The Truck That Ran Over UNC

The big red truck is rolling into Chapel Hill. On the side of the giant rig it reads the "“University of Utah Utes"”. What truck you ask? The big red one that ran over the UNC Tar Heels last season 46-16 and left the Tar Heels wounded and wondering "“Did anyone see the name on the truck that hit us?" Truth be known, this season'’s version of the big red truck is hardly the same as the one led by Alex Smith and Urban Meyer last season. In fact, UNC looks to be a better team than the squad that was bombed at Rice Eccles last season and Utah looks to be dangerous but doesn'’t seem to be capable of the same type of demolition.

The Tar Heels are solid where it matters most and the result is optimism abound. On offense they are getting big plays out of new starting quarterback, senior Matt Baker, and feature a dangerous tailback Barrington Edwards who is coming off a career high 129 yards. Perhaps the strength of their team is found in the trenches, with their offensive and defensive lines, two areas where they were dominated last season by the Utes. The Tar Heels, playing at home, are feeling confident and wanting to avenge last season'’s embarrassment.

In fact, revenge is sounding like the big motivator for UNC.

"They kept their foot on our throat," linebacker Tommy Richardson. "Even though they were in control of the game, they were passing a lot and running trick plays. I'm looking forward to this game."

"This team's always going to have fighters on it," wide receiver Jesse Holley says. "The head coach is a fighter, and he recruits fighters. This game with Utah is personal and it means something. We want to get back to .500. And we owe them."

Not wanting to burst the Carolina revenge bubble, but the spread offense doesn'’t just become "“un-spread"” because you have a lead. Utah was able to play many players off it'’s bench in the thrashing of Tar Heels last year and they could have run it up, which they did not. In fact the 46 points Utah scored last year was pretty much a typical scoring night for the high powered Utes who averaged 45.3 points per game last year. It even could be argued that Utah did in some way call off the dogs as the offense didn'’t score in the final 12 and half minutes. In fact, in only one other home game (Texas A&M) did Utah score fewer points (41). It is true that Utah set a UNC record for most yards allowed to an opponent of 669. UNC'’s offense was just as bad as their defense as they only mustered 221 yards. Was it Utah'’s fault that the ACC team probably over-looked the Utes? Was it Utah'’s fault that the ‘Heels probably thought the Ute offense was a gimmicky and finesse system prior to the game? Of course not on both counts. So apparantely it must be Utah'’s fault that they physically dominated the Tar Heels in a game in which 9 Tar Heels were injured and didn'’t let their opponent feel as though they had a chance. Memo to the Tar Heels, "“You were nothing special, the Utes destroyed every opponent last year." ” Actually some of the blame for last season's result could be shouldered by the UNC. If I remember correctly the Tar Heels had three players suspended for marijuana use the week of the Utah game, including a top receiver and a key defender.

So now forgetting the past, this year'’s Utes must show some toughness on the road. It would seem that Vegas believes Utah isn'’t ready to do that and has established UNC as a 3 ½ point favorite. To be honest, most of the talk is making this out to be a very tough game and not one that Utah will win.

How good is UNC? The Talk and The Truth

The Talk is that UNC has a strong and quick defense that has held up pretty well against some good competition. The Truth is that UNC is still giving up about 22 points per game, and while their opponents have been solid, none of them are offensive juggernauts (Georgia Tech, Wisconsin, NC State). Also, the supposedly improved defense has yet to make an interception in the first three games.

The Talk is that Matt Baker is a good QB and a great leader. The Truth is that he only has 4 TDs on the season and 5 Interceptions. He has made a couple big plays, including an 87-yard touchdown pass, but is still completing less than half his passes. Statistics show he is hardly the strenghth of their team.

The Talk is that UNC'’s offense is improved this season and starting to hit it'’s stride following a 31-24 victory over NC State. The Truth is that they are only averaging 19 points per game on the season and 9 of their 57 points were scored by their defense. Add to that another TD the offense scored after getting the ball inside the 5-yard line, and this low scoring team has had nearly 30% of their points resulting from their defense on the season.

Thinking about what will happen...

I think Utah is the probably the best team UNC has faced so far this season. If this game was in Salt Lake City, I'’d say Utah would win by 7-10 points. The fact this game is in North Carolina, and this Utah team hasn'’t yet cleared the road game hurdle, is what makes this game very close. You can argue that UNC is a faster team than Utah and better on the defensive line that the Utes, but you'’d have a hard time arguing the ‘Heels are better than Utah in any other area.

The Questions:

Can Utah limit UNC'’s running game better than they did at TCU this season?

Keeping UNC from grinding out long drives on their home field should be a key. Especially early on, as Utah'’s defense could get wore down late in the game if forced to stay on the field too much. Air Force also had similar rushing success early in the game against the Utes.

Can UNC mix it up enough on defense to confuse or slow down Brian Johnson?

TCU did this by getting Utah to expect blitzing, but then playing more zone coverage later in the game. Odds are that the same tactic won'’t work again against the quick learning Johnson. However, he hasn'’t been played enough to have seen it all yet. Also, if UNC can limit UtahÂ’s first down yardage and force the Utes to have 3^rd and long, they will put a lot of pressure on the Johnson, as Utah hasn'’t excelled on 3^rd down this season as they did last year.

The Outlook:

I think the odds makers have this game about right. I want to be wrong. But, I have a feeling that Utah will lose a close game in North Carolina. This will be Utah'’s first chance to surprise us this year and if they jumped up and bit the ‘Heels, it would be a huge step in the growth of this team. But, I'’m not sure they are ready for that step. I don'’t think they will walk away feeling like UNC was a better team, in fact, I'’d guess UNC won'’t even get the vindication they are seeking. The fact that this is a road game and not an easy trip on Utah will cause them to be less efficient than normal. Don't get me wrong, I don'’t expect Utah to make a lot of mistakes, but I think perhaps the big play will be missing this time around. UNC will run well enough to keep the tempo to their liking and eek out a victory 23-20.

Want to read more about the North Carolina Tar Heels? Visit the Tar Heel Blue website.

Want to know what a Tar Heel is? Here are two definitions I found:

(a) In the civil war a regiment from the state of North Carolina held their line while their foe retreated. Hence, they held the line like they had tar on theidefinition (this is probably the preferred defintion).

(b) An old derogatory term relating to areas of poverty in North Carolina. The people in the area were so poor they didn'’t have shoes and as a result had tar on their heels.

Incidently, The Daily Tarheel is also picking a narrow victory for boys in powder blue. You can read more about their projected 28-24 victory for the home team.

Utah facing the big WHAT IF

That quietness is hard to shake. The sizzle has cooled. The University of Utah and their 18 game winning streak are back to square one. They now say things like, "“You can'’t win them all"”. Oh sure, now you tell us. The fans where brought back to earth last week in a tough overtime loss to TCU. The Ute players and coaches are giving us other cliches like, "“We'’ll see what we are made of"” and "“It'’s important how we bounce back"”. The truth is the University of Utah hasn'’t had to bounce back from anything in almost two years. While we like to think they are resilient and will be ready to put up a big game in a crucial situation and against a quality opponent at a critical time, but we just don'’t know. That little inner battle of self confidence versus self doubt will be one of the most intriguing things to see tonight and the result will set the path for the rest of the season.

What we know so far:

TCU is a good team. Not a great team, but good. Them beating OU and Utah, two of the top five teams in the country last year, is a good accomplishment, but it doesn't mean quite as much as it sounds like it does. OU is down. Way down. Utah isn'’t unbeatable anymore either. And for the Frogs one loss, well SMU apparently isn'’t as awful as people think. Certainly SMU is now capable of standing up and winning if the opponent doesn'’t overlooks them and lays an egg, as TCU did in their lone loss on the year. TCU plays in BYU in Provo this week, so we'’ll have another chance to gauge them.

Utah should be unbeaten. Utah'’s loss to the Horned Frogs shouldn'’t have happened. It'’s true there were a couple bad calls that went against them, including the offensive pass interference that wasn'’t called on TCU on the winning touchdown in overtime. But, don'’t misunderstand, the referees weren'’t the cause of the loss. Utah had chances to win this game. Utah was up 17-7 in the 3^rd quarter and instead of seizing the game, they let the Frogs stay in the game. Also, Utah had the ball at midfield with something like three minutes left in the game. Yet they didn'’t seize that opportunity either and ended up in an overtime game. You want to know what happens to road teams in overtime when they are playing in that hot humid Texas air? The same thing that happens to teams that come to Utah and try to battle out a close game at altitude. You begin to look a little tired and you lose your edge. Case in point - Utah'’s star running back Quinton Ganther developed cramps and wasnÂ’t there to be the hammer late in the game. Shoulda, coulda, woulda sums it all up. Last year, Utah simply DID.

Air Force can definately win this game tonight. Utah and Air Force have had battles in recent years. Sure Utah thumped them last year, but in years prior we'’ve seen triple overtime and close wins by both teams. Vegas says the Utes are favored by a touchdown. While that number is easy to rationalize and I could see a 37-27 score in favor of Utah, history says this game will be closer than that and come down to the final two or three minutes.

The big WHAT IF-

What happens to Utah if they lose? It would be the first time in 30 games that the Utes have lost two in a row. It would be two conference losses and make winning the conference outright pretty much impossible. In fact, it might make even sharing the conference title an extreme long-shot. Would the surge in popularity for the Utes be gone? The bandwagon, which has lost a few members already, would certainly have plenty of vacancy if Utah were to drop to 2-2. The young QB Brian Johnson who looks like he can be terrific, would have a large case of doubt cast into his promising career. Instead of being a rising program, a loss would further give credence to those people claiming the last two years as flukes and nothing more than the "“Urban effect"”.

Mumbling on the outcome:

No way Utah'’s defense stops the Falcon offense. I expect Air Force to score a minimum of 27 points and expect perhaps the mid-thirties. Utah must be efficient and avoid early turnovers. That seems to be a basic element to any game, but the key is early turnovers. If Utah comes out and scores a few times early, they will be able to survive some errors later in the game. If Air Force causes some blunders by Utah and gets an early lead, the whole game changes and the ground game will hurt Utah. Surely the game won'’t be over if the Utes go up early, but the style of the game will change to what Utah might prefer. Air Force, unlike past Falcon teams, is passing the ball fairly well. QB Shaun Carney is very elusive and tricky with the ball. His ability to throw off an option play brings new dangers to defending the Falcons. That said, these Falcons still do most of the damage on the ground and not in the air. Air Force is 13^th in the nation in rushing yards per game at 258.

I was wrong predicting the outcome of last weekÂ’s game, so take this with a grain of salt. While I expect the Utes to serve the Falcons a big dose of Quinton Ganther, I also think they'’ll make a concerted effort to allow both QB Brian Johnson and WR Brent Casteel to make some big plays. Utah has a 9 game home winning streak and should win this game. I'’ll give in to history and go with a close score of 37-34 in favor of Utah.

Big Numbers in 1988 Scott Mitchell, set a then NCAA record, and still holds the Utah record with 631 yards passing in a game when Utah lost to Air Force in 1988. Why did they lose? In the same game, Air Force rolled up a whopping 640 yards rushing against Utah. Let those numbers sink in. Next time you see a running team go nuts for 450 yards, realize that is still about 200 yards short. Next time you see a big air show and the QB posts something like 450 yards, realize he isn'’t even close.

Nation’s 2nd longest winning streak in jeopardy

There is a little game day tension circulating in Salt Lake City. The Utes have knocked off 18 straight opponents. A streak that now extends into parts of three different seasons. Confidence is in the air, but today there is also something else. Tension. TCU’s victory over Oklahoma gave the Horned Frogs instant respect and has given everyone the impression that they will be conference contenders. Even though TCU wasted some of that respect with a loss to SMU the following week, their strong defense has people noticing.

The Utes are still favored to win, albeit narrowly, as Vegas has posted a 3 ½ point spread. The game will be televised nationally by ESPN and features a couple of great reasons to watch. First, Utah will try and push the nation’s 2^nd longest winning streak to 19 games. USC is #1 and isn't expected to lose anytime in the near future. Second, this is TCU’s home opener and first ever game in the Mountain West Conference.

This is Utah’s first road game of the season and should be the toughest test thus far. Are the young guys ready to step up in a situation that is bound to present some adversity? Mainly, will Brian Johnson make the right decisions and help Utah’s offense be close to error free? Will Utah’s defense cause enough turnovers to keep TCU’s offense from breaking lose? This game actually has the feel of the New Mexico game last season. New Mexico was featuring a tough defense, the game was on ESPN, and everyone was wondering if Utah would be able to win a big road game. Utah answered the bell in a pretty physical game by winning 28-7. That game vaulted Utah to 6 straight games of scoring 45 or more points. Answering the challenge tonight could also vault this season’s Utes. However, what will happen to the young team and the bandwagon fans if things don’t go Utah’s way?

What will happen? I think Brian Johnson, who set a school record for efficiency in his last game by going 18-21 passing, will be solid and make enough big plays to keep the offense moving. Also, the Utes will actually test TCU’s defense. TCU’s defense is drawing praise for their performance the first two weeks, but I’m not sure we know how good they are. OU had no passing game and the Horned Frogs were able to stack the line of scrimmage to slow Adrian Peterson. SMU is better than in recent years, but also doesn’t possess a potent offense. Utah’s offense is much younger than last year, but is still explosive and features four big playmakers in Brian Johnson, Quinton Ganter (RB), Brent Casteel (RB/WR), and John Madsen (WR). TCU has the talent to win this, especially if QB Tye Gunn is able to play up to his reputation of a dangerous and poised leader. Turnovers will be a key as usual, but I would expect both teams will make a similar number of mistakes. I think this game will be close, but expect Utah to make just enough big plays to hold-on and keep the streak alive. Utah 23, TCU 16.

Mumbling about College Football and an Ex-Ute:

• What is going on in Norman Oklahoma? The Sooners lost to TCU and didn’t play very well in beating Tulsa in week 2. This week OU is a 6 ½ point underdog at UCLA. How hard is it to get a QB when you have the national reputation the Sooners have? Apparently Jason White’s 12 years as QB left OU without the focus on recruiting for that position.
• Urban Meyer is also in jeopardy of losing his first game in the last two years as Tennessee plays at Florida on Saturday. For all the nay-sayers who have said Urban’s spread offense was gimmicky and wouldn’t work against big time talent, this is a big week.
  Notre Dame isn’t crying over losing Urban Meyer. The Fighting Irish are coming off back to back wins under Charlie Wiess and draw Michigan State this week for a chance at 3-0.
• From the “I wish you were here, and I bet you do too” category is Steve Savoy. Savoy was a big playmaker and all conference wide receiver for Utah last season. Savoy chose to go pro early, although the never was much of a press conference or explanation as to why he was making that decision. Savoy went undrafted and then made another bad choice by selecting Detroit as the team to attend camp with. Detroit featuring many young high draft selections at wideout was a dead end before he even go there. Savoy was cut and is not playing football on Sundays. Or Saturdays, or even Thursday nights on ESPN.

Battle of the Brothers - Utes and Aggies

One of the nation's longest rivalries continues when the University of Utah plays Utah State tonight. It hasn't felt like a rivalry lately however, as Utah has won 23 of the last 28 games and comes into this game as a 24 point favorite. That said, you can expect the Aggies to play nothing to lose as new coach Brent Guy looks to shake things up for Utah State.

