Saturday, October 8, 2022

NCAA Week 6

 Here is the current AP top 10 for college football:

1.  Alabama:  5-0
2.  Georgia:  5-0
3.  Ohio St:  5-0
4.  Michigan:  5-0
5.  Clemson:  5-0
6.  So. California:  5-0
7.  Oklahoma St:  4-0
8.  Tennessee:  4-0
9.  Mississippi:  5-0
10.  Penn St:  5-0

Huge game for the Vols today at LSU.  UK had their test last week at Ole Miss, and failed it.  Will UT do better?

104 comments:

  1. Today's game for the Unofficial College Football Championship features Oregon (the holder) traveling to Arizona.

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  2. Every year I tell myself that I'm going to watch Oklahoma play Texas, and I almost never do.

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  3. Today's Casey Kasem countdown is from October 7, 1972. On October 7, 1972, the Dolphins were 3-0, with wins over the Chiefs (20-10), the Oilers (34-13), and the Vikings (16-14). The next day they would be in New York to play the Jets.

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  4. On October 7, 1972, the Oakland A's hosted the Detroit Tigers in the first game of the 1972 American League Championship Series. It was the first post-season game for the Athletics since the 1931 World Series.

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  5. Game 1 of the ALCS was a humdinger. The A's went with Catfish Hunter; the Tigers (managed by Billy Martin) countered with Mickey Lolich. In the top of the 2d, Norm Cash homered to give the Tigers a 1-0 lead. In the bottom of the 3d, Bert Campaneris walked, advanced to third on a single by Matty Alou, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Joe Rudi. So the game was tied 1-1 after 3.

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  6. That was it for awhile, as Hunter and Lolich were on their games. In the top of the 9th, the score was still 1-1, and Hunter and Lolich were both still pitching.

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  7. Duke Sims led off the top of the 9th with a double for the Tigers, and that was it for Hunter. Vida Blue came in to pitch to Norm Cash, who laid down a bunt. The A's were doing a thing where they mostly pinch-hit for their second basemen, so they didn't have a regular at that position. Ted Kubiak, who had come in during the third inning, fumbled the throw at first, and the Tigers had men on first and third with no one out.

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    1. Actually Kubiak fumbled the throw at third. Sorry about that.

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  8. With men on first and third and no one out, the A's pulled Vida Blue and brought in Rollie Fingers. Fingers induced Gates Brown to pop out to Sal Bando in foul territory. Then Fingers got Jim Northrup to hit a grounder to Kubiak, who flipped to Campaneris for one out. Campaneris turned the double play, and the score was still 1-1.

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  9. It was still 1-1 in the top of the 11th, when Al Kaline drilled a home run off of Fingers to make the score 2-1 for Detroit. The Tigers brought out Lolich to pitch the 11th, but Lolich was finally gassed. Sal Bando led off with a single, and the A's sent in Blue Moon Odom to pinch run for Bando. Then Mike Epstein singled Odom to second, and the A's had the winning run on base. At this point, Billy Martin pulled Lolich, replacing him with Chuck Seelbach. The A's sent in Mike Hegan to pinch run for Epstein.

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  10. Gene Tenace came up and tried to bunt, but it didn't work. The Tigers threw out Odom at 3d, Hegan advanced to 2d, and Tenace was on first. One out.

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    1. The Tigers came very close to getting a double play here, but the throw to first pulled Cash off the bag, and Tenace was safe.

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  11. At this point, Dal Maxvill (who had replaced Kubiak at 2d in the 10th inning) was due up. So Manager Dick Williams sent up Gonzalo Marquez, a 32-year-old rookie from Venezuela. Marquez played with the A's in 1972 and for part of the 1973 season, before he was sent to the Cubs. In his time with the A's, he only had 46 at-bats. Now he slapped a single to right, which scored Hegan to tie the game. With the ball slowly rolling out to Kaline, Tenace decided to try for third.

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    1. I got so interested in Gonzalo Marquez when I discovered him in 1972 a few years ago. I had never heard of him.

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  12. Kaline, one of the great right fielders of all time, snatched the ball and fired a bullet to third base. The throw was so good that it hit Tenace's back just as Tenace was sliding into third. Aurelio Rodriguez, playing third for the Tigers, couldn't grab the ball, which bounded off toward the dugout.

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  13. Actually, it looks like the ball hit Tenace's foot. Anyway, the Oakland-Alameda Coliseum had a huge foul ground, and the ball bounded off toward the dugout, quickly getting away from Rodriguez. Tenace saw what was happening, jumped up, and raced home to win the game 3-2 for the Athletics.

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  14. Here were the top 5 college football teams on October 7, 1972:

    1. USC
    2. Oklahoma
    3. Ohio St.
    4. Alabama
    5. Michigan

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  15. Anyway, I like to think of 1972 Eric running errands on Saturday and listening to that A's-Tigers game.

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    1. On the other hand, in 1972 Eric might have been washing his car out in the back yard. People did a lot of car-washing in 1972.

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    2. Thank you, but no. We were carnonwashers when carnonwashing wasn't cool.

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  16. Number 20 on the countdown this week is "City of New Orleans," by Arlo Guthrie, which may be the only song in the history of the countdown to feature the word Kankakee.

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  17. Number 13 is "Saturday in the Park," by Chicago.

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  18. Number 12, "Nights in White Satin," by the Moody Blues. Failed as a single back in 1967, but was re-released this year and is doing very well.

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  19. Number 11, "Play Me," by Neil Diamond. This is an excellent countdown.

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  20. 50 years later, in October 2022, Tennessee leads LSU 23-7 at the half.

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  21. In Danville, Centre College is tied 7-7 with Sewanee with 13:18 left in the second quarter.

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  22. Number 10, "Popcorn," by Hot Butter. I'm always happy to hear this piece.

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    1. That song fires a little tube in my brain that remembers our apartment in Highland Park, Illinois, and I love going back to that place.

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  23. Number 9, "My Ding-a-Ling," by Chuck Berry.

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  24. Texas is pounding Oklahoma 28-0 at halftime, and Oklahoma fans have to be wondering if they can take Josh Heupel away from Tennessee.

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  25. Number 8, "Black and White," by Three Dog Night.

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  26. Number 7, "Burning Love," by Elvis Presley

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    1. I really enjoyed the Elvis movie from earlier this year or last.

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  27. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  28. Replies
    1. This is one of my least favorite songs by Bill Withers, and I even like it.

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  29. Number 5, "Go All the Way," by The Raspberries

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    1. Number 4, "Everybody Plays the Fool," by The Main Ingredient

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    2. Two really good ones. I've been on a bit of a Raspberries jag for the last few years. It doesn't appear to be available on YouTube anymore, but there used to be a promotional video out there for "Go All the Way" in which they isolated Eric Carmen's vocal, and it's just terrific.

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  30. Number 3, "Back-Stabbers," by the O-Jays

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  31. The good news for Tennessee fans is that they are drubbing LSU, up 30-7 early in the 3d quarter. The bad news is that Oklahoma will now certainly try to hire Josh Heupel.

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  32. Number 2, "Ben," by Michael Jackson. What a great song.

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  33. Number 1, "Baby, Don't Get Hooked on Me," by Mac Davis. An excellent countdown. America seems stable and prosperous here in late 1972. President Nixon is headed toward an easy win, and it looks as though the 1970's will be quiet and successful.

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  34. Tennessee is humiliating LSU. The Vols now lead 37-7 with 2:13 left in the third quarter, and LSU fans are heading for the exits in Baton Rouge. You don't see that very often. I know LSU prefers to play home games at night, but this is a stunning result.

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  35. In Cleveland, the Guardians and the Rays complete nine scoreless innings. I don't think we have ghost runners in the post-season, so this will be the first real extra innings game we've had all year.

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  36. Florida survives at home against a tough Missouri team, with the Gators winning 24-17.

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  37. Texas beats Oklahoma 49-0, and I think it's safe to say that the Sooners are looking for a new coach.

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  38. The Rays and the Guardians are just waiting for someone to hit a home run, so they could be there a while. Now moving into the 11th.

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  39. Tennessee crushes LSU 40-13, and next week's game in Knoxville against Alabama will be the most anticipated game for Big Orange fans in many, many years.

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  40. Mississippi State drubs Arkansas 40-17. A few weeks ago, the Razorbacks were in the top 10. Then they lost to Texas A & M (23-21), Alabama (49-26), and Mississippi State (40-17), and now they're just trying to become bowl eligible.

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  41. Rays and Guardians still scoreless in the bottom of the 13th. Still waiting for a homer. In 2014, the Nats and Giants played a game like this that went 18.

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  42. On to the 14th. Meanwhile, it's 0-0 in Toronto after one, where the Blue Jays are hosting the Mariners. The baseball playoffs have been going today since 11:07 AM CDT, and no one has scored yet.

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  43. In the top of the 14th, Tampa Bay gets the leadoff runner on base. Do they try to advance him? Of course not. They keep swinging for the fences.

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  44. So the Rays follow up their leadoff single with a strikeout and a double play. On to the bottom of the 14th. It's crazy to think that the Guardians have had 13 chances to eliminate the Rays with a single run, and haven't taken any of them.

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  45. Toronto whacks a two-run homer, and we finally have runs today. I'm beginning to see why the Houston Astros dominate the American League.

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  46. Cleveland goes down 1-2-3, and it's on to the 15th. Until today, there had never been a scoreless post-season game after 13 innings.

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  47. Tampa Bay starts the top of the 15th with a leadoff single.

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  48. Once again, the next batter after the leadoff single strikes out.

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  49. But the next man up singles, and the Rays have runners at the corners with one out. Cleveland huddles at the mound. While they're there, they should probably ask each other why they spent 14 innings swinging for the fences when they could have ended the series with one run.

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  50. With the lead runner on third, and one out, the next batter -- strikes out. I will never understand why the analytics lead to so many strikeouts with a runner on third and less than two out, but they do.

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  51. And another strikeout ends the top of the 15th. Cleveland has another chance to eliminate Tampa Bay, which truly deserves to be eliminated.

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  52. And there it is. In the bottom of the 15th, Oscar Gonzalez hits the home run everyone has been waiting for. The Guardians beat Tampa Bay 2-1 and 1-0 (15), and they will move on to play the Yankees.

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  53. Updates: Centre beats Sewanee 35-16. Sewanee falls to 2-3 on the year, and 0-2 in conference play. In Williamsburg, William & Mary knocks off the number-6 team in Division I-AA, beating Delaware 27 to 21. The Tribe go to 5-1 on the year and 2-1 in conference. Huge win for the Tribe.

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  54. The bad news for Auburn is that they lost at Georgia 42-10, in a game that had everyone wondering why CBS picked that game to show nationwide. The good news for Auburn is that they are that much closer to firing their coach, as they wanted to do in the off-season.

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  55. Meanwhile, north of the border, the Blue Jays are trying to stave off elimination. They lead Seattle 9-6 in the top of the 8th, but the Mariners have the bases loaded and no one out. Toronto brings in Jordan Romano who immediately strikes out two batters in a row -- because that's how batters work nowadays.

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  56. But the next batter is the number-9 hitter, J.P. Crawford. He manages to hit a soaring pop fly that lands about 80 feet behind second base. None of the Blue Jays can reach it, and in fact at least two of them crash into each other. Crawford ends up at second. All three runners score and the game is tied at 9. George Springer, the former Astro turned Blue Jay center fielder, is injured and has to leave the game. Things happen when you put the ball in play. Nothing happens when you strike out.

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  57. Of course, Seattle fails to take the lead because the next batter strikes out.

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  58. So now it's 9-9 going into the bottom of the 8th, and we'll just wait for the game-winning homer.

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  59. The good news for Vandy is that the Dores led Ole Miss 20-10 in the first half. The bad news is that football games last for four quarters, and Ole Miss came back to win 52-28.

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  60. The Blue Jays don't homer in their half of the 8th, and the score remains tied at 9 going into the 9th.

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  61. Holy Moley! The Mariners get a 1-out double from Cal Raleigh, and a 2-out double from Adam Frazier, and Seattle leads Toronto 10-9 in the top of the 9th. That's what I get for being so cynical. The M's were down 9-5 when they came up to bat in the top of the 8th, and now they are three outs away from eliminating Toronto.

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  62. Alabama and Texas A & M are scoreless after one quarter.

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  63. Alabama leads 14-7 with 4 minutes left in the 2d quarter. The Mets, facing elimination, lead the Padres 2-1 after four innings. The Cardinals, also facing elimination, trail the Phillies 1-0 in the bottom of the 3d.

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  64. The Padres tie their game with the Mets. It's 2-all going into the bottom of the fifth. But then it's untied after Pete Alonso, the Mets' cleanup hitter, blasts a solo shot into the left field seats. Mets 3, Padres 2.

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  65. Texas A & M has been waiting all year to play Bama, and it shows. That game is a cracker. The Tide, having to play without Bryce Young, leads 17-14 at the half.

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  66. With one quarter left, Alabama is clinging to a 24-17 lead over Texas A & M.

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  67. Meanwhile, with Will Levis on the bench due to injury, Kentucky gets drilled at home, losing to South Carolina 24-14. The loss drops UK to 4-2 on the year, and 1-2 in the SEC. The Cats' next two games are home to Mississippi State, and at Tennessee. So UK is probably headed out of the top 20, and they may not return for awhile.

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  68. For Kentucky, South Carolina, Missouri, and Vandy, the games they play against each other -- and especially the home games they play against each other -- basically count double. If you can sweep all three of those games, you will probably have a successful year. If you lose any of them, you are in trouble.

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  69. With 9:15 left in the game, Alabama misses a field goal, and their lead remains at 24-17. Meanwhile, the Mets have put up two runs in the bottom of the 7th, and now lead 5-2. In St. Louis, the Cardinals trail 2-0 in the bottom of the 7th and are running out of outs.

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  70. With 6:13 left, Texas A & M converts a huge fourth and 2, and the Aggies are in business at the Alabama 20. Now that Auburn's football program has collapsed, it's exciting to see Texas A & M embracing Auburn's traditional role of starting off with absurd losses, and then playing great against Alabama.

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  71. Come to think of it, Texas A & M pretty much does the same thing to UK in basketball.

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  72. Alabama holds, and TAMU boots a field goal to make it 24-20 with 3:32 left. Meanwhile, the Mets lead 7-2 in the top of the 8th, and the Phillies lead 2-0 in the top of the 8th.

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  73. Texas A & M holds, and Alabama punts. The Aggies will start from their own 30 with 1:50 left.

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  74. With 51 seconds left, Texas A & M has a first down at the Alabama 37.

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  75. On first down, Alabama is called for defensive holding. Now A & M has a first down at the Alabama 27.

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  76. On first down, Alabama blitzes and A & M throws the ball away. 39 seconds left. 2d and 10 from the Alabama 27.

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  77. On second down, A & M tries a post pattern to the end zone but their man is double-covered and the pass is broken up. 33 seconds left. 3d and 10 from the Alabama 27.

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  78. On third down, A & M completes a pass over the middle. First down at the Alabama 15. They spike the ball. 2d and 10 from the Alabama 15 with 17 seconds left.

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  79. On second down, Alabama gets a good rush and the Aggie QB has to throw the ball away. 11 seconds left. 3d and 10 from the Alabama 15.

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  80. On third down, Alabama appears to have intercepted the ball in the end zone, but there is a flag.

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  81. Pass interference on Alabama in the end zone. A & M gets a first down at the Alabama 2.

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  82. Three seconds left. First down at the Alabama 2. Alabama calls time.

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  83. After having all sort of success throwing the ball down the middle, A & M goes to the corner of the end zone on the last play. Alabama has the play covered, and the Tide hangs on for a 24-20 victory.

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  84. Meanwhile, the Mets lead 7-2 in the top of the 9th, and the Phillies lead 2-0 in the top of the 9th.

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  85. Here's my view of Kentucky football. I think Mark Stoops has done a great job, and I think UK is lucky to have him. But he's been there since 2013, and he has finished ranked in the top 20 only twice -- once in 2018, when he finished number 12, and once in 2021, when he finished number 18. Basically, his program is like the equivalent of a basketball program that usually gets to the round of 32, and sometimes reaches the Sweet 16. That's great for Kentucky -- it's really great. But can you imagine how silly we would think it was if, say, Penn State's basketball team had that sort of run, and then folks at Penn State started having serious talks about whether their basketball program was better than their football program? Only at Kentucky, where you have a spiteful media that loathes the basketball program, would this sort of nonsense ever occur.

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  86. Stoops is a solid coach, his teams play hard, and they usually win a couple of games each year that they aren't supposed to win. That's fantastic, and I hope he spends the rest of his career at UK. But no one should pretend that he's trying to do what Calipari is trying to do. Think about it like this: Next year, on November 11, 2023, Kentucky will host Alabama in football. If Stoops is still here, and UK loses that game, is anyone going to criticize Stoops? Of course not. But if Calipari loses to Duke, or UNC, or Kansas, the media will crush him -- no matter the circumstances. That's the difference between the two jobs. Stoops has about 5-6 games every year that he really needs to win. Calipari is supposed to win them all.

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    1. I agree with all of this, except for your characterization of the media.

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  87. In the fourth quarter, Oregon leads Arizona 49-16, so the Ducks will keep the UCFC. Next week, the Ducks have a bye.

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  88. Meanwhile, the Padres have a run on a hit-by-pitch and three walks. The bases are loaded, there are two outs, and the Mets lead 7-3 in the top of the 9th. Seth Lugo is coming in to pitch for New York.

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  89. Josh Bell grounds out and the game is over. Mets win 7-3, and they survive.

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  90. With two out and runners at the corners, Tommy Edman pops up, and the Cardinals are eliminated. Philadelphia moves on to face the Braves.

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