Pat Brennan fans STAY UP

I sure do hate to gush about the joys of writing for a second straight post. So I won't, but I feel obliged to celebrate the first pieces of positive feedback I have gotten from people, regarding both my work for The Lantern and this blog. To be truthful, the feedback is starkly contrasted to the grade I probably have in Comm423 right now (Lantern Practicum, writing for The Lantern). Shout out to the girl from the party last night that said she reads my blog, and my good, old friend from Reading, PA who has been enjoying updates about the Ohio State wrestling team from his dorm room at Albright College. I've protected their anonymity just incase I ever blow up,  for real.

I promised myself that this would be the best "sports year" of my life. I want to knock some of the "once in a lifetime" events off my personal list. We're off to a solid start following my trip to see the Buckeyes win the Sugar Bowl in Louisiana. I should mention that the memory of that trip was tarnished due to the horrific car crash that took place on an Alabama highway during the drive home. But the post-traumatic nightmares and panic attacks have ceased for a while now, so I'm just gonna dust off my shoulder.  Just wipe the dirt, flying debris, blood, and shards of glass that accumulated on my shoulder during the crash. 

- swipe swipe-  

Yeah, just like that. 

I'm also optimistic that I'll get to cross another "once in a lifetime" event off my list come March. The Ohio State bball team is lookin' pretty fine these days, aren't they? I think yes. Could mean a trip to Houston, TX for the Final Four. Fingers crossed.

I think it will be tough for the Buckeyes to stay undefeated. However, I do think they are capable of finishing the regular season without a loss. After that, I firmly believe that they'll win the Big Ten, be a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament. That's about as much as you can guarantee in March.

I was very impressed by Jared Sullinger's performance at Illinois on Saturday. For OSU to have a true freshman step up and almost singlehandedly win the game for them speaks volumes about the depth and mental toughness of the team. It also proves that the Buckeyes are mature up and down their bench- they'll need to overcome adverse situations if they want to win in March. Saturday also showed us that the Bucks have both a shooter (Diebler) and a big man (Sullinger) who can take over a game on any given night. 

And did you see Dallas Lauderdale's finish off Buford's missed shot in the first half? That was insane. 

This team is deep. They will make Buckeye Nation proud this year.

Life as a Journalist

After producing an article on the Major League Soccer SuperDraft late last week, and easing into a routine as a Lantern reporter, I feel like a real journalist.

It was quite a thrill to finish my piece on the draft selections of Konrad Warzycha and Matt Gold into MLS (by Sporting KC and Toronto FC, respectively).  I streamed the first three rounds of the draft at my home work space, and after debating skipping Comm 423 for the purpose of having a close beat on the story, headed for campus. I continued to check up on the draft throughout class and saw that Matt Gold had been taken in the third round by TFC. I flipped out and headed across the hall to the newsroom. I tried to call Matt but I had taken his cell number down incorrectly and now had no way to contact him or Konrad.

I stuck around after class and finally tracked Konrad down. Talking to an athlete after a big moment in their career... its a feeling of accomplishment as a sports writer, to say the least. If you manage to get in touch with that athlete, its like reaching an island oasis or something- you know that you're in the place, right where you need to be, and that's all! You're golden. Konrad and Matt are both class acts, aside from being great value as third-round picks for their new clubs. They've both been of a professional mindset since their freshman year when they played in the College Cup finale and I really believe that they could have promising professional careers in front of them.

I think I'm going to send everyone involved in the story a fruit basket, including Alissa Clendenon, the men's soccer Sports Information Director. Never again will I ever hunt down a story like this and find friendly, trusting people at every turn like I did with Konrad, Matt, and Alissa. Konrad gave me Matt's phone number and I went ahead and called the Canada-bound boy. If I were to say that Konrad was friendly and professional during my talks with him, than I'd have to say that Matt was damn near the nicest guy ever. So I got quotes from him and two hours after the draft had ended, my story was up on the The Lantern's website.

As an interesting side-note, I also talked to Devin Barclay for this article. Barclay was the place-kicker for the Ohio State football team, and is a former MLS man. He played for the Tampa Bay Mutiny, or something haha.

It was a good experience but reassuring for me since I hadn't had anything published for weeks. I bided my time and that was a good decision. Worth the wait.

Stack'em up- Big Ten vs. The World

Remembering the Big Ten's 2010 bowl season
College football bowl season is a special time of year. Conference pride is on the line and fans from bitter rivalries unite, if only for a day. I remember watching Northwestern's bowl game exactly one year ago yesterday from outside Rose Bowl stadium. Ohio State fans were cheering hard for Northwestern to pick up an unexpected win for the Big Ten. Camaraderie, ho! It was a warm and fuzzy moment.

Sadly, there was nothing to cheer about for Big Ten fans yesterday. Michigan, Michigan St., Northwestern, Penn State and most notably, Wisconsin, combined for an 0-5 record in their respective bowl games. The five losses guaranteed a losing bowl season for the conference, which fell to 2-5 on the year. Only Ohio State's Sugar Bowl matchup against Arkansas remains.

Ghastly business.

So, what do we make of the strength of the Big Ten conference? Eight teams made bowl appearances- that is very impressive. Some of the weaker of the bowl-bound teams, namely Iowa and Illinois, surprised with victories against #12 Missouri and Baylor, respectively. This speaks to the competitive depth of the Big Ten. Big Ten co-champs Michigan State lost to Alabama, 49-7. Sure, everyone knew that Michigan State's 11-1 regular season record was a direct result of their mostly unimpressive schedule but there's no excuses for a 42-point loss- very poor showing. Wisconsin, another member of the co-champion triumvirate, had a solid Rose Bowl against the impressive TCU Horned Frogs. TCU batted-down a Wisconsin two-point conversation with two minutes remaining in regulation and that was the difference for the Badgers, who lost 21-19. Keep in mind that TCU was the favorite in this game and Wisconsin kept it close despite the Horned Frogs' stifling defense. The game counts as a loss for the conference, but really wasn't a bad showing.

As for everyone else, the Nittany Lions of Penn State were competitive in their Outback Bowl loss to Florida yesterday. Florida put the game away with a pick-six late in the fourth quarter. Northwestern lost a tight affair as well, fighting back in the second half before falling to Texas Tech, 45-38. Michigan also lost a laugher to Mississippi State in the Gator Bowl. Perhaps the Wolverines reached a bit beyond themselves when they accepted a bid to the traditionally respectable and competitive Gator Bowl, a New Year's Day mainstay. In any event, Rich Rodriguez's boys were drubbed.

Summary of Big Ten's 2010 bowl season
Despite five members of the conference losing bragging right to individual teams in their bowl losses yesterday, the Big Ten collective maintained it's position one of the top conferences.

Now for some fun, let's compare the Big Ten to other power conferences....

Big Ten v. Big East
Just kidding, the Big East sucks.

Big Ten v. ACC
How did Miami end up? They lost to ND in the WHAT bowl? Ouch- never heard of it. Well, the ACC actually went 4-3 in bowls this year. Not bad. But anytime your conference champ is practically irrelevant on the national landscape and doomed in their BCS game (see UConn, Big East), there is no comparison. It is a down year for the ACC, that isn't Earth-shattering news. Big Ten > ACC.

Big Ten v. Big VII/12
This one is serious. The Big 12 sent eight teams to bowl games this year and have a 3-4 record with Texas A&M's Cotton Bowl clash against LSU still to come. As previously mentioned, Iowa and Illinois thwacked Missouri and Baylor. Northwestern did lose to Texas Tech, so the head-to-head is a 2-1 win for the Big Ten. Your mid-level teams need to produce in the post-season to be top dog amongst the power conferences, and the Big 12 didn't get that production this year. #14 Oklahoma State beat on Arizona, but Kansas dropped the Pinstripe Bowl against 'Cuse at New Yankee Stadium and #18 Nebraska lost to Washington in the Holiday Bowl, also their final game as Big 12 participants.  Oklahoma won a BCS game, but it came against unranked UConn (see UConn, Big East). This is an OK conference, however, I don't think there is any question that the Big Ten up-ends the Big 12 in a head-to-head comparison.


Big Ten v. SEC
Now, lets compare the Big Ten to their main detractors- the South Eastern Conference. The SEC sent ten teams to bowl games this year, including the maximum allotment of BCS participants (2- Arkansas and Auburn). So far, the SEC is 3-3 in their bowls and swept the Big Ten on New Year's Day, knocking off Michigan, Michigan State, and Penn State. However, their three losses are not pretty- Tennessee lost to UNC, Georgie lost to UCF, 10-6, and recent conference championship game participant South Carolina lost to Florida State. A lot of the Big Ten's national perception and ability to argue "top-conference-status" will hinge on an Ohio State Buckeyes victory- not just a solid performance- against Arkansas in the Sugar Bowl on Tuesday. And of course, the jury will be out on the SEC until LSU plays A&M in the Cotton Bowl, and #1 Auburn faces #2 Oregon for the national championship. Oh, and six-loss Kentucky plays Pitt next Saturday- the world awaits. I do not await, however. I'm going to forego waiting to see how the remaining bowls play out and declare the SEC the best conference in America by a wide margin. The SEC is murderer's row, people. Auburn alone is an incredible talent- they're being led into the national championship as favorites by their Heisman Trophy winner, Cam Newton. After Auburn, you have Arkansas, then LSU which is 10-2 and doesn't get a sniff of the BCS this year. Alabama is the 4th-best team in the conference and they murdered Sparty yesterday- that is mind-boggling. SEC takes the cake, hands down. No shame for the Big Ten though, unless we loose to Arkansas and go 0-4 against them in bowls. Then there is shame.