Tulsa Time

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"Livin' on Tulsa time
Livin' on Tulsa time
Gonna set my watch back to it
Cause you know I've been through it
Livin' on Tulsa time."

Originally recorded by Don Williams
(Written by Danny Flowers)

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When I was growing up in Arkansas, the University of Tulsa was a regular on the University of Arkansas' football schedule.

The series was a natural. The campuses were a short distance from each other, separated only by a state line, some mountainous terrain and about 100 miles of highway. Students from either school could be on the other campus within a couple of hours — depending on the weather and the traffic.

It never really became the rivalry the administrators of the two schools seem to have believed it could be, even though there were some great games between the two schools when I was growing up.

In those pre-cable days, there were strict limitations on how many appearances a team could make on television during the regular season. I can't recall a single time in my school years when the Arkansas-Tulsa game was televised, but I remember listening to nearly all of the games on the radio.

Bud Campbell was the "Voice of the Razorbacks," and he was the one who described the action in all the games I listened to until his tragic death in an auto accident in 1974. If my memory serves me correctly, Campbell's final Razorback broadcast was the Tulsa game.

• In 1966, the year I enrolled in first grade and started following college football, Arkansas beat Tulsa, 27-8.


• In 1967, Tulsa slipped past Arkansas, 14-12.

During the next three seasons, the Razorbacks were overwhelming.

• In 1968, Arkansas hammered Tulsa, 56-13.


• In 1969, Arkansas was en route to its legendary #1 vs. #2 "shootout" with Texas at the end of the season. When the Razorbacks faced Tulsa in September, it was no contest as the Hogs rolled to a 55-0 win.


• In 1970, Arkansas demolished Tulsa, 49-7.

Then,

• in 1971, Tulsa enjoyed a rare victory over Arkansas, 21-20.


• In 1972, the Razorbacks returned the favor by beating Tulsa, 21-20.


• Typically, Arkansas and Tulsa have played in September. But in 1973, they met in Little Rock in late October. As the rest of the country coped with Vice President Agnew's resignation and the constitutional crisis known in the history books as the "Saturday Night Massacre," Arkansas emerged with a 20-6 win.


• 1974 wasn't the best season in Arkansas' history, but the Razorbacks manhandled Tulsa, 60-0.


• In 1975, when the Razorbacks finished on top of the Southwest Conference for the final time under Frank Broyles, the Razorbacks defeated Tulsa that September, 31-15.


• The next year, Tulsa won a memorable battle of kickers, nailing three short field goals to one long one for Arkansas in a 9-3 triumph.


• In 1977, Lou Holtz's first year in Fayetteville, Arkansas' only loss was to Earl Campbell and the Texas Longhorns. A few weeks before that game, the Razorbacks crushed Tulsa, 37-3.

The schools continued to play each other through my college years and for nearly 10 years after that.

But the series appears to have died off around the time Arkansas left the old SWC and joined the Southeastern Conference in the early 1990s.

Arkansas put some good teams on the field when I was a boy, and the Arkansas-Tulsa game often featured a nationally ranked unit.

But, in all the years that I was growing up and listening to Arkansas-Tulsa games on the radio, if either team was ranked, it was Arkansas.

When the teams face each other this weekend, Tulsa will be the one that enters the game unbeaten and ranked.

Tulsa is 18th in the nation.

The Tulsa game with UCF was televised this evening, and I watched part of it to get an idea of what the Razorbacks will be up against.

My conclusion? They're going to have their hands full.

I'm not saying that I don't think the young Razorbacks haven't learned a lot already this season. They're 3-5, but what a lot of people tend to forget is that three of the teams that beat them are in the Top 10 (including the top two teams, Texas and Alabama).

Even so, there are lessons yet to be learned for this Arkansas team, and it's Tulsa's time to teach.

Seems Like Old Times ...

The top five schools in the BCS rankings — which are based in large part on the current rankings in the AP, Harris and Coaches' polls — are:

1. Texas (7-0)


2. Alabama (7-0)


3. Penn State (8-0)


4. Oklahoma (6-1)


5. USC (5-1)

If I had to put together a Top 10 list of schools that dominated college football when I was a boy, those five would be on that list (along with Notre Dame, Michigan, Nebraska and Ohio State).

I guess the old saying is true.

The more things change ...

And, Now, For Something Completely Different ...

In a year that will give America either its first black president or its first female vice president, I guess it's only fitting that major league baseball, too, will produce a champion that breaks the mold.

The Tampa Bay Rays, of course, are an expansion team. Formed in 1998 as the "Devil Rays" but renamed by the owner in 2007 to be "a beacon that radiates throughout Tampa Bay and across the entire state of Florida," Tampa Bay's baseball team actually plays in twin city St. Petersburg.

The team qualified for the playoffs for the first time this year, so winning the World Series would be a first for Tampa Bay as well.

The Philadelphia Phillies, on the other hand, have been to the World Series before. But they haven't been there often — five times in all. They even won it once — way back in 1980, when the Phillies beat the Kansas City Royals.

The Phillies' last appearance in the World Series was 15 years ago, when they lost in six games to the Toronto Blue Jays.

At the time, Philadelphia appeared to be on the verge of becoming a force to reckon with in the National League, but events conspired against the Phillies.

The players' strike the following year canceled the 1994 postseason, and realignment of the major league clubs in 1995 put Philadelphia in the same division with the Atlanta Braves, who were in the midst of an unprecedented run of success in the 1990s (with the exception of their postseason performances).

In 2008, baseball, like the political parties, had the opportunity to end up with familiar finalists — the Dodgers, who lost the N.L. title to the Phillies, have been in the World Series 18 times, and the Red Sox, who lost the A.L. title to the Rays, have been there 11 times.

But both politics and baseball are writing new chapters this year.

Game 1 of the World Series is Wednesday night in the Rays' ballpark.

By the way, for you baseball trivia experts out there, Thursday (when Game 2 is scheduled to be played) will be the 15th anniversary of Joe Carter's walk-off home run that won the 1993 World Series for Toronto against Philadelphia.

MY PREDICTION: I'm going to predict that Tampa Bay will defeat Philadelphia in six games. The Rays are looking like a team of destiny to me.

Boston's Memorable Comeback

The year 1929 seems to be inescapable for Americans these days.

