BLOGPOLL BALLOT, PREWEEK ONE: WE HATE THIS BALLOT

I thought I remembered South Carolina losing to South Carolina in a messy cockfight.

So South Carolina lost to Tennessee, Auburn and South Carolina last year? Damn, they were short on pixie dust.

If Michigan ends up #2 by the end of the year, i’ll eat my Ron Powlus/Joe Montana jersey.

Where’s Boise State?!? They have to get at least an ounce of love from the Fiesta Bowl, don’t they?

I like Duke at #25. That means UConn is beating a ranked opponent on Sept. 1.

Im so pissed there is no sound with that video. So Swindle are you the Bridge operator, or the Ship’s captain?

Corrected, dammit.

That’s just mean to lead South Cackalacka fans along like this.

You’ll revisit this after UGA wins another close one against the ’Cacks.

I’m going with:

UGA – 11.25
USC (no, the other one) – 10.003.

Orson, Orson, Orson……….. you have to quit holding back and tell us how you really feel about losing to Auburn last year

Was leaving UF off the list of close USCe losses intentional?

RABBLE RABBLE YOU ONLY RANKED MY TEAM #23 RABBLE RABBLE VENGENCE RABBLE NED RABBLE

and what the hell was that guy doing with the door on that boat…putting up a sign that says “back in 10 minutes” or something?

I hate seeing UM @ #2, for purely objective reasons, because there is no way I believe they are the 2nd best team in the country. At least I hope not, with a rebuilding defense, and an offense that has never been “dynamic” no matter how many returning “career stats leaders who have also never beaten OSU” they have coming back….

But then again, SOMEONE from the B10 will finish in the top5, and it’s either them, Wisconsin (meh), or OSU…I give up…

I’d also like to add that South Carolina’s 2nd half against Arkansas scared the beejeezus out of me and it might should count in the pixie dust deficiency department as well.

Some day, some day, Duke will be tolerably good at a sport other than basketball and competitive lawyering.

If anyone remembers we gave up two last second first have touchdowns to UT and Arky with a ball hitting off of our players and bouncing directly into the hands of their recievers standing in the endzone on hail mary plays. Not to mention that ball hitting Jared Cook in the chest with him being able to walk it in against Auburn. And of course FREAKING THREE BLOCKED KICKS, and one called back for a delay that I am not sure even a computer could have spotted to lose to UF

I know, I know, excuses excuses…you gotta admit though, we had some freakishly bad bounces last year.

13 -

They seem to be pretty good at lacrosse, no? And from the dozens of Dukies I ran into when my alma mater GW played them in the NCAA Tournament…no one can match the douchiness of Duke.

It might be crap, but its stench is eagerly anticipated every…single…year.

I have it on good authority that pixie dust doesn’t work on chickens, as their entire history of college football will indicate. On the bright side they get to beat one of the Big 3 this year. Bully!

Thank you, finally somone that doesn’t have LSU at #2. They will be a very good team but not #2. I belive West F’n Virginia should hold that spot.

West f’n Virginie still can’t cover a quadripalegic with spina bifida, and will lose at least once because of it.

Your man crush on Spurrier is out of control swindle. To say you practice it out in the open unapolegetically is an understatement. More like swinging the closet door open with pinache and proclaiming to the world " I can NEVER replace his picture on my blog. Even if Urban wins me two more championships and has dinner with me, for free!"

So you had your poll earlier this summer. Now here’s the blog poll with some minor edits. And of all teams, you don’t move Michigan. This poll isn’t crap, it’s a joke.

Michigan will end up 3rd in the Big Televen.

And your boy at M Zone is right, WVU needs to play someone out of conference to crack the top 5.

Steve-
Duke is not good at competitive lawyering. Their famous law alumni: R. Nixon, K. Starr, E. Dole and Tucker Max.

RE: Some day, some day, Duke will be tolerably good at a sport other than basketball and competitive lawyering.

Yea lacrosse, and How’s the golf team?

We now have well reasoned arguments for why Mich, LSU, and Wf’nVU shouldn’t be number 2, so does that mean Orson should move Texas to 2 and USC’lina to number 3?!?

Honestly I think he should go out on a limb and choose one of the teams between 8 and 14. I’d go with Oklahoma. Regardless, someone minorly surprising will have a monster year and end up in the title game.

Grr. Arrgh>. fist shake

We’re better than Oklahoma!

Alabama’s # 1 bitches, # 14 is on its way

I resemble that remark, Mr. Hoo.

Orson…you’re an A-hole…

Send my damn tag back….and clean it first…

:-)~~

To 21 -

Why is it West Virginia’s fault none of the “big boys” want to play them?

Rutgers is a different story because teams would love to crush them in recruit-rich Jersey but Rutgers is scared….but absolutely no one wants to deal with West F’in Virginia.

And Louisville was very public about the “big boys” running scared from playing them. Only a few big teams play tough games out of conference, you can name them on two hands, and I’m not counting teams that play Notre Dame every year. Teams like USC, Tennessee, Michigan, Florida State, Miami, Colorado, Washington and UCLA always have at least one killer non-traditional OOC game.

re #23, you sure you wanna take credit for that type of “success”?

And no ND in the 24 spot? We could smoke Missouri, just like everyone in the BXII south does.

Auburn unranked, huh?

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/contests/pontiac/?cmp=vanurl

1. - Speaking of which, anybody read that CNNSI fluff piece on Georgia’s Damon Evans and his desire to make Georgia a, “national brand,” by scheduling the likes of Az. State, Colorado, etc?

Perhaps Evans should stick to staying away from the coeds, instead.

Just because you have an attorney on the payroll as general counsel/univ attorney does not mean you should keep him tied up in keeping your AD out of hot water.

Auburn plays West fuckin’ Virginia in ’08 and ’09.

I need a favor can someone please post FSUs schedule as I am firewalled at work and cant pull it up. This is for sports investing purposes. The O/U for the season for them is 9 wins.

OT: mustache wednesday? One vote for Cheech Marin

Coop, I don’t keep up with the day to day news coming out of the athletic department in Athens, but seems like I would’ve heard about Evans being in trouble.

Edsall #30 – I respect what point you’re trying to make, but please try to explain it to me again. Who are all these teams that WV asks to play, but get turned down? Also, why is it that teams don’t get points from you for a tough in-conference schedule? Why do only OOC games count as “killer” in your book?
I agree I’m pushing your quote slightly out of context, but well within the impression I got of your intention.

most of the crap teams RU is playing were scheduled when Rutgers was also, indeed, pure shite. so let them do thier Kansas State cupcake diet for a while (or at least cut them some slack) and then start bashing them in a few years, altho by then i would bet shiano has them playing some stiffer comp.

Face Hitting the Fist Dept:

According to Youtube commentator:

“The bridge operator was drunk and lowered the bridge too soon, so technically the bridge hit the ship not the other way around.”

Regarding this poll, Florida and LSU are ranked too low, but I like where the two USCs and Notre Dame are ranked. (Namely, ND is outta sight.)

Prediction: The SEC schools will move in the polls during the first month as they play almost all nobodies, while everyone else will start “manning” up soon and knocking each other around the Top 25.

SKLM, I cannot wait to talk shit back here when ND beats USC this year. It will be a bright, sunny day in south bend. Not quite as nice as the 13 year unbeaten streak, but we’ll get back there eventually.

Edsall is god,

Go F’yourself. UConn may be even worse than Syracuse this year, and while Edsall may be able to coach I’d love to see him land a decent F’ing recruit.

Rutgers has tried to set up home and home’s with a number of big teams, including Michigan, but no-one will come to Piscataway. And at least we set up a series with ND starting in 2010 and running through 2017.

UConn fans are pretty big douches too, and sadly I expect you guys to embarrass the conference and lose to Duke in the opener.

Oh, and Orson… Rutgers should at least be somewhere between 20-25. How far out of the rankings do you have them?

#39

You are supposed to say the SEC minus Ga and Tenn.

[minor threadjack]]

My answer to last night’s question #3 is this guy: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=2986313

That is all.

[/end minor threadjack]

Dave K, we really have no desire to play you, and not because we’re scared that you’ll be good, but because you’d only pull down our BCS computer numbers. The only good thing about us playing Rutgers is that I can catch a bus from the port authority to get to the game at the Meadowlands instead of having to fly to the midwest.

Wooderson,

Right… with the direction the RU program is headed we’re definitely going to be a schedule downgrade for you guys. Whatever… I hope you guys do beat USC this year, maybe that will get you to six wins.

The problem Big East teams are facing isn’t that bigger name schools won’t play them. It’s that the bigger name schools want 2-for-1’s or even 3-for1’s instead of a home and home series.

Smack Time Dept:

1. - Wooderson: A bright sunny day in South Bend? Perhaps for USC fans when they stomp all over Chalie’s gang again this year.

