The Sports Curmudgeon

So, did you watch the regular telecast of Monday Night Football, or did you check out Peyton and Eli doing their brand of “commentary”?  I wanted to see how they were going to present the “chat-version” of this NFL telecast; so, I flipped over to ESPN2 to check it out.  Here is my Bottom Line:

• I loved the Peyton and Eli show!

Let me put that assessment of their first presentation into context here.  I enjoy the regular broadcasting team that ESPN offers up on Monday nights; while they are not  a modern equivalent of the original MNF team with Dandy Don and Howard Cosell and either Keith Jackson or Frank Gifford, the current guys are very good:

• Steve Levy is a sports lifer; he is solid in his delivery, and he does not have any annoying schtick that gets in the way of his play-by-play.
• Louis Riddick is – in my opinion – a rising star.  He knows football and he expresses his thoughts and opinions clearly and concisely.
• Brian Griese is the “weak link” here by comparison – – but he is as good as the color analyst on any network’s #3 broadcast team.

Please do not interpret anything I say here as a denigration of that announcing team.  The presentation by Peyton and Eli was refreshingly different.  They mixed it up; sometimes they “called the play as it happened”; sometimes they called it – or the defense – before the snap; sometimes they just chatted with their guests.  It was a different experience, and it was enjoyable.  Over and above different and enjoyable, it was educational; even if you rooted against both Manning brothers in every game they ever played, you must acknowledge that they know something about football.  And they shared lots of that with the audience; it was a football education sans tuition.

Next Monday will be the Lions at the Packers and I will once again check out Peyton and Eli’s presentation of the game.  Here is what I do not yet know:

• Is this format sustainable?
• I know that the format of a play-by-play guy along with one or two pleasant and knowledgeable sidekicks has been around for more than 50 years.  While I loved the first “show”, I have no idea if this new way of presenting football will be as enjoyable come Christmas time.
• So, I am just going to “take it one week at a time” and see how this format evolves or stays the course.

[Aside:  One of the “guest commentators” was Russell Wilson.  I think Wilson should save copies of his contributions to this coverage if he aspires to a broadcasting slot once his playing days are over.  He was really good too.]

Moving on … here is a comment from Bob Molinaro in the Hampton Roads Virginian-Pilot:

“Moldy oldie: Proof that there’s no bottom to boxing — at least not in Florida — is allowing almost 59-year-old Evander Holyfield to climb into a ring Saturday for a potential eight-rounder against 44-year-old Vitor Belfort. The thing smacks of elder abuse.”

The prescience of that remark is demonstrated by the outcome.  The bout was scheduled for 8 rounds (two minutes each in lieu of the normal three-minute rounds).  The bout was originally supposed to have Oscar de la Hoya as the aged boxer in the match, but Oscar came down with COVID-19, so Holyfield took the bout on short notice – – as if everyone knew that a 58-year-old man would assuredly keep himself in shape to undergo such an activity at the drop of a hat or a positive coronavirus test.

The folks in California where the bout was supposed to happen would not sanction that switch; it is not clear if they would have sanctioned it without the “short-notice situation”.  But the promoters/organizers found that Florida would sanction the “fight” and so they moved it there.  [Aside: Score another point for Florida and common sense with that decision …]

Mercifully, the fight lasted less than one round.  The referee declared a TKO and Holyfield was the loser.  I hope the folks who paid to see this spectacle realize that they could just as well have set that amount of cash on fire and received similar levels of entertainment.

Switching gears …  I ran across an item in the Raleigh News and Observer reporting that the NC State Athletic Department “will reduce the traveling parties for away games in hopes to minimize exposure or the spreading of COVID-19.”  The only folks traveling to game venues away from campus will be “those who are vaccinated or who have an exception from the Office for Institutional Equity and Diversity (OEID).”  To get an exemption from OEID, there needs to be a claim of a religious or medical reason why vaccination is out of bounds.

While I applaud NC State for incentivizing vaccination, it does beg the question a bit.  If indeed the goal here is to “minimize exposure or the spreading of COVID-19,” then how are those minimization goals kept in play for home games and practices at NC State facilities?  Senator Hiram Johnson once said, “The first casualty, when war comes, is truth.”

If a “war” is not a shooting war but merely a “political war” – and vaccination has become a political war zone –, I would argue that the first casualty is logic because truth has no place in any sort of political matter be it war or simple discourse.

Finally, here is another absolutely accurate analysis from Bob Molinaro:

“Bad takes: Nobody can deny Derek Jeter’s Hall of Fame credentials. But even as a Cooperstown shoo-in, Jeter’s enshrinement is being greeted online with wildly fluctuating assessments of his talent. Overrated, say his detractors, who may suffer from Yankee envy or are weary of media godding up of The Captain. But those who anoint him the game’s greatest shortstop have also strayed far enough off base to be tagged out.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………

 

 

Let me begin today with an erratum.  Last week, while discussing the demand by Ben Simmons to be traded from the Sixers, I said that maximizing the return to the Sixers would fall to GM, Daryl Morey.  Over the weekend, a long-term reader of these rants from Philly sent me a note to inform me that Daryl Morey is the Sixers’ Team President and that the Sixers’ GM is Elton Brand.

Thanks for that correction…

I got another email from a reader over the weekend posing a question related to the issue of the Big-12 poaching 3 teams from the AAC as part of its expansion.  Here is the pertinent text of that email:

“You said that the AAC was the big loser in all of this.  So, what can or should the AAC do to continue to survive?”

Obviously, if I had an air-tight plan to keep the AAC relevant in football, I would be in touch with its Commissioner, Mike Aresco.   The fact that I am not trying to get through to him tells you that I consider these remarks only slightly above the level of superficial.  Let me start by setting the college football landscape.

• The so-called Power 5 conferences are the ACC, Big-10, Big-12, Pac-12 and SEC.  That is where the big money is in terms of TV rights deals; that is where most Division 1-A football programs would prefer to be.  However, membership in that echelon of college football is “by invitation only”.
• The so-called Group of 5 conferences are the AAC, C-USA, MAC, MWC and Sun Belt.  Until the AAC lost Cincy, Houston and UCF, the AAC was the best of these second-tier football conferences.

Imagine that all the transfers out of the Big-12 and then subsequently into the Big-12 that have been announced so far took place tomorrow morning.  That is not the case, but just pretend it is.  The effect on the AAC is that it would be down to 8 teams and would be looking to expand.  It could “entice” other programs to join it by selling the fact that it has been in recent times the best of the Group of 5 conferences – – but that selling point could be very fleeting if no other competitive programs jump at the opportunity to be part of the AAC.

