The Daily Forecast

Colin Cowherd: Playoff wins = Bowl wins

January 13, 2009 at 4:38 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

I’m not sure why, but every once in a while I turn on “The Herd” on ESPN Radio. And every time I do, host Colin Cowherd comes through with something amazing.

Apparently, Colin dreams up ideas at night, and then comes on the air and talks about them without rationally looking over them first.

Today’s example, essentially saying that playoff wins didn’t matter in the NFL.

Now, I’m no NFL expert, but I thought the whole point of the league was to win in the playoffs. Sure, winning regular season games is fun, and it’s part of the process, but in a league where the champion is crowned following a 12-team postseason, being the best team in the playoffs is all that matters.

Here’s the problem with Cowherd, he’s not a complete idiot, and he’s far from a genius. He’s in between, meaning he often tries to push his half-baked ideas.

In this instance, he was trying to say that things aren’t always as good as they look, and that teams’ problems can often be masked by big wins. This is true, but the problem is that if those big wins come in the playoffs, the problems don’t matter. The Cardinals probably don’t have to be worrying about the fact their quarterback is older than the Crypt Keeper while he’s leading them to the NFC Championship Game, which they are hosting. At least not right now, that’s what the offseason is for. They’ll worry about it then, perhaps while polishing a Super Bowl trophy.

Sure, Norv Turner sucks as a coach, but the argument that the Chargers are getting worse is tough to make. I understand they went from 14 wins to 11 wins to 8 wins. But they also went from no playoff wins to two playoff wins, to one playoff win in that same time period. And the 8-win season came with Shawne Merriman watching, not to mention all the playoff games LaDainian Tomlinson has been watching.

So yea, you can make the argument the Chargers underachieve in the regular season. That’s fine. But it’s hard to say they’re regressing when they have been winning games when it matters.

You may be asking, what as the bow Cowherd put on this argument? Well, this folks, is where it got really asinine. He compared winning in the playoffs to winning a bowl game. I’ll repeat that, winning a playoff game to winning a bowl game.

I agree, that for a vast majority of teams, the bowl win probably didn’t mean that much, and it probably has nothing to do with how well you’ll do next year. But in college football, only one game matters in the postseason, and that’s the BCS title game. In the NFL, every playoff game matters, because if you win, you still have a chance to win the championship that year.

It’s not a matter of, ‘our team looks awesome coming back next year because we won our wild card playoff game.’ No, it’s, ‘what can we do to win our divisional playoff game next week?’

Maybe that’s why people listen to Cowherd, because he’s way to easy to win an argument with while driving to work, and people just want to feel good about themselves.

Get ready for more of this

January 11, 2009 at 8:17 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Go ahead and cancel the 2009 college football season, Tim Tebow is coming back.

This makes the Gators the overwhelming favorites to repeat as champions, and Tebow, most of the skill players and 10 starters (I’m guessing at least Brandon Spikes leaves) coming back on defense, they definitely deserve to be.

Basically, the team you saw win the national title four days ago will be coming back, almost entirely intact.

Can they be beat? Sure, but it will take a lapse by them (like Ole Miss this year), or a superhuman effort by someone else (maybe Texas, but they lose some key defenders). A USC team that doesn’t take it’s yearly mid-season shit on itself could also be a problem for the Gators, but even the mighty Trojans won’t have as much talent and experience as Florida.

Thom Brenneman is already getting out his chapstick.

The Cardinals (!?!) are headed to the NFC title game

January 11, 2009 at 4:26 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Jake Delhomme threw five interceptions yesterday, against the Arizona Cardinals.

The same Arizona Cardinals that had 13 interceptions all season long, now have seven in two playoff games, and believe it or not, they’re headed to the NFC Championship game next week either at the New York Giants or at home (!?!) against the Philadelphia Eagles.

If there was one game I was sure of this weekend, it was this one. I was positive the Panthers were going to win this game, and part of the reason I was so positive was that I figured Jake Delhomme wouldn’t play much of a role in it. I figured DeAngelo Williams and that Jewish guy from The Daily Show would run all over the Cardinals, the Carolina defense would give Kurt Warner fits, and the Panthers would waltz into the title game.

So when I got back from covering a wrestling meet and the score was already 20-7 Arizona, I was a bit amazed.

Apparently nobody can cover Larry Fitzgerald. Apparently Delhomme is still not a very good quarterback when everything is asked of him (that Super Bowl performance creeps more and more toward abberation every time he steps onto the field). Apparently the Cardinals atrocious finish to the season was simply a result of resting their players, and not an indication of what’s to come (and even though it’s different for every team, I’m sure, expect the ‘do you rest guys at the end?’ arguments to pick up next year).

Now, can the Cardinals do the unthinkable and get to the Super Bowl? Surely not, right?

I don’t know. I think both the Eagles and Giants are better teams, but I thought Carolina was better, too. I thought the Cardinals didn’t have the defense to make a run, but the defense has come up with huge plays in the first two games.

And as much as I don’t believe in Kurt Warner, he does seem to be one hell of a quarterback when things are going his way.

Oh, did I mention Anquan Boldin didn’t play in this game?

In other news, the Ravens beat the Titans on a last-second field goal, cementing them as my ‘scariest team in the playoffs.’

Today’s picks: Eagles 23, Giants 21; Chargers 16, Steelers 13.

LOL_Bowls!!!1!!1

January 9, 2009 at 5:11 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

What better way to return to the Daily Forecast than with some LOL_Bowls?
 
Eagle Bank Bowl: Wake Forest 29, Navy 19
 

 
New Mexico Bowl: Colorado State 40, Fresno State 35
 

 
St. Petersburg Bowl: South Florida 41, Memphis 14
 

 
Las Vegas Bowl: Arizona 31, BYU 21
 

 
New Orleans Bowl: Southern Miss 30, Troy 27 (OT)
 

 
Poinsettia Bowl: TCU 17, Boise State 16
 

 
Hawaii Bowl: Notre Dame 49, Hawaii 21
 

 
Motor City Bowl: Florida Atlantic 24, CMU 21
 

 
Meineke Bowl: West Virginia 31, North Carolina 30
 

 
Champs Sports Bowl: Florida State 42, Wisconsin 13
 

 
Emerald Bowl: California 24, Miami (FL) 17
 

 
Independence Bowl: La Tech 17, No. Illinois 10
 

 
PapaJohns Bowl: Rutgers 29, NC State 23
 

 
Alamo Bowl: Missouri 30, Northwestern 23 (OT)
 

 
Humanitarian Bowl: Maryland 42, Nevada 35
 

 
Texas Bowl: Rice 38, Western Michigan 14
 

 
Holiday Bowl: Oregon 42, Oklahoma State 31
 

 
Armed Forces Bowl: Houston 34, Air Force 28
 

 
Sun Bowl: Oregon State 3, Pittsburgh 0
 

 
Music City Bowl: Vanderbilt 16, Boston College 14
 

 
Insight Bowl: Kansas 42, Minnesota 21
 

 
Chick-Fil-A Bowl: LSU 38, Georgia Tech 3
 

 
Outback Bowl: Iowa 31, South Carolina 10
 

 
Gator Bowl: Nebraska 26, Clemson 21
 

 
Capital One Bowl: Georgia 24, MSU 12
 

 
Rose Bowl: USC 38, Penn State 24
 

 
Orange Bowl: Va Tech 20, Cincinnati 7
 

 
Cotton Bowl: Ole Miss 47, Texas Tech 34
 

 
Liberty Bowl: Kentucky 25, ECU 19
 

 
Sugar Bowl: Utah 31, Alabama 17
 

 
International Bowl: Connecticut 38, Buffalo 20
 

 
Fiesta Bowl: Texas 24, Ohio State 21
 

 
GMAC Bowl: Tulsa 45, Ball State 13
 

 
BCS National Championship Game: Florida 24, Oklahoma 14
 

 

The Weekly Forecast, Week 12

November 14, 2008 at 5:41 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

There’s been a lot of talk about the BCS and how it’s going to turn out. Some national writers were even publicly thanking Iowa this week for knocking off Penn State and not allowing another Big Ten team to make it into the national title game. Now, I think this Penn State team is different than those Ohio State teams (better, faster defense being the biggest difference), and I don’t think the rest of the college football world is as good as it was before. Those SEC teams are not as good as Florida two years ago or even LSU last year. I’m sorry, I just don’t see it. And those Big XII teams could be amazing or they could be exactly what we think they are, a group of teams that have awesome offenses, but that are playing against defenses that just aren’t that good.

But congratulations to Ohio State for ruining everything for the Big Ten, even to the point that when we truly have no idea which conference is really good and which one isn’t, people have still surmised that the Big Ten is pathetic. What do they have to go on other than the last two years? The USC/Ohio State game? Really? Not that Ohio State would have won it, but no Beanie Wells and Terrelle Pryor wasn’t yet the starter, I think that’s significant. Also, Penn State ca-rushed Oregon State while the Nittany Lions had three starters suspended for the game.

Believe me folks, it’s not that clear cut this year.

Notre Dame at Navy, noon, CBS

The Forecast: It’s never a good sign when throughout the course of the week your athletic director has to be summoned to answer questions about your future, and people are saying that a game against Navy will go a long way to decide your future. Such is the life of Charlie Weis, who cannot see his penis, let alone his future. Right? I’m sorry, I’m way to distraught about the regression of this team to be funny right now. Pick: ND 31-24.

