Leach Fired Under Bizarre Circumstances

Yet another football program will have to fill a head coaching vacancy after Texas Tech head coach Mike Leach was fired today after being accused of mistreating an injured player.

Leach has always been known to have an unorthodox style of coaching, but if what he's being accused of is true then I'm at a loss for words.

According to the family of sophomore receiver Adam James, Leach had James stay in a small electrical closet during practice.

Since Leach has yet to make a statement denying the allegation, I have to accept that it's true.

What I'm wondering is what good would come out of leaving a player with a concussion in a small closet? It doesn't make sense to me.

Some old school guys will question whether or not we're getting a little to sensitive to the way coached treat their players. Coaches like Bear Bryant used very tough tactics to build up their players. However, stuffing a player into a dark closet seems unnecessary. Like I've said before, it's football, not the Marines.

Texas Tech had a little bit of a drop off from last season's success, but they were still a solid team. I'm thinking that Texas Tech wanted Leach out anyway and this was just a good excuse for doing so.

Former Vandy Stars Shine In Monday Night Football

You have to look long and hard to find Vandy alums in the NFL. That is unless you're looking at the Chicago Bears roster.

The Bears currently have five players on their roster that suited up for Vanderbilt once upon a time. Unless you're a die-hard Vanderbilt fan, the only one you probably know is Jay Cutler. The others are Earl Bennett, Hunter Hillenmeyer, D.J. Moore, and Chris Williams.

Now I understand that the big programs in the country like Florida put five players on every team in the NFL, but we're talking about Vanderbilt here. It's just amazing to me that one NFL team would pick out that many Vandy players.

Last night ESPN's Monday Night Football offered another meaningless game to the standings. With that said, the Bears came out like they were playing for a playoff spot. Much of that can be contributed to Cutler, Bennett, and Hillenmeyer.

It's been a very rough year for Cutler, but last night he reminded everyone the kind of talent he has. He out dueled Brett Favre's Vikings, and Favre congratulated Cutler afterwards. Classy move for Favre to do that.

Former Vandy wide receiver Earl Bennett also had a great game. He had three catches for 35 yards, including a big touchdown reception.

And then there's the defensive side of the ball. Hunter Hillenmeyer might be the best kept secret at the linebacker position in all of football. He showed that last night by having 15 tackles and a forced fumble in overtime on Adrian Peterson.

Now I understand that Hillenmeyer had part of the facemask on that tackle, but it looked like it was incidental contact. It's part of the game and the officials missed the call. It was still a great play to punch the ball out during that crucial point in the game.

Hillenmeyer has gotten his chance to show what he's capable of as a starter when Brian Urlacher went down for the season. He's third on the team in total tackles behind Lance Briggs and Danieal Manning. He's also become a master at forcing fumbles with four this season.

For a program that produces very few NFL stars, the Bears are showing other NFL scouts to start looking at Vandy players a little bit harder.

The 72' Dolphins Can Rest Easy Once Again

Almost every year we go through this. We speculate that an undefeated team will join the 1972 Dolphins for the only teams to finish an entire season undefeated.

This year we even had two teams at 13-0, and once again they fell up short.

There's a little bit of debate on whether or not coach Jim Caldwell should've benched his starters after the 1st half against the Jets. The Colts already have the number one seed locked up in the playoffs, but it can't be good for your starters to not play for a month. Not to mention if the Colts lose again this weekend against a streaky Bills team, then a losing mentality may be stuck in the players' minds leading up to their 2nd-round playoff game.

The Saints, on the other hand, still had something to play for. If the Vikings win tonight then they will have the tie-breaker over the Saints for home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

There's a reason why only one team has completely run the table in NFL history. Much like college football, any team can win on any given week. Even a bad team like the Buccaneers is capable of beating one of the NFL's best teams.

So relax Mercury Morris and Don Shula. Your claim to fame is safe until next year.

And the Coaching Carousal Keeps on Moving

College football has certainly seen it's share of coaching changes this year. Another change just rocked the sports world as Urban Meyer has announced that he will step down as head coach of Florida due to health reasons.

This all comes just weeks after Meyer turned down a coaching opportunity at Notre Dame, which he has always held in high regard. With that said, I Meyer is completely genuine in his reason for leaving.

There were hints that this might happen earlier in the season when Meyer said that it basically wasn't fun anymore. He's been coaching in college for 24 years now.

I haven't always agreed with Meyer on things, but I've always respected him overall as a coach. He is an excellent recruiter and took not just Florida, but also Utah, to new levels.

Meyer also stated that for the 24 years that he's been in the business he has completely ignored his health and that he wants to starting paying more attention to his family. There's no better reason than that.

You have to respect Meyer for that considering he's walking away from a $24 million contract that was suppose to run through 2014. We'll have to see how that all plays out.

Meyer finished with a 56-10 record at Florida, including 32 wins in the SEC over five seasons.

So who will replace Urban Meyer and take over for a program that is still one of the best in the nation? It's really hard to speculate, but you know it will be a big name. Whoever it ends up being, I'm sure that this coach will leave his current program out of the blue much like Brian Kelly did to Cincinnati.

Coaching Changes (2009-2010)

• Urban Meyer (Florida)
  
• Charlie Weis (Notre Dame)
• Brian Kelly (Cincy)
• Turner Gill (Buffalo)
• Mike Sanford (UNLV)
• Butch Jones (Central Michigan)
  

All I Want for Christmas is a Titans Playoff Berth

Currently there are six teams knotted up at 7-7 in the AFC. Every single one of these teams have some sort of a chance at making the playoffs this year. Even the Titans.

The computer projections have the Ravens and the Broncos, who are both 8-6, snagging the last two wild card spots.

Before the Titans can start thinking about making the biggest turnaround in NFL history they better start thinking about the NFL's hottest team. That team is the San Diego Chargers and they're coming to town for Christmas.

Some of you may not realize this, but the Chargers have not only won nine-straight games, but they've won 17 straight December games. That's the sign of a mature team, and the Titans aren't exactly strong in that category.

Another thing that's going to hurt the Titans is the loss of Keith Bullock. This almost gives the Titans no chance in this game. After Bullock left the game against the Dolphins last week, the Titans nearly lost after having a 16-point lead at one time in the game.

Needless to say, the Chargers are better than the Dolphins. The Titans will have to shut down the passing game in order to put more guys in the box to slow down the speedy Darren Sproles.

The one thing that may give the Titans a fighting chance here is the short rest. The Chargers rely on a high-octane offense while the Titans rely on ball control and running the ball up the gut. Short rest could hurt the Chargers more than the Titans.

Oh yeah, and anytime you have a game-changer like Chris Johnson then anything is capable of happening. The Chargers run defense isn't exactly the strongest part of their team either.

It's asking for a lot, but I want a Titans playoff berth for Christmas. To get that the Titans have to win on Christmas day.

Moutain West Makes Statement At Pac-10's Expense

The bowl season is not even a week old and already one conclusion can pretty much be made. People should start taking the Mountain West Conference seriously.

Both No. 14 BYU and No. 23 Utah dominated in their own respective bowl games against Pac-10 opponents, and we're not talking about doormats of the Pac-10 either.

We're talking about an Oregon State they came very close to representing the Pac-10 in the Rose Bowl this year. California, who Utah beat tonight, may not have been spectacular but they still beat some very good teams within the Pac-10 this year, most notably Stanford just a month ago.

It should also be noted that Oregon State defeated California 31-14 which turned around and lost to BYU by 24. This doesn't look too great for a conference that claims to be one of the best in the country.

You still can't forget about Wyoming, which took care of business against the WAC's Fresno State. Fresno is suppose to be one of the better teams that the WAC has to offer.

The Moutain West is now 3-0 so far and still has two more representatives to go. Air Force will be the next one and they'll play Houston on December 31. That will probably be the only loss the Mountian West will take this bowl season.

It's definitely time to start taking them serious if you weren't already. This conference continues to grow and there could be a reasonable argument made to say they're better than the Big Ten or the Big East.

This is the great thing about bowl season. Conferences get the chance to prove how good they are against other conferences. It's a great way to see where your conference stands, and right now the Mountain West is proving they deserve just as much respect as the BCS conferences.

Will The Real Memphis Grizzlies Please Stand Up?

It's to probably no one's surprise that the Lakers, Celtics, and Cavaliers are all once again rolling through their respective seasons. However, there is one team that's surprising me and that's the Memphis Grizzlies.

We're talking about a team that is historically one of the worst franchises in NBA history. That looks to be changing as this team is finally starting to show it's maturity. Players like Rudy Gay and O.J. Mayo are turning into All-Stars while support players Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph are also pulling their weight.

Don't look now but the Grizzlies actually have a very solid team. What proves that the most isn't so much the games they are winning but also the games that they are competing in. No longer are the Grizzlies just target practice for the NBA powerhouses. The Celtics found that out a week ago as they escaped Memphis with a five-point win.

Outside of the Lakers, the gap between the worst teams and the best teams are closer than you would think. Three games separates the current eighth spot from the third spot. We've seen plenty of upsets already during this young season and the Grizzlies have had a share of them.

The Grizzlies already have wins over six playoff teams from last year, including wins over the Nuggets and Cavaliers.

There's a lot of basketball to be played but the Grizzlies are trying on that Cinderella slipper and it might just be the perfect fit.

The NFL Needs to Get Off Its Power Trip

Under most circumstances the NFL has done a great job in disciplining its players. It's turned into a league that puts up with little misbehaving from it's players.

That's all well in good, but when the NFL threatens to fine a player for wearing his murdered teammate's jersey number to honor him then that's when I draw the line.

Chad Ochocinco was good friends with Chris Henry who was tragically killed this past week. With all of the distractions being drawn from Ochocinco wearing Henry's jersey number, he has decided to stick with his own jersey number.

The NFL has to loosen up a little bit. It's football, not the Marines. Not only can players not have hardly any fun now, but they can't even honor fallen teammates by wearing something as simple as a jersey number? The NFL Players Association even offered to match the fine and give it to a Chris Henry memorial fund, but rules prohibit that as well.

This isn't the first time that Ochocinco has wanted to support a worthy cause this season by using his uniform. Earlier in the season during breast cancer awareness week, Ochocinco wanted to wear pink wristbands to honor the cause. The NFL said no to that too.

For Ochocinco, I commend you. We need more individuals like yourself who know how to have fun and still be a respectful person. And to the NFL, get off your power trip.

The Chase for Perfection May Hit a Road Block

Vince Lombardi once said that "perfection is unattainable, but if we chase perfection, then we can catch excellence". If that's the case then the Colts and the Saints have already caught excellence.

There's not as much parody in the NFL as there once was. There's a reason why this is first time in NFL history that two teams have made it this far in the season without a loss. The NFL has always had plenty of parody. The gap between the worst teams in the NFL and the best teams is unbelievable.

The Colts extended their regular season winning streak to 23 last night by sneaking out of Jacksonville with a four-point win. Peyton Manning had to work is heroics once again in the 4th quarter for the Colts to stay perfect.

As for the Saints, they're sitting at 13-0 with a Saturday matchup with the Cowboys just ahead. This is probably the last true test the Saints will face during the regular season.

Everyone is ready to stomp all over the Cowboys since they're historically a bad team in December, but this is a trap game for the Saints. The Cowboys are sick and tired of being crapped on by the media, and Roy Williams expressed that earlier in the week.

Let's not forget that the Saints have had to come back numerous times this season against teams like the Panthers to stay perfect. The Cowboys are definitely not a championship team, but they're capable of beating the Saints. Yes, even in the Superdome where it looks like the Saints are unstoppable.

If both of these teams do finish the regular season undefeated, then don't automatically crown them conference champs just yet. Both conferences have very worthy opponents that could knock both Saints and the Colts into the loss column.

The Saints will have to get through either the Vikings or the Packers. These two defenses are among the best in the NFL and we've seen Drew Brees have a few rough games this season. Keep that in mind.

In the AFC there's also two teams that the Colts should watch out for. The Chargers and the Patriots. This may sound cynical, but I still haven't climbed on the Charger bandwagon. They do this every year. They play great ball and have the sports analysts salivating over them, only to lose in the first or second round of the playoffs.

I'm not ready to climb off the Patriot bandwagon just yet. Don't count the Patriots out of the equation. They should've beaten the Colts already, and I think they could do it again. Tom Brady obviously has to get healthy, but he's got plenty of time for that.

There's no consolation prize for finishing the regular season undefeated. In fact, it's extremely overrated. The Colts have done this almost every year for the past decade and it's produced just one Super Bowl. Just one. It's an amazing accomplishment, but it doesn't make your team any harder to beat in the playoffs by being undefeated.

Another Tragedy Strikes The Bengals

Chris Henry

1983-2009

The roller coaster ride for the Bengals this season took a turn for the worse when wide receiver Chris Henry was tragically killed after being thrown from the back of a pick-up truck on Wednesday.

Henry was starting to get his life in order and his teammates noticed first-hand. Carson Palmer told the media that he was misunderstood and had the kindest heart. Chad Ochocinco, with tears streaming down his face, said that Henry was one of his good friends and that he had just spoken with him on Tuesday to discuss life.

This is one of those stories that you don't believe is true at first. We're talking about a guy who was one of the better up and coming wide receivers just two seasons ago before getting into trouble with the law multiple times. He was a game changer much like Desean Jackson is now in the NFL.

The saddest part of all was that he was only 26.

A broken forearm ended Henry's season in week 9. To that point he had over 200 yards receiving and two touchdowns. Most importantly, he was staying out of trouble.

Investigators are calling it a domestic dispute and aren't ruling out a possible homicide. She was driving the truck and Henry went after her by jumping in the bed of the truck. Whether she intentionally threw him from the truck is still under investigation.

Frankly it doesn't matter how it was done. Either way it's still another tough loss for an organization that's already dealt with losing the spouse of a defensive coordinator earlier in the season.

It's going to be tough for the players to put this behind them and somehow play football, but unfortunately they'll have to. Hopefully they can rally around this and pull out a win in honor of Chris Henry.

Predators Closing In On Division Lead

Who would've thought that the Predators would once again be pushing for the division lead? After the way they started the season, I saw them battling for last place with the Blues.

The Preds added their 19th win of the season tonight after handling the Blue Jackets for the 2nd time in the past week. The Predators now sit just two points back of the division leading Blackhawks.

This might be the year to finally get a division title with the Red Wings dealing with all sorts of injuries and the rest of the division just seeming average.

After watching the first two periods of tonight's game I'm ready to say that the Predators are making yet another trip to the playoffs.The Predators still have the normal pieces to the puzzle with Steve Sullivan, Jason Arnott, and Martin Erat.

Now other guys are starting to step up and make this a much more balanced team than a year ago. Guys like Patric Horngvist and Joel Ward are supplying the Predators with some much needed depth.

The Predators went through the gauntlet of their schedule a few weeks ago and came out with some huge wins over the NHL's best teams. It's one thing when the Predators are only beating the cellar dwellers, but when they're notching victories over the Blackhawks and the Sharks, then obviously this team is better than everyone thought.

There's still a ton of time left in the season, but I like how the Predators are playing right now. They're skating smoothly, scoring goals, and their goaltending hasn't look this good since back when Tomas Vokoun was still in the net.

Things are looking up in Smashville!

Predators Leading Scorers

1. Steve Sullivan: 22 points (9 g, 13 a)
2. Jason Arnott: 20 points (11 g, 9 a)
3. JP Dumont: 20 points (5 g, 15 a)
4. Martin Erat: 19 points (10 g, 9 a)
5. David Legwand: 18 points (6 g, 12 a)
   

Tiger Deserves Every Bit of Scrutiny

Star athletes always seem to take some sort of a step back in their respective careers.

Guys like Michael Jordan, Wayne Gretzky, Kobe Bryant, and Alex Rodriguez all experienced a fall from grace. However none of those examples amount to what Tiger Woods has squandered in just a matter of weeks.

Woods was one of the most respected athletes in the world two weeks ago. He was on top of his game and the outright best golfer of his generation. He had tons of endorsements that made up 90% of his earnings.

He foolishly threw that all away by getting caught up in the fame. He was running around with numerous women, possibly up to nine, while his wife was who knows where.

Now he's a punching bag of the media, and he deserves every punch.

Since all of this has been going on Woods has acted like a coward in handling this situation. He has hid behind his website and not even made one single public apology. For all we know his apology on his website may have been completely written by an adviser.

Woods has now said that he will take an indefinite leave of absence from golf to focus on his issues. That's a small step in the right direction, but he still has a ton of work to do before I ever think about respecting him again.

Even before all of this went on I still had less respect for him than the average fan. Sure, I thought he was the best golfer in the world, but I thought he acted like a child when things didn't go his way on the golf course. Slamming his golf clubs in disgust and yelling out profanities will not earn you much respect from me. Especially on a golf course where etiquette is pretty important.

It's going to be close to impossible for Woods to return to his dominance that he once had. To be frank, I don't see how he'll ever face the media again. He rarely spoke with the media before anyway.

This whole situation has dominated the sports news wire for the last two weeks now and I'm sick of hearing it. This will be the only thing you hear from me about the situation. Draw your own conclusions, but all of the negativity that Tiger Woods receives from this is well deserved.

The Blue Raiders Are Heading to the Big Easy!

We finally found out this past Sunday where in the heck the Blue Raiders would be playing their bowl game, and of the five possibilities the New Orleans Bowl was one of the better destinations.

I would've preferred to see them go to the GMAC Bowl in Mobile, AL due to the fact that it's the night before the national championship game and everyone will be eager to watch some football on that day.

The New Orleans Bowl is December 20th and I'm not sure how many people will be watching football on a Sunday night. They'll have to compete with the NFL that night so the Blue Raiders probably won't get as much exposure in the New Orleans Bowl. That's probably why Troy opted for the GMAC Bowl and you can't blame them. They're the champs so they deserve to choose where they want to play.

The Blue Raiders will take on Southern Miss who is very experienced in bowl games. They've gone to a bowl game 12 of the last 13 seasons. They definitely have the Blue Raiders in that category.

Southern Miss hails from Conference USA, a mediocre conference much like the Sun Belt.

Both of these offenses are ranked in the top 40 in total offense with the Blue Raiders having a one yard advantage in average offensive yards a game. Pretty bizarre.

This game will come down to who's defense shows up and slows the opposing offense down enough to pull out a win. I like the Blue Raiders and their defense who leads the nation in tackles for loss with over eight a game. Not to mention they're fourth in sacks averaging over three a game in that department.

In reality the Blue Raiders have already prepared themselves for this game by playing against some good offenses in the regular season. The most notable one being Clemson which they lost to by 17 to start the season.

I'm just not that impressed with Southern Miss's defense that got smoked in their five losses. They gave up 30 to UAB, 34 to Tulsa, and 34 to Virginia, 35 to Kansas, and 25 to East Carolina.

It will be a very close game and both offenses will score a lot of points. In the end I think MT's defense will step up and make a few key stops to bring home the bowl win.

Did the Rich Really Get Richer?

The Yankees are close to adding another piece to their already potent lineup by signing outfielder Curtis Granderson to what will probably break the bank whenever it's finalized.

This acquisition is a huge risk for the Yankees because their dealing one of their top prospects in outfielder Austin Jackson. It makes you wonder why they would deal a good, young prospect that could add some youth to their aging roster.

Along with dealing Jackson, they also dealt two pitchers. And all of this for a guy who hit below .250 and struck out on a regular basis. He does add a great glove in the outfield.

Whether this deal ends up working out for the Yankees or not, this deal is just another example of how the Yankees throw their millions of dollars around to build another dynasty. They do it every offseason, but that formula has only produced one championship since 2000.

Maybe the Yankees are confident that Granderson will be able to hit home runs out of the new Yankee Stadium that became a launching pad in its first season. He hit 30 long balls last season.

The Yankees are nowhere near done in this offseason. Look for them to add another starting pitcher, possibly Roy Halladay, and re-sign a few players.

They've already re-signed Andy Pettitte to a one-year deal worth almost $12 million. That's pocket change for the Yankees.

Whatever ends up happening, we know the Yankees will spend plenty of money to assure that they stay on top of baseball for many years to come.

Big Yankee Acquisitions Since 2005

• C.C. Sabathia (2008)
• A.J. Burnett (2008)
• Mark Teixeira (2008)
  
• Bobby Abreu (2006)
• Johnny Damon (2005)

Iverson Returns to the City of Brotherly Love

Hollywood couldn't have written a better plot for the way that Allen Iverson's career is probably going to end.

This isn't breaking news or anything, but Iverson has returned to the city that he grew up in and ultimately built his Hall of Fame career.

Since leaving the Philadelphia 76ers in 2006 Iverson has bounced around the league with brief stays in Denver, Detroit, and Memphis. He must of really disliked Memphis because he only suited up for a meager three games.

He looked pretty decent in those three games earlier in the year for the Grizzlies. He averaged 12 points a game and added three assists a game.

The reason why it didn't work in Memphis is for one primary reason. He wanted to be the star and the go-to guy, and Memphis wanted him as a role player. A guy who came off the bench and gave the team instant production. Iverson would rather be continuous production.

He's going to get that chance with his second tour in Philadelphia. Coach Eddie Jordan has already said that he plans on starting Iverson the rest of the season. They are pretty thin at the guard position anyway.

This was the kind of break that Iverson needed to end his up and down career. Now he's got a chance to lead a team full of average players and carry them to the postseason. He's already done that a couple of times with this franchise, most notably the 2001 76ers that went to the NBA Finals.

As great as that would be, I dont think "The Answer" is the answer this time around. He's more of a suggestion. He'll help this team win ten more games than they would without him, but that's not going to be enough to make the playoffs. Don't forget, the Eastern Conference is a lot deeper than it use to be.

Great story here, but Iverson's tears aren't going to bring the same success that was brought the first time around.

Current Guards in Philly

1. Andre Iguodala (19 ppg, 6 apg)
2. Lou Williams (17 ppg, 5 apg)
3. Willie Green (8 ppg, 2 apg)
4. Jrue Holiday (5 ppg, 2 apg)
5. Royal Ivey (2 ppg, 0.5 apg)

Allen Iverson Career averages: 27 ppg, 6 apg

Notre Dame...More Like Notre Lame

I've tried to always root for Notre Dame over the years. They've always had that mystique and that tradition that sent chills down my spine when I saw them walk out of the tunnel and into Notre Dame Stadium.

Those days are long gone.

News has just come out that Notre Dame will decline playing in a bowl game this year despite being bowl eligible at 6-6. I guess they're too good for any bowl other than the BCS bowls. Kind of like they're too good to join a conference.

Notre Dame has been refusing bowl bids for years and years now so it shouldn't come as too much of surprise. Notre Dame went from 1925 to 1970 without playing in a bowl game if that tells you anything.

This just makes me sick. I understand that you just fired your head coach, but you owe it to the players and the fans to go out their and get a win. It doesn't matter who it's against. If they want to put you up against Wyoming then you take it.

There's nothing good that's going to come out of skipping the bowl game and ending your 2009 season losing four in a row. That is unless you're scared of losing to a smaller football program. Who knows. Maybe they are.

There was originally a remote possibility that Notre Dame could have been matched up with my school, Middle Tennessee State. Of course, that would never fly with the Fighting Irish.

