Thursday, December 29, 2011
The Winter Transfer Window Is Approaching.
With the year dwindling down, and top teams in need of new talent(I'm looking at you Wenger, spend some money!) the winter transfer market can't come fast enough. I will list a few of the more important teams that need to make signings, and players that could quite possibly be on the move. With the players, I'll be giving a percentage on the likeliness that they will move away from their current clubs.
NFL Power Rankings and Playoff Scenarios - Week 17
One final week remains for this NFL regular season in which we have seen many great stories emerge. Some of these are as follows:
- Tim Tebow winning more games than were expected
- The Green Bay Packers going for a perfect season
- The NFC West having a team make the playoffs with a winning record
- The San Francisco 49ers not allowing a rushing touchdown until week 16
- Drew Brees eclipsing Dan Marino's season passing yards record
- The Colts showing how much they rely on Peyton Manning
- The Detroit Lions breaking their playoff drought
- The number of rookie quarterbacks that saw playing time
- NFL lockout (this seems so long ago that I almost forgot that it happened)
- Former NFL player, Steve Gleason, diagnosed with ALS
All of these stories helped make the NFL season really great for me even though I entered the season with apathy galore. This week should provide plenty excitement with the Cowboys and Giants going head-to-head with a playoff spot on the line, the sixth seed in the AFC being open to four possible teams, and so much riding on the Cincinnati-Baltimore game.
In the following infographic you can see what needs to happen for each team to make the playoffs as the various seeds that are still possible.
The most probable outcomes are as follows:
Follow the jump for our weekly power rankings and predictions.
Pac-12 Basketball: Conference Preview
Nonconference winding down in the Pac-12 and SO MUCH has happened! Wait... What's that? Nothing has happened? Oh yeah, that's right...
This nonconference slate has been nothing short of a disaster for the Pac-12. The early part of the 2011-2012 slate has seen losses to numerous, let's say, less than stellar teams.
What do UC-Riverside, Montana State, Northern Arizona, Fresno State and Eastern Washington all have in common? Yes, they are all .500 or worse mid-major teams, but they are also .500 or worse mid-major teams with victories over Pac-12 schools.
That wouldn't be so bad, if there were some good wins to go along with those bad losses... But there aren't. The Pac-12 has not beaten a ranked team in any poll this season, nor have they even beaten a team that has been receiving votes in a poll when the game is played.
Sure, there has been close games. Washington State was a kind roll away from tying #23 Gonzaga in the waning moments of their game in Spokane. Stanford dominated their game against #5 Syracuse for 36 minutes, before letting that one slip away. Washington played back-to-back heartbreakers against #11 Marquette and #5 Duke.
But close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. The Pac-12 has not been able to get it done, and their stock has slipped. Some pundits say that the Pac-12 is as low as the 8th best basketball conference in the nation, others say they're in 9th.
Don't worry, I have good news.
The conference is guaranteed to win about half of their remaining games. How will that happen?
Two of the sweetest words in the English language will save us all: "Conference Play"
That's right! If you can't beat other people, might as well beat each other. The conference will win 11 games a week, and that's a sure thing.
A good sports writer would pretend like he knows exactly what is going to happen and not give in, even when he's wrong. I guess I'm not a good sports writer because I have no idea what will happen, and I admit it. The way the first part of the season has gone, all it will take is a long hot streak for a team to take control.
Below we have a team-by-team breakdown of every school in the conference. After this, you'll be ready for tonight's action and conference play into 2012.
This nonconference slate has been nothing short of a disaster for the Pac-12. The early part of the 2011-2012 slate has seen losses to numerous, let's say, less than stellar teams.
What do UC-Riverside, Montana State, Northern Arizona, Fresno State and Eastern Washington all have in common? Yes, they are all .500 or worse mid-major teams, but they are also .500 or worse mid-major teams with victories over Pac-12 schools.
That wouldn't be so bad, if there were some good wins to go along with those bad losses... But there aren't. The Pac-12 has not beaten a ranked team in any poll this season, nor have they even beaten a team that has been receiving votes in a poll when the game is played.
Sure, there has been close games. Washington State was a kind roll away from tying #23 Gonzaga in the waning moments of their game in Spokane. Stanford dominated their game against #5 Syracuse for 36 minutes, before letting that one slip away. Washington played back-to-back heartbreakers against #11 Marquette and #5 Duke.
But close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. The Pac-12 has not been able to get it done, and their stock has slipped. Some pundits say that the Pac-12 is as low as the 8th best basketball conference in the nation, others say they're in 9th.
Don't worry, I have good news.
The conference is guaranteed to win about half of their remaining games. How will that happen?
Two of the sweetest words in the English language will save us all: "Conference Play"
That's right! If you can't beat other people, might as well beat each other. The conference will win 11 games a week, and that's a sure thing.
A good sports writer would pretend like he knows exactly what is going to happen and not give in, even when he's wrong. I guess I'm not a good sports writer because I have no idea what will happen, and I admit it. The way the first part of the season has gone, all it will take is a long hot streak for a team to take control.
Below we have a team-by-team breakdown of every school in the conference. After this, you'll be ready for tonight's action and conference play into 2012.
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Jerome Simpson - Random Video Post
Another day of Christmas break, another random video post. Eventually we'll be along with more content but for now enjoy this video of Jerome Simpson doing an amazing stunt to get into the end zone.
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Emerald City Dunkers - Random Video Post
Attended the Cougar Hardwood Classic today at Key Arena and watched the Cougs take down Pepperdine. A couple of times the Emerald City Dunkers took the floor and did what they do, mind-blowing dunks off trampolines. Anyways, enjoy this video I shot at the game tonight. Go Cougs!
Are Your Ready For Some Football? Week 16
With only two weeks left until the playoffs we can start listing what teams need to do to be able to make it into the race for the Super Bowl. The big games for the week, in terms of playoff decisions, are the Cardinals at Bengals, Giants at Jets, Chargers at Lions, and the Eagles at Cowboys.
The Giants/Jets and Eagles/Cowboys games will help decide the future of the NFC East which is a tightly contested race for division leader between the 8-6 Cowboys and the 7-7 Giants with the Eagles still clinging onto hope at 6-8. If they Eagles cannot win out then they will fail to live up the expectations that all of the nation set up for them at season's beginning.
Another match up that I want to see is the Chargers game against the Lions because San Diego always seems to perform well at the end of the season. Also, the Lions started off so hot and they have a chance to not make the post season.
So tune your dials to your local football channels in order to catch this weeks opportunity to have each team not embarrass themselves by not making the playoffs.
Week 15 Pick'em Results
Dan: 8-8 (133-75, 64%)
Jordon: 7-9 (129-79, 62%)
Brett: 8-8 (120-73, 62%)
The Giants/Jets and Eagles/Cowboys games will help decide the future of the NFC East which is a tightly contested race for division leader between the 8-6 Cowboys and the 7-7 Giants with the Eagles still clinging onto hope at 6-8. If they Eagles cannot win out then they will fail to live up the expectations that all of the nation set up for them at season's beginning.
Another match up that I want to see is the Chargers game against the Lions because San Diego always seems to perform well at the end of the season. Also, the Lions started off so hot and they have a chance to not make the post season.
So tune your dials to your local football channels in order to catch this weeks opportunity to have each team not embarrass themselves by not making the playoffs.
Week 15 Pick'em Results
Dan: 8-8 (133-75, 64%)
Jordon: 7-9 (129-79, 62%)
Brett: 8-8 (120-73, 62%)
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
NFL Power Ranking Week 16 - The Ending of the Streaks
What a crazy week we just experienced. The Green Bay Packers lost on their quest to have an undefeated season by falling to the Chiefs 19-14, the mighty Indianapolis Colts got back to their old ways of winning with a victory over division rival Tennessee Titans, and Tim "Just Wins" Tebow suffered his second loss of the season to the powerful New England Patriots.
Let's start with the Packers. As Brett predicted at the beginning of the week, the Chiefs were the spoilers to the Packers party. His reasoning behind his pick was, "I just figured, they have to lose at some point. Arrowhead is a tough place to play. And If I'm right I look brilliant." Aaron Rodgers had his worst performance of the year with a 48.6% completion percentage and throwing only one touchdown (all other games this year have had 2+). Kyle Orton was pretty efficient with a 104.1 rating which looks amazing in comparison to his previous ones (39.6, 21.0, 87.1, and 67.6 over the four previous games). The combination of Rodgers having an off game with Orton not having a normal game lead to this victory for Kansas City.
The Colts win! This victory can be attributed solely to the superb performance of Dan Orlovsky. Let's take a minute to soak in his beautiful stats: 11-17, 82 yards, 1 touchdown. Isn't that just amazing? No? Well, he has more than this win on his achievement list. In addition to the W, he is not Curtis Painter and he was also able to cover the spread against the Patriots. On a more honest note, the Colts owe this win to Matt Hasselbeck's two interceptions and Jared Cook's fumble.
The third streak was Tim Tebow. While he is known for his fourth quarter heroics, he really stepped up in the first quarter and made me think that the Broncos actually stood a chance. However, the game really started getting out of hand later and Tebow went back to his normal skill level, sort of a flipped game in terms of #Tebowtime. One question that I have seen on various websites cough ESPN cough was "Should Broncos Commit To Tebow?" Yes, they should commit to Tebow for the near future. While I don't believe that they should stick with him for the long run with his current state of play, he has shown improvement. Streaks are meant to be broken. Look at the Colts and Packers this year, look at the Patriots back in 2007, hell, even look at the Dolphins that lost their second game of the 1973 season. Tebow's throwing motion has seemed like it is getting quicker and he seems to be getting more accurate with his passes. I'll even admit that one of his completions had me saying, "Wow, now that was a nice pass." Just because he lost does not mean that people should start hating on him, we can all agree that he is still a great person and a great leader (which is what lead to his previous wins)
Probable Elimination (<10% chance):
Mathematically Eliminated:
Follow the jump for our power rankings.
Let's start with the Packers. As Brett predicted at the beginning of the week, the Chiefs were the spoilers to the Packers party. His reasoning behind his pick was, "I just figured, they have to lose at some point. Arrowhead is a tough place to play. And If I'm right I look brilliant." Aaron Rodgers had his worst performance of the year with a 48.6% completion percentage and throwing only one touchdown (all other games this year have had 2+). Kyle Orton was pretty efficient with a 104.1 rating which looks amazing in comparison to his previous ones (39.6, 21.0, 87.1, and 67.6 over the four previous games). The combination of Rodgers having an off game with Orton not having a normal game lead to this victory for Kansas City.
The Colts win! This victory can be attributed solely to the superb performance of Dan Orlovsky. Let's take a minute to soak in his beautiful stats: 11-17, 82 yards, 1 touchdown. Isn't that just amazing? No? Well, he has more than this win on his achievement list. In addition to the W, he is not Curtis Painter and he was also able to cover the spread against the Patriots. On a more honest note, the Colts owe this win to Matt Hasselbeck's two interceptions and Jared Cook's fumble.
The third streak was Tim Tebow. While he is known for his fourth quarter heroics, he really stepped up in the first quarter and made me think that the Broncos actually stood a chance. However, the game really started getting out of hand later and Tebow went back to his normal skill level, sort of a flipped game in terms of #Tebowtime. One question that I have seen on various websites cough ESPN cough was "Should Broncos Commit To Tebow?" Yes, they should commit to Tebow for the near future. While I don't believe that they should stick with him for the long run with his current state of play, he has shown improvement. Streaks are meant to be broken. Look at the Colts and Packers this year, look at the Patriots back in 2007, hell, even look at the Dolphins that lost their second game of the 1973 season. Tebow's throwing motion has seemed like it is getting quicker and he seems to be getting more accurate with his passes. I'll even admit that one of his completions had me saying, "Wow, now that was a nice pass." Just because he lost does not mean that people should start hating on him, we can all agree that he is still a great person and a great leader (which is what lead to his previous wins)
Probable Elimination (<10% chance):
Team
|
Chance of Playoffs
|
Philadelphia
|
7.261%
|
Tennessee
|
5.360%
|
Arizona
|
4.952%
|
Chicago
|
4.848%
|
Kansas City
|
4.550%
|
Seattle
|
4.532%
|
Team
|
Chance of Playoffs
|
Buffalo
|
0%
|
Washington
|
0%
|
Carolina
|
0%
|
Miami
|
0%
|
Jacksonville
|
0%
|
Tampa Bay
|
0%
|
Cleveland
|
0%
|
Minnesota
|
0%
|
St. Louis
|
0%
|
Indianapolis
|
0%
|
Follow the jump for our power rankings.
Monday, December 19, 2011
2011 Pac-12 FIP Findings
Last year on my old blog, the WSU Baseball Blog, I set out to create an FIP constant for the Pac-12. Compiling the numbers was easy but a tad bit time consuming. I then defined FIP and published my findings on the blog; other than my draft day coverage no article I wrote ever there ever had more page views. Since it was such a hit last year I figured I'd go ahead and do it again this year!
After the jump I will describe FIP (and why we like it here more than ERA), show you the formula for finding FIP, present my results from the 2011 season and talk about what it all means.
Thursday, December 15, 2011
NFL Power Rankings/Predictions Week 15 - Condensed Finals Week Post
This will be a big numbers post for a quick perusal. We will return to split prediction/power rankings posts next week when I am completed with finals and driving across the state multiple times in a week. Without further excuse making, I present you with the playoffs elimination table.
Probable Elimination (<10% chance):
Mathematically Eliminated:
Week 14 Pick'em Results
Dan: 12-4 (137-71, 65%)
Jordon: 12-4 (134-74, 64%)
Brett: 13-3 (125-68, 65%)
Probable Elimination (<10% chance):
Team
|
Chance of Playoffs
|
Arizona
|
4.8120%
|
Seattle
|
3.2070%
|
Philadelphia
|
2.7000%
|
San Diego
|
2.4650%
|
Kansas City
|
0.2720%
|
Team
|
Chance of Playoffs
|
Buffalo
|
0%
|
Washington
|
0%
|
Carolina
|
0%
|
Miami
|
0%
|
Jacksonville
|
0%
|
Tampa Bay
|
0%
|
Cleveland
|
0%
|
Minnesota
|
0%
|
St. Louis
|
0%
|
Indianapolis
|
0%
|
Week 14 Pick'em Results
Dan: 12-4 (137-71, 65%)
Jordon: 12-4 (134-74, 64%)
Brett: 13-3 (125-68, 65%)
Follow the jump for our power rankings and predictions.
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Content Cutback: Dec. 10 - Dec. 17
Dear much appreciated readers,
From now until next Saturday it is finals week for three of our four writers, myself included. With that being said we most likely will have little to no new content the next seven days.
We apologize if this makes you sad, it makes us sad too as we very much enjoy creating content for you guys. We also know you'll understand as most of you were either in college at one point or are currently in college. Finals week is one long stretch of studying, sleeplessness and self-hatred.
So again, please excuse the break from our regular content.
I'm sure Dan plans on putting together his weekly power rankings post and NFL picks post on Tuesday and Thursday respectively, but don't be surprised if those posts are bare minimum.
To give you something to look forward to, I have finalized my 2011 Pac-12 FIP numbers and will have a post about it for you guys after finals week. If you want to read up on what exactly this is, follow this link to my post last year over on my old blog regarding the same topic. It was well received last year so I figured I would put in the time to create it again.
If you're in the same situation as us, good luck on your finals! If not, have a fantastic week and we will be back shortly!
From,
The Sports Minds Writers
From now until next Saturday it is finals week for three of our four writers, myself included. With that being said we most likely will have little to no new content the next seven days.
We apologize if this makes you sad, it makes us sad too as we very much enjoy creating content for you guys. We also know you'll understand as most of you were either in college at one point or are currently in college. Finals week is one long stretch of studying, sleeplessness and self-hatred.
So again, please excuse the break from our regular content.
I'm sure Dan plans on putting together his weekly power rankings post and NFL picks post on Tuesday and Thursday respectively, but don't be surprised if those posts are bare minimum.
To give you something to look forward to, I have finalized my 2011 Pac-12 FIP numbers and will have a post about it for you guys after finals week. If you want to read up on what exactly this is, follow this link to my post last year over on my old blog regarding the same topic. It was well received last year so I figured I would put in the time to create it again.
If you're in the same situation as us, good luck on your finals! If not, have a fantastic week and we will be back shortly!
From,
The Sports Minds Writers
Friday, December 9, 2011
Sports Minds Heisman Debate
We have our Heisman finalists everyone. This year we're looking at Montee Ball, Robert Griffin III (RG3), Andrew Luck, Trent Richardson and Tyrann Mathieu. For the sake of this post however we will be replacing Mathieu with Case Keenum because let's be honest, Mathieu is one hell of an athlete but only really had two remarkable games this season.
After the jump each of the SportsMinds writers makes their case for the Heisman candidate they believe deserves to take home the trophy. Jordon will be advocating for RG3, Dan for Luck, Jeff for Richardson and I for Keenum.
We would be covering Montee Ball as well but we only have the four writers. Ball is an incredible player and if he indeed wins the award it would be much deserved and reasonable.
The Heisman presentation is this Saturday (tomorrow) so tune in and see just how it really plays out.
After the jump each of the SportsMinds writers makes their case for the Heisman candidate they believe deserves to take home the trophy. Jordon will be advocating for RG3, Dan for Luck, Jeff for Richardson and I for Keenum.
We would be covering Montee Ball as well but we only have the four writers. Ball is an incredible player and if he indeed wins the award it would be much deserved and reasonable.
The Heisman presentation is this Saturday (tomorrow) so tune in and see just how it really plays out.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Are You Ready For Some Football? Week 14
Our Sunday Night Football game between the Cowboys and the Giants is my game of the week. If the Giants manage to win the game then the two teams will be tied for the divisional lead with only three games left. The final match up between the two teams is during week 17 on New Year's Day. Have fun watching television and make the jump to see our picks and previews.
Dan: 12-4 (125-67, 65%)
Jordon: 10-6 (122-70, 64%)
Brett: 12-4 (112-65, 63%)
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
NFL Power Rankings Week 14
I'm sorry for the delay of this posting but it is dead week for me right now and I have been swamped with assignments. Don't worry though, by the time the playoffs roll around I will be fully devoted to giving you much more information and rankings/projections than you could ever wish for. In the mean time here are the updated playoff elimination percentages and the power rankings follow the jump as usual. Also, Tim Tebow won again in case you were wondering. Imagine how good the Packers would be if they had Tebow instead of Rodgers, my guess is that they would finish the regular season 17-0 because Tebow would find a way to just win during their bye week.
Probable Elimination (<10% chance):
Mathematically Eliminated:
Probable Elimination (<10% chance):
Team
|
Chance of Playoffs
|
Seattle
|
2.6210%
|
San Diego
|
2.2940%
|
Kansas City
|
1.9690%
|
Arizona
|
1.2400%
|
Philadelphia
|
0.5560%
|
Washington
|
0.1480%
|
Buffalo
|
0.0578%
|
Tampa Bay
|
0.0161%
|
Carolina
|
0.0045%
|
Miami
|
0.0043%
|
Cleveland
|
0.0000%
|
Team
|
Chance of Playoffs
|
Jacksonville
|
0%
|
Minnesota
|
0%
|
St. Louis
|
0%
|
Indianapolis
|
0%
|
Fifpro World XI: Who's in, and who's out.
Well it's about that time of year again folks, where the world XI are selected, and no surprises here; Barcelona and Real Madrid are the two most represented teams in this year's selection. With that many players, each team is destined to have players on the list besides Messi and Ronaldo right? Well let's take a look at all the players that are given the nod as the best players in the world.
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Mike Leach Introduced as Head Coach at Washington State
I couldn't sleep last night. I tried and I tried but I just couldn't do. I ended up with about 4 hours of sleep total, but right now, I'm as energized as I can be.
Coach Leach will do that to you. He took the podium today at noon in Pullman, WA and showed why he has the reputation as being one of the most charismatic personalities out there.
I got to the CUB Senior ballroom around 11:15 for the press conference, and found my seat in the last row. There was a buzz in the air, everyone was excited. By 11:30, every seat in the place was packed.
The brass at Washington State went all out. The crimson girls dance team, the WSU cheer squad, the WSU band, and even the venerable mascot Butch T. Cougar were on hand. By the time high noon rolled around, the standing room crowd that surrounded the seating area ran five rows deep in places.
Coach Leach, with his wife and youngest kids in tow, entered the crowd from the back of the room as the audience was in the middle of the Cougar Fight song. He sat behind a desk and the press conference began.
To say the least, the new WSU head coach was captivating and... Well... It was magical.
Update: Per KING 5's Chris Egan on Twitter the press conference was witnessed by 1300 people and at least 400 people were turned away. I believe it. Also, in an unrelated point, read this comment that was posted on CougCenter. You will see why Mike Leach is so amazing.
Below are some of my favorite quotes from the night from, not only Coach Leach, but Athletic Director Bill Moos too. To read more check one of the Twitter feeds I used to live tweet the event. Find my personal account here, and the Sportsminds account here.
Coach Leach will do that to you. He took the podium today at noon in Pullman, WA and showed why he has the reputation as being one of the most charismatic personalities out there.
I got to the CUB Senior ballroom around 11:15 for the press conference, and found my seat in the last row. There was a buzz in the air, everyone was excited. By 11:30, every seat in the place was packed.
The brass at Washington State went all out. The crimson girls dance team, the WSU cheer squad, the WSU band, and even the venerable mascot Butch T. Cougar were on hand. By the time high noon rolled around, the standing room crowd that surrounded the seating area ran five rows deep in places.
Coach Leach, with his wife and youngest kids in tow, entered the crowd from the back of the room as the audience was in the middle of the Cougar Fight song. He sat behind a desk and the press conference began.
To say the least, the new WSU head coach was captivating and... Well... It was magical.
Update: Per KING 5's Chris Egan on Twitter the press conference was witnessed by 1300 people and at least 400 people were turned away. I believe it. Also, in an unrelated point, read this comment that was posted on CougCenter. You will see why Mike Leach is so amazing.
Below are some of my favorite quotes from the night from, not only Coach Leach, but Athletic Director Bill Moos too. To read more check one of the Twitter feeds I used to live tweet the event. Find my personal account here, and the Sportsminds account here.
Monday, December 5, 2011
Cougar Baseball Announces Signing Class
I'm too busy studying for finals to write up a post on this right now, but what you need to know is in the following press release from the WSU Athletic Department, information on each individual player below the break.
PULLMAN, Wash. - Twelve student-athletes have each signed a National Letter of Intent to play baseball at Washington State University beginning next fall, Cougar Head Coach Donnie Marbut announced, Friday. All 12 are natives of the state of Washington.
The additions are outfielder Tyler Carlson (Enumclaw), right-handed pitcher Maxwell Dammeier (Mercer Island), shortstop Shea Donlin (Woodinville), left-handed pitcher Kelly Fitzpatrick (Mead), centerfielder/right-handed pitcher Mitchell Gueller (Rochester), right-handed pitcher Christopher McDowell (Mount Vernon), infielder Patrick McGrath (Woodinville), infielder Matt Mendenhall (Kennewick), outfielder Austin Pernell (Kent), utility player James Robinson (Colfax), right-handed pitcher Jacob Schroeder (Ferndale), and shortstop Trek Stemp (Kennewick).
"This class is really exciting to think about, "Marbut said. " A couple of things that stand out are the relationships that are already built. Carlson, Dammeier, and McDowell are teammates in the summer and were teammates with current Cougar Ian Sagdal last summer. Donlin, Pernell and Schroder are teammates this summer and were teammates with current Cougar Yale Rosen last summer. Stemp and Mendenhall are teammates this summer and have been playing with current Cougars Bryce and Ty Jackson forever."
Marbut added, "We try to build a family in our program and it's a lot easier to do when these players are familiar with one another. Coach (Spencer) Allen and coach (Gregg) Swenson did an outstanding job again identifying our needs and filling them with the right types of student-athletes. Those two know exactly what a Cougar baseball student-athlete looks like and I want to thank them for their hard work and dedication to our program."
PULLMAN, Wash. - Twelve student-athletes have each signed a National Letter of Intent to play baseball at Washington State University beginning next fall, Cougar Head Coach Donnie Marbut announced, Friday. All 12 are natives of the state of Washington.
The additions are outfielder Tyler Carlson (Enumclaw), right-handed pitcher Maxwell Dammeier (Mercer Island), shortstop Shea Donlin (Woodinville), left-handed pitcher Kelly Fitzpatrick (Mead), centerfielder/right-handed pitcher Mitchell Gueller (Rochester), right-handed pitcher Christopher McDowell (Mount Vernon), infielder Patrick McGrath (Woodinville), infielder Matt Mendenhall (Kennewick), outfielder Austin Pernell (Kent), utility player James Robinson (Colfax), right-handed pitcher Jacob Schroeder (Ferndale), and shortstop Trek Stemp (Kennewick).
"This class is really exciting to think about, "Marbut said. " A couple of things that stand out are the relationships that are already built. Carlson, Dammeier, and McDowell are teammates in the summer and were teammates with current Cougar Ian Sagdal last summer. Donlin, Pernell and Schroder are teammates this summer and were teammates with current Cougar Yale Rosen last summer. Stemp and Mendenhall are teammates this summer and have been playing with current Cougars Bryce and Ty Jackson forever."
Marbut added, "We try to build a family in our program and it's a lot easier to do when these players are familiar with one another. Coach (Spencer) Allen and coach (Gregg) Swenson did an outstanding job again identifying our needs and filling them with the right types of student-athletes. Those two know exactly what a Cougar baseball student-athlete looks like and I want to thank them for their hard work and dedication to our program."
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Moos Courtship of Leach: Nothing to be Angry About
This is a column I wrote for the Daily Evergreen, supposed to run tomorrow. However I was asked to write a news story dealing with the same subject and it was decided they could not run both. The news story took importance, obviously, and I was stuck with a column that couldn't run.
Instead of sit on it and do nothing I decided to post it here for you guys to read. Some of it may be things you've read before, but then again it may not be. I used the 49ers-WSU comparison again at the end, so yes you most likely have read that part before.
Anyways, if you would like to read my withheld column read on after the jump. If not, meander down the home page and check out Dan's weekly NFL picks post.
Are You Ready For Some Football? Week 13
Three teams are looking for a win this week in order to stay in the playoff hunt. These three teams are Miami, Carolina, and Jacksonville. Miami had started out the season pretty poorly but then had some good luck blow their way to keep their hopes alive, look for their dreams to be crushed as they face off against the Raiders this week. The other two teams have a chance to win as Carolina plays Tampa Bay and Jacksonville plays San Diego. While the games will be difficult for both teams, as shown by their inability to win which got them here in the first place, they will bring their all so that they can survive another week.
Week 12 Pick'em Results
Dan: 10-6 (113-63, 64%)
Jordon: 13-3 (112-64, 64%)
Brett: 11-5 (100-61, 62%)
Week 12 Pick'em Results
Dan: 10-6 (113-63, 64%)
Jordon: 13-3 (112-64, 64%)
Brett: 11-5 (100-61, 62%)
Will Prince Albert follow in the footsteps of King James?
If you know anything about this year's free agent market in MLB, then you know that the game's best player is up for grabs. Albert Pujols is a free agent, and some teams can't wait to sign this two time world champion, and future Hall of Famer to occupy 1st base for the next 6-7 years.
It's Been One Day and Leach Hire Already Paying Off for WSU
24 hours later and Washington State is already feeling the donor and season ticket love from the fan base it hoped to energize. So, did the big name hire of Mike Leach get the results hoped for by Bill Moos? You tell me...
- Yesterday, high volume caused the WSU Cougar Athletic Fund website to crash.
- One of many stories I heard of people planning on purchasing season tickets.
- Phone lines at the Athletic Department are so clogged the department is directing people to their website to purchase 2012 season tickets.
- Mike Leach is currently #3 on the Google Trends list. People are interested.
- Perhaps the most telling bullet point, verifying that the people mentioned in bullet two are following though. On Wednesday alone WSU sold 750 season tickets, 100 of which were club seats at $2,00 a piece. This equals a MINIMUM of $200,000 for the department IN ONE DAY.
Not only has the hiring of Leach energized the current fan base of Cougar fans, it's also creating new fans. Fans of Leach from across the internet and Texas Tech fans who still love Leach are throwing their fan allegiance at WSU.
Bill Moos, thank you.
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