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Bar Chat

11/27/2014

Is the SEC About to Cannibalize Itself?

NFL Quiz: Name the seven to throw 40 or more TD passes in a single season. Answer below.

Reminder...the AP Poll...

1. Florida State 11-0 (37 first-place votes)
2. Alabama 10-1 (21)
3. Oregon 10-1 (2)
4. Mississippi State 10-1
5. Baylor 9-1
6. TCU 9-1
7. Ohio State 10-1
8. Georgia 9-2
9. UCLA 9-2
10. Michigan State 9-2
11. Kansas State 8-2
12. Arizona 9-2
13. Arizona State 9-2
14. Wisconsin 9-2
17. Missouri 9-2
18. Ole Miss 8-3
19. Marshall 11-0...no way CFP ranks them
21. Colorado State 10-1
25. Boise State 9-2

*And the new College Football Playoff selection committee rankings...

1. Alabama
2. Oregon...quack quack
3. Florida State
4. Mississippi State
5. TCU
6. Ohio State
7. Baylor
8. UCLA
9. Georgia
10. Michigan State
11. Arizona
12. Kansas State
13. Arizona State
14. Wisconsin
15. Auburn
23. Boise State...wow
24. Marshall...finally
25. Utah

“It starts with the premise there are no great teams in college football. Not when the Heisman front-runner (Marcus Mariota) is backed by Oregon’s 93rd-ranked defense. Not when Missouri could win a division over a team that shut it out (Georgia). Not when Ohio State struggles with Indiana and loses to Virginia Tech.

“Certainly not when the SEC West is on the brink of cannibalizing itself.

“Do we even have to go there with Florida State?

“The possibility of SEC Armageddon starts with the eventual Southeastern Conference champion having at least two losses. That possibility will go to the final day of the season (Dec. 6) because either Georgia or Missouri – both 9-2 – will win the East Division.

“From there, all it takes is the Tigers or Bulldogs winning in Atlanta. If Auburn beats Alabama in the Iron Bowl and Ole Miss defeats Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl then the league champion can finish no better than 11-2.

“Decision time, then for the College Football Playoff selection committee. Does a two-loss SEC champion deserve a spot in the top four over, say, conference champs Oregon, Ohio State, Florida State and Baylor – all with one or no losses?....

“Even more controversial: Mississippi State at 11-1 – having not won its division – being the highest-ranked SEC team remaining. The Bulldogs could conceivably be in competition for a top-four spot with other champions of the Power 5 conferences. Yes, that would include the champion of its own conference.

“The specific language that deals with that possibility can be seen here in the CFP committee’s protocol.

“A non-champion would be selected only if it is ‘unequivocally one of the four best teams in the country.’

“In this season where no team is great, extending the suspense seems about right.”

--In the FCS Championship (Div. I-AA), the action gets started on Saturday, winners then going on to face the 8 seeds, who are:

#1 New Hampshire, #2 North Dakota State, #3 Jacksonville St., #4 Eastern Washington, #5 Illinois St., #6 Villanova, #7 Coastal Carolina, #8 Chattanooga

Locally, Fordham takes on Sacred Heart for the right to face New Hampshire Dec. 6.

--Johnny Mac notes that as the Division III playoffs get underway, Wisconsin-Whitewater is once again seeded #1, with coach Lance Leipold’s record 105-6 in eight seasons, with six national titles. Is that good? [Leipold is interested in the soon-to-be vacant Montana coaching job, incidentally.]

--West Point is thinking of rebranding Army athletics, which will probably spell the end of “Black Knights” as an official team name as early as next spring, according to Army Times.

“Black Knights” has been the official nickname since 1999, though the roots go back to the 1920s.   But now the name would go to the traditional “Cadets” moniker.

“Can West Point do better than Black Knights? Maybe. But changing the nickname and mascot isn’t really what’s going to drive recognition, or grow fan support.

“The best is to win big games. Especially the game. The Black Knights battle the Midshipmen on Dec. 13. Consider it an opportunity to start rebranding with a big fat win. Go Army. Beat Navy.” [Sorry, Bobby C.]

--So, you’ve seen all the stories on North Carolina, its athletic program and academic issues. Pretty embarrassing, right? You’d think they’d want to improve their image, right?

Well the Tar Heel football players didn’t get the message, I guess, because after defeating Duke in Durham 45-20, Carolina players celebrated by trashing the visitors’ locker room at Wallace Wade Stadium, doing thousands of dollars in damage to the walls and carpet. UNC coach Larry Fedora and Carolina’s athletic director apologized to their Duke counterparts.

--After the Jets upset the Steelers on Nov. 9, there was some talk that maybe, just maybe, if the Jets finished strong Rex Ryan could return. The Jets then had a bye week and the past few days prior to Monday night’s rescheduled game against the Bills in Detroit, some were putting the odds at Rex’s return at 50/50. I was beginning to think he could survive.

“The Jets took the jump from embarrassing to pathetic Monday night.

“Through this dismal season, the hapless Jets had managed to look like an NFL team for the most part.

“That vanished Monday night as the Bills crushed them 38-3 before 56,044 fans at Ford Field. Luckily for them, tickets were free. No one should have paid to watch this mess....

“The no-effort, no-heart, no-guts performance turned in by this team impersonating an NFL squad should be enough to seal the fate of coach Rex Ryan and end any discussion of him returning for a seventh season. It also may be enough to finish off general manager John Idzik.”

[By the way, the Jets have been blown out after their bye week the past three years, losing by an average of 26 points.]

--The rise and fall of Robert Griffin III has been well-chronicled in the Washington media, and I just want to note the comments of the Washington Post’s Mike Wise prior to RG3’s abysmal effort last Sunday.

“When was the last time someone broke through the gate as a messiah for a title-starved sports town and, through his own words and deeds, became as reviled as he once was beloved?

“LeBron James is the first name to come to mind. As young star athletes go, James is a direct lesson for Robert Griffin III only because neither got into legal trouble to exacerbate their popularity freefall, yet both ultimately went from pure gold to absolutely polarizing quickly....

“James’ nadir was, of course, ‘the Decision’ in 2010, an ill-conceived, made-for-ESPN, free-agent announcement that coldly left his current franchise out of the loop before ‘taking [his] talents to South Beach.’ What followed were some of the most vile reactions sports fans have ever had toward an athlete they once worshipped.

“In hindsight, Griffin had a ‘Decision’ of his own, a fork in the road that forever changed his relationship with the burgundy-and-gold legions. It was Jan. 6, 2013, halftime, NFC divisional playoff against Seattle – the moment he refused to swallow his pride and step aside for Kirk Cousins in a game in which he was hurting his team on the field as much as he was ailing physically.

“It was not noble; looking back, it bordered on narcissistic. And it ended with a gruesome knee injury that further robbed Griffin of his gifts, the speed and athleticism that still don’t feel like they have returned.

“I have no idea what his playbook study habits are like. But I know he has often come across as a fame junkie since that day, from the Adidas ‘All in for Week 1’ campaign to running out with a team flag before a season opener – by himself. RGMe was harsh, but for a while it seemed appropriate....

“The last six games of the season aren’t a referendum on Jay Gruden’s first year as coach or Bruce Allen’s first year as personal shot-caller; they’re all about Griffin, who, incredibly, is at the crossroads of his career just three seasons after Snyder mortgaged the franchise’s future on trading up and plucking him No. 2 in the draft.”...

“RGIII, the player revolutionizing the position with Andrew Luck, Colin Kaepernick and Russell Wilson just two winters ago, is suddenly headed toward Josh Freeman territory.”

So after RG3’s lackluster effort in the 17-13 loss to the 49ers, Jason Reid of the Washington Post weighed in:

“Only five weeks remain in the regular season, and it appears Robert Griffin III’s time is running out with the Washington Redskins....

“After his atrocious two-interception, six-sack performance in a Week 11 loss to the lowly Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Redskins hoped Griffin would rebound against the formidable 49ers. He did some things better.”

A few good throws, a nice scramble that resulted in a field goal. “And Griffin also displayed his toughness while being sacked five times and hit eight.

“That established, it’s the same story with Griffin: His lack of pocket presence is a big problem. On one sack in the first half, Griffin took a five-step drop and then two steps forward in the pocket while he surveyed the defense. He took way too long to make a decision and get the ball out of his hand....

“(In) his third season, Griffin is so raw in the pocket, he’s at best a project.”

Tuesday night, the Redskins apparently decided to replace RG3 with Colt McCoy for Sunday’s game against the Colts.

--I posted last time prior to Giants-Cowboys so for the archives I have to note that aside from “the catch,” Odell Beckham had 10 receptions for 146 yards and two touchdowns.

Yes, I saw it live. I loved Collinsworth’s immediate description, “That might be the greatest catch I’ve ever seen.”

