Previewing the ACC-Big Ten Challenge From A Skewed Perspective

Isaac Haas will look to be a beast on the block for Purdue against Louisville Wednesday night in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge (Getty).

My time as an ACC basketball fan started in the early 90's when I first arrived from Chicago to the wild and wonderful town of Fredericksburg Virginia. I followed the league heartily throughout my youth and fully embraced the Carolina-Duke rivalry as a fan of the squad in sky blue uniforms.

Flash forward to 2013 when I started writing for RushtheCourt. I initially wanted to write about the ACC, but spots were needed covering the Big Ten. I've been covering this league now for four years and have become much more familiar with this conference than the one I was obsessed with years ago. So this makes the ACC-Big Ten challenge strange for me.

In the past, I obviously would have ridden with the ACC and wanted them to win all 14 games. Now, while I'm still a Carolina fan, I'm fully rooting for the Big Ten to win the event. Monday's games left both leagues tied 1-1, with Florida State beating Minnesota and Northwestern taking down Wake Forest. These were merely an appetizer for the proceedings coming tonight and Wednesday. What follows is what to look for in the best six games to come, with an extra little prediction thrown in for good measure.

• Syracuse at Wisconsin: This one has the makings of a classic, with both teams residing within the top 10 on KenPom. The Badgers are only shooting 31 percent from behind the arc and have a tendency to take way too many threes. So how they handle the Cuse zone may very well determine the outcome. Another troubling element for Wisconsin is that they actually have been really sloppy this season (20.4 percent turnover rate). One thing they do really well, however, is crash the glass on the offensive end. Defensive rebounding has never been a strong point for Jim Boeheim coached teams, and that's still the case. The Orange have started off the season really shooting well from the perimeter, though, with four of their primary five deep shooters hitting over 46 percent. Prediction: Wisconsin in a close one because road games and Syracuse really aren't a thing this early in the year. 

• Michigan State at Duke: This is not a typical Michigan State team, at least not yet. They are painfully young, and they have almost no size except for Zach Randolph clone (Tom Izzo's words, not mine) Nick Ward. Duke is still Duke, even without the services of three absolute stud freshmen. Without going into a full-fledged breakdown on the numbers, I already know that Sparty has almost no chance here. The caveat, however, is whether or not Grayson Allen plays. If he's out of the mix, then I'd say the end result is a coin flip. My best guess is that everyone's favorite villain plays and the perimeter attack of Allen, Luke Kennard, and Frank Jackson prevails. No coin necessary. Prediction: Kind of made this clear already, but Duke wins by 15.

The somewhat hated Grayson Allen will lead Duke to a win over Michigan State tonight (Mark Dolejs, USATSI). 

• Virginia Tech at Michigan: This one barely makes the cut as one of the six best games here, but should be a sneaky good game because both squads should end up as tournament teams in March. Dan Brody's favorite coach has a 5-1 team that is one blown lead against Texas A&M from being undefeated. They have a bunch of rangy guards that shoot the ball well and don't turn it over, coupled with Zach LeDay as the one banger in the post. Michigan is built a tad different than the teams of the past five years, because they actually have much more size than the Hokies with the trio of DJ Wilson, Marc Donnal, and German Moritz Wagner. They used this size to cripple Marquette, the former school of Buzz Williams, and a solid SMU team to win the 2K Classic. They can shoot it from deep, and the aforementioned bigs do a really good job in pick-and-roll situations where they casually saunter to the rim for dunks and layups. This should be a really close game that will come down to the last couple of possessions. Prediction: Michigan will use their size to barely pick up their third quality win on the year.

•  Purdue at Lousiville: This one is another sneaky good game, but with a higher ceiling. Unlike the VT-Michigan matchup, both teams are ranked and both could be legitimate threats to win their respective conferences. This isn't the same defensive team for Purdue as last year, with the losses of the very large human AJ Hammons and perimeter pest Raphael Davis. They are better scoring the ball, however, due to the fact that they are simply much larger than most in the paint, with the tag-team of Caleb Swanigan and Isaac Haas. They've surrounded the monsters in the paint with a bunch of shooters than can make it rain from distance. On the other side, Louisville boasts the number two most efficient defense in the land and could force the Boilers into a tough shooting night. The question here is will they develop anything remotely resembling  competence on the other side of the floor. Prediction: Ricky P and the Cards will frustrate Purdue and hold them in check with their defense. Louisville squeaks by.

• Ohio State at Virginia: This one could get really ugly for two reasons. The first of which is that Ohio State has played only one semi-decent team, and haven't come close to seeing anything near what Virginia brings to the floor defensively. So they obviously could struggle to score points, which I hear is a problem when trying to win basketball games. The second reason is that the same core beat Kentucky last season, but lost to UT Arlington and Lousiana Tech at home. Whether or not this group has matured since, suffering the sting of not making the NCAA's in 2015-16 will be on display here as they travel to Charlottesville. Tony Bennett's team was insanely good when I watched them dismantle Iowa. They scored at will and did not allow the Hawkeyes to accomplish anything on offense. Despite a lack of star power, the system is working for the Cavs. Prediction: This one will be close for a half, but UVA will run away with it in the last ten minutes.

• North Carolina at Indiana: If someone were to give me five dollars each time this game is referred to as a track meet, I wouldn't be living in a 350X350 studio apartment . Needless to say, pace has been mentioned quite a bit leading up to what arguably is the best game on paper of the Challenge's fourteen. Carolina and Indiana have both surprised pundits and fans alike by being a bit better than people expected out of the gate. Carolina is getting insanely stellar play from Joel Berry, and they are rebounding 46.6 percent of their misses thanks to Kennedy Meeks and freshman Tony Bradley. The two have absolutely owned the backboards. Indiana, meanwhile, shocked the college basketball world by beating Kansas early. But they then fell back to earth, losing to Fort Wayne last week. Both of these teams could easily win their leagues and could end up in the Final Four. If I were a betting man, I'd say the over is a safe play. Prediction: It's hard to go against Carolina with the way they've been playing, but I think Indiana playing at home will shoot the lights out much like they did against Kansas to get the win. 

That reverse jinx was brought to you by Bill Simmons. Enjoy the hoops.

Brendan Brody tweets @Berndon4.

SEC Week 5 Preview

We're still a week away from a really good SEC slate. But SEC football is still better than any alternative*.

SEC Week 4 Preview

The lone good game of this week's SEC slate was played on Thursday in Manhattan, Kansas. Since my procrastination doesn't have classwork to delay me any longer, it has manifested itself in through my yardwork. The last thing I want to do on a Saturday in the fall is yardwork. After all, the grass and weeds will all be dying soon anyway. That is, unless my neighbor mows his lawn. Then I am obligated, driven by guilt and shame, to mow the yard and pull the weeds. Anyways, due to my procrastination all we have left is a yawn-inducing week of SEC football. Which is weird, because it's the third Saturday of September and the Gators aren't playing Tennessee. Thanks, Obama!* Anyhow, let's get to the games.

Flora-Bama
The Gators continue their Muschamp Goodbye Tour this week in Tuscaloosa. It might be a decent game. But this battle for the panhandle could also get ugly. This same Gator team allowed the Cats to rack up 30 points, 450 total yards and 369 passing yards. Sure, they were okay against the run but that's only because Kentucky didn't have to run to score. The Cats threw three interceptions and the Gators still needed three over-times to put them over the top. Now, every team is capable of having a bad week. But I'm betting it's more of a sign of how Florida is still down and last season was no aberration. They'll need a flawless game this week to beat Alabama, whether it's Blake Sims or Jacob Coker throwing the rock. Alabama 35, Florida 17.

Dogs-Tigers
Dan Mullen has turned Mississippi State into a pretty good squad. They are no longer the pushover where SEC foes automatically penciled in a win when they showed up on the schedule. However, they aren't quite there yet and I'm not sure they'll ever get to the point where you will have to question whether or not they can beat LSU in Death Valley. LSU 27, Mississippi State 14.

Cocks-Dores
There is one final SEC match-up this week and it's merely filler. USC makes the trip to Nashville to play Vandy. No one expected the 'Dores post-Franklin would go into such a quick decline. Whether their backslide was caused by Franklin leaving the cupboard bare or they were winning almost single-handedly fueled by his charisma, it's arbitrary and meaningless at this point. The only thing that matters is the Dores are no longer a threat and the Gamecocks should blow their doors off. USC 42, VU 10.

As for the rest of the SEC, see the gifs below. The SEC brings the funk, and the fury.

It's morphin time!

*Actually, the move to 14 teams ruined any sense of history or rivalries. But hey, at least Vandy sucks again. /shrugs

SEC Week 3 Preview

The SEC moves into its second week of the SEC-G5 Challenge, meaning we have another week filled with yawners, leaving one potentially awesome game and another that should have been an awesome game. First, let's tackle the latter.

LCB Picks: SEC & VA Picks

SEC
Tennessee v (5) UGA @ 3:30 on CBS:
Another bad week of games in the SEC. Tyler Wilson and Arkansas travel to Texas A&M, giving the Aggies their first SEC win. John L. Smith is just an awful substitute for Bobby Petrino, even with all the chaos and lack of loyalty the latter can bring. South Carolina plays Kentucky in Lexington. We all know how this ends and it won't be pretty. LSU plays defending CAA champion Towson. Towson has an extremely talented RB in Terrance West. But they have no chance in Baton Rouge. Ole Miss goes to Alabama, moving their SEC record to 0-1. Missou takes on UCF in Orlando. This could actually be worth watching, but neither team is really good enough to enforce it as a must-watch. I like UCF with the upset.

Now, most of those games aren't much worse than this as UT still hasn't been able to build depth neccessary to push the best of the SEC for four quarters. The saving grace is the rivalry. UT leads the series (21-18-2) but UGA has won the last two. To end the streak, UT will need to get a sizable lead before the 4th. With their complete lack of a running game and a questionable secondary, I don't really see the Vols being able to hold a small lead late in the game. With their receiving corps, the Vols always have a chance to get a jump on the competition. However, with Jarvis Jones coming after Bray and Aaron Murray passing against the aforementioned weak secondary, I like UGA in a close one. UGA 20, UT 14.

VA
Nothing to see here, seriously. VT plays Cincinnati at Fed Ex Field. After losing another early-season game against a supposedly lesser opponent, VTs season capsule should almost mirror 3 of the last 4 seasons (save for 2009). UVA hosts unbeaten Louisiana Tech. This is the second game that could have been a good one. But the QB controversy is still unsettled and until it is, they'll struggle. The winless Tribe of W&M play host to the truly awful Georgia State Panthers. Whoever loses this game will go winless. Lastly, the 4th ranked ODU Monarchs and NCAA record-holder Taylor Heinicke play at UofR. The Spiders sit at 3-1, however they haven't been tested this season and are coming off a season where they went winless in the CAA. Until the Spiders beat someone of note, their games won't be of note. JMU, VMI and Liberty all on the bye.

LCB Picks: SEC & VA Games of the Week

Editors Note: I'm back, picking the best games on the SEC and Virginia D-1 slate. Sorry for missing last week, times are crazy. Work, school, wedding prep and three dogs make free-time a commodity.

SEC Games of the Week

(24) Florida v Texas A&M @3:30 on ESPN:
One of the LCGs best friends is an A&M grad. We had dinner the other night and talked about the upcoming season. She is extremely happy about their move to the SEC. She is even prouder of her school. With plenty of reason. The fans are great, teams competitive and have some of the best traditions in college football. Texas A&M is a fantastic addition to the SEC. However, it may be a while until there ready to compete. Sumlin will need a couple of years to transition from the predictable ground-and-pound offense of Mike Sherman to his spread. They should be competitive. They may even beat Florida today (Muschamp seems like Zook 2.0 and the offense isn't helping), but the SEC West can be a murderers row for a new head coach. The Aggies may have added two conference championships and two national titles this offseason, but I don't see '12 being added to the exterior of Kyle Field any time soon. Florida 28, Texas A&M 24.

Washington v (3) LSU @7:00 on ESPN:
This game is getting a lot of push from the networks. I have no idea why. While the team from Seattle has been prepped for Mike, they aren't ready for the Tiger defense or Tiger Stadium. LSU 35, UW 17.

(7) Georgia v Missouri @7:45 on ESPN2: 
Mark Richt just cannot catch a break. First Crowell, Commings and Vasser; and now Ogletree and Rambo piss dirty. The former is now playing FCS football for HBCU Alabama State. The latter four, all defensive starters, have been rumored to be suspended for this game. Despite the suspensions and their "old man football" style, the Dawgs are good. Aaron Murray is probably the best quarterback in a great group of QBs in the SEC, though the Tylers -Wilson and Bray- have pretty good arguments. And I like him to lead the Dawgs to a victory in Columbia, with a little help from John Jenkins and the defense. Pinkel's team will be more competitive than Sumlin's in the first year but I think today they struggle with the difference in size and speed from the top-heavy Big 12 to the loaded SEC. UGA 24, Missou 21.

Virginia Game of the Week
Penn St. v Virginia @12:00 on ABC:
This is the only "good" game in the state of Virginia today. The Dukes play host to Alcorn State, who haven't been relevant since Steve "Air" McNair was suiting up for the Braves. The Monarchs travel across the bay to play Hampton, a team who hung tough in Norfolk in 2011. However, Legree has graduated and taken any shot of an upset with him. The Tribe plays Louisiana-Lafayette, a patriot league team that should be destroyed at Zable. Though, if there are any upsets, it will be in Williamsburg. The Hokies have their annual bodybag game. This year's opponent, Austin Peay. It will get ugly. UR takes the weekend off to recover from their trip to Charlottesville with a game against Gardner Webb. Finally, Liberty plays Norfolk State. It should be a good game between two quality opponents. But neither team is good enough to warrant further mention here.

As for the Cavaliers and their game against Penn State. I think it will give us a good read on how much the Cavs have improved from last years bowl run to now. The Cavs struggled to put away FCS Richmond last week. The reason, starting quarterback Michael Rocco. Some may even call him a game manager. But when the game manager was lucky to not have multiple interceptions in the first game against a bad FCS team, that's not a good start. It doesn't help Rocco's future as a starter to know that the uber-talented Phillip Sims is waiting in the wings. I think, if Penn State can rebound to make Rocco pay for his mistakes, Sims plays the second half. But that's a big if. The Nittany Lions got beat by a good (better coached) but less talented Ohio Bobcat team last week. And the score was a lot closer than the actual game, leading me to believe the Wahoos win this one ugly. Hopefully, for the Cavs sake, this is Rocco's last start. It's time to unleash Sims on the ACC. UVA 24, PSU 20.

Old Dominion, The Last Domino

Since I last left you Da'Rick and Tyrann failed drug tests, Isaiah Crowell was caught riding dirty. Petrino crashed his motorcycle, Phillip Sims and Lafonte Thoroughgood came home, Gus Malzahn left for Jonesboro, and Urban Meyer decided a year (much of it as a broadcaster) was enough time spent with his family. Sure, there is plenty that I'm forgetting but these are the stories that wrap-up what always makes for an entertaining offseason in the South. However, even with all that news, the biggest story (outside of Happy Valley) of the offseason was conference realignment. It just so happens that my school, Old Dominion University, pulled the plug on the move from FCS to FBS. So, I figured we could take a look at how this happened, the reaction to the news and its future impact on a program just years removed from its rebirth.

The How:
Early on in life we all learn that each action has a equal or bigger reaction. But for some reason, especially when it comes to conference realignment, we often forget this fact. In June 2010, when Colorado jumped ship to the Pac no one thought it would affect the Virginia centric CAA. However, it was the first in a number of dominoes to fall that ultimately ended with VCU moving to the A-10, Georgia State moving to the Sun Belt, Old Dominion moving to CUSA, Rhode Island reversing course and the combo of Albany and Stony Brook switching to the CAA for football only. Don't believe me, just follow the timeline.

Georgia State starts their transition immediately, ending any chance at postseason glory (their chances were already low). Over two seasons of play, the Panthers have lost to Division 2 and NAIA programs. Their most recent loss, a 33 to 6 drubbing at the hands of HBCU and MEAC member South Carolina State. A program that is struggling so bad financially, they are considering dropping down to Division 2. Clearly Georgia State, the program with an all-time record of 9-14 (.375), is ready for FBS football. VCU leaves the CAA for the A-10 immediately, though that won't matter until November.

Credit: Mace and Crown

The move for ODU begins in 2013 when all Olympic sports (the ones sponsored by CUSA anyhow and those haven't left for CUSA already) join the league, with the football team starting the mandatory two-year transition the same season. The delay is in order to allow the football team one last chance at an FCS Championship. This has resulted in all ODU sports being ineligible for all CAA autobids for the various NCAA sports, a decision that has led to plenty of criticism from fans and journalists.

Reaction:
Since May, the response from students, alums, athletes, recruits and fans has been overwhelmingly positive. This cannot be more evident in the fact that between the beginning of the CUSA rumors and the announcement (about 10 days) donors pledged $3 million for the ODAF.

