Football in General

So today was a big day in Football in general. Not only just NFL but also in the Heisman watch. This football year in the NCAA has been full of upset from Michigan VS Appalachian State to the close game between Indiana VS Purdue. As Irish talked about in his recent post with the Heisman watch he hated the Gators and he didn't really say but hinted to him not wanting Tim Tebow to win. The NFL this year has been full of big games with the biggest being New England Patriot's overtaking the Indianapolis Colts.
With Tim Tebow winning the Heisman, the talk of the Heisman trophy is over. I feel he should have won the trophy because of stats you can read in Irish's post. I do feel that Ohio States running back Chris "Beanie" Wells should have been a candidate. I feel with his presence on the field along with the way he can contribute to the game changes the way a game goes in general. Like Tim Tebow he was a threat in more than just on the ground, but also in the air. He had thrown for many yards this season, along with his running game. He could change directions on a dime along with his intelligence on the field. You can tell with the respect the players show him on the field that he has more than just authority on the field but he is also a good friend. Many people may think a good friend doesn't really count for much, but when a teammate is also a good friend he can convince a player that wants to give up in a game to give it to go the extra mile and win the game.
Secondly, I would like to talk about the NFL. Like I said before the NFL this year has been full of big games. I hate the Patriots, but I will give them credit this year for the way they have played this year. They have been doing real well and have the chance of being the second undefeated team. The only other team that have been undefeated are the 1972 Miami Dolphins. I think the Patriots do have the total package along with the Colts, but they have gotten lucky. I don't think they would have won against the Colts if the Colts did have all of there players but who knows, they didn't. The Patriots bring a good running game, a great quarterback, awesome wide outs, and an even better defense. They may just be the best team ever to be in the NFL. What I want to know is how can people compare Brady to Manning. Brady is not even half of what Manning is because not only does Manning command an excellent offense, but he stays in the game and still competes even if he doesn't have everyone that should be on the field. This shows a lot of mental strength to do instead of backing out. I don't think Brady has that mental strength that Manning has because frankly Brady has never not had anyone "great" to throw to. Manning has struggled a lot this year without Harrison, but I think when he comes back, it will be a completely different story as I have said many times before.
The Colts play this weekend the Baltimore Ravens. I made a mistake on my last blog saying that the Colts played them over last weekend, but I correct myself by saying they play them this weekend. I don't think the Colts will have a problem with the Raven's at all because the Raven's frankly don't have much of an offense. I feel their defense is pretty strong because of their commander Ray "Ray Ray" Lewis. I am pretty excited about the game because I think this is a measuring stick to the rest of their success. Hopefully they blow out the Raven's because I mean i didn't give a whole lot of credit to the Raven's, but they are decent. We will just have to see!

2008 Rose Bowl: Illinois vs USC

This is a great match between Pac 10 and Big 10, and I am very much looking forward to this game in many ways. Many people think Illinois shouldn't be in the Rose Bowl with USC, and instead it should be Georgia. I think Illinois is very deserving to be in the Rose bowl with the likes of USC. They have make the biggest turn around from the last two years because of the coaching and recruiting of Ron Zook. USC and Illinois have a very similar record, believe or not. USC have key wins over #14 Nebraska, #24 California, and #6 Arizona State and upset lost to unranked Stanford and #5 Oregon. Illinois have keys wins over #21 Penn State, #5 Wisconsin, and #1 Ohio State and upset lost to Missouri, Iowa, and #25 Michigan. Both teams have had their highs and lows. People don't give Illinois a chance against USC because they are unknown team from past years and people say Big 10 was weak this year, but i totally disagree.

#13 Illinois: This team has really come with the help of Ron Zook with a record of 9-3 and runner up in the Big conference. The big upset win over #1 Ohio State obviously got where they are now. I really believe they can beat USC at the Rose Bowl in another upset victory to cap off this season in a very exciting and close game. Illinois offers one of the best rush offenses in the country with 266.2 per game average yards and 5th ranked in NCAA. They run a spread offence with SEC like speed with key players; Juice Williams, Rashard Mendenhall, Jeremy Leman, and Arrelious Benn. They need to play a flawless such like they did against Ohio State, and create turnover on defense against a always tough USC.