ND will not beat USC this year, nor for the forseeable future. Stick with the Mickey Mouse teams you like to stack up on your yearly schedule.

Plus, all of your key players will probably be in jail or probation on booze, weed, or prostitution charges!

there they sit at number one for sheer lack of creativity or insight. Curses

Pre-season, Mr Swindle, the best that you can do is the “least implausible” ranking – it’s sort of like going by disproving the null hypothesis, but without the rigor. I think I’m on record about wanting to see some game results from the WRs and Fullbacks before I get too caught up in it all…

I cannot wait to talk shit back here when ND beats USC this year. It will be a bright, sunny day in south bend.

We shall see, Mr Wooderson, we shall see.

Not quite as nice as the 13 year unbeaten streak, but we’ll get back there eventually.

2019 at the earliest, I should think, provided that the game goes your way this season. And for that kind of sustained ass-kicking, you’re probably going to need a push (a Bush push?) in the form of the SC program going less supernova and more brown dwarf… in which case Kenny Irons will show up at Heritage Hall with his suitcase for a little brown sugar action, no doubt.

SKLM, when we have 1/10th the arrests that Southern Cal has had, and when our players start yelling “We own the police” at parties, then you can talk to me about discipline problems. Until then, rest assured you’re going down.

Dave, sorry bud, but yeah, Rutgers is a scheduling downgrade.

Wooderson

I can’t believe a ND fan is talking trash after their performance in big games lately, but I’ll bite. Is that 13 year streak more or less impressive than Notre Dame’s current bowl losing streak?

I, personally, would go with less impressive. I think Notre Dame has shown an ability to be dominated by a wide variety of opponents in the latest streak and versatility is important.

What are your thoughts?

To Dave K. (42),

I will NOT TOLERATE the besmirching of Coach Randy “God” Edsall. UConn was a terrible I-AA team before he showed up. He is, was and will always be God for getting us to a bowl game and making us even a little competitive. He has landed some good recruits, our RB Donald Brown will prove that this year, and he has a knack for finding good defensive players. If Terry Caulley doesn’t blow out his knee, we would have made a bowl in 2004 and kept the momentum going. Big things poppin this year…

As for Rutgers, I don’t live in Jersey so I don’t know how agressive they’ve been in scheduling but I know WFVU & Louisville have been and made big stinks about the big boys turning them down. Kudos to Auburn for signing up to play WFVU. Rutgers is hampered by their smallish building but why can’t they play someone like Michigan at Giants Stadium (or the new building) as a home game to entice them? Like Michigan wouldn’t want that spotlight?

UConn students are douches, but in the meathead department as opposed to Duke’s pretentious variety of douches.

If they lose to Duke week one, Edsall may be a mere mortal.

I would just like to go on record as saying that Notre Dame will suck a mighty wind this year (not to be confused with the way their recently departed QB sucks a mighty cock). That is all.

Wooderson,

Sorry buddy …you have exactly 3 teams ranked ahead of Rutgers on your schedule this year. Who’s it a downgrade from, Stanford? Your schedule blows as it is and your team still has a chance to lose seven games this year so maybe you should talk a little less shit.

09/01 Ga Tech 3:30 PM
09/08 at #17 Penn State 6:00 PM
09/15 at #5 Michigan 3:30 PM
09/22 Mich St 3:30 PM
09/29 at Purdue TBD
10/06 at #14 UCLA 8:00 PM
10/13 BC 3:30 PM
10/20 #1 USC 3:30 PM
11/03 Navy 2:30 PM
11/10 Air Force 2:30 PM
11/17 Duke 2:30 PM
11/24 at Stanford 3:30 PM

HA I think the Navy game will decide their bowl eligibility.

Yeah …If ND loses to GT in the opener I think they’ll have AT LEAST six losses going into Navy. Be nice to see either MSU or Purdue take them out too to get to seven losses.

Dave, tell me again who you play that’s any good? Louisville an WfVU?

You’re playing Norfolk State (1-AA) and Army, along with UConn, Cinci, and Syracuse.

Pardon me if I do’nt consider that a murderer’s row of half your season. I’d take Navy over all of them.

Nd will win 9 games minimum this year, etch it in stone.

I can’t speak to SKLM’s sched, they play good teams.

i think notre dame’s strategy this year should be to keep choppin wood. it is a strategy that has worked before for other programs and ND will really need a good plan this year.

I expected to see a poll with USC at #’s 1,2, and 3 by now and yet I am still left hanging.

Wooderson…

I didn’t say our schedule was any good. In fact, I hate it. All I was noting was that Rutgers will be far from a downgrade for your own schedule.

And we are in the process of upgrading our schedule… but as Paco pointed out its hard when teams want 2 for 1 and 3 for 1 deals. We are adding another 12,000 seats to the stadium so perhaps that will help.

Also, if ND wins nine games Patron shots are on me.

What’s so bad about ND’s schedule? 8 of their first 9 are against bowl teams. They play three top 15ish teams (PSU, UM & UCLA) on the road by mid-October and they play the consenus #1 team in the land. What’s wrong with that? Just because they end with three straight cupcakes doesn’t mean the whole schedule is easy.

Edsall,

No one said it was easy. I just said that having RU on there wouldn’t be a downgrade.

Considering they could lose to any and all of the first nine teams I wouldn’t say its easy at all.

Put simply, ND eats its cupcakes after the main meal, while everyone else is busy filling up before the Turkey hits the table.

#20….to be fair, Urban Meyer never won a Heisman trophy while wearing Gator Orange and Blue. Urban Meyer could win ten national championships, and he’ll still be considered the second best coach ever at Florida.

Regarding the poll, where the hell is Mississippi State? Don’t make Coach Croom come in here and smite you all with his voice.

SKLM – #40 – I can’t hate too much because of the love you showed USCe’s #6 ranking and you’re desire to see a USC-USC MNC game. BUT how are LSU and UGA nobodies with regards to USCe’s opening month schedule. While I’ll grant you the SC legislature-demanded USCe – SC State game is bullshit, I’ll trade UL-Laf for Idaho any day and well, comparing Wash, Nebraska and Wash St to UGA and LSU is just plain silly. If memory serves (no promises) USCe and USCw trade places at 2nd toughest strength of schedule in the country in most of the published polls. Obviously, USCw’s schedule must get tougher after their opening month.

Wooderson, your talk of cupcakes, turkey, and main meals is making Weiss’ belly growl so loud I can hear out here on the west coast.

I love seeing all the ND drones beat their chests before the season starts, telling the world how relevant they are. If this year goes like the past 5-7 seasons (which it will) the Ty Willingham excuses will begin to flood these here internets.

Rex, we won’t need to yell so loudly about the Ty willingham excuses when Washington goes 2-10. TYhen everyone will just say “Oh, I’m so sorry, I never realized.”

Keep in mind, we have 7 seniors on the team in total. The man sucked as a recruiter, and his current recruiting shenanigans in Seattle back that up.

I’m saying we’ll win 9 games despite the handicap.

And if we weren’t relevant, people wouldn’t spend so much time knocking us.

“Not relevant” would be someone like, I dunno, Arizona, who I don’t think I’ve heard mentioned once lately (no offense to UA, they play basketball better than football).

Apparently, Relevant = Undeserved Media Attention

I think that video wins the YouTube.

i woulda done a top 35.

Rick, we didn’t ask espn to devote so much time to us. they did it because they know it’d get people like you riled up to tune in and watch them bash us.

The only time I watch ESPN anymore is when they show a game I want to watch.

Not relevant = bringing up your own team after 30 posts because no one else cared they weren’t mentioned in the poll.

In all seriousness I think you end up with 8 wins this year (none against top teams or in a bowl) and Weiss’ genius label will begin to wear thin. Kind of like the leather in his belt. You know that shit is straining!

Can we have a blogpoll for best new football promos? ‘Cause I think Minnesota finally has come up with one that’s actually pretty good:

This Is Gopher Nation

#26

No, you’re not. Wisconsin plays in the Big Televen, and thus, by law, all of your players are white and slow. All of Oklahoma’s players are black and fast. Thus, you are not better than us.

Now if you’ll let me take my OU homer hat off and put my ND homer hat on…

ND will be lucky to go 6-6 this year. This is coming from an alum (well, a grad school alum). We will suck, and suck hard. However, we will pull out one—and only one—major upset.

So when they ask Saban for his coaches’ poll vote, does he tell them personally “IDHTFTS” or does he have his SID do it?

I don’t understand the Okie State hype. Y’all do realize they lost six games last year, including to Kansas State and Houston. Even if they have this great offense, their defense is awful: 34, 31, 32, 34, 29, 36, 24, 30, 27, 31. Thats PPG allowed in their final ten games, not Mike Gundy’s late few nines on Golden Tee. Granted, my team’s defense is no better, but I don’t see us universally acclaimed as a top 20 program.

ND will win nine games-but it will take two seasons.

No way Wake Forest should be ranked behind Florida State. I love how their fans think by simply replacing Jeff Bowden with Jimbo Fisher that they’re magically transformed into the conference champion. Your QB’s are still Weatherford and Lee. Good luck with that.

Dayum.

Washington plays 5 teams on that there little top 25 list, none of which are named Duke. Boise State as well for the cherry on the Sunday.

As for Wooderson – the problems at ND go far deeper than Tyrone Willingham and you damned well know it. It is not the destination it used to be, and it’s lack of conference affiliation is hurting it.

You have what, one more year to blame everything on Ty’s recruits, right? What happens after that?

As an Oregon fan, I have to say that you have the Ducks ranked too high. Can’t believe none of the geniuses above missed mentioning it.

Counting Game Cocks Before They Hatch Dept:

1. - Out of Conference: It would be good to have Spurrier go against Carroll in the MNC game. But, USCe has to get by Florida, LSU and other tough games first. While, USCw has to avoid getting tripped up in the Pac 10 like last year by ucla and other hungry hippos. Though, I would prefer LSU in the MNC game against USCw, since beating that jerk Lester “The Molester” Miles would be preferable.

ND City: Seems to me ND has not recovered from the George O’Leary fiasco, followed later by the Urban Meyer leaving ND at the altar bit** slap a few years later. ND is lucky Ty came in and restored order for a year or so.

I guarantee you in 10 years, ND fans will still somehow blame Ty Whillingham for the mediocrity that ND football has become and they will still be waiting for Charlie Weis wake up them !@##$% echos.

once again the MGO blog has failed to invite the sedge court journal. Bogus.

I’d just like to point out that Willingham managed to win at Stanford. He’s not the evil incarnate that ND fans make him out to be. There was a coach or two that preceeded him that helped with the slide . . .

Could Alabama and ND just play each other every week? As both their fan bases are convinced they are the greatest teams ever to grace God’s green earth, they can battle it out with each other for world domination. That way none of the rest of us have to listen to their delusional blabbering . . .

Applause, Kipp, applause.

Great post, Kipp. It’s really hard to believe that Stanford is only 8 years removed from their last PAC-10 title. The only other coach to win one there in the past 30+ years- Bill Freaking Walsh.

Kipp,
I’d like to point out that Willingham only managed to win at Stanford for one year. It was probably the worst year in the history of the PAC10. Willingham was 11-13 his last two years at ND. Weis is 19-6. Are you really trying to say that Willingham is a good coach? The only delusional people are the ones who continue to believe that a coach with a .500 career record is good. He sucks.

83 -

Willingham was a bad coach because ND blew so many close games they should not have lost. His last year alone, they lost two games (BC & Pitt) that were absolutely agonizing.

The reason Weis is reaching God status for the Domers is that his teams win the games they’re supposed to. Sure, a win over USC or Ohio/LSU in a bowl game would be nice, but it just feels like it’s going happen. The teams with Weis have proven a knack for winning the tight, close games (see UCLA last year, Stanford & Michigan in 2005). In fact, Weis is the first ND coach since Holtz that has his team actually crushing inferior opponents.

I say all this with a Domer of a family (dad, uncle, cousins, etc.) and they’re just happy Notre Dame is GOOD again. They want the national title but understand it’s coming in a few years. At least they feel like it’s coming. With Ty, you felt like mediocrity was the way it would always be.

Thank Edsall for Charlie Weis!

Salty Dog, how on earth does lack of conference affiliation hurt us? It’s the one thing that makes you all hate us more.

We’ll know in 9 days where the situation lies.

Doubting Thomas Dept:

1. - Edsall:

Coming from a family of a bunch of Notre Damers it is amazing for me to believe that they are happy with ND.

I would be happy after winning a game against a ranked rival, or any kind of bowl game or some team of note besides our much admired Academies that are made up of purely high ranking academic-type kids.

No, ND, your players are not in the same category, since they are just like every other college football factory, so there!

SKLM, our players have slightly better typing and grammar skills than the Grand Marques.

Wooderson: You are probably right, but I bet your football players cannot rhyme as well as the Grand M, who seems to have an Ebonic vocabulary much more extensive than most…

SKLM, one wonders if that’s the sort of life skill one should be picking up at a so-called institute of higher learning.

I bet the Marques got his grades up at the Testing for Higher Credentials center.