SnoTap Netflix Reviews: Double Jeopardy

In this odyssey of me watching movies, there will definitely be some I cannot explain why I chose to watch
this movie. There are a lot of them in the late 90s to early 00's remembering even as a kid I wanted to see it but could not because it was rated R (THANKS PARENTS). Double Jeopardy is an example of  this kind of movie where I really had no idea why I felt the need to put it into my Netflix list. There were some entertaining parts, but I could have sent my parents a 'Thank you note' for telling me to avoid this one.

Cast: Ashley Judd, Tommy Lee Jones, Bruce Greenwood 

Genre: Crime thriller 

Charlie's Ratings: 2 out 5 - To be honest, this is a movie you can watch on Lifetime on a Saturday afternoon. Now granted, the Saturday afternoon viewing does not get you Judd's sex scene in the beginning but I digress. The movie is pretty much how you would expect it to go with a female lead where she seeks revenge on her husband that set her up for murder. There is nothing really alluring or twist-worthy about the movie.

 What's interesting about Judd waking up and not realizing what she done goes back to one of my favorite quotes from my friend Fant, "I got so drunk last night, you could tell me I killed a guy and I would believe you." Basically, this is what happens to Judd. She comes to find out that her husband is not dead and goes on a vigilant manhunt in search of him all of the country. My big issue with the manhunt is she never really faces conflict completely. Like there are scenes where it seems like Judd is dead to rights and somehow she escapes out of them including one involving the husband, not the cop played by Tommy Lee Jones, late in the movie. It is all fairly too predictable when it is all said and done.

The reason it at least gets two stars out of me is it was quick to watch. I stayed up way too late one night watching it while working because it moved pretty fast. So if you are looking for a quick movie and into this genre, it might do the trick.

IMDB: 6.3/10 

Rotten Tomatoes: 25% 

Charlie.  

BCS Closes its Door With a Classic

Bowl Championship Series started in 1999. After much debate about not having a National Championship, NCAA figured out a way to have a National Championship game with a bowl game posing as the title game. BCS took some major lumps throughout the years ranging from screwing teams out of titles, games and anything else you could think of. Next year, a playoff will begin which is what 75-90 percent of college football fans wanted for the last several years. The final game pitted Florida State against Auburn and it could not have been any better with Seminoles coming out on top, 34-31 in a dramatic comeback including a final award-winning drive by Jameis Winston.

It really felt like this game displayed college football in 2013 perfectly. The whole season was batshit crazy. Like Real Housewives crazy. No one expected Auburn to be there, and hell people thought Florida State would be there last year, not this year. There are many games from this year where people are going to point to and say 'I remember where I was when this happened.' Three of them have involved Auburn, and the third one, the Tigers were on the bad side of things meaning destiny does not always find its date at the end of the night.  

Auburn held an 18-point lead in the first half thrashing everyone's narratives to begin the game. S-E-C chants were being heard from stands in Pasadena. Instead people were starting to drum up another narrative about how Florida State did not play anyone for the entire year because they played in the ACC versus the big bad SEC. People also began comparing Winston's night to Troy Smith's horrendous performance in his only BCS National Championship. Those narratives would also be found stranded by the wayside at the end of the game and end of the college football season. 

Honestly, I feel like one of the biggest drive of the game featured Florida State getting their first touchdown of the game late in the second quarter. They were down 18 points, and severely dominated throughout the first half. Seminoles needed at least a field goal to keep themselves relevant in this game, and were able to get into the end zone with about 90 seconds left in the first half. Noles had a chance to double up as Aaron Rodgers like to calls it as they had the ball first in the second half meaning they could be right back into this game early on in the third quarter. 

Florida State did not really do much in the third quarter besides getting a field goal, but more importantly, the defense started to wake up. It is like they were Junior from Cool Runnings decided to be a 'bad ass mother who don't take shit from no one' and started to start hitting in this football game. Defensive tackle Tim Jerrigen led the charge with delivering big hit after big hit trying his damnedest to stop Auburn's rushing attack at the line of scrimmage. Auburn's offense held at 21 points and Florida State trailed by eight points heading into the final quarter where things got mad real meaning they need sunglasses and Advil in the morning. 

Marshall did not make a mistake all game long which is amazing to think up given how Florida State forces turnovers, and how often Marshall has the ball in his hand. But he made a mistake early in the fourth with Florida State cornerback P.J. Williams pick off a weak pass from Marshall sitting up the Seminoles in their best field possession all game. Winston and company took advantage as they marched down the field to get a touchdown to Chad Abram, the last remaining fullback with a neck roll meaning he probably eats footballs for dinner. Florida State's plan was to go for two, but Devonta Freeman may or may not have pointed the pistols at Auburn's bench leading to a 15-yard penalty forcing the Noles into an extra point. 

Even though Auburn pounded the ball down the field, they were not able to get a responding touchdown instead only three points giving the Tigers are four-point lead. It did not last long as Kermit Whitfield took back the kick 100 yards to give Florida State their first lead since 3-0. The game went from being 'pretty enjoyable' to 'HOLY SHIT, THIS IS GETTING ENTERTAINING AND FULL OF HAM.' People who trust in things like destiny believed Auburn had at least one more drive left in them and truth be told, they had Florida State on the ropes.

Tigers began to pound the football down the field. Florida State's defense started to suck wind, and it clearly showed their lack of fourth quarter games was coming back to haunt them a bit with Jerrigan, their best defensive player on Monday night had to go to the sidelines with cramps. Tre Mason had one of the best losing efforts performances with 196 yards on 34 carries including a 37-yard touchdown to give Auburn the lead again. It is weird to think about it, but Mason and Auburn could have drain this clock to virtually zero never letting Winston get another chance guaranteeing the Tigers second National Championship in as many years yet this is straight revisionist history due to Jameis validating his Heisman trophy with an exclamation point.

Winston started the drive from the 20 yard line heading the same direction Vince Young did many years ago leading Texas over USC. Florida State's talented redshirt freshman went six for seven marching this football team down the field. A couple things about that drive stood out to me... 1.) They never had a fourth down. Usually on these big last second drives, there is at least one fourth down, it did not happen. 2.) Florida State faced a 3rd and 3 and got a delay of game penalty of all things putting them at 3rd and 8 yet Winston kept his composure delivering a ball to the end zone that should have been caught but a yellow flag showed why the receiver did not.

Chris Davis, the hero of Auburn's season as he took back the miraculous Iron Bowl field goal, committed the penalty. If this game did not need another story line, Davis delivered another one. Scott Van Pelt says all the time 'Sports is the greatest reality show' and it is extremely true with Davis' case. Everyone tripped over themselves to buy him a drink after beating Alabama, and now people will probably still be cool with him yet the pass interference will be remembered.  

Seminoles had to finish the drive though down at the goal line. Winston did not leave much theatrics as he found Kelvin Benjamin with a pop pass on the first play. Jameis threw a ball that only 6'6 Benjamin could pull down and he did it giving Florida State the lead once again with under 30 seconds. It showed incredible pose in the moment from a guy whom just turned 20 yesterday. He wanted the moment and took advantage of it. Heisman moments are overrated, but let's be clear, that was the play of 2013, Auburn plays be damned.

Florida State wins their third National Championship ending the seven year reign of SEC dominance setting up another great year of college football with a four-team playoff involved.  Winston will be back for another year with Florida State trying to claim the first college football playoff.  There is a chance people will still  not be happy and ask for the BCS back yet the last one will always be remembered for a great finish. This is how a series finales should end.  

Charlie. 

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums

Dougy's Best of 2013: Concerts

Dougy's Best of 2013: Songs Countdown

Dougy's Best of 2013: Artists//Album Covers//Music Videos//Lyrics

Dougy's Best of 2013: Movies (Coming Soon)

I consider 2008 to be the year I started really listening to music. Losing interest in the fading emo and pop-punk genres that dominated my high school years, I discovered the likes of Bon Iver, The Hold Steady, Vampire Weekend and MGMT in 2008. The rest, as they say, is history. Since then I have discovered a wide variety of music and my taste in tunes continues to become more refined. Although 2010 remains my favorite year of music releases, 2013 would be a very close second. In fact, quite a few of my 2010 favorites returned with albums that appear below. In no other year have I consumed as much music as I did in 2013. I listened to well over 60 albums this year and know I'm missing quite a few (sorry Beyonce!). Like every year, I'll continue discovering 2013 music well into the new year.  This list would probably be more accurate if written three months from now, but where is the fun in that? After writing a quick blurb about each of these albums I realized two things.  A) I've already spoken about most of these albums on SnoTap throughout the year.  B) this year's albums got me a little sentimental.  Vampire Weekend will always remind me of leaving Eau Claire.  Arcade Fire will always remind me of moving to Knoxville.  Rhye brings to mind San Francisco.    I realize all of these lists are subjective, but I felt this list was better if ran without comment. That being said, I'm always down for good music discussion and would love to hear any and all feedback.  As always, thanks for reading. Without further ado, here are my favorite albums of 2013.

To make it even easier for you, I've included a link to a sample of each album.

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #30
Boards of Canada - Tomorrow's Harvest

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #29
Darkside - Psychic

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #28
Action Bronson - Blue Chips 2

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #27
Haim - Days Are Gone

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #26
Savages - Silence Yourself

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #25
Kurt Vile - Waking on a Pretty Daze

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #24
David Bowie - The Next Day

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #23
Run The Jewels - Run The Jewels

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #22
My Bloody Valentine - mbv

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #21
Deerhunter - Monomania

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #20
Rhye - Woman

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #19
Volcano Choir - Repave

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #18
Washed Out - Paracosm

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #17
Foals - Holy Fire

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #16
A$AP Rocky - Long. Live. A$AP.

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #15
Justin Timberlake - The 20/20 Experience

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #14
Queens of the Stone Age - ...Like Clockwork

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #13
CHVRCHES - The Bones of What You Believe

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #12
Fuck Buttons - Slow Focus

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #11
The National - Trouble Will Find Me

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #10
Local Natives - Hummingbird

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #9
FIDLAR - FIDLAR

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #8
Cut Copy - Free Your Mind

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #7
Disclosure - Settle

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #6
Danny Brown - Old

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #5
Kanye West - Yeezus

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #4
Daft Punk - Random Access Memories

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #3
Lorde - Pure Heroine

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #2
Arcade Fire - Reflektor

Dougy's Best of 2013: Albums #1
Vampire Weekend - Modern Vampires of the City

**********

HISTORY

2008 Coldplay - Viva La Vida

2009 Yeah Yeah Yeahs - It's Blitz

2010 Arcade Fire - The Suburbs

2011 Bon Iver - Bon Iver, Bon Iver

2012 Beach House – Bloom

2013 Vampire Weekend - Modern Vampires of the City

**********

Dougy's Best of 2012: Albums

First Taste: Bo Pelini won Twitter CFB National Championship

Nebraska's head coach Bo Pelini is almost more known on Twitter for his parody account, @FauxBoPelini. It is a great example of a parody Twitter account done right. In fact, the fake account went past the real Bo Pelini on Twitter in terms of follows. This must have got the attention of a smart intern or someone working with Nebraska's social media team. I know this is true because Pelini picked the perfect time to drop the tweet when every CFB tweeter was on Twitter in the middle of the National Championship. He said this very thing to the fake account.

@FauxPelini ok enough is enough... I want my cat back. You've had her long enough!
— Bo Pelini (@BoPelini) January 7, 2014

Fake twitter account's response....

@BoPelini OK don't be mad but I haven't seen her since Thursday. WAIT DIDN'T CARL LEAVE TOWN ON THURSDAY
— Fake Bo Pelini (@FauxPelini) January 7, 2014

Pretty much purrfect (Oh God that's bad, shut up Charlie)

Charlie.

Closing Time: Louisville Replaces Charlie Strong with Jennifer Lawrence.

I am sure there are many Louisville fans disappointed about Charlie Strong headed to Texas. I will say it is like the Tom Crean move to Indiana. I mean I hated it as a Marquette fan, but that is a top-five job in the college basketball world. Same goes for Texas. I like the hire a ton for the Longhorns. But Louisville got some encouragement as Jennifer Lawrence, an Oscar-winning actress and a favorite by most men, flashed the Louisville 'L' today geared up in a Louisville hoodie. This is also a big moment in the Louisville-Kentucky rivalry as Ashley Judd is the super fan for the Wildcats, and J-Law is a major blow to Judd's throne. Also Marquette-Louisville do not play in basketball anymore, but Lawrence broke my buddy Mach's heart. (H/T @UofLEquipment) 

@SnoTap12 She is dead to me
— Joseph Maciejewski (@JoeMach64) January 6, 2014

Charlie.

SnoTap BCS Championship Preview: Florida State v. Auburn

College football season is over. This is a sad thing for many people. Even though I really do not have a team, college football has become a big part of my life. I really think it is due to their Twitter users are the best out there. CFB Twitter is by far the best Twitter. BCS is also over as the college football playoff will begin next year. It closes with two teams whom have already won a BCS National Championship in Florida State and Auburn. One is more likely to be there with the other trying to finish their date with destiny as well as ensure the SEC had the final seven BCS National Championships.

Thinking back to different BCS National Championship teams, they are loaded with players who are currently playing in the NFL and making a big impact with their collective teams. Florida State might be the next team. They are completely loaded on both sides of the football. All 22 players starting for the Seminoles tonight will get drafted without question, and they are led by their Heisman-winning quarterback Jameis Winston who is having one of the best seasons ever.

People really believe in Auburn's defense, but at the same time, they have given up 30 points multiple times this season even in a winning effort. That should be a major red flag heading into a game against Winston and Florida State as they will break 2008 Oklahoma's record of total points with four touchdowns. Auburn will try to find some ways to break this Florida State team, but how exactly do you stop Winston?  The only thing I could come to is a true zone defense maybe channeling their inner Lovie Smith or Monte Kiffin (ACTUALLY STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM THAT ONE). Winston has been crazy good against the blitz this season meaning the zone will be their friends and a cover two could ensure their secondary is protected better than blitzing leaving a poor defensive backfield on an island.

If there is one defect in Auburn's game, it is their secondary. Tigers do not really have strong cornerbacks, and the only way to save them against Winston might be putting them in zones all game long.  Tigers passing defense could be the unraveling of this team on Monday night though no matter what. Auburn gives up around 260 yards per game, and they do not force many turnovers, only 13 interceptions this season. In no way whatsoever, Kelvin Benjamin cannot get behind the Auburn's secondary or it will be curtains for this defense. Further, Auburn should admit themselves early on that Benjamin will at least have one or two big plays and cut off the head of the other players.

No one thought Auburn would be here at August. People thought they would have an improving year, but a BCS appearance in the Sugar Bowl would have definitely suffice this January. Therefore Auburn is playing with house money. If they win, they carry an SEC torch for another year but if they lose, it was a hell of a season no matter what. Sometimes when a team plays with house money, they play loose and free leading to good things. Auburn is the best rushing team in the nation, and they will go up against one of the best rushing defenses in the country. Hate to sound like John Madden here pointing the obvious, but Auburn will need to run the football efficiently to win the game without question.

If Tre Mason and company are able to run the football and control the clock, they can win this football game. The longer they can keep Winston and Florida State's explosive offense off the field, the better. There is a slight problem though. Florida State's starting defense has not allowed a touchdown all season. I have to think knowing the kind of coach Gus Malzahn is, there will be some trick plays tonight. I expect Auburn to try and catch Florida State off-guard multiple times in this football game as this will be another way for the Tigers to keep the ball longer than expected.  Additionally, they need Nick Marshall to at least complete a couple passes even if they are not the pretty ones Winston is throwing when Florida State has the ball.

Many people are calling for a Florida State blowout.  These are the same folks who were calling for an Alabama blowout last year. I went against the grain last year and took Notre Dame. I cannot pick against Florida State in this game, but I do think five weeks for Malzahn will do more good for Auburn than it will do for the Seminoles and Jimbo Fisher. Additionally, whenever a player wins a Heisman trophy, their following game in the bowl is not a guaranteed great game. In the end, Winston will find a way to win this game late, but Florida State needs to slam the door on destiny before it gets a chance. Florida State 41 Auburn 31

Charlie.

CBB Stock Market: January 4-5th

Looking for something else on Sports News on Tap, I found a gem called 'CBB Stock Market' which highlighted what happened on the weekend of college hoops. It was a pretty decent weekend for college basketball with a couple unbeatens going down along with a couple teams losing at home that probably should not have on Saturday and Sunday. Sometimes I will use this space for a longer form recap, but mostly, it will be a subheading. 

BUY BUY BUY 

Ohio State Buckeyes - Why is no one talking about this team? They are unbeaten and might be the best 'team' right now in college basketball. When I say 'team' I might just them as a unit versus the best players out on the court. They have a balanced scoring attack with Lenzelle Smith Jr. and LaQuinton Ross being the two top scorers for this team. While Smith and Ross are the only two averaging double-digits, they have six more averaging at least five points a game. Efficient team who has big games against Michigan State and Iowa. Excited to see how they handle both teams. 

San Diego State Aztecs - When Marquette lost to San Diego State, I felt like this could be a bad loss moving forward. Aztecs seemed like a team playing above their head, but now, I have to think this team is a legitimate contender this season. Hyperbole or not, but teams do not just go into Phog Allen Fieldhouse and win a basketball game. They made Kansas played at their pace, and on defense, they forced a ton of 3-pointers as Kansas shot 16 threes in the game only making four of them. Judging by this team's resume, it is not out of the question for them to be a top three seed if they play well in the Mountain West.  

Villanova Wildcats - Hands down, Big East favorite at least at the beginning of the year. They went into Butler earlier this week and took care of the Bulldogs in a tough overtime. Sure, Butler is not what they used to be, but that's a tough environment to win a basketball game especially coming off a road loss against Syracuse where they were outclassed in the second half. And on Sunday, they boat raced a supposedly better Providence team by 30 points at home putting up 90+ points. This is the Big East favorite until a couple teams can beat them. 

HOLD HOLD HOLD

North Carolina Tar Heels - What a confusing team. North Carolina loses their fourth game against an unranked team. This was an uninspired effort from the Tar Heels with them not getting to the line very often (7/11) and convincing themselves they could make threes when they were not falling at all.  They also had 17 turnovers. I am standing by what I said in November that North Carolina is going to be a five or sixth seed and find themselves at least in the Elite Eight or they lose in the first round. No in-between.

Jabari Parker - From a scoring standpoint, the last two games have been a struggle for the heralded freshman, but this had to be expected right?  Parker could not just fly through the season like Superman. It is just not possible. He struggled to score against Elon only having 12 points (It should not be forgotten he had 10 rebounds which is equally important), and a season-low seven against Notre Dame, a team not really known for their defense this season. There is a book on Parker, and he needs to make adjustments to his game to find more scoring.

Kansas Jayhawks - I am not ready to bury this team. Big 12 is a really good conference with the play of Baylor, Oklahoma State, Iowa State and Kansas State meaning Kansas needs to figure out their freshman-led team quicker than usual yet at some point, it will come together. They are too good for it not to happen. Even if Kansas goes into the tournament at a three or four seed,  Jayhawks would be completely lethal. Soon enough, they will find a way to win one of these close games. Kansas has a massive four-game stretch starting on January 11th.

SELL SELL SELL 

Memphis Tigers - Oh Memphis. I wanted to believe in this team. I saw them against Florida and then they beat Oklahoma State the second time around, it seemed like a different team. They really should put paper in front of their nickname. They got their asses kicked at home to a good yet beatable Cincinnati team. I have no idea why their guards kept trying to throw things at Justin Jackson only to get blocked. Josh Pastner's seat moved from lukewarm to suddenly warmer in the last couple days. 

Fran McCaffery - If you missed it yesterday, Iowa's head coach lost his shit costing his team the game against Wisconsin. Iowa was up 41-39 before the double technical foul on McCaffery and after it, Iowa never led after it. Four points is all it took for Wisconsin to win this game which was equally the two technical fouls. Nothing is wrong being a fiery coach, but if you do, it needs to be controlled and not screaming at officials like a drill sargent. My assumption is he will miss two or three games for bumping an official meaning he could miss games against Northwestern, Ohio State and Minnesota.

GAMES TO WATCH THIS WEEK 
Tuesday: 7. Baylor at 9. Iowa State 6:00 pm ESPN2,  3. Ohio State at 5. Michigan State 8:00 pm
Wednesday: 23. Illinois at 4. Wisconsin 8:00 pm Big Ten Network
Thursday: 24. Memphis at 12. Louisville 6:00 pm ESPN,  1. Arizona at UCLA 8:00 pm ESPN

Charlie. 

Gardner Guides Marquette past DePaul

The first 30 minutes of the DePaul-Marquette game felt like rock bottom.  This team has been struggling all season, but not to the level where they would be trailing everyone's little brother DePaul by 10 points in the second half at home. Marquette had not lost to DePaul at home since 2001 when I was in sixth grade. Things honestly looked grim for Marquette, but Davante Gardner took control of the game giving Marquette a bolt of energy it needed. Could this be a turning point in the season, or did Golden Eagles just take care of business against a team they are supposed to beat plus what's up with JaJuan Johnson's minutes?

The thing that stuck with me from this game is Marquette could have easily quit in this game and let DePaul win this basketball game. Basketball is probably the one sport when you can definitely see a team quit and Golden Eagles definitely could have laid down letting DePaul win this basketball game, but they did not allow it to happen. Instead, they started nailing down some 3-point shots which in turn opened up the middle for Gardner whose been struggling as of late. He stepped up in the moment after being called out by his coach, Buzz Williams earlier in the week for his sluggish play. 

The head coach had a right to call out Gardner. There is really no leader on this basketball team which is another story for another blog post, but some player needed to grab this team by the collective balls, possibly that player is Gardner which would be my assumption as to why Williams targeted Gardner. Marquette's big man in the last four games before DePaul, he managed only 32 total points and barely grabbed down any rebounds. He still struggled a bit from the rebounding angle getting only six against the Blue Demons, but that is still an upgrade from what Gardner's output has been in the last couple of games. A leader sometimes is not a player who is yelling and screaming rather a player making the biggest plays in the game. It was 40-30 DePaul with 15 minutes left, and Gardner plus the others ended the game on a 30-16 run which was 30-9 before a late 7-0 DePaul run. Marquette found their stride in the final 15 minutes. 

Out of all the things that happened with the game, maybe the most puzzling thing is the lack of minutes for freshman JaJuan Johnson. There is definitely a feel that Williams is not really keen on playing many freshmen. I have no idea how Johnson at least gets 10-15 minutes a game to give Jake Thomas a breather. Honestly, I have no idea why him or Deonte Burton does not start over him at this point. Even though Thomas had some clutch 3-pointers on Saturday, he is nowhere near a starter in the Big East or any power conference. Against Samford, Johnson gave Marquette 25 minutes and had 14 points yet in the first two conference games, he played a full seven minutes all against Creighton. There seems like a disconnect there. Hopefully whatever issue Williams has with Johnson against high quality teams dissolves sooner rather than later. 

It is hard to tell what to expect from Golden Eagles moving forward even with their win against DePaul. Like this is a team they are supposed to beat meaning this win should not be a rallying cry for a 'saving of the season' at this point. There is a long way to go, and as I mentioned on Friday, expectations should not be very high right now meaning it is okay to take what is given right now. Xavier on the road Thursday will be a true test and Seton Hall at home this next weekend will not be an easy task either. 

Charlie.  

Bucks Buzz: Monday January 6th

Even though it has been a bad year for Milwaukee thus far, Mitch Pratt and Charlie Tritschler will provide you with a bi-weekly update on the Bucks ranging from recaps, links and other neat stuff.  

Hot Recap Takes
Thursday: Jazz 96 Bucks 87 - BATTLE OF THE TANK. I had no idea how bad Milwaukee has been in Utah in the last 24 years as the Bucks have only won three of their last 24 games in Salt Lake City. It did not get any better last Thursday as Bucks fall rather easily to Utah. Once again, Milwaukee gave up a big stat line to a big man with Derrick Favors having a double-double with 22 points and eleven rebounds. Gordan Hayward had a big day as well going for 22 and on an efficient 8/16 shooting. He has really turned into a good player for the Jazz. On Milwaukee's side of things, the good was Larry Sanders having his first big game since coming back from injury with 16 points, eight rebounds and going seven for seven from the field. The bad was Brandon Knight going 3 for 12 with only eight points. These games are evidence when people call Knight a 'shoot-first' point guard.

Saturday: Suns 116 Bucks 100 - Phoenix was without Eric Bledsoe, but that did not matter in this one as they rolled Milwaukee on Saturday night. Milwaukee had a season-high 26 turnovers, and to think with how bad the season has been, I am surprised they have not hit 30 this season. Gerald Green of all people had a great day against the Bucks going for 24 points and five steals. I know I bang on this point consistently, but another big man enjoyed a nice day with Channing Frye with 22 points and seven rebounds. Milwaukee did have some good performances out there with Knight having 25 points on 8/12 shooting and O.J. Mayo had his first good night from the bench going for 20 points with 7/11 shooting. Negative side of things we saw a rookie game from Giannis Anetokounmpo. An with him being shutout in a game for the first time since his DNP against Washington in late November. Hopefully this does not deter Larry Drew from starting him.

BEEF WATCH: Sanders vs. Neal
What's been surprising is Milwaukee really has yet to have any team issues with their bad record. Usually by this time, someone would be in trouble for punching a teammate. After a bad outing by Sanders, Gary Neal made a comment about 'earning his money.' This is an absurd thing to Neal to say to Sanders. He earns bench contract sure, but it is not like he is scorching the earth right now. I mean this is not like Neal is the team leader here. There is really no basis to call out Sanders. Personally, I think Larry knows he needs to step up and be a leader of this team. I really do not believe he needs any reminders. To me, it sounds like jealousy from Neal.

Links

Great post from K.L. Chounaird about Giannis and his nicknames. I agree about 'Greek Freak' being an offensive nickname, same goes with The Alphabet. K.L. includes a cool story about his Nigerian name. (Bucksetball) 

What to Watch
I would watch Knight's shooting selection. There are rumblings among Bucks faithful that he is shooting too much with the basketball as a point guard. I am not sure if I am in that camp yet. As it has been noted here before, he is only 22 years young. Still lots of time to figure it out.  

What's Next for Milwaukee

Welp they play Golden State at home on Tuesday which will probably be billed as the return of Andrew Bogut. Milwaukee might give up 140 points in regulation.

Charlie.

Wild Card Recap: Dumpster Fire Dalton

Seeing what happened to Kansas City on Saturday made you think about Cincinnati instantaneously. The reason is being is Bengals have been exactly like the Chiefs in terms of they have not won a playoff game in over 20 years. For Cincinnati, it has been worse than Kansas City as Bengals have not won a playoff game since 1990. This seemed like more than given to break the streak. Cincinnati is undefeated at the so-called 'The Jungle' playing a San Diego team whom basically snaked their way into the playoffs like the guy from The Wolf on Wall Street. It seemed like a lock. But once again, Cincinnati failed to live up to the bright lights and it all falls on their quarterback.

Sometimes blaming the quarterback is an unjust thing to do. People do with Tony Romo of the Dallas Cowboys all the time, and there are ton more examples of quarterbacks getting the brunt of the blame when it is undeserving. But this is one of those cases where it all falls on the quarterback. Andy Dalton cost his team the football game, and once again, it a big football game with a big moment, he failed to step up to the big lights. This is a problem, and probably it means they have an issue at quarterback whether they want to admit it or not right now.

Cincinnati held a 10-7 advantage heading into halftime. They could have been up at least three more points if Giovanni Bernard did not fumble near the goal line. Dalton came out in the second half, and it honestly seemed like he tightened up crumbling under the pressure even when there was not much. After San Diego scored a touchdown to retake the lead giving Chargers a 14-10 lead early in the third quarter, Dalton tries to run the ball falling forward leading him to fumble the ball. San Diego recovered and added a field goal to give them a seven-point advantage. Dalton played adequtely leading up to this point, but it seemed like the fumble was the start of the spiral like when your friend suggests to do RumpleMintz shots after five hours of drinking.

It became the same story with Dalton as instead of coming up with a response to San Diego getting a score and tying up the game, he threw a putrid interception to Shareece Wright. Once again, this turnover happened in Chargers territory. People really think this guy is a franchise quarterback?  This is an average quarterback at this point. Sure he wins games, but Trent Dilfer won games with a good defense behind him. There are so many quarterbacks that have been bailed out by having a great defense, but Dalton cost his team a chance to win this football game without question even though his defense gave him a chance in another attempt to bail his ass out. San Diego only turned Dalton's mistakes to six points meaning Cincinnati at least a chance in this football game and Dalton pissed it away like a drunk Billy Madison.

Even with the ineptitude of Dalton, San Diego deserves credit for winning the football game. Chargers defense played well even with holding one of the worst pass defenses in he National Football League (This actually makes Dalton's day more criminal). They also ran the ball for almost 200 yards with a three-headed monster of Ronnie Brown, Danny Woodhead and Ryan Mathews against one of the best rush defenses in the NFL. With Mathews banged up, they were still able to find a way to control the clock and pull off the massive upset against Cincinnati. Also let's not forget Phillip Rivers being the first person since my grandpa in the 2000s to wear a bolo tie.

It is not time for Cincinnati to make a quarterback change, but they should draft a quarterback in the upcoming 2014 NFL draft. It is a loaded quarterback draft meaning they could get someone like Aaron Murray, Zach Mettenberger or Logan Thomas in the mid-rounds. In no way should Cincinnati be thinking about giving Dalton a 100 million dollar contract in 2015 when his contract is up. Dalton might be sixth in passing for the season, but he might just be a mid-level quarterback who knows how to throw a vertical route to A.J. Green.

Charlie.

Wild Card Recap: Saints Become Road Warriors

Narratives in sports are a funny thing. Most of the time they are overblown, but there are some that become a 'Death, Taxes' and team x losing to team y or losing in y condition.'  The latter became how people treated New Orleans Saints on the road especially in cold. People believed the Saints could not win a big game when they had to be away from the SuperDome. New Orleans could not really disagree as the facts were there with Saints going 8-8 since 2011 on the road. Well they shed some of the criticism beating Philadelphia on a chilly Saturday night in the city of Brotherly Love.

While their road failures have been an issue for New Orleans, kicking field goals have been a real problem for Saints this season. Garrett Hartley is currently looking for work after going 22/30 this season missing three field goals inside 30-39 and another four field goals inside 40-49 so it is not like Hartley missed field goals from deep distances rather he missed short yardage field goals. Credit to New Orleans for making sure it would be not be what came back to bite them in the ass in the playoffs. Shayne Graham was a rockstar on Saturday night drilling three field goals including the game-winner at the very end. Couple weeks ago, Graham did not have a job and now he is kicking field goals in the playoffs, what a world.

One of the more impressive things about New Orleans' win is they grinded out this victory. This was not a classic Saints game where they relied on big plays and a huge Drew Brees performance in the process.  Only twice did Brees have a lower quarterback rating yet New Orleans still found a way to find this football game. Further, Saints lost the turnover bout to with Philadelphia picking Brees off twice and still New Orleans came out ahead in this football game. Saints Defensive Coordinator Rob Ryan gets a great deal of shit from people, but he deserves a ton of credit for the game plan he had against Philadelphia. He is the biggest reason why Saints were able to win with a negative turnover ratio and a poor Brees performance.

Philadelphia only had one play of 25 yards or more. Eagles make their living off of those plays as they had 62 this year leading the NFL. DeSean Jackson usually on the receiving end of the big play assault was held in check with 53 yards on three catches with 40 of them on one play. Even without Saints cornerback Keenan Lewis whom went out of the game earlier with a concussion, they were able to hold Jackson in check. New Orleans also held LeSean McCoy at by as the league leader in rushing only had 77 yards averaging 3.8 yards per carry. Ryan's yeoman effort on Saturday night makes me think this New Orleans team might be step up for a deep playoff run even though they will be battling the elements for all four weeks of the playoff season.

Hell of fight by Philadelphia this season. Nobody really knew what to expect with Chip Kelly and this team. When they started off season 3-5, many people started writing off this team and people began to criticize Kelly's style as a coach. Eagles responded by only losing one game the rest of the season and will definitely be a Super Bowl contender in a couple years with a couple more pieces. They have a plan in place, and might be one of the most exciting teams moving forward. Expect to see this team a great deal in primetime next season.

New Orleans heads back to Seattle for their second game, and place that has given them all sorts of trouble in the Pete Carroll era. All week they will see the Marshawn Lynch run, or the game in December when Seattle wiped the floor with them. But given how New Orleans gutted out a playoff road win, I would not doubt this team at all.

Charlie.

Wild Card Recap: Insanity in Indianapolis

I really do not remember much of Buffalo-Houston when backup Buffalo quarterback Frank Reich lead the Bills back from being down 35-3 against the Oilers. It is a faint memory of my early childhood as I was four at the time. I vaguely remember watching it with my dad in our old TV room we called 'the den.'  But Saturday's Kansas City-Indianapolis game will always be remembered. It is this generation's Buffalo-Houston, and how Colts pulled off the unthinkable with Kansas City puking on their cleats like they were the girl in The Exorcist. 

For many people, this will be the game they point to that vaulted Andrew Luck's career as an NFL quarterback. The first playoff win is crucial even if it is somewhat meaningless. All of the shit Tony Romo and Matt Ryan endured throughout their young career just because their team, not the player, could not win the game is ridiculous. Although Luck will not have the same #hotsportstake people saying he cannot win a big game. In fact, he will be known for his fourth quarter comebacks which is sort of a dumb stat too, but that's a discussion for another time. All and all, Andy Luck had himself a grown ass man win on the biggest stage in his young career.

