I'm at a loss for questions this week. I'm intentionally avoiding anything regarding the words "Orange" and "Bowl", and I still haven't gotten into basketball season too deeply, so...uhh...let's see what I can come up with here...
1 - Name the two bowls (not involving your own team) that you're most interested in watching.
2 - Let's pretend the BCS Top 8 are in an 8-team playoff. 1 Ohio State vs 8 KU, 4 OU vs 5 Georgia, 3 Virginia Tech vs 6 Missouri, 2 LSU vs 7 USC. How do those playoffs play out?
3 - Rank (in order of how you would vote) the four Heisman finalists (Tebow, Daniel, McFadden, Brennan), and give me someone who was snubbed.
4 - From what you've seen of Big 12 hoops, tell me who's making the NCAA tourney besides KU and UT. (A basketball question! Go me!)
5 - Question #5 is always a predictions question, so...1-AA ("Championship Sub-Division") Semis: SIU vs Delaware, Richmond vs Appalachian State. Don't worry--I won't make you give reasons for your picks. You don't have to pretend to know anything about these teams.
Click 'Full Story' for the answers, and as always, leave your own in the comments...
The Beef: #1 – I am going to say Wake Forest/UCONN because I want to see a bowl game finish 6-3. The other would be USC/UGA in the Rose Bowl because those......oh no wait...the Rose Bowl was stupid for not taking what would have likely been the MOST talked about game (even potentially over the Champ game). Oh well...I will go with....um....AZ St. and Texas because I have a feeling there will be a lot of scoring.
#2 – Ohio State....wow...OU/UGA is a GREAT game right now....I say OU because I think they can stop Moreno enough. I take SC to upset LSU and I take Va Tech actually, I think they would just have the advantage having been there before. I take OU over Ohio State and USC over Tech...and I take...wow...I don’t know...those are the two best playing teams right now I believe. I will take USC but closer than the game some years ago.
#3 – I would vote McFadden, Daniel, Tebow and Brennan...I believe it will be Tebow, McFadden, Daniel, Brennan. I don’t think anyone got snubbed from this list....White could have been in there though...but I think they got it right.
#4 – I have not really seen anything in hoops aside from our games and a little of kU/Arizona. I hear UT has won some games though....and that ISU and TTech maybe have lost some?
#5 – I was surprised to see N. Iowa go down in the quarters...Delaware was ruthless against Del. State....but I like a matchup of SIU (over Delaware) and App St. (because they are HOT HOT HOT!) I wont even begin to believe I could give you scores...
The Boy: One question: how has VT "been there before" when we're talking about a national quarterfinal matchup? No one's been there before. Just sayin'.
1 - California vs Air Force could be really interesting simply because of the offenses at play. Two months ago, I'd have scoffed and said that Cal would murder AFA (actually, two months ago I'd have scoffed at the possibility of the two playing in a bowl...Cal was supposed to be much higher than that), but now I'm not so sure. And honestly, I think OU vs West Virginia could be a lot of fun because of the amount of speed on the field. OU should win, but but pretty much every player on both teams is ridiculously fast...Phil Loadholt aside.
(And seriously, how bad a draw did OSU get, having to play against an Indiana team that EVERYBODY IN THE COUNTRY, outside of Stillwater, will be rooting for...)
2 - OSU and KU are pretty damn similar in strengths and weaknesses, but I think OSU's strengths are, uhh, stronger. KU's offense has a lot of potential, but if they couldn't score on us for 2.5 quarters, they wouldn't score on OSU in 3.5 quarters. OSU wins 20-10.
OU vs UGA is a pretty stout matchup, but even though UGA plays in the SEC, I don't think they've played against a D as good as OU's (if OU is playing inspired...which isn't necessarily always the case). It's tight, but I say OU 30, UGA 21.
USC vs LSU...seriously, we have two phenomenal matchups and two okay ones. Honestly, I just haven't been tremendously impressed with LSU since the Virginia Tech game. They don't really have a "go to him with the game on the line" offensive player, and their defense is overrated. They're good, and I think they'll beat OSU in the real title game, but at this point in the season...USC 31, LSU 17.
