2012 - Page 4 of 114 - Last Word On Sports

Bowl Preview: Capital One Bowl, #6 Georgia vs. #23 Nebraska

Posted on December 20, 2012 by Lindsay Higgins

Our Bowl Previews begin with a big game taking place on New Year’s Day. Its a Big 10 vs SEC match-up as the Georgia Bulldogs will take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers.

1 p.m. EST, New Year’s Day
From: Orlando
On: ABC

Photo credit: zane.hollingsworth via photopin cc

When The Bulldogs Have The Ball: Junior QB Aaron Murray threw for 3,466 yards and 31 TDs to 10 different receivers this season. Losing WRs Michael Bennett and Marlon Brown to injury didn’t slow the passing game in a significant way. Perhaps even more impressive than Murray and the passing game were the numbers put up on the ground by two true freshmen, Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall. The two combined for 2,083 yards and 24 TDs over the course of the season. Gurley was particularly impressive in the SEC Championship game, with 23 carries for 122 yards and 2 TDs against the Alabama defense.

So how does Nebraska slow the Dawgs? Well, they could take some lessons from the Florida defense; Georgia did manage a 17-9 win over the Gators in October, but Dan Quinn’s defense harassed Murray into three first-half picks and the team took a ridiculous number of penalties. The Huskers have an excellent pass defense, allowing under 50% of opponents’ passes to be completed, but keep in mind they didn’t face any quarterbacks of Murray’s style and ability this season. Probably the best QB the Huskers faced was Braxton Miller, who’s much more of a scrambler than Murray is. Nebraska’s pass rush isn’t the greatest, so expect some short passes and run plays, especially early on. Later the Dawgs can try to get the secondary to bite on some play fakes, then go for the deep ball. Then again, the Huskers have struggled to stop the run this year- Georgia may be able to let Gurley and Marshall carry much of the load on offense.

Photo credit: shawnzrossi via photopin cc

When The Cornhuskers Have The Ball: Running back Rex Burkhead is always a threat when healthy, which he wasn’t for much of the season. (Burkhead did return for the last two games of the year). His replacement, Ameer Abdullah, led the team with 219 carries for 1,089 yards rushing. Between the two of them and QB Taylor Martinez, the Georgia run defense is going to have to be stout to stop the Nebraska ground game. Martinez is consistently good as a runner; in the passing department, he is inconsistent with good games and bad games. Over the course of the season he threw for 21 TDs and 10 INTs. Some of the blame can be spread around though; as Martinez hasn’t always had top-notch protection from the Nebraska offensive line.

Task number one for the Georgia defense will be to keep Martinez in the pocket as much as possible. This is a tall order. (If you still haven’t seen Martinez’ 76-yard rushing touchdown against Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship Game, go find it on youtube). Their primary task as far as the receiving corps goes will be to cover talented sophomore Kenny Bell. The Dawgs defense has 11 interceptions and 25 sacks on the season and I expect them to get at least a couple more of each in Orlando. Keep on eye on junior LB Jarvis Jones, who has an interception, seven forced fumbles, and 22.5 tackles for loss on the season.

Prediction: Nebraska has to still be smarting from the beat down they suffered in their Big 10 Conference title game, and they’ll come out ready to play and play hard. I just don’t think they quite match up talent-wise with Georgia, particularly when the Huskers are on defense. Georgia 38, Nebraska 20.

Feel free to leave your comments below and follow me on Twitter @lastwordLindsay, and don’t forget to stay tuned as I bring you previews of the biggest Bowl games of the season. Happy College Bowl Season everyone.

Early Contenders: NCAA National Player of the Year- Guards

Posted on December 20, 2012 by Alex Ivic

Alright everyone, last week we gave you the apples, this week we’ll talk about the oranges. While the post players are stronger overall this year (and you can see them by clicking here), there are some guards having tremendous seasons, and they will definitely factor into this year’s National Player of the Year race. Here are my guard rankings for National Player of the Year so far (all stats are as of December 16):

1. Trey Burke (Michigan)– Trey is the starting point guard for the number two team in the nation. He is playing extremely well and does whatever his team needs. He is shooting a blistering 53% FG (Field Goals), 38% 3 PT (3-Point Shot), and 76% FT, giving him a team leading 18 ppg. Not only does he score, he is great at creating opportunities for his teammates and is averaging 7 assists per game. He’s putting up 3.3 rebounds, 1.3 steals, and is the leader on a deep team that has three other players averaging double-digit scoring.

2. Michael Carter-Williams (Syracuse)- Some people would argue that Michael should be #1 on this list, and they would have a very good argument. So how does the third leading scorer on his own team end up in the player of the year race? Well, he literally does “everything else”. He helps out his bigs by grabbing rebounds (5.2) and blocking shots (1 per game). He also does things that elite guards do – he leads the nation in assists (10.8) by a wide margin, he is second in the nation with steals (3.7), and then also scores 12.3 points per game. The only real knock is he is struggling with his 3-point shot and is only making 23%. If he keeps stuffing the stat sheets like this all year he will be in the hunt.

3. Brandon Paul (Illinois)- Brandon is a senior, and started out the season well, but continues to improve. He had a huge outburst of 35 points against a very good Gonzaga team. He is involved in all aspects of Illinois’ game and averaging 19 ppg, 4.7 rebounds, and 3.5 assists. He is shooting a highly respectable 47% FG, 41% 3PT, 72% FT, and is a threat from anywhere on the floor.

4. Erik Green (Virginia Tech)– The Hokies were playing far above the expectations early in the season, and are starting to come back to earth. The Hokies have only lost 2 games this year and Green played well in both losses scoring 23 and 28 points respectively. He is second in the country in scoring with 24.8, shooting 52% FG, 35% 3PT, 90% FT. He is averaging 4.4 rebounds, 4.9 assists, and 1.8 steals. Considering his play and the numbers he has put up, it was hard to keep him off the list because he earned it, but I would not be surprised to see him drop off by the end of the year.

5. CJ McCollum (LeHigh)– You have to be careful when including players from small schools and be cautious about the stats they are producing. However, if you have seen CJ play or watched him dismantle #2 Duke in last year’s March Madness, you know this is a legit elite basketball player. Expect to see him drafted in the lottery of next year’s NBA draft. He is the only guy in the NCAA that has a higher average than Erik Green at 24.9 ppg. If you knew he was shooting 51% FG and 83% FT you’d think he was having a very good year, but once you throw in the 52% 3-PT, you realize it is a stellar scoring streak that he is on.

There are about 10 additional guards that slot in after the above five. Some are surprises, and some have had a slow start to the season but I expect them to be on this list be the end of the year. They include Russ Smith (Louisville), Isaiah Canaan (Murray State), Ben McLemore (Kansas), Marcus Smart (Oklahoma State), CJ Wilcox (Washington) and a few others.

.. and that’s the last word!

You can now follow me on my new Twitter account – @LastWordOnCBB.

Hammer Radio: Year End MMA Awards and TUF Finale Review

Posted on December 19, 2012August 3, 2022 by Ben Kerr

The Boys at the Hammer feature weekly coverage of all things MMA. This week they are back from Montreal with a new episode recapping the experience at UFC 154 and you can listen to the archived podcast by clicking here. Hammer Radio 124.

“It’s the Third Annual Hammer Awards episode. Pretty much we just choose the winners and losers in categories like Fighter of the Year, Fight of the Year, Submission of the Year and of course, Douchebag of the Year. Check it out.

We also go overtime with full recaps of last weekend’s UFC on FX 6, The Ultimate Fighter 16 Finale and the Bellator show.”

The Hammer features LastWordOnSports’ own writer Greg Persson, long time internet superstar Steve Jeffrey, and is hosted by MMA aficionado Dave Abraham.

The Hammer has had interviews with some of the biggest names in MMA over the years, including BJ Penn, Dan Henderson, Sean Sherk, Mark Coleman, Rory MacDonald, Brendan Schaub, Mark Bocek, John Makdessi, Mark Hominick, Martin Kampmann, Johnny Hendrix, and others. They continue to bring unparalleled, independent coverage of all things MMA to fans of the sport.

They’ll give you the straight goods and the Last Word.

Don’t forget to tune into “Friday is MMA Night” on Last Word Radio from 9-10pm EST. If you miss the show, it will be available in our archives or on iTunes for podcast download.

Also, check out our BRAND NEW sports forums!

Main Photo credit: theMatthewBlack via photopin cc

My Pint Runneth Completely Dry on Eric Wood

Posted on December 19, 2012 by Michael Kovacs, ADMIN

It is likely that you have already read or at the very least heard of the comments uttered by the Buffalo Bills’ centre, Eric Wood, directed at the Bills In Toronto Series. This diatribe has much less to do with me feeling the need to come to the defense of the city of Toronto, but it has everything to do with the lack of professionalism exhibited by Mr. Wood. He, and quite possibly the Bills depending on their course of action, have caused my pint to runneth completely dry.

Wood was interviewed in the wake of the team’s horrendous performance against the Seattle Seahawks at the Rogers Centre (he didn’t play, and wasn’t on the trip). In the interview, he candidly said, “It’s a bad atmosphere for football. I mean, nobody wants to play there. I guess for opposing teams it beats the hell out of going in somebody else’s stadium and dealing with a bunch of crowd noise.”

The issue I take has nothing to do with whether I believe he is right or wrong, as I have my own thoughts about the environment which aren’t entirely different from him. My problem is that I believe his course of actions, the way he chose to share his thoughts, were grossly unprofessional. Had he voiced his opinions behind closed doors to Bills management might have been a much wiser decision.

See, the Bills need Toronto. They need the city, but more specifically they need the money, the corporate money, and television distribution that comes with one of North America’s top five markets. As a former Bills season ticket holder, I have been to Rich/Ralph Wilson Stadium many times, and love atmosphere (in fact, I’ve written about it several times), but there is no way around the fact that the franchise is in need of money. It is questionable at best as to whether the team can survive without the Bills in Toronto Series. The injection of millions of dollars is keeping the Bills in Buffalo.

Since airing his opinions, Wood has several times defended his comments. Basically he is saying that he isn’t backing down from his stance, and that the rest of the players feel the same way. Again, whether true or not, it is very unprofessional to discuss the issue with media. While he acknowledges the importance of Toronto’s money for the Bills, what he fails to see is that it is not his business. He has nothing to do with whether the team plays in Buffalo, Toronto, or Deluth. He is paid to play the game in any scenario.

What Wood needs to work on his own game. It was interesting to read how it directly affected their game. He said, “I mean, it’s a crucial third down for them in the first quarter, and they’re running just regular snap count, where I don’t care if we have a half-filled Ralph Wilson Stadium, they don’t do that.” So, that’s why you got the crap kicked out of you for sixty minutes? Okay, maybe the quiet crowd doesn’t help you, but it doesn’t hurt you either. If anything it’s a neutral site game, one in which his team was dismantled.

Wood felt the need to continue – ‘That game up in Toronto last year worked out in our favour. We got up on them (Washington) early and they pretty much fell asleep with no crowd noise. They gave in quick, too. It’s just not a fun game for us.” So, the quiet crowd helped you win one year, then it caused you to get blown out of the water the next? Which is it, helpful or hurtful? Excuses, excuses. Let’s call a spade a spade here – this is a guy who is obviously frustrated on a team which is sucking despite higher preseason expectations then they’d had in a while. His comments were out of turn, and inappropriate.

I am waiting to see how this plays out and am looking for an official reaction from either Rogers, the Buffalo Bills or even the NFL. I wholeheartedly believe Wood needs to face discipline from someone – anyone.

Tune in every weekday to “Beyond the Field” from 8-10pm as the guys welcome some fantastic guests, have great banter and take your live calls.

Top Shelf Prospects: What to expect from Big Name Draft Eligibles at the WJC

Posted on December 19, 2012November 5, 2021 by Ben Kerr

Welcome to today’s edition of “Top Shelf Prospects”. If you missed any of my previous articles you can find a complete listing of them here.

Every year there is a lot of hype about the World Junior Championships, and deservedly so. In fact it is one of my favorite hockey watching experiences of the year, lockout or no lockout. However the one thing I see every year is that hockey fans come into the tournament with unrealistic expectations for the 17 and 18 year old players who will be available in June’s NHL Entry Draft.

We certainly have some big names, near consensus #1 ranked Nathan MacKinnon will play for Canada, his chief rival for the spot of #1 Seth Jones will feature prominently for the United States; Halifax Mooseheads teammate and rising star Jonathan Drouin is currently practicing in a 2nd line role for Team Canada; Sasha Barkov will be on the Finnish roster, Elias Lindholm will play a key role for the Swedes. This is just scratching the surface, as even in a lockout year, there is no shortage of high calibre draft eligible prospects on these International Rosters.

