Monday: Florida State and the Big 12; Ruthless Rangers
The Big 2 for Monday:
(1) The ACC meetings open in Florida under speculation that Florida State might try to depart the league in search of more loot.
The chairman of the school’s board of trustees, Andy Haggard, started it all with comments critical of the new ACC/ESPN contract that he later tried to clarify: “All I tried to say was I think Florida State needs to keep an open mind,” Haggard said Sunday morning. “If the Big 12 or the SEC or any other conference wants to talk, we have an obligation to listen. If the Big 12 calls, should we hang up the phone? No. I’m not saying take it. I’m saying listen to it. Listen to what they have to say. … My only point is to listen to anybody who wants to talk — especially in these economic times.”
Florida State’s president says his school is “committed” to the ACC. But as Orlando Sentinel columnist Mike Bianchi writes: [I]f we’ve learned anything in recent years about institutions of higher earning switching conferences, it is this: Without fail, they all say they are steadfastly committed to their current league only until another league offers them more money.
And right now FSU could sure use some more money. Spetman announced a $2.4 million budget shortfall in the athletic department last week that sent shock waves through Seminole Nation. In college football’s arms race, Seminole fans envision the Gators and other SEC schools purchasing F-22 Raptor fighter jets while they are still going to battle with tomahawks and bows and arrows.
More than ever, Florida State fans feel they are a football school hopelessly trapped in a basketball league.
(2) The Texas Rangers are an incredible baseball team. Just look at that bottom third of that lineup they trotted out last 
night in a 13-6 whuppin’ of the Angels: Nelson Cruz, Mike Napoli, Mitch Moreland. Are you kidding me? Cruz has averaged 28 homers over the past three seasons. Napoli’s hit at least 20 bombs every year since 2008, including 30 last season. Moreland hit 16 last year in 464 at-bats.
It’s enough to wear out even Cy Young contenders like Jered Weaver, who entered last night’s game with a 5-0 record and 1.60 ERA and left it 5-1 with a 2.83 after giving up eight runs on 10 hits in 3 1/3.
We haven’t even talked about their pitching. Anybody still think Yu Darvish (5-1, 2.84) is going to be a bust?
Long season; I know. But you watch teams like the Yankees get shut down by a washed-up Kevin Millwood yesterday and you wonder how anybody’s going to have anything for Texas.
NAME THAT TUNE
Where I come from isn’t all that great
My automobile is a piece of crap
My fashion sense is a little whack
And my friends are just as screwy as me
I didn’t go to boarding schools
Preppy girls never looked at me
Why should they I ain’t nobody
Got nothing in my pocket
May 14, 2012 - 8:14 AM
Beverly HIlls-Weezer. I woke up with the song stuck in my head. Weird.
Hokie Al with the lightning score.
Hasn’t F$U won an ACC basketball title since they last won an ACC football title? if they think they’re a football school trapped in a basketball conference, perhaps they should ask themselves why they can’t even win the football title in a basketball conference for the last several years.
It sounds to me like a rational board member must have had a little chat with the irrational Haggard and thus the backstepping occurred. F$U needs to prove themselves on the field. If they are bothered by the dominance of UNC & Duke, just let them get a whiff of UTexas in all sports. Talk about having to kiss the ring! Let F$U go, they’ll find out what a mistake they’ve made.
Also, I’m not wasting all summer arguing about fantasy football conference realignments. BORING!
I don’t always agree with crooked road, I do with his assertion of FSU.
I found out yesterday that Clemson have won the most champions in the ACC at 14 titles while FSU have won 12.
I think FSU resemble more of a whiny, pouting, and entitled brat who stamps her feet when she don’t the pony she wants.
I say, let FSU go, and become the whipping post for Texas and the Oklahoma’s schools.
Did I hear something last night while dozing thru the baseball game that former Brookville High School graduate Brandon Inge had like 4 straight 4 RBI games and was being mentioned in the same sentence with Lou Gehrig. I think I did. As the self appointed, unofficial and underpaid Lynchburg stringer to this blog, I think it is important to point these things out.
