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Post by hifigator on Feb 10, 2012 12:44:47 GMT -5
I broke down on the way out to the lake place. By the time I finally got there it was about 11pm. Needless to say, I was already in a bad mood, and since I thought I had plenty of time, I never set the DVR. So I didn't get to see the game "live." Then when I saw that Cuse won in overtime, I certainly didn't feel any better. But without having seen the game, a tough loss on the road against a top 5 team, at least sounds like a moral victory. But dammit ... I HATE moral victories. Someone said a "moral victory is nothing but another term for a loss." But trying to be as objective as possible, at least on paper, it's a quality loss ... but dammit, it's Cuse!
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Post by hifigator on Feb 2, 2012 15:48:03 GMT -5
Just now checking in and don't have time to read 16 pages right now, but just had to throw in a few comment about the win. I know UConn has been in a bit of a slump, but it's still very much of quality win to beat them, even at home, but especially by double digits. As the announcers pointed out, they had 13 points about 3 minutes into the game, but only had 42 with just a minute left in the game. That is some pretty good defense -- 29 points in 36 minutes! Additionally, you could literally see UConn getting frustrated -- playing 30 seconds of defense, missing a quick shot and then back for another30 seconds of defense. Even though many scoff at 56-42 kinds of games, and lament the lack of excitement of such low scoring contests, I thoroughly enjoyed the game. In an ironic twist, something finally went right. I was taking care of a couple of things outside, and watched the game on DVR delay, but something went wrong for a bit. I had the start of the game and then the signal was interropted. I think they were up 4 points -- something like 11-7. Then when the signal returned, we were up four -- something like 26-22. So I missed a big chunk of the first half, but all in all, I can't complain.
Lastly, I'm not sure what caused this, but you could tell that the UConn players were paying too much attention to the fans. "We" ... ok, whatever ... Hoya fans were in their heads, and it only made every mistake magnify, and it made them second guess themselves. Also, you could see on a couple of free throws where the Husky player was "stiff" and uncomfortable at the line, and it showed on his shot.
Good Job and well done!
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Post by hifigator on Jan 31, 2012 15:07:00 GMT -5
To simplify and take the issue a bit farther at the same time, I think the QB position comes down, at least primarily, to three things: making the read, making the throw and making the play. The physical ability to make the throw is undoubtedly the easiest to measure, and perhaps, the most overrated. I don't want to say overvalued, because the ability to make the difficult throws is certainly something that separates the men from the boys, so to speak.
But the other two primary qualities are at least equally important. Yet many teams seem to feel confident that they can teach -- or at least that the player can learn -- the read. I'm not so sure that's the case. There seems t be an assumption that you can't teach the throw at this level. Either the guy has the arm or he doesn't. But for some reason, there is more confidence in the ability to develop the read. In any case, I think that the valuation of the first two skills is inconsistent. As for my third quality, when I say "make the play," basically I mean the physical and mental ability to ad lib -- to make something happen when something went wrong.
And in my opinion, maybe this is the easiest skill to develop. When should the QB give up on the called play? When should he try to make something out of nothing and when should he live to fight another day? These skills are not as innate in my mind, and are therefore, probably the easiest to improve at a later stage.
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Post by hifigator on Jan 31, 2012 12:09:47 GMT -5
It's somewhat ironic that at the very same time that so many people seem focused on the potential of this or that player to be "the guy" who can step in an play QB in the NFL right out of the gate, the same thing is true that has been true all along, and that is that at QB, far more than any other position, there is a clear learning curve and that virtually without exception, it simply takes time. The old adage that the "speed of the game" is so much greater than college is, and likely will always be true. And when the players under center pick their game up to another level, it starts when the game "slows down for them." Yes, guys like Ryan, Flacco and Dalton have done surprisingly well in their rookie seasons. But the truly elite guys are all guys that spent several years learning the NFL game. Even the Mannings, who both started as rookies, weren't remotely close to the players they are now. Drew Brees wasn't the superstar for a couple of years. Rodgers mired on the bench behind Favre for a couple of years. And even the aged veteran Brady, spent his couple of seasons with a clipboard watching Drew Bledsoe. And if you want to take it farther, you can look at guys like Alex Smith. He was being called the biggest bust that wasn't named Leaf for several seasons. Literally no one would have predicted that he would even be in the league 7 years later, much less leading a team into the NFC championship game.
Still, all the buzz is about Luck and now to a lesser degree, RGIII.
