A sixteen seed had never beaten a one seed in March Madness. The closest any sixteen seed had come to this impressive feat was in 1996 when Western Carolina lost 73-71 to Purdue. However, on March 16th 2018, history was made when the University of Maryland-Baltimore County beat the first ranked Virginia Cavaliers 74-54.
Virginia came into the tournament with championship aspirations as the number one overall seed. They went 31-2 including a 20-1 record in the ACC, arguably the best conference in the NCAA. They had the top-ranked defense in the country and were led by one of the best young minds in college basketball in head coach Tony Bennett. The Cavaliers came into the game as 20.5-point favorites making it the 2nd biggest upset in NCAA tournament history behind Norfolk State’s upset over Missouri in 2012.
On the other hand, the Retrievers were far less talented than the Cavs and were only in the NCAA tournament due to a last second 3-pointer from senior guard Jairus Lyles in the America East Conference championship over Vermont. As one would expect, the Retrievers came in as heavy underdogs and were projected to lose by 20.5 points according to the sportsbooks in Vegas.
However, on this night it was the Retrievers who played as if they were the heavy favorites. The once vaunted UVA defense had absolutely no answer for Lyles who scored a game high 28 points. In the words of Coach Bennett at the postgame press conference, it was a “thorough butt whipping.” America was stunned as millions of brackets around the country were now busted.
While the Retrievers put on a show on the court, it was their Twitter account who stole the hearts of Americans with some of the most memorable tweets of the decade.
The Retrievers would go on to lose in the next round against Kansas State, however their victory over the Cavaliers will live in infamy. In 2019, the Cavaliers would once again be a number one seed in the NCAA tournament. This time though the outcome was far different as they would go on to win the NCAA Division One basketball championship and celebrate by cutting the nets. No college basketball fan will ever forget where they were the night the sixteen seed beat the one seed.
Coming in at #10 for sports moments for the decade is the 2016 NCAA basketball championship where Villanova beat UNC 77-74 off a last second three-point shot. This game was a close back-and-fourth matchup between two powerhouse schools for the NCAA championship.
With 6 seconds left, UNC guard, Marcus Paige, hit an awkward double clutched 3- point shot to tie the game. 74-74. This was one of the most clutch shots seen. The defender jumped to block his shot, but Paiges double clutch allowed him to avoid the block, and still get the shot off. With just 6 seconds, left, most spectators were gearing up for overtime.
Kris Jenkins inbounds the ball to Villanova guard, Ryan Arcidiacono. Arcidiacono dribbles the ball up the floor to the 3- point line, and then turns around to flip the ball to forward, Kris Jenkins, who trailed Arcidiacono. Arcidiacono used his body to shield, so Jenkins could have clean 3-point shot. The shot goes up… and swish. Game over.
This national championship featured one of the best back and fourths in the final seconds of the decade. The game also featured big name players who went on to play in the NBA such as Villanova guards, Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart, as well as UNC forwards, Justin Jackson and Kennedy Meeks.
Coming in at #10 on sports moments of 2019 is Joe Burrow’s dominance in college football this season. Not only has his performance on the field been nothing short of spectacular, but he also has an incredible story to how he got to be the Heisman QB for the undefeated LSU Tigers.
Joe Burrow, the 3-star recruit out of Ohio, attended Ohio State University. It was there where he sat on the bench his first three seasons behind quarterbacks JT Barrett, and Cardale Jones. Burrow even got the nickname, “John Burrow,” out of mockery from his other teammates since JT’s first name was Joe. In his fourth year, Burrow lost the starting job to freshman, Dwayne Haskins. That is when Burrow transferred to LSU under Coach Orgeron. Burrow immediately became the starter and lead LSU to 10-3 and 13-0 records back to back years.
2019 was history in the making for quarterback Joe Burrow. Burrow lead to LSU Tigers to an undefeated season, and a #1 seed in the College Football Playoffs. He also won the Heisman trophy after being 15,000-1 odds for the award in the preseason. Burrow’s Heisman victory featured the largest margin of victor ever. Burrow also threw for 4,715 yards (ranked 2nd), 48 touchdowns (1st), and completed 77.9% of his passes (1st). In addition, Burrow won
Davey O’Brien National Quarterback of the Year Award
Greetings, as we settle into the holidays and the new year, it is important that we all take time to reflect on the past year. Therefore, we should especially take some time to reflect on the College Football season. This college football season brought a lot of moments and plays to be grateful for. Here is an accumulated list of plays and moments that ranked among the top of the entire 2019 college football season.