Not that it would really matter since he’s a trustee, but one of the articles that I read about FSU basically said that Haggard had many of his ‘facts’ wrong when it came to the new TV deal. I guess the money would be better in the Big 12, but FSU would get thumped on a weekly basis. This is a team that hasn’t been able to beat Wake Forest routinely in recent years — how would they handle stepping up to OU & Texas on a regular basis??
RE: The Rangers — They sure look like the class of the league at this point, but the Phillies fan in me knows that the only thing that counts is 3 weeks in October. The Phils were far & away the best in the NL last year until mid-September then suddenly they couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn. The scariest thing to me is how close Texas has been to becoming a legitimate dynasty…they were one pitch away last year, and were within a few outs in 2010.
Just think how good the Rangers would be if they still had ARod!
RP — Yeah, the USA Today story I linked mentioned those factual errors in Haggard’s initial ramblings. Those quotes I posted are the ones he made after backtracking a bit.
Ralph — Yes, good for Inge. Tough to see a guy get released when he’s still got a lot in the tank and just becomes a victim of circumstance. Good to see him land on his feet.
With the trouble my Tigers have had in scoring runs and in keeping the opposition from putting up big run totals (Scherzer and Porcello as starters have struggled again this year, and Valverde has proven vulnerable as closer)…I’m thinking that while they might still win the Central, all the talk of them being a favorite to win it all won’t verify. The Rangers are a killer team.
BTW, the problems with the captcha have kept me away, and will continue to do so until they are fixed. On average, it takes 3-4 attempts to get a comment through, and it’s not worth the hassle. This one somehow went through on the first attempt…
The ACC is neither a football or a basketball conference. And the schools that think it is had better be packing their bags and making room for some real schools like Johns Hopkins and Stoney Brook because the ACC is a Lacrosse Conference!
Aaron, Could say the same for Seth. Hope Weaver views his ACC brethren as part of the family.
Reports are saying that VCU is joining the Atlantic 10
FSU found itself in the position of arguing vehemently that their receiver did NOT make a catch in order that they might have a chance to kick a winning field goal. They missed the FG. And lost. In Tallahassee. To Virginia.
If FSU has to resort to that, Oklahoma and Nebraska will bury them. FSU is not ready for the Big 12.
This FSU nonsense is just that, nonsense. The incremental money they could get for going to the Big XII, or Big XVI, or whatever set of roamin’ numbers (get it?) it lands on, is going to get eaten up in travel costs. FSU sports teams don’t exactly travel on high school buses to events.
Granted, Tallahassee is pretty remote to most of the ACC, too, but it is really remote to anything other than the SEC. I know, I’ve flown into Tallyland, and it ain’t a fun thing to do, what with the way the flight attendant pushes you out the door and screams “pull the red cord first . . . ”
I’m just shocked at how bad the bleeding is there, financially. Geez, what are they doing with the money? If Tech can be in the black, financially, FSU certainly should be. They aren’t getting the same bang for the buck, I suppose.
This Rangers team reminds me a bit of the 198x Detroit Tigers team. I’m sorry, too old to remember the exact year, and too lazy to google it, that just destroyed everybody . . . for one year.
And, wait, do my eyes deceive me? What happened to the captcha code?
1984, Rick. Apt comparison. Eight guys with double-digit bombs on that Tigers team, which went 104-58. Ruppert Jones had an .862 OPS and couldn’t even crack the starting outfield. (As you can see, I wasn’t too lazy to Google it).
The scary thing is, Texas pitching is better than theirs. Holland/Darvish/Lewis/Harrison/Feliz > Morris/Petry/Wilcox/Berenguer/Rozema, although I’d draft Jack Morris No. 1 overall out of that crowd.
