College Football Is Soon Upon Us

August has arrived which means...Football is finally back. The Hall Of Fame Game between the Baltimore Ravens and Chicago Bears is tonight, marking the first game of the football season. Yes I'm excited football is back. As a high school football coach, I love this time of year. 2-a-days begin in a few days and we passed out equipment this morning. My team looks to be pretty good this year so hopefully it'll be a fun year for my Panthers this season.

But this blog isn't about the NFL or High School Football (hmmm...high school football in Texas...I feel another blog coming at a later date.) This blog is about College Football, which next to High School Football is my favorite. Yes I love the Dallas Cowboys and the NFL, but nothing compares to College Football.

I'm a big Texas Longhorns fan so naturally I think the Longhorns have a shot at the Big 12 championship this year. But that's not just me being a homer. Look around the Big 12. Texas Tech will be the same...a lot of passing offense and not enough defense to stop anyone. Baylor is still a young team so they will make too many mistakes, but being year 2 of Coach Matt Rhule I think they will be a lot better. Oklahoma lost a lot of guys to the NFL so we just aren't sure what they will be like. Oklahoma State will be similar to Oklahoma after Mason Rudolph was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers. Iowa State and Kansas...bottom feeders as usual. Kansas State...will be ok, but I don't see them having enough talent to win the conference. So that leaves Texas. They had the 3rd best recruiting class in the country this year and they will be going into year 2 of Coach Tom Herman. This should be the year the Longhorns are back on top of the Big 12.

But who will be the in the NCAA Playoffs? Even if Texas goes undefeated this year and wins the Big 12, I don't see the selection committee picking them unless they completely dominate everyone they play. So who do I think will be in the National Championship playoffs? Well first...the playoffs should be extended to 8 teams. But that's another blog and another debate for another day. Here's my college football playoffs prediction:

(1) Alabama vs. (4) Michigan

(2) Clemson vs. (3) USC

National Championship: (1) Alabama vs. (3) USC - Alabama winning the national championship.

Now if you know anything about me at all, then you know how much it is hurting me physically to make this prediction. I can't stand Alabama or Nick Saban. After Texas, I'm an LSU fan so to admit that I think Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide will be hoisting the national championship trophy at the end of the year makes me sick to my stomach. But it's so hard to not pick them. Look at their history since Saban became their coach. Year after year he seems to be able to just plug a new kid into a position after the starter left for the NFL and they keep trucking along. That's insane to me. How in the world does Alabama keep winning year after year after year after year? Doesn't make sense, but it's hard to not pick them. This is one prediction I'll be very happy to say I was wrong about if Alabama either loses the National Championship or doesn't even make it to the playoffs.

Needless to say...I really hope they do not make it, but I can't make a prediction without them. 

NHL Stanley Cup Finals

Well boys and girls I am proud to say that I was right about who would be in the Stanley Cup Finals. I got how many games it would take for each team to win their series (Vegas won in 6 games when I said it'd take 7 and Washington won in 7 games when I said it'd take 6), but I'm happy to say I was right in that the Stanley Cup Finals will feature the Vegas Golden Knights vs. the Washington Capitals. So who will win? Well that's not as simple as it may seem, but I'll do my best to answer that question. Let's compare each team and see if we can come up with an answer.


Goalies
Vegas - Marc-Andre Fleury
Washington - Braden Holtby

Between these two goalies, it's a close one but I think the edge goes to Vegas. Marc-Andre Fleury has won three Stanley Cups, all with the Pittsburgh Penguins. This year he went 29-13-4 with a 2.24 GAA. In the playoffs Fleury is 12-36 with a 1.68 GAA, which explains why the Golden Knights are in the Finals. His best performance of the Western Conference Finals game in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals when he made 35 saves in a 3-2 Vegas win over the Winnipeg Jets. Fleury has experience, knows what it takes to win in the playoffs and knows what it takes to be able to hoist the Cup. Washington's Braden Holtby is not slouch. Holtby went 34-16-4 with a 2.99 GAA. In the playoffs, Holtby is 12-6 with a 2.04 GAA. Holtby saved his best for the playoffs, which is why Washington is in the Finals. His best playoff performance game in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference against Tampa Bay when he stopped all 29 shots he faced in a 4-0 win that sent the Capitals to the Finals. Both teams have extremely talented goalies, but the edge goes to Vegas.

Star Players

Vegas - Jonathan Marchessault
Washington - Alex Ovechkin

Both of these players have been tremendous for their respective teams, but I believe the edge goes to the Capitals. Alex Ovechkin is probably the best player the NHL has seen since Wayne Gretzky. He led the NHL with 49 goals in the regular season and has 12 so far in the playoffs. Ovechkin has speed and shot that looks like a Nolan Ryan fastball. Vegas' Jonathan Marchessault is pretty good himself. He finished the regular season with 27 goals and 75 points, just 3 behind team leader William Karlsson. He leads the Golden Knights with 8 goals and 18 points in the playoffs. Both players have carried their teams through the playoffs into the Stanley Cup Finals, but the edge goes to Washington.

Defense

This is where I think both teams are pretty equal. Maybe Washington has a slight edge, but overall they are pretty even. For Vegas, Fleury has been the difference maker on defense while Brayden McNabb has been an enforcer during the regular season. McNabb led Vegas with 64 hits and 38 blocked shots. For Washington it's not been goaltending so much as it has been mostly the work of Dmitry Orlov, Matt Niskanen, and Brooks Orpik. Orlov had 128 hits and 116 blocked shot. Niskanen had 117 hits and 98 blocked shots. Finally, Orpik led Washington with 218 hits and 168 blocked shots. Now you might be reading this saying "It looks like Washington has the edge." But when you watch Vegas they may not have as many hits or blocked shots as Washington, but they are quick to the puck and quick to clear the puck out of their zone. So defensively both teams are even.


So my prediction is that we are in for one of the best Stanley Cup Finals in NHL history. An expansion team versus the best player in the NHL in 25 years. I believe that the Cinderella story of the Vegas Golden Knights will strike midnight and be over. The Washington Capitals will win the Stanley Cup and will do it in 7 games.

NHL Conference Finals

Well...I'll be the first to admit that I was pretty far off on what teams would get to the Conference Finals of the NHL Playoffs. I did correctly predict that the Vegas Golden Knights would knock off the San Jose Sharks in six games. That I was correct on. But the other three series...way off.

Now yes I predicted correctly pick Tampa Bay over Boston, but I said in six games and they dominated the series, knocking off the Bruins in five games. So that leaves us with our Conference Finals. In the Western Conference, it's the Vegas Golden Knights (an expansion team) going up against the Winnipeg Jets (who won a playoff series this year for the first time in team history). In the Eastern Conference, it's the Washington Capitals (notorious for not being able to win in the playoffs) going up against the Tampa Bay Lightning (the only team in the conference finals that has experience and a Stanley Cup championship under their belts). Now I know the series have already started (I have a regular full time job so I wasn't able to write this blog before the two series started). As of the writing of this blog, the Vegas Golden Knights and Winnipeg Jets are tied at a game a piece while the Washington Capitals have a 2-0 series lead over Tampa Bay. So what are my predictions for the rest of these series?

Western Conference: Vegas Golden Knights vs. Winnipeg Jets - Vegas wins in 7 games.
I'll be honest...I didn't expect much from the Jets when the playoffs started. I mean I thought they might get out of the first round, but knowing their history it's kind of understandable that I wouldn't pick them to beat the defending Western Conference champion Nashville Predators. But they have surprised me in every aspect of their game in these playoffs. Despite all of that, I still believe the Vegas Golden Knights will continue their unbelievable first year in the league and will become the first ever expansion team to reach the Stanley Cup Finals in their first year. Every aspect of the Golden Knights is extremely good. Scoring, goaltending, defense...it's all VERY good. This series is already showing that it's going to be extremely good. But I think Vegas will take the series in seven games.

Eastern Conference: Washington Capitals vs. Tampa Bay Lightning - Washington wins in 6 games.
Over the years, the Capitals always seem to have one of the best teams during the regular season, but can't seem to put it together in the playoffs. You can't say that about this year's Capitals team. Not at all. Had I been able to write this article before the series began, I would have picked Tampa Bay. But for the Capitals to go into central Florida and take both games on Tampa Bay's home ice has shown me otherwise. I think Tampa Bay will get a couple wins in these playoffs, but Washington has been too dominate in the series and I think will take the series in six games.

Stanley Cup Finals prediction: Vegas Golden Knights vs. Washington Capitals.

2018 NHL Second Round Playoffs Prediction

When the NHL playoffs started, I made my first round predictions. I'm proud to say that I called correctly seven out of the eight teams correctly to move onto the second round, and in three of those match-ups I also called correctly how many games those teams would win. I was perfect in predicting that the Tampa Bay Lightning would defeat the New Jersey Devils in five games, the Boston Bruins would defeat the Toronto Maple Leafs in seven games, and the Pittsburgh Penguins would defeat the Philadelphia Flyers in six games. The one prediction I was completely off was thinking the Anaheim Ducks would beat the San Jose Sharks in seven games. Props to San Jose on the four-game sweep.