At first glance, the AAC could turn to the “Independents” to try to coax them into signing on.  After all, those schools would suffer no financial penalty for breaking off an existing conference affiliation and since money is the driving force for all this realignment, the lack of an expense is a selling point.  Then you take a look at the seven Independents and realize that this is a relatively barren field:

1. Army:  They could join Navy in the AAC and that might entice the folks at Army to give this serious consideration.  Army and Navy are not football powerhouses as they once were, but both schools have a large national following.  For the AAC, this should be “Priority Number One” as an acquisition.
2. BYU:  Forget it.  BYU is the fourth school invited to join the Big-12 along with the 3 departing AAC schools.
3. Liberty:  An intriguing thought …  Importantly, Liberty fits in the geographical footprint of the AAC schools.  If I were Mike Aresco, I would be on the horn to the AD in Lynchburg as soon as I finished pitching the AD at Army to come aboard.
4. New Mexico State :  The Aggies do not fit in the conference geographical footprint and the football program there has been a weak sister in recent times.  They are an independent because their previous conference affiliation ended when the conference did the moral equivalent of showing them the door.
5. Notre Dame:  Don’t be silly…
6. UConn:  The entire program there is a hot mess; I have suggested elsewhere that it either abandon football entirely or drop down to Division 1-AA.  On the other hand, some of the schools in the AAC might want to invite a doormat to join to make their records a bit better…
7. UMass:  Ditto what I just said about UConn…

Maybe, the AAC could coax Army and Liberty to join it bringing its membership up to 10 schools.  Now, where to find another two teams?  Well, the idea would be to poach two schools from lesser Group of 5 conferences – – preferably ones that are geographically convenient to the other schools and ones that have some TV interest attached to them.  Here are a couple of possibilities:

• UTSA:  With SMU and Tulsa already in the AAC, UTSA fits geographically, and this is a program that has been ascending in the past several years.  The San Antonio TV market is not nearly what the Houston TV market is, but the team is competitive and therefore attractive.  UTSA is now in C-USA.
• Air Force:  This is a real stretch – – but if the AAC can entice Army to join Navy in the conference, maybe they could also poach Air Force from the Mountain West?  Colorado Springs does stretch the geography a bit, but might it work?
• Coastal Carolina:  The program is growing in visibility, and it is in the right geographical spot.  Coastal is currently a Sun Belt team.
• Appalachian State:  About 15 years ago, they went to Ann Arbor and beat a top ranked Michigan team.  That upset was so stark that Appalachian State will be a recognizable name to college football fans for another 20 years.  App St is also a Sun Belt team
• La- Lafayette:  La-Laf is geographically where the AAC might want it to be, and it has been upgrading its football program for the last several years.  La-Laf is also a Sun Belt team.

From my vantage point, the optimal quartet of teams for the ACC to acquire to get to a 12-team conference would be:

1. Appalachian State
2. Army
3. Liberty
4. UTSA

So, that is my recommendation for the AAC going forward; it is a scenario where the AAC is a “buyer”.  But there is another factor for the AAC Commish to keep in mind:

• Has the Big-12 decided to remain a conference with 12 teams, or does it aspire to a larger size?

The PAC-12 says it has no expansion plans.  The Big-10 is not likely to try to acquire any of the AAC schools.  The ACC seems uninterested in expansion and the SEC would not look twice at an AAC school.  But might the Big-12 want to take another bite out of the so-called Group of 5 conferences?  In that case, the AAC and the Sun Belt and C-USA had better batten down the hatches because things could get very rocky very quickly.

The question posed by the reader involved what the AAC can do and should do.  What I have listed here is what I think they should do.  Can the AAC pull it off?  If it hopes to remain as the best of the Group of 5 conferences, it had better do so.

Finally, a football conference is sort of like an extended family.  So let me close today with an observation by the satirist, Alexander Pope:

“A family is but too often a commonwealth of malignants.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………

 

 

Last week was the full-blown start of the college football season; this week has both college and NFL football being played in earnest.  Therefore, today is the first full-fledged Football Friday for 2021.  So, let’s get it rolling…

The Linfield College Wildcats open their season this week at home against Simon Fraser University.  Neither school played any football games in 2020 but Simon Fraser opened its season last week in a less-than-impressive manner.   Simon Fraser was on the short end of a 68-0 loss to Idaho.  Go Wildcats!

 

College Football Comments:

 

Six Division 1-AA teams beat their bigger brothers in last week’s games.

1. Holy Cross beat UConn 38-28 and the Huskies coach “retired” after the game.
2. Montana beat Washington 13-7; Washington was ranked #20 in the nation.
3. E. Tennessee St beat Vandy 23-3; could be a long year for the Commodores.
4. UC-Davis beat Tulsa 19-17.
5. E. Washington beat UNLV 35-33 in double OT.
6. S. Dakota St. beat Colorado St. 42-23; a late TD by the Rams made this less horrific a loss.

Washington was not the only Top 25 team to lose out in Week 1.  Some of these games will be mentioned later but Indiana, UNC, Miami, LSU and Wisconsin all lost as ranked teams – – and Oklahoma looked anything but the #2 ranked team in the country beating Tulane by only 5 points.  The Sooners were supposed to play Tulane in New Orleans – – but Hurricane Ida forced the game to be moved to Norman OK.  Nevertheless, the Sooners were only able to eke out a win 40-35.  Oklahoma led 37-14 at the half but could only manage a field goal in the second half.  One major hang up about Big-12 football has been its lack of defense.  OK, so OU gave up 35 points to Tulane; that should put a stop to that narrative…

Indiana – ranked #17 – opened the season with a 34-6 blowout loss on the road against Iowa – ranked #18.. Indiana QB, Michael Penix, threw two Pick-Sixes, and that did not help the Hoosiers’ cause even a little bit. Indiana was the only Big Ten East team to lose last weekend.

Penn State opened with a nice road win at Wisconsin 16-10.  If you like defensive football, this was a game for you; the score was 0-0 at the half.

Rutgers opened its season with a thrashing of Temple by a score of 61-14.  Yes, Rutgers was the team delivering the ass-kicking here.

Texas-San Antonio beat Illinois 37-30.  Recall that Illinois beat Nebraska the week before last.  It is going to be a long season in Lincoln NE.

Alabama opened its season taking on one of the ACC’s better teams in Miami.  Some folks in the South Florida media had high hopes for an upset – or at least a competitive game here.  Sorry about that but the final score was Bama 44-13.  Alabama gained 510 yards for the day; Miami gained 266.  Alabama QB, Bryce Young  was tremendous with 344 yards passing and four touchdowns.  His passing yardage was 78 yards more than Miami’s total offense for the day.

Mississippi St. trailed La- Tech 31-14 at the start of the 4^th quarter.  However, the Bulldogs rallied for 3 TDs in the final quarter to scratch out a 35-34 victory.

Auburn beat Akron in a mismatch 60-10.  The score was 54-0 at the start of the 4^th quarter.  This game should not have been scheduled in the first place.

Georgia beat Clemson 10-3.  Georgia got its TD on a Pick-Six.  You simply had to like the defensive play in this game.  Georgia held Clemson to 2 yards rushing for the game and Clemson’s total offense was 180 yards.  Kirby Smart was the defensive coordinator for 8 years at Alabama under Nick Saban; it looks as if he brought his dominating style of defense to Athens, Ga this season.

UCLA beat LSU 38-27 last week.  UCLA’s defense held LSU to 53 yards rushing for the game and only 1,9 yards per carry for the Tigers.  The Bruins’ offense was balanced gaining 210 on the ground and 260 through the air.

Tennessee dominated Bowling Green 38-6 from start to finish in Josh Heupel’s opening game in Knoxville.

La-Lafayette was ranked 23^rd in the country last week and went to Texas to play the 21^st ranked Longhorns.  The spread was a meager 7.5 points, but Texas put a hurting on the Ragin’ Cajuns 38-18.  Texas  Bijan Robinson had 24 touches in the game and produced for 176 yards from scrimmage and 2 TDs.

E. Illinois surprised Ga Tech 22-21.

Va Tech beat UNC 17-10.  This is a big win for the Hokies over the Tar Heels who were ranked 10^th in the country at the kickoff.  Tech had 3 INTs in the game and held UNC to only 2 for 10 on third down conversions.

UNC-Charlotte beat Duke 31-28.  The Duke defense was very bad last year, and this result does not indicate to me that it got a whole lot better over the summer.

Utah St. beat Washington St.  26-23.  Is this a bad omen for the entire state of Washington?  Here the Cougars lost their opener, and the Huskies lost their opener to a Division 1-AA team.  Not a happy weekend in the Greater Northwest…

Notre Dame beat  Fla St.  41-38 (OT).  ND played very uncharacteristically here.  The Irish gained only 71 yards rushing and allowed 269 yards rushing.  The Irish led 38-20 starting the 4^th quarter and gave up 18 points in the 4^th quarter to send the game to OT.  Is Fla St. that good – – or is ND not as good as had been advertised?

Kansas won its season opener last week beating South Dakota 17-14.  South Dakota actually outgained Kansas in the game 263 yards to 244 yards.  The game was about as even as the score and the offensive outputs would indicate.  Neither team turned the ball over and neither team had even a single yard in the return game.

San Diego State beat New Mexico State 28-10.  New Mexico State led 10-0 at the half but were blown away in the second half.  The stats for the game are out of balance.  NM St had more offense for the game; and almost all of it came in the passing game; Aggies were held to 48 yards rushing.  On the other side, San Diego State gained only 76 yards passing and ran the ball for 252 yards.

 

College Games of Interest:

 

Oregon at Ohio State – 14 (64):  This is a big interconference game.  It is my second choice as the Game of the Week.

Pitt – 3 at Tennessee (57):  This will be an interesting test for Tennessee and an important game for Pitt to uphold the “honor” of the ACC.

Tulsa at Oklahoma St – 12.5 (51):  Tulsa lost to UC-Davis last week; I would have expected this line to be north of 21 points.  This is a very strange line…

Rutgers – 2 at Syracuse (52):  Rutgers may not be the doormat they have been in recent years.

Air Force – 6 at Navy (41):  On the 20^th anniversary of 9/11…

Temple – 6.5 at Akron (53):  Both teams were humiliated in Week 1.  What happens now?

Buffalo at Nebraska – 14.5 (54):  Buffalo is one of the MAC contenders – – but if Nebraska loses to them at home this week, there could be an uprising in Lincoln…  I doubt that Buffalo can win this game, but they just might be good enough to come in comfortably under that spread.  I’ll take Buffalo plus the points.  Put it in the Six-Pack.

Iowa at Iowa St. – 4.5 (47):  This will be Iowa’s second ranked opponent in two games this year.  The Hawkeyes blasted Indiana last week; I think that can propel them this week.  I’ll take Iowa plus the points.  Put it in the Six-Pack.

Appalachian St at Miami – 9 (54):  Alabama was way too much for Miami last week.  Appalachian St. had better not be too much for the Hurricanes this week…

NC State – 2 at Mississippi St (55.5):  I was tempted to take the OVER in this game…

Vandy at Colorado St – 7 (51):  Both teams lost to Division 1-AA opponents last week.  One of them is going to be extremely unhappy on Sunday morning…

Utah – 7 at BYU (49):  The “Holy War” is my the Game of the Week in college football.

San Diego St at Arizona – 2.5 (46.5):  State had problems with a less-than-fearsome New Mexico State team last week (see above), but they won the game.  Arizona had a win total prop bet of 2 games for this year and struggled on defense in their opening game.  That line is mysterious to me…

Alabama State at Auburn – 51.5 (57.5):  Auburn clobbered Akron last week.  This week they will clobber Alabama State.  Are they playing schools that begin with the letter “A” as a way to prepare for Alabama later this year?

 

NFL Comments:

 

Of course, I watched the Bucs beat the Cowboys last night and here are my takeaways from that experience:

• I think I am going to like Drew Brees a lot as a TV commentator.
• I think NBC has too many “faces” and “voices” at the studio end of their programming.
• I said I did not think Dak Prescott really had a shoulder injury.  Last night did nothing to change my mind.
• The Cowboys’ offense is indeed potent, and their defense is still porous.
• The Bucs’ running game was unimpressive at best.

Quarterbacks get inordinate amounts of attention considering that football is truly a team game.  Nevertheless, I think there are several NFL QBs who will have a chance this year to “change the narrative” that surrounds them.  Let me suggest four of them here:

1. Sam Darnold (Carolina):  He has been under intense scrutiny and has taken a ton of criticism in his first several years in the NFL.  The media and the fans in NYC soured on him rather quickly and never missed an opportunity to point out that Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson and Nick Chubb were all available when Darnold was taken at 33.  I do not think Sam Darnold is the second coming of John Unitas nor do I think he is a stumblebum.  I think he can change the way fans see him in 2021.
2. Matthew Stafford (LA Rams):  He has spent what must feel like an eternity playing with rosters that were outmanned from the start.  Because the Lions were often way behind early in games, Stafford’s stats are inflated to some degree by game circumstances.  Some have even dubbed him as “Padthew Statford” because the think he has been the motive force for padding his stats.  I do not think that is the case and I think Stafford will lead the Rams to the playoffs this year.  Time will tell…
3. Carson Wentz (Colts):  He has developed a reputation as a diva and as a player who does not always get along with teammates.  Last year, his game fell apart and he was benched – as he should have been.  However, according to reports, his reaction to being benched was to stop talking to his coaches.  Winning cures almost all ills and Wentz heeds to show fans and teammates in Indy that he is a winner and not a pain in the ass.  This season would be a good time for him to start on that quest…
4. Jameis Winston:  His narrative is simple; he throws the ball to “the other guys” far too often; he “makes bad decisions”.  Well, now he is working under the tutelage of a certified offensive maven in Sean Payton, and he has the makings of a running game that will take some of the offensive burden off his shoulders.

 

NFL Games:

 

Pittsburgh at Buffalo – 6.5 (48):  I think the Steelers are a good team if they have a sound and solid Ben Roethlisberger at QB.  I am confident that the Bills are a very good team so long as Josh Allen does not regress significantly from last year’s performance level.  The Steelers’ defense will make the Bills earn their points; I do not know what to expect from the Bills’ defense here.  Last year the Bills’ defense was mediocre until about mid-season and then became a very good unit.  Is that the formula for 2021 too …? 

Jets at Carolina – 4 (44):  When the Jets’ defense takes the field, they will see Sam Darnold’s face smiling back at them.  This is a game ripe for fan over-reaction at the end no matter who wins or which QB “shines” or “struggles”.  I think the Panthers are the better team all around, but I am not confident in either of them enough to put this game in the Six-Pack. 

Jax – 3 at Houston (46):  Indubitably, this is the Dog-Breath Game of the Week.  I am about to offer a litmus test for the sanity of any and all football fans who play in survival pools.

• Any one of them who takes either the Jags or the Texans as their Survival Pool pick of the week should be institutionalized.

One of these two teams will be in first place – or tied for first place – in the AFC South as of Monday morning.  Imagine that… 

Arizona at Tennessee – 3 (52):  There should be points aplenty in this game; neither team is going to succeed this season based on its defensive prowess. 

Chargers at Washington “pick ‘em” (44.5):  I gave this game consideration as the Game of the Week.  This will be an early season test for Justin Herbert and the new Chargers’ staff and system.  The Washington defense is for real… 

Philly at Atlanta – 3.5 (49):  The question I would like to begin to answer here is simple:

• The Eagles have used first round picks to acquire speedy WRs in each of the last two Drafts.  Are Jalen Reagor and DeVonta Smith going to “pay off” in the NFL?

The Eagles’ OL is a team strength and the Falcons’ DL has been a team weakness over the past few years.  If those trends continue to obtain, the Eagles can control the game with a running attack and a short passing game utilizing their two excellent tight ends.

Seattle – 3 at Indy (49):  Call this the “Oscar Game”.  The two starting QBs here created an over abundance of drama in the offseason and raised passive-aggressive behavior to an art form.  One of them will be victorious here so we can give them an “Oscar” for their performance.  Russell Wilson is the better QB; the Colts’ defense is the better unit. 

Minnesota – 3 at Cincy (47.5):  The return of Joe Burrow is a plus for the Bengals, but he did not get a lot of playing time in the Exhibition Games as he should not have.  I like the Vikes to control this game with Dalvin Cook grinding out yardage.  I’ll take the Vikes on the road to win and cover.  Put it in the Six-Pack. 

SF – 8 at Detroit (45):  Cutting to the chase here…  I think the Lions are the worst team in the NFC.  While I do not think the Niners are the best team in the conference – or not necessarily the best team in their division – I am picking against the Lions competency here.  I like the Niners to win and cover on the road.  Put it in the Six-Pack. 

Cleveland at KC – 5.5 (54):  The Total Line opened at 52 points and shot up to this level very quickly.  I cannot see either defense asserting itself here.  If the Browns decide to slow play the game with Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt controlling the clock, the game could go Under but if both teams come out winging it, this game go OVER by the end of the 3^rd quarter.  The only reason this is not the Game of the Week is because the Packers/Saints game is on the same week. 

Miami at New England – 3 (43.5):  The word is that the Patriots have “revamped the defense”.  That is not all that surprising to me since Bill Belichick cut his teeth as a defensive coach and the Pats’ defense for the last two years has not been as good as at times in the past.  If that defense is truly revamped and noticeably better, I think the Dolphins will struggle here.  So, on  a hunch, I’ll take the Pats at home to win and cover.  Put it in the Six-Pack. 

Denver – 3 at Giants (41.5):  Absent a bunch of turnovers giving offenses short fields, this game should not produce a lot of points.  It will, however, produce a lot of punts because these are good defenses and mediocre offenses. 

Green Bay – 3.5 vs New Orleans (49.5) Game is in Jax:  This is my Game of the Week.  This game has playoff implications, and this game will start to give insight into questions about how the season will unfold for both teams.  Is Aaron Rodgers’ head in a good place after an offseason full of nonsense?  Has Jameis Winston begun to learn from his new coaches? 

(Sun Nite) Chicago at Rams – 7.5 (46.5):  I think the question here is basic:

• Can the Bears protect Andy Dalton against the pass rush of the Rams?

The Bears’ running game is not going to distract the Rams’ defense; so, the onus is on the Bears’ OL.  I think the Rams can run away and hide in this game, so I’ll take them at home to win and cover; put it in the Six-Pack. 

(Mon Nite) Baltimore – 4 at Las Vegas (50): One of the football gods has obviously decided to hex Ravens’ RBs this year.  Before the first snap of the season, the Ravens have lost their top two RBs to season ending injuries.  The two projected workhorses here are LeVeon Bell and Latavius Murray and both have been signed in the past ten days or so.  Before this rash of injuries, I would have taken the Ravens in this spot but now, I shall pass on that opportunity.

So, here is the first Six-Pack of the year:

• Iowa +4.5 against Iowa State
• Buffalo +14.5 against Nebraska
• Vikes – 3 over Bengals
• Niners – 8 over Lions
• Pats – 3 over Dolphins
• Rams – 7.5 over Bears.

Finally, here is a view from Bob Molinaro regarding one of the “burning questions” in the NFL for 2020:

“The whittled list of new names for the Washington Football Team, according to CBS Sports, includes Armada, Brigade, Commanders, Defenders, Presidents, Redhogs and Redwolves. This is an easy one for me. I hate them all.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………

 

 

Earlier this week, I said that the Big-12 conference needed to poach a few teams from other conferences if it wanted to remain one of the so-called Power 5 Conferences.  I thought these four made sense:

1. Boise State
2. BYU
3. Cincy
4. UCF

Well, I got three out of four.  Yesterday, the Big-12 “invited” four teams to join them and substituted Houston for Boise State.  The addition of those four schools gives the conference 12 members and there are rumors that it might seek to expand beyond that.  Before I get into my interpretation of why the Big-12 chose to do what it did, please allow me to point out a minor hypocrisy here.

• When the SEC poached Oklahoma and Texas from the Big-12, the conference commissioner squealed like a stuck pig and filed lawsuits against ESPN for “tampering” with the welfare of the Big-12 schools.  However, today it is simply business when the Big-12 poaches 3 schools from the American Athletic Conference.

As usual, the Big-12 decision making is all about money.  College football is the money maker for athletic departments and the big bucks come from television contracts.  So, the Big-12 probably looked at the eight teams it still had under control and realized that it was going to have a dickens of a time securing its next national TV contract.  The reasons are simple:

1. None of the remaining 8 schools is in a large TV market on its own.
2. None of the remaining 8 schools has a large “national following”.

TV networks hand out the big bucks in those media rights contracts to attract viewers; and so, the Big-12 needed to get hold of a lot more “TV market potential” to dangle in front of networks that might want to buy their game rights.  I think it is that simple to explain why Houston was “invited” instead of Boise State.

• Houston:  8^th largest TV market in the US with 2.6 million TV households
• Boise:  101^st largest TV market in the US with 312 thousand TV households.

[Aside, to give you an idea of the smallness of that Boise TV market as compared to Houston, consider the size of Boise’s “neighbors” when it comes to TV market size.  Boise is slightly smaller than Myrtle Beach, SC and slightly larger than Greenville, NC.  However, Boise is a larger TV market than Lincoln, NE or Lubbock, TX.]

So, besides potential TV eyeballs for games, what might these four schools bring to the newly expanded Big-12?

• BYU:  This is the big fish in the Big-12’s net.  In addition to a large national following, BYU has a strong football tradition.  Since 1974, BYU has had only 3 losing seasons and in that same time span it has had 17 seasons with double-digit wins.  Moreover, with its religious affiliation, the school has a strong – and loyal – national following.  The only downside that I see is geographic; BYU is not near any of the other Big-12 schools, and it is really distant from West Virginia and Cincy.
• Cincy:  In recent years, Bearcats’ football has been at or near the top when it comes to schools outside the Power 5 conferences.  As of this morning, one of the ranking services has them as the 10^th best team in the country.  The downside that I see here is sort of geographic; in terms of college football, Cincy is never going to be the dominant program in Ohio.  So, how many of those eyeballs in that TV market are going to pay attention to Cincy instead of Ohio State?  Cincy is a plus for the conference in basketball; it is always a relevant program in that sport.
• Houston:  The Cougars have been successful in football recently and as noted above it is a large TV market.  However, it is sitting in the middle of an SEC footprint with Texas A&M and Texas to its north/west and with LSU to its east.  That TV market is very big, but it is going to be fragmented.  Like Cincy, Houston will be a good addition to the Big-12 come basketball season.
• UCF:  This is the wild-card addition in my mind.  Like BYU, UCF is not close to any of its new conference-mates.  However, UCF is a huge school – more than 60,000 students – meaning there is potential here for alums to spread out around the country and provide more “national following”.  [Aside:  After all, that number of graduates cannot all stay in Orlando and work for Disney.]  The downside is that while  the football program has been successful recently, there is no real history there.  And, UCF football is sitting among those fans who follow Miami, Florida and/or Florida State passionately.

