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Best of the SB Nation Network: November 26, 2009

2009-11-27T07:30:56Z

Here is the best of the SB Nation network for Thanksgiving day, November 26, 2009:

Football

- Is the Bears coaching staff at fault for Jay Cutler's issues? I'd say the offensive line myself.

- Daily Norseman makes a case for Brett Favre for MVP.

- Here are the recaps from today's Packers-Lions game from Acme Packing Company and Pride of Detroit.

College Football

- BCS Evolution breaks down the national title hopes and bowl chances for each team.

- Addicted to Quack said that Oregon State can't win at Oregon. Building the Dam clearly disagrees.

- The Only Colors reacts to reports of possible thuggery on the Michigan State campus.

College Basketball

- Blogging the Bracket features a Thanksgiving day breakdown.

- Gonzaga takes the Maui Invitational.

Hockey

- Habs Eyes on the Prize looks at the surprise retirement of the flower 25 years ago.

- A year ago today was the final home game for Colorado Avalanche legend Joe Sakic.

- In Lou We Trust brilliantly tears apart a lazy columnist from Newsday.

Baseball

- Pinstripe Alley looks at cost and value and economic realities of baseball.

- The top five reasons Washington Nationals fans have to be thankful this Thanksgiving.

Basketball

- The Celtics have plenty to be thankful for this Thanksgiving.

- Pounding the Rock has a nice preview of the Texas-state rivalry.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Thanksgiving Day Feast

2009-11-27T04:38:45Z

Here’s the list of fantasy players who feasted on stats today. If you had these guys on your active roster, it won’t be just the turkey that helps you rest easy tonight; you got a big jump on the competition in Week 12.

QB
Aaron Rodgers – 348 yards, 3 TDs
Tony Romo – 309 yards, 2 TDs

WR
Miles Austin – 145 yards, 1 TD
Donald Driver – 142 yards, 1 TD

TE
Jason Witten – 107 yards

Packers Defense
Broncos Defense

Josh McDaniels Says 'F**k' On Live Television

2009-11-27T02:41:45Z

Nothing beats a good live-TV f-bomb; fortunately, Broncos coach Josh McDaniel just obliged. (Obvious warning here: There is uncut swearing in the below clip.)

In case you couldn't tell, Josh McDaniels is very upset with his professional football team. At this point, it's safe to say NFL Network is very upset with Josh McDaniels.

Brayden Schenn To Make NHL Debut Tonight With Kings

2009-11-27T02:10:54Z

2009 5th overall draft pick Brayden Schenn will make his NHL debut tonight with the Los Angeles Kings, after signing a “One-Day NHL Regular Season Amateur Tryout Agreement.” Since Schenn has yet to sign an entry-level contract with the Kings, it seems that they have are using a rare contract to get Schenn up to the NHL for just a game.

Brayden Schenn is a highly touted offensive prospect from the Brandon Wheat Kings of the WHL, and leads his team this season with 39 points in 24 games. To make room for Schenn, the Kings placed Andrei Loktionov on injured reserve.

According to TSN the CHL and WHL both had to agree to the tryout, which will not affect Schenn’s amateur status. It’s an agreement that is very rare, and it will be interesting to see how Schenn responds while playing significant minutes tonight.

The Kings take on Vancouver tonight at 10:00 p.m. EST.

Maybe Bill Belichick Is A Genius After All

2009-11-27T00:39:18Z

Because his assistants sure don't seem to be.

William C. Rhoden takes stock of the Belichick coaching tree today, and any football fan knows the verdict here. Once regarded as mini-genuises themselves, Eric Mangini, Charlie Weis, and Josh McDaniel have all experienced rapid declines in reputation. And when you throw in lesser lights like Romeo Crennel -- and the way the Patriots have continued to win regardless of staff departures -- and it's pretty much official: Bill Belichick does everything for the Patriots.

Thanksgiving Day Football: Not That I'm Not Thankful, But ...

2009-11-27T00:17:16Z

It's a Turkey Day tradition, right up there with brown gravy and quiet seething: football. And it's not like I'm not appreciative of the football -- for God's sake, if not for football we'd have to speak with our families, which, gross -- but I have a feeling today's contributions to the pigskin canon aren't going to have much of a shelf-life.

First, it was the yearly destruction of the Lions at the hands of the Packers. In the afternoon, you watched the Cowboys beat up on a hapless Raiders team. One question: Why would the NFL do this? Deadspin's Drew Magary used his column to ask that question today -- warning, link includes plenty of dirty language -- and the question is valid. Why schedule the horrid Raiders on Thanksgiving Day? Why not, oh, I don't know ... any other team in the entire league? I've yet to hear a valid answer for this.

So it is on Thanksgiving Day, which is all about giving thanks for what you have while noticing, in that uniquely American way, what you lack. Today, that lack has been entertaining football. Not complaining; just saying.

NHL Fans Have One Thing To Be Thankful For Today

2009-11-26T21:23:01Z

On this American Thanksgiving, hockey fans across the country should be adding this to be thankful for. On this day 92 years ago, the National Hockey League was formed. The complete history lesson on the start of the league can be found on NHL.com but here is an excerpt from the piece:

A group that included S.E. Lichtenhein of the Montreal Wanderers, G.W. Kendall of the Montreal Canadiens, T.P. Gorman of the Ottawa Senators and M.J. Quinn of the Quebec Bulldogs, along with NHA secretary-treasurer Frank Calder, met at Montreal's Windsor Hotel. The NHA owners had had repeated problems with Eddie Livingstone the owner of the Toronto Blueshirts, and decided to exclude him from the NHL.

The NHL is still around due to the hard work of many people but these five gentlemen were the pioneers for the league.

Matthew Stafford Is A Man, Part II

2009-11-26T15:24:35Z

Young Matthew Stafford became legend last Sunday with his zero-second heroics against the Browns. It was immortalized with the greatest satirical YouTube tribute song ever created. And now, thanks to NFL films and their fancy microphones, the legend grows — Stafford was wired on Sunday, which means we can now hear everything he was saying during that final sequence. Yes, it’s as awesome as you’d imagine, starting around the 4-minute mark:

Best of the SB Nation Network: November 25, 2009

2009-11-25T23:12:36Z

Here is the best of the SB Nation network for November 25, 2009:

Hockey

- St. Louis Gametime attempts to figure out why the Blues haven't carried over the momentum from last year.

- A 2010 Winter Olympics preview from a Colorado Avalanche perspective from Mile High Hockey.

Football

- The Buffalo Bills are making the intelligent move by pursuing Mike Shanahan.

- Where did it all go wrong for the Denver Broncos?

MMA

- The Boxing Bulletin reviews Showtime's Super Six tournament.

- Southpaws were wild in UFC 106 and Nogueira came out on top.

Baseball

- Over the Monster has a common male problem. Premature hall of famerism.

- Pinstripe Alley deals with the same question only for the much older Andy Pettitte.

Basketball

- Rookie Dante Cunningham gets promoted and Blazersedge gets the interview with him.

- Speaking of interviews, Bright Side of the Sun scores one with Earl Clark.

College Football

- The biggest civil war in Oregon in 45 years and many are discounting a big factor: the stadium.

- Bruins legend J.J. Stokes joins the Bruins Nation podcast in the big week against USC.

- The fans rose up to force local ABC station in San Antonio to show the Cornhuskers/Colorado matchup instead of Oprah. Apparently no one told these fans that Oprah is only on for another two years!

College Basketball

- Casual Hoya ranks the top five games of the John Thompson III era.

- Coug Center summarizes the past week in Pac-10 basketball.

WWE

- Linda McMahon is running for a Senate seat in Connecticut. Wrestling goes political. Oh joy!

Soccer

- World Soccer Digest looks at the World Cup power ranking poll and finds some abnormalities once you get past Brazil.

- The MLS expansion draft has Seattle Sounders' fans saying goodbye to a favorite.

And just for fun, if we were to look at West Virginia as cars, what kind of car would they be? Happy travel day, SB Nation readers.