10. Illinois Upsets #6 Wisconsin
Coming in at #10, is the upset for the Illinois Fighting Illini over undefeated Wisconsin, 24-23. Down 13 points near the end of the 3rd, the Fighting Illini stormed back and won the game with a game winning field goal. Illinois were 31 point underdogs, but shocked the nation by giving #6 Wisconsin their first loss of the season.
Along with that particular game and game-winning kick, what Love Smith has done to this program has been impressive. He has this program on the right track, and bowl bound for the first time in 4 seasons. A traditional basketball is starting to make some headway in the College Football realm.
9. Virginia Tech Over UNC in 6 OT
If the LSU- A&M 7 OT game was the flavor blasted Goldfish, than this game is the off-brand Goldfish you find in the back of a Walmart. While this game did not carry the hype of the shoot out in Kyle Field last year (mainly due to being a measly ACC matchup), it did provide a lot of entertainment, and suspense as the game went into 6 overtimes.
A person sees 6 overtimes, and thinks a lot of scoring, but the final score was only 43-41 Virginia Tech featuring only 22 combined points scored in the 6 overtime periods. This game would be higher up on the top moments of College Football the game carried more stakes.
8. Miss State Beats Ole Miss in Egg Bowl Fluke
I look back on this game, and thank this game for giving me entertainment on Thanksgiving day since the NFL game was a blowout. Mississippi State, and Ole Miss were in a classic turkey bowl battle for the state of Mississippi, where Ole Miss was down 7 in the 4th quarter. With 3 turnovers, Ole Miss has struggled offensively the entire game, but managed to mount a 82-yard drive that resulted in a 2-yard Ole Miss touchdown with 4 seconds left to give the PAT the chance to tie the game.
Immediately after catching the touchdown, Ole Miss WR, Elijah Moore, ran to the back of the end zone in Starkville, MS and celebrated the touchdown by imitating to be a dog, and take a leak/ go to the bathroom on the Miss. State field. While the celebration was hilarious especially in a rival game, it immediately drew a flag from the official for excessive celebration. Now all the pressure was on the Ole Miss kicker as a “gimme” PAT to tie it up just got moved back a daunting 15 yards. Like a scene of the movie, the Ole Miss kicker missed the game tying PAT, and Mississippi State came away a win in the Egg Bowl all because an Ole Miss WR wanted to pee like a dog in the end zone.
If you remember… after last year’s Sugar Bowl win and missing the College Football Playoffs, UT Quarterback, Sam Ehlinger, screamed into the microphone “Longhorn Nation, we’re backkkkkk’ during the postgame. For months, the nation has been baffled by this quote. What is the University of Texas back to? Mediocrity? Bowl eligibility? Well we found out this season as in the Longhorns went 7-5 after being ranked #10 to start the season. After every UT loss this year, people all over twitter spammed the video of Ehlinger saying “we’re back” to not let any UT or their fans forget it.
7. UT Being Back
When you reflect on this College Football season, the season would be incomplete if we forgot about the University of Texas “being back” phenomenon, as well as the “horns down” takeover.
Additionally, there seemed to be a lot of drama surrounding the “horns down” gesture this year. Last season, the Big-12 started to penalize teams for making the “horns down” hand sign. After this statement by the Big-12, this seemed to only inspire fans more to show the “horns down” out of mockery. It seemed like regardless of whether UT was playing in the stadium or not, a “horns down” sign was being thrown somewhere to make fun of the Austin school. It got to be such a big deal that College Gameday did a segment over it prior to Texas’s loss to LSU.
6. Baylor’s Incredible Turnaround
On the other hand, arguably the biggest surprise in College Football has been the Baylor Bears. After going 1-11 two seasons ago, Matt Rhule took the Bears to an impressive 11-2 record including a Big-12 championship appearance. Ranked at #7, Baylor has displayed one of the best turnarounds in College Football.
This was a team that lost to Liberty and UTSA at home in 2017, and then went on to beat every Big-12 team except Oklahoma in two years later. Matt Rhule has taken the Bears where no one thought they would be.
With a double-digit win season, Baylor is back in the Sugar Bowl for the first time since 1957.
5. UCLA Beats Washington 67-63 in Shootout
This game deserves to be in Top 10 moments of 2019 because it is a game that we all love to watch: offensive shootout. This game was the game college football fans dream to see on their TV when they are debating on whether to go to sleep or somehow watch Pac-12 football on a late Saturday night. A game that featured 14 passing TD’s and over 1300 yards of total offense, this is the game that we all took apart of in our NCAA 06 video game on the Play Station 2.
Down 49-17 at one point, UCLA stormed back to put up 50 points in the 2nd half including a game-winning touchdown from 15 yards out for UCLA. This game is in the top 10 for the combination of amount of offense displayed, and an incredible comeback.