Lets be clear about what this tournament is, and what it is not. This tournament is an international showcase for players under the age of 20. Players must have been born on, or after, January 1st, 1993 in order to play in this years tournament. Conversely, our first time draft eligible players in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft (assuming we have a CBA by then, and one is held) must be born on or before September 15, 1995. As such we can have up to a two and a half year age gap between the oldest players in this tournament, and those who will be first time draft eligibles in June.

These two years are extremely important in terms of development. The difference between a hockey player at 19 and 17 is huge. Experience, weight gain, strength gain, refined technique, these are all things that will be learned by players in the next two years. As such, this is very much a showcase event for 18 and especially 19 year old players (players typically drafted in the 2012 and 2011 Drafts respectively). This is not a draft showcase, te big draft showcase tournament is more likely to be the World Under 18s held in the Spring, or the Ivan Hlinka held in August.

We have to remember that the number of undrafted prospects who have really shone in this tournament is few and far between. Last year, Filip Forsberg, Ryan Murray, Jacob Trouba, and Nail Yakupov were all impressive for undrafted players. Yet they were not the stars of their teams. They were secondary pieces as Yakupov played second fiddle to Kuznetsov for the Russians; Ryan Murray was behind Brendan Gormley and Dougie Hamilton on Canada, Jacob Trouba was behind Jarred Tinordi on the US Squad; and Filip Forsberg was part of a deep Swedish team with many talented players.

In fact, in the last dozen or so years those who have had outstanding performances in their draft year are few and far between, and those that have almost always become NHL stars. Some of the names I am thinking of are Ilya Kovalchuk (6 points in 7 games in 2001), Alex Ovechkin (7 points in 6 games in 2004), Sidney Crosby (9 points in 6 games in 2005), Patrick Kane (9 points in 7 games in 2007), Drew Doughty (4 assists in 7 games in 2008), and Steven Stamkos (1 goal 6 points in 7 games in 2008). In fact none of these players was even the best player on his team in those tournaments. Many forget that on the stacked 2005 Canadian World Junior Team the best forwards were Jeff Carter and Patrice Bergeron (two 19 year olds at the time) and not Sidney Crosby. These numbers hover around 1 PPG but remember also when looking at World Junior point totals that players on teams like Russia, USA, Sweden, and Canada often get two games against some very outmatched opponents, where they can boost those point totals in this short tournament.

photo credit: Tom Hanson

The only top draft pick who really bucked this trend and had a super tournament from start to finish was John Tavares who had a scintillating 8 goals and 15 points in 6 games for the 2009 Team Canada Squad and was named the Tournament’s MVP (along with a slew of other awards). However lets also remember that with a September 20th birthday Tavares was 18 years old when that tournament began. In fact he missed the 2008 NHL draft by just 5 days. He was also a Team Canada veteran, playing for the team in the 2008 tournament. He was in a much different situation than most draft eligible players face (a little older, a little more international world junior experience).

If there is one player in a similar situation this year, it is Seth Jones of Team USA who has an October 1994 birthday, and played on the American squad last year. While Jones should be a key member of Team USA, I don’t anticipate a Tournament MVP award either (while talented, no player in this draft is on a par with what Tavares was in 2009).

So what does this all mean. Simply this… if the draft eligible prospects in this tournament struggle, and don’t put up a point per game, or don’t score key goals, or play key roles for their countries, don’t panic. They are still top prospects who will be taken very high in the NHL Draft, and this small sample size tournament will not drop them in the draft rankings.

All that said, things are so close 1-5, that if one of these guys pulls off an unlikely Tavares-like performance, he could rocket up the draft boards. Just don’t expect it and don’t count on it. In other words, it is possible to really boost your stock (though that is unlikely), but its not really possible to fall off the map at this tournament.

The Stars of this tournament will likely be guys coming from the group of already drafted prospects like Ryan Nugent Hopkins, Nail Yakupov, Jonathan Huberdeau, Ryan Strome, Dougie Hamilton, Alex Galchenyuk, Filip Forsberg, Teuvo Teravainen, Jacob Trouba, Morgan Rielly, Mikhail Grigorenko, and others.

Thanks for reading. Feel free to leave comments below and follow me on twitter @lastwordBKerr and be sure to join Max Vasilyev and I on Wednesday Nights at 10:00pm when we host the hockey radio show, “Puckheads”, on the Last Word Radio Network. You can listen in live or to our past podcasts by clicking here, or by searching for us on iTunes.

College Basketball Lecture Notes: Games of the Week

Posted on December 19, 2012 by Alex Ivic

Getting to experience a little college hoops euphoria so early in the season was wonderful while sitting on the couch on Saturday. To see an upset of biblical proportions (David & Goliath is from the bible you know…) was extremely exciting and has me yearning for conference play and March Madness to arrive. I strongly suggest going to YouTube and watching “One Shining Moment” for any of the last 10+ years… if you are new to college basketball, at the end of every March Madness tournament, the highlights of the tournament are put to a Luther Vandross song. I found myself watching all of the videos back to 1999, and I know the song is corny but its amazing to be reminded of all the great moments and see the NBA players we have been watching the last decade back when they were in college.

Butler (aka David) was able to topple #1 Indiana (aka Goliath), in a nationally televised game that demonstrated everything that is great about college basketball. Student-athletes playing with passion, diving on loose balls, making big shots, and doing anything they could to help their team win. Butlers’ Rotnei Clarke appears to be one of those players that has no range limit and no conscience, kind of in the mold of JJ Redick. In our other game of the week, Arizona squeaked by in a last second lay-up against Florida, winning 65-64.

There are some big tilts at the top of the rankings this year, both of which will have big ramifications come seeding time for March Madness.

Games of the Week

#9 Kansas at #7 Ohio State– Saturday December 22 @ 4pm- CBS- Kansas is a national powerhouse and mainstay in March Madness every year. Coach Bill Self has this team playing well together and they are improving each and every week. This Kansas team may not be as deep as in past years, but as players are stating to understand their role and mesh, Kansas is looking like a very dangerous team. This team is led by seniors Jeff Withey, Travis Releford, and Elijah Johnson… however their leading scorer is freshman phenom Ben McLemore at 16.1 ppg. Kansas is currently on a seven game win streak and 9-1 overall, with their only loss coming to Michigan State early in the season on November 13. This is a vital game for the Jayhawks as it is their only chance to add a signature win to the resume before conference play starts in January, although a win against Temple on January 6th will also be nice.

Ohio State, coached by another legend in Thad Matta, is in the same boat as Kansas. They also have only the one loss, to Duke on November 28, but none of their wins are of the highest quality either. Being in the Big 10 they will have ample opportunity to prove themselves in conference play, but this would be a great feather in their cap come tournament time. This team is led by juniors Aaron Craft and Deshaun Thomas. Deshaun is a dynamic scorer who is averaging over 20 ppg, and while Aaron is only averaging 9.2 ppg, he is one of the best two-way guards in the country. Ohio State is a very good program and a have a good team this year, but I think they are rated a little high at #7 and based on there play and talent level so far I think they should be in the 10-15 range.

Kansas is the slightly better team here, but home court advantage will be huge and Ohio State should take the win in a barn-burner.

#10 Illinois at #12 Missouri- Saturday December 22 @ 6pm ESPN 2– Another battle of top 25 teams, and truthfully they are extremely similar teams, which should make for an interesting game. Let start with the similarities between the two teams.

They are both very experienced teams. The rotation players (most teams have 7-8 players that play the majority of minutes during the game) for both teams are predominantly upperclassmen (3rd or 4th year players).
Full of very athletic players, and play the game with aggression and intensity on both ends of the floor.
Skilled and deep teams with players that can contribute down most of the roster.

There are two big differences. Illinois is one of nations leaders in 3 pointers made per game, and while they score in bunches if they hit a dry spell they will have difficulty scoring. They have not had any such difficulties yet however. The big difference, and the reason that I think Illinois will win this game, is the chemistry of each team. The core guys for Illinois have been playing together for multiple years, they are a cohesive unit and know their roles and what to expect from the other guys on the team. Missouri on the other hand do not yet play as a cohesive unit and are still trying to establish their team play. Missouri is mostly consistent of upperclassmen as mentioned above, however they have 6 transfers that are playing their first year with Missouri, including Jabari Brown who just became eligible and played his first game with Mizzou on December 17. Mizzou will be a tough team to beat come March Madness, but they still have to much chemistry to figure out to beat a team like Illinois this week.

… and thats the last word!

Rant: What Makes a "True" MMA Fan?

Posted on December 18, 2012August 3, 2022 by Mark Modeski

I was recently faced with a tough comment by a reader, who challenged me with the following: “As a MMA fan you should have known who he (Nelson) was, seems like just another UFC only fan here. Poor form”. While the comment itself was rather dull and uninspiring, I nonetheless found myself exploring my own dedication and devotion to the sport – after all, there may have been some element of truth. What makes a true MMA fan?

Is a true MMA fan someone who watches every fight in every promotion? I don’t think so. I think it takes a level of dedication beyond that of someone who follows every promotion that makes them a “true fan”. I concede, above all else I watch the UFC more than any other organization. Why? Well, first off they have more events than any other promotion, but also because they have by far the best fighters in the world. I have yet to hear an interview with an up-and-coming fighter who says: “Man, I’ve been working and training really hard to make it to Titan Fighting Championships”. I know that these lower level promotions are a breeding ground for the rising stars and future of the world of MMA, but it takes a certain level of dedication and devotion to a sport to watch not only these “farm league” promotions, but also the big show. The “big show” is now.

Do I watch any of the smaller promotions? Hell yes! There are some really grea,t exciting fights on those cards, and sometimes it’s the only way to see blacklisted UFC fighters still strut their stuff. Do I always watch them? No, not always. There are some really boring fights on these cards to be honest, and there is a perfectly valid reason that a lot of these guys are not in the UFC. I have neither time nor the inclination to watch two clowns dance around each other for fifteen minutes. If I wanted that I’d go watch boxing.

Have I always watched all of these smaller promotions? Dear God, no! As my interest in the sport grew, so did my affinity to learn more about the sport and look elsewhere to get my MMA fix at a time when the UFC still had months between cards.

Asserting a fan’s dedication to a sport goes beyond how many different aspects of the sport they know, or how many stats they know for each athlete within that respective sport. How many fans of baseball watch anything other than MLB? Or how many NHL and/or NBA fans watch anything beyond those respective sports’ promotions? I’ll bet at least 90% (warning, no basis statistic) never veer from the larger sporting promotion because they, much like myself, love watching the best in the sport. Yes, they will occasionally watch an OHL game, or a college basketball game, but their dedication lies with the cream of the crop and the best of the best. Do I frown on these people? No. A love of sport is a love of sport. I make no apologies for how I choose to watch sports. In return, I won’t judge you for how you choose to do the same – whatever floats your boat.

I’ll end with a final thought – knowledge equals power, but not passion. Next time you want to cut someone down for not being a “true fan”, ask yourself what that is first because everyone has their own definition.

Follow me on Twitter – @LastWordMark

photo credit: Jeremy Andrews via photopin cc

My Pint Runneth Dry on Marouane Fellani (and his 3-match ban)

Posted on December 18, 2012 by Michael Kovacs, ADMIN

I am not alone in finding it difficult to feel sympathy for Ryan Shawcross, or for any defender who feels it necessary to slow down their opponents by clutching a handful of jersey as they go by. Some would argue he got what he deserved – that is, a head (and hair) full of Marouane Fellani. In fact, I think it’s a growing issue in top-flight football, as defenders are getting away with clutching and grabbing more often than not, but that’s a rant for another day – maybe tomorrow. But what happened between the Everton mid-fielder and Stoke defender took it to another level, one that can’t be tolerated in football.

Look, Fellani’s actions are inexcusable. Not because I’m losing sleep over whether Shawcross has a welt on his noggin or not, but because what this tells me about Fellani. It doesn’t matter that I think he got what was coming to him.

First, what does that say about Marouane’s dedication to his team? As the Premier League know-it-alls deliberated and came to a conclusion that the Belgian would be slapped with a three match ban, I was rather disappointed. For me it should have been a bit harsher, but that’s beside the point. The fact is that Fellani is an incredibly important part of this Everton starting XI, and is a big reason for their early season success. Without him and there is no way in hell they would be in the position they’re in. So now they have three matches to play without their best player at a crucial time in the year.

As you know, this year’s version of the Premier League has a log-jam in the battle for 2013/14 Champions League spots. Everton is amongst a group who have a serious shot at one of the prized positions. We all know their past of doing well at the start of the year and the propensity to fizzle in the latter stages of the campaign, so it is all the more important they get some separation early in the year, if only to give a bit of cushion. A top-four spot seemed very possible, but with some pretty big teams nipping on their heels, and given a stretch of matches without their best player, I worry about their form now and in the near future. Fellani’s loss will be felt big time.

Any player who puts his own needs ahead of his team mates must be considered selfish – agree? I mean, the very nature of team sports is for each player to serve a role to the best of his (or her) ability for the betterment of the squad as a collective. Any self-serving action must therefore be seen as detrimental to the team’s efforts. Assuming you agree, then there is no way around the fact that Fellani’s actions were a) selfish and self-serving, and b) damaging to his team. With the exception of a carefully contructed “yo’ mamma” joke or a kick to the groin, the Everton mid’s actions were unnecessary.

So for that reason, because of what he means to this club, I must say that it leaves my pint 3/4 empty.

Have your say by adding your two cents/pence/euros below, or join thousands of footy fans on a rapidly growing football community – Reddit Football!

Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter – @PintRunnethDry

NFL Week 15 Top and Bottom Power Rankings

Posted on December 18, 2012 by Jack Stone

Week 15 has passed and it was probably the most exciting week of the season considering we had most of the ranked teams playing in crucial top-flight battles. So that only means one thing – Power Ranking changes! It’s about time!

28 – Philadelphia Eagles – This team has completely fallen apart after high hopes this off-season. Andy Reid is coaching his last games as Eagles head coach, and Michael Vick will soon be a free agent. They are so bad, the team has already thrown in the towel and begun the rebuilding process.

29 – Oakland Raiders – Finally ended that losing streak. No time for celebration though, as they were at home facing the Kansas City Chiefs. However, when a basement team picks up a win it usually leads to a ranking jump! Expect the Raiders to go back to their losing ways because that win was not convincing in any way, shape or form.

30 – Detroit Lions – The league’s new losing streak title holder at six losses in a row. They got embarrassed 38-10 @ Arizona, which called for a ranking trade with those same Cardinals.

31 – Jacksonville Jaguars – Basically, losing to Miami isn’t as embarrassing as losing to Oakland, so they remain one-up on K.C. The Jags play New England next with the Pats coming off a loss, this is going to be UGLY.

32 – Kansas City Chiefs – They couldn’t score on the Raiders… crickets …. 2-14 is their final record.

Ah man, I’m glad that’s over. Talk about painful. Now we can talk about the big guns, and some big battles had major influences on playoff races. There were some major battles that had huge impact on the rankings. Let’s talk!

5- Houston Texans – Most would be suprised to see them fifth considering they will have home field for the playoffs, but I think their easy schedule helped hide a lot of flaws. They beat Denver back in week three before the Broncos got their game together. They beat Baltimore and Chicago while both teams had key injuries. Other then that they had no competition at all, and when they faced New England and Green Bay they got beat down badly. I don’t see them getting passed the AFC Championship game. Great season though!

4 – New England Patriots – The loss on Sunday night to San Francisco is a legit loss, but it now looks like they lost that second place bye to the Denver Broncos. Not only that, it looks like they will end up playing round two in Denver @ Mile High Stadium to play the league’s hottest team. Basically they will be playing their biggest games on the road. But everyone knows the Pats are forever dangerous.

3 – San Francisco 49ers – Beating the Patriots in New England is pretty much the most impressive victory in football, but I’m sure everyone feels that they hung on by a thread after giving up 24 4th quarter points. The 49ers still need better quarterbacking to be the best. I know the weather was bad, but three dropped snaps is terrible. Didn’t see Brady drop any!

2 – Denver Broncos – We all knew when Peyton came riding in to Denver things would be interesting. It looks like everyone is clicking with Peyton’s offense, and that has sparked the Broncos in what is now 9 straight wins, and 7 out of the 9 wins have been 30+ points! They have a good defense too – it’s tough to beat a team that scores 30 points and has a good defense!

1 – Atlanta Falcons – How do you beat a team that scores 30 points and has a good defense? Just ask the Falcons, they always find a way to win! Just when everyone wanted to write them off after last week’s loss, the Dirty Birds go out and smash the New York Football Giants to pieces 34-0! So maybe my rankings are good for something! They are 7-0 at the Georgia Dome where they should be all playoff-long before heading to the Super Dome in New Orleans.

That was a crazy week of football! Im starting to write off the Ravens and getting less confident in the Giants. But the Pack are really heating up. If they can snake home field advantage over San Francisco we could see them in the NFC Championship game. My crystal ball tells me it will be Green Bay @ SF with the winner travelling to Atlanta, and New England @ Denver with the winner heading to Houston.

photo credit: Monica’s Dad via photopin cc

Sports. Honestly. Since 2011

Year: 2012