Merry X-mas Everyone!!

Merry Christmas from your friends at BCP

Yankees fail, THEEEEE Yankees fail!!

For the last month, we heard that Cliff Lee was being courted by the Yankees and Rangers. It was supposed to be easy for the Yankees. They offer more money than the other teams and they get their man. But Mr Lee proved to be a formidible opponent. He wanted 7 years, they offered him 7 years. He wanted to get paid, and they offered him $150 million. An offer that is too good to be true. 99% of the players in baseball would have excepted that offer. Cliff Lee did not. The Rangers, the team he was traded to in July, offered a 6 year deal with an option for a 7th that was around $138 million. He didn't except that offer either. Instead he chose to return to the team that traded him almost a year ago to the day. Thats right, he chose Philadelphia. A 5 year deal, with an option for a 6th, with a price of $120 million. He took less money to come to a place he really never wanted to leave. He returns to Philadelphia where he is being welcomed with open arms. Now the Phillies have arguably the best front 4 starters in the history of baseball with Lee, Roy Halladay, Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels. To further the bad off-season for the Yanks, Jayson Werth signed with Washington and Carl Crawford signed with rival Boston before Lee decided to come back to Philly. Sure the Yankees signed Russell Martin and Pedro Feliciano, but its rare to see the Yankees not sign a big name free agent. I guess not everyone wants to sign in New York.

Apology

I apologize for not being able to attempt the Valerio's wing challenge. While up the Poconos, I wasn't feeling too hot and decided that piging out on wings wasn't the way to go. I promise the next time i'm up there, I will attempt the challenge and do it.

Blog This

Its been an interesting month to say the least.

First, Comcast was trying to stick me with a $700 bill for unreturned items. Basically they said I didn't return the old cable boxes from my old apartment. The technician took them when they installed new boxes at the new apartment. Finally after a month of me convincing them, they discovered I was right and removed the charge from my bill.

When I moved out of Holme Circle, I was supposed to get my security deposit back. Now I don't know how long its supposed to take. I really was hoping to get it before the Pocono trip this weekend. I get back from my walk yesterday and its in the mailbox.

I applied for a couple more jobs but haven't heard anything back yet. Keep your fingers crossed.

If you haven't see it yet, join my Thursday nights for Straight Dope. Stop by to watch me rant and rave about anything and everything.

The BCS Standings are so dumb.

My fantasy team is 0-8. My next two games are against Skirkies.

While at the Poconos, I have been given a food challenge. I've been dared to eat an entire plate of Valerio's wings. There are 44 wings on a plate. If I do it, I win $20 and bragging rights. If I can't, I lose $20 and endure the wrath of neverending shame.

Just the Facts

The San Francisco Giants are your 2010 World Series Champions. Its their first championship since 1954, when they were the New York Giants. Its been an interesting decade of champions. Here are the last 10

2001: Arizona Diamondbacks
2002: Los Angeles Angels
2003: Florida Marlins
2004: Boston Red Sox
2005: Chicago White Sox
2006: St Louis Cardinals
2007: Boston Red Sox
2008: Philadelphia Phillies
2009: New York Yankees
2010: San Francisco Giants

Here are some interesting WS facts

Three droughts of more the 50 years without championships have been broken during this time (SF 56 years, BOS 86 years, CWS 88 years)

The Texas Rangers became the 28th different team to play in the World Series. Only Seattle and Washington have yet to appear.

The City of Washington D.C. has the longest current World Series drought. The city's last appearence was the Washington Senators 1924 win in 7 over the Giants. (86 years)

The Giants became the 5th different team to win a World Series in two different cities joining the Dodgers, A's, Braves and Twins.

Speaking of droughts, here is a list of current WS droughts by division
AL East: TB (2 years), NYY (1 year), BOS (3 years), TOR (17 years), BAL (27 years)
AL Central: MIN (19 years), CWS (5 years), DET (4 years), CLE (13 years), KC (25 years)
AL West: TEX (2010), OAK (20 years), LAA (8 years), SEA (34 years)

NL East: PHI (1 year), ATL (11 years), FLA (7 years), NYM (10 years), WSH (41 years)
NL Central: CIN (20 years), STL (4 years), MIL (28 years), HOU (5 years), CHC (65 years), PIT (31 years)
NL WEST: SF (2010), SD (12 years), COL (3 years), LAD (22 years), ARZ (9 years)

MLB Playoffs

Welcome back. The MLB playoffs begin Wednesday on TBS. Who will be this years World Series Champion? Thats what i'm about to tell you. Let's do this:

ALDS

Texas Rangers at Tampa Bay Rays (TB wins 3-1)
New York Yankees at Minnesota Twins (NYY wins 3-1)

NLDS
Cincinnati Reds at Philadelphia Phillies (PHI wins 3-1)
Atlanta Braves at San Francisco Giants (SF wins 3-2)

ALCS
New York Yankees at Tampa Bay Rays (TB wins 4-3)

NLCS
San Francisco Giants at Philadelphia Phillies (PHI wins 4-2)

World Series
Tampa Bay Rays at Philadelphia Phillies (PHI wins 4-2)

This Old Apartment

Tonight is my last night in my apartment. As of tomorrow, i'll be a resident of Salem Harbour. Me and Duke signed the lease today and we can start moving stuff in tomorrow. Its a really nice place. Golf course, pool, tennis courts, gym, etc. Its almost like a country club. They don't use Peco, so thats one less service i'll need to transfer over. The comcast will be installed Monday afternoon. I still have the apartment until Sept 30th. I have to go back and clean the bathroom, kitchen and shampoo the carpets. After that, its all over. It also got me to thinking about the two year period since I last moved. Whats happened since?

The Phillies have won 2 NL Pennants and the 2008 World Series
I bought a new car and a new computer
I lost my job
My sister had another kid
My parents moved to New Jersey
I've been on 8 weekend style trips (2 Penn State, 2 Pocono, 2 Jersey Shore, Baltimore and Delaware)
I almost broke my ankle, twice
Ed has opened "The Lighthouse"
The Richardsons actually found girls that can stand them enough to date them

I guess thats about it. A toast to Holme Circle. Thanks for two years of housing me.

NFL Predictions 2010

AFC East
NY Jets
New England
Miami
Buffalo

AFC North
Baltimore
Cincinnati
Pittsburgh
Cleveland

AFC South
Indianapolis
Tennessee
Houston
Jacksonville

AFC West
San Diego
Oakland
Kansas City
Denver

Wild Cards: Cincinnati, Tennessee

Cincinnati at Baltimore (BAL)
Tennessee at San Diego (TEN)

Tennessee at NY Jets (NYJ)
Baltimore at Indianapolis (BAL)

AFC Championship
Baltimore at NY Jets (BAL)

NFC East
Dallas
NY Giants
Washington
Philadelphia

NFC North
Minnesota
Green Bay
Chicago
Detroit

NFC South
New Orleans
Atlanta
Carolina
Tampa Bay

NFC West
San Francisco
Arizona
Seattle
St Louis

Wild Cards: Atlanta, Green Bay

Green Bay at New Orleans (NO)
Atlanta at San Francisco (ATL)

Atlanta at Minnesota (MIN)
New Orleans at Dallas (DAL)

NFC Championship
Dallas at Minnesota (MIN)

Super Bowl XLV
Baltimore vs Minnesota (MIN)

Cash XI Results

Ty Cobb Award for Jerk of the Year: Craig Murray
Monty Burns Award for Excellence: Gregg Maddalo
Twix Party of the Year: Tom Asher
Most Hilarious Moment: Ed Skirkie
Party Animal: Jim Dutill
Jim Spicer Alcohol Award: Bill Richardson

Thanks to all for attending. Cash will return.

