By now I’m sure you’ve heard about the NCAA handing down sanctions to 16 Alabama athletic programs, including the football team, for its athletes improperly obtaining textbooks. All teams were placed on probation for three years and the football team, which according to the chairman of the committee on infractions had four of the worst offenders, was forced to vacate 21 wins from the 2005-2007 seasons.
(Note: Three of those wins came against Ed Orgeron-led Ole Miss, but before the Shrimp Boat can go bragging to all his friends at Tennessee about how he actually went 3-0 against Alabama, he has to realize that the term “vacating” doesn’t mean the same as “forfeit.” In a rule that only the NCAA could create (or perhaps the federal government), Alabama will have the wins taken out of the record books, but teams like Ole Miss will not be allowed to change those loses to wins. I know. This is completely logical. So Ed Orgeron’s record against Alabama remains at 0-3, while Alabama’s record against Ed Orgeron becomes 0-0. Seriously, this is the solution the NCAA finds to be the best.)
After the NCAA’s ruling was released yesterday, ESPN’s Ivan Maisel wrote a column on the whole situation that I couldn’t believe he actually turned in and allowed to be published. Normally, I find Maisel’s writing to be pretty solid. He’s seemingly well connected in college football and knows enough that he can write on just about any team or conference. But this column was just a bit much. So in honor of the old firejoemorgan.com website, let’s attempt to break this down as they used to do so masterfully.
(Maisel’s words are in bold, mine are below his.)
With the announcement Thursday that the NCAA has wrist-slapped Alabama for its textbook problem, the university's rehabilitation might be complete.
Not so long ago, the school didn't have a textbook problem. It was a textbook problem.
Rehabilitation might be complete? Didn’t they just get hit with three more years of probation? By my count, that makes three stints on probation since 1995. One more slip up in the next three years and the velvet hammer of NCAA justice will come reigning down.
Oh, and is Rick Reilly selling independent sentences now? Only he could craft that textbook sentence.
Here stood a two-time loser in NCAA court, a school that lost a total of 38 scholarships in two cases only seven years apart, a school that as recently as 2002 made the NCAA lawyers dust off the death penalty to see whether it fit Alabama's crimes.
To quote the 2002 chairman of the committee on infractions Thomas Yeager, “God forbid, there's ever another appearance — ever. Should there be one — particularly within the five-year period — I don't know what's left.”
Yet on Thursday, the NCAA Committee on Infractions imposed no scholarship reductions on the Crimson Tide football team or any of the university's other 15 teams that had 201 players obtain free textbooks for their buddies.
The committee ordered Alabama to vacate 21 victories in football and one in tennis. The university also must pay a fine to the NCAA of $43,900, the cost of the free textbooks distributed. That's not quite 48 cents per seat at one of the Tide's seven games at Bryant-Denny Stadium this fall.
Well chairman Yeager, looks like another appearance isn’t such a big deal after all.
Something has changed at the Capstone. In recent weeks, coach Nick Saban worried aloud that the university had not defended itself aggressively enough to the NCAA Committee on Infractions. That is quite a change from a university that for years didn't appear to take the NCAA Manual seriously.
Nick Saban may be many things, but a fool is not one of them. Of course he’s going to stand up for his team and demand that his bosses do the same. Giving him credit for doing this is like giving people credit for breathing.
And are they really taking the NCAA Manual seriously? As said earlier, this is NCAA visit number three in 14 years.
Take yourself back to 1993, the year after Alabama won its sixth AP national championship. Alabama had never been on NCAA probation. When coach Gene Stallings discovered that corner Antonio Langham's eligibility might be in jeopardy, the university's investigation consisted pretty much of a broom and a rug under which to sweep it.
Once the NCAA determined that Langham had signed with an agent, and that athletic department officials dithered in their investigation, the hammer came down. When the Committee on Infractions ruled in 1995, it took away 26 scholarships and put Alabama on three years' probation (later reduced to 17 and two, respectively).
The committee used the term "distressing failure" in its report to describe the action of athletic director Hootie Ingram, Stallings and others in their investigation of Langham.
But they kept that national title. And can we all agree that the world could use more old men named Hootie?
Lesson learned? Seven years later, the NCAA came after the football program in the case of Albert Means, a Memphis defensive tackle recruit. Again, the university failed to understand what it had at stake.
In the days before the NCAA announced its verdict, faculty athletic representative Gene Marsh, a member of the Committee on Infractions who had recused himself from the case, told athletic department officials that Alabama had no reason to worry. The football team might lose a scholarship or two, but there wouldn't be any bowl sanctions.
