Week 5 musings...Hockey's Back!

Wow, sorry for the delay folks, but I spent the last two days watching all the hockey I could handle. Well, that's not exactly true...I watched all the hockey my girlfriend could handle. Before we get into college football, some observations from around the sports world.

Baseball
Man do I hate the Red Sox. Go Pale Hose! Also, I'm gonna go with the Yanks though... just because they'll always be the New York Yankees, unlike the Trent/Sue-Swingers exchange that is the Angels nomenclature. (Editor's note: If you've never seen Swingers, stop reading...you don't have permission to breathe anymore.)

Sue: "Hey man, you're not from here, alright. You don't know how it is. I grew up in L.A."
Trent: "Anaheim."
Sue: "Whatever, man. It's different out here. It's not like New York, Mikey."

How is it possible that I am rooting for the Braves? Probably because they have 27,241 rookies playing for them and somehow still find a way to win. They're the anti-Yankees; instead of buying big-name players to finish their illustrious careers, they plug in minor leaguers and still play well. Sick.

Question of the day: We all know Bobby Cox is going into the Hall...but what about Leo Mazzone? Has there ever been an assistant coach inducted? (Teebs, fill me in!)

San Diego....thanks for playing. On that note, why do we still have divisions in sports? It's not like the players ride trains for days to play a series. Logistics has made inter-regional divisions irrelevant. Each team should play everyone the same amount of times and then have the top 8 teams go to the playoffs. This crap where better teams stay at home because they're a 2 hour flight from San Francisco as opposed to a 1.5 hour flight is a load of crap.

Basketball
We get it... Dwayne Wade is a nicer guy than Kobe. However, if one more person says he's better than LeBron I'm gonna have to get out my gat fool. LeBron has Ilgauskushowthehelldoyouspellit on his team. D-Wade has Shaq. Put LeBron on the Heat with Shaq and they beat Detroit last year. They beat San Antonio too (cause Bron Bron matches up better on Manu). D-Wade on the Cavs? Last place. Stop kissing his ass because he's a nice fella. Everyone seems like a saint compared to AI and Kobe. LeBron is younger, faster, stronger, and sees the court better than D-wade. Wade is good, all-star good, but he's not better than LeBron. LET IT GO!

Hockey
People, enough with Sid the Kid. We know Crosby will eventually be good, but for Christ's sake give him some room to be a kid! He's not going to score 100 points this year. He's not going to win the Hart. Hell, he's not even going to be the Rookie of the Year. Alexander Ovechkin will. (How come none of the NHL teams have sweet threads like the Russkies?) I've been watching hockey all my life and haven't seen a package like Ovechkin since Messier was a youth in Edmonton. He skates like Federov, has a release like Kovulchuk, balance like Forsberg, and he has Messier's fire. The kid was pure lightning. I'd expect him to score at least 40 goals this year. If you get a chance to watch a Capital's game this year, do it.

Also, love the new rule changes. The games thusfar have looked like pick-up hockey with actual skill. Free flowing and back and forth rushes. Skill is finally at a premium. Seriously, check out the score sheets. All of the big guns are putting up numbers. Jagr, Naslund, Forsberg, and Roenick all had multi-point games. Sadly, not everyone enjoys it. Chelios was hating life after making at least 5 trips to the sin-bin last night against the Blues. By the way, hockey in High-Def is 1000 times better than regular hockey.

College Football
Northwestern vs Wisconsin UPSET SPECIAL
Wisconsin is without Matt Bernstein. He makes Brian Calhoun the playmaker he is. Without Bernstein Wisco is going to be in a lot of second and long formations unless they open the game with three or four play action bombs. Wisco will also be hard pressed to move the ball on third and long in spite of Stocco's huge day passing last week. I'm really taking NW on this just because Tyrell Sutton is an Ohio kid and I know he's going to have a huge day. Calhoun will do everything he possibly can to keep the Barry Alvarez Farewell Tour chugging along, but it's just not going to happen. He's a little to thin to handle the load they keep throwing at him. On the defensive side, Wisco hasn't seen a real running back this year, so expect Sutton to add some more big numbers to his Big Ten Freshman of the Year campaign.
Northwestern 24 – Wisconsin 20

Texas vs Oklahoma WOODSHED GAME OF THE WEEK
Bob Stoops can eat my ass. He's not that great of a coach. Just like Ditka's Bears didn't have that swagger after Buddy Ryan left, so limp the Sooners since Mike Stoops went to Arizona. Adrian Peterson is an amazing talent, but he can't keep this close by himself. I have a feeling that Mack Brown, Vince Young, and the Horns are going to smack the Sooners in the mouth over and over again...and then do it again just for good keeping. I'd give $50 to see Mack pull a Woody and go for two late in the game just to spite his rival. (For those of you who don't know, in 1968 Woody Hayes went for two after a touchdown against Michigan late in a 50-17 Buckeye rout. When asked why, Woody replied, "Cause I couldn't go for three!")
Texas 52 - Oklahoma 10

Michigan vs Minnesota
Every year this game comes down to the wire. One team usually jumps out to a huge lead then hangs on for dear life until the outcome is ultimately decided in overtime. This year will be no different, except that Michigan is going to come out smoking following their big win at Michigan State last weekend. Unfortunately, I have to keep reminding everyone that Michigan just can't tackle. I think they forgot to practice tackling for going on three years now and it's starting to show. I expect Laurence Maroney to have a huge game with Glen Mason emphasizing the run after their debacle last week against Penn State.
Minnesota 55 – Michigan 53 (4-OTs)

Cal vs UCLA
This is going to be a VERY tight game. While both teams have some explosive playmakers, neither is going to really open up their playbooks enough to use them. UCLA brings Maurice Drew, Spencer Havner, and Marcedes Lewis, while Cal brings Joseph Ayoob and Marshawn Lynch. The reason I don't think either coach will open up their playbooks is because coming in second in the Pac-10 is like coming in second in the National League West. No one cares unless you knock off the big dog. USC is the big dog, and both UCLA and UCB (that's really what they are, the University of California at Berkeley) will be saving all their big plays for the chance to upset USC. Played straight up, I think UCLA has enough to beat UCB.
UCLA 14 – Cal 10

LSU vs Vanderbilt
Moses Osemwegie will have his hands full this game. If Vanderbilt can successfully keep the LSU line from reaching the second level, they'll give Moses a chance to keep the Tiger running game in check. The key to controlling teams with tough running games and running quarterbacks is to control the movement of the offensive line. I think Vandy will be able to successfully do this enough to give Jay Cutler a chance to win the game. LSU is giving up almost 300 yards per game in the air, and Cutler is dynamic enough to move Vandy when it counts. Throw in the fact that LSU will be looking forward to a big game with Florida, and we have the makings of an upset. However, if LSU's o-line handles the Commodore d-line, then we have the makings of a blow-out.
Vanderbilt 31 – LSU 30

Tennessee vs Georgia
DJ Shockley versus Tennessee's defensive line. That's the nuts and bolts of this entire game. Every coach in America thinks they know how to beat a running QB. Problem is, only the Patriots, Eagles, Ohio State, Alabama, and Texas really know how to do it. Some think you have to pressure the QB from the sides and try to contain him in the pocket...WRONG. Some think you have to leave a spy to watch him...WRONG. The key is this. Don't blitz. Don't pressure. Don't spy. A straight-up 4-3 base where the d-line plays gap control will keep a running QB in check. Under no circumstances can the line be allowed to get to the second level. Tennessee has a defensive line that can do this. Ohio State made this adjustment after the first quarter in the Texas game and held Vince to 23 yards on his last 17 carries. Freeze the o-line and prevent movement and you'll win.
Tennessee 24 – Georgia 13

Penn State vs Ohio State GAME OF THE WEEK
All week I've had to hear about how Derrick Williams and Justin King have brought speed back to the Nittany Lions. I've got news for you folks, Ashton Youboty ran the same 40 time that Williams did this year. Penn State is 5-0 for the first time in years and it couldn't have come at a better time for people in Pennsylvania (How's the Wannstedt feller doing?). Bad news though folks, Ohio State has speed to burn and is much more physical than anyone this Penn State offense has faced. Ohio State has always had a problem with Penn State though, right? Well...no. The Bucks have always had a problem with Zack Mills. If Mills was still running the Lions' offense I'd be worried to death about this game, but Michael Robinson is the human-turnover machine. If you are the kind of person who wants to see a team fold in the pressure, and knows that it ain't gonna be Texas doing it on Saturday, then flip to this game. Penn State just doesn't have the moxie to take a few smacks in the mouth and keep coming back like they did against Northwestern.
Ohio State 28 – Penn State 9

Williams hasn't faced anyone like Youboty