Alexander Ovechkin Has Eventful Night In Washington

2009-11-26T03:41:13Z

Alexander Ovechkin was busy for the Washington Capitals tonight as he scored what ended up being the game winning goal and then received a game misconduct for a boarding penalty later in the game. The boarding penalty came at the 3:38 mark in the third period as he checked Buffalo's Patrick Kaleta into the boards when Kaleta had his back to Ovechkin. Kaleta was bloodied up a little but eventually returned to the game. Here is what Ovechkin had to say about the situation after the game.

In the interest of full disclosure, I am a Buffalo Sabres fan and while the play definitely warranted the boarding call, I was surprised the referees gave Ovechkin the game misconduct penalty.

Ravens To Start Rookie Corner Against Steelers

2009-11-26T00:49:59Z

Meet Landarius Webb. He's a 5-foot-10, 179-pound cornerback out of Nicholls State (where he ran a 4.35 40), a former I-AA All-American -- and Sunday night he'll be the focus of Big Ben, Santonio Holmes, and Hines Ward as he makes his first NFL start in place of an injured Fabian Washington:

Webb’s game will be on display for the entire nation.

“It’s not about me, man,” he said. “I’m just out there filling a void for Fabian Washington.”

When he lines up across from Ward, Webb can expect some roughhouse tactics, some taunting words and that trademark grin.

“I don’t know what to expect, never been against these guys,” Webb said. “Great team, great quarterback, great wide receivers.

“I heard it’s a very physical game. I don’t know what to expect. I just know it’s a very important game for the ball club.”

Yes, kid. Something tells us the Pittsburgh-Baltimore game will be a "physical" one. Just a hunch. No reason.

Dan Hawkins Is So Fired (Unless He's Not)

2009-11-26T00:21:18Z

The promised "ten wins, no excuses" season never materialized at Colorado, and as unrealistic as that Dan Hawkins vow was, it's nowhere near as ludicrous as the expectation that he might be the Buffs' head coach come 2010. Only now it seems he's not prepared to go quietly, if at all. Take it away, Ralphie Report:

It looks like University of Colorado Athletic Director Mike Bohn has heard enough and will make an "an official announcement about the football coaching situation" Thursday ... the AD will catch a flight home late tonight and sit down with Dan Hawkins tomorrow to discuss his future.
This announcement is just hours after the University of Colorado went public with their dispute of Vic Lombardi's report that Dan Hawkins and Chancellor Phil DiStefano came to an agreement that Hawkins will be retained as head coach for the 2010 - 2011 season.

Sounds like things are getting a mite testy up in the Rockies. If you happen to be at loose ends after gorging yourselves tomorrow and somehow unsatisfied with your own family dramas, just tune in and refresh the site constantly for any news of Dan Hawkins' job status! It's what Ralphie would want.

BCS Continues To Strike Back

2009-11-25T21:31:42Z

On the heels of joining Twitter and hiring Ari Fleischer, the BCS continues its counterattack by launching PlayoffProblem.com, where many of your stupid arguments in favor of a traditional postseason bracket are swiftly shot down. Observe:

Just try to create an eight-team playoff based on latest rankings (November 23rd). Should a one-loss Georgia Tech (10-1, #7) get in but not a one-loss Pittsburgh (9-1 #9)? Should a two-loss Oregon (9-2, #8) get in but not one-loss Pittsburgh or any of the SEVEN teams with two losses: Ohio State (10-2, #10), Iowa (10-2, #11), Oklahoma State (9-2, #12), Penn State (10-2, #13), BYU (9-2, #19), Utah, (9-2, #19), or Houston (9-2, #23)? If you think the BCS is controversial, try sorting that out. A playoff would guarantee bigger problems, more controversy, more disappointed teams and more frustrated fans.

Oh, the frustration of enjoying an actual playoff format play itself out on the field! That sounds awful!

Sure, there will be snubs regardless of the format — as there currently is with the BCS and would be with a playoff. But to argue that fans, in general, would be more frustrated by a playoff is insanity. That’s like saying fans would rather the NCAA skip that whole, boring March Madness thing and just let the two hoops teams ranked 1 and 2 at the end of the season play in the championship game.

