3:00 – I was expecting the crowd to pick up for this game and it looks pretty packed to me from a distance.

3:03 – If LSU is gonna keep this game close they’re going to

to hit those easy layups like the one Hickey just missed.  Hamilton and O’Bryant also just missed short shots right near the basket.

3:06 – Kentucky is killing themselves right now.  LSU’s defense might give them trouble.

3:11 – My first impression of Anthony Davis is very tall and lanky, poor free throw shooter and very raw.  If the Hornets want an immediate impact player in the draft he might not be the best choice.  Then again, we’re only 5 minutes in here.

3:13 – Hickey looks terrified early on.  Two airballs and a missed layup.

3:15 – LSU looks like a junior high team out there:  shooting ridiculous threes, fouling left and right, getting outrebounded

3:23 – There’s just nothing going on for LSU on offense.  Luckily Kentucky hasn’t exactly been on fire so it’s only 19-10

3:27 – Nice job by Stringer in taking it to the hoop with some authority.  Gotta get some points on the board and getting to the line is a good place to start, especially when you’re not hitting your jumpers.

3:29 – That Gilchrist-Davis basket was scary easy

3:31 – Davis just took a knee to the skull or neck.  If he misses some time in this game the Kentucky defense might be a little more susceptible in the paint on both sides

3:33 – Next play:  Stringer takes it straight to the hoop.  Glad we’re on the same page.

3:35 – Momentum shift?  LSU down by 6 with 5 min left in the half

3:36 – Big steal by O’Bryant and huge shot by Turner.  O’Bryant is a difference-maker and is playing well today minus a few missed put-backs.

3:39 – Two more big baskets by O’Bryant but Kentucky is just coming right back and hitting 3′s at will.  It’s going to take a flawless 2nd half to beat this team.  Davis is about to check back in (in obvious pain).  Pretty big indication of how much Kentucky needs him.

3:41 – Davis comes back in and absolutely destroys O’Bryant.

3:47 – Halftime.  35-26 Kentucky.  LSU did a nice job coming back, but it was with Anthony Davis off the floor and once he came back on Kentucky pushed the lead from 1 to 9.  He’s a major difference maker because he’s such a disruption inside.  He’s long and has so much range.  I still think he’s a mystery on offense and very raw, but he’s obviously a major talent.

4:06 – Terrance Jones has been the best offensive player on the court so far.  He can do a little bit of everything and just had a really nice block-layup combo.  Justin Hamilton has been very productive for LSU so far this season, but he’s very limited as far as athletic ability goes.  That was an easy layup that he just got overmatched with by Jones.

4:10 – I’ve noticed this in other games as well, but Hamilton has really terrible hands.  Balls constantly bounce off of him on rebound attempts.

4:12 – Davis just had a nice layup, a smooth jumper and a steal in a matter of a minute.  There’s the offensive game that we’ve been questioning.  If this kid has a consistent jump shot then he’ll be a lock to go #1 in the draft.

4:18 – Malcolm White just ejected.  Since when was tackling a guy in midair in the middle of a dunk against the rules?

4:22 – Even as a freshman Johnny O’Bryant is head and shoulders above anyone else on the LSU team

4:30 – Looks like this one is over.  62-35 with 10:00 left.  I’m out.

The fan base has one thing to blame for it’s new-found depression:  expectations.  Expectations are a natural part of society.  If you read all positive reviews of a movie, you go see the movie expecting it to be good.  If your friend tells you to go to a restaurant because the food it amazing, then it better be amazing when you get there.  The same thing applies to football.  If you’ve got a football team that has the media hyping that a championship is almost a given, then your team better win a championship.  If you’ve got an offense that people are calling ‘the best ever’ or ‘unstoppable’ then you better go out and play like you were unstoppable.  For LSU and Saints fans, the expectations were a championship.  These are two teams that have been building up to this point for quite some time.  Both have reached the level of being expected to win week in and week out.  For all their flaws, and believe me both teams have several, this was a championship-or-bust season.

So let’s step back and take a look at these two seasons.  LSU survived what was arguably the toughest regular season schedule of all time unscathed, including wins against the Rose Bowl champion, Orange Bowl champion, BCS champion, and I’ll even throw in the Cotton Bowl champion.  We produced a Heisman finalist, a Thrope award winner and a Coach of the Year.  Shouldn’t that be enough to satisfy a fan base?  Teams like Mississippi State and Kentucky would kill for that kind of season.  Then again, those two teams have no expectations.  The Saints cruised their way through the end of the regular season with Drew Brees breaking endless passing records and the offense as a whole looking unstoppable.  They opened the playoffs with a blowout win at home, but got unlucky having to travel out West to play the one type of team that would give them trouble.  Despite turning over the ball five times, the Saints were still winning the game with 1:30 remaining.  Shouldn’t a record-breaking season and a playoff win be enough to satisfy Saints fans?  I know the Browns or Bills would love to have a season like that.  Once again, no expectations.

To those who think that they’ve learned from their mistake and will be more open-minded about their teams, you might want to take a step back and see what’s in store for next season.  LSU returns the core of their team, including their stable of running backs and several playmakers on defense.  The schedule looks to be a breeze up until Alabama.  On top of that, Zach Mettenberger will bring a competant passing attack to the mix.  This is a preseason #1 team in my opinion.  The Saints will be in a very intriguing situation.  Their main goal will without a doubt be to become the first team to win a Super Bowl in their home stadium.  The offense will be strong and there should be a new defensive coordinator to shape up that side of the ball.  Do you think Saints fans will accept a playoff loss with all of that on the line?

This is what football in Louisiana has become.  Remember the mid 90′s where we’d be happy as fans to finish at .500 and watching guys like Kevin Faulk and Ricky Williams play were enough to get us excited?  Those days are long gone.  Who cares if Mathieu was a Heisman finalist?  So what if Drew Brees is breaking passing records?  It’s championship-or-bust for Louisiana football, and that’s not going to change anytime soon.

Quarterback:

Drew Brees – 440-662, 5087 yards, 41 tds, 13 ints

Aaron Rodgers – 343-502, 4643 yards, 45 tds, 6 ints

This particular comparison comes down to volume.  Sean Payton’s offense is about as pass-heavy as you can get, with Brees attempting a whopping 160 more passes than Rodgers.  The Packers have been more efficient and quick-strike in their passing game, with 9.2 y/a compared to 8.2 y/a for the Saints.  Both of these quarterbacks have had historical seasons;  Brees just broke Dan Marino’s 27 year old record for passing yards in a season, and Rodgers posting a staggering 45/6 td/int ratio.  One thing that sets Rodgers apart from Brees is his scrambling ability.  Rodgers has 257 yards rushing and 4 touchdowns compared to 81 yards and 1 touchdown for Brees.

Offensive Line:

This is one area of weakness for the Packers.  Rodgers has been sacked 36 times, 3rd most in the NFC.  This statistic often gets forgotten because the Packers’ offense is so otherwise dangerous.  Rodgers has such great pocket awareness and quick of a release that his ability makes up for the deficiencies on the line.  In contrast, Brees has been sacked 24 times, a stat made more impressive considering he leads in NFL in passing attempts.  Some of this can be contributed to the nature of the Saints’ offense.  Payton utilizes a multitude of screen passes, check downs and short slants/hooks to the receivers.  Instead of using the run to set up the pass, Payton often uses the short passing game instead.  This obviously greatly reduces the number of sacks/passing attempt.

Running Backs:

Big advantage to the Saints in this category.  New Orleans is 6th in the NFC in rushing, averaging 127.9 yards per game.  Green Bay is 4th to last in the NFC, averaging a measly 98.5 yards per game.  The Saints have rushed 396 times compared to 371 for the Packers.  This brings us back to an earlier point:  looking at both the passing and rushing attempts, the Saints have 1058 total offensive plays compared to 873 for the Packers.  Oddly enough, time of possession is very close at 31:48-30:24 in favor of the Saints.  So what is to be made of this?  It seems to me that the Packers like to use as much of the play clock as possible, which attributes to their time of possession, but also scores in far fewer plays/possession than the Saints.  Back to the rushing game, the Saints have three backs with over 400 yards rushing (Sproles-563, Thomas-532 and Ingram-474).  The Packers have two 500 yards backs in Starks (578) and Grant (511).  As I mentioned earlier, the Saints love to get their backs involved in the passing game and run the screen pass with Sproles and Thomas better than anyone in the league.

Wide Receivers: 

Both offenses love to spread the ball around.  Jordy Nelson, Marques Colston, and Greg Jennings are all in the top 10 in the NFC in receiving yards.  Nelson has been a revelation for Green Bay, catching 12 touchdowns and averaging 18.7 yards per catch.  Colston has had a bounce-back year and is back to being a top-tier NFL wideout.  The two teams have very solid secondary receivers in Robert Meachem and James Jones, both of whom might be #1 wide receivers on weaker teams. 

Tight Ends: 

Jimmy Graham and JerMichael Finley both came into the season with a ton of hype and expectations.  Graham has thrown those expectations out the window this season, posting a ridiculous line of 91 catches for 1213 yards and 10 touchdowns.  He has established himself as an elite tight end and Drew Brees’ #1 target.  He’s a matchup nightmare both in the red zone and in the middle of the field.  On the other side, Finley has been a bit of a disappointment.  His line of 48 catches for 703 yards and 7 touchdowns isn’t horrible, but for a guy as talented and dangerous Green Bay probably expected a little more.  Drops have been a major problem with Finley this season.  Defenses are keying on him when he lines up out wide, greatly reducing his targets.  That being said, if I’m a defensive coach I’m still terrified of his potential, especially in the red zone.  These are two great tight ends that factor in huge for the passing game.

So there’s a little breakdown of the offenses.  I, for one, hope and expect to see these two teams in Lambeau for the NFC Championship game.  A rematch (hate that word now) would be fitting, especially considering how great these offenses have been all season long and how close the game in September turned out.

-Kerr made a good point about the addition of Chandler.  Obviously he’ll give the team a much-needed defensive presence inside, but he’ll certainly have a negative impact on Amar’e Stoudamire’s offensive game.  With Chandler clogging up the middle, Stoudamire will be forced to settle for a lot more jumpers.  Might be for the best since his weak knees are going to struggle making it through the brutal schedule.  Chandler looks dominant under the basket and should block a ton of shots this season.

-Rondo and Bass are carrying the Celtics.  Rondo looks like the best player on the court, hitting a nice percentage of mid-range jumpers and creating chaos near the basket.  Bass is going to really help the Celtics with his versatility and the Garnett/O’Neal combo will be greatly appreciative of his minutes.

-The first game does look sloppy.  Lots of fouls, bad shots and a ton of technicals.  Should be a trend all day and throughout the next few weeks.

-Ray Allen is so much fun to watch.  He still has the perfect shot and looks invincible from behind the 3 point line no matter how many hands are in his face.

-Melo is taking over the 4th quarter, as the Knicks should expect from him.

Miami @ Dallas:

-Pretty sure Jason Kidd is earning Social Security checks

-Vince Carter sucks and Brendan Haywood is a huge step down from Chandler, although Odom is a nice plus.  Not sure if I’m high on the Mavericks this season.  Losing Chandler and having all those veterans age an extra year can’t be good.

-Juwan Howard would be a lot more productive if the NBA let him use his wheelchair.

-Norris Cole looks like he’s gonna be starting at PG for Miami in about a month, if not sooner.  Another playmaker on this team is a scary thought.

-Miami looks really dangerous on both sides.  They’re dominating this game so far.

-I just read that Brian Cardinal was the first NBA player to win Dad of the Year in his subdivision as well as YMCA Over-30 Men’s League MVP.

-Chris Bosh just tried to go straight to the basket and wound up looking ridiculous.  If only he still had the dreads and he’d pull off the complete JarJar act.

-Haven’t been watching the last few minutes and the Heat are still up by 25.  Expect the trend to continue

-Wow Mike Miller is hurt again?

-If the Heat do not win the title this year then fans in Miami are going to be very upset with management for giving Spolstra that big extension.  If this team is coached properly then they should win it all.

-Amazing play by Chalmers/James/Wade:  Chalmers got the deal, drove the court and attempted and alley-oop to James.  James saw the defense closing in and tipped the ball mid-air to Wade for a wide open put back.  Great instinctual basketball.

-Did I mention that Vince Carter is terrible?  Oh, I did?  OK well sorry for being redundant.

-This will arguably be the least interesting quarter in the NBA this season.

-Brian Cardinal air-balling a 3 reminds me of Sloth from Goonies trying to play basketball.

-They keep playing the LMFAO NBA commerical and I immediately want to see Sloane in every new movie/tv show that’s released.

Chicago @ LA Lakers

-Joakim Noah’s jumper looks very similar to my own.  In other words, it’s not pretty.

-Devin Ebanks is Trevor Ariza’s twin.  Apparently the Lakers decided that not only did they need a replacement for him, but they also needed to find an exact replica.  Ebanks is currently shutting down Rose btw.

-This Lakers team has a different feel to them.  Lots of new faces.  Coupled with the new coach it’s going to be interesting to see if they’re still one of the league’s elite teams.

-Picking up with 6 min left in the 4th quarter.  Lakers by 8.  Kobe looks strong with 24 points and Rose has hit 4-4 from 3 pt range.  Bulls shooting 18% from the field from the 2nd half.  The Lakers bench has played surprisingly well both shooting and on the boards.

-If the Bulls are going to be a contender this year, Rip has to turn the clock back about 3-4 years.

-That Rose reverse layup has become his trademark move.

-Lakers free throw shooting has been awful in the closing minutes.

-He might not be the high flying, drive to the basket player he was in the past, but Kobe can still hit a clutch jumper when you need him the most.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   -Luol Deng = early season favorite for NBA MVP?    

-THE MVP!!!!!          

-What a finish.  Deng had another huge play with a steal and Rose finished it off with an off balance, one handed floater against Gasol. 

Orlando @ OKC

-Scott Brooks looks like a wimpy Liam Neeson.  Taking a little break.  Be back for the premiere of Lob City.

LA Clippers @ Golden State

-My most anticipated game of the day.  Not only am I excited to see the new-look Clippers, but Golden State has a really fun starting five.

-Mark Jackson’s first order of business as Warriors coach:  bring Andris Beidrins back to life.

-The Clips 3 guard rotation of Paul, Billups and Mo Williams is about as good as it gets.

-Pretty entertaining but sloppy first half.  Monta Ellis is a great player to watch when he’s driving to the basket, but he puts up some ugly jumpers.  If the Warriors have learned to play a little defense they might be a playoff team.  DeAndre Jordan’s shot blocking skills are the complete polar opposite of his free throw shooting.

We have to begin by giving a quick recap of what went down.  As I wrote about last week, the proposed trade to send Paul to the Lakers was shot down by the league for “basketball reasons”.  The fallout from the failed deal led to the Hornets shifting their attention to the Clippers.  The league, acting of course as the owners of the Hornets, proposed a deal similar to the one above but also including Eric Bledsoe and not including the two 2nd round picks.  The Clippers made the next moves, rejecting the trade offer and signing Chauncey Billups to show that they were prepared to compete in 2011 with or without Paul.  After a couple days of negotiating, the league finally decided to back down from its inflated demands and agreed to the accepted deal.

The Clippers came out of the trade with a star PG and can immediately make the team a contender.  The thought of Paul tossing alley-oops to Griffin and Jordan must be making Clippers fans salivate.  The team did lose a budding star in Gordon, but even if the Hornets would have agreed on the trade without Gordon involved the Clippers would be unable to re-sign both Gordon and Paul.  Kaman’s contract was a nice piece but if they were going to use it anyway then why not use it on the best point guard in the league?

The Hornets, on the other hand, find themselves in a very complicated situation, but made out the best they possibly could considering the circumstances.

This whole process has been a complete nightmare for Hornets’ upper management.  Stern and his deputies effectively took all control of the team away from GM Dell Demps after hearing complaints from the other league owners regarding the failed Lakers trade.  Demps did his best to prepare for this situation last season and had a plan in mind for what to do with Paul and the future of the team.  It will be interesting if we ever hear his reaction to the trade and whether or not he ever had any say-so in the deal.  Luckily for Demps, popular belief is that a new owner and lease are lined up and ready to be ushered in sometime in the near future.  The quicker the league hands over control of the team back to Demps, the better off everyone will be.

Regarding the trade itself, although the Hornets certainly made out great, there are some question marks regarding the team.  Eric Gordon is a great young player and could put up 25 points per night for this team.  However, he does come with some baggage.  Gordon played in 62 and 56 games the last two seasons and is starting to be placed with that nasty ‘injury-prone’ label.  Luckily, the injuries have all been of the random variety and not one specific thing.  Gordon is also an unrestricted free agent after the 2012 season, so the Hornets will have to make sure to convince him to extend sometime during the next two years.  Kaman is a quality big man who can really help the team, but pairing him with Okafor down low creates a big of a problem because neither are considered power forwards.  My thinking is that Kaman’s expiring contract is shipped off sometime before the deadline for another batch of young talent/draft picks.  I haven’t spoken much about Aminu because he’s such a raw talent.  He’s one of those uber-athletic wings who hasn’t learned to hit the side of a barn with his shot.  Monty Williams did a great job of coaching up a mediocre group of players last year, and if he can do it again without a full season of Chris Paul I’ll be very impresssed.

Alright, enough of the negative.  Eric Gordon is a stud and there is a good possibility that both the Minnesota pick and our own could be lottery picks in what is arguably the best draft in a long time.  These three players along with whatever we get out of Kaman or Okafor will be the foundation of the Hornets for years to come.  Now that this whole fiasco has finally come to an end, Demps can finally go out and grab some remaining free agents to fill out the roster.  Carl Landry at a reasonable price would be a very nice person to have this season.  A backup point guard would also help out a lot.  I wouldn’t expect a whole lot out of the Hornets this season, but with two talented young players on the way next season things could start to get a lot more exciting.

Hornets fans have their fingers crossed for Minnesota to pack the lottery with ping pong balls

I personally think that with new ownership on the way, the end of the Chris Paul era and the beginning of the youth movement for the team, now would be the perfect time for New Orleans to brand the team.  Everyone knows that the Hornets is a horrible name for this basketball team.  When I hear the name all I can think about as Charlotte.  A new identity to go along with a new team would go a long way to increase the interest in New Orleans basketball.  I’m picturing a black and gold theme and a rebirth of the old hockey team name:  the New Orleans Brass.  Of course, however, I’m open to suggestions.

-  Due to Paul’s unwillingness to sign an extention with Golden State or the Clippers, the pipe dream scenarios of the Hornets bringing in Stephen Curry, Eric Gordon or Minnesota’s 1st round pick in 2012 were impossible to pull off.  Instead, the best offer that we were hearing about to either of those two teams was Paul for Bledsoe, Al Aminu and Mo Williams.  That’s a garbage trade and Demps was wise to cut off talks with those two frontrunners.

-  My first reaction to the trade was “Why are we trading for two over-the-hill bigs when we’re in rebuilding mode?”.  These feelings subsided once the third team was brought into the discussion.  So for those who were in a coma yesterday, the Hornets agreed to send Paul to the Lakers for Gasol and Odom.  They also agreed to send Gasol to the Rockets for Kevin Martin, Luis Scola, Goran Dragic and a 1st round pick in 2012.  Martin is a free shooter and the scorer at the 2 that the Hornets have been missing.  Scola is an underrated asset under the basket and a steady 18-8-50% performer.  Dragic would have immediately been in line to compete for the starting PG position with Jack.  The pick was from the Knicks and would’ve given us 2 1st rounders in a stacked draft.

-  The rumors surrounding the trade were the most interesting part.  Reports had the Hornets sending Okafor to the Lakers to complete the trade, which would have shed us of his ridiculous contract.  Lamar Odom was already complaining about being a Hornet, and odds are he would have never stepped foot on the court in a Hornets’ uniform.  The big rumor going around was sending Odom and Ariza to the Sixers for Andre Iguodala, a player who would work perfectly with a big time scorer like Martin.  David West is still floating around as a sign-and-trade candidate.  Free agency just kicked off today.  Moral of the story is that Demps was not finished and he had a plan in mind to make the most of what could’ve been an awful situation.

-  Unfortunately, we might not get to see the new-look Hornets.  Big time owners like Mark Cuban and Dan Gilbert urged Stern to not allow the trade, basically saying that it was ‘unfair’ to the rest of the league.  Let’s look at the trade for a minute:  Chris Paul swapped in a deal involving 4 All-Star caliber players.  It’s not like we accepted the Clippers’ shitty offer.  We got 3 quality players and the Lakers got a superstar point guard and depleted their front court in the process.  What justification does Stern have to kill this trade if the numbers work? 

-  There’s going to be some serious discussion going on throughout the league regarding the legitimacy of this decision.  The players already want Stern’s head on a platter.  This is exactly what the league did not need on the eve of the return of basketball.  I’m hoping the trade gets allowed.  We all know Paul is gone after this year and this is probably the best return we’ll get out of him.  In addition, I’m also really excited to see what Demps is going to pull off next.  The NBA is back, and for better or worse we’re going to have a  fun two weeks of mass chaos.

REASON A: ALABAMA IS NOT EVEN A DIVISION CHAMPION LET ALONE A CONFERENCE CHAMPION

I say this knowing full well that being a conference champ is not a requirement of the BCS, but logic states that if the national championship is meant to signify the best team in the entire sport, then the team that wins it shouldn’t be third best qualifier from its own conference. I truly believe that if LSU can’t beat Georgia this weekend, then they don’t deserve to hoist the crystal ball either. Everyone who wants to make the NFL, MLB, NBA, or any other sport wild card argument can save their breath. College football is a different animal, and it always has been. Two teams are anointed to play for the title, and not a field of playoff contenders. This has always made the college football regular season eminently important as any loss can, and usually does, end a team’s title hopes. There have been plenty of seasons where one conference loss has relegated LSU to miss out on Atlanta, but every SEC team’s mantra is always the same to start the season: Atlanta first, then the national title. No Atlanta should always mean no national title.

REASON B: LSU ALREADY BEAT BAMA . . . IN TUSCALOOSA

This is the one that really should send all those farmers back home crying to their wife/sister. You had your chance, in your home stadium where you “never lose” (except the past two times when it mattered), to beat LSU and you failed epically. “But we would’ve won handily if we didn’t miss 4 FGs and Eric Reid wasn’t so good that he out jumped and out fought a guy 7 inches taller and 60 pounds heavier.” Yeah well if Auburn didn’t graciously reroof the Cecil Newton Baptist Revival Church of Buttfuck, AL they wouldn’t have a national title, but they did, so welcome to reality. The fact that I could smell your kicker’s fear from 400 miles away, and the only sound louder than 100,000 people exhaling in agony every time he missed a kick was the sound of his asshole clenching out of dread for the next kick he knew he was going to shank. Maybe Golden Boy should spend some of his time either recruiting or coaching up special teamers, like the “Doofus” Les Miles. Les, unlike coaching Adonis Nick Saban, understands that special teams is a huge phase of the game and has consistently put top units on the field during his time with the Tigers. The bottom line is the Crimson Tide had every advantage in the first meeting, and still couldn’t get it done. What about that choke job screams that they should get another shot? Talent does not always merit opportunity in sports. If that were the case LeBron James would have 6 titles, the Chargers would win the Superbowl, and Alabama would legitimately have the 22 (or however many) national titles they claim to have. It sucks that you may be the second best team and not get to play for the title. Next time I suggest not shitting the bed in a big home game.

REASON C: IS ALABAMA REALLY THAT MUCH BETTER THAN OKLAHOMA STATE?

Iowa State is not good. However, is it the worst thing in the world to lose in 2OT on the road one day after your entire school mourned the loss of two prominent athletic figures? Alabama’s loss is definitely to a much better team, but Oklahoma State’s loss produced a better circumstance. It did not eliminate them from winning their conference. Alabama has a magnificent defense, but the best of all time, hardly. Alabama has played the murderers row schedule of North Texas, Kent St., and Penn St. all ranked 92^nd or lower in total offense (out of 120 teams). In fact Alabama’s average opponent ranked 90^th in offense, and Georgia Southern (who is an FCS team and has no offensive ranking) racked up over 300 yards rushing on the Tide. When questioned after the game Bama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart said when we scheduled Georgia Southern then didn’t run the triple option, and we couldn’t get out of the game now. Sounds like the guy running the most fearsome defensive unit of all time right? Alabama made no effort to test themselves outside of conference play, and for this reason they are going to be rewarded with a spot in the title game. Sounds backwards to me.

I think we need to let next weekend play out and if Oklahoma State, Virginia Tech, or even Houston can finish out conference championship runs each should be given serious title game consideration. At least each of them will have proved it with results on the field rather than winning the battle of what-ifs and conjecture off of it.

1. DeAngelo Williams - Williams looks to be the most sought-after free agent on the market. The two early leaders for his services look to be Carolina and Denver. John Fox would love to reunite with Williams and have him paired with Moreno to form a very dangerous backfield. Carolina has said recently that they are definitely going to be in the running for Williams and certainly aren’t going to just let him leave without a fight. However, with Jonathan Stewart and Mike Goodson already on board, I see this as more of a bluff by Carolina. My feeling is that he’s going to Denver.

2. Serious Quarterback Needs - Looking around the league, there’s a large number of teams with really terrible options at quarterback. Arizona has Max Hall or Derek Anderson. Cincinnati has Andy Dalton. Washington has John Beck. Tennessee has Jake Locker. Minnesota has Christian Ponder. There’s going to be an awful lot of movement with veteran quarterbacks, namely Donovan McNabb, Matt Hasselbeck and Carson Palmer. Kevin Kolb is also a player who is almost certain to be traded. Should be interesting to see the final outcome of this mess.

3. Plaxico Burress - The former gun-toting gangsta is out of prison and ready to pick up where he left off. Burress has sparked the interest of several teams, including Philadelphia and the Jets. The 34 year old wideout is certainly past his prime, and I’m sure the time off of football messed up his conditioning and rhythm, but Plax has enough size and natural ability to make an impact with a team.

4. Randy Moss - Moss is currently jobless but will be in high demand after reportedly being in the best shape in years. Moss still has the ability to be a difference-maker, but of course having the ability to do something and actually wanting to do it are two different issues.

5. Nnamdi Asomugha - The pursuit of Nnamdi will be almost LeBron-like and I guarantee there’s already a long list of teams lined up to give the NFL’s premier cornerback a jersey. Dallas has been mentioned as a potential suitor as well as Houston, the Jets, Baltimore, Detroit and New England. As long as they’re willing to pay, Houston is the best fit due to their gaping holes in the secondary. Could Nnamdi be that one player who could finally take Houston to the next level?

6. The Jets Free Agent Pool - The Jets are set to put 16 players on the free agent market, including Braylon Edwards, Santonio Holmes, Shaun Ellis and Antonio Cromartie. The Jets could either get lucky and bring back most of their free agents or really get screwed in the frenzy and be forced to have a semi-rebuilding campaign.

7. The Rookie Crash Course - Finally, with training camp shortened and time to prepare for the regular season at a premium, how will teams treat their rookie quarterbacks? Cam Newton (Car), Andy Dalton (Cin), Blaine Gabbart (Jax) and Christian Ponder (Min) are all in the running for starting jobs. Will the shortened training camp cause teams to rethink starting them right away and look for veteran stopgaps in free agency? Will those lucky to get starting jobs be able to learn the offense and adjust to NFL defenses in just a few weeks?

Worst Golf Movie of All Time – Caddyshack II (1988 – 8% Rotten Tomatoes, 3.4 IMDB)

The choice for worst golf movie of all time is a no brainer. It’s Caddyshack II and it’s not even close. In a larger sense, this film might rank up there as one of the worst overall sports movies and worst sequels ever made. The movie basically keeps the same basic storyline, re-uses all the same jokes and trades out the good actors in the first movie for really bad ones instead. Replacing the hilarious Rodney Dangerfield, who stole the show in the first movie, with Jackie Mason is about as bad as it gets. Mason used this film to try and resurrect his career, but unfortunately his performance in Caddyshack II put about 5000 more nails in his coffin. Dan Aykroyd takes over Bill Murray’s gopher hunting role and gets out-acted by the gopher. The jokes fall flat, the writing and acting are awful and there isn’t even any golf in the first hour of the movie. They even downgraded to a shittier Kenny Loggins song. Many claim that this might be one of the worst movies of all time. I’m not going to go that far, but it’s easily the worst in the golf genre.

Most Underrated Golf Movie of All Time – Tin Cup (1996 – 69% Rotten Tomatoes, 6.2 IMDB)

Another Kevin Costner movie makes the cut in the underrated golf movie category. Tin Cup might be my favorite in the Costner sports catalog (I’ll concede that Field of Dreams was a better movie, but this one is my personal favorite). The movie works as not only an engaging and relatable sports movie but as a romantic comedy as well. The movie lightly hits on the mental pressures of playing golf and the frustrating scene on the final hole of the US Open remains one of the best sports movie moments of all time. Rene Russo is solid as the female lead and Don Johnson plays a great arrogant golf

villain. Costner’s sports movies are all very re-watchable, and Tin Cup is no exception. It’s one of those movies that you’ll never brag to be your favorite movie ever, but you’ll also rarely change the channel when it comes on TV.

Ryan

Worst Golf Movie of All Time – Who’s Your Caddy? (2007 – 6% Rotten Tomatoes, 1.8 IMDB)
In the interest of journalistic integrity I watched this all the way through.  It wasn’t fun.  This is one of those movies that falls into the “cool black people vs. stuck-up white people” vein.  It’s got a mediocre cast headlined by Outkast’s Big Boi (with lone bright spot being Terry Crews playing pretty much the same awesome character he always plays).  It takes about three minutes before the movie starts to reinforce negative stereotypes of both black and white people, and it continues the entire way.  You find yourself rooting for both all parties involved to lose somehow.  The acting sucks, the jokes are insulting, and you can guess the entire plot right away.  The biggest surprise of the movie?  Seeing a slimmed down Uncle Phil from Fresh Prince of Bel Air. I honestly don’t think he’s acted since the show ended, and this project was what motivated him out of retirement?  The movie promotes drug use, juvenile delinquency, and the notion that if you don’t get what you want immediately act like a giant asshole and pretend the rules don’t apply to you and it’ll work out in the end.  Terrible movie, but the soundtrack was actually pretty good.

Most Underrated Golf Movie of All Time – The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000 – 43% Rotten Tomatoes, 6.5 IMDB)

Matt Damon, Will Smith, and Charlize Theron.  Those names alone should guarantee a fantastic movie.  Throw in the fact that it’s a period piece set in 1930′s Savannah and you’ve got solid gold.  I think people were turned off by this movie’s length (it was a little over two hours).  It was also criticized heavily and was accused of racism for Will Smith’s character, Bagger Vance, who many called a “mystical negro.”  In short, Charlize Theron inherits a golf course saddled with debt.  To raise funds, she holds the greatest golf tournament the town’s ever seen.  Matt Damon is a local golf legend and Theron’s ex-flame who was sent off to war and never quite recovered after his return.  Will Smith plays Bagger Vance, a humble caddy that appears out of nowhere to get everyone’s lives back on track then disappears without a trace.   It was a very enjoyable story, just about 30 minutes too long.  Something truly impressive in this movie: they managed to make their golf tournament scene last a full hour.  Will Smith is always charming, and Charlize Theron is a natural as a Southern belle.  Matt Damon is an incredible actor, and he takes a character you shouldn’t necessarily like, fights through some cheesy bits, and makes you really care for him.  This film was hampered by its slow development, but those that give it a chance will find a heart-warming story of both love and redemption told in a way that feels completely genuine.

Perry:

Worst Baseball Movie of all Time – The Babe (1992 - 47% Rotten Tomatoes, 5.7 IMDB)
This was probably the easiest lead actor role ever played since Marlee Matlin played a deaf girl.  John Goodman plays an overweight alcoholic baseball player.   Besides being a baseball player, John Goodman didn’t have to reach far into the actor’s talent bag.  Throughout the movie I swear you can actually watch John Goodman expand like heating a marshmellow in a microwave.    I believe there are give or take 28 scenes with him eating.  Don’t get me wrong I love the legend of Babe Ruth.  During his time he was more popular than the president and perhaps the most famous sports personality in American history.    However this film did not do Ruth justice.   John Goodman hogged the camera.  He was in every scene because he was too fat to not be in camera’s view.  If James Cameron directed this movie it would have taken years, like Avatar, because he would have had to invent a camera to fit John Goodman’s entire body.  There are a plethora of historical inaccuracies:  Ruth was never an enemy of “Iron Horse” Gehrig, never an overhead pitcher, and he did not hit a home run at his last at bat (he grounded out).  John Goodman, stick to movies like Arachnophobia and King Richard.  Thank you for almost ruining Babe Ruth for me.

Most Underrated Baseball Movie of all Time – The Fan (1996 – 40% Rotten Tomatoes, 5.6 IMDB)
Let me start this off by saying I have no clue how this movie got terrible reviews.  It’s got a great cast in Bob De Niro, Wesley Snipes, John Legui-I-don’t-speak-Mexican-so-I-can’t-spell-his-name-amo, and Benicio Del Toro.  Granted De Niro was a little past his prime filming this, but he was not quite in the Little Fockers terrible spectrum.  De Niro plays the same typecast character he played in Taxi Driver and Cape Fear.  How can you not like that?  Wesley Snipes acts like himself; an overzealous, self absorbed douche, but hey, that’s why we love him, especially the IRS.  Who cares if John L is a fast talking Puerto Rican (see Rosie Perez and every other Puerto Rican actor), he’s still a likable guy.   This movie has it all: suspense, action, thrill, baseball, violence, passion, and oh yeah a kick ass soundtrack featuring Nine Inch Nails.    It cost approximately $55,000,000 to film but only grossed $18,000,000.  America, I am ashamed of you.    I do believe that this is one film that people will look back in 50 years and call it a masterpiece.  However, I’m probably very wrong, and I may only like this movie because it was one of the first R-rated movies that I was allowed to watch.

Jason

Worst Baseball Movie of all Time – Major League: Back to the Minors (1998 – 21% Rotten Tomatoes, 4.1 IMDB)
There’s a lot of really bad baseball movies to choose from when it comes to selecting the worst baseball movie of all time. High on the list are the Freddie Prinze Jr. sappy chick flick Summer Catch, and Ed, starring Matt LeBlanc and a monkey who pitches (Note: any time that an animal brought in to compete against humans in a sports movie, that movie will more often then not end up on these lists). Mr. 3000 killed Bernie Mac and The Bad News Bears Go to Japan was just awful. However, the ultimate title must go to the movie that killed the best baseball movie franchise to date, Major League: Back to the Minors. The creators took the sellout approach making the 3rd movie, choosing to continue the series despite losing many of the familiar stars (Charlie Sheen, Tom Berenger) and keeping around the really annoying ones (Tanaka, Corbin Bernsen). As a result, the movie was horribly acted, unbelievably predictable and filled with levels of cheesiness unseen in other two movies of the series. Also, they couldn’t have picked a more awkward actor to play the player who is supposed to be the best on the team. Every time he swings a bat you say to yourself there’s no way in hell that he could actually hit anything.
 
Most Underrated Baseball Movie of all Time – For Love of the Game (1999 – 54% Rotten Tomatoes, 6.2 IMDB)
Kevin Costner is obviously known for his work in Field of Dreams and Bull Durham, two appropriately rated and very well received baseball films. However, his other baseball movie, For Love of the Game is a great film in it’s own right. The movie follows an aging superstar pitcher during his quest for a perfect game. While pitching, the pitcher reflects on the emptiness in his life and his recently failed relationship with Kelly Preston. Although the film’s exceptional baseball scenes steal the show, the romantic storyline adds to the plot and Costner does a good job of letting us know what the pitcher is going through. While not the greatest baseball movie by any means, For Love of the Game holds up over time and should be talked about more often when it comes to capturing the emotion of baseball on film.

Vincent

Worst: The Benchwarmers (2006 –  12% Rotten Tomatoes, 5.4 IMDB)
Take your classic nerd revenge comedy, mix it with the Bad News Bears, and add in the least funny cast on earth and you have the basic premise of The Benchwarmers. This warmed over turd of a concept is about three nerd buddies who were picked on and terrible at baseball as children. Now adults Jon Heder, Rob Schneider, and David Spade feel bad for a group of kids cast off from the local little league field so they help them take the field back. Nice, you think these guys are going to coach this rag tag bunch from mediocrity to superiority right? Of course they aren’t. One of the boys on the team’s dad, played by Jon Lovitz (whose lack of funniness is only matched by his unlikability), turns out to be a billionaire who is going to donate a new state of the art field to the best little league team in the area. So in all of their wisdom the three adults create a team to play against little leaguers. Even as I type this I still think that kind of sounds funny. Trust me it isn’t. For the next hour or so of movie time there are some unfunny scenes, probably an unfunny montage of men beating up children; I don’t remember, the main conflict of the movie arises and is settled in about 2 minutes (Schneider used to be a bully and apologizes to the person he bullied), and the adults let the crappy kids play and get their asses kicked by 41 runs in the finals. The feel good moment is that they scored one run against the super team, who let them score by the way. Everyone celebrates and good has triumphed over evil. What bullshit. If I was the writer of this movie I would’ve had the kid who was going to score the lone run stop and take a shit halfway between home and third. It could’ve had a dual purpose of saying this movie is a gigantic turd and if you really want to show up a bully shit on him. How does getting beat by 41 runs and being allowed to score a mercy run make anyone feel like a winner. I’d feel much better losing 42-0 than 42-1. David Spade should have retired after Chris Farley died, Jon Heder has yet to say one funny thing in any movie he’s played in (which are all comedies), and Rob Schneider wouldn’t even exist if Adam Sandler didn’t need someone to play Asian women or Iranian delivery men in his movies. At least there was one redeeming thing to come from The Benchwarmers. Hollywood learned that if you are trying to make a major comedy and your three anchors are Jon Heder, Rob Schneider, and David Spade you might as well take your money and burn it in a trash can. At least a bum can warm his hands over that.

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Underrated: A League of Their Own (1992 – 82% Rotten Tomatoes, 7.0 IMDB)
Is it possible that the most underrated baseball movie all time is about women’s baseball? Not only is it possible, but it’s true. A league of their own takes us back to the time of World War II, when the men were off fighting, and the movement to empower women was just taking root powered by the famous image of Rosie the Riveter. With not enough talented men around to play America’s favorite game, a candy magnate (best descriptive title ever) decides to start a woman’s league. Enter the Rockford Peaches, the coolest team of skirt wearing, baseball playing women around anchored by their star catcher Dottie Hinson (Geena Davis). With a cavalcade of stars including Tom Hanks, Rosie O’Donnell, Madonna, and even pre Tank Girl Lori Petty (you know when she still had the promise of being a good actress in her future). The sign of a good movie is characters with depth that people can grow to care deeply for. This movie certainly has that. From the drunken ex-big league manager with a brilliant mind and poor attitude who learns to overcome his self-loathing and appreciate his team (Hanks) to the immensely talented, but uninterested star player (Geena Davis). Even fat, annoying super lesbo Rosie O’Donnell is an entertaining supporting character in her pre soap box ranting days. They even got Madonna to pull off playing a character with whore-like qualities. In addition to having characters you get invested in, A League of Their Own gave us one of the great pop culture references of all time. If you’ve never heard anyone saying “There’s no crying in ______”, you are either: a liar, deaf, or an illegal immigrant hanging out in the Home Depot parking lot who can’t speak English and has never seen A League of Their Own. Actually scratch that last one cause even they know Hanks’ iconic, “There’s no crying in baseball!” Finally all great movies need great endings, and what beats did the ball get knocked out or did she drop it on purpose? I personally think Dottie realized how important baseball was to Kit, and she knew that was the only way her kid sister would ever emerge from her shadow, but then how do you explain why she told the pitcher to throw high fastballs to strike her out? It’s very rare for a movie with an ambiguous ending to do it successfully, but in the case of A League of Their Own I think it really enhances the movie. In the end this movie is great because it has moments of levity balanced with serious topics and sad scenes all while following characters you care about, and not throw aways like the shitheads in The Benchwarmers.