THE definitive email chain of 12/28/09

Sportynation, today was my first day back to work after taking most of last week off for the Xmas holiday. I knew I’d have a million emails, and that it would be a pretty much typical Monday filled with reports and analyzing business. However, I didn’t know it would be a day with a classic email exchange. The typical sports guy initiated the epic email chain, and me and my cousin Vin took the baton, and ran with it. It was too great to not share it with, Sporty nation. Here it is. Enjoy.



Typical Sports Guy:

Months ago I asked who's season were you most concerned about: skins or titans.

Today I ask what was more embarrassing: skins last night or Tennessee getting 59pts scored on them?

I've hung my head in shame; skins were terrible. See you next season.

Cousin Vin:

Man, I completely forgot this game was played.

Look at it the college football way: you beat Oakland 34-13 last week. And Oakland beat Denver 20-19 on Sunday. Denver beat New York on Thanksgiving. So, technically, the 'Skins are way better than the Giants. It's science.

Typical Sports Guy:

What's more disappointing: skins season or giants season?

Me:

Skins.

Giants started off 5-0 and built high expectations which undoubtedly contributes to great disappointment, but the Skins are a laughing stock. They are routinely called a "high school" team with a high school coach by most everyone, and stoop to a new low each week, and probably most importantly fooled people like you and my Cousin Vin. They roped you two in...hard.

I told you guys that they were ummm...not Great, but you guys pointed to their nail biting wins over Cleveland and St. Louis as a clear indicator that they are better than the winless Titans whereas I pointed to them having one of the statistically easiest schedules this year and in the history of the league. Simply put, they had wins and my home state Titans did not. Nevermind, they played a much much tougher she-duel. You guys used win-loss as the only barometer of how good a team is.

How do you two reconcile everyone saying the two teams in both conferences with the best records are widely thought to not be the favorites to win the SuperBowl in their respective conferences and are said to not be as good as other teams with worse records? All, that being said, NO ONE knows who will win, but we kinda know who won't.

I have 318 unread emails. I missed 2.7 days. Oh dear!

Cousin Vin:

Any time your team quits and goes on to lose by 8 (yes, 8!) touchdowns, you're in worse shape. At the point the conversation was held, the Skins where the better team. You can't deal in absolutes, man. What sort of PROFESSIONAL team goes out and loses by 59. Jacksonville State doesn't even lose by 59.

It's not just win-loss, but how much effort was put into the games. Obviously none was put forth by the Titans in the NE game and a shake up was necessary, or they may have continued down that path. But they did change things, so we'll never know.



Me:

Anytime, you hire a coach to be an offensive coordinator and then a month later promote him to head coach , you have a problem. Then, 6 games into the season with a 2-4 record, when the same head coach is stripped of offensive play calling duties in favor of a guy, Sherm Lewis, that was last seen working in a bingo hall, you have problems or as you say "are in worse shape." (Btw, nice stat yesterday that detailed that the Redskins are the 3rd lowest scoring offense of the decade..."worse shape" ladies and gentlemen.

Anytime, you hire a coach that doesn't know the team colors of his new (job, employer, team), you have a problem, or as you say "are in worse shape."

Anytime, you have you have the easiest schedule in the league, so easy that it's a record and unprecedented to start a season playing in 5 consecutive weeks…winless teams. And barely beat Cleveland and St. Louis, two teams that will have top 4 draft picks, you are in "worse shape."

Losing to the Patriots is not THAT bad. Losing by such a large margin is disheartening (it may be possible that terrible defeat was an outlier. that is that 1 in 100 times that that actually happened), but I’m not so sure it is as bad as barely winning with such an easy schedule and being in such turmoil.

Cousin Vin, says its not just win-loss and obviously no effort was put forth in the Titans losing to the Pats.

Titans just lost at home 42-17 last week in a must win game to have a chance at the playoffs. Was effort put forth then? Did the Giants put forth effort yesterday in a complete and utter beatdown 41-9 in another must win game?

Cousin Vin, may also assert that Tampa Bay is better than NO because they infact won their only matchup, or that because the Skins lost by 3 in OT to the Saints, they are better than many other teams because they put forth "effort." After all, most teams wouldn't play the Saints that well.

The point is, there is no truly right answer, but there is significantly more evidence suggesting that the Titans are better and were "in better shape" at THAT time. You are entrenched in your argument my man.

Fight it!



Typical Sports Guy:

no one is talking about TEN still; more disappointing season: giants or skins.

good answer, wrong question. get back to work and stop writing novels. yes, novels...this all seems speculative and fictitious.

Cousin Vin

Extrapolations on things I "may" say? False, false, false.

The Titans stopped playing competitively against the Pats. They lost to the Chargers but also scored a 4th quarter TD and kept driving even when the game was far from competitive. The Giants had drives deep into Carolina territory and even scoring chances even though they were down 32 points. Which proves my point, the Titans quit.

Giants are disappointing, even though their problems would be solved w/a good WR. Everyone who isn't from DC knows the Skins are garbage. You guys need to stop falling for them every year. Though in week 6, their prospects shone brighter than the Titans.

Me

How is your point proven that the Titans quit against the Pats, but NYG didn't quit?

100% you didn't see any of this game and are basing your assertion that they quit off of a box score or probably most notably what the "typical sports guy or media" said or a highlight or two. Tell me about their drives...

That game, the Titans were down 10-0 after the first, and then the Pats blew up in the 2nd quarter. In the second quarter, the Titans had drives that ended in turnovers and punts. I'll insert a great metaphor here, "when it rains it pours" It's like when you play EA Sports NCAA football. Once you get 1 turnover you are that much likely to get another and another and another. Then you throw the controller in disgust and scream.

Even though Chris Johnson had 128 yards rushing (he could have not quit and gone for 200 yards), the passing game was putrid AT BEST. When, you are down, you have to pass, and when you can't pass when it is a necessity, bad things happen in bunches. “It’s quicksand”.-The replacements Name 2 Titans WRs. Lendale White and Chris Johnson don't count.....................................

Lastly, as crazy as this may sound, the defense was definitely not as bad as the offense despite giving up 12 billion points. The Pats won time of possession 2:1 (40 minutes to 20 minutes) and the defense was on the field all day long.

Cousin Vin:

Sounds like a bunch of excuses to me.



Me:

Ha.

Today, Cousin Vin, you are anti-logic. You are making a strong statement about a game that you didn't see. You will and would never admit that just maybe, maybe you reacted too quickly and possibly recklessly.

I'm objecting to the statements that teams quit and more importantly the visceral reaction that you and the typical sports guy has regarding solely the final score while overlooking the nuance and qualitative aspects of sports. Maybe, they stopped playing as hard as they could, but maybe they didn't. At my crib Friday, I asked how hard what you play if you were clearly outmatched by the other side, and you said, you'd play even harder. You are asserting that you would play harder and these highly competitive professionals.

I’m not making excuses. I am challenging the conventional wisdom and am actually THINKING.

Cousin Vin:

It's very easy to assume what I think. I'd reply with my own tome, but am currently getting crushed by work.

Quickly: the Pats blew up in the second quarter, is it impossible the Titans would take your own answer to your own question and pack it in? In the snow already down 45 at HALF. Why not pack it in?

And if they're not packing it in, the Titans must absolutely suck. Either in execution or scheming or both. To lose by 8 touchdowns while giving max effort? Even if the 'Skins played 5 winless teams, they didn't get rocked by anything close to that. By your logic, then, The Titans would've been worse at the time than Washington. They let Brady's backup lead scoring drives.

Don't think I don't know what I'm talking about, I have too much work to get deep into this.

Me:

There you have it ladies and gentlemen. Michael Jordan shoots 3-26. He quit. He didn't have one of the worst games of his career. He quit!

Me: But, he was playing a good opponent.
Cousin Vin: So. He quit
Me: Could his historically poor performance be an outlier? or just a terrible game?
Cousin Vin: No, he quit.
Me: I watched almost all of the game. Did you?
Cousin Vin: No. I did not watch any of it. He quit.
Me: While I was watching he seemed to be trying really hard, and just was having one of those days. He couldn't buy a basket.
Cousin Vin: He quit.
Me: You said, you wouldn't quit if you were outmatched in a game and you'd try harder.
Cousin Vin: It's different. I wouldn't quit. Jordan, the professional athlete, would. It's so reasonable. He's rich. I'm not. He doesn't have a competitive side.
Cousin Vin: If Tony Kukoc had played the same opponent, he wouldn't have played as poorly.
Me: Yeah. You are probably right, but neither would Jordan.
Cousin Vin: That's right because JORDAN QUIT! He won't quit the next time...
Cousin Vin: Also! Kukoc wouldn't play that badly against the worst teams in the league. Now would he?
Me: No
Cousin Vin: Exactly. Jordan quit
Me:OHHHHH. Now I get it!



Cousin Vin:

Right, because I said exactly that.

That's worse than Nancy Grace, Justin.

Me:

Of course you did say EXACTLY that, but you more less said that.

I simplified today's convo with a most basic example that we all can understand.

It had to be done to illustrate your “arguments.”

I don't/didn't watch Nancy Grace, but I don't have to watch her. She quit!

Cousin Vin:

Nothing to do with previous e-mail, but 2008 NBA Finals Game 6. When Lakers realized it was out of reach, did they pack it in? Or was that an anomalous game?

Again, I will reply to your previous e-mail.

Me:

Everyone says they packed it in. So, it must be true...

No need to reply, Cousin Vin. You've said enough. I'm gonna leave for Stuyvesant Town now, the apartment complex, not the girl you heard about on the green line.

I'll format our back and forth today, and post it on my blog tonight. It was fun. Guarantee people will like it. I'll holla homie. I sent you an invite for NYE last night.

Cousin Vin:

Biased e-mails. I'll reply to your gmail to show you the error of your ways. If you're not too stubborn to see a different viewpoint, or mangle the entire argument.

Did you watch game 6?

Me:

Of course I watched game 6. It was down right ugly. And the Celts blitzed them. I am always hesitant to say what is going on in someone else's head. I don't disagree that it is possible that someone can quit, but the contrary is equally possible.

Did the Chicago Bulls quit last week? They were up 35 and lost in regulation at home (I think it was at home).

I won't change the emails at all. I'll copy and paste verbatim, the most I'll do is correct spelling. Gotta be worried when you say something is biased when it's verbatim with all context.

Sportynation, what do you all think? What is your opinion on today's exchange? Stay classy, challenge conventional wisdom, identify the importance of nuance, and most importantly think.

This is my Minority Report.

Mike Tomlin "releases hell!"

Mike Tomlin, head coach of the defending Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers, a couple weeks ago announced that he and his team will "release hell" ala Gladiator to finish out the season (after losing 3 straight). The typical sports guy and media absolutely ate this stuff up. The typical sports guy loves a coach with fire and passion. Tomlin's motivational declaration was "inspiring" and undoubteldy something that the team needs...allegedly. Most everyone believed/believes that it makes all the difference in professional sports. I'm NOT one of em.

If the Steelers win, it's because of his speech and not the simple fact that they were to play the absolutely horrible Oakland Raiders and Cleveland Browns both of whom are pure garbage. Sportynation, a motivational speech in professional sports is just down right silly. Professional athletes don't need extra motivation from a coach, and we are kidding ourselves thinking that a coaches SPEECH or declaration has a major impact on the outcome of a game. Btw, these full of rage and anger Steelers went on to lose 5 straight games! 5 straight!

Professional athletes, simply put, are professionals. That is, they are immensely skilled, talented, specialized, physically imposing specimens. Mike Tomlin saying that the team is going to play really well, doesn't really matter for players that are already trying to do well, particularly a team that just won the Championship the year before. Sportynation, let's not forget that the other team has a coach as well, a coach that can also profess to "release hell."




Generally speaking, a professional athlete has gotten to be a professional athlete for a reason. Once at the professional level, a motivational speech is just hot air coming from a coach's mouth. Just watch a basketball game and you'll see the players looking at almost everything except for the coach. Just do it. It's a pretty funny observation.

Sportynation, would you going to argue that Doug Collins' motivational techniques made Michael Jordan who he is? Mike Brown's motivational efforts influence LeBron? Stan Van's motivational techniques make Dwight Howard or J.J. Reddick play better?

Randy Moss doesn't need Bill Belicheck to motivate him, but rather he needs Tom Brady to throw the ball to him down field.



Adalius Thomas said it best, "Motivation is for Kindergartners. I'm not a Kindergartner," Said Thomas. "Sending somebody home, that's like 'He's expelled, come back and make good grades.' Get that [expletive] out of here. That's ridiculous. Motivation?" "I think everyone woke up to the snow yesterday. I didn't know it was going to snow. There was traffic. I can't run people over getting to work. I don't do that. I actually almost had a car accident. It is what it is. He did what he thought was best for him. That's what he did."

Look, motivation is the activation of goal oriented behavior. For the most part professional athletes are motivated to play well for various reasons...mainly and probably most importantly because they want to do well. It has a larger place in college sports, younger sports, and MAYBE other professions, but the most important form and type of motivation is intrinsic. Intrinsic motivation comes from rewards inherent to a task or activity itself...the desire to win, be the best or etc.

Let's not overthink things. Just a little while ago, Mike Tomlin kicked an onside kick up 2 points with a few minutes to play. That's not unleashing hell, that playing scared. Coach Tomlin's "hell" came in the form of Ben Roethlisberger passing for 503 yards, 3 Touchdowns one of which that came with 3 seconds left to play 1 inch from being out of bounds. Now, that some motivation for you...

This is my Minority Report.

I agree w/ Gladwell...gasp!

Malcolm Gladwell wrote the below last week regarding the craziness regarding celebrity and sport and it is one of the most poignant observations that I have read/seen ever...ever. Read below.

Second thought: How random are our reactions to celebrity misbehavior? You'd think there would be some general moral principle at work here, but there just isn't. Barry Bonds and Shawne Merriman allegedly did exactly the same thing: took performance-enhancing drugs that gave them a decided advantage over their peers. Bonds became a pariah. Merriman went to the Pro Bowl. Leonard Little left a party, got into his car and hit and killed a young woman. He blew .19 on the Breathalyzer. What happened to him? He did 60 days. Six years later, he was arrested for drunk driving again. He still plays for the Rams. Michael Vick did bad things to dogs and went to jail for two years and become the personification of evil. I mean, I love dogs and I was appalled by Vick's behavior. But in what universe is it a bigger crime to fight pit bulls than it is to get wasted and kill an innocent person? (Let's not even get into Plaxico Burress, whose case proves, I guess, how unexpectedly seriously New York state courts take the crime of stupidity). And now we have Tiger Woods, who fooled around on his wife and hit a fire hydrant. And in the middle of this absurd circus, the reigning King of Kings of the NBA and role model to millions is a man who not that long ago was accused of rape and lucked out of a trial because, by all appearances, he was able to buy off his accuser in a civil settlement. Huh?

Ladies and gentlemen, Malcolm Gladwell.

Quote of the Day

"Why do people think they are owed something by celebrities or successful people? It's a joke. They owe us nothing but a good performance."- Jason Whitlock

Usually don't agree with him, but I definitely agree with this statement. Think about his assertion. What does he owe us? He is an uber successful golfer. Think, sportynation...

This is my Minority Report.

Tiger Tiger Woods y'all!

From the Associated Press with my commentary to follow...

WINDERMERE, Fla. (AP)—Tiger Woods canceled yet another meeting with state troopers but, for the first time, talked about his car crash on his Web site, saying it was his fault, that his wife acted courageously and that remaining details were private.

The statement was posted about an hour before troopers were to meet with the world’s No. 1 golfer at his home inside the gates of Isleworth. A meeting was not rescheduled.

In a tape of a 911 call released Sunday, two days after the accident, a neighbor told dispatchers that a black Cadillac Escalade hit a tree and “I have someone down in front of my house.”

Woods’ neighbor never mentions the golfer by name, and the call is inaudible at several points because of the bad connection.

“I came out here just to see what was going on,” the neighbor, who was not identified, told dispatchers. “I see him, and he’s laying down.”

One woman is heard in the background yelling, “What happened?”

In his statement, Woods took responsibility for the accident.

“This situation is my fault, and it’s obviously embarrassing to my family and me,” Woods said. “I’m human and I’m not perfect. I will certainly make sure this doesn’t happen again.”

Woods said it was a private matter, and he wanted to keep it that way. What he failed to address was where he was going at that hour.

“Although I understand there is curiosity, the many false, unfounded and malicious rumors that are currently circulating about my family and me are irresponsible,” he said.

Windermere police chief Daniel Saylor has said Woods’ wife, Elin, used a golf club to smash out a rear window to help him get out of the SUV when she heard the crash from inside their home at 2:25 a.m. Friday.

“The only person responsible for the accident is me,” Woods said. “My wife, Elin, acted courageously when she saw I was hurt and in trouble. She was the first person to help me. Any other assertion is absolutely false.”




Sgt. Kim Montes of the Florida Highway Patrol said Woods’ attorney, Mark Nejame, informed the patrol that Woods would not be meeting with troopers Sunday afternoon.

“It has not been rescheduled,” Montes said. “He’s not required by law to give us a statement, and we’ll move forward with our investigation without it.”

Police first tried to interview Woods on Friday, only for his wife to ask if they could return the next day because he was sleeping.

As they headed to Woods’ $2.4 million house inside the gates of Isleworth on Saturday afternoon, FHP dispatch put through a phone call to troopers from Woods’ agent, informing them that Woods and his wife would be unavailable to talk until Sunday.

The accident came two days after the National Enquirer published a story alleging that Woods had been seeing a New York night club hostess, and that they recently were together in Melbourne, where Woods competed in the Australian Masters.

The woman, Rachel Uchitel, denied having an affair with Woods when contacted by The Associated Press.




Los Angeles attorney Gloria Allred confirmed she was representing Uchitel when she was reached by the AP on Sunday.

“She is with me in L.A.,” Allred said later in an e-mail to the AP. “We plan to meet and then we’ll decide on the next step, which we do not plan to announce to the press.”

Uchitel arrived at Los Angeles International Airport late Sunday morning, where she was met by Allred and escorted out of the baggage claim area and into a black car. Uchitel did not speak to reporters except to ask that she be left alone.

Woods is to host his Chevron World Challenge this week in Thousand Oaks, Calif., which benefits his foundation. Woods’ news conference had been scheduled for Tuesday afternoon, although it was not clear if he would still play, or even attend.

“We do not know if Tiger is playing; we are anticipating a great week of competition,” said Greg McLaughlin, the tournament director and president of his foundation.

Aside from occasional criticism of his temper inside the ropes, Woods has kept himself out of the news beyond his sport. In an October posting on his Facebook account, Woods wrote, “I’m asked why people don’t often see me and Elin in gossip magazines or tabloids. I think we’ve avoided a lot of media attention because we’re kind of boring. …”

“He’s an iconic brand, the platinum standard,” said John Rowady, president of rEvolution, a Chicago-based sports marketing agency. “I find it interesting how he’s being attacked by so many sides after how gracious he’s been. But even the best of celebrities who try to do their best can be riddled with controversy.”



AP Golf Writer Doug Ferguson in Jacksonville, AP Sports Writer Tim Dahlberg in Las Vegas and Associated Press writers Linda Deutsch in Los Angeles, Lisa Orkin Emmanuel and Sarah Larimer in Miami and Louise Nordstrom in Stockholm contributed to this report.

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Tiger Woods' remarks have been tremendously well though out, calculated, and wise. He has taken responsibility for the incident, has attempted to deflect attention away from his wife and family, and most importantly he has not said too much.

Famous people and/or people in the public eye far too often succumb to public pressures and sabotage themselves in a multitude of ways. That is to say that these noteworthy people make public statements against the advise of attorneys (see Jim Leyritz), make the media rounds (see Roger Clemens), write a lot on the personal websites, blogs, and social networking sites, and etc (see most anyone on Twitter and facebook).

The typical sports guy/gal or media member will tell you that Tiger must come clean. Tiger must speak up and do the "right" thing which is to tell all. Tiger owes this too his fans, the public, his sponsors, and the little children that look up to him. However, that position an d expectation is disingenuous and bordering on the asinine.



Sporty nation, Tiger Woods has a very very very small expectation of privacy. He is famous, he makes millions upon millions because of fans, the general public, the media, and etc. That being said, he doesn't truly owe any of these parties information about what is going on in his personal life or his arrests particularly because they are done in private and because they are not directly incongruous to an image that he is portraying. To further clarify, if Tiger Woods pulled an Eliot Spitzer and cracked down on crime and profited monetarily, politically, and socially then we have a serious serious issue that needs to be pointed called out, or if Tiger Woods a spokesman for PETA and was frequenting bull fights in Seville, then we have a relevant story because he is directly profiting from a blatant lie. What Tiger is alleged to have does not have to be told to the public.

(side note, how funny is Chris Berman endorsing Nutrisystem and Applebee's simultaneously on ESPN?)



In addition to the above, Tiger speaking to the public could and probably would be more damaging to his career, his sponsors, his family, the sport of golf, and his image. Tiger does not benefit from speaking to the police, holding a press conference, and/or "telling all." Is it not exceptionally unrealistic for people to expect Tiger Woods to air his personal life and alleged dirty laundry out to the public because the public wants to know. After all, let's not forget that the media benefits from the downfall of athletes and famous people and instututions. (See Perez Hilton and TMZ as well at The Duke Lacrosse scandal, the downfall of Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriguez, Allen Iverson, and Terrel Owens to name a few).

Dan Le Batard, probably my favorite sports columnist ever and certainly my favorite sports personality of all time said, "Why would and should Tiger talk to police if law doesn't demand it and anything he tells them will be purchased anonymously by TMZ?" The answer is...he shouldn't.

Sportynation, Tiger Woods doesn't owe us anything and we are kidding ourselves with expectations that are far beyond what we would expect from ourselves. Would you announce to the co workers and etc. what happened in your personal life this past weekend or one of your lower points of your life? Probably not. And finally, there is no true ethical dilemma at play here.

As I told my cousin Vinny, we have absolutely NO idea what goes on in these individual's lives (even though we too often think we do) and nor should we know what going on in these individuals lives.

This is my Minority Report.

Texas Christian University #1?

Sportynation it seems like Texas Christian University (TCU) could be the best team in the nation, but that's not enough.



TCU is currently #4 in the nation, and probably has a slim to none chance to be crowned the best team in the nation. They have 3 immensely quality wins this year against Clemson, a top 20 team with a leading Heisman trophy candidate, BYU, a top 20 team, and Utah, another top 20 team that beat an Alabama team last year in a BCS bowlgame that returned many of its players and is back at the top of college football. Not only does TCU have quality wins, it will wins its conference easily and has only been challenged once this year. TCU has a top 4 total offense as well as a top 4 total defense this year.

TCU has performed mightily and admirably this year,and honestly there is not much more they could have done this year. They have been exceptionally consistent and impressive all year with a solid schedule. However, The University of Florida (UF), The University of Alabama (Bama), and the University of Texas (UT) are very far ahead of TCU and will remain there for some puzzling reason.

UT has won all of their games this year, but has been unimpressive often and has played one team that is currently in the top 25. So, UT has this going for it...A lofty preseason ranking, unimpressive wins, and an average schedule. BCS Championship game here they come! Sportynation, please look at UT's schedule right now and tell me where the quality opponents are.

Next we have Bama from the perennially media darling South Easter Conference (SEC). Bama has two wins over teams that are currently in the top 25, LSU and Va Tech. And, has been impressive at times and merely ok at other times particularly with it's QB play and offensive lulls . One of those "ok" times was against an average rebuilding team, University of Tennessee (UTK). Bama had to have a last second easy field goal block and also help from the referees (that also refereed a controversial UF game that will be later discussed) to pull a win at home against this average UTK team. The win was a win, but the way it went down was lucky and unfulfilling.

UF has played well and should be commended for there 0 loss season thus far and a return to the SEC championship game. However, qualitatively this season has not been impressive. UF has one win against a team that is currently in the top 25 and that win was ugly, unimpressive, and against merely a "pretty good" team, LSU. UF has controversial wins against Arkansas and to an extent against Mississippi State both of which are not considered good teams and probably are bad teams. These wins were so controversial and highly contested that the referring crew was suspended shortly after the game. There is a common belief by most outside of the SEC, that the SEC and it's officials are trying its best to keep UF undefeated as well as Alabama.



Sportynation, just the other day a national commentator declared that he thinks and would vote a one loss SEC team over TCU, Boise State, or Cincinnati. Not only is this unreasonable, but it is shocking, unfair, arrogant, and elitist.

This blog post is not intended to tell you definitively who the best team in the nation, but rather it is intended to get you all out of the easy common thought that we have to always reward the incumbent or the teams that were successful last year or the year before. There is more parity in college football. Teams are recruiting better (Tomlinson, arguably the NFL player of the decade went to TCU as an fyi), nutrition is better, coaching is better, and more and more people are playing football. Teams change. Conferences change. It is entirely possible that the Big 12 can be down this year as well as the SEC. College Basketball is inundated with surprising teams and sooner rather than later a #1 seed in college basketball will lose to a #16 against all odds. And, that team will probably not win the national championship. So we shouldn't vote off of what we think will happen in a hypothetical matchup, but we should vote off of what is fair. We should give teams the opportunity to play for a championship if they are deserving. No one thought that Boise State would beat a good Oklahoma team. No one thought that the talented Bama team of last year would lose to Utah. No one! And, it happened.

We no longer should make excuses for the power conference teams. Alabama lost last year because they didn't want to win the BCS bowl game. If UF were to lose a regular season a rationalization would be made. If TCU were lose a game a undeniable acceptance and I told you so would be ever present. And, those are the unfortunate facts!



This is my Minority Report.

congrats yanks

Congrats on #27. Thaaaaaaaaa Yankeeeeeees win.

Typical sports guy and media, APOLOGIZE to Girardi. (blog post to come)

Stay responsible sportynation. This is my Minority Report.