Posts Tagged ‘Robert Waterman’

TalkSportsPhilly Bowl Projections: Week 2

November 11th, 2015 by Robert Waterman | Comments Off on TalkSportsPhilly Bowl Projections: Week 2 | Filed in College Sports, Football, General, Sports

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So, Week 2 of the College Football Playoff Rankings have been released, and there are some significant changes as there were some big upsets last weekwhich have shaken up the rankings so let’s recap the initial College Football Playoff top 10 teams before we go any further:

(As of November 3, 2015)

1. Clemson
2. LSU
3. Ohio State
4. Alabama
5. Notre Dame
6. Baylor
7. Michigan State
8. TCU
9. Iowa
10. Florida

My, how things change in one Saturday. Three teams that were in the top 10, saw their dreams shattered as LSU, TCU and Michigan State all lost last weekend. LSU lost to Alabama by a score of 30-16 in Tuscaloosa, as Derrick Henry ran wild on the Tigers defense carving them up for 210 yards and 3 touchdowns. Meanwhile, in Stillwater, Oklahoma, The Oklahoma State Cowboys had their way with TCU as they destroyed the Horned Frogs 49-29, all but ending their chance at redemption for missing the playoffs last year. And finally in Lincoln, Nebraska in what may have been the most controversial ending of the season.

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TSP College Football Bowl Projections: Week 1

November 6th, 2015 by Robert Waterman | Comments Off on TSP College Football Bowl Projections: Week 1 | Filed in College Sports, Football, General, Sports

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Ahhh…….November. The seasons are in transition, the World Series just reached its conclusion (Congratulations to Kansas City) , the NHL and NBA seasons are in just about full swing, and for football…..it’s time to get serious, especially for the College Football scene. So with that, I welcome you to the 1st installment of the TalkSportsPhilly College Football Bowl Projections. During the course of the next 5 weeks, I will be making my projections for the College Football Playoff Games, the “New Year’s Six” games, as well as provide projections for both Temple and Penn State and where they might end up for bowl season, so with that in mind……..Let’s get Started.

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Playoff Picture

So earlier, the College Football Playoff Selection Committee released their first Top 25 poll of the season. This group of 12 individuals ranging from former Athletic Directors, to former Head Coaches, to even former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice meet every week in a sequestered room in Grapevine Texas to come up with this poll. So some of you might be saying to yourselves, “What goes into this poll???” or “What does this committee base their decisions on?”

Well, the short answer is in 3 simple parts: Strength of Schedule, Head-to-Head, and Conference Championships. The last one could definitely be the tipping point come that 1st Sunday in December (Just ask TCU and Baylor last year about that). The top 4 teams in that final poll will meet in the College Football Playoff Semifinals on New Year’s Eve at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida and the Cotton Bowl Classic in Arlington, Texas (Site of last years National Championship Game). The pair of winners will then meet on Monday, January 11th, 2016 in Glendale, Arizona to crown a National Champion. So now that the poll has been explained, here is the 1st Top 25 poll of the playoff season:

College Football Playoff Top 25 as of 11-3-2015
1 Clemson 8-0
2 LSU 7-0
3 Ohio State 8-0
4 Alabama 7-1
5 Notre Dame 7-1
6 Baylor 7-0
7 Michigan State 8-0
8 TCU 8-0
9 Iowa 8-0
10 Florida 7-1
11 Stanford 7-1
12 Utah 7-1
13 Memphis 8-0
14 Oklahoma State 8-0
15 Oklahoma 7-1
16 Florida State 7-1
17 Michigan 6-2
18 Ole Miss 7-2
19 Texas A&M 6-2
20 Mississippi State 6-2
21 Northwestern 6-2
22 Temple 7-1
23 UCLA 6-2
24 Toledo 7-0
25 Houston 8-0

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Philly Sports News: Temple and PSU Take Another Step

October 20th, 2015 by Robert Waterman | Comments Off on Philly Sports News: Temple and PSU Take Another Step | Filed in College Sports, Football, General, Sports

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So I’ve got some good news, and some bad news after another crazy Saturday of College Football.  So I will start with the bad news first, Penn State went into Columbus with visions of winning, however, they were quickly extinguished in a 38-10 loss to the top ranked Ohio State Buckeyes on Saturday Night Football.  The Nittany Lions looked lethargic for most of the game as Christian Hackenberg went 7 for 13 throwing for 120 yards and 1 touchdown, but was pressured and hurried as well as sacked all night long.  The lone bright spot for this team was RB Saquon Barkley who ran for 196 yards.  Now keep in mind that he is only a freshman who had a bright future ahead of him.

For Ohio State, it was the J.T Barrett show as he threw for only 30 yards and 2 touchdowns, however, he killed Penn State with his legs as he ran for 102 yards and 2 additional touchdowns, and if that wasn’t enough Ezekiel Elliott ran for 153 yards and 1 touchdown as well.  Next game for Penn State is a road test against Maryland while Ohio State also goes in the road for another Saturday Night game against Rutgers.

Now for the good news….. (more…)

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NCAAF: Penn St vs Ohio St Preview

October 16th, 2015 by Robert Waterman | Comments Off on NCAAF: Penn St vs Ohio St Preview | Filed in College Sports, Football, General, Sports

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So during the preseason I had thought that when we got to this game that both teams would be 6-0, and then Temple came along and spoiled that. In any case, Penn State travels to Columbus this week to take on the undefeated and top ranked Ohio State Buckeyes in a Saturday Night clash at “The Horseshoe.” However, Ohio State has not been that impressive this year either pulling out closing against Northern Illinois and more recently against Indiana. However, I think that Penn State might actually be the least impressive of the 2 teams coming into this game.

Now I know what you’re saying….. “Penn State is 5-1 that is impressive in itself!”. Well I’m here to give a reality check for those who are saying this. Yes Penn State is 5-1, BUT, in 3 of their 5 wins the margin of victory was by 15 points or less, including a 6 point win against Army, which the Nittany Lions gave up almost 300 rushing yards to the Black Knights. Both teams seem to have some weak spots so lets dive in deeper with the matchups.

Suffice to say that both teams have struggled at times this year, however, Ohio State has been more consistent in the 2nd half of games when they have pulled away in all but 2 of those games. The Buckeyes are led by QB Cardale Jones, who has struggled at times this year, while throwing for 1158 yards and 7 TDs this season. They also have another QB in J.T Barrett who can be a very dangerous red zone threat with his legs. Running back Ezekiel Elliott adds another dimension to Urban Meyer’s offense on the ground as he has already ran for almost 900 yards and 10 touchdowns through six games. QB turned WR Braxton Miller is perhaps more dangerous now than he ever was on a team that is looking to get back to the playoffs and defend the national title that they won last season.

Meanwhile for Penn State, QB Christian Hackenberg has not lived up to his pre-season Heisman hype, and is having an average season at best throwing for 1087 yards and 7 TDs to date.  He will need to have a career game if Penn State has a chance. The defense will have to stand on it’s collective heads all game because they will be tested all night by Ohio State’s stout Offensive Line.

Prediction:  Bottom line, as much of a Penn State fan that I am, Ohio State has to much firepower for Penn State to keep up.  I fear this game may be over by halftime.

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NCAAF: Temple, Penn State impressive, but big test looms for one

October 12th, 2015 by Robert Waterman | Comments Off on NCAAF: Temple, Penn State impressive, but big test looms for one | Filed in College Sports, Football, General, Sports

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So one game I think we all knew who would win, and another one I couldn’t have been more wrong with. So we will start with Penn State, who was impressive in their homecoming win over Indiana despite yet another slow start which had fans wondering if they would even get going. That is until midway through the 1st quarter, when Christian Hackenberg threw the 1st of 2 touchdown passes on the game, and the rest was history as Penn State won 29-7. Hackenberg was 21 for 39, threw for 262 yards and 2 touchdowns, while also running for 2 more touchdowns in what was probably his best performance of the year. Same could be said for the offense as a whole as they put up 420 yards of offense for the game.

Next up for Penn State is perhaps the game of the year as the Nittany Lions travel to Columbus to take on top ranked Ohio State who is coming off a 49-28 thrashing of Maryland.

As for Temple, I hate to admit when I’m wrong, but I was wrong in this case. Temple came out on Saturday and put a hurting on Tulane, in their own homecoming game, by a score of 49-10. The Owls were led by QB P.J Walker who went 11 for 15 with 183 yards and 2 touchdowns. The ground game also did its job by racking up 122 yards and 3 TDs, while the defense forced 2 interceptions on the game.

Now mind you this all came after Temple fumbled 5 times early on in the game, so this goes to show that despite the big win, it was nowhere near perfect or pretty for that matter. Next for Temple is a Saturday night game of their own at home against an 0-6 UCF team that just can’t seem to win a game, yet at the same time could potentially hand Temple their 1st loss if the year. This reporter’s prediction? Don’t give one!

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NCAA: Is Temple for Real?

October 7th, 2015 by Robert Waterman | Comments Off on NCAA: Is Temple for Real? | Filed in Basketball, College Sports, General, Sports

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So who had the Temple Owls going 4-0 to start the season? Certainly not this reporter, but that is exactly what they have done. After s shocking win against Penn State in the opener, Temple has gone on to defeat Cincinnati, Umass and UNC Charlotte to get to where they are today.  And what’s more impressive is that the latter 3 wins were all on the road.  Now before anybody starts proclaiming Temple can win 10 games this year, lets remember that they are just now getting to the best and potatoes of their schedule.  Granted they are good right now, but I think we need to hold judgement until after a Halloween match-up with Notre Dame (currently number 15 in the polls) before we make any kind of assumptions about this team.

Now I am not saying that it can’t be done, however, they will need to rely on their offense which temple2currently ranks 99th in the nation in passing yards averaging only 189 yards per game. And the running game is only slightly better with the Owls averaging 159.2 yards per game, good for 88th in the country through 4 games.  The saving grace for Temple has been their stout defense which has allowed 15.5 points per game which is 16th in the nation. But they cannot continuously rely on their defense to win games. It will have to start with the offense and QB P.J Walker who has only thrown for 731 yards and 5 touchdowns through the first 4 games and has a QBR rating of 47.3 according to ESPN, which is not good for any Quarterback but especially not so for Walker who needs to start impressing people over the next few weeks.

Now getting back to the schedule, I see games upcoming against Tulane and Central Florida in the next 2 weeks, both of which are at home but both could be lose-able games.  And then they go on the road for a Thursday Night Clash against East Carolina on October 22 before coming home to face Notre Dame on Halloween in what could potentially be the game of the year for the Owls. Could they be 8-0 by that point? Not in my honest opinion.  Could they be 4-4 or somewhere in between? Very possible if not likely. And November could prove to be just as though with road games against SMU and South Florida to begin the month before ending the season with 2 home games against Memphis and Connecticut. Somehow I can very easily see an 8-4 record for this team which is more than good enough for a bowl game but as far as taking the next step is concerned, Im going to say Stay Tuned.

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