Trades of the Ned Colletti Era

Since I have some free time on my hands, I decided to evaluate the trades of Snakeskin.  Despite my feelings, I wanted to be as objective as I could be.  I used a metric similar to Doug Decatur (http://www.amazon.com/Traded-Inside-Lopsided-Baseball-History/dp/0879464127/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1338949305&sr=8-1) whereby I added up the WAR (per Baseball-Reference) for all players on both sides of the trade after the trade.  This doesn't take into account the player leaving the team though.  The goal is to show which group performed the best in the Majors after the trade -- the players the Dodgers gave up or the players they got back.  Issues of contract (such as Pierre), free agency (such as Blake), or quality play for another team (such as Thome) are not considered here.  Reasons the players left or stayed with the Dodgers are not considered here.  (The nice part is if the player was traded away, the future bWAR are canceled out.)

Ned came on the job in November 2005.  Per Baseball-Reference, the Dodgers have had 38 trades since then.  This does not include simply purchasing/selling a player.  (Tomas Perez seems more like a purchase, but it's a trade for these purposes per its BR listing.)  Don't worry about the math.  It's done at the bottom.  bWAR is listed for each player post trade, with the asterisks showing it is counting from midseason after the trade in question.

The Trades

1. December 13, 2005: Traded Milton Bradley (+8.2 bWAR 2006–2011) and Antonio Perez (-1.1 bWAR 2006) to the Oakland Athletics.  Received Andre Ethier (+14.1 bWAR 2006–2012).
2. January 4, 2006: Traded Duaner Sanchez (+0.8 bWAR 2006, 2008–2009) and Steve Schmoll (never appeared again in Majors) to the New York Mets.  Received Tim Hamulack (-0.8 bWAR 2006) and Jae Wong Seo (-1.0 bWAR 2006–2007).
3. January 14, 2006: Traded Chuck Tiffany (never appeared in Majors) and Edwin Jackson (+11.7 bWAR 2006–2012) to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.  Received Danys Baez (-1.4 bWAR 2006–2007, 2009–2011) and Lance Carter (-0.3 bWAR 2006).
4. March 31, 2006: Traded Jarod Plummer (never appeared in Majors) to the Kansas City Royals.  Received Wilson Valdez (+0.1 bWAR 2007, 2009–2012).
5. April 24, 2006: Traded Cody Ross (+9.6 bWAR 2006*–2012) to the Cincinnati Reds.  Received a player to be named later, who became Ben Kozlowski (never appeared again in Majors).
6. June 27, 2006: Traded a player to be named later, who became Justin Ruggiano (+0.6 bWAR 2007–2008, 2011–2012), Dioner Navarro (+0.8 bWAR 2006*–2011), and Jae Weong Seo (-0.7 bWAR 2006*–2007) to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.  Received Toby Hall (-1.1 bWAR 2006*–2008), Mark Hendrickson (-0.3 bWAR 2006*–2011), and cash.
7. July 23, 2006: Traded Sandy Alomar (-0.1 bWAR 2006*–2007) to the Chicago White Sox.  Received B.J. LaMura (never appeared in Majors).
8. July 25, 2006: Traded Blake Johnson (never appeared in Majors), Julio Pimentel (never appeared in Majors), Odalis Perez (+1.0 bWAR 2006*–2008), and cash to the Kansas City Royals.  Received Elmer Dessens (+0.1 bWAR 2006*–2010).
9. July 28, 2006: Traded Willy Aybar (+0.9 bWAR 2006*, 2008–2010), Danys Baez (-1.2 bWAR 2006*–2007, 2009–2011), and cash to the Atlanta Braves.  Received Wilson Betemit (+0.5 bWAR 2006–2012).
10. July 31, 2006: Traded Sergio Pedroza (never appeared in Majors) and Joel Guzman (-0.3 bWAR 2007) to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.  Received Julio Lugo (-2.2 bWAR 2006*–2011).
11. July 31, 2006: Traded Cesar Izturis (+1.3 bWAR 2006–2012) to the Chicago Cubs.  Received Greg Maddux (+4.2 bWAR 2006*–2008).
12. August 31, 2006: Traded Jhonny Nunez (-0.1 bWAR 2009) to the Washington Nationals.  Received Marlon Anderson (+1.1 bWAR 2006*–2009).
13. March 26, 2007: Traded Elmer Dessens (0.0 bWAR 2007–2010) to the Milwaukee Brewers.  Received Brady Clark (-0.4 bWAR 2007–2008) and cash.
14. March 29, 2007: Traded nothing to the Chicago Cubs.  Received Tomas Perez (-0.2 bWAR 2009).
15. May 26, 2007: Traded Tomas Perez (-0.2 bWAR 2009) to the Chicago White Sox.  Received Dwayne Pollok (never appeared in Majors).
16. July 31, 2007: Traded Wilson Betemit (0.0 bWAR 2007–2012) to the New York Yankees.  Received Scott Proctor (-2.1 bWAR 2007–2008, 2010–2011).
17. August 9, 2007: Traded a player to be named later, who became Travis Denker (+0.1 bWAR 2008), to the San Francisco Giants.  Received Mark Sweeney (-1.0 bWAR 2008–2009).
18. April 8, 2008: Traded Eric Hull (never appeared again in Majors) to the Boston Red Sox.  Received Christian Lara (never appeared in Majors) and cash.
19. June 6, 2008: Traded Juan Rivera (never appeared in Majors) to the Kansas City Royals.  Received Angel Berroa (-1.3 bWAR 2008–2009).
20. July 26, 2008: Traded Jon Meloan (+0.3 bWAR 2008–2009) and Carlos Santana (6.3 bWAR 2010–2012) to the Cleveland Indians.  Received Casey Blake (+8.6 bWAR 2008*–2011) and cash.
21. July 31, 2008: Traded Bryan Morris (never appeared in Majors) and Andy LaRoche (-0.3 bWAR 2008*–2011) to the Pittsburgh Pirates.  Received Manny Ramirez (+5.9 bWAR 2008*–2011) from the Boston Red Sox.
22. August 19, 2008: Traded a player to be named later, who became Eduardo Perez (never appeared in Majors), and a player to be named later, who became Michael Watt  (never appeared in Majors) to the San Diego Padres. Received Greg Maddux (-0.2 bWAR 2008*).
23. April 15, 2009: Traded Delwyn Young (-1.1 bWAR 2009) to the Pittsburgh Pirates.  Received a player to be named later, who became Eric Krebs (never appeared in Majors), and a player to be named later, who became Harvey Garcia (never appeared again in Majors).
24. July 30, 2009: Traded Steve Johnson (never appeared in Majors) and Josh Bell (-1.1 bWAR 2010–2012) to the Baltimore Orioles.  Received George Sherrill (+0.8 bWAR 2009*–2012).
25. July 31, 2009: Traded Claudio Vargas (+0.6 bWAR 2009*–2010) to the Milwaukee Brewers.  Received Vinny Rottino (-0.2 bWAR 2011–2012).
26. August 31, 2009: Traded Justin Fuller (never appeared in Majors) to the Chicago White Sox.  Received Jim Thome (+4.5 bWAR 2009*–2012) and cash.
27. August 31, 2009: Traded a player to be named later, who became Victor Garate (-0.2 bWAR 2009), and Luis Garcia (never appeared in Majors) to the Washington Nationals.  Received Ronnie Belliard (+0.6 bWAR 2009*–2010).
28. August 31, 2009: Traded a player to be named later, who became Tony Abreu (-1.4 bWAR 2010), to the Arizona Diamondbacks.  Received Jon Garland (+1.4 bWAR 2009–2011).
29. December 15, 2009: Traded Juan Pierre (+0.2 bWAR 2010–2012) to the Chicago White Sox.  Received a player to be named later, who became John Ely (-0.4 bWAR 2010–2011), and a player to be named later, who became Jon Link (-0.1 bWAR 2010).
30. July 28, 2010: Traded Elisaul Pimentel (never appeared in Majors) and Lucas May (-0.5 bWAR 2010) to the Kansas City Royals.  Received Scott Podsednik (0.0 bWAR).
31. July 31, 2010: Traded Brett Wallach (never appeared in Majors), Kyle Smit (never appears in Majors), and Blake DeWitt (-0.3 bWAR 2010*–2012) to the Chicago Cubs.  Received Ted Lilly (+3.1 bWAR 2010*–2012), Ryan Theriot (+0.1 bWAR 2010*–2012), and cash.
32. July 31, 2010: Traded Andrew Lambo (never appeared in Majors) and James McDonald (+4.3 bWAR 2010*–2012) to the Pittsburgh Pirates.  Received Octavio Dotel (+1.0 bWAR 2010*–2012).
33. September 18, 2010: Traded Octavio Dotel (+0.7 bWAR 2010*–2012) to the Colorado Rockies.  Received a player to be named later, who became Anthony Jackson (never appeared in Majors).
34. November 30, 2010: Traded Ryan Theriot (-0.3 bWAR 2011–2012) to the St. Louis Cardinals.  Received Blake Hawksworth (-0.5 bWAR 2011).
35. December 27, 2010: Traded Chin-lung Hu (-0.4 bWAR 2011) to the New York Mets.  Received Michael Antonini (never appeared in Majors).
36. July 31, 2011: Traded Rafael Furcal (+2.4 bWAR 2011*–2012) to the St. Louis Cardinals.  Received Alex Castellanos (+0.1 bWAR 2012).
37. July 31, 2011: Traded Trayvon Robinson (-0.3 bWAR 2011)  to the Seattle Mariners.  Received Juan Rodriguez (never appeared in Majors), Stephen Fife (never appeared in Majors), and Tim Federowicz (+0.2 bWAR 2011) from the Boston Red Sox.
38. December 8, 2011: Traded Dana Eveland (+0.2 bWAR 2012) to the Baltimore Orioles.  Received Jarret Martin (never appeared in Majors) and Tyler Henson (never appeared in Majors).

