Pittsburgh looks to win Big East Fiesta lotto

The University of Utah football team is un-defeated and poised for its first BCS bowl game ever. They are most likely to play in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl against the Big East Conference Champion. It is still possible for the Utes to play in the Rose or Sugar bowls, but there would have to be a few upsets in college football this week. Now a smart man, would be quiet and wait to see how things pan out before making projections or comments about what is likely to happen. Sorry, I can't do it.

I predict Utah to beat the Pittsburgh Panthers 45-21 in the Fiesta Bowl. Since on a national radio show this weekend I heard a Pittsburgh fan start trash talking the Utes a little early, I thought I would forward a response letter to the Panthers that while not really written by the Fiesta Bowl committee, should have been. (Note: assumptions made that things go as predicted over the final week of college football and the two teams actually meet)

Dear Pittsburgh Panthers,

We thank you for your interest in the Tostitos Fiesta bowl. We politely decline the extension of an invitation to your school. We did a quick review of your resume and offer a few points of note:

• At 7-3, with only a pending game against South Florida, your record seems adequate for a mid major school in a under-performing conference. However, the BCS bowls are generally reserved for teams that have played up to their potential and established themselves among their peers.
• As nice as your 7-3 record seems, we honestly thought you were 2-8. Our mistake. Upon further review we noticed that you scored late or in overtime to beat Furman (Division 1-AA), Temple (2 wins all year), Boston College, Notre Dame, and West Virginia. Congratulations on that. Instead of being an embarrassment to your conference and families, you rallied to win both your pride and the title of the best team in a conference filled with almost-woulda-coulda-shouldas.
• It should be noted in all 3 of your losses you were beaten by 7 or more points.

Oh wait, never mind. We just received a phone call on your behalf. Please disregard the above notes and any comments we may have made that seem to slight you and your fine institution. We hereby accept your RSVP for the Tostitos party. Please forgive the confusion, we weren't initially aware that you were invited, nor after looking at your credentials were we sure that you were qualified to attend. However, your Daddy, Mr. BCS has personally called to get you on the invitee list. It seems you belong to the right fraternity of big schools and conferences that have guaranteed themselves invitations to all the big parties and a lion share of the cover charges generated by such parties. So...Congratulations and welcome to the Fiesta Bowl. If your alumni and fans need directions to Tempe, we suggest heading west and away from the east coast bias. Find I-40 and drive until you smell our delicious nachos and southwestern appetizers.

Sincerely,

U. R. Whelkum

Fiesta Bowl Director

Okay, silly letter aside. I don't see the Utes being challenged by the Panthers. I'll spend the weekend hoping that the Utes fall into another opponent or that the BCS will realize they CAN have their cake and eat it too, by making Auburn and Utah play, while relegating Pitt to play Texas or another "we almost did it" team.

Stock rising to the roof

Tonight the Utah Jazz will hoist John Stockton's #12 jersey to the rafters at the Delta Center.

That means, not only will we never see a player who could fill his shoes, or his void in the league, but certainly not his jersey. It is a bit cliche to say he was one of a kind, but there isn't much other way to put it.

Stockton is loved by most, and is often labeled as 'Old School' and remembered for the length of his shorts. I guess he was 'old school', but did it in a way that was un-matched by any other. Perhaps he should be titled Dean or President of the Old School. And thinking about Old School, I think you could argue that many of the new generation of players should be called "No School". Players of today skip college, skip fundamentals, and basically skip the idea that playing with respect for the game is a core value. Mr. Old School is the NBA's all-time assist and steals leader. With regard to the length of his shorts, like any other aspect of fashion, if you wait long enough those too will come back 'in'.

This ceremony tonight isn't really for John. I think he cares, but doesn't seek this type of attention. This ceremony is for the fans, giving us another reason to warrant his appearance back in Arena, and a chance to remember him (and remember those great teams). Perhaps next year we'll get him back into the spotlight long enough to unveil the Stockton and Malone statues outside the Delta Center. Then in a few years we'll host a Hall of Fame inductee celebration. After that we are just going to have to wait for one of his sons to get into the NBA.

