Basketball Stretch Run

Just about everyone has four games left in their season, and the bubble got thinner this weekend with the Bracketbuster games knocking some of the high-rising mid-majors off their at-large bid bids (Siena, Wichita State, Utah State). Look out for some crazy finishes this week.

1: Duke (ACC)
2: Kansas (Big12)
3: Syracuse (Big East)
4: West Virginia
5: Kansas State
6: Georgetown
7: Pittsburgh
8: Kentucky (SEC)
9: Purdue (Big Ten)
10: Villanova
11: Texas A&M
12: Vanderbilt
13: Wisconsin
14: Tennessee
15: Baylor
16: New Mexico (MWC)
17: Michigan State
18: Temple
19: Xavier
20: Ohio State
21: Louisville
22: California (Pac10)
23: Texas
24: Butler (Horizon)
25: Wake Forest
26: Maryland
27: Georgia Tech
28: Clemson
29: Gonzaga (WCC)
30: Oklahoma State
31: Connecticut
32: Richmond (A-10)
33: Missouri
34: Texas Tech
35: Northern Iowa (MVC)
36: Rhode Island
37: BYU
38: Dayton
39: UNLV
40: Florida State
41: Utah State (WAC)
42: Marquette
43: San Diego State
44: Illinois
45: UAB
46: Old Dominion (Colonial)
47: UTEP (CUSA)
48: Virginia Tech
49: Siena (MAAC)
50: Kent State (MAC)
51: Cornell (Ivy)
52: Weber State (Big Sky)
53: Oakland (Summit)
54: Sam Houston State (Southland)
55: UC-Santa Barbara (Big West)
56: Wofford (Southern)
57: Murray State (OVC)
58: Jacksonville (A-Sun)
59: North Texas (Sun Belt)
60: Morgan State (MEAC)
61: Robert Morris (NEC)
62: Coastal Carolina (Big South)
63: Stony Brook (Amer. East)
64: Lehigh (Patriot)
65: Jackson State (SWAC)

Just missed it: Wichita State, Mississippi State, St. Mary's, William & Mary.

Basketball Week 3

As always, automatic bids are in bold (and these reflect games through Monday):

1: Kansas (Big 12)
2: Duke (ACC)
3: West Virginia
4: Syracuse (Big East)
5: Kansas State
6: Georgetown
7: Villanova
8: Kentucky (SEC)
9: Pittsburgh
10: Wisconsin
11: Purdue
12: Texas A&M
13: Vanderbilt
14: Tennessee
15: Wake Forest
16: Baylor
17: New Mexico (MWC)
18: Temple (A-10)
19: Michigan State (Big 10)
20: Gonzaga (WCC)
21: California (Pac-10)
22: Texas
23: Georgia Tech
24: Butler (Horizon)
25: Xavier
26: Louisville
27: Ohio State
29: Richmond
30: Rhode Island
31: Clemson
32: Texas Tech
33: UNLV
34: Dayton
35: BYU
36: Oklahoma State
37: Northern Iowa (MVC)
38: Old Dominion (Colonial)
39: Florida State
40: Illinois
41: San Diego State
42: Marquette
43: Missouri
44: UAB
45: Notre Dame
46: Charlotte
47: UTEP (C-USA)
48: Utah State (WAC)
49: Siena (Metro)
50: Kent State (MAC)
51: Cornell (Ivy)
52: Weber State (Big Sky)
53: Oakland (Summit)
54: Sam Houston State (Southland)
55: UC-Santa Barbara (Big West)
56: Charleston (Southern)
57: Belmont (A-Sun)
58: Murray State (OVC)
59: Arkansas State (Sun Belt)
60: Morgan State (MEAC)
61: Stony Brook (A-East)
62: Robert Morris (NEC)
63: Lehigh (Patriot)
64: Coastal Carolina (Big South)
65: Jackson State (SWAC)

First Four Out: Mississippi State, St. Mary's, Virginia Tech, Wichita State.

