Oregon Beats Oklahoma State in a Shootout

I'm not really a big fan of college football in general. The play calling is just plain bad at times. Most of the defense at these colleges and universities are terrible. Most fans will only see one or two elite defenses in the country each year. Expectations for stopping offenses now are pathetic. Some consider a victory on defense when the offense only scores 28 - 35 points. Really? The expectations should be a shutout all day or night every Saturday. Thus, the reason why watching college football can be frustrating.

Anyway, Oregon beat Oklahoma in an exciting game, 42-31. The title is probably misleading as a shootout in college football is when both teams are in the high 50s. I kid. I kid. Oregon won the game on the wheels of Jeremiah Masoli who is a JUCO transfer. He had a good all-around game, amassing 18/32 for 258 yards with one touchdown and an interception. Masoli also had 16 carries for 106 yards and three touchdowns.

The game started off hot in the beginning as Oklahoma State jumped on Oregon with Dez Bryant leading the way. Dez Bryant was dominating the defenders in the first quarter and half of the second quarter. He made plays when given the opportunity which was early and often. This game illustrated another problem with college football. Most of these teams don't bump and run coverage so these big time receivers get a free release off the line. When that happens, the receive more often than not burns the coverage each time. Back to the task at hand, the game changed once Dez Bryant got injured. In the latter portion of the second quarter, Dez Bryant injured his left knee. The field was slippery all night as there were three game played on that field before last night's bowl game. Bryant was running an in-route, caught the pass, and slipped while making cut. Result was his left leg getting caught underneath him and twisting. The Ducks gained momentum after that unfortunate incident and seemed to never look back.

Both teams were scoring back and forth in the second half, though Oregon looked be the more confident and physical team. Jeremiah Masoli led the charge. He dominated the Oklahoma State defense when utilizing the read option. Masoli's physical running style seemed to pump up his teammates and even the announcers calling the game. During one of his touchdown runs, Masoli ran over Quinton Moore. He just flatten him on his 41-yard TD run. Masoli ran over another Cowboy defender earlier in the game.

Oklahoma State more than held their own in second half while exchanging touchdowns. However, they were not the same team after Dez Bryant got injured. The offense was just not able to keep up with Oregon's offense. Other players around Dez Bryant didn't step up and take the lead. Everything was pinned on the shoulders of Zac Robinson. He held his own but obviously, it wasn't good enough for the win.

Too much speed and too much Jeremiah Masoli gave the Cowboys all they can handle. The future is bright for both programs as most, if not, all of their stars will be returning next year. For the Oregon Ducks, LeGarrette Blount will probably be the featured back for the Ducks as Jeremiah Johnson moving to greener pastures in the NFL. Their receiving core will be young and probably inexperience as the Ducks main receivers who are seniors were getting most of the playing time. For the Cowboys, Zac Robinson and Dez Bryant will be returning along with their talented running backs, Kendall Hunter and Keith Toston. Expect a big year from both programs next year.

I thoroughly enjoyed this.

The Rockets Signed Somebody Important

The Rockets improved their team by signing Dikembe Mutombo Mpolondo Mukamba Jean-Jacques Wamutombo. I just wanted to type his name in there. Seriously, the Rockets greatly needed his size and shot-blocking ability on the second unit. That unit lacked height before the Mutombo signing.

You're Fired!!!!

Update 4:00 pm mt:

Some other personnel have been kicked to the curb. Mike Shanahan and Mike Martz were also given the axe today. Mike Shanahan needed to get fired. He has been awful for awhile now. Luckily, the ownership have finally seen the light. God bless their hearts. Shanahan will surely land on his feet as there are numerous openings out there. His teams have been awful on defense and underperform on offense. He was not able to reign in Jay Cutler's gunslinging mentality. His drafts haven't worked out quite well (See Dre Bly). Mike Singletary fired his offensive coordinator, Mike Martz. Here is his reason:

"After an evaluation period I felt it was best to go in a different direction," Singletary, a Hall of Fame linebacker as a player, said in a statement issued by the team.

"This was not an easy decision because I appreciate Mike Martz, and I enjoyed working with him. He is a true professional, and I wish him the best in the future. I do recognize the need for a long-term solution on the offensive side of the ball."

Would the 49ers bring in Mike Shanahan as their offensive coordinator? Certainly possible, but I doubt that happens. Though Shanahan and Singletary would be fun to watch butt heads over decision-making.

Posted 10:45 am

Those are the words Vince McMahon has uttered on countless occasions. Whether he was firing a general manager from Raw or Smackdown!, the billionaire would say those words in the same tone or more angrily. Anyway, some folks lost their jobs yesterday. Now they know how I feel when being unemployed. Rod Marinelli, Phil Savage and Romeo Crennel, and Eric Mangini were all fired yesterday.

Lets start with Rod Marinelli who, along with pretty much his entire coaching staff, was fired by the Lions . I kinda feel bad for this man. His team as whole is talentless. That organization just doesn't have enough talent to compete in this league at the moment. The Lions can thank Matt Millen for his handy work on fielding that team. The players played hard for their coach every Sunday. That is all you can ask for at this point. The Lions can't get any worse and the next coach will probably have better success than Marinelli. There are many candidates available for the Lions head coaching position, but who would want that job? Do you think Bill Cowher will want to struggle for years to bring the Lions back to the playoffs? Probably not. The Lions will probably sign a young coordinator to become their head coach such as Steve Spagnuolo. For goodness sake, please stay away from this man.

Phil Savage and Romeo Crennel received the axe from the Cleveland Browns. Phil Savage probably deserved the axe more than Romeo Crennel. Phil Savage hasn't done much in the draft to build the Browns. A quarterback needs weapons to be effective unless he's Tom Brady. Kellen Winslow and Braylon Edwards are not going to cut it. You need more than that. Jamal Lewis is terrible. Find a franchise running back. Knowshon Moreno anyone? What about the defense? Browns need some cover corners and a host of other things depending on their defensive identity such as a pass rushing linebacker, or a linebacker that is not one dimensional. Will they be a 3-4 or 4-3 defense? Who is your starting quarterback next year? Speaking quarterbacks, that position is pretty much the reason why Crennel got the axe. Derek Anderson was ineffective before being injured. I always thought the league was starting to catch up with him at the end of last season. He didn't end that year the way he started. Brady Quinn didn't offer much of an upgrade except for less turnovers, then he got injured. Next up was Ken Dorsey. 'Nuff said. Crennel's team did beat the Giants who many thought were unbeatable at the time. He did have one winning season in his four years coaching the Cleveland Browns. I have no clue as to who would coach the Cleveland Browns. Maybe they'll re-hire Butch Davis. How about Leslie Frazier, the Vikings assistant head coach / defensive coordinator?

The Eric Mangenius is a genius no more. Good job, Brett Favre. Or was it Brett's fault? Hey, most of the teams around the league know what they are getting with Brett Favre. They're getting interceptions, more interceptions, and some miracle plays. How do you prevent some of these interceptions? Try running the football. T-r-y r-u-n-n-i-n-g t-h-e FOOTBALL!!! Thomas Jones and Leon Washington were having productive years and the offensive line seem to thrive when running the football, but sucked at keeping Favre upright. The Mangenius playcalling got worse as the season progressed. Passing the football on the down and distance when a run play should've been called and using trick plays at inopportune times. He just tried to do too much with what he had. Maybe the pressure got to him. With all of that said, Brett Favre got Magini fired. That sums it up nicely. Memo to the Jets upper management: Get rid of Laveranues Coles. He has been griping all season because his better half was released and ultimately signed with the Dolphins. Just release the jerky. The Jets upper management should also try getting a playmaking wide receiver or two. Hiring Bill Cowher and who ever the general manager he selects would do wonders for the Jets.

News Happening Around the NBA

How about those Knicks? They have now lost six games in a row. Why are we talking about the Knicks? Well, Stephon Marbury might be bought out of his contract. Really? Yes, really. Donnie Walsh is going to dedicate January to buying out Marbury as soon as possible, according to the New York Post. Marbury will probably make things difficult as he wants all of his money, or else he'll show up at another arena when the Knicks are the visiting team. The Lakers are waiting patiently in background as they monitor the situation; that is just pure speculation on my part.

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Speaking of the Lakers, if they sign Earl Boykins, I'm going to puke. Earl Boykins is too short to run the triangle offense. How is he going to pass the ball into the post passed a long-armed defender? Boykins's defense is not all that great. The Lakers should just continue with Sasha Vujacic at the point with some sprinkling of Sun Yue.

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Captain Stephen Jackson wants the Warriors to bring back B. Diddy aka Baron Davis. Here are some quotes from Captain Jack:

What you might not imagine is what Jackson talked to the Los Angeles Clippers point guard about: Davis coming back to the Warriors.

"That's all we talked about," Jackson said. "I went to his house, spent some time with his mom and his grandmother. He wants to come back. And if he wants to come back, I want him back."

Jackson said he's going to be the president of the "Bring B.D. Back" campaign.

"I think that would be great for us," Jackson said. "Coach loves him. Him and (guard) Monta (Ellis) have good chemistry. If they could work that out, that would be great for the organization."

So Captain Jackson, how propose the Warriors re-acquire Baron Davis? Should the Warriors give up Corey Maggette and his enormous deal along with a couple of young players for the former UCLA baller? Corey Maggette and Mike Dunleavy don't get along at all, although the Clippers owner does have a soft spot for the former Duke star. Maggette is a known chucker who doesn't run the offense. Baron Davis is not going to help the Warriors anymore than Maggette is doing right now. Everybody on the Warriors roster wants a trade but won't go public with it. Their coach is going through the motions and the front office doesn't seem to be on the same page. I doubt Mike Dunleavy accepts a trade involving Baron Davis for whoever the Warriors have. However, Sterling might just make this trade happen.

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According to the Toronto Sun, the Raptors have interest in Joe Smith. Adding Joe Smith to this team doesn't hurt, though I would be looking for a creative scorer who is an upgrade over the underachieving Anthony Parker. A good question would be what do the Raptors have to offer that the Thunder would want.

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