SKSergiokosco: CFB Week 4 Preview

By: Tre Bailey
SKSergioKosco Blogger

By: Tre Bailey  

Week 4 Update

Another big weekend behind us and lots lots more to cover I have been waiting for this day all week long some upsets, standard performances, and disappointments lets dive right in!

Weekly Recap

With week three in the books there are lots of positives and negatives to take away from the weekend. I must admit I hate being wrong and boy was I wrong about LSU Leonard Fournette can literally carry that team on his back. He is the Running Back College football has been looking for since Adrian Peterson at OU. His strength and speed matched with lateral quickness makes him a special weapon. He definitely has my vote for Heisman.

Now before the season started the Defending national champion buckeyes had a lot to look forward to, the ideal quarterback situation has now turned into a problem. With offensive struggles the first 3 weeks of the season it leaves you to believe who the true started should be. A more than close victory and poor performances by both high caliber quarterbacks has every buckeye fan worried. Personally they do not deserve the top spot this week in the AP polls but I guess the computers feel differently than I do. Get it together buckeyes because there are plenty of teams ready to strip you of that title.

I would like to take a moment and state that I was wrong again; if you look back to my week 2 update I was quick to bash the Texas Longhorns, I wasn’t impressed with the bashing they took from ND but they have since improved. While a 1-2 record may not be proof of improvement UT fans can have some hope. First of all Jerrod Heard is the guy no matter what anyone says he is the best option on the roster if Texas wants to win. He makes better down the field reads and his running ability opens up the running lanes for his backs in a read option type system. Defensively they seem to be finding their name, with the weakness being in the secondary. There are 2 freshman corners who I feel should start or at least be given the chance simply because the seniors aren’t that far ahead talent wish of where they should be, correct me if I’m wrong Strong did say if a senior and a freshman are in a close competition the freshman will start. Well Charlie time to show the world what your recruiting has done. I’m looking forward to this weekend’s match up against OKState. The longhorns should be looking to rally after a discouraging 45-44 loss against Cal because of a special teams mistake.

3 of my big games from last week did not disappoint; what a night of college football it was starting off with USC-Stanford. As I said that game is always a tossup, almost all rivalries are; Stanford was able to get that offense together and rally to a 10 point victory against the Trojans and finding their way back into the top 25 rankings.  UCLA-BYU was decided by a whopping 1 point margin it was a great game. Josh Rosen looked like a freshman out there which is unusual but one of the best things for him. This was his reality check and hopefully he learns a great deal from this game. BYU’s defense is so underrated I don’t even know where to begin but a late game push by the Bruins led them to the victory. And the game everyone in the nation except the state of Alabama is happy about and one I am proud to say I was correct on. OLE MISS showed Alabama why they aren’t the best in the SEC anymore. While the Rebels saw a lot of luck, (which I was always told is when Skill meets opportunity) they made the most of it and held a game long lead against the crimson tide. Chad Kelley looked great for the rebels; Jake Cocker on the other hand struggled with turnovers in clutch situations the Bama defense wasn’t able to come up with the big plays when needed and a tired Ole Miss defense fought until the last whistle to become the number 3 team in the nation (Number 2 in my opinion)

This week we also saw some coaching beef which is always a nice change up and fun sight to see. After 3-0 Texas Tech handled Arkansas with ease Coach Kingsbury in the post-game conference took some shots at Bret Bielema addressing some of his pre-season comments that any spread offense he plays is Razorbacks will hand them their “butt” Ill link Kingsbury’s interview below. To me Kingsbury should have just took the win and went on with his day. Arkansas embarrassed the Red Raiders last year, and could have absolutely roasted Kingsbury just let the final score do the talking next time Kliff and go handle business against TCU this weekend!

Games of the week

While there aren’t many interesting undercard matchups this week (at least none that caught my eye) we will review some of the better matchups ranked and unranked.

Tenn vs. Florida- I like this matchup here the SEC opener for Tennessee with Florida winning its conference opener, both programs seem to have found some type of rhythm offensively and defensively. While they are playing at the SWAMP I believe Tennessee’s dynamic offense can outlast the Gators in a 4 quarter shootout as long as the Volvs can hold up defensively I favor them to leave Gainesville with a victory.

Oklahoma State vs. Texas- this will determine the rest of the season for the longhorns. Oklahoma State has been on a roll the past few weeks but haven’t showed any signs of lateral improvement. While I favor the cowboys; the longhorns are growing on me, finding themselves offensively partnered with traditional late game defensive struggles by the Cowboys gives UT some type of a slight edge. If some secondary changes are made on UT’s behalf they have the talent to beat the Cowboys on their home Turf.

Ohio State vs. Western Michigan- while this isn’t a huge match up it is one for the buckeyes; if the buckeyes can’t find themselves offensively they will be in trouble entering BIG10 play in the coming weeks, the Buckeyes aren’t playing like they just won a national title which is worrisome for many fans.

TCU v. Texas Tech- this matchup will be interesting while TCU will look to blow out the Red Raiders playing in Lubbock isn’t easy. It also isn’t easy to play against a quarterback who has thrown for just over 1000 yards already this season and a Raider team who is coming off of a SEC victory look for Tech to put up more than a fight in this high scoring affair.

Miss St vs. Auburn- this is the second best matchup in the SEC both teams look to recover from conference losses both respectively losing to LSU; both programs look to throw their name back in the hat for potential SEC contenders.

Now there are only 2 top 25 matchups this week which unfortunately isn’t that great but both match ups are going to be worth watching as conference foes clash

UCLA vs. Arizona- My boy Josh Rosen looks to show growth and maturity after last week’s poor performance against BYU. While he is just a freshman and people won’t expect much I see past the classification politics and look at sheer athleticism and leadership. With Arizona’s Capitan Linebacker Scooby Wright still questionable from a knee injury look for the Bruins to take advantage of that in the running game opening up down the field play action passes and take advantage of a hurt Arizona program both offensively and defensively.

Oregon vs. Utah- Oregon is missing something in their program, they don’t seem to have the same flare as they have in years past and the demoralizing loss to Michigan St hasn’t helped any. I favor the defense of Utah being able to hang with the high octane Oregon offense. Look for Utah to slow the pace of the game and keep that offense off of the field and their defense well rested.

Quick shout out to the Memphis Tigers starting off 4-0 winning their conference opener Thursday night against Cincinnati 53-46

Kingsbury Post Game Interview excerpt

Top Plays of the week



Top 25 Provided by Associated Press:

RANK	TEAM	RECORD	POINTS	LAST WEEK
1	Ohio State (42)	3-0	1,490	1
2	Michigan State (7)	3-0	1,415	4
T3	Mississippi (11)	3-0	1,345	15
T3	TCU	3-0	1,345	3
5	Baylor	2-0	1,213	5
6	Notre Dame	3-0	1,183	8
7	Georgia	3-0	1,162	7
8	LSU (1)	2-0	1,088	13
9	UCLA	3-0	981	10
10	Florida State	3-0	953	9
11	Clemson	3-0	903	11
12	Alabama	2-1	882	2
13	Oregon	2-1	855	12
14	Texas A&M	3-0	798	17
15	Oklahoma	3-0	782	16
16	Arizona	3-0	488	20
17	Northwestern	3-0	469	23
18	Utah	3-0	439	21
19	Southern California	2-1	367	6
20	Georgia Tech	2-1	352	14
21	Stanford	2-1	288	NR
22	BYU	2-1	174	24
22	Wisconsin	2-1	174	19
24	Oklahoma State	3-0	149	25
25	Missouri	3-0	352	22

Nick Diaz and the aftermath of the " Death Sentence"

Nick Diaz and the aftermath of the "Death Sentence"

 

By: Dylan Smith

 

  A week after the Nevada State Athletic Commission handed down an extremely controversial 5 year ban and a hefty $165,000 fine to UFC fighter Nick Diaz, there has been immediate backlash against the commission from not only fans, but from fighters such as women's bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey who believes marijuana shouldn't even be tested for, and former Olympic wrestler and now #1 flyweight contender Henry Cejudo vowing not to fight in Las Vegas until Diaz' suspension has been lifted. MMA personality Joe Rogan also went on record showing his support, and even the pound-for-pound best boxer in the world Floyd Mayweather commented on the situation, saying "Let the man smoke weed and enjoy his life". There was also a petition created for the Obama administration to lift the ban from Diaz that needs 100,000 signatures and as of today has over 53,000. You can support Diaz and sign the petition here https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/lift-nsac-ban-mma-fighter-nick-diaz . 

 

This was not the first time Diaz has tested positive for marijuana in his career. He also tested positive in 2007 fighting under the PRIDE banner when he failed his pre fight drug test which caused his submission win over Takanori Gomi to be changed to a no contest along with a 6 month suspension and a 20% fine from his purse earned in the fight. He tested positive again for marijuana metabolites in 2011, after his fight for the interim welterweight championship against Carlos Condit where he was defeated by decision which the commission handed down a 1 year suspension and a 30% fine of his fight purse. 

 

There was little question with those two instances that Diaz was indeed guilty of having the banned substance in his system. Although, following his 2011 test he was able to prove that he owned a medical marijuana license in his home state of California and it was perfectly legal for him to use the drug for medicinal purposes. Regardless, the commission deemed his license insufficient and denied him an exemption, saying he lied in the pre fight questionnaire when he denied the use of any recreational drugs.

 

There are a few reasons there is so much controversy surrounding what has been dubbed the "death sentence" the commission gave Diaz, but one of the main points of argument is the two WADA (World Anti Doping Agency) tests that Diaz passed then later ultimately tested above the threshold when tested by the commission. During the hearing the commission was not willing to acknowledge the two tests that Diaz had passed and based their decision off of the test done by them. Despite great legal representation by Diaz in the form of lawyers and attorneys proving that the commission had a major lack of evidence and any punishment besides the minimal would be unjust, the NSAC ruled that Diaz was indeed guilty and would receive the maximum punishment for his third offense.

 

Watch this video and hear from the man himself on his thoughts of the hearing, the crooks that are the NSAC board members, and what he plans to do in the future. 

(Video courtesy of MMAjunkie.com)

 

 

 

SKSergiokosco: CFB Week 3 Preview

By: Tre Bailey
SKSergioKosco Blogger

By: Tre Bailey  

Week Two has come and gone and week three is now upon us, the excitement of college football is in full effect and as far as the honeymoon phase, well if you get tired of football I recommend you lose your cable subscription until February. As far as my loyal fans out there; sit tight, grab your popcorn, and enjoy the ride.

Weekly Recap
 

Week two did not disappoint me what so ever as there were some absolutely amazing matchups last Saturday. Starting with my game of the night Oregon v. Michigan St, and as I so rightfully called the Spartans shut down that good ole Oregon playoff dream early on this time around. With a bitter taste from last season’s defeat Michigan State was able to pull off a thrilling 38-31 Victory. As a Buckeye fan I am disappointed in Oregon, but at least those squawking duck fans can stay silent for the time being. Talk about thrillers how about that Oklahoma V. Tennessee matchup, Volvs…… I am astonished, disappointed, saddened, whatever negative adjective you would like to place to express my negativity towards how you guys handled the end of that game. I mean you guys lost in 2OT meaning you had more than a snowballs chance in an oven to win… but no you decided to blow the game long lead being outscored 28-7 between the fourth quarter and both overtimes. Oh well it’s in the past, I still have high hopes for your run in the SEC as far as OU goes way to rally and win.

AUBURN what in the world was going on, you could only win by 7 to an FCS school, not to take anything away from the Jacksonville state but seeing how the SEC is supposed to be the “Power conference” and they could only win by a whopping 7 points worries me. It’s not like its Vandy out there, or even Kentucky, its Auburn get it together War Eagle and take it to LSU this weekend. Now while we are on the SEC subject let me just get this out there and anyone is free to comment on this topic. The SEC is no longer the strongest Conference in the NCAA, as I mention Auburns abysmal performance against Jacksonville State I have to bring up Arkansas, I mean not only did they lose they lost to Toledo. These are the cupcake games you schedule to give your walk-on athletes a chance to play before they all redshirt before conference play. Now if you can’t handle these games you are in for a long…. And I mean LONG season razorbacks. Again I do not knock smaller programs and a special shout out to Appalachian St giving it to Michigan some years ago. Oh and only a 7 point win for Mizzou as well….. But the SEC is “the best conference”. Any who back on topic, Mississippi State almost pulled it out losing 21-19 to LSU while almost only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades; this is a sign for Both Miss St and LSU. For Miss St it shows that they will compete until the last whistle blows which is what you like to see from a young football team right? As far as LSU well you aren’t going to win the game only throwing the ball 14 times. Going to have to open up that playbook coach, it’s only a matter of time before Fournette can’t carry the team anymore. As Far as the other games from the weekend no other top 25 team had a really tough match up but I will highlight the top 3 unranked games of the week.

Under Card games of the week
 

College football lives beyond the top 25 so here are my top 3 unraked matchups of the week

 WKU V. LA Tech what a game it was a 48-31 victory for the Hilltoppers didn’t come easy as the bulldogs made a 4^th quarter push to climb to victory With 1,169 yards of combined offense you could say defense wasn’t much of a factor, on the other hand the score line was only a difference of 3 so you can’t sleep on well coached offense. Both Quarterbacks played fantastic games with Ex-Florida QB Jeff Driskell going 28-48 with 357 yards for the bulldogs and Brandon Daughty having a HUGE night going 28-38 with 441 yards. Expect big numbers from both of these boys this year.

      

      Michigan V. Oregon St while Michigan pretty much blew the beavers out of the water the reason I choose this game all bias set aside is for the simple fact that Jim Harbaugh won his first game as a Michigan Wolverine in convincing fashion. After a tough week one match up he was able to rally his troops and put together a full 4 quarters. Well done coach well done.

      

      Lastly Kentucky V. South Carolina. A strong 2-0 start for Kentucky this year doesn’t say much to your average run of the mill program. But for Kentucky all of those years of feeding off of recruits who want to go to the school to see amazing basketball has payed off. It seems as if they are onto something this year, while it may be too early to tell and 2 point victory isn’t much to levy on think of it this way. It’s a conference victory and Kentucky has been know not to be all that good in conference play.

 

What to Watch For
 

As this weekend doesn’t present too much of a wow factor for matchups there are some games that you may want to catch

Auburn V. LSU this will be a test of will, with auburn dropping 12 spots in the rankings this past week due to their poor performance, they look to rebound against a not so strong LSU team. While the Defense is fine LSU has no type of dynamic offense. With a chip on their shoulder this week expect to see Auburn come out on top.

Georgia Tech V. Notre Dame a real first test for ND, the Irish look to continue as that one independent school who reigns supreme. While the classic triple option offense is difficult to scheme against especially when you have a quarterback who can set his feet and let it fly look to see a valiant attempt for GA Tech take on the Irish, it’s a close one But Chip Kelley knows how to use his young QB so I’m giving this one to the luck of the Irish.

Ole Miss V. Alabama this will be a fantastic test for the rebels, if they can walk into Tuscaloosa and win I will respect them more than any organization behind Ohio State. With that being said I don’t believe their offense has it all the way figured out, While Cocker has looked somewhat decent under center this will be his first run at a true SEC defense. I would love to take Ole miss in this upset of the week and I will do just that.

Potential upset alert, USC V. Stanford. Now hear me out, although Stanford lost its season opener they found the offense they were looking for in a 31-7 victory against UCF. Now as I don’t expect Stanford to pull it off against this Stellar USC team keep your eyes open as the history of this game seems to play more than the game itself. Meaning this game tends to be a great game in recent times.

Last but definitely not least…. The independent team that is shocking the nation… UCLA V. BYU 2 consecutive weeks….. 2 times Tanner Mangum has heaved it deep in the waning seconds of the game and his prayers are answered. While one of those times was against a ranked Boise St squad I think his luck may have run out. I have been saying since week one how I’m a fan of Josh Rosen at UCLA and he has yet to disappoint me. He has done nothing but exceed expectations, and seeing help from his relentless defense. I expect UCLA to win but anything is possible.

As I leave you this week be sure to check out the highlight of the week. Tanner Magnum’s late game hail mary to seal a second consecutive victory. Including highlights from the entire game and what a game it was!

This Weeks Top 25 Rankings Provided by Associated Press

RANK	TEAM	RECORD	POINTS	LAST WEEK
1	Ohio State (59)	2-0	1523	1
2	Alabama	2-0	1423	2
3	TCU	2-0	1366	3
4	Michigan State (2)	2-0	1354	5
5	Baylor	2-0	1240	4
6	USC	2-0	1146	8
7	Georgia	2-0	1031	10
8	Notre Dame	2-0	1012	9
9	Florida State	2-0	973	11
10	UCLA	2-0	928	13
11	Clemson	2-0	926	12
12	Oregon	1-1	833	7
13	LSU	1-0	787	14
14	Georgia Tech	2-0	716	15
15	Mississippi	2-0	713	17
16	Oklahoma	2-0	705	19
17	Texas A&M	2-0	703	16
18	Auburn	2-0	519	6
19	BYU	2-0	349	NR
20	Arizona	2-0	342	22
21	Utah	2-0	290	24
22	Missouri	2-0	264	21
23	Northwestern	2-0	170	NR
24	Wisconsin	1-1	158	NR
25	Oklahoma State	2-0	48	NR