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Published September 29, 2009 Home page commentary Sept. 19-26, 2009The comments below were posted on the ColumbusSports.com home page from Saturday, Sept. 19 through Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009. ========================== Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009 Ohio State Buckeyes - I didn't include this game in my Pigskin Picks for today, but I wanted to post a few lines about how I think it may play out and explain my reasoning. When making picks ATS (against the spread), it's wise of course to separate your brain from your heart. For me, most of the time that's very difficult to do when it comes to the Buckeyes, so unless I feel pretty strongly that I'm not picking with my heart, I avoid picking their games, even though I believe I've got a very good "feel" for how they'll play in any given week. That's basically the case for today's game. My gut feeling tells me that the mostly unknown but talented defense is going to play inspired and harass Juice Williams into a few costly mistakes, and Terrelle Pryor will make enough big plays himself that Ohio State should cover the 14 point spread. So what's the problem? Why didn't I pick Ohio State today? Two words: Jim Tressel. I hate to say it, but especially with the weather expected to be wet, if Ohio State gets a 10 - 14 point lead Tressel Ball will take over and bring a strong risk factor to the equation when it comes to predicting the final spread, not to mention the possibility of allowing Illinois to stay within upset reach. Remember Navy? Here's hoping that the players take it upon themselves to not let that happen and find a way to beat Illinois by at least 20, which on talent alone they should be able to do. If it only weren't for that coaching philosophy.... Miscellaneous - My least favorite high school and college football rule: if the ball carrier falls down but is NOT touched by a defensive player, he's considered down and can't get up and continue running. Why not? What's the purpose or reasoning behind that rule? And why only in high school and college? Please don't tell me it has something to do with the fear that a player may get hurt trying to get back up. Uh.... it IS football, remember? If you know why this rule is in place, please post it in the comment area at the bottom of this page. Watching the Indiana - Michigan game, and either Indiana is way better on offense than anyone gave them credit for, or the Wolverine defense is a lot worse than what we thought. Currently (late in the first half), Indiana leads 20-14, but it could very easily be 28-14. Oops, Michigan just drove and scored, make that 21-20 Michigan. Will be interesting to see whether the Hoosiers can drive down for one more score before half. --------------------------------------------- Friday, Sept. 25, 2009 New Jersey Nyets - The news that a Russian billionaire (Mikhail Prokhorov) may likely become the owner of an NBA franchise, obviously with the official blessing of David Stern, has "what were they thinking?" written all over it. For a league as concerned with image and legitimacy as the NBA, just how do they think that a Russian "business man" came to be a billionaire in the first place? By owning and operating a chain of McDonald's franchises from Moscow to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky? I don't think so. Just imagine the uproar the first time one of his players misses a key free throw late in a game and gets banished to a D League team in Siberia. Cleveland Indians - The way their season is ending, currently 11 losses in a row and counting, it almost seems like the front office should find a way to reincarnate old Municipal Stadium on the shores of Lake Erie and play one more home game there in front of about 1500 "fans". It would be a fitting tribute to the Tribe of yesteryear, when so many seasons ended like the current one. I can still hear the echo of the vendor's voices shouting "beer here!" in that hollow, cavernous pit of a playing field. Ah, memories. That's what 30 games below .500 will do to you. Ohio State Buckeyes - I hope the players are as fired up for some revenge against Juice Williams and gang as I am. Too many times in the past 10 years the Illini have come into the 'Shoe and outplayed the Buckeyes, including the huge upset (with a few assists from the refs) of then No. 1 Ohio State in 2007 when the Illinois players seemingly just wanted it more than the Buckeyes at the end of the game. I'm sure Illinois will come into town with more determination than they showed when they opened the season (and got clobbered) against Missouri, so Tressel's boys had better be ready, but I'm going to be disappointed with anything less than a 20 point victory on Saturday. It's just time to put Ron Zook's team in its place, which is preferably in the lower half of the Big Ten where it belongs. Columbus Blue Jackets - Hockey? What's that? Do you know the difference between a cross check and a power play? If so, and you'd like to show off your hockey knowledge on ColumbusSports.com, email me today. Bengals vs. Steelers - What? A meaningful game for the Bengals? Well, remember it is only the 3rd week of the season. Still, after their upset of the Packers in Green Bay last week (how frustrated must Cincy fans be over that fluke Denver loss?), the Bengals have a chance to actually prove something against the Steelers and at least make the next part of their schedule very meaningful. Cincinnati has been in this position before, however, and always finds a way to lose to Pittsburgh, so it'll be quite interesting to see how this one plays out. The Bengals do catch a huge break with Troy Polamalu out, and the Bears certainly benefited from that last week when they upset the Steelers, so Carson Palmer needs to keep from tearing up his knee during the game and find a few open areas in the Steelers secondary. Look for Chad 85 to make a few big plays and for the Bengals to pull off the upset on Sunday. Cleveland Browns - Ouch! Oh! Stop! Please Mr. Lewis, have mercy! Pigskin Picks will have more to say on this game. BTW, for a bit of reflection and perspective, check out the very first article I ever published on this site (so Brady, where ARE you?). --------------------------------------------- Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2009 Ohio State: Just imagine if the Buckeyes only beat Illinois by 30 points this week. They'll probably fall another 2 spots in the polls even if half the teams ahead of them lose. Nothing says disrespect like winning 38-0 and dropping in the polls even when some ahead of you lose. Guess it's just a case of Tressel (and OSU fans) reaping what he sowed. Cleveland Browns: Another ugly loss for a franchise that is getting uglier by the day, even for its diehard fans. Brady Quinn looks worse than last year. More tentative and unsure of himself. Short of a drastic, quick turnaround by the whole team, it's looking like Mangini's first year is going to be 2 or 3 wins at best, and possibly even challenging the Lions dubious record set last year. (btw, if you didn't click the Brady Quinn link above, definitely check it out) USC: Is it possible that the Trojans are overrated this year? If they lose another game or two (California, Stanford, UCLA, Oregon, Notre Dame), the answer is definitely yes, but all that does is increase the frustration the Buckeye team and Buckeye nation feels about losing to the Trojans. If USC does end up with only the upset loss to Washington, it makes Ohio State's 3 point loss to them look better, but if they lose another couple of games, and one of the losses was NOT to Ohio State IN Columbus with a freshman quarterback starting for USC, the frustration of that loss will only continue to increase and remain a thorn in the collective memory of Buckeye fans for a long time. The only thing that could possibly turn that bad memory around would be a rematch against USC in the Rose Bowl, but how many of you would give Ohio State much of a chance in that game? Mike and Mike: Did you hear Greeny's rant on ESPN Radio this morning about the Redskin's rookie (Robert Henson) that doesn't even play yet complained about "dim wit" fans booing the team and further demeaned them by saying that "someone that works 9-5 at McDonald's" should keep his/her mouth shut. If you missed it, it's worth a watch. by Brian White --------------------------------------------- Saturday, Sept. 19, 2009 Ohio State: Although the Buckeyes enjoyed an old time "kick some ass" game against Toledo today, Terrelle Pryor needs to stop channeling his innerBrett Favre and heaving 2 or 3 prayers per half, usually while falling back or falling down. While the team can get away with it against an opponent like the Rockets, it'll come back to haunt them at some point in the season. Let's hope we don't see it in the fourth quarter at Happy Valley or Ann Arbor in November. Too bad Ohio State couldn't leave a few of those points on the field for the Browns to pick up. Who says Tressel is conservative? Did you see all those passes he had Joe Bauserman throwing when the score was 38-0 in the fourth quarter? Too bad Joe couldn't complete any of them. Cleveland Browns: I hate to keep reading about all the bad vibes coming out of Cleveland and the Eric Mangini regime, but like most everything else in sports it's nothing that a few wins can't cure. Unfortunately for us Browns fans and Mangini himself, a few wins is about all we can expect this year. Cincinnati Bengals: Unless the Bengals can find a way to steal a win in Green Bay this week, and even assuming they beat the Browns in week 3, they face the strong prospect of heading into their bye week on Nov. 1 at 2-5, then have to face the Steelers and the Ravens coming out of the bye. Ouch. Cleveland Indians: Sorry, don't really have anything to say about the Tribe, just wanted to mention them so they don't go completely unnoticed this September. Actually, I will say one thing: Michael Brantley looks like he might be the real deal as a leadoff hitter and give the Indians the option of dropping Grady Sizemore down to 3rd in the lineup next year where he'll get a lot more RBI opportunities. by Brian White
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