@danpatrick show's "Top 10 Things Cam Did Want to Say (but couldn't)"

10. Cecil was going to be here tonight, but this is my Dave moment

9. Yes, I sleep with the Heisman, who knows how long they will let me keep it

8. Hey Dan Patrick, Oregon can't stop me OR contain me

7. Stop calling me "Fib" Newton; I really didn't know anything *wink wink*

6. I just found out the Ducks were going to give me $181,000.

5. There's a lot of things my parents do behind the scenes since I came out of my mother's womb

4. I am wearing Mississippi State tightie-whities right now

3. Anybody want me to sign something? My dad said I can get $20 a pop

2. I was going to be on Leno tonight, but Letterman opened up the checkbook a bit wider than Jay did.

1. I have 180,000 reasons to smile and a lot of time to spend it - what else am I going to do until January 10?

BCS Bowl Predictions

BCS Bowls don't start for another 19 days, but what else are we going to do other than watch the St. Petersburg Bowl and 19 days of Brett Favre talk? Might as well throw down a BCS Bowl Prediction and see how I fare.

Rose Bowl: Wisconsin v TCU

Wisconsin has one of the most underrated running games around. Freshman James White filled in nicely at the end of the year for Junior John Clay, who combined for 1965 yards and 27 touchdowns, not to mention a decent defense, although TCU comes in with the highly ranked defense, yet virtually untested against the in comparison to Wisconsin's opponents in Michigan, Ohio State, and Iowa. This game will likely come down to whoever can outsmart the other's defense. Wisconsin will run the ball with their duo of Clay and White, control the clock and the line of scrimmage, and ultimately the TCU scoring by limiting their offensive plays. TCU will be able to keep it close because they are more of a passing team, but Wisconsin should win this one. Wisconsin 31 TCU 27


Fiesta Bowl: Oklahoma v Connecticut

I've already expressed my displeasure with the Huskies getting a BCS bowl bid by winning a very non-competitive (on the national scale) Big East conference, which is why TCU will be licking their chops come their inaugural Big East season. Oklahoma, although losing two games to slightly inferior football teams (Missouri and Texas A&M), their domination of both Oklahoma State and Nebraska, two very excellent offenses show their defense can show up. Their offense, as shown in their two losses, is hit or miss, although when they hit, they hit hard. Landry Jones is showing Sooner fans that he is their new Sam Bradford, but their loss of NFL talent is costing him. I can say I know nothing about UConn football, and if you lose to Temple, you won't win a BCS bowl game. Oklahoma 42 UConn 14


Sugar Bowl: Ohio State v Arkansas

Four years ago, Arkansas won 10 games in a row after getting blasted by USC the first game of the year. Mitch Mustain was the quarterback, Darren McFadden, Felix Jones, and Peyton Hillis lined the star-studded backfield, and their defense was led by Jamaal Anderson and Chris Houston. They then finished the year losing to LSU, Florida in the SEC Championship, and Missouri in the Cotton Bowl. Their head coach? Houston Nutt. This year's team has won 6 straight after losing to Auburn, including a blasting of South Carolina and roughing up of LSU. As the SEC's second-highest-ranked team in the BCS, they are honored with their first BCS bowl game ever. Ohio State doesn't fare well against SEC teams, especially ones with great defenses. Arkansas isn't a defensive power, but they have stood their ground, and Ryan Mallet, Knile Davis, Jarius Wright, and DJ Williams lead the nation's 3rd ranked passing offense into a home crowd in New Orleans and a monumental win for the Razorbacks. Arkansas 34 Ohio State 20


Orange Bowl: Virginia Tech v Stanford

Aside from the two teams playing in the NCG and TCU, Virginia Tech is the hottest team right now, winning 11 straight and another ACC title. Their first two losses can be thrown out at this point, because they are a different team than the one that played Boise and James Madison. However, they are no longer playing a familiar ACC team - Stanford is the next hottest team, along with Wisconsin (who should be playing each other in the Rose Bowl...) and their quarterback Andrew Luck is the best in the country according to some, and will most likely be a top draft choice in April 2011. Stanford is a Virginia Tech killer, simply because their offense is consistent, and have seen much better offenses in the Pac-10 than the Hokies offer, and I predict another not-fun-to-watch game. Stanford 28 Virginia Tech 16


National Championsip: Auburn v Oregon

This will get its own write-up in the coming weeks!

Spurs poised for another title run

After last season's disappointing ending, the Spurs were viewed as a ship sailed, with Duncan aging, the Jefferson deal not cashing in, and the fact that the Lakers have dominated the West three straight years, it is no wonder everyone overlooks the Spurs. But, the veteran team has compiled an 18-3 record and are the NBA's top team through the first quater. The Lakers, off to a less-than-stellar start after a second-straigh NBA title, look to be on a collision course with the Spurs, once again, to decide who wins the West. Although there is still a lot of basketball to be played, the Spurs rarely slump during the season and play at championship level when it matters most.

One Step Closer for a BCS Playoff

With the recent word from the Big East that TCU will join the current 8-team league, and talks about another team, such as Central Florida or Villanova (who is a basketball Big East member), could help the Big East gain national power back after losing Miami (FL) and Virginia Tech to the ACC and West Virginia and Pitt's lackluster records as predicted Big East contenders. Also, we may be one step close to seeing all 6 BCS conferences achieve a championship game and near uniformity. This will eliminate co-champions, and allow for an avenue for a more fair regular season, where we can truly have a BCS playoff with 10 teams.


The top 5 teams are decided by the top two teams in the BCS, and the remaining conference champions, regardless of BCS ranking, but they must rank in the top 10 in order to qualify. Thus, Virginia Tech and UConn would not be in the BCS Playoffs and with good cause. Losing 4 games in the regular season doesn't warrant for a playoff berth. Although Virginia Tech only had 2 losses, this is a year a very good 1 and 2-loss teams such as Stanford, Wisconsin, Arkansas, and Ohio State. Had Virginia Tech not lost to a FCS team, they'd be at least 5th because they are ACC champions.

So, if two conference champions are left out, the seeding would start from 3rd in the BCS and work down.

This year is more interesting because there were 3 Big 10 co-champions (which will be eliminated after a championship game) and one team (Stanford) ranked higher than three conference champions. Only BCS-conference champions will count for the top 6. Boise State and TCU, for instance would have to work to get into a high ranking to get a higher seed.

Here is the top 6 teams:

1. Auburn (BCS number 1)
2. Oregon (BCS number 2)
3. Wisconsin (theoretical Big 10 champ)
4. Oklahoma (Big 12 champ)
5. TCU (highest ranked non-BCS conference champion)
6. Stanford (highest ranked team remaining)

The final four teams would simply fall in according to ranking in the BCS:

7. Ohio State
8. Arkansas
9. Michigan State
10. Boise State

The first round matchups will be the BCS teams that didn't win a BCS-conference championship, or a "play-in" game:

Seed 8 v 9

Seed 7 v 10

These game locations will be based on the 8th and 9th ranked bowl games as it stands now (Cotton Bowl and Chick-fil-A Bowl).

The 7 v 10 would face 2nd seeded Oregon and 8 v 9 would face 1st seeded Auburn.

The second round matchups would be:

Seed 1 v 8/9
Seed 2 v 7/10
Seed 3 v 6
Seed 4 v 5

These matchups are based on the 4th-7th ranked bowl games, with the top two bowls (which are now BCS bowls) will rotate in and out over the years and will always host the one of the top 2 teams and based on location of the schools. Those bowls will be Outback Bowl (7), Capitol One (6), Rose Bowl/Fiesta Bowl (5), Orange Bowl/Sugar Bowl (4).

The semi-final round will be between the four remaining teams and be played at the two BCS bowls not played in the second round.

And finally the championship game, which rotates as well in the playoffs, will also be hosted at one of the four BCS bowl locations.