Now, let’s talk ACC baseball. Pete Hughes has to be kicking himself over that Duke Puke that his team spewed a few weeks ago. A sweep, on your own home field, by the worst team in the ACC, now stands between Tech and what would be an almost guaranteed slot in the NCAA field.
Now, Va Tech is battling that other Tech, for the 8th spot in the ACC tournament. I just don’t see the ACC pulling 9 teams into the NCAA field, but I could be wrong. Making the ACC tournament is probably the clincher for either GT or VT. The Hokies go to UNC this weekend, the Ramblin’ Wreck get Miami at home. GT holds the head to head tiebreaker. Smart dollars are on the Jackets.
Rick H. great question…what is FSU doing with that money? How is their budget showing red ink? Everyone knows your football program pays the bills and maybe the financial shortfall is a reflection of just how far the program has fallen. No one wants to pay big ticket prices in Tallahassee to watch them lose to the likes of UVa and Wake Forest…and they want to go up against OU and Texas on a yearly basis? Good luck to them with that.
Did FSU forget that they can’t even win the lowly ACC in Football? Now they want to look at the Big 12 where they would be good for at least 4 wins and more if they joined the SEC. Hey, 20 years ago this might have worked but FSU is the B rated actor that thinks they are still a top movie star, ha. I would hightly recommned the Big East or WAC.
Aaron, yep, that’s the Deeeetroit bunch I was talking about. That team could just smack the crap out of the baseball. Heck, I could have thrown a couple innings a game and them still win.
Morris, a definite top choice on the bump.
I remember seeing Sweet Lou, Lance Parrish and Alan Trammell start their play in rookie league ball, for the Bristol Tigers. Even then, as a no-nothing teenager, you could just tell, these guys know what to do with a baseball.
There was some Gibson guy, too, that had a few good moments with this team, but it gets overshadowed by that HR he hit and limped around the bases for the Dodgers a few years later.
But the key to that Detroit team – George “Sparky” Anderson. He was a great manager.
I know I’ve donated a few bucks to the Seminole Hard Rock Casino during Orange Bowl weeks past. Perhaps FSU could hit up the tribe for a loan.
Under advise from the Clemson Athletic Advisory Committee, Dr. Terry Don Phillips has asked the ACC fir the procedures that would be necessary for them to exit the conference.
Florida State and Clemson feel that they cannot fairly compete with their instate rivals, Florida and South Carolina, when the SEC schools will bring in around $120 million more over the next 15 years.
Captcha code down!! Everybody into the pool!
FSU considers itself a brand name. THAT’S what they are selling–not current performance. Similar to Notre Dame.
From an ACC standpoint, having a team–or two–in Florida helps everyone in recruiting that rich talent pool.
The big deal is the relatively paltry contract the ACC got for its television rights. Universities have voted virtually unanimously that money is what rules–tradition, geography, rivalries are all just a means to drive money. Fans care about traditional rivalries because they hate the other team. University management cares about traditional rivalries because they make money off having a rival.
For a conference which was a step from extinction two years ago, which lost FOUR longtime members, and which is not located near an ocean, the Big XII has sure changed from ugly duckling to swan in a hurry.
Mitch Vingle of the Charleston Gazette tweets that he’s hearing Tiger Woods will play in Greenbrier Classic.
One thing we know for certain is that VT is not going anywhere unless politics get involved to force some league to take them!
I have to agree with Rick about the money. I guess folks are withholding their money due to FSU being mighty mediocre.
I mean, when was the last time the mere mention of FSU makes fans quake in their seat? They don’t make anyone scared anymore. If UVa and Wake could beat them, then they aren’t the monsters under the bed anymore. Sorry, ‘noles, you had your run.
And, no CAPTCHA? What?
Here is a message from our digital folks about the new spam filter, which you guys seem to like (am I right?):
What the reader will see is a checkbox, that they will need to check, to let the computers know that the incoming comment is NOT spam. Now, IF the reader doesn’t have JavaScript enabled on their browser, they will see a password. BUT unlike the most recent filter, this password will not change over time as the reader looks at it. One new comment, will get one new password, every time.
I started laughing when I read the comments about FSU and how “the ACC favors the North Carolina schools” as was reported in my hometown paper (The San Antonio News Express).
I am still laughing.
CNN/SI reported last night that the potential revenue difference for FSU between the ACC and Big 12 was pretty huge and the dis-advantage FSU has compared to Florida ($ wise) is hurting FSU in football recruiting.
Maybe thatis all true and FSU can get the $ it desires elsewhere. If that is the case, well, then they should go. In the end, who cares? Not me.
If FSU feels like the ACC favors North Carolin based schools they haven’t lived until they see how Texas runs the Big 12. Even IF the money is true why would Texas A&M give up a 100 year rivalry? Why would Nebraska go to the Big 10? Why did the conference almost dissolve over the Longhorn Network?
Does FSU really believe it has the kind of cache to stand against Texas and win? How about the cache to even be heard? Not bloody likely.
I have to laugh. This is gamesmanship by FSU. Any of you who get worked up about this aren;t looking at it right. FSU is delusional.
and I can’t type worth a darn today….
and I love the fall of King Captcha
Hey Robert, where was VT mentioned in AMac’s blog post as a possible candidate for switching conferences?
Oh that’s right, you’re a UVA guy. You’re always paying more attention to VT than any other school (including your own Hoos).
FSU might not be perceived to be as strong as they were in the 90′s, but they are still a big draw.
What I don’t understand is why they, or anyone already in a BCS conference not named the Big East, would have any interest in the Big 12 as a supposed step up? Who wants to bow down to Texas?
If FSU not winning the ACC gives the perception that the ACC is down (which is not true), then what kinda shape is the Big 12 in with the struggles of Texas the last 2 years?
Great line by ken. I guess we all could have a cannonball competition. I personally like to do what I call the rocking chair to can opener combo. Makes a heck of a splash.
That’d be an awesome RT blog party.
I heard Va Tech tried to field a lacrosse team last year and even put posters up around the campus. “Athletes wanted for LAX” and to this day there are still four hokies wandering around a California airport.
Just read your Q&A. Crooked Road assumes a whole lot of facts not in evidence. Fact one, that either player would actually be developed into a good player by S.G. and that if they developed into good players they would stay a full four years.
S.G. never developed a player that I could see. I can’t remember one who came in good and became great in 9 years. To me they all stayed the same. At the very best, a couple became more consistent. I view Jeff Allen as a major failure (or maybe the poster child for my point of view) in development as his immaturity was a constant problem for 4 years. he reminded me of Larry Johnson so many times (like a man playing with boys) and then that petulant stuff came out and messed it all up. S.G.’s courtside demeanor could not have helped no matter how entertaining (faces, coat throwing, can’t look and histionics) Dowdell is the only guy still in the NBA that I can think of and we had quite a few who looked to me like they had the talent and needed the skill building. As for four years? Well, no one who can go to the NBA instead stays four years. That is simply unrealistic.
Considering how many teams now have guys doing the “1 and done” or maybe 2 years if they are lucky, I have to consider the 4 year expectation to be unrealistic.
We are well rid of S.G. He had 9 years. 9 years. And the program dropped a little each year. Sorry S.G. lovers.
Is Johnson the right guy? Who knows? Can he weather the early storm? Who knows? Is Weaver giht? Who knows, although I find it interesting that he draws so much passion from the crowd. I can’t think of another school where the fans even know (or care) who the A.D. is. There hasn’t been this much fun in B-burg since it was rumored that Mr. Cassell had a barn burned secretly at night to make room for athletic facilities.
I can’t wait for football……
89Hoo
Nebraska is not in the Big 12. And the year is 2012.
Aaron, that IT explanation makes as much sense to me as mustard and mayonniase mixed together.
I don’t see a checkbox, to check or not. I guess I must have JavaScript enabled, becuz’ I see no password? That next sentence, though, that’s the mixed mustard/mayo part – if I see no password, does it mean I’m golden (and can spam the crap out of this place, now?!). So, somebody can come along, play nice for 2 or 3 posts, then just have free reign over this place?
As usual, don`t have anything real relevant to add. Just wanted to prove that I am human. You`re welcome
Hey Aaron, can I borrow fifty bucks…..in these economic times?
In response to guy above, you damm right VT doens’t want leave ACC. They are the tallest midget in sorry Football conference with easy access to BCS bowl. Granted, Beamer will find a way to lose most big games but it sure beats being middle of the pack in SEC or other real power conferences.
Here is that VCU to the A-10 story mentioned here earlier.
In part what I posted on Andy B’s blog about FSU. Remember folks, the ACC is 6-11 in the past 2 years in bowls and FSU has 2 of those W’s. Be careful what you wish for because the “what have you done for the conference lately” mentality may come up and bite us:
“FSU’s record from the late 80′s to 2000 was staggering. Two National Championships, 9 consecutive ACC Championships (or ties), an incredible 152-19-1 record from ’87 through ’00 and 15 years in a row of never ending the season ranked below #5! By winning percentage alone they are rnked the 3rd best team in CFB in the past 25 years. Clearly after the last NC ( we remember that all too well), they started a decline which in retrospect had more to do with Bobby Bowden’s age than anything else, though they did win the ACC in ’05 (again, a loss we remember too well). In his 2 years as head coach, Jimbo Fisher has a 19-8 record which includes 2 bowl wins and 2 Fl. Cup Championships (beating both UM and Florida in consecutive years). To say FSU adds nothing to the ACC right now to me is like saying the Yankees bring nothing to MLB because they haven’t won the World Series in 10 years.
FSU is a sleeping giant which regularly out recruits VT and most of the ACC teams year in and year out. Last year the ACC was a horrible 2-6 in bowls, and FSU had 1 of the W’s. The year before the ACC was 4-5 in bowls, again FSU had one of them. The ACC is a “soft” football conference for sure, losing one of the most consistent, successful, tradition rich teams would deal a major blow to the conference and only lessen it’s attractiveness to TV and recruits. When conferences are negotiating TV contracts, tradition, viewership and reputation are huge. The same with recruiting. Telling a recruit he’ll get to play against the likes of a FSU is big. FSU is major asset to the conference.”
35 – Bob H – thanks for the correction. Of course I meant Oklahoma and Texas would bury them (Nebraska would, too, but a different discussion). My point was that Virginia, of all teams, would not have been that close to a Big 12 team, irrespective of the year.
I’ll stick by my comment last week, in regards to the coaching change. Especially when false rhetoric such as this –
‘We are well rid of S.G. He had 9 years. 9 years. And the program dropped a little each year. Sorry S.G. lovers.’
False rhetoric like that pretends the Bobby Hussey and Ricky Stokes eras never happened. False rhetoric like that ignores the stats of Greenberg’s term in Bburg. That’s okay, we’ll see how everything goes the next few years. We can talk NCAA invites all you want, beginning next March.
Jonathon, at least Va. Tech can get to a big to lose. Your boys already packed up and waiting for the bowl games to come on, so they can have something to watch. It’s a long time between football and baseball season.
zman, the reason Weaver has drawn so much attention is because of the scatter brained way he handled this. Had he simply said after the Duke game that he was disappointed in our losing record and lack of an NCAA appearance again and he was making a head coaching change then we probably wouldn`t have had well respected Washington Post sports writer John Feinstein telling all his readers what a fiasco this was. The Sopranos handled family matters with more class the Weaver showed.
Both FSU and Virginia Tech would be insane to leave the ACC. It is a mediocre conference at best and these two schools are lucky to be in it. FSU hasn’t really had much of a team since they beat the Hokies in 1999. That was the only year that Tech had