The conference tourneys are approaching and it'll get harder to identify the leaders of the mid-majors each week. For example, Belmont and Jacksonville are tied in the Atlantic Sun, but Belmont has the higher RPI and is moving up. Old Dominion and Northeastern (just on the outside as well) are also tied in the Colonial.
As for Mizzou's chances... a win tonight over Texas will go a long way. Basically you can break their 6 remaining games down in two groups. Have to wins at Nebraska (2/20), Colorado (2/24), and at Iowa State (2/27) and hope to wins Texas (tonight), at Kansas State (3/2), and Kansas (3/6). If they win one of the "hope to wins" and all the "have to wins" they finish 22-9 (10-6). That puts them in the 5-7 seed range with a winnable first round Big-12 game (Nebraska, Colorado, Iowa State). Win that one and they should be in. They would have no BAD conference losses (at Oklahoma is defendable), 2 of the 3 teams they lost to out-of-conference (at Vanderbilt and neutral-Richmond) are solid locks right now, and they have wins that are getting better by the day (neutral-Illinois, neutral-Old Dominion, Kansas State, Oklahoma State). Pulling out that Baylor win would have been much nicer, but if they knock off Texas tonight, they don't have to win in Manhattan or try to topple kU here.

Basketball Rankings Week 2 and Missed Super Bowl

I blew the Super Bowl blog... but my excuse is that two blogs a week would be too much time away from my important work. I would have picked the Colts, not sure why, probably because it was the safe pick... I definitely would not have guessed there would only be 1 turnover and 1 sack and the game would be over before 9pm. Props to the Saints for playing the most aggressive Super Bowl I've seen.

On to the Rankings...
1: Syracuse
2: West Virginia
3: Kansas
4: Duke
5: Georgetown
6: Kansas State
7: Villanova
8: Wisconsin
9: Kentucky
10: Purdue
11: Michigan State
12: Tennessee
13: Georgia Tech
14: Pittsburgh
15: Texas A&M
16: Vanderbilt
17: New Mexico
18: Butler
19: Temple
20: Wake Forest
21: Texas
22: Baylor
23: Gonzaga
24: California
25: Xavier
26: Rhode Island
27: Northern Iowa
28: Maryland
29: Texas Tech
30: Ohio State
31: Mississippi
32: Dayton
33: Connecticut
34: BYU
35: UNLV
36: Clemson
37: South Florida
38: Florida State
39: Oklahoma State
40: Richmond
41: Missouri
42: Marquette
43: UAB
44: Northeastern
45: Siena
46: St. Mary's
47: Charlotte
48: UTEP
49: Utah State
50: Cornell
51: Kent State
52: Oakland
53: Weber State
54: Sam Houston State
55: Charleston
56: Pacific
57: Belmont
58: Arkansas State
59: Murray State
60: Morgan State
61: Robert Morris
62: Stony Brook
63: Coastal Carolina
64: Lehigh
65: Jackson State

Just missed it: Notre Dame, Old Dominion, Wichita State, Illinois, Tulsa, Virginia Tech, Louisiana Tech.

Basketball Rankings Week 1

Need a refresher? I take all the teams getting votes in both polls, and those in the top 40 of the RPI, and the first-place team in each conference (aka, the auto-bids). Then the top 65 is the teams with the lowest average of the polls, the RPI and the strength of schedule. Here's the first one (auto-bids in bold):

1: Kansas
2: Syracuse
3: Georgetown
4: West Virginia
5: Duke
6: Kansas State
7: Villanova
8: Purdue
9: Wisconsin
10: Vanderbilt
11: Michigan State
12: Tennessee
13: Kentucky
14: Pittsburgh
15: Temple
16: Georgia Tech
17: Xavier
18: Texas
19: New Mexico
20: Butler
21: Baylor
22: California
23: Rhode Island
24: Wake Forest
25: Ohio State
26: Connecticut
27: Clemson
28: Gonzaga
29: Texas A&M
30: Florida State
31: Brigham Young
32: Texas Tech
33: Northern Iowa
34: Maryland
35: Missouri
36: Marquette
37: Mississippi
38: Oklahoma State
39: Dayton
40: UAB
41: San Diego State
42: UNLV
43: Richmond
44: St. Mary's
45: Cornell
46: Charlotte
47: Siena
48: Kent State
49: Wichita State
50: UTEP
51: Oakland
52: Sam Houston State
53: Weber State
54: Charleston
55: Louisiana Tech
56: Pacific
57: Arkansas State
58: Jacksonville
59: Murray State
60: Morgan State
61: Robert Morris
62: Stony Brook
63: Coastal Carolina
64: Lehigh
65: Jackson State

Just Missed it: George Mason, Virginia Tech, Tulsa

Turning 28 and 5 Years of Blogging

In various forms, I've been blogging for 5 years now. I published my first blog somewhere (can't really remember where) shortly after my 23rd birthday. Now that I'm 28, and haven't taken off as a syndicated columnist, things aren't what I thought they'd be in 2010.

In 2005, I thought that by this time...

The Chiefs would have won a Super Bowl... in 2005 they had just finished a mediocre 2004 season and were preparing to explode with Dick Vermil, Trent Green and new horse, Larry Johnson(and they went 13-3 in '03). All they needed was to fix the defense. Here we are, 2010, a 29-51 record since (2 winning seasons, 1 playoff loss, 2 last-place finishes) and no real promise. What happened? Trent Green turned into TrINT Green, Larry Johnson turned out to be a douche who beats women, and Vermil left for retirement. A new coach, a new GM, and very little promise... at least we pummled the Broncos out of the playoffs to cap the season.

Britney Spears would be dead... and Jessica Simpson would have several beautiful kids. The way she was going, you can't tell me you are surprised Britney didn't end up in a gutter with several stab wounds in the summer of '07.

LeBron would have several MVPs and titles... yeah, we had only seen a season and a half, but in his second season he was beginning to assert himself as a rebounder and passer. He was getting respect on both sides of the ball. His highlight reel was getting exponentially larger. And there was all the hype. Now he has only one MVP and one Finals appearance. He needs to switch teams... unfortunately for the state of Ohio.

I'd be single and gamefully employed... nothing against my wonderful wife. There was nothing wrong with my decision to marry her either... just not where I thought I'd be at this point. Stupid journalism job market (and my enability to avoid wasting time at work) has landed me back in school going for the Master's degree. The second part can still happen, just a little longer.

The Royals would be competitive... hey, I'm not asking for much. They missed the wild card by 7 games in '03... other than that, the only word you could use to describe them is TERRIBLE. 2004 was a BAD year... but it got worse in '05. Five seasons, 4 managers, 483 losses. WOW... at least I'm not a Pirates fan (oh wait, only 478 losses) or an Nationals fan (oh wait, only 466 losses).

Rock 'n' Roll would still be alive... despite the efforts of some of my favorite bands, no one is making ROCK music anymore. Most everything that is coming out nowadays is metal or "punk" or "alternative." Maybe the Foo Fighters are still ROCKing.

Brett Favre would be awaiting his call to "the Hall"... not that he had to retire after a decent '04 season, but '05 was BAD (4-12, 20/29 TD/INT ratio, no pass longer than 59 yards) and the Packers had drafted Rodgers. Once he secured the Ironman status, why is he still playing? He'll go down in history with MVPs, a Super Bowl ring, tops in stats... is he worried that Peyton may pass him up?? Let's say Peyton plays until he's 40... 304+ starts, 185 wins, 6700 completions, near 80,000 yards, 580 TDs, 286 INTs (assuming equal progression)... that will have passed Brett in everything accept INTs. So baring an injury or trailing off by Peyton, Favre's lone record will be interceptions... but that's saying a lot.

Driving a hot sports car... nope. Still rollin' in the wagon.

Mizzou would be a athletic force to be reckoned with... going into 2005 the basketball team came off a weak season with a first-round NIT loss, the football team went missed a bowl game, and no one else was doing anything of note. There was hope for improvement... after Quinn Synder was fired, the teams all had strong consistent coaching staffs and had begun to invade Texas for recruits and win back St. Louis from Illinois. Well, I wouldn't call them a force, but 2008 - 2009 was a great run... 2 trips to Big 12 Champsionship in football, baseball won the regular season title in '09, soccer won the Big 12 tourney in '08 and the regular season title in '09, basketball won the Big 12 tourney in '09 and went to the Elite 8, and softball won the Big 12 tourney title in '09 and upset UCLA in the first round of the World Series... getting closer.

I would have met my doppelganger... I firmly believe everyone has one, and he/she is out there somewhere. You know, your evil twin (or your good twin, if you are the evil one). I thought I would have run into mine by now... and maybe killed him so I could absorb his powers...

I would have been arrested for something, just one time... I guess I'm just lucky to have avoided the wrath of the law... that and I try not to break it... ever.

Sports news coverage would go back to just highlights, hirings/firings, and puff-pieces... Did you know ESPN has a legal analyst?? Seriously, I just want the basics. Tell me Michael Vick had a dog-fighting ring and the Falcons released him... I don't need hourly updates of his legal struggles. Tell me Tiger Woods' wife accuses him of infidelity and he wrecked his car... end of story... when he returns to golf, we'll chat about his short-game then.

Again, I could really use some ideas for columns. I'm working hard on school, so throw me some non-sports softballs... it's sad I had to use a sports metaphor to make a non-sports request.

Oh yea... great Super Bowl match-up. Don't care who wins... I'll take the Colts. By the way I went 1-9 in the playoffs (only got Dallas over Philly... but this week I picked against the teams I wanted to win in a reverse jinx-thing).

Quarterfinal Round

Wow, a 1-3 week last week. The Jets surprised me and the refs in the Packers-Cardinals did not help (it should have be a facemask penalty on the fumble... oh well).

This week I'm taking the teams riding the winning streaks.

Cardinals over Saints... I think the Saints seriously lost their mojo and I bet the Cardinals defense is looking to get back on track... although I'd take the over on 90 points in this game, too.

Cowboys over Vikings... If you haven't noticed, the Cowboys own Brett Favre, and they've also fixed their late-season-losing problem.

Ravens over Colts... I know, I know, you never bet against Peyton Manning in night games... but this Colts team needs more than him to get out of this funk.

Chargers over Jets... it's a tough call on which team is hotter, I'll take the home team in what might be the best game of the weekend.

Playoff Push

I've been gone awhile, and I'm sorry. The holiday were without consistent internet connection and I was just too damn lazy to give you much. But, I'll make up for it with a solid column here. Several good tidbits and promise for 2010.

NFL Picks:
So you didn't see my last two weeks of picks, but I went 12-4 in Week 16 and 11-5 in Week 17 to finish 174-82. So if I'd have bet $10 on every game, I have come out of the season with $920. Nice work.

For the Wild Card Weekend...
Bengals over Jets... in an weird coincidence, three of this week's match-ups were played last week. The Jets were the only team playing to get in, but this match-up has switched locations. The Bengals get Ced Benson back and the Jets are still quarterbacked by Mark Sanchez... take the home team.
Patriots over Ravens... when one team "owns" another like the Patriots do the Ravens, the losing team needs a big playmaker to change the odds. Joe Flacco is a winner, but he's not that guy. The injuries to the Patriots will only hurt them in the next round against the Chargers.
Cowboys over Eagles... I know it's really hard to beat a team three times in one season, but the Cowboys have the tools. Also, I picked them to win it all, so here they are.
Packers over Cardinals... only upset of the weekend, but the Packers are hot and the Cardinals have not been good at home this year. Of course, they played poorly down the stretch last year and banged out some playoff wins, but not this time.

Bowl Picks:
Once again Katie and I picked the bowl games against each other and this time Katie pulled out the squeaker 19-15 to 18-16. The contest swung on the Boise State fake punt... she took the Broncos, I believed a little too much in TCU's offense.
Missouri's loss to Navy was unfortunate, but if you are going to lose to a "mid-major" at least it's to a group of guys who are learning to kick ass for a living.
As for the National Championship, someone on Facebook claimed that it would only have been fair if Mark Ingram had left the game with an injury as well. Injuries are never fair, and they cannot be prevented, but that's what happens when big men collide with each other at full speed. People get hurt. I feel bad for Colt, it sucks to be in his situation. Robbed of a chance to win Heismans and National Championships in consecutive years... that REALLY sucks. It's the disadvantage to running quarterbacks. They have to be able to take hits. Look at the kid from Navy, how many hits does he each game? You have to be tough, and Colt is not really a TOUGH player... a great player, just not "tough." Alabama was just bigger and better that night.

College Basketball:
You know I dislike preseason rankings. They are based on the previous season's "success" and whatever recruiting class you got. Why is Kansas, a team that only won 2 tournament games, ranked #1 and UConn is #13? Kansas is good, and they may make the Final Four, but are they are clear #1 right now?? My rankings will be coming soon, they might be top five, but don't expect them to be #1.

What's to come:
- A final NFL rap-up with Draft predictions
- College Rankings
- NBA and NHL mid-seasons predictions