FanNation - The Republic of Sport

Since Badgerfan was fool hearty enough to take up my challenge (mwa-ha-ha), I decided to open to everyone in the "Big 10 Football Group" willing to take a side wager a chance to show their conference knowlege.

The Prize

Each looser must append a message chosen by the winner within days after the Big 10 conference season is over until 1 week past the NC game.

Near as I can tell Fan Nation gives you a total of 30 characters.

You keep up to the 1^st 9 for your current screen name (so you may need to truncate it).  The 10^th is a space.

The next 20 are those of your choosing.  Test it out on your own screen name to make sure it is a permitted name (characters. etc.)

For example, I am choosing "Bows 2 ProveIt & OSU"

Ignore the potential of the humiliation of claiming you love your rival.  Think of the satisfaction of seeing you and/or your team praised all over Fan Nation.

Show some good sportsmanship here if you want to enter.  Don't do things like pseudo obscenities, bashing, or change your 1^st nine character name to something like "AE Doesn't" if you loose.

Think about it, this isn't some little meaningless title like "Big 10 Mascot," (sorry to break the news to you 84) or my "Lloyd Carr memorial Starting Lineup."  This is something for all of Fan Nation to look at and wonder why his name is "Prove It ThinksMinesotaFBis#1"

Publicly humiliating your friends and/or exalting yourself - now that's something to play for!

The Game (I will give some help and encouragement next)

...is simple.  Pick how the teams in the Big 10 conference will finish in 2008, 1^st thru 11th.  For each spot you get wrong, you get a point.  Lowest score wins.  For example, I pick tSUN to finish 7^th.  Suppose they finish 4^th, then I get 3 points (7-4 = 3).  Suppose they finish 9^th, then I get 2 points (9-7=2).  Finishing place is based on games against other Big 10 teams only.

Tie Breaker 1

As the season goes along I will periodically calculate how accurately you predicted the Big 10 games using your listing.  For example, if you picked OSU to finish higher than Penn State, and OSU wins the game, you get a point in your win column.  If PSU wins, you get a point in your loss column.

This isn't the same as how they finish or picking every game, but a good record will give you an idea of how you are doing as the season progresses.  It will also provide some intermediate cheers and jeers.

Remember, this is only a tie breaker.

Tie breaker 2

Who ever posted their predictions 1^st.  Don't want to give an advantage to someone who waits until the fall injury and suspension reports come in.  Plus, I don't feel like putting any additional thought into this.

If you loose in a tie breaker, you don't have to change your name, but you get no prize.  Nada.  Nothing.  Nil.  Good day sir and good bye.

Don't be overly impressed - I am just going to dump this into an excel spreadsheet and blog it weekly.

Help There's a couple of blogs in the Big 10 Football group where you can get a quickie 3 or 4 sentence opinion on each team's prospects.  See Badger's Big 10 Breakdown and 2008 Kickoff

Encouragement Your guess is as good as any.  At least 3 slots wll be decided by the tie breakers below.  In 2007, the difference between the 5th and 8th place teams was a loss in double OT, so luck has about as much to do with it as knowlege (unless I win, in which case I will claim it was all skill).

Settling Ties in the Big 10

...is a royal pain.  You play 8 games, but there are 11 teams, so there will be some tie breakers to hand out for teams with identical conference records.  Only conference records are used.

Any time a tie breaker splits the teams, go back to tie breaker 1.

Tie Breaker 1 - how the teams did heads up against the team(s) they are tied with (winning %)

Tie Breaker 2 - How they did against common opponents (winning % against common opponents ALL the tied teams played, including non-conference games) (common non-conference games aren't likely, but it could happen in a 2 way tie)

Tie Breaker 3 - Win against the highest finishing team in the Big 10 (presumably, they had the hardest win just to be tied)

If they're still tied, they are given the average of the place (for example if 5^th and 6^th were still tied, they are each ranked 5.5.  If 7^th, 8^th, and 9^th tied, they are all ranked 8)

How to Enter

1. List out how you expect the teams in the Big 10 to finish, 1^st thru 11^th (no ties) and post as a comment below.

2. Please place on separate lines so it is easier for me to enter correctly in my spreadsheet.

3. At the end of the comment place the 20 character extension you want to see all the losers post.  (I suspect most will spend more time doing this than picking the teams.)

4. No duplicate lists - if they are duplicated, the 2^nd list (comment) will be zapped.

5. You can change your listing (comment), but you go to the bottom in The Game Tie breaker #1 and your earlier list will get zapped (so list everything again)

6. Agree to all the guidelines noted above which I am too lazy to retype.

7. Deadline for entry August 28^th.

7. At least 6 entries.  Why 6?  Well, you know why... it's in the Carr-ds

8. 1 entry per person

9. Only open to members of the Big 10 Football Group - other entries will be zapped

...so if you have any GAME homeboys, bring it and Prove It.

Friendly Reminder - This is a Prove It blog, not a bastion of free speech.  As a courtesy to my 6 readers, leave an idiot comment and I will zap it or trash you with facts as the mood hits.