tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-336246292024-03-18T05:17:23.625-04:00Dan Shanoff<b>And the new hotness is...<br>Quickish!</b>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger3742125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-84424023669434876832015-09-01T14:59:00.002-04:002015-09-01T14:59:10.974-04:009/1/15 Quickie: Nine Years Later...<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Nine years ago today, I launched this blog. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">It came the day after the final edition of the Daily Quickie on ESPN.com, a column I loved writing (and still one of my favorite professional and personal accomplishments).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The blog was many things: An outlet for my many enthusiasms, a place to keep writing daily (for a time, even more than daily), my own corner of the media universe.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Things have withered in the past year or two (or more) -- Quickish overwhelmed everything, and by the time I sold the company to Gannett, blogging felt less vital to me than participating on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Anyway, yesterday, I made my next career move -- I have joined Facebook, on the Media team, in the Sports Partnerships group, with a focus on journalists and media companies.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/danshanoff/posts/10153647593471340" target="_blank">Here is what I posted on FB</a>:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-top: 1em;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; line-height: 16.0799999237061px;">Thrilled to share the news that I have joined Facebook’s amazing Sports Partnerships team, with a focus on working with sports media folks, particularly journal</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #666666; display: inline; line-height: 16.0799999237061px;">ists and news organizations.</span></span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-top: 1em;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #666666; display: inline; line-height: 16.0799999237061px;"></span></span><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">From Greenhouse-era AOL to ESPN-dot (and ESPNet-dot-SportsZone!) to founding Quickish and beyond, my journalism career has been defined by a passion to impact every fan’s everyday relationship with sports.</span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-top: 1em;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Now I get to work across the entire sports media industry with so many talented journalists I admire (whether we personally know each other yet or not). And I am so excited to join a phenomenal company, with brilliant, enthusiastic colleagues, platforms powered by innovation and the biggest, best audience of sports fans in the world.</span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="margin-bottom: 1em; margin-top: 1em;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"></span><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Much more soon, but sports media colleagues -- old, new and to-be-met-soon -- please reach out to me with your ideas. (Everyone who knows me knows I won’t hesitate to do the same.)</span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">It is a phenomenal role on a phenomenal team with a phenomenal company working with a phenomenal universe of sports-media people I have gotten to know over the past 20 years.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">So excited for what's next, and I hopefully will be able to point you to all sorts of great things.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">-- D.S.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; line-height: 16.0799999237061px;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-17900972948994454382015-04-20T13:22:00.000-04:002015-04-20T13:22:08.262-04:00Tim Tebow and the Philadelphia Eagles<div>
<div>
<i>Previously, on Dan's obsession with Tim Tebow: 1,000+ posts
about the Tebow phenomenon from 2009-2012 at <a href="http://www.timteblog.com/" target="_blank">TimTeblog.com</a>. With that as
context, a handful of thoughts about Tebow signing with the Eagles</i>:<br />
</div>
<div>
<br />
*Chip Kelly is smarter than you, armchair NFL expert. From the start, Tebow has needed a
coach who is innovative (and fearless) enough to deploy him in
individual high-leverage situations.<br />
<br />
</div>
<div>
*That means on the goal line, 4th/3rd/2nd/1st-and-short and
as a 2-point conversion specialist (which might just become the next
important NFL position).<br />
<br />
</div>
<div>
*I think that "QB continuity" -- that a starting QB has to
play every single snap, otherwise his fragile mind and team chemistry
would implode -- is more likely orthodox pap than not.<br />
</div>
<div>
<br />
*I hope Kelly's intention is to test out the potential of that as a
schematic inefficiency -- at a minimum, I love the idea of the 2-point
conversion specialist.<br />
</div>
<div>
<br />
</div>
<div>
*There is no downside to bringing him in, if you don't care about the media hysteria (and Kelly doesn't).<br />
<br />
</div>
<div>
*Peter King will <a href="http://mmqb.si.com/2015/04/20/tim-tebow-signs-philadelphia-eagles-nfl/6/">define a lot of the conventional wisdom</a> on this: "Let’s be real about what this is: It’s a trial. It’s a chance. It’s a
coach who doesn’t care about the distraction of having Tim Tebow in his
camp, because he thinks Tebow might help his team."<br />
<br />
</div>
<div>
*Sports media pre-emptively complaining about the media
coverage is slightly disingenuous: For starters, a lot of fans genuinely
care (out of curiosity, schadenfreude or other).<br />
<br />
</div>
<div>
*And, consequently, it's worth pointing out that Tebow coverage generates a ton of online traffic (or TV/radio ratings) -- I don't see anyone sending those page views back.<br />
<br />
</div>
<div>
*Good perspective from Adam Schefter: "Let's stop with this
Tim-Tebow-in-Philly-is-a-media-circus" idea. The whole league is a media
circus."<br />
</div>
<div>
<br />
</div>
*Related: I'll wager that Tebow's Eagles jersey is a Top 5 seller
for the NFL in May, right up there with Winston, Mariota, Cooper and
Gurley.<br />
<br />
</div>
<div>
*Curious: He can't wear No. 15 (retired by the Eagles for
Steve Van Buren) or No. 5 (retired for Donovan McNabb). This is new
territory. Available QB options are 9, 11, 12, 17 or 18.<br />
</div>
<div>
<br />
</div>
*May just need to dust off TimTeblog.com for this run.<br />
<br />
-- D.S.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-67993917863684035562015-04-15T09:04:00.001-04:002015-04-15T09:04:26.163-04:004/15 Justified Quickie<b>Terrific series finale for Justified last night</b>, which finishes its run as one of the best TV dramas of all time. I'd put it in my personal Top 10 of the "post-Sopranos" era.<br />
<br />
Last night after it was over, I tried to force-rank my list, but it was too hard, so here are 10 that make the cut, in no particular order:<br />
<br />
Breaking Bad, Justified, The Shield, The Wire, The Americans, GOT, Friday Night Lights, Battlestar Galactica, Deadwood and...<br />
<br />
I'm going to leave that 10th spot open, recognizing that I have yet to list Mad Men or Sopranos or Lost or Oz.<br />
<br />
The Americans and GOT, of course, are still ongoing -- it's a testament to both (particularly The Americans, which I particularly enjoy) that they crack the list before their full run is even close to done.<br />
<br />
Otherwise: Pretty compelling final night of regular-season NBA coming up tonight. Going to dip my toe back into daily writing, btw...<br />
<br />
-- D.S.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-79163031867819011182015-02-02T09:40:00.001-05:002015-02-02T11:55:42.717-05:00Monday 2/2 Super Bowl Hangover Quickie*The decision not to give the ball to Marshawn Lynch is the worst play call in the history of pro football.<br />
<br />
*It's been a while since I went full-blown "instant history/hysteria," so it's nice to stretch my legs a bit. (That makes me more productive than Marshawn Lynch on the Seahawks' last offensive play of the season.)<br />
<br />
*The justification for the "Worst. _____. Ever." siren is the combination of the stakes (Super Bowl championship), the moment (come-from-behind TD, virtually the final play of the game, coming after one of the greatest catches in NFL history) and the context (would have denied the Pats a title), the context (would have won a back-to-back title for Seattle) and the context (Lynch is the NFL's best RB).<br />
<br />
*It's not enough to say "Worst play call in Super Bowl history" -- because it is the Super Bowl, that makes it vastly bigger than if the play call happened in, say, Week 6 (or even an earlier playoff round). It is the context that justifies the superlative.<br />
<br />
*Looking for a reasonable/rational defense of the play call? <a href="http://www.vox.com/2015/2/2/7961789/pete-carroll-play-call-defense" target="_blank">Vox outlines a good one</a>, but it comes with a worthwhile caveat about over-thinking it. (Let's also say that Malcolm Butler made a phenomenal play -- if that ball drops for an incompletion, it's very likely Lynch runs it in on one of the next two plays, and the history of the NFL is altered. That Butler was an undrafted rookie makes it all the more incredible.)<br />
<br />
(Update: As always, <a href="http://grantland.com/the-triangle/super-bowl-new-england-patriots-seattle-seahawks/" target="_blank">read Bill Barnwell for a measured take on the situation</a>.) <br />
<br />
*All in all, it was as entertaining of a Super Bowl as you could have asked for.<br />
<br />
*Postscript: The ads. It was basically a given that Budweiser would <a href="http://admeter.usatoday.com/results/2015" target="_blank">run away with the ad title</a>, but improbable that Nationwide would be the ad "everyone is talking about," if only because of how grim it was. Personal favorite: Always' #LikeAGirl ad. (Notable: There were a LOT of "dad ads" -- I liked the Toyota Camry one. The Nissan one didn't speak to me at all.)<br />
<br />
-- D.S.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-58385007787179651472015-01-13T13:14:00.000-05:002015-01-13T13:14:00.699-05:00Tuesday 1/13 Ohio State Champs Quickie*First of all: I was totally wrong about Ohio State's worthiness for the college football playoff. Full stop.<br />
<br />
*Urban Meyer is a Hall of Fame strategist and motivator. Obviously, I loved him when he was at Florida. I didn't sour on him like many Florida fans when he ended up at OSU -- I'm a long-time OSU-loather, so I disliked his location, not the coach. Also, you just knew he'd have OSU in position to win a title sooner rather than later -- <checks watch="">... yup. Three career titles is just a start, and there is no reason why Ohio State won't win next year, too. Prohibitive favorite, no matter who is at QB....</checks><br />
<br />
*But that is a fascinating question, isn't it? Cardale Jones had arguably the greatest season by a starting QB in the history of college football. He certainly had the best three-game stretch, a cannon-armed, fridge-sized load (ESPN's Tommy Tomlinson wins, for dubbing him a "vending machine"). He was the perfect QB for the past two games for Ohio State.<br />
<br />
*And yet! JT Barrett was all-Big Ten (even better than preseason all-Big Ten QB Braxton Miller) and is arguably a better fit for Meyer's offense than Jones. Not "arguably" -- when given a choice earlier this season, Meyer picked Barrett over Jones and didn't look back.<br />
<br />
*Returning to a favorite theme of mine: <a href="http://ftw.usatoday.com/2015/01/ohio-state-cardale-jones-national-championship-nfl-draft" target="_blank">Jones should turn pro</a>, not just because he can (which is always a pretty good reason to do it), but because he should -- he isn't getting more NFL-prepared from another season at Ohio State (and certainly not if he is subordinated to second-string). He will be a better NFL QB if he is taught by NFL QB coaches and participating in an NFL system. At the very least, he will make some money, both from his NFL contract and the inevitable endorsement deals that will come from being a favorite of LeBron James. And, oh yeah, he seems to have the biggest arm in college football -- even if no one knew it until a few weeks ago. (He won't turn pro, obviously, but it's a very interesting discussion, I think.)<br />
<br />
*In the end, the inaugural College Football Playoff was a raging success. Just enough controversy about the selection process, which then played out epically with the controversial 4th team steamrolling the reigning SEC juggernaut, then the reigning nouveau-riche program (featuring the Heisman winner and presumptive No. 1 overall pick of the NFL Draft), which itself had steamrolled the unbeaten defending champs and its own former Heisman winner/presumptive top-ish draft pick.)<br />
<br />
*Looking ahead to the 2015 playoff foursome, an early prediction: Ohio State, Oregon, Alabama, TCU.<br />
<br />
-- D.S.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-76758718485862397492015-01-02T10:10:00.001-05:002015-01-02T10:20:46.851-05:00Friday 1/2/15 College Football Playoff Hangover QuickieThe inaugural college football playoff went better than I think anyone could have ever imagined:<br />
<br />
*The defending (unbeaten) champ was vanquished in a fashion we haven't seen in a college football championship situation in 20 years (Tommie Frazier runs over Florida in 1995).<br />
<br />
*The dynastic program (and conference) was vanquished by a team that many/most argued didn't even deserve to be in the field, coached by a conference ex-pat.<br />
<br />
*It's as much -- possibly more -- about the losers (Florida State, Alabama) as it is about the winners (Oregon, Ohio State). Both games were amazing to watch.<br />
<br />
*As many have pointed out, in the absence of the 4-team playoff, we
would have gotten FSU and Alabama for the title -- this makes last
night's outcomes even more amazing.<br />
<br />
*And now we have "How Do You Stop the Ducks?" versus "Sure, Keep Doubting the Buckeyes."<br />
<br />
*It seems like it'll be Oregon in a rout -- the inevitable conclusion to the Ducks' manifest destiny. But if Ohio State can out-muscle Alabama, there is certainly a "why not?" to the game.<br />
<br />
*And we have the end of the mythology of the SEC -- certainly the 2006-2014 version. Critics of the SEC's haughtiness will point to New Year's Day 2015 for years.<br />
<br />
*And we have the start of a glorious new era in college football, with a playoff system that produced drama-infused games and highly entertaining outcomes.<br />
<br />
*I'll give the last word to Spencer Hall, who <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2015/1/2/7479809/college-football-playoff-oregon-ohio-state-alabama-florida-state" target="_blank">had a wonderful morning-after homily about what happened last night</a>, concluding:<br />
<br />
"This all happened in the same day, and let's never do this any differently, college football."<br />
<br />
-- D.S. Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-68974795555484330622014-12-23T09:05:00.001-05:002014-12-23T09:05:37.601-05:0014 Great Sportswriting Reads for 2014<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Back during the Quickish Era, my favorite thing was the year-end
"best-of" sportswriting list -- the first one was in 2011 ("Quickish 11
for '11"), and it proved pretty popular<em>...</em>not to mention enjoyable to prepare.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">You can't find that original list anymore, but the tradition lives on in
'14. And the underlying sentiment extends into another year:
<i>Sportswriting has never been better</i>.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">To be sure: "14" is an absurd, artificial constraint; there are many
more worthy entries*, as my overworked browser tabs and gut-busting
Pocket account indicate.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Still, here are 14 of my favorite pieces of sportswriting this year -- listed alphabetically by author<strong>.</strong></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong>Katie Baker, Grantland</strong>: <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866681-grantland.com/features/mike-keenan-russia-khl/?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">"The Cold Never Bothered Him Anyway"</a></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong> </strong></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong>Chris Ballard, SI.com</strong>: <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866685-www.si.com/longform/kobe/?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">"Twilight the Saga"</a></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong> </strong></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong>Jane Coaston, EDSBS</strong>: <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866689-www.everydayshouldbesaturday.com/2014/8/1/5937301/hey-morons-women-are-people?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">"On Women and Sports"</a></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong> </strong></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong>Bryan Curtis, Grantland</strong>: <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866693-grantland.com/features/travontes-party/?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">"Travonte's Party"</a><b> </b></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Steven Godfrey, SB Nation</b>: <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2014/4/10/5594348/college-football-bag-man-interview" target="_blank">"Meet the Bag Man"</a><strong> </strong></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong>Spencer Hall, SB Nation</strong>: <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866701-www.sbnation.com/soccer/2014/4/28/5644378/the-istanbul-derby?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">"The Istanbul Derby"</a></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong> </strong></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong>Amanda Hess, ESPN.com</strong>: <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866705-espn.go.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/10702976/just-cheer-baby-lacy-t-sues-oakland-raiders?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">"Just Cheer, Baby"</a></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong> </strong></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong>Greg Howard, Deadspin</strong>: <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866709-deadspin.com/the-big-book-of-black-quarterbacks-1517763742?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">"The Big Book of Black Quarterbacks"</a> </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong></strong></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong>Sarah Marshall, The Believer</strong>: <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866717-www.believermag.com/issues/201401/?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">"Remote Control"</a></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong> </strong></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong>Brian Phillips, Grantland</strong>: <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866721-grantland.com/features/2014-world-cup-pele-garrincha-brazil/?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">"Diamonds in the Rough"</a></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong> </strong></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong>Paul Sonne and Anton Troianovski, Wall Street Journal</strong>: <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866725-www.wsj.com/articles/sb10001424052702304434104579383363676015636?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">"Here's the Skinny on NBC's Olympic Latte Secret"</a></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong> </strong></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong>Louisa Thomas, Grantland</strong>: <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866729-grantland.com/features/nfl-football-domestic-violence-ray-rice/?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">"Together, We Make Football"</a></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong> </strong></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong>Wright Thompson, ESPNFC.com</strong>: <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866733-www.espnfc.com/blog/wright-thompson/94/index?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Sketches from the World Cup</a></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong> </strong></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><strong>Don Van Natta, ESPN.com</strong>: <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866737-espn.go.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/11420510/dallas-cowboys-owner-jerry-jones-wants-known-football-man?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">"Jerry Football"</a></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">* - Again, "14" is a dumb constraint and I lament the things I don't
include as much as I enjoy the things I do. Here are a few under "Also Receiving Votes":</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-a982-545b-b583721f09a3" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Chris Ballard, SI: </span></span><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-a982-545b-b583721f09a3" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="http://www.si.com/longform/haverford/index.html" target="_blank">"Haverford Oops"</a></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-a982-545b-b583721f09a3" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Flinder Boyd, Newsweek: </span></span><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-a982-545b-b583721f09a3" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="http://www.newsweek.com/2014/06/06/birdmans-vengeful-ghost-252517.html" target="_blank">"The Birdman's Vengeful Ghost"</a></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-a982-545b-b583721f09a3" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Flinder Boyd, FoxSports.com: </span></span><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-a982-545b-b583721f09a3" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="http://www.foxsports.com/nba/story/javaris-crittenton-063014" target="_blank">"Run and Gun"</a></span></span><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-a982-545b-b583721f09a3" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-a982-545b-b583721f09a3" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Jeremy Collins, SB Nation: </span></span><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-a982-545b-b583721f09a3" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="http://www.sbnation.com/longform/2014/10/1/6872411/thirteen-ways-of-looking-at-greg-maddux" target="_blank">"13 Ways of Looking at Greg Maddux"</a></span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-a982-545b-b583721f09a3" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Kathy Dobie, GQ: </span></span><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-a982-545b-b583721f09a3" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="http://www.gq.com/news-politics/big-issues/201405/camden-new-jersey-little-league-baseball" target="_blank">"The Undefeated Champions of Defeat City"</a></span></span><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-a982-545b-b583721f09a3" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-a982-545b-b583721f09a3" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Jason Fagone, Grantland</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">:</span><a href="http://grantland.com/features/anthony-gatto-juggling-cirque-du-soleil-jason-fagone/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">"Dropped"</span></a> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">David Fleming, ESPN.com: </span><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="http://espn.go.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/11169006/nfl-showers-hostile-environment-michael-sam-espn-magazine" target="_blank">"Nothing to See Here"</a></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Eva Holland, SB Nation: </span><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="http://www.sbnation.com/longform/2014/1/8/5279942/alaska-wilderness-woman-2013-competition-profile" target="_blank">"Wilderness Women"</a></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b29d9f5c-7755-9128-67c1-935d2b70b984" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Jesse Katz, LA Magazine</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">:</span><a href="http://www.lamag.com/longform/escape-from-cuba-yasiel-puigs-untold-journey-to-the-dodgers/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;">"Escape from Cuba"</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Michael Kruse, SB Nation: </b><a href="http://www.sbnation.com/longform/2014/8/26/6065867/devaughn-darling-profile-florida-state-football" target="_blank">"The Right Thing To Do Vs. The State of Florida"</a><b> </b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Erik Malinowski, FoxSports.com: </b><a href="http://www.foxsports.com/mlb/just-a-bit-outside/story/pitchman-tom-emanski-profile-071714" target="_blank">"Pitchman"</a></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>JR Moehringer, ESPN.com: </b><a href="http://espn.go.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/11583279/derek-jeter-plays-last-game-yankee-stadium" target="_blank">"The Final Walk-Off"</a><b> </b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Brian Phillips, Grantland: </b><a href="http://grantland.com/features/sumo-wrestling-tokyo-japan-hakuho-yukio-mishima-novelist-seppuku/" target="_blank">"Sea of Crises"</a><b> </b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Alan Seigel, Sports On Earth</b>: <a href="http://www.sportsonearth.com/article/66322718/" target="_blank">"Sabre Rattler"</a></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Susan Shepard, SB Nation: </b><a href="http://www.sbnation.com/longform/2014/9/10/6126977/texas-tech-football-mascot-profile-lubbock-texas" target="_blank">"Double T's Last Ride"</a></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Wright Thompson, ESPN.com: </b><a href="http://espn.go.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/10984370/portrait-serial-winner-luis-suarez-soccer-most-beautiful-player" target="_blank">"Portrait of a Serial Winner"</a></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Wright Thompson, ESPN.com: </b><a href="http://vimeo.com/107934388" target="_blank">"Section O, Row 61"</a><b> </b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Tommy Tomlinson, ESPN.com: </b><a href="http://espn.go.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/11382220/ex-nfl-qb-jared-lorenzen-lifelong-battle-weight" target="_blank">"You Can't Quit Cold Turkey"</a></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Wells Tower, GQ: </b><a href="http://www.gq.com/long-form/who-wants-to-shoot-an-elephant" target="_blank">"Who Wants to Shoot an Elephant?"</a><b> </b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Seth Wickersham, ESPN.com</b>: <a href="http://espn.go.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/11348255/how-philadelphia-eagles-coach-chip-kelly-converted-lesean-mccoy-believer-espn-magazine" target="_blank">"30 Yards and Cloud of Dust"</a></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">And please feel free to tweet at me (<a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866741-twitter.com/danshanoff?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">@danshanoff</a>) with any of your particular favorites.</span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><em> </em></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><em>For other great year-end lists, check out these collections from <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866745-blog.longreads.com/2014/12/16/longreads-best-of-2014-sports-writing/?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Longreads</a>, <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866749-longform.org/lists/best-of-2014?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Longform</a>, <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866753-www.sbnation.com/2014/12/22/7373843/best-of-sb-nation-longform-2014?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">SB Nation</a>, <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866757-twitter.com/erikmal?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">FoxSports.com's Erik Malinowski</a> and <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866761-storify.com/kvanvalkenburg/lot-of-great-stuff-from-espn-this-year-here-are-so?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">ESPN's Kevin Van Valkenburg</a>, and subscribe to <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866765-wordpress.us9.list-manage.com/subscribe?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Van Natta's weekly "reads" newsletter</a>. Also, if you're curious, <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/14-sportswriting-faves-for-14/1866769-ftw.usatoday.com/2013/12/best-sportswriting-of-2013-quickish-list-year-end?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">here is a link to last year's "13 for '13."</a></em> <em>Finally, sincere thanks for your support of this newsletter this year. <a href="http://tinyletter.com/danshanoff" target="_blank">Subscribe here</a>.</em></span></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-77518592648233365942014-12-08T12:19:00.002-05:002014-12-08T12:19:28.834-05:0012/08 Monday Quickie*<b>Alabama, Oregon, FSU, Ohio State</b>: <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2014/12/7/7348489/college-football-playoff-teams" target="_blank">I'm with Spencer Hall on this</a>.<br />
<br />
*<b>Madison Bumgarner is SI Sportsman of the Year</b>: No quibbles. (Only because THE event of 2014 was the World Cup, I would give runner-up to Tim Howard.)<br />
<br />
*<b>NFL Sunday</b>: The Super Bowl pairing is coming from the Pats, Seahawks and Packers.<br />
<br />
*<b>The two college hoops wins from the past week that I'm filing away for March</b>: Duke over Wisconsin in Madison and Arizona over Gonzaga in Tucson.<br />
<br />
*<b>On a personal note</b>, I am so <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/people/2014/12/07/olivia-barker-obituary-usa-today-reporter/20053275/" target="_blank">saddened by the death of Olivia Barker</a>, a standout USA TODAY reporter who was my journalism "protege" (as we liked to joke) back in high school. My deepest condolences go out to her family, friends and colleagues -- and especially her husband and 5-year-old son.<br />
<br />
-- D.S.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-41974390592847827762014-12-07T09:54:00.004-05:002014-12-07T09:54:48.651-05:0012/07 Final CFB Hangover Quickie<b>OK, so Alabama and Oregon are obvious for the college football playoff foursome</b>.<br />
<br />
<b>FSU gets my vote</b> - as much as I'd enjoy the schadenfreude - because I can't fathom an unbeaten defending national champ not making the playoff field. That's three.<br />
<br />
<b>That fourth spot </b>-- the one that's going to get decimated by Alabama -- should not be Ohio State.<br />
<br />
The Big Ten was a farce this season, and Ohio State lost to Virginia Tech, barely a bowl team. It's the worst loss among playoff contender resumes.<br />
<br />
<b>So it's down to TCU and Baylor, which is nearly impossible</b>.<br />
<br />
TCU has a slightly better overall resume; Baylor beat TCU head to head.<br />
<br />
<b>Here's where I net out, and I'll admit it's simplistic</b>: What's the point, if the tiebreaker for extremely similar resumes isn't "Well, who won when they played each other?"<br />
<br />
I know Baylor has engaged a PR firm -- to much derision -- to help lobby their case. That was a waste of money. I think it's a very simple message: "We played a playoff game with TCU and won."<br />
<br />
(And I know I am clearly not discounting nearly enough that Baylor beat TCU in Waco, not in Fort Worth or on a neutral field. This wasn't a true playoff between the teams, like we got with Alabama-Mizzou, Oregon-Arizona, Ohio State-Wisconsin or FSU-Georgia Tech. TCU, of course, should simply sit tight with "You're right, Committee: Resume matters.")<br />
<br />
<b>Foursome I'd pick</b>:<br />
(1) Alabama<br />
(2) Oregon<br />
(3) FSU<br />
(4) Baylor<br />
<br />
But if the committee goes with TCU over Baylor, I won't be outraged. (Personally, I'd rather see TCU play Alabama or Oregon than see Baylor play Alabama or Oregon.)<br />
<br />
I will be slightly more outraged if the committee decides to sidestep "TCU vs. Baylor" entirely and goes with Ohio State. That's just a cop-out, because OSU's resume is so flimsy.<br />
<br />
And if they keep TCU and take Ohio State over FSU, I will merely chuckle at the inanity of it all. Ohio State fans in 2002 sure had no problem with "close wins in games they probably should've lost."<br />
<br />
<b>Foursome I think WILL be picked</b>:<br />
(1) Alabama<br />
(2) Oregon<br />
(3) TCU<br />
(4) FSU<br />
<br />
*I think the committee will punish Baylor for its seemingly soft strength of schedule (nevermind that Ohio State's CONFERENCE schedule was a joke).<br />
<br />
*I can't see a scenario where they drop TCU from 3 to "out" after TCU destroyed a team they needed to destroy.<br />
<br />
*I can't see a scenario where the committee excludes an unbeaten defending national champ for a team from a mediocre conference with a really ugly loss on their resume. (But it could happen!)<br />
<br />
<i>A few takeaways</i>:<br />
<br />
*<b>This is still <i>way</i> better than a "clean" two-team decision</b> that would have left us with Alabama and Oregon and not even a nominal discussion about the others. (Except maybe regional outrage about snubbing an unbeaten defending champ.)<br />
<br />
*<b>The problem with the "four team" solution isn't the argument at the margin; it's the way it basically locks in at the top</b>. Here's what I mean:<br />
<br />
If you give Alabama and Oregon and even Urban's Ohio State (in a Big Ten year that isn't beyond mediocre) an annual mulligan for that one fluky loss -- rather than having that fluky loss seemingly derail their title chances -- that will be three of your four playoff teams almost every year, short of FSU going unbeaten and crashing the party (which is unlikely in non-Jameis years). The worry is less about "Who gets snubbed?" than creating an enduring (and boring) three-team playoff oligopoly of Alabama-Oregon-Ohio State, thanks to a system that offers a built-in mulligan.<br />
<br />
*<b>We're getting an 8-team playoff sooner than you think</b>.<br />
<br />
*<b>As always, post-selection sound and fury will signify nothing</b>, and we'll all settle in for the novel three-game process to determine a national champ, of whom we will all universally recognize.<br />
<br />
-- D.S.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-91467717292209559542014-12-01T10:35:00.004-05:002014-12-01T10:35:56.074-05:0012/01 Monday Mania Quickie*If the college football season ended today (only one more week to say that!), my playoff foursome would be: Alabama, Oregon, Florida State and TCU.<br />
<br />
*If Baylor throttles Kansas State, I could see them jumping TCU. Have a hard time seeing Ohio State with a QB3 beating Wisconsin. The SEC has cannibalized itself.<br />
<br />
*Absolutely on board with everyone else saying that yesterday's Pats-Packers game will end up being prelude to a Super Bowl rematch.<br />
<br />
*I'm ready for the Johnny Manziel Era in Cleveland. <br />
<br />
*Kobe!<br />
<br />
*Hard not to imagine that Will Muschamp ends up as defensive coordinator at Auburn. (And probably too much to hope that Ole Miss' Hugh Freeze ends up at Florida.)<br />
<br />
*Love Mo'Ne Davis being tabbed as SI for Kids' Sports Kid of the Year. (She's arguably worthy of Sports Person of the Year for Sports Illustrated, full stop.)<br />
<br />
*By the way, SI For Kids is a phenomenal magazine. Not a great magazine -- a phenomenal one. If you have kids, it's a must-have.<br />
<br />
*Great news for my friends at SB Nation and Vox Media <a href="http://recode.net/2014/11/30/yet-another-big-funding-round-for-a-big-web-publisher-this-time-for-vox-media/" target="_blank">about their big new funding round</a>.<br />
<br />
*<a href="http://www.vulture.com/2014/11/chris-rock-frank-rich-in-conversation.html" target="_blank">This Chris Rock Q&A</a> is as good as folks are saying.<br />
<br />
-- D.S.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-37452991363664766462014-11-27T08:43:00.000-05:002014-11-27T08:43:46.774-05:0011/27 Giving Thanks QuickieLet's start with the usual caveat: This is a flimsy list of sports-related things I'm thankful for, specifically from this past year. (The "Big Things" I'm thankful for -- my family, my health, my friends, the life I get to lead -- go without question.) As always, this list is clearly incomplete:<br />
<br />
*<a href="http://espn.go.com/espnw/news-commentary/article/11367099/why-mone-davis-play-matters-girls" target="_blank">Mo'Ne Davis</a>.<br />
*<a href="http://meninblazers.com/" target="_blank">Obsessive World Cup consumption</a>.<br />
*<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/31/sports/baseball/world-series-2014-madison-bumgarner-sf-giants-ace-is-product-of-north-carolina-and-proud-father.html?_r=0" target="_blank">Madison Bumgarner</a> in Game 7.<br />
*<a href="http://www.si.com/nba/2014/05/20/adam-silver-nba-commissioner-donald-sterling" target="_blank">Adam Silver</a>'s resolve. <br />
*<a href="http://espn.go.com/wnba/story/_/id/11313239/wnba-san-antonio-stars-future-spurs-assistant-becky-hammon-was-born-coach" target="_blank">Becky Hammon's new gig</a>.<br />
*<a href="http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-draft/0ap2000000349399/Sam-reacts-to-getting-drafted" target="_blank">Michael Sam's moment</a>.<br />
*<a href="http://espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs/2013/story/_/id/10371865/super-bowl-xlviii-why-seattle-fans-adore-russell-wilson" target="_blank">Russell Wilson</a>.<br />
*<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjOkTib5eVQ" target="_blank">Richard Sherman's rant</a>. <br />
*<a href="http://espn.go.com/ncw/boxscore?gameId=400508661" target="_blank">Seeing UConn women's hoops in person</a>.<br />
*<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpMROL5bK9E" target="_blank">Florida's Final Four run</a>. <br />
*<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0RjRHnrDWE" target="_blank">Watching Peak Spurs in June</a>.<br />
*<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxVAOoQeNJ8" target="_blank">Kevin Durant's MVP speech</a>. <br />
*<a href="http://ftw.usatoday.com/2014/03/10-reasons-why-kliff-kingsbury-is-the-coolest-coach-in-college-football" target="_blank">Kliff Kingsbury at SXSW</a>.<br />
*<a href="http://www.si.com/college-football/2014/07/22/charlie-strong-texas-longhorns" target="_blank">Charlie Strong at Texas</a>. <br />
*<a href="https://casper.com/" target="_blank">Casper mattresses</a>.<br />
*<a href="http://nuzzel.com/" target="_blank">Nuzzel</a> (launched-in-2014 app I use most).<br />
*<a href="http://serialpodcast.org/" target="_blank">Serial</a>.<br />
*<a href="http://store.nba.com//Mens_Washington_Wizards_Paul_Pierce_adidas_Red_Net_Number_T-Shirt/source/ak1944nba-pla-1916775?003=14181044&010=1916775" target="_blank">Rooting for Paul Pierce</a> (wait...<i>what?</i>)<br />
*Northwestern beating Notre Dame.<br />
*Two more teams for a college football playoff.<br />
*Great sportswriting (Quickish 14 for 14 TBD).<br />
*Watching my kids play sports.<br />
*TinyLetter (<a href="http://tinyletter.com/danshanoff" target="_blank">Subscribe!</a>)<br />
*The Wizards' playoff run.<br />
<br />
Most of all, thanks to you for your continued support of this blog, the newsletter and all of the other things I'm futzing around with. More than a decade after I first connected with many of you, I appreciate it more than ever.<br />
<br />
-- D.S.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-86851284034679907382014-11-24T15:48:00.004-05:002014-11-24T15:48:59.431-05:0011/24 Monday Monday Quickie*<b>Yes, that Odell Beckham Jr. catch</b> WAS the play of the year in the NFL and a wildly fun time on the internet last night. <br />
<br />
*<b>You can already see it coming: The CFB Playoff Committee will snub Mississippi State</b> for "regional balance" -- probably Ohio State. Nevermind that the Big Ten is terrible this season.<br />
<br />
*<b>Look at the Red Sox: Hanley!</b> And maybe Sandoval! (I'm not sure I'd pay Hanley that much money, but Sandoval feels like a solid pick-up.) <br />
<br />
*<b>My Wizards beating the Cavs on Friday night</b> wasn't the revelation (although it was extremely fun to watch); it was my Wiz beating the Bucks the next night, a game they historically always lose.<br />
<br />
*<b>So intrigued by ESPN's over-the-top play</b> with the Cricket World Cup. It'll be very successful, I'm betting. (But what does that even mean? I'm actually not so sure.)<br />
<br />
*<b>For those <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/media/media-blog/2014/nov/23/silicon-valley-companies-journalism-news" target="_blank">wondering why media companies have never created a successful social platform</a></b>, I would ask them to remember that fantasy sports (via ESPN, Yahoo and CBS) have been pretty successful as social platforms. (If you want to quibble that ESPN's platform was built by Starwave, a hybrid media-technology company, I'll take your point - I lived it - but Starwave was closer to a media co than not.)<br />
<br />
-- D.S.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-35180944771803071052014-11-16T08:56:00.001-05:002014-11-16T08:56:35.750-05:0011/16 CFB Hangover Quickie<b>Four-team playoff if the season ended today</b>:<br />
<br />
*Alabama<br />
*Oregon<br />
*FSU<br />
*TCU<br />
<br />
<b>It's hard for me not to give a second spot to an SEC team</b> -- Mississippi State lost by 5 on the road at Alabama, the best team in the country. (It is crazy to think that Georgia is a confounding loss to Florida away from absolutely being in the playoff mix.)<br />
<br />
<b>The other contenders are flawed</b>: FSU had trouble with Miami. TCU had trouble with Kansas, for god's sake. (Baylor beat Kansas by 46.) Oregon's best resume fodder (Arizona St) just lost to Oregon St. But if all three win out, they're in; they control their own fate.<br />
<br />
<b>Baylor and Ohio State are theoretically in the mix</b>, but including them would undermine any claim that the playoff committee values "strength of schedule."<br />
<br />
<b>The murkiness at the top is (probably) good for the sport</b> -- the only constant is that Alabama still rules. (And giving them a once-a-season mulligan only tilts things in their favor more.)<br />
<br />
<b>Next week's most consequential game</b>: (The schedule sure doesn't look promising. Then again, you could have said the same thing about this week, except for the Alabama-MSU game.) <br />
<br />
<i>Two other notes</i>:<br />
<br />
*<b>Northwestern shocks Notre Dame in South Bend</b>: The Wildcats' 1995 win there was the most meaningful sports event of my lifetime. This one was not nearly as unlikely, but still -- extremely unlikely. It's a season-maker for Northwestern and an indictment of ND (and FSU?)<br />
<br />
*<b>Melvin Gordon</b>: As someone who loves superlatives, being able to watch (or flip over to) a player setting the single-game rushing record was pretty awesome. What Wisconsin has done at running back over the past 20 years is remarkable.<br />
<br />
<i>Enjoy a high-quality NFL Sunday.</i><br />
<br />
-- D.S.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-49507922954348603022014-11-09T08:41:00.002-05:002014-11-09T08:41:48.004-05:0011/09 CFB Hangover QuickieIf the season ended today:<br />
<br />
*Mississippi State<br />
*TCU<br />
*Alabama<br />
*Oregon<br />
<br />
With FSU at No. 5. (Obviously, that's an "at least for me" projection -- FSU is in the Top 4 "for real" until/unless they lose, which they aren't/won't.)<br />
<br />
I suppose that if you wanted to expand it a bit, you'd say that the fairly clear-cut playoff foursome is:<br />
<br />
*<b>Mississippi State-Alabama winner next week</b> (but MSU could still lose to Ole Miss and Alabama could still lose to Auburn).<br />
<br />
*<b>Florida State</b>, presuming a win over Duke (!) and Florida (!!).<br />
<br />
*<b>TCU</b>, which should roll through the rest of the season. <br />
<br />
*<b>Oregon</b>, presuming a win over Arizona State in the Pac-12 title game (although that win at home over Michigan State suddenly isn't as amazing as it was last week). <br />
<br />
And, consequently, my preseason scenario plays out:<br />
<br />
The Playoff Committee gets the "regional balance" it so desperately wants, more than anything else.<br />
<br />
In the process, the committee snubs the SEC by penalizing its runner-up for playing a schedule far more difficult than the one faced by other contenders.<br />
<br />
-- D.S.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-70992566000591295672014-11-02T08:07:00.001-05:002014-11-02T08:07:33.638-05:0011/02 CFB Hangover Quickie<b>That Ole Miss ending</b>...just brutal.<br />
<br />
They are as good of a 2-loss team as you will ever find, and if schedule strength really mattered to the playoff selection committee Ole Miss (lost by 7 points combined AT LSU and AT Auburn) would qualify for 5th place, which is entirely ceremonial.<br />
<br />
<b>If I had a playoff committee vote this week</b>: <br />
<br />
(1) Mississippi State<br />
(2) Auburn<br />
(3) Oregon<br />
(4) Kansas State-TCU winner<br />
<br />
<b>Let's be real: There is no way Florida State isn't No. 2</b> in the next playoff seeding, and they have a clear path to an unbeaten season and a cakewalk into the playoff. Hope they enjoy it.<br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>A quick word about Florida romping Georgia</b>: In 13 seasons as a Florida football fan, I have never been so gobsmacked over a result.<br />
<br />
<b>Today's best in the NFL: Broncos-Patriots</b>, obviously. Everything else is fantasy fodder.<br />
<br />
-- D.S.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-24990295178920602592014-10-30T08:55:00.003-04:002014-10-30T08:55:50.766-04:0010/30 Bumgarner Quickie<strong>*Madison Bumgarner</strong>: The greatest pitcher in World Series history, full stop.<br />
<br />
(<a data-cke-saved-href="http://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2014/10/29/7130485/madison-bumgarner-world-series-giants" href="http://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2014/10/29/7130485/madison-bumgarner-world-series-giants">Love this from McCovey Chronicles' Grant Brisbee.</a>)<br /><br /><strong>*Russell Westbrook</strong>: <a data-cke-saved-href="http://www.nba.com/video/games/blazers/2014/10/30/0021400015-westbrook.nba/" href="http://www.nba.com/video/games/blazers/2014/10/30/0021400015-westbrook.nba/">As scintillating of a solo act</a> as we expected him to be.<br /><br /><strong>*Louisville beating Florida State tonight</strong>: <a data-cke-saved-href="http://online.wsj.com/articles/upset-alert-for-florida-state-1414619929?mod=rss_Sports" href="http://online.wsj.com/articles/upset-alert-for-florida-state-1414619929?mod=rss_Sports">Well, theoretically</a>.<br /><br /><strong>*Rachel Sklar's Medium piece</strong>: <a data-cke-saved-href="https://medium.com/theli-st-medium/im-41-single-and-pregnant-9b2da840a45a" href="https://medium.com/theli-st-medium/im-41-single-and-pregnant-9b2da840a45a">"I'm 41, single, and pregnant."</a><br /><br /><strong>*<a data-cke-saved-href="http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-10-30/tim-cook-im-proud-to-be-gay" href="http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-10-30/tim-cook-im-proud-to-be-gay">Tim Cook</a></strong>.<br />
<br />
-- D.S. Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-69268637519030734432014-10-26T09:22:00.004-04:002014-10-26T09:22:52.106-04:0010/26 CFB Hangover Quickie<i>Loving the 9:30 NFL Kickoff as a novelty. Wouldn't necessarily want this as a West Coaster every weekend...</i><br />
<br />
*Here's my playoff foursome:<br />
<br />
Mississippi State<br />
Ole Miss<br />
Alabama <br />
TCU<br />
<br />
Here's why I cannot fathom including Oregon but not Ole Miss -- Ole Miss just lost on the road to a ferocious team (that is particularly ferocious at home); Oregon lost at home to a flimsy Arizona team, giving up points left and right.<br />
<br />
Here's why I cannot fathom including Michigan State but not Alabama (or Ole Miss) -- strength of schedule. I give MSU credit for playing Oregon tough on the road (but not as tough as flimsy Arizona, apparently), but Michigan State's conference schedule is a joke.<br />
<br />
Here's why I cannot fathom including Florida State but not TCU -- strength of schedule, again. FSU has a single marquee win, over Notre Dame (barely, and that was in Tallahassee). TCU had trouble with two of the nation's best offenses, and otherwise has seen much tougher comp.<br />
<br />
If Oregon, Michigan State and Florida State are going to be dropped into the Playoff Foursome just because of their W-L record and gaudy numbers against flimsy opponents, can we skip any pretense that "strength of schedule" matters?<br />
<br />
I would love the SEC to go back to my old proposal that they abandon the national college football playoff system, create their own 8-team, 3-round playoff and sell the TV rights for billions.<br />
<br />
-- D.S.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-14581493899821383042014-10-24T09:30:00.000-04:002014-10-24T09:30:06.047-04:00Friday 10/24 End-of-Week Quickie*<b>Steve Nash</b>: This bums me out tremendously. Nash is one of my favorite NBA players of all time, and it's a shame this is a lost season. Is it too much to hope he can recover over the year and get one last productive year?<br />
<br />
*<b>Manning to Sanders, Manning to Sanders, Manning to Sanders</b>: The way Manning distributes TDs is part of his brilliance -- but not so great if Julius Thomas is on your fantasy roster.<br />
<br />
*<b>CFB Saturday: Mississippi State at Kentucky</b> screams "trap game" (so does Ole Miss at LSU -- not quite as much, but it's still on the table). The rest of the slate is largely inconsequential.<br />
<br />
*<b>Tim Hudson making his first-ever World Series start</b>: Nice milestone. Game 3 isn't a deal-breaker for the losing team -- just one more twist in a solid (if not spectacular) series.<br />
<br />
*<b>Your best game of NFL Week 8</b>: Eagles at Cardinals. Other interesting storylines: Seahawks reach "must-win" moment? ... Ravens at Bengals ... If the Falcons lose at home to the Lions to drop to 2-6, does Mike Smith lose his job on Monday? ... Zach Mettenberger Mania.<br />
<br />
Enjoy your weekend!<br />
<br />
-- D.S.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-1692751749398019392014-10-19T18:41:00.004-04:002014-10-19T18:41:41.533-04:00Sunday 10/19 CFB Hangover QuickieSo we're down to two teams that control their own playoff destiny: The SEC champ (presumably from the SEC West) and Florida State.<br />
<br />
The other two slots?<br />
<br />
Well, if resume matters, one should almost assuredly be the SEC West runner-up -- but don't discount the Playoff Committee's commitment to the false equivalency of "geographic balance."<br />
<br />
The two one-loss conference champs with the best shot at running the table are Oregon and Michigan State. A one-loss Big 12 champ would have a gripe (<i>especially</i> K-State), but good luck with that.<br />
<br />
Imagine a 1-loss Auburn with wins over Alabama, Ole Miss, Georgia and Kansas State (but a loss to unbeaten Mississippi State) being left out for an Oregon team that lost to Arizona or a Michigan State team that played the flimsiest conference schedule we've seen in years.<br />
<br />
The upshot: The SEC West will continue to clobber itself -- seemingly for a single playoff spot -- while FSU cruises on a weak schedule right into a guaranteed playoff slot.<br />
<br />
-- D.S.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-76609996492256509972014-10-15T08:45:00.002-04:002014-10-15T08:45:15.018-04:0010/15 Wednesday Quickie*Can't think of a better sports story this year than the Royals' unbeaten run through the MLB playoffs. Every time you think it can't continue -- probabilistically or otherwise -- it simply does.<br />
<br />
*Hiring the Rays' Andrew Friedman is a <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/15/sports/baseball/andrew-friedman-from-rays-rags-to-dodgers-riches.html?ref=sports" target="_blank">huge coup for the Dodgers</a>. Given their willingness to spend (and endlessly deep pockets), it's arguably even bigger than when the Cubs hired Theo Epstein.<br />
<br />
*The NYT <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/15/sports/bill-simmonss-return-sets-intrigue-in-motion-at-espn.html?ref=sports&_r=0" target="_blank">tries to sort through Bill Simmons' future</a>. (And he's back from his suspension today.)<br />
<br />
*Spencer Hall's dispatches from the road are always enlightening -- <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2014/10/14/6962339/michigan-wolverines-football-2014-penn-state-game" target="_blank">the latest is from Ann Arbor</a>. <br />
<br />
*When you have 30 minutes this week/weekend, <a href="http://www.foxsports.com/mlb/just-a-bit-outside/story/profile-fay-vincent-1989-mlb-world-series-earthquake-101414" target="_blank">don't miss Erik Malinowski's profile of Fay Vincent</a>. <br />
<br />
*As a fan of email newsletters (<a href="http://tinyletter.com/danshanoff" target="_blank">cough</a>), <a href="http://www.niemanlab.org/2014/10/the-new-vox-daily-email-explained/" target="_blank">Vox's new effort looks very promising</a>.<br />
<br />
*If you are a baseball fan, you will love @joe_sheehan's email newsletter. <a href="http://joesheehanbaseball.blogspot.com/2014/10/appeal.html" target="_blank">Read this from Joe, then subscribe</a>.<br />
<br />
<br />
-- D.S.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-39036060896938361082014-10-12T08:27:00.002-04:002014-10-12T08:27:51.517-04:0010/12 CFB Hangover Quickie*Mississippi State and Ole Miss are the top 2 teams in college football, and I cannot fathom how a voter would rank FSU ahead of either, given the "who'd ya beat?" and "how'd ya beat 'em?" tests.<br />
<br />
*With Arizona's loss late last night and the other results, there are now just three teams that control their own playoff destiny:<br />
<br />
- The Ole Miss/Miss St winner.<br />
- The FSU/ND winner (next week).<br />
- Baylor.<br />
<br />
Baylor still plays at Oklahoma and versus Kansas State, with a trap game at West Virginia next week. Given that it took a 21-point 4th-quarter comeback yesterday to beat a very good TCU team, I have little confidence they will go unbeaten.<br />
<br />
Ole Miss still has to play Auburn (Nov. 1). Mississippi State still has to play Alabama (Nov. 15). And, of course, they still have to play each other in the regular-season finale.<br />
<br />
But let's stipulate that the SEC West champ gets into the playoff, with no-matter-how-many-but-assume-one loss.<br />
<br />
Let's stipulate the FSU-ND winner goes unbeaten and is in the playoff.<br />
<br />
Let's stipulate that of one-loss conference champs, Oregon and the presumptive one-loss Big 12 champ have the inside track at the other two playoff spots.<br />
<br />
But let's also stipulate that, this season, a one-loss SEC West <i>runner-up</i> would have a far more impressive resume than any of those three teams.<br />
<br />
Let's say the first half of this season holds and that SEC West champ turns out to be the Ole Miss-Miss State winner and the SEC West runner-up turns out to be that game's loser:<br />
<br />
I cannot imagine that the playoff committee would be interested in an Egg Bowl rematch as a playoff semifinal, a month after the teams have played a "decisive" game (although they should!)<br />
<br />
What is endlessly fascinating is that this college football season hinges on the two national powerhouses from Mississippi -- the top 2 teams in the country.<br />
<br />
-- D.S.<br />
<br />
(P.S.: As Bradley Beal is my favorite NBA player, yesterday's news of his broken wrist -- putting him out for at least two months -- is depressing, yet so familiar for any hard-luck Wizards fan.)<br />
<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-36565377592709176912014-10-05T08:38:00.001-04:002014-10-05T08:38:35.152-04:0010/05 CFB Hangover Quickie<i>Submitted while trying not to think about last night's 18-inning Nats loss...</i><br />
<br />
From Oregon's late-night loss to Arizona on Thursday to UCLA's late-night loss to Utah early this morning -- with losses by Alabama, Oklahoma and Texas A&M -- this was as voluminously wild of a week of Top 10 upsets as we've seen in years, if not ever.<br />
<br />
(That doesn't even count Wisconsin or USC - who were already out of the playoff discussion but experienced shocking losses, relatively for the Badgers and absolutely for the Trojans - or LSU and Stanford, who lost to still-in-the-playoff-mix teams.)<br />
<br />
<b>There is a <i>single</i> clear controls-their-own-destiny playoff scenario left</b> - if ridiculously tenuous:<br />
<br />
(1) SEC champ.<br />(2) Unbeaten FSU-ND winner.<br />(3) Unbeaten Baylor-TCU winner.<br />
(4) Unbeaten Arizona. <br />
<br />
<i>That's it</i> -- and the chances that next week's Baylor-TCU winner runs the table is meh (Baylor still has to play Oklahoma, TCU still has Oklahoma State and Kansas State), and Arizona going 13-0? Please.<br />
<br />
And so we are left with the idea that as long as everyone is losing, then many of the losers still at least have a shot. That's not entirely true. It's a small pool of eligible candidates:<br />
<br />
Presuming Arizona will still choke away at least one regular season game (if not more), Oregon is not finished.<br />
<br />
And it seems totally absurd that a 1-loss SEC (West) runner-up would be ineligible, simply because the Playoff Committee wants the false equivalency of regional balance in its first playoff field.<br />
<br />
Let's digress about the SEC for a sec: Mississippi State throttling Texas A&M (my pick as the No. 1 team going into yesterday) followed by Ole Miss's stunning win over Alabama was as exciting as it gets for back-to-back games on a Saturday afternoon.<br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>If the season ended today, based on resume, I'd have both Mississippi teams in my playoff</b>:<br />
<br />
(1) Mississippi State<br />
(2) Ole Miss<br />
(3) Auburn<br />
(4) TCU <br />
<br />
Of course, that's not how it works.<br />
<br />
<b>The SEC West now becomes a round-robin thresher</b>: Mississippi State playing Auburn, Ole Miss playing Auburn, Mississippi State and Ole Miss playing each other, with Alabama cranky and still good enough to spoil Mississippi State or Auburn's season and with Texas A&M cranky and still good enough to spoil Ole Miss or Auburn's season.<br />
<br />
<b>Consider next week's SEC schedule</b>: Auburn at Mississippi State and Ole Miss at Texas A&M. Setting aside the fact that those games are harder than any single game any of the non-SEC playoff "contenders" will play this season -- let alone next week -- yet are part of a standard gauntlet for contenders in the SEC West, that's like a de facto playoff. (Although let's just stipulate that even if the SEC champ - presumably from the West - finishes with one loss, it is guaranteed a playof spot.)<br />
<br />
<b>Layer in that TCU plays at Baylor in a de facto playoff playoff</b> -- the winner retains "control-their-own-playoff-destiny" status -- and that Arizona could easily lose to a ticked-off USC that can feel entitled to hate anything related to the State of Arizona (yuk yuk) -- and next week could see at least four Top 10 teams (and four off the quickly dwindling list of playoff contenders) lose.<br />
<br />
It's glorious.<br />
<br />
<b>Look: We could still end up with a reasonably projectable playoff field</b> of the SEC West champ (with however-many losses), unbeaten FSU, unbeaten TCU and WHYTHEMNOTUS (say, Oregon).<br />
<br />
But we'll always have yesterday, when the long-held physics of college football -- particularly down in Mississippi -- were upended.<br />
<br />
-- D.S.<br />
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-15640423896798209402014-10-03T08:18:00.001-04:002014-10-03T08:18:50.392-04:0010/3 Oregon Whoa QuickieJust like that, the college football playoff landscape is a mess.<br />
<br />
Yesterday, it was all so clean: The four playoff teams would be the SEC champ (presumably unbeaten), unbeaten Florida State, unbeaten Oklahoma and unbeaten Oregon.<br />
<br />
Now, Oregon has a playoff-killing loss on its resume -- at home, against an Arizona team that is undefeated but hasn't been all that impressive this season (but clearly has Oregon's number). Even if it runs the table and wins the Pac-12 title, its argument (and resume) is less strong than, say, a 1-loss SEC runner-up (if still stronger than Michigan State).<br />
<br />
Look ahead: The SEC champ is in. Unbeaten FSU is in. A presumably unbeaten Oklahoma is in.<br />
<br />
The fourth spot is now up-for-grabs among several would-be 1-loss teams: Pac-12 champ Oregon? Big Ten champ Michigan State (which lost to Oregon)? A 1-loss SEC runner-up in a year when the playoff committee will be focusing as much on regional diversity as picking the four "best" teams?<br />
<br />
And that's all before Saturday's shake-out: Either Texas A&M or Mississippi State will be knocked out. Either Alabama or Ole Miss will be knocked out. LSU could absolutely beat Auburn. Notre Dame could (should?) lose to Stanford. Nebraska will be knocked from the unbeatens by Michigan State. And Oklahoma -- looking at a clear path to the playoff after last night -- could absolutely lose to TCU, which would make things even messier.<br />
<br />
If you thought a playoff would make things less contentious, Arizona's seismic upset at Autzen in the middle of the night is a good reminder that it will be even more so this year than ever.<br />
<br />
PS: Hard not to root for the Royals to dispatch the Angels.<br />
<br />
-- D.S. <br />
<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-47582412123058716322014-09-29T13:30:00.002-04:002014-09-29T13:30:19.484-04:009/29 Fire Hoke Quickie<em>I'm still digesting the experience from the past few days at the
Online News Association conference, which I'll hopefully have more to
say about in the next day or two. Until then, a few faves:</em><br />
<br />
*<strong>Everyone calling for Michigan to fire Brady Hoke <em>today</em></strong>. A few representative samples: MGoBlog's Brian Cook (<a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/today-s-faves-fire-hoke-nats-no-no-bridgewater-swisher/1507241-mgoblog.com/content/not-michigan?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">"Brady Hoke should have been fired walking off the field"</a>), MaizeNBrew's Drew Hallett (<a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/today-s-faves-fire-hoke-nats-no-no-bridgewater-swisher/1507245-www.maizenbrew.com/2014/9/28/6855989/2014-michigan-wolverines-football-fire-brady-hoke-hot-seat-shane-morris-concussion?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">"The Fireable Offense of Brady Hoke"</a>) and my USA TODAY Sports colleague George Schroeder (<a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/today-s-faves-fire-hoke-nats-no-no-bridgewater-swisher/1507249-www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/bigten/2014/09/28/michigan-wolverines-brady-hoke-shane-morris-dave-brandon/16401305/?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">"The situation is beyond salvage."</a>) It's not that he has to go at the end of the season -- he has to go <em>right now</em>. His pathetic explanations -- and the even more pathetic statements from the school -- are making things worse.<br />
<br />
*<strong>The Nationals' no-hitter</strong>: I can't count how many
baseball games I have been to in my lifetime, but I can count how many
my kids have been to -- seven, including yesterday, when my dad took
them to the Nationals' season finale, which everyone assumed would be a
pro forma walk-through before the team heads into the playoffs. It ended
up being <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/today-s-faves-fire-hoke-nats-no-no-bridgewater-swisher/1507253-www.washingtonpost.com/sports/nationals/jordan-zimmermann-no-hitter-a-fitting-cap-to-washington-nationals-season/2014/09/28/0e1d8010-4735-11e4-891d-713f052086a0_story.html?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">one of the defining games of the Nats' franchise history in DC</a>.
