From the New York Knicks to...

I was going to do a review of the first week or so of the baseball season but really, has there been anything to write home about? Maybe how the Marlins are playing but honestly, I thought they were going to be good. Cleveland has been bad and that's surprising but I am a positive guy so I don't think I am going to point that out with a whole post. Other then that it's been a pretty ho-hum start to the season.

So, I heard another story yesterday that really surprised me and I really don't know what to think about it. Florida International announced yesterday that they had hired Isiah Thomas as their head basketball coach. At first I was like what? That's ridiculous, why would either parties agree to this? I thought about it and I realized it may not be a lose lose.

First, for FIU, this is a splash. This is a way to give themselves some sort of edge against they teams they may play. Isiah is a huge name but I'm worried that it was a huge name back in the 80's and 90's and the players he is going to be recruiting aren't really going to know what is in front of them. He will be able to sell to the parents but again, its FIU, so really what is he going to be going after.

For Isiah, however, there is much more risk. I know he wanted to get out of New York because of EVERYTHING that happened but it's FIU. You aren't going to have good players and if you fail, where do you go next? You have never coached college kids and even though you were horrible in the NBA, college is a whole different animal. If you were going to take a college job, why would it be this one?

I just don't know if it was the smartest move for Isiah and I know he will have a chance to answer all my questions. I guess this is what we should've expected from him and I wish him all the best but I would advise him to not expect much!

National Championship Game Starts TOO DAMN LATE!

Okay I will admit that I didn't really care about last night's game anyway so it probably wouldn't have mattered but a 9:21 tip off? That is ridiculous.

I understand that CBS wants their west coast viewers to be able to see the whole game but the game was UNC vs MSU....how many west coast people really cared? The only people as a whole who watched that game were people who had UNC in their brackets. Fortunately for CBS that was probably over half the freaking country.

But either way having a game that ends well after 11...I didn't watch so I don't know what time it ended....is not helping the game. It is hurting it.

Every major sport with the exception of the NFL struggles with their scheduling. Baseball starts World Series games around 9 and NBA and NHL playoff games start after 8. The advantage for the NBA and NHL is that their games only last 2.5 hours so it is easier to work with.

But has anyone learned from the success of the NFL? The Super Bowl starts at 6:30 on a Sunday night. EVERYONE CAN WATCH.

The NCAA and CBS actually have a simple solution.

Play the Final Four games on Friday night and have the National Championship game tip off at 6:30 or 7 on Sunday night.

I GUARANTEE you the ratings would be better. People would be partying the entire day like they do for the Super Bowl. Parents would actually let their kids watch if they wanted.


Hell I would watch.

College Basketball that isn't the Final Four

There are three things going on in college basketball that I want to talk about that aren't the final four. I will get to the final four later this week but for now there are three developing stories that I would love to bring up and share my wonderful, expansive wealth of knowledge with you on.

First, John Calipari signed an 8 year, $31.65 million contract to become Kentucky's head coach this morning. It seemed to imminent for a couple of days but its official now. I think this is great for Kentucky. They needed to make a splash and they did. They needed to do it quickly and they did. They picked out the guy they wanted, they went after him and they got him. There was a lot of talk about Kentucky being a top 5 job in college basketball and I do still agree with that to a certain degree but if they wouldn't have gotten Calipari or another big name, that reputation would have taken a serious hit in my mind.

Do I think Calipari is the right man for the job? I am not sold on this yet. I think Calipari is great! He is a great recruiter and is a great coach! But remember fans, he has never coached at a big school. So far on his resume is Massachusetts, the New Jersey Nets and Memphis. He put UMass and Memphis on the map, but Kentucky is a whole different world. I do believe he can handle and will do a good job but people will need to be patient here and this is a whole new experience for Calipari. He will have the talent to win in 2 years or sooner but a school like Kentucky has so much BS and politics outside of the gym that the coach has to deal with that it will be interesting to see how coach Cal deals with it. I think the Cats will be back and will be back soon with the team that is there and potentially the freshmen that Calipari may bring with him. Everyone just needs to give him a LITTLE bit of time.

The second issue that has come up is the recruiting scandal of Nate Miles at Connecticut. I have a couple of things to say about this. First, I suspect this is something that happens more often then we as fans hear about. I am not saying that every major program does it because I truly don't believe that but I suspect that some do. Even if its not the huge programs, I am sure its out there and we don't hear about it. Jim Calhoun and Connecticut were just stupid enough and not cautious enough to get caught. I suspect there will be some probation. I think it should be one NCAA tournament only because the kid in question doesn't even go to Connecticut anymore. They broke the rules and they should have a penalty for that but you are hurting the players more then the people who committed the violations and that's not cool.

Colin Cowherd brought up a great point on ESPN Radio the other day. For all the fans out there who really honestly think Calhoun didn't know about this, YOU'RE ALL IDIOTS! Of course he knew about this and he probably was on the other end of some of the illegal calls and messages. Calhoun is a great coach and all but he screwed this one up and he deserves to be punished for it. Just because he is the coach of you're favorite team doesn't make him Mr. Innocent. You all know that if it were Boeheim or Coach K or Roy Williams you would all be crucifying the guy right now but because its Calhoun you think he did nothing wrong. Wake up!

Just as an interesting quick little third note, all the experts and most fans for that matter, myself included all said that the Big Ten was down this year and was a weak conference but if you look fans, the Big Ten has a legitimate shot at winning both post season tournaments with Penn State in the NIT and Michigan State in the big dance. Wouldn't that be something!

NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen Preview

Are you ready for the Sweet Sixteen? Well Verb and I give you our picks and preview the games for you right here on Jumping Offsides. The episode is 30 minutes long and has a preview of each game with picks by myself and Verb.


Teasers:

• I pick 2 number 1 seeds to lose while Verb takes 1 to go down (and they aren't the same ones either)
  
• Verb doesn't like Xavier or Michigan State
• I don't like Duke or Missouri

You will have to listen for the picks. Click here.

Is Your Bracket Busted???

Did you wake up this morning and cry in your cheerios?? Or did you do your crying Friday night after Wake lost?

It was an interesting weekend for the tourney as really the favorites all won for the most part. There were really only 2 teams that I truly thought would win that didn't. Obviously Wake Forest is one and the other is Florida State. Both of those teams should have won in my opinion.

Although neither outcome really surprised me either. In fact if you listen to the podcasts from last week you will hear me say that Wake should watch out for Cleveland State. I probably would have picked that but it wasn't a good move in my opinion since I didn't think Wake would lose in the second round either.

The Florida State loss was actually more surprising to me. I mean obviously Wisconsin wasn't very highly thought of going in but they did come from a big conference and they weren't bad all season. But nobody gave them a chance to beat FSU.

But really chalk is "in" again this season. For the first time since 1996, and only the 3rd time ever, all of the number 2 seeds are playing in the 2nd weekend. And all the 3 seeds are left. You have 2 regions with the 1,2,3,4 seeds still playing, 1 region with 1,2,3,5, and then you have 1 region with 1,2,3,12.

Will we see a second straight year of all 1 seeds in the final four? I doubt it but it is still a possibility. And honestly I hope not.

Actually if you look at the tourney from 20 years ago the regions are shaping up the same. In 1989 there were 2 chalk regions, 1 with a 5 instead of a 4, and 1 with a double digit sweet sixteen. I am pulling for a repeat of that season from here on in too. If history repeats itself you will see 2 #1 seeds lose Thursday or Friday and a #3 seed will win it all.

And I am a Villanova fan so a 3 seed winning would be exactly what I want to see.

Tourney Tip Off is ALMOST HERE!!

Man I love this day. We are only 2 hrs from tip off in the NCAA Tournament and I can barely focus.

Unfortunately I am at work today (off tomorrow though!!) and am trying to keep busy this morning or else I will just drive myself nuts.

These next 4 days are 4 of the best sports days of the year. Sure the Final Four is great but I don't care as much by that time. This weekend is all about teams like Siena or Utah State. Teams with big dreams like North Dakota State and teams that just want to keep it competitive like Morehead State.

The Duke's UConn's just want to get through the weekend without too much problem. They want to get to next Thursday or Friday where they finally get excited. That is part of the problem for the big schools, they know they should win these early games so they don't play as hard.

Then you have the Utah's of the world. The smaller schools that earned their trip easily but are the favorite to lose amongst the top 5 seeds.

Guys like Dominic James of Marquette can only sit and watch as one time Final Four thoughts have faded to just getting through to the Sweet Sixteen.

There are so many story lines that haven't been talked about and exciting moments coming these next 4 days that it is easy to get excited for all the games.

Today and tomorrow are especially great cause the traditional seed matchups are all taking place. I mean who isn't really excited about the 5/12 and 6/11 matchups. And what happens if a 16 keeps it close or a 15 takes it down to the wire? Pure hysteria.

And that is what makes these next 2, then 2 more, days so great.

Now we are only 1 hour 50 minutes from it all beginning!

NCAA Tourney Picks Podcast

Today Verb and I did our first podcast with one of us on the phone and it came out pretty good. In fact I doubt you would have noticed had I not told you.

We wanted to tell you who we were picking for the tourney and since we weren't planning on another full podcast until Sunday it would be kind of hard to to do that.

So....click here...and you can listen to our picks. It only took 20 minutes and we give you some pretty good information.


Teaser:

Verb's Elite 8:

Louisville, Kansas, UConn, Memphis, Pittsburgh, Duke, UNC, Oklahoma

theGM's Elite 8:

Louisville, Michigan St, UConn, Memphis, Xavier, Villanova, UNC, Syracuse


You will have to listen for our reasons and for our final four and champions. We also give you some early round upsets that you might not expect (and it isn't Arizona over Utah!).

How to Win the Cash in your NCAA Tournament Pool

I know most of us do at least one bracket pool this time of year. Maybe you do it for free, maybe you put a little cash on it. But you surely do it.

The question is how have you done? If you win regularly then you can skip this post and instead check out my post on changing the tournament a bit.

But if you aren't winning your pool's then continue as I will give you the keys to winning it all.


1. Pick your Champion and Final Four teams first

By doing this you don't have to be worried about any upset that could potentially exist. You choose your winner, runner up, and other final four teams. Then you put them in right away, just click on their name or write it down for every game they play. Don't even consider who else they might play.

2. Don't pick any crazy upsets

This kind of ties into #1 but here it is anyway.

Take note that of the past ten Champions, seven were number 1 seeds, two were 3 seeds and one was a 2 seed. Notice that there were NO Champions seeded lower than number 3 in the past 10 years.

Only THREE Champions have EVER (EVER) been lower than a 3 seed and 2 of those were in the late 80s. Overall 18 of the 24 Champions have been a 1 or 2 seed, which equals out to 75% of all the Champions.

And if you are thinking right now that maybe the lower seeds make the Championship but lose...nope....only 4 times has the runner up been lower than a 3 seed.

I am not saying the low seeds don't win or can't win BUT if you want to win the cash then let someone else pick a 4 or 6 seed to win it all.

3. Pick a 7 or 10 to get to the Sweet Sixteen

Every year except 3 (1989, 1995, 1996) has seen a 7 or 10 seed make it to the second weekend of the tournament.

Now if you have already picked your Final Four and Champions you would be able to look and say okay I think this 7 or 10 seed might make a run.

And honestly...most years....there are two 7 or 10 seeds that make it to the second weekend. But if you want to win the cash you only have to get one. Figure it out and you are one step ahead of someone.

*fact - I picked Kansas last season to win but finished second. why? the person who won had West Virginia beating Duke (a 7 over a 2).

4. Pick a 12 seed

You have to pick at least one 12 seed to win. In every year (except 3 1998, 2000, 2007) a 12 seed has beaten a 5 seed in the first round.

It happens every single year (almost) so you better make sure that you have one.

But don't get crazy. You only need one. Sure two 12's might win and it is okay to pick two but don't make it a stretch. Only take the 12 over the 5 that will surely lose in the next round anyways. If you have a 5 that you like to make the second weekend IF they win the first round game...DON'T pick them to lose in the first round.

Safest play is to look at the 5 seeds, which one won't win the second round game anyway? If you see one like that, take that 12 seed now.
5. Don't bet on 8s and 9s

Lots of people want to predict the big upset in the second round. They want to take an 8 or a 9 to beat a 1 seed.

Don't fall into that trap!

Sure it happens. But in 24 years only 10 have seen a 1 seed lose in the second round. It just isn't worth the risk.

The ONLY way you make this pick is if you think that a 4 or 5 seed is going to make the Elite 8. Then you could take the risk. But if you are wrong you fall behind.


There you go! Follow these 5 simple steps and you will win the cash!

Oh and go to this site here and check it out. It has the statistics for seeds and every tournament since 1985 filled in.

*editors note* - I have picked the champ the last 2 years and have lost both times....so you might not want to listen to me.


If you liked this read these:

How to Get Off Work for the Tourney
Verb's Midwest Region preview

How to Make the NCAA Tournament Better

Right after the brackets are announced and for the following 24 hours you will always hear about what teams should have gotten in and what teams shouldn't have. It is part of what makes the NCAA Tournament so great.

But is it necessary?

I have 2 completely separate methods that will fix much of the problem and still make it a great tournament every year.

*note - I know option 2 has been mentioned elsewhere but I mention it again here*

Option #1: Have a RPI cutoff for conference Champions

I like having the conference champions get automatic bids but do you really care about teams like Morehead State or Alabama State? No you don't and neither do I.

So allow all the conference champions an automatic bid IF their RPI is in the top 120. The teams outside the top 120 would then go to the NIT instead. They still get postseason basketball and they might actually win a game (although not likely).

This would eliminate 6 automatic bids this season. Radford (131), Cal State Northridge (127), Morgan State (130), Morehead State (142), Chattanooga (174), and Alabama State (179) would all be left out of the NCAA Tournament and instead would be in the NIT.

Then you take the other low seeds and just make them 16s and 15s to replace those teams. You would also eliminate the DUMBEST THING IN SPORTS....the play in game. There would be no reason for it.

By eliminating the play in game (and making the field 64 instead of 65) and the low ranked conference champions you could have included 5 more teams. Maybe St. Mary's, Creighton, Penn State, San Diego State, and Auburn.

Now wouldn't you rather see a tournament with those teams as the 13 and 14 seeds instead of the Morehead State's of the world??

Admit it....you would.


Option #2: Make the Bubble Teams the Play In teams

Right now you have a ridiculous play in game that is supposedly part of the tournament. Well let's expand on that a bit.

Instead of making two teams that WON THEIR CONFERENCES and received automatic bids to the tourney let's make 4 of these play in games and have games between the Bubble Teams to see who gets in.

You leave the 12 or 11 seeds open on selection Sunday and you play 4 games on Tuesday (or Monday) between the last 8 teams considered. This season it would probably look something like this:

Wisconsin vs San Diego State
Minnesota vs Penn State
Maryland vs St. Mary's
Arizona vs Creighton

Play the games in Dayton or at another neutral site and the winners get into the field! This way the bubble teams get one last chance to prove who is worthy and it takes the guess work out of the hands of the selection committee.


There are always going to be complaints from teams just outside the tourney. Even if you use option 1 or 2 on here you are going to find teams like Auburn or South Carolina or New Mexico that will think they deserved the chance more.

But using those options would make the tournament more exciting AND in my opinion more complete!



What do you think about these options? Would you want to see either actually happen?


If you liked this then check these out:
Verb Thinks the Tourney Should Stay the Same
Why Thursday of Championship Week is Overrated
The Big East Tourney Should NOT Invite all 16 Teams

Selection Sunday Podcast

This week on the Jumping Offsides podcast Verb and I discussed college basketball. And that is it. Was there anything else?

*You can find the podcast on the right sidebar*

Topics:

• The GM picks all 65 teams (outpicked Joe Lunardi)
• Discuss who has an argument to get in (St. Mary's, Creighton)
• Talked about who might not deserve in (Arizona)
• Discussed potential changes to the tourney (more coming tomorrow on this)
• Previewed each Region
• Made our picks (they are subject to change though)

We are hoping to get something up Wednesday night / Thursday morning with our updated picks. Check it out!!

My 65 Teams that are in the Tournament

The GM gave you his 65 earlier today. I was fortunate enough to be able to watch Duke, Stephen F. Austin and Mississippi State win their respective conference tournaments before I was able to post mine. As of right now there is only one more automatic bid to give out. The Big Ten bid. That goes to either Purdue or Ohio State and I don't need to wait for that to end because I have both of those teams in anyway. The only thing that may change is their seeds and well I am in the same boat as the GM and I don't feel like torturing myself trying to figure out who is going to play who.

My list may be a little different then the GM's but to be honest I haven't really looked at his list only because I don't want to cheat. I want my own list and if it ends up being the same as his well then we must think a like.

Fans, the GM is a very organized, look at all the numbers and statistics kind of guy and I am more of an eye test, who is the better looking team kind of guy and that may be where most of the differences are. I think the GM and I would both agree on the fact that there are really only a few spots left anymore. I am ready to give you my last 4 in and my first 4 out. Since Mississippi State won that's all I really feel is debatable but those 4 spots are really up for grabs. There is potential for me getting all 4 wrong.

Let's get after it!

As the GM said, the 31 conference champions are on the right side bar. Obviously they are in and that also means I have half the field filled already. Boo Ya!

Now I have to give you my locks for being in. I am just going to look at each conference and list the teams that I would consider locks.

Xavier
Dayton
North Carolina
Wake Forest
Clemson
Boston College
Florida State
Oklahoma
Kansas
Oklahoma State
Texas
Texas A&M
Pittsburgh
Connecticut
Villanova
Syracuse
Marquette
West Virginia
Michigan State
Illinois
Ohio State/Purdue
Butler
BYU
Washington
UCLA
Arizona State
California
Tennessee
LSU

That's a total of 29 teams that I feel are locked in that didn't win their conference tournaments. These teams aren't sweating right now they are just waiting for their seed, location and opponent.

It's time to do some math. 31 conference champs + 29 locks = 60 teams in.

All that means is that I'm fairly confident I'm going to get that many right. After that who the hell knows. Only the committee that is sitting in that room in Indianapolis right now. That's who.

Now I am going to give you my bubble teams in the order that I am putting them in. This way, I can highlight my last four in and last four out just as the GM did earlier today.

61. Wisconsin
62. Maryland
63. Minnesota
64. Creighton
65. San Diego State

66. Saint Mary's
67. Florida
68. Arizona
69. South Carolina

70. Penn State
71. Auburn
72. New Mexico
73. Michigan

Those teams are kind of close but at the same time not really. They could've played their way in but it was a long shot going in. None of them really did anything to make a case for the dance. The NIT is going to be darn good this year!

There ya have it, I am not sure I'm going to go 65 for 65 but I hope I'm close. We will never know if I have my last 8 out ranked correctly but if they don't make it, it doesn't matter.

This tournament is going to be AWESOME BABY! Listen to the podcast to get the GM and I's analysis.

65 Teams for Men's NCAA Tournament

For the past couple weeks Verb and I have been giving our 65 teams each week on the podcast. But today we are waiting until after the brackets are announced to do the podcast. So I wanted to let you all know who I think the 65 teams are gonna be.

I am not going to try and seed the teams as I think that is a unenviable task and way too much work. But here are my 65:

31 Conference Champions:

You can see 27 of these on the left side of the screen plus you can add Purdue, Duke, Tennessee, and Stephen F. Austin to the list. That is who I expect to win but since I have a prior engagement to attend early this afternoon I must get this list up before those games are over.

34 At Large Teams:

These are in no particular order until you get to the end....

North Carolina
Florida State
Boston College
Clemson
Wake Forest
Connecticut
Pittsburgh
Villanova
Syracuse
Marquette
West Virginia
Michigan State
Illinois
Ohio State
Oklahoma
Texas
Kansas
Arizona State
Washington
UCLA
LSU
BYU
Xavier
Dayton
Butler

now my last 9 (last 4 in are bold):

Oklahoma State
Michigan
Wisconsin
Arizona
California
Minnesota
Maryland
Texas A&M
San Diego State


And here are my first 4 out:

St. Mary's
Creighton
Penn State
UNLV

Oh...and if Mississippi State beats Tennessee than San Diego State is out and A&M is my last team in.

So there you go. Now you only have to watch the selection show to see where the teams are seeded cause I am confident that I got all 65 correct!!

The Big East Tournament Is Still Good But.....

This is the first year since the conference expanded to 16 teams that the entire Big East Conference was invited to New York for the conference tourney. And I think it is a mistake.

Who wants to see DePaul, Rutgers, South Florida, or St. John's play anyway? All it did was make it all but impossible for a team in a 9-12 spot to make a run. Not saying they would have but having to play 5 games in 5 days and win them all is probably never gonna happen.

Honestly I think adding the first day and NOT televising the games is actually hurting the Big East Tourney. I wasn't even the least bit excited to watch the games yesterday and usually I am just waiting for the games to start.

Not that the first day games are ever really exciting but I would much rather have watched Georgetown vs Syracuse than Seton Hall vs the Orange. Either way I think Syracuse would have won but it would have made for better TV.

Not only that should the schools that sucked that bad all season really waste all that money on travel costs to go to New York and lose? I mean is DePaul really going anywhere for the postseason? No. So why not just go home after going 0-18 and get ready for another sport or another losing season next year?

For some reason some people think that every team should be given a chance but I really disagree. There is no reason why all 16 teams are in New York. Reward the teams that actually did something (and those that kinda did) and leave the bottom 4 teams on their couches at home to watch with everyone else.

Top 5 Ways To Get Off Work To See March Madness

I am sure that there are a lot of you out there that want to be home for the opening days of the NCAA Tournament. I mean it is probably the best 2 day period for sports all year and if you are stuck at work for part of it that would suck.

Hell if you live on the West Coast you might miss the first 3 games each day. I don't know if I could live with myself if I missed that much.

So the question becomes how do you get off work for those two days without feeling guilty about screwing your employer?

In my book there are 5 sure fire ways to pull it off. If you try any of these remember two important things....DO NOT let anyone know you are a huge basketball fan and don't go to a public place where a coworker or boss can see you watching the games. IF you must go out to a bar you better go out of town. If you office does a pool for the brackets don't talk much about it, pretend that you are just guessing. This way they won't think you are taking off intentionally.

Number 5: Play Hooky

This is a classic excuse but it is not perfect. The best way to pull it off is to mope around the office on Wednesday and make sure people think you are coming down with something. Spend the day coughing, pretending your nauseous, and whining a lot! Oh and you can't eat much. Sneak little snacks during the morning and afternoon but DO NOT EAT LUNCH! And make sure your coworkers know you aren't eating lunch because you are sick. That way when you call of on Thursday and Friday people think you are actually sick.

Excuse Number 4: Actually Injure Yourself at Work

Depending on your job this will either be easy or impossible. If you work at a desk all day and don't do anything else it is going to be harder to pull off. But if you work in a warehouse or are a construction worker this should be a breeze. The unfortunate part of this is you actually have to hurt yourself a bit. Either fall off a ladder, drop something heavy on your foot, or (as a last ditch effort) actually fall down some stairs. And another important factor is to make sure someone is around to see it. That way you have someone to back up your story.

Excuse Number 3: The Dead Relative

This is a classic and can be used multiple times if you really want to. I have never even thought about this cause Karma is a vengeful bitch and I won't want to have any guilt on my conscience. You can either do this one of two ways. You can either build up the illness for a couple days by telling people your relative is in the hospital and sick or you can make it all of a sudden and just call on Thursday and tell your work that your relative died. Either way works, so long as no one at your job knows the person obviously, it just depends on how much you want to put into your story.

Excuse Number 2: Actually Make Yourself Sick

This one will take some time. You do have multiple options though. You can either plan ahead by a few days and start drinking out of the same cup or bottle as someone that is sick or just making sure you around sick people a lot. OR you can do a spur of the moment thing. If you are allergic to anything find it and touch it or eat it on Tuesday night or Wednesday morning. That way you show up to work Wednesday and you are obviously ill and affected and you will probably get sent home. If worse comes to worse you can always eat a mushroom or berry from your yard. The risk there is that you might have to watch the games from the hospital which probably wouldn't be good. BUT it would allow you to see all the games.

Excuse Number 1: Schedule A Surgery or Medical Procedure for Wednesday

*I actually did this one once*

This takes more planning. You have to schedule something valid the day before the tournament. I personally did the wisdom teeth removal. I had 5 wisdom teeth (that's right 5! which makes me wiser than you my friends) and they actually came in okay but kept getting cavities so I had them removed. At the time I had minimal paid days off from my job so I needed something good to see the first round games. So I scheduled my wisdom teeth removal for that Wednesday. I was doped up on painkillers and couldn't eat a lot of junk but I got to see all the first round games.

And I would do it again!!

Would you rather have a vasectomy to stay home? (Deadspin)

If you need any other ideas this website surely has plenty of them for you.


Either way, if you are going to try and be home for the first round you better start planning it now!

Me? I fortunately have plenty of sick time now and taking the days off legitimately.

Bubble Teams Decide to Play Their Way Out

It must be the hot new thing. I swear this year more then any other year that I can remember bubble teams are trying to play their way out of the tournament as opposed to in. I know this year's bubble is probably bigger then any other year so maybe it's just more obvious when these teams play poorly but really this year has been out of control.

Four teams that come to mind right away are Maryland, Penn State, Florida and Arizona. A couple of weeks ago I had all four of these teams in and pretty comfortably too. Now, who knows, all four might be out. I have two of them out and two of them really close.

Let's look at all four teams more specifically.

Maryland won a huge game against North Carolina and they were riding high. They seemed to have the inside shot at the last spot from the ACC and really seemed to be firmly in the tournament. Now they have lost two in a row and most recently they lost to Virginia. Couple that loss with the Morgan State loss and Maryland looks pretty bad. All of the sudden they are 7-9 in the ACC and 5-5 in their last 10. In my opinion, the loss to Virginia sealed the deal and Maryland can't play their way in.

Penn State beat Illinois and man were they riding high. That was their second win against Illinois and they have a win over Michigan State on their resume. I said that after the second Illinois win that Penn State was in, well as long as they beat a bad Iowa team. Well guess what, they didn't beat that bad Iowa team and now they are a huge question. 10-8 in the Big Ten and the big wins that I previously mention help but Iowa is a bad loss. I think they have to win now in the Big Ten tournament at least once to feel comfortable come Sunday. Just think, all they had to do was beat Iowa.

Florida was once a lock for most experts. Then they lost 3 in a row. They weren't against bad teams but it was 3 losses in a row at the end of their season. Not a good time to go into a slump. Mississippi State was the worst loss of the three but earlier in the SEC schedule they lost to Georgia. That is a bad loss. They broke the losing streak with a win over Kentucky, which pretty much sealed the deal for Kentucky, but I don't think that helps Florida a whole bunch. They need a win or two in the SEC tournament to feel comfortable Sunday but in my opinion they are still in right now. They better not lose their first game in the tournament.

Florida had 3 losses in a row but guess what, that's not the worst losing streak of the 4 teams. Speaking of 4, Arizona recently had a 4 game losing streak. That's not good right now! Wait, this just in, they won 7 in a row to get into the conversation. This is the definition of a streaky team and right now they are going the wrong way. Well, they did just beat Stanford but really, I don't think that means a whole lot. They play Arizona State as their first game in the Pac-10 tournament and to be honest, I would not like to be in Arizona's shoes right now. That is definitely a game they could lose and if they do, Sunday will be a long day for the Wildcats.

