A&M to SEC Still Very Possible

After days of speculation -and just a year after the last A&M secession talks- SEC presidents held a meeting Sunday morning and said they aren't extending an invite to the Aggies. Not today, anyway.

"The SEC Presidents and Chancellors met today and reaffirmed our satisfaction with the present 12 institutional alignment. We recognize, however, that future conditions may make it advantageous to expand the number of institutions in the league. We discussed criteria and process associated with expansion. No action was taken with respect to any institution including Texas A&M.”

I'm guessing the last thing the SEC wants is a potential billion dollar lawsuit from Texas and/or the Big 12 for snatching A&M while the Aggies are members of the Big 12. An offer can't be made until the school is officially out of their conference, unless I'm mistaken. The Texas A&M Board of Regents is meeting Monday to discuss realignment and to give A&M power to make realignment decisions. With the SEC denying reports of an invitation, they're saving themselves and giving A&M a chance to leave the Big 12 and formally apply. In other words, today's statement from the SEC means absolutely nothing. The Aggies will be members of the SEC sooner rather than later.

1 Down, 10 To Go

A few weeks ago I made 11 predictions for the college football season. Well, one one of those has already come true. My number 7 prediction was that Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy would have another meltdown, like his famous press conference attack on a reporter in 2007.

                                                              2:00 minute mark

Well, he graced us with his presence again.

ESPN reported that a carpenter hired by Gundy showed up to his house wearing an Oklahoma baseball shirt and the coach was not flattered when he arrived home a few hours later. The carpenter is now suing Gundy for $10,000 in damages.

"According to the lawsuit, Gundy arrived at the house at 9:30 a.m. and spotted Loveland's shirt. "How dare you come into my house and offend my wife," Gundy allegedly said.
Gundy then allegedly used profanity as he told the contractor to get off his property. He called Loveland a "stupid idiot" for wearing the shirt on "OSU soil," and refused Loveland's apologies. The contractor offered to turn his shirt inside-out, but was refused, according to the lawsuit."


I figured he would blow up sometime this season. I didn't think it would take just 10 days.

Thanks coach.

11 Non-Conference Games To Watch This Fall

With exactly 2 months until the start of the college football season and not a truly meaningful sporting event until then, it's time to look ahead. Last year nearly every preseason discussion was "Is this the year a non-BCS school makes the title game?" Or something similar. It got old. Part of me was glad #4 Boise State was upset by Nevada at the end of the year. They won't be in that position this year, but they do have a non-conference game against Georgia that's worth watching. Here's 10 more.


11. Missouri @ Arizona State (Sept. 9): Mizzou doesn't leave the state much in the non-con, only twice in the last 4 years. Quarterback play is also a question mark for the Tigers with the departure of Blaine Gabbert to the NFL. Starter James Franklin only attempted 14 passes last year, and a Friday night start against a pretty good Arizona State team will be a good early challenge.

10. Ohio State @ Miami (Sept. 17): Rematch of the 2001 National Title game as well as a bout last season in Columbus in which Ohio State won 36-24. Any match up of historic programs is sure to get ratings and this is no different. It will also be interesting to see how Ohio State is handling things post-Jim Tressel/Terrell Pryor.

9. Oregon State @ Wisconsin (Sept. 10): Wisconsin has a chance to be really, really good this year. The transfer of former NC State quarterback Russell Wilson to Madison is huge. After landing Wilson last week, Wisconsin's odds to win the BCS title dropped from 30-1 to 15-1. Beating Oregon State will get them a little closer to that goal.

8. Notre Dame @ Michigan (Sept. 10): Notre Dame is probably overrated again, and with a new coach, Michigan will have plenty of question marks as well. But aside from the historical aspects of the match up, there's something else to watch. It will be the first night game in Michigan's history.

                                                             Turn on the lights

7. Boise State @ Georgia (Atlanta, Sept. 3): Boise State won't make the national game this year, but they do know how to knock off top BCS teams, as they did to #10 Virginia Tech last season. Georgia isn't as good as last year's Virginia Tech team, but they aren't bad. Probably just outside the top 25.

