Happy Thanksgiving - yep, it's 2:45 on Turkey day and I'm on the computer while everyone sleeps. All picks are in, so here we go:
ROE is going up early with his Titans pick - 2:00 left, and their lead looks safe.
ROE also likes DAL this afternoon. JG took SEA, I kind of like a SEA cover in this one.
JR and MK both like AZ as a dog for the evening game today. How are they a dog in this game BTW?
All 3 of you like the BILLS, I like them too but I didn't bet it.
JG took BAL as a TD FAV on the road.
I think the COLTS are coming on, I picked them-4.5 at CLE.
KOBS likes the Panthers and any line...we'll give him +3.
JR and JG have the NYG at WAS. How do you not pick this team right now?
MK likes the FALCONS at SD...I like this pick as well.
I took NE hosting PITT.
MR took OAK hosting KC...should be a fun watch!
We all like the VIKES...except ROE of course took the BEARS - just has to go against the home town club.
That's all for NFL picks this week.
NCAA
Everyone has a pick for tonight, MR and MK like the Horns, JG and JR like the points!
MK likes WV, JG has PITT. I am leaning PITT at home in this one.
MK and JG agree on LSU over ARK.
JG took COL (out of hatred for Big Red I'm guessing) and I took NEB. COL is just terrible.
MK picks FRESNO again. He loves them, but they've only covered 2x this year!
MK also like AZST...this is a good pick at home against a not good UCLA team.
JR and MK like TECH, MR and JG like GEO. I really think these 2 teams are a lot closer than 9 points...should come down to the wire.
MR and MK like MIA at NCST. Pack has won 3 staight...look out.
JG likes VT over VIR.
MR likes CIN, MK likes SYR. Wow, this might be the 1st SYR bet of the year.
3 of us like MIZZOU...everyone but MK.
I like SOMISS at SMU. Weird game, but I just think SMU is awful and SOMISS has been playing well.
MR likes FLA, MK and JG like the NOLES. I think 15 is too much, but FLA covers everything this year.
MR likes AUB - he's usually right, so this game will probably be close.
JR and JG likes TT...easy $.
I like Tulsa -14 at MARSH. Tulsa is still really solid on OFFENSE and MARSH is still brutal.
MR likes the BEAVERS in the Civil War...I think the DUCKS get them. Give me ORE...quack, quack, quack...
MR and JG likes the Sooners to roll over OKST. I agree.
Everyone but JG is calling for a Chuck Weis sacrafice and USC to cover the 4+ TD line.
I also like HAW at just under 4 TD's over my favorite WASU club. Any week you bet against WASU is a good week.
That's all for college picks.
GOPHER PERSPECTIVE
I'm felling okay about this year. 7-5 is a nice improvement, and I'm excited to watch a Bowl Game no matter where it is. The OL coach firing was the right thing to do, obviously something had to happen. But the guy they brought in sounds great. Former USC OL coach, worked with the Dolphins and under Saban at ALA. He's a big-time recruiter as well, I guess. Nice fit. I also read that he will be running game coordinator and bring in many more under center plays and more of a power running game to go with our spread passing. I think this is a must - not sure how many times I was pissed this year when we couldn't convert a 3rd and 1 from the shotgun. The question is if this will be the end of the Dunbar era. I doubt it, but hopefully he's able to adjust and have a better balance in the future. It sounds like these changes will be implemented immediatly and used in the Bowl Game. I would love for us to play Ball State and come out and run it down their throat and play some inspired football. It would be nice to hang a 38-17 on the undeated Cardinals. But now we're just getting ahead of ourselves - hopefully the recruiting continues to roll, and we play well in game #13.
Have a good thanksgiving fellas - talk to you later.
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Week 14 Games - please send picks ASAP
WMU
BALLST -10 TUES
NAVY
NILL -3 TUES
A&M
TEXAS -34 THUR
WV
PITT 3 FRI
CMU
EMU 10.5 FRI
OHIO
MIAOH -1 FRI
MISST
OLE -13 FRI
AKR
TEM -2.5 FRI
UTEP
ECU -5.5 FRI
KENT
BUFF -10 FRI
LSU
ARK 4.5 FRI
BGSU
TOLEDO 2.5 FRI
COL
NEB -15 FRI
FRESNO
BOISE -19.5 FRI
UCLA
AZST -10 FRI
GT
GEO -9
MIA
NCST 1
SC
CLEM -1
VIR
VT -8.5
SYR
CIN -22
KAN
MIZZ -13
UAB
UCF -9
ARKST
NTEX 20
NEV
LT 3.5
NMST
UTST -5
SOMISS
SMU 13.5
FLA
FSU 15
MARY
BC -6.5
NC
DUKE 8.5
AUB
ALA -14.5
BAY
TT -20
TULSA
MARSH 14
FIU
FAU -5
TULANE
MEM -13
UK
TEN -5
VAN
WF -3.5
ORE
OREST -3
OK
OKST 7.5
ND
USC -28.5
WASU
HAW -27.5
_____________________________________
TEN
DET 12 THUR
SEA
DAL -14 THUR
ARI
PHI -3 THUR
SF
BUF -7
BAL
CIN 7
IND
CLE 4.5
CAR
GB
DEN
NYJ -9
MIA
STL
NO
TB
NYG
WAS 3
ATL
SD -5.5
PITT
NE 0
KC
OAK -3
CHI
MIN -3.5
JAC
HOU -3.5
BALLST -10 TUES
NAVY
NILL -3 TUES
A&M
TEXAS -34 THUR
WV
PITT 3 FRI
CMU
EMU 10.5 FRI
OHIO
MIAOH -1 FRI
MISST
OLE -13 FRI
AKR
TEM -2.5 FRI
UTEP
ECU -5.5 FRI
KENT
BUFF -10 FRI
LSU
ARK 4.5 FRI
BGSU
TOLEDO 2.5 FRI
COL
NEB -15 FRI
FRESNO
BOISE -19.5 FRI
UCLA
AZST -10 FRI
GT
GEO -9
MIA
NCST 1
SC
CLEM -1
VIR
VT -8.5
SYR
CIN -22
KAN
MIZZ -13
UAB
UCF -9
ARKST
NTEX 20
NEV
LT 3.5
NMST
UTST -5
SOMISS
SMU 13.5
FLA
FSU 15
MARY
BC -6.5
NC
DUKE 8.5
AUB
ALA -14.5
BAY
TT -20
TULSA
MARSH 14
FIU
FAU -5
TULANE
MEM -13
UK
TEN -5
VAN
WF -3.5
ORE
OREST -3
OK
OKST 7.5
ND
USC -28.5
WASU
HAW -27.5
_____________________________________
TEN
DET 12 THUR
SEA
DAL -14 THUR
ARI
PHI -3 THUR
SF
BUF -7
BAL
CIN 7
IND
CLE 4.5
CAR
GB
DEN
NYJ -9
MIA
STL
NO
TB
NYG
WAS 3
ATL
SD -5.5
PITT
NE 0
KC
OAK -3
CHI
MIN -3.5
JAC
HOU -3.5
Week 13 Results
MK wins again at 9-6 after a large Saints win last night. JG and MR each finish at
8-7, and I pulled up the rear again at 6-9...only 6 of 13 weeks I've finished last or tied for last, not bad.
Here's where we are for overall standings:
MR 101-94
JG 101-94
MK 94-101
JR 90-105
NCAA with only one week left:
MR 78-57...wow +21, nice work.
MK 65-70
JG 65-70
JR 61-74
Roe pretty much has this one wrapped up.
NFL - lots of weeks left
JG 36-24...+12, again - very impressive.
JR 29-31
MK 29-31
MR 22-38
Right now we all owe JG 2.50 for our weekly challenge - pretty even overall.
Last week, VIKES crushed - like I called it! Gophers...not so much.
GOPHERS - IOWA (accompanied by "The End" by the Doors...please play this while reading)
So that's it. 7-1 to 7-5, not exactly what I was expecting, but should we really be surprised. In hindsight it's easy to say, but the 7-1 was done with the soft part of the schedule and a ridiculous turnover margin. If this team would have lost to Bowling Green and Indiana, but beat NW and MICH then the perception of this season would have been much more positive. I hate looking at it like that - it's like the BCS, if you lose early you're okay as long as you finish well. I'm happy with 7-5, I'm not happy ending at 0-4, but an overall 7-5 and low end Bowl Game is good for this team. Insanely young at nearly every position, and the talent level continues to increase. I heard maybe the most retarded arguement ever by Chad Hartman yesterday saying that even all of the good players on the team were recruited by Mason, well, Brewster has only had one recruiting class dumb fuck - if Brewster's players are the best on our team then we really have some issues. He's a moron...that's obvious. As far as the game goes, we stayed through almost halftime. Went to piss at 20-0, and came out at 27-0 - tossed my beer, tore up my final Mecca ticket and stormed out. The inability to even show up was concerning - but it's a tired team that just wasn't ready to play, which is on Brewtser. I think we were rolling in too down after the big let down against the Becky, and Iowa was ready to go. Not a fun night at all - but it is the end, my only friend - the end. That is the bright spot of this whole thing - can you believe this is the final time we'll play in this cursed place! That's reason to celebrate enough right there. Next time we'll be able to watch our Gophers play at home it will be hosting Air Force outside on a sunny September day in 2009...how great is that!?!? It was a fitting end to the horror that was the Mecca, losing to a rival....very very badly. I can't wait for 2010 with those pigfuckers come back and only have 10K fans rather than the 25-30K that were in the dome on Saturday. God I hate Iowa.
Bring on Ball State - that would be a fun one to watch. I'll send out more Gopher seasonal recaps as we go, but for now I will leave you hanging!
I'll post the games right now for next week.
Later.
8-7, and I pulled up the rear again at 6-9...only 6 of 13 weeks I've finished last or tied for last, not bad.
Here's where we are for overall standings:
MR 101-94
JG 101-94
MK 94-101
JR 90-105
NCAA with only one week left:
MR 78-57...wow +21, nice work.
MK 65-70
JG 65-70
JR 61-74
Roe pretty much has this one wrapped up.
NFL - lots of weeks left
JG 36-24...+12, again - very impressive.
JR 29-31
MK 29-31
MR 22-38
Right now we all owe JG 2.50 for our weekly challenge - pretty even overall.
Last week, VIKES crushed - like I called it! Gophers...not so much.
GOPHERS - IOWA (accompanied by "The End" by the Doors...please play this while reading)
So that's it. 7-1 to 7-5, not exactly what I was expecting, but should we really be surprised. In hindsight it's easy to say, but the 7-1 was done with the soft part of the schedule and a ridiculous turnover margin. If this team would have lost to Bowling Green and Indiana, but beat NW and MICH then the perception of this season would have been much more positive. I hate looking at it like that - it's like the BCS, if you lose early you're okay as long as you finish well. I'm happy with 7-5, I'm not happy ending at 0-4, but an overall 7-5 and low end Bowl Game is good for this team. Insanely young at nearly every position, and the talent level continues to increase. I heard maybe the most retarded arguement ever by Chad Hartman yesterday saying that even all of the good players on the team were recruited by Mason, well, Brewster has only had one recruiting class dumb fuck - if Brewster's players are the best on our team then we really have some issues. He's a moron...that's obvious. As far as the game goes, we stayed through almost halftime. Went to piss at 20-0, and came out at 27-0 - tossed my beer, tore up my final Mecca ticket and stormed out. The inability to even show up was concerning - but it's a tired team that just wasn't ready to play, which is on Brewtser. I think we were rolling in too down after the big let down against the Becky, and Iowa was ready to go. Not a fun night at all - but it is the end, my only friend - the end. That is the bright spot of this whole thing - can you believe this is the final time we'll play in this cursed place! That's reason to celebrate enough right there. Next time we'll be able to watch our Gophers play at home it will be hosting Air Force outside on a sunny September day in 2009...how great is that!?!? It was a fitting end to the horror that was the Mecca, losing to a rival....very very badly. I can't wait for 2010 with those pigfuckers come back and only have 10K fans rather than the 25-30K that were in the dome on Saturday. God I hate Iowa.