I'm not a pessimist, I'm just a fan noticing a few bubble teams that may not think they are on the bubble. I don't know but all of these teams could've easily played their way in but they didn't.

Will the real bubble teams please step up?

Verb's Sweet Sixteen - 3/2

Today is my birthday and it is snowing here in south central Pennsylvania so what is there better to do then write a blog about college basketball and the NCAA tournament.

NOTHING!

That's right, it's March now and even though I have been writing this post for weeks now, it's time to get serious. I know the fun and hot thing to talk about right now is the bubble and trust me, I love that too, but getting one of the top 4 seeds is a big deal also. Trust me, those teams care just as much about getting a top seed as much as the bubble teams care about getting in.

I can't really spotlight one huge game only because there are so many this time of year. The conference tournaments start this week and well, every game for every team is huge when you talk about the conference tournaments.

The one huge thing that happened for last week's top 16 was Marquette's Dominic James went down with a season-ending injury. Now, it may be a little harsh to drop them out of the sweet sixteen just because of this injury but it's huge. McNeal is still a stud for this team but they have lost their last two, albeit, to Connecticut and Louisville. Should they be dropped out, I'm not sure, I guess we'll see in a little bit.

East (Boston)

1. Pittsburgh - It's now terribly obvious that Dajuan Blair HAS to stay out of foul trouble. Sam Young can score and maybe make up for Blair if he does get in trouble but I don't know if he can do that every time. Blair is the key to this team and if he can stay out of foul trouble, they can win the whole thing.

2. Duke - Even though every game Duke plays seems to be close these days, they keep winning. That's the key during this part of the season is to just win baby! If they can keep doing this they make get lucky and get a 1 seed but I think they only way that happens is either a victory over UNC or a tournament championship.

3. Villanova - The loss to Georgetown hurts but not too badly. If you look at Georgetown's resume, its not that bad. It was considered a home loss but it was at the Wachovia Center, which isn't actually their home floor. This team is still very dangerous in my opinion, so keep an eye out for this team in the Big East tournament.

4. Purdue - They just blew out Ohio State and even though they lost to Michigan, they have a recent victory over Michigan State. They may be a little inconsistent but they still are a solid club that could make a decent run in the tourney.

South (Memphis)

1. North Carolina - If they lose to Duke they could lose the number 1 seed. I don't think they will. The game is in Chapel Hill and well, the only way they lose is if they decide defense doesn't matter AGAIN. If this did plays D, they are great. I feel like a broken record with that.

2. Louisville - They have won 5 in a row, which will probably turn into 7. They will enter the conference tournament on a huge hot streak. This team is really good. I think they only way they get a 1 seed is if they win the conference tourney and Pitt or UConn lose early.

3. Kansas - Big 12 champions in all likelihood. I think that warrants a 3 seed, don't you?

4. LSU - SEC champions in all likelihood. I think that warrants a 4 seed, don't you?

Midwest (Indianapolis)

1. Connecticut - Hasheem Thabeet is a game changer on defense. AJ Price is really good. This team could definitely win the whole thing! It would be hard for this team to lose their number 1 seed. They will be number 1 this evening and that's not hard to lose obviously but that's why they play the games.

2. Michigan State - The Purdue loss is the only one in the last 10. I think of the number 2 seeds, this team is the least likely to move into a number 1 but that doesn't mean they aren't good. Kalin Lucas may be the Big Ten player of the year and he will carry this team deep into the tournament.

3. Wake Forest - This has been a strange team since they had that huge win over Duke. Definitely an up and down team that could definitely win the conference tournament. A number 2 seed definitely isn't out of the question.

4. Missouri - I don't know anything about this team other then I think they are overrated. I expect they can't move up much from here but an early loss in the conference tournament could cause them to move down.

West (Glendale)

1. Oklahoma - Two losses without Blake Griffin doesn't really hurt this team. I love this team and I think a long run in both tournaments are in the future here. I can't see this team losing their number 1 seed.

2. Memphis - What a game it would be if Memphis and Oklahoma played for a spot in the final four. Dozier against Griffin. Evans against Warren. Capel against Calipari. We can only hope, right?

3. Washington - Pac-10 champions deserve a number 3 seed, don't they?

4. Clemson - They were number 16. It came down to Clemson, Gonzaga, Marquette, and Xavier but Clemson got the nod. I don't really have a reason to be honest. I just felt that overall they deserved it the most. I would make Marquette the number 5 seed in the region which would result in a Marquette/Clemson game in the second round. I would pick Clemson right now, so there, there is my reason.

That's all for this week guys. Man, I love this stuff. Oh and in case your thinking about what I am going to do for the rest of my birthday...I am working 12:30 to 10:00.

Boo Ya!

Verb's Sweet Sixteen - 2/23

College Basketball is awesome baby with a capital A! I had to steal one from Dickie V but it's getting to be that time. It's the best thing going right now. I've been trying to tell everyone for weeks how great college basketball is but I think now it really takes over the spotlight in the sports world. I love it!

The GM and I talked about our 65 teams that we each think are in Sunday during the podcast. If you haven't listened to that you should because it's awesome!

Anyway, now that I have my full field, which is obviously subject to change, I still have to seed my teams. I have been seeding the top 4 teams in each region for weeks and this is my new version. The tournament is getting closer and closer so I am trying to make this as realistic as possible.

Here we go!

East (Boston)

1. Connecticut - They lost to Pitt but the committee is trying to keep everyone close to home because of the economy so they get to stay in Connecticut. This team is still dangerous with Thabeet in the middle.

2. Duke - They may still be the same old Duke team but this spot was the for the winner of the Duke/Wake game Sunday and well Duke won so they get the 2 seed.

