Sunday, January 29, 2012
Things Will Be Changing on Ed Bagley's Blog in the Near Future
Copyright © 2012 Ed Bagley
Look for some significant changes to Ed Bagley's Blog in the next few weeks. After more than 5 years, 970 original articles by myself, and 482 guest articles, my blog is going to get a major facelift.
Since its inception, my blog has remained a Front Page 2003 project in website construction.
The positive of this form of website construction has been that I could build it myself without having any real technical skill, and be able to post articles on it without help from far more talented technical people than myself.
The negative has been that it has what is called a "frames" construction, meaning that, the page you are looking at is really 5 pages. The header at the top is a page, each of the 3 columns below is a separate page, and the 4 pages together make up another page. Search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing do not like frames pages, so they ignore these websites in their listings and ranking of popular sites.
Ed Bagley Blog, for example, has never benefited from what the tech heads call SEO--search engine optimization. Despite not having the advantage of being listed in popular search engines, Ed Bagley Blog--at its height--drew more than 5 million viewers in a year. That's pretty impressive for a no-nothing site.
Once rebuilt, Ed Bagley's Blog will reappear as a WordPress site that will be picked up by search engines, have an RSS feed, and probably get more viewers from traditional sources such as the search engines online.
Hopefully, the rebuild site will be much more inviting and friendly to viewers. I confess that I am really a writer, and not a web-construction whiz. I do not want to be technically competent, or outstanding in that field. I want to write, and hopefully have people enjoy reading what I have to say, whether they agree with me or not. The idea is to exchange ideas and thoughts, thus promoting online conversation.
I hope you will come along for the ride, because I do not intent to park the car for some time. You might call it unfinished business on my part.
Make yourself a great day, and remember that you are about as happy as you want to be.
Friday, January 20, 2012
Ed Bagley's 2011 Final Top 25 Poll
Clearly, Let There Be No Doubt, the Crimson Tide of Alabama Are No. 1
Copyright © 2012 Ed Bagley
What a year. College football in 2011 saw tons of scoring and very little defense. Only 1 undefeated team at the regular season's end (LSU at 13-0). And for the first time ever, two teams from the same SEC West Division (#1 LSU and #2 Alabama) played for the BCS national championship.
Following is my Final Top 25 Poll for the 2011 season, and why I picked them the way that I did.
A couple of thoughts first. 1) All references to rankings in my poll are based on the Final AP Top 25 Poll and not the Coaches Poll or the BCS Standings. 2) In addition to won-loss records, I place a lot of importance on how teams played against other Top 25 teams during the regular season. 3) How did the team react under the bright lights, intense scrutiny, and pressure of their bowl game.
The fact that Houston, for example, ended the season at 13-1, had one opportunity to play a Top 25 team and lost against Southern Mississippi in the Conference USA championship game, and scored a big victory over an unranked Penn State team in its bowl game, does not impress me.
The fact that both the AP and Coaches Polls had Alabama #1, LSU #2, Oklahoma State #3, Oregon #4 and Arkansas #5 does not really influence me either.
Drum roll please.
1) Alabama (12-1) – Fans can argue that Oklahoma State should have played LSU in the BCS title game, and the fact that the Cowboys had 3 victories against Top 25 teams before beating #7 Stanford in the Fiesta Bowl, but the Crimson Tide did lose to #1 LSU 9-6 in the regular season and sported an 11-1 record before meeting LSU for a second time. The point is, when given a second chance, Alabama shut out LSU 21-0 and made it darn clear who was the better team in the BCS title game. Oklahoma State may have run up 41 points on Stanford; it's doubtful the Cowboys could have done the same against Alabama's defense, which turned out to be the best in the nation in all 4 critical categories—rushing defense, passing defense, total defense and scoring defense.
2) LSU (13-1) – Is LSU the 2nd best team? I think this is also clear. The Tigers were the only undefeated team in the regular season that played 5 Top 25 teams and beat every one of them--#1 Alabama, #4 Oregon, #5 Arkansas, #17 West Virginia and #19 Georgia. No other team played and beat 4 Top 25 teams, and only two—Oklahoma State and Clemson—beat even 3 top teams during the regular season. LSU had a chance to go down as one of the greatest teams in NCAA history, but unfortunately, the Tigers really struggled in the BCS title game. LSU still had a sensational season by any other standard.
3) Oklahoma State (12-1) – The Cowboys only lost once, beat 3 Top 25 teams, and polished off #7 Stanford 41-38 in the Fiesta Bowl. While Oregon, Arkansas or Southern California could have been #3 on my list, each of these teams had only 1 win against other Top 25 teams.
4) Arkansas (11-2) – The Razorbacks lost twice, to #1 Alabama and #2 LSU, and beat #15 Kansas State 29-16 in the Cotton Bowl. I doubt that either Oregon, Southern Cal or any other team would have fared any better against Alabama and LSU during regular season play.
5) Oregon (12-2) – Oregon lost its first game of the season to LSU, and its second loss came against Southern Cal. The Ducks beat a physical Wisconsin team, 45-38, to win the Rose Bowl. Oregon's no-huddle, hurry-up spread offense was something to watch. The Ducks also beat #7 Stanford on the road, 53-30.
6) Michigan State (11-3) – Beat 2 Top 25 teams (#10 Wisconsin and #12 Michigan), and took down SEC's Georgia 33-30 in the Outback Bowl. The Spartans had the 6th best total defense in the nation. No other team had at least 2 big wins against better competition, and that includes Southern Cal, Stanford, Boise State, South Carolina, Wisconsin, Michigan and Baylor to name a few.
7) South Carolina (11-3) – Beat 2 Top 25 teams and polished off #24 Nebraska 30-13 in the Capital One Bowl. Can't put Southern Cal, Stanford or Boise State ahead of the Gamecocks because none of these teams had 2 wins against Top 25 teams, USC did not play a bowl game because of NCAA sanctions, Stanford lost its bowl game to Oklahoma State, and all Boise State could do was beat an unranked, mediocre Arizona State team in the Maaco Bowl.
8) Wisconsin (11-3) – Beat 2 Top 25 teams, and did lose to #4 Oregon in the Rose Bowl, but only by a touchdown, 38-45. The Badgers lost to Michigan State during the regular season, but did beat the Spartans for the Big Ten title.
9) Stanford (11-2) – Beat only 1 Top 25 team (#6 Southern Cal 56-48 in overtime), and did lose to Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl, but only by a field goal, 41-38.
10) Southern California (10-2) – Beat only 1 Top 25 team (#4 Oregon on the road 38-35), and was not eligible for a bowl because of NCAA sanctions. Should have played Oregon for the Pacific 12 Conference title, but was not eligible for that game either. At the end of the year, no one wanted to play USC, and for good reason—the Trojans may well have beaten any team in the country except Alabama or LSU.
11) Michigan (11-2) – The Wolverines turned out to be one of the biggest surprises of the season. They were 7-6 last year and won 11 games this year, including 1 win over a Top 25 team (Nebraska), and a 23-20 Sugar Bowl victory over #21 Virginia Tech.
12) Baylor (10-3) – The Bears had 2 wins over Top 25 teams (TCU and Oklahoma) and outlasted unranked Washington, 67-56, in the Alamo Bowl. Baylor, like Oregon, was all offense, led by the 2011 Heisman Trophy winner, Robert Griffin III (or RG3). Baylor had losses to Kansas State and Oklahoma State, both ranked teams, which is more than Boise State can claim, having played only 1 ranked team all year.
13) Boise State (12-1) – Had 1 win over a Top 25 team and a 56-24 win over unranked Arizona State in the Maaco Bowl.
14) Oklahoma (10-3) – The Sooners had 2 wins over Top 25 teams, and beat unranked Iowa 31-14 in the Insight Bowl.
