Alrighty welp I’m back for another week of actual Barspotting. Kansas City was nice and all but I’ve been to all the good bars up there and now I’m ready to hit (or find) the good bars down here in Austin. This week I’m going to try to get to Third Base. Hopefully, I can play my cards right and get there to brag about it all to you on Monday morning. From the looks of things it’s a hot spot to be at so I know it’ll be crowded with others when I get there. Come on and join me!
There could be a big ole disparaging parenthetical here about how the Big 12 will go away and how badly it will affect my peeps and schools back home around the Kansas City area, but I’m deciding that we’ll focus on the good things this week. Sure there may be moves, but our teams will play this Saturday and many Saturdays to come. Whether or not they will play for a national title might still be going away real quickly, we’ll get enjoy the regional rivals and funky inter-conference matchups. It’s time for some PMA (Positive Mental Attitude) and for this week’s Crib Sheet: Continue reading Crib Sheet: It’s PMA Day→
Here we go with another year of Pick It and Stick It! This time I decided to go easy on people and not do confidence points throughout the year. It was just too much beef to handle week in and week out. So I cut that fat off and leaned it down to a tasty point spread straight up pick league. You can drop two weeks so if want to join up please do so at:
The bowl season ended Monday and there was a ton of news that happened over the last week. It’s mostly who’s coming and who’s going. It’s what I like to call the Carousel Hell. So put your seatbelt on get ready to go round and round, here’s this week’s Crib Sheet:
Mike Leach’s legal battle with Texas Tech may have cost him the Maryland job. He said that he thought he was the frontrunner, but the Terps went with UConn coach Mike Edsall. He hasn’t been contacted by other schools at the moment.
RichRod is officially out of Michigan now. Blow up the program part two. It makes me warm inside to think the same thing that happened to Nebraska a couple of years ago with Bill Callahan is now happening with another team I dislike immensely. Good days.
It’s even better for Brady Hoke. The former Michigan alum and former San Diego State head coach is now your new Michigan head coach. They wanted a Michigan man and they got one. I give it about another 3 years before a turnaround happens.
After showing up Michigan’s Denard Robinson and holding the team to 14 points, Manny Diaz will take his talents to Texas as defensive coordinator. He leaves Mississippi State and will be belting buckles in Austin. Let’s hope he didn’t fall for that ‘coach in waiting’ stuff.
The Playoff PAC is looking to stir up some smoke on the BCS. They are filing a complaint with the IRS regarding a cruise the Orange Bowl put on for college athletic directors over the summer. Shady or not, this seems like arrows instead of missiles for the Playoff PAC people. If there’s going to be a change, they can’t dink and dunk it.
So TCU won the Rose Bowl. Someone then paid for a billboard congratulating the team. Except it was in Columbus, Ohio. Yeah someone with big pockets wanted to rub it in the Ohio State President E. Gordon Gee’s face. He was running his mouth earlier about the mid-con teams not being worthy and now I guess he gets to eat crow.
Speaking of the Horned Frogs, head coach Gary Patterson notched himself a 2 year extension with the program. You go undefeated in two regular seasons, you deserve that and a ham sandwich.
Texas Tech told the NCAA that they texted too much. That’s alliteration. And that’s the news!
Head BCS Honcho Bill Hancock reminded everyone that a playoff is way below in priority for the college bowl partners. He said that even the old way of bowls would be considered first. Seriously, he does a great job of stirring the pot.
The BCS Championship Game happened Monday and it garnished the best cable ratings ever. Yet, the actual viewership is down. This is what happens when the biggest game of the year ends up on cable. Seriously, why didn’t Disney toss the game on ABC instead of ESPN? Television is becoming more live sport driven than anything else. Still, until I can replicate the experience of a sports bar in my basement, I will be going out for the games.
LSU’s Les Miles went to Michigan to talk about an open job but decided to stay with the Tigers. Listen up childrens, this is the classic strategy head coaches employ to get them off the hot seat or get a raise.
Man we feel for UGA VIII, the mascot of the Georgia Bulldogs. He didn’t make the trip to the bowl game last week and now we know why. UGA VIII has lymphoma. Jinkies, is the team as cursed as this dog is?
Former South Florida football coach Jim Leavitt settled out of court for some extra cash from the school. He was canned for reportedly striking a walk on student. He’s a defensive guy and because of that, the rumors are now flying about Leavitt coming back to Kansas State to take a defensive coordinator position. Tune in next week, this is getting hotter.
It’s the middle of the bowl season and we’ve had some great games so far. What’s cool about this time right now, is that coaches are making jumps left and right, either to the NFL or back down from the NFL. Players are also declaring their intentions for the big time as well. So while we try to keep up with who’s going where and who’s staying, we get some great bowl action left. Well, at least through Monday. Until then, here’s the Crib Sheet:
So Kansas State got burned on an excessive celebration penalty in their loss in the Pinstripe Bowl to Syracuse. A simple salute to the fans cost the Wildcats 15 yards and a missed shot for a 2 point conversion to tie the game up. The officials had some lame-o explanation and because of that it may be reviewed next year. Overall the game was pretty sloppy for the Wildcats but you can’t end the game on a penalty.
One of our favorite mascots, Georgia’s UGA (number VIII this time), missed the Liberty Bowl trip due to a sickness. Let’s wish him a good recovery. If you remember this UGA took over duties because to previous died at a very early age.
Florida’s on a rampage. We know they got Will Muschamp from under Texas as their new head coach. Now they signed up Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Charlie Weiss. I figured Weiss was a short termer for the Chiefs but leaving so soon to go back to college is kind of a scratcher. Maybe he will have free reign?
Here we are in the middle of bowl season. I got some good gear for Xmas and I hope you got some too. The bowl action was light in the last week, but we are now ramping up into the meat of the schedule. Most of the Big 12 schools will be playing this week and there will be ample action in between. Meanwhile, I Bowl Pick It and Stick It standings are out are some peeps jumping out of the gate quick. Let’s look at that first:
Irish eyes will be smiling when Notre Dame will play Navy in Ireland 2012. We’re not sure where they will play but more than likely there’s a good chance they’ll all go out together after the game and get drunk.
Communication issues have tormented Turner Gill and the Kansas Jayhawks. His solution? Yanking cell phones from players the day before the game and then giving it back in the locker room after the game. How will the players wake up in the morning or talk to their mothers? I guess that’s what computers are for. We wonder how many more losses it will take for Gill to yank computer privileges too.
The NCAA leaped to action regarding the issue of sports agents and collegiate players by writing a letter. A letter. They asked for cooperation. Nothing else. Just another reason the NCAA needs to upgrayedd or just disband. These guys are getting real irrelevant.
The Playoff PAC, the special interest group formed to blow away the BCS and instill a college football playoff, will file a complaint with the IRS regarding the tax status of the Fiesta, Sugar, and Orange Bowl. They used a load of lawyers and one accountant to pick apart the tax returns and public documents of the BCS bowls and found that some loans and director salaries were just too much. Whether the IRS will remove the tax status, we won’t know. But we do know that the Playoff PAC is digging into every crook and cranny to blow away the BCS.
It seems Landry Jones of Oklahoma will have a higher calling after he is done calling plays. Jones says he’s 98% sure that he wants to become a pastor after football. Just goes to show you all walks of life come to play football. We wonder how many Hail Marys he’s tossed compared how many he’s recited.
He’s just hanging with Tim Brewster. He’s not going for the head coaching job. That’s what Minnesota is saying after Mark Mangino was spotted on the sidelines of a game, supporting his buddy. Minnesota should’ve gotten right out in front of this. There is no way no one would not recognize Mark Mangino hanging out on the sidelines. The nose bleeder seats would’ve been able to see him.
Apparently along with the no cell phone rule for players, Turner Gill’s Kansas Jayhawks can’t be with the ladies after 10 pm. That’s a harsh rule. It’s on any night. Do mothers count? Like as in visit and talk to. Keep your mind out of the gutters, people.
Strange things are afoot for Missouri. First off, cornerback Munir Prince left the team due to the transient quadriplegia he suffered in the preseason. If he plays anymore it could get permanent. Next up, senior safety Jasper Simmons has been suspended indefinitely from the team. He had knee surgery after the Illinois game. Are they just trying to drop a scholarship or something? At any rate, some very unusual things are going down in Columbia.
We are back again going out to the best of what Kansas City sports bars has to offer in terms of college football. Like the storied tradition of college football, we have a tradition of going back to the best bar of last year to start out this season for KC College Gameday. We had no way of knowing back at the beginning of last September that Johnny’s in the Power & Light would be the best but here we are planning the first Barspot of the year down there. With every television fit into every nook and cranny as well as the crazy touch table poker game, Johnny’s hit the spot on all things needed for a great sport viewing experience. So come back out with us Saturday as we head back out there to enjoy Johnny’s and scoff at that ridiculous KC College Live thingy going on in the outdoor area.
In continuing with our homage to March Madness Mascots, this week’s entrant supports a team that recently ran over the the Duke Blue Devils. This blog is all about football, but we’re not so naive enough to wonder what that accomplishments. So in reward for achieving that impressive feat, we are going to be looking at the University of Maryland’s Testudo. We’ll take a look at the bronze buddy and the fabric counterpart in this trip down mascot lane. We’ll find out first and foremost, just what the hell a Testudo is along the way. So poke your head out for Testudo!
Okay it’s not as exciting as signing day or the first day of summer practice, but it’s enough to get us here at the KCCGD excied for some more college football! This week’s Crib Sheet dives into cracks and pulls up some loose change and football news. It doesn’t matter, it’s great to see the kids on the field getting ready for another season. We’re saving the change for stadium popcorn. On to the Crib Sheet:
We’re heard stories about college players getting arrested for drug and/or alcohol related crimes, but we haven’t heard the story about other players removing student newspapers that feature such crimes on the front page. Welp, it happened in Texas and the coach is backing his players for the removal. Is it suppression of free speech? Or is it a team rallying together? We don’t know, but we do that a campus full of students walked into class that morning without a crossword puzzle to distract them and that’s just wrong. At any rate, the coach later apologized.
Dan Beebe told everyone to chill about the permanent championship homes for the Big 12. At least not until June. It looks as though the rumor was Football in Jerryville, Baseball in OKC, and Basketball at the Sprint Center in KC. Maybe he’s holding out for more money from Jerry Jones, but my guess is that the Big 12 can get more from each city in the Big 12 area when putting the location up for grabs each year.
The Notre Dame athletic director, Jack Swarbrick, let slip the possibility that the Fighting Irish may have to join a conference and lose its independence if expansion happens all around them. This could be a bad thing for the Irish and a great thing for the conference that nabs them.
Coaches in Texas and Maryland get a one year reprieve from the new rule that limits successors in waiting to recruit for the team. The gates are open, boys, take as much as you can before the clock runs out!
Speaking of Notre Dame and Maryland, they will be playing each other at FedEx field in 2011. The Notre Dame Fighting Irish will be the home team. Huh? FedEx field is IN Maryland. Okay now we see why this independence is going away for the Irish. That’s just ridiculous.
President Barack Obama honored the Alabama Crimson Tide at the White House this week for winning the BCS National Championship. It must be be tough for a Big 10 guy to honor an SEC team, but hey, he’s a politician and he rolls with the tide.
It’s a short week here at the KCCGD. We gotta pack up tonight and get ready to hit the highway big time for Turkey Day. We still have some time to get pumped for college football. Usually when you think of football and Thanksgiving, it’s the NFL games with Detroit and Dallas. But, there is even a bigger tradition for Thanksgiving and college football. Rivalries are all over the place and it’s spread out nicely across the whole weekend. So while the travel may be plentiful for us and maybe you, we are guaranteed some live college football at some point. Happy Thanksgiving and here’s the Crib Sheet:
ESPN Page 2 columnist Matthew Iles talks about some of the more goofy rivalry trophies in college football. We like the Old Brass Spittoon the best. I wonder if, at the end of the game, whether or no the winner spits in it and if it makes a ba-doing noise.
Florida State barely got bowl eligibility last weekend by edging out Maryland 29 – 26. Bobby Bowden may end up being forced out anyway at the end of the year. The guy has been getting from all sides down there.
Some Big 12 coaches are jumping to the defense of Kansas coach Mark Mangino. Mike Leech and Bob Stoops are covering for him, even though they are alot like him. The surprising one was Bill Snyder 2.0. Coaches need to look out for each other and we’re seeing a pretty good case of this right here.
Jimmy Clausen could have used some defense when he was cold cocked by a fan in front of a South Bend restaurant. Not very Catholic-like indeed. Jimmy’s out at the end of the year and heading to the NFL. This incident merely sealed the deal.
That’s just the tip of the iceberg for Notre Dame. Charlie Weis pretty much said it himself when we stated that there is no surprise if the Irish can him at the end of the year. Urban Meyer keeps telling the press he’s out, signaling the start of a new coaching search for the Domers. No more vaunted, Charlie Weis led, Notre Dame Fighthing Irish.
Taylor Potts last week wore ‘Nick’ on the back of his jersey, now we know why. Mike Leech talks about his man love former Kansas linebacker Nick Reid. He never met him but for some reason he’s always thought Reid was the ultimate football player. We’re still trying to figure this out. It did help inspire them to a win though.
This week marks the middle of the college football season. What have we learned so far? The top teams are still at the top. Texas and Florida hold destiny in their hands. Florida might have a rougher road but the coarse has been set for the predicted title match up. The rest of pack? Not so much. Especially in the Big 12. Oklahoma fell off the map big time, with Sam Bradford getting knocked out early with a shoulder injury. Kansas State is first in the Big 12 North, which punctuates the mediocrity thriving up there. The BCS busters are hanging around, except for the teams from Utah thankfully. The KCCGD crew is batting over .500 for hitting up good sports bars. Let’s hope the last half of the season is as exciting as the first half. Here’s the crib sheet :
Former Penn State running back Austin Scott filed suit against all of the people involved in the rape charge against him that was eventually dropped a couple of years. There was not enough evidence to bring to jury. Scoot claims that everyone involved injured his career and is seeking damages. Rape is a serious charge and if someone gets wrongly accused and is ousted because of that, then the people involved should get punished.
Oregon running back LeGarrette Blount is on the campaign trail to revive his status with the team, this time talking in front of teens with other current players. It’s going to be a long road back but the more work he does, the better chance he will have at getting back on the field. Let’s hope he makes it.
Dennis Dodd for CBS clearly points out the writing on the wall of Oklahoma Sooners fans, Sam Bradford’s college career is over. After going down again against Texas, we doubt he’s gonna come back and try to re injure the shoulder or something else. Landry Jones will be your guy from now on.
On the BCS front, we have a new political action committee started to fight the BCS. Yup it’s the Playoff PAC! A bunch of Belt Way people will get together and try to elect Congressmen to vote on playoffs for the BCS. Never mind that the guy running it just happens to be a Utah alumnus. Seriously, people from Utah suck.
It was a big week of news and the Crib Sheet is back this week to tell you what mattered. It was Signing Day last week and the ouija board nearly broke from producing signatures sprinkled out across the whole nation. There were some surprises, but most of what was expected came to be true. We mixed in some political goobery and a little bit o’ smack talk to keep things fresh. My guess is the next couple of weeks are going to be dry news wise, so let this be the spike before the long lull. Here’s the crib:
Newly appointed Jesus of Tennessee Lane Kiffin is crying wolf over Urban Meyer trying to hit up one of his recruits. Lane still got the guy, but maybe the rub off from Al Davis’ fragile shoulders are showing up in Volunteer-land. It’s nice you got the recruit, Lane, but talking smack on Urban will produce some nasty results. Just talk to Georgia. Oh and he apologized.
Missouri too, had a pretty good recruiting class. They promised some tight end play to Sheldon Richardson but realy this kid is defensive tackle all the way. At any rate, look for them to compete for the North and then choke at some point.
Nebraskasigned about 21 kids to fill out the black shirts. Look out for these guys. With the walk on program back on and some key pick ups, Nebraska will be well on their way to almost going back to the Big 12 Championship game.
Conference wise, Texas and Oklahoma went 1 and 2, again. Hey they do that every year so get used to it. Colorado had a top 4 conference recruiting ranking last year and look at how they finished. Sleep tight, Texas A&M.
Bryce Brown is hanging out and making everybody speculate the hell out of him. Everybody else is down and signed but this guy just likes making everyone wait. Also, the big rumor is he might turn pro in some other league. Really, Bryce is a huge tease.
James Franklin, the Maryland offensive coordinator, was named last Thursday as the successor to Ralph Friedgen. Overlooking the fact that Maryland has done crap the last couple of years, this pick makes sense. If the school is satisfied with mediocrity then they should continue in it.
Mike Leech is culling his old lawyer skills and is still banging out a contract with Texas Tech. So the Red Raiders are apparently pulling a Boston College and telling Leech he can’t talk or interview with other teams during his contract. If they break off now, look for him to be somewhere else after this year. Come Texas Tech, fumble this one away!
Okay, this is getting redonkulous. Now all of Utah’s lawmakers are sending a resolution to PrezBama to blow away the BCS and give in to the power of playoffs. Now with football players on hand! Please somebody tell the whole state of Utah to get over it and focus on getting the Mountain West the automatic bid. Going the political route won’t work.
Missouri pulled in LSU tight ends coach Josh Henson. It looks as thought some SEC cred might be seeping into the Big 12. Recruiting wise, this will help out the Tigers immensly. Tim Griffin’s already saying they’re going after Bryce Brown too.
Dana Dimel is coming back to K-State. So he did a great job for Mike Stoops and reviving some offense and it looks like he’ll be doing the same at K-State. Let’s hope that it will be more than Ron Prince’s “Throw-everything-up-and-see-what-sticks” offense.
In sign of bi-partisanship, Rep. Joe Barton (R) from Texas is siding with PrezBama in setting up a college football playoff. Does he really need the votes? Plus, this guy’s an Aggie. Shouldn’t he be working more toward making Texas A&M a real football team instead of playing up to the playoff people?
