Unsurprisingly, Jack Ikegwuonu joins his brother Bill in being acquitted on the ridiculous "burglary" charges the Dekalb County State's Attorney's Office charged them with. Again, they were found in a townhouse that Bill's friend was renting, allegedly holding an XBox, by Bill's friend's roommate, who was drunk and freaked out, and they ran off. That's the worst case scenario of what occurred. The Ikegwuonus said that they had plans to meet up with Bill's friend and saw a light on inside, so they went in. In any event, this seems like typical college male stupidity. Did you ever borrow anything from a friend's apartment or dorm room without asking? Probably. Did you get charged with burglary? Uhh, no.
I hate to say it, but throwing the book at two African-American scholarship football players in this sort of questionable circumstance reeks of overreaction. But why? Did Dekalb State's Attorney John Farrell think it'd be good press to persecute (not prosecute) two out of state black college students by charging them with a felony? (To be fair, Ron Matekaitis, now--horrifyingly-- a judge, was State's Attorney at the time of the brothers were charged.) Did he not want to look soft on athletes in a college town like Dekalb? Did he have something against guys with African last names? Who knows. What I do know is they should have offered some deferred prosecution agreement, like Madison has, where the charges should have been dropped in exchange for community service. And they certainly never should have charged the Ikegwuonus with a felony. Jesus. A conviction would have ruined these guys' lives. Ridiculous.
Showing posts with label University of Wisconsin Football. Show all posts
Showing posts with label University of Wisconsin Football. Show all posts
Friday, July 17, 2009
Monday, July 06, 2009
Whither Student Tickets?
So the Wisconsin State Journal's sports editors have finally caught onto the fact that something is amiss with Wisconsin's student ticket policies. This dawning realization led to this article, with its implied criticism of students who buy football season tickets and then immediately turn around and scalp them. My thoughts on that extremely common phenomenon are as follows.
First, there's the general and irrefutable truth that every year, at least some students are going to try to resell their student tickets. They're in college, they need money, standing for three hours in tiring, sobering up in the middle of the day isn't pleasant, all the games are on TV anyway, Wisconsin v. Wofford isn't particularly compelling, etc. So I don't begrudge kids' efforts to resell tickets and make some money. Indeed, I've bought scalped student tickets on several different occasions myself. (I do, however, begrudge the idiot student in the article who insisted that he isn't being "selfish" by buying tickets and then immediately scalping them. Dude, you're doing this to make money for yourself, and in doing so, making some other fan (like the incoming freshman mentioned in the article), pay more for tickets. That's selfish. Get a dictionary. And it's okay-- capitalism is based on selfishness. Just embrace it, you coward.)
Anyway, given that fact, the question is what to do about it. It seems to me, that the university currently has policies that tacitly encourage scalping, and I'm talking about the way that they allocate tickets and how they admit "students" to Camp Randall. In regard to allocation, until this past month, the university had a pure lottery for tickets. This year, they changed the policy to a first come, first served sale, but held the sale online at 8 am on a weekday-- not the most convenient time for students who have summer jobs. (The system didn't work particularly well as the University apparently cheaped out with their contract with Ticketmaster, but that's another matter.) In any event, neither method of allocation works that well. If you want to discourage scalping, you need to make getting tickets kind of a pain in the ass-- making people who want them do something a bit difficult, like wait in line for a long time. Certainly, making people sit in front of their computers for an hour is more difficult then just having them submit their names to a lottery, but they're still making it far too easy for the commercially-minded to buy tickets.
Second, I have never understood how anyone can walk up to the student gates, submit a voucher, get a ticket and waddle into the student section without any proof that that person is actually a student. Hell, an eighty-three-year-old who doesn't speak English can use a "student" voucher. It's ridiculous. Because of this complete lack of verification that the users of student vouchers are in fact students, the resale market for scalped student tickets is unlimited. If the UW did what other schools do without too much hassle, that is, simply ask for student IDs along with a voucher, the market for scalped vouchers would be halved, at least. Apparently spending three seconds to glance at a student ID is too much to ask of the ticket takers though. Sigh.
I'll make it plain-- in combination with the documented neutering of the "Grateful Red"-- it's clear that whoever runs UW's student ticket program for the major sports is doing a piss-poor job. Folks, this is a down economy. People are scrambling for work, the state (like most states) has serious budget problems, the university is looking to save money-- how about firing whatever half-assed, uncreative, and overpaid simpleton is handling student ticket policies? I'm guessing you could hire some young turk with fresh ideas to replace that person at 60% of the cost. Maybe a recent graduate of UW's MBA program? Hell, they could have a competition for that job among second year MBA students, with applicants needing to submit proposals to revamp the system. But that would be far too fun and unorthodox for the athletic department under Barry's reign.
First, there's the general and irrefutable truth that every year, at least some students are going to try to resell their student tickets. They're in college, they need money, standing for three hours in tiring, sobering up in the middle of the day isn't pleasant, all the games are on TV anyway, Wisconsin v. Wofford isn't particularly compelling, etc. So I don't begrudge kids' efforts to resell tickets and make some money. Indeed, I've bought scalped student tickets on several different occasions myself. (I do, however, begrudge the idiot student in the article who insisted that he isn't being "selfish" by buying tickets and then immediately scalping them. Dude, you're doing this to make money for yourself, and in doing so, making some other fan (like the incoming freshman mentioned in the article), pay more for tickets. That's selfish. Get a dictionary. And it's okay-- capitalism is based on selfishness. Just embrace it, you coward.)
Anyway, given that fact, the question is what to do about it. It seems to me, that the university currently has policies that tacitly encourage scalping, and I'm talking about the way that they allocate tickets and how they admit "students" to Camp Randall. In regard to allocation, until this past month, the university had a pure lottery for tickets. This year, they changed the policy to a first come, first served sale, but held the sale online at 8 am on a weekday-- not the most convenient time for students who have summer jobs. (The system didn't work particularly well as the University apparently cheaped out with their contract with Ticketmaster, but that's another matter.) In any event, neither method of allocation works that well. If you want to discourage scalping, you need to make getting tickets kind of a pain in the ass-- making people who want them do something a bit difficult, like wait in line for a long time. Certainly, making people sit in front of their computers for an hour is more difficult then just having them submit their names to a lottery, but they're still making it far too easy for the commercially-minded to buy tickets.
Second, I have never understood how anyone can walk up to the student gates, submit a voucher, get a ticket and waddle into the student section without any proof that that person is actually a student. Hell, an eighty-three-year-old who doesn't speak English can use a "student" voucher. It's ridiculous. Because of this complete lack of verification that the users of student vouchers are in fact students, the resale market for scalped student tickets is unlimited. If the UW did what other schools do without too much hassle, that is, simply ask for student IDs along with a voucher, the market for scalped vouchers would be halved, at least. Apparently spending three seconds to glance at a student ID is too much to ask of the ticket takers though. Sigh.
I'll make it plain-- in combination with the documented neutering of the "Grateful Red"-- it's clear that whoever runs UW's student ticket program for the major sports is doing a piss-poor job. Folks, this is a down economy. People are scrambling for work, the state (like most states) has serious budget problems, the university is looking to save money-- how about firing whatever half-assed, uncreative, and overpaid simpleton is handling student ticket policies? I'm guessing you could hire some young turk with fresh ideas to replace that person at 60% of the cost. Maybe a recent graduate of UW's MBA program? Hell, they could have a competition for that job among second year MBA students, with applicants needing to submit proposals to revamp the system. But that would be far too fun and unorthodox for the athletic department under Barry's reign.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Thank Goodness
The UW athletic department finally gives in--- and scraps the stupid student ticket lottery. Although it's only for football, sadly. Now tickets will be sold on a first come, first served basis, but done online only. I guess the embarrassment of a 70% empty student section at the start of every game, even for night games against decent opponents, was enough to shame them into action.
Hopefully, this change will lead to more kids who actually want to go to the games getting tickets, and thus there being more kids in the seats and more intensity from the student section during games, resulting in a better, more intimidating home environment. Okay, maybe it won't be a sea change. But it's got to help. And the kids who keep getting shut out of the lottery will finally have some recourse.
The policy change will also likely mean that for fans looking to buy a scalped student ticket every once in a while, like myself, prices will be a bit higher. But don't worry, the online sales method ensures that people who aren't really interested in going to the games will still try to buy season tickets just to resell them. We couldn't have kids camping out or anything, could we? Nooooo, never. That'd be way too much fun.
Dean Wormer said it best: "No more fun of any kind!"
Hopefully, this change will lead to more kids who actually want to go to the games getting tickets, and thus there being more kids in the seats and more intensity from the student section during games, resulting in a better, more intimidating home environment. Okay, maybe it won't be a sea change. But it's got to help. And the kids who keep getting shut out of the lottery will finally have some recourse.
The policy change will also likely mean that for fans looking to buy a scalped student ticket every once in a while, like myself, prices will be a bit higher. But don't worry, the online sales method ensures that people who aren't really interested in going to the games will still try to buy season tickets just to resell them. We couldn't have kids camping out or anything, could we? Nooooo, never. That'd be way too much fun.
Dean Wormer said it best: "No more fun of any kind!"
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Designated Drivers
Seriously, get one. This type of crap is getting really tired. And who flees from the cops? They should show the entire UW football team the internet footage of that guy trying to steal the Krispy Kreme delivery truck from the Freedom on Old University. Madison is just not a big enough city where you're going to be able to escape from the cops.
Plus, you'd think that during some intense physical training regimine would not be the time to go out on random benders, but rather eat really well and get a lot of sleep. Just straight dumb, my friend. And he seemed like such a nice, jolly kid. He has a great smile. Sigh. Can you say undrafted? If so, you've said it all.
Plus, you'd think that during some intense physical training regimine would not be the time to go out on random benders, but rather eat really well and get a lot of sleep. Just straight dumb, my friend. And he seemed like such a nice, jolly kid. He has a great smile. Sigh. Can you say undrafted? If so, you've said it all.
Saturday, March 07, 2009
Wisconsin Wins the Champs Sports Bowl?
If so, that would be totally hilarious. See here.
This raises the question-- would you rather have won the middling bowl game and then have this sort of thing break out, or get stomped and humiliated on national television but maintain some integrity?
This raises the question-- would you rather have won the middling bowl game and then have this sort of thing break out, or get stomped and humiliated on national television but maintain some integrity?
Saturday, January 24, 2009
HA!
The UW "athletic board" just gave head football coach Brett Bielema a one-year extension, meaning his contract now ends in 2014, instead of 2013. I have no idea why the board (who even knew there was a specific "board" just for the athletic department?) voted to do so, but at first blush it seems ridiculously undeserved. It certainly wasn't the awful bowl performance, his failure to develop players, the constant worsening of UW's performance in his three years or his fair to middlin' recruiting. Maybe it was just the fact that the board does what Barry says, and Bielema is Barry's boy? Maybe Barry wants to give Brett a public vote of confidence, so as to help recruiting? Who knows.
I do know that unless the extension increased the penalty if the university breaches the contract (that is, the amount of money the contract says the university will owe Bielema if and when the university fires him while he's still under contract), then it doesn't really matter, or make his job any more secure. And I doubt the penalty clause would increase that much with a one-year extension. So it's probably just window dressing. Every Badger fan knows that Bielema is going to have to do significantly better next season, even with Alvarez defending him. All this extension did is make the heretofore unknown "UW athletic board" look like a gaggle of dunces.
I do know that unless the extension increased the penalty if the university breaches the contract (that is, the amount of money the contract says the university will owe Bielema if and when the university fires him while he's still under contract), then it doesn't really matter, or make his job any more secure. And I doubt the penalty clause would increase that much with a one-year extension. So it's probably just window dressing. Every Badger fan knows that Bielema is going to have to do significantly better next season, even with Alvarez defending him. All this extension did is make the heretofore unknown "UW athletic board" look like a gaggle of dunces.
Thursday, January 08, 2009
More Randomness
Again, too much nunsense out there for a coherent post. Here's another grab-bag.
- Former Packer O-coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski was "fired" from his position as the Boston College football head coach yesterday, after refusing to not interview with the Jets. Apparently UW-Whitewater alum Jagod failed to tell his AD that he was talking with the J-E-T-S, and that didn't sit too well with his boss. And the Globe reported some informal agreement that Jagod would not pursue other jobs for the first three years as BC chieftan. So there. But what a wacky way to get fired, eh? "If you do not-very-outlandish thing A, I'll can you!" "Alright, well I'm doing it." "You're canned!" That's a pretty quick trigger. And can Boston College really afford to be so choosey? It's not like the goofy Wisconsin native hadn't gotten BC (the smallest school in the ACC) to the ACC title game two straight years. Oh, wait. (I guess they did just gift Vandy its first bowl win in 50 odd years.) Anyhoo, Jagod is a friggin' weirdo. If you don't like recruiting 16-year-olds and want to go back to the NFL, just quit already. Further proof that you just can't trust a Warhawk. They're shifty.
- So, awesomely, UW men's basketballers totally pounded Northwestern last night. What a contrast to the PSU game on Saturday. NU had been doing quite well so far this year (they were in the top 25 in Pomeroy's ratings), but UW carved up their defense and forced miss after Wildcat miss. The dominant final score (by 29 points in a 62 possession game), jumped UW 15 slots in the Ken Pom ratings. Awww, yeah. Number 34, bitches! Whoop!
- Seriously now, UW sophomore forward Jon Leuer is getting smoother and smoother on offense, and his rebounding and D really have picked up. Or they at least looked excellent against NU's nearly all-white frontcourt. (It's like being back in Minnesota!) Sadly, fellow soph Keaton Nankivil continues to start but play less than Leuer. The young Madisonian just keeps looking a bit timid, though he has bursts of effectiveness. (What is it with these Madison Memorial alums? Are they all nancies or is it just me?) Hell, lower ceilinged walk-on Kevin Gullickson got about the same number of minutes as Nankivil last night. And don't get me wrong, I effing love kids like KG who are academic badasses (Academic All-Big Ten two straight seasons with a "business finance" major) and have multiple drinking citations. That is doing Wisconsin proud, my young friend. But schollie sophs should be earning more minutes that walk-ons, regardless of how bad ass they are. Can I blame the math teacher/head coach at Memorial for stunting the Nanker's development?
- Also, third soph Tim Jarmusz ran about the ugliest fast break I have ever seen last night. He bricked a mildly contested one on one lay up. The Leuer missed a tip, then Krabby missed a tip, then the ball got knocked out of bounds, I think. Yeesh. I thought Tim could shoot. There were a couple of ugly fast breaks last night-- there was another where Pop missed a lay in, Bohannon tipped it back up, and it was goaltended. Bizarre. Apparently, NU is the only team unathletic enough that Wisconsin can run on them (or is unafraid of the consequences of trying to run).
- Last UW basketball note: I'm convinced that UW's kick ass offense against NU was partly due to the fact that NU is the third straight team UW has played who primarily plays zone defense. (Michigan and NU are 1-3-1 teams, and PSU plays a lot of 2-3.) Meaning they just finished their second straight week of preparing to play against zone Ds. This has me worried they're going to be out of practice for the pressure man to man D Purdidn't will throw at them this weekend, and accordingly are going to look ugly on offense. Whatever. Number 34! Whoop!
