FOOTBALL

On Saturday, the Steelers eeked out a win against the Ravens, and the Packers absolutely trounced the #1 seed Atlanta Falcons.  The Packers are a surging #6 seed right now playing great on the road, and the Steelers defense is turning it on full throttle at just the right time.  Sunday gave us two more action-packed games to finalize the conference championship game match-ups.

First up, it was the Seattle Seahawks visiting the Chicago Bears at an icy soldier field.  The Seahawks pulled off a remarkable win against the New Orleans Saints last week, and Seahawks running-back Marshawn Lynch gave us one of the most memorable runs in playoff history.  He shook off 6 defenders to score the go-ahead touchdown.  It even caused the ground under the stadium to actually rumble.  So could the Seahawks keep up their ‘nobody-believed-in-us’ card against the Bears?  Well, the first half was played in fierce weather conditions as the snow kept flowing.  That’s bad news to the Seahawks (not used to it) and great news for the Bears (their secret weapon).  The Bears pulled out to a healthy 21-0 halftime lead, and the Seahawks simply couldn’t get ANYTHING going in the first half.  But, in the second half, the weather cleared, and the Seahawks came storming back.  Matt Hasselbeck quickly accumulated 258 yards and 3 touchdowns.  But, it was the Bears day, and a strong day on the ground behind Matt Forte, Chester Taylor, and even Bears QB Jay Cutler sealed the victory.  Now, we can expect a rivalry game in the NFC Championship between two bitter foes in the NFC North.  That’s right — it’ll be Packers/Bears fighting for the Super Bowl next week. Expect a brawl.  Chicago 35, Seattle 24.

Then, it was the main event of the weekend between the New York Jets and New England Patriots.  The Jets won the first meeting this season, and then the Patriots absolutely destroyed them on Monday Night Football.  Given the way the Pats have been playing lately, they were heavy favorites headed into this game.  Furthermore, these teams have been jabbing at each other in the media all week.  Pats receiver Wes Welker even had an interview with the media that went viral, using as many references to feet as he could (taking aim at Jets coach Rex Ryan’s supposed foot fetish that went public).  When all that was done, and it was time to settle the score on the field.

The Pats got out to an early 3-0 lead and seemed to be controlling the game in the first quarter, but the Jets put it all out there and got an early key touchdown from LaDainian Tomlinson.  Tomlinson’s former team, the San Diego Chargers, have been burned by the New England Patriots in the post-season several times.  They’ve kept him from the coveted Super Bowl ring he always wanted, so Tomlinson wanted to beat the Patriots BADLY!  Then, Mark Sanchez connected with Braylon Edwards for a beautiful 15-yard touchdown.  And suddenly, the Jets headed into halftime with a 14-3 lead.  The 3rd quarter kept everything pretty status quo, until late in the 3rd, Tom Brady hit tight-end Alge Crumpler for a TD, followed by a clutch Sammy Morris 2-pt conversion to make it a 3-point game.  But, in the 4th, Mark Sanchez tossed a gorgeous, back-of-the-end-zone pass to Santonio Holmes to give them a 21-11 lead.  The Pats tried to comeback, but really struggled.  Then, with just under 2 minutes left in the game, with the Jets leading 21-14, Jets running-back Shonn Greene burst through the Pats defense for a 15-yard touchdown run to seal the game.  The Pats did get another TD, but it wasn’t enough and they couldn’t get the onside kick to give them one last chance.  And with that, the Jets win the season rivalry and will head to Pittsburgh for the AFC Championship.  That’s going to be amazing!  NY Jets 28, New England 21.

BASKETBALL

In the NBA, all the talk has been around Carmelo Anthony this past week. Most of the rumors (although they are pretty legitimate) have him going to the New Jersey Nets. Apparently, ‘Melo doesn’t think he can win in Denver, and wants to play the second half of his career somewhere else. But more specifically, he wants to go back to his hometown.  In a test of what the Nuggets could do against the league’s best, the Nuggets hosted D-Wade and the Heat Thursday. Anthony had a solid game with 21 points, and his teammates definitely chipped in for the victory. So, if the Nuggets can beat the Heat (albeit without LeBron), then why shouldn’t Carmelo just stay with the Nuggets and try to win there. The Lakers aren’t as good this season, and San Antonio is beatable. Denver would just have to focus on winning and not trying to disband. They could potentially win a championship if they acknowledged that nobody is going anywhere. Unfortunately, Melo is still probably headed out of town.

