Felix

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Jan 4, 2009 -> 11:07 AM) I was waiting for a comment. Weber is solid and I'm not about to say that Lick is going to be more successful because Weber has been very sucessful but as a pure coach I'll take Lick. I'll take Tubby over both of them

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Jan 3, 2009 -> 12:10 PM) Wow, the refs in this game should be ashamed of themselves. Non call after non call after non call. Lets just put on pads then. Assuming you're talking about the Gopher/OSU game, definitely. It was terrible for both teams though. Either way, big win for the Gophers. I know OSU is struggling right now, but they really took over in that second half and they finally showed some rhythm on offense. Not to mention the backups did a really good job closing out the first half, which is encouraging to see.

QUOTE (kjshoe04 @ Jan 2, 2009 -> 06:41 PM) I have been gone a couple days, so I haven't been able to get in here, but I still say ISU would beat Illinois. I don't care that Illinois beat Purdue. I think ISU would be able to beat Purdue as well. Not every time but they would beat them at least 30% of the time. Which is what I feel like Illinois is capable of as well. Every thing I said holds true. They play Creighton tomorrow. That should be a good indicator. ISU is still the more athletic and more experienced/smarter team. Probably better coached as well. The amount of homer in this post is amazing. Possibly the most I've seen in a really long time on Soxtalk. Thanks for that.

The point wasn't that 20 wins was some illustrious number of wins that is amazing for a program to get. The point was that the team gained 11 wins with a similar (read: weak) schedule and hardly any change in personnel, which is definitely impressive. As for Tubby's 'hunger', are you actually basing this on anything or is this just a 'gut feeling'? I haven't noticed any change in him and I think he's still eager to prove to Kentucky that he's still a top class coach.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Jan 2, 2009 -> 11:17 AM) I'm just not convinced that Smith can truly turn that program around and consistently make the NCAA's every year. We'll see. Yeah, there's nothing in Tubby's coaching history that shows he knows how to make the tournament consistently. Oh wait... In his time at Minnesota, Tubby has already completely changed the face of the team. The team last year won 20 games despite not having much more talent from the year before, when they won 9. The team this year is young, but very talented. I don't think we are that great a team this year and I suspect we'll still be on the bubble come tournament time, but I do think we'll be much better next year as the freshman continue to learn the system. Add in the fact that Tubby has already shown he can recruit the top Minnesota talent (something previous coaches never did which meant a number of the top Minnesota players went to Wisconsin, Iowa, etc.), and there is a lot of reasons to be happy about this program and the direction it's headed in. I won't try defending the football program as I have stopped following college football for the most part, but I do know that Brewster has done a fantastic job recruiting which makes a big difference. I don't think we'll be a top Big Ten team any time soon, but it's much more encouraging than the past with Glen Mason who seemed content with having the team always be in the middle of the pack.

I just got a Zune for Christmas, and I love it. It's the 120gb model, so it wasn't affected here and I haven't had any complaints about it as of yet.

The Gophers got blown out by Michigan State today (it wasn't close, despite what the final score says) thanks to our worst effort as a whole all season. The offense was nonexistent and the defense couldn't get back in time on anything. The loss led me to buying a lot of beer on the way home, so yeah, thanks Gophers.

I didn't listen to that many new releases in '08, but A City Dressed in Dynamite by That Handsome Devil would definitely be on my list.

Hopefully the fans in Cincy cheer him. Otherwise things could get ugly quick.

The Gophers polished off their non-conference schedule with an easy win over Tubby's alma mater (High Point) 82-56. A 12-0 record going into Big Ten play gives the Gophers their best start in 60 years, and is definitely reason to be excited. We haven't played anyone other than Louisville yet, so the real test will be Wednesday when Michigan State comes to the Barn to start off the Big Ten season. I can't wait.

I can't wait for OSU to come here just so I can yell random things at Titus about Club Trillion.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Dec 23, 2008 -> 01:39 PM) Titus got in at the end last night, he clearly didnt want anything to do with the ball, or a rebound or an assist. His post today indicates that he got a steal, meaning no trillion for him. He did say the crowd booed him when he got it though, which I find hilarious.

I didn't watch it, but I have to thank you again for the link to Club Trillion. It's really fantastic, as is the continuous torture of Evan Turner.

QUOTE (danman31 @ Dec 23, 2008 -> 04:16 AM) While I agree Missouri shouldn't be ranked, Minnesota hasn't really proven anything more. They beat an overrated Louisville team at home, Missouri beat an overrated USC team on a neutral floor. The only difference is that Mizzou lost to Xavier. The rankings suck right now anyway. Wake Forest is #6 on the grounds that they are 11-0 on the 196th best schedule in the country. Check your facts. They played them at a neutral site in Arizona, which certainly isn't home for the Gophers. I don't think the Gophers should be ranked any higher than they are, but there's something to be said for an undefeated team beating a top 10 team on a neutral court that deserves a ranking.

QUOTE (danman31 @ Dec 22, 2008 -> 08:51 PM) Even weirder: Missouri basketball is ranked in one poll. Of course that's weirder, the Gophers should be ranked so it isn't weird that they are

Gophers are #23 in the coaches poll.. woo!

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Dec 22, 2008 -> 11:31 AM) Not surprisingly, people like the #7. I can't tell if you're being serious, but the point is that no matter what number you pick, you'll end up with Texsox as your hero.

Texsox is not my hero, sorry. I like it though

I can't wait for the new rankings to come out. Also, the fact that Travis Busch is featured so prominently here is frightening. He's not very good, although he did do a pretty good job against Louisville.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Dec 20, 2008 -> 08:25 PM) From Gammons: It has been suggested that the best way to decipher the Red Sox-Mark Teixeira negotiations is to pull out your old turntable, put on "Revolution 9" from the Beatles' "White Album" and play it backward. Then you will know what's been offered and what's been requested. We don't know whether the Angels, were they to lose Teixeira, would turn to Manny Ramirez. We don't know whether Randy Levine, Hank Steinbrenner and the Yankees could win out and buy Ramirez. We don't know whether the Red Sox will decide not to pony up and sign Teixeira or whether there really might be a three-way deal among the White Sox, Angels and Reds that would put Jermaine Dye in Cincinnati, Joey Votto in Anaheim and Chone Figgins in Chicago. JD for Figgins? I don't like it. That's an amazingly horrible idea.

The Gophers should be ranked when the new rankings come out, which I never thought I'd see after my freshman year and the 9-win disaster season. I'm really, really excited for this team, since we are so young and have so much young talent coming to the program next year too. I realize I'm the only one here that cares about the Gophers, but damnit, I'm still going to mention them even if I'm only talking to myself

The Gophers knocked off #9 Louisville 70-64 today on a neutral court in Arizona. There were a bunch of fouls between the two teams (each had 25), but the Gophers managed to get the win. This was HUGE. I just wish I could have watched it on TV instead of following online, but I am back in NJ right now and it was on the local FSN channel back in Minnesota. Oh well, either way huge win.

I was in the Minneapolis airport for the entire day thanks to the snow in Newark, NJ. My flight was supposed to leave at 10:45, but was delayed until ~7:30. It was a dreadful day.

I think Javy is going to do quite well in Atlanta, but at the same time, I'm glad KW traded him when he did. His time in Chicago was clearly done after the stretch run last season.