SB Nation User Blog: Beatuofa

Should Arizona State be terrified of an SEC defense?

Beatuofa — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 20:36:09 -0000

Now, let me preface this by saying as much as I enjoy Ted Miller, I have a sneaking suspicion he's a bit of a wolf in sheep's clothing on this issue. He came to ESPN via the Seattle Post Intelligencer, and currently lives right here in Scottsdale (ahem, ahem -- good interview suspect, House of Sparky?). But he was born in Atlanta and went to school in Virginia, so he's certainly steeped in the SEC mystique, and in various interviews I've read he has generally been admiring of that conference's tradition and power.

All that said...he is a GREAT beat writer, and I'd kill to have him on staff at one of the local papers. He did a piece on his blog presenting some *gasp* FACTS about recent SEC/Pac-10 tilts, and questioning the going wisdom that ASU is going to shrivel up in a little ball at the mere sight of those big, bad southern boys are visiting SDS tomorrow. An excerpt:

As ESPN.com's Ivan Maisel pointed out this week: Eight SEC teams are in the top 30 in total defense.

But how many elite offenses have SEC teams faced so far? Check out the schedule. I'll wait here.

And it's not like those SEC defenses will face elite offenses in conference play, as Ivan also pointed out, "Four SEC teams rank among the top 50 in total offense, and only four rank among the top 59 in passing efficiency."

Now, Sun Devil fans certainly have reason to worry, given our collective fragile psyche after the shocking upset to UNLV last week. And ASU's last several big stage performances certainly haven't gone particularly well (I'm looking at you, Oregon, USC, and Texas). But it shouldn't be a surprise to see Rudy Carpenter & Co make some hay on the big, bad, Bulldawgs.

ESPN: Should Arizona State be terrified of an SEC defense?

A look at negotiating at the top of the draft

Beatuofa — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 18:23:41 -0000

Came across an awesome article in the Washington Post via The Big Lead about the negotiation process between the Washington Nationals and their top draft pick Aaron Crow, who ended up being the only 1st rounder not to sign (I think -- max of 2.) Unlike the NFL or NBA drafts, the MLB draft doesn't get nearly as much attention and the process is pretty opaque to alot of us. This sheds a good light on what goes on with many players at the top of the draft and how it can often come down to the very last second, just like it did with Eric Hosmer this year and Josh Vitters last year. Because of the type of players we are dealing with at ASU who are among the most talented in the country, we will probably see something like this situation just about every year with at least a few players. It's long, but well worth a read.

More Than 3,700 words from Jim Bowden on Aaron Crow

Could Eric Hosmer come to ASU?

Beatuofa — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 21:05:35 -0000

UPDATE: Baseball America is reporting that Hosmer signed a deal with the Royals at the deadline. Terms haven't been released as of yet, but I'll update when they are.

The deadline for drafted players to sign a contract is this Friday, 8/15. As always, there's a handful of high picks holding out to the last minute, and in all likelihood, everyone will come to terms before midnight on Friday. ASU recruit Eric Hosmer was drafted 3rd by the Kansas City Royals and negotiations are still apparently ongoing. But much of what's been written seems to indicate that although Hosmer is still pretty likely to sign a contract, it's not an absolute slam dunk.

Hosmer is represented by uberagent Scott Boras, who has almost singlehandedly remade the finances of the major league draft over the past 15 years. Year after year, high draft picks sign record breaking deals under his watch, as if pro clubs are helpless to keep themselves from throwing out cash by the bushel at his clients. This article from the Kansas City Star talks about the dynamic between club and agent.

We bring all this up because signing Hosmer is not a forgone conclusion. There were reports before the draft that Hosmer and his advisor, superagent Scott Boras, were looking for a bonus in the neighborhood of $7 million to skip out on his scholarship at Arizona State.....There's a little bit of a different feeling around Hosmer, who some think might be more willing to play college ball. Boras has always been a proponent of guys going to college. Some think that's just a negotiating position, and maybe it is to an extent, but I also think he believes it.

While KC has historically had decent success working with Boras clients, they are a small market team and you never know when they could decide that enough is enough.

Also, Hosmer himself doesn't seem to be the usual ballplayer who is only interested in money. This article from the Farmington (N.M.) Daily Times talks about his decision to come back for his Connie Mack team for the summer when he could have been at home enjoying his summer vacation.

