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. 

Sugar Bowl Thoughts & Weekend Bowl Predictions

Well folks, that does it for me in Sports News On Tap confidence pool. I put a great deal of faith in Baylor, Arizona State and Alabama, and that we have lost all three games meaning my stellar record is tanking faster than half the NBA. This usually happens with SnoTap contests. I come very close to not giving away any money and then somehow I end up giving the little money I have away to someone.  Hopefully tonight's games and this weekend's go better for me, but before we make those picks, I did have a few thoughts on Oklahoma stunning upset of Alabama.

I did not give Oklahoma a chance. Oklahoma fans did not really give this team a chance. No one saw this coming (I am sure some smartass picked it), but seriously, what a complete stunner. Oklahoma looked like a top five team in the country last night, and considering they struggled against Texas and Baylor in major ways, it is amazing to see this team develop into something special. Trevor Knight looks to be first great Oklahoma quarterback in awhile. He can do it all, and I came away utterly impressed with the way he threw the deep ball. No reason why the Sooners should not be in the top 10 to begin the 2014 season.

As for Alabama, it is the first time they have lost consecutive games since 2008. Alabama had five turnovers, and they looked like a completely different team that did not belong out there. A.J. McCarron needs to rethink his Senior Bowl decision because this would not be the way I want to go out. I have no idea why Derrick Henry only had eight carries since he had 100 years plus he also added 61 yards of receiving. Maybe the future is bright with their backfield, but it is pretty clear this Alabama team was certainly not one of their best ones.

AT&T Cotton Bowl 
13.) Oklahoma State vs. 11.) Missouri 6:30 pm FOX - With how the SEC and Big 12 looked this week, I do not know what to think about this game. Like no idea whatsoever. Oklahoma State is one team I have been wrong about for the entire season. Same goes for Missouri. It is like 'Laugh in Charlie's face bowl.' Here what it comes down... Do I believe the Tigers' inability to stop the run against Auburn what they truly are or was it just a mirage? As for Oklahoma State, they can move the ball with the best of them and occasionally they can play some defense. I like this Cowboys team a little more than Missouri. Close and fun game. OK STATE 45-38  

Orange Bowl 
12.) Clemson vs. 7.) Ohio State 7:30 ESPN - Fun game. I had someone shit on this game, and I had no idea why because this should be a pretty fun game if you like offense. I could see if you want to see some defense how this one could be bad because this is not happening. Ohio State will be without two of their best defensive players Bradley Roby and Noah Spence, one out with injury and one out with suspension. This does not help things. This is the last game for Tajh Boyd's illustrious career at Clemson, and you have to think Chad Morris will find a way to make this a memorable one for him. Like peeing your pants in the sixth grade, we do not forget Clemson had 70 points put on them last time at the Orange Bowl.  Urban Meyer has only lost once in his bowl career which you know what that means? He prepares really well for this games. Ohio State with a close shootout win. OSU 52-48

BBVA Compass Bowl (Saturday) 
Vanderbilt vs. Houston 12:00 pm ESPN - I think it is a complete slap in the face that Vanderbilt is even in this bowl. I do not think you will get many disinterested Commodores in this one. Rather they will played pissed off and dominate a Houston team who has not beat anyone worth nothing. VAND 41-14

GoDaddy Bowl (Sunday) 
Arkansas State vs. Ball State 8:00 ESPN - WE GET FOOTBALL ON SUNDAY NIGHT YAAAIS pitting the Sun Beast versus MACtion which is quite the dilemma on who to pick. I think the answer is Ball State as they held it close against bowl teams plus I do not really like a team who lost two games inside the Sun Beast. BSU 40-21

Charlie.

20 Questions about the 2014 PGA Season

Bryan Reynolds begins our PGA season. He came on Sports News on Tap in February or March last season so this will officially be his first full season with SnoTap. Look for all sorts of PGA coverage in the coming weeks and months. We begin with me asking Bryan all sorts of questions about the upcoming season. 

1.) The question till he does it, does Tiger Woods get a major this year? 