A few things you of interest about about John:

• The Jazz trainer said at one point his body fat was 2.4% and his resting heart rate was 36.
• UCLA legend coach John Wooden said John was the one player he'd pay to watch.
• John was cut the first time he tried out for the US Olympic team. In addition, Karl Malone and Charles Barkley were cut during the same tryout. He later went on to star on the Dream Team and collect a gold medal. That was in the days when the best players wanted to play in the Olympics.
• Not only is John the all time assist leader at 15,806, but he has 5,463 more than 2nd place.
• No active NBA player has more than 8,100. Of the 9 times that an NBA player has posted 1,000 assists in a season, John has 7.
• No Days off. John played in 1,504 of 1,526 games in his career, and in 17 seasons he played every game. He obviously played with countless illnesses and sprains, but felt his duty to play. In today's NBA, some guys miss games because they are tired from pushing their own CDs.
• A security guard once pointed out Karl Malone to John and said, "I don't know if you're a basketball fan, young man, but that's Karl Malone".
• Once when Stockton was a free agent, he re-signed with the Jazz for less money than he could have received on the open market. When questioned why he turned down the bigger money offer, he replied "How much is enough?" He'd likely get banished from the league today, as the guys think they are entitled to the crazy salaries.
• John is married to Nada, has six children, and now lives in his hometown of Spokane.

Rather than closing with a flashy, clever line, I'll keep it simple and straight like Stockton himself. Thank you for wearing #12 so well and so often John.

Utes look for 11-0 on Rivalry week

The Utah Utes play BYU, a.k.a. the TDS (Team Down South) or BYWho, in the one of the most anticipated games in years. To accurately write words that capture the emotions this week around the city is hard to do, but...I'm up for the challenge.

The things swirling in the air...

• People are absolutely nuts over Urban Meyer right now. Urban is rumored to be going to Florida next season. I refuse to focus too much on that right now. Think of it like a great date and enjoy it while it lasts. Even if we are thinking a long-term marriage, its impossible to say what he is thinking. Florida might have $2 Million reasons why he would be interested in dating them for a while, and it would be hard to blame him. He is for now our coach and he is awfuly good. Similar situation to Rick Marjerus, who used to coach the Utes Basketball team to prominance. People were always interested in Rick, and while he entertained them, he didn't let their desire or money effect ultimately effect where he coached college baseketball.
• BCS. Assuming the Utes beat the TDS this week then they should be a lock for the #6 spot in the BCS rankings and a big time bowl. That said, there will still be alot of attention on the Auburn/Alabama, Cal/Stanford, and Michigan/OhioSt. A victory by any of the 2nd teams listed in that group would not only cement Utah's place, but possibly allow them to move up in rankings. Of that group, Michigan is most vulnerable, but who knows.
• ESPN Gameday did the national morning show outside Rice Eccles stadium. Thousands of Utah fans showed up at 8am to carry on and go nuts, even though it was about 30 degrees, with a few snow flurries. Nevermind, Utah's game doesn't start until 5pm local time. Many Ute fans participated in Operation Sombrero, in honor of a hopeful fiesta bowl appearance. It's definately not every Saturday you see hundreds of sombrero wearing guys on the streets of Salt Lake City. It was a great showing and there were even a few Cougar fans there to offer a contrast for the rivalry.
• Fans on both sides have talked alot of Smack. Utah's players have been pretty quick, but a couple of BYU's younger players have offered up opinions of "put a hurt on 'em" and "should be able to run well on them" that I'm sure won't go un-noticed.
• Couple of links to also note: http://www.usatoday.com/sports/columnist/lopresti/2004-11-18-lopresti_x.htm (Called, Get to Know the Utes) and for all the crazyness http://utefans.net (popular Utah fan forum).

I, like most logical and sane people, expect the Utes to win this game. However, I think Vegas is a little too agressive with a 21 1/2 point spread. I see turnovers by BYU being a key to how close it will be. No turnovers and this could be really tight, but with a couple turnovers, I'd expect Utah to win 31-17. If the weather stays good and BYU doesn't hold onto the ball, then the Cougars will get steamrolled.

FUN Stat to consider - In College football history there have been over 80 teams go undefeated for a whole season. Until now, only one team, Nebraska (in the 80s) was able to win every game on its schedule by 14 or more points. The Utes so far are in line to be only the 2nd team ever to accomplish this feat.

Go Utes!!!

Utes taking the sports car onto the icy Wyoming track

The Utes are in Laramie, Wyoming today seeking to improve to 10-0. The thought of playing in sub-freezing weather with a chance of snow is hardly fun. It could be worse, you could play for Wyoming and know that you chose to play in this weather several times a year!

Things to consider: Wyoming is 6-3, and 5-0 at home this year. The Utes are only 3-2 in their last 5 visits to the frozen rodeo arena in Laramie. Wyoming's offense looks finely tuned as they have averaged 48 points per game the last two weeks and have scored over 50 twice this year. Okay, before I sound like Lou Holtz trying to pump-up McNeese St. and why they are undoubtedly the fiercest team in the country, I should note that the oddmakers say its Utah favored by 23. Utah will win this game, but I have a hard time not thinking it could be their closest game of the year (under 14 pts).

On a warm day, or even just a decent day for football, I would see something along the lines of 50-28 for this game. There is definitely the argument that Utah could blow the doors off the Cowboys well running truck. After all, Utah has one of the top offenses in the country, and Wyoming's defense in near last in the conference against the run and the pass. Despite Wyoming's perfect home season, the Utes have won their last nine road games, a streak that nearly covers the last two seasons. Urban Meyer hasn't allowed the Utes to look past anyone this year.

Even with all the talk about the BCS, Urban's coaching future, and the big game against BYU next week, I expect the Utes will be focused. However, I expect the weather to have some impact and look for more like 35-21. That is about as pessimistic as I can get. Barring a complete blizzard in Wyoming tonight, I just can't see the Utes getting slowed down enough for the Pokes to get passed them.

Speaking about the Urban Meyer coaching future. I know a guy, who knows a guy, who's sister's brother's friend's dad's uncle, delivered a Pizza to his house. Apparently, there are no moving boxes in sight around the Meyer house. So there, its official. He stays in Utah for at least another year. Okay, perhaps my inside source isn't so 'real', but given the comments I've heard this week I'd say the Pizza guy inside my head is right. He stays and is here at least another year of love in Salt Lake City.

Speaking of traditions....the call "Utah by 5" has forever been a mantra shouted by the Ute fans when asked about an upcoming game. In these days however, the expectations are so high, people would be disappointed with such a weak prediction.

Absol-UTE-ly dominating and 9-0

The University of Utah Utes are now 9-0 and running over opponents like a runaway train. In making a case for the Utes to make an appearance in a BCS bowl, I offer the following review. As of today, the Utes are only 7th in the BCS rankings and therefore not guaranteed a big bowl birth. (disclaimer: I apologize in advance if I missed any statistics and for any bias related to my Ute Alumni status)

First, Utah features a High-Octane offense that has burned every opponent. Examine the amazing numbers.

• The Utes have had only 6 scoreless quarters this season. That is in 9 full games. Keep in mind 3 of those scoreless quarters were the 4th quarters of games they had in hand. At this point, they have scored in 15 of the last 16 quarters.
• The Utes have 10 Quarters this season in which they have scored 20 or more points.
• The Utes average 45.8 points per game and have scored 41 or more in 7 of their 9 games. In addition, they have scored 63, 51, and 63 in their last three conference games.
• Though odds makers continue to throw large point spreads out there, the Utes have beaten the spread 7 of 8 weeks in which numbers were posted.
• How quick do they strike? Saturday against Colorado St., Utah had a scoring drive that lasted just over five minutes (I think 5:08). That was reported as their longest scoring drive of the season.

Second, arguing against their schedule. It's true the Utes don't play in a BCS conference and therefore don't play that type of opponent every week. However, they have played three BCS schools this year and beaten all three by a combined 110-43. Sure the schedule isn't the toughest, but they have controlled the only thing they can, and that is hammered each opponent. No off games for the Utes, no squeakers on a bad night. No overtime flukes. Average margin of victory is 25.5 points and the closest game was a 14 point margin. In fact, only twice have they not won their game by 20 or more points. Let's look at a few of their opponents and how the Utes have handled them....

• Texas A&M is the 22nd ranked team in the country. The Utes beat the Aggies by 20 points and the 41 points they scored are 2nd only to the 42 that Oklahoma scored on the Aggies. The Aggies challenged OU, led most of the game, and nearly won. In fact, not counting the blowout by the Utes, the Aggies other two losses were by a combined 8 points. More? The Aggies offense, led by Reggie McNeil, has scored 27 or more points in every game this year except one. The one? The Utes, of course, only allowed 21 pts.
• Arizona is the pansy of the Pac 10. However, keep in mind #4 Wisconsin only managed to beat the Wildcats 9-7. The Utes handled the Aggies 23-6, in game that wasn't that close. As far as the Pac 10 goes, the Utes have tried to challenge them every year. Last year the Utes beat both Cal and Oregon.
• New Mexico while not a great team, was predicted by many to beat the Utes. The score was 28-7 and while that doesn't seem overly impressive you must look further. The 28 points the Utes scored are the most given up by the Lobos this year. Also, the 5-4 Lobos may have lost to the Utes by 21 points, but they've only lost by a combined 19 points in their other 3 losses.
• North Carolina is a BCS school and was throttled by 30 points in Salt Lake City a few weeks back. Everyone said that while it was a impressive win by the Utes, it didn't mean much because North Carolina is awful. Maybe not. Since that beating, the Tar Heels have beat then #4 ranked Miami, and narrowly lost to #16 ranked Virginia Tech by 3 points.
• UNLV rec'd a 63-28 throttling by the Utes. Only noteworthy when you note that the #4 Wisconsin Badgers only beat the Rebels 18-3, and needed a late touchdown to do that. The Utes had their 63 points in only 3 quarters, which is also the most points given up by the Rebels this year.
• San Diego State was another team set to challenge the Utes with their strong defense. The Utes posted 51 points, which were the most points allowed by the Aztecs this year, and left me wondering how the Aztecs played #9 ranked Michigan to a near dead heat on the road in Ann Arbor. Michigan won 24-21, but the Aztecs led at half-time and missed two 4th quarter field goals.
• Colorado State claimed to be able to hang with the Utes. Stating last year's close game proved to them that the Utes weren't unbeatable. At the end of the game, the scoreboard showed 63-31 in a game that wasn't even that close. That is the most points by a Ram opponent this year, and only the 2nd opponent to score more than 34 points (USC scored 49).

In conclusion, the 9-0 Utes are not just another small conference team that is beating lesser opponents. The are running over everyone in their path. Are they due for a bad game that could cause them to stumble? Maybe, but I wouldn't count on it. In the words of Urban Meyer, we'll just keep focusing on the next game. 9-0 only means that you get a chance to go to 10-0. Surely this week's opponent, Wyoming, wishes the Utes would focus on something else besides the next bump in the road. Chances are Urban's focus will mean steamrolling yet another bump.

Old traditions and curses are falling like mad.

First the Redsox break the curse of the bambino. The sports world will have to look for a new team to be the forever bridesmaid. Actually, it wasn't so much Boston's inability to win the title as it was their real ability to lose it. Getting close now and then only served to highlight, just how well they could really lose it. How did they break it? I think getting Schilling and a bunch of loose guys in their lockerroom who didn't believe in the curse and just went out and played.

Another long term tradition/curse that went bust was the Washington Redskins and their ability to pick the president. Since like 1936, if Washington won their last home game before the election, the encumbent won the office. If the lost, of course the opposite occured. Imagine the predictions when the Redskins lost their last home game. Could it be Kerry? Well, that tradition went bust I think largely because the tradition was exposed and bantered all over the media. It became just too big and too impossible to continue. Its over. Now we don't have to watch or care much about those Redskins except for the weeks they play the Cowboys (How 'bout them Cowboys!).

Bottom line, while it may be good to look back in sports (and life), you can't overstate the impact the past will have on the current days. Especially if there is desire for a different outcome. The past can grip only as tight as you allow it.