Utah State was supposed to be playing their second game of the season against Utah. However, due to Hurricane Katrina, Nicholls State was unable to make it Logan and the game was cancelled. This could play in Aggies favor as the Utes have no game film to review on either this year's Aggies or how they might play with their new coach. However, on the flip side the Aggies will have to deal with all those first game jitters while facing a very explosive Utah team. As a result, I expect Utah to hang a couple of early touchdowns on the Aggies and force them to mature in a hurry. The Aggies have a young line backers and that is one position that can bury you against Utah's spread offense. I look for Ganther and QB Johnson to have good nights for the Utes and for the score to be something like 42-17.

'Cats In The Bag

The Utah Utes pushed the nation's 2nd longest winning streak to 17 games with a 27-24 victory over the Arizona Wildcats. It was closer than some liked, but all in all it was a huge positive as Utah as the guys who they've asked to fill big shoes this year were ready for the task.

The Utes had the 'Cats on the verge of a blowout with 27-10 lead in the third quarter. But, to Arizona's credit, they fought back with two unanswered scoring drives to cut the margin to three points. In fact, they had the ball and were driving towards a tying or winning score when the drive stalled near the Utah 40. With only about three minutes left in the game Arizona coach Mike Stoops opted to punt the ball back to Utah on fourth down instead of going for it. Bad decision? His team had two straight scoring drives to serve as momentum. Utah's running back Quinton Ganther then ripped off two long runs and Utah ate all but about 30 seconds of game clock before pinning Arizona deep in their own territory.



Some Ute Game Mumbles...

• Running back Quinton Ganther is in for a big season. He gained 137 yards rushing, 50 yards receiving, and scored one TD. Especially as Utah entertains teams that are less physical than Arizona, Ganther should run them over.
• QB Brian Johnson looked awfully nervous early in the game. Luckily, those nerves didn't produce much in the way of bad decisions. As the game wore on his athleticism and decision making showed why Ute fans should be excited. He is no Alex Smith, but he is on his way to being a very good Brian Johnson.
• Bad day for the Stoops brothers. Hours before the Utes beat the Mike Stoops led Wildcats, the Bob Stoops led Oklahoma Sooners were upset at home by TCU.
  
• Instant replay is now a Mountain West thing. It didn't take long to try it out either. Early in the game Utah quarterback Brian Johnson was hit while throwing. The ruling on the field was a fumble and Arizona would have been poised for a quick lead. Luckily for Utah and the confidence of their young QB, the play was reversed.
• From the "When I say I'm explosive, I mean that I'm explosive" category, Utah freshman Brent Casteel took the ball 59 yards for a touchdown and later make a great catch in traffic. Casteel had taken some heat for being a little young and little over confident when he mentioned something about a future heisman run during an interview. This guy is going to make many a big play in the years to come.
  

Utes - New Season, New Players, New Result?

Tonight the University of Utah opens a new season against Pac-10 opponent Arizona and there are many questions about this season'’s Utes. There are new players, new coaches, new uniforms, and if the NCAA has it'’s way, at some point a new nickname. As far as on the field results, the Utes are favored by a touchdown to win their 17^th straight football game and at least in game one, expected to fulfill the marketing slogan '“Keep it Rolling.'”

When Utah talks about a promise to Keep it Rolling, they are certainly aiming high. Not only did Utah win every game last year and finish ranked #4 in the country, but they demolished virtually every opponent and never were really tested. They had no close games and won by an average score of 45.3 to 19.5. The closest game for the 2004 Utes was a 14 point victory.

Last year, Utah'’s offense relied on one of the nationÂ’s most intelligent decision makers in quarterback Alex Smith. Sure the fire and motivation provided by Urban Meyer could be argued as the key component, but Smith gave Utah leadership and efficiency that was unmatched. Utah scored a staggering 93% of the time in the red zone (82% TDs). As Alex was selected number one in the NFL draft, itÂ’s obvious people noticed the key to the Utes. Meyer was thrown something like $14 Million dollars by the University of Florida, so obviously he has received accolades of his own.

This year'’s Ute offense will be different as the mesh the spread offense with some of the philosophy of new offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig from Oregon. Also, it'’s hard not to think the physical mentality that new coach Kyle Wittingham exudes won'’t also cause some change to the offense. Last year, Utah used a spread offense and a relentless attacking philosophy to bury their opponents. This season, while they'’ll continue to have a significant amount of the spread offense, we may see them also try to just physically overmatch many of their opponents. New starting QB, Brian Johnson is even more athletic than Alex Smith and while he may not be efficient, Utah'’s coaches are openly positive about the potential of Johnson and the Ute offense. Another reason for optimism is this year'’s featured running back Quinton Ganther. Ganther is a very strong runner who will try and pound Ute opponents all season. How strong is he? It has been reported that he can bench a team high weight, something like 435lbs. There is also the ability to play physical at the wide receiver position. Starting wide receiver John Madsen who at 6'’5"” and 230lbs will be able to punish the smaller corners and is definitely a potential NFL caliber player.

There are also a couple of new names at receiver for fans to follow. First, is a heralded JC transfer Brian Hernandez who has had a great camp in preparing to contribute. Also is one of the most, shall we say “confident” Utes in Brent Casteel. Castell is a redshirt freshmen who has game breaking ability. So far he has also shown some great quote-ability as he has stated he has goals to be freshman all American and a heisman candidate. Nothing like a little orexuberanceyouthful exeburance.

Why Ute Fans should panic....

Coaching Changes -– The Utes have a new head coach, a new offensive coordinator and a new defensive coordinator in addition to other changes of line and assistant coaches. There hasnÂ’t been a coach make more of a dramatic impact on a college program than Urban Meyer did at Utah the last two seasons. Now long time Ute assistant, Kyle Wittingham gets his chance to lead the Utes. He is in a tough situation, because along with the new QB, will take a lot of heat if the Utes struggle. If the continue last yearÂ’s success, credit will probably go to Meyer for establishing a great program.

Quarterback -– The Utes go from starting a NFL top pick in Alex Smith, to an 18 year old sophomore quarterback in Brian Johnson. Johnson has praise from coaches and teammates, but fans are pretty jumpy about this position. Johnson will have perhaps the most pressure of any Ute and definitely the biggest shoes to fill.

Wide Receivers -– The top two wide-outs from last year Paris Warren and Steve Savoy are gone. The Utes are quick to state that they have more depth at the position this season, and while that may be true, it would be surprising for the Utes to have as much production at receiver this year as they received from Warren and Savoy.

Running Backs- Leading rusher Marty Johnson and his 14 rushing TDs are gone. Quinton Ganther takes over, and while demonstrates promise, only rushed for one TD last season. Every is very high on Ganther and he should have a great yardage season, but you canÂ’t forget the scoring and tough inside running that Marty Johnson produced.

Other Key Players gone -– Defensive leaders Marques Ledbetter (injured), Morgan Scalley, Bo Nagahi, Corey Dodds, and Sione Pouha are all gone. Top offensive lineman and Sports Illustrated All-American Chris Kemoeatu is also gone and pursuing a pro career.

What kind of offense will Ute Fans see? In the press we hear things that lead us to believe the Utes will feature an offense similar to last year'’s offense, but mix in some new things. New Offensive Coordinator, Andy Ludwig, from Oregon has a good offensive reputation but hasn'’t ever been associated with the spread offense that Utah has run the last two seasons. Further, not only has Urban Meyer left, but the top two offensive gurus Mike Sanford and Dan Mullen are also gone. Is there reason to think Utah will deviate from last year'’s explosive spread? The Utes who were 3^rd in the country averaging 45.3 last season have been leaking many things that suggest a change. It has been said that the TE will return to UtahÂ’s offense. Running back Quinton Ganther, who looks like an impressive battering ram type of player, is said to be drawing rave reviews. He is a different style runner and a focus on Ganther could mean more smash mouth type of offense. I would expect games to be closer this season, as a former defensive coordinator in Wittingham, is liable to err on the side of conservatism.

Despite all the questions, Ute fans should be prepared for another great season.

Kyle Wittingham is a competitive and hard nosed guy, who is more interested in winning than re-inventing the wheel. It's for that reason that you think Utah will continue some of the things that made them great last season. Forget about undefeated talk, but the ability to be ranked and win the conference is completely reachable.

The Utes will win because the cliche, "“Players win games"” is still true and the Utes have the talent to win. Despite the many changes, the replacements at quarterback, running back, wide receiver and on the defensive line all show signs of being more than capable.

If QB Brian Johnson and RB Quinton Ganther live up to the hype, the offense will thrive again up on the hill. The defense has questions at linebacker but the secondary and defensive line will both be very strong.

Want to follow the Utes?

Want to laugh and hear great coverage about the University of Utah? 1280 the Zone has a show each week day from 10am-1pm local time, called "“The Red and Blue"”. It is hosted by former BYU and Utah players and features non stop rivalry banter by the hosts and the callers.

Utah games are carried by Hot Ticket 700. They also features some great afternoon coverage by Matt Thomas and Bill Riley.

The best Ute Fans site on the net? Clear the best is www.utefans.net . The message board, the pictures, and Ute content is unmatched.

Will Arizona let the Cat out of the Bag? Will they spoil Utah'’s season before it begins? Have they said enough to actually convince themselves they can win? Sure Arizona comes from the Pac-10 and they are feeling optimistic both about their second year under Mike Stoops and the fact that they played Utah pretty tough last year, but they shouldn'’t get over confident. For one, Utah will sell out the game and will be pretty tough at home. The Utes are 4-2 against the Pac-10 the last four years and are favored by a touchdown to keep the trend going. It is true that the Wildcats played Utah tough last season and that their own turnovers hurt them. It is also true that Utah just started the season and wasn'’t clicking either.

I expect Arizona to have trouble scoring more than 20 points against Utah, and I have a hard time not seeing Utah get at least 3 TDs against the ‘cats. I expect Utah to win a relatively close game, by last season’s standards anyway, and get their 17^th straight victory 27-17.

Alex Smith is no dummy

Okay by now we know that Alex Smith graduated in only two years and had a 3.74 grade point average. We know that he has a great reputation for breaking down game film and knowing his opponents. We know that he was able to grasp one of college football's most complex offenses and then take that understanding into battle in a near flawless display of decision making.

We also know that he broke the hearts of many Ute fans by declaring for the NFL draft. Not only did he break hearts, but to some he did the wrong thing. He made a quick, self-serving decision that was probably based on the euphoria of leading the Utes to a great season, more than it was on sound reasoning. Right? I mean c’mon, Alex is great but he isn’t going to go that early in the draft. Why did he leave early? Why not get better, stronger, and go pro later?

What? What's that? Well, then all of a sudden we heard what Alex already knew. He would be a first round draft pick. More than that, he'’d go in the top 10. Some fools even said, top 5 or even #1. No way are we getting caught up with that #1 overall non-sense, but wow, seriously first round? Alex must know something afterall.

Now of course, even we know that reality. Alex Smith could very well go number one in the entire draft, and if not, will almost certainly be number two. The 49ers who own the first pick have even been negotiating with Alex, although his unwillingness to sign for less than market value may drop him out of the number one spot. We also hear rumors about teams faking interest and maybe the 49ers are playing games to set themselves up to trade the pick.

Given all that we now know, perhaps its possible that Alex Smith could be the one playing some good cards in all this pre-draft smoke screening. Either he'’ll negotiate a great deal, one better than Eli Manning signed last year, or perhaps he'’ll cause San Francisco to let him drop to #2. Number two would mean he lands in Miami and would work with much heralded coach Nick Saban. Who knows, maybe Miami might be the better place for Alex afterall. Perhaps, Alex has this figured out as well and is on his way to making more of the right decisions.

Lastly, we’'ve heard repeatedly that there are no absolute ‘"must haves’" in this draft and its weaker than some recent drafts. That fact in itself could speak even more to Alex’'s strong decision making. Knowing that this would be a so-called weaker draft, meant this was the perfect time for Alex to come out. He went pro when he was at the peak of his college career, and enters the NFL draft at a time when there is lack of mega stars who would take the top draft positions away. Smart move. And to think, he won't even be 21 years old until two weeks after the draft. Hold the Champagne!

After the first few picks of Saturday’'s NFL draft, we’'ll know just how smart Alex is. Good luck Alex.

Majerus to become a Hoosier?

The latest on Rick Majerus: The Indiana University coaching rumor, his new Denver Nuggets Position, and a must read Majerus website.

Okay, first I think the rumor of Majerus going to Indiana may have been around for a while, however, I will be honest and say it was new to me as of this week.

( Photo/AP )

A local sports radio host for 1320AM KFAN, Steve Brown, on his morning show “Steve and the Booner” stated that he heard from some people close to the situation that Rick Majerus to Indiana was a possibility. Back when Rick signed with USC, the rumor was that Indiana told Majerus that Mike Davis wasn’t long for Hoosierland, and therefore in addition to the health concerns, that Rick was convinced it was in his best interests to bail on USC and wait. Wait for better health, wait for the right job in the Midwest, wait for the chance to go to a true basketball mecca, and wait for Indiana University. Any truth to that?

Well…I’d say maybe some. Was Indiana actually the reason that Rick backed out of the Trojans job? I would say no, but the idea of someone like Indiana coming along might have played a role. I’d venture a guess that Indiana University had no contact with Rick Majerus after he signed his contract with USC. However, I think Rick might have had second thoughts genuinely about his health and also in the back of his mind wondered how much longer it would be until one of the "Big jobs" in the Midwest opened up. “Big jobs” is a pretty short list and the members of which are only open to speculation, but perhaps anyone in the Big Ten qualifies, along with Marquette.

There have been recent rumors of Majerus going to Depaul. It was those rumors that brought the Indiana rumor to my attention. It doesn’t help that as nice of a guy as Mike Davis is, Indiana has struggled mightily under him and reports are that he will be working on a final season of “do it now or else” ultimatum. If Hoosier faithful could deal with Bobby Knight, they could certainly deal with Rick Majerus, who is strong willed, but hardly the volatile guy that Knight was. In terms of Depaul, if this was the program that Joey Meyer ran years ago, then I'd say maybe. However, I have a hard time seeing him going to Depaul to be the guy to bring long term stability and to resurrect a lost program. Not that there isn't some of that to do at Indiana, but the prestige, conference, talent, and appearance on the national radar all make it much more appealing.

There seems to be some negativity around Rick since he dropped USC. Understandable. The question remains, is this guy still good for college ball? Should a big school like IU take a chance on Big Rick? I think Indiana would do itself a great service by bringing in Majerus. He would instantly upgrade the type of players that come to Hoosierville, and he’d probably get them back to competing for the conference crown in a relatively short period. Majerus left Utah after a great run, but in truth, after 15 years in a hotel up on the hill above Salt Lake City, things had run their course. I still believe that college basketball would benefit by having Rick back involved, that's not to say that Mike Davis isn’t a terrific person who makes the world better in his own way. I’d vote for letting Davis finish the upcoming season, his last year under contract, all while letting Majerus take another year to improve his health. After the next season, allow the marriage to take place.

As long as we are talking about Majerus, lets look at his recent Mile High Adventure-
The latest news with Rick is that he took a 5-day term as the self described new “food and beverage director” of the Denver Nuggets last week. Eat, drink and be Majerus, as Aaron J. Lopez of the Rocky Mountain News said in his recent article. Majerus and Nuggets coach George Karl are great friends and have always been basketball confidants. What could be better for Majerus than spending a week with former Ute standout Andre Miller and his basketball buddy George Karl?

Finally, a Majerus must read is the “Completely Unauthorized Rick Majerus Site” complete with funny quotes and even a “Majerus Driving Tour of Milwaukee”.

Bogut is gone, now what?

Andrew Bogut has cleaned out his locker, and packed up all his prestigous awards and headed off into the sunset. Well, okay, he has headed off to train and prepare for the NBA draft and should in theory be back in town next fall when his future NBA team plays the Jazz. However, his void at the University of Utah will be felt. Unless, something crazy occurred, say...

....the NBA establishes an age limit of 21, just to spite Jermaine O'Neal and others who complained at the suggested limit of 20. The result is several college players will be forced to rescind their NBA intentions and return to school, including Andrew Bogut, Chris Paul, as well as the entire North Carolina Tarheel team. Okay, wiping the drool and waking up....

Bogut grabs the biggest individual prize, the John Wooden award (below) and looks forward to professional basketball.


(Photo by Reed Saxon, Associated Press)

So Bogut is gone, now what?

Well this week in addition to the open lockers left my Andrew Bogut and Marc Jackson, the Utes also announced that starting forward Justin Hawkins was leaving the team. No official statement as to the reason for the departure was given, however its being bantered around that there were a variety of internal conflicts and disagreements, including some rumors of involvement from Papa Hawkins. While it hasn't been said, one can only surmise that someone must have been unhappy about their role in the offense. If he was unhappy being a role player to Bogut and company during the season, to his credit he didn't say a peep to the press.



(Photo by August Miller,Deseret News)

Why would Hawk want to leave? Perhaps he was told to go home and work on free throws (only 58% this year), outside shooting (zero 3 pointers), and conditioning, as the Utes will feature more pressing and up-tempo style next season. There might have been something in there somewhere that he didn't like. Giving in to the urge to comment on rumored reasons of one's unhappiness, I have to say the loss of Hawkins will hurt most in the toughness category, but that his offensive numbers can be made up elsewhere. You can't bag on Hawk though, he brought effort every game and was a team player. Hopefully he lands on his feet somewhere and gets a chance to continue his development. My fear is that, he won't be as successful in the starring role, as he was operating as a role player receiving the help of Bogut and Jackson.

For good measure, and as long as the revolving doors were still spinning...Out went backup guard Jermaine Calvin and backup forward Jake Schmidt. While Calvin had quickness, his 5'9 size and lack of a reliable outside shot probably meant limited contributions from him in the near future. Schmidt was an easy decision, as didn't score in only 14 minutes of game time during his freshman year.

The combination of losing those three starters at once leaves a huge hole and would seem to signal that next season's Utes will be making a giant U-Turn from the good fortune and success they experienced this year. However, the conversation around the U is hardly one that would indicate the sky is falling. Instead, the Utes are announcing some strong incoming players and at least floating the words of "depth" and "potential" as coach Ray Giacolletti hopes to get the deep up-tempo team he desires.

We'll focus more on the newcomers later, but in a brief summary I offer some quick mumbles..

• - Misha Radojevic, a 6-10" low post player from Serbia, comes in with two years of eligibility and is described a "tough kid" by Ray Giacoletti.
• - Luke Nevill, a 7'0" redshirt freshman from Australia looks to continue the Aussie dominance of the center position for the Utes. Andrew Bogut even said that Nevill "has a lot more potential than I had at that age..".
• - Shaun Green, a 6'8" forward from Salt Lake City who is one of the top Utah recruits of the year.
• - Johnnie Bryant, a transfer point guard, and Ricky Johns, a shooting guard fill out the list of incoming players.

For now, Ute fans will keep their focus on the NBA draft. I recommend CollegeHoopsNet.com as a great resource on both college basketball as well as the upcoming draft. As of this moment, the good folks at CHN have Andrew Bogut and Chris Paul as their 5 STAR draft prospects. Check it out!

East Coast Bias, broken by AP

The AP has spoken, and as one would have guessed based on their All America team that was previously announced, Andrew Bogut is the AP Player of the year.

Credit the AP for recognizing a player that didn't play basketball in the Eastern part of the United States. Bogut is the first player in the west to win the award since Sean Elliott of Arizona was honored back in 1989. Not to perpetuate the East coast bias, but two players in 16 years is kind of hard to dispute.

Andrew Bogut is the first player from the University of Utah to ever win the award.

The Adolph Rupp Trophy for the nation's best player was also just announced and it went to Duke's J.J. Redick. It should be noted this award is given by the Commonwealth Athletic Club of Kentucky, who awarded their award to a Duke player for the 4th time in 7 years. Further evidence that the Commonwealth Club either needs cable TV or a later bedtime, is that their award except for Elliott in 1989, hasn't gone to a player from the west since 1977 (Marques Johnson - UCLA).

Final Voting Results for AP Player of the year

Player of year voting
Player	School	Votes
Andrew Bogut	Utah	31
J.J. Redick	Duke	15
Wayne Simien	Kansas	9
Dee Brown	Illinois	5
Hakim Warrick	Syracuse	4
Sean May	North Carolina	3
Chris Paul	Wake Forest	2
Francisco Garcia	Louisville	1
Luther Head	Illinois	1
Salim Stoudamire	Arizona	1

Andrew Bogut officially packs his bags

Andrew Bogut made the announcement everyone expected today. He is leaving the University of Utah after his 2nd year to declare himself eligible for the NBA.

Bogut was as polished and mature as he has been all year long. He also announced that he had retained Dave Bauman of SFX sports to be his agent, so there is no going back. Andrew also, announced a parting gift for the University of Utah, in the form of a $125,000 donation for a new locker room.

Andrew Bogut was a class act and he'll be missed. Good Luck Andrew!



How will Andrew do in the Pros?
I think one on one he had little to no trouble with anyone. The 7'3" guy from Kentucky gave him a mild problem, but then Bogues figured him out and went around him twice from top of key. Without 3 guys on him, he would have done more. It's hard to pick on his numbers, but those of us who got to see him often, know that he is a team player who did not force shots or break the offense to get his numbers. In the NBA he'll make those around him better and probably not face as many creative zones and triple team combinations.

I am not sure he'll be superstar in the NBA, but as I follow the NBA pretty close as a part of the Utah Jazz Column on the Most Valuable Network, I do know that it is very hard to find good big men in the NBA. I think he could be an all-star level at that position within a couple years. After the O'Neals there is a lot of room in the league at Center position. Yao is good, but his level seems more than obtainable, for Bogut in that Bogut should rebound as well, shoot with a little more range, be a little more mobility, and should pass better than Yao.

Honestly, I haven't broken down the other players going into draft, so I'm not going to proclaim Bogut as #1 overall...but I would expect Bogut to be top 5 draft pick, have a long good career, and his international experience probably means he is more ready for the pro game at this moment than most of the other college kids coming out. His immediate area of improvement, would just be more strength. Bogut already has good hands in that he catches almost everything, but probably could get stronger in his upper body that would allow him to be even stronger going to the basket.

March Gladness Update: Utah-Kentucky preview

Tonight the 6th seeded, University of Utah battles the 3rd seed, Kentucky Wildcats in the Austin region of the NCAA tournament.

