Mid Week Review

This week is just half way through and it’s already been a crazy week in the world of sports, and I don’t know where to start. WE have the Lakers showing some life wit Mike D’Antoni actually coaching up defense. WHAT?!?!?! The trade deadline came and went without a bang as expected. Surprisingly Josh Smith stayed in Atlanta and we knew it but it still seems stupid that Dwight Howard is still a Laker. Boy they must really be feeling themselves in Laker managemet.

Also the NFL combine got underway and there’s been four stories to comeout of there. One story was that 4 offensive lineman ran the 40 in under 5 seconds the fastest came from Arkansas Pline Bluff’s, Terron Armstead who ran a 4.65 the second fastest came from Oklahoma’s Lane Johnson coming in with a 4.75. Another story was Texas wide receiver, Marquise Goodwin running the fastest 40 with a 4.27.

I hate to make it all about 40 times but these guys have to be mentioned which bring me to a guy who really needed to shine at the combine, Manti Te’o. This dude after instilling and unbelievable level of doubt to all NFL teams considering drafting this him goes out and runs a 4.82. A 4.82, c’mon man, there are lineman on defense and offense that run that fast if not faster (see previous paragraph). After seeing that it all made sense why he wasn’t able to catch anyone from behind during the Championship game versus Alabama. Safe to say his stock has plummeted some are now projecting he’ll be the last pick in the first round which would send him to Baltimore… NOOOO OZZIE DON’T DO IT PLEASE DON’T DO IT!! (Ozzie Newsome is the GM for the Ravens).

The last story from the combine that caught my attention was the Honeybadger Tyrann Mathieu of LSU’s work out. A quick look back in case you’ve forgotten this young man. He was the Tigers’ playmaker on defense and special teams and Heisman candidate 2 seasons ago before LSU cut him from the team because of marijuana. I personally have been rooting for this kid, because he owned up to his mistake like a man. He could’ve transferred o another school but he stayed at LSU took his punishment, and now he’s showing his stuff off for the scouts.

He ran a 4.43 unofficially in the 40-yard dash, which surprised people since he’s 10 pounds heavier than his playing weight of 176. Again for a guy three years removed from high school 186 isn’t too bad and even though his 225 bench press was halted at 4 reps, but his on the field physicality should erase all doubt about him not being strong enough to deal with the likes of the NFL. That 40 definitely raised some brows, and may have earned this man a few more dollars come draft time.

Lastly on my lists for the week, so far College hoops. Tuesday night yet another #1 team fell. The thing is we all know this isn’t the first time we’ve had a #1 go down but it’s also not the first time this season that Indiana was that #1 team, losing to Minnesota last night. This loss won’t have a major impact on them come tourney time but it will affect them come conference tournament time.

Now the experts are predicting Indiana, Gonzaga, Duke, and Michigan to hold down the #1 seeds come tourney time. That’s great but the teams to watch out for in this expert’s opinion should definitely be considered for top seeding come time for the big dance. Miami who just lost their first conference game of the year over the weekend is still dangerous. In the Big Ten you have to believe in Tom Izzo and the Spartans. Come post season they’re always a little bit tougher to beat.

Finally we still have to recognize Kansas. They did struggle a bit in the Big 12 losing games to OU, OSU, and TCU consecutively. However, since then they have avenged 2 of those losses in rematches against OSU, and TCU and have won 5 straight since that 3 game skid. For a better look at the Top 25 teams and what they’ve done in the last couple of weeks follow this link below start studying because the Ides of March are upon us.