Notre Dame fans need to get over themselves because they're no longer the prestigious program that it once was. In fact, they're just another average program that is good every now and then. The only difference is they're an independent and not in a conference, which in my mind puts them in the same class as the other independents who get no respect in football.

Big time coaches like Urban Meyer and Bob Stoops want nothing to do with Notre Dame because they know the program is no longer what it use to be. Notre Dame is gradually falling down the college football pecking order and other Midwestern teams like Cinicinatti and Pittsburgh are moving past them.

Don't worry guys, maybe the biased Lou Holtz will come back and coach your team. He's obviously better at coaching than he is as a college football analyst. After all he did predict the Irish to go undefeated with maybe a close loss to USC. I must say, great prediction.

The one good thing I have to say about Notre Dame at this point is wide receiver Golden Tate. This guy is one of the best pound for pound wide receivers in the country. He has 15 touchdowns and just under 1,500 yards receiving for the year.

If I was Tate I would take whatever the NFL offers in the upcoming offseason. No reason to return to this train wreck in South Bend.

Conference Titles Up For Grabs This Weekend

It's the last week of the regular season in college football, and there are some huge conference title games on the docket. Here's the rundown.

MAC Championship-Detroit, MI

Central Michigan vs. Ohio

At face value this looks to be a pretty lopsided affair between Central Michigan and Ohio. Central Michigan has proven that they can play with the some of the bigger conferences and they absolutely dismantled the MAC throughout the season.

Ohio has won seven of their last eight and have also been competitive in some of their non-conference games. The main one being an 11-point loss to Tennessee back in September. It may be close early, but look for the much more talented Chippewas of Central Michigan to win by a couple of touchdowns.

Prediction: Central Michigan over Ohio


Conference USA Championship-Greenville, NC

No. 21 Houston vs. East Carolina

I'm not sure who to pick in this game. Both teams have some questionable losses coupled with a few impressive wins. Houston has hung around in the top 25 all season long and they definitely know how to put up some serious points.

East Carolina has a pretty decent defense and that should slow down the high octane Houston offense a little bit, but not enough to win this game. Houston wins in shootout fashion.

Prediction: Houston over E. Carolina

ACC Championship-Tampa, FL

No. 10 Georgia Tech vs. Clemson

Outside of the SEC championship game, this will be the best game to watch on Saturday. Georgia Tech is coming off of a tough loss to Georgia this past weekend so look for them to take out their anger on Clemson. A BCS bowl is on the line and Georgia Tech will ride their infamous spread option offense to take them to the promise land.

However, don't sleep on Clemson. Anytime you got a playmaker like C.J. Spiller lining up for you on offense, anything can happen. Spiller is a home run hitter and don't be surprised if he makes some huge plays to strengthen his Heisman campaign. A Clemson win would definitely help out his cause.

This game will be close to the end and I like Clemson to pull off the epic upset and send the Yellow Jackets to a demoralizing second straight loss.

Prediction: Clemson over Georgia Tech

Big 12 Championship- Arlington, TX

No. 3 Texas vs. No. 22 Nebraska

Texas's margin of victory has been 10 points or more for six straight games. The Big 12 ended up being extremely watered down this season, and the Big 12 North is even worse than that. Don't look for much in this game. Look at Nebraska as the sacrificial lamb for the Big 12 North. Someone had to win that horrible division and Nebraska were the lucky winners.

The question isn't who's going to win. The real question is how many points will be scored in this game. Look for at least 60 points to be scored between the two teams, and Texas will do most of that scoring. Texas coasts to another Big 12 win and snags a spot in the National Championship game.

Prediction: Texas over Nebraska


SEC Championship- Atlanta, GA

No.1 Florida vs. No. 2 Alabama

For the second year in a row we'll get the treat of seeing Florida and Alabama do battle for the SEC crown and a shot at the National Championship. This game will be more evenly matched than last season. This year's Alabama squad has an absolute beast lining up for them in the backfield in Mark Ingram and a streaking quarterback in Greg McElroy. Oh yeah, and that defense isn't too bad either.

