College Hoops- Preview

In my opinion, there is absolutely NOTHING as exciting in sports as march madness. It's hard to imagine that college sports are about to be in full swing. College football (conference championships, bowl games, etc.) and college basketball combine to make an thrilling time of the year for sports junkies like me. College basketball can also help get your mind off other sports (cough,cough....ole miss....Mississippi State...). So let's start this preview. Here's this year's preseason top 25. (Note the margin between the number of first place votes between UNC and Kentucky)

ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll
RK	TEAM	RECORD	PTS
1	North Carolina (30)	0-0	774
2	Kentucky (1)	0-0	721
3	Ohio State	0-0	702
4	Connecticut	0-0	655
5	Syracuse	0-0	649
6	Duke	0-0	635
7	Vanderbilt	0-0	567
8	Louisville	0-0	514
9	Memphis	0-0	482
10	Florida	0-0	474
11	Pittsburgh	0-0	471
12	Baylor	0-0	358
13	Kansas	0-0	331
14	Wisconsin	0-0	313
15	Xavier	0-0	277
16	Arizona	0-0	269
17	Alabama	0-0	194
18	Michigan	0-0	187
19	Texas A&M	0-0	161
20	UCLA	0-0	147
21	Marquette	0-0	145
22	Cincinnati	0-0	141
23	Gonzaga	0-0	125
24	California	0-0	111
25	Missouri	0-0	110

• Others receiving votes: Florida State 108, Texas 107, Michigan State 73, Temple 59, Washington 29, Butler 25, New Mexico 22, Creighton 19, Villanova 18, Purdue 17, UNLV 16, West Virginia 13, George Mason 12, Mississippi State 11, St. John's 11, Saint Mary's 5, Virginia 5, Virginia Commonwealth 4, Drexel 2, Kansas State 2, Long Beach State 2, Notre Dame 1, Brigham Young 1

The Power Conferences

1. Big  East

This comes as no surprise to anyone, but the Big East is poised to be the conference to beat this year.  With 10 teams receiving votes in the above poll, the Big East is looking strong this year.

    2.ACC

The ACC should probably be renamed to the ABC (Atlantic Basketball Conference). This conference LIVES for basketball. With some of the most talented teams in college basketball (UNC, Duke, WV), this is the conference that is most likely going to beat the Big East this year.

Sleeper Conferences

1. SEC

With 2 teams in the preseason top 10 this year and teams loaded with raw talent (Alabama, Mississippi State, and Ole Miss), look for the SEC to get hot this year around March Madness.

    2. Big 12 (10 or 9.... I forget.)

With teams like Texas and Kansas, all 9 or 10 teams in the Big 12 will be pushed to be better better this season. Look at K-State or Texas A&M as specific sleepers this year to win this conference.

The Best of the Rest

1. Xavier
2. Temple
3. Butler
4. George Mason
5. Saint Mary's
6. Murrah State
7. Virginia Commonwealth
8. Belmont
9. Harvard
10. Cornell

With ALL of that said, I'm really hoping for some crazy good basketball this winter.

Friday Night Writes: Thursday Edition- MCHS @ Northwest Rankin HS

What you are about to read is the preview to arguably the most anticipated regular season game of this year in the state of Mississippi.

Madison Central High School VS. Northwest Rankin High School

The Jaguars will walk into Cougar Stadium this Thursday night a very hot team. The Jaguars, ranked #5 by clarionledger.com's Super 10 rankings, average nearly 33 points a game and nearly 330 rushing yards a game. As hot as the Jaguars are, the #4 NWR cougars are even hotter. The winners of 9 straight games are averaging nearly 30 points a game. Plus, they're playing pretty good defense, especially on the D-line. NWR's defense is averaging 2.5 sacks a game ( but we'll talk about that later).

This is a heated rivalry game and I've talked to several fans on both sides. So I'll tell you what the average arguement is on both sides:

• NWR: "We're undefeated. 9-0. What's y'all's record? That's right. 7-2."
• MCHS: "We've played better teams! We have a harder schedule! Y'all can barely beat a 4A team ( NWR beat Mendenhall 47-44 in a very close game)!"

This discussion might be ended with several harsh words form both sides.

NWR is led by RB Ramone Nash.  This man, or beast, is AVERAGING 163 yards a game. AVERAGING!   He also accounts for nearly 2 touchdowns a game for the Cougars. QB Reid Humphreys isn't too shabby throwing the ball either( 105 yds/gm passing).NWR can play some defense, too. Their D is led by LB Daniel Myrick and DL Will Freeman, both of whom are tackling machines. However, the Cougars have struggled against the run at time this season, giving up 305 yards against Mendenhall.

Madison Central's rushing attack is one of the most potent in the state. Led by Senior QB Drew Rowell, who is good with his feet, averaging nearly 7 yards/ carry. The Jags main problem is that their offense is one dimensional, averaging about 40 yards a game through the air. However, unlike the Cougars, the Jags have a unpredictable defense. The secondary is the main question in my opinion.

Keys to the Game

• The Cougars, as mentioned before, have an excellent defensive line. During the game, they will begin to key in on the Jags rushing plays. The Jags must keep the Cougars on their heels by choosing different plays in different formations, or by utilizing the play-action passing game.
• The Jags have a fairly good defensive line led by DE Martez Simpson. The key for the Jags defense is to not let Ramone Nash into the secondary. Once in the secondary, Nash will likely torch the shaky unit. About 75% of the TD's that the Jags D has allowed have been long plays of 40+ yards. Easy TD's will translate into a easy win fore the Cougars.
• The right Cougars defense has to show up. Not the same defense that gave up 305 yards to Mendenhall.
• This is the key that I think will determine this game. As when any 2 closely matched teams play, special teams is important. Win special teams and the game will probably be easier to win.

Prediction- I'm not sure who will win but I have a feeling that team will win...
42-39 in OT.

A Few Videos in Anticipation of the MCHS @ NWR Football Game

Yeah, it's a pretty big deal. More to come tomorrow.

The Weekend Depth Chart

The weekend review by Good-Win! Sports Blog.

First String

• As I sit here and write this, Game #5 of the World Series is being played. And after rereading my last weekend depth chart prediction about the Fall Classic, I KNOW I was absolutely correct about this being a good world series. This has been one of the best World Series since '03( Marlins vs. Yankees). The Marlins have long since fallen from glory, but that series lasted 6 games. Watching this World Series, it's hard not to pull for Ron Washington and Josh Hamilton. Hamilton has a great life story. Check it out. 
• Well, there's another prediction I was not completely wrong about ( I wasn't right either). Texas Tech defeated Oklahoma. So my prediction of a SEC vs Big 12 National Championship isn't wrong. However, right now it looks like Oklahoma State in the National Championship game instead of Oklahoma.
• Another upset of a top 5 team. This play says it all.

Second String

• Wow. Absolutely did not see this coming. Ole Miss played well against #9 Arkansas. Very well. Props to Houston Nutt for preparing his players for war. It came down to the wire, and the difference in the game was one intangible. Arkansas knew how to win. However, most Ole Miss fans were happy with this effort by the Rebels. I would be too.

Preview

• The game of the year in MHSAA football this year takes place this Thursday at Northwest Rankin High School. The Cougars, ranked # 3 in the state by the Clarion Ledger,  will take on the #7 ranked Jaguars of Madison Central. This game features 2 of the best rushing attacks in the state.

The Weekend Depth Chart

OK, so this isn't a real depth chart, but it is a fairly creative way for me to sum up this past weekend in sports.

First String

• The "Top 3" in college football had an excellent weekend outscoring opponents 137- 31. And let's face it the SEC will probably be decided on November 11th at Bryant- Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa. Oklahoma has a fairly easy schedule with their toughest game being at Oklahoma State. To me, it's looking like a Big 12 vs. SEC match up in the National Championship game.
• This year's Fall Classic is setup with the Rangers playing the Cardinals. Yes, the Rangers are the logical choice. Yes, on paper they look very, very good. And believe me, they ARE very, very good. However, there is one intangible that the Cards posses that is very important in all playoff situations. They are hot. Smoking hot. This year's World Series is looking very promising for ALL fans of baseball.
• We learned several things this past Sunday. You can only contain Tom Brady for 57 minutes. Sean Payton is hurt. And this (might?) affect his team. And Handshakes can be offensive.

Second String
(For this section, we'll highlight admirable effort)

• Mississippi State played very well for a team who has been spiraling downward. They gave the #15 USC Gamecocks a real scare. Tyler Russell didn't play great, but put his team in a position to win. And isn't that all you can really ask from a redshoirt sophmore? Connor Shaw looked OK too, using his legs to help the Gamecocks to a win.
• Texas played much better than I expected (and a lot of other people) . They played the #4 team in the BCS rankings extremely well.'
• Admirable effort indeed. Watch #21. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wJF6s9MtOM&feature=related

Injury Report
(Real Injuries)

• Sean Payton, Coach NO Saints- Out for a couple of days.
• Marcus Lattimore,RB USC Gamecocks- out for season
• I told you i wouldnt report on NASCAR, so I won't. But INDYCAR lost driver Dan Wheldon in a horrible crash this weekend. Our prayers are with his family.

Friday Night Writes: MCHS @ Vicksburg High School

The Madison Central Jaguars(5-2) travel to Vicksbug to take on the Vicksburg High School Gators (3-4).

The Jaguars, ranked #7 in the state by maxpreps.com, are lead by senior quarterback Drew Rowell who has 641 rushing yards on the year. Meanwhile, the Gators are lead by quarterback Cameron Cooksey who has lit up the recordbooks at Vicksburg by throwing for over 2,200 yards this season.

The Jaguars, who seem to have a shaky secondary at best, must face one the state's best passing offenses. The Gators' offense will also boast one of the states best WR's. AJ Stamps has nearly 1,000 recieving yards this season, and is averaging 11.4 points a game this season. The Gators look like a formidable foe.

With injury questions at fullback (Hugh Warren), the jags will rely on junior fullback Daniel Goodspeed to take the pitch on the option from Drew Rowell.

So the Jags will have to rely on a deep front 7 on defense led by DE's LJ Hollins and Martez Simpson. The key for this game will be to either get to Gator QB Cameron Cooksey quick to disrupt his timing or to jam the WR's. Or possibly both. Get to the quarterback quick, and the Jaguar secondary will have chances to make some plays on the ball.

The Jags seem to have one thing the Gators don't. Bobby Hall has taught them how to win.

Prediction: MCHS- 28, VHS- 10

QUICK! College Football Preview

Key-word here: Quick.

20 Baylor @ 21 Texas A&M(aTm)- As much as I like RG3, aTm is probably going to manhandle them. aTm is an underrated team in my opinion. aTm- 35, Baylor- 17

15 USC @ Miss. State- With Steven Garcia gone, this game will be close. MSU is the home team, and therefore will have a loud, ringing advantage. MSU- 31, USC- 28 (OT)

1 LSU @ Tenn.- Tenn. has zero chance in my mind. LSU has already beaten other, better teams. Not close in my mind. LSU- 45, Tenn.- 3

6 OK. St. @ 22 Texas- OK St. has an amazing offense. Texas has a pretty good defense. Might be a good game. Probably not. AMAZING OFFENSE>PRETTY GOOD DEFENSE. OK St.- 42, TX- 21

2 Alabama @ Ole Miss- Sorry Ole Miss fans. Alabama is just too good. Ole Miss might have a chance to win if they had a QB. Or a defense. Or a good coach. UA- 28, UM- 3

Florida @ 24 Auburn- Honestly, Auburn is just lucky right? I keep telling myself that but if they keep pulling the W's out, they may be more than lucky. Close game. UF- 24, AU-21

Your thoughts?

Welcome! (To You and Me!)

Well, this marks the beginning of a (hopefully successful) journey. I hope that I can give everyone reading this a new and unique way of looking at things in the sports world. I hope to cover several major sports (College Football, College Basketball, College Baseball, NFL, NBA, and MLB) as well as slightly covering (SLIGHTLY!) my local high school football team, THE Madison Central Jaguars.

Why make a blog? Well it's not because I'm a great writer! No, seriously I'm not. In the future, I'd love to have a job in the sports industry, so I figured why not start early? Another thing you should know about me is that I am very opinionated. VERY. So now I have a platform to voice that opinion.

I will admit this was probably not the best timing to start a blog, but I was so excited to start I had to start right now! Why is it not the best time? Well that's an easy question. I'm just too busy. Way. Too. Busy.

Even though I probably won't be able to watch much college football this weekend, I am looking forward to some SEC matchups. We will probably learn something about several of these teams this weekend. (MSU, USC, AU, and UF).

So with these things in mind, Let the games begin! (FINALLY!)