Bring on Ball State - that would be a fun one to watch. I'll send out more Gopher seasonal recaps as we go, but for now I will leave you hanging!
I'll post the games right now for next week.
Later.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
If Celebrities Lived In Iowa - GopherHole Message Board Community
If Celebrities Lived In Iow
a - GopherHole Message Board Community
Not sure if you guys have seen this...it's pretty funny, and true. Try the link, if it doesn't work try going to the Gopherhole website and football forum. Good stuff.
a - GopherHole Message Board Community
Not sure if you guys have seen this...it's pretty funny, and true. Try the link, if it doesn't work try going to the Gopherhole website and football forum. Good stuff.
WEEK 13 PICKS & PREVIEWS
Well, my meeting for the next hour canceled, so what would I rather do than write about football for the next 45 minutes!
Here we go for Week 13...final regular season game for the dome and the Gophers this year.
I did see an interesting note in the CFN preview, that a Gopher W could still actually get them into a Jan 1 Bowl...some other things have to happen, but that would be fun. Let's pull for ILL, OSU, PSU, and the GOPHERS and we might have a shot if we hit all 4.
As I mentioned before - we all picked the MIA-GT game tonight, should be good. I like the GT defense and running game at home. Plus it's rule #1 of the TREE NCAA BETTING RULES (I will have more than 1 rule next year - my off-season goal is to try and take all the guess work and emotion out of this deal and make it easier to pick games...we'll see). Tech is a winner.
I was the only one to jump on WV at LOU. The Cards are terrible, I had to pick this one.
MK and JG both like the Buckeyes this week. I kind of like them too, but it's just too hard for me to pick that big of a line in a rivalry game. I need a separate set of rivalry rules to make this easier!
JR and MR agree again on IND covering at PUR. I think they are playing better, and hopefully Tiller will continue to play Siller...than IND wins outright!
All 3 of you took the TN at VAN game...MK likes the Vols, a fatal mistake I have made way too many times this year. MR and JG took the smaaat kids. I like them too.
JG like CSU at WY. I've been saying it for weeks - the Cowboys are very bad, so it's never a bad play to bet against them.
JR and MR agree again on MISST over ARK. I like them at home - tough to beat.
JG likes ND to cover 3 TD's vs. SYR. Might happen, SYR is that bad.
3 of the 4 of us picked a winner in my favorite game of the week...the heated Apple Cup rivalry between possibly the 2 worst teams in the BCS conferences this year. Buckle up folks, the 0-10 Huskies are at the 1-9 Cougars of WASU. Wow, this should be ugly, but you have to bet against WASU, right? Or not, MR and JG like the Cougars.
MK takes the ILLINI - we need them to win, but I don't trust them a bit.
JG likes WF at home - this one was too tough to call for me.
MK likes Sparty on the road. I think they keep it close with a tight PSU squad.
I took AF to cover 19 at TCU. Line was outrageous...I like the Falcon at as little as +8 or +10.
MR and I agree again on KST over the lowly Clones. JG avoided this game...why? Clones suck.
MK likes BOISE at NEV -6. I like it, but I'm a little scared...BOISE is due for a close one, and NEV is good enough to be that one.
MR likes BYU covering at UTAH. I like the pick - UTAH is ready for a close one too. Tough to play a rivalry game with all they have on the line.
MK likes the Beavers, I like the Cats at home -3. Should be a good one to watch, unfortunately it's the same time as the game of the week.
JG likes the Noles...duh. MK likes thr Turtle at home. I side with Kobs on this one.
JG went against the norm and took TT over OK. MR and MK both like the Sooners. I have to pick the Sooners as well.
MR likes HAW late night over a horrible Idaho team.
Finally, and quite possibly the kiss of death...ALL 4 OF US LIKE THE MAROON AND GOLD THIS WEEK. Yikes, our track record is not good when we all agree. But maybe this isn't like the other games, maybe some of us like it but some of us are picking it out of just pure hatred for the Southerners. Let's hope the karma gods are on our side in this one.
GOPHERS - HOMOS
Wow, last game of the year already. At least we'll have a fun bowl game to look forward to in the future, let's hope it is in January. But first things first - BEAT IOWA.
State of the Hawkeye
Iowa was not impressive last week hosting PUR, and really has not played well on the road all year long. Greene runs the ball, and he runs it well. They can't throw or pass block worth a damn. The defense is pretty solid - like ususal - but they have some deficiencies. They have only allowed into the 20's in 4 of their 11 games. But NW and ILL - 2 similar offense to us - were 2 of those games. They have their eyes set on a Jan 1 bowl as well with a win on Saturday.