- I have no idea who the Packers will hire to replace now deposed D-coordinator Bob Sanders. I do like, a lot, this line from a Journal-Sentinel article about the search. "McCarthy, a source said, wants someone who could adapt to his talent and not be tied to one way of doing things." Exactly. If you need perfect personnel to coordinate an effective defense, you're going to be in trouble, because people get old and incompetent and/or get injured quite quickly in the NFL. Hire somebody who makes decent lemonade.
- Getting back to college football, I will not be watching this evenings faux-national championship game as I have more interesting and important crap to do. In addition, I have opted to not even Tivo the game, as Grey's Anatomy and 30 Rock hold more allure than watching two "schools" try to run up the score on each other. (How can a team be seen as a formal representive of a school, if less than half of said team actual matriculates from said school?) Plus, Florida and the Pope should win by double digits. OU got into the championship game by losing early in the season (thus resulting in being higher ranked than Texas Tech and Texas, which was the tie-breaker for getting into the Big 12 Championship game), and by running up the score. Karma is a bitch. As is the fact that the Big 12 has gotten exposed this postseason. True, Nebraska managed to beat a terribly quarterbacked Clemson team, and Kansas bombed a floundering Minnesota team as predicted but Mizzou needed overtime to beat friggin' Northwestern, top ten team Texas Tech got pounded in Dallas by Ole Miss, Oklahoma State got burned by Oregon, and Texas needed all sorts of help to barely squeak past the Ohio A&M. Not looking so strong there, El Grande Doce. Plus, Florida actually has a defense and an offense, and Bob Stoops has laid several BCS eggs since winning his national championship eight plus years ago. I say the Pope, his balanced team, Tim Tebow (and his remarkably built ladyfriend), win by two touches. 30 something to 20 something. Predictable, cheesy and boring, especially with Fox's awful production values. (ABC does the Rose Bowl so much better, it's not even funny.)
Watching the lady from Knocked Up debate the moral dillema of her illicit affair with a dead boyfriend's ghost (worst plot development ever) on Grey's Anatomy will be far more entertaining. Or maybe not. Well, if it's a good game it'll be rebroadcast soon enough anyway.
- In all seriousness, not watching that game is actually an effective way you can show your displeasure over the stupid BCS system. If the ratings start to suffer, the university presidents (whose hands must be chapped from all the rubbing together they do at the thought of the financial payout from the current deal) may start to come around. Either that, or we'll have to wait for them to all die off. Or at least for Big 11 commish Jim Delaney to die off.
- Finally, UW running back PJ Hill and his prodigious posterior have opted to try to take his game to the next level. Good luck to the young man. Despite assorted injuries, PJ has been a fine college back, and is actually third in career rushing yards at UW, behind Anthony Davis and Ron Dayne. In addition, PJ has always seemed like a good teammate and an amiable young man. (For example, I didn't see him grumble or sulk a bit after John Clay started getting more carries this season.) As far as his decision to leave "early" goes, I can't blame him a bit. He redshirted after breaking his leg in preseason camp as a frosh, so he's been here for four whole seasons. He doesn't have much left to prove, and Clay (and Zach Brown and Montee Davis) would have been champing at the bit behind him next season. I don't know where (or if) he'll be drafted, but he has always been great at getting yards in tough spots, maximizing what he can get after contact. He'd make a solid short yardage back, I'd wager. Godspeed.
- Former Packer O-coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski was "fired" from his position as the Boston College football head coach yesterday, after refusing to not interview with the Jets. Apparently UW-Whitewater alum Jagod failed to tell his AD that he was talking with the J-E-T-S, and that didn't sit too well with his boss. And the Globe reported some informal agreement that Jagod would not pursue other jobs for the first three years as BC chieftan. So there. But what a wacky way to get fired, eh? "If you do not-very-outlandish thing A, I'll can you!" "Alright, well I'm doing it." "You're canned!" That's a pretty quick trigger. And can Boston College really afford to be so choosey? It's not like the goofy Wisconsin native hadn't gotten BC (the smallest school in the ACC) to the ACC title game two straight years. Oh, wait. (I guess they did just gift Vandy its first bowl win in 50 odd years.) Anyhoo, Jagod is a friggin' weirdo. If you don't like recruiting 16-year-olds and want to go back to the NFL, just quit already. Further proof that you just can't trust a Warhawk. They're shifty.- So, awesomely, UW men's basketballers totally pounded Northwestern last night. What a contrast to the PSU game on Saturday. NU had been doing quite well so far this year (they were in the top 25 in Pomeroy's ratings), but UW carved up their defense and forced miss after Wildcat miss. The dominant final score (by 29 points in a 62 possession game), jumped UW 15 slots in the Ken Pom ratings. Awww, yeah. Number 34, bitches! Whoop!
- Seriously now, UW sophomore forward Jon Leuer is getting smoother and smoother on offense, and his rebounding and D really have picked up. Or they at least looked excellent against NU's nearly all-white frontcourt. (It's like being back in Minnesota!) Sadly, fellow soph Keaton Nankivil continues to start but play less than Leuer. The young Madisonian just keeps looking a bit timid, though he has bursts of effectiveness. (What is it with these Madison Memorial alums? Are they all nancies or is it just me?) Hell, lower ceilinged walk-on Kevin Gullickson got about the same number of minutes as Nankivil last night. And don't get me wrong, I effing love kids like KG who are academic badasses (Academic All-Big Ten two straight seasons with a "business finance" major) and have multiple drinking citations. That is doing Wisconsin proud, my young friend. But schollie sophs should be earning more minutes that walk-ons, regardless of how bad ass they are. Can I blame the math teacher/head coach at Memorial for stunting the Nanker's development?
- Also, third soph Tim Jarmusz ran about the ugliest fast break I have ever seen last night. He bricked a mildly contested one on one lay up. The Leuer missed a tip, then Krabby missed a tip, then the ball got knocked out of bounds, I think. Yeesh. I thought Tim could shoot. There were a couple of ugly fast breaks last night-- there was another where Pop missed a lay in, Bohannon tipped it back up, and it was goaltended. Bizarre. Apparently, NU is the only team unathletic enough that Wisconsin can run on them (or is unafraid of the consequences of trying to run).
- Last UW basketball note: I'm convinced that UW's kick ass offense against NU was partly due to the fact that NU is the third straight team UW has played who primarily plays zone defense. (Michigan and NU are 1-3-1 teams, and PSU plays a lot of 2-3.) Meaning they just finished their second straight week of preparing to play against zone Ds. This has me worried they're going to be out of practice for the pressure man to man D Purdidn't will throw at them this weekend, and accordingly are going to look ugly on offense. Whatever. Number 34! Whoop!
- I have no idea who the Packers will hire to replace now deposed D-coordinator Bob Sanders. I do like, a lot, this line from a Journal-Sentinel article about the search. "McCarthy, a source said, wants someone who could adapt to his talent and not be tied to one way of doing things." Exactly. If you need perfect personnel to coordinate an effective defense, you're going to be in trouble, because people get old and incompetent and/or get injured quite quickly in the NFL. Hire somebody who makes decent lemonade.
- Getting back to college football, I will not be watching this evenings faux-national championship game as I have more interesting and important crap to do. In addition, I have opted to not even Tivo the game, as Grey's Anatomy and 30 Rock hold more allure than watching two "schools" try to run up the score on each other. (How can a team be seen as a formal representive of a school, if less than half of said team actual matriculates from said school?) Plus, Florida and the Pope should win by double digits. OU got into the championship game by losing early in the season (thus resulting in being higher ranked than Texas Tech and Texas, which was the tie-breaker for getting into the Big 12 Championship game), and by running up the score. Karma is a bitch. As is the fact that the Big 12 has gotten exposed this postseason. True, Nebraska managed to beat a terribly quarterbacked Clemson team, and Kansas bombed a floundering Minnesota team as predicted but Mizzou needed overtime to beat friggin' Northwestern, top ten team Texas Tech got pounded in Dallas by Ole Miss, Oklahoma State got burned by Oregon, and Texas needed all sorts of help to barely squeak past the Ohio A&M. Not looking so strong there, El Grande Doce. Plus, Florida actually has a defense and an offense, and Bob Stoops has laid several BCS eggs since winning his national championship eight plus years ago. I say the Pope, his balanced team, Tim Tebow (and his remarkably built ladyfriend), win by two touches. 30 something to 20 something. Predictable, cheesy and boring, especially with Fox's awful production values. (ABC does the Rose Bowl so much better, it's not even funny.)
Watching the lady from Knocked Up debate the moral dillema of her illicit affair with a dead boyfriend's ghost (worst plot development ever) on Grey's Anatomy will be far more entertaining. Or maybe not. Well, if it's a good game it'll be rebroadcast soon enough anyway. - In all seriousness, not watching that game is actually an effective way you can show your displeasure over the stupid BCS system. If the ratings start to suffer, the university presidents (whose hands must be chapped from all the rubbing together they do at the thought of the financial payout from the current deal) may start to come around. Either that, or we'll have to wait for them to all die off. Or at least for Big 11 commish Jim Delaney to die off.
- Finally, UW running back PJ Hill and his prodigious posterior have opted to try to take his game to the next level. Good luck to the young man. Despite assorted injuries, PJ has been a fine college back, and is actually third in career rushing yards at UW, behind Anthony Davis and Ron Dayne. In addition, PJ has always seemed like a good teammate and an amiable young man. (For example, I didn't see him grumble or sulk a bit after John Clay started getting more carries this season.) As far as his decision to leave "early" goes, I can't blame him a bit. He redshirted after breaking his leg in preseason camp as a frosh, so he's been here for four whole seasons. He doesn't have much left to prove, and Clay (and Zach Brown and Montee Davis) would have been champing at the bit behind him next season. I don't know where (or if) he'll be drafted, but he has always been great at getting yards in tough spots, maximizing what he can get after contact. He'd make a solid short yardage back, I'd wager. Godspeed.
Saturday, December 27, 2008
More Champs Sports Bowl Nunsense
Also, here's our end of the witty repartee. That is, here's our answers to Tomahawknation.com's various questions regarding Wisconsin and this afternoon's Champ Sports Bowl (3:30 pm Central, mis amigos).
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
The Bowl Season Blahs
As a few of you may have noticed, there's been no discussion on this fine, upstanding website of the University of Wisconsin football team's date with destiny and the Florida State Seminoles, in the Champs Sports Bowl on December 27. Why is that? Well, to be honest, and to channel Top Gun, I have totally lost that lovin' feeling. Of course I'm still a fan. And, of course, I'll watch the game. But, sheesh, I kind of just wish this season was over already.
The moral loss to Cal Poly-SLO really drove it home--- this team is not good. In fact, they kind of hurt to watch. It's like being a dog waiting to get whacked with a newspaper-- you're constantly ready to wince in pain. Further, the lack of improvement this season from the team has been really disturbing, and has made me concerned about the future of the program in general. As far as the bowl game goes, I'm quite worried that Florida State, even a Florida State that is nowhere near what it used to be, is going to hammer them. I fear a result similar to the Penn State and Iowa games this season, or the Mike Bobo/David Pollack-led beatdown by Georgia a few years back. Now, I sure hope that I'm wrong. And I'm glad the Badgers made a bowl game, if just for the extra practice time. But I just can't muster any enthusiasm for the season's ultimate game.
And thinking about the Big Ten's bowl season as a whole is even more depressing. Take a look at the conference's match-ups. The Badgers and a likely beat-down will start things off. Then we have Northwestern, who will get absolutely exposed by Missouri's offense in the Alamo Bowl. Next up is Minnesota against Kansas in the Insight Bowl on New Year's Eve. Hmmm, anyone else think that KU's excellent quarterback Todd Reesing might totally bomb Minnie's atrocious defense?
The morning after, New Year's Day, we have two more likely losses, with Michigan State playing Georgia (given Sparty's overrated one dimensional offense, that is not going to be pretty) in the Capital One Bowl, and a peaking USC team looking to make a statement against Penn State in the Rose Bowl. (To be fair, think this game could be close. PSU is a very good team. But I just don't see them doing much offensively against USC's ridiculous defense.) These two losses will likely overshadow the Big Ten's lone bright spot--- an improving Iowa team should be able to take down South Carolina that morning in the Outback Bowl.
Then, four days later, the capper--- Ohio State playing a pissed off Texas in the Fiesta Bowl. How did a two loss OSU get into the BCS again? Never mind. The Longhorns are going to depants the Buckeyes on prime time national television. The whole world is going to see their sissy-boy panties rippling in the Arizona evening breeze. It'll be a fitting end to a forgettable season of Big Ten football.
The moral loss to Cal Poly-SLO really drove it home--- this team is not good. In fact, they kind of hurt to watch. It's like being a dog waiting to get whacked with a newspaper-- you're constantly ready to wince in pain. Further, the lack of improvement this season from the team has been really disturbing, and has made me concerned about the future of the program in general. As far as the bowl game goes, I'm quite worried that Florida State, even a Florida State that is nowhere near what it used to be, is going to hammer them. I fear a result similar to the Penn State and Iowa games this season, or the Mike Bobo/David Pollack-led beatdown by Georgia a few years back. Now, I sure hope that I'm wrong. And I'm glad the Badgers made a bowl game, if just for the extra practice time. But I just can't muster any enthusiasm for the season's ultimate game.
And thinking about the Big Ten's bowl season as a whole is even more depressing. Take a look at the conference's match-ups. The Badgers and a likely beat-down will start things off. Then we have Northwestern, who will get absolutely exposed by Missouri's offense in the Alamo Bowl. Next up is Minnesota against Kansas in the Insight Bowl on New Year's Eve. Hmmm, anyone else think that KU's excellent quarterback Todd Reesing might totally bomb Minnie's atrocious defense?
The morning after, New Year's Day, we have two more likely losses, with Michigan State playing Georgia (given Sparty's overrated one dimensional offense, that is not going to be pretty) in the Capital One Bowl, and a peaking USC team looking to make a statement against Penn State in the Rose Bowl. (To be fair, think this game could be close. PSU is a very good team. But I just don't see them doing much offensively against USC's ridiculous defense.) These two losses will likely overshadow the Big Ten's lone bright spot--- an improving Iowa team should be able to take down South Carolina that morning in the Outback Bowl.
Then, four days later, the capper--- Ohio State playing a pissed off Texas in the Fiesta Bowl. How did a two loss OSU get into the BCS again? Never mind. The Longhorns are going to depants the Buckeyes on prime time national television. The whole world is going to see their sissy-boy panties rippling in the Arizona evening breeze. It'll be a fitting end to a forgettable season of Big Ten football.
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
Comebacks and Bowl Hopes
Mr. Man mentioned that last night VT had a crazy, last-minute "almost comeback" that almost never happens, which is true. But I was watching this 2001 game live and it will always stick out in my mind, as a crazy, last-minute, actual comeback.