Of course, the financial crisis has had people thinking about the Great Depression (which began with the stock market crash in October of that year) for awhile now.

But last night the Boston Red Sox gave sports fans a chance to reflect on 1929 as well.

(Considering that the last comparable comeback in baseball occurred only a couple of weeks before the legendary Stock Market Crash of 1929, Americans outside the Boston area may not find much comfort in last night's rally by the Red Sox.)

With their 8-7 win over Tampa Bay, the Red Sox remained alive in the American League Championship Series. They trail, three games to two, as they return to Tampa for the final two games this weekend.

The comeback, as has been stated, was the greatest in baseball's postseason since 1929, which was 40 years before the American and National Leagues split into divisions. In 1929, the only postseason games were the World Series itself — which matched the Philadelphia Athletics and the Chicago Cubs that year.

The A's won the first two games in Chicago, then lost the third game when the series shifted to Philadelphia. Thus, when the teams met for Game 4 on Saturday, Oct. 12, 1929, in Philadelphia, the visiting team had won each of the first three games.

It looked like that trend would continue through the first six innings of the fourth game.

The Cubs led, 8-0, going into the bottom of the seventh. But left fielder Al Simmons led off the at-bat with a home run for the A's, and Philadelphia scored nine more runs on nine more hits — taking a 10-8 lead into the eighth. The score held up, giving the A's a 3-1 lead in the series.

The Athletics clinched the world championship with another come-from-behind victory two days later, on Monday, Oct. 14, 1929, at Philadelphia's Shibe Park. The Cubs took a 2-0 lead into the bottom of the ninth, but the Athletics rallied for three runs to finish off Chicago in five games.

Does last night's rally have any historical significance — for either the economy or baseball?

It's hard to say what, if any, relationship the two things have to each other — and, therefore, whether the occurrence of an historic comeback should serve as an omen of an impending economic collapse.

It seems to me that a few things can be said with some certainty:

• Although we often hear sports analogies used in economic conversations, the fact is that the advantage in an athletic contest is more permanent than the advantages most consumers realize with most investments.
  
  As we've seen in the recent wild fluctuations of the stock market, the value of stocks can change drastically on a daily basis — if not hourly or even by the minute.
  
  But, unless a rules violation is discovered long after a game is over, and a team is required to forfeit a game it won on the field, a win is a win is a win. Fans can "what-if" an outcome indefinitely, some fans may desert a team because of it, but the outcome itself doesn't change. Nor does the value of any championships that were won.


• Also — unless I missed something — I didn't get the sense that this was a deal breaker for Tampa Bay.
  
  In 2003, at Chicago's Wrigley Field, when the Cubs were a few outs away from winning the National League title in Game 6 and blew it when both a fan and a player failed to catch a fly ball, igniting a fateful (and nearly as improbable) eight-run rally by Florida, I clearly got the feeling that the air had gone out of the team and the fans, even though Florida did not clinch the league title that night.
  
  The difference between the 2003 Cubs and the 2008 Rays is that the Cubs were playing at home. The crowd for Game 7 at Wrigley Field seemed more subdued than one would expect, perhaps with the memory of the previous game fresh in the fans' minds.
  
  And the Cubs' long-suffering fans were eliminated as factors in the game when Florida rallied from a 5-3 deficit to take the lead for good in the fifth inning.
  
  Only time will tell if a similar fate awaits the Rays. But they lost Game 5 on the road, and now they have two opportunities to wrap up the American League title at home. I like their chances.

Here's a sampling of the media response to last night's game:

• If you pull for the Boston Red Sox, you've lived with a history of postseason futility that was nearly as paralyzing as the one the Cubs' fans have endured for a century.
  
  In the end, it may take something as dramatic as Boston's championship season of 2004 to snap them out of it.
  
  In 2004, as you may recall, the Red Sox came back from an 0-3 deficit against the rival New York Yankees to win the league title in seven games, then won the World Series with a four-game sweep of St. Louis that was capped by a total lunar eclipse on the night of Game 4 that colored the moon red over Busch Stadium.
  
  Anyway, the Red Sox's fans know what's it like to have their backs against the wall.
  
  "Pedigree matters," says Bob Ryan in the Boston Globe. "The Red Sox are the defending champions. They always come to play nine innings, and if it takes the greatest postseason comeback in 79 years to stay alive, then they will give you the greatest comeback in 79 years."


• The rally was "unbelievable," as Joe Posnanski writes in his blog.
  
  "This was like something out of a kid’s dream," he writes. "Do you remember being a kid and concocting these fantastic scenarios when your team was losing, these preposterous comebacks that boggled logic and the space-time continuum?"


• Gary Shelton concedes, in the St. Petersburg Times, that Boston put together a remarkable comeback.
  
  "The Rays lost a devastating game," Shelton writes. "They didn't lose anything else. They did not lose momentum, they did not lose their confidence, and they did not lose their grip on the ALCS. Saturday night, Sunday at the latest, they will close out this thing. Just you watch."


• But judging from the tone of his recap in today's Tampa Tribune, Martin Fennelly believes the tide has turned — and that, in spite of their 3-2 lead with the last two games to be played at home, the Rays are finished.
  
  "Seven runs up. Seven outs away," he writes. "It goes on. How will the Rays?"

Happy Birthday to a Living Legend

When I was growing up, it seems it was an era when legendary people coached in the most popular sports in America.

Players came and went, especially at the college level, but the great coaches were always there.

In baseball, managers like Walter Alston, Yogi Berra, Leo Durocher, Sparky Anderson, Dick Williams and Earl Weaver called the shots from the dugout.

In college football, Paul "Bear" Bryant, Darrell Royal, Barry Switzer, John McKay, Ara Parseghian and Woody Hayes roamed the sidelines. Joe Paterno is the only active coach who was a head coach in major college football 40 years ago.

In the NFL, Vince Lombardi, Tom Landry, George Halas, Paul Brown, George Allen, Bud Grant, John Madden, Hank Stram, Don Shula and Chuck Noll defined success at the professional level.

But no coach was as synonymous with success in his sport as John Wooden, who led UCLA's basketball team to 10 national championships in 12 years.

It's been more than 30 years since Wooden, nicknamed the "Wizard of Westwood," ended his coaching career after winning his 10th national title.