FOOTBALL

In college football, a major name is headed to the NFL Draft. Auburn quarterback Cam Newton, National Championship and Heisman Trophy winner, is going pro. He will skip his senior season and test his game at the next level. There is a lot of mystery as to how good Newton will be in the pros. His game revolves around being mobile and running the ball down field and that doesn’t exactly work in the NFL (unless you’re Michael Vick, and Newton is not Vick). Experts agree that Newton is only an above-average passer (not a great one), and it will be interesting to see what team takes a chance on him. His game somewhat resembles that of #1 pick draft bust JaMarcus Russell, although Russell showed up out of shape and had off-the-field problems. Although the Buffalo Bills sure could use some help at QB.

Finally, in the NFL, the Denver Broncos have found their replacement for Josh McDaniels. They’ve decided to hire former Carolina Panthers head coach John Fox. Fox coached the Panthers for what seemed forever, and while they had an awful season this year, they have been very successful in the past — even going to a Super Bowl. Denver is one of the NFL’s most famous franchises and their fan base demands a competitive team every year. They’ve got a lot of talented pieces, and Fox might be the guy to get that team in gear. Plus, there are plans to turn the keys over to Tim Tebow (the God of college football) next season. We’ll see how this all pans out. But hey — John Elway is their VP of Operations, so that could be very good luck.

BASKETBALL

In college basketball, big news from the Donald L. Tucker Center in Tallahassee where #1 Duke traveled to take on the Florida State Seminoles.  The Blue Devils are unbeaten this year and seriously look like the best team in college basketball.  The Seminoles, on the other hand, aren’t even ranked.  But whenever a team gets a chance to take on the best in the nation, they know that everybody is watching, and they bring their A game.  The game was close, but thanks to an amazing night from Florida State’s Derwin Kitchen (22 points, 10 boards), Florida State was able to upset Duke.  Now there are only four unbeaten teams left, but it’s painfully clear that anybody is beatable this season.  FSU 66, Duke 61.

In the NBA, the Miami Heat were looking to protect a 13-game road winning streak when they headed to LA to face the Clippers.  Typically, the Clippers are an easy win.  Sometimes they give you a little trouble, but dominate teams like the Heat usually get out of there with a ‘W’.  Like Florida State, the Clippers were ready and prepared for LeBron/Wade and the Heat.  Blake Griffin had a fierce night with 24 points and 14 rebounds.  Dwayne Wade led the Heat with 31 points, and LeBron had 27, but the Clippers were in top form last night and simply too much for the Heat.  The Clips have only won 13 games this season, but do have wins over powerhouses Miami and San Antonio.  That shows that they shouldn’t be ignored ANY longer.  LA Clippers 111, Miami 105.

FOOTBALL

Finally, some juicy playoff gossip from the NFL.  The Patriots/Jets feud has heated up prior to this weekend’s game.  Usually, it’s NY Jets coach Rex Ryan doing all the smack talk, but this time it was Jets cornerback Antonio Cromartie.  Cromartie was asked what he thought about Patriots QB Tom Brady, and Cromartie said, flat out, that Brady was an ass****.  Anotonio cited that whenever Brady scores on the Jets he points to the Jets sidelines and brags.  That he does it all the time and that he’s an ass****.  Well, Brady said that he never remembers doing that and actually said that he has a lot of respect for the Jets and their defense.  Brady said that if he does point, it’s only because he’s excited that they just scored, and that it’s nothing personal or malicious.  Either way, this game is going to be a bloodbath.  A do or die, and both teams have extreme Super Bowl ambitions.

