For quite a while, I've been a passive onlooker to the University of North Dakota Men's hockey team. This is a team from a state that doesn't have much else to offer. The cold blustery, flat corn fields leave little room for graduates to want to stay there. I wouldn't want my family to have to live in such a place. In fact, any hockey traditions in Grand Forks have less to do with the community and more to do with the University?
Well that's simple: Fans. The thing about UND is their following. It's not like a Colorado College fan base, or a Denver fan base. This fan base is only concerned with one thing, and that thing is their beloved men's hockey team. So when the Badgers show up, it's not necessarily all hockey fans, but fans of the UW sports system. Not with UND. These are all hockey fans, and if you scale the number of pure hockey fans showing up to a UND away game to that of a Michigan or Wisconsin or Minnesota game, you would be shocked.
Tradition is something that is built on the past. UND has a great past. They also have a great future. Right now they are sitting pretty good. One must ask though: how much will this school change with a new logo? Will fans finally stop shouting "Sioux" at the end of the national anthem and replace it with the new mascot? I doubt it.
Take a look around the NCAA and look at it's two darlings: Boston College and Minnesota. These are the two schools that I would consider to be heavyweights. Every year these two schools account for about 40% of the nations top NCAA committed talent. To put that into perspective, Wisconsin and Michigan would probably account for 10% at best. The next best school is probably North Dakota. This cornfed community in the middle of no where, with nothing to do is the 3rd best recruiting program in the nation. How is this possible? Well, everyone know's the UND culture. Every player is coddled by the fans. That's just the way it is. As much as Alabama's football players are treated like royalty, their basketball players are more like the decked out Lincoln Navigator than the Rolls Royce.
At UND, their is no Lincoln Navigator. There is no, "other team". While they do have a football program and many other sports, no one really cares. This school recruits some of the best talent in the nation to a program with one of the best traditions. How is this possible? Take a a look.
Friday, December 26, 2014
Monday, November 3, 2014
WWE Takes a New Route
In case you have been focusing on a sport like football, basketball or hockey, the little known sport of wrestling has been on going. Unlike any other "sport" on Yahoo! these days, the WWE is all scripted. This is a well known fact. Not to mention, is there really a 240 lbs. guy who can super-plex another 240 lbs guy from the top rope? I doubt it.
But I digress. I have been watching WWE since about March. I just turned the show on one day, and have been watching every Monday Night Raw since. One thing I didn't realize was that the week before I tuned in, CM Punk quit on the show. That was a huge blow to the programming that is still recognizable to this day.
Since that time, Daniel Bryan has pretty much come and gone as a WWE champion. Of all the moves the WWE has made, I think the Bryan dethroning has been the biggest mistake. They were making a killing off of Daniel and stripped him of his belt to piss off the WWE universe. Then John Cena get's the belt, while Bryan get's hurt. Little did we know that 6 months later, we would see the title belt once a month or less.
Tonight's show was the first time that I have felt something great since the departure of Daniel Bryan. Tonight, Mr. McMahon came on the show and pretty much threw the Authority under the bus and made them one up their survivor series rematch. The problem with the authority all along was that they only pissed people off. They never came off as truly bringing something new to the table.
So let's break down what happened tonight and it's implications.
The first is that Randy Orton is no longer in the authority. Outside of Triple H and Kane, the only fighting member of the authority is Seth Rollins. This doesn't look too good from the outside. Triple H throws down the orders, while Kane runs interference and Rollins does the dirty work. With Orton gone, this team doesn't look so good.
Rollins looks quite small, and doesn't appear to have the same appeal that Orton brought. Not to mention, who will enforce? The authority has been quick to talk about how Rollins starts problems only to have the rest of the group finish. The loss of Orton (assuming he leaves the Authority) doesn't do much to the Authority in the first place. Think back to the last meaningful match up with Orton. That match would be when he lost the WWE championship. That's a long time ago. Ever since then, it's been the rest of the gang cleaning up the shit for Orton. Much like Orton has been cleaning up after Rollins.
Now here is the interesting part. The WWE has always been built on feuds. There has always been a dominant group. Whether that be the Shield, the Authority, Degeneration X, or the NWO there has always been somebody. So while the idea of the Authority breaking up is awesome, it doesn't fall into line with previous writing.
The list of wrestlers who dislike the authority is long. So expect team Cena to be big. However, having a wresting group as big as team Cena for longer than 2 weeks will be a disaster. Eventually it will be about 5 wrestlers on team Cena with everyone else wanting a piece.
That idea is not John Cena. Cena is always about respect and loyalty. Ganging up on others is not never giving up. That's working the system over.
So this could play out really well for viewers. For about 2 months, we could see a WWE without a leading group. It appears that the authority is destined to break up. Let's just say they do.
It will only be a matter of time before someone organizes a group to re-establish the authority. So for two months, we could be getting just what we asked for.
But I digress. I have been watching WWE since about March. I just turned the show on one day, and have been watching every Monday Night Raw since. One thing I didn't realize was that the week before I tuned in, CM Punk quit on the show. That was a huge blow to the programming that is still recognizable to this day.
Since that time, Daniel Bryan has pretty much come and gone as a WWE champion. Of all the moves the WWE has made, I think the Bryan dethroning has been the biggest mistake. They were making a killing off of Daniel and stripped him of his belt to piss off the WWE universe. Then John Cena get's the belt, while Bryan get's hurt. Little did we know that 6 months later, we would see the title belt once a month or less.
Tonight's show was the first time that I have felt something great since the departure of Daniel Bryan. Tonight, Mr. McMahon came on the show and pretty much threw the Authority under the bus and made them one up their survivor series rematch. The problem with the authority all along was that they only pissed people off. They never came off as truly bringing something new to the table.
So let's break down what happened tonight and it's implications.
The first is that Randy Orton is no longer in the authority. Outside of Triple H and Kane, the only fighting member of the authority is Seth Rollins. This doesn't look too good from the outside. Triple H throws down the orders, while Kane runs interference and Rollins does the dirty work. With Orton gone, this team doesn't look so good.
Rollins looks quite small, and doesn't appear to have the same appeal that Orton brought. Not to mention, who will enforce? The authority has been quick to talk about how Rollins starts problems only to have the rest of the group finish. The loss of Orton (assuming he leaves the Authority) doesn't do much to the Authority in the first place. Think back to the last meaningful match up with Orton. That match would be when he lost the WWE championship. That's a long time ago. Ever since then, it's been the rest of the gang cleaning up the shit for Orton. Much like Orton has been cleaning up after Rollins.
Now here is the interesting part. The WWE has always been built on feuds. There has always been a dominant group. Whether that be the Shield, the Authority, Degeneration X, or the NWO there has always been somebody. So while the idea of the Authority breaking up is awesome, it doesn't fall into line with previous writing.
The list of wrestlers who dislike the authority is long. So expect team Cena to be big. However, having a wresting group as big as team Cena for longer than 2 weeks will be a disaster. Eventually it will be about 5 wrestlers on team Cena with everyone else wanting a piece.
That idea is not John Cena. Cena is always about respect and loyalty. Ganging up on others is not never giving up. That's working the system over.
So this could play out really well for viewers. For about 2 months, we could see a WWE without a leading group. It appears that the authority is destined to break up. Let's just say they do.
It will only be a matter of time before someone organizes a group to re-establish the authority. So for two months, we could be getting just what we asked for.
Wednesday, September 24, 2014
Fantasy Sports Drafts
It's that time of year. Fantasy "input your sport here" and you have everything planned. From the position of the over hyped first round pick to the sleeper in the final rounds, every pick is a tactical one. You probably have entered a couple of mock drafts, or at the very least looked at the top picks in the draft. Maybe even going as far as analyzing how the new wide receiver will affect your quarterbacks passer rating, or how the lack of a defense will force your center in hockey to play back and reduce his points. Maybe it's the position of your basketball forwards that you don't like. Doesn't matter, you are an expert and no one will convince you otherwise.
I take the same walk as you. Whether you are the up to the minute stat checker, or the casual Monday morning roster mover you have something in common with me. You like sports, and expect them to produce something in your fantasy league. I feel you, and understand your ways. For football, I use my own algorithm to pick my players. I developed the equation about five years ago and have fine tuned it over the years. You might say I am too dedicated, but this is my response: for football, I enjoy the game until hockey starts. Once hockey starts, that's all I care about and I spend at least three nights a week positioning my team.
Here is how I broke down my football league this year. My algorithm doesn't take into effect the injuries of players, or their probabilities. To put this into a nut shell, I came up with an equation that requires a little bit of research for football but is spot on in hockey. For football, I input every offensive lineman's height and weight. You don't get O-line stats in most football leagues, but the QB's effectiveness has a direct correlation to these guys. Next I average their height to weight ratio. For every time a sack was directly allowed, I input a negative five into the equation. For every run over 5 yards I add .05 to this number. (I do this because you can't get reliable stats on which holes a running or quarterback will go). Runs of of six to 10 yards get a .10 and anything eleven or more yards gets a .30
So now we have 3 numbers, the height and weight of each lineman, their average height to weight ratio (this is always in proportion to each player so that you are not making the same stats for everyone) and finally the sack/run number. (If the sack/run number totals zero, I make it a -3.14 which is roughly pie. You'll catch that reference later.)
Now I take the QB's average passing yards per play ( make sure this is per play and not per game). This becomes my fourth number. Finally I add the number of plays thrown to a WR/TE minus the number thrown to a RB or any other non WR/TE.
This gives me my fifth number.
So here is what I do: You make a quadratic equation. Look up the formula on Google for reference as it will look weird in line format.
First take the height and make it in inches. No 6 foot 3. It's 73 inches. Then you take the weight of that line man and divide it by the height. So let's say a guy is 6 foot 3 and 400 lbs. Looks like this: 400/73 = ~5.48
Next we take the height to weight ratio. Again convert to total inches. For argument's sake let's say everyone on our O-line is 6 foot 3 and 400 lbs. We want to use a BMI calculator for each person, but since we have all the same guys, we take our BMI and divide it by 5 (5 offensive lineman). So in this case our BMI is 50, and we have 5 guys
50/5 = 10
Next, let's say last year we allowed 15 sacks. (this is a two part math problem)
15*-5 = -75
Next we need our run totals. Let's say we allowed 50 runs of five yards, 16 runs of 5-10 yards, and 10 runs of 11 or more:
50 * .05 = .75
16 *.1 = 1.6
10 *.3 = 3.0
.75 + 1.6 + 3.0 = 5.35
Next we take the sack number and divide it by our run number:
-75/5.35 = -14.01
Let's say the QB's pass per play was 7.5
lastly, let's say our QB threw to his WR/TE's 400 times and non WR/TE's 200 times:
400-200 = 200
Let's put this together: 5.48 *-14.01*7.5/-75*200
5.48*-14.01*7.5 = -575.81
-75*200 = -15000
-575.81/-15000 = .03838
Square root of .03838 = .196
Then finally we use that 10 way up there and multiply it by .196 which gives us: 1.96
This is how effective our offensive unit is in relation to the QB. This dives deeper into the stats and tells us a number. These numbers don't do anything unless you have two or more QB's to relate. I use this specific equation for effective QB's in football and goalies in hockey.
For the last 3 years I have won the championship in football by a landslide. With the exception of last year, I have won 4 straight championships in hockey. I had some injuries in my hockey league late in the playoffs and didn't bother using this algorithm. It cost me.
It should be noted that I have an effective equation for defensemen, forwards, WR's, RB's and Defensive units. I use all of them, but only showed you how I use two.
So with that in mind, let's think about why it's so important to draft yourself and not auto draft. Everyone knows that the top picks are the best players. An auto draft will accomplish getting you this. What auto draft won't get you is the last picks of the draft. Those, like the first rounds, are selected off of pre draft rankings. Those players could wind up off NHL or NFL rosters by the end of the year. That is why I developed this equation and it has worked. It also goes to show why you should never auto draft: you don't get to pick your last player.
I take the same walk as you. Whether you are the up to the minute stat checker, or the casual Monday morning roster mover you have something in common with me. You like sports, and expect them to produce something in your fantasy league. I feel you, and understand your ways. For football, I use my own algorithm to pick my players. I developed the equation about five years ago and have fine tuned it over the years. You might say I am too dedicated, but this is my response: for football, I enjoy the game until hockey starts. Once hockey starts, that's all I care about and I spend at least three nights a week positioning my team.
Here is how I broke down my football league this year. My algorithm doesn't take into effect the injuries of players, or their probabilities. To put this into a nut shell, I came up with an equation that requires a little bit of research for football but is spot on in hockey. For football, I input every offensive lineman's height and weight. You don't get O-line stats in most football leagues, but the QB's effectiveness has a direct correlation to these guys. Next I average their height to weight ratio. For every time a sack was directly allowed, I input a negative five into the equation. For every run over 5 yards I add .05 to this number. (I do this because you can't get reliable stats on which holes a running or quarterback will go). Runs of of six to 10 yards get a .10 and anything eleven or more yards gets a .30
So now we have 3 numbers, the height and weight of each lineman, their average height to weight ratio (this is always in proportion to each player so that you are not making the same stats for everyone) and finally the sack/run number. (If the sack/run number totals zero, I make it a -3.14 which is roughly pie. You'll catch that reference later.)
Now I take the QB's average passing yards per play ( make sure this is per play and not per game). This becomes my fourth number. Finally I add the number of plays thrown to a WR/TE minus the number thrown to a RB or any other non WR/TE.
This gives me my fifth number.
So here is what I do: You make a quadratic equation. Look up the formula on Google for reference as it will look weird in line format.
First take the height and make it in inches. No 6 foot 3. It's 73 inches. Then you take the weight of that line man and divide it by the height. So let's say a guy is 6 foot 3 and 400 lbs. Looks like this: 400/73 = ~5.48
Next we take the height to weight ratio. Again convert to total inches. For argument's sake let's say everyone on our O-line is 6 foot 3 and 400 lbs. We want to use a BMI calculator for each person, but since we have all the same guys, we take our BMI and divide it by 5 (5 offensive lineman). So in this case our BMI is 50, and we have 5 guys
50/5 = 10
Next, let's say last year we allowed 15 sacks. (this is a two part math problem)
15*-5 = -75
Next we need our run totals. Let's say we allowed 50 runs of five yards, 16 runs of 5-10 yards, and 10 runs of 11 or more:
50 * .05 = .75
16 *.1 = 1.6
10 *.3 = 3.0
.75 + 1.6 + 3.0 = 5.35
Next we take the sack number and divide it by our run number:
-75/5.35 = -14.01
Let's say the QB's pass per play was 7.5
lastly, let's say our QB threw to his WR/TE's 400 times and non WR/TE's 200 times:
400-200 = 200
Let's put this together: 5.48 *-14.01*7.5/-75*200
5.48*-14.01*7.5 = -575.81
-75*200 = -15000
-575.81/-15000 = .03838
Square root of .03838 = .196
Then finally we use that 10 way up there and multiply it by .196 which gives us: 1.96
This is how effective our offensive unit is in relation to the QB. This dives deeper into the stats and tells us a number. These numbers don't do anything unless you have two or more QB's to relate. I use this specific equation for effective QB's in football and goalies in hockey.
For the last 3 years I have won the championship in football by a landslide. With the exception of last year, I have won 4 straight championships in hockey. I had some injuries in my hockey league late in the playoffs and didn't bother using this algorithm. It cost me.
It should be noted that I have an effective equation for defensemen, forwards, WR's, RB's and Defensive units. I use all of them, but only showed you how I use two.
So with that in mind, let's think about why it's so important to draft yourself and not auto draft. Everyone knows that the top picks are the best players. An auto draft will accomplish getting you this. What auto draft won't get you is the last picks of the draft. Those, like the first rounds, are selected off of pre draft rankings. Those players could wind up off NHL or NFL rosters by the end of the year. That is why I developed this equation and it has worked. It also goes to show why you should never auto draft: you don't get to pick your last player.
Thursday, July 10, 2014
Soccer Fever
Sports have been a backbone of the United States since our inception. Not only is a sport a way out, but it gives everyone a chance to compete. Benchmarks are made, which only helps people evolve their skills and better their respective games.
Modern sports are the same way. We take our children to fields, or rinks, or courts or wherever we can find a place that allows us to enjoy our family. These settings become home, and the lessons learned become life. We apply sports to living a peaceful life, even likening ourselves to success in sports.
During the early 1900's, Baseball was a way for people to socialize. Like Facebook and Twitter, people went to a game to become noticed. Whether they were sporting new knickers, or a nice dress the ball park was always the setting. This drove our youth onto the field and helped solidify baseball as an American icon. Over time, people drove from far away to see their favorite teams. Even Sunday became a game day. Sadly time did baseball some bad work too.
Players like Pete Rose took the game away from the field and onto a casino floor. Others like Mark McGuire and Sammy Sosa made the game about themselves. All of this me, me, me tone eventually took the game away from the stands as much as it filled them. Baseball became not a game of class, or fun for the family but a game where the focus was to see who could hit the most home runs. The focus became stats.
Last week, ESPN published an article that Soccer has overtaken Baseball as the number one sport among young youths. This was shocking at first, but then I gave it some thought. Football has come under massive scrutiny. The game has changed from the hard hitting defenses and non-stop offenses to lawsuits off the field and head injuries on the field. It's no longer about the actual game. Think about it. The super bowl get's people to watch just for the television ads and the half time show. Once again, it's about the stats.
Even the NBA is waning. Basketball grew in the small courts where children could play. Many basketball players today grew up in the inner cities. May of them are black. This was not by mistake. This happened because the black family had to work twice as hard to get around. The black children didn't get the same opportunities to attend a game. So they played out their favorite fantasy's the basketball court and have turned to dominating the sport. However, America is growing every day. Not just in size, but in attitudes towards others. The same high intensity games are not taking place anymore. Black children are being given many of the same opportunities that once were not available to them. On the NBA court, teams are selling for all time high's. Doesn't even matter that the teams on the court play horribly.
I don't think the NHL is even a fair argument. The cost of hockey is insane. Most families don't have the time to invest in such a sport. Unless something changes, hockey will find it's way into the cellar peeling for every last fan before it's major base drops. All hockey needs is another lock out and fans become annoyed.
But not soccer. No, not soccer. I'll tell you why not soccer. For years I have avoided the game. I hated it. I can't tell you why I disliked such a cheap game, but I did. I served in Iraq, where I handed out soccer balls on a daily basis. The joy of a simple ball was as great for a 15 year old as it is with my 2 year old son. From top to bottom, nobody cares about the stats. Most MLS arena's are not expensive by comparison with their higher tier counter parts. Soccer is mainly played out in public parks, where an entire family can enjoy something. Sound familiar, maybe like middle 1900's baseball?
Not to mention a ball is about $20. You can have an enormous amount of players in one game. And unlike football or basketball, the scene never changes. Jersey's do. No one ever asks you to put on shoulder pads, or step into a fancy arena. Many college games are played at simple parks. Most pro teams utilize the facilities of NFL teams, or open parks.
Soccer has been here all along. It's been cheap, and it has not changed much at all. Unfortunately the world cup ends in a couple of days and the dreams of an elongated relationship will fade faster than a Lindsey Lohan rehab stint.
No matter what happens on the television, or far away soccer will always remain cheap. It will always be the game in the park, and until something vastly changes it will always be the underdog. Let's hope it stays this way so that everyone can enjoy it, until someone figures out how to sell it.
Modern sports are the same way. We take our children to fields, or rinks, or courts or wherever we can find a place that allows us to enjoy our family. These settings become home, and the lessons learned become life. We apply sports to living a peaceful life, even likening ourselves to success in sports.
During the early 1900's, Baseball was a way for people to socialize. Like Facebook and Twitter, people went to a game to become noticed. Whether they were sporting new knickers, or a nice dress the ball park was always the setting. This drove our youth onto the field and helped solidify baseball as an American icon. Over time, people drove from far away to see their favorite teams. Even Sunday became a game day. Sadly time did baseball some bad work too.
Players like Pete Rose took the game away from the field and onto a casino floor. Others like Mark McGuire and Sammy Sosa made the game about themselves. All of this me, me, me tone eventually took the game away from the stands as much as it filled them. Baseball became not a game of class, or fun for the family but a game where the focus was to see who could hit the most home runs. The focus became stats.
Last week, ESPN published an article that Soccer has overtaken Baseball as the number one sport among young youths. This was shocking at first, but then I gave it some thought. Football has come under massive scrutiny. The game has changed from the hard hitting defenses and non-stop offenses to lawsuits off the field and head injuries on the field. It's no longer about the actual game. Think about it. The super bowl get's people to watch just for the television ads and the half time show. Once again, it's about the stats.
Even the NBA is waning. Basketball grew in the small courts where children could play. Many basketball players today grew up in the inner cities. May of them are black. This was not by mistake. This happened because the black family had to work twice as hard to get around. The black children didn't get the same opportunities to attend a game. So they played out their favorite fantasy's the basketball court and have turned to dominating the sport. However, America is growing every day. Not just in size, but in attitudes towards others. The same high intensity games are not taking place anymore. Black children are being given many of the same opportunities that once were not available to them. On the NBA court, teams are selling for all time high's. Doesn't even matter that the teams on the court play horribly.
I don't think the NHL is even a fair argument. The cost of hockey is insane. Most families don't have the time to invest in such a sport. Unless something changes, hockey will find it's way into the cellar peeling for every last fan before it's major base drops. All hockey needs is another lock out and fans become annoyed.
But not soccer. No, not soccer. I'll tell you why not soccer. For years I have avoided the game. I hated it. I can't tell you why I disliked such a cheap game, but I did. I served in Iraq, where I handed out soccer balls on a daily basis. The joy of a simple ball was as great for a 15 year old as it is with my 2 year old son. From top to bottom, nobody cares about the stats. Most MLS arena's are not expensive by comparison with their higher tier counter parts. Soccer is mainly played out in public parks, where an entire family can enjoy something. Sound familiar, maybe like middle 1900's baseball?
Not to mention a ball is about $20. You can have an enormous amount of players in one game. And unlike football or basketball, the scene never changes. Jersey's do. No one ever asks you to put on shoulder pads, or step into a fancy arena. Many college games are played at simple parks. Most pro teams utilize the facilities of NFL teams, or open parks.
Soccer has been here all along. It's been cheap, and it has not changed much at all. Unfortunately the world cup ends in a couple of days and the dreams of an elongated relationship will fade faster than a Lindsey Lohan rehab stint.
No matter what happens on the television, or far away soccer will always remain cheap. It will always be the game in the park, and until something vastly changes it will always be the underdog. Let's hope it stays this way so that everyone can enjoy it, until someone figures out how to sell it.
Friday, May 2, 2014
Colorado Avalanche in review/ Blackhawks vs Wild
What a year! Colorado played their best season since Patrick Roy was a goalie. They have had some momentum in between, but nothing like this. They moved the puck, developed well and even turned a few rookies into superstars in waiting.
The year started well in Denver. Practices looked good, and the preseason was great. Pepsi Center sold out for the first preseason game, as everyone had a chance to see the new bench boss Patrick Roy. His style has changed over the year which shows his adaptive style, while glorifying his rookie coach status. In his very first game, he got himself a $10,000 fine for having a public shouting match. He showed that he was still pumped, even though he didn't have a pair of skates.
His first season didn't end without controversy though. In November, Semyon Varlamov was arrested for allegedly assaulting his girlfriend. Though his time in jail was short, Varly didn't waiver the entire year.
The biggest story of the year was rookie Nathan MacKinnon. Around this time last year, Seth Jones was all but set to be the first overall pick in the draft. Jones laced his very first skates in Colorado. He has ties to this community, and he looked great. As a defensemen he could have filled voids that the Avalanche needed. After the Avs picked MacKinnon, Jones said his new priority was to make every team that passed on him regret the decision. As of today, Jones' coach has been fired and his team missed the playoffs for the first time in 3 years. I think Colorado made the right choice.
The Avalanche played a speed game all year. Matching their new rookies with seasoned veterans, which proved to be lethal. Colorado never had a dull moment and made every team pay for their mistakes.
Having a 52 win season was great for the Avalanche. They grew in every department. 13 players made their playoff debut and MacKinnon had 10 points in the playoffs.
In the end, Colorado was exposed for having a shoddy defense. This was prominent in game 6 and 7. Next year promises to be great, but Colorado will likely wave goodbye to Paul Stastny. For a defensemen, that is a price that has to be paid.
The year started well in Denver. Practices looked good, and the preseason was great. Pepsi Center sold out for the first preseason game, as everyone had a chance to see the new bench boss Patrick Roy. His style has changed over the year which shows his adaptive style, while glorifying his rookie coach status. In his very first game, he got himself a $10,000 fine for having a public shouting match. He showed that he was still pumped, even though he didn't have a pair of skates.
His first season didn't end without controversy though. In November, Semyon Varlamov was arrested for allegedly assaulting his girlfriend. Though his time in jail was short, Varly didn't waiver the entire year.
The biggest story of the year was rookie Nathan MacKinnon. Around this time last year, Seth Jones was all but set to be the first overall pick in the draft. Jones laced his very first skates in Colorado. He has ties to this community, and he looked great. As a defensemen he could have filled voids that the Avalanche needed. After the Avs picked MacKinnon, Jones said his new priority was to make every team that passed on him regret the decision. As of today, Jones' coach has been fired and his team missed the playoffs for the first time in 3 years. I think Colorado made the right choice.
The Avalanche played a speed game all year. Matching their new rookies with seasoned veterans, which proved to be lethal. Colorado never had a dull moment and made every team pay for their mistakes.
Having a 52 win season was great for the Avalanche. They grew in every department. 13 players made their playoff debut and MacKinnon had 10 points in the playoffs.
In the end, Colorado was exposed for having a shoddy defense. This was prominent in game 6 and 7. Next year promises to be great, but Colorado will likely wave goodbye to Paul Stastny. For a defensemen, that is a price that has to be paid.
Friday, March 28, 2014
Good night Badgers, good luck seniors
This time last year, I was marveling at the same result that I am writing about today: a first round Badger exit from the NCAA hockey tournament.
I'm well known for knocking heavily on teams, and even more hated for knocking on the teams that I love. However this year's badger class deserves to be hit hard. Believe me, that is what they are going to get.
I'm a firm believer that in hockey, the coach is more out of the game than any other sport. Think about it: in the NFL the players wear cleats. If the coach wanted to come in and play QB there is nothing stopping him. In hockey, the coach doesn't have skates. He's the ultimate motivator while also being the ultimate peep looker. His words are magic in the locker room, but meaningless on the ice. So the coach had better be sure that each player understands their role on the ice, or the coach will be answering questions about the loss off the ice.
That pretty much sums up today's loss to UND. It's a tough one because it sends a really good senior class to graduation and the NHL. I don't know that it sends our best forward, Nic Kerdiles, to Anaheim. However it does send Mark Zengerle to a place where he is not Mr. Assist. That's a problem for Kerdiles.
So with that we begin with our Hobey nominated goaltender. His name is Joel Rumpel and he is from Canada. His nation of origin doesn't really matter, but his on ice character does. Joel is not the best goalie WI has ever seen. He's also not the worst. He's a guy who is big and uses that size to play his opponents. While he's looking tall and big, the opposing team is finding seams. Joel gives up quite a bit of room due to his flexibility issues. If he get's the puck square to the chest, you'll need a sniper to get him. A rebound requires a tap and the score changes. Joel has problems keeping the team in the game when he's the only guy available to do so. He showed that tonight, and WI fans everywhere will hope that NCAA basketball will be much kinder to the Badgers.
Defense is a hit and miss for Wisconsin. When they are on, they can stop anything from getting to the net. This shut down style program has enabled Joel Rumpel to move past his peers and become nominated for the Hobey Baker award. If you could award the Hobey to a certain part of the team, the WI defensive corps would get it. They have kept the badgers from certain death many times. When they lose a game, it's because the defense was not able to handle the load.
This brings in our offense. I love offense in a college hockey game. The implication of a hockey offense is a team sport. You need to dump off the puck to your defensive unit to cycle the puck. The offense must also be tactful in using every skater to their advantage. The one line unit of Zengerle, Kerdiles, and Barnes was not enough to keep the badgers hot.
So why did WI lose? They key is to watch where North Dakota didn't score to figure out where WI faulted. The biggest showing was the point in the game where the UND player ran into Rumpel. The goal was called off but Rumpel let the goal in anyways. You could see that Joel didn't have the form to hold fast like he needed to. However this is a team game.
The defense can be credited for the fifth and fatal blow by Rocco Grimaldi. Somehow, he penetrated all six WI players to break away towards an empty net. This shows that WI was not available to play defensively tonight. They lacked speed, motivation and maturation.
On the offense, WI was a joke. They didn't play well at all. Pucks on the net were worthless. The cycle was not implemented well, and it showed.
So for tonight we can really see that WI was not ready to play like the #5 ranked team in the nation. They were ready to play the the #17 team, which is probably where they should have been.
I'm well known for knocking heavily on teams, and even more hated for knocking on the teams that I love. However this year's badger class deserves to be hit hard. Believe me, that is what they are going to get.
I'm a firm believer that in hockey, the coach is more out of the game than any other sport. Think about it: in the NFL the players wear cleats. If the coach wanted to come in and play QB there is nothing stopping him. In hockey, the coach doesn't have skates. He's the ultimate motivator while also being the ultimate peep looker. His words are magic in the locker room, but meaningless on the ice. So the coach had better be sure that each player understands their role on the ice, or the coach will be answering questions about the loss off the ice.
That pretty much sums up today's loss to UND. It's a tough one because it sends a really good senior class to graduation and the NHL. I don't know that it sends our best forward, Nic Kerdiles, to Anaheim. However it does send Mark Zengerle to a place where he is not Mr. Assist. That's a problem for Kerdiles.
So with that we begin with our Hobey nominated goaltender. His name is Joel Rumpel and he is from Canada. His nation of origin doesn't really matter, but his on ice character does. Joel is not the best goalie WI has ever seen. He's also not the worst. He's a guy who is big and uses that size to play his opponents. While he's looking tall and big, the opposing team is finding seams. Joel gives up quite a bit of room due to his flexibility issues. If he get's the puck square to the chest, you'll need a sniper to get him. A rebound requires a tap and the score changes. Joel has problems keeping the team in the game when he's the only guy available to do so. He showed that tonight, and WI fans everywhere will hope that NCAA basketball will be much kinder to the Badgers.
Defense is a hit and miss for Wisconsin. When they are on, they can stop anything from getting to the net. This shut down style program has enabled Joel Rumpel to move past his peers and become nominated for the Hobey Baker award. If you could award the Hobey to a certain part of the team, the WI defensive corps would get it. They have kept the badgers from certain death many times. When they lose a game, it's because the defense was not able to handle the load.
This brings in our offense. I love offense in a college hockey game. The implication of a hockey offense is a team sport. You need to dump off the puck to your defensive unit to cycle the puck. The offense must also be tactful in using every skater to their advantage. The one line unit of Zengerle, Kerdiles, and Barnes was not enough to keep the badgers hot.
So why did WI lose? They key is to watch where North Dakota didn't score to figure out where WI faulted. The biggest showing was the point in the game where the UND player ran into Rumpel. The goal was called off but Rumpel let the goal in anyways. You could see that Joel didn't have the form to hold fast like he needed to. However this is a team game.
The defense can be credited for the fifth and fatal blow by Rocco Grimaldi. Somehow, he penetrated all six WI players to break away towards an empty net. This shows that WI was not available to play defensively tonight. They lacked speed, motivation and maturation.
On the offense, WI was a joke. They didn't play well at all. Pucks on the net were worthless. The cycle was not implemented well, and it showed.
So for tonight we can really see that WI was not ready to play like the #5 ranked team in the nation. They were ready to play the the #17 team, which is probably where they should have been.
Thursday, March 20, 2014
Minnesota: No longer the sacred hockey state?
Last year at around this time, I was an emphatic Wisconsin Badger hockey fan. I watched each game with pride and with a sense of passion. I even paid money to watch the away games on my computer. Devoted, I would say.
On a Thursday night, I watched Wisconsin dance their way through the competition and cheered when they won on Friday. I was so thrilled I booked a plane ticket, hotel and rental car to watch their WCHA championship game. The arena was filled, just like every night before. I saw people with jerseys from Boston to Alaska. This truly was the meccha for College Hockey. Then the leagues fractured.
Today I watch with utter disdain as the once proud venue's of Minnesota cannot fill the glass seats much less sell out. It's horrible. I thought about this for a while and came to a grave conclusion: the state of Minnesota is no longer a landing pad for College Hockey's finest. This is a sickening feeling knowing that the best conference in all of hockey is playing in a small arena on the western side of Michigan, with half of their talent from last season.
One this is for sure, St. Paul should remain the home of the WCHA. But the B1G and NCHC need to take a walk.
The B1G conference is a pretty solid group of teams. With Michigan bowing out in the first round, this league needs a bracket buster to advance 3 teams. That probably won't happen if Wisconsin and Minnesota get their way. Which brings me to a point: If WI and MN play each other, the stands will be packed and the crowd will be large. That's because the Xcel Energy Center is down the road from the University of Minnesota and roughly 4 hours away from Madison. The nearest team after that: Ohio State which is a long 12 hour drive from Minneapolis.
But the NCHC isn't off the hook either. Like the B1G, they are a new conference. Unlike the B1G, they don't have money. Take a look at the center ice for the B1G games at the Xcel center. Yeah, that's the B1G logo. Not even Red Baron's WCHA Final Five paid enough to remove the Minnesota Wild logo. So it's easy to think that this year's Frozen Face off, which features no teams from Minnesota, will be a dud played in an arena not set up for hockey. The closest team is North Dakota, which depending on speed can take roughly 4-5 hours. The Fighting Sioux don't have traveling problems. But Western Michigan, Denver, and Miami do. With the Gophers playing in St. Paul, I doubt many fans will want to boo UND in favor of watching the state team wallop on WI and whoever wins tonights game.
So yes, it's going to be ugly.
The worst part is that the NCHC cannot afford to have a bad showing. They don't have the guaranteed money that the B1G has. So unless SCSU or UMD can pull a big crowd next year, change needs to come. Unfortunately that 10 year contract with Target Center is going to weigh heavily.
Here is my proposal: Dump Minnesota, for both the NCHC and the B1G. MN and WI are both heavy weights in college hockey, but they won't fill an arena when they are not playing. Gopher and Badger fans will come to Detroit. It just happens to be that the Motor City is also very close to MSU, MI and a decent drive from Columbus. Factor in PSU being in the same time zone and I wouldn't bet against Detroit being a better destination.
As for the NCHC, they are new. Like anything new, they don't have much money. With UNO downsizing to a smaller campus arena, one could assume that the fan bases should settle within the next 3 years. So why not scrap Minneapolis in favor of the better seeded teams getting home ice? Make changes so that the home arena is required to allot a certain percent to the away team. Just imagine the championship being won at the Ralph or in the historic Herb Brooks National Hockey Center.
Play the NCHC out for a little. Figure out where fans won't travel, and where they will. I can tell you this from my personal experience: Many of the smaller schools don't travel well.
So let's ditch Minnesota entirely.
On a Thursday night, I watched Wisconsin dance their way through the competition and cheered when they won on Friday. I was so thrilled I booked a plane ticket, hotel and rental car to watch their WCHA championship game. The arena was filled, just like every night before. I saw people with jerseys from Boston to Alaska. This truly was the meccha for College Hockey. Then the leagues fractured.
Today I watch with utter disdain as the once proud venue's of Minnesota cannot fill the glass seats much less sell out. It's horrible. I thought about this for a while and came to a grave conclusion: the state of Minnesota is no longer a landing pad for College Hockey's finest. This is a sickening feeling knowing that the best conference in all of hockey is playing in a small arena on the western side of Michigan, with half of their talent from last season.
One this is for sure, St. Paul should remain the home of the WCHA. But the B1G and NCHC need to take a walk.
The B1G conference is a pretty solid group of teams. With Michigan bowing out in the first round, this league needs a bracket buster to advance 3 teams. That probably won't happen if Wisconsin and Minnesota get their way. Which brings me to a point: If WI and MN play each other, the stands will be packed and the crowd will be large. That's because the Xcel Energy Center is down the road from the University of Minnesota and roughly 4 hours away from Madison. The nearest team after that: Ohio State which is a long 12 hour drive from Minneapolis.
But the NCHC isn't off the hook either. Like the B1G, they are a new conference. Unlike the B1G, they don't have money. Take a look at the center ice for the B1G games at the Xcel center. Yeah, that's the B1G logo. Not even Red Baron's WCHA Final Five paid enough to remove the Minnesota Wild logo. So it's easy to think that this year's Frozen Face off, which features no teams from Minnesota, will be a dud played in an arena not set up for hockey. The closest team is North Dakota, which depending on speed can take roughly 4-5 hours. The Fighting Sioux don't have traveling problems. But Western Michigan, Denver, and Miami do. With the Gophers playing in St. Paul, I doubt many fans will want to boo UND in favor of watching the state team wallop on WI and whoever wins tonights game.
So yes, it's going to be ugly.
The worst part is that the NCHC cannot afford to have a bad showing. They don't have the guaranteed money that the B1G has. So unless SCSU or UMD can pull a big crowd next year, change needs to come. Unfortunately that 10 year contract with Target Center is going to weigh heavily.
Here is my proposal: Dump Minnesota, for both the NCHC and the B1G. MN and WI are both heavy weights in college hockey, but they won't fill an arena when they are not playing. Gopher and Badger fans will come to Detroit. It just happens to be that the Motor City is also very close to MSU, MI and a decent drive from Columbus. Factor in PSU being in the same time zone and I wouldn't bet against Detroit being a better destination.
As for the NCHC, they are new. Like anything new, they don't have much money. With UNO downsizing to a smaller campus arena, one could assume that the fan bases should settle within the next 3 years. So why not scrap Minneapolis in favor of the better seeded teams getting home ice? Make changes so that the home arena is required to allot a certain percent to the away team. Just imagine the championship being won at the Ralph or in the historic Herb Brooks National Hockey Center.
Play the NCHC out for a little. Figure out where fans won't travel, and where they will. I can tell you this from my personal experience: Many of the smaller schools don't travel well.
So let's ditch Minnesota entirely.
Saturday, February 15, 2014
College Hockey Unload
This season has been a terrible one for me. I've been a season ticket holder for the Denver Pioneers hockey team. I've never rooted for another team other than WI or CC and from everything I see going on at Magness, I'm shocked that Gwozdecky was fired. Attendance has been minor, with one sellout.....ONE! I mean this is a 7 time national championship team. They sold out against Brown. Needless to say I won't be attending any more games next season as a Pioneer fan.
I'm not impressed with this edition of the Colorado College Tigers. Unless Scott Owens has been taking a few years off the recruiting pipeline, things don't appear to be getting much better. My hope is that after this year, the remaining athletes can take the summer to re-group and come back firing for next season. I don't know that they won't run the NCHC tourney, but this season has been a debacle.
Miami of Ohio is probably the most disappointing team in the NCHC right now. Some might call me clueless, but for a team picked to win the conference this is a very poor showing. Rico Blasi has some work to do, but I have no idea where he needs to pick up. I think a second season in the NCHC will show the league what type of team we get to see on the weekends.
Duluth has become a stronger team one year after having a sub-par performance. They look stronger and I think they are about 2 years away from a solid national championship team. However this is not a set sport, so let's hope they play hard every game.
This is the first time in about 8 years that the University of North Dakota has not had a premier goalie. They don't look horrid, but I think this is the dip in Dave Hakstol's career that he will look back on. Pretty good teams every year. Never the less, I always have faith in the nickname removed Fighting Sioux. They play good in the second half of the year and are always a potential snake bite in the post season.
I'm truly impressed with SCSU. They have been solid for two straight years now. A great showing last year and this year has been nothing short of greatness.
Prior the start of this year, I have been extremely pessimistic about the B1G conference. I was angry with the formation of this conference as it removed Minnesota and Wisconsin from yearly visits to Colorado. It also took the money out of the WCHA, and forced a great conference in the CCHA to fold. However after some time watching, I can say that I am a fan. I've only really picked up on the B1G network games recently, so I'll have more to say next year than now. However I have noticed the rise of Penn State, Ohio State, and Michigan State in the collegiate level. Aside from Penn State just starting, the B1G gave these three schools a bigger platform than they had before.
Hockey East always seems foreign to people from the western side of the states. That's because roughly 1/4 of their teams play inside of Boston. The addition of Notre Dame has been a disaster in my mind. They are so distant from any other team in hockey east, but their payroll with NBC will always benefit them.
Atlantic Hockey has always been an also ran conference. While I do love these smaller schools competing night in and night out, they just don't command the recruiting that upper echelon conferences do. Unless they pick up a new team with money, I don't see their status changing anytime soon.
Once upon a time, the ECAC was another also ran conference. Then we got this influx of playoff runs from Yale, Quinnipiac, and Union. This year Clarkson has proved better, combined with the return to Lake Placid makes for a stunning conference.
The WCHA will take time. Ferris State is 2 years removed from a title loss, and Minnesota State is not the team they were last year. I think the next two years will prove to be difficult for a conference stretched from Alaska to Alabama. Let's hope that these teams can retain the glory they once basked in prior to the hockey shakeup.
I'm not impressed with this edition of the Colorado College Tigers. Unless Scott Owens has been taking a few years off the recruiting pipeline, things don't appear to be getting much better. My hope is that after this year, the remaining athletes can take the summer to re-group and come back firing for next season. I don't know that they won't run the NCHC tourney, but this season has been a debacle.
Miami of Ohio is probably the most disappointing team in the NCHC right now. Some might call me clueless, but for a team picked to win the conference this is a very poor showing. Rico Blasi has some work to do, but I have no idea where he needs to pick up. I think a second season in the NCHC will show the league what type of team we get to see on the weekends.
Duluth has become a stronger team one year after having a sub-par performance. They look stronger and I think they are about 2 years away from a solid national championship team. However this is not a set sport, so let's hope they play hard every game.
This is the first time in about 8 years that the University of North Dakota has not had a premier goalie. They don't look horrid, but I think this is the dip in Dave Hakstol's career that he will look back on. Pretty good teams every year. Never the less, I always have faith in the nickname removed Fighting Sioux. They play good in the second half of the year and are always a potential snake bite in the post season.
I'm truly impressed with SCSU. They have been solid for two straight years now. A great showing last year and this year has been nothing short of greatness.
Prior the start of this year, I have been extremely pessimistic about the B1G conference. I was angry with the formation of this conference as it removed Minnesota and Wisconsin from yearly visits to Colorado. It also took the money out of the WCHA, and forced a great conference in the CCHA to fold. However after some time watching, I can say that I am a fan. I've only really picked up on the B1G network games recently, so I'll have more to say next year than now. However I have noticed the rise of Penn State, Ohio State, and Michigan State in the collegiate level. Aside from Penn State just starting, the B1G gave these three schools a bigger platform than they had before.
Hockey East always seems foreign to people from the western side of the states. That's because roughly 1/4 of their teams play inside of Boston. The addition of Notre Dame has been a disaster in my mind. They are so distant from any other team in hockey east, but their payroll with NBC will always benefit them.
Atlantic Hockey has always been an also ran conference. While I do love these smaller schools competing night in and night out, they just don't command the recruiting that upper echelon conferences do. Unless they pick up a new team with money, I don't see their status changing anytime soon.
Once upon a time, the ECAC was another also ran conference. Then we got this influx of playoff runs from Yale, Quinnipiac, and Union. This year Clarkson has proved better, combined with the return to Lake Placid makes for a stunning conference.
The WCHA will take time. Ferris State is 2 years removed from a title loss, and Minnesota State is not the team they were last year. I think the next two years will prove to be difficult for a conference stretched from Alaska to Alabama. Let's hope that these teams can retain the glory they once basked in prior to the hockey shakeup.
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
Superbowl 48
The air was slightly damp, with a steady beam of sun making for a hot day. The grass was green, and children played. Families rented pavilions and celebrated with reunions, barbeque's and music. Cars drove by on the busy streets while motorcycle clubs roamed the small suburban area.
No this was not a scene or the opening from a book. This was what I experienced on the first day of the Denver Bronco's training camp last August. I remember all of this going on while radio and television news covered every possible angle of what happened the previous season: a double overtime loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Everybody had something to say about that team, with the good and bad times rolling off of slick tongues.
As the season progressed, story lines came into play. The first was why Joe Flacco had been plastered all over Denver. After all, Joe has never been a Bronco and the last time he played in Denver the result didn't end well. Every player who fell under the flag of Bronco Player had just become destined for the golf course. So naturally this gravitation towards pummeling the Ravens was overpowering.
Soon after, the talk was no longer about Denver making the playoffs. The talk was about how Peyton Manning was set to surpass Tom Brady for touchdowns in a season. As the weeks flew off the calender, the nothing seemed to matter except that record.
When the record was set, the feeling was almost one of "well done, Peyton". Not the typical idea one would want to see from a team desperately needing a super bowl.
Which brings us to the big game. All the hype that surrounded the Bronco's couldn't help them. This was after all, the worst the Bronco's had ever played. As it stands, I cannot seem to find a Bronco fan willing to show some Denver pride after that ass kicking.
So I decided to break this game down a little and possibly piss some people off for what I have to say.
Say is where I will begin. You can say what you want about the pregame, but getting a coin toss one way or another is the beginning of a game. This decides who gets what advantage and when. It's the first chance for a team to manage something. It's also the first chance for the other team to display the offense they prepared. So I am not buying into the idea that the league's best offense was set back because they didn't start the game off on defense.
I want to point out something about Denver's special teams. Early this season when the rave about Peyton was flying, praises were coming for Trindon Holliday. After all, he was cut by the Texans and he seemed to be doing well last season. By the time this game started, the best chance Mr. Holliday could get at a game was to hope John Fox forgot that he had fumbled so many footballs.
When the kickoff came, I didn't think anything of the kick. I was questioning why the football didn't clear the endzone considering the new kickoff rules. I remember thinking that either this kicker sucked, or the wind really got a hold of that ball. My next thought was if the ball is 9 yards deep, why didn't a guy stop Holliday from pursuing a run out?
A: Trindon Holliday was not stopped because the Bronco's had planned to attack Seattle's defense in every way possible. The thought was not how to overcome them, but when they could sneak in passes. This kickoff showed that the Bronco's did not have confidence to run their normal scheme.
On the first snap, the noise in the stadium appeared to be so loud that I thought this might have been Centurylink Field. At this point in the game, everyone in the stands is super happy to be at the superbowl. The biggest game in American sports, and what is usually the most watched event of the year. This proposes another question: Why didn't John Fox script the Bronco's offense for the first couple of plays?
A: Denver is not a team set up to take commands from the tower. Peyton knows all of the play calls and can quick snap (Omaha) when he get's the package he wants. Restricting Peyton is not something the Bronco's have done all year. This makes me believe that the Bronco's were coming into this game thinking they were playing for the same result that week 2 of the regular season would bring: a win. Wrong answer in my opinion for the last game of the year.
As the ball entered the endzone, Peyton didn't seem anywhere close and Moreno didn't even try to throw the ball forward for the chance to be outside of the endzone. Why didn't he try to do something with the ball?
A: Take a look at the Bronco's offensive line. They are built to hold for Peyton. Had RGIII, Cam Newton, or even Russel Wilson been under center this line would not prove of any use. They are built to hold for a guy who does not move well. Once they are beat, they hope that their QB can make a play or just accept the sack. In this case, the entire defense came as a force and Moreno decided to take the safety instead of giving up a touchdown.
On the next possession, Denver held Seattle's offense in very good check. They only allowed a field goal. In fact on the next two possessions, Denver only allowed six points. Considering how depleted they were in depth and old they were in presence, this was pretty good. So why were the Bronco's unable to hold an offense no where near the top in any category?
A: The defense on the field is what it is: a bunch of guys going for the best result possible. With Derrick Wolfe, Von Miller, and Chris Harris out, this team was only built for taking what the other team was giving up.
On Denver's next possession, Peyton threw a ball to Demaryious Thomas who ended up getting decked pretty hard. After watching this play, most radio pundits put that play as the game changer. I didn't think so. Which begs the question: Did the DT hit by Earl Campbell seal Denver?
A: No. However this showed how little Denver had spent working on the basic mechanics of the game. Thomas had a good 3 yard box around him to make a move. Normally this would have been enough to break open for some good yards. However, Campbell is incredibly fast and will nose dive against anyone. With the proper mechanics, Thomas could have had a five to seven yard gain instead of the three he got popped for.
Following this significant play, Manning threw his first interception. With a 8-0 lead, Seattle was getting the ball back in a way that Denver has rarely shown this year. I honestly couldn't believe that Manning didn't sharpen that play up. Which makes me wonder: What really went on during that play?
A: Crowd Noise. Manning is a defensive mind game. He calls fake plays to see which player will address his pass and then calls that player out. This is why you hear " X is mike". He's identifying the mike linebacker, or the guy who's going to come after Manning in the first blitz situation. This screws the defense because everyone on offense knows who is coming. Then the lineback backs off and the safety moves. Before the safety get's to his destination, manning throws in an audible followed by the world "Omaha" and then hut. The safety has momentum, just not in the way that he wanted. The receivers can take advantage of this fade and get a good route. On this particular play, Manning didn't get to move the safety. So he threw to the call of the play.
At the start of the second half, Seattle had a 22-0 lead. The superbowl record is a 10 point come from behind win. So this would mean shattering this record. I still do not believe that a 22 point lead was the end for Denver. Not for this offense anyways. So I wondered, did the kick off return for a touchdown seal the game, and why did Prater not kick into the endzone?
First A: Many people felt that the safety on the opening possession of the first half was the end for the Bronco's. I didn't see this game from that perspective. I saw the ultimate failure of an offense AND defense in the first half, and the kickoff assured me that nothing about this team was running at a pro level. I felt that the kickoff return was the nail in the coffin. I felt this way because up to this point, the only thing not to fail was the special teams. I'm sure people will disagree with me, but the reality is Denver had no chance from this point on. They would have had to pull a top 5 comeback in league history to win at this moment.
Second A: Prater was trying to avoid Percy Harvin. He had two options: kick the ball past the endzone or pooch the kick in front of Harvin which would get the kicking team time to get to the ball. The first option was out at the opening kick off. Harvin has more speed than Holliday and a 10 yard take off would be just what he needed to seal this game off. When Prater pooched the kick, the kicking team failed to get good penetration. The fell into zone blocks and allowed Harvin to pick holes. Ultimately he jettisoned the kicking team for the end zone.
The game was a blur at this point to many people not rooting for Seattle. In fact, most people were shocked that this game was so lopsided. Many people felt a good game was in order, but not a blowout. When Manning threw the touchdown pass in the third quarter, he proved he was able to bring this team back. Or did he?
A: No, Hell no. Manning proved that he possessed the ability to score a touchdown. What he didn't prove was that he could get his offense on the same page.
In retrospect, this was the worst superbowl that I have ever watched. I have heard some good predictions and some down right horrible ones about Mannings future. Here is what I believe: Manning has a legacy that won't be remembered until he put's on his HOF jacket. His superbowl win against Chicago is such a distant memory. Right now the only thing that seems to be going through people's mind are his inability to play in this superbowl, and his throw for a pick six in the previous superbowl against the Saints. I like and subscribe to the notion that Manning's arm is going downhill. I think we are about two years away from seeing an offense custom to Peyton's soon to be unpowered and short throws. Denver will be surging on Defense. Unfortunately, before they hit their new prime the guy under center for the offense will be talking about the time he was in superbowl 48.
No this was not a scene or the opening from a book. This was what I experienced on the first day of the Denver Bronco's training camp last August. I remember all of this going on while radio and television news covered every possible angle of what happened the previous season: a double overtime loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Everybody had something to say about that team, with the good and bad times rolling off of slick tongues.
As the season progressed, story lines came into play. The first was why Joe Flacco had been plastered all over Denver. After all, Joe has never been a Bronco and the last time he played in Denver the result didn't end well. Every player who fell under the flag of Bronco Player had just become destined for the golf course. So naturally this gravitation towards pummeling the Ravens was overpowering.
Soon after, the talk was no longer about Denver making the playoffs. The talk was about how Peyton Manning was set to surpass Tom Brady for touchdowns in a season. As the weeks flew off the calender, the nothing seemed to matter except that record.
When the record was set, the feeling was almost one of "well done, Peyton". Not the typical idea one would want to see from a team desperately needing a super bowl.
Which brings us to the big game. All the hype that surrounded the Bronco's couldn't help them. This was after all, the worst the Bronco's had ever played. As it stands, I cannot seem to find a Bronco fan willing to show some Denver pride after that ass kicking.
So I decided to break this game down a little and possibly piss some people off for what I have to say.
Say is where I will begin. You can say what you want about the pregame, but getting a coin toss one way or another is the beginning of a game. This decides who gets what advantage and when. It's the first chance for a team to manage something. It's also the first chance for the other team to display the offense they prepared. So I am not buying into the idea that the league's best offense was set back because they didn't start the game off on defense.
I want to point out something about Denver's special teams. Early this season when the rave about Peyton was flying, praises were coming for Trindon Holliday. After all, he was cut by the Texans and he seemed to be doing well last season. By the time this game started, the best chance Mr. Holliday could get at a game was to hope John Fox forgot that he had fumbled so many footballs.
When the kickoff came, I didn't think anything of the kick. I was questioning why the football didn't clear the endzone considering the new kickoff rules. I remember thinking that either this kicker sucked, or the wind really got a hold of that ball. My next thought was if the ball is 9 yards deep, why didn't a guy stop Holliday from pursuing a run out?
A: Trindon Holliday was not stopped because the Bronco's had planned to attack Seattle's defense in every way possible. The thought was not how to overcome them, but when they could sneak in passes. This kickoff showed that the Bronco's did not have confidence to run their normal scheme.
On the first snap, the noise in the stadium appeared to be so loud that I thought this might have been Centurylink Field. At this point in the game, everyone in the stands is super happy to be at the superbowl. The biggest game in American sports, and what is usually the most watched event of the year. This proposes another question: Why didn't John Fox script the Bronco's offense for the first couple of plays?
A: Denver is not a team set up to take commands from the tower. Peyton knows all of the play calls and can quick snap (Omaha) when he get's the package he wants. Restricting Peyton is not something the Bronco's have done all year. This makes me believe that the Bronco's were coming into this game thinking they were playing for the same result that week 2 of the regular season would bring: a win. Wrong answer in my opinion for the last game of the year.
As the ball entered the endzone, Peyton didn't seem anywhere close and Moreno didn't even try to throw the ball forward for the chance to be outside of the endzone. Why didn't he try to do something with the ball?
A: Take a look at the Bronco's offensive line. They are built to hold for Peyton. Had RGIII, Cam Newton, or even Russel Wilson been under center this line would not prove of any use. They are built to hold for a guy who does not move well. Once they are beat, they hope that their QB can make a play or just accept the sack. In this case, the entire defense came as a force and Moreno decided to take the safety instead of giving up a touchdown.
On the next possession, Denver held Seattle's offense in very good check. They only allowed a field goal. In fact on the next two possessions, Denver only allowed six points. Considering how depleted they were in depth and old they were in presence, this was pretty good. So why were the Bronco's unable to hold an offense no where near the top in any category?
A: The defense on the field is what it is: a bunch of guys going for the best result possible. With Derrick Wolfe, Von Miller, and Chris Harris out, this team was only built for taking what the other team was giving up.
On Denver's next possession, Peyton threw a ball to Demaryious Thomas who ended up getting decked pretty hard. After watching this play, most radio pundits put that play as the game changer. I didn't think so. Which begs the question: Did the DT hit by Earl Campbell seal Denver?
A: No. However this showed how little Denver had spent working on the basic mechanics of the game. Thomas had a good 3 yard box around him to make a move. Normally this would have been enough to break open for some good yards. However, Campbell is incredibly fast and will nose dive against anyone. With the proper mechanics, Thomas could have had a five to seven yard gain instead of the three he got popped for.
Following this significant play, Manning threw his first interception. With a 8-0 lead, Seattle was getting the ball back in a way that Denver has rarely shown this year. I honestly couldn't believe that Manning didn't sharpen that play up. Which makes me wonder: What really went on during that play?
A: Crowd Noise. Manning is a defensive mind game. He calls fake plays to see which player will address his pass and then calls that player out. This is why you hear " X is mike". He's identifying the mike linebacker, or the guy who's going to come after Manning in the first blitz situation. This screws the defense because everyone on offense knows who is coming. Then the lineback backs off and the safety moves. Before the safety get's to his destination, manning throws in an audible followed by the world "Omaha" and then hut. The safety has momentum, just not in the way that he wanted. The receivers can take advantage of this fade and get a good route. On this particular play, Manning didn't get to move the safety. So he threw to the call of the play.
At the start of the second half, Seattle had a 22-0 lead. The superbowl record is a 10 point come from behind win. So this would mean shattering this record. I still do not believe that a 22 point lead was the end for Denver. Not for this offense anyways. So I wondered, did the kick off return for a touchdown seal the game, and why did Prater not kick into the endzone?
First A: Many people felt that the safety on the opening possession of the first half was the end for the Bronco's. I didn't see this game from that perspective. I saw the ultimate failure of an offense AND defense in the first half, and the kickoff assured me that nothing about this team was running at a pro level. I felt that the kickoff return was the nail in the coffin. I felt this way because up to this point, the only thing not to fail was the special teams. I'm sure people will disagree with me, but the reality is Denver had no chance from this point on. They would have had to pull a top 5 comeback in league history to win at this moment.
Second A: Prater was trying to avoid Percy Harvin. He had two options: kick the ball past the endzone or pooch the kick in front of Harvin which would get the kicking team time to get to the ball. The first option was out at the opening kick off. Harvin has more speed than Holliday and a 10 yard take off would be just what he needed to seal this game off. When Prater pooched the kick, the kicking team failed to get good penetration. The fell into zone blocks and allowed Harvin to pick holes. Ultimately he jettisoned the kicking team for the end zone.
The game was a blur at this point to many people not rooting for Seattle. In fact, most people were shocked that this game was so lopsided. Many people felt a good game was in order, but not a blowout. When Manning threw the touchdown pass in the third quarter, he proved he was able to bring this team back. Or did he?
A: No, Hell no. Manning proved that he possessed the ability to score a touchdown. What he didn't prove was that he could get his offense on the same page.
In retrospect, this was the worst superbowl that I have ever watched. I have heard some good predictions and some down right horrible ones about Mannings future. Here is what I believe: Manning has a legacy that won't be remembered until he put's on his HOF jacket. His superbowl win against Chicago is such a distant memory. Right now the only thing that seems to be going through people's mind are his inability to play in this superbowl, and his throw for a pick six in the previous superbowl against the Saints. I like and subscribe to the notion that Manning's arm is going downhill. I think we are about two years away from seeing an offense custom to Peyton's soon to be unpowered and short throws. Denver will be surging on Defense. Unfortunately, before they hit their new prime the guy under center for the offense will be talking about the time he was in superbowl 48.
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