I have no clue who the #2 college football team in the nation is. Florida? Michigan? Boise State? You know what would help me decide? A 16 team playoff!

Here is my proposal.

First off, you can't have all 11 conference champs in the playoff. You wanna see Troy or Middle Tennessee St. lose to the Buckeyes? I don't think so.

Rule #1
All Conference champions are in the playoff, provided they are in the top 20 of the final BCS standings. This season that would mean BYU would be in as they are the Mountain West champion and ranked #20 in the final BCS standings. Troy? Send them to the 1-AA playoffs, they might not even win that.

Rule #2
No conference members may play each other in the first round.

Rule #3
Notre Dame gets a bid provided they are in the BCS top 12.

So that would mean that 8 teams this year would get automatic bids. Ohio St. (Big Ten), Florida (SEC), USC (Pac-10), Louisville (Big East), Oklahoma (Big 12), Wake Forest (ACC), Boise St. (WAC), and BYU (Mountain West). Plus Notre Dame would be in at #11 in the final BCS standings.

The other eight would be decided by a selection committee, using the BCS standings as a guide for who to choose as well as seeding. This is how I would shake it out for this year.

Woody Hayes Bracket
1) Ohio St.- Big Ten Champion, #1 BCS
16) BYU - MWC Champion, #20 BCS

8)Oklahoma- Big 12 Champion, #10 BCS
9) Boise St.- WAC Champion, #8 BCS

5) Louisville- Big East Champion, #6 BCS
12) Arkansas- At Large, #12 BCS

4)LSU- At Large, #4 BCS
13) West Virginia- At Large, #13 BCS

Bo Schembeckler Bracket
2)Florida- SEC Champ, #2 BCS
15)Virginia Tech-At Large, #14 BCS

7)USC-Pac-10 Champ, #5 BCS
10)Auburn- At Large-#9 BCS

3) Michigan-At Large, #3 BCS
14) Wake Forest-ACC Champ, #14 BCS

6)Wisconsin-At Large, #6 BCS
11) Notre Dame-At Large, #11 BCS

Bubbles Burst
Rutgers (#16 BCS), Texas (#19 BCS), Tennessee (#17 BCS), California (#18 BCS)

Personally, I would've put Rutgers in over BYU, but remember rule #1.

Conference Breakdown
SEC-4
Big Ten-3
Big East-2
ACC-2
Pac 10-1
WAC-1
MWC-1
Big 12-1
Notre Dame-1

But how will we ever play 4 weeks worth of football. First, cut the extra game they added a few years ago. But even with this season, we can pull this off.

Round 1- Played at home of higher seed
4 Games Dec. 8th, 4 Games Dec. 9th

Quarterfinals-Played at the Holiday Bowl in San Diego, Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, and Fiesta Bowl in Tempe. (Fiesta Bowl would be in rotation, we'll get to that soon)
4 Games Dec. 16th

Semifinals- Played at Sugar Bowl in New Orleans and Orange Bowl in Miami (Rotation)
2 Games Dec. 23rd

Final- Played at Rose Bowl in Pasadena (Rotation)
1 Game- Jan. 1st

Rule #4
The Championship game will always be played on New Years' Day.

Now for the rotation.

The 4 current BCS games (Fiesta, Sugar, Orange, and Rose) will rotate 1st choice of quarterfinal matchup, 2nd choice semifinal, 1st choice semifinal, and championship game. Meaning after having the title game this year, the Rose would go back to the quarterfinal and the other 3 move up a spot.

The other 3 quarterfinals (Cotton, Gator, and Holiday) would rotate 1st, 2nd, and 3rd choice of games every year.

All the other bowls can have games and invite who they want. There will be no other bowl games the day of playoff games, however.

Now for the money.

The NCAA gets about 1 billion a year from CBS for March Madness, I would expect CBS/Fox/ABC to pony up similar money for the rights to a football playoff.

First round games would be played at home sites. Meaning 8 teams would already be making money off that game.

