Or what I like to call the NFL playoffs. What a great time of year! I told my kids this morning before church that getting to watch the playoff yesterday and again today, not to mention the next couple of rounds leading up to the Super Bowl on Feb 7 is obviously another sign that God loves us very much. Why else would we get an extended Christmas present?
Adding insult to a difficult year, UGA was not ranked in the year-ending polls. This was the first time since 1996 that the Dawgs garnered no respect from the pundits.
I am certainly not going to argue that the 8-5 Bulldogs had a great year, but they did lose to (at the time) #9 Oklahoma St, #4 LSU, and #1 Florida. Of course the Dawgs also took it on the chin to Tennessee (Chick-fil-a Bowl losers) and Kentucky (Music City Bowl losers). Victory highlights included South Carolina, Arkansas, Auburn, and #7 Georgia Tech – all Bowl teams.
The bottom line is that a 5 loss team is not going to end the season ranked, but when you crunch the numbers, it’s not all doom and gloom. Here’s to future days!
Go Dawgs!
I suppose congratulations are in order to Alabama. The local fans will be nauseating. I don’t think they will consider for a moment that not only did Colt going out change everything, but if Texas had a backup with just a little more experience, the Tide would have let the game slip away. Hats off to Garrett Gilbert – he got Texas to within three before Alabama’s defense won the game in the closing minutes.
There is no doubt that Alabama is here to say. In beating Texas 37-21 (BTW, nice way to take a new on that last TD Uncle Nick), giving the SEC four consecutive BCS titles, Alabama further hammered home the point that the SEC is the most dominate conference in the land.
Regular Season Record: 46-41
SEC Championship: 0-1
SEC Bowl Record: 4-6
Final Record: 50-48
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SEC Bowl Record: 6-4 *Actual, not my predictions
I guess it’s probably bad form to quote myself, but I say screw it; after all it is my site! A couple of days ago I was lamenting on the Falcons tough 2010 schedule [2010 Atlanta Falcons Schedule Littered with Playoff Teams]:
“The 2010 Atlanta Falcons schedule will be good for fans, but suck for the Falcons chances to make the Playoffs.”
Have I mentioned before that I love Pat Yasinskas’ NFC South Blog? I am sure I did; at least once or twice. I digress. Mr. Yasinskas has posted that the Falcons would-be difficult schedule turns out to be not so tough. Probably.
“According to ESPN Stats & Information, the Atlanta Falcons have the division’s hardest schedule in 2010. But the good news is the schedule ranks No. 20 in the league.”
It’s not like the two games against division rival Tampa Bay, and road dates with Cleveland, Seattle, and St. Louis make this schedule a gift horse.
If you are a fan of Disney classics, and appreciate the finer glory of Blu-ray, you must check out Sleeping Beauty. It has been years since I have seen this classic. I watched it over the weekend with my youngest son, and I was left with “wow” as the best description I can offer.
Not only is Sleeping Beauty a timeless story, but the Blu-ray version of this moving is simply stunning – the vivid colors and art style are a sight to behold. I also made a second viewing with the commentary track, which has highly entertaining due to the intelligent comments and the picture-in-picture snippets.
Disney is about to place Sleeping Beauty in the “vault” [per Blu-ray.com] which means no more Sleeping Beauty for a few years. This may or may not be a big deal – fans of the movie have probably already picked it up, but as new Blu-ray adaptors look for the movie they will have to go the expensive “collectors” route on eBay and other second-hand markets.
I enjoy lurking around on the Blu-ray.com forums; stumbled across this thread yesterday – the 1978 animated version of The Lord of the Rings will be released on Blu-ray April 6. I immediately made a pre-order on amazon; “blind” purchase and all.
I do not care how much cheese factor this movie has; it has always been a person favorite from childhood days and I cannot wait to see what sort of goodness high-def brings to this animated classic. Besides, I cannot get my kid into the books or movies, so maybe the animated version will do the trick.
If you are a fan of the 1978 animated version, or even just have a passing interest in knocking everything that is wrong with this film, you should really check out this review. I think it is overly harsh, but it is highly entertaining and worth a read. For example,
Did you know that The Last Alliance lost? Evidently so. “As the Last Alliance of Men and Elves fell beneath his power”, however, Sauron failed to notice “the heroic shadow who slipped in”; Isildur, according to the movie, heroically snuck up behind Sauron and heroically hacked his hand off while he was looking the other way, and so came by the Ring. Hah! Some hero: “Isildur the Backstabbing Sneak”.
Sometimes I just like what I like; the pundits be damned. Of course no offense intended to the reviewer; I actually enjoyed the review!
So at last it has come to this; Alabama is a 3.5 point favorite over Texas. Going against this blog’s tradition, I am taking Texas and the points for an outright upset.
For those keeping score at home my loyalties belong to Georgia first, Texas second, and finally the SEC. I would normally pull for the SEC team, even the despised Florida Gators, but there is no way on God’s green Earth that I am pulling for the Tide over the Horns.