"When Eric left last year, he said, I'll see you next year,' and I believed him," Redskins manager Joe Hayden said Saturday morning during his team's workout at the Farmington Sports Complex, a cigar dangling from his left hand. "Hos isn't driven by what drives a lot of young guys. Sure, he wants to make a lot of money, he wants to be a success, but he remembers his roots."

With all of the star power that left Tempe in the wake of a somewhat disappointing Super Regional finish that ended far short of the team's goals (even if they did lose to the eventual national champion), most were figuring that the team was going to take a significant step back. For all that Brett Wallace, Ike Davis & Co. were maligned for not performing up to expectations in postseason play, they led the Sun Devils to the best 3 year run of the Pat Murphy era. Adding a talent like Eric Hosmer would instantly allow them to replace a big chunk of the offense that was lost when those stalwarts moved onto the pros. It'd also quiet some of the critics who argue that Murphy doesn't bring in players who are interested in playing college baseball.

Certainly, the odds are still stacked high against Hosmer showing up in Tempe. Negotiations with top 5 pick Josh Vitters went down to the wire last year, but he still ultimately ended up signing on the dotted line of a professional contract. Expect a flurry of deals in the last hours and minutes before the 11:59 PM deadline Friday night. Cross your fingers though, that Eric Hosmer's name doesn't show up on that list and we get to look forward to seeing him in maroon & gold.

For a laugh: Tim Duncan returns some pants

Beatuofa — Mon, 26 May 2008 16:12:23 -0000

This is a few days old, but I didn't see anything on it so I thought I'd throw it up here. Via the Yahoo! BDL blog, a post about Tim Duncan's adventures to return some pants. An excerpt:

Saleswoman: Sir, you can’t return these pants.

Duncan: (incredulous) Wha-what do you mean I can’t return them?

Saleswoman: Sir, these pants have obviously been worn a number of times. It looks like you have also used them to paint in…

Duncan: (voice getting higher) What do you mean they’ve been worn?

Enjoy!

http://foodcourtlunch.com/?p=919

SMQ roasts the Aggies, or "Get out your pitchforks!"

Beatuofa — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 19:34:10 -0000

I will admit to having fond feelings for both UT and A&M, due to having friends loyal to both schools, but I thought you guys would get a kick out of this one in case you haven't made your way to Sunday Morning Quarterback yet today.

Included in SMQ's piece are gems like these:

"He's left the program in shambles and destroyed its reputation around the Big XII," said student Jordan Hodge, 23, outside the Dime Box YMCA after being thrown out of the meeting for attempting to vote for Franchione's indictment twice. "A one-dimensional quarterback, a 280-pound running back, a completely inept defense. Secret reports that say god knows what. Don't get me started on Mike Goodson.

Enjoy!

Much belated congrats and thank you to the Horns

Beatuofa — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 18:56:56 -0000

Congratulations from this ASU Sun Devil on your deserved victory in San Diego. Your team came in focused and ready to play and it showed. There was no "big-timing" about how mighty UT was too bored with the Holiday Bowl and as a result, my Devils got throttled. In all truth, ASU is probably a year or 2 away from having the horses to compete with the Longhorns, but I had hoped for a better showing than we provided. But didn't I tell you that we'd manage to make your defensive woes go away? ;)

Also, I just want to say that I hope you guys don't take the community and the writing here at BON for granted. Having the chance to have interesting, nuanced, passionate, and above all INTELLIGENT discussion about your team is a rare, rare thing on the internet -- the ASU message boards are almost entirely free of the sort of high level discourse you guys get daily here. Trust me, you don't know how lucky you are to get the chance to interact with other fans of your school without constantly rolling your eyes while muttering "Geez...morons!"

And while there are a couple of interesting blogs on the Devils, they are still in their infancy and it's still up in the air whether they will have the quality content on a daily basis that is found here, much less the active and engaged community of contributors.

UT is one of the few other schools I actively root for, having 3 good friends all as graduates (one of whom won a national title for the Texas swimming team a couple years ago) and I've had a great time on 3 visits to Austin. The Texas fans who came over to the various ASU sites that I frequent were largely knowledgeable and friendly pregame, and gracious and classy in victory. I've even got a UT shot glass sitting in front of me on my desk at work as I type this. So while it sucks to lose we did, at least it takes the sting out when it's to a program and a university that I respect and hope mine can emulate in athletics and across the board. BON has a permanent place in my RSS feed, so I hope you won't mind if I stick around and put my two cents in every so often.