With the college football season kicking off next week, here is a conference by conference preview, starting with the Big East, Big Ten, and Pac 10.
Big East
OVERRATED TEAM: Pittsburgh Panthers
Pitt lost their best player from last year, workhorse running back LeSean McCoy. Their QB is still Bill Stull who has been absolutely dreadful at times.(See 3-0 Sun Bowl loss to Oregon State for proof) And Dave Wannstedt is shaky as a coach and he has underperformed when compared to previous coach Walt Harris. For a team that last year finally broke a 3 year drought without a bowl appearance I don't see how the talent level is there to warrant Pittsburgh being picked in the preseason media poll as the Big East favorite.
UNDERRATED TEAM: Connecticut Huskies
The Connecticut program has flown under the radar for several years now and they continue to field a competitive and gritty team without the talent level that many Big East schools have. Not many people realize that Uconn won a share of the Big East title with West Virginia in 2007. Coach Randy Edsall has done a masterful job building this program up from a Division 1-AA school to a formidable Big East program. This year's team loses their best player in school history, first round NFL Draft pick Donald Brown, but the defense is strong enough to keep the team in games and I think this team will surprise people as they so often have done during their 5 years as a Big East member.
PROJECTED STANDINGS (projected conference record):
1. Rutgers (5-2)
2. Cincinnati (4-3)
3. West Virginia (4-3)
4. Connecticut (4-3)
5. Pittsburgh (3-4)
6. South Florida (3-4)
7. Louisville (3-4)
8. Syracuse (2-5)
Big Ten
OVERRATED TEAM: Penn State Nittany Lions
Last year's Big Ten Champions begin this year with high expectations, ranked 8th in the Preseason USA Today Coaches' Poll. I don't see the offensive firepower there to warrant such a high ranking. Quarterback Daryll Clark has been serviceable at the position and I do not think he will be able to carry a Penn State team that lost a lot of talent from last year's team including 4-year starting wide receiver Derrick Williams. Joe Paterno's team will take a step back this season.
UNDERRATED TEAM: Northwestern Wildcats
Northwestern has a typical Northwestern team again this year- undersized and less talented than its peers, yet tough, gritty, and competitive. Head coach Pat Fitzgerald took over the Northwestern program as the youngest head coach in college football and he has molded the Wildcats into a scrappy bunch, similar to how Fitzgerald was as star linebacker of Northwestern's 1995 Rose Bowl team. Northwestern catches a little break this season in that they do not play league favorite Ohio State. We saw flashes of Northwestern's potential last year when they outplayed Missouri in the Alamo Bowl before losing in overtime. I think this year's team will surprise people by making an appearance or two in the top 25 during the season.
PROJECTED STANDINGS (projected conference record):
1. Ohio State (8-0)
2. Illinois (5-3)
3. Penn State (5-3)
4. Michigan State (5-3)
5. Iowa (5-3)
6. Northwestern (4-4)
7. Minnesota (4-4)
8. Wisconsin (3-5)
9. Michigan (3-5)
10. Indiana (1-7)
11. Purdue (1-7)
Pac - 10
OVERRATED TEAM: California Golden Bears
Every year over the past four seasons, Cal has started the season with high expectations only to fall flat and fail to meet those expectations. I myself will not get suckered into drinking the Cal Kool Aid this year. Cal has high expectations again this year as they were picked to finish 2nd in the Pac-10 preseason media poll behind USC. Cal does have some talent including darkhorse Heisman candidate running back Jahvid Best, but this team does not have the mental toughness needed to win a big game (i.e. beat USC) or avoid the road upset that has plagued them year after year.
UNDERRATED TEAM: Stanford Cardinal
For a Stanford team that hasn't played in a bowl game since 2001, a winning season would be a cause for celebration and I believe this year's team has a good chance to have a winning campaign. The highlight of 3rd year head coach Jim Harbaugh's tenure thus far has been the historic upset of USC at the Coliseum in 2007, but Harbaugh is aiming for bigger things for this program. Stanford has the pieces in place necessary to finish in the top half of the league. Keep an eye out for senior running back Toby Gerhart, who last year broke the school record for rushing yards in a season. Gerhart is a tough, hard-nosed player who is an absolute pleasure to watch play football. Guys like Toby Gerhart help make college football such a great game and I advise football fans to make sure to check this guy out this season.