The NCAA stripped Alabama of 21 scholarships, added a two-year bowl sanction, put the football program on five years' probation and described the university as "looking down a gun barrel" at the death penalty.
Whoops. I think the lesson learned here was don’t listen to anyone named Gene Marsh.
Coach Dennis Franchione, who had been at Alabama for little more than a year, said he felt blindsided. The tangible loss of scholarships took its toll on the football team. Franchione stayed one more season. Then came the five-month stint of Mike Price and the four-year slog of Mike Shula.
Football mediocrity, together with the intangible stain of being a two-time NCAA loser, took its toll on Alabama officials. They got it.
Wait? You mean we’re not supposed to cheat and we should take this NCAA thing seriously? Surely you jest.
This is the part of the column where the insanity is finally let loose. He’s crediting the school for taking the NCAA seriously and ignoring the tiny, tiny details that this is the third run-in with the NCAA in 14 years and that the way they responded this time is EXACTLY HOW EVERY SCHOOL SHOULD RESPOND TO THE NCAA. Yes, by all means, let’s praise a school that finally figured out the NCAA means business when they come around town and that arrogance isn’t the best tone to take with them. It’s like praising a parent for taking care of their kids. Congratulations, you’re now a normal member of society.
In the brief statement that he read to the media Thursday afternoon, athletic director Mal Moore said that Alabama "conducted an exhaustive review."
He added, "We have clearly demonstrated our intent to do things the right way."
I believe doing things the right way means not meeting with the NCAA every four and a half years.
On Thursday, Committee on Infractions chairman Paul Dee, the former Miami athletic director, said, "I think the University of Alabama did a terrific job."
I would hope so. After all this face time with the NCAA, they should be experts on investigating their infractions that continue to happen.
The penalties apply backward, not forward. Alabama must vacate 21 football victories. But that's about it. Where these textbooks are concerned, the NCAA made a molehill out of a molehill. Alabama accepted responsibility, performed its due diligence and fixed the flaw.
Again, way to go Alabama. You cooperated for the first time with yet another NCAA investigation. You should be proud. We’ll all look forward to another glowing article that commends your next round of cooperation in four and a half years. Never in my life did I expect to read a congratulatory column for the response to another round of rules violations.
In other words, in its dealings with the NCAA, the university finally found a textbook solution.
Again with a textbook line! I hope Reilly gave you a discount for buying in bulk.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Looking for a Midweek Pulse
As we trudge through the barren sports wilderness that is June, July and August, it is my hope that I spend that time mentioning baseball as few times as possible. I enjoy following baseball but I can imagine nothing more boring than a weekly discussion on the ups and downs of life in the National League East (Although, I imagine around the end of June, maybe early July, I’ll launch into a tirade on the Braves’ shortcomings in the 2009 season). So, that said, I’ve got some non-sports related items in the oven and look forward to unveiling them as we lumber toward the start of football season. But for now, I go to an old rock, the ESPN headlines.
If you’ve never read before, I take a screen shot of ESPN’s top headlines on this day and, after reviewing each headline, I determine if there is life in the world of sports at the midway point of this week. This is not a knock on ESPN, but simply to point out how badly the sporting world sucks without football. On to the headlines…
USC coach Floyd submits resignation. I think the real shocker in this story is the following sentence, which was also read by an anchor on SportsCenter last night:
“The Clarion-Ledger of Jackson, Miss., first reported Floyd's resignation.”
Score one for the ol’ hometown paper. Obviously, columnist Rick Cleveland’s friendship with Floyd was the key to The Clarion-Ledger getting some national credit for breaking the story. I’m sure there are a half a dozen columns from Cleveland documenting it, but if you weren’t aware, Floyd and Cleveland grew up together in Hattiesburg and their dads were friends as well. And you can mark it down right now, come the start of college basketball season expect a column from Cleveland on how Tim Floyd is ready to get back into coaching and that some struggling team out there should give him a chance to turn around their program.
2 scores enough for Pens to force 7. I have a suspicion that this is a hockey story. Or maybe some really cool gambling game I don’t know about. If it’s a hockey story, it should be placed on the yet-to-be-created ESPNHockey page where only people who care about hockey can see it. And if you’ve been keeping score, I’ve now given ESPN three ideas on how to manage content for their webpage: ESPNWomen, ESPNKids and now ESPNHockey.
Sources: Favre a no-show, Vikes slow chase. Of the top three headlines, two involve people with connections to the Hattiesburg area. The first, Tim Floyd, is allegedly one of the nicer and more genuine people you could ever meet who may have been caught up in the sleaze of college basketball recruiting. The second, Brett Favre, is a selfish asshole who enjoys holding NFL franchises hostage for months at a time, then screwing them over at the least opportune time.