15) Southern Mississippi (12-2) – Beat #18 Houston, 49-28, for the Conference USA title, and then beat unranked Nevada, 24-17, in the Hawaii Bowl.
16) Georgia (10-4) – Lost to Boise State, South Carolina and to LSU in the SEC championship game. Then lost to Michigan State in the Outback Bowl, but only by a field goal, 33-30.
17) Nebraska (9-4) – Lost to Wisconsin, Northwestern and Michigan, beat Michigan State at home, and lost 13-30 to South Carolina in the Capital One Bowl.
18) TCU (11-2) – Upset #8 Boise State and beat unranked Louisiana Tech by a touchdown, 31-24, in the Poinsettia Bowl.
19) Kansas State (10-3) – Beat Baylor, but lost to Arkansas 16-29 in the Cotton Bowl.
20) West Virginia (10-3) – Beat 1 Top 25 team, and clobbered #22 Clemson, 70-33, in the Orange Bowl.
21) Virginia Tech (11-3) – One of 5 teams that did not beat a single team in the final AP Top 25 Poll. The others were Georgia, Houston, Florida State and Cincinnati. Lost to Michigan in the Sugar Bowl, but only by a field goal, 20-23.
22) Houston (13-1) – Could not beat a Top 25 team, but did beat unranked Penn State 30-14 in the TicketCity Bowl. Houston, with 13 wins, is a modest team with great stats, and much to be modest about.
23) Florida State (9-4) – Could not beat a Top 25 team, but did beat unranked Notre Dame 18-14 in the Champs Sports Bowl after the Irish blew a 14-point lead.
24) Cincinnati (10-3) – Could not beat a Top 25 team, but did beat unranked Vanderbilt 31-24 in the Liberty Bowl (please, stop laughing).
25) Clemson (10-4) – The Tigers did beat 3 Top 25 teams during the regular season (including Virginia Tech twice), but lost to West Virginia 33-70 in the Orange Bowl. Yikes, what an ending to Clemson's season of hope.
I would be the first to admit that my last 8 picks are not really top caliber teams. You could argue that none of them should be in a Top 25 list of really good teams. However, it is a Top 25 list that I am picking. Maybe the caliber of teams will be better next year. If any of them learn how to play defense, that would be a start to improvement.
2011 College Bowl Game Wrap-Up
Copyright © 2012 Ed Bagley
National Championship Game:
Alabama's Defense Stifles and Then Snuffs Out LSU 21-Zip as the Crimson Tide Win Their 2nd BCS Title in 3 Years
The first football coach who declared that "defense wins championships" realized that his opponent could not score if his defense kept them off the field. That first coach was not Nick Saban of Alabama, but Saban was listening intently when he first heard it said, and the evidence of that was the 2011 BCS national championship game.
Alabama's defense held LSU's offense to 92 total yards and 5 first downs, no touchdowns and no field goals while getting 4 sacks, an interception and a fumble recovery—that's an average gain of 2.09 yards on 44 attempts by LSU.
Did I mention that #2-ranked Alabama beat #1-ranked LSU 21-0, posting the first shutout in the 14-year history of the BCS playoff system. It was Alabama's 2nd national championship in 3 years, and Nick Saban became the first coach to win 3 BCS national championships, and became the only active coach with 3 national titles.
Saban led LSU to the title in 2003, and Alabama in 2009. His lifetime record is 146-54 (73%).
LSU had beaten 8 ranked teams on its way to a perfect 13-0 mark on its way to the BCS title game, including Alabama 9-6 in a defensive struggle during the regular season. The Tigers' offense did not show up for the title game because the Crimson Tide defense did not let them—that's what a defense can do in a national championship game.
Jeremy Shelley tied a bowl record with 5 field goals, and Trent Richardson finally scored a touchdown with 4:36 remaining in the 4th quarter to really put the game away. Richardson gained 96 yards on 20 carries (4.8 YPC).
The Tide's AJ McCarron was the offensive MVP, completing 23 of 34 passes (67%) for 234 yards and no interceptions. 'Bama's Courtney Upshaw as the defensive MVP; he had 7 tackles, a sack and spent most of his night in the LSU backfield. Upshaw was joined by Dont'a Hightower, both linebackers, in stopping both LSU's running and passing game.
So, in a game that started with the betting line even, Alabama (12-1) beat LSU (13-1) by 21 points for the national title. Alabama was also No. 1 in both the final BCS Poll and AP Top 25 Poll.
Famous Football Quotes by Knute Rockne, the Great Notre Dame Coach
Copyright © 2008 Ed Bagley
College football's annual bowl season is full of surprises and spectacular
moments. Famous coaches have had some memorable remarks about American's most
popular sport, and here are some of them by legendary Notre Dame coach Knute
Rockne, who many consider to be the best of the best.
Knute Rockne's head coaching record in college football was second to none, and
his won-loss percentage is better than any other college or pro coach ever.
In 13 years with the Notre
Dame Fighting Irish, Rockne's regular season won-loss percentage was 90%
(105-12-5), his winning percentage among all games was 86%, and he led Notre
Dame to 6 national championships, winning titles in 1919 (9-0), 1920 (9-0), 1924
(10-0), 1927 (7-1-1), 1929 (9-0) and 1930 (10-0). Five of his 6 national
championships came from undefeated teams.
Along the way he coached the immortal George "Gipper" Gipp, whose multiple
skills lifted Notre Dame to national fame, and the "Four Horsemen" backfield of
Harry Stuhldreher, Don Miller, Jim Crowley and Elmer Layden that led the
Fighting Irish to a 28-2 record.
While covering a Notre Dame football game, sportswriter Grantland Rice penned
the famous opening story line—"Outlined against a blue-gray October sky, the
Four Horsemen rode again"—that has become legend in sports history.
Rockne's influence on the game
of football was immense. He is credited with helping popularize the forward
pass, initiating intersectional rivalries, building a national schedule, and
instituting the "Rockne Shift", a backfield T formation that quickly shifted
into a box formation to the right or left as the ball was snapped.
Rockne was also the first coach to realize the market potential of football as
an entertainment medium and openly promoted Notre Dame football by courting the
media for free advertising so Notre Dame's football program would be financially
successful.
Knute Rockne was a Norwegian immigrant who graduated magna cum laude from Notre
Dame in 1914, played end for the Fighting Irish that defeated the highly-ranked
Army team for the first time in 1913, and was a graduate assistant in chemistry
before eventually becoming Notre Dame's head coach in 1918. A Protestant, he
converted to Catholicism later in life.
Following his undefeated, 6th national championship team in 1930, Rockne died at
age 43 as a passenger in a tragic Fokker airplane accident that would help
revolutionize the transportation business and lead to the all-metal Boeing 247
aircraft. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1951 as a
charter member.
Here are some of Knute
Rockne's best known quotes:
"Four years of football are calculated to breed in the average man more of the
ingredients of success in life than almost any academic course he takes."
"At home we're the hosts, and I never liked the idea of being embarrassed in
front of our friends."
"On the road we're somebody
else's guests – and we play in a way that they're not going to forget we visited
them."
"We count on winning. And if we lose, don't beef. And the best way to prevent
beefing is – don't lose."
"Let's win one for the Gipper."
"I've found that prayers work
best when you have big players."
"It isn't necessary to see a good tackle. You can hear it."
"One loss is good for the soul, too many losses is not good for the coach."
"Show me a good and gracious
loser and I'll show you a failure."
"Yes, I know that you feel you are not strong enough. That's what the enemy
thinks too. But we're gonna fool them."
"The secret is to work less as
individuals and more as a team. As a coach, I play not my eleven best, but my
best eleven."
"One man practicing sportsmanship is better than a hundred teaching it."
"Most men, when they think they are thinking, are merely rearranging their
prejudices."