I think tonight's National Championship game is the final definitive proof that there is no God. Sorry, Notre Dame.
Yeah, Temple might be the best option for ND players tomorrow… Damn thing is I wanted ND to win… In retrospect, after checking their schedule this season beating Wake Forest and Boston College in November is hardly a reason for sport writers to consistently vote them #1 ....
Although he game is not over congratulations to Alabama anyway, they have dominated thus far, worst BCS National Championship game I’ve ever seen from a competitive view…
Yeah, Temple might be the best option for ND players tomorrow… Damn thing is I wanted ND to win… In retrospect, after checking their schedule this season beating Wake Forest and Boston College in November is hardly a reason for sport writers to consistently vote them #1 ....
Although he game is not over congratulations to Alabama anyway, they have dominated thus far, worst BCS National Championship game I’ve ever seen from a competitive view…
Maybe it will deflect some of the national OSU hate from their poor showings in NC games...
McCarron should declare for the draft... He may not have the greatest downfield arm in the world but the guy looks like a prototype NFL QB to me... A solid and disciplined dropback QB at around 6'3'.
Yeah, Temple might be the best option for ND players tomorrow… Damn thing is I wanted ND to win… In retrospect, after checking their schedule this season beating Wake Forest and Boston College in November is hardly a reason for sport writers to consistently vote them #1 ....
Although he game is not over congratulations to Alabama anyway, they have dominated thus far, worst BCS National Championship game I’ve ever seen from a competitive view…
2004 between USC and Oklahoma (55-19) would be awfully close.
That game also featured the incomparable Ashlee Simpson at halftime.
Yeah, Temple might be the best option for ND players tomorrow… Damn thing is I wanted ND to win… In retrospect, after checking their schedule this season beating Wake Forest and Boston College in November is hardly a reason for sport writers to consistently vote them #1 ....
Although he game is not over congratulations to Alabama anyway, they have dominated thus far, worst BCS National Championship game I’ve ever seen from a competitive view…
Too bad it wasn't a barn burner like the OSU-FLA game. That one had me on the edge of my seat until - Ginn broke his foot
Gotta hand it to 'Bama. They were like men against boys.
Saban is an outstanding coach, but despite his four championships, I don't think he's on the same level as the all-time greats like Osborne, Leahy, McKay...
The loss of advantages for big-time programs like no scholarship limits and being the only game on TV every Saturday, there is one big advantage that comes with national TV -- and that is that the hype machine makes college football a self-fulfilling prophecy more often than not.
If you're expected to be good, you're going to get the benefit of the doubt (USC's 2012 season aside), and the BCS is based on any number of factors that are all influenced by the hype machine. Back in the day, you played your bowl game and let the chips fall where they may with voters. Now the BCS gives you what the hype machine spits out.
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I read that in the same 4 years, Alabama signed 104 players vs Notre Dame's 81. (You can only have 85 players on scholarship, so a lot of Bama kids had to be cut loose somehow)
That's a huge advantage.
Nick Saban never had a really good record except for one year at MSU before this whole oversigning trick.
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Too bad it wasn't a barn burner like the OSU-FLA game. That one had me on the edge of my seat until - Ginn broke his foot
Gotta hand it to 'Bama. They were like men against boys.
That game was 21-14 late in the first half, then a risky fourth down gamble and a fumble, both deep in OSU territory, gave Florida a big halftime lead. The score at the half was 34-14 and there was only one score in the second half, for a final of 41-14. No question the Gators were the better team, that night, but it was not the same level of domination Bama showed, last night.
That game was 21-14 late in the first half, then a risky fourth down gamble and a fumble, both deep in OSU territory, gave Florida a big halftime lead. The score at the half was 34-14 and there was only one score in the second half, for a final of 41-14. No question the Gators were the better team, that night, but it was not the same level of domination Bama showed, last night.
My memory has obviously failed me. I forgot the Bucks got close at 21-14 before falling apart.
