Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Ramblings

  • UVa is the only ACC team that did not go to a bowl game in football OR the NCAA tournament in basketball. The athletic director finally got a clue and fired head basketball coach Dave Leitao. UVa is rumored to be going after Tubby Smith (Minnesota), Jeff Capel (Oklahoma), Anthony Grant (VCU), and Sean Miller (Xavier). I predict that Capel will be the next coach at UVa. Even though he is a former Duke player, he is by far the least objectionable of all former Dookies in the coaching profession. He has ties to the state of Virginia and the ACC so I think he will listen when UVa comes calling (after the tourney). He is a good recruiter so I'd be happy with that hire (if Tubby says no).

  • I am a little ashamed to admit that I watch "Celebrity Apprentice." This year's cast is pretty weak. I still don't know why Kim Kardashian is a celebrity so imagine my disappointment that Khloe Kardashian is on this show. Also, how is a former briefcase model on "Deal or No Deal" considered a celebrity? Brian McKnight tickled the ivories on the last episode -- for my money, it doesn't get any better than when he sings "Anytime." Great slow jam.
  • Sick of basketball brackets? This bracket is funnier and you will waste more time on it. The smart money is on Dr. Shasta Kielbasa.
http://nameoftheyear.blogspot.com/

  • I am not a Redskins fan, but Chris Cooley might be my favorite player in the league. After he made a comment about not wanting to be traded to Cleveland (after rumors were floating around), he received a lot of hate mail from Browns fans. His response below is great:
http://chriscooley47.blogspot.com/2009/03/dear-dennis.html

  • "Eastbound and Down" is yet another great show on HBO. It is about a washed-up major league pitcher -- a reliever in the mold of Mitch "Wild Thing" Williams or John Rocker -- who comes back to his hometown to teach a high school gym class while he waits to get called back to the majors. Check out the mildly inappropriate clips below.




Sunday, March 15, 2009

March Madness 2009


I have been blogging about nothing but basketball recently, but it's March -- so get used to it. The brackets came out tonight, and I think the committee made the right decisions for the most part (although I don't think Arizona should have gotten in). To me, the most intriguing 1st round match-ups are as follows: UCLA-VCU, LSU-Butler, Boston College-USC, West Virginia-Dayton, and Tennessee-Oklahoma State. I would not be shocked to see VCU win two games in this year's tourney. Even though I am not a huge fan of office pools, I will fill out a bracket for office use this year. [http://chopculture.blogspot.com/2008/03/march-madness-pools-bad-gus-johnson.html]


I don't want to post my entire bracket on here (in case co-workers read this post and steal my brilliant picks), but I will reveal my national champion (PITT) and my sleeper pick (GONZAGA). My overrated pick goes to SYRACUSE -- I see them losing in the 2nd round. I am pumped about this year's bracket. I am very confident that we will not see all four #1 seeds in Detroit. Per usual, Dickie V has all the #1 seeds advancing to the Final Four. I think Dickie V fills out his bracket in 30 seconds or less.

If you need some more inspiration to get excited for the madness, please enjoy a video compilation of the best March Madness announcer ever -- Gus "Rise n Fire" Johnson:

Thursday, March 5, 2009

All-ACC Predictions

I have been following ACC hoops for over 20 years. Ever since high school, I have tried to predict the All-ACC teams before they are released. I am usually pretty close. This year's first team is the most difficult all-conference team I have ever tried to predict. I think there are 10 players worthy of first team consideration. The official awards are released on Monday, but my picks are as follows:

1ST TEAM ALL-ACC

Ty Lawson (UNC) - Gets my vote for ACC Player of the Year.
Tyler Hansbrough (UNC) - Not dominant but leads league in scoring.
Tyrese Rice (BC) - Carried an average team to at-large consideration.
Gerald Henderson (DU) - Edged out Singler based on 2nd half of season.
Jack McClinton (Miami) - Clutch shooter, hits 47% of threes.

2ND TEAM ALL-ACC

Toney Douglas (FSU) - Would be 1st team any other year.
Jeff Teague (Wake) - Ditto.
Kyle Singler (DU) - Duke's best all-around player.
Greivis Vasquez (MD) - Had triple-double against UNC.
Trevor Booker (CU) - Best post-up scorer and rebounder in ACC.

3RD TEAM ALL-ACC

A.D. Vassallo (VT) - Can create own shot, led league in minutes played.
Malcolm Delaney (VT) - 2nd in minutes played and free throw pct.
Danny Green (UNC) - Heels' most consistent player all year.
James Johnson (Wake) - Solid inside presence for the Deacons.
Gani Lawal (GT) - 2nd in rebounds and FG pct. albeit with worst team.

I'd give strong honorable mention to K.C. Rivers (Clemson), Wayne Ellington (UNC), and Brandon Costner (NC State). 1st team was very difficult to decide -- I really like watching Douglas and Teague play so it's hard for me to leave them off of 1st team, but who can I take off? McClinton is money in crunch time. Rice carried his team and will get votes because he has been 1st team in the past. Henderson developed a jump shot. In my opinion, Lawson and Hansbrough are the only locks for first team. I think the Charlotte Observer was insane to write that Hansbrough might not make first team.

OTHER AWARDS

All-Freshmen team: Landesberg (UVa), Shumpert (GT), Davis (UNC), Alabi (FSU), and Aminu (Wake)

Player of the Year: Lawson (UNC)

Coach of the Year: Leonard Hamilton (FSU)

Sunday, March 1, 2009

10 Random Burning Questions

The following are rhetorical questions, but feel free to answer them:

10) During the porn version of the Oscars, has anyone ever cried during an acceptance speech? Have they ever given a lifetime achievement award?

9) Has crime in D.C. decreased since the Washington Bullets changed its name to the Wizards?

8) Who likes Facebook more: college co-eds, stay at home moms, stalkers, or the human resources department at your company?

7) Was “COPS” the first modern-day reality TV show?

6) If Fig Newtons are truly fruit and cake – and not cookies – why are they in the cookie aisle in the grocery store?

5) Why does MLB’s National League Central division have 6 teams while the American League West has 4 teams (and each other division has 5 teams)? Don’t tell me it’s all about geography because the St. Louis Rams are in the NFC West in the NFL.

4) Why does biweekly mean “every two weeks” while biannual means “twice a year”?

3) Who is the dead man that discontinued Hi-C Ecto Cooler?

2) Why didn’t Teen Wolf’s “condition” appear until age 17 and, more importantly, why didn’t he play college hoops?

1) What did Neil Patrick Harris do between March 24, 1993 (the last episode of “Doogie Howser, M.D.”) and September 19, 2005 (the first episode of “How I Met Your Mother”)?