The Year of the Stretch Forward

In the last two weeks since my rankings came out, there have been many changes: upsets, shocking victories, and the Chinese New Year.  That's right, on February 10th we officially entered The Year of Snake.  So, in honor of The Year of the Snake, I am naming this college basketball season "The Year of the Stretch Forward".

The stretch forward, or stretch four, is a term used to designate a player that plays at the power forward position, but has skills that are not normally associated with a power forward, namely: the ability to knock down a three pointer. The difference between a traditional forward and a stretch forward is purely on the offensive end. The stretch forward has the ability to play inside and around the perimeter, thus stretching out the defense.  Made popular in the NBA by players like Ryan Anderson, Kevin Love, and Ersan Ilyasova, the stretch forward position, if played correctly, can become a team's most dangerous weapon on offense. Recently however, college teams have began recruiting and developing players to play this role, and for many of them, it is working very well.  I am going to highlight five of the best in the college game at this position, and show the impact they are having on their teams.

Erik Murphy - Florida Gators - 6'10" 238 lbs. 

The senior (pictured right) from South Kingston, Rhode Island is one of the best stretch forwards in the nation.  He is averaging 12.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game for the 5th ranked Gators.  Murphy, a career 44% three point shooter, is shooting a blazing 50% from 3 this year, making 52 of his 104 attempts from deep.  He is an 83% free throw shooter, and also takes care of the ball: only 1.4 turnovers per game.  Murphy has led Florida to a 21-3 record, and a first place standing in the SEC with an 11-1 conference record. They are in running for a potential 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, with ESPN projecting them for one of the four coveted top seeds.  Florida arguably would not be in the situation they are now without Murphy, who has stepped up in a huge way in the last few weeks as Florida's front line has been plagued by injuries   Look for Murphy to lead his Gators deep into the NCAA Tournament this year.

Romero Osby - Oklahoma Sooners - 6'8" 232 lbs.

Osby is making a big name for himself in Norman.  The transfer from Mississippi State has played his last two seasons of eligibility with the Sooners.  Known as a lock-down defender, Osby has improved on offense to become the leading scorer for Oklahoma averaging 14 points per game.  He is shooting 56% from three this year, and grabbing 7 rebounds per game as well.  He doesn't take a lot of threes, but his ability to knock them down is what often opens up lanes for him to drive, which is exactly what he did to score 17 points in Oklahoma's upset win last week over #5 Kansas.  As for the rest of the team, Oklahoma is 16-8 with a 7-5 conference record.  They have quality wins over Kansas, and Oklahoma State; and no bad losses  so far.  They are being projected for an 8 seed in the tournament, and 5-1 or even a 4-2 record to finish out the season should place them safely in the NCAA Tournament. 

Doug McDermott - Creighton Bluejays - 6'8" 225 lbs.

You have to love those coach's sons.  Greg McDermott, Doug's father and Creighton's head coach, has to be pleased with his son's (and his team's) play this year.  Creighton is #1 nationally in 3 point percentage at 43%, and #2 in 3 pointers made per game at 9.3.  Doug McDermott is averaging 22.9 points per game, which is good for 3rd in the nation.  He also adds 7.8 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game.  Doug has shot 48% from 3 the last two years, and adds an 86% mark from the charity stripe.  He is not afraid to shoot the ball, hoisting 118 attempts so far this year, and making 57 of them.  Doug McDermott went to Ames High School in Ames, Iowa where he was teammates with All-American and now Golden State Warrior, Harrison Barnes.  During McDermott's and Barnes' junior and senior seasons they posted a 53-0 record, and won two state championships.  Now McDermott has led his Creighton team to a 21-6 record, and they have been ranked most of the year.  They have however fallen a bit in conference play in the Missouri Valley Conference  and trail Wichita State by 1 game.  The good news is the Shockers have to travel to Omaha and take on Creighton in the last game of the year on March 2nd.  Both teams are projected to get seed somewhere in the 7-9 range in the NCAA Tournament. 

Ryan Kelly - Duke Blue Devils - 6'11" 230 lbs. 

Senior Ryan Kelly is by far the most valuable player for Duke this year.  He has averaged 13.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game this year to go along with 52% shooting from three.  His defense is incredible: he's known as a shut-down post defender.  He is deadly in transition shooting the three, and is an 80% free throw shooter.  The only problem is that he has been out with a leg injury since January 12th.  This is where you realize just how valuable Kelly is to Duke: they are 15-0 with Kelly, including 3 wins over top 5 teams, and they are 7-3 since then, going 0-2 against ranked teams.  This included a 27 point thrashing they took at Miami.  After losing to Maryland this past weekend, Duke has fallen to #6 in the rankings.  They are still projected for a 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, but how far they go in that tournament will solely depend on the heath of Ryan Kelly, who is projected to be healthy by the time the tournament starts. 

Kyle Wiltjer - Kentucky Wildcats - 6'10" 239 lbs.

In a season that has been highlighted by disappointments for the defending national champions, Kyle Wiltjer has been a bight spot for Kentucky.  The sophomore from Portland, Oregon has been a great scoring option for the Wildcats, averaging 11.8 points and 4.6 rebounds per game.  The 41% three point shooter showed up the biggest in Kentucky's most pivotal game of the season against then #16 Ole Miss.  The game was in Oxford, Mississippi, and Wiltjer silenced the crowed with 26 points, including 5 threes.  Kentucky, who is clinging to a tournament spot received more bad news last week, as standout center Nerlens Noel tore his ACL and is out for the season.  In their first game without him, Kentucky suffered a 30 point defeat to Tennessee who is just a .500 SEC team.  Kentucky sits at 17-8 with an 8-4 SEC record.  They will have to prove themselves in their 6 remaining games to secure a spot in the NCAA Tournament, where they are currently projected for a 10 seed.  

I can't believe that March Madness is almost here! This has been a crazy year for college basketball, and I'm pretty sure that it will only get crazier from this point on.  I will be releasing the second edition of my Straight Up Index rankings tomorrow.  'Til next time. 

The Straight Up Index

As I was surveying the college basketball landscape this weekend, I really liked what I saw.  Great teams, players, coaches, and conferences all battling for supremacy.  However, I have one problem: rankings.  The sports world, and specifically college basketball, is overflowing with information about rankings.  By simply tweaking a formula to favor a certain type of win, you can make a case for your team to be number 1.  Human made polls are no better.  Sportswriters and journalists in the AP Poll are often biased towards a certain conference or team, and you can't expect all the coaches in the USA Today Coaches Poll to know what's happening to every team, and watch games to determine who should be ranked where.  These complaints aside, there are some very positive things about the different types of polls out there.  So I came up with the idea to combine them into what I am going to call the Straight Up Index (SUI). This index will take several of the different polls and ranking systems and combine them into one giant composite ranking. Here are the rankings that I will be using:

RPI (Ratings Percentage Index): The RPI system ranks teams based on wins, losses, and strength of schedule. RPI is made up of three factors: the team's winning percentage (25%), its opponents' winning percentage (50%), and the winning percentage of those opponents' opponents (25%).  It is a good system that looks directly at who you beat, and how good they are.  

The Human Polls: I am combining the AP Top 25 and the USA Today Coaches Poll into one category. As mentioned above these polls are subject to bias, but are a good representation of the college basketball landscape, especially because voters can use the "eye test" (how a team appears based solely on the fact that they play a certain way, and they are better/worse than their record).  The AP Poll is probably more widely accepted (it's the one that gives you the number next to the team's name on TV), but both are subject to letting an underrated team fall through the cracks (Oregon), or consistently overrating a team (NC State). 

BPI (College Basketball Power Index): The BPI is a more complex and thorough rating system. but it takes into account many things that matter at the end of year when the tournament starts in March. The BPI takes into consideration several categories: where the game is played (home, neutral, road), pace of game, diminishing returns for blowing out bad teams, scoring margin, strength of schedule, and playing games without key players.  As you can see, it is a much more thorough system than the RPI, which is both a good and bad thing.  

Kenpom (Ken Pomeroy College Basketball Ratings): Ken Pomeroy's (Kenpom for short) rating system is a really confusing formula that crunches a lot of numbers that spits out a really good ranking system.  It has quickly gown to become the number 1 online formula based ranking system over the last few years, even if most people (myself included) don't understand how it works. 

So now you know where I am getting the rankings that make up the Straight Up Index.  My formula is quite simple: Each rankings system is worth 25% of the Index (except the human polls, which I will combine so each one is worth 12.5%).  A team gets 25 points if they are ranked number 1 in a poll, 24 if they are ranked number 2, and so on, all the way down to number 25, who will receive 1 point.  With each poll taking up 25% of the Index, 100 points would be a perfect score (#1 in every poll).  After giving every team the composite score, I will rank them simply based on who scored the most points. 

Here is the first edition of the Straight Up Index college basketball rankings (data is through games of Wednesday, February 6th):

SUI Ranking	Team	RPI	HP	BPI	KP	SUI
#1	Florida	3	2	3	1	95
#2	Duke	1	4	1	5	93
#3	Michigan	4	3	4	4	89
#4	Indiana	12	1	2	2	87
#5	Louisville	8	11.5	5	3	76.5
#6	Syracuse	7	9	6	7	75
#7	Arizona	5	7	7	12	73
#8	Gonzaga	10	6	8	9	71
#9	Miami (FL)	2	9.5	12	10	70.5
#10	Kansas	9	5	9	13	68
#11	Ohio State	17	10	10	8	59
#12	Minnesota	11	18	11	11	53
#13	Michigan State	13	10	17	15	49
#14	New Mexico	6	15.5	19	NR	37.5
#15	Pittsburgh	NR	24	13	6	35
#16	Creighton	NR	14.5	14	18	31.5
#17	Cincinnati	NR	17	15	20	26
#18	Colorado State	15	NR	21	16	26
#19	Butler	14	14	NR	NR	24
#20	Marquette	16	25	20	22	21
#21	Oklahoma State	NR	23	18	19	18
#22	NC State	19	NR	16	NR	17
#23	Kansas State	23	14	NR	NR	15
#24	Wisconsin	NR	NR	24	14	14
#25	VCU	NR	NR	22	21	9

Also receiving points: Belmont (8), Oregon (7), San Diego State (7), Georgetown (6.5), Oklahoma (6), Missouri (5.5), UNLV (5), Ole Miss (4.5), Connecticut (4), Saint Mary's (2), Wichita State (2), Colorado (1), Notre Dame (1)
HP=Human Polls, KP=Kenpom, SUI=Straight Up Index

Analysis: For the inaugural edition of the Straight Up Index, there is not much analysis about who moved where, because, well, it's the first one.  I do think that the SUI ranking is a very fair and equal composite ranking of several major ranking systems. I am going to try to put out new rankings every 7-10 days.  They will be posted on the main page of the blog like this one is.  The SUI rankings will be displayed on the left sidebar of the blog, so you can see who the 10 is at any given time.

Big Game Forecast: Here I will be highlighting the marquee games that are coming up over the next week (all times Eastern, and all rankings AP - the ones you see on TV - as of February 7th):
February 9th:
#3 Michigan @ Wisconsin (12:00 pm), North Carolina @ #6 Miami (FL) (2:00 pm), #23 Pittsburgh @ #17 Cincinnati (6:00 pm), #11 Louisville @ #25 Notre Dame (9:00 pm), #15 New Mexico @ UNLV (9:00 pm)
February 10th:
#1 Indiana @ #10 Ohio State (1:00 pm)
February 11th:
#24 Marquette @ #20 Georgetown (7:00 pm), #13 Kansas State @ #5 Kansas (9:00 pm)
February 12th:
Kentucky @ #2 Florida (7:00 pm), #3 Michigan @ #12 Michigan State (9:00 pm)
February 13th:
North Carolina @ #4 Duke (9:00 pm)
February 14th:
Wisconsin @ #18 Minnesota (7:00 pm), #7 Arizona @ Colorado (10:00 pm), #6 Gonzaga @ Saint Mary's (11:00 pm)

I have always wanted to have my own ranking system.  Now that I have the formula down, I am going to create the Straight Up Index - College Football Recruiting Rankings to recap signing day for the 2013 class. As Dick Vitale would say "Enjoy these hoops BABY! They won't be here forever!" He's right: watch as much as you can, because once March Madness is over you are going to look back and wish you watched more.  So get out there, put that game face on, and watch some great basketball.  And if you miss some games, I'll just fill you in next week.  'Til next time.

2012-13 College Football Bowl Preview (Part I)

The best part of the college football season is, unfortunately, the end.  But that awesome time from December 15th to January 7th is the most fun any fan could expect to have.  Here is Part I of my 2012-13 College Football Bowl Preview (all times Eastern):

The Gildan New Mexico Bowl: Saturday December 15th, 1:00 pm.
Nevada (7-5) vs Arizona (7-5) - Arizona and Nevada don't have to travel very far to kick off the bowl season.  Arizona has had an up and down year, with great wins against Oklahoma State and USC, but letdowns against Oregon and Arizona State.  In Rich Rodriguez's first year, it seems like there are two different Arizona teams that took the field this year.  It will be interesting to see which one shows up against Nevada, who is no slouch, but has lost 4 of its last 5 games this year. Straight Up Pick: Arizona.

The Famous Idaho Potato Bowl: Saturday December 15th, 4:30 pm.

Toledo (9-3) vs #22 Utah State (10-2) - Utah State comes in riding a 6 game winning streak, with a top notch win against Louisiana Tech.  Their two losses on the year came to BYU and Wisconsin by a combined 5 points.  Toledo's balanced attack will be a tough test for the Utah State defense, as Toledo has a point to prove in the MAC, which has become a surprisingly competitive conference over the last couple of seasons. Straight Up Pick: Utah State.

The San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl: Thursday December 20th, 8:00 pm.
Brigham Young (7-5) vs San Diego State (9-3) - Independent BYU has to travel to play what will be practically a home game for San Diego State. Both teams have had quarterback issues, and will rely on powerful running games in this matchup. Straight Up Pick: San Diego State.

The Beef 'O' Brady's St. Petersburg Bowl: Friday December 21st, 7:30 pm.
Ball State (9-3) vs UCF (9-4) - After losing the Conference USA title game to Tulsa, UCF has to face a feisty Ball State team who played very well in the MAC this year. Led by junior quarterback Keith Wenning and a great group of receivers, Ball State will try to keep pace with UCF's dynamic offense. Straight Up Pick: UCF

R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl: Saturday December 22nd, 12:00 pm.
East Carolina (8-4) vs Louisiana-Lafayette (8-4) - Both teams are riding 3 game winning streaks into this game, with Louisiana-Lafayette led by their conservative short passing and running game, while East Carolina is content to fling it all over the field with great athletes at all the skill positions. Straight Up Pick: Louisiana-Lafayette.

The Macco Las Vegas Bowl: Saturday December 22nd, 3:30 pm.
Washington (7-5) vs #19 Boise State (10-2) - Washington had a nice upset of Oregon State, but has largely disappointed in what was predicted to be a big year for the Huskies.  Meanwhile, Boise State has played a great season, with quarterback Joe Southwick looking better every game. Straight Up Pick: Boise State.

The Sheraton Hawaii Bowl: Monday December 24th, 8:00 pm.
Fresno State (9-3) vs Southern Methodist (6-6) - SMU has had an inconsistent year, but started to find their stride winning 2 of their last 3 games.  Fresno State however is one of the most underrated teams in the country, with loses against Oregon, Boise State, and Tulsa.  Fresno State touts the number 12 ranked scoring offense this year, so look for them to put up a lot of points in this one. Straight Up Pick: Fresno State.

The Little Caesars Bowl: Wednesday December 26th, 7:30 pm.
Western Kentucky (7-5) vs Central Michigan (6-6) - After a dramatic upset of Iowa early in the season, Central Michigan went in the tank and lost 4 straight games.  They recovered however, and finished the year on a 3 game winning streak. Western Kentucky has had an okay year across the board, and found themselves in a bowl game for the first time in school history since moving to D1. Straight Up Pick: Western Kentucky.


The Military Bowl: Thursday December 27th, 3:00 pm.
#24 San Jose State (10-2) vs Bowling Green (8-4) - San Jose State brings a top 15 passing offense and a whole lot of momentum into this game.  San Jose State is a team that just finds a way to win games.  Bowling Green will try to stop SJSU's passing with their top 10 defense.  Straight Up Pick: San Jose State.

The Belk Bowl: Thursday December 27th, 6:30 pm.
Cincinnati (9-3) vs Duke (6-6) - The good news for Duke: they made a bowl game.  The bad news for Duke: It's against Cincinnati, who's smash-mouth style will be a tough match for the Blue Devils.  Cincinnati is led by one of the best players with the best name: quarterback Munchie Legaux. Straight Up Pick: Cincinnati.

The Bridgepoint Education Holiday Bowl: Thursday December 27th, 9:45 pm.
Baylor (7-5) vs #17 UCLA (9-4) - I will tell you this: lot's of points will be scored.  Both schools boast top ranked offenses, and we are still not sure if Baylor has a defense. UCLA's Brett Hundley will see if he can outgun Baylor's Nick Florence.  Straight Up Pick: UCLA.




More game previews coming in Part II. Enjoy these great games! Til' next time.

College Basketball November Recap

2011-2012 was a great year for college basketball.  But if what has happened so far this year is any indication for this season, we are in for a treat! Here is my recap of the first month of college hoops:

Team of the Month: The Duke Blue Devils. Ranked #2 in the nation at 8-0, Duke went into November facing an absolute gauntlet of a schedule.  They beat then #3 Kentucky, and in back to back games toppled #2 Louisville and #4 Ohio State.  The #1 ranked team, Indiana, has impressed as well, but has only faced one ranked team, a #14 North Carolina squad, who they crushed by 24 points.  The rest of the road was not a cake walk for Duke however: they beat now ranked Minnesota, and a tough VCU team. One interesting thing to watch with Duke is the fact that they have yet to play in a true road environment, with four of their eight wins coming on neutral court.  They will play two more neutral court games against Temple and Davidson before heading down the road to take on NC State on January 12th.  Mark that one on your calender!

Dark Horse of the Month: This was a tough category for me to pick one team, but I went with the 8-1 Bucknell Bison. Bucknell started the year off well with a 15 point road win against Purdue, and has built on that upset with wins against New Mexico State, Columbia, and Kent State.  They did lose to a decent Penn State team on the road, but look for Bucknell to turn some heads in the Patriot League and be very dangerous come March and tournament time.

Surprise Team of the Month: Everyone likes surprises. The Virginia Tech Hokies, who entered the season with low expectations and a new coach, like them too. Off-season hire James Johnson has turned this team around in an unbelievable way. At 7-0, the Hokies look like ACC contenders under the leadership of senior guard Erik Green, who is averaging almost 25 points per game. After playing a pretty soft schedule early, Virginia Tech beat Iowa and then upset Oklahoma State (then ranked #15) by ten points. This team still has challenges before conference play starts, like a tough road matchup against West Virginia, but it's time to start believing in the Hokies!

Player of the Month: Many players impressed in November with great stats like Lehigh's C.J. McCollum who averaged 26.3 points per game to lead the nation. But the best player was Duke's Mason Plumlee.  The 6 foot 11 inch senior has been the key to Duke's undefeated start, averaging 19.9 points and 11 rebounds per game. The combination of his smart play and size make Mason Plumlee someone to be feared in the ACC this year.

Freshman of the Month: Marcus Smart, Oklahoma State. Smart has led the Cowboys to a 5-0 record in November. He is averaging an incredible 13.4 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 5.8 assists per game.  How good is that? Well, the last freshman to reach those numbers in November was Dwyane Wade in 2001. Smart will try to lead his Cowboys to a championship in what looks like a pretty wide open Big 12 this year.

6th Man of the Month: Just because you don't start doesn't mean you don't have game.  Syracuse senior forward James Southerland would agree with that statement.  The Bayside, New York product is averaging an extremely efficient 16.7 points off the bench this year in 26 minutes per game. His presence has been felt off the bench, helping Syracuse to an undefeated start.

Shot of the Month: You can always count on Butler for some drama.  Brad Stevens' squad was down 2 points late against Marquette in the first round of the Maui Invitational when this happened:

Upset of the Month: Non conference play is always good for some upsets, and we are going to stay in Maui for this one, where Division II host school Chaminade knocked off the Texas Longhorns.  It wasn't a fluky upset either. After leading by 4 at the half, Chaminade outpaced the Longhorns in route to a 86-73 victory. Thirty years after upsetting Ralph Samson's #1 ranked Virginia Cavaliers, the Chaminade Silverswords struck once again, and took down another quality opponent in the Maui Invitational.

Game of the Month: With so many tournaments and high powered non conference matchups, it was hard to choose just one, but Duke's nail biting win over Louisville in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament final got my vote.  Featuring two of the top 5 teams in the country, Duke jumped out to an eight point halftime lead before Louisville clawed their way back, forcing Duke to nail several clutch threes down the stretch to close the deal, 76-71. It looked like a preview of what we might see come tournament time in March.

November was an awesome month for college basketball, and I can't wait to do the December Recap. Here are some great high-powered games that you can't miss for December (rankings are as of December 6) (all times Eastern):
December 8th: 
#8 Arizona @ Clemson (8:00 pm), #13 Illinois @ #10 Gonzaga (10:00 pm)
December 15th:
#1 Indiana @ Butler (2:00 pm EST), West Virginia vs #3 Michigan (8:00 pm), #6 Florida @ #8 Arizona (10:00 pm)
December 19th:
Xavier @ #11 Cincinnati (7:00 pm)
December 22nd:
#9 Kansas @ #7 Ohio State (4:00 pm), #13 Illinois @ #12 Missouri (6:00 pm)
December 27th:
#18 New Mexico @ #11 Cincinnati (9:00 pm)
December 29th:
Kentucky @ #5 Louisville (4:00 pm)
December 31st:
#11 Cincinnati @ Pittsburgh  (12:00 pm), #19 Michigan State @ #14 Minnesota, #10 Gonzaga @ #23 Oklahoma State (6:00 pm)

There you have it. Happy watching! 'Til next time.

Super Bowl and Some Upsets

This has been the craziest last few days in sports. Good thing I am here to straighten it out.

Today, Sunday January 22nd, former Penn State head coach Joe Paterno passed away at the age of 85 due to complications with lung cancer.  Paterno won 409 career games as a head coach, all of them with Penn State. He is the all time winningest coach in college football history.  He took the Nittany Lions to 37 bowl games and two national championships, and over 250 of his players would go on to the NFL. "He will go down as the greatest football coach in the history of the game," Ohio State coach Urban Meyer said today.  The circumstances surrounding his death are extremely sad. 

How do I describe this week in college basketball? Exciting? Crazy? Unstable? How ever you say it, it was awesome for any hoops fan, or anyone that loves to watch a good upset.  The first team I would like to highlight is Baylor.  The Bears came into this week 17-0 and ranked #3 with two top ten matchups within  the Big 12. They lost them both. First, an 18 point whooping at #7 Kansas, followed by a 1 point 89-88 loss at home to #5 Missouri.  This gives Kansas 16-3(6-0) the lead in the Big 12, but with a very tough schedule to come, that includes Missouri twice, and Baylor one more. Looks like a great race in the Big 12.  

Duke came into the week with a 45 home court winning streak. That streak is no more.  Thanks to the giant killer Florida State, Duke suffered their first ACC loss at the hands of the Seminoles.  Junior guard Michael Snaer hit a game winning three as time expired to upset the #4 Blue Devils 76-73. A week earlier the 'Noles upset #5 North Carolina 90-57. This is coming from a team that lost to Harvard and Princeton, and lost their first ACC game by 20 to a inconsistent rebuilding Clemson team. But Florida State is 4-1 in the ACC, and might be the hottest team in college hoops right now.  

After Baylor went down, there were two undefeated teams left: number 1 ranked Syracuse and Murray State. Then Syracuse lost.  Playing in a very hostile environment at Notre Dame, the Irish were in control of the game from the start, out hustling Syracuse the whole game. The Orange, playing without their starting center Fab Melo, who was unable to make the trip due to academic issues, were outmatched in the post. Notre Dame is now 12-8 (4-3 in the Big East), and has suffered this year after losing star forward Tim Abromaitis early in the season to an injury.  But this win could spark the Irish, who definitely have to ability to step up this year in the Big East. Syracuse still leads the Big East, however, leaving Murray State as the only undefeated team left in college basketball.

The Super Bowl matchup is set, and I can't wait.  Patriots vs. Giants. The New England Patriots, defeated the Baltimore Ravens 23-20 thanks to a Billy Cundiff missed 32 yard field goal with 11 seconds left to send the game into overtime. This will be Tom Brady's fifth career trip to the Super Bowl.  

It is very difficult to win games when you go 0-12 on 3rd down conversions. The San Francisco 49ers learned this, losing to the red hot New York Giants 20-17 in overtime. Two fumbles on punt returns for the normally turnover free 49ers led to a crucial touchdown and the game winning Lawrence Tynes field goal in overtime. Tynes also kicked a game winning overtime field goal in 2007 to put the Giants in the Super Bowl against the Patriots, which the Giants won. The stage is set for a great, deja-vu, Super Bowl!

The Super Bowl is set, college basketball is on fire, the NBA and the NHL are getting exciting, and I think I can almost smell spring training! 'Til Next Time.