Tasty nibblets abound this morning.
- Just when you thought the NCAA/Nevin Shapiro mess couldn’t get any weirder, it does.
- Pete Fiutak thinks SOD failed at UT because he “was way too nice and way too decent to be able to crush and kill in the cutthroat world of the SEC.” So how come he had a losing record at La. Tech?
- Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t find this list convincing.
- Mark Emmert goes on record saying a fourth college subdivision for the haves could work.
- Brian Cook looks at Big Ten recruiting and finds that Kentucky and Tennessee are wrecking havoc.
- Michael Elkon rips Tony Barnhart’s selection committee proposal.
- Wisconsin’s 2015 conference schedule is a piece of work. At least fans will be able to stay home and see what’s on the Big Ten Network.
Get The Picture 
Wait a minute. You mean there are other sports stories going on today outside of the Miami Heat? I would never know with ESPN’s wall-to-wall coverage. As if we all care.
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Hate to find my self on the side of Emmert, made me check my myself all over to see what I was missing but an upper tier has a lot of good advantages for CFB. It is the only way I can get behind a 4 team playoff being adequate and the top half of D1 are very different from the remainder. I could support a “divorce” with the top 64 going their own way, especially if play between the two were prohibited in football. That would be a fans delight.
Also pinched myself with Dodds comments in that same article, he is someone I wouldn’t normally want as my spokesman but his conviction is encouraging. We need more ADs, presidents, and commissioners speaking out about the mistake that was made by the group who proposed the four team playoff. Why even start a process so flawed? Like buying a new car with half the parts missing knowing you will have to return to the shop soon. Not trying to extend a debate where everyone is so entrenched just acknowledging that playoffs make for strange bedfellows too.
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Well said Mac. Have you called these Bozo’s? I want you in there to say that to them; “Why even start a process so flawed?
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And you Senator were praising the Big Ten for its 9 game conference schedule. Their weak scheduling just got weaker. I say the SEC should add 6 horrible teams and then I would be all for an 11 game conf schedule.
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Um… did you count the number of conference games there? It’s eight. The Big Ten doesn’t go to a nine-game schedule until the next season.
What makes the schedule shitty in the short-term is the conference’s decision to add Maryland and Rutgers.
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My point is that our 8 game schedule is tougher than even a 10 game Big Ten conf. schedule. Fla, SC, UK and UGA are at a disadvantage than the rest of the SEC due to tough in-state non-conference rivalries. If Saban had to play FSU every year, I doubt he would have voted for a 9 game conference schedule.
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You know that’s right!
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How can you say that when Alabama has regularly elected to schedule a tough non-conference opponent over the past several years (e.g., see their appearances in the kickoff game)? I don’t think Saban is afraid to play anyone at this point.
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Elected is the key word…Have they done it every year? Have they gone to another teams stadium every other year?
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So I decided to look it up. In Saban’s 6 years Alabama has played two road games OOC at the opponents stadium. At Duke and at Penn State. That’s not so impressive is it?
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We usually play GT and also schedule a tough non-conf game. Boise State, Clemson, Ok State, etc.
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This quote about Dooley is made particularly ironic when you consider what players did to an off-duty police officer while Dooley was coach. Not one of those players was kicked off the team.
“was way too nice and way too decent to be able to crush and kill”
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Also, Dooley had a horrible relationship/reputation with TN high school coaches. I realize that isn’t a talent laden group but they are a base that needs to be totally owned by UT, and always has been (except the Memphis area). After SOD left it also surfaced that he was a pompous jerk to the staff people in the Athletic Department. You have to take that with a grain of salt but being Barbs’ son, it is believable. Given his legacy at both La Tech and UT he was a very questionable hire for the Hillbillys. As with Shula Jr, Kiffin, Jr, and now SOD, you have to wonder if the whole nepotism thing is going to be scrutinized more in coming years.
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Oops, and of course, the Bowden boys.
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Nepotism has no place in CF. I think they hire these Sons to gain National recognition. You reap what you sow.
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The interesting thing is these privileged offspring have a built in edge in recruiting and staffing because of their famous last name and still have failed miserably. They are worse than their record. I always wondered why Bama didn’t ask themselves “how bad can young Shula be to never have had the Captain’s chair at age 37 with all his daddy’s connections?” I think they found out, just as TN did…..twice (slow learners).
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“(except the Memphis area)”
Butch could fix that geographical recruiting void by pitching Memphians that they could come All the way from Memphis to meet Mott or Tito
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Few comments….
1)Butch Jones strikes me as a Donnan-like hire for UT. There are positives and negatives on his resume. On one hand, he basically followed Kelley around who essentially build on the heavy lifting Mark D’antonio did at Cincy). Further, its not like he had any signature wins in his tenure at Cincy that would suggest he is capable of really elevating a program. that said, he does not really have to be great to get UT back to 8-4 respectability.
2)the notion that because DD was nice is why he failed is a joke. Despite being intelligent, articulate, and interesting, there is nothing to suggest that he knew how to run a football program. The famed “binder” he presented, links to Nick Saban, his last name, and his differentiated background got him hired, and despite the fact that everyone knew the program he inherited was bereft of talent, the fact that he was nice had nothing to do with the fact that he did not remedy the situation fast enough. My guess is he miscalculated badly in thinking that his offense could carry the team enough to cover defensive sins. Hiring Sunseri and flipping schemes was a disaster given their personnel.
