GT Coaching Rumors

So I was going to make a post about candidates for the Georgia Tech Football job, but now I am just sick of all the rumors. A couple of days ago Will Muschamp was the favorite to take the job and message board rumors put the probability of him being the next coach at 80%. Then he was apparently rejected by the the Board due to his ties with the University of Georgia. If that is the real reason I don't know what to think. Last week we had the rumors that Rick Neuheisel was going to get the job - thankfully this hasn't happened. Charlie Strong, Chris Hatcher, and Randy Edsall are reported to have interviewed. Oh yeah - Jimbo Fisher and Bobby Petrino were mentioned as well. Yesterday I even saw a rumor mentioning Kentucky offensive coordinator Joker Phillips as a candidate.

Today, Paul Johnson is on campus interviewing according to Tony Barnhart at the AJC. However, some rumors are floating around that he is out and is going to take the SMU job (he also interviewed at Duke). Barnhart also says that Johnson may not take the job if offered and that if he does not Jon Tenuta is the leading candidate. But then another rumor says that Hatcher will again be considered.

I know I missed some of the "candidates" but this is all I can remember. Unfortunately Paul Johnson's agent isn't in the office today so I can't ask him what is going on. Maybe I should just wait until the official announcement so I don't drive myself crazy.

Dear Chan,

Adios.

Press conference at 2:00 pm today per 790 The Zone. It goes without saying that those at CanChan.com are quite happy right now.


Sincerely,
Peter Pan Complex

Weekend Preview 11/9-11/11

Movie

Movies
Lions for Lambs
Tom Cruise, Robert Redford, and Meryl Streep star in a movie that Fox News, you know, "fair and balanced," says could end their careers due to its extreme leftism. As they say, its a "Ticking TOM Bomb," get it? The tagline is also very creative and fresh: "If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything." As a bleeding heart liberal, this is sad. I'll pass.

Fred Claus
Does Vince Vaughn have a gambling problem? Why would he subject himself to this film? Looks like a decent cast, but I'm always wary of Christmas films, ever since Christmas Slay.

Before The Devil Knows You're Dead (out in Atlanta this week)
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke, Albert Finney, Sidney Lumet directing. It's about 2 brothers robbing their parents. Sounds messed up, but good.

Music
Big night on Austin City Limits, as Arcade Fire performs. This is two solid weeks in a row for ACL, which is really one of the most underrated programs on television, and constantly fuels my desire to move to Austin.

Saturday Night Live this week has a musical flavor, as Jon Bon Jovi, yes JBJ himself, will be the host, and the Foo Fighters will be the musical guest. (Re-run from 10/13).

College Football
Arkansas at #24 Tennessee
Can the Vols horrible run defense shut down the nation's best player?

Illinois at #1 Ohio State
Can the Fightin' Zooks take down the Bucks?

#18 Auburn at #10 Georgia
The South's longest continual rivalry continues, with the road team being the dominant force in the series year in and year out.

Florida State at #11 Virginia Tech
We'll see if the Noles really are back this week.

NBA (Friday night)
Hawks at Celtics
The young Hawks get a huge road test, as their initial tough gauntlet continues.

Suns at Heat
The Suns should rebound against an aging Heat squad.

College Basketball
The season kicks off tonight with 10 of the top 25 in action, and 13 ACC and SEC teams in action. Check back tomorrow for summaries of the blow outs.

NFL
Lots of divisional match ups this weekend.

Dallas at NY Giants
This should be a good test for both teams. The Cowboys will need to protect Romo against a tough front four for the Giants.

Buffalo at Miami
Do the Dolphins scratch into the win column? Ms. Cleo Lemon says no.

Jacksonville at Tennessee
Take the under, even if it's 10.

Cincinnati at Baltimore
Can even Steve McNair pass against the vaunted Bengals secondary?

Miserable Night on the Flats

I was looking forward to the Georgia Tech vs. Virginia Tech game coming into tonight. I mean, Thursday night games in Atlanta are always great. Big Boi from Outkast was playing halftime, and I thought GT had a chance. Boy was I wrong.

The game got off to a great start, when 6 seconds into the game GT had to call a timeout before even running a play. Even if your first few plays aren't scripted you would think you could figure out something to run. I guess there was a glimmer of hope when GT took the lead 3-0, but things only got worse from there. GT threw 5 interceptions, had 1 fumble, missed a wide open James Johnson who could have crawled into the endzone, the defensive backs gave 10 yard cushions on 3rd and 4, and we were crushed. The one thing on offense that was actually working was James Dwyer, and for some reason after a few good carries he was inexplicably not in the game.

On top of that the speaker set up for the halftime show was horrible. I did not hear one word come from Big Boi's mouth.

The only positive the whole night was the fact that traffic wasn't bad since everyone left early. Fortunately, the 1st preseason basketball game is tomorrow night.

UGA Storming the Field

How does UGA storming the field after their 1st touchdown against Florida reflect on the program and Mark Richt? I know there are some mixed feelings on this one. Many Georgia Tech fans over at the Hive are more than ticked. Richt is being called things such as classless, a loser, and a jerk. Fans on some SEC boards weren't happy about the action either, but the condemnation seems to be much less severe. At the AJC, rivals SEC coaches have weighed in on the tactic as well. The responses are mixed, but the majority seem to say it is probably not something they would do, but they don't seem to have a huge problem with the move.

This article condemns Richt, but my take is different. Even as a Georgia Tech fan, I find Richt hard to dislike and on the 2 occasions I have met I have been quite impressed. I can't say that I think his move would be right in all situations. But with a team that has lost 15 of 17 to an opponent that hasn't always had better talent, I do at least understand his thinking. The team has looked tight in the past against Florida and they most definitely did not on Saturday night. Plain and simple - the ploy worked and I don't have a problem with it.

Edited to add: I now feel like my argument is validated because Jason Whitlock disagrees with me.

Must See DIII Football Action

With 2 seconds to go in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference battle between Millsaps College and the Trinity (TX), it looked like Millsaps had the game wrapped up. However, 61 yards and 15 laterals later, Trinity came out victorious. Just watch this!



CrispAds Blog Ads

Figuring out the SEC East

So far this season, the SEC East has been extremely balanced, with all six teams within one game of each other. Florida Georgia, and South Carolina lead the way at 3-2, while Tennessee and Kentucky sit at 2-2, and Vanderbilt is at 2-3. Let's predict the standings at the end of the year.

1. Florida

The Gators only losses in the conference have been to SEC West foes Auburn and LSU. The Gators must give the Dawgs their annual whoopin this weekend in Jacksonville, and then beat USC in Columbia in 3 weeks to finish the slate. Prediction: Finish 6-2, win SEC East.

2. South Carolina

The Gamecocks struggled this weekend in losing to Vanderbilt, and seem to have lost any chance at sharing the Eastern division title as well. They have three tough games left, against disappointing Tennessee and Arkansas, and then hosting the Gators. Prediction: Finish 5-3, 2nd in SEC East.

2. Kentucky

The Wildcats have been the surprise team in the league this season. Their toughest games are behind them in Florida and LSU, but still must travel to Athens to take on Georgia. However, for the Cats, Tennessee comes to Commonwealth Stadium this year. Prediction: Finish 5-3, 2nd in SEC East.

4. Georgia

Georgia must go to Jacksonville this weekend for the Cocktail Party, and then host Auburn and Kentucky to end the SEC schedule. They'll split the last two games and end up with a .500 record in the league. Prediction: Finish 4-4, 4th in SEC East.

4. Tennessee

The Vols will split the remainder of their games, winning against Arkansas and Vandy, but losing to USC and Kentucky. They will finish 7-5 overall, leading to the end of the Fulmer era in Knoxville. Prediction: Finish 4-4, 4th in SEC East.

6. Vanderbilt

Every year Vandy has one big upset, and this year's victim was USC. Georgia almost was the first victim the previous week, but a late fumble ended the 'Dores chances of that one. It looks like they'll end the year with the 2 wins they currently have, as they play Florida, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Prediction: 2-6, 6th in SEC East.

Games to Watch this Weekend (short version)

Since the majority of us are attending a wedding this weekend, the weekend preview will be pretty brief.

Army @ Georgia Tech (12:00, Lincoln Financial)
It's homecoming on the flats. Army comes in with losses to Akron, Wake, BC, and Central Michigan. The Jackets should win and win big.

Tennessee @ Alabama (12:30, Lincoln Financial)
Not sure what to think of this one. I think I have to go with Tennessee because Alabama has not been that impressive.

Miami @ Florida State (3:30, ABC)
Never mind this isn't a big game anymore.

Florida @ Kentucky (3:30, CBS)
Kentucky pulled off the huge upset last week and Florida has lost 2 in row. Sorry Kige, but I have to go with the Gators.

USC @ Notre Dame (3:30, NBC)
USC had a rough plane ride, but won't have a rough game. Despite Digger's speech at the pep rally it will be USC big.

Auburn @ LSU (9:00, ESPN)
Auburn can't score, LSU's defense is good, LSU will be mad, LSU is still the best team in the country, and Death Valley at night. All of this equals a victory for LSU.

Indians @ Red Sox(Saturday 8:00, Fox) (same on Sunday if needed)
Indians up 3-2 and I have to go with Carmona over Schilling tonight. Cleveland v. Colorado in the World Series.

New England @ Miami (1:00, CBS)
You know 1 team is good and 1 team is bad when there is a 16+ point spread in an NFL game. New England by a big number.

Atlanta @ New Orleans (1:00, Fox)
A true battle of ineptitude. The Falcons made a change at QB, but Leftwich was awful last time he played. Harrington hasn't been great, but he hasn't been the main problem. The Saints are great, but the Falcons are worse. Saints win.

Indianapolis @ Jacksonville (8:00 Monday, ESPN)
Jacksonville has been pretty good of late, but I still have to go with the champs.

INTENSITY

If this doesn't make you want to run through a wall, I don't know what will.



And, yes, the quarterback is Chad Henne, of those soon to be Big 10 champs, the Wolverines of UM.

Down Go the Bulls

Well, so much for that argument. South Florida was defeated by dream-buster Rutgers last night, 30-27. The Scarlet Knights of the Wasteland rode their stud Ray Rice for 181 yards on 39 carries, pounding the Bull defense all night. Rutgers also used two special teams fakes, a punt and field goal, to keep drives alive and gain scores.

Whose up for #2 next week? Idle Boston College? Next Thursday night in Blacksburg could be their downfall, and keep the streak of #2 teams losing continuing...

October 18th- #2 South Florida, loses to Rutgers
October 13th- #2 Cal, loses to Oregon State
October 6th- #2 USC, loses to Stanford

Notre Dame QB Number 3

I can honestly say that I have never been upset when Notre Dame loses, which is probably why I find humor in this video. It is good to see they have made a QB change for this weekend's game against USC. I am sure it is going to make to make a huge difference. At least Evan Sharpley can't be worse than Clausen #3 and someone who transfers after 1 game.

Just a few of the stellar stats for the year:
- Rushing Offense: 32.1 ypg (120 of 120)
- Passing Offense: 158.7 ypg (111 of 120)
- Scoring Offense: 11.4 ppg (119 of 120)
- 3rd Down Conversion: 26.1% (118 of 120)
- 1st Downs Per Game: 12.6 (119 of 120)

All of this brought to you by the offensive genius Charlie Weis. Tyrone Willingham might be smiling bigger than me right about now.

Judging the BCS Contenders

Here we are at the half-way mark of the college football season, and the first BCS standings have been released. Teams that no one would have predicted as being national title contenders have stormed to the front of the standings. Let's see how they stack up now, and the rest of the year:

Ohio State
Challenges: The Buckeyes have the meat of the Big Ten schedule remaining, with visits to Penn State and Michigan, and hosting Illinois and Wisconsin, all teams who have been ranked this season.

Computers: The computer rankings figure to rise, where the Buckeyes are 5th in the composite standings on the intial release.

Odds: In this season, you never know what can happen on any Saturday, but if the offense can be as consistent as it has been all season and support the national championship-caliber defense, the Buckeyes are the leaders in my opinion. 3-1


South Florida
Challenges: The Bulls have three major tests remaining, traveling to Rutgers this Thursday, and hosting upstart Cincinnati and disappointing Louisville.

Computers: The leaders of the initial computer rankings with a strong non-conference slate behind them, the Bulls could drop this high ranking, as the Big East is not as strong as initially thought. The schedule remains competitive, but lacks in "big time" opponents.

Odds: Again, another team with a strong defense and, at times, suspect offense. Matt Grothe does an excellent job of leading the team, but is unconventional in his approach at quarterback. If the offense can maintain its solid play to go along with a fast aggressive defense, the Bulls have a good chance of playing for the national championship in only their 7th year of D-I football. 5-1


Boston College
Challenges: The Eagles face the toughest game on their schedule next Thursday night in Blacksburg against Virginia Tech. Dates with Clemson, Florida State, and Miami will be challenges in terms of team speed on the other side of the ball.

Computers: BC was 7th in the intial computer rankings, and that does not look to improve after the game against VT. The ACC has been largely disappointing, with no teams stepping up either inside or outside of the conference. This is an area of concern, and could be the reason the Eagles get passed in the BCS rankings.

Odds: I'm still not sold on this BC team, but once they get past VT next Thursday, the schedule really opens up. I think they are disciplined enough to not beat themselves, which will be key against Clemson, FSU, and Miami. The computer rankings and the lack of strong teams in the ACC will probably be their demise. 10-1

A Day to Wish You Were from Kentucky

Last night, the Commonwealth greeted Billy Clyde Gillispie (how can you not love someone with the middle name Clyde?) like a conquering warrior returning from battle, or more like an emo-male, tired of unrequited love, greeting the drunkest slut in school into their dorm room. Tubby just wouldn't put out like they would have liked.

Today, the Wildcats, with the aid of the all-mighty Letdown Game on their side, defeated the indomitable LSU Bengals of the Bayou. I think this calls for some Ashley Judd.

Basketball Musings (with a little football thrown in)

We are still in the heart of the college football season, but college basketball has now arrived. For people like those of us who went to the Institute it could not come soon enough. I am still not exactly sure what to think about the basketball team this year, but I think they could surprise some people with Lewis Clinch back from his academic snafu.

My rest of the season prognostication for the football team - they will probably beat Virginia Tech to add a glimmer of hope for a strong finish to the season, but then in classic Chan fashion lose at home to North Carolina. They will probably finish the regular season at 7-5 and play in and win some awful bowl game that nobody cares about.

Back to basketball - I miss the days when Midnight Madness was actually televised on a channel that people actually get, instead of ESPNU. I remember many late nights in early 90's having friends over and staying up to watch all the festivities. Maybe we were the only ones watching, but we lived for it.

A few articles to start the season off:

GT Practice Blurb

Matt Causey

ACC Prospectus

Blue Ribbon Preseason Rankings

Multiple links on the ACC from Duke Basketball Report.

Lots of articles on Kentucky and Gillispie - Pat Forde, CNNSI/AP, Lexington Herald-Leader

Zam at USC

Not an article but a plug for a good site on Division 3 hoops.

Games to Watch this Weekend

As Ryan mourns the complete death of the Bowdon dynasty in Tally...

Georgia Tech @ Miami (12:00, ESPN)
They are desperate at the mothership to have to show this match-up. Think low scoring, as both teams have powerful, fast defenses, and offenses that have the potency of an 85 year old heart attack survivor.
Prediction: Miami 17, Georgia Tech 14

LSU @ Kentucky (3:30, CBS)
The Bengals of the Bayou attempt to do what few teams have done this year- survive the let down game. Good thing they have team speed the Falcons are jealous of, and that Andre Woodson had a shaky last game in Columbia against Smelley’s Cocks.
Prediction: LSU 35, Kentucky 17

Boston College @ Notre Dame (3:30, NBC)
The Jesuits from Boston invade the hapless Irish in South Bend. This one could get ugly early, and, even though BC are no track stars, they can run faster than I can, which is about all ND has in the secondary.
Prediction: BC 38, ND 10.

Auburn @ Arkansas (7:45, ESPN)
The night cap to a pretty sad Saturday of football. The Plainsmen have figured some things out on offense, and the defense has been stout all year. Things are not looking good for Houston Nutt in Fayetteville, and they won't get any better this week for the Hogs.
Predition: Auburn 27, Arkansas 17.

New England @ Dallas (4:15, CBS)
Tony Romo was exposed last week by the Buffalo D, just as Eastwood was exposed as being cheap at Tony Roma's in Las Vegas with the french fries. New England keeps working Rodney Harrison back into the equation, and Asante Samuel starts getting more action in the secondary as well. Dallas has a pass defense that adds Terrence Newman this week, but it won't help.
Prediction: New England 31, Dallas 21.

NY Giants @ Atlanta (Monday Night, ESPN)
I'm sure the exec's from ESPN wish they had this one back. Prediction: Giants 21, 'Coons 10.