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That game was 21-14 late in the first half, then a risky fourth down gamble and a fumble, both deep in OSU territory, gave Florida a big halftime lead. The score at the half was 34-14 and there was only one score in the second half, for a final of 41-14. No question the Gators were the better team, that night, but it was not the same level of domination Bama showed, last night.
They also had a lead against LSU. They also killed themselves with penalties that game, though.
I think it's pretty simple. The upper echelon of the SEC (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Texas A&M, South Carolina and usually Auburn) is a Bentley and the rest of their conference and College Football is a Ford Taurus. Until other schools can convince the best talent to come to their schools, this dominance is going to continue. The SEC also plays by a different set of rules when in comes to recruiting. They oversign like crazy and then send "lesser" players to the scrap heap. Take Texas A&M as an example. They have 35 commitments for the 2013 class. I find it hard to believe that they have that many scholarships available. If the NCAA would grow some balls and make all conferences play by the same rules, things might level out.
i believe TAMU had that many spots open...oversigning is when you get over 85 schollys...
here is a post from 11warriors on it
Quote:
First, let's look at how they can get to 34 when the SEC has a new cap of 25 per year:
A&M only signed 19 last year, and 22 the year before, and 24 the year before that. Thanks to back-counting early enrollees, they can back-count 1 player from the class of 22 (now numbering 21), and, correspondingly, 4 players from the class of 19 (now 15). That means that this year, they can back count up to 10 players (if they have that many early enrollees), allowing them to sign up to 35 players this year and still remain in good standing with the rule of 25 per year.
According to A&M fans, they are also expecting between 3 and 5 of these players to not qualify academically, further reducing this number.
Just meeting the rule of 25 is not enough, however, as teams are still obligated to stay at or below 85 scholarships for the football season (82 for us under sanctions). Well A&M only had 74 scholarship players this season for a variety of reasons, including non-qualifiers, transfers, etc. They are graduating 17 seniors, and may lose 3 juniors to the draft.
This would put them 31 players under the 85 man limit.
The difference between this 31 and the 34 or however many they sign will be "oversigned" players. It remains to be seen how many players do not qualify and how many more they add to the class.
Whose head is further up their own ass, the American baseball writer who uses the word integrity 15,000 times in their column explaining their HHOF vote or the Canadian hockey writer who averages 1.7 shots at non-traditional hockey markets per Sunday column?
Whose head is further up their own ass, the American baseball writer who uses the word integrity 15,000 times in their column explaining their HHOF vote or the Canadian hockey writer who averages 1.7 shots at non-traditional hockey markets per Sunday column?
"Integrity" doesn't explain keeping Raines and Biggio out. You're talking about the second-best leadoff man in history (behind Rickey Henderson) and one of the five best second basemen in history, neither of whom have ever been linked to anything. The same group of guys who gave Andre Dawson a decidedly undeserved MVP award, then used that as the basis for putting in the HOF. The same group who will never consider Todd Helton for playing in an advantageous home situation, but put Jim Rice in. The same group that has several members who simply refuse to vote for anyone on the first ballot under the idiotic notion that it would be some type of tacit statement that New Inductee is better all-time than Babe Ruth.
And on the matter of "whose head is further up their own ass", the answer is still the hockey writer.
On a side note, did Schilling have any issues as a player? I can't remember. Biggio should have made it.
Not that's been rumored or anything.
If Jeter gets in on the first ballot though (as he probably will), I just might flip out. To me, it would be the BBWAA making an absolute statement that all these other guys are tainted, but not the golden boy. And that might get really ugly if it ever emerges that he did. Also, I think he's horribly overrated. Not horrible (well, his fielding is), but overrated.
Not horrible (well, his fielding is), but overrated.
