Florida won on the road at Vanderbilt last week, but I'm not going to praise the team too much for it. I mean, let's be real...Temple won there this season. If Temple wins somewhere, Florida can undoubtedly win there. Anyway, one more win and we go to a bowl game. Can this Florida beat Spurrier in The Swamp? I certainly hope so.
Watching the UF-Vanderbilt game in NYC
I'm not really sure what happened to Michigan State last weekend, but I'm officially cheering for the Big Ten West. GO MINNESOTA - BEAT THE BUCKEYES! Baylor basically gave Stoops the message to start looking for a new job. Auburn looked like the New York Jets with those 2 fumbles to end the game. Terrible way to end a game. FSU looked bad against a bad team as usual. TCU is proving itself. Alabama got lucky. And Oregon didn't blink. The Ducks took care of business.
As for this week... I'm calling for Rutgers to beat Indiana. Attention Scarlet Knights: If you want to go to a bowl game, you may need to win this game. I am obviously picking Nebraska to win at Wisconsin and control its own destiny in the Big Ten West. But most importantly, I need the Big Ten West Winner to win the Big Ten Championship.
Wisconsin-Nebraska in 2012 (in Lincoln)
I'm picking Georgia Tech at home over Clemson. TCU will completely embarrass Kansas. I'm picking Mississippi State at Alabama. Auburn will rebound with a win over Georgia. Texas A&M will beat Missouri. My pick of an unranked team beating a ranked team this week should be painfully obvious: Miami over FSU. I don't say this often (for obvious reasons), but Go Canes.
And of course, I'll take my Gators at home to secure a bowl berth.
Today is Friday, November 14th: the official start of the Florida men's basketball season. Anyone who knows me knows that the start of basketball season (all college basketball, not just the Gators!) is like a holiday for me. I'm excited to see Florida beat William & Mary tonight - even though I'm disappointed I can't see Chris Walker's progress just yet. We will miss him Monday when we play ACC foe Miami. That looks like a trap game, but I'm obviously picking the Gators. Miami will be better this year with the transfers coming in, but come on...Gators got this.
Do people actually believe Minnesota has a chance to beat Louisville? Because they don't. But I'll pick Manhattan to win at FSU this weekend! I'll pick Gonzaga to beat #22 SMU and start the season overrated as usual, but I'm not too worried since the Zags will lose on December 6th at Arizona. The big game on November 18 is Kansas vs Kentucky (if you think Michigan State-Duke is bigger, you're wrong and you shouldn't talk about basketball). Florida plays both Kansas and Kentucky this year, so I'll definitely be watching that game. I'll take Kentucky (even though they're getting just a bit too much hype this season) - and I'll pick Duke to beat Michigan State. No, I don't show respect for Big Ten basketball. But I also just think Duke will be better than Michigan State this year. I think Utah will lose at San Diego State. Oklahoma needs to watch out at Creighton next week.
With all that said.... GO GATORS!! Beat the Tribe tonight, and beat the Gamecocks tomorrow!!
Kurt Roper finally figured it out: Florida has no quarterback. And what do you know? When the Gators eliminated the QB position from the game plan, they actually won a game - and over a ranked Georgia team with playoff aspirations. I like Jones and Taylor. Before the game I kept reading about the return of the ground and pound offense, and I kept saying to my dad that Jones and Taylor would get a lot of touches in the game. But even I didn't expect what I saw. They combined for nearly 400 yards rushing, and Treon Harris finished the day completing 3 of 6 passes for 27 yards. And it was glorious.
So that was amazing, and I still can't believe it happened. What I also can't believe is that for the second straight year, Rutgers was blown out at homecoming in its first homecoming game in a new conference. Last year in the AAC vs Houston, and this year in the Big Ten vs Wisconsin. The weather was terrible. It was cold and rainy and when I left the game I couldn't feel my toes and I was covered in mud. But I was glad I went - and I was glad I got to enjoy a fat sandwich!
And the Huskers, of course, won. That Auburn game was nuts, and Mississippi State looked lethargic. It will be really interesting to see how the SEC West shakes out. People are getting ahead of themselves in the SEC East. Right now, Missouri is the clear favorite to head to the SEC Championship and lose. Yes, I understand that if Missouri loses to Tennessee and then loses one more conference game, and if Georgia loses one more conference game, and if Florida beats Vanderbilt and South Carolina...Florida would go to the SEC Championship game. That's a lot of IFs. So Gator fans, don't get your hopes up. We'll probably win another game or 2 this year, head to a meaningless bowl game, and Muschamp will get another year to prove himself. But as I keep telling people (because it's still true for now), Muschamp is undefeated in Tallahassee as head coach of the Gators!
So, this weekend...
Oklahoma vs Baylor should be an interesting one. I think the Sooners will squeak out a victory, but it should be a close one. I'm pulling for Kentucky to beat Georgia...because, well, to hell with Georgia! I'd like to see Texas beat West Virginia. I think Arizona State will knock off overrated Notre Dame. Kansas State vs TCU should be another good one, and I'll take TCU. Oregon needs to be careful at Utah. One comment on the Ohio State-Michigan State game: Go Green, Go White. Ohio State won't win this without cheating, which I wouldn't put past Urban Liar. I think Alabama will beat LSU. Auburn beats the Aggies. Ole Miss and Miss State will win their cupcake games. Rutgers and Nebraska both have bye weeks, so they can't lose.
Most importantly, Florida plays at Vanderbilt. The streak was ruined last year, but I'd like to start a new one this year, and I'd like a chance at a bowl game this year. So come on Florida, just win!! Beat the Vols!!
Either way, Vanderbilt already got Gator'd
GO GATORS!!
Also - I watched the Florida vs. Barry exhibition basketball game last night. I'm VERY excited for basketball season, which officially starts for the Gators in one week!! Lots of work to do on defense, and definitely need to develop more chemistry, but I can't conclude too much from an exhibition game. This team will be much different than last year's group. But there are some positives: Horford looked alert rebounding, Carter looked healthy, Chiozza seemed okay handling the ball, Robinson showed some shooting range, Hill still has remarkable speed, Frazier will of course still be awesome (despite an ice-cold second half last night), and we should have Walker for almost a full season this year - if he can stay out of trouble. We'll see Chris Walker make his season debut November 21st against Louisiana Monroe, and I look forward to seeing his shot-blocking abilities help our team defensively - and hopefully he'll add a spark on offense as well. Florida basketball! FANTASTIC!
Yes, I took last week off from writing. After seeing Florida's/Driskel's performance against Missouri, I needed to join the Gators in having a bye week. I'm pretty sure that game was not an actual football game. It was something. It was on a football field. The participants wore football uniforms and had a football. But that, my friends, was not football. It certainly was not Gator football. I needed an extra week to recover from it.
So things have been shaking up in the top 25, and I really don't know who's good this year. TCU has a good offense, clearly. Alabama looks like it's finally shaping up, but I wouldn't be surprised if they lose another game. Mississippi State looks good. Ole Miss will lose again. Oregon...still suspect. FSU is awful Like really, really, really bad at football. Louisville killed me last night. They squandered every opportunity in that game. Honestly, I've watched FSU and I've actually paid attention. I'm SO sick of the media hyping the "undefeated defending national champions." Umm, wake up. FSU could easily be 3-5 right now if not for some bad calls and good luck. Yes, I said 3-5. Go back and watch the games vs Oklahoma State, Clemson, NC State, Notre Dame and of course Louisville. Could have lost all of those. And none of those teams are very good. So it's pathetic that they could have lost all five. But I'm supposed to believe FSU can contend for a national title this year? No chance. Sure, go ahead...say I'm biased because I went to Florida. Say my judgment is clouded because of the off-the-field issues. But WHEN (notice I didn't say IF) FSU loses, I will say back to you, "I TOLD YOU SO." Fun fact: Jameis Winston threw as many picks against Louisville as Geno Smith did against the Bills on Sunday.
So last weekend, one of my teams beat the other. I was win-win for me. But I'm hoping both Rutgers and Nebraska win this weekend. I'm going to the Wisconsin-Rutgers game tomorrow, and I'd really like to rush the field after a Scarlet Knights' victory.
Nebraska will have no problem with Purdue. I'll pick TCU to beat West Virginia. I'll actually pick Kentucky to win at Missouri. Mississippi State will definitely beat Arkansas (lock of the week). Stanford will give it a good try, but Oregon wins this year. I'm of course picking Illinois -- not because I think they're good, but just because I hate Ohio State. I'll pick UCLA at home over Arizona and Arizona State at home over Utah.
But more important than all of these....GO GATORS! TO HELL WITH GEORGIA!!!!
By now, I'm sure everyone has seen the new web sites popping up http://www.hiredanmullen.com/ and http://www.wewantdan.com. After watching how Muschamp handled the LSU game, I'm on board. Anything has to be better than this. Muschamp is awful. Driskel can't make decisions. The receivers can't catch. The defense is lazy. I give up. I need a break from this team, so I'm leaving the country.
Just kidding. Bust seriously. I am going on vacation tomorrow, so this blog will be short today since I have to get up early!
Baylor will win on the road, and it won't be as close or crazy as the TCU game. Hey Big 12 - defense, anyone? Oklahoma will beat Kansas State. Alabama will beat Texas A&M. Michigan State should win at Indiana. Upset special: Rutgers wins at Ohio State. Would you really expect me to pick the Buckeyes? Georgia will beat Arkansas by fewer than 10 points. Stanford vs Arizona State seems like a toss-up - I'll pick the Cardinal again, even after they disappointed me against Notre Dame. TCU will beat Oklahoma State by double digits. Nebraska beats Northwestern. Kentucky loses to LSU. I can't stand FSU, so I'm all about the Irish this weekend.
And of course... I stand by my team in all kinds of weather. GO GATORS. Beat Missouri. Make it a great homecoming!
And....THIRTY DAYS UNTIL GATOR BASKETBALL!!!!!!!!!!
No, I'm not just referring to Driskel's performance of 11 of 23 for 59 yards and 3 interceptions. Or the fact that he's thrown 5 interceptions over the last 7 quarters. Sadly, I'm also talking about Treon Harris being at the center of a sexual assault/sexual battery investigation and Skyler Mornhingweg ending up in the hospital after a fight with his own teammate over some shoes. Sure, we don't know the facts of Harris's case. He may be innocent. He may be guilty. I don't know what happened, and neither do you. We know a complaint was made and later was withdrawn. People keep making comparisons between this case and Jameis Winston's case. Sure, both men were backup QBs at schools in Florida at the time they were accused of wrongdoing. But that's about where I stop at comparing similarities. People want to make jokes about having Tallahassee's PD investigate the situation. I get it - no one wants to see Driskel on the field (including me). The complaint has now been withdrawn, but UF did the right thing by taking this accusation seriously.
It was after I started writing this that I saw that the accuser withdrew her complaint, and I'm not sure what that means for Harris's future, but I'd still be surprised if he plays tomorrow considering he hasn't practiced all week, and I haven't heard any word on his reinstatement. I would ask that people put things in perspective with Harris, though. He came in for the end of a game and provided a spark that led to a field goal and a touchdown. I might credit Matt Jones a bit more than I'd credit Harris on those drives, but that's really not the point. The point is, everyone is so convinced that our QB problems were solved and that suddenly we'd be great at football again because Harris helped us score 10 points against a team that has just 2 wins this year and hasn't beaten the Gators since 2004. Bottom line: we beat an unranked team by one point. A little perspective, please.
When Tyler Murphy started his first game last year, many people (myself included) thought, "hey, this guy could be better than Driskel!" And maybe he was, I don't know. But he wasn't great, and he certainly wasn't up to par with the high standards set by Florida fans. He was not Spurrier. He was not Wuerffel. He certainly was not Tebow. And I'm sorry to put things in perspective for everyone out there, but neither is Treon Harris. He's short and he's inexperienced. He hasn't done anything to prove he's great. He's just proved he's better than Jeff Driskel, which I'm pretty sure I could do. Honestly, if you put me on a football field, I think I could complete 11 passes for 59 yards and throw 3 interceptions. I may even pass 60 yards. The point is, Harris's few successful drives against Eastern Michigan and Tennessee do not suddenly make him an elite QB. If none of this happened and he started against LSU, and UF lost, would everyone be screaming for Grier or - dare I say it - Mornhinweg?
Would I have preferred to see Harris play QB over Driskel? Absolutely. Do I think people are going nuts now with all the posts and tweets about starting Harris this weekend? Absolutely. He hasn't practiced all week. Are people forgetting that? Driskel will start, and he'll play most, if not all, of the game. I will add that I personally think Jeff Driskel should be on UF's baseball team rather than the football team. He seems like a hardworking guy, and he seems like he could actually be a good athlete. I just don't think football is the right fit for him. But I have respect for Muschamp (words I never thought I'd say) for suspending Harris amidst the serious allegations. Yes, I want my football team to win games. But do I want to win games so badly that I don't care at all about the character of the young men on the teams? Absolutely not. I lived on campus my first 2 years at UF. I've seen a lot of things. And honestly, I think they made the right choice.
I read Treon Harris's lawyer's statement about the situation, and one line in his statement seemed a little strange to me. He says that the accuser was the sexual aggressor with not just Treon that night, but also with another guy. I must be missing something. Why is it relevant if she was the sexual aggressor with another guy that night? If she had sex with five other guys that night, does that mean she's suddenly immune to rape for the rest of the evening? And no, I'm not looking for some pompous response to this from a legal perspective. I want to know why this lawyer felt the need to release a statement to the public telling us that this girl was somehow sexually involved with another guy that night. Whether she was lying, telling the truth or was simply confused when she made the complaint, I don't think an account of her consensual sexual activities with other men have any place here.
Yes, this is a sports blog, and yes, I'll make picks for this weekend. But with such a serious allegation made against someone on my alma mater's football team, I felt it was necessary to at least make mention of the matter.
Now, onto football.
Rutgers had a big win last week over Michigan - but I thought rushing the field was completely over the top and actually quite embarrassing. Nebraska didn't show up until late in the game last week, and it was too little, too late for the Huskers - especially when Armstrong sealed the game with a Geno Smith-type pass (read: he threw to the wrong team). But a lot of crazy stuff happened last week. TCU beat Oklahoma. UCLA lost to Utah. Alabama lost an October game. Mississippi State looked good, and I still think Dan Mullen is trying to get his resume together for a hopefully-soon-to-be-open head coaching job at UF. We'll see.
This week....
FSU has a conference game against the mighty Syracuse Orange... and I don't see any way Syracuse comes away with a home victory. Sorry, Orange faithful. I love Charlie Strong, but Oklahoma rebounds this week with a win. Georgia wins at Missouri. Wisconsin wins at home. Miami wins at home. Georgia Tech wins - but by 10 or less. Baylor beats TCU. UCLA beats Oregon. Alabama beats Arkansas. I want to believe Ole Miss will be prepared and beat Texas A&M, but they may still be flying high after last week. Something tells me Auburn will squeak past Mississippi State, but I'm honestly pulling for Mullen in this one. Auburn destroyed LSU last weekend. And that gave me hope for the Gators this week. It's a night game in the swamp, and LSU is not as lucky as in past years. But if last week taught us anything, it's that anything can happen. GO GATORS! Beat LSU!
So I must say - last weekend the Gators looked almost as good as they did Labor Day weekend. Gave up no yards, had no incomplete passes, no turnovers... Ah, the beauty of a bye week.
