Kotite's Corner

Another Series Win for the Phillies

2010-08-20T13:27:00.003-04:00

The Phillies won their 5th series in a row, beating the San Francisco Giants at home, winning 2 out of 3 games. They had a chance for the sweep yesterday, but to be honest, were due for a letdown game, and really did not play well.

The Phillies won game 1 behind a strong performance from Roy Oswalt. The game was not going well, as Oswalt allowed two 1st innings runs, and the Phillies offense got off to a sluggish start against Giants starter Barry Zito. That was until the 5th inning. The Phillies put a 2 spot in both the 5th and 6th innings to take a 4-2 lead. After the Giants got one back in the 7th, the game was tight, and went into the 8th inning seeing the Phillies clinging to a 4-3 lead. In the bottom of the 8th, the Phillies loaded the bases, and arguably the team MVP, Carlos Ruiz, came to the plate. Ruiz ripped a double off the wall, the Phillies would go on to score 5 in the inning to win the game 9-3.

The 2nd game of the series started out much the same. Joe Blanton was on the bump in this game, and has to have the worst 1st inning ERA in the history of baseball. Not surprisingly, Andres Torres led off the game with a mammoth home run into the 2nd deck in right field. Blanton did calm down however, and would only give up 1 more run on a solo home run by Pat Burrell, his 2nd in as many games in the series. The Phillies offense, led by Jimmy Rollins, once again put up numbers. They got to Matt Cain, Jimmy Rollins ended up a double short of the cycle, and Dominic Brown hit a huge home run. The Phillies smashed the ball all game, and ended up with 2 doubles, 3 triples, and 2 home runs, and won the game 8-2.

The Phillies went for the sweep yesterday with Cole Hamels on the mound. The Phillies have not scored for Hamels all season, and that trend would continue. Hamels is usually able to keep the Phillies in games even when they are not scoring for them; unfortunately, this was not one of those nights. Hamels gave up 3 1st inning runs, and Jonathan Sanchez shut down the Phillies, as the Giants avoided the sweep and won the game 5-2. The Phillies 2 runs weren't scored until the 9th inning.

The Phillies have won 5 straight series, and that is really all you can ask for. If the Phillies keep taking 2 of 3 every series, they will be in good shape. Unfortunately, the Braves are playing way over their heads, and currently lead the Phillies by 2.5 games in the NL East. The Phillies do lead the wild card however now by 1 game over the Giants, and 2 games of the Cardinals.

The Phillies sit at 2-1 on this current 10 game homestand, and I really think you need to go 7-3 on this homestand. This means they need to go 5-2 against the Nationals and Astros; this is something they should be able to do against 2 bad teams. The Nationals come to town for a 3 game series starting tonight. Roy Halladay takes the mound tonight for the Phillies.

Phillies Win 4th Series in a Row

2010-08-16T19:17:00.003-04:00

The Phillies won a series 2-1 against the Mets for the 2nd time in a little over a week. It was good to bounce back from the first game of the series when Mets knuckle baller R.A. Dickey dominated the Phillies.

There isn't much to say about the first game of the series as R.A. Dickey threw a complete game shutout, outdueling Cole Hamels. Hamels continues his strong play this season, by also throwing a complete game, and only allowing 1 run. The problem was the Phillies offense; it was bad, and the Phillies couldn't even muster a run against Dickey. The Phillies lost the game 1-0.

The 2nd game of the series, and needing a win, Halladay took the mound. All he did was his usual work; threw 8 scoreless innings, and the Phillies won the game 4-0. Again the Phillies offense wasn't great, but was good enough to win... especially with Halladay on the mound.

The rubber match was the ESPN Sunday night game last night, and then Phillies really needed to win this series, and did just that. The Phillies got a quality start from Kyle Kendrick, who only allowed 1 run, and the Phillies played some small ball to take the game 3-1. The Phillies took the series 2-1.

There are some offensive concerns coming out of this series. The Phillies only scored 7 runs in the 3 games. They are just lucky that the Mets have an even worse offense right now. There is some good news, as Chase Utley will probably make his return from the disabled list tomorrow as the Phillies are back home against the Giants this week for a 3 game series. The Phillies are currently tied with the Giants for the wild card lead. The Phillies remain 2 games back of the Braves for first place in the NL East. Ryan Howard is also due off the disabled list tomorrow, but it looks like he will sit out at least another week.

The Phillies definitely need to step up the offensive game. The Phillies are winning games, but it isn't going to last very long if they continue to struggle offensively. The Phillies have not hit a home run in a week. Hopefully the return of Utley, and the soon return of Howard will fix the home run drought.

Eagles Finally Get Some Game Action

2010-08-13T12:52:00.004-04:00

After following all the camp stories to death the past couple weeks, it will be nice to finally watch and get to see some of the players in actual game action, even if it is just a meaningless preseason game.

The Eagles play host to the Jaguars in their first preseason game of the season. It's important to remember that the most important outcome of any preseason game is making sure no one is on the injured list after the game.

This is however a meaningful game for a lot of the players trying to make the team. They will be judged a lot on how they perform in game action. Also, the Eagles are counting on a lot of rookies to play big roles this season, and these games are important for those players also to get some live game action under their belts.

Tonight, I will keep a close eye on the 2 starting defensive rookies, Brandon Graham and Nate Allen. 2nd round pick Nate Allen appears to have locked up the starting free safety position. I'm not sure if this is due to the fact that he has outplayed everyone, or just that the Eagles are really hoping that he is the team's free safety of the future. The Eagles are very thin at the safety position in my opinion, as Quintin Demps, and Macho Harris are not starters in my opinion. This means that Allen will have to play a large role in the defense this season. I have concerns that Allen struggles with tackling at time. I have been a big advocate that the Eagles should have chosen Taylor Mays over Nate Allen. Obviously it could be years down the line before that argument is determined, but I have some definite concerns over Nate Allen, and I am hoping I am wrong.

Brandon Graham is the other rookie, the Eagles first round draft pick, who looks like he might be starting by Week 1. All indications from camp are that Graham is a special player, and has been one of, if not the most impressive player in camp thus far. The Eagles have been trying to fill the left defensive end spot opposite Trent Cole for years. I am hoping Graham can be that guy. He is another guy who we will need to keep a close eye on tonight.

On defense, the team appears pretty set. We will see how the strong side linebacker position plays out, as Moise Fokou was the starter entering camp, but Akeem Jordan appears to have taken that starting spot over. I am not a huge Jordan fan, I feel like he is adequate, but a very average player overall. I think Bradley, and Ernie Sims will be beasts this season.

The cornerback spot is another position that I feel is thin. I'm not sure Ellis Hobbs is starting material. And I'm not sure Joselio Hanson is 3rd CB material. I am interested to see how Trevard Lindley plays in the preseason, as I think he could end up being a starter; that is probably a year or two away though.

On offense, the Eagles are very young, but seem to have a lot of skill. Obviously we need to see how new starter Kevin Kolb performs in game action, but luckily he was able to start a couple games last season. On offense, the offensive line is the question mark, along with Kolb. Jason Peters did not play well last season. Todd Herramans is still injured. Stacy Andrews is the starting right guard, which is a concern in itself. And that doesn't even mention the uncertain center position.

At center, Jamaal Jackson is out, and probably won't be back for a while, and shouldn't be rushed back with the ACL injury. Nick Cole took over the center position, but seemed to struggle and also got injured. This moved 3rd year former Pittsburgh Panther, Mike McGlynn, into the starting center position, and he will get the nod tonight at center. Apparently McGlynn has played really well the past week at camp, and is a very big body at the center position.

Either way, it will be nice to see an actual game, and see how some of the young players perform, even if it counts for nothing.

Phillies Take Series Against Dodgers

2010-08-13T11:36:00.004-04:00

The Phillies won an amazing game yesterday when it looked like they were about to drop 2 of 3 at home to the Dodgers. Because the Braves won 2 of 3 from the Astros, the Phillies once again remain 2 games back in the NL East, and 1 game back of the Giants in the wild card.

The Phillies lost the first game of the series with Kyle Kendrick getting lit up, and the bullpen doing horribly. Kendrick pitched poorly from the start, which isn't surprising since even though Kendrick has pitched well, he gets lit up a lot. After Kendrick left the game, Antonio Bastardo let up a run, Herndon let up 4, Baez let up 2, and Romero let up 2. Even though Ex-Phillie Vicente Padilla didn't pitch well, he got the win. The Dodgers won the game 15-9. The Phillies couldn't pull out an amazing comeback. More on that topic later.

Game 2 of the series, the Phillies bounced back and got the 2-0 victory behind Roy Oswalt, who picked up his first win as a member of the Phillies. This was exactly how you draw it up from a managing standpoint. Oswalt pitched 7 scoreless innings, followed by Ryan Madson pitching a scoreless 8th, followed by Brad Lidge with a 1-2-3 9th inning to get the save. It didn't matter that the Phillies offense didn't give them much this day, as the pitching was phenomenal.

Game 3 of the series, the Phillies, behind more bad pitching would find themselves down 9-2 going into the bottom of the 8th inning. Blanton continued his first inning struggles by allowing 3 earned runs in the first inning, which always puts the Phillies in a tough hole to get out of. The bullpen was again bad. Chad Durbin this time allowed 2 runs, J.C. Romero allowed 2, but both were unearned, and Jose Contreras allowed 1 run.

The Phillies were able to overcome this however, as they put up a 4 spot in both the 8th and 9th innings. The Phillies made it a 9-6 game going into the 9th inning, but still had a lot of work to do. After Polanco was hit by a pitch, Sweeney and Werth walked to load the bases with no outs. Ben Francisco hit a grounder right to 3rd baseman Casey Blake, who let the ball go right through his legs. The Phillies scored 2, and then had runners on 1st and 2nd, with beast Carlos Ruiz coming to the plate. Ruiz ripped a drive deep to left center scoring 2 runs, and winning an unbelievable comeback for the Fightins. It was the biggest comeback victory in Citizens Bank Park history, and allowed the Phillies to keep pace in the National League.

Even though the Phillies won an amazing game, it masks the fact that the bullpen was very bad this series. Almost every member of the bullpen allowed a run in this 3 game series. This cannot continue to happen coming towards the end of the season if the Phillies want to make the playoffs, and go deep in the playoffs.

On the other hand, the offense played well overall, despite the injuries, and Carlos Ruiz continues to be an absolute beast. He is very close to Ryan Howard for the offensive MVP of this team right now. Ruiz seems to come up with every clutch hit that is needed lately for the Phillies. Shane Victorino joined the team last night, and the Phillies sent back down Antonio Bastardo to the minors. Victorino did not start last night, but probably will tonight.

The Phillies travel to New York to play the Mets this weekend in a 3 game series. They just have to keep taking care of business and winning ball games, no matter what the Braves, and other wild card teams are doing.

Phillies Take 2 of 3 From Mets

2010-08-08T20:23:00.005-04:00

The Phillies won earlier today, capping off the series win at home against the New York Mets, and winning the series. The Phillies held off the Mets and won the game today 6-5.

Friday night saw a solid start from Joe Blanton, but an offense that struggled, until the 8th inning. The Phillies went into the 8th inning losing 2-1 in the game, but put up a 6 spot in the inning, and held off a late Mets change to win the game 7-5. It is a good sign to see Joe Blanton pitch well, since he is basically the 4th starter on this team, and will need to pitch well late in the season for the Phillies to have success. New Phillie Mike Sweeney got 2 hits in the game, both coming in the 8th inning.

On Saturday, the Phillies lackluster offense continued, only this time it continued throughout the whole game. Again, the Phillies got great starting pitching, this time from Cole Hamels, who should have a much better record than he does. Hamels only allowed 1 run in the game, the only run the Mets would get; too bad it was 1 more than the Phillies would score on this day. The Phillies almost busted the game open again for a 2nd straight game in the 8th inning. They loaded the bases in the 8th inning against K-Rod, only to see Ross Gload ground out.

The Phillies were able to bounce back today behind Roy Halladay and the long ball. The Phillies once again had 1 big inning, scoring 5 runs in the 3rd inning, and knocking R.A. Dickey out of the game early. Halladay went 7 innings and struck out 10, but did allow 5 earned runs. This raised his ERA to 2.34; not too bad. Raul Ibanez hit a 3 run homer for the Phillies, and Jayson Werth also homered and went 3-4 at the plate. Werth's average is now back over .300. Brad Lidge pitched a scoreless 9th, getting the save. It was a good sign, as Lidge gave up a leadoff single, and this is when Lidge usually struggles a lot, with runners on base.

Lidge pitched well this weekend when he came in, however J.C. Romero has been struggling. I am a Romero fan, and still am, but he needs to turn it around and have a good end of the season. I still feel as if the Phillies need a 2nd lefty in the bullpen, and would be in favor of calling up Antonio Bastardo to the bullpen to give the Phillies that 2nd lefty, even if he comes in just to get 1 guy out.

On offense, I would really like to see Jimmy Rollins step his game up, and have a great last 2 months. We have seen what this team is capable of when J-Roll gets hot, and this team is scary good. If Rollins can get on a roll late in the season, and get Utley and Howard back, there is no reason this team shouldn't be as good as the team that went to the World Series the past 2 seasons.

2010 College Football Preseason Rankings

2010-08-05T16:46:00.002-04:00

The ESPN/USA Today college football rankings will be finally released tomorrow, so I decided I would come up with my own rankings for the much anticipated upcoming college football season. The AP poll will get released later this month.

TOP 25
1. Alabama Crimson Tide
2. Ohio State Buckeyes
3. Boise State Broncos
4. TCU Horned Frogs
5. Texas Longhorns
6. Florida Gators
7. Virginia Tech Hokies
8. Nebraska Cornhuskers
9. Oregon Ducks
10. Iowa Hawkeyes
11. Miami Hurricanes
12. Wisconsin Badgers
13. Oklahoma Sooners
14. Pittsburgh Panthers
15. Arkansas Razorbacks
16. USC Trojans
17. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
18. Florida State Seminoles
19. LSU Tigers
20. North Carolina Tar Heels
21. West Virginia Mountaineers
22. Oregon State Beavers
23. Penn State Nittany Lions
24. Georgia Bulldogs
25. Utah Utes

Just Missed
Cincinnati Bearcats
Navy Midshipmen
UConn Huskies
Houston Cougars
Texas A&M Aggies
Stanford Cardinal
California Bears
Washington Huskies
Temple Owls
Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders

Carlos Ruiz is a Baller

2010-08-03T20:42:00.004-04:00

Carlos Ruiz is the catcher on the Philadelphia Phillies, and is quickly becoming a fan favorite this year as he continues to play solid baseball, and pick up the slack for the Phillies while some of their stars are on the DL.

But beyond that, Ruiz has basically always been the man. Even in previous years, when his offensive numbers were not great, he is a great defensive catcher. He has a cannon arm, and all the pitchers like pitching to him. He controls every pitcher on the staff well, and knows which pitches to call in which situations. Also, combine that with the fact that Ruiz has been one of the best Phillies offensively the past 2 seasons in the playoffs; and it all adds up to Ruiz being an official baller.

Even though we don't get to hear Ruiz too much in interviews since he barely speaks English and is not seen as the star of the team, I am picturing something along the lines of a combination of Dave Chappelle's version of Rick James, and the Dos Equis most interesting man in the world.

You know when Ruiz goes back to his native Panama, he is an absolute baller. He probably parties harder than Pacman Jones and Michael Vick combined. He definitely has his choice of any chick he wants when he is out, and treats them however he wants as well, as his pimp hand is extremely strong. Making it rain pesos is a common occurrence for Carlos when he is out. Chooch, you are the man.

Phillies Lose 2 of 3 to Nationals

2010-08-02T17:44:00.005-04:00

The Phillies closed out their series at Washington, and even though they snapped their 8 game winning streak with Roy Oswalt on the mound, they did salvage 1 game yesterday of the 3 game series.

Roy Oswalt made his Phillies debut on Friday to try to extend the Phillies winning streak to 9 games, but didn't fare too well in his debut. The offense didn't do anything either, and the Phillies lost the game by a large margin.

On Saturday, the Phillies didn't get off to a good start, and Ryan Howard got the night off after slumping the past few days. Joe Blanton continued his usual 1st inning performance and allowed 3 runs in the first inning. A Carlos Ruiz solo home run, and a Raul Ibanez 2 run home run made the game tied at 4 going into the 9th inning. Carlos Ruiz then had a 2 out, RBI single, which gave the Phillies the lead going into the bottom of the 9th. On came Brad Lidge. A single, out, walk, and Ryan Zimmerman bomb ended the game, and another blown save for Lidge.

Yesterday, the Phillies were able to salvage a game in the series, and won the game in the 11th inning. Brad Lidge worked a scoreless 1-2-3 bottom of the 9th this time, including putting out Ryan Zimmerman. This game also saw Ryan Howard go down awkwardly, as he rolled his ankle trying to slide back into 2nd base. It doesn't seem to be as bad as it looked, but he might miss a few games with a sprained ankle.

After the series, the Phillies sat exactly where they were before; 2.5 games back of the first place Atlanta Braves. Even though the Phillies lost 2 of 3, they have still won 9 of 11 overall, and travel to Miami for a 3 game series against the Marlins, which will start off with Roy Halladay on the bump.

Unfortunately, Brad Lidge cannot be trusted anymore. He has absolutely no command of any pitch he throws. He can't throw his fastball by anyone anymore, and has to rely on his slider. When Ruiz sets up outside, the pitch may come inside, when he sets up high, the pitch may come low; the point is, Lidge has no command, and his pitches really could go anywhere at this point.

The problem is there really isn't any other option. Ruben Amaro was too busy patting himself on the back and doing any interview possible talking about how amazing he has been to acquire Lee, Halladay, and Oswalt in about a year's time to address the bullpen issue that the Phillies currently have, and have had all season long.

Ryan Madson has not pitched very well this year, and even when he does pitch well, he has struggled in save situations when given the chance. I still think his still is better than Lidge's though. Jose Contreras has been good this season, and seems to have really good stuff, but not sure if he would be able to be the closer. J.C. Romero has also been very good, and while he can go up against righties, he is more in there to get lefties out, and has never closed before. David Herndon and Danys Baez have no business still being on this roster.

Another option to close is the Phillies triple A closer, Scott Mathieson. Mathieson has played with the big club before, but the Phillies seem retisant to bring him up for a long period of time for some reason. Mathieson has closer stuff, and an overpowering fastball, and could be the closer of the future for the Phillies.

For more bullpen help, the Yankees just designated Chan Ho Park for assignment, and I don't think there is any reason the Phillies should not go after him, because he would obviously be more welcome on the roster than Baez. Also, along with Mathieson, the Phillies have 2 other triple A bullpen pitchers currently that I think would be much better on the roster than Baez or Herndon. Antonio Bastardo would be that 2nd lefty in the bullpen, and was actually on the playoff roster last season, and I think would be very good as a guy who can get lefties out in big situations. Vance Worley is another guy who I feel like should be in the Phillies bullpen currently, as he can get the job done.

The Phillies will probably wait to waivers to address the bullpen situation, but they will need to not only add a body to the bullpen, but also possibly figure out what they want to do in the 9th inning with a 1 run lead; or there will be more and more heart attacks in the Philadelphia area the more Brad Lidge comes running out of the bullpen.

Eagles Acquire J.J. Arrington from Broncos

2010-07-31T11:28:00.002-04:00

The Eagles made a trade yesterday acquiring J.J. Arrington from the denver Broncos, while giving up linebacker Joe Mays. Arrington did not play last season at all with knee problems, and will still need to pass a physical today.

Arrington was a 2nd round draft pick by the Arizona Cardinals in 2005, but never really had abreakout season. Arrington's career high in yards was his rookie year when he ran for 370 yards and 3 TD's.

Joe Mays was a 6th round draft pick by the Eagles in 2008 out of North Dakota State. The Eagles had high hopes for Mays, and made him a starter last season at the middle linebacker position at one point in place of Stewart Bradley, but Mays struggled as a starter, and never ended up getting into games very much. It was tough to imagine a spot for Mays getting much time this season at the linebacker spot with a crowded situation.

If J.J. Arrington does not make the team, the Eagles will receive a 6th round draft pick in 2012, which might end up being the case.

Phillies Win 8th Straight

2010-07-30T00:21:00.004-04:00

The Phillies have been on a tear lately, and a lot has been going on down at Citizens Bank Park, as the Phillies try to catch up to the Atlanta Braves.

The Phillies gained another game on the Braves today with their 8th win in a row tonight. They did it in walk off style to sweep the Diamondbacks, on an 11th inning RBI single from Wilson Valdez. How many people when the season started would have thought the Phillies would be winning a big game in late July on a walk off hit by Wilson Valdez, scoring Cody Ransom. Well tonight, the 6-7-8 hitters were huge, as Ransom, Ruiz, and Valdez all had good games. Ruiz has been ripping the cover off the ball the past few games.

This all comes the day after yesterday's 7-1 win... also known as the debut of Domonic Brown. Brown had a huge debut, going 2-3 with a double, a single, 2 RBI's, and 2 runs scored. Brown took his first at bat and almost went deep, taking a pitch and going off the top of the fence in right field. Brown is a 5 tool player who looks like he is the real deal. Roy Halladay's starts rarely go unnoticed, but when Domonic Brown was doing what he was doing, not many people noticed Halladay quietly dominating, as he has basically done all year long.

This is all being done as the Phillies are still missing key players in the lineup. Chase Utley remains out of the lineup, and will probably be out for another 3 weeks or so. Jimmy Rollins fouled a ball off his foot, and missed the last 3 games, but hopefully will return to the lineup. Shane Victorino strained his oblique in Tuesday night's game, which is why Domonic Brown is in the lineup. As much as I rip of Victorino, I don't like both him and Rollins being out of the lineup, as they are our 2 fastest players on the team.

With all the injuries, Ryan Howard has been a rock in the lineup. I believe there should start being some Ryan Howard MVP talk. Howard has struggled the past 2 days, but is batting .295 currently, and has been above .300 a lot of the season. He has 23 home runs, and leads the NL in RBI's by a long shot. Howard is probably around 2nd or 3rd in the current NL MVP pecking order but if the Phillies make the playoffs, Ryan Howard has to be strongly considered to win the award. Guys like Joey Votto, Adrian Gonzalez, and Albert Pujols are probably also in the mix.

Not only has Howard put up solid numbers all year long, he has been the guy who has stayed healthy. I am not blaming the guys who have been injured, but at any point if we lost Howard along with a Rollins, or Victorino, or especially Utley, the lineup would struggle big time. Howard has been the rock in the lineup, and there is no replacing him as the clean up hitter. Placido Polanco has been the only other guy who has been healthy and not gone into any type of slump.

Any way you look at it, the Phillies are playing great baseball right now, and hopefully will keep it up with Roy Oswalt joining the squad. The Phillies go on the road now, and start with a 3 game series in Washington. Roy Oswalt will be on the bump tomorrow night for the Phillies. The Phillies currently sit 2.5 games back of the first place Atlanta Braves, and it feels like they were about 7 games back a week ago.

Even though we were very frustrated as of recently, it is nice to have an enjoyable Phillies team to watch, and have a team to root for going into August and September, and then hopefully into the playoffs.

Phillies Trade for Roy Oswalt

2010-07-30T00:01:00.003-04:00

For the 2nd straight year, the Phillies have acquired a top pitcher at the trade deadline. Today, the Phillies traded with their old friend Ed Wade, and got pitcher Roy Oswalt in a deal. In the trade, the Phillies gave up J.A. Happ, and minor leaguers Anthony Gose and Jonathan Villar.

All things considered, this seems like a really good trade for the Phillies. While maybe a little overrated, Roy Oswalt is still an elite pitcher in this league, and Ruben Amaro really got the best of this trade. The Phillies do not have to pick up the club option in the 3rd year of Oswalt's deal, which means his deal will only go through next season, and the Astros are paying $11 million of Oswalt's $23 million that he is owed through the next 2 seasons.

Oswalt initially seemed hesitant to want to come play in Philly for the next couple years because he is from the south, but I guess when some other teams, mainly the Cardinals, backed off the deal, Oswalt seemed like he would rather have a chance at contending with the Phillies than staying in Houston.

The Phillies not only now have 3 very good pitchers, they also didn't have to give up on their best hitting prospect, Jonathan Singleton, who is in Single A. J.A. Happ is a good pitcher, but he isn't anything special.

Ruben Amaro seems like he actually got this deal right. Unfortunately, it wouldn't even have needed to be done if Amaro got rid of Cliff Lee in the offseason for a few crappy prospects. Without Amaro saying it, this deal kind of admits that he made a mistake getting rid of Cliff Lee, which the fans have been saying since that deal was done. It still hurts not having Cliff Lee on the team, but Roy Oswalt should slide into the #3 spot in the rotation nicely. Oswalt is 6-12 with a 3.42 ERA this season.

