During the first game of the season, against a tough BYU team, Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford was taken down at the end of the second quarter and landed on his throwing arm.

After the game, the Sooners released a statement saying that Bradford had sprained the AC joint in his throwing arm, and may be out for 2-4 weeks.

Now, after several weeks on the sideline, it appears he may return as early as this weekend against Miami.

[Update: The latest word as of Thursday afternoon was that Sam Bradford would not start this weekend -- but could possibly play -- against Miami as he continues to recover from the ac joint injury that has kept him out of action since the opener.]

Photo credit: Nate Billings, The Oklahoman (via newsok.com)

The acromioclavicular joint  (AC joint) is a spongy tissue that connects the clavicle to the scapula, which makes an injury to this area extremely sensitive. In fact, the AC joint is the only area that connects the shoulder girdle to the rest of the body by forming a joint with the clavicle.

Mechanism of AC Joint Injury

Despite having full range of motion in the shoulder joint (the glenohumeral joint), the AC joint provides less motion.

The two most common ways to injure this joint are repetitive stress such as throwing a football or baseball, or an acute trauma to the lateral aspect of the shoulder joint, such as crashing to the ground after been tackled, as happened to Bradford.  

The AC joint is actually the second most commonly injured joint in the body, next to the glenohumeral joint.

In this article we will only be discussing the acute injury. When the force is applied to the lateral portion of the shoulder, the ligament connecting the clavicle to the scapula is either stretched, as in a sprain, or torn, as in an AC joint separation. 

AC joint sprains are typically classified into 3 groups:

• Grade 1 AC joint sprain: A partial disruption of the AC joint, simply a stretch or sprain of the AC joint ligaments.
• Grade 2 AC joint sprain: A partial injury to the AC joint capsule and coracoclavicular ligament (another ligament connecting the clavicle to the scapula)
• Grade 3 AC joint sprain: A complete tear or disruption of the AC joint capsule and ligaments. A disruption or the ligament will require surgery and you will have a noticeable separation of the clavicle to the scapula.

AC joint sprain grades image credit: Earthopod.com

AC Joint Sprain Symptoms and Diagnosis

Common symptoms of an AC joint sprain are pain and tenderness of the AC joint.

To find this area on yourself, use two fingers to feel along the clavicle towards the shoulder. You will feel a noticeable small separation between your collarbone and the stiff boney prominence just before you reach the the head of the humerus, which is the joint space. Press lightly on that area to feel the sponginess of the joint.

Pain in the joint because of touch or movements of the shoulder are the primary indicators of an injury to the AC joint. It is also common to see bruising and swelling of the AC joint after the injury. 

Someone with an acute injury to the AC joint will try to keep the arm close to the body, as if in a sling to avoid movement and pressure to that joint.

Other indicators of an AC joint injury are similar to orthopedic tests your doctor will run to identify an AC joint separation. Any overhead activities will exacerbate the pain, such as incline bench press, or simply getting something in the overhead cupboard.

Another self test you can do at home is to take the web of your hand on your uninjured arm and place it below the bicep of the injured arm and resist yourself trying to bring the injured arm across the body. If there is pain in the AC joint, this is a good indication of injury. 

If you have pain in this joint, it is best to see your doctor to determine if there is an injury to the AC joint, the severity, and the course of treatment. Your doctor will use orthopedic tests, feel the joint, and test your range of motion to come to a diagnosis.

The shoulder is a tricky joint and there can be a multitude of different injuries in this area, so a proper diagnosis is key for a quick recovery. Your doctor will also take x-rays of the AC joint to rule out a fracture, or complete tear of the ligament. It is not uncommon for the doctor to take an x-ray of both of your shoulders to determine if there is a difference from side to side.

Another common technique that we use at Mountain View Pain Center is to take a second X-ray of the injured joint with a weight in the hand to determine if there is laxity of the ligament.

AC Joint Injury Treatment and Recovery

The key to a proper recovery is rest. Dropping weights in your workouts, or simply laying off for a few days, will not correct the problem.

If you want this injury to heal then you must not be involved in any sporting activities at all for at least two weeks, if not more, depending on the severity of the injury.

You should not only avoid sporting activities but all strenuous activities for the shoulder, especially anything that involves lifting or reaching overhead.

When the initial injury occurs, get ice on it immediately. If you cannot get straight to your doctor, then try to keep the arm close to your side as if in a splint to avoid tension on the joint.  This is something you do not want to let go for very long. If there is a small tear in the ligament and you continue to play your sport or work out then you risk a complete tear, and a much longer recovery.

In many cases after an AC joint injury, you may receive a cortisone shot in the tissue around the joint, or directly in the bursa to relieve pain. This may get you on the field without pain for that game; however, for long-term treatment we do not recommend it.

Cortisone shots over time will actually weaken the tendons and ligaments. If we are dealing with an already weak ligament then the chance for further damage increases. Cortisone shots simply mask the pain but do not actually treat the problem.

If you are only planning on getting a shot and continue to work out and play, expect further problems down the road. At Mountain View Pain Center, we commonly work side by side with a pain management doctor to give a shot for the acute pain, while we work to rehab the area to stabilize the joint.

As with any acute injury, the two main problems are pain and swelling. To treat these both simultaneously at Mountain View Pain Center, we use a special treatment called Interferential Therapy around the shoulder joint. This works by removing not only pain, but also the edema (swelling) in the area.

Another therapy we use is called Microcurrent therapy to speed up the healing process of the stretched ligament. Coupled with the rehab exercises, this helps the stretched ligament to heal properly and regain stability.

The next step is to apply kinesio-tape to the area. We prefer kinesio-tape at our office because it will remove swelling from the area without limiting the range of motion.  We tape to hold the AC joint down, so the ligament will shorten and heal, thus preventing further or chronic injury to the AC joint.  This tape can be worn for several days, and even stays on in the shower. You can also apply any topical analgesic or pain relief gel directly over the tape.

For a Grade 1 or Grade 2 sprain, with proper treatment, you should be pain free within about three weeks.  Remember, just because the pain is gone does not mean the instability is gone. You must continue treatment for full rehabilitation.

At Mountain View Pain Center, once the initial pain is reduced, hopefully in the first week, we begin with exercises to restore normal motion to the joint and prevent the buildup of scar tissue. After the injury has begun to heal, you should start with light weight, high repetition exercises of the shoulder joint, such as external rotations, abductions, and retractions.

Do not by any means go straight back to the gym and start doing heavy lifts, such incline bench press, right away. While the initial workouts are a good way to test what you can and cannot do, we recommend staying away from any heavy chest, flyes, and shoulders for another month.

If you are a quarterback or pitcher, you can begin to lightly throw the ball at practice, starting with short passes. Give the shoulder ample time to rest and do not go straight into a game without proper warm up.

We encourage our athletes to return to our office before a game to be properly treated and taped. Also, ice after you are done playing, even if it does not hurt right away. You want to avoid pain and inflammation tomorrow.

If you have a Grade 3 sprain, or complete separation, you may need to be referred to an orthopedic surgeon. 

Nutrition for Soft Tissue Injuries

• Glucosamine Sulfate 1000mg or Glucosamine with MSM
• Max joint Relief
• We always recommend for any inflammation: fish oils, ginger, boswellia, and turmeric.

In any case, an AC joint sprain is not something you want to just let “heal itself” because you are constantly using this joint and the chance of a chronic sprain will increase the longer you go without treatment.

Although a nuisance and a painful problem, this is very treatable and generally you can be back in the game within 2-6 weeks. 

Look to see Bradford back in the game against Miami or Baylor. Depending on how the treatment has progressed and what Bob Stoops and Bradford’s doctors think is best for Bradford’s long term career, we will see. As a fan, I would like to see him back sooner than later; however, giving the shoulder ample time to heal is the most important thing.

It will definitely be a test for the shoulder in either case. Boomer Sooner!

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If you would like further information on supplements or vitamins for similar types of injuries, contact us or we can direct you to www.maxmusclehighlandsranch.com

This article contains the opinions and examples of treatment plans for plantar fasciitis from Mountain View Pain Center in Denver, CO, and is not intended as a substitute for specific medical advice from a doctor regarding your individual injury or condition. If you have any further questions or concerns feel free to contact our office or leave a comment below.

Dr. Niall McNally is certified in chiropractic neurology and has a strong background in sports injuries and in the rehabilitation of common nagging athletic problems. Dr. McNally also is trained in pediatrics, orthopedics, and nutrition.

