College Basketball: Players and Teams to Watch

Kyrie Irving/Duke: Duke is the favorite to win the National Championship. Irving is a solid point guard that solidifies this team and will have dominating performances. This year, Duke has an amazing team, and the Cameron Crazies will be crazier than ever.

Josh Selby/Kansas: Selby will put on a show every time he is on the court. The combination of his speed, athleticism, vision, and jump shot make him one of the elite players in college basketball as a freshman. Watch out for underrated Kansas.

Perry Jones/Baylor: His Athleticism is ridiculous, especially for his size. At 6'10, Perry Jones might be the most athletic big man in the country. He probably will not be a dominating presence, put his potential is ridiculous.

Brandon Knight/Kentucky: This guy can flat out score. He is not as fast as John Wall, nor as flashy, and not as athletic. But this guy is a great shooter, passer, and great team leader--one that will be helping a reloading Kentucky team (again full of freshman that is very athletic and talented) to be one of the top teams in America. This guy will score all game long.

Others to Watch:

Harrison Barnes/UNC

Travis Leslie/Georgia

Robbie Hummel/Purdue

Kalin Lucas/Michigan St.

Jared Sullinger/Ohio St.

My Take on Recruiting

Stanford: Stanford has a very talented class coming in. Blake Lueders headlines the class, and will have a chance to get immediate playing time. Devon Carrinton is a great get for the Cardinal-the Safety posintion is one that is much needed for Stanford. I believe Carrington will also compete for the starting job. Anthony Wilkerson, a running back, will help Stepfan Taylor and Tyler Gaffney replace star running back Toby Gerhart. Stanford also added two very talented QBs in Dallas Lloyd and Brett Nottingham. The quarterback position for Stanford has huge depth. The Cardinal will have returning starter Andrew Luck, Josh Nunes, and the two recruits as quarterback for next year. With a great recruiting class coming in this year, coaching staff have already been looking ahead to the 2011 class. The Cardinal have already recieved four committments, one of the most in the country. This Stanford football program is heading in a very good direction. Andrew Luck will be the key in the next couple of years, and if he does well, I see great things happening for Harbaugh and his team.

"The Oasis"

Few of us have the chance to meet their heroes in life. I was asked a few months ago who I would most like to meet and talk with. I named John Wooden, Jim Harbaugh, and Toby Gerhart. Tonight I went to watch a Stanford basketball game. Stanford was playing the University of Washington, a very impressive team. Stanford lost after a close game, and the Huskies pulled away with the lead to win 78-61. Afterwards, we stopped by "The Oasis" a Stanford burger restaurant. Coach Harbaugh happened to sit at the table next to us, and we had a chance to talk. I had a great time talking Stanford Football.

If Coach Harbaugh is reading this, I want to follow up on a couple of things from tonight's conversation:
1) Per your offer, I would love to arrange for the Grace Cathedral Men and Boys Choir to sing for Stanford sometime next Fall. We sing every Spring for the SF Giants and it would be an honor to sing for Stanford.
2) If you want to write to me individually my email is wrogdenmoore@yahoo.com. It was an honor to talk with you about my passion for Stanford Football, and a great dream to speak with you about recruiting. I have enormous respect for you and your program, and I'm unbelievably excited to connect with you. I quoted you on my high school applications about contributing "an enthusiasm unknown to mankind." I strive to follow this motto.

National Signing Day

National Signing day was the last day for class of 2010 football high school recruits to sign with the colllege that they would be attending. Here are the final rankings of the top classes.
1. Florida-Top players: Ronald Powell, Dominique Easley, Matt Elam, Johnathon Dowling, Sharriff Floyd
2. Texas-Top players: Jackson Jeffcoat, Jordan Hicks, Darius White, Mike Davis, Reggie Wilson
3. Oklahoma-Top players: Corey Nelson, Blake Bell, Kenny Stills, Tony Jefferson, Brennan Clay
4. Alabama-Top players: Demarcus Milliner, C.J. Mosely, Phillip Sims, Johnavon Fulton, DeAndrew White
5. Auburn-Top players: Corey Lemonier, Michael Dyer, Trovon Reed, Eric Mack, Shon Colemon
6. Florida State-Top players: Christian Green, Lamarcus Joyner, Christian Jones, Jeff Luc, Kenny Shaw
7. USC-Top Players: Kyle Prater, Seantrel Henderson, Robert Woods, Xavier Grimble, Dillon Baxter
8. Penn St-Top Players: Mike Hull, Paul Jones, Silas Redd, C. J. Olaniyan, Khairi Fortt
9. Michagan-Top Players: Demar Dorsey, Cullen Christian, Devin Gardner, Josh Furman, Jibreel Black
10. UCLA-Top Players: Owamagbe Odighizuwa, Malcolm Jones, Dietrich Riley, Cassius Marsh, Jordan Zumwalt
11. Tennessee-Top Players: Da'Rick Rogers, Justin Hunter, JuWuan James, Jacques Smith, Matt Milton
12. Stanford-Top Players: Blake Lueders, Brett Nottingham, Anthony Wilkerson, Devon Carrington, Dallas Lloyd
13. LSU-Top Players: Travis Dickson, Eric Reid, Ego Ferguson, Kadron Boone, Tharold Simon
14. Oregon-Top Players: Lache Seastrunk, Curtis White, Ricky Heimuli, Erick Dargan,
Dior Mathis
15. Georgia-Top Players: Alec Ogletree, Garrison Smith, T.J. Stripling, Michael Thornton,
Brent Benedict
Others: Washington, Mississippi, Miami

Alabama wins Championship

Alabama has won their first National championship. Carried by their Heisman winner, Mark Ingram, the Crimson Tide were practically unstoppable. Their deffense was relentless. Alabama really deserved this win.
Texas' star quarterback, Colt McCoy, was injured in the first half and didn't return for the rest of the game. Freshman Garrett Gilbert had to step in, but the tenacious Alabama defense was too much for the former Gatorade Athlete of the Year.

Alabama was the most consistently dominant team this season. The Crimson Tide had wins over some of the best teams in the country, such as Virginia Tech, Mississippi, South Carolina, LSU, Florida, and Texas.

Heisman Winner

Mark Ingram Wins the Heisman



Mark Ingram, the sophomore running back for Alabama has won the heisman for the first time in school history. He is the second sophomore to win the award. Ingram had an amazing season, helping his currently ranked #1 Alabama team to an undefeated season and to the BCS National Championship game in Pasadena. Although all the candidates were deserving, Ingram really stood out because he was such a successful running back even though he was in the toughest conference in the country, the SEC. Because Ingram is only a sophomore, he will probably be returning for next season with Alabama, and will have a chance to tie Archie Griffin for most Hiesman awards (2) in an athlete's collegate career.

Heisman Watch

Top Candidates

1. Toby Gerhart-RB Stanford
He ranks 1st nationally in rushing yards, second in yards per game, and 1st in touchdowns.
Gerhart deserves to win.

2. Mark Ingram-RB Alabama
Ingram is the favorite to win the Heisman, but he doesn't have the statistics to support him. Ingram is a great player, but not as dominant and punishing as Gerhart.

3. Colt McCoy-QB Texas
Put on a show with 4 tds against Texas A&M.

4. Tim Tebow-QB Florida
Played his best game of the season in his last game in "The Swamp." If Tebow and his gators beat Ingram and Alabama next week, he would have a very good chance of winning the Heisman.

5. Kellen Moore-QB Boise State
Moore has been playing very well, but Boise State's easy schedule has really hurt his chances.

Big Game

Cal comes back in the third quarter to win the Big Game and the Axe. Stanford had a chance with one minute, down six, and they were on Cal's 15 yard line. Andrew Luck, freshman quarterback for Stanford, threw an interception and Cal ran out the clock.

Players of the Game
Toby Gerhart, Stanford--20 rushes, 136 yards, 4 touchdowns
Shane Vereen, Cal--42 rushes, 193 yards, 3 touchdowns

NCAA Football week 6

My top ten :

#1 Florida-Doing well, but their big test is this week against LSU.

#2 Alabama-The best defence in the country also has an impessive and young offence.

#3 Texas-They haven't done anything to prove theirselves yet.

#4 Boise State-Kellen Moore is a great quaterback, but their strength-of-schedule is horrible.

#5 LSU-The tigers have survived Georgia, but they have Florida this week.

#6 Cincinati-Mardy Gilyard (WR) is amazing and so is QB Tony Pike.

#7 TCU-Great defence, but that is all that they can really rely on.

#8 USC-Matt Barkley is looking really good... the trojans are back in the race.

#9 Miami-Jacory Harris and the Hurricanes need to recover from their loss to Virginia Tech.

#10 Virginia Tech-Besides the loss to Alabama, they're looking very impressive.