Sources: Rambis passes so Kings net Westphal. Let’s see, Kurt Rambis could continue coaching with the Lakers, one of the top teams in professional basketball, and potentially take over when Phil Jackson retires, or he could take over the Sacramento Kings, a team that just finished 15-67, whose best player is Kevin Martin and in two years, the franchise may not even be in Sacramento. Tough choice.
Fight for 1st: BoSox rip Yanks. I thought about something to write here, but decided I’d wait until these teams meet for the 35th time later this season.
Manny visits team: ‘What happened, happened.’ You know what happened, Manny? You got yourself suspended and just about killed Andre Ethier’s season. Normally, I wouldn’t care, but Ethier is on my fantasy baseball team, which was thoroughly enjoying the results of his batting in front of or behind Manny. When Manny went away, he took Ethier’s bat with him. So you take your “What happened, happened” and go to hell.
Nationals select Strasburg at No. 1. You want to read something confusing? Check out the compensatory picks section of the Wikipedia page on the Major League Baseball draft. For such a simple game, baseball did a great job of creating player personnel rules that confuse and create general ignorance among its fans.
Ex-minor league pitcher, 25, joins BC as QB. Seriously, give it up Chris Weinke. It’s over.
Sources: Mayfield tested positive for meth. It jumped up a bit didn’t it? I mean, this really got out of hand fast. No steroids, but METHAMPHETAMINES. Not sure who Jeremy Mayfield is? HE’S A PROFESSIONAL STOCK CAR DRIVER. I think we can all agree that there’s nothing safer than snorting a little meth before getting behind the wheel. It’s science (No more Anchorman quotes, I promise).
Rumors: Mavs will swap J. Howard for pick 5. “Here’s what’s happening in your world. A La Jolla man clings to life at a university hospital after being viciously attacked by a pack of wild dogs in an abandoned pool.” Sorry, I tried to stop, but I love that movie so damn much. After it’s over I think we should get an apartment together.
Pulse Verdict: DEAD.
If you’ve never read before, I take a screen shot of ESPN’s top headlines on this day and, after reviewing each headline, I determine if there is life in the world of sports at the midway point of this week. This is not a knock on ESPN, but simply to point out how badly the sporting world sucks without football. On to the headlines…
USC coach Floyd submits resignation. I think the real shocker in this story is the following sentence, which was also read by an anchor on SportsCenter last night:
“The Clarion-Ledger of Jackson, Miss., first reported Floyd's resignation.”
Score one for the ol’ hometown paper. Obviously, columnist Rick Cleveland’s friendship with Floyd was the key to The Clarion-Ledger getting some national credit for breaking the story. I’m sure there are a half a dozen columns from Cleveland documenting it, but if you weren’t aware, Floyd and Cleveland grew up together in Hattiesburg and their dads were friends as well. And you can mark it down right now, come the start of college basketball season expect a column from Cleveland on how Tim Floyd is ready to get back into coaching and that some struggling team out there should give him a chance to turn around their program.
2 scores enough for Pens to force 7. I have a suspicion that this is a hockey story. Or maybe some really cool gambling game I don’t know about. If it’s a hockey story, it should be placed on the yet-to-be-created ESPNHockey page where only people who care about hockey can see it. And if you’ve been keeping score, I’ve now given ESPN three ideas on how to manage content for their webpage: ESPNWomen, ESPNKids and now ESPNHockey.
Sources: Favre a no-show, Vikes slow chase. Of the top three headlines, two involve people with connections to the Hattiesburg area. The first, Tim Floyd, is allegedly one of the nicer and more genuine people you could ever meet who may have been caught up in the sleaze of college basketball recruiting. The second, Brett Favre, is a selfish asshole who enjoys holding NFL franchises hostage for months at a time, then screwing them over at the least opportune time.
Sources: Rambis passes so Kings net Westphal. Let’s see, Kurt Rambis could continue coaching with the Lakers, one of the top teams in professional basketball, and potentially take over when Phil Jackson retires, or he could take over the Sacramento Kings, a team that just finished 15-67, whose best player is Kevin Martin and in two years, the franchise may not even be in Sacramento. Tough choice.
Fight for 1st: BoSox rip Yanks. I thought about something to write here, but decided I’d wait until these teams meet for the 35th time later this season.
Manny visits team: ‘What happened, happened.’ You know what happened, Manny? You got yourself suspended and just about killed Andre Ethier’s season. Normally, I wouldn’t care, but Ethier is on my fantasy baseball team, which was thoroughly enjoying the results of his batting in front of or behind Manny. When Manny went away, he took Ethier’s bat with him. So you take your “What happened, happened” and go to hell.
