Home     Log in    XML, RSS Subscribe Feed (RSS)     XML, RSS Comments Feed

Posts Tagged ‘Ohio State’

Week 2: Are You Convinced Yet?

September 9th, 2010 by Matthew C. Keegan | 1 Comment | Filed in Collegiate Sports, NCAA Football

The first week of the 2010 college football season is behind us, capped by a fascinating Boise State win over Virginia Tech. Some people are still surprised each time the Broncos knock off a major program with these folks calling the Hokies loss a “surprise.” Does anyone need to buy a clue?

Week one was filled with tune up contests with a few surprises including Kansas losing to North Dakota State, an FBS school. Not that the Jayhawks are a football powerhouse, but they shouldn’t lose to a Missouri Valley Conference program. With #15 Georgia Tech coming to town this weekend, the Jayhawks are looking at a long, dismal season.

If the first week of the season didn’t tell you that Notre Dame and Michigan have improved while the Big East is looking especially lame, then you’ll have to spend a few extra hours this weekend taking in some of the top contests including:

Georgia at South Carolina — Every SEC match up is a dog fight, but in this case the #24 Gamecocks have the edge over #22 Georgia because of its home field advantage. Odd that this game was scheduled for noon because by halftime the air temperature should be pushing past 95 degrees. That might cook a few eggs, but I believe that South Carolina will finish on top in a close one.

South Florida at Florida — The Gators are ranked #8, but are without Tim Tebow. Will that make a difference? It didn’t last week when Miami of Ohio came in, but the Bulls are a better team and likely to put up a good fight. If they pull off a surprise, then everyone will wonder if South Florida is “that good” or whether the Gators have simply faded.

Florida State at Oklahoma — The #17 Seminoles travel to Norman to take on the #10 Sooner in one of the better inter-conference battles of the young season. I don’t have a stake in this game, but I have to think that the Sooners will shake off their close contest against Utah State to knock off the Noles. If not, bye-bye BCS aspirations!

Miami at Ohio State — The Buckeyes are ranked #2 in the nation and the Hurricanes are #12 which means that this game should be well played, a back and forth affair which could yield a frontrunner for a BCS contender. I’m not entirely convinced that the Buckeyes deserve a #2 rating, but I’m also not sure that the Canes are that good either.

Penn State at Alabama — JoePa is still around and his #18 Nittany Lions look to challenge for the Big Ten title. Playing the #1 Crimson Tide on the road in an inter-conference tilt means that Penn State can’t afford to make any mistakes while Alabama will have to make several if the cats are to stand a chance to pull a huge upset.

Happy footballing!

Adv. — Need cash to pay for college? If so, then check out the Sallie Mae Smart Option Student Loan to see whether this funding option works for you.


Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

College Basketball Homestretch: Bubble Teams Step It Up

March 2nd, 2010 by Matthew C. Keegan | 1 Comment | Filed in Collegiate Sports, NCAA Men's Basketball

Hokies, Huskies & Illini Must Win

With Selection Sunday just 12 days away, several teams remain on the cusp as the regular season winds down and conference tourney play begins. Smaller conferences are already gearing up for their tournament runs with those first games scheduled this weekend.

Fun Five

Final FourSeveral games this week could help polish the resumes of teams likely bound for the tournament while a number of match ups could allow some teams on the bubble to prove whether they belong in the field of 65 or not. 34 bids are awarded to conference slots with the remaining 31 consisting of “at large” schools. At least two dozen of these positions are probably already decided leaving just ten slots available.

Games you are going to want to watch this week:

Illinois (18-11) at Ohio State (23-7) – Beating the Buckeyes at Columbus would be huge for the Illini, a win that would likely punch their ticket for the post season. After that, it is a home game against the Wisconsin Badgers (21-7), not a sure victory either. Win both games and the Illini can play much more relaxed basketball during the Big Ten tournament.

Connecticut (17-12) at Notre Dame (19-10) – The Huskies were on everyone’s list of tournament bound teams at the beginning of the season, but Big East conference play has been tough for UConn. At 7-9 in the Big East, the Huskies aren’t likely to get to the tournament unless they beat the Irish and South Florida (17-11) for their last two regular season games and win at least one game in the Big East tournament. Notre Dame is in if they win; South Florida is in if they win and advance at least one round in the tournament too.

NC State (16-13) at Virginia Tech (21-7) – Once considered a virtual lock three games back, the Hokies have lost three straight and need to get a monkey off of their backs by knocking off the Wolfpack at home. There are four ACC teams breathing down the Hokies back; a late season collapse could mean that the VT is out while those currently following are in. Hokie junior guard Malcolm Delaney needs to have the kind of game he had against Wake Forest last month when he scored 31 points.

Charlotte (19-9) at Rhode Island (20-7) – The fourteen team Atlantic 10 will send Temple and Xavier to the NCAA tournament with Richmond at 22-7 having a decent shot. There is a possibility a fourth A10 team will get in, which likely means that Wednesday’s match up between the 49ers and Rams will eliminate one team from content. By the way, Saint Louis (19-9) and Dayton (19-9) are also on the bubble. A Saint Louis victory over the #16 Temple Owls (24-5) helps their case.

Oklahoma State (20-8) at Texas A&M (20-8) – In all likelihood the Cowboys secured an at large bid by beating then #1 Kansas at home on Saturday. But if they lose to the Aggies, are upset by the Huskers and collapse in the first round of the Big 12 tournament, that win against KU may mean that the selection committee won’t be interested in a 20-11 Cowboy team. But that’s a doubtful scenario as junior guard James Anderson will continue to make a huge impact for OU.

March Madness

Of course, even after this week’s action is over, several teams will emerge and others will find themselves submerged. A handle of conference upsets will scramble the field further which means those team’s in the driver’s seat need to keep winning if they have a chance of being a part of March Madness.


Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Early Surprises Shake Start Of College FB Season

September 11th, 2008 by Matthew C. Keegan | 4 Comments | Filed in Collegiate Sports, NCAA Football

The college football season is off to a good start with every school having gotten at least one game under its belt through last weekend.

Already, we’re seeing some big surprises, none bigger than the East Carolina Pirates who dispatched college footballVirginia Tech and West Virginia over successive weekends. Now ranked #14, ECU has made a legitimate case for being one of the best programs out there and will probably garner a BCS bid, perhaps a BCS championship invite if they finish 12-0.

Other surprises may not be too surprising for some rabid fans, but I found them to be at least somewhat intriguing including:

Big East Weakness — No slight at ECU for slapping West Virginia, but when your highly ranked squad gets dominated at any point in the season, the strength of the league should be questioned. The Mountaineers started the season with great expectations and those expectations have now been dashed.

Pittsburgh has had plenty of problems with Mid-American Conference foes, losing to Bowling Green at home before shaking off Buffalo the following weekend; the Panthers do not have the look of a team that will fight for Big East honors, something that UConn and South Florida will try to uphold.

Fresno State — The Bulldogs traveled to Piscataway, NJ to take on the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and after a scoreless first half, FSU romped 24-7. Rutgers definitely misses their all star player, Ray Rice, but the Bulldogs showed that Wisconsin should not take them lightly when the Badgers visit them this Saturday.

ACC — Never will I make the mistake of comparing the Atlantic Coast Conference to the Southeast Conference, but a comparison to the Big East Conference could be in order. Which one of these major conferences is worse this year? Well this weekend you’ll have a chance to figure that out as Rutgers hosts North Carolina tonight while Virginia travels to Storrs, CT to take on UConn. South Florida could be the best team in either league, but after that no team impresses me.

The Biggest of the Weekend Match Ups

The most anticipated game of the season in some eyes is this Saturday’s match up between Ohio State and USC. The early season big tilt has the makings of a national title game, but I expect that the Buckeyes will do what comes natural for them in these contests: lose. Ohio State played flat against Ohio this weekend and I don’t see them putting up much of a fight after the third quarter against the Trojans.

Other predictions:

  • South Florida over Kansas in a nail biter.
  • East Carolina over Tulane in a cakewalk.
  • Oregon over Purdue in a game closer than expected.
  • Penn State over Syracuse by at least four touchdowns.
  • Georgia over South Carolina in a very close match.
  • Auburn over Mississippi by two touchdowns.
  • Fresno State over Wisconsin in a squeaker.

Other winners this Saturday should include TCU, UConn, Georgia Tech, Navy, Air Force, Michigan, Utah, Arizona State, and Iowa.

Tip – Is a lack of money keeping you from finishing your college education? Consider Federal Pell Grants which never have to be repaid or a work study program offered through your school. Upperclassmen can sometimes find work as a professor’s assistant while private student loans and Stafford loans offer ways for you to borrow money which can be paid off after you graduate.


Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Ohio Colleges Are Preparing To Rate Themselves

June 17th, 2008 by Matthew C. Keegan | 2 Comments | Filed in College News

Columbus, Ohio

Back in the day when I was in college, professors would distribute end-of-the-semester surveys to allow their students to review the class and the instructor’s teaching methods. We never knew what the results of those surveys were, as that information was shared between the college and the professor only.

Today, many colleges and universities still practice this method of student evaluation, but in Ohio they are taking it one big step further: according to The Columbus Dispatch the state’s 13 public universities and its medical college will begin rating themselves.

In a plan approved last week by Ohio’s education czar, Chancellor Eric D. Fingerhut, the schools will be offering a standardized test to students to see how well they are learning while at school. Though the testing specifics haven’t been finalized yet, the results — when they are released in about four years — will give the public a clearer look at how specific colleges are faring, to provide improved accountability to Ohio residents.

In the meantime, student satisfaction surveys will be released along with hard to find crime statistical information for each school.

Other benefits of the self-grading plan include a college-cost calculator to allow prospective students determine the actual price of an education at each university along with degree offerings, housing options, student demographics, counseling and legal resources, graduation rates, transfer rates, student retention and success rates, post-graduation plans and data about community engagement.

Ohio’s community colleges, which aren’t part of the initial rating plan, are expected to be included later on and will also adapt their program for national accountability.

Adv. — Starting college? SayCollegeMove has checklists and other downloads to help smooth the transition from home to dorm.


Tags: , , , , , ,