Unfortunately, this probably means that the Phillies can't re-sign Jayson Werth unless they greatly increase their payroll next season, or they are able to trade Raul Ibanez or Shane Victorino. Getting a trade done for Raul Ibanez would be optimal, but it probably won't be able to be done. Another horrible move by Amaro was giving Ibanez a 3 year deal. I would have no problem trading Victorino this offseason if it means keeping Werth and sliding him to center field, and playing Domonic Brown in right field.

Either way, this was a very good trade, and it definitely makes the Phillies a much better team than before the trade, and they didn't seem like they had to give up much to do it.

Brandon Graham Signs With Birds

2010-07-29T23:50:00.004-04:00

The Eagles locked up first round pick Brandon Graham tonight, agreeing to terms on a 5 year deal. It's nice to have him in camp, as he seems like the type of guy who really wanted to be here the whole time.

It shouldn't really be a big deal that Graham has missed a couple of days, especially because the whole team hasn't been at camp as of yet. Graham actually signed earlier than most first round picks, as there are still only a hand full of first round picks signed.

Brandon Graham is expected to compete for the starting job at the defensive end position opposite Trent Cole, and hopefully he can win that job and be successful, since nobody else has really been able to take over that spot.

Jameel Poteat Commits to Pitt

2010-07-28T19:51:00.002-04:00

The University of Pittsburgh finally got the verbal they were looking for from star running back Jameel Poteat.

Poteat took over the running back position vacated at Bishop McDevitt high school in Harrisburg from Shady McCoy after McCoy went to Pitt, and now it looks like Poteat will follow in McCoy's footsteps again to the Pitt Panthers. According to various recruiting sites, Poteat is ranked anywhere from 18th to top 10 among running backs in the 2011 class. Poteat had offers from many other schools, and this is a great get for Pitt, as if Poteat lives up to his potential, it looks like Pitt will continue to have strong play from the running back position.

Eagles Sign Nate Allen

2010-07-28T19:15:00.003-04:00

The Eagles signed 2nd round draft pick Nate Allen from South Florida yesterday, which is important, especially because Nate Allen is technically the starting strong safety. Allen signing means that only 1st round pick Brandon Graham is unsigned with the Eagles. It is sort of good news for all the teams and 1st round draft picks as the 2nd first round draft pick signed today, so at least that is some progress. Hopefully Allen can use his time in camp to start the season at the free safety position.

Domonic Brown to Make Phillies Debut

2010-07-28T18:06:00.004-04:00

Domonic Brown will make his Phillies debut tonight as the Phillies ride their 6 game winning streak into another matchup against the Diamondbacks.

Brown's arrival is sort of overdue, and the only reason he was called up now is due to an injury to Shane Victorino. Victorino was placed on the 15 day DL today with a strained oblique, and it opens the door for Domonic Brown to make his debut. Jayson Werth will slide over to center field, and Domonic Brown will play his familiar position of right field. Domonic Brown is due to bat 6th in the order tonight.

As much as I rip Victorino, it is never good when both Victorino and Jimmy Rollins are not in the lineup. J. Roll is only expected to miss tonight's game and maybe tomorrows, but is still is tough without the 2 fastest players on the team, especially when you are already missing Chase Utley.

It will be exciting to check out Domonic Brown tonight, and hopefully he has a solid debut. Tonight's matchup is also a matchup of 2 pitchers who have thrown no hitters this season. Roy Halladay threw a perfect game earlier in the year, and Diamondbacks pitcher Edwin Jackson threw a no hitter against the Rays.

The Phillies need to keep this winning streak going, especially being at home, and playing against a bad Diamondbacks team. They are still 3.5 games back in the NL East of the first place Braves.

Eagles Open Camp

2010-07-26T18:48:00.004-04:00

The Philadelphia Eagles opened camp today as all rookies, and selected veterans reported to Lehigh University to begin another grueling few weeks in the heat.

Neither 1st round pick Brandon Graham or 2nd round pick Nate Allen are signed as of yet. According to Andy Reid at his press conference, the team is fairly close to signing Nate Allen, but not necessarily Brandon Graham. Only 1 first round pick is currently signed, and it is Dallas Cowboy, Dez Bryant.

Normally it wouldn't be a big deal for any rookie to miss some time at camp, especially these first few days, but both Allen and Graham could be starting for this team this season from the start. With the injury to Marlin Jackson, Nate Allen is currently penciled in as the starting free safety. And with the free safety play the Eagles got last season after the departure of Brian Dawkins, Nate Allen will need to get in all the work and practices possible.

Graham fills another position that the Eagles have not gotten much out of in recent years; the left defensive end spot, opposite Trent Cole. Even though there are a lot of candidates to fill this spot, Graham could see a lot of time this season, and thus like Allen, would benefit from being at camp as soon as possible.

Other than that, no practices actually took place today, just Michael Vick and Andy Reid at the podium. Reid didn't give anybody any information, and was annoyed by all the Michael Vick questions, and let it be known, as is usually the case since he is a pompous ass. One possible piece of good news coming out of Reid's press conference was a softball lobbed to him by Merrill Reese. Does this possibly mean that kiss ass Dave Spadaro was not present? If this is true, this is obviously a good thing... for everyone. The less Dave Spadaro this season, the better.

Camp stories will be a little more interesting starting later in the week when they roll out the red carpet for all the rest of the players to arrive.

Lots of Camp Battles Expected for Eagles

2010-07-23T11:32:00.004-04:00

The Eagles rookies and selected veterans report to training camp on Monday, July 26. The rest of the team will report on July 29, and there figure to be a lot of training camp position battles this year.

On offense, Kevin Kolb is obviously the starter at quarterback going into the season. Unfortunately, we have a backup quarterback who is going to have the cameras on him all throughout training camp. It will be interesting to see how the Eagles utilize Vick this season. At running back, LeSean "Shady" McCoy is the starter, and I expect him to have a very good season, and quickly establish himself as an elite running back. Mike Bell backs McCoy up for now, and the 3rd RB battle will between Eldra Buckley, and rookie draft pick from LSU, Charles Scott. At fullback, Leonard Weaver has a lock on that spot, and is one of the best in the game.

At wide receiver, the Eagles are very young, and will have DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin as the top 2 receivers. The 3rd receiver in the slot will be Jason Avant, who seems to get better every year. He will be counted on to have a bigger role this year. The battle for the 4th and 5th wide receivers looks like it will be between Hank Baskett and rookie Riley Cooper. At tight end, Brent Celek is coming off a great year, and can hopefully continue to improve on that. Cornelius Ingram should be able to win the backup job, assuming he can stay healthy. I am very interested to see what Ingram can bring to the table, as I had high hopes for him when the Eagles drafted him.

On the offensive line, there are a few battles that will look to take place. Winston Justice and Jason Peters are the tackles. Winston Justice needs to show he can continue to improve upon his solid season last season. At the one guard position, Todd Herramans is the starter, assuming he is healthy. At the other guard, it could be a battle between Stacy Andrews, and Max Jean-Gilles. Neither player showed much last season. At center, Jamaal Jackson will start the season injured, and it looks like Nick Cole has the edge to start the season at center. I think Mike McGlynn should get a serious look to start at center, and could outplay Nick Cole in training camp.

On the defensive side of the ball, there will be even more position battles. The Eagles really struggled last season on defense, and need to bounce back this year. Up front, the defensive tackles will be the same - Broderick Bunkley and Mike Patterson - both solid players, but both of whom struggled at times against the run up the middle. Pro bowler Trent Cole has been solid ever since being drafted by the Eagles. Unfortunately, he has never had any help from the opposite defensive end. This could all change with first round draft pick Brandon Graham from Michigan. Graham could end up starting at the opposite end. However, Graham, like every other 1st round pick is unsigned, so he will need to get into camp as soon as possible if he wants to battle for the starting end spot. Darryl Tapp, the acquired free agent from Seattle, Victor Abiamiri, and Juqua Parker will also get a look to start. This left defensive end position looks to be one of the better camp battles to keep an eye on.

At linebacker, the Eagles appear like they are set. Obviously Stewart Bradley holds down the middle linebacker position, if healthy. The outside linebacker spots look to be held down by Ernie Sims, acquired in the offseason from the Detroit Lions, and 2nd year player Moise Fokou. Fokou will need to improve on a somewhat disappointing rookie season, but the Eagles appear to really like him.

The secondary is a large concern in my opinion, and a lot thinner than most people are talking about. At the cornerback position, the Eagle are no longer with Sheldon Brown, who will be replaced by Ellis Hobbs it looks like. Asante Samuel has the other cornerback spot locked up. Hobbs is good, but I'm not sure can step in and be a 2nd cornerback. This also means Joselio Hanson will step in to be the 3rd cornerback possibly, which I'm not sure I like either. Look for rookie Trevard Lindley to get a strong look this camp also.

At safety, Quintin Mikell is the starting strong safety. He will need to improve on his play last season, as he really struggled without Brian Dawkins. The Eagles brought in Marlin Jackson, but he already is out for the season. This means that rookie 2nd round draft pick Nate Allen is the starter right now at the free safety position. Nate Allen is also unsigned currently. The Eagles got absolutely nothing from the free safety position last season, and never adequately replaced Brian Dawkins. Hopefully Nate Allen is that player, but I'm not so sure he is. Quintin Demps should also get a look here, but never looked very good when he was in the game. Macho Harris was just terrible last season.

The Eagles are counting on their top 2 rookie picks this year to play big roles on defense, and need to get both guys signed and in camp, as they need to contribute right away. Either way, training camp should be interesting this season to see how all of these battles play out.

Phillies Need a Lot of Help

2010-07-23T00:16:00.006-04:00

The Phillies right now have a lot of issues, and will need a lot of help to not only try to win the division, but even get the wild card in the National League.

With the trade deadline a little over a week away, it looks like the Phillies have targeted an elite starter to attempt to acquire. Roy Oswalt is the name that has been mentioned most in this situation. It seems kind of stupid that the Phillies need to acquire a starting pitcher at the trade deadline this season when they had Cliff Lee on the team signed through the season. It's actually beyond stupid; it's moronic; it's asinine; and the series of moves that Ruben Amaro has made since taking over are basically all moronic, and they leave the Phillies in a horrible position as it stands right now.

Since the Phillies got rid of 7 of their top 10 prospects in the Lee and Halladay deals respectively, and since I would imagine Domonic Brown will not be traded, the Phillies don't have many prospects right now, and almost all the ones that they do are at the single A level. This means that the Phillies might have to include Jayson Werth and J.A. Happ in a trade. Since Werth is a free agent in the offseason, it makes sense to trade him; however, trading Werth really puts the already struggling lineup in an even tougher position.

If you trade Werth, you can replace him in the field with top prospect Domonic Brown, who is a natural right fielder. That is fine, as Domonic Brown is overdue to join the major leagues in my opinion. However, Jayson Werth, even though he is struggling, fills the #5 hole in the Phillies batting order, and is the right handed bat there. Batting behind Ryan Howard is not as easy thing to do. Domonic Brown is a lefty, and will join and already lefty heavy Phillies batting order. Also, you can't expect Domonic Brown to jump into the #5 hole behind Utley and Howard, as a lefty.

This means that you would have to probably put Rollins or Victorino in the #5 hole, both of whom are switch hitters, and unfortunately, both of whom are struggling at the plate. Rollins can hopefully turn it around and have a good end to the season; Shane Victorino just flat out sucks. If you put Rollins there, he can swing away like he always wants to anyways, but you then have Victorino at the leadoff spot, popping up the first pitch he sees every at bat. Either decision is not optimal.

Bottom line, the lineup right now isn't good enough to make the playoffs. In fact, the offense has been so bad that the Phillies fired hitting coach Milt Thompson tonight. Thompson will be replaced with Greg Gross, who has already been the Phillies hitting coach. The offense is flat out bad no matter who is the hitting coach right now, and I can't even remember the last time I said that about the Phillies. Chase Utley coming back obviously can't hurt, but I don't think it will do enough to revive the offense. Utley isn't going to fire anybody up with his personality, and Utley wasn't even hitting the ball anyways before he got injured.

Therefore, if the Phillies do make a trade, it will need to be for a pitcher, and this is what will need to carry the Phillies into the playoffs; because it sure isn't going to be the hitting.

Jabaal Sheard Suspended

2010-07-20T17:11:00.004-04:00

Pitt Panthers defensive end Jabaal Sheard was has bene suspended indefinitely after being arrested early Sunday morning for throwing another man through a glass window of an art gallery on Pittsburgh's South Side.

Sheard's suspension is technically indefinitely, but that could mean a lot of different things. The preliminary hearing in the case is July 28th, and until the suspension is lifted, Sheard cannot even participate in any team activities.

Sheard is the Panthers starting left defensive end, and plays opposite Greg Romeus, who is a possible 1st round draft pick next year. It will hurt the entire defense if Sheard misses any time, as the Panthers rely heavily on their pass rush for their defense to be successful. If you had to pick a weakness of Pitt's defense, it is the secondary, and without Sheard in the lineup, you are missing a vital part of the pass rush, and allowing opposing quarterbacks to have time to pick apart the Panthers secondary. This also will probably bring more double teams to Romeus' side of the ball for any game(s) that Sheard misses.

Unfortunately, even missing 1 game is a big deal, as the Panthers actually schedule real teams on their non-conference schedule - something Penn State knows nothing about - and open the season at Utah. The 2nd game of the season is against D-1AA New Hampshire, and Game 3 is against Miami. So, seems easy enough to me. Continue to state that we are looking into this issue, and doing our due diligence on that matter until after Sheard plays in Week 1 at Utah, then suspend him for the New Hampshire game, and then bring him back to play Miami.

Phillies Need a Wake Up Call - Badly

2010-07-19T22:00:00.004-04:00

The Phillies are in much need of a wake up call. The 2nd half of the season has gotten underway, and the Phillies have not yet started to play. They are a very easy Geovany Soto mishandled hop away from starting out the 2nd half 0-5.

The Phillies need someone on the team or on the coaching staff to get in the players faces, throw some chairs around, and start benching players. The Phillies are flat out a bad team right now, and since no one on the team is man enough to get in the other players faces, I will do my best to do it here.

Shane Victorino - You are playing like complete shit. In the top of the 7th tonight, with 2 on and 2 out, Shane Victorino came up and popped up the first pitch to the catcher. Sadly, we have seen Victorino and his stupid uppercut swing do this way too many times. Victorino is one of the dumbest baseball players I have ever seen, and actually had the audacity to sort of blame the fans for some of the Phillies struggles for not picking the Phillies up. You're right Shane, I forgot. It is our job as fans to pay money to come see you, and even though you make millions, it is our job to pick you up and cheer you on, and say go get 'em next time as you pop up first pitches. What is this, freakin little league? Should we have cheered, and said "nice try" as Shane jogged back to the dugout? Maybe Victorino should stay in St. Louis, where fans actually might do that. Just as an aside, Shane Victorino has 69 at bats this month, and has walked a grand total of 1 time. 1 time he took a walk.

This article was supposed to destroy a lot of players on the team, but I can't see to get past how bad Shane Victorino is. Let's try to move on. Jimmy Rollins is batting like .140 since he came back from the DL for good, which clearly isn't good from the leadoff spot. Since Rollins also never walks, the Phillies are getting from the leadoff spot. Jayson Werth is completely lost right now, and strikes out way too much. Werth actually has as many strikeouts as Ryan Howard does this year, and in about 50 fewer at bats. Not good.

Raul Ibanez is actually playing a little better the past month, but is well past his prime overall. I guess Ruben Amaro should be blamed for that more so than Ibanez, but he needs to step up his game also. I'm not going to blame Wilson Valdez, who shouldn't really be in a any position to be the man to try to jump start this pathetic offense.

Ryan Howard, Placido Polanco, and Carlos Ruiz have been solid all season. You can usually say that about Chase Utley, and even though he is on the injured list, he was not playing very well before he was on the injured list. If he continues to struggle down the stretch when he comes off the DL, Utley needs to be blamed as much as anyone for the Phillies season.

As for the pitching, the Phillies really only have 2 good starters, and everyone knew this coming into the season. Halladay has done everything he can do, and Cole Hamels has been better than most people actually thought he would be, including myself. Joe Blanton, Kyle Kendrick, and Jaime Moyer are jokes, and below average pitchers, and that is 60% of our starting staff. Cliff Lee would look real good right now, huh?

Also, Ruben Amaro deserves some of the blame as well. I don't need to re-hash the worst trade in Philadelphia sports that he pulled off, and the fact that Domonic Brown is still in the minors, destroying every level, as Raul Ibanez bats .250 in left field. You need to do everything you can to trade Ibanez. If not, I have been on record that you shouldn't trade Jayson Werth, but I wasn't expecting the Phillies to possibly be sellers at the deadline, and if the Phillies continue this free fall, they should try to trade Werth I think to get what they can, as he definitely will not be back next season.

Either way, the Phillies need some type of wake up call. I really hope one of the players steps up to the plate - not on the field - but instead in the locker room, to rustle a few feathers, and get in some players faces, to hopefully turn this season around.

Simon Gagne No Longer a Flyer

2010-07-19T17:32:00.004-04:00

The Flyers traded Simon Gagne today to the Tampa Bay Lightning, which ends Gagne's time as the longest tenured Flyer. The Flyers traded Gagne to the Lightning in exchange for defenseman Matt Walker and a 4th round draft pick.

The move was not necessarily done to bring is equal talent value, but was done to get rid of the contract of Simon Gagne. The Flyers needed to and were able to make this move after they signed Nikolai Zherdev last week. Zherdev is the man who will take Gagne's spot at the forward spot. By getting rid of Gagne, they Flyers are able to get back under the salary cap. Gagne was owed $5.25 million this season, and was under contract for 1 more season.

Even though Gagne was oft-injured, and appears to be older than his current age of 30, Gagne still will be missed simply because he has been on the Flyers for 10 years. Gagne was a former first round pick of the Flyers in 1998. And in today's sports, it is rare to see a player stay on the same team for even close to that amount of time. In fact, only David Akers can claim he was on a Philadelphia team for longer than Gagne currently up until today.

Gagne leaves the Flyers ranked 10th in both career games played for the Flyers, and 10th in career points for the Flyers. Even though it just happened very recently, Gagne will always be remembered as scoring one of the best goals in Flyers history - the Game 7 goal against the Boston Bruins that put the Flyers ahead 4-3 in the game, capping off the 3-0 series and 3-0 in game deficit.

76ers Lineup Shaping Up

2010-07-15T23:16:00.003-04:00

The Sixers lineup is shaping up now that the draft is concluded, and the Sixers signed Evan Turner.

I still would like to see the Sixers make one offseason move; that move would be to get rid of Andre Iguodala, obviously via trade. Iguodala makes a lot of money, a bad signing by Ed Stefanski, but still is a good player, just not a #1 option. I think Iguodala makes a lot of sense for certain teams, including the Chicago Bulls, who missed out of signing LeBron. If you can unload Iguodala, it will open up room for Thaddeus Young to start at the #3.

This is the year you need to find out if Thaddeus Young can play or not. Young looked good and showed flashes early in his career, but struggled for the most part last season. This is the year you need to find out in Young can be a starter in this league, or if he is just a serviceable player. In this scenario, Jrue Holiday would start at the point, and Evan Turner at shooting guard. With Thaddeus Young at the small forward, this would give the Sixers maybe the tallest 1, 2, 3 combo in the league. Holiday is big for a point guard, Turner is big for a shooting guard, and Young is big for a small forward. This would allow the Sixers to create a lot of matchup problems for any other team.

If Iguodala stays on the roster, which is probably likely, then Iguodala will probably start at the small forward position, and Thaddeus Young will come off the bench. The Sixers have tried putting Iguodala at the 2, and Young at the 3, but that didn't really work, and Iguodala has said he feels more comfortable at the small forward position.

As for the big men, the Sixers are not great up front. Elton Brand is a natural power forward, but as we have seen the last 2 seasons, is well past his prime, but locked into starting with all the money they are paying him. He is also unfortunately sort of blocking the process of Marreese Speights, who has shown a lot of skill when in the game. He is another guy the Sixers need to see if he can be a long term starter in this league.

Finally, the Sixers do not have to run out Samuel Dalembert at center. It wasn't a very significant trade, but just getting rid of Dalembert is one of the best trades in Sixers history. Basically the opposite of the Cliff Lee trade. In return, the Sixers received Spencer Hawes and Andres Nocioni. Hawes will probably be penciled in as the starting center. Hawes isn't great, but has size, and is decent, and still young.

If the Sixers want to play around, they can put Thaddeus Young at the 4 from time to time, or Speights, and Elton Brand can play center. Jason Smith will also get some time up front this year to see if he can show us something.

Lou Williams will probably be one of the first players off the bench, and even though Williams didn't show much last year as the starting point guard, he can still play, and is a solid backup to Jrue Holiday. Throw in the fact that the Sixers now have a respectable coach in Doug Collins who can help groom the young players, and will make the guys work hard, and the Sixers should at the very least have more wins than last season.

Phillies Begin 2nd Half of Season

2010-07-15T15:29:00.004-04:00

The All-Star break is over, and the Phillies begin the 2nd half of their season tonight with a 4 game series in Chicago to play the Cubs.

The Phillies unfortunately with their poor play over the past month and a half leave them with a lot of work to do in the 2nd half of the season. The Phillies are perenially a very good 2nd half team recently, but you hate to have to rely on that in order to make the playoffs. The Phillies currently sit 4.5 games back of the NL East leading Atlanta Braves. The Mets are in 2nd place, 4 games behind the Braves.

The Phillies have had their injury issues, but you don't want to blame all of their problems on the injuries. Bottom line, the Phillies offense the first half of the season is the worst it has been in a long time. Sitting out parts of the first half of the season were Jimmy Rollins, Placido Polanco, Chase Utley, and Carlos Ruiz. The Phillies still are without Polanco, who is due back possibly this weekend, and Chase Utley, who will probably be out for another month. Ryan Howard has been the only real consistent bat in the lineup, as he had an all-star first half of the season, and is almost batting .300.

The pitching staff has been up and down, but better than expected. The only reason the Phillies are even 4.5 games back is due to the pitching, which has picked up the hitting. In fact, the final 2 games before the all-star break, the Phillies won consecutive games 1-0, behind solid starting pitching from Roy Halladay, and Cole Hamels. Halladay has been everything he was brought in to be. Cole Hamels has been solid this year so far. Kyle Kendrick and Jaime Moyer have been very up and down, and Joe Blanton has been flat out bad.

I hate to keep bringing up the worst trade in Philadelphia sports in my lifetime, but trading away Cliff Lee was a horrible mistake by Ruben Amaro, Jr. People say get over the trade and stop talking about it; however, the trade is significant and applicable to how the Phillies are playing now. If you want to agree with Amaro and say the Phillies couldn't spend the money, then you can blame Amaro for giving Moyer a 2 year deal, and not trading Joe Blanton, although there wasn't much demand for Blanton. Also, if you want to agree with Amaro and say the Phillies needed to replenish the farm system, this is just untrue, because if the Phillies had kept Cliff Lee this year and then let him walk, they would receive 2 first round draft picks as compensation. You could easily argue that these 2 first round picks would be much better than the prospects that the Phillies did get.

Also, Ruben Amaro needs to make the correct decision and try to trade Raul Ibanez. Ibanez is having a bad year, which you kind of had to expect, as Ibanez is up there in age. If no one wants Ibanez, most people feel like the Phillies should trade Jayson Werth. I do not however. You need Werth in the lineup, as he is one of the positives in a poor lineup, and is the only power right handed bat. Bottom line, Dominic Brown absolutely needs to be a starter on this Phillies team, like yesterday. According to Ruben Amaro, Brown can't replace Ibanez because Brown isn't a left fielder. Ohh right, I forgot Ibanez is an outfield covering gold glover out there. Brown technically is a right fielder, but I have to imagine can fill in left field for the rest of the season. Dominic Brown was recently listed as the #1 prospect currently not in MLB by ESPN.com. He can definitely give a jolt to the lineup.

Either way, the Phillies need to step up their game, and have a solid 2nd half if they want to make the playoffs. Luckily, this is nothing new for the Phillies, as they usually do have very good 2nd halves.

Flyers Fall Short as Blackhawks Win Cup

2010-06-10T17:02:00.002-04:00

The Flyers lost to the Blackhawks last night and thus ended their amazing run at the Stanley Cup, and had to watch Chicago celebrate their Stanley Cup victory on our home ice.

Much like the rest of this postseason, the Flyers did everything they could to win this game, and left it all out on the ice; but in the end, it wasn’t enough. The Flyers were outplayed from the start of the game early, and Michael Leighton had to keep the Flyers in the game early. The end of the first period saw a 1-1 score. The Flyers got on the board first in the 2nd period, when Danny Briere continued his great postseason and roofed a shot over Niemi. However, the Blackhawks responded with 2 in the period to take a 3-2 2nd period intermission lead.