Looking at a big picture view of the newly constructed Big-12, the biggest problem that I see is that there are no rabid rivalry situations.  Yes, Kansas and Kansas State is a rivalry — – but it is not USC/UCLA.  And that is probably the biggest and longest-lived rivalry situation in the conference.  Look at the other “Power 5 Conferences and you will always find a nice inventory of longstanding rivalry games to promote and televise.

The big loser in all of this is the American Athletic Conference.  It lost arguably its three best football programs leaving Memphis and possibly Navy as its football standard bearers.  Navy of course has great national following but not necessarily the potential for being a strong team year after year.

Finally, since much of today’s rant had to do with television, let me close with this view of television by the critic, Clive Barnes:

“Television is the first truly democratic culture – the first culture available to everybody and entirely governed by what the people want.  The most terrifying thing is what the people want.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………

 

 

Over the past week or so, I have seen a variety of reports with headlines that follow this line of thinking:

• Ben Simmons demands a trade … Ben Simmons will not report to training camp … Superstar wants out of Philly

After the way the Sixers exited the playoffs a couple of months ago and given the way the fans and sports media in Philly have “dealt with” that debacle, I am sure that Ben Simmons has gotten the message that the fans do not want him back on the team.  I am not the least bit surprised that he wants to be traded nor would I be surprised to learn that the Sixers will be looking to move him.  What confuses me is that some folks who report on the NBA consider Ben Simmons to be a “superstar”.  I do not.

Simmons is an excellent passer, and he is as good a defender as there is in the NBA these days.  However, basketball is a game that requires players to be able to put the ball in the basket on a more than occasional basis; NBA games do not end with scores of 21-18.  Ben Simmons lack of scoring ability keeps him from being a “superstar” because of the seriousness of that hole in his game.

Certainly, the Sixers’ front office will try to maintain a narrative that Simmons is a superstar and that the Sixers will demand a heavy ransom from any team that wants to take on his services.  If GM Daryl Morey can pull that off, he has a great retirement gig waiting for him as a used car salesman.

Speaking of retirement, a strange sequence of events over the past couple of days has placed former UConn football coach, Randy Edsall in retirement.  Eleven days ago, UConn was pantsed by Fresno State to the tune of 45-0; last Saturday was even worse.  At least Fresno State is a Division 1-A team and they showed well in their second game of the year losing to Oregon by only a TD.  UConn was not nearly so competitive in their second outing of the season.

Last week was supposed to be a cupcake game for the Huskies as they took on Division 1-AA Holy Cross.  The final tally had the Huskies on the short end of a 38-28 score.  Moreover, this was not a fluke win by the Crusaders on some sort of lucky bounce of the football.  Holy Cross gained 100 more yards on offense than UConn did.

On Monday morning, Randy Edsall said that he was going to retire at the end of the 2021 season – presumably to spend more time with his family.  I remember thinking at the time that he might have come to that decision as a means of avoiding being separated from the school before the end of the season, but that did not matter all that much.

Then yesterday came the news that Randy Edsall had retired and that the defensive coordinator would be the acting head coach for the rest of 2021.  The irony in that situation from my perspective is that the defensive coordinator is the guy in charge of the team unit that yielded 38 points to Holy Cross.  For that, he gets a “promotion”?

Here is the PR statement regarding this retirement situation from the UConn Athletic Director:

“Upon further reflection by both Randy and I (sic), and after having the opportunity to visit with Randy today, we are both in agreement that it is in the best interest of our student-athletes to have a new voice leading UConn football,”

Here is what I think is the best outcome for UConn:

• Either drop back down to Division 1-AA … or …
• Eliminate football entirely.

There is no great tradition of UConn football; college football as an activity is not important in Connecticut or in New England – possibly apart from the campus of Boston College.  I am sure there is a rich alum of UConn or two who dream of big things for UConn football; even if they bankroll the program to keep it in Division 1-A, it will be decades before anyone utters the phrase:

• UConn is the Alabama of New England.

I want to take a moment here to make two quick statements:

1. Randy Edsall was one of my College Coaches on a Hot Seat just two weeks ago.
2. Randy Edsall will probably enjoy retirement more than he would have enjoyed being on the UConn sidelines for the rest of 2021.

Moving on…  About a month ago, I mentioned here that Clinton Portis was facing some serious legal issues.  He owed a woman about $150K in child support and had defied a court order related to that matter; that got the judge in Florida to issue an arrest warrant for Portis.  Simultaneously, Portis and a half dozen other defendants were indicted in Federal court for insurance fraud.  That trial ended in a hung jury and Portis’ lawyers must have gotten a reasonable deal from the prosecutors because Portis subsequently pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud.

These charges carry a maximum sentence of 10 years and a fine of not more than $250,000 or twice the gross financial gain from the fraud. He will make restitution of $99,264 to the Gene Upshaw NFL Players Health Reimbursement Account Plan.  Portis admitted that he took part in a scheme to defraud the plan through “false pretenses, representations, and promises.” Basically, he admitted that he made false claims for benefits under the health plan for retired NFL players.

Finally, the three protagonists of stories related today can see their fame fading just a bit.  So, I will close here with Mark Twain’s view of “fame”:

“Fame is a vapor; popularity an accident; the only earthly certainty is oblivion.”

But don’t get me wrong ,I love sports………

 

 

Happy Labor Day to all.  The plan for today in and around Curmudgeon Central is to attend a good ol’ All-American cook-out later in the day.  However, before setting off for that event, I want to take a moment to review happenings in a sport that is far more important elsewhere in the world than in the US.  That would be soccer – or futbol in some other locales.

I have no interest in starting an argument here about the greatest living soccer player, so let me assert that both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo can be considered to be in the Top Five should that discussion begin anywhere on the planet.  Both players are on new teams for this year for very different reasons.

I mentioned before that FC Barcelona somehow got themselves in a financial situation where they could not re-sign Lionel Messi based on the salary rules in place for La Liga.  How they allowed themselves to get into that situation is certainly not clear to me.  They had to have known what the rules were, and they surely knew years in advance when Messi’s contract would expire and be in need of renewal.  No matter: Messi wound up being signed by a team in the French League, Paris-Saint Germain

Ronaldo was a different story from all reports.  He had been playing for Juventus in Serie-A in Italy since 2018; after appearing in one game for Juventus this year, he reportedly told the coach/manager that he had no intention of staying with the club.  Juventus reached a deal with Manchester United in the English Premier League and Ronaldo thus returned to the place where he began his rise in the world of international soccer back in 2003.  The EPL season has just begun; Manchester United has won two of the first three games of the year.

Normally, I like looking at the bottoms of leagues to see how the downtrodden are doing.  Unfortunately, in the early stages of this year’s EPL table, there is a minor discontinuity for me.  I have a grandson who lives in Dublin, Ireland; I have previously referred to him here as The FOG – – the First and Only Grandson.  His adopted English Premier League team is Arsenal and the Gunners – – as they are called – – are not doing well at all this year.  Arsenal have played 3 games; they have yet to score a goal in any game; they have yielded 9 goals to opponents.  Not to put too fine a point on it, but Arsenal has “stunk out the joint” so far in 2021.  Not good for The Fog…

Switching gears…  Three MLB teams have been eliminated from playoff participation with a month left in the season.  You can look for lots of empty seats when the Orioles, Rangers and/or D-Backs play home games.