Nationals select Strasburg at No. 1. You want to read something confusing? Check out the compensatory picks section of the Wikipedia page on the Major League Baseball draft. For such a simple game, baseball did a great job of creating player personnel rules that confuse and create general ignorance among its fans.
Ex-minor league pitcher, 25, joins BC as QB. Seriously, give it up Chris Weinke. It’s over.
Sources: Mayfield tested positive for meth. It jumped up a bit didn’t it? I mean, this really got out of hand fast. No steroids, but METHAMPHETAMINES. Not sure who Jeremy Mayfield is? HE’S A PROFESSIONAL STOCK CAR DRIVER. I think we can all agree that there’s nothing safer than snorting a little meth before getting behind the wheel. It’s science (No more Anchorman quotes, I promise).
Rumors: Mavs will swap J. Howard for pick 5. “Here’s what’s happening in your world. A La Jolla man clings to life at a university hospital after being viciously attacked by a pack of wild dogs in an abandoned pool.” Sorry, I tried to stop, but I love that movie so damn much. After it’s over I think we should get an apartment together.
Pulse Verdict: DEAD.
Monday, June 08, 2009
When It's Over
In my lifetime as an Ole Miss fan, I’ve seen more games involving an Ole Miss team collapsing than I care to remember. I’ve seen more meltdowns than care to remember. I’ve seen more epic meltdowns than I care to remember. And, on rare occasions, I’ve seen a how-the-hell-did-we-win-that game. All of these are part of the experience of being an Ole Miss fan. A few euphoric highs mixed in with a steady diet of soul-numbing losses.
But through all of these wins and losses there is one common thread that most Ole Miss fans know very well. We can tell you the exact moment when we knew the game would be won or lost. Usually it’s a single play, but sometimes it can be a series of plays. For instance, last football season when I saw Jevan Snead on one drive carve up LSU’s defense with three of the best passes I’ve ever seen, the last of which gave Ole Miss a 21-3 lead, I knew there was no way LSU had a prayer to get back in that game even though the game was still in the second quarter.
However, it’s most often the single plays that are the eventual cause of so much wailing and gnashing of teeth. Ed Orgeron’s decision to go for it on fourth and one while leading and dominating Mississippi State 14-0. South Carolina converting a third and goal from the 20 in Oxford last fall. Kendrick Lewis flying by Wake Forest quarterback Riley Skinner right before a big gain put Wake in field goal range to win the game. These are just a few examples of individual plays that the moment after they happened Ole Miss fans knew the game was lost.
This weekend Ole Miss fans saw another play get added to the ever-growing list of moments when they knew the game was lost, and in this case, when the next game was lost. On Saturday when second basemen Evan Button tapped his inner Chuck Knoblauch and threw a routine ground ball 50 feet instead of 60 feet to first, the Super Regional series against Virginia was over. Even with Ole Miss leading the series 1-0 and the game 3-2, it was done. The air was sucked right out of the crowd of over 10,000, and whether Ole Miss fans would audibly admit it or not, they knew they were about to watch a late rally from Virginia and would see the Cavaliers win on Sunday. I knew it. The friends I was with knew it. Hell, even the guy who can’t think knew it.
You don’t get within five outs of Omaha, make a crucial mistake and actually live to see Omaha. It just doesn’t happen. Unfortunately for Evan Button, his mistake was and will rightfully be remembered as the one play that ended Ole Miss’ chance at a trip to the College World Series. If he makes that play, which he said he normally makes 99 out of 100 times, Virginia is just about finished. Two outs, no one on base and four outs from elimination. That’s a tough situation from which to rally.
Instead, he choked. Of course, all the blame doesn’t fall on his shoulders, but that single play turned the series around. Last week, I wrote “[a]s for Ole Miss, they’ll have the home crowd behind them, which will be good as long as things don’t sour and help create a sense of impending doom.” Well, after Button’s error, the sense of impending doom couldn’t just be felt, it could be heard. The cries of “Why?!?! Why us?!?!,” the deep groans and the collective tightening of the sphincter muscle filled the stadium Saturday afternoon, preceding what we knew was coming.
The thing about the ability to know when the game is won or lost is that it can’t be taught. It can be learned, but not through teaching. Only through experience, and usually many painful ones, can an Ole Miss fan really develop and fine-tune this ability. I can’t remember exactly when mine started to kick in, but I know that what I have now is never wrong. I have to believe that on Saturday many Ole Miss fans either discovered this ability for the first time or sharpened theirs to a fine point. And to you newbies, it doesn’t make it any less awful.
But through all of these wins and losses there is one common thread that most Ole Miss fans know very well. We can tell you the exact moment when we knew the game would be won or lost. Usually it’s a single play, but sometimes it can be a series of plays. For instance, last football season when I saw Jevan Snead on one drive carve up LSU’s defense with three of the best passes I’ve ever seen, the last of which gave Ole Miss a 21-3 lead, I knew there was no way LSU had a prayer to get back in that game even though the game was still in the second quarter.
However, it’s most often the single plays that are the eventual cause of so much wailing and gnashing of teeth. Ed Orgeron’s decision to go for it on fourth and one while leading and dominating Mississippi State 14-0. South Carolina converting a third and goal from the 20 in Oxford last fall. Kendrick Lewis flying by Wake Forest quarterback Riley Skinner right before a big gain put Wake in field goal range to win the game. These are just a few examples of individual plays that the moment after they happened Ole Miss fans knew the game was lost.
This weekend Ole Miss fans saw another play get added to the ever-growing list of moments when they knew the game was lost, and in this case, when the next game was lost. On Saturday when second basemen Evan Button tapped his inner Chuck Knoblauch and threw a routine ground ball 50 feet instead of 60 feet to first, the Super Regional series against Virginia was over. Even with Ole Miss leading the series 1-0 and the game 3-2, it was done. The air was sucked right out of the crowd of over 10,000, and whether Ole Miss fans would audibly admit it or not, they knew they were about to watch a late rally from Virginia and would see the Cavaliers win on Sunday. I knew it. The friends I was with knew it. Hell, even the guy who can’t think knew it.
You don’t get within five outs of Omaha, make a crucial mistake and actually live to see Omaha. It just doesn’t happen. Unfortunately for Evan Button, his mistake was and will rightfully be remembered as the one play that ended Ole Miss’ chance at a trip to the College World Series. If he makes that play, which he said he normally makes 99 out of 100 times, Virginia is just about finished. Two outs, no one on base and four outs from elimination. That’s a tough situation from which to rally.
Instead, he choked. Of course, all the blame doesn’t fall on his shoulders, but that single play turned the series around. Last week, I wrote “[a]s for Ole Miss, they’ll have the home crowd behind them, which will be good as long as things don’t sour and help create a sense of impending doom.” Well, after Button’s error, the sense of impending doom couldn’t just be felt, it could be heard. The cries of “Why?!?! Why us?!?!,” the deep groans and the collective tightening of the sphincter muscle filled the stadium Saturday afternoon, preceding what we knew was coming.
The thing about the ability to know when the game is won or lost is that it can’t be taught. It can be learned, but not through teaching. Only through experience, and usually many painful ones, can an Ole Miss fan really develop and fine-tune this ability. I can’t remember exactly when mine started to kick in, but I know that what I have now is never wrong. I have to believe that on Saturday many Ole Miss fans either discovered this ability for the first time or sharpened theirs to a fine point. And to you newbies, it doesn’t make it any less awful.
Wednesday, June 03, 2009
Super Regional Fever
A fourth Super Regional in five years? The third one in Oxford in five years? Pass the kool-aid and save me a seat on the bandwagon. If you are one of the few regular readers here, you know that while I follow college baseball, although not very close, I cannot emotionally invest myself in it. Football season (and basketball season to a smaller degree) is such a drain on my core that I have to shut down emotionally for at least four months in order to prepare for the upcoming fall. If I allowed baseball season to affect me even the way basketball does, I’d have some sort of mental breakdown in October where I disappear into the woods and live off of berries and tree bark for three months. I have to take some time off. Plus, it’s hard to really get into a sport that receives almost zero national exposure and in a good year breaks even financially.
However, when postseason play rolls around, it’s any good Rebels duty to get swept up in the excitement and become emotionally invested in the baseball team. Before you begin screaming bandwagon fan, which I most certainly am, I kept up with this team (at least how they did in each SEC series) and earlier I tried to name as many players as I could. I came up with 18, most of which were pitchers. I have problems naming the other starters and their positions (seriously, how long has Logan Power been at Ole Miss?) and couldn’t give you the batting order if my life depended on it. But you better believe I’ll be sweating my ass off and getting horribly sunburned in the outfield this weekend.
So with all that said, while everyone else is offering their expert opinions on the Ole Miss/Virginia match-up, I give you everything you need to know about the Super Regional from the guy who followed Ole Miss this season, but not that closely, and just jumped on the bandwagon (hell, I might even try to drive the thing) and is now probably way too emotionally invested in the outcome.