I think we all had the same reaction in watching it in real time. ‘Did he just do that?’ With each replay it became more amazing.

So at least Giants fans have Beckham to look forward to, and hopefully Victor Cruz can come back strong next season.

As for Dallas QB Tony Romo, I’ve noted in the past his terrific rankings. I understand some of the criticism, but just some. I mean on Sunday, his splits were 18/26, 275, 4-0, 143.4! As Ronald Reagan would have said, ‘Not bad, not bad at all.’

--After New Orleans lost on Monday night to Baltimore, 34-27, despite Drew Brees’ 35/45, 420, 3-1, 118.5 performance, you can only shake your head at the futility of the NFC South....

Atlanta 4-7
New Orleans 4-7
Carolina 3-7-1
Tampa Bay 2-9

Cincinnati 7-3-1
Baltimore 7-4
Pittsburgh 7-4
Cleveland 7-4

--Dallas’ DeMarco Murray has rushed for at least 100 yards in 10 games this season, 1 shy of Emmitt Smith’s franchise record of 11, set in 1995.

Murray has 1,354 yards in 11 games, 123.1 per game, so he’s on a pace for 1,970. He’s also a full 403 yards ahead of No. 2 in the NFL, Pittsburgh’s Le’Veon Bell, who has 951 yards thus far.

--Hey guys, you know how they always say it’s important to win the turnover game? Well no one should need any more proof, but I did want to see what was happening this season.

1. Green Bay +15 (8-3 record)
2. New England +11 (9-2)
3. Arizona +10 (9-2)

30. Jacksonville -10 (1-10)
31. NY Jets -12 (2-9)
32. Oakland -13 (1-10)

--Finally, you know that feel-good story in Cincinnati? Defensive tackle Devon Still and his sick 4-year-old daughter who was honored on the field earlier this month? As Michael O’keeffe of the New York Daily News reports, “Still has not paid any child support for months for Leah Still,” according to Channing Smythe, Leah’s mother.

“Civil rights attorney Gloria Allred, who represents Leah’s mother, delivered a letter to the NFL on Tuesday asking the league to investigate if Still has violated its Personal Conduct Policy by failing to pay child support for the girl, who was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a rare pediatric cancer in June.”

By all accounts, though, he has spent extensive time with his daughter.

--Jon Heyman / CBSSports.com...the man who first broke the story:

“Pablo Sandoval and Hanley Ramirez have agreed to deals to join the Red Sox, completing a stunning free-agent double play.

“Sandoval will receive $95 million for five years, plus a club option. A few hours later, Ramirez reached an agreement on a deal with Boston, too, pending a physical. The plan is for Ramirez to play left field, which seems to make Yoenis Cespeds a likely trade possibility.

“Sandoval...made a tough decision to leave San Francisco. The Padres also made what is said to be an ‘aggressive’ opening offer....

“Ramirez is said to have reached out to the Red Sox in hopes of returning to the place where he started his career. He knows Red Sox GM Ben Cherington very well from his days before his trade to the Marlins (Cherington made that deal, as acting GM at the time, for Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell).

“Ramirez is extremely close to David Ortiz, who he sees as a mentor....

“Boston is rebuilding in a big way. The team is also talking to its former ace, Jon Lester, and is believed prepared to offer him close to $130 million over six years.”

--The White Sox signed Adam LaRoche to a two-year, $25 million contract. He just turned 35 and had 26 homers and 92 RBI last season with Washington.

--The 2015 Hall of Fame ballot went out. Results will be announced on Jan. 6.

New candidates include Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez and John Smoltz, along with Carlos Delgado, Gary Sheffield, Nomar Garciaparra and closer Troy Percival.

I think everyone will be surprised if Johnson, Martinez and Smoltz don’t all get in the first go ‘round.

But then you have holdovers like Mike Piazza and Jeff Bagwell, let alone Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens. More as we get closer to January.

College Basketball

1. Kentucky
2. Wisconsin
3. Arizona
4. Duke
5. North Carolina
6. Louisville
7. Texas
8. Virginia
9. Wichita State
10. Gonzaga
15. San Diego State

My Aztecs won in double-overtime over BYU on Monday night, 92-87, as they finally shot the ball well, 48.5% from the field, while holding BYU to 38.5%. And on Tuesday, SDSU defeated Pitt 74-57, as the Aztecs hit 58.7% of their field goal attempts! No more slump. The ‘D’ also held Pitt to just 37.7%.

