SB Nation - Tim Tebow

Undeserving Winners Of National Awards Announced

Beergut — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 22:06:08 -0000

The winners of the Maxwell, O'Brien, Walter Camp, Outland, Lombardi, Nagurski, Butkus, Thorpe, and just about every other individual college award were announced yesterday at the ESPN Awards Show. Ndamukong Suh, the incomparable defensive tackle from Nebraska, won the Outland Trophy as the nation's best interior lineman, the Chuck Bednarik Award as the nation's best defensive player, the Lombardi Award as the nation's top lineman, and the Bronko Nagurski Trophy as the nation's top defensive player. Suh winning all of these awards was somewhat predictable, because they were well-deserved.

What was somewhat surprising was that texas QB Colt McCoy won the Davey O'Brien Award as the nation's top QB. McCoy isn't even the best quarterback in his own conference, forget the nation. I'm very surprised the O'Brien didn't go to Case Keenum of Houston. Keenum has led the nation's top offense all season long, passing for 5,449 yards and 43 TDs against only 9 interceptions. Compare this to McCoy, who had 3,512 yards passing and 27 TD passes with 12 interceptions, to go along with 3 fumbles, and the decision to give the award to McCoy is a head-scratcher. McCoy averaged over a turnover per game, but we're supposed to believe this is the nation's best quarterback? McCoy also won the Maxwell Award for the nation's best all-around player. The Maxwell really should have gone to C.J. Spiller of Clemson, the multi-talented RB who is equally dangerous as a runner, receiver, and returner. Spiller rushed for 1,145 yards and 11 TDs while averaging 5.7 yards per carry, had 33 receptions for 445 yards and 4 TDs, AND finished fourth nationally in kickoff returns, averaging 33.7 yards per return while taking 4 of them all the way back for touchdowns. Those stats are a little more impressive than a QB with whom there is a better than 50% chance he'll turn the ball over than pass for a TD.

McCoy also won the Walter Camp Football Foundation's player of the year award, but that was somewhat expected because he won the same award last year.

The Biletnikoff Award for the nation's best wide receiver went to Notre Dame's Golden Tate; that award should have gone to texas' Jordan Shipley. Tate had 93 receptions for 1,496 yards and 15 TD receptions. Shipley has 106 receptions for 1,363 yards and 11 TDs, and still has one more game to play. Shipley built his stats against the Big 12 Conference, not against a padded schedule with the likes of Navy, Nevada, and Washington State. Tate is a phenomenal receiver, but no moreso than Shipley. Given the opponents Shipley faced, and the game-by-game production, the best wide receiver in the nation this year is Shipley.

The Jim Thorpe Award for the nation's best defensive back went to Tennessee safety Eric Berry. While I think a good argument could be made for texas safety Earl Thomas, who finished tied for second in the nation in intercepions, with 8 on the season, Berry was dominant playmaker on a top twenty defense for Tennessee. Berry also garnered more national attention early on because of his stellar play against Florida and Heisman-hopeful Tim Tebow early in the season, while Thomas was coming off a season on one of the worst pass defenses in the nation in 2008, so that probably played into consideration for the award.

Overall, with the exception of the defensive awards which went to Suh and Berry, a lot of these national awards went to the wrong person. It seems some of these committee's make up their minds early on who the winner is going to be during the season, and don't let other candidates or other information sway their opinion, and that is a shame.

Bearcats Betrayed

GrantC — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 18:27:02 -0000

Although anyone with at least one wobbly glass eye could have seen this coming from a mile away, Univ of Cincinnati football head coach Brian Kelly has left the upstart program he created for greener pastures (or at least a lot of green) in South Bend. Kelly had a brief, albeit wildly successful, run in the Natti where he helped take a team that was mediocre in a non-BCS conference and turn them into a near national title contender.

But his team is P-O'd.

And not the, "Oh well we understand the opportunity" kind of semi-bothered - I mean there were definitely some serious "M-Fer" bombs dropped behind closed doors. Heck in front of the media they even claimed he had nothing to do with their success and that they were going to win in the bowl game literally in spite of him. YIKES - doesnt look like they'll be honoring him with a plaque on a bench in the locker room anytime soon.

From this angle he looks a lot like Charlie Weiss...

Having been at Miami when we finished the 2000 season in 2nd place and knew we were on the verge of getting back to the title game, only to see Butch Davis flee for the NFL just before signing day, I know the feeling all too well (side note: I happened to be in the UM quad selling ESPN magazine subscriptions for charity that day, so I guess that made me the sports expert that the local news wanted to interview on the subject - so I provided a high quality, lengthy answer questioning his decision and the only clip that made the evening news was me saying 'Cleveland?!?! - UGH!'... so I know how Charlie feels on that whole taken out of context thing). And I don't mind the players wanting to win out of spite and feeling like they were the reason they won - and if those guys are as good as that 2000 Canes team then they'll go out next year and win a national championship while some bozo offensive coordinator roams the sidelines pretending to coach (ahem, Larry Coker) - unfortunately for all of the Bearcat football fans (or should i say "both of them"), I dont think this team is quite as deep as The U and may be en route to a serious beat down at the hands of Urban & Timmy, who surely want to end their romance on a high note in the Sugar Bowl, and probably a quick fade back into college football oblivion. So while just starting to come out of our own dark era since the departure of Butch (and his players), it pains me to tell the UC fans that Kelly probably was the reason that they were any good and that while he seems like an A*hole, you'll be wishing you had him back in no time... Hey, at least the basketball team is back to looking like they belong in the Top 25 - onward to March Madness!

Poll

How do like the Bearcats chances against the Gators?

What could have been: How Kellen Moore stacks up against Heisman finalists

Kevan Lee — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 15:51:29 -0000

The 2009 Heisman Trophy ceremony will take place tomorrow night sans perhaps the nation's best player in Boise State quarterback Kellen Moore. Score update: College football 13, Rationality 0.

How does Moore compare to the New York-bound Heisman Trophy finalists? Join me after the jump for a comparison, and share your Heisman vote in the comments.

via www.unlockedsports.com

Tim Tebow

College football's BFF was predestined to find his way to New York for this year's Heisman ceremony. Tebow's numbers might not back up his candidacy (3.8 yards per carry, 18 TD passes), but his overwhelming charisma does the trick.

What Kellen Moore could beat him at: Passing TDs, QB efficiency rating, wins, consistency, left-handed throwing contests, audibles, undefeated regular seasons, Mark Johnson popularity contest

What he could beat Kellen Moore at: crying, man pheromones, Heisman trophies, national championships, concussions, magazine covers, girlfriend hyperbole, Jesus popularity contest

via thematadorsports.com

Colt McCoy

McCoy might be the front-runner in one of the tightest Heisman races in history, due solely to his not receiving the award last year. The Texas QB had a stellar 2008, followed up by a hit-or-miss 2009 (including a 20-for-36, 3 INT championship game). Fortunately for him, he has lazy, misinformed sports journalists on his side.

What Kellen Moore could beat him at: passing TDs, QB efficiency rating, grasp of clock rules, fewer 3-INT games, Sports Illustrated features about pluckiness, text messages to Case Keenum

What he could beat Kellen Moore at: running the read option, throwing to Jordan Shipley, number of babies in the Texas area named after him, pictures with football sledgehammers

via blog.al.com

Mark Ingram

Ingram is the driving force of the No. 1 team in the country, which will pretty much guarantee you some Heisman votes every single time. His 1,500 yards and 15 TDs aren't lights out, but when you're the leader of the national championship favorites, they don't have to be.

What Kellen Moore could beat him at: percentage of team's total offense, recovered fumbles from center, average margin of victory over conference opponent, intimate knowledge of Nevada's secondary, staring contest

What he could beat Kellen Moore at: Running with the ball, poll ranking, national championship game appearances, fathers who played in the NFL, 100-yard games against Chattanooga

via cdn.bleacherreport.com

Toby Gerhart

Gerhart's numbers (1,700 yards, 26 TDs) dwarf those of Ingram, but the one thing hurting Gerhart's candidacy the most is that Stanford did not win its conference. Can a player win the Heisman by playing on an above average Pac-10 team?

What Kellen Moore could beat him at: wins, undefeated regular seasons, conference championships, BCS ranking, ESP, inspiring an entire region with his QB play, times described as "not prototypical"

What he could beat Kellen Moore at: baseball, TD runs, stiff arms, comparisons to John Riggins, future Snapple endorsements

via bigrednetwork.com

Ndamukong Suh

Nebraska's dominating defensive tackle worked his way into Heisman consideration with a Big XII championship game for the ages. The road is tough for a defensive Heisman candidate. Does Suh's resume warrant a Charles Woodson-type honor?

What Kellen Moore could beat him at: maybe a foot race, name pronunciation, conference championships, not losing to Iowa State

What he could beat Kellen Moore at: arm wrestling, feats of strength, NFL draft position, girth

The official vote of OBNUG, which is not really all that official

The Heisman Trophy seeks to award the "most outstanding college football player" in the country. With that in mind, Tebow and McCoy are out, more linemen should be in, and the decision between Gerhart, Ingram, and Suh is a tough one. I'll go with Suh because he found a way to have an impact despite constant double- and triple-teams. I wouldn't be upset if either Ingram or Gerhart won it, though.

Your turn

Who do you think will win the Heisman on Saturday? Will you be watching? Will Kellen Moore get a New York invite before his career is up? Leave your thoughts in the comments.

Poll

Who will win the 2009 Heisman Trophy?

Thursday Night Dawg Bites: Charlie Strong Moves On, a Congressman Makes Georgia Proud, and Clay Travis Breaks a Table (Metaphorically)

T Kyle King — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 03:54:39 -0000

You all know where my focus has been this week, but there has been much afoot elsewhere in the blogosphere and I wanted to direct your attention to the best of it in case you might have missed some of the more noteworthy nuggets. For your edification, these are they:

". . . And to the zoo with Georgia Tech?" I hate it that the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets are going to ~~a good~~ any bowl game, but at least they’re facing the Iowa Hawkeyes, which means they’re being subjected to the righteous and hilarious wrath of the guys who started an Iowa weblog because they thought what Orson Swindle’s sense of humor lacked was a sufficient appreciation for the sublimely profane and hysterically absurd. Take it away, Black Heart Gold Pants!

There’s a joke from the movie "Airplane" about how Louisville likes its coffee to be made here, but I’m not going to make it. Stop me if you’ve heard this one, but Charlie Strong is the new head coach of the Louisville Cardinals. Speaking as someone whose alma mater’s offense has spent the last decade or so being stymied by the defenses fielded by Coach Strong at one SEC East rival or another, I can say this day is long overdue, and say so both selfishly and appreciatively. U. of L. got itself a quality head coach, and, while we have to think the Florida Gators (who lost a step after losing their offensive coordinator to the Mississippi St. Bulldogs, and who likely will lose another after losing their defensive coordinator and Tim Tebow in one fell swoop) are due to fall back to the pack a bit in 2010, I don’t like the fact that both we and they are looking to hire defensive coordinators at the same time.