Here is a possibility of how this year's playoffs could align:

Arkansas (8) v Michigan State (9) @ Chick-fil-A Bowl - Arkansas wins
Ohio State (7) v Boise State (10) @ Cotton Bowl - Ohio State wins

Auburn (1) v Arkansas (8) @ Sugar Bowl - Auburn wins
Oregon (2) v Ohio State (7) @ Rose Bowl - Oregon wins
Wisconsin (3) v Stanford (6) @ Capitol One Bowl - Wisconsin wins
TCU (4) v Oklahoma (5) @ Outback Bowl - TCU wins

Auburn (1) v TCU (4) @ Orange Bowl - Auburn
Oregon (2) v Wisconsin (3) @ Fiesta Bowl - Oregon

Auburn (1) v Oregon (2) @ BCS NCG

The BCS May get the Big Game Right ...

The days of the Bowl Championship Game have seen some timeless matchups that were not for a national championship. Boise State v Oklahoma (Fiesta), West Virginia v Georgia (Sugar), Penn State v Florida State (Orange), and Texas v Michigan (Rose) have been some recent matchups that either defined a new tradition (Boise State in BCS, West Virginia's 1st BCS bowl appearance a win over SEC power UGA, a Big 12 team in the Rose Bowl) or a clash of coaching legends (Paterno v Bowden), the undercard matches have often been of great magnitude at least for one game out of the the four. It is hard to say which game will go down as a classic BCS game this year, although Arkansas-Ohio State and Wisconsin-TCU look to be good matchups, I am very displeased with the way the BCS ended up this year.

I'll start with the Big East Champions, Connecticut. I understand the Big East is still considered a BCS conference, although the closest they came to a BCS championship berth with West Virginia in 2004-05 after a 11-0 start, losing to Pitt to end the season. Although they went on to win against Georgia, their lack of power since losing Virginia Tech and Miami (FL) to the ACC has hurt the prowess of the conference as a whole. Which is exactly why TCU is headed to the conference, because the defense they play can dominate the Big East and give them a BCS NCG berth with a season like the last two they've put together. UConn playing in a BCS game against Oklahoma is a slap in the face to three parties: 1) Oklahoma - they always seem to get stuck playing the statistically worse team eligible for a BCS game 2) The Fiesta Bowl - again they get a game that no one will watch, and could be highly one-sided 3) UConn - they will get the exposure and the payout, but the game will be over quickly and be very forgettable, although it is a BCS game.

The Rose Bowl, although many people will say it is a good matchup, is another big slap in the face against a team who could be a national champion: Stanford. Instead of playing in the Rose Bowl, they will travel across country to the Orange Bowl, probably the most insignificant of all the bowls, and face Virginia Tech, who hasn't played in a BCS bowl against a team with any depth since the 2004 Sugar Bowl against Auburn. They've benefited from the Orange Bowl tie-in with the ACC 3 of the last 4 years, and have gone 1-1. VT is a great ACC team, but their 9-14 record historically in bowl games doesn't fare well against the Cardinal from Stanford. It will be watched by a lot of Cardinal fans, but another forgettable game.

This is what should have happened, and although there was a stipulation that the Rose Bowl had to take TCU (which is odd, since they aren't from a BCS conference ...), here is what I wanted from the BCS matchups:

Rose Bowl: Wisconsin v Stanford - a classic Rose Bowl-style game, two I-formation teams that play it tough at the line of scrimmage, and would have attracted more fans from the state than TCU will, although the Rose Bowl is always a hot ticket, regardless of the teams.

Orange Bowl: Virginia Tech v Michigan State - I don't agree with giving a team an automatic bid and barely sneaking in the Top 25 of the BCS standings, which means there are 24 teams that are better than UConn, and 14 won't be playing in a BCS bowl. I also know the rule of only two teams per conference, but when a third teams beats the Rose Bowl-bound team, I have to include them. Fairness is putting the best teams together, and not weighing them based on their conference. UConn doesn't deserve a New Year's Day (or later) bowl game (Rutgers, Louisville, and Temple beat them).

Fiesta Bowl: Oklahoma v TCU - Stanford belongs in the Rose Bowl - they've earned it. TCU doesn't belong in the Rose Bowl, but they've probably earned an at-large bid. Going against Oklahoma might not be the best of matchups, but thanks to the BCS, not every game is.

Sugar Bowl: Arkansas v Ohio State - nothing wrong with this matchup

I apologise in advance to UConn fans - I'd be excited to have a BCS bowl berth if I were you, regardless of whether you deserved it or not, so no hate against your school - there are just 14 teams that are ranked higher than you are and played tougher competition and didn't lose to Temple.

Pan seared chicken with chicken broccoli pasta

My Chronicle of Nokia Phones - 2003-Present (UPDATE)

2003 - Nokia 3595 on AT&T - Nokia My first phone I received for Christmas - it didn't last too long, because a shelf fell off the wall and landed on it - screen went dead

2004 - Nokia 6010 on T-Mobile - Bought it online for about $60, and the great thing was I got free WAP access through T-Mobile, so checking basketball scores during March Madness was great. Sold it back online for about $50 because T-Mobile had spotty coverage in my new hometown in Arkansas.

2005 - Nokia 6030 on AT&T - went over to my dad's plan and got this phone - sadly, another phone that didn't last long. Fell out of my pocket at a restaurant parking lot. Luckily the restaurant found it, but the screen was white. Barely made calls anymore. On to the next one ...

2006 - Nokia 3120 on AT&T - found this gem online and loved every bit of it. The best feature phone I've ever used. I am still not sure why I got rid of it, but I did.

2007 - Nokia 6030 on AT&T - Another great phone, one I kept the longest thus far. Keypad was very nice, and the loudest, clearest sounding cell phone I've ever had. Gave it to my girlfriend, who is now my wife, to replace the exact phone which she had. 

2008 - Nokia E61 on AT&T - It was my time for a QWERTY keyboard on a phone. I was trying to decide between the Nokia E61 and the HTC Dash. Both had WiFi, both QWERTY, but only one had the Nokia emblem on it. The large screen, well-spaced keyboard, and great battery life was wonderful. Still the best screen I've seen on a non-touch smartphone.

2009 - Nokia E71 on AT&T - Love this phone. Even until this day, I still get the maximal usage out of Nokia's most popular smartphone to date. LED flash, 3G, WiFi, multi-tasking, Ovi Store, Exchange email, wireless printing, expandable storage, and the list goes on - the most high-tech phone I had used at the time. 

2010 - Nokia 6350 on AT&T wireless - this is a phone I ordered with my new AT&T wireless service, so this is not a phone I have used before, and serves as a spare phone, but still a phone I have purchased and I do indeed still have this phone.

2010 - Nokia C3 on AT&T - Phone I bought for my wife. I am not sure if I can call this a feature phone, since it has WiFi and a slew of smartphone features, but still a solid phone for a very affordable price.

2010 - ???

I am still in limbo on what my next phone should be, although I am pretty confident that it will be a Nokia. Their current lineup and soon-to-be-released phones have definitely caught my eye, but I am not 100% on one device yet. But, I do have preferences:

Nokia N8 - 12 MP camera, largest sensor ever put inside a cellular phone, Xenon flash, 720p video recording, HDMI output with Dolby Digital sound, 3.5" capacitive touch screen with Gorilla Glass, AMOLED display, 5 different colors, 16GB on-board memory expandable to 48 GB via MicroSD, penta-band 3G radio, Bluetooth 3.0, USB on-the-go, free turn-by-turn navigation through Ovi Maps, and way too many others to list. Definitely number 1 on my list, but at $549.00 unlocked, it is a steep price.

Nokia C7 - 8 MP camera, dual LED flash, 720p video recording, 3.5" capacitive touch screen with Gorilla Glass, AMOLED display, 3 different colors, 8GB on-board memory expandable to 40GB via MicroSD, free turn-by-turn navigation through Ovi Maps, and although not as many hardware features, the software is the same, and the screen size as well. With a $449.00 unlocked price, this is more affordable, although missing out on such an amazing camera paired with HDMI out, this is slightly lower on my list.

Nokia E7 - Comparable to the N8, except a 4" display, slide-out screen reveals a keyboard, 8MP LED flash camera instead of 12MP Xenon. Also, the 16GB on-board memory is not expandable, and this device, although unreleased at this time, is scheduled to be more expensive than the N8. The screen and the keyboard are selling points, but without the expandable storage and with a steeper price, this is definitely lower on my list, but still a possibility.

UPDATED

2011 - Nokia N8 on AT&T - I made my decision near the end of February to purchase the N8 after I saw a deal on Newegg. Although the software feels dated more and more everyday, it is very capable of my needs, the camera is absolutely stunning, and the battery life is awesome. Customizations are endless, and although I still struggle with a software keyboard, this is still a stellar device. 

BCS Playoffs - More Possible, Still Not Probable

My thought on the BCS versus a playoff system was that the BCS is the perfect system given the current structure of the NCAA Football conferences - only three of the six conferences play an additional conference championship game and divisions. Those three conferences, the Big 10, the Pacific 10, and the Big East conferences are all adding one or more teams to their conference, and the Big 10 (plus 2) and the Pac 10 (plus 2) have already outlined their plan for divisions and conference championship games. The Big East (plus 1 at this point) hasn't finalised adding a second team to the current 8 team conference, although divisions and conference championships might not be in the mix until they get into 12+ teams. However, since the Big 12 is losing 2 teams to dip to 10 teams, they will likely reshuffle their divisions or do away with them altogether.

The biggest hurdle for the playoff system that everyone is envisioning is uniformity. The SEC plays 12 regular season games which includes 4 non-conference games, 5 division games, and 3 inter-division games. The Pac 10 also plays 12 regular season games, but 9 of them are conference games, 3 are non-conference. The Big 10, who has just 1 team than the Pac 10, has 12 regular season games, but 4 non-conference games, and 8 conference games, leaving out 2 conference opponents any given year a Big 10 team doesn't play. Now, with the additions in these two conferences, that will likely change, but We still have 6 conferences that aren't perfectly aligned. The Big East has 9 confirmed teams, Big 12 is down to 10, Pac 10 up to 12, Big 10 up to 12, and the SEC and ACC remain at 12. If the BCS wanted to implement their own playoff system, they would likely try to bribe the conferences to these guidlines:

• Each conference must play the same number of conference opponents and non-conference opponents.
• Each conference must play a conference championship held on the same weekend.
• Each conference must have the same number of teams in each conference and divided into 2 divisions.
• Each division team must play each other once during the year.
• Each team in the conference must maintain a level of schedule integrity.

Let me elaborate on that last point. Every team in the country schedules 1-2 very small schools to play, either at the beginning of the year or for homecoming. Those higher tiered teams, or BCS teams, must be held accountable for playing a FCS team if they choose. So, if a team does schedule a FCS team, they must either even their schedule integrity out by scheduling a BCS conference team as a non-conference opponent, or forfeit a spot in the BCS playoffs if they qualify. For instance, Alabama played Georgia State this year, yet they played a Big 10 team in Penn State. That would be fine. But, Ole Miss played Jacksonville State, an FCS school. They did not play an out-of-conference BCS school, therefore their eligibility to be a BCS playoff team would be void. In maintaining a schedule integrity, schools are still allowed to play smaller schools in order to benefit both parties, but that game should not count towards a BCS playoff ranking unless it is paired with a competitive non-conference game with a BCS conference team.

Now, the BCS would probably not add that last stipulation, however, I feel that is the last thing the BCS would need in order to have playoffs. Now the 6 BCS conferences are aligning into 6, 10-12 team conferences, the possibility is higher. The probability, however, is not improving.

Twittersation: @kenosando and @j1two

I've met a pretty cool cat via Twitter, J. Brown (@j1two), whom I've had the privilege to go back and forth on sports with recently, and I'd thought I'd chronicle the conversations.

On South Carolina's bowl outlook if they lose to Auburn:

J1two I'd cry foul if I was Spurrier and this really happened. RT @kenosando: SEC Bowl predictions: AUB BCS NCG, ARK Sugar, SCAR Chik-fil-a


kenosando @J1two They can get anything from the Chick-fil-a, Outback, or Cotton - they would finish 5th in SEC if they lose in SEC Champ

J1two @kenosando I hear ya but they still won their division of the conference... Got to account for something?!

kenosando @J1two not in the whole SEC picture - SEC West was 15-3 against the east, although SCAR won against bama, they were 1-2 against the West

J1two @kenosando Yeah but that's punishing S. Carolina for being in the East division. They can only play the teams who are on their schedule

kenosando @J1two S. Carolina was two of those 15 losses though - Aub, Ark, LSU, MSU, and Ala had combined 1 loss to the East

Briefly on the BCS:


J1two This is why I hate the bowl system. I hated since I was 9 #NoLie


kenosando @J1two I hate it too - Oklahoma went to the nat'l champ by not winning their conf. champ. game in '04 - pounded by USC

J1two Spoken like a true Auburn fan but they did get hosed RT @kenosando: I hate it too Oklahoma went to the nat'l champ ...


The 2004 Auburn Team and Jason Campbell:


kenosando @J1two lol - I think the '04 team was better than this team - stout defense, 4 players went in the first two rounds of draft

J1two @kenosando Yeah that would have been a great match up. I think it could of propelled Campbell higher in the draft also

kenosando @J1two Yeah, too bad the NFL hasn't been nice to him so far. Washington screwed him up with their disarray of an NFL franchise

J1two @kenosando The epitome of a career with no stability... 

Jay Cutler and the Chicago Bears:

kenosando @J1two let's hope Cutler doesn't fall victim to that - I want to see Chicago get to a SB with a good QB not just a DEF

J1two @kenosando Yeah. But being a Bears fan over the years if we have a decent offense its a plus. We just want stifling D's and a run game.

kenosando @J1two I agree, if the Colts had a Chicago Defense, they'd be better off, but in the age of QBs, you have to have a good 1, Cutler is

J1two @kenosando The ghosts of Rex Grossman lingers in our minds... #uhoh That's why we're optimistic but cautious.

kenosando @J1two For sure - at least he is more knowledgeable about Washington's 2-min offense ... allegedly

J1two @kenosando I know some Bears fans would want to go if they heard this but I think Rex would still be QB'ing if he had a good O coordinator.

J1two @kenosando He was/is polarizing in Chicago because everyone thought he was the QB of the future those first six games of '06 had us dreaming
 

kenosando @J1two He's prob the only QB who had a rating of 100+, 10, 137, and 36 in consecutive weeks - http://is.gd/hZXVk

Cam Newton's Eligibility and Future in Auburn:

J1two RT @kenosando: RT @WarBlogle: Cam Newton ruled eligible to play by NCAA.  http://bit.ly/gdC4QZ 

J1two What's up w/ the NCAA disciplining the school if Cam Newton doesn't talk to the media after the SECOND championship game?

kenosando @J1two and ESPN broke the story as if they tattled on Auburn - now Cam is eligible, maybe Auburn had a plan all along, and he will speak now 

J1two @kenosando Do you think Cam is 1 and done? Or is he coming back?

kenosando @J1two I think he will be lobbied heavily to stay. If he can stay, then the staff will. Now the scandal is dead, he could stay 

J1two @kenosando If they win the BCS title then he's gone. Done everything in 1 yr. 2 many headaches and slander to come back to w/out motivation.

kenosando @J1two I can see that happening for sure - I think to keep Malzahn on staff, he'll need a raise. Or just Cam

==================================================

I think CNN's "The Situation Room" is booking us soon for panel discussions. JRIB could hear about us, maybe a couple of Clone forum members upcoming.

Follow @J1two

Follow @kenosando