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In the NBA, blockbuster trade talks are heating up again around Carmelo Anthony.  The deal, that is supposedly close to being done, would send Carmelo Anthony to the New Jersey Nets.  If he went to the Nets, this would effectively be the consolation prize that New Jersey received for not landing LeBron.  Remember, the Nets intend to move to Brooklyn in the next few years, which would make them a big market team.  Having a nucleus of Carmelo in his prime along with Brook Lopez in the middle would give them a very nice foundation.  There are also reports that Chauncey Billups would also join him.  Plus, the loose trade talk may also send the Pistons Rip Hamilton to New Jersey.  This would instantly make them competitive in the East.  Right now, these are still just talks, but expect more details in the days to come.

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Elsewhere, one of the most coveted coaching jobs in sports recently became available.  At the end of this season, Michigan fired head coach Rich Rodriguez.  He simply did not return them to prominence.  Michigan is one of the top, most prestigious programs in college football, and it’s a job that every coach dreams of.  Michigan interviewed LSU coach Les Miles for the gig, and there was talk that Michigan alum Jim Harbaugh (from Stanford) was interested.  Yesterday, Michigan found their replacement:  Brady Hoke from San Diego State.  Hoke isn’t a sexy name, but he has turned around two lowly programs (Ball State and San Diego State).  Michigan needs a hard nosed guy who knows how to turn their ailing program into a winner.  Michigan isn’t close to tackling Ohio State right now, but there’s a chance that Hoke has the coaching know how and great recruiting skills to make this happen.

Finally, in college football, Auburn head coach Gene Chizik had some interesting words just one day after winning the National Championship.  He said the time to party… is OVER, essentially only allowing his program only 12 hours to celebrate winning the whole thing.  The reality is that Auburn, a team that many considered only a middle-of-the-road team prior to the beginning of the season, will resume that reputation this off-season.  They will most likely lose Cam Newton to the NFL draft along with other key defensive backs and offensive lineman.  They will have to pretty much rebuild, and Coach Chizik knows that winning next season will require a lot of energy and attention to detail.  He’s shutting down the party early.

FOOTBALL

In college football, the big day was upon us — The BCS National Championship Game between the #1 Auburn Tigers and the #2 Oregon Ducks.  This game has been anticipated for weeks.  Auburn were the kings of the SEC this year, typically the toughest conference in college football.  They even overcame a 31 point deficit in Alabama earlier this season.  Winning there is nearly impossible.  Their hero has been Cam Newton, their mobile quarterback who broke school records and recently won the Heisman trophy.  Behind Newton, the Tigers have been posting up some amazing point totals.

Oregon has exhibited one of the most exciting offenses in college football history.  They have unique, never-seen-before plays and have a hurry-up offense that boggles defenses.  For example, they will run a 15 yard run play, and before the defense can catch their breath, they’re at the line again running another play 10 seconds later.  It doesn’t give the defense time to think.  Plus, they have a secretive coded play-calling system from the sidelines.  They hold up poster boards with 4 random, yet colorful images.  These apparently mean something, and people have been trying to decode them all season.  This would be a National Championship to remember.

The first quarter started off slow.  Both teams played very sloppy, and you could see that both were extremely nervous to be in the National spotlight.  It was 0-0 at the end of the first.  In the second, both teams started to shine a bit putting some points on the board in their traditional fashion.  Oregon even ran a trick play on an extra point, lateraling the ball to their kicker for a 2-point conversion.  Incredible.  But Auburn went into the half up 16-11.

The 3rd quarter was slow as well, and all we saw was a field goal from Auburn.  More notably, Oregon simply couldn’t get their offense going.  In the 4th quarter this continued, as Auburn continued to stay on the field with short running plays.  And on 3rd down, Cam Newton seemed to do whatever was necessary to pick up the first downs.  But, late into the 4th quarter, Oregon knocked the ball from Cam Newton and recovered a fumble.  They actually had a chance to tie this thing up.  They marched down the field, and then, on a trick play, Oregon QB Derron Thomas threw a cool shovel pass to LeMichael James for a TD.  Then, in spectacular fashion, Thomas threw an amazing cross-field pass to Jeff Maehl for the 2-point conversion.  It was pure magic.  But Auburn would have some time.

Auburn was moving the ball steadily, but one play changed the whole game.  Auburn running-back Jonathan Dwyer ran for a short gain, and was tackled.  The play stopped, but players on the Auburn sideline screamed that the play was never whistled dead.  So even though players were just standing around, Dwyer took off running.  37 YARDS DOWN THE FIELD!!!  The play was reviewed to see if Dwyer’s knee actually touched the ground (which would rule him down).  But it didn’t.  It was a fair play that put Auburn in incredible field position.  What a tough break for the Ducks to give up a big gain on a play when they weren’t even trying.  Then, Dwyer ran for another big one to the 1 yard line.  And with that, Auburn kicker Wes Byrum came in and booted a simple 19 yard field goal to win the National Championship.  Tough luck for Oregon, but congratulations to the Auburn Tigers on winning it all.  Auburn 22, Oregon 19.

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In the NFL, it was the final day of the Wild Card playoff round.  First up, it was the Baltimore Ravens heading to Kansas City.  Arrowhead stadium in KC is known as one of the toughest places to play when the fans get into it.  And with the Chiefs in the playoffs for the first time in years, you could expect an electric energy.  That would have worked had a ferocious Ravens team not come out and pounded the Chiefs.  The Baltimore defense smothered KC.  Chiefs quarterback Matt Cassel simply couldn’t do anything, even throwing some very crucial picks making it easy for the Ravens offense to score.  Ravens tight end Todd Heap had a terrific day with 102 yards receiving, but, more notably, for keeping the Ravens offense on the field.  Baltimore knew KC couldn’t score, and if they could just slowly move the ball down field and kill clock, they knew their defense would be able to have the rest they needed to completely destroy the Chiefs.  Now, the Ravens move on to play their division rival:  The Pittsburgh Steelers.  That should be an amazing battle.  Baltimore 30, Kansas City 7.

Next up, it was Michael Vick and the Philadelphia Eagles hosting Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers.  The Eagles have had an incredible season with Vick at the helm and were hoping to advance deep into the playoffs.  Rodgers, on the other hand, was looking to win in the playoffs.  His stats rival Peyton Manning’s and Tom Brady, but not winning in the playoffs keeps him out of that conversation for greatness.  The Packers got off to a strong start with Rodgers tossing two touchdown passes to take a 14-0 lead.  It would stay that way until the very end, when Vick and the Eagles actually found themselves with a chance to win late in the 4th quarter IN Packers territory.  With just 40 seconds on the clock, Vick went for it all throwing deep for Riley Cooper in the end zone, but it was intercepted by the Packers Tramon Williams.   And that was ball game — the end of a terrific, electrifying season for Vick and the Eagles.  But don’t worry, Vick will be back next year.

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Finally, in the NBA, a very funny story.  The Cleveland Cavaliers and the Miami Heat obviously have a very peculiar relationship with LeBron James (the former King of Cleveland) now utilizing his talents in South Beach.  The Cavaliers needed to stay in Los Angeles for an extended stay this week.  The Miami Heat would also be in town, and, in a move similar to that of a High School student, the Cavs organization decided to switch hotels.  Apparently the Heat were slotted to stay in the same hotel as the Cavs, and the Cavs didn’t want any altercations between them and LeBron James.  Perhaps they didn’t want to lose focus.  So they decided to stay at a different 5-star hotel down the road.

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Andrew Luck will not be heading to the NFL next year. He’s decided to stay at Stanford University to finish his degree in Architectural Design. Stanford fans breathed a sigh of relief.  Coach Jim Harbaugh still hasn’t decided if he’s going back to Stanford. He’s being entertained right now by a number of teams including the San Francisco 49ers. Apparently they offered $6 million per season. Luck and Harbaugh are very close so if Harbaugh leaves it will be interesting to see what happens to Stanford next season. The buzz this morning is why is Luck staying if Harbaugh isn’t going to be there. Perhaps it’s for the education, perhaps it’s to see if he can win the Heisman, perhaps it’s because he doesn’t want to enter the NFL and go to the Carolina Panthers (the first team to pick in the NFL)?

