The Post Leyland Era

BY: KEVIN MCCANN
SPECIAL CONTRIBUTOR

          Ahh springtime. For Tigers fans, it marks the beginning of cold days and even colder nights at Comerica for the next month or so; and of course the longing to hear the sweet southern drawl of Ernie Harwell once again welcoming us to spring time in Detroit, and Major League Baseball. If only, right?  But hey, we still have Rod Allen and the everlasting image of him chasing that small Japanese pitcher all the way to the centerfield wall to keep us smiling.  Broadcasters aside, let’s dive right into what you’ll actually see on the diamond in Detroit this year

Let’s first start by saying "find a corner" Shane Victorino. You pick the ALCS, down one run in the 7^th to come out of nowhere become a power hitter? Respectfully, go away and never come back.  Now, let’s get to who was left wearing an olde English D on their chest after that debacle, and more importantly who’s still wearing one now.

Brad Ausmus. Photo Credit: baseball162.com

Jim Leyland was one of the last of a dying breed.  We can all sit and mope about the departure of one of the best managers in franchise, and maybe even MLB history. Though, judging by my twitter feed and the influx of “OH MY GOD HAVE YOU SEEN BRAD AUSMUS?!?” tweets, most female Tigers fans got over the retirement pretty quickly.  However, the male side of the spectrum will all just have to light up a ceremonial cigarette on opening day in honor of Jimmy, and feel sorry for ourselves.

The questions surrounding the new staff are numerable. Brad Ausmus has never been a major league manager before, that’s a fact. But let’s be honest, could he have picked a better roster for his first gig?  Veteran leadership is abundant (i.e. Torii Hunter, Victor Martinez, Miguel Cabrera) and is mixed with some very promising young talent not only in the field, in guys like Nick Castellanos and Jose Iglesias, but in the rotation and bullpen as well, in Drew Smyly and Bruce Rondon.  Ausmus will have a big job to do. No doubt about that. Expectations are high in the Motor City right now, and it seems that anything less than a World Series is unacceptable. That’s a pretty tall order for any manager, let alone a guy who has never been one before.  But hey, Cabrera right?

Perhaps the biggest question of the year will be the bullpen, and after last October, who could blame anyone for asking?  The plan of using a set-up man as a closer in the postseason failed miserably. Joaqin Benoit gave it up more than a Kardashian at an NBA game (lookin at you Kanye, you’re marrying that). Anyway, the days of Benoit are gone and the arrival of Joe Nathan and Joba Chamberlian (yeah in case you forgot, we have Joba Chamberlain) should be enough -- I reiterate, SHOULD BE enough -- to more than solidify the back end of the bullpen.  They will absolutely still need the young guys like Rondon and Al Alburquerque to step up and contribute, as well as other guys who have been mainstays the past few seasons like Luke Putknonen and dare I say, Phil Coke.

All in all, with a 1, 2, 3 punch of Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, and Anibal Sanchez, they don’t need to ask too much of the front end of the bullpen, other than serviceability. The questions around the rotation seemingly have already been answered. Verlander is back to full health, Scherzer is, …well Scherzer, and Sanzhez will look to continue the recent success he’s found in Detroit. Smyly is young and an unproven starter, but he definitely has great stuff, there’s no denying that. It will be up to Jeff Jones and partly Alex Avila to help bring him along.  I won’t touch on Porcello because frankly, if you follow me on twitter, you already know how I feel about him.  The Fister trade definitely hurts the rotation. Anytime you lose a great arm like that, there’s going to be an impact. However, the Tigers still have the best rotation in the AL Central, and arguably the best in the American League. 

If you didn’t tune in at all last year post Jhonny Peralta suspension, then the infield is going to look just a little different to you. Peralta and Omar Infante are gone. But Ian Kinsler and Iglesias are the here and now. We all know about his ability to field his position, but if Iglesias can recapture the way he hit in Boston before coming over to the Tigs, then look out.  Kinsler will look to do a little recapturing also this year.  Perhaps we will see the Kinsler of 2008 when he hit .319 and was MVP of the All-Star Game. Then again, maybe we won’t, who knows? One thing is for sure: the Tigers have the best back-up middle infielder/first base coach in the game in Omar Vizquel.

The corners of the infield, particularly the hot one (that’s baseball language for 3^rd if you’re new to the game) is shrouded with questions. Is Cabrera fully healthy and can he stay that way? How patient will they be with Nick Castellanos if he begins to struggle? Will it ultimately be a move back to the left side for Cabrera and a permanent spot at first for Victor Martinez? My guess is that Ausmus will be very, very and just for good measure one more, very patient with Castellanos.  His back-up option for an everyday third baseman at this point is Don Kelly, and though he may be the beloved favorite of so many Tigers fans, he’s hardly a viable alternative.

Nick Castellanos takes over at third base in Detroit. Photo Credit: prospectinsider.com

The biggest question in the infield is centered around the plate.  Thanks to a rule change in Major League Baseball, which I believe is a total and complete fallacy and should be reversed immediately, we know that Avila will not be taking on any big collisions this season.  That being said, that’s about the only thing we know for certain about Alex Avila this season.  Will we see the Avila of 2011, who hit .295 and drove in 82 runs? Or will we see the Avila of last year again, who totaled .227 for the year with a whopping 47 RBI’s in 102 games? Tigers fans will just have to wait and see, but here’s to hoping it’s the first one. 

The outfield will look more or less the same, except a slight change in left field with the addition of Rajai Davis, though it has not been announced who the everyday left fielder will be.  Davis brings the added ability to steal bases, something the Tigers have lacked the past few years.  Davis hit .260 last year, while Andy Dirks was fractions behind him at .256. Dirks may have an upper hand solely because of a lack of left handed bats in the line-up, however both will look to impress Ausmus while in Lakeland, in hopes of winning the job in left.

We know what to expect from Hunter, he’s been doing it for years. If he’s healthy, he’s good, plain and simple. What will we get from Jackson? He came on late in the season to bring his average to .272 for the year. His struggles from the lead-off spot down the stretch in the post season are well documented.  However, Leyland moving him to the bottom of the batting order seemed to work out well in the ALCS, where Jackson hit .318 in 22 at-bats, with an OPS of .741.  It will be interesting to see what Ausmus does with Jackson in the lineup. Tori Hunter clearly proved to be a more than adequate option in the lead-off spot, should Ausmus choose to take that route. 

Almost every expert, from every major media outlet that covers Major League Baseball, is picking the Tigers to run away with the AL Central.  To the casual fan, that’s just awesome.  But most people who really love the Tigers know that the AL Central minus the Tigers would be unquestionably the worst division in baseball.

The Tigers line-up boats 5 former All-Stars (Avila, Cabrera, Hunter, Kinsler, Martinez).  The starting rotation is home to  two of the last three AL Cy Young Awards and also the past two All-Star Game starters for the American league (Verlander & Scherzer, respectively).  The team’s closer Nathan ranks 10^th on the all-time saves list, and will more than likely get to at least 7^th on that list this year.

In a word, they’re stacked. In a division as weak as the AL central, with the lineup, the rotation, and the bullpen they have, they should have no problems cruising through to a pennant and making Ausmus's job a lot less stressful. Provided that, for the most part, they stay healthy.  Buckle up Tigers fans; 2014 should be one hell of season.   

An Unsuccessful Success Story

Photo credit: toledoblade.com

They say all good things must come to an end. I'm not sure who "they" are, but "they" are probably wiser than I am. As is Jim Leyland, but now Leyland and I have something in common: neither one of us is managing the Detroit Tigers.

In the past 24 hours, you've probably experienced all sorts of emotions regarding Leyland's retirement; it could be shock, it could be sadness, it could be excitement for the future.

Leyland retired Monday, walking away from a team that probably should still be playing if not for Boston's grand efforts. But they aren't. As surprising (or not) as it is, the Tigers season is over, as is Leyland's illustrious managerial career.

Call him old, call him senile, call him grumpy...all are probably fair points. But his career was illustrious. He may one day have a home in Cooperstown, he may not. But he restored the roar in Detroit as well as anyone. He presided over perhaps the most successful time period in Detroit sports to never yield a title; certainly the most successful in recent memory.

Failure

Leyland did a lot for the Tigers. He took a perennial loser and turned it into a perennial winner. He had help, yes. He had great players, yes. There are few in the game of baseball who are quicker to point out that players make managers look good, not the other way around. But Leyland made his players look good.

Adoration has come pouring in for Leyland from all avenues, Woodward to Twitter. Rightfully so. Leyland earned that. He managed the Tigers for eight great years, took the team to four American League Championship Series, and won two pennants.

Yet when it came to the ultimate task at hand, the ultimate goal, Leyland failed. He'd probably say the same thing. He got all the questions right leading up to the final question, but he missed that one. It's not his fault. But while players play the game, managers get the credit and, in this case, they take the blame.

That's what I'll remember most about Leyland, fair or unfair. The Tigers never won the title that Mike Illitch (and a bunch of fans) so desperately wanted, needed almost.

Future Hopes

That's not to say Leyland won't get his ring with the Tigers. He's staying on with the organization in a TBD role. That's the right move. It won't be the same without the Marlboro man in the dugout, but he'll still be around, as he should be.

Jim Leyland was baseball in Detroit. The polarizing figures in recent Tigers memory are polarizing because Leyland made them so. 

He was the one who kept running Brandon Inge out there, and finding a spot for Ryan Raburn, when everyone else thought his spot was next to the crate of Dubble Bubble in the dugout. 

He gave the ball to a tall lanky kid from Virginia and allowed him to become a dominant force on the mound, and got the most out of a Venezuelan infielder who had some troubles in his early Detroit career. 

He did all of it with a mumbling voice and a cigarette. 

If the next manager in Detroit can win a title, Leyland won't be in the spotlight. It's not his style. But he'll be on my mind. And I'll smile, knowing that a good thing isn't over just yet. 

Say It Ain't So, Te'o

To think, two days ago I was considering how to write a piece on Michigan basketball...hah! Thank you touchdown Jesus. Well unless you live under a rock, by now you've heard of Manti Te'o's amazing story. When I talked about Te'o and the Heisman last month, I called Manti "the best story in college football." That's still true, depending on your definition of "best." The only problem is now the story is fiction, instead of non-fiction. Oh well. It joins a long list of things that are simply too good to be true. On my personal list, I include the double cheeseburger on the dollar menu (yes, the second slice of cheese matters, forget the McDouble), the NHL on ESPN, and Santa Claus. To end this first paragraph, I go to a movie about Santa Claus (sort of), with my own little twist: the best way to create American tears is lying LOUD for all to hear.

Manti Te'o is at the center of a scandal, regarding the existence of his late girlfriend photo credit: msn.foxsports.com

Whether you believe Te'o or not, and judging by the reaction, you don't, he's at fault. He's at fault for a lot of different reasons. Now my thoughts on the topic are this: he is a liar. He's ignorant, and he loses a lot of credibility as a person in my opinion. Harsh, but true. Now Manti has said that he was the victim of an internet hoax, seemingly brought on by Ronaiah Tuiasosopo. When I hear that name, I think of Marques Tuiasosopo, not because of his career, but because he played in the Rose Bowl against Drew Brees and Purdue, the game where I saw the best sign aired on television: on ABC, it said Hey Pasadena, A Brees is Coming. Awesome. Back to the story though. So Tuiasosopo and Te'o are apparently friends, with the former duping the latter, as well as the American public, in an effort to...to...

It just doesn't make any sense. Watergate makes more sense than this story. So here is where my only grain of doubt about Te'o lying can be found. The only way I see him telling the truth is because I don't know why on earth Te'o would do this. Perhaps he was looking for sympathy. The problem is that he would have gotten his sympathy with the loss of his grandmother. Perhaps he really is just flat out stupid. Perhaps he actually believed that someone he never met, never even saw, could be real. Forget real, he called her the love of his life. The love of his life. Twenty-two year olds often make mistakes because of ignorance, stupidity, and embarrassment. I know because I am a twenty-two year old. But as the veteran of a few failed relationships, even I can tell you she's not your girlfriend if you've never met her.

A great line in The Dark Knight Rises is when Commissioner Gordon tells John Blake, "You're a detective now son. You're not allowed to believe in coincidence anymore." Taking that rationale, I don't believe Te'o at all when he says he is the victim. I don't see this as a coincidence that Te'o and Tuiasosopo happen to be friends, and Te'o happened to be out of the loop on this whole story. You can say he didn't lie at all, but he thanked his girlfriend's family after beating Michigan State. So if you are naive enough to believe that Te'o was indeed hoaxed, he at least lied about her family, because...well, because she does not freaking exist.

I'm going to hold off on evaluating Te'o until he actually comes out and speaks. Waiting is not doing you any favors, Manti. It's making all of us think you are creating a story. If you are telling the truth, then what the hell are you waiting for??? Let's hear it! I love the people who say they don't care about this story. How can you not care about this story? This is iconic. I'm 99% positive this will never happen again. If you don't have an opinion on this story, reevaluate your opinions (again, assuming you are a sports fan).

