New England Patriots at Buffalo Bills
The Bills will play with emotion but the Patriots will roll.

Arizona Cardinals at Detroit Lions
The Cardinals will blow the Lions off the field.

Houston Texans at St. Louis Rams
The Rams will be no match for the Texans this weekend.

Cleveland Browns at Kansas City Chiefs
Both of these teams are horrible but the Chiefs will eke out a win.

Miami Dolphins at Tennessee Titans
The Dolphins have played well but the Titans will win.

Atlanta Falcons at New York Jets
The Jets blistering defense won’t give the Falcons a chance.

Oakland Raiders at Denver Broncos
The Broncos need this win and they will get it.

Cincinnati Bengals at San Diego Chargers
The Bengals will play with emotion and get the upset win.

San Francisco 49ers at Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles are flying high and will top the Niners.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks should easily dispatch of the Bucs.

Chicago Bears at Baltimore Ravens
The Ravens will pick apart the Bears on both sides of the ball.

Green Bay Packers at Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers will continue to slide as the Packers win a close one.

Minnesota Vikings at Carolina Panthers
Adrian Peterson will lead the Vikings to victory.

New York Giants at Washington Redskins
The Giants will put too many points on the board.

Eli Manning will be too much for the Redskins to handle (Image: Zuma Press)

Post from: EveryJoe

NFL Predictions for Week 15

The good news for Harvin is that he was able to get back on the practice field on Friday. When asked about his status, he indicated that he’s likely to play this Sunday in the game against the Carolina Panthers.

Harvin has been an immediate help to the Vikings. He’s quickly become one of Brett Favre’s favorite targets and his versatility makes Minnesota a much more dangerous squad. On the season, he has 48 catches for 681 yards and six touchdowns. He also has 13 rushing attempts for 113 yards.

Back in May, Harvin had a swine flu scare. However, further tests indicated that he was simply suffering from severe dehydration and a virus. With regard to the migraines, it is a condition that Harvin has dealt with for his entire life.

Percy Harvin - Minnesota Vikings (Image: Zuma Press)

Post from: EveryJoe

Percy Harvin Injury Update – Migraines

Lott Trophy

• Winner: Jerry Hughes, defensive end, TCU
• Other finalists: Eric Berry of Tennessee, Rolando McClain of Alabama, Ndamukong Suh of Nebraska
• Given to: best defensive player in terms of talent and off-field character

Walter Camp Player of the Year

• Winner: Colt McCoy, quarterback, Texas
• Other finalists: Tim Tebow of Florida, Case Keenum of Houston, Mark Ingram of Alabama, Ndamukong Suh of Nebraska
• Given to: best player of the year
  

He may not have taken home the Heisman, but Colt McCoy won a number of other awards this year. Image: Newscom

Biletnikoff Award

• Winner: Golden Tate, receiver, Notre Dame
• Other finalists: Freddie Barnes of Bowling Green, Jordan Shipley of Texas
• Given to: best receiver of the year

Ray Guy Award

• Winner: Drew Butler, punter, Georgia
• Other finalists: Chas Henry of Florida, Zoltan Mesko of Michigan
• Given to: best punter of the year

Disney Spirit Award

• Winner: Mark Herzlich, linebaker, Boston College
• Other finalists: n/a
• Given to: most inspiration college football figure

Jim Thorpe Award

• Winner: Eric Berry, defensive back, Tennessee
• Other finalists: Joe Haden of Florida, Earl Thomas of Texas
  
• Given to: best defensive back

Doak Walker Award

• Winner: Toby Gerhart, running back, Stanford
• Other finalists: Donald Buckram of UTEP, Jonathan Dwyer of Georgia Tech, Mark Ingram of Alabama, Dion Lewis of Pittsburgh, Ryan Matthews of Fresno State, Jacquizz Rodgers of Oregon State, CJ Spiller of Clemson, Ben Tate of Auburn, Ryan Williams of Virginia Tech
• Given to: best running back

Chuck Bednarik Award

• Winner: Ndamukong Suh, defensive lineman, Nebraska
• Other finalists: n/a
• Given to: best defensive player

Lombardi Award

• Winner: Ndamukong Suh, defensive lineman, Nebraska
• Other finalists: Jerry Hughs of TCU, Terrence Cody of Alabama, Gerald McCoy of Oklahoma
• Given to: best lineman

Bronko Nagurski Trophy

• Winner: Ndamukong Suh, defensive lineman, Nebraska
• Other finalists: Jerry Hughs of TCU, Terrence Cody of Alabama, Pat Angerer of Iowa, Eric Berry of Tennessee
• Given to: best defensive player

Davey O’Brien Award

• Winner: Colt McCoy, quarterback, Texas
• Other finalists: see the whole list here
• Given to: best quarterback

Maxwell Award

• Winner: Colt McCoy, quarterback, Texas
• Other finalists: Mark Ingram of Alabama, Tim Tebow of Florida
• Given to: best player overall

Ted Hendricks Award

• Winner: Jerry Hughs, defensive end, TCU
• Other finalists: Jeremy Beal of Oklahoma, Sergio Kindle of Texas, Von Miller of Texas A&M,  Brandon Graham of Michigan, Derrick Morgan of Georgia Tech, Greg Romelus of Pittsburgh
• Give to: best defensive end

This is not, in any way, a complete list. There are tons and tons of college football awards that I’m sure I’m missing. Feel free to link to others in the comments and I’ll add them to the list.