He graduated from the University of Central Oklahoma and successfully completed his Doctor of Chiropractic degree at the Parker College of Chiropractic in Dallas, TX. A very active athlete, Dr. McNally played hockey up into the junior level. In fact, it was his love for hockey, and the Colorado Avalanche, that originally gave him the idea to one day practice sports medicine and chiropractics in the area.

Dr. Ihsan Erhuy specializes in motor vehicle accident injures, back, neck, and extremity problems, as well as treating pregnant patients and children. He is certified in the Diversified, Gonstead, Thompson, Upper Cervical, Activator, Sacral Occipital, Applied Kinesiology, Soft Tissue techniques.

Originally from Adana, Turkey, Dr. Erhuy graduated from the University of Arizona and also susuccessfully completed his Doctor of Chiropractic degree, along with his bachelor of science in health and wellness, at the Parker College of Chiropractic in Dallas, TX.

In what has seemingly been the year of upsets in college football, it’s been almost a guarantee that a highly ranked team will go down every week.

With three matchups between ranked teams this week, we know for certain that at least three ranked teams will lose. But again, that doesn’t mean the other ranked teams are safe, and more than one should be on upset alert this week.

No. 15 Penn State should have no problem rebounding from last week’s upset loss to Iowa, but the Nittany Lions are on the road against a talented, though underachieving Illinois team.

The three remaining unbeaten non-BCS schools should have no problem this weekend against lesser opponents, but the games still merit monitoring.

Fifth-ranked Boise State isn’t doing itself any favors in terms of strength of schedule by playing host to UC-Davis. But, hey, No. 1 Florida played Charleston Southern, right? And North Carolina has two I-AA teams on the schedule in The Citadel and Georgia Southern.

No. 12 Houston, which has knocked off a pair of Big XII teams, including last week’s one-point thriller over Texas Tech, steps back into Conference USA play with a cross-state road trip to El Paso to face UTEP.

Follow this link to StubHub for special deals on all college football tickets.

No. 11 TCU plays host to a Conference USA foe in Forth Worth when it welcomes in SMU from Dallas.

Again, all three unbeatens should have no problem, but if this season has taught us anything, it’s that nothing is guaranteed.

With that being said, here are this week’s three marquee games:

#7 USC at #24 California

• USC-California Date: Saturday, October 3rd
• USC-California Kickoff Time: 8:00 ET
• USC-California TV: ABC (regional)
• USC-California Spread: USC -5.5

Cal was riding high less than two weeks ago. The Bears were ranked sixth in the country, had just picked up a road victory in Minnesota, and Jahvid Best was a top-notch Heisman candidate.

Oh how things quickly change.

The Bears got a punch in the mouth and a heavy dose of reality last week in Oregon. The Ducks dished out a 42-3 beatdown inside Autzen Stadium, and Best was limited to 55 yards on 16 carries. This was an Oregon defense that had allowed 79 points in its previous three games.

Whether Cal was looking past the Ducks to USC is uncertain, but now the Bears must face a USC defense that held Cal to three points last year. Many of those players are gone, but the Trojans are still talented on that side of the ball. USC is allowing just nine points per game, and rebounded from its 16-13 upset loss in Washington to knock around Washington State, 27-6.

It will be understandable if USC is distracted in this game with running back Stafon Johnson in the hospital with a crushed throat following a weightlifting accident.

Still the key in this game will be whether Cal can get Jahvid Best going or not. If Best has a good game, the Bears send USC south with a loss. If not, the USC defense will feast on Cal quarterback Kevin Riley.

USC-Cal free pick: USC 27 – Cal 16 | USC -5.5

#4 LSU at #18 Georgia

• LSU-Georgia Date: Saturday, October 3rd
• LSU-Georgia Kickoff Time: 3:30 ET
• LSU-Georgia TV: CBS
• LSU-Georgia Spread: Georgia -2.5

The Tigers barely escaped an upset bid from Mississippi State last week, needing a goal line stand to preserve a 30-26 victory. LSU has been largely unimpressive in its 4-0 start, and are ranked where they are based on the preseason polls.

Still, LSU has done enough to win, although 31 rushing yards on 30 attempts last week against the country’s No. 88 rush defense is an eye-popping stat. It’s hard to figure out how LSU is unbeaten, but one thing the Tigers don’t do is beat themselves, and that starts with quarterback Jordan Jefferson, who has seven touchdown passes to just one interception. Brandon LaFell has been his favorite target, catching five scoring tosses.

LSU is dead-last in the SEC in total offense, something upon which the Georgia defense hopes to capitalize.

Georgia lost its opener on the road to Oklahoma State, but has since rattled off wins over South Carolina, Arkansas, and Arizona State.

Georgia coach Mark Richt is 20-5 against SEC West opponents and 9-1 over the last four years. As long as Richard Samuel continues to run the ball well, he has 281 yards on 62 carries with two scores this season, the Bulldogs should be able to wear down a good LSU defense.

If Georgia can force Jefferson into a couple of mistakes, they could be partying in Athens Saturday night.

LSU-Georgia free pick: Georgia 23 – LSU 17 | Georgia -2.5

#8 Oklahoma at #17 Miami (FL)

• LSU-Georgia Date: Saturday, October 3rd
• LSU-Georgia Kickoff Time: 8:300 ET
• LSU-Georgia TV: ABC (regional)
• LSU-Georgia Spread: Oklahoma -7.5

Just like Jahvid Best, remember how Miami quarterback Jacory Harris was being touted as a Heisman candidate? Well, one lackluster performance in a road beatdown on national television will nip that talk in the bud quickly.

Following impressive outings against Florida State and Georgia Tech, Harris looked uncomfortable in his team’s 31-7 loss at Virginia Tech. The Hokies confused the sophomore quarterback, who completed just 9 of 25 pass attempts, and Miami was just 1-for-11 on third-down conversions.

Oklahoma quarterback, and reigning Heisman winner, Sam Bradford may return to the Sooners’ lineup on Saturday night. He has not played since being knocked out of the season-opening loss to BYU with a shoulder injury. If Bradford can’t go, Landry Jones has done well in his stead.

The freshman quarterback has completed 43 of 69 passes for 622 yards with nine touchdowns and three interceptions in his first two starts. He even set a school record with six TD passes in a 45-0 win over Tulsa.

The Sooners have had two weeks off to prepare for their first real road game, and Land Shark Stadium will be no easy place for Jones or Bradford to play.

The difference could be the OU defense, which has not allowed a point since the 14-13 loss to BYU in Dallas.

Oklahoma-Miami free pick: Oklahoma 31 – Miami 20 | Oklahoma -7.5

One other game of interest is the Wisconsin-Minnesota game, which begins Saturday at 11:00 CT.

College football’s oldest rivalry renews itself Saturday afternoon in Minneapolis. On the line is the best rivalry trophy in the country: Paul Bunyan’s Axe.

The Badgers have a five-game win streak in the rivalry, which dates back to 1890, when the Gophers won a 63-0 contest. While the Gophers own a 59-51-8 overall advantage in the 118-game rivalry, since the introduction of the Axe in 1948, Wisconsin owns a 34-24-3 edge.

Minnesota’s last win came in 2003 when Rhys Floyd kicked a last-second, game-winning field goal. The game has been won on last-minute blocked kicks, big plays and defensive stands, and is one of the most heated rivalries in the country. In 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt intervened to cancel the game because of deaths and other injuries on the field in the first 15 meetings.

This year’s game has extra intrigue because both teams are actually good.

The Badgers are 4-0, but will be leaving the friendly confines of Camp Randall Stadium for the first time this season. The Gophers are 3-1 on the year and coach Tim Brewster is still searching for his first victory against Wisconsin in now his third season as head coach.

The Gophers must shore up a run defense that allowed Cal tailback Jahvid Best to rush for five touchdowns. Wisconsin comes in with a solid offensive line capable of plowing holes for a pair of good backs in John Clay and Zach Brown.

Minnesota-Wisconsin free pick: Wisconsin 38 – Minnesota 34 | Wisconsin +2.5

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* – Bob Stoops and Sam Bradford photo credit: ESPN.com

The latest: it’s not the best case scenario, but at least it’s not the worst case scenario.

According to the ESPN telecast, Bradford has a sprained AC joint in his right shoulder but the X-Rays were negative.  

After watching Bradford walk to the locker room with what Brad Nessler aptly described as “an imaginary sling” I’d say this is about as good as could be hoped. I think everyone watching thought Bradford had probably separated the shoulder.

Bradford is obviously out for the rest of tonight’s game (and, strangely, got a bloody nose while standing on the sideline) and is currently watching his Sooner teammates try to stave off a game BYU club that is currently on the goalline with the score tied at 10-10 as I type this. 

Now, onto the most important question: will Sam Bradford play against Texas? It is obviously too early to tell now, and we probably won’t know more until Monday. But — and this is an important but — if the initial prognosis (at least, according to ESPN) of 2-4 weeks proves accurate, Bradford should be back for the October 17th Red River Shootout. 

Follow the link to StubHub for great deals on tickets to the Red River Shootout between Oklahoma and Texas.

In between now and then the Sooners face Idaho State, Tulsa, Miami (FL), and Baylor. If they can find a way to tonight, they should be able to win those four games even without Bradford, thus making the Red River Shootout still a potentially monumental game between two top-5 teams.

Of course, winning tonight will now be much harder after BYU scored a TD.  14-13 Cougars with 3:00 minutes left in the 4th quarter.

More info to come as it becomes available.

Update 10/7: The latest word on Monday is the Bradford’ shoulder injury appears worse than initially hoped. According to Bob Stoops (via College Football Talk), who provided an update on Sam Bradford’s injury today, Bradford has a Grade II or Grade III sprain of the AC joint in his throwing shoulder. Stoops said the team is still 1-2 weeks away from even having a timetable for Bradford’s return. Needless to say, not good.

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* – Sam Bradford photo credit: OU Math Club

This post will analyze the North Carolina-Oklahoma Elite 8 game using a statistical analysis provided by the Game Predictor at ESPN.com, which is powered by TeamRankings.com. For an analysis of how this program works, hop over to the first individual game Sweet 16 preview I put out for UConn-Purdue. The methodology is all explained there.

(You have my apologies in advance for the relative shortness of this Elite 8 preview. I’ve spent a good 2 to 3 hours on each of the others, but I’m under the gun after an oil change for my car took a little longer than expected and a huge birthday bash for my girlfriend’s grandfather is quickly impending. But I’ll try to go as in-depth as I can on this one.)

Both North Carolina and Oklahoma head into Sunday’s South Regional Final riding incredible waves of momentum.

North Carolina has their leader back in Ty Lawson, looking healthier by the minute, and he led them to victory over an overmatched Gonzaga team last night. Lawson scored 19 points and had 9 assists in the 98-77 North Carolina victory, while Tyler Hansbrough poured in 24 points on efficient 8-10 shooting and had 10 rebounds.

Likewise, Blake Griffin is showing no ill-effects from the injury that sidelined him towards the end of the regular season and Oklahoma is beginning to look like the team that many thought was going to be a #1 seed before slumping down the stretch. OU completely took apart Syracuse last night, winning 84-71, and earning the only victory I did not predict from the eight Sweet 16 games.

Tomorrow’s game should be a good one, and certainly more competitive than the Sweet 16 games for each. Here are the particulars:

North Carolina-Oklahoma South Regional Final – Elite 8 Preview and Prediction

• StubHub: South Regional Final – Elite 8 Tickets
• South Regional Breakdown
• Date: Sunday, March 29
• TV Time: 5:05 PM on CBS
• Site: FedEx Forum in Memphis, TN
• Announcers: Jim Nantz and Clark Kellogg
• Point Spread: North Carolina -6.5
• Over-Under: 164

Now let’s hop over to Game Predictor for a quick look at this one, using the same statistical categories we’ve used for each Sweet 16 game and each Elite 8 game:

• Offensive Efficiency: North Carolina – 1.156 | Oklahoma – 1.125
• Defensive Efficiency: North Carolina – 0.933 | Oklahoma – 0.956
• Assist/TO Ratio: North Carolina – 1.425 | Oklahoma – 1.118
• Free Throw %: North Carolina – 0.762 | Oklahoma – 0.675
• Defensive Field Goal %: North Carolina – 0.413 | Oklahoma – 0.395

And the prediction from Game Predictor:

• Odds to Win Game: North Carolina – 72.9% | Oklahoma – 27.1%
• Most Likely Final Score: North Carolina – 74.5 | Oklahoma – 66.9
• Odds to Cover Spread (OU +6.5): North Carolina – 61.4% | Oklahoma – 38.6%
• Confidence Level: 4 Stars

I am not surprised by the Game Predictor analysis, nor do I disagree.

Oklahoma is a very good team, and Blake Griffin is obviously monster. The battle between he and Tyler Hansbrough is going to be a great one, and features 2 of perhaps the 5 five best college basketball players over the last half decade. Griffin most likely will not be a four-year player like Hansbrough has been, and has much more upside at the next level because of his athleticism, but Hansbrough is a wily old veteran who will come as close as anyone can to battling Griffin to a draw.

That leaves the rest of the two teams’ respective rosters to decide this game. And unless Griffin just dominates Hansbrough, I don’t see the rest of the Oklahoma team being able to do enough to keep pace with North Carolina.

Willie Warren is a fine player, especially for a freshman, and has a bright future, but Ty Lawson is 3-year veteran with tournament experience whose vast improvement from downtown has provided another weapon for a North Carolina offense that already had plenty. The Tar Heels average an astounding 90.5 points per game, utilizing the same attacking style of offense that was on display last night against Gonzaga. Oklahoma has shown that they can play in the 90s this season, but against the likes of Baylor and Texas Tech, neither of which, obviously, is the caliber of North Carolina.

For Oklahoma to compete, Warren will obviously need to be on his game from a scoring standpoint, and guys like Taylor Griffin, Tony Crocker, and Austin Johnson will need to defy their season averages and two or three of them will need to get into double figures. North Carolina has five guys who average in double figures on the season, and while Oklahoma displayed solid defense last night against Syracuse, they will have to step it up another notch or two to contain this potent Tar Heels offense.

Honestly, it looks to me like this Tar Heels team is on a mission that was going to be derailed by one thing: Ty Lawson’s injury. Considering his second half performance against LSU, and his efficiently explosive 27 minutes against Gonzaga, I think we can remove his injury from the list of concerns for the Tar Heels. Said Gonzaga’s Josh Heytvelt after last night’s loss to Carolina:

“If they play like that, they’re going to win the national championship,” Gonzaga’s Josh Heytvelt said. “They’d hit every shot, it seemed like. You can’t do anything on teams like that.”

I’m not ready to go quite that far yet, but it’s hard to argue with Hytvelt’s sentiment.

I predicted North Carolina to reach the title game, but to lose to UConn. And whether or not UConn ends up winning, I have a hard time believing this year’s national champion won’t come from one of the four Big East teams remaining. But North Carolina is the one team I think can compete with the Big East badasses that are still standing.

And I certainly think they can, and will, beat Oklahoma.

Blake Griffin will no doubt have a great game and give his all in trying to keep Oklahoma in it, but I think North Carolina pulls away in the second half and wins this one by 10 or 11 to cover the spread and move on to Detroit.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

This post will analyze the Oklahoma-Syracuse game using a statistical analysis provided by the Game Predictor at ESPN.com, which is powered by TeamRankings.com. For an analysis of how this program works, hop over to the first individual game Sweet 16 preview I put out for UConn-Purdue. The methodology is all explained there.

I know I’ve been saying for this most of these Sweet 16 previews, but this is going to be a really good game. I guess when you’re broken an entire season down to a 16-game tournament, you expect the majority of the games to be between high profile, very good teams.

Oklahoma was thought by many to be a #1 seed for most of the season. Then Blake Griffin got hurt, the Sooners lost a few games, and never really got their swagger back during the regular season or Big 12 Tournament. They have rebounded for two victories in rounds one and two, but something about this team still just feels a bit off from where they were before the Griffin injury.

Syracuse is still be riding a wave of momentum from their thrilling 6-OT victory over UConn in the Big East tournament. The ‘Cuse fell short against Louisville in the Big East Championship game, but won both of their first tournament games by double digits. And with a point guard like Jonny Flynn, shooters like Devendorf and Rautins, and a tough interior player like Paul Harris, you have to think Syracuse has a chance to beatany team still standing.

What’s in store tomorrow night? Here are the particulars:

Oklahoma v Syracuse Sweet 16 Preview and Prediction

• StubHub: South Region Sweet 16 Tickets
• South Regional Breakdown
• Date: Friday, March 27
• TV Time: 7:27 PM on CBS
• Site: FedEx Forum in Memphis, TN
• Announcers: Jim Nantz and Clark Kellogg
• Point Spread: Oklahoma -1
• Over-Under: 153 1/2
• My prediction: originally it was Oklahoma…now I’m not so sure. Read on.

Let’s jump right into the Game Predictor analysis, using the same statistical categories we’ve used for all of the other Sweet 16 previews.

