NFL Draft 2012

The NFL Draft was this weekend, and it was interesting to say the least. Andrew Luck, the most praised player coming out of college since John Elway in 1983, was picked #1 overall by the Indianapolis Colts. Robert Griffin III, the Heisman Trophy winner, was picked at number 2 by the Washington Redskins. Trent Richardson was picked at number three by the Cleveland Browns. The draft was quite uneventful, most of the picks seemed previously choreographed, and, although there were some interesting picks, the draft was uneventful. Until the actual football games start, and I am anxiously awaiting them, I will try to be in baseball mode.

An Update on the World of Sports

I am sorry I haven't posted anything in over two months, I have been very busy. Baseball season has begun. The Red Sox celebrated their 100th Anniversary last Friday against the Yankees, but unfortunately for Red Sox fans, the Yankees won 6-2. Philip Humber of the White Sox threw a perfect game on Saturday against the Mariners, which was just the 21st perfect game in MLB history. The Giants won the Super Bowl, 21-17 over the Patriots. Kentucky won the NCAA Basketball Championship earlier this month, they beat Kansas in the final, 67-59. Bubba Watson won the Masters at Augusta earlier this month as well. The Stanley Cup Playoffs are going on currently, and the NBA Playoffs will be beginning soon as well.

Super Bowl

In less than an hour, the New England Patriots and New York Giants will meet in the Super Bowl. The Giants have won five straight games and beat the Patriots 24-20 earlier in the year. That was the Patriots' last loss, they have won 10 games in a row. Tom Brady leads the potent offense of the Patriots, and the Pat's defense is beginning to improve. However, Brady will have to go against the great defensive line of the Giants, and Eli Manning will look to have a big game. I think the Giants will start out well, and lead 21-14 at halftime. The Patriots will mount a comeback in the second half, however, and win the game 35-28.

The Latest News

I couldn't really devote a whole page to all of these topics, so I'm putting them together. Notre Dame beat #1 Syracuse 67-58 on Saturday, ending the 'Cuse's run at number one and their 20-game winning streak. In sadder news, Joe Paterno, a great football coach, maybe the best ever, died on Sunday at the age of 85. Also on Sunday, the New York Giants beat the San Francisco 49ers 20-17 in overtime, and the New England Patriots beat the Baltimore Ravens 23-20, when Billy Cundiff missed a field goal with 15 seconds left (He blamed the miss on the scoreboard). If Jay Cutler had never gotten hurt, the Giants probably wouldn't be going to the Super Bowl. I think Cutler's team, the Chicago Bears would probably have faced off with the Green Bay Packers at some point in the playoffs, and the 49ers would have been in the mix as well. This would have all but eliminated the 9-7 Giants. It just goes to show you the importance of a starting quarterback (for other examples google the 2011 Indianapolis Colts). Prince Fielder signed a 9 year/$214 million contract with the Detroit Tigers on Tuesday. This contract is the 4th-largest contract in MLB history. Fielder, whose father Cecil played for the Tigers, is from Detroit and will bolster a lineup that made it to the ALCS last year. Also today, the Oakland Raiders found their new head coach, Dennis Allen, someone that at least has the possibility to survive the harsh pressure put on the last few Raiders coaches.

Roll Tide!

#2 Alabama was crowned national champion tonight by beating #1 LSU 21-0 in the BCS National Championship. Alabama had one of the great defensive performances in BCS history in the win, allowing only 92 total yards. To put this into perspective, Trent Richardson, Alabama's great running back, rushed for 96 yards and a touchdown that sealed LSU's fate. AJ McCarron, the offensive MVP of the game, threw for 234 yards while leading them on several important drives. Jordan Jefferson threw for 53 of LSU's 92 total yards, and while Alabama's defense was amazing, Alabama's coach Nick Saban found every hole in LSU's secondary, praised as the number 1 secondary in the country, and made McCarron a hero in the state of Alabama. Alabama won its ninth National Championship in school history, and will return a team next year that is hugry for another championship run. Jeremy Shelley converted five of seven field goal attempts, his five field goals setting a new BCS record. Alabama came out with way more fire than LSU, and some big plays sparked the Tide even more. This is the sixth straight national championship won by an SEC team, and the third straight by a team from Alabama. Meanwhile, for LSU, they will enter a bit of a rebuilding year, but expect them to try to build this team around Tyrann Mathieu, and the addition of Gunner Kiel at quarterback will help them a lot. With the end of another college footbal season, all I can say is "Roll Tide!"

Game of the Century: Take 2

Two months ago, on November 5th, the supposed "Game of the Century" took place in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, between Alabama and LSU. LSU pulled out a win in overtime, 9-6. Tomorrow, those two teams meet again, this time in New Orleans, for the National Championship. For the first game, I picked Alabama, 12-10. I wasn't that far off on the score, but I picked the wrong team. This time, I hope to do better. I think that the number one key to the game is offense. It's a battle of defenses, but the team that succeeds on offense is the one that is going to win the game. The number two key is special teams. Who can make that long return that sets up something? Who can make that clutch field goal? Which team is going to block a punt? I think that all of these are important to the way this game will come out. Although LSU won the first game, and may have the momentum, I think that Alabama is out for blood tomorrow. I think that Trent Richardson and AJ McCarron will be able to create the spark of offense that this team needs to beat LSU. I don't think that LSU will be able to contend with Alabama if the Tide can get a lead of at least two scores. Typically, these supposed "defensive games" turn into the games with more offense because the offenses know that they have to step up more. Although I don't see Alabama winning a full share of the National Title, they're the better team.

My Prediction: Alabama and LSU are deadlocked 10-10 at halftime, but Alabama pulls ahead in the second half and doesn't look back. Alabama, 27-17.

BCS Bowl Results

The first set of BCS Bowls, the ones before the National Championship Game, are over. The first one, played last Monday, featured the Oregon Ducks against the Wisconsin Badgers in the Rose Bowl. Oregon, in its Space Age headgear, won the game 45-38 after holding off one last Wisconsin drive at the end and getting two long-distance touchdowns from their speedy freshman De'Anthony Thomas. Oregon's LaMichael James led the Ducks with 159 yards rushing and one touchdown in what will be his last game at Oregon, and Montee Ball led the Badgers with 164 yards and added a touchdown, one that tied Barry Sanders' record for most touchdowns in a season.

The Fiesta Bowl, played immediately after the Rose Bowl, pitted the Stanford Cardinal against the Oklahoma State Cowboys. In what will (probably) be future number 1 pick Andrew Luck's last game, Luck had an 87.1% completion percentage, 347 yards, and two touchdowns, but it still wasn't enough to defeat Brandon Weeden, Justin Blackmon, and Oklahoma State. After Jordan Williamson missed a kick that would have won the game for Stanford at the end of regulation, the game went into overtime, where Williamson missed another big kick. Oklahoma State didn't have these kicking problems, and Quinn Cook nailed a 22 yarder to win the game for Oklahoma State, 41-38. Justin Blackmon hauled in 8 passes for 186 yards and three touchdowns from Brandon Weeden, who finished the game with 399 yards and 3 touchdowns.

Then came Tuesday and the Sugar Bowl. Michigan and Virginia Tech dueled it out in New Orleans in a very interesting game. It was a game of field goals, Virginia Tech scored one touchdown the whole game, Michigan score two. Although Logan Thomas had 214 yards passing and one rushing touchdown, and David Wilson added 82 on the ground, Michigan, with only 184 TOTAL yards of offense, beat Virginia Tech 23-20 in overtime. Virginia Tech made three field goals in this game before tying the game on a Logan Thomas touchdown run and two-point conversion. Virginia Tech, down 20-17 got the ball back late in the game, and went on a great drive before Frank Beamer made a huge coaching mistake by taking away all of his team's momentum and making his team play for overtime. Virginia Tech's field goal kicker, Justin Meyer, made the kick and sent the game into overtime. After a touchdown was controversially called back after a review, Meyer missed a 37 yard field goal kick. Michigan, playing unusually conservative, played for the field goal, ironically another 37 yarder. Brendan Gibbons, the Michigan kicker, sank it through, and Michigan won, 23-20. Denard Robinson had 117 yards and two touchdowns passing in the game, and that was enough to pull out a win. This gives Michigan the big-time win that they were looking for, and they could be a dangerous team next year.

