MMBSD: Intransitive

For those non-math majors out there the transitive property is essentially if A>B and B>C then A>C. Or in College Football mindset if each game represents the true value of the team then Texas Tech should have beaten beaten Oklahoma as they had beaten Texas which had beaten OU. However there's no such thing as the transitive property for college football given we operate in a one game format in a probabilistic sport. Well that and the OU that lost to Texas wasn't the OU team that took the field against Tech. U's star running back has been slowly recovering from a devastating knee injury and the defense has slowly integrated in 9 new starters. Couple that with the home field thing where Bob Stoops is now 60-2 and the end is result was Texas Tech being blown out in Norman. Consequently we have intransitive intransigence with 3 teams locked into a one loss scenario which we would normally overlook. However this year the winner of the Big 12 South has a clear path the Mythical BCS Championship game affects other at large BCS Bowl Bids so we all pay attention.

Given the lateness of the lost and the size of the lost Tech will assume the position and await if it gets any BCS bid at all (probably not). As such you have OU with its "playing the best college football at the moment" momentum versus Texas "we beat OU and the national media licks our balls". Ultimately I imagine the voters will strategically decide who gets it (not your computers Gutsy) and as such style points in beating arch-rivals A&M for Texas and Ok State for OU will matter a great deal as going into next week Texas is ahead of OU by .09 points. Of course since its ESPN's world and we just live in it, I'm its equally possibly the simpler Texas beat OU and we'll forget about that whole Tech thing will dominate the national narrative.

Whither USC?
USC has won the Pac 10 title 6 straight years and been the Pac 10s main representative each of the past 6 years. However despite its slew of 5 star recruits, Pete Carroll's super-serum, and the ultimate in sweater accessories, USC's reign at the top might finally come to an end this week if the other OSU (Oregon State) can win at home against U of Nike, Oregon. While this win wouldn't keep USC from a BCS bowl (its off to the Fiesta if Oregon State wins) it would mark a fairly dramatic milestone.

5 Straight Years
While Penn State crushed MSU to send Happy Valley into ecstasy, OSU won a record 5th straight time over the over-matched Team from Up North. Adding insult to injury it was the largest margin of victory for the Buckeye's since the 1960s. tOSU awaits OSU game to figure out where they are going (likely Jan 1st Capital One v. #2 SEC team (Georgia).

Beached Whale
I've had as much fun as anyone with Notre Dame's suffering, the Fighting Irish might have topped last year's low point of losing to Navy, by losing this year to Syracuse (probably the 2nd worst team in all of College Football). The only reason Weis will keep his job at this point is recessionary economics have buying out such a bloated contract untenable.

NFL

Mercury Morris Will Talk Trash Again
The Titans fell prey to the Favre led Jets. Possibly most surprising were the Titans inability to chew up any kind of yardage on the ground. Relying on Collins to heave it up 35+ times won't end in many victories. Luckily the Lions continue their march towards history after blowing a 17-0 lead. Can anything stop this team of destiny?

End of the Line for McNabb
While the Iggles never got over the hump, they have been one of the more dominant teams of this decade. For the past few years injuries have slowly diminished Mcnabb's skills and when coupled with Andy Reid refusal to use the crazy gadgets of "a running game" has resulted in an team Iggles without an offense. So its worth noting that at the last gasps of Philly's playoff chances Mcnabb was benched in favor of Kolb. I'm curious where he will end up next year, but if this isn't the signal bye bye Mcnabb I don't know what it is

Ugly Football
I'm scanning the games and I'm really struck at how ugly most games are these days. Sure part of my perceptions are colored by rooting for a team with less luck than Titantic but can anyone name the league's MVP at the moment ....other than Warner by default?

Other Odds and Ends

• Your #1 pick in the 2009 NBA draft will be Blake Griffin, who had 35 points and 21 rebounds on Saturday
• Early NCAA basketball favorite UNC suffered a major loss when its star Freshman center went down. Their frontcourt is getting thin
• Saturday also saw a great old school battle in the paint, when Yao Ming outplayed Dwight Howard. When's the last time you remember each teams best player being a center in the NBA?
• Remember when Bush quit drinking?