Cash 11 Preview

This Saturday is Cash 11. My annual party that reflects on events over the past year. There will be six awards given out this Saturday (Jerk of the Year, Alcohol Award, Field of Excellence, Best Party, Most Hilarious Moment and Party Animal). Just checked the weather for Saturday and its suppose to be sunny and 88 degrees during the day and clear and 70 at night. Everything is looking good. I'll update you next week on the big winners.

As for me, things are good. I'm about a month away from the move in date at Salem Harbour. The job search is still ongoing. Its looking more and more likely that i'll sign up with a temp agency in October unless something drastic happens before then.

In closing, don't be shocked if the Phillies add another relief pitcher or backup infielder before the August 31st waiver trade deadline.

Fat (by Weird Al Yankovich)

I came to a haunting realization over the past weekend. I'm getting too damn big. Seeing some pictures of me from Gregg's wedding, I realized i've really let myself go. I weighted myself on Sunday night. 270! Thats the biggest i've ever been. To quote Timecop, "would you lay off the f***ing candy bars" Other than that, its been business as usual. This past weekend I stayed at my parent's house to watch their dog and my sister's. Both dogs were good. I gotta go back to my parent's house tomorrow to help finish pulling up some carpets. That isn't the hard part. Its the pulling up the 8 million staples they used to keep the padding underneath in place. I don't mind helping because they are letting me use their house for my party, which is less than 3 weeks away. In other news

I officially sent my letter to the Holme Circle Office stating my intentions of leaving. As of September 11, i'll technically be a tenant of two different places. At least until October 1st.

I'll be at the Phillies vs Rockies game on Friday. Roy Halladay is scheduled to pitch. Finally, a non-Jamie Moyer start.

A Year without a Job

I can't believe its been one year since I was laid off. June 30, 2009. I walked into the computer room not realizing that it would be my last day of work. I was told I was passed over and that I was out. Worst drive home ever. A lot has happened in the last year. My parents sold their house and moved to Marlton. My sister had a daughter. Its been a weird year to say the least. It started with a severence from Beneficial that lasted till October followed by Unemployment pay which i'm still getting. I've applied for like a dozen jobs without success. I applied for two more today. One in Wayne, PA and the other is another job at Beneficial. Why go back there you ask? Because at this point, I just need to get back to work.

In other news:

I'll be at my parent's shore house in Delaware from Saturday until Tuesday.

Salem Harbour has approved me and Duke. We move in September 11, 2010.

Its looking more and more likely that Baltimore will be cancelled. But a Pocono trip may take its place. Stay tuned for more information on that.

Cash 11 is Saturday August 7th. Six awards will be given out.

Well Allow Me to Retort

It turns out the reports of the Big 12's demise were premature. Texas decided to stay, which means the rest of the Big 12 South will also stay. They say they are happy at 10 teams, which means at some point, we can expect them to expand back to 12. The Pac-10 wasted no time finding a 12th team. Utah has just officially excepted an invitation to be their 12th team. I assume that means there will be two six team divisions. My guess is Pac-10 North will be Washington, Wash State, Oregon, Oregon State, Cal and Stanford. Pac-10 South will be USC, UCLA, Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah. The Mountain West ends up right back where they started at 9. They added Boise State but lose Utah. So how long will they wait before raiding the WAC again? They want to be an automic BCS conference. The best way to get one, expand to 12 teams. They need 3 more. Perhaps they'll add any 3 of the following teams, (Nevada, Utah State, Idaho, New Mexico State, San Jose State, Fresno State).

I will going to the Phillies games on June 22nd vs Cleveland and July 23rd vs Colorado. That means I have only 5 teams left to see (TB, BOS, LAA, SEA, STL)

I took my car to get an oil change on Monday. It took me 356 days to go a little over 3,000 miles. Total cost was $25.

Still applying for jobs, but haven't had any luck. Hopefully soon.

Cash 11 is Saturday August 7th, from my parents house in NJ.

The Big XII (1996-2011?)

Not a great time to be a Philly sports fan. The Flyers just lost a hard fought Stanley Cup Finals to Chicago 4-2. Congrats to Chicago on their first cup since '61. The Phillies have been slumping lately, but are showing signs of breaking out of it. The Eagles look to be in rebuilding mode. And the Sixers have the #2 pick, but something tells me that they won't take the best player availible, Evan Turner, as John Wall will more than likely go #1 to Washington. But the Phillies always go through a rough stretch before and then during interleague play. But something about it this year is different. Maybe its that they get 3 extra "home" games thanks to the G-20 Summitt taking place in the Rogers Center. Maybe its they have one of the best pitchers in the game, who is used to pitching in the AL's best parks. Whatever the case, the Phils will face Boston, New York and Toronto on the road and Cleveland and Minnesota at home. They are already 1-2 in interleague play. I predict they will finish 7-8 vs the AL.

In other news, the Big 12 looks like the titanic. Colorado is bolting for the Pac-10 and Nebraska for the Big 10. (Scary how they could meet in the Rose Bowl soon) Its looking likely that Texas, Oklahoma and the rest of the Big 12 South (sans Baylor) will be going to the Pac 10 as well. Its a shame because many considered the Big 12 one of the biggest, most talented conferences in the country. Both money talks and thats why its come to this. It leaves schools like the Kansas schools, Iowa State, Baylor and Missouri without a chair when the music stops. But i'm sure the Mountain West would jump to add these schools and become a major player to absorb the Big 12's BCS auto-bid.

Bri Updates:

I got a new phone last night. I got a regular Droid. I'm still getting used to all the bells and whistles.

Special thanks to Cousin Tim for the ticket to Saturday's game vs San Diego. I also am going to see Cleveland on June 22. Based on past ticket stubs, I still have to see Tampa Bay, Boston, LA Angels, Seattle, Colorado and St Louis.

I'm also looking at summer trips to Baltimore and Nutley. Possibly Washington and New York. Next summer: Wrigley Field in Chicago. I mean it this time.

The Things I Do for Money

Sup Bitches! The last few days i've decided to put my free time to good use. On Friday, me and Ed helped Drach move into his new apartment. We had to move a washer/dryer, fridge, desk, a dresser, his bed, etc. He rented a Uhaul and we moved everything, it took about an hour and a half. On top of free lunch and drink, I made $25.

Over the weekend, Ed offered me some scratch to clean his apartment (like $50). He wanted me to mop his kitchen and bathroom floors, do a little dusting and vacuuming. Nothing I haven't done before. I agreed and decided to do it today. His place was pretty dusty. I started by dusting in the living room. Went I went to vacuum, I realized his vacuum wasn't very good. I went home to get mine, along with some window cleaner. I wiped down his coffee table, TV, radio, A.C. and TV stand. Dusted everything in the living room, ran the vacuum and evened Fabreezed the furnature. Next was mopping his kitchen floor. He had a pretty cool mop and it took me like minutes to do. While that was drying, I moved onto to the bathroom. I wiped down the sink and toilet. Then I did a pre-wash on the floor before mopping it. After that was done, I moved onto dusting and vacumming his room. I also cleaned all his mirrors and windows. In all it took about 2 hours. Before I left, I noticed his ceiling fan was extremely dusty. Do I dusted it down and vacuumed up the dust and I was done. Ed was very impressed with his newly cleaned place, finding it amazing the extra stuff that was cleaned. He rewarded me with an extra $10 then discussed.

Here are some updates:

I did not get the job in Check Processing. No big deal. I applied for another job tonight at a place near Franklin Mills.

Me and Duke are in early discussions about getting an apartment together. I'll keep you updated.

The Shore was an awesome time. My next big trip is looking like Baltimore.

And finally, Cash 11 will be on August 7, 2010 in Marlton, NJ. More to follow.