4. BYU Hail Marry Against Tennessee
If Americans love anything in sports, its a good underdog team. Americans were the underdog in the revolutionary war, and ever since they find themselves rooting for the underdog. The up and coming BYU Cougars went up to face the historically acclaimed Tennessee Volunteers from the SEC. Down 3 with 18 seconds left in the 4th quarter, BYU faced a 3rd & 6 on their own 20 yard line. Tennessee is playing a prevent defense just to keep BYU from a field goal. Next play, BYU QB, Zach Wilson, connects with WR, Micah Simon, on a blown coverage for a 64-yard bomb putting them inside the red zone. This then leads to a clutch field goal from kicker, Jake Oldroyd from 33 yards out to send the game into overtime.
BYU then goes on to win the game in the 2nd overtime by scoring a touchdown. This was such a huge moment this season because it seemed like all was lost for the Cougars, but then they made a miracle play for 64 yards in the last seconds to give them another shot in overtime against a favored SEC team sending Tennessee to 0-2.
3. Clemson Making the Playoffs Again
While Clemson’s season was generally overlooked mostly due to how flashy Ohio State and LSU looked, and the drama of the College Football Playoffs, Clemson still managed to have a very impressive season going undefeated for the 3rd time in 5 seasons. With their undefeated season, Clemson makes the College Football Playoffs yet again making this the 5th time in a row tied for most with Alabama.
This is an incredible achievement for Dabo Swinney and his team as they have made the playoffs for half the decade. This makes them one of the top College Football Dynasties of the decade (probably only behind Alabama). This achievement should be noted regardless of the Tigers’ questionable strength of schedule.
2. Bama Missing the Playoffs
What is better than a team making the playoffs for 5 years straight… a team that finally misses the playoffs after 5 years. Alabama will miss the playoffs for the first time since the College Football Playoffs were formed in 2014. Nearly the whole nation cheered when Alabama lost to Auburn in the iron bowl eliminating their playoff chances. A giant complaint in College Football was the lack of differentiation since Alabama has won the national championship 5 out of the last 10 years, and have been in the playoffs for the last 5 years.
Now nearly the whole country seems rejuvenated watching an NCAAF postseason without Nick Saban and crew.
1.Burreaux Mania & Company
Sitting at #1 College Football moment of 2019 had to be the Ed Orgeron and his Bayou Bengals of Louisiana. The LSU Tigers were the #1 story in college football this year between their new revamped offense, winning the SEC, and Joe Burrow’s Heisman run.
The nation seemed to fall in love with the university after they upset Alabama at home, and of course America’s sweetheart, Ed Orgeron. Beating two top-10 teams, and four top-15 teams made them the #1 seed in the College Football Playoffs, their first appearance since the playoffs origin in 2014.
Along with their team achievements, LSU’s players & staff won a myriad of personal awards including the Heisman, Maxwell, Davey O’Brien, Jim Thorpe, Biletnikoff, and coach of the year. The combination of these made LSU’s overarching success the #1 moment in College Football in 2019.
Howdy everyone and welcome back to this week’s Picks from God. I would like to start off by voicing my discontent towards the Indianapolis Colts and the Seattle Seahawks. For those who didn’t get a chance to read last weeks Picks from God, we went 2-2 (-1U) as we won Tamu CC +10 and U40.5 in Army-Navy game. However, we lost Seahawks -6.5 and O48.5 in the Monday Night Football matchup.
Early in the 4th quarter the Seahawks held a comfortable 20-point lead over the Carolina Panthers. 10 minutes and 2 touchdowns later, the Seahawks win the game by 6 points and therefore, not covering the 6.5 point spread. I have advised everyone to ride the Seahawks money train the whole year, however I believe it’s best if we all got off at the next station. Getting blown out by the Rams and then not covering against the Panthers has me racing for the exits. This team is dead to me.
Jacoby Brissett and Marlon Mack stink. That’s it. The Colts offense is horrendous. How in the great Lord’s name does the over not hit when one team puts up 34 points?!? Just ridiculous.
With that being said, this week the Lord has spoketh to me again and we have a few winners lined up. With a solid mix of NCAA Basketball, bowl games and NFL action let’s dive into Grad School’s Picks from God.
*Grad School Sports reminds you to please gamble responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, please call 1-800-522-4700.
1. NCAA Basketball: Oregon State (-anything*) vs. Texas A&M. *As of publishing, there is no official line for this game. For those who slept through last weeks lesson let me give you some advice. If you want to make money, bet against Aggie Men’s Basketball. I may be an Aggie graduate. However, until Buzz Williams thoroughly renovates that program, I will continue to advise everyone to bet agains them. They have still yet to cover a spread this season and Reed Arena isn’t exactly a rowdy venue anymore. Take whatever the book will give you on the Beavers.
