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NFL Mock Draft 2009 Draft of 2009 Lacks Star Power NFL Draft 2009: Getting Started Super Bowl Well Worth Tuning In For
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Prospects On Center Stage NBA Preview 2008/09: Final Call
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Ranting and Raving, Vol 3: 9/24/08 By Ron Jumper It has been some time since I have delivered a nice lengthy rant. However, we are getting into the swing of things and everything has started to heat up. We have early looks at who could play in the BCS Championship and who will compete for the Heisman. The NFL is 3 weeks in, which everyone is always shocked by this point at how good and bad some teams are. This is also a very important time in fantasy football for everybody, as a big trade could swing your team one way or the other. As always, there is just random things that I feel the need to talk about.  For starters, I didn’t realize Bill Stewart was a complete idiot when I picked the Mountaineers to make a BCS run. For goodness’ sake, watching him make quick decisions on the sideline in the last 2 games has been like watching a 7-year old play NCAA Football 2009. There is no sense of clock management, they tried to pass way too much with the best running QB in the country, and their defense is so vanilla Yarnell’s would be proud. With the Big East so down this season other than USF, they can still stumble their way to 8 or 9 wins on the season but that doesn’t even remotely mean they are a decent football team. What a shame… Changing gears, the injury to Ball State’s Dante Love is just so heart breaking. This was the best wide receiver in the country in terms of yardage going into the game, before an injured back most likely finished his football career forever. Love was truly special, as I’ve mentioned in previous articles, and will be missed greatly. I feel for Love on a personal level, but I also feel for his teammates. Ball State is 4-0 and just beat Indiana 42-20. They are hitting on all cylinders but, with the injury to Love, you can just feel the air coming out of the sails. I hope Cardinals coach Brady Hoke can hold on to his team and keep them on course to compete for the MAC title. It would be a tall order. However, I will be the first one to sing his praises if he does pull it off. You will me missed Dante Love, and the world should be made aware of what a great career you had over the years. Another player that doesn’t get a lot of recognition but means everything to his team is Javon Ringer. Michigan State depends on him like no one else in the country outside of Tim Tebow. The Spartans offense has really sputtered everywhere else. Ringer has 11 of their 13 offensive touchdowns. He also has 143 carries and the next closest back is at just 14. Despite the running of Ringer, the passing game has really sputtered also. Brian Hoyer is 45 of 101 for 700 yards with 1 TD and 2 INTs. His completion percentage is 44.6%! Keep in mind they have played Cal, Eastern Michigan, Florida Atlantic, and Notre Dame, so it isn’t like he has played against defensive juggernauts. The question now becomes can Ringer keep this workload for the entire season? He is on pace for a mind-boggling 429 carries. That is over 35 carries a ballgame, no back can survive that. However, at this point, it appears he may have to as they get into Big Ten play.  This weekend was the start of the SEC version of survivor. Every week is a new battle, as we had LSU-Auburn and Florida-Tennessee last week only to get Alabama-Georgia and Tennessee-Auburn this week. It is indeed survival of the fittest. To make it through doesn’t always mean you are the best though, it is how the schedule falls and how healthy you can stay as well. That being said, Georgia has been solid so far, but they play 5 ranked teams in the next 8 games. Of those 3 that aren’t ranked, one is Tennessee and the other is rival Georgia Tech. They just won’t get a break the rest of the season. The Bulldogs could arguably be the best team in the country but, with that schedule, it seems like a long shot for it to come to fruition. While the SEC is battling it out, could anyone be on cruise control more than USC? I mean who are they going to play that is any good? Currently, not one other PAC-10 team is even in the top 25. Not one! That is simply pathetic. The toughest game they have left might turn out to be might be Arizona (he said with a wink). It just isn’t fair to look at Georgia’s schedule and then USC’s schedule. Could you imagine if they could swap? How awesome would that be? USC battling it out in the SEC every week. But seriously, the only team that can beat USC… is USC. Sticking with the SEC, how about Houston Nutt down at Ole Miss? As a Razorback fan, I don’t miss the usual routine whatsoever. Nutt’s postgame interview was very similar to the one’s from his days back at Arkansas. He talks about how “excited” he is and so forth. Also, as usual, he throws his quarterback under the bus and takes no responsibility. He explains that “we can prepare him all week” when speaking of Jevan Snead. At no point is there any acknowledgement that they could have had him better prepared or that some of the blame should fall on the staff. Nope, it is always someone else’s fault. Nevermind the team had 7 penalties for 82 yards and outgained Vandy 385-202, it must be exclusively the players fault they lost the game. Good luck, Ole Miss. You are going to need it. The one thing I will give Houston Nutt credit for is that he knows when to fold and move on. The Arkansas Razorbacks are absolutely terrible. The Hogs looked like a Sun Belt team against Alabama this last weekend. Actually, I would be willing to say that Arkansas State will give the Tide a better game on November 1. This isn’t to say the future isn’t bright, but the present is woeful. It makes you miss the players of old… Speaking of which, Felix Jones has been phenomenal so far this season for Dallas. He has made a seemless transition. What amazes me the most is that it still looks so easy for Jones to blow by anybody and fly down the sideline. He makes it look far too effortless. Granted, he has a huge offensive line, gets to play alongside Marion Barber, and has two of the most underrated blockers in the NFL (Terrell Owens and Jason Witten) but still. If he keeps up this pace, look out. Felix isn’t the only rookie running back that has played well so far, as this is shaping up to be one of the best running back classes in the history of the NFL. Matt Forte has been outstanding and appears to be one of the top backs in the league. Chris Johnson has emerged as the top rusher for the Titans and has been explosive in the process. Darren McFadden has been as good as advertised so far. Jonathon Stewart has been a touchdown machine for the Panthers. Kevin Smith has earned the starting job for Detroit. Even Steve Slaton has performed admirably thus far for the Texans. We might be adding Rashard Mendenhall to the list soon, as he is starting in place of Willie Parker on Monday night. That is just an unprecedented amount of talented rookie running backs that are making an impact this season. In fact, 6 rookie running backs will have started a game when Mendenhall starts on Monday night. The rookies have also had an interesting impact on Fantasy Football, as Forte has emerged as a top 10 back. I feel great having grabbed him in the 6th round of the draft. If you didn’t get off to the great start you wanted to though, it isn’t over. The next few weeks are when you make those big trades that can leapfrog your team to the top. Later this week, Ric Atkinson will be breaking it all down for you so be sure to check it out.  September 24, 2008 |
| NCAA Football | |
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Be Careful What You Wish For
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| NCAA Basketball | |
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Jumpology: My Bracket Jumpology: Scouting The Heavyweights Jumpology: Reviewing The Bracket
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