No. There, I said it. I think Tiger is the greatest golfer in the world. It is stupid to question that. But with the resurgence to young talent on tour, I will take the field every time. Tiger will be close but I will be the fool that bests against him.

2.) What should our expectations be with Jordan Spieth this season?

I think we should expect him to be a young gunslinger out there. He has all the talent in the world but on his journey to success, he is going to stumble on some failure. I will give him another win in 2014 but if he misses a cut in a major, I would not be surprised.

3.) Out of the four major winners last year, which one could you see winning another major this season?

What a question. If you want to think about how exciting golf is now, this is the perfect way to get the ball rolling. There is no right or wrong answer, in my opinion, but I am going to say Justin Rose. The English golfer seems to have more discipline than the others and I think that consistency will stay true into 2014.

4.) What are your five favorite non-major tournaments?

WGC-Match Play, John Deere Classic, The Players, At&T National, and WGC- Cadillac. The match play is my favorite, even over some majors. I love the head-to-head action and the pressure it puts on every hole. For those who do not understand match play, get to know it; it does not get much better. John Deere is a favorite for me as I have played Deere Run many times myself. It is pretty awesome to see the pros walking the fairways that you once have. It is like Lebron James playing pick-up basketball at your high school gym. Maybe that’s a stretch, but you hear what I’m saying.

5.) If someone wanted to get into the PGA more, what would be your suggestion to them?

Be patient and enjoy the Sundays. I am a scoreboard watcher so I am constantly in tune with what is going on in each tournament. That is a lot to ask of yourself, especially if watching the tour is new to you. If you check the standings Saturday night, then flip on the coverage early Sunday afternoon, you will have a pretty good idea of what is going on. Unlike some other sports, it does not always come down to the last two minutes. Watching the potential winner play his/her back 9 is pretty darn awesome.

6.) Besides the man in Sunday red, who has the most pressure to win a major this season?

Zach Johnson. Many will forget that he has won the one that matters most, but since his victory at Augusta, he has yet to put another exclamation point on his career. Zach returned with a vengeance last year, but with the exception of The Open Championship, he was a dud in the majors.

7.) Is this year the United States finally wins the Ryder Cup overseas?

Yes! I love the chemistry the United States has developed. When you can run out pairings of Tiger and Stricker, and they are not even your number one weapon, you know the other squad is in trouble. The only weakness is their inexperience/age but I think they could overcome that.

8.) Between Golf Channel, ESPN, CBS and NBC who has the best golf coverage?

I think the collaboration that Golf Channel and NBC has established is outstanding. GC does a great job in the early rounds, getting cameras out there, and letting you have a chance to watch every shot if you want to. ESPN does not seem as dedicated as others for my taste. When it is their turn to televise a tournament, they drop everything but in general, most of the crew there could not care less.

9.) Who is the one golfer you can see having a breakout year?

Justin Rose. I guess I do not know if we could consider it a breakout year since he got the major last year but Rose has everything you need to be a stud on tour and it is falling together at the right time. He constantly hung around last season, and I would expect no different come 2014.

10.) What golfer is poised to win his first major this season?

Dustin Johnson. The dude just got engaged to Paulina Gretzy, daughter of ‘The Great One’. Maybe it’s hopeless optimism, but I would think some of the talent and luck will rub off on the big guy. The clock is defiantly ticking on DJ, who will be celebrating his 30th birthday this season. He has been close and this is finally going to be his year.

11.) Who has more pressure on them to be good this season, Dustin Johnson or Sergio Garcia?

Well with my previous answer, I almost have to put the pressure on Johnson. Sergio has just always kind of disappointing, that is what we have grown to expect from him. Dustin still has time, for now, and I think he can live up the expectations.

12.) What golfer could you see taking a step back this year from his 2013 success?

Phil Mickelson. Like many others on tour, he is getting up there in age. I am not saying he is old by any means, but at some point, this is going to take a toll on him. Also, it would not take much to regress from the year he had in 2013. Phil was outstanding and I do not see him living up to that.

13.) Who would be your ideal foursome to play with, current or past golfers?

Fred Couples, Payne Stewart, Tiger Woods, and myself. Freddie has always been around and he has always been great. When Freddie hangs ‘em up in the future, we are going to look back and admire one of the greatest golfers and personalities the game ever saw. When Payne passed away, I was too young to understand the impact he made on the game. The man was a legend; it would be an honor to play with him or against him. I am not always a fan of Tiger but you have to respect him from what he has done. He has brought golf to the forefront and is one of the finest athletes we have in sports. If you get the chance to play with the best, you take it.

14.) Who is the best golf WAG? (Wife or Girlfriend)

I think I got to go Jason Dufner here and his wife Amanda. Duf had himself a handful on the 18th green after winning his first major. Is that not the dream?

15.) Last time the U.S. Open was at Pinehurst, the winner was three over par, much of the same this year?

It is so hard to say. When the U.S. Open at Merion was approaching, much of the talk was how the players would tear it up. That turned out to be far from the truth. Predicting the scoring at this time of year is too tough, especially considering the role weather plays in scoring. I would say No, the players will find the birdies out there, but I could be wrong.

16.) This works with 16.), do you like when PGA golfers look like the rest of us golfing the course or would you prefer higher scoring?
I like when they look like the rest of us because I like to see them recover. That is the difference between them and us. If they double a hole, they should not lose focus; they could birdie the next two. We do not have that luxury. When a course is beating them up, it is a true test of what kind of player they are.

17.) Who is the one golfer nobody is talking about that needs more attention?

Steve Stricker. I do not know if he counts or if this is what we are after with the question but I am ready to see something out of Steve. We all know how good he can be but I am ready for him to win. Recently, he seems he has been a coach like figure to both Tiger and Spieth. I want to see Steve put the pedal to the medal and get himself a major.

18.) To you, what's the most crazy storyline that could realistically happen?

Adam Scott repeats at Augusta. I mean this storyline kind of speaks for itself but he has to be one of the favorites. He has been continuing to play well as of late, and he has everything you need to win the jacket. It helps to have Stevie on the bag, whom has a little experience winning there.

19.) Besides Augusta (That's everyone's number one), what's your top five courses that you would want to play on.

Whistling Straits, TPC Sawgrass, St. Andrew’s, Pebble Beach, and Doral. Kind of a hodgepodge list as I would be satisfied playing any course on tour but these are the big ones for me. Sawgrass is an obvious one; I would like to think I could better Sergio’s effort but who knows how many I would plunk in the water. It would not have to be St. Andrew’s but playing a links style, tour level course is defiantly on the list.

20.) What should we watch for in the first couple months of the season? 

Watch for consistency. Guys like Phil, Justin Rose, and Matt Kuchar, all got out to consistent starts last year and that lead them to big seasons. Being consistent does not mean they have to win, just expect them to remain close and have control of their games. Golf is different than almost all other professional sports in that winning does not define success at all times. Winning makes you great but being consistent is enough for people to remember that you deserve to be there.

Bryan 

2013: A Sucky Wisconsin Sports Year

The year 2013 was a pretty good year personally but sports-wise, it was pretty rough. Granted, this is all sort of relative as the Badgers and Packers saw a pretty good deal of success for the season but ultimately fell short of their 2013 goals. The "WINsconsin" moniker had officially lost its luster and hopefully should be on a hiatus for the time being.

It all started on January 1, 2013 as the Badgers lost 20-14 to the Stanford Cardinal in the Rose Bowl. This marked the third straight Rose Bowl defeat for Bucky and they've all were pretty crushing defeats. This, of course, came after Bret Bielema abruptly departed for the apparently greener SEC pastures of Arkansas about a month before that last Rose Bowl. The Badgers were left looking for a head coach for the Rose Bowl. Former head coach and current Wisconsin athletic director, Barry Alvarez, took the reigns for just the Rose Bowl game. While it was a cute story, the game obviously didn't go as Barry or the rest of Badger Nation had planned.

The Badgers went 8-6 on the year but the Rose Bowl loss and the sudden departure of Bielema left a really sour taste in the mouths of Badger fans. Bielema's 2013 at Arkansas would end up being an even bigger disaster, especially after his wife tweeted "#karma" after the Badgers got screwed by the refs at the end of the Arizona State game. Ironically, the Razorbacks didn't win a game for the rest of the season after that tweet. I guess she got what she asked for.

Then, later in January, the Green Bay Packers were doing their usual thing and cruising right along until they met Colin Kaepernick and the San Francisco 49ers in the Divisional Round of the NFC Playoffs. That day, the defense absolutely fell apart, letting Kaepernick run and pass all over them to the tune of 444 total yards and four touchdowns en route to a somewhat embarrassing 45-31 loss.

Many fans thought the Packers would cut ties with defensive coordinator Dom Capers but he's still hanging on by a thread.

Fast forward to April as the Brewers began got their season-to-forget underway. 2013 was a disaster essentially from start to finish for Milwaukee and it all really culminated in the suspension of star OF Ryan Braun for alleged performance enhancing drug use. The witch hunt for Braun boiled over in July and he was suspended for the rest of season. This was most likely a deal worked out between MLB and Braun's camp so that he could come back immediately in 2014 in hopes of moving on. You knew that Bud Selig, a Milwaukee native, would not be denied in his thirst for suspending Braun after he let a suspension slip through his fingers at the beginning of the 2012 season.

The Brewers as a team finished with a 74-88 record in 2013. There really wasn't a whole lot to hang their hats on either. However, we saw a true breakout year from CF Carlos Gomez who hit .284 with 24 home runs and took home a National League gold glove. Also, Brewers fans got their first taste of Scooter Gennett, who hit .324 in 69 games with the Brewers last year.

While Green Bay may have made the playoffs in 2013, they spent half of their season feeling like the Jacksonville Jaguars of the world as Aaron Rodgers missed seven games with injuries. People talked about  hair-brained conspiracies about why Rodgers was practicing yet not playing plus Packers fans having to watch the likes of Seneca Wallace, Matt Flynn and Scott Tolzien. Just when you think Green Bay's fanbase could get some perspective about how lucky and fortunate they are to have two rock solid quarterbacks, they somehow snake into the playoffs and fans still live the privileged lifestyle.

Finally, the Milwaukee Bucks. The Bucks season was probably considered a great success internally as they achieved their coveted goal of the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Now, to most fans with a brain, this season was anything but a success. The embarrassment of getting destroyed in four straight games against the Miami Heat after backing hard into the playoffs at the end of the season was truly rock bottom of the mediocrity treadmill, that the Bucks have been stuck in. Gone are the medicrity $wag twins (Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis) and the Bucks are moving in another direction and are hopefully getting off the treadmill.

Hopefully, 2014 ends up working out better for the major sports teams in the state of Wisconsin. It's off to a similar start with the Badgers dropping their New Year's Day bowl game yesterday once again. I'll wait to jump to conclusions though as there are still 363 for the rest of the teams to pick up the slack.

-Big Money

Tap's Trailers: Rob The Mob

First trailer of the year, and we will probably be playing a little catch up so I hope that's alright with everyone. Crazy time of year for trailers as they are trying to get everyone ready for 2014.  This looks alright from a trailer perspective. It seems like it could be predictable, but if done right, that can be fixed. It features a young couple whom wants to get a better life so Michael Pitt's character decides to rob New York's mafia in an attempt to get rich quick and have no one find out about it. The latter does not happen and they get deeper into things than ever expected. Besides Pitt, it stars Nina Arianda, Ray Romano and Andy Garcia.

Charlie.

First Taste: We Ball (Freestyle) - XV

Sometimes I feature a song because of the artist, not entirely the song, and this is one of those times. I have not heard anything from XV in quite a long time. The last time we heard XV, it was the Popular Culture mixtape from early 2013 which I enjoyed greatly.  He is a guy I have backed for awhile now and one of those I always thought would find a way to break through. This is just a freestyle so my assumption is we can expect more from XV in 2014 which would be awesome. When I say 'just a freestyle', I mean it is not great, yet still encouraging he is putting out music. He's definitely on the list of people I would like to see in concert for the coming year.

Charlie.