It All Comes Down To The Postseason For LeBron James

Great players are defined by the number of championships that they win and how they play in the postseason and in crutch time of the playoffs when it matters the most.

That doesn't mean that you can just look at the number of championships that two player have won and determine which player is better just on that number. For example, Robert Horry's 7 NBA championships doesn't make him a better player than Oscar Robertson, who won just one NBA championship in 1971 with the Milwaukee Bucks. Steve Kerr's 5 NBA championships doesn't make him a better player than Hakeem Olajuwon, who won just two NBA championships in 1994 and 1995 with the Houston Rockets.

However, the greatest players who have ever played in the NBA are separated by their performance in the postseason. For example, Karl Malone has the second most career points in NBA history, while his longtime teammate from 1985 to 2003 with the Utah Jazz, John Stockton, holds the NBA record for most career assists. However, both Malone and Stockton will never be considered two of the greatest players of all-time because they never won an NBA championship although they made the playoffs every year together and made two NBA finals in 1997 and 1998 but fell to Michael Jordan and his Bulls both times.

LeBron James can do whatever he wants in the regular season but it won't matter because his legacy will be defined by his play in the postseason.

Obviously, that doesn't mean that LeBron can go chill and grab a sandwich until the playoffs roll around, but we all know what LeBron is going to give us in the regular season. His regular season average is going to be around 27 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists because that is what LeBron puts up every year. Following his rookie season, his averages in the regular season for the last 7 years have been 28.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 7.1 assists.

There are still reasons to watch LeBron during the regular season.

It will be interesting to see if he has developed a post-up game, which would be a huge threat considering his passing ability and the fact that he is a huge 6 foot 8 inch small forward that can play anywhere from point guard to power forward. During the summer, LeBron worked with Rocket's great center Hakeem Olajuwon to improve his post-up game. LeBron said, "Just to see how he was able to dominate in the low post, for me as an individual, I just try to look at some of the things I feel I need to get better and hit home at it."

It will also be intriguing to see if LeBron is finally committed to being more aggressive in attacking the rim instead of settling for long jumpers and threes. Through the Heat's first three games LeBron has not even attempted a three point shot, while last season he averaged about 3.5 three point attempts per game. With his more aggressive and attack minded mentality, LeBron has been getting to the free throw line much more often. Through his first three games, LeBron is averaging 12.3 free-throw attempts per game, while last season he averaged about 8 a game.

However, until LeBron proves that he can get it done in June and win an NBA championship, he will never be one of the greatest NBA players to ever play the game and he will still have a ton of doubters.

LeBron will have to be able to get over the pressure of playing in an NBA finals and play like he did in the conference finals last year against the Bulls. In game 2 of that series, LeBron scored 9 of the Heat's 14 points in the 4th quarter to close out the Bulls after the game was tied at 73 with 5 minutes remaining. In the next game, LeBron once again scored 9 points in the 4th quarter to help the Heat beat the Bulls by 11 after they were up by just 3 at the beginning of the quarter. In game 4, LeBron scored 6 points in the the final 1:36 of overtime to extend the Heat's lead from 91-89 to 101-93 by the end of overtime. In game 5, LeBron hit a three point shot to tie the game at 79 with a minute remaining and then hit a jumper with just 29 seconds left in the game to give the Heat a 81-79 lead. LeBron averaged just under 26 points during the 5 game series with the Bulls.

However, if the LeBron that closed out the Bulls doesn't show up, the LeBron that was practically invisible in the 4th quarter of the NBA finals against the Mavericks will once again be without an NBA championship after this season and many more to come. In the NBA finals, LeBron averaged just 17 points per game (9 points less than in the Eastern Conference Finals) and struggled mightily in the 4th quarter. In the 6 game NBA finals against the Mavericks, LeBron scored a total of 18 points and averaged just 3 points in the final frame. When superstars are supposed to shine and great players are supposed to be made, LeBron failed to raise to the occasion.

John Skelton Will Need To Limit His Turnovers Against The Bengals

John Skelton Will Need To Limit The Turnovers For The Cardinals: In the last 6 games, John Skelton has been pretty solid, as the Cardinals are 5-1 with wins over the Eagles in Philly and the 49ers at home. In fact, with Kevin Kolb behind center, the Cardinals are just 2-6 including a 6 game losing streak that they went on earlier this season. Therefore, with Kevin Kolb out once again with a concussion, it may actually be a blessing in disguise for the Cardinals, who need a win and some help to stay in the playoff race. The only knock on Skelton can be his turnover problem. In his last 6 games, Skelton has thrown 10 interceptions including 4 multi interception games. Luckily for Skelton, the Bengals rank second to last in the league in interceptions with just 7 all season. If Skelton does turn the ball over against the Bengals, it will be costly because the Bengals don't give the ball back, as only the Patriots, Browns, and Titans have fewer giveaways than the Bengals.

The Quarterback Matchup Will Be The Key In The Raiders-Chiefs Game

Carson Palmer vs Kyle Orton: At the beginning of this season, Carson Palmer was refusing to play any longer for the Cincinnati Bengals and was asking owner Mike Brown for a trade and Kyle Orton was the starting quarterback for the Denver Broncos. After Jason Campbell was injured, Carson Palmer was traded to the Raiders and after Orton was dropped in favor of Tim Tebow, he was picked up by the Chiefs. Now, the two meet in a huge AFC West divisional game. Palmer is finally starting to get into a grove with his new team and he is beginning to run the offense with much more efficiency. After throwing 7 interceptions in his first 3 games with the team, Palmer has settled down and played much better. He has thrown for over 300 yards in two of his last four games. Although Orton has started just one game with the Chiefs, in that game his Chiefs pulled off the upset of the season when they beat the 13-0 Packers 19-14. Orton threw for 299 yard on 23 of 31 passing in their huge victory. Whichever quarterback has the better game will likely be sitting in the winner's circle after the game. 

Chris Johnson Will Need To Show Up For The Titans Against The Jaguars

What Chris Johnson Will Show Up For The Titans: This offseason Chris Johnson got paid the big money that he so desperately wanted. He signed a four-year extension worth 53 million dollars with 30 million dollars guaranteed. Since Johnson signed his new contract, he has been widely inconsistent. In games, where Chris Johnson has run for at least 65 yards, the Titans are 4-0. In games, where Johnson has run for less than 65 yards, the Titans are 3-7. It appeared that Johnson had turned the corner when he ran for 190 yards in a 23-17 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and then had a 153 yard rushing game in a 23-17 victory over the Buffalo Bills in week 13. However, in the last two weeks Johnson has really struggled in two straight Titans losses, as he has not run for over 55 yards in either game. Chris Johnson will need to have a solid game because in the Titans and Jaguars first meeting he ran for just 24 yards in a 16-14 Titans loss.

The Bills Will Need To Stop The Broncos Running Attack

The Bills Ability To Stop The Broncos Running Attack: Tim Tebow is not exactly accustomed to the cold weather. He grew up in Jacksonville and then played college football at Florida. When Tebow travels to Buffalo to take on the Bills, the game time temperature is going to be in the low 30's and it will be Tebow's first cold weather start of his career from high school to college to the NFL. Tebow said, "I've never worn sleeves, but I've been wearing sleeves in practice this week to try to get used to that." Even when the weather is not bad, the Broncos opponents see a heavy dose of the run but especially with the cold weather in Bufflo, the Bills defense should be ready for a lot of Tebow and McGahee running from out of the backfield. The Broncos, which rank 1st in the NFL in rushing yard per game at 163.1, will likely try to run the ball around 50 times, which they also did against the Chiefs in week 10 and the Chargers in week 12. Luckily for Tebow and the Broncos, the Bills struggle to stop the run. They rank 28th in the league in rushing yards allowed per game at 139.5, 29th in rushing yards per attempt at 4.8, and 29th in rushing touchdowns allowed with 16. If the Bills struggle to stop the run once again on Saturday, it will be a long day in Buffalo for the Bills, who have lost 7 straight after starting 5-2.

The Most Disappointing NFL Teams

1. San Diego Chargers: If you mull over the San Diego Chargers team numbers, it is hard to believe that they sit in 3rd place in their divisional race. Despite being ranked in the top 10 in the offensive categories of yards per game, passing yards per game, and points per game, the Chargers will need serious help to get into the playoffs. The Chargers, who usually start slow and heat up in November, did the opposite of that this season. They started off the season hot with a 4-1 record, but then they went on a 6 game losing streak to fall to 4-7. One of the main problems for the Chargers during their skid was Phillip River's turnover issue. In just the Chargers first 10 games, he had 17 interceptions including 10 picks in their 6 game losing streak. To put that in perspective, in the last two seasons combined Aaron Rodgers has thrown 17 interceptions, while Rivers threw 17 picks in a 10 game span this year. With Anotnio Gates declining in his 9th year in the league and having his worst season since his rookie year in 2003 and Malcom Floyd missing some time with a hip injury, Rivers has often forced way too many balls to Vincent Jackson. If the Chargers don't make the playoffs, it will be the first time since 2002 and 2003 that the Chargers failed to make the playoffs in two consecutive seasons.

2. Philadelphia Eagles: After the NFLPA and the owners agreed to a deal to end the lockout, the talk of the offseason was the Philadelphia Eagles. The Birds, who won the NFC East in 2010, made a huge splash in free agency by spending a ton of money. They signed quarterback Vince Young, running back Ronnie Brown, defensive end Jason Babin, defensive tackle Cullen Jenkins, and cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha, while they also traded for cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. Vince Young went as far as saying that his new team was a "Dream Team." However, the so called "Dream Team" has not lived up to the hype. The Eagles began the season 1-4 and after a week 13 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, the Birds were sitting at 4-8. Michael Vick has been banged up all season long with a rib injury and their defense has been very susceptible to the run. DeSean Jackson is also having the worst season of his young career, as talks about his contract are continuing to swirl around Philly. Despite the Eagles last two victories to improve to 6-8, they will still need two victories and a Giants loss to the Jets and then a Giants victory over the Cowboys in week 17 to make the playoffs.

