Did you miss us? It’s only been a week, but the Binge SportsCast is back with a brand new episode. Where’s TM been and what kind of shenanigans has he been getting in to?
After some catching up, the boys jump right into it with a quick recap of the MLB over the last several weeks, ramping up for the playoffs. Who’s in and who’s got some work to do. Will the historic Cleveland Indians win streak be good for them in the long run and will Giancarlo Stanton get to 60 HRs? College football is discussed by PJ, while TM justifies his disinterest via Sounder! A quick recap of TM’s thoughts on the NFL season thus far, how he feels about his boy Jay Cutty, and which teams surprised him in that first week.
Around the League is a new segment with another new Sounder! Week 2 of the NFL was a much better watch, yet there was still some brutal play by a handful of teams. Are the Lions legit, or do the Giants just suck that much ass? We give our predictions and picks for week 3 and maybe, just maybe, another sounder pops up. Keep an eye out on twitter this weekend… TM and PJ will be sharing some Tailgate and Gametime tweets from our respective teams!
Keep an eye out for the Binge Sportscast on a weekly basis through the NFL season!
Check out our boy Jay Cutler and his Hail Mary attempt… it’s glorious
TM is gone for the week, so PJ is flying solo through the first 2 weekends of college football. He dives in to the biggest matchups of the season thus far; who impressed and who looks like they may be in trouble. Is college football becoming too PC? Ask Baker Mayfield… someone was chirping in his ear. ND’s fanbase should be ashamed of themselves and the Buckeyes may be looking for a new QB.
Afterwards, PJ welcomes Jack back to the SportsCast to dissect and analyze exactly what we witnessed in the first week of the NFL season. Surprise losses, dominating wins, Coaches not knowing what planet their on, and a city that can’t fill an NFL stadium on opening weekend now having, not 1, but 2 NFL franchises. It’s officially overreaction week for the NFL, so let us know what changed in your predictions after watching week 1.
Welcome to an all-new edition of the Binge SportsCast. Once again, I’m flying solo and I start things off with a little plug and an announcement for an upcoming show, but once I get into things, you know I’m talking about Ronda Rousey nearly being decapitated by Holly Holm. I break down the fight and talk about what might be next for the former champ.
From there, I dive into everything else that’s happening in the sports world. College basketball quietly started in the last week, so I get into some of that as well as the new rankings for the College Football Playoff. As I turn to the pros, I break down my top 5 in the NHL, NBA, and NFL, and I might talk a little smack about the Binge Fantasy Football League along the way. Enjoy.
Okay, here we go for all the marbles. Welcome to Binge Sports and our continuing coverage of the College Football Playoff. We started our coverage with a few weeks to go in the regular season and let you vote on the teams you thought would make to college football’s version of “The Final Four”. From there, we got to here:
You know what the beauty of this playoff is? Quite simply, it’s working. In the old BCS system, what would have happened? We would have gotten Alabama v. Florida State in the national title game while Oregon and Ohio State would have been left to play in the Rose Bowl. Not a bad consolation prize, but we would have asked “what if this and what if that” yet again. But instead, what we have is two teams who have truly earned their chance to play for the very first College Football Playoff National Championship.
New Year’s Day was a very exciting day for college football as a whole. While the Rose Bowl game wasn’t exactly close, that Oregon offense is just fun to watch. And the Sugar Bowl gave us one of the best college football games I’ve ever seen. It seemed early on that Alabama was going to win in a walk, but the Buckeyes fought back and knocked the SEC out of the title picture for a second straight year. So where does that leave us? With one game to go. But before I get to the game, let’s see how the vote went on the way here.
17% voted for Ohio State to win the Sugar Bowl
100% voted for Oregon to win the Rose Bowl
Now let’s get to it.
(4) OHIO STATE BUCKEYES (12-1, Big 10 Champs, def. Alabama in Sugar Bowl)
(2) OREGON DUCKS (12-1, Pac-12 Champs, def. Florida State in Rose Bowl)
When: Monday, January 12, 2015-8:30 p.m. ET/7:30 p.m. CT
Where: AT&T Stadium-Arlington, Texas
TV: ESPN
Current Line: Oregon is favored by 7
Why You Should Watch: Because it’s the national championship game. Is there more of a reason than that? I’ll spare you a long breakdown this time around because we know what to expect. The two best teams in the country will battle for the sport’s top prize. Oregon can score in a hurry. Ohio State has a head coach who’s been here before and will have the Buckeyes ready to go. The easy pick here is Oregon, but hey, everybody said that about Alabama too. One thing is for certain. We’re in for a hell of a ride on Monday night.
[yop_poll id=”167″]
Who’d you pick and why? Let me know below or follow me and tweet @BingeSports and/or @THElukenorris. And if you can’t get enough football, click HERE for previews of this weekend’s NFL Playoffs and vote for the winners there as well. Enjoy the action and check back soon for previews of the AFC and NFC championship games.
Working the Weekend with Luke meets Binge Sports today for this December 14th edition. It’s already been a big day for Binge Sports as I wrote a piece this morning on the continuing story of the courageous and inspiring Lauren Hill.
If you haven’t gotten a chance to read it yet, you can do so by clicking HERE. And in pretty damn cool news for me, Law and Moreno received an email a little while ago from a talent coordinator at freaking ESPN saying they had read the article and were looking for a way to contact Lauren through us. Now, I obviously don’t know how to get a hold of her and I really hope she’s at home resting today, but it’s pretty cool to know that the machine in Bristol is checking out Binge Media.
And before I got word of any of this, I already knew what I was going to write about today. So I’ll go ahead with the week’s best segue……….
And speaking of ESPN (oh yeah, that was good), the amazing documentary series 30 For 30 continued last night with the premiere of The U Part 2.
Picking up where the 2009 film The U left off, this documentary continues the story of the rise, fall, rise, fall, and so on and so forth, of the University of Miami football program. While I did enjoy it, like most sequels, it just couldn’t quite live up to the original. Granted, I did remember more of what was talked about in this film as opposed to the original as I grew up watching a lot of these Hurricane teams and players, some of whom are still playing in the NFL today.
The first half of the film is simply fantastic, mostly focusing on the hiring of Butch Davis and his plans to resurrect the program after sanctions were put on them by the NCAA including the loss of a ton of scholarships. It showed how he would scour the country for walk-ons and get creative, like how Santana Moss came in on a track scholarship and was “shared” with the football team. The really great stuff comes in the coverage from 1998 to 2003, starting with the game played at the end of that ’98 season against UCLA, which would really kick off the turnaround.
The 2000 season was brilliantly done as well, culminating in the ‘Canes being ranked third in the BCS behind Oklahoma and Florida State, despite having beaten the Seminoles earlier in the year.
And of course, there was a lot of attention paid to the 2001 squad, coached by Larry Coker after Davis left for the NFL, that pulverized Nebraska in the Rose Bowl to complete a 12-0 season and win Miami’s fifth national championship.
One of my favorite segments, which I don’t have a video for, was the one that covered the national title game versus Ohio State following the 2002 season. I think I had forgotten how badly Miami had gotten screwed on that final call and how big the celebration had already gotten as time expired in regulation. The film gives you many different angles of that final play and the call is just absolutely atrocious.
Oddly enough, however, this isn’t just where the program starts to take a turn for the worse, but the documentary itself loses a little bit as well. As it moves into the middle of the decade, with the “7th Floor Crew” rap group taking center stage for a few minutes, the film just loses a little bit of steam. Don’t get me wrong, it’s funny to hear Greg Olsen rap, but that seemed to get just about as much time as the murder of Bryan Pata, which just didn’t seem right to me. It’s around this time that Randy Phillips starts getting a lot of air time as well, which just ends up being more annoying than anything else.
The Nevin Shapiro scandal gets about twenty minutes of attention as the film starts to wrap up and we are given a bit more insight into how all of this played out and how close he really was to some of these players. I did like how it came off that while this kind of thing happens at other universities, something of this magnitude could really only happen at the University of Miami. And the fact that Shapiro is now serving hard time in a federal prison only adds to the story.
As I said before, I really did enjoy the documentary. If I had to put a number on it, I’d probably go 7.5 on 10, due mainly to the fact that just because of how extraordinary the original was, it just couldn’t match up. And some of the stars just aren’t as big as the names we had in the first. Greg Olsen just isn’t Michael Irvin, you know. Randy Phillips isn’t Warren Sapp. So while the direction was good and I was happy that there was once again no narration, it didn’t crack the top ten in this amazing documentary series. But hey, they say that any press is good press, and with yet another movie dedicated to them I guess it is still “all about the U”.
Did you watch last night? Share your thoughts with us below or hit me up @THElukenorrisor @BingeSports, where we’ve always got all the balls.
Welcome back to Binge Sports and the continuing coverage of the College Football Playoff rankings. Not much has changed this week as only one team from last week’s top ten is gone after Ole Miss was humiliated over the weekend. The top seven remained the same. UCLA and Georgia each moved up a spot and Michigan State entered at number ten. So let’s check out this week’s action and see who has the inside track.
(1) ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE
CURRENT RECORD: 10-1, lost to Ole Miss
REMAINING SCHEDULE: v. Auburn, SEC Championship?
HOW THEY GET IN: If the Tide can win the Iron Bowl this weekend, I think they get in no matter what happens in the SEC title game. But I’ve been wrong before. Not often, but I have.
HOW THEY GET IN: As I said last week, the Ducks have already won the Pac-12 North and solidified their spot in the Pac-12 title game. Their opponent still hasn’t been decided, but will be this weekend. I don’t think anybody will beat them coming in, so I’m calling them a lock for the final four.
(3) FLORIDA STATE SEMINOLES
CURRENT RECORD: 11-0
REMAINING SCHEDULE: v. Florida, ACC Championship
HOW THEY GET IN: The Seminoles have kept on winning, but they haven’t been winning in a big way. But as the defending national champions and an undefeated record, they deserve to be here right now. I don’t think they’re as strong as they were last year, but if they win the next two, they’ll definitely be in.
(4) MISSISSIPPI STATE BULLDOGS
CURRENT RECORD: 10-1, lost to Alabama
REMAINING SCHEDULE: @Ole Miss, SEC Championship?
HOW THEY GET IN: It’s still tricky right around spot number four. They can’t control what Alabama does, but they’re certainly hoping for an Auburn win this weekend. They’ve got their rivalry game with Ole Miss this weekend and it’s on the road, but they should still win. They’ll be relying on their strength of schedule to earn a spot over teams such as………
(5) TCU HORNED FROGS
CURRENT RECORD: 9-1, lost to Baylor
REMAINING SCHEDULE: @Texas, v. Iowa State
HOW THEY GET IN: TCU actually gets things going tonight with a game against in-state rival Texas. I don’t know why, but this feels like a trap game to me. The Longhorns aren’t what they once were, but they could give the Horned Frogs a game tonight. And don’t forget, TCU’s lone loss came to a Baylor team that’s fighting for a spot as well.
(6) OHIO STATE BUCKEYES
CURRENT RECORD: 10-1, lost to Virginia Tech
REMAINING SCHEDULE: v. Michigan, Big 10 Championship
HOW THEY GET IN: Rivalry games continue with arguably the biggest one in college football history as the Michigan Wolverines come to Columbus on Saturday to try and derail the Buckeyes chances of getting into the playoffs. However, Michigan is just terrible and the Buckeyes should win this in a walk. They’ve already earned a spot in the Big 10 title game, probably against Wisconsin. Win that game and the committee will have to take notice.
(7) BAYLOR BEARS
CURRENT RECORD: 9-1, lost to West Virginia
REMAINING SCHEDULE: v. Texas Tech, v. Kansas State
HOW THEY GETIN: As I said last week, Baylor controls their own destiny. If they win the next two games, they’ll be the Big 12 champion thanks to that head-to-head win against TCU, who they’re actually chasing in these standings. Will the committee take that into account? The Bears certainly hope so.
(8) UCLA BRUINS
CURRENT RECORD: 9-2, losses to Utah and Oregon
REMAINING SCHEDULE: v. Stanford, Pac-12 Championship?
HOW THEY GET IN: It’s pretty simple for UCLA. Beat Stanford tomorrow and they’re into the Pac-12 championship game against Oregon. It’s a longshot, but a win against Oregon could vault them into the top four. We’ll see what happens tomorrow.
(9) GEORGIA BULLDOGS
CURRENT RECORD: 9-2, losses to South Carolina and Florida
REMAINING SCHEDULE: v. Georgia Tech, SEC Championship?
HOW THEY GET IN: First of all, the Bulldogs have to beat Georgia Tech this weekend. But they’ll also be rooting heavily for Arkansas to knock off Missouri, as that is what they need to earn a spot in the SEC title game. Get there and beat Alabama or Mississippi State and the committee would take a long look at Georgia.
(10) MICHIGAN STATE SPARTANS
CURRENT RECORD: 9-2
REMAINING SCHEDULE: @Penn State
HOW THEY GET IN: They don’t. But I wanted to give you the top 10. They’ll likely be in a big bowl game, but not part of the playoff. Sorry Spartan fans. It’s the truth.
[yop_poll id=”156″]
Who did you vote for and why? Comment below or follow @BingeSports on Twitter or tweet me directly @THElukenorris. I’ll be back next week with conference title game previews and the top ten heading into the final weekend before selections are made.
The fan vote is back! Welcome to Binge Sports coverage of the inaugural College Football Playoff. After years of dealing with the dreaded BCS, the human element has been brought to the world of college football. The conversation we’ve been dealing with for years has been “Well, what about that third team that’s left on the outside looking in?” And now, it will probably be the same. Just substitute “fifth” for “third” and we’ll go from there. Instead of relying on computers to give us the top two teams to play for a title, a committee has been formed to vote in the top four teams, who will battle in January in the first-ever playoff in big time college football. Over the next few weeks, I’ll give you the top ten teams as ranked by the committee, their current record, their remaining schedule, and how they get in. At the end, you’ll have the chance to vote for the four teams that you think will get in. I’ll reveal the results when the teams are officially announced in a few weeks. Let’s start at the top with a familiar face.
(1) ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE
CURRENT RECORD: 9-1, lost to Ole Miss
REMAINING SCHEDULE: v. Western Carolina, v. Auburn, SEC Championship?
HOW THEY GET IN: I know everybody is upset that Alabama is back at number one and thinks there may be some bias here, but no matter how you look at it, Alabama deserves to be here, as much as we all may hate it. But they’re not a shoe-in just yet. Yes, they’ve got a cupcake this week, but as we’ve seen before, the Iron Bowl against Auburn could derail their title hopes once again. If they do survive that game, just getting to the SEC Championship against Georgia or Missouri may get them in.
(2) OREGON DUCKS
CURRENT RECORD: 9-1, lost to Arizona
REMAINING SCHEDULE: v. Colorado, @Oregon State, Pac-12 Championship?
HOW THEY GET IN: The Ducks have already won the Pac-12 North, so we know they’re into the conference championship game. Logic says they should win their final two regular season games. But their opponent for the Pac-12 title game has yet to be determined as the teams in the South division are battling for the right to face Oregon. If I had to put money on it, I’d say that Oregon wins out and gets in.
(3) FLORIDA STATE SEMINOLES
CURRENT RECORD: 10-0
REMAINING SCHEDULE: v. Boston College, v. Florida, ACC Championship?
HOW THEY GET IN: It’s going to be very difficult for the committee to keep Florida State out, barring some crazy scenario that sees them lose these games to sub-par opponents like BC and Florida. I don’t think they’re as strong as they were last year, but they’ve kept on winning, coming from behind many times, including the Miami game last weekend. It looks like they’ll play Duke or Georgia Tech in the ACC title game, which shouldn’t be too much of a struggle, but stranger things have happened.
(4) MISSISSIPPI STATE BULLDOGS
CURRENT RECORD: 9-1, lost to Alabama
REMAINING SCHEDULE: v. Vanderbilt, @Ole Miss, SEC Championship?
HOW THEY GET IN: Here’s where things get tricky. First of all, the best thing for Mississippi State would be for Auburn to beat Alabama. As far as what they can control themselves, they shouldn’t have a problem with Vanderbilt, but a big rivalry game looms with #8 Ole Miss in the last week of the regular season. If they win out and Alabama wins out, they’ll have to hope that the committee can see past them not being in the SEC Championship game and put them in ahead of another conference winner, such as……….
(5) TCU HORNED FROGS
CURRENT RECORD: 9-1, lost to Baylor
REMAINING SCHEDULE: @Texas, v. Iowa State
HOW THEY GET IN: There’s certainly no guarantee that TCU even wins the Big 12. Remember the head-to-head loss against Baylor in the 61-58 game of the year candidate? While ranked ahead of Baylor at the moment, they’ll have to hope that the committee just sees them as a stronger team at the end of the year. And with no conference championship game, they don’t have a chance to exact revenge on the Bears.
(6) OHIO STATE BUCKEYES
CURRENT RECORD: 9-1, lost to Virginia Tech
REMAINING SCHEDULE: v. Indiana, v. Michigan, Big 10 Championship?
HOW THEY GET IN: A few weeks ago, nobody was really considering Ohio State as a contender. But they went up to East Lansing and put a beating on Michigan State, followed by another impressive win against a surprisingly good Minnesota team. They should handle Indiana this week and “The Game” against Michigan shouldn’t be too much trouble either (damn, it pains me to my core to write that). It looks as if a showdown with Wisconsin in the Big 10 Championship is coming. Will the committee reward Urban Meyer for being….well, Urban Meyer, or is the Big 10 just not good enough this year? A few upsets up top wouldn’t hurt the Buckeyes either.
(7) BAYLOR BEARS
CURRENT RECORD: 8-1, lost to West Virginia
REMAINING SCHEDULE: v. Oklahoma State, v. Texas Tech, v. Kansas State
HOW THEY GETIN: As I said above in the TCU portion, if Baylor can win out, they’re the automatic champion of the Big 12. That head-to-head win against TCU looks damn good right now, but that loss to West Virginia doesn’t. Their finisher against Kansas State won’t be any picnic either. The good news is that they’re at home for their final three games, which may play a big part in deciding the Big 12.
(8) OLE MISS REBELS
CURRENT RECORD: 8-2, losses to LSU and Auburn
REMAINING SCHEDULE: @Arkansas, v. Mississippi State
HOW THEY GET IN: It’s hard to see Ole Miss getting in now after recent back-to-back losses against LSU and Auburn. But they do have that big game with Mississippi State coming up and they are the team that pinned that loss on the Crimson Tide. But they would also need a ton of help at the top and a loss in either of the next two games would easily eliminate them.
(9) UCLA BRUINS
CURRENT RECORD: 8-2, losses to Utah and Oregon
REMAINING SCHEDULE: v. USC, v. Stanford
HOW THEY GET IN: This is another long shot, but their two losses are to good teams. If they can somehow make their way into the Pac-12 title game and knock off Oregon, the Bruins will at least give themselves a chance.
(10) GEORGIA BULLDOGS
CURRENT RECORD: 8-2, losses to South Carolina and Florida
REMAINING SCHEDULE: v. Charleston Southern, v. Georgia Tech, SEC Championship?
HOW THEY GET IN: They have to get to the SEC Championship and win and hope for other help. It’s as easy as that and highly unlikely. They may not even get that far if Missouri can win out.
Okay, there you have it for this week. And now I leave it to you. Which four teams are you picking to go the inaugural College Football Playoff. Pick your four below and back up your votes with comments below or tweeting @BingeSports and/or @THElukenorris. I’ll be back next week with an update. And remember, Binge Sports has all the balls.