Virginia: Champs of the ACC Tournament, forgetting that basketball exists. I mentioned a month or two ago that I was pretty certain I did not see a single highlight of Virginia basketball during the season. I still think that’s pretty amazing. A program that at one time had some really good teams, plays in a basketball-oriented conference and in recent years produced the occasional feisty team just vanished. Very weird.
As for the baseball team, I’ve read they’re built much like Ole Miss. Good hitters, not a lot of power and strong pitching. And their pitching leads the nation in ERA, which could be a result of playing in the ACC, which could be a weak baseball conference. I have no idea. Just a guess. I’m not sure it’s possible for someone to know less about a baseball team and conference than I do about Virginia and the ACC. But I still know more about the baseball team than the basketball team.
Ole Miss: SEC regular season champs, errr, co-champs, hoping to not choke away another shot at Omaha. The last time Ole Miss was in a Super Regional I wrote this. It documented the collapse in game one against Arizona State and spent some time on the state of complete misery that was Ole Miss athletics. Just reading the part about Ed Orgeron reminded me how happy I am that he’s gone (And I forgot about the defensive first baseman thing we did that season. One of the dumbest ideas ever). Anyway, that first game could be classified as not good times.
And the in two Oxford Super Regionals before that, the Rebels won both first games against Texas and Miami and then lost the next two to lose the series. The point is that the Rebels have not fared well in these games. I don’t know if it’s the pressure, the teams weren’t as good as we thought they were or that “Ole Miss” stitched across each jersey. Whatever it is, things just don’t go well. So in addition to overcoming a good Virginia team, Ole Miss will be battling the 800-pound gorilla on their backs.
Intangibles is just a made-up word like Eskimo and San Diegans. Coming into the weekend, Virginia has to feel good about themselves. They won the ACC Tournament, then went to UC Irvine, won the regional there and in the process beat the unbeatable Stephen Strasburg of San Diego State. So I’m guessing they’re not sweating a potential appearance by Brett Bukvich.
But, I doubt Virginia has played in an environment like they’ll see on Friday. Close to 12 thousand sweaty, jacked-up and alcohol-fueled fans ready for the elusive breakthrough to Omaha will be packed around Swayze Field. I don’t see it affecting them the entire series, but one would think Friday might be a little overwhelming for them.
As for Ole Miss, they’ll have the home crowd behind them, which will be good as long as things don’t sour and help create a sense of impending doom. The team is coming off what has to be considered the most clutch and best pitching performance in the history of Ole Miss baseball. Normally, I wouldn’t put too much stock in winning the final regional game. Yes, it can be a momentum builder, but often winning one of those is more of a relief than anything else, especially when you’re the one seed. But how the Rebels won absolutely created a new sense of confidence within the team. Drew Pomeranz set an example not just for the pitchers, but also for everyone else by sacking up and doing what needed to be done in a crucial situation. Hopefully, when it’s someone else’s turn this weekend, they’ll respond as he did.
Predictions are always right except when they’re wrong. I thought about this for a fairly long time. Well, more like 11 minutes, but when I look at everything…ah, screw it. Ole Miss sweeps.
However, when postseason play rolls around, it’s any good Rebels duty to get swept up in the excitement and become emotionally invested in the baseball team. Before you begin screaming bandwagon fan, which I most certainly am, I kept up with this team (at least how they did in each SEC series) and earlier I tried to name as many players as I could. I came up with 18, most of which were pitchers. I have problems naming the other starters and their positions (seriously, how long has Logan Power been at Ole Miss?) and couldn’t give you the batting order if my life depended on it. But you better believe I’ll be sweating my ass off and getting horribly sunburned in the outfield this weekend.
So with all that said, while everyone else is offering their expert opinions on the Ole Miss/Virginia match-up, I give you everything you need to know about the Super Regional from the guy who followed Ole Miss this season, but not that closely, and just jumped on the bandwagon (hell, I might even try to drive the thing) and is now probably way too emotionally invested in the outcome.
Virginia: Champs of the ACC Tournament, forgetting that basketball exists. I mentioned a month or two ago that I was pretty certain I did not see a single highlight of Virginia basketball during the season. I still think that’s pretty amazing. A program that at one time had some really good teams, plays in a basketball-oriented conference and in recent years produced the occasional feisty team just vanished. Very weird.
As for the baseball team, I’ve read they’re built much like Ole Miss. Good hitters, not a lot of power and strong pitching. And their pitching leads the nation in ERA, which could be a result of playing in the ACC, which could be a weak baseball conference. I have no idea. Just a guess. I’m not sure it’s possible for someone to know less about a baseball team and conference than I do about Virginia and the ACC. But I still know more about the baseball team than the basketball team.