Post from: EveryJoe

2009 Award Winners

Manning was again outstanding, finishing with 308 passing yards, four passing touchdowns and an interception. Wayne had five catches for 132 yards and that fourth quarter TD. Dallas Clark had seven catches for 95 yards and two touchdowns.

The Jaguars got good games from Maurice Jones-Drew and David Garrard. Jones-Drew had 110 rushing yards, 30 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Garrard passed for three touchdowns and 223 yards. The loss dropped the Jaguars to 7-7 and harmed their chances of making the playoffs.

To complete their regular season, the Colts face the New York Jets and then travel to Buffalo to play the Bills in the season finale. Can they remain undefeated heading into the playoffs? It’s looking likely at this point.

Peyton Manning and the Colts are cool under pressure (Image: Zuma Press)

Post from: EveryJoe

Colts Stay Undefeated with Another Close W

Jim Leavitt, Image: Newscom

Says the special teams player,

“I don’t think anything should happen to him. Me and Coach Leavitt are fine. People can say different things but he only grabbed my shoulder pads to motivate me, because he’s a passionate guy. He never apologized because he had nothing to apologize for”

Allegedly, Miller’s father went to see Leavitt at his office, and inappropriate, somewhat threatening comments about Leavitt’s power at the school were made. It was also reported, though, that the coach apologized.

To me, this sounds like a case of an angry soccer mom. You know, the sports parent who is a bit overprotective and wants to see the best for their kid. Did Leavitt yell at Miller with a lot of passion? Probably. Did he grab him? Probably. Did he step over a line? The school is looking into the matter, but it sounds like he didn’t really do anything wrong. I just hope an overzealous father hasn’t affected his son’s position on the team.

Post from: EveryJoe

Miller says: Me and Coach Leavitt are Fine

However, some people are wondering if his $2 million per year raise wasn’t a bit excess.

Texas Head Coach Mack Brown, Image: Newscom

According to reports, the university’s Faculty Council has called the new deal, which raises Brown’s annual salary from $3 million to $5 million, “unseemly and inappropriate.” At first glance, I totally agreed with them. Times are touch, economically, and it seems silly to reward a single person on such a high level when he’s definitely not the only reason Texas’ football team has succeeded over the past few years.

Yet, president William Powers Jr. makes a strong case for the raise. Under Brown, the entire athletic program has thrived, with no subsidies or deficits. In the past few years, the athletic program has also transferred around $6.6 million into academics at the school. In short, Brown is helping to put butts in seats, and those ticket sales add up. He’s bringing in more money than most of the other people at that college…so shouldn’t he get more of a salary in return?

Still, I’m not sure that any coach is worth so much money. I’ve always thought that many college football coaches make way too much money every year, since at the end of the day, academics should be more important than sports. Yes, you can argue that he’s pulling in a lot of money for the school, but can’t you also argue that a certain educational program is pulling in a lot of new students who choose Texas over other colleges?

Yes, Brown deserves a raise. $2 million, though? Yeah, that might be a little unseemly and inappropriate. Your thoughts?

Post from: EveryJoe

Does Mack Brown Deserve a Raise?

The major advantage to a new twelve-team structure is that the conference could split into two divisions and have a longer regular season, as is found in the SEC. Right now, Big Ten teams typically have a longer break between their last game and their bowl games than most other teams, which can be a real disadvantage.

Before any specific schools are evaluated for a possible move to the Big Ten, the conference will evaluate whether or not this is actually a good move for the conference. So, no names have been officially thrown out yet. My guesses? Syracuse and Pittsburgh seem like natural choices, and I wouldn’t count Missouri out of the running just yet, though I’m not sure that they’d want to leave the Big Twelve, which is rising in popularity faster than the Big Ten these days. I’d put Cincinnati and Temple on the list of teams to consider, too.

I think it will depend how all of these teams continue to play over the next few years, but let’s not forget – this is more about money than it is about invited the strongest team into the conference. The Big Ten wants someone who’s competitive, in order to boost strength of schedule, but at the same time, they want a team that has a growing fan base, and one that fits into the Big Ten “state of mind.”

Now, I know a lot of people have been talking about Notre Dame again…but I just don’t think that will ever happen. Negotiations take time and money, and after 1999’s talks didn’t work out, I doubt they’ll try again to convince the school to conference up. Besides, Notre Dame doesn’t really need a conference affiliation. The school has amazing contracts and fans on their own, thank you very much.

