The Real World Cup Begins: Dark Horses and More

The elimination rounds of the World Cup began with a bang today, as Ghana knocked off the United States for the second straight tournament, repeating the 2-1 heartbreak of 2006.

Ghana's Black Stars, the sole surviving African team, set up a quarterfinal match with a surprisingly good Uruguay squad. But more on that to come, so read on, my friends!
(View group results and bracket here)

Look, we all know who the favorites are in the Cup. The top ten of the FIFA world rankings table is heavily represented, as only Italy, France, and Croatia missed the party.

The French did what they do best (choke, surrender, complain), and Italy was just plain old. Croatia didn't even make the tournament.

Brazil and Spain have got to be heavily favored now that all the chips are on the table. But if this tournament has been one thing so far, it's been unpredictable. Spain has already lost once, to Switzerland, and Brazil let a pitiful North Korean team hang in against their supposedly fearsome squad for way too long.

So let's take a look at the lower-ranked teams who are gunning for glory in South Africa, and see if any of them have a shot to shock the world in July.

No. 45 Japan is the lowest ranked side in the Round of Sixteen. In the past, the Japanese have had a reputation for being solid, yet boring and uncreative.

Hmm. Sounds a lot like the American squad I just saw knocked out! What it doesn't sound like is the actual Japan of 2010. Keisuke Honda, especially, has been impressive.

Japan won two out of its three games in Group E, dominating Denmark 3-1 and surviving a top-20 Cameroon squad 1-0. Their lone loss came against the Netherlands, who along with Portugal, Argentina, Spain, and Brazil round out the consensus top five.

Japan will match up with No. 31 Paraguay, with the winner of that game taking on the survivor of a potentially epic Spain-Portugal tilt. I think they have a good shot against Paraguay, the Group F champs, but advancing to the semis by topping one of the Iberian giants would be nothing short of a miracle.

Still, I like what I've seen from this team so far.

Slovakia (No. 34), Ghana (No. 32), and Paraguay (No. 31) are the other surprise teams to crash the knockout round.

It would kinda be cheating for me to pick Ghana to advance, since they already won today. I think their matchup against Uruguay (No. 16) is going to be extremely interesting.

Ghana plays good defense, packing a lot of men into the box with terrific team speed to punish slow-moving attacks like the States'. I also love the way that their midfielders play together - they seem to all be on the same page with crisp, competent passing.
Uruguay, on the other hand, can counter with great attackers in Diego Forlan and Luis Suarez, who scored a pair of goals against South Korea this morning. This pair has the speed and creativity to create some real problems for Ghana.

The Uruguayans also played great defense throughout the group stage - they didn't allow a single goal against France, South Africa, or Mexico.

For my money, the winner of this game will be your World Cup bracket-buster, because all of the other underdogs face nasty first round opponents.

Slovakia drew the Netherlands (no chance, right?), while shorthanded Chile (No. 17) faces a familiar opponent in Brazil.

Their all-time record? Not pretty. Brazil has won 46, lost six, and the sides have drawn 12 times. I'd give it about a 95% chance that the favorites will be advancing on that side of the bracket, setting up an epic battle in the quarters.

This could play into the hands of the winner of Uruguay-Ghana, if play gets chippy and players get ejected. The Netherlands is a notoriously assholey side. And Brazilian star Kaka already has one red card in this World Cup.

That leaves us with just one dark horse (caballo negro?) to discuss, and No. 18 Mexico got a tough draw in an Argentina team which is firing on all cylinders after sweeping through the group stage. Much as I'd like to predict an upset here, I think Maradona and his stars Gonzalo Higuain (three goals so far) and Lionel Messi (no goals, he's overdue!) will make short work of El Tri.

Here's how I'd rate the fourteen remaining teams' chances of making the final.

Will be pissed if they don't:
1. Brazil
2. Spain
3. Netherlands

Won't be surprised if they do:
4. Portugal
5. Argentina

A decent chance:
6. Uruguay
7. Germany

An outside shot:
8. England
9. Ghana
10. Japan

Signs point to "no":
11. Paraguay
12. Mexico

Would be a miracle:
13. Chile
14. Slovakia

And there you have it! Tomorrow we get England-Germany (The Blitz II - gotta love that World War Two bad blood) and Argentina-Mexico. Should be another great day of soccer in South Africa!

Should the White Sox Play in the National League?

The White Sox are in the middle of a ten game win streak (and 14 of the last 15), which is the longest the franchise has had since the 70s. A bunch of people I have talked to are really excited about this, but I am a little more skeptical.

Why am I so skeptical? Of the last 15 games, 13 have been played against the National League including every one of the past 10 wins. It's not that the wins haven't been impressive, the White Sox did win the game when they played against phenom Strausburg, and the Tigers and Twins haven't been able to beat similar competition.

It's just something about the White Sox, they always play well against the National League. That is why I am proposing the White Sox move to the National League.

Before I delve too much into this, I am aware that when the Diamondbacks and Rays joined the league, the move to the NL Central that was proposed to the Kansas City Royals and Milwaukee Brewers never reached the White Sox. I am also aware that MLB isn't going to come down from their offices and tell the Pirates that they are switching leagues, as proposed by Tom Verducci earlier this year. I just want to show how well the White Sox play against the National League.

First off, let's take a look at the 2010 team. The White Sox are 6 games under .500 against the American League and 11 games over .500 (13-2) against the National League. The White Sox are 127 and 101 all time against the National League, which is good enough for third place all time.

Now let's look at the team.

Ozzie learned how to manage coming up in the National League while coaching for the Florida Marlins. It has often been said that Ozzie ball, aka small ball, belongs more in the National League then the American League.

Mark Buehrle just set the record for interleague wins at 22 with his victory over the Pirates. Freddy Garcia is third in wins and also ERA.

Three of the top four HR leaders in interleague play have played for the White Sox:

Thome 57
Griffey Jr 55
Delgado 50
Konerko 48

Paulie Konerko is also the active leader in interleague HR against a single team with 15 against the Cubs.

Jake Peavy is a former National League Cy Young Winner. Juan Pierre has played in 3 All-Star games for the NL.

Lastly, numerous White Sox players have grown up or played in the National League (Paul Konerko, Carlos Quentin, Juan Pierre, Jake Peavy, AJ Pierzynski...).

This team would thrive in the National League and would be winning pennants year in and year out.

LET'S GO WHITE SOX.

FINAL ACSS WORLD CUP GROUP STAGE STANDINGS

This was an extremely close race and it came down to the closing minute of the closing game.

1st Place: Steve 19
2nd Place(tie): Dave 18
2nd Place(tie): Ryan 18
4th Place: Colin
5th Place (tie): Dan 16
5th Place (tie): Mark 16
7th Place (tie): Derek 13
7th Place (tie): Tim 13

Final Scores

Dave Weir 18
Brazil 7
Greece 3
Paraguay 5
New Zealand 3

Mark Fodor 16
Spain 6
Uruguay 7
Denmark 3
North Korea 0

Derek Wilson 13
Italy 2
Mexico 4
Chile 6
Algeria 1

Ryan Parrent 18
Netherlands 9
Ivory Coast 4
Ghana 4
Honduras 1

Colin Newman/O'Shea 17
Argentina 9
Cameroon 0
Slovakia 4
South Africa 4

Steve Noffke 19
Germany 6
United States 5
Switzerland 4
South Korea 4

Tim Transon 13
Portugal 5
Serbia 3
Nigeria 1
Slovenia 4

Dan Noffke 16
England 5
France 1
Japan 6
Austrailia 4

Mike D'Antoni, You Are Insane

This gem is from the New York Post today.

http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/knicks/hinrich_maneuver_EYxQj5hD0CoYEBmMNnic3M#ixzz0rsqbQ7gg

"This sets the course of the franchise for the next 10 years," D'Antoni said.The Bulls have a stronger cast in star point guard Derrick Rose, two young big men Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson, and scoring forward Luol Deng.The Knicks' lone hope in landing James was having him come aboard with either Bosh or Stoudemire to join their young corps of Danilo Gallinari, Wilson Chandler, Toney Douglas and Bill Walker."Our core young players can be put up against anybody," D'Antoni said. "You might smirk, but we have some pieces that are very interesting. I'm confident because we have a great product. We're selling the best place in the world to live and play."

Okay, let's see: Derrick Rose vs. Toney Douglas. ROSE

Luol Deng vs. Bill Walker. DENG

Danilo Galinari vs. Taj Gibson. GIBSON (close, but he did average a double-double most of the season!)

Joakim Noah vs. Wilson Chandler. NOAH

I'm smirking, Mikey, I'm smirking. It's okay though, Joe Johnson is a good fit in your system! And he will enjoy the hell out of that max contract.

ACSS Updated Standings

These are the updated standings after Groups A,B,C,D,E,F & G have finished play. With the North Korea loss and the Brazil tie, the tournament all comes down to one game. Switzerland vs Honduras. If the Swiss win or tie, Steve wins. If Honduras wins, Ryan wins.

I have also included a list of teams advancing again.

Dave 18
Steve 18
Colin 17
Ryan 17
Dan 16
Derek 13
Mark 13
Tim 13

Teams Advancing

Dave
Brazil
Paraguay

Mark
Uruguay

Derek
Mexico

Ryan
Netherlands
Ghana

Colin
Argentina
Slovakia

Steve
Germany
United States of America
South Korea

Tim
Portugal

Dan
England
Japan

Scores

Dave Weir 18
Brazil 7
Greece 3
Paraguay 5
New Zealand 3

Mark Fodor 13
Spain 3
Uruguay 7
Denmark 3
North Korea 0

Derek Wilson 13
Italy 2
Mexico 4
Chile 6
Algeria 1

Ryan Parrent 17
Netherlands 9
Ivory Coast 4
Ghana 4
Honduras 0

Colin Newman/O'Shea 17
Argentina 9
Cameroon 0
Slovakia 4
South Africa 4

Steve Noffke 18
Germany 6
United States 5
Switzerland 3
South Korea 4

Tim Transon 13
Portugal 5
Serbia 3
Nigeria 1
Slovenia 4

Dan Noffke 16
England 5
France 1
Japan 6
Austrailia 4

Top Chef Power Rankings (06/23/10)

Welcome to the return of the Top Chef Power Rankings. I am not a week late, as I’ve stated before, I do not like doing the Power Rankings after just one show. Last night’s episode was entertaining, even though it seemed like a repeat of a challenge from season two. There was lots of drama, lots of stress with some teams rising to the occasion, and others not so much. Jacqueline was sent home. I felt bad for her because she had so few ingredients while Amanda got to spend way too much money on wine. Jacqueline should have spoken up more and fought for her dish earlier in the competition, but because she didn’t, she is being sent packing.


Top Shelf


Angelo Sosa



Started off the show going 3-0 in competitions. He has clearly asserted himself as the chef to beat. He has already created a rivalry with Kenny and has clearly showed that he is in the business of beating Kenny and playing mind games with him. In the first elimination challenge, he was allowed to choose which group of 4 chefs would have an additional chef competing against them. Naturally he sent Ed to Kenny’s team. Then this week, if picked Kenny to join his team, knowing that if their team failed, Kenny had a higher percent chance of being sent home. I believe Tom described it best with the word “Gamesmanship.” I see this playing out a lot like Hosea and Stefan. I think Angelo needs to focus more on making good dishes then worry about Kenny, that could be his down fall.


Kenny Gilbert



Kenny asserted himself right out of the gate, dominating the slicing and dicing portion of the very first quickfire. After that, he had three straight second place finishes before finishing in the bottom last night. The reason I am ranking him so high despite the bottom finish is because of his strong start. I also think he was thrown a little off by Angelo’s gamesmanship. If he can ignore Angelo, I feel he can go far in this competition. Saying that, Top Chef loves rivalries (Voltaggio Brothers, Hosea and Stefan) so if these two maintain their rivalries, they will stay around awhile regardless how they cook.


Best of the Rest


Kelly Liken



Kelly was the elimination challenge winner, so she will claim the third spot this week. Her team did not like her at all this week, and it appeared she didn’t even care. It’s one thing to be competitive, it’s another to just not get along with your team. This could create problems for her in future team challenges.


Kevin Sbraga



also started off strong in the slicing and dicing quickfire. Kevin followed up that performance by landing as one of the top finishers in week 1. Kevin’s group got second in this week’s episode continueing his strong start.


Alex Reznik



Alex was the only Chef to win his group in week 1 who did not pick his competitors. After finishing in the top in Week 1, his team finished 1st in week two. Two top finishes lands him in this spot.


Timothy Dean



Another strong starter in the slicing and dicing quickfire. However, he was the only Top 4 quickfire chef to not win his group, and was actually in the bottom in week 1. He was part of the second place team on the last episode, which I thought was going to be the winning team. He has showed he is one of the better chefs, despite his one bad dish.


Middle of the Pack


Arnold Myint



Last night’s episode I couldn’t decide if he really did help out the other chef’s, like he claimed, or just talked a lot. I have a tendency to believe him, and his salsa was a hit with the judges. He has the potential to do well, but I’m still wait and see at this point.


Tracey Bloom



I’m putting Tracey a head of a few middle of the pack cheftestants based solely on the fact she won a quickfire, even if she was just riding Angelo’s coattails. She was on the bottom team as well last night. So this ranking might be a little high for her. We shall see.


Tiffany Derry



She was on the winning team last night, she also cruised through the first elimination challenge.


Lynne Gigiotti



Just like Tiffany, she was on the winning team last night, and had little problems with the first elimination challenge.


Tamesha Warren




I think Tamesha is a potential sleeper this season. She seems a little quiet right now, and will need to fight for her dishes in team events going forward.


Andrea Curto – Randazzo



Andrea has had no problems making it through the elimination challenges yet and was on the team that I thought was going to win last night.


Sleeper Pick

Ed Cotton



I have to put Ed this low because of his bottom performance this week. Yes he finished second in the quickfire (lucky being a lefty for that challenge), but I thought they were going to send him home based on the fact that the judges said his team had the worse dish, two of the chefs had immunity, and Kenny has been way to good to send home. Saying all that, I think Ed got caught in the wash of the Angelo and Kenny Fued (two episodes in a row actually). I think once Ed is allowed to cook on his own, he will thrive and be a tough out.


Chopping Block

Stephen Hopcraft



Stephen has not started off the competition strong. In week one he was on the chopping block. This past week he was on one of the two worst teams. He was quick to throw other competitors under the bus at judges table. That is not always the best way to defend his dish, and could lead to problems for him down the line.


Amanda Baumgarten



In my opinion, she was the chef who should have been sent packing this week. She had the highest budget on her team, and created what appeared to be an awful dish. She has not shown much promise, and is scared of doing desserts. That is not a recipe for success on Top Chef.

Cubs vs White Sox Part II with a side of World Cup

Big Day for ACSS fans today. Today will be the conclusion of the ACSS World Cup Pool. Up to 4 people can still win in any given scenarios. That action is at 10:00 and 1:30 CST. Then The Cubs will play on the Southside today as they take on the White Sox at 3:05. So busy day in front of the TV.


LET'S GO WHITE SOX

NBA Draft Quick Hits

In no particular order...

1. I can't remember a year where I cared less about the draft. Mostly it's the impending Free Agent Shootout, but also this is just a pretty uninspiring class.

2. The Bulls shipped Captain Kirk and the #17 pick to Washington for, basically, cap space. After surviving rumor after rumor, it looks like this one is for real. We will miss you in Chicago, Mr. Hinrich. Here's hoping some kind of buyout lets us bring you back for cheap.

Word is, we might be bringing back Chris Duhon to take his spot. Here is a picture of the old school boys getting down.

3. In the category of MMMM... THAT'S EFFIN DELICIOUS... I just cooked a pork chop and green beans in a cast-iron skillet. Total prep/cook time: 15 minutes. Spices used: Kosher salt, mixed-up salt, pepper. Extra virgin olive oil, a little cayenne, and a splash of the beer can just for a second, just for flavor.

Cook the chop first, then the green beans in the mixed fat and olive oil. Pretty self explanatory. Damn good. And that's your moment of zen. I ate it with some crusty white bread.

4. I think the Lakers might have gotten a couple of second round steals tonight, proving once again that the rich tend to get richer.

They took Devin Ebanks, former Indiana commit, at No. 43, and then picked Derrick Caracter with the No. 58 pick. Ebanks reminds me of a Lamar Odom Lite, and Caracter is a big guy who has finally put it together despite what has been a troubled career. I expect both of these guys to contribute in the Lakers rotation.

5. My pick to flop from the Top Ten is Al-Farouq Aminu. If you can't win in college, you won't be able to win in the League. Fittingly, Aminu went to the Clippers. PS- Dino Gaudio, Wake's coach, just got fired this year.

6. My pick to surprise, outside of the Top Five, is Token White Guy Gordon Hayward. Fittingly, he went to Utah (at No. 9). Who saw that coming?

7. Jordan Crawford (Xavier, formerly Hoosiers) was drafted by New Jersey and went to Atlanta, while Damion James (Texas) was drafted by the Hawks and will be a Net. This is a bit strange to me, since I see these guys being better fits on their original squads.

Jordan and Jamal Crawford can't really coexist, seeing as they are basically the same guy. But I like Jordan's game and think he will be okay wherever he ends up.

8. Predicted flops from this draft: Aminu, Cole Aldrich, Ed Davis, Eric Bledsoe (shoulda stayed in school, he's Daequan Cook v. 2.0).

9. Predicted all-stars: John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins.
a. If I'm right on this, I'm the man: Miami got Da'sean Butler from West Virginia with the 42nd pick. If anybody from that second round can surprise people and be an all-star, it's Butler.

10. Safest rotation players from Day One: Ekpe Udoh (Baylor/Golden State), Patrick Patterson (Kentucky/Houston), Hassan Whiteside (Marshall/Sacramento, 2nd round), Evan Turner (Ohio State/Philly, the only Big Ten player drafted).

11. Less than a week 'til Free Agency. Let's get LeBron!!!!

The Clinton-Bocanegra Defense Summit

Via Deadspin, via Luke Winn. This is after the USA advanced yesterday.
Yup, that's right, Ol' Bill (best president ever) got down on the Team USA victory celebration. Good man.

ACSS World Cup Standings (featuring teams that are moving on)

Below is the updated standings after groups A,B,C,D,E & F have finished play. In a new section I have listed off the teams that each guy has advanceing. With Italy and Cameroon losing today we have only 4 guys left who can win. Dave Mark Ryan and Steve.

Steve 18
Colin 17
Dave 17
Dan 16
Ryan 14
Mark 13
Derek 13
Tim 12

Teams Moving On

Dave
Brazil (still playing but has clinched a berth)
Paraguay

Mark
Uruguay

Derek
Mexico

Ryan
Netherlands
Ghana

Colin
Argentina
Slovakia

Steve
Germany
United States of America
South Korea

Tim
NONE

Dan
England
Japan


Dave Weir 17
Brazil 6
Greece 3
Paraguay 5
New Zealand 3

Mark Fodor 13
Spain 3
Uruguay 7
Denmark 3
North Korea 0

Derek Wilson 13
Italy 2
Mexico 4
Chile 6
Algeria 1

Ryan Parrent 14
Netherlands 9
Ivory Coast 1
Ghana 4
Honduras 0

Colin Newman/O'Shea 17

Argentina 9
Cameroon 0
Slovakia 4
South Africa 4

Steve Noffke 18
Germany 6
United States 5
Switzerland 3
South Korea 4

Tim Transon 12
Portugal 4
Serbia 3
Nigeria 1
Slovenia 4

Dan Noffke 16
England 5
France 1
Japan 6
Austrailia 4

Italia, Italia, (expletive deleted)

As many of you know, I spent the 2006 World Cup living in Verona, Italy, which is a city about two hours west of Venice and east of Milan. As a result, L'Azzurra will always hold a special place in my heart. Their epic run to the championship, with Gianluigi Buffon's star turn in goal and the infamous Zidane head-butt and shootout to finish it, is easily one of my Top Ten Sports Moments.

Speaking of which... I'll get on that, at some point. I'm sure Noffke is dying to resurrect the franchise.

Anyway, today Italy completed their fall from grace with a 3-2 defeat to a motivated Slovak squad that wouldn't have been able to hold 2006 Italia's jock. Highlights here. Much like the USA game yesterday, this one gave me a palpable sense of desperation while watching. However, the differences are crucial.

Guys who were the heart and soul of 2006 Italia were on the sidelines watching, Buffon looking like more of a coach than the beast who allowed a lone goal (an own goal no less) four years before, Gattuso looking homeless, Pirlo finally reaching the pitch in the 56th minute, where he ignited that famous Italian attack of four years ago.

But it was too little, too late. Substitute goalie Federico Marchetti was terrible all Cup, failing to make more than a single save in all of Group F action. He choked again in the closing minutes of this one, letting a Slovak substitute bounce a loose ball in, while Italian fans had visions of Buffon enveloping the rock authoritatively and starting a fast break.
Anyway, I'm rambling. Long story short is, Italia let itself get old and stagnant, and didn't do a whole lot about it. Cannavaro had clearly lost a step. Buffon and Pirlo being hurt definitely didn't help. If those guys are in, it's a different story.

It could be worse. Unlike the dirty effin' Frogs, at least L'Azzurra didn't fall into backstabbing and squabbling amongst themselves after an ignomonious Cup exit.

In the end, these players will not be remembered for 2010. All this was was a sad postscript to one of the great World Cup runs, and much like when the White Sox are mediocre, I can always remember that title just a few years ago. Cubs fans, France fans, choke on that!

ACSS World Cup Standings

This are the standings after Groups A,B,C,D & F have finished play. Things are getting really tight. Five guys still have a shot to win with some big games coming up.

Also, Dan and Fodor have made some proposals in the comments. In the previous entry. Please everyone let me know your thoughts. Here's what i'm gathering so far.

Redrafting

For
Fodor
Dan

Against
Tim
Colin
Steve
Dave

Doesn't Care
Derek

Winner Take All

Against
Fodor

For
Tim
Steve
Colin
Dave
Dan (assuming he can't repick)

Doesn't Care
Derek

So, we need to do some politicing to figure out what we want to do.


Steve 18
Dave 17
Colin 17
Dan 13
Derek 13
Mark 13
Tim 12
Ryan 11



Dave Weir 17
Brazil 6
Greece 3
Paraguay 5
New Zealand 3

Mark Fodor 13
Spain 3
Uruguay 7
Denmark 3
North Korea 0

Derek Wilson 13
Italy 2
Mexico 4
Chile 6
Algeria 1

Ryan Parrent 11
Netherlands 6
Ivory Coast 1
Ghana 4
Honduras 0

Colin Newman/O'Shea 17
Argentina 9
Cameroon 0
Slovakia 4
South Africa 4

Steve Noffke 18
Germany 6
United States 5
Switzerland 3
South Korea 4

Tim Transon 12
Portugal 4
Serbia 3
Nigeria 1
Slovenia 4

Dan Noffke 13
England 5
France 1
Japan 3
Austrailia 4

IU Football’s Crazy June

To the casual Indiana football fan the only relevant months of the year are September and October…I say this because those are the only months that have great tailgating weather (and even October is a stretch sometimes). To anybody like me, who is an actual fan of the team, college football is a year round sport. One of the most exciting times for football fans (even for IU), is tracking the progress of each year’s recruiting class – though it isn’t always good for the Hoosiers.

In a typical year, the recruiting class starts taking shape in the early summer months, but the bulk of visits and commitments take place during the football season. Of course there are teams like Texas and OSU who can hand pick their recruits and are basically wrapped up by the time football season starts…but for most teams this isn’t the case.

That is…Until now!!

The month of June has seen “Wild” Bill Lynch securing football commitments at about the same pace The Jersey Shore’s “The Situation” shacks up with an unattractive, obese, female (also known as a Purdue co-ed…ouch).

Through today – June 24th – IU’s commitment list stands at 18 players. As a point of reference: This is the most in the Big Ten…OSU has 15 commits followed by a slew of schools that are sitting at 5. Some will point to Indiana and say “quantity, not quality” – I disagree. The coaches have done a great job of pinpointing players that they have a shot with but won’t have to compete with the likes of OSU, PSU, etc. To further my point, the last two recruits that Indiana received commitments from had offers from Wisconsin – not exactly one of those MAC schools that we have competed with in the past.

Here’s a quick rundown of IU’s current class – keep in mind that these are verbal commitments and a lot of these kids are already hearing from “bigger and better” programs trying to sway them prior to February’s signing day.

- According to Rivals.com Indiana’s class consists of 2 4 star recruits (rated #243 and #245 in the country), 10 3 star recruits, 4 2 star recruits, and 2 kids that are un-rated.

- Indiana’s class is heavy on defense and the trenches…and very light on skill position players. The only 2 skill position players are a Wildcat QB and a 6’5” WR/basketball player (sound familiar?).

- The class is heavy on the Midwest. The farthest West that a commit hails from is Kansas – with Ohio the farthest East.

- According to Rivals.com IU has gotten verbals from 5 of the top 15 recruits in Indiana, with a few more possibilities in there. (Purdue’s recruiting strategy of avoiding the home state at all costs seems to help here…).

There are a lot of factors that go into recruiting – coaching stability might be the most over-looked…but this year IU has their trump card – the state of the art weight room (and largest in the nation) that was part of the new stadium addition last year. The only thing left to do is go out and improve on the field as well. A bowl season will go a long way in getting these commits to ignore the other schools and sign on the dotted line as a Hoosier in February.

I’ll see if I can find some time in the near future to breakdown the class by position. IUs 2011 recruiting class is definitely off to a strong start.

ACSS World Cup Standings

These are the standings after Groups A, B, C and D have finished play. Start drawing up your sceanrios to see how you can win.

Steve 18
Dave 15
Colin 14
Dan 13
Derek 13
Mark 13
Tim 12
Ryan 11



Dave Weir 15
Brazil 6
Greece 3
Paraguay 4
New Zealand 2

Mark Fodor 13
Spain 3
Uruguay 7
Denmark 3
North Korea 0

Derek Wilson 13
Italy 2
Mexico 4
Chile 6
Algeria 1

Ryan Parrent 11
Netherlands 6
Ivory Coast 1
Ghana 4
Honduras 0

Colin Newman/O'Shea 14
Argentina 9
Cameroon 0
Slovakia 1
South Africa 4

Steve Noffke 18
Germany 6
United States 5
Switzerland 3
South Korea 4

Tim Transon 12
Portugal 4
Serbia 3
Nigeria 1
Slovenia 4

Dan Noffke 13
England 5
France 1
Japan 3
Austrailia 4

Wimbledon

Being that I played tennis during high school I really enjoy watching tennis. After watching the US lock up their group in world cup play I flipped over to Wimbledon only to find the most epic match I have ever seen on. Currently Isner and Mahut are in the 5th set tied at 37 games a piece. This may not mean much so let me put it in perspective. If I went out and won in strait sets 6-2 6-2 6-2 that would only be 24 games. The match now officially is the longest match of all time (currently 4.25 hours) longest match of all time (number of games), Isner has tied the record for aces in a game (78) and they have combined to have the most aces in a match (~138ish)note the old combined aces record was about 84. Easily the best tennis match I have ever watched. Its too bad that whoever wins will be too tired to win their next match.

ACSS World Cup Standings

These are the offical standings after Groups A & B have finished play.

Things are really starting to get intresting. Colin has had 2 teams play 3 games while Ryan has 0. All others have had 1 team play 3 games.

I am sorry to say that Dan has offically been eliminated. Even if his 3 remaining teams win, giving him 16 points, Dave is assured of two points in the Paraguay New Zealand game.

Dave 15
Colin 14
Derek 13
Mark 13
Steve 12
Tim 12
Ryan 11
Dan 7




Dave Weir 15
Brazil 6
Greece 3
Paraguay 4
New Zealand 2

Mark Fodor 13
Spain 3
Uruguay 7
Denmark 3
North Korea 0

Derek Wilson 13
Italy 2
Mexico 4
Chile 6
Algeria 1

Ryan Parrent 11
Netherlands 6
Ivory Coast 1
Ghana 4
Honduras 0

Colin Newman/O'Shea 14
Argentina 9
Cameroon 0
Slovakia 1
South Africa 4

Steve Noffke 12
Germany 3
United States 2
Switzerland 3
South Korea 4

Tim Transon 12
Portugal 4
Serbia 3
Nigeria 1
Slovenia 4

Dan Noffke 7
England 2
France 1
Japan 3
Austrailia 1

Cheering for Mexico. Is that an American Thing to Do?

Mexico is playing for its World Cup life today. It is sitting in a pretty good spot to move on, but still has a scenario in which they could be eliminated from the tournament today. I for one am cheering for Mexico to move on and do well in the elimination round. My question to all of you is, as an American fan, should I be doing this?

As you may or may not know, El Tri is Team USAs biggest rivals. They are rivals for obvious reason like, currently being the two most successful teams in CONCACAF as well as sharing a border. USA has never won in Mexico (0-23-1) and has only held the lead in Estadio Azteca(Mexico’s home field) for a grand total of 10 minutes, which happened last year. Bill Simmons wrote a good article about that game which gives a good feeling of how intense Estadio Azteca is for the American Team and the American Fans. Mexico views defeating team USA as a source of national pride, even if the feeling isn’t reciprocated, Team USA feels the intensity.

So why would I be cheering for Team USA’s biggest rival? It’s the same reason I cheer for the Big Ten in out of conference games and bowl games. It’s because they represent North America. They represent a brand of Soccer that represents us. When Ohio State played in back to back national title games and lost to the amazing “speed” of the SEC, all of a sudden every single team in the Big Ten got stereotyped as big, slow and outdated. Was that a fair assumption to make? Of course not, but that was the story everyone else kept repeating; If these guys got beat so badly and they beat everyone in their league, clearly the league is bad. So every year, I cheer for Big Ten teams that I normally vehemently despise because I want every else to recognize how strong the league is. This is the same reason I’m cheering for Mexico. If Mexico and USA (and Honduras) do well in the World Cup, the world will start taking North American soccer a little more seriously and give both teams that much more respect.

The other reason I am cheering for Mexico is I know how much it would mean to their fans. Yes I know the European, African and South American fans are all just as passionate, but most major soccer powers have won a world cup. Mexico is still looking for their first. No team from North America has ever won the World Cup, if any team does, even if it’s Mexico, that’s something worth celebrating.

Rick Reilly Tries to be Funny About Soccer

I am joining fodor in the Rick Rielly is an idiot posts. His most recent post about how to fix the World Cup is so dumb it can't even be considered an attempt at humor.

Three of his 10 points are about the vuvuzelas. I have heard of one, and only one, person who is not in the media complain about these things. It's what they do, it doesn't take away from the game so who cares? We know Rick hasn't watched any games so he is jumping on the bandwagon here.

He doesn't like stoppage time. He claims we have no idea when the game is going to end. Actually rick, there's a nice little number next to the clock that shows how much extra time is playing. The other advantage of stoppage time is the ref won't end a game when one team is on the attack. No we won't get your dramatic 3-2-1 buzzer beater, but we can get a full 30 seconds of a good attack that leads to a goal which is just as dramatic and exciting. Oh and guess what, if this does happen, the game would end on that "last second" shot.

ACSS World Cup Standings

These are the standings after each team has played two games.


Dave 15
Derek 13
Steve 11
Tim 11
Ryan 11
Mark 10
Colin 8
Dan 7




Dave Weir 15
Brazil 6
Greece 3
Paraguay 4
New Zealand 2

Mark Fodor 10
Spain 3
Uruguay 4
Denmark 3
North Korea 0

Derek Wilson 13
Italy 2
Mexico 4
Chile 6
Algeria 1

Ryan Parrent 11
Netherlands 6
Ivory Coast 1
Ghana 4
Honduras 0

Colin Newman/O'Shea 8
Argentina 6
Cameroon 0
Slovakia 1
South Africa 1

Steve Noffke 11
Germany 3
United States 2
Switzerland 3
South Korea 3

Tim Transon 11
Portugal 4
Serbia 3
Nigeria 0
Slovenia 4

Dan Noffke 7
England 2
France 1
Japan 3
Austrailia 1