Jacoby Brissett...you came so close to being a hero to the Gator fan base. But alas, you and your team choked and disappointed football fans everywhere. However, you did expose FSU, and they are no longer ranked first in the coaches' poll. So thanks for that, I guess. Nebraska had no problem with Illinois (as expected). Rutgers looked good against Tulane (as expected). Honestly, I expected a bigger win from Texas A&M. I know Arkansas is supposedly an improved team, but I'm still not sold on the Razorbacks. Stanford pulled away from Washington in the 4th quarter and I was disappointed. Wisconsin did not look good in its victory over USF, and I'm honestly still not sure why Wisconsin is ranked - or why they're ranked ahead of undefeated Nebraska. (Yes, I'm biased - but aside from the cupcake games they've each played, I'd argue that beating Miami is more impressive than losing to LSU)
Georgia and Tennessee played yet another close game that came down to the end, and Georgia won again - but Tennessee does look better, which has me on edge for this weekend. And after seeing a breakdown of Jeff Driskel, I'm really not sure why Muschamp isn't giving Harris/Grier a chance.
At a certain point, Muschamp has to realize that if Driskel doesn't improve, Muschamp is going to lose his job. It's one thing to stand behind your QB and try to give him confidence. It's another thing to keep a guy on the field who just plain doesn't understand the game. I'd love to see Driskel improve and become the great QB analysts have said he could be. But honestly? I don't expect it. Hey Jeff, please surprise me. I'm begging you.
After seeing Tyler Murphy beat USC and after seeing Jacoby's stats vs FSU, I wonder how Driskel might perform at an ACC school. And I find myself wondering...Is our coaching really just that bad - or is the ACC just so awful that these guys suddenly look decent? Hmmmm....
The biggest upset this week may have already happened. Oregon, what happened?? Bear down...good win for Arizona. I only watched the beginning of the Houston game, but O'Korn looked pretty bad before being benched, so I'm not entirely surprised they lost to UCF.
I hope TCU beats Oklahoma, but I haven't seen enough of TCU to really say if I think it'll happen. TCU's best win in 3 games was over Minnesota. Given the quality of Big Ten football, I really can't make any guesses based on that. The Buckeyes travel to the state of Maryland for the second time this season, and I think this time they won't be so lucky. GO TERPS! I'll also call for Stanford to win at Notre Dame. No particular reason - I just think this one is a toss-up.
The SEC West is looking kinda crazy right now with 6 of 7 teams being ranked in the top 25. We'll get 3 ranked vs ranked games this weekend with Alabama @ Ole Miss, LSU @ Auburn and Texas A&M at Mississippi State. I'm picking Alabama and LSU on the road and Mississippi State at home. The LSU @ Auburn game will be close, but I think Les comes out on top. This Tigers vs Tigers matchup consists of the 2 luckiest teams in the SEC, so I expect something close with a strange ending. I think Ole Miss has looked decent so far, but I don't see Nick Saban losing this early in the season. Mississippi State seems focused to me. Texas A&M didn't impress me against Arkansas, so the Bulldogs get the edge this weekend in my eyes.
I think Rutgers will get back on track in conference this week with a home win over a very down Michigan team. I really hope Nebraska plays well enough to win on the road at Michigan State. This will likely be the hardest road test for the Huskers this season, and it would be nice if they could remain undefeated! But more importantly...
Florida hasn't lost to Tennessee since that awful ending in 2004. I won't tolerate a loss to the Volunteers. So come on Gators. Be prepared to play football, and be prepared to win. Let's go for ten wins in a row over Tennessee.
Many people saw the news over the weekend that Emmitt Smith took to Twitter to express his frustrations with Jeff Driskel: "Put Jeff Driskel on the bench please, I have seen enough." I don't know any Gator fans who disagreed. Unfortunately, he followed that up with a political move: he apologized. Emmitt, there is no need to apologize for saying what all of Gator Nation is thinking. We also saw Robinson retweet (and then un-retweet) a picture of Will Grier and Treon Harris that expressed his interest in seein a new QB on the field for Florida. Not for one second do I buy the "that was an accident" excuse. He just knew Muschamp would get on his case about bringing down team morale. But here's the bigger problem: Jeff Driskel is bringing down team morale by being absolutely terrible at football. And no, I'm not going to apologize for saying that. I'm sure the kid works hard and tries his best, but at the end of the day, Will Muschamp needs to recognize that Driskel is not a solution to Florida's woes. He's actually making things worse.
Which brings me to my next point...seriously, how many more games does Muschamp have to lose before Foley gives up? Foley has now said he will evaluate everything after this season. Hopefully that means after this season he'll realize how terrible Muschamp is and fire him - and hopefully Driskel will leave with Muschamp.
As we watched Florida embarrass itself in Tuscaloosa
Besides Driskel keeping his starting position, other surprises last weekend included Missouri managing to look worse than Florida, Lucky Les not being lucky enough to come back and beat Dan Mullen....and Clemson apparently being paid off to lose that game. No other explanation. To those of you thinking I should mention Utah-Michigan as a surprise, well, I wasn't surprised by a Big Ten team looking terrible. But Rutgers and Nebraska won! And I ended up winning 4 bets on the Nebraska-Miami game. Sweet, sweet victory!
As for this week: Florida can't lose! (Gators have a bye) So...Let's go NC State!!! Former Gator Jacoby Brissett has a chance to make all of Gator Nation smile by beating the tremendously overrated FSU. So please, Wolfpack, I'm begging you. Beat those gross Noles. I'll be watching Tennessee-Georgia to see what Florida is in for next week against the Vols. But I think Georgia wins today. A note about Thursday's game - I expected UCLA to win, but Arizona State...wow. That was rough. Wisconsin will win against the USF Bulls. Wisconsin played one SEC team to start the season (and lost) and now they play no one the rest of the season because they're in a joke of a conference. They could end up with 1-2 losses and have to play another SEC team in a bowl game. And guess who I'll pick.... I'm not sure why some people think Arkansas is "back" all of a sudden, but I think they're going to get blown out in Arlington. Rutgers will beat Tulane. Nebraska will beat Illinois. My upset special this week: Stanford loses at Washington.
And Driskel won't turn the ball over today. GO GATORS!
Jameis Winston, I'm looking at you. I may not know you personally, but I know enough to know you're an entitled moron. Rape accusations. Soda theft at Burger King. Crab leg theft. And now yelling vulgar nonsense while standing on a table in your student union? Clearly you don't get it. It has been made clear to you about a million times that you will be held to a higher standard - as you should be - than other students because you're a public figure at FSU. But here's the problem: Your corrupt football program/university let you get away with stupidity with seemingly little consequence. I have said before that I respect the FSU baseball team a lot more for not letting you play after the crab leg incident. But man. You're just an idiot. You personify the FSU culture that every Gator fan loves to make fun of. You're not invincible. You're not important. Get over yourself and grow up. I could go on and on about this. You deserve the suspension (took long enough for something to actually earn you a suspension), and I sincerely hope Clemson runs up the score in the first half. GO TIGERS.
On to other overrated things in the ACC...Virginia Tech! Thank you for proving that you're not good. It just makes the fact that you exposed Ohio State so much sweeter. No offense to the I still don't quite understand Arkansas State's distraction attempt against Miami.
So Rutgers disappointed me in its Big Ten home opener. Penn State just isn't good. But then again, neither is Gary Nova. At least it was a close game, I guess. Nebraska looked great on the road. Hopefully they snapped out of that funk that made them almost lose at home to McNeese State....but luckily in college football, almost doesn't count. USC proved to be way overrated, and Tyler Murphy actually showed some potential. It was surprising, but I did enjoy seeing the upset. Georgia was Georgia. Their kicker set a new SEC record for most consecutive field goals, and then he ended his streak.
The game I cared most about last weekend turned out to be much more dramatic than I had hoped. Kentucky may be improved, but there was no reason for that game to go to triple overtime in the swamp. Completely unacceptable. Muschamp better turn it around fast or Foley won't be supporting him much longer. But at least Jojo Kemp can shut his mouth now. 28 victories in a row for Florida over Kentucky.
Supporting the Gators during the Florida-Kentucky game 9-13-2014
Obviously this weekend is a huge game for the Gators. I only wish I were more excited. I think we have a lot of offensive talent on this team - including Jones, Taylor, Robinson, Dunbar, Debose - but I don't think it's being utilized well at all. I'm not sold on Roper just yet. Still definitely not sold on Muschamp, needless to say. Alabama is a 2 score favorite, and I actually wouldn't be surprised if Alabama is insulted by that after seeing our game. However, Alabama's game against West Virginia did expose vulnerabilities. Thought I think Saban has had a plan all along to confuse SEC opponents. I think Saban has known all along he wants Coker as QB. Sims will play, but only for specific plays that were designed for him or in games/situations where Saban feels no threat from the opponent. That said, we may see Sims this weekend if Alabama runs up the score early. But if you've ever watched a Lane Kiffin team play, you know Coker fits Kiffin's style of offense better than Sims does, so I think Alabama is just trying to throw off SEC opponents with this "we don't know which QB to play" nonsense. Florida, please surprise me. Please pull off a huge upset.
Some picks for this weekend...
Rutgers will redeem itself with an upset win at Navy. Missouri will beat Indiana - and it won't be close. Michigan State will beat Eastern Michigan by less than 65. Wisconsin will beat Bowling Green, but it will be closer than people expect, at least through the first half. Auburn will beat Kansas State. LSU will beat Mississippi State, but it won't be a blowout. Oklahoma will be challenged by West Virginia, but will win by no more than 10. Oregon will beat Washington State. Hoping for Clemson to beat FSU, though I haven't been impressed with either team. Of course I'm picking Nebraska over Miami. That's a given. Clearly this isn't a classic Miami-Nebraska matchup, though. Miami couldn't handle Louisville, and even though Nebraska had a momentary lapse against McNeese State, I still don't think Miami can win this game in Lincoln. People who know me love that I know to make bets on games. I have 3 bets riding on this Miami @ Nebraska game, so come on Huskers! Go Big Red!! I can't bring myself to pick against Florida, no matter what logic tells me. I'm sure Muschamp is checking the weather in Tuscaloosa hoping this game will be canceled. But come on Florida...shock the world! Beat Bama!
I know, I've been saying that for years. But now the media is FINALLY catching on! On Saturday night, all ESPN could talk about was how bad the conference is this year. I mean, that's nothing new. The conference hasn't been good in years. I've explained this a million ways, a million times already, so I have no need to go on a rant now. I'm just happy that the media caught on early this season. Now I won't have to hear these "experts" on tv talk about a potential Ohio State-Michigan State game in the final four. Because guess what? There's no way 2 Big Ten teams are making this playoff.
Shout out to the Hokies, by the way. SO HAPPY I got to see Ohio State lose in Columbus. Only wish I could have been there in a Gator shirt to rush the field...
I knew Michigan State would lose and I knew Michigan would lose (I thought it would at least be a game, though, since Notre Dame isn't good). Stanford disappointed me, and UCLA did not look too good. At least Houston won a game. Nebraska and Rutgers both won, but in less-than-impressive fashion. Come on - Howard and McNeese State? But Nebraska and Rutgers may still be 2 of the best teams in the Big Ten. The final score didn't show it, but Wisconsin had trouble moving the ball against Western Illinois. Purdue lost. Northwestern lost again. Just give up. The Big Ten is not very big at all. But don't worry, Buckeye fans. I think your team can beat 0-2 Kent State.
FSU did not look good. I repeat: they will not win the national championship this year. I'd actually be surprised if FSU makes the playoff this year. The ACC looks really bad (almost as bad as the Big Ten!), and the Seminoles may not even win the conference. If Florida had played the Citadel and won 37-12, everyone would be talking about how bad our offense is to only score 37 and how lazy our defense must be to give up 12 points to an opponent like the Citadel. Any FSU fan would have expected to win that game by at least 50 points. Face facts: FSU is way overrated. They're just lucky the ACC sucks. As for FSU's next game - let's go Clemson!!!!
Tonight we have the battle of the cougars - BYU vs Houston. I'd love to see Houston get its act together and win this. I do think it will be close, but I think BYU comes away with this one. Once again, not many high profile games this weekend. As much as I'd love to support the SEC, I don't see Tennessee winning on the road at Oklahoma. Missouri will beat UCF in a game that will be closer than it should be. Louisville wins at Virginia. I'll pick NC State on the road at USF. Overrated USC will beat Tyler Murphy and company. My upset of the weekend? UCLA loses to Texas. Best game of the weekend is probably Georgia-South Carolina. You know I've gotta go with Spurrier to beat the Bulldogs. Nebraska will get its act together and win at Fresno State. I see Rutgers winning its Big Ten opener at home vs the Nittany Lions - sorry Penn State fans!
So last week the Gators played Eastern Michigan and came away with a big win. 65-0. I was happy to see we were at least able to move the ball, but I won't get too excited about beating EMU because, well, it's EMU, not Alabama. I was happy to at least see a full game rather than a ten-second tease, though. But this week we play an SEC opponent....an SEC opponent who hasn't beaten Florida since 1986 (and UK hasn't won in Gainesville since 1979). The streak will stay alive this year - sorry Jojo Kemp. If you couldn't beat us last year in Lexington when we were arguably the worst we've ever been, you can't beat us now in Gainesville.
There were a few close calls and disappointments this weekend. Alabama didn't look as good as people expected on offense (I'll be very surprised if Sims starts all season) or defense. Ohio State sucked and Navy lost its momentum, which was hugely disappointing. Then of course Oklahoma State fumbled away a golden opportunity to beat a terribly overrated FSU team - but after seeing that game, I'm confident FSU will not go undefeated this year.
But one disappointment stood out above all the others. The biggest disappointment of the weekend was the Florida game being terminated after 10 seconds. Sure, Valdez Showers looked great for 10 seconds. And I mean, Jeff Driskel didn't turn the ball over. We didn't miss any field goals. Our defense didn't allow a first down - or even a yard - from Idaho's offense. We averaged 64 yards per return, and we're still undefeated. This all sounds great if you didn't see or hear about the game. But I really, really wanted to watch the Gators play. I sat in a Gator bar in Nashville with one of my best friends from college, and we were pretty disappointed. It didn't help that the rain in Nashville was almost as bad as the rain in Gainesville on Saturday! So I'm still waiting for Florida to really start its season. Ten seconds of football just didn't do it for me.
Florida vs Idaho (Complete Game)
So sometimes I'll write about some crazy things some of my friends say. One friend of mine has been telling me for months that the Miami Hurricanes will go undefeated in football this year. I actually thought they'd surprise people in the first game because Louisville lost an awesome coach, but I was wrong. So that friend of mine is very quiet now. Obviously we have a bet on the Miami-Nebraska game the end of the month. Hint: the Huskers aren't losing to Miami in Lincoln. I made a few accurate predictions based on my SEC bias. One such prediction I made about this past weekend was that LSU would win in the 4th quarter. Sure, I thought it would be decided later in the quarter, but I know many people thought Wisconsin had secured a victory in the 3rd. I knew better. I know Les gets Lucky, and I know LSU doesn't lose openers like that. Of course Georgia beat Clemson and of course Auburn beat Arkansas. No surprises there. And I guess for now it's safe for me to eat potatoes since Florida didn't lose to Idaho. I hope they reschedule the game.
On to week 2! Nebraska will blow out McNeese State. Rutgers will beat Howard and remain undefeated as a Big Ten team. I'll take Stanford at home over USC and I'll take Oregon at home over Michigan State. I'm already picking Nebraska and Rutgers - how many Big Ten teams can I really pick to win in one weekend? I think Michigan vs Notre Dame will be close, but I'll say Notre Dame wins by single digits. I'll pick Ole Miss on the road at Vandy. Just for my dad, I hope Houston can beat Grambling State. Houston looked terrible against UTSA.
Not many marquis games this weekend. There supposedly are more thunderstorms expected in Gainesville on Saturday. With any luck, I'll get to see Florida beat Eastern Michigan this weekend.
College football season is upon us! I have no more excuses. No more grad school, no more negligence. Yes, I'm finally updating my blog. So now that I'm a Big Ten alum - do I see things any differently?
My M.A. Graduation - University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Well, no. Of course I'm still biased toward the SEC. I'm a Gator first and foremost, and no additional degrees will change that. My belief that the SEC will be dominant may also be due to recent brainwashing from the recently launched SEC Network, though. It's my new favorite channel. I'm loving the classic SEC games. The last 3 things in my DVR are games from January 1997, January 2007 and January 2009. I'll give you 3 guesses what games they are.
I really do want to be excited for Gator football season this year, and I'm honestly trying to get hyped up, but I'd be lying if I said it's not difficult after that 4-8 meltdown last year. I refuse to set any type of comeback expectations. For now, I'm just concerned with the Idaho Vandals. Will Muschamp - if you lose to Idaho, I'm not eating potatoes for a year. Seriously. And French fries are one of my favorite things on this planet, so please don't do that to me. As far as I remember, Idaho went 1-11 last year. So just take this season one game at a time. Beat Idaho and start 1-0.
Beyond the Florida-Idaho game, I'm obviously also excited to see how Rutgers represents itself in a new conference (for the 2nd year in a row). This time, they're in the overrated Big Ten. Let's see how they fare in a non-conference road game against Washington State. The Cougars haven't impressed me (my mom went to Washington, so does it surprise you I'm not impressed by Washington State?) in recent years, so I think Rutgers has a shot to win this one on the road. Rutgers joining the Big Ten does complicate things for me a bit, though. I am a Husker alum, but Rutgers is my hometown team and has always been my #2. Make no mistake - I still want Nebraska to play well and win games, and I certainly won't be upset if Nebraska beats Rutgers, but this creates some conflict for me. For now let's just see how Rutgers looks against Washington State. And well, the Huskers are a lock over the FAU Owls.
My hopeful pick of the week is clearly Oklahoma State over those disgusting FSU Seminoles. I haven't heard much about the Cowboys for this season, but they typically have a decent offense, and with the game being in Texas, I feel like the crowd should favor Oklahoma State. Come on Cowboys. Please show up, and please beat FSU. Then there's that other game in Texas - LSU vs Wisconsin. I'm guessing this game will go down to the last minute or so based on how both teams usually like to play. I'll call for an LSU victory sealed in the last 90 seconds of the game (or OT). I'll be surprised if the game isn't close, but I think Lucky Les prevails in this one.
My upset special to start the season should be really obvious. LET'S GO NAVY. With Ohio State being forced to play a QB with no experience, and with the game being in Maryland, I really think Navy will show up with the confidence to win this game. I want to clarify that I do feel bad for Braxton Miller, though. That really sucks to be getting ready to play in your senior season only to be hurt in practice a few weeks before the season and have to wait another year to finish your college campaign. However, I don't feel sorry for Urban Liar at all, and I hope he is completely frazzled and loses every game this season. Let's go Midshipmen!!!
Other picks for the first week - I'll take South Carolina over Texas A&M. Spurrier knows how to win games, and as much as I like Sumlin, I think his team will need some time to adjust to playing without Johnny Football. I'll pick Georgia over Clemson, as much as it pains me. Another painful one for me to pick is Miami, but I'll take them over Louisville only because the Cardinals lost a great coach in Charlie Strong. If Strong were still there, make no mistake, I'd take Louisville in a heartbeat. And Auburn is going to embarrass awful Arkansas. West Virginia has absolutely no chance of beating Alabama. Nick Saban is gonna be out to prove something this year - even more so than usual.
We'll see if any teams really impress me this weekend. I'm not going to make some insane final four or Heisman pick before the season, because I honestly don't know what to expect this year. But at the end of the day, I really just have 2 words to say:
Okay, I'm almost done with graduate school...I promise. I won't be so negligent for much longer. But it's March - I had to write SOMETHING.
Just a quick rant about these brackets, though. Usually Selection Sunday is like a holiday for me. I love seeing the brackets come out, and I love doing my expert analysis. This year? I was hurt. I was betrayed by the tournament selection committee. Evidently the rights fees are so high now that this tournament is officially 100% about ratings, and 0% about basketball. It really makes me sad. And for those of you casual fans or people who just fill out a bracket and don't watch any basketball, let me explain what I mean. I saw months ago that the rules on rematches were changing for the tournament, but I didn't fully understand what they were trying to turn the tournament into. Now I know.
These are by far the most “made-for-tv” brackets ever. Every region is all about old rivalries and rematches. I mean, Nebraska plays Baylor in an old Big 12 matchup, and then if the Huskers win they could have a rematch with in-state rival Creighton. Not to mention 2 more Big 12 schools are in the same region - Oklahoma and Oklahoma State - who happen to be rivals with one another. But it gets worse. Cincinnati, UConn, Providence and Villanova are all in the same bracket for at least one potential old Big East matchup - not to mention THREE AAC schools (UConn, Cincy, Memphis) are all in that region for potential rematches, along with a potential Villanova-St. Joe's Philadelphia Big 5 game.
Louisville and Kentucky could play each other again. A Duke/Michigan rematch is possible. Florida is in the same region as UCLA and Ohio State, conveniently the same 2 teams the Gators beat for the back-to-back titles, and the Gators have a potential rematch with Kansas, and a chance for VCU to play Florida. If you're unaware, VCU's coach Shaka Smart used to coach under Florida's Billy Donovan.
Dayton has tried to schedule a yearly game with Ohio State and the Buckeyes refused because they won't play in-state games for fear of being embarrassed or something, so the committee put them together in the first game. Arizona could meet up with Oregon again after Oregon beat Arizona to end the regular season. And let's not ignore the fact that Oregon opens with BYU, who they already beat in overtime this season. It also doesn't seem like a coincidence that Wichita State's 2 best wins came over St. Louis and Tennessee, and the Shockers just happen to be in the same region with those 2 teams.
I know I'm not alone in noticing all the bracket flaws, and this is not an exhaustive list. Rick Pitino isn't happy about having to play Manhattan, and it's understandable. It's all about story lines this year instead of basketball. These brackets are just terrible, but they did it all on purpose. It’s 100% made for television. Anyway, I'm sure you already know who I want to win it all this year, so I'm not gonna go over my bracket here. Regardless of the NCAA selection committee's terrible job this year, I hope to see Florida cutting down the nets in Arlington. GO GATORS!!!
Okay, so I'm still in graduate school, and I'm still neglecting my blog. But that will end this year. I'd also like to point out that it's 2014 now, and in this year, Florida football is undefeated, and Urban Meyer is winless.
In 2013, I was lucky enough to attend two Gator basketball games. One at UConn and one at MSG against Memphis. The UConn buzzer beater broke my heart, but I was much more upset about the disgraceful attitude of the drunk UConn fans. I've learned that Storrs is just a trashy suburb of Boston, and the fans there are a bunch of uneducated, drunk, rude Boston fans. For any Gator fans reading this, just think of them as the "LSU of basketball" and it should be clear how unpleasant they are.
The Jimmy V Classic was a much better experience. The Pitt/Cincy fans there for the first game were civil to each other and to me, and I don't think a Memphis fan did so much as even shoot my group of friends in Gator gear a dirty look. Much classier group of fans. Much more enjoyable. And the better outcome didn't hurt.
Gator Nation at MSG for the Jimmy V Classic - December 17, 2013
So unfortunately, the Gators have had a whole bunch of problems with suspensions and injuries and general ineligibility this season. The two losses we had were single-digit road losses without our full roster, so I can't read too much into them. However, the Gators made a huge statement yesterday with a big road win in overtime at Arkansas. Arkansas may not seem like much to look at if you watch them on the road. But man...at home? The Razorbacks are tough. They can score. A lot. They had won 23 games in a row at home. So I already knew they'd be a tough team. Then I heard our leading scorer Casey Prather would be sitting on the bench with a bruised bone in his knee. Then I heard Patric Young and Scottie Wilbekin were questionable for the game and definitely wouldn't be starting. I worried that we'd be down to 5 scholarship players and Jacob Kurtz. Scottie and Patric stepped up and played through the pain. Dorian Finney-Smith was on fire with 22 points and 15 rebounds. And Scottie really stepped up and showed his senior leadership at the end of regulation. That was a GREAT win yesterday, and I fully expect the Gators to jump to #9 in both polls with Louisville and Iowa State losing. GO GATORS!!!!
But the Gators weren't the only ones to make a statement yesterday. ESPN made a statement about customer service. Most of the first half wasn't aired due to "technical difficulties." Does anyone else remember that the SAME THING happened during the 2013 Florida-Arkansas football game? Because it did. Those who know me well know that I live in New York City, but I grew up in a suburb in New Jersey that is within the New York City DMA. Apparently ESPN is unaware of that, though. My father still lives in my hometown, and we saw very different things at the end of the Florida-Arkansas game. My ESPN2 stayed with the Florida game until the conclusion of overtime.
Somehow, ESPN decided my father lives close enough to Philadelphia that he should be what's known as a "mandatory pullout" for the Memphis-Temple game. Let me assure you, my father does not care about seeing the first few minutes of the Memphis-Temple game. Sure, Memphis is ranked. But Temple was 5-8 going into that game. Florida was playing on the road without its leading scorer, with 2 more starters playing hurt, at an arena where Arkansas had won 23 straight...and the game went to overtime. As soon as Scottie Wilbekin hit that 3 in overtime, my father got a message that he could continue watching the Florida game on ESPN3, and he was switched to the Temple game. This makes no sense to me. I grew up in that house. Sure, we got some channels from Philadelphia, but our local television was primarily out of New York City, and I happen to know that county falls in the New York City DMA, not Philadelphia's DMA.
So I wrote to ESPN about my concerns - both about the switch and about the feed trouble that persisted. Anyone reading this who tried to watch the game yesterday knows exactly what I'm talking about. You were watching the game, it kept flickering in and out, they apologized for technical difficulties, and switched us to the Iowa State at Oklahoma game. So imagine my surprise when the "customer care" representative wrote back to me and said they didn't know about any feed trouble. That's interesting. If you don't know about any feed trouble, why is your on-air team apologizing for it?
ESPN's response, which made absolutely no sense
Thanks ESPN for showing you not only don't care about your viewers, but instead of actually having someone available to read actual concerns from viewers, you'd rather send an irrelevant automated response with a shameless social media plug. I'm embarrassed for you. I wrote back to this response, even though I'm quite sure no one will ever see it. I also work in TV, so I didn't appreciate the complete lack of effort in providing me a proper response.
