NCAA: Virginia and Baylor Rule College Basketball

The University of Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball team rewrote the narrative of a top-seeded team who, only last season, lost to a 16th seed named Maryland-Baltimore County and was ridiculed everywhere they went.  They just won the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship for the first time in Minneapolis, defeating Texas Tech in overtime 85-77.

De'Andre Hunter scored 27 points and Kyle Guy scored 24 to lead the Cavaliers to victory, not to mention being nearly perfect against the Red Raiders in OT to seal it. 

This time around, Virginia was an under-the-radar team that somehow skipped over the top seeds in the tournament to get where they are. They got past Gardner-Webb, Oklahoma, Oregon, Purdue and Auburn on the way to Minneapolis.  It also helped that fellow ACC conference teams Duke (with all-world freshman Zion Williams) and North Carolina were both defeated. 

Granted, the final four of Virginia, Texas Tech, Auburn and Michigan State did not set CBS' TV ratings on fire.  But the teams did compensate with good basketball and exciting finishes, and that's all you can really ask.  Oh, and a controversial finish that ended up benefiting the Cavaliers while deflating Auburn and famous alum Charles Barkley.

So yes, Virginia.  The school that was founded by Thomas Jefferson is a national basketball champion.

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In Tampa, Florida Sunday, Baylor won its third women's basketball title, defeating defending champion Notre Dame 82-81.

The Bears' first title since 2012 came with Chloe Jackson scoring 26 points and the winning score with 3.6 seconds remaining.  They had to overcome not only Lauren Cox' third quarter knee injury that took her out of the game, but also a late charge by the Irish that culminated in Arike Ogunbowale closing out her college career by missing free throws that would have tied the game.

Pat Mulkey, Baylor's coach, is now only the third person in NCAA history to win at least three women's championships.

Twins 2019: New Manager, Same Old Problems

The Minnesota Twins, having said goodbye to Joe Mauer and manager Paul Molitor, are looking at the 2019 Major League Baseball season as a new beginning.  A chance to quit being an inconsistent team and compete with the Cleveland Indians, with whom they finished a distant second to for the American League Central division title.  The national baseball pundits are giving the Twins a shot at being contenders, which is something that hasn't happened much this decade.

There are plenty of new faces here, starting with Rocco Baldelli as the new manager.  Others you may or may not have heard of yet include:  Willans Astudillo as catcher, Jonathan Schoop replacing Mauer at first, and designated hitter Nelson Cruz coming in from the Seattle Mariners as a free agent.

But the same old problems that have held the Twins back for years remain.  Byron Buxton and Miguel Sano have been the two players the team's been promoting as future superstars since they were drafted, except injuries and repeated trips between Minnesota and Rochester, N.Y. have blunted their effectiveness.  Well, they're not kids any more, so it's time to put up or shut up.  Buxton is allegedly healthy to start the season, while Sano won't be ready until May at the earliest.

The other big concern is pitching.  Who knows if Jose Berrios, Kyle Gibson, Jake Odorizzi, reliever Fernando Romero or the rest of the staff can keep their team in the game?

The Twins still won't get anywhere close to Cleveland  They're a good bet to finish in second or third place again.  But don't be shocked if they ended the 2010s with another 90-loss season.

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The MLB season actually began a week earlier with the Mariners playing a two-game series against the Oakland Athletics in Tokyo, Japan.  Already, we've had our first retirement when Ichiro Suzuki called it quits in his native country.

The big story, as it usually is during the off season, is player movement.  For the longest time, free agents Bryce Harper and Manny Machado went unsigned, and people were wondering if teams were colluding to keep the price tag down.  Then Machado signs with the San Diego Padres.  Harper stays in the National League East division by switching from the Washington Nationals to the Philadelphia Phillies, singing for what was then the biggest long-term contract in the history of pro sports.  Until Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels signed a bigger contract extension to remain with that team.

MLB continues to make strides in making its games slightly shorter than "War and Peace".  But real innovations like pitch clocks and restrictions on how many times a manager can go to the mound to change pitchers per inning may have to wait until 2022, when the new collective bargaining agreement with the players is agreed upon.  So keep your Kindle handy.

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Here's who we think will make it to October.  Please don't take this to the bank.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

East  New York Yankees
Central  Cleveland Indians
West  Houston Astros
Wild Card  Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays

NATIONAL LEAGUE

East  Atlanta Braves
Central  St. Louis Cardinals
West  Los Angeles Dodgers
Wild Card  Milwaukee Brewers and Colorado Rockies

Super Bowl 53: Boring But Important

In the end, Super Bowl 53 in Atlanta was a complete and utter dud compared to the exciting finishes of recent years.  But it was also historic.  The New England Patriots defeated the Los Angeles Rams 13-3, tying the all time record for most championships (six) with the Pittsburgh Steelers.  The Patriots did it in less than two decades with the same coach (Bill Belichick) and quarterback (Tom Brady).  The Steelers achieved it over a three decade period with three different coaches and quarterbacks.

More about the game later.  Right now, let's break down what else happened in and around the big game.

Prelude  
The Rams were not supposed to be here, having benefited from a missed pass interference call that would have gone against them, and that would have enabled the New Orleans Saints to win the NFC Championship.  Instead, the game remained tied going into overtime, where the Rams kicked the winning field goal that sent them to Atlanta.  But that one bad call was all people could talk about in the two week break leading up to the Super Bowl, with upset Saints fans threatening boycotts and lawsuits against the NFL seeking to upend the results.

As for the Patriots, they shut down the Kansas City Chiefs in overtime to win the AFC Championship, with Brady all the while claiming that his team was getting no respect.  That came across as, given New England's recent history for dominating the conference, was more for motivation than truth.

The Game
With three points on the board each for the Rams and Patriots for three quarters and punting dominating, this was a defensive struggle, to put it mildly.  CBS' Jim Nantz and Tony Romo tried their best to make the game more exciting than it was, but in vain.  Only a 29-yard pass from Brady to Julian Edelman (who was voted Super Bowl MVP), followed by a running play into the end zone in the fourth quarter to enliven things and to seal the deal for New England.  A combined total of sixteen points by both teams was the lowest in Super Bowl history.  But then again, defense does win championships.

Halftime
Maroon 5 may not have been the first choice for the Super Bowl halftime show, but the NFL seems to have gone through nearly every mass appeal pop act that isn't NSFTV (not safe for TV).  Atlanta is the capital of hip hop, and nearly every worthy act boycotted the event out of respect for Colin Kaepernick's continued persona non grata status from the league for taking a knee during the national anthem, and for trying to be nice to President Donald Trump. It also accounts for the lack of believability when it comes to the NFL's social justice initiative, launching as it did in Dr. Martin Luther King's hometown during Black History Month.

Adam Levine, Maroon 5's front man and celebrity judge on TV's "The Voice", did a good job of singing the band's Top 40 hits while performing mostly shirtless and having moves like Mick Jagger.  He also exposed his nipples and tattoos in a way that Janet Jackson never could.  Double standard much?

Commercials
Companies spend millions of dollars each year to get their message and their product across before the biggest TV audience of the year..  Here's how some of those companies spent their money.

• Bud Light and its Kingdom of Dilly claims its beer, unlike the other guys, doesn't use corn syrup.  In another ad, the Kingdom is attacked by a flying dragon, which makes sense only if you're a rabid "Game of Thrones" fan.
• Bob Dylan's anti-nuclear war classic "Blowing In The Wind" is used to remind us that Budweiser is now brewed with wind power.  Good to know. We think.
• Harrison Ford's dog in an Amazon ad orders mass quantities of dog food through his dog collar, which was a rejected use for Alexa.
• Sarah Jessica Parker and Jeff Bridges (as the Dude from "The Big Lebowski") walk into a bar and order Stella Artois beer, just to be different.  Call it "Stella and The City".
• The Washington Post (now owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos) stressed the importance of journalism while saluting those who died practicing it.

OK, so Super Bowl 53 wasn't the most exciting game ever.  The TV ratings were the worst in ten years, which meant New Orleans wasn't watching, or fans had tuned out because the NFL had become too violent or too political.  Or they just didn't want to see the Patriots win another championship.  But Boston sports fans don't care about that right now.  They just beat LA again.

Clemson 2, Alabama 1 (in championships)

For the fourth consecutive year, the University of Alabama's Crimson Tide and Clemson University's Tigers have faced each other in the College Football Playoff.  Three of those times included the championship game, which included Monday's matchup at Santa Clara, California.  Everyone wondered if these were the only two institutions of learning in America capable of playing championship football in this decade.

The final was Clemson 44, Alabama 16.  It was the Tigers' second title in three years, beating a Crimson Tide team that had been the best in America for most of the fall, and the envy of most other college football programs under coach Nick Saban.

Clemson's defense capitalized on many Tide mistakes and, through the arm of freshman quarterback Trevor Lawrence (three touchdowns and over 300 yards passing), outshone Alabama's star QB Tua Tagovalova.  It was an impressive end to a season that saw the Tigers go 15-0, something that hasn't been done in 121 years.

After running through their conference schedules, the Tigers beat Notre Dame 30-3 in the Cotton Bowl, and the Tide won a shootout over Oklahoma 45-34 in the Orange Bowl.  These semifinal games were held on the Saturday between Christmas and New Year's, as ESPN keeps trying to convince viewers to watch bowl games on days other than January 1.  So far, it's had the effect of being lumped in with all the other Your Name Here bowl games, with ratings to match.

Now it's Clemson's turn to shine with a bright future apparently in sight, while Alabama coach Saban will simply go back to the drawing board and reload for another shot at the title.  Given the flawed state of college football, it would surprise no one if these schools met for the fifth time for the national championship.

The State of Minnesota Football 2018

The Minnesota Vikings finished at 8-7-1 and out of the playoff picture for the 2018 NFL season, having come out flat in the final regular season game against the NFC North champion Chicago Bears, who had little to play for but showed up anyway.  The Vikings lost the game and the final playoff spot, which had been theirs to win, to the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles,

Plenty of factors were in play to make the Vikings, to whom some fearless football pundits thought were going to go. all. the. way. (Chris Berman), plunge to the depths of mediocrity this season.

• Kirk Cousins turned out to be the highest-paid "average" quarterback in NFL history.  But he still managed to remain upright the entire season, and Aaron Rodgers didn't.
• The death of offensive line coach Tony Sparano shortly before training camp, and the firing of offensive coordinator John DeFilippo didn't help matters for a sputtering offense and a line that couldn't protect Cousins.
• A tie at Green Bay, an unexpected loss to lowly Buffalo at home, and not staying on the same field against teams with winning records.  Plus the Bears had a great year. 
• And, of course, the old standby excuse for not living up to expectations:  Injuries, and plenty of them.

Coach Mike Zimmer and General Manager Rick Spielman will get at least one more season to turn things around.  They need a new offensive coordinator, the fourth in two seasons.  They need more help on the offensive line.  And they need Cousins to get used to the surroundings a little more, without having heated discussions with his receivers on the sidelines about blown plays.

Our preliminary Super Bowl pick:  New Orleans Saints vs. New England Patriots.
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The University of Minnesota Golden Gopher football team had another up-and-down season under coach P.J. Fleck, going 3-6 in the Big Ten and 7-6 overall.  Despite this record, they made their way to the Quick Lane Bowl in Detroit, beating Georgia Tech 34-10.

There were two reasons why the Gophers turned their season around after a slow start:

• After giving up more than 50 points to bad teams like Illinois and Nebraska, Fleck fired his defensive coordinator Robb Smith, replacing him with Joe Rossi.  Almost overnight, the team's defense improved.
• Defeating the Wisconsin Badgers at Madison 34-10, taking Paul Bunyan's Axe home for the first time since 2003, and becoming bowl-eligible.

Sounds like all that boat-rowing has paid off. 

Sports 2018: Scandals and Comebacks

OK, so what else happened this year besides LeBron James moving west, another NBA title for the Golden State Warriors, Philadelphia's Eagles flying home with a Super Bowl, the Boston Red Sox winning another World Series, the Washington Capitals swigging the Stanley Cup, players taking a knee, and Colin Kaepernick does TV commercials instead of playing football?

• Larry Nasser, who was a team physician for USA Gymnastics and Michigan State University, is off to prison for sexually assaulting female athletes.  Because of what this man did (and the many gymnasts who were brave enough to point him out in court), women and young girls will think twice before ever trusting their bodies to team doctors again.  And unless your name is Simone Biles, the future of gymnastics in this country is in peril.
• Serena Williams, who pretty much is women's tennis these days, amazed the world with her comeback from a difficult pregnancy,  She also alienated a lot of folks for her meltdown at the finals of the U.S. Open, losing points for alleged cheating and the match to newcomer Naomi Osaka.
• Even though the PGA Tour promotes its golfers in its ads as "these guys are good", there's only one who still draws crowds and spikes tournament TV ratings whenever he plays:  Tiger Woods.  After a decade of injuries and scandal, Woods became relevant again in winning the Tour Championship.  Meanwhile, Brooks Koepka won two of the four golf majors this year (U.S. Open and PGA Championship).  He's good, too.
• The U.S. Supreme Court in April struck down a 1992 federal law prohibiting states from legalizing sports betting.  Who this benefits other than casinos in Las Vegas and states hoping to cash in on the possible tax revenue is hard to say.  But we won't be looking at the final score the same way again.
• After the Vegas Golden Knights went to the Stanley Cup finals in their first season, the National Hockey League is hoping lightning strikes again in Seattle.  That's when an expansion team will hit the ice come 2021.  The enthusiasm for hockey might be there, but one wonders if the folks in the Emerald City would prefer to see the NBA Sonics return.

In Minnesota, departures were the big story.

• Lindsay Whalen ended her long playing career that included a Women's Final Four appearance as a Minnesota Gopher, gold medals as part of the U.S. Olympic women's basketball team, and four WNBA titles with the Minnesota Lynx.  Whalen has returned to her alma mater as the new Gopher women's basketball coach, and so far her team is doing very well.
• Joe Mauer leaves behind a complicated legacy with his retirement as a Twins player after 15 seasons.  As a catcher, he won the American League batting title (the only catcher to do so) and for being the league's most valuable player.  When the Twins' fortunes soured, Mauer was moved to first base plagued by injuries and a massive contract that expired only last season.  But he'll be remembered as the hometown boy from St. Paul who made good, and that's enough.
• After being a big pain in the butt in demanding to be traded at the start of the season, the Minnesota Timberwolves obliged Jimmy Butler with a trade to the Philadelphia 76ers,  Since the trade, the Sixers are having a good season lodged in a playoff position (as of 12/28/18).  The Wolves are struggling as an under-.500 team well short of making the playoffs.

PASSING ON:  David Pearson, Willie McCovey, Dick Modzelewski, Paul Allen, Jim Taylor, Tex Winter, Dave Anderson, Stan Mikita, Tony Cloniger, Maria Bueno, Red Schoendienst, Dwight Clark, Carol Mann, Billy Cannon, Chuck Knox, Hal Greer, Rusty Staub, Roger Bannister, Ben Agajanian, Oscar Gamble, Warren Miller, Dan Guerney, Doug Harvey, Keith Jackson, Lee Leonard

The 2018-19 Owljock Bowl Board

To paraphrase Chuck Todd of NBC's "Meet the Press":  If it's the end of the college football season, it must be time for the Owljock Bowl Board.  But first, a couple of notes.

• Alabama, Clemson, Notre Dame and Oklahoma are this year's contestants in the College Football Playoff, which means there's a 75 percent of a team from the South winning the national championship.  The Crimson Tide, which has been the top-ranked team all season, is favored to win another title.
• The CFP semifinals will now be on the last Saturday in December, in response to calendar quirks and declining TV ratings,  That is, if the rotation falls on New Year's Day.  In which case, by tradition and contract, the Rose and Sugar bowls would host the semifinals.
• As usual, there's the whining over which teams got passed over for the four-team playoff, which usually leads to calls for an eight-team playoff.  This year it's Central Florida and Ohio State.  The Knights' crime is going undefeated in something called the American Athletic Conference, and playing pushovers just like the big boys do.  The Buckeyes won the Big Ten Plus title, but lost a key game or two for the committee to consider them.  Now coach Urban Meyer is leaving after the Rose Bowl, allegedly for health reasons, and will be replaced by assistant Ryan Day.

If you haven't been here before (or if you just plain forgot), here's how the Bowl Board works:  We name the game, who's playing and where, who's televising it, and a brief description of the game's sponsor and what they're known for (where appropriate).  Got all that?  Good. Let's get on with it.

Air Force Reserve Celebration Bowl:  North Carolina A&T vs. Alcorn State (Atlanta, GA 12/15)  ABC

New Mexico Bowl:  North Texas vs. Utah State (Albuquerque, NM 12/15)  ESPN

AutoNation Cure Bowl:  Tulane vs. Louisiana (Orlando, FL 12/15)  CBS Sports Network
Automotive retailer.

Mitsubishi Motors Las Vegas Bowl:  Fresno State vs. Arizona State (Las Vegas, NV 12/15)  ABC
Auto manufacturer.

Raycom Media Camellia Bowl:  Georgia Southern vs. Eastern Michigan (Montgomery, AL 12/15)  ESPN
Media company.

R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl:  Middle Tennessee vs. Appalachian State (New Orleans, LA 12/15)  ESPN
Shipping firm.

Cheribundi Boca Raton Bowl:  Alabama-Birmingham vs. Northern Illinois (Boca Raton, FL 12/18)  ESPN
Energy drink.

DXL Frisco Bowl:  San Diego State vs. Ohio (Frisco, TX 12/19)  ESPN
Men's clothing store chain.

Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl:  Marshall vs. South Florida (Tampa, FL 12/20)  ESPN
Lawn mowers.

Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl:  Florida International vs. Toledo (Nassau, Bahamas 12/21)  ESPN
Industrial park in Elk Grove Village, IL, near Chicago.

Famous Idaho Potato Bowl:  Western Michigan vs. Brigham Young (Boise, ID 12/21) ESPN

Jared Birmingham Bowl:  Memphis vs. Wake Forest (Birmingham, AL 12/22)  ESPN
Retail jewelry store chain.

Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl:  Houston vs. Army (Fort Worth, TX 12/22)  ESPN
Defense contractor.

Dollar General Bowl:  Buffalo vs. Troy (Mobile, AL 12/22)  ESPN
Retail chain.

SoFi Hawaii Bowl:  Louisiana Tech vs. Hawaii  (Honolulu, HW 12/22)  ESPN
Financial services.

SERVPRO First Responder Bowl:  Boston College vs. Boise State  (Dallas, TX 12/26)  ESPN
Disaster cleanup service.  Formerly Heart of Dallas Bowl.

Quick Lane Bowl:  Minnesota vs. Georgia Tech  (Detroit, MI 12/26)  ESPN
Auto care shops.

Cheez-It Bowl:  California vs. Texas Christian (Phoenix, AZ 12/26)  ESPN
Cheese crackers.  Formerly Cactus Bowl.

Walk-On's Independence Bowl:  Temple vs. Duke (Shreveport, LA  12/27)  ESPN
Sports restaurant chain.

New Era Pinstripe Bowl:  Miami vs. Wisconsin  (New York City, NY 12/27) ESPN
Sports apparel.

Academy Sports + Outdoors Texas Bowl:  Baylor vs. Vanderbilt  (Houston, TX  12/27)  ESPN
Sporting goods retail chain.

Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl:  Purdue vs. Auburn  (Nashville, TN 12/28)  ESPN
Financial services.

Camping World Bowl:  West Virginia vs. Syracuse (Orlando, FL 12/28)  ESPN
Camping and RV supplies.

Valero Alamo Bowl:  Iowa State vs. Washington State (San Antonio, TX 12/28)  ESPN
Energy company.

Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl:  Florida vs. Michigan (Atlanta, GA 12/29)  ESPN
Chicken restaurant chain.

Belk Bowl:  South Carolina vs. Virginia (Charlotte, NC 12/29) ABC
Regional department stores.

NOVA Home Loans Arizona Bowl:  Arkansas State vs. Nevada (Tucson, AZ 12/29)  CBS Sports Network
Mortgage lender.

Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic (CFP Semifinal):  Clemson vs. Notre Dame (Arlington, TX 12/29) ESPN
Tires and blimps.

Capital One Orange Bowl (CFP Semifinal):  Alabama vs. Oklahoma (Miami Gardens, FL 12/29) ESPN
Financial services.

Military Bowl Presented by Northrop Grumman:  Cincinnati vs. Virginia Tech  (Annapolis, MD 12/31)  ESPN
Defense contractor.

Hyundai Sun Bowl:  Stanford vs. Pittsburgh (El Paso, TX 12/31)  CBS
Auto manufacturer.

Redbox Bowl:  Michigan State vs. Oregon (Santa Clara, CA  12/31)  Fox
Movie and game rentals.  Formerly Foster Farms Bowl.

San Diego County Credit Union Holiday Bowl:  Northwestern vs. Utah  (San Diego, CA 12/31) FS1
Financial services in southern California.

TaxSlayer Gator Bowl:  North Carolina State vs. Texas A&M (Jacksonville, FL 12/31)  ESPN
Online tax preparation.

Outback Bowl:  Mississippi State vs. Iowa (Tampa. FL 1/1/19)  ESPN2
Steak and seafood restaurants.

VRBO Citrus Bowl:  Kentucky vs. Penn State (Orlando, FL 1/1/19) ABC
Vacation rental and travel website.

PlayStation Fiesta Bowl:  Louisiana State vs. Central Florida (Glendale, AZ 1/1/19)  ESPN
Videogame consoles.

Rose Bowl Game Presented by Northwestern Mutual:  Washington vs. Ohio State (Pasadena, CA 1/1/19)  ESPN
Financial services.

Allstate Sugar Bowl:  Texas vs. Georgia (New Orleans, LA 1/1/19)  ESPN
Insurance and financial services.

College Football Playoff National Championship Game Presented by AT&T:  Teams TBD  (Santa Clara, CA 1/7/19) ESPN
Communications giant.