The Flyers really dominated the 3rd period, as they needed to in order to stay in the game. Finally, the Flyers were able to beat Niemi with about 4 minutes left in the game, as Scott Hartnell notched his 2nd goal of the game. Once again, the Hartnell-Briere-Leino line was easily the best line on the team, and was the most effective line of the postseason.

Once overtime started, the Flyers had the momentum and were outplaying the Blackhawks, getting most of the scoring chances at this point. However, all it takes is 1 shot on net, and Patrick Kane provided just that. On a very innocent looking play in the Flyers zone, Kane had the puck on the side, and really nowhere to go with it. He made a couple moves, got some room past Kimmo Timonen, and sent a puck towards Leighton, who was covering the post. The puck somehow snuck through Leighton, and into the net to give the Blackhawks their first Stanley Cup since 1961. It was a pretty weak goal to be honest, but that is also what great players do; they score big goals when it doesn’t look like they have anything or anywhere to go with the puck.

The Blackhawks were probably the better team, I would say overall they probably had more chances than the Flyers, especially in 5 on 5 situations, and when the game was tied. The Blackhawks seemed to come out at the start of games and really outplay the Flyers. The Flyers seemed to play their best hockey when they were down in games. That isn’t to say the Flyers didn’t play well or Chicago dominated the series, because I don’t think either of those are even close to true; it just seems like the better team overall won. Not the better team by much, but the better team nonetheless. If the Flyers had been able to steal 1 of the first 2 games in Chicago, it would have been a completely different series, and probably a different outcome. As the road team, you have to win 1 of those first 2 games.

Either way, it was a great season and everything. Even though the Flyers disappointed at points, and were very up and down, they still made it to the Stanley Cup Finals which can’t be considered a disappointment as a season. It is disappointing, and will be going forward, but the season as a whole is not a disappointment. Even before the season when the Flyers were considered one of the top teams in the East, you still would have put them behind the Penguins and Capitals in the pecking order.

We did get to see some unbelievable moments. The final regular season game win in the shootout. Beating up on the Devils handily, who routinely beat up on the Flyers the past 2 decades. Coming from 3-0 down against the Bruins – not only in the series – but also in Game 7, to advance. Watching Brian Boucher play great hockey, getting injured, and then watching Michael Leighton pick up right where Boucher left off. Whooping up on the Canadiens, while collecting 3 shutouts in the Eastern Conference Finals. And then finally hitting the wall and losing in the Stanley Cup Finals. The Flyers did their best, and managed to not fold when they got down 2-0 in the series, and make it a series at least.

Most of the team will be back next year to try to make a run at another Stanley Cup appearance. It will be much tougher next season, as we still will go into the season behind the Penguins and Capitals, as teams expected to win the Eastern Conference. Either way, it was a great season, with a disappointing end, and we can look forward to hopefully winning it all next season.

Now a Best of 3 Series

2010-06-05T11:53:00.004-04:00

The Flyers won Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals in front of a crazy home crowd at the Wachovia Center to take even up the series at 2, and now it becomes a best of 3 series.

The Flyers jumped all over the Blackhawks in this game in the first period, and even though things got close at the end, the Flyers held off the Hawks to win the game 5-3. The Flyers got a great solo effort from Mike Richards to get on the board early in the first period. Shortly after, Matt Carle kept a Blackhawks clearing attempt in the zone and fired a puck into the open net. Carle's goal went as unassisted, but James van Riemsdyk played a big role on that play, bringing the puck around behind the net and getting it out in front. After a Blackhawks Patrick Sharp goal, Claude Giroux snuck behind the defense, and Kimmo Timonen found him with a great pass, and the Flyers took a 3-1 lead into the first intermission.

After a scoreless 2nd period, Ville Leino banked a shot off a Blackhawks defender and passed Antti Niemi and gave the Flyers a 4-1 lead halfway through the 3rd. The Blackhawks would not go away however, and scored 2 quick goals to make it 4-3, and then had plenty of good opportunities down the stretch to tie it, but Jeff Carter put the game away with an easy empty netter, and give the Flyers a 5-3 victory. Ville Leino's goal allowed him to become the all-time leading Flyers postseason scorer for a rookie passing Brian Propp.

5 different Flyers had goals, and no one had more than 1 assist either. The top line that needed to step up, ehh sort of stepped up. Richards goal was on the power play, so it was not with his linemates, and was a solo effort anyways. Carter's goal was an empty netter that hopped over Blackhawks defender Duncan Keith's stick and gave him an easy breakaway goal. The top line did play better though, and Carter, although I still don't think he had a good game, did play better than Game 3. The top line really needs to get going though, and win a game in Chicago.

The Flyers did do what they should have and replaced Daniel Carcillo with van Riemsdyk, and although van Riemsdyk made some mistakes, he also has an assist, and a great play on the Matt Carle goal. van Riemsdyk solidified his spot, and should play on the Giroux, Asham line the rest of the postseason.

Michael "Lights Out" Leighton turned the lights out on the Blackhawks, and made 31 saves in the game. Leighton played very well, and there wasn't much he could have done on any of the 3 Blackhawks goals. The first one was deflected, again off a Flyers played, as Braydon Coburn deflected the puck into the net. The 2nd one was on a 5-on-3 advantage, so it's hard to do anything on that one. And the 3rd one was kind of fluky and just a matter of the Blackhawks sending the puck towards the net, and the puck kind of rid on Timonen and Toews going towards the net and went in. Leighton really has played well, and needs to do it on the road now to steal a game.

Chris Pronger has been fantastic this Stanley Cup shutting down the first line of Kane-Towes-Byfuglien. He has the Blackhawks players all complaining about his play, and he is pushing these 3 players around, and having his way. Pronger did not have a point last night, and actually only played 28 minutes, which is less than usual for him, but he always has an impact on the game, and in this postseason, it has been a very positive impact.

Now... there is still a lot of work to do. The Flyers do have the momentum, but all that momentum might stop come Game 5 when the puck drops in front of the Chicago crowd. The series is now a best of 3 series, and the Blackhawks have 2 home games to the Flyers 1. The Flyers need to find a way to steal a game in Chicago, and it really needs to be Game 5 since the Flyers do have the momentum. The Flyers do not want to let Chicago go up 3-2, and have to win 2 in a row, with the final one being in Chicago. The Flyers really need to come out and try to win Game 5. The top line has the capability of having a big game, and stealing a game. Michael Leighton has the capability to steal a game. The team needs to step up for Game 5, and come back to Philly with a win, a 3-2 series lead, and a chance to win the Stanley Cup Finals on home ice in Game 6. Of course, that is much easier said than done.

Flyers Face Another Must Win Tonight

2010-06-04T10:45:00.005-04:00

The Flyers play the Blackhawks tonight in a must win game 4 at the Wachovia Center tonight. The Flyers took back some momentum and should have plenty of confidence going into tonight's game.

The Flyers won an amazing game on Wednesday night 4-3 in overtime. Claude Giroux put in the game winner about 6 minutes into overtime to give the Flyers the needed win. This Flyers team, as we know, had lived on the edge a lot in this postseason, and Game 3 was no different.

The Flyers did really control most of the game, including basically all of the 3rd period. However, the Flyers still found themselves down in the 3rd period after Patrick Kane put in his first goal of the series on a breakaway. The Flyers could have really packed it in at this point, and given up. They did just the opposite. The Flyers scored just 20 seconds later, as Ville Leino had the pick bounce to him with a wide open net.

The 2nd line continued their unbelievable play this postseason. Scott Hartnell, Danny Briere, and Ville Leino were a solid line again, as all 3 players scored goals. Hartnell, who I have been very critical of, was one of the best players on the ice in Game 3, and had an unbelievable assist on the Briere goal. Matt Carle, Chris Pronger, and Claude Giroux also had very strong games.

The top line, mostly Jeff Carter, and Daniel Carcillo did not have good games. The top line has yet to show up this series, and Richards, Carter, and Gagne need to step up their games. Carter played one of the worst games I've ever seen anyone play. He looked horrible out on the ice, and there is no reason that Carter, at 6'4", 220 should be as soft as he is. That top line needs to step it up if the Flyers want to win this series, and if they do step it up, the Flyers could definitely win the Stanley Cup. I hate to seem like I am ripping Jeff Carter, because he is probably still somewhat injured, but if he plays well, that first line can succeed, and that would go a long way.

Daniel Carcillo is a guy who you really like to have on your team. He gets in opposing player's heads, he can fight, and is an annoying guy to face when you are on the other team. All of that said, he isn't very good at hockey. Carcillo needs to be scratched again, and go back to James van Riemsdyk. van Riemsdyk is young, and untested, and may never live up to his #2 overall pick status, but he still has a lot of skill, much more than Carcillo. Giroux has been playing on a line with Carcillo and Asham, and Giroux's skill level is somewhat lost with those 2 on his line. JVR hasn't put up many points this postseason, but he has a lot of speed, and puck handling skills, and needs to be out there. The team actually knows that Carcillo doesn't give them much, since Carcillo has yet to play in either of the last 2 games 3rd period. And these are 2 periods that the Flyers have dominated.

In fact, my sources are telling me that JVR will suit up, but I am not sure who will not play in his place. The only person who makes sense would be Carcillo.

Flyers Drop Game 1

2010-05-30T10:02:00.004-04:00

...Well I guess that is not how things were drawn up before the game by either team. The Flyers lost game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals 6-5 to go down in the series 1-0. The game was a crazy game to say the least, and each team had multiple leads during the contest.

The Flyers got on the board early and often in Game 1. Unfortunately for them, so did the Blackhawks. The Flyers could never seem to get any momentum going, as once the Flyers would score, it seemed like the Blackhawks wasted no time getting the goal back. The Flyers opened the scoring in the 1st period, as Ville Leino fired a puck towards the net that went off a defenseman and made its way in. The Blackhawks came right back and score 1 minute later. The Blackhawks scored again a few minutes after that, but the Flyers answered with 2 more before the period was over, goals from Scott Hartnell and Danny Briere, to make it a 3-2 Flyers lead at the first intermission.

If you flipped over to Comcast at this point, you could see Roy Halladay complete the 20th perfect game in MLB history. Maybe this would be a good sign for a great Philadelphia sports night.

Unfortunately, the Blackhawks scored 1 minute into the 2nd period on a 2 on 1, and the game was tied at 3. About 7 minutes into the period, Blair Betts scored a goal, but again, the Blackhawks had an answer; the Blackhawks scored 2 minutes after Blair's tally to make it 4-4, and then scored again 5 minutes after that. Michael Leighton was yanked after this goal, a move I did not agree with. For the 2nd straight period, the Flyers scored in the final minute and a half of the period, with Arron Asham scoring in his 2nd straight game to make the score 5-5 going into the 3rd.

Michael Leighton was clearly not playing well, and I understand getting him out of the game in a game he is playing poorly, and tryint to re-fresh for Game 2. However, the Flyers were only down 1 goal at the time Leighton was pulled, and the game was tied going into the 3rd period. I would have rather had Leighton in the net for the 3rd period of a winnable game than Brian Boucher. The only reason to me to pull a goalie is when a goalie is playing poorly, and you have basically conceded that the game would be lost. This would have been a fine situation if the score were 5-1 or 5-2. However, the Flyers were only down 1 goal, and you want to keep the goalie out there who gives you the best shot at winning or getting on a hot streak - and to me that is Leighton. I'm not defending Leighton's play last night, because it was subpar, but I still would have kept him out there.

The 3rd period slowed down and calmed down a little bit, and Antti Niemi, the Blackhawks goalie, who had been struggling all game, along with Leighton, turned his game around and shut down the Flyers. I believe Leighton could have done the same if he was out there. The Blackhawks scored what would be the game winning goal 8 minutes in, on a fairly weak goal where Boucher bit on a shot fake and was out of position for the shot. The Blackhawks then clamped down on defense, and the Flyers never got any great chances towards the end of the game, and only finished the 3rd period with 6 shots in the period. Before the 3rd period, the Flyers were outshooting and outchancing the Blackhawks.

Either way, the Blackhawks really had to win this game more than the Flyers did. The Flyers really need to try to get Game 2 now, and come back home with the series tied 1-1. The Flyers got this crazy game out of the way; they now need to re-focus, relax, and play some better hockey all around. The Flyers seem to be able to play well playing fast, or slow hockey, but I think the Flyers need to try to slow the pace down a little bit. The Flyers need to do a better job in the neutral zone of not allowing the Blackhawks to come through and gain entry to the Flyers zone so easily. If the Flyers can win Game 2, they have still accomplished their goal of splitting in Chicago.

Micahel Leighton needs to step up his game, and show that he can look comfortable in between the pipes, because he never got into a rhythm. Also, the Flyers need to show they can hold onto a lead because blowing 3 leads in the game in unacceptable, even if they are only 1 goal leads, and early in the game. After they take the lead, if they do in Game 2, they need to do a better job on defense of not giving up shots in the slot, and just taking advantage of whatever scoring chances they get, much like Game 4 in Montreal.

Game 2 is not necessarily a must win, but if they do not take it, it makes both Game 3 and Game 4 at home must win games for the Flyers. A win in Game 2 would also allow the Flyers to calm down a little bit, and play their game coming back home for Games 3 and 4. They now just need to re-group, and execute Peter Laviolette's game plan for Game 2.

Halladay Completes Perfect Game

2010-05-30T09:52:00.003-04:00

While the Flyers were in the midst of a crazy Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals, Roy Halladay was doing something that had only been done 19 times before him, and once in Phillies history - pitch a perfect game.

Halladay was perfect against the Marlins, retiring all 27 batters he faced, and striking out 11 en route to the perfect game. And the perfect game was basically needed just to get the win, since the Phillies offense is one of the worse in the league, the Phillies could only muster up an unearned run in this outing. This might be the most unwatched perfect game among Phillies fans, as it was on the road, and came during a night when the Flyers kicked off the Stanley Cup Finals.

Halladay never showed any emotion during the game, and if just looking at Halladay, you would have never known what was at stake. In the 9th inning, Ronny Paulino grounded out to 3rd to end the game, and complete the perfect game. Paulino's grounded initially looked like it was going to be a weak hit between 3rd and short, but it was hit softly enough to field by Castro, who was playing 3rd. I can't even imagine how nervous it must be to have the last ball hit to you in a perfect game situation.

Roy Halladay has never pitched a perfect game before or a no hitter. This is the 20th perfect game in MLB history, and the Phillies have now become the first team to throw 2 perfect games; the other being Jim Bunning in 1964.

Flyers Advance to Stanley Cup Finals

2010-05-25T17:56:00.002-04:00

The Flyers put down the Canadiens on Monday night to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals. This will be the Flyers first Stanley Cup appearance since 1997, when they were swept by the Red Wings, and the Russian 5. The Flyers haven’t won a Stanley Cup since 1975 when the Broad Street Bullies were around, and have been to the Stanley Cup 5 times since then, and lost all 5.

This version of the Broad Street Bullies enters the Stanley Cup playing their best hockey all season. They defeated the Canadiens, who were playing great hockey coming into the series, 4-2, to eliminate Montreal. The Flyers advanced, and will face the Chicago Blackhawks in the Stanley Cup Finals, who swept the #1 seeded San Jose Sharks.

Eliminating the Canadiens in Game 5 is exactly what the Flyers needed to do. You didn’t want to have to go back to Montreal for a Game 6, or give them any momentum. The game didn’t start out exactly as planned, as Montreal scored 59 seconds into the game. They then went on the power play, and had an opportunity to take a 2-0 lead in the game.

They didn’t, and that particular Canadiens power play was the start of the Mike Richards show for the night. Richards plowed through a Canadiens player at the point setting up a shorthanded odd man rush that resulted in a good scoring chance for Braydon Coburn. About 30 seconds later, Claude Giroux cleared the puck out of the Flyers zone, and Richards chased after it. The puck slid into the Montreal zone, and Richards was in a race with Canadiens defenseman Roman Hamrlik to be the first to the puck. Canadiens goalie Jaroslav Halak then decided he wanted to be first to the puck and skated after it. What resulted was a 3 person sliding collision which sent Richards, the puck, and Halak’s goalie stick towards the net. Richards got up, avoided Halak’s stick, and put the puck into the back of the net.

This was just the beginning of Mike Richards playing the “I’m not going to let this team lose this game” role. That is what a captain should do in a big game like this, and Richards was up to the task. The Flyers added 2 goals in the 2nd, one on a nice pass by Matt Carle, which left Arron Asham in front of the net by himself. He made a nice move, and beat Halak. Just over a minute later, the Flyers showed great puck movement, including an unreal behind the net pass from Richards to Jeff Carter, who put a shot over Halak’s shoulder.

Of course the game had to be nerve racking though, as Montreal scored just 7 minutes into the 3rd period, and the Flyers had to hold off a desperate Canadiens team for most of the rest of the game. They did just that, as the defense played well, and Michael Leighton played well down the stretch, and another fabulous Mike Richards play led to a Jeff Carter empty net goal. Mike Richards played his best game in a while, and it was especially important for him to do this in such a big game. Richards is the captain of the team, and the leader, and he showed why on Monday. He was not going to let the Flyers lose that game, and was a beast on almost every shift of his.

Richards had a solid game, Arron Asham had a number of chances, and the defense and Leighton was solid. The first goal was a little bit of lazy defense, but also a goal that Michael Leighton could have saved. After this point though, Leighton was solid. The fans were amazing as always, as Philadelphia fans always are, and were rewarded with getting to watch the Flyers celebrate a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals. If the Flyers can win this Stanley Cup, it would be one of the more memorable seasons in Philadelphia sports history, and one of the best coaching performances by Peter Laviolette in these playoffs.

This was a great win, but the goal is to win the Stanley Cup, so there is still plenty of work to be done. As good as the Flyers are playing right now, which they are, the Blackhawks have been a great team wire to wire. They were the #2 seed in the Western Conference, which is a stronger conference than the East, and could have easily been the #1 seed. Instead, they took it to the #1 seeded Sharks in the Western Conference Finals. The Blackhawks feature 3 solid lines, come at you in waves, have star players on offense and defense, and also have a hot goaltender, much like the Flyers. It will not be easy, but it should be a very good Stanley Cup Finals.

Flyers Win Game 4

2010-05-22T19:08:00.005-04:00

The Flyers bounced back from their disappointing Game 3 loss and won Game 4 in hostile Montreal to take a 3 games to 1 series lead in the Eastern Conference Finals.

The Flyers did exactly what they needed to do going into Montreal for 2 games. They needed to just win 1 of those games and come back home with a 3-1 series lead. After the Flyers disappointing Game 3, they needed to step it up and take Game 4, so that the Canadiens would not have all the momentum and a series tied at 2.

The Flyers locked it down defensively, and Michael Leighton bounced back from Game 3, and recorded his 3rd shutout in 4 games of the series, as the Flyers won 3-0 in Game 4. The first period was a defensive battle with not many scoring chances, which I thought was a good thing for the Flyers, so the crowd would get slightly bored and restless. In period #2, the Flyers took over. Claude Giroux made an unbelievable solo play and beat the Montreal defense to put the Flyers on the board early in the 2nd period.

Later in the 2nd period, Chris Pronger made a great pass to Ville Leino, allowing Leino go move in on a breakaway, and Leino beat Halak to put the Flyers up 2-0 after 2 periods. In the 3rd, the Canadiens did put a lot of pressure on, but Leighton and the defense were up to the task. The Flyers had to kill off 2 power plays in the 3rd period, and then after doing so, Claude Giroux put in his 2nd goal of the game into the back of the net from his knees into the empty net to end the game.

The Flyers hardly allowed Montreal any good chances, and the Canadiens only ended up with 17 shots, after outshooting the Flyers in all 3 games thus far. Give a lot of credit to Peter Laviolette for regrouping the team in between games, and setting up the game plan, and allowing the Flyers to execute. Also, credit Matt Carle, and Chris Pronger, both of whom were really bad in Game 3, and both of whom really played well in Game 4.

Ian Laperriere and Jeff Carter both returned from injury to give the Flyers a needed boost. Jeff Carter moved onto the first line with Mike Richards and Simon Gagne, as Daniel Carcillo was a healthy scratch. I was calling for mostly Arron Asham to get scratched, but if it wasn't him, I would say Carcillo was the next guy who should have been scratched. Carter played almost 14 minutes, including a couple on the power play, and had 4 shots on goal, which is good. Laperriere replaced Andreas Nodl in the lineup, and played a little over 9 minutes, including a short period of time on the penalty kill. Blair Betts and Darrol Powe did a great job on the penalty kill. Laperriere is mostly known for his penalty killing and leadership as being a great locker room guy.

Again, the Flyers accomplished their task of taking 1 of 2 in Montreal, and now go back home for Game 5 with a 3-1 series lead. You really would love to close out this series in Game 5, so you don't give the Canadiens any life, and don't have to go back to the crappy city that is Monreal, and deal with their annoying fans. Game 5 is Monday night at 7:00.

Flyers Brought Back Down to Earth

2010-05-21T19:52:00.005-04:00

The Flyers lost last night in Montreal 5-1, but still hold a 2-1 series advantage in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Well, I guess it was wishful thinking to think the Flyers would never allow another goal in the playoffs, and just win every game on their way to their first Stanley Cup since the 1970s. The Flyers lost against a motivated, and spunky Montreal Canadiens teams, in front of a raucous/annoying crowd of French Canadians singing soccer chants.

The Canadiens took control from the beginning of the game, and never looked back. In the first 5 minutes of the game, the Flyers actually had 2-3 decent chances to score, including a power play, but Halak made a few nice saves, and kept the score tied at 0. Montreal got on the board halfway through the first, when Mike Cammalleri put in a rebound off the back boards to break Michael Leighton's shutout streak, and finally give the Canadiens some momentum, and their first lead of the series. The Canadiens put in 3 more, before the Flyers were able to get a goal in the 3rd period to avoid the shutout. And in classic Broad Street Bullies fashion, the Flyers just beat the crap out of the Canadiens at the end of the game. Simon Gagne continued his hot scoring streak, and scored the lone goal for the Flyers.

The Flyers defense really was the reason they lost this game, and it was most notably Matt Carle, and Chris Pronger. Quite frankly, Carle, and Pronger were horrible in this game. Carle and Pronger were both guilt of defensive let downs, turnovers, and not picking up guys going to the net all game long. It is hard to blame Leighton for most of the Canadiens goals, the Canadiens just flat out outplayed the Flyers all game long.

The Canadiens also outshot the Flyers for the 3rd straight game, which is disconcerting. The Flyers need to do a better job of keeping the play in the Canadiens end, and doing a better job cycling in the offensive zone. If the defense can play better, and the Flyers can cycle the puck and keep it down low, they should be more effective in Game 4.

A loss in this situation isn't necessarily the worst thing that could happen. The Flyers weren't going to sweep through everyone. You knew they were going to lose a game at some point, and it happened on Thursday night. Losses are not always necessarily the worst thing that can happen. The Flyers can not re-group, move on from their solid 6 game winning streak, go back to the drawing board, and pretend that this series is tied going into Game 4. If the Flyers can win Game 4 in Montreal, they still will be in command of this series.

76ers Name Doug Collins Head Coach

2010-05-21T19:34:00.003-04:00

The Philadelphia 76ers finally ended their coaching search today by officially naming current NBA analyst, Doug Collins, their head coach.

Doug Collins has been an NBA analyst for better part of the decade, after last coaching the Washington Wizards in 2002-2003. Collins has coached 8 seasons, coaching the Bulls, Pistons, and Wizards and compiling a 332-287 overall record. Collins does have some Philadelphia ties, as he was the #1 overall draft pick in the 1973 draft.

It's hard to say whether Collins is the right guy for this job. It's even harder to say why Collins would want this job. Collins clearly has a very good basketball mind, and is a guy who knows the game well, and is extremely intelligent. It isn't so clear if he will be able to succeed with this group of players. The Sixers, last time I checked are not a very good team, and have a bunch of bad contracts, which doesn't allow them to go after any players, and makes it harder to unload the current bad contracts. This probably means that the Sixers will not be very good for a few years, even with a solid young guy in Jrue Holiday, and the #2 overall pick this year.

Collins always had success where he went, but always also seemed to slightly underachieve. Collins was the Chicago Bulls coach from the middle to the late 80s, and consistently made the playoffs with Michael Jordan leading the team, but the Bulls never took off until Collins was replaced with Phil Jackson. Collins took some time off, and then coached the Pistons in the mid to late 90s, and which point he was fired from that job. He then took some more time off and coached the Washington Wizards for a couple seasons, and was fired again. In between all the coaching jobs, Collins worked as an analyst for NBA games for TNT, and is considered one of the better analysts.

Doug Collins name has surfaced for multiple coaching positions after his final coaching job with the Wizards, but he has never been hired until now. Like I said, I do respect Doug Collins' knowledge for the game, and think he knows his stuff, I am just not sure he is the guy to be the long term coach of the 76ers. The 76ers will not be good for a few years, and Doug Collins tendencies are to get sort of burned out after coaching for a few years. If the Sixers continue to be a bad team for the next few years, I hope that Collins stays motivated to coach the team, and does not bail after a couple of poor seasons.

This Sixers coaching job is not a very good one right now. Due to all the bad contracts, it is not easy to bring in players, and the team is basically handicapped and stuck with the guys who are currently on the team. However, in a couple years, when the Sixers do have some wiggle room, this could a very good coaching job to have. We will just have to see if Doug Collins sticks around long enough, and is able to keep the team motivated, which in today's NBA, is not an easy thing to do.

Coach Laviolette Deserves Credit

2010-05-19T17:26:00.001-04:00

The Flyers had fought their way back admirably from down 3 games to 0 to the Bruins to tie the series at 3, and force a decisive Game 7 in Boston. Unfortunately, Game 7 did not start out according to plan. The Flyers got down early 3-0 in the first period, and never fought back, and ended up losing the game. The Flyers still deserve a lot of credit for fighting back even to force a Game 7…..

This might have been the story line after Game 7 if one Peter Laviolette was not the coach of the Philadelphia Flyers. Luckily for us, he is, and the storyline instead goes something like this…

The Flyers had fought their way back admirably from down 3 games to 0 to the Bruins to tie the series at 3, and force a decisive Game 7 in Boston. Unfortunately, Game 7 did not start out according to plan. The Flyers got down early 3-0 in the first period….. and then came one of the greatest called time outs in Philadelphia sports history. Teams only get 1 time out in hockey, so they are usually reserved for late in the 3rd period of games to give your guys a short rest before one final push. Laviolette used the Flyers 1 timeout in the first period after going down 3-0.

Since that timeout, the Flyers have outscored the Bruins, and now Canadiens, 13-0. Since that timeout, the Flyers have not allowed a goal. The defense has been great, and Michael Leighton has been even better. In that timeout, Laviolette told Michael Leighton to not allow another goal, and the Flyers would win that game. Leighton apparently received the message loud and clear, as he did not allow another goal in that Game 7, and has not let the Canadiens find the net as of yet through 2 games of the Eastern Conference Finals series.

Peter Laviolette also told the Flyers during that timeout to settle down, and get a goal before the period was over to make it 3-1. As we all know, James van Riemsdyk got that goal, the Flyers went into the locker room down 3-1, and the rest, as they say is history.

Peter Laviolette was hired by the Flyers on December 4th, as they sent John Stevens packing. The Flyers were slumping at the time, and a replacement was needed. It did take some time to get used to Laviolette’s aggressive forechecking system, but the players have bought into it, and the Flyers aggressive forechecking is one of the reasons they are having success so far in the playoffs. Laviolette won a Stanley Cup with the Carolina Hurricanes, so he brought instant credibility and respect from the players, who knew that Laviolette can get the job done as coach. He has gotten the job done here, and then some.

Laviolette, much like some of the players, seems to elevate his game once the playoffs start. Laviolette is focused on winning the Stanley Cup, and anything short of that will be a disappointment. After eliminating the Bruins capping off one of the most historic comebacks in sports history, Laviolette remained stoic, and said that the Flyers were not happy with advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals, and that the Flyers can still play better. After both the Game 1 and Game 2 wins over Montreal in the Eastern Conference Finals, Laviolette was not pleased. He said the Flyers need to play better if they want to advance. I like that out of the head coach. We can call this the anti-Andy Reid.

After losses to terrible teams like the Raiders, or blowout losses to good teams like the Cowboys to end the season, Andy Reid continues to say how good the team played, and how close they are, and that they are only a hair off, and how they will get it right for next game, since they don’t have far to go. This is complete bullshit, as is most everything that comes out of Andy Reid’s mouth. Even after historic wins, and 6-0 wins, Laviolette is not content. Winning is always good, but can often mask a lot of mistakes, and Laviolette knows this, and knows that the Flyers need to continue to correct some things if they want to continue to advance in these playoffs. Peter Laviolette should be the long-term coach of the Flyers, as he is right up there with Charlie Manuel right now, as the best coach in the city.

76ers Jump Up To Pick #2

2010-05-19T17:23:00.003-04:00

While the Flyers were busy taking a 2-0 series lead on the Canadiens last night, and the Phillies were busy not giving Roy Halladay any run support, and losing to the Pirates, the NBA Draft Lottery was held, or in the case of 2010, the John Wall Sweepstakes.

The Sixers were sitting in the 6th position, meaning if everything played out by the numbers, the Sixers would have the #6 pick in the NBA Draft. Jrue Holiday was sent to represent the 76ers, which seemed strange since if we got the #1 overall pick, we would be taking another PG in Wall to replace Holiday. The Sixers did not get the #1 overall pick, but instead got the #2 overall pick, which is great news. Not only do the Sixers not have to worry about taking a point guard, assuming the Wizards, who won the draft lottery, take John Wall #1 overall.

Keep in mind that the Sixers do not have a coach currently, but having the #2 pick, and the chance at getting an elite guy might be attractive to some coaches going forward, especially since Jrue Holiday showed some promise last season.

Here are some other players who the Sixers could take, if John Wall goes #1—

Evan Turner - SG/SF, Ohio State

Some would argue that Evan Turner is better than John Wall, and should go #1. Turner was the best player in college basketball last year, and led Ohio State to a #2 seed in the NCAA Tournament, and a Sweet 16 berth. Ohio State lost in the Sweet 16, but it was not because Evan Turner didn’t play well. Turner is a 6’7” shooting guard, who was a junior last season, and averaged 20.4 point per game, 6.0 assists per game, and 9.2 rebounds per game. Turner can fill up a stat sheet very well, much like Andre Iguodala.

If you project Turner to start at the shooting guard position this season, Andre Iguodala will be the starting small forward, which he likes, and Thaddeus Young will have to come off the bench. This also gives the Sixers a very large backcourt in 6’4” point guard Jrue Holiday, and Evan Turner at the 2. Turner makes the most sense here.

Derrick Favors – PF, Georgia Tech

Derrick Favors was one of the extremely talented freshman in the nation last year, and is a load underneath the basket. Favors is 6’10”, and seems to be very streaky. Favors averaged 12.4 points per game, and 8.4 rebounds a game last season. Favors is a guy who projects as a really good NBA player, and when Favors was playing well, there were few big men who could contain him last year. Being a power forward, there really is no need for the 76ers to pick Favors, as we already have Elton Brand locked up for forever, and Marreese Speights, a solid young player behind Brand.

Wesley Johnson – SF, Syracuse

Wesley Johnson busted onto the college basketball scene last year, and played an extremely important role in Syracuse’s success last season. Johnson is a junior, and was a transfer from Iowa State. Johnson made his mark immediately, and ended up averaging 16.5 points per game, and 8.5 rebounds per game. Johnson is a beast, and a freak athlete who can attack the rim, but also shoot the 3, making 41.5% of his three pointers last season. However, Johnson is not a guy the Sixers really need at this point, as they already have 2 similar players in Iguodala, and Thaddeus Young, and they are struggling finding enough minutes for Young right now.

DeMarcus Cousins, PF/C, Kentucky

Cousins, like John Wall, was one of the heralded freshman on the Kentucky squad this year. The first think you notice about Cousins is that he is a huge body. Cousins is listed at 6’11”, 270 pounds, and thus is a huge man to remove from the middle of the floor. He uses his weight well, and is comfortable going right at people, and throwing his body around. Cousins averaged 15.1 points per game, and 9.8 rebounds per game. In my opinion, Cousins should be the pick by the Sixers if they do not pick Evan Turner. Cousins could end up being a beast on the inside, and guys like that are not easy to find, and do not come along all the time. Cousins could fill a need at center once Dalembert is gone, or even at power forward once Brand is gone. Cousins could actually replace Brand in the lineup if he outplays him, since Brand is past his prime.

NBA Mock Draft (5/19/10)

2010-05-19T17:20:00.002-04:00

With the NBA Draft Lottery taking place last night, we now know where certain teams will make their picks. See below for our first NBA Mock Draft of the year--

1. Washington Wizards - John Wall – PG, Kentucky
2. Philadelphia 76ers- Evan Turner – SG/SF, Ohio State
3. New Jersey Nets- Derrick Favors – PF, Georgia Tech
4. Minnesota Timberwolves- Wesley Johnson – SF, Syracuse
5. Sacramento Kings- DeMarcus Cousins – PF/C, Kentucky
6. Golden State Warriors Al-Farouq Aminu – SF, Wake Forest
7. Detroit Pistons- Greg Monroe – C, Georgetown
8. Los Angeles Clippers- Donatas Motiejunas – PF/C, Lithuania
9. Utah Jazz- Cole Aldrich – C, Kansas
10. Indiana Pacers- Patrick Patterson – PF, Kentucky
11. New Orleans Hornets- Xavier Henry – SG, Kansas
12. Memphis Grizzlies- Ed Davis – PF, UNC
13. Toronto Raptors- Hassan Whiteside – PF/C, Marshall
14. Houston Rockets- Ekpe Udoh – PF/C, Baylor
15. Milwaukee Bucks- James Anderson – SF, Oklahoma State
16. Minnesota Timberwolves- Avery Bradley – PG/SG, Texas
17. Chicago Bulls- Daniel Orton – C, Kentucky
18. Miami Heat- Larry Sanders – PF, VCU
19. Boston Celtics- Luke Babbitt – SF, Nevada
20. San Antonio Spurs- Eric Bledsoe – PG, Kentucky
21. Oklahoma City Thunder- Solomon Alabi – C, Florida State
22. Portland Trailblazers- Damion James – SF, Texas
23. Minnesota Timberwolves- Paul George – SF, Fresno State
24. Atlanta Hawks- Armon Johnson – PG, Nevada
25. Memphis Grizzlies- Gordon Hayward – SF, Butler
26. Oklahoma City Thunder- Gani Lawal – PF, Georgia Tech
27. New Jersey Nets- Devin Ebanks – SF, West Virginia
28. Memphis Grizzlies- Jordan Crawford – SG, Xavier
29. Orlando Magic- Willie Warren – SG, Oklahoma
30. Washington Wizards- Stanley Robinson – SF, UConn

Flyers Continue Hot Streak

2010-05-19T16:57:00.002-04:00

The Flyers continued their amazing postseason run last night by winning Game 2 against the Canadiens and holding serve by winning both games at the Wachovia Center. The Flyers won the game 3-0, and have now outscored the Canadiens 9-0 in the two games.

The story of this game was simple – Michael Leighton. Leighton, much like in Game 1, kept the Flyers in the game when they were outplayed in the first period for the 2nd straight game. In Game 1, Leighton had to make 13 saves in the first period, as the Flyers went into the locker room with a 1-0 lead. In Game 2, Leighton was even better, making 16 saves in the opening period, again allowing the Flyers to take a 1-0 lead into the break. Leighton made 3 point blank saves in a row on Andrei Kostitsyn in the first period right out in front of the net. Leighton put himself in a great position all night in order to make the necessary saves. Leighton’s positioning has been nothing short of spectacular, allowing him to make nice saves, and not get out of position.

On the offensive end, I would have liked to see the Flyers get more chances and opportunities. The Flyers need to get better at 5-on-5 hockey going forward in this series, especially on the road. The Flyers power play is what has propelled them to this 2-0 series lead, along with Leighton. The Flyers were 2-6 on the power play in Game 1, and 2-4 in Game 2. The 4 power play goals in the first two games of the series has been solid, and obviously I would like the Flyers to continue to score power play goals, but also want to see the Flyers play better 5-on-5 hockey the rest of the series.

Also, the Flyers have technically been outshot in both games so far, so that is something to look at going forward. Actually in each game, the Canadiens have come out and really controlled the first period, but the Flyers have scored a goal in the first period each game. The 2nd period seems to be fairly even both games, and the Flyers outshot the Canadiens in both 3rd periods thus far. Shots on net is a somewhat overrated statistic, as you can have plenty of scoring chances and not get a shot on net, and put a weak shot on net which isn’t a scoring chance.

Any way you look at it, taking a 2-0 series lead is a very good thing, but it doesn’t get any easier having to go to Montreal for Games 3 and 4. Montreal is one of those teams who has a very good home ice advantage, and always seem to play better on their home ice than on the road. The Flyers need to continue to play good defense in front of Michael Leighton, as we cannot rely on Leighton to shut out the Canadiens the entire series. The Flyers defense I think has done a good job shutting down Mike Cammalleri and Tomas Plekanec. The Flyers need to take at least one in Montreal, as you don’t want let the Canadiens back in this series by winning 2 in a row and tying the series at 2, and having all the momentum. Game 3 will be Thursday night in Montreal.

Flyers Continue Momentum in Game 1

2010-05-16T22:29:00.005-04:00

The Flyers beat the Canadiens in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals in convincing fashion, winning the contest 6-0. I really was not sure what to expect from this series, as the Flyers came in after dominating the Devils, and then having the historic comeback against the Bruins. The Canadiens entered the game as the #8 seed, but beat the #1 seed Capitals, and the defending champion Penguins.

The Flyers scored early and often in this game, taking a 1-0 lead on the power play just 4 minutes into the game as Braydon Coburn, who has been solid all postseason got rewarded with his first goal of the postseason, much like van Riemsdyk's tally in Game 7 against the Bruins. Speaking of James van Riemsdyk, he had another good game, and put in a goal in the 2nd to make it 2-0. The Flyers continued the onslaught from there, and added goals from Briere, and Gagne in the 2nd period, and then Hartnell and Giroux in the 3rd period to win the game 6-0. Matt Carle and Ville Leino both had 2 assists in the game.

Obviously scoring 6 goals will be the big story of the game, but Michael Leighton obviously stopped every shot that came his way, and played a great game. He wasn't challenged a whole lot, but did make some very nice saves early, including 13 in the first period alone to keep the Flyers head, and allowed the Flyers to put the game away.

The game wasn't necessary as lopsided as the score way, both teams had chances and opportunities to score, the Flyers just took advantage of theirs, and Leighton greatly outplayed Halak, who was pulled after the Flyers 4th goal. You have to be encouraged with the way the Flyers played, and I didn't even mention Mike Richards and Chris Pronger in the summary.

Hopefully the Flyers put this game behind them quickly, and move onto Game 2, and hold down home ice. They still need to come out and continue their strong forechecking and get to the Canadiens when they are not playing well. We have seen numerous times where the Flyers will score 6 goals one game, and then 0 or 1 the next, so hopefully the Flyers come out and play well in Game 2. The Flyers have now outscored their opponents 10-0 since going down 3-0 in Game 7 against the Bruins. Either way, very positive and encouraging sign to start the series with.

Rasheed Wallace is the Man

2010-05-15T20:15:00.004-04:00

Rasheed Wallace has never let been shy about being a die hard Flyers fan, and has never been shy about showing this.

Wallace, back in 2004 when Jeremy Roenick scored a goal against the Toronto Maple Leafs to win a series in overtime, cut off the interview he was currently doing in the Detroit Pistons locker room to watch the television in the locker room, and starting yelling "It's in, it's in."

Wallace has been seen numerous times in his Flyers gear and Flyers hat. So, I have to give him props, as Wallace, not playing for Boston, was being interviewed on Thursday night after Boston beat the Cavaliers to close out the series. This took place in Boston, the night before the Flyers and Bruins were about to play Game 7 in the same city. Needless to say, Rasheed Wallace is the man, as this is what he looked like at the interview--

Flyers Win!!!!!

2010-05-15T19:50:00.006-04:00

The Flyers capped off a historic comeback, one of the best in playoff sports history, to beat the Bruins 4-3, in a game that featured an unbelievable comeback of its own.

Only 3 teams in the history of sports, and 2 teams in the history of the NHL had ever come back from a 3-0 series deficit. The Flyers not only did that, but also fell behind the Bruins by a score of 3-0 in the 1st period, only to still come back and win the game 4-3 with a 3rd period goal.

The Bruins were all over the Flyers in the 1st period, and the Flyers took 2 stupid penalties, both of which the Bruins capitalized on to make it a very quick 2-0 lead. The Bruins then had numerous chances to make it 3-0, and then finally did that on Lucic's 2nd goal of the game.

At that point, Flyers coach Peter Laviolette called a timeout, in what turned out to be one of the best timeouts in Philadelphia sports history. He told Michael Leighton to calm down, and if he did not allow a goal the rest of the game, the Flyers would win. He also said that someway they needed to get a goal before the 1st period was over.

The Flyers would do both of those. James Van Riemsdyk, who has been very back this postseason, scored on a semi-fluky goal that slid under the pad of Tuukka Rask. This accomplished exactly what the Flyers needed by getting the score back to a manageable 3-1 deficit going into the first intermission.

The Flyers came out on a mission in the 2nd period, and really dominated this period and got back in the game. Scott Hartnell jumped on a rebound early in the 2nd period and roofed a backhand to make the score 3-2. Shortly after, Danny Briere threw a puck in front of the net, which somehow deflected into the net to make it 3-3. The Flyers actually appeared to score again later in the period, and it was reviewed, but was not called goal. Sure looked like a goal to me.

The game went to the 2nd intermission tied at 3, and the Flyers had all the momentum. The Flyers continued to play well into the 3rd period, and even though the period was fairly even, the Flyers did have the majority of the scoring chances.

A too many men of the ice penalty gave the Flyers a power play a little more than halfway through the 3rd period, and Simon Gagne scored as the power play was winding down. The Flyers held off the Bruins the last 8 minutes of the game to cap off one of the best moments in sports history.

I would say that this victory ranks up there among the top 10, possibly top 5 Philadelphia victories I have ever watched in my lifetime. Just flat out unbelievable. Down 3-0 in the series, then down 3-0 in Game 7 in Boston, only to come back and win against a team that supposedly locks it down defensively when they get a lead. Incredible.

Hopefully the Flyers can continue this little momentum and run they have going now. It helps that they have home ice advantage in the Eastern Conference Finals as the #7 seed, because the #8 seed Montreal Canadiens await them. Game 1 of that series is Sunday night at the Wachovia Center.

Stadium Switcheroo

2010-05-13T16:50:00.003-04:00

So the G20 Summit is descending on Toronto in a few weeks and it’s the Phillies that may be the biggest beneficiaries of all. Thanks to all the Political Honchos who will descend on the Canadian city, the Interleague series scheduled to be played in the Skydome has been relocated to Citizens Bank Park. The Blue Jays will still serve as the home team and the designated hitter will still be in full effect, but there are still more issues that need to be worked out in order to make the Blue Jays feel right at home here in Philly.

First of all: no Phillie Phanatic. Sorry fans, he may be the best mascot in baseball but he doesn’t travel with the team. Therefore, he isn’t invited to this road series.

When the big screen tells us the rules of fan behavior in the stadium, it should come from Adam Lind and Aaron Hill and not Carlos Ruiz and Raul Ibanez. But either way, “enjoy the game.”

If and when Ryan Howard hits a home run, the Liberty Bell must remain silent. No banging back and forth to try and excite the crowd. They are the road team after all.

The organist and PA announcer from Toronto should be on hand. Dan Baker and his well respected pipes will have to sit this one out. And when the stadium feels flat, it will be up to the Toronto organist to play some Canadian little ditty to pep the fans back up.

When the 7th inning stretch rolls around, fans should be instructed to “Root root root for the Blue Jays.”

For this one weekend, the fans of the Phils are granted the opportunity to make bad jokes about how good of a road team the Phillies are.

Blue Jays fans are allowed to harp on visiting Phillies fans and tell them to “go back home!”

A red Maple Leaf should be painted in the on-deck circle.

The soft pretzels should be shaped like T’s instead of P’s and sodas should be served in collectible cups with an image of Vernon Wells instead of Chase Utley.

So as you see, shifting from one stadium to another isn’t as easy as hoping on a plane. There are so many more things that are involved in Home Field Advantage. Obviously, none of these things will actually happen. And that’s just fine with this Phillies fan. Here to 3 extra home games!

Flyers Force Game 7

2010-05-13T16:45:00.002-04:00

The Philadelphia Flyers are on the verge of making history Friday night by attempting to be the 3rd hockey team ever, and 4th professional team (NHL, NBA, MLB) ever to come back from a 3 games to 0 deficit. The Flyers won Game 6 at the Wachovia Center, in front of a raucous crowd, which included myself, and forced a game 7.

Teams have gone down in playoff series 3-0 in Major League Baseball, the National Hockey League, and the National Basketball Association 281 times. Only 3 times has a team ever come back from such a deficit to win the series. It has happened twice in the NHL, and once in MLB. The last time it happened in the NHL was 1975. The Flyers still have their work cut out for them though, and obviously it goes without saying that to win any game in the playoffs on the road, in a Game 7 is an extremely difficult task.

The Flyers jumped out of the gates quickly in Game 6, and really dominated the play in the first half of the first period. Some great forechecking, and great work around the net to keep the puck alive by the Richards-Carcillo-Gagne line led to the first goal of the game by Mike Richards. Kimmo Timonen also did a good job pinching in on the play getting the puck out in front of the net to Gagne. The Bruins then had their chances as they took control late in the first period, and into the 2nd period. Michael Leighton was up to all the challenges though, including a first period breakaway that he saved.

Late in the 2nd period, the Flyers were about to have a long 5 on 3 power play when Chris Pronger knocked Zdeno Chara to the ice and got called for a weak penalty. However, on the 4 on 3 power play, Danny Briere blasted a shot over Rask’s shoulder and into the net. The two goal scorers in Briere and Richards continue to play really well in the playoffs.

Michael Leighton, making his first start since March 16th, played amazing. He made save after save in the 3rd period when the Bruins were really pressing. The Bruins did finally get a puck past Leighton with exactly 1 minute left in the 3rd period, but they didn’t get much pressure in the final minute, and the Flyers left the ice with a 2-1 victory, and all the momentum going into Game 7. However, momentum can change quickly, especially when you go on the road.

The Flyers need to jump out quickly, like they have the last 2 games, and get a first period lead. The last 2 games, the Flyers have scored in the first period, and it has forced the Bruins to play from behind, something they are not good at doing. The Bruins are not an offensive power; they are a physical, defensive team that likes the get the lead and sit on it. The Flyers need to make sure this doesn’t happen in Game 7. That will be easier said than done.

Flyers Make It a Series

2010-05-11T18:13:00.004-04:00

The Flyers won last night 4-0 in Boston to actually make this 2nd round series competitive. The Flyers still are up against the wall, and still need to take 2 more in a row, starting tomorrow night in Philadelphia.

The Flyers really outplayed the Bruins in Game 4 in Boston from start the finish. The Scott Hartnell-Ville Leino-Danny Briere line did most of the damage, as Ville Leino was flying all over the ice. Take a look back, and you can see that we reported during the first round series against the Devils that Ville Leino should be playing, and possibly taking Scott Hartnell's spot in the lineup. Leino got the Flyers on the board in the first, and did most of the damage on the next 2 goals, getting an assist on 1, and skating circles around the Bruins to keep the puck in the offensive zone for a Hartnell goal the other time. Beisdes Leino, and Hartnell, Simon Gagne had 2 goals to close out the game.

Speaking of Scott Hartnell, he finally showed up for a game. He scored for the first time in 22 games, and did have a good game overall, skating better, and being more aggressive. This line will need to continue the strong play if the Flyers want to win the series.

The game was somewhat strange in that you had the Flyers really dominating, the Bruins taking dumb penalties, and then giving up in the 3rd period taking cheap shots at the Flyers the entire period. The Flyers, being the most hated team by officials in sports, would have gotten suspensions thrown their way if they had done some of the things the Bruins were doing in the 3rd. Claude Giroux was boarded late in the 2nd period, continued to play for the rest of the 2nd, but then sat out the 3rd period. It looks like this was more precautionary and that Giroux will be good to go Game 6.

Brian Boucher, however, will not be good to go for Game 6, and will probably miss the rest of the playoffs with a strained MCL. Boucher has been very good in these playoffs, and will definitely be missed, but I'm not so sure Michael Leighton is much of a downgrade from Boucher, even though Leighton does not have the playoff experience that Boucher does. Leighton saved all 14 shots he faced after he entered the game last night, but the Flyers did a very good job defensively, really for the first time all series.

Game 6 will be important, and the home crowd will need to get the Flyers into the game. Kotite's Corner will be present in the crowd cheering on the orange and black. Game 6 will start at 8 o'clock.

Flyers Need to Take Next 2

2010-05-05T17:00:00.002-04:00

The Flyers get back on their home ice tonight in a must win game in the 2nd round of the playoffs against the Bruins, who currently hold a 2-0 series lead.