3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: In 2009, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were 3-13 and had their worst season since they went 2-14 in 1986. However, last year they were one of the pleasant surprises of the NFL, as they increased their win total by 7 games and had an impressive 10-6 year. Following their solid 2010 season, the Buccaneers have been one of the biggest disappointments this season in the NFL. A big reason for their struggles has been the very poor play of their defensive unit. They rank 2nd to last in points allowed per game at 28.6 and third to last in rushing yards allowed per game at 141.1. They have only held one opponent all season to less than 17 points and they have not held an opponent to less than 24 points in their current 8 game losing streak, as their opponents are averaging 32 points per game in this 8 game skid. Josh Freeman has also experienced a huge problem with turnovers. After throwing just 6 interceptions last year, Freeman has already thrown 18 interceptions, which is tied for the most in the NFC with Redskins quarterback Rex Grossman. In the Buccaneers current 8 game losing streak, Freeman has thrown 12 interceptions including a four pick game against the Bears and a three pick game against the Texans.

The Most Surprising NFL Teams

1. Cincinnati Bengals: After a disastrous 4-12 season in 2010 and Carson Palmer refusing to play any longer for the Bengals and asking owner Mike Brown for a trade, the Bengals have had one of the most impressive turnarounds of any NFL team this season. Their great success has been led by their first round pick A.J. Green and their second round pick Andy Dalton, who have formed an incredible connection on the offense side of the ball. A.J. Green has over 1,000 receiving yards and is just the fourth player since 1999 to have over 1,000 receiving yards as a rookie, joining just Anquan Boldin in 2003, Michael Clayton in 2004, and Marques Colston in 2006. The only passer ratings better than Dalton's 81.0 since 1999 are Matt Ryan's passer rating of 87.7 in 2008 and Ben Roethlisberger's passer rating of 98.1 in 2004. The Bengals, who started 6-2, now sit at 8-6 and are currently tied for the final AFC Wild Card spot with the Jets.

2. Denver Broncos: After a 1-4 start, most Broncos fans were turning to the NFL draft in April and hoping that their team would get the number 1 overall pick and be able to take Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck. And then Tebow-mania began. Since Tim Tebow took over as the Broncos starting quarterback, Denver is 7-2 including a 6 game win streak that they went on before they fell to the Patriots last week. Tebow, the most polarizing figure in the NFL, has captured the attention of the nation by his incredible 4th quarter comebacks. In his first start on the road in Miami against the Dolphins in week 7 with the Broncos down 15-0, he led two touchdown drives plus a two point conversion in the final 5 minutes of the game before a Matt Prater field goal won the game in overtime. In week 11 against the Jets, Tebow led a 95-yard touchdown drive in the final 5 minutes to top the Jets 17-13. In week 14 against the Bears, with the Broncos down 10-0 with under 5 minutes remaining in the game, Tebow threw a touchdown pass to Demaryius Thomas before setting up a Matt Prater field goal with seconds remaining in regulation. The Broncos would win the game in overtime after another Prater field goal 13 to 10. Currently, the Broncos sit atop the AFC West at 8-6.

3. Detroit Lions: Although many people really liked the Detroit Lions this off-season and predicated that they would make the playoffs, the Lions are still a surprise considering that they finished at the bottom of the NFC North last season at 6-10. They key to the Lions success has been a healthy Matthew Stafford. After missing a total of 19 games in 2009 and 2010, Stafford has played in all 14 games this season with the Lions and his connection with Calvin Johnson, also known as Megatron, has been deadly. Stafford, who ranks in the top 5 of nearly every passing category, has thrown 14 touchdown passes to Megatron. Only the Packers, Saints, and the Patriots have scored more points this season than the Lions, who have scored 24 pointsor more in 9 games this season. If the Lions win one of their final two games against the Chargers or the Packers on the road in Green Bay, they would clinch a playoff spot for the first time since 1999.

4. San Francisco 49ers: Jim Harbaugh, the former Stanford head coach, has changed the culture in San Francisco. After a 6-10 season in 2010, the 49ers are currently 11-3 and have already clinched their first NFC west title since 2002 and just their second since 1997. The 49ers have been led by an incredible defense. They have allowed just over 13 points per game, which is the best in the NFL and is 6 points better than the Seahawks, who rank 2nd in the NFC in points allowed per game at 19.5. The 49ers defense is led by their great linebackering core of NaVorro Bowman and the always great Patrick Willis. Alex Smith has also had a career saving season. The former numer 1 pick is having his best season in the NFL in his 7th year in the league, as Harbaugh has instilled a lot of confidence in his quarterback. Smith has taken great care of the ball this season and has made plays when he has needed to. Smith has thrown just 5 interceptions this season.

Kellen Moore Will Go Down As One Of The Greatest College Football Quarterbacks Of All-Time

Kellen Moore completed his career in a fitting fashion last night as the Boise St. Broncos beat the Arizona St. Sun Devils in the MAACO Bowl Las Vegas 56-24. Moore captured his 50th college football win in 4 seasons and once again proved that despite being apart of a non-AQ conference, the Broncos can beat the so called "big boys." Moore also threw for over 275 yards for the 9th time in 2011 and the 27th time in his career.

When the question is asked, who is the greatest college football quarterback of all-time, there are a wide variety of different responses.

Some fans would argue that Florida quarterback Tim Tebow was the greatest quarterback to ever play the college game. Not only did the 2007 Heisman Trophy winner play with more passion and bring more excitement to the game than any other quarterback in history, but he also achieved a lot in his career. In his freshman year in 2006, Tebow helped Florida win the BCS National Championship as a key contributor to the team, despite being the backup quarterback. In 2008, Tebow led Florida to a National Championship once again, as the 13-1 Gators beat Sam Bradford and the Oklahoma Sooners 24-14 in the title game. In that championship game, Tebow put together one of the most memorable 4th quarters in college football history, as he was 11 of 11 for 148 yards and 2 touchdowns, while also rushing for 45 yards in the final period.

Although Nebraska quarterback Tommie Frazier never won a Heisman trophy, he is often given consideration as the best college football quarterback of all-time. Frazier, who started for the Cornhuskers from his freshman year, led Nebraska to a BCS bowl game every year during his four year career and his Cornhuskers didn't lose a regular season game in his final three seasons. Despite losing the 1994 National Championship to Florida St., Frazier led the Cornhuskers to two straight National Championships in 1995 and 1996, including a 62-24 beatdown of Florida in the 1996 Fiesta Bowl. He won three straight National Championship Game MVP awards as well.

There are also arguments for many other college football quarterbacks as the greatest of all-time at the position. "Slingin" Sammy Baugh of TCU, Vince Young of Texas, Archie Manning of Ole Miss, Matt Leinart of USC, Doug Flutie of Boston College, John Elway of Stanford, Charlie Ward of Florida St., and Davey O"Brien of TCU are also all in the discussion.

Looking back at the career of Boise St.'s Kellen Moore, the Broncos star should also be in the discussion as one of the best college football quarterbacks of all-time.

Just looking at the pure statistical numbers that Moore put up don't tell the whole story of his impressive career, but they are still among the most impressive of any quarterback in college football history. Kellen's Moore passer rating was in the top 4 of the FBS every year in his final three seasons at Boise and his 182.6 passer rating in 2010 was the 3rd highest passer rating for a single season at the time. Moore's career passer rating of 169.2 is the third highest in FBS history, only slightly behind Tim Tebow and Sam Bradford. Kellen Moore was in the top 4 of the FBS in completion percentage in 3 of his 4 year's at Boise St and his 74.1 completion percentage in 2011 was the 3rd highest completion percentage for a single season in FBS history. Moore's career completion percentage of 69.6 is the 4th highest in FBS history. Moore also ranks 7th in career pass completions, 4th in career passing yards, 7th in career passing yards per attempt, 2nd in career passing touchdowns, and 3rd in career passing efficiency.

As good as those numbers are, the most impressive stat of Moore's is his ability to win games. In four seasons, Moore had an incredible record of 50-3, as his Broncos won 12 games in 2008, 2010, and 2011 and 14 games in 2009. His 50 wins are the most in college football history, 5 more than Colt McCoy's 45 wins from 2006 to 2009 with the Texas Longhorns. Moore's three losses were by a combined 5 points. Although many of Moore's wins came against far weaker opponents, it still takes outstanding play to win 50 games no matter what conference you play in. When Moore and his Broncos did play against AQ schools, they always ended up in the winning circle. Moore was 6-0 in his four year career against AQ opponents including victories over #17 Oregon on the road in 2008, another victory over #16 Oregon in 2009, a huge win over #10 Virginia Tech last year, and finally a win over #19 Georgia this season.

Moore may have even played a larger role in the grand scheme of college football. Because of the strong play of Moore and his Broncos, the BCS is likely going to scrap its automatic qualifying system to give every team a so called "even" opportunity to play in a BCS game. In fact, the 2009 Boise St. team is the only non-AQ school to ever receive an a-large bid into the BCS.

Whether the 6-foot Moore, who has limited arm strength, can be a good NFL quarterback remains to be seen. However, his college football career will go down as one of the greatest for a quarterback in history.

The Xavier-Cincinnati Rivalry Should Continue

Most people assume that the North Carolina-Duke rivalry is the closest major rivalry in college sports, as the two schools are located just eight miles from each other in North Carolina. However, the closest major rivalry in college sports is actually between the Ohio arch rivalries Xavier and Cincinnati, as the two schools are separated by just three miles. The close proximity of the schools and the fact that many of the kids who play in the game are from Ohio and played high school basketball against each other, make the rivalry one of the nastiest and fiercest in college basketball.