Back to Football. When NW beat MI, my hopes for a BigTen #5 seed faded away, but new hopes emerged. I am now hoping for the Champs Sport Bowl in FLA against the ACC #6. What else am I hoping for? I am hoping that the Miami Hurricanes end up being the ACC #6. I want that matchup. We recruit heavily in Southern Florida, and a matchup and win against Miami in Florida, would be really helpful to us. Also, I have always wanted to play and beat Miami. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Amen
These two pieces, by Michael Hunt and Jim Polzin are pretty much exactly what my feelings are regarding the Wisconsin football team at this point, and essentially mirror Sal's points. When you think back on this season, all you can really say is "Ugh."
Awesome
Jeff Potrykus is the Wisconsin football beat writer for the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. I think he does a fine job covering the team, though he can be a bit crusty, an attribute that especially comes out when hosting online chats during the season. Today, he turned his disdain on full bore for Michigan Coach Rich Rodriguez. I don't know how you feel about Michigan football this season (since I'm friends with some Michigan alums I kind of feel bad, though I really wish UW had beat them), but Rodriguez just seems to be a hard guy to like, significantly more of a huckster than your typical Division I coach. Anyhow, since the worst season in decades for the Wolverines is almost over and Michigan knew it was going to get thumped by Ohio State today, Rich Rod opted to preemptively defend himself. Potrykus is having none of it. Funny stuff.
p.s. Also, UW will be especially thin in the defensive backfield this afternoon-- both Jay Valai and Mario Goins are out. That's unfortunate, as Cal Poly runs a ton, and both guys are good, solid tacklers.
p.s. Also, UW will be especially thin in the defensive backfield this afternoon-- both Jay Valai and Mario Goins are out. That's unfortunate, as Cal Poly runs a ton, and both guys are good, solid tacklers.
Friday, November 21, 2008
The Final Triumvirate "Weekend"
Ah, how that blessed season, where the Packers, Badger men's basketball and Badger football overlap, comes and goes so quickly. And this weekend may not even count, as the Packers don't play until Monday night at the Saints (Monday is definitely a weekday, I don't care what the ESPN ads say) and the Badger basketball team is gallivanting around the Virgin Islands in a tournament that may or may not be aired anywhere. Bummer.
Thankfully, the most entertaining and perhaps the most important even this weekend will be the most easy to catch, I think. It's the University of Wisconsin football team playing the Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Mustangs on Saturday morning at 11 am. Don't laugh. Yes, Cal Poly may be a Division I, FCS level school (formerly known as D-IAA). But they're also ranked third in the FCS polls. They have one of the leading offenses at that level, something callled the "triple option," which, since I wasn't watching much football in the 70s and 80s, is beyond my current understanding. They also have an enormous wideout that's being hyped as a potential first-day draft pick. And they run a 3-4, which could be effective as it's a somewhat novel scheme at this level. In short, this game is nothing to sneeze at and will likely be hard fought and close down to the final minutes. Frankly, I'm frightened by it-- the Badgers need the win for guaranteed bowl eligibility (and the ability to practice through December), but they'll obviously get no credit for a win, let alone a close win. And if they lose, the ramifications are very serious. It'll be a very serious blow to Bielema, the coaching staff and to the program generally, totally killing the goodwill garnered by the Minnesota comeback. And what bowl game is going to take an underperforming 6-6 squad that just lost to an FCS school? This is an important, scary game.
Thankfully, it's played in Madison, starting at 2:30 pm Central time (allegedly on the Big Ten Network, though check your alternates). This means it's going to be friggin' freezing, and especially cold as the game winds down. Since California's central coastline is one of the most temperate places in the Continental United States, you'd have to think the Mustangs will not be loving their environs by the end of the game. Hopefully, the Badgers' running game and some effective passing by Sherer will allow them to play keep away, keeping Cal Poly's bizarre and scary offense off the field. But you have to think the Cal Poly guys will be fired up to prove something, evn though this game basically doesn't matter to them, as their season will continue in the FCS playoffs regardless.
The UW men's basketball will be playing at least three games in the next four days as part of the Paradise Jam tourney in the sunny Carribean. (Why didn't I think to follow them down there again?) Anyhow, unfortunately, their first game (against Iona tonight at 7:30) will not be broadcast, except on the radio or on a terrible paid online feed. See here. You'd hope they'd take care of Iona (12-20 last season, and a member of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference), but win or lose they'll play either Valparaiso or San Diego. Valpo gave UW a tough time in Madison last season, and San Diego won the WCC tournament last season (Gonzaga's conference), beat UConn in the opening round of the NCAA tournament, and returns all of its guys. Two potentially very tough match-ups. Anyhow, things go screwy from there, depending on if they lose and to whom. They could play UConn or Miami in the final (UConn is currently ranked in the top 5, and Miami in the top 20), they could play LaSalle or Southern Mississsippi in some type of consolation game. It's all up in the air. (Here's the bracket.)
Anyhow, thanks to the tropical locale, it seems very dubious as to whether you'll be able to watch any of those games whatsoever. Allegedly, some of the games on Sunday (when the Badgers will play if they beat Iona) will be broadcast on some series of Fox College Sports (FCS) channels. Alas, I get none of them. The championship game, should the Badgers make it that far (dubious), will be broadcast on Monday night on one of the thousands of derivations of Fox Sports Net. But, of course, this broadcast will run right up against the Packer game. Sigh. Anyhow, go Badgers! I'll be cheering for them in abstentia, apparently.
Thankfully, the most entertaining and perhaps the most important even this weekend will be the most easy to catch, I think. It's the University of Wisconsin football team playing the Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Mustangs on Saturday morning at 11 am. Don't laugh. Yes, Cal Poly may be a Division I, FCS level school (formerly known as D-IAA). But they're also ranked third in the FCS polls. They have one of the leading offenses at that level, something callled the "triple option," which, since I wasn't watching much football in the 70s and 80s, is beyond my current understanding. They also have an enormous wideout that's being hyped as a potential first-day draft pick. And they run a 3-4, which could be effective as it's a somewhat novel scheme at this level. In short, this game is nothing to sneeze at and will likely be hard fought and close down to the final minutes. Frankly, I'm frightened by it-- the Badgers need the win for guaranteed bowl eligibility (and the ability to practice through December), but they'll obviously get no credit for a win, let alone a close win. And if they lose, the ramifications are very serious. It'll be a very serious blow to Bielema, the coaching staff and to the program generally, totally killing the goodwill garnered by the Minnesota comeback. And what bowl game is going to take an underperforming 6-6 squad that just lost to an FCS school? This is an important, scary game.
Thankfully, it's played in Madison, starting at 2:30 pm Central time (allegedly on the Big Ten Network, though check your alternates). This means it's going to be friggin' freezing, and especially cold as the game winds down. Since California's central coastline is one of the most temperate places in the Continental United States, you'd have to think the Mustangs will not be loving their environs by the end of the game. Hopefully, the Badgers' running game and some effective passing by Sherer will allow them to play keep away, keeping Cal Poly's bizarre and scary offense off the field. But you have to think the Cal Poly guys will be fired up to prove something, evn though this game basically doesn't matter to them, as their season will continue in the FCS playoffs regardless.
The UW men's basketball will be playing at least three games in the next four days as part of the Paradise Jam tourney in the sunny Carribean. (Why didn't I think to follow them down there again?) Anyhow, unfortunately, their first game (against Iona tonight at 7:30) will not be broadcast, except on the radio or on a terrible paid online feed. See here. You'd hope they'd take care of Iona (12-20 last season, and a member of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference), but win or lose they'll play either Valparaiso or San Diego. Valpo gave UW a tough time in Madison last season, and San Diego won the WCC tournament last season (Gonzaga's conference), beat UConn in the opening round of the NCAA tournament, and returns all of its guys. Two potentially very tough match-ups. Anyhow, things go screwy from there, depending on if they lose and to whom. They could play UConn or Miami in the final (UConn is currently ranked in the top 5, and Miami in the top 20), they could play LaSalle or Southern Mississsippi in some type of consolation game. It's all up in the air. (Here's the bracket.)
Anyhow, thanks to the tropical locale, it seems very dubious as to whether you'll be able to watch any of those games whatsoever. Allegedly, some of the games on Sunday (when the Badgers will play if they beat Iona) will be broadcast on some series of Fox College Sports (FCS) channels. Alas, I get none of them. The championship game, should the Badgers make it that far (dubious), will be broadcast on Monday night on one of the thousands of derivations of Fox Sports Net. But, of course, this broadcast will run right up against the Packer game. Sigh. Anyhow, go Badgers! I'll be cheering for them in abstentia, apparently.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Wisconsin-Minnesota Post-script
A few things:
- The play where Daven Jones was injured (he has a torn ACL and is done for the year, though he has a redshirt he could use next season) was despicable. He was a gunner on a punt, had his man beaten plainly, was the first guy down the field, in great position to tattoo the returner . . . and his man shoves him in the back. His leg twists awkwardly, he goes flying past the returner and crumples to the turf. At least the refs saw it and called the blatant and disgusting block in the back. Nice one, Gophers. Couple that with the stupid body slamming of Nick Toon and the head punch of Bill Nagy, and it looks like many of Minnesota's players were so amped up they weren't playing intelligently.
- It sounds like Kyle Jefferson is doing alright and isn't too badly injured. My original post on the game failed to mention Kyle being knocked unconscious and being taken off the field in an ambulance. That was poor form, as that was scary, scary stuff. Remembering the vicious hit he took against Michigan State last season, you have to wonder if he's just too skinny a guy to be a D-I (excuse me, FBS) receiver. He still has a redshirt season to burn. Taking it, perhaps next year, and using it to really focus on bulking up and getting stronger might be a good idea. At the very least, Kyle has to start acting like David Gilreath when he catches balls in the middle of the field, and get down quickly.
- Finally, I like how Nick Maragos redeemed his botched hold on the Badgers' first field goal attempt. Specifically, on the last defensive play of the game, where Niles Brinkley (who despite his ongoing learning curve as a cornerback, has great hands) snatched an interception and inexplicably decided to start running across the field with the ball, Maragos shouted and waved his hands at him, trying to get Brinkley to fall down. Eventually Niles figured it out, and hit the turf, sealing the win. Smart play, Nick, and a good example of leadership. A fumble there by Brinkley gives the Gophers a fresh set of downs, and the game remains very much in question.
- The play where Daven Jones was injured (he has a torn ACL and is done for the year, though he has a redshirt he could use next season) was despicable. He was a gunner on a punt, had his man beaten plainly, was the first guy down the field, in great position to tattoo the returner . . . and his man shoves him in the back. His leg twists awkwardly, he goes flying past the returner and crumples to the turf. At least the refs saw it and called the blatant and disgusting block in the back. Nice one, Gophers. Couple that with the stupid body slamming of Nick Toon and the head punch of Bill Nagy, and it looks like many of Minnesota's players were so amped up they weren't playing intelligently.
- It sounds like Kyle Jefferson is doing alright and isn't too badly injured. My original post on the game failed to mention Kyle being knocked unconscious and being taken off the field in an ambulance. That was poor form, as that was scary, scary stuff. Remembering the vicious hit he took against Michigan State last season, you have to wonder if he's just too skinny a guy to be a D-I (excuse me, FBS) receiver. He still has a redshirt season to burn. Taking it, perhaps next year, and using it to really focus on bulking up and getting stronger might be a good idea. At the very least, Kyle has to start acting like David Gilreath when he catches balls in the middle of the field, and get down quickly.
- Finally, I like how Nick Maragos redeemed his botched hold on the Badgers' first field goal attempt. Specifically, on the last defensive play of the game, where Niles Brinkley (who despite his ongoing learning curve as a cornerback, has great hands) snatched an interception and inexplicably decided to start running across the field with the ball, Maragos shouted and waved his hands at him, trying to get Brinkley to fall down. Eventually Niles figured it out, and hit the turf, sealing the win. Smart play, Nick, and a good example of leadership. A fumble there by Brinkley gives the Gophers a fresh set of downs, and the game remains very much in question.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Bowl Eligibility Attained
What a wild and ridiculous game. The two sides, Wisconsin and Minnesota, basically take turns handing the game to each other (two safeties, one a near Krumble, aka kickoff fumble return for touchdown?), but each team is too inept to firmly take control.
True, Wisconsin made some great plays to get back into it. This game was definitely a bit of a coming out party for some of the Badgers' young wideouts, especially native Minnesotan Isaac Anderson. Anderson failed to adjust to a decent bomb in the first half, but made up for it with a fine catch on an excellent throw that was almost a touchdown in the second. Plus, he had some big third down conversions. Hill created some decent runs out of nothing. Shaughnessy and Newkirk put on some solid pressure on many downs. Aubrey Pleasant was making sure tackles in the secondary. True frosh Antonio Fenelus made a great hit to force the fumble that led to the safety.
But both teams committed plenty of boneheaded mistakes. Though Weber is a good QB, Brandon Green was way too open on that embarrassing Fourth and 18 conversion that kept the Gophers in the game. Sherer failed to throw the ball away on several downs, leading to sacks and big lossess. The Badgers' failure to pick up more than 3 yards on the Badgers' last real offensive drive was embarrassing, though at least the ran the clock down before each snap. (Lesson learned, I hope.) Whapping the ball out of bounds on the kickoff return-fumble was uber-frustrating. And Shane Carter creeping offsides on Minnesota's first two point conversion attempt was reminiscent of Travis Beckum's error against Michigan.
But the Gophers had more screw-ups. They had UW stopped on a long third down, when a Minnesota DB decided to body slam Nick Toon while both of them were out of bounds. Fifteen yard penalty, first down. Just dumb. And on the series leading into the safety, why did the Minnesota LG try to cut block Newkirk on a drop back passing play? Was he tired? (Newkirk hoped over the guard and sacked Weber at the 2.) And I have no idea why Weber held the ball so long on the second safety. Or why the Minnesota LT couldn't hold still before the snap in the second half. And of course the fumble that provided the Badgers their final touchdown-- a carbon copy of the unforced Minnesota fumble on the opening drive. What a totally bizarro game.
Maybe that's what happens when you take a bunch of late teenagers/early twenty-somethings, but them in a pressure cooker for a week, tempt them with an enormous axe, and then have them run into each other for three hours. Yeesh. Honestly, I don't think either team's performance should merit it any kudos. It was just too sloppy and too wide open of a game. But that's an agitated Wisconsin fan talking. I bet for the unbiased observer, it was a heck of a game to watch.
True, Wisconsin made some great plays to get back into it. This game was definitely a bit of a coming out party for some of the Badgers' young wideouts, especially native Minnesotan Isaac Anderson. Anderson failed to adjust to a decent bomb in the first half, but made up for it with a fine catch on an excellent throw that was almost a touchdown in the second. Plus, he had some big third down conversions. Hill created some decent runs out of nothing. Shaughnessy and Newkirk put on some solid pressure on many downs. Aubrey Pleasant was making sure tackles in the secondary. True frosh Antonio Fenelus made a great hit to force the fumble that led to the safety.
But both teams committed plenty of boneheaded mistakes. Though Weber is a good QB, Brandon Green was way too open on that embarrassing Fourth and 18 conversion that kept the Gophers in the game. Sherer failed to throw the ball away on several downs, leading to sacks and big lossess. The Badgers' failure to pick up more than 3 yards on the Badgers' last real offensive drive was embarrassing, though at least the ran the clock down before each snap. (Lesson learned, I hope.) Whapping the ball out of bounds on the kickoff return-fumble was uber-frustrating. And Shane Carter creeping offsides on Minnesota's first two point conversion attempt was reminiscent of Travis Beckum's error against Michigan.