VT vs MU. Assuming this is on a neutral field and not in Blacksburg, I think MU gets the nod. The only teams I see that can match MU's speed right now are OU, LSU (on offense), and USC (on defense). And I'm just not impressed with VT's offense. They could murder us in special teams, but...MU 28, VT 24.
In the semis, I'd take OU > OSU (24-14) and USC > MU (41-31). And honestly...I say OU > USC. USC just doesn't have the offensive speed that they used to have. Their WRs are big and strong and have great hands, but...I think TE Fred Davis is their fastest receiving threat. OU's physical enough to deal with USC's offense. OU 26, USC 20.
3 - I've been struggling with this one. I HATE that Tebow was anointed as the favorite a month ago, I'm not nearly as impressed with the 20 TD/20 TD season as others (if Chase Daniel never handed off inside the 5, he'd have at least 15 rushing TDs of his own), and that immediately makes me want to reject him, but...when Dixon got hurt, the spotlight went on Tebow, and he seemed to raise his level of play a notch. I say Tebow/Daniel/McFadden (great overall numbers, but often disappeared)/Brennan. And I too assume the actual finish will be Tebow/McFadden/Daniel/Brennan.
4 - Honestly, I think OU might be able to slide into the #3 slot, maybe ATM. In all, OU's pretty strong all-around, ATM's huge (though I'm not sold on their guards), KSU's got obvious talent, but I just don't think their coaching will get them very far (it's rare that you see ND coach Mike Brey coaching circles around his opponent), MU's got potential but needs to take the next step fast, Tech doesn't have enough offensive firepower (though you have to love the 42-1 run they broke off last night), OSU is MADDENINGLY inconsistent (how do you get drubbed by North Texas, then drub Washington?), and Baylor's guards-only offense can only take them so far. If 5 Big 12 teams make it, right now I'll say that it's KU, UT, OU, ATM, and KSU. I'm sure that will change a week from now.
5 - My father-in-law is from SIU, so...I pick Delaware. Kidding. I say SIU > UD and App St > Richmond. And because App St's the only one I've seen all season, ASU > SIU. ASU slipped up a couple times after the Michigan win, but they've proven themselves in tourneys past.
The Beef: Oh c’mon now...they have played in big time games and bowls all throughout the last 10 years....we have not....but if you don’t want an element of realism in this (like discounting experience), I still feel VT beats us. Their defense is getting healthy and have two different options on offense at QB. And special teams would certainly make an impact.
The Boy: I just haven't been even remotely impressed with their offense...even if you have a good defense, you have to be able to score to beat us, and while special teams might be worth at most 7-10 points, it alone isn't going to get them enough points.
And yes, we're arguing about a fake game...
Michael Atchison: 1 - I’ll watch the Sugar Bowl (Hawaii vs. Georgia) just to see if anything magical happens like last year’s Fiesta Bowl. And the Holiday Bowl always proves to be entertaining, and Arizona State vs. Texas is a quality matchup.
2 - Round one winners: Ohio State, Oklahoma, Missouri, Southern Cal
Semi-final winners: Oklahoma, Southern Cal
Champs: I’m 50.1% certain it’s Southern Cal.
3 - The homer in me goes: Daniel, McFadden, Tebow, Brennan
I don’t know if they were snubs, because that’s a pretty good top four, but Pat White and Sam Bradford certainly made good cases for inclusion.
4 - A&M is a lock. They’ve played a good schedule and been very impressive. After that, it’s tough to call. Texas Tech has been schizophrenic, and K-State has some real problems, Michael Beasley notwithstanding (and how about Bill Walker’s response to nature’s call last week). I think Mizzou will sneak in, and I suspect Oklahoma will, too. If K-State doesn’t make it, watch for some serious fireworks in Manhattan.
5 - Delaware wins because their uniforms look just like Michigans, and the Fighting Blue Hens is the best mascot in the world.
And I’ll take Richmond to be a contrarian.
The Beef: Well....last time out I was not impressed with our defense....so that is where I stand. I think their experience at this level, athleticism, defense, special teams and coaching gives them a slight edge over us.
Michael Atchison: I’m not sure the "they’ve played in big games for ten years" argument works. The kids on the current team haven’t done it for ten years, and I’m not sure that any of them have played in games any bigger than what our guys experienced each of the past two weeks.
I’m not sure that Virginia Tech could score enough to keep up with Mizzou. And the irony is that I think Arkansas probably can. So we got the lesser bowl and the tougher matchup.
The Boy: On their current team, not many outside of the coaching staff have that experience. And our defense played well enough against OU to hold VT to 17 points or less, I'll say that much...
But really, there's no point in arguing a hypothetical I guess...the point of this e-mail is to mention the sleeper I forgot to name in my initial e-mail: UCF's Kevin Smith. 2450 rushing yards in Conference USA is at least as impressive as what Colt Brennan has done in the WAC.
ZouDave: 1 - For sure the Fiesta Bowl. Oklahoma vs West Virginia could be a wildly entertaining game, or it could be an absolute raping with OU out to prove they're the best team in the nation. Either way, I'm really interested to see the team that "showed how to beat us" against the team that just over a week ago we were destined to face for the National Title.
The other that looks intriguing to me is the Capital One Bowl, because back in August if you'd have guaranteed that Michigan and Florida were facing each other in a Bowl Game everyone would have assumed it was for the National Title. Not so much. I want to see this 8-4 and 9-3 team that still get more credit than 11-2 Missouri.
2 - Ohio State over kansas, Oklahoma over Georgia (in a BRILLIANT game), Missouri over VT (because I'm a homer), USC over LSU (in a BRILLIANT game). Side note before I continue, this playoff would bring people out of the woodwork screaming about how unfair the playoffs are because OU and UGA had to face each other in the 1st round and USC and LSU, same thing. Basically the mere presence of both kansas and Missouri would be deemed offensive and the playoffs would be scrapped forever.
2nd round - Oklahoma over Ohio State, USC over Missouri (in a "what could have been" Rose Bowl)
Finals - Oklahoma over USC, matching up the two teams many feel are the best in the country right now. Now, let's see if that jerkbag OU fan comes over here and recognizes that I gave them the respect mighty OU deserves or if he'll still think it's his God-given right and duty to remind everyone that he happens to cheer for a more storied football program and therefore has led a better life. Ass.
3 - I would vote for McFadden, Daniel, Tebow then Brennan. I think if you're awarding College Football's Most Outstanding Player, it can't go to anyone other than McFadden. The guy is absolutely outstanding. Not that I don't think Chase is, but I just think McFadden is more deserving.
Now, if you want to base it as more of a MVP trophy, in a "What would happen to his team if you removed him?" kind of thing, then it's simply no doubt that it's Chase Daniel. Remove McFadden, they've got that Felix Jones (I think it's Jones) behind him and, well, they were 8-4 with McFadden so there's not that much room to fall. Tebow, well if he wasn't there I'm sure Florida would just go to some other 5-star QB in their system and then actually use a running back at the goal line. Hawaii is just another Texas Tech. How many Hawaii QBs have we seen put up Tecmo Bowl numbers? They'd have another one. If you remove Chase Daniel from Mizzou, we go from 11-1 North Champions to probably 8-4 or maybe 7-5. That's the biggest and most significant drop-off, and that's why Chase is MVP. I won't be surprised if Chase gets another award but not the Heisman (although I guess I should make sure he's a finalist for any other awards before I make that kind of statement).
As for a snub, the only possible name here is Dixon. But, injury is part of it. Priest Holmes probably could have been the NFL MVP in 2002, but he hurt his hip and missed the last 2 1/2 games. That for sure cost him. It sucks, but you can't just assume anything and take away from the actual accomplishments of the other contenders.
4 - I have absolutely no idea. I've watched maybe 3 Mizzou games this year and haven't watched more than a minute of anyone else. Cannot answer this.
5 - I gotta go with Delaware, because they're the Blue Hens and it's Riccio's alma mater. GO BLUE HENS! Then I'll go with App State because they beat Michigan, and they're hot. How hot? HOT HOT HOT
The Beef: Considering the last time Va Tech did NOT win 10 games or more in a season was 2003-2004...I would argue that opposite...that these players have been in FAR more big games than we crammed into this past season...as has at least the head coach (a point which you cannot argue).