--In other games the past few days...Sunday, Wichita State defeated Newman 105-57. “Newman!”

And Kentucky defeated Montana State 86-28, with the latter hitting 12 of 61 from the field (19.7%), 2 of 23 from downtown.

Monday, then No. 12 Villanova had a statement win over No. 14 VCU 77-53.

Wake Forest played 17 players (including four members of the pep band) in whipping Nichols State 75-48.

And No. 6 Louisville destroyed Savannah State 87-26, as the Tigers were 10 of 51 from the field (19.6%), 0 for 16 from three, while committing 26 turnovers. As Johnny Mac asked, is a 3 assists, 26 turnovers ratio good? 

Understand, Louisville got off to a 29-0 lead! I first made note of the game at the half...41-7. I played on some poor teams in my youth, but never like this.

Pitino actually played three walk-ons. The Egyptian is a 7-foot freshman. Coach also said, “This will be the first time since I’ve been at Louisville that I will not watch the game film. You get nothing out of this. You feel bad for the other team.”

Horace Broadnax, the Savannah State coach, was okay with how it all went down. “I’ve got a beautiful wife with two kids that I can’t wait to get back to. I’m gonna take a nice shower, drink me a cold beer, and move on.” [Cindy Boren / Washington Post]

Horace, my man! You just got thrown in the December file for yearend award consideration.

--With the Cavaliers at 5-7 as of Tuesday’s play, LeBron is off to the worst start since his rookie season in 2003 – when the Cavs were 4-8. Yes, it’s early, but while LeBron is averaging 25.0 ppg, his field goal percentage of .471 pales to what he did his last two seasons, .565 and .567.

Who wudda thunk Toronto and Memphis would have the two best records in basketball, 12-2.

On the other hand, Oklahoma City, sans Westbrook and Durant, are 3-12. Many said as soon as Westbrook went down, to join Durant on the injury list, that the Thunder should tank the season (wink wink...wink) because by the time both return they’ll be too far behind to make a playoff run. But Westbrook could be back much sooner than first thought. We’ll see...wink wink...

--Once again the Bulls’ Derrick Rose made news for how he’s handling an injury, in this case his left hamstring. He played ten minutes in the first half of Tuesday night’s game against Denver and did not return for the second half as Chicago fell 114-109. After the game Rose said:

“It wasn’t nothing like I’m limping or I pulled it or anything, it wasn’t any of that. It was just that I wasn’t moving the way I wanted to while I was on the floor. So why push through it when I wasn’t able to affect the game the way I wanted to?”

Rose has missed eight games this season and has not started and finished two consecutive contests. He’s returning after two serious knee injuries, but some, such as Charles Barkley, have basically said he’s not ‘sucking it up,’ with Rose himself saying he is worried about his health, post his NBA career. [Nick Friedell / ESPNChicago.com]

--Sweet 16...NCAA Men’s Division I Soccer Championship:

#1 seed Notre Dame vs. Virginia; Syracuse vs. Georgetown; Xavier vs. Creighton; Louisville vs. UMBC*; Michigan State vs. Washington; Providence vs. UC Irvine; Clemson vs. North Carolina; California vs. #2 UCLA.

*So last time I said it was embarrassing that Wake Forest lost to UMBC (Univ. of Maryland, Baltimore County) in a penalty kick tiebreaker. Nothing against UMBC, but they were the underdog and Wake should have won at home.

But then UMBC stunned #4 seed Maryland in College Park, 1-0, to advance to the Sweet 16. Good for the Retrievers!

“In a stunner of local and national proportions, UMBC etched the greatest victory in its soccer annals, perhaps in its athletic annals, by upsetting fourth-seeded Maryland, 1-0, and advancing to the round of 16 for the first time.”

It was Maryland’s earliest exit from the tournament since 2001. It was also UMBC’s first win over their in-state rivals since 2000.

This would have been a cool game to attend. As Goff noted, there were 3,776 spectators, with hundreds of UMBC supporters, and “Ludwig Field crackled with energy.”

Get this... “In September, the teams settled for a 0-0 draw before 7,284 observers, the fourth-largest home crowd in Maryland history.”

So I’m announcing that from here on, the official soccer team of Bar Chat for the Sweet 16 is the Retrievers.

--I forgot to note last time that Roger Federer fulfilled a lifetime goal, helping to deliver a Davis Cup trophy to Switzerland, its first, as Federer and his teammates defeated the French in the finals. He first played in the Davis Cup in 1999, when he was 17.

--In noting Manny Pacquiao’s win over Chris Algieri, I should have noted that despite Pac Man’s dominating performance, it has now been five years since he had a knockout, though he knocked Algieri down six times to retain his WBO welterweight crown.

But will Manny (57-5-2) ever face Floyd Mayweather Jr.? Promoter Bob Arum sums up how all fans of the sport feel.

“Every place we go, they ask us: ‘When is it going to happen? When is that fight going to be made?’ 

--We note the passing of two hockey greats. Pat Quinn, a player and coach in the NHL, died at 71. He was chairman of the Hockey Hall of Fame, whose greatest achievement was coaching Team Canada to its first gold medal since 1952 in the Salt Lake City Olympics in 2002.

Quinn coached five NHL teams over 21 seasons. In 1979-80, while coaching the Flyers, the team went 35 straight games without a loss, setting a North American professional sports team record. [25 wins, 10 ties.] He was coach of the year twice, 1980 and 1992, but never won the Stanley Cup.

Pat Quinn is also long known for a body check on Bobby Orr in a playoff game in 1969 that some say was the greatest (clean) hit in hockey history. [Quinn was penalized but shouldn’t have been.]

And Viktor Tikhonov, the former coach of the Soviet national hockey team known as the Big Red Machine that won three Olympic golds – and the devastating silver in 1980 at Lake Placid – died in Moscow. He was 84.

Tikhonov did win gold medals in 1984, 1988 and 1992. He was known as a real taskmaster, often requiring his players to live in barracks, away from their families.

But it was in 1980, in the medal round against the U.S. [the Soviets having defeated the Americans 10-3 at Madison Square Garden in an exhibition game two weeks before] that Tikhonov made what he later called “the biggest mistake of my career.”

He replaced the great goaltender Vladislav Tretiak at the end of the first period with the score tied 2-2. The replacement, Vladimir Pyshkin, played well, but the U.S. won 4-3.

Tretiak, now president of the Russian Hockey Federation, said on Monday, “People like Vikto Tikhonov should never be forgotten. This is our history, and if we forget our past, what can be said?” [Sources: William Yardley and Douglas Martin / New York Times]

--Wake Forest golf fans...there is hope! The current 2014-15 team wasn’t ranked in the top 25, preseason, but in the latest Golfweek / Sagarin rankings, we’re No. 6! [The Lady Deacs are No. 10.]

Illinois is the top men’s team...Washington the top women’s team.  

Cheng-Tsung Pan from Washington is the top-ranked male; SooBin Kim, Washington, the top woman. Hmmmm.

--Finally, on Monday, Charlie Sifford was among 17 other honorees who received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, including Ethel Kennedy, Meryl Streep and Stevie Wonder.

I venture that most under the age of 25, for starters, have no idea who Charlie Sifford is, but Tiger Woods sure knows.

Sifford is the trailblazing black golfer who was a terrific talent back in the day but was excluded from the PGA Tour.

Finally, in 1960, he won his challenge over the PGA’s “Caucasian only” membership policy. He was already 38, and past his prime, but he did win two PGA Tour events, the 1967 Greater Hartford Open and the 1969 Los Angeles Open, as well as the 1975 PGA Seniors’ Championship.   [Sifford was born June 2, 1922, so he was 45 and 46 when he won the two PGA tournaments.]

Top 3 songs for the week 11/28/70: #1 “I Think I Love You” (The Partridge Family) #2 “The Tears Of A Clown” (Smokey Robinson & The Miracles) #3 “I’ll Be There” (The Jackson 5)...and...#4 “We’ve Only Just Begun” (Carpenters) #5 “Fire And Rain” (James Taylor) #6 “Gypsy Woman” (Brian Hyland) #7 “Indiana Wants Me” (R. Dean Taylor) #8 “Montego Bay” (Bobby Bloom) #9 “Heaven Help Us All” (Stevie Wonder) #10 “Green-Eyed Lady” (Sugarloaf)

NFL Quiz Answer: 40 TD passes in a single season.

Peyton Manning, 55 (2013)
Tom Brady, 50 (2007)
Peyton Manning, 49 (2004...Indy)
Dan Marino, 48 (1984)
Drew Brees, 46 (2011)
Aaron Rodgers, 45 (2011)
Dan Marino, 44 (1986)
Drew Brees, 43 (2012)
Kurt Warner, 41 (1999)
Matthew Stafford, 41 (2011)

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