Payout Breakdown
1st round losers (8)- $5 Million
Quarterfinal losers (4)- $7.5 million
Semifinal losers(2)- $10 million
Runner Up (1)-$15 Million
Champion (1)- $20 Million

Total Payout to the 16 teams- $125 million

Leaves about $875 million for the NCAA, you could double those payouts and would still be a nice payday for the NCAA, but 40 million to the champion would be such an unfair advantage to buliding a program.

But what about the players, these are "student-athletes" they need to take finals in December. That argument holds no water to me as 336 D1 college basketball teams are in the thick of their season while taking finals, football players should be able to handle it.

That's my proposal. Any comments are welcome, maybe this way we can get a champion the way it should be, on the field.

Alright I have no clue who the 2nd best team in the nation is anymore. Go to a playoff and make everyone happy. Have you heard a single person that is happy about the BCS. I think not.

College Basketball Pick of the Day
Iona +11.5 @ Fordham

Record:
9-5
Yesterday, Georgia St. +14 @ Hofstra, Hofstra 62 Georgia St. 59

Feeling good after back to back hits. And despite being 1-2 picking Hofstra games I can't resist.

College Basketball Pick of the Day:
Georgia State +14 @ Hofstra

Record:
8-5
Yesterday, Marquette -14 vs. Northwestern St., Marquette 83 Northwestern St. 67

Bengals are back in a big way after this winning streak. They always had a secondary that could create turnovers, but now instead aren't giving up points. If they were in the NFC, they would be my pick for the Super Bowl.

College Basketball Pick of the Day:
Marquette -14 vs. Northwestern St.

Record:
7-5
Yesterday, Middle Tennessee St. -5 vs. Indiana St., MTSU 65 ISU 58

Ran late so didn't get an update today til now.

Bengals will beat the Ravens they still need it bad and Ravens gotta lose sometime right?

College Basketball Pick of the Day:
Middle Tennessee St. -5 vs. Indiana St.

Record 6-5
Yesterday Siena +1.5 vs. Hofstra, Hofstra 84 Siena 80

Busy day for me. So we'll get to the the good stuff.

College Basketball Pick of the Day
Siena +1.5 over Hofstra

Record:
6-4
Last Time: Florida International +20 @ George Mason, FIU 39 GMU 65

Had a busy weekend with work and all, but lets get back into it today.

The First Cut Is The Deepest-Jay Cutler is the right move for the Denver Broncos. I always thought Plummer was an average to slightly above average QB, not this year. Give the rookie the chance. I mean we've seen lately what they can do, Brady, Roethlisberger. Cutler could be the shot in the arm this team needs on offense. They have a Super Bowl-caliber defense and need some help on the other side of the ball.

How 'Bout That Cowboy!- Tony Romo now leads the league in QB rating after his 5 TD's on Turkey Day. He's 5-1 as a starter and "dating" Jessica Simpson and won the Galloping Gobbler, it's a happy holiday in the Romo household.

Trojan Men-I said I could be swayed if they pound Notre Dame, and they did. USC rightfully moved up to #2 and barring a collapse against UCLA will play for the national title. Which should be a hell of a game.

Falling Off the Mountaineer- Ouch West Virginia win out and more than likely get an at-large to the BCS, instead you fall to South Florida AT HOME! Not acceptable. They can still spoil Rutgers BCS Big East title hopes with a win this week.

Jayhawk Jam-Yes it's basketball season too. Kansas/Florida may be the best college basketball game in a long time that no one watched. Kudos to Kansas for bouncing back nicely after that loss to Oral Roberts.

Matthews' Moolah- 5 years 50 million for Gary Matthews Jr.? That's the worst money spent this offseason this side of Daisuke Matzusaka bidding rights. Oh wait J.D. Drew still needs to be signed I'll wait til that happens to annoint the worst signings of the year.

Hall of Fame Time- The Baseball Hall of Fame ballot was released today. The picks: Tony Gwynn and Cal Ripken get in, Mark McGwire misses by a few percent, and Jim Rice takes a step back in his never ending quest to get in the hall.

