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Failing Grade I've got good news, and really good news.... The good news is that the college football season gets cranked up when the Gamecocks and Wolfpack kick it off in Raleigh on Thursday night. The really good news is that the Panthers' NFL pre-season ends on Thursday night, too. The 2009 calendar year has not been kind to the Carolina Panthers. I don't want to remind anybody of the playoff disaster against Arizona, but the month of August has been equally brutal. I don't make too much out of the results of pre-season football; in fact, most of it is unwatchable. Unfortunately, the Panthers have taken it to a new level with key injuries, shoddy play and terrible tackling. I sure hope they are sand-bagging, but something tells me they have a ton of work to do on the field and on the waiver wire - which should be rocking this week, with the first cuts around the league. Any Panther fan that walked into the stadium on Saturday or even could stomach watching it on TV, had to have flashbacks to the Arizona game. The team was thoroughly outplayed by the Ravens in every phase of the game. When owner Jerry Richardson was shown on the tube, he looked like he was either in a deep, deep sleep or he was afraid to open his eyes to watch anymore. Either way, I couldn't blame him. Even though it was good to see him in attendance. Thursday, the Panthers host the world champion Pittsburgh Steelers and all of their rowdy fans. Normally, the final pre-season game doesn't involve the first team guys, but this pre-season has been so bad, it wouldn't surprise me to see the Carolina first-teamers get some additional playing time. Hopefully, the Steelers take the night off. Their first team defense hasn't given up a TD in the entire pre-season, and there's no reason to make matters worse for Jake and Co. Let's just get to the Philly game in week 1 of the regular season...hopefully the Panthers can get their starters and their confidence back in time for the Eagles. I am jacked for the start of the college football season this week. I will absolutely be glued to the set when N.C. State and South Carolina play Thursday night. It's a huge ACC-SEC match-up, and while the winner will feel better about themselves, the loser has immediate issues. I still think it's a bigger game for Steve Spurrier's team. When you look at the schedule, the SEC slate is tough enough, but this is a game that Gamecock Nation expects to win. This is also a game that the Wolfpack Nation has been waiting for since the 34-0 beatdown last year in Columbia. There have been some magical games between these two in Raleigh, and something tells me that the 34-point margin from last year isn't about to take place again on Thursday. This isn't the only ACC-SEC match-up of the opening weekend. We'll have the Southern Fried Football™ Tour in Atlanta on Saturday, for the Virginia Tech-Alabama match-up. I can guarantee you this will be a better game than last year's debacle between the Tide and the over-matched Clemson Tigers. I'm also interested in Georgia's visit to Oklahoma State. Last year, the Big XII jumped out to a great start with numerous teams scoring at a record pace....only to see their defenses crumble down the stretch and in the post-season. OK State can change that with a win against the Dawgs. Keep in mind that Mark Richt's teams are 28-1 against non-conference teams during the regular season. Closer to home, the App State / East Carolina game will be interesting, too. Armanti Edwards is back and good to go from his lawn-mowing episode, and the Pirates have Patrick Pinkney back at QB. I swear it seems like Pinkney has been in Greenville for the past decade...there's nothing like a 6th-year senior under center. Thank goodness the college football season is here! I enjoyed the overviews and settings of the Barclays and the FedEx Cup. The shots of the Statue of Liberty and the backdrop of the Manhattan skyline were very cool. Even though the golf and the format are a complete snore, I enjoyed the TV coverage. There's something about a four-week tourney in which the winner gets ten gazillion dollars....and given that over 70 PGA Tour players had earned over a million bucks heading into the event....it's hard to get too worked up about the format or the concept. Rick Pitino....are you trying to replace Plaxico Burress as the dumb-ass of the month? Just when you thought it was safe to leave your home in the Bluegrass state, leave it to Rick Pitino to stick his Italian loafers into his sweet-talking mouth. Just exactly what was his point, in last week's press conference? For seven minutes, he blamed the media for their coverage of his latest headache. Rick, if you had kept it in your pants before having sex with some skank in a Louisville restaurant, perhaps you wouldn't find yourself in the middle of a media circus and extortion case. Just a thought. I have to hand it to the Bluegrass State; they have certainly given us some extra fodder for the radio show, TV commentary and the blog: Rick Pitino's prowess and arrogance, John Calipari's ability to leave Memphis and the NCAA investigators high and dry, and Billy Gillispie's latest DUI...it appears that Madness has already started. There has been a lot made of the SEC's new TV deal, which will pay the league billions of dollars from both CBS and ESPN for their football television rights. Many say it gives the league an unfair advantage, since each school will bring home 15 million bucks per year (give or take) from the new deal for years to come. Well, the ACC is trying to stay in touch with their Southern brethren. While their TV package is up in the near future, the conference unveiled its latest basketball schedule. It should be noted that the league will have 281 TV appearances. A total of 173 TV games involving conference members, and this will make 6 years in a row that over 250 games will include members in TV appearances. "Cha-ching." |
Packman
on Sports Commentary
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