Green Bay Packer Playoff Scenarios

There are 5 scenarios listed below, in order of probability.

1. GB win @ CHI + NYG loss or tie @ WAS + ATL loss or tie @ PHI.
2. GB win @ CHI + NYG loss or tie @ WAS + CAR loss or tie @ NO.
3. GB win @ CHI + NYG loss or tie @ WAS + STL loss or tie @ MIN.
4. GB tie @ CHI + NYG loss @ WAS + STL loss @ MIN + (ATL loss or tie @ PHI OR CAR loss or tie @ NO).
   
   ...and the craziest scenario ever conceived, plus the only scenario possible should the Giants win on Saturday night:
   
   
5. GB win @ CHI + NYG win @ WAS + CAR loss @ NO + STL loss @ MIN + DAL loss vs. DET + IND loss vs. MIA + SD loss vs. ARI + SF win @ DEN + SEA win @ TB + HOU loss vs. CLE (Should GB and NYG win, the results to the other 8 games listed above must ALL occur, allowing GB to clinch the #6 seed over NYG based on strength of victory tiebreaker.)

Bottom line: 'Hail to the Redskins' on Saturday night, then root for the Eagles, Saints, and Vikings (surely one of those teams will win) Sunday afternoon, and GO PACK GO on Sunday night football. The Giants are pathetic, the Pack's defense has stepped up, the Bears will rest their starters since they have clinched home field advantage throughout the playoffs, and the Eagles and Saints will most likely beat their opponents. We can do this!!

It's going to happen, the Packers will make the playoffs!!!

Time to give the Beavers some more love

The Oregon State Beavers, that is.

After watching today's Sun Bowl between #25 Oregon State and #38 Missouri, sign me up as a fan of the Beavers. My predicted upset over USC earlier this year also plays a factor in this decision. However it mainly took one play from today's game for me to become a fan. Oregon State was not dominant today by any means, in fact they only won by a point. Rather, it is how they won.

Down by 14 points in the second half, the Beavers rallied back at the end of the game. With 0:21 left on the clock, down 38-31, Oregon State passed for a touchdown to make the score 38-37. A probable extra point would tie the game and most likely send it into overtime. It was then that head coach Mike Riley showed some real guts and faith in his football team and unbelievably went for a 2-point conversion, and thus the lead. With Missouri on their heels, expecting an extra point, Coach Riley put the game in the hands of his offensive line by going up the middle with the halfback.

Running back Yvenson Bernard crossed the end zone line for a successful conversion and a 39-38 lead. Missouri had about 15 seconds for a quick score, but their drive was unsuccessful as time ran out near mid-field. Truly this was the gutsiest college football play I have seen this season. Heck, I would not have even tried that on PS2! Furthermore, this amazing play capped off what has thus far been the most exciting bowl game of the season (note: the Houston/South Carolina Liberty Bowl has been pretty exciting as well through halftime). It's one of the plays where hindsight shows the coach is gutsy if it works, and an idiot if it doesn't.

All that matters for me, and Oregon State for that matter, is that Coach Riley was gutsy and I am now a fan of their team. Kudos to the Beavers!

GONZAGA vs. DUKE TONIGHT!!!

My favorite college basketball team (Gonzaga) vs. the team I despise the most (Duke). I am not sure why, but this game is being played at Madison Square Garden in NYC. I guess neither team wanted to play a true road game against the other. Makes sense, as both teams have the most dominating home-court advantages in college basketball. Not only am I looking forward to this matchup because it's on national television (ESPN2, 9PM), but this is also the first-ever matchup between the schools.

I have been waiting for this game for a long time. I hate Duke and I hope the Zags rip them apart. Look for a 80-75 type game, hopefully with Gonzaga being the victor. The Zags have been impressive thus far, earning a 9-3 record with their most difficult schedule in school history. Duke on the other hand, has looked rather bland at times. This Blue Devil team does not resemblence the powerhouse Duke teams we have grown accustomed too. They look very beatable, but I still expect a close game.

This game is the highlight of a very exciting sports night. Prior to this game at 7PM, also on ESPN2, features #8 Pitt @ #19 Oklahoma State. This will be another excellent game, but look for more of a defensive battle. Probably the first team to 60, if either gets there, will be the victor. I predict a Cowboy victory over the Panthers, as very few come out of Stillwater, OK with the 'W'. Also on tonight at 8PM, we have our 2nd college football bowl game of the season. This too should be a good game as #16-BYU faces #49 Oregon in the Las Vegas Bowl. BYU closed the season on a remarkable run, so look for a Mormon victory in 'Sin City'.

This may be my last post until New Year's Eve, so I will post the upcoming bowl schedule for the next ten days (predicted winners in bold).

Las Vegas Bowl (12/21) - #16 BYU (10-2) vs. #49 Oregon (7-5)
New Orleans Bowl (12/22) - NR Rice (7-5) vs. NR Troy (7-5)
New Mexico Bowl (12/23) - NR New Mexico (6-6) vs. NR San Jose State (8-4)
Papa John's Bowl (12/23) - #28 South Florida (8-4) vs. NR East Carolina (7-5)
Armed Forces Bowl (12/23) - NR Tulsa (8-4) vs. NR Utah (7-5)
Hawaii Bowl (12/24) - #41 Arizona State (7-5) vs. #27 Hawaii (10-3)
Motor City Bowl (12/26) - NR Middle Tennessee (7-5) vs. #39 Central Michigan (9-4)
Emerald Bowl (12/27) - #50 Florida State (6-6) vs #24 UCLA (7-5)
Independence Bowl (12/28) - NR Oklahoma State (6-6) vs. NR Alabama (6-6)
Holiday Bowl (12/28) - #31 California (9-3) vs. #17 Texas A&M (9-3)
Texas Bowl (12/28) - #15 Rutgers (10-2) vs. NR Kansas State (7-5)
Music City Bowl (12/29) - #35 Clemson (8-4) vs. #47 Kentucky (7-5)
Sun Bowl (12/29) - #25 Oregon State (9-4) vs. #38 Missouri (8-4)
Liberty Bowl (12/29) - #33 South Carolina (7-5) vs. #30 Houston (9-3)
Insight Bowl (12/29) - #37 Texas Tech (7-5) vs. #44 Minnesota (6-6)
Champs Sports Bowl (12/29) - #40 Purdue (8-5) vs. #34 Maryland (8-4)
Meineke Car Care Bowl (12/30) - #36 Navy (9-3) vs. #29 Boston College (9-3)
Alamo Bowl (12/30) - #19 Texas (9-3) vs. NR Iowa (6-6)
Chik-Fil-A Bowl (12/30) - #22 Georgia (8-4) vs. #14 Virginia Tech (10-2)
MPC COmputers Bowl (12/31) - #42 Miami, FL (6-6) vs. NR Nevada (8-4)

Winter Solstice Rankings

1. UCLA (10-0, 0-0)
2. North Carolina (9-1, 0-0)
3. Wichita State (9-0, 0-0)
4. Ohio State (10-1, 0-0)
5. Wisconsin (11-1, 0-0)
6. Connecticut (10-0, 0-0)
7. Duke (10-1, 0-0)
8. Pitt (10-1, 0-0)
9. Washington (9-1, 0-0)
10. Florida (10-2, 0-0)
11. Alabama (10-1, 0-0)
12. LSU (6-3, 0-0)
13. Arizona (9-1, 0-0)
14. Texas A&M (9-2, 0-0)
15. Tennessee (9-2, 0-0)
16. Kentucky (8-3, 0-0)
17. Kansas (9-2, 0-0)
18. Nevada (9-1, 0-0)
19. Oklahoma State (11-1, 0-0)
20. Marquette (11-2, 0-0)
21. Butler (11-1, 0-0)
22. Gonzaga (9-3, 0-0)
23. Memphis (8-3, 0-0)
24. Texas (8-2, 0-0)
25. Syracuse (9-2, 0-0)

Rankings are updated through games played on Wednesday, December 20. Next update will be issued (hopefully) on December 31.

Coming soon...

Starting to get back in the groove of things and I hope to return to blogging in the very near future. I will try to get an updated college basketball rankings up either tonight or tomorrow. Stay tuned...

Dec. 4 NCAA Basketball Ranks

College Basketball Rankings (as of 11/27)

1. UCLA (4-0, Last Week:8)
   
2. Ohio State (6-0, LW:4)
3. Alabama (5-0, LW:9)
4. Pitt (6-0, LW:6)
5. North Carolina (4-1, LW:1)
6. Wichita State (4-0, LW:22)
7. Marquette (7-0, LW:25)
8. Washington (5-0, LW:13)
9. Syracuse (7-0, LW:17)
10. Kansas (5-1, LW:7)
11. Florida (6-1, LW:2)
12. Connecticut (5-0, LW:14)
13. Texas A&M (6-0, LW:16)
14. Nevada (5-0, LW:21)
15. LSU (2-1, LW:3)
16. Duke (5-1, LW:11)
17. Georgia Tech (5-1, LW:24)
18. Wisconsin (5-1, LW:5)
19. Butler (7-0, LW: NR)
20. Gonzaga (6-1, LW:31)
21. Xavier (4-1, LW:26)
22. Memphis (3-1, LW:19)
23. Georgetown (4-1, LW:10)
24. Maryland (7-0, LW:50)
25. Illinois (7-0, LW:30)

Updated rankings will be issued by 1:30PM Monday.

Pre-Bowl Rankings

There are two keys to the final BCS Standings released earlier. First and foremost, the voters did NOT want a rematch between Ohio State and Michigan. I have commented on this before, so I will not go into great detail. All I will say is that win or loss, Michigan is the only team in the country that can compete with Ohio State. The Wolverines only lost by 3 points in hostile territory. It is not far fetched to think that Michigan could win on a neutral field. As for Florida, I just can not see them competing with the Buckeyes. That being said, I hope the Ohio State blows out Florida and makes the voters look even more foolish than they already are. Secondly, the voters seem to be lacking any sort of long-term memory. Unfortunately, the "what have you done for me lately" attitude became very evident since the end of Michgan's regular season two weeks ago. By playing later in the season, USC and Florida were able to capitalize on Michigan's off-weeks. It seems I am still in the minority by keeping Michigan at #2, even after their loss to Ohio State. I will have plenty of time to chime in on this debate over the next month.
As for the rest of the standings, there really is not much to talk about due to the limited amount of games last week. Clearly I have a lot less respect for the Auburn Tigers and Cal Bears than the voters do. That is what happens though when I have high expectations. I once thought that both were top-10 teams, maybe even top-5. Then they lost games against inferior teams, so I had to penalize them severely. Rounding out the top 25, UCLA and Oregon State move up after wins against top-20 teams. They replaced Georgia Tech and Hawaii.
Since the first bowl of the season, the Poinsettia Bowl, occurs on December 19, I will go on hiatus from college football this week so I can concentrate on updating my college basketball rankings. I am a couple weeks behind and have some catching up to do. To help myself out, my next college basketball rankings will be dated, such that it will only include results through Monday, November 27. I will then issue a quick update to reflect the results' through Sunday's games. For now, chew on this: