Unverified Voracity Wants CONCACAF Disbanded Comment Count

Brian

The only way we'll ever see FSU at Michigan again: a playoff

Playoff stuff. CBS anonymously surveyed conference commissioners and came back with indications as to where they're leaning if (when) a four-team playoff gets implemented. The most important bit from the Big Ten perspective:

CBSSports.com survey says: The commissioners that responded favored playing the semifinal games on campus and holding the title game at a neutral site -- either an existing BCS bowl or letting cities bid for the title game. There was not much support for holding the semifinal games at neutral sites.

I predict in 2014: Semifinal games will end up being played on campus sites with the current BCS bowls hosting the championship game on a rotating basis. Although, don't count out the BCS allowing other cities to bid for the game -- similar to the Super Bowl. Also it's a stone cold lock that the double-hosting format by the BCS bowls (Fiesta, Orange, Sugar and Rose) will be eliminated when the new cycle begins.

That is the way it should be. Cut out the middlemen and provide home atmospheres. Brett McMurphy also reports that commissioners are split down the middle about restricting the field to conference champions, that semifinals will be played sometime around Christmas, and the final will be "as close to January 1 as possible." Oddly, the actual plus one—just another game after the bowls without a bracket—is still on the table.

Amazing how we've instantly flipped from never happen to definitely happening on this. Once Delany was proposing stuff in newspapers this was inevitable, I guess. Still a jarring shift in the landscape.

Burying the lead. David Stern got snippy when asked about the NBA's one-and-done rule recently, which got the headline and the attention. I think this is more significant, though:

“Years ago, I said to the NCAA, I’ve got a great idea,” he said. ‘We’ll insure a select group of basketball players. And that will make them more likely to stay in school, because they won’t feel the loss of a big contract. We’ll designate a pool, and those that are lucky enough to be drafted and make money will pay us back, and those that don’t, it’s our expense. The NCAA I think took it to a committee, that takes it to a census, that took it to a conference, then they have a congress and they came back to me and they said, well, it will only work under our rules if we do that for all sports. And I said, I don’t think that’ll work.”

NBA: Would you like some free money?

NCAA, thanks to the Indiana States of the world: No.

The NCAA is a lot like CONCACAF these days, dominated by a bunch of insignificant islands who have voting power out of all proportion to their relevance. This is D-I. Indiana State wants it to be intramurals. A split is necessary.

As far as the one-and-done model goes, the reason Stern gets snippy is because every time he has a press conference someone asks him about the one and done being ridiculous. This is because it is. John Gasaway was talking about this on twitter recently and I chimed in to agree: the NBA should move to the NHL model where everyone's eligible out of high school whether they opt in or not. NBA teams could then draft players without having to sign them, and sign them when they thought they could be a useful addition to the roster. You could expand the draft to five rounds and give NBA fans another reason to watch college basketball. The kids who aren't ready but keep declaring for the draft willy-nilly would evaporate. It would be a win for everyone.

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Della Valle items. I'm watching his weird Findlay Prep team* club a high school that's actually a high school in a made-for-ESPN high school showcase. It's dififcult to judge Della Valle's offense since he's an afterthought amongst the mega-touted guys around him, but he plays probably 80% of Findlay's minutes so he's doing something right.

He's a scrappy, high-effort player who's doing pretty well defensively against other guys going to high majors, and it seems like he's making smart cuts to get open. These cuts are almost universally ignored by his teammates; the one time he did get a dump-down in the post he took a couple of back-to-the-basket dribbles before hitting a teammate flashing down the lane. The resulting thunder-dunk was aborted by a foul. He looks like a Beilein player out there amongst the athletes and whatnot. Findlay claims he's hitting 55% of his threes on the year, which… like… if that's true he's not shooting nearly enough.

His ballhandling is okay. You could get away with him as a backup point but wouldn't want to start him there. He'd be able to play at the two and three easily. I'd take him without blinking.

It would be a great help for Michigan if Arizona's troubled Josiah Turner returned. Survey says

"I won't elaborate beyond that just because when our season ends we will be able to take the next step and get on the same page with Josiah moving forward. That shouldn't be interpreted as he will never play at Arizona again, but I know he won't play this season again."