Northwestern at Michigan, noon, ESPN2

The Forecast: My apologies to Nick Sheridan, who I’ve been taking shots at all season. I mean, he still sucks, but I’m sorry. Anyway, it looks like Michigan could get to four wins this season because much like Wisconsin and Minnesota, Northwestern doesn’t have a very good offense. Sure, Michigan has had trouble with the spread offense for years, but in this year where up is down and we’ve elected a black man as president, I’m going the opposite of what I actually think. Well, at least in this game. Pick: U-M 23-17.

No. 25 South Carolina at No. 4 Florida, 3:30 p.m., CBS

The Forecast: This is the only game between ranked opponents this week, and the fact that South Carolina is actually ranked with the following wins (NC State, Wofford, UAB, Mississippi, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas) is pretty pathetic. Game of the week, folks, game of the week. But, since I’m a member of the media let me pretend to get worked up over this matchup: Steve Spurrier used to coach at Florida! The Gators have an inside track to the national title game! Tim Tebow! Ah, fuck it. Let’s just watch a video of a drunken Florida co-ed running into the stall door in a bathroom. Pick: Florida 48-10.

No. 6 USC at Stanford, 7 p.m., Regional broadcast

The Forecast: I only bring this game up because I wanted the chance to share this video. And because of that play, I predict that USC will have violent butt sex with Stanford at the 50-yard line this year. Pick: USC 77-0.

***WEEKLY GAME YOU COULD GIVE A SHIT ABOUT***

Minnesota at Wisconsin, 3:30 p.m., ABC

The Forecast: This is one of ABC’s three mid-afternoon options this week. The other two are California at Oregon State and North Carolina at Maryland. Obviously ABC is scared of the South Carolina/Florida game and has just thrown its hands up in the air. Pick: You will actually use Saturday for yard work this week.

What to expect from George Perles’ campaign for Gov.

November 12, 2008 at 3:47 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Apparently former Michigan State University football coach George Perles is going to run for Governor of the state in 2010.

I have no idea who he’ll be running against as Jenny Granholm’s time will be up, but I’m 100% positive on his party. As any State fan, or fan of a State rival, knows, Perles is a conservative.

Well, I was given a look at his campaign plans starting in the fall of 2009.

Fall 2009: Travel state in large bus and stress to crowds how important the ‘get out the vote’ or ‘ground game’ effort is.

Spring of 2010: Travel state in slightly larger bus and stress to crowds how important the ‘ground game’ effort is.

Summer of 2010: Travel state in biggest bus on the planet and stress to crowds how important the ‘ground game’ effort is.

Fall of 2010: Concede.

Look familiar?

Can we stop with the running on 4th and 1?

November 11, 2008 at 4:37 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

I’m seeing an epidemic with college and pro coaches lately struggling when going for it on fourth and short.

In this past week alone, I saw three teams attempt conversions that were their last hope, and I saw three teams try dives right into the line. All three teams failed.

Mike Singletary I expected this from. He’s a smash-mouth guy and an old-school linebacker, so I fully expected him to OK a play call that goes right up the gut on what was actually a third and goal from the 2. The problem is, so did the Cardinals, and the 49ers were pushed backwards.

Andy Reid and Charlie Weis, however, I didn’t expect as much. Reid especially. He has a big, still-somewhat-mobile quarterback and a dynamic running back. How do you not play-action on your last chance and give Donovan McNabb one last shot to make a decision and get 1 yard? The Giants hadn’t given you much all night and everyone knows how good their defense can be up front, so why not make them think a little, or at least make them move? And do you really think they’re going to not be ready for a dive up the middle when you switch from your hurry-up shotgun to putting McNabb under center?

Same with Weis. He moved Jimmy Clausen under center and ran a dive play to erase Notre Dame’s last glimmer of hope in its 17-0 loss to Boston College. Not only was the move so telegraphed that Clausen could have just pointed to where James Aldridge was going to run, but Notre Dame hadn’t been able to run for squat all night. Hell, the offensive line has struggled to open holes against competent defenses all year. Make the defense think. Don’t make it easy on them. This isn’t a tough guy contest, it’s a football game. Brains can be just as dangerous as braun in these situations.

And sure, if you have a massive offensive line that’s dominating the game, run it up the gut, I’m fine with that. I’m also cool with the quarterback sneak on fourth and inches. It’s effective and probably works 90% of the time. But if you have that massive offensive line that’s dominating, chances are you’re not in a situation where you have a do-or-die fourth down late in the game.

I’ll never forget the 1996 Big XII Championship game (and yes, I had to look up the year) where fourth and one changed forever as Texas threw a play-action pass to convert. That was pretty much unheard of at the time, but it changed the way we looked at fourth and one for a while. It made defenses think just a little bit, even though they’re always looking to get that surge and stop the run.

There’s really not much that’s more satisfying for a defense than stopping a run play on fourth and short. It’s a show of toughness and strength. So all I ask is that coaches stop giving them the chance to do it.