Hey folks. Happy Friday.
Let’s get it on!
1. CBS Sports’ Bowl Predictions (CBS Sports)
Bowl
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Date
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Location
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Matchup
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Prediction
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Military Bowl
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Dec. 31
|
Annapolis, MD
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ACC vs. American
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Boston College vs. Navy
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Pinstripe Bowl
|
Dec. 27
|
New York, NY
|
ACC vs. Big Ten
| |
Independence Bowl
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Dec. 27
|
Shreveport, LA
|
ACC vs. SEC
| |
Armed Forces Bowl
|
Dec. 22
|
Fort Worth, TX
|
AAC vs. Big 12
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Army+ vs. California+
|
I’ve been following four sets of published predictions—SB*Nation, CBS Sports, Sports Illustrated, and USA Today.
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| From @ArmedForcesBowl. |
SB*Nation also has Army vs. Cal but in the Independence Bowl. Here, Army’s in lieu of the ACC while Cal is still in lieu of the SEC. Not sure how Cal would draw in Louisiana, especially compared to even a middling SEC team, but okay.
Sports Illustrated also has Army in the Armed Forces Bowl, but against Syracuse. Again, that’s a good match-up, but only a fool would schedule it in Louisiana. If that’s the match-up, you’d obviously rather host it in NYC at the Pinstripe Bowl.
Finally, USA Today has Army in the Cure Bowl on December 15th against Coastal Carolina. That sucks, not only because of the matchup but also because the game is just a week after the Army-Navy Game.
Did you know we were voted #3 Best Bowl Game two years in a row? Don't miss out. Join us on Saturday, Dec. 22 at 2:30 pm (CT) for another year of great football!— LM Armed Forces Bowl (@ArmedForcesBowl) October 11, 2018
🎟️ https://t.co/17oXkZLIkg pic.twitter.com/Y9tJQLl2ws
2. Niumatalolo says quarterback is not the problem with Navy offense (Capital Gazette)
[Offensive coordinator Ivin] Jasper said after Saturday’s loss in Colorado Springs that he anticipated Air Force would employ an odd front as it has traditionally done against Navy. Jasper installed a game-plan that put Perry in shotgun formation and was going to feature some zone blocking principles.
Unfortunately, the Falcons came out in an even front and that apparently spoiled the game-plan, most likely because the blocking assignments changed and the running gaps were different.
That’s amazing. I mean, it is amazing. These guys saw what the problem was, but they absolutely could not make an in-game adjustment, and that let their offense to get endlessly stoned for four solid quarters. They’d previously been rushing for more than 350 yards per game! Holy smokes!!!
For the record, Army faced this exact same problem against Liberty. Somehow they played through it. And, I mean, I’m sure it was hard, but more than anything, doesn’t this speak to the limitations of the quarterback, that he literally cannot run anything except the prescribed gameplan?
Maybe I’m missing something here, who knows?
3. 12 Million Americans Believe Lizard People Run Our Country (The Atlantic)
Public Policy Polling has raised weird polls to an art form. During last year's presidential campaign, the firm earned a bit of a reputation for its unorthodox questions; for example, "If God exists, do you approve of its handling of natural disasters?"
Today PPP released the results of a national survey looking at common conspiracy theories. Broken down by topic and cross-referenced by political preference, the results will not inspire a lot of patriotism. If you need to defend your fellow countrymen, be sure to note that the margin of error is 2.8 percent.
Well worth your time.
4. Getting Smart on Battery Storage (YouTube)
Promising piece of technology. Not sure how it will scale for truly industrial applications or what it costs, but I’ve been getting smart about this stuff lately. Cautiously optimistic.
5. College Football TV Schedule: Week 7, 2018 (506 Sports)
This is probably the best slate of games so far this season. I’m mostly concerned about the 3 o’clock hour, but I’ve listed noon to 7:00 pm for ease of personal reference.
Games I’m hoping to follow:
12:00 PM - #14 Florida @ Vanderbilt (ESPN)
12:00 PM - Tennessee @ #21 Auburn (SECN)
12:00 PM - Akron @ Buffalo (CBSSN)
12:20 PM - Duke @ Georgia Tech (ACC Network)
Don’t think I’m gonna see much of these, but I’d very much like to see the Vols turn their season around, and of course, Army badly needs Buffalo to keep beating the crap out of teams in the MAC. Probably wouldn’t hurt the Black Knights for Duke to keep winning as well, but I’m still gonna pull for Georgia Tech as home underdogs.
2:00 PM - Southern Mississippi @ North Texas (ESPN3)
2:00 PM - Troy @ Liberty (ESPN3)
Southern Miss at North Texas promises to be super-entertaining. Hoping to catch the end of that one. Not a defensive struggle, most like. Similarly, Troy is a 9-point road favorite, but it would be really great if Liberty could pull out a victory. The Flames aren’t bowl-eligible this season, but it would be great for the cause if they could nonetheless notch six wins.
3:30 PM - #7 Washington @ #17 Oregon (ABC/ESPN2)
3:30 PM - #10 UCF @ Memphis (ABC/ESPN2)
3:30 PM - #2 Georgia @ #13 LSU (CBS)
3:30 PM - Army vs San Jose State (ESPNU)
3:30 PM - #22 Texas A&M @ South Carolina (SECN)
3:30 PM - Michigan State @ #8 Penn State (BTN)
3:30 PM - Temple @ Navy (CBSSN)
We’re running Sports Bar on the Back Deck on Saturday starting around 3 pm. I think I can maybe run four screens if I use my wife’s 22” computer monitor with her laptop as my third and my chromebook as the fourth. We’ll start with Army at SJSU and Georgia at LSU on the big screens and put either UCF at Memphis or Washington at Oregon on the 22” screen with the other on the chromebook. Then we’ll switch it up as games develop.
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| Obligatory selfie: Sports Bar on the Back Deck (single TV setup) |
By the way, it’s hard to believe to believe that 22 inch screens used to be standard for televisions, but it’s true. Now, that size is an afterthought.
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That’s all I’ve got. Enjoy the weekend!
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