If I had to guess today, I’d put my money on Pittsburgh. It seems like the most solid choice for a twelfth school for the Big Ten. What’s your guess?

Post from: EveryJoe

Big Ten Wants Twelve

Akron

Brian Kelly, Image: Newscom

• Fired: J.D. Brookhart
• Hired: Rob Ianello (assistant coach at Notre Dame)

Buffalo

• Leaving for Kansas: Turner Gill
• Hired: TBD

Cincinnati

• Leaving for Notre Dame: Brian Kelly
• Hired: TBD

Florida State

• Retiring: Bobby Bowden
• Hired: Jimbo Fisher (assistant coach at Florida State)

Kansas

• Fired: Mark Mangino
• Hired: Turner Gill (head coach at Buffalo)

Louisville

• Fired: Steve Kragthorpe
• Hired: Charlie Strong (assistant coach at Florida)

Louisiana-Monroe

• Fired: Charlie Weatherbie
• Hired: TBD

Marshall

• Fired: Mark Snyder
• Hired: TBD

Memphis

• Fired: Tommy West
• Hired: Larry Porter (assistant coach at LSU)

Notre Dame

• Fired: Charlie Weis
• Hired: Brian Kelly (head coach at Cincinnati)

San Jose State

• Retiring: Dick Tomey
• Hired: TBD

UNLV

• Fired: Mike Sanford
• Hired: TBD

Virginia

• Fired: Al Groh
• Hired: Mike London (Richmond coach)

Western Illinois

• Leaving for health reasons: Don Patterson
• Hired: TBD

Western Kentucky

• Fired: David Elson
• Hired: Willie Taggart (assistant coach at Stanford)

Post from: EveryJoe

College Football Coaching Update, 12/14/09

The Saints had a close game against the Atlanta Falcons. Although the Falcons were without stars Matt Ryan and Michael Turner, they put up a great fight. It took Garrett Hartley field goal with under five minutes remaining to give the Saints a 26-23 victory. As usual, Drew Brees led the way with three touchdowns and 296 passing yards.

The Colts also didn’t have an easy affair. With Denver Broncos wide receiver Brandon Marshall going off for an NFL record 21 catches for 200 yards and two touchdowns, the Colts needed Dallas Clark’s third touchdown reception with 2:25 remaining to seal a 28-16 victory.

Next week, the Saints host the Dallas Cowboys, while the Colts travel to Jacksonville to take on the Jaguars. If both teams can stay undefeated headed to the Super Bowl, this year’s Super Bowl may gone down as the best of all-time.

Can Peyton Manning and the Colts go undefeated? (Image: Zuma Press)

Post from: EveryJoe

Colts and Saints Remain Undefeated

Few of us would have guessed at the beginning of the season that he’d be the winner. It was called “The Year of the Quarterback,” yet we’ve mainly been let down by the talent that returned for another year of college football. Last year’s Heisman winner, Sam Bradford, had a tragic season marred by injury, so he wasn’t even a contender. Colt McCoy of Texas finished third, and Tim Tebow finished fifth in the voting. I’m not saying that they aren’t great players, but neither of them has blown me away this season.

Mark Ingram and head coach Nick Saban hold the Heisman Trophy together. Image: Newcom

The race for the Heisman this year was a close one, and I think that’s because no player truly stood out on the field. My vote would have went to Ingram as well, so I think he deserves the honor, but looking over the season, it wasn’t filled with superstars. Here’s the breakdown of the voting:

• Mark Ingram, Alabama: 1304 points
• Toby Gerhart, Standford: 1276 points
• Colt McCoy, Texas: 1145 points

Three things are really interesting with this year’s voting:

1. It was the closest race in the history of the Heisman, with Ingram winning by just 28 points.
2. This is Alabama’s very first Heisman, even though the Alabama is third in the BCS with National Championship wins.
3. Ndamukong Suh, a defensive player from Nebraska, finished fourth.

Although the Heisman is an award for the best player overall, defensive players usually aren’t seriously considered as top contenders. They simply don’t have as much room to shine. This year, a number of experts and fans were calling fro Suh to win the Heisman, saying that no offensive player has done enough to stand out and be the winner.

Whether you think that’s true or not, Ingram has been the backbone of the Alabama program, rushing for a Crimson Tide record of 1,542 yards so far this year and scoring 18 touchdowns. Against Florida in the SEC Championship game, he ran all over their top-ranked defense, adding three touchdowns and over 100 yards to his total.

Mark Ingram, in the SEC Championship game, Image: Newscom

Since he’s just a sophomore, people are already starting to ask: could he be a repeat Heisman winner? Could Alabama be a driving force in the SEC again next year, with Ingram leading the way? Time will tell – for now, they have a championship on their minds, and it’s going to be quite a battle against Texas next month.

Post from: EveryJoe

Mark Ingram wins the Heisman