Saints Pummel Patriots ... and ESPN Hype

If the Patriots-Saints game on Monday night was supposed to be Super Bowl XLIII 1/2 ... then we really don't have to play Super Bowl XLIV, do we?

New Orleans destroyed New England last night and showed everyone that this indeed is a championship caliber team. The offense is as lethal as advertised and that defense held down Tom Brady and Randy Moss. This is a great team.

A great team that could go undefeated this year. They play at Washington next week then at Atlanta (who is missing Matt Ryan and maybe Michael Turner). Then they get a mammoth Saturday night game at home against the Dallas Cowboys. They'll host Tampa Bay before finishing out the season in Carolina.

Really, only the Dallas game looks like it could be lose-able.

That would mean that the Saints would be the second team to have a 16-0 regular season. They'd also get to host their two playoff games ... and they've been unreal at the Superdome. That could mean that N'Awlins will have a chance to make history in Miami next February. Hopefully an undefeated Colts team will be there to take them on.

Monday night also showed us that if the Saints did get to the Super Bowl, they can win it. This was probably the biggest stage that many of the Saints players have ever been in and they passed with flying colors. Despite ESPN's diehard attempts to pimp out this game (I'll admit that I was amped for this game despite not caring about either team), it was just a dud.

Well, unless you're a Saints fan.

The Big Ten Should Finally Win the ACC-Big Ten Challenge

The ACC-Big Ten Challenge begins tonight with a yawner of a game between Virginia and Penn State.

This series has been played every year since 1999. The ACC has won the Challenge in all ten seasons. Duke is a perfect 10-0 in the Challenge. Wake Forest is 8-1. Clemson is 8-2. Michigan State is lone Big Ten school with a winning record in this event (5-4).

The ACC is 62-35 in the Challenge. This year could be different. This year should be different.

The Big Ten is regarded as the top conference this year. The ACC saw a lot of talent head off to the NBA draft (nine players) or graduation. Big Ten only saw two of their guys drafted (B.J. Mullens and Goran Suton) and didn't lose as much to graduation. That allows the Big Ten to be a bit more experienced and cohesive at this time. Both conferences boast three ranked teams (Duke, North Carolina and Clemson in the ACC; Purdue, Michigan State and Ohio State in the Big Ten).

There are a few more reasons why I think the Big Ten will break the streak and win their first Challenge:

-Georgia Tech won't participate. The Yellow Jackets were one of the worst teams in the ACC last year, but have improved with Derrick Favors roaming the paint. They are better than Virginia, NC State, Miami and a few other ACC schools that will be playing.

-Michigan State is better; UNC lost a lot. The jewel matchup during this week is Michigan State at North Carolina. You probably remember that the Heels blew out Michigan State by 35 in the Challenge last year. They returned to Ford Field in April and blew out the Spartans again in the National Championship game. This really isn't a rematch since most of the star-power of the Tar Heels is currently playing in the NBA. Michigan State lost Suton and some other parts, but most of the team that lost in that title game is back.

-Weird matchups: Why is Maryland playing Indiana and not NC State? I feel that NC State could beat Indiana in a battle of the two worst teams in these conferences. Instead, the Wolfpack plays Northwestern, who look to go to their first NCAA tournament in school history. Maryland can win that game and should be playing them instead. And why is Ohio State hosting Florida State and not Clemson???

This isn't to say that the ACC doesn't have a chance to continue their dominance. There are several games that could go either way. So here is my prediction:

Penn State at Virginia. Virginia wins (ACC 1-0)
Maryland at Indiana. Maryland wins (ACC 2-0)
Michigan State at North Carolina. Michigan State wins (ACC 2-1)
Northwestern at NC State. Northwestern wins (tied 2-2)
Virginia Tech at Iowa. Va Tech wins (ACC 3-2)
Wake Forest at Purdue. Purdue wins (tied 3-3)
Boston College at Michigan. Michigan wins (Big Ten 4-3)
Duke at Wisconsin. Duke wins (tied 4-4)
Florida State at Ohio State. Ohio State wins (Big Ten 5-4)
Illinois at Clemson. Clemson wins (tied 5-5)
Minnesota at Miami. Miami wins (ACC 6-5)

Wait. Did I just give the ACC another win? Hmmm. Maybe the streak will continue. But even if I'm wrong, there are plenty of swing games and I have five road teams winning ... which goes against the grain. During the Challenge, the home team has won 67 of the 97 games.

GO ACC!!!!!

Frank & Weis: When Being Fired Is Fair or Not

Lawrence Frank and Charlie Weis spent all last week knowing that they wouldn't be holding onto their jobs for very much longer. Both Frank, the head coach of the New Jersey Nets, and Weis, the head coach at Notre Dame, were on borrowed time and were looking straight at that shiny guillotine.

Both were fired in successive days this week. Frank, who was reported to be fired all weekend, finally was shown the door before the Nets 17th straight loss to open the current season. Notre Dame waited until today to officially fire Weis, who says he already has had phone calls about offensive coordinator positions in the NFL.

Weis deserved to get fired. He had five years to mold the Fighting Irish into his kind of program. The offense, at times, looked powerful but the defense was lacking. Also, some decision-making just didn't make sense. He could recruit very well considering Notre Dame's strict requirements, but he just couldn't max all that talent.

While 35-27 doesn't seem to be a horrible five-year record, it doesn't sit well at Notre Dame. This is a program that hasn't won a National Championship in 21 years. That was also their last Heisman Trophy winner. They've been walking around the last two decades like a celebreality star: famous for what they used to be.

Weis was given every opportunity to pull this thing around and he just couldn't do it. Losing at home to Navy ... twice ... can do that to you.

Over in New Jersey, Frank was fired because ... well ... uh ... well they had to do something! The Nets are one loss away from setting the NBA record for most consecutive losses to start a season. Apparently, that's Frank's fault. He was 225-241 in his six-plus seasons with the Nets. He won two Atlantic Division titles and finished second once during that time. But the Nets have become one of those teams who decided to enter the Free Agent Sweepstakes of 2010. They gave away all their best players in salary dumps and are relying on young guys and role players to keep the ship afloat.

Their best player, point guard Devin Harris, missed the first ten games of the season. Courtney Lee, Yi Jianlian, Jarvis Hayes and Keyon Dooling have all missed time. And, again, the Nets dealt away Jason Kidd, Richard Jefferson and Vince Carter over the past two seasons. That must be Frank's fault, too.

Such is the life of a coach. Both Notre Dame and the Nets are very attractive jobs. Notre Dame still has the name recognition and that sweet television deal with NBC. They have resources that most other programs envy. The Nets have some nice young talent with Devin Harris, Lee, Yi and Brook Lopez. They also have a bunch of cap room to try to nab one of those max guys next summer. Add to that the fact that the Nets could be owned by the richest man in Russia and the team still plans on moving to Brooklyn means that the job could be in high demand.

Is Tiger-Gate Fair Or Out of Bounds?

Since Black Friday, the biggest sports story has been Tiger Woods smashing up his car at 3am. With all the wild rumors flying and the fact Tiger is seemingly hiding from both the media and police officials, this story won't be going away any time soon.

But is this coverage down the fairway? Or is it out-of-bounds?

Let me just say that this has brought about ... yet again ... that whole MSM vs Blog argument. MSM is angry that blogs are starting or chasing these rumors and that it's tough to convey the actual facts of the incident. Blogs are just saying that the MSM is mad that they're being scooped. That whole MSM vs Blog thing has been hashed out before and has grown tired, so I won't go back to it here.

You can go to friend and colleague Alana G and read her take on this issue. I agree with much of what she said. I'm one of those guys who cannot stand the the "reality TV world" we currently live in. I don't need to see people who used to famous ... or ones dying to become famous ... and their daily lives or over-dramatized problems. I'm not a big fan of blogs who skirt the stars day jobs in an effort to find seedy details. I don't care for it and I don't look at it very often.

But, like my television, I can change the channel. I don't need to watch "Cheaters" because there are 300 other channels with stuff on. I don't need to go to Deadspin.com or TMZ.com because I can read other blogs (like YARDBARKER!!!). I really don't care if Tiger was cheating on his wife and she caught him in the act or whatever.

That doesn't mean that those sensational-driven shows or websites have no place in the world. There are plenty of people interested in them so they deserve to be there. Like I've said before, if no one wanted it, it wouldn't be there. And if enough people are craving more information on this Tiger Woods story, then there will be shows and websites ready to find it for them.

Which is what makes me laugh about the MSM. Be high and mighty all you want, but every news organization has someone down in Orlando trying to dig and scoop for the latest tidbit of this story.

As for the original question, I don't think this is totally out of bounds. It is a bit overkill that I have to hear little rumors or people reading into Tiger's web post on an hourly basis. How many people know someone who cheated on their spouse? How many know about when the spouse gets angry when confronting their adulterous partner? How many fender-benders and all that have you seen? But Tiger is learning what any superstar has learned at some time or another: the bigger you are the harder you fall. What is insignificant about most people is vital info when it's about you. It doesn't matter who you are ... even if you're the President of the United States. Tiger should understand this and come out publicly with some insight on what's going on.

After all, if the rumors are true, then Tiger made the bed he's sleeping in.

Back From Thanksgiving

Sorry to stray away from the sports stuff, but I gotta get personal here. I went back home (Charlotte) for Thanksgiving and decided not to blog while I was on vacation.

I'll get back in the swing of things soon.

Allen Iverson Retired

I wrote this on November 9th and just wanted to repeat it again:

Allen Iverson Should Just Go Ahead and Retire
Who knew that the marriage between Allen Iverson and Memphis Grizzlies wouldn't work out? Oh, yeah -- everyone. Hard to believe that little song and dance that the two sides did when he signed during the offseason would end badly.

Iverson has played a total of three games ... all off the bench ... before taking a leave of absence from the team. Now the word is that he's contemplating retirement. The Answer is correct. Quit.

Iverson should hang them up. It's obvious that (a) the only role for him in today's NBA is as a bench contributor and (b) he doesn't want to do that. It's obvious that winning isn't the most important thing to him or else he wouldn't have signed with the lowly Grizzlies in the first place (would taking a lot less money and a bench gig with the Cavaliers or Heat be a bad thing?). Before Iverson decides to leave the NBA for whatever else he may want to do, he should consider one thing:

Did the NBA kick him out first and make the decision for him?

Despite how you may feel about Iverson, he is a Hall of Fame player. No one with his smallish build has ever done the things he did. And though he never won a championship, he almost single handily took the Sixers to the 2001 NBA Finals. He was a great player and hopefully will be remembered as such.

The key word is "was". He still is a good player who still can score in bunches. The problem is that teams don't need a guy with his skills of today starting and disrupting the team's flow. Look what happened in Denver once he left. He could cut a nice extended career out of being an offensive spark-plug coming off the bench but that's not his style. Again, the NBA has made the decision for you.

It's a shame that it had to end like this. Iverson in a Memphis uniform will be a sad chapter to a great career ... one that could have been better. To most fans, his "practice" rant will be the thing most people remember him for. That, and for being a gunner. And for unofficially ushering in the hip hop culture into the NBA. He also was a great scorer or something.

So say good-bye to the "bad guy". We probably won't see Iverson's mug much longer since he really doesn't seem like the guy to stick around the league in any other capacity. As you know, he's either the star or nothing at all.

What Happened to My College Football?

When I was growing up, Notre Dame mattered. It really doesn't anymore. Their last championship team was back in 1988. That team beat then-No. 1 Miami, won at then-No. 2 USC and beat then-No. 3 West Virginia in the Fiesta Bowl for the National Championship.

That was 21 years ago. None of the high school kids that the Irish are recruiting remember that. They were babies when the remember the Irish's last elite season (a 12-1 campaign in 1993).

During those years, Miami had one of the greatest runs in college football history. From 1983 to 1991, the Canes won four National Championships. During that time frame, the Canes rolled up a 96-13 record. Now, Miami had a nice run earlier this decade, but this isn't the same feared program it once was.

Their main rival, the Florida State Seminoles, were also among the elite. FSU won at least 10 games every year from 1987-2000. Since then, the Noles haven't looked the same. After dominating the ACC during it's first nine seasons in the league (and 11 of their first 12), Florida State looks more like just another run-of-the-mill team. Since that streak ended, they've hit double digits in wins just once.

Add to that the fact that once mighty Nebraska is an afterthought, Oklahoma and USC has fallen on mildly tough times this year while Michigan will miss the bowl season yet again.

That doesn't mean that those great programs are all down. Alabama, Ohio State and Texas will be playing in BCS bowls. And new titans like Florida are flexing their muscle.

Still, it doesn't seem the same. Look at the rankings right now. Boise State? TCU? Cincinnati? Those are three of the top six ranked teams in the country. This could be the weirdest bowl season we've ever seen. Our BCS bowls (aside from a Florida/Alabama vs Texas title tilt) won't have that traditional flavor. How does a Florida/Alabama vs Cincinnati Sugar Bowl sound? Or Boise State vs Iowa in the Fiesta? TCU vs Georgia Tech in the Orange? Makes that Oregon-Ohio State Rose Bowl zing, doesn't it.

That isn't to belittle those newbies to the party. Boise State has become a force, nationally. Cincinnati and TCU have been pretty good for a while now and have finally broken through to elite status. The fans of those programs should be excited and they deserve everything they get.

Still, the BCS doesn't want this. They don't want Cincy, Boise and the Frogs in their huge games. Their sponsors, who are already in a financial bind, don't need to see ratings fall off because the glamor teams are gone.

What's funny is that all those bowl games people make fun of because ... well, what's the point? ... will be the ones that will interest the most people. The Holiday Bowl might do well with an USC-Nebraska matchup. Ole Miss vs Penn State would be a great Capital One Bowl. Either Virginia Tech or Miami vs Pittsburgh in the Gator Bowl would be nice. Z

Me? I'm looking forward to a West Virginia-North Carolina rematch in the Meineke Bowl.