I was at the Nevada game where BYU lost 27-13. If receivers could just catch passes, Jake heaps might have been able to get them back into that game. But what's stunning about BYU losing to Utah State is that BYU has made Air Force, Florida State, Nevada and Utah State all look like the same team. They've lost those four games in about the same fashion, similar scores, similar stats.
Bronco Mendenhall knew he was losing some talent when Max Hall, Harvey Unga and Dennis Pitta all left, but I don't think he imagined the dropoff would be this steep. He's now presiding over BYU's worst season since the Crowton era. Salvaging this season to a .500 record now seems out of the question. They still have TCU and Utah to play, and the way they're going, not a single game left is a gimme. San Diego State has a legitimate shot at beating this team. So does Wyoming. So does UNLV. I have a hard time fathoming losses to CSU and New Mexico, but then, last week I couldn't fathom them losing to Utah State.
Bronco is to blame. Hopefully he'll elarn from this. He's been too good a coach up til now no to. Not deciding on a quarterback cost the practice reps Jake Heaps needed, and more importantly, Jake Heaps's receivers needed. Jacobsen, Ashworth, Hoffman, DiLuigi... if the ball hits your hands, it's your fault if you miss it.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Monday, September 13, 2010
BYU blows it
BYU made headlines when they announced they were going independent. But getting blown out by Air Force 35-14 is not the way to impress the Powers That Be.
- The two-quarterback system clearly doesn't work. Bronco Mendenhall needs to own that. With each QB getting half the reps in practice, the receivers getting different passes half the time, it's just not working. None of the receivers looked good Saturday, but I at least believe McKay Jacobsen could catch a pass.
- The defense got embarrassed by the option. Air Force ran it all day and BYU couldn't stop them. If you consider yourself the better team, you do not allow the other team to get 400+ yards rushing on you.
BYU's in trouble already. They're 1-1 and still have Florida State, Nevada, TCU and Utah on the schedule.
- The two-quarterback system clearly doesn't work. Bronco Mendenhall needs to own that. With each QB getting half the reps in practice, the receivers getting different passes half the time, it's just not working. None of the receivers looked good Saturday, but I at least believe McKay Jacobsen could catch a pass.
- The defense got embarrassed by the option. Air Force ran it all day and BYU couldn't stop them. If you consider yourself the better team, you do not allow the other team to get 400+ yards rushing on you.
BYU's in trouble already. They're 1-1 and still have Florida State, Nevada, TCU and Utah on the schedule.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
You Watching, Big 12?
Boise St. def. Virginia Tech 33-30.
BYU def. Washington 23-17.
Wouldn't they fit in nicely in the Big 12 North with Nebraska and Colorado going away?
BYU def. Washington 23-17.
Wouldn't they fit in nicely in the Big 12 North with Nebraska and Colorado going away?
Monday, September 6, 2010
TJ Houshmandzadeh joins Ravens
So just a couple days after we hold our fantasy football draft, my third wide receiver taken gets cut by the Seahawks and picked up by Baltimore. I hope that somehow he can fit right in. I've always liked Housh. And part of it might be I like watching Chris Berman recap what Housh does in games.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
The Burying of Jay Mariotti
Tough reporters don't make many friends, and Mariotti apparently is no exception. but you can't really call him a tough reporter at this point. He's a tough columnist/talking-head who makes harsh judgments on every sports story of the week. Not since Peter Vecsey has there been such a celebration among athletes and colleagues over a sports writer's comeuppance.
Personally, if he's guilty, I think he's getting what he deserves. Ye are judged by the measures which ye mete out. If you're going to rip on athletes for hitting women, don't hit women yourself. Actually, ignore everything before that comma in the previous sentence and leave it at that.
Personally, if he's guilty, I think he's getting what he deserves. Ye are judged by the measures which ye mete out. If you're going to rip on athletes for hitting women, don't hit women yourself. Actually, ignore everything before that comma in the previous sentence and leave it at that.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Carmelo Anthony Wants Out
By not signing the extension, or at least by continuing to put it off, Melo's made it clear where his head's at. It's on Cloud Uncertain, and just because he signs it doesn't mean he instantly wants a trade.
He can see how bad the Nuggets chemistry is without Coach George Karl. Chauncey Billups is getting older. Melo sees the SuperFriends in Miami and knows if he'd done his contract different, he could've set up his own Justice League elsewhere. Hey, Chicago would've had the room, and he could be a Bull with Rose, Deng, Boozer and Noah right now. He could be in New York right now with Amare Stoudamire wondering if they're going to get Tony Parker or Chris Paul to join them next year.
He can see how bad the Nuggets chemistry is without Coach George Karl. Chauncey Billups is getting older. Melo sees the SuperFriends in Miami and knows if he'd done his contract different, he could've set up his own Justice League elsewhere. Hey, Chicago would've had the room, and he could be a Bull with Rose, Deng, Boozer and Noah right now. He could be in New York right now with Amare Stoudamire wondering if they're going to get Tony Parker or Chris Paul to join them next year.
Friday, August 13, 2010
Karl Malone now a Hall of Famer
Some Mailman love here and http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/jack_mccallum/08/11/malone.pippen.hof/index.html.
Very classy, moving speech he gave tonight.
Very classy, moving speech he gave tonight.
Friday, August 6, 2010
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Who I Want to Win the 2011 NBA Finals
30. LOS ANGELES LAKERS - Highest payroll in the league. Kobe's got five rings now, Phil Jackson's got eleven. Enough! Someone please knock them off their horse! If Kobe and Phil left and it became Pau's team, maybe I could like them again, which I haven't been able to do since Magic retired.
29. MIAMI HEAT - If the Finals come down to Lakers-Heat, you bet I'm rooting for the Heat. Otherwise I'm looking forward to the soap-opera year this team is sure to have. And Miami won a championship not too long ago.
28. MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES - A team run this badly does not deserve to win.
27. DALLAS MAVERICKS - Come on, is there an owner more fun to hate than Mark Cuban? I don't really hate Mark Cuban, in the way I didn't really hate Nature Boy Ric Flair when he was backstabbing good guys left and right in his pro-wrestling prime. Both are showmen. I guess it's called sports-hate. What can I say? The Dirk-era Mavs are like the C-Webb Kings. I'm glad they're good, but I enjoy rooting against them. Again, if it's the Lakers and Mavs in the Western Conference Finals, I'm going back to my Amarillo roots and becoming a big Mavs fan. (From now on, when I say hate, I mean sports-hate.)
26. DETROIT PISTONS - They already have three rings in the past twenty years. And see #28.
25. SAN ANTONIO SPURS - Four rings in the past decade is plenty. They're getting old, and they're not even fun to hate. They're just annoying. Annoyingly effective, but annoying nevertheless.
24. DENVER NUGGETS - I lived in Seattle in the late 1980's/early 1990's, so I am a Coach Karl fan, but I revelled in the Nugs falling apart under Adrian Dantley's watch. Melo's like Dirk. I can respect his game, but he's fun/easy to hate. And K-Mart, and J.R. Smith...
23. CHARLOTTE BOBCATS - They're owned by Michael Jordan and coached by Larry Brown, so...
22. PHILADELPHIA 76ERS - They won in the 1980's once, so no.
21. PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS - For firing Kevin Pritchard on draft night, and for trying to steal Jazz players every year with toxic contract offers (and succeeding this year with Wesley Matthews), I say there are 20 other teams I'd rather have win.
20. NEW ORLEANS HORNETS - No Jazz fan wants Chris Paul to win a ring before Deron Williams, nor a New Orleans franchise to win a ring before a Utah one.
19. INDIANA PACERS - I could care less about this team, but if THIS squad won a ring, I would then be looking for the last few signs of the Apocalypse.