• The Orioles are 42 games out of first place in the AL East.  They have the worst record in MLB (43-92) and happen to be in the same division with the team in possession of the best record in the AL – – the Tampa Bay Rays at 86-51.  Against the other four teams in the AL East, the Orioles record is a miserable 15-44.  They also have the worst run differential in MLB at minus-234.
• The D-Backs are similarly situated in the NL; they are 42.5 games out of first place in the NL West.  They have the worst record in the NL (45-93) and happen to be in the same division with the team in possession of the best record in the MLB – – the SF Giants at 87-50.

It appears as if the folks who make programming decisions at ESPN have chosen the new direction for First Take and the show’s mainstay, Stephen A. Smith.  Max Kellerman is out, and Smith will now “debate” a rotating cast of ESPN talking heads on the program.  Two names stand out from what is a lackluster list:

1. On Mondays, former Cowboys WR, Michael Irvin will join Stephen A. for debates about NFL football.  Irvin will be there for the entire 2 hours of the program and according to ESPN hype, “He and Smith will debate the week’s key on-the-field moments and under-the-radar stories, while also providing fans with insider news and can’t-miss analysis heading into that week’s Monday Night Football matchup and week ahead.”  If you are someone who has run low on hyperbole and/or someone who needs to hear even the most mundane point blasted at you at deafening decibels, these Monday programs are for you.
2. On Fridays, Tim Tebow will join Stephen A. for debates about college football.  If you told me to take a week and come up with a pair of “guest debaters” who are more different from one another as are Tebow and Irvin, I am not sure I could do so.  Irvin is all bombast; he might start ventilating in the course of telling you what month of the year we are in.  Tebow is generally low-key except when he is talking about or experiencing something exciting.

I doubt that I will be able to endure two solid hours of Smith and Irvin yelling at each other on Mondays.  I shall try it out one of these weeks; I set the OVER/UNDER at 35 minutes before I move on to something else.  At the other end of the spectrum, I am genuinely interested to see how Smith and Tebow work together.  I may or may not be able to hang in there for an entire two-hour show, but I am intrigued by the possibilities there.

Some of the rotating guest debaters that ESPN would have you believe are all “A-List sports personalities” include:

• Paul Finebaum – He has forgotten more about college football than Stephan A. Smith ever knew.
• Keyshawn Johnson – Another bloviator from the Michael Irvin school of broadcasting.
• Mina Kimes – I have enjoyed seeing her on much lower-key programs on ESPN.
• Kimberley A. Martin – Meh…
• Monica McNutt – Meh…
• Jessica Mendoza – Between her and Stephen A. Smith, there is not even the possibility of “dead air”.
• Chiney Ogwumike – I like her on ESPN Radio
• Dan Orlovsky – Meh…
• Kendrick Perkins – Sometimes I think he is provocative for the sake of being provocative.
• Marcus Spears – I have liked him on various NFL studio shows.
• Brian Windhorst – I can take him or leave him.
• Damien Woody – I like him.

Finally, I’ll close with an observation by satirist Karl Kraus:

“Journalists write because they have nothing to say and have something to say because they write.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………

 

 

Forget the false start to the college football season from last weekend; the real season begins this week.  There will be an unimportant game on Wednesday followed by a half dozen games on Thursday and then a handful of games on Friday.  All that will lead up to a grand crescendo of games next Saturday.  When you have lots of college football on Saturdays in the Fall, all is right with the universe.

With the arrival of football season, I need to decide what to do in terms of a writing schedule.  For the last couple of years, I have done “Football Friday” rants blending college and professional football commentary and “analysis”.  Having thought about it, I think I prefer to maintain that format rather than returning to separate rants on college football and NFL football on different days from several years ago.  So, that will be my focus until and unless I get a better conceptual idea.

Having said all that, I do need to make some overview comments about college football in general leading up to the real beginning of the season.  So, let me begin by suggesting a few college head coaches who are – or ought to be – on a hot seat in 2021.

1. Randy Edsall – – UConn.  Yes, he is still the head coach of the Huskies.  How that continues to obtain is mysterious — – but it does.  He is 6-30 since his return to UConn.  The team was miserable last year and they opened the season last week against Fresno State and were blown out 45 – 0.
2. Herm Edwards – – Arizona State.  The NCAA super-sleuths are all over the Sun Devils’ records chasing down allegations of improper recruiting during the COVID-19 shutdown last year.
3. Scott Frost – – Nebraska.  It’s been a few years since he arrived at his alma mater as a savior after doing a good job at UCF.  However, his Huskers have been mediocre at best while he has been in charge; the cumulative record is 12-21 and the Big-10 record is 9-18.  I think the bloom is off the rose in Lincoln.  If Frost does not get the team to a bowl game that boosters can go to and enjoy themselves, I think he is done.  The fact that the NCAA is investigating “irregularities” and possible violations will not help Coach Frost’s cause.  Losing the opening game 30 – 22 to Illinois last week when Nebraska was a 7-point favorite will not help Coach Frost’s cause either.
4. Justin Fuente – – Va Tech.  The Hokies were 5-6 last year; that is not acceptable; it is first time the team has been under .500 since 1992.  Significant improvement is needed here if he is to keep his job.
5. Ed Orgeron – – LSU.  He is on this list because he won a national championship two years ago and then his team wet the bed with a 5-5 record last year.  Another year with 5 losses and he will be history in Baton Rouge.

I probably would have put Jim Harbaugh (Michigan) on this list had not the Wolverines given him a 4-year contract extension during the offseason.  Last year, his team was 2-4 and given how long he has been at the helm in Ann Arbor, it is fair to ask if he is ever going to beat Ohio State.  But he has a new contract that runs through the end of 2025, so his seat is not particularly warm let alone hot.

There is one coach at a school where coaching changes happen more frequently than at other schools who is plenty safe for now.  That would be Greg Schiano (Rutgers).  This is Schiano’s second tour of duty at Rutgers and in his first season last year, his team was 3 – 6.  That may not sound all that good but consider:

• For the two years prior to Schiano’s return, the Rutgers’ team record was 3 – 21.
• Moreover, 3 of the 6 losses were by one-score; Rutgers was competitive.
• The only way Schiano leaves Rutgers is if he is hired away by a bigger program.

And the mention of Greg Schiano reminds me to comment on another coaching situation – – the one at Tennessee.  There is a new guy in charge again this year; the Vols hired Josh Heupel away from UCF where his teams had gone 28 – 8 over the last 3 seasons with bowl game appearances every season.  Heupel takes over the Vols from Jeremy Pruitt who was fired ostensibly because of NCAA violations.  The fact that Pruitt’s teams went 16-19 over his three season in Knoxville did not help his cause since Tennessee fans seem to think they should be competing for national championships in most seasons.  Self-delusion is very powerful…

Recall how Puritt got the job in 2017.  Butch Jones was fired for not winning enough and the AD offered the job to Greg Schiano.  This caused agita in Knoxville because Greg Schiano had been on the Penn State staff with convicted pedophile, Jerry Sandusky and some folks felt that “guilt by association” was appropriate notwithstanding the fact that Schiano had never been implicated in any sort of wrongdoing.  I said that self-delusion is a powerful force, and it seems to run rampant among Vols’ fans and boosters.  Here is how things went down to get to the point where Jeremy Pruitt became the choice to lead Tennessee once Schiano had been dismissed out of hand:

• In 2008, Tennessee fired Philip Fulmer for going 5-7.  Forget that Fulmer had won a national championship and had been the coach in Knoxville for 16 seasons.
• That led to hiring Lane Kiffin who stayed there for exactly 1 season before taking another job in college football.  I am convinced that Kiffin realized the unattainable goals the fans had there, and he left town as soon as he had another offer.
• That led to the hiring of Derek Dooley for the 2010-2012 seasons – – all of which yielded sub-.500 records.
• Enter Butch Jones for the next 5 seasons where the Vols go 34 – 29.  As I said, he had a winning record, but it was not “winning enough”.
• When the AD at Tennessee offered the job to Schiano and the agita caused it to be rescinded, that also led to a palace revolt where Philip Fulmer ousted the AD and took the job himself.  So, Fulmer was involved at the start and the end of this reign of mediocrity at Tennessee.  Now Fulmer and Pruitt are gone and the mantle falls on Coach Heupel.  Mazel-tov, Coach…

l do not want to pretend that I have looked for and analyzed all the out-of-conference scheduling choices by every school in Division 1 because I did not.  However, I have looked at a few and I have categorized some of them as Bold and others as Shameful.  Let me start with the Bold ones:

• Georgia:   Will play Clemson, UAB, Charleston Southern, Ga Tech
• Ga Tech:  Will play N. Illinois, Kennesaw State, Notre Dame, Georgia
• Kent State:  Will play Texas A&M, Iowa, Maryland, VMI

Now for some Shameful out of conference scheduling choices:

• Tennessee:  Wii play Bowling Green, Pitt, Tennessee Tech,  South Alabama
• Rutgers:  Will play Temple, Syracuse, Delaware
• Syracuse:  Will play Ohio, Rutgers, Albany, Liberty
• Oklahoma:  Will play Tulane, W. Carolina, Nebraska
• Oregon State:  Will play Purdue, Hawaii, Idaho
• Houston:  Will play Texas Tech, Rice, Grambling State, UConn

Next, I would like to consider three teams that can – and should – have much better season in 2021 than they did in 2020:

1. Boston College:  The Eagles changed coaches last year and won 6 games in Coach Jeff Hafley’s first season.  Unless that was a complete mirage, I would expect the team to be better with another year of immersion in that system.
2. LSU: Not only did the Tigers finish at .500 last year, they were embarrassed on the field.  The pass defense was the worst in Division 1 and it allowed an SEC record of 623 yards passing in a single game to Mississippi State’s Air Raid offense.  That is atypical performance from a team in Baton Rouge.  The immediate fallout is that defensive coordinator Bo Pellini was fired along with all his defensive staff.  I have to think that the new staff and the current players will have to be better than that in 2021.
3. Penn State:  After starting 0-5 last year, Penn State won its final 4 games.  That gave them a losing record for the year and that is the first time Penn State alums and fans had to endure such an ignominy since the 2004 season.  The Nittany Lions had a lot of players who opted out of the COVID-19 dominated season last year; that should not be the case again this year.  If Penn State can resume its long-standing identity as a team that runs the ball effectively, they should do better this year than they did last year.

The oddsmakers at sportsbooks have made their assessments about which teams will be “really good” and which ones are going to be “really awful” in 2021.  Here are the preseason win total proposition bets for top teams and then for bottom teams.

Top teams:

• Alabama – – 11.5 wins
• Clemson – – 11.5 wins
• Georgia – – 10.5 wins
• Ohio State – – 11 wins
• Oklahoma – – 11 wins

Bottom teams:

• Arizona – – 2.5 wins
• Bowling Green – – 1.5 wins
• Kansas – – 1 win
• La-Monroe – – 1.5 wins
• New Mexico State – – 2 wins
• Temple – – 2.5 wins
• UConn – – 2.5 wins
• UMass – – 1.5 wins
• UNLV – – 1.5 wins

The oddsmakers have spoken regarding the nine teams listed above who should be awful in 2021.  Anyone who has followed these rants for a while knows that I like to focus on the worst teams in a season and I think there are other teams that – perhaps – should have been on this list of under-performers:

• Akron:  These guys allowed more than 41 points per game last year wining only 1 game.  Moreover, they have only won one game in the last two seasons.
• Duke:  If you look at their final four game last season, the Blue Devils gave up an average of 54 points per game.  In that stretch, a 48-0 loss to Miami was the best defensive performance.
• Old Dominion:  This team was 1-11 in 2019 and did not play at all in 2020.  It is hard to imagine that a  “year off” is a benefit for a team that was 1-11…
• UTEP:  The Miners won 3 games last  year and two losses came by a total of 8 points.  That’s the good news.  The Minors also lost by double-digits to Rice, UNC-Charlotte and Texas-San Antonio.  This is a team with a losing tradition.  They play in C-USA – – not nearly a top-shelf conference – – and in conference games in the last 4 seasons, UTEP is outrageously 1 – 27.

I will be tracking as the season progresses what I call The Brothel Defense – – that is the defensive unit in the country that allows anyone to score as often as it likes.  Last year, The Brothel Defense was Kansas; the Jayhawks gave up 46 points per game.  No team wants to top that in 2021…

And as usual, I am looking forward to following the football fortunes of Linfield College (McMinnville, OR).  The last time the Linfield Wildcats had a losing season in football was in 1955. That is a year before Dwight Eisenhower ran for a second term as President and two years before Sputnik became a news story.  The wildcats did not play in the COVID-19 environment of 2020; so, I consider that winning season streak to be intact at 64 consecutive seasons.

Linfield does not play its first game until September 11 at home against Simon Fraser University.  Linfield is a Division III school and its regular season schedule is only 9 games long but there is the possibility of Division III national tournament participation as a post-season event.  Go Wildcats!

 

Games of Interest:

 

Before I get to games for this weekend, let me do a very quick look back at four games from the so-called “Week-Zero” for college football last weekend.

1. I already noted that Illinois beat Nebraska 30 – 22 despite Nebraska being a touchdown favorite.  Remember, that is Illinois the Huskers lost to; it has been a long time before anyone confused Illinois with a football powerhouse.  Next up for Nebraska is a visit by Fordham – a Division 1AA team.  The Huskers are 42.5-point favorites; I suggest that they better cover if they like their coach…
2. UCLA beat Hawaii by a score of 44 – 10.  Was that a statement game indicating that Chip Kelly – now in his 4^th year at UCLA – finally has a team that might play the way his teams at Oregon used to play?  We shall see quickly because this week LSU comes calling – – and LSU is a significant step up in competition as compared to Hawaii.
3. UTEP beat New Mexico State 30-3.  The Aggies next game is against San Diego State and the Aggies are 31-point underdogs.  Looks like another long season in Las Cruces.
4. Fresno State beat UConn 45- 0.  The last time the Huskies had a winning season was in 2010.  Things are not looking promising after a first game like that one.  This week, UConn plays Division 1-AA, Holy Cross and they are only 2-point favorites in that game!  Remember, UConn took last year off to avoid COVID-19 problems with the idea of using the year as a way to reset the program.

Here are three teams that could steal the spotlight early-on in the 2021 season with a strong performance this week.

1. Miami:  They get to open against Alabama – the consensus #1 team in the country.  As of now they are almost 3 TD underdogs, but strange things happen in college football.  A win for the Hurricanes would be a seismic event; a nail-biting loss would insert Miami into discussions about the CFP and/or New Years’ Day bowl games.
2. La-Lafayette:  Ten years ago, no one associated with this program would have thought a season-opener against Texas was anything more than a “squash match”.  The Cajuns are only a one-score underdog.
3. Florida State:  They open at home against Notre Dame ranked in the Top Ten.  An upset here could be transformational.