The Orange Bowl, played on Wednesday in Miami, didn't need any overtime or kicker heroics, it was just an absolute rout by West Virginia against Clemson, 70-33. Geno Smith threw for 401 yards and six touchdowns to lead West Virginia, and Tavon Austin caught 11 passes for 117 yards and four touchdowns. West Virginia scored the most points in one quarter in bowl history by scoring 35 points in the second quarter. On the other side, Tajh Boyd threw for 250 yards and two touchdowns for Clemson, and Andre Ellington rushed for 116 yards and a touchdown on the ground.

Although not technically a BCS bowl, the Cotton Bowl featured the sixth ranked team in the country, Arkansas, against the eighth ranked team, Kansas State. Although Collin Klein, who has taken the country by storm, threw for 173 yards and a touchdown and added 42 yards and another touchdown on the ground, his efforts fell short, and Arkansas won 29-16. Tyler Wilson led Arkansas by throwing for 216 yards and two touchdowns. This game featured two special teams "touchdowns", Joe Adams of Arkansas returned a punt 51 yards at the beginning of the second quarter, and Nigel Malone returned a blocked extra point for a "touchdown". (It only counted for two points). It's been an interesting bowl season so far, which makes the National Championship Game even more hyped.

Oh Canada

The 99th Grey Cup is tomorrow in Vancouver. The game will feature the British Columbia Lions, who are playing at their home stadium, against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. BC is led by CFL MVP Quarterback Travis Lulay, while the Blue Bombers are led by Quarterback Buck Pierce and Defensive Back Javon Johnson, the CFL Defensive Player of the Year. The game is shown in America on Altitude Network or ESPN 3, and on TSN in Canada. Although Winnipeg has the Defensive Player of the Year, and a very potent defense, the Lions have a very powerful offense, and although it will be close, the Lions will win.
My Prediction: Although it will be very close, The BC Lions will prevail in the end, 31-28.

Game of the Century

Later today, at 8 ET on CBS, #1 LSU and #2 Alabama will duel it out in an SEC West matchup. Although I think that this matchup should be #1 vs. #3 or 4 because of level of teams played, I have to admit that the game is intriguing, and I might watch. Although this is an SEC game, and I don't like the SEC (can you say overrated), I think that we could see either of these teams in the National Championship Game. The game will be a defensive struggle, with two of the nation's top defenses going head to head. Alabama is coached by Nick Saban, a two-time national championship winning coach (one with LSU), and LSU is coached by Saban's successor, Les Miles, who has led the Tigers to a title in 2007. This is, in my mind, Alabama's first real test of the year. Florida and Penn State don't count as really great competition, and while LSU was playing teams such as Oregon and West Virginia, ranked in the top 25, Alabama was playing Kent State and North Texas. Granted, Western Kentucky and Northwestern State aren't that great either, but at least LSU has scheduled some non-conference, tough matchups, instead of relying on the power of the SEC. That being said, not many teams walk into Bryant-Denny Stadium and come out having beaten the Tide. That is why I think that Alabama will win. Roll Tide!
My Prediction: 12-10 Alabama

Upset Saturday

First of all, I'm sorry that I didn't show my picks this week. I didn't get around to it today, but I'll be back next week. Here's how I did last week compared to Lee and Kirk from College Gameday last week:
Frank: 9-1
Lee: 6-4
Kirk: 7-2
This week was an interesting one in College Football. First of all, #23 Michigan State beat #11 Michigan 28-24. Later in the day, Ohio State knocked off #16 Illinois 17-7, and #12 Georgia Tech was stunned by Virginia 21-24. Arizona State at Oregon is currently starting the second quarter, however an upset could occur there, as the Sun Devils are currently beating the Ducks 14-7.

My picks vs. those of College Gameday

This week, I am showing my picks on the top games of the week and comparing them to Lee and Kirk from College Gameday's picks

                                                     Lee:                              Kirk:                                      Frank:
Oklahoma vs. Texas:                Oklahoma              can't pick, calling game  Oklahoma
Ohio State at Nebraska:           Nebraska                 Nebraska                          Nebraska
Florida at LSU:                              LSU                           LSU                                       LSU
Texas A&M at Texas Tech:      Texas Tech             Texas A&M                    Texas A&M
Iowa at Penn State:                   Iowa                         Iowa                                 Penn State
Missouri at Kansas State:         Missouri                 Kansas State                 Kansas State
Michigan at Northwestern:     Michigan                 Michigan                       Michigan
Miami(FL) at Virginia Tech:     Miami                     Virginia Tech                 Virginia Tech
Georgia at Tennessee:              Georgia                   Georgia                          Tennessee
Auburn at Arkansas:                   Auburn                   Auburn                           Arkansas

NFL Power Rankings

After releasing my predictions for the NFL season, I'd thought I'd show you my preseason Power Rankings:
1. Green Bay Packers
2. New England Patriots
3. Philadelphia Eagles
4. New Orleans Saints
5. New York Jets
6. Pittsburgh Steelers
7. Atlanta Falcons
8. San Diego Chargers
9. Baltimore Ravens
10. Chicago Bears
11. Dallas Cowboys
12. Kansas City Chiefs
13. St. Louis Rams
14. Miami Dolphins
15. Indianapolis Colts (Without Manning)
16. New York Giants
17. Cleveland Browns
18. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
19. Detroit Lions
20. Houston Texans
21. Seattle Seahawks
22. Minnesota Vikings
23. Oakland Raiders
24. Cincinnati Bengals
25. Tennessee Titans
26. Arizona Cardinals
27. Jacksonville Jaguars
28. San Francisco 49ers
29. Denver Broncos
30. Washington Redskins
31. Buffalo Bills
32. Carolina Panthers

NFL Predictions

Well, it's that time again, time for some NFL Football! Each team enters with a new team and a new atmosphere. The Eagles made some big moves this off-season, and many expect them to make the Super Bowl in Indianapolis. Here are my predictions:

AFC East:                                      AFC North:                             AFC South:                       
1. New England Patriots            1. Pittsburgh Steelers                  1. Indianapolis Colts   
2. New York Jets                           2. Cleveland Browns                    2. Houston Texans
3. Miami Dolphins                       3. Baltimore Ravens                     3. Tennessee Titans
4. Buffalo Bills                               4. Cincinnati Bengals                     4. Jacksonville Jaguars

NFC East:                                      NFC North:                             NFC South:
1. Philadelphia Eagles                  1. Green Bay Packers             1. New Orleans Saints
2. Dallas Cowboys                          2. Chicago Bears                       2. Atlanta Falcons
3. New York Giants                         3. Detroit Lions                        3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
4. Washington Redskins              4. Minnesota Vikings              4. Carolina Panthers

AFC West:
1. San Diego Chargers
2. Kansas City Chiefs
3. Oakland Raiders
4. Denver Broncos

NFC West:
1. Seattle Seahawks
2. St. Louis Rams
3. Arizona Cardinals
4. San Francisco 49ers

NFL Playoffs:
AFC Wildcard:
Pittsburgh Steelers beat Miami Dolphins 27-10
New York Jets beat San Diego Chargers 17-10
NFC Wildcard:
New Orleans Saints beat Chicago Bears 31-17
Dallas Cowboys beat Seattle Seahawks 42-21
AFC Divisional Round:
New England Patriots beat New York Jets 35-24
Indianapolis Colts beat Pittsburgh Steelers 24-13
NFC Divisional Round:
Philadelphia Eagles beat Dallas Cowboys 28-20
Green Bay Packers beat New Orleans Saints 17-13
AFC Championship:
New England Patriots beat Indianapolis Colts 24-21
NFC Championship:
Philadelphia Eagles beat Green Bay Packers 38-10
Super Bowl XLVI
On February 5, 2012, the Philadelphia Eagles and New England Patriots will meet for Super Bowl XLVI. The Eagles, with all of their offseason moves, made it through with offense and a lot of good cornerback play. The Patriots made it through with their amazing passing game and improved defense. In Super Bowl XLVI, Tom Brady and Michael Vick will duel it out through the air, handing the ball off just to keep the defense honest. Tom Brady will throw for 379 yards and five touchdowns, and Vick will throw for 310 yards and three touchdowns. it will come down to the last minute, in which Tom Brady will lead the Patriots on a last-minute, Super Bowl winning drive and the Patriots will win, 35-31.

Manchester United beats Arsenal 8-2

In one of the highest-scoring soccer games you will ever see, Manchester United beat Arsenal 8-2. It was the worst loss for Arsenal in 115 years. This wasn't the way Arsenal wanted to start their 125th year anniversary, the club has started out winless, and, although they have gotten a tie in the Premier League and have advanced into the UEFA Champions League Group Stage, Arsenal fans are panicking and are asking for their manger, Arsene Wenger, to buy some good players or be fired. Wayne Rooney scored a hat-trick for the Red Devils, and Nani, Park-Ji-Sung, and Danny Welbeck, each scored a goal, and Ashley Young scored two goals himself to complete the (count them) 8 goals. Theo Walcott and Robin Van Persie, a couple of Arsenal veterans, scored the two goals for Arsenal.
After losing Cesc Fabregas to Barcelona and Samir Nasri to Manchester City, two of the best players on the team are gone, and with fanbase turning against him, the 15-year manager of Arsenal, Arsene Wenger now sees the need for transfers.
Meanwhile, Manchester United is in first place in the Premier League, having won all three games that they've played, and will now get almost two weeks off before their next game against Bolton.

I'm in Football Mode

The Lockout is over, and Free Agency and trades are going on all over the NFL. I can't wait for football to start to see who will win. If you look at all of the deals made in the last week, you'll agree with me. Up north, the CFL is actually going on (Talk about doers and not dreamers), and even with their longer field and regular season, they don't complain about a thing, unlike the NFL. Unfortunately, my friend Michael's favorite team and my preseason favorite team to win the Grey Cup, the Saskatchewan Roughriders, are 1-4, and my favorite team, the BC Lions, haven't even won a game yet, they are 0-5. There have been some good games, and the most intriguing game of the year in my mind was the game between the Montreal Alouettes and the Roughriders, a rematch of the Grey Cup. The Roughriders won 27-24. Meanwhile, the teams that neither Michael nor I picked to even get to the Playoffs, the Edmonton Eskimos and Winnipeg Blue Bombers, are in first place of their divisions, going 5-0 and 4-1, respectively. Well, the NFL is entertaining my inner General Manager, while the CFL entertains my inner coach. Keep on going football!

