MLB playoff time
Most of you know our thoughts on baseball:
Rule one, never pitch to Barry Bonds, whether he's the fired hitting coach of the Marlins, 127-years-old or sound asleep.
Rule 2, baseball talk only begins in the 'er' months. Well, we're in the 'er' months. With that, let the playoff puzzle begin.
We'll take Orioles and Giants in the wildcard rounds. We'll take Orioles and Red Sox in the AL and Dodgers and Cubs in the NL for the divisional-round winners. Then we have Red Sox and Cubs in a match-made-in-TV-heaven in the World Series.
From there, we'll go Red Sox. (Although we'd love to see the Cubs pull this off.)
Thoughts?
College football lists
College football is through the first turn of its tri-oval season.
September has come and gone, and what a month it was. It was four weeks that felt like it had enough story lines to fill a season and a half.
With that in mind, let's listify a few things that were so staggering and at times shocking that we need to take a step back and examine them (of course, we'll do it in the 5-in-10 by the 5-at-10 fashion):
Auburn football coach Gus Malzahn took the drastic step of opening up competition at every position during the Tigers' off week with hopes of reviving his team after an 0-2 start to Southeastern Conference play.Hottest seats
Texas' Charlie Strong. When sources are whispering, time to sharpen the resume.
Oregon's Mark Helfrich. Too quick? Nope, Oregon has to move to continue brand.
USC's Clay Helton. Too quick? Nope, not when the locker room's in shambles.
Purdue's Darrell Hazell. Only question here is how'd he stay this long?
Boston College's Steve Addazio. Yes, he's 3-2; those three are Mass, Wagner and Buffalo.
Now, add in LSU - and the real possibility that Auburn could be in play, considering Gus Malzahn is only one more loss from moving back on that list - and it is easy to see how active this offseason could potentially be.
Of those, we think there's a very real chance that the top two get the ax, but even if the lead openings are just LSU and Texas, considering the ripple effects that will have. Heck, the hirings of those jobs will great openings at other top-20 programs.
Michigan wide receiver Jehu Chesson, center, is gang-tackled by Wisconsin defenders Zack Baun (56), Jack Cichy (48), T.J. Edwards (53) and Leo Musso (19) in the first quarter of an NCAA college football game at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Mich., Saturday, Oct. 1, 2016. (AP Photo/Tony Ding) Playoffs in full swing
We touched on this Monday around these parts and certainly on Press Row. The preseason AP poll has been shredded. Seven of the top 12 from the preseason have no chance at the playoff without seismic shifts in the current landscape. With that, and with the sage suggestions from Stewwie, let's look at the short list of teams that truly control their own destiny. There are eight unbeaten power five teams, and if any of that group runs the table, they are in.
The group is, in AP order: 1. Alabama, 2. Ohio State, 3. Clemson, 4. Michigan, 5. Washington, 8. Texas A&M, 9. Tennessee, and 10. Miami. The regular season of college football continues to be the best in all of sports because of the moving pieces and the simple fact that those teams are truly already in the postseason in a lot of ways. And when one of those eight drop, in brings more teams into the party.
With that, here's the biggest five games left that will shape the playoff field:
Michigan-Ohio State. Hard to image a bigger stage, especially if's 1-2.
The next three weeks in the SEC. Tide, Aggies and Vols take turns against each other.
ACC title game. Clemson's got the easiest path to final hurdle.
Washington at Utah. Huskies' biggest tests behind them.
Houston-Louisville. This one will decide the at-large frontrunner.
Minnesota Vikings running back Matt Asiata (44) dives for extra yardage between New York Giants defenders Trevin Wade, left, and Jonathan Casillas (52) during the second half of an NFL football game, Monday, Oct. 3, 2016, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jim Mone) NFL Power poll
Man, the league is filled with craziness, right?
We're a quarter through the schedule, and the teams atop the division are shocking. And then again not so much.
Powerful
Denver (4-0). The Broncos continue to crush people whether Trevor Siemian or Paxton Lynch or David Lynch or Trevor Burbank is playing quarterback. When your defense is that good, and all you need is 14 points, it takes away a lot of pressure.
Minnesota (4-0). Ditto. (Except plug in Sam Bradford or Shaun Hill.)
Philadelphia (3-0). The Eagles have a renewed spirit under Doug Pederson. Man, the power of belief and cohesion within an organization can be a strong force.
New England (3-1). Yes, the Pats were blanked, but start looking around the offensive room. Gronk is starting to get well. Brady is back from suspension. Here's betting the Patriots release some frustration on the Browns this weekend.
Atlanta (3-1). Led by an explosive offense that has scored a league-best 18 TDs in four games - four more than the next closest team - the Falcons are two games clear in the NFC South.
Powerless
San Francisco (1-3). OK, the roster is bad. And to the record is bad. And coach Chip Kelly is better suited for college. And now for the bad news: the team's best player and likely team leader NaVorro Bowman is now out for the year.
Tennessee (1-3). Defensively, the Titans have made major strides and have allowed only five touchdowns this year. But the offense has been an anchor around the team's neck. And it could be the noose around coach Mike Mularkey's.
Indianapolis (1-3). How bad are the Colts? Well, there are a lot of teams in the bottom half of the league who would gladly trade quarterbacks with Indy and they still are toiling near the bottom of the barrel.
Chicago (1-3). Yes, the win over Detroit was fine, but this roster is weak and the current decisions are about future gains.
Cleveland (0-4). Man, is there a more consistent bunch in sports than the winless Browns?
This and that
- Jimbo Fisher says Auburn won the Kick Six on an 'illegal' play. No, the other one. http://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/watch-jimbo-fisher-says-auburn-won-kick-six-game-vs-bama-with-illegal-plays/
- Raise your hand if you are tired of the Odell Beckham Jr. soap opera. Yep, me too.
- Many thanks to the many kind folks among you who have offered your kind words and prayed about my mom. She's in a better place. Here's my column on her today. http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/opinion/columns/story/2016/oct/04/greeson-birthday-becomes-day-saying-goodbye/390003/
Today's question
Spin it forward and look toward the playoffs in baseball. Let's play a little true or false:
True or false, the Cubs will win it all.
True or false, the Broncos are the best team in the NFL.
As for a Rushmore, Secretariat died on this day in 1989. Rushmore of all-time horses, and we think Mr. Ed has a spot here.
He could talk for Pete's sake.