Author Archives: ASimPerson

Braves Diary (1/162)

Going to try something a little different. Anyone who knows me knows that my favorite sports team on the planet is the Atlanta Braves, but I don’t write about them very often on the site. So this is just going to be a little column about what I was doing and my thoughts about the course of the game.

The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been base-ball.

I post that quote before the first game of every season on my social media feeds. I don’t know if the original script calls for baseball to be hyphened like that, but James Earl Jones says those two syllables like there’s a hyphen there, and who am I to argue with James Earl Jones?

Naturally, I’m still working from home and the first pitch of this game was around noon, Pacific Time. Generally a Braves game will start well into the afternoon for me, which I find pretty ideal as I try to get stuff done near the end of my day. It was also in the 70’s in San Francisco today, which is pretty rare even in the summer, much less on April 1. It was significantly colder in Philadelphia, with temperatures in the upper-40’s/low-50’s and a stiff 20 mile an hour wind. The players, just recently in Florida, looked as cold as the conditions.

I finally had a gap between meetings during which I could actually watch some of the middle innings, which was just in time to see Pablo Sandoval crush a changeup from Aaron Nola. That was no Citizens Bank cheapie – it was well into the second deck, and one of the hardest hit balls the Panda has had in years. (And due to the conditions, it had to be – almost every other fly ball was affected by the stiff wind.) Even better, it tied the game. The Braves eventually lost in the 10th, but that shot will be one of those we look back on the end-of-year reel in late September and go “man, he crushed that ball”.

The conditions were crummy, but not crummy enough to necessitate the backup opening day, so there’s no game until Saturday. I put together the schedule that you can see on the right last night, and boy howdy we have a lot of nationally televised games this season. That’s what coming within a game of the World Series will do for you.

Georgia Tech, ACC Champions

Today was an interesting day for me. It’s not every day I hike what winds up being 9 miles and then I watch the ACC title game from a rooftop deck in Oakland.

But Saturday, March 13 was like that.

I feel like getting a bit introspective, so you’re just going to have to bear with me here.

Likely the only reason I care about college basketball at all goes back to my freshman year at Georgia Tech, 2003-2004. I didn’t attend a single basketball game that year, so yeah, it’s sufficient to say that I didn’t take much notice. But I did know about the NCAA Tournament, and we were a three seed.

Suddenly, the basketball team became a thing to me. Jarret Jack was definitely the best player, but everyone’s favorite player was probably Will Bynum (whom I know for a fact is shorter than me, we’ll get to that in a bit), plenty of folks liked BJ Elder, and, of course, Luke Schenscher Has a Posse. (And boy howdy could Ish Mohamed dunk a basketball.) That team got through the bracket, with some scrapes closer than other, but the team reached the final four. The RA’s in my freshman dorm put together a watch party in the basement of my dorm.

We entered the semi-final against Oklahoma State as underdogs to one of the last Eddie Johnson Oklahoma State teams, at least according to Jim Nantz and Billy Packer. (And boy howdy, nobody misses Billy Packer, eh?) The game was tight, and tense, with Tech gradually giving up a lead in the second half. Here’s the end of the game:

(Yeah, definitely pumped my first again after Bynum’s layup goes in.)

After the horn sounds we all cleared out of the basement and began wandering out West Campus thinking that we should all be doing something but having absolutely not idea what to do. Which, yeah, it was Georgia Tech, that makes a certain amount of sense.

We don’t need to talk about the national title game.

The next season was equally exciting, but the high point for me was the 2005 game against Wake Forest in a regular season ACC contest. You see, Wake was good then, as they had a guy named Chris Paul manning the point for them. I had joined the Swarm for both football and basketball, with basketball tickets back then being pretty hard to get, even in the Swarm. (I’m pretty sure I camped out for Duke tickets at least once.) The main benefit is what we got to stand on risers right behind the court. It’s hard to describe how much fun that was and how much I miss it.

Anyway, the 2005 Wake game went into overtime. 7 points were scored. 4 points by Jarret Jack, 3 by Chris Paul, and we won. It was the first and only time I had stormed a court. In the milieu of standing on the court with basically everyone else, I found myself standing right next to Will Bynum. Georgia Tech’s media guide had him listed at 5’11”, and I’m here to tell y’all that he was not taller than me, and I’m 5’10”.

The other thing I remember is that the next day was kinda rainy and I was taking the shuttle bus back to my dorm, and I saw Jarret Jack just sitting on the bus just like everyone else. He wound up being an NBA lottery pick after that season and richer than I’ll ever be. At a lot of schools now, at least in football, athletes are fully remote, even in the absence of a global pandemic. But I can report in 2005 he went to at least one class.

The years since then turned to underachieving and Tech trying to make the most of the terrible contract we’d given Paul Hewitt after the final four run. We haven’t made the NCAA tournament since 2010.

That will change now.

The past four years have been rough for Georgia Tech basketball. Starting over under Josh Pastner, he almost immediately got in trouble with the NCAA for poor decision making on his part, that ultimately resulted in the team taking a postseason ban last year. There’s been a player that I’ve liked almost as much as Will Bynum, and he’s unquestionably the heart and soul of this team: Jose Alvarado.

It was extremely appropriate that the ACC title game essentially ended with Alvarado stealing the ball from FSU and passing off for the game sealing assist. I have just known that this dude does not like to lose for the past four years. He’s definitely a guy that most people would describe as “scrappy”. But he guys his way through injuries, and unlike a lot of guys who do, he still makes the team better around him.

Tech suffered two awful losses to begin the year, losses that hurt their shot for an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. The team acknowledged after the game last night that it was extremely low moment for then. Alvarado admitted that he wouldn’t have believed you if you’d told him they’d be ACC Champions after the loss to Mercer.

But here we are. I know that there will be those that say that Tech only played two games in the tournament because UVA had to bow out. That the ACC is down this year. Sure. Fine. But a conference record above .500 – a rare thing indeed. Eight straight wins.

Champions.

Go Jackets!

Bowl Games 2020: Epilogue

Well, I was pretty off about how the course of the game would go. Naturally, I had a meeting during the first hour of the game, which was about the amount of time that it was a competitive game. Alas.

For my bowl predictions this season, I went 0.500 (13-13), which took my lifetime percentage down from 55.4% to 54.9%.

Otherwise, I’m not sure what else to say. I hope we have something approaching a normal 2021 college football season. If I don’t post any other updates to the site before then, well, stay healthy and safe and I’ll see you in August.

Bowl Games 2020: Final

As usual, all times eastern and all predictions wrong.

Monday, January 11

8:00: Alabama vs. Ohio State (CFP Championship Game @ Miami Gardens, FL; ESPN): There are no shortage of variables going into this game. Ohio State is very, very good, but they don’t have the body of work. I mean that in two ways, and I’m not necessarily docking them credit if they do win because they didn’t play enough games. I mean it purely from an analysis perspective. How do we weigh factors like them them running roughshod over Clemson but looking pedestrian against certain other Big Ten teams? What is the extent of Justin Fields’s injury? The latter could be key in the run game if Alabama doesn’t think he’s a credible run threat. That said, he also was presumably no longer a credible run threat in the Clemson game after taking the hit, but that didn’t seem to slow the Ohio State offense down, especially in the second half. But that said, I’m here to just pick winners and losers. I suspect many thing this will be a blowout in Bama’s favor, as though that feels inevitable. I don’t think so. I’m optimistic this will still be a close game that will definitely see the Buckeyes with a chance to win at the end. But… I will still go with the majority in that I don’t think they’ll quite get there. So perhaps if I were a betting guy, I’d go with Ohio State to cover but Bama to win.
SP+ line:  Alabama by 4.3
Vegas line: Bama -8
Watchability tier: IV
Previous meetings: Just four all time. The first was in 1978, a 35-6 Alabama win in the Sugar Bowl. The only regular season meeting was the Kick-Off Classic in the Meadowlands at the start of the 1986 season, and Bama won that one 16-10. For the 1994-95 season, they met in the Citrus Bowl, and Alabama won 24-17. And finally, their most recent meeting was the only Ohio State victory so far in the series, a 42-35 win in the 2014-15 Sugar Bowl that took the Buckeyes to the national title game in the inaugural College Football Playoff.
Last bowl game: Alabama defeated Notre Dame 31-14 in the “Rose” Bowl. Ohio State defeated Clemson 49-28 in the Sugar Bowl.
Announcers: Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, Maria Taylor, Allison Williams

Bowl Games 2020: Happy New Year!

The page is updated, and 2020 is almost over. Thank goodness.

Thursday, December 31

12:00: Tulsa vs. Mississippi State (Armed Forces Bowl @ Fort Worth, TX; ESPN): This one is mostly a high watchability tier because Tulsa should put on a display in terms of shutting down a 3-7 Miss State team. I have the Golden Hurricane all the way here.
SP+ line: Tulsa by 6.9
Vegas line: Tulsa -2.5
Watchability tier: III
Previous meetings: This is the first meeting between these teams.
Last bowl game: Tulsa’s last bowl game was the 2016 Miami Beach Bowl, where they beat Central Michigan 55-10. And thanks to 2020 rules, 3-7 Miss State will be heading to their eleventh straight bowl game. The streak started with a 52-14 win over Michigan in the 2010-11 Gator Bowl, and last season they lost 38-28 to Louisville in the Music City Bowl.
Announcers: Chris Cotter, Mark Herzlich, Ian Fitzsimmons

2:00: San Jose State vs. Ball State (Arizona Bowl @ Tuscon, AZ; CBS): We’ve got a battle of champions here! And it could be good! But you’ll also have overlap between the earlier game and the later game, and this one may lose out. Plus, I like San Jose to cover here. The Spartans just flat out won the Mountain West this year and while their success seems a bit out-of-nowhere, they definitely earned it.
SP+ line: SJSU by 6
Vegas line: SJSU -7
Watchability tier: II
Previous meetings: This is the first meeting between these teams.
Last bowl game: For the Spartans, this is their first bowl game since the 2015 Cure Bowl, where they beat Georgia State 27-16. For Ball State, this is their eighth bowl appearance all-time, with the most recent being a 23-20 loss to Arkansas State in the 2013-14 GoDaddy.com Bowl.
Announcers: Brad Nessler, Gary Danielson, Jamie Erdahl

4:00: West Virginia vs. Army (Liberty Bowl @ Memphis, TN; ESPN): Look down at the announcers. It’s cool, I can wait. Okay, now that you’re back, I AM SO PSYCHED. Former Voice of the Yellow Jackets Wes Durham will be on the call, along with former Yellow Jacket Roddy Jones! Talk about a perfect duo to call some flexbone offense. I am here for this. So… the awkward part is that West Virginia is a touchdown favorite even by the advance metrics. And I’m here to say, look, Army probably wanted to play in a bowl game this year more than any team not in the playoff, and maybe more than one or two of those teams. I think they will show up ready, while West Virginia will not. Against an option team, this is deadly.
SP+ line: WVU by 6.8
Vegas line: WVU -7
Watchability tier: III
Previous meetings: Three, and they were all a long time ago. Army won the first two meetings in 1941 and 1946, 7-6 and 19-0 respectively. The last meeting was in 1961, where WVU won 7-3.
Last bowl game: West Virginia’s last bowl appearance was the 2018 Camping World Bowl, where they lost 34-18 to Syracuse. Army’s last bowl appearance was the 2018 Armed Forces Bowl, a 70-14 rout of Houston.
Announcers: Wes Durham, Roddy Jones, Eric Wood

Friday, January 1

12:00: Cincinnati vs. Georgia (Peach Bowl @ Atlanta, GA; ESPN): Hoping this is more like Georgia’s game against Texas two years ago rather than their game against Baylor last year. Cincy’s certainly got the defense to pull this off, and I don’t buy this business about UGA’s offense suddenly being competent. I’m taking Cincy straight-up here.
SP+ line: Cincinnati by 1.4
Vegas line: UGA -7
Watchability tier: IV
Previous meetings: Just one, in 1976. Georgia won 31-17.
Last bowl game: Cincy’s made three straight bowl games. In 2018 they beat Virginia Tech 35-31 in the Military Bowl, and last season they beat Boston College 38-6 in the Birmingham Bowl. For Georgia, this is their 24th straight bowl game, dating back to the 1997-98 Outback Bowl, where they beat Wisconsin 33-6. Last season they beat Baylor 26-14 in the Sugar Bowl.
Announcers: Mark Jones, Dusty Dvoracek, Kris Budden

1:00: Northwestern vs. Auburn (Citrus Bowl @ Orlando, FL; ABC): This is certainly a bowl game that will probably happen. Auburn did finally do the thing and Fire Gus, but in the end they wound up making a sensible hire, so that’s not even that funny. That said, it’s not like Harsin will be coaching this game, and let’s see who will be on the sidelines for the Tigers instead…ah right, it’s the guy who tried to start a coup, Kevin Steele. Wonder how he feels about not getting the big job? I’ll take Northwestern to come out ready to play and to hold on to win.
SP+ line: Auburn by 0.7
Vegas line: NU -3.5
Watchability tier: III
Previous meetings: Just one, a 38-35 Northwestern victory in the 2009-10 Outback Bowl.
Last bowl game: Northwestern’s last bowl game was the 2018 Holiday Bowl, a 31-20 win over Utah. Auburn’s been to seven straight bowls, going back to the a 34-31 loss to Florida State in the 2013-14 BCS Championship Game. Last season they lost 34-24 to Minnesota in the Outback Bowl.
Announcers: Dave Flemming, Rod Gilmore, Paul Carcaterra

4:00: Alabama vs. Notre Dame (Rose? Bowl @ Arlington, TX; ESPN): This is just wrong, but apparently the city of Pasadena is getting $2 millions for the use of the Rose Bowl name, so I more power to them I guess. That said, I don’t have a lot of reason to think this will be anything other than a dominant Alabama victory. Thanks for playing, Irish.
SP+ line: Bama by 13.3
Vegas line: Bama – 19.95
Watchability tier: IV
Previous meetings: Seven. The first was in the 1973 Sugar Bowl, a 24-23 Notre Dame win. They met a few times in the regular seasdon in the 80’s, and you probably already know about their most recent meeting, a 42-14 Alabama win in the 2012-13 BCS Championship Game. Notre Dame holds an overall 7-2 advantage in the series, though.
Last bowl game: In 2004, Alabama lost 20-16 to Minnesota in the Music City Bowl, a return of sorts after improving to 6-6 from 4-9. They’ve gone to the postseason every year since then. Last season, they didn’t make a New Year’s Six bowl, but beat Michigan 35-16 in the Citrus Bowl anyway. The Irish have been to four straight bowl games, dating to the 2017-18 Citrus Bowl, where they beat LSU 21-17. Last season they beat Iowa State 33-9 in the Camping World Bowl.
Announcers: Sean McDonough, Todd Blackledge, Todd McShay, Allison Williams

8:00: Clemson vs. Ohio State (Sugar Bowl @ New Orleans, LA; ESPN): I think Clemson will win, but I am tired of hearing so far in bowl games about how Ohio State hasn’t played enough games and blah-blah-blah. So I essentially hope this is (yet again) the best bowl game of the season and it entirely proves the Buckeyes deserve to be here.
SP+ line: Clemson by 1.8
Vegas line: Clemson -7.5
Watchability tier: IV
Previous meetings: These two have played each a few times recently. Their first meeting was a 17-15 win Clemson back in the 1978 Gator Bowl. The previous three have all also been Clemson wins, most recently 29-23 in the 2019 Fiesta Bowl, you know, last season’s playoff semi-final. Clemson therefore has a 4-0 overall series lead.
Last bowl game: Clemson beat Colorado 19-10 in the 2005 Champs Sports Bowl, and including that they’ve been to bowl games in 16 straight seasons. Last season, they beat Ohio State 29-23 in the Fiesta Bowl and then were felled by LSU 42-25 in the CFP Championship Game. Ohio State has been to eight consecutive postseasons, dating to a 40-35 loss to… Clemson in the 2013-14 Orange Bowl. And as previously stated, they lost 29-23 to Clemson in last year’s excellent Fiesta Bowl. Let’s hope this is more of the same.
Announcers: Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, Maria Taylor, Tom Rinaldi

Saturday, January 2

12:00: North Carolina State vs. Kentucky (Gator Bowl @ Jacksonville, FL; ESPN): This game exists purely to hold you over until the fireworks start at the bottom of the hour. I have NC State here.
SP+ line: NCSU by 4.3
Vegas line: UK -3
Watchability tier: I
Previous meetings: Just one, a 1970 27-2 win for NC State.
Last bowl game: The Wolfpack were last seen in the postseason as participants in the 2018 TaxSlayer Bowl, where they lost 52-13 to Texas A&M. Kentucky have been to five straight bowl games, starting with a 33-18 loss to Georgia Tech in the 2016 TaxSlayer Bowl (woo). Last season they beat Virginia Tech 37-30 in the Belk Bowl.
Announcers: Anish Shroff, Tom Luginbill, Lericia Harris

12:30: Indiana vs. Mississippi (Outback Bowl @ Tampa, FL; ABC):  HERE WE GO. Indiana is a fun team that, while missing their all-time great QB, is still fun to watch and pretty good. Ole Miss, meanwhile, runs what I am calling the “YOLO Offense” because their playcalling is essentially “eh, screw it, throw it deep”. And it seems to work! This game should have all the points. Well, hopefully. That said, Indiana actually plays a little defense, so I think the Hoosiers will get a spot and pull out a win.
SP+ line: Indiana by 7.2
Vegas line: Indiana -7
Watchability tier: III
Previous meetings: This is the first meeting between these teams.
Last bowl game: Indiana’s making their second consecutive bowl season, after last season’s narrow loss to Tennessee in the Gator Bowl, 23-22. Ole Miss is appearing in their first bowl game since the 2015-16 Sugar Bowl, where they beat Oklahoma State 48-20.
Announcers: Tom Hart, Jordan Rodgers, Cole Cubelic

4:00: Oregon vs. Iowa State (Fiesta Bowl @ Glendale, AZ; ESPN): Iowa State has had an all-time great season by their standards, and I think they’ll carry that all the way through to a victory.
SP+ line: Iowa State by 2.9
Vegas line: Iowa State -4.5
Watchability tier: II
Previous meetings: This is the first meeting between these teams.
Last bowl game: This will be the fourth straight bowl appearance for the Ducks, dating to a 38-28 loss to Boise State in the 2017 Las Vegas Bowl. Last season, they beat Wisconsin on a perfect day in Pasadena, 28-27. The Cyclones have now been to four straight bowls, dating to a 21-20 win over Memphis in the 2017 Liberty Bowl. Last season they lost 33-9 to Notre Dame in the Camping World Bowl.
Announcers: Dave Pasch, Mike Golic, Quint Kessenich

8:00: North Carolina vs. Texas A&M (Orange Bowl @ Miami Gardens, FL; ESPN): And finally, what will probably be the last bowl game before the title game. And boy howdy I hope Carolina wins, because the TAMU whining after not getting in the playoff was awful. That’s not a great basis for prognostication, but it’s what I’ve got.
SP+ line: UNC by 2.5
Vegas line: TAMU -6
Watchability tier: III
Previous meetings: This is the first meeting between these teams.
Last bowl game: UNC won last year’s Military Bowl 55-13 over Temple. TAMU has been to 12 straight bowl games, dating to the 2009 Independence Bowl, a 44-20 loss to Georgia. Last season they beat Oklahoma State 24-21 in the Texas Bowl.
Announcers: Bob Wischusen, Dan Orlovsky, Katie George