Finally a College Football Coach says it...

As a Bears fan, I remember Mike Ditka berating Jim Harbaugh on the sidelines after an audible turned into an interception that was returned by the Vikings for a touchdown. As a USC fan, I remember Jim Harbaugh calling out Pete Carroll when he got the Stanford job. I never did care for him all that much until yesterday when I read his thoughts on the state of college football today (thanks to the BCS).

"Somebody really ought to take notice of this stuff. You have eight or nine wins and so you're a great football team? Well, what if you played four patsies in your non-conference and then you only won half your conference games and so you get to go play in the Alamo Bowl and everyone says you're a great team. That's what happens … There's no question that the Pac-10 doesn't get that respect for playing teams out of conference of like caliber. If that is the way the game is set up now about it's all going off of computer rankings and all won-loss record, maybe we should be playing five non-conference games, so everybody is 9-2 and then the strength of schedule numbers look really good. Then, the BCS ranking spits out two Pac-10 teams for BCS bowls. To me, college football is not one team drubbing another team, because this team needs a lot of money and this team knows it can get a win to increase their BCS standings. Drub. Drub. Drub. Drub. Then, you still have that fan base who think it's enough of an experience, but they're getting cheated and we're kinda cheating the game."

It was almost like he was inside my mind repeating exactly what I have been saying to the numerous people who would listen to me over the last 5 years. Now as a USC fan I believe in playing anyone, anytime, anywhere. The BCS computers on the other hand would rather watch Florida beat The Citadel in November. Just keep this thought in your mind when the SEC and Big 12 start beating up 1-AA teams at home to start the season. It's embarrassing that a school that won the National Championship last year will start the season with 1-AA Charleston Southern (not to mention mixing in Florida International and Troy as well). As a college football fan, keep in mind how exciting it is to see the powerhouse programs play each other during the season. Isn't that better and more of an indication of how "good" a team is rather than watching Texas Tech beat up Eastern Washington by 60 points? Thank you Coach Harbaugh for telling the truth of what goes on in college football. I just hope some media members were paying attention.

Sushi and Football...that's what the PAC-10 does!

I will admit I stole these from Ted Miller at ESPN.com, but I thought these are facts that should be out there before all the talking heads and idiots bash the PAC-10 before the season starts. Check these out:

Quick facts from the Pac-10 before media day begins. Bet some of these surprise some folks:

• The Pac-10 has a winning record vs. every BCS conference since 2000. Yes, even that one down yonder.
• The Pac-10 is 9-2 in BCS bowls since 2000.
• The Pac-10 has the highest all-time bowl game winning percentage of all FBS conferences.*

Moreover, as for this season, of the automatic qualifying BCS conferences:

• The Pac-10 has the most teams -- six -- without any FCS (I-AA) opponents.
• The Pac-10 plays the lowest percentage (13 percent) of nonconference games against FCS foes.
• The Pac-10 plays the highest percentage of nonconference games (50 percent) games BCS opponents.

*Based on current conference membership.

I cant wait until the season starts and the PAC-10 doesn't get any respect again because people aren't smart enough to figure out that the SEC and Big 12 will have better overall records based off scheduling adn scheduling alone. The PAC-10 will get kicked in the balls for the umpteenth season in a row until the bowls come around and people realize that they play football on the West Coast.

What team will sign Michael Vick?

Michael Vick is out of prison and free to sign with any NFL team that wants him. He still hasn't cleared all the hurdles that NFL Commissioner Roger Goddell has put in front of him in order to play but he should be eligible sometime around Week 4. I keep hearing the experts and pundits arguing over which team would be best for Vick. He is now 28 and hasn't thrown a pass in 2 years. He had issues with his accuracy (54% career completion percentage) and it is not certain that any NFL team would want him as a QB anymore. Most teams are probably discussing him as a Wildcat type that would run more than throw.

The question Vick must answer is, "What is more important, being in the NFL now or as a QB in the future?" So what Vick needs more than anything else is an opportunity to play. He needs to get reps in order to get back to where he was prior to his prison sentence. No NFL team will offer him the keys to the offense and install him as the centerpiece on offense right now. In my opinion, Vick shouldn't even consider the NFL. He needs to sign with the USFL and play QB if he is serious about his future. The USFL would love this at it would bring unprecedented exposure to their new league. The league will be over by Thanksgiving which still gives Vick an opportunity to join an NFL team for the last month. This is the best opportunity for him, lets hope he makes the right decision.

Does Artest make Lakers better?

While reading the latest issue of Sports Illustrated I came across an article that proclaimed that the Lakers were going to be better next year than this year because of the recent signing of Ron Artest. Now Artest would probably beat Trevor Ariza in a one-on-one contest, but that isn't what we are talking about here. In a team concept, which one makes the Lakers better? Can Artest adjust to being a complimentary piece and defer in crucial times to Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol. Only time will tell but for now we need to dive into the numbers because the numbers never lie.

Artest's stats as a starter in 2008 - 17.9 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 3.5 apg, 1.5 spg, 0.41 bpg.
Ariza's stats as a starter in 2008 -10.2 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 1.3 apg, 1.95 spg, 0.26 bpg.

Just looking at those numbers it should be a slam dunk that Artest makes the Lakers better. As Lee Corso would say, "Not so fast my friend". Artest should have the statistical advantage since he played more minutes and didn't have the competition for shots that Ariza did. The problem for Artest as a Laker is that he will be the 3rd option at best with Bryant and Gasol already entrenched as the stars of the team. In order to make the Lakers better he will have to be as efficient or more efficent than Ariza was. More stats:

Artest shot 39.9% FG, 40.0% 3FG, 79.2 FT% with 2.0 turnovers as a starter.
Ariza shot 47.8% FG, 28% 3FG, 79.4 FT% with 0.9 turnovers as a starter.

Ariza's playoff numbers also need to be pointed out. In 23 playoff games he averaged 11.3 ppg while shooting 49.7% FG and 47.6% 3FG. While Artest appears to be the better 3 point shooter based on his regular season stats, the rest of his offense repertoire is awful. It is hard for a forward to shot less than 40% from the field. A major part of the success of the Lakers is the high efficiency on offense and Ariza was a big part of that. One of my favorite stats is Points Per Shot (PPS). This stat brings points scored, FG%, 3 pointers, and free throws into one giant ball and shows how many shots it takes someone to score 1 point. The higher the number, the more efficient the player.

Artest 1.126
Ariza 1.214
Bryant 1.282
Gasol 1.465
Bynum 1.430
Odom 1.255

Artest may score more points than Ariza but he takes more shots and possessions to do so. Is it really a good thing for the Lakers to be taking away shots from Gasol, Bryant, Bynum, and Odom? That answer is clearly NO and it is the reason why Artest doesn't make the Lakers better. I haven't even discussed the fact that Ariza is 5 years younger or that Artest is a lunatic. The survey says.....XXX!

The Last 300 game winner?

Tonight Randy Johnson goes for win #300 against the worst team in baseball, The Washington Nationals. Lets hope he gets it done and becomes the 24th and most likely last 300 game winner in baseball history. He is a mortal lock for the Hall of Fame with 5 Cy Young's and 2 no-hitters. He is also second on the all-time strikeout list with 4,843 so this win won't put him over the top. The question is, will there be a 25th member of the 300 win club? I say no. This is it people. The last one will be The Big Unit. Cherish it and understand its significance. With today's constant watching of pitch counts and innings limits, pitchers don't stay in the game long enough to get high win totals. Who do you think will be the next 300 game winner? I say no one. Here are the active win leaders and their ages:

250 - Jamie Moyer (46)
220 - Andy Pettite (37)
214 - Pedro Martinez (37)
210 - John Smoltz (42)
184 - Tim Wakefield (42)
153 - Bartolo Colon (36)
151 - Livan Hernandez (34)

So that exercise doesn't bring us any closer to a 300 game winner. Let's look at the top pitchers in the game:

140 - Roy Halladay (32)
122 - C.C. Sabathia (28)
116 - Johan Santana (30)
99 - Carlos Zambrano (28)
94 - Josh Beckett (28)

Not one pitcher under 25 has 54 career wins. Its looking like Randy Johnson is the last one. Let me know who you think will be next.

Manny and the Minors

Manny Ramirez will reportedly be sent to the minors leagues for a week to 10 days just prior to his return from his 50 game suspension for violating MLB's drug policy. He is eligible to return to the Dodgers on July 3rd. My question is, "Why is he allowed to play in the minors for 7-10 days while he is under suspension?" When a minor league player is suspended for 50 games he isn't eligible to play in the minors until the 50 games are up. If a player is AAA is suspended he cant play in A ball to get ready to return to AAA. Major and Minor Leagues all fall under the same MLB umbrella. Manny should be allowed to report to the minors on July 3rd and not before. MLB needs to take a stance on this and make sure that Manny doesn't return to play in any games until July 3rd. Do the right thing MLB!

Time for LeBron to grow up

After failing to get to the NBA Finals by losing to the Orlando Magic, LeBron James ran away from congratulating his opponents and talking to the media. I understand that people that are ultra-competitive hate to lose. But at this point, he should understand his responsibility and stand up at the microphone and answer the media questions. He only comes off as a spoiled brat that refuses to take the good with the bad.

LeBron finally answered some questions from the media on Sunday and had this to say,

"It’s hard for me to congratulate somebody after you just lose to them. I’m a winner. It’s not being a poor sport or anything like that. If somebody beats you up, you’re not going to congratulate them. That doesn’t make sense to me. I’m a competitor. That's what I do. It doesn't make sense for me to go over and shake somebody's hand."

So much for good sportsmanship. While you are upset you lost, it doesn't make you more of a loser if you show some maturity and congratulate the victor. If his actions and words up to that point weren't bad enough, he continued his lack of class by wearing a New York Yankee hat while talking to the media on Sunday. While the Yankees may be his favorite team, he needs to understand that everyone in Cleveland is fearful of him leaving for the Knicks after next season. It is everyone in Cleveland's worst nightmare and after a disappointing finish to a season where everyone thought the Cavs were headed to the NBA Finals LeBron just kicks the city in the gut by wearing a Yankee hat. Really, LeBron? Time to be a man and understand how to act like one.