Alamo Bowl Preview

“Leaving the game plan is a sign of panic, and panic is not in our game plan.”-Chuck Noll (four time Super Bowl winning coach)

Some sage advise from the coach with more Super Bowls than any other, however there’s one problem for the Wildcats-their game plans (especially on offense) tend to be pretty crap.

Now this isn’t to say that I think Stoops is a bad coach or that a loss today means we should start scouting for his replacement. In fact, as I stated here, Stoops has ushered in the most successful period in Arizona Football history. & for an example of the results of overreacting to a disappointing season one need only look to Dick Tomey being fired in 2000 after two six loss seasons (a mere two years after leading Arizona to a 12-1 record & a #4 ranking) in favor of John Mackovic who would be fired after going 10-18 over two and a half seasons. Fact is, Stoops is good but he’s not great.

This Week In College Football!

This Week: 0-1 (To quote Tommy Stoessor, “Sigh…”)

Season Total: 48-13

Championship Games:

· ACC: #15 Virginia Tech vs. #21 Florida State-Props to Mark Stoops. He took over a defense ranked at the bottom of the ACC & turned them into the 11^th best defense in points allowed. In fact they’ve allowed over 20 points only three times this season, which just so happens to be the three games they lost. It also so happens that Tyrod Taylor & the rest of the Hokies offense has only scored under 20 once this season, a 19-0 victory over Boston College. I’ll take VT to win its 11^th straight.

Virginia Tech 27, Florida State 20

Alex Zendejas & the State of Wildcat Football

Last night we all had the privilege to watch a classic episode of the Duel in the Desert, though I understand most Wildcat fans wouldn’t quite put it that way. Fact is, however, that last night was the first overtime game in the history of the rivalry (the pre-OT 1987 game ended in a 24-24 tie) and for all the heartbreak there were an equal number of thrills. Of course all anyone is talking about is Alex Zedejas & his blocked extra points, & it’s understandable why (even if I don’t think that’s entirely fair). So let’s go ahead & break down each of Zendejas’s last three kicks, both the quality of the kicks & the decisions that went into them, & what it all means for Arizona Football.

ARIZONA vs. ASU

It's once again time for the Wildcats & Sun Devils to battle it out for the oldest of all the rivalry trophies in college football, the Territorial Cup. Now this year feels a bit like last, as we have two decent teams that have disappointed their fan bases.

Arizona once again blew away hopes of a Rose Bowl, though with the quality of Oregon & Stanford this year (& playing both on the road) such hopes were never quite reasonable. However it is hardly unreasonable to be upset about the two home losses to mediocre Oregon State & USC teams (each of which has lost to a Washington school). In both games the vaunted Arizona defense looked, well… defenseless for much of the game & the offense seemed to forget they were even in a game until late in the fourth quarter.

Today In College Football!

Normally I do my entire look at the week’s major college football games on Friday night & thus I’m forced to ignore any games played on Thursday or Friday, obviously that wouldn’t do this week (Though I’m only previewing Friday’s games here, the rest I will preview at my normal time). This year not only is the day after Thanksgiving Black Friday, but it is quite possibly the defining day in deciding who will play for the BCS National Championship (It’s important to always try & remember to include the BCS part of that because to do otherwise would suggest D-1A college football has a legitimate championship game).

#1 Oregon faces its last ranked opponent in a 21^st ranked Arizona team that’s fought it tooth & nail nearly every year regardless of the final outcome. #2 Auburn face its greatest challenge yet in the defending “National Champions” #11 Alabama (Remember, Boise State finished last year undefeated too). While #4 Boise State goes up against a one loss Nevada team ranked 19^th, giving them a chance to prove the remaining doubters that they truly do deserve a chance at college football’s mythical title.

That’s the three biggest contenders for this year’s title (So long as Boise wins their last two I fully expect them to jump TCU in the rankings) going up against three ranked teams, & two of them must do so on the road (Oregon’s the lone home team). College football just doesn’t get any better than this. At least until they have a playoff…

"Office" Watch-"WUPHF.com"

Before I get to this week’s episode I’d like to do a quick recap of the last two episodes that I’ve thus far neglected.

“Christening”:

My brother watched this episode before I did & told me it was terrible. When I started it I was wondering why he had such a negative opinion, then I finished the episode and felt the same way.

The main storyline deserved credit for keeping Michael’s character arc reasonable. It makes sense that he would get caught up in the church group’s enthusiasm (especially when the other member of the office were being so insufferable, not surprisingly with Ryan leading the way) & volunteer to join them on their trip to Mexico. The problem was that the payoff of Andy & him throwing a tantrum to get off the bus to Mexico wasn’t overly rewarding in either laughs or character development.

This Week In College Football!

Last Week: 11-3 (Gah! Two UA games missed in a row.)

Season Total: 40-7

I have to be up in less than 5 hours so once again I will try to keep this short (& with no Arizona game I might actually succeed!).

Top 10

· Mississippi at #5 LSU-LSU has quite possibly the best defense in college football. Ole Miss has… a terrible defense & Jeremiah Masoli (Hah! I knew he was an overrated product of Oregon’s system).

LSU 34, Ole Miss 14

· #7 Wisconsin at Michigan-A win here would guarantee Rich Rodriguez another year in Ann Arbor & one can only hope karma will come back to bite the Badgers for running up the score on an outmatched Indiana team last week. Now if only Michigan didn’t have the 93^rd ranked defense in point allowed & Wisconsin wasn’t the 8^th ranked scoring offense.

Wisconsin 41, Michigan 30

· #8 Nebraska at #19 Texas A&M-A&M’s offense has been on a roll since Ryan Tannehill took over the quarterbacking duties & they’re riding a 4 game win streak. However I’ve been on the Cornhusker bandwagon all year & I’ll be damned if I jump off now.

This Week In College Football

Last Week: 10-4 (Damn me for switching my Arizona pick)

Season Total: 29-6 (What’s up “experts” on ESPN?)

The first set of games is about to start so I’ll try and make this quick.

Top 10

· Georgia at #2 Auburn-Let’s get this out of the way, Cam Newton is ineligible. No, he hasn’t been ruled ineligible yet but any reasonable person knows that he is. However that doesn’t mean he won’t play. Interestingly Georgia’s best player, wide receiver A.J. Green, missed the first 4 games of the season due to problems with the NCAA. In those games Georgia went 1-3 while averaging 24.3 points-per-game. Since his return they’ve averaged 40.3 points-per-game & gone 4-2. While Auburn has the 55^th ranked scoring defense & has won 3 home games this year by 8 points or less. Make no mistake; even with Newton Auburn could lose this game. Could…

Auburn 41, Georgia 34 (If Auburn does the right thing & benches Newton: Georgia 37, Auburn 27)

· San Diego State at #3 TCU-San Diego State’s actually pretty good, they’re a solid 7-2 & one of those losses was by only 3 points to Missouri. Problem is TCU is awesome.

TCU 34, SD St. 10

· Louisiana-Monroe at #5 LSU-Expect LSU to comfortably win this bye week.

LSU 41, LM 3

"Community" Watch-"Epidemiology"

Let me start by making this simple proclamation: “Community” is better than “The Office.” I know… I know… That’s blaspheme, especially coming from someone like me who’s been pushing “The Office” on people for the past 5 years (At this point I don’t even know who’s got my Seasons 1 & 2 on DVD… No, seriously I’m freaking bidding on eBay for replacements). However, when you see an episode of “Community” like last week’s “Epidemiology” there can be no doubt (Sadly, judging by the ratings only Casey Johnson, my brother, & I watched the episode. What the hell do you people do on Thursday nights? Get hammered? Do homework? Get hammered while doing homework? Either way you’re making a mistake). In fact “Community” actually surpassed “The Office” last season with its brilliant paintball, action send up “Modern Warfare” (the best half hour of TV all last season). Out of loyalty I gave “The Office” a chance to come back this season, but Community remains the stronger, & much funnier, show.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that “Community” would give us probably the greatest Halloween themed episode of all-time (which is saying something considering how good last week’s “Modern Family” was). No live action show does a better job of poking fun at/paying homage to movie genres. First there was last season’s mob themed chicken finger episode with homages to “The Godfather” movies and “Goodfellas”, then “Modern Warfare,” followed by this year’s space themed episode of two weeks ago & then last week’s zombie apocalypse masterpiece “Epidemiology” (officially the half hour that all other comedy’s will be judged against the rest of this season).

This Week In College Football

Last Week: 8-1 (Ok Oregon you’re legit)

Season Total: 19-2 (If only I had any faith I could keep that up)

My guys have state tomorrow (Come on State Championship!), & I’m enjoying my Season 1 “Community” DVDs ("Community">"The Office", now, not all-time), so I’m a little preoccupied so the analysis will be kept to a minimum this week.

Also Jan Brewer? Really Arizona? Apparently none of you watched the governor's debate, know what the GOP legislature is doing with the budget, or understands the reality of our immigration problems. But I digress...

Top 10

· Chattanooga at #2 Auburn-seriously?

Auburn 83, Chattanooga 6 (or something like that)

· #3 TCU at #5 Utah-As good as Arizona/Stanford & Bama/LSU are going to be this is the game of the week. Whoever wins this game has a good shot at going to the title game & at the very least will be in a BCS bowl. TCU hasn’t won at Utah in 4,000 years but they’ve also only given up 16 points in their last 5 games (that’s not a typo).

TCU 27, Utah 17

· Hawaii at #4 Boise State-this will be one of Boise’s last true hurdles to a perfect season, the other being Nevada. If there’s one thing you can expect, besides a Boise State win, it’s a whole lot of points.

Boise St 48, Hawaii 24

· #6 Alabama at #10 LSU-like the TCU/Utah game there are title/BCS game complications here (even LSU still has an outside shot at the title). LSU has the advantage of a bye week before this game; Bama has the advantage of having an offense that can score. LSU’s only shot at winning this game is by winning the turnover margin by at least 2, I don’t think they will.

Bama 27, LSU 20

This Week in College Football

Last Week: 11-1 (perfection thwarted by Ricky Stanzi’s complete ineptness at running a 2-minute drill)

It’s pretty late & I’ve got to be up in the morning so I’ll make these picks brief (apparently that didn't happen, gonna be a long Saturday...).

Top 10:

· #1 Auburn at Ole Miss-Jeremiah Masoli must hate himself for blowing a chance at national stardom leading the Oregon Ducks on a quest for a title. Instead he’s stuck on a mediocre Ole Miss team & facing off against the most dynamic QB in the nation, Auburn’s Cam Newton. Ole Miss has the potential to be dangerous but, Auburn’s offense should be too much & the streak of #1’s going down should end.

Auburn 37, Ole Miss 24

· #5 Michigan State at # 18 Iowa-Both these teams played tough games that went down to the final minutes last week. MSU fell way down against Northwestern only to climb back up & hold onto the win. Iowa, on the other hand, blew a late lead & saw their quarterback self-destruct in the last 2 minutes. Despite the different showings I still believe in this Iowa team & they’re at home so they’re the pick.

Iowa 27, Michigan State 17

· #6 Missouri at #14 Nebraska-Mizzou is coming off a huge victory over #1 Oklahoma (called it!) & my pre-season #1 Nebraska came back strong from their loss to Texas to hang 51 on Oklahoma State. These two offer differing styles as Mizzou likes to air it out while Nebraska likes to keep it on the ground with QB Taylor Martinez. This game should be a thriller & I like Braska to edge it out on their home turf.

Office Watch-"Costume Contest"

This marks the beginning of my weekly (at least through this calendar year) reviews of half of NBC’s comedy Thursdays (sorry "30 Rock" fans, your show’s funny enough but I’ve just never really gotten into it, & anyone who actually watches "Outsourced"). Hopefully I won’t be overly inept, & can provide some insight into "The Office" & "Community" however if you want a professionals take I recommend Alan Sepinwall at hitfix.com, James Poniewozik at time.com, & the reviewers from the avclub.com.

It would be inappropriate for my first review to be off anything but "The Office". It’s my favorite sitcom of all-time (I own each season & have seen each episode from the first 3 seasons, the show’s apex, a half dozen times), & I was one of the early converts (props to Cody Johnson & Alex Van Guilder for being the only people I know to have discovered it before me), having started my weekly viewings in its 2^nd season. Quite simply no show has given me more enjoyment over the years (even you "Lost").

This Week in College Football

Due to my now very lax schedule I’m free to provide more coverage to the things that really matter-sports (especially football), television, movies & a little bit of politics. Hence I will now begin a few weekly columns with my college football weekly predictions being the first. In this column I will preview each PAC-10 game, all games involving top 10 teams, & any between two ranked teams (going by the BCS standing since those are the rankings that matter). Now here we go!

Top 10:

· #1 Oklahoma at #11 Missouri-Yes, Oregon ended the streak of AP #1s losing, but the AP rankings mean about as much as an MTV award now, so Oklahoma is now on the clock as #1 w/ thanks to the BCS computers & they’ve got a tough one ahead of them. Oklahoma is an impressive 6-0 with wins over 2 currently ranked teams as well as a solid Air Force squad. What’s not so impressive is their 71^st ranked defense, and the fact they’ve only played one true road game in which they barely edged out a mediocre Cincinnati team. So yea, I’m taking the less talked about undefeated Big 12 team in this matchup.

Mizzou 31, Oklahoma 27

· #6 LSU at #4 Auburn-In what has to be the game of the week we get two undefeated SEC schools one with a fantastic defense (LSU) & the other with an incredible offense (Auburn). Conventional wisdom says defense wins championships but, LSU has been the least impressive of the undefeated teams & I’d rather not bet against Heisman frontrunner Cam Newton.

Auburn 34, LSU 24

NFL Preview!

Last year I made some great predictions (the Bengals going 10-6 & the Colts making the Super Bowl) & some indefensible ones (the Giants will win the NFC & JaMarcus Russell is better than Joe Flacco). This year… well… it’ll probably be as hit & miss as ever because the NFL is crazy.

Now onto the predictions (playoff teams in bold).

AFC East

1. Dolphins 12-4

2. Patriots 11-5

3. Jets 9-7

4. Bills 3-13

That’s right, the Dolphins. A healthy Ronnie Brown plus Brandon Marshall & improvement from Henne and the defense equals a first round bye. The Patriots offense may be the best in the league but key injuries on the defense will hold them back. The Jets lead the league in hype, they won’t in offense. The Bills have C.J. Spiller & supposedly 52 other NFL players, but I’m skeptical.

College Football Preview!

Yesterday was the PAC-10 preview, now today I give you the full NCAA D-1 football preview including the top 10 teams, the winner of each BCS conference, the Heisman winner, & who will play in each BCS Bowl.

TOP 10:

1. Nebraska-Loses the best player in college football, Ndamukong Suh, & will actually improve. The defense should continue to anchor the team under coach Bo Pelini & the offense, which returns 9 starters, should be improved enough to get Nebraska its first BCS title.
2. TCU-if the Horned Frogs get through the Mountain West (which should be a BCS conference) undefeated they should finally break up the big boys club of the BCS & score a title game birth. & I believe they will as they return 16 starters from last year's team including QB Andy Dalton who leads all D1 QBs with 29 career victories going into the season.
3. Alabama-Bama, who returns only 1 defensive starter, won't be able to rebuild fast enough to get another BCS "Championship", but they should still win the toughest conference in college football.
4. Virginia Tech-Coach Frank Beamer & QB Tyrod Taylor are, simply put, winners. Then add in an always fantastic defense & 2 RBs in Ryan Williams & Darren Evans who have run for a thousand yards and what you get is the best team in the ACC.
5. Boise State-Returns an unfathomable 20 starters, including stud QB Kellen Moore, from last year's undefeated team. If they can get past Virginia Tech & Oregon State they may be able to reach the title game.
6. Iowa-a top notch defense that returns 8 starters including DE Adrian Clayborn (11 and a half sacks) & safety Tyler Sash (6 picks) plus an improving offense should allow Iowa to reach the Rose Bowl.
7. Ohio State-Dual threat QB Terrell Pryor & 13 other returning starters will be looking to make the BCS "Championship", if they can beat Iowa & Wisconsin on the road they should do so.
8. Texas-lost stud QB Colt McCoy & 10 other starters from last years team, but sophomore QB Garret Gilbert has already played in a national title game & Texas is never short on talent.
9. Miami-since coach Randy Shannon's first season in 2007, when the team went 5-7, the Canes have improved by 2 wins each season. Behind QB Jacory Harris & an improved defense Miami should add another 2 wins yet again.
10. Stanford-With a fantastic QB in Andrew Luck & an equally adept coach in Jim Harbaugh the Cardinal will eak out a PAC-10 title.

PAC-10 Football Preview

We're about to begin the last season of PAC-10 football, (Stanford & UCLA open the PAC-10 season on Saturday) before expansion begins, & the league is as wide open as ever. Realistically 5 teams have a shot at winning the PAC, though only 4 of those can reach the Rose Bowl thanks to USC's restriction from post-season play (maybe that will cut down some of their arrogance), & all 5 have serious questions to answer. Can USC stay motivated without a light at the end of the tunnel? Will Oregon be the same without former QB Jeremiah Masoli? Can Oregon State & their new QB play well throughout the entire PAC-10 season? Will Jim Harbaugh be able to replace Toby Gerhart & complete his transformation of Stanford into a PAC-10 power? & of course the biggest question of all: Can Arizona do what every other PAC-10 team has done & make it to the Rose Bowl? Well let me answer those questions for you.

2010 PAC-10 Final Standings

1. Stanford 7-2 (10-2 overall) (Rose Bowl)

Coach Jim Harbaugh & QB Andrew Luck lead Stanford to its first Rose Bowl since its Jan 1, 2000 loss to Wisconsin thanks to wins over both Oregon State & Arizona.

2. OSU 7-2 (8-4) (Holiday Bowl)

OSU’s tough non-conference schedule pays off, as most of the PAC-1o proves much easier than TCU & Boise State.

3. Arizona 7-2 (10-2) (Alamo Bowl)

Arizona fails to make it to the Rose Bowl yet again, but Stoops & the Wildcats can take solace in their first 10-win season since 1998.

4. Oregon 6-3 (9-3) (Sun Bowl)

The loss of Masoli proves too much for the talented Ducks who fail to live up to pre-season expectations.

5. USC 5-4 (9-4) (None, ahahahaha!)

For the second year in a row USC proves overrated as they fade down the stretch.

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama

As previously mentioned the Joeys feature 6 nominees (nominees also up for the Emmy are italicized) & I will also predict the winner of each category for the Emmys. Without further ado...

Josh Holloway (Sawyer, "Lost")-Holloway brought his performance to another level in the last 2 seasons of "Lost" as Sawyer became the leader of the castaways, along with Jack. Holloway earns this nomination for showing Sawyer's heartbreak over Juliet's death & his portrayal of shock & joy at reuniting with her in the sideways universe.

Michael B. Jordan (Vince, "Friday Night Lights")-The character of Vince could've easily become a cliche, a troubled black kid from the inner city with no dad & a junky for a mom, but Jordan was up to the task of making Vince into a full formed person. He completely sold Vince's evolution into a leader on the football field & a much better person off it.

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy

As previously mentioned the Joeys feature 6 nominees (nominees also up for the Emmy are italicized) & I will also predict the winner of each category for the Emmys. Without further ado...

Ty Burrell (Phil Dunphy, "Modern Family")-some people have criticized Burrell's Phil Dunphy as Michael Scott as a father, my response-what's wrong with that? Michael Scott is hilarious & so is Phil Dunphy, though to be fair as childish as Phil is he has a slightly better grip on reality than Michael & he's never nearly as offensive. & that's why Burrell get's major points from me, he's not allowed to be quite as unhinged as Steve Carell yet he manages to draw just as many laughs.

Glen Howerton (Dennis, "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia")-Charlie Day as Charlie generally gets the most credit for the many laughs on Always Sunny, however, as much as I love Charlie, I find Howerton's mildly more intelligent Dennis to be the best of the show's ensemble. His character's self-centeredness, and belief that he's far more intelligent than he is (due to the stupidity of those around him) never fails to make me laugh. He also gets a boost for reminding me of my good friend Jamie Becwar.

Nick Offerman (Ron Swanson, "Parks & Recreation") -Offerman's Ron Swanson is one of the great comedic creations of the last few years. He is extremely prejudiced of government, despite being the head of the Pawnee, Indiana Parks & Rec department. He's had 2 failed marriages with women named Tammy, & yes, his mother's name was Tammy. Of course all of that is just good writing, but Offerman only enhances the character with his brilliant mustache, slapstick talent, odd talents, & ability to convey Ron's overwhelming hatred for human interaction.

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy

Like the Emmys the Joeys feature 6 nominees (nominees also up for the Emmy are italicized) & I will also predict the winner of each category for the Emmys. Without further ado...

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy:

Alison Brie (Annie, "Community")-Brie more than held her own comedically against the rest of the hilarious cast, especially when Annie sprayed herself in the eyes with pepper spray. In addition her chemistry with Joel McHale allowed for a fantastic season finale cliff hanger.

Jenna Fischer (Pam, "The Office")-This was definitely the weakest season of "The Office", but of all the lead actors Fischer was the one who best acquitted herself throughout the season. She was at her best showing Pam's insecurities about the wedding & becoming a mother, as well as frustration & anger at Michael for first dating & then breaking up with her mother. Not to mention as long as "The Office" is on Fischer's getting one of my nominations.

Jane Lynch (Sue Sylvester, "Glee")-"Glee" had an up & down season (up for most of the first half, down after returning in April), but Lynch's Sylvester was always hilarious. She gave a needed break from the sometimes overbearing melodrama with uproariously inappropriate comments the best of which addressed the great deal of hair product in Mr. Schuester's hair. Lynch also was fantastic in her few dramatic moments involving Sue's mentally challenged sister.

The Joey Awards for Television

Ok so I've been slacking on my Top-10 Movies lists (don't worry I'll get there eventually), & sadly those lists will have to be pushed back another few weeks thanks to the upcoming College Football & NFL previews but today, in honor of Sunday's Emmys, I will be presenting the first annual Joeys.

Why am I doing my own awards in place of an Emmys preview? A. I want to give a shout out to my favorite shows. B. Emmy voters are the people involved in making television, hence they don't actually have that much time to watch television (which is why the TCA's, the Television Critics Awards, are generally much better), making me just as qualified to choose the best performance in television as the Emmy voters. C. Because Emmy voters don't watch that much television they often make ghastly, indefensible, choices such as never giving The Wire (considered by most critics, & Bill Simmons, to be one of the 2 greatest dramas in television history along with The Sopranos) an Emmy, & only 2 nominations to boot. More recently they gave John Cryer Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy for Two and a Half Laughs (O wait, that's supposed to be Men, my bad) over the brilliant work of Rainn Wilson & Neil Patrick Harris. Now on to the Joeys!

Top 10 Movies of the Decade

With the 2000's having come & gone I think it's high time I make a list of the top 10 movies of the decade, however I saw a lot of movies over the last 10 years and I don't feel listing only 10 of them would do the decade justice hence over the next month I will produce a top 10 list in 8 different categories (Why 8? I don't have a good reason so much as I started making lists and came up with 8). 

The categories will be Action, Animated, Comedey, Drama, Horror, Romance, Sci-Fi, and Sports before culminating with my top 10 overall films. A couple rules regarding the list: 1) No movie will appear twice on the list (excluding the top 10 overall). So you won't see District 9 or Star Trek on the Sci-Fi & Action lists. 2) Only one movie will be permitted per franchise, hence you won't see more than one Shrek or Lord of the Rings on the list. 

The first list should appear by the end of the week & hopefully you'll agree with my picks less you realize you have an inferior taste in cinema. Now I'm off to watch a few more movies before finalizing my list, adios.