your urine freeze?

 

There’s even a bowl named after pizza. No, not just Papa John’s pizza. It’s the Papajohns.com Bowl. Why not call it the Pizza Bowl and play it in Italy? Hey, we have a game in Canada. Why not?

 

How is this traditional? That is the excuse for keeping these things around in the first place. There are 34 bowl games, which is about 24 too many. Can’t imagine many people will set the DVR to record Rice and Western Michigan… and that’s not because nobody has the NFL Network on their cable system. It’s the Texas Bowl, which will probably move to Oklahoma in a few years and still be called the Texas Bowl.

 

A playoff system won’t happen. If you truly believe in your heart it will, you are kidding yourself. If you have an eight-team playoff, the ninth team will complain about being snubbed. If you have a 16-team playoff, the 17th team will whine. People are going to whine regardless. And there are 17 million reasons—34 million for the Big 12, SEC, and Big 11—not to have a playoff.

 

It’s all about the almighty dollar. Or in one case, it’s all about the almighty Canadian dollar. And pretty soon, it will be about the almighty Peso in the Mexicanfoodisnotreallytacobell.com Bowl from Mexico City.

 

These bowl games can’t take a hike, eh?

 

Ole.

Go to Source

The Final Coaches Poll: Wheel Of Politics!

Ah, yes. The final coaches poll has been made public, and as usual, there are some truly noteworthy voting practices amongst our fair and balanced coaches. Some take this seriously, some cast their votes with reckless abandon, and some prove they just need a lobotomy.

It’s time to play “Who’s the biggest Homer?”

Here is the actual final poll, so you can see how the teams ended up, and then compare how some esteemed and knowledgeable coaches voted versus their brethren.

1. Oklahoma

2. Florida

3. Texas

4. Alabama/USC (tie)

6. Penn State

7. Utah

8. Texas tech

9. Boise State

10. Ohio State

11. TCU

12. Cincy

13. Oregon

14. Oklahoma State

15. Georgia Tech

16. BYU

17. Georgia

18. Michigan State

19. Va Tech

20. Northwestern

21. Pitt

22. Ball State

23. Mizzou

24. Ole Miss

25. Oregon State

 

First up is Urban Meyer, coach of the Florida Gators. Just how unbiased was he?

He voted Florida No. 1, Alabama No. 3, Utah (his former team) No. 4, USC No. 6, BYU No. 20, Georgia No. 21, and the biggie, Ole Miss No. 12.

Let’s see now, Ole Miss beat Florida. Bada bing. They must be great, right? BYU is his former team’s nemesis while Georgia is his current nemesis, so there’s no bias whatsoever in giving them the shaft, now is there? 

Our second coach needs no introduction when it comes to hating other conferences. Howard Schnellenberger, coach of the Florida Atlantic Owls, hates the Pac-10. Don’t believe me? Check out his votes: USC No. 8, Oregon No. 19, and he didn’t place Oregon State in the top 25. Yes, Howard, you deserve the booby price for the second straight year (Last year his venom was directed at the Florida Gators).

Our third coach is Bobby Bowden, who truly has shown how sharp his brain is this year. Dadgummit Bobby, either retire or shape up. Oklahoma State got a No. 18 from him, and Michigan State got a No. 13. Did he actually confuse these two teams? It looks like it.

Todd Dodge, coach at North Texas, voted Ball State, the loser to Buffalo in the MAC Championship, No. 15. Let that one sink in.

Dan Hawkins, Colorado’s coach, voted Mizzou at No. 16, Oklahoma No. 1  and Texas No. 2. He just loves the Big 12, doesn’t he?

Mike Leach voted Texas Tech at No. 2. Surprised, anyone?

Pat Hill, Fresno State’s coach, must not have had his coffee when he casted his votes: Boise State No. 6, Ball State No. 17, and Va. Tech No. 12.

Then there’s our lovable Les Miles, who has preached about the tough path of the SEC and its opponents. How did he vote? Like a good ‘ol Southern boy. Florida No. 1, Alabama No. 4, Oregon No. 17 (hate the Pac-10, Les?), Georgia Tech (ACC) No. 12, Georgia No. 13, and Ole Miss No. 14. Surprised Vandy and South Carolina aren’t in there? They may be- there is one team he voted for that didn’t make the top 25. Could it be LSU?

Mark Richt, Georgia’s coach, has also expressed his fondness for the SEC, just like Coach Miles. He ranked Florida No. 1, Alabama No. 2, and Ole Miss No. 20. How does a second place SEC team get ranked ahead of a Big 12 conference champ?

Funny, there are some teams he voted for that didn’t make the top 25- can we guess who they are? (I’ll put ten bucks on South Carolina, LSU and Auburn) If you want to know how five SEC teams were ranked in the top ten at one point, now you know.

Then there are coaches like UCF’s George O’Leary, whose hatred towards one particular conference is pretty evident. O’ Leary’s wrath this year is aimed at the Big Ten- he voted Michigan State No. 25, Northwestern No. 24, and Penn State No. 9.

