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“College Football–From Bad to Worse”
==============

And you thought ‘Black Friday’ was awful 3-weeks ago.

Now this for what is left for the Pac 12, that became the Pac 10 (post UCLA-USC), then was down to the Pac 4, when everyone else defected to the Big 10 and Big 12.

And as the sun comes up in the morning, it looks like the sun has set on West Coast football.

The latest is what has just happened on Tobacco Road, home of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

If things weren’t bad enough with what USC-UCLA did, followed by what Oregon-Washington and the four corner schools did, now what is happening in the Bay Area.

The ACC is about to become an 18-team conference, that will stretch from New England to Miami, and now to the Bay Area.

Stanford and Cal, plus SMU, are about to be admitted to the ACC.

It’s all part of a big money plunge, that puts the ACC brand on the West Coast, for what that is worth.

A week ago, 7-schools spoke out against letting Cal-Stanford join.  A week later, because ESPN made an upgraded TV offer, the ACC members have changed their mind.

They agreed to a 72M-extension of its current TV deal that goes till 2036, if they take in the Cardinal-Golden Bears-and Mustangs, eventhough none of their football programs brings much to the ACC, or the fact basketball success is negligible.

I’ve spent weeks talking about the blood on the hands of the Pac 12-Presidents.  Now the dirty deal behind closed doors from the ACC leaders.  The victims, the football fans out here..

Reports the ACC will give minimal TV money to Stanford-Cal, and no TV money to SMU for the first five years they are in the league.  That means there will be some 55M-additional TV money to be split among the other ACC schools, including bonus payments for bowl games.

They may also cave in for extra bonus shares that convince Florida State-Clemson-Miami to stay in the league.

And as the sun comes up, there are only two left in what was the Conference of Champions, Oregon State and Washington State.  Horrible news in Corvallis and Pullman.  Probably good news for the Mountain West to take on the Beavers and Cougars.

But at the end of the day, the Pac 12 is gone forever, Stanford and Cal take on enormous travel costs, and the Mountain West is still a Group of 5-conference, nothing more, though football will be fun.

Just when you thought it couldn’t get worse, we get this.  Look to the sky.  It’s like a mushroom cloud settling over what was such a good conference once upon a time.

Pick any phrase you want, ‘Greed is Good’, .’Money Talks-People Walk’….or ‘Everyone has a price’

I hate funerals.  And this is one no one wants to go to, what was done to the Pac 12-Conference..
========================

==============

“College Football–From Bad to Worse”

==============

 

And you thought ‘Black Friday’ was awful 3-weeks ago.

 

Now this for what is left for the Pac 12, that became the Pac 10 (post UCLA-USC), then was down to the Pac 4, when everyone else defected to the Big 10 and Big 12.

 

And as the sun comes up in the morning, it looks like the sun has set on West Coast football.

 

The latest is what has just happened on Tobacco Road, home of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

 

If things weren’t bad enough with what USC-UCLA did, followed by what Oregon-Washington and the four corner schools did, now what is happening in the Bay Area.

 

The ACC is about to become an 18-team conference, that will stretch from New England to Miami, and now to the Bay Area.

 

Stanford and Cal, plus SMU, are about to be admitted to the ACC.

 

It’s all part of a big money plunge, that puts the ACC brand on the West Coast, for what that is worth.

 

A week ago, 7-schools spoke out against letting Cal-Stanford join.  A week later, because ESPN made an upgraded TV offer, the ACC members have changed their mind.

 

They agreed to a 72M-extension of its current TV deal that goes till 2036, if they take in the Cardinal-Golden Bears-and Mustangs, eventhough none of their football programs brings much to the ACC, or the fact basketball success is negligible.

 

I’ve spent weeks talking about the blood on the hands of the Pac 12-Presidents.  Now the dirty deal behind closed doors from the ACC leaders.  The victims, the football fans out here..

 

Reports the ACC will give minimal TV money to Stanford-Cal, and no TV money to SMU for the first five years they are in the league.  That means there will be some 55M-additional TV money to be split among the other ACC schools, including bonus payments for bowl games.

 

They may also cave in for extra bonus shares that convince Florida State-Clemson-Miami to stay in the league.

 

And as the sun comes up, there are only two left in what was the Conference of Champions, Oregon State and Washington State.  Horrible news in Corvallis and Pullman.  Probably good news for the Mountain West to take on the Beavers and Cougars.

 

But at the end of the day, the Pac 12 is gone forever, Stanford and Cal take on enormous travel costs, and the Mountain West is still a Group of 5-conference, nothing more, though football will be fun.

 

Just when you thought it couldn’t get worse, we get this.  Look to the sky.  It’s like a mushroom cloud settling over what was such a good conference once upon a time.

 

Pick any phrase you want, ‘Greed is Good’, .’Money Talks-People Walk’….or ‘Everyone has a price’

 

I hate funerals.  And this is one no one wants to go to, what was done to the Pac 12-Conference..

========================

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“AFC-West–What’s Happening”
==============

The final weekend of the preseason schedule is upon us, then roster cuts, then the opening of the NFL season.

A look see at the always popular AFC-West and headlines for each team:

CHARGERS…The starters in the skill positions have not played a snap in any of the games, but you know this offense will be explosive with Justin Herbert, Austin Ekeler, Mike Williams, Keenan Allen, Gerald Everett.

Kellen Moore’s playbook from Dallas will be worth watching.

1st round pick Quinton Johnston is going thru quite a learning curve.  Making catches and dropping balls too.  Josh Palmer has not had much time because of injuries, but you still trust his 72-catch season.  Jaylen Guyton, once a big play guy, has not played slow to rebound from knee surgery last year.  Has he lost his speed? Has he suffered a setback? Is he being pushed out of a job?

Kick return Derious Davis has hauled a punt back for an 81Y score but also dropped a punt and got blasted making a bad decision in traffic.

Isaiah Spiller and Josh Kelly look like they will both stay and get snaps when tough yards are necessary.

Interesting to see the growth of Stone Smart is catching lots of balls, but questions remain if he can block if he is on the field?

The offensive front looks so solid, and young guards Zion Johnson and Jam Salyer have played alot of snaps to get used to new positions.  These guys could be unsung heroes in what I believe will be a very good offensive line.

Defensively who knows, because the starters have not played.  How healthy is DT-Austin Johnson, who needs to team with Sebastian Day to plug a porous run defense upfront.  CJ Okoye has been active, with a sack, a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, but he is so raw.  Who knows how he plays when he lines up against Pro Bowl offensive lineman?  Joey Bosa will get double duty sacks.

We know Eric Kendricks track record with the Minnesota Vikings.  We know so much is expected of Kenneth Murray.  But there may be athleticism coming in the form of Daylan Henley, hyper-active in these preseason games.  He looks like a real player.  Depth is an issue.

In the secondary, there is Derwin James, yet to play.  There is Asante Samuel, who makes plays and then gets beat.  There is Michael Davis looking to build out on a breakout season last year.  How they all fit when the season opener arrives remains to be seen.   The kids have gotten a ton of snaps in the two preseason games.  Some good plays by Ja Sir Taylor and JT Woods, but they have given up chunk plays too.  Call it a learning experience.

The kicking game looks solid, whether that is Cam Dicker or Dustin Hopkins.

-0-

DENVER…So much expected from Sean Payton, so many injuries to start the preseason.

His top running back Javante Williams, coming off knee surgery, has yet to play though they say he will be in the starting lineup on opening day.

It’s been really tough with on going injuries to the receiver group.  Losing Tim Patrick and KJ Hamlin is devastating.  Yes there is Jerry Jeudy, but can you keep him off the injured list?  This is a real problem.

Russell Wilson has a new lease on life with Payton’s playbook.

The defense was so strong last year, buy has little depth.  An ailing Barrett Browning at LB is not good news.  Work in progress on defense.

RAIDERS…Jim Garopplo says he will be there opening day but how long he stays on the field remains to be seen.  His stats and won-loss record are impressive, but so scary is the list of injuries that keep taking him off the field.

The Josh Jacobs saga will end by opening day and then we see if he is the heavy duty guy he was a year ago.

Davante Adams, a healthy Hunter Renfrow and whomever they run out at tight end will need to stay on the field.

The defense looks much more athletic and now you add the fire that Marcus Peters brings to a young secondary.  It may be this team goes as far as the young but rebuilding defense plays.

CHIEFS…Nothing has changed.  Andy Reid is there.  Patrick Mahomes is there.  Travis Kelce has lots of mileage on him but will give you 17-weeks of mayhem at tight end.  They keep finding young skilled athletes for the skill positions.  Interesting to see if Ike Pacheco’s second year is as dynamic as year one.

Lost in all the conversation is how they rebuilt that defense.  They have drafted edge-speed to change the pass rush.  They have guys in the secondary who can run.  They adedd a smart ex Charger Drue Tranquil.

They will be Kansas City as usual-pretty explosive, and the champs till somebody knocks them off the perch.

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“AZTECS…A VERY DIFFERENT SEASON”
===============

San Diego State opens the football season on Saturday at Ohio University,in what could be the start to a very different season.

Season openers can be really scary games, if there have been coaching changes or quarterback changes.  You walk into a game wondering if what you saw on tape from a team’s games last year, will be different or not?

Brady Hoke blew up the offensive side of his coaching staff and this team will be very different this year when they have the ball.  They have to be.  Who can forget the dismal first half of the season, ranked behind Army, Navy, Air Force, who run the option-wishbone?

Tim Albin, the Bobcats coach, lost his do everything QB at the end of last season, and no one is revealing whether starter Kurt Rourke or his backup CJ Harris will be the starter.  Both are players.  They are different, so Hoke’s defense may face different challenges depending who runs the offense.

Hoke had to replace all 3-starters in his defensive front and change out linebackers, so Ohio has no idea what the Aztecs will do up front on defense, such an important part to SDSU’s dominance over the years.

Albin has tape to look at, from out of town.  It’s Utah Utes game tapes and the way they run and throw to a double tight end offense.  That might give him a glance at what SDSU is, in Ryan Lindley’s new look offensive package.

Both the Aztecs and Bobcats played Toledo last year, the only common opponent.  State outslugged the Rockets for a win.  The Bobcats went  hammer and tong in playing the Rockets last year.

Both teams have  a history of toughness, so this might be a field goal kicking contest before it is over.  This might be a street fight too before it is over.  The Aztecs have imposed their will on teams, pounding the ball and mugging quarterbacks.  The Bobcats, return 16-starters from a team that beat up a very good Miami of Ohio team at the end of the season.

Hoke came from Michigan.  Albin was part of a successful staff led by Frank Solich, who came to Ohio from Nebraska.

Hoke’s team needs a win for other reasons too  SDSU’s season ticket base has eroded badly after just one year at Snapdragon Stadium.  The coach says winning sells tickets, but San Diego fans want to see offense.

The game is important to show Hoke has not lost contact with reality about modern day offensive football, especially after last year’s QB-debacle that forced him to play five different signal callers.  Thankfully for him, Jalen Mayden took the job at mid seaso and had big games statistically.  SDSU needs to open it up and win.

And the first game in Week Zero is important, because UCLA and Oregon State loom just ahead before the end of September for SDSU.

So we find out Saturday at 4pm.

Can Hoke regain the personality of what made State great during his tenure, this cement tough defense?  Can Maden make SDSU electric, running and throwing?  Will the new ’12’ offense, with the double tight end package,open up the passing game?  Will the new defensive front jell?  Will 3-newcomers in the offensive line fill the holes that led to the QB mess last season?  Who wins the run game fight, Keon Christon or the Ohio front?

Can Albin’s tough guy team handle the tough guy way San Diego State play’s defense?  Will Ohio’s coach come up with a defensive plan to control the tight ends?  Can the Bobcats overwhelm a new look OL?  Will Maden be able to cope with pressure, since he did not in a couple of losing games last season?

We shall see come Saturday at 4pm,  Aztecs-Bobcats in what could be a very different football season.

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“PADRES-GIVE THEM LAST RIGHTS”
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It’s so hard to be a fan of the Padres.
It’s almost impossible to have hope when you keep having disappointments
It’s tough not to rage in anger at all the money spent for a team dead in water
It’s impossible to not sound off about who is to blame for this mess.

Where do you start when you analyze this mess?

PETER SEIDLER..How can you criticize a man who spent (243M) of his wealth to build a legacy.

AJ PRELLER…Guess the fan who held up the sign “DFA-AJ” in left field summarizes what the off season might be like for the GM

BOB MELVIN..You can pick any topic and there will be some blame.

MANNY MACHADO..Grinds, plays great on defense, a really substandard season at bat.  Now hitting (.249).  Can’t get out of my mind his comments about ‘look at back of my baseball card’ or dissing on not wanting ‘band-wagon fans in the stadium’.  That and a near month long stretch hitting in the (.150s)

JUAN SOTO..Rallie back, tailed off, hitting (.261)-that’s some 30–point below his Washington Nationals average.  Defense is left is spotty.  Great he has 106-walks..but he has 106-strikeouts too.  Spent months so out of sync, he was a mechanical mess.  All this for a potential 40M a year deal.

XANDER BOEGAERTS…Banged up wrist-has been adequate but not as productive as he was with the Red Sox..hitting (.265) with limited power

FERNANDO TATIS…Good stretches-electronic play-bad stretches…Who would think he would hit (.109) in one stretch?  But he is a catalysts that makes things happen.

HA SEONG-KIM..Spectacular season, maybe more popular than anyone on the roster, and is now at a legitimate (.278-16HR) star status.  And what a glove.

TRENT GRISHAM…Love the glove-hate the at bats and a team leading (131-strikeouts).  What an enigma

JAKE CRONENWORTH..A struggle of a season, hovering around (.200) for half the season..hitting better post All Star break..superbe glove work at 1st base.

GARY SANCHEZ…16-home runs and throwing base runners out stealing, but hitting in low .200s

LUIS CAMPUSANO..Looks as if he has arrived, hitting (.309) with a bit of pop in his bat and seems settled in catching the ball

GARRETT COOPER-JI MAN CHOI…Trade acquisitions blew up in face, a combined (5-35) and Choi is hurt, a mess

DAVID DAHL-ADAM ENGLE..Wasted guaranteed money-now gone (a combined (1-15)

MATT CARPENTER-NELSON CRUZ-ROUGNED ODOR..What a disaster- Carpenter gets (12M) over two years, hitting (.170) and is almost permanently benched….Cruz hot hurt, didn’t really hit and left (.245) and no one picked him up..Odor (.203) was a pick me up chemistry guy but was cut loose again.

BRANDON DIXON..Last seen hitting (.203)

JOSE AZOCAR…up and down from El Paso, hitting (.236) and knows flight schedule back and forth to El Paso

AUSTIN NOLA….Lost ability to hit, still getting paid with his (.146) batting average.

If that’s not bad enough, the bottom half of the roster, the teams critical offensive stats are awful too.

Add in losing all these series to the staggering Arizona Diamondbacks…Royals..Pirates…Washington, and you know why they are so far out of the pennant race and nearly out of the wild card race.

And even if they found a way to get the last wildcard spot, what chance does this team have against the Braves..Dodgers..Phillies?

Need a priest to administer “LAST RIGHTS’ to this team.

Hard to be a Padres fan right now.
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