However, it hasn't all been positive and the concerns are legitimate. Old Dominion will leave a Virginia centric league for one with teams as far away as 2,000 miles. That type of travel will increase expenses, put more demand on student-athletes (and band members), and lower the chances for rivalries to exist outside of the eastern division. Increased ticket prices is another concern, which may be inescapable due to increased demand and expenses. However, President John Broderick and AD Wood Selig have promised no increases in student fees and limited gradual increases for ticket prices for season and single-game tickets. The added expense of playing FBS football has been estimated at $2 million per year. This estimation covers the increase in football scholarships, a new women's sport (plus the schollies) to satisfy Title IV, travel increases and expected increase in coaches salaries.

 

Future/Summation:

Wood Selig and John Broderick have everyone in town excited for what this transition will bring to our great institution. Bobby Wilder has recruited his tail off, already landing 21 commitments in the 2013 class with 17 of those players being 3 or 2 star recruits. At the same time last year, they had three, all unranked. They have already won recruiting battles against notable programs Cal, Temple, Purdue and Illinois as well as future conference mates La. Tech, Marshall and ECU. Situated in the middle of one of the richest recruiting grounds in the country with just 2 FBS state schools to compete with (Comparatively, North Carolina has 6 and Ohio has 8) and breaking support records on an annual basis, the future is a bright one for Old Dominion.

LCB Picks: SEC/VA Games of the Week

Editors Note: This season, on top of the usual SEC picks, we will be picking the best games on the Virginia D-1 slate. We, as in the LCB, all spent our formative years in Virginia. So, we probably should have been doing this all along. 

On Friday night, Oregon crushed UCLA 49-31 to win the first ever PAC-12 Championship game, earning a spot in "The Granddaddy of Them All," the Rose Bowl. LaMichael James rushed for 219 yards, helping his team roll and giving himself a leg-up in the Heisman race. But this was all news to me. Tonight, I took my fiancee out to eat, came home, took the dogs on a jog, and then started preparation for my upcoming finals. It was a fruitful night. However, when I logged on to write this preview I noticed update after update of the UCLA-Oregon game. To my surprise, it was tonight. Like most my age, I have a fairly busy schedule. However, I still feel like I'm just as likely to hear about a game of this magnitude through word of mouth as I am to see a commercial (which I didn't, at least until the game was finished). I had no clue this was happening and even though I could care less that I missed it. (The fact that UCLA got in a conference championship with a 6-6 record, just 1 win more than the "sky is falling" Tennessee Vols, and a fired coach is laughable at best.) I do have a lot of questions; What went wrong with their advertising campaign? Was this on TV? ABC, ESPN, VS, Animal Planet? Am I the only one that had no clue this game was happening? I can't be, right? Am I developing an east coast bias? Whatever the answers are, we all know that the PAC-12 Championship Game is another reminder of why we should all be thankful for the SEC.

SEC Championship Game
(12) UGA v (1) LSU @ 4:00 on CBS:
Many are saying if LSU loses they are still a lock for the BCS Title game, which is impressive. Not quite as impressive as who they've beaten and how they've done it, but impressive nonetheless. However, if Georgia wins and locks-up the automatic bid, the SEC could get four teams into BCS games. LSU, Bama, and UGA would be locks; with Arkansas having a pretty good argument towards their inclusion. This has to scare the other conferences, right? If you add USC to the equation, five teams in the SEC are eligible for a BCS game (though, they have no shot at a BCS game). No matter how you feel about the absurdity of not having playoffs is, it's still an impressive accomplishment for a conference.

Did you know Glamour Shots slogan is:
"We Bring Out Your Best ... Then We Take Your Picture"
Aaron Murray does!

To make matters worse for the non-SEC, it's clear the SEC East is suffering through a down year and yet they have two teams (that's more than most conferences) in the top 14 of the BCS rankings. This domination by the SEC is only going to get worse in the next couple of seasons. Florida will get better, Vandy is building something, UT will return, and the new guys (aTm and Missou) should be in a decent spot to contend. The SEC will continue to get better, until the rest of the conferences defect from the BCS and force a playoff; which has to be the only way to slow down this train. I like the Dawgs in the upset. Apart from them playing a seudo-home game and knowing Aaron Murray is the best QB LSU will face this season, I don't have much of a reason to believe this will happen. Just call it an inkling. UGA 28, LSU 24.

VA Games of the Week
ODU v (3) Georgia Southern @ 1:00 & JMU v (2) North Dakota State University @ 4:00 on ESPN3/Game Plan:
While trolling the message boards this week, I saw one question that stood out to me: "Would you rather your school make it to the Final Four or win a FCS Championship?" As you would guess, most of the answers revealed what sport that poster preferred. However, it's a fairly good question. If your team makes it to the Final Four, they gain national notoriety for the school, boost admissions, boost athletic donations (simultaneously helping the non-revenue sports), and you get a month of lifelong memories. But, you don't even win a Championship and your teams' coach is probably going to leave in the near future (See; Larranaga, Jim). However, if you win an FCS national championship, your school wins the most legitimate National Title in college football, gains a possible catalyst towards a jump to the BCS, a boost (albeit smaller) to athletic donations, and you get a month of lifelong memories. But noone that didn't/doesn't attend an FCS school cares/knows and while it may be more legitimate than the BCS Title game, it still doesn't include all of Division 1.

For me, I'd take the championship. Only because ODU is on the verge of announcing a major expansion to Foreman Field and they're "this close" to making the jump. I believe a FCS Title would be all they need to speed up the process.

Once again, no picks, but I am interested in what other "mid-major" fans would rather have; Fourth Place or First? CBS, Sports Illustrated, & ESPN or ESPNU?

LCB Picks: SEC & VA Games of the Week

Who else is happy that Hank Williams Jr. lost his job? I am. Not because of what he said (which was just plain stupid and a very weak analogy)  but because of how much that song could grate on the ears? I couldn't be happier to know that I will never have to hear that song again or have to relate it to football. I feel the same way about his MNF theme as I do about Faith Hill's Sunday Night Football intro and John Mellencamp's "This is our COOUUUNTRRY." All terrible, all horrendous. If I never heard any of these three songs ever again, I think I would stop going gray and live an extra five years.

Editors Note: This season, on top of the usual SEC picks, we will be picking the best games on the Virginia D-1 slate. We, as in the LCB, all spent our formative years in Virginia. So, we probably should have been doing this all along.

SEC Game of the Week 
UGA v Tennessee @ 7:00 on ESPN 2:
I imagine many of you are asking why this would be the "game of the week" when their are two top-25 SEC match-ups this week (LSU-Florida and Auburn-Arkansas).  But after the beating Florida took last week from Alabama, can anyone see Florida beating LSU a week later? Didn't think so. Also, the Auburn-Arkansas is a game for third place behind Bama and LSU in the SEC West. As for UT/UGA, the winner will take a share of the lead in the East with South Carolina (who just benched their QB) and have a chance at their first SEC Championship birth since UT played in 2007, which is ages in this new era of college football.

David Pollack said that Georgia has rebounded nicely and are creeping up on teams since the loss to Boise State. But with a loss to USC (included two TDs by DE Melvin Ingram), a bye week against Coastal Carolina, and sputtering wins over Ole Miss and Mississippi State; I wouldn't start planning a trip to Atlanta in December just yet. Georgia's last two trips to Knoxville ended badly, with losses of 21 and 26. Another loss like that for Richt could spell "pink slip." Aaron Murray will need to rebound after a terrible game against Miss. State where he threw 3 picks, completed just 52% of his 25 passes and failed to reach 200 yards.

As I mentioned earlier, the Vols have dominated the Dawgs in K-town in the last two games. However, both were before Kiffin tore the team apart and Derek Dooley came to town. Now, his pants are magical but he'll need to get his teams' running game going to win this game. Tauren Poole leads the team in yards, but is averaging just 76.2 yards per game. If they can't find room for their backs to run, they'll be leaning heavily on the arm on Tyler Bray. Which is nothing new, but without Justin Hunter, he'll need to find another threat to fill the void. Last week it was De'Anthony Arnett grabbing two touchdowns against powderpuff Buffalo.

Expect big games out of Isaiah Crowell, Tyler Bray, and D'aRick Rogers. Expect Bacarri Rambo and Austin Johnson to be everywhere. Expect a close game. Expect a loss for Georgia. Both teams are evenly matched-up, but Georgia lacks the receiving threats that Tennessee has in Da'Rick Rogers and De'Anthony Arnett. UT 38, UGA 35.

VA Games of the Week
(12) Maine v (6) James Madison @ 3:30:
What a shocker? Another week, another top-25 game for James Madison. Now, FCS is a new thing to me, but I can't imagine a tougher stretch for a team than the one JMU is currently playing. Four straight weeks against ranked opponents and that's leaving out their opening game against UNC. If this is a normal thing for an FCS team, I apologize, but it seems like an incredibly difficult run for any team. What makes this game even harder, they'll be without WR Kerby Long (concussed), S Jakarie Jackson (hammy) and  QB Justin Thorpe (sticky-icky), while RB Dae'Quan Scott (shoulder) is expected to see little to no action.

Freshman QB Jace Edwards gets his second start but as long he doesn't turn it over, he will be successful. What JMU needs is a repeat performance from Jauan Latney and Jordan Anderson who combined for 261 yards last week against a talented, but down, Richmond squad. Without that, JMU could be in trouble.

This game will come down to the match-up of the CAAs best run defense and running back. JMU has shut down the run all season long, but face their toughest test of the season with Pushaun Brown coming to town. Whoever wins this battle, wins this game.

I'll take JMU for the win, as JMU's defense has been an immovable force. I, also, think the new backfield could end up being the start of something beautiful in Harrisonburg. JMU 20, Maine 10.

LCB Picks: SEC & VA Games of the Week

There is only one game of the week for this weekend. It has everything every 80's movies purported to us as rivalries; north v south, rich v middle/upper-middle class, white v tanned skin, and mountain men v city boys. It is of course, Florida v Bama JMU v Richmond. JMU, the capital of New Jersey, resting in the Shenandoah Valley.  Richmond, sitting on the banks of the James River. JMU, full of Jersey Shore misfits waiting for the ending of "The Sopranos" and the next Arturo Gatti fight, both which will never come. Richmond, a campus full of aristocratic southern gentlemen from the banks of the Baltimore Harbor. It's gametime fellas, and these two, wholly Southern institutions are ready to brawl. It may be over a spilled Sam Adams or a Cape Cod, but it's still a rivalry damn naggit.

This makes the third week in a row that JMU partakes in the picks of the week, which is just by chance but also shows just how tough their schedule has been. First Liberty, then W&M, and now Richmond. All three ranked at kick-off, all three with talented offenses. JMU has overtaken the first two, but now it has to overcome the loss of QB Justin Thorpe (5-game suspension for substance abuse) and overcome the Spiders. The wacky-tobaccky gets em everytime.

I visited both teams message boards to get a feel for the game that Teach and his fiancee will be taking in. What I found was a lot of hate. What I learned is that Richmond fans typically wear sweater vests. Unbeknownst to me, this is the staple for the average Spider alumnus. What I learned for JMU is that they are all backward hicks who like to fornicate with their sisters. JMU also has a big stadium, which is easy to fill up since all of their alumni is young and lives in DC. Whereas UR has trouble filling an 8.5k field with their tiny "select" population of undergrads and sweatervest wearing alumni.

The game goes down at JMU, the crowd should be pumped, the stadium should be full, and the jerseys will be a color most commonly referred to as "a mix of last nights dinner from Tacos El Primo and jungle juice" also known as "Barney Juice." Da'Quan Scott is still running the ball, JMU wins by a hair, but makes it look easy. JMU 21, UR 18.

Elsewhere in the South:
Florida takes on Bama, and if they have any chance of winning, they'll need a big game out of QB John Brantley. Or in other words, Bama wins big, 34-17.

ODU hosts future D-1 opponent UMass, in a "blackout" game. I'll be there to take pictures and recap the first CAA home game of my favorite FCS squad. I hope they win. But I also hope they can win by a minimum of 14 points, all in the name of John Calipari. 

LCB Picks: SEC and VA Games of the Week

There are a lot of interesting and possibly great match-ups this weekend. I wish I could cover them all, but I'm running a little late on time. So, for this week, my picks are going to be slightly abbreviated. And yes, I do know I have all week to write this piece. Time management has always been an issue of mine. Just know that I'm working on it.

Editors Note: This season, on top of the usual SEC picks, we will be picking the best games on the Virginia D-1 slate. We, as in the LCB, all spent our formative years in Virginia. So, we probably should have been doing this all along.

SEC Games of the Week
(14) Arkansas v (3) Alabama @ 3:30 on CBS:
After a quick perusal on the google machine, it appears that Arkansas has turned into a fashionable upset pick for this game. I would guess it's due to the youth of Alabama's defensive front and the awesomeness of QB Tyler Wilson, which to me is always a funny reason (the youth, not the awesome QB) for a team to be favored. Aren't all of these guys young and inexperienced?  Sure, the freshman need to adapt to the speed of play in the SEC and realize they can't just touch a guy to insure a tackle (Fun-da-men-tals kids, WRAP HIM UP!). But that's why each FBS team has so many roster spots, to provide the depth needed to avoid starting a bunch of underclassmen. To be honest, the only teams that can use "youth" and "inexperience" as an excuse are the ones dealing with coaching turnover or a high amount of attrition. Alabama doesn't fit that bill. But it doesn't even matter, I could never pick Arkansas over Bama. Not, at least, with Trent Richardson playing for the Tide. Alabama 31, Arkansas 27.

(2) LSU v (16) WVU @ 8:00 on ABC:
This game, to me at least, holds more intrigue in the stands than it does on the field. Two of the more notoriously rowdy fanbases coming together for a night game in Morgantown. Couldn't these AD's just think of those poor couches for once? LSU 24, WVU 17.

VA Game of the Week
(8) James Madison v (16) William & Mary @ 7:00 on PPV:
If you read last week, you would know that I thought Liberty was the better team. I was clearly wrong as the Dukes overcame the challenge of playing in Lynchburg. What do they get for it? A trip to Williamsburg to play a ranked opponent that plays much better at home than anywhere else.

With lots of rain in the forecast, the weather is likely to be less than ideal. Add that to the fact that both teams have fantastic defenses and questions surrounding the quarterback position, and you get the most important ingredients to an ugly football game. Speaking of quarterbacks, JMU doesn't know which Justin Thorpe they're going to get, the one who almost blew the game against woeful CCSU or the one who helped lead them to victory over a ranked Liberty squad on the road. As for the Tribe, they just handed the reins from Michael Paulus to Michael Graham. This was a non-decision, as Paulus just couldn't seem to return to his pre-inury form and was hurting more than he was helping.  However,  if Graham's not the answer they're looking for and they can't find a way to move the ball with any consistency, it will be a long year in Williamsburg. Anyways, I like JMU to win, because they have Dae'Quan Scott and W&M doesn't. JMU 17, W&M 14.

Coming Soon: RISK – NCAA Edition

Thanks to a connection at Parker Brothers, I can now report that the NCAA has teamed up with the family board game maker to release a sponsored edition of "RISK," as evidenced by the leaked game cover above. If you can recall your childhood, you'll remember "RISK" as the game where the main goal is global domination over your opponents. Now, it hasn't been confirmed why this partnership has occurred, but we can only assume that the monetary benefits were too big to ignore.

I 'm not sure how well this will go over with fans of both sides, but I can assume it will end like many of the games of "RISK" I was involved in as a youth, with no one winning and everyone involved on the verge of throwing punches. Actually, I'm pretty sure every game of "RISK" ever played has ended that way. No one wins, ever.

The release date has not yet been announced, but many board game insiders are guessing anywhere between 11 to 27 months. At the moment, no price has been set, but many of those same insiders are saying that it will be much higher than it's actual value.

LCB Picks: SEC and VA Games of the Week

It's week three of the college football season and I finally feel like I'm getting a good feel for the teams in the SEC. But I once defended the hiring of Lane Kiffin as the UT coach, so, take it with a grain of salt. As a way of deflecting that reminder of my lacking of judgment, lets get to the games.

Editors Note: This season, on top of the usual SEC picks, we will be picking the best games on the Virginia D-1 slate. We, as in the LCB, all spent our formative years in Virginia. So, we probably should have been doing this all along.



SEC Game of the Week
Tennessee v (16) Florida @ 3:30 on CBS:
Those pants are filled with magic (insert Michael Scott here), almost enough to pull off the upset. Just not enough. But that's why UT has Tyler Bray, who as Clay Travis points out is the best QB in the SEC and the reason why many NFL teams will try to lose games next year in order to draft him, he's just that good or he has been against some mediocre to average (at-best) opponents. Da'Rick Rogers and Justin Hunter force Dan Quinn to make a tough decision; go zone and get torched through the air, blitz and get burned across the middle, or go man and get ran all over. Either way he goes, it spells doom for a team that has had trouble getting to the QB (2 sacks total against shitdeous squads, FAU and UAB). Florida has the homefield advantage and the edge in the talent department, but the trio is just too good to keep pace. The Swamp is made silent and UT wins 38 to 32.

VA Games of the Week
Virginia v UNC @ 3:30 on ABC:
Virginia goes to Chapel Hill for the next chapter in the "South's Oldest Rivalry." After confidence builders against W&M/JMU and Indiana/Rutgers, both teams come in at 2-0 . UNC is just weeks removed from the firing of Butch Davis, but their defensive front seven might be the best in the ACC. They're big, fast, and relentless. UVA's offensive line will have to step up big for the Cavs to win this one. However, if they can somehow hold the Heels d-line back, the Hoos have a chance to move to 3-0 for the first time since 2005 (which is also the last time they went 2-0). It won't happen. That defense of the Heels is fierce. The pick: UNC 35, UVA 14

James Madison v (19) Liberty @ 7:00 on ESPN3:
Not knowing much about either team, apart from Jerry Falwell's affiliation with Liberty and that Mickey Matthews career is reminiscent of a roller coaster, I decided to check out JMU's message board to see their thoughts on how this game will play out. What I found was a largely dejected fanbase. But who can blame them after the woeful performance against Central Connecticut State. QB Justin Thorpe went 5-11 for a net of 47 yards (his long was 28 yards), with two of those incompletions going to the other team (If I replaced Justin Thorpe's name in this sentence with Jamarcus Russell, would you even call me out?). The feeling on the message board is that with how bad the Duke offense is playing, it won't matter much how good their defense is playing.

I'm with the Dukes' posters on this one; Liberty QB Mike Brown goes HAM (he's a lock for 250 yards through the air and 70 on the ground), leads his squad to a 35 to 21 victory, Mickey Matthews' seat gets hotter, and Liberty gives a moment of release for one of the most depressing cities in Virginia. Seriously, Lynchburg could make Richard Simmons sad.

Elsewhere in the South:
Auburn tries to continue their magical run with a trip to the other "Death Valley." Should be a good game, but Auburn still hasn't been able to rebound from the loss of Nick Fairley and Cam Newton. But how can you replace two of the most dominant SEC players of the last decade? You can't, at least, not cheaply. Even with losing those two, I still like Auburn as teams that get this lucky seem to put it together more often than not.

Old Dominion and Hampton play in Norfolk. Both teams are 2-0. Last years meeting resulted in a 28-14 win for the Monarchs. ODU should have no trouble in their last tune-up before starting conference play in their inaugural season as a member of the CAA. W&M, Virginia Tech and Richmond get to play patty cake with New Haven (Division II), Arkansas State and VMI. All three teams are a lock to move to 3-0.

LCB Picks: SEC & VA Games of the Week

I had plans. Plans that consisted of previews for the SEC, NFL, and all of the D-1 college football teams that call Virginia home. These plans weren't that lofty. To be honest, with one dedicated afternoon, these could have become a reality. But life continued to get in the way and now all of these squads are foreign to me. Meaning all of the season previews would have been my crib notes of another writers' work and essentially useless. But now that we're one week deep, I am finally confident enough to tell you that Oregon can't match the speed and size of a top tier SEC team and that Virginia Tech could be in position to go the BCS National Championship the same season their most well known dog fighting alumnus will fall just short of the Super Bowl (just as long as they can get past those pesky Pirates of East Carolina).

Editors Note: This season, on top of the usual SEC picks, we will be picking the best games on the Virginia D-1 slate. We, as in the LCB, all spent our formative years in Virginia. So, we probably should have been doing this all along.

SEC Game of the Week
(3) Alabama v (23) Penn State @ 3:30 on ABC:
This game was picked for obvious reasons; it's Bama versus Penn State. It also happens to be the only SEC game with two ranked teams this week. I had the chance to watch a decent amount of both teams' games last week, enough to tell me Alabama will make it back-to-back seasons with wins over the Nittany Lions. Both teams played lesser opponents, Kent State for Alabama and Indiana State for Penn State. Both teams showed some weaknesses, most notably, behind center. Alabama's QBs combined for four interceptions, which would be a huge concern if they didn't have Trent Richardson and a top three defense. However, State's QBs struggled to recognize the defensive fronts and blitzes of Indiana State, a huge concern considering there not even considered an FCS power. Bama 33, PSU 20.

VA Game of the Week
Old Dominion v Georgia State @ Noon:
This really isn't that great of a match-up. Both teams are still in their infancy and building on their successes slowly but surely. However, I had to make this the pick game for a couple of reasons. First, Georgia State is coached by none other than Bill Curry. Yes, that Bill Curry. Secondly, Georgia State was forced to use a punter to fill their starting QB vacancy last week and their keeping with him. Thirdly, Georgia State plays in the Georgia Dome. Lastly, I go to Old Dominion. Now, let's expand on everything but my choice of college.

Bill Curry, seriously? The man has won a National Championship, coached in Super Bowls, and has whatever cache being an ESPN announcer brings. It boggles the mind that he isn't coaching somewhere on the FBS level, especially when this guy is still employed.

The punter/QB situation brings up even more questions. Does he still get to punt? Does he still wear a soccer cleat on his kicking foot? What are the chances in a third-and-long/shotgun formation situation that he accidentally punts the ball? I hope the answer to all these are yes, yes and 100%. As for the Georgia Dome. I'm not amazed they play there, after-all, they need somewhere to play. But I can't help but think how depressing this stadium must look with under 20,000 fans in the stands. It has to resemble a Marlins home game, right? Anyways, Old Dominion wins 28-17.

Butch Davis' Future Career Paths

North Carolina football coach Butch Davis is most likely out according to this Greg Barnes article at Inside Carolina, which leaves his future open to speculation. Here's a list of the five most suitable jobs that come to mind when I think of Butch Davis (in no particular order):

Who To Root For | Butler v UConn

During the Butler-VCU game, I felt conflicted. As an ODU student, should I root for one of the school's biggest rivals or the incredibly likable squad who knocked out the Monarchs with less than a second on the clock? After many days of deliberation, I ended up going with the Rams, figuring the rivalry could be put on hold for the betterment of the CAA and the great state of Virginia. Now, with the Rams back in Richmond, it's time to go back to the drawing board and find out who to root for. For the categories and the breakdown, make the jump..

Around the Power 6 "Plus 1"

ACC
Ascending: Duke
Descending: Maryland
Player of the Week: Nolan Smith, Duke (23.3 pts, 4.3 rbs, 4.5 assts, 1 stl)
On the Horizon: Maryland at VT (Tues.), BC at UNC (Sat.)

My favorite team (which so happens to be dominated by freshmen and sophomores) was up 14 points at halftime in Cameron Indoor. This was a shocker, to say the least. More on this game to come, but Duke gets the nod because they proved they're the class of a very weak ACC. Even without Kyrie Irving, the Devils have found another scoring option in Seth Curry to go with an ever-dominant Nolan Smith. Smith hit every big shot and put Duke on his back against Carolina, with Kyle Singler doing nothing and the Plumlee brothers looking like they had money on UNC. He's inched his way ever closer to serious national player of the year consideration. Maryland is now 5-5, sitting at 16-9 overall and needing a spectacular finish to avoid the NIT. Maryland gets a chance to move up a little if they can win in Blacksburg Tuesday, while Boston College gets a chance to avenge the ass-kicking they absorbed at home against Carolina on Saturday.

Big East
Ascending: Georgetown
Descending: Cincinnati
Player of the Week: Chris Wright, Georgetown (16.5 pts, 4.3 rbs, 5.5 assists)
On the Horizon: St. John's at Marquette (Tues.), Georgetown at UConn (Wed.), UConn at Louisville (Fri.), Pitt at St. John's (Sat.).

Georgetown has shaken off its 1-4 start to climb into the top 10. They've now won 8 league games in a row, using multiple contributions to make up for losing Greg Monroe to the NBA. I was seriously considering putting Marquette in the descending spot, as both they and the Bearcats look to be the first casualties of the murderers row that is Big East conference play. Chris Wright struggled right around when the Hoyas were 1-4, but has gotten his act back together just in time for Georgetown latest hot streak. My only knock on him is his inconsistent shooting, but he's one of the best point guards in the country in terms of leadership and intangibles, proving this with his play of late. St. John's looks to continue its streak of big wins at MSG, this time getting a Pitt team that still might not have Ashton Gibbs on Saturday. Also, UConn gets Georgetown at home, then has to turn around and go to Louisville in a rare Friday night contest.