State of the Gopher
After 3 losses in a row, this team is in need of a W to get back on track. NW and WIS could have/should have been wins. Not showing up at all in the MICH game is still a mystery, but we'll attribute that one to the Dome. The offesne looked brilliant at times last week...finally. The defense continued to play well, PJ had nice numbers, but basically gained eevrything on a couple of long runs...he was held in check most of the day. Bottom line is the turnovers and mistakes beat us, which can't happen at this point in the season...but that's a young team for you. The running game continues to putz along, and will never really be good in 2008. The passing game has grown, and getting Decker back will not hurt. The defense continues to get consistent pressure and make turnovers happen. A couple bad plays cost us against the Becky, but I think we can prevent those at home.
Who Wins and Why?
I think the Gophers match-up extremely well with the homos. On defense, we can stop the run fairly well, and our pass rush should be enough to make Stanzi look like the brutal QB that he can be. On offense, I'm sure we'll sputter a bit because of our inability to run the ball, but I think we can throw it well enough to score some points. I look for the Gophers to come out with a fire in their belly and start the game the right way. Flying all over the field and making Iowa look slow. I like an early Gopher TD in this one to get 1/2 the dome rocking, and the other half to slam their 33rd and 34th beers of the day. Then, in typical Gopher fashion, I'm sure we'll give up a cheapy before half and go into the 1/2 tied at 7-7. The 2nd half will be a battle on the line of scrimmage. The Gopher defense will likely allow Greene his 100 yards for a 12th straight game, but it might take him 25-30 carries to get there. He will be the #1, #2, and #3 focus for the front 7. I think our D-backs are actually better than their WR's, so we can afford to have the luxary of counting on our front 7 to stop the run. Major grinder in the 2nd half from both sides - I think Brew will realize the run isn't working, but continue to try and punish them with Shady. A Green TD puts the Gophs up in the 2nd half 17-10. Iowa will fight back and keep it very very close, but I'm going to give this one to the Gopher on a...believe it or not...Joel Monroe made FG! GOPHERS WIN TO MOVE TO 8-4 AND SEND THE HOMOS FLEEING BACK TO THE SOUTH...MN 20 IOWA 17.
WHO HATES IOWA!!??!! - don't think this chant will not be started 100 times by yours truly after a Gopher victory at Huberts.
NFL PICKS
MR likes PIT tonight
JR and MK like the VIKES...yikes.
MR of course goes with the JAGS
JR and MR agree on BAL.
JR and MK like CLE
MK likes DAL
MK and JG like the BUCS
JG likes the BILLS
MR and JG likes JETS, I LOVE THE TITANS
JR and JG like the NYG
JG likes WASH
MR likes SD
MK likes N.O.
VIKES-JAGS (aka Williamson vs. Childress Part I)
How bizarre were the TWilly comments this week..."I want to fight him in the middle of the field." Wow, what a tard. He's got a whopping 4 catches this year, you're right TWilly, we were wrong, you actually suck even worse than we thought. But back to the undercard...the Jags aren't good...especially at home. This is one that Vikes fans are labeling as scary, when i think it's going to be a breeze and the purple will roll. VIKES WIN 23-13.
DOME MEMORIES (dream music...drifting off...ahhh)
2007
- beating MIAOH for our first and only win in year #1 of Brewster Ball. We should have lost this game, but their K missed a gimme, so we won in OT....
- losing to NDSU - I am going to guarantee this never happens again in my lifetime
2006
- missing an XP to lose to PSU 28-27...I miss Gianini
- beating NDSU 10-9 on a blocked FG
- The Drew Tate for Heisman campaign rolled in to dome and lost 34-24 to close out one of the most oevrhyped careers in NCAA history
2005
- 42-35 OT win over then #11 PUR...I have never been more excited at a Gopher game in my life
- 34-38 loss to Becky on the infamous blocked punt...I have never been more down at a Gopher game in my entire life
2003
38-35 vs MICH...fuck.
44-38 vs MSU the next week...Fire Mason!
37-34 win over Becky when Rhys kicks the winner.
2000
- first tailgating experience for me vs. Ohio U...hammered and then we lose 23-17
- homecoming...NW hailmary beats us...gay.
1999
- Purdue beats us on homecoming in similar fashion
1998
- 49-7 over IOWA...who hates IOWA!!??
1996
- 2 Tyrone Carter fumble returns for TD beat nationally ranked SYR 35-33...wacker ball!
1994
- went to Penn State's 1st official B10 game...56-3. wow.
1993
- wacker ball at its finest...PUR wins 59-56...no tackles were recorded by either team.
1989
- NEB 48-0, one of the first games I really remeber going to
- Ohiost beats us 41-37, after we were up 31-0 at half...my dad kept pounding the wall behind us as we were sitting in the top row of the lower level. classic dome collapse moment.
We went through 5 coaching tenures in the dome:
Holtz - 2 years
Gutekunst - 6 years
Wacker - 5 years
Mase - 10 years
Brew - 2 years
Sadly, the first 2 and last 2 years seem to have been the best as far as coaches go.
How about the glory years with Mason, let's look at what he did:
4 of his 10 year he went .500 or better in conference, which Brew may do this year.
7 of the 10 years he went to Bowl Games: 3 Music City, 2 Sun, 1 MicronPC, 1 Insight
It's crazy, but most of us have never known anything but the dome for Gopher football, so it's sad to see the end of the MECCA. Well, actually not really. MICH or OHIOST might actually try and move their home games their when the Gophers are supposed to come to town in the coming years. The brutal collapses are too many to count, the great comebacks were few and far between. The only games we could come close to selling out were IOWA and WIS because 1/2 the fans are wearing the wrong color. God, I'm really going to miss it.
Have a great weekend everyone - I'm sure I'll will be in touch with most if not all of you as the booze starts to flow and I get more and more confident in a Gopher Win.
Later.
Here we go for Week 13...final regular season game for the dome and the Gophers this year.
