Weekly Nickel 10-31-2011

Photo courtesy of coacheshotseat.com. Can Les Miles (pictured above) pull a rabbit out of his hat and lead his Tigers over the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa on Saturday night?

By Josh Kramer

Halloween is always a wild time for obvious reasons.  It is the one time of year where you can dress however you want and go unnoticed.  This weekend though, was highly noticeable in terms of the wide world of sports.  Saturday night was arguably the best night of College Football we have had all year.  Sunday was full of thrills and surprises.  And the Fall Classic had its first Game 7 since 2002.

Here are the events to keep an eye on this week.

5.  So a month of games are gone.  That is a shame for sure, but at least some progress was temporarily made.  The insanity and chaos that I witnessed at the end of last week into this weekend demonstrated to me that we have a very good shot of at least having a partial season.  Both sides want to make this deal happen.  It is just a matter of getting over the 2% conflict.  If I had to guess, I would say we will be seeing the game’s biggest stars by January.  This is a bummer in that the Christmas lineup was set to be epic.

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Week 9 was pretty fine

Photo courtesy of zimbio.com. Rex Burkhead (pictured above) had himself a huge day in leading the Cornhuskers over the Spartans.

By Josh Kramer

Despite the absence of the top two teams in the nation, Week 9 was pretty fine.  There was a major shakeup in the Big Ten.  A QB out West, who is definitely no “fluke,” continued his Heisman Campaign.  And another unbeaten from the ACC went down hard (Clemson).

Big Ten Bonanza

Too quick of a whistle

Photo courtesy of tusconcitizen.com. Are NFL referees to quick with the whistle in terms of roughing the passer penalties?

By Andrew McNeil

Daily I hear that the NFL has gotten soft.  That the league is taking the aggressiveness out of football. This is true especially when it comes to the quarterback.  You can barely touch the field general without it being a penalty.  Every week you see a ridiculous roughing the passer penalty that quite frankly makes you sick. There are also many complaints that the calls are not consistent.  That players such as Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and Drew Brees get the penalty flags more frequently than other quarterbacks such as Ben Roethlisberger and Mike Vick. In an interview with ESPN’s Jim Rome, Roethlisberger said, “I think in part because the league doesn’t want certain games to be played without certain quarterbacks,” Roethlisberger continues to say. “No offense to the other Patriots, but whose going to watch the Patriots
without Tom Brady and the Saints without Drew Brees. That’s the way it is. They want to protect those guys because they are the marquee guys of this league, and you don’t want them to get hurt.” Vick also had similar complaints after one of his team’s losses this season.

NFL Week 8 Predictions

Photo courtesy of abcnews.go.com. The game of the week takes place in Pittsburgh. Who will have their team more ready to play? Belichick (left) or Tomlin (right)?

By Josh Kramer

The NFL season rolls on to Week 8.  Up to this point in the season, we have learned a lot.  The Packers are living up to all of the hype and more, appearing poised to repeat as Super Bowl Champions.  Teams like the San Francisco 49ers and the Cincinnati Bengals missed the memo and have decided to be contenders.  And people are finally starting to realize just how valuable Peyton Manning was to his team..  Football fans across the country are witnessing what the Colts are like without #18.

As has become the tradition, we are once again having “TheSportsKraze Pick’em Challenge.”

The participants this season are as follows:

TheSportsKraze (TSK) (defending champion)-Josh Kramer-Founder/Editor-In-Chief of “TheSportsKraze” and former ESPN intern.

CV3-Chad Vordenberge-An elite high school wide receiver and a very successful business owner.

CB-Craig Baker-A former collegiate baseball player and current special education teacher.

DC-David Clark-A dedicated sports fan who was coached by TheSportsKraze on his fraternity flag football team.  After playing for TheSportsKraze, he has developed a slow but steady motivation to show his coach who the real pick’em champion is.

After Week 7, here is the scoreboard.

CB-68

TSK-70

CV3-68

DC-64

Week 8 Slate:

College Football Week 9: It will be mighty fine

Photo courtesy of spartan-football.com. Will Kirk Cousins (pictured above) and the Spartans have enough gas left in the tank to escape with a victory against the Cornhuskers?

By Josh Kramer

It is safe to say that Week 8 was great.  Riddled by blowouts and its fair share of upsets, fans were kept on their toes until the last second across the country (especially in East Lansing).  As the nation continues to prep for what many are calling the “Regular Season National Championship” in Tuscaloosa, do not overlook Week 9.  It has the makings to be mighty fine.

Here are the marquee matchups.

Michigan State at Nebraska:  Cornhuskers by 3

Headline:  After every high comes a low.  The Spartans struggle in the cornfields of Lincoln.

Week 8 NFL Power Rankings

Photo courtesy of somuchsports.com. There are currently three winless teams left in the NFL. Which will come out on top in the "Andrew Luck Sweepstakes?"

By Wesley Kaminsky

Last season, the most prized draft pick heading into the 2011 NFL Draft was Stanford quarterback, Andrew Luck. After an outstanding 2010 season in which he led the Cardinal to an Orange Bowl title, Luck was guaranteed to be the number one pick. The only problem with that though was that he stayed in school, determined to win a National Championship. Now, a season later, things haven’t changed, and Luck is still the hands down number one pick, and a good bet to win the Heisman Trophy. He’s got Stanford ranked #6 in the BCS at 7-0, and wants a shot at the National Championship.

Do you think his focus is on the NFL right now? Luck has already come out and said he doesn’t want to go to a team that’s going to lose on purpose just to get him, and you better believe him when he says that. After all, Luck still has another year of eligibility, and wouldn’t it ruin the dreams of the Dolphins, Colts, or whomever landed the number one pick in the draft if he decided to stay in school?

Out of every week so far this season, Week 7 was the most clear in showing which teams need Luck the most. The Dolphins saw a 15-0 lead disappear with three minutes left, while the Colts got embarrassed 62-7 in New Orleans on Sunday Night Football. Both teams are winless, and both teams are desperate. The only difference with the Colts is that they still have Peyton Manning.  Would the Colts look into trading #18 if they were able to draft Luck? Even Tony Dungy, the Colts former head coach suggested this as a possibility.

Food for Thought 10-25-2011

Photo courtesy of zimbio.com. Tim Tebow (pictured above) was the marquee storyline of Week 7 in the NFL.

By Josh Kramer

We are in the midst of arguably the best time of the year in the sporting world (along with March Madness).  Football is at full tilt at both the collegiate and the professional ranks. The NHL is back in action.  Plus we are coming up on the home stretch of the Fall Classic.  There is not enough time in a day to keep up with everything.

Here are the main items that have caught my attention.

Tebow Time

Weekly Nickel 10-23-2011

Photo courtesy of zimbio.com. Albert Pujols (pictured above) is doing all in his power to capture his second ring.

By Josh Kramer

Albert Pujols did his best Reggie Jackson impression on Saturday night.  The matchup the entire country has been waiting for in the College Football world is finally set for November 5th (with both powers coming in unbeaten).  And Carson Palmer has returned to the gridiron.  Last week was exciting, but do not sleep on this upcoming week.

Here is what you should keep an eye on in regards to the sporting world.

5.  The final documentation will be completed this week in regards to  the NBA world tour.  And though this is not all that exciting, at least it means some basketball featuring many of the NBA’s brightest stars is going to be played somewhere.  Though we all would much prefer to watch Kobe and Lakers take on LeBron and the Heat on the East or West coast, beggars can’t be choosers.  This is what the sad situation has come too.  Keep an eye on the developments in regards to the six-game, four-continent exhibition tour featuring 18 of the NBA’s elite players.  The tour is expected to start on October 9th.

NFL Week 7 Predictions

Photo courtesy of thesportstalkers.com. Can Norv Turner (pictured above) win the war of words with New York Head Coach Rex Ryan via a victory on Sunday?

By Josh Kramer

We learned a lot in Week 6.  First of all the Lions are not invincible.  Secondly, sometimes the antics of coaches can become far larger than the actual outcome of a big time game.  Thirdly, Aaron Rodgers and the Packers are just as good as advertised.  And lastly, the Cincinnati Bengals, who many expected to be highly involved in the “Andrew Luck Sweepstakes,” are now 4 and 2 heading into the bye week.

As has become the tradition, we are once again having “TheSportsKraze Pick’em Challenge.”

The participants this season are as follows:

TheSportsKraze (TSK) (defending champion)-Josh Kramer-Founder/Editor-In-Chief of “TheSportsKraze” and former ESPN intern.

CV3-Chad Vordenberge-An elite high school wide receiver and a very successful business owner.

CB-Craig Baker-A former collegiate baseball player and current special education teacher.

DC-David Clark-A dedicated sports fan who was coached by TheSportsKraze on his fraternity flag football team.  After playing for TheSportsKraze, he has developed a slow but steady motivation to show his coach who the real pick’em champion is.

After Week 6, here is the scoreboard.

CB-59

TSK-62

CV3-60

DC-55

Week 7 Slate: