Folks, it has been an odd summer. I am sitting in the South on a Saturday afternoon in July and the temperature hasn't (and won't) hit 80. The NBA's offseason has calmed and a lot of people can't get very excited about a Nationals/Padres game on a Tuesday night. Alas, I have good news. College football is only seven (7!) weeks away! We've already started trying to appease you with our Conference previews, but every Saturday one of us (whoever thinks of it first) will give you a taste of what Saturdays in the fall look like at the Stadium Drives compound.
Starting September 5th, you all can expect:
Lots of trash talking
Grubby putting more orange on this site than should be legally allowed
Michigan's return to prominence
Kentucky's QB play to be shaky at best
Posts in the middle of the day bemoaning awful coaching decisions
Florida to be very, very good
Arguments with no end
Ian writing about Dicky Lyons Jr. (even though he's not at UK anymore)
All those things, and much more. Come on, it's only seven weeks. If we all band together we should be able to make it through.
As July slides gracefully to a close and August ramps up, you won't be able to throw a miniature rubber football in any direction without hitting a pre-season position/player/team ranking of some kind. Putting a 2009 value on something before the first ball is snapped or field goal missed (I'm looking at you Daniel Lincoln) does one thing and one thing only: keeps us sane until September, when we can back up our misapplied value systems with actual statistics.
Today I'd like to take my stab at an SEC quarterback ranking for something a little more applicable during these hot and lazy summer months. Best Beer-lympics event partners.
As I write this, it's been exactly one month since the Lakers capped a terrific season with their 15th NBA championship. Since that day, we've seen a wild offseason ensue, with moves ranging from questionable to downright bizarre.
Ron Artest and Rasheed Wallace, arguably the two most combustible personalities in the league, have joined the Lakers and Celtics respectively as they seek championships. Shaquille O'Neal is set to become The Big Witness as he hopes to help LeBron get his first ring. Trevor Ariza parlays his terrific postseason into a nice contract with Houston, where he likely won't get the chance next year to play with Yao Ming, whose foot injury may sideline him for all of 2009-10. The Magic, who were three wins away from a title, have dramatically altered their lineup with the addition of Vince Carter and Brandon Bass, as well as the loss of Hedo Turkoglu. Things have gotten so crazy that Allen Iverson, a future Hall-of-Famer who is desperate for a ring, is set to join either the Clippers or the Grizzlies, two of the worst teams in the league. And we haven't even mentioned the draft, where the Timberwolves spent three first round picks on point guards.
With that in mind, here's a look at some of the wildest off-season stories.
The West get stronger: In today's NBA, if you're not moving forward, you're falling behind. That's why the Spurs, who won 54 games last year, shook up their lineup with the addition of scorer Richard Jefferson, who should provide an instant burst of energy. Not standing pat, the Lakers went out and acquired Artest, whose toughness and defensive ability should make him an instant fan favorite...as long as he stays on his best behavior. Not to be outdone, the Mavericks worked out a deal for Shawn Marion, giving them an important piece as they hope to move into the upper echelon of the conference. Denver has been relatively quiet so far, but still acquired Arron Afflalo to fill Dahntay Jones' role and also worked out a trade for speedy PG Ty Lawson on draft night. With Portland and Utah also looking to make moves, it's safe to say the West will again be a battleground next season.
It wasn't enough nearly ruining the most storied college basketball program in the country. It wasn't enough starting Mark Coury for almost an entire season. It wasn't enough offering scholarships to players who now can't get an offer to a team in a major conference. It also wasn't enough alienating one of the most passionate fanbases in sports. No, Billy Gillispie seems to have trumped all of those feats with his latest venture.
Rick Bozich of the Courier Journal reports that Gillispie is penning, "The Billy Gillispie Story." Let that sink in for just a moment.
Here are some possible chapter titles:
Merrick Inn Has the Greatest Pool in Lexington!
Getting Kicked Out of Desha's
My Date With Jeanine Edwards
How I Got Back at Jeanine Edwards for Not Putting Out
My Night Out on the Town With Bruce Pearl
24 Year-Olds Will Do Anything, I Repeat Anything If You Coach at UK
Sleeping With Your Players' Girlfriends for Beginners
Hanging Around Too Long: April 2009-June 2009 in Lexington
I'm not sure if you ever saw a Gillispie press conference, but if his writing skills are on par with his orating this book should be read at a 2nd grade level.
Tonight's big event is the Midsummer Classic, the MLB All Star game in St. Louis. As a college sports blog we wondered how many players starting the game tonight actually played college ball. It was actually more than we thought. The roster and our take on the players after the jump.
The guys over at Ridiculous Upside have put together a nice, thorough look at the NBA Summer League in Orlando. There are several "hey-I-remember-him" guys recapped, and one in particular from my alma mater.
Former Tennessee star, and all-time SEC 3 point record holder Chris Lofton spent the last few weeks in game action with the Celtics, after burning up the Turkish league last year.
From RU:
He came into camp with a reputation as a good three-point shooter, and Summer League only emphasized that - he made 60 percent of his threes. He didn't really offer much else, with a combined five rebounds, three assists and three steals in five games, but he also didn't turn the ball over (four total), and he had the best free-throw percentage on Boston's entire roster, a respectable 89 percent. If teams are looking for an outside shooter, Lofton is one of the best prospects coming out of Orlando.
Fellow SEC alum (and '08 second round Warrior pick) Richard Hendrix spent the league with the Magic and has a legitimate shot to make a Magic roster with Gortat off to Dallas this offseason.
Now underway for the "League hopefuls" is NBA Las Vegas.
This one may have slipped under your radar, not having the pomp and grandeur of the USA Men's team winning the Gold in China. That's okay because anyone who's not a fan of Washington State (x2!), Duke, Kentucky, Pitt, Butler (x2!), UTEP, Northwestern, Kansas, Georgia, or Ole Miss probably didn't pay a lot of attention to the US Under 19 basketball team. You should have though, because this team dominated international competition in the World Under 19's.
Young men under 19 years old went to battle with their country's logo on their chest in the past two weeks and brought home another gold medal. Amongst them were SEC players Darius Miller (UK), Howard Thompkins (UGA), and Terrico White (Ole Miss). The SEC contingent added 23 points, 2 assists (12 total by Miller), and 10.7 rebounds per game for the US team. That's not bad representation.
The US team outplayed their opponents to the tune of an average 88-66 score. They showed dominance against the lesser teams in the tournament and outlasted Greece in the finals by 8, their second win over the Greek team. Let's all congratulate our boys and realize that this is an important win on the international level. While it's not up to the level of the Beijing gold we have to feel like the future of USA basketball is in capable hands with the non professionals for now.
On a personal note: congrats to the Wildcat Darius Miller on the championship. Get used to high expectations young man!
Perhaps the Mountain West should be known as the Equal Rights Conference this year, seeing as how they resorted to using Congress to try to sort out the BCS mess...apparently feeling that the enormous recession and ridiculous unemployment rates were not enough for our representatives to tackle. More than six months after Utah surprisngly dismantled Alabama in the Sugar Bowl, those loveable little Utes just won't quit yapping about a fair system and level playing ground for everyone.
Tennessee athletics director Mike Hamilton agreed to a new contract this week. The terms of the new deal equate to about a 43% raise and will put him in the top 10 of AD salaries across the NCAA.
From the Knoxville News-Sentinel,
"Interim UT president Jan Simek praised Hamilton’s ability to make tough decisions in recent years.
Since succeeding Doug Dickey in 2003, Hamilton has replaced the head coach in basketball, baseball and, most recently, football, while keeping the UTAD financially solvent."
Florida's Jeremy Foley is the highest paid AD in the land, according to SportsBusiness Daily. To us, that ranking makes sense. Florida has a top 3 football program, a top 5 baseball program and a top 30 basketball program... and are well above the poverty line when it comes to ticket and logo sales.
Quick sports fan, name the biggest event in the sports world this weekend. Nope, not the John Deere Classic (do they win a tractor for playing the best 72 holes of golf?). If you said Yankees/Angels you would also be wrong. Here's a tip, it's awful bloody, can end in less than 3 minutes (something I've never done), and draws one of the most loyal followings in all of sports. Give up? Try UFC 100 on for size.
This event in Las Vegas this weekend is sure to be sports' biggest draw. UFC has been growing like early 2000's NASCAR and it will all culminate with Brock Lesner taking on Fank Mir for the heavyweight title. Follow along after the jump for a little bit about these guys.
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Ron Artest and Rasheed Wallace, arguably the two most combustible personalities in the league, have joined the Lakers and Celtics respectively as they seek championships. Shaquille O'Neal is set to become The Big Witness as he hopes to help LeBron get his first ring. Trevor Ariza parlays his terrific postseason into a nice contract with Houston, where he likely won't get the chance next year to play with Yao Ming, whose foot injury may sideline him for all of 2009-10. The Magic, who were three wins away from a title, have dramatically altered their lineup with the addition of Vince Carter and Brandon Bass, as well as the loss of Hedo Turkoglu. Things have gotten so crazy that Allen Iverson, a future Hall-of-Famer who is desperate for a ring, is set to join either the Clippers or the Grizzlies, two of the worst teams in the league. And we haven't even mentioned the draft, where the Timberwolves spent three first round picks on point guards.
It wasn't enough nearly ruining the most storied college basketball program in the country. It wasn't enough starting Mark Coury for almost an entire season. It wasn't enough offering scholarships to players who now can't get an offer to a team in a major conference. It also wasn't enough alienating one of the most passionate fanbases in sports. No, Billy Gillispie seems to have trumped all of those feats with his latest venture.
Tonight's big event is the Midsummer Classic, the MLB All Star game in St. Louis. As a college sports blog we wondered how many players starting the game tonight actually played college ball. It was actually more than we thought. The roster and our take on the players after the jump.
This one may have slipped under your radar, not having the pomp and grandeur of the USA Men's team winning the Gold in China. That's okay because anyone who's not a fan of Washington State (x2!), Duke, Kentucky, Pitt, Butler (x2!), UTEP, Northwestern, Kansas, Georgia, or Ole Miss probably didn't pay a lot of attention to the US Under 19 basketball team. You should have though, because this team dominated international competition in the World Under 19's.
Quick sports fan, name the biggest event in the sports world this weekend. Nope, not the John Deere Classic (do they win a tractor for playing the best 72 holes of golf?). If you said Yankees/Angels you would also be wrong. Here's a tip, it's awful bloody, can end in less than 3 minutes (something I've never done), and draws one of the most loyal followings in all of sports. Give up? Try UFC 100 on for size.
Bloguin is the revolutionary blog network specifically focused on helping bloggers get the most out of their websites. We're currently working on building a large network of online communities and hope to expand our blogging coverage to include a wide range of topics. 
The Bloguin Network allows advertisers to promote their products and services to our ever-growing number of visitors. We offer both site-specific ad placements as well as the ability to run a network-wide campaign. If you're interested in working with Bloguin to meet your advertising needs, please contact us.
The Bloguin Network is always looking to expand. We're specifically looking for blogs in the sports, entertainment, and video games field, but are open to adding any type of quality site.. If you're a blogger and interested in joining our network, please fill out our application form.
The Bloguin Login gives you full access to everything our network has to offer. Your name and password will work for each and every one of our sites. Signing up is simple, and will allow you to post in all our forums, create member blogs, and access other cool features! What are you waiting for? Create an Account! 