Ole Miss: SEC regular season champs, errr, co-champs, hoping to not choke away another shot at Omaha. The last time Ole Miss was in a Super Regional I wrote this. It documented the collapse in game one against Arizona State and spent some time on the state of complete misery that was Ole Miss athletics. Just reading the part about Ed Orgeron reminded me how happy I am that he’s gone (And I forgot about the defensive first baseman thing we did that season. One of the dumbest ideas ever). Anyway, that first game could be classified as not good times.
And the in two Oxford Super Regionals before that, the Rebels won both first games against Texas and Miami and then lost the next two to lose the series. The point is that the Rebels have not fared well in these games. I don’t know if it’s the pressure, the teams weren’t as good as we thought they were or that “Ole Miss” stitched across each jersey. Whatever it is, things just don’t go well. So in addition to overcoming a good Virginia team, Ole Miss will be battling the 800-pound gorilla on their backs.
Intangibles is just a made-up word like Eskimo and San Diegans. Coming into the weekend, Virginia has to feel good about themselves. They won the ACC Tournament, then went to UC Irvine, won the regional there and in the process beat the unbeatable Stephen Strasburg of San Diego State. So I’m guessing they’re not sweating a potential appearance by Brett Bukvich.
But, I doubt Virginia has played in an environment like they’ll see on Friday. Close to 12 thousand sweaty, jacked-up and alcohol-fueled fans ready for the elusive breakthrough to Omaha will be packed around Swayze Field. I don’t see it affecting them the entire series, but one would think Friday might be a little overwhelming for them.
As for Ole Miss, they’ll have the home crowd behind them, which will be good as long as things don’t sour and help create a sense of impending doom. The team is coming off what has to be considered the most clutch and best pitching performance in the history of Ole Miss baseball. Normally, I wouldn’t put too much stock in winning the final regional game. Yes, it can be a momentum builder, but often winning one of those is more of a relief than anything else, especially when you’re the one seed. But how the Rebels won absolutely created a new sense of confidence within the team. Drew Pomeranz set an example not just for the pitchers, but also for everyone else by sacking up and doing what needed to be done in a crucial situation. Hopefully, when it’s someone else’s turn this weekend, they’ll respond as he did.
Predictions are always right except when they’re wrong. I thought about this for a fairly long time. Well, more like 11 minutes, but when I look at everything…ah, screw it. Ole Miss sweeps.
Monday, June 01, 2009
From the Weekend That Was
Ole Miss baseball pulls off one for the ages. Well played, sports gods, well played. You let us get comfortable, start dreaming of a Super Regional in Oxford next weekend and then with one ferocious backhand slap, you casually remind us that we are indeed Ole Miss. It was an especially nice touch when you consider that we had not suffered a soul-numbing loss in quite some time. A small payback for football season I suppose.
If you missed it, Ole Miss, one game away from probably hosting a Super Regional since paired top seed UC Irvine lost, had a 9-3 lead in the eighth inning with our best reliever, Jake Morgan, who destroyed Western Kentucky the night before, pitching. He promptly surrendered six runs then gave way to in the ninth to Nathan Baker, who gave up a solo home run to complete the collapse. Now, after the 10-9 loss, Ole Miss plays again tonight. If they win, they most likely host a Super Regional next weekend against Virginia. Lose and the season is done.
If they manage to lose tonight, this will be another impressive chapter in The Book of Great Ole Miss Collapses: Baseball Edition. You may already be familiar with previous chapters “A Top Three Team That Doesn’t Make the SEC Tournament.” “Beating Texas Once is Easy; Losing the Next Two is the Hard Part,” “We Beat Miami Once, Who Knew We Had to Do It Again?” and “Yet Another Super Regional Loss: The Arizona State Chronicles.” All of those were truly award winning work. It’s hard to believe that Western Kentucky could be cause for a chapter, but you never know what the sports gods have planned.
Lakers and Magic set to produce mediocre NBA Finals ratings. It won’t be the worst Finals ever or the best, but the 2009 version of the NBA Finals should fall right in the meaty part of ratings history. The Lakers are obviously one of the bigger draws nationally and the Magic, while in a bad TV market, have a superstar in Dwight Howard and play an exciting enough brand of basketball that casual NBA fans will tune in for most of the series. Or at least until Fox starts airing a four-part “We didn’t land on the moon” special, which revisits the evidence that says we never landed on the moon. I love summertime TV.
Ohio State baseball has something in common with Ohio State football. It appears that being beaten without mercy is a common theme for Ohio State sports teams when they make a postseason appearance or play a quality opponent. The Buckeye baseball team’s season ended yesterday with a 37-6 loss to Florida State (By comparison, the football team lost to USC 35-3 last September). At this point, for the sake of Ohio State players and fans, the Buckeyes should only be allowed to play games in the states of Ohio and Michigan. That’s pretty much what they do anyway so all this rule would really do is ban Ohio State from postseason play, which is something we can all get behind.
The SEC passes the Houston Nutt Rule. At the meetings in Destin last Friday, the SEC presidents voted to cap the number of football player signings at 28, just nine players less than Ole Miss’ 2009 signing class of 37. Fortunately for Ole Miss, the rules requiring the Rebels to play with only nine players on the field at a time, forcing Jevan Snead to throw left handed and giving Ole Miss’ opposing quarterbacks a non-contact jersey did not pass.
Some Tennessee fans really, and I mean really, hated Jonathan Crompton. The Tennessee quarterback revealed that he was emailed at least two death threats during last season’s 5-7 disaster. I’m going to ignore what kind of a loser thinks that something like this is a good idea, takes the time to find an email address and then actually goes through with it. Everyone should know that when you’re angry at how your team’s quarterback is playing, you never take it out on him. Instead, you bury it deep inside and finally allow it to erupt in a 12 minute, profanity-laced tirade in which you denounce the school, the coaches, the players, everyone associated with the school and finally end it by swearing off sports forever and that you’ll never set foot on campus again or give another dollar to the school. That’s the way bad quarterbacks should make you feel. Any other way is completely unacceptable.
If you missed it, Ole Miss, one game away from probably hosting a Super Regional since paired top seed UC Irvine lost, had a 9-3 lead in the eighth inning with our best reliever, Jake Morgan, who destroyed Western Kentucky the night before, pitching. He promptly surrendered six runs then gave way to in the ninth to Nathan Baker, who gave up a solo home run to complete the collapse. Now, after the 10-9 loss, Ole Miss plays again tonight. If they win, they most likely host a Super Regional next weekend against Virginia. Lose and the season is done.
If they manage to lose tonight, this will be another impressive chapter in The Book of Great Ole Miss Collapses: Baseball Edition. You may already be familiar with previous chapters “A Top Three Team That Doesn’t Make the SEC Tournament.” “Beating Texas Once is Easy; Losing the Next Two is the Hard Part,” “We Beat Miami Once, Who Knew We Had to Do It Again?” and “Yet Another Super Regional Loss: The Arizona State Chronicles.” All of those were truly award winning work. It’s hard to believe that Western Kentucky could be cause for a chapter, but you never know what the sports gods have planned.
Lakers and Magic set to produce mediocre NBA Finals ratings. It won’t be the worst Finals ever or the best, but the 2009 version of the NBA Finals should fall right in the meaty part of ratings history. The Lakers are obviously one of the bigger draws nationally and the Magic, while in a bad TV market, have a superstar in Dwight Howard and play an exciting enough brand of basketball that casual NBA fans will tune in for most of the series. Or at least until Fox starts airing a four-part “We didn’t land on the moon” special, which revisits the evidence that says we never landed on the moon. I love summertime TV.
Ohio State baseball has something in common with Ohio State football. It appears that being beaten without mercy is a common theme for Ohio State sports teams when they make a postseason appearance or play a quality opponent. The Buckeye baseball team’s season ended yesterday with a 37-6 loss to Florida State (By comparison, the football team lost to USC 35-3 last September). At this point, for the sake of Ohio State players and fans, the Buckeyes should only be allowed to play games in the states of Ohio and Michigan. That’s pretty much what they do anyway so all this rule would really do is ban Ohio State from postseason play, which is something we can all get behind.
The SEC passes the Houston Nutt Rule. At the meetings in Destin last Friday, the SEC presidents voted to cap the number of football player signings at 28, just nine players less than Ole Miss’ 2009 signing class of 37. Fortunately for Ole Miss, the rules requiring the Rebels to play with only nine players on the field at a time, forcing Jevan Snead to throw left handed and giving Ole Miss’ opposing quarterbacks a non-contact jersey did not pass.
Some Tennessee fans really, and I mean really, hated Jonathan Crompton. The Tennessee quarterback revealed that he was emailed at least two death threats during last season’s 5-7 disaster. I’m going to ignore what kind of a loser thinks that something like this is a good idea, takes the time to find an email address and then actually goes through with it. Everyone should know that when you’re angry at how your team’s quarterback is playing, you never take it out on him. Instead, you bury it deep inside and finally allow it to erupt in a 12 minute, profanity-laced tirade in which you denounce the school, the coaches, the players, everyone associated with the school and finally end it by swearing off sports forever and that you’ll never set foot on campus again or give another dollar to the school. That’s the way bad quarterbacks should make you feel. Any other way is completely unacceptable.
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