18. HOUSTON ROCKETS - They won twice in the 1990's, so no. Though I do hope Yao Ming doesn't have to retire.
17. GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS - Coach Don Nelson has become a parody of himself, so no.
16. WASHINGTON WIZARDS - Good thing they changed their name from the Bullets, right, Gilbert? Gilbert? Sheesh, what's eating him?
15. L.A. CLIPPERS - If they won, it would justify everything Donald Sterling has ever done, and we can't have that.
14. CHICAGO BULLS - They had MJ. They're not allowed to get more rings just yet.
13. MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES - In a way, I'd like them to benefit from the otherwise brutal Pau Gasol giveaway. On the other hand, this is the team that handed two more rings to Kobe on a platter.
12. NEW JERSEY NETS - I must admit, I'd enjoy the Russian Billionaire geting more pub, but see the Pacers.
11. NEW YORK KNICKS - See the Pacers.
10. SACRAMENTO KINGS - See the Pacers.
9. TORONTO RAPTORS - Noh Canada. On one hand, it'd be cool to see a team thrive after its superstar leaves, but no.
8. ATLANTA HAWKS - We're actually getting into teams I kinda like now. Hawks seem constantly on the verge of breaking through, and it'd be nice if they can figure it out. But man, they're going to regret that Joe Johnson contract in three years!
7. BOSTON CELTICS - I can like Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and company. They play hard. They were two minutes away from winning last year, and I would've loved it. (Actually it would have felt more like relief.) And in a way I'd like Shaq to tie Kobe for championship rings.
6. CLEVELAND CAVALIERS - I don't really like the Cavs, but it'd be awesomely funny for the city if the team could pull it off.
5. MILWAUKEE BUCKS - Small market team doing what they can with the limited resources they have. They look like they're making smart moves. Plus Andrew Bogut came out of Utah, so I'd like to see him excel.
4. ORLANDO MAGIC - If a team in the East wins, I'd like it to be these guys. Let coach Stan Van Gundy get some long-due revenge against Pat Riley for his Fredo-style execution from the Miami family.
3. OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER - Part of me still sees them as the Sonics, and while it sucks Seattle doesn't have an NBA team anymore, Kevin Durant is the humble superstar this league really benefits from.
2. PHOENIX SUNS - It'd be cool if old man Steve Nash could pull it off after all he's been through. The Donaghy playoffs, losing D'Antoni, Steve Kerr devastating the team, Amare bailing...
... but it's distant #2 compared to...
1. UTAH JAZZ - Jerry Sloan. The Miller family, carrying on the tradition of the late great Larry H. Deron Williams emerging as the best point guard in the league. Al Jefferson finally being on a winning team. The winningest franchise of the past 25 years without winning a ring winning a ring. Jerry Sloan. Make it happen!
29. MIAMI HEAT - If the Finals come down to Lakers-Heat, you bet I'm rooting for the Heat. Otherwise I'm looking forward to the soap-opera year this team is sure to have. And Miami won a championship not too long ago.
28. MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES - A team run this badly does not deserve to win.
27. DALLAS MAVERICKS - Come on, is there an owner more fun to hate than Mark Cuban? I don't really hate Mark Cuban, in the way I didn't really hate Nature Boy Ric Flair when he was backstabbing good guys left and right in his pro-wrestling prime. Both are showmen. I guess it's called sports-hate. What can I say? The Dirk-era Mavs are like the C-Webb Kings. I'm glad they're good, but I enjoy rooting against them. Again, if it's the Lakers and Mavs in the Western Conference Finals, I'm going back to my Amarillo roots and becoming a big Mavs fan. (From now on, when I say hate, I mean sports-hate.)
26. DETROIT PISTONS - They already have three rings in the past twenty years. And see #28.
25. SAN ANTONIO SPURS - Four rings in the past decade is plenty. They're getting old, and they're not even fun to hate. They're just annoying. Annoyingly effective, but annoying nevertheless.