This pick is more of a “heart” pick – Texas has not played well down the stretch, but you can now argue that Nebraska’s defense was one of the better units in the nation at the end of the season. You could also make a case that the Texas A&M game was an aberration; that sort of stuff happens in a rivalry game. I think Coach Brown will pull off another miracle win; similar to the victory over USC. Texas will play the underdog card well.
Hook ‘em!
Regular Season Record: 46-41
SEC Championship: 0-1
SEC Bowl Record: 4-5
Final Record: 50-47
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SEC Bowl Record: 5-4 *Actual, not my predictions
While the pending signing of Troy Glaus is old news, he finally passed his physical, agreed to terms, and made his 1 year, $1.75 million contract official.
Glaus can make up to $2.25 million in incentives in 2010 that are tied to staying off the disabled list and in the lineup, including a $250,000 bonus if he’s on the roster 100 days. The rest of the incentives are triggered by plate appearances — $350,000 each for 400, 450 and 500 PAs, $400,000 for 550, and $550,000 for 600.
Glaus will play 1B, and most likely bat in the 4th spot between Chipper and McCann. The Braves continue to build their roster, attempting to save a nickel, by signing older, possibly injury prone players. Seems a tad bit risky to me, but if Glaus stays healthy, makes a decent transition to 1B, he could be good for 25+ HRs, which would make the middle of the order extremely potent.
It is a toasty 22F outside, but feels like 13F. I live in an old house; single pane windows, no insulation, hardwood floors, crawl space. As I write this from my kitchen, the thermometer shows the room in 60F.
Had a pipe burst yesterday; wish me luck the next few days that nothing else gives way. Too damn cold to write anything else. Have to get a cup of the black stuff to warm up.
Happy Wednesday. Tomorrow is Hook ‘em day!
The Falcons finished 16th in offense and 21st in defense. What does this mean for next year? They should concentrate on the d-line and the secondary. Getting back a healthy Peria Jerry should help, but not having a 2nd round pick in the 2010 draft is going to be a tough break. Looking towards 2010, the Falcons also made some minor roster moves, signing fan favorite D.J. Shockely to a futures/reserve contract.
Should Norwood stay or go?
Also looking towards 2010, Mark Bradley of the ajc.com thinks the Falcons can do with our Jerious Norwood (among others):
Jerious Norwood, running back: Three different coaching staffs haven’t yet figured a way to exploit Norwood’s talent. He has scored 10 touchdowns in four seasons; he scored one in 2009. (Yes, he was hurt. Still.) He averaged 3.3 yards a carry this season, which is terrible for a speed back. His longest run from scrimmage was 21 yards. When you’ve just completed your fourth NFL season and people are still talking about untapped potential, something’s wrong.
I respectfully disagree with Mr. Bradley. As he stated in his article, Norwood was injured much of the year – in my opinion concussions and hip injuries are not helpful, especially to a “speed” guy. If you look at Norwood’s career statistics, counting this year he has average 5.3 yds/rush, so this year’s subpar effort should be attributed to his health. Also consider that Norwood has averaged 9.5 yds/reception. For those keeping score at home, that is almost a first down per catch. I have long contended that the Falcons should use Norwood out of the backfield for quick out type patterns; anything to get him in open space where Norwood can utilize his speed.
For Norwood, the bottom line is that injuries sat him back this year. You also have to consider that injuries to Turner also affected the way Norwood was utilized. Look towards his per game statistics for further “proof” that injuries affected Norwood this year.
Now I am not saying that the Falcons should mortgage their future on Norwood, signing him to a crippling contract. I am saying that Norwood has been used effectively (at times) and should not be discarded after one injury plagued year.
Any diehard Falcons fan and even those not so close to the organization, know that the Falcons had a brutal schedule this year. That was the reward for landing a Wildcard spot, going 11-5 in the process. The Falcons remarkably harsh schedule featured 4 teams getting ALT after their bye week.
It is too soon to tell if the Falcons will get hosed again in 2010 with unfavorable bye dates, but it is not too soon to take a sneak peak at their schedule (thanks to J.Mike’s Missives – “official” Falcons blog). Home dates will include the following 2009 Playoff teams: Baltimore, Cincinnati, Arizona, New Orleans, and Green Bay. The road schedule will feature Pittsburgh (oh so close), a return visit to New Orleans, and Philadelphia.
I call that pretty harsh. Now consider that San Francisco is up and coming, and four games against division rivals Carolina (they will be improved) and Tampa Bay (up and coming … but maybe a couple of years away). The only “easy” games may be Cleveland, Seattle, and St. Louis, but all are road games.
The 2010 Atlanta Falcons schedule will be good for fans, but suck for the Falcons chances to make the Playoffs. Of course anything can happen, and we are still months away from seeing the Falcons back in action.
The Atlanta Falcons closed out the 2009 season 9-7, beating Tampa Bay 20-10. For the first time in my life, the Falcons have back-to-back winning seasons!
More to come later; I just wanted to get a quick congratulations to the Falcons and Jason Snelling (147 yards rushing) on the historic day!
No SEC action today, so a quick moment of reflection on this SEC Bowl season.
Yesterday was not a good day for my picks; losses included South Carolina and Arkansas, both of which I said I should not pick. Oh well, live and learn. My sole winner was Ole Miss.
The only pick I have left is for all the marbles. Alabama is the one SEC team that I really do not want to win. Well, actually I did not want Arkansas (their coach is a f’ing wanker), South Carolina (cannot stand the fighting chickens), Florida (ugh!), Tennessee, or Auburn to win, but I digress. I am of the school that you pull for the conference, not the actual teams. A healthy SEC makes Georgia look better; at least in my own little world.
Of course none of this matters for a couple of reasons. First, with the BCS all the other teams and games are relegated to second class citizens. Except for maybe the Rose Bowl; elitists never conform. Second, the Mountain West Conference has kicked the shit out of all takers, winning this year’s Bowl Challenge Cup, with one more game to plan. Then again, it is all comes down to Texas/Alabama, so no one really cares about the MWC’s impressive record.
Regular Season Record: 46-41
SEC Championship: 0-1
SEC Bowl Record: 4-5
Final Record: 50-47
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SEC Bowl Record: 5-4 *Actual, not my predictions
Remember when yesterday, New Year’s Day, was the day for all the major Bowl games? This stringing everything along for an extra week for the sake of TV ratings rather sucks.
Yesterday I went 2-1 against the spread. I knew I should not have picked Auburn to cover; while the Tigers won they almost threw away the Outback Bowl multiple times, finally defeating Northwestern 38-35. WTF happened to LSU? A sloppy Capital One Bowl field neutralized LSU’s superior speed, and thus the SEC’s other Tigers fell to the Nittany Lions 19-17. Lucky I took the points and those 2.5 LSU received from Penn St. put me over the hump. Finally, the Florida Gators were giving up 12.5, but they easily whipped the Cincinnati Bearcats 51-24 last night in the Sugar Bowl.
Papajohns.com Bowl: South Carolina vs. UConn
This one is almost unwatchable. Two run of the mill teams in their respective conferences. The fighting chickens are giving up 4, and while I should not give away that many points, South Carolina is the pick.
Cotton Bowl: Oklahoma St. vs. Ole Miss
Ole Miss should represent the SEC well today. Both teams are entering today’s match up after losing out to their end of year rivals, but I expect Ole Miss to bounce back and cover the 3 they are laying to the Cowboys.
Liberty Bowl: Arkansas vs. East Carolina
The Pirates come into this game on a roll, winning their last four games, while the Razorbacks lost a heart-breaker in OT to LSU. With that, Conference USA gets no respect in this one; Arkansas is giving up 7.5, which to me seems like too damn much, but I have yet to pick against the SEC this Bowl season, so why start now? The hogs cover the 7.5 in a high scoring shootout.
Regular Season Record: 46-41
SEC Championship: 0-1
SEC Bowl Record: 3-3
Final Record: 49-45
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SEC Bowl Record: 3-3 *Actual, not my predictions
Ouch. I was pretty far off on the Chicken Way (as my two year-old calls it) game; I am not going to concede that Va. Tech is all that … nothing like the third best ACC team kicking a mediocre SEC team in the mouth. How is that for being ungracious?
Outback Bowl: Northwestern vs. Auburn
The Tigers are giving up 8 to the purple cats, who just happen to carry in a three game winning streak including wins over (at the time) #4 Iowa and #16 Wisconsin. Auburn is bringing a two game winless streak into the Outback, ending their season with losses at Georgia and to #2 Alabama. No shame in that, but looking deeper, the Tigers have lost five of seven. Auburn is still favored by 8? Something smells with this one. Does the Big 10 really such that bad? This is against my better judgment (the SEC has really been flat this Bowl season); Auburn to cover the 8.
Capital One Bowl: 13 Penn St. vs. 12 LSU
How can the Happy Valley bunch be favored by 2.5 over the Tigers from Death Valley? Penn St. is vastly over rated, playing in a weak Big 10 and against subpar competition. I am taking LSU and the points; easy.
Sugar Bowl: 3 Cincinnati vs. 5 Florida
Gators are 12.5 point favorites in a game that at one point looked pretty promising. That was before all the drama with the coaches. There is no doubt that the Bearcats have had a nice season, but it will come to a crashing conclusion tonight in New Orleans. Can the mighty Gators cover? I have missed all year when I have picked them to cover significant points, so this is another “against my better judgment” pick, but Tebow goes out a big time winner. Gators by 14+ points.
Regular Season Record: 46-41
SEC Championship: 0-1
SEC Bowl Record: 1-2
Final Record: 47-44
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SEC Bowl Record: 1-2 *Actual, not my predictions