It Was a Nice Day Out

I decided to get outta the house today. Its too nice out to waste a day like this. I went to Tyson to cash in my change. $45 was the outcome. As I was leaving I noticed my gas was getting a little low so I went across the bridge into Jersey to get some cheap gas. I stopped at Wawa on 73. It cost me $50 bucks to fill up. ($2.73 was the advertised price per gallon) I stop into the store to pick up some breakfast. I went over to the coffee stand. I spilled a little half and half on the counter and cleaned it up. The coffee person was impressed. Apparently people over there are slobs. They thanked me for being so tidy. Its just the kinda person I am. Leave it as you find it.

In Other News:

I'll be going to the shore next weekend for the tri-birthday weekend. Should be interesting.

I had a job interview last Friday. Haven't heard anything yet so keep your fingers crossed.

The Sharks are up 3-1 on Detroit. I call this a bragging rights series because its my team vs Drach's. Come on!!

I'm an uncle again. My niece Maura Emily Spicer was born on April 27, 2010. Congrats to Kelly and Jim.

Spring Cleaning

Hey all. I decided that I was going to do some spring cleaning today. I started by cleaning my boxfan which had a combo of dust, dirt and pollen. Next, I turned to my bathroom. I cleaned the sink, toilet and bathroom and mopped the floor. I went to the kitchen to wipe down the stove, fridge counters and the floor. Finally dusting and vacuuming both rooms. My house is the cleanest its been since I moved in. I clean the house every week, but this is the first time I hardcore cleaned it.

The playoff beard will last at least one more round thanks to the Flyers beating the Devils in 5 games. I almost picked that upset, but I didn't want to jinx them. Roy Halladay is being awesome, and some of you wanted to keep Cliff Lee. Halladay is 4-0 with a 0.82 ERA while Lee has yet to pitch for Seattle. Still think it was dumb to trade him?

I'm actually shocked one of my fantasy baseball teams is at the top of the standings. My AL team has been in the top 3 for the last couple weeks. But the injuries are starting to pile up. My NL team is in the middle of the pack. I'm in second in the Skirkie league.

I've also come to a point where i've looked back upon bad decisions i've made and realized that I need some closure. Recently I talked to someone I wronged in the past and asked for forgiveness. It feels good to get stuff of your chest and move on with a clean slate.

Well, enjoy the playoffs. I know I will. Also, we are less than 7 weeks from World Cup 2010. My pick to win, who else, Germany. Go Alemania!!

NBA Playoff Picks

Eastern Conference
#1 Cleveland over #8 Chicago 4-1
#2 Orlando over #7 Charlotte 4-2
#3 Atlanta over #6 Milwaukee 4-2
#5 Miami over #4 Boston 4-3

#1 Cleveland over #5 Miami 4-2
#2 Orlando over #3 Atlanta 4-2

#1 Cleveland over #2 Orlando 4-3

Western Conference
#1 Los Angeles over #8 Oklahoma City 4-3
#2 Dallas over #7 San Antonio 4-2
#3 Phoenix over #6 Portland 4-2
#4 Denver over #5 Utah 4-3

#1 Los Angeles over #4 Denver 4-3
#2 Dallas over #3 Phoenix 4-3

#2 Dallas over #1 Los Angeles 4-2

NBA Finals
#1 Cleveland over #2 Dallas 4-2

Update and NHL predictions

What's up? I thought i'd give you an update on whats happening with me. I'm still an unemployed bum, but that will hopefully change soon. I've decided to sign up with a temp agency in the hopes that maybe one of the jobs they send me too will morph into a full-time gig. Baseball season is underway and I couldn't be more happy about it. My favorite team is the favorite to win the National League and their prize offseason addition looks outstanding. Cliff who? The B mobile, (you mean your Chevy [pause] yes) is doing well. Its about 500 miles away from getting a tune up. I answered a MLB on FOX question right on twitter the other day and won a prize pack. I'm just hoping its doesn't have an autographed picture of Joe Buck in there.

And finally, its NHL playoff time. That means its time for me to grow the playoff beard. I clean shaved last night and will not shave again until the Flyers and Sharks have both been eliminated from the playoffs. That being said, here are my predictions for the playoffs. I'll have the NBA preditions later in the week when the regular season has ended.

Eastern Conference
#1 Washington over #8 Montreal 4-2
#2 New Jersey over #7 Philadelphia 4-3
#3 Buffalo over #6 Boston 4-2
#4 Pittsburgh over #5 Ottawa 4-3

#1 Washington over #4 Pittsburgh 4-3
#3 Buffalo over #2 New Jersey 4-2

#1 Washington over #3 Buffalo 4-1

Western Conference
#1 San Jose over #8 Colorado 4-2
#2 Chicago over #7 Nashville 4-2
#3 Vancouver over #6 Los Angeles 4-1
#5 Detroit over #4 Phoenix 4-2

#1 San Jose over #5 Detroit 4-3
#2 Chicago over #3 Vancouver 4-2

#2 Chicago over #1 San Jose 4-2

Stanley Cup Final
#1 Washington over #2 Chicago 4-3

Free Preview and Predicitions

I just got a message from Comcast about a free preview of MLB Extra Innings from April 5-11. I love having the ability to watch games I wouldn't normally see. ESPN and FOX generally show the same 5 teams every week. (Yanks, Red Sox, Mets, Dodgers and Angels). To purchase the package for the whole season they said it would cost $179. I am thinking about getting it. Sorry to get all Drach, but I was figuring out how much each game would cost. There are 29 teams (they blackout Phillies games) and they play 162 games. Thats 4,698 possible games they can show. Now its $179 for the whole season. I figure its about $.038 per game. Now obvisiously they will lose games to FOX, ESPN and MLB Network so it may raise the price to like 6 or 7 cents a game but thats still a pretty good deal. Something I will think about.

2010 MLB Predictions
AL East: Yankees, Red Sox, Rays, Orioles, Blue Jays
AL Central: Twins, Tigers, White Sox, Indians, Royals
AL West: Mariners, Angels, Rangers, A's

AL Playoffs: Yanks over Twins, Red Sox over Mariners, Red Sox over Yanks

NL East: Phillies, Braves, Mets, Marlins, Nationals
NL Central: Cardinals, Cubs, Reds, Brewers, Astros, Pirates
NL West: Rockies, Giants, Dodgers, Diamondbacks, Padres

NL Playoffs: Phillies over Giants, Cardinals over Rockies, Phillies over Cardinals
World Series: Red Sox over Phillies

Is there anything better than the NCAA Tournament?

For the past week, i've blogged about who I thought was still alive and what they had to do to quailify for the NCAA tournament. I wrote down the 65 teams I felt would make the tournament. 31 of them were automatic. The rest were pretty easy to figure out also. In the end I predicted 64 of 64 teams correct (98.5%). The only one I got wrong was Virginia Tech instead of Florida. I also have some other thoughts on the selections.

1. How does Florida get in ahead of Mississippi State, who beat them in the SEC tournament on Friday? Florida had 3 quality wins this season (Mich State, Florida State and Tennessee). They also beat Miss State in the regular season. Miss State didn't have much heading into the SEC semi-final match vs Florida. But the Bulldogs beat them. They also beat #22 Vanderbilt to advance to the SEC final vs Kentucky. They were 0.4 seconds from winning the auto bid. But a slim OT loss doomed Miss State to the NIT. I still don't understand how Florida gets in. Even Illinois had a better body of work, beating 5 Top 25 teams.

2. Miss State, Va Tech and Illnois were the biggest snubs this year. Miss State and Illinois were screwed by Houston and New Mexico State winning their conference tournaments and stealing bids. Va Tech lost their spot by playing a terrible out of conference schedule and losing to Miami in the ACC semis.

3. Duke should not have been seeded higher then Syracuse. Duke should not have an easier region than #1 overall seed Kansas. Further proof that Duke is getting a cakewalk, they get Arkansas Pine Bluff, who played tonight. The over/under is 45 point win for Duke. God i hate their fans.

4. How does Washington and San Diego State win their conference tournaments and get lower seeds (11) than the teams they beat, California and UNLV (8)?

5. Finally, why do two conference tournament champions play in the play in game? If they really wanted to have an intruging game, play the last two teams into the tournament against each other. The game should have been Utep vs Utah State. If you want to expand the field, go to 68 and have the last 4 in play the last 4 out.

Bricketology Vol 5

Friday three more teams locked up bids. Georgia Tech beat Maryland, San Diego State beat New Mexico and California beat UCLA. More teams fell off the bubble. Dayton lost to Xavier, St Louis lost to URI, Northwestern blew a halftime lead and lost to Purdue, Nevada lost at home to New Mexico State and Ole Miss lost to Tennessee. Mississippi State, Minnesota, Illinois and Rhode Island did what needed to be done to stay alive. 12 conference championship games today. Will we see any surprises.

Last 4 IN
Washington
Illinois
Florida
Rhode Island

Last 4 OUT
Minnesota
Mississippi State
Seton Hall
Ole Miss

The Bubble
Rhode Island (23-8 (9-7) RPI:38) a 63-47 over St Louis put Rhode Island in the A-10 semis and a showdown with Temple. With the way the bubble is shrinking, the Rams may need to win the A-10 tournament to earn a bid. The Rams went 0-5 against the top 4 seeds in the A-10and only have 2 top 50 RPI wins (OKST 28 and Dayton 49). They do have some eyesore losses (St Bonaventure 155 and UMass 175).

Illinois (19-13 (10-8) RPI:72) Illinois' 58-54 win over Wisconsin may be just enough to put them in the tournament. They will play Ohio State in the Big 10 semis. A win with certainly put them in lock status. They now have 5 decent wins (Mich St, @Wisc(twice), Clemson and Vandy). What could hurt them was the 2 point loss at home to Minnesota.

Minnesota (20-12 (9-9) RPI:65) the Gophers were all but dead after their 28 point loss at Michigan. But the Gophers have new life after an upset of Michigan State in the Big Ten tournament. They may have to beat Purdue in the semi-finals and have a good showing in the championship to be in consideration. Minnesota has 4 top 50 RPI wins (Ohio State, Mich State, Wisconsin and Butler) and won the only meeting vs Illinois. Their bad losses include a sweep by Michigan and a loss to Indiana.

Washington (23-9 (11-7) RPI:48) Washington beat Stanford to advance to the Pac-10 final vs Cal. A win gives them the automatic bid. A loss may send them to the NIT with the way the bubble is shrinking. Washington's best wins are Texas A&M and Cal. Losing twice to USC and at home to Oregon doesn't help.

Mississippi State (22-11 (9-7) RPI:63) a huge win over Florida in the SEC quarters keeps them on the bubble for now. Miss State draws Vanderbilt in the SEC semis. They would have to win the SEC tournament to get into the tournament based on their numbers. Not much in terms of good wins. Their best wins are ODU, Ole Miss twice and Florida. They do have bad losses to Rider and Auburn.

Florida (21-12 (9-7) RPI:51) Florida lost to Mississippi State in the SEC quarters to put their chances in jeopardy. Florida has good wins vs Mich St, Tennessee and Florida State. But how will their late season loss to Georgia hurt? Florida will be sweating on selection Sunday.

Utah State (27-6 (14-2) RPI:26) Utah State is in good shape to make the NCAA's after beating La Tech to reach the WAC final vs New Mexico State. They have the second longest win streak in the country behind Butler. They have a very impressive win over BYU. They split with NMST and swept Nevada in WAC play.

Bricketology Vol 4

Thursday was bubble burst day. Cincy, Arizona State, UAB, Memphis and Marshall all lost, thus ending their hopes of at large bids. Notre Dame locked up a spot with a win over Pitt. Plenty of bubble games today including Rhode Island vs St Louis, Illinois vs Wisconsin, Ole Miss vs Tennessee and Miss St vs Florida. 28 of 34 bids are locked up. Will anyone else join the big dance today?

Last 4 IN
San Diego State
Washington
Illinois
Ole Miss

Last 4 OUT
Rhode Island
Arizona State
Mississippi State
Seton Hall

The Bubble
Rhode Island (22-8 (9-7) RPI:41) they did what they needed to do by beating St Joe's at home on Tuesday to open the A-10 tournament. They will play St Louis in round 2 and the winner could face Temple in the A-10 semis. Rhode Island may need to make the A-10 final to be safe. The Rams went 0-5 against the top 4 seeds in the A-10and only have 2 top 50 RPI wins (OKST 28 and Dayton 49). They do have some eyesore losses (St Bonaventure 155 and UMass 175).

Dayton (20-11 (8-8) RPI:51) they stayed alive with a win over GW in the first round of the A-10 tournament setting up a third meeting with Xavier on Friday. They have 3 top 50 RPI wins (Xavier, GT, ODU) but also have a bad loss to St Joe's. Dayton will have to win the A-10 tourney to make it in.

St Louis (20-10 (11-5) RPI:85) St Louis blew a great chance at a signature win losing to Temple last week. Sweeping Dayton, and winning over Rhode Island have them on the board. They have a first round bye in the A-10 tourney and will play URI in round 2 Friday, which could be a bubble busting game. A win could set up a rematch with Temple. They also have a win over Richmond, but lost to UGA.

Georgia Tech (20-11 (7-9) RPI:40) after trailing by 10 at the half, they came back to beat UNC 82-78 to advance in the ACC tournament. But they still need to upset #2 seed Maryland to lock up a spot. Tech has good wins over Duke, Wake, Clemson and Siena but were swept by FSU and lost to Miami and Virginia.

Illinois (18-13 (10-8) RPI:77) tough week for the Illini losing to Ohio State and Wisconsin. The good news is they draw Wisconsin in the Big Ten tournament on Friday. A win would put them in good position to get an at large berth. They have 4 decent wins (Mich St, @Wisc, Clemson and Vandy). What could hurt them was the 2 point loss at home to Minnesota.

Washington (22-9 (11-7) RPI:49) it looked grim at halftime, but a 25-6 run in the second half led the way to a victory over Oregon State. Washington will play Stanford, who upset Arizona State. As long as the Huskies beat Stanford to advance to the Pac 10 championship game, they should be in good shape. Washington's best wins are Texas A&M and Cal. Losing twice to USC and at home to Oregon doesn't help.

Florida (21-11 (9-7) RPI:52) Florida defeated Auburn by 9 to advance to the SEC quarters to play Miss State. The winner is in great shape for an at large and the loser may be heading to the NIT. Florida has good wins vs Mich St, Tennessee and Florida State. But a three game losing streak and a bad loss to UGA hurt.

Ole Miss (21-9 (9-7) RPI:56) Ole Miss has won 4 in a row. Finishing 2nd in the SEC West earned them a first round bye. They will play Tennessee today in the SEC quarters. They will need to get to at least the semis to be considered. They have a great win over Kansas State in Puerto Rico and defeated UTEP but haven't done much in SEC play. They also lost to Florida and were swept by Miss St.

Mississippi State (21-11 (9-7) RPI:67) Miss St will play Florida today in the SEC quarters. Miss St would have to beat Florida and then potentially Vandy to get back into the discussion. Not much in terms of good wins. Their best wins are ODU and Ole Miss twice. They do have bad losses to Rider and Auburn.

San Diego State (23-8 (11-5) RPI:32) the Aztecs almost lost to Colorado State but held on for a 72-71 win. They will get New Mexico in the MWC semis. A win will almost certainly lock them in. A loss will leave them wondering if they are in or out on selection Sunday. They split with New Mexico and UNLV in conference play, but were swept by BYU and a horrible loss to Wyoming.

