I was reading a blog by one of the few people who has bothered to comment on a wordpress blog of mine. He wrote a blog illogically denouncing the SEC and he has Georgia as the SEC’s best team. In reflecting upon how wrong this is, it occurred to me that Georgia should not even be considered the best team in the East, particularly if both Florida and Georgia finish with one loss apiece. I’ve now left two comments on his blog to discuss this.

Just to avoid any idea of bias against them, I actually like Georgia. After Kentucky and Vanderbilt, who I mostly favor as regular underdogs, Georgia has been my favorite team in the East. I can’t think of a recent instance where I didn’t cheer for them against Florida, Tennessee, or South Carolina. I guess I’m more neutral with Tennessee now, but I remember being very annoyed on the Bulldogs’ behalf that Tennessee won the SEC East in 2007, and I was definitely for Georgia before that. So I’m being consistent now that the team I like less deserves to play in the game and will not be able to.

As an aside, I also like newcomer Missouri—I remember cheering for them many times as underdogs against teams like Nebraska and Oklahoma—but I knew no matter how many losses there had been by A&M and Missouri, the first time one of the two got a breakthrough win, people were going to say, “Aha! The SEC defenses aren’t so good after all. Look at that Big XII team go!” And that’s exactly what happened when Texas A&M, despite falling flat offensively against LSU and Florida after going out to early leads, finally managed to win such a game against Alabama. So I’m not quite in solidarity with the new Tigers and the Aggies just yet.

There is a fan interest that has made me passionate about this issue, and that’s being a fan of LSU. As you may have noticed, Florida has been pretty good for about the last 25 years, and they’ve played LSU in all of those years. Every single one of them. Does LSU get any consideration if they tie for something as a result of this? Win or lose, the answer is no. So when I see that a team like Florida, who played LSU and Texas A&M, is being passed over by Georgia, who instead played Ole Miss and Auburn, I sympathize with Florida even though I like Georgia much better.

Georgia earned a win over Florida, don’t get me wrong, but don’t forget South Carolina beat Georgia handily. The only reason we’re not looking at a 3-way tie right now is that unlike Florida, South Carolina didn’t win its game against LSU.

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I’ll post my top 25 blog later in the week, but I have updated the LSU/Mississippi St. rivalry post and released my weekly computer ratings.

After the impressive first six teams of the SEC, a lot of commentators look down the standings and seem to focus on programs in decline. People are wondering what is going on at Arkansas, Auburn, Tennessee, even Kentucky (which was on the verge of bowl-eligibility last season). But I think it’s been overlooked that Vanderbilt has become bowl-eligible for the third time in five years. Their 2008 appearance against Boston College had been their first bowl game since 1982.

Things were looking so bad at one point that in 1995, LSU actually hired Gerry DiNardo, who had been the Vanderbilt coach, because he had accomplished the feat of winning 5 games in a season there not once but twice. I guess that was harder to do when it was an 11-game season though, to be fair. Only once in the following 10 years would Vanderbilt win 4 games or more (going 5-6 in 1999).

Something is different this year though. When Vandy went 6-6 in 2008, they had lost 6 of 7 going into the bowl game, only becoming bowl eligible in a close game against Kentucky after having lost three similarly close games (to Mississippi St., Georgia, and Duke) in consecutive weeks at the beginning of a 4-game losing streak.

In 2009 and 2010, Vandy started 2-2 and 2-3, respectively, before finishing with 2-10 marks in both seasons.

Then last season, the Commodores started 3-0 only to finish 6-7.

This is also the fifth time in eight seasons Vandy has won 5 games or more. In 2005, Vanderbilt won the first 4 games before losing 7 in a row then beat Tennessee in the finale. In 2007, the ’Dores started 5-3 then lost 2 games by a touchdown or less (either of which would have made them bowl-eligible) as they ended the year with a 4-game losing streak.

Granted, this was partly because the end of the season has a lot more conference games than the beginning does, but I think it was more than that. I think that confidence and killer instinct goes away, and it’s more a sense of “not again” and playing not to lose game after game.

This is the first time I’ve seen Vanderbilt as the team that’s making things happen rather than having things happen to it.

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I WROTE Friday night about Notre Dame linebacker, Manti Te'o staying with his team, to play Michigan State Saturday night, even though Tuesday his grandmother died, and Wednesday his girlfriend died...I don't know how he did it...I don't think I'd be able to handle it...But he did...He went out and lead his defense into holding #10 Michigan State to just 3 points...He had 12 tackles, broke up 2 passes, and intercepted a lateral late in the game...It was an amazing effort...

But he wasn't alone...The Notre Dame front 7, no matter which 7 were out there, were all over MSU QB, Andrew Maxwell, who was forced to drop back more then MSU would like, but the Irish defense shut down running back Le'Veon Bell...

The Irish offense was aggressive in the first half, and QB Everrett Golson showed some real flashes of brilliance...But the second half, Kelly held the O back, and called a conservative game, not letting his young QB get into bad situations...The Irish lead by an outstanding defensive performance, won 20-3...

This week's big upset...#21 Stanford and their typical gritty performance beat #2 USC 21-14...Giving Trojan QB Matt Barkley a 0-4 record against the Cardinal...Barkley opened the season as many people's favorite for the Heisman (not me) threw for 254 yards and 2 Interceptions...I think this just killed his Heisman and National Title chances...Oh, can I just say that Lane Kiffin is such an overrated douchebag!

Last week's victim of a major upset, Arkansas had a tough task trying to rebound from their loss to UL Monroe, by taking on #1 Alabama...Worse yet, they had to do it without their starting QB who is still dealing with the ringing bells in his head from last week...Well, Arkansas didn't show much fight, getting destroyed 52-0...

And speaking of UL Monroe...They put another scare into another SEC school this week...The Warhawks came back late, lead by QB Kolton Browning to tie Auburn 28-28, forcing the game to overtime...Browning passed for 237 yards and 3 TD's, while also rushing for 58 yards and another TD...Unfortunately The Warhawks OT field goal was deflected, and Auburn's Cody Parkey knocked in a 35 yard field goal to win it...But after the last two weeks, no one will be looking past UL Monroe...And maybe some scouts will start looking at this Browning kid...

There was another Sun Belt team that was feeling good Saturday night...Western Kentucky went into Lexington to take on the Kentucky Wildcats...Now I know as far as the SEC is concerned, Kentucky is garbage...But to little Western Kentucky, this game means a lot...In state rival...A SEC team...A team they've never beaten...

Well, that changed Saturday...The Hilltoppers left everything on the field, as they beat Kentucky 32-31 in overtime...The Wildcats scored a TD in the first OT...The Hilltoppers came back and RB Antonio Andrews scored a TD...But coach Willie Taggart wasn't going to put his defense out on the field again...He went for it all...Quarterback Kawaun Jakes threw a lateral to Andrews, who threw back to Jakes who ran it in for the two-point conversion, and the win...That people, is what you call having balls!

The Ohio University Bobcats opened their season 3-0 after beating Marshall 27-24...Once again the Bobcats were lead by their QB Tyler Tettleton, who threw for 200 yards and 3 TD's...Ohio's normally tough defense gave up 432 passing yards but came up with a late interception to seal the deal...The D will have to improve if they want to roll through the MAC undefeated...

Another upset Saturday happened in Pittsburgh, as #13 Virginia Tech came to pay the 0-2 Panthers visit...Little did they know the Panthers were going to punch them in the mouth, as Pitt rolled to a 35-17 victory...Va Tech QB Logan Thomas threw 3 interceptions between picking himself up off the turf...After two weeks of looking like shit, Pitt got back to their roots and played some hard nosed football...Maybe they wanted to put the ACC on notice since they'll be leaving the Big lEast along with Syracuse after this year...

(And yes, I'll have plenty in Monday Moaning about ND going partially to the ACC)

In what I expected to be a good ACC match up, #5 Florida State took o Wake Forest...As a matter of fact, in my gambling days, I would have taken Wake w/ the points...Well, it didn't end up being that good of a game, as FSU blew Wake out 52-0...This game was all about Florida State' Chris Thompson...A year after he suffered a broken back in a loss at Wake Forest, the 5 foot 8 inch, 185 pound RB ran for 197 yards and 2 TD's on 9 carries...His TD runs were 74 yards, and 80 yards...Holy SHIT! Great for him!

And yes LSU fan...Way to go...Your team beat Idaho 63-14...Don't get so excited...That's what LSU is suppose to do, right? Wow, I can't wait until they take on Towson in 2 weeks...But at least they'll have a real game at Auburn next week...

In Utah, the third time is a charm...As the Utah players and fans stormed the field 3 times...Yes, 3 times...They had thought they had #25 BYU beaten, but replay showed 1 second left...They cleared the field...BYU lined up for a long filed goal(somewhere around 50 yards)...The kick is blocked, and the field is stormed again...But players and fans were charging onto the field while the ball was still live, as a BYU player had scooped up the ball and was trying to advance it...So, clear the field...Tack on 15 yards...One un-timed play...BYU sets up for a 36 yard field goal...Ball is up, looks good, hooks a bit, hits the upright...Finally! Game over! Utah wins in an exciting game...So exciting it ended 3 times!

Locally, here in a great OAC Rivalry, the Baldwin Wallace Yellow Jackets beat the John Carroll Blue Streaks 32-28 at Don Shula Stadium...It was BW's first win at Shula stadium since 1998...

That's it for now...see ya Monday!

Later, The Beeze.

 
In case you haven't been paying attention, "The Avengers" opened this weekend, and this flick is going to bust over $200 Million for the opening weekend...Holy shit!

Oh, and by the way, it was fucking awesome...The Mrs. and I checked it out Sunday evening...They did a great job with it...Great action, great humor, and it was cool seeing shots of Cleveland getting blown the hell up!

And then of course, there's Scarlett Johansson...Hot as hell and kicking ass!


Tonight Mrs. Beeze's name is Scarlett!

Now, onto sports...

-Ohio State got rid of cheater Tressel, and his dirty ways...The brought in Urban Meyer to get things back on track, never mind the dirt that comes with him from Florida...And then this weekend, THIS story broke...Shit is unreal in Columbus!

-Albert Pujols finally finally hit his first home run of the year...I don't really give a shit...I've enjoyed seeing his overrated, overpaid ass struggle...Fuck the Angels for giving him a ten year deal...DOLTS!

-The Kentucky Derby lived up to it's hype of being the most exciting 2 minutes in sports...As "I'll Have Another" (15-1) came from behind and beat out Bodemeister who lead the entire race...He also beat out my horse, Dullahan who was charging hard as well...My oldest daughter had her money on Bodemeister, so she was pretty pissed...

-Sunday I wrote THIS post about struggling Indians pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez...Then the prick goes out there and pitches a good game...

The Indians have been a bit of a hot topic this week...With the Tribe sitting in first place of their division, and the Texas Rangers coming to town for the weekend, all the radio guys could talk about was the poor attendance so far...Some of these guys ranted about how Clevelanders shell out money every year for Browns season tickets, even though they religiously suck, and the front office has made it clear, they couldn't give a fuck about the fans...And if you've read my blog before, you know that pisses me off as well...I refuse to spend a dime on the Browns...

As for people not turning out for the Tribe...Well, shit baseball in Cleveland, during April usually sucks...Most of April is normally cold...even nice days, it gets cold at night...Then of course, we have a shitty economy here right now...People are watching how they spend their money when it comes to entertainment...Families may plan on taking a vacation, and dropping $150-$200 to take the family to a ball game may not be in the budget...

As for the fans who use the Indians' cheap owner as an excuse to not go, I could agree with that, if they weren't dumping money into the Browns...Also, the Indians are winning, and last year they were competitive...So a bad team isn't an excuse...

That said, unlike some of these guys on the radio, I'm not going to rip people for not going to the Indians games...Why? Because fuck it, I don't go...Shit every single game is televised...If that isn't enough, how about this...Tickets cost too much...Beers cost too much...Hot Dogs cost too much...Parking costs too much...And if we aren't taking the kids, a baby sitter costs too much...We've got bills to pay...Tuition for the kids...And just because some ass-hat on the radio says we should go to games, doesn't mean shit to me...

Lastly, I've got a PENNY_FOR_YOUR_THOUGHTS on this topic...

Now, I've gotta go throw it in Scarlett...Have a week...

Later, The Beeze.

The Kansas Jayhawks had a terrific season.  I think they were ranked high in the preseason polls and picked to win the Big XII due more to their reputations and history rather than true talent.  Yet, the Jayhawks played to their ranking and preseason predictions.  They won their 8^th straight conference title and were ranked in the top 10 for most of the season.  They earned a number 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament.  While these accomplishments don’t seem like a surprise, I have to honestly admit they really exceeded my true expectations.

KU featured a fine starting five and a very thin bench.  When the season started, Tyshawn Taylor had more career minutes played than all of his teammates combined at Kansas.  Jayhawk fans are used to a solid rotation of 8 or 9 almost every season.  This team played its bench only when it was necessary.  Yet, they found a way to succeed and play to the seemingly unrealistic preseason predictions.  Mirroring the toughness of their head coach, Bill Self, Kansas fought and scraped their way to success.  Few games were easy or runaways and the Jayhawks seemed to be playing from behind much of the season.  They found a way to win game after game. 

The NCAA Tournament followed the established pattern for the Jayhawks.  They didn’t play well in the first halves and those kids were able to turn things around in the second halves, making furious comebacks in several postseason games.  Even in the championship game, the Jayhawks struggled early and found themselves digging themselves out of a hole late.

Kentucky is a fine team.  There has been little doubt the Wildcats were the best team throughout a down year in college basketball.  They were young but talented and athletic.  Coach John Calipari got them to buy into his system and to play defense, a deathly combination for the opposition.

There is no doubt Kentucky was more talented and athletic, player for player, than Kansas.  The Wildcats dominated the first half and it was all the Jayhawks could do not to be blown out and embarrassed.  KU popped out of the locker room after the half just as they did several other games.  Kansas made a couple of shots and made a couple of defensive stops.  In my opinion, the key play of the game was when Jeff Withey failed to get an easy dunk through the cords early in the second half.  KU had cut into the lead and their fans were just starting to feel the momentum swing.  If that dunk goes down, who knows if the outcome would have been different.  So much happened after that play.  Immediately though, UK scored a basket and snuffed the Jayhawks’ growing momentum.  I want to make it clear that I am not blaming Withey for this loss.  Without him, KU would never have been even close to the championship game.  It just happened to be his missed dunk that I felt was the key.

From that point, KU ever so slowly scraped their way back into the game but never really gained that feeling of momentum.  The Wildcats seemed to be on the verge of allowing the Jayhawks back into the game mentally but with that failed dunk, Kansas seemed to lose a little something.  They eventually cut their deficit to 5 points but never closer.  UK kept them at arms length and eventually outlasted the comeback.

But that missed dunk wasn’t the only missed opportunity for the Jayhawks.  KU missed 3 dunks and 13 lay-ups through the course of the game.  The fantastic Anthony Davis had a lot to do with Kansas’ tightness around the rim.  Still, KU only lost by 8 points.  If KU had cashed in on just a few of those missed chances, things could have been much different.  Make the dunks (the highest percentage shot possible) and just a couple of the missed bunnies, then maybe there would have been a different result in the outcome.

It is futile to play the “what if” game.  It serves no purpose and it does take away from a great performance by the Wildcats.  I mention these key blown opportunities because it shows that the game wasn’t that far from having a different result. 

I heard a talking head yesterday speaking about how this only proves that Kentucky is the best program and how John Calipari is by far the best coach in college basketball.  All of his arguments sounded pre-written.  I think if KU would have won, this guy would have just replaced Kentucky with Kansas and John Calipari with Bill Self.  His arguments would have held weight for whichever school and coach, depending on who won the game.  He went on and on about now it wasn’t even close to which school and coach was best.  He said no one could argue the point anymore.  My point is that the discussion is still closer than this guy wanted to admit.  Three dunks and a couple of lay ups and who knows.  Kentucky had a fine season and played a heck of a championship game and they deserved the title but KU wasn’t that far behind.

Bill Self proved that he must be counted among the game’s finest coaches.  He has shown in the past that he is a top notch recruiter and has been able to get top players to adhere to his system.  He proved this season he could coach a team with less talent but with huge hearts and still win.  Coach Self and this team should be very proud of their season and the final results.  I know the fans are.  The worst thing is that we now have to wait seven months for the next edition of the Kansas Jayhawks.

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