I did see an interesting note in the CFN preview, that a Gopher W could still actually get them into a Jan 1 Bowl...some other things have to happen, but that would be fun. Let's pull for ILL, OSU, PSU, and the GOPHERS and we might have a shot if we hit all 4.
As I mentioned before - we all picked the MIA-GT game tonight, should be good. I like the GT defense and running game at home. Plus it's rule #1 of the TREE NCAA BETTING RULES (I will have more than 1 rule next year - my off-season goal is to try and take all the guess work and emotion out of this deal and make it easier to pick games...we'll see). Tech is a winner.
I was the only one to jump on WV at LOU. The Cards are terrible, I had to pick this one.
MK and JG both like the Buckeyes this week. I kind of like them too, but it's just too hard for me to pick that big of a line in a rivalry game. I need a separate set of rivalry rules to make this easier!
JR and MR agree again on IND covering at PUR. I think they are playing better, and hopefully Tiller will continue to play Siller...than IND wins outright!
All 3 of you took the TN at VAN game...MK likes the Vols, a fatal mistake I have made way too many times this year. MR and JG took the smaaat kids. I like them too.
JG like CSU at WY. I've been saying it for weeks - the Cowboys are very bad, so it's never a bad play to bet against them.
JR and MR agree again on MISST over ARK. I like them at home - tough to beat.
JG likes ND to cover 3 TD's vs. SYR. Might happen, SYR is that bad.
3 of the 4 of us picked a winner in my favorite game of the week...the heated Apple Cup rivalry between possibly the 2 worst teams in the BCS conferences this year. Buckle up folks, the 0-10 Huskies are at the 1-9 Cougars of WASU. Wow, this should be ugly, but you have to bet against WASU, right? Or not, MR and JG like the Cougars.
MK takes the ILLINI - we need them to win, but I don't trust them a bit.
JG likes WF at home - this one was too tough to call for me.
MK likes Sparty on the road. I think they keep it close with a tight PSU squad.
I took AF to cover 19 at TCU. Line was outrageous...I like the Falcon at as little as +8 or +10.
MR and I agree again on KST over the lowly Clones. JG avoided this game...why? Clones suck.
MK likes BOISE at NEV -6. I like it, but I'm a little scared...BOISE is due for a close one, and NEV is good enough to be that one.
MR likes BYU covering at UTAH. I like the pick - UTAH is ready for a close one too. Tough to play a rivalry game with all they have on the line.
MK likes the Beavers, I like the Cats at home -3. Should be a good one to watch, unfortunately it's the same time as the game of the week.
JG likes the Noles...duh. MK likes thr Turtle at home. I side with Kobs on this one.
JG went against the norm and took TT over OK. MR and MK both like the Sooners. I have to pick the Sooners as well.
MR likes HAW late night over a horrible Idaho team.
Finally, and quite possibly the kiss of death...ALL 4 OF US LIKE THE MAROON AND GOLD THIS WEEK. Yikes, our track record is not good when we all agree. But maybe this isn't like the other games, maybe some of us like it but some of us are picking it out of just pure hatred for the Southerners. Let's hope the karma gods are on our side in this one.
GOPHERS - HOMOS
Wow, last game of the year already. At least we'll have a fun bowl game to look forward to in the future, let's hope it is in January. But first things first - BEAT IOWA.
State of the Hawkeye
Iowa was not impressive last week hosting PUR, and really has not played well on the road all year long. Greene runs the ball, and he runs it well. They can't throw or pass block worth a damn. The defense is pretty solid - like ususal - but they have some deficiencies. They have only allowed into the 20's in 4 of their 11 games. But NW and ILL - 2 similar offense to us - were 2 of those games. They have their eyes set on a Jan 1 bowl as well with a win on Saturday.
State of the Gopher
After 3 losses in a row, this team is in need of a W to get back on track. NW and WIS could have/should have been wins. Not showing up at all in the MICH game is still a mystery, but we'll attribute that one to the Dome. The offesne looked brilliant at times last week...finally. The defense continued to play well, PJ had nice numbers, but basically gained eevrything on a couple of long runs...he was held in check most of the day. Bottom line is the turnovers and mistakes beat us, which can't happen at this point in the season...but that's a young team for you. The running game continues to putz along, and will never really be good in 2008. The passing game has grown, and getting Decker back will not hurt. The defense continues to get consistent pressure and make turnovers happen. A couple bad plays cost us against the Becky, but I think we can prevent those at home.
Who Wins and Why?
I think the Gophers match-up extremely well with the homos. On defense, we can stop the run fairly well, and our pass rush should be enough to make Stanzi look like the brutal QB that he can be. On offense, I'm sure we'll sputter a bit because of our inability to run the ball, but I think we can throw it well enough to score some points. I look for the Gophers to come out with a fire in their belly and start the game the right way. Flying all over the field and making Iowa look slow. I like an early Gopher TD in this one to get 1/2 the dome rocking, and the other half to slam their 33rd and 34th beers of the day. Then, in typical Gopher fashion, I'm sure we'll give up a cheapy before half and go into the 1/2 tied at 7-7. The 2nd half will be a battle on the line of scrimmage. The Gopher defense will likely allow Greene his 100 yards for a 12th straight game, but it might take him 25-30 carries to get there. He will be the #1, #2, and #3 focus for the front 7. I think our D-backs are actually better than their WR's, so we can afford to have the luxary of counting on our front 7 to stop the run. Major grinder in the 2nd half from both sides - I think Brew will realize the run isn't working, but continue to try and punish them with Shady. A Green TD puts the Gophs up in the 2nd half 17-10. Iowa will fight back and keep it very very close, but I'm going to give this one to the Gopher on a...believe it or not...Joel Monroe made FG! GOPHERS WIN TO MOVE TO 8-4 AND SEND THE HOMOS FLEEING BACK TO THE SOUTH...MN 20 IOWA 17.
WHO HATES IOWA!!??!! - don't think this chant will not be started 100 times by yours truly after a Gopher victory at Huberts.
NFL PICKS
MR likes PIT tonight
JR and MK like the VIKES...yikes.
MR of course goes with the JAGS
JR and MR agree on BAL.
JR and MK like CLE
MK likes DAL
MK and JG like the BUCS
JG likes the BILLS
MR and JG likes JETS, I LOVE THE TITANS
JR and JG like the NYG
JG likes WASH
MR likes SD
MK likes N.O.
VIKES-JAGS (aka Williamson vs. Childress Part I)
How bizarre were the TWilly comments this week..."I want to fight him in the middle of the field." Wow, what a tard. He's got a whopping 4 catches this year, you're right TWilly, we were wrong, you actually suck even worse than we thought. But back to the undercard...the Jags aren't good...especially at home. This is one that Vikes fans are labeling as scary, when i think it's going to be a breeze and the purple will roll. VIKES WIN 23-13.
DOME MEMORIES (dream music...drifting off...ahhh)
2007
- beating MIAOH for our first and only win in year #1 of Brewster Ball. We should have lost this game, but their K missed a gimme, so we won in OT....
- losing to NDSU - I am going to guarantee this never happens again in my lifetime
2006
- missing an XP to lose to PSU 28-27...I miss Gianini
- beating NDSU 10-9 on a blocked FG
- The Drew Tate for Heisman campaign rolled in to dome and lost 34-24 to close out one of the most oevrhyped careers in NCAA history
2005
- 42-35 OT win over then #11 PUR...I have never been more excited at a Gopher game in my life
- 34-38 loss to Becky on the infamous blocked punt...I have never been more down at a Gopher game in my entire life
2003
38-35 vs MICH...fuck.
44-38 vs MSU the next week...Fire Mason!
37-34 win over Becky when Rhys kicks the winner.
2000
- first tailgating experience for me vs. Ohio U...hammered and then we lose 23-17
- homecoming...NW hailmary beats us...gay.
1999
- Purdue beats us on homecoming in similar fashion
1998
- 49-7 over IOWA...who hates IOWA!!??
1996
- 2 Tyrone Carter fumble returns for TD beat nationally ranked SYR 35-33...wacker ball!
1994
- went to Penn State's 1st official B10 game...56-3. wow.
1993
- wacker ball at its finest...PUR wins 59-56...no tackles were recorded by either team.
1989
- NEB 48-0, one of the first games I really remeber going to
- Ohiost beats us 41-37, after we were up 31-0 at half...my dad kept pounding the wall behind us as we were sitting in the top row of the lower level. classic dome collapse moment.
We went through 5 coaching tenures in the dome:
Holtz - 2 years
Gutekunst - 6 years
Wacker - 5 years
Mase - 10 years
Brew - 2 years
Sadly, the first 2 and last 2 years seem to have been the best as far as coaches go.
How about the glory years with Mason, let's look at what he did:
4 of his 10 year he went .500 or better in conference, which Brew may do this year.
7 of the 10 years he went to Bowl Games: 3 Music City, 2 Sun, 1 MicronPC, 1 Insight
It's crazy, but most of us have never known anything but the dome for Gopher football, so it's sad to see the end of the MECCA. Well, actually not really. MICH or OHIOST might actually try and move their home games their when the Gophers are supposed to come to town in the coming years. The brutal collapses are too many to count, the great comebacks were few and far between. The only games we could come close to selling out were IOWA and WIS because 1/2 the fans are wearing the wrong color. God, I'm really going to miss it.
Have a great weekend everyone - I'm sure I'll will be in touch with most if not all of you as the booze starts to flow and I get more and more confident in a Gopher Win.
Later.
Picks are in
All picks are in - we're ready for Week 13...unfortunately, I have no time to write this afternoon so I'll send out the full preview tonight. One thing to note - MR and JR have GT, JG and MK have MIA...we all are betting the THUR game, just like old times!
Next Post:
- PICKS
- GOPHER-IOWA PREVIEW
- DOME MOMENTS
- WHO HATES IOWA!
Later.
Next Post:
- PICKS
- GOPHER-IOWA PREVIEW
- DOME MOMENTS
- WHO HATES IOWA!
Later.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Week 13 Game List
Here we go again...week 13...IOWA WEEK...Grrrr
NILL
KENT 3 - TUES...DONE
BALLST
CMU 6 - WED (tonight!)
MIA
GT -4 - THUR
BUFF
BGSU -3.5 - FRI
MIAOH
TOLEDO -3 - FRI
FRES
SJST 2.5 - FRI
WV
LOU 7
NCST
NC -11.5
ARMY
RUT -17
MICH
OHIOST -19.5
CLEM
VIR 3
IND
PUR -13
TEN
VAN -3.5
EMU
TEM -10.5
UCF
MEM -4.5
COLST
WY 2.5
ARK
MISST 0
SYR
ND -19.5
WASH
WASU 8.5
TULANE
TULSA -28.5
FAU
ARKST -5.5
STAN
CAL -9
ILL
NW 2.5
OLE
LSU -5.5
BC
WF -1.5
AKR
OHIO 2.5
MSU
PSU -14.5
MARSH
RICE -8.5
NTEX
MDTN -20
AF
TCU -19
UTEP
HOU -15
ISU
KST -10
LT
NMST 6
BOISE
NEV 6
DUKE
VT -17.5
BYU
UTAH -6
PITT
CIN -4
ECU
UAB 7
OREST
AZ -3
ULM
FIU -6
ULL
TROY -7.5
IOWA
MN 6
FSU
MARY 0
TT
OK -6.5
UNLV
SDST 13
IDAHO
HAW -23.5
UCONN
USF -3 - SUNDAY
_______________________________________________________
CIN
PIT -10 - THUR
MIN
JAC 0
PHI
BAL 0
NE
MIA -2
CHI
STL 9
CAR
ATL 0
HOU
CLE -3
SF
DAL -11
TB
DET 9
BUF
KC 3
NYJ
TEN -5.5
OAK
DEN -9.5
NYG
ARI 3
WAS
SEA 3.5
IND
SD -2.5
GB
NO -3
NILL
KENT 3 - TUES...DONE
BALLST
CMU 6 - WED (tonight!)
MIA
GT -4 - THUR
BUFF
BGSU -3.5 - FRI
MIAOH
TOLEDO -3 - FRI
FRES
SJST 2.5 - FRI
WV
LOU 7
NCST
NC -11.5
ARMY
RUT -17
MICH
OHIOST -19.5
CLEM
VIR 3
IND
PUR -13
TEN
VAN -3.5
EMU
TEM -10.5
UCF
MEM -4.5
COLST
WY 2.5
ARK
MISST 0
SYR
ND -19.5
WASH
WASU 8.5
TULANE
TULSA -28.5
FAU
ARKST -5.5
STAN
CAL -9
ILL
NW 2.5
OLE
LSU -5.5
BC
WF -1.5
AKR
OHIO 2.5
MSU
PSU -14.5
MARSH
RICE -8.5
NTEX
MDTN -20
AF
TCU -19
UTEP
HOU -15
ISU
KST -10
LT
NMST 6
BOISE
NEV 6
DUKE
VT -17.5
BYU
UTAH -6
PITT
CIN -4
ECU
UAB 7
OREST
AZ -3
ULM
FIU -6
ULL
TROY -7.5
IOWA
MN 6
FSU
MARY 0
TT
OK -6.5
UNLV
SDST 13
IDAHO
HAW -23.5
UCONN
USF -3 - SUNDAY
_______________________________________________________
CIN
PIT -10 - THUR
MIN
JAC 0
PHI
BAL 0
NE
MIA -2
CHI
STL 9
CAR
ATL 0
HOU
CLE -3
SF
DAL -11
TB
DET 9
BUF
KC 3
NYJ
TEN -5.5
OAK
DEN -9.5
NYG
ARI 3
WAS
SEA 3.5
IND
SD -2.5
GB
NO -3
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Week 12 Wrap-up
Alright - 12 weeks down, and we have a dead heat at the top.
JG wins another week at 10-5, nice work.
MR went 8-7
JR and MK both went 6-9
NCAA - Roe has a 12 game lead over JG with 2 full weeks left.
NFL - JG has a 6 game lead over JR with many weeks left
*Note* Once NCAA games stop, we'll add more NFL games to keep the totals at 15 games per week.
So last week was brutal, for most of us. You knew we were all dead for agreeing on SC over FLA...no chance on that one.
WORST PICKS OF THE WEEK
MK's USF -7.5 only missed covering by about 6 TD's...close
JR liked Tulsa -5.5, missed by 45.5 points on that one. OUCH!
BEST CALLS OF THE WEEK
MR and JG seeing through the MICH disappointment and picking the GOPHERS to cover - nice work guys.
JG calling for a PUR cover - WHO HATES IOWA!!???
MR - BOISE - always pick BOISE to cover, it seems automatic every week.
NFL
Absolutely brutal. A combined 7-13 this week, that will lose you a lot of money!
Roe continued his hot streak in the NFL at 1-4 again. Through 12 weeks he has been over .500 only 1 time, and is a combined 20-35 (.360)
Meanwhile, JG has only his 3rd sub .500 week and leads at 32-23 (58%)
JR, MK, and JG all have 6 sub .500 weeks in college, while MR only has 2.
Not a lot of highlights to discuss from the NFL, so we'll move into some other commentary.
MIKE LEACH
Read a NYT article on this guy yesterday by the dude who wrote Moneyball. He claims that Leach as a coach at a Major program (USC, TEXAS, OHIOST) would never lose a game with his strategy. He literally said they wouldn't ever lose. I think he's downplaying the talent that TTECH gets, granted it's 3rd behind TEX and OK in the area, but they have some players on that team. It's an incredible system that continues to produce year in and year out. Once you have a plan you can recruit for that plan (a process the GOPHERS are going through right now), but I have a hard time believeing this guy has a plan that is that much better than the rest of the world.
VANDY
I stumbled onto this stat - VANDY had lost their last 19 in a row with Bowl eligibility on the line...19?!? Congrats to the smaaat kids for finally getting it done and moving into the Bowl mix this year.
OBAMA
How can you not love this guy?!? I'm not a political guy at all, but my world kind of revovles around NCAA Football...and apparently that is at the top of the list for the President-elect to fix. If he manages to push a playoff system through the morons running the show at the NCAA I may tatoo his face on my back and name my next child after him. A president that cares about the major issues at hand - gotta love it!
PLAYOFF SYSTEM
If you read CFN at all, you've already heard this...but I'll mention it anyway. An 8 team playoff is easily the most fair and logical way to settle the season every year. It doesn't diminish the regular season, it gives everyone a chance regardless of conference strength (a la USC and PSU/OSU this year), and it would be the single biggest sporting event of the year...by only adding 3 weeks to the season for 2 teams...really only 2 if you count the Bowl Games. The 6 BCS conferences will each get an automatic berth for the CONFERENCE CHAMP - you need to win your conference to get in this thing so how could that diminish the regular season at all!?!? The 2 other spots would be filled by 1)Best Non-BCS school, 2) Wildcard...this is 1 team in the nation that is outstanding but didn't win its conference....someone like Ohio State, Alabama/FLA, TEXAS/TEXTECH/OK. How amazing would this be...I might pee my pants just thinking about it. So in the interest of myself and maybe you guys, I will run through this sceanrio for this year to see what could have been and what might be in the future.
BIGEAST - PITT/WV/CIN
SEC - FLA/ALA
B10 - PSU/OSU
B12 - TT/OK/TEX/MIZZ
ACC - everyone still has a chance!
P10 - OREST/USC
NONBCS - UTAH/BYU/TCU/BOISE
Then they could be seeded by the BCS rankings of the 8 teams and here we go. 4 BCS Bowls used for 1st round games on Jan1, round 2 the next weekend (JAN10) at 2 neutral sites that rotate every year, then the championship game the next week (JAN17) - it would be larger than the Super Bowl.
I'll keep you updated on this one, with some projected results to see who the real world champ would be.
But that's just my opinion.
So on to this week - IOWA WEEK. Anyone going to the game? My Dad and I are looking to get downtown early and get liquored up to try and tolerate the dipshits from the South. Let me know if you're heading down and we can try and hook up.
I'll post the games for this week soon.
later.
JG wins another week at 10-5, nice work.
MR went 8-7
JR and MK both went 6-9
NCAA - Roe has a 12 game lead over JG with 2 full weeks left.
NFL - JG has a 6 game lead over JR with many weeks left
*Note* Once NCAA games stop, we'll add more NFL games to keep the totals at 15 games per week.
So last week was brutal, for most of us. You knew we were all dead for agreeing on SC over FLA...no chance on that one.
WORST PICKS OF THE WEEK
MK's USF -7.5 only missed covering by about 6 TD's...close
JR liked Tulsa -5.5, missed by 45.5 points on that one. OUCH!
BEST CALLS OF THE WEEK
MR and JG seeing through the MICH disappointment and picking the GOPHERS to cover - nice work guys.
JG calling for a PUR cover - WHO HATES IOWA!!???
MR - BOISE - always pick BOISE to cover, it seems automatic every week.
NFL
Absolutely brutal. A combined 7-13 this week, that will lose you a lot of money!
Roe continued his hot streak in the NFL at 1-4 again. Through 12 weeks he has been over .500 only 1 time, and is a combined 20-35 (.360)
Meanwhile, JG has only his 3rd sub .500 week and leads at 32-23 (58%)
JR, MK, and JG all have 6 sub .500 weeks in college, while MR only has 2.
Not a lot of highlights to discuss from the NFL, so we'll move into some other commentary.
MIKE LEACH
Read a NYT article on this guy yesterday by the dude who wrote Moneyball. He claims that Leach as a coach at a Major program (USC, TEXAS, OHIOST) would never lose a game with his strategy. He literally said they wouldn't ever lose. I think he's downplaying the talent that TTECH gets, granted it's 3rd behind TEX and OK in the area, but they have some players on that team. It's an incredible system that continues to produce year in and year out. Once you have a plan you can recruit for that plan (a process the GOPHERS are going through right now), but I have a hard time believeing this guy has a plan that is that much better than the rest of the world.
VANDY
I stumbled onto this stat - VANDY had lost their last 19 in a row with Bowl eligibility on the line...19?!? Congrats to the smaaat kids for finally getting it done and moving into the Bowl mix this year.
OBAMA
How can you not love this guy?!? I'm not a political guy at all, but my world kind of revovles around NCAA Football...and apparently that is at the top of the list for the President-elect to fix. If he manages to push a playoff system through the morons running the show at the NCAA I may tatoo his face on my back and name my next child after him. A president that cares about the major issues at hand - gotta love it!
PLAYOFF SYSTEM
If you read CFN at all, you've already heard this...but I'll mention it anyway. An 8 team playoff is easily the most fair and logical way to settle the season every year. It doesn't diminish the regular season, it gives everyone a chance regardless of conference strength (a la USC and PSU/OSU this year), and it would be the single biggest sporting event of the year...by only adding 3 weeks to the season for 2 teams...really only 2 if you count the Bowl Games. The 6 BCS conferences will each get an automatic berth for the CONFERENCE CHAMP - you need to win your conference to get in this thing so how could that diminish the regular season at all!?!? The 2 other spots would be filled by 1)Best Non-BCS school, 2) Wildcard...this is 1 team in the nation that is outstanding but didn't win its conference....someone like Ohio State, Alabama/FLA, TEXAS/TEXTECH/OK. How amazing would this be...I might pee my pants just thinking about it. So in the interest of myself and maybe you guys, I will run through this sceanrio for this year to see what could have been and what might be in the future.
BIGEAST - PITT/WV/CIN
SEC - FLA/ALA
B10 - PSU/OSU
B12 - TT/OK/TEX/MIZZ
ACC - everyone still has a chance!
P10 - OREST/USC
NONBCS - UTAH/BYU/TCU/BOISE
Then they could be seeded by the BCS rankings of the 8 teams and here we go. 4 BCS Bowls used for 1st round games on Jan1, round 2 the next weekend (JAN10) at 2 neutral sites that rotate every year, then the championship game the next week (JAN17) - it would be larger than the Super Bowl.
I'll keep you updated on this one, with some projected results to see who the real world champ would be.
But that's just my opinion.
So on to this week - IOWA WEEK. Anyone going to the game? My Dad and I are looking to get downtown early and get liquored up to try and tolerate the dipshits from the South. Let me know if you're heading down and we can try and hook up.
I'll post the games for this week soon.
later.
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