Kid Rock plans to steal this headline for his next album. Speaking of new head coaching hires, the SB Nation headline of the week clearly was the one atop Gobbler Country’s report on the hiring of Mike London by the Virginia Cavaliers. You just don’t get enough Warren Zevon references anymore. By the way, if I ever come up to the plate for an at-bat in Turner Field, I will have them play "Lawyers, Guns, and Money" over the PA system. The foregoing sentence contains the single most useless piece of information I have ever shared with you, and that is saying something.

Where Lane Kiffin blows smoke, there’s fire. Don’t get me wrong; Clay Travis is a friend of mine, at least according to Facebook. However, when he undertook to demonstrate the ephemeral nature of the allegations against the Tennessee Volunteers in a detailed twelve-point exegesis, it seemed to me---and also, apparently, to C&F---that he protested too much. (Also, the headline was a bit sophomoric. If you’re going to go suggestive, why not go with "NCAA Suggests Term ‘Hostesses’ Ends With Six Superfluous Letters"?) Clay is a graduate of Vanderbilt’s law school, so he is familiar with this axiom: "When the law is against you, argue the facts; when the facts are against you, argue the law; when both are against you, pound the table." We are now taking donations to buy Clay Travis a new table, because he just reduced his old one to kindling.

Giving a player I root for an award named for a guy who coached at Auburn, Clemson, and Georgia Tech is like giving David Frum an award bestowed by Iran, Iraq, and North Korea. Who should win the Heisman? The better question is, "Why should you care?" The answer is: "You shouldn’t." This has been a public service announcement.

Here’s a hint: the best candidate was once the victim of an inadvertent ethnic slur from the mouth of Jill Arrington, back in the pre-Erin Andrews days when Jill Arrington was the hottest thing stalking (or being stalked on) a sideline. If you haven’t yet voted for David Pollack as the defensive lineman of the decade, do so right now. If you want to bring along a few recently deceased citizens from Telfair County in alphabetical order, more power to you.

I have a hard time believing Aaron Murray wouldn’t have done at least as well. I was impressed with this at first, but then I realized that there’s nothing worthwhile about being third in any category in which Jonathan Crompton ranks fourth.

As a believer in limited government, I once supported the election of a horse to the legislature, secure in the knowledge that he would vote "nay" on everything. I have abandoned politics (except as it relates to football, of course), so, in the spirit of bipartisanship that can only arise from the ambivalence of a former political science major who now recognizes that there is a reason why the Sugar Bowl happens four times more frequently than the Iowa caucuses, I am pleased to add a second name to the list of Georgia Congressmen whom I endorse. (Oddly enough, this happens at the same time that objective journalists are endorsing my candidacy for the U.S. Senate, an office I am not seeking.) You already knew that Representative Jack Kingston (R.-Ga.) was a great American; now you know that Representative John Barrow (D.-Ga.) is one, too. As their distinguished colleague, Representative Corrine Brown (D.-Fla.), would have put it, Congressmen Barrows and Kingstey are superb to all other legislator.

Why they didn’t wait on the bloggers’ ballots before computing the final BCS standings, I have no idea. The final regular-season BlogPoll has been posted and the Alabama Crimson Tide squeaked by with 77 of 78 first-place votes to become the nation’s new No. 1 team. I received some gentle chiding in the "Wack Ballot Watchdog" rundown and was the runner-up for the designation "Mr. Bold," which went to the one guy who voted for the Texas Longhorns in the top spot.

In closing, I would like to recount a conversation had between two friends of mine as we walked to Sanford Stadium for the 1997 Georgia-Auburn game. It was not the coldest Georgia-Auburn game I have ever attended---1995 still takes the top spot in that competition---but it was plenty cold and one of the fellows had been drinking heavily. The one who had been drinking heavily said he was warmer because he’d been drinking heavily. The one who hadn’t been drinking said, "Actually, alcohol doesn’t make you warmer, it just makes you feel warmer." The one who had been drinking heavily gave the one who hadn’t been drinking a hard time over that statement, and he has continued to do so in the twelve years since, but I believe it applies here as well; viz., this posting may not have made you more well-informed, but it should have made you feel more well-informed. In a season of looking at the glass as half-empty, that ought to suffice.

Go ‘Dawgs!

Who Should Win the Heisman?

cocknfire — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 15:30:13 -0000

More photos » by JACOB HARRIS - AP

Might cocknfire's vote go to a Notre Dame player, like Johnny Lujack?

Browse more photos »

Hopefully in time to be included in the Sports Blog Heisman Trophy presented by The Blue Workhorse.

This is not the easiest year to craft a Heisman ballot, at least not the way it should be done. As I've said before, the Heisman is becoming too much like the MVP award, and the MVP is becoming too much like the Heisman. Remember that the Heisman Award is supposed to go to "the most outstanding college football player in the United States." There is no reference there to how valuable you are to your team. There's not even a suggestion that your team has to be very good. The winner has to "the most outstanding." That's a tall order for anyone to fill.

Which is why I get distressed when I hear people touted for the award because his team is great and "they just couldn't do it without him." If the numbers back up that player being the most outstanding, fine. But his team's achievements shouldn't be as important to a candidate's chances as they are.