The Value of the Trades (Players Received/Players Lost)

1. +7.0 (Ethier for Bradley/Perez)
2. -2.6 (Seo/Hamulack for Sanchez/Schmoll)
3. -13.4 (Baez/Carter for Jackson/Tiffany)
4. +0.1 (Valdez for Plummer)
5. -9.6 (Kozlowski for Ross)
6. -2.1 (Hall/Hendrickson for Navarro/Seo/Ruggiano)
7. -0.1 (LaMura for Alomar)
8. -0.9 (Dessens for Perez/Johnson/Pimentel)
9. +0.8 (Betemit for Aybar/Baez)
10. -1.9 (Lugo for Guzman/Pedroza)
11. +2.9 (Maddux for Izturis)
12. +1.2 (Anderson for Nunez)
13. -0.4 (Clark for Dessens)
14. -0.2 (Perez for nothing)
15. +0.2 (Pollok for Perez)
16. -2.1 (Proctor for Betemit)
17. -1.1 (Sweeney for Denker)
18. 0.0 (Lara for Hull)
19. -1.9 (Berroa for Rivera)
20. +2.3 (Blake for Meloan/Santana)
21. +6.2 (Ramirez for LaRoche/Morris)
22. -0.2 (Maddux for Perez/Watt)
23. +1.1 (Krebs/Garcia for Young)
24. +1.9 (Sherrill for Bell/Johnson)
25. -0.8 (Rottino for Vargas)
26. +4.5 (Thome for Fuller)
27. +0.8 (Belliard for Garate/Garcia)
28. +2.8 (Garland for Abreu)
29. -0.7 (Ely/Link for Pierre)
30. +0.5 (Podsednik for May/Pimental)
31. +3.5 (Lilly/Theriot for DeWitt/Wallach/Smit)
32. -3.3 (Dotel for McDonald/Lambo)
33. -0.7 (Jackson for Dotel)
34. -0.2 (Hawksworth for Theriot)
35. +0.4 (Antonini for Hu)
36. -2.3 (Castellanos for Furcal)
37. +0.5 (Federowicz/Fife/Rodriguez for Robinson)
38. -0.2 (Martin/Henson for Eveland)

Total :-8.0

Average: -0.2

17 positive; 20 negative

Ranking the Trades (No Attempt to Break Ties)

1. +7.0 (Ethier for Bradley/Perez)
2. +6.2 (Ramirez for LaRoche/Morris)
3. +4.5 (Thome for Fuller)
4. +3.5 (Lilly/Theriot for DeWitt/Wallach/Smit)
5. +2.9 (Maddux for Izturis)
6. +2.8 (Garland for Abreu)
7. +2.3 (Blake for Meloan/Santana)
8. +1.9 (Sherrill for Bell/Johnson)
9. +1.2 (Anderson for Nunez)
10. +1.1 (Krebs/Garcia for Young)
11t. +0.8 (Betemit for Aybar/Baez)
11t. +0.8 (Belliard for Garate/Garcia)
13t. +0.5 (Podsednik for May/Pimental)
13t. +0.5 (Federowicz/Fife/Rodriguez for Robinson)
15. +0.4 (Antonini for Hu)
16. +0.2 (Pollok for Perez)
17. +0.1 (Valdez for Plummer)
18. 0.0 (Lara for Hull)
19. -0.1 (LaMura for Alomar)
20t. -0.2 (Perez for nothing)
20t. -0.2 (Maddux for Perez/Watt)
22t. -0.2 (Hawksworth for Theriot)
22t. -0.2 (Martin/Henson for Eveland)
24. -0.4 (Clark for Dessens)
25t. -0.7 (Ely/Link for Pierre)
25t. -0.7 (Jackson for Dotel)
27. -0.8 (Rottino for Vargas)
28. -0.9 (Dessens for Perez/Johnson/Pimentel)
29. -1.1 (Sweeney for Denker)
30t. -1.9 (Lugo for Guzman/Pedroza)
30t. -1.9 (Berroa for Rivera)
32t. -2.1 (Hall/Hendrickson for Navarro/Seo/Ruggiano)
32t. -2.1 (Proctor for Betemit)
34. -2.3 (Castellanos for Furcal)
35. -2.6 (Seo/Hamulack for Sanchez/Schmoll)
36. -3.3 (Dotel for McDonald/Lambo)
37. -9.6  (Kozlowski for Ross)
38. -13.4 (Baez/Carter for Jackson/Tiffany)

Conclusions

Not surprisingly, the Ethier trade is Ned's best despite giving up a player with plenty of baseball left in him in Bradley.  The Ramirez trade is not surprisingly the second best, especially as LaRoche never turned into the player we expected him to be.  Thome cannot be considered a good one for the Dodgers since he did next to nothing as a PH and all of that value was with other clubs.  The Dodgers obviously gave up nothing of value.  The Lilly trade has actually worked out well.  The first Maddux trade has a lot of value from his time in San Diego, but he did contribute for the 2006 Dodgers.  (And having Maddux as a Dodger was awesome for memories.)  I was surprised that Garland ranked so high and Blake as low as it did.  If Santana continues as expected will be ugly long term.  I didn't expect it to look like that already.

Trading Edwin Jackson and Cody Ross for essentially nothing in return (literally in the case of Ross/Kozlowski who never played in the Majors) are by far the worst trades made under Ned's watch.  I doubt anyone foresaw Ross's development, but Jackson was a top prospect at the time.  While there are other bad ones, these are easily the disasters of this regime.

Obviously with most of these players still active, it will be a long while before trades of Colletti or any GM can be fully evaluated.  I have not attempted to compile similar lists for Colletti's contemporaries.  But one has to feel like Ned struck gold his first time panning in the river and beyond acquiring a HOF talent (regardless of his failed drug tests), he does not have anything to be too proud of.  The converse is that with two disastrous trades, he hasn't screwed up too royally (although McDonald for Dotel will be worse every single year).  And the two worst trades are worse than the two best trades are good.

Topes vs. Dodgers

Inspired by this apparently inaccurate tweet, I compiled the "veteraness" of today's Isotopes and Dodgers lineups.  

Albuquerque Isotopes ‏@AbqTopes

Tonight's Topes lineup has combined to play in 3,547 Major League games. Today's Dodgers lineup has combined for 2,521 games at MLB

Albuquerque Isotopes Lineup (Games in Majors)

1. Trent Oeltjen RF (99 games)

2. Alex Castellanos 2B (0 games)

3. Matt Kemp CF (821 games)

4. Juan Rivera LF (974 games)

5. Jeff Baisley 1B (14 games)

6. Josh Fields 3B (217 games)

7. Aaron Miles SS (932 games)

8. Jose Bard C (586 games)

9. Fernando Nieve P (99 games)

Total 3742 games

Los Angeles Dodgers Lineup (Games in Majors as of Today)

1. Tony Gwynn CF (546 games)

2. Elian Herrera 2B (10 games)

3. Jerry Hairston 3B (1289 games)

4. Andre Ethier RF (899 games)

5. Scott Van Slyke 1B (13 games)

6. Jerry Sands LF (68 games)

7. Matt Treanor C (441 games)

8. Dee Gordon SS (97 games)

9. Chris Capuano P (195 games)

Total 3558

The Dodgers had their fifth walk off win of the season.  This is just amazing.  Indeed, the Dodgers are 20–5 at home.

April 13—Dodgers and Padres are tied 8–8 in the bottom of the ninth.  Cashner records two outs.  Mark Ellis walks and steal second.  Kemp walks.  Loney walks.  Ethier walks in the game-winning run.

April 15—Dodgers and Padres are tied 4–4 in the bottom of the ninth.  Brach walks Rivera.  Loney singles.  Uribe sacrificed.  Brach intentionally walks AJ Ellis.  Hairston fouls out.  Gordon singles in the game-winning run.

April 28—Dodgers and Nationals are tied 3–3 in the bottom of the tenth after a ninth-inning rally by the Dodgers.  Kemp leads off and homers off of Gorzelanny.

May 18—Dodgers and Cardinals are tied 5–5 in the bottom of the ninth.  Salas walks Herrera.  Ethier strikes out.  Kennedy singles.  Salas intentionally walks Loney.  AJ Ellis walks in the game-winning run.

May 26—Dodgers and Astros are tied 3–3 in the bottom of the ninth.  Wright hits Ethier with a pitch.  Van Slyke sacrifices off of Lopez.  Lopez intentionally walks Loney.  AJ Ellis hits a three-run home run.

The 2012 Dodgers have been victimized by four walk-offs (April 17—Kottaras doubles off Guerra; April 18—Braun sacrifices off Guerrier; May 6—DeJesus draws walk off Wright; May 8—Giambi homers off Elbert).  Thus, the 2012 Dodgers have lost only 11 games while batting.

In recent years, here's the number of walk off wins and losses the Dodgers have had:

2011: 8 walk-off wins; 7 walk-off losses

2010: 9 walk-off wins (including the balk-off win); 7 walk-off losses

2009: 12 walk-off wins; 8 walk-off losses

2008: 8 walk-off wins; 7 walk-off losses

2007: 6 walk-off wins; 5 walk-off losses

2006: 8 walk-off wins; 9 walk-off losses

(I know there weren't any game-ending balks.  If there was a game-ending stolen base, I would have missed it.  Any other non-PA events out there?  Balk, SB, CS, PO, CI?)

Oh, and 1988: 5 walk-off wins; 9 walk-off losses.

Scoring 2 Runs or Fewer

The Dodgers have averaged 2.26 runs a game since the All-Star break through August 3. In 2010, there have been 953 games where a team scored two runs or fewer. Teams are 132–821 when they do so. That's a .139 winning percentage. The Dodgers have 35 games with 2 or fewer runs so far this year. They are 11–24, a .314 winning percentage. Somehow they've been very lucky when failing to score.

1. Dodgers 35 11–24 .314

2. Padres 32 9–23 .281

3. Red Sox 26 7–19 .269

4. Marlins 28 7–21 .250

5. Phillies 33 8–25 .242

6. Rockies 31 7–24 .226

7. Twins 27 6–21 .222

8. Rangers 25 5–20 .200

9. Pirates 44 8–36 .182

10. Giants 34 6–28 .176

11. White Sox 30 5–25 .167

12. Yankees 19 3–16 .158

13. Cardinals 35 5–30 .143

14. Mariners 50 7–43 .140

MAJOR LEAGUES 953 132–821 .139

15. Reds 24 3–21 .125

16. Diamondbacks 34 4–30 .112

17. Mets 30 3–27 .100

18. Nationals 31 3–28 .097

19. Angels 33 3–30 .091

20. Indians 34 3–31 .088

21. Rays 24 2–22 .083

22. Braves 27 2–25 .074

23t. Astros 41 3–38 .073

23t. Cubs 41 3–38 .073

25t. Brewers 30 2–28 .067

25t. Royals 30 2–28 .067

27. Athletics 34 2–32 .059

28. Blue Jays 21 1–20 .048

29. Tigers 27 1–26 .038

30. Orioles 43 1–42 .023

Source: Baseball-Reference.com PI – Team Batting: For 2010, (requiring R<=2), sorted by greatest Performances matching selected criteria in a season.

College Football Bowls

Folks,

I'm keeping this one really short. Nothing left to project. Nothing worth recapping at this point. No races to be decided. No questions of who's #1 and #2. We just have 28 games left. Now whether they are something to be excited about or glorified exhibition games is a question that only you can answer. We start tonight with the Poinsettia Bowl and go until January 8.

Games to watch outside the BCS: Holiday Bowl, Cotton Bowl, former Citrus Bowl, former Peach—all self explanatory. Also worth watching, Music City Bowl as FSU will be missing a quarter of its team. We will watch BYU take down UCLA.

The best question left is will the AP vote somebody other than Ohio State/LSU as #1. They could make a "protest vote" of Hawaii. They simply could decide after the bowls that one of the other unfit-to-play-for-a-national-championship teams is "worthy" of being #1.

If LSU wins, they are the second 2-loss national champion in history with 1959 Minnesota (who lost the Rose Bowl and split with undefeated Syracuse). As sick as it makes my stomach: Go Buckeyes.

I am going to the Rose Bowl, so if you're looking for a place to watch New Year's bowls, I'd advise somewhere else.

And if you haven't made picks in the Bowl Pick 'Em games, you should do so today. Although if you sign up late, you lose relatively few points because the lowest confidence values are automatically assigned to the first bowls.

Thursday, December 20
6:00 -- Utah vs. Navy (+9) at San Diego (Some Extremely Localized County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl) (ESPN HD)

Friday, December 21
5:00 -- Memphis vs. Florida Atlantic (-2) at New Orleans (Tiny Freight Carrier New Orleans Bowl) (ESPN2 HD)

Saturday, December 22
10:00 -- Southern Mississippi vs. #20 Cincinnati (-11) at Birmingham (Pizza Giant's Online Presence Bowl) (ESPN2 HD)
1:30 -- Nevada vs. New Mexico (-3) at Albuquerque (New Mexico Bowl) (ESPN HD)
5:00 -- UCLA vs. #19 Brigham Young (-5.5) at Las Vegas (Japanese TV Manufacturer Las Vegas Bowl) (ESPN HD)

Sunday, December 23
5:00 -- #24 Boise State vs. East Carolina (+10.5) at Honolulu (Unimpressive Hotel Chain Hawaii Bowl) (ESPN)

Wednesday, December 26
4:30 -- Purdue vs. Central Michigan (+9.5) at Detroit (Motor City Bowl) (ESPN HD)

Thursday, December 27
5:00 -- #12 Arizona State vs. #17 Texas (-1.5) at San Diego (Whale's Vagina Insurance Company Holiday Bowl) (ESPN HD)

Friday, December 28
2:00 -- #14 Boston College vs. Michigan State (+3) at Orlando (Crappy Sports Clothing Subdivision of Retail Shoe Giant Bowl) (ESPN HD)
5:00 -- Texas Christian vs. Houston (+3.5) at Houston (Texas Bowl) (NFLN HD -- Unavailable)
5:30 -- Maryland vs. Oregon State (-4.5) at San Francisco (Nut Sub-brand That Was Launched to Coincide with Naming This Game Bowl) (ESPN HD)

Saturday, December 29
10:00 -- Connecticut vs. Wake Forest (-3.5) at Charlotte (Festering Oil Change Bowl) (ESPN HD)
1:30 -- Central Florida vs. Mississippi State (+3) at Memphis (Dirty Car Parts Store Liberty Bowl) (ESPN HD)
5:00 -- Penn State vs. Texas A&M (+5.5) at San Antonio (Fifth-Rate Gas Company Alamo Bowl) (ESPN HD)

Sunday, December 30
5:00 -- Alabama vs. Colorado (+3.5) at Shreveport (Oil Mining Independence Bowl) (ESPN HD)

Monday, December 31
9:30 -- California vs. Air Force (+4) at Fort Worth (Price Gouging Helicopter Company Armed Forces Bowl) (ESPN HD)
11:00 -- Georgia Tech vs. Fresno State (+4.5) at Boise (Greasy Truck Stop Humanitarian Bowl) (ESPN2 HD)
11:00 -- #23 South Florida vs. Oregon (+6.5) at El Paso (Sun Bowl) (CBS HD)
1:00 -- Kentucky vs. Florida State (0) at Nashville (Homosexually Named Hotel Music City Bowl) (ESPN HD)
2:30 -- Indiana vs. Oklahoma State (- 4.5) at Tempe (Online Company That No One Knows What They Do Bowl) (NFLN HD -- Unavailable)
4:30 -- #15 Clemson vs. #22 Auburn (+2.5) at Atlanta (Shitty, Wet Piece of Chicken Slapped Between Two Stale Buns with Pickles and Mayo Bowl) (ESPN HD)

Tuesday, January 1
8:00 -- #18 Wisconsin vs. #16 Tennessee (-4) at Tampa (Australian Steakhouse That Isn't Australian Bowl) (ESPN HD)
8:30 -- #7 Missouri vs. #25 Arkansas (+3.5) at Dallas (Telephone Behemoth Cotton Bowl) (FOX HD)
10:00 -- Michigan vs. #9 Florida (-10.5) at Orlando (Credit Card Giant Bowl) (ABC HD)
10:00 -- Texas Tech vs. #21 Virginia (+5.5) at Jacksonville (Photocopier Gator Bowl) (CBS HD)
1:30 -- #13 Illinois vs. #6 Southern California (-13.5) at Pasadena (Rose Bowl Presented by Financial Devil) (ABC HD)
5:30 -- #10 Hawaii vs. #4 Georgia (-11) (Insurance Goliath Sugar Bowl) (FOX HD)

Wednesday, January 2
5:00 -- #11 West Virginia vs. #3 Oklahoma (-6.5) at Glendale (Mass-Produced Tortilla Chips Fiesta Bowl) (FOX HD)

Thursday, January 3
5:00 -- #8 Kansas vs. #5 Virginia Tech (-3.5) at Miami Gardens (Shipping Company Run By Insane Christians Orange Bowl) (FOX HD)

Saturday, January 5
9:00 -- Rutgers vs. Ball State (+10) at Toronto (International Bowl) (ESPN2 HD)

Sunday, January 6
5:00 -- Bowling Green vs. Tulsa (-4.5) at Mobile (Auto Company's Financial Arm Bowl) (ESPN HD)

Monday, January 7
5:00 -- #2 Louisiana State vs. #1 Ohio State (+5.5) (Insurance Goliath BCS National Championship Game) (FOX HD)

College Football -- Week 14

I'm still in despair over the loss of Ed Orgeron from the active coaching ranks. Mississippi, possibly the nation's most insane college for the gap between self-perception and reality, canned him after just three years and well-rated recruiting classes. Now, did Coach O ever show that he was a good head coach? I think that's debatable at best, but I know that Mississippi was better than its record this year. He'll probably catch on as an assistant somewhere soon and go back to doing what he does best. Thank goodness that we got three years of tearing off his shirt, "Yabeeboy!", Hummer ads, and the greatest fan song I've heard to date. In his memory, all together, "Yo yo yo, yoooooooooooo yoooooooooo, yo yo, football!" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nACZJ5x_wBY

Coach O was one of many casualties this week. Texas A&M fired Franchione, and Nebraska axed Callahan. Neither was unexpected. Icons in Lubick and Bower were forced out of Colorado State and Southern Mississippi. Boss Hog Houston Nutt left the insanity of Fayetteville for the "quiet" insanity of Oxford, Mississippi. A&M immediately hired Mike Sherman, a deposed Packer head coach. Duke let Coach Roof go. We won't do better, but maybe some new blood can help. Openings at Baylor, Michigan, and SMU were long expected.

Turning to actual games from rivalry week, we all saw LSU fall off the cliff after teetering on the precipice since October began. They may have lost twice in triple overtime, but it's remarkable how they left schools like South Carolina, Alabama, Auburn, Tulane, and Mississippi hang with them in wins. My Thanksgiving went better as USC looked like the team the Trojans were supposed to be. But, it was too late for national purposes. Let's just blast the Bruins and beat up on Ohio State/Illinois in the Rose Bowl. Colorado ended Bill Callahan's head coaching career by putting up 65 on the Huskers. (Turner Gill may be a great fit there, but I thought Bo Pelini should have gotten the job the last go around.) Ole Stinkin' Miss blew the Egg Bowl and cost Coach O his job. Toledo did not have anything left and coughed up the Peace Pipe to the BuGS of Bowling Green. A&M ruined Texas's BCS hopes and sent Fran off a winner. Hawaii finally beat someone good in Boise.

Saturday gave us a merciful ending to Miami's lousy season. I hope better days are coming there, but that quarterback situation needs fixing and soon. VT won the Commonwealth Cup and will face BC for the ACC championship. Tennessee overcame its general lousiness and beat Kentucky in quadruple overtime. LSU should destroy them in the SEC championship and should be thankful that they don't have to play Georgia. Wake Forest should Vandy what the Commodores could be (and what my Devils could be too). BYU won an extremely exciting Holy War. My magic underwear got worn out from it. UCF and Tulsa clinched C-USA divisional titles and will do it over again in Orlando this week. Notre Dame's pain finally ends—at least until next September. They can't be this bad again next year. They really can't be.

Oregon and UCLA played what some have dubbed the ugliest game of college football in the last decade. UO was down to its fourth-string quarterback and was shut out. Bauer was there in person and had to deal with the pain. Georgia won the hate. Duke choked away the Liberty Bell and made me weep. Oklahoma showed again how good it can be when it's not losing to unranked teams in the Bedlam Game. WVU showed that it's the best in the Big East in the de facto championship again UConn. That was never close. I'm shocked that Kansas State played two road non-conference games this year (Auburn and Fresno). If Bill Snyder were dead, he'd be haunting Ron Prince. Tim Tebow may have finished a Heisman season by dominating the 'Noles. WSU, Clemson, and Auburn won their rivalry games that no one outside of their states cared about. And, Missouri was in control against the potent Kansas offense.

As this is it, we will have participants in the BCS National Championship Game by the next time I compose an email. Missouri and West Virginia clearly control their destinies. Each plays at night against Oklahoma (who is the favorite!) and Pittsburgh respectively. I wonder when was the last time that a #1 team was an underdog, especially on a neutral field. Should either lose, Ohio State will take the place. Should both lose, I have no idea who would face the Buckeyes. Georgia's computers are not very good despite being called "the best team right now" by some media pundits. (Note to pundits: it's the two best teams over 14 weeks, not over the last 4.) LSU could still sneak in based on great computers and a bump from winning the SEC championship. Oklahoma could get a huge bump from blasting #1 Missouri. USC could get in, but I don't think anyone forgives the Trojans for losing to Stanford (nor should they). Virginia Tech has plenty going for it including a loss to LSU and a chance to avenge the loss to BC. I have little faith that Kansas can sneak in. Regardless, there are EIGHT teams that can get to the NCG if things fall their way. The most determinative thing will be whom the Harris voters and coaches put at #1 and #2. There would have to be a very narrow margin between #2 and #3 (or even #2 to #4) to get another team in. Of course, the voters are idiots.

It sickens me to list 2-loss teams, but I feel obligated to at this point.

• 1 loss: #1 Missouri (#9 Oklahoma), #2 West Virginia (#21 South Florida), #3 Ohio State (#15 Illinois), #5 Kansas (#1Missouri) (4)
• 2 losses: #4 Georgia (#50 South Carolina, #14 Tennessee), #6 Virginia Tech (#7 Louisiana State, #11 Boston College), #7 Louisiana State (#36 Kentucky, #27 Arkansas), #8 Southern California (#77 Stanford, #17 Oregon), #9 Oklahoma (#53 Colorado, #28 Texas Tech), #11 Boston College (#45 Florida State, #51 Maryland), #13 Arizona State (#17 Oregon, #8 Southern California) (7)
  
• And "#12" Hawaii still doesn't count when its wins are #25, #44, #84, #91, #93, #107, #112, #115, and #120 and two FCS schools. I honestly still rank them with the three-loss teams despite beating Boise. They certainly will be in a BCS game if they beat Washington.

So, pressed for a guess to the pecking order: (1) West Virginia, (2) Missouri, (3) Ohio State, (4) LSU, (5) Georgia, (6) Virginia Tech, (7) Oklahoma, (8) USC. No chances given to BC, KU, or ASU.

And, I'll guess as to the actual BCS games
BCS NCG: West Virginia vs. Ohio State
Rose: USC vs. Illinois (replaces Ohio State)
Fiesta: Oklahoma vs. Arizona State
Sugar: LSU vs. Hawaii (final pick)
Orange: Virginia Tech vs. Georgia

This week is conference championships. All five games are on Saturday. Only the MAC game hasn't been mentioned. (I'll take the Chips there and UCF in C-USA). Out west, it's rivalry weekend, plus Washington head to the islands to face Hawaii. There are a few Big East games. WVU has the Backyard Brawl against Pitt. The Sun Belt championship will be determined between Troy and FAU. BYU, already MWC champs, makes up a game against SDSU. And we all wave goodbye to the Orange Bowl as FIU hosts North Texas. (We ready! We ready!) Oh, and I can't forget Army vs. Navy! Always a fun game.

Now, every conference championship has been decided or has a clear-cut game this weekend to finish it off. (The five championship games and FAU–Troy happen this week. WVU, tOSU, BYU, and Hawaii have already claimed championships, although Connecticut can claim a co-championship if Pitt upsets WVU.) That leaves the Pac-10, and what a mess it is!

There are eight scenarios in the Pac-10 based on three games this week, UCLA–USC, Oregon State–Oregon, and Arizona–Arizona State. (The California–Stanford game only counts in the heads and hearts of their alums and fans of nihilist German porn stars this year. It's appropriate that the game is on Versus.) This will be a bit complicated, but I think that I've done this right. First, I'm going to list the scenarios based on victors.
1. USC / OSU / ASU
2. USC / OSU / UA
3. USC / UO / ASU
4. USC / UO / UA
5. UCLA / OSU / ASU
6. UCLA / OSU / UA
7. UCLA / UO / ASU
8. UCLA / UO / UA

In both scenarios 1 and 3, USC and Arizona State are tied at 7-2. USC beat Arizona State. USC goes to the Rose Bowl.
In both scenarios 2 and 4, USC is outright champion at 7-2. USC goes to the Rose Bowl.
In both scenarios 5 and 7, Arizona State is outright champion at 7-2. ASU goes to the Rose Bowl.
In scenario 6, UCLA, USC, Arizona State, and Oregon State are all tied at 6-3. We break the tie by looking at the records as a group. Here, UCLA beat USC and Oregon State, USC beat Arizona State and Oregon State, and Arizona State beat UCLA and Oregon State. Oregon State at 0-3 is eliminated, and the others are all 2-1. We then look at the group of UCLA, USC, and Arizona State, where, as seen above, all three are 1-1. We move down the tiebreaker to the 5th place team. That is occupied now by both Oregon and Arizona. UCLA was 1-1, USC was 1-1, and Arizona State was 0-2 against Oregon and Arizona. ASU is eliminated. Finally, UCLA defeated USC. UCLA goes to the Rose Bowl.
In scenario 8, UCLA, USC, Arizona State, and Oregon are all tied at 6-3. We break the tie by looking at the records of the group. Here, UCLA beat USC and Oregon, USC beat Arizona State, Arizona State beat UCLA, and Oregon beat USC and Arizona State. USC and Arizona State, both at 1-2, are eliminated. UCLA beat Oregon. UCLA goes to the Rose Bowl.

So, as stated below, USC controls its destiny. Should, the Trojans stumble, Arizona State controls its destiny. Should the Sun Devils stumble too, then the roses end up with UCLA. (Which then means that Hawaii automatically qualifies for the BCS because UCLA is so pathetic. I'm really not making that up. There is a rule that automatically grants non-BCS champions access should they finish ahead of a BCS champion.)

I and the crew will be out at the Coliseum, apparently in the UCLA section. Stop by at the law school tailgate if you're out there. Don't believe USC's threat to move to the Rose Bowl for a second, but it's nice to remind the Coliseum Commission that someone wants to play there and will make improvements as opposed to a pie-in-the-sky NFL team that won't be coming for decades. If both MU and WVU lose on Saturday, I'll probably try to send something out early Sunday to share the insights at hand.

• ACC (Orange Bowl)
  
• Boston College (6-2): Win the ACC Championship Game (vs. Virginia Tech at Jacksonville)
  
• Virginia Tech (7-1): Win the ACC Championship Game (vs. Boston College at Jacksonville)
• Big 12 (Fiesta Bowl)
• Missouri (7-1): Win the Big 12 Championship Game (vs. Oklahoma at San Antonio)
• Oklahoma (6-2): Win the Big 12 Championship Game (vs. Missouri at San Antonio)
  
• Big East (At-large)
• West Virginia (5-1): Going to New Orleans, Miami Gardens, Glendale, or Pasadena (Pittsburgh, BCS Game)
  
• Big Ten (Rose Bowl)
• Ohio State (7-1): Going to Pasadena or New Orleans (Bye, Rose Bowl or BCS National Championship Game)
• Pacific-10 (Rose Bowl)
• Southern California (6-2): Win out (UCLA)
  
• Two-loss teams needing help: Arizona State (6-2, one Southern California loss)
  
• Three-loss teams needing help: UCLA (5-3, one Arizona State loss)
  
• Southeastern (Sugar Bowl)
• Tennessee (6-2): Win the SEC Championship Game (vs. Louisiana State at Atlanta)
• Louisiana State (6-2): Win the SEC Championship Game (vs. Tennessee at Atlanta)
  

Available Games

Thursday, November 29
4:45 -- Rutgers at Louisville (-2.5) (ESPN HD)

Friday, November 30
5:00 -- Fresno State at New Mexico State (+13) (ESPN2 HD)

Saturday, December 1
8:00 -- Miami (Ohio) vs. Central Michigan (-3.5) at Detroit (ESPN2 HD)
9:00 -- Tulsa at Central Florida (-6.5) (ESPN HD)
9:00 -- Navy at Army (NL) at Baltimore (CBS HD)
10:00 -- #6 Virginia Tech vs. #12 Boston College (+4.5) at Jacksonville (ABC HD)
1:00 -- #14 Tennessee vs. #5 Louisiana State (-7.5) at Atlanta (CBS HD)
1:30 -- UCLA at #8 Southern California (-20) (ABC HD)
1:30 -- Oregon State at #18 Oregon (NL) (ESPN HD)
4:00 -- California at Stanford (+13) (Versus)
4:45 -- Pittsburgh at #2 West Virginia (-28.5) (ESPN HD)
5:00 -- #9 Oklahoma vs. #1 Missouri (+3) at San Antonio (ABC HD)
5:00 -- Arizona at #13 Arizona State (-6.5) (ESPN2 HD)
8:30 -- Washington at #11 Hawaii (-14) (ESPN HD)

Unavailable Games

Saturday, December 1
11:00 -- Florida Atlantic at Troy (-15) (CSS)
3:30 -- #21 Brigham Young at San Diego State (+14.5) (the mtn.)

Games Not on TV

Saturday, December 1
1:00 -- Louisiana Tech at Nevada (-8)
3:00 -- North Texas at Florida International (+2.5)

Open Dates: #16 Clemson, Florida State, Maryland, North Carolina State, Wake Forest, Duke, Georgia Tech, Miami (Florida), North Carolina, #22 Virginia, Colorado, Iowa State, #7 Kansas, Kansas State, Nebraska, Baylor, Oklahoma State, #17 Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, #20 Cincinnati, Connecticut, #25 South Florida, Syracuse, #15 Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, #3 Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, #19 Wisconsin, Alabama-Birmingham, East Carolina, Marshall, Memphis, Southern Mississippi, Houston, Rice, Southern Methodist, Texas-El Paso, Tulane, Akron, Bowling Green, Buffalo, Kent State, Ohio, Temple, Ball State, Eastern Michigan, Northern Illinois, Toledo, Western Michigan, Air Force, Colorado State, Nevada-Las Vegas, New Mexico, Texas Christian, Utah, Wyoming, Washington State, #10 Florida, #4 Georgia, Kentucky, South Carolina, Vanderbilt, Alabama, Arkansas, #23 Auburn, Mississippi, Mississippi State, Arkansas State, Louisiana-Lafayette, Louisiana-Monroe, Middle Tennessee, #24 Boise State, Idaho, Louisiana Tech, San Jose State, Utah State, Notre Dame, and Western Kentucky.

College Football -- Week 13

I intend to keep this short. Like I said, intend. Oregon lost control of its chances. I should put up a posting on the blog about teams that were in control in November and lost. 2001 has nearly a half-dozen. Sadly, my Blue Devils were dominated by Notre Dame. I'm speechless as to how lousy the Devils were with the ball. Carolina is the week, which can fix the season. If not, basketball season has already begun. In the big game of the week, Ohio State controlled nearly the entire game in Ann Arbor.

Hawaii continued to infuriate me by barely surviving against a lousy Nevada team. I hope Boise annihilates Hawaii this week. We may be "stuck" with a WAC team in the BCS, but I'll take the Broncos over the Warriors any day. Alex's Rockets did not do well against Ball State. But all can be forgiven by winning the Peace Pipe against the BuGS this week. The media fawned over Tim Tebow's performance against Florida Atlantic. While there are lots of great things to talk about that kid, beating up FAU isn't one of them. Connecticut and West Virginia have set up a de facto Big East Championship Game (much like the Big Ten did). Thus, it looks like every major conference but the Pac-10 has one this year. Bauer's 'Cats stunk against Illinois and probably will not be bowling at 6-6. If only they had beaten a team from Durham. Georgia finished its SEC season. They need Tennessee to lose to UK to get to Atlanta. LSU would much rather fight UT than UGa. So, go 'Cats.

Missouri finished tuning up for the Big 12 North Championship game this week in KC. Kansas did as well. Miami University clinched a spot in the MAC title game against CMU. Tennessee needed a miracle comeback versus Vandy. It was a shame. LSU was less than dominant against Mississippi. Wisconsin struggled with Minnesota and illustrated how bad the top of the Big Ten is. Miami couldn't do anything right against Virginia Tech. Cal's slide continued with a loss in Seattle. Wake, a very unappealing bowl choice, got its 7th win to ensure a bowl bid. Oregon State looked excellent at Wazzu. With Dixon done for the season (one tough hombre playing on a torn ACL), I'm hoping that the Beavs can give USC Rose Bowl control with a win in the Civil War. The Bruins can do that this week though.


0 losses: #2 Kansas (1)

1 loss: #1 Louisiana State (#28 Kentucky), #3 West Virginia (#23 South Florida), #4 Missouri (#10 Oklahoma), #5 Ohio State (#17 Illinois), #6 Arizona State (#9 Oregon) (5)
And "#15" Hawaii doesn't count when its wins are #42, #85, #87, #100, #106, #112, #116, #118, and two FCS schools.
I have a horrible suspicion that everyone is going to lose, and Ohio State will get in just by virtue of taking the last two weeks off. Peacking order is (1) LSU, (2) KU/MU, (3) WVU, (4) ASU, and (5) tOSU as I see it today. The championship races are pretty simple now, with the exception of the Big 12 South. (I won't complain much though.)

ACC (Orange Bowl)

Boston College (5-2): Win the ACC Championship Game (Miami, vs. Virginia or Virginia Tech at Jacksonville)

Virginia (6-1): Win out (Virginia Tech, vs. Boston College at Jacksonville)
Virginia Tech (6-1): Win out (at Virginia, vs. Boston College at Jacksonville)
Big 12 (Fiesta Bowl)
Kansas (7-0): Beat Missouri and win in the Big 12 Championship Game (Missouri at Kansas City, vs. Oklahoma or Texas at San Antonio)
Missouri (6-1): Win out (at Kansas at Kansas City, vs. Oklahoma or Texas at San Antonio)
Oklahoma (5-2): Win out OR a Texas loss and then win in the Big 12 Championship Game (Oklahoma State, vs. Kansas or Missouri at San Antonio)

One-loss North teams needing help: None
Two-loss South teams needing help: Texas (5-2, one Oklahoma loss)
Big East (At-large)
Connecticut (5-1): Beat West Virginia (at West Virginia, Bye)

West Virginia (4-1): Beat Connecticut (Connecticut, Pittsburgh)

Two-loss teams needing help: None

Big Ten (Rose Bowl)
Ohio State (7-1): Going to Pasadena or New Orleans (Bye, Bye, Rose Bowl or BCS National Championship Game)
Pacific-10 (Rose Bowl)
Arizona State (6-1): Win out (Southern California, Arizona)

Two-loss teams needing help: Oregon (5-2, one Arizona State loss), Southern California (5-2, one Oregon loss)

Southeastern (Sugar Bowl)
Tennessee (5-2): Win out (at Kentucky, vs. Louisiana State at Atlanta)
Louisiana State (6-1): Win the SEC Championship Game (Arkansas, vs. Tennessee or Georgia at Atlanta)

Two-loss East teams needing help: Georgia (6-2, one loss by Tennessee)

This week, I will celebrate Thanksgiving with my family by watching ASU-USC. If you need a place to watch, my door is open. Friday gives us a full day. Nebraska and Colorado will be shoved down our throats. LSU goes for that silly boot versus the Hogs. Texas A&M can make the Big 12 race very interesting by upsetting a mediocre Texas team (whom Scott Wolfe votes #4 in the country). Boise and Hawaii go at night, and the Egg Bowl is on GamePlan. Not to mention, there is the Peace Pipe on ESPNU.

Saturday gives us a Miami-BC game. The Eagles are only playing for a better bowl and respect. Miami just wants to salvage the season. (Jerry, it's in HD, so you probably want to watch elsewhere.) The Virginias play for a trip to lovely Jacksonville. Tennessee can clinch a trip to Atlanta. I pray they don't. The Holy War is supposedly on all three MWC outlets at once. I am unsure what that means, but I will pop open a beer, have a shot of liquor, drink some caffeine, swear, try to have sex with a woman other than my wife (like that would happen), light up a cigarette, and use everyday underwear instead of the magic variety to celebrate.

The afternoon gives LA UO-UCLA. A Bruin upset is very good for USC, so don't root against UCLA too hard. UConn and WVU will clinch a BCS berth. I expect WVU to go to the Orange Bowl and UConn to the Sugar Bowl if either wins as of right now. (If Hawaii is in the mix, it becomes harder to guess on UConn.) Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate will also be available from Georgia. The Irish end the dream season in Palo Alto. Bedlam will happen in Oklahoma too. Duke and Carolina will be on ESPNU giving me hope before making me angry. I am unsure what game we will get on ESPN. It could be K State-Fresno or UConn-WVU. I'm hoping for the latter.

At night, the Floridas go in a game that means little nationally. Clemson and South Carolina battle for control of the most fucked up state that I've actually been to. The Shula Bowl is on GamePlan. The Apple Bowl is a week ahead of the rest of Pac-10 rivalry week. And nationally, the Border War/Showdown between KU and MU will captivate the nation. Will Kansas be unable to step up after playing nobody? Will Mizzou get some respect? Will the winner find a way to lose next week to Oklahoma/Texas? Will Kansas regret moving this game to Kansas City and out of Lawrence forever? How could I talk more about this than Alabama, post-9/11 and post-Pearl Harbor after losing to ULM, versus Auburn? Oh yes, because this is important and nobody outside of Alabama cares.

Apologizes for neglecting lines last week. No one complained. I doubt most people besides Kevin and Alex get to this point in the email.

Happy Thanksgiving. Only one week let.

Available Games

Tuesday, November 20
4:00 -- Middle Tennessee at Troy (-13) (ESPN2 HD)

Thursday, November 22
*5:00 -- #11 Southern California at #7 Arizona State (+3) (ESPN HD)

Friday, November 23
8:00 -- Central Michigan at Akron (+2.5) (ESPNU)
9:00 -- Nebraska at Colorado (-4.5) (ABC HD)
10:00 -- Mississippi at Mississippi State (-6.5) (LFS/ESPN GamePlan)
11:30 -- Arkansas at #1 Louisiana State (-12.5 ) (CBS HD)
*11:30 -- Toledo at Bowling Green (-6.5) (ESPNU)
*12:30 -- #13 Texas at Texas A&M (+5.5) (ABC HD)
*6:00 -- #17 Boise State at #14 Hawaii (-3.5) (ESPN2 HD)

Saturday, November 24
*9:00 -- #8 Virginia Tech at #16 Virginia (+3.5) (ESPN HD)
9:00 -- Miami (Florida) at #15 Boston College (- 14.5) (ESPN2 HD)
9:00 -- South Florida at Pittsburgh (+10.5) (ESPN GamePlan/ESPN Plus)
9:00 -- Maryland at North Carolina State (-2) (ESPN GamePlan/LFS)
*10:30 -- #19 Tennessee at Kentucky (-3) (CBS HD)
*11:00 -- Utah at Brigham Young (- 4.5) (Versus/CSTV/the mtn.)
11:00 -- Miami (Ohio) at Ohio (-2.5) (ESPN GamePlan/GTN)
*12:30 -- #9 Oregon at UCLA (+2) (ABC/ESPN GamePlan)
12:30 -- #6 Georgia at Georgia Tech (+3.5) (ESPN GamePlan/ABC HD/ESPN HD)
*12:30 -- #20 Connecticut at #3 West Virginia (-17) (ESPN GamePlan/ABC HD/ESPN HD)
12:30 -- Kansas State at Fresno State (-1) (ESPN/ESPN GamePlan)
12:30 -- Notre Dame at Stanford (-3.5) (ESPN2 HD)
12:30 -- Oklahoma State at #10 Oklahoma (-11.5) (FSN HD)
*****12:30 -- Duke at North Carolina (-14) (ESPNU)
1:00 -- Nevada at San Jose State (+3) (ESPN GamePlan/KAMA/Comcast SportsNet West)
*2:00 -- Florida State at #12 Florida (-14) (CBS HD)
*4:00 -- #21 Clemson at South Carolina (+2.5) (ESPN2 HD)
*4:00 -- Washington State at Washington (-5.5) (FSN HD)
*4:00 -- Florida Atlantic at Florida International (+11.5) (ESPN GamePlan/ESPN Plus)
4:15 -- #23 Cincinnati at Syracuse (+20) (ESPNU)
*5:00 -- Missouri at Kansas (-2.5) at Kansas City (ABC HD)
*5:00 -- Alabama at #25 Auburn (-6) (ESPN HD)

Unavailable Games

Friday, November 23
11:00 -- Wyoming at Colorado State (-3.5) (the mtn.)

Saturday, November 24
10:00 -- Tulane at East Carolina (-12) (MASN)
11:00 -- Southern Methodist at Memphis (-7.5) (KTXA/WLMT)
12:30 -- Utah State at Idaho (-2.5) (Altitude)
1:00 -- Ball State at Northern Illinois (+9) (Comcast SportsNet Chicago/Comcast Local)
1:30 -- Alabama-Birmingham at Marshall (-14.5) (WOWK)
2:30 -- Nevada-Las Vegas at New Mexico (- 10.5) (the mtn.)

Games Not on TV

Saturday, November 24
10:00 -- Buffalo at Kent State (0)
11:00 -- Temple at Western Michigan (-11)
11:00 -- Wake Forest at Vanderbilt (+1.5)
11:00 -- Texas-El Paso at Central Florida (-19)
12:00 -- Tulsa at Rice (+11)
12:00 -- Arkansas State at Southern Mississippi (-14)
12:30 -- Texas Southern at Houston (Shame on the Cougars)
1:00 -- Western Kentucky at North Texas (NL)
4:00 -- Louisiana-Monroe at Louisiana-Lafayette (+2.5)
5:00 -- Texas Christian at San Diego State (+11)

Open Dates: Iowa State, Baylor, Texas Tech, Louisville, Rutgers, #18 Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, #5 Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, #22 Wisconsin, Eastern Michigan, Air Force, Arizona, California, Oregon State, Louisiana Tech, New Mexico State, Army, and Navy.