Notre Dame Athletic Director Jack Swarbrick addresses the media yesterday concerning Manti Te'o photo credit: bleacherreport.com

Whether Te'o speaks, and regardless of what he says, a lot of focus will now shift to where Te'o may fall in the NFL Draft. There's been a lot of talk about this topic. To me, it's an organizational decision on whether or not to draft Te'o. Like my friends Jeff Riger and Eric Thomas stated, if you think Tim Tebow gets attention, wait until the pre-prodigal son makes his way to the NFL. If I'm a GM in the NFL and I'm sitting pretty in the fourth round, having addressed my needs (and not simply taken the best player available), I give Te'o a look. The difference between Tebow and Te'o is that Manti is actually good. Ten days ago, we were talking about him as a top ten pick. Any thought of even a first round pick is now likely gone. It's a giant distraction. Not to mention, do you want to bring in someone who you believe to be a liar? I wouldn't. But in the fourth round, maybe. I see Te'o going to a team like New England or Baltimore. He has to go to a team where distractions are a non-issue. He needs a team with a coach who simply does not respond to dumb questions. And he needs leaders on the defense who will take him under his wing and show him how to keep his mouth shut.

It is possible Te'o is telling the truth. It is highly unlikely, but possible. I don't think so, but that doesn't mean he's lying. In any event, Te'o is at fault. Life is a learning experience, and Manti is going to learn a valuable lesson, either way. He's either going to learn that surprisingly, despite what everyone says, if it's on the internet it may not be true (as I assume that this story is true, having read it on the internet). Or, he's going to learn that you can only lie for so long. Either way, Notre Dame's golden boy just got a big red slash on that helmet, and it isn't from an Alabama player. Still a great story though...you know you've been talking about it.

Snubbed

In every social group, roles seem to be clearly defined. Since it's 2013, I guess I can now refer to them as "cliques." Whether it's right or wrong, socially acceptable or not, certain personality types fit certain roles. There is always a quiet kid. There is always a loud kid. There is always that kid who gets in trouble a lot, and (most of the time) there seems to be a kid who does everything right. The major professional sports are no different. The quiet kid is the NHL, the sport that seems to fly under the radar until it gets upset that the other sports are having more fun and decides its time for some drama. You have the loud kid, or the NFL, who is always making headlines, always in the news because its product seems to be in the greatest demand. The NBA definitely takes the title of kid who always gets in trouble. If you need a reason, see Kevin Garnett and Carmelo Anthony fighting outside the locker rooms at the Garden, just the other night. Then there is Major League Baseball. Since the 1994 strike, baseball has been relatively quiet in terms of scandal--minus steroids, but from an organizational standpoint, the suspensions in place for steroids make it very difficult to find a rational reason to do them. Perhaps baseball's New Years resolution was to be more like its professional brothers.

1996 was a pretty normal year, sports wise. It was the last time the Summer Olympics graced American soil. The major sports were dominated by dynastic teams from the last thirty or so years. Jordan's Bulls won the NBA crown, Aikman's Cowboys won the Super Bowl, and Jeter's Yankees won the World Series. Kentucky won the NCAA Basketball Tournament, and Florida won the National Championship in college football. But 1996 was also significant because it was the last time Major League Baseball did not elect someone to its Hall of Fame...until now.

Craig Biggio launches a ball at Comerica Park photo credit: waiverwireblog.com

Steroids are as hotly a contested topic that sports has seen since Tonya Harding. They are talked about in schools, barber shops, even funerals. And today the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) decided that if you took steroids, no matter what your numbers are, you simply are not going to get into the most exclusive club in sports. That's the way it's going to be I guess, and that's fine. Steroids are cheating, I understand. I personally don't think it makes you that much better, but I've never tried them so I'm not really sure. I'm okay with that decision, though. It means Barry Bonds and Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa and Roger Clemens will probably never have a place in Cooperstown. Oh well, should have thought of that before you put the needle in your ass. But baseball struck out looking when the writers failed to elect Craig Biggio to its version of the "He-Man Woman Haters Club."

Money drives the world. It can't buy happiness, but it sure can buy things that make you happy. After all, cash is king. Professional sports pays its "clients" more handsomely than almost any other industry. If you're good, you can make bank if you want. Forget loyalty, throw that out the window, because the next guy is putting an extra zero at the end of that check. It's easy to get caught up in money. There are numerous examples. Take A-Rod, Randy Johnson, and Jason Giambi for example, and that's only the Yankees. I don't care that A-Rod was traded, no. But then look at a guy like Craig Biggio. Before we get into the statistical robbery that occured, lets look at the character.

Biggio was drafted by the Houston Astros in the first round of the 1987 MLB Draft. He made his debut in 1988 for the club, and he NEVER played for another team. Biggio came up as a catcher, and changed his position about five times to make his boss happy. He was a fixture in the Houston community. He has won numerous awards for that hard work and charity. He won the Roberto Clemente Award, perhaps the most prestigious community and sportsmanship award in sports. He won the Hutch Award in 2005, given annually to a player who shows tremendous competitive fire and will to win. He won the Branch Rickey Award in 1997, given to the person (not player) in Major League Baseball who exemplifies tremendous community service. So throwing his numbers completely out of the equation, that's a good start for a Hall of Fame resume.

He could have average numbers with that start and still have a good shot to make the Hall of Fame on his first try. 2,000 hits, maybe 300 steals, throw a couple of Gold Gloves in there, you've got a case anyway. Forget the fact that his numbers are good enough to get him in alone. How about the fact that Biggio, a player whose entire career was spent in the steroids era, was never once associated with steroids? He played with Jeff Bagwell, Roger Clemens, and Andy Pettitte, so any argument about temptation not being there is now gone. He was never in trouble. Biggio tore his ACL and MCL in the middle of his career. It was hardly a blip on the radar for him, coming back to have numerous productive seasons.

So now let's look at those stats that apparently were not good enough to get Biggio elected to Cooperstown on the first try. Biggio was a career .281 hitter. Okay, that's about the only above average stat he has, because everything else is exceptional. He has 3,060 hits. He has 3,060 hits. No typo. If you have 3,000 hits, and your name isn't involved in scandal, you go to the Hall. Period. Aside from that, Biggio has 291 career home runs. You might look at it as average, and it is, for a career cleanup hitter. But Biggio was a career leadoff hitter. He had fifty leadoff homeruns...fifty. That's the most in National League history. Oh yeah, he stole 414 bases.

Craig Biggio celebrates his 3,000th hit with his family photo credit: celebritybabies.people.com

Okay the hard numbers are there. Now let's look at the accomplishment aspect of Biggio's career. He had 10,000 at bats. Only twenty-three players in MLB history have reached that number. His 3,060 hits have only been passed by nineteen other players. Craig Biggio fell nine home runs shy of 300 for his career. Had he hit nine more homeruns, he would have become only the second player in MLB history with 3,000 hits, 300 homers, and 300 steals. The other one is in Cooperstown, his name is Willie Mays. Biggio is the only player in history with 3,000 hits, 600 doubles, 400 steals, and 250 home runs. When he retired, he was fifth in career doubles, and also had the most doubles for any right handed hitter...in history. He did all of this while flying under the radar, for the most part.

Biggio was a seven time All-Star. He won four Gold Gloves, without ever really having a true primary position. He won five Silver Slugger awards. He played in a World Series. His number is retired in Houston, and he deserves a spot in Cooperstown. He deserved to be voted in today. This hits home a lot more for me because I grew up playing second base. I was the Houston Astros mascot for Halloween one year. I loved Craig Biggio because he played baseball the right way, the hard way. He kept his mouth shut, he put his head down, and he went to work every day. In the group that could have been elected today, Craig Biggio is definitely the kid who seems to do everything right.

Roll Tide On South Beach

Happy 2013 everyone. It's been a while since I've been on cyber space, and since there was so much excitement about it last night, I figured it was time to rejoin. Over 100,000 followers for one girl whose face was shown on the television about five times? I would like to firmly say I was not one of those bandwagon followers who decided to follow Katherine Webb's (AJ McCaron's girlfriend) every move on twitter. No, I was already following her. Just kidding, on both accounts--I definitely am now following her. And despite twitter followers, she was not the center of attention last night. Believe it or not there was a football game that went on in Miami, sort of.

Nick Saban and Alabam wave to fans after winning last night's National Championship. photo credit: sbnation.com

I, like most of you, believed Notre Dame had a chance to beat Alabama in last night's BCS Championship game. 12-0...great coach...tough schedule...and it was Notre Dame. And then they played. It quickly became: 12-1...good coach...mediocre schedule...still Notre Dame though. Rudy couldn't have saved the Irish. Forrest Gump was not needed for the Tide. Alabama manhandled Notre Dame. That's being nice. They made them look like the Little Giants, before they beat the Cowboys, of course. Notre Dame's version of Becky "The Icebox" O'Shea forgot how to tackle. Notre Dame's secondary looked like they might as well have been wearing honolulu blue and silver. When you've got Manti Te'o missing tackles, and the grand canyon for Eddie Lacy to run through, well that's when you see 42-14. All of that on the table, the Irish deserved to be there.

Now the haters out there will take to twitter and say they would have rather seen Oregon (cough Lebron--can't pass up an opportunity to hate on him). Maybe Oregon would have fared better. Maybe the New York Jets would have fared better, although probably not. But the point is, the Irish went 12-0. Nobody beat them, no matter how many teams should have beat them. They did not play an easy schedule. It was rather the opposite. That Oregon team lost to Stanford...Notre Dame did not. Sure the Cardinal had a different quarterback for the two games, but how is it Notre Dame's fault that Stanford couldn't evaluate their talent well enough when they came to South Bend? You go 12-0 and you are Notre Dame, you're going to the title game. Deal with it. Get over it. Period.

The problem for Notre Dame was not their schedule. It wasn't anything they did or did not do. They ran into a brick wall. Ronald Reagan couldn't have influenced that wall coming down. I thought it was ironic that at halftime Brian Kelly didn't have much to say about what his team could do better. For the first time in a while, instead of dancing around the question and giving the generic "we have to execute our game plan better and not make mental mistakes," Kelly instead said what everybody watching the game was thinking: Alabama is damn good.

Tricky Nick

It starts at the top. You've heard that saying numerous times. Half the time you don't even know what it means. In sports, however, it's clear. The coach runs the show, unless Kobe is on your team. College football is no different. And whether you love him or hate him, Nick Saban may be the best ever.

There's a bold statement to capture your attention. The thing is I hate Nick Saban. I don't know him at all. I've never met him, I've never seen him, I have hardly heard him speak. But I hate him. The guy is cheat codes. He's too good. My hatred for Saban started long before the entire state of Alabama began its love affair with the coach. Nick Saban made a name for himself in East Lansing. Two hot shot young coaches were making names for both themselves and their programs. Saban had made Michigan State football relevant for the first time since Bubba Smith laced up his cleats. And Tom Izzo had recaptured the "magic" that MSU basketball had been so desperately missing. There they were, two coaches in the spotlight, doing the right things, and winning. And just like that, Saban was gone.

Nick Saban coaching Michigan State. photo credit: wosn.tv

Now LSU is a more appealing job than Michigan State is, plain and simple. Saban could have made Michigan State into a power though. But he left. Oh well, he thought it would advance his career, and he was right. I guess it makes me love Tom Izzo more. All the times he could have bolted, whether for other college jobs or the NBA, Izzo stayed put. Saban did it the easy way. He took the job at LSU. He won a national title. He left. Insert the Miami Dolphins and go ahead and describe it as disaster. Back to college for Nick, and it's unlikely he will ever leave again. Why the hell would he? Five mil a year, any high school player you want, and oh yeah you coach in the heart of dixie. He was bound to win the game in Miami, since he hardly won anything in the pros there. Saban is so good he makes the Auburn girls like Alabama. And now Nick is approaching that other coach from dixie, Bear Bryant.

It's going to be difficult for Saban to ever achieve the love that Bear Bryant has in Alabama. The stadium in Tuscaloosa is named after him for Christ's sake. But one thing has been presented: Saban is the greatest college football coach in this era. That is certainly up for debate and many people will debate it. But think about it. Saban has now faced three of the four midwestern powerhouse football programs, in the last three years. Notre Dame...check. Michigan...check. Michigan State...check. The scores of those games? A combined 132-35. Are you kidding me? 132-35???

Those games illustrate to me why Saban is the best since the Bear. In all three of those games, there was plenty of time for both teams to prepare. Are Alabama's players more talented than those three teams? Yeah, probably. But not 100 points better. Saban faced Michigan State and Notre Dame at the end of the season. He had about a month to prepare for both of those games. He faced Michigan at the beginning of the year. He had plenty of time to prepare for that one, too. Mark D'Antonio, Brady Hoke, and Brian Kelly are all very good coaches. Yet Saban made all of them look like they were coaching their first game.

Is that the whole story? Obviously not. Saban has lost games as well. He lost one this year. But even Bear Bryant lost games. Three titles in four seasons. Four titles overall. And kids, the scary part is that he isn't done. Expect Alabama to be back. They had five players drafted in the first thirty-five picks of last year's NFL Draft. And then they won another National Championship. Whether you are in cyber space or real life, that is pretty damn good.

Low-mas

When Barry Sanders played with the Lions, he was nothing short of amazing. Sanders had an impact on the city that few athletes had before him, and few will have after him. He retired as the second leading rusher in NFL history, trailing only Walter Payton. And when he retired, most sports fans wondered what he could have done had he played a few more years. Most Detroit fans wondered what he could have done with a decent offensive line. But the one exception to that line (for those who don't know about Kevin Glover, and that seems to be a lot) was Lomas Brown.

Brown was a very good lineman for Detroit. He anchored the Lions' line for eleven years, and created holes for Sanders to run through, which he did, a lot. He was hardly ever injured, missing only one game with Detroit. He made seven straight Pro Bowls at a point in his career. He was everything you want in an offensive lineman, a guy that represented your team and your city well; and then last Friday happened.

Lomas Brown blocking for the Lions photo credit: apse.net

Now Rob Parker set the bar pretty low for people (that associate with Detroit) to mess up on what they say nationally, with his comments on RGIII. But as any good competitor will do, Brown challenged him. When talking about a game against Green Bay in 1994, Lomas admitted to personally allowing quarterback Scott Mitchell to be in a position to get injured, which is exactly what happened. Mitchell broke his hand, Dave Krieg came in, rallied the team from a big deficit, and who would have thought, the Lions still lost. Then, on top of his idiocy to begin with, Lomas decided to say, "I've been out of the game since '02. I don't think that much can happen to me. Yes, America, yes, I did it." I don't feel like looking up my college notes on footnotes, so that's from the world-wide leader.

I like to take a pretty laid-back approach when writing these because I think when you mix humor with good content, your readers enjoy the piece. There is no humor in this article because it just isn't funny. Are you kidding me, Lomas Brown? Now I double checked just to be certain, and Lomas Brown did graduate from college, although you may not know it from this decision. Whether or not something can happen to him from a legal/financial standpoint, I don't know. Somehow my guess is we are going to find out soon. But throw that stuff out for a second, and consider something a lot more important than money. Brown does a lot of work with kids, whether it's through charity or coaching. Wonder what he's going to tell them about this little episode...

It's no secret Scott Mitchell wasn't liked in Detroit. He was overpaid to begin with; he didn't live up to expectations; simply put, he sucked. But as bad as someone is, you don't go out and hope he gets injured! Take Stefan Logan, for example. No person in their right mind wants Logan to get injured. You hope the coach takes him out, God yes. But hoping he gets injured? No. Give Mitchell a lot of credit through this whole situation. Lomas lobbed him a perfect alley-oop and instead of bashing Brown for his comments, perhaps the most disliked quarterback in recent memory has given everyone a reason to like him. Mitchell said to do that shows, "a blatant disrespect for the game," and he is right on the money, even if none of his throws ever were.

Scott Mitchell walking off the field after getting injured against Green Bay in 1994 photo credit: usatoday.com

I'll give credit to Brown for one little thing: he had the courage to speak his mind truthfully. Good for you. The same can be said about Rob Parker. They both were honest and these days that counts for something. But for everyone's benefit, keep it to yourself you idiot. You can think that. You can even say it, but say it to your wife, not to America. It sets an AWFUL example for kids who are growing up, and it sets an even worse example for those idolize YOU. It's not that difficult of a concept; think before you speak. Should I go on national television/radio and say how I actually tried to let someone get hurt? Right up there with should I actually pour my five year old cousin these shots of 151...

Sometime in the next few days, Brown will probably come out and apologize, not apologizing for his comments but for the setting in which he said them. It won't be heartfelt. He made sure of that when he clarified that what he said was absolutely correct. And he also clarified another thing for all of us. He made that question a lot more valid and a lot more mysterious. What would it have been like if Barry Sanders had a decent offensive line?

If...

"If" is an interesting word. It normally provides a basis for completely irrelevant arguments. For example: if the Lions were really bad, they would have lost to the Cardinals yesterday. But the Lions aren't really bad, so they couldn't possibly lose to a team that had lost nine straight, and got blanked last week fifty-eight to zip. "If" only. But surprisingly, this article will not rip the honolulu blue and silver. No, we are going to give them a while to search for their competitive soul. Rather, this article will be used to make my boldest prediction yet, but only thanks to the word "if." This time though, the "if" will hinge upon events that have not happened yet, as opposed to those that have already happened. It's a little confusing, so I promise to explain it. But it makes no sense without having a base event, upon which I am going to make this prediction. That event happened last week. Welcome back, Anibal.

Mike Illitch has no fears, well baseball wise, at least. The owner dishes out money like it actually grows on trees. He may have set himself up to fail with this last one. Five years and eighty million dollars for Anibal Sanchez; mighty steep for a number four starter. But this time it makes sense. Sanchez proved down the stretch that he was indeed worth the money, if athletes can even be worth that kind of money. The problem that could arise is the contracts of the top three starters, when their contracts end. You can expect Verlander, Scherzer, and Fister to all approach/top $100 million dollars in value, with the taco bell monster probably approaching $200 million.

Anibal Sanchez inked himself a 5 yr/$80 million dollar contract. photo credit: mlbreports.com

That's okay though. Yay for no salary cap. And when you've got the money (and Illitch clearly does), who dares to stop you? Illitch wants a winner so bad he appears willing to bankrupt himself to get it. I haven't seen his income statement, but I imagine its funds may be assigned elsewhere rather quickly.

So Sanchez is back in Detroit. The legend will continue to grow. The questions will continue to arise, many asking if Sanchez and Omar Infante are the same person. But what the Sanchez signing does for the Tigers is simple: no matter how much money Earvin "Magic" and the Dodgers plans to throw at free agents, no matter how many last minute, crazy signings their rivals across the freeway make, the Tigers are the favorite to win the World Series. Vegas's odds will likely change by the time opening day comes. But my first (way, way, way less bold) prediction is that the Tigers will have the best odds to win the whole thing. They have four All-Star caliber starters and a fifth starter with All-Star caliber stuff. I feel like a lot of people hear that term and don't know what it means, so I'll explain it (if you do know, skip down to the next paragraph). Drew Smyly's "stuff" is his pitching repertoire. And while he may not be ready just yet, his pitches have the ability to turn him into an All-Star.

So our series of "ifs" begin. "If" number one: if the Tigers make the right move in dealing Rick Porcello...

The Tigers now have the best problem in baseball: they have too many starting pitchers. You can count the teams with this problem on one finger. It doesn't happen in the big leagues except for every once in a while. That once in a while is very rare. But it's here. And now we get to sit back and watch Dave Dombrowski work his magic. There are a few options with Porcello, all of which hinge on a trade, and all of a which create our first "if." If I were Dombrowski, I would sit down Porcello, Brennan Boesch, Avisail Garcia, and Jhonny Peralta, put some ribbon around them, and send them in a gift bag to the Texas Rangers. I'd ask for Elvis Andrus in return. It may be a lot to give up. But Porcello's overrated, Boesch is...haha, and Peralta is old. He may be solid, but he's old, and an upgrade would be nice, if they can get it for the right price. Garcia is a tremendous young player, but so is Nick Castellanos, and there may only be room for one of them, anyway. Other moves concerning Porcello that would please me are acquiring either a nice young outfielder or a closer. Any of those three moves, and you can put a check next to our first "if."

"If" number two: if the Tigers starting pitchers stay healthy...

No one can question their talent. The top four for Detroit are better than any other in baseball. Don't give me the "there as good as any," because they are flat out better. Verlander is the best number one pitcher in the game. Scherzer is the best number two pitcher in the game. Fister is by far the best number three pitcher in the game. And Sanchez...well, they just spent eighty million dollars on a number four starter. He's the best number four in the game. Now the challenge is to keep them healthy, all year long. If those four stay healthy, then our second "if" is all set.

Justin Verlander's supporting cast (from left): Doug Fister, Max Scherzer, and Anibal Sanchez photo credit: cbssports.com

"If" number three: if the Tigers shore up the back end of their bullpen...

This can happen a few different ways. Bruce Rondon may be the answer. The fireballing kid could come in and be the closer, right away. Probably not going to happen without at least a few hiccups, but it's possible. More likely though, the Tigers will acquire a closer; or at least they will acquire a reliever who could take over if Rondon slips. This is the biggest need in my opinion. You could get by with Peralta, and you could get by with the outfielders you have on the roster. But Detroit needs back-end bullpen help. If they get it, well now we're cooking with fire.

That's it. Those three little things and my prediction is born. Now this is as bold a prediction as I've made. It doesn't make a lot of sense because only one of the players has accomplished the feat I think all of them will accomplish. Thank you for waiting patiently. If the Tigers make a good move with Porcello, if the starting pitchers stay healthy, and if the Tigers set the back end of their bullpen, then history will be made this year. My prediction is that the 2013 Detroit Tigers will join the 1971 Baltimore Orioles as the only two teams in big league history with four twenty game winners on one pitching staff. Verlander, Scherzer, Fister, and Sanchez would join Palmer, McNally, Ceullar, and Dobson atop the Mount Rushmore of pitching staffs. I guess we'll see "if" I'm right.

Angels In The Outfield

Josh Hamilton is reportedly taking his talents to LA. photo credit: thebiglead.com

Turn the spotlight toward Los Angeles, rumor has it tinseltown just got a little more tatted up. Josh Hamilton has reportedly signed with the Angels. Let's hope the reports are right, cause otherwise this is a giant waste of time. And since it's on the internet, it must be true (insert french model "bonjour" joke here). Since the sports world doesn't spend enough time talking about LA already, this ought to do the trick. Even the Lakers are sick of the attention they've been getting. Hell, if the Pistons started the season 9-13, it may have been progress. The Lakers start the season poorly, they fire their coach. I guess there may be a difference in expectations.

That's exactly what the Angels now have: expectations. The Angels have had expectations for a while, actually. They inked Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson last year. They traded for Zack Grienke. They have the greatest general since Patton in Mike Trout (he does dominate WAR). And now (reportedly) they have Josh Hamilton. Ah the beauties of no salary cap. But what does this move do for the fightin' rally monkeys? At first glance, most immediate responses will gravitate in the direction of excitement, I'd think. If I were an Angels fan, I'd be excited. Lose Torii Hunter, gain Josh Hamilton. The Rangers have been stagnant so far, sans moving Michael Young. They've lost Mike Napoli. It looks like they are about to lose Ryan Dempster. And oh yeah, they lost that Hamilton fellow. Could the evil empire be heading towards the setting sun, not the rising sun?

Probably not...let's be realistic. The only person with more money than the Yankees is Warren Buffet. And since he doesn't appear to be interested in buying a baseball team, the Angels can firmly take the grasp as the other team in sports willing to stop at nothing until they buy a championship. I read an article this morning on Chauncey Billups. Now, admittedly, there is no athlete who I have a greater respect for than Chauncey; I absolutely love him and absolutely hate (still) Joe Dumars for that trade. Chauncey is not really relevant to the Angels. But the article brought up the point that the '04-'05 Pistons could end up being the last team in the NBA to win a title without a superstar, forever. I'm nearly positive there won't be another in basketball. And with moves like this, it's starting to cloud the future for a team like that to do it in baseball. With all of these things to consider, I don't think this makes the Angels the front runner for anything.

Baseball is weird. Teams like Oakland can catch fire in a mere second and before you know it...oh no, the Tigers eliminated them, just kidding. But seriously, start up teams make runs in baseball like no other sport. Take the Orioles, for example. Where did that come from? You can even use Oakland, since Baltimore didn't advance either. The point is, the team that just throws money at talent doesn't always win. There's something to be said for doing it the hard way. You draft players, build them in your system, hire the right manager, and before you know you raise a trophy. There are certainly counter examples. The Yankees have won twenty-seven world championships. That's a lot. But even the Yankees seem to be missing out on the highest priced talent these days. Maybe they're starting to figure out that isn't necessarily the best way to accomplish what you want.

The Angels are a weird case though because they won a title doing it the hard way not too long ago. They have a world class manager in Mike Scoscia, and they have developed talent in their system that has succeeded at the major league level. They drafted Trout. They drafted a guy like Mark Trumbo. So that's why this deal just seems to surprise me a little bit. Josh Hamilton is a great player, as is Albert Pujols. They can do things I can't even do in a video game. They're top tier talent. But they aren't going to be top tier talent for much longer. Pujols showed age last year (whatever his age may be), as did Hamilton. And while Hamilton did not get the super-long deal Pujols did, that's a lot of money for a guy who struggled down the stretch and isn't getting any younger.

Can the Angels win a World Series next year? Yes. Any team that has a top four of Trout, Howie Kendrick, Albert Pujols, and Josh Hamilton can win it all. That's a guess on Kendrick by the way, someone has to replace Torii. But the Angels didn't even make the playoffs last year. Not only that, they had two teams finish ahead of them in their own division. They lost a lot of pitching. Yeah they still have Weaver and Wilson, and now Tommy Hanson, but what have those guys ever won? Wilson pitched in the World Series a couple of times, he gets that to his credit, but he isn't their ace. No, that would be the kid brother of the former Tiger great Jeff Weaver. This is a team who said they couldn't afford to go out and sign a big name pitcher like Zack Grienke, yet they go out and sign Josh Hamilton? For $125 million? Something is not right.

Josh Hamilton joins Mark Trumbo and Mike Trout in the LA outfield. photo credit: bleacherreport.com

The move makes the Angels better, no question. I'm just not sure how much better it actually makes them. Hamilton is going to be a similar player to Torii Hunter. He's going to hit more home runs, yes. His role is different than Hunter's. But I don't think he's better than Torii defensively. I don't think he is a better teammate than Hunter. That may not be fair of me to say since I'm not his teammate, but Hamilton doesn't seem to be in the news for his leadership. The move, for me, means the Angels are saying this: This is our chance to win it, and if we fail, oh well, we went down trying. It's a fine strategy and a lot of teams do it. The Tigers may even be doing it. But for Los Angeles, I'm just not sure it's warranted. The Angels have arguably the greatest young talent baseball has seen since ever. Why not keep that money and build around him? I guess you could still do that in the future, there is no salary cap, but $125 million? That's the kind of thing you give to a full-proof investment and that is not what Josh Hamilton is.

From a personal standpoint, I'm not about to criticize Hamilton. Everyone makes mistakes in life and I'm sure he's a fine person who just needed to grow up a bit. But from a business standpoint you HAVE to look at it more in depth. You are taking a guy who has drug and alcohol issues, who relapsed LAST YEAR after being sober for a long period of time, and you are going to give him $125 million to come play baseball in southern California? Temptation grows on trees out there, literally. I'm sure it's written in his (reported) contract that he can't mess up or it's night night. But I'd be just a little bit more cautious about that one.

For Hamilton though, the move makes total sense. He's going somewhere where he doesn't have to be the guy. Pujols and Trout have that covered. He doesn't have to play centerfield anymore. If he strikes out, there is someone in the lineup who can pick him up. He left a sinking ship for greener pastures. The Rangers have apparently decided to sail the Bermuda Triangle, because they could not seem more lost at this point. For Josh Hamilton, his expectations of winning a championship are now more realistic than they were yesterday.

It all goes back to expectations. This move makes the Angels better, yes. It gives them a great chance at a winner. I don't think it makes them better than the Tigers. I don't think it makes them better than San Francisco. And in a sport where tradition rules, that division belongs to the Rangers until the season is over and they didn't win it. One thing is for sure though. You can keep that spotlight in the exact same place, cause it's not going anywhere.

Time Is Ticking

I checked the stats. Jimmy Howard's goals against average actually is the lowest in the NHL right now. So for my critical piece of the week, it's time to analyze the other most scrutinized player in Detroit sports: Matthew Stafford. If Sunday night was any indication, the Lions may be in trouble. Who are we kidding? Substitute "motor city" for "river city" and the music man has been singing about the Lions all year long. This year for the honolulu blue is as lost as Atlantis. That said, there is everything to gain in the next three weeks.

Matthew Stafford loses his grip on the ball in Sunday's loss to the Packers photo credit: newstimes.com

The Lions are bad. Get rid of the argument that goes, "they've lost a bunch of close games, they aren't that bad." Good teams win close games; it's what makes them good. Good teams have a quarterback who drives the ball down the field in the fourth quarter, a defense who makes the big stop when they need it, and a coach who makes the right calls. Quick synopsis of Sunday night: no, no, and no. All three aspects, all failed with grounded colors. It shouldn't be a surprise at this point. The Lions are 4-9. Any hope of the playoffs vanished with the illegal challenge flag. They probably vanished before that. So here's the question now: is what we have good enough to get us to where we want go?

That's a question for Martin Mayhew. No matter how many times fans can scream "draft defense you moron," the final decision is his. I'd argue that almost 50% of Lions' fans think they can do a better job than Mayhew. Some of them might be right. But you're not going to get that chance. Mayhew drafted Stafford. For one year, he played with a cocky attitude, he was healthy, and he threw touchdowns. Apparently that means go ahead and fling the ball with your wrist whenever you want because you are God's gift to football.

Matthew Stafford celebrates his first quarter touchdown in Sunday's loss to Green Bay photo credit: i4u.com

It's not ALL Stafford's fault. However, this loss points the finger right at number nine. That fumble changed a lot of people's views on Stafford, whether they are willing to admit it or not. The Lions were up 14-3 and driving...in Lambeau...in the snow. That doesn't even happen in the movies. They had a chance to stomp on Green Bay's throat. Instead they held the door open for the Packers and seated them in first class. I get it was a fluke play, it doesn't happen very often, and it probably doesn't happen if it's not thirty-three degrees outside. But it happened. And again that play didn't lose the game for Detroit. But when you lose a game like that, you look to the quarterback. That's how it has always gone and that's how it will continue to go...forever. At the end of the day, he's the one with the ball in his hands the most. He's the one who can bring his team back from that awful moment and win the game. And in this case, he's the one who didn't.

Stafford has an immense amount of physical ability. It's scary how good this guy could be. He has an AK-47 attached to his right shoulder. Yet for some odd reason, he doesn't seem to use it. Stafford flips more balls up in the air than any quarterback I have ever seen. I'm tired of it. He looks like a pansy when he does it. He looks like he's afraid to step up and be a quarterback. Sometimes he has to do it. Most times he doesn't. It's a huge problem for Stafford. If he doesn't fix it, I'm not sure he should be the long term quarterback of the Lions.

Difficult to agree with me after the dude racked up 5,000 yards last year, isn't it? Well, when you throw it forty-five times a game, you are likely to pick up some yards. But why are we anointing him as the answer after one good year? They went 10-6 and lost in the first round of the playoffs. That's a bad year for Tom Brady. If you really want the Lions to exit the rut they've been in since, oh I don't know, forever, then maybe it's time you start holding them a little bit more accountable. They had a nice year last year for where they were as an organization. Now they're back to the same bad habits of losing leads and losing fans. It starts with the quarterback, and Stafford has to figure it out...now.

It seems lately that for every good throw Stafford makes, there is a back foot lob ten feet behind Tony Scheffler. STEP INTO THE DAMN THROW. I've screamed it at my television far too many times. He's too talented to be making mistakes that are expected of a high school signal caller. This is the NFL, son. People make bank to laugh at those throws and take them to the house. If you want to be the franchise quarterback, then you better make a better effort to look like you belong. Right now Stafford does not look like he belongs. That is harsh and true, it is. He looks out of place, minus two or three drives per game. He doesn't make the right decisions, he throws balls that would sail over Shaq, and he can't even celebrate a touchdown the right way. Okay the last one was a joke, but he really should learn not to slip before the celebration. The first two points I stick by, though. He has to make better decisions and learn that you can't fling the ball up ten times a game. Two or three times, okay sure. But ten times? No. Not now, not ever.

I'm not saying abandon ship on Stafford. He's too good when he wants to be. But it's time we started looking at the Lions as what they are, not what they were a year ago. They are a bad team with little to no leadership. They have no one who has ever won anything. Their games seem to have a pattern to them. Calvin Johnson is double teamed from the start, so they try and stay away from him. Then, before you know it, they are down ten with four minutes to go. Next they force the ball to Calvin, and as insane an idea as it is, holy s*it he catches it...almost every time. And then they lose. That's not how every loss goes, but more than a few have gone like that.

Whoever decides the plays (Scott Linehan) at the end of the game needs to figure one thing out. If you are going to throw the ball to anyone other than 81, that player better be wide open. I'd rather have Calvin against two or three defenders than anyone else on the Lions against one defender. I really believe that. And on fourth and ten with the game on the line, the ball needs to go to 81. If it doesn't, then you need to be fired. Or better yet Matthew, how bout you make a decision for once. How bout you say, "I've got the best non-qb in the league, and if we need a play he's going to get it." That would go a long way for me. But I'm gonna sit here and criticize you for as long as you are going to take shots down the field, and throw it behind Scheffler, when we have one play to get it right.

Time is ticking Matthew. As most analysts will tell you, NFL means "Not For Long." You've got all the ability in the world. You've got the tools to get yourself to Canton, and to get this team to a Super Bowl. Start acting like it, and start playing like it. There's three weeks left to start doing things right, and gain some steam going into next year. No better time than the present.

When Irish Eyes Are Smiling

A good article normally stems from a good introductory paragraph; it's that way with almost every essay, paper, or report ever written. You learn it at a young age and you practice it over and over until you finally think you have it mastered. I'd like to think (for the most part) that my intros have been decent enough to keep you reading. That is the goal, after-all. Unfortunately you don't get an elaborate intro today because there's really no nice way to dress this up other than just coming out and saying it: Manti Te'o should win the Heisman Trophy.

Manti Te'o looks up to the sky after beating Michigan State the week he lost both his grandmother and girlfriend photo credit: espn.com

Tonight in Manhattan, college football will once again be center stage. Not surprising, it is Saturday night. Instead of uniforms you get suits, in place of broadcasters you get Chris Fowler. It's a shining night for three student athletes who all deserve to be there and probably all deserve to win, yet only one will. It's probably going to be Johnny Manziel. It's difficult to argue with his resume. The numbers are there. The moment is there. Even the nickname is there. The dude pulled a cat out of traffic, come on. The only thing this guy can't do is legally drink. He's a very talented football player and I get he's a freshman, but if he wins the Heisman tonight, then change the award.

By now you've probably heard of Manti Te'o's hard times (gotta love the back to back apostrophe, don't get to do that every day). Te'o lost both his girlfriend and his grandmother earlier this season, right before he and the Irish were to take on Michigan State. Now, you can be ready for a lot of Charles Woodson comparisons tonight, so I'll start you early. It was the Michigan State game for Woodson that was sort of his coming out party. It was the game where people and looked around and said, "you know what, this guy has an outside shot to win the Heisman." It was that interception that still defies everything humanly possible. For Teo, it was a spirited performance against the Spartans (twelve tackles, two pass breakups, and a fumble recovery) that gave people the sense that this guy may actually have a shot at the Heisman. The thought crept in, after that game, and slowly got bigger as the season went on.

What is the point of the Heisman trophy if Te'o doesn't win it tonight? He's the best story in college football. He came back to Notre Dame for his senior season, kept his mouth shut (unlike Matt Barkley), and made ALL of the plays. He is the best player on the best team in the country. Oh they aren't the best, Alabama is better? They're number one, and if you want to say that Manziel is the best player because of his numbers, then Notre Dame is the best because of their number. All of a sudden, we're back to baseball and the MVP debate on numbers, and how Johnny Manziel has a better WAR than Manti Te'o. Save it...you can't judge an award on numbers, you have to look at more than that. You are picking the winner of the most prestigious award in sports. It's nice to win an MVP or a Conn Smythe, but this is the Heisman. You may have never heard of Roger Crozier but you've almost certainly heard of RGIII (if you haven't, thank you for reading something that probably doesn't make a lot of sense to you).

Johnny "Football" is seeking to become the first freshman to ever win the Heisman Trophy photo credit: bleacherreport.com

Being the best player on the best team doesn't always mean you should win something. There's probably a lot of examples where the team is the greater than the individual, and Notre Dame and Teo may even be one. Chauncey Billups shouldn't have won an NBA MVP in 2004, but he was the best player on the best team. Te'o, however, should win tonight. Teo has 103 tackles and is second in America in interceptions. He's a linebacker. That doesn't happen. So he definitely has the starts part covered. A lot of people say Johnny Manziel will win because of his moment, beating Alabama in Tuscaloosa. Now, I don't have a lot of friends who like Notre Dame. I do have one good one though, and he was quick to point out Te'o's performance against Oklahoma when I said Te'o doesn't have a moment like that. Twelve tackles and an interception in Norman to beat the Sooners? Alright Jack, fine that counts. So he's got the moment covered. It's not rolling the Tide in Bryant-Denny, but it's not celebrating after beating Uconn, either (see Spartan fans, I take shots at Michigan too). Beating Oklahoma in Norman is not easy, I don't care what kind of year they are having. And the story? Losing both your girlfriend and grandmother in the same week, playing, playing exceedingly well, and leading NOTRE DAME to an undefeated season and a birth in the BCS Title game? Cue Booby Miles's uncle saying, "...and he can pass!!" Yeah, he's got it all covered.

So there's the resume. Now I don't believe in the argument that Te'o should win because he's a senior and Manziel will have his moment in the future. That's about as predictable as Craig Sager's next suit. Who knows what will happen with Manziel in the future. No, the voters should throw class standing out of the equation, and I'm sure they did. Manziel has a wonderful resume too. But do you think he'd even be in this conversation if not for beating Alabama? Hell no. He got hot at the right time, and beamed brighter than the sun on national television when he got his chance. That's what good players do. But everyone forgets about Johnny Manziel's bad games because of his good one, and that's where I have an issue. Twenty-four out of thirty-one for 253 and two scores is great against Alabama. But twenty-three out of thirty for 173 and no scores in a loss against Florida is pretty pedestrian. Should you be allowed to have a bad game and win the Heisman? Probably. But how bout twenty-nine out of fifty-six for 276 with no scores and three picks against LSU? How bout seventeen out of twenty-six for 191, a score and two picks against Ole Miss? Point is Manziel has had plenty of average games. Heisman Trophy winners are not supposed to be average. Now you're thinking, "well, he's a freshman, cut him some slack." You're right, he's a freshman so I will cut some slack on the bad games. I'm not going to give him the Heisman Trophy though in cutting him a break.

That takes a look at Manziel's numbers in the big games. That's really what matters isn't it? That's how Woodson won it: a huge pick against Michigan State and punt return to the house against the Buckeyes. Te'o's worst statistical game came against Wake Forest; he had six tackles. He had six tackles, and Notre Dame won thirty-eight to zip. He had five tackles against both USC and Boston College, but he had an interception in both of those games. He had six tackles and a pick against Navy and he didn't play the whole game. So let's look at what I think are the six biggest games on Notre Dame's Schedule: USC, Michigan, Michigan State, Stanford, Oklahoma, and Miami (yeah, you're point about Notre Dame not having to go through the rigors of the SEC is now useless). In those six games combined, Te'o had fifty-seven tackles, and four interceptions. Oh yeah, and Notre Dame won every one of the games.

All of that said (sorry Collin Klein, find a corner), Manziel could still win the award and he would be deserving. That's the beauty of having two great players up for an award. But if Manziel wins, then the Heisman trophy should be given exclusively to offensive players, because you're not going to find a defensive resume and story like this one ever again. You're going to see history tonight one way or the other. It's either going to be the first freshman or the first exclusively defensive player to win the Heisman Trophy. The intro might have sucked, but how's that for a finish?