Utah State (26-6 (14-2) RPI:30) Utah State blew out Boise State to adavance to the semis of the WAC tournament vs Louisiana Tech. They have the second longest win streak in the country behind Butler. They have a very impressive win over BYU. They split with NMST and swept Nevada in WAC play. They may need to get to the final of the WAC tournament to get an at large bid.

Nevada (20-11 (11-5) RPI:62) a win over Idaho put Nevada in the WAC semis vs New Mexico State. Their best non-conference win was Tulsa and they swept New Mexico State but were swept by Utah State, lost to UNLV and also have a bad loss to Hawaii. Nevada would have to win the WAC tourney to get in. It helps the WAC tournament is on their home court.

Tulsa (23-10 (10-6) RPI:64) like UNLV and Nevada, Tulsa is hosting their conference tournament. Down 10 in the second half, used a 25-6 run to end Marshall's season in the C-USA quarters. They will play top seed UTEP today. Tulsa would have to win out to make the field of 65. Tulsa doesn't have much in terms of quality wins except wins over Oklahoma State and Memphis. They were swept by UTEP, and lost to Duke and Nevada.

Bricketology Vol 3

Rohde Island and Dayton took care of business in the A-10 tournament. Charlotte is out after losing to UMass. Seton Hall and South Florida have also bit the dust. Cincinnati is hanging around after upsetting Louisville. Majority of the bubble teams in action today. Some need more than one win to enhance their profile. Some just need that one more signature win to put them over the top. ACC, Big 10 and SEC all start their tournaments today. Big East, Big 12, C-USA and Pac 10 continue theirs. 27 of the 34 at large bids filled.

Last 4 IN
San Diego State
Washington
Florida
Illinois

Last 4 OUT
UAB
Rhode Island
Arizona State
Ole Miss

The Bubble
Rhode Island (22-8 (9-7) RPI:42) they did what they needed to do by beating St Joe's at home on Tuesday to open the A-10 tournament. They will play St Louis in round 2 and the winner could face Temple in the A-10 semis. Rhode Island may need to make the A-10 final to be safe. The Rams went 0-5 against the top 4 seeds in the A-10and only have 2 top 50 RPI wins (OKST 28 and Dayton 49). They do have some eyesore losses (St Bonaventure 155 and UMass 175).

Dayton (20-11 (8-8) RPI:49) they stayed alive with a win over GW in the first round of the A-10 tournament setting up a third meeting with Xavier on Friday. They have 3 top 50 RPI wins (Xavier, GT, ODU) but also have a bad loss to St Joe's. Dayton will have to win the A-10 tourney to make it in.

St Louis (20-10 (11-5) RPI:85) St Louis blew a great chance at a signature win losing to Temple last week. Sweeping Dayton, and winning over Rhode Island have them on the board. They have a first round bye in the A-10 tourney and will play URI in round 2 Friday, which could be a bubble busting game. A win could set up a rematch with Temple. They also have a win over Richmond, but lost to UGA.

Georgia Tech (19-11 (7-9) RPI:44) lost both games they needed to have last week. Losing at Clemson and at home vs Va Tech. Tech draws UNC in round one of the ACC tournament. They would need to win that game and maybe upset #2 seed Maryland to lock up a spot. Tech has good wins over Duke, Wake, Clemson and Siena but were swept by FSU and lost to Miami.

Notre Dame (22-10 (10-8) RPI:57) beating Seton Hall in the 2nd round of the Big East tournament may have punched their ticket to the tournament. A win tonight over Pitt will move them to lock status. They have won 5 straight games, and have quality wins over Pittsburgh, Marquette, West Virginia and at Georgetown.

Illinois (18-13 (10-8) RPI:75) tough week for the Illini losing to Ohio State and Wisconsin. The good news is they draw Wisconsin in the Big Ten tournament on Friday. A win would put them in good position to get an at large berth. They have 4 decent wins (Mich St, @Wisc, Clemson and Vandy). What could hurt them was the 2 point loss at home to Minnesota.

Washington (21-9 (11-7) RPI:50) the Huskies swept the Oregon schools on the road and will play Oregon State in the Pac-10 tourney on Thursday. If all goes well, they would get Arizona State in the semis setting up a potential win and in game. Washington's best wins are Texas A&M and Cal. Losing twice to USC and at home to Oregon don't help.

Arizona State (22-9 (12-6) RPI:54) the Devils are basically in the same boat as Washington. Win your opening round Pac-10 tourney game against Stanford and set yourself up for a showdown vs Washington, where the winner will be in position to make the tournament. Arizona State doesn't have a great top 50 RPI victory, in fact, their best victories have come vs fellow bubble teams Washington and San Diego St.

Florida (20-11 (9-7) RPI:53) two close losses this week did not help. A 4 point home loss to Vandy and an 8 point loss at Kentucky. Florida plays Auburn in the SEC tournament opener Thursday. A win sets up a bubble busting match vs Mississippi St. Florida has good wins vs Mich St, Tennessee and Florida State. But a three game losing streak and a bad loss to UGA hurt.

Ole Miss (21-9 (9-7) RPI:56) Ole Miss has won 4 in a row. Finishing 2nd in the SEC West earned them a first round bye. They will play the winner of the Tennessee vs LSU matchup Friday. They will need to get to at least the semis to be considered. They have a great win over Kansas State in Puerto Rico, but haven't done much in SEC play. They also lost to Florida and were swept by Miss St.

Mississippi State (21-11 (9-7) RPI:68) Miss St had a tough week. A bad 9 point loss at Auburn and then blow out at home by Tennessee may have ended their at large chances. Miss St did win the SEC West and earned a first round bye. They will play the winner of Florida vs Auburn on Friday. Miss St would have to beat Florida and then potentially Vandy to get back into the discussion. Not much in terms of good wins. Their best wins are ODU and Ole Miss twice. They do have bad losses to Rider and Auburn.

San Diego State (22-8 (11-5) RPI:36) they won both games last week vs AFA and Colorado St. Now a rematch with Colorado State in the MWC tourney and a potential rematch with New Mexico in the semis if they win. They split with New Mexico and UNLV in conference play, but were swept by BYU and a horrible loss to Wyoming. A win over NM may just be enough to put them in the tournament.

Memphis (23-8 (13-3) RPI:46) Memphis put themselves back in the conversation with a huge win over UAB and a blowout win over Tulsa. They earned the #2 seed in the C-USA tourney and could potentially meet UAB in the semis. They had close losses to Kansas, Syracuse, Gonzaga and Tennessee. Other than UAB, not many top 50 wins. Memphis is on the right side of the bubble for now and a trip to the C-USA final might put them in lock status.

UAB (23-7 (11-5) RPI:40) two big losses last week to Memphis and UTEP hurt their chances. But if UAB can get to the semis of the C-USA tourney and get another shot at Memphis, it put them back into the hunt. UAB has two good wins, beating Butler and Marshall, but a loss to Virginia seems worse after the Cavs have lost 8 straight games.

Marshall (23-8 (11-5) RPI:61) why is Marshall here you ask? They finished conference play with 11 wins. They have a road win over UAB, but lost their only meetings with Memphis and UTEP. Marshall could play themselves in if they get a semifinals rematch with UTEP. But realistically they need to win the C-USA tournament. Their worst lost is a novemeber loss to UNC.

Utah State (25-6 (14-2) RPI:31) Utah State has the second longest win streak in the country behind Butler. They have a very impressive win over BYU. They split with NMST and swept Nevada in WAC play. They will play Boise State in the first round of the WAC tourney on Wednesday. They may need to get to the final of the WAC tournament to get an at large bid.

Nevada (19-11 (11-5) RPI:64) riding a 3 game win streak entering the WAC tourney has Nevada back in the discussion. The #2 seed in the WAC tournament, which is also on their home court, the Wolfpack will play San Jose State on Wednesday. They swept New Mexico State but were swept by Utah State and also have a bad loss to Hawaii. Nevada would have to win the WAC tourney to get in.