His wife of more than 50 years died of cancer 10 years later, in 1985.

But today, Wooden celebrates his 98th birthday. I hear that he's been hospitalized a few times in recent years, mostly for injuries and ailments that are typical of elderly people, but otherwise he seems to be in fine health for a man of his age.

Wooden rewrote the coaching record book while he was at UCLA. Most of it may as well have been chiseled into stone.

When I was growing up, it was practically assumed that, if UCLA was playing, you could take it to the bank that the Bruins would win.

The legendary coaches of my youth have all retired now. Many of them are deceased. But have you ever noticed that there are always a few in each generation who seem determined never to die? George Burns was like that. So was Bob Hope. They eventually died, of course, but long after common sense would have predicted.

(Burns, it is said, was once asked by a reporter what his doctor thought of his cigar-smoking habit. Burns reportedly exhaled a lungful of smoke in the reporter's direction and replied, "My doctor is dead.")

It looks like it may be that way with Wooden as well (although, just for the record, I don't think Wooden is a smoker).

Certainly, some of his achievements will stand forever.

For example, we often hear how difficult it is for a basketball team to go undefeated in a single season. UCLA had back-to-back undefeated seasons in 1972 and 1973 — the only team in college basketball ever to accomplish that feat.

The Bruins also went undefeated in 1964 and 1967.

We also hear how difficult it is for a national champion to repeat — and it is. Wooden won seven consecutive national championships, from the 1966-1967 season to the 1972-1973 season.

And, in addition to the undefeated seasons I mentioned earlier, the Bruins went 29-1 in three seasons, they went 28-2 twice and they were 28-3 in Wooden's final season in 1975.

He won about 80% of his games.

Happy birthday, Coach. And many, many more.

Against the Wall

Down 3-1 in their best-of-seven championship series with the Philadelphia Philies, the Los Angeles Dodgers find themselves against the wall when the series resumes with Game 5 on Wednesday.

Game 5 is the last game scheduled to be played in Los Angeles. If the Dodgers win, they still have to take the last two games in Philadelphia to advance to the World Series.

It's a tall order, one that has seldom been achieved in postseason baseball.

Based on his column for CBS Sportsline, Gregg Doyel doesn't think the Dodgers can do it. Doyel believes that, in spite of Joe Torre's record of managerial success with the New York Yankees, he's blowing the series with the Phillies.

"You can argue that [Torre] has been unlucky in this series, but you can't argue this: He has been unsuccessful," writes Doyel, who contends (legitimately, I might add) that L.A. pitcher Derek Lowe "came out too early" last night.

"And isn't that what it comes down to? Success and failure? Wins ... and losses?"

I don't know if the Dodgers can win the last two in Philadelphia, especially after failing to win either of the first two games that were played there.

But I do know this. The karma isn't good for a Dodger opponent on Wednesday.

Why?

Let me answer that question with a question. Do you remember where you were 20 years ago tomorrow?

I remember where I was. Let me refresh your memory.

It was Saturday, Oct. 15, 1988. The first game of the World Series, between the heavily favored Oakland A's and the raggedy Dodgers, was being played at Dodger Stadium (which, coincidentally, is where Wednesday night's playoff game will be played).

Everyone believed the A's — with their potent offense, led by the "Bash Brothers" (Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco), and a stellar pitching staff, led by 20-game winner Dave Stewart and reliever Dennis Eckersley, who recorded 45 saves that year — would manhandle the Dodgers.

Of course, the experts thought the Dodgers wouldn't make it to the World Series in 1988. The experts thought they would lose the National League championship to Dwight Gooden and Darryl Strawberry and the New York Mets. Nevertheless, the Dodgers prevailed.

(In much the same way, I might add, a majority of the experts in 2008 believed the Chicago Cubs would dismantle the Dodgers in the first round of the playoffs.)

The first game of the 1988 World Series appeared to be living up to expectations. The A's fell behind, 2-0, in the bottom of the first inning, but Canseco hit a grand slam in the second to give Oakland a 4-2 lead. The Dodgers added a run in the sixth but trailed, 4-3, in the ninth inning.

And that set the stage for perhaps the most memorable World Series at-bat ever.

Twenty years ago, I was working on the sports desk of the Denton (Texas) Record-Chronicle. I had been there for two months, having moved to the city in August to enroll in graduate school.

On weekdays, the newspaper was an afternoon paper, which meant the copy desk had to be at work very early in the morning to meet the late-morning deadline.

But the paper published a Sunday morning edition, which required the copy desk editors to work on Saturday nights.

There was a TV in the newsroom (which, up to that time, had been a rarity in the newsrooms where I had worked) and it was on, showing the World Series.

Nearly all the copy editors were in the back shop, assisting with pasteup. I was virtually alone in the newsroom, monitoring the sports wire for late football scores and waiting for the World Series game to end.

The process was governed by the clock. During the lag time between the end of the game and the appearance of game articles on the Associated Press sports wire, I could write a headline and send it through our computer system so the folks in the back shop could paste it on the front page of the sports section.

Then, when the game story appeared on the wire, I could send it through to the back shop as well. It could be pasted on to the page beneath the headline I wrote earlier.

I knew the dimensions of the space that had been left for the headline in the page layout so I was working on a few ideas while keeping an eye on the game — in case something dramatic happened.

Something dramatic did happen.

Eckersley retired the first two batters, then intentionally walked the next batter to bring up the pitcher. The Dodgers chose to pinch hit for him.

The pinch hitter was Kirk Gibson, who had been sitting out the game because of two injured ankles and a stomach virus. But he came to the plate and crushed a slider into the outfield bleachers for a two-run home run — like Roy Hobbs in "The Natural."

Few, if any, memorable baseball moments have been replayed for TV viewers as often in the last 20 years as Gibson's walk-off home run. (And, if you witnessed Gibson's painful yet exultant trip around the bases, you know the word "walk" is woefully misused in this context. Perhaps hobble-off would be more appropriate.)

Gibson made no more appearances in that World Series. But the Dodgers seemed to be inspired by his home run and went on to defeat the A's in five games.

Is something similar going to happen tomorrow night?

I don't know.

But if the Dodgers are going to come back and win the series, Wednesday is an appropriate time to start their rally.

Who Should Be #1 Now?

