WATERCOOLER CHAT: VIKES NEW QB, UNIV OF MIAMI GETS OFF EASY, HEAT WIN IN POLL
FOOTBALL
In the NFL, the Minnesota Vikings decided to go with new quarterback Josh Freeman on Monday night vs. the New York Giants. He was pretty bad, but the Vikings have decided to start him again when the Vikings take on the Green Bay Packers. This is a head scratcher, especially considering that the Vikes have two healthy quarterbacks on the bench: Christian Ponder and Matt Cassel. If you’re Christian Ponder, a former first round pick the Vikings selected to be their guy, and they’re not starting you in favor of a guy who doesn’t even know the offense, Ponder has to assume that his days are numbered in Minnesota. We’ll see if this gamble by the Vikings pays off on Sunday.
In college football, the sentencing has finally come down from the NCAA on the University of Miami. A few years ago, a report came out that the Hurricanes received a ton of cash from boosters throughout the last decade. One booster in particular, Nevin Shapiro, paid for the players to have parties, cars, and even hookers. This was a horrible report for the University, and nobody knew what would happen to the school. But, after all this, the NCAA only took away 9 scholarships and didn’t even institute a bowl ban. That means this will affect recruiting, but not that badly. Without a bowl ban, the team is always in the hunt. So this isn’t really that bad. What message does that send to other schools? It pretty much says to do anything you want to get the best players, and all you will receive is a slap on the wrist. The NCAA itself could be in jeopardy. A lot of people are not happy with this organization.
BASKETBALL
And in the NBA, this year’s General Manager’s poll showed that 76% of the managers think that the Miami Heat will win the championship this year, and that LeBron will repeat as MVP. This a huge number of managers thinking that the Heat will create a dynasty. The Spurs and the Pacers tied for second for teams that could win it all. The GMs also didn’t vote Kobe Bryant the best shooting guard in the league — that honor went to Rockets shooting guard James Harden. Finally, the GMs think that Victor Oladipo in Orlando will win rookie of the year.
