2/24/10--The end to the 2010 Winter Olympics is beginning to come into view and I'm curious if some of my observations sync up with yours.
Who knew that skater dudes had such an impact on the world, and the world of sports? It's amazing that what once began innocently on residential neighborhood sidewalks and driveways, then grew in popularity such that community rec departments built skate parks, has now crept its way into an Olympic version of the sport which is played out in an icy "half-pipe". Are these kids, who perform incredible acrobatic moves 20-feet above the side of the half-pipe while their feet remain attached to their board, talented? Absolutely! Are they courageous thrill-seekers risking serious injury while attempting these death defying acrobatics? Indeed. Are they traditional athletes, like the various competitors from around the world who train for four years to chase an Olympic medal in other sports...cardio training, strength training, long hours in the gym, diet...? Uh, not that I am not impressed, but no, I don't think so. Admit it though; they are entertaining.
On the surface, what might be sillier than the winter biathlon? In America, when we hear of triathlon we conjure up warriors who torture themselves while competing in a continuous chain of events--swimming, biking and running, all in warmer temps. The Winter Olympics biathlon is composed of cross-country skiing and riflery! Why do we want cross country skiers running around the the snowy, wooded mountain areas with weapons strapped on their backs? When you boil it down, seriously, this event is brutally tough. Skiers navigate their way on a cross-country course up and down challenging inclines only to settle at one of several shooting stations along the way where they step up to fire five shots at a target about the size of a grapefruit at 50 yards. The ability to aim a gun steadily, while their body's muscles are crying out with burning fatigue, cannot be appreciated until you see them. It's not just who is the master of the course as a cross-country skier. It's a strange combination of being an incredibly well-conditioned athlete with exceptional technique on skis, who can focus his attention attempting to steady his shaking body, and fire five accurate shots at the target before hitting the trail again. I have new-found respect for these guys just like I do the skater dudes, although in a much different way.
The classic ice skating/ice dancing competition has always been revered as a top winter attraction. Even in non-Olympic years our TV networks offer various world competitions to whet our appetite for the next edition of the Winter Olympics. Can I stay glued to all of the skating--men's, women's, pairs...short, long, free-style, etc.? No, but I do try to catch the finals, the best of the best.
Although it may not be totally strange, one thing that I did find a little hard to watch was the pairs competition when two Scottish skaters representing Great Britain skated through their routines. They are good, very good skaters who sell their character portrayal better than most others. I think we all agree that, to a large degree, pairs skating inherently projects some kind of a male-female relationship. I understand that not all skating pairs are actually "a pair", but some are and the others project that relationship as they skate, hoping to dance their way into the judges' hearts. Back to the Scotties. Their last name is Kerr, and as I said, they are very good. They are so good that unless you pay attention to wealth of background info on all of these skaters you would never sense that they are brother and sister. But, when you are educated to this fact, and you watch them work together as if they were not siblings, though fully knowing that they are...it's a little weird. They have to be very good skaters and even better thespians to pull that off, and for the most part, they do.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Tiger's Media Inferno Firing Up Again
2/18/10--Everyone get ready. The Tiger Woods media inferno, after calming down just a bit in the last couple of weeks, will be burning full blast again as we head into his “gathering” Friday, Feb. 19. It will burn well beyond that date with the extensive media over-play of whatever he chooses to communicate.
This is not a press conference. His agent, Mark Steinberg , and other PR handlers have crafted a way for Woods to tell us some things, hold back a whole lot more, and to make it a one-way communication. There will be no questions. The only attendees will be Woods and few close associates. A very small, select group of media members will be there just to take notes as Woods speaks publicly for the first time in months. A “pool” TV camera will provide a feed to outlets choosing to air this appearance.
The buzz in the media and around water coolers seems to be centering on speculation of Woods issuing an apology. Who said he is apologizing? If he does, to whom does he owe an apology and why? In this writer’s opinion the only people owed an apology are Tiger’s family members, who have been shamed, and business associates that have contributed to his bank account throughout his career. I don’t know Tiger; we don’t have any kind of relationship. Therefore, he owes me nothing. If some people feel they have been cheated because he encouraged them to buy products he has endorsed, then they are silly for making the purchase based on the idea some popular athlete thought it was a good idea for them to do so.
The Tiger saga began a couple of months ago. But, it struck me recently, and the light bulb really illuminated, when I heard of this public statement occurring Friday. Where have Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, Jr. been all this time? Don’t they always pop up in front of TV cameras when there is some fabulous story about someone being wronged or a crusade to which they would like to attach themselves?
I got it. If Tiger’s handlers really wanted to begin the road to public image recovery they should have hooked up with Lionel Ritchie and Quincy Jones. That way the world’s best golfer could be seen belting out a few lines in the newly re-made version of “We Are the World” music video benefitting the victims in Haiti. Can’t you see Tiger, golf cap crunched on top because of the recording studio head-phones, laying down a couple of solo lines of the ballad alongside Celine Dion, Barbara Streisand and Wyclef Jean?
Too bad. He missed a great opportunity.
This is not a press conference. His agent, Mark Steinberg , and other PR handlers have crafted a way for Woods to tell us some things, hold back a whole lot more, and to make it a one-way communication. There will be no questions. The only attendees will be Woods and few close associates. A very small, select group of media members will be there just to take notes as Woods speaks publicly for the first time in months. A “pool” TV camera will provide a feed to outlets choosing to air this appearance.
The buzz in the media and around water coolers seems to be centering on speculation of Woods issuing an apology. Who said he is apologizing? If he does, to whom does he owe an apology and why? In this writer’s opinion the only people owed an apology are Tiger’s family members, who have been shamed, and business associates that have contributed to his bank account throughout his career. I don’t know Tiger; we don’t have any kind of relationship. Therefore, he owes me nothing. If some people feel they have been cheated because he encouraged them to buy products he has endorsed, then they are silly for making the purchase based on the idea some popular athlete thought it was a good idea for them to do so.
The Tiger saga began a couple of months ago. But, it struck me recently, and the light bulb really illuminated, when I heard of this public statement occurring Friday. Where have Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, Jr. been all this time? Don’t they always pop up in front of TV cameras when there is some fabulous story about someone being wronged or a crusade to which they would like to attach themselves?
I got it. If Tiger’s handlers really wanted to begin the road to public image recovery they should have hooked up with Lionel Ritchie and Quincy Jones. That way the world’s best golfer could be seen belting out a few lines in the newly re-made version of “We Are the World” music video benefitting the victims in Haiti. Can’t you see Tiger, golf cap crunched on top because of the recording studio head-phones, laying down a couple of solo lines of the ballad alongside Celine Dion, Barbara Streisand and Wyclef Jean?
Too bad. He missed a great opportunity.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Quick Hits From Early Days of Winter Olympics
The 2010 Winter Olympics began this past Friday night with the pageantry of opening ceremonies in beautiful Vancouver, British Columbia. Here are a few quick hit observations which I noted while watching it in vivid, crystal clear HD.
THE BROADCAST--Is NBC's Lester Holt the hardest working man in TV journalism? The poor guy usually gets morning Today Show weekend host duties, then doubles back to host the evening news. Now they have him in Vancouver providing whatever is needed, including live morning reports as part of Today, which clocks in at 4 AM Pacific Time (7 AM EST). I know TV is a visual medium and looks are important, but Bob Costas looks younger now than he did 10 years ago thanks to some touch up work. The much darker than natural hair color he is using is just not believable. It doesn't take away from his quality work, but it certainly is distracting.
ALMOST "OH NO!" FOR OHNO--Saturday night short track speed skater Apolo Ohno was the beneficiary of some over-aggressive Koreans as he picked up a silver medal in the 1500 meter event, thus putting him in position to be the most decorated US winter Olympian ever if he earns one more medal. Heading into the final curve/home stretch Korea owned the first three places. But, the two battling for the second and third spots got their skates tangled and both went sailing into the protective padding as Ohno and fellow American, 19-year old JR Celski, crossed the finish line in those silver and bronze places.
MOGULS ANYONE?--This downhill skiing event, which combines speeding over almost 900 yards of bumps (moguls), two big aerial jumps, and subjective grades on technical execution from the judges, is growing on me. If you have seen it, you might agree how shocking it is to see the athletes navigate their way through the middle of this downhill speed-bump course, trying to safely kiss off the small, back-side of each mogul while not sacrificing time or speed. Their upper bodies must remain relaxed, yet still locked into the proper upright position, while the tremendous strength in the ankles, knees, hips and lower back absorb the shock of each mogul. The fury takes less than 30 seconds, but the entire journey is hair-raising. Count me as a new mogul fan. By the way, Hanna Kearney from Norwich, VT won gold for the US, defeating the favored Jen Heil of Canada.
PAIRS FIGURE SKATING--I just couldn't help but think of Chris Farley and his classic Saturday Night Live routine when I began watching this on Sunday night. There was the great orchestral music accompaniment blaring over the PA, the three-person broadcast team at rink side providing information and commentary, and the roar of the crowd. All we needed was Farley in his sparkly, sequin shirt--unbuttoned to show his chest hair--flashing a passionate smile while tossing his partner across the ice. We all know the real darlings of the ice skating world are the ladies in the women's competition, and that is usually saved until much later in the games' schedule. So, until then we have to be patient.
METEOROLOGY--While a good portion of the United States was suffering through cold temperatures that reached into the far south, the meteorological tidbit for the day was that the relatively mild temperature in Olympic host city Vancouver was 2 degrees higher than what we woke up to in the Tampa Bay area of Florida on Sunday.
THE BROADCAST--Is NBC's Lester Holt the hardest working man in TV journalism? The poor guy usually gets morning Today Show weekend host duties, then doubles back to host the evening news. Now they have him in Vancouver providing whatever is needed, including live morning reports as part of Today, which clocks in at 4 AM Pacific Time (7 AM EST). I know TV is a visual medium and looks are important, but Bob Costas looks younger now than he did 10 years ago thanks to some touch up work. The much darker than natural hair color he is using is just not believable. It doesn't take away from his quality work, but it certainly is distracting.
ALMOST "OH NO!" FOR OHNO--Saturday night short track speed skater Apolo Ohno was the beneficiary of some over-aggressive Koreans as he picked up a silver medal in the 1500 meter event, thus putting him in position to be the most decorated US winter Olympian ever if he earns one more medal. Heading into the final curve/home stretch Korea owned the first three places. But, the two battling for the second and third spots got their skates tangled and both went sailing into the protective padding as Ohno and fellow American, 19-year old JR Celski, crossed the finish line in those silver and bronze places.
MOGULS ANYONE?--This downhill skiing event, which combines speeding over almost 900 yards of bumps (moguls), two big aerial jumps, and subjective grades on technical execution from the judges, is growing on me. If you have seen it, you might agree how shocking it is to see the athletes navigate their way through the middle of this downhill speed-bump course, trying to safely kiss off the small, back-side of each mogul while not sacrificing time or speed. Their upper bodies must remain relaxed, yet still locked into the proper upright position, while the tremendous strength in the ankles, knees, hips and lower back absorb the shock of each mogul. The fury takes less than 30 seconds, but the entire journey is hair-raising. Count me as a new mogul fan. By the way, Hanna Kearney from Norwich, VT won gold for the US, defeating the favored Jen Heil of Canada.
PAIRS FIGURE SKATING--I just couldn't help but think of Chris Farley and his classic Saturday Night Live routine when I began watching this on Sunday night. There was the great orchestral music accompaniment blaring over the PA, the three-person broadcast team at rink side providing information and commentary, and the roar of the crowd. All we needed was Farley in his sparkly, sequin shirt--unbuttoned to show his chest hair--flashing a passionate smile while tossing his partner across the ice. We all know the real darlings of the ice skating world are the ladies in the women's competition, and that is usually saved until much later in the games' schedule. So, until then we have to be patient.
METEOROLOGY--While a good portion of the United States was suffering through cold temperatures that reached into the far south, the meteorological tidbit for the day was that the relatively mild temperature in Olympic host city Vancouver was 2 degrees higher than what we woke up to in the Tampa Bay area of Florida on Sunday.
Friday, January 22, 2010
BEST SUNDAY OF NFL SEASON THIS WEEKEND
The best Sunday of the entire National Football League season, which features the AFC and NFC championship games, will be played this weekend with the two conference champions advancing to play for the ultimate prize—the Vince Lombardi Trophy, signifying Super Bowl champions. Here’s an inside look at the two match-ups.
NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME—Minnesota Vikings at New Orleans Saints, site Super Dome
KEYS FOR MINNESOTA—The Vikings need to be able to run the ball effectively to off-set the tremendous crowd noise that heavily impacts pass audibles at the line of scrimmage by the QB. If the Vikes can go to the line, get set quickly, snap the ball and get RB Adrian Peterson rolling it will take the crowd out of the game. It will also allow Bret Favre to have the entire play-action pass playbook open for use.
The Viking defense is pretty salty up front. They have great size and strength in the middle with their defensive tackles and they have excellent athleticism and speed to rush the pass off the edge. The LBs are solid and run well. If the Vikings can dominate up front and make the Saints more one-dimensional, meaning pass only, the advantage goes to them. Drew Brees is good, but not nearly as good if he has a run game to complement his passing game. Look for the Saints to have to throw quick, shorter or play-action passes early to keep the heat off Brees.
KEYS FOR NEW ORLEANS—The Saints are improved defensively over the last couple of years, but they are still a distance from being a dominating unit. Facing a balanced attack like Minnesota, they are going to have to find a way to get off the field by either creating turnovers or making the Vikes punt without achieving first downs to help create decent field position for Brees and the offense.
Offensively, the Saints will need to really mix it up. They will throw quick passes and screens to keep Brees safe, and then take some deep, downfield shots to Marcus Colston vs. an average Viking secondary. Reggie Bush is an X-factor. If Coach Sean Payton can find a way to get Busch on the perimeter to stretch the defense, just like Minnesota does with Percy Harvin, that will loosen things up a bit.
LAST WORD—This is a great match-up and special teams will have a huge impact. Saints have Busch to make potential big plays and the Vikings have Harvin. The difference could be the kickers and Minnesota’s Ryan Longwell had a fabulous year hitting 26-28 FGs, including 2-2 over 50 yards.
AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME—New York Jets at Indianapolis Colts, site Lucas Oil Field (dome)
KEYS FOR NEW YORK—This team has won with strong defense and a punishing run game. The Jets offensive line boasts four former first round picks among the five starters. Rookie QB Mark Sanchez cannot carry the load, so the O-line and RBs Shon Green and Thomas Jones have to keep slamming away to eat some clock and move the chains. Rex Ryan’s defense is a headache for any opposing offense and if the Jets are to pull the upset on the road they need to hit Peyton Manning early and often, trying to off-set his rhythm as well as seeking turnovers. The Jets are content to win ugly. That means dictating tempo on “D”, eating clock while putting up enough points so that the defense can cover, and not turning the ball over.
KEYS FOR INDY—There is no one better adjusting to, and being productive, vs. the blitz than QB Peyton Manning. That being said, he will have to connect on quickies and find the best one-on-one match-up with the little time he’ll be afforded. Indy was 32nd in the league in run offense. There is no way they run the ball effectively, but they need to pop a few in there to take advantage of the hard-charging Gang Green defense to keep them honest. If Manning can stay upright and not be pressured into throwing into impossible coverage, the Colts will be OK. But, that is a big if. Defensively the Colts are like the Saints, improved over the last two years, but still not a unit strikes fear into their opponent. The Colts have gotten good play in stopping the run out of their safeties, which they will do again vs. the Jets. But, they can’t give up the deep play-action ball for a home run due to their over-aggressive run defense mind-set. The strength of the Colts defense, their quick, agile pass-rushing DEs, are really not a factor against this type of Jets offense.
LAST WORD—Jets QB Sanchez threw 20 INTs vs. 12 TDs this season. He completed only 53% of his passes. If the Jets defense gets Manning off of his game early and New York can muster any kind of points because of it, thus, not saddling Sanchez with the heavy responsibility of having to win the game himself-- the underdog could conceivably steal this one. On the other hand, you live by the sword, you die by the sword. If the Jets pressure package gives up a couple of big plays with their sell-out style of defense, it'll be uphill for their offense. I still like Indy, but I am not betting lunch on this one.
NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME—Minnesota Vikings at New Orleans Saints, site Super Dome
KEYS FOR MINNESOTA—The Vikings need to be able to run the ball effectively to off-set the tremendous crowd noise that heavily impacts pass audibles at the line of scrimmage by the QB. If the Vikes can go to the line, get set quickly, snap the ball and get RB Adrian Peterson rolling it will take the crowd out of the game. It will also allow Bret Favre to have the entire play-action pass playbook open for use.
The Viking defense is pretty salty up front. They have great size and strength in the middle with their defensive tackles and they have excellent athleticism and speed to rush the pass off the edge. The LBs are solid and run well. If the Vikings can dominate up front and make the Saints more one-dimensional, meaning pass only, the advantage goes to them. Drew Brees is good, but not nearly as good if he has a run game to complement his passing game. Look for the Saints to have to throw quick, shorter or play-action passes early to keep the heat off Brees.
KEYS FOR NEW ORLEANS—The Saints are improved defensively over the last couple of years, but they are still a distance from being a dominating unit. Facing a balanced attack like Minnesota, they are going to have to find a way to get off the field by either creating turnovers or making the Vikes punt without achieving first downs to help create decent field position for Brees and the offense.
Offensively, the Saints will need to really mix it up. They will throw quick passes and screens to keep Brees safe, and then take some deep, downfield shots to Marcus Colston vs. an average Viking secondary. Reggie Bush is an X-factor. If Coach Sean Payton can find a way to get Busch on the perimeter to stretch the defense, just like Minnesota does with Percy Harvin, that will loosen things up a bit.
LAST WORD—This is a great match-up and special teams will have a huge impact. Saints have Busch to make potential big plays and the Vikings have Harvin. The difference could be the kickers and Minnesota’s Ryan Longwell had a fabulous year hitting 26-28 FGs, including 2-2 over 50 yards.
AFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME—New York Jets at Indianapolis Colts, site Lucas Oil Field (dome)
KEYS FOR NEW YORK—This team has won with strong defense and a punishing run game. The Jets offensive line boasts four former first round picks among the five starters. Rookie QB Mark Sanchez cannot carry the load, so the O-line and RBs Shon Green and Thomas Jones have to keep slamming away to eat some clock and move the chains. Rex Ryan’s defense is a headache for any opposing offense and if the Jets are to pull the upset on the road they need to hit Peyton Manning early and often, trying to off-set his rhythm as well as seeking turnovers. The Jets are content to win ugly. That means dictating tempo on “D”, eating clock while putting up enough points so that the defense can cover, and not turning the ball over.
KEYS FOR INDY—There is no one better adjusting to, and being productive, vs. the blitz than QB Peyton Manning. That being said, he will have to connect on quickies and find the best one-on-one match-up with the little time he’ll be afforded. Indy was 32nd in the league in run offense. There is no way they run the ball effectively, but they need to pop a few in there to take advantage of the hard-charging Gang Green defense to keep them honest. If Manning can stay upright and not be pressured into throwing into impossible coverage, the Colts will be OK. But, that is a big if. Defensively the Colts are like the Saints, improved over the last two years, but still not a unit strikes fear into their opponent. The Colts have gotten good play in stopping the run out of their safeties, which they will do again vs. the Jets. But, they can’t give up the deep play-action ball for a home run due to their over-aggressive run defense mind-set. The strength of the Colts defense, their quick, agile pass-rushing DEs, are really not a factor against this type of Jets offense.
LAST WORD—Jets QB Sanchez threw 20 INTs vs. 12 TDs this season. He completed only 53% of his passes. If the Jets defense gets Manning off of his game early and New York can muster any kind of points because of it, thus, not saddling Sanchez with the heavy responsibility of having to win the game himself-- the underdog could conceivably steal this one. On the other hand, you live by the sword, you die by the sword. If the Jets pressure package gives up a couple of big plays with their sell-out style of defense, it'll be uphill for their offense. I still like Indy, but I am not betting lunch on this one.
Saturday, January 2, 2010
Big Ten Arrow Up, Pac-10 Arrow Down, ACC Up Slightly in Bowl Action
There are still a number of big bowl games to come today and in this coming week, but at this point it's easy to draw some conclusions about what certain conferences did or didn't do with their post-season opportunities.
The arrow is pointing up for the Big Ten with Ohio State's big win over Oregon in the Rose Bowl, Penn State's topping LSU in the Capitol One, and Wisconsin stopping Miami 20-14 on the Champs' Bowl. As a point of comparison, last year the Big Ten struggled with a 1-6 bowl mark, the lone victory turned in by Iowa. The conference stubbed their collective toes in two games decided by a total of three points this past week. Northwestern lost to Auburn by two and Minnesota finished the year 6-7 by losing to Iowa State. The Midwesterners still have two games to go--in tonight's Alamo Bowl Michigan State tangles with Mike Leach-less Texas Tech and on the Orange Bowl stage Iowa takes on Georgia Tech this Tuesday night.
The arrow is pointing down on the Pac-10. The west coast conference schools finished the bowl season a disappointing 2-5. Their lone wins were UCLA having to furiously comeback to beat Temple (believe that?), 30-21, and USC bested Boston College 24-13. In a very entertaining Rose Bowl Oregon's point-a-minute offense was kept in check and fell to Ohio State 26-17 . From the bad news department, the conference took two real solid body shots delivered by the Mountain West Conference, a non-BCS league, but, nevertheless, one that should be. Cal was popped by Utah 37-27, and BYU ripped Oregon State 44-20. One of the better bowl games featured Stanford vs. Oklahoma in the Sun Bowl. The Big 12 Sooners beat the Cardinal, 31-27. But, the game that took a big swipe at the Pac 10's power ranking was another Big 12 team, Nebraska, totally dominating Arizona 33-0 in the Holiday Bowl.
The ACC arrow is slightly up, but their final game pitting their GT Yellowjackets against Iowa in the Orange will determine the conference's finish. They are 4-3 right now, but the only game that was a mild upset was Florida State sending venerable head coach Bobby Bowden out with class in a 33-21 win over West Virginia. Other wins for the conference were Auburn edging Northwestern in overtime, Clemson topping Kentucky 21-13, and Virginia Tech handling Tennessee impressively, 37-14. The ACC didn't get any help from North Carolina who lost to Pitt 19-17, and the previously mentioned games with Miami losing to Wisconsin and BC dropping their contest to USC.
By the end of next week we'll have a new national champion and the final wrap-up on other conferences like the Big East, Big 12 and SEC. Stay tuned.
The arrow is pointing up for the Big Ten with Ohio State's big win over Oregon in the Rose Bowl, Penn State's topping LSU in the Capitol One, and Wisconsin stopping Miami 20-14 on the Champs' Bowl. As a point of comparison, last year the Big Ten struggled with a 1-6 bowl mark, the lone victory turned in by Iowa. The conference stubbed their collective toes in two games decided by a total of three points this past week. Northwestern lost to Auburn by two and Minnesota finished the year 6-7 by losing to Iowa State. The Midwesterners still have two games to go--in tonight's Alamo Bowl Michigan State tangles with Mike Leach-less Texas Tech and on the Orange Bowl stage Iowa takes on Georgia Tech this Tuesday night.
The arrow is pointing down on the Pac-10. The west coast conference schools finished the bowl season a disappointing 2-5. Their lone wins were UCLA having to furiously comeback to beat Temple (believe that?), 30-21, and USC bested Boston College 24-13. In a very entertaining Rose Bowl Oregon's point-a-minute offense was kept in check and fell to Ohio State 26-17 . From the bad news department, the conference took two real solid body shots delivered by the Mountain West Conference, a non-BCS league, but, nevertheless, one that should be. Cal was popped by Utah 37-27, and BYU ripped Oregon State 44-20. One of the better bowl games featured Stanford vs. Oklahoma in the Sun Bowl. The Big 12 Sooners beat the Cardinal, 31-27. But, the game that took a big swipe at the Pac 10's power ranking was another Big 12 team, Nebraska, totally dominating Arizona 33-0 in the Holiday Bowl.
The ACC arrow is slightly up, but their final game pitting their GT Yellowjackets against Iowa in the Orange will determine the conference's finish. They are 4-3 right now, but the only game that was a mild upset was Florida State sending venerable head coach Bobby Bowden out with class in a 33-21 win over West Virginia. Other wins for the conference were Auburn edging Northwestern in overtime, Clemson topping Kentucky 21-13, and Virginia Tech handling Tennessee impressively, 37-14. The ACC didn't get any help from North Carolina who lost to Pitt 19-17, and the previously mentioned games with Miami losing to Wisconsin and BC dropping their contest to USC.
By the end of next week we'll have a new national champion and the final wrap-up on other conferences like the Big East, Big 12 and SEC. Stay tuned.
Thursday, December 31, 2009
HOW MANY HEAD COACHES DOES IT TAKE TO COACH A FOOTBALL GAME?
Throughout the history of college football bowl games, there cannot be another scenario that matches the strangeness surrounding the Sugar Bowl between Florida and Cincinnati when it comes to the coaching arrangement.
You have to sharpen your pencil and be ready to connect the dots. Ready? On New Year’s Day there will be no less than six, yes six, head coaches connected to just these two teams.
Most of you are aware that head Gator Urban Meyer resigned on Saturday, Dec. 26th only to change that decision to making that a leave of absence for health reasons. To quote Urban, “it’s full speed ahead” for him to coach through the Sugar Bowl. Once the game ends Florida’s offensive coordinator, Steve Addazio, takes over for Meyer as interim head coach for an undetermined amount of time. Gator defensive coordinator Charlie Strong accepted the head coaching job at Louisville the week after the SEC title game but the agreement included Srong prepping and coaching the defense in the Sugar Bowl. So, that's three for the Gators.
Flipping over to Cincinnati, Brian Kelly led the Bearcats to unprecedented success over the last three years and parlayed that into becoming the new head coach at Notre Dame. Because Kelly accepted the job at the Golden Dome in the second week of December and he needed to move on to assemble a staff, get a handle on recruiting, and further organize his new program the Bearcats placed Cincy’s offensive coordinator, Jeff Quinn, in charge as interim head coach for the bowl game. Now we are up to five head coaches.
Lastly, as Kelly departed the Queen City for South Bend the Bearcats carried out their search for a permanent head coach. Enter Butch Jones, who coincidentally succeeded Kelly three years ago as head coach at Central Michigan upon Kelly’s leaving for Cincy. Jones will be watching his new team with a keen eye as they go about tangling with the Gators while being coached by other people than his own.
I am not sure if this has any effect on the game itself, but it certainly is unusual. So, there you have it. Connect the dots. Six versions of head coaches all tied to two teams in just one bowl game.
You have to sharpen your pencil and be ready to connect the dots. Ready? On New Year’s Day there will be no less than six, yes six, head coaches connected to just these two teams.
Most of you are aware that head Gator Urban Meyer resigned on Saturday, Dec. 26th only to change that decision to making that a leave of absence for health reasons. To quote Urban, “it’s full speed ahead” for him to coach through the Sugar Bowl. Once the game ends Florida’s offensive coordinator, Steve Addazio, takes over for Meyer as interim head coach for an undetermined amount of time. Gator defensive coordinator Charlie Strong accepted the head coaching job at Louisville the week after the SEC title game but the agreement included Srong prepping and coaching the defense in the Sugar Bowl. So, that's three for the Gators.
Flipping over to Cincinnati, Brian Kelly led the Bearcats to unprecedented success over the last three years and parlayed that into becoming the new head coach at Notre Dame. Because Kelly accepted the job at the Golden Dome in the second week of December and he needed to move on to assemble a staff, get a handle on recruiting, and further organize his new program the Bearcats placed Cincy’s offensive coordinator, Jeff Quinn, in charge as interim head coach for the bowl game. Now we are up to five head coaches.
Lastly, as Kelly departed the Queen City for South Bend the Bearcats carried out their search for a permanent head coach. Enter Butch Jones, who coincidentally succeeded Kelly three years ago as head coach at Central Michigan upon Kelly’s leaving for Cincy. Jones will be watching his new team with a keen eye as they go about tangling with the Gators while being coached by other people than his own.
I am not sure if this has any effect on the game itself, but it certainly is unusual. So, there you have it. Connect the dots. Six versions of head coaches all tied to two teams in just one bowl game.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Christmas Gift Comes Early for Some Bowl Teams
Christmas gifts came early for several college football teams when they were selected to play in a post season bowl game. With the long-play version of the bowl season kicking off this weekend it is worth noting (or maybe not) the background on some of the recipients of these gifts.
Sat. Dec. 19 New Mexico Bowl Wyoming (6-6) vs. Fresno St. (8-4)
Wyoming staggers into this game winning just two of their last six games and they struggled to beat a poor Colorado St. team, who lost their last nine in a row, 17-16 in the finale.
Sat. Dec. 26 Little Caesar’s Pizza Bowl Marshall (6-6) vs. Ohio (9-4)
For those of you who thought the Pizza Bowl was Laverne DeFazio’s father’s bowling alley/pizza shop on that goofy 70’s TV show, you are right, but they are not the title sponsor of this bowl game in Detroit. Marshall (not Penny) fired their head coach at the end of the season and will play this game with a lame duck staff unless the interim head coach actually gets named head coach. To get the minimum of six wins for bowl eligibility Marshall defeated Southern Illinois, Tulane, Bowling Green, Memphis, Tulane, Alabama-Birmingham and SMU. Impressed? They lost to a 4-8 UTEP team 52-21.
Mon. Dec. 28 Independence Bowl Texas A&M (6-6) vs. Georgia (7-5)
A&M started off 3-0 and then went 3-6 the rest of the way, including 3-5 in a softer Big 12 conference this season. The Aggies were a roller-coaster team evidenced by their 62-14 loss to Kansas State, who didn’t have enough Division I wins to be bowl eligible.
Tues. Dec. 29 Eagle Bank Bowl UCLA(6-6) vs. Temple (9-3)
This would make for a good basketball match-up, but not necessarily on the gridiron. UCLA backed into this game. If Army had beaten Navy in the season’s wrap-up game last weekend then Army would play Temple. Thanks to Navy, UCLA will play in the nation’s capitol against the Owls. The Bruins started 3-0, then lost five in a row before closing with three wins in their last four outings. UCLA was 3-6 in the PAC 10.
Thurs. Dec. 31 Insight Bowl Iowa St. (6-6) vs. Minnesota (6-6)
Glancing at this match-up you might think what lure does this game have? A winning season! It’s obvious that the winner of this game can say they had a winning season, which they can’t say just yet, whereas the loser has a losing season…pretty simple. Each team had a not quite, but near-signature win. ISU was granted eight turnovers by Nebraska in barely edging the Huskers, 9-7. Three of their other five wins were over North Dakota St., Kent State and Army. The Goophers, or excuse me…Gophers, beat Northwestern. Both teams finished 3-5 in their league play.
Fri. Jan 1 Gator Bowl Florida St. (6-6) vs. West Virginia (9-3)
The bowl committee decided to let Coach Bobby Bowden go out on a high note by taking the Seminoles over much more-deserving, higher ranked teams for this traditional New Year’s Day bowl. After 34 years as a head coach and being ranked second all-time in career wins he deserves the benefit of the doubt . FSU was the model of inconsistency. Early in the year they barely got by Division I-AA Jacksonville State, 19-9, they then headed out to Provo, UT to pound BYU, 54-28, only to return home to lose to South Florida who had a red-shirt freshmen starting his first game at QB. FSU finished 4-4 in the ACC.
As a thank you to the bowls who selected them it will be interesting to see which teams cease the opportunity presented to them. By making the most out their post-season practices and putting their best product on the field they can quiet the nay-sayers who may have thought they weren’t bowl worthy.
Sat. Dec. 19 New Mexico Bowl Wyoming (6-6) vs. Fresno St. (8-4)
Wyoming staggers into this game winning just two of their last six games and they struggled to beat a poor Colorado St. team, who lost their last nine in a row, 17-16 in the finale.
Sat. Dec. 26 Little Caesar’s Pizza Bowl Marshall (6-6) vs. Ohio (9-4)
For those of you who thought the Pizza Bowl was Laverne DeFazio’s father’s bowling alley/pizza shop on that goofy 70’s TV show, you are right, but they are not the title sponsor of this bowl game in Detroit. Marshall (not Penny) fired their head coach at the end of the season and will play this game with a lame duck staff unless the interim head coach actually gets named head coach. To get the minimum of six wins for bowl eligibility Marshall defeated Southern Illinois, Tulane, Bowling Green, Memphis, Tulane, Alabama-Birmingham and SMU. Impressed? They lost to a 4-8 UTEP team 52-21.
Mon. Dec. 28 Independence Bowl Texas A&M (6-6) vs. Georgia (7-5)
A&M started off 3-0 and then went 3-6 the rest of the way, including 3-5 in a softer Big 12 conference this season. The Aggies were a roller-coaster team evidenced by their 62-14 loss to Kansas State, who didn’t have enough Division I wins to be bowl eligible.
Tues. Dec. 29 Eagle Bank Bowl UCLA(6-6) vs. Temple (9-3)
This would make for a good basketball match-up, but not necessarily on the gridiron. UCLA backed into this game. If Army had beaten Navy in the season’s wrap-up game last weekend then Army would play Temple. Thanks to Navy, UCLA will play in the nation’s capitol against the Owls. The Bruins started 3-0, then lost five in a row before closing with three wins in their last four outings. UCLA was 3-6 in the PAC 10.
Thurs. Dec. 31 Insight Bowl Iowa St. (6-6) vs. Minnesota (6-6)
Glancing at this match-up you might think what lure does this game have? A winning season! It’s obvious that the winner of this game can say they had a winning season, which they can’t say just yet, whereas the loser has a losing season…pretty simple. Each team had a not quite, but near-signature win. ISU was granted eight turnovers by Nebraska in barely edging the Huskers, 9-7. Three of their other five wins were over North Dakota St., Kent State and Army. The Goophers, or excuse me…Gophers, beat Northwestern. Both teams finished 3-5 in their league play.
Fri. Jan 1 Gator Bowl Florida St. (6-6) vs. West Virginia (9-3)
The bowl committee decided to let Coach Bobby Bowden go out on a high note by taking the Seminoles over much more-deserving, higher ranked teams for this traditional New Year’s Day bowl. After 34 years as a head coach and being ranked second all-time in career wins he deserves the benefit of the doubt . FSU was the model of inconsistency. Early in the year they barely got by Division I-AA Jacksonville State, 19-9, they then headed out to Provo, UT to pound BYU, 54-28, only to return home to lose to South Florida who had a red-shirt freshmen starting his first game at QB. FSU finished 4-4 in the ACC.
As a thank you to the bowls who selected them it will be interesting to see which teams cease the opportunity presented to them. By making the most out their post-season practices and putting their best product on the field they can quiet the nay-sayers who may have thought they weren’t bowl worthy.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