PROJECTED STANDINGS (projected conference record):
1. Southern California (8-1)
2. Oregon (6-3)
3. California (6-3)
4. Stanford (5-4)
5. Oregon State (5-4)
6. Arizona State (4-5)
7. Arizona (4-5)
8. Washington (3-6)
9. UCLA (3-6)
10. Washington State (1-8)
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Monday, August 17, 2009
Tiger Woods Goes Down
Relatively unknown South Korean golfer Y.E. Yang delivered a monumental upset on Sunday to defeat Tiger Woods and win the PGA Championship. Tiger Woods had been a perfect 14 for 14 in major championships when having the lead going into the final round. He had had won 36 of 37 of all tournaments when having the 54 hole lead with that 1 loss occurring in 1996 in one of his first tournaments as a pro. Tiger Woods came into the PGA Championship off tournament titles at the Buick Open and the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational the past 2 weeks. Tiger vaulted to the top of the leaderboard right away this week posting a 5 under 67 early Thursday afternoon. After Friday's 2nd round Woods had a 4 shot lead and Saturday and Sunday looked like they would just be an anticlimatic coronation for Woods and his record tying 5th PGA Championship win. Entering the final round Woods' lead had been trimmed to 2 shots, but it still seemed highly unlikely that he would relinquish the lead. Yet here was Y.E. Yang paired with Tiger Woods and able to stare Tiger down to become the first Asian to win a major championship.
Y.E. Yang is probably unknown to all except the big-time golf fan. This was only Yang's 2nd major championship appearance in the last 2 years; his other appearance was in this year's Masters where he failed to make the cut. Yang did win a PGA Tour event earlier this year at the Honda Classic in March, although that is a lightly regarded tournament that did not include many of the big names on tour. Yang also won an international event in 2006 at the HSBC Champions tournament in Shanghai where he outlasted Tiger Woods to mark his arrival on the world golf scene. I became familiar with Yang only over the past few weeks as he finished 8th at the Canadian Open, 5th at the Buick Open, and 19th at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.
Tiger Woods has been beaten in majors before as this was his 6th runner-up finish in a major championship, but nobody has had to play alongside Tiger to beat him. So many world class players have wilted playing under the glare and spotlight of a Tiger Woods pairing in the final round of a major. This is what makes Yang's achievement so incredible. Sunday's final round had so much of the drama that makes major championship golf so entertaining. The Woods-Yang duel was supposed to have included a 3rd man in the mix, but defending champion Padraig Harrington dropped out of contention with a quintuple bogey 8 on the par 3 8th hole after hitting it into the water twice. Yang was able to make up Woods' 2 stroke lead by the 4th hole and he would stay at least within 1 shot of Woods the rest of the way. Yang took control of the tournament on the 14th hole when he made the shot of the tournament, an incredible chip in from just off the green for eagle. That shot will probably go down as the most memorable shot in all of golf for 2009.
Yang would hold on to a 1 stroke lead and take it to the par 4 18th hole where he knocked his 2nd shot within 7 feet of the hole to all but clinch the victory and the big upset. Y.E. Yang played an outstanding tournament and rose to the occasion with the low round of the day on both Saturday (67) and Sunday (70). Woods on the other hand played poorly over the weekend. Woods played way too conservatively on Saturday with his 4 stroke lead when the Hazeltine course had low scores there for the taking. Woods did not attack the pins, seemingly content that avoiding the bogeys would be enough to pull out the victory. On Sunday Woods missed countless 10 foot putts and stumbled his way to a 3 over par round of 75. In the end Y.E. Yang was the best player of the week and he is a worthy PGA Champion. His dramatic conquering of Tiger Woods concludes what has been a very entertaining major championship season in 2009.