3)elkon’s article is fabulous
4)emmert’s comments suggest to me that the tipping point of splitting off is closer than one might think. I think that is fabulous. Hopefully, it will mean an end to games with teams like FAU, Tenn Tech, and Georgia Southern.
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If being nice, cordial, polite, kind, fair, etc. held SOD back, how do you explain CMR’s success? And I too find it curious that Georgia is pointed out as the “Key” game to UT’s season. I don’t know if it’s a left handed compliment or a face slap. I’m hoping UT’s season comes down to a single game…Vandy…they really, really can’t afford to lose that one.
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The toothless ones actually think they have a decent shot at us. Cannot understand their rationale but think it was based on them having beaten us before when we were better. OK…..and do you have any semblance of offensive talent other than your line? Anything can happen but TN isn’t much better than Auburn in my estimation.
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LOL @ #18 and #19 on that “100 Reasons” list. Gator History Lesson FTL.
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DeLoss said, “somehow the NCAA needs to federate in a way that people with common programs can vote on their programs.”
And they shall be called by the have nots a Dunciad of Federates
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I read the comments on the Miami article and noticed that the UF Fans really hate Miami. I guess the long history before SOS ran from the game is still a bit of a thorn in their butts.
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Pete Fiutak is moron.
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I’ve read Fiutak’s article and looked at UT’s 2013 schedule. I had UT going about 6-6 in the regular season before doing that. I am now revising my prediction for UT’s 2013 win total….downward. UT has only 3 wins “in the bag” (the walkover games against directional-type schools). Now that some positive noise is coming from Kentucky and UK gets UT in Lexington I think that game is not a clear winner for the Vols (you may recall the Cats beat UT 2 years ago in Lexington). Nor is the Missouri game a sure win (you may recall the Tigers beat UT last year). UT is going to lose to Oregon, Bama, Georgia, Florida and South Carolina. Given that the Vols got trounced by Vandy last season and that Vandy is coming off a 9 win season, it is likely that Vandy will beat ’em this year, too. If things go as badly for UT as I hope they will the Vols might only get those 3 directional school wins. It’s gonna be a long season in KnoxVegas.
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Gee, I hope uT doesn’t totally mail it in. I don’t think my neighbor, who at one time sported a bed sheet size T flag on his porch and walked his coon dog outfitted in a ridiculous orange sweater would survive it. It is bad enough that my wife shares my prized Black Krim and Georgia Streak heirloom tomatoes with them. Now I will feel inclined to place him on some kinda of watch. He could commit seppuku in the front yard under that flag. The Homeowners Association will probably give me a call wondering if I helped nudge him that way. 😉
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Toss him a knife after the Vandy game. 🙂
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Regarding Fiutak: why the Hell is Georgia always the “statement” game for teams presumably on the rise? Why not Florida? Why not Bama? We’re always South Carolina’s “statement game,” and, of course, Clemson, UF, AU and GT have their Georgia games circled in red, too. In recent years, we’ve been the statement for Colorado, Boise State, Miss State, Central Florida, Oklahoma State. What I get from this is that we have enough of a rep that beating us really matters; but are seen as vulnerable enough that a win can be had.
I say our Dawgs turn this phenomenon into a “so, you wanna piece a me?” chip on the shoulder thing. That’s why I’m glad CTG left the big D in late against Vandy, AU and GT. Assure maximum punishment. Bludgeon them into oblivion. Rain points down on their heads like firebombs on Dresden. Hit them so hard that (as one of my son’s coaches said after he delivered a particularly ferocious hit) “You put that boy’s Mama in the hospital!” Then maybe the Gators can be the stepping stone, and we’ll just do the stepping on.
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This is rich “18.Georgia is 2-0 against Florida in the last two years. Florida is 18-5 against Georgia in the last 23 years. Use this fact liberally.”
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In his defense, there are actually two facts there and he doesn’t say which one to use. 😉
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He left off 49-40-2 Georgia’s favor in the series as a whole. Use that fact liberally.
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That’s impossible. The series did not begin until 1990. Just ask Gator Mike or any other gator fan.
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“100 Reasons To Be Excited for Florida Gators Football In 2013”
101. Muschamp on a couch staring
Paul Myerberg@PaulMyerberg29 May
Got email asking how to get Muschamp/Couch pic (http://i.imgur.com/1D7VRrC.jpg ) so reader could turn it into canvas. Thunderous applause to you, sir
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I wonder if Muschump realizes that he has bitten off more than he can chew yet. If he wakes up he may be able to pull a Corch and exit while he still is a sellable commodity. NFL HC or Big 10/12 HC? Kansas will be looking for somebody soon.
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Maybe DeLoss will hire him as soon as they can figure out a way to get shet of Mack
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That may happen sooner rather than later.
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About the 4th division, ESPN the magazine had an article on this a few years back where college football would be structured like the British premiere league. I think it was done in jest but just because something is done in jest doesn’t mean it isn’t a good idea. They referred to it as the Gordon Gekko subdivision.
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/columns/story?columnist=forde_pat&id=4369091&sportCat=ncf
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