Quick Thoughts: What I Learned On Break

So, while I recovered from work and school during late December and the first half of January, I learned three important things...

1) College football’s bowl system is completely out of whack.
2) Tyler Hansbrough is a jerk.
3) Tennessee’s football program is in trouble.

I should have realized the first one a long time ago but I was too busy shaking the pom-poms for the sport. But I’m not here to bash the BCS. On the contrary, I think that the BCS got it right…AGAIN! It’s what took place before the BCS, and frankly – before January 1st, that bothered me.

There were approximately ZERO intriguing bowl games before New Years Day. As bad as that statistic is, what is even worse was that there were twenty – that’s right, 20!!! – bowl games BEFORE New Years Day. That is absolutely ridiculous! I mean, come on, Southern Methodist and Nevada played on Christmas Eve in Hawaii. Was this even televised? I can neither confirm nor deny that a game was actually played. I like to think that the two opposing coaches and all the players were sitting on the beach in lounge chairs, sipping daiquiris while some S.I.D. sat behind them asking things like: “Guys, what do you want me to say happened in the third quarter?”

Moving on, I know that you all have seen this commercial:



What a freakin’ jerk! I know what you’re thinking? No, Cheek. Hansbrough found that little girl’s dog and delivered it safe and sound back to her home. He’s a saint! Well, in the immortal words of that drunk, Lee Corso, “Not so fast, my friend!” Hansbrough didn’t do anything! The shaggy-haired, frat boy – complete with his backwards hat, flip flops and I-found-these-clothes-on-the-floor-and-they-didn’t-smell-TOO-disgusting wardrobe – notices the sweet girl putting fliers and immediately sends a text to his friends (which includes Hansbrough). Hansbrough then forwards it on to his HUGE arsenal of groupies. Three extremely average looking girls find the dog and send a message back to Hansbrough letting him know (and hoping that they can hang out with him and thereby be noticed by someone for once).

The commercial then shows Hansbrough handing the dog off to an overjoyed little girl. All that guy did was show up, grab the dog, return it and take the glory. Seriously, what a jerk!

As for Tennessee and the whole Lane Kiffin/David Cutcliffe/Why can’t we find a head coach?!-saga:
About 14 months ago, you (the University of Tennessee) bought yourself a sweet little 2009 Porsche (Kiffin). It was HOT! It was new, good looking, made others turn their head when you entered the room. Sure, it made some crazy noises every once and a while but that was part of the fun – you know, freaking other people out. Then about a week ago the thing completely clunks on you. It’s out.

Now you’re thinking, “Okay, I’m not going to be burned like that again. I need something safe and reliable this time.” Enter the 2004 Honda Accord of college football – David Cutcliffe. The only problem is that some weird guy in North Carolina just bought the last one. You could have bought it but you were determined that you didn’t want one in periwinkle blue. You weren’t in a position to be picky and you got burned again!

What the heck are you going to do now?!

Note: As I post this, ESPN is breaking the story that Derek Dooley, the head coach at Louisiana Tech, is the leading candidate for the head coaching position at Tennessee.

Well, apparently there’s a guy in Louisiana who is selling a mo-ped, on the cheap, that he’s just been using on his five mile commute. Good luck with that, Tennessee.

A Couple Quick Thoughts

So, as I sit her thinking about how many Thanksgiving calories I can burn by simply thinking about burning Thanksgiving calories my mind finds itself deviating to a couple other things...

First, and I'll keep this one brief, I realized for the first time in my life what Thanksgiving really is. It's a tailgate party for women. When someone told me this, I calmly chuckled and said, "Ha ha. Good one. That's funny." Then I started to think about it. That's when I decided to take a hard look at the women in my family during Thanksgiving and found that there is actually some validity to this whole thing.

Just like men at a tailgate party the women showed up each carrying a different dish - something to share with the group. Then they set up camp for the day. They went on to joke around with one another and shared stories of year's gone by. Most importantly though, this all took place right before the "biggest game of the year"...BLACK FRIDAY! The Super Bowl of Shopping Day's for women. I swear I heard my cousin Ellen and Lady Cheek harkening back to the glory days of Black Fridays of the past.

"Oh, that will never top the great sale of '94!"