Nashville Predators Sue Sommet Group Over Naming Rights

2009-11-25T21:15:19Z

On The Forecheck has the story, courtesy of a press release from the Nashville Predators:

Nashville Hockey Club Limited Partnership today announced that it has terminated its naming rights agreement with Sommet Group of Tennessee f/k/a Sommet Group, LLC ("Sommet"), and has filed suit in the Chancery Court for Davidson County, Tennessee, against Sommet stemming from Sommet's failure to fulfil its naming rights payment obligations under that agreement. This is the last year of a three year naming rights agreement that the two companies entered into in 2007.

Sommet Group has apparently not made payments as part of the agreement for several months now, and the Predators are cutting ties with the company and will be seeking a new name for their arena. For now, it will still be known as Sommet Center, until the Metro Sports Authority in Nashville can approve a change on December 18th. Dirk Hoag proposes a number of new sponsors, from among the local business presence in Nashville...

Jack Daniels Arena, anyone?

MMA Holiday Shopping Alert: 20% Off At UFC Store

2009-11-25T20:56:14Z

UFC Store Friends & Family 20% Discount, ends MIDNIGHT TONIGHT. Last chance to save! CODE: UFCFRIEND

- From the UFC’s Twitter account

For anyone out there looking to get a little holiday shopping in for an MMA addict friend tonight is a great chance to get it done as the UFC offers a big discount on items from their store.

Brittney Griner - A GIRL! - Dunks

2009-11-25T19:04:00Z

Before Tuesday night, there had been just six woman to dunk in a regulation collegiate basketball game. Now, thanks to Baylor's Brittney Griner, there have been seven.

As The Sporting Blog points out, it wasn't her first time, and it certainly won't be the last dunk for the freshman. Now, in your best Bill Walton voice: "Throw it down, big woman!"

Dana White Is Thankful For A Lot

2009-11-25T17:59:04Z

• I’m thankful for Bruce Lee. I’ve said it a million times: He’s the father of mixed martial arts. He was so far ahead of his time.
• I’m thankful for Canada. Those fans up there are awesome. If the United States MMA market was like the Canadian market, the UFC would be even bigger than it is now.
• I’m thankful for the passionate, psychotic lunatics who are the fans of the UFC. Not only will they come and blast me when they think something’s wrong, they also travel all over the place, buy the events, stand by the sport, and I’m very thankful for their energy and support.

- Just a few items from the list of things Dana White is thankful for from ESPN.com

I sincerely wish I was thankful to have a jet.

For Golden State, Six Is Enough

2009-11-25T17:38:31Z

Less is more? Addition by subtraction? Choose whichever similar cliche you want for Golden State because they all apply. Tuesday night, due to injuries, the Warriors dressed only eight players and played just six, but won the game anyways, beating the Mavericks, 111-103.To say it was a rare occurrence would be an understatement, as SB Nation's Inhistoric points out.

In fact (according to the Elias Sports Bureau), the Golden State Warriors became the first team in the shot-clock era to win a game with only six men [playing]. The last time a team won a game with, at the most, six players was way back on February 10, 1952, when the Baltimore Bullets beat the Fort Wayne Pistons 82-77. In that game, all five Bullets starters -- Don Barksdale, Frank Kudelka, Stan Miasek, Dave Minor and Kevin O'Shea -- played all 48 minutes.

It was also the first time since 1997 that a team had three starters play the entire game.

The Warriors go 3-8 operating like a semi-functional team, and 1-0 using just six guys. Probably time to cut the dead weight, right?

MMA Programming Reminder: No Ultimate Fighter Tonight

2009-11-25T16:57:46Z

Due to the Thanksgiving holiday The Ultimate Fighter will not be on tonight. It will return next week with a special two hour episode featuring four fights.

'And Then Adam Morrison Cried'

2009-11-25T16:07:06Z

Chris Chase at Yahoo!‘s The Dagger has formed a list of the 10 best college hoops games of the decade (’cause it’ll soon be over, you see?), all of which should give you many I-remember-where-I-was-when moments. As a Maryland fan and Mason graduate, No. 9 — Duke 98, Maryland 96 (OT); Regular season, 2001 — and No. 5 — George Mason 86, Connecticut 84 (OT); Regional final, 2006 NCAA tournament — are particularly poignant.

But team affiliations aside, this goes down as the most memorable game of the decade for me. Must be something to do with Gus Johnson losing his mind: