BlatantHomerism
- 27 comments
- 0 likes given
- 4 likes received
Bio not provided
Maybe it has something to do with the BCS or something. Just seems weird to me that every game now is a referendum on your conference. Very tiresome forcing every conversation into this artificial paradigm.
@palisoonerThat's beside the point. The overall track record is impressive. But if the goal is to win or compete for a national championship most years, OU isn't there anymore. The proof is in the pudding.
As for recruiting, there's a reason why teams like LSU and Alabama and Ohio State win so many games. Just because Mack's teams underperform doesn't change the fact that you have to recruit well to win consistently. OU's recruiting is tailing off, which is a problem.
@ryanoudoakNot exactly. I look at the entire body of work. So far, Alabama has thrashed Michigan, Arkansas, W. Kentucky and Florida Atlantic. ND has wins over Michigan, Michigan State, Purdue and Navy. Even though the Irish haven't whipsawed through the competition like the Tide, I like what the latter has accomplished better. Alabama's resume has been hurt badly by Arkansas' clear demise.
@ryanoudoak No doubt. I'd like to see some bigger changes coming in the offseason.
You would know the SEC East better than I. I've been carrying the flag for Florida since before the season, though. Honestly, I know he looked good over the weekend, but I'm not sure about Connor Shaw.
Thanks so much for the feedback, guys.
One thing to keep in mind is that my goal here is to rank teams based on achievement. At this point, that requires some discretion on my part as to the quality of opponent. I'm fine with that - it's only the second week of the season, after all. As the season progresses and we get more data about teams' levels of strength, I attempt to adjust all rankings accordingly based on quality of competition.
For instance, note that I dropped Clemson 10 spots this week. The Tigers' win in the opener over Auburn no longer looks as impressive as it did a week ago, so I made the proper adjustment. Same goes for Ohio.
Ben,
Can't believed you skipped the debut of SoonerVision.
My big question on some of these new channels like the LHN and Pac-12 Network is what a reasonable timeframe is for them achieving wider distribution? The party line is that gaining carriage takes time, but does the "value proposition" for the carriers really ever change that much? Looking at the LHN, for instance, I'm not sure if a deal with Uverse is going to be the big domino that causes other carriers to fall. If having three live football games isn't enough to entice bigger carriers such as DirecTV and TWC this year, what more can ESPN do to gain carriage year from now? (Aside from cutting the price.)
Is it just me, or does it seem as though the number of disciplinary measures taken for failed drug tests has gone up materially this year?
You eat one of those burgers before a Louisiana game and you won't be seeing much of the Ragin' Cajuns.
Personally, I'd encourage all sports teams to remove "Sweet Caroline" from their playlists.
It sounds as though freshman Nick Patti is really the future for Boise St. at QB. I wonder if this is setting up as a quarterback controversy. That seems like the kind of situation Chris Petersen would generally do his best to avoid.
Good read, AT. I think your analysis of the offense is incomplete, though. The reality is that Texas' running game beat up on bad defenses like Texas Tech and Kansas, but the better Ds shut it down: http://www.cfbstats.com/2011/team/703/rushing/offense/gamelog.html. So it could be that the running game is a paper tiger. Or it could be that better defenses could crowd the line of scrimmage. Either way, whereas a team like Alabama or LSU are just that good running the ball, I don't think Texas has reached that point. I think UT will have a pretty good year, especially because the schedule breaks pretty well, but Ash is going to have to improve significantly for the Longhorns to really compete with upper-echelon teams.
@JMattHicks What makes it such a great sport. Don't hear anyone talking about some NFL game the way they are about the big CFB match-ups.
@VictorStillwell Not a dig, man. It's how ND rolls.
@JB TexasEx Might help to read the article first so you're not chasing ghosts, kemosabe.
@Mr Cosell Thanks for reading and the feedback.
The proper "procedure" to avoid tampering that you mentioned would be Dodds not saying anything at all. The Big 12 has both an interim commissioner and an incoming commissioner who can speak to the conference's position on expansion. I see no reason for Dodds to comment at all unless his objective is to influence the process, and I think Texas has compelling reasons to stay at 10 teams.
As for ND, bringing in all of the Irish's programs besides football add no value to the rest of the league in the short term. In fact, it would probably be dilutive to their shares. That would mean the only reason to do that would be if it secures their full membership eventually.
Jack Swarbrick may view independence as an untenable position for the long term, but the people who he works for don't. ND's alums and fans will fight joining a conference until the program's future is threatened. Is it worth getting strung along until that happens?
Also, if the B1G and ACC aren't options for ND, that implies that it's Big 12 or Pac-12 if/when ND is forced to join a conference. Does having ND as a partial member give the Big 12 any meaningful advantage when that day comes?
In other words, involving ND in the Big 12 as a partial member means needlessly splitting the pot with them. Of course, it would give Texas a marquee non-conference game and potential filler for the LHN. That doesn't sound like a great deal for anyone besides UT.
You're wrong about No. 1, AT. It's a very big deal.
You're right about No. 6. Love watching the Thunder play, but their halfcourt game is schlock. I wouldn't be surprised if after next season Scott Brooks is looking for work.
You could be right, although Dodds' latest statements were referring specifically to Florida St. ("There's no traction," etc.)
I honestly don't know what the motivations are. It could be that Dodds is trying to avoid accusations of tampering. Like I said, it could all be posturing on his part. But he could have very easily said something like, "Expansion is an issue for the conference. I'm confident that the committee that we've assembled will come to the right conclusion, and I'd be happy to offer my input."
It's no secret that Mack is against conference championship games, which is a good reason for him/Dodds to want to stay at 10. (Stoops feels the same way, in fairness.) I'd hate to see that be the reason they don't make this move.
Ha, very well could go that way given OU's track record in those kinds of games in the past few years.
Yo, where's the volume?