Leading up to the game this year on December 10th, the rivalry seemed to be even more heated than usual. Xavier, an undefeated and top 10 team, was looking for revenge after they lost by 20 points on the road to Cincinnati in their previous meeting. Prior to the game, there was a lot of chatter between players on both teams, especially Cincinnati, through social media, which added a lot of fire to the already heated rivalry. In an interview before the game, Cincinnati starter Sean Kilpatrick called out Tu Holloway. What asked if he was a better player than the preseason all-American, Kilpatrick said, "I'll let the fans decide," before saying, "Yes I am." When Kilpatrick was asked if Holloway would start for Cincinnati, he said, "Would he, with the players we have now? I would say no?" Then after the first half expired, Mark Lyons began to get into it with a few Cincinnati players that came off of the bench. All of the trash talking plus the game being between two heated rivals was all leading up to something bad. You could just feel it. 

With the game out of hand and the Cincinnati players frustrated after being down by 23 points, 76-53, all hell broke lose and a bench clearing brawl marred a great rivalry and a quality Xavier win. The fight between the two clubs was a disgrace to both universities and an embarrassment to both basketball programs and their players. Watching the tape of the brawl, which ended the game despite there being 9.4 seconds remaining on the clock, makes the fight seem more and more of a shame. Xavier center Kenny Frease was hit by a right forearm punch by Cincinnati center Yancy Gates and was then kicked by Cincinnati's Cheikh Mbodj, while he was bleeding out of his left eye from the punch from Gates. Punches were being thrown from all different angles from Xavier and Cincinnati players including Xavier starters Dezmine Wells and Mark Lyons.

The fight has received incredible national attention and even legal attention. Cincinnati coach Mick Cronin said, "It's a shame... I have never been this embarrassed in my entire career. It's a complete embarrassment. Toughness is doing the right thing. You take your ass-whipping and go home. If my players don't act the right way, they will never play another game at Cincinnati... The whole thing is frustrating because it shouldn't have happened." Cincinnati president Gregory H. Wiliams said in a statement, "We hold our student-athletes to a high standard, and this behavior will not be tolerated." Xavier coach Chris Mack tweeted, "If my players say they've been taught to be tough their whole life, they mean ON THE FLOOR. Nothing else is condoned." In a later tweet he said, "No one, no regrets our ending to the UC game more than me... Both teams were at fault." Xavier president Michael J. Graham said in a statement, "This behavior was not representative of Xavier's standards and has no place in intercollegiate athletics." Coaches from around the country entered into the discussion about the brawl. Kansas St. coach Frank Martin, who is considered by many to be the most intense and toughest coach in all of college basketball said, "It's a rivalry that's deeper than the game. But there's no place for that. We have to preach to our guys to never cross the line and that toughness on the street is a different word than toughness in education." 

The embarrassment of the brawl and the suspensions have already hurt both programs. Xavier, which was ranked in the top 10 and was 8-0 with wins over Vanderbilt, Purdue, and Butler, were hammered in their first game after the brawl by Oral Roberts 64-42, as Tu Holloway, Mark Lyons, and Dezmine Wells, the teams three leading scorers were unable to play. Meanwhile, Cincinnati still has to play Oklahoma and #13 Pittsburgh on the road without Yancy Gates.

Obviously, it is going to take some time to rebuild the image of these programs. However, the Xavier-Cincinnati rivalry should continue and the in-state rivals should continue to play each other every year. The brawl this season was a horrible scene, but if the rivalry was removed for this one incident, it would still be a shame.

The two teams have played each other 79 times dating back to their first meeting in 1928 and they have met once every season since the 1942. To put in perspective how historic this non-conference rivalry is, Kentucky and Louisville have played each other just 42 times and the Holy War between Villanova and St. Joe's has been played just 68 times. Therefore, it would be a shame to see these two great programs end their long and storied rivalry.

The Crosstown shootout, which the rivalry is also called, is a matchup that has had some great moments, especially in the last two decades. In 1996, Cincinnati, led by future first round pick Danny Fortson, were the #1 team in the country when unranked Xavier pulled off the huge upset over the Bearcats 71-69. In 1999, Xavier once again beat Cincinnati when the Bearcats were ranked #1 in the country, as they pulled off the huge upset 66-64 at home.

The two schools should continue to play but there obviously needs to be changes made to the rivalry. The biggest solution to the problem is to play the game on a neutral floor instead of at one of the school's campus. Since 2000, the teams have alternated from playing on Xavier's home floor at the Cintas Center to playing on Cincinnati's home floor at Fifth Third Arena. However, the rivalry should go back to playing on a neutral floor like Cincinnati Gardens, which has hosted 42 Crosstown shootouts including nearly every one of the rivalry games from 1948 to 1974. Although the game may lose a bit of its flavor by moving to a neutral site, the strong emotions of an entirely pro-Xavier crowd or an entirely pro-Cincinnati crowd, would help keep the players emotions in check.

Xavier athletic director Mike Bobinski has openly said that he would still like to continue the series with the Bearcats. He said, "We need to grow up. We have a chance to do things right and I don't think the right move is to walk away from this [rivalry]."

The Gildan New Mexico Bowl Preview

Obviously, the main attraction of every college football bowl season is the BCS games including the BCS  National Championship. However, some of the best plays and games come from the non-BCS bowl games. Here is a breakdown of the Gildan New Mexico Bowl from Albuquerque, which kicks off the bowl season on December 17th.

Gildan New Mexico Bowl in Albuquerque, New Mexico between Temple (8-4, 5-3 MAC) and Wyoming (8-4, 5-2 MWC) on December 17th: The Temple Owls are very proud to be in just their fourth bowl game in program history and their second in three years. Its only other two bowl game appearances were in 1979 when it beat the Cal Bears in the Garden State Bowl and in 1925 when it lost to Tulane in the Sugar Bowl. The Owls have one of the most underrated running backs in the country, as Bernard Pierce was second in the FBS amongst running backs in touchdowns with 25 and he even had a 5 touchdown game against Maryland on the road in one of his 6 multiple touchdown games. The Owls will be able to score on the Wyoming defense, which allowed an average of over 35 points per game against bowl opponenets. Temple are led by their tough defense though. It ranked 3rd in the FBS, only behind LSU and Alabama who are playing in the BCS National Championship, in points allowed at 13.8 per game. The Owls held Penn St. to 14 points in a near upset in September. The Owls defense will be the key in their victory over Wyoming.
Winner: Temple

An Overview Of The BCS Bowl Games

Obviously, every college football fan looks forward to the BCS bowl games including the BCS National Championship and this year features an incredible slate of BCS games, which fans should be very intrigued about.

In the Rose Bowl, two of the best running backs in the country, Montee Ball of Wisconsin and LaMichael James of Oregon, will meet in a game that features two of the top 4 scoring teams in the FBS. Wisconsin is playing in the grandaddy of them all for the second consecutive year, while Oregon is playing in its second Rose Bowl in three years. However, Wisconsin hasn't won a Rose Bowl since 1994 when they beat UCLA 21-16 and Oregon hasn't won a rose bowl game in almost 100 years since 1917 when the Ducks beat Pennsylvania 14-0.

For fans that love to watch great offenses and teams that score a lot of points, the Fiesta Bowl and definitely not the BCS National Championship is the game to watch. Oklahoma St., led by the lethal aerial connection of Brandon Weeden and all-American Justin Blackmon, will be playing in their first BCS bowl against the Stanford Cardinals, who are led by Heisman runner-up and future number 1 pick, Andrew Luck. Both teams have potent offenses that ranked within the top 5 in scoring in the FBS.

For the first time since 2000, the sugar bowl will be a matchup where neither team is from the SEC. However, the matchup of Michigan and Virginia Tech, two of the most high profile schools in the country with two of the largest fan bases in the country, is going to be a huge attraction. While Virginia Tech has dominated the ACC and is in its sixth BCS game and its fourth since 2008, Michigan is appearing in its first BCS game since the 2007 Rose Bowl.

Although the Orange Bowl is once again the least attractive of the BCS games, it does feature two teams that can score a lot of points. Clemson quarterback Tajh Boyd is in the top 10 of the FBS in passing yards and touchdowns, many of which go to his big time freshman receiver Sammy Watkins. The Mountaineers can also score some points and rack up a ton of yards, which they showed even against the incredible defense of LSU. West Virginia ranked 6th in the FBS in passing yards per game. Clemson is just playing in its fourth Orange Bowl and its first since 1982 when they beat Nebraska 22-15. West Virginia is playing in its first BCS bowl game since 2008 when they beat Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl 48-28.

The BCS National Championship is a rematch of the "Game of the Century" played earlier this year when the LSU Tigers beat the Alabama Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa in a defense battle 9-6. The last rematch in a college football National Championship game was back in 1996 when the Florida Gators lost to Florida St. 24-21 in Tallahassee and then went on to beat Florida St. in the National Championship 52-20. The National title game features arguably two of the best defenses in college football history. Alabama ranked 1st in the FBS in points allowed at an incredible 8.8, while LSU finished 2nd allowing 10.5 points per game. Through Alabama's first 10 games, they were allowing just an average of 7.1 points per game including holding 6 of those opponents, Kent St., North Texas, Vanderbilt, Ole Miss, Tennessee, and LSU, to under 10 points. LSU's defense wasn't too far behind. In 8 SEC games and the SEC championship game, LSU allowed an average of less than 10 points per game and held everybody beside Arkansas to less than 11 points. Although the Alabama and LSU offenses should manage to put some more points on the board than in their previous meeting, don't expect an offense shootout with defenses like LSU and Alabama that have so many talented and NFL caliber players.

Montee Ball and Tyrann Mathieu Are Going To Make This Heisman Trophy Race Historically Close

It is very difficult to find an unprecedented circumstance when it comes to college football's most prestigious award, the Heisman Trophy. The trophy has been around since 1935 when Chicago halfback Jay Berwanger won the inaugural award and has seen everything from USC halfback O.J. Simpson winning the award by the largest margin of victory in the 1968 Heisman race to running back Reggie Bush's 2005 Heisman Trophy being vacated because of NCAA violations when he was at USC. The Heisman has also seen its fair share of close calls and narrow margin of victory. In 1985, Auburn running back Bo Jackson narrowly defeated Iowa quarterback Chuck Long by 45 points to win the Heisman. In 2009, running back Mark Ingram won the closest Heisman in history over Stanford running back Toby Gerhart by a slim 28 points. This year's Heisman is not only going to be tight at the top of the list, but it is going to be close all the way down to number 5 because of the fantastic seasons that Montee Ball and Tyrann Mathieu have both had.

It is incredible to look at the numbers that Wisconsin running back Montee Ball has put up, and think that he is probably going to finish in 4th in the Heisman trophy voting. By now, everybody has probably seen the stat that 45 teams in the FBS have scored less touchdowns than Montee Ball this season including high profile schools like Florida, Ohio St., Auburn, Tennessee, and Penn St. Ball has had one of the best statistical seasons for a running back in college football history. He leads the FBS with 1,759 rushing yards and an incredible 32 rushing touchdowns. Ball also has been effective out of the backfield as a reciever, as he has had 6 receiving touchdowns, which is 2nd in the FBS amongst running backs, who have had at least 14 carries this season. Montee has even thrown a touchdown pass against Inidana this season. Ball now holds the Big Ten Conference record for touchdowns in a single season and is just the 5th player in college football history to score 30 touchdowns in a season. His 38 total touchdowns are just one behind the FBS record for tochdowns in a season, which was set in 1988 when Oklahoma St. running back Barry Sanders scored 39 touchdowns. Obviously, Ball has been a scoring machine this season. Ball has reached the end zone at least 3 times in 8 of the Badgers' 13 games this season and he has had a multiple touchdown game in the other 5 as well.

If you look back at previous Heisman Trophy winners and runners-ups at the running back position, their numbers don't compare to the incredible stats of Montee Ball. In 2005, Reggie Bush won the Heisman trophy and received the 2nd most votes in Heisman history with 2,541. In 2006 and 2007 Darren McFadden finished as the runner-up in the Heisman trophy race to Troy Smith and then Tim Tebow the following year. In 2009 Alabama running back Mark Ingram won the Heisman Trophy becoming the first Alabama player to win the prestigious award. However, while it may seem surprising, Ball's stats are far more impressive than Bush's, McFadden's, and Ingram's. In 2005, when the Heisman was awarded to Reggie, he had rushed for 1,1658 yards and just 15 touchdowns. When McFadden lost the Heisman in 2006, he had rushed for 1,558 yards and 14 touchdowns and the next year when he lost the race, he had rushed for 1,725 and 15 touchdowns. When the Heisman was awarded to Ingram in 2009, he had just 1,542 rushing yards and only 15 touchdowns. Ball has rushed for more yards than Bush, McFadden, and Ingram, and while none of them had more than 15 touchdowns, Ball has more than doubled their rushing touchdowns with his 32. With this in mind, voters are going to look at Ball's incredible numbers and the Wisconsn back is going to get a lot of votes even if he does finish in 4th place.

There is no player in college football that makes more big plays than LSU cornerback Tyrann Mathieu, or more commonly known to his teammates as Honey Badger. The Chuck Bednarik award winner, as the nation's best defensive player, has made play after play to keep the Tigers undefeated this season, especially against top ranked opponents.

In the Tiger's huge 40-27 victory over #3 Oregon in their opening game of the season, Mathieu was all over the field, as he made 11 tackles, 6 of them being solo. In the second quarter, with the LSU offense struggling and the Tigers punting the ball back to the Ducks already down by 3 points, Mathieu made a huge play for his team. After Kenjon Barner fielded the punt from LSU punter Brad Wing he tried to spin around Mathieu, but Tyrann wasn't fooled and striped the ball away from Barner and took the ball into the end zone. The play changed the course of the game, as the Tigers took a 9-6 lead and stopped the Duck's offense momentum.

The Tigers can thank the Honey Badger for their big 47-21 victory over #16 West Virginia as well. In the first quarter of that game, Mathieu stripped West Virginia wide receiver Brad Starks and then recovered the football to halt a West Virginia drive. Mathieu sealed the victory for the Tigers during the end of the second quarter. With LSU up 20-7 and the Mountaineers looking to make the game a one score contest, Mathieu intercepted Geno Smith's pass and returned it to the West Virginia 1 yard line, which set up the LSU touchdown and their 27-7 lead at halftime.

Mathieu is also a huge reason that the Tigers were able to beat #3 Arkansas 41-17 and secure a spot in the SEC Championship game. Not only did the Honey Badger have 8 solo tackles during the game, but his big plays helped the Tigers jump out of an early 14-0 hole and outscore the Razorbacks 41-3 for the rest of the game. With Arkansas up 14-7 and expecting to pin the Tigers back deep into their own territory, they punted the ball to Mathieu. What a mistake. The Honey Badger took the punt back 92 yards to the house for the longest punt return for a touchdown all season and tied the game up at 14. Mathieu said, "I could hear my teammates in my ear saying, 'Man, we need you to go make a play.' I was able to help the momentum really go in our favor. You have no idea how bad I just wanted to go out there and make a big play for our team. I was fortunate enough to be able to do that." The Honey Badger wasn't done just yet however. With Arkansas looking to go up before halftime, Mathieu stripped Arkansas running back Dennis Johnson, which set up a LSU touchdown. In the blink of an eye, Mathieu's punt return and forced fumble gave the Tigers a 7 point lead and totally changed the momentum of the game.

Mathieu had his Heisman moments against Georgia in the SEC Championship game. The Bulldogs came out firing against the Tigers and took a 10-0 lead, while the LSU offense remained non-existent. They had just 12 yards of total offense on 5 possessions and were struggling to move the ball on the Georgia defense. With Georgia punting the ball back to LSU, the Tigers needed a play and guess who made it for them? Yes, the Honey Badger. He took the punt from Drew Butler and returned it 62 yards for an LSU touchdown and cut the Bulldogs lead to 3 points. After halftime, Mathieu recovered a fumble at the Georgia 27 yard line, which set up a LSU touchdown and gave them a 14-10 lead. After a three and out on the Bulldogs next possession, Mathieu had his signature Heisman moment. He took a punt 47 yards back to the Georgia 17 yard line after faking out and alluding at least 9 Georgia tacklers. Mathieu's fantastic return set up another Tiger touchdown and gave LSU a 21-10 lead. The LSU offense had mustarded a total of just 51 yards and yet the Tigers were leading 21-10 because of the great punt returns and a fumble recovery by Mathieu.

If you look back at the previous Heisman Trophy winners, many of them have won the Heisman trophy because of the great plays that they have made to lead their team to the National Championship game. Since 2000, of the 10 Heisman trophy winners (not including Reggie Bush), 8 of them have played on teams who played in the BCS National Championship Game. With this in mind, voters are going to look at all of the plays that Mathieu has made and his importance to LSU's Championships run and the LSU cornerback is going to get a lot of votes even if he does finish in 5th place.

Poland Will Have To Grab At Least One Point Against Greece If They Want To Reach The Knockout Stage

Poland vs Greece in Group A at National Stadium in Warsaw, Poland on June 8th: Poland has been waiting to kick off Euro 2012 since it learned that it would jointly host the European Championship with Ukraine on April 18, 2007 ahead of the bids from Italy and Croatia-Hungary. If Poland wants to avoid becoming just the 4th nation since the European Championship began in 1960 to host the European Championship and not make it out of the group stage, joining just Belgium in 2000 and Austria and Switzerland in 2008 to fail to make the knockout stage, they will have to get off to a solid start against a tough Greece side in Warsaw. It will be vital for Poland to feed off of the energy of their supporters when they take on Greece because there is going to be an incredible amount of energy in Warsaw with the opening of the tournament. Poland, led by boss Franciszek Smuda, will likely have to score first if they want to get any points from their matchup with Greece because of the strength of the Greece back four. Greece allowed just 5 goals in qualifying and didn't allow a multiple goal game in 10 matches. Greece will be looking to use their strong back four to make a run in Euro 2012 just like they did in Euro 2004 when they won the tournament after winning their quarter-final, semi-final, and final games all by a 1-0 score line.

Prediction: Poland 1 - Greece 1

Group-By-Group Euro 2012 Breakdown

The draw for Euro 2012 has finally arrived and it has been a long awaited day to see the four different groups for the second most prestigious international tournament, only trailing the World Cup of course. After 240 group qualifying games and 8 playoff matches, which saw 14 teams of 51 join host nations Poland and Ukraine in the exclusive European Championship, the 16 teams have been split into four different groups. Euro 2012 features to be an unbelievable tournament this upcoming summer. Of the top 14 teams in Europe, all of them but Switzerland, who is ranked 12th in Europe, are participating in the European Championship. Also, of the top 15 teams in the world, 11 of them are playing in Euro 2012. Here is a breakdown of the 4 groups:

Group A (Poland, Russia, Greece, Czech Republic):

Prior to the draw being released, Poland looked like a long shot to make it out of the group stage. They are the lowest ranked team in the tournament at 66 in the world and 33 in Europe. It looked likely that they would become just the 4th nation since the European Championship began in 1960 to host the European Championship and not make it out of the group stage, joining just Belgium in 2000 and Austria and Switzerland in 2008 to fail to make the knockout stage. However, Poland is very fortunate that they drew, by far, the easiest of the four groups. The Polish, led by coach Franciszek Smuda, drew the lowest ranked team in pot 2, Russia, the 2nd lowest ranked team in group 3, Greece, and the lowest ranked team in pot 4, Czech Republic. If you add the European rankings of the four team, it adds up to 72. To put that in perspective, Netherlands, which was in pot 1 just like Poland, and they drew a group that when you add the European rankings of the four team, it adds up to 17! 

Russia will definitely be the favorite, but the entire group is wide open and there for the taking. While the Russians will look for scoring from Roman Pavlyuchenko, the heart of their team is their defense. In qualifying, just Italy allowed fewer goals than Russia, as the Russians allowed just 4 goals in 10 matches and they didn't concede any goals in their final 4 matches. 

Greece as well thoroughly relies on their defense, as they allowed just 5 goals in 10 matches. They will be looking to use their great defense and tactics to make a run similar to their unbelievable Championship victory in 2004 in Portugal. 

The Polish will have a huge home field advantage and the energy of playing in Warsaw against Greece and Russia and Wroclaw in their final match against Russia. Although Poland is the lowest ranked team in the group, Czech Republic may be the most unlikely to make it out of the group stage.

Group B (Netherlands, Germany, Portugal, Denmark): 

In one of the greatest groups that you will ever see in any international tournament, it is just unfortunate that two of these very high quality teams will not make it to the knockout stage. To call this the group of death is probably an understatement and not doing it justice. Of the top 11 teams in the world and the top 8 teams in Europe, 4 of them are in this group. The group features the 2nd highest ranked team from pot 1, Netherlands, the highest ranked team in pot 2, Germany, the highest ranked team in pot 3, Portugal, and the highest ranked team in pot 4, Denmark. Their average world ranking is 5.75 and their average European ranking is 4.5, which is unbelievably impressive.

In qualifying, Germany and Netherlands were by far the most impressive teams in the group stage. The Germans had a perfect 10-0-0 record and had a goal differential of +27. Although the Netherlands dropped their last game against Sweden, they still finished the group with a +29 goal differential and they were able to score goals on everybody, as they racked up 37 goals in just 10 games. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar scored 12 goals for the Dutch, which is more goals than 24 other teams in the competition scored during qualifying. The Germans are the favorite to win the group, especially after they just convincingly beat the Dutch 3-0 on November 15th. 

However, it would not be surprising if any of these four teams won the group. The Portuguese have Cristiano Ronaldo, so that alone poises an immense threat to ever other team in the group. Ronaldo will need help though if the Portuguese side is going to advance. Nani will have to continue to play like he currently is for Manchester United and the back four, which has world class players like Pepe and Fabio Coentrao, will have to step up, especially since they have drawn high-powered offenses like the German and Dutch. 

The big question mark in this group is Denmark. The Danish actually finished ahead of Portugal in Group H qualifying. In fact, they beat Portugal on the final day of qualifying, 2-1, to take the group. The Danish will heavily rely on striker Nicklas Bendtner for their scoring, as they didn't score more than 2 goals in any qualifying match. 

Group C (Spain, Italy, Croatia, Republic of Ireland): 

Spain boss Vincente del Bosque said, "It's a complicated group. We've got an important team like Italy and two two teams that got through the playoff easily." However, you have to believe that the Spanish coach is fairly happy with his group, as the defending European champions avoided Germany and Portugal. Despite the fact that the Spanish had a perfect 8-0-0 record in qualifying, questions have been raised about the World and European Champions recently. They fell to England at Wembley on November 12th 1-0 and then tied Costa Rico in San Jose three days later 2-2 after trailing 2-0 until two late goals from David Silva in the 83rd minute and David Villa in the 90th minute. 

The Italians should be riding into Euro 2012 with some confidence. They breezed through qualifying, as they allowed just 2 goals in 10 matches and the Italians also beat the Spanish in their last meeting on August 10th 2-1. However, in qualifying and in their victory over Spain, the Italians played with talented strikers Giuseppe Rossi and Antonio Cassano. However, with Rossi likely out for the tournament with a serious knee injury and Cassano probably out as well after he had surgery to repair a small hole in his heart, the Italians will heavily relay on Mario Balotelli and Giampaolo Pazzini to proivde the scoring for the side. 

The Croatians could be the biggest question mark of any team in the entire tournament. The 8th ranked team in the world, has shown at times that it can be as good as any team in the world but it has been very inconsistent like when it fell to Georgia 1-0 in qualifying and then went on to win 4 straight qualifying matches. 

Lastly, while Ireland is going to have a difficult time doing much of anything in this group, they definitely have a ton of interesting storylines. Their Italian boss, Giovanni Trapattoni, is going to manage against his homeland and former team, as he managed the Italian national team for 4 years from 2000 to 2004. Since the Irish have not been in the European Championship since 1988, the Irish fans will be hoping for a nice showing in Poland-Ukraine.

Group D (Ukraine, England, France, Sweden): 

The English, led by boss Fabio Capello, have to be content with the Euro 2012 draw. They avoided Spain and Netherlands from pot 1, as well as Portugal from pot 3. However, the English side definitely has a whole lot of pressure and controversy surrounding them. Wayne Rooney has a three-match suspension and if his appeal is not succesful, he will miss the entire group stage. This would leave the English in a deep goal scoring hole without the Manchester United striker. Also, Fabio Capello will be under an immense amount of pressure since the English, who lost in the round of 16 in the 2010 World Cup, have never even made the finals of the European Championship. The Three Lions open up with a huge clash against Les Bleus in Donetsk, Ukraine. The English should be coming into the group as the favorites and with a huge amount of confidence. In their last two qualifying games, they beat the World and European Championship Spain 1-0 and then beat Sweden 1-0 as well, who is in there group for the tournament.

The French look like they have turned the corner from the disgrace surrounding their 2010 World Cup after Nicolas Anelka, Patrice Evra, Frank Rbery, and Jeremy Toulalan were all suspended after their revolt against former boss Raymond Domenech. Les Bleus have been playing some really great soccer recently under new boss Laurent Blanc. They are unbeaten in their last 17 matches and haven't lost in well over a year since September 3, 2010. The French will heavily relay on Frank Ribery, Karim Benzema, Florent Malouda, and Yoann Gourcuff. The other teams in Group D will have a lot of trouble breaking down the French defense, as they allowed just 4 goals in 10 matches during qualifying.

Ukraine and Sweden are the long shots in this group with powers like England and France expected to advance into the quarterfinals. Ukraine, like Poland, will have a huge home field advantage and the energy of playing in Kiev against Sweden and Donetsk in their final two matches against France and England. Ukraine should not be overlooked in this group. They tied Germany 3-3 after leading for much of the match 3-1, which is a very impressive showing considering that the Germans didn't drop one point in Euro 2012 qualifying. Sweden also should not be overlooked in this group. During qualifying, Sweden scored 31 goals, which was the third most goals scored in qualifying, only behind the Netherlands and Germany. Sweden even beat the Netherlands in their final qualifying match 3-2 to prove that they can play with any team in the world. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who scored 5 goals in qualifying, will have to be a dynamic threat for Sweden if they want to sniff the top two.

Jimmer Fredette Will Be Solid In The NBA

The NBA players and owners finally reached a tentative, handshake agreement early Saturday morning to end the 149-day NBA lockout. Although the deal still needs to be ratified by both the players and owners, it appears that the training camps and free agency will begin on December 9th and the 66 game season will begin on Christmas Day. With a tentative deal in place, attention can finally turn from meetings and negations to the court and what is a better way to begin talking about the hardwood than discussing Jimmermania.

Jimmer Fredette had an outstanding four-year collegiate career with the BYU Cougars. Following his junior season, where he scored 22.1 points per game, Fredette led Division I in scoring with 28.5 points per game in his senior year. Since 2002, only Stephen Curry in 2008-2009 averaged more points per game in a season than Jimmer. As a result of his phenomenal year, Fredette won every major National Player of the Year award. With the 10th overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft, the Milwaukee Bucks selected Fredette and then traded him to the Sacramento Kings as apart of a previous draft day trade. Although many people doubt Fredette's capability to play in the NBA, Jimmer will definitely be a solid pro.

Many people compare Jimmer Fredette to J.J. Redick. Redick, who was taken 11th by the Orlando Magic in the 2006 NBA draft, is a prolific shooter like Fredette. However, Jimmer is a much more effective scorer than J.J. and considering that Redick has had a pretty good NBA career so far, there is no reason to think that Jimmer will not be solid in the pros. Redick relays heavily on the three point ball, while Jimmer can score in many different ways. In his senior year at Duke, 51 percent of the shots Redick attempted were threes. In Jimmer's senior season, just 40 percent of the shots he attempted were threes. Also, when Jimmer does shoot the three ball, he can do it in many different ways. Fredette can be a spot up shooter but he also can create space for his own three point shot. Redick is predominately a stand still shooter and can't create his own shot like Fredette has the ability to do. Lastly, Fredette's ability to create off the dribble allows him to get his other teammates involved in the game. In his final three seasons at BYU, Jimmer averaged at least 4 assists in every season. Redick never averaged more than 2.6 assists per game in college.

Most of the doubt surrounding Fredette is not about his offense, but rather about his defense and whether he can defend NBA talent. Many doubters point to the fact that Jimmer didn't play great defense in college but he did average more than 1 steal and 3 rebouns per game in each of his final three years at BYU. It can't be overlooked how much the Cougars relied on Fredette on the offense end of the floor, as he played more than 35 minutes per game for BYU and took over 20 shots per game. Therefore, Jimmer was often exhausted on the defense side of the floor.

There are many people around the NBA who also believe that Fredette will be a very good pro. An Eastern Conference GM said, "You know what the negatives are - defense, he is 6-2 and not all that athletic, all of that stuff. But you have a guy who can put the ball in the basket, and everybody needs someone like that. Even if you use him as a sixth man, a guy like Jason Terry or Ben Gordon, whatever their limitations are as point guards or defensively, you love the scoring they give you."An NBA executive said about Jimmer, "He was Jimmer Fredette. He shot the ball well, he handled the point and he played at different speeds. He needs to get better defensively. He is a tough kid, he is mature, he is very poised."

This Weekend In College Football Is Going To Show The Best And The Worst Of The BCS

The Bowl Championship Series, or more commonly known as the BCS, has been the most highly debated system in sports since its inception in 1998. It is nearly impossible to meet a sports fan that feels indifferent about the BCS. Whether people love the BCS or want a college football playoff to determine the National Champion, people have an opinion on the subject. 

The criticism for the BCS has been widespread throughout college football analysts and coaches and even some politicians. 

College football analysts Brent Musburger said, "My dream scenario -- and it's not going to happen -- would be to take eight conference champions, and only conference champions, and play the quarterfinals of a tournament on campuses in mid-December. The four losers would remain bowl-eligible. The four winners would advance to semifinals on New Year's Day with exclusive TV windows. Then, like now, one week later, there would be the national championship game." 

Just this week Stanford coach David Shaw said, "Bottom line is, the BCS is flawed... I don't understand it. Most of the people I talk to don't understand it. Most of the people that are explaining it don't completely understand it... All I've heard all year is the computers don't like Stanford. Well, the computers haven't programmed themselves."

Politicians from Utah have been extremely outspoken against the BCS. In 2009, Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff and Utah Senator Orrin Hatch questioned and explored if the BCS violated anti-trust laws. In 2011, Shurtleff announced that he would file an anti-trust lawsuit against the BCS for "serious anti-trust violations" and this lawsuit was supported by 21 high profile economists and anti-trust experts. 

Although President Barack Obama supports a college football playoff, he doesn't believe that the BCS should be up for legal debate like many of the politicians from Utah. Obama said, “If you’ve got a bunch of teams who play throughout the season and many of them have one loss or two losses, there’s no clear, decisive winner. We should be creating a playoff system... I think it is about time that we had playoffs in college football. You know, I am fed up with these computer rankings, and this and that and the other. Get eight teams. The top eight teams right at the end. You've got a playoff. Decide on a national champion." 

Although criticism for the BCS seems to be much more widespread in the public, there is still a lot of support for the system. 

Big Ten commissioner Jim Delaney is one of the most outspoken supporters of the BCS. Delaney said, "There is nothing more powerful than the regular season in college football. All the games that were local are now regional. The regional games are now national. The level of interest of young people, 12-17, was measured recently. I think NASCAR and the NFL gained 1%. College Football gained 9%. I understand the paradigm of the American sports fan is to play it out. I know we're swimming upstream on it. But we've grown the fan base, we've grown the regular season and we've maintained the postseason... The majority of the presidents and faculty and athletic directors and coaches in the Big Ten believe in the Rose Bowl and believe in the bowl system." 

Nebraska Chancellor Harvey Perlman added that no system can be implemented where every conference and every school is "going to have as competitive a chance as others- I mean that's just the reality of the world."

This weekend figures to bring out the best and the worst of the BCS. It is going to show why all of the critics of the BCS are right, while showing at the same time why all of the supporters of the BCS are right. Confusing? Chaotic? Crazy? Welcome to the BCS.

For the critics of the BCS, this weekend is going to once again show how every team in the FBS doesn't have an equal opportunity to reach the National Championship and how non-AQ schools (schools from conference other than the ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, SEC, or Pac-12) will never have the chance for a national title. It is also going to show how the regular season is extremely important for only some teams and not every team.

The Houston Cougars are currently sitting at 11-0 (7-0 in Conference USA) and have one of the most prolific offenses in recent history. The Cougars offense, lead by Heisman trophy candidate Case Keenum, has been racking up unprecedented numbers. In 11 victories this season, Keenum has thrown for over 300 yards in every game and has thrown for over 400 yards in 5 of those games. Keenum leads the FBS in passing yards, as he has already thrown for over 4,000 yards, and he also leads the FBS in touchdowns with 38. The Cougars are scoring a ridiculous number of points, as they lead the nation in scoring at over 53 points per game. Since 2004, just Western Kentucky and Hawaii in 2007 have scored more points per game than the Cougars. In 7 conference victories, Houston is averaging over 58 points per game. The Cougars lead the FBS in total yards and total yards per game at 618.3. No team since 2004 has averaged more yards per game than the Cougars. Houston leads the FBS in passing yards as well with over 465 per game. Since 2004, just Texas Tech in 2007 has averaged more passing yards per game than the Cougars. Despite the fact that the Cougars are undefeated and are putting up these unprecedented and incredible numbers, they are not going to have a chance to play in the National Championship this year in New Orleans. Currently in the BCS standings, the Cougars are ranked 8th. It would take a loss by all 6 one loss teams to get the Cougars to number 2 in the BCS rankings and in a position to make the title game and the chances of this happening is unbelievable slim. Therefore, Houston's game this weekend against a solid Tulsa team, which hasn't lost a game in Conference USA as well, is not going to have the importance that it should because it doesn't have National Championship implications. Once again, a team that is undefeated will not win a National title, which has happened 6 times since 2004.

Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delaney said that college football is "the most important regular season in all of sport." However, BCS critics say that the regular season is "the most important regular season in all of sports" for the few teams who are competing to get into the BCS National Championship or into a BCS bowl game. For the teams that are not going to land in one of the five BCS games, the regular season losses its importance. There are a number of very good games this week that are not significant because college football lacks a playoff. #25 Texas at Texas A&M, Iowa at #21 Nebraska, and Texas Tech at  #18 Baylor are all great football games. However, since none of these teams have legitimate opportunities to make a BCS bowl game, the games lose their importance.

For the supporters of the BCS, the weekend’s slate of games is going to prove why the BCS causes more excitement in the regular season than any other sport. It is going to show why, like Jim Delaney said, "There is nothing more powerful than the regular season in college football."

If there was an 8 team playoff in college football, the LSU and Arkansas game would lose its appeal. Both teams would make the playoffs and their battle this weekend in Baton Rouge would just be for seeding. However, with the current BCS in place, the excitement surrounding the game is unbelievable because of all of the different possibilities that will result after the conclusion of the game, especially if the Tigers fall to the Razorbacks. With a Razorback victory coupled with an Alabama win over Auburn, there would be a three-way tie atop the SEC west standings with LSU, Alabama, and Arkansas. Therefore, the team with the lowest BCS ranking would be eliminated and then the tie between the two higher ranked BCS teams would be broken by their head-to-head result. If LSU does fall to Arkansas chaos and madness will ensue. Thus, everybody is going to have their eyes glued on the game in Baton Rouge because of its monumental importance in the National Championship race, which is just what the BCS wants. 

Case Keenum And The Houston Offense Are Doing Unprecedented Things

In the last 13 years since 1998, 7 teams from non-AQ schools have appeared in a BCS Bowl game. Utah played in the Fiesta Bowl in 2004 and the Sugar Bowl in 2008 representing the Mountain West conference. TCU has played in two BCS bowl games as well. The Horn Frogs, representing the Mountain West conference as well, played in the Fiesta Bowl in 2009 and the Rose Bowl last year. Boise St. has played in two BCS bowl games representing the WAC. The Broncos played in the Fiesta Bowl in 2006 and the Fiesta Bowl again in 2009. Hawaii also made an appearance in a BCS Bowl game in 2007 when they played in the Sugar Bowl as a representative of the WAC. A conference that was not mentioned above in being represented in a BCS Bowl game was Conference USA. In fact, since 1998, Conference USA has never had a team finish inside of the BCS top 10. However, if Houston can run the table, they will likely represent Conference USA in a BCS bowl game. This feat would be unprecedented for the conference and it would be unprecedented for college football as well because there has never been an offense as explosive as the Cougars' offense.

Lead by Heisman Trophy candidate Case Keenum, the Houston offense is a dominant force. Keenum, who is in his 6th season of eligibility, is going out with a bang and is putting up crazy numbers. In 10 victories this season, Keenum has thrown for over 300 yards in every game and has thrown for over 400 yards in half of those games. He leads the FBS in passing yards and is 49 yards away from reaching 4,000 yards on the season. He is second in the FBS in completion percentage at 74.2, which is very impressive because he has attempted the 11th most passes of any quarterback. Keenum is also second in yards per attempt at over 10 and second in QB rating at just under 200. Lastly, Keenum leads the FBS in touchdowns with 37, which is just under 4 touchdown passes per game. In fact, in a two game span, Keenum threw 15 touchdown passes, as he threw 6 in a 63-28 victory over Marshall and then he had a crazy 9 touchdown performance against Rice in a 73-34 win earlier this season. Keenum has put his name in the record books numerous times thus far this season. He passed former Hawaii quarterback Timmy Chang for the most career yards of total offense in FBS history in Houston's victory over Marshall. The next week against Rice, Keenum passed former Texas Tech quarterback Graham Harrell for the most career touchdown passes in FBS history. To cap an unbelievable three week stretch, Keenum passed Timmy Chang for the most career passing yards in NCAA history in a victory over UAB.

Just looking at the numbers that the Houston offense is putting up is astounding and unthinkable. The Cougars are scoring a ridiculous number of points, as they lead the nation in scoring at over 54 points per game. Since 2004, just Western Kentucky and Hawaii in 2007 have scored more points per game than the Cougars. In 6 conference victories Houston is averaging over 61 points per game and in their last 3 wins over Rice, UAB, and Tulane, they have scored an average of 67 points. Their lowest scoring output in conference play this season was a 49-point performance against UTEP. Yes, as crazy as it sounds, 49 points is their lowest scoring total in 6 conference games. The Cougars lead the FBS in total yards and total yards per game at 628.8. No team since 2004 has averaged more yards per game than the Cougars. Houston leads the FBS in passing yards with over 465 per game as well. Since 2004, just Texas Tech in 2007 has averaged more passing yards per game than the Cougars.

Who Should Be Number 3 In The BCS Standings?

If LSU can remain unbeaten by beating Ole Miss, Arkansas, and then most likely Georgia (who have to beat Kentucky at home to win the SEC East) in the SEC Championship game and Oklahoma St. can win out by beating Iowa St. and then Oklahoma in Bedlam, the National Championship game is simple. It will be #1 and 13-0 LSU against #2 and 12-0 Oklahoma St. in New Orleans. If LSU losses one of their final three games, they will most likely still land in the National Championship since they beat both #3 Alabama and #4 Oregon already this season. However, the craziness and huge debate will begin if Oklahoma St. losses to #5 Oklahoma in Stillwater the final week of the season. Therefore, it begs the question: What team deserves to be ranked 3rd in the BCS standings and jump into the National Championship if Oklahoma St. falls?

Alabama currently sits 3rd in the BCS standings and the Crimson Tide may have the strongest argument to be ranked at that position. In their 9 wins they have outscored their opponents by more than 30 points and their closest victory was a 16-point beating of Penn St. 27-11 on the road. The Tide have knocked off three ranked teams including #6 Arkansas 38-14. The Tide have been the only team all season to hold the Razorbacks to less than 29 points and their tremendous defense is allowing just 7.1 points per game, which is the best in the nation. Bama has held their opponents to single digits in 6 of 9 games as well. Compared to Oregon, Alabama's loss to LSU is much more impressive. The Ducks fell to the Tigers by 13 points, 40 to 27, in a game that wasn't even as close as the score indicates. In fact, Oregon trailed by 20 points for most of the 4th quarter until they scored a late touchdown. However, the Tide played a hard fought, tough game with the Tigers that they barely lost in overtime 9 to 6. The Tigers still have another chance to prove themself in a big game with they take on Auburn in the Iron Bowl at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Oregon benefited greatly from having the national spotlight on them last week, as they made a big jump in the BCS rankings. In a huge primetime game against #4 Stanford and Heisman Trophy front-runner Andrew Luck, the Ducks whipped the floor with the Cardinals in a 53-30 whopping on the road in Paulo Alto. The Ducks offense looked unbelievable quick and devastating, as LaMichael James had 146 yards on 20 carries to go along with his 3 touchdowns on the ground. In total, the Ducks ran for 232 yards on the Stanford defense, which had been so good at stopping the run in previous weeks. They also forced Andrew Luck into two interceptions and forced 5 turnovers overall. The impressive win over the previously undefeated Cardinals moved the Ducks from 7th to 4th in the BCS standings, ahead of Oklahoma. Oregon will once again have a chance to prove its talent in primetime when they take on #18 USC on Saturday. However, their Pac 12 Championship game will be against an unranked and much weaker Pac 12 South opponent. Another cause for concern for Duck fans is that the Crimson Tide played a much closer game with the LSU Tigers than Oregon did.

Oklahoma's loss to Texas Tech at home is going to be a lot to overcome, especially since both Alabama and Oregon loss to #1 LSU. The Red Raiders are currently 2-5 in the Big 12 and are sitting in second to last in the conference. Not only have they been losing games, but they have been getting killed in recent weeks, which makes Oklahoma's loss to them so much worse. The Red Raiders lost to Iowa St. at home, who are 2-4 in conference play, by 34 points, Texas by 32 points, and they lost by 60 points, yes 60 points, to Oklahoma St. this past weekend in Lubbock at home. Despite their horrible loss, of the three teams, the Sooners have by far the best opportunity remaining on their schedule to prove on the national stage that they deserve to be in the National Championship game, as they will take on #2 Oklahoma St. on the road in Stillwater in the final week of the season. If the Sooners can knock off the Cowboys, who have been just destroying teams this season, it may be hard to keep them out of the National Championship.

Best Touchdown In College Football This Season

Check out this unbelievable punt return for a touchdown by Arkansas Razorback Joe Adams.

The Loss Of Jonathan Papelbon Is Not As Bad As It Seems For The Red Sox

There is no arguing that Jonathan Papelbon has meant a tremendous amount to the Boston Red Sox organization. The list of achievements that Papelbon has racked up with the Sox is plentiful. Pap is the Red Sox career leader in saves with 217, which is 85 more saves than Bob Stanley's previous record of 132 that he set when he was the Red Sox with the Red Sox from 1977 to 1989. Papelbon has saved at least 30 games in his first 6 MLB seasons, which has never been done by another pitcher in major league history. Papelbon was selected to 4 straight all-star games from 2006-2009 as well. Pap's instrumental part in the Red Sox World Series victory in 2007 is definitely his greatest career accomplishment. In 6 playoff series from 2005 to 2008, Papelbon didn't allowed an earned run in 25 innings pitched including in the 2007 playoffs when he pitched 10.2 innings without allowing a run. Therefore, at first glance, Papelbon's departure to the Phillies under a four-year, 50 million-dollar contract, is a devastating one to the Red Sox. However, the Red Sox made a good decision to not sign the longtime Boston closer to a huge contract.

Since his almost perfect first four MLB seasons, there is no doubt that Papelbon has struggled the last two years. To say Papelbon had a bad season in 2010 would probably be an understatement. He blew a career high 8 saves, which was the most blown saves in the AL that year, to go along with his incredibly high 3.90 ERA and 1.27 WHIP. Papelbon also had a 5-7 record and his 7 losses were tied for the most losses by a reliever pitcher in the entire AL. In fact, in September when the Red Sox were fighting to get into the playoffs, Papelbon had a 0-1 record and blew 2 saves to go along with his 10.61 ERA in 9 appearances. A large factor in Papelbon's struggles was his lack of control. He had a career high 28 walks, which was a very high number considering that he walked just 8 guys in all of 2008.

Although his 2011 season was an improvement from his 2010-year (how could have it have been worse), Papelbon still didn't look like his old self. Papelbon had just 31 saves, a career low, and ranked outside of the top 11 in saves for the first time in his career. Pap's ERA didn't look to great either, as it was just under 3.00 at 2.94. Once again when the Red Sox needed Papelbon down the stretch when they were fighting for a playoff spot, Papelbon struggled mightily. In his final four appearances, Papelbon blew two saves. This includes when he allowed two runs in the Sox final game of the season against the Orioles in the bottom of the 9th after they were leading 3-2, which denied the Sox an opportunity to play the Rays in a one game playoff.

With these two past seasons in mind, Papelbon was obviously not worth the ridiculously high price that he was asking the Red Sox for. It worse not worth paying Papelbon the largest free-agent contract in terms of total dollar value for a relief pitcher in history and the third highest relief pitcher contract in terms of annually salary per year because of how poorly Papelbon pitched in 2010 and 2011.

The loss of Papelbon is not so severe for the Sox because the Red Sox had a closer-in-waiting in Daniel Bard right behind him. The hard throwing right-hander has looked really good in his short MLB career. In 2010, he pitched 74.2 innings and had a ridiculous ERA of 1.93. Bard struggled towards the end of his 2011 season but that can be credited to the tremendous amount of innings he pitched and the number of appearances he made. Bard was 5th in the AL in games pitched with 70 and that is an incredible amount for a pitcher in his 2nd MLB season. Entering September, before his rough end of the season, Bard had an ERA of 2.03. Bard finished 2011 as the leader in the AL in holds with 34. Many people argue that Bard is just as good, if not better, than Papelbon and Bard will only be getting paid 505,000 dollars in 2012 compared to Papelbon's crazy 12.5 million dollars.

The Cardinals World Series Proves Never Say Never

It happens so often in sports. A team gets ravaged by injuries or a team falls way behind the playoff race and they lose motivation and don't continue to fight. Just look at the Cincinnati Reds and the Cleveland Indians this season.

In 2010 the Cincinnati Reds won the NL Central for their first division title since 1995 and just their second NL Central title in team history. With reigning NL MVP Joey Votto leading the charge, the Reds were looking for another division title this season. However, with three of their starting pitchers mising significant time, (Johnny Cueto missed all of April, Edinson Volquez missed almost two months in July and August, and Travis Wood missed all of July) they were unable to recover and lost hope in their season. Entering July the Reds were two games above .500 and were just 2 games behind the NL Central leading Brewers. By the end of the season, the Reds dropped 15 games on the Brewers and were 17 games out of the division lead.

After leading the AL Central for nearly every day for over four months from the beginning of April to Mid-July, the Cleveland Indians were finally surpassed in the division race by the Detroit Tigers. The Indians lost faith in their ability to make a comeback just as the Tigers had previously done to them. On July 10th, the Tigers were .5 games ahead of the Indians. By the end of the season, the Tigers had finished 15 games ahead of the Indians in the AL Central, as the Indians finished the season with a dismal record of 33-40.

The St. Louis Cardinals faced all of these hardships and more. They were struck by countless injuries like the Reds, they fell way behind in the playoff race like the Tigers, and they looked like they were down and out after they miraculous got into the playoffs several times. However, the Cards were able to overcome all of these difficulties and showed that you should never say never.

Injuries hit the Cardinals right away. With Chris Carpenter entering his 14th MLB season and beginning to age and the Cards not having much depth in their pitching staff, they were rallying on ace Adam Wainwright to have a huge season. The 30 year old was entering the prime of his career as well. However, before the season even began, it was announced that Wainwright would have to get Tommy John Surgery on his right elbow and that he would miss the entire 2011 season. The Cardinals realized the loss of Wainwright was a major one. Form 2009 to 2010, Wainwright had more wins than any other pitcher in the NL with 19 in 2009 and 20 in 2010. In 2010 he ranked 3rd in the NL in innings pitched, 3rd in WHIP, 4th in strikeouts, and 2nd in ERA. Those impressive numbers landed Wainwright a 2nd place finish on the NL Cy Young ballot after he had previously finished 3rd in 2009. Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak said, "You're losing an ace. It's not something you can replace overnight."

Unlike the Reds, the Cardinals maintained their fighting spirit even after Wainwright went down before the season. Kyle Lohse said, "That's a big guy to miss. We still got to go out there and play. Nobody is going to fell sorry for us. We still have to go out there do our jobs." Although you can't replace a guy like Wainwright, the Cards still fought hard every day no matter who was pitching and got great contributions form their entire staff.