Big 10
Ascending: Wisconsin
Descending: Illinois
Player of the Week: Jordan Taylor, Wisconsin (22 pts, 4 rbs, 6.5 assts, 4.3/1 assist-to-turnover ratio)
On the Horizon: Michigan St. at Ohio St. (Tues.), Wisconsin at Purdue (Wed.), and Ohio St. at Purdue (Sun.)

Wisconsin was the first team to knock off Ohio St. just like they did in football, winning on Saturday and climbing to number 10 nationally. They look ready to go much further than their first round exit last season when they lost to Cornell. Michigan St. has been the team most criticized for leadership questions, but Illinois has fallen to pieces, largely because of a rift between the seniors and some of the younger players. Bruce Weber has benched Demetri McCamey and Mike Tisdale, as a team that was clearly going to be dancing a couple of weeks ago now has some work to do. Taylor gets player of the week (it's actually 2 weeks, but who's counting) largely off of his work Saturday, going off much like Nolan Smith did against UNC. Sparty gets one of their final chances more a marquee win on Tuesday, while the spotlight shines upon West Lafayette as Purdue gets 2 games against the league's elite in four days.

Big 12
Ascending: Texas
Descending: Oklahoma .
Player of the Week: Jordan Hamilton (18.3 pts, 7.8 rbs, 1 blk)
On the Horizon: Kansas at Kansas St. (Mon.) and Colorado at Kansas (Sat.)

Texas continues to roll unexpectedly and at this pace should be headed toward a number one seed. Oklahoma had a decent stretch early on, but the team that lost to D3 Chaminade has shown that they simply have lost too much talent in the last two years (Where the hell are Tommy Mason-Griffin and Keith “Tiny” Gallon even playing right now?) to compete in the second or even the third best league in the land. Jordan Hamilton has been player of the week two times in a row now, providing a little bit of everything as the best player on the 2nd best team in the country. My preseason final four pick Kansas St. gets the Jayhawks at home in a non-eventful week schedule wise, and the Jayhawks also get a relatively frisky Colorado team Saturday at home.

SEC
Ascending: Florida
Descending: LSU
Player of the Week: Chandler Parsons, Florida ( 16.3 pts, 11.7 rbs, 5 assts)
On the Horizon: Vanderbilt at Georgia (Tues.), Georgia at Tennessee (Sat.)

I'm firmly planted on the Florida bandwagon right now, if only because they're another one of my Final Four picks that actually isn't making me look completely stupid right now. The Gators are now 9-2 and running away from the rest of SEC East. Remember when LSU had players like Big Baby Davis and Tyrus Thomas, all of five years ago? Well they don't have them anymore, and their record of 10-15 shows it. Parsons gets a free pass for playing hurt against UT on Saturday, but averaged a double-double in his 3 other games in the last two weeks. Georgia gets a chance to bump up its resume with challenging games against Vandy and Tennessee, which could vault them to second behind Florida.

Mountain West
Ascending: San Diego St
Descending: UNLV
Player of the Week: D.J.Gay, San Diego St. (12.5 pts, 4.8 assts, 2.3 stls, 18/0 asst to turnover ratio)
On the Horizon: New Mexico at San Diego St. (Wed.), UNLV at Colorado St. (Sat.)

I've been as guilty as anyone in perpetrating the “2011 Jimmer Fredette Love Fest,” but San Diego St. should be getting just as much pub as the Mighty Mormons. They're now 25-1, and could arguably make a case for a number one seed if they win out. UNLV now sits at 6-5 in a league that was supposed to be better than it has been (as I rethink whether the Mountain West really deserves to be included as the “plus one” part of this bi-monthly blog enterprise). They've blown chances against the top 2, and now will be on the bubble unless they do some damage in the conference tourney. Again the player of the week spot is usually exclusively Jimmer's domain, but this week I'm going with SDSU point guard D.J. Gay. Stunningly, he has gone a four game stretch without turning the ball over once. New Mexico has been just as disappointing as UNLV, but gets a crack at the Aztecs in San Diego on Wednesday, as the MWC tries to get more than two teams into the NCAA's.

Pac 10
Ascending: UCLA
Descending: Cal.
Player of the Week: Tyler Honeycutt ( 8.3 pts, 7.8 rbs, 4.3 assts, 3.3 blks)
On the Horizon: Washington St. at Arizona (Thurs.), Washington at Arizona (Sat.)

I try not to harbor an East Coast bias in writing this, and in doing so I've actually watched Pac 10 games quite a bit in the last month. The league isn't as bad as it was last year, and the main reason is the reemergence of “Blue Blood” programs like Arizona and UCLA. The Bruins look to be hitting their stride, entering the week at 9-3 in the league, and getting a big non-conference win against their old boy Steve Lavin and St. John's on 2-6. Cal was looking like they were going to shake off their early struggles with a strong conference start, but it looks as though losing in triple overtime to Arizona might have been the death knell to their year. Honeycutt didn't put up huge scoring numbers, but he did have an 8 block game as is considered to be a potential lottery pick. Arizona looks to continue a streak that has them up to number 13 in the country, getting the two talented Washington schools at home in the span of two days.

Duke-UNC Recap and other Observations
I'm not normally a believer in the term “moral victory,” that being said, I came away from the Greatest Rivalry in College Sports in good spirits. Like I mentioned up top, UNC was up 14 points at the half, something that I and probably a great number of Carolina fans would not have fathomed going into the game. Especially after the blowouts last year, even if UNC should have won the game. But to go into Duke and play that well in stretches, bodes well for the rest of the season. The major key that I can see going forward is the need to develop one or two consistent shooters. If Reggie Bullock or someone else can start knocking it down from deep, biased or not, this is a dangerous team that could end up in Houston for the Final 4. Barnes is starting to get it, and Kendall Marshall has been a revelation. They beat people up on the boards, and after some early season problems defensively, they do a good job locking people down. I don't want to say we're back, but after the carnage of last year, I'm highly pleased with the improvement I've seen from Chapel Hill.

Kansas is a lot better than I thought. Last Monday in the Missouri game, they took the Tigers' best punch in the beginning of the game, with Mizzou starting off 7-9 from the field, and ended up putting up 103 points and winning by 17. Russ' cousins Markieff and Marcus are the real deal, and the rest of the supporting cast have all gotten better since last year's early exit, offsetting the losses of players like Sherron Collins and Xavier Henry. They are now number one, and they deserve to be.

Three teams that I saw in spurts over the weekend as I attempted to channel surf sans remote control (harder than you think unless you're 50 or older) that will be top 10 teams next year are Vandy, Louisville, and UConn. Vanderbilt has shooter John Jenkins, Festus Ezeli, Brad Tinsley, and possibly Jefferey Taylor all coming back. Louisville brings in 2 McDonald's All-Americans to a team that has dealt with all kinds of injuries, all the while losing just Preston Knowles. UConn is probably losing Kemba Walker, but will bring back everybody else, including freshman guards Jeremy Lamb and Shabazz Napier who have become the 2nd and 3rd scoring options the Huskies need with teams keying on Walker. All of these teams have Sweet 16 potential right now, but the future is extremely bright as I try to get a jump on actually picking teams for the Final Four in the preseason that even make the NCAA's.

Around The Power 6, March Forecast

I've always wondered how the process worked. I've always wondered why there couldn't be an easier way to objectively pick the 65 (now 68) teams for the Big Dance each March. So I created one. Using http://www.kenpom.com/ as my guide, I came up with a crude formula to seed teams as they stood up until Sunday's games. All for the LCB universe. You're welcome.

How it works: All I did was take Ken Pomeroy's Top 100 teams, which is probably similar to the RPI Top 100. I gave teams points based on their victories, with different points for winning against top 20's, top 50's, and top 100's. I also scored it based on whether the game was on the road, at home, or at a  neutral site. I then took points away based on losses, using the same thing. So a team like Xavier for example, lost a lot of points and didn't make the cut because it has a couple of bad losses against teams outside the top 100. If a team won or lost by 15 or more, they were rewarded or penalized accordingly. I'm by no means a mathematician, and this process took way too long for me to ever do it more than once or twice, but I like the way it turned out. Here's how I have it after Sunday's games.

1. Ohio St., Pittsburgh, Texas, Kansas                                                                                          
2. San Diego St., Duke, BYU, UConn
3. Purdue, Notre Dame, Villanova, Georgetown
4. WVU, Louisville, Kentucky, Wisconsin
5. Syracuse, Washington, Utah St., Missouri
6. Tennessee, Illinois, Minnesota, Texas A&M
7. Michigan St., Cincinnati, Marquette, Arizona
8. Vanderbilt, Georgia, Temple, UNC
9. St. Mary's, St. Johns, UNLV, Florida
10. Harvard, FSU, UCLA, Cleveland St.
11. Nebraska, Wichita St., George Mason, Belmont
12. Clemson/Penn St., Maryland/ODU, Alabama, Missouri St.
13. UTEP, Oakland, Duquesne, VCU
14. Florida Atlantic, Fairfield, Coastal Carolina, Vermont
15. Bucknell, Montana, Austin Peay, Long Island
16. Chatanooga/Texas Southern, McNeese St./Long Beach St., Buffalo, Bethune-Cookman

Around the “Power 6” Plus 1
37 of the 68 spots in my mock field are taken up by these teams, with the Big East getting a whopping 11 into the field. The Big 10 has 7, the SEC has a surprising 6, followed by the Big 12 and ACC with 5. The Pac 10 and Mountain West get 3 bids apiece, with the CAA flying under the radar with 3 squads as well. I could be accused of having a state of Virginia bias with that, but Mason, VCU, and ODU all have strong resumes looking at the parameters I used.

ACC
Teams In: Clemson, FSU, Duke, UNC, Maryland
Close but no Cigar: : VT, Boston College
Player of the Week: John Henson ( 13 pts, 10 rbs, 5 blks)
On The Horizon: Duke at Maryland (2-2), VT at Boston College (2-5), Florida St. at UNC (2-6), UNC at Duke (2-9)

I bumped Duke up to a 2 seed even though by the math they should have been a 4. Maryland and Clemson were two of the last 4 at large teams, although they both seem to be creeping up and getting better. If UNC keeps winning and winning convincingly like last night at BC, they have a great chance to be a 4 or a 5. There are huge matchups in the next 7 days looming, with the bloodbath on next Wednesday overshadowing the Duke-Maryland and Florida St-UNC tilts this week.

Big East
Teams In: West Virginia, Syracuse, Georgetown, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Villanova, Louisville, Notre Dame, St.Johns, UCONN, Marquette
Close but no Cigar: None
Player of the Week: Ben Hansbrough (20 pts, 4 rbs, 6 assists)
On the Horizon: Syracuse at UCONN (2-2), Villanova at Marquette (2-2), West Virginia at Villanova (2-5), Pitt at West Virginia (2-7), Georgetown at Syracuse (2-9)

The Big East is really good. You don't need to be an unpaid blogger who waits tables to inform you of this. The numbers bare it out in that all of these teams are going to have monster strength of schedule and RPI numbers simply by taking turns pummeling one another. St. Johns win over Duke bumped them up quite a bit. Hansbrough put up 26 against Pitt, bringing the Irish up to number 8 in the polls. All in all, these teams not only got into my fake field, but also came in with 8 in the 1-5 seeds. West Virginia had a surprisingly good number, and has a couple of big games to move up further at Villanova and at home against Pitt.

Big 10
Teams In: Ohio St., Michigan St., Wisconsin, Purdue, Illinois, Minnesota, Penn St.,
Close but no Cigar: Michigan
Player of the Week: Darius Morris, Michigan ( 14 pts, 5 rbs, 7 assts)
On the Horizon: Michigan at Ohio St. (2-3), Michigan St at Wisconsin (2-6), Ohio St. at Minnesota (2-6)

Penn St. was the only real shocker here, though, Michigan was closer than I thought. If these teams can win one or two more against the Buckeyes' and Boilermakers' of the world, at the same time avoiding losing to Iowa and Indiana, they have a real shot at dancing. Darius Morris gets the nod for POTW over Jared Sullinger with his triple-double (12 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assists) against Iowa. Michigan St. at Wisconsin highlights the week ahead, as a win in Madison would help Sparty gear up for their inevitable Final Four run. I may be the only person still left on the bandwagon, since I picked them to win it all in October. I like to be right and feel smart. I am insecure and small inside.

Big 12
Teams In: Kansas, Texas, Texas A&M, Missouri, Nebraska
Close but no Cigar: Baylor, Kansas St
Player of the Week: Jordan Hamilton (18 pts, 10 rbs, 3 asst)
On the Horizon: Kansas at Nebraska (2-5), Missouri at Kansas (2-7)

The Big 12 is largely regarded as being a top 3 conference, but with the crashes of Baylor and Kansas St., they're really not that great outside of Texas, Kansas, and Missouri. Nebraska has been interesting, and we shall see if they are for real when they play the Jayhawks at home Saturday. Jordan Hamilton might be the most improved player in the country, not only scoring-wise but putting up huge rebound numbers and playing lock down D. He held Khris Middleton of the Aggies in check to the tune of zero for nine shooting in their win over the Aggies Monday night.

SEC
Teams In: Kentucky, Tennessee, Florida, Vanderbilt, Georgia, Alabama.
Close but no Cigar: Mississippi St, South Carolina
Player of the Week: JaMychel Green, Alabama ( 18 pts, 8 rbs, 2 blks)
On the Horizon: Miss.St at Alabama (2-3), Kentucky at Florida (2-5), Alabama at Tennesee (2-5), Tennesee at Kentucky (2-8), Xavier at Georgia (2-8)

I didn't think Alabama would do what they've done so far, giving the SEC 6 teams in right now. They're 5-1 in league play, but need some wins against some of the East's elite to buff up their resume a little bit. No real great teams here, but Kentucky and Florida still could do some damage. Tennessee has done better than I thought without Bruce Pearl, so they might be a factor as well in the extremely tight SEC East race.

Mountain West
Teams In: BYU, San Diego St, UNLV
Close but no Cigar: New Mexico, Colorado St.
Player of the Week: Jimmer Fredette (35 pts, 4 rbs, 4 assts, 2 stls)
On the Horizon: San Diego St. at Colorado St. (2-3), UNLV at BYU (2-6)

BYU and San Diego St. ended up doing better than I thought, especially with BYU's win over Arizona looking better and better as the Wildcats climb in the polls. New Mexico is playing better after struggling early on. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that Jimmer is going to be my player of the week every time I do this for the rest of the year. UNLV gets a rematch against the Cougs in Provo on Saturday, while Colorado St. can move up with their game against San Diego St. at home tonight.

Pac 10
Teams In: Arizona, UCLA, Washington
Close but no Cigar: Washington St, Cal.
Player of the Week: Derrick Williams ( 20 pts, 9 rbs)
On the Horizon: USC at UCLA (2-3), Arizona at Cal (2-6)

UCLA looks to be getting better and better after some early season losses. Cal also has some better early season wins than I thought, and winning games like the one coming up at home versus Arizona will go a long way, although they already have 9 losses. The battle for Pac 10 player of the year between Williams, Isaiah Thomas, and Klay Thompson won't get much play on the East Coast, but all three might be in the top 15 overall, yet, remain completely overlooked.

Around the Power 6, plus 1

ACC
Ascending: Clemson
Descending: N.C. State
Player of the Week: Nolan Smith, Duke

Biggest Games of the Week: VT at Maryland (Thurs.), BC at Florida St. (Sat.)

Clemson took a loss earlier this week to Carolina, but had a big win against a decent Miami team and a Georgia Tech team that murdered UNC. Jerai Grant leads the way averaging 13 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 blocks a game. N.C. State beat an awful Wake team, but lost on the road to both BC and FSU. They need to win games like this if they want to make the tourney, as the conference might only get 3 or 4 bids. Nolan Smith has been nothing sort of sensational since Kyrie Irving went out. He's averaging 25.4 points and 5.8 assists since 2011 has started. As I mentioned, UNC beat Clemson tonight, with VT at Maryland and BC at FSU highlighting the rest of the week, as these types of match ups become bigger and bigger as the season progresses for tourney resumes.

Big East
Ascending: West Virginia
Descending: Notre Dame and Cincinnati
Player of the Week: Rick Jackson, Syracuse
Biggest Games of the Week: Cincinnati at Notre Dame (Wed.), Villanova at Syracuse (Sat.)

West Virginia is number 21 in the consensus poll after disposing of Purdue at home on Sunday. Notre Dame and Cincinnati look to be the first casualties of the monstrous schedule Big East teams get to deal with on a weekly basis. Look for my descending and ascending to be extremely fluid throughout the country with parity all over the place, but especially here. Rick Jackson has been amazing for the Orange, but as the game against Pitt proved last night, he can't do it all by himself if Syracuse wants to be Final Four contenders. The winner of the Cincy-ND game on Wednesday will hopefully be to parlay it into some momentum. ND needs Carleton Scott to come back, while Cincy needs to develop a dependable shooter or two. Nova at Syracuse should be one of the highlights of the whole season.

