American Sports Thread

[Syferus]

First up- Bama were good value for the win, well managed through the game, though Clemson should be kicking themselves as they had a great shot, but for the runback and the onside recovery bad mistakes on their behalf. And 2 TDs they gave up were blown coverage. Fatal errors at this level

on the other hand, I don't believe Henry broke the line on the last td (and why did it take 20 seconds for the on the field ruling to come?) I do not believe the evidence was incontrovertible the other way, and take another look at the pylon cam shot from the previous TD. It looked to me (and a couple of Obama fans in the room) as if his left hand is down OB before he touched the pylon with the ball in his right (pause it and see!). the Roll tide crew say it wouldn't matter 'Bama would have made the next play both times and I tend to agree. Clemson fans maybe not so much...

Henry clearly broke the pane. It's not even in question. Referees are slow making the calls because they're petrified to make a wrong call in that situation.

Bama win as I expected but I didn't expect Clemson to get 40 on them. Should sicken the SEC haters. Five of the last seven national titles have went to the state of Alabama and it could so easily have been six.

[AZOffaly]

Fair play Alabama. And the SEC went 9-2 in bowl games I think!

Syf... 5 of the last 7 to the state of Alabama? Talk about reflected glory 😃  I believe the count in that time is 4-1. 😃 auburn have 1.

[Syferus]

Fair play Alabama. And the SEC went 9-2 in bowl games I think!

Syf... 5 of the last 7 to the state of Alabama? Talk about reflected glory 😃  I believe the count in that time is 4-1. 😃 auburn have 1.

Auburn had 1 over the previous century of play too. Lots of schools would kill to have won one and lost another the past five years.

[AZOffaly]

I know. Auburn's one stands on its own. Saying there were 5 in the 'state of Alabama' is a bit rich when Alabama won 4 of them is all I'm saying. It's like saying Offaly and Kerry have 40 Senior All Ireland Football titles between them

Fair play to the SEC though. They proved me wrong this year. I know a lot of people don't place a lot of stock in the bowl games, but I do, especially the bigger bowls, and the SEC had a great bowl season.

Alabama are a machine. Saban is unreal.

[dec]

Rams and probably Chargers moving to LA

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/14558668/st-louis-rams-relocate-los-angeles

[Syferus]

I know. Auburn's one stands on its own. Saying there were 5 in the 'state of Alabama' is a bit rich when Alabama won 4 of them is all I'm saying. It's like saying Offaly and Kerry have 40 Senior All Ireland Football titles between them

Fair play to the SEC though. They proved me wrong this year. I know a lot of people don't place a lot of stock in the bowl games, but I do, especially the bigger bowls, and the SEC had a great bowl season.

Alabama are a machine. Saban is unreal.

Big difference is there's only two majors in Alabama, you're either War Eagle or Tide and it's everywhere, major department stores have an Auburn and Alabama section with season schedules. It's like a pressure cooker when it's just the two of them. Alabama being the best program in the history of college football forces Auburn to keep up or die. I'd go as far as to say Auburn wouldn't have been so good recently if not for having to keep up with the pace Saban is setting.

Who would could have imagined that Bear Bryant (universally regarded as the greatest college coach of all-time) would meet his match in another Tide coach? Saban's five titles have been harder to get than Bryant's six and I doubt if Saban won't win another before he's done. Eleven undisputed national titles and another five claimed, that is some legacy for one school to have.

[cadhlancian]

Rams in LA 2016, Chargers back down the road to try and sort something out with the city. Definitely not a good result for the Chargers owners ( Spanos) . They have lost leverage with this decision...

[AZOffaly]

I know. Auburn's one stands on its own. Saying there were 5 in the 'state of Alabama' is a bit rich when Alabama won 4 of them is all I'm saying. It's like saying Offaly and Kerry have 40 Senior All Ireland Football titles between them

Fair play to the SEC though. They proved me wrong this year. I know a lot of people don't place a lot of stock in the bowl games, but I do, especially the bigger bowls, and the SEC had a great bowl season.

Alabama are a machine. Saban is unreal.

Big difference is there's only two majors in Alabama, you're either War Eagle or Tide and it's everywhere, major department stores have an Auburn and Alabama section with season schedules. It's like a pressure cooker when it's just the two of them. Alabama being the best program in the history of college football forces Auburn to keep up or die. I'd go as far as to say Auburn wouldn't have been so good recently if not for having to keep up with the pace Saban is setting.

Who would could have imagined that Bear Bryant (universally regarded as the greatest college coach of all-time) would meet his match in another Tide coach? Saban's five titles have been harder to get than Bryant's six and I doubt if Saban won't win another before he's done. Eleven undisputed national titles and another five claimed, that is some legacy for one school to have.

Don't disagree with any of that to be fair. I'm only slagging the '5 out of 7 for the state of Alabama', when 4 of them were Alabama itself. But I know where you are coming from. It's a nice aspect of College Sports, that you don't need to be an NFL big 'market' to support rabid College Football Fans. Quite a few of the College Hotspots, especially in the south, are NFL black zones. Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas. Even in Louisiana and Tennessee, I'd say the Bayou Bengals and Vols respectively are bigger brands than the Saints and Titans. (The Saints one maybe a close one to call).

