Sign stealing. Cheating or an art? Or both? Or neither?
Look, this whole University of Michigan sign-stealing controversy is sounding a bit like the Houston Astros sign-stealing horseshit of a few years back, albeit with less garbage can banging and more just buying tickets for games involving conference opponents. It isn’t just the person above who is involved though. That man’s name is Connor Stalions. For fuck’s sake. Connor Stalions. Sounds like the name of a spy in a Tom Clancy novel or a jobber in WWE.
Anyway, Stalions was just hired a little over year ago by the Wolverines after being a volunteer with the team for seven years. A volunteer for seven years? OK then. On his LinkedIn (Corporate Facebook) profile, he mentions he can identify and exploit critical vulnerabilities and centers of gravity in the opponent scouting process. OK then. And over the past three years he has bought tickets for over 30 games at eleven different Big Ten schools and that many times it’s tickets on the exact opposite side of the season where the other person can hold their smartphone up to film the home team’s sideline. OK then.
Does this sound like something that is illegal? Yes. Yes it does. Well, not illegal in a criminal sense but illegal in a “that shouldn’t happen in a sporting event” kind of way. And yes, the NCAA, as corrupt an organization as it is, prohibits doing this and rightfully so.
So the question is who else knew. Stalions isn’t buying all those tickets himself. Not on a $55,000 per year salary. Someone is doing it for him. That person should be given a hell of a lot more than a slap on the wrist. And if Jim Harbaugh knew (which is the issue EVERYONE wants to know), he should be punished as well.
Will these punishments for Harbaugh, everyone involved and the school happen this season? Are you crazy? Of course not! The Wolverines are probably the favourite at this moment to win the national championship and there’s no way they will be derailed by this. Next season, sure why not. Relegate all their games to the Big Ten Network. Fine them. Suspend everyone. Do whatever. But don’t expect to see any 2023 punishment for the Michigan Wolverines football team. Besides, won’t Captain Khaki be in the NFL next season anyway?
Well that was…interesting………Wyld Stalions AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA *ahem* sorry about that. Let’s just get to the schedules alright?
Tuesday
US | Canada | ||
New Mexico State at Louisiana Tech | 7:00 | ||
Liberty at WKU | 7:30 |
We have a potential conference championship preview here…OK it’s pretty much going to be the conference championship unless something crazy happens in November. I guess the question will be if that game will be in Bowling Green (Kentucky) again or in Lynchburg, Virginia. Also, the Aggies look to take another giant step towards two straight years of bowl eligibility, cementing Jerry Kill as one of the most underrated head coaches this century.
Wednesday
US | Canada | ||
Jacksonville State at FIU | 7:00 | ||
UTEP at Sam Houston | 8:00 |
Well……it’s football. Enjoy it. I just hope one of the games is close.
Thursday
US | Canada | ||
Long Island at CCSU | 7:00 | ||
Syracuse at Virginia Tech | 7:30 | ||
Georgia State at Georgia Southern | 7:30 | ||
South Carolina State at NC Central | 7:30 |
We are looking at some seriously important Modern Day Hate down in Statesboro. With James Madison not eligible for the division title, the Sun Belt East could very well come down to this game. Both teams are playing well but think of this: if Georgia State wins, they would be 7-1 and could end up hosting 8-0 James Madison next weekend. Not saying College Gameday should go there (they won’t) but it’s not often that a Sun Belt game itself deserves that honour.
Also, yes, the Long Island University Sharks will be on your television screen this Thursday night. Funny how CBS inks a contract with the NEC to show their football games and they lose two of their schools just the other day with Merrimack and Sacred Heart moving on. The conference is now down to six schools and is teetering on not even having an automatic bid to the FCS playoffs which has to be up to like 60 teams or something like that now (it’s actually 24 teams but still….that’s quite a few teams).
Friday
US | Canada | ||
Brown at Penn | 7:00 | ||
FAU at Charlotte | 7:30 |
I think it could be -4 degrees out and Biff Poggi would still wear the cut-off sleeved shirt. Got to respect that.
Saturday Early
US | Canada | ||
#4 Florida State at Wake Forest | Noon | ||
UConn at Boston College | Noon | ||
Maryland at Northwestern | Noon | ||
Indiana at #10 Penn State | Noon | ||
UMass at Army | Noon | ||
South Carolina at Texas A&M | Noon | ||
Houston at Kansas State | Noon | ||
Tulsa at SMU | Noon | ||
#6 Oklahoma at Kansas | Noon |
This schedule is not the greatest to be honest. It’s not bad. But really, nothing stands out except maybe Oklahoma travelling to Lawrence to face Kansas in what can, for the first time in a long time, be considered a speed bump kind of game for the Sooners. Other than that, there are quite a few teams playing games that could dictate whether they go bowling or not, including South Carolina, Army, and Boston College.
Saturday Afternoon
US | Canada | ||
Clemson at NC State | 2:00 | ||
BYU at #7 Texas | 3:30 | ||
Virginia at Miami | 3:30 | ||
Michigan State at Minnesota | 3:30 | ||
Florida vs. #1 Georgia (in Jacksonville) | 3:30 | ||
Miami-OH at Ohio | 3:30 | ||
#20 Duke at #18 Louisville | 3:30 | ||
#8 Oregon at #13 Utah | 3:30 | ||
Pittsburgh at #14 Notre Dame | 3:30 | ||
Mississippi State at Auburn | 3:30 | ||
#22 Tulane at Rice | 4:00 | ||
Prairie View A&M at Florida A&M | 4:00 | ||
USC at California | 4:00 |
We have a ton of games in the afternoon window with quite a few of the day’s best games. Oregon and Utah in another Pac-12 Cannibalization Game, the Blue Devils and Cardinals face off where the winner might have the inside track to facing Florida State for the ACC Championship and, of course, the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party. Look, maybe Gary Danielson would be a whole lot more likeable if he was shitfaced. “Brad, this is a good game and I love how Duvalllllllllllllll County smells *BURP* but I have to profess my love for the Alabama God Damn Crimson Tide. They are GOD’S TEAM GOD DAMMIT (as he points a finger in Brad’s face). But this red team here is pretty good…too……” *immediately vomits all over the broadcast booth* OK, maybe not.
Saturday Primetime
US | Canada | ||
Marshall at Coastal Carolina | 6:00 | ||
#19 Air Force at Colorado State | 7:00 | ||
#21 Tennessee at Kentucky | 7:00 | ||
Colorado at #23 UCLA | 7:30 | ||
#3 Ohio State at Wisconsin | 7:30 | ||
Vanderbilt at #12 Ole Miss | 7:30 | ||
#17 North Carolina at Georgia Tech | 8:00 | ||
Cincinnati at Oklahoma State | 8:00 | ||
Old Dominion at #25 James Madison | 8:00 | ||
Washington State at Arizona State | 8:00 |
Hmmm….one of the weaker primetime schedules since early September. I don’t think anyone thought it would be that way, though. Many would have picked Tennessee-Kentucky as a huge game and tOSU-Wisky as another super important game. Not saying it isn’t important at all but probably a whole lot less important than it was predicted to be.
Saying all that, just remember the old college football adage: the weaker the window, the more chaos we see.
Saturday Late Night
US | Canada | ||
New Mexico at Nevada | 10:30 | ||
#11 Oregon State at Arizona | 10:30 |
The Beavs cannot afford to lose here against a pretty good Wildcats team. The other game is borderline-unwatchable. Remember, Nevada beat San Diego State 6-0 last week. Yawn.
Hey, Watch This!
Oregon at Utah (3:30, FOX) – Is there any doubt that this is the Game of the Week? Well there would have been about a month ago but now we’re here and this is the easy choice. With both teams at 3-1 in the conference, there is a very good chance that the loser here has their hopes dashed of a Pac-12 Championship game berth. Forget the College Football Playoff. Forget the New Year’s Six. It’s off to like the Holiday Bowl or something like that. Not bad. But not what they played this season for.
Oklahoma at Kansas (Noon, FOX) – I think we have all figured out that you can’t sleep on Lance Leipold’s Kansas Jayhawks. Last season was a revelation and this year it continues as they are just getting better which is bad news for the rest of the Big XII. The Sooners were going along quietly until they beat Texas and held off UCF at the end. Now, everyone is watching. I said it above: this is a big speed bump game for OU. Win and you head to Stillwater and Bedlam for the biggest game of the season. Lose and the playoff might be just out of reach.
Duke at Louisville (3:30, TSN+/specialty pack) – I do wish that TSN had picked this game up. To put it on their online platform seems like a bit of a slap in the face to both programs. But, for once, it feels like every channel is showing live sports and big-time properties from NASCAR to Formula 1 to the CFL to the Rugby World Cup. So I understand. Look, the Cardinals are not out of this race yet. Win out and they probably head to Charlotte for the ACC Championship. Duke also has an opportunity if they run the table but they will need some help.
Ohio State at Wisconsin (7:30, NBC) – Please don’t be Jac Collinsworth, please don’t be Jac Collinsworth, please don’t be Jac Collinsworth…..hey Noah Eagle is calling the game! Good. Eagle is good. Comes by it honestly with his dad one of the best at calling the NFL. Jac on the other hand is fucking terrible. He is there because his name is Collinsworth and not something else. Hopefully, NBC does the right thing and puts him elsewhere next season. As for this game, the Buckeyes should not take the Badgers lightly as an upset loss here would screw over a potential 1 vs. 2 matchup in The Game in late November.
Sickos Game of the Week
UConn at Boston College (Noon, TSN+/specialty pack) – The battle for Northeastern supremacy starts and ends with this game since UMass sucks. Amazingly enough, if the Eagles win here they are 5-3 and closing in on bowl eligibility. That’s huge for Jeff Hafley who started the season on a massive hot seat. That doesn’t take away from the fact that the bottom half of the ACC is not good and last season’s UConn might be an aberration.
Hubba Bubba Blowout of the Week
Indiana at Penn State (Noon, CBS) – A lot of people are questioning whether James Franklin is the guy that can get Penn State over the hump and into the CFP. Next year will be the ultimate test. If they can’t get in with an expanded field, they should move on. Putting all that aside, the Nittany Lions played awful last week and will be taking out their anger on the lowly Hoosiers, I can pretty much guarantee that.
Wanna Bet?
Man, looking back most of my picks fucking sucked. UAB over Memphis? Woof. UNC over Virginia? Yikes. USC over Utah. Oh no. I would say let’s keep the ball rolling but the ball, at this point, is a square. Need to start over and get some of these picks right.
FIU 40 Jacksonville State 27 (upset pick!)
Georgia State 26 Georgia Southern 21
FAU 38 Charlotte 7
Oklahoma 43 Kansas 30
Kansas State 34 Houston 23
SMU 44 Tulsa 9
Clemson 49 NC State 16
Louisville 23 Duke 19
Utah 24 Oregon 17 (slight upset)
Auburn 37 Mississippi State 20
Air Force 32 Colorado State 6
Ohio State 31 Wisconsin 17
Oregon State 49 Arizona 35
The Bossman Top 26
It’s time for another rousing version of the Bossman Top 26. OK, it’s the second time doing this many teams. Let’s just get going with it.
#1 | Michigan |
#2 | Georgia |
#3 | Ohio State |
#4 | Florida State |
#5 | Washington |
#6 | Alabama |
#7 | Oklahoma |
#8 | Texas |
#9 | Oregon State |
#10 | Utah |
#11 | Oregon |
#12 | Ole Miss |
#13 | Penn State |
#14 | Notre Dame |
#15 | LSU |
#16 | Missouri |
#17 | Louisville |
#18 | North Carolina |
#19 | Tulane |
#20 | UCLA |
#21 | Tennessee |
#22 | Air Force |
#23 | Duke |
#24 | USC |
#25 | James Madison |
#26 | Liberty |
Yep, I have added Liberty in at the final spot. Sure, their schedule is arguably the easiest in the land; but if they run the table and get some help they might sneak into the New Year’s Six much to the chagrin of many college football fans. James Madison continues to wait for a waiver that may never come but at least we know that if there aren’t enough bowl eligible teams, they would be the first call to fill a bowl spot. And yes, I have Michigan in the top spot. Despite their cheating ways (it seems), they still look like the best team in college football, even better than UGA. I know SEC fans will scrunch their noses at that since they think their conference is the be-all-and-end-all and that the CFP should be Georgia, Alabama, Ole Miss and LSU. Well you know what? Fuck you. This is my rankings. Make your own.
Getting these blog posts out before the Tuesday night games is basically impossible for me. Not complaining since it means there’s Tuesday night football. It’s still not easy though. Enjoy the games everyone!