Bricketology Vol 2

Saint Mary's earned the automatic bid from the West Coast Conference with their win over Gonzaga last night. The Zags were a lock heading into that game so that takes another at large spot off the board. Another could be gone if Wright State defeats Butler in the Horizon League final tonight. I have now 27 of the 34 at large spots locked up with 7 spots left for 19 teams to claim. The Big East and A-10 start their tournaments today.

Last 4 IN
Georgia Tech
San Diego State
Washington
Florida

Last 4 OUT
UAB
Rhode Island
Arizona State
Ole Miss

The Bubble
Rhode Island (21-8 (9-7) RPI:39) The loss at UMass may have dropped then from in to out, but they have a chance to play their way back in. They host St Joe's tomorrow in the A-10 tourney opener. A win sets up a rematch with St Louis, who beat them by 5 in St Louis a few weeks ago. To get in, they would have to get to the semifinals which could set up a 3rd meeting with Temple. Beating Temple would almost surely lock them into the field of 65.

Dayton (19-11 (8-8) RPI:51) losing at home to St Louis may have ended their chances at the tournament. They have 3 top 50 RPI wins (Xavier, GT, ODU) but also have a bad loss to St Joe's. They host GW tomorrow in the opening round of the A-10 tourney. Dayton will have to win the A-10 tourney to make it in.

St Louis (20-10 (11-5) RPI:83) St Louis blew a great chance at a signature win losing to Temple last week. Sweeping Dayton, and winning over Rhode Island have them on the board. They have a first round bye in the A-10 tourney with a potential date with URI in round 2 which could be a bubble busting game. A win could set up a rematch with Temple. They also have a win over Richmond, but lost to UGA.

Georgia Tech (19-11 (7-9) RPI:44) lost both games they needed to have last week. Losing at Clemson and at home vs Va Tech. Tech draws UNC in round one of the ACC tournament. They would need to win that game and maybe upset #2 seed Maryland to lock up a spot. Tech has good wins over Duke, Wake, Clemson and Siena but were swept by FSU and lost to Miami.

Notre Dame (21-10 (10-8) RPI:59) despite losing Luke Harangody, ND won their final 4 games, beating Pitt, @GTown, UConn and @Marquette. Even if they lose their first Big East game, they are a safe bet to be in the field. They also beat WVU and their worst loss came @ Rutgers.

Illinois (18-13 (10-8) RPI:75) tough week for the Illini losing to Ohio State and Wisconsin. The good news is they draw Wisconsin in the Big Ten tournament on Friday. A win would put them in good position to get an at large berth. They have 4 decent wins (Mich St, @Wisc, Clemson and Vandy). What could hurt them was the 2 point loss at home to Minnesota.

Washington (21-9 (11-7) RPI:49) the Huskies swept the Oregon schools on the road and will play Oregon State in the Pac-10 tourney on Thursday. If all goes well, they would get Arizona State in the semis setting up a potential win and in game. Washington's best wins are Texas A&M and Cal. Losing twice to USC and at home to Oregon don't help.

Arizona State (22-9 (12-6) RPI:53) the Devils are basically in the same boat as Washington. Win your opening round Pac-10 tourney game against Stanford and set yourself up for a showdown vs Washington, where the winner will be in position to make the tournament. Arizona State doesn't have a great top 50 RPI victory, in fact, their best victories have come vs fellow bubble teams Washington and San Diego St.

Florida (20-11 (9-7) RPI:52) two close losses this week did not help. A 4 point home loss to Vandy and an 8 point loss at Kentucky. Florida plays Auburn in the SEC tournament opener Thursday. A win sets up a bubble busting match vs Mississippi St. Florida has good wins vs Mich St, Tennessee and Florida State. But a three game losing streak and a bad loss to UGA hurt.

Ole Miss (21-9 (9-7) RPI:57) Ole Miss has won 4 in a row. Finishing 2nd in the SEC West earned them a first round bye. They will play the winner of the Tennessee vs LSU matchup Friday. They will need to get to at least the semis to be considered. They have a great win over Kansas State in Puerto Rico, but haven't done much in SEC play. They also lost to Florida and were swept by Miss St.

Mississippi State (21-11 (9-7) RPI:69) Miss St had a tough week. A bad 9 point loss at Auburn and then blow out at home by Tennessee may have ended their at large chances. Miss St did win the SEC West and earned a first round bye. They will play the winner of Florida vs Auburn on Friday. Miss St would have to beat Florida and then potentially Vandy to get back into the discussion. Not much in terms of good wins. Their best wins are ODU and Ole Miss twice. They do have bad losses to Rider and Auburn.

San Diego State (22-8 (11-5) RPI:36) they won both games last week vs AFA and Colorado St. Now a rematch with Colorado State in the MWC tourney and a potential rematch with New Mexico in the semis if they win. They split with New Mexico and UNLV in conference play, but were swept by BYU and a horrible loss to Wyoming. A win over NM may just be enough to put them in the tournament.

Memphis (23-8 (13-3) RPI:46) Memphis put themselves back in the conversation with a huge win over UAB and a blowout win over Tulsa. They earned the #2 seed in the C-USA tourney and could potentially meet UAB in the semis. They had close losses to Kansas, Syracuse, Gonzaga and Tennessee. Other than UAB, not many top 50 wins. Memphis is on the right side of the bubble for now and a trip to the C-USA final might put them in lock status.

UAB (23-7 (11-5) RPI:40) two big losses last week to Memphis and UTEP hurt their chances. But if UAB can get to the semis of the C-USA tourney and get another shot at Memphis, it put them back into the hunt. UAB has two good wins, beating Butler and Marshall, but a loss to Virginia seems worse after the Cavs have lost 8 straight games.

Marshall (23-8 (11-5) RPI:62) why is Marshall here you ask? They finished conference play with 11 wins. They have a road win over UAB, but lost their only meetings with Memphis and UTEP. Marshall could play themselves in if they get a semifinals rematch with UTEP. But realistically they need to win the C-USA tournament. Their worst lost is a novemeber loss to UNC.

Utah State (25-6 (14-2) RPI:32) Utah State has the second longest win streak in the country behind Butler. They have a very impressive win over BYU. They split with NMST and swept Nevada in WAC play. They will play Boise State in the first round of the WAC tourney on Wednesday. They may need to get to the final of the WAC tournament to get an at large bid.

Nevada (19-11 (11-5) RPI:64) riding a 3 game win streak entering the WAC tourney has Nevada back in the discussion. The #2 seed in the WAC tournament, which is also on their home court, the Wolfpack will play San Jose State on Wednesday. They swept New Mexico State but were swept by Utah State and also have a bad loss to Hawaii. Nevada would have to win the WAC tourney to get in.

Bricketology Vol 1

All this week i'll be doing my own version of bracketology. Now i'm no Joe Lunardi, but I think i've watched enough games and done enough research to correctly pick all 65 teams. I know its easy with the 31 auto-bids, but picking the other 34 takes some knowledge. All this week, i'll be posting what bubble teams are alive, which are dead and my last 4 IN and last 4 OUT.

Let's get it on

Last 4 IN
Georgia Tech
San Diego State
Washington
Florida

Last 4 OUT
UAB
Rhode Island
Arizona State
Ole Miss

The Bubble
Rhode Island (21-8 (9-7) RPI:39) The loss at UMass may have dropped then from in to out, but they have a chance to play their way back in. They host St Joe's tomorrow in the A-10 tourney opener. A win sets up a rematch with St Louis, who beat them by 5 in St Louis a few weeks ago. To get in, they would have to get to the semifinals which could set up a 3rd meeting with Temple. Beating Temple would almost surely lock them into the field of 65.