Suprises so far:

Stanford, 4-1 (3-0 in Pac-Ten)

Toby Gerhert is having an outstanding senior year. If the Cardinal win in Corvallis on Saturday, they will be in the top 25.

Ole Miss, 3-1 (1-1 in SEC)

It doesn't look like Ole Miss are going to be title contenders anymore. Being upset limited their chances. If they want to contend, the Rebels need to beat Alabama this week, which is not an easy task.

the College Football Season Kicks off

Top 25
1. Florida
2. Oklahoma
3. Texas
4. USC
5. Alabama
6. Ohio State
7. Mississippi
8. Oklahoma State
9. Virginia Tech
10. LSU
11. Penn St.
12. Georgia
13. Cal
14. Boise State
15. Georgia Tech
16. Oregon
17. TCU
18. North Carolina
19. Florida State
20. Notre Dame
21. Nebraska
22. BYU
23. Utah
24. Iowa
25. Oregon State

My All-Americans
QB: Tim Tebow, Florida
HB: Jahvid Best, Cal
HB: Jonathon Dwyer, Georgia Tech
WR: Dez Bryant, Oklahoma State
WR: Dezmon Briscoe, Kansas
TE: Jermaine Gresham, Oklahoma
OL: Russell Okung, Oklahoma State
OL: Ciron Black, LSU
OL: Trent Williams, Oklahoma
OL: Sergio Render, Virginia Tech
K: Kai Forbath, UCLA

DL: Terrence Cody, Alabama
DL: Greg Hardy, Mississippi
DL: Ndamukong Suh, Nebraska
DL: Carlos Dunlap, Florida
LB: Sean Witherspoon, Missouri
LB: Brandon Spikes, Florida
LB: Rennie Curran, Georgia
DB: Eric Berry, Tennessee
DB: Morgan Burnett, Georgia Tech
DB: Taylor Mays, USC
DB: Alterraun Verner, UCLA

Harbaugh

My family went to have lunch in Palo Alto, with a lot of people, including Jim Harbaugh, the Stanford football head coach. It was very interesting hearing him talk about the Stanford program that he is in charge of. Harbaugh really made Stanford football a better team. Stanford is an up-and-coming team that will be a top 25 team in the years to come. Coach Harbaugh's motto is: "We are going to bring an enthusiasm unknown to mankind!" It worked, too.

Giants Game

I had great seats behined home plate to watch the San Francisco Giants and Barry Zito beat the Philadelphia Phillies and Cole Hamels 7-3. Freddy Sanchez, newly aquired player from the Pirates, had a great game in his debut. Pablo Sandoval was also very successful, as he drove in some runs. Right now, the 22 year-old Sandoval is the weapon and the crowd favorite offensive player on the Giants. It was a great game, and very important for the Giants, since they are in a very tight race to win the wild card.

NL Wild Card race (Baseball)

The NL Wild Card race is raelly tight. The Rockies, Giants, Cubs, and Cardinals are within one game of each other.

Whoever makes the playoffs out of these teams, I bet, will come down to the last few games.

NBA summer league

The NBA Summer League was an action filled couple of weeks where the young NBA players, namely rookies, get to play in exhibition games to show their talent and to get prepared for the NBA season.

Here are the top 15 best scorers:
ppg (points per game)

1. Anthony Randolph (GSW)
4 games
32.8 ppg

2. Anthony Morrow (GSW)
3 games
24.7 ppg

3. Nick Young (WAS)
4 games
23.8 ppg

4. Eric Gordon (LAC)
2 games
21.5 ppg

5. Adam Morrison (LAL)
4 games
20.8 ppg

6. Marcus Thornton (NOH)
3 games
20.7 ppg

7. Othyus Jeffers (DLS)
2 games
20.5 ppg

8. Cartier Martin (GSW)
3 games
19.7 ppg

9. Andray Blatche (WAS)
3 games
32.3 ppg

10. Tyreke Evans (SAC)
5 games
19.2 ppg

11. Blake Griffin (LAC)
5 games
19.2 ppg

12. Jodie Meeks (MIL)
5 games
19.0 ppg

13. Jason Thompson (SAC)
5 games
19.0 ppg

14. Darren Collison (NOH)
4 games
18.5 ppg

15. Dante Cunningham (POR)
4 games
18.3 ppg

Records: Golden State Warrior Anthony Randolf the summer league record with 42 points on July 14th . Two days later, fellow teamate Anthony Morrow broke the record with 47 points.

MVP: Rookie Blake Griffon of the Los Angeles Clippers.