The two biggest plays of the game when fumbles occurred in the second half. The first was a strip sack and the second, a rare Donald Brown fumble. When a team attempts to make a dramatic comeback like Indianapolis, they need to catch a break. When Indianapolis cut the lead to 38-17 early in the third quarter, Robert Mathis made a strip sack of Alex Smith on the very next possession. This is a play to expect from Mathis whose had 19 sacks this season having a career year at age 32. Mathis knew the beaten up Colts defense needed a play out of him and he made it happen out there. What's lost about that play is Kansas City drove down the field a bit before Mathis made the play setting up Indianapolis to continue their comeback.

Sometimes, the 'Announcer Jinx' is a real thing. NBC's broadcast crew of Dan Hicks and Mike Mayock mentioned how Donald Brown has never lost a fumble, and on a critical goal line carry, Brown fumbled the football. The ball laid out there, and Luck had the presence of mind to pick the ball up and snuck into the end zone for a touchdown. The fact he saw the hole still there from Brown running it, and did not just fall on it is sort of incredible. I do not think all quarterbacks are thinking about running it first rather they are probably just falling on the ball. This brought Indianapolis only down by three points.

After a Kansas City field goal, Luck found T.Y. Hilton behind the defense deep leading to a final touchdown giving Indianapolis the one-point lead with them climbing all the way up the 28-point hill. It was an incredible comeback, do not get me wrong, but the lack of defense being played felt like we were watching a college football game versus an actual National Football League game. Neither team really wanted to play defense at any point of this game and really all that mattered was not who had the ball last, but who made the last big play. Game could not have been more fun, but let's not excuse how bad both of these defenses were throughout the game.

Even the coldest human in the world has to feel for Kansas City in general. This is a team that has not won a playoff game since Bill Clinton was President and O.J. Simpson did not commit murder.  Also a team that won two games last year, and had a great season led by new coach Andy Reid. It seemed like the ultimate redemption story, but it did not happen meaning continued heartbreak for the Kansas City fanbase. Many people will question what Reid was thinking burning through this timeouts, but let's be honest, that is a staple of Reid's coaching career since he started with Philadelphia. We all should have seen it coming at some point this season.

Indianapolis heads to New England in what I would consider a rivalry. Granted, the rivalry started when Tom Brady and Peyton Manning were running things, but they played some classics in the postseason. Here's hoping Luck can carry on the rivalry into the next generation.

Charlie.

Wild Card Recap: Packers Grasp at Destiny Falls Short

Green Bay Packers' theme song going into the Wild Card weekend should have been 'Cinderella Man' by Eminem solely for the first couple lines in the song when Em says 'Technically, I am not really supposed to be right here so fuck it, let's make the most of it." Green Bay had no business being in the playoffs. Absolutely none. They did not have their franchise quarterback for half the year, their defense looked like Swiss cheese more than times than not and they had more injuries than a M.A.S.H. unit yet they still ended up winning the division finding themselves in a home playoff game against San Francisco. Packers came very close to pulling off the upset yet it was not meant to be with old problems haunting the team along with an old nemesis dominating Green Bay again.

Sometimes in the final loss of the season, the demons of the team reared their ugly head once again. This happened with Green Bay's offense as they failed to get off to a fast start, and they struggled to score on the goal line. Packers started off the game with only six yards of offense. It seems like it might be the script is too conservative to start the game more times than not. Three straight runs to begin the game is not really what is expected when Aaron Rodgers is behind center. Mike McCarthy is really hard coach to criticize because the times you want him to be like Ted Cruz, he acts like a hippie and the times you want him to be free as a bird, he goes all Rick Santorum.  But Green Bay getting off to a slow start did not help things, and the team was very fortunate San Francisco only had six points on the board thanks to the true meaning of a bend not break defense. 

Goal line demon did not rear its ugly head until the fourth quarter, probably the worst time for it to happen. For the year, Green Bay is only 50 percent at red zone efficiency which is way down from years past. Granted some of that can be blamed on not having Rodgers, yet this was a major problem when this team had a 6-2 record.  Packers found themselves on on the 10 yard line going in with what could have been their second straight touchdown drive in the fourth quarter.  Green Bay moved the ball down there with a steady dose of short passing and Eddie Lacy bullying the usually tough San Francisco rush defense.  When they went to goal line, it seems what got Green Bay down there went out the window. First down was a short-side zone read run to Randall Cobb and a five-wide set that went nowhere. Second down, the coverage forced Rodgers to throw it away and on third down, Rodgers could only gain two yards on the ground causing Green Bay to tie the game versus putting them ahead. The play calling was mind-boggling in the situation with Lacy bruising and beating up this San Francisco defense for him not to touch the ball once is maddening. Goal line play calling needs to be better next season, no question about it. 

While many people will rush to point the finger at defensive coordinator Dom Capers, he really did call a good game for what he had out there. Losing Sam Shields and Mike Neal right away felt like a death sentence for this defense yet they remained tall out there. They lost another linebacker in Andy Mulumba and Capers made a quick switch to running a 4-3 defense for a couple plays which virtually unheard from the Packers coach. I have no idea if this will be his last game as Packers defensive coordinator despite what the armchair general managers want, but if it is, this is a hell of a way to go out. He did the most with limited amount of pieces out there. The only real compliant from this defense is the inability, for the third straight time, to stop The Angry Ostrich.  

Colin Kaepernick kept his ownership over Green Bay and will continue to give this defense nightmares well into the 2014 year. Once again, Kaepernick did it with his arm and legs being very efficient with his passes, and he also found a way to make it work on the ground nearly running for 100 yards, his second-highest for his career. For the second straight year, there was no contain on Kaepernick letting him run wild and he only made one bad decision all game, an interception to Tramon Williams in the early stages of the game. If Green Bay wants to head back to the Super Bowl, they need to figure out Kaepernick because it is likely they will need to go through San Francisco in order to get there again. 

That leads me to wonder whether San Francisco is the new Dallas in terms of the one team Green Bay just cannot beat in any scenario. For as good as Brett Favre was for his career, he only beat Dallas once and it was a cold game in Lambeau Field post Jimmy Johnson and Barry Switzer. Aaron Rodgers record against Jim Harbaugh's San Francisco is now 0-4. They will not meet again in the regular season next year, but a postseason affair could definitely happen again whether it be again at Lambeau or a meeting at new Levi Stadium set to open next season. Either way, Green Bay needs to start beating the 49ers before Kaepernick is the new age Troy Aikman for fans. 

2013 season is now in the books. It will be one where people wonder 'what if' ranging from all the injuries to what things might have been like had Rodgers stayed healthy all year. But at the end of the day, this is still a Super Bowl contender for 2014 and they will make moves to better themselves for the upcoming year. 

Charlie. 

Tap's Trailers: Grand Piano

Do you think they could make a movie about a pianist (Try hard not to laugh at the word, oh who am I kidding, laugh away!) being threaten to get killed unless he is perfect on-stage?  Well this is the plot of Grand Piano starring Elijah Wood in what seems like one of his first movies starring since the days of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Wood plays a pianist whom used to be great, but an incident caused him with stage fright meaning he was never the same throwing off his entire life. One night as he takes the stage someone is in his ear about killing him if he is not at his very best. John Cusack also stars in this one. Looks alright, but I feel like I have seen this movie before with different occupations.

Charlie.

First Taste: Dare You (Music Video) - Hardwell (Feat. Matthew Koma)

Alright, folks the holiday season is officially over. It is the first full week of work for some people in the last three weeks. It also means that part-timers like myself will go back to feeling worthless instead of feeling like everybody else who works sparingly. This is a great way to jumpstart your week and may it be the motivation for whatever New Year's Resolution you might be starting today because we all know this past week did not count whatsoever. Hardwell has put out some real awesome stuff since splitting with Swedish House Mafia, and this is just another great one. Make sure you add this to your workout playlist for the next couple months.

Charlie.

SnoTap NFL Wild Card Picks: Blackouts, Weather and Scoring... Oh My!

It is time to make my NFL picks for the weekend. This was my first season where I tried to bet with Las Vegas. I do not have any experience and think I did slightly below average going 14 games under .500 with a couple pushes thrown in there. I realize how bad it would be actually sports gamble, but I feel like if my money is right, why not? At least try it out and see what happens. As for straight up, it was a successful season once again winning over 160 games. Let's hope the straight up trend continues for the playoffs.

SATURDAY 
Kansas City at Indianapolis 3:35 pm NBC - Is it weird I think this could be the best non-Packer game of the weekend?  I am introducing a new SnoTap theory for this game called the 'Arizona Theory.'  It is based off Arizona Cardinals 2009 team that got crushed by Green Bay Packers in the final game of the season only to beat the same team in the Wild Card round of the playoffs. Kansas City suffered an embarrassing home defeat to Indianapolis 23-7 earlier this month, but remember, Chiefs had locked up the fifth seed and they knew there was a chance they could be seeing Indianapolis in this round of the playoffs. This means they could be showing all sorts of shit Indianapolis did not see the first time around.

Andy Reid has not been to the playoffs since 2010, and he did not win a playoff game since 2008. Same goes for Kansas City with their team not having a playoff win since 1994. But this game will come down to which star shines the brightest... Jamaal Charles or Andrew Luck. Indianapolis boasts one of the worst rushing defenses in the NFL meaning Charles could have a huge game on the fast track at Lucas Oil. Last three games are not really indicative of what the Colts have done against ground. Tennessee's second game they rushed for 162 as a team, Cincinnati rushed for 155 yards and Arizona rushed for 120. Charles might be the difference maker.

But that's not to say Luck could not have the same day with the Colts. Kansas City's secondary have become their biggest problem of their comeback season. While the Chiefs have not faced a ton of great quarterbacks this season, but when they have, results are not the greatest. Luck seemed to move the ball better in the last couple of games without forcing the ball as he only has one interception in the last four games

Indianapolis seems to beat giants this season. They always seem to play up to their opponent. Alex Smith on the road and winning seems to mix like oil and water. Indy in a close one. Indianapolis 34 Kansas City 29 

New Orleans at Philadelphia 7:10 pm NBC - These are two of my favorite teams to watch this season so this game should be a delight to watch. I really would be surprised if we see a blowout even though the odds might be against New Orleans. I really think this is a game where I would be nervous as an Eagles fan.

Many people have already pushed the narrative about Saints not being a good road team as well as how much dome teams suffer in cold weather playoff teams. It almost reminds me a bit of Atlanta in 2002 with Green Bay. A little different elements, but no one gave Atlanta a chance, no one. I feel like some of that is happening with New Orleans. Drew Brees will be able to move the ball against this defense, but they will need to run the ball to create some balance. Saints have a big problem not involving their run game more, and that needs to happen on Saturday night.

Philadelphia is the bandwagon team of the playoffs. They are a fun offense with likable players such as Nick Foles, DeSean Jackson, LeSean McCoy. People go head over heels to tell you how great Chip Kelly has been this season. This might have to be a Shady game for Philadelphia because New Orleans ranks second in pass defense. They really have not allowed many gaudy numbers against the pass. They do not force many turnovers, but it seems like New Orleans does not give up the big play as much as other teams taking away one of Philadelphia's big parts of their offense.

This is a game that applies to the logic 'Until you can do it, I don't believe you can do it.' I cannot take New Orleans on the road in a big game until they prove they can win one of these games. I BELIEVE YOU NARRATIVES. Philadelphia 27 New Orleans 21

SUNDAY
San Diego at Cincinnati 12:05 pm CBS - There are two people I have came around to liking in 2013, Jason Dufner and Phillip Rivers.  There are more people out there whom I have come to like, but in sports, Duf and Rivers are guys I choose to like versus disliking. Rivers being a crybaby is somewhat annoying, but the guy is just so quirky, it works perfectly for me. He is an oddball unlike some of the other robotic-like quarterbacks I have to respect it.

Rivers will be up against it on Sunday with Cincinnati having one of the best pass defenses in the NFL. They also force turnovers which is a problem for Rivers at times. San Diego quarterback will need to be in control if they want to win the game, and see if their rushing attack can at least give them something because they will need to keep their defense off the field as much as possible.

Andy Dalton is sixth in the NFL at passing the football. That is incredible because I do not consider him that good in any sort of scenario.  But one thing the Red Rocket does well is take advantage of bad pass defenses this year except for San Diego. Dalton really struggled on the road this season facing the Chargers in a game I think many people forgot about. Just a mirage or something to keep an eye on? Like Rivers, Dalton needs to limit his turnovers as much as possible.

This is the third straight playoff appearence for Cincinnati, their fourth in five years. They still have not won a playoff game since 1990. I think that changes with a spirited performances at one of the toughest places to play this season. CIN 24-21

San Francisco at Green Bay 3:35 pm FOX - I made a pick as well as a full breakdown of this game earlier today. Check it out. 

Charlie.

CBB Weekend Picks: New Marquette Expectations

If you notice I have been quiet about Marquette basketball, probably too quiet. Honestly, New Mexico game fell on a bad weekend as I headed back from Green Bay meaning my blogs were not as solid as they probably should have been that day. Obviously playing on New Year's Eve night did me no favors either. Also it does not help this is one of the worst starts for Marquette in the last decade. But as we did with other struggling teams in Wisconsin, they still need to be written about even if it pains me.

I cannot believe this is the group of guys Big East writers picked to win the conference. I just cannot believe that actually happened, and I am wondering if a banner can be hung just for that, maybe. I also amazed at how much I looked forward to this season all to get disappointed. It really comes down to readjusting expectations for the season. At this point, I really do not expect to be in the NCAA Tournament. If Marquette finds their way there, great maybe they are on a roll and can upset somebody in the first round (It is not the second round, THIS IS MY LAST TRADITIONALIST THING, LEAVE ME ALONE SHUT UP).  If not, well everyone has an off year and hopefully the team can respond in the following year when there is not as much pressure on them.

Further, I go from last year and the year prior to thinking 90 to 95 percent of the games Marquette plays they will win or certainly have a chance. This year, we are probably looking around 60-80 percent for some games as well as under 20 percent with others.  There are some they should definitely win like this Saturday against DePaul which is at home, but I am not going to feel as comfortable going to Xavier on Thursday as I did a couple years ago. Hopefully, we can laugh at this blog post in March, but I doubt much will change because there are some significant issues with this team although DePaul is DePaul.  MU 61-47

Other college basketball games to watch.
22.) Iowa at 4.) Wisconsin 7:00 pm Big Ten Network (Played Sunday) - Could be a real depressing Sunday for Packers/Badgers fans if both teams lose their game. Iowa has won the last five of six games with Wisconsin's only win coming in double overtime at home. This is the game of the weekend, but Iowa needs to make some stops and get out on shooters if they want to win this one. Badgers squeak this one out in a high-scoring affair. UW 82-79

5.) Michigan State at Indiana 1:00 pm CBS - Big game for Hoosiers this season as they had no marquee non-conference wins and they already have one loss in Big Ten play to Illinois. Yogi Ferrell versus Keith Appling will be a delight, and I think this game will be different in February. Michigan State is rolling of late, I think they handle Indiana on the road. MSU 75-66

6.) Oklahoma State at Kansas State 3:00 pm ESPNU - Here is my upset pick of the weekend. Kansas State has not lost since late November in a horrendous holiday tournament so do not let their record fool you. They beat Gonzaga in late December, and they will score another big win on Saturday with a big Marcus Foster performance. KSU 72-70

7.) Duke at Notre Dame 3:00 pm CBS - First trip for Duke to South Bend, and let me tell you, it is a tough place to play. Yet I have no idea who will guard Jabari Parker and the rest of his Duke friends in this one plus I have no idea who is scoring for Notre Dame.  Duke big.  DUKE 85-68

10.) Oregon at 20. Colorado 4:00 pm FOX Sports 1 (Played Sunday) - Too bad this one is being played during Green Bay's game because I want another look at both of these teams. At some point, I feel like teams are just due for a loss, and despite the Buffs' offensive struggle on Thursday, I think they can get it done at home. COLO 68-64

21. San Diego State at 16. Kansas 3:30 pm CBS (Played Sunday) - I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but Aztecs record is a bit inflated. They head to Phog, and I have to think it will not work out well for them. Might have to DVR so I can watch Joel Embiid later. He will have a massive game. KU 80-61

Cincinnati at 18. Memphis 11:00 am ESPN - This is one where I am just happy to see this rivalry back full-time. They played now and again since the C-USA split, but glad to see it back twice a year. Memphis is better than their ranking. They make a statement. MEMP 79-64

I will be doing a regular post on Friday like this, not always about Marquette. I will also have a wrap-up post on Monday with a Marquette recap as well.  

Charlie.

SnoTap Packers Preview: San Francisco vs. Green Bay

There is a chance the season could end like it began with Green Bay losing to San Francisco. This is the fourth time in the last two years Green Bay and San Francisco have played each other with the Niners taking all three games. It is not officially a rivalry renewed (Remember how many times they played in the 1990's) until Green Bay can win a football game against this generation's San Francisco team.

It is really hard to point to anything from the first game and say 'Well that's going to be the difference in this one.' When they played in September, I sweated out a horrible hangover after a fun guys weekend in Green Bay, and it was about 75 degrees in Wisconsin with the same sort of weather in San Francisco. Now, it has a chance to be the coldest game in the NFL history. Weather is not the only difference. People are back from injury, people are injured that were not in September. It is a completely different game. 

Colin Kaepernick is a player whom currently has ownership over Green Bay. The numbers are silly in the last two games when he faced Green Bay plus he is coming on strong as of late with the addition of Michael Crabtree. Kaepernick never really dealt with this kind of weather yet in his career, and when he does play in colder weather games, it is inconsistent at best.  Green Bay will need to be better in terms of contain as this has been a problem that burned them in the past with Kaepernick as well as running backs like Frank Gore from bouncing it to the outside. If Green Bay can bottle up Kaepenrick and Gore, it will probably result in a good day for them. 

It is probably assumed Gore will eat on Sunday against a weak Packers defense. Seeing what Matt Forte did means Gore could have a massive day on Sunday. Now he is bothered by a knee injury and one thing I found interesting just looking his logs this year is he strings together three or four big games then he struggles for a couple. This would also be called inconsistency friends as well as grasping for straws with a shitty defense. Gore only had 14 yards albeit against a tough as nails Arizona's defense. I cannot help, but think this is just a wonky statistic thing meaning Gore will likely have over 80 yards of rushing. More importantly is not what Green Bay does against Gore, but the others who will run the football comparable to when you let a basketball star beat you and not his or her teammates. 

As for the other quarterback, it will be the second game back for Aaron Rodgers. He did not play well in his first game back. If we were to do a Packers Classroom, it was a C performance for Aaron. But this could be a game where he comes up with a big performance. I realize it will be colder than a beautiful girl when I try to talk to her, but hear me out with this out. Matt Ryan had 348 yards against San Francisco's pass defense two weeks ago completing 37 passes with only eleven incompletions. Carson Palmer had 407 yards last week and nobody is panicking about how San Francisco will stop Rodgers?  Even with the cold, no one should be shocked if Rodgers comes up with a big day on Sunday. 

While it seems like passing through heavy winds might not be the best idea, it could be the only one. Green Bay is running the ball well, but San Francisco's rush defense will lock most teams down. They need to have some creativity with their running game. The short side toss did not work against Chicago and it will certainly most not work against a fast San Francisco defense. Now do I believe the sweep will work because San Francisco's defense is very aggressive meaning they can get caught up in something like a sweep play yet it needs to be with the field. Please I cannot take many more short-side tosses in my life because I am pretty sure I will jump directly out of my window. 

Before I make my pick, let me address a couple things... I hate to sound like a Packers elitist, but here we go. Everyone needs to stop bitching about Troy Aikman and Joe Buck. They do not hate your team, I promise. Look I love Cris Collinsworth, but does he sometimes say things I disagree with? Absolutely. Announcers are not always accurate just like we in life are not always accurate at our jobs. Seeing this petition against Aikman is embarrassing to Packers fans. It is up there with 'Best Fans in Baseball' type bullshit we see from St. Louis.  Also embarrassing was Packer fans getting on Tyler Dunne of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel for taking San Francisco over Green Bay... HOW DARE THE PACKER BEAT WRITER PICK AGAINST THE TEAM... U ARE NOT DOING YOUR JOB, TELL ME NICE THINGS, NOT BAD THINGS.  

Well I am going to disagree with Dunne. It is probably because I am a homer but I also truly believe Green Bay can win this game. They will need to force a couple turnovers as well as play close to mistake-free football as possible. Rodgers always shows up for San Francisco, and that will happen on Sunday plus Eddie Lacy has one of the best days on the ground against San Fran's defense. Green Bay's defense holds Kaepernick in check while Gore has a big day. This is another nail-biter but Packers pull it out. 

Green Bay 28 San Francisco 23 

Charlie.