Dayton (19-11 (8-8) RPI:51) losing at home to St Louis may have ended their chances at the tournament. They have 3 top 50 RPI wins (Xavier, GT, ODU) but also have a bad loss to St Joe's. They host GW tomorrow in the opening round of the A-10 tourney. Dayton will have to win the A-10 tourney to make it in.

St Louis (20-10 (11-5) RPI:83) St Louis blew a great chance at a signature win losing to Temple last week. Sweeping Dayton, and winning over Rhode Island have them on the board. They have a first round bye in the A-10 tourney with a potential date with URI in round 2 which could be a bubble busting game. A win could set up a rematch with Temple. They also have a win over Richmond, but lost to UGA.

Georgia Tech (19-11 (7-9) RPI:44) lost both games they needed to have last week. Losing at Clemson and at home vs Va Tech. Tech draws UNC in round one of the ACC tournament. They would need to win that game and maybe upset #2 seed Maryland to lock up a spot. Tech has good wins over Duke, Wake, Clemson and Siena but were swept by FSU and lost to Miami.

Notre Dame (21-10 (10-8) RPI:59) despite losing Luke Harangody, ND won their final 4 games, beating Pitt, @GTown, UConn and @Marquette. Even if they lose their first Big East game, they are a safe bet to be in the field. They also beat WVU and their worst loss came @ Rutgers.

Illinois (18-13 (10-8) RPI:75) tough week for the Illini losing to Ohio State and Wisconsin. The good news is they draw Wisconsin in the Big Ten tournament on Friday. A win would put them in good position to get an at large berth. They have 4 decent wins (Mich St, @Wisc, Clemson and Vandy). What could hurt them was the 2 point loss at home to Minnesota.

Washington (21-9 (11-7) RPI:49) the Huskies swept the Oregon schools on the road and will play Oregon State in the Pac-10 tourney on Thursday. If all goes well, they would get Arizona State in the semis setting up a potential win and in game. Washington's best wins are Texas A&M and Cal. Losing twice to USC and at home to Oregon don't help.

Arizona State (22-9 (12-6) RPI:53) the Devils are basically in the same boat as Washington. Win your opening round Pac-10 tourney game against Stanford and set yourself up for a showdown vs Washington, where the winner will be in position to make the tournament. Arizona State doesn't have a great top 50 RPI victory, in fact, their best victories have come vs fellow bubble teams Washington and San Diego St.

Florida (20-11 (9-7) RPI:52) two close losses this week did not help. A 4 point home loss to Vandy and an 8 point loss at Kentucky. Florida plays Auburn in the SEC tournament opener Thursday. A win sets up a bubble busting match vs Mississippi St. Florida has good wins vs Mich St, Tennessee and Florida State. But a three game losing streak and a bad loss to UGA hurt.

Ole Miss (21-9 (9-7) RPI:57) Ole Miss has won 4 in a row. Finishing 2nd in the SEC West earned them a first round bye. They will play the winner of the Tennessee vs LSU matchup Friday. They will need to get to at least the semis to be considered. They have a great win over Kansas State in Puerto Rico, but haven't done much in SEC play. They also lost to Florida and were swept by Miss St.

Mississippi State (21-11 (9-7) RPI:69) Miss St had a tough week. A bad 9 point loss at Auburn and then blow out at home by Tennessee may have ended their at large chances. Miss St did win the SEC West and earned a first round bye. They will play the winner of Florida vs Auburn on Friday. Miss St would have to beat Florida and then potentially Vandy to get back into the discussion. Not much in terms of good wins. Their best wins are ODU and Ole Miss twice. They do have bad losses to Rider and Auburn.

San Diego State (22-8 (11-5) RPI:36) they won both games last week vs AFA and Colorado St. Now a rematch with Colorado State in the MWC tourney and a potential rematch with New Mexico in the semis if they win. They split with New Mexico and UNLV in conference play, but were swept by BYU and a horrible loss to Wyoming. A win over NM may just be enough to put them in the tournament.

Memphis (23-8 (13-3) RPI:46) Memphis put themselves back in the conversation with a huge win over UAB and a blowout win over Tulsa. They earned the #2 seed in the C-USA tourney and could potentially meet UAB in the semis. They had close losses to Kansas, Syracuse, Gonzaga and Tennessee. Other than UAB, not many top 50 wins. Memphis is on the right side of the bubble for now and a trip to the C-USA final might put them in lock status.

UAB (23-7 (11-5) RPI:40) two big losses last week to Memphis and UTEP hurt their chances. But if UAB can get to the semis of the C-USA tourney and get another shot at Memphis, it put them back into the hunt. UAB has two good wins, beating Butler and Marshall, but a loss to Virginia seems worse after the Cavs have lost 8 straight games.

Marshall (23-8 (11-5) RPI:62) why is Marshall here you ask? They finished conference play with 11 wins. They have a road win over UAB, but lost their only meetings with Memphis and UTEP. Marshall could play themselves in if they get a semifinals rematch with UTEP. But realistically they need to win the C-USA tournament. Their worst lost is a novemeber loss to UNC.

Utah State (25-6 (14-2) RPI:32) Utah State has the second longest win streak in the country behind Butler. They have a very impressive win over BYU. They split with NMST and swept Nevada in WAC play. They will play Boise State in the first round of the WAC tourney on Wednesday. They may need to get to the final of the WAC tournament to get an at large bid.

Saint Mary's (25-5 (11-3) RPI:43) deja vu? Saint Marys was in this same position a year ago. WCC Championship vs Gonzaga. Win and your in, lose and sweat on selection Sunday. They have wins over fellow bubble teams SDST and Utah St, but were swept by Gonzaga. A third loss to the Zags may keep Saint Mary's out because they won't have a signature win.

Nevada (19-11 (11-5) RPI:64) riding a 3 game win streak entering the WAC tourney has Nevada back in the discussion. The #2 seed in the WAC tournament, the Wolfpack will play San Jose State on Wednesday. They swept New Mexico State but were swept by Utah State and also have a bad loss to Hawaii. Nevada would have to win the WAC tourney to get in.

My Favorite Time of the Year

Its almost March. What does that mean? Shamrock Shuttle? Duke's birthday? Nope. It means conference tournament time. 33 of 34 conferences have tournaments to determine who gets an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. (The Ivy League is the only conference that does not have a tournament) I decided to pick who I think will win the conference tournaments. If you wanna see the current standings, go here

America East: Stony Brook over Maine
Atlantic 10: Xavier over Richmond
ACC: Duke over Maryland
Atlantic Sun: Campbell over Belmont
Big 12: Kansas over Texas
Big East: Syracuse over Pittsburgh
Big Sky: Northern Colorado over Weber State
Big South: Coastal Carolina over Winthrop
Big Ten: Michigan State over Ohio State
Big West: Pacific over UCSB
CAA: Old Dominion over William & Mary
Conference USA: Memphis over Marshall
Horizon: Butler over Cleveland State
Ivy: Cornell
MAAC: Siena over Fairfield
MAC: Akron over Kent State
MEAC: Morgan State over South Carolina State
Missouri Valley: Northern Iowa over Illinois State
Mountain West: New Mexico over San Diego State
NEC: Robert Morris over Quinnipiac
Ohio Valley: Murray State over Eastern Kentucky
Pac 10: Washington over Arizona State
Patriot: Lafayette over Lehigh
SEC: Kentucky over Vanderbilt
So Con: College of Charleston over Wofford
Southland: Sam Houston State over Southeastern Louisiana
SWAC: Jackson State over Alabama State
Summitt: IUPUI over Oakland
Sun Belt: North Texas over Troy
West Coast: Gonzaga over Saint Mary's
WAC: Utah State over Louisiana Tech

What the Conferences Should Do

There is a lot of talk about college conference expansion. The Big Ten wants to add a 12th team. The Pac 10 wants to get to 12 also. But if both succeed, how will the conferences look? Will it be like 2005 when the ACC took Miami, Virginia Tech and Boston College? Which forced the Big East to recruit 5 Conference USA schools and basically made Conference USA give up 8 schools and recruit from the WAC and MAC. Rumors are the Big Ten is targeting Pittsburgh, Notre Dame, Missouri, Syracuse and for some reason Texas. The Pac 10 could look to either the WAC or Mountain West for new teams. That being the case, i've decided to blog about who I think the conference should add and why and how the conferences will look after all this movement.

