I watched a little bit of the Boise St./Arizona St. game the other night and I’m sitting there thinking, “ What the heck am I doing watching Boise play a 6-6 team?” Nothing against ASU, but they simply were not up to taking on Boise St. Boise won the game 58-26 or something like that. Boise had a record of 11-1.
Boise St. lost one game this year to a very good TCU team and they got banished to Siberia in the bowl matchups. Why? Because they are not part of the BCS, that special group of college programs from the “power” conferences. They’re not part of the good ole boys group. If I was Boise St. I’d be really ticked off. Yeah, I know, they’re going to the Big East next year so it will all be all right. But they shouldn’t have to. If you’re good, you’re good. And these guys are good.
“They don’t play a tough enough schedule,” some say. So, they go to a bowl and beat mighty Oklahoma. “Oklahoma didn’t want to be there,” some whined. Baloney! They went to Virginia Tech last year and beat the Hokies. “Luck!” they cried. “Let’s see them schedule the SEC”. So they scheduled Georgia, went TO Georgia and beat them. “Well, they couldn’t do that week in and week out,” they declared. By the way, Georgia was in the SEC championship game.
So, I’m fed up with this BCS system. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a Big 10 fan and they are a BCS conference. But right is right. And who would I like to see Boise play? Oh man, how about Boise vs. Arkansas, Notre Dame, or Michigan? Now that’s what we should see. But to watch a great team play a 6-6 team, just wasn’t right.
www.chiefpigskin.com
Saturday, December 24, 2011
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Pujols to Angels
I admit, I was very saddened when I heard that Albert Pujols was leaving my beloved St. Louis Cardinals to sign with the L.A. Angels. I wasn’t sad for the Cards, heck, they will be fine. I was sad to see the best player in baseball, a Cardinal icon, and great humanitarian leave St. Louis. It was so enjoyable to watch Pujols play. Not only is he one of the best hitters of all time, he plays excellent defense, runs the bases well, and makes smart plays. He is also a great team leader. The Angels are getting a heck of a player.
But I was uneasy with the amount of money it was going to take to resign Albert. The Cardinals were offering $200 million over ten years. That was too much for too long. Only because Albert had become the face of the Cardinals, second only to the great Stan Musial, would have I and apparently the Cardinals paid so much. Now that he is gone, I’m ALMOST relieved the Cards didn’t sign him. I can’t believe I’m saying that! But it frees up money to sign other players for a more balanced team.
Consider, in baseball, no matter how good you are, a player usually gets four at bats per game. And the worst hitter on the team also gets four at bats per game. It’s the same for everyone, superstar or not. So, Pujols could only hit four times, the same as Skip Schumacher or Yadier Molina. In football, I can get my stud thirty carries a game. In basketball the star can shoot twice as much as the entire team (or more). Thus, the star can only do so much. And Pujols, the biggest star of all, can only do so much.
I will miss Sir Albert, we all will, but the Cardinals will be OK. They won nine World Series titles without him and they’ll win more without him. He can’t be replaced but someone else will get their chance. Isn’t that what we tell a kid in football? When a starter goes down, we grab that young back up, look him in the eye and say, “It’s your turn man, you’re ready, get in there and play hard”. And that’s exactly what the Cardinals will have to do.
But I was uneasy with the amount of money it was going to take to resign Albert. The Cardinals were offering $200 million over ten years. That was too much for too long. Only because Albert had become the face of the Cardinals, second only to the great Stan Musial, would have I and apparently the Cardinals paid so much. Now that he is gone, I’m ALMOST relieved the Cards didn’t sign him. I can’t believe I’m saying that! But it frees up money to sign other players for a more balanced team.
Consider, in baseball, no matter how good you are, a player usually gets four at bats per game. And the worst hitter on the team also gets four at bats per game. It’s the same for everyone, superstar or not. So, Pujols could only hit four times, the same as Skip Schumacher or Yadier Molina. In football, I can get my stud thirty carries a game. In basketball the star can shoot twice as much as the entire team (or more). Thus, the star can only do so much. And Pujols, the biggest star of all, can only do so much.
I will miss Sir Albert, we all will, but the Cardinals will be OK. They won nine World Series titles without him and they’ll win more without him. He can’t be replaced but someone else will get their chance. Isn’t that what we tell a kid in football? When a starter goes down, we grab that young back up, look him in the eye and say, “It’s your turn man, you’re ready, get in there and play hard”. And that’s exactly what the Cardinals will have to do.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
LSU - Alabama II
About a month ago I wrote a blog of the LSU – Alabama football game that ended 9-6 in overtime. I thought it was a great game and said so. Not everyone agreed. Seems the definition of a good game these days is 52-35. Now we are faced with a rematch for the national title. Good idea? Talk about controversy! This BCS season is full of it.
I saw a poll on CBSsports.com that indicated that only 34% of fans favor this matchup and a whopping 66% believe Oklahoma St. deserves a shot at the Tigers. I’m not sure where I stand on this one. Yes I do. I really think LSU is the best team in the country and Alabama is a very close second. Okie St. is right behind them. Based on that and the BCS system, it has to be LSU vs. Alabama. But I would RATHER see Oklahoma St. in the title game. I would compare it to boxing in the old days; when a contender got beat by the champ, they got the next contender in line to challenge. Alabama had their chance, AT HOME no less, and got beat. Let’s give someone else a shot. But that’s not how the BCS works. According to the rules, it must be BCS #1 against BCS #2, end of story. So, like it or not, that’s the matchup.
That brings us to the subject of a playoff. Seems everyone wants a playoff. You know, if we had a playoff it would probably end up with Kansas St. vs. Boise St. for the championship, which is OK with me, but not glamorous enough for the masses. Anytime you have a tournament there are upsets, that’s how I came up with Boise against KSU. Hey, who could’ve predicted UConn vs. Butler for the round ball championship last year? One way to do a playoff would be to take the top eight in the BCS standings and have a tourney. These would be the eight teams:
1. LSU
2. Alabama
3. Oklahoma St.
4. Stanford
5. Oregon
6. Arkansas
7. Boise St.
8. Kansas St.
Nope, no one from the Big Ten. And in a seeded tourney #2 always plays #7. That would put Alabama against Boise in the first round. Alabama would be out because we know none of the “big boys” can beat Boise. If we had a tourney for conference champions, these would be some of the teams:
Clemson Northern Illinois
Oklahoma St. Oregon
Wisconsin Arkansas St.
West Virginia
Southern Miss.
TCU
LSU
Which would you favor? Frankly, I could go with either.
Finally, how about the bowl matchups? I feel bad for Boise. Everyone knows how good they are but they continue to get robbed. Same with TCU. How did Virginia Tech get a BCS bowl after a beat down by Clemson? And Michigan? What’s with that? Sometimes I really dislike this BCS stuff.
Well, there you have it. Coach Grant’s take on the state of college football. There will be some good matchups, and I’m going to enjoy them. I’m looking forward to Stanford vs. Oklahoma St. the most. How about you?
Hey, if you like free football instruction, visit Chiefpigskin.com everyday!
I saw a poll on CBSsports.com that indicated that only 34% of fans favor this matchup and a whopping 66% believe Oklahoma St. deserves a shot at the Tigers. I’m not sure where I stand on this one. Yes I do. I really think LSU is the best team in the country and Alabama is a very close second. Okie St. is right behind them. Based on that and the BCS system, it has to be LSU vs. Alabama. But I would RATHER see Oklahoma St. in the title game. I would compare it to boxing in the old days; when a contender got beat by the champ, they got the next contender in line to challenge. Alabama had their chance, AT HOME no less, and got beat. Let’s give someone else a shot. But that’s not how the BCS works. According to the rules, it must be BCS #1 against BCS #2, end of story. So, like it or not, that’s the matchup.
That brings us to the subject of a playoff. Seems everyone wants a playoff. You know, if we had a playoff it would probably end up with Kansas St. vs. Boise St. for the championship, which is OK with me, but not glamorous enough for the masses. Anytime you have a tournament there are upsets, that’s how I came up with Boise against KSU. Hey, who could’ve predicted UConn vs. Butler for the round ball championship last year? One way to do a playoff would be to take the top eight in the BCS standings and have a tourney. These would be the eight teams:
1. LSU
2. Alabama
3. Oklahoma St.
4. Stanford
5. Oregon
6. Arkansas
7. Boise St.
8. Kansas St.
Nope, no one from the Big Ten. And in a seeded tourney #2 always plays #7. That would put Alabama against Boise in the first round. Alabama would be out because we know none of the “big boys” can beat Boise. If we had a tourney for conference champions, these would be some of the teams:
Clemson Northern Illinois
Oklahoma St. Oregon
Wisconsin Arkansas St.
West Virginia
Southern Miss.
TCU
LSU
Which would you favor? Frankly, I could go with either.
Finally, how about the bowl matchups? I feel bad for Boise. Everyone knows how good they are but they continue to get robbed. Same with TCU. How did Virginia Tech get a BCS bowl after a beat down by Clemson? And Michigan? What’s with that? Sometimes I really dislike this BCS stuff.
Well, there you have it. Coach Grant’s take on the state of college football. There will be some good matchups, and I’m going to enjoy them. I’m looking forward to Stanford vs. Oklahoma St. the most. How about you?
Hey, if you like free football instruction, visit Chiefpigskin.com everyday!
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