The comments off the bathroom wall

Draft Low, High Reward

Junoyeop — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 19:09:12 GMT

Last year, three rookie running backs absolutely stunned the league by coming out of nowhere and becoming star running backs. Matt Forte of the Chicago Bears, Steve Slaton of the Houston Texans and Kevin Smith of the Detroit Lions. These three running backs were all draft picks in the 2008 NFL draft, the same that produced Darren McFadden, who is unluckily stuck on the horrible and not getting better Oakland Raiders, Rashard Mendenhall, who lost most of his rookie year to injury trouble with the Steelers, and Jonathan Stewart, who made a formidable tag team with DeAngelo Williams of the Carolina Panthers. Each one of these guys, Fort??, Smith, and Slaton each had a very strong college careers. But why didn't they get drafted higher if they were so good?How did these three stars get drafted so low?

Matthew Garrett Forte was born in Lake Charles, Louisiana, December 10 1985. Forte attended Slidell High School in Slidell, Louisiana and graduated as an honors student and a letterman in football and track. Forte went on to play football at Division I School Tulane. While he was always among the stars on the Tulane football team, he never became a standout until his senior year when he set the Tulane records door rushing with 2127 yards and 23 touchdowns. With momentum on his side, Forte was the star at the 2008 Senior Bowl receiving the MVP and helping his draft status greatly. Fortewent on to be drafted in the second round by the Chicago Bears.

When Forte was originally drafted by the Chicago Bears, he was originally going to compete with Cedric Benson, now star running back of the Bengals, and Adrian Peterson(no not that one). But after Benson ran into legal issues, Forte had little competition left with Peterson and second year running back Garrett Wolfe. Forte made his NFL debut on September 7th, 2008 against the Indianapolis Colts, carrying the ball 23 times and 123 yards, and one touchdown.

The top running back picked in the 2008 draft was Darren McFadden, and yet Forte had a much better season. Although McFadden had considerably less carries than Forte, had McFadden taken the same number of carries as Forte at the pace he was going, McFadden would've had 404 less yards. McFadden also would've had less receiving yards. The Raiders could've had a running back with a larger skill set for a later round pick. Overall I think Forewill be a much stronger running back than McFadden will ever be. I think Fort?? is the second best NFL running back, only behind the immortal Adrian Peterson.

Steve Slaton was born on January 4, 1986 in Levittown, Pennsylvania. Steve Slaton played for Conwell-Egan Catholic High School in Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania. Slaton got many scholarship offers, such as North Carolina, Maryland, and Rutgers, but chose West Virginia over them.

Slaton was a star throughout college. From his freshman year all the way to his Junior year, his last year at WVU. Slaton was the MVP of the 2006 Sugar Bowl in his freshman year. Slaton continued his success thought his junior year. He finished the year with 1744 on 248 carries with 16 touchdowns muscling through with a wrist injury. Slaton's junior season was the worst year in his college career. Slaton was often injured during his junior season, not helping his draft status.

Slaton was drafted by the Houston Texans with the 89th overall pick in the third round. Slaton rushed 13 times for 43 yards and caught three passes for six yards. Slaton's season just went up-hill from there. Slaton was named the AFC player of the Week. Slaton finished the season with the most yards among the rookie running backs with 1282 yards and sixth in the NFL.

The McFadden comparison comes again. Slaton had a much better season than Slaton. Slaton ran for the most rushing yards as a rookie while McFadden was not even close. Slaton was also much better in the passing game. Overall, I think Slaton may have a more NFL ready game and is more of an NFL type player than McFadden. Slaton will have a slightly better career than McFadden.

And then there was Kevin Smith, the highest rusher in the history of NCAA Football. Kevin Smith was born on December 17th, 1986 in Miami, Florida. Smith attended Southridge High School in Miami, Florida. He attended the University of Central Florida.

Kevin Smith had an amazing college career. He became Central Florida's all time leading rusher in just three seasons. He had 905 carries for 4864 yards. In Smith's last season at UCF, he was a dark horse candidate for the Heisman Trophy. After his historic junior year, Smith was the first consensus All-American from UCF. Smith was drafted with the direst pick in the third round by the Detroit Lions.

