Man Law: The Prick Index!
I propose a new stat for the geeks over at Football Study Hall, the prick index. It would be some measure of a players tendency to be a big enough prick to draw an opponent into a stupid penalty. Take Chris Johnson, please /rimshot...
Florida's worst onside kick ever, against Louisville in Sugar Bowl - SBNation.com
Here we have a post-onside kick kerfuffle that saw the Gators draw two personal fouls, Chris Johnson (who's listed as a "key member of the kickoff unit") get ejected and Louisville granted exquisite field position. Teddy Bridgewater took immediate advantage, lofting a 19-yard touchdown pass to Damian Copeland, making it 30-10 in favor of the actual underdogs.
He was drawn into an unimaginably stupid penalty when Florida failed to recover an onside kick. You already handed the Card the ball in pretty good field position, then you do and give them 15 more yards? for what the stratification of tapping some guys facemask?
Quarterbacks who effectively mix up their cadence are seen as having possession of a tool that makes them more effective. A role player on special teams who can cause opponents to give up free yards? 15 of them! That is way better than the occasional encroachment.
I can see the recruiting scenarios now...
Recruiting Coordinator: That kids can't catch and runs sloppy routes, but his prick index is off the chart! Hes pulling in 2 personal fouls a game!
Coach: Can we offer him a preferred walk on?
As San Diego goes, so goes the Mountain West
Mountain West Conference must give San Diego State Aztecs first option to join - ESPN
As part of Boise State's contract to remain in the Mountain West, obtained by ESPN, MWC presidents must set the terms of SDSU's return and present an offer to the school before moving on to other schools. The "right of first option" in the contract lasts until Jan. 31, after which time the conference can attempt to invite other schools or stand pat with its current membership.
I gotta hand it to Boise and the mountain west for being maybe the only adults the recent big east dust up.
Boise, as much as any recent conference jumper, had a legit case to sue out of the exit fee. The Big East the agreed to join no longer exist and it was not the votes of Boise that did it. Instead Boise just decided that 5 million was a life lesson in assuming your neighbors grass is greener.
On the same side the Mountain West could have twisted Boise's arm and tried to squeeze them. Instead they gave some pretty impressive concessions to the Bronco's because at the end of they day they knew, even with the concessions, that they are better off with Boise than without.
Back to the Bronco's, it showed some class that they looked out a bit for San Diego.
Now to a situation where nobody showed class
Pennsylvania Tom Corbett governor defends reversal on NCAA sanctions - ESPN
Gov. Tom Corbett said the NCAA veered dramatically from its own disciplinary rules and procedures when it decreed last summer that Penn State would pay a $60 million fine, and the football team would suffer a four-year postseason ban and a dramatic reduction in the number of athletic scholarships it could offer.Corbett wants a federal judge to throw out the sanctions, saying they have harmed students, business owners and others who had nothing to do with the former assistant football coach's crimes against children.
I'm not sure I agree with the way PSU's penalties came about but I do know it's funny to whine and complain that they hurt students and players not involved when, for a decade, students and players not involved profited from PSU's coverup.
Around Buffalo Sports
UB Hoops lost
Season-Low Shooting Performance Dooms Bulls at Tulsa - Buffalo Athletics
"We did somethings well, but we didn't sustain them, and a lot of that goes to concentration," head coach Reggie Witherspoon said. "And obviously we didn't shoot the ball well, but they didn't shoot it well either. It was one of those games that you knew was going to go down to the wire. We got some looks late that we didn't convert."
The Bills are looking for Love-eee (Buffalo Rumblings)
Buffalo Bills Coaching Update: Lovie Smith Interview Scheduled, Per Report - Buffalo Rumblings
On the day that he was fired as head coach of the Chicago Bears, Lovie Smith made it known that he was interested in talking to the Buffalo Bills about their head coaching vacancy. He will get that opportunity this weekend, per a WGR 550 report.
The lockout goes on in the NHL (Die By The Blade)
NHL lockout: Disclaimer avoided, because the NHL needs the NHLPA to exist - SBNation.com
Bob Goodenow never would have predicted this. Neither would John Ziegler -- the league president during the 1992 players strike -- nor his ultimate successor Gary Bettman, nor the money-losing owners who saw their franchises relocate after the league lost its first to major labor battles. But 20 years after the NHL labor wars began, 17 years after the NHL first locked out its players only to cry uncle in an embarrassing loss, the league found itself in the odd position of turning to the courts to ensure the NHLPA's survival.