So with the second round set to begin tonight, here's my predictions on who will advance to the conference finals:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Boston Bruins - Tampa Bay wins in 6
The Boston Bruins proved against the Toronto Maple Leafs that they won't go down without a fight.They fought back constantly in that series to take down the Maple Leafs. But with that said, Tampa Bay is a whole new bear to try to take down. The Lightning are too quick for the Bruins and Boston won't be able to keep up. The Lightning also have too many scorers who can put the puck in the net from anywhere on the ice. So it's my prediction that Tampa Bay wins the series in six games.




Washington Capitals vs. Pittsburgh Penguins - Pittsburgh wins in 7
This series will be extremely competitive. Both teams are good. There's no denying that. This will be a back and forth seesaw affair for sure. But the Capitals have a knack for coming up short on the big stage. And I believe that will happen again. Both sides have good defense, good scorers, and good goaltenders. But the Penguins have the experience it will take to win a game 7 and move onto the conference finals against Tampa Bay.  So it's my prediction that Pittsburgh wins the series in seven games.



WESTERN CONFERENCE
Nashville Predators vs. Winnipeg Jets - Nashville wins in 5
The Jets were impressive in their first round win over the Minnesota Wild. But it's going to take a lot more effort for them to take down the Predators. The Preds have too much strength on defense and too good of scorers on offense. And it helps that their goaltender is pretty good too. The Jets won't have the capability to keep up with the likes of Mike Fisher and the rest of the Preds. So it's my prediction that Nashville will win this series in five games.

Vegas Golden Knights vs. San Jose Sharks - Vegas wins in 6
The Golden Knights are making history with every playoff win, but it's San Jose that shocked me. I did not see their sweep of the Ducks coming. They won't have it as easy against Vegas. James Neal and the rest of the Golden Knights look determined to re-write our expectations of an expansion team. They are quick, the strike from almost anywhere, and their goaltender is nearly unstoppable. While this round won't be as easy for the Golden Knights either (they swept the Los Angeles Kings in the first round), I believe we will see history once again. So it's my prediction that Vegas wins the series in six games.

I was pretty close to dead on in the first round. Can I be that accurate again with a spot in the conference finals on the line for these teams? Guess we will have to wait and see. Second round of the 2018 NHL Playoffs begin tonight.

MLB Standings Through April 15th

The first month of the season has been pretty exciting around baseball. We've seen Clayton Kershaw show why he's the best pitcher in baseball; last night (April 15th) we saw the ageless Bartolo Colon take a perfect game into the 8th inning; and we've seen some surprise teams come out of the gate on fire. Here are the standings through Jackie Robinson Day.

American League

East

Boston Red Sox          13-2        -GB

Toronto Blue Jays       9-5         3.5 GB

New York Yankees     7-7         5.5 GB

Baltimore Orioles       5-11       8.5 GB

Tampa Bay Rays        3-12        10 GB

Central

Minnesota Twins       7-4         -GB

Cleveland Indians      8-6         .5 GB

Chicago White Sox    4-8        3.5 GB

Detroit Tigers             4-9        4 GB

Kansas City Royals    3-10      5 GB

West

Los Angeles Angels  13-3       -GB

Houston Astros          10-6      3 GB

Seattle Mariners         8-5        3.5 GB

Oakland Athletics      6-10      7 GB

Texas Rangers            6-11      7.5 GB

Wild Card

Toronto Blue Jays       -

Houston Astros           -

Seattle Mariners          .5 GB

Cleveland Indians       1 GB

New York Yankees     2 GB

National League

East

New York Mets          12-2        -GB

Philadelphia Phillies   9-5          3 GB

Atlanta Braves            8-6          4 GB

Washington Nationals 7-9          6 GB

Miami Marlins            4-11        8.5 GB

Central

Pittsburgh Pirates        11-4        -GB

St. Louis Cardinals      9-7          2.5 GB

Chicago Cubs              7-7          3.5 GB

Milwaukee Brewers    8-8          3.5 GB

Cincinnati Reds           2-13        9 GB

West

Arizona Diamondbacks 11-4       -GB

Colorado Rockies          9-8         3 GB

San Diego Padres          7-10       5 GB

San Francisco Giants     6-9        5 GB

Los Angeles Dodgers    5-9         5.5 GB

Wild Card

Philadelphia Phillies          +1

Atlanta Braves                    -GB

St. Louis Cardinals             -GB

Colorado Rockies               .5 GB

Milwaukee Brewers           1 GB

Chicago Cubs                     1 GB

2018 NHL Playoffs Are Set

The NHL playoffs are set. The playoffs will be one that no one needs to miss. Now I have to admit that the playoffs lost some luster in my eyes, after the massive collapse of my Dallas Stars
. But despite the Stars downfall (get better soon Ben Bishop), the playoffs are still going to be a lot of fun to watch. All 16 teams are fairly equal to some degree, which means that the 8th seeds could upset the 1st seeds. Now will it happen? I don't think so. But it's possible. Here's my NHL predictions:

EASTERN CONFERENCE

(1) Tampa Bay Lightning vs. (8) New Jersey Devils
This one I think will end quickly. Now I don't think it'll be a sweep. New Jersey have some good scorers and they are solid in net, but the Lightning are too stacked to have their season end in the first round.

PREDICTION: Tampa Bay wins in 5 games






(2) Boston Bruins vs. (7) Toronto Maple Leafs
Austin Matthews is going to be fun to watch in this series. The Bruins will struggle to contain this young superstar. Rusk has been dealing with injuries. If Matthews and the Maple Leafs can take advantage of Rusk, then Toronto will have a chance to knock off the 2-seed. But Rusk seems to always rise to the occasion in the playoffs, which is why I think it'll be a rough series but one Boston can win.

PREDICTION: Boston wins in 7 games



(3) Washington Capitals vs. (6) Columbus Blue Jackets
This one is probably going to be the one series that will be completely one sided. The Capitals, with Alexander Ovechkin leading the way, will help the Capitals end this series early.

PREDICTION: Washington wins in 4 games







(4) Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (5) Philadelphia Flyers
The Flyers have flown under the radar this season (like what I did there. lol), but they won't catch their in-state rivals off guard. The Penguins, behind Sidney Crosby, will ultimately knock off Philadelphia. Not saying that it'll be easy. Philadelphia will have a strong fan base behind them at home, but the Penguins will advance to the 2nd round.

PREDICTION: Pittsburgh wins in 6 games




WESTERN CONFERENCE

(1)Nashville Predators vs. (8) Colorado Avalanche
The Avs barely made it into the playoffs, especially after their goalie went down. Not sure they can handle the Preds for a long period of time. They might get a win at home, but they won't do much more than that.

PREDICTION: Nashville wins in 5 games




(2) Winnipeg Jets vs. (7) Minnesota Wild
The Jets surprised me this season at just how good they are. I didn't think they'd be in the playoffs at all let alone be the 2-seed. They will be a force in these playoffs. Minnesota will have some highlight moments in this series, but the Wild won't be able to do it for long. 

PREDICTION: Winnipeg wins in 6 games



(3) Vegas Golden Knights vs. (6) Los Angeles Kings
No one thought an expansion team could do what Vegas did this year. They are good...very good. Led by James Neal and Marc-Andre Fleury, the Golden Knights will have the desert of Las Vegas flocking to the ice for hockey.

PREDICTION: Vegas wins in 6 games





(4) Anaheim Ducks vs. (5) San Jose Sharks
This will be a series that, unless you live in one of these two cities and are fans of one of these two teams, will be a snooze-fess. Neither the Ducks nor the Sharks have anyone worth watching on either team. But with that said, the Ducks seem to always find a way to advance in the playoffs...at least out of the first round.

PREDICTION: Anaheim wins in 7 games

So there ya go. Those are my predictions for the first round of the NHL Playoffs. I will predict the rest of the playoffs after the each round is over. What do y'all think? Give me your predictions.

Major League Baseball Is Back

This is one of my favorite time of the year...Opening Day around Major League Baseball. This time of year everyone has a shot to win it all, everyone has a chance to have a magical year, everyone is even at 0-0 and are in first place.

The season begins on Thursday. There are some teams that look very promising to do well and content for the World Series. There are other teams that, if we are being realistic, don't have a chance this year as they are rebuilding. But who will emerge at the end of this 162-game season as the World Series Champs? Only time will tell.

Here are my predictions for this next season:

*American League West Division Champs: Houston Astros
It pains me to say this, but I don't see the Astros losing their hold on the division this year. The majority of their team from last year's World Series champion team is back and they've added pitcher Garritt Cole in a trade with the Pittsburgh Pirates. They will also have a full season with Justin Verlander as the ace of their pitching staff. Their lineup is scary with reigning AL MVP Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa, Alex Bregman, and George Springer just to name a few. The rest of the AL West will have a hard time catching the Houston Astros.




*American League Central Division Champs: Minnesota Twins
This is my upset pick. Many think it'll be the Cleveland Indians and they've got a great shot to win the division, but the Twins adding Lance Lynn and Jake Odorizzi to their pitching rotation to go along with guys in their lineup like Byron Buxton, Brian Dozier, Joe Mauer, and adding Logan Morrison will give Minnesota the edge to win their division in 2018.

*American League East Division Champs: New York Yankess
How can you not pick the Yankees to win the division this year? They added the best player in the game today in Giancarlo Stanton to go along with Aaron Judge.  They have a complete lineup to go along with a great pitching rotation. First year Aaron Boone has a great group to work with.

*American League Wild Card: Boston Red Sox and Texas Rangers
The Boston Red Sox will be in contention for their division for most of the season, but I think will fall away late in September. Their rotation looks similar to last years rotation and their lineup looks similar as well. They aren't quite good enough to catch the Yankees due to the Stanton trade, but they will be good enough to host the AL Wild Card game at Fenway Park.

The Texas Rangers are another surprise I'm calling to make the playoffs as the 2nd Wild Card team. They have a lot of questions, but with Adrian Beltre and Elvis Andrus as the leaders of the clubhouse to go along with the big bat of Joey Gallos their offense should produce a lot of runs. They will need Roughned Odor to start swinging at only strikes and will need Shin Soo-Choo to stay healthy all year. Their rotation has been revamped completely with the additions of Mike Minor, Matt Moore, and Doug Fister will make their pitching staff better. The bullpen will be much better than last year as Alex Claudio will go into the closer's role full time and additions of Chris Martin from Japan, Tim Lincecum, as well as a full season of Jake Diekman back from injury and a healthy Matt Bush should be enough to boost the Rangers to the second Wild Card spot in the playoffs.

*National League West Division Champs: Los Angeles Dodgers
This one won't even be close. The Los Angeles Dodgers will run away with this division.  Their pitching staff is strong, their lineup is a killer, and they have unfinished business after losing in Game 7 of the World Series. This division will be wrapped up by mid-September.

*National League Central Division Champs: Milwaukee Brewers
I'm sure everyone is picking the Chicago Cubs to win the division, but I'm not and it's because of their acquisition of Yu Darvish that I'm not picking them. Darvish is not good under pressure. When the game is on the line and they need a big start from him, they won't get it. He proved during his time in Texas and then again in the World Series with the Dodgers that when there is pressure for him to pitch well, he will crumble. I believe that the Brewers, with their big signing of Lorenzo Cain and trade for Christian Yelich will be what they need to knock the Cubs out of the division driver's seat.

*National League East Division Champs: Washington Nationals
This is a no brainer. No other team in this division will be able to keep up with the Nationals. Now...the Phillies will be better this year after signing Carlos Santana and Jake Arrieta. But they won't have enough to catch the Nationals. They are still the team to beat in the East behind that monster pitching rotation of Stephen Strasberg and Max Scherzer.





*National League Wild Card: Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies

The Chicago Cubs, while I don't believe will be the division champions, will be the good enough to host the Wild Card game at the friendly confines. While Darvish does cave under pressure, he will give the Cubs 15-17 wins which will be good for them. Jon Lester and Kyle Hendricks will also be solid for the Cubs in their rotation. It's hard to argue their lineup with the likes of Anthony Rizzo and Kris Bryant in it. The Cubs will be good...just good enough to grab that number one wild card spot.

The Philadelphia Phillies will be the big improvement team this year. Under first year manager Gabe Kapler, the Phillies will make a solid stride to returning to the glory they once were back about 10 years ago. Carlos Santana will be a solid piece in their lineup while Jake Arrieta will anchor the pitching rotation. The Phillies will surprise some people and will make it back to the playoffs as a wild card.

*PLAYOFF PREDICTIONS

AL Wild Card: Boston over Texas

NL Wild Card: Chicago over Philadelphia

ALDS: Houston over Boston; NY Yankees over Minnesota

NLDS: LA Dodgers over Chicago; Washington over Milwaukee

ALCS: NY Yankees over Houston

NLCS: LA Dodgers over Washington

WORLD SERIES: LA Dodgers over NY Yankees in 7 games

What is your MLB predictions for 2018?