#6 USC: This team as everybody knows always have talent on both sides of the ball, but injuries and other such distractions like media and lack of team work. Their lost to Stanford in one of the biggest upsets in history kept them out of the BCS Champion game. But they are back at home at the Rose Bowl and playing as good as they should. They have keys players such as; John David Booty, Fed Davis, and Keith Rivers. For them to win they need to play like that did against Arizona state, and kept Illinois defense from getting to John David Booty because would mean a bad day like the Stanford lost.

Heisman Talk

This year has been one for the ages. It has been probably the wackiest one I have ever witnessed. All the upsets and all of the crazy plays that make us all as football fans love our scholarly athletes. In the end, though, we have to choose (or at least the media does) a most valuable player in all the land. The Heisman trophy of course goes to this individual so here is a little short list I have composed (in no particular order):

1) Tim Tebow, Florida, QB - As much as I hate to say it, because I dislike the Gators very much, the guy is good. He is setting records left and right. He has passed for over 3000 yards and thrown for 29 touchdowns. Which would seem about right for a Heisman quarterback...But then add in that he has rushed for over 800 yards and scored 22 touchdowns on the ground. Those are some big numbers from a sophomore in what many say is a bit of a rebuilding year for the Gators.

2) Matt Ryan, Boston College, QB - A solid quarterback that has gone through a steady system up there in ACC land. He has had steady experience throughout his college career freshman through senior year. He has thrown for over 4000 yards this year and thrown for 28 TD's. His rushing totals aren't anywhere near Tebow's so they won't be mentioned. Still, a very solid candidate that has a good shot tomorrow in New York.

3) Darren McFadden, Arkansas, RB - The guy is a beast. The best running back in the college ranks no question. With 1700 yards on the ground to compliment his 15 touchdowns through the run he is easily Heisman capable. Add on his one touchdown through the air and then throw in (no pun intended) his four passing touchdowns and you have one hell of a candidate for this year's Heisman running (once again no pun intended, I really gotta stop). Even his coach thinks he should take it home. He got that wood baby!!!

4) Colt Brennan, Hawaii, QB - The surfer boy from Laguna Beach, California is one who has flexed his muscle all year long. His passing stats are almost laughable (in that they are so dramatic). His passing yards are well over 4000 and his touchdowns thus far this year that he has thrown amounts to an astounding 38 (he had 58 last year). So with those kind of numbers you can throw this cat into the mix as a legitimate threat of taking home the hardware.

5) Chase Daniel, Missouri, QB - The underdogs of the year finally came to life as they lost to Oklahoma on their second go around with the Sooners. But don't let that take anything away from what Mr. Daniel did all year, and that is lead a very good team to a BCS bowl and look really good doing it too. He as well threw for over four grand in passing yards with 33 TDs to go with it. He also rushed for four touchdowns. The guy is good and will definitely get a good, hard look from all that are voting.

Interesting "game"

Ok so i came across this little game while i was looking on the SI.com website. As it states in the article the game should only be played by people who are of age to drink. The game is called Brent Musburger Drinking game. The basis of the game is you are supposed to drink when he says certain things. Examples whould be like if he is shown on camera you are supposed to drink once. If he says the word "folks" you are supposed to take one drink as well. As he says more random things the more you have to consume. One of the big ones would be that if he yells "its a foot race," when someone is running towards the goal line. You have to drink the whole drink. Now this really has nothing to do with football except for the fact that watching football and drinking has been a long tradition. The only thing is that most of the time College campuses are usually dry campuses and don't allow drinking at the game. So the game is really restricked to college students in their apartments or frats drinking beer. Again like i said this was kind of a random post, but i found the story some-what intertaining. Thanks for reading it.

Purdue

So Purdue made it to a bowl game this year. They play in Michigan which sucks! They play Eastern Michigan which they played earlier this year and smoked. I don't understand how Purdue is so terrible at football. I mean really, they have good talent so it must just fall back on coaching which you may have read my blog about how Purdue needs to fire Joe Tiller. Eastern Michigan doesn't have a chance at winning this bowl game, but it is in Michigan, so it isn't even an important bowl game.

Another thing I wanted to talk about like I have before are how stupid the athletes are. I just read a couple days ago how two of Purdue's basketball players were suspended due to alcohol. Really, why would you be so stupid. You are basically given 60,000 by Purdue to come here and you piss it away. Sometimes people don't make a whole lot of sense.

Any lastly I want to talk about IU's Eric Gordon. Ya Ya, he may be the shit now and everyone from IU is running their mouth about how good he is and I understand this doesn't have anything to do with football but most football fans also watch or have knowledge about basketball. But anyways, what are the IU fans going to do when Gordan goes pro after this year and they aren't left with a superstar anymore and Purdue still has their freshman recruiting class which is pretty good? Just a question!?!?!

AFC South Shuffle

So my Colts ended up with another W this last weekend. It was a big one like I stated in my previous post. It almost assured them another AFC South championship and with that assures them yet another playoff birth. The colts played tough the whole game and Peyton is starting to get more and more comfortable with the players he has on the field. Given he had almost all of his starters back except Harrison, Harrison does play a huge part of Peyton Mannings game. These stats may be a little off but it was something like the passing rating with Harrison was in at least the hundreds and with out him his passing rating is around seventy. Thats a pretty big difference for only one player being gone. Though with Peyton starting to throw strong and well we can let Harrison rest for the Playoffs expecially because it looks as though we are a shoe in to get in.

Now the game between the Titans and the Texans was a big one. If the Texans would have won they could have been tied with the Jaguars and the Titans for second place. But since the Titans won and the Jags lost the wild card spot could go to the Titans and not the Jags. So the Titans winning last weekend was big for them and if they can win at least a couple more games and the Jaguars loss a couple more the Titans could come from outa no were and get into the playoffs. Man again here I go with another famous John Madden quote, but the bottom line is the Titans need to win as many games as they can and the Jags must do the same. I know it sounds simple but thats just it, it is. Just win.

Patriots Squeek One Out

One would argue that its hard to beat the Patriots. I'll go on a limb and agree with this. However, someone also might argue that it's hard to beat the Patriots and the refs. That's what it felt like last night for the Baltimore Ravens. Call after call seemed to go against the underdogs as the super power Patriots came away with the last minute victory 27-24.

Despite the loss, I was thoroughly impressed with the Baltimore performance. The offense was keyed by Willis McGahee. His outstanding performance led to many scores his stats ended at 138 yards rushing and a touchdown. Also, which was quite a surprise, was Kyle Boller's impressive stint at QB. He was making all the big passes early on but finally came back to normal form as he threw a pick at a momentum changing time. The defense was also impressive (I think any team that holds this Patriots offense to 17 points in 59 minutes is impressive) as they looked to be hard hitting and unafraid of the Juggernaut Patriots.

As usual Patriots QB Tom Brady was impressive throwing two touchdowns and a pick with 250plus in passing yards. The receivers were limited however and especially the running backs as leading rusher Maroney had only 44 yards rushing.

Trash talking seemed to be going crazy as even the coaches got involved in it. After being taunted by a Patriot DB, head coach of the Ravens Brian Billick blew two kisses to him. Also highlighting foul play was a Linebacker from the Ravens throwing a referee's flag into the stands. A heated game and the only result that came from it was the continue of a streak for the Pats and a continued slide from the Ravens.

Seriously?

Okay, so these past few weeks I have been extremely repetitive, at least it seems like it. These past few weeks it seems that a big development happens within the top ranks. Does this happen every year and I just notice it more this year because I write about it every week. Maybe...I digress. Anyways, back to the post at hand. So Missouri just lost at the hand of the Oklahoma Sooners. So now it gets really, really tricky. You have a couple of teams vying for the national championship. I'm just glad I don't have to sort this mess out.

The Teams:

1) Ohio State: The talking heads seem to stand pretty pat that they are in the NC come January. They have only lost once, they won the big ten championship, and seem to have been the most consistent all year.

So, assuming that OSU gets in you have these teams vying for the final spot:

2) LSU: They have a very good argument in that they won the toughest conference in the nation in the SEC. They actually lost as the number one rank twice this year which is actually quite impressive. They also beat 6 ranked teams this year.

3) Georgia: They are the hottest team right now. They lost two games all year, as did LSU. They are riding high right now and they are ranked fourth behind OSU at this point in time.

4) USC: They are flying high as well but I think they are too little too late to come back in the mix right now. However, they are getting some pub right now, so don't count them out.

5) Kansas: Losing to Mizzou might have done them in, despite only having one loss this year. Something to build on I guess.

6) Va. Tech: I don't think so, their losses hurt them too much earlier this season.

Well that's my run down. To end I will leave you with a little National Championship prediction:

OSU vs. LSU

Backyard Let Down

So much for another National title run since their last against the University of Notre Dame back in the Raghib Ishmail days. That's right West Virginia straight up blew it just now. Losing to a team with a losing record in the Pitt Panthers. A 13-9 letdown leads West Virginia out of the NC, which they would have had if they would have won. Easily. There was no doubt about it. West Virginia QB Pat White had two costly fumbles while the third fumble of the game was provided on a kickoff return by WV. The Pitt defense was unstoppable all game only giving up seven points (the other two points came on a safety on the last play of the game) to what many people in the nation were calling the most lethal offensive attack in the nation.

So where were exploders Noel Devine, Steve Slaton, and Pat White. Well I think they forgot their big game games at home. Oh, wait, it wasn't even supposed to be a big game in that they were favored by four touchdowns as one source had it.

So once again we are back to something I have harped upon all friggen season, this BCS mess that this crazy college football season has made. After this loss, though, I think it is safe to assume that Ohio State slid into WV's spot. The second spot is Missouri's to lose, but that's what they are doing right now as they are down 14 points to the Sooner's of Oklahoma. What's up with all of these teams just blowing their chance at the NC once they are in position to get into it. Have any of their coaches taught them how to do a lil TCOB...that's right taking care of business. It seems to be a lost art.

Taken The Conference Title Home

This Saturday was conference title night with three very big prime time match ups; Big 12, ACC, and SEC. Two teams, as of now, have calmed their conferences title in big games that were very exciting. One game was a rematch with BC vs. Virgina Tech for the ACC conference title. And the other game was for the SEC conference title with action packed teams LSU vs. Tennessee.

ACC BC vs. Virgina Tech: This game was a rematch that had a totally different look and outcome. In the first game it was undefeated BC's chance to prove themselves as a real contender for the BCS title. And Virgina Tech's chance to show BC real competition on their home field. VT dominated for about 57 minutes in terrible conditions, but still scoring 10 points. A heroic performance by BC's star QB Matt Ryan brought the team back and scored 14 points within less than 3 minutes. In this rematch saw BC take the advantage early with a strip by a linebacker was returned for a TD. From there Virgina Tech seem to get serious and limited their mistakes then and there so they wouldn't have repeat. They dominated the game in the second half scoring 14 unanswered point in a victory of 30-16.

SEC Tennessee vs. LSU: Both teams had their highs and lows from disappointing upsets to big overtime victories. In this game they put it all behind themselves and the only they wanted right then was the conference title. LSU starting QB Matt Fynn was injured for this game but Ryan Perrilloux showed that hes valuable too. This game as action packed with back and forth scoring. In Tennessee's last chance to tie the the game up, QB Eric Ainge was picked off in the red zone. LSU took it home in this one 21-14 for the SEC conference title.

Need the win.

The colts have been playing well for the last couple of weekends. They played the Falcons last game and played like the Colts we were used to. They game out and really flexed their muscles and beat the Falcons 13- 31. I hoping that they can repeat a performance like that this Sunday. They play the Jaguars this weekend, who are their rivals in the AFC South. They have to beat this team to make sure that they stay on top of the AFC South. The end of the season is going to be a important one for them. The last five games that they play they end up playing three of those games with conference rivals. Back to the Jaguars game, the Colts really do need to win. They will have most of their starters back and Diem and Harrison are Questionable to start. They are playing in Indianapolis so they should be able to beat the Jaguars again but who knows it is the NFL. The big thing that the Colts need to worry about is their running backs. They have a very strong running duo in Fred Taylor and the very versatile Maurice Jones-Drew. They each look as though they each can break a thousand yards rushing. Their defense is also very solid. Although they allow a ton of yards a game almost 350 yards a game they only allow 17.7 points per a game. That means that they usually hold opponents when they get in the red zone to only a field goal. I know that this sounds a lot like a John Madden comment but if the Colts can score when they get into the red zone they should blow the Jaguars out of the water in the score. So I’ll watch the game this Sunday and hope that my boys come out with a win.

Colts

So everyone knows that the toughest part for the Indianapolis Colts is over. After having many injuries over the last couple weeks including the biggest game against the Patriots, it seems like they may be back in business.

They face the Baltimore Ravens this weekend and if they win, the Colts can officially say were back. I have to give it to Peyton because day in and day out, he pushed the Colts to play their best no matter if they had all their weapons or not. Now that most everyone is back, I think the Colts will be a completely different team! I have said this before and probably will say it again and that is Harrison will be the difference maker. Although he may not go for a lot of yards, he will cause the defense trouble just because of his presence on the field. The Ravens are in trouble because you know the Colts are going to be fired up with most everyone back. People ask, will the Colts be the same dominant team they were after all the injuries. I feel they will because although the players will probably be careful about their injuries but they are professional football players, and they all know exactly what they need to do to get the job done. GO COLTS!!!

More Than A Shot At The Title

In this Big 12 Conference title game that have Oklahoma versus Missouri in the most important rematch this year. Each team has a lot to gain and also a lot to lose in this rematch on a neutral field. In the first match up during the regular season it was a gridiron war at Oklahoma's home field. Missouri lead Oklahoma 24-23 entering the 4th, but due to so costly turnovers by Missouri lost 31-41. This rematch is any ones game, no one has a true advantage in any part of the game.

Missouri is now ranked #1 with a dominating victory over previously #2 Kansas, that game previewed the new and improved Missouri Tigers lead by Heisman hopeful QB Chase Daniel and WR Jeremy Maclin. Against Kansas Chase Daniel CMP% was a amazing 81.6% and 361 passed yards. They are the only #1 with a lost who is able to correct that lost, and at the same time win the Big 12 Conference title. Without turnovers like in the last game the offense can definitely score when they need to. Their defense needs to show a lot of pressure and create turnovers of their own. But it won't be easy against the always tough Oklahoma. A win here is for redemption, Big 12 title, and a shot at the BCS title.

Oklahoma is now ranked #9 due to upset loses to Colorado and Texas Tech, but they are still the favorite in this conference title game and that makes #1 Missouri mad. Oklahoma is lead by Freshman QB Sam Bradford and WRs Malcolm Kelly and Juaquin Iglesias who together run one of the best offenses in the NCAA. Their game plan is the same as Missouri's. At this point Oklahoma cannot get a shot at the BCS title, but with a win here they can get in a BCS bowl game.

More on the murderer

As you read on Irish's post, football star Sean Taylor was murdered a few days by an intruder breaking into his house and shooting him. Three men were held in court via video conference today on chargers for Taylor's murder. Authorities say that the lawyers said some of them had confessed to the murder of Taylor. The three men's names are: Charles Wardlow, Eric Rivera, and Venjah Hunte. The police said the murder rose out of the burglary that occurred at Taylor's house. Jason Mitchell, a fourth member of the crew, was also arrested but has not gone to court yet for the charges. The four members were arrested Friday in southwest Florida, about 100 miles away from Miami.

Mitchell had prior connections to Taylor after he had been cutting Taylor's yard, and also was invited to his birthday party about two months prior. The funny thing is, is that Mitchell's mom is trying to get him out of the ordeal by telling the paper that her son was at home all week and weekend. She claims she does not know why he was arrested or being held for this charge. The judge denied bail for all the men involved which I think is a good thing!

This is ridiculous that the four men would actually have the nerve to break into the house when the injured Taylor was trying to recuperate from a knee injury he suffered while playing. Not to mention they killed him. If you were wanting to break into his house, AGAIN, then your an idiot, but after you kill the NFL star, you know your going to jail. Most likely, you would go to jail regardless but why would you shoot him, why wouldn't you run away? How stupid can the "fellas" get. All I have to say is those are some greedy bastards and now they have to pay for their stupidity!