16-0

Congratulations to the New England Patriots on their amazing feat of an undefeated season. I think this is something sports fan may not see in the NFL for at least another 35 years and tonights game with the New York Giants really proves how hard it is to go undefeated in the NFL. The Giants were amazing by making the game so close but a true champion will prevail and that is exactly what the Patriots did. Brady and Moss was like watching Montana and Rice, or Manning and Harrison. I was a little said to see Jerry Rice and Peyton Mannings records broken tonight but either way it was amazing andI give my props to them on a job well done. The Patriots are well on their way to another Superbowl, Tom Brady will get the MVP with Randy Moss right behind him in the voting. I will tip my cap to the Giants as well for putting up such a good fight and espeically for not throwing in the towel as they easily could have. Instead the Giants wanted to stop the Patriots in their tracks rather than just letting them go undefeated. This game meant something not only to the players and coaches of the Patriots but just as much to the Giants who were last on the Patriots regular season schedule and the last hope for anyone who didn't want to see the Patriots finish with a perfect season. I would also like to thank the NFL for putting the game on more cable channels rather than just the NFL network and I bet they are also thanking themselves for it becuase the ratings had to have been exceptional. What a game. Now, how much longer is the string of greatness in Boston sports going to last? ---CJ

Heisman Race

Tonight College Football will announce the winner of the 2007 Heisman Trophy winner and it will probably be the closest race ever. Although I still believe that Tim Tebow should be the winner, I would also be really happy if it went to Colt Brennan. I think that Tebow had the best overall season of any single player and was most important to his team. He lead all players in overall touchdowns and is the best dual threat player in the game, 29 passing touchdowns and 22 rushing touchdowns is just amazing. I think what hurts Brennan is the fact that last year he had better season statistics than he does this year. Even though his numbers are always phenomenal, it would be hard to vote more for someone who had better numbers the previous year and didn't win. The edge Brennan has over the other candidates is that he is the quarterback of the only undefeated team in College Football this year and he holds 27 NCAA Quarterback records. A lot of coaches are saying the winner should be Darren McFadded. His numbers are great, he was last years runner up, and he already won the nations top running back award. McFadden's numbers have improved even from last year when he had an outstanding season and he plays in College Football's toughest conference. McFadden became a leading candidate after he helped Arkansas beat #1 LSU where he rushed for 206 yards and 3 touchdowns. The final candidate is Chase Daniel, who led the Missouri Tigers to a 10-2 season in which both losses came to Oklahoma. Daniel is a clear leader and has that x-factor that pro scouts like to see. Daniel is in the top 5 in passing yards and top ten in passer rating. I believe Daniel is a great quarterback and he does play in a great conference but I think he is just a bit behind Brennan and Tebow for quarterbacks. My pick is Tebow for Heisman since he was the best overall college football player this year. I know that all these players are incredibly talented and will all succeed at the next level. Its going to be one of the closest races ever, if not the closest. In order. Tebow, McFadden, Brennan, and Daniel. ---CJ Prutch

Sometimes I even stop thinking about sports.

Before I get into what I really want to write about I thought with the heisman presentation tomorrow, I thought it was about time to slurp a little more Colt Brennan. A couple months back I saw Colt in person and put in this blog that he was amazing and I thought Hawaii could win out. Well they did! I am dissappointed they struggled with Washington, because if they would have won BIG over Washington I think they would have a case to play for all the marbles. Now after the season is over and if they beat Georgia I will be crying for a play off cause I would love to see them try and win the National Championship. If they lose to Georgia it was still a great season and I am happy I got to see Colt play this year.

I would love to keep talking sports and going off about sports, but this week sports has taken a backseat a couple of days this week. Monday I watched Sean Taylor’s funeral and to hear everyone speak and to see the video tribute it really makes you realize that athletes are human too. I am in my 20’s and I still look up to a lot of athletes and often times you forget how human they are. But to see the human side of Sean Taylors family, friends and teammates really makes you stop thinking about sports for the time being. I even got a little emotional Monday watching the funeral, the video tribute they showed was just amazing. One thing that I think helps people to move on is sports. The Redskins played last night and won, which I am happy for them.

The other thing that happened this week was in Omaha. A guy went to the Von Maur at Westroads Mall and opened fire and shot eight people and then killed himself. I live just 50 miles from Omaha and have been to that mall several times. For something like this to happen just really puts a little fear into you and makes you greatful for the things in your life. I usually watch sports everynight, but Wednesday night I was glued to my TV watching all the reports on what happened. Why someone would go and do this sort of thing I have no clue. We will probably never find out why this happened or what exactly set him off to do it. Its just a really sad story in a good city. Omaha may never be the same, but trust me, its still a city with good people in it. --- Bobby bobby@wecoversports.com

Bo’s A Perfect Fit

On Sunday December 3, 2007 Tom Osborne and the Nebraska Cornhuskers announced Bo Pelini as the new head coach of their football team; the same day it was announced that the LSU Tigers would be playing in the BCS Championship game. Pelini, who is the defensive coordinator at LSU, is the best man for the job at Nebraska and I couldn’t agree more with Tom Osborne and his choice. The Blackshirts, who were once known as having a stingy defense, had lost their character in recent years under previous head coach Bill Callahan and the program took a turn for the worst this 2007 season when the Huskers had some of their worst games and losses in school history. The Nebraska Cornhuskers were one the dominant college football teams throughout the 90’s under Tom Osborne and also had a dominant defensive team under Frank Solich, with Pelini as the defensive coordinator. Many Nebraskans had hoped that when Solich was fired in 2003 that Pelini would get the head coaching job, instead they got Callahan and the rest is history.
After watching the press conference this past Sunday, it really made me feel good about the Husker football program and I’m not even a fan. Like Pelini said, “One of the unique aspects of this job…is everything it means to the state.” I don’t think Callahan had this same state of mind when coming to the program, and as a result, it brought the Huskers down. Pelini is totally defense minded and with that, he coached the LSU Tigers to three straight years of being ranked in the top 3 in overall defense in the nation and when he coached her at Nebraska, he had the defense lead the nation in turnovers and pass efficiency and second in takeaways and scoring defense, very impressive. On top of that, which really makes me a fan of Pelini, is that fact that he used to coach in the NFL along side Pete Carroll and under George Seifert with the San Francisco 49ers back in the 90’s when the 49ers were one of the NFL’s most dominant teams. I am a huge USC and 49er fan and knowing that Pelini has ties to these teams and coaches really makes me a fan and a believer that Bo Pelini will turn the Husker’s back in to one of College Football’s most dominant programs. Pelini being the coach and Osborne being the Athletic Director is going to have a great positive spiral affect. More players around the nation again are going to want to come to Nebraska to play football and hearing past players under Pelini, players want to win for their coach. Pelini is known for inspiring his players and Osborne took that into account when he hired him. You can tell that the Huskers had lost their desire to win this year after they played USC and that all attributes to the coaches. The coaches can’t let their season go just after one game, because it’s now how you start, but how you finish. Nebraska could have ended the season on a high note if the coaches knew how to inspire their players, but obviously they didn’t. Pelini has that x-factor that players need from a coach to succeed and I believe that the Nebraska Huskers will completely turn around their football program in 2008 and will have a winning record and strong defense. I am happy for Husker fans and players because Tom Osborne made the best choice with who should “restore the order” here in Nebraska by hiring Bo Pelini, but what else would you expect from Tom? Only the best right? ---CJ Prutch

College Football Mess Continued...

The College Football bowl games are officially set and what a mess it has been. If you look up and down the BCS bowl games it is clear that there is a problem with the system today and it’s quite obvious that the BCS is all about the money. I can not believe some of the match ups that are going to take place when it is obvious that there are better match ups and more deserving teams that should be in the BCS bowl games. The first example of the mess is the National Title game itself. Now, with today’s ridiculous system, the Ohio St vs. LSU championship game is the right call, but this game is a true reflection of how bad the BCS system really is. I said a few days ago that with the way the BCS system works then the correct title game should be between Ohio St and LSU but that doesn’t mean that these are the two best teams. Since the BCS started there has always been controversy on who should play in the National Title game and who should play in the other BCS bowl games. The 2007 College Football season has proved that the only way to make the National Title game between to two best teams in the nation is to implement a playoff system. There really is no clear team right now that stands out as being the best team in College Football. I can argue that USC and Oklahoma should play for the National Title because they are both on fire right now and both are conference champions. But both of them lost to unranked teams in the regular season and for that reason it has held them back from being the top two teams. However, Ohio St and LSU don’t have a better argument since they both have lost to unranked teams and even worse, these two teams have lost within the last two weeks of the regular season. In my opinion, it shouldn’t always be who you lose to but also when you lose. If you lose early in the season, it gives a team time to rebound and catch up, just as Oklahoma, USC, Georgia, and Virginia Tech did. How is it fair that LSU has lost twice when being #1 and is still in the National Championship game? Not only that, why is it that LSU jumped 5 spots in the polls just because they beat Tennessee in the conference championship? Oklahoma crushed a much better Missouri team and Virginia Tech beat a much better Boston College team to win their conference titles. It’s not fair but it’s the way the BCS system. I think that of all the teams, Virginia Tech got the biggest shaft in this system. Virginia Tech was ahead of LSU in the polls before this past Saturday, they had a commanding victory of Boston College but somehow LSU still climbed ahead of them. Virginia Tech’s two losses this season are to LSU and Boston College and I think the loss to LSU is the reason that voters couldn’t put them ahead of LSU in the final poll since they got beat 45-7. Their loss to Boston College was a close one that was lost in the last 2 minutes of the game but they got their revenge this past weekend. For some reason voters just love LSU. No matter when they lose, how they lose, or who they lose to, it is practically impossible for LSU to drop out of the top ten or to not be mentioned in the National Championship. Why? I don’t know, even though I think they really are one of the best teams in the nation, just like I thought USC was earlier this year, if you lose to teams you shouldn’t lose to then it should hurt you. Even though LSU lost both games in triple overtime, they still did give up 50 points to Arkansas. USC didn’t give up anything near 50 points, either did Oklahoma. Another team that got the shaft was Missouri. Why is it that they lose both their games to Oklahoma but beat Kansas and somehow Kansas is in a BCS game? It’s because Kansas has just one loss, even though Kansas didn’t beat a top 25 team this season. Another laugher is the fact that USC is playing Illinois in the Rose Bowl. Are you kidding me? Illinois? I know they handed Ohio St their only loss but Illinois doesn’t deserve this. The only reason their in is because the Rose Bowl wants to keep the tradition of the Pac-10 champion vs. the Big 10 champion, but since Ohio St is in the National Championship, they bumped Illinois into the Rose Bowl. Illinois is an up and coming team but I think it would be a fairer and better match up if they could have put Missouri was in there. They can’t do that though because the BCS doesn’t allow three teams from one conference to play in a BCS bowl game, thanks voters for putting an undeserving Kansas in there. And what’s up with the Hawaii vs. Georgia Sugar Bowl match up? This could be interesting since each team has a completely different style but I think if the BCS is all about the money then they should satisfy fans and have Hawaii play Missouri or Kansas so we could see a shootout. Congrats to Hawaii though for finishing as the only undefeated team in Division 1 college football in what has been the hardest season to go undefeated. I really hope Oklahoma crushes West Virginia in the Fiesta Bowl so voters can see that West Virginia and the Big East aren’t that good, but I do think with the way the system is that the Fiesta Bowl got the match up correct. The Orange bowl would be a great game too if Kansas wasn’t in it. I think they will put up a great fight against Virginia Tech but I don’t think they are deserving of being in the game. I like to see Missouri or Kansas vs. Hawaii in the Sugar Bowl and Georgia vs. Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl. Now those would be great game. Then to top it off, they should have just put USC up against either Missouri/Kansas and disregard the three team rule, or override the Big 10 and put Florida vs. USC in the Rose Bowl. The 4 major bowl games should include the 8 best teams not playing for the National Championship! One final note, if Tim Tebow doesn’t win the Heisman Trophy, then there is truly something wrong with the College Football system. ---CJ

College Football Mess

Here We Go Again

The College Football regular season couldn't have finished any different. Number one Missouri gets crushed by Oklahoma and number two West Virginia gets totally upset by Pittsburgh. The Oklahoma win over Missouri wasn't a shocker, considering they had already done it once this season, but West Virginia had the National Title Game sitting right in front of them but instead, just like it has happened all year, a number two team falls to an unranked opponent. Coming into the game, Pitt was only 4-7! Crazy, just crazy. I think most fans wanted to see this or were at least praying to see this happen for two reasons. One, most people don't think West Virginia was good enough to be a title contender, and number two, it helps make another great argument for a playoff system. Now the real question is who should play in the title game. I'm going to give my "For and Against" with each team that makes a case to play in the National Title Game.

Missouri
For: Only two losses came to the Oklahoma Sooners...
Against: Two losses to the same team, didn't win the Big 12, lost on the last day of the regular season.
My Vote: No
West Virginia
For: Just two losses, one to a pretty good South Florida earlier in the season.
Against: they lost on the last day of the regular season to an unranked opponent, and they play in the Big East which isn't that tough of a conference. Put a power SEC, Pac-10, or Big 12 team in that conference and watch them roll up and down it.
My Vote: No
Ohio St
For: Only one loss and it was to an up and coming Illinois team, big wins at Michigan, Wisconsin, and Penn St. Big 10 Champs.
Against: Big 10 isn't as strong as it used to be, Buckeyes didn't play any tough non conference games.
My Vote: Yes
Georgia
For: Both losses are to pretty good teams (South Carolina and Tennessee) and are on a 6 game win streak.
Against: Didn’t win the SEC championship
My Vote: No
Kansas
For: Only one loss which came to Missouri so it’s not a bad loss
Against: didn’t play anyone else in the top 25 all season besides Missouri and they lost that game, not to mention they didn’t win the Big 12.
My Vote: No
Virginia Tech
For: Won 5 straight, ACC champions…
Against: Big loss the LSU early in the season and last minute loss to BC shows me that they are capable of blowing games and getting blown out
My Vote: No

LSU
For: Toughest Schedule of any team in this conversation, SEC champions, only losses came in triple Overtime to a pretty good Kentucky team and a pretty good Arkansas team.
Against: Has a loss within in the last two weeks, you can’t lose late in the season and expect to get in, unless you want to be like 2001 Nebraska.
My Vote: Yes
USC
For: One of the toughest schedules of the teams we are talking about, PAC-10 Champions crushed Arizona St and won 4 straight.
Against: The loss to Stanford kills them here, I can’t vote for a team that lost to one of the worst team in college football, and at home!
My Vote: No
Oklahoma
For: Big 12 Champions, big win against Missouri late and beat them twice
Against: lost to unranked Colorado and unranked Texas Tech
My Vote: No
Hawaii
For: Undefeated, and we saw last year that WAC teams can play with the big dogs (Boise St 42 Oklahoma 41)
Against: Don’t play a tough schedule and last night was a glimpse of how they would fair against a pretty good team at the least with just a 35-28 win over Washington.
My Vote: No
Arizona St
For: Great record especially for playing in the Pac-10
Against: lost to both Oregon and USC, the other top teams in the Pac-10, gotta win at least one to get in this argument.

Those were all the teams I feel that make an argument at least to play for the National Championship and with the way things are in the College Football System today, I think the National Championship game should be between Ohio St and LSU. Although I will say if there was a playoff system, the title game would end up being LSU and USC. I just cant’ see these teams losing anymore.

---CJ