That said, they can't be discounted either. Which is why you have to at least look at Colt McCoy -- until you realize that he's having either his worst or second-worst statistical year and has nearly disappeared in three of his team's biggest games (Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Nebraska). Because showing up for the big games does matter if you're going to be most outstanding.

Showing up for almost all the games also matters. It's not just enough to be good overall; you need to have games where you shine. Just because your team's achievements aren't central to the award doesn't mean the ability to carry a team, either in victory or defeat, isn't something we should look for in a Heisman candidate.

But the overall numbers are a good place to start. I've chosen a few players from several different categories to consider. The choices aren't that easy to make; there are a lot of good football players in the NCAA -- and I threw in Tim Tebow because this is an SEC blog and so he has to at least be considered.

First, the quarterbacks.

Your going to want to click that for a larger version because it's got a lot of good info in there. For those unfamiliar with PEPCT (pass efficiency percentage), it's a new stat I'm still tweaking that measures a quarterbacks performance against defenses based on those defenses' normal pass efficiency numbers. And we should note that Tebow also has 859 rushing yards and 13 TDs on the ground.

But even if you add the rushing yards, Tebow just hasn't produced as much as Kellen Moore or Jimmy Clausen. The touchdown numbers would move him past Clausen, but he's thrown almost as twice as many picks as Clausen in comparison to the number of attempts. The numbers just don't support a Heisman candidacy this year.

Still, let's look at how players tended to do on a week-by-week basis.

You're not reading that incorrectly; Tim Tebow has passed for 250 or more yards in one game (Arkansas) all season long. Yes, I realize that Tebow is a running quarterback; but you should have to throw the ball for more than 250 yards more than once in a season to be a Heisman contender.

Not that there's nothing wrong with the other two contenders. It was hard to come up with a "signature" game for either -- their best games came either against weak opponents or when their teams lost, and like McCoy they sometimes had subpar outings in important games. For example, Moore's numbers aren't terrible against Oregon, but it was still his worst game statistically. And Clausen's "signature" game was against a team that defeated Notre Dame.

I'll choose Kellen Moore as the best of the quarterbacks.

Running backs overall.

It's harder to adjust statistically for defenses with running backs than with quarterbacks, though I'm working on a couple of possible ways to do it. In any case, here are a few things that I found interesting about this chart. First, Mark Ingram is undeniably the best per carry by more than a half-yard. Second, he has the edge in receiving yards. But look at Gerhart's touchdown numbers; they are absurd. He essentially scored every twelfth time he ran the ball. Dion Lewis was very good, but he just can't quite compare with what Ingram and Gerhart did overall.

Weekly.

Here is where Ingram's candidacy takes a little bit of a hit. Three times he rushed the ball for fewer than 75 yards, a mark that Gerhart and Lewis never falled to make. Even against the defenses of the SEC, the "most outstanding" should do better than that -- especially at rival Auburn with a chance at an undefeated season on the line.

Gerhart was more consistent by far this year, and his worst game seems just a little bit better than the others. Sure, it was against Wake Forest, but at least it wasn't against Navy.

So Toby Gerhart gets first place among the running backs, with Mark Ingram a close enough second to warrant further consideration later.

I've never understood why wide receivers don't get more consideration than they do for the award. So let's take a look at some of the better wideouts this year.

How hard was it for an SEC fan to include two Notre Dame players on his list of potential Heisman candidates? I don't want to talk about it.

But Golden Tate had an outstanding year. Look at that touchdown percentage and the yards per catch. With 45 fewer catches than Freddie Barnes against tougher competition, he had just 55 fewer receiving yards. Another 14 receptions for Danario Alexander only earned him 148 additional yards. The edge is resoundingly to Tate among the players I looked at here.

Weekly.

This is where Alexander and Barnes fall off the table to me. Both have more games with fewer than 75 yards than Tate and were far worse in their worst outings. (Though one becomes more and more curious as to how Notre Dame lost to Stanford. Oh, that's right. They had to play defense.)

So the best wideout of the group appears to be Golden Tate.

Finally, we have to look at defenders and examine this hype about Nebraska's Ndouopiufdsoia Suh, or something like that.

Dr. Saturday is the one who got me to consider Brandon Graham. And you've never heard of Von Miller at Texas A&M, who was completely off my radar until I started looking through the numbers. I know you've heard of Ndamukong Suh, because you probably watch football on ESPN and they mention his name almost as frequently as McCoy's.

All three of these players are very good, and consider that Suh was probably double-teamed more than any defensive lineman in the country. Even so, based purely on the statistics, you have to give Miller the edge here.

Weekly.

If you thought that Suh was almost unstoppable against Texas in the Big XII Championship Game, you were right. Four and a half sacks among six tackles for loss and 11 overall. Nothing Graham or Miller did all year can come close to matching that.

Counting all of those things and throwing in some of those "intangibles," I have to go with Ndamukong Suh as the defensive candidate.

Leaving us with:

Kellen Moore
Toby Gerhart
Mark Ingram
Golden Tate
Ndamukong Suh

One of these names is really in a different league from the others -- literally -- and that's Moore. He had a great year for Boise State, but playing in any midmajor save the Mountain West isn't quite like playing in a BCS conference. For consideration, you need to put up laughable numbers, and Moore's not quite there.

The next cut is tough, but I'm removing Golden Tate. That's hard, because I really wanted to see him at least get considered. He is, though, on a 6-6 team that not's going to a bowl game. Gerhart was on the best Stanford team in years, Ingram helped win an SEC Championship and Suh led the Cornhuskers to a Big XII North title. Again, the team's season can't be the central point. But we're getting to the point here where hair-splitting is all that's left.

So the top three are Gerhart, Ingram and Suh. Not terribly original. But the idea here is not to be surprising or creative; it's to find the best. Find me better than any of those three at their positions. I don't think it can be done.

We're allowed three names for the final ballot. So I now have to put them in order. This is the hardest part, because I honestly think any one of these players is more than deserving.

But Ingram disappeared one time too many. And as good as Suh was for Nebraska this year -- and as scared as I'd be to tell him this to his face -- the numbers put up by Toby Gerhart are almost incomparable. Gerhart it is.

1. Toby Gerhart
2. Mark Ingram
3. Ndamukong Suh

A Head-Scratching Snub.

Acid Reign — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 09:00:21 -0000

More photos » by Butch Dill - AP

Auburn wide receiver Darvin Adams (89) frequently abused defensive backs! (AP Photo/ Butch Dill)

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War Eagle, everybody. The post-season All-SEC teams are out now, and there aren't too many surprises. It looks like some reporters and sports information directors simply copied their preseason list over again. I guess they DID pay enough attention that Jevan Snead didn't get any votes.

I'd say the biggest surprise of the All-SEC voting was the complete absence of Auburn wide receiver Darvin Adams in the voting. The media voters select 5 wide receivers. Statistically, Darvin Adams was 5^th in receptions, 4^th in receiving yards per game, 3^rd in receiving yards, 2^nd in yards per catch, and tied for the lead in receiving touchdowns. In fact, there's not a single statistical category that Adams WASN'T in the top five. Somehow, Joe Adams of Arkansas made it in ahead of Adams, despite catching TWENTY fewer balls! Adams also finished behind Florida's Riley Cooper, despite having more catches, more yards per catch, and more touchdowns. A similar argument could be made against LSU's Brandon LaFell: fewer yards, and fewer yards per catch. Even compared to the starting All-SEC unit, Darvin Adams had a better yards per catch stat and more touchdowns than Shay Hodge of Ole Miss. When comparing Adams to Georgia's A. J. Green, Adams had more yards, more catches, a better yards per catch average, and more touchdowns. HOW does Adams not get AT LEAST honorable mention notice?

On the season, Darvin Adams finished with 48 catches for 855 yards and 10 touchdowns. War Eagle, Darvin Adams!

In another predictable but irritating snub, kicker Wes Byrum was left out of the all-star balloting. Byrum hit on 14 of 15 field goal attempts, and made all 49 of his extra point attempts. Byrum connected on 93.3 percent of his field goals. The selected All-SEC starter Leigh Tiffin was only good on 87.9 percent of his field goals, and missed THREE extra points. Second-team selection Blair Walsh only hit 90.5 percent of his field goals. What makes Byrum's snub easier to take is that he essentially lost because Auburn was scoring touchdowns in the red zone, rather than settling for 3. The Tigers converted 76% of their red-zone appearances into touchdowns, and got points 94% of the time overall.

There isn't an official offensive lineman stat page on the SEC website. But I'd take Auburn's Lee Ziemba over most of the 2^nd team offensive linemen, and a couple of the starters. Ziemba finished in the "honorable mention" category, surely a result of false starts. The sad fact is that Ziemba earned his reputation for jumping off in previous years. This year, he's actually been penalized less than you think! On false starts, Lee had 1 against La Tech, 1 against WVa, 1 against Furman, 1 against Georgia, and one against Alabama. That's a total of 5 false starts in a 12 game season, which is not many for a starting left tackle. Ziemba had no holding calls against him, all year. And the only other penalty was on his ineligible catch in the Georgia game. How many sacks did Ziemba give up? I don't remember but one, and it was when Ziemba was trying to get over on a corner blitz that was probably not even his responsibility. All in all, Lee Ziemba was the best lineman on a pretty tough Auburn unit.

Let's hear it for the left-out Tigers that led our team! War Eagle!

Other Musings from Championship Week, after the jump.

Once again, we see the need in the Football Bowl Subdivision for a post-season playoff. The argument against undefeated TCU and Boise State for playing in weak, non-BCS leagues is somewhat legit. Big East Champ Cincinnati plays in a BCS conference, went undefeated, and got left out. Rather than play for a national title, Cincy will be taking on a frustrated Gator group. Coach Brian Kelly appears to be headed for Notre Dame, and the Bearcats will be facing a fired up Gator group without their leader. It's a bitter end to a great Cincy season.

As to the Texas Longhorns, has there ever been a more disrespected number two team in the national title game? Oh, yes! I remember about 17 years ago the national press was moaning over a team that had a whole schedule full of single-digit wins, that would NEVER be able to challenge the top-ranked Hurricanes. I think we all remember how that 1993 Sugar Bowl turned out, with the Tide stomping Miami into goo. I'd suggest that the Tide not take Texas lightly. The book on the Longhorns is to contain McCoy and cover Shipley. However, the overlooked part of the 'horn team is their run defense. Alabama will have a tough time replicating their SEC Championship Game effort on offense, I think.

Fellow track'em writer War Eagle Atlanta posted an excellent question earlier this week: Will Auburn fans cheer for the Tide, or the Longhorns? If Alabama loses, I'll snicker and try to get glimpses of Nick Saban's face on the sideline. But there is no hairy way I really want the SEC to lose the BCS title game. We'll never hear the end of it, from the national media, if the SEC loses that game. Yes, I want Alabama to win. No, I absolutely will NOT be screaming "Roll Tide" at my TV that night. Hopefully, I'll be sitting quietly in my chair with a Klondike and a stinger, enjoying a good football game.

