In Walks the Stranger

Trying to catch up and prepare for March Madness, so here is my top 65 through Sunday's games:

1. Ohio State (26-3, 14-1)
2. UCLA (25-3, 14-2)
3. Kansas (25-4, 12-2)
4. Georgetown (22-5, 12-2)
5. Nevada (26-2, 13-1)
6. Memphis (25-3, 14-0)
7. Texas A&M (24-4, 12-2)
8. Wisconsin (26-4, 12-3)
9. Southern Illinois (25-5, 15-3)
10. North Carolina (24-5, 10-4)
11. Florida (25-4, 12-2)
12. Pitt (24-5, 11-3)
13. Oregon (22-7, 10-7)
14. Washington State (23-5, 12-4)
15. USC (21-8, 11-5)
16. Virginia Tech (20-8, 10-4)
17. Texas (21-7, 11-3)
18. Notre Dame (22-6, 10-5)
19. Xavier (21-7, 11-3)
20. Winthrop (25-4, 14-0)
21. UNLV (23-6, 10-4)
22. Maryland (22-7, 8-6)
23. Duke (22-7, 8-6)
24. Vanderbilt (19-9, 9-5)
25. Butler (26-5, 13-3)
26. Air Force (23-6, 10-5)
27. Tennessee (20-9, 8-6)
28. Louisville (21-8, 11-4)
29. Syracuse (20-8, 9-5)
30. Davidson (26-4, 17-1)
31. Michigan State (21-8, 8-6)
32. San Diego State (20-8, 9-5)
33. BYU (21-7, 11-3)
34. Old Dominion (23-7, 15-3)
35. Virginia (19-8, 10-4)
36. Arizona (18-9, 9-7)
37. West Virginia (20-7, 8-6)
38. Kentucky (19-9, 8-6)
39. Marquette (22-8, 9-6)
40. Villanova (19-9, 7-7)
41. Kent State (19-9, 11-3)
42. Texas Tech (18-11, 7-7)
43. LSU (15-13, 4-10)
44. Missouri State (21-9, 12-6)
45. Massachusettes (21-7, 11-3)
46. Vermont (23-6, 15-1)
47. Alabama (19-9, 6-8)
48. Hofstra (22-8, 14-4)
49. Indiana (18-9, 8-6)
50. Boston College (19-9, 10-5)
51. Drexel (22-7, 13-5)
52. Appalachian State (23-6, 14-3)
53. Bucknell (20-8, 13-1)
54. Bradley (20-11, 10-8)
55. Oklahoma State (19-9, 5-8)
56. Virginia Commonwealth (24-6, 16-2)
57. Akron (20-6, 10-3)
58. DePaul (17-12, 8-7)
59. Purdue (18-10, 7-7)
60. Kansas State (20-9, 9-5)
61. Creighton (19-10, 13-5)
62. Northern Iowa (18-12, 9-9)
63. Gonzaga (20-10, 10-3)
64. George Washington (18-8, 9-5)
65. Illinois (21-9, 9-6)

Final NCAA Football Rankings

A lot of things I want to comment on, but now is not the time. Perhaps later, perhaps not. I will say this...everyone in the Big 10 (except Penn State) is OVERRATED. I am guilty of overrating them too. Michigan and Ohio State looked like a complete joke last week, and I will be sure to remember this when I make my 2007 Preseason football rankings later in the year. Kudos to Florida for playing a perfect football game, I still don't like them though.

That's all for now, I can now focus more on college basketball and other matters. It will probably be 7-10 days before I blog again, so catch ya later.

Jan. 8 NCAABB Ranks

2007 Basketball Rankings

Happy 2007 everyone. May the new year bring joy to us all. My first post of the year will be an update to my college basketball rankings. From now on, I will update my rankings every Monday evening, shortly after the polls do. Without further ado, here are the rankings:

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)