big daddy russ
10-13-2006, 12:29 AM
-Is there a more underrated team right now than West Virginia?...
-...There may be. And that team actually plays the Mountaineers on November 2. Oh, and Louisville's stud QB finally comes back next week.
-Is there a more overrated team right now than Georgia?...
-...Definitely, and it's not even close. If that team from Lincoln somehow wins nine or ten games and makes a second-tier bowl, I'm going to puke.
-Purdue: who exactly is their QB? Because Greg Orton and Curtis Painter have me as confused as Paris Hilton during a game of Cranium.
-I can't help but root for New Mexico State Head Coach Hal Mumme. You see, one of my best friends from HS married his niece (another Ingleside product) and I've had the chance to hang out with him once or twice. It's not like we're best friends or anything, and chances are he has no clue who I am other than some groomsman at Troy and Crystal's wedding, but he's one of the best, most down-to-Earth "mini-celebrities" I've met. On that note, NMSU has struggled to one of the most deceptive 2-3s record in the nation, and it may cost Mumme his job. Their two wins have been to Southeast Louisiana State and Texas Southern--not exactly a murderer's row--but his worst loss was by a mere eight points to Idaho, a pretty good team among the mid-majors (that just happens to be coached by ex-Miami Hurricane, Seattle Seahawk and SF 49er HC Dennis Erikson). He lost by a TD to both UTEP and New Mexico (both of which will probably wind up being bowl teams) and his QB leads the nation in passing. I could make some cheezy "I need my Mummy" joke here, but I'll take the high road and just say "this one's for you, Hal." If nothing else comes your way, A&M needs a coach. 'Cause they sure as hell don't have one now...
-...which leads me to my next topic, something I originally wasn't going to touch on, something that just seems like typical BS bulletin board material, but I've sat on this nugget waaay too long. One of my buddies back at A&M (well, he's an A&M grad) is buddies with a couple of the backups on the Aggie football team, so he hangs out with some of the guys from time to time... and they've all lost respect for Coach Fran. Yeah, it's third-hand info to you, so take it however you want, but these guys can't stand their coach. It's one thing to be losing your games, but it's another to be losing both your games and your team. Anyone who knows how I work knows that you'll never get a name out of this unless the situation blows up. Just know that I'd be VERY surprised if Fran's still there after '07. The only thing keeping him there this year is that big contract.
-The Big XII sucks this year. One team almost lost to Army, another did, a Big XII North "power school" lost to a IAA team, and the PAC-10's third-best team beat our second-best team.
-Garrett Wolfe is the best player in America. Period. Not Troy Smith, not Calvin Johnson, not James Davis, not Brandon Meriwether, not Ray Rice, not Erik Ainge, not Mario Manningham, not Kevin Kolb, not Marshawn Lynch, not Paul Posluszny, not LaRon Landry, not Dwayne Jarrett, and not this guy:
-Is Adrian Peterson the next Herschel Walker and Bo Jackson all rolled into one? Oh he's good, even great, but that's not what I'm talking about. You see, he's pretty darn good this year, but he's still not as good as he was his freshman year-- when he should've walked away with the Heisman. This year he may steal it from a more deserving player (see above) in what may turn out to merely be the second-best season of his collegiate career. (Bo stole it from Iowa's Chuck Long, Herschel from Stanford's John Elway, though Herschel's 5.3 ypc makes his a little easier to digest)
-Biggest breakouts: Ian Johnson, Chase Daniel, James Davis, Syvelle Newton, Erik Ainge, and Arkansas. Sure, Mario Manningham, Chad Henne, and Ainge's favorite target all deserve mention, but these five guys have been absolute studs. I mean, for real, who would've ever thought that Davis would actually be better WITHOUT Charlie Whitehurst in the backfield, that Daniel would be a better QB than a record-setter, that Ainge would break out of his sophomore slump this way, and that Newton would take a midseason change-of-position completely in stride... and turn out to be even more than the Ol' Ball Coach could've hoped for? Oh, and I thought Arkie would be competitive, but never dreamed they'd be where they are.