Smith was named the starting running back of the Lions after a very strong preseason showing after beating out former Cincinnati Bengal star Rudi Johnson. Smith had a very strong rookie campaign, with 238 carries for 976 yards and 8 touchdowns.

Smith vs. McFadden. Small school vs. Big School. And the win in a major upset goes to the small school in Kevin Smith. Smith was a much more productive running back then McFadden as in his rookie year all-round. He doubled McFadden's total while sharing the load with Rudi Johnson and had a avg. yards per carry a tick lower than McFadden. I personally feel that these two guys will have pretty equal playing careers. Each of them have raw speed but Smith seems to take hits better than McFadden. However McFadden has great open field skills. Once McFadden takes over full-time duties, i think he will improve on al his potential.

I realize that McFadden shared significant playing time with a productive running back in Justin Fargas. But so was Kevin Smith. I think people dismiss late round draft picks too much. This is how we get Tom Brady. This is how we got many stars in this league. I think last years draft just proved to us that just because you are a high round draft pick, does not mean that someone is going to pan out. And just because someone is not drafted in the first round, does no mean that this player could not be a productive player in the NFL. All players not drafted in the first round are underdogs. Matt Forte, Steve Slaton and Kevin Smith proved to us that you can go from unwanted to being a star.

The Oriole Way

Ny — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 00:05:03 GMT

It was the bottom of the eighth in an empty Memorial Stadium. Most of the 40,000 fans that came to see the Orioles that day had already left. The place looked like an Independent League game, with perhaps a quarter of the original crowd scattered throughout the stadium, watching their Baltimore club lose like it had all season.

But this time, actually, was different.

The Baby Birds had their backs against the wall and a rough road ahead of them if they were to come back. Down by five against the Yankees, most teams would have given up, but they didn’t.

Rising to the challenge, the Orioles rallied. With one out and the bases loaded, Brooks Robinson stepped up the plate. With the small crowd behind him, he knew he had to do something special.

And he did.

On the first pitch of the at-bat, he rocketed the ball right back at the Yankees pitcher and into center field, scoring two runners and cutting the lead to three.

Later that inning, Willie Kirkland drove in two to pull the Orioles close for the first time all day. Jerry Adiars then singled another run in, tying the ball game at 7-7.

Up came Charlie Lau (for only the second time that day). After beginning the inning with a pinch-hit single, he clobbered a fastball into left-center, doubling and scoring Aidars, giving Baltimore a lead they would never surrender.

With every fan in the stands on their feet, the Orioles took the field in the top of the ninth. Roger Maris homered for the Yankees, but it didn’t matter, as Stu Miller closed the door and ended the game 9-8.

No one expected the Orioles to win that day against the all-powerful Yankees, but they did. They showed respect for the game by never giving up, even when the chances of winning seemed slim; the Birds still gave it 100 percent the whole way.

Most players would have lost all hope, but they didn’t. Though at the time they didn’t know, it was a pivotal moment in Orioles history. I like to think it was the start of the "Oriole Way."

The Oriole Way was a template that was used to draft, develop, and train players in Double-A and Triple-A ball in preparation for the professional ranks.

The concept was to teach a system and have a "plug-and-play" mentality with all of the organization's players, and it worked. For a short period of time, it truly was the standard in baseball.

But it could be said it ended just seven years later.

It’s the bottom of the tenth in the sixth game of the 1971 World Series against Pittsburgh. There's one out, and Brooks Robinson strides up to the plate. He seems tired, worn out from the endless season, though the Orioles had found a way to reach the fall classic for the fourth time in six years.

He knows what he has to do. With Frank Robinson on third, all he needs to do is get the ball into the outfield, and the championship is theirs.

Frank Robinson looks like he's on his last leg as well. Playing 13 years in the bigs takes a toll on any player, and with all the late runs the Birds had made since he came there, he'd been playing a lot more than even that figure implies.

With a bum ankle causing him incredible pain, all Frank is thinking about is getting back home and goofing around with his kids. But there's a game to be played.

Brooks swings at the first pitch he sees and hits it high into left field. It's nothing more than a glorified lopper, but it serves its purpose.

Robinson tags from third, and here comes the throw. A cloud of dust, a hearty roar on 33rd Street, and the game was won. The Orioles went on to win Game Seven and the Series.

