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SEC Championship Preview: LSU vs. UGA

02 Dec
American and LSU Flags

LSU if flying high

It’s the match-up that doesn’t matter (just don’t tell these Tigers): LSU vs. UGA. Well, I guess technically, it matters for the record books, but is anyone really under the impression LSU’s ticket to the BCS Championship isn’t already punched?

Other teams get to take a week off (Alabama) before heading into the bowl season, but LSU will look to make it win number 13. And for the record, I think the extra game helps LSU and couch surfing hurts Alabama.

Anyway, I’m getting ahead of things, back to the game at hand. UGA comes in on a 10-game win streak after dropping it’s first two. LSU comes in on a 13-game winning streak dating back to last year’s Cotton Bowl.

On paper, not much separates these two teams. Both UGA and LSU allow less than 100 rushing yards a game and less than 200 passing yards per game. On offense, LSU averages 215 rushing yards per game versus UGA’s 180. UGA has a better passing attack at 255 yards per game to LSU’s 176. But the stats never tell the full story.

LSU’s passing game is built on efficiency rather than big plays. The Tiger rushing game is what pounds opponents into submission. I just don’t see this changing against UGA — no matter how stout the stats say the Bulldog run defense is.

The LSU special teams will also play a factor as they have all season. LSU is allowing a ridiculously low 0.46 yards per punt return — less than a foot and a half! If there’s a record for fewest punt return yards allowed for the season, this has to be it.

Eye of the Tiger

Eye of the Tiger

Another huge factor pointing to an LSU victory is experience. LSU has more big-stage experience at this point and knows how to not only play on the big stage, but to excel on it. Despite the game taking place in Georgia, I know the Tiger faithful will travel well and override the Georgia supporters in the Georgia Dome.

I see LSU running and running and running and coming up with defensive stops play after play to make this is a routine contest. I’ll take the Tigers by a score of 37-13.

LSU has seized it’s BCS destiny this year and it seems the whole team is aware of the stakes of every game. Thirteen and Eaux is about to become a reality in Atlanta. Forget Christmas and New Year’s, Jan. 9 is the most important date circled on Tiger players and Tiger fans calendar. Start the countdown to a Tiger Takeover in New Orleans!

Here’s some pregame entertainment for you: Protectors of the SEC.

 
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Posted by on December 2, 2011 in Livin', Uncategorized

 

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LSU-Arkansas Game

26 Nov
LSU Defeats Arkansas 41-17

LSU Defeats Arkansas 41-17

Ah, Death Valley, it was great to be back. We hadn’t hung out since the LSU-Auburn game in 2009. That one was a blowout and thankfully, so was yesterday’s game against those pesky Razorbacks from Arkansas.

I have to admit, coming into this game, I was a little nervous about the possibility of an upset. But these Tigers just seem to be on a different level than any other team in the nation.

I had forgotten how bad the traffic in Baton Rouge can get so I did not enjoy the one-hour trip turning into a two-hour trip. That was all forgotten once I was tailgating with the Tigalaya.com crew on the pristine LSU campus. I didn’t have long to tailgate. Two strong bloody marys and it was time to head to the stadium.

Fellow blogger Dat Tiger Fan hooked me up with a great ticket in Section 221. If you check his blog, you’ll figure out this guy know his football. His prediction for the LSU-Arkansas game? A 38-17 LSU victory. He was only off by a field goal.

12 and Eaux

12 and Eaux

It was great to be back on the scene taking in the atmosphere of Tiger Stadium, doing the LSU cheers and listening to The Golden Band from Tigerland.

Once the game started, Arkansas got out to a 14-0 lead and had me thinking my fear of an upset might become a reality. But the Tigers didn’t panic, didn’t hang their heads and got their acts together and took off on a 41-3 run to clinch a spot in Atlanta in the SEC Championship. And more than likely, a spot in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on Jan. 9 for a chance to play for another BCS Championship.

A lot of people are expecting the championship game to be a rematch of the LSU-Alabama game. While I do agree LSU and Alabama are the two best teams out there, I don’t think a rematch is fair. Alabama failed to win it’s division, conference and its home game against LSU. The Crimson Tide had their chance and couldn’t seal the deal while LSU passed every test put in front of it.

The Golden Band from Tigerland

The Golden Band from Tigerland

Why should Alabama be rewarded with an extra week off while LSU is forced to play the Georgia Bulldogs for the SEC Championship? A game that will be another Top 25 matchup for LSU. That’s eight games against Top 25 foes for those of you keeping score at home. How many Top 25 teams has Alabama faced? Five. Yet another reason Alabama is undeserving of a rematch.

This LSU team has accomplished more in the regular season than any team before it (in LSU school history and in NCAA history). Now it’s off to Atlanta to add the SEC Championship trophy to the hardware case. I’m still debating whether or not to make the trip to Atlanta. Stay tuned…

 
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Posted by on November 26, 2011 in Travelin'

 

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Movie Review: Moneyball

23 Sep

Brad Pitt Gives Moneyball the Spark it Needs to Succeed

Moneyball (based on the book by Michael Lewis) tells the true story of Oakland A’s manager Billy Beane (played by Brad Pitt) and his strategy of managing a team with a limited payroll competing with teams with nine-figure payrolls (New York Yankees, this movie is looking squarely at you).

Set during the 2002 season, the A’s are coming off a first round playoff loss and losing their star players Johnny Damon and Jason Giambi.

Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill in Moneyball

Brad Pitt, left, and Jonah Hill star in Columbia Pictures' drama "Moneyball," a film about the unique approach Oakland A's GM Billy Beane used to rebuild his team in 2002.

The challenge: rebuild the A’s organization with one of Major League Baseball’s lowest payrolls.

Enter Peter Brand (played by Jonah Hill), a statistically driven, Yale-educated economist. Together, they throw conventional MLB wisdom out the window and base the roster solely on player statistics. Initially, this experiment looks like a disaster. Fans, the Oakland media and even the A’s manager (played by Philip Seymour Hoffman) are incensed after the dismal start to the season.

Slowly, but surely the season turns around for the A’s as the plan starts to pay off culminating with a 20-game win streak. Beane and Brand’s experiment revolutionizes the league after only one season.

Many critics are throwing out the “O” word for Pitt’s performance. While I think that’s a bit premature, it is one of his strongest performances since Fight Club.

Pitt and Hill have great onscreen chemistry, but the true scene stealer throughout the film is Kerris Dorsey who plays Pitt’s character’s daughter. The scenes between Dorsey and Pitt add an emotional connection that is somewhat lacking in the clubhouse scenes.

The movie completely plays to Pitt’s strengths: quick wits, charm and a little bit of snark.

The Oakland A's are the team in focus in "Moneyball."

The Oakland A's and the team payroll are at the center of "Moneyball."

The hodgepodge of a team features some nice side characters including Scott Hatteberg (played by Park and Recreation‘s Chris Pratt), David Justice (Stephen Bishop) and Jeremy Giambi (Nick Porrazzo).

While this film is about baseball at its core, it does an excellent job exploring the mind of Billy Beane, his backstory and his love of the game. It’s a most unknown story (save diehard baseball fans) that truly deserves the big screen treatment.

Overall, it is one of the better films I’ve seen this year. It’s been a while since a baseball movie performed well at the box office, but I’m confident Moneyball will be one of the Fall’s highest-grossing films.

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 133 minutes

All photos courtesy of Columbia Pictures.

 
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Posted by on September 23, 2011 in Watchin'

 

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