The Boy: They were better than us every year from 1999-2006, but in 2007, we're better than them. The end. :-)
The Beef: Sound thought process....well done. :-)
Mizzourobot: 1 - (Trying to contain my disgust and contempt for the system at large)...
I'm fascinated by Michigan vs. Florida. Michigan has been all over the map, and so has Florida. Florida will win, of course, but there's going to be a ton of talent on that field.
Central Florida vs. Mississippi State: I want to watch Kevin Smith, up close and personal.
Also, I've got money on the title game, had it since the beginning of the season, so that's kind of interesting.
2 - kU over Ohio State: Yeah, I know it's kU. But I'm actually more impressed with Kansas losing to us by 8 than Ohio State getting beat by Illinois, even though I think Illinois is a better team than kU. If that makes any sense. Oh, it doesn't? Well, it's college football, so that's fitting. Anyway, I just think kU would score points, and OSU wouldn't. Much like the national title game will be.
OU over UGA: OU is the best team in the country right now, period. Georgia's good, but they got shellacked by Tennessee in the game that cost them the SEC East. I just think OU can man up and out-physical anyone they choose.
MU over Va Tech: That's great that they've won all those games since 2003-2004. We'd outscore them. Simple. I don't have faith in a team that sloppy not to make turnovers, which helps us.
LSU over USC: I know everyone loves the Kool-Aid on USC because they beat ASU. And they won the Pac-10, and that's cute and all. But LSU plays with the big boys and USC lost to Stanford. I'd like to see how Booty does when Glen Dorsey shoves his foot down his throat.
OU over KU: You know that scene in the Untouchables, where Capone gives the "PART. OF. A. TEAM." speech? That would be pretty compared to this.
LSU over MU: This one is close. They can beat spread teams, but we're a great spread team. I can see this one coming down to something similar to the Arkansas game, only we get stuffed on a 2 point conversion instead. I honestly think this would be a terrific game.
OU over LSU: OU has somehow managed to piss me off not only be beating us, but by losing their other two games, so it looks like we got beat by a moderately great team as opposed to the best team in the country. I hate hate hate this team, but I just think the O-line and D-line are too good.
3 - Tebow- I hate to admit it, just the fact.
McFadden: But he will be laughing all the way to the bank come NFL time when Tebow is the new Kordell Stewart.
Daniel: I hate OU.
Brennan: Wheeee! A Rainbow Warrior is a Heisman finalist. This says more about the season than anything.
Snub: Kevin Smith. Kid's ridonkulous.
4 - MU: We're shakey now, but I think once conference play gets going we're going to sneak in.
KState: Again, shakey, but will sneak in.
aTm: They have a shot at surging and making a run at Texas.
Texas Tech: will just get bubbled out.
5 - SIU: This team won me a lot of money in the 2002 NCAA Tournament, so I always root for them.
App State: I have no reason behind this. I should work for the Orange Bowl!
rptgwb: 1 - Considering none of the BCS Bowls really intrigue me THAT much, my eyes are immediately drawn to the Alamo Bowl and the Chick-Fil-A Bowl. Family ties dictate my interest in Alamo Bowl and my own personal interest in the Aggies was re-ignited somewhat by my presence at Kyle Field when Texas A&M upset Texas. Not to mention, a TexAgs.com message board post once asked about posters' dream OOC home-and-home, to which the Aggie in my family responded Penn State for the matchup of traditions - especially the Penn State unis, Happy Valley and, of course, Joe Pa.
The Chick-Fil-A Bowl is interesting to me for reasons unknown. Clemson has always been a rooting interest of mine for no apparent reason whatsoever. I absolutely love the backfield tandem of Spiller and Davis (who I use in the same backfield to embarrass peers in NCAA 08 if I don't feel like passing for 400 yards with Mizzou) and they seem to have that old Mizzou "when can they finally get over the hump" syndrome without the decades of mediocrity and bad luck. Throw in my family's distaste for Auburn (although I'm not running to watch my dad's Crimson Tide against Colorado in the Independence Bowl) and my laughing at the "multiple teams want Tommy Bowden" scenario, and the Chick-Fil-A bowl will be a staple in my New Years Eve.
2 - Quarters:
- OSU holds off KU late, 27-24
- OU defeats UGA, 28-17
- MU lets Virginia Tech's offense beat itself, 24-10
- LSU survives USC, 30-28
Semis:
- OU defeats OSU, 31-20
- LSU defeats MU, 30-20
National Championship
- Stoops outcoaches Miles, as OU defeats LSU, 31-30
3 - The official rptgwb Heisman ballot
- Tebow - Everyone discredits his numbers by calling him a fullback, but who is the last fullback to throw for 29 touchdowns in a addition to his 22 on the ground?
- Daniel - The Big 12 Championship cost him. I simply could not believe MU's receivers couldn't get open in 5 or 6 seconds against OU, and I don't think Daniel could believe it either.
- McFadden - The most explosive player in college football, and we'll learn that the hard way on Jan. 1.
- Brennan - He's a taller, sidearmed version of Todd Reesing with an EASIER schedule (read that line again).
Snub: Dennis Dixon - It's become clear that there was no player in college football more valuable to his team this year than Dixon. He was playing lights out until his injury, and when his knee went out, Oregon had to scrap their entire offensive system. Dixon at least deserved the courtesy of an invitation, and had he remained healthy and Oregon in the title race, I'm not so sure I don't have Dixon ahead of Tebow.
4 - My non-expert, non-informed, semi-involved Tourney picks:
In for sure: Texas, Kansas, Texas A&M
Likely: Kansas State, Texas Tech
Probable, but still not sold: Missouri, Oklahoma State
And.... my surprise tourney pick: Baylor (and no, I'm not joking)
5 - Delaware beats SIU and Appalachian State defeats Richmond. Then, in the finals, Delaware beats Appalachian State, who sees Delaware's uniforms and mistakes them for a cupcake like Michigan (seriously, Google it...)
And ZouDave..."Now, let's see if that jerkbag OU fan comes over here and recognizes that I gave them the respect mighty OU deserves or if he'll still think it's his God-given right and duty to remind everyone that he happens to cheer for a more storied football program and therefore has led a better life. Ass."
I had the same thought every round I took OU...
ZouDave: So did Doug get left out of this one for a reason? Was he one of the probably 25 ku posters I suspended for 30 days on Tigerboard after the bowl selections happened?
The Boy: Oh wow...crap...no...and here I was, curious about how he was going to respond. Hi, Doug! Here are the questions I forgot to include you on...
Michael Atchison: Doug’s snub clearly was in retaliation for what the Orange Bowl did to Mizzou. That’ll teach the BCS to **** with RMN.
ZouDave: Y'ALL BETTA RECOGNIZE!
rptgwb: RMN takes no responsibility for any unfortunate events that transpired for Orange Bowl and Rose Bowl reps, like the tires I "may or may not" have slashed...
Doug: Geez, I figured Bill was just moody still following Saturday and Sunday... and pretty much every day since. I had no idea there was a vast MU-wing conspiracy to keep me from offering my gleeful commentary. Oh, and Dave, I haven't been to Tigerboard in about two months... so, no, you did not suspend me.
1 - I'm going to say the Fiesta Bowl... just to see a pissed-off OU team steamroll West Virigina. And... um, hmmm... the Capital One Bowl, because Michigan is going to have a hell of a time stopping Florida's offense.
2 - Okay, it's a little bit homerish, but I think KU would give OSU a run for its money, especially since the Buckeyes would have been off for 3 to 4 weeks before playing, but being the horseshoe, OSU 35 KU 31 , OU vs UGA would be the best first round match-up right now but OU 28 UGA 21 , Missouri at VaTech? Uh, VaTech 38 MU 35 , and here's your upset... USC 42 LSU 21 (has it occured to you guys yet that the mastermind behind the LSU defense is the head coach at Nebraska next year? I'm just sayin'.)
After that... OU to clobber OSU, USC to roll VaTech... and Oklahoma as the national champs.
3 - I'd go McFadden, Teabow, Daniel and Brennan... and hat-tip to Nation of Islam Sportsblog... if you're looking for a snub, tell me this doesn't make sense.