• Offensive Efficiency: Syracuse – 1.077 | Oklahoma – 1.123
• Defensive Efficiency: Syracuse – 0.965 | Oklahoma – 0.955
• Assist/TO Ratio: Syracuse – 1.243 | Oklahoma – 1.120
• Free Throw %: Syracuse – 0.645 | Oklahoma – 0.676
• Defensive Field Goal %: Syracuse – 0.408 | Oklahoma – 0.394

And now the prediction. It is definitely the closest one I have seen so far, which makes perfect sense to me. Similar seeds, probably very similar strength of schedules, with Oklahoma being slightly better overall with respect to the stats analyzed above.

• Odds to Win Game: Syracuse – 48.8% | Oklahoma – 51.2%
• Most Likely Final Score: Syracuse – 66.7 | Oklahoma – 67.7
• Odds to Cover Spread (Syracuse +1): Syracuse – 51.5% | Oklahoma – 48.5%
• Confidence Level: 1 Star

Man, this is a though one. Even the Game Predictor has a confidence level of only one star, making this basically a pick ‘em game.

I like the way that Syracuse is playing right now and I definitely like the experience and proven clutch ability of their backcourt. But Oklahoma obviously has the best player on the court in Blake Griffin. And as we know, more often than not in basketball, the team with the best player wins. I’m not saying all the time, or even more than 55-45, but if you put your money on the team with the best player I think you would win more than you lose.

But I’m going against that here, and I’m going against Game Predictor.

Perhaps I am still thinking too much about the 6-OT game, but there is just something I like about this Syracuse team. This is not a team that will dominate you inside, and they will have their hands full with Blake Griffin, but Syracuse is tough mentally and physically and has a floor general in Jonny Flynn who has a motor that never stops.

Plus, the old cliche is that tournaments are won by the team that gets hot at the right time.

Syracuse won their last four regular season games, made it to the Big East championship, and won by double figures in their first two tourney games. Oklahoma lost three out of their last five regular season games, choked in the Big 12 tournament, and struggled with Michigan before putting them away late. In a game this close, with such a razor thin margin of difference, I think Syracuse’s roll supersedes Blake Griffin’s greatness.

I’m going with Syracuse, straight up. And hoping for overtime.

Let’s break down what should be an extremely tight round of March Madness betting. (Editor’s note: All picks are straight up, not against the spread. Go to the homepage and check out the recent game-by-game posts for a closer look at how to pick these games against the spread.)

EAST REGION

No. 1 Pittsburgh Panthers vs No. 4 Xavier Musketeers

Xavier is like the plucky little kid trying to measure up to his older brother in this NCAA basketball betting matchup. What do the Musketeers do best? Play defense and rebound like crazy. They showed off those skills in the first two rounds of the tournament, totally stymieing Wisconsin in the round of 32 after shooting the lights out against Portland State.

Problem: Pittsburgh battles the same way Xavier does and does it better. While the Musketeers are fifth in the nation in rebounding, the Panthers are second. Pittsburgh will eke out a win here thanks to superior backcourt talent with Levance Fields leading the way alongside outstanding big man DeJuan Blair.

Online betting pick: Pittsburgh

No. 2 Duke Blue Devils vs. No. 3 Villanova Wildcats

Playing in the powerful Big East, Villanova has flown under the radar for much of the season. This weekend, the Wildcats be outed as major contenders when they knock off the Blue Devils. Duke’s overreliance on perimeter shooting doesn’t bode well against the defensively sound Villanova. Expect the Wildcats to control the pace and reach the Elite 8.

Online betting pick: Villanova

SOUTH REGION

No. 1 North Carolina Tar Heels vs No. 4 Gonzaga Bulldogs

There aren’t too many “pretenders” left in the March Madness betting field, but Gonzaga is close. Yeah, the Bulldogs put up some points against Akron and Western Kentucky, but those were No. 13 and No. 12 seeds, respectively. Gonzaga barely survived those matchups, coming from behind to beat Akron and downing Western Kentucky with a last-second shot.

Jumping from that competition to No. 1 North Carolina, still the odds-on sportsbook favorite to win the March Madness odds, will be too much for the ’Zags to handle. The Tar Heels should drop major points on the Bulldogs in a high-scoring affair here. Bet on North Carolina, who should keep getting better with Ty Lawson regaining his form.

Online betting pick: North Carolina

No. 2 Oklahoma Sooners vs No. 3 Syracuse Orange

It’s Blake Griffin Versus the World in what could be the closest of all the Sweet 16 lines. Well, maybe that’s an overstatement, but the point is that Griffin has been the force of the Tournament so far, averaging 30.5 points and 15 rebounds. Is Syracuse up to the task after breezing through the first two rounds?

I say yes. The Orange are a potent offensive unit with well-distributed scoring; five different Orange players averaged 10 or more points per game this regular season. The Orange offense can top Griffin’s inevitable powerhouse performance and guard Jonny Flynn has been sensational. Bet on Syracuse to pull off what some online betting experts would call a minor upset.

Online betting pick: Syracuse

WEST REGION

No. 1 Connecticut Huskies vs No. 5 Purdue Boilermakers

So, uh…Connecticut did pretty well in its first two March Madness betting contests, averaging a 46-point victory margin. Does that mean the Huskies are extremely sharp or extremely untested? Only time will tell. What we do know is that Purdue enters the Sweet 16 nicely battle-hardened, being the only No. 5 seed to avoid the dreaded 5/12 loss and grinding out a tough win over Washington. Center JaJuan Johnson in particular has stepped up his play and will need to maintain that high standard against UConn.

It’s tempting to pick Purdue to pull off the sportsbook upset here, but UConn sure isn’t getting much respect for a No. 1 seed. Better to have the Huskies surprise you with a loss than to pick the No. 5 seed and kick yourself afterwards. Go with Connecticut until they prove you wrong.

Online betting pick: Connecticut

No. 2 Memphis Tigers vs No. 3 Missouri Tigers

It just doesn’t feel right picking Missouri. For one, J.T. Tiller’s convenient last-second injury, which allowed Kim English to shoot the game-winning free throws in his place, seemed shady. Missouri also got pretty darn lucky when Marquette’s Lazar Hayward blew the game by stepping on the baseline during an inbound.

Karma aside, Memphis is still be better of the two March Madness picks here. It got its major scare out of the way in the first round and should ride its outstanding defense to the Elite 8 and maybe the Final Four.

Online betting pick: Memphis

MIDWEST REGION

No. 1 Louisville Cardinals vs. No. 12 Arizona Wildcats

Like them or not, the Arizona Cardinals have impressed in the March Madness odds after many detractors felt they shouldn’t have qualified for the tournament at all. Many online betting sharps correctly predicted their upset over Utah in the first round and they had the lucky draw of No. 13 Cleveland State in the second round, so the Wildcats haven’t really been tested.

Louisville, the top overall seed in the tourney, won’t be like anything the Wildcats have faced so far. This may be the only Sweet 16 betting matchup with blow-out potential.

Online betting pick: Louisville

No. 2 Michigan State Spartans vs No. 3 Kansas Jayhawks

Still feels weird to see Michigan State seeded higher than Kansas, doesn’t it? Most basketball betting fans didn’t expect much from Kansas in its attempted national title defense after the Jayhawks lost all their starters from last year’s team. However, they’ve looked very impressive early, riding the torrid play of Cole Aldrich and Sherron Collins.

A couple of weeks ago, Michigan State would have been the consensus sportsbook pick here, but the Spartans had their hands full with USC and may not have an answer if Aldrich does anything close to the triple-double he posted against Dayton. Bet on Kansas to win one more round.

Online betting pick: Kansas

So I’m posting this now, lest I sleep all the way through to noon. (yeah right, “sleeping in” for me means 7:30 at the latest.)

Anyway, enough blabbering. The first day of the second round, as always, features a number of interesting games and compelling questions:

• Will Ty Lawson be healthy enough to play for North Carolina? Will it matter, considering the Tar Heels are playing a team from the SEC?
• Did Cal-State Northridge wake Memphis (and yawning coach John Calipari, right) up, or will they somnambulate tomorrow and get upended by Maryland?
• Who will win the 3-point battle between AJ Abrams’ Longhorns and Jon Scheyer’s Blue Devils?
• Does Michigan have an answer for Blake Griffin?
• Will I continue falling down the ranks in the MSF Bracket Challenge?