-...There may be. And that team actually plays the Mountaineers on November 2. Oh, and Louisville's stud QB finally comes back next week.
-Is there a more overrated team right now than Georgia?...
-...Definitely, and it's not even close. If that team from Lincoln somehow wins nine or ten games and makes a second-tier bowl, I'm going to puke.
-Purdue: who exactly is their QB? Because Greg Orton and Curtis Painter have me as confused as Paris Hilton during a game of Cranium.
-I can't help but root for New Mexico State Head Coach Hal Mumme. You see, one of my best friends from HS married his niece (another Ingleside product) and I've had the chance to hang out with him once or twice. It's not like we're best friends or anything, and chances are he has no clue who I am other than some groomsman at Troy and Crystal's wedding, but he's one of the best, most down-to-Earth "mini-celebrities" I've met. On that note, NMSU has struggled to one of the most deceptive 2-3s record in the nation, and it may cost Mumme his job. Their two wins have been to Southeast Louisiana State and Texas Southern--not exactly a murderer's row--but his worst loss was by a mere eight points to Idaho, a pretty good team among the mid-majors (that just happens to be coached by ex-Miami Hurricane, Seattle Seahawk and SF 49er HC Dennis Erikson). He lost by a TD to both UTEP and New Mexico (both of which will probably wind up being bowl teams) and his QB leads the nation in passing. I could make some cheezy "I need my Mummy" joke here, but I'll take the high road and just say "this one's for you, Hal." If nothing else comes your way, A&M needs a coach. 'Cause they sure as hell don't have one now...
-...which leads me to my next topic, something I originally wasn't going to touch on, something that just seems like typical BS bulletin board material, but I've sat on this nugget waaay too long. One of my buddies back at A&M (well, he's an A&M grad) is buddies with a couple of the backups on the Aggie football team, so he hangs out with some of the guys from time to time... and they've all lost respect for Coach Fran. Yeah, it's third-hand info to you, so take it however you want, but these guys can't stand their coach. It's one thing to be losing your games, but it's another to be losing both your games and your team. Anyone who knows how I work knows that you'll never get a name out of this unless the situation blows up. Just know that I'd be VERY surprised if Fran's still there after '07. The only thing keeping him there this year is that big contract.
-The Big XII sucks this year. One team almost lost to Army, another did, a Big XII North "power school" lost to a IAA team, and the PAC-10's third-best team beat our second-best team.
-Garrett Wolfe is the best player in America. Period. Not Troy Smith, not Calvin Johnson, not James Davis, not Brandon Meriwether, not Ray Rice, not Erik Ainge, not Mario Manningham, not Kevin Kolb, not Marshawn Lynch, not Paul Posluszny, not LaRon Landry, not Dwayne Jarrett, and not this guy:
-Is Adrian Peterson the next Herschel Walker and Bo Jackson all rolled into one? Oh he's good, even great, but that's not what I'm talking about. You see, he's pretty darn good this year, but he's still not as good as he was his freshman year-- when he should've walked away with the Heisman. This year he may steal it from a more deserving player (see above) in what may turn out to merely be the second-best season of his collegiate career. (Bo stole it from Iowa's Chuck Long, Herschel from Stanford's John Elway, though Herschel's 5.3 ypc makes his a little easier to digest)
-Biggest breakouts: Ian Johnson, Chase Daniel, James Davis, Syvelle Newton, Erik Ainge, and Arkansas. Sure, Mario Manningham, Chad Henne, and Ainge's favorite target all deserve mention, but these five guys have been absolute studs. I mean, for real, who would've ever thought that Davis would actually be better WITHOUT Charlie Whitehurst in the backfield, that Daniel would be a better QB than a record-setter, that Ainge would break out of his sophomore slump this way, and that Newton would take a midseason change-of-position completely in stride... and turn out to be even more than the Ol' Ball Coach could've hoped for? Oh, and I thought Arkie would be competitive, but never dreamed they'd be where they are.