College Basketball Pick of the Day
Florida International +20 @ George Mason

Record:
6-3
Last Time, Hofstra +1.5 vs. Hawai'i, Hofstra 79 Hawai'i 80

Happy Thanksgiving!

I have to stuff myself with turkey and football so I'll be quick.
NFL Picks (no spread)
Miami over Detroit
Dallas over Tampa Bay
Denver over Kansas City

College Basketball Pick of the Day
Hofstra +1.5 vs. Hawai'i

Record 5-3
Yesterday, Georgetown -14.5 @ Fairfield, Georgetown 73 Fairfield 60

Justin Morneau beat out Derek Jeter for AL MVP. Meaning my 7 for 7 in MLB postseason award predictions ends up at 7 of 8. I bet it was those crazy Boston writers that put Morneau first instead of Jeter that got him enough of those bonus points. Oh well.

Either of my picks yesterday woulda lost...sorry.

College Basketball Pick of the Day:
Georgetown -14.5 @ Fairfield
Record:
5-2

Yesterday, Drexel Pick over Penn, Drexel 49 Penn 68

No way Alfonso Soriano should have finished in 6th place for NL MVP. Don't give me the his team was in last place, 3 of the 5 ahead of him didn't make the playoffs either. Good thing he has 136 million reasons to move on.

Tough call for the pick of the day. I also like Towson +16 @ Western Kentucky, but went this route instead.

College Basketball Pick of the Day:
Drexel Pick over Penn

Record:
5-1
Yesterday, Duke -5.5 vs. Air Force, Duke 71 Air Force 56

Random thoughts on a plethora of sports yesterday.

1) I think Alfonso Soriano was the best player in the game last season. But the Cubs overpaid in both years and money. Soriano is already "30" years old. An 8 year contract is pretty insane, yes the 8th year is a team option, but the 7th year is a player option, I'm sure will be picked up by Soriano at that time. Soriano has improved each of the past 3 seasons because he is in his prime, now at 30 probably three maybe four more years of above average numbers and then the steep decline will begin because of the type of all-around offensive player he is. I can't wait for Chicago fans to be complaining about this contract in 2012.

2) How pissed must NBC be? The new flex scheduling allows them to pick what game they want on Sunday night. So they pick a juicy matchup between the Eagles and Colts in Indy and can bill it as McNabb vs. Manning. Oh wait, Donovan McNabb tears his ACL against the Titans. Dick Ebersol must have been on his knees to Roger Goodell asking to switch again. Come watch Jeff Garcia lead the Eagles again Peyton Manning, oh what am I saying this is gonna be an awful game on NBC! Gotta feel bad for the commercial reader on this one.

3) Jimmie Johnson finally got his Nextel Cup title. I still would like to know if we had put Tony Stewart in 11th place, 5 points behind the 10th place driver in the Chase and reconfigured all the points with him in it, what place Tony Stewart would have come in. Had to have been top 3.

4) Old Dominion pounded #8 Georgetown by 13 last night in their gym that they haven't lost in since 1982. I mention this cause I'm a fan of the Colonial Athletic Association, as you may have noticed all my picks of the day have come from that conference, I do that cause I know the conference. This is a big win for the Monarchs and for the Colonial that helps validate what George Mason did last year. Beware Blaine Taylor and his team.

5) The UTAH JAZZ are 9-1. They've bene doing it withoutAndrei Kirilenko, but Carolos Boozer, Mehmet Okur, and Deron Williams are playing fantastic while Derek Fisher is a solid veteran to have coming off the bench. They could end up with a division title, but remember they started off great two years ago and missed the playoffs. Now if AK47 can just stay healthy they can be really dangerous in the playoffs, plus I need him for my fantasy team.

6) College Hooops 2k7 comes out today. Awesome.

7) I have nothing to say about the NHL, sorry.

College Basketball Pick of the Day:
Duke -5.5 vs. Air Force

Record: 4-1
Yesterday, Towson +28 @ Kansas, Towson 61 Kansas 87

Michigan after that still does deserve to be the #2 team in the nation. I can be swayed if USC blows out Notre Dame though.

The dream is dead for both New Jersey teams as Rutgers got waxed by Cincinnati in football and NJ Tech fell by 13 to Columbia on Friday in basketball.


College Basketball Pick of the Day
Towson +28 @ Kansas

Record 3-1
Yesterday Hofstra -7 @ Manhattan, Hofstra 77 Manhattan 79

Couple of quick thoughts

Just when the OSU/Michigan game couldn't get any bigger the winningest coach in Wolverine history passes away. Bo Schembechler was one of the best college coaches of all time. Should be interesting if Big Blue plays even more inspired. (If that's possible)

Another HUGE game that's been swept under the rug, partly cause Cal lost this week, but mainly cause of OSU/Michigan is USC/Cal. Cal can still get in the Rose Bowl with a win, USC will pretty much be in the national title game with a W. This may end up being a better game than OSU/Michigan.

College Basketball Pick of the Day:
Hofstra -7 @ Manhattan

Record: 3-0
Yesterday Florida Atlantic +22 @ Old Dominion, ODU 70 FAU 55

Steve Slaton and Pat White keep running wild for West Virginia. If Rutgers holds them in check then they really do belong in the national championship game.

College Basketball Pick of the Day:
Florida Atlantic +22 @ Old Dominion

Record: 2-0
Yesterday Towson -2.5, Towson 69 Samford 62

I have many things to do the next two days, so I'll give my opinion now on what will happen between the Buckeyes and Wolverines on Saturday. This is a huge game that has been hyped what seems like even more that the national title game between USC and Texas last season. These are two great teams, both undefeated. (though I think both would have a loss in the torture chamber that is the SEC)

Both teams try and tout how good their defenses are playing this year, but I think we'll see a whole lot of scoring. There are just too many weapons for OSU (Troy Smith, Ted Ginn, Anthony Gonzalez) and Michigan (Chad Henne, Mike Hart, Mario Manningham) for this to be a 20-10 type game. In the end, it's going to come down to special teams and that edge goes to Ohio St. as Ginn is the best punt returner I've ever seen. I think he ends up with a special play in the 4th quarter that either scores or sets up the game winning score for the Buckeyes.

The Pick- Ohio State 37 Michigan 31
Meaning I guess I would take the Wolverines +7.

Gotta love when a mid-major beats a major. Gotta love it even more when that school is called Oral Roberts...glad I didn't go there for college. How far will Kansas tumble down the polls after being beaten on their home court. I'd say they fall out of the top ten to about number 12 next week.

College Basketball Pick of the Day:
Towson -2.5 vs. Samford

Record: 1-0...yesterday Syracuse -18.... Syracuse 81 Northeastern 58

There's another undefeated team in New Jersey....and it's not Rutgers football. New Jersey Institute of Technology in their first year at Division One after going 8-19 last season in Division Two is now 2-0. They opened their season with a 56-55 win @ Manhattan, then rode Rider 63-52 last night. Beware the Highlanders, beware. They look to go to 3-0 at Columbia on Friday.

College Basketball Pick of the Day:
Syracuse -18 vs. Northeastern

Alright took way too much time off from this. Been quite busy. When I saw I'm 3 for 3 on my MLB award picks, figured it was a good time to get back into it.

Starting tomorrow a College Basketball pick of the day...(for recreational purposes only) We'll keep track and see how I do.

First a rant on Daisuke Matsuzaka. Now I know he seems to be a great pitcher and will do well in the majors, we all saw what he did in the World Baseball Classic. But over 51 million dollars to just talk to him for 30 days? Are you kidding me Red Sox?!!? What's even more crazy is that the Red Sox bid 10 million more at least the the 2nd highest bidder, the Yankees or Mets. This can mean one of two things. The Red Sox are so desperate for pitching that they would spend this much on a pitcher, cause its gonna cost at least another 50 million to sign Matsuzaka. So 100 million for him. Now that's gonna put a lot of pressure on him to perform. That 100 million would have put a nice chunk to get Barry Zito and Alfonso Soriano in a Boston uniform next year, but that's just me.