They found a way to win when others couldn’t, which was really what the Oriole way was all about. They played great defense, pitched well, and never gave up. The three attributes to any winning organization. Even with their skills diminishing, and their hours as immortals dwindling, they found a way to win.

That’s what Oriole baseball is all about, never giving up, playing till the final out.

The one thing that Baltimore has lacked these past 11 years is consistency. Every year, we seem to have a new manager and vice president. Who knows, if Angelos feels like we're not rebuilding fast enough, we may have a new one tomorrow.

If it's true that history repeats itself, then maybe, just maybe, the Oriole Way can get up and running once again.

NCAA Tournament Bracket Projections - March 2, 2009

Clement — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 12:49:21 GMT

NCAA Tournament Bracket Projections - March 2, 2009

If you did not realize yesterday, we have entered March and are less than two weeks (and counting) from Selection Sunday. Out of the many years I have done this exercise, this has been the toughest. Why? There is a higher number of teams among the Last Four In and the Last Eight Out who have signature wins. Simply look at some of the teams that our top 4 overall seeds have lost to (v. Georgetown, @ Maryland, @ Providence, @ Michigan) and you will begin to understand that the Tournament Selection Committee already has with 13 days of basketball yet to played.

At the top, I decided to elevate Duke based on two crucial road wins against teams that we have in the field. Though the officials made as many as three errors in the final four minutes (all favoring Duke) against Virginia Tech, this is an improved team with Elliott Williams as a starter. Louisville, who continues to rack up quality wins, inches closer to the #1 line, while Oklahoma is hurting badly in the style points department.

In the next two weeks, there will be heavy movement between the 4th and 9th seed lines, as many of these teams will face each other in the middle and latter stages of their conference tournaments. Meanwhile, nothing is shored up on the bubble. In a week that expected to see shrinkage in the number of teams vying for spots, we saw more teams join the fray. Though not in the field, Michigan, Providence, Oklahoma State and Washington State earned a closer look with some unexpected wins taking shape.

Normally, we look at the Last Four In. This time, let’s look at the Last Seven In, because that is when the headache of choosing these evenly matched teams begun.

* My 28th at-large bid, Virginia Tech, won a shocker at Littlejohn, and nearly overcame a horrible first 10 minutes against Duke to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. While only 7-7 and with bad losses against Seton Hall and Georgia, Tech has the look and feel of a tournament team, with road wins against Wake Forest and Clemson.

* My 29th at-large bid, Georgetown, added another quality win on a floor other than their own by defeating Villanova. This gave them a real chance at finishing 8-10 in the Big East, which would likely gain them the #11 seed in the Big East Tournament. Two wins, which is very possible, and they are in with no questions asked.

* My 30th at-large bid, Maryland, willed themselves to victory against NC State in a game they badly needed and that is the profile of a tournament team. Additionally, the Terrapins have elevated their play and now hold signature victories over two teams among my top 7 overall seeds. One point of information: Maryland’s inclusion meant that Miami would not be in the field as the ACC will not include a 9th team.

* My 31st at-large bid, Florida, is in a world of hurt. They have a weak SOS and their best win was against Washington on a neutral court in November. Two wins this week (see assumptions) and they have a puncher’s chance at the NCAA Tournament.

* My 32nd at-large bid, Notre Dame, is playing better despite not achieving results. If they defeat Villanova, then that gives them wins v. Louisville, Villanova, Texas (N), Georgetown, and @ Providence. All things considered, Mike Brey should consider investing in a tie. Seriously.

* My 33rd at-large bid, Arizona, disappointing this weekend in the Pacific Northwest. In a game that would have been an ornament on their resume, Arizona blew a double-digit second-half lead at Washington. That said, Arizona can keep its streak of tournament bids going, but they must first sweep Cal and Stanford. Good luck.

* My final at-large bid is Kansas State. Kansas State? If they can defeat Oklahoma State in Stillwater and do not slip up versus Colorado, they are certainly in, as that would give them a 10-6 clip with a split against Missouri and road wins against the #2-4 teams in the Big XII South.

As I said, this was the toughest Last Four Out decision that I have to make so far this season. As a result of unanticipated losses on Saturday and concern about how they will play in their remaining games, I omitted Kentucky and South Carolina, who both had little margin for error. As mentioned, not much separates those Last 7 In and the Last 9 Out (the 9th is Washington State).

Who Slid One Seed Line?
West Virginia, Penn State, Ohio State, Maryland

Who Benefited by One Seed Line?
Texas, Creighton, BYU, Florida

Key Assumptions This Week
* UConn wins at Pitt
* UNC defeats Duke
* Minnesota wins versus Michigan
* Virginia Tech splits against UNC (home) and Florida State (away)
* Georgetown sweeps St. John’s (away) and DePaul (home – does it matter?)
* Florida takes out Mississippi State in Starkville and Kentucky at home
* Notre Dame versus Villanova and St. John’s
* Arizona pulls out a Bay Area team sweep in Tucson
* Kansas State wins at least one of two at Oklahoma State and versus Colorado
* Maryland achieves a split versus Wake Forest and at Virginia

Next Update: Friday, March 6 (results ending Thursday, March 5)

If you have any questions, comments, or just wish to send a shout, shoot me a line at phashemi@gmail.com.

The Seedings
1: UConn (Big East), North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Duke (ACC)
2: Louisville, Oklahoma (Big XII), Michigan State (Big Ten), Wake Forest
3: Kansas, Villanova, Clemson, Memphis (C-USA)
4: Marquette, Washington (PAC 10), Xavier (A-10), Illinois
5: Florida State, Missouri, Purdue, Arizona State
6: Butler (Horizon), Syracuse, UCLA, Gonzaga (WCC)
7: California, Boston College, LSU (SEC), Texas
8: Wisconsin, Utah, West Virginia, Tennessee
9: Dayton, Minnesota, Creighton (MVC), BYU
10: Virginia Tech, Penn State, Davidson (Southern), Ohio State
11: Georgetown, Florida, Siena (Metro Atlantic), Notre Dame
12: UNLV (MWC), Maryland, Arizona, Kansas State
13: Utah State (WAC), Vermont (America East), Western Kentucky (Sun Belt), VCU (CAA)
14: North Dakota State (Summit), Buffalo (MAC), American (Patriot), Stephen F. Austin (Southland)
15: Cornell (Ivy), Weber State (Big Sky), VMI (Big South), Belmont (Atlantic Sun)
16: Robert Morris (Northeast), Tennessee-Martin (Ohio Valley), Morgan State (MEAC), Long Beach State (Big West), Alabama State (SWAC)

IN: Virginia Tech, Georgetown, Kansas State
OUT: Kentucky, Miami-FL, South Carolina

Last Four In: Florida, Notre Dame, Arizona, Kansas State
Last Four Out: Miami, Kentucky, South Carolina, Michigan
Next Four Out: Cincinnati, Providence, Oklahoma State, St. Mary’s

Seeding Summary (Multi-Bid Conferences Only in Order of Percentage)
ACC: 8/12
Big Ten: 7/11
Big East: 9/16
Pac-10: 5/10
Big XII: 5/12
Mountain West: 3/9
SEC: 3/12
A-10: 2/14

Mark Teixeira is going toward Beantown-wards

Junoyeop — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 02:29:32 GMT

As some of you may know, Mark Teixeira is one of the premier free agents out in the market this year. He is considered of the most consistent hitters in baseball and has been for the last couple years. Mark Teixeira has had a long journey so far in his potentially Hall of Fame career. He was drafted out of high school by the Red Sox, but did because he wanted to go to Georgia Tech. After becoming a Georgia Tech legend, Teixeira was drafted by the Texas Rangers and immediately made an impact, becoming 1 of the top prospects in the Rangers organization. He then bounced around from the Rangers to the Braves and finally the Angels, were he made his first playoff appearance. Mark Teixeira is a signing that will impact the Red Sox future to come. Here are some things Mark Teixeira will help do.

1. He will solidify one of the best young infields in baseball with Dustin Pedroia, Kevin Youkilis, Jed Lowrie and now Mark Teixeira

2.He potentially sets up Lars Anderson to come up and be the future DH of the future. After Big Papi's contract expires, Anderson, a top Red Sox prospect, will be able to fill Ortiz's shoes.

3.It sets up an unprecedented middle of the order, 2-7. Here is potentially the 2009 Red Sox Lineup,considering Jason Varitek Re-signs..

1.Jacoby Ellsbury

2.Dustin Pedroia

3.David Ortiz

4.Mark Teixeira

5.Kevin Youkilis

6.Jason Bay

7.JD Drew

8.Jed Lowrie

9.Jason Varitek If there is a better lineup currently in baseball, I would like them to stand up and object to my opinion that the Red Sox have the Best LINEUP IN BASEBALL!!!

If you would like to know more about Mark Teixeira's move to the Red Sox, please view the following links: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3780408 http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081218&content_id=3722397&vkey=hotstove2008&fext=.jsp http://www.thebostonchannel.com/sports/18311921/detail.html

A Long Season and a Wide Smile

Raptorsforum.com — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 17:17:08 GMT

If you consider Minerva???s wide smile as a representation of the entire history of the universe, then this pre-season cannot even take up a single charged electron hovering within a dimple. But it seems like we???ve experienced enough of it to cover everything that the waxing of her upper lip might have removed. I???m sure she doesn???t require such beautifying measures, but unwanted, bristly follicles stuck in wax, torn away from their life source, and tossed away unceremoniously, pretty much sums up how I feel about this last little bit of time reeled-off within the Raptor???s universe. Now is the regular season going to be much different? Will time continue to seem to drag on? I think it might. I reached a certain level of boredom last season already, that I never felt before. Coming back home on the subway and seeing young fans slumped in their seats, on the verge of assuming the fetal position, and not expressing sorrow over a disappointing loss, but rather over what might happen in the TJ-Jose saga in the weeks to come, exemplified how the excitement about the team within this community fell off substantially. Personally, I kept anticipating a decent winning streak, and there were tantalizing hints at those developing - but they just never materialized anymore than shapes of unicorns formed in the clouds. I expect this season to be quite the reverse in many ways. Jose is not only the singular floor-general, but he looks entirely comfortable as a leader on this team. And pre-season ugliness aside, I have to imagine that a lineup with Calderon, Bosh, O???Neal, and Parker, has to be able to create something more than a collection of individuals, and carry this team somewhere this season. When that winning streak finally materializes I am not going to be euphoric. This team should be able to gain enough of an identity that they will be able to systematically tally up one win after another, even if absolutely everything fails to go just right. It might take a little while to get to the point where they have a much wider margin for error, and a lesser tendency to make errors, but I???m thinking that it will happen, and that it will not be something to trigger enormous amounts of dopamine in my brain. Gone this season will be the whole nail-biting ???salami and cheese??? moments, along with an announcer that craves giving players nicknames that matchup with his favorite breakfast cereals (Captain Crunch, Golden Grahams, Special K, Snap Crackle and Pape). All of that stuff was getting old already anyhow. It has been all about the playoffs for some time now. Last season just never developed in any way that could ensure success against Orlando, or pretty much anybody else. This season, with Bosh seeing the game through new eyes post-olympics, and as a part of a viable tandem on both ends of the floor, and most importantly - with his good health allowing for proper role definition from CB4 on down - we should all sense a steady path to the playoffs. But it will likely be a slow, slow, steady path, making the interminable pre-season suddenly seem like a single gleam of light bouncing off of Minerva???s incisors. I might be wrong. The entire regular season might be charged with electricity. Maybe Sarah Palin shows up at the first game in Philly, trying to expand her base beyond hockey moms. And maybe Jose hits a three-pointer to open the scoring, throws up his familiar moose antlers, and the VP-wannabe feels compelled to shoot him in the **** and call out for the materials needed for a proper field-dressing. Maybe it just gets all the more exciting from there on in. Maybe Andrea takes to singing Figaro while driving to the basket and finishing with vicious dunks. Maybe Jamario jumps over Yao. All fun stuff, but not at all necessary to any degree to allow for us to see the season in it???s proper perspective. I???m simply planning to soak it in, game by game, and look to May for the real thrills. And that will not be something easy for me, or any of us I would guess, to settle into just yet. We???ll look for the bedpan at the end of the rainbow, the big weakness on the wings, the lack of depth on the bench, before finally seeing that this team is what it is, and that it might allow for some cautious optimism and a bright future. But there will be no ref to start the clock prematurely, and allow the history of the universe to unravel towards that future any sooner. It???s going to be a long season. *Courtesy of RaptorsForum member: LX*

Playoff Push on July 30th

Junoyeop — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 02:07:17 GMT

i found this on a website and i decided to share it. these are the paces teams were on at the trading deadline.see how accurate this actually was.

This post is a measure of who's projected to win all divisions plus the wild cards, and how far behind the rest of the teams are. For instance, Tampa Bay is in the AL East lead with 91 wins, but Boston is just a couple percentage points behind and also gains 91 wins. Any team over .500 in this measurement has a shot at the division title or wild card, but as the season draws nearer to the end, start focusing on teams in the .800s or .900s.

AL Division Championship Pace
1 - LAA - 1.0000 (97 - 65)
1 - TAM - 1.0000 (91 - 71)
1 - CHW - 1.0000 (89 - 73)
4 - BOS - 0.9743 (91 - 71)
5 - MIN - 0.8728 (88 - 74)
6 - NYY - 0.6567 (87 - 75)
7 - DET - 0.5363 (83 - 79)
8 - OAK - 0.4896 (82 - 80)
9 - TEX - 0.4604 (81 - 81)
10 - TOR - 0.2915 (83 - 79)
11 - CLE - 0.0549 (77 - 85)
12 - BAL - 0.0000 (79 - 83)
12 - KAN - 0.0000 (76 - 86)
12 - SEA - 0.0000 (68 - 94)

AL Wild Card Pace
1 - BOS - 1.0000 (91 - 71)
2 - MIN - 0.8758 (88 - 74)
3 - NYY - 0.8402 (87 - 75)
4 - DET - 0.6842 (83 - 79)
5 - TOR - 0.6565 (83 - 79)
6 - OAK - 0.6222 (82 - 80)
7 - TEX - 0.5850 (81 - 81)
8 - BAL - 0.5099 (79 - 83)
9 - CLE - 0.4102 (77 - 85)
10 - KAN - 0.3790 (76 - 86)
11 - SEA - 0.0000 (68 - 94)

NL Division Championship Pace
1 - CHC - 1.0000 (92 - 70)
1 - NYM - 1.0000 (85 - 77)
1 - ARI - 1.0000 (82 - 80)
4 - PHI - 0.9925 (85 - 77)
5 - LAD - 0.9731 (81 - 81)
6 - FLA - 0.8441 (81 - 81)
7 - ATL - 0.7288 (78 - 84)
8 - MIL - 0.6630 (86 - 76)
9 - COL - 0.6449 (76 - 86)
10 - STL - 0.5664 (85 - 77)
11 - SFO - 0.2926 (70 - 92)
12 - HOU - 0.0863 (77 - 85)
13 - PIT - 0.0528 (77 - 85)
14 - CIN - 0.0000 (76 - 86)
14 - SDG - 0.0000 (65 - 97)
14 - WAS - 0.0000 (59 - 103)

NL Wild Card Pace
1 - MIL - 1.0000 (86 - 76)
2 - PHI - 0.9548 (85 - 77)
3 - STL - 0.9438 (85 - 77)
4 - LAD - 0.8184 (81 - 81)
5 - FLA - 0.8120 (81 - 81)
6 - ATL - 0.7011 (78 - 84)
7 - HOU - 0.6643 (77 - 85)
8 - PIT - 0.6448 (77 - 85)
9 - CIN - 0.6140 (76 - 86)
10 - COL - 0.6122 (76 - 86)
11 - SFO - 0.3908 (70 - 92)
12 - SDG - 0.2070 (65 - 97)
13 - WAS - 0.0000 (59 - 103)

Im Back!!!

Junoyeop — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 22:46:48 GMT

Hi everyone. Its me Drainer with a new and improved look.With my new name Syk,i would love to improve Ur Typical Fans. me, being the creator of the group, has lost all of my priveledges to acess this group. Whoever is running this group now, i would like my group creator priveledges back and I would love to et this group up and running again. I was the one who got this group to third best on Fannation at one point and i would love to return the glory to UTF. This group was created to be an open group to be a community and open to an up and coming bloggers on Fannation. As this group got ove 150 people, i was rlly happy.When i came back today, i realized that this group had still not gotten over 300 people, which i feel is a disapointment. I would like everyone who reads this blog to help invite people to the group and help us get over 200 people and beyond. It would be great for the once elite group of Ur Typical Fans.