3. Villanova - I still think this is one of the most dangerous teams in the country right now. They just won a huge game in Syracuse and with Reynolds and his experience handling the ball this team could go deep.

4. Purdue - Huge win over Michigan State since the my last version. They need to stay healthy but if they do I have a good feeling about this team too. They really seem to play together and are a very good team.

South (Memphis)

1. North Carolina - I know they lost to Maryland but that was an ACC road game and they are still one of the top teams in the nation. Defense, Defense, Defense!

2. Louisville - This team can be up and down and very streaky but Pitino will have his guys tournament ready so if this team peaks at the right time they could easily make the final four.

3. Missouri - This spot came down to the Tigers and Kansas and I just decided Missouri has a better body of work so they get the nod here. I don't know if its really a reward to be put in the same region as Carolina and Louisville however.

4. Clemson - I still don't know what to think about this team. I am a big ACC guy and they killed Duke earlier this season but some of the letdowns they have had worry me. Booker is good on the inside and they can be really good but they can be really average sometimes too.

Midwest (Indianapolis)

1. Pittsburgh - The number 1 team in the land right now! Dajuan Blair has played his way into the player of the year talk. Lavance fields is the most underrated player in the country too.

2. Michigan State - The Purdue loss doesn't really hurt that badly. If they would've lost to Wisconsin at home it, that might have hurt but they made a big run and came back and won by 11. This team is good and have I told you how much I think of Tom Izzo?

3. Wake Forest - This is where the Duke/Wake loser was going to go. Jeff Teague has a lot on his shoulders. Can he win 6 in a row? I don't know but this team is still very solid!

4. Kansas - As I am writing this, Kansas is beating Oklahoma and if they do that they will have the inside track to win the Big 12. I think I have them too low but for now this is where they are going to be. Bill Self lost 80% of his scoring from last year. How good is he and how good is Sharon Collins?

West (Somewhere in Arizona)

1. Oklahoma - Losing to Texas and Kansas without Blake Griffin doesn't drop them from a number 1. Griffin gets to sit out a game and a half and that gives him a break. He still is the player of the year in my opinion and this team is still great. Willie Warren is the real deal!

2. Memphis - Hottest team in the country right now. They can get up and down the floor with anyone and unlike Carolina, they don't mind playing D too. Tyreke Evans is right there with Warren for freshman of the year.

3. Marquette - The South Florida loss still haunts me with this team but they still are a solid club and have the depth and style to win a few games in March. They just have to avoid the big letdown. Depending how deep they go in the conference tournament, this team could still move up some.

4. Washington - This is the best team in the Pac-10. Their point guards name is Isaiah Thomas. That's all I can really tell you here but usually its teams like this that bust my bracket in March.

Those are my top 16 right now! Every team on here other then Memphis was from a BCS conference. It's going to be an awesome month!

Boo Ya!

Wait.....What??

A couple days ago Verb tried to tell you that there is stuff going on in sports. He is full of it.

We all know that February, along with July, are the worst months for sports in the entire year. And honestly August isn't too much better but it helps that football is right around the corner and at least there are preseason games to get a minute or two of football each week.

I mean what you could possibly be excited about right now?

The Combine. Please. It is the biggest farce in the whole draft process. Every year a player comes in and puts on this great show and is all of a sudden a can't miss prospect. And half of the players don't even do anything anymore. They would rather save themselves for their schools pro day in the spring where the conditions are more favorable for them.

The NBA. Why now? If you have a favorite team and you follow them than sure you are excited all season. But for anyone else the NBA doesn't matter right now. Hell just look at the trade deadline yesterday. All month we had heard rumors about big names on the block and then the day came and went with nothing much happening.

And the games are relatively boring. I mean this is the most top heavy league in all of sports. You have about 5 teams that have a legitimate shot at the finals and everyone knows it. And the thing with the NBA is that upsets don't usually happen in the playoffs. The favorites generally make it. So why watch the season?

The NHL. Same as the NBA. If you have a team that you follow it will surely be exciting but for the most part fans are waiting for the playoffs. Add to that the limited number of fans and you have no excitement.

Nascar. Yawn!! I enjoy a little racing from time to time. Usually I can watch the races at tracks like Daytona or Talladega because they are exciting the whole time. But this past Sunday I couldn't even stay awake for the Daytona 500. And the damn thing ended halfway through. The sport (or whatever you want to call it) is barely watchable.

College Basketball. Is it March? We all know the regular season of college basketball is pretty meaningless. I enjoy watching a few minutes of a few games but for the most part there is only 1 game per week that is really worth watching. Now in a few weeks it will be the most amazing thing going on but right now.....Yawn!

Baseball. Who cares about A-Rod? I mean other than all the talking heads on tv does anyone else care? Sure Red Sox fans are in heaven and Yankee fans are pissed but me...I don't give a damn. Half the players cheated in that time frame and it doesn't bother me. But then again I am not a traditionalist and couldn't care less who the home run king is.

And spring training hasn't truly started yet. Like College BB this sport really gets going in March. Until then...let me sleep.


Other than that what is going on? Someone give me something. Come March the excitement returns but February might just be the 2nd worst month for sports all year.

Sweet Sixteen - 2/16

The farther we get into the season the more people talk about bubbles and seedings and who's in and who's out. I love it because I have been doing it for a month and I don't think its ever too early to start talking about it. The Poll's don't really matter as long as you get into the tournament so why not talk about the bubble or who the number 1 seeds are.

North Carolina beat Duke this past week. That's all I have to say about that.

I am a day later then usual with this post but I am so glad I am. Tonight Pittsburgh played against Connecticut without Jerome Dyson. Dyson is out for the season with a bum knee and I honestly think it won't hurt UConn that much. I was right about tonight's game too because I believe what really hurt them was that Thabeet only scored 5 points and was in foul trouble most of the game.

The other thing that really hurt UConn was Dajuan Blair. 22 points and 23 rebounds will beat any team in the country. What a game and what a player! Jodie Meeks 54 was great and Blake Griffin just had 40 and 23 but neither of those games were against the number 1 team in the country. I am just saying...

The game that might mean the most that is coming up this week is Duke vs. Wake Forest II. This time the game is in Durham but I think if either team wants a shot at a number 1 seed they have to win this game. They may even need more help then that but if everything falls their way, the winner of this game still make get a number 1 seed.

Let's get to this week's seeds!

East (Boston)

1. Pittsburgh - Beating Connecticut gives them the closer game. Boston is closer then Indianapolis so Pitt goes to Boston. Dajuan Blair is huge and Sam Young can score with anyone.

2. Duke - The loss to Carolina was understandable and somewhat expected but losing at Boston College hurts. This team is close to falling even farther and better beat Wake at home if they want to stay here.

3. Washington - I know this is a long way to go but it's because too many Big East teams are in the top 16. This team is solid and you probably don't know much about them. Honestly, all I know is that their point guard is named Isaiah Thomas. Yea, but this one didn't harass a secretary.

4. Xavier - After the unexpected loss to Duquesne, they lost again but this time it was against Dayton. I honestly thought about putting Dayton here because they are really good too. The A-10 is at least a 2 bid conference this year which is more then I expected.

South (Memphis)

1. North Carolina - This team will NOT win the championship if they play D like they did in the first half against Duke. They WILL win the championship if they play D like they did in the second half though. It's really that simple here.

2. Michigan State - This team is so up and down I don't really know what to say. Most seasons when the Spartans do this they usually find it during the tournament. That's the Izzo factor.

3. Marquette - In my mind one loss doesn't usually hurt too badly but South Florida isn't very good. In 9 days they play UConn and can pick themselves back up from that but really South Florida hurts.

4. Villanova - I try not to put 2 teams from the same conference in the same region but its impossible when I pick 5 teams. This was the fifth team and I still think they are a very dangerous team.

Midwest (Indianapolis)

1. Connecticut - They had Boston until they lost to Pitt but I think they will take this. The Dyson loss isn't huge as long as a few role players step up a bit. This team will be fine.

2. Memphis - This team is really good! Trust me!

3. Missouri - I don't know anything about this team either except that they just keep on winning. They needed a buzzer beater to beat Kansas but they did and now we will definitely hear and learn about them somehow.

4. Illinois - This team is solid. I don't think they are where they need to be to make a big run but if they keep improving they could be dangerous.

West (Somewhere in Arizona)

1. Oklahoma - They will be number 1 a week from yesterday. They deserve but they play Kansas. Let's see if they can avoid the number 1 jinx.

2. Wake Forest - This team needs to get its act back together. They may have taken a small step back by beating Florida St pretty good. They are undefeated against ranked teams this year.

3. Louisville - This team is good but they got whooped by Notre Dame. Notre Dame isn't horrible but the score was 90-57. That's bad and deserves at least one drop.

4. Kansas - Three teams from the Big 12. That's right. UCLA lost to both Arizona teams so they don't belong right now so Kansas gets the nod.

Every game is huge these days!

Enjoy!

The GM Says....2/13

Bud Selig says A Rod "shamed the game".....Bud you are an idiot.

Now is not the time to attack a star player by saying you are "saddened" by the fact that A-Rod used steroids. And why would you say A-Rod "shamed the game" when a few others admitted to using? Selig you are an idiot for that. Now is the time to stand behind your star player and support him. Celebrate him coming forward and accepting his responsibility instead of attacking him. This is exactly why you aren't liked by ANYONE!!

Police arresting people in Phelps case....I told you so!

I said on this site last week that the police in South Carolina are going to try and make names for themselves by doing everything they can to charge Phelps with something. And that is exactly what they are trying to do. They are rounding up suspects and are surely offering them deals to testify against Phelps. This is ridiculous. So the kid did something that he shouldn't have done BUT come on. Is your arresting him gonna help the fight against drugs?? NO its not. Leave your agendas off the job!

Rosenhaus says Boldin, Johnson, and Burress want traded.....Anquan come to Philly!!

Agent Drew Rosenhaus says that he has three clients that are interested in being traded from their current teams. Chad "Not Sure His Last Name" Johnson, Anquan Boldin, and Plaxico Burress are the three clients. Personally I think Burress and Johnson are solid but past their best days. I don't think there is much argument that Boldin is the best of the bunch and please please Andy Reid TRADE FOR HIM!!! Give up one of your first round picks and GET HIM NOW!!

UConn could lose one of top scorers for season.....that would hurt there chances a bit.

Jerome Dyson is scheduled to have surgery next week on an injured knee. He suffered the injury in the Syracuse game on Wednesday night. Dyson is second on the team in scoring, averaging 13.2 points per game. This would be HUGE for the UConn. I think if he is out for the season, which they have yet to determine, that UConn is out as serious contenders for the title. Sure they will still make the tourney and might even make a run but they won't be able to keep up in scoring with a team like UNC.

Ferentz gets new deal for same money.....wow, average gets a good pay these days.

Kirk Ferentz signed a 7 year extension today with the University of Iowa. Ferentz will get the same salary and bonus structure as his current deal had. Last season the Iowa coach made 2.84 million in salary. Hmmm...I wonder if I can find a job where average gets paid that well. In his last 4 seasons Ferentz has led Iowa to a 28-22 record. Not that great but apparently not worth a new coach either.