(If I couldn't be there, it's nice to know that at least my kids got to
see it in person.) Meanwhile, talk about mis-managing expectations:
Forget winning the NL pennant -- I'll be bummed if this team doesn't win
the World Series.<br />
<br />
*<strong>Teddy Bridgewater</strong>: Instant sensation. (So of course he suffers that ankle injury -- but that's temporary; he's going to be good for a long time. <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/today-s-faves-fire-hoke-nats-no-no-bridgewater-swisher/1507257-www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-game-highlights/0ap3000000402603/week-4-teddy-bridgewater-highlights?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Watch highlights here</a>.)<br />
<br />
*<strong>Steve Smith Sr.</strong>: Doing it for the Olds! (<a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/today-s-faves-fire-hoke-nats-no-no-bridgewater-swisher/1507261-grantland.com/the-triangle/blood-and-guts-and-another-steve-smith-masterpiece/?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Enjoyed this on Smith</a> from Grantland's Andrew Sharp.)<br />
<br />
*<strong>JR Moehringer on Derek Jeter</strong>: My favorite of the many (many) things written about Jeter this past week. <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/today-s-faves-fire-hoke-nats-no-no-bridgewater-swisher/1507265-espn.go.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/11583279/derek-jeter-plays-last-game-yankee-stadium?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Click here - it'll take you 15-20 minutes</a>. (I'm not much of a Jeter fan -- certainly not a Yankees fan -- and, still, that final at-bat <span class="aBn" data-term="goog_198041014" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ">on Thursday</span></span> night was a bonafide sports Moment.)<br />
<br />
*<strong>Matt Norlander on this past <span class="aBn" data-term="goog_198041015" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ">Saturday's</span></span> 20th anniversary of the release of Dave Matthews Band's "Under The Table And Dreaming"</strong>:
I was 21 and not only in college, but in a fairly typical fraternity,
so obviously I have vivid memories of this particular CD, which was
ubiquitous. <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/today-s-faves-fire-hoke-nats-no-no-bridgewater-swisher/1507269-www.relix.com/articles/detail/under_the_table_at_20_revisiting_dave_matthews_bands_most_important_record?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">As Norlander notes</a>, that is hard to reconcile with the polarizing opinions about DMB now, but at the time? Whew.<br />
<br />
<strong>@SportsREDEF</strong>: Jason Hirschhorn's REDEF empire (and you should absolutely be <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/today-s-faves-fire-hoke-nats-no-no-bridgewater-swisher/1507273-www.mediaredefined.com/?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">subscribing to the MediaREDEF email newsletter</a>) expands into sports, <a href="http://mail01.tinyletterapp.com/danshanoff/today-s-faves-fire-hoke-nats-no-no-bridgewater-swisher/1507277-twitter.com/sportsredef?c=bdb4ade8-366e-4008-b214-11ff71ef1f38" style="color: #3466cc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">first with a Twitter handle</a>, very soon with its own daily email.<br />
<br />
*<strong>Re/Code's Kara Swisher:</strong> I tweeted about this <span class="aBn" data-term="goog_198041016" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ">on Friday</span></span>
from the ONA conference (and will have more later this week), but
having been a longtime follower and fan of hers, this was the first time
I had ever seen Swisher in person, and it is an understatement to say
she is a dynamo. Airport issues kept her from showing up until all but
the final few minutes of her assigned panel (on news start-ups,
obviously a subject near and dear to me), and she blew the doors off
from the second she bounded up the stage stairs and started talking.
What an inspiring force of personality.<br />
<br />
<em>OK, quick related aside</em>: <span class="aBn" data-term="goog_198041017" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ">On Friday</span></span>
night, we were walking in the same direction on the street (I was maybe
10 feet behind her), and I found myself having an internal debate
("Should I go up and introduce myself? How weird/off-putting, because
she doesn't know me. But she would never hesitate to do it, if things
were reversed and she wanted to talk to me. But still: I'm me, not her.
What am I going to do - ask her to take a selfie with me? Ask her some
dumb question? Autograph my conference program?" And so on. I had a lot
of internal monologues during my few days in Chicago.) Anyway, she was
in a conversation with someone, and I deferred to letting her have her
night roll along peacefully, rather than interrupted by a fanboy.
Hopefully, there will be another chance some other day.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33624629.post-84615170654181759912014-09-28T14:20:00.003-04:002014-09-28T14:20:31.651-04:009/28 Sunday CFB Hangover Quickie<i>Just got back from a few days in Chicago at an industry conference, so bear with me as I catch up...</i><br />
<br />
The most important story in college football yesterday, by far, is the deplorable, FIRING-WORTHY conduct by Michigan coach Brady Hoke, who not only left in a player who obviously had a concussion, but he re-inserted the player later in the game.<br />
<br />
In the most charitable interpretation, Hoke is so clueless that he shouldn't be a college football head coach; in a less favorable interpretation, he abdicated his core responsibility, disqualifying him for the role -- not at the end of the season, but today.<br />
<br />
It compounds Hoke's mistake if the AD doesn't do anything about it. It compounds Hoke's absence of leadership that not a single assistant coach felt compelled to overrule the head coach's decision.<br />
<br />
The editors of MaizeNBrew -- who care about the issue far more than I do -- <a href="http://www.maizenbrew.com/2014/9/28/6855989/2014-michigan-wolverines-football-fire-brady-hoke-hot-seat-shane-morris-concussion" target="_blank">have the best take on it</a>.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile:<br />
<br />
*Legitimately stunned that Northwestern won at Penn State.<br />
<br />
*Entirely unsurprised that Arkansas would simply try to run it up the gut on their final, futile play of the game.<br />
<br />
*FSU has lost whatever air of invincibility it carried into the season.<br />
<br />
*If the playoff was today:<br />
(1) Texas A&M <br />
(2) Alabama<br />
(3) Oregon <br />
(4) Auburn<br />
<br />
Oklahoma is on the outside looking in, with FSU next to OU. A&M's win over South Carolina at South Carolina suddenly doesn't look so impressive, given Mizzou was able to do the same thing.<br />
<br />
*Next week's best: Arizona-Oregon on Thursday, Alabama at Ole Miss, LSU at Auburn, Texas A&M at Mississippi State, Oklahoma at TCU, Stanford at Notre Dame, Nebraska at Michigan State, Utah at UCLA -- that's as loaded of a weekend as you could want, with all of the would-be playoff contenders with resume-making (or season-breaking) tests. Hard to say what, but SOMETHING interesting is going to happen. At a minimum, I think Notre Dame and Nebraska take losses and, consequently, exit any shot at the playoff. I could see Oklahoma getting stymied at TCU. And of the three big SEC games, I don't see any upsets, but LSU-Auburn will be a slugfest.<br />
<br />
-- D.S.<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0