Previewing the College Football Playoffs

That big to do in college football thing is happening today:

"I'm tellin' you Dabo, it looked like a corn dog on a skillet!" "Yep, I bet it did."

Capital One Orange Bowl @ 4 PM

This game should be a high-scoring affair. After all, almost all of Oklahoma’s final results resemble basketball scores, and Clemson has been quite talented offensively for a while now. What’s surprising coming into the game, or maybe it’s not surprising, is how little respect the Tigers seem to garner as a number one team. Not only are fans and experts picking the Sooners but so are all the cyborg simulations that one day we might opt to use for colonizing other planets and venturing in and out of wormholes.

Alas, until that day arrives, we will debate the flash and skill of Deshaun Watson versus the Big 12 Petrie dish success of Baker Mayfield, whose name sounds like he has a future on the professional golf circuit if this football endeavor doesn’t pan out. Both quarterbacks have thrown for at least 3,300 yards and thirty touchdowns this season. So why should all that end now? Winter on the east coast has been warm. It was above freezing in the North Pole yesterday. Expect fireworks in Miami. Heat and haze and a sign of things to come.

Oh, and this just in, some of Clemson’s players misbehaved and got themselves sent home from a business trip they mistook for an early Spring Break. Blame it on the weather. Blame it on Dabo Swinney being a sideline jerk. Clemson gonna Clemson. Start writing and reading those Bob Stoops redemption stories; he and Baker are about to go Interstellar.

Goodyear Cotton Bowl @ 8 PM

Doesn’t Goodyear Cotton Bowl sound like a racist musical? Oh well, I digress. Isn’t this exciting? Isn’t this David versus Goliath? Little ole Michigan State from the shoulda coulda woulda Big Ten versus the almighty Crimson Tide from Alabama. Enough on that, some story lines should be retired. Let me digress further.

In the SEC, over the past decade or so, it has become popular to root and cheer for the conference over all other comers. I am a Georgia fan, so this means that I have spent the last decade or so rooting for Saban and Les Miles and even Gators who shall not be named to win BCS bowl games and national titles. To all that camaraderie and bull shit, I now say no more. No more will I root for a conference for the sake of not feeling so down and out about my own team coming up short. It’s nonsense.

While Saban and others have stuffed the pockets of the entire SEC, the on the field results have been somewhat depleted. What do you have to show for Saban’s success, Volunteers? What trophies do you possess, Ole Miss and Mississippi State? Tigers of Missouri, are you as feared as the Tigers of LSU? How do you feel Gamecocks, Commodores, Razorbacks, and Wildcats? How warm is your seat, Les Miles? Oh where, oh where have you gone, Mark Richt?

Go Spartans! Go Connor Cook! Saban winning hasn’t won for anyone else, so his losing can’t be that bad. Yet, how does one out Saban Saban? Look for his ‘Bama to bruise poor Sparty, and, when it happens, do not pretend this excellence belongs to anyone other than Saban and his followers.

Bryan Harvey tweets @LawnChairBoys. 

The Straw Men

Tired of discussing what's wrong with North Carolina with anyone and everyone who wants to talk basketball with me, I'm going to talk about what's wrong with UConn, Louisville, UCLA, Oklahoma, and Arizona. ESPN flashed up these teams on the screen during today's UNC-NC State game, and I believe they speak to the up and down cycles forced onto college programs by early departures and graduation.

Last season, UConn, Louisville, UCLA, Oklahoma, and UNC all entered the NCAA Tournament as number one or two seeds hoping to cut down the nets in Detroit. This year all five might miss the Tournament. Throw in Arizona, who has the longest current streak of consecutive NCAA's, and this year's field looks drastically different than the traditional March guest list.

Where the Wild Things Are: #3 Texas Defeats #20 Oklahoma 16 to 13

Sam is in his room. He's not sure why he's been banished to bed so early, but his stomach growls as he paces back and forth , in his pajamas, pondering the decisions that led him here much earlier than expected and without any supper.

His actions were not rude. He didn't talk back or forget to do his chores. In fact, he did everything his coach asked him to do and more. He studied game film, perfected his NFL-ready release, and used the offseason to bulk up, adding fifteen pounds of muscle, so the punishment he's now received feels nothing less than unwarranted. The injustice of his current situation echoes with the epitomes of bad parenting and teeters on the edge of neglect.

What's happened to Sam gives one legitimate reason to whine, "life's not fair."

After already missing three games this season due to a shoulder injury, Oklahoma Sooners quarterback Sam Bradford was bounced from the Red River Rivalry when he sustained a hit identical to the one against BYU that injured him once already this season. At this point, no one from Oklahoma has said how long the Heisman winner will be out, but the possibility exists that Bradford's season is over, leaving the Sooners' hopes and dreams for this year permanently in the realm of fantasy.

Oklahoma began the season as a top three team, but losses to BYU and Miami quickly snatched away any chance at a national title bid; and today's loss to Texas most likely erased any chance at winning the Big 12 title.

Now, Sam and Oklahoma are left to imagine what could have been because the wild things, with their long horns and hooves of stone, are dancing without them, and the wild rumpus, in the land of the Sooner, will have to wait while Sam decides whether to stay or journey to some distant island of the NFL, where giant beasts roam everywhere.

Hopefully, Sam, you find a warm plate when you return.

LCB 1st Annual Preseason Top 25

College basketball has arrived, and despite the lack of excitement shown by that first sentence, it should be an exciting and eventful season. Hopefully my jinxing my favorite teams streak (see MLB 2008) will end and UNC will triumphantly prevail in winning their 2nd championship in 4 years. I'll get to the TarHeels soon enough, but for now, here's the my top 25, starting with teams 25-21.

#25 Villanova(22-13)
Last Year: Lost in Sweet 16
Coach: Jay Wright
Stud: Scottie Reynolds
Glue Guy: Dante Cunningham
Schedule: Texas, Big East

Nova made a mini-run last year, suprising some as they lost to eventual champ Kansas in the Sweet 16. Reynolds is one of the better PG's in the conference, if not the country. He needs to consistently bring it every night for the Cats to make any headway in a loaded Big East that has become like the bball version of the SEC and Big 12 in football. Reynolds goes cold too often to make him a truly elite player, but he can get there if he can raise his game and avoid dryspells. The Cats don't have any other reliable offensive threats, but Cunningham and Shane Clark will combine to do some of the dirty work inside. Cunningham is a senior, and played on the Randy Foye led team that made a deep tourney run. Corey Stokes, Reggie Redding, and Corey Fisher are the other guards who will see the bulk of the playing time. They need to hit from the outside, giving Reynolds the option of kicking it out for open looks when defenses collapse on him. Aside from the hellacious trip through the Big East, the only other really difficult non-conference match-up is a battle with Texas. If they get through conference play alive, they could make another deep NCAA run.

#24 Florida (24-12)
Last Year: Lost in NIT Final Four
Coach: Billy Donovan
Stud: Nick Calathes
Glue: Walter Hodge
Schedule: SEC, with it otherwise being pretty cake with the exception of maybe a decent clash with Florida State.

After the Gators repeated as champs in 05-06 and 06-07, last year was predictably a rebuilding campaign. They still won 24 games, losing two starters from that team with Marreese Speights declaring early, and Jai Lucas transfering on November 5th. The wheels fell off at the end of last season, as they missed out on the NCAA's by losing to S.Carolina in the 1st round of the SEC. They need Calathes, who put up the highest scoring average by a freshman in Donovan's time at the school, Alex Tyus, and Chandler Parsons to take big leaps and provide some leadership to get back to the dance. Walter Hodge is the only remaining part who saw significant minutes on the championship squads, and provides three point shooting and decent passing skills. Dan Werner is another veteran to bang inside, yet he sometimes plays more like a 3. The Gators recruited 5 freshman who could see significant playing time, with Dominican Eloy Vargas being the most highly-touted. The SEC is down, and look for the Gators to contend for the East crown in a battle with Tennessee and Kentucky, making the tourney as about a 6 or 7 seed that could make the Sweet 16.

# 23 Georgetown (28-6)
Last Year: lost in 2nd round of the NCAA's
Coach: John Thompson III
Stud: DaJuan Summers
Glue: Jessie Sapp
Schedule: Memphis,Duke, Big East and Potential matchups with Gonzaga,Michigan St.Tennessee in the Old Spice classic.

Roy Hibbert is playing for the Pacers. Patrick Ewing Jr. almost made the Knicks. Vernon Macklin transferred to Florida. Jeremiah Rivers moved on to Indiana. Where I'm going with all of this is the fact that Georgetown is going to look a little different this year. They still have Summers,Sapp, and 3 point gunner Austin Freeman back from a 28 team season that ended because Stephon Curry decided to single-handedly destroy them. Summers needs to take over and spend more time slashing and taking the ball inside. He needs to be the legitimate go to guy for the team to get near the success of the last two years. Sapp will be steady defensively, and will combine with Freeman and Soph Chris Wright to keep teams honest outside. Freshman Greg Monroe is highly touted, but he doesn't look to have much help down low, which could spell disaster in the conference. The Hoyas will get an early test playing Memphis, and meet Duke later in the season. They also could see Gonzaga, Michigan State, or Tennessee in the Old Spice Classic. They could win 20 plus games but probably are looking at being an early out in the dance, unless Wright and Monroe turn out to be superstars.

22. USC (21-12)
Last Year: Lost in 1st Round
Coach: Tim Floyd
Stud: DeMar DeRozan
Glue: Daniel Hackett
Schedule: Oklahmoma, (Memphis or Xavier in Puerto Rico Tip-Off) Pac-10

Sometimes it's fun to play the "what if player A stayed for 4 years," game.(Well maybe it's only fun if you're a tool like myself) With USC, they could potentially have fielded a team with O.J. Mayo, Gabe Pruitt, and Nick Young to go along with what they have already in the fold. What they have right isn't too bad however, as the Trojans should challenge in the Pac-10. It starts and ends with another potential one and doner in DeMar DeRozan. From all accounts, he is the best freshman coming in from the class of 08. He is a slasher who can jump out of the gym. He'll have help in the form of Taj Gibson, Daniel Hackett, and Dwight Lewis. Gibson brings muscle inside, while Hackett will man the point, and Lewis brings scoring from the wing. I really liked Hackett two years ago when they were sweet 16 bound. He fell off last year due to injury, so look for him to bounce back. Another key will be whether or not UNC transfer Alex Stepheson is eligible. If so, he'll give Gibson someone else to help with the dirty work inside. Stepheson also has a nice touch inside in close. Also Percy Miller (AKA, Lil Romeo) is on board as a frosh pg. Do with that information what you will.

21. Oklahoma (23-12)
Last Year: Lost in the 2nd round
Coach: Jeff Capel
Stud: Blake Griffin
Glue: Tony Crocker
Schedule: USC,VCU, (Purdue,Davidson in the Preseason NIT), Big 12

I hate Duke with a passion. Therefore I hate to give any former Dookie props unless they somehow get drafted by the Bulls. (See Deng,Luol). Jeff Capel is a really good coach however. He did a pretty damn good job when he was at VCU, and he looks like he's turning things around after Hurricane Sampson tried to ruin his first of two train wrecks. I've only really seen the Sooners play once or twice last year, so I can't completely subscribe to all the Blake Griffin hype. From all accounts, he could have been drafted really high if he went out last year. He should beat up on the Big 12 all season. He has help in the form of his brother Taylor, Tony Crocker, Austin Johnson, and freshman point Willie Warren. I really like Crocker's game, and if he can take care of the ball along with dialing up some 3's, the Sooners will contend and can get a 3 or 4 seed.

Meet Josh Jarboe

Meet Josh Jarboe, incoming freshman wide receiver at Oklahoma. Jarboe was arrested in March for receiving stolen property and having a weapon on school property — both felony charges. The charges were reduced to misdemeanors and Jarboe, despite being on two years probation, was allowed to keep his scholarship to Oklahoma. Well now he shows us his rhyme skills, actually he is pretty bad. All he talks about is shooting people, guns, ak-47s, and women.

Heres the video(absolutely Not Safe For Work) and viewer discretion is advised.



Someone obviously did not learn from their run-in with the police, and the fact they were easy on him makes it worse. Just another story of someone who could throw a lot down the drain at the drop of a hat. As for the rapping, that repeating thing he did bothered me a lot. He finished strong though "She is like a barbecue, I put my meat upon her grill"