College Football Preview (Stanford)

Stanford will be very good this year. With Andrew Luck returning, even the loss of the starting wide receivers and coach from last year won't stop Stanford from having a good year. Luck can throw to anyone, and although there are many teams better than Stanford, no one should take them for granted because Stanford can play. They start out the season with seven games that should be easy for them before facing USC. They face Oregon just two weeks later, and face Notre Dame two weeks after that.
My Prediction:
Stanford will do well, and beat Alabama in the Sugar Bowl, 35-10.
11-2
2011 Sugar Bowl Champions

College Football Preview (Boise State)

Although they lost their two best wide receivers, Titus Young and Austin Pettis, and their offensive coordinator, Boise State still is a force to be reckoned with, especially with Kellen Moore returning at quarterback, and Doug Martin at running back. Even with all of the changes, there is still hope for the Broncos, and I think that they will win at least 10 games. Their first game is in Atlanta against Georgia on September 3rd, and after that they don't have a real test until they play Nevada on October 1st. After that, they may face a good team in Air Force on Oct. 22nd, and then play their hardest game of the year against TCU on November 12th. I believe that these are the only three games that they could lose, however I think that they will have to lose at least one of these games.
My Prediction:
Boise State will have a productive year, after losing one game, they will play in the Fiesta Bowl and lose to Oklahoma 28-31.
11-2
2011 Fiesta Bowl Runners-Up

CFL Canada Day Kickoff

We have FOOTBALL! Just not in the way you'd think. The NFL is still in a lockout, but the CFL has already started its regular season. With a 120 yard field, different rules, and so on, the CFL and NFL are similar but not the same. Unfortunately, for us in the United States, (Happy 235th America), if the lockout goes on we'll have to watch either the CFL, with all of its difference, or the UFL, basically a minor league to the NFL. The CFL kicked off its season over the weekend in its annual Canada Day Kickoff. The Montreal Alouettes beat the BC Lions on Thursday in Montreal 30-26. On July 1st, Canada turned 144 and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers beat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, 24-16. Later that night, the Toronto Argonauts and Calgary Stampeders dueled it out until the Argonauts won 23-21. There were no games on Saturday, but on Sunday, the Edmonton Eskimos beat the Saskatchewan Roughriders 42-28. Hopefully we won't miss any NFL games this year, but being in July and with no timetable set for negotiations (although right now their winging some), I don't know when we'll see an NFL game. Until then, GO CANADA!

College Football Prediction (LSU)

LSU looks to be an interesting team this year. Althought they lost their best returner and cornerback, Patrick Peterson, to the NFL, and have a new running back, Jordan Jefferson and all of his passing targets return, along with most of the offensive line. Morris Claiborne, who had five interceptions last year, will return and probably have a successful year. Their first game is against Oregon, which I think the Tigers will lose. They then have an easy game against Northwestern State before facing two straight challenges against Mississippi State and West Virginia, one of which I believe they will lose. They have a game against Alabama on November 5th that looks to be a good one, and the Tigers should win. Their last game on November 25th will pit them against Arkansas, a game where I think Arkansas will show everyone that they are not to be messed with and win, just keeping LSU out of the SEC Championship Game.

My Prediction:
LSU will make a second straight appearance in the Cotton Bowl, where they will beat Texas A&M 14-10.
10-3
Cotton Bowl Champions

College Football Preview (Alabama)

Alabama won the National Title two years ago led by Mark Ingram and Greg McIlroy, and now that each of them are gone, this year should be interesting. It will either be a year of rebuilding or a year of winning. I believe that they have one of the best defenses in the country, however their offense has a little to be desired, with Trent Richardson, a very, very capable running back, having to replace Mark Ingram, a Heisman Trophy winner. Richardson, who played enough time last year and the year before to determine that he is actually quite good, won't be able to put up the same sort of numbers that Ingram did, however his numbers may lead to similar success. My only problem with Alabama is their quarterback. The quarterback battle is between AJ McCarron and Philip Sims, with McCarron expected to win. I don't think that either of them will have the same productive numbers that McIlroy had during the last two years. Greg McIlroy didn't put up great numbers, but he was a true leader. After an early battle against Penn State on September 10th, I believe that they will be upset by LSU on November 5th, but will beat South Carolina in the SEC Championship game and advance to the Sugar Bowl against Stanford.
My Prediction:
Alabama will have a successful season, but lose to Stanford 35-10 in the Sugar Bowl
12-2
2011 Sugar Bowl Runners-Up