All of these questions and more will be answered beginning with UCLA-Villanova tipping off at 1:05 ET. Here is the complete schedule for Saturday:

NCAA Tournament Second Round TV Schedule and Spreads — Saturday Games

East #3 Villanova v East #6 UCLA

• TV Time: 1:05 PM
• Location: Philadelphia, PA
• Announcers: Dick Enberg/Carter Blackburn and Jay Bilas
• Point Spread: Villanova -2 1/2
• Over-Under: 145
• My pick: Villanova

West #2 Memphis v West #10 Maryland

• TV Time: 3:20 PM
• Location: Kansas City, MO
• Announcers: Tim Brando and Mike Gminski
• Point Spread: Memphis -9 1/2
• Over-Under: 131 1/2
• My pick: Maryland

West #1 UConn v West #9 Texas A&M

• TV Time: 3:35 PM
• Location: Philadelphia, PA
• Announcers: Dick Enberg/Carter Blackburn and Jay Bilas
• Point Spread: UConn -10 1/2
• Over-Under: 139 1/2
• My pick: UConn

West #4 Washington v West #5 Purdue

• TV Time: 5:40 PM
• Location: Portland, OR
• Announcers: Kevin Harlan and Dan Bonner
• Point Spread: Washington -1 1/2
• Over-Under: 139 1/2
• My pick: Purdue (I realize this differs from my official bracket, but screw it.)

South #1 North Carolina v South #8 LSU

• TV Time: 5:45 PM ET
• Location: Greensboro, NC
• Announcers: Jim Nantz and Clark Kellogg
• Point Spread: North Carolina -11 1/2
• Over-Under: 157 1/2
• My pick: North Carolina

South #2 Oklahoma v South #10 Michigan

• TV Time: 5:50 PM
• Location: Kansas City, MO
• Announcers: Tim Brando and Mike Gminski
• Point Spread: Oklahoma -6 1/2
• Over-Under: 135 1/2
• My pick: Oklahoma

South #4 Gonzaga v South #12 Western Kentucky

• TV Time: 8:10 PM ET
• Location: Portland, OR
• Announcers: Kevin Harlan and Dan Bonner
• Point Spread: Gonzaga -10 1/2
• Over-Under: 143 1/2
• My pick: Gonzaga

East #2 Duke v East #7 Texas

• TV Time: 8:15 PM ET
• Location: Greensboro, NC
• Announcers: Jim Nantz and Clark Kellogg
• Point Spread: Duke -7 1/2
• Over-Under: 139 1/2
• My pick: Duke

So, I have mostly favorites winning again with the major exception being Memphis and Maryland. I’m just not a believer in Memphis. They are talented, and they should win, but they are facing a battle-tested Maryland team that knows it can beat anyone on any given night. And Gary Williams has worked tournament magic before. Memphis very well may prove me wrong, but I think this upset will be the story of Saturday.

And Matt Painter’s Purdue Boilermakers, I think, will carry the Big Ten torch into the Sweet 16. I just don’t think Michigan is consistent enough for 40 minutes to beat a team like Oklahoma that has a player the caliber of Blake Griffin.

Purdue, however, is proving that they have a very balanced attack — it is not necessarily explosive, and they are not going to blow many teams out, but they are effective. Purdue plays great defense and can harrass Washington’s guards, and Robbie Hummel really is a difference maker. If he can keep playing 30 minutes, he makes Purdue a really versatile team on both sides of the floor. I hate ‘em, but I respect ‘em. Tom Crean would certainly do well to model the way that Matt Painter has built his team around a core of solid, hard-nosed kids from the state of Indiana.

Enjoy the games tonight and tomorrow everyone. I’m sure I’ll be back at some point with some more random musings. And thanks for all of the traffic and support this week. It has easily been our biggest week ever, and obviously much credit and thanks goes to all of the readers who have visited and continued returning. I’m glad you’ve found our conference tournament and NCAA Tournament coverage useful, and we’ll keep it coming through the Final Four.

If you came to this page looking for picks and predictions for the 2009 NCAA Tournament, we’ve got you covered.

Follow the link to our 2009 NCAA Tournament Game-by-Game Picks all the way through the Final Four.

Or, you can view them by region:

• Midwest Region Breakdown and Predictions
• East Region Breakdown and Predictions
• South Region Breakdown and Predictions
• West Region Breakdown and Predictions

And if you actually came to this page to review our 2009 Big 12 Tournament predictions, pardon the interruption and continue reading below.

So, if you didn’t realize from my Big 12 Tournament Preview post earlier this week, I have always thought one thing when I look at Kansas head coach Bill Self: Jon Arbuckle. I was a huge Garfield fan when I was a kid, and Self is the spitting image of Garfield’s toolish owner.

Luckily for Kansas fans though, Self has been much more successful as a college basketball coach than Jon Arbuckle ever was…at anything.

The Jayhawks enter the 2009 Big 12 Tournament as the champions of the last three, and winners of six of the twelve Big 12 tournaments that have taken place. I don’t think many people expected Kansas to have the #1 seed this year, considering what they lost off of last year’s NCAA Championship team, but here they are.

Will Kansas achieve a very impressive Four-Peat? Or will they ar-buckle under the pressure and allow a new Big 12 Tournament champion to emerge?

Before I give you my predictions, let’s break down a few important things first: a) a few links on the Big 12 Tourney and to help you buy tickets to the Big 12 or NCAA Tournament; b) the bracket, which I will update as the games become final; and c) the current odds for each team. Here we go:

Links:

• Big 12 Tournament History: Past Champions and MVPs
• StubHub Tickets: 2009 Big 12 Basketball Tournament Tickets
• StubHub Tickets: 2009 NCAA Tournament Tickets

And here are the odds of winning the 2009 Big Ten Championship game for each team (according to OffShoreInsiders.com):

• Oklahoma odds: +140
• Kansas odds: +150
• Missouri odds: +350
• Texas odds: +800
• Texas A&M odds: +800
• Kansas State odds: +1000
• Baylor odds: +2500
• Nebraska odds: +2500
• Field (any other team): +2500

And now, let’s break down the 2009 Big 12 Tournament game-by-game until we come up with a hypothetically predicted Big 12 champion:

Big 12 Tournament Bracket and Predictions: Wednesday Games

What a disappointment Baylor has been this season. Coming off last year’s success, Scott Drew was the favorite of some IU fans to become the new head coach in Bloomington. And with guys like Curtis Jerrells and LaceDarius Dunn back, Baylor was a trendy pick to be a Top 25 team in 2008-09. However, the Bears are 17-13 (5-11 in conference) after starting the season 12-2. Still, I think the Bears’ ability to score (despite recent struggles), and their postseason experience from last year, makes them a darkhorse in the Big 12 Tournament. Nebraska just beat Baylor 66-62 in each team’s final regular season game, but I think Baylor pulls off the mini-upset here and advances. Baylor wins.

Colorado went 1-15 in conference play and sucks. Texas only went 9-7, but this is a solid 20-10 team that will play in the NCAA Tournament. I’d be shocked if this is even a game. Texas wins.

Oklahoma State finished in the four-team quagmire at 9-7, and this is a team that can really score and that is playing well. In their last 7 games, OSU is 6-1 with a four-point loss to Oklahoma being the only blemish. They spanked Iowa State earlier this year and the Cyclones, losers of 5 out of their last 7, have done nothing to show they have improved since the first meeting. Oklahoma State wins.

As a die-hard Hoosiers, Texas Tech has been my 2nd-favorite team since Bob Knight took over there. Now that Pat Knight is the head coach, the Red Raiders remain a favorite of mine. Unfortunately, Tech has sucked this season, going 3-13 in conference play and not stopping anyone on D. A&M beat them twice, scoring 79 each time. Of course, Texas Tech did recently beat Kansas by 19, so anything is possible. I hope Texas Tech proves me wrong, but I think Texas A&M wins.

Big 12 Tournament Bracket and Predictions: Thursday Games

Assuming that my Wednesday picks prove true, my darkhorse Baylor will be playing Kansas in Round 2. Can the Bears win? Probably not. Kansas has really played well in conference play, minus the hiccup against Tech. They beat Baylor earlier this year, and while I think the Bears will make this a good game, I don’t think they play enough D to win it. Kansas advances.

Texas would play Kansas State in my hypothetical 2nd round. Both teams went 9-7 in conference play and both teams went 20-10 overall. However, Kansas State beat Texas in their one meeting in Austin. This game is a really toss up, so I’m going with Kansas State — because I live in Dallas and Longhorn fans can be really annoying. Not a very scientific way to pick a victor, I know, but there just is not much separating these two teams.

An Oklahoma-Oklahoma State matchup in the 2nd round would be fun. Most people think, and I agree, that Oklahoma is the best team in the conference. Had Blake Griffin not gotten hurt, they might not have dropped that back-to-back set against Texas and Kansas. Still, the Sooners have lost three of their last five. But they beat Oklahoma State twice during the regular season, and are now back at full health. I think Griffin and the Sooners will be on a mission to prove that they are the best team in the Big 12. Oklahoma wins.

Texas A&M-Missouri in the second round would be a rematch of both teams’ final regular season game, in which A&M won by 10 at home. In the two previous games, Missouri lost to Kansas by 25 and then beat Oklahoma by 9. Will the real Tigers please stand up? The Aggies are playing very good defense of late and have won six in a row entering the tourney. I think the Aggies score another win over Missouri and advance to the semi-finals.

Big 12 Tournament Bracket and Predictions: Friday Games

The battle of Kansas would ensure if my above predictions prove true. They played twice this season, with Kansas winning by double figures each time. And while I think Kansas State will pull of the win over Texas, the Wildcats have not scored an impressive victory since February 7th at Texas A&M. The Jayhawks will march on to the Big 12 Championship game.

Oklahoma-Texas A&M could be a very good game, and one the Aggies could win. However, Oklahoma won both regular season meetings and this would be A&M’s third game in three days. I think their Big 12 Tournament run ends here, as the Sooners and Blake Griffin will just be too much to overcome with less-than-100% legs.

Big 12 Tournament Championship Game on Saturday

It is the matchup that everyone wants to see: Kansas versus Oklahoma. You know Blake Griffin wants a chance to avenge the February 23rd loss, and a pissed off/motivated Blake Griffin is not a good thing for any opponent. Oklahoma is the best team in the Big 12 when healthy, and is still gunning for a #1 seed. I think the beat Kansas, and beat them convincingly to win the Big 12 title.

So there you go — one man’s first impression, quick hit predictions for the 2009 Big 12 Tournament. As always, I suggest that you run to your nearest bookie and bet completely the opposite way, but that’s your call. Game 1 between Nebraska and Baylor tips off in a little over an hour, so I’ll be updating the bracket above as the day and week goes on.

My take on that is that I think both Florida and Oklahoma would defeat Utah if they played — but why in the hell aren’t they? I also thought that Alabama would beat Utah, and we saw how that turned out. To have two one-loss teams playing in the BCS championship game to determine the “national champion”, while the only undefeated team in college football is left on the sidelines with no chance at a title, well it stinks.

And while I don’t begrudge any coach for stating the case for his team, I think Pete Carroll and Mack Brown should shut up about their own teams’ national championship arguments and get behind Utah. Both USC and Texas have lost; Utah has not. A much more compelling case for a playoff can be made by arguing the case of Utah. If coaches with the stature of Pete Carroll and Mack Brown got behind the Utes’ cause and helped to fan the flames of outrage, perhaps mountains could be moved a few more inches closer to a playoff.

Our friends over at Flash Sports Tonight do a nice job of ripping Pete Carroll and Mack Brown a new one in the newest FST Flash Report:

(And if for some reason the video isn’t displaying, head on over to Flash Sports Tonight and watch it there.)

Unfortunately, the plight of Utah is simply indicative of the greed and myopic thinking that defines college football. And until the conference commissioners and school presidents start thinking more with their heads and their hearts than with their wallets, it will always be that way.

Anyway, enough soapbox stuff. It is not the fault of Florida and Oklahoma that whichever team wins this game will have to deal with a certain amount of taint on their trophy. And it certainly does not mean that the two best teams in America are not, in fact, playing tonight. It is hard to argue with either Florida or Oklahoma as worthy national championship contenders. As we preview tonight’s game, I’ll be giving you lots of links to get you ready for tonight.

First, let’s get the particulars out of the way. Here is the pertinent time, place, lines, and announcer information you need to know:

BCS National Championship Game: Florida Gators v Oklahoma Sooners

• When: Today, January 8th, 2009
• Where: Miami, FL
• TV Schedule: 8:00 ET on FOX
• Announcer Pairing: Thom Brennaman and Charles Davis
• Point Spread: Florida Gators -5
• Over-Under: 69 1/2

(Point spreads and over-unders provided by the College Football Handicapping experts at DocSports.)

The next link comes from ESPN, where they have put together an informative “Tale of the Tape” comparison between Florida and Oklahoma:

BCS Championship Game Tale of the Tape – (ESPN)

SI.com has some nice stories previewing a few of the key positions for each team:

Florida finally has a good ground game – (Stewart Mandel)

Oklahoma’s O-Line is pretty damn good – (Andy Staples)

Brandon Spikes may want to stop talking trash about Big 12 defenses until after the game – (Stewart Mandel)

Well, it took me a little longer to get this post together than I’d anticipated and I’m about to be late for a work meeting. So I’ll give my prediction real quick before getting out of here.

I am rooting for Oklahoma to win tonight, but I think Florida will get it done. I think there is some truth to the notion that Big 12 defenses have not been that good, and when you combine that with the potential bowl game Heisman jinx for Sam Bradford and the motivation that Tim Tebow is carrying into this game, I think the Gators will get it done. It will be high scoring and I think it will be close. Other than the announcers, it should be a very enjoyable and entertaining game.

Florida 45 | Oklahoma 38

Who do you think will win it?

(Photo Art by Midwest Sports Fans.)

First off, I want to congratulate Sam Bradford on winning the Heisman Trophy. He put up some of the most ridiculous numbers college football has ever seen this year, and led the Oklahoma Sooners to five straight 60-point outings to close out the season. That is remarkable.

And I want to congratulate the Oklahoma Sooners on becoming Big 12 Champs and being selected to play the Florida Gators in the BCS National Championship game. The Sooners are on quite a roll right now and the Oklahoma-Florida matchup to determine the champion should be exciting.

But what the hell did the University of Texas do to become the toilet of college football in 2008? All they did was go 11-1, beat Oklahoma, and have a QB set the NCAA record for completion percentage. With all that said, let’s count the ways that Texas has been shit on this season:

1 — Despite having an identical 11-1 record with Oklahoma, and owning the head-to-head tie-breaker with the Sooners, Texas was left home during the Big 12 Championship while Oklahoma played Missouri.

2 — Again, despite having the same record as Oklahoma and beating them, Texas experienced their one loss a few weeks later in the season and fell behind Oklahoma in the polls and BCS standings. This is what gave Oklahoma the right to play in the Big 12 Championship game and make it to the BCS National Championship game…despite the ugly fact that a team with an identical record, and that they lost to, will have to watch the championship game from home.

3 — Colt McCoy was sensational in his head-to-head matchup against Sam Bradford. He made the plays to win his school’s biggest game of the year. Sam Bradford did not. The #1 and #2 vote-getters in the Heisman balloting met on the same field, and the the guy who lost and played worse ended up winning the award for Most Oustanding Player in America.

If I were a Texas fan, I’d be feeling a little salty right now. If I were an Oklahoma fan, I’d be thanking my lucky stars that the 2008 Sooners somehow defied the most basic logic that is supposed to govern sports: nothing is more important than what happens on the field.

Oh wait — this is college football we are talking about, the sport where logic is nowhere to be found.

I am having a hard time coming up with a more egregious set of circumstances to end a season and determine a national champion than what has happened this year. And if the Illogical Quagmire of 2008 cannot galvanize change and inspire a movement towards a playoff, I’m not sure what will. If you have the same record as another team, but you beat them on the field of play, you should take priority and be rewarded. That did not happen this year, and Texas got royally screwed because of it.

And if choosing the winner of an individual honor requires the splitting of hairs, as this year’s Heisman Trophy voting clearly did (based on the fact that the difference between #1 and #3 was smaller than the typical difference between #1 and #2), then beating the other candidate head-to-head should carry some pretty serious weight. Obviously it did not in this case, as Sam Bradford came out ahead of Colt McCoy.

And here’s the really sad thing: I know a lot of people are reading this and chomping at the bit to get the comments and tell me I’m an idiot for arguing about Texas and ignoring Texas Tech. Well guess what? That is even more proof for my point!

Texas Tech beat Texas who beat Oklahoma who beat Texas Tech. And yet, the big argument at the end of the season was between Texas and Oklahoma, with Texas Tech all but forgotten. Sure, Oklahoma wiped the floor with Texas Tech. And I would rank them 3rd out of those three on my own personal ballot. But who cares!? Does the old saying, “That’s why they play games” mean anything in college football?

Apparently not.

Not only was Texas Tech shut out of the Big 12 championship game, shut out of the BCS, and shut out of even getting an invite to the Heisman ceremony (despite having the #4 and #5 vote-getters in Graham Harrell and Michael Crabtree), but they weren’t even in the conversation! How ridiculous is that?

Unfortunately, that is college football.

I love college football. I grew up going to games every Saturday, and I love nothing more than watching, debating, and reading about college football all Fall long. But I love college basketball more, and for one extremely important reason: champions are determined on the court, and not through media politicking or in a computer.

Oklahoma had a historic season in many ways in 2008. One feat that should definitely go down in the record books is that they recorded the first loss in the history of college football that, apparently, was not a loss.

In the absence of a playoff, when two teams with identical records do not play eachother, subjective opinions must be solicited to attempt to determine who is better. This has always been a part of college football, and there is no way around it to a certain degree. But when teams play eachother on the field, that game has to mean something. In this case, Oklahoma may as well have just won that game 45-35 instead of what actually happened. Oklahoma was treated like a 12-0 team, while Texas was dealt the fate of a team that went 10-2 and lost to the Sooners.

Oh yeah, and don’t forget about Texas Tech.

My head is starting to hurt just writing this, because it is such a sad and ridiculous circle of idiocy. The only thing standing between college football and a playoff is excuses. College basketball does it. The other college football divisions do it. And somehow, a better method simply has to be implemented to determine champions.

One of the most popular arguments bandied about in opposition of a playoff is that a playoff would lessen the importance of the regular season, that what makes college football different is that a game in October is just as meaningful as a game in January. Well to all of the people who make that argument, I present the 2008 college football season as the quintessential counter-argument that you simply cannot refute.

How meaningful is the college football regular season when Texas can beat Oklahoma, yet Oklahoma goes to the Big 12 championship, the national championship, and the Oklahoma QB beats out the Texas QB for the Heisman?

How meaningful is the college football regular season when Texas Tech can beat Texas, and their arguments are not even taken seriously, for the most part because they do not have the same prestige as Texas and Oklahoma?

It doesn’t seem all that meaningful to me. Not after this season.

What do you think?

So congratulations to Oklahoma. 2008 truly has been the Year of the Sooners, because somehow Oklahoma was able to defy sports logic and completely erase the typical consequences of losing. And this is not a knock on Oklahoma, their coaches, or their players — they have an amazing team. And it is hard to argue that they are not deserving of a spot in the championship game. The problem is that it is not hard to argue for Texas or Texas Tech either.

So the knock is not on Oklahoma, but rather on the idiotic system of college football over which the Sooners have no control.

I just hope that 2008 was a step backwards that can ultimately lead to a giant leap forward — in the form of a playoff. All of this illogical BS has gone on for far too long in college football and it is time for what happens on the field to matter more than what happens on a ballot.

Discussion Questions for Comments Section:

1. Do you think that Texas and Texas Tech got screwed in 2008?
2. Do you want to see a playoff in college football? Why or why not?

Looking forward to everyone’s responses on this topic. And let’s just hope that one of these days, logic can actually become a part of college football.

I know, I know — Mike Gundy is now 41 and his press conference rant is over a year old. Still, it does not make it any less funny. In fact, let’s take a quick trip down memory lane before we jump into the preview. But rather than listen to Mike Gundy rant about some “garbage” newspaper story, let’s watch him provide a weather report in the heart of a nasty storm.

And now, onto the serious stuff.

Here are the particulars for today’s Bedlam Series game between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State:

Matchup: #3 Oklahoma Sooners (10-1) at #12 Oklahoma State Cowboys (9-2)

Where: Stillwater, Oklahoma

Time: 8:00 ET

TV: ABC

Announcer Pairing: Brent Musberger, Kirk Herbstreit, Lisa Salters

Point Spread: Oklahoma -7 ½

Over-Under: 72

What’s at stake: This game will help determine who goes to the Big 12 Championship Game from the Big 12 South division.

Texas took care of Texas A&M on Thursday night, as expected. This means that if the favorites hold serve, with Oklahoma beating OSU and Texas Tech beating Baylor, then there will be a three-way tie in the Big 12 South. By tiebreaker rule, whichever team is tanked higher in the BCS Standings would then go on to play Missouri in the Big 12 Championship Game. This scenario is the only possible way that Oklahoma could play in the Big 12 Championship.

If Oklahoma loses today and Texas Tech beats Baylor, then Texas Tech will play in the Big 12 Championship based on its victory over Texas. If Texas Tech loses to Baylor and Oklahoma beats Oklahoma State, Texas goes to the Big 12 Championship game because the Longhorns beat Oklahoma earlier this year.

So there’s just a little bit at stake tonight in Stillwater.

Let’s take a quick look at what some of the “experts” are predicting:

Dennis Dodd, Senior Writer at CBS Sportsline: Oklahoma State 31 | Oklahoma 23

“I had this vision Saturday night of Mike Gundy sitting on a trunk somewhere drawing up ball plays as he watched OU on TV out of the corner of his eye. People are just assuming that Oklahoma is going to cruise past the Cowboys. The reason it won’t is Kendall Hunter. Gundy will use its All-America-worthy back to control the clock. OSU’s defense is underrated. The fans will be out for blood.”

For the record, the other four prognosticators at CBS Sportsline all picked Oklahoma to win.

John Tamanaha, Official Prognosticator at NBCSports.com: Oklahoma 48 | Oklahoma State 31

“With Mike Gundy calling the shots, Zac Robinson hooking up with Dez Bryant, and Kendall Hunter running the rock, Oklahoma State is more than capable of getting into a shootout with Oklahoma, especially at home in Stillwater. But the Cowboys won’t be able to come up with enough stops to stay within striking distance in the fourth quarter.”

Stewart Mandel, College Football Oracle at SI.com: Oklahoma 48 | Oklahoma State 24

“Theoretically, the Sooners are walking into a “hostile” atmosphere — except there will be 15,000 empty seats due to OSU’s inane policy requiring fans to buy season tickets in order to attend this one.”

And, for the record, 83% of the fans who had voted by 10:15 ET this morning had picked Oklahoma.
Sounds reasonable to me.

Here is why I think Oklahoma will win:

1 – Karma is a bitch

Oklahoma State instituted an insane policy this year that no single-game tickets would be sold for the Oklahoma-Oklahoma State game, instead forcing people to buy season tickets. Now, it is estimated that there will be 10,000-15,000 empty seats – for one of the biggest games of the season! Mike Gundy wants to talk about something being garbage? That’s garbage. No way the cosmic forces of college football allow Oklahoma State to win under such circumstances.

2 – Bob Stoops is better than Mike Gundy

It’s that simple. Look no further that the two team’s respective performances against Texas Tech. Graham Harrell made Oklahoma State look foolish, and Mike Gundy may as well have let T. Boone Pickens call the offensive plays. We all know what Stoops and the Sooners did to Texas Tech. Mike Gundy may be a man, but Bob Stoops is the man in the Big 12.

3 – The BCS is a bitch

If Oklahoma wins and Texas Tech wins, as explained earlier, all hell breaks loose. As any college football fan knows, the evil and diabolical BCS demon is not happy unless it has created as much carnage and controversy as possible. Texas Tech and Oklahoma will both win today, forcing the three-way tie in the Big 12 South that will be determined by politics and BS. And nothing says BCS better than politics and BS.

My prediction: Oklahoma 49 | Oklahoma State 31

And now, if you are a betting man, I’d run out an bet every last dollar on Oklahoma State pulling off the upset. I’m as accurate with my predictions as Lee Corso is sane. Just remember that I picked Texas Tech over Oklahoma as you click away from his prediction as fast as humanly possible.

Texas Tech comes into Saturday night’s matchup (at 8:00 ET on ABC) with an 10-0 record, a #2 ranking, and off of back-to-back wins over top 10 teams Texas and Oklahoma State. The Oklahoma Sooners will defend their home turf Saturday with a 9-1 record, a #5 ranking, and a loss to Texas (in Dallas at the Cotton Bowl) as their only blemish of the year.

Both teams have offenses that are pretty much ridiculous. Texas Tech, powered by the lethal combo of Graham Harrell and Michael Crabtree, is #1 in the nation in passing yards per game with 438.6, and they are #2 in overall offense. Oklahoma is led by superstar sophomore Sam Bradford and is #4 in total offense and #3 in passing offense. Holy crap I am getting excited for this game.

If the over-under is anything less 100, take the over.

What are the keys to victory? I’ll run down a few in the preview and then offer up a prediction. But first, chime in with your prediction:

Texas Tech-Oklahoma Preview: Keys to victory for Texas Tech

1 — Emotion and Mindset

For two straight weeks, Texas Tech has played “the biggest game in school history” and they have won both of them. The Texas game was a knock down, drag out fight that they were able to pull out by the skin of their teeth with an incredible touchdown pass from Graham Harrell to Michael Crabtree in the final seconds. It is the kind of play a team makes when they are that season’s “darling of destiny.” (Case in point: think about Tennessee in 1998 and how they won a game on a phantom pass interference and another when Clint Stoerner fumbled while attempting to run out the clock. Some teams just get all the breaks for an entire season.)

Texas Tech needed no breaks against Oklahoma State, however. They thoroughly whooped the Cowboys, who failed to get Dez Bryant enough play-making opportunities. Now, the Red Raiders are 10-0 and have spent a two weeks since the Texas win listening to everyone tell them they are the greatest thing since sliced bread. Not to mention, they have played with a very high level of emotion and concentration for two consecutive weeks.

Can they maintain it? That is the key question. Norman will be a hostile environment and Oklahoma usually jumps out to early leads with their high-octane offense. If Texas Tech gets down, they can’t panic or lose their emotion. Emotion and mindset have been a strength of Texas Tech all year. It needs to be again.

2 — Pressure Sam Bradford to force turnovers

In Oklahoma’s lone loss this year, Sam Bradford was picked off twice by Texas. He has only been picked off four times in their other 9 games. Texas fell behind early but was able to come back because of timely special teams plays and turnovers. Sam Bradford has been spectacular through nearly two seasons, but has shown a propensity to lose his poise late in games or when Oklahoma is down. Texas Tech needs to capitalize on this and get to him every chance they can.

3 — Establish a ground game

Texas Tech is known for its aerial assault, but Texas won because they stayed committed to running the football. Colt McCoy threw 35 passes and as a team they ran it 35 times. Texas Tech doesn’t need such an even split (McCoy ran it 14 times himself, while Harrell won’t do that), but they do need to try to control the ball, especially late if they have a lead. The top two running backs for Texas Tech average over 5 yards per carry. The Red Raiders will rack up points behind the superb ability of Graham Harrell in leading the spread, but they can salt away a victory by pounding a struggling Oklahoma defense with the run.

Texas Tech-Oklahoma Preview: Keys to victory for Oklahoma

1 — Special frieking teams

Oklahoma has been plagued by special teams breakdowns all season long. They had Texas dead to rights with a 14-3 lead and all of the momentum before Jordan Shipley gave the Longhorns a glimmer of hope with a kickoff return for a TD. Oklahoma scored on the very next possession and could have been up 21-3. Instead, it was 21-10, and Texas got it back to 21-20 before the half. The Sooners dominated the first half in every way, but led by only one at the break. Take away the special teams failure and the game could have had a drastically different outcome.

Oklahoma almost always jumps out and has their offense clicking early. Texas Tech’s D has played well this year, but the offenses in the Big 12 this year, and Oklahoma specifically, have proven they could rack up points with 15 defenders on the field. If Oklahoma gets up early at home, they need to maintain their lead. If a special teams play can spark a struggling Red Raiders team, it could be deja vu all over again for Oklahoma in a big game at home.

2 — Sam Bradford needs to be better than Graham Harrell

In each of the key Big 12 games this year, the quarterback who has played better has been on the winning team. Colt McCoy outdueled Sam Bradford in Dallas, and Texas won. Graham Harrell made one more play that Colt McCoy in Lubbock, and Texas Tech won. Graham Harrell was better than Zack Robinson, Colt McCoy was better than Chase Daniel, and so on it goes.

Sam Bradford’s statistics are incredible. But the one whisper I continuously hear from people who watch the Big 12 closely is that Sam Bradford, while he has the prototypical body and arm of an NFL quarterback, lacks the moxie and winning ability of Colt McCoy and Graham Harrell. This game will be Sam Bradford’s chance to prove that he is a legit Heisman contender and that he can lead a team to victory in a hue game. He failed against Texas, but Oklahoma needs him to be better than the de facto Heisman front-runner right now, Graham Harrell. And part of Sam Bradford being able to do this will be the ability of his offensive line to protect him adequately.

3 — Bob Stoops needs to be better than Mike Leach

Last week, Texas Tech kicked the snot out of Oklahoma State because Mike Leach had his team mentally, emotionally, and tactically more prepared to play than Mike Gundy did. Oklahoma State inexplicably did not use Dez Bryant correctly, and their defense had no answer for Texas Tech. The defense part is not so egregious, because no defense can stop Texas Tech.

But no defense has been able to stop Oklahoma either. And while Texas Tech possesses one of the better defense’s Oklahoma has faced all year, they shouldn’t be able to contain Sam Bradford and the balanced attack of the Sooners — if Bob Stoops doesn’t screw it up, that is. His offense has been superb all year, but coaches sometimes outthink themselves and try to do “special” things in big games. I think this is what has made Mike Leach such a great coach: Texas Tech does what it does and it doesn’t seem to change from the preseason to regular season. They just execute and understand their identity.

Bob Stoops, however, does not have the reputation of a great big game coach; and I think part of the reason why is that he makes the same mistake other coaches make by not staying committed to doing the things they do well. Stoops and the Oklahoma coaches need to let Sam Bradford run the show and not outthink themselves. You know that Mike Leach will do so for Graham Harrell, which is why Graham Harrell has been so good in key spots.

Texas Tech-Oklahoma Prediction

I was really leaning towards picking Oklahoma when I began writing this. They are at home, Texas Tech has to be emotionally drained from the last two weeks, and Oklahoma’s offense is, overall, every bit as good as Texas Tech’s.

But there are two key differences between Texas Tech and Oklahoma: Graham Harrell-Mike Leach and Sam Bradford-Bob Stoops.

Graham Harrell has proven that he is clutch this season, and that he is the type of zone where he believes that he can make every play. Sam Bradford couldn’t do this in his biggest test of the season against Texas. And despite Bob Stoops longer and more decorated coaching resume, I actually trust Mike Leach more in a big game to have his team ready to play, and to not lose its identity. Bob Stoops and Sam Bradford can change my mind with a win Saturday night, but I’m not ready to bank my credibility as a prognosticator on it.

The Sooners are favored by somewhere around 6, but I’m taking the Red Raiders outright (and, like I said, the over if it’s anywhere under 100).

Texas Tech 56 – Oklahoma 52 in an another 2008 Big 12 instant classic.

[tags]texas tech red raiders, oklahoma sooners, college football, big 12[/tags]

(Photo art by Midwest Sports Fans)

It was not a good weekend for fans of Tennessee, Michigan, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin. All four teams lost huge games that will have negative ripple effects for the rest of their seasons.

Tennessee feel to 0-3 in the SEC, and 2-4 overall, with a 24-16 loss to the Georgia Bulldogs. Phil Fulmer is now squarely on the hot seat and the Volunteers are showing no signs of being able to turn their terrible season around.

Michigan lost for the first time ever to a MAC team as they fell 13-10 to Toledo in the Big House. Rich Rodriguez is stubbornly trying to run the spread offense without the personnel to do so, and proving that he has the biggest ego in college football north of Gainesville, FL. Looks like the bad karma of his unceremonious exit from West Virginia has followed him to Ann Arbor.

Bob Stoops lost for the third time in four years to Texas coach Mack Brown as the Oklahoma Sooners let an early lead disappear in a 45-35 loss to Texas. Bob Stoops proves yet again that he simply can’t win the big one, and is now being sarcastically referred to as “Big Game Bob.” At least the Sooners are still a top 10 team and a couple of Texas stumbles from being right back in the Big 12 race.

And Wisconsin…oh Wisconsin…they were trounced 48-7 by a Penn State team that is playing incredibly well. Brett Bielema has now seen his Badger team fall to 3-3 overall and 0-3 in the Big Ten. Luckily for him, there are no other good teams in the Big Ten, so the Bielema and the Badgers have a good shot of finishing 8-3.

All in all, each of these four coaches was a huge loser this weekend. Phil Fulmer and Rich Rodriguez were bigger losers, as their team’s seasons are pretty much in the tank. However, Phil Fulmer takes the award for Biggest Loser as the latest misstep by the Tennessee Volunteers may in fact be the straw that breaks the camel’s back and forces Fulmer to find a new job.

[tags]college football, michigan wolverines, rich rodriguez, tennessee volunteers, phil fulmer, wisconsin badgers, brett bielema, oklahoma sooners, bob stoops[/tags]