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By Marc Lawrence
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Thursday, Nov 21 |
This week, Deion Sanders was discussing Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter, who is currently the favorite for the Heisman Trophy.
"Travis is the best defensive player and the best offensive player in the country," Sanders said. "So, if that stabilizes and authenticates who he is, so let it be. But, I don't see anybody better, I don't see anyone projected better, and the scouts will tell you. Everybody will tell you who knows this game of football. "He should win the Thorpe, Biletnikoff, the Jerry Rice, the Prime award. He should win every darn award that they got."
It seems that Sanders thinks a Coach Prime award should be given to the nation’s best corner.
For the record, there is no "Prime Award," but Sanders thinks there should be one.
"Matter of fact, why don't they have me an award, Rick?" Sanders jokingly asked his boss, CU athletic director RickGeorge. "Wouldn't that be good if a player that played for me win the Prime? The best corner in college football should be called the Prime."
Me thinks someone’s ego is larger than the state of Colorado.
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ON TODAY'S SCORECARD
What We Learned
Per Nate Davis of the USA TODAY, the 32 things we learned from Week 11 of the 2024 NFL season:
Sunday provided ample evidence that the league should brand at least one official rivalry weekend per season. Several consequential outcomes emerged in key games between opponents who are all too familiar with one another.
Buffalo’s victory was secured thanks to QB Josh Allen’s highlight reel, 26-yard TD run with little more than two minutes to play. He may not finish with stats as gaudy as Baltimore Ravens counterpart Lamar Jackson, but Allen’s success with a team seemingly depleted in the offseason should put him squarely in the conversation for his first MVP award.
Chris Boswell converted all 6 of his FG attempts today in the win and is the first kicker in NFL history with 6+ made FGs in 3 career games. He also joins John Carney (1993) as the only kickers ever with 6+ made FGs in multiple games within a season. With it, QB Russell Wilson’s 22-game streak with a TD pass – which was the NFL’s longest active one – came to an end.
The idle Arizona Cardinals (6-4) continue to lead the division but are only one game ahead of cellar-dwelling San Fran (5-5).
Click here to read more of the 32 things we learned from last week’s game 11. |
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GRINDING OUT THE PROFITS
Ye Of Little Faith
No faith in the recent conquerors of previously unbeaten Miami? Nope.
Georgia Tech has been a wreck when coming off a game like that, going 2-9 ATS as the favorite when they were a dog in the last game. Worse, beating Miami seems to send Ga. Tech into a stupor, going 0-5-1 ATS at home in games following a win over the Hurricanes.
Should we even mention that Tech has rival Georgia next? It is one of those rivalries where one school is angry while the larger, more famous one acts like it doesn’t have time for the other team. Georgia fans will list Florida, Auburn, and Clemson long before they remember Georgia Tech.
The Wolfpack are among the many 5-5 teams needing that one more win for a bowl game, and they have a 9-2 ATS mark in ACC games vs. a team coming off an ACC tilt.
Wolfpack QB CJ Bailey has six TD passes and just one pick in his last three starts. We’re doubling down on the Raleigh Gang with a one-two punch combination that, unlike the Tyson-Paul “fight,” will actually land.
First, THE SMART BOX with a straight right hand, followed by the vicious left hook we call THE CLINCHER, which points out NCSU is 24-5 ATS with rest in conference play since 1997, and that includes a hefty 11-1 SUATS, versus .600 or worse opponents.
Even a Las Vegas boxing judge can see a clear-cut unanimous decision here. |
STAT OF THE DAY
+325
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For the first time in history, the Detroit Lions
are Super Bowl favorites at +325 at BetMGM. |
QUOTE OF THE DAY
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“The titles, numbers, they're there.
The way I'd like
to be remembered
more is like a good person
from
a small village in Mallorca.”
- Rafael Nadal on his retirement speech
after the final match of his
career on Tuesday.
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TRENDING TODAY
West is Best
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The NBA has two conferences. So far this century, one has been far superior to the other.
Decades of dominance: Western Conference teams are 37-18 against Eastern Conference teams this season, putting the West on pace to finish with the better head-to-head record — and thus the better overall record — for the 23rd time in the past 26 seasons.
Yes, you read that right: The East has had a better winning percentage than the West just three times this century: 2008-09 (.505), 2021-22 (.501) and 2022-23 (.509). During that time, Western Conference teams have also won nearly twice as many championships (16 of 25).
* The disparity is on full display in the current NBA standings: The East has four teams with winning records (Cavaliers, Celtics, Magic, Knicks), while the West has 11 (Warriors, Thunder, Lakers, Rockets, Nuggets, Suns, Timberwolves, Clippers, Mavericks, Grizzlies, Kings).
* If the NBA didn't have a salary cap and the West had more big-spenders, that might explain their consistent superiority. But there are actually more small market teams in the West.
So what's behind this imbalance? Some theories with two of Yahoo Sports' NBA experts, Kevin O'Connor and Tom Haberstroh. A few of their favorites…
1. The East has had more consistently bad teams, which has hurt the conference's overall performance. The data supports this theory: Of the 10 teams with the worst record this century, eight are in the East, including the bottom three (Wizards, Hornets/Bobcats, Knicks).
2. The West has better weather, which attracts better players. There's probably some truth to this, and the data once again backs it up: The West has produced more All-NBA players than the East every single year since 1999.
3. The West has better decision-makers. "It's all about upstairs," says Haberstroh. "Historically, the best GMs and decision-makers have been in the West — Sam Presti in OKC, R.C. Buford in San Antonio — and while players come and go, they're a constant."
Bottom line: Conference/league imbalance isn't unique to the NBA. The NFC won 13 straight Super Bowls from 1984-96; the AL has won 28 of the last 36 MLB All-Star Games. Theories can help diagnose these anomalies (i.e. the AL has had a larger concentration of power hitters, which translates well to the ASG), but there's still an element of flukiness that can't be explained. |
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SPORTS CHAT WITH MARC
Ronnie from the Big Apple wants to know: What surprised you the most in this week’s College football Playoff rankings.
Marc Says: I would say the fact that Boise State leapfrogged BYU, meaning the Broncos are the provisional No. 4 seed in the playoff with two weeks to go in the regular season. |
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Coffee In One Hand. Confidence In The Other. The Coffee Club Way.
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