BETology 2/20

The Rant will be your daily site to find out exactly how your team stacks up against the rest of the conference as we creep closer to the Big East Tournament in New York City, which begins March 12th.

STANDINGS:

Marquette Golden Eagles 10-3
2-23 @ Villanova
2-25 vs Syracuse
3-2 vs Notre Dame
3-5 @ Rutgers
3-9 @ St. John’s

Georgetown Hoyas 9-3

2-20 vs DePaul
2-23 @ Syracuse
2-27 @ UCONN
3-2 vs Rutgers
3-6 @ Villanova
3-9 vs Syracuse

Syracuse Orange 9-3

2-20 vs Providence
2-23 vs Georgetown
2-25 @ Marquette
3-2 vs Louisville
3-6 vs DePaul
3-9 @ Georgetown

Louisville Cardinal 9-4

2-23 vs Seton Hall
2-27 @ DePaul
3-2 @ Syracuse
3-4 vs Cincinnati
3-9 vs Notre Dame

Notre Dame Fighting Irish 9-5

2-24 vs Cincinnati
3-2 @ Marquette
3-5 vs St. John’s
3-9 @ Louisville

UCONN Huskies 7-5

2-21 vs Cincinnati
2-23 @ DePaul
2-27 vs Georgetown
3-2 @ Cincinnati
3-6 @ South Florida
3-9 vs Providence

Pittsburgh Panthers 8-6

2-24 @ St. John’s
2-27 vs South Florida
3-3 vs Villanova
3-9 @ DePaul

Villanova Wildcats 8-6

2-23 vs Marquette
2-25 @ Seton Hall
3-3 @ Pitt
3-6 vs Georgetown

St. John’s Red Storm 7-6

2-20 vs South Florida
2-24 vs Pitt
3-2 @ Providence
3-5 @ Notre Dame
3-9 vs Marquette

Cincinnati Bearcats 7-6

2-21 @ UCONN
2-24 @ Notre Dame
3-2 vs UCONN
3-4 @ Louisville
3-9 vs South Florida

Providence Friars 6-7

2-20 @ Syracuse
2-23 @ Rutgers
3-2 vs St. John’s
3-5 vs Seton Hall
3-9 @ UCONN

Rutgers Scarlet Knights 4-10

2-23 vs Providence
3-2 @ Georgetown
3-5 vs Marquette
3-8 @ Seton Hall

DePaul Blue Demons 2-10
2-20 @ Georgetown
2-23 vs UCONN
2-27 vs Louisville
3-3 @ South Florida
3-6 @ Syracuse
3-9 vs Pitt

Seton Hall Pirates 2-12

2-23 @ Louisville
2-25 vs Villanova
3-5 @ Providence
3-8 vs Rutgers

South Florida Bulls 1-12

2-20 @ St. John’s
2-27 @ Pitt
3-3 vs DePaul
3-6 vs UCONN
3-9 @ Cincinnati

YESTERDAYS RECAP:

Marquette- 67

Seton Hall- 46
Tied at the half, Marquette scored 40 in the second half and cruised to their 2^nd straight win.  Marquette moves a half a game ahead of Syracuse and Georgetown for 1^st place in the conference.  Marquette plays a second straight road game when they got to Philadelphia and play Villanova on Saturday.  A win against Nova would set up a 1^st place showdown with Syracuse on Big Monday next week in Milwaukee.  Seton Hall needs to win out and have Providence lose the rest of their games to avoid playing on Tuesday in the Big East Tournament.

TODAY:

Providence @ Syracuse
7:00pm ESPN2

South Florida @ St. John’s

7:00pm ESPN Regional

DePaul @ Georgetown

7:00pm ESPN Regional

THIS WEEKS GAMES:

Thursday:
Cincinnati @ UCONN, 7:00pm ESPN

Saturday:

Seton Hall @ Louisville, NOON ESPN Regional
Georgetown @ Syracuse, 4:00pm CBS
Marquette @ Villanova, 6:00pm ESPN2
UCONN @ DePaul, 8:00pm ESPN Regional
Providence @ Rutgers, 9:00pm ESPNU

Sunday:

Pitt @ St. John’s, NOON ESPN Regional
Cincinnati @ Notre Dame, 2:00pm CBS

Monday:

Syracuse @ Marquette, 7:00pm ESPN
Villanova @ Seton Hall, 9:00pm ESPNU

BETology:

TUESDAY March 12th:

7:00pm
12 – DePaul
Vs
13 – Seton Hall

9:00pm

11 – Rutgers
Vs
14 – South Florida

WEDNESDAY March 13th:

NOON
8 – St. John’s
Vs
9 - Cincinnati

2:00

5 – Notre Dame
Vs
Tuesday 7:00 winner

7:00

7 – Villanova
Vs
10 - Providence

9:00

6 – Pitt
Vs
Tuesday 9:00 winner

THURSDAY March 14th:

NOON
1 – Marquette
Vs
Wednesday NOON winner

2:00

4 – Louisville
Vs
Wednesday 2:00 winner

7:00

2 – Georgetown
Vs
Wednesday 7:00 winner

9:00

3 – Syracuse
Vs
Wednesday 9:00 winner

Check back tomorrow for another update!

BETology 2/19

The Rant will be your daily site to find out exactly how your team stacks up against the rest of the conference as we creep closer to the Big East Tournament in New York City, which begins March 12th.

STANDINGS:
Georgetown Hoyas 9-3
2-20 vs DePaul
2-23 @ Syracuse
2-27 @ UCONN
3-2 vs Rutgers
3-6 @ Villanova
3-9 vs Syracuse

Syracuse Orange 9-3

2-20 vs Providence
2-23 vs Georgetown
2-25 @ Marquette
3-2 vs Louisville
3-6 vs DePaul
3-9 @ Georgetown

Marquette Golden Eagles 9-3

2-19 @ Seton Hall
2-23 @ Villanova
2-25 vs Syracuse
3-2 vs Notre Dame
3-5 @ Rutgers
3-9 @ St. John’s

Louisville Cardinal 9-4

2-23 vs Seton Hall
2-27 @ DePaul
3-2 @ Syracuse
3-4 vs Cincinnati
3-9 vs Notre Dame

Notre Dame Fighting Irish 9-5

2-24 vs Cincinnati
3-2 @ Marquette
3-5 vs St. John’s
3-9 @ Louisville

UCONN Huskies 7-5

2-21 vs Cincinnati
2-23 @ DePaul
2-27 vs Georgetown
3-2 @ Cincinnati
3-6 @ South Florida
3-9 vs Providence

Pittsburgh Panthers 8-6

2-24 @ St. John’s
2-27 vs South Florida
3-3 vs Villanova
3-9 @ DePaul

Villanova Wildcats 8-6

2-23 vs Marquette
2-25 @ Seton Hall
3-3 @ Pitt
3-6 vs Georgetown

St. John’s Red Storm 7-6
2-20 vs South Florida
2-24 vs Pitt
3-2 @ Providence
3-5 @ Notre Dame
3-9 vs Marquette

Cincinnati Bearcats 7-6

2-21 @ UCONN
2-24 @ Notre Dame
3-2 vs UCONN
3-4 @ Louisville
3-9 vs South Florida

Providence Friars 6-7

2-20 @ Syracuse
2-23 @ Rutgers
3-2 vs St. John’s
3-5 vs Seton Hall
3-9 @ UCONN

Rutgers Scarlet Knights 4-10

2-23 vs Providence
3-2 @ Georgetown
3-5 vs Marquette
3-8 @ Seton Hall

DePaul Blue Demons 2-10
2-20 @ Georgetown
2-23 vs UCONN
2-27 vs Louisville
3-3 @ South Florida
3-6 @ Syracuse
3-9 vs Pitt

Seton Hall Pirates 2-11

2-19 vs Marquette
2-23 @ Louisville
2-25 vs Villanova
3-5 @ Providence
3-8 vs Rutgers

South Florida Bulls 1-12

2-20 @ St. John’s
2-27 @ Pitt
3-3 vs DePaul
3-6 vs UCONN
3-9 @ Cincinnati

YESTERDAYS RECAP:

Notre Dame- 51
Pittsburgh- 42
Notre Dame is now 4-1 against ranked teams this season, but maybe more importantly is just 1 game out of the 4^th seed after a 51-42 win in Pittsburgh yesterday.  The Irish started out sluggish making just 1 of their first 18 shots, but they cut a 16 point Pitt lead to just 3 at the half.  Notre Dame outscored Pitt 32-22 after the break.  Pitt shot 9-30 after taking a 19-3 lead in the 1^st half, including go 0-8 from 3 point range.  Pitt has now dropped 2 straight games in league play and travel to New York to take on St. John’s Sunday afternoon.  Pitt is currently just a half a game ahead of the Johnnies.

Villanova- 71

Rutgers- 63
Villanova used a 50 point 2^nd half to turn a 10 point halftime deficit into an 8 point home victory against the Scarlet Knights.  The Wildcats have now won 4 out of 5 and are tied with Pitt for the 6^th seed in the Big East.  Pitt owns the tie breaker as of now, but Villanova still plays the Panthers again the first week in March.  Rutgers failed to score 70 for the 9^th straight game and will have to beat Providence on Saturday if they hope to have any shot at not playing in the opening round of the Big East Tournament.

TODAY:

Marquette @ Seton Hall
7:00pm, ESPN Regional

THIS WEEKS GAMES:

Wednesday:

Providence @ Syracuse, 7:00pm ESPN2
South Florida @ St. John’s, 7:00pm ESPN Regional
DePaul @ Georgetown, 7:00pm ESPN Regional

Thursday:

Cincinnati @ UCONN, 7:00pm ESPN

Saturday:

Seton Hall @ Louisville, NOON ESPN Regional
Georgetown @ Syracuse, 4:00pm CBS
Marquette @ Villanova, 6:00pm ESPN2
UCONN @ DePaul, 8:00pm ESPN Regional
Providence @ Rutgers, 9:00pm ESPNU

Sunday:

Pitt @ St. John’s, NOON ESPN Regional
Cincinnati @ Notre Dame, 2:00pm CBS

BETology:

TUESDAY March 12th:

7:00pm
12 – DePaul
Vs
13 – Seton Hall

9:00pm

11 – Rutgers
Vs
14 – South Florida

WEDNESDAY March 13th:

NOON
8 – St. John’s
Vs
9 - Cincinnati

2:00

5 – Notre Dame
Vs
Tuesday 7:00 winner

7:00

7 – Villanova
Vs
10 - Providence

9:00

6 – Pitt
Vs
Tuesday 9:00 winner

THURSDAY March 14th:

NOON

1 – Georgetown
Vs
Wednesday NOON winner

2:00

4 – Louisville
Vs
Wednesday 2:00 winner

7:00

2 – Syracuse
Vs
Wednesday 7:00 winner

9:00

3 – Marquette
Vs
Wednesday 9:00 winner

Check back tomorrow for another update!

BETology 2/18

We are just 1 month away from Selection Sunday, so what better time to start The Rants annual look at the Big East Tournament.  There are only 14 teams playing in the BET this season with the departure of WVU and with UCONN ineligible for post-season play, but the conference race might be tighter than ever.  The Rant will be your daily place to find out exactly how your team stacks up against the rest of the conference as we creep closer to the BET in New York City, which begins March 12th.

STANDINGS:

Georgetown Hoyas 9-3
2-20 vs DePaul
2-23 @ Syracuse
2-27 @ UCONN
3-2 vs Rutgers
3-6 @ Villanova
3-9 vs Syracuse

Syracuse Orange 9-3

2-20 vs Providence
2-23 vs Georgetown
2-25 @ Marquette
3-2 vs Louisville
3-6 vs DePaul
3-9 @ Georgetown

Marquette Golden Eagles 9-3

2-19 @ Seton Hall
2-23 @ Villanova
2-25 vs Syracuse
3-2 vs Notre Dame
3-5 @ Rutgers
3-9 @ St. John’s

Louisville Cardinal 9-4

2-23 vs Seton Hall
2-27 @ DePaul
3-2 @ Syracuse
3-4 vs Cincinnati
3-9 vs Notre Dame

Pittsburgh Panthers 8-5
2-18 vs Notre Dame
2-24 @ St. John’s
2-27 vs South Florida
3-3 vs Villanova
3-9 @ DePaul

Notre Dame Fighting Irish 8-5

2-18 @ Pitt
2-24 vs Cincinnati
3-2 @ Marquette
3-5 vs St. John’s
3-9 @ Louisville

UCONN Huskies 7-5

2-21 vs Cincinnati
2-23 @ DePaul
2-27 vs Georgetown
3-2 @ Cincinnati
3-6 @ South Florida
3-9 vs Providence

Villanova Wildcats 7-6

2-18 vs Rutgers
2-23 vs Marquette
2-25 @ Seton Hall
3-3 @ Pitt
3-6 vs Georgetown

Cincinnati Bearcats 7-6
2-21 @ UCONN
2-24 @ Notre Dame
3-2 vs UCONN
3-4 @ Louisville
3-9 vs South Florida

St. John’s Red Storm 7-6

2-20 vs South Florida
2-24 vs Pitt
3-2 @ Providence
3-5 @ Notre Dame
3-9 vs Marquette

Providence Friars 6-7

2-20 @ Syracuse
2-23 @ Rutgers
3-2 vs St. John’s
3-5 vs Seton Hall
3-9 @ UCONN

Rutgers Scarlet Knights 4-9

2-18 @ Villanova
2-23 vs Providence
3-2 @ Georgetown
3-5 vs Marquette
3-8 @ Seton Hall

DePaul Blue Demons 2-10
2-20 @ Georgetown
2-23 vs UCONN
2-27 vs Louisville
3-3 @ South Florida
3-6 @ Syracuse
3-9 vs Pitt

Seton Hall Pirates 2-11

2-19 vs Marquette
2-23 @ Louisville
2-25 vs Villanova
3-5 @ Providence
3-8 vs Rutgers

South Florida Bulls 1-12
2-20 @ St. John’s
2-27 @ Pitt
3-3 vs DePaul
3-6 vs UCONN
3-9 @ Cincinnati

WEEKEND RECAP:

SATURDAY:

Providence- 71

Notre Dame- 54
Providence never trailed in their upset win over Notre Dame.  The Friars were paced by a game high 20 points from Kadeem Batts as well as getting a near triple double from Vincent Council, who finished with 7 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds.  Providence held the Irish to under 40% shooting and just 1 of 14 from 3 point range.  Things don’t get any easier for Notre Dame as they still have 3 more games on the road in conference play, where they are only 3-3 this season.  All 5 of the remaining games on the Irish schedule come against teams that are over .500 in Big East play.  For Providence, the win puts them 2 games up on the bottom 4 in the conference and helps them avoid playing Tuesday in New York.  The Friars still have games against Seton Hall and Rutgers remaining on their schedule, winning both of those would clinch the Friars getting a 1^st day bye in the BET.

Villanova- 70

UCONN- 61
Villanova gained a much needed road victory over UCONN dominating them in the paint outrebounding the Huskies 41-25 including 20-5 on the offensive glass.  Villanova, who trailed by 3 at the break but outscored UCONN 40-28 in the 2^nd half, now sits at 7-6 in the conference.  Nova has 3 of their 5 remaining games at home, but 2 of those 3 are against Marquette and Georgetown, who are tied atop the conference at this point.  As for UCONN, despite being ineligible to participate in the Big East Tournament, they will still play a big role in the seeding for the tournament.  UCONN still plays Georgetown once and Cincinnati twice in their final 5 games.
 
Marquette- 79
Pitt- 69
Marquette is tied for 1^st place in the Big East at 9-3 and now holds a 1.5 game lead over Pitt and Notre Dame to secure a double bye in the Big East Tournament.  The Golden Eagle beat the Panthers for the 2^nd time this season.  Marquette entered the game shooting a league worst 29% from 3 point range, but made 5 of 8 attempts in the 1^st half to jump out to a 13 point halftime lead.  The Golden Eagles out rebounded Pitt by 8 and shot 56.5% from the field for the game, becoming the 1^st team in 49 games to score 75+ points against the Panthers.  Both Marquette and Pitt have some tough games down the stretch.  Marquette plays their next two on the road, before coming home to play Syracuse and Notre Dame.  Pitt has Notre Dame and St. John’s this week, before finishing with Villanova and South Florida at home and DePaul on the road.

DePaul- 75

Rutgers- 69
In a battle of Big East bottom dwellers, the Blue Demons snapped their 9 game losing streak with a home win against Rutgers.  With the Rutgers loss, both teams are almost assuredly going to be playing on Tuesday in New York.  The top 10 teams in the conference get Tuesday off this year in NYC and Rutgers is now 2 games out of 10^th place and DePaul is 2 games back of Rutgers.

Syracuse- 76

Seton Hall- 65
The Orange have lost 4 games this season, all away from the Carrier Dome.  Saturday could have been #5, but Syracuse did what good teams do, win games even when you don’t play your best.  The good news for Syracuse, who holds a share of 1^st place with Marquette and Georgetown, is that they play 4 of their final 6 in the dome.  However, the 2 they do play on the road are against those 2 teams they are tied with a top the conference.  The loss for Seton Hall is their 7^th straight after starting 2-4 in conference play.  Seton Hall sits 14^th in the conference standings at the moment (#13 seed with UCONN ineligible) and would have to win out to get out of a Tuesday evening game in New York.

SUNDAY:

Louisville- 59

South Florida- 41
Louisville took advantage of both Notre Dame and Pitt losing on Saturday to get a little separation in the standings with a win at South Florida.  The Cardinals now hold a 1 game lead over those 2 teams for the 4^th seed and double bye in New York.  Louisville has now won 5 of 6 since losing 3 straight in mid-January.  The Cardinals also have a favorable schedule the rest of the way out, with games against Seton Hall and DePaul as the next two opponents for Louisville.  South Florida has now lost 8 in a row and are all alone in last place in the conference with just 1 Big East win.  With 5 games remaining the Bulls have already clinched a spot on the schedule for Tuesday night in New York.

TODAY:

Notre Dame @ Pitt
7:00pm ESPN

Rutgers @ Villanova

9:00pm ESPNU

THIS WEEKS GAMES:

Tuesday:
Marquette @ Seton Hall, 7:00pm ESPN Regional

Wednesday:

Providence @ Syracuse, 7:00pm ESPN2
South Florida @ St. John’s, 7:00pm ESPN Regional
DePaul @ Georgetown, 7:00pm ESPN Regional

Thursday:

Cincinnati @ UCONN, 7:00pm ESPN

Saturday:
Seton Hall @ Louisville, NOON ESPN Regional
Georgetown @ Syracuse, 4:00pm CBS
Marquette @ Villanova, 6:00pm ESPN2
UCONN @ DePaul, 8:00pm ESPN Regional
Providence @ Rutgers, 9:00pm ESPNU

Sunday:

Pitt @ St. John’s, NOON ESPN Regional
Cincinnati @ Notre Dame, 2:00pm CBS

BETology:

TUESDAY March 12th:

7:00pm
12 – DePaul
Vs
13 – Seton Hall

9:00pm

11 – Rutgers
Vs
14 – South Florida

WEDNESDAY March 13th:

NOON
8 – Cincinnati
Vs
9 - St. John’s

2:00pm

5 – Pitt
Vs
Tuesday 7:00 winner
 
7:00pm
7 – Villanova
Vs
10 - Providence

9:00pm

6 – Notre Dame
Vs
Tuesday 9:00 winner

THURSDAY March 14th:

NOON
1 – Georgetown
Vs
Wednesday NOON winner

2:00pm

4 – Louisville
Vs
Wednesday 2:00 winner

7:00pm

2 – Syracuse
Vs
Wednesday 7:00 winner

9:00pm

3 – Marquette
Vs
Wednesday 9:00 winner

Check back tomorrow for another update!

The Tarnished Trophy

The Heisman Trophy will be awarded tonight for the 77^th time in its history.  According to the Heisman Trust Mission Statement, it will be presented to “the outstanding college football player whose performance best exhibits the pursuit of excellence with integrity. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard work. The Heisman Trophy Trust ensures the continuation and integrity of this award.”  Reading this was news to me because growing up, I always thought that the Heisman Trophy was awarded to the best player in college football.  Recently, that too has changed to giving the award to the best player on the best team in college football. 

For this reason, the Heisman Trophy, which was once the single greatest individual trophy in all of sports, has now become ordinary.

In all likelihood, Johnny Football, Johnny Manziel to those of you new to this freshman phenom, will win tonight, as he should.  I have no problem with him winning.  My problem is with the player who many think could pull the upset, Manti Te’o.  Now, maybe my issue should be with the Heisman committee and their voters instead of with Te’o himself.  As I said, the Heisman Trophy used to be awarded to the best player in college football who held those traits and qualities mentioned in the Heisman Trust Mission Statement.  Now, they give it to the best player on one of the top ranked teams.

Manti Te’o had a very nice season this year, and did it all with a heavy heart after losing his grandmother and girlfriend within a 24 hour span.  I get that.  That being said, he isn’t the best linebacker in football, let alone the best player in the nation.  He was the middle linebacker on the best defense in the country and averaged just 4.33 solo tackles a game, which does not rank in the top 100 nationally (The NCAA only ranks top 100).  Te’o also ranks 59^th in the nation in total tackles with 103.  That is 63 tackles behind the nation’s leader.  As for interceptions, yes, he does have 7 this season, which is more than any other linebacker in the nation, and only 1 other player has more.  That player is Phillip Thomas from Fresno State, who returned 3 of those 8 picks for scores.  Thomas also has more solo tackles than Te’o this year.  Why wasn’t he invited to New York?  If the trophy is given to the best player, one would think Thomas would be invited before Te’o.  No?

Let’s try this blind comparison.

PLAYER A:
Tackles - 103
Sacks - 1.5
Interceptions - 7
Tackles for Loss - 5.5 for 19 yards
QB Hurries - 4
Forced Fumbles - 0
Fumbles Recovered - 2

PLAYER B:
Tackles - 125
Sacks - 5.5
Interceptions - 2
Tackles for Loss - 10.5 for 48 yards
QB Hurries - 8
Forced Fumbles - 6
Fumbles Recovered - 2

Player A is Notre Dame LB and Heisman Finalist Manti Te’o.  Player B is the 2-time Big East Player of the Year, Khaseem Greene, a linebacker from Rutgers.  The numbers speak for themselves.  For what it’s worth, Rutgers allowed 14.25 points per game, good enough for 4^th best in the nation, and they finished with a 9-3 record and unranked.

Again, I hate the way this award is now given to the player with the most publicity who plays for a great team.  Nowhere in the Heisman mission statement does it say the “most valuable” or “leader,” yet that is the voters’ current interpretation for the award.

In 1985, Bo Jackson’s senior year at Auburn they finished 8-4 and unranked.  In 1988, Barry Sanders starred on a team outside the Top 10 at Oklahoma State.  Neither of those two players would have won the Heisman Trophy had the voters used the same mentality then, which they use now.  More recently, in one of the biggest Heisman snubs in history, Jason White, the quarterback of the #1 ranked Oklahoma Sooners, was awarded the Heisman over Larry Fitzgerald, star wide receiver of the 8-4 Pitt Panthers. I would love to go back and hear from the voters who voted for White that year over Fitzgerald.

The Heisman is a joke anymore.  It lives off its history and is no longer as prestigious as it once was.  That is unfortunate, because at one point in history, it truly meant something special to win the Heisman Trophy.