6. LSU @ West Virginia (Sept. 24): Any time a potential title contender travels to a hostile environment early in the year, it gets exciting. West Virginia has a new coach and won't be on any preseason polls while LSU should be in the top 5. The atmosphere in Morgantown will give this one some drama, though.

5. Alabama @ Penn State (Sept. 10): National title contender from the SEC West traveling to a rough environment to face a fringe top-25 team? Sounds familiar. However, this match up gets the nod in the head coaching and home field advantage departments.

        

4. Florida State @ Florida (Nov. 26): This has the potential to be #1 on the list, but things have to fall into place just right. Regardless, Florida State is looking to repeat last year's 31-7 rout. Florida's new head coach and former Texas D coordinator Will Muschamp knows pressure, but now he's the head guy in Gainesville.

3. Texas A&M @ Arkansas (Cowboys Stadium Oct. 1): The former Southwest Conference foes should be in the top 15 heading into the season, but both loss key players from last year's teams. Arkansas is replacing quarterback Ryan Mallett while A&M linebacker Von Miller was the second overall pick in this year's draft. Both teams also share the misfortune of having title contenders within their divisions (Oklahoma, LSU, Alabama). Both teams should still be ranked heading into this one, though.

2. Oregon @ LSU (Cowboys Stadium Sept. 3): Two top-5 teams selling out this monstrosity will be awesome.

Oregon fans bought 15,000 tickets, only to be outdone by the 37,000 snatched up by LSU. The remaining tickets were bought pretty quickly, and if I wasn't biased, this would be the #1 game to watch by far. But I am, so it's not.

1. Oklahoma @ Florida State (Sept. 17): Florida State got pounded by Oklahoma last year in Norman, 47-17. They went on to win 10 games and return 20/22 starters from last year. Aside from quarterback Christian Ponder, everyone else is back. They've also had a top 10 recruiting class each of the last 4 years. With the returning starters as well as the influx of top talent, The Seminoles are my pick to win the BCS title this year, IF they can get by top ranked OU in week 3.


                                    

Big 12 Wrap Up

Back in early January I predicted the Big 12 standings here.

What I knew all along:

-Kansas would capture its 7th straight Big 12 title, albeit a very tough road after trailing Texas by 2 games midway through the conference schedule.

-Rick Barnes would pull a Rick Barnes. The Longhorns started the Big 12 season 11-0 only to lay eggs against Nebraska, Colorado, and Kansas State. Way to go, Rick.

-Kansas State wasn't as good as everyone wanted to believe. However, they did rally big time after starting 2-5 in conference play to finish 4th. It's not the season they hoped for, but a Big 12 tournament 4-seed is better than the NIT.

-Texas Tech isn't very good at basketball. Shocking, considering their ridiculous home atmosphere down in Lubbock.

I had no clue:

-Colorado would finish 8-8, good enough for a 5-seed in the Big 12 tournament. Tad Boyle can coach, so the Pac-10 better watch out. Also, Buffs guard Alec Burks will be in the NBA sooner rather than later.

Here's how they finished:


1) Kansas: (14-2) Predicted finish: (1st)

2) Texas (13-3) (2nd)

3) Texas A&M: (10-6) (4th)

4) Kansas State (10-6) (5th)

5) Colorado: (8-8) (10th)

6) Missouri: (8-8) (3rd)

7) Baylor: (7-9) (6th)

8) Nebraska: (7-9) (8th)

9) Oklahoma State: (6-10) (9th)

10) Oklahoma: (5-11) (12th)

11) Texas Tech: (5-11) (11th)

12) Iowa State: (3-13) (7th)


So I was perfect on 5 teams, within 1 spot on 3 teams, and missed badly on Colorado, Iowa State, and Missouri. I would predict the Big 12 Tournament which starts in 9 hours, but frankly, I don't care about conference tournaments.