2. NCAA Football: Utah State (-6) vs. Kent State. I like my chances with good quarterbacks and Utah State QB Jordan Love is a stud. Love has thrown for over 3,000 yards and has 17 touchdowns on the year. Couple that with the RB duo of Gerold Bright and Jaylen Warren and I like my chances against a very subpar Golden Flashes team. I like Utah State to show us the Love in the Frisco Bowl.
3. NFL: L.A. Rams vs. San Francisco 49ers (-6.5). The Rams suck. Coming off an embarrassing loss to the Cowboys and being virtually eliminated from the playoffs doesn’t give me hope for this ballclub. I also bet on QB’s and it’s a lopsided matchup in that category. The man Jimmy G is lightyears ahead of Jared Goff and the Niners will be looking to make a statement ahead of their pivotal matchup with the Seahawks in the last week of the season. Also, the last time these two teams met Goff had absolutely no answer for the Niners’ defense and I expect a similar result this time around.
4. NFL: Arizona Cardinals vs. Seattle Seahawks (-9.5). Like that one girlfriend you can’t seem to forget, I am back on the Seahawks after our 3-day hiatus. Am I worried that the Seahawks may be overlooking this Cardinals team with the 49ers’ on the horizon? No. 2 words: Russell Wilson. He will have this team ready to go in a raucous CenturyLink Field. He understands home-field advantage is at stake and I’m looking forward to watching this defense feast on Kyler Murray. Yes, the Seahawks have been unreliable the last two weeks. However, the Lord preaches forgiveness and we should do so now.
Please remember, I am not a professional gambler. So please do yourself a favor and fade me at all costs. In addition, if you do not have the funds or live in an area where gambling is prohibited by law, please do not gamble. As we conclude this week’s picks, lets all remember Jeremiah 29:11. Good luck to everyone this weekend.
This Sunday at 3:25, the Dallas Cowboys travel to Philadelphia to take on the Eagles in a battle for the #1 spot in the NFC East. Both teams come into the matchup with a mediocre 7-7 record sitting at top of the division. What has been a rather underwhelming fight for the division will all come to an end this Sunday. If the Cowboys win, they will clinch the #1 seed in the NFC East making the Cowboys the NFC East champion for the two years in a row- first time in 8 years. On the other hand if the Eagles win, they do not clinch playoff berth, but control their own destiny sitting on top of the division.
Now both teams have had an underwhelming season since the Eagles and Cowboys were predicted to have 11 and 10 wins respectively when both teams can only get a maximum of 9 wins this season. They met previously in October in Arlington where the Cowboys beat the Eagles 37-10. The Cowboys in that game looked dominant and clearly the better team; however, that was nearly 2 months ago and a lot has happened since.
Since that game, the Cowboys have lost 4 out of their next 7 games losing to all teams above .500 except for the Rams. The media has swarmed them regarding the possibility of firing Jason Garrett after losing to the Bills on Thanksgiving, and the Bears in primetime. The Eagles have also experience their share of struggles losing 3 out of their next 7 games including the Dolphins, and nearly losing to the Redskins and Giants.
The Cowboys now come into this game ranked 2nd in passing averaging 300 yards a game, and are 6th in rushing averaging 134 yards a game. On the other side, the Eagles are 16th in passing with 231.5 yards a game, and 11th in rushing with 121.4 rushing yards a game. The Cowboys offense seems to have a little bit of an advantage; however their defenses are similar being next to each other in nearly every team defensive stat. The Cowboys have won 4 games against the Eagles in a row and are looking to add a 5th on Sunday.
Keys to the Game
The key to the game for the Cowboys is to run the ball. The Cowboys have looked the best they have looked recently last week when they beat the Rams, and running the ball was a huge part of it. They had over 250 yards on the ground in their win against the wins. Establishing run will not only open up the pass for quarterback, Dak Prescott, it will eat up the clock and keep the Eagles offense off the field majority of the game.
The key to the game for the Eagles is their defense and their ability to stop the run/force turnovers. The Eagles offense is banged up with only 2 healthy wide receivers, and their running backs are banged up. This offense has struggled to score in the first half the past few games. So if the Eagles defense can put pressure on Dak to force some bad throws, or even some turnovers, then that gives the offense the boost it needs in this rivalry game.
Prediction
Predicting a game that includes the Cowboys is always tough because you never know which team will show up. I think the Cowboys are the healthier, and more talented team. Normally, I would say the Eagles, but the Eagles have struggled against bad teams the past 3 weeks (Dolphins, Giants, Redskins). Additionally, the Cowboys always seem to play well against the Eagles (winning the last 4 games against them). I am going to go with the Cowboys over the Eagles 27-20.
Dallas and Philadelphia will square off 3:25 CT this Sunday on FOX. The winner will most likely win the NFC East, and be the #4 seed in the NFC playoffs. The NFC East champion will most likely host a playoff game against either the Seattle Seahawks or San Fransisco 49ers whichever team is the runner-up.
Yesterday, the NFL released both the AFC and NFC rosters for the 2020 Pro-Bowl. Aka the 2020 nobody cares bowl. Highlighting the roster are 12 (TWELVE) Baltimore Ravens, 7 Saints and 6 Chiefs. Everyone knows that the Pro-Bowl selection process isn’t the most unbiased and just way to do things, but this years class of selections in particular really exposed the flaws. Keep reading for some of the most egregious snubs.
NFC QBs
Russell Wilson, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers. The 1st is having an MVP caliber season, Brees is currently ranked the 4th best QB in the NFL, and then we have Aaron Rodgers, who simply got a free pass because his name is Aaron Rodgers.
Rodgers is currently ranked the 17th best QB in the league, sandwiched between Jameis Winston (16th) and none other than Baker Mayfield (18th). Rodgers does lead the league with only 2 interceptions, but is a distant 9th and 11th when it comes to TDs and yards, respectively.
So, who should’ve got in before Rodgers? I think the signal callers with the best cases are Dak Prescott and Kirk Cousins. Prescott is currently ranked the 3rd best QB in the league, Cousins is 9th. Prescott is 2nd in yards and 4th in TDs. Statistically speaking he’s put together a much better year than Rodgers, and he’s been way more efficient while doing it. Cousins is top ten in all major categories, yards, TDs, INTs, and total QBR. He’s also put together a more impressive season on paper and in the metrics department.
I’m not a football data analyst or anything, but it looks like the voters got it wrong here. Rodgers got in because he’s Aaron Rodgers. He’s got the reputation, and way more State Farm commercials than Kirk will ever have.
AFC Safeties
Minkah Fitzpatrick, Jamal Adams, Earl Thomas. The first two I agree with, the last probably shouldn’t have made it.
Just yesterday I saw an article calling Tyrann Mathieu a candidate for defensive player of the year. How can he be a top candidate for that award, and not make the pro-bowl team?
Thomas is the Pro-Bowler with a stat line of 30 solo tackles, 2 INTs, 1.5 sacks, and 1 forced fumble.
On the other hand, Mathieu has 50 solo tackles, 3 INTs, and 2 sacks.
It gets worse though, folks.
Devin McCourty has 38 solo tackles, 5 INTs, 2 forced fumbles, and 1 fumble recovery.
These are just basic stats. I’m no statistician or big into stats at all, but when you sit down and look at the comparisons, it’s pretty ugly.
And the WORST Pro-Bowl selection of them all
Tyreek Hill. Mr. Hill has played in 10 of a possible 15 games for the Chiefs this year! He’s put together a truly impressive line of 49 receptions on 79 targets for 727 yards and 9 TDs. His stats really jump off the page don’t they?!
Well let me know what you think of Hill’s stats after you look at Julian Edelman’s, top receiver on the “terrible” Patriots offense.
92 receptions, 140 targets, 1,019 yards, 6 TDs.
So let me get this straight… Edelman has 45 more receptions, 61 more targets, 2 more TDs, and 292 more yards than Hill, but the latter is the Pro-Bowler? Got it. Oh yeah and since reputation is supposedly a factor in the voting process, let’s just throw in that Hill was the one with child abuse allegations this past off season, not Edelman.
Hey NFL, your Patriots bias is showing.
Of course, I’m cherry picking here comparing Hill to Edelman because I’m a big fan of Jules. But just so you know, there are 52 receivers who have more receptions than Tyreek Hill, 38 with more yards, 12 with more TDs, and 20 with a better yards per reception average. Sounds like a Pro-Bowl starter to me!
So let’s all raise our glass to another year of big Pro-Bowl snubs not just on the Pats but across the league and another year of no Patriot actually playing in the nobody cares bowl.
We’re about 48 hours past the Pats getting back into W column and boy does it feel good. Defense balled out, offense was effective enough, but all in all it felt like the Pats did just enough to get back on track. My thoughts below.
Defense
This defense is absurd. The Pats currently have two of the best corners in the league on the roster. Everyone now knows Stephon Gilmore, candidate for defensive player of the year, and arguably the top corner in the league. He took home two interceptions, including a pick six on the day. He currently boasts a QB rating of 32 against him when receivers he is covering are targeted. This weekend he covered Tyler Boyd, who I pointed out in my game preview is putting together a pretty nice season. Gilmore held him to two catches for 24 yards, but somehow Boyd still thought he won most of their one on one match-ups. Hats off to you for the confidence, Tyler…I guess. Gilmore is currently tied for the league high in interceptions, with six.
His counterpart, J.C. Jackson, is probably a name that most fans of the NFL in general don’t know off the top of their head. J.C. is an undrafted DB out of the University of Maryland. He put together a really good rookie season last year and has only stepped it up from there. He currently touts a QB rating of 28 when receivers he is covering are targeted. Jackson also had two interceptions to add to his season total of 5. It’s pretty rare to find undrafted studs like J.C. The fact that he’s playing DB, one of the toughest individual positions in the sport in my opinion, makes it even more impressive.
It’s no wonder why Zac Taylor said he thought his receivers got “bullied” by the Patriots DB’s. The whole secondary was jumping routes and hitting hard all day long. It was awesome to watch, but even more funny to hear Taylor say that. A first year head coach (also the youngest head coach in the league) probably doesn’t need to be beating down his players at the end of a year like this. Oh well though.. Bengals gonna Bengal.
Special Teams
The special teams group has balled out all season and this game was no different. Jake Bailey added to his stellar rookie season, consistently pinning the Bengals in unfavorable field position. Nate Ebner almost blocked another kick, and the duo of Matthew Slater and Justin Bethel is any special teams coaches’ dream. Since the addition of Bethel, the Pats have not given up a punt return of more than ten yards. That’s truly remarkable when you consider the rate at which the Pats are punting – currently 3rd in the league with 5.4 per game.
Matthew Slater caused a fumble on a punt which turned out to be a big turning point in the game. It was caused by some lucky timing by Slater’s right arm/hand, and a Bengals blocker ever so slightly pushing Slater into the punt returner, which negated a possible penalty for punt interference. The Bengals were furious that nothing was called, and the team really seemed defeated after it happened. Who recovered it you ask? None other than Justin Bethel.
Offense
If you just look at the stats you’d probably think the offense had another lackluster performance. Brady only had 129 yards, Michel had 89 (one of his higher totals for the year), but as a whole, the Pats had 175+ yards on the ground, and the passing game showed a good bit of improvement.
The one big bright spot in the offense was the usage of N’Keal Harry. The rookie only had two catches for 15 yards, but made an awesome diving catch in the back of the end zone, and showed unreal athleticism making a diving over the shoulder catch that was negated due to a penalty. While Harry may not have put up eye popping numbers, it was encouraging to see him out there for a majority of the snaps, and his confidence seemed to be at a high point during this game. I’m looking for him to emerge as a real number two threat down the stretch, he could be really big for this team.
I mentioned one of the keys to this game being the offensive line. The big guys certainly had a better outing than the Chiefs game, but there’s still room for improvement. Marcus Cannon got beat several times by Carlos Dunlap and Sam Hubbard, who both sacked Brady and hit him multiple times. Isaiah Wynn and Joe Thuney led the way and showed off their versatility. Much like my hope for Harry, I still think this group can be way better than they have showed so far.
On the negative side, Mohamed Sanu continues to disappoint. He dropped a pivotal pass on third down, and only caught two passes for 13 yards in total. Phillip Dorsett played nine snaps, as his position as a go to option in this offense seems to be over. Edelman and Brady showed some rare miscommunication as a few passes either missed Edelman or hit off his fingers. I’m sure we’ll never know the extent of his injuries this season, but it’s pretty obvious that Jules is hurting.
On to Buffalo
Buffalo comes to Foxborough this Saturday for the second of three games that will be played on Saturday. It’s a short week for both teams, but I don’t expect that to negatively effect anybody on either side as both realize that this is a pretty big game for both teams.
The Pats need to win this game to retain the 2nd spot in the AFC, if they lose they risk dropping behind the Chiefs, who have the head to head advantage. Unfortunately, the Super Bowl still goes through Baltimore.
For Buffalo, it’d be huge for their confidence going into the playoffs, and further solidify the great season they’re having so far. They’re coming off a huge win in Pittsburgh, Josh Allen is playing well, the defense is the strength of their team, and they’re without a doubt hyped up to go into New England and get a shot at dethroning the Pats.
I’m expecting a dog fight in Gillette. The Bills are going to come out swinging, they’re going to be hyped up, I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Pats down early. But it’s going to come down to who can execute when it matters, who wins in the trenches, and who can get open consistently. This will probably be a low scoring defensive battle – wouldn’t want it any other way in December.
The 2016 season brought Chicago Cubs fans their biggest triumph in franchise history. After 108 years, the Cubs finally broke through and won a World Series in dramatic fasion, coming back from a 3-1 deficit to beat the Cleveland Indians in the 2016 World Series. But since this historic night, the Cubs have slowly reverted back to those lovable losers we all hoped were a thing of the past. In 2017, the Cubs were overmatched in a NLCS series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. The series was far from competitive as it lasted only five games and saw the Cubs get outscored 28-8. In 2018, the Cubs managed to lose a five game division lead in the month of September, forcing a game 163 against the Milwaukee Brewers. The Cubs lost game 163 as well as the wild card play-in game for an early postseason exit. In 2019, the Cubs were competitive in the division all year long until that dreaded month of September rolled around again. The Cubs went 11-16 in September including a nine game losing streak, all at the hands of division opponents (Baseball Reference). When the Cubs won the World Series in 2016, fans were expecting a dynasty with the great core of young talent and the answer to our prayers in Coach Joe Maddon. However, with the progressive drop off since 2016, it may be time to start reevaluating the team and making changes to right the ship for the future.
The 2019 offseason got off to a hot start for Chicago as Joe Maddon was let go and quickly replaced by rookie manager David Ross. Ross was a pivotal part of the Cubs 2016 World Series as a player. His most significant contribution came in game 7 when he smoked a fastball from Andrew Miller over the centerfield wall. But David Ross will now be watching games from the dugout as he transitions into the coaching world. With the coaching staff for 2020 figured out, the Cubs now turn their offseason attention to the roster. The Cubs came into the offseason in need of middle infield and bullpen depth as well as another arm or two in the rotation; however, the offseason has been eerily quiet for the Cubs. This offseason has featured big names coming off the board early with Strausburg, Rendon, and Cole all signing big contracts. Yet the Cubs have not made any sort of competitive move. So how should the quiet offseason thus far be interpreted? I beleive that the Cubs have no intentions of spending big this offseason, but are instead packing it in with what they already have and preparing for the 2020 season. Not to say that they won’t sign a couple lower tier free agents, but fans should not expect big things from the Cubs this offseason, and here is why:
The Chicago Cubs are already among the biggest spenders in the major leagues with a 2019 payroll that was second only behind the Boston Redsox. A majority of their payroll remains in tact going into 2020. They have committed salaries at just over $137 million, estimated arbitration player salaries at $48 million, and pre-arbitration salaries at $5 million. Add in some extra expenses and around $15 million in player benefits and the Cubs are estimated to have a payroll of around $220 million, already over the 208 million luxury tax for 2020 (Andraki). This leaves little room to operate in free agency as the team has already elected to let Cole Hamels walk (signed with the Braves) and have been hesitant in signing back Nick Castellanos to the team. With the payroll already over the luxury tax, I believe the Cubs are setting their sights on the 2020 free agency. By this time, they will have unloaded the overpaid contracts of Jon Lester, $20 million, Tyler Chatwood, $13 million, and Craig Kimbrel, $16 million. So if the Cubs are staying quiet this offseason, what are the goals and expectations of 2020?
Get David Ross comfortable: The 2020 season will be big for the Cubs, not competing for a World Series, but determining where the future of the franchise goes. It will allow first year coach David Ross to get his feet wet managing a team for the first time without large expectations weighing him down. Being a coach at any level is a transition, but this is magnified at the major league level. It’s not just about coaching in the big leagues; it’s about being able to establish a coaching style, creating a comradery amoungst the players, dealing with injuries and players rest, and protecting the arms of your pitching staff. There is so much more that goes into managing a major league baseball team outside of actually coaching the games and practices. 2020 will be a big year for David Ross to learn the ropes and get comfortable in his new role.
Trade or Pay?: The time is soon apporoaching where the young core of the Chicago Cubs is going to get PAID. There isn’t going to be room in the budget to pay everyone the bigger contracts they deserve, so 2020 allows the Cubs time to trade a couple of these players instead of letting the walk in free agency. The guys at the top of this list are Kris Bryant and Kyle Schwarber. Kris Bryant’s young career has already come with many accolades including a Rookie of the year and MVP award in consecutive years. But since his MVP season in 2016, he’s had some difficulties staying healthy, leading to some drops in power numbers and RBIs. Not to mention, Bryant filed a grievence against the Cubs claiming there was some manipulation in how they handled the beginning of his MLB career. Add in all these factors, and it might be time to part ways with the slugger, if the right packages is obtained in return. Schwarber is coming off his best full season in the bigs and seems destined to play in the American League. Coming up through the organization as a catcher/outfielder, Schwarber has found his home in Left Field for the Cubs. His lack of experience and ahtleticism have led to below average outfield play from Schwarber. Ideally, he is a player that should be penciled in at the DH spot each game. For the right package, Schwarber could be another canidate for the Cubs to trade rather than pay in the next year.
Young Guns: The Cubs featured some players towards the end of last year that had success for the first time in the MLB. These include guys like Alec Mills, Nico Hoerner, and Robel Garcia. Mills made some spot starts for the Cubs late in the season because of an injury to Cole Hamels as well as coming out of the pen and was a bright spot for the Cubs at the end of the year. In four starts and 36 innings pitched, Mills accummulated a 2.75 ERA and had a 10.5 K/9. With the exit of Hamels, Mills could fight for a rotation spot this year, but is also auditioning to be a part of the franchise in the future. Nico Hoerner filled in for the injured Javier Baez last year and shocked everyone with the success he had. In his first big league action, Hoerner hit .282 with 22 hits and 17 RBIs in just 20 games played. With the exit of Ben Zobrist and Addison Russell, infield depth will be a necessity. Hoerner looks to cement his spot on the major league roster with a solid 2020 season. Garcia is another canidate to take on some innings in the infield. With the absence of Zobrist and disaster season of Daniel Descalso, Garcia was thrust into the lineup in the middle of the year. Garcia was up and down throughout the middle of the season showing off some power with a .500 slugging percentage (ESPN). Garcia will have more opportunities in the 2020 season to try and become a more consistent part of the lineup.
Unfortunatley, the frustrations that the Cubs fans have had over the last few years look like they will continue in 2019. The bigger contracts that helped the Cubs win a 2016 World Series are now taking their toll as the Cubs have been unable to be aggressive in free agency. But remain positive Cubs fans. This will be a year for our rookies to step up and get experience, our young stars to emerge, and our first year head coach to gain important experience for future postseason runs. It will be a bump in the road that will allow our franchise to be even more successful in the future. Forever, Go Cubs Go!
The bets have been placed and the drafting is over! Your 2020 Grad School Sports FedEx Cup Draft results are in. Overall, the preview played an important role between Grad School TJK and Grad School’s JPF results in selecting key players in the 2020 season. At the first of each month, Grad School TJK and Grad School JPF will be able to make decisions on their current draft picks. They will be able to add, drop, or trade up to two players they wish. The 2020 Draft initial selection results are as follows:
Round 1: Grad School TJK was given the first pick of the 2020 Draft as he lost the 2019 FedEx Cup bet. With the first pick, Grad School TJK selected Brooks Koepka—currently unranked in the 2020 FedEx Cup Rankings. Grad School JPF followed up the second pick of the first round with selecting Dustin Johnson—also currently unranked in the 2020 FedEx Cup Rankings. While both first-rounders are currently unranked, look for them to have a big 2020 season.
Round 2: With the first pick of the second round, Grad School TJK obtained 2019 FedEx Cup winner, Rory McIlroy—currently ranked 4th in the 2020 FedEx Cup Rankings. Grad School JPF elected Justin Thomas as his second overall pick—currently ranked 5th in the 2020 FedEx Cup Rankings.
Round 3: Round three led to the drafting of Xander Schauffele—currently ranked 21st—by Grad School TJK and Justin Rose—presently ranked 170th—by Grad School JPF.
Round 4: Grad School TJK obtained veteran Jason Day—currently ranked 139th—and Grad School JPF scored big with selecting Tommy Fleetwood—ranked 109th presently.
Round 5: The final round of the 2020 FedEx Cup Draft initial selecting finished with Grad School TJK selecting cry-baby Patrick Reed—ranked 70th—and Grad School JPF selecting Bryson DeChambeau—ranked 52nd.
The details are shown as follows:
$100 PGA FedEx Cup Bet
On the 1st of every month, you may have the opportunity to add/drop/trade players that you have chosen to be of your Top 5 Choices. You will have 24 hours to make the add/drop/trade. Prior to add/drop/change, you must consult the other party to notify them of the add/drop/change. Every month, first choice to add/drop/trade will change (Tanner in March, Jeremy in April, etc.). A maximum of 2 add/drop/changes may occur during these 24-hour periods.
DEADLINE to add/drop/trade is May 1st. On this date after the 24-hour period, those 5 players in the box below are final—no exceptions.
TJK
JPF
Brooks Koepka (u)
Dustin Johnson (u)
Rory McIlroy (4)
Justin Thomas (5)
Xander Schauffele (21)
Justin Rose (170)
Jason Day (139)
Tommy Fleetwood (109)
Patrick Reed (70)
Bryson DeChambeau (52)
***Rankings are current as of Dec 16, 2019 and adjusted every week***
Grad School Sports™ 