The next installment of the FedEx Cup Playoffs kicks off this Thursday from TPC Boston with plenty on the line for the remaining golfers still alive. This week’s course is viewed as a relatively simple one – there should be a lot of low scores.
For the past few seasons, the Sooners haven’t been the only team from the state of Oklahoma to be in the national picture. Under head coach Mike Gundy and offensive co-ordinator Dana Holgorsen (who left in 2011) the Cowboys of Oklahoma State have ridden tremendous offensive firepower to the BCS landscape.
In the move from the Big East to the Big 12 Conference, West Virginia gets a serious bump up in the week-to-week compete level. The shift to the Big 12 is fitting, as the Mountaineers are entering the second season under head coach Dana Holgorsen, who schemed the Oklahoma State offense to new heights over the past several years.
With the Reds running away with the NL Central the Pirates and Cardinals will have to chase the Wild Card to make the post-season. St. Louis and Atlanta are tied for the Wild Card lead while Pittsburgh is 2 games back.
I have long been a fan of Nevada and that hasn’t changed with their move to the Mountain West Conference. With their old pals the Boise State Broncos also in the fold I don’t see a championship in their immediate future but they definitely won’t embarrass themselves.
In 2010, San Jose State went 1-10 and didn’t win a single game in the WAC. Last year, the team went 5-7 and 3-4 in the WAC. Mike Macintyre did such a nice job getting the team going in the right direction that he picked up a contract extension through 2017. Can the Spartans keep progressing in their final year of play in the WAC?
Many will remember Utah State for their loss in game one of the 2011 season. The Aggies absolutely had the defending champion Auburn Tigers beat, but they let them off the hook in the last two minutes. Still, this team deserves lots of credit for putting it back together and finishing with a solid 7-6 record in 2011.
Texas is in a somewhat similar situation, on a big-picture scale, as the Florida Gators: a super prestigious football program that was among the nation’s elite just a few seasons ago, but has recently fallen on hard times. The fact that an 8-5 2011 record portrays “hard times” at UT should speak volumes for the high pedigree of this program under head coach Mack Brown. Still, the Longhorns need to right the ship.
Even with a program like Oklahoma, as steady as it comes, this is a team that’s ready to go to the big stage right now. The Sooners were ranked #1 in the AP poll last season, but injuries to their top RB and WR spurred the team to hit turbulence, and finish at 10-3.
Washington is going to be in a tough spot heading into the 2012 NFL season. With the arrival of quarterback Robert Griffin optimism is higher than it has been in a while but this is still a last place team in the tough NFC East, and probably by a wide margin when you look at the competition.
I am not sure why but I actually feel sorry for Boise State coming into this season. Odds are this is their worst team in a while; the Mountain West Conference isn’t what it used to be so not much to play for there; and the University was acting like it was getting cold feet about moving to the Big East next season.
The Tigers are playing well but just can’t seem to catch and pass the White Sox like everyone expects they will (eventually they will run out of season).
The MLB playoff picture is starting to take shape and this week’s schedule features a couple of crucial series that could have an impact on the final field for the postseason.
In 2012, Boston College has the returning starters to be a much improved team from a year ago – which is a good thing indeed, because not much went right for the Eagles in 2011. The Eagles had a pop-gun offense and were outgained by virtually every conference foe, on their way to limping home with a 4-8 record.
Randy Edsall, the man that built the Connecticut football program from literally nothing (as far as the FBS is concerned) to a 2010 BCS bowl participant (the Fiesta Bowl vs. Oklahoma) took over Maryland a year ago with an aggressive approach. Things were going to be done Edsall’s way, and if you didn’t like it, you could leave. This is precisely what QB Danny O’Brien did, as he transferred to Wisconsin to do graduate work and play for the Badgers.
Brady Hoke turned this team around and Rocky Long did a good job of keeping it going last year. The job will get a little tougher now with a more difficult Mountain West Conference. It also gets more difficult now that the team won’t have Ryan Lindley or Ronnie Hillman in the backfield.