But the Gophers had more screw-ups. They had UW stopped on a long third down, when a Minnesota DB decided to body slam Nick Toon while both of them were out of bounds. Fifteen yard penalty, first down. Just dumb. And on the series leading into the safety, why did the Minnesota LG try to cut block Newkirk on a drop back passing play? Was he tired? (Newkirk hoped over the guard and sacked Weber at the 2.) And I have no idea why Weber held the ball so long on the second safety. Or why the Minnesota LT couldn't hold still before the snap in the second half. And of course the fumble that provided the Badgers their final touchdown-- a carbon copy of the unforced Minnesota fumble on the opening drive. What a totally bizarro game.
Maybe that's what happens when you take a bunch of late teenagers/early twenty-somethings, but them in a pressure cooker for a week, tempt them with an enormous axe, and then have them run into each other for three hours. Yeesh. Honestly, I don't think either team's performance should merit it any kudos. It was just too sloppy and too wide open of a game. But that's an agitated Wisconsin fan talking. I bet for the unbiased observer, it was a heck of a game to watch.
Catastrophe...
That was a really poor 25 minutes of football there. Three fumbles by three different guys? I don't know how many sacks. Several terrible passes by Sherer. A botched hold on a field goal. Really terrible defense in key spots, again combined with solid defense in others-- typical frustrating Badgers this season. Hell, starting Left Guard Andy Kemp actually sacked Sherer on the play where the stupid Minnesota DT punched Bill Nagy in the head. If they weren't gifted that fumble on Minnesota's first drive, this game would be completely out of hand.
Minnesota has 8 guys in the box thus killing the run, and the line isn't pass blocking well, but until the last few minutes of the half, Paul Chryst kept calling play action passes and seven step drops. I mean, what? I'm putting on my red velour sweatpants, but considering how poorly the Badgers are playing, and that they have shown negative resilency this season, this one looks like a loss.
Minnesota has 8 guys in the box thus killing the run, and the line isn't pass blocking well, but until the last few minutes of the half, Paul Chryst kept calling play action passes and seven step drops. I mean, what? I'm putting on my red velour sweatpants, but considering how poorly the Badgers are playing, and that they have shown negative resilency this season, this one looks like a loss.
Friday, November 14, 2008
Triumvirate Weekend
One of the few blessed weekends of the year is nigh-- 27 hour period in which all three teams that Camp Lambeau is devoted to- the University of Wisconsin football team, the UW men's basketball team, and the Green Bay Packers- play meaningful televised games. Hip hip hooray! Or as Lil' John says-- "Yeah-uh!" I am especially enthused as I have recently been stricken with a hilarious case of shingles (aka "The Shingles"), which has left me couchbound, and usually in the fetal position. (Although it did merit me a Vicodin prescription, so I can't be too upset.) The football games are far more important than the basketball event, but Bo Ryan's team will be playing it's first actual (non-exhibition) game of the season, so that has to account for something.
Anyhow, as U-65 nicely explains below, the UW football team's bowl options hang in the balance tomorrow against the Minnesota Gophers. Actually, UW's ability to go to any bowl whatsoever hangs in the balance. If UW loses, and then goes on to beat Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo in 8 days, yes, the team will be "bowl eligible" with six wins. But last season two other Big Ten programs (Iowa and Northwestern) hit the allegedly magic number of six wins, and the only bowling they did was at their local Brunswick-affiliated alleys. So UW needs this win to keep hope alive for any bowl game whatsoever, in addition to all those other excellent reasons-- to have the option of a pretty solid bowl destination, to make sure this year's seniors continue to hold onto the axe, to keep a lid on a big rival, because beating Minnesota is fun, etc.
As far as scouting that game goes, you hope UW will keep up it's MO of late--run the ball effectively, and play passable solid defense. Minnesota's run defense, at least on paper, hasn't played that well, and UW's passing defense is leaky enough that holding onto the ball and having a bunch of punishing ground-oriented drives could be really helpful. In other news, I have no doubt that the crotch-puncher, aka Gopher wideout Eric Decker, who's allegedly out with a sprained ankle, will play. No doubt whatsoever.
The Packer-Bear game on Sunday is equally pivotal for Green Bay. The Packers are 4-5, coming off two very close road losses to decent ('Queens)/very good (Titians) teams, where they didn't play all that well, with neither the offense nor the defense able to get it done when it mattered, and with the refs not helping either (the no-call PI on Jennings in the Titan game, and Peterson taking off his helmet with no penalty against the 'Queens). They stand one game behind Minnesota and the Bears in the standings. This is their chance to pull themselves back into the division race and make a real run for the playoffs. (Since it looks like the runners up in the NFC South and East will take the wild card slots.) And it's a chance for Rodgers to show he can perform under pressure, when teams have had a chance to scout him out, and for McCarthy to show that he can beat Lovie Smith in a meaningful game. With a loss, and upcoming games against New Orleans, Carolina, and at Jacksonville and Chicago, the playoffs are likely out of the question. It's simply a huge game. The most meaningful Packer-Bear game in several years.
Thankfully, the Bears' weakness this season- inability to get pressure and a therefore poor pass defense- matches up with the Packers offensive strength-- throwing the football, when Rodgers can get some protection. Unfortunately, the Bears are running the ball decently, and the Packers have had serious difficultly stopping the run for most of the season. I think this will be a very, very close game, unfortunately, and given the buddha-like Lovie Smith's record against the Pack, I could definitely see it turning South. Let's hope the Sexy One, aka Gross Rexman, makes some key errors, or if Captain Neckbeard, v. 2.0, plays, that his sore ankle makes him immobile enough so he takes some sacks.
But don't despair for long even if the Packers lose, since as that grudge match is ending, the UW men's basketball team will be tipping-off, with their game against Long Beach State set to start at 3 pm on the Big Ten Network. (The Kohl Center is going to look like a Dodger game-- half full until 45 minutes in.) The notable thing about this game will be seeing who hits the floor: Keaton Nankivil is expected to be the fifth starter, but what will the rotation be behind him, and which of the five frosh are going to redshirt? It also marks the return of former Minnesota coach Dan Monson to the Kohl Center. Hopefully, two-Gopher connected teams will leave Madison with losses this weekend, as you'd expect this one to be a nice, encouraging win, with LBSU picked to finish in the middle tier of the Big West.
Anyway, a wild weekend awaits. Set your Tivos!
Anyhow, as U-65 nicely explains below, the UW football team's bowl options hang in the balance tomorrow against the Minnesota Gophers. Actually, UW's ability to go to any bowl whatsoever hangs in the balance. If UW loses, and then goes on to beat Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo in 8 days, yes, the team will be "bowl eligible" with six wins. But last season two other Big Ten programs (Iowa and Northwestern) hit the allegedly magic number of six wins, and the only bowling they did was at their local Brunswick-affiliated alleys. So UW needs this win to keep hope alive for any bowl game whatsoever, in addition to all those other excellent reasons-- to have the option of a pretty solid bowl destination, to make sure this year's seniors continue to hold onto the axe, to keep a lid on a big rival, because beating Minnesota is fun, etc.
As far as scouting that game goes, you hope UW will keep up it's MO of late--run the ball effectively, and play passable solid defense. Minnesota's run defense, at least on paper, hasn't played that well, and UW's passing defense is leaky enough that holding onto the ball and having a bunch of punishing ground-oriented drives could be really helpful. In other news, I have no doubt that the crotch-puncher, aka Gopher wideout Eric Decker, who's allegedly out with a sprained ankle, will play. No doubt whatsoever.
The Packer-Bear game on Sunday is equally pivotal for Green Bay. The Packers are 4-5, coming off two very close road losses to decent ('Queens)/very good (Titians) teams, where they didn't play all that well, with neither the offense nor the defense able to get it done when it mattered, and with the refs not helping either (the no-call PI on Jennings in the Titan game, and Peterson taking off his helmet with no penalty against the 'Queens). They stand one game behind Minnesota and the Bears in the standings. This is their chance to pull themselves back into the division race and make a real run for the playoffs. (Since it looks like the runners up in the NFC South and East will take the wild card slots.) And it's a chance for Rodgers to show he can perform under pressure, when teams have had a chance to scout him out, and for McCarthy to show that he can beat Lovie Smith in a meaningful game. With a loss, and upcoming games against New Orleans, Carolina, and at Jacksonville and Chicago, the playoffs are likely out of the question. It's simply a huge game. The most meaningful Packer-Bear game in several years.
Thankfully, the Bears' weakness this season- inability to get pressure and a therefore poor pass defense- matches up with the Packers offensive strength-- throwing the football, when Rodgers can get some protection. Unfortunately, the Bears are running the ball decently, and the Packers have had serious difficultly stopping the run for most of the season. I think this will be a very, very close game, unfortunately, and given the buddha-like Lovie Smith's record against the Pack, I could definitely see it turning South. Let's hope the Sexy One, aka Gross Rexman, makes some key errors, or if Captain Neckbeard, v. 2.0, plays, that his sore ankle makes him immobile enough so he takes some sacks.
But don't despair for long even if the Packers lose, since as that grudge match is ending, the UW men's basketball team will be tipping-off, with their game against Long Beach State set to start at 3 pm on the Big Ten Network. (The Kohl Center is going to look like a Dodger game-- half full until 45 minutes in.) The notable thing about this game will be seeing who hits the floor: Keaton Nankivil is expected to be the fifth starter, but what will the rotation be behind him, and which of the five frosh are going to redshirt? It also marks the return of former Minnesota coach Dan Monson to the Kohl Center. Hopefully, two-Gopher connected teams will leave Madison with losses this weekend, as you'd expect this one to be a nice, encouraging win, with LBSU picked to finish in the middle tier of the Big West.
Anyway, a wild weekend awaits. Set your Tivos!
Monday, November 10, 2008
Bloomington is Nice
Especially when the Badgers have three different guys, including a wide receiver, rush for over a hundred yards. Really, that game should have been ridiculous from the get-go. They were running all over them from the first play from scrimmage, even without Andy Vanden Huevel, who I fear is lost for the season. (On an odd play where he pulled, ran forward, blocked his guy down the sidelines and fell down. Didn't look like he should have hurt anything.)
Instead, the defense made a few bonehead mistakes in coverage, the Badgers fumbled twice and Sherer threw a completely stupid interception, and Indiana was about to take the lead going into halftime. And then, Jay Valai did what he does best-- lay the wood. And he laid it to the head and neck of Indiana's starting quarterback. The Hoosier QB drops the ball, Andre Levy snatches it up, runs back 50 yards (although he totally outran his blockers), and the Badgers drive a bit before time runs out and kick a field goal to go up four. IU's best offensive hope, their pretty good QB, is out for the rest of the game. Wisconsin scores 31 straight points, shuts out the now hapless Hoosiers, and it's a blow out. But for the first 27 minutes it was close, because of Wisconsin's own mistakes, again.
Anyhow, now they're back to .500 (again), and hopefully will be able to win the last two at home, and qualify for a marginally tolerable bowl game. I know that sounds cynical, but at this point, Wisconsin is really playing for the future. Sure, it's important for the seniors to beat Minnesota one last time and have this class go out with a winning record. But for the program as a whole, I feel that it's more important to keep a somewhat respectable record for publicity and morale purposes, and to start working on things for next season. To wit, I was especially pleased to see guys like Gilreath, Clay, Valai and Toon step forward on Saturday and make big plays. Let's hope they keep it up against the Gophers.
Instead, the defense made a few bonehead mistakes in coverage, the Badgers fumbled twice and Sherer threw a completely stupid interception, and Indiana was about to take the lead going into halftime. And then, Jay Valai did what he does best-- lay the wood. And he laid it to the head and neck of Indiana's starting quarterback. The Hoosier QB drops the ball, Andre Levy snatches it up, runs back 50 yards (although he totally outran his blockers), and the Badgers drive a bit before time runs out and kick a field goal to go up four. IU's best offensive hope, their pretty good QB, is out for the rest of the game. Wisconsin scores 31 straight points, shuts out the now hapless Hoosiers, and it's a blow out. But for the first 27 minutes it was close, because of Wisconsin's own mistakes, again.
Anyhow, now they're back to .500 (again), and hopefully will be able to win the last two at home, and qualify for a marginally tolerable bowl game. I know that sounds cynical, but at this point, Wisconsin is really playing for the future. Sure, it's important for the seniors to beat Minnesota one last time and have this class go out with a winning record. But for the program as a whole, I feel that it's more important to keep a somewhat respectable record for publicity and morale purposes, and to start working on things for next season. To wit, I was especially pleased to see guys like Gilreath, Clay, Valai and Toon step forward on Saturday and make big plays. Let's hope they keep it up against the Gophers.
Friday, November 07, 2008
In a Hoosier-like State
The woman and I are headed down South this weekend to see the University of Wisconsin football team try to pick up a road win against the University of Indiana Hoosiers. I can't remember exactly when I bought these tickets. I think it might have been before the season started, when I was thinking about how I had never been to Bloomington, and had always heard that it was a nice town.
And, of course, I was thinking that this game would be a gimmie, a cakewalk, a nice pleasant distraction, that would be a cheery appetizer to a day of exploring a new Big Ten college town. But now, despite Wisconsin's rise from the depths of utter sucktitude against Penn State and Iowa, I'm kind of nervous about this game. Lose it, and any shot at a bowl game should go out the window. Seriously. I know you can make a bowl with a 6-6 record, but, I believe, every D-I team with a winning record has to get chosen ahead of you first. And honestly, who would want a 6-6 Wisconsin team with losses to Michigan and Indiana? I sure hope the Motor City Bowl has better taste. Hell, I guess I'm getting ahead of myself. After all, Minnesota has looked somewhat competent lately, and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo has one of the top scoring offenses in D-IAA.
Anyhow, I will be at the game and will be reporting back. Hopefully, Wisconsin can run all over Indiana, and finally get a solid road victory over another Big Ten team. But we'll see.
And, of course, I was thinking that this game would be a gimmie, a cakewalk, a nice pleasant distraction, that would be a cheery appetizer to a day of exploring a new Big Ten college town. But now, despite Wisconsin's rise from the depths of utter sucktitude against Penn State and Iowa, I'm kind of nervous about this game. Lose it, and any shot at a bowl game should go out the window. Seriously. I know you can make a bowl with a 6-6 record, but, I believe, every D-I team with a winning record has to get chosen ahead of you first. And honestly, who would want a 6-6 Wisconsin team with losses to Michigan and Indiana? I sure hope the Motor City Bowl has better taste. Hell, I guess I'm getting ahead of myself. After all, Minnesota has looked somewhat competent lately, and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo has one of the top scoring offenses in D-IAA.
Anyhow, I will be at the game and will be reporting back. Hopefully, Wisconsin can run all over Indiana, and finally get a solid road victory over another Big Ten team. But we'll see.
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
Ahem
Despite the old adage, almost no one hates to say I told you so, so I'm not going to pretend that I do. But man, I wish the Badgers' terrible clock management on their last drive against Michigan State hadn't mattered. Kudos to the pops for spotting this issue right away.
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