The first two games of the series, both in Boston, have been fairly evenly matched, with the Flyers playing well for stretches and the Bruins playing well for stretches. Unfortunately, the Flyers have been playing catch up in both games, and then unable to keep their momentum going at the end of games. The Bruins got a fortuitous bounce of the puck in overtime in Game 1 to win that game, and then got another bounce with the puck ending up in front of the net that they scored with less than 3 minutes left in Game 2.

Both games really could have gone either way, and the Flyers are unfortunate to be down 2-0, but they are down 2-0 nonetheless. Getting back in front of the home crowd should do a lot for the Flyers, and help them get back in the series. The Flyers won both home games in their first round series, also Games 3 and 4, and will need to do the same against the Bruins, or else they will have to come back from a 3-1 deficit.

The work starts tonight in Game 3. The Flyers need to get some contributions from players they wouldn’t normally get them from with the injuries. Carter, Gagne, and Laperriere remain out with injuries. Scott Hartnell also has yet to show up in the playoffs, but it’s not due to injury, it’s due to the fact that he sucks all of a sudden. Mike Richards, Chris Pronger, and Brian Boucher have been the 3 best Flyers throughout the playoffs so far probably. Boucher did not have a very good Game 2, and should have not let in a couple of the Bruins goals that game, but overall has been solid. Boucher will need to step it up back at home. Danny Briere really found his game at the end of the Devils series, and has continued it into this series. Claude Giroux has also been a beast, and Ville Leino had a very good Game 2 assisting on both Flyers goals.

The Flyers need to continue to rely on these guys, but also need Giroux to step it up in this series, as he did all of his damage so far in the Devils series. Also, even though he is young, JVR needs to step it up as well, as he has a lot of skill and is flying around the ice, just has not produced the point results. It is unfortunate that Scott Hartnell has been killing this team with his play, but he has just been awful. He looks like he forgot how to play hockey. I would be calling for Hartnell to be a healthy scratch, but that is not really feasible with all the injuries.

Either way, no matter who it is, the Flyers need everyone to elevate their game to win these next 2 games. You want to pull out a solid win tonight, you don’t want a game that is 2-2 towards the end and anything can happen. Also, the Flyers need to get the first goal tonight, and not play from behind. Both games, the Bruins have gotten on the board early in the first period, and that cannot happen tonight.

CHOOOOOOOCH

2010-05-05T16:56:00.003-04:00

The Phillies got a much needed win last night to avoid dropping the first two games of an important 4 game home series against the St. Louis Cardinals. Carlos Ruiz hit a walk off HR in the bottom of the 10th to give the Phillies the 2-1 victory.

Ruiz usually does most of his damage come playoff time, but decided to carry the Phillies to this regular season victory. Ruiz had 2 of the 5 Phillies hits, and had both RBI’s. The first RBI came in the 7th inning of a scoreless game, with a deep sac fly that scored Ibanez. Then in the 10th inning, Ruiz had a great at bat, and blasted a walk off solo home run that sent everyone home happy.

Cole Hamels pitched well, which is obviously a very good sign going forward. Hamels faced a strong right handed lineup of Ludwick, Pujols, and Holliday and did well against them. Hamels did run into some trouble in the 9th inning, but overall you have to be pleased with his performance. This is a good much needed sign, as Hamels has to become that solid #2 guy in the rotation. This is due to the fact that Ruben Amaro made one of the worst trades in team history by giving away Cliff Lee. This is probably the worst trade in Philadelphia sports history in the last 30 years.

But anyways, Hamels pitched well, and Blanton pitched pretty well on Monday night, even though he ran into some trouble in the 7th inning. You still have to be pleased, as Blanton’s stuff looked good, and in his first start back, he got through 6 innings with only 1 earned, and then did run into some trouble in the 7th.

The offense, which has been struggling, came alive in the last 2 games of the Mets series, including smashing around Johan Santana. The first 2 games of this Cardinals series however, have not been great offensively. They haven’t gotten many hits, and have not put runs on the board. I think the offense will come with time, and only get stronger as the season goes on.

Unfortunately, offense can come and go, and will go stretches where they will struggle, which is why it is always important to have a solid pitching staff, and also why in the playoffs, pitching tends to be more important than hitting.

The bullpen needs to get better, and Ryan Madson is not being reported out at least 2 months. I believe the Phillies need to bring up Scott Mathieson from Triple A, and see what he can do as a major league reliever. Mathieson’s stuff is very good, and he might be able to get in there and play well.

Surprisingly... Flyers Will Play Bruins

2010-04-28T21:33:00.004-04:00

The Montreal Canadiens beat the Washington Capitals in Game 7 of their first round series, which means that the Flyers will face off against the Boston Bruins in the 2nd round. The Canadiens unexpectedly came back from 3 games to 1 down to the Capitals, and won the last three, two of which were in Washington.

With the Canadiens win, the #6, #7, and #8 seeds all advanced in the Eastern Conference. The only better seed to advance was #4 Pittsburgh. Since hockey re-seeds the teams in the 2nd round, the #7 seeded Flyers will play the #6 seeded Bruins. The Flyers will travel to Boston for Game 1 on Saturday at 12:30 pm.

I think this is very good news for the Flyers, as the Capitals are by far a better team than the Bruins. The Capitals and Bruins are almost complete opposites, as the Capitals had one of the best offenses the NHL has seen in quite some time, and the Bruins do not score many goals, but play very good defensively, and have one of the best young goalies in the NHL.

Even though the Capitals struggle defensively and in between the pipes, they are just too dangerous to want to face in a playoff series. The Capitals had the most points in the NHL by far, and scored the most goals by far. By playing the Bruins, the Flyers might even be the favorite, especially if Brian Boucher can keep playing the way he has been. The Flyers are the better offensive team in this series.

It won't be easy, since the Flyers will start the series without Simon Gagne, Jeff Carter, and now Ian Laperriere. Laperriere has been declared out of the playoffs after visiting with neurosurgeon experts from the University of Pittsburgh. The Flyers will need to stay out of the penalty box against the Bruins. They did not do this against the Devils, and the penalty kill is one of the main reasons they Flyers advanced, and one of the main reasons the penalty kill was so effective was because of Laperriere. He will not be easily replaced on the penalty kill. Simon Gagne could return as early as Game 3.

If the Flyers want to win, they need to get continued good play from the leaders on the team Mike Richards, Chris Pronger, and Kimmo Timonen. Obviously, Boucher needs to continue to be solid in net. The Flyers will continue to need to get Claude Giroux, and Danny Briere to keep playing the way they did the last 2 games of the Devils series, especially without Carter and Gagne in the lineup. The Flyers went 2-1-1 against the Bruins this year, the 1 being an overtime loss in the New Years Classic at Fenway Park. Boucher played 1 of those games against the Bruins and picked up a 3-1 victory. As mentioned earlier, Game 1 will be Saturday at 12:30.

Phillies Re-Up Howard

2010-04-26T20:02:00.005-04:00

The Phillies extended Ryan Howard's contract today, giving him 5 more years on top of his existing contract, and $125 million. The deal lasts from the years 2012 through 2016, with a club option for 2017.

When the deal kicks in, it will make Howard the highest paid player in Phillies history, and the 2nd highest paid player in baseball if you average out the years. Howard will make $20 million each in 2012 and 2013. He will then make $25 million in 2014, 2015, and 2016. There is a club option on Howard in 2017 at $23 million, and if they buy him out at that time, it will be for $10 million.

This is definitely the right move to do, if the Phillies let Ryan Howard play in the 2011 season and he even played above average, teams would be throwing a lot of money at him. This secures a guy who will bat in the middle of the lineup for years to come. Howard is also a good guy, and good team player, and a guy who seems like he will work hard after getting a big pay day, wanting to win for the fans and the city.

The bigger question is now what the Phillies plan on doing with Jayson Werth or Raul Ibanez. Amaro gave a terrible contract to Ibanez, who is off to a slow start this year. Not surprising, since Ruben Amaro made the worst trade Philadelphia has seen in quite some time. Anyways, this is probably Werth's last season as a Phillie, unless they did sign him to a long term deal, they would need to go way over payroll next season since Ibanez will still be getting paid. If the Phillies could keep Werth, and eventually let Dominic Brown replace Ibanez, that would be optimal.

The Phillies also could use Werth or Ibanez as a trading chip to acquire a starting pitcher at the trade deadline. Obviously the Phillies would rather unload Ibanez, but probably won't be able to get much for him, especially if he still keeps playing the way he is. The Phillies, unfortunately, due to not having God, I mean Cliff Lee on the team, are in need of starting pitching. Ever starter except for Halladay has gotten off to a bad start. You know its not a good thing when I am looking forward to Moyer's next start.

Long Wait for Flyers

2010-04-25T22:09:00.004-04:00

The Flyers played poorly toward the end of the season and ended up barely making the playoffs, on a penalty shot win in the last game of the regular season. This could be considered a high note entering the playoffs, and the Flyers kept that momentum going by beating the Devils soundly 4 games to 1, while winning 2 out of 3 in New Jersey.

The win against the Devils, despite the numerous injuries for the Flyers is continued momentum that you do not want to see slow down. However, as I mentioned, the Flyers are missing key players that could possibly be back at some point in these playoffs, if the Flyers keep winning, and the extra rest will do them good. Also, extra rest will do a guy like Ian Laperriere good who partially broke his orbital bone and required 70 stitches while taking a puck to the face to block a shot. I have to give mad props to Laperriere for doing whatever he can to help the team win, I will always like Laperriere because of that. It was very Aaron Roward-esche. Ian Laperriere, you are the man!

So, there are two schools of thought to the waiting in between games or playoff series. One thought is that you are on a hot streak, with momentum, and you want to keep that going, and want to play the next game right away. You don't want the Flyers to have time to think about the large situation they are in, or how they are probably playing a little over their heads, and that they will probably have to play the mighty Capitals this next series. You would rather have just kept the same schedule, and had maybe a game or two off, and jumped right into the next series. Unfortunately, proponents of this cannot be happy right now, as the Flyers were in first team in the entire playoffs to advance to the 2nd round, and the Capitals, the team who the Flyers will play if they win, have yet to even close out their series yet, and face a tough game 6 in Montreal tomorrow night.

The other school of thought is what is currently playing out. This is that it is always good to let your team rest up, especially into the playoffs, when the players have played an entire grueling hockey season. You get a chance to get some injuries rested up, and even the players who aren't injured have to be banged up, so you get a chance to recuperate, and start the next series fresh. Also, being the first team to advance also means that while the Flyers are recuperating, the Capitals are still playing and worrying about the Montreal Canadiens. The Capitals have to travel to Montreal to play game 6 tomorrow night, and then face a possible game 7. This will increase their chances to get tired out, or more injuries.

Personally, I think most of the debate on whether it is better to have rested or play right away is all just more talking points while your team isn't playing. I don't think it much matters, as long as your team is better, and comes out playing well, they have a chance in any series. There shouldn't be any excuse either way.

Hopefully the 2nd school of thought works out in this case, and that the Flyers can jump right back into action having rested up and not miss a beat next series, no matter who they play. Also, whoever they do end up playing, probably the Capitals, will hopefully be a little slower and worn out from their longer first round series.

NFL Draft 2nd - 7th Round Picks

2010-04-24T17:10:00.003-04:00

The draft continued into Friday night and basically all day Saturday, as the 2nd and 3rd rounds were on Friday night, and then the 4th through 7th rounds were Saturday.

Here is a rundown of the rest of the Eagles picks, highlighted by the 'Donovan McNabb pick,' in early 2nd rounder Nate Allen, safety, from South Florida.

2nd round- Nate Allen, S, South Florida

3rd round- Daniel Te'o-Nesheim, DE, Washington

4th round- Trevard Lindley, CB, Kentucky

4th round- Keenan Clayton, LB, Oklahoma

4th round- Michael Kafka, QB, Northwestern

4th round- Clay Harbor, TE, Southwest Missouri State

5th round- Ricky Sapp, DE, Clemson

5th round- Riley Cooper, WR, Florida

6th round- Charles Scott, RB, LSU

7th round- Jamar Chaney, LB, Mississippi State

7th round- Jeffrey Owens, DT, Georgia

7th round- Kurt Coleman, S, Ohio State

Overall, I am not a huge fan of this draft for the Philadelphia Eagles. I am unsure of the Brandon Graham pick, when they still had Derrick Morgan and Earl Thomas on the board. I also personally would rather have Taylor Mays than Nate Allen. That's not to say that Graham and Allen are bad players or will be busts, they can be very effective.

I also don't see a need for all the defensive ends to be chosen. I also think that the Eagles really needed to take an offensive lineman fairly early. Even when the Eagles had their offensive line set for the next season, Andy Reid usually stick took a couple O lineman. Now, when we need offensive line help, especially on the interior, we don't take a single one.

Obviously, I am no draft expert, so I don't know much about most of these players, any of them could be busts, and any of them could be future pro-bowlers, but just looking at the draft as a whole, I can't say I am content with it.

NFL Draft Continues Tonight

2010-04-23T11:09:00.003-04:00

The broken up NFL Draft resumes tonight at 6:00, with the 2nd and 3rd rounds to take place. The Eagles have 2 picks in the 2nd round, and due to the trade yesterday, 0 picks in the 3rd round. All of this could change, as the Eagles could try to make some moves to get into the 3rd round. If they don't make any moves today, the Eagles will welcome 2 more players to the nest to join Brandon Graham, the first round pick.

The Eagles are in a good spot with what is being referred to as the 'Donovan McNabb pick' which is the 37th overall, and 5th in the 2nd round. I have to imagine most teams like the new draft format, as it gives them an entire day and night to re-shuffle and take a look at their draft boards.

The Eagles still obviously have a lot of needs. I really think the Eagles need to take a safety or cornerback, probably with the 'Donovan McNabb pick.' Taylor Mays, the safety from USC, and Nate Allen, the safety from South Florida are both still on the board, and have to be high on the Eagles wish list. Mays is a guy who would have been a top 10 pick if he left after his junior year at USC, but struggled his senior year, which is why he is still on the board. And Ray Didinger said that the he would like to take Nate Allen, a safety from South Florida, so you know he has to be good. I've also been hearing that the Eagles have a lot of interest in Mississippi running back Dexter McCluster. McCluster is a very small back, who is really quick and elusive, but I'm not sure with his size if he is ever a #1 running back. However, with McCoy, I don't think the Eagles would draft him to be a #1 back. I think the Eagles think they can get McCluster probably in the 3rd round, but they don't have a pick there.

I really want the Eagles to conitnue to address defense, at least with the 37th pick. I still do think that they need a offensive lineman also. Unfortunately, the Eagles have a lot of needs actually. If I had my choice, I would like to have Taylor Mays with the 37th pick, and then possible look at taking a cornerback with the 2nd pick in the 2nd round.

Flyers Put Away Devils

2010-04-23T10:49:00.005-04:00

The Flyers closed our their first round series with a pretty convincing series victory over the New Jersey Devils, who really seemed to have little interest in trying to get back into the series. The Flyers won 3-0 on the Devils home ice to eliminate the #2 seed. The Flyers went 9-2 against the Devils this season, including the playoffs.

If anything last night, the Devils had the puck in the Flyers zone more than the Flyers did in the Devils zone, but the Flyers converted their chances into goals, and the Devils did not. New Jersey went 0-8 on the power play, and I think the Flyers solid penalty killing was the main reason they won this series. This was perfectly exemplified last night when Ian Laperriere went down a blocked a slap shot with his face. It took about 60 or 70 stitches to close up a cut above Laperriere's eye.

With Jeff Carter and Simon Gagne out possibly for the rest of the playoffs, the Flyers needed some guys to step up and score some goals. Guys like Danny Briere and Scott Hartnell need to get going, and guys like Claude Giroux, and JVR, both of whom have played well, need to step up into an even bigger role. Danny Briere did his job, and played a great game. He got the Flyers on the board on the power play just over 3 minutes into the game. Two great passes, one from Richards to Giroux, and then from Giroux to Briere wide open in front of the net set up Briere's tally. Briere also saved a goal that appeared to be rolling into the Flyers net on a Devils power play, and Briere swatted the puck away just before it crossed the line. Giroux ended up scoring 2 goals in the 2nd period to put the game away. The Flyers just kind of sat back and didn't make any mistakes in the 3rd period, and won the game, and advanced to the 2nd round.

Unfortunately, the Flyers probably will have to face off against the best team in hockey in the regular season, the Washington Capitals, and Alexander Ovechkin. The Capitals have one of the most potent offenses the NHL has seen in a while, led by Ovechkin, Backstrom, and Semin. I hope that the Canadiens can win another game at least in that series to extend it and put some pressure on the Capitals. As good as the Capitals offense is, their defense and goaltending aren't great.

Either way, the Flyers played a great series, but need to step it up in the 2nd round if they want to beat whoever they end up playing. Boucher needs to continue his strong performance from this series to help this team advance through the playoffs.

Eagles Draft Brandon Graham

2010-04-23T10:36:00.006-04:00

The Eagles made some noise in the first round of the NFL Draft last night by trading up to the #13 spot to select defensive end out of Michigan, Brandon Graham. By moving up to the #13 spot, the Eagles gave up their own first round pick, and also their 2 third round picks. They still have 2 second round picks for tonight.

Brandon Graham is one of those guys who has played both outside linebacker and defensive end, but projects as a DE for the Eagles. He is undersized as a defensive end, listed a little bit over 6'1" and 270 pounds. Graham describes himself as fast, relentless, and a guy with a high motor. I'm not sure if Graham will start right away, but he does project as a left defensive end, to go opposite Trent Cole. This is a position that we needed, as Trent Cole has really been the only effective defensive end during his time in Philly. Juqua Parker is effective in small doses, but is older now. Victor Abiamiri is always injured, and even when he isn't, has not been very effective. If Graham can be a solid player, he will be the long term starter at the left defensive end position.

The Brandon Graham pick has been praised by some of the so-called experts in Jon Gruden, and Todd McShay. Graham appears to be a DE who can use his speed to beat offensive lineman to the outside, but also has a jab step and is able to fake like he is going outside, and cut back inside on an offensive tackle. Being as small as he is however, you have to imagine he will get pushed around at times by some of the bigger, dominant offensive tackles.

It is hard to say at this point whether the Eagles made the right move or not with Graham, but Reid and Roseman both wanted Graham, so at least they got the guy that they wanted.

Flyers Take Command of Series

2010-04-21T16:50:00.002-04:00

The Flyers won yesterday in Game 4 of the first round series to take a commanding 3-1 series lead in front of the home crowd at the Wachovia Center. The Flyers outplayed the Devils in the past 2 games, and I think the home crowd played a factor in that.

The Flyers were down after the first period 1-0 on a Kovalchuk goal scored on a 5 on 3 power play. Boucher would not allow another goal, and the Flyers went on to score 4, winning 4-1, and seeing players such as Jeff Carter and Danny Briere break out of their slumps.

Jeff Carter got the Flyers going on the power play in the 2nd period wristing a shot past Brodeur. The assist went to Danny Briere. Later in the period, Briere skated in the Devils zone, and ripped a slap shot in the upper corner beating Brodeur and giving the Flyers a 2-1 lead that they would not relinquish. The Flyers got 3rd period goals from goal scoring machine Daniel Carcillo, and another power play tally from Jeff Carter gave the Flyers a 4-1 lead and victory.

Boucher continued to play strong in between the pipes stopping 30 of the Devils 31 shots. The defense has played well for the most part in front of him. Boucher has only allowed 9 goals in the 4 games so far this series. The Devils only goal this game as I said came on a 5 on 3 power play. When the action has been 5 on 5, the Flyers have had control of the last 2 games. Their Flyers have been forechecking relentlessly, and making the Devils defenseman give up pucks, and not enabling the Devils to move easily through the neutral zone. The strong forechecking is a stable of coach Peter Laviolette’s system, which the Flyers seem to be buying into.

The work is not over yet, the Flyers cannot be happy by a strong postseason performance thus far, they need to put the Devils away. It was 10 years ago with Boucher in net that the Flyers had a 3-1 series lead on the Devils, on their way to the Stanley Cup, only to see the Devils win 3 straight games and eliminate the Flyers. Obviously that is in the past, but it can still happen, especially with 2 of the final 3 games of the series in New Jersey. You don’t want to have to go to New Jersey to win a game 7. The Flyers will go to New Jersey for Game 5 Thursday night, and will hopefully be travelling back to Philadelphia without the Devils coming as well. The Flyers will have to win Game 5 however without Jeff Carter, and Simon Gagne, both of whom have injured feet. Ville Leino, and David Laliberte will replace them in the lineup.

Eagles Schedule Released

2010-04-21T16:48:00.000-04:00

The NFL released the much anticipated schedules of all 32 teams yesterday. It is hard to break down the Eagles schedule at this point, as there are a lot of question marks and new faces going into next season.

Based on 2009 records, the Eagles will have the 9th toughest 2010 schedule. Those projections never seem to hold up, so it doesn’t mean too much. The schedule to me seems like it is a little easier in the first half, and gets harder in the 2nd half of the season – but I feel like I always think that. The Eagles season is basically split into 2, as they get a bye in Week 8. Hopefully Kevin Kolb can feel comfortable playing against a weaker schedule in the first half of the season.

The Eagles open the season on September 12, at home against the Packers at 4:15. The Packers do present a very good defense that Kolb will have to face in Week 1 right off the bat. The Donovan McNabb led Redskins come to town in Week 4 for another late afternoon nationally televised kickoff. The first night game is in Week 5 at San Francisco on Sunday night. The Eagles have 3 Sunday night games, 1 Monday night game, and a Thursday night game, and close the season at home against the Cowboys.

The full schedule is below—

Week 1 - Sun. Sept. 12 – Eagles vs. Green Bay – 4:15 PM

Week 2 - Sun. Sept. 19 – Eagles at Lions – 1:00 PM

Week 3 - Sun. Sept. 26 – Eagles at Jaguars – 4:05 PM

Week 4 - Sun. Oct. 3 – Eagles vs. Redskins – 4:15 PM

Week 5 - Sun. Oct. 10 – Eagles at 49ers – 8:20 PM

Week 6 - Sun. Oct. 17 – Eagles vs. Falcons – 1:00 PM

Week 7 - Sun. Oct. 24 – Eagles at Titans – 1:00 PM

Week 8 – BYE WEEK

Week 9 – Sun. Nov. 7 – Eagles vs. Colts – 4:15 PM

Week 10 – Mon. Nov. 15 – Eagles at Redskins – 8:30 PM

Week 11 – Sun. Nov. 21 – Eagles vs. Giants – 8:20 PM

Week 12 – Sun. Nov. 28 – Eagles at Bears – 1:00 PM

Week 13 – Thur. Dec. 2 – Eagles vs. Texans – 8:20 PM

Week 14 – Sun. Dec. 12 – Eagles at Cowboys – 8:20 PM

Week 15 – Sun. Dec. 19 – Eagles at Giants – 1:00 PM

Week 16 – Sun. Dec. 26 – Eagles vs. Vikings – 1:00 PM

Week 17 – Sun. Jan. 2 – Eagles vs. Cowboys – 1:00 PM

Phillies Could Use Cliff Lee

2010-04-20T17:07:00.003-04:00

Cliff Lee should be on the Phillies. I have a very bad feeling that this thought is going to be in my head all season and haunt many Phillies fans throughout the season, and into the playoffs.

The trade of Cliff Lee was one of the dumbest trades in Philadelphia sports history while I have been alive. Not only was it lopsided in that we got back a few crappy prospects, but Lee on the Phillies makes the Phillies the favorite to win the World Series. Who knows though? Maybe the Phillies will go on to win the World Series this year, and Jaime Moyer, and Kyle Kendrick will play big roles in that.

There are always trades that occur in which your team comes out on the short end of the deal. In fact sometimes these trades are even necessary to move on with your team, or move on from another player. I can think of many instances in which a Philadelphia team made a trade in which we were probably on the short end of the stick. However, no trade has ever been made by a Philadelphia team that I can remember that has one of the best players in the league at a position that you need a solid player there.

Cliff Lee was on the Phillies. Cliff Lee was signed through next season. They didn’t have to give Him a long term deal, they could have paid Him his $9 million, tried to win a World Series with the best roster in baseball, and let Him walk. Instead, the $9 million was too much. Don’t think we should blame Ruben Amaro for not being allowed to go over the Phillies budget? Fair enough – let’s instead blame him for signing Jaime Moyer to a 2 year contract that keeps him in Philadelphia this season, paying him $8 million this year.