But he’s not the only one who hates the Big Ten. Chris Petersen (Boise State) voted Penn State at No. 10, Boise State No. 7, and Michigan State No. 23. Ouch.

Gary Pinkel of Missouri placed Oklahoma No. 1, Texas No. 2, Texas Tech No. 6,  Oklahoma State No. 11, and Mizzou No. 18.

Tyrone Willingham voted Mizzou No. 11. How does a four-loss team that got smoked by Texas and Oklahoma get a No. 11 ranking? The other questionable vote by a Pac-10 coach was Rick Neuheisel’s ranking of Oregon State at No. 17, and Texas No. 1.

So which coaches were the most biased? Who gets the Homer Awards this year?

You have to give it to Gary Pinkel (Missouri) for his blatant bias towards the Big 12, Les Miles, Urban Meyer and Mark Richt for their SEC bias, and George O’ Leary for his hate on the Big Ten. Their motto should be, “Individually, we are strong. Together we are stronger.”

The polls are pretty disheartening, and sometimes we don’t understand why they are so skewed. By making the polls public, a fan can now see that polls don’t work. Some coaches were very fair in ranking the teams, while others used it as a platform to give their conference a boost. Disgusted yet?

Ready to scream for playoffs? Can we ditch the coaches poll?

coaches poll: http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/football/2008-12-08-final-coaches-ballots_N.htm

Go to Source

How the Big Ten coaches voted

Posted by ESPN.com’s Adam Rittenberg

Count me among those who would like to see the Coaches’ Poll publicize its voting every week. Alas, we only get to see the ballots after the final regular-season votes are tallied. 

You can see how all 61 coaches voted by clicking here, but around these parts, we’re interested the Big Ten.

Seven Big Ten head coaches voted in this season’s poll: Wisconsin’s Bret Bielema, Michigan State’s Mark Dantonio, Indiana’s Bill Lynch, Michigan’s Rich Rodriguez, Purdue’s Joe Tiller, Ohio State’s Jim Tressel and Illinois’ Ron Zook.

Some obversations from each coach’s ballot:

Bret Bielema — Bielema had Oklahoma and Florida at Nos. 1 and 2. He loved Penn State and was one of only two coaches — Rutgers’ Greg Schiano being the other — who ranked the Nittany Lions at No. 4, ahead of both USC and Alabama. Bielema had Ohio State at No. 8 and Michigan State and Northwestern at Nos. 17 and 18. He also showed some love for his alma mater, Iowa, putting the Hawkeyes at No. 20.

Mark Dantonio – Dantonio had Oklahoma first, followed by Florida. He showed some Big Ten pride by putting Penn State at No. 6, Ohio State at No. 8, his own team at No. 18, Northwestern at No. 19 and Iowa at No. 25. Dantonio had his former team, Big East champ Cincinnati, at No. 12. He also gave some love to the non-BCS, putting four teams (Utah, Boise State, TCU and BYU) in his top 16. 

Bill Lynch – Texas’ head-to-head win against Oklahoma resonated with Lynch, who put the Longhorns at No. 2, behind Florida. Lynch’s Big Ten ties also showed up, as he had both Michigan State (15) and Northwestern (19) in the top 20 and Iowa at No. 23. Lynch wasn’t a huge ACC fan, putting Georgia Tech at No. 16 and league championship participants Virginia Tech and Boston College at Nos. 24 and 25. 

Rich Rodriguez – Rodriguez had Oklahoma at No. 1 and Florida at No. 2. He showed some love for his new conference with four teams among the top 18, but I found it interesting that he put rival Michigan State at No. 18, two spots behind Northwestern, a team the Spartans beat. Rodriguez was one of three coaches — Urban Meyer and Tiller the others — to put Northwestern at No. 16. He was the only Big Ten coach not to have Iowa on his ballot. 

Joe Tiller – Tiller had one of the more intriguing ballots, with Oklahoma and Texas at Nos. 1 and 2. Maybe he’s sick of all the SEC love or ticked off that Michigan didn’t have a chance for a rematch with Ohio State in 2006. Tiller and Buffalo’s Turner Gill gave Ohio State its highest ranking (7) among the 61 coaches. He had five Big Ten teams in the top 20. 

Jim Tressel – Like Tiller, Tressel also had Oklahoma and Texas in the top two spots, followed by Florida and USC. He had Penn State at No. 6 and his own team at No. 8. He also was pretty generous to former assistant Dantonio, giving Michigan State its second-highest ranking at No. 14. Tressel didn’t think nearly as much of Northwestern, putting the Wildcats at No. 21, two spots ahead of Iowa. 

Ron Zook — The Zooker had Oklahoma at No. 1, a spot ahead of his former team, Florida. He liked Penn State (5) and Ohio State (8), and gave the ACC more love than most of his Big Ten colleagues. Zook didn’t have too much love for his former conference, the SEC, not ranking Mississippi at all and putting Georgia at No. 19. 

Go to Source

Next Page »