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Post by hifigator on Jan 28, 2012 12:57:27 GMT -5
Maybe it's "just me," but I haven't seen the big deal that everyone seems consumed with. I guess I am just entirely desensitized to money -- at least when it comes to other people's money. Who was it -- Ronald Reagan? -- that said, "a million here and a million there, and it adds up to real money." In anycase, whoever said that might have been describing my sentiment perfectly. My point isn't to criticize the prudent business decision to not risk $28 million on a player who just missed the entire season, and who, while among the all-time greats when at his best, still realistically, only has 3 maybe 4 seasons left -- and even that, only if he recovers from a serious and uncertain neck condition. I don't have any problem making such a financial decision, regardless of how unpopular it might be with some.
My point is that since I see teams constantly throwing around absurd amounts of money on lesser star players than Manning -- and even worse, to completely unproven commodities in rookies -- I just don't see the obstacle of having Manning and Luck on roster as insurmountable. Yeah, I know, it really is a lot of money. But my point is that in an ideal model, you would have an elite player in his declining years serve as a mentor to an immensely skilled but inexperienced prodigy/protege'. I understand the potential issues with each, as they would likely each want to be "the guy," but as much as I dislike Peyton, I do think that he has the right demeanor to accept and even embrace such a role, unlike Brett Favre, for example. And I would have to think that Luck is smart enough to understand the huge benefits of grooming himself on the sidelines for a year or two. It certainly helps that arguably the best two QBs in the league did just that, in Rodgers and Brady.
But I haven't heard hardly anyone adopt such a position. I would think that the best interests of the Colts would be to renegotiate with Manning in such a way that makes him happy, while also signing Luck as their QB of the future. I see that as a win-win situation, and I think my opinion is all the more valid, as I dislike the Colts and Manning. If I had my way, they would disappear into mediocrity.
Does anyone think my view makes any sense?
P.S. If the Colts could turn their program around and have similar success under Manning in the next year or two, as they have in the past decade, while grooming the "next big thing," then I can't help but think that the money issue would take care of itself.
Thoughts?
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Post by hifigator on Jan 26, 2012 9:59:24 GMT -5
Pitt hates pretty much everyone except their own. But the image of Georgetown especially irks them, no doubt. Fortunately, we don't care. (Yes, "we" as in the aggregate group of us, not implying that I went to GU)
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Post by hifigator on Jan 23, 2012 12:33:37 GMT -5
Amazing that, in this era of coddling players, two coaches who coach in a Marine Corps drill instructor mode, are in the Super Bowl. I actually talked about that down here last week. We were going through the potential story lines. Obviously, the one we got is a rematch of one of the best Super Bowls in history, and specifically arguably the greatest single play in Super Bowl history. But as to your comment, I thought the coaches would really be the adopted story in 2 of the other possible matchups. Obviously, a Raven-49er matchup would have given us the "Super Baugh," pairing up the Harbaughs against one another. And if the Niners were playing the Patriots, then I think the storyline could easily have been the matchup of Harbaugh, the young, arrogant and cocky coach who doesn't care what you think and almost gladly, rubs people the wrong way against Bellichek, the older, crotchety coach whe doesn't care what you think and almost intentionally rubs people the wrong way. In any case, at least it wasn't a rematch of one of the worst Super Bowls in history and probably the most boring in recent history -- Ravens and Giants, which by the way, was held in Tampa and is the only Super Bowl that I ever went to. Well, not actually "went" to, but we did drive down there Sunday morning and hung out all day taking in the atmosphere. We were going to spend a couple of hundred bucks a piece on tickets if we happened to stumble into some,, just for the experience, but we when all was said and done, we were really glad that we didn't get tickets.
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Post by hifigator on Jan 20, 2012 12:51:00 GMT -5
It's always inspiring to see the progress that Harry continues to make. We can all learn from what your entire family has been through. And by the way, Harry is already 7 feet tall in my eyes.
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Post by hifigator on Jan 11, 2012 14:08:00 GMT -5
The stat they showed before the game was something like Bama giving up an average of about 192 yards per game. It also said that if they finished at that number, it would have been the lowest yards per game allowed in any season since Oklahoma in 1986, I think. Yes, their defense is really good overall. They don't really have any weaknesses on that side of the ball, and really no significant ones anywhere. Kicker was supposed to be their achilles heal, but he came through on Monday night.
For what it's worth, when Florida played Bama and LSU in back to back weeks at the beginning of October, I said then that they were the two most talented and complete teams that I had seen in several years. LSU was more impressive, but in fairness, once we lost our starting QB, we were an entirely different team. Ironically, Brantley had thrown for nearly 200 yards before getting knocked out about 4 minutes before halftime. For that reason, I thought that LSU was slightly better, but again, it was really hard to compare. We weren't a great team ever this year, but we were horrible without Brantley.
The one thing that really stuck out to me about Bama, was that I don't ever remember seeing a unit stay on their blocks as well as they did. Obviously you can place some blame on the Gator D line for not getting off blocks, but from what I saw, it was more a matter of great technique in that regard. Give them the credit.
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Post by hifigator on Jan 10, 2012 17:07:18 GMT -5
For what it's worth, there are quite a few suggesting that we are moving quicker than predicted, in the direction of a playoff. In fact, there are quite a few who think that at least a "plus 1" is almost a foregone conclusion. The overnight ratings for last night's BCS championship game were the lowest in history. The fact that rematches are not exactly attractive certainly played in and much of the Country simply has no interest in the southeast. But most I have heard think there's more to it than that. Obviously the almighty dollar is primarily in charge, and not only was bowl interest down overall across the board, but the poor showing of the Title game will hit the powers that be where it counts -- the wallet! Only time will tell, but at least right now, there is significant semtiment in the "right" direction.
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Post by hifigator on Jan 5, 2012 3:29:03 GMT -5
Too late to think straight, much less, put it into text. Just finished watching the game. Thank you DVR!!! I had to pick someone up at the airport, and of course, the plane was delayed coming in. And when Marquette went up 17, I wondered why I was still awake. Now I know.
Yippee!!! About halfway through the second half, I said that we really need Hollis to get going -- and that he did!!!!
Good job boys!!!
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Post by hifigator on Jan 4, 2012 14:13:28 GMT -5
I heard that former head of NFL officiating explain that very rule during a game on NFL Redzone earlier this season. He said that they are instructed to specifically consider the sole of the foot as a unique entity and that in issues regarding the sole of the foot, any part of the sole that touches the ground in a single step, is considered to have hit at same instant. In that particular case, he was distinguishing between an ankle touching, thereby making the runner down by contact at that point.
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Post by hifigator on Jan 3, 2012 13:04:22 GMT -5
I must admit that my initial instinct when this was first starting to surface a couple of months ago was that you end up in a mighty odd predicament trying to force someone to stay where they don't want to be.
normtide says: Dec 19, 2011 7:00 PM Commish Slive has stated:
The SEC has NO exit fees or waiting period. If someone does not want to be here, we do not want them here.
That is how a conference is run and remains stable.
While the logic is quite simple, I'm not sure that it applies in this situation. Still, at least to a degree, it does make sense to question whether it really helps either party to force an unwanted relationship. But when the Benjamins are concerned, maybe a happy or cordial relationship is completely irrelevant.
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Post by hifigator on Dec 30, 2011 13:20:41 GMT -5
calhoya wrote:
Also thought that he recognized that the officials were not calling a tight game and used a very aggressive defense to fluster our ballhandlers,
I disagree. That is what his teams do almost every game. His teams are even Dukier than Duke in that regard. Why they don't call more reach in fould, I don't know. But all's well that ends well.
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Post by hifigator on Dec 29, 2011 13:16:46 GMT -5
strummer wrote:
I also enjoyed when Henry missed a dunk but got fouled late,
What I noticed about that was that it should have been a shot at a three point play -- not because he should have made the dunk, although you could make that case -- but because if they were consistent, they would have called goaltending as well. I used the DVR and slowmo over and over, and the goaltending on one end and the foul on the other were almost mirror images as far as the ball, its path and the rim were concerned.
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Post by hifigator on Dec 29, 2011 13:12:54 GMT -5
In all seriousness, the NBA is just not that exciting or important until after March Madness. I was sort of hoping they would axe the season and hopefully rein in these absurd ticket prices, salaries etc ...
sigh ...
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Post by hifigator on Dec 29, 2011 13:07:31 GMT -5
I don't have the time right now to read the 14 (or more, by the time I finish this post) pages of comments, but I wish I did! I was out at the lake last night, making use of the DVR and it was absolutely great! Even though much/all of the appeal of being out there is the LACK of much/all of the hustle and bustle (not sure I've ever written that word -- no idea if I spelled it correctly) of the city, I was so wishing I had internet just to come to this thread and enjoy everyone relish a great road win. Otto Porter really stepped up. But it was really a cumulation of solid play from a maturing team. Everytime Louisville would make a run, the Hoyas would stay calm and run some clock -- make the Cardinals work for 30 seconds and generally, get a decent shot -- and obviously, made enough of them to earn a tough win on the road against a really good opponent. Kudos for knocking down most of the free throws when it really mattered. Off the top of my head, I think Otto made 5 of 6 in the last minute. Dickie V. had his head so far up Pitino's a$$ that ... nevermind. It took him until only about 20 seconds remained in the game, before he seemed to acknowledge that G'town was a team even competitive with Louisville. It was almost an assumption that they would come back and win -- extending their home streak to what ... 21 games Well, look on the bright side, now they don't have the added pressure of having to worry about that winning streak anymore. Great job guys! One last thing: how is it that with Pitino's style of play and specifically defense, that they only had 3 team fouls in the second half with something like 6 or 7 minutes left in the game? And given that fact, I did find the technical on slick to be especially humorous, and even aprepos. On the down side, either Louisville or Kentucky will win a marquee game in a little over 48 hours.
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Post by hifigator on Dec 20, 2011 13:27:00 GMT -5
Just when you think you have the NFL figured out ...
The Packers are great and probably won't lose a game The Ravens are a damn good team The Steelers are a damn good team The Giants can play with anyone The Colt are aweful and probably won't win a game The Dolphins are terrible and in the group of worst teams right behind the Colts The Chiefs are aweful and just going through the motions until the season ends The Bears are pretty dang good -- remember they were 13-3 last season The Eagles are great ... wait, no -- they're aweful and not even going to make the playoffs .. now wait a minute .. The Jets are primed to take it to the next level and contend for the Super Bowl ... no, wait a minute, they're pretenders and out of it ... no, wait a minute, they are righting the ship and look to be making a serious run again ... no, wait a minute ... The Giants are (see Jets above) The Chargers are pretenders and stink. Forget about the playoffs, even in the AFC west ... wait a minute ... The Chiefs are aweful. Forget about the playoffs, even in the AFC west ... The Seahawks are terrible, no wait, they are world beaters ... no, wait, they are bad ... no, wait a minute ... The Broncos have a great defense, but can't score
I don't think I have ever seen an NFL season with so many teams having such a drastic Jekyll and Hyde personality. But maybe that's part of the allure of the NFL. People call Pro Wrestling a soap opera for men, but maybe that's what the NFL has become.
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Post by hifigator on Dec 13, 2011 16:38:36 GMT -5
Why am I not surprised that the NCAA granted -- and rather quickly, I might add -- OSU's request for exception from the rules. The only real question then, is why, with coaching changes being the norm, every single year about now, why this wouldn't be a more common and more well-known practice. I'm not sure what the motivational difference is between Meyer leaving last year from Florida and Meyer joining staff at OSU this year. I just specifically remember a big issue being made about Muschamp officially being a UF Coach prior to the recruiting dead period and that the only reason he could do so was because one of the Gator coaches (former DC) had already left. Still, my point is that with this time of year being so seemingly important since signing day will be less than a month away following the final bowl game, it would seemingly be relatively urgent to get on with the new as quickly as possible.
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Post by hifigator on Dec 12, 2011 15:59:53 GMT -5
What is this NCAA waiver allowing Ohio State to have two coaching staffs? Why the special treatment? It's not like they're the first team to go to a bowl with a new coach coming in the next year. To my knowledge, there is no "waiver." There is a limited number of coaches that fall into different categories and then contact between coaches and recruits is regulated my a laundry list of rules. I'm not naive enough to even begin to suggest that these rules are the "norm" or the way of the land, but at least on paper, they are there for a reason. I want to say that the number of coaches is 14, but I could be wrong. But whatever the number is, unless something has changed in the last year, it is rigid without wiggle room. When Meyer said he was leaving last season, but coached the team in the bowl game, the only reason Will Muschamp could be on staff at the same time as well was because our DC -- whose name escapes me right this second -- had left. So Muschamp was able to be on staff at the same time. I don't know exactly what level of coach he was designated, and therefore what restrictions he had, but there were some. Also, there was a lot of talk down here about Meyer staying for the Bowl game. As a State Employee -- lots of argument about the term, and whether it should apply, but that's another issue entirely -- in any case, as a state employee, he received a substantial amount of money by being employed on Jan. 1. It did rub a lot of people the wrong way, and I can't say that I blame them for fealing that way. In any case, if Meyer is officially on staff at OSU, then he has got to be taking someone's place. And if he isn't officially a coach, then his hands are really, really tied as far as recruiting goes. It isn't like he can do what he wants now because he isn't a coach. That much was made very, VERY clear. But like I said, I'm not naive enough to think that rules are followed religiously.
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