This is Turner's second suspension. He did not travel with the team to Florida on Dec. 7, and Miller also held him out during the third game of the season to send something of an attitude adjustment message.

Miller wouldn't comment on the chances of Turner -- rated the 10th-best recruit in the country last season by Rivals.com -- being with Arizona next season

Hmmm. Make this work, Sean Miller. Arizona currently has one scholarship available and is after Duquense transfer TJ McConnell, a PG (who can't play next year, settle down) who fits a bigger need for them. Without someone else leaving they would not have room for Della Valle. Root for McConnell to Arizona and Turner to zen meditation.

Della Valle visits Arizona the 13th and Michigan shortly after. Vibes have been good so far but not so good that it would be a shock to see him at Arizona. It seems to be down to M and the Wildcats, though.

*[The only students at the school are the guys on the basketball roster. It's a school in a very technical sense. The academics seem fine, as the kids go to a tony private school across the street.]

Beilein offense in detail. It's been like four days so it's time for another Massive Daily Profile. This one is on Beilein's offense:

Beilein rapidly moves the five pins around the board, showing the wide variety of offensive looks he uses. The only thing moving faster than his fingers is his mouth, as he breathlessly details what would be overly complex to most.

You realize Beilein is in complete control of this offense, and for good reason — it’s all his. Some may have similar principles in their system, but the minutiae, terminology and endless reads Beilein employs are unique to him. Though the basics come from some ancestral systems, he has morphed and twisted his attack into something all his own.

Ever wonder why you don’t see other teams running the Beilein system? It’d be impossible. The only man who truly knows its detailed intricacies is Beilein.

Etc.: Five high points of the basketball season. Craig Roh interviewed, seems to be adopting the shaggy hair required of Michigan SDEs.

Comments

03 Blue 07

March 30th, 2012 at 5:20 PM ^

That's just it. The premiums are not easy. If there is an arm's-length, third-party financial institution that would pay the premium for the family (as in, loan them the premium payment) at a reasonable interest rate, I think that would be how a lot of kids currently pay for it. Or, that "third party financial institution" isn't really an arm's-length party. Regardless, I am shaking my head if the NBA really offered to fund the pool of risk and the NCAA turned it down. Just...my goodness. What is the counterargument? I can't think of a very good one. You have a comittee that decides what guys will "get insurance," and hopefully it's made up of intelligent people who are honest. Or use some other criteria. As long as it tries to be objective and based on merit.

TrppWlbrnID

March 30th, 2012 at 4:26 PM ^

so the playoff thing is really a plus 2 as the champ game will be in a bowl game that already exists and we are adding 2 roving semifinal games. but if the bcs championship game goes away and is now just played in one of the existing bcs bowls, we will be down a bowl. so we really are a plus 1, but its more like a plus 2 minus 1 scenario.

take that, talk radio dudes

M-Dog

March 30th, 2012 at 5:54 PM ^

My tongue is dragging on the ground, drooling at the prospect of a playoff game in the Big House against an SEC team in late December.  Please, please, oh please.

BTW, unless it's Florida, it can actually get pretty cold in the SEC states in late December.  SEC teams could still wind up being at a disadvantage because of weather they are not used to playing in . . . even though they are playing at home. 

 

WolvinLA2

March 30th, 2012 at 8:40 PM ^

How many Big Ten states are really going to have much snow already in December?  A lot of winters it hasn't hardly snowed yet in December, let alone piles of it.  And yeah, the turf will be cold.  But NFL teams play outside in December and January, why can't college? 

Statistically speaking, it would only happen every couple years.  The top two teams would get the home games, so how many years is one of the top two teams in the country in a cold climate?  It would only be Big Ten teams that would qualify, unless Boston College or Syracuse really picks it up. 

It would be a novelty when it happened, and it would probably add hype to the game.  Michigan played a game just fine over Thanksgiving weekend this past year, one month wouldn't have made enough difference to not play the game.

I Bleed Maize N Blue

March 31st, 2012 at 4:40 PM ^

Yeah, maybe you'd get lucky, and there wouldn't be snow, and granted, there have been winters without much, but my point is what if there was?  One month could make a difference.

I guess you missed my point about heated fields, which NFL stadiums have (that need it).  I wouldn't think college-only stadiums would have it, because the season's over . Remember the storm which collapsed the Metrodome roof?  That was mid-December.  Minnesota's stadium was a possible reloc for the Vikings game, except they couldn't get it cleared in time, and the field not just being cold, but frozen was an issue.

So what if Michigan were to host a playoff game, and a storm hit right before?  Postpone the game?  What if you can't get snow cleared by Monday?  Relocate to Ford Field?  Of course then you only have 59% capacity.

Oh, and Syracuse plays in a dome, which is why I mentioned outdoor stadiums.

Erik_in_Dayton

March 30th, 2012 at 5:04 PM ^

As I see it, the NBA would be entering into an agreement with a player in which the NBA says, "We'll pay you $X if you are injured while playing in college."  Doesn't the NCAA just have to not prohibit that?  It's not a benefit that the NCAA is providing.  The NCAA could not prohibit that for female players - all NCAA athletes, in fact - and those athletes would be on the same footing as the elite MBB players as far as their relationship w/ the NCAA...All of this being said, I don't know the exact language of Title IX. 

MI Expat NY

March 30th, 2012 at 5:09 PM ^

That's a perfectly fair reading of Stern's quote, but who knows how it really would have worked.  

I also don't exactly see how this is strictly a benefit to the "non-Iowa State's" of the world.  Sure, most early departures come from big schools, but it's hard to argue that there aren't plenty of smaller schools who would have had players benefit from the same system.  Gordan Haywood at Butler, for instance.

DonAZ

March 30th, 2012 at 5:22 PM ^

It would not surprise me if Title IX entered into the discussion somewhere.  From what I can understand, the interpretation of that statute has broadened over the years to mean a great many things never intended at original draft.  At a minimum it likely causes universities to pause and consult lawyers before making any decisions.

M-Wolverine

March 30th, 2012 at 11:50 PM ^

And has nothing to do with smaller schools. Hell, small schools get NBA ready players even more rarely, so they have more interest in keeping them in school than say, Kentucky. It's all about not giving male players something females players won't get. And to some extent, not being able to strong arm the NFL to do the same for football. I don't know why it's continually looked to be school class warfare around here when it's Federal mandate that restricts these things.

MaizeAndBlueWahoo

March 30th, 2012 at 9:48 PM ^

If there's going to be a four-team playoff, why not have the semifinal games played the week after the CCGs?  It would be cool, for one, to have more football on the day of the Army-Navy game.  They don't have to be at the same time.  Then the losers can go to bowls, which ought to keep the bowls happy because then a playoff doesn't have to detract one bit from their pool of teams to choose from.

cstalionsuofm

April 7th, 2012 at 7:04 PM ^

Here are a few huge flaws in the playoff idea:

Scenario:

Top10

1.Michigan undefeated

2.USC undefeated

3.LSU

4.Alabama

5.Oklahoma

6.Oregon

7.West Virginia

8.Wisconsin

9.Arkansas

10.Florida State



Michigan would play USC in Rose Bowl. LSU would play Oregon and Alabama would play Oklahoma.

The Rose Bowl should just be for the national championship. Instead, the loser (who is clearly the 2nd best team) will not play in the championship. It could be Oklahoma vs USC (5v2) and Michigan lost by one in a 1vs2 matchup. Just a silly idea. And also, Michigan USC would be at Rose Bowl while the other teams get the advantage/disadvantage of playing at home or away. This is just an awful idea and will NEVER happen

cstalionsuofm

April 7th, 2012 at 7:05 PM ^

The BCS has never gotten it wrong. What cause great controversy last year ended up being a great turnout. They got the top two teams and the better team won. If OK State would have been there, it would have been an UGLY BLOWOUT WIN for LSU

cstalionsuofm

April 7th, 2012 at 7:09 PM ^

After thinking about it, it would be amazing to have Michigan host a school in December to go to the championship! But there are still flaws that need to be fixed. There need to be a few scenarios so no teams get screwed over that deserve to be in the championship. Whatever it takes to get 1 vs 2



PRIORITIES ARE:

1. Get 1 vs 2

2. Keep Rose Bowl