And then you got the winners of two of the last three national championships in the Florida Gators. It has turned out that Florida may not be as dominant as we originally thought they were, but they're still good enough to go undefeated in the SEC. That's pretty good in my book. Never count out a team led by Tim Tebow. Buckle your seatbelts ladies and gentlemen. This one will be one of the best SEC championship games off all time.

With that said, Florida wins by the slimmest of margins. If their were half-points in college football, Florida would win by a half-point. It's going to be that close.

Prediction: Florida over Alabama

Nets Make History, And Not the Good Kind

Records in sports come and go. Almost everyday there is a record set in the sports world. Well the record the Nets set tonight in the NBA may stick around for a while.

The Nets went to 0-18 after their 16-point loss to the Mavericks, and the schedule doesn't seem to be letting up anytime soon. To keep this thing from getting way out of control, they better sneak out with a win against the Knicks on Sunday or who knows where this infamous start to season will end up.

Previously the worst record to start a season was 0-17 and was held by the 1988 Miami Heat and the 1999 LA Clippers. Well the players from those teams can finally get some sleep at night.

How fortunate does former Net Vince Carter have to feel after being dealt to Orland in the offseason? Christmas definitely came early for him.

It's hard to believe that any team could be this bad in professional sports. Surely these guys could get one win out of 18 opportunities. Apparently not.

After looking over the roster it is pretty clear why their such a bad team, but even bad teams win once in a while. Outside of Devin Harris this team's best player is probably Rafer Alston if that tells you anything.

They've already fired head coach Lawrence Frank who had been with the team for a while. You can't blame them for that. There's no excuse for a team starting 0-18.

You might be able to make a case for a team starting 0-6. Maybe the schedule was really tough or there were some key injuries, but there's no excuse for this.

Even though it's tough, I'm going to look at the glass half full. The NBA season is still very young and there's 64 games remaining to try to finish off with some of your pride still intact.

Godspeed New Jersey Nets. Godspeed.

Blue Raider Bowl Watch

There's no question about it. The Blue Raiders will definitely be going to only their second bowl game in school history. They finished the season 9-3 which is the best record ever since joining the FBS in 2001.

Now the question is where in the heck are the Blue Raiders going for their bowl game. As of right now there are five possibilities: Humanitarian Bowl, Little Caesars Bowl, GMAC Bowl, EagleBank Bowl, and the New Orleans Bowl.

You may be wondering how it's still possible for the Blue Raiders to get the New Orleans Bowl since they can't win the Sun Belt championship. Basically, if Troy agrees to another bowl game then the New Orleans Bowl could invite the Blue Raiders.

This is all speculation, but it seems like the Humanitarian Bowl and the Little Caesars Bowl is unlikely compared to the other three. The main reason for that is the geographic purposes. However, ESPN's bowl projections have the Blue Raiders going to the Little Caesars Bowl to take on the Ohio Bobcats of the MAC.

There are two very intriguing possible matchups that the Blue Raiders could end up being paired with. If the Blue Raiders get an invite to the GMAC Bowl then there's a remote possibility that Notre Dame would get the other invitation. More than likely Notre Dame would decline the invitation, so don't get your hopes up on that one.

The other possible matchup would be a rematch of the 2006 Motor City Bowl between the Blue Raiders and Central Michigan.

Things will gradually start to develop within the next week or so. Either way it's a good time to be a Blue Raider!

Bowl Possibilities

• Humanitarian Bowl (Boise, ID)...Possible Opponents: Idaho, Northern Illinois
• Little Caesars Pizza Bowl (Detroit, MI)...Possible Opponents: Ohio
  
• GMAC Bowl (Mobile, AL)....Possible Opponents: Central Michigan, Notre Dame
• EagleBank Bowl (Washington D.C.)....Possible Opponents: Bowling Green, Marshall
• New Orleans Bowl (New Orleans, LA)....Possible Opponents: Southern Miss