Ten Things JJ Thinks He Thinks

1. Georgia/Colts Thoughts

a. I am excited about the commitment UGA is making with their next defense coordinator hire. Not only is Georgia putting up the money ($700,000) but the fact we are offering multiple years in a contract to a defensive coordinator is exciting.
b. Tough decision for Kirby Smart, chance to return to his alma mater, get out of Nick Saban's shadow and have complete control of the defense. The $700,000 will not be bad either. If he stays on the capstone he continues to learn under Nick Saban and thus increasing his value as a head coaching candidate. Furthermore, Alabama will make an offer competitive to Georgia's offer so Smart will not be leaving because of the money.
c. I know the Colts beat the Ravens 17-15 in week 11 but that seems like ancient history now. I am worried that the Colts have not played with great intensity in about 3 weeks while the Ravens have had to play with playoff intensity those same three weeks.
d. I know one thing is for certain the Colts can not turn the ball over 4 times like the Pats did on Sunday and the 3 turnovers the Colts had against the Ravens in week 11 if the Colts want to host the AFC Championship in 13 days.

2. Fiesta/Orange/GMAC Bowl Thoughts

a. We might as well begin the 2010 Heisman campaign for Boise St QB Kellen Moore. Moore ended the season with 39 passing touchdowns and three interceptions, breaking the FBS record for highest touchdown-to-interception ratio (minimum of 30 pass touchdowns).
b. Boise State joined Utah as the second school from a BCS non-automatic qualifying conference with a pair of BCS bowl wins.  In addition, Boise State joined the 2002 Ohio State Buckeyes and this years Alabama team as the only teams to go 14-0 in college football history.
c. Does Boise St begin 2010 ranked in the top 5? Despite how much I hate to say this but I think they have earned the right. Next year the Broncos have to fly east and play the Hokies at Fed Ex Field in Landover, Md. They also have to play Oregon State in Boise next season.
d. You got to love the relationship the cheerleaders at Boise St have with the football players. Everyone remembers Ian Johnson's proposal three years ago but Bronco lineman Michael Ames got to experience the spoils of victory Monday night. About time lineman get some love.
e. How great was this years Orange Bowl? Anytime Georgia Tech loses it is a great day for America and Tuesday was even sweeter because Tech's top 20 ranked hoops team lost to the undermanned Georgia Bulldogs inside Stegeman Coliseum.
f. In two bowl games under Paul Johnson, the Jackets have been outscored 62-17.
g. You can not blame Georgia Tech entirely for this stat, but it is a fun stat nonetheless. The ACC is 2-10 in BCS games all-time.
h. What could have been for Iowa if QB Ricky Stazi does not get injured late in the season?
i. Stat of the Orange Bowl: 29...Iowa outrushed Georgia Tech by 29 yards. The Jackets finished with 143 rushing yards -- well below their season average of 307.2.
j. How good was Central Michigan quarterback Dan LeFevour during his four years at Mount Pleasant, Michigan?
k.LeFevour finished his career as the MAC's all-time leader in completions, attempts, pass yards, total yards and touchdowns. His 150 total touchdowns is the most in FBS history, and his 15,898 yards is the 2nd-most in FBS history.
l. Their has been some good QB's to play in the MAC so do not discount those records.
m. LeFevour is also the first player in FBS history with at least 12,000 pass yards and 2,500 rush yards. WOW.

3. Title Game Thoughts

a. Pretty boring game except for the fourth quarter and the play right before halftime. This game reminded me a lot of last years Super Bowl.
b. As long as teams have to go 30 plus days between games we are going to get poorly played National Championship games.
c. The win gave Alabama its eighth major poll national championship, tying Notre Dame for the most ever. No wonder both of these schools fan bases are a little full of themselves when it comes to their football team.
d. I know losing your QB was a bad break for the Longhorns but how does the University of Texas never develop a consistent running game while Colt McCoy was in school?
e. I still think Bama wins if McCoy plays the whole game. Texas's recievers did not make plays for Gilbert until the 4th quarter. Who is to think that they would have made plays for McCoy.
f. What Heisman jinx? Mark Ingram carries the ball 22 times for 116 yards and two scores. Ingram also joins USC's Matt Leinart (2004) as the only players to win a BCS title and the Heisman Trophy in the same season. Ingram also became the second running back in the last 64 years to win the Heisman and a national championship of any kind in the same season, joining Tony Dorsett's (Pittsburgh) feat in 1976.
g. Why does it seem Jordan Shipley has been in school for 6 seasons?
h. Shipley did have a great game finishing with 10 catches for 122 yards, tying him for the second-most receptions in a BCS championship game.A couple of drops kept those numbers from being more impressive.
i.The SEC has now won four titles in a row and this is unbelievable to me. Also, it it time for UGA to join the group of SEC institutions winning National Championships.
j. I did not realize this about Texas, the Longhorns lost its first BCS bowl game in four tries, dropping to 3-1 all-time. Only LSU (4-0) had a better record in BCS games.


4. Baseball Thoughts

a. Congratulations to one of my favorite players growing up, Andre "The Hawk" Dawson for his election to MLB's Hall of Fame.
b.CNNSI's Joe Posnanski has a great read on The Hawk and how Dawson was a great player in an era that did not produce many great players. 
c. I am amazed at the support Tim Raines has started getting in the past few years. I know I am biased as hell but how come Dale Murphy has not gotten this same support?
d. 2013 candidates include Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Craig Biggio, Curt Schilling, Sammy Sosa, and Mike Piazza.
e. 2014 candidates Tom Glavine, Jeff Kent, Greg Maddux, Mike Mussina, and Frank Thomas.
f. After 2014 candidates include Randy Johnson, Mariano Rivera, Ivan Rodriguez, Trevor Hoffman, Omar Vizquel, Gary Sheffield, Ken Griffey, Chipper Jones, etc.
g. Of the candidates of the class of 2013 right now only Craig Biggio seems like a lock. To many questions surround the other players. Also, I do not think Curt Schilling's entire career is Hall of Fame worthy. To hear him talk he would beg to differ.
h. I think everyone in the 2014 class should get in and Glavine and Maddux should be unanimous selections but they probably will not.
i. A lot of people may disagree with me on Mussina (one argument being he could not beat the Dawgs in the 1990 College World Series) however his 270 wins rank 33rd All-Time and his 2813 strikeouts rank him 19th of All-time. Also, it will be a very long time before we see another pitcher get close to his total of 270 wins. He also pitched in the postseason 9 times and has a 3.42 era in those postseason games.
j. If the 2004 Atlanta Braves can win 99 games with a rotation of Russ Ortiz, John Thomson, Jaret Wright, Mike Hampton and Paul Byrd how many games can the 2010 Braves win with a rotation of Tim Hudson, Jair Jurjens, Tommy Hanson, Derek Lowe and Kinshin Kawakami?
k. Couple of random stats; Barry Bonds led the 2000--09 decade with a .517 on-base percentage. From 1990-99, Frank Thomas was the leader with a .440 OBP. In the 1980s, Wade Boggs led with .443
l. Carlos Beltran and Adrian Beltre each has had 6,877 plate appearances. Beltre has 1,700 hits, Beltran has 1,705. Beltre has 348 doubles, Beltran 340. Beltran has struck out 1,086 times, Beltre 1,084 times. Beltre is a lifetime .270 hitter with 250 homers and 906 RBIs. Beltran is a lifetime .283 hitter with 273 homers and 1,035 RBIs
m. I am pretty intrigued by the terms of Adrian Beltre's cotract with the Boston Red Sox. He gets $7 million this year with a $2 million signing bonus. There is a $5 million player option for 2011. If he does not exercise the option but gets 575 plate appearances, he’ll receive a $1 million buyout. The base salary for his 2011 contract, should he pick up the player option, would increase to $10 million if he gets 640 plate appearances. He also receives $50,000 for being an All-Star; $100,000 for a Silver Slugger, $75,000 for LCS MVP; $100,000 for a Gold Glove; $200,000 for MVP ($125,000 for second, $100,000 for third, $75,000 for fourth, and $50,000 for fifth).
n. I was shocked to see the size of the contract the Cardinals gave Matt Holiday this week. It seemed as if the Cardinals were biding against themselves so good for Scott Boras to maximize the value for his player. The bigger question now surrounds Albert Pujols and it looks like the Cards may have to make him baseball's first 30 million dollar man to keep him in St. Louis.


5. Braves All Decade Team

With the all-decade awards and teams I have done the past few years I figured I would give an All-Decde team for my favorite baseball team. Let the second guessing begin.

C. Brian McCann
1B Adam LaRoche
2B Marcus Giles
3B Chipper Jones
SS Rafael Furcal
LF  Chipper Jones
CF Andruw Jones
RF Gary Sheffield
SP Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, Tim Hudson
Closer John Smoltz
Setup Mike Remlinger

By far firstbase was the most difficult decision. I almost went with Andres Galaraga as my first basemen but he only played one season this decade and I gave the nod to LaRoche because of his 2006 season and the second half of this season. Left field was also tricky and some of my options included Reddie Sanders, B.J. Surhoff, Matt Diaz, Garrett Anderson, and Ryan Langerhans. Pretty safe bet Chipper gets named to two positions. Everyone should not forget how good Mike Remlinger was for the Braves in mutliple roles in a Braves uniform. What are everyone's thoughts?

6. What I read this week

The first article comes from CNNSI college football writer Andy Staples. It is a letter he wrote to his late mom after her Crimson Tide won the National Championship Thursday night. A must read.

The second article comes from Sports Illustrated and was an article that ran in the Sportsmen of The Year issue. It takes an in depth look at Urban Meyer and his desire to win. It has to be mentioned that Meyer has been dealing with work related stress for much longer of a time period than his time at Florida. S.L. Price writes the feature and if one has ever read anything before by Mr. Price they know it is must read.

7. Playoff Thoughts

a. What can you say about the J-E-T-S, Jets, Jets, Jets?
b.I was shocked to see how the Jets dominated the game but when you have the NFL's top defense and rushing game it becomes a little easier to go on the road in January and win.(See New York Giants January 2008)
c. It looks like Cincinnati needs to find a receiver opposite of Chad Ochocinco for the Bengals to take the next step. They have a solid running game but if a defense can shut down Ochocinco they take away the passing threat all together.
d. While the Jets have the defense to keep rolling to a Super Bowl it might be a little much to ask Sanchez to beat Phillip Rivers and hopefully Peyton Manning in the next two weeks.
e.However, Sanchez became just the fourth rookie QB in NFL history to win his postseason debut, joining Shaun King ('99 Bucs), Ben Roethlisberger ('04 Steelers) and Joe Flacco ('08 Ravens). Sanchez and Flacco are the only ones to do it on the road.
f. Did not watch much of the Philly-Dallas game but what I did saw was pretty impressive for the Cowboys.
g. A lot of firsts for the Cowboys as Tony Romo got his first playoff win after losing his first two appearances, going 23 for 35 for 244 yards and two touchdowns. Also, Wade Phillips got his first career postseason win in his fifth game. He had lost games previously with the Broncos, Bills and Cowboys.
h. Next up for the Cowboys is a pretty intriuing matchup against the Minnesota Vikings. The Cowboys are 2-0 all-time when facing the Vikings on the road in the divisional round. It also has to be mentioned that Saturday was the Cowboys first playoff win since 1996, when they beat the Vikings in the wild card round, only to go on to lose to the Panthers in the divisional round.
i. I did not see the Patriots going out like that.
j. Maybe Coach Hoodie should have stuck with Matt Cassell and traded Brady?
k. Tom Brady lost a fumble and was picked off three times, the third three-interception playoff game of his career. In Brady's last eight playoff games, he has thrown 12 interceptions. Not good.
l. Is Ray Rice a top three fantasy pick next season? On Sunday, Rice had an 83-yard rushing TD on the first play from scrimmage, the second-longest rushing TD in postseason history. Rice finished with a team playoff record 159 yards and two TDs, and the Ravens had a franchise playoff-game record 234 rushing yards.
m. If you would have told me Joe Flacco would have gone 4-10 with an int and no scores and the Ravens would have won by 19 I would have called you a moron.
n. Last week I told everyone to learn the name Julian Edelman as he would be playing the role of Wes Welker, you should have listened as Edelman caught 6 passes for 4 yards and two td's.
o. Flaco is 3-1 as a starting QB in the playoffs -- with all three wins coming on the road. His road three wins are tied for the most among active QBs.
p. I did not see the Packers-Cardinals game ending with a defensive play.
q. For the readers that are gamblers the over/under was 47.5, the Cardinals went over by themselves. Amazing.
r. I think it is time we stop doubting Kurt Warner come the playoffs. All he did on Sunday was go 29-33 throwing for 379 yards and 5td's. AMAZING.

