The BCS and NFL Playoffs are becoming clear.

Wilson Football

In college games I went 8-1 bringing the season total to 31-15.

In pro games against the spread I went 1-4 bringing the total to 20-12.

College football:

#1 Oregon 15 California 13 – The Ducks ducked a close call to continue on the road to the BcS game. They survived to play #22 Arizona at home this week and at Oregon State next.

#2 Auburn 49 Georgia 31 – Tiger QB Newton played very well accounting for 4 scores. The Auburn D is a problem particularly in a possible game against a O like Oregon’s. Auburn will play #11 Alabama next week and #17 South Carolina in the SEC Championship game.

#3 TCU 40 San Diego St. 35 – TCU lost some ground against Boise with a close game against a good SDS team. They have no chance to recover that ground with only the 1 win New Mexico State team left on the schedule.

#4 Boise St. 52 Idaho 14 – Boise is in the best shape to sneak into the Big game if one of the top 2 fall. They have 6-3 Fresno State, #18 Nevada, and 4-6 Utah State.

#5 LSU 51 La. Monroe 0 – Read more at FryingPanSports

The NFL owners meeting produces little real news.

Fryingpan Sports

The NFL owners meeting produces little real news.

By Bill Smith

The NFL owners held their March meetings this week and very little of any real significance resulted.

Rule changes:

The changes the owners agreed upon were minor. Perhaps the most important was the change to the draft order. Beginning (and maybe ending unless the new agreement includes a draft) in 2010, the 20 non playoff teams will be ranked based on the existing formula that is based on record first then reverse of strength of schedule. The 12 playoff teams will be ranked based on how far they got in the playoffs.

The losers in the wild card round would be ranked by record and the reverse of strength of schedule. That group would be followed by the losers in the Divisional round, the losers in the conference championship games.

The second rule change is that quarterbacks will now wear pink tutus and are not allowed to be tackled. The defense will get credit for a sack by sticking a finger into the QB’s ear hole and tickling the ear. Just kidding! The defensive player will be called for a personal foul if he hits the … Read more at FryingPanSports

February 28th a giant date for the NFL.

Fryingpan Sports

February 28th a giant date for the NFL.

By Bill Smith

In one of his first public statements, the newly elected Executive Director of the NFL Players Association (NFLPA) DeMorris Smith gave hope to millions of NFL fans. Smith said that he wanted to get started on negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) as soon as possible. While no one should hold his breath, there is a chance that the NFLPA and the owners can come up with a system that is going to acceptable to everyone involved.

February 28th is a key date in both 2010 and 2011. If the two sides can come to agreement and the players ratify it before 2/28/10, the uncapped year could be avoided. There is enough money for everybody. The cap for 2009 was originally estimated to be around 105 million, due to the TV contracts and other increases in revenue, the new cap is now over 116 million per team. That also raises the minimum salary to nearly 99.5 million which is the amount every NFL team must spend on salaries and player bonuses.

There are a number of poison pills placed in the last year … Read more at FryingPanSports

Smith's election as Executive Director of the NFLPA is great news for NFL fans.

Fryingpan Sports

Smith’s election as Executive Director of the NFLPA is great news for NFL fans.

By Bill Smith

The NFL Players Association announced that attorney DeMorris Smith had been elected Executive Director unanimously by the team Player Reps. This is very good news for all NFL fans. It seems that the Reps have selected a moderate in Smith over the extreme positions of the other leading candidates.

Troy Vincent and Trace Armstrong were the best known candidates to fill the very large shoes of Gene Upshaw. Both of them were campaigning on a platform of a very hard line position against the NFL. Both had reportedly promised the players that they were the candidate that could finally bring guaranteed contracts to the NFL players. That would create a long and ugly strike/lockout that could cost the NFL several seasons. If the owners folded first, it would have created a league that would make Major League Baseball look organized.

While Smith’s positions on league issues are widely unknown, he has not made any overt public statements about what concessions he would demand from the league.

The NFLPA website says the following about Smith:

Smith, 45, is a trial lawyer and Read more at FryingPanSports

The NBA has to “bail out” 15 teams.

Fryingpan Sports

The NBA has to “bail out” 15 teams.

By Bill Smith

The Sports Business Journal (SBJ) reported that a private placement deal to borrow 175 million dollars was arranged for the N.B.A. by JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America. The charged interest rates are reported to be as high at 8.27 percent. The influx of cash will augment the 1.7 billion dollar league-wide credit facility that uses the NBA’s media contracts as collateral to secure loans for the clubs.

The money is necessary to provide cash to 15 NBA teams to cover payroll and other expenses. Those teams, unnamed by the league, have struggled with salaries, capital improvements, and to cover losses sustained over the last few years.

“In this economic environment, it’s tremendous that the league can place such a facility,” Alex Martins, chief operating officer of the Orlando Magic told the SBJ, which plans to borrow from the new debt. “It certainly helps us bridge the time period between now and when we move into our new events center in 2010. We’ve been operating at a $15 [million] to $20 million [annual] loss over the past half-dozen years, so it helps us” Martins told the SBJ.… Read more at FryingPanSports

A Few Good NFL Stories of 2008 season.

Fryingpan Sports

A Few Good NFL Stories of 2008 season.

By Bill Smith

While many of you will find this article a departure from the normal frying pan analysis, I wanted to give accolades to some of those I think deserve them.

Kurt Warner and the Arizona Cardinals—The Cards have been the flavor of the month for several preseasons. They have the best receiver combination in the league and a potential Hall of Fame QB. The Cards wining their division was not all that surprising. The NFC West has been a weak division for a while. But to beat the Falcons and then go and drill the heavily favored Panthers in their house was a shock. Now that the Eagles knocked off the Giants, the Cards may have a shot to go to the Super Bowl. Win or not, at least they have brought some success to the fans.

The Arizona Cardinal Defense, head coach Ken Whisenhunt and defensive coaches—Congratulations on your stealth defense. You made all of us think you were a middle of the road defense then suckered the Falcons and Panthers into believing that before you dominated them. It was either an acting job worthy … Read more at FryingPanSports