I don't think that Michigan needed to win the Sugar Bowl to declare itself "back" -- a 10-win season and a spot in a BCS-level bowl game (not to mention a win over Ohio State) was more than enough. But the win certainly didn't hurt.
(Let's be real: The refs helped, too, overturning that sensational VA Tech OT TD catch for which there wasn't nearly enough conclusive video evidence to flip the verdict. The Hokies didn't do themselves any favors with the missed FG in OT.)
NFL Job Stuff: You've got to feel bad for Chargers fans. Norv Turner and AJ Smith's ouster after a mediocre season is an inevitability -- this was the moment to make a clean break... The Bears GM job is a good one (so is its offensive coordinator job... would you want to know they are re-signing Matt Forte before accepting?)... You shouldn't be surprised that Andy Reid will be back in Philadelphia, despite what could/should be pinned as one of the worst coaching jobs -- relative to expectations -- of the past decade.
CFB Jobs: Boise has locked up Chris Petersen, who seems content to keep churning out 11-win seasons in Idaho against mediocre competition (and the occasional giant). It's a pretty smart system, actually, and if he could just recruit a kicker who won't choke in the team's biggest game of each season, he would actually get to play for national titles. That's a backhanded compliment -- I am all for his choice to be a big fish in a small pond.
NBA: The Lakers are fine. They won't win the NBA title (ha! hardly.), but they certainly aren't the dud they seemed to be as the season tipped off.
CBB: I really try not to read too much into single regular-season performances by would-be contenders -- well, sometimes I read too much into stellar performances, but I try not to file away the lousy ones. That said: It's hard to catch UConn losing to Seton Hall and not think that the Huskies won't be adding six more consecutive wins to their current NCAA Tournament streak.
Sports x Politics: I wasn't far off on my Iowa caucus picks from yesterday morning! Maybe I should just launch the Quickish Politics spin-off now and punt sports.
Best Thing I've Read This Week (So Far): Michael Rosenberg in this week's SI, on Tom Brady's formative season at Michigan battling Drew Henson.
Stick with Quickish to catch up on all the good stuff you might have missed yesterday -- and pop by all day today to keep up with the best takes on the moment's biggest stories.
-- D.S.
Wednesday, January 04, 2012
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It's amazing how many teams really need to upgrade at kicker, isn't it? Oregon might be playing an undefeated Alabama if they both had better kickers. Stanford wins its bowl in regular with a better kicker. Michigan/VT might be a different story.
Amazing, isn't it? That the one position that isn't even really a position decides so many games?
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