8. College Top 5

1. Alabama - Nick Saban won the first of what looks like multiple national championships on the capstone this week.
2. Texas- I would have liked Colt McCoy to have been healthy but I still think Bama would have won. Mack Brown is a better coach than a majority of fans give him credit.
3. Florida - They faced one major challenge this season and failed miserably. How good is this program when one loss to the eventual National Champions seems like a bad season?
4. Boise St.- I keep discounting them, they keep winning. They beat both Oregon and TCU this season and they were rarely even challenged.
5. TCU - They beat six teams that won bowl games during the regular season, how many teams can say that?


9. NFL Top 5

1. Dallas Cowboys-The last four weeks the boys have outscored their opponents 99-31.
2. San Diego Chargers- It is about time Norv Turner get some respect.
3. Indianapolis Colts-Caldwell's first playoff game as head coach.
4. Baltimore Ravens-Amazing 3-1 record in playoff games past two season-all on the road
5. New York Jets-Mark Sanchez returns to southern California for round 2 of the playoffs.

10. Non Football Thoughts 

a. Pretty awesome weekend in Athens, Ga. It is always a great time to hang out with the crew from Sylvania. No shortage of awesomness when one is around the A-list crew that is Smoak, TMAC, Shep and myself.
b. It was also great to see T-Thomas who has some awesome trips planned the next 10 days. The locales of his trips include my two favorite places to visit; Las Vegas and New York City. Good for him.
c. 6 days to the new season of 24 and Jack Bauer doing what he does so well.
d. We got a light dusting of snow on Thursday and their is still snow on the ground in front of the building across the street from me. Is this the longest snow has been on the ground and not melted ever in Atlanta?
e. Here are some videos of us Southerners trying to drive on the ice and snow. Video 1. Video 2. Video 3. If you want to make these videos even more entertaining add some background music with the theme from Benny Hill.
f. I am a little excited for the 100 episode of How I Met Your Mother tonight on CBS. A little preview for those who are fans of that show.
g. Athens, Ga might have the best restaurants of any town its size in all of America. I found a new gem Sunday morning called Moma's Boy. Some of the best biscuits and grits I have eaten in a while.
h. Other favorites in the Classic City in no particular order include; Add Drug, Little Italy, The Last Resort, Farm 255, 5 Points Deli, Inoko Express, Transmetropolitan, The Taco Stand, De Palma's, Weaver D's, Rafferty's, 5 & 10 and some ice cream from Hodgson's Pharmacy. What did I forget?
i. Tooth Fairy looks like the worst movie of All-Time. I would like to think The Rock is better than that but do we know anymore?
j. I know I said it last week but I will say it again, how is Friday Night Lights not part of the regular primetime NBC lineup?
k. The new book Game Change looks absolutely amazing. Some of the excerpts that have been released are very intriguing. It is going to be great to get an inside look at the 2008 Presidential race. Maybe we can finally learn why the Republicans nominated Sarah Palin for Vice-President? 60 minutes discussed alot of this book last night, even more intriguing.
l. Enough of the politics.
m. Next weekend is a three day weekend...anyone have some great plans or ideas?
n. It looks like we are losing a good man come November as Derek Jeter is set to marry Minka Kelly. Love the reporting done by the NY Post to get this story.
o. American Idol returns this weekend, I know the roomdawg is excited, me not so much.
p. How does Howie Long put up with the antics of everyone else on the Fox studio show?
q. 70 million youtube views can not be wrong.
r. Looks like a pretty good TV week ahead as all of our shows return. The show I am looking forward to the most is the return to Leverage on TNT.

Quote of The Week

From the Roomdawg after John Saunders presented the National Championship trophy to Nick Saban and he gave it to his players to pass around and each one gave it a kiss.

"That football is going to have herpes when they are done passing it around."


Quote of The Week II


Comes from Anthony "A-train" Mcclendon when asked if he ever heated his bacon in the microwave.



"Nah, Nah, That's just disrespectful"




Text of The Week
From the greatest kicker in Screven County history who also is a big fan of betting squares for a big football game.

Anytime you want to do squares let me know...nothing is more exciting. Had a girl watching the game with me almost have an orgasm when she finally understood what was going on.

Have a wonderful week!