I agree in concept, but over 3300 hits (#11 all-time in only 18 seasons) with around a .320 career average with over 250 hrs's for a SS? He doesn't have A-Rod power numbers, but how many do? His post season numbers are in-line or better than his regular season numbers. His .976 fielding percentage is inline with Larkin's.
I admit I basically never watch the Yanks, other than when O'Neill was there. But based on that ancient memory and the stats, he sure seems like a first ballot player. Trust me, I hate all things Yanks, but I can't see anything here that would give me pause. Golden boy or not, he is one of the best to ever play the game.
If Jeter gets in on the first ballot though (as he probably will), I just might flip out. To me, it would be the BBWAA making an absolute statement that all these other guys are tainted, but not the golden boy. And that might get really ugly if it ever emerges that he did. Also, I think he's horribly overrated. Not horrible (well, his fielding is), but overrated.
Overrated how? 3000 Hits? . 313 career batting average? Championships? Leadership? 13 time all star?
You are definitely delusional on this point.
Does he deserve first ballot consideration? In pure numbers yes in my opinion, but not necessarily from the you have to be a god to go in year 1 mentality that has evolved.
Have to agree with EspenK. Jeter is worthy of being a first ballot hall of famer, probably the most worthy of his generation depending on how you consider someone like Mariano Rivera.
Have to agree with EspenK. Jeter is worthy of being a first ballot hall of famer, probably the most worthy of his generation depending on how you consider someone like Mariano Rivera.
Short answer:
I think it's safe to say that, after 140 years of professional baseball, anyone who finishes their career among the 10 best at their position is probably worthy of the first ballot.
But that's not the point. I think that a lot of assumptions have been made about who's clean and who's not, which has been reflected in the voting. Bonds, Clemens, McGwire, Sosa, Piazza...they all face an uphill climb.
But here's where it gets really dicey. Next year, Frank Thomas comes up on the HOF ballot. Thomas is one of the greatest hitters in history and, although a butcher in the field, played at a position where poor defense is considered to be acceptable. If Thomas goes in, then the BBWAA is making a tacit statement that "Thomas was great, and he's clean". But we don't know that. We don't know if Jim Thome, or Gary Sheffield, or Manny Ramirez, or Jeff Bagwell, or any of those other guys are actually clean or not.
Anybody whose career was primarily 1994-present is going to be under serious scrutiny, and justifiably so. The problem comes by putting in someone perceived to be clean, with the possibility that we find out down the road that he was not. I used Jeter as the original example because he's the guy whose multiple flaws have been totally overlooked and whitewashed by the starry-eyed media.
(My short answer was three paragraphs...guess if you want my long answer, you'll have to wait a couple days for that. It'll either be worth it or be an excellent way to kill an hour.)
I think it's safe to say that, after 140 years of professional baseball, anyone who finishes their career among the 10 best at their position is probably worthy of the first ballot.
But that's not the point. I think that a lot of assumptions have been made about who's clean and who's not, which has been reflected in the voting. Bonds, Clemens, McGwire, Sosa, Piazza...they all face an uphill climb.
But here's where it gets really dicey. Next year, Frank Thomas comes up on the HOF ballot. Thomas is one of the greatest hitters in history and, although a butcher in the field, played at a position where poor defense is considered to be acceptable. If Thomas goes in, then the BBWAA is making a tacit statement that "Thomas was great, and he's clean". But we don't know that. We don't know if Jim Thome, or Gary Sheffield, or Manny Ramirez, or Jeff Bagwell, or any of those other guys are actually clean or not.
Anybody whose career was primarily 1994-present is going to be under serious scrutiny, and justifiably so. The problem comes by putting in someone perceived to be clean, with the possibility that we find out down the road that he was not. I used Jeter as the original example because he's the guy whose multiple flaws have been totally overlooked and whitewashed by the starry-eyed media.
(My short answer was three paragraphs...guess if you want my long answer, you'll have to wait a couple days for that. It'll either be worth it or be an excellent way to kill an hour.)
)