Once again, i would like to ask for my group creator priveledges back and i would love to get this group back to glory.

Sincerely,

Syk(formerly known as Drainer)

The Beginning is Nigh

Raptorsforum.com — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 13:25:57 GMT

Courtesy of RaptorsForum member LX --------------------------------------------------------- Anytime now, somewhere in Switzerland, the Large Hadron Collider will bang a bunch of lead ions together in the hopes of learning how the universe began. This big atom smasher might also start a chain reaction causing the whole world to melt into a mucky glob of dark matter, or so the worry has been expressed, and predicted, perhaps in more sophisticated terms, but no less scary. Who wants to make such a prediction? You can only be wrong and live to tell about it. Come to think about it, this whole idea changes the way I look at predictions on the upcoming NBA season. Let???s assume we???re all going to go poof thanks to a scenario not unlike the igniting of Solarburnite as explained in Plan 9 from Outer Space. That would mean we should take the observations about the upcoming season as the next best thing to experiencing a season that, in reality, or bad b-movies come to life, will never be. So enjoy! I???m going to say the Raptors will have a shot at winning it all. Take that and run with it. Run down Yonge Street naked. Enjoy it while you can. And if we???re all still here next week, well then you get the added bonus of watching the games. Although by discovering the beginnings and all of the workings of the universe, quantum physics will quite likely throw all basketball scenarios off-kilter, even if they don't kill us all. Let???s say the Swiss harness just enough dark matter to counteract a force like Dwight Howard. And this bit of anti-Howard makes freethrows. They might become the greatest basketball nation on earth and eclipse our NBA. David Stern will think that at least the hip-hop influence will have been effectively combatted, and that instead of relying on the lame swing stylings of the Pussycat Dolls to really catch on, he can be sure that yodeling will be the perfect soundtrack to all the action this game supplies. One way or another - quantum physics is going to mess things up. So why go into the prognostications in-depth? I just won???t do it. But since it???s hurricane season, and there???s nothing but one cone of uncertainty showing up after another, I think I can use that model to predict what probably won???t be such a disaster in New Orleans (again - barring the effects of quantum physics). Yeah - I know. All the hurricanes are terrible things, and I shouldn???t make light of the death and destruction. But up against a Hadron Collider???s mishaps, they seem apt for sports metaphors. And it allows me to skim over a season-to-be in the way a weather-forecaster glances over monstrous storms. I see a few storms brewing in the Atlantic, another in central Florida, and somehow there???s some tropical-force winds blowing off the Great Lakes. (Why is there not a Great Lakes division?) Which ones will make their way into the Gulf of Mexico. Which team from the East will blow into the home of what I???m calling the champs of the west right off (mostly just for the sake of a metaphor, and my love of Chris Paul)? Well let???s look at the cone of uncertainty for Toronto. They could be the team to blow in from the Atlantic. But then look and you'll see that the cone widens out pretty dramatically as it approaches the Gulf, and actually covers the possibility of drifting out to the middle of the Atlantic and dying out. Like with any storm, the direction taken will depend on whether other systems steer it one way or the other. The most resistance will come most likely from pressure in the form of four other teams. Boston, Detroit, Cleveland, and Orlando all have established high-pressure systems in place. It???s not hard to say that each of them could find themselves in the 50-60 win range. And still with each of them, there are questions that make me think the Raptors might put a small scare into the good citizens of New Orleans for at least a brief time. Boston won it all. Do they have the same desire to win this time around? They definitely do not have James Posey, who is already in New Orleans waiting. I???m thinking they still win big, but prove much more vulnerable to Highs and Lows than last season. Detroit petered-out again last season, with the future of the franchise - Mr. Prince - withering just as badly as the previous year when his team needed him the most. There is a vacuum of leadership that still hangs over that team as much as when Ben Wallace left. And now they have threats of a shakeup that might only be threats or might bring an even greater vacuum. And they have an unproven rookie coach to make things right this time. But then Flip was just a coach in name only apparently. It just feels like too many storm clouds and no thunder and lightning. Cleveland can come up big in the playoffs, but they are so unbalanced that there is no saying what direction they will take. They even lost something defensively last season, so they count on Lebron as much as ever. It???s nice that they found themselves a point guard, but now Mo Williams has to figure out how he can be effective while teams are playing off of Ben Wallace or Anderson Varejao. It will be interesting to see whether Lebron ends up being a point forward again, or not. And whether or not they peak at the right time. They are built like a playoff team on paper, and their regular season record might not matter so much. You know Lebron will show up. But if they???re not quite right by the time the post-season arrives, and still can???t find the right ways to compliment Lebron then they???ll fight the kind of uphill battle that their record would indicate they should. And Orlando comes off a season where they played a lot of close games, learning how to play in the crunch, but also raising some questions as to how some of those games got close to start with. They also lacked a certain amount of leadership. Back in January I watched them blow a 20 point lead to the Nets. Actually it wasn???t the Nets, because there wasn???t anyone on that team putting in any kind of effort until Darryl Armstrong hit the floor. Yep - that???s right - Orlando allowed themselves to be beaten by an old geezer all on his own, with a 20-point cushion to fall back on. A lack of leadership do you think? They have a nice front-court, but a backcourt that has questionably only gotten weaker over last season, and a defensive intensity that is entirely hit-and-miss. All of the above makes them very susceptible to losing ground over the marathon of a season. So even though the East is stronger, and almost entirely competitive with the West, there is no one or two teams that seem like sure bets. I???m guessing that three of the four teams at the top of the conference slip a little and let Toronto, and maybe Philly or Washington to surge upwards. From there who knows? Toronto began the last two seasons with very few weaknesses to worry about going in. At least none that couldn???t be fluffed over by looking at the overall depth, and the growing signs of leadership and chemistry that so many teams lack. And yet nobody saw them with any great strengths that they could rely on through a whole season and into the playoffs. They lacked Boston???s desire and dominance at a number of positions, Detroit???s experience as a team, Cleveland???s King, and Orlando???s front-court. Now they have Jermaine O???Neal and Bosh together forming a pretty formidable eye-wall that will not die out so soon. And so if they find themselves over warm waters, with the more established teams weakening here and there, and get a good playoff seeding, they have a chance to, as they say, wreak havoc. I look forward to watching the games and I hope to see that cone of uncertainty narrow as the schedule plays out. Quantum Physics be damned!

NFL Draft Sleepers

Ny — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 01:16:26 GMT

After a week of college football there were a few players who caught my eye, from a ball hawk safety to a speedy back ive got a few who will hear there name on draft day

Brandon Pettigrew - The Best tight end in the draft, I know your thinking what about Chase Coffman but Brandon has better hands and is a better blocker. Last year he had 35 catches for over 500 yards and four tds which shows the kind of player he really is considering he was caching balls thrown from an average qb. Pettigrew is by far the fastest tight end in this years class which is loaded with future starters like Jermaine Gresham and Travis Beckum. Brandon would be a first round pick if it wasent for him assaulting a police officer (by elbowing his chest) which may even drop him into the early third round but the risk that someone takes, they surely wont regret

Devin Moore is another back from a non bcs school who will have a big impact in the NFL. Hes a small back at 5'11, 191 pounds but what he lacks in size he makes up for in raw speed. He is a great returner and has returned a few for touchdowns in his career. Moore is the next Leon Washington and a great value in the fourth round

LaMarcus Coker was Tennesses leading rusher a few years back but was kicked off the team due to falling a few drug test. Since then he has joined Hampton and is doing pretty good. With that being siad he is one of the fastest runners in this draft running around a 4.26 which by any standards is amazing. For that reason he will be drafted in the late seventh round and has the potential to be a special back in the NFL that is if he can kick his drug addiction

Darcel McBath is going to be an impact safety in the NFL. Running a 4.45 he has the speed to track down backs when there in open field and come scross field to make a tackle on a receiver and would be a great pickup in the fourth round though he is a better fit at corner kinda like a Dwight Lowery

Ur Typical Fans Blogging Tourney

Ny — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 13:27:23 GMT

Since we havent had one for a few months lets have an eight man blogging tourney, all you have to do once you join is send me the blog that you would like to be entered and ill do the rest