The Big Ten

Notre Dame makes sense. They are based in Indiana, which is the heart of Big Ten country. They already play Michigan, Michigan State and Purdue in football and being an independent, it wouldn't force a conference reshuffeling like we saw 5 years ago. But Notre Dame wants to remain independent because they believe they can make more money. Not seeeing the big picture, Notre Dame can't recruit 5 star kids anymore and joining the Big Ten would certainly get them back to relevancy again. I doubt Pitt or Syracuse would leave the Big East. Missouri is interesting because its a new market. Texas will not leave the Big 12. The team I think should go to the Big Ten, Iowa State. They already have a rival in Iowa and geographicaly it makes sense. Here is how the Big Ten would look

Big Ten West
Iowa, Iowa State, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Northwestern

Big Ten East
Penn State, Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State, Indiana, Purdue

The Pac 10

They feel like their conference has become irrelevant in football because they don't have the money making conference championship game like the ACC and SEC. By adding two more schools, they can get to twelve and have the game. Seeing as how they have two rival schools close to each other, there are 3 possible combinations for the Pac 10 to go after. Utah and BYU, Idaho and Boise State and Nevada and UNLV. I guess a fourth possibility would be New Mexico and New Mexico State. Boise State would be perfect for football because of how good they have been the last 10 years. Idaho won a bowl game this year and being close to Washington and Oregon makes them an interesting thought. BYU and Utah are another possibility, but being so far from the other Pac 10 schools and that they fit in better in the Mountain West would make them tough to get. The New Mexico schools would be interesting additions being near Arizona, but I doubt it. The schools the make the most sense would be Nevada and UNLV. Both are decent in both sports, and geographically are close to the Arizona schools and the LA schools. Here is how the Pac 10 would look

Pac 10 North
Oregon, Oregon State, Washington, Washington State, Stanford, California

Pac 10 South
UCLA, USC, Arizona, Arizona State, Nevada, UNLV

Let's say this happened. The Big 12 would need one more team. I see them going after Colorado State from the Mountain West or maybe Utah State from the WAC. Let's say they get Colorado State. The Mountain West would be down to 7 teams. I say Utah State jumps to the Mountain West to replace Colorado State to put them back at 8. Now the WAC lost two teams and they are down to 7. I see them getting North Texas from the Sun Belt to make 8. So here is how the new conferences would look

Big 12 North
Colorado, Colorado State, Nebraska, Kansas, Kansas State, Missouri

Big 12 South
Texas, Texas Tech, Texas A&M, Baylor, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State

Mountain West
BYU, Utah, Utah State, New Mexico, San Diego State, Wyoming, Air Force, TCU

WAC
Hawaii, Boise State, Idaho, Fresno State, San Jose State, New Mexico State, Louisiana Tech, North Texas

Done with the sickness

Well, the first month of 2010 has come and gone. It went pretty fast. I'm 29 now and it feels no different. Had a great birthday at the Ashburner. But since then, i've been held hostage by a cold. Sinuses bothering me, sore throat, coughing and so forth. I'm about 95% back to full health. I still have a little clogage in my right ear, but other than that i'm good. I'm actually really excited about this weekend's Penn State trip. It will be the first time i've been out socially since my birthday. Between the cold and the 12 inches of snow we got, I haven't really gone out other than grocery shopping.

In other news:

I still haven't heard back about that job I applied for. It's been 3 1/2 weeks. I'm really hoping to hear back from them because i'm actually qualified to do the job. Its not like there are a lot of computer operator jobs out there.

I'll be at Penn State from Friday until Monday. Its one of two places I make a point to go to every year. (the Poconos is the other)

The Saints making the Super Bowl means only 4 teams and never played in the Super Bowl
(Lions, Browns, Texans, Jaguars)

Happy President's Day everyone

A Flawed System

I was one of the many millions of people to watch the NFC Championship game on Sunday. It was the highest rated game since 1982's "the catch" featuring San Francisco vs Dallas. We all know Brett Favre threw a pick in the final seconds which prevented the Vikings from a potential FG for the win. The Saints drove for the game winning FG in overtime. But I feel this system is flawed.

In baseball, basketball and hockey, each team will get at least one possession. Each team gets an equal shot at winning the game. Why is the NFL the only league that does not allow a team a chance to win. Their overtime format is a joke. Basically, the team that wins the coin toss has the ultimate advantage because they can drive downfield and score and shut the other team out by not allowing them a chance. The NFL needs to change the format of overtime to allow each team 1 possession in OT. Not from the 25 like in college, but a full field drive. If you get first ball and score, you have to stop the other team from scoring. Its more fair and it would make for a better game. But you know Roger Goodell won't change the rules. For the same reasons Bug Selig refuses to change around baseball. Because they believe their sports are fine and do not need to be fixed. Um, you guys are wrong. Is it fair the Vikings lose the NFC Championship without a fair chance to tie or win the game?

Some will say that the D should have stepped up. They did. The refs made two horrible calls in OT. First, Pierre Thomas' first down rush. The ball never crossed the first down marker, so how can you call it a first down? Secondly, the absolutely awful pass interference call on a clearly uncatchable ball. I think that is pretty self-explanitory. Now the Vikings could have avoided all this by not having 12 guys in the huddle on 3rd and 10 with 19 seconds left. It forced Favre to throw, and you just knew that something like that would happen. I would have run the ball in the hopes that even if you don't get in FG range, it runs the clock down and you try a hail mary pass. Worst case, OT. Best case, pass interference or a TD catch.

So I guess we are in for another summer of will he or won't he. I hope whatever he decides, he does it quickly and doesn't Mariotti it. Cause I can't take another summer of this. If he returns, the Vikings are the NFC favorites, if he retires, he is going out after one of the best years of his career.

Update

What's going on with me? Well i'll be happy to tell you.

I'm spending the week at my parent's house. I'll be back in Philly on Friday night.

I applied for a job in Moorestown, NJ. I heard from Tom its a competitor of his in merchant services industry. Wish me luck.

I turn 29 on Saturday. Looking forward to going out and having a good time.

As of tonight, all of my bills are paid until February.

Ed has booked the rooms in State College. The trip is 3 weeks from Friday.

I didn't do too well with my picks for the first weekend (0-4)

The Chargers, my pick to win the Super Bowl, lost thanks to the kicker who helped me win my championship.

I decided that there will be a Cash 11 this summer, regardless of my financial situation.

I have been to Press at least one night each of the last two weeks. I don't think i've done that since 2008.

I guess that is all. Having re-disposed of the monster, exit our hero stage left.

NFL Playoff Predictions

Earlier this season, I made my NFL picks. Let's just say I hit on some and missed on a few more. Although my Super Bowl pick is still alive(San Diego), my NFC team, Atlanta, did not make the playoffs. Of the 12 playoff teams, I had 7 right(4 AFC, 3 NFC). But thats the past, lets talk about the present. This is how I see the playoffs going down.

AFC

Cincinnati over NY Jets
New England over Baltimore

Indianapolis over Cincinnati
San Diego over New England

San Diego over Indianapolis

NFC

Philadelphia over Dallas
Green Bay over Arizona

Philadelphia over New Orleans
Minnesota over Green Bay

Minnesota over Philadelphia

Super Bowl XLIV
San Diego over Minnesota