Heisman trophy winner and Alabama running back Mark Ingram and defensive end Marchell Dareusis  are planning to enter the draft.

Wild Card Weekend in the NFL…..games begin Saturday afternoon at 4:30 with Seattle against New Orleans. It’s all football all weekend. Enjoy

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Stanford played up to its potential in Monday night’s Orange Bowl matchup against Virginia Tech. The game wasn’t even close as Stanford QB phenomenon Andrew Luck threw for 287 yards and four touchdowns in the win. The big news though is whether Stanford’s  Heisman runner up,  Luck  will play next year in the NFL or go back to Stanford for his Junior year.  If Luck enters the NFL draft, he will likely go number one. The other big question is whether Stanford Coach Jim Harbaugh will stay at the school or entertain offers to coach in the NFL. Stay tuned for lots more on both these stories. Stanford 40, Virginia Tech 12.

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In the NFL, the final week of the season provided fans with hope of the playoffs. Five out of the 12 playoff teams this year are new to the dance and one of the teams has a losing record.

The Atlanta Falcons and Pittsburgh Steelers both took care of business easily against this years bottom feeders. With each earning the victory, the two other teams that have earned a bye week and a home playoff game are the New England Patriots and Chicago Bears. Atlanta 31, Carolina 10. Pittsburgh 41, Cleveland 9.

There were five games that had potential playoff implications that left teams out of the playoffs. The first game had the Indianapolis Colts winning on a last minute field goal over the already eliminated Tennessee Titans. And with the end over end kick that went through the uprights, the Jacksonville Jaguars hopes of making the playoffs died in the 2010 – 2011 season.  There was one other game that had decided the division winner and that was the Sunday night football contest between the Seattle Seahawks and St. Louis Rams. The Rams never got going. They were dropping passes left and right, allowed an awful rushing attack run on them, and allowed the crowd at Qwest Field to stay loud and in the game. The Seahawks kept the Rams out of the endzone and are now the 1^st team in NFL history to enter the playoffs with a losing a record at (7-9). Indianapolis 23, Tennessee 20. Seattle 16, St. Louis 6.

Two of the final three games had no meaning to the playoff because the Green Bay Packers beat the Chicago Bears. The Bears played hard for the game against their division rival, but Jay Cutler’s two interceptions put Chicago in a tough position to win the ball game. Nevertheless, the Bears locked themselves into the number two seed and because the Packers won their game, the Giants and Buccaneers games became meaningless. Green Bay 10, Chicago 3.

The coaching carousel now is in full swing for the NFL. The Cowboys and Vikings each have made it official that they are keeping their interim head coaches, Jason Garrett, and Leslie Frazier. The Panthers John Fox has been notified that he will not be rejoining the team after his game this weekend. Even after their collapse at the end of season, The Giants decided to hold onto their coach Tom Coughlin along with the Houston Texans deciding to hold onto Gary Kubiak. And Tom Cable in Oakland seems to be on his way out the door.

And the biggest news of all: Brett Favre says he’s done.

In College Football, two BCS bowl games have been played. The Fiesta Bowl featured a matchup of the Oklahoma Sooners and the Connecticut Huskies. The Sooners, who have had a bad stretch of losing their last five bowl games, took care of business. The Huskies, whom many have been argued is worthy of a BCS game after winning the Big East, went down big. Oklahoma 48, Connecticut 20.

The second BCS game played this weekend was the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. The game between the TCU Horned Frogs and Wisconsin Badgers started as an unlikely shootout, but quickly slowed down to be a good defensive battle. Wisconsin had the chance to send the game into overtime with under two minutes to go in the 4^th quarter, but the TCU defense came up with a big stop to secure the win for the Big East bound team. The loss of Wisconsin capped off an awful day for the Big Ten, which lost all five of its scheduled bowl games for the day. TCU 21, Wisconsin 19.