Big 10
Ascending: Ohio St.
Descending: Illinois
Player of the Week: Draymond Green, Michigan St.
Biggest Games of the Week: Michigan St. at Illinois (Tues.), Ohio St. at Illinois (Sat.), Mich St. at Purdue (Sat.)

Ohio St. gets the nod, as they have now risen to number one in the land. Aaron Craft's emergence at point guard has keyed their impressive start. Illinois shook off my negative marks with a win at the “Champaign Room” (stolen from Scott Van Pelt, but I liked it) over Michigan St. tonight. Draymond Green has been a do-it-all type all season, averaging 15 and 8 in conference play so far. Illinois beat Sparty tonight, and both teams get tested further on Saturday with Ohio St. coming to Illinois and Michigan State traveling to West Lafayette to take on Purdue as part of the College Gameday festivities.

 Big 12
Ascending: Colorado
Descending: Oklahoma St.
Player of the Week: Marcus Morris, Kansas
Biggest Games of the Week: Texas A&M at Texas (Wed.), Texas at Kansas (Sat.)

Further proof that I shouldn't have let Angry Birds dominate my life the last two days. If I would have finished this on Monday like I planned, my pick of Colorado would have looked a lot better since they took a loss at Nebraska tonight. Regardless, they're 4-1 in the league, and Alec Burks is the real deal. Oklahoma St. looked good in beating Kansas State, but it's debatable as to whether or not this is even a quality win anymore with Frank Martin's boys looking so shaky. They got blown out by A&M, and then lost to Colorado on Saturday. Marcus Morris scored 33 against Iowa St, and is the best player on the second best team in the country. Sorry for ripping you, and your skills in the podcast bud. The A&M -Texas game on Wednesday puts Sophomores Jordan Hamilton and Khris Middleton on display. Texas gets to run the gauntlet and try to knock off the undefeated Jayhawks in Lawrence on Saturday.

SEC
Ascending: Mississippi St.
Descending: Vanderbilt
Player of the Week: Bruce Ellington, South Carolina
Big Games of the Week: Tennessee at UCONN (Sat.), St. Mary's at Vandy (Sat.)

I keep thinking Mississippi State will get on a roll, and I still believe they will, despite my saying they were a disappointment last week. Dee Bost and Renardo Sidney being in the lineup on a regular basis make this a tournament team, despite they're shoddy record. Vandy cracked the top 25 for “a minute,” as the kids say, but sandwiched a win against a pretty good Georgia team with losses to South Carolina and Tennessee. With apologies to Sam Muldrow and his triple double with 10 blocks against the aforementioned Commodores, Freshman Bruce Ellington hit 4 clutch three's in the last 7 minutes keying their comeback in the overtime win. He's averaging 18 points and 4 helpers in league play so far. Non-conference clashes highlight the rest of the week, with UT getting Bruce Pearl back to take on Kemba and the Walkerette's. Vandy gets a chance to get back in my good graces with a tough home game against a 16-2 St. Mary's team.

Mountain West
Ascending: BYU
Descending: New Mexico
Player of the Week: Jimmer Fredette
Biggest Games of the Week: New Mexico at UNLV (Sat.)

I can sum this up relatively easily. Jimmer Fredette is a really good shooter. He can shoot from half court and make the ball go in the basket. I think he might also be able to cure cancer. San Diego State kills people on the boards, and might not lose all year unless Jimmer chooses to destroy them. TCU is good at football. Utah used to have Keith Van Horn and Andre Miller, but now they don't have anybody. New Mexico would have been good if Darrington Hobson came back. UNLV needs Larry Johnson and Stacey Augmon back.

 Pac 10
Ascending: Arizona
Descending: Arizona St.
Player of the Week: Klay Thompson
Biggest Games of the Week: Arizona at Washington (Thurs.), Arizona at Washington St.(Sat.)

Arizona has been sneaking their way back into national relevance, with Derrick Williams the best “no one has seen him play” future NBA star outside of Alec Burks. Arizona St. has fallen off since being really good two years ago. Klay Thompson is another under the radar star, but losing point guard Reggie Moore will hurt them. Arizona will be 17-3 and in tremendous shape if they can get a sweep in the Evergreen state.

Pop-A-Shot
Taking a shot at breaking down the consensus top 25 in stream of consciousness fashion, much like when shooting at a pop o shot machine, trying to make as many as possible without regard for shooting form or follow through. I'm giving myself two minutes to write whatever comes into my brain:

The Big East now has 9 teams in the top 25, with West Virginia jumping in at 21 following their win against Purdue on Sunday. The ACC, SEC, and Pac 10 have a combined three, making me think that the college basketball talking heads might need to rethink the whole “power 6” thing. San Diego St. and BYU are both in the top 10, making their upcoming showdown potentially one of the best games on the landscape in the next couple of weeks. Last year's Cinderella St. Mary's makes their first appearance of the year, coming in at 22. Australian's everywhere may now rejoice. The Big 10 and Big 12 continue to be well-represented, with 6 and 4 teams in the rankings respectively.

MLK Day Analysis
I watched all or parts of all the games on Monday. Instead of just giving game recaps I've picked out a player from each of the teams involved that, even though they aren't the headliners per se, may be the most important part of each squad's March hopes. That is, if Baylor and Kansas State even get there:

Villanova: Maalik Wayns- The “Two Corey's” get most of the ink, but Wayns has emerged as a capable third option in the backcourt for Nova. He's averaging 5 assists a game, and does a good job pressuring the ball on defense. That being said, he was awfully quiet yesterday against Kemba Walker and UCONN, and he needs to shoot better than 40% from the field and 20% from 3 for this to be a Final Four contender.

UCONN: Alex Oriahki- I said this last week, but UCONN absolutely has to have someone else step up for them to go anywhere. Team's will do everything they can to stop Walker. But with Oriahki bringing double-doubles in 3 of his last 4 (including 11 points and 21 rebounds against Texas) and providing an inside threat, the Huskies could be much more than the team “that would lose to their Women's team” like two idiots on the season preview mentioned on this here website.

Kansas St: Rodney McGruder- Jacob Pullen doesn't look the same without Denis Clemente, Curtis Kelly looks nothing like the beast of last year's NCAA run, and Kansas St. just looks like they collectively are scared that their coach is going to punch them in the face. McGruder has had some nice games however, and this sophomore who's averaging 7 boards a game and shooting 43% from deep needs to play a bigger role for things to get back on track.

Missouri: Phil Pressey- Pressey is the one player from yesterday's games that stood out in terms of “dudes I knew nothing about but impressed the hell out of me.” He's quick, can shoot, and just seems to be the catalyst off the bench for the Tigers. With Pressey and Michael Dixon leading their press, Mizzou has two good points to run at people. Their stock just went up a lot after yesterday in my eyes, and Pressey's impact has a lot to do with it.

Syracuse: Brandon Triche/James Southerland- Playing the best 2-3 zone in the country is nice and all, but last time I checked, you have to put the ball in the basket from time to time to be successful in March, and right now I'm still not sold on Cuse because they cannot shoot consistently. Either Triche or Southerland, or both, need to emerge on the perimeter for the Orange. If they do, this could be a championship-level team. Rick Jackson is an elite rebounder, and Scoop Jardine is more than capable running the offense. If they get more from these two, watch out.

Pittsburgh: Gilbert Brown- I could have went with Nasir Robinson here, but I think Brown is more important in the long haul. He's a freakish athlete who can do a little bit of everything, but doesn't always do it all the time. If Brown takes a couple of steps forward, Pitt also would have to be in my top 5 in terms of team's who have a legitimate chance to cut down the nets in Houston.

Kansas: Markieff Morris- Markieff is the less-heralded of the Morris boys, kind of like Geoff is to Russ (Just kidding Geoff, if you read this). Inside jokes that 3 or 4 people get aside, last night showed that if Kansas has both of these guys going in the same game, they're unstoppable. They combined for 44 points and 14 rebounds, shooting 79% from the field. Marcus has been more reliable offensively, but if they get these type of numbers on a nightly basis, and with Josh Selby emerging to become the star he was thought to be, then Kansas won't be losing to a Northern Iowa type team early on this year.

Baylor: Anthony Jones- I still think Baylor can be a force, even though they aren't ranked and lost by 20 at home last evening. They really impressed me early on and that's with LaceDarius Dunn only scoring 13 points and taking just three 3's, which won't become a common occurrence. Last night, Jones scored 17 on 3-3 shooting from deep. He's 6'11, can hit the boards, and if he can do more of what he did last night, Baylor has four scoring options in him, Perry Jones, Quincy Acy, and Dunn that are better than what most have.