A couple of weeks ago, I asked this question — after Southern Cal and Florida lost to unranked opponents and eighth-ranked Alabama beat third-ranked Georgia.

Circumstances compel me to ask it again.

• The top-ranked team, Oklahoma, lost to the fifth-ranked team, Texas, by 10 points Saturday. (Barry Tramel conceded, in The Oklahoman, that "the better team won.")
  
  Texas vaulted into the top spot in the polls.
  
  Is that where the Longhorns belong?
  
  Well ...


• Second-ranked Alabama was idle, but third-ranked Missouri lost to 17th-ranked Oklahoma State. David Ubben of the Columbia Missourian says the loss "ended any hope" that Missouri would play for the national title.
  
  Meanwhile, the still unbeaten OSU Cowboys prepare to take on Baylor next week, followed by a showdown with Texas on Oct. 25.
  
  Actually, we should learn a lot about Texas in the next three weeks. The 'Horns are at home against Missouri next Saturday and Oklahoma State on Oct. 25, then they travel to Texas Tech for a Big XII South game on Nov. 1.


• Eleventh-ranked Florida, after being knocked from the ranks of the unbeaten by Ole Miss two weeks ago, absolutely hammered #4 LSU, 51-21. The Gators have two weeks to savor their victory over the defending national champions before returning to action against Kentucky on Oct. 25.


• Seventh-ranked Texas Tech managed to remain unbeaten, but the Red Raiders struggled against unranked Nebraska only to pull off a 37-31 win in overtime.


• And there were some other upsets in college football Saturday, including previously unbeaten #13 Vanderbilt's loss to Mississippi State, 17-14, and unranked Arkansas' victory over #20 Auburn on the road, 25-22.

Even though Alabama was idle yesterday, I still think (as I did two weeks ago) that the Crimson Tide deserve to be ranked #1. I think they might run the table the rest of the way — and that would include victories over Auburn and LSU.

But in the latest AP poll, the Longhorns rode their 45-35 win over the Sooners to the top ranking in the land, while OU fell to #4.

The Tide still isn't getting the recognition I believe it deserves. Alabama remained at #2 in the polls.

Personally, I would be shocked if Alabama doesn't win its next three games (vs. Ole Miss, at Tennessee and vs. Arkansas State) before traveling to Baton Rouge, La., to take on LSU on Nov. 8.

Showdowns in the Top 25

If you're a college football fan, this is the time of the year that gets your blood racing. And nothing gets a college football fan excited quite the way a rivalry does.

In the next couple of months, we'll see many rivalries renewed, sometimes involving national or conference implications but always involving strong emotions.

And sometimes they involve two teams that are both ranked, sometimes highly ranked.

• A good example is the "Red River Rivalry" between Texas and Oklahoma. The two teams will face off this Saturday for the 103rd time. The game will be played in Dallas, as it has been since 1912.
  
  For sheer spectacle and grandeur, there really is nothing in American sports like the OU-Texas football game. It has had regional implications for a century. It has had conference implications since Texas and OU became members of the same conference more than a decade ago.
  
  And, in every season but five since the end of World War II, at least one of the teams has been nationally ranked when they played each other.
  
  Sometimes both teams are in the Top 10 when they face each other. This is one of those times.
  
  Oklahoma is ranked #1 in the AP, Coaches' and Harris polls. Texas is ranked #5 in all three polls. Both teams have records of 5-0.
  
  And one of the players who is sure to get plenty of attention is Oklahoma QB Sam Bradford, who is ranked seventh nationally in passing yards.
  
  Oklahoma is fifth in the nation in total offense, scoring 49.60 points per game; Texas is 12th and averages 47.20 points per game.
  
  In total defense, Oklahoma is ranked 11th nationally, while Texas is 28th. The Sooners are giving up 13.8 points per game. The Longhorns are yielding 11.4 points per game.
  
  As heated as the rivalry is, the Norman (Okla.) Transcript says it isn't personal for the head coaches. "I’ve never believed you have to hate someone to compete against them," says OU coach Bob Stoops.
  
  The game has an early start this year — 11 a.m. (Central). It is being televised by ABC.
  
  I predict a victory for Oklahoma, 20-17.

But the OU-Texas game is, by no means, the only show to see on Saturday (although you'd probably get an argument about that here in Dallas this week!)

• Texas Tech, which is ranked #7 in all three polls, plays in the Big XII South with OU and Texas and probably will have something to say about whether Texas and Oklahoma live up to expectations this season. The 5-0 Red Raiders will be at home against unranked Nebraska (3-2) on Saturday in a game that will be televised by FSN at 2 p.m. (Central).
  
  Offense — mostly Texas Tech's — should dominate in this game. Michael Crabtree of Texas Tech is seventh in the nation in receiving yardage. He is fortunate enough to have the nation's leader in passing yardage, Graham Harrell, throwing the ball in his direction.
  
  Those two players are a big part of why Texas Tech, ranked second in total offense, is averaging 48.20 points per game.
  
  The Cornhuskers, who rank 40th in total offense, are scoring 33.40 points per game.
  
  They say defense wins championships, but it's not likely to win this game. Tech's potent passing game will be going up against a Nebraska defense that ranks 82nd nationally and gives up 26.0 points per game. Those are the kinds of numbers that make Tech's 49th-ranked defense look like, well, the '85 Chicago Bears.
  
  I predict that Texas Tech will win, 38-17.


• Aside from the OU-Texas game, two other undefeated Big XII teams — 5-0 Missouri (#2 in the Coaches' poll, #3 in the AP poll and #4 in the Harris poll) and 5-0 Oklahoma State (#17 in all three polls) — will play each other in a game that will be televised by ESPN2 at 7 p.m. (Central).
  
  Both teams are in the Top 10 in total offense, and they bring legitimate offensive weapons into the game. Missouri's #3 offense is led by QB Chase Daniel, who is considered a Heisman Trophy candidate and is currently tied with Bradford at seventh in passing yardage. Oklahoma State's sixth-ranked offense boasts Kendall Hunter, who is tied for sixth nationally in rushing yardage.
  
  In scoring, Missouri ranks second in the nation with 53.40 points per game. Oklahoma State is third in the nation with 52.60 points per game.
  
  Once again, I don't think either defense will play a major role in the outcome. But, if either one does, I expect it to be OSU's defense, ranked 51st in the nation. Missouri's defense is ranked just a hair behind Nebraska, at #83.
  
  Even so the Cowboys have been giving up 23.0 points a game while the Tigers have been giving up 20.0 points per game.
  
  Andrew Astleford writes, in the Columbia Missourian, that Missouri's offensive unit doesn't care about time of possession. Bob Davie, the analyst for ABC/ESPN who will call the game, agrees — to a point. "It doesn't matter how long you have [the ball]," he says. "It's what you do with it."
  
  And I predict Missouri will do enough to win: Missouri 28, Oklahoma State 24.


• Kansas (4-1) is ranked 16th in the AP and Harris polls, 15th in the Coaches' poll. The Jayhawks host unranked Colorado (3-2) this weekend in a game that will be televised by ESPN2 at 11:30 a.m. (Central).
  
  Kansas' 14th-ranked offense is led by Todd Reesing, who is fourth in the nation in passing yardage. The Jayhawks are scoring 35.20 points per game. Colorado is ranked 89th in total offense and is scoring 24.20 points per game.
  
  Defense also favors Kansas. The Jayhawks are 39th in total defense, and they're permitting 18.8 points per game. Colorado is 61st in total defense; CU is allowing 26.4 points per game.
  
  But Colorado may be bolstered by the knowledge that head coach Dan Hawkins has been given a two-year contract extension that keeps him in place through 2012.
  
  Even so, I predict that Kansas will win, 30-24.


• Conference games are always important in the Southeastern Conference, even if the teams aren't ranked.
  
  Tennessee and Georgia play each other Saturday in a game that is a good example of that. Tennessee (2-3) was ranked #18 when the season started, but the Volunteers lost in overtime to UCLA and fell out of the rankings. Georgia (4-1) was at the top of the polls until the Bulldogs got blasted by Alabama a couple of weeks ago. They're currently ranked #10.
  
  The teams meet in an SEC East game that will be televised by CBS at 2:30 p.m. (Central). Although currently winless in SEC play, the Volunteers could get back in the divisional title picture by beating the Bulldogs.
  
  I expect this to be more like what SEC games used to be, with lots of defense and not much spectacular offense. Tennessee is ranked #5 in total defense and allows 16.6 points per game; Georgia is ranked #22 and permits 19.2 points per game.
  
  Actually, defense remains a key ingredient in SEC football. Seven of the top 20 teams in total defense (and six of the top 20 teams in scoring defense) play in the SEC.
  
  In total offense, Georgia is 30th nationally and scores 34.40 points per game. Tennessee is 97th and averages 18.00 points per game.
  
  The numbers seem to favor Georgia, but Terence Moore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution has seen that before. And he wonders why Tennessee has dominated Georgia in three of the last four seasons.
  
  I pick Georgia to win this time, 27-17.


• Elsewhere in the SEC, defending national champion LSU faces #11 Florida in a game that will be televised on CBS at 7 p.m. (Central). It's not a divisional game — but it certainly could be a preview of the conference championship game.
  
  LSU's total offense ranks 28th in the nation thus far, averaging 35.50 points per game. Despite having the defending Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback calling signals again this season, Florida's total offense ranks 47th in the nation — but it averages 36.0 points per game.
  
  Randy Rosetta of the Baton Rouge (La.) Advocate is wondering if LSU's tailback Charles Scott has a shot at winning the Heisman Trophy. Scott isn't leading the nation in rushing yardage, though, and talk about his chances of winning the trophy will start to fade if the Tigers can't beat the Gators.
  
  Both teams are in the top 20 nationally in total defense. LSU is ranked 14th and gives up 15.3 points per game, and Florida is ranked 19th and gives up 11.4 points per game.
  
  This is my upset special — Florida 27, LSU 24 at "The Swamp."


• Notre Dame and North Carolina exemplify two programs hungry for recognition that are on a collision course this Saturday. North Carolina (4-1) is #22 in the AP poll and #25 in the Harris poll, but hasn't quite managed to get enough support to break into the Coaches' poll. Notre Dame's once proud program has been getting some votes in all three polls — thanks to a 4-1 start that has included wins over Michigan, Purdue and Stanford — but hasn't cracked the Top 25 in any of them.
  
  I think the game between the Fightin' Irish and the Tar Heels could be one of the more competitive games of the day. It certainly appears to be one of the least predictable.
  
  Notre Dame has the edge in total offense with a #70 ranking, averaging 25.80 points per game. North Carolina is 88th in total offense but averages more points than the Irish with 32.40.
  
  In total defense, North Carolina has the numerical edge, ranked 57th compared to Notre Dame's #84 ranking. Both teams give up 19.0 points per game.
  
  It's one of the games that will be televised by ABC in its 2:30 p.m. (Central) slot.
  
  I predict North Carolina 27, Notre Dame 21.


• ABC's viewers on the Pacific coast probably will get to see unranked Arizona State visit USC (ranked eighth in the AP and Harris polls, ninth in the Coaches' poll).
  
  The 3-1 Trojans are 19th in total offense, averaging 38.00 points per game. Arizona State (2-3) is 69th with a scoring average of 23.00 points per game.
  
  It's going to be tough for Arizona State to raise that scoring average because USC is fourth in the nation in total defense, and the Trojans give up only 11.8 points per game. Arizona State is 42nd in total defense and gives up 20.8 points per game.
  
  Actually, I don't think Arizona State has much of a chance in this game. I pick USC 31, Arizona State 10.


• Another intriguing matchup in the middle of the afternoon features Big Ten rivals Michigan State and Northwestern. Michigan State (5-1) is ranked in all three polls (#23 in AP, #19 in the Coaches' poll and #21 in Harris).
  
  Northwestern, despite being 4-0, seems to be something of a prisoner to its past failures in football, although that appears to be changing. The Wildcats have received some support in the AP poll but are not in its Top 25. The Coaches' poll, however, has Northwestern ranked #22 and Harris ranks Northwestern #23.
  
  Football fans who watch the Michigan State-Northwestern game on ESPN2 at 2:30 p.m. (Central) will get to see the nation's second-leading rusher, Javon Ringer of Michigan State, who needs only 12 more yards to crack the 1,000-yard mark for the season.
  
  In spite of Ringer's contribution, though, Michigan State ranks only 54th in total offense and averages 28.50 points per game. Northwestern is 64th and averages 25.00 points per game.
  
  Northwestern has the edge in total defense. The Wildcats are ranked 37th in the nation and give up 12.4 points per game. Michigan State is ranked 56th and gives up 16.2 points per game.
  
  Northwestern's quarterback acknowledges that the Wildcats' game with Michigan State isn't considered a rivalry, but he thinks maybe it should be, according to Shannon Ryan of the Chicago Tribune.
  
  I predict that Northwestern will remain undefeated with a 21-17 victory.


• Another significant game in the Big Ten — between Penn State and Wisconsin — will be televised at 7 p.m. (Central) on ESPN. Penn State (6-0) is ranked #6 in all three polls. Wisconsin (3-2) is #24 in the Coaches' and Harris polls but is currently unranked in AP, having been displaced by Ball State.
  
  Penn State is ninth in total offense, thanks in part to Evan Royster, who is 10th in the nation in rushing yardage. Wisconsin is 43rd in total offense.
  
  The Nittany Lions are eighth in the nation in total defense. The Badgers are 31st.
  
  And when it comes to the scoring categories, Penn State averages more than 44 points a game; Wisconsin averages just under 29 points a game. Penn State's defense allows less than 12 points a game, while Wisconsin gives up 18 points a game.
  
  I pick Penn State to win, 31-20.


• Ohio State (5-1) travels to Purdue (2-3), and the game will be part of ABC's viewing package at 2:30 p.m. (Central).
  
  The Buckeyes are ranked 11th in the Coaches' poll, 12th in the other two polls.
  
  The numbers on offense tell different stories. The Boilermakers are ranked 58th in total offense, and Ohio State is ranked 81st. But Ohio State is scoring more than Purdue, 25.67 points per game to 25.40 — a narrow margin, to be sure.
  
  Ohio State enjoys a decided advantage over Purdue on defense. The Buckeyes are ranked 18th in total defense, giving up 16.2 points per game, while Purdue is ranked 108th and surrenders 25.0 points per game.
  
  My pick — Ohio State 24, Purdue 20.


• Another Top 25 team — 5-0 Brigham Young (ranked eighth in the Coaches' poll, ninth in the other two) — hosts New Mexico (3-3) in a game that will be televised by The Mtn. at 5 p.m. (Central).
  
  The Cougars' advantage against New Mexico is more pronounced on offense. BYU is ranked 13th in total offense and averages 41.20 points per game. New Mexico is ranked 96th and scores 22.33 points per game.
  
  Brigham Young ranks 30th in total defense and gives up 11.6 points per game. New Mexico is 63rd and allows 27.0 points per game.
  
  I pick BYU by a score of 35-16.


• Earlier Saturday, viewers of The Mtn. can see Utah (13th in the Coaches' and Harris polls, 14th in the AP poll) travel to unranked Wyoming for a 1 p.m. (Central) kickoff.
  
  The offensive numbers suggest a blowout. Utah (6-0) is 39th in total offense and scores 37.17 points per game. Wyoming (2-4) is nearly the worst team in the country in total offense, ranking 118th, and it is the worst team in scoring, averaging only 9.33 points per game.
  
  In total defense, Utah is 13th and gives up 21.0 points per game. Wyoming is 43rd in total defense and gives up 28.2 points per game.
  
  I predict that Utah will stay undefeated with a 33-13 win.


• Boise State (15th in the AP and Harris polls, 16th in the Coaches' poll) travels to Southern Miss for a 7 p.m. (Central) kickoff on CBS-CSN.
  
  The offensive numbers would suggest a close game. Boise State (4-0) is 20th in total offense and averages 36.0 points per game, but unranked Southern Miss (2-3) is 17th in total offense while averaging 31.0 points per game.
  
  Boise State seems to have a clear edge in defense, though, ranking 41st in total defense and giving up 12.3 points per game. Southern Miss ranks 97th in total defense and yields 29.2 points per game.
  
  My prediction is that Boise State will win, 31-21.

But you don't have to wait until Saturday to see a ranked team in action.

Wake Forest (#21 in the AP and Coaches' polls, #22 in the Harris poll) plays Clemson on ESPN Thursday night at 6:30 p.m. (Central).

Time was, Clemson would have been the big draw in a football game between those two teams. And Clemson was in the Top 25 until falling to Maryland in overtime last week.

So Clemson enters the game unranked and 3-2. Wake Forest is 3-1 after an upset loss to Navy.

Clemson is ranked 50th in total offense and averages 30.60 points per game. Wake Forest is ranked 85th in total offense and averages 25.00 points.

Both teams are strong on defense. Wake Forest is ranked 26th in total defense and gives up 17.0 points per game. Clemson is ranked 36th, but the Tigers give up fewer points per game (16.0).

The numbers suggest that the unranked Tigers might defeat the Demon Deacons. And that's what I'm going to predict — Clemson 24, Wake Forest 21.

The Final Four

Baseball's 2008 divisional series are complete now, and three of the four survivors that I predicted last week have advanced to the next round.

The surprise entrant, at least as far as my predictions are concerned, is the Boston Red Sox. I predicted they would lose to the Los Angeles Angels. But they didn't, winning a 3-2 ballgame at Fenway Park last night to eliminate the Angels.

And they will go on to meet the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League Championship Series. That series starts on Friday.

If Tampa Bay defeats Boston, that will make two consecutive seasons in which a team that has never been in a World Series before wins its league's title and advances to the Fall Classic. The Colorado Rockies played in their first World Series last year, but they failed to win a game against the Red Sox.

It would also be the fifth time in this decade that a team has played in its first World Series. The others were the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Anaheim Angels and the Houston Astros.

Playing for a World Series berth is nothing new for the Red Sox or their fans. Only the Yankees (who have more World Series championships — 26 — than any other team) and the Athletics have represented the American League in the World Series more often than the Red Sox.

Both the Dodgers and the Phillies have been to the Fall Classic before, but the Dodgers have been there more frequently. In fact, the Dodgers have played in the World Series more often (18 times) than any other National League team. By contrast, the Phillies have been in the World Series five times with only one title to show for it — the fewest of non-expansion teams.

But numbers from the past — even the recent past — really don't mean anything in the playoffs. Already, the teams with the best records in both leagues (the Angels and the Cubs) have been eliminated.

In fact, Scoop Jackson of ESPN speculates that the Cubs' meltdown against the Dodgers was their worst ever. If he's right, that's a pretty impressive achievement, considering the Cubs' record of failure in the playoffs.

Here's my prediction:

• In the National League, I predict the Dodgers will defeat the Phillies in five games.
  
  The first game will start at 7:22 p.m. (Central) on Thursday. It will be televised on FOX.


• In the American League, the Rays may be the sentimental favorite, but I pick the team with the postseason experience — the Red Sox — to win the championship in six games.
  
  The first game starts at 7:37 p.m. (Central) Friday. It will be televised by TBS.

Fasten your seat belts. It could be a bumpy ride.

No Jive — A.L. Teams Stay AL-ive

The Philadelphia Phillies finished off the Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday, setting up the National League Championship Series almost as I had predicted.

The Phillies and Dodgers won their divisional series faster than I anticipated, though. I thought both teams would need the full five games to finish off their foes, but the Dodgers eliminated the Chicago Cubs in three games and the Phillies vanquished the Brewers in four.

The National League's best-of-seven Championship Series is slated to begin Thursday in Philadelphia. The starting time hasn't been announced.

In the American League, the Chicago White Sox and the Los Angeles Angels faced elimination with another loss, but both teams hung on to force a fourth game today.

The Tampa Bay Rays and the White Sox meet in their Game 4 at 4:07 p.m. (Central). The Angels face the Boston Red Sox in their Game 4 at 7:37 p.m. (Central).

Tampa Bay and Boston can win their series if they win today. If either loses, Game 5 will be played Wednesday.

Both games are to be televised by TBS.

Incidentally, Ken Griffey Jr. of the Chicago White Sox has the opportunity (however slim it may seem to be) to end the longest personal World Series drought of any active player in the major leagues.

Griffey has played in more than 2,500 games in his 20-year career without ever playing in a World Series — although he came close to playing in the 1995 World Series when Seattle took Cleveland to six games for the American League championship.

But, to make it to baseball's promised land, Griffey's White Sox must defeat the Rays today and Wednesday, then win the American League championship against either Boston or Los Angeles.

Dodgers Knock Off Cubs

The Los Angeles Dodgers are playing like they’re double parked.

The Philadelphia Phillies failed to finish off the Milwaukee Brewers Saturday. That series will continue with Game 4 today.

But then the Dodgers completed their sweep of the Chicago Cubs Saturday night.

It’s now been more than a century since the Cubs won the World Series — hey, it’s been more than 60 years since the Cubs even played in a World Series.

But James Loney drove in a couple of runs with a first-inning double and the Dodgers never looked back.

I predicted the Dodgers and Phillies would advance to the league championship series, but I really didn’t think the Cubs would roll over the way they did. The Brewers could still force the Phillies to play five games before advancing to the championship series against the Dodgers.

A couple of American League teams will be trying to match the Dodgers' achievement on Sunday.

The Boston Red Sox will take a 2-0 series lead into their game at home against the Los Angeles Angels. And the Chicago White Sox will be trying to stop the Tampa Bay Devil Rays from completing a sweep when they play in Chicago.

The Red River Rivalry

Over the years, the Oklahoma-Texas football game has been one of those rivalries that has taken on a distinct life of its own.

It always matters who wins, no matter what the records are, no matter what the rankings are (or even whether either team is ranked). Of course, the game is that much more interesting when things like unbeaten records and possible conference and national championships are thrown into the mix.

The 2008 edition of the "Red River Rivalry" promises to be the most anticipated game between the two schools since 2004, when #2 Oklahoma shut out #5 Texas, 12-0.

That was the first time Oklahoma had won five straight against Texas in 30 years.

Such a winning streak won’t be on the line this time. OU won the game last year, Texas won it the year before that.

But both teams will be ranked in the top 5 when they kick off next Saturday. The Sooners made sure their record would have no blemishes when they buried Baylor 49-17 Saturday afternoon. The Longhorns remained unbeaten with their 38-14 victory over Colorado Saturday night.

The winner of next Saturday’s game at the Cotton Bowl should be one of the favorites to play for the national title in January.

Of course, unbeaten Texas Tech and Oklahoma State might have something to say about that. Both are in the same division of the Big XII as Texas and OU.

And as Thayer Evans observes in the New York Times, "The game could ... muddle the polls if Texas wins. The Longhorns would join Alabama, Louisiana State and Missouri in the battle for No. 1."

ABC is set to televise the game on Saturday, starting at 11 a.m. (Central).

Dodgers, Phillies on Verge of Advancing

The other day I predicted that the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Philadelphia Phillies would win their divisional series and advance to the National League's championship series.

But they've both been more efficient than I expected.

I predicted that both teams would need all five games to finish off their foes.

Each team has played only two games — and they both have today off — but both teams are 2-0 and could finish off their series tomorrow.

Particularly amazing are the Dodgers, who barely managed a winning record in baseball's worst division yet have surprised baseball observers by winning the first two games on the road. Now they need only one more win — with the next two games to be played in Dodger Stadium — to move on to the N.L. championship series.

Only one team in major league baseball history has come back to win a playoff series after losing the first two games at home — the 2004 Boston Red Sox — recalls MLB.com.

The Phillies, meanwhile, took care of business at home. They, too, need only one more victory to win the series with the Milwaukee Brewers — but the next two games will be played in Milwaukee, where the Brewers won 60% of the time this year.

The Brewers, however, are going to have to win 100% of their home games in this playoff series, then take the fifth and deciding game in Philadelphia if they're going to deny the Phillies a spot in the league championship series. That's a tough assignment.

As MLB.com observes, prior to this year, there were 16 times when a team took a 2-0 lead in a best-of-five National League divisional series. Each of those 16 teams won the series — and 13 of them did so by completing the sweep with a win in the third game.

The odds clearly are against the Brewers and the Cubs.

And, if you're a Cubs fan, it's going to be hard to blame this postseason collapse on a 63-year-old billy goat curse — unless the Cubs can manage to rise from the near-dead, win two straight in Dodger Stadium and bring the series back to Wrigley Field for the fifth game.

If that happens, the billy goat might turn out to be a plausible scapegoat.

But make no mistake about it. The blame for the first two losses (especially Thursday night's 10-3 disaster) belongs to the Cubs themselves.

And a certain amount of the credit probably belongs to the Dodgers.

Here Are My Playoff Predictions

Milwaukee and Philadelphia are due to get the baseball postseason started in a couple of hours.

And I want to get in my first-round predictions before the first pitch is thrown.

In the National League:

• Milwaukee vs. Philadelphia: Both teams performed well at home, winning about three-fifths of the time. The Phillies played a little better on the road than the Brewers did.
  
  Both teams were pretty weak at the plate. The Phillies were 10th among the 16 N.L. clubs with a .255 average. The Brewers were 12th with a .251 average.
  
  According to the old saying, though, pitching and defense win championships. There have been exceptions, but that certainly seems to be true in short series.
  
  If it becomes a matter of pitching, who has the edge between the Brewers and the Phillies? Based on the numbers, it looks pretty close. For that matter, the top four teams in the N.L. in ERA are the same four teams who are in the playoffs. Milwaukee had a 3.85 ERA during the season, the Phillies had a 3.88 ERA. Pitching should be pretty strong in the N.L.'s playoff games.
  
  The bullpen appears to be about equal, with Milwaukee getting 45 saves during the season and Philadelphia getting 44.
  
  I predict it will go five games and I'll give the edge to the team with the homefield advantage — Philadelphia.


• Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Chicago Cubs: Hands down, the Cubs were the best home team in the National League, winning two-thirds of their games at Wrigley Field. The Dodgers were pretty good at home, too, winning a little more than 59% of the time.
  
  On the road, the Cubs had a winning record (winning 52% of their games) while the Dodgers won less than 45% of their road games.
  
  The Cubs had the best team batting average of any team in the playoffs — in either league (.278) — and their pitchers' ERA was a respectable 3.87, which was fifth-best in the majors (although it trails the Dodgers' 3.68 ERA, the best in the National League).
  
  Those numbers should suggest an easy Cubs win. In fact, they should suggest an easy win against the Dodgers and another easy win against either the Phillies or the Brewers, making a trip to the World Series virtually inevitable.
  
  But these are the Cubs we're talking about. When you look up "futility" or "error-prone" — or "curse" — in the dictionary, you should see the Cubs logo.
  
  History tells me that, because we're talking about the Cubs, we will see a magnificent collapse. And, if history provides any indication of what to expect, it will be grander and more heartbreaking than any of the Cubs' previous collapses.
  
  So my question is, will the Cubs collapse against the Dodgers and their N.L.-leading ERA? Or will they win in the first round, only to wilt against either the Phillies' league-leading home run hitters or the Brewers' pitchers, with their 3.85 ERA and league-most complete games?
  
  I'm going to guess that they'll end the suspense quickly and lose in the first round to the Dodgers, three games to two.

In the American League:

Chicago White Sox vs. Tampa Bay: Tampa Bay had better winning percentages at home (70% to 66%) and on the road (49% to 43%) than the White Sox did.

The White Sox led the league in home runs, but, other than that, neither team's offense was at the top of the A.L. charts. The Sox were 11th of 14 teams and the Rays were 13th in batting average. Tampa Bay showed pretty good speed during the season, leading the A.L. in stolen bases, but their problem was getting on base in the first place, ranking 13th in base hits.

The key, in addition to winning percentages at home and on the road, may be found in pitching. Tampa Bay was second in the league in ERA (Chicago was sixth), tied for third in complete games (Chicago was 11th) and virtually tied for third in strikeouts with the White Sox (Chicago had 1,147 while Tampa Bay had 1,143).

If it comes down to the bullpen, Tampa's relievers recorded the A.L.'s second-best tally in saves (52) while Chicago was 12th in that category (34).

Plus, Chicago may be a little tired after having to play two additional games on Monday and Tuesday just to qualify for the playoffs while everyone else was resting and licking their wounds.

I pick Tampa in four games.


• Boston vs. Los Angeles Angels: Boston was a stronger team at home than Los Angeles, winning 69% of the time in Fenway Park while the Angels won about 62% of the time at home. Boston struggled on the road, winning 48% of its games while the Angels again won about 62% of the time.
  
  At the plate, the Red Sox had a better year than the Angels, recording a higher batting average of .280 to Los Angeles' .268. Boston was sixth in the league in home runs (L.A. was ninth), but the Angels finished second in steals (129), just ahead of Boston (120).
  
  Who has the edge in pitching? L.A.'s ERA was 3.99 while Boston's was 4.01. The Angels' bullpen led the A.L. in saves with 66; Boston was a distant third with 47. But Boston led the league in strikeouts with 1,185, while the Angels were sixth in the A.L. with 1,106.
  
  It doesn't really seem to matter to the Angels whether they're at home or on the road. The Red Sox will be competitive, but I pick the Angels to win in four games.

Enjoy the playoffs!

Back in Black

The team's nickname is the White Sox, but, at various times in their history, the Chicago White Sox have used black as an element in their uniform design.

For Tuesday night's one-game A.L. Central playoff with the Minnesota Twins, the management of the White Sox urged Sox fans to come to the ballpark wearing black to show their support for the team. It was dubbed a "blackout," in sports pages across the country.

Black may seem more suitable for funerals than baseball games, but, in this case, it was just right for the White Sox — although the Twins, who came up on the short end of a 1-0 stick, thanks to Jim Thome's solo home run, may have felt like they attended a funeral.

Their own.

The White Sox have had their backs against the wall twice this week. They responded by winning two must-win games to get into the divisional playoffs.

Now, they have today off before they begin their playoff series in Tampa Bay on Thursday.

The White Sox deserve to be praised for their tenacity. And I also think they deserve a one-day breather. In a best-of-five series, anything can happen. But the must-win games are behind the Sox — for now.

But I also think the suggestion in a Chicago Tribune editorial that the White Sox and Cubs could play each other in the World Series is still a bit premature.

Local pressure, more than anything else, has contributed to the Cubs' history of heartbreak in the postseason.

So let 'em play the games.

And, when the dust settles in each league, if it turns out that the Cubs and White Sox are destined to meet in a "subway series," let's talk about it at that time.

For now, Chicago baseball fans, enjoy the fact that both your teams are still standing.