There is one other option. They only put up the posting fee and made it SO high to ensure that the Yankees weren't the top bid. Then simply if they couldn't sign Matsuzaka for cheap or not sign him, let him go back to Japan for next season and not have to pay the posting fee. Which also mean he wouldn't be in a Yankee uniform next season, which is all they are trying to accomplish.

I just can't see spending the 2006 Marlins payroll 3.5 times over just for the opportunity to talk to a player who has never played at the major league level except for the World Baseball Classic where he was 3-0. One win came against Chinese Taipei who stinks, so throw that out. He was spectacular against Mexico and Cuba, but the pitch count at 65 in the WBC we haven't really seen him be extended out against Major League talent.

I think he'll be an above average starter a 15 game winner with a 3.5 ERA in the majors, but that's not worth 100 million to me. Not when I could have Barry Zito and a 3.83 ERA and just 2 years older and be most of the way to giving a solid contract to 40-40-40 man Alfonso Soriano, give me a lineup with Soriano setting the table, Youkilis #2, and then Big Papi and Manny....yikes.

Not a good way to start as the Pack looked like they were gonna keep it close, but a 24-0 2nd half for the Eagles and I'm 0-1 on picks.

Now that the MLB season is over time for the awards to be given away.
AL MVP-Derek Jeter
NL MVP-Ryan Howard
AL CY-Johan Santana
NL CY-Brandon Webb
AL ROY-Justin Verlander, Papelbon and Weaver make this a tight race
NL ROY-Hanley Ramirez...I'm worried all the Marlins rookies will split votes and Ryan Zimmerman of the Nats will take it
AL Manager-Jim Leyland
NL Manager-Joe Girardi

Alright, so I'm bored and decided to give this blogging thing a try. Under the basis of all the sports "experts" we see in the media, I figure why can't I be one too? We'll try and have some fun along the way. Today's a good day to start this blog though, Week 4 of the NFL is near complete, MLB playoffs are under way tomorrow, college football is getting to the heart of conference play, NASCAR's in the Chase for the Nextel Cup, and hockey's starting soon. All right maybe the last part didn't really factor into this blog.

First some MLB predictions-
San Diego over the Cardinals in 5
I got a feeling this is Jake Peavy's coming out party. I know its hard to say that about a pitcher with 11-14 record this year, but Peavy's been on fire the last month a 2.41 ERA with a 4-1 record to get the Pads in the playoffs. Chris Young is another solid starter for San Diego. The Cardinals backed into the playoffs and might not even be here if the Astros beat the Braves on Sunday, Chris Carpenter may be the Cy Young winner, but a 4.70 ERA on the road compared to 1.71 at Busch, game one is at the Dog House gives the Pads an early advantage and they take the series.

Mets over the Dodgers in 5
I have no clue what to say. Dodgers have the pitching with Lowe, Penny, and Maddux, but the Mets have a crazy good offense and a solid bullpen. El Duque is always good in October and could steal a game one win at Shea. Mets offense is the difference, they get a lead early and keep it, plus the rally around the "We Don't Need Pedro" effect.

Yankees over the Tigers in 4
I don't like the Yankees but they have too much firepower even if Randy Johnson's out. Wang is great at home and the Tigers are rattled after losing the Central by getting swept by the Royals. They will get one at home but that's it.

Twins over the A's in 5
If this series goes five games Twins hand it to Johan and win it at the Metrodome. I would not be surprised at all if the A's win in 4 however. Zito, Loaiza, Haren, and Blanton are above average starters and the Twins could potentially start two rookies this series in Matt Garza and Boof Bonser. Either of these teams will give the Yanks a run for their money in the ALCS.

Monday Night Football
Eagles get out to an early lead, but Favre on Monday Night is always special it seems...take the Pack to cover +12