Jamie Garcia backed up his impressive rookie campaign with another solid year and didn't suffer the usually second year slump like Jason Hayward. Garcia's 3.56 ERA was the 6th best among lefties in the NL. In his 13th season in the MLB, Kyle Lohse had his best year. He had 14 wins, only the 4th time he has had double digit wins in his career, to go along with a 1.17 WHIP, a career best, and a 3.39 ERA, also a career best. From 2007 to 2010, Jake Westbrook had a record of 27-33. In 2011, Westbrook posted a 12-9 mark, his most wins since 2006 when he went 15-10 with the Cleveland Indians. Kyle McClellan, who was forced to fill the 5th spot in the rotation from April to July before the Cards acquired Edwin Jackson, did a magnificent job especially since he had never made an MLB start before 2011. In fact, McClellan began 2011 with a 5-0 record through 7 starts and had an ERA of 3.30. Although Chris Carpenter didn't have his best season, he was unbelievable in September. In his last 5 starts in September, Carpenter was 3-0 with an ERA of 1.28 and let up a total of 5 runs. In those 5 games, Carpenter had 2 shutouts including one on the final day of the season in a 8-0 victory over the Astros to clinch the Wild Card for the Cards. The real key behind the success in the Cardinals staff was their durability, which was so vital with their lack of starting pitching depth. Carpenter, Westbrook, Garcia, and Lohse all started at least 30 games.

Aside from getting over all of the injuries, the Cardinals made one of the most memorable comebacks in MLB history to just reach the postseason. On August 25th the Cardinals were 10.5 games behind the NL Wild Card leading Atlanta Braves. They weren't even the second place team in the Wild Card race, as the Giants were a full game ahead of them. On September 6th the Cardinals were 8.5 games outside of the Wild Card lead. Although the Cards could have lost hope several times during their comeback, they continued to play hard baseball. When the Cards were playing the Mets on September 22nd, they were leading 6-2 entering the top of the 9th and were 3 outs away from closing the Braves wild card lead to 1 game. However, the Mets scored 6 runs in the 9th to win their first game when trailing by 4 runs in the 9th inning since 2007. The loss was a devastating one for the Cardinals because they went from 1 game out with 6 to play to 2 games out with 6 to play. However, Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said after the game, "Don't make a mistake and say we're heartbroken. Our heart's beating. We won the series, get ready for tomorrow." The Cards didn't seem to lose hope after the loss, as they finished their 22-9 stretch with a 4-2 run to end the season, while the Braves lost their final 5 games including a 4-3 battle with the Phillies in 13 innings on the final day of the season to give the Cardinals the NL Wild Card. The Cardinals became the first team in MLB history to make the playoffs after trailing a playoff spot by at least 8 games in September. Just getting into the playoffs showed the Cardinals resilience and their never die attitude.

If the Cardinals had bowed out to the Phillies in the NLDS, nobody have would faulted them. After the Rays completed their 9 game comeback over the Red Sox in September to reach the playoffs, they fell in 4 games to the Texas Rangers. The Cards spent a tremendous amount of energy just reaching the playoffs and they were facing a terrific Phillies ball club, which had won 102 games, their most in franchise history. However, the Cards once again refused to go down. After losing 11-6 in game 1, the Cards were on the brink of facing a deep 2-0 hole, as they fell behind 4-0 on the Phillies after just 2 innings. In many fans eyes with Cliff Lee on the mound, the game was over. Lee had a sub .100 ERA in the months of August and September and in his 10-year MLB career, he had never lost a regular season game, where he was leading by 4 runs. However, the Cards scored 3 runs in the 4th and then 1 run in the 6th and 7th to knock Cliff Lee out of the game after 5 earned runs and give the Cards a 5-4 victory. Even when the Cards seemed to be given no chance with the best pitcher in baseball Roy Halladay pitching against them in a decisive game 5 in Philly, Chris Carpenter pitched a shutout to send the Cards to the NLCS after a narrow 1-0 victory.

Looking back at the Cardinals season and how they fought and clawed for everything and were nearly down and out so many times, the way they won the World Series was only fitting. Game 6 of the World Series summarized the Cards season. Nearly down and out in the 9th and 10th inning, the Cardinals managed to somehow survive and win the game in the 11th. Trailing 7-5 in the 9th inning with 2 outs and runners on 1st and 2nd, the Cards were not only down to their last out, but they were down to their last strike. However, David Freese took a 1-2 fastball the other way from Neftali Feliz and banged it off of the right field wall over the head of Nelson Cruz to send Pujols and Berkman home and to tie the game up at 7. But in the top of the 10th the Rangers seemed to be on their way to winning their first World Series in franchise history after Josh Hamilton hit a two run home run off of Jason Motte to give the Rangers another 2 run lead. However, we've already seen this story before though. The Cards seem to have no chance but then suddenly fight their way back into the game. After scoring one run earlier in the 10th, Lance Berkman hit a single into center field after being down to his last strike to tie the game for the Cards once again. They were not to be denied and in the 11th, Freese came up again and hit a walk-off home run to center field that sent the series to a decisive game 7. In game 7, the Cards completed their miraculous run to a World Series with a 6-2 victory and sent Tony La Russa off in a good note.

Despite Their Losses, Clemson and Kansas St. Still Have A Lot To Play For

The rode to the BCS National Championship is always a rocky and difficult path. Teams have to survive their opponents best shot week after week and they have to be able to win close games. Just look at Auburn's season last year. The Tigers won 6 games by a touchdown or less including 5 games by just 3 points or less. Even a team like Kentucky, who were 2-6 in the SEC, played their best game of the season against the Tigers and just came up 3 points short. In a usual year, there are only one to three undefeated teams in college football. For most teams in the country, their strength and character is tested after they lose a game and fall out of the National Championship picture. Often times, it is much harder for a team to be motivated and get up for a game after a difficult loss than a team that is fighting for a title. While teams like Clemson and Kansas St. may have fallen out of the National Championship picture, they still have a lot to play for.

History shows that teams who have National Championship aspirations and drop a game are often susceptible to further losses down the road because they lose motivation. In 2010 Virginia Tech may have had its best team since 1999 when the Hokies were led by Michael Vick and were undefeated until they lost in the BCS National Championship to Florida St 46-29. The Hokies were in the preseason top 10 at number 6 but had a crushing loss in a highly contested week 1 game against the Boise St. Broncos 33-30 after Kellen Moore threw a game winning touchdown pass with a little over a minute remaining. The Hokies were so distraught over their loss and their National Championship dreams vanishing that they became the second team to ever be ranked in the AP Poll and lose to a FCS opponent when they fell to James Madison the following week 21-16 at home. No disrespect to James Madison, but there isn't a college football fan out there that believes that the Hokies would have lost that game if they had beaten the Broncos the previous week. However, the Hokies had an emotional let down and it put them in a horrible 0-2 hole to begin the season. That same year, Oklahoma rallied off 6 straight wins to begin their season with a perfect 6-0 record and the Sooners were the number 1 ranked team when the BCS standings were initially released. After giving up more than 485 yards of total offense in a 36-27 loss to the Missouri Tigers, the Sooners dropped to number 9 in the BCS standings and out of National Championship contention. The Sooners were unable to rebound from their difficult loss to Missouri and just two weeks later, the Sooners played a horrible game in a 33-19 loss to Texas A&M

Before Clemson's loss to Georgia Tech, the Tigers perfect 8-0 start was their best start since 2000 when they also began 8-0 and their number 5 BCS ranking was the best in school history. Those impressive numbers will now only add to the challenge for the Tigers when they try to recover from their 31-17 loss to Georgia Tech. Although a National Championship is now out of the picture for the Tigers, they still have a lot to play for. Since the ACC split into two divisions in 2005, Clemson has won the Atlantic division just once. In fact, Clemson has not won an ACC Championship since 1991 when the team was coached by Ken Hatfield. If the Tigers want to get to Charlotte, so that they can have a shot at winning their first ACC title in 20 years and making their first BCS Bowl game, they will have to recover very quickly from their loss because they have a huge game in two weeks against Wake Forest. If the Tigers fail to recover and fall to Wake, the Demon Deacons will have to beat a weak 2-6 Maryland team at home to win the Atlantic Division and just like that Clemson would be on the outside looking in. The Tigers also need two wins out of their last three games to win 10 games for the first time since 1990.

Kansas St. is in a very similar position to the Clemson Tigers. The Wildcats began their season with a perfect 7-0 record for the first time since 1999 and were number 8 in the BCS rankings. The Wildcats may have an even tougher time recovering from their first loss of the season than the Tigers for two reasons. First off, unlike the Tigers, the Wildcats had a lot of doubters after their 7-0 start and many fans believe that the Wildcats showed their true stuff after they were destroyed by Oklahoma 58-17 at home. The Kansas St. players are going to hear all week about how their 41-point loss shows who they really are and it may be tough for the Wildcats to have to handle all of the pressure of trying to prove those doubters wrong. Secondly, the Wildcats may have the hardest remaining schedule in the country. They have to travel to play #3 Oklahoma St. in Stillwater, then play #16 Texas A&M the following week, and then travel to Austin to play #24 Texas to finish up a brutal three game stretch. However, Kansas St. should be looking forward to the challenge. They are already bowl eligible and will play in a bowl game for just the 3rd time since 2003. The Wildcats need just one win out of their final four games to end up with at least 8 wins for the first time since 2003 when they went 11-4 and lost in the Fiesta Bowl.

One thing that the Tigers have that the Wildcats don't have is an explosive offense to help them get through their next few games. Clemson quarterback Tajh Boyd ranks 7th in the country in passing yards and 3rd in touchdowns with 25 and his main target, freshman Sammy Watkins, is 7th in the country in receiving yards and 2nd in touchdowns with 10 in 9 games. Boyd and Watkins power a Clemson passing game that is averaging over 300 yards a game and that put up more than 50 points in 2 of their last 3 games. Unfortunately for Wildcat fans, Kansas St. lacks that offense firepower, which may prove to be costly when they face high powered offenses that score a lot of points like Oklahoma St. and Texas A&M. Out of 120 teams in the FBS, Kansas St. ranks 113th in passing yards per game, as Collin Klein threw for just 58 yards against Oklahoma last week.