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Drumroll,
Please... Beginning on Monday, I will be hosting a new daily radio show alongside former 1995 Heisman Trophy winner, Eddie George. You can catch the show on College Sports Nation, SiriusXM Channel 91, from 9am-noon, Monday thru Friday. Of course, Eddie and I also host the SiriusXM Tailgate Show each Saturday on the same channel at the same time, too. And if you can't get enough of my take on the world of college football and college sports in general, I also host the College Football Sunday Show from 9am-1pm, too. Just to break up the national radio gig, I still enjoy the daily TV commentaries on WJZY's 10pm newscast....so let it be said, that if you had a hard time finding me on the air, then that's your fault. You can catch me any day of the week. The work schedule sounds hectic, but when you love what you do, it's not work. It will be nice once we figure out the logistics to eventually do all the shows and interviews from the comfort of my new home studio....there's nothing better than eliminating the commute. The hardest thing I will have to navigate is figuring out a way to smuggle something out of the kitchen, down the hallway and into the studio without Chester barking or sniffing his way for a taste. For those of you with SiriusXM, I hope you give the new show a listen and join in the conversation. We'll have great guests, insight and calls from all over the country. If you don't have satellite radio....what are you waiting on? It beats static and a terrible signal on the AM dial. Trust me, after 13 years, I should know. It took me long enough to figure it out. Speaking of college football, that was another great weekend of games. One of the best games actually involved a pair of ACC teams.....and given the early return of ACC football, that's saying something. But the Florida State-Clemson game was highly entertaining. The Noles lost for the 5th straight time in Death Valley, and in the process took themselves completely out of the national title discussion. But I would still list them as the team to beat in the Atlantic division. Clemson fans will not take too kindly to that statement, since they are undefeated and have the tie-breaker against FSU. However, FSU's league schedule is much easier to navigate than the slate the Tigers are facing. The Tigers head to Blacksburg this weekend, where they haven't won in decades. I have no idea how good the Hokies are since their September bakery schedule is now complete, but I do know that they are awfully good at home under Frank Beamer. Clemson will also have the dubious task of having to be emotionally up for the third consecutive week....and that's tough for any team, much less one that is as young as this particular Clemson team. The Noles don't face Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech or UNC....Clemson plays all of them. The schedule makes the difference. But Clemson has been the biggest surprise not only in the ACC, but the entire country.....after their efforts against Troy and Wofford, I would have never thought they could perform at the level they did in dispatching Auburn and FSU. As for the rest of the league, how can you defend the results of NC State's blowout loss at Cincinnati; Virginia losing at home to Southern Miss; Maryland getting destroyed at home by Temple and of course the Miami Hurricanes continuing their losing ways at home to mighty Kansas State? With games like this, there's no wonder why Pitt and Syracuse are chomping at the bit to join the ACC. The latest polls reveal that the coaches believe that Oklahoma is #1 and the writers believe LSU is the best team in the land. I'll make this short and sweet....based on the 2011 body of work through all games played in September, there is no doubt that LSU should be ranked #1. The AP writers have out-coached the coaches. It's not even close. LSU has three wins in September against ranked teams....and none of the wins took place in Tiger Stadium. Nuf Said. The most important point of the LSU-Bama-OU ranking debate is this: It really doesn't matter, because all three teams control their destiny...rank 'em however you want. It's still early, and there are a ton of games to be played. I still think Boise State will be unbeaten and if Wisconsin beats up on Nebraska this weekend in Madison, I think the new-look Badgers with Russell Wilson at QB have a chance to be standing undefeated in December, too. Even the Pac 12 could get in the discussion with unbeaten Stanford and their huge match-up with Oregon coming up. Stay tuned....it's too early to worry about rankings. I was happy to see the Panthers win their first game in the Ron Rivera Era. It wasn't pretty or well-played, but it was a "W", and that's all that counts. The torrential rains that engulfed the stadium during the 2nd quarter made for a wild scene on the tube. It was hilarious watching the players, fans and TV cameras cope with Mother Nature. In the end, the Panthers picked up a much needed win, and I'm happy for the crew. I ran into Coach Rivera at a fast food establishment last week and had a brief conversation about Newton and the play of his team. I told him that the first win was coming against Jax...he wanted nothing to do with it....you gotta earn it. Congrats, Coach.....I told you so. Can you believe the choke jobs taking place in Boston and Atlanta? I'm talking about baseball, this time.....the Red Sox and Braves have put on a clinic in gagging. Boston had a 9-game lead over Tampa Bay on September 4th. It has evaporated. The final series has the Red Sox playing the inept Baltimore Orioles....and ironically, Sox fans will be rooting for the arch-rival Yankees to put a hurting on the Rays in the final three games of the regular season. While all of this is taking place, in the National League the Braves had a 10 1/2 game lead over St. Louis in the wild card race last month....it is now down to a single game with three to play. The Braves hook-up with the NL East champion Phillies while the Redbirds close with the worst team in baseball, the Houston Astros. I normally expect the Braves to fold in October, but this early collapse has shocked me. All of a sudden, the Bravos' starting rotation is injured and they are in a free fall. It's hard to believe, but Atlanta hasn't won a playoff series since 2001. The question now is if they will get the chance to reach the post season? The next couple of days will be fascinating. The Fed Ex Cup is rumored to be over. Somebody won $11.44 million bucks on Sunday. I can honestly say that I didn't watch a single shot of any of the tournaments. I'd be hard pressed to believe that anybody else did, either. What a waste. |
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