The Big 12 season

is about 2/3 of the way over. Here's what I know:

-Kansas and Texas are in a different stratosphere.
-Iowa State is worse than I thought.
-Kansas State is worse than 99% of the country thought.

Here were my predictions on the eve of conference play starting.


Here's how we look with 5 or 6 games left for everyone:

1) Texas (10-0, predicted finish last month: 2nd): The Longhorns have looked other-worldy for most of Big 12 play, beating Missouri and Kansas by double digits and sweeping Texas A&M. A No.1 seed looks to be in the cards with 6 games left and the Big 12 tournament remaining. Prediction: Final Four

2) Kansas (9-1, 1st): Kansas has won its last 5 games by a combined 92 points. The only road block remaining looks to be the March 5th matchup in Columbia with Mizzou. Prediciton: Final Four

This is where it gets interesting. Teams 3-8 are all within 2 games of one another.

3) Texas A&M (6-4, 4th): A&M was embarrassed twice by Texas by a combined 41 points. Losses to Nebraska and Colorado don't help either. Prediction: NCAA 2nd round.

4) Baylor (6-5, 6th):Lacedarius Dunn can score with the best of them, getting 21 points a game. If he decided to pass every once in a while the Bears could be a lot more dangerous. Freshman Perry Jones is a future NBA big man that no one has heard of because of Dunn's separation anxiety with Mr. Wilson. Prediciton: NCAA 2nd round.

5) Missouri (5-5, 3rd): Missouri's problems are pretty cut and dry. They don't win on the road. Call it coaching, lack of discipline, or a lack of calls they can't get away from Columbia. I don't know, but I hope they know the NCAA tournament isn't played at Mizzou arena. Prediction: NCAA 2nd round.

6) Colorado (5-6, 10th): I missed on this one. Alec Burks is better than I thought, and the Buffs look to be a year away from doing damage in the new Pac-12. They might not get that chance, though. Burks has said he's leaving early if projected as an NBA lottery pick. He's 18th here. Prediction: NIT.

7) Nebraska (4-6, 8th): They can't score, but the Huskers have the Big 12's best defense and the 10th best defense in the country. Head coach Doc Sadler might need an NCAA tourney appearance to save his job, however. He's failed to make the big dance, and with Nebraska's move to the Big 10 next year, I think AD Tom Osborne wants to start fresh in 2011-2012. Prediction: NIT.

8) Oklahoma State (4-6, 12th): The Cowboys aren't as bad as I thought, but they aren't that good either. Their best win was a 76-60 defeat of Missouri on Feb. 3rd. Sitting at 16 wins, they'll probably need 6 more to make the tournament. But with games with Texas, Texas A&M, Kansas, and Baylor remaining, that ain't happening. Prediciton: NIT.

9) Kansas State (4-6, 5th): From No. 3 to NIT. I knew the loss of Denis Clemente was going to severly hamper the Wildcats' hopes of repeating last year's Elite 8 run. It has, and the wheel's have been falling off the last few months. Dominique Sutton transferred. Former McDonald's AA Wally Judge flat-out quit. Then last night, when Rodney McGruder apparently nailed a 3-pointer to drop Colorado, it was .01 second late. It's been that kind of season in Manhattan. Prediction: NIT.

10) Oklahoma (4-6, 9th): Jeff Capel isn't a great coach unless he has future NBA stars on his Roster. The only decent conference wins have come over Baylor and Colorado. I don't see things in Norman improving anytime soon. Prediciton: CBI

11) Texas Tech (3-7, 11th): Alright, I get it. Pat Knight's dad is an all-time great coach. Unfortunately, none of those skills got passed down to his son. Knight hasn't done anything since taking over for Bob in Lubbock. He's got to go after this season. Prediciton: Watching the tourney on CBS.

12) Iowa State: (1-9, 7th): "The mayor" Fred Hoiberg is struggling in his first season coaching in the Big 12. He's got one of the smallest rotations in the country, and he has about 15 guys who transferred to ISU and are sitting out this season because of NCAA rules. Next year will be better in Ames. Prediciton: CBI.

College hoops top 10

With exactly 1 month until Selection Sunday, the weekly polls are starting to get more attention as fans try to project seeds for their team. No.1 Ohio State finally fell on Saturday, a 71-67 loss to Bo Ryan's Badgers in Madison. Here's how I see things now.


1) Kansas (24-1): The media seems to like Texas as the new No.1. The Longhorns did beat KU in Lawrence, but they also have 3 losses to KU's single defeat. Kansas has won its last 5 games by a combined 92 points. That's impressive.

2) Ohio State (24-1): Losing to the No.14 team on the road is about the same as losing to a top 5 team at home, so these are basically 1A and 1B in my book. Wisconsin is tough at home, so that loss wasn't a shocker and shouldn't concern Buckeye fans. Vegas even had Wisconsin favored in the upset.

3) Pittsburgh (23-2): Everyone seems to have Texas ahead of Pitt at No.3, and even No.1 or 2 in some cases, but I like the Panthers here. They're 11-1 in the ultra-competitive Big East, they have one less loss than Texas, and they just knocked off Villanova in Philly on Saturday night.

4) Texas (22-3): The Longhorns are looking as good as anyone lately, and the case can be made for them to be higher here. They're on pace to finish with an unblemished 16-0 Big 12 record and a No.1 seed looks good right now.

Those 4 teams look to be on their own level. Everyone else is part of a jumbled mess of sorts from about No.5-15.

5) Duke (22-2): That ACC schedule isn't doing much in the way of Marquee wins for Duke here. The losses to Florida State and St. Johns aren't exactly impressive, either. Coach K doesn't seem to think freshman star Kyrie Irving will return from his toe injury to help come tourney time. That will hurt Duke in March.

6) Notre Dame (21-4): The loss of Boston Celtic Luke Harangody hasn't hurt the Irish much, who sit in sole position of 2nd place in the Big East. They have some nice wins over Wisconsin, Georgetown, Uconn, and Pittsburgh. Ben Hansbrough has been playing lights out this year.

7) San Diego State (25-1): The Aztecs just swept UNLV, which are 2 good wins for the selection committee to look at. I've just never been sold on mid-majors in the NCAA tournament. How many mid-majors have made the final four the last 20 years? George Mason and Butler? I have SDSU at 7 because college basketball is down this year.

8) BYU (24-2): I only have the Cougars this high because of The Jimmer. Fredette is getting 27 points a game and his range is anywhere inside the lines. I'm not kidding. That range could lead to a potential run in March.

9) Georgetown (20-5): The Hoyas are 3rd in the Big East behind Pitt and Notre Dame with quality wins over Missouri, Utah State, Villanova, and Syracuse. Austin Freeman is as good as any guard in the country.

10) Wisconsin (19-6): The Badgers were favored to beat No.1 Ohio State Saturday, and they did just that.  With Jon Leuer and Jordan Taylor getting 19 and 18 points a game respectively, the Badgers are tough to beat with that defensive style Bo Ryan employs in Madison.

Sign of things to come?

The first college basketball game I watched this season was an 8-point Pittsburgh win over Rhode Island. It was November 8th- nearly 3 months ago- and I'm still asking myself, where are the great teams? Because I don't see any.

Ohio State is close. Undefeated actually, but does anyone think the Buckeyes will cut down the nets in Houston? I don't. Jared Sullinger is great, no doubt, but he's still a freshman, which should raise a few concerns if you're picking them to win it all in your office pool.

This weekend saw a remarkable 13 ranked teams lose, and 9 of those losses came against unranked opponents.

The Big East looked to be head and shoulders above the other conferences, but its top teams continue to lose. The AP's No. 2 Pittsburgh lost to Notre Dame this week.  Uconn lost to Louisville Sunday. Syracuse has lost 4 in a row. Villanova has dropped 3 of 4. We hear every year how great the conference is, but the Big East hasn't had a national champ since Uconn in 2004.

The loss of Duke's Kyrie Irving has hurt the Blue Devils, who were were taken out early by St. Johns Sunday. That's another questionable loss for Duke, who lost to Florida State on January 12th.

Kansas and Texas are the teams in the Big 12 this year, and one of the two will probably grab a No. 1 seed in the dance. Kansas lost to the Longhorns last Saturday, ending their 69 game home winning streak and undefeated season. Texas already has 3 losses but are playing as well as anyone right now.

BYU and San Diego State look like potential Butlers or Davidsons this year, but neither looks truly great so far.


Most years by this time, I have 2-3 teams who I think will win it all. Last year it was Kansas or Duke.

Right now I could fill out 10 brackets and have 10 different winners. The level of parity should make for a ridiculous NCAA tournament, which might have more upsets in 2011 than any year in recent memory.

My college hoops top 10, January 20th edition

1) Ohio St.: This could be Ohio St. or Kansas at #1, as both teams have had recent struggles with less than stellar competition. The Buckeyes escaped Iowa, Michigan, and Penn St. by less than 5 points in the last 2 weeks.

2) Kansas: After struggling to beat Michigan, Iowa St, and Nebraska, the Jayhawks put on a clinic against Baylor Monday night, 85-65. Texas travels to Lawrence on Saturday, and the winner will be in the driver's seat in the Big 12.

3) Pittsburgh: If I was picking a national champion right now, Pittsburgh would be my team. After opening Monday night's game against Syracuse on a 19-0 run, the Panthers held on for an eight point win and improved their record to 18-1.

4) Syracuse: The Orange almost recovered from that ridiculously bad start Monday, but spotting Pittsburgh 19 points was too much. This is still a really good team, though. They have another big game Saturday at home against Villanova.

5) Duke: I'm still not sold the Blue Devils can win a title without Kyrie Irving. I think the outstanding guard trio of Irving, Nolan Smith, and Kyle Singler can make up for the lack a of post presence, but without Irving it might be tough.

6) Connecticut: Another Big East team? Yes, the conference is that good right now. Kemba Walker is on the short list of national player of the year honors, and they just beat my #7 team, 61-59.

7) Villanova: Last Big East team, I promise. The two Coreys, Fisher and Stokes, are getting 16 and 15 ppg respectively. Fisher went off for 28 points in Monday's loss to Connecticut, but the Wildcats are still a game ahead of Uconn in the Big East standings.

8) Texas: If head coach Rich Barnes can somehow stay out of the way, Texas can make a deep run in March this year. They certainly have the talent to compete with Kansas for the Big 12 title with Jordan Hamilton averaging 19 points a game.

9) San Diego State: I'm not really sure about San Diego State yet. They're undefeated, but they haven't played a ton of good teams so far. The rest of their schedule only has three obstacles remaining: @BYU Jan. 26th, @UNLV Feb. 12th, and BYU at home on Feb. 26th. 3 wins there and we might have an undefeated team this season.

10) BYU: The only reason I like BYU here is Jimmer Fredette's ability to score at will most nights. The Cougars are 18-1 and are 6th in the nation in scoring, getting 84 points a game.

Big 12 basketball starts tomorrow

The final season of the Big 12 as we know it begins tomorrow, with 5 conference matchups on the slate. Texas and Kansas will begin Big 12 play next week, as both schools finish up their non-conference schedules this weekend.

The Big 12 isn't as good as I thought it would be in October, but there are still a handful of good teams who can potentially make some noise in March. Here's how I think everything plays out:

1) Kansas: The Jayhawks are 14-0 and #3 in the latest polls while leading the nation in field goal percentage. Freshman guard Josh Selby has looked as good, if not better, than advertised, and the Morris twins have stepped up as well. Marcus is averaging 15 points a game while Markieff is grabbing 8 rebounds per. Foul trouble has been a problem though, and will be the only reason if Kansas doesn't make the final four in Houston. Prediction: Elite 8.

2) Texas: I've never been sold on Rick Barnes as a great head coach, but he certainly has the talent in Austin this season. Jordan Hamilton has been playing like an All-American, averaging 19 points and 6 rebounds a game. Freshman big man Tristan Thompson has played great also, averaging 12 ppg and 8 rpg, so talent won't be an issue for the Longhorns. Prediction: Sweet 16.

3) Missouri: I think Missouri's guards will win them enough games in the Big 12 to net a 3rd place finish, but the overall lack of inside presence won't get them higher than that, and could easily slip farther in the standings. Rebounding will kill the Tigers, who are currently 76th in the nation. In 2009, Mizzou's best season in a long time, Leo Lyons (6'9") and DeMarre Carroll (6'8") could handle the ball, run the press, and wreaked havoc on defense. The 2011 Tigers don't have anyone like that, and it will hurt them. Prediction: Sweet 16.

4) Texas A&M: The Aggies are a 2-point loss to Boston College away from being undefeated, and also have two wins over ranked teams already this year (#20 Temple, #22 Washington). A&M isn't really great at anything, they just know how to win. However, their inability to put away bad teams (beating Stephen F. Austin, McNeese St, and Nichols St by less than 12) doesn't bode well for conference play. Prediction: 2nd round.

5) Kansas State: The loss of senior guard Denis Clemente hurt more than any Wildcat fan wanted to admit. Clemente was the fastest Big 12 guard I saw in person last year, and he was the perfect compliment to pre-season AA Jacob Pullen, who is still scoring but is only getting 3 assists per game. The team can't shoot, sitting at only 44% from the field, but are 5th in the nation in rebounding. Prediction: Sweet 16.

6) Baylor: The Bears were my pick for second place before the season started, but they've lost to every decent team they've played. Losses to Gonzaga, Washington St, and Florida St. have dropped them from the top 25 and have questioned their ability to truly make up for the loss of center Ekpe Udoh, who left early for the NBA.  Prediction: 2nd round.

7) Iowa St: The Cyclones are 13-2 with wins over in-state rival Iowa as well as Virginia back in December. They've taken care of the cupcakes, with their only losses coming back-to-back against Norhern Iowa and Cal. First year coach Fred Hoiberg has looked good so far, and a NCAA tournament appearance is possible. Prediction: 1st round.

8) Nebraska: The Big 12 hasn't been kind to the Cornhuskers, who are still looking for their first ever win in the NCAA tournament. Head coach Doc Sadler might need an NCAA tournament appearance to save his job, but the loss of forward Christian Standhardinger really hurts the team going forward. Standhardinger was averaging 9 ppg before leaving the team in December. Prediction: NIT.

9) Oklahoma St.: Sitting at 12-2 is nice, but who have the Cowboys beat? Stanford and Alabama, and that's about it. Head coach Travis Ford is a year or two away from making a splash in the new Big 12. Prediction: NIT

10) Colorado: Sophomore Alec Burks is the best player nobody has heard about, averaging 19 points a game with a potential future in the NBA. That's about it for the Buffs, though, who can score with the best of them (84 points a game) but are allergic to defense. Prediction: NIT.

11) Texas Tech: The Red Raiders aren't very good. At all. They've already lost to North Texas, TCU, and UTEP. If head coach Pat Knight's last name wasn't Knight, he'd be coaching some NAIA school already. Nevertheless, he should be gone after this season. Prediction: Do they still have that CBI tournament? Who knows, maybe the Red Raiders can make that. Otherwise, they'll be sitting at home in March.

12) Oklahoma: Blake Griffin isn't walking through that door. The Sooners already have a nice five-game losing streak, including a four-point loss to Division II Chaminade in November.  Next year's recruiting class doesn't look promising either, so I'm not sure when things will improve in Norman. Prediction: No post-season.