Other PGA Championship Observations:
Y.E. Yang is probably unknown to all except the big-time golf fan. This was only Yang's 2nd major championship appearance in the last 2 years; his other appearance was in this year's Masters where he failed to make the cut. Yang did win a PGA Tour event earlier this year at the Honda Classic in March, although that is a lightly regarded tournament that did not include many of the big names on tour. Yang also won an international event in 2006 at the HSBC Champions tournament in Shanghai where he outlasted Tiger Woods to mark his arrival on the world golf scene. I became familiar with Yang only over the past few weeks as he finished 8th at the Canadian Open, 5th at the Buick Open, and 19th at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.
Tiger Woods has been beaten in majors before as this was his 6th runner-up finish in a major championship, but nobody has had to play alongside Tiger to beat him. So many world class players have wilted playing under the glare and spotlight of a Tiger Woods pairing in the final round of a major. This is what makes Yang's achievement so incredible. Sunday's final round had so much of the drama that makes major championship golf so entertaining. The Woods-Yang duel was supposed to have included a 3rd man in the mix, but defending champion Padraig Harrington dropped out of contention with a quintuple bogey 8 on the par 3 8th hole after hitting it into the water twice. Yang was able to make up Woods' 2 stroke lead by the 4th hole and he would stay at least within 1 shot of Woods the rest of the way. Yang took control of the tournament on the 14th hole when he made the shot of the tournament, an incredible chip in from just off the green for eagle. That shot will probably go down as the most memorable shot in all of golf for 2009.
Yang would hold on to a 1 stroke lead and take it to the par 4 18th hole where he knocked his 2nd shot within 7 feet of the hole to all but clinch the victory and the big upset. Y.E. Yang played an outstanding tournament and rose to the occasion with the low round of the day on both Saturday (67) and Sunday (70). Woods on the other hand played poorly over the weekend. Woods played way too conservatively on Saturday with his 4 stroke lead when the Hazeltine course had low scores there for the taking. Woods did not attack the pins, seemingly content that avoiding the bogeys would be enough to pull out the victory. On Sunday Woods missed countless 10 foot putts and stumbled his way to a 3 over par round of 75. In the end Y.E. Yang was the best player of the week and he is a worthy PGA Champion. His dramatic conquering of Tiger Woods concludes what has been a very entertaining major championship season in 2009.
Other PGA Championship Observations:
- Lee Westwood had a strong showing in a major once again. Westwood finished 3rd this week to go along with a 3rd place finish at the Open Championship. You may remember that Westwood also finished 3rd at the US Open last year at Torrey Pines, narrowly missing a 15 foot putt on the 72nd hole that would've put him in the playoff with Tiger Woods and Rocco Mediate. Westwood made the cut at all 4 majors this year, one of only 12 players that can make that claim. In my opinion, Lee Westwood is the best active player never to have won a major championship. At the age of 36 he should have several good opportunities ahead of him to win his elusive major title.
- In addition to Westwood, the other 11 men to make the cut at all 4 majors were Kenny Perry, Angel Cabrera, Vijay Singh, Jim Furyk, Rory McIlroy, Ross Fisher, Henrik Stenson, Camilo Villegas, Sean O'Hair, Graeme McDowell, and Kevin Sutherland.
- Phil Mickelson struggled for the 2nd week in a row in his return from a 6 week layoff. Mickelson finished in 73rd place at +12, twenty shots behind Y.E. Yang. This was after last week's WGC-Bridgestone Invitational where Phil was never in contention. I hope Phil can regain the form that saw him come so close to winning the US Open at Bethpage in June. The PGA Tour is more exciting when the fan favorite Mickelson is near the top of the leaderboard.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
MLB Progress Report - AL Central
American League Central
The AL Central race is shaping up to be a very tight race with the Tigers, White Sox, and Twins separated by only 2 and 1/2 games. The Tigers and White Sox each made a nice acquisition at the trading deadline to bolster their pitching staff. The Tigers picked up Jared Washburn and the White Sox traded for Padres ace Jake Peavy, who is currently injured but may me able to return later this season. These moves were important because both the Tigers and White Sox have not exactly distinguished themselves from the rest of the mediocre AL Central. The Tigers have the worst record of any division leader in baseball at 55-50 and the White Sox spent nearly all of May and June under the .500 mark. The Twins have not stood out from the pack either as they have been hovering around the .500 mark the entire season; they have been no worse than 5 games under .500 and no better than 3 games over .500.
In terms of pitching, the Tigers and White Sox have a clear edge over the Twins. The Tigers rotation with Justin Verlander, Edwin Jackson, rookie Rick Porcello, and newcomer Jared Washburn is strong and their closer Fernando Rodney has only blown 1 of 22 save opportunities this season. The White Sox starting staff might be even superior to the Tigers' if Jake Peavy can come back from his injury in September and regain his top form. Having Peavy and Mr. Perfect Mark Buehrle at the top of the rotation can not only vault the Sox to the division title but it can give them a puncher's chance to reach the World Series. The Twins on the other hand lack the front line starters that the Tigers and White Sox have. Nick Blackburn, Scott Baker, and Kevin Slowey are, at best, slightly above average and Francisco Liriano has been a major injury-plagued disappointment after starting his career with an outstanding 2006 season. The Twins have 2 of the best position players in the American League in Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau, but I think their lack of pitching will keep them from getting into the postseason.
I predict that the White Sox will wind up on top of the AL Central for the 2nd year in a row. The Sox have a little more pop in the middle of their lineup than the Tigers with veteran sluggers Jermaine Dye, Paul Konerko, and Jim Thome, along with last year's 5th placed finisher in AL MVP voting, Carlos Quentin. Last year's AL Central race came down to the very end with the Sox beating the Twins in a one game playoff. One can hope that this year's race will come down to the final day of the season as well.
The AL Central race is shaping up to be a very tight race with the Tigers, White Sox, and Twins separated by only 2 and 1/2 games. The Tigers and White Sox each made a nice acquisition at the trading deadline to bolster their pitching staff. The Tigers picked up Jared Washburn and the White Sox traded for Padres ace Jake Peavy, who is currently injured but may me able to return later this season. These moves were important because both the Tigers and White Sox have not exactly distinguished themselves from the rest of the mediocre AL Central. The Tigers have the worst record of any division leader in baseball at 55-50 and the White Sox spent nearly all of May and June under the .500 mark. The Twins have not stood out from the pack either as they have been hovering around the .500 mark the entire season; they have been no worse than 5 games under .500 and no better than 3 games over .500.
In terms of pitching, the Tigers and White Sox have a clear edge over the Twins. The Tigers rotation with Justin Verlander, Edwin Jackson, rookie Rick Porcello, and newcomer Jared Washburn is strong and their closer Fernando Rodney has only blown 1 of 22 save opportunities this season. The White Sox starting staff might be even superior to the Tigers' if Jake Peavy can come back from his injury in September and regain his top form. Having Peavy and Mr. Perfect Mark Buehrle at the top of the rotation can not only vault the Sox to the division title but it can give them a puncher's chance to reach the World Series. The Twins on the other hand lack the front line starters that the Tigers and White Sox have. Nick Blackburn, Scott Baker, and Kevin Slowey are, at best, slightly above average and Francisco Liriano has been a major injury-plagued disappointment after starting his career with an outstanding 2006 season. The Twins have 2 of the best position players in the American League in Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau, but I think their lack of pitching will keep them from getting into the postseason.
I predict that the White Sox will wind up on top of the AL Central for the 2nd year in a row. The Sox have a little more pop in the middle of their lineup than the Tigers with veteran sluggers Jermaine Dye, Paul Konerko, and Jim Thome, along with last year's 5th placed finisher in AL MVP voting, Carlos Quentin. Last year's AL Central race came down to the very end with the Sox beating the Twins in a one game playoff. One can hope that this year's race will come down to the final day of the season as well.
Monday, August 3, 2009
MLB Progress Report - AL East
As the 2009 calendar turns to August, we are close to two thirds of the way through this year's MLB regular season. The non-waiver trade deadline has passed and the pennant races are heating up. Over the next few days I will offer up my takes on the playoff races. Today I will discuss the AL East.
American League East
As it stands here on August 3rd, the Yankees and Red Sox are tied atop the AL East in the loss column with the Tampa Bay Rays 6 games back. I will dismiss the Rays as a contender because they have been inconsistent nearly the entire season. Their bullpen is shaky and while their starting rotation is nice, they lack the dominant starter or two that the Yankees and Red Sox have. In addition, Evan Longoria and Carlos Pena have been major disappointments the past 2 months after each had red hot starts. The dropoff for Longoria has been particularly stunning. Longoria was on a record RBI pace in the middle of May and he finished May with 55 RBI's. In June and July he had 23 RBI's total. Even more discouraging for Rays fans is Longoria's .209 batting average in June and July. Carlos Pena has never hit for a high average but after hitting .231 in April and May, his batting average during June and July was .201, while his homerun production was cut in half during those months. When your #3 and #4 hitters are in major slumps, it puts you at big disadvantage and I don't see how the Rays can make up a 6 game deficit to catch either the Yankees or Red Sox in the standings.
The Yankees will host the Red Sox for a big 4 game series this upcoming weekend looking to finally beat the Red Sox after losing the first 8 meetings of the season. Despite their 0-8 record vs. Boston this year, I would favor the Yankees to win this weekend's series and ultimately outlast the Red Sox to win the AL East. The Red Sox have been struggling with their offense since the All Star Break and John Smoltz has not been good since making his Red Sox debut mid-season. The Red Sox did get healthy over the weekend though by sweeping their perennial whipping boys, the Baltimore Orioles. (Over the past 4 seasons, the Red Sox have a 50-17 record vs. the Orioles.)
The Yankees meanwhile have been red hot. Prior to losing 3 out of 4 to the White Sox this past weekend, the Yankees had won 9 of their previous 10 series. To be blunt, the Yankees should be in 1st place with the offseason moves that they made. The Yankees signed 3 of the top available free agents in the offseason, CC Sabathia, Mark Teixiera, and AJ Burnett, by throwing significantly more money at the players than their next best offers. Adding those big names to the stable of proven Yankee veterans and talented youngsters, the Yankees have the best team in the league on paper, as they have for much of this decade. While World Series championships are not won on paper, regular season games are and the Yankees are a virtual lock to reach the postseason. When it comes to the postseason, however, the Yankees have proven to be failures. Only 5 players remain from the 2004 team that choked away a 3 games to none ALCS lead to the Red Sox, but there have been several other players who have been with the Yankees for their 2006 and 2007 playoff flameouts.
The X-factors for the Yankees' postseason chances this year will be their strong young pitchers, Joba Chamberlain and Phil Hughes. Chamberlain has always had great stuff, but as a starting pitcher he has been mostly erratic, often struggling to reach the 7th inning. Since the All Star Break Chamberlain has been very good in his 3 starts, pitching 21 and 2/3 innings while giving up 2 runs and 8 hits combined in the 3 starts. A dominant Chamberlain would give the Yankees a huge edge in the postseason because Sabathia and Burnett have been just a little bit above average as starters this season and projected #2 starter Chien-Ming Wang is out for the season after having a pitched terribly all season long. Meanwhile, Phil Hughes has been great as the 8th inning reliever; he has given up only 1 run in his last 18 appearances spanning 23 and 2/3 innings. A dominant Hughes-Rivera combination will harken back to the days of the late 90's when the great Yankees bullpen was the biggest reason for their postseason success.
Even if the Red Sox can not beat out the Yankees for the AL East title, I do like their chances to win the wildcard, although the Texas Rangers have impressively hung around and only trail the Sox by 2 and 1/2 games. The Red Sox nucleus of Pedroia, Youkilis, Ortiz, Beckett, Wakefield, and Papelbon has only known success and the depth of their pitching staff and bullpen gives them an edge over the Rangers, in my eyes.