(Fri) UNC – 5.5 at Va Tech (64):  A win for the Hokies here could give Coach Justin Fuentes a lot of breathing room…

(Fri) Duke – 7 at UNC-Charlotte (60):  The Blue Devils need to win here AND need to keep the 49ers offense under some semblance of control…

(Sat) Penn State at Wisconsin – 4.5 (50):  An early test for James Franklin’s Nittany Lions …

(Sat) Indiana at Iowa – 3 (46):  Indiana is ranked in the Top 25 pre-season polls this year; it’s been a while since that happened…

(Sat) Fresno State at Oregon – 19.5 (62):  Remember, Fresno State won last week 45-0 over UConn.  Given the respect shown here for Fresno State, you can appreciate how bad UConn might be…

(Sat) Alabama – 18.5 vs. Miami (FL) (62) [Game is in Atlanta]:  Just how good is the Crimson Tide this year…???

(Sat) La-Lafayette at Texas – 8 (58):  The Ragin’ Cajuns are ranked 23^rd in the pre-season polls this year; Texas is ranked 21^st…

(Sat) Georgia at Clemson – 3 (51.5):  This has to be the Game of the Week; if you only make time to see one game start-to-finish, this should be the one.  Both teams think they should be national champion caliber teams.  This will be the first showing by DJ Uiagalelei as the successor to Trevor Lawrence at Clemson.  Good luck with that …

(Sun) Notre Dame – 7.5 at Florida State (56):  Twenty-five years ago, this might have been the Game of the Year; in 2021, the Seminoles need a good showing just to get folks believing that they have turned the program around…

(Mon) Louisville at Ole Miss – 9.5 (75.5) [Game is in Atlanta]:  If history is any guide, this one should light up the scoreboard…

Once the season is in motion and I can begin to see trends, I will try to offer up a Six-Pack of wagering selections for college and NFL games.  Last year’s performance for the Six-Pack was awful; I will try to do better.

At the end of the season, I will look to identify the 8 worst college football teams and put them into an imaginary “tournament” where the winning team gets to go home and the losers play on to determine the worst team in the country.  I call that the SHOE Tournament because it identifies the SHOE team of the year where that is an acronym for Steaming Heap Of Excrement.

Looking forward to a fun season.  Glad to have folks aboard…

Finally, let me remind you of H. L Mencken’s views on college football as an institution:

“College football would be more interesting if the faculty played instead of the students – there would be a great increase in broken arms, legs and necks.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………

 

 

As has been the custom this season, when the first of a month rolls around, I look at the cumulative numbers associated with MLB’s Injured List.  The season began on April 1^st and has been ongoing for 5 months; here are some data:

• 756 players have spent time on the Injured List
• 445 of those players are pitchers
• Those players spent a total of 38,691 days on the Injured List
• Those players collected a total of $688,245,968 while on the Injured List.
• Four players – – Mike Trout, Chris Sale, Stephen Strasburg and Justin Verlander – – have earned more than $20M each while on the Injured List.

Earlier this week, I said that the NFL had proposed to the NFLPA that COVID-19 vaccinations be made mandatory.  I also said I could not see the union agreeing to that proposal and with the start of the season fast approaching, there was a need for clarity on such a question of eligibility for players.  The league and the union have come to an agreement on the testing elements of a COVID-19 protocol for the 2021 season:

• Vaccinated players will be tested weekly – that is an accelerated testing schedule as compared to the biweekly tests administered to vaccinated players during training camp.
• Vaccinated players are exempt from contact-tracing quarantines
• Unvaccinated players will be tested daily.
• Unvaccinated players are subject to five-day contact-tracing quarantine if they are identified as “high-risk close contacts” of someone who tested positive.

These protocols apply to coaches and team staff members as well as players.

Moving on… I am beginning to believe that someone somewhere has a Voodoo doll in the likeness of Carson Wentz.  Let me give you a thumbnail sketch of his NFL career:

• He was having a great  year – attracting comments that he might be the MVP – until he tore up his knee in December.  Nick Foles replaced him and led the team to a Super Bowl victory.
• His game fell apart in 2020; he was benched; reports say he and his coach were not even speaking; the coach was fired, and Wentz was traded.
• On the first day of training camp with his new team, Wentz injured his foot.  The team did not know if he would be out 5 weeks or 12 weeks; maybe surgery was needed and maybe not…
• Wentz recovered and resumed practice and looked to be the starting QB for the Colts next week in Week 1.
• Early this week Carson Wentz was put on the 5-day quarantine list because of high-risk close contacts with someone who tested positive for COVID-19.

Speaking about surprising events related to an NFL QB, the Patriots released Cam Newton.  As a veteran, that release immediately makes him a free agent; he need not clear waivers before negotiating for a new position.  However, as someone who gives every indication that he is not vaccinated, he would have to wait for a 5-day period before he joined his new club once he signs on.  I look at this situation in three ways:

1. Mac Jones may have legitimately beaten out Newton for the starting job in the eyes of Coach Belichick.  He is the coach with about 3 lbs. of Super Bowl rings, not I.  But did Jarrett Stidham beat out Newton for the back-up job too?
2. Newton had to miss 5 days of training camp over a “misunderstood rule” regarding COVID-19 protocols.  Is that the entire story there?  Did those 5 days provide Jones and Stidham the time needed to earn their ascendence past Newton?  [Aside:  This does not smell like a “cap cut”.  Newton got a $2M bonus to sign back in the offseason and only has $1.5M guaranteed for 2021.  That is not a significant cap burden.]
3. The Cowboys have Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush on their roster as QBs this morning.  Prescott has not played at all this year after a severe injury last year.  Cooper Rush is – well – Cooper Rush.  If the Cowboys do not make a serious run at Cam Newton, I will be shocked.

The Houston Texans still have Deshaun Watson on their roster for 2021.  Watson has “demanded” a trade; he said he would not play for the Texans again; he is also the subject of a criminal investigation for sexual assault and the defendant in 22 civil actions alleging sexual assault.  He has not been part of any OTAs or minicamps, but he has reported to training camp and has done some on-field drills.  I guess he is still the Texans’ starting QB based on demonstrated on-field ability over Tyrod Taylor, Davis Mills and Ryan Finley.  At the same time, I cannot imagine that the league will allow him to play given the extent of his legal issues at the moment particularly considering the social focus on sexual assault today.

It seems to me that the Texans and the NFL Front Office are playing “Alphonse and Gaston” with Watson’s situation each seemingly waiting on the other to announce some sort of suspension that would clarify when, if and how Watson might be eligible to play again in the NFL – for the Texans or anyone else.  The NFL season starts a week from tomorrow; the Texans open on September 12 against the Jags.  Here is what I was able to find regarding the NFL Personal Conduct Policy that appears to be applicable here.  A player may be put on paid leave if charged with a felony or:

“… a crime of violence … of having engaged in sexual assault by force or against a person who was incapable of giving consent.  The formal charges may be in the form of an indictment by a grand jury, the filing of charges by a prosecutor or an arraignment in a criminal court.”

Reports say that there is a grand jury in Texas reviewing evidence regarding 10 folks who have filed criminal complaints against Watson.  The start of the NFL season has great importance to the NFL and to the Houston Texans – – but I doubt that the grand jury members or the prosecutors presenting to that grand jury give any great significance to that impending date.

Finally, I shall close today with an observation by the novelist, Joseph Heller:

“Success and failure are both difficult to endure.  Along with success come drugs, divorce, fornication, bullying, travel, medication, depression, neurosis and suicide.  With failure comes failure.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………