24. DENVER NUGGETS - I lived in Seattle in the late 1980's/early 1990's, so I am a Coach Karl fan, but I revelled in the Nugs falling apart under Adrian Dantley's watch. Melo's like Dirk. I can respect his game, but he's fun/easy to hate. And K-Mart, and J.R. Smith...
23. CHARLOTTE BOBCATS - They're owned by Michael Jordan and coached by Larry Brown, so...
22. PHILADELPHIA 76ERS - They won in the 1980's once, so no.
21. PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS - For firing Kevin Pritchard on draft night, and for trying to steal Jazz players every year with toxic contract offers (and succeeding this year with Wesley Matthews), I say there are 20 other teams I'd rather have win.
20. NEW ORLEANS HORNETS - No Jazz fan wants Chris Paul to win a ring before Deron Williams, nor a New Orleans franchise to win a ring before a Utah one.
19. INDIANA PACERS - I could care less about this team, but if THIS squad won a ring, I would then be looking for the last few signs of the Apocalypse.
18. HOUSTON ROCKETS - They won twice in the 1990's, so no. Though I do hope Yao Ming doesn't have to retire.
17. GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS - Coach Don Nelson has become a parody of himself, so no.
16. WASHINGTON WIZARDS - Good thing they changed their name from the Bullets, right, Gilbert? Gilbert? Sheesh, what's eating him?
15. L.A. CLIPPERS - If they won, it would justify everything Donald Sterling has ever done, and we can't have that.
14. CHICAGO BULLS - They had MJ. They're not allowed to get more rings just yet.
13. MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES - In a way, I'd like them to benefit from the otherwise brutal Pau Gasol giveaway. On the other hand, this is the team that handed two more rings to Kobe on a platter.
12. NEW JERSEY NETS - I must admit, I'd enjoy the Russian Billionaire geting more pub, but see the Pacers.
11. NEW YORK KNICKS - See the Pacers.
10. SACRAMENTO KINGS - See the Pacers.
9. TORONTO RAPTORS - Noh Canada. On one hand, it'd be cool to see a team thrive after its superstar leaves, but no.
8. ATLANTA HAWKS - We're actually getting into teams I kinda like now. Hawks seem constantly on the verge of breaking through, and it'd be nice if they can figure it out. But man, they're going to regret that Joe Johnson contract in three years!
7. BOSTON CELTICS - I can like Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and company. They play hard. They were two minutes away from winning last year, and I would've loved it. (Actually it would have felt more like relief.) And in a way I'd like Shaq to tie Kobe for championship rings.
6. CLEVELAND CAVALIERS - I don't really like the Cavs, but it'd be awesomely funny for the city if the team could pull it off.
5. MILWAUKEE BUCKS - Small market team doing what they can with the limited resources they have. They look like they're making smart moves. Plus Andrew Bogut came out of Utah, so I'd like to see him excel.
4. ORLANDO MAGIC - If a team in the East wins, I'd like it to be these guys. Let coach Stan Van Gundy get some long-due revenge against Pat Riley for his Fredo-style execution from the Miami family.
3. OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER - Part of me still sees them as the Sonics, and while it sucks Seattle doesn't have an NBA team anymore, Kevin Durant is the humble superstar this league really benefits from.
2. PHOENIX SUNS - It'd be cool if old man Steve Nash could pull it off after all he's been through. The Donaghy playoffs, losing D'Antoni, Steve Kerr devastating the team, Amare bailing...
... but it's distant #2 compared to...
1. UTAH JAZZ - Jerry Sloan. The Miller family, carrying on the tradition of the late great Larry H. Deron Williams emerging as the best point guard in the league. Al Jefferson finally being on a winning team. The winningest franchise of the past 25 years without winning a ring winning a ring. Jerry Sloan. Make it happen!
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