4 - I'll say right now, based on non-conference performances, aTm is in, MU is in and, for right now, K-State is in, however I have a strong feeling that the season is going to get away from Frank Martin, because he is just now starting to deal with coaching a team after losses (Oregon and Notre Dame). When conference season starts and they travel to Norman and play the Aggies in Manhattan, they could easily be 0 and 2, and I don't know if he can actually "coach" in that type of situation.
5 - I'll go Delaware and Applachian State.
Oh, and even though this has been over for a day (thanks, Bill!) I do have a question. Now that emotions have settled (somewhat), who are you guys, as Tiger fans, more upset with? The Rose Bowl (for its insane devotion to tradition), the Orange Bowl (for taking the team that MU beat), the Big 12 Conference, the BCS selection process, Lew Perkins or Mike Alden?
Michael Atchison: I’m not really upset by any of it anymore, but the Orange Bowl is at the top of the list. I might not agree with the Rose’s rationale, but at least it’s rooted in some sort of tradition. The Orange’s intellectual process ("we wanted a one-loss team") makes Skip Bayless look like Aristotle in comparison.
Mizzourobot: Oh, and even though this has been over for a day (thanks, Bill!) I do have a question. Now that emotions have settled (somewhat), who are you guys, as Tiger fans, more upset with? The Rose Bowl (for its insane devotion to tradition), the Orange Bowl (for taking the team that MU beat), the Big 12 Conference, the BCS selection process, Lew Perkins or Mike Alden?
The World.
After that? The Orange Bowl. The Rose Bowl I knew would hang on to tradition. That's their shtick. But the Orange Bowl saying, we will not use head to head matchup as a barometer for which team is better just makes me livid. Honestly, at this point, though, I'm kind of mad at ourselves (Tiger fans in general)for not being pumped about the Cotton Bowl. This is so much more than what any of us were really expecting at the beginning of the year. Yes, it sucks that we lost to OU and our shot at the national title. Yes, it sucks that the BCS selection system is asinine. But we have so much to be excited about, and all I've heard is disappointment. That's got to change. Because one thing that won't help is Darren McFadden running for 350 yards because we're moping around, or recruits sensing the depressed attitude from Tiger fans.
ZouDave: Yeah, Doug, I know. I remember your Tigerboard handle and would have at least emailed you before sending you to the sidelines until after the first of the year.
So unless you've been moonlighting as the now unwelcome Kong, you're still "safe" ;-)
The Boy: Damn you...you broke the "No Orange Bowl reference" rule! No WONDER I excluded you...
But I'll be dumb enough to answer anyway. I was more pissed at the Orange Bowl simply because it was a surprise. I knew th e Rose Bowl was going to be ignorant, and I was prepared for that. However, I thought the Orange would take VT-WV, meaning the 2nd Big 12 team would be selected by the Fiesta...and since there would be no need for a THIRD OU-MU game, KU would be the only possible selection. That the Orange Bowl actually selected KU because a) they only had one loss (to us), b) MU looked poor against OU (we were only playing in that game because we beat KU), and c) they would probably travel better (either due to some serious Lew Perkins misinformation, or the fact that the Orange Bowl committee got KU and KSU confused) made me more pissed at them in the end.
And I must say...I admire your continued dedication to defending your non-conference schedule (Lefevour's awesome! Central Michigan was tough!). :-)
Michael Atchison: I wasn’t paying attention for a couple of days, and than I saw that Kong had somehow become persona non grata. Who’s next? Little Miss Muffett? Hermie, the Elf who would be a dentist?
Doug: Actually, my point about Lefevour was much more in jest. The reality is CMU was not on KU's level when the two played and is still not even after winning the MAC. I just thought the statistical comparison between Lefevour and Teabow was just too amusing.
ZouDave: And actually, Doug, this just started this morning. Your exclusion was very short. And you're welcome for me noticing. Ungrateful jerkbag.
As far as who I'm most upset with? Mizzou fans for openly acting like children. I'm miffed at the snubbing, but I think Seth has made the case all along (going back to the middle of the season) that the Cotton Bowl was our best destination anyway if we weren't playing for the National Title. And he's right. We're in Dallas, so our fans can get there easily, we're in a New Year's Day game, which has been a milestone we've wanted to reach, and we're playing a beatable opponent that brings a lot of attention. I think the Cotton Bowl will draw strong ratings with this matchup.
But to pick one from your list, it's the Orange Bowl. Perkins may have broken some rules (don't know, really don't care...other than to be able to call him a dirty cheater), but that doesn't mean the Orange Bowl had to do what they did. Or, maybe add to the list and say I'm upset with Dan Beebe for not having the stones to say "If the Big 12 gets 2 BCS bids, those 2 bids should go to our division champions." That did piss me right off. If he'd at least said that publicly, and then the rest happened, I'd not be sitting here thinking "This commissioner sucks."
Doug: Really? Normally we do this on Wednesday so my mistake there. And, yes, thank you, Dave for noticing. I'm sure the past couple of days you've gone tired of, well, anyone claiming to partial to KU, so thanks for getting me involved.
You're correct, Bebee is a very weak commissioner. More so than Weinberg even. As much as I dislike Kevin Keitzman, he had a very good point about the unwillingness of the Big 12 schools to hire someone that could actually lead the conference as opposed to kowtowing to the powers of OU, Texas and Nebraska who detest the idea of revenue sharing.
The Boy: All a conference commissioner is going to care about is getting two teams in the BCS. He couldn't care less which two teams. If the Orange had selected Texas, Beebe would have been thrilled.
And yes, I was a day late. I'm a terrible Roundtable leader.
Really, I just wanted us to make the Orange Bowl so I could point out the extreme irony of our making the Orange Bowl the first year the students actually did not throw oranges at the start of the season.
ZouDave: Kong brought it on himself. I've always considered him a very welcome part of that community, because he always acted the way a ku fan had to act to be accepted over there. He was always magnanimous, polite and willing to find fault in ku while still being an unquestioned supporter. That will, for the most part, always be accepted (other than maybe during the week of a game against them).
But when he came out with guns blazing, insulting the fanbase for questioning the BCS Selection Process (that everyone knows is messed up this year), insulting the fanbase for wanting to run with the Lew Perkins story (as if ku fans wouldn't dream of running with any story about Mike Alden) and openly laughing at Missouri's misfortune, he immediately crossed the line from being an accepted member of the community to just another beaker. And while Nick took exception privately with how Kong was treated, I told him the reason the backlash was so severe was because of the shock we were all in given who the subject was. If it had been a post from any of a number of other ku posters, it barely would have been remembered apart from any other rant. But this was Kong, someone who seriously had been "accepted" over there and now he was turning on them. I don't fault Tigerboard's reaction at all. Even I let loose on him for it. It was uncalled for. What he was saying had plenty of truth in it, but as with most things it was more about how he said it as opposed to what he said. He could have easily stated his opinion in more of a Kong fashion, but he didn't.
And then he pulled the ultimate Deep Nylon and went from one day saying "I love it over here, you guys crack me up." to the next saying "This place is horrible and I'm never coming back." Kong, sad to say, but you won't be missed.
Michael Atchison: Did anyone else see Beebe interviewed during the championship game and wonder how Barney from The Simpsons got to be our commish?
And has anyone else seen this? I was just flipping through the TV channels, and I saw something that made me stop and go back. It was Dan McLaughlin, who does play-by-play on a lot of Mizzou network basketball games, and he was pictured in front of the U.S. Capitol dome. But the graphics said "Dan Walters, Washington, D.C. reporter." The whole thing looked like CNBC with numbers crawling across the screen, but it turns out that it was an infomercial for a subprime mortgage company. So I Googled and found these, which show that I’m about six weeks late to the party:
http://www.cardinalsdiaspora.com/?p=1965
http://www.stltoday.com/forums/viewt...
The guy, of course, has the right to make a living, but it seems an odd choice for someone trying (successfully, it would appear) to make a career as a sportscaster.
ZouDave: Someone mentioned this on Tigerboard earlier today, seemed to give the impression that it was "terrible" and "disgraceful".
Mizzourobot: David: No, that was the BCS selection show.