American League East
As it stands here on August 3rd, the Yankees and Red Sox are tied atop the AL East in the loss column with the Tampa Bay Rays 6 games back. I will dismiss the Rays as a contender because they have been inconsistent nearly the entire season. Their bullpen is shaky and while their starting rotation is nice, they lack the dominant starter or two that the Yankees and Red Sox have. In addition, Evan Longoria and Carlos Pena have been major disappointments the past 2 months after each had red hot starts. The dropoff for Longoria has been particularly stunning. Longoria was on a record RBI pace in the middle of May and he finished May with 55 RBI's. In June and July he had 23 RBI's total. Even more discouraging for Rays fans is Longoria's .209 batting average in June and July. Carlos Pena has never hit for a high average but after hitting .231 in April and May, his batting average during June and July was .201, while his homerun production was cut in half during those months. When your #3 and #4 hitters are in major slumps, it puts you at big disadvantage and I don't see how the Rays can make up a 6 game deficit to catch either the Yankees or Red Sox in the standings.
The Yankees will host the Red Sox for a big 4 game series this upcoming weekend looking to finally beat the Red Sox after losing the first 8 meetings of the season. Despite their 0-8 record vs. Boston this year, I would favor the Yankees to win this weekend's series and ultimately outlast the Red Sox to win the AL East. The Red Sox have been struggling with their offense since the All Star Break and John Smoltz has not been good since making his Red Sox debut mid-season. The Red Sox did get healthy over the weekend though by sweeping their perennial whipping boys, the Baltimore Orioles. (Over the past 4 seasons, the Red Sox have a 50-17 record vs. the Orioles.)
The Yankees meanwhile have been red hot. Prior to losing 3 out of 4 to the White Sox this past weekend, the Yankees had won 9 of their previous 10 series. To be blunt, the Yankees should be in 1st place with the offseason moves that they made. The Yankees signed 3 of the top available free agents in the offseason, CC Sabathia, Mark Teixiera, and AJ Burnett, by throwing significantly more money at the players than their next best offers. Adding those big names to the stable of proven Yankee veterans and talented youngsters, the Yankees have the best team in the league on paper, as they have for much of this decade. While World Series championships are not won on paper, regular season games are and the Yankees are a virtual lock to reach the postseason. When it comes to the postseason, however, the Yankees have proven to be failures. Only 5 players remain from the 2004 team that choked away a 3 games to none ALCS lead to the Red Sox, but there have been several other players who have been with the Yankees for their 2006 and 2007 playoff flameouts.
The X-factors for the Yankees' postseason chances this year will be their strong young pitchers, Joba Chamberlain and Phil Hughes. Chamberlain has always had great stuff, but as a starting pitcher he has been mostly erratic, often struggling to reach the 7th inning. Since the All Star Break Chamberlain has been very good in his 3 starts, pitching 21 and 2/3 innings while giving up 2 runs and 8 hits combined in the 3 starts. A dominant Chamberlain would give the Yankees a huge edge in the postseason because Sabathia and Burnett have been just a little bit above average as starters this season and projected #2 starter Chien-Ming Wang is out for the season after having a pitched terribly all season long. Meanwhile, Phil Hughes has been great as the 8th inning reliever; he has given up only 1 run in his last 18 appearances spanning 23 and 2/3 innings. A dominant Hughes-Rivera combination will harken back to the days of the late 90's when the great Yankees bullpen was the biggest reason for their postseason success.
Even if the Red Sox can not beat out the Yankees for the AL East title, I do like their chances to win the wildcard, although the Texas Rangers have impressively hung around and only trail the Sox by 2 and 1/2 games. The Red Sox nucleus of Pedroia, Youkilis, Ortiz, Beckett, Wakefield, and Papelbon has only known success and the depth of their pitching staff and bullpen gives them an edge over the Rangers, in my eyes.
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