Happy New Year everyone! If you're still reading this blog, I appreciate it a lot. I know the frequency of my posts has rolled over and died since the baseball season ended (and since I started working five days a week, including Saturday, Sunday and Monday--football days), but there's a lot going on right now.
First off, the Texas Christian University Horned Frogs won one for "little guys everywhere" last night in the Rose Bowl, as the #3 Frogs beat the #5 Wisconsin Badgers, 21-19, in a game that came down to Frogs linebacker Tank Carder deflecting a pass attempt on a Badgers' two point conversion attempt. TCU had only fleeting success stopping Wisconsin's electric running game, and they got some yards through the air, but TCU QB Andy Dalton (who, in four years, had a record of 42-7 as a starter) made sure, with his arms, legs, and directions, that they held on. Last year, a previously undefeated season (12-0) ended in disappointment with a blowout loss to Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl. This year, TCU won big, ending 13-0, and establishing itself as a BCS powerhouse.
Other winners in Bowl Games included Mississippi State over Michigan, Alabama clobbering Michigan State 49-7, Florida (and Urban Meyer) beating Penn State (and Joe Paterno), and Oklahoma over Connecticut. Tomorrow night (Monday), the Virginia Tech Hokies take on the Stanford Cardinal (and Heisman runner-up QB Andrew Luck) in the Orange Bowl.
About a minute ago, the Seattle Seahawks sewed up/patched up/eeked out/backed into a playoff berth with a 7-9 record thanks to a 16-6 win over the even more hapless St. Louis Rams. The Seahawks, with former Super Bowl participant quarterback Matt Hasselbeck out with a hip injury, won the lowly NFC West with the victory over rookie QB Sam Bradford and the Rams.
So, here are the playoff matchups:
AFC
New York Jets vs. Indianapolis Colts
Baltimore Ravens vs. Kansas City Chiefs
AFC teams with first-round byes: New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers
NFC
New Orleans Saints vs. Seattle Seahawks
Green Bay Packers vs. Philadelphia Eagles
NFC teams with first-round byes: Atlanta Falcons and Chicago Bears
>>>MY PICKS: Well, in the AFC, it's hard to pick against perennial championship heavyweight the Patriots, especially when Tom Brady is in another zone (which, when it comes to him, means he's playing scary good). They're loaded with talent and have drawn comparisons to the 40-points-a-game, 18-1 2007 team. The Pats lost an error-filled first-round game to the Ravens last year, and famously lost a 2006 AFC Championship game to the Colts that they once led by 18.
This year, there's no San Diego Chargers in the AFC, which is weird, and three of the NFL's best teams (New England, Pittsburgh, New York) and in this conference. It should be fun.
In the NFC, the Chicago Bears gutted it out in a season where Julius Peppers often looked like the best defensive player alive, Brian Urlacher often looked like the second best defensive player alive, and Jay Cutler looked like a pretty decent QB, the kind (dare I say it?) that you'd like to have on your team. And the Falcons, despite a weak showing with division opponents New Orleans last week, rolled this year, and will have key homefield advantage, and a third-year QB (Matt "Matty Ice" Ryan) who is no stranger to pressure situations. But the Saints are hungry and the Eagles have Michael Vick.
My predicted Super Bowl matchup: Patriots vs. Saints
Yes, I'm going on the record. No, I'm not betting money. The Pats (soundly) beat everyone they can play in this year's playoffs, including embarrassments of the Jets and Steelers that I watched. Meanwhile, the Saints are the defending champs, have the experience, have Drew Brees, and I like this matchup better, anyway, than, say, the Pats vs. the Bears, because the Brady Corps smashed the Bears a few weeks ago in Chicago in the snow. 'Nuff said.
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