Monday, January 30, 2012

Just My Thoughts... Football, Super Bowl, Pro Bowl, etc.

"Football is the Biggest Thing Around"



It will be hard to predict this year's Super Bowl outcome, but no matter who wins, the New England Patriots vs. New York Giants is a great match up. While Tom Brady and Bill Belichick will get all the attention, the big reason the Patriots are in the Super Bowl is Vince Wilfork. Wilfork dominated the Ravens from the defefensive tackle position. At Pro level I have seen few defensive tackles take over a game like Wilfork did. I saw Ndamukong Suh dominate Texas in this fashion, but that was at the college level. Wilfork has to weigh around 400 lbs. of raw power, yet football fans who watch him are amazed at his quickness. The Giants will have to game plan for Wilfork, as much as they will have to plan for Tom Brady. Wilfork is really the only serious defensive challenge the Giants will have to overcome. Should be an interesting Super Bowl.


I heard a sports radio host say that "the NFL Conference Championship round is last weekend for real football fans." I totally agree with this statement. I tried to watch some of the Pro Bowl this last weekend and boy it was tough to watch. I have never watched Pro Bowl start to finish and have rarely watched any of it live. The little bit of it I watched this year reminded me of flag football and none of the players really seem to care the outcome of the game. I really don't want to list the other reasons, why this the Pro Bowl is bad. Still, I will say it always seems werid to me, that the most popular sport in America has the worst All-Star game. I do understand it is important to have an all star game to put the elite players of the league on display, no matter how hard it is to watch.


I am always amazed at the names who get left off the Pro Bowl list. Lots of old name where on the list this year and lots of great young players were left off. I do like the Pro Bowl being moved to weekend before the Super Bowl, that way a few desperate, diehard NFL fans will tune in for a football fix.


I am a huge hoops fan, but it is hard to pay close attention to basketball when football is on. Now that football season is over, I am totally focused on roundball. We still have the Super Bowl to look forward to, but the Super Bowl is more like an award show, with a little football mixed in. Still, the Super Bowl should be as good of a game as we could hope for.


Both the NBA and college basketball have been pretty uneventful this year. Right now, I am now totally focused on UNC Tar Heel basketball. The Heels seem to be getting everything together. They looked really rough in the FSU game, in which they suffered the worse loss under Roy Williams. Since then the Heels have found their way. Still, this team reminds me not of the 2005 or 2009 UNC championship teams, but of Roy's Kansas team, which had Paul Pierce, Raef LaFrentz, etc. and were knocked out of the NCAA tourament early. That Kansas team was picked by most to win it all. Still, I hope I am wrong and Roy and the boys can get a third championship in less than a decade.

Friday, January 20, 2012

NFL Conference Championship Predictions January 22



"ELI...TE"


Last weekend in the NFL was awesome, but this week we have two dream matchups! Eli Manning silenced all the doubters last week. Eli has looked like the best quaterback in the playoffs so far, even though Tom Brady had a big game as well. The Giants vs. 49ers game, is the hardest game to pick and it is the most intriguing match. I would like to pick 49ers, they are such a physical, complete team. I didn't last week and that was my only loss, but the Giants are rolling and are a great road team, especially in the playoffs. Both teams in this match up have great defenses, but the Giants have Elite Eli and he has been clutch all year. I expect Eli to be himself(he has been leading his team down the field in the 4th quarter all season) and win in a close one. Alex Smith stepped up last week, but if he wins this week he will make a quatum leap in his progress. I think the Patriots will beat the Ravens. The Ravens have a well documented great defense, but Joe Flacco looked terrible last game. Brady and his Tight Ends(who no one can match up with) will score points with their offense and Flacco's offense will not score as many, that will decide the ball game. I was 3-1 last week and 6-2 for the entire NFL playoffs, which is 75%, that is pretty good. Let's see how we all do this week with the NFL picks. Be sure to add your picks.


SUNDAY, JANUARY 22

Baltimore Ravens at New England Patriots (3:00 PM ET CBS)

Patriots 33-23


New York Giants at San Francisco 49ers (6:30 PM ET FOX)

Giants 30-27



Thursday, January 12, 2012

NFL Divisional Playoff Predictions Jan. 14,15


"FACE OFF"
*
We all know what the big story is, this weekend in the NFL. I picked the Patriots to win, but I will be happy to be wrong if Tim Tebow can pull another miracle off. I think the 49ers at home may provide some interesting challenges for the Saints. Still, I picked the Saints to win the Super Bowl before the season, so I will stick with them. Plus, the Saints offense maybe the best I have ever seen in the NFL. The Ravens are veteran playoff team with an experienced quaterback. The Texans don't have those luxuries, Ravens should get the win. This is a really risky pick, but I am going to take the Giants to pull off the huge upset over the Packers. The Packers have been the best team all year, but the Giants have figured things out at the right time. The Giants also have the pass rushers to get to get to Aaron Rodgers. The Packer's defense has been suspect all year and the Giants are good enough offensively to keep up. Should be another great NFL weekend!
*
SATURDAY, JANUARY 14
New Orleans Saints at San Francisco 49ers (4:30 PM ET FOX)
Saints 30-23
*
Denver Broncos at New England Patriots (8:00 PM ET CBS)
Patriots 31-23
*
SUNDAY, JANUARY 15
Houston Texans at Baltimore Ravens (1:00 PM ET CBS)
Ravens 24-16
*
New York Giants at Green Bay Packers (4:30 PM ET FOX)
Giants 33-30
*

Saturday, January 7, 2012

NFL Wild Card Round Playoff Analysis and Predictions: Jan. 7-8, 2012

Here is my Wild Card Round analysis and predictions for this weekends NFL playoff games:



Here are my predictions:

Bengals 27, Texans 21
Saints 41, Lions 31
Falcons 24, Giants 21
Steelers 16. Broncos 7

Friday, January 6, 2012

Ready for Wild Card Weekend!!! NFL Playoff Predictions


"PLAYOFF PRESSURE"
*
I picked games over the last 8 weeks of the NFL season. I was 74-42 overall with my picks, which is pretty good but not great. I would like to continue my winning ways this Wild Card Weekend. Please make your picks in the comment box and let's see who knows the unpredictable NFL the best. Pick a winner and score for each of the four games.
*
Saturday, January 7
Cincinnati Bengals at Houston Texans (4:30 PM ET NBC)
Texans 23-20
*
Detroit Lions at New Orleans Saints (8:00 PM ET NBC)
Saints 38-27
*
Sunday, January 8
Atlanta Falcons at New York Giants (1:00 PM ET FOX)
Giants 27-23
*
Pittsburgh Steelers at Denver Broncos (4:30 PM ET CBS)
Steelers 20-14
*

Thursday, January 5, 2012

2011 Georgia Bulldogs Postseason Recap

Here's my latest video recapping my thoughts about Georgia's football season.  Dawg fans, what did you think about the season?  Let us know!

Did Clemson TE Dwayne Allen Spill the Beans? Are the Tigers Paying Players?

Check out this video below and hone in on the 1:35 mark.  Did Allen really say what we all just heard?  He has more money at Clemson than anywhere else?  Notice how he quickly backtracked from the word "money"  and switched it to "resources."  NCAA, where you at?


Hmmm, not the first time I've heard about this, but it makes you wonder...

Monday, January 2, 2012

Grow Your Roll: Jan.2 Bowl Edition!

Here are some plays to help you make some cash today while you watch the bowl bonanza!




GEORGIA (-3) over Michigan State:
Unlike last year's Dawg squad, this year's group has been ready to play every week.  There will be no repeat of the3 lethargic embarrassment against UCF in last year's Liberty Bowl.  Michigan State is a great team, but they were soooo close to smelling the roses in Pasadena.  Do they want to be in Tampa?

GEORGIA 27, MICHIGAN STATE 20



OHIO STATE (+2.5) over Florida:
The Gators are playing a de facto home game in Jacksonville, but can the Gators or their fans get fired up for this game?  Obviously, we will hear the Urban Meyer angle ad nauseum throughout the day, but it'll be the Buckeyes who are playing to please their new coach.  The Gators will look to right the seemingly sinking ship.  The only reason I would pick them is Ohio State's poor history versus the SEC, but you and I both know Urban has been coaching the Buckeyes up for the last month, even though he won't be on the sidelines today.

OHIO STATE 24, FLORIDA 23

Enjoy all the games today!

Sunday, January 1, 2012

College Football Bowl Game Picks(the important games)

The SEC helps to Heat up the College Bowl Season!
*
So, far the college football bowl season has been pretty uneventful. I have watched some games like the Baylor vs. Washington game for example, was an exciting, high scoring track meet, but overall college fans have not seen much that would make them jump out of their recliners. Don't worry the big bowls are still to come, and a SEC National championship is sure to heat up fans this winter. Here are my predictions for the important bowls. I will say sorry ahead of time to the college football purest, I did not waste my time on the small bowls.
*
Monday, January 2

Houston (19) vs. Penn State (22)
Ticketcity Bowl ESPN U 12:00 PM ET
Penn State 31-27
Penn State will win the game in the trenches.
*
Nebraska (20) vs. South Carolina (9)
Capital One Bowl ESPN 1:00 PM ET
South Carolina 34-20
The SEC teams are too big, mean, and fast.
*
Michigan State (17) vs. Georgia (16)
Outback Bowl ABC 1:00 PM ET
UGA 41-31
SEC, enough said.
*
Ohio State vs. Flordia
Gator Bowl ESPN 2 1:00 PM ET
Ohio State 35-27
The Gators have not been the same since Urban Meyer left, and now he is at Ohio State, oh irony!
*
Wisconsin (10) vs. Oregon (5)
Rose Bowl ESPN 5:00 PM ET
Oregon 48-34
I like Wisconsin, Russell Wilson and Montee Ball are great. Wisconsin will score a lot points in this shootout, but in the end Oregon is too fast and speed kills!
*
Stanford (4) vs. Oklahoma State (3)
Fiesta Bowl ESPN 8:00 PM ET
Oklahoma State 45-38
Someone has to win in this shootout.
*
Tuesday, January 3
Michigan (13) vs. Virginia Tech (11)
Sugar Bowl ESPN 8:30 PM ET
Michigan 31-23
Michigan is ready to make a statement on the big stage.
*
Wednesday, January 4
West Virginia (23) vs. Clemson (15)
Orange Bowl ESPN 8:30 PM ET
Clemson 41-27
Clemson is just too athletic and fast.
*
Friday, January 6
Kansas State (8) vs. Arkansas (6)
Cotton Bowl 8:00 ESPN PM ET
Arkansas 52-41
I will take the SEC team almost everytime. This game should have a ton of offense.
*
Roll Tide and Nick Saban are ready for greatness!
*
Monday, January 9
Alabama (2) vs. LSU (1)
BCS National Championship ESPN 8:30 PM ET
Bama 19-13
The best two teams are playing in the BCS National Championship game and that is all college football fans can ask for. LSU maybe the best team in the country(and could be the best college football defense I have ever seen), but it is tough to beat a team as good as Alabama twice. Bama could have won the 1st game, but they missed two field goals. Alabama should find the mark this time and get the win in a defensive struggle. A win for Saban will put his name among the great coaches of all time!

*
Time to party in Tuscaloosa, ROLL TIDE!
*