I’ve decided not to acknowledge that mess of a game between Washington and the Giants as the start of the NFL season. The Redskins in no way resembled an NFL team, so it shouldn’t count. That means that the official start of the NFL season is on Sunday. Though I still mostly see the NFL as just as acceptable follow-up to college football instead of a stand-alone attraction, I still greet the season with all sorts of excitement, and I have spent a good portion of my time over the last while thinking about this season from a ridiculous number of angles. Some of the thoughts have been productive and helpful towards the goal of profitability, and some almost certainly have not. Still, thinking about football is better than a huge majority of other possible activities.
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The long wait is over and the NFL season is here. Sort of. I’m not entirely sure that that mess of a game tonight is worthy of being called an NFL game. It was hard to stay awake through that one, and it didn’t even start late.On the plus side, it can only get better from here. As I was watching, here are ten thoughts that came to mind:
The buzz has been around for a bit, but it really seems to be intensifying tonight – it seems like Tampa Bay is going to call up phenom pitcher and former number one pick for the post-season. Though he is a starter, he would likely start out in the bullpen much like Joba Chamberlain did last year. That worked out very well at the time (except for when there were bugs), and the same could happen for the Rays. They don’t really need rotation help right now, but another stud in the bullpen would really help. Apparently Price is doing very well in the minors and is more than ready for prime time. I think that the Rays are attractive anyway, but this helps even more.
As we get down to the point where we can start counting down to the NFL season in hours or even minutes, I find myself constantly looking at the upcoming season from every different angle. It will be a very good thing when the season finally gets underway, because then I can’t start looking at what actually happens instead of driving myself crazy thinking about what might happen. Until then, though, all I can do is ask questions I can’t answer. Here are ten of those questions that keep coming back to the top of my mind:
Continue reading “Eight Questions Heading Into the NFL Season”
The NFL season is just around the corner. That means that it is fantasy football time. I don’t profess to be an expert, but I do believe that you can significantly improve your chances of success in your league by following a few common sense tips. Here, then, are my ten tips to help guide you to a winning fantasy football season.
– Dave Wannstedt death watch? – Pitt was ranked to start the season (for no good reason, but that’s another story), but they did what they have done in the entire Wannstedt era – they disappointed. Bowling Green is among the elite in an underappreciated MAC, and they delivered a real setback to a Big East conference that already struggles for respect. Surely Pitt won’t tolerate the ceaseless mediocrity of this coaching regime for much longer.
1. Georgia might be first now, but they aren’t going to still be there by January.
2. Matthew Stafford will not be the number one pick in the draft.
3. USC has not been profitable against the spread in three seasons. I don’t expect that to change.
4. Notre Dame’s bug season is not going to materialize this year, and Charlie Weis is going to be in trouble because of it.
5. Missouri is the real deal. Their schedule doesn’t have a lot of obvious losses on it. None, really. Two games should be tough, two more could be a problem if they don’t have their act together, and the rest should be wins. Missouri is a real contender.
6. The winner of the Ohio State – USC game will play in the national championship
7. Michigan will win nine games this year. I wouldn’t touch them ATS, though.
8. West Virginia will not be in the BCS.
9. BYU will run the table ad be in the BCS.
10. Tim Tebow will not repeat as Heisman winner.
11. Colorado will be the best team with a bad record in the country. Their schedule is absolutely brutal, but they will continue to improve.
12. Stanford will finish higher than UCLA in the Pac-10 standings.
13. Nick Saban will annoy me at least 37 times this season. Charlie Weis and Jim Tressel will exceed that total. Steve Spurrier won’t quite make it to 37 times, but he’ll be close.
14. South Florida will win the Big East
15. Virginia Tech will win the ACC
16. Ohio State and USC are absolutel locks to win their conferences
17. Missouri will win the Big 12
18. I’ll take Florida in the SEC, but I don’t feel too good about it
19. Dan LeFevour of Central Michigan will, once again, be the most underappreciated player in the country.
20. Arizona State will lose twice, but will look very good otherwise and will be a tough bowl opponent.
21. It’s going to be a really long year for LSU.
22. Hawaii won’t be very good, but they will be much better ATS than they were last year.
23. Joe Paterno will be forced to retire after yet another frustratingly mediocre season.
24. This is the last season in a long while that Lane Kiffin won’t be a college coach.
It is so, so, so great to have college football back underway. I never really realize just how much I miss it until it is back again. As I said yesterday, I went to the Buffalo-UTEP game. It wasn’t an all-time clasic, but it was thoroughly entertaining. My quick notes:
Later on this evening I will be sitting in UB Stadium at the University of Buffalo watching the Bulls play the Miners of UTEP in what is scheduled to be the first college football game of the year to kick off. I have never been to a Bulls game, and I don’t much care about either team in the grand scheme of things, but I happen to be in the area on a trip, and I love everything about college football, so I figured I would check it out. Besides, despite what may be the first instinct of most people looking at this game, it has the real potential to be an interesting showdown. Here’s a look at the four top storylines:
Continue reading “UTEP at Buffalo – The First College Game of The Year”
On Monday I went to a thoroughbred yearling sale. It was the biggest sale in the province, and the second biggest in western Canada. There were almost 200 horses on offer, and many of them were very well bred and well turned out.
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