"You girls don't know the half of it! Back in '74 we won the Macy's National Championship! Those were the good ol' days."

Second, Jack Swarbrick. You don't know who he is, do you? Well, he is - of course - the illustrious Athletic Director of the University of College Football in America...better known as "Notre Dame."

Ol' Jack had an interesting quote today as he was signing Charlie Weis's $18-million dollar walking papers.

"I am excited to embark full bore on the process of finding the right next successor to the legacy of Rockne and Leahy and Parseghian and Holtz."

ARE YOU FREAKIN' KIDDING ME?!

Listen, everyone who really loves Notre Dame...and I mean, REALLY loves Notre Dame...is like 60 years old. They walk around calling people "whipper snapper" and complaining about kids' long hair and loud music. Bottom line is getting those 17 and 18-year old blue-chip athletes on your campus is what wins games, not tradition. Those players don't care about Knute Rockne, they don't care about the "Four Horsemen" and they sure as heck don't care about this so-called legacy and tradition. Those things are for fans.

Athletes of that age and potential care about four things when considering college: sunshine, hot chicks, academic standards that aren't too rigid and getting to the NFL. Look at the biggest powerhouse football programs out there right now - Southern California, Florida, LSU, Texas, etc. Notre Dame isn't offering the same thing as them.

Seriously. Come on, Jack. I don't even know if Knute Rockne ever really existed. I don't know anything about this "Lee High" fellow and the only reason I know Ari Parseghian is because of the movie "Rudy." And don't get me started on Lou Holtz - he's not a legend. He was a decent coach who strung together a couple good years and now spends his days spitting at the cameras on the set of ESPN shows.

Get over yourself, Notre Dame. You're not what you think you are.

Poll Vaulting

So, I haven't been able to write much this week becasue - in case you didn't know - it's been raining in Atlanta. And, boy, did we get some rain! Creeks rose, rivers overflowed and my neighborhood flooded to my doorstep...

But I'm dry now and assessing the world of sports, though, I'll be trying to keep this brief.

Today, let's talk AP Poll. It's an interesting little monster that, I think, drives the popularity of college football. Have you ever wondered how it works though? It's actually pretty interesting when you consider some of the whack-jobs that get to decide on it. If you're interested in taking a second or two to look throgh some of the AP's voters' ballots, HERE is the list. I would encourage people to take a quick gander at the ballots of Mr. Jon Wilner of the San Jose Mercury News and Mr. Doug Lesmerises of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. These are the very "whack-jobs" that I was telling you about. Or are they?

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From ESPN Senior Writer Pat Forde
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"What people think in August [when filling out preseason Top 25s] is at least partly based on what Phil Steele and Athlon thought in April [when their preview magazines are written]," Lesmerises said. "A multi-gazillion-dollar industry based on people putting 15 minutes into a poll that is based on a magazine that did its rankings in April is not a good system."

It should be noted that, unlike some human voters, both writers put a lot more than 15 minutes into their ballots on a weekly basis. Wilner said he works for hours on his Top 25. Lesmerises said he usually does three or four drafts before sending in the final version.

This week both Lesmerises and Wilner rank Alabama No. 1 and Miami No. 2.

Lesmerises has Houston No. 3 and Cincinnati No. 4, while Wilner goes with Texas third and LSU fourth.

You and Urban Meyer might both be wondering where a certain orange-helmeted team fits in. Both have the Gators a heretical fifth.

Lesmerises has Texas lower than any other AP voter at seventh. Among his other against-the-grain rankings: Penn State 15th, Ohio State 22nd, Mississippi 24th and USC 25th.

"I cover Ohio State," Lesmerises said. "I can't pretend to be an expert on every team in the country. Because of my ignorance of the college scene as a whole, I fall back on results."

"I'm trying to treat every team as Team X, where it doesn't matter where you were ranked in the preseason and it doesn't matter what conference you're in and it doesn't matter what your record was last year. What matters are results, results, results. But I'm not a computer, so 10 to 20 percent of my voting tends to take in my perception of how good a team is."

Wilner has Virginia Tech sixth. Houston is seventh. Oklahoma State is 11th. And Penn State is 21st.

"Every August, the AP sends out a list of voting guidelines," Wilner said. "The No. 1 guideline is to base your ballots on results. They also say, 'Don't be afraid to make radical changes week to week.' They want you to shake it up. I try to mix results and common sense."

To Wilner, Lesmerises and three other AP voters, Florida does not deserve its current ironclad place atop the rankings.

"Not when other teams have good results," said Wilner, who stresses that his rankings are not predictive but reactive. "Florida beat Tennessee, but I don't think Tennessee is that good -- unless UCLA is really good, and I don't think that's the case, either."

And both writers are amazed to find Houston ranked lower than Oklahoma State. Despite a double-digit victory in Stillwater, the 2-0 Cougars are one spot below the 2-1 Cowboys in the AP poll and seven spots lower in the coaches' poll.

Because of their willingness to vote outside the mainstream, both writers have become accustomed to scrutiny. And they welcome it. Said Lesmerises: "I have to be able to defend every single spot on my ballot."

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All very intersting stuff. We'll see how things will "shake up" after this weekend.

Now for this week's edition of The Betting Man:
Last Week (2-3); Season (4-10)
-Better week but that's not really saying much. Things better turn around quick or I'm going to have to switch from ALPO to the "store brand" dog food for dinner...and NOBODY wants that! Too bad the games aren't getting any easier to pick.

#4 Ole Miss (-3) at South Carolina
-My first impression is to take South Carolina and their defense to keep things close at home. But my "first impressions" are 4-10 this season...

#9 Miami (-2.5) at #11 Virginia Tech
-Miami has been on a hot streak and normally I'd ride that hot streak into the ground. But if I'd "normally" pick Miami then I'd probably "normally" be wrong...

#15 TCU at Clemson (-2.5)
-I love almost everything that there is about TCU. It's in the south, it's a good ol' private Christian-based school in Texas and they took an otherwise useless mascot (the frog) and put some "awesome" in it...the HORNED FROGS!!! It's just too good!

#6 California (-6) at Oregon
-Stupid Oregon and it's multiple personality disorder! There is absolutely no telling WHICH team is going to show up against Cal. And there is absolutely no telling whether they will be wearing crazy uniforms or not.

Texas Tech @ #17 Houston (-1)
-The line says that this is basically a "pick the winner" game. I just can't, in my right mind, pick Houston here. Tech is going to be gunning after the loss to the Longhorns and Houston can't possible out-gun the Red Raiders...right?

Boise @#$% State

So, I would normally make this particular type of post on Wednesday (that way I have the rest of the week to agonize over it) but I was out of town early in the week and have been busy catching up on the 78 emails that my friends have been firing back and forth about this upcoming weekend's college football games...

College football. It's back! And not a moment too soon. Like I have always said, "There are really only two season in the south - College Football Season and Gettin' Ready for College Football Season." The latter was getting a little played.

Therefore, I found myself in fron tof the tube last night watching the Ol' Ball Coach and the South Carolina Gamecocks take on North Carolina State. For those of you that didn't watch...what a freakin' train wreck that was. Just miserable. I sure am glad that we have good games on the docket for the weekend. Games of importance.

The interesting thing about last night, though, was that there actually was an important game last night. Now, when I mention which game it was, I don’t want anyone complaining or leaving saying, “That’s garbage! That game wasn’t that big.” Just hear me out.

#16 Oregon at #14 Boise State

On the surface, I wouldn’t watch this game if it was being played in my back yard. It’s just not all that intriguing – except to see what uniforms Oregon is going to show up in (which ended up being White on White…that’s weak, Oregon).

But as I thought about it, I realized something. Do you have any idea what is going to happen if Boise State wins this game? There is going to be some weird junk happen. I mean, Boise is already a little weird. They play on blue astroturf for crying out loud! They have weird players and weird cheerleaders...they're just plan weird!

Well, they did win the game, 19-8 (which is a weird score). The meaning of that win: it pretty much means that Boise will make a trip to a BCS game barring a complete and utter meltdown. That meltdown would definitely be weird seeing that their remaining schedule looks like this:
-Miami (OH)
-@Fresno State
-@Bowling Green
-UC Davis
-@Tulsa
-@Hawaii
-San Jose State
-@Louisiana Tech
-Idaho
-@Utah State
-Nevada
-New Mexico State

That’s it. If they lose one of those games, it’s “season over!” If they win all of them, which they should, they will go to a BCS game.

What I think everyone needs to prepare themselves for is to watch them climb their way up the AP poll over the next couple months. They are going to be a Top-5 team by mid-October. Teams from the Big 12 and SEC are going to sit there and pick each other off and Boise is going to sit back and watch it all happen while playing one of the worst schedules in college football. Just be prepared for another “Should Boise State be playing for the National Title” argument with that random guy in accounting. It is DEFINITELY coming.

Now for the start of the 2009 Betting Man Games! Play with me, play against me, whatever. You can leave your picks in the comments section if you like or keep score at home. It’s up to you. Enjoy!

Week 1 Games (Theme: “Prove it!”):
#20 BYU vs. #3 Oklahoma (-22)
-The teams suit up in Arlington, Texas for this one. I’ll lay the 22 because I think that Sam Bradford and the Sooners are going to try to put on a show and prove that their recent title appearance was no fluke.

Nevada at #23 Notre Dame (-14.5)
-Again, another opportunity to watch a team try to prove something. Only this time, Charlie Weis and the Irish better prove it or he could be looking for a new gig.

#11 LSU (-17.5) at Washington
-LSU is going to be trying to prove something...that they can fly across the country win a game too (like Georgia did a year ago in beating Arizona State). Washington is going to be overmatched on a lot of levels here.

#5 Alabama vs. #7 Virginia Tech (+6.5)
-The Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game in Atlanta! Great match-up! I think that Virginia Tech could pull this thing off and that could prove to some that big things are in store for the Hokies down the road.

#13 Georgia at #9 Oklahoma State (-5.5)
-We don’t bet on Georgia games on this site. That being said, expect a nice little game of keep away from the Dogs this weekend -- even if Joe Cox fights off his bout with the flu. The Cowboys’ offense can’t score if they are on the sidelines.

The Fall of the Ol' Ball Coach

So, I'm about to say something that is not only unlike anything that I have ever said before but that will probably also frighten and, at least, anger most of you...

I feel sorry for Steve Spurrier.

The Evil Genius, who brought us the Fun N' Gun Offense, Gator Pride and the abomination that we call "Rex Grossman," has taken a nose dive. And, yes, I actually feel bad about this. Hear me out, okay?

We all saw the video footage of Spurrier explaining what happened during Tebow-Gate (the now infamous vote that left Tim Tebow NOT being the unanimous choice for Preseason All-SEC Quarterback). The ballot from the University of South Carolina did not vote for Tebow. BLASPHEMY!!!

But this isn't why Spurrier has fallen...it was his reaction -- he appologized?! This isn't the Steve Spurrier that I have come to know and hate. The Steve Spurrier that I know would have sauntered up to the stage at the SEC meetings, looked down at the members of the media, made a few condescending remarks to them, taken a shot at the University of Georgia, made yet another jab at Peyton Manning and then thrown an assistant or two under the bus on the way out the door.

He's just not controversial anymore. He's lost that swagger that made him a jerk. I'm just not scared of him anymore. Do I worry that South Carolina might beat my team in any given year? Sure. But I don't have that same hatred of Spurrier that we all shared back in the late 90's. It just isn't the same.

I can't even say "I hate him" anymore. I can only embark on the upcoming season with a mild, but healthy, dislike.

So that's what has become of Steve Spurrier. He's reduced himself to becoming almost exactly like my laundry. Sure, I don't want to talk about it but if I ignore it then it's really going to be a burden next week.

Now cracks a noble heart. Good-night, sweet ball coach.

The Two Constants

There are two constants in college football. Just two simple truths that you can right down in the book at the beginning of every college football season.

1. Clemson is NOT going to be as good as you (or anyone else for that matter) thinks they are going to be.

2. Any school that had a successful, ambitious head coach leave the program only to have a loyal, devoted assistant take the reigns is doomed for failure.

Constant #1 explained:

Clemson came into the opening weekend ranked #9 in the nation. They were set to battle, yes, a ranked opponent, but a youthful #24 Alabama. I wish I could say that it was a good game, a well fought contest, a game that went down to the fourth quarter with the team who just "wanted it more" rising to the top and claiming victory. But that is not what happened.

Clemson was completely and totally man-handled. They were pushed around from the first play and, frankly, embarrassed in Atlanta's Georgia Dome. The 34-10 Alabama beat down proved once again that Clemson is not the team that they think they are.

Now, I'm not saying that Clemson won't win a bunch of their games and eventually capture an ACC title but are they a top-ten team? Hardly. The part that makes ESPN dub this massacre a "shocker" is that no one expected the Tigers to collapse this early. Many probably felt they would win their seven games and then slip up when playing back-to-back games at Boston College and at Florida State. Instead they trip over their own feet early on and leave, of all teams, Georgia Tech looking like the best team in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Constant #2 explained:

One of the top programs in the country over the past few years has been the West Virginia Mountaineers. They have ended the last three years, respectively, ranked 5, 10 and 6. Rich Rodriguez lead them to a point where they were in the National Championship conversation each year and put them on the map with a marquee win over the, then SEC Champ, Georgia Bulldogs in the 2006 Sugar Bowl. He pushed them into the national spotlight and made them a force to be reckoned with - despite playing in the Big East.

Then Michigan came calling. The glitz and glamour of a big-time, storied program lured Rodriguez away from what he had built. That's going to happen though. In college football, where you find success, you'll also often find poachers.

Enter Bill Stewart. Named the interim head coach prior to the 2008 Fiesta Bowl, Stewart had served, loyally, under Rodriguez as Quarterbacks Coach. He had also accumulated a lengthy resume of other schools and positions where he had served. Yet, never as head coach.

After a meaningless win over Villanova in week one, Stewart found himself traveling down to meet with Skip Holtz's East Carolina Pirates at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium...

...How many of you have EVER asked yourself what East Carolina's stadium was called?...

...and the giant-killing Pirates took care of business, 24-3. East Carolina not only kept the Mountaineers from getting into the endzone but also held them to 251 yards of TOTAL offense.

I'm not going to say that Stewart has lost control of the program but they look bad...really bad. Not to mention that when you look at their schedule you begin to realize that UWV might be a 4-5 loss team. The bad thing is that there may not be anythign that Stewart can do about it. People just aren't going to by into what he's selling adn that will be most noticeable in his recruiting over the next year or so.

Florida State, Penn State...heed this warning. It's right around the corner.

The SEC is Better Than the Big 10

Just a great little ditty by our good pal Ryan Parker. Enjoy...knowing that we are just two short days away from the first Saturday of the college football season.

Rivalry Time

Michigan hosted hated adversary Ohio State this past weekend for the opportunity to represent the Big Ten conference in the Rose Bowl in January. This rivalry doesn’t need anything to make it a great match-up. It has been for years. It's not the only good rivalry out there though.

We have plenty of rivalry games lined up for our viewing pleasure this weekend as well. That got me to thinking about some of the great rivalries of all-time: Ali-Frazier, Yankees-Red Sox, Donald Trump-Rosie O’Donnell.

Some of my personal favorite rivalries are taking place this week. What do I like about these games? Everything. They have emotion. Fans would sometimes toss out an entire season as long as they could have their team win this one game. They have great names like “The Duel in the Desert,” “The Red River Shootout,” and “The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party.” They even have great names for their trophies like Paul Bunyan’s Axe, the Sweet Sioux Tomahawk and the Beehive Boot.

There are so many great games to choose from but here are a couple of my favorites:

Best Name: The Backyard Brawl (West Virginia vs. Pittsburgh). It was tough for me not to pick The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party for this one but I decided to go with The Brawl. This one isn’t this weekend…it’s next, but it’s still a great name. Frankly, this game just sounds cool – The Backyard Brawl – you pretty much have to be the toughest teams in the area to call your game this. West Virginia and Pittsburgh first locked up for The Brawl in 1895.

Best Trophy: The Floyd of Rosedale (Iowa vs. Minnesota). The Big Ten has a bunch of great trophies but this is my favorite for a couple reasons. First, it’s a trophy with a 21-inch bronze pig on the top of it. I mean, come on! It’s a giant pig-trophy. The other thing that makes this trophy great is that in its first year, in 1935, the governors of the two states actually bet their state’s prize-winning hog on this game. This was in the north, people!

(The more that I think about this topic the more I think this could take over its own blog entry. We may have to devote an entire day to talking about the great trophies of college football.)

Best overall game: The Iron Bowl. It’s the annual grudge match between Auburn and Alabama (okay, I’m a little biased because I’m from the South). The Crimson Tide own a 38-32 advantage in the series with the lone tie coming in 1907. Auburn has won the last five contests though. This is one of my favorites because there is such a passionate hatred between these two teams. In the state of Alabama, you grow up cheering for either Alabama or Auburn. Cheering for both is completely unheard of.

Thanksgiving night there is also a great game – with possible Rose Bowl implications: Southern Cal vs. Arizona State. I’ll be tuning in with the best part of Thanksgiving with me…no, not friends and family…a big sandwich filled with leftover turkey!

Have a great Thanksgiving everyone!

Problems With A Playoff

One of my favorite debates in sports is the topic of a playoff system in college football. Why? – Because it’s a never-ending struggle. We’ll probably still be arguing about it 30 years from now.

Currently, people are more upset with the BCS system than Donald Trump is with Rosie O’Donnell. Everyone thinks that a playoff system needs to be in place. They claim that there is just too much controversy out there – too many politics. I think that they’re wrong.

Let’s look at what it would take to build a payoff system (we’ll try to keep this as simple as possible and just work with the logistics of the actual setup).

First, we’ll need to decide on how many teams make this playoff system. A 64-team field is almost out of the question seeing as there are only 119 teams in Division I-A football. Half the field can’t make the playoffs. A four-team playoff seems too small and wouldn’t suffice for what the pundits want. Eight seems to be the number that pleases most people. So, we’ll go with eight for the moment.

Now, we have to decide if conference champions get an automatic bid into the playoffs. If so, which conferences? I think we’d have to be looking at the Big 10, Big 12, SEC, ACC, Pac-10 and Big East. That’s only six…which two do you add in after that? The MAC? The WAC? Who knows? You’re going to leave someone out. And what happens when a 7-5 Baylor squeaks into the Big 12 title game and it happens to be their day? Then we have a playoff that includes a team ranked 40th in the country. (Keep in mind that this system would also make non-conference football games completely and totally irrelevant.)

Another fact to keep in mind: Notre Dame is independent. Does that mean that they don’t get the chance to play for a title. I’m actually okay with that. Moving on…

So, let’s say that we just run with the six power-conferences. We have to fill those last two spots. How do we decide on those two teams? I guess we’d have to leave it up to a selection committee. There are more than a dozen one and two-loss teams out there right now that will not win their respective conference and a still-undefeated Hawaii team to contend with. You’re talking about some BIG schools, with BIG boosters, who like to throw around BIG dollars. Now, if you don’t think politics are going to get involved in that process then you’re crazy.

Do we simply extend the field to 16 teams? If we do then we are going to be running into the same problems when we get to the three-loss teams. Possibly even more. The Southeastern Conference has seven teams in the BCS Top 25 – You have to think that more than three of them could make a case for this hypothetical tourney.

We all enjoy our college sports and college football seems to be our first love. When we talk about it we use words like “heritage” and “tradition.” There is a certain amount of tradition that goes into the Bowl System. People love talking about that year the team won the Sugar Bowl or the Cotton Bowl or the EricCheek.blogspot.com Bowl (I’m trying to convince everyone that this bowl needs to take place in 2010).

The system isn’t perfect. We all know this. One of the things that makes collegiate football so great, though, is that we argue about it. We constantly enter into debate with friends, co-workers and the “experts” sitting three seats to our right at the local watering hole. So go tell your buddy he’s a moron…heck, come tell me I’m an idiot. I welcome the conversation.

Three Of These Things Aren't Like The Others...

There were some big upsets this weekend. Colorado knocked off #3 Oklahoma, the Tiger-Plainsman-War Eagles of Auburn defeated #4 Florida (on the road and at night no less), Kansas State popped #7 Texas, Maryland took care of the “wood-choppin’” boys from #10 Rutgers and the Ramblin’ Wreck beat the #13 Clemson Tigers.

These were all good things that made for a great week in college football. It also made for an odd looking AP poll come Sunday afternoon. I mean, let’s look at your top five:

1. LSU
2. USC
3. California
4. Ohio State
5. Wisconsin

Okay, I’ll buy into that. That seems like it could be a top five on any given year over the past decade or so. But then…

6. South Florida
7. Boston College
8. Kentucky

These three schools are like those three random freshman girls who show up for their first big fraternity party of the year. They look great on the surface – they’re trendy and no one really knows anything about them so they have that “air of mystery” going for them. The thing is, they’ve just been nursing on beers so far and not really hitting the “hard stuff.”

Boston College, you did beat, a then ranked #15, Georgia Tech in Atlanta a couple weeks ago but we found out that the Jackets, despite beating Clemson, are not nearly as good as we all thought. That’s pretty much it…that’s all you’ve accomplished.

Kentucky, you beat Louisville a few weeks back when we thought that they would be vying for trip to the National Title Game…then the Cardinals fell to Syracuse and we all said, “Whoa, whoa, whoa! These guys can play offense but their defense is just dreadful.” The win the Wildcats had at Arkansas was decent but they still gave up a lot of yards and 29 points.

South Florida…hmmm…you’re like the leader of the trio. You actually have some things going for you. You went into Auburn and beat them and then this past weekend you beat the speedsters that were #5 West Virginia. I’ve got to admit, you’re looking kind of hot right now.

Well, ladies, the bar just ran out of beer so if you want to continue to hang out then you’re going to have to turn it up a notch. It’s nothing but mind erasers and tequila shots from here on.

The first half of Boston College’s schedule isn’t exactly a gauntlet. They have gone through Wake Forest, NC State and Georgia Tech in conference and have tangled with Army and UMass over the past two weeks. They have Bowling Green and Notre Dame (and don’t even get me started on the Irish right now) for the next two. They should have a 7-0 start. Then it’s time to line up the shots – at Virginia Tech, Florida State, at Maryland, at Clemson, and Miami. Yowza!

Kentucky has played some stellar offense and has put up at least a 40-spot in each of their first five games but the Wildcats are about to hit it hard. This week, on Thursday night, the cats travel to #11 South Carolina. They’ll follow that up by hosting top-ranked LSU and #9 Florida. Later on they have to go to Athens to take on the Dogs and then host Tennessee. Yikes!

What I’m saying is that as good as those girls looked entering the party, we all know that they are going to end up doing too many shots, get trampled on the dance floor, break the heel on their left shoe, tear their shirts and end up throwing up all over themselves…they’ll end up back in obscurity.

The only thing that frightens me is that South Florida might end up looking great at the end of the night (like the girl who just calls a cab for her sloppy friends and then heads back up to the bar). The rest of South Florida’s schedule looks like this:

-at Florida Atlantic
-Central Florida
-at #21 Rutgers
-at UConn
-#20 Cincinnati
-at Syracuse
-Louisville
-at Pittsburgh

This isn’t tough. South Florida could do this. Their toughest game is at Rutgers. They have Louisville at home and Cincinnati is ranked despite not having played anyone at all. South Florida may be sitting there at the end of the season with an undefeated record.

Is the nation going to be okay with South Florida playing for a National Title if they run the table? I’m just not okay with it at this point.

The Betting Man Update:
Week 4: 1-4
Overall: 8-12 (I really need to turn this ship around soon.)

Pics of the week:

It was a beautiful day for football in Utah this past weekend.

Mike Flynt, 59, plays linebacker for Sul Ross State...Now that's old man strength.

Hey Coach Stoops, how did your Sooner's look this week?

SEC fans everywhere were cheering for Auburn.

The Thrills of Week Three

Week Three in college football's march to the New Year did not disappoint.

The SEC, in particular, was exciting with some big wins and tough losses. Kentucky got the proverbial monkey off their back after finally downing Louisville, 40-34 (but can you really have a monkey on your back after four losses to a team?...it seems like it should be longer than that).

Quick note: Hey, Kentucky, we’re going to have to talk about your incessant field-rushing problems. You can’t rush the field every time you win a game. We’ll discuss this further another time…

Alabama came back, after giving it away, to beat #16 Arkansas, 41-38. I actually watched this won…actually the fact that I watched this game says nothing…Lady Cheek watched it though and THAT says something.

Florida made Tennessee (the team that was supposed to give the entire country a fair shake this season) a thorough drubbing. Florida QB, Tim Tebow looked like he was for real, throwing for 299 and a couple scores.

Mississippi State even got on the board this weekend with a win over Auburn. Auburn, you should be ashamed of yourself.

Then there was Nebraska hosting USC and the Trojans proving to everyone in the country that they are a true and utter powerhouse. They destroyed Nebraska in what I had thought was going to be a decent game. The 49-31 score is A LOT closer than the game actually was. Will Ferrell was even on hand to take in the beat down.

And then there was Michigan playing host to Notre Dame – a game that I would haven’t watched if it had been played in my back yard. This game was set up to be a complete and total train wreck…and it was for Notre Dame. We realized this weekend just how terrible The Football University of America really is. Michigan, who we all learned was just plain awful, killed the Fighting Irish. And Jimmy Clausen: You were the nation’s most highly touted QB coming out of high school. How in the world do you average 4.4 yards per completion in a game?! Heck, Georgia’s Knowshon Moreno averaged 7.2 yards per carry last weekend. Jimmy, you’re my new go-to joke (somewhere Reggie Ball just made a sigh of relief).

Now for a little house cleaning:
-Tennessee got pummeled by Florida. I really thought that the untested Florida wouldn’t be able to run away from UT like they did.
-Ohio State took care of business against Washington.
-I didn’t realize that Kentucky would come with the horse-power that they did while hosting gunslingin’ Louisville.
-Southern Cal forced their will on Nebraska in Lincoln.
-Georgia Tech couldn’t hang with Boston College and we all realized that their win over Notre Dame wasn’t nearly as impressive as we all thought.

Last Week: 3-2
Season: 5-5

We’ll stay local with our “Pic of the Week” this time:

It’s good to see that Sean Bailey is back in the mix and has made a full recovery.

Have a good week everyone!

What A Week!

Note: I am posting this entry on Tuesday, September 4 -- partly because I needed to complete the weekend with last night's Clemson-FSU game and partly because if I don't work all that hard on normal days, I'm certainly not going to work all that hard on Labor Day.

Ah, the first week of college football for 2007. I felt it pulsing through my veins -- as I drove the family Explorer through Gator-Country and into Orlando for a family reunion. At about 9 a.m., as I was passing through the Turf-Grass Capital of the World, I could almost see Myers Quad laid out in front of me...the lush green grass topped with red-canvas tents, the smell of whatever it is that Joe was preparing for the afternoon feast, the sound of Tom and Fitz - already drunk, mind you - leading the masses in chants. Heaven on Earth, my friends. Heaven on Earth.

The trip went fine and I was able to secure a little TV-time from my Gator-loving family (man, it's hard to call those people "family") so that I could watch the Bulldogs. Having been in the car all afternoon with Lady Cheek and my sister, I had little knowledge of what had happened earlier that day. I went in saying, "Well, USC will win...Florida will win...Georgia Tech will have a great shot at Notre Dame...Michigan will win..." but hold it right there.

Michigan ran into the "power-house" known as...Appalachian State??? I just had to Google the school to find out that their mascot was "The Mountaineer." Going into the game, Michigan's chances of losing this game had to be about the same as the chances that Jack Bauer would end up shooting himself in the foot during Hour 2 and that the next 22 hours would consist of him sitting in a doctor’s waiting room with him crying and yelling things like, “I can’t go after the terrorists! I hurt my foot for crying out loud!”

But it actually happened.

Appalachian State beat Michigan. And I have to say, it was only a matter of time before the stars aligned and a D-IAA team did this to one of the big boys. I bet that every D-I coach is rethinking the idea of scheduling one of these guys in what I always consider a no-win situation.

I can’t imagine what it must be like up in Ann-Arbor this week though. I mean, those kids must be throwing themselves in front of buses up there. We’ll find out what the sports writers feel the punishment should be later this afternoon.

All in all, though, a good first week of action.