And yeah, what Alabama has done, with 16 titles, is unreal, particularly, as you say, in recent years. And to be fair there isn't a whiff around the Alabama program either. Saban seems to run a tight ship. He resurrected Florida, Won a championship at LSU, and now has revitalised Alabama into being the best program in the country by a mile.

What is your ties to Alabama, and Auburn, by the way. I can tell you are a big SEC and Auburn fan. Did you live in 'Bama?

[AZOffaly]

Rams in LA 2016, Chargers back down the road to try and sort something out with the city. Definitely not a good result for the Chargers owners ( Spanos) . They have lost leverage with this decision...

Ouch. Talk about going back to somewhere where you said you didn't want to be. How are they going to sell that to the fans they wanted to leave behind?

And the Rams back in LA? Blast from the past. I met Eric Dickerson at the High School game in Dublin in 2014, he was some legend. It'll be nostalgic to see them back in LA, but it's a sickener for the Saint Louis fans. They won a Superbowl in Saint Louis. They've lost the Cardinals and the Rams in 30 years. Such is the franchise nature of American Sports, and a reason why pro sport in the states never truly gets into the blood in a lot of cities in the way the college sports do. I know a lot of teams are embedded, like the Packers, Patriots, Niners, Cowboys etc, but these moves, and what happened in Cleveland, Baltimore, Houston, Oakland/LA just makes it hard for fans to have a sense of permanency with their team. There's always some sort of news angle about stadiums, revenue, concessions etc.

Speaking of the Raiders, where do they slot into this? Only one team moving to LA?

[TabClear]

Just finished watching the wildcard games.  Exciting matches bar the kc cakewalk but the rest of the post season is going to be hard watching for the vikings and bengals.  No sympathy for cinncinati, the late hit on brown was the act of a sc**bag and he deserves all he gets.

Viking kicker on the other hand I feel sorry for. Shows what pressure can do.   Looks like Seattle's name is on the trophy this year.     Botched snap turns into a td and a kicker misses a chip shot.

[Clov]

Rams in LA 2016, Chargers back down the road to try and sort something out with the city. Definitely not a good result for the Chargers owners ( Spanos) . They have lost leverage with this decision...

Ouch. Talk about going back to somewhere where you said you didn't want to be. How are they going to sell that to the fans they wanted to leave behind?

And the Rams back in LA? Blast from the past. I met Eric Dickerson at the High School game in Dublin in 2014, he was some legend. It'll be nostalgic to see them back in LA, but it's a sickener for the Saint Louis fans. They won a Superbowl in Saint Louis. They've lost the Cardinals and the Rams in 30 years. Such is the franchise nature of American Sports, and a reason why pro sport in the states never truly gets into the blood in a lot of cities in the way the college sports do. I know a lot of teams are embedded, like the Packers, Patriots, Niners, Cowboys etc, but these moves, and what happened in Cleveland, Baltimore, Houston, Oakland/LA just makes it hard for fans to have a sense of permanency with their team. There's always some sort of news angle about stadiums, revenue, concessions etc.

Speaking of the Raiders, where do they slot into this? Only one team moving to LA?

I think even the Niners move to Santa Clara affected the connection some fans have with the team. The seat licensing debacle at their new stadium (and swathes of empty seats) is evidence of that.

That said I'm happy to see the Rams back in LA. The Niners - Rams rivalry was never the same once they left. Hopefully we can go full redux on the 80's by going back to beating them twice a year.   

[AZOffaly]

I read the report on nfl.com. Looks like the Chargers will still be moving.

[Oraisteach]

Browns hire Hue Jackson as Head Coach, so I bet it's Sayonara for Johnny Football.  Is Jerry Jones still interested in him, I wonder, after JM's recentVegas antics?  Even LeBron James's company has ditched him as a client.

[Minder]

Browns hire Hue Jackson as Head Coach, so I bet it's Sayonara for Johnny Football.  Is Jerry Jones still interested in him, I wonder, after JM's recentVegas antics?  Even LeBron James's company has ditched him as a client.

I think it's a good hire for the Browns, not often they get their first choice either. Interesting to see if he takes a QB with #2 pick in the draft.

Lawrence Phillips dead I see, was looking at the death penalty in jail.

[Syferus]

Browns hire Hue Jackson as Head Coach, so I bet it's Sayonara for Johnny Football.  Is Jerry Jones still interested in him, I wonder, after JM's recentVegas antics?  Even LeBron James's company has ditched him as a client.

I think it's a good hire for the Browns, not often they get their first choice either. Interesting to see if he takes a QB with #2 pick in the draft.

Lawrence Phillips dead I see, was looking at the death penalty in jail.

He wouldn't be their first choice if their franchise wasn't an open air tyre fire. The big ticket guys were never going near Cleveland.