Utah 29-5 VS Kentucky 27-5

If you read a story about this game is will probably consist of talk about how great Andrew Bogut is and Kentucky's goal of stopping him, or you'll hear how Kentucky has beaten the Utes 5 straight times in the NCAA tournament since 1993. I don't disagree with either point, Andrew Bogut is great and a key, and yes Kentucky has beaten the Utes in the tournament before, but there are other things to consider.

Utah and Kentucky Mumblings....

• Kentucky is the favorite to win. Although, not the way they might have been favored in previous seasons. Vegas only has the Wildcats favored by 4 1/2 points.
• These are pretty young teams, given their place in the tournament. The two teams combine to start only two seniors.
  
• McDonalds knows more than Super Sized Meals. For a high school player there isn't many accolades higher than being named to the McDonald's all-American team. Super sized players usually go to the top basketball schools. In this case, Kentucky had one of the best recruiting classes in the country last year, netting a whopping three Big Macs in one year. Two of those guys, Guard Rajon Rando and Center Randolph Morris start as freshman. Utah, has at least three guys who ate at McDonalds this week.
• A good start to the game and rebounding could be keys to Utah's success. On the season, the Utes are 29-1 when leading at halftime and 28-3 when out rebounding their opponent.
• Kentucky has a legendary NCAA history. Utah, however, isn't exactly a slouch. This is the Utes 9th appearance in the Sweet 16 since 1975.
• The media is making a huge deal over the fact that Kentucky plays up to 13 players per game. The assertion is that Kentucky has so much talent and depth that they can force a tempo and a high scoring game that Utah cannot adapt to. The counterpoint would be, if Kentucky had its usual NBA caliber talent the starters would play more. As far as high scoring, this Wildcat team only scores five points more per game than Utah (73.5-68.4).
• Kentucky has lost 5 games this season, all of them to quality opponents: Florida (twice), North Carolina, Kansas, and South Carolina.
• The only common opponent for the Utes and Wildcats is the Coppin State Eagles. Speaking of Coppin St., they seemed to be everybody's tune up team this year and they played 7 NCAA teams: Utah, Kentucky, Oklahoma, West Virginia, Pittsburgh, Texas, and Delaware St.

Why Utah will win
For starters, Kentucky lost to Florida twice, who lost to LSU, who lost to Utah.

A couple of other considerations. Utah turns the ball over a lot (14 per game) which could allow Kentucky to take advantage. However, Kentucky also turns the ball over a lot (13 per game) and so one area that may have been a big Wildcat advantage may not play out like the experts expect. Bogut will impact the game, but Kentucky will make such an effort to stop him, he may not have a big scoring day. However, his presence will open the door for the other Utes to hit some shots. Unlike some past years, these guys can and should be able to seize the opportunity.
For Kentucky to win, they will have to make some outside shots. Oklahoma and UTEP couldn't and they lost. In fact, most of Utah's opponents have not. However, New Mexico had some strong outside shooting games when they beat Utah twice this season. Unlike other experts, I don't see fatigue being the key issue. I do think Kentucky will try and get Bogut tired, but I think fouls are more important. If Bogut and Marc Jackson stay out of foul trouble, the Utes will be better than Kentucky at the two most important positions and have a chance to win.

March Gladness continues

The Big dance is no longer "big" in terms of number of teams playing, but is "big" in that only 16 teams are still playing. The University of Utah stunned #3 seed Oklahoma 68-57 to get their invitation to the sweet 16 and a date with Kentucky on Friday in Austin, Texas.

The Utes did so with perhaps their most balanced effort of the season. Andrew Bogut killed the Sooners with his passing, rather than by posting his normal 20 points per game. You had to really appreciate Bogut's patience in this game. Most top scorers in the country would have been forcing things to try and get their shots. Bogut did not score for over 8 minutes at the start of the game and didn't reach double figures until about a minute was left in the game. Bogut only took 7 shots the entire game, making four and scoring 10 points. If you didn't see the game you'd assume that Oklahoma shut him down and limited his touches. The opposite was true. OU did swarm Bogut on every possession, but he was still able to get touches and do something with the ball. Instead of recklessly attacking the double and triple teams, he did what few 7 footers can, and took a few dribbles and passed to a variety of cutting teammates. Along the way he picked up 7 assists and several other passes led to baskets, fouls, or a missed layup.

You cannot minimize the fact that Bogut picked-up his teammates. However, when he gave them the opportunity, they seized it in a big way. A couple of these guys are pretty fearless, which I can't say was a mark of recent Ute teams. Justin Hawkins, and Bryant Markson have been complimentary players, but they both willingly attacked the basket when given the opportunity. In addition, despite the media's clamoring over Bogut, none of this gets done without PG Marc Jackson. He has been terrific and isn't just getting it done only on the offensive end of the floor, he has shown the ability to slow down the speedy guards like Utep's Riviera and OU's Lavender and Godbold. As long as we are spreading credit around, I do believe coach Ray Giacoletti deserves a lot of credit both for keeping the team loose and full of confidence, but also his decision to move Bogut to the high post where he could distribute to his teammates.

As you might expect, the media attention is raining down on the Utes and Andrew Bogut in particular. Some that you may or may not have seen:

• Tim Dahlberg, AP Writer, wrote a nice piece about Bogut and included the strong statement,

  "..if Bogut isn't everybody's player of the year, something is wrong with the balloting. If he's not the first pick in the NBA draft in June, some general manager is sleeping."

• Jim O'Connell, AP Writer, announced that Bogut is the leading vote-getter on the AP All-America team. Bogut joins players who are from college basketball's elite programs - Kansas (W. Simien), Syracuse (Hakim Warrick), Duke (JJ Redick) and Wake Forest (Chris Paul). O'Connell mades a strong point when he said,

  "Bogut was the only member of the first team not to have received any recognition after last season. In fact, he was the only one of the five not to have been at least an honorable mention selection in the preseason All America balloting. Now Bogut is considered a sure lottery pick, and the possible top pick, if he decides to declare for the NBA draft".

• Joe Beatty, Utah Chronicle, offers a good recap of Utah-Oklahoma game. Joe also mentions a great statistic about turnovers, by saying that Utah had 21 turnovers, and,

  "the Sooners committed a season-low seven, and were 20-1 this season when winning the turnover battle.."

The Utes draw the Wildcats on Friday night with a chance to become a part of the Elite Eight. Certainly followers of the Ute program did not expect a season like this on the heals of Rick Majerus' departure and starting the season with a new coach. However, the Ute fans, much like Majerus who picked OU to beat the Utes before the game, didn't know Giac!

Utes seeking March Gladness

The University of Utah squeaked by UTEP 60-54 in round one of the NCAA tournament. For the Utes it was like a road game, as many of the UTEP faithful made the trip to Tucson. The Utes came back from an early deficit, and then gave up a big lead of their own, to hold on for a win. The game actually went about like I envisioned, even down to my predicted final margin of victory (5-6) although the ending was more tense than I expected. Andrew Bogut was terrific and received just enough help at the end to get it done.

Next up, the Oklahoma Sooners. I get the sense that many Utah fans and the media that covers the Utes aren't giving Utah much of a chance at this point. Well, if you look at the schedules of the two teams, it becomes clear what will happen....

Utah and Oklahoma share four common opponents. Both schools beat Coppin St., Northern Colorado, and High Point. Please don't ask me where those schools are because I would only say..... Coppin is not a state that I know of, unless it's some small north eastern state hidden around Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, that none of us out west remember from geography class. Northern Colorado, I'd only venture to guess is in some small obscure city north of Denver, no wait that is Colorado State which is in Fort Collins and since there isn't a north and south Colorado like Carolina or Dakota, I'm at a loss...,....and High Point, for lack of a better guess, I would say they should be in some mountainous region maybe in Northern Montana. Okay, refocusing now. Both OU and Utah lost to their other common opponent, Washington. Utah and Oklahoma are also teams that generally win games they are supposed to win. All five of Utah's losses are to tournament teams, and six of the seven OU losses came to tournament teams. That one loss is the one that makes this whole thing clear. The Sooners lost to Missouri, which finished just below .500 this season. Missouri lost to UNLV. Utah beat UNLV three times, so its clear Utah will win.

Using the same logic, Utah should win the National title. That poor Illinois squad lost their only game to Ohio State by one point. That opened the door for the consideration that Ohio State lost to Creighton who lost to Wyoming. Utah beat Wyoming twice. Clearly this isn't March Madness it's March Gladness for Utah.

Seriously, with regard to the Sooners, they look to be very high powered. Strong back court and two big guys to battle Bogut down low. Deep bench of athletes and an extra big guy or two. That might be just the combination to slow Bogut and the Utes. However, keep in mind some of Bogut's best games came against Colorado St., which boasts three 7-footers and was the biggest team in the league. Also, while OU has many good players, I am not sure there is one that is NBA bound on this roster right now. Utah will have to do some obvious things to compete in this game: Control the tempo, hit a few of the open three pointers when OU sags in on Bogut, and keep turnovers within reason. To do that Utah will need the support players to make more of an impact than they did against UTEP.

Despite all my impenetrable logic, Vegas says OU is a 5 point favorite. I think that feels about right.

Midweek Sports Mumbling....

Tomorrow the Big Dance starts and the Utes are in Tucson getting ready for a 1:15 local tipoff against UTEP. However, despite the basketball team being away from Campus there was still a lot going on up on the hill.

Alex Smith held his personal workout day in front of more than 60 NFL scouts and coaches. Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports gushes over Alex's performance in his write up today. He stated that Alex did so well that he has likely vaulted himself to the top of the draft board. This is amazing, but great news. Cal's QB Aaron Rodgers will have his personal day tomorrow and attempt to steal the spotlight. Right now its looking like Alex Smith, Aaron Rodgers, Braylon Edwards (Michigan), Michael Williams (USC) and perhaps Cedric Benson (Texas) are vying to be the top 5 picks in the draft.

Back to Tucson...

The Utes are either a darkhorse to make a run to the sweet sixteen, or a prime candidate to be knocked off. Top college basketball analysts are offering both opinions with nearly equal frequency. On one side you have the school of thought that the school with the best big man and best guard is the team that wins. Utah looks great to those people with Bogut and Mark Jackson. On the other side of the fence are those that suggest the Utes haven't played great talent and will fall when the do.

I looked for, but didn't not see any common opponents for UTEP and Utah. I did see both schools playing several patsies:
Utah: Stony Brook, High Point, Furman, Montana Western, and Coppin State.
UTEP: Panhandle St. (seriously), Occidental, IPFW, Jackson St., and Delaware State.

I expect UTEP to keep it close with their athleticism. I don't know much about them, but I think their choice of defense will be important. If they play a zone, it will be good and bad for them. They will do so to battle Andrew Bogut, but if they do, they will sacrifice the tempo they need to win. Despite their good foul shooting, I think they will get handled on the glass and lose a low scoring game. If they don't play zone, and rely on double teams to handle Bogut, they will probably fail to stop him, but may win because of the tempo. It will be interesting to see their choice. I see a close game with Utah winning by 5-6 points.

Sports Mumbling, March 15th

This is one of the great times of the sporting year no doubt. March Madness is upon us, the NBA enters the final quarter of the season, baseball is at spring training, and Golf's show piece, the Masters is drawing near. While I'm not keenly aware, I'm sure there are exciting things going on in tennis, soccer, professional fishing and Nascar right now too. Too bad the NHL is only in the news for not having any. Anyway, I mumble on....

First about the University of Utah.....

• The University of Utah stumbled slightly in the Mountain West Conference Championship against New Mexico. However, I think we need to break out of the negative mindset. It was a terrific game to watch. New Mexico is playing well and Danny Granger is terrific right now.
  
• A note about the Utes loss, was that Bryant Markson was competing and trying to help the Utes win, despite dealing with the deal of an Aunt to whom he was really close. He missed the funeral to be with the team, but instead of traveling home with the team, went straight to be with his family. Hang in there Bryant!
• Utah's 6th seeding is the highest ever for the Mountain West Conference. Remember however that the league is all of about six years old.
• Utah's first round game against UTEP is anything but a gimmee. UTEP rolls in with a 27-7 record and has the athleticism to win against the Utes. Not saying they will, but they could.
• If Utah were fortunate to get to the sweet sixteen they'd probably be playing....who else, but Kentucky. Kentucky seems to be the team to knockout the Utes every year.
• Maybe you didn't know.....All 5 Utah losses came against NCAA tournament teams (Washington, Arizona, Utah St, and New Mexico-twice) and on the road. That means it takes a quality team to beat the Utes. The Utes did beat tournament teams: LSU and New Mexico.
• Utah outscored 26 of 29 regular season opponents in the 2nd half.
• A Utah win over UTEP could bring a matchup with Oklahoma in the 2nd round. As Utah was hoping to play the Sooners in football and didn't get the shot, this might be at least a small consolation prize.
• ESPN has a good wrap-up of Utah's season available for all to see.

More Mumblings...

• Ever notice that much ado is made about all the team's on the bubble for the NCAA tournament. It is interesting to see who gets in, but really how often do those teams make any dent in the tournament. Of course, I'm speaking from the vantage point of a #6 seed, University of Utah fan.
• Carlos Boozer won't be in Cleveland when the Jazz make their first visit there since acquiring him. The Cleveland fans are still pretty chapped over the whole thing and you don't have to look hard for a group of Cav fans who are still steaming. I wish Carlos was healthy enough to play and get this behind him. All the drama aside, the chance to see Lebron James makes the game something to look forward to.
• I bet you aren't up to date on the USPPBA. You know, the United States Perforated Plastic Ball Association. You know, The Wiffle Ball League? Yeah, there is a such a thing. Their website requires registration to see much, but its kind of interesting. Here are other two sites I recommend. First, www.wiffle.com, is your place to get wiffle balls, equipment, and souvenirs. Second, Major League Wiffleball, is a great site with statistics, standings, wiffle ball rules, and a connection to some major league baseball players. So if you want to swing big without the aid of Steroids and the intense media glare that comes from the big leagues, go back to the basics and play some wiffleball!
  

The Utah Jazz Blog has moved

As you may have noticed on this blog, I've also been keeping a Utah Jazz Blog, and re-posting some of the entries here. About a week ago, I was invited and accepted, to move the Jazz Blog to the Most Valuable Network. I'm excited to be apart of the growing and committed team at MVN. Please come check it out:

ALL THAT JAZZ

Andrew Bogut is ESPN's player of the year

It has been a great year for the University of Utah Athletic Department, and it just became even better. Andrew Bogut was just named ESPN.com's National Player of the year today. ESPN also announced it's Men's College Basketball All American team, which included Bogut, Chris Paul (Wake Forest), JJ Redick (Duke), Wayne Simien (Kansas), and Sean May (North Carolina).

As Bogut is definately leaving Utah after this season to go to the NBA, the Utes will have a player in the top 5 of the NFL (Alex Smith) and NBA drafts in the same season, with rumors of each going as high as number one overall.


(photo from ESPN.com; taken by Levine)

Arroyo is gone, but the talk continues

They say the month of March comes "in like a Lion"......instead I think I'll come in with "I hate to whine about the whiners who are whining about old news, but I can't resist, and must get it off my chest so I'll beat it to death with a big stick".

Therefore, my Whiney Sports Mumbling Rant...