I only bring this up, because even though people were upset when the move happened, people are not talking about how this could ruin the Phillies this season. The starting pitching, besides Halladay, and Hamels last start, has been poor. Cliff Lee on the DL is better than Kyle Kendrick in the rotation. A rotation of Halladay, Lee, Hamels, Blanton, and Happ is so much better than a rotation of Halladay, Hamels, Blanton, Happ, and Moyer/Kendrick. Not only do you have Cliff Lee the #2 starter, it keeps the pressure off of Hamels, as Hamels would be one of the best #3 starters in baseball. With Hamels being in the #2 spot, it means that we really need Hamels to step up and pitch like he did in 2008. By having Lee in the rotation, it also means that we don’t have to see the jokes of Kendrick and Moyer out on the mound anymore, unless there is an injury.

Either way, Lee is gone, I just wanted to bring more attention to the fact that Amaro made one of the dumbest moves that I can remember in my lifetime as a Philadelphia sports fan, and he is getting slightly a free pass for it. Even Ed Wade would have kept Cliff Lee. We are only 2 weeks into the season, and we already need another starting pitcher. The fact that we are going to have to get a starting pitcher at the deadline probably is ridiculous, after you trade away a Cy Young winner, because you couldn’t go $9 million over your budget. The offense is good enough to win a World Series. Right now, the pitching isn’t even close. This particular team is built to win multiple World Series’. If the Phillies make it to the World Series and get out-pitched by the better staffs of the Yankees or Red Sox… blame Ruben Amaro.

Eagles Acquire Ernie Sims from Lions

2010-04-19T18:14:00.003-04:00

The Eagles made a trade today, just 3 days before the NFL Draft, acquiring linebacker Ernie Sims from the Lions in a 3-team deal. The Eagles will part ways with a 5th round draft pick as part of the deal – the same 5th round pick they acquired from the Browns for linebacker Chris Gocong, and Sheldon Brown a couple weeks ago. The Lions receive tight end Tony Scheffler from the Broncos and a Broncos 7th round pick, and the Broncos receive the Eagles 5th round pick this year.

This seems to be a good trade on the surface. The Eagles really didn’t part with much, just a 5th rounder, and get a guy who has a chance to be a star linebacker in the league. Ernie Sims was the 9th overall pick in the 2006 NFL Draft by the Lions out of Florida State. Sims has been a stud everywhere he has been, being one of the best high school players in the country, and being a beast at Florida State. He has yet to live up to his potential in the NFL though, and suffered through an injury plagued season last year. His upside is high though, and the Eagles did need a linebacker badly. Sims is still young and is just 25 years old.

Looking ahead to next season, Stewart Bradley will obviously be back as the man in the middle. Sims played at the weak side linebacker position in his career with the Lions, so I would assume he is going to stay at that position, which was mostly Akeem Jordan’s position last season. At strong side linebacker, you are looking at either Moise Fokou or Alex Hall, who was acquired in the Brown-Gocong trade. Fokou saw time last season, and struggled for the most part, but he was a rookie 7th round draft pick. It seems like the starters right now would be Bradley, Sims, and Fokou, but obviously this could all change before the season.

If Sims doesn’t reach his potential in the NFL, it isn’t a very big deal since we only parted ways with a 5th round pick for him. But Sims could end up being a beast, which would be a great move and a great sign for the Eagles. I still think the Eagles could use one of their picks in the draft on a linebacker, but this makes it less likely that the Eagles will use one of their top ones on this position.

Flyers Take 2-1 Series Lead

2010-04-18T21:16:00.006-04:00

The Flyers beat the Devils 2-1 in overtime Sunday night to beat the Devils and take a 2-1 series lead in this best of 7 first round series. The Flyers outplayed the Devils most of this game, especially as it went on, and finally solved Brodeur in overtime to put the game away.

This game was easily the most nerve-racking Flyers game all season, and one of those games we as fans are all too familiar with - watching the Flyers dominate the entire 3rd period, and then having them lose on a fluke goal. Well, the Flyers did not let that happen, and even though they couldn't solve Brodeur in the 3rd period, they finally put one past him in overtime.

Daniel Carcillo got the game winner, a little over 3 minutes into overtime on an open net stuff in. The goal came just 5 seconds after a Devils penalty expired making the goal an even strength goal. Mike Richards had the puck at the side of the net and just tried to stuff it into the corner. Brodeur had the corner covered, but the puck popped out in front of the net and Carcillo was there uncovered, and stuffed it in. Gagne was in front of the net also. That line had combined for the 2nd Flyers goal of the game, when Gagne made an unbelievable forechecking hit on a Devils defenseman who gave up the puck. Carcillo immediately swooped in, grabbed the puck and played it out in front to Richards who scored easily. Claude Giroux continued his stellar postseason with the other Flyers goal in the 1st period off a nice pass from Kimmo Timonen.

The Flyers really played well from the start, and benefited from being in front of the home crowd. It seemed to really give the Flyers a boost to play in their own building. The Flyers only got better and more dominant as the game moved along. The 3rd period was completely controlled by the Flyers, and the Flyers seemed to have a legit scoring chance every minute. Brodeur had to show why he is the best goalie of all time to keep the Devils in this one. Even in overtime, the Flyers came right out and had a few scoring chances before Carcillo put the game away.

The Richards, Carcillo, and Gagne line had a superb game. Richards continues to play well this postseason, as he has done the past 2 years. The Giroux, Van Riemsdyk, Asham line also continued to play very well. Giroux has been the best player on the Flyers thus far, besides maybe Pronger, and possibly Boucher. We still need for Jeff Carter to step it up and score a goal. The threesome of Carter, Briere, and Hartnell really need to start playing and give the Flyers something, because they haven't yet in the playoffs. The defense is playing solid for the most part, as Pronger, Timonen, and Coburn had strong games.

The work isn't done yet, the Flyers need to come out with the same intensity that they had at the end of Game 3, because you know that the Devils will be coming out firing on all cylinders. Also, if Brodeur plays like he did tonight, we are going to need to dominate the game just to have a chance to win, similarly to tonight.

Pitt Basketball Offseason Notes

2010-04-17T13:30:00.003-04:00

The Pitt Panthers basketball season ended about 3 weeks ago in a 2nd round loss to Xavier in the NCAA tournament. That makes 9 straight NCAA tournaments for Pitt, and 0 Final Four appearances.

Pitt had a very good season, and you do have to give Jaime Dixon a lot of credit for getting the most out of the team this year. Pitt lost 4 starters from the 2009 Elite Eight team, including Levance Fields, Sam Young, and DeJuan Blair. We lost something like 60% of our scoring, 70% of our rebounding, and 50% of our assists. The expectations were not very high, but Pitt had another terrific season overall, coming in 2nd in the Big East regular season, and spending the entire season in the top 25, including cracking the top 10.

However, like is true with most of these Pitt teams, we tend to struggle in the tournament, and Jaime Dixon deserves some of the blame for that. I don't necessarily dislike Jaime Dixon, I just don't think he is really as good as the national media makes him out to be.

Next season, we should be solid again, as we always are. The only player we lose is shooting guard Jermaine Dixon. This will be a big loss, but we have the bodies to replace Dixon. Pitt has a solid group of 3 freshman coming in next year, all of whom are in the top 20 nationally at their respective positions. The only issue with the starting lineup next season is whether or not Travon Woodall is in it. Woodall right now is really the only true point guard on the team, and got better and better as the season went on. Ashton Gibbs can play PG, but is naturally a shooting guard. However, if you want Gilbert Brown to start, which he absolutely should, he needs to be at the small forward position. This means that Brad Wanamaker, who still continues to make the dumbest mistakes on the court, will be the starting 2.

Also, I would personally like to see Dante Taylor take over the starting power forward position for Nasir Robinson. Gary McGhee will be the starting center next year. I like Nasir Robinson, but he is more of a role player, who can be solid coming off the bench. If it were up to me, the starting lineup next year would be Ashton Gibbs at the point, Wanamker at the 2, Gilbert Brown at the 3, Taylor at power forward, and McGhee at center. I wouldn't mind Wanamker coming off the bench, and sliding Gibbs to the 2, and starting Travon Woodall at the point, however, Wanamaker is the best all-around player on the team, and really fills up the stat sheet. I also think that Jaime Dixon will continue to bring Dante Taylor off the bench, and start Robinson, which is a mistake. Look for redshirt freshman Talib Zanna to get some time this year and center, and freshman J.J. Moore should also see some time.

A lot of the success next year depends on how Dante Taylor does. Taylor was a 2009 McDonalds All-American who everyone expected big things from, and essentially did nothing last season. Taylor looked lost and lazy and like he didn't really want to play, but he did show flashes. So if he commits and puts in the work this offseason conditioning and in the weight room, he could be a big factor next year, which we definitely need.

Pitt Football Offseason Notes

2010-04-17T13:09:00.005-04:00

The Pitt Panthers ended the 2009 football season on a solid note with a 19-17 win over UNC in the Car Care Bowl. Obviously the final 2 games of the Big East schedule ended on a bad note with losses to West Virginia and Cincinnati knocking Pitt out of a BCS Bowl, but a #15 ranking to close the season is solid nonetheless, and definitely something to build on.

We will need to not miss a beat next season coming out as we open the season at Utah the first weekend of the college football season. 2 weeks later, Miami comes to Pitt. Throw in a trip to Notre Dame, and we have one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the nation. It is nice to see a team not afraid to schedule tough in the non-conference, unlike Penn State.

Pitt has a lot of solid players returning, but also a lot of question marks, mostly at the QB position. Pitt returns all american WR Jonathan Baldwin, who is one of the best WR's in the league. Pitt also returns all american Dion Lewis, who was the best freshman in the nation last year, and is one of the best RB's in the nation. The offensive line was incredibly solid this year, and even though we have to replace some bodies there, I think we will be fine there. On defense, Greg Romeus and Jabaal Sheard both return to form one of the best DE tandems in the league. Pitt led the nation in sacks last season. Remember the name Dan Mason, who takes over the middle linebacker position this year - he is going to be a beast. The secondary replaces both CB's, but I think we will be fine there.

The main position battle and question mark comes from the most important position on the field - the quarterback position. Even though we have 2 solid incoming freshman in Mark Myers and Anthony Gonzalez, it looks like it is going to be a battle between junior Pat Bostick, and sophomore Tino Sunseri. Bostick was the highly recruited QB from Lancaster who came in and played games in both his freshman and sophomore year when Bill Stull struggled. Bostick, unfortunately looked pretty bad each time he was in there, but he was able to win some big games including games at Notre Dame, and at West Virginia. However, Tino Sunseri, the sophomore from Pittsburgh seems to have the upper hand running with the first teamers in spring practice. Sunseri was fairly highly recruited, came from a big time Pittsburgh program, and has much less playing time than Bostick, but has appeared poised and under control when he has been in the game.

I think we will go into the season with Tino Sunseri having the upper hand and starting at the quarterback position. He might be on a short leash with the more veteran Bostick waiting for some playing time however. Also, going forward, look for Mark Myers, from Ohio to eventually be the starting QB on this Pitt team.

Pitt should start the season in the top 20 nationally, and with big games in the non-conference and in the Big East, this could be a huge season for Pitt to put their stamp that last year was no fluke, and the Pitt Panthers are back in the national spotlight in football.

Flyers Drop Game 2

2010-04-16T22:21:00.008-04:00

The Flyers opening round series against the Devils is tied up after the first 2 games at the Prudential Center in New Jersey. The Devils came back in Game 2, and beat the Flyers with 2 late third period goals to win the game 5-3.

The Devils wasted no time getting on the score sheet in this game, with a short handed goal early in the first period by Zach Parise, less than 3 minutes into the game. The Flyers however, didn't let the early goal affect them, and came back with 2 goals in the first period to take a 2-1 first intermission lead, even though the Devils, like most of Game 1 had control of the action.

The Devils continued to push the pace in the 2nd period scoring a goal about 4 minutes in to make the score 2-2. This was really the first bad goal that Boucher has allowed in the postseason, as he led a fairly weak wrist shot from the point creep through his pads. Each team added a goal later in the period to go into the 3rd period tied at 3. The Devils again controlled most of the 2nd period.

In the 3rd period, the Flyers actually appeared to control most of the action, and definitely had their chances to take the lead and take a 2-0 series lead, but Martin Brodeur shut the Flyers down. The Flyers finally outshot the Devils in the 3rd period, which is the first period they have done so in the first 2 games of the series. However, it was the Devils who got on the board, with ex-Flyer Dainius Zubrus scoring with about 4 minutes left. The Devils would add an empty net goal, and thus go on to tie the series up at 1.

The Flyers have too many supposed "stars" on their team who either underachieve like crazy or just plain aren't star players. Jeff Carter is coming back from an injury, but he still needs to step it up in the playoffs. Carter had his chances this game, but came up small. Carter was the Flyers leading point getter most of the season, and needs to stop playing soft in big games. Danny Briere is basically a joke on the ice, and is stealing money from the Flyers. He tries out there, but just isn't good enough or big enough to get it done anymore. Also, Scott Hartnell is flat out not a very good player. He's a good guy to have on your team, and a guy you definitely root for, but he doesn't play smart, and doesn't bring much else to the table unless he is mixing it up with an opponent. He definitely should not be in the game at the end when you need a goal, because he is not very good. I honestly think they should healthy scratch Hartnell, and play Ville Leino next game.

Either way, The Flyers need to get a jolt on energy in the next 2 home games, and at worst take 1 of them. The Flyers should play better being at home, they do seem to usually respond to the great home crowds. Game 3 is Sunday at 6.

Phillies News and Notes

2010-04-15T23:02:00.002-04:00

Cole Hamels is the single most important piece of the puzzle to the Phillies season. He needs to get his head out of his ass and figure his stuff out to become the #2 starter on the team. I think we are past the point where we should expect to see the Hamels from 2008, but I think we all figured he would be better than 2009. Again, it is very early, but Hamels first two starts have been bad. He gets lazy to certain batters, he can’t punch batters out the way he used to be able to, and he still gives up a couple bombs each game, you just have to hope they are solo HR’s. The offense is really good, and Roy Halladay is really good, and the rest of the pitching is average. Since Cliff Lee is not on the team, Hamels needs to be a solid #2 starter if we want to complete to win a World Series.

Speaking of Cliff Lee, He should still be on the team. There is not a grammatical mistake in the previous sentence, Cliff Lee is so much the man and has earned the respect to be referred to as He. Yes, I am going to complain about this all season, but Cliff Lee looks a lot better as the #2 starter than Cole Hamels, and J.A. Happ looks a lot better as the #5 starter than Jaime Moyer/Kyle Kendrick. It was a terrible move by Amaro, and I’m not sure the Phillies can win it all without Lee and Hamels pitching like a chump. Again, we had Lee locked up for this season at $9 mil, which is an absolute steal, and we traded him. Stupid move, Amaro.

Speaking of Jaime Moyer and Kyle Kendrick, they both are not very good pitchers. They can go through stretches where they will get the job done, but I don’t have confidence in either in a big game. Moyer is a guy who everyone roots for, and is a local Philly guy, and definitely has a Philly attitude. The problem is more that Amaro gave Moyer a 2 year deal in the 2008 World Series, when he should have given him a 1 year deal, or let him walk. I will always like Moyer for being a big part of the 2008 season, and winning a World Series in Philly, but I’m sick of watching him throw his slow pitch softball pitches that get raked by right handed hitters. If an umpire isn’t giving him the calls on the corners, he is not effective. As much as I just ripped Moyer, I think Kyle Kendrick is worse. Kyle Kendrick is not a major league pitcher in my opinion; he could maybe be a long reliever type who comes out of the bullpen when the game isn’t very close. Bottom line, Joe Blanton can’t come back soon enough. Unfortunately, we have to rely a lot on Moyer or Kendrick as the 5th starter this season, and I’m not sure either can get the job done.

The offense has looked very good, which is a good sign in April, but they have really only faced 1 good pitcher (Roy Oswalt), who they struggled against. There really isn’t much to say about the offense. The above statement was not a criticism of the offense, just something to keep an eye on. The Phillies lead MLB in almost every offensive category so far this season, and will definitely live near the top all season. But this team will also go through offensive slumps throughout the year, especially when they start facing good pitchers, and pitchers from the division. Either way, it is still a good sign to be getting off to a hot start with the offense, because the Phillies usually start playing real well offensively in the middle of the season.

The bullpen wasn’t really tested this season until the past couple days, and has done a very good job overall when they have been in there, besides the game today. The only 2 losses for the Phillies have charged to Nelson Figueroa and Danys Baez, but neither was given much support by the starting pitcher in the particular game. Figueroa may as well warm up every time Kendrick takes the mound as he will probably be in the game at some point. Madson has looked good, again except for today, and should be even better when he settles into that 8th inning role he is so fond of. Contreras, Durbin, and Herndon have also looked good when they have taken the mound. I really hope that J.C. Romero comes back healthy, because he is the main lefty out of the bullpen, and can be dominant when he is healthy. Romero can also come in the game in the 6th inning if need be, or the 8th inning to get out tough leftys. Brad Lidge, however, I am concerned about. Lidge will have me nervous all season, as even if he starts out well when he comes back from injury, I think he might wear down by the end of the year. We really need to Lidge to be better than last year obviously, and I don’t think he will be. I just have a bad feeling that Lidge will be injury plagued all season, and be very inconsistent when he is healthy.

Eagles Have Lots of Draft Needs

2010-04-15T16:54:00.002-04:00

The NFL Draft is quickly approaching… the first round will take place in prime time this year, April 22nd. The Eagles currently hold the 24th overall pick in the first round. Unfortunately, they enter this offseason with more needs than I can remember in a while, especially on the defensive side of the ball.

The Eagles ended last season with their defense as bad as I can remember it in a while. It is only fair that you give Sean McDermott some time to fully take over the defense and turn it back into the elite defense it was under the late, great Jim Johnson. The Eagles appear to be trying to get younger on defense, getting rid of veteran fan favorite Sheldon Brown, when they don’t really have an alternative who is on the same level as Brown right now.

The Eagles have holes in basically every area of the defense. The Eagles need a safety, as Macho Harris and Quintin Demps were not able to get the job done there last season. They also need a cornerback since the aforementioned Sheldon Brown is now a Cleveland Brown. Ellis Hobbs can play, but isn’t as good as Brown. The Eagles could also use some help at the linebacker position. Stewart Bradley will be back in the middle, but I’m not sure how confident we should feel in Akeem Jordan and Moses Fokou on the outsides. Up front, the Eagles also need some help. The tackles are solid, but can’t play entire games. Trevor Laws, former 2nd round draft pick couldn’t even get on the field last year. Trent Cole also has no help at the other end position, and the Eagles are going to have to sure the left end position up at some point soon. This is a lot of positions to address; too many to address in one offseason, which is why I don’t think the defense will be up to par next season.

On offense, the Eagles are pretty solid, and young at most positions. We will see this season what we have in Kevin Kolb. If Kolb is solid, the Eagles have a solid group of young skill position players in Kolb, Shady McCoy, DeSean Jackson, and Jeremy Maclin to built off of for the next decade. Brent Celek has become a solid starting tight end in this league. The offensive line is the weak part of this offense. This is amazing considering the fact that genius Andy Reid spends so much time and money and picks to make sure the offensive line is solid. Shawn Andrews was cut, and Stacy Andrews was horrible and couldn’t get on the field last season. Jason Peters was average when he played, and when he was injured, Todd Herramans would play tackle, and looked terrible there. The rest of the line in Cole, Jean-Gilles, and Jackson played poorly in my opinion. McNabb was not protected well, and none of the running backs had much room to maneuver. The offensive line will need to improve this offseason for Kevin Kolb to feel comfortable behind them.

The Eagles will be on the clock shortly, and need to make something happen in the draft. Right now, this roster might not even be a playoff team right now, and they certainly are not ready to seriously contend. Andy Reid loves to brag about how awesome he is for having so many picks going into every draft... hopefully he uses them wisely.

Flyers Take 1-0 Series Lead

2010-04-14T22:12:00.005-04:00

The Flyers took game 1 against the Devils in a very nerve racking game, as the Flyers basically sat back in the 3rd period and trying to hold on a 2-0 lead. They gave up a late goal to make the score 2-1, but held on to take a 2-1 series lead in this first round series.

Brian Boucher was the player of the game for the Flyers, as he made just about every save that came his way, including a few really nice ones. The only goal the Devils scored came off a deflection that he had no chance on. The Devils controlled the play in the first period and Boucher kept it at 0-0 after that period, and the Devils controlled the 3rd period, but Boucher was up to the task. This was Boucher's first playoff win since 2000, also against the Devils.

The Flyers got on the board halfway through the 2nd period on the power play, as the puck was out in front of Brodeur, and Chris Pronger muscled the puck into the net. With just over 3 minutes left in the 2nd period, Mike Richards unleashed a laser that found the upper corner and beat Brodeur on a slap shot. The Flyers took the 2-0 lead into the 3rd period, and then really just sat back and basically wanted to clock to tick down before the Devils could catch up. They came close, but they didn't.

Even though the Flyers won, they were outplayed. They should treat Game 2 as if they were outplayed in Game 1, and show some more energy and a sense of urgency. The Flyers only ended up with 14 shots on the night. The Flyers never really carried the puck into the zone, they were always getting to the red line and dumping it in. And when they did dump the puck in, they were not able to get the forecheck going and start cycling to get some chances. The Flyers did do very well on the penalty kill, as they had to kill off 6 minutes of power play time for the Devils in the 3rd period alone, including a double minor.

Great start to the series, but the Flyers should not be content with this victory. They need to play better in Game 2 and the rest of this series if they want to advance to Round 2, because it is only a matter of time before the Devils players like Parise, and Kovalchuk get going. The Flyers can't count on Boucher carrying them many more games.

Flyers Playoff Preview

2010-04-14T17:10:00.002-04:00

The Flyers get underway with the 2010 playoffs this evening when they travel to Newark to play the Devils at the Prudential Center. The Flyers went through a very up and down season, and had to win the final regular season game in a shootout against the Rangers just to get into the playoffs. The Flyers are in as the #7 seed in the East.

This season will definitely be considered a disappointment if the Flyers get bounced in the first round. The Flyers have arguably as much talent as almost anyone in the NHL, and should be competing to win Stanley Cups. The defense did improve this season with the help of Chris Pronger, and the offense, while not great, is above average. The Flyers still have no go to guy in net, and the musical chairs that has been the Flyers goaltending of the past decade has continued. It started with the offseason signing of Ray Emery. Emery started the season in net, and played well. He then had some injury problems and was eventually shut down. Enter Brian Boucher and Michael Leighton. Both goalies got their shot, and Leighton outplayed Boucher. Unfortunately, Leighton also got injured, which left Boucher as the Flyers starter through the end of the season. Boucher did play very well in certain games down the stretch, but overall was not effective. Nothing explains the Flyers inconsistencies in goals more than Boucher vs. Brodeur in the 2010 playoffs… a rematch of the 2000 Eastern Conference Finals that the Flyers lost to the Devils 4 games to 3. We all know the Flyers have had about 100 netminders in between that series and this one, while the Devils have the best goalie in NHL history in Brodeur.

While the goaltending edge obviously goes to the Devils, the Flyers might have the edge in some other categories. As I mentioned earlier, this Flyers team is not without talent. On paper, the Flyers probably have more talent than the Devils, not including goalies. The Flyers have a solid veteran offense made up of playoff veterans such as Danny Briere and Simon Gagne, and younger emerging stars like Glaude Giroux, and James Van Riemsdyk. The leaders of the team, guys like Mike Richards, Jeff Carter, and Chris Pronger will need to have a very good series if the Flyers want to win. Richards and Carter need to step it up offensively, as they led the Flyers in points throughout the season, and will continue to need to do so into the playoffs. Pronger brings an element to the Flyers that they have not had in a while -- A punishing, intimidating veteran defenseman who has a ton of playoff experience, and success. The defense will need to play well in front of Boucher if the Flyers want to beat the Devils.

The Flyers do go into this series as the underdog, but this is not a typical 2-7 matchup. I think the Flyers have underachieved most of the season. If the Flyers continue to underachieve, then they will be out in the first round, and another disappointing season will pass. The Flyers may just be an above average team and nothing more. The Flyers also will not be afraid of the Devils, as they have won 5 of the 6 meetings this year with New Jersey.

Hockey playoffs are always extremely exciting; one of the best things to watch in all of sports is playoff hockey. The Flyers and Devils know each other very well, and get under way tonight in Game 1 at the Prudential Center.

Sixers Season Comes to an End

2010-04-14T16:57:00.003-04:00

The 76ers season comes to an uneventful end tonight... too bad people are more interested in the Flyers playoff game, the Phillies, and the Jimmy Rollins injury right now. The 76ers will close out their disappointing season tonight in Orlando. With 1 game remaining, the Sixers currently sit at 27-54, bad enough for the 7th worst record in the NBA. The Knicks will finish with a better record than the Sixers. The Sixers can do themselves some favors and not win this game, however it might not be easy as the Magic don’t have anything to play for either having locked up the #2 seed in the Eastern Conference.

The 76ers actually have somewhat of an eventful, strange season that saw ticket prices spike with the return of a fan favorite, and then drop back down to their normal, abysmal level. The Sixers actually entered the season with decent expectations. They had made the playoffs the 2 previous seasons, and pushed 2 teams better than them to 6 games in the first round. They came into this season with Andre Iguodala in his prime, a healthy Elton Brand, Lou Williams supposed to see more time, and youngsters like Thaddeus Young and Marreese Speights supposed to contribute more. Ed Stefanski hired new coach Eddie Jordan to run the team. Unfortunately, the Sixers never quite got on track.

Instead, they faltered as soon as the season started. They never quite grasped Jordan’s “Princeton” style offense. Lou Williams never really fully took over the point guard position. Samuel Dalembert continued to suck. Elton Brand was terrible. Thaddeus Young regressed, but is still young. Speights sat behind an ineffective Brand most of the season.

Allen Iverson was re-signed, which brought a sellout crowd to the Sixers game, but not much else. Iverson played pretty well, all things considered, but quickly left the team as personal issued mounted. After Iverson left, the season was a lost cause, and so we got to see the one bright spot this year in rookie Jrue Holiday, who is the youngest player in the NBA. Holiday has been the only person who has even really tried the 2nd half of the season, and has looked good. In fairness, Andre Iguodala has also played well, and is a good player, but is not the guy who should be leading your team. Iguodala is a very good #2 or #3 option on a team, a guy who can do everything well, but cannot be a #1 option on a good team unfortunately.

The Sixers team is put together terribly, but I think you need to give general manager Ed Stefanski some more time to fix it. You have young guys such as Speights and Jason Smith who need to get some time to see what they can do. Speights has shown the ability that he can be a possible solid player, but he is stuck behind Elton Brand. Samuel Dalembert is a clown, but he makes so much money that they have to play him. Thaddeus Young is still very young and has a lot of room to grow, but needs to step his game up. The Sixers won’t be able to do anything this offseason, but should soon get some room to maneuver with Dalembert and Willie Green coming off the books after next season. Unfortunately, for the next few years, the Sixers are flat out a bad team.

NFL Mock Draft (4/13/10)

2010-04-13T19:13:00.004-04:00

1. St. Louis Rams - Sam Bradford, QB, Oklahoma

2. Detroit Lions - Ndamukong Suh, DT, Nebraska

3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Gerald McCoy, DT, Oklahoma

4. Washington Redskins - Russell Okung, OT, Oklahoma State

5. Kansas City Chiefs - Trent Williams, OT, Oklahoma

6. Seattle Seahawks - Eric Berry, S, Tennessee

7. Cleveland Browns - Joe Haden, CB, Florida

8. Oakland Raiders - Bryan Bulaga, OT, Iowa

9. Buffalo Bills - Jimmy Clausen, QB, Notre Dame

10. Jacksonville Jaguars - Derrick Morgan, DE, Georgia Tech

11. Denver Broncos - Rolando McClain, LB, Alabama

12. Miami Dolphins - Dan Williams, DT, Tennessee

13. San Francisco 49ers - Bruce Campbell, OT, Maryland

14. Seattle Seahawks - Dez Bryant, WR, Oklahoma State

15. New York Giants - Sean Weatherspoon, OLB, Missouri

16. Tennessee Titans - Earl Thomas, S, Texas

17. San Francisco 49ers - Anthony Davis, OT, Rutgers

18. Pittsburgh Steelers - Kyle Wilson, CB, Boise State

19. Atlanta Falcons - Jason Pierre-Paul, DE, South Florida

20. Houston Texans - Ryan Mathews, RB, Fresno State

21. Cincinnati Bengals - Taylor Mays, S, USC

22. New England Patriots - Jermaine Gresham, TE, Oklahoma

23. Green Bay Packers - Maurkice Pouncey, C/G, Florida

24. Philadelphia Eagles - Mike Iupati, G, Idaho

25. Baltimore Ravens - Devin McCourty, CB, Rutgers

26. Arizona Cardinals - Brandon Graham, DE/OLB, Michigan

27. Dallas Cowboys - Rodger Saffold, OT, Indiana

28. San Diego Chargers - C.J. Spiller, RB, Clemson

29. New York Jets - Sergio Kindle, DE/OLB, Texas

30. Minnesota Vikings - Brian Price, DL, UCLA

31. Indianapolis Colts - Vladimir Ducasse, OT, UMass

32. New Orleans Saints - Jerry Hughes, DE/OLB, TCU

Eagles Trade Brown and Gocong

2010-04-02T13:00:00.004-04:00

The Eagles have made a huge trade today. And it doesn't involve Donovan McNabb, or any of the 50 QB's the Eagles have on the roster. I guess Andy Reid wants to hang onto the QB's as long as possible so he can continue to tell us all how amazing the Eagles are for having 3 quarterbacks that could start. But I digress...

We have lost one of the members of our Wolfpack today... and not because the Eagles no longer have Chris Gocong. The Eagles also traded Sheldon Brown to the Cleveland Browns, and in exchange receive the Browns 4th round pick and 5th round pick in this year's draft, and linebacker Alex Hall. The Browns picks that the Eagles receive are the 105th and 137th overall picks in the draft. Linebacker Alex Hall was a 7th round pick in 2008, and is a former Division 2 All-American at St. Augustine's. Not surprising that the Eagles wanted Hall, as Reid loves former Division 2 and Division 3 guys who dominate in college... yet they usually aren't very good in the pros. Reid goes after D-2 and D-3 guys almost as much as he goes after Mormons. The 4th round and 5th round picks are decent, but I don't have too much confidence that the Eagles will turn these into solid players, especially like Sheldon Brown was.

Chris Gocong was below average in my opinion, and was on the field way too much. He can't tackle, he can't cover. The only thing Gocong is supposed to be good at doing is rushing the passer from the outside. Unfortunately, even though this was the report on Gocong on draft day, the Eagles still picked him, and did not use him properly. So if Chris Gocong does have any skill, which I don't think he does, we wouldn't even know because he is not used to his strength. Gocong could end having success in a 3-4 defense where he can play the outside linebacker spot and rush the passer.

Sheldon Brown on the other hand is a great player, and has been so ever since the Eagles drafted him. Brown was one of the longest tenured Eagles, and was definitely a fan favorite. He is probably the hardest hitting cornerback in a league full of cornerbacks who don't even like contact, including the Eagles own Asante Samuel. Brown thrived with his physical play. Everyone remembers the famous Sheldon Brown hit on Reggie Bush on one of the first plays of the game to start a divisional playoff game. Sheldon Brown not ever being a pro-bowler so far in his NFL career is an absolute joke. Eagles fans know that Brown has been playing at a pro bowl level for a while now, and he does not get the national attention that he deserves. Brown epitomizes what Philadelphia loves in their athletes. He plays injured, he plays his hardest on every play, and one time, he came out with a Jason mask on. Even though Brown is getting older, and is probably past his prime, he is still very effective, and is better than Ellis Hobbs any day of the week. Brown will definitely be missed.

The trade overall is a bad one in my opinion. If the goal is to get rid of an older player in Brown, and an ineffective player in Gocong, then they accomplished that. But the trade makes the Eagles a much worse team. Andy Reid loves his late round draft picks, and loves to try to have the most picks of any team in the NFL every year. This doesn't seem to translate into solid draft picks, however. If the Eagles plan is to rebuild, they need to do it right - get rid of the older guys, which unfortunately includes McNabb, and spend the next year improving the defense, to hopefully go along with the young offensive playmakers this team has in a season or two.

Eagles Sign Leonard Weaver

2010-03-05T12:51:00.003-05:00

The Eagles have gotten the deal done that we all thought they would - they signed fullback Leonard Weaver to a deal which will make him the highest paid fullback in the league. Weaver signed a 3 year deal worth $11 million, with $6.5 million guaranteed. Weaver can make another $700,000 in incentives. Weaver is coming off a fantastic season, one in which he went to the pro bowl. Weaver was a great free agent signing.

March Madness (3/03/10)

2010-03-03T19:04:00.002-05:00

Here is the first installment of our Bracketology version.

March Madness Seeds (3/03/10)
#1: Kansas, Kentucky, Syracuse, Duke
#2: Purdue, Villanova, West Virginia, Kansas State
#3: Vanderbilt, New Mexico, Ohio State, Pittsburgh
#4: Tennessee, Michigan State, Gonzaga, BYU
#5: Temple, Wisconsin, Maryland, Georgetown
#6: Butler, Xavier, Texas, Missouri
#7: Texas A&M, UNLV, Baylor, Richmond
#8: Northern Iowa, California, UTEP, Wake Forest
#9: Marquette, Virginia Tech, Clemson, Florida State
#10- Georgia Tech, Louisville, Oklahoma State, Florida
#11- UConn, Old Dominion, Siena, Illinois
#12- Dayton, Cornell, UAB, St. Mary’s
#13- Kent State, San Diego State, Murray State, Utah State
#14- Sam Houston, Weber State, Charleston, Oakland
#15- Morgan State, Coastal Carolina, UC Santa Barbara, North Texas
#16- Campbell, Robert Morris, Bucknell
Play-in-Game: Jackson State, Stony Brook

Last 4 In: UAB, St. Mary’s, Dayton, San Diego State

Last 4 Out: Mississippi State, Rhode Island, Notre Dame, Minnesota

Conference Breakdown (Multiple Bids)

Big East (8) – Syracuse (1), Villanova (2), West Virginia (2), Pittsburgh (3), Georgetown (5), Marquette (9), Louisville (10), UConn (11)

Big 12 (7) – Kansas (1), Kansas State (2), Texas (6), Missouri (6), Texas A&M (7), Baylor (7), Oklahoma State (10)

ACC (7) – Duke (1), Maryland (5), Wake Forest (8), Florida State (9), Virginia Tech (9), Clemson (9), Georgia Tech (10)

Big Ten (5) – Purdue (2), Ohio State (3), Michigan State (4), Wisconsin (5), Illinois (11)

Atlantic 10 (4) – Temple (5), Xavier (6), Richmond (7), Dayton (12)

Mountain West (4) – New Mexico (3), BYU (4), UNLV (7), San Diego State (13)

SEC (3) – Kentucky (1), Vanderbilt (3), Tennessee (4)

West Coast Conference (2) – Gonzaga (4), St. Mary’s (12)

Conference USA (2) – UTEP (8), UAB (12)

Movie Director Rankings

2010-02-26T16:22:00.004-05:00

After reading the awful list that EW.com compiled, Kotite's Corner decided to poll their entertainment contributors in order to establish an actual top 25 living directors. We compiled this by balancing both history and current relevance.

1. Christopher Nolan - Memento, Batman Begins, The Prestige, The Dark Knight

2. Martin Scorsese - Raging Bull, Goodfellas, Casino, The Departed, Shutter Island

3. Steven Spielberg - Jaws, E.T., Jurassic Park, Schindler's List, Saving Private Ryan

4. Quentin Tarantino - Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs, Kill Bill, Ingourious Basterds

5. James Cameron - The Terminator, Aliens, True Lies, Titanic, Avatar

6. Darren Aronofsky - Pi, Requiem for a Dream, The Wrestler

7. Coen Brothers - Raising Arizona, Fargo, The Big Lebowski, No Country For Old Men

8. Clint Eastwood - Unforgiven, Mystic River, Million Dollar Baby, Gran Torino, Invictus

9. David Fincher - Seven, Fight Club, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

10. Paul Thomas Anderson - Boogie Nights, Magnolia, Punch Drunk Love, There Will Be Blood

11. Ron Howard - Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind, The Da Vinci Code, Frost/Nixon

12. Jason Reitman - Thank You For Smoking, Juno, Up in The Air

13. Steven Soderbergh - Traffic, Ocean's Eleven, Che, The Informant

14. Peter Jackson - Lord of the Rings, King Kong, The Lovely Bones

15. Tim Burton -Beetle Juice, Batman, Edward Scissorhands, Big Fish, Alice in Wonderland

16. Sam Mendes - American Beauty, Road to Perdition, Jarhead, Revolutionary Road

17. Danny Boyle - Trainspotting, 28 Days Later, Slumdog Millionaire

18. Spike Jonze -Being John Malkovich, Adaptation, Where the Wild Things Are

19. Spike Lee - Do the Right Thing, Malcolm X, He Got Game, Summer of Sam, Inside Man

20. Michael Mann - The Last of the Mohicans, Heat, The Insider, Ali, Collateral

21. Wes Anderson - Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, The Darjeeling Limited

22. Paul Greengrass - The Bourne Supremacy, The Bourne Ultimatum, United 93

23. Guillermo Del Toro - Hellboy, Pan's Labyrinth, Hellboy 2

24. J.J. Abrams - Mission Impossible 3, Star Trek

25. Ang Lee - Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Brokeback Mountain, Taking Woodstock

Shuster Suck

2010-02-18T21:08:00.008-05:00

Shuster taking it from the other countries

Listen, if you don't watch curling, I don't like you, so stop reading. I have never curled before. I honestly do not know shit about curling. But every 4 years I watch it and it has become my favorite Olympic sport. So after Torino's surprise bronze medal for the Americans, I had some-what high hopes...possibly a medal again. These thoughts were quickly squashed by Shitty Shuster and his awful performance. If the game were on the line in 4 separate occasions and I had just one rock to curl down the ice, I would not make any of them. You know what is different between Shuster and I.....nothing! His wikipedia page has been hacked multiple times today with hilarious faux facts about him that were much better written than this. My personal favorite was something along the lines of this, "After choking in so many important curling events, Shuster is now known as the Donovan McNabb of curling." Whoever you are who wrote those today, thank you and I am sorry for butchering your quote (like anyone reads this) One good thing about today, is I just found out about this hot ice dancing chick on the US, Tanith Belbin (see below) and she agrees that Shuster sucks!

Eagles' Management: The KGB of the NFL?

2010-02-01T22:06:00.002-05:00

With the elevation of Howie Roseman to GM of the Birds, the Eagles' brain trust has openly (though inadvertently) revealed itself as the NFL's version of Russia's KGB-dominated dictatorship. The similarities are simply mind-boggling. First, though, a brief Russian history recap: Russia's leadership consists of a President, who has traditionally been the head of government, and a Prime Minister, who was usually a figure-head administrator of the Communist Party. Vladimir Putin, a long-time official of Russia's infamously brutal spy organization the KGB, was "elected" President in 2000 and served the requisite two 4-year terms ending in 2008. To retain absolute power and control after his presidency, Putin in 2008 appointed himself (through his minions) Prime Minister, and ensured that his hand-picked puppet, Dmitry Medvedev, was "elected" President. In this way, Putin shifted dictatorial authority from the Presidency to the Prime Minister, thereby retaining absolute power over the government. Now, substitute the Eagles' Coach/General Manager for the Russian President/Prime Minister, and we can clearly see the self-serving, manipulative dishonesty of this GM appointment, not to mention the petty dictatorial mindset of the Lurie/Banner/Reid cabal. Rather than consider an independent football outsider who can train a fresh eye on the perennial meltdowns of this perennially underachieving organization, the insecure tyrants of NovaCare appoint an inexperienced bean-counting lackey in Roseman who will in no way challenge the status quo. In this way, Reid -- the Vladimir Putin control freak of Eagledom -- retains absolute power and authority over all personnel decisions, despite no longer carrying the titular GM designation in combination with Head Coach. Reid, with the backing of the clueless Lurie & Banner bean-counting sisters, further consolidates his control over this sorry organization, ensuring there will be no internal whispers of dissent to challenge his arrogant, myopic decisions. And, unfortunately for the fans, the endless term of Comrade Reid, like that of Putin, is destined to produce nothing but more helpless misery for the general public. Once again, the Eagles' brass proves its incompetency and, even worse, its timidity.

Friday Football Picks

2010-01-08T10:14:00.002-05:00

The 2nd annual Friday Football Picks has ended. After winning most of the season, and then dropping to 3rd, Willard comes back to win at the end. It was unbelievably close between Willard, Jack Flack, and Roget for first place, all 3 separated by mere percentage points, and all 3 picking games that finished almost right on the line the final week of the season.

Willard led most of the season, with Dr. G nipping on his hells. With Dr. G having a Denver Broncos-like collapse this season, Willard was in command. But Willard proved he was human, and couldn't keep up his 60% picking clip. He slowly came back to the pack, and Roget and Jack Flack took advantage. Roget had the lead going into the final week of the season, but couldn't hold off Willard. The final standings are below--

Overall Winning Percentage
1. Willard (53.03%)
2. Jack Flack (52.94%)
3. Roget (52.86%)
4. C-Money (50.00%)
5. Dr. G (46.97%)
6. Mr. Green (43.48%)
7. Hollywood (35.71%)

Eagles Fall Flat to Cowboys

2010-01-04T20:16:00.004-05:00

The Eagles lost their final game of the season on Sunday in disappointing fashion 24-0 to the Dallas Cowboys. The Eagles were dominated in every facet of the game, and to be honest, the score could have been a lot worse.

The offensive line was terrible, the running game was non-existent because they didn't run the ball, McNabb was not very good, the receivers were bad, the defense was terrible, and the coaching was terrible. All of that combines for the disappointing loss. With the loss, the Eagles drop from what could have been the #2 seed and a first round bye to the #6 seed and a 2nd straight trip to Dallas to play the 3rd seeded and NFC East champion Cowboys.

I don't understand why the Eagles don't try to get the ball in their playmakers hands. I personally would like to see McCoy and Weaver touch the ball a lot more than they did this game. Running back is a position on the team where you usually have your most athletic, quickest players. These guys are weapons, and Reid did not use them on Sunday. Westbrook looked bad in my opinion, and they Eagles need to get back to what won games for them down the stretch - getting the ball in the hands of McCoy and Weaver a lot more.

Of course, it would also help if the Eagles weren't dominated up front on both sides of the football. The offensive line was bad from the start, and McNabb was under pressure most of the day. The Cowboys were getting pressure when they didn't even blitz. On the other side of the ball, the Eagles couldn't even get in the Cowboys backfield. Even on rushing plays, Marion Barber, and Felix Jones were getting past the line of scrimmage with ease. On passing plays, Tony Romo had all day, and he is too good to allow to sit back and throw all day with open lanes. The Eagles have been responsible for a lot of Romo's worst games of his career, so they know what happens when you get pressure on him. The Eagles did not blitz a lot, and that might have been because they did not want to show the Cowboys anything in the 2nd half, I'm not sure.

Costly mistakes also were key. McNabb missed DeSean Jackson on a fly route early in the game which would have made it a 7-7 game. Jeremy Maclin dropped a wide open pass that went through his hands on a 3rd down. McNabb fumbled a snap down at the Cowboys 10 yard line.

The Eagles will need to put that loss behind them, and get re-focused and come in with a different attitude if they do not want their offseason to start next weekend.

Eagles-Cowboys Preview

2010-01-02T12:39:00.003-05:00

The Eagles take on the Cowboys tomorrow, in what is one of the biggest regular season games in a while for both teams. Both teams are in the playoffs, but depending on what happens in this game and others, both teams could fall into as high as the #2 seed, or as low as the #6 seed.

The Eagles are in the better position sitting at 11-4 right now. The Eagles are in the #2 slot right now, and control their own destiny for that spot. If the Eagles win tomorrow, they are the #2 seed in the NFC, and get a first round bye. If they lose, the Cowboys win the NFC East, and the Eagles could end up dropping to as low as the #6 seed in the NFC playoffs, and possibly a 2nd straight trip to Dallas to play the Cowboys in the first round of the playoffs.

As for the game itself, both teams come in playing really good football. The Cowboys have won 2 straight and playing well, showing that they don't necessarily choke every December. The Eagles have won 6 straight, and their offense especially is clicking on all cylinders. On offense, the Eagles will need to really run the ball effectively, and give McNabb time to throw the ball. I think that is the key to the game for the Eagles... the offensive line needs to give McNabb time to throw the ball. If this happens, the offense can play as they want to, and McNabb will have time to find Jackson, Maclin, or Celek downfield.

On defense, I think the Eagles really need to get to Romo, and get pressure on him, and be in his face all game long. The Eagles first need to do a good job against the Cowboys rushing attack, and not let the Cowboys beat you on the ground. We also need to focus on shutting down Jason Witten. As we know, the Eagles struggle with opposing tight ends, and Witten is one of the best in the NFL, so that will be an important matchup for the Eagles.

It will be interesting to see what the Eagles game plan is, and how they come out of the gates. I think that getting a lead in this game is very important. We need to be able to play from ahead. The Eagles are the best first half team in the NFL, and best opening drive team in the NFL, so hopefully the Eagles will jump out to a quick lead.

Flyers Lose Winter Classic

2010-01-01T16:30:00.007-05:00

The Flyers lost to the Boston Bruins 2-1 in overtime today in another great Winter Classic game. The rain and snow held off, and the game went on as planned. It started to get dark and chippy by the end of the game, and the Flyers allowed a late Bruins goal in regulation, and then in overtime to lose the game.

Overall, the game was great to watch, and I'm sure was fun to be at and play in. The atmosphere was great. Flyers fans, who are the best in the NHL packed Fenway Park, and you could hear Flyers chants throughout the game. The Flyers got a goal early in the 2nd period on the first career goal by Danny Syvret. The Flyers had a lot of chances throughout the 2nd period, and dominated most of the action that period.

The 1-0 lead held up through most of the 3rd period as well, until the refs gave the Bruins a bullshit power play with less than 4 minutes left in the game. Former Flyer, Mark Recchi scored on the ensuing power play with a little over 2 minutes left. I am a huge believer that referees do not like the Flyers at all. I know the Flyers play rough, and they lead the league in penalty minutes, but they always seem to have a target on their backs. Because of that reputation, refs are always going to call the Flyers on weak penalties, that other teams would not get called for.

Either way, the game went into overtime, but before that, the Flyers got another penalty called against them with under a minute left in the 3rd period. The Flyers fought that penalty off, but the Bruins scored a goal a couple minutes into the overtime period to win the game and the Winter Classic. Right before the Bruins scored, Danny Briere had a wide open net with the puck on his stick, but couldn't get a shot off. If the game were indoors, Briere probably buries that, but he wasn't able to get the shot off with the chippy ice in overtime. I will say that Michael Leighton was solid in net all night for the Flyers, and there wasn't much he could do on the 2 goals that were scored against him.

Even though it seems like it is tough to play on, and the conditions aren't as good as a regular indoor game, I am a big fan of the Winter Classic, and was glad the Flyers were chosen to play in it, even though I am very disappointed with the outcome. Also am disappointed we had to watch that fat phony, Curt Schilling during the 1st intermission wearing a Bruins jersey talk about Philadelphia and Boston fans.

Friday Football Picks

2010-01-01T11:50:00.003-05:00

Roget – Overall Record: (36-30-1)

Titans (-4.5) at Seahawks

Texans (-8) vs. Patriots

Steelers (-3) at Dolphins

Eagles (+3) at Cowboys

Jack Flack – Overall Record: (34-30-3)

South Florida (-7) vs. Northern Illinois

Texas Tech (-8) vs. Michigan State

Central Michigan (-3.5) vs. Troy

Eagles (+3) at Cowboys

Willard – Overall Record: (32-30-2)

Titans (-4.5) at Seahawks

Falcons (-1.5) at Buccaneers

Chiefs (+13.5) at Broncos

Packers (+3) at Cardinals

C-Money – Overall Record (29-29-2)

West Virginia (-2.5) vs. Florida State

Steelers (-3) at Dolphins

Jaguars (+1) at Browns

Bears (-3) at Lions

Dr. G - Overall Record (31-31-2)

Missouri (-6.5) vs. Navy

West Virginia (-2.5) vs. Florida State

Cincinnati (-13) vs. Florida

Georgia Tech (-4) vs. Iowa

Mr. Green – Overall Record: (30-35-2)
Cincinnati (+13) vs. Florida
Central Michigan (-3.5) vs. Troy
LSU (-1) vs. Penn State
West Virginia (-2.5) vs. Florida State

Hollywood - Overall Record: (24-42-1)

Texans (-8) vs. Patriots

Bengals (+10) at Jets

Giants (+9) at Vikings

Browns (-1) vs. Jaguars

Overall Winning Percentage
1. Roget (55%)
2. Jack Flack (53%)
3. Willard (52%)
4. C-Money (50%)
4. Dr. G (50%)
6. Mr. Green (46%)
7. Hollywood (36%)

2009 College Football Playoff

2009-12-29T22:48:00.006-05:00

.... And then there were two. We are down to the final two teams in our college football playoff, and it is a great game with the #3 and #4 seeds, Cincinnati and TCU, respectively.

Mr. Green: Cincinnati

Roget: TCU

Dr. G: TCU

Jack Flack: TCU

Willard: TCU

Hollywood: TCU

C-Money: Cincinnati

WINNER: TCU (5-2)

TCU takes the national Championship in a very close game. Congratulations to the TCU Horned Frogs, the 2009 Kotite's Corner National Champions.