It's a difficult time to be a Florida Gator. One of the prices for success is that your assistant coaches become hot commodities. Florida's loss of Tim Tebow pales compared to the amount of talent and experience that has left the Florida coaching staff in the past two seasons. How Urban Meyer rebuilds his staff will be key. It could be a tough transition period ahead.

What a difference a year makes! This time last season, we were jeering the Auburn coaching search. This year, we're cheering a promising foundation, and lauding Jay Jacobs' pitch to the Outback Bowl. Well done, sir, well done!

Voting For The Sports Blog Heisman Leaves Out Two Big Names

ccmachine — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 20:16:59 -0000

Texas offensive line plays paper, rock, scissors in the huddle to see who has to try and block Suh on this next play.

View full size photo »

Last year sports bloggers collectively voted to award the first annual Sports Blogger's Heisman Trophy to (gulp!) Tim Tebow. Now once again we face the challenge of selecting one man from a handful of players to be recognized as the best college football player in the nation. Like the actual Heisman voting, points are awarded for first, second and third place votes. Here's my attempt at explaining my selections.

1. Ndamukong Suh, DT Nebraska - On a day where "Heisman Frontrunners" Colt McCoy and Tim Tebow were supposed to make their final statements of deserving the hardware it was Suh who stole the show and produced the most dominating performance college football fans have seen on national television in a long time. For the season Suh has 82 tackles, 23 tackles for loss, 12 sacks, 1 interception, 10 pass breakups, 24 quarterback hurries, 1 forced fumble and 3 blocked kicks.

2. Mark Ingram, RB Alabama - Like Suh, I had Ingram further down on my list until his performance last Saturday where he gave the second most impressive performance of the day. Against Florida he averaged 4 yards per carry on his way to 113 rushing yards and 3 touchdowns. You can also add 76 receiving yards to his tally and for the season he's been even more impressive with 1,542 rushing yards (6.2 YPC) and 15 rushing touchdowns.

3. Toby Gerhart, RB Stanford - He's been the workhorse for the Cardinal this season with 311 carries for 1,736 yards (5.6 YPC) and 26 rushing touchdowns. Unfortunately he's a bit overshadowed by not being able to participate in a conference championship game but his body of work in the regular season is impressive enough on its own.

Obviously Tim Tebow and Colt McCoy are missing from my list and as many will claim bias in leaving them off we really could debate if they deserve to be on the list or not until the end of time. At the end of the day their seasons weren't as impressive as these three and since the Heisman Trophy is not a lifetime achievement award but rather an award given to the most outstanding football player in a single season this was the result of the process. Thoughts?

The Fatal Flaws

mlmintampa — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 07:17:50 -0000

More photos » by Dave Martin - AP

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Hopefully, we are far enough out from the SEC Championship Game that we can take an level headed look at the 2009 Gators. As fans, we have seen a team that either was destroying people or not meeting our expectations. Considering the history of college football, 14-0 was a challenge unlikely to be met, especially with the bonus of three outright championships in four seasons. But we thought our boys could do it. Here's some things that I thought were never addressed or fixed and ultimately led to the Gators' fall. As always, tell us where we're wrong. Let's get the hard one out of the way first;

Tim Tebow: In each of his first three seasons, Tebow improved as a player. The problem was that as a senior, he was the same as the year before. Every team he faced knew exactly what he was doing. You saw the strategy Alabama used of daring Tebow to throw to receivers he never trusted behind a line that nearly killed him. Against Tennessee you saw how an NFL-style scheme (even without the talent to do it) could confuse Tebow. There are two reasons for this; either Tebow plateaued as a player or the loss of Dan Mullen impacted Tebow's preparation and chemistry with the offense.

Tebow was pulled in more directions this season. He wasn't just Tim Tebow, quarterback, Florida. He was a missionary, preacher, charity leader, university representative, oh and this was his senior year of college. Everyone is stretched thin in their senior year of school either because of school demands, the pressure of post-graduation or relationships. Tebow had all of that plus everything listed above. The problem is that Tebow wouldn't have it any other way. This season, I have a hard time thinking that everything else surrounding him didn't contribute to his actions on the field. He was still a college senior and no senior ever has a perfect year. Here's hoping that at least he doesn't knock a brick off Century Tower. (If you don't get that, look at the last urban legend listed here.)

Lack of a Go-To-Guy: Tebow needed a running mate this season and no one stepped up to fill that role. Aaron Hernandez had uneven performances and Riley Cooper could never get open before Tebow got in trouble. Cooper might have been the most well-rounded player on offense, but even he got the drops. Jeffrey Demps and Chris Rainey still struggle catching the ball and Brandon James was never going to be the solution at the Harvin position. Emmanuel Moody lived in Urban Meyer's doghouse all season. Carl Moore and Andre Debose never saw the field. That Florida ran the same offense as 2008, without a go-to-guy, is a failure of the coaching staff. Like Donald Rumsfled said, "You go to war with the Army you have. Not the Army you might want or wish to have." Meyer and Steve Addazio knew what they had in front of them and treated them like Percy Harvin and Louis Murphy with Jason Watkins and Phil Trautwein at the tackles. Which brings us to our next point...