I keep reading articles in the Salt Lake Papers about Carlos Arroyo and how the Jazz miss him and how great he is doing for Detroit (reference, Jo-Ann Barnas article for Detroit Free Press picked up and ran in Salt Lake this week). I've even read opinions sent in to the newspapers and other online sites by fans who hate the trade of Arroyo and are mad at the Jazz and mad at Coach Sloan in particular. The point they are missing, and missing, and missing (they could stop shooting and missing at that point, but since Carlos hasn't stopped, why should they), and missing....is Detroit is asking him to be a part-time helper. In Detroit he is a back-up and averaging only 18 minutes per game. In Utah, the Jazz thought he was the man who could embrace the team's philosophy, lead the team, play heavy minutes (35 per game), and basically make those around him better. Truth is, he did not play well this year, despite the contract and faith the Jazz put in him. Truth is, he got on the wrong side of Coach Sloan, and while some of that may have been Jerry's fault and this league at times may be run by the players, the Jazz never have been. He was woefully immature and continues to complain that no one talked to him, as if, Carlos had no idea where Coach Sloan's office was. I for one am tired of reading his quotes and tired of all the fans who continue to push this side of things. Its a team game, but Carlos chose to make it about him and didn't like the result. I've said a million times...I'd rather lose with the right guys than win with the wrong ones. If it took giving in to a player who demanded kid gloves and special treatment to win, I'd rather lose. Is Carlos a bad guy? Whoa, that's not the point. I liked Carlos and enjoyed the good times while he was here, but unlike great players in this league he didn't fight through adversity. He isn't as valuable as people make it seem, and to hint that he means more to the Jazz than Sloan (as many have done) is idiotic.

To Carlos I say,

"take care Carlos, may you end up better than the other guys who left thinking they could do better outside the Jazz system (see: Shandon Anderson, Howard Eisley, DeShawn Stevenson, etc) . I'd like to send some of your Utah fan supporters with you, but you know how they are...fickle, as soon as they see that the grass isn't greener, they'll be bagging on you in no time."

My guess is with the recent improvement of the Jazz and Keith McLeod, and Arroyo's failure to really change the fact that only 5-6 guys on the Pistons really carry the load, that this issue will die down. Come next summer when the Jazz have the money from the Arroyo contract to spend elsewhere and an extra first round draft pick, people will be glad the Jazz held to their principles and really evaluated the situation for what it was.

In the spirit of statistical overkill, and to convince those that still wish to argue the over value of Carlos Arroyo, I offer the numbers below (thanks to the www.82games.com for the +/-). The result is that both teams, Utah and Detroit, have been better while Carlos is on the bench.

+/- points
Carlos in Utah (this year): -7.3
Carlos in Detroit: -6.4
Keith McLeod (Utah Starter): +2.5
Chauncey Billups (Detroit Starter): +4.9

Shooting %
Carlos in Utah (last year): 44.1%
Carlos in Utah (this year): 40.1%
Carlos in Detroit: 39.0%

Minutes Played - per game
Carlos in Utah (last year): 28.3 mins
Carlos in Utah (this year): 24.7 mins
Carlos in Detroit: 18.7 mins


To assert that Arroyo and his 39% shooting and 18 minutes per game is the reason, or even a critical influence, for Detroit's hot streak (winning 8 of 10) makes only slightly more sense to me than heaping extra praise on the hot dog vendors at Auburn Hills. I mean yes technically they are there, and yes in some remote way they are making an impact on the things inside the building, but its really only a coincidence that they are associated with the Pistons at a time when they are rolling.

Whew, all better now. Until the next article...

(Originally Blogged on the Utah Jazz Blog)

Sports Mumbling, March 3rd

Sports Mumbling on March 3rd...

• New Ute Hoop Rankings- Now 15th (coaches) and 16th (media) ranked in the country. Based on what I've seen this year, those rankings feel about right. Sports Illustrated has them at #17 in their power rankings, by Luke Winn.
  
• I give credit to "Ancient Ute" who posted a 'Historical trend for Utah Basketball' on the utefans.net website. His report (click here), shows that the Utes have only had 6 losing seasons in the last 50 years.
  
• Ute center Andrew Bogut has his own blog, "Awesome Aussie". Its not too bad, although he is certainly much better on the court than he is online. Some good stuff in there, but don't buy into the bit about him having a pet crocodile and kangaroo as he stated on Jan 23rd!
  
• Looking to move to Utah this spring? I think Karl Malone's house is still for sale. Better hurry and jump on it though, it looks like the price has dropped to a mere $5.75 M.
• The Jazz have won 3 in a row, and go for 4 against the Hornets in New Orleans. The Jazz would win by 15-20 right now in Utah, but momentum and the road atmosphere probably makes this a game. I'm not a big Byron Scott fan (coach of the Hornets), so I can't say their struggles bother me.
• One part about the Hornets I like, is the point guard Dan Dickau. He has taken over for the oft injured and finally traded Baron Davis. Dickau is a point guard who shares the ball, and is thinking about others when on the floor. He is probably going to earn himself some cash as he is a free agent this summer and only going to get better. If you are a rumor monger, remember that the Jazz will have cash to spend, have an unsettled point guard position, and Dickau went to Gonzaga, which coincidently was the same school as John Stockon. A little more you ask...remember that Stockton used to go home to Gonzaga for pickup games and played many times with Dickau.
  

Jazz Find rhythm in Houston

Thanks to a big fourth quarter from Raja Bell, Mehmet Okur, and Matt Harpring, the Utah Jazz surged past the Houston Rockets for a 99-92 victory in Houston Sunday afternoon.

The Jazz have had trouble in the 4th quarter of games. Coming into the Houston game, Utah was 6-21 on the road. Starting the 4th quarter with a tie score seemed to be pointing the direction of many games this year. Good effort, but not good enough to win. Instead of wilting, Memo scored 9 points in the 4th Quarter, Bell 7, and Harpring 8 as the Jazz seemed to either make every shot or get an offensive rebound on each miss in the fourth quarter. There were a couple of 'you had to see it' type shots in the fourth quarter as well. One was a reverse by Kirilenko, when he got caught under the backboard he reached his long arm out and quickly flipped it back into the basket. He made it look almost effortless, but the truth is there aren't many guys in the league who could have done it. Moments later, Mehmet Okur drove the baseline and was fouled hard, but with a showing of great strength, flipped it over his head with his left hand and into the basket. The Jazz took advantage of a couple of bounces and combined that with beating the Rockets in the effort and energy departments of rebounding and defense.

For the Rockets, McGrady was terrific in the first quarter, but didn't have as much pep over the final three quarters. The new guy Mike James played hard till then end and scored 19 points, making just enough 3-pointers in the 4th quarter to keep the Rockets within shouting distance. Perhaps I miss something, but I just don't understand why a 7'6" player like Yao Ming only gets 10 shot attempts against the Jazz who don't have a player over 6'11". Is Yao not aggressive enough in demanding the ball or getting position? Or is it, what appears to be a team that overall has questionable shot selection and doesn't appear to be running an offense most of the time? I know that normal point guard Bob Sura was out with an injury, so perhaps that was the problem in lack of offensive sets and touches for Yao. Lets hope so.

On this Day in the NBA- Houston Style: Feb 28, 1981 Calvin Murphy set the record for most consecutive made free throws with 78 (against San Diego). This record was later broken by Michael Williams of Minnesota and pushed all the way to 97 (in 1993). Murph still holds the record for highest FT percentage for a season at .958 (1980-81 season).

There is also a great write-up of this game in the Houston Chronicle (click the link), that includes sharp comments by McGrady, Jon Barry, and Van Gundy. Also, in keeping with the trend of looking for the best blogs for the opponent, I point you to the Houston Rockets Fan Blog.

(Originally blogged at the Utah Jazz Blog)