So what does this all mean? Did the BCS get it right this year? Once again, the answer is a resounding 'No.' In fact, the question "Did the BCS get it right?" is a stupid question to be begin with, because the BCS cannot get it right, the BCS is not right to begin with. The BCS means a computer chooses two teams to play for the National Championship. Whether the two teams selected are the best two teams in the nation is meaningless. There are plenty of teams this year who haven't lost a single game, including TCU and Cincinnati, who will not get to play for the National Cahmpionship. There are arguments for and against all of the top teams, which is why we need a playoff system in college football. Division I-AA, and all Divisions below that have a playoff system.

College basketball will always be better than college football, because of college basketball's playoff system, March Madness. Did anybody ask whether UNC and Michigan State deserved to play for the National Championship last season? Did anybody ask whether March Madness got it right? No, because March Madness is a great playoff system, which always features classic, memorable games, upsets, buzzer beaters, and memories. A playoff system in football would probably create the same result.

To close our 2009 college football playoff, here is the final bracket, and how the tournament played out.

6 Eagles Make Pro Bowl

2009-12-29T19:46:00.004-05:00

Six Philadelphia Eagles players were selected to the Pro Bowl, which may be the most since 2004-2005. The players selected were Leonard Weaver, DeSean Jackson, Jason Peters, Trent Cole, Asante Samuel, and David Akers. Most are also starters.

Since only 1 fullback is chosen, Leonard Weaver is the starter there. DeSean Jackson also is a starter, and will start opposite Larry Fitzgerald. Jason Peters will be the starting tackle, along with Bryant McKinnie. That is 3 starters on the offensive side of the football.

On defense, Asante Samuel will be starting at the one corner, opposite Charles Woodson. Trent Cole will back up Julius Peppers and Jared Allen at the defensive end spot. David Akers is the lone kicker.

Hopefully the Eagles actually send 0 players to the Pro Bowl. The Pro Bowl this season is the weekend before the Super Bowl, so both Super Bowl teams obviously will not be sending anyone to the Pro Bowl, so the alternates are important. Donovan McNabb is a 1st alternate at QB.

Also, 3 Pitt Panthers made the pro bowl - Larry Fitzgerald, and Darrelle Revis, who were basically locks before the season, and punter Andy Lee of the San Francisco 49ers.

Eagles Clinch First Round Bye With Win

2009-12-29T11:12:00.003-05:00

The Eagles will clinch the #2 seed in the NFC and a first round bye if they beat the Cowboys on Sunday. You had to know that this Eagles-Cowboys matchup the final weekend of the season would be meaningful, and it is for both teams.

Because the Vikings lost last night, the Eagles and Vikings now have identical records. The Eagles hold the tiebreaker over the Vikings with the better conference record, and thus control their own destiny for that #2 seed. However, the Eagles can drop completely out of that spot, and drop to as low as the #6 seed if they lose to the Cowboys possibly. The Eagles have a lot to gain from a win this weekend, and unfortunately, they have a lot to lose. In fact, the Cowboys who sit at #6 in the NFC right now, could still end up with the #2 seed and a first round bye. If the Eagles, Vikings, and Cardinals lose, and Cowboys win, they take the #2 seed, and the Eagles will fall to the 5th or 6th seed.

If the Eagles lose to the Cowboys, and the Vikings and Cardinals both win, the Eagles would be the #5 seed, and would travel right back to Dallas for a first round playoff matchup. If the Eagles lose to the Cowboys, and the Vikings win, and the Cardinals lose, the Packers also jump the Eagles, and the Eagles drop to the #6 seed. In this scenario, the Eagles would also travel back to Dallas to play the Cowboys. There are also scenarios where the Eagles could lose, drop to the #5 or #6 seed and play the Vikings, if the Vikings lose their game, and Cardinals win.

So, a win would be huge for multiple reasons as you can see. You do not want to have to play in Dallas twice in a row, and in my opinion, you never want to play a divisional opponent for the 3rd time of the season in the playoffs. Should be a very interesting weekend.

2009 College Football Playoff

2009-12-29T11:05:00.002-05:00

The final two teams are set, and we just saw the first two major upsets of the tournament with the top two seeds both going down in the semi-final matchups. The remaining two teams square off in the Rose Bowl. The matchup is as follows--

#3 Cincinnati vs. #4 TCU - Rose Bowl, Pasadena, CA.

It will be interesting to see how this game plays out. The explosive spread offense of Cincinnati led by Tony Pike and Mardy Gilyard against TCU, who has maybe the best defense in the nation.

Here is the updated bracket--

2009 College Football Playoff

2009-12-29T10:57:00.004-05:00

The final four teams are set and we are ready to go with the games. Two good matchups square off with #1 Alabama facing off against #4 TCU, and #2 Texas playing #3 Cincinnati. The winners advance to play in the National Championship game in the Rose Bowl.

Mr. Green: TCU

Roget: TCU

Dr. G: TCU

Jack Flack: TCU

Willard: TCU

Hollywood: TCU

C-Money: Alabama

WINNER: TCU (6-1)

Mr. Green: Cincinnati

Roget: Texas

Dr. G: Cincinnati

Jack Flack: Cincinnati

Willard: Texas

Hollywood: Cincinnati

C-Money: Cincinnati

WINNER: CINCINNATI (5-2)

Upset alert - Both top seeds go down. This is huge. Neither game was close either. TCU wins in a landslide over Alabama, and Cincinnati wins in a landslide over Texas. This is why they play the games. Well, in real life, they actually don't, but if they did, something like this could happen. We will never know, and unfortantely for TCU and Cincinnati, they will not get a chance to play for the National Championship in real life. However, they will get to play for the 2009 Kotite's Corner National Championship.

2009 College Football Playoff

2009-12-28T22:16:00.002-05:00

Well, the 2nd round games were played, and there really has not been an upset yet in terms of how the teams were seeded. The final four teams are now set, and will match up at 2 randomly chosen sites. The final four matchups are as follows--

#1 Alabama vs. #4 TCU at Cowboys stadium in Dallas, TX.
#2 Texas vs. #3 Cincinnati at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, IN.

These are some great games that we all would love to see played out on the field. It will be interesting to see if the underdog, TCU, can stay alive against the #1 overall seed.

Here is the updated bracket--

College Football Playoff

2009-12-28T21:59:00.009-05:00

We are down to the final 8 teams of our 2009 college football playoff. Of the 8 teams, there is 2 SEC teams, 2 non-BCS teams, 1 ACC team, 1 Big 12 team, 1 Pac-10 team, and 1 Big East team. The only major conference not represented is the Big 10 (Big 11).

Mr. Green: Alabama

Roget: Alabama

Dr. G: Alabama

Jack Flack: Alabama

Willard: Alabama

Hollywood: Alabama

C-Money: Alabama

WINNER: ALABAMA (7-0)

Mr. Green: TCU

Roget: Florida

Dr. G: TCU

Jack Flack: TCU

Willard: Florida

Hollywood: TCU

C-Money: Florida

WINNER: TCU (4-3)

Mr. Green: Oregon

Roget: Texas

Dr. G: Texas

Jack Flack: Texas

Willard: Texas

Hollywood: Oregon

C-Money: Oregon

WINNER: TEXAS (4-3)

Mr. Green: Cincinnati

Roget: Boise State

Dr. G: Cincinnati

Jack Flack: Cincinnati

Willard: Boise State

Hollywood: Boise State

C-Money: Cincinnati

WINNER: CINCINNATI (4-3)

The #1 overall seed Alabama cruises into the Final 4, and the other 3 games come right down to the wire. TCU edges defending National Champion Florida 4-3. Texas barely survives an upset big by Oregon and wins 4-3. Cincinnati, the Big East champion survives Boise State, and wins 4-3. The final 4 is now set. We have the SEC champion, the Big East champion, the Big 12 champion, and underdog TCU. These are the top 4 seeds in the tournament, so the seeding held up.

Eagles Lose Jamaal Jackson For Season

2009-12-28T16:07:00.003-05:00

Jamaal Jackson's season is over after he tore his ACL yesterday on a routine passing play. Jackson was blocking his man, backpedaling, and his ACL tore. Jackson isn't the greatest center in the league, but he has been the one staple on the offensive line this season, and in years past. He is consistent, and he was the veteran leader on this offensive line. It is not very good timing to lose a leader like that going into the biggest game of the season.

Nick Cole will replace Jackson at center, and has filled in before, but has never started a game there before. I'm assuming a week of work will be fine, but the Eagles almost made a huge mistake yesterday when McNabb and Cole botched a snap, which almost caused a turnover or safety. Max Jean-Gilles will probably start at right guard now, taking Cole's starting spot there. If only we have one of the Andrew's brothers. Reid said that Stacy Andrews could get into the mix, but Andrews has been a healthy scratch for a while, as he has no push, and isn't very good anyways. Former Pitt Panther Mike McGlynn will probably suit up and back up at center and guard.

College Football Playoff

2009-12-28T15:59:00.003-05:00

....And then there were eight. The first round of action has been completed. The higher seeds took care of business, leaving some very intriguing 2nd round games. The four games will take place at the four respective major bowls chosen randomly. The matchups are as follows--

#1 Alabama vs. #9 Georgia Tech in Miami, FL (Orange Bowl)
#4 TCU vs. #5 Florida in Pasadena, CA (Rose Bowl)
#2 Texas vs. #7 Oregon in New Orleans, LA (Sugar Bowl)
#3 Cincinnati vs. #6 Boise State in Glendale, AZ (Fiesta Bowl)

Imagine if we actually got these see these matchups play out on the field and not on the computer.

Here is the updated bracket--

College Football Playoff

2009-12-28T15:33:00.007-05:00

The first round continues with the right side of the bracket, which features #2 overall seed, the Texas Longhorns.

Mr. Green: Texas

Roget: Texas

Dr. G: Texas

Jack Flack: Texas

Willard: Texas

Hollywood: Texas

C-Money: East Carolina

WINNER: TEXAS (6-1)

Mr. Green: Oregon

Roget: Oregon

Dr. G: Oregon

Jack Flack: Iowa

Willard: Iowa

Hollywood: Oregon

C-Money: Oregon

WINNER: OREGON (5-2)

Mr. Green: Virginia Tech

Roget: Boise State

Dr. G: Boise State

Jack Flack: Boise State

Willard: Boise State

Hollywood: Boise State

C-Money: Virginia Tech

WINNER: BOISE STATE (5-2)

Mr. Green: Cincinnati

Roget: Cincinnati

Dr. G: Cincinnati

Jack Flack: Cincinnati

Willard: Cincinnati

Hollywood: Cincinnati

C-Money: Cincinnati

WINNER: CINCINNATI (7-0)

The first round conclues with all the home teams and higher seeds winning on the right side of the bracket... no surprises here. The trend of no close first rounds games continues as well.

College Football Playoff

2009-12-28T13:44:00.005-05:00

We will kick off the first round of action with the left side of the bracket, which includes #1 overall seed, Alabama.

Mr. Green: Alabama

Roget: Alabama

Dr. G: Alabama

Jack Flack: Alabama

Willard: Alabama

Hollywood: Alabama

C-Money: Alabama

WINNER: ALABAMA (7-0)

Mr. Green: Ohio State

Roget: Georgia Tech

Dr. G: Georgia Tech

Jack Flack: Georgia Tech

Willard: Georgia Tech

Hollywood: Georgia Tech

C-Money: Georgia Tech

WINNER: GEORGIA TECH (6-1)

Mr. Green: LSU

Roget: Florida

Dr. G: Florida

Jack Flack: Florida

Willard: Florida

Hollywood: Florida

C-Money: Florida

WINNER: FLORIDA (6-1)

Mr. Green: TCU

Roget: TCU

Dr. G: TCU

Jack Flack: TCU

Willard: TCU

Hollywood: TCU

C-Money: TCU

WINNER: TCU (7-0)

No surprises on the left side of the bracket in the first round, as the home team wins each game, except for Georgia Tech over Ohio State, which isn't much of an upset anyways. All 4 teams advance convincingly.

2009 College Football Playoff

2009-12-27T23:31:00.004-05:00

It is time for the start of the much anticipated 2nd annual Kotite's Corner College Football Playoff. Since actual real life college football doesn't have a playoff, which again is a joke, we will do our own. It isn't too hard to figure out, as every other sport, including the sub-divisions of college football seem to be able to have a playoff.

The rules are simple. The 11 conference champions all were given at-large bids. This includes Alabama, Texas, Cincinnati, TCU, Boise State, Oregon, Ohio State, Georgia Tech, Central Michigan, East Carolina, and Troy. We then took the next 5 at-large teams according to the final BCS standings. These teams were Florida, Iowa, Virginia Tech, LSU, and Penn State. The 16 teams were then seeded, and a bracket was created. The first round games are to be played at the higher seeded teams’ home field. The 2nd round games would be played at the respective major bowls (Orange, Sugar, Rose, Fiesta), and the semi-final games would be played at two random neutral sites, which we chose as the new Cowboys stadium in Dallas, and Indianapolis, so there would be a game in the north in a dome. The National Championship game would be played as it will be this season in the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.

Check out the opening 16 team bracket below, and stay tuned to see who is voted the winner--

Eagles Hang On to Beat Broncos

2009-12-27T20:06:00.004-05:00

The Eagles survived a sloppy 2nd half, and a Broncos comeback to win with a game winning David Akers field goal with 4 seconds left.

The Eagles came out of the game and looked unstoppable in the first half. McNabb barely threw an incompletion, and was picking apart the Broncos, and had almost 250 yards passing and 2 TD's at halftime. Brent Celek had 121 yards receiving and a touchdown at half. The Eagles also got the ball to start the 2nd half, and instead of putting the Broncos away, McNabb threw an interception. Sometimes it seems like McNabb struggles when he has too much time in the pocket, which is what happened on the interception. McNabb tends to play his best when he just makes plays, and reacts to what is happening. He made numerous passes right on the money in the first half with pressure in his face.

After the Broncos settled for a field goal, the Eagles scored another touchdown on a pass from McNabb to Avant, who made a nice catch concentrating on a tipped ball. The Eagles were up by 17 at the point halfway through the 3rd quarter. The Eagles offense really struggled at this point, and the Broncos took advantage of a Macho Harris fumbled kick return, and eventually tied the game at 17. The Eagles defense however buckled down in the 4th quarter, and held the Broncos deep in their own territory late in the game, giving the Eagles the ball back at the Broncos 42 yard line with 1:41 left to play in a 27-27 game. After a McCoy 2 yard run, McNabb found Jeremy Maclin at the 13 yard line for a 27 yard completion. This play was initially ruled incomplete right along the sideline, but after reviewing, was called a completed pass. Akers would kick the field goal after 3 runs, and the Eagles move to 11-4 on the year, and still a shot at the #2 seed, and hopefully wrapping up the NFC East with a Redskins win tonight.

Because McNabb was picking apart the Broncos in the first half, the Eagles rushing attack never really got going. McNabb threw 35 passes, and the Eagles called 23 runs between Westbrook, McCoy, and Weaver. McNabb ran the ball 5 times as well, including a 27 yard scramble on a 3rd and long. Westbrook ran 9 times for 32 yards, McCoy ran 6 times for 27 yards, and Weaver ran 7 times for 20 yards. McNabb threw for 322 yards, 3 TDs, and 1 INT.

For some reason the Eagles seem to be able to do whatever they want in the first half of games, and lead the NFL in almost every statistical scoring category in the first half of games. However, they seem to really hit a wall at halftime. When the other teams' defense adjusts to the Eagles offense after halftime, the Eagles offense doesn't seem to adjust. I'm not sure what it is, but the Eagles need to get better, and close out games in the 2nd half in games that they have large leads.

On defense, the Eagles played fairly well overall. They were put in bad positions a few times in fairness to them on a couple of the Broncos touchdowns. They only allowed 241 yards of total offense for the Broncos, and did a very good job shutting down the Broncos best weapon in Brandon Marshall. They didn't seem to blitz a lot, and even though they got 3 sacks, I would have liked to see them get more pressure on Kyle Orton.

Either way, the Eagles get the victory to move to 11-4, and now can watch the Sunday night, and Monday night games, and root for the Redskins, and Bears. If the Redskins win tonight, the Eagles win the NFC East. If the Cowboys win, the Eagles have to travel to Dallas next weekend needing a win to win the NFC East. The winner of that game would win the division. If the Bears beat the Vikings on Monday night, the Eagles and Vikings would have identical records fighting for the #2 seed in the NFC and getting that first round bye.

Pitt Panthers All-Decade Football Team

2009-12-27T14:01:00.002-05:00

The Pittsburgh Panthers all-decade football team shouldn't be too hard, especially since I went to Pitt for 4 of the years this decade. I will mention some close calls who didn't make the list who possibly deserve to. Clint Session, who is a possible pro-bowler this season for the Colts did not make the team at linebacker, as he was caught in a numbers game. There are 4 Pitt linebackers in the NFL right now, including Session, however the other 3 all played at higher levels at Pitt. Pitt is the real Linebacker U. Dion Lewis is breaking all types of records at Pitt, but has only done it for 1 year, whereas McCoy was a beast for 2.

Take a look at the all-decade team below--

Offense
QB: Tyler Palko

RB: LeSean McCoy

FB: Lousaka Polite

WR: Larry Fitzgerald, Antonio Bryant

TE: Kris Wilson

OL: Jeff Otah, Jason Pinkston, Mike McGlynn, Rob Pettiti, C.J. Davis

Defense
DL: Greg Romeus, Mick Williams, Joe Clermond, Claude Harriot

LB: Scott McKillop, Gerald Hayes, H.B. Blades

Secondary: Darrelle Revis, Torrie Cox, Shawntae Spencer, Tez Morris

Specialists
K: Conor Lee

P: Andy Lee

PR: Darrelle Revis

KR: LaRod Stephens-Howling

Coach: Dave Wannstedt

MVP: Larry Fitzgerald

Close Calls: Clint Session, Rashaad Duncan, Dion Lewis, Jonathan Baldwin, Rod Rutherford

Pitt Panthers All-Decade Basketball Team

2009-12-26T23:10:00.005-05:00

In keeping with our all-decade teams, I figured I should not only make ones for all the Philadelphia sports teams, but also the Pitt Panthers basketball and football teams. It shouldn't be too hard considering I spent 4 years this decade at Pitt.

This list was harder than I thought, as 3 solid point guards spread out the decade at Pitt, with Brandin Knight, Carl Krauser, and Levance Fields. It was also close at center between Chris Taft, and Aaron Gray. For team MVP, I really was torn between Brandin Knight and Sam Young, but went with Knight because Knight brought Pitt basketball to prominence early in the decade, and got the Oakland Zoo excited about Pitt basketball Pitt has made the tournament 8 straight seasons now, and Brandin Knight was the leader of that first team.

Check out the all-decade team below--

PG: Brandin Knight

SG: Julius Page

SF: Sam Young

PF: DeJuan Blair

C: Chris Taft

6th Man: Levance Fields

Coach: Jamie Dixon

MVP: Brandin Knight

Close Calls: Carl Krauser, Aaron Gray

Pitt Football... We're Back Baby

2009-12-26T22:33:00.005-05:00

The Pittsburgh Panthers finished their season at 10-3 on the year, with a victory in the Meineke Car Care Bowl over the North Carolina Tar Heels. A Panthers 33 yard field goal with 52 seconds left gave Pitt the 19-17 lead. Pitt came into this this game ranked 17th in the nation, and will finish right around there, maybe move up a couple spots.

The game was played in Charlotte, which created somewhat of a home atmosphere for UNC, but I was surprised and pleased with how many Pitt fans were at the game. It was close the whole game, and both teams made at least 1 costly mistake. Dion Lewis, the Panthers star freshman running back rushed for 159 yards in this game and a TD. He finished the season with 1,799 rushing yards, breaking the Pitt records this season of Ironhead Heyward, LeSean McCoy, Curtis Martin, and Tony Dorsett. Not a bad list. I was very concerned coming into this season, as I figured we would miss Shady McCoy a lot, as McCoy was basically the only weapon on offense the past 2 years.

It was a very successful season for Pitt, and Dave Wannstedt is finally putting his stamp on this team, and bringing Pitt back into national prominence. Wannstedt said after the game when asked why a 10 win season is important that everyone knows that Pitt football is back. Dion Lewis agreed, "It's back," Lewis said regarding Pitt football. We're not satisfied with just 10 wins. We want to get more next year." Lewis was named game MVP. This Panthers team is stacked with solid freshman and sophomores, including Lewis, Raymond Graham, Jonathan Baldwin, Dan Mason, and Mike Shanahan to name a few.

As far as the actual game goes, the Panthers had a tough time getting into the end zone, and settled for 4 field goals, the final one being the difference. The Panthers also missed a field goal, and missed a touchdown opportunity, when Lewis was trying to reach for the end zone, fumbled, and the ball went out of bounds in the end zone, giving the ball to UNC for a touchback. UNC also had some costly mistakes, throwing an interception inside the Pitt 5 yard line, and also going offsides on the final drive, as Pitt was going to attempt a 47 yard field goal.

The final Pitt Panthers drive was very impressive, and was exactly how Pitt wants to play offensively. Anyone who is a fan of running the ball had to appreciate the last drive. The drive started at the Panthers own 5 yard line, and went to the UNC 16. The drive took 8:47 off the clock, lasted 17 plays, which included 14 Dion Lewis runs, 1 Bill Stull run, and 2 pass attempts. It resulted in the game winning field goal.

Obviously, Pitt would have liked to be in a better Bowl game, and I am not trying to say that a bowl win over UNC is anything real special, but it was still a positive note to go into next season on. This was important, considering the way Pitt ended the season with 2 straight heartbreaking losses to West Virginia and Cincinnati. A 10-3 season is successful, and Pitt should be ranked very high going into next season.

Eagles-Broncos Preview

2009-12-26T15:38:00.006-05:00

The Eagles play the Denver Broncos tomorrow at 4:15 in a game that has playoff implications for both teams. The Eagles can clinch the NFC East with a win and a Cowboys loss, and stay in contention for the #2 seed by winning. The Broncos are in the playoff mix in the AFC.

This game will also feature the return of Brian Dawkins, and Correll Buckhalter. I think Buckhalter was always one of the more underrated players on the Eagles. Even though he was oft-injured, when he was healthy, he has a great burst through the hole, always did what the Eagles asked him to do, never complained, and always filled in nicely when Westbrook would get injured. In fact, you could argue that the Eagles could have used him more since he is on pace this season to have his highest rushing total of his career, which currently is his rookie season with the Eagles. Also, the leader of the defense, and basically the team for the past decade returns in Brian Dawkins. It will be very emotional before the game, and they have said that Dawkins will be announced by name before the game for an introduction. This should be an unbelievable scene, very similar to when Iverson returned. I could go on and on about Dawkins, and have in plenty of posts before, but everyone loves Dawkins, so there isn't much else to say.

As far as the actual game, it is an extremely important game for the Eagles. I personally am very scared of playing the Cowboys the final game of the season in a winner takes the NFC East situation, so I want to avoid that at all costs. The only way to avoid that scenario is to get help from the Redskins, but also take care of business against the Broncos. The Broncos has been up and down all season... mostly down after they started the season 6-0. Their defense, led by Dawkins, has been the big surprise. They were one of the worst units in the NFL last season, and now are a top 10 defense in almost every category this season. The Eagles need to continue to mix the run and the pass effectively in order to win this game. Jeremy Maclin will return, which should help the passing game, as I have to imagine the Broncos will do their best to take DeSean Jackson out of the game. McCoy and Weaver need to run the ball effectively when called upon. Along with Dawkins, the Broncos feature the leader in sacks in the NFL currently in Elvis Dumervil, so the offensive line will have their hands full to keep McNabb on his feet.

On defense, the Eagles definitely took a step forward with a good game last weekend against the 49ers, but it still wasn't great. It is week 16 and the Birds and still having trouble filling the voids created by Brian Dawkins, and the injured Stewart Bradley. At the linebacker position, the Eagles are basically shuffling guys in and out. Will Witherspoon is the only linebacker that is playing almost every snap. After that, Akeen Jordan, Jeremiah Trotter, and rookie Moses Fokou are all part of the mix. I didn't say Chris Gocong because Gocong didn't play 1 snap on defense against the 49ers, and will back up Fokou for the 2nd straight game this weekend. Also, Sean Jones is still the starting free safety, but has been doing an awful job lately, and is now splitting time with Quintin Demps, who doesn't seem to be playing much better. The defense will have to shut down Brandon Marshall, the playmaker on the Broncos offense.

The Eagles would really like to see the Cowboys, and Vikings lose, but first need to go out and take care of business at home against a team that is good, but we should beat.