Never figuring out the passing game: If yards and rushing yards stay relatively flat, how do touchdowns scored go from 75, 82 in 2008, to 56 this season? I pin the blame on not having a secure 3rd and 4th receiver and not securing the offensive tackle spots. I thought Xavier Nixon and Marcus Gilbert got it together, but it was late in the season before that lineup change was made. I don't blame the line for the 36 sacks (only 2 more than last season) because too often they had to face 5 and 6 man rushes. Teams could afford those blitzes because Florida's receiving options were Cooper, Hernandez and a bunch of nobodies. David Nelson had his best game against Alabama (4 catches, 53 yards, TD). That's nice, but Nelson was supposed to be a number 3 guy behind Cooper and Hernandez, but his output was no better than 2008 (23 catches, 254 yds, 2 TD in 2009; 12 catches, 228 yds, 5 TD in 2008). Deonte Thompson was supposed to explode this season, yet nearly had the exact same numbers. Demps still thinks run first, catch ball second. Rainey is skinner than I am and James was getting too many touches as a returner (62) to be fit enough to be a permanent player (20 rushes, 24 catches). We trusted that Meyer, Addazio and Billy Gonzales would see any red flags and immediately turn the Gators into Georgia Tech South. But they kept calling plays like they had four reliable receivers and two experienced tackles.

Steve Addazio, Offensive Coordinator and Offensive Line Coach: It does not matter if you liked Addazio's play calling or not. The fact is that he cannot do both jobs and I would be surprised if anyone could be o-line and coordinator. Offensive line is hands on, requiring the coach to be on the sidelines. Offensive coordinator is a mad genius, sitting in his box and designing plays like a chess player thinking three moves ahead. It didn't help that Florida's play calling by committee was like cooks spoiling the broth. Last year, the offense went through Mullen. You never knew who it went through this season.

A light defensive line: Just the presence of Terrence Cody kept UF away from the precious dive play. UF does not have a monster run stuffer like that (Omar Hunter may get there one day). Plus, Jermaine Cunningham and Carlos Dunlap are long and lean. They can run around you, but not through you. Were it not for Brandon Spikes, A.J. Jones and Ryan Stamper, UF would have been screwed at the front. The Gators got by like this until they ran into an old-school big ugly offensive line at Alabama. Like any great defense that relies on speed, a big line can always win. There wasn't much UF could have done here, aside from eight in the box, and Greg McElroy was too good for that.

The Fans: No one is escaping this. Every college team has good and bad fans, unemployed fans who stalk message boards all day, and the locker room stooges who get off on revealing who was tanked on Monday night and who has the girlfriend sleeping with half the defense. Every college team has jackasses who write blogs, guys who have only played video game football and claim they know what they are talking about, and old men trying to live vicariously through college kids. But we wore the crown, so we fall the hardest. It doesn't help either that we seemingly lost the ability to lose with class. I include myself in this because while this seems very mature and composed, during the game I was screaming obscenities at Nick Saban, my friends, Mark Ingram, "Sweet Home Alabama" (song, not the Reese Witherspoon movie), Tim Tebow, and the band Alabama. I was also figuring out how UF could win in the fourth quarter, when a rational person would have turned off the game and waited for Texas-Nebraska.

We've been spoiled the past four years and the sooner we realize that, the sooner we have some realistic expectations for the Gators. Eventually, Tennessee, FSU and Georgia will get good. Florida may actually lose consecutive games to these teams. Losing these games, if it happens, should not require you to threaten the lives of anyone or throw the Gators under the bus, via your facebook status or twitter. However, all bets are off if Urban Meyer becomes Ron Zook, but I don't see that happening. We need to be rational again, but mediocrity can never be tolerated.

The Confidence and Complacency of Champions: When the Yankees were losing Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS to the Red Sox, Aaron Boone asked Derek Jeter why he was so calm. Jeter said, "The ghosts will come eventually." The ghosts did show up and Boone hit a game winning home run to send the Yanks to the World Series. The next season, the Yanks blew a 3-0 ALCS lead, and the Red Sox won the World Series, defeating the Curse of The Bambino in the process.

When you are defending champion, even if you are not considered to be the best team in your league the next season, there is a certain level of confidence in your team and what they can do. The Gators had won the SEC and National Championship twice in the last three seasons. There was no reason to doubt that they couldn't do it again. With that confidence also comes enough of a lack of drive that it can impact you negatively. You don't want to take those extra reps or spend 15 more minutes running routes. Sure, you can go to the party/Bible session/hookup with that chick from Plants, Plagues and People class, you'll just end your film study five minutes early. What's a few minutes anyway?

It all adds up eventually and for the Gators, it was 19 points in Atlanta. 19 points does not happen in one week of preparation, but over the course of the entire season. It's the reason why guys take extra sprints in August or lift more weights in April. Over the course of 11 months, the Gators were confident they could win no matter what and complacent enough to not put in more time. As for the party that ended Carlos Dunlap's season that included other teammates, let he who never took the edge off an upcoming test by drinking or fooling around with a lady cast the first stone. As for me, I think you got me confused for a better man.

Besides, Alabama played a perfect game. They had one penalty, were 11 of 15 on 3rd down, Bama held the ball for nearly 40 minutes, McElroy was 12 of 18 passing, and Marquis Maze's five catches for 96 yards made up for Julio Jones two catches for 28 yards. Florida could have spent the week in the football complex and St. Augustine's Church and they still would have lost. Give Alabama some credit.

As we said on Saturday, everything sucks now, but this still your team. You have to take the good with the bad and accept that sometimes, the other guy is better and you are not good enough. Time to look forward to next season and put your faith and trust in Urban Meyer. Especially that he finds a new defense and offensive coordinator. And say a prayer that John Brantley and Omarius Hines become the next great duo in Gainesville.

Brett Greenwood Cruelly Denied Heisman Invite Yet Again

Oops Pow Surprise — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 19:00:22 -0000

by Dave Weaver - AP

3 months ago: Arkansas State quarterback Corey Leonard, left, is sacked by Nebraska's Ndamukong Suh in the second half of their NCAA college football game in Lincoln, Neb., Saturday, Sept. 12, 2009. Nebraska beat Arkansas State 38-9.(AP Photo/Dave Weaver)

View full size photo »

Okay, we shouldn't be taking shots at Brett Greenwood; Brett The Net was hardly a weak link in the Iowa defense this season. Old jokes die hard, I supposed. Anyhoo.

Heisman candidates were announced late Monday. They went with five nominees this year, and we could really see all five make a run at the trophy.

They are, in alphabetical order, Toby Gerhart, Mark Ingram, Colt McCoy, Ndamukong Suh, and Tim Tebow.

While noting the unusual fact that a freaking defensive tackle made the final five (full disclosure: if I had a vote, I'd pick Suh without reservation), Barking Carnival made this astute observation:

Interesting that 3 out of the 4 offensive candidates play on teams that owe most of their success this year to their defense.

We would slightly amend the BC statement to say "owe most of their team success," but the point's well-made as it stands. And look, while Mark Ingram was utterly phenomenal this season regardless of his defense, and while Florida and Texas owe an awful lot of the credit for their seasons' success to leaders like McCoy and Tebow, the fact remains that this was really a lousy season for the expected powers-that-should-have-been in college football. Sam Bradford imperiled his pro career by returning to Oklahoma, Tim Tebow took a massive step back in draftability, and Colt McCoy wouldn't be a front-runner for the Heisman if he'd won it last season; his stats have regressed from that ridiculous 2008 campaign.

We expect McCoy to win, even as he's not our choice (again, it's Suh, who's like the buttchild of Lee Roy Selmon, Warren Sapp, and Captain America). College football is still a heavily PR/media narrative-dominated sport, and there are a massive number of voters (especially east of the Missouri) who are going to look at Gerhart and Suh and instinctively dismiss them for reasons that are entirely independent of their play on the field. That's just the way of things in a popularity contest among 55-year-old men in the newspaper sports bubble.

So here's my ballot and expected finish:

MEIN

Suh
Ingram
Gerhart

ZEITGEIST

McCoy
Ingram
Tebow

Shame, really. You put 2009 McCoy or Ingram on, say, Nebraska, and I'm not sure how much better they play. You put Suh on a top 5 team, and he sets a new record for most Heisman votes received by a defensive player. He was utterly unreal, and Nebraska's inability to close out close games (VT, ISU, Texas: 3 losses, 4 points) is a truly unfair reason to penalize Suh and deny him the trophy.

The Shotgun/Throwdown: Tuesday (12/8/09) Edition

WVUIE97 — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 15:08:10 -0000

Welcome, By-Godders, to the Shotgun/Throwdown, WVU's best place for sports links, information and a bit of fun. Today we're being brought to you by Lamar St. Pale Ale in honor of today's Miss Throwdown.

I had a bit of a browser snafu earlier (sorry for the delay). Today seems a bit quiet, but things should pick up again tomorrow as Huggs and Co. get back to business. Suggestions and requests are always welcome. Here we go...

BAMA 32:13 Tebow Cried t-shirts - Red Label Sports
You have to check out the first T-Shirt on this page!!

Random Link of Awesomeness:

Shorter And Sweeter: The Greatest Christmas Decoration Ever!

Video of Interest:

Thanks, once again, to WVIllustrated.

Video of (Dis)Interest:

Michael Bay directed a Vicky's commercial. Surprisingly, there are no robots ~~or explosions~~ and only one explosion[ed.] and sadly, no Megan Fox.

Soccer Gallery of the Week:

The World Cup draw was held a few days ago. Here is the Group breakdown in hotness form.

via www.djmick.co.uk

Miss Throwdown:

Today's Miss Throwdown is the sexy actress who plays the maid, Catalina, on the tv show My Name Is Earl. Here's Chicago native, Nadine Velazquez.

via gallery.celebritypro.com

Lamar St. Pale Ale image via www.bruguru.com

SB Nation - Tim Tebow

Undeserving Winners Of National Awards Announced

Bearcats Betrayed

How do like the Bearcats chances against the Gators?

What could have been: How Kellen Moore stacks up against Heisman finalists

Tim Tebow

Colt McCoy

Mark Ingram

Toby Gerhart

Ndamukong Suh

The official vote of OBNUG, which is not really all that official

Your turn

Who will win the 2009 Heisman Trophy?

Thursday Night Dawg Bites: Charlie Strong Moves On, a Congressman Makes Georgia Proud, and Clay Travis Breaks a Table (Metaphorically)

Who Should Win the Heisman?

A Head-Scratching Snub.

Voting For The Sports Blog Heisman Leaves Out Two Big Names

The Fatal Flaws

Brett Greenwood Cruelly Denied Heisman Invite Yet Again

The Shotgun/Throwdown: Tuesday (12/8/09) Edition

What You May Have Missed:

News of Note (FB):

News of Note (BB):

What's On Tap:

Around the League (and Beyond):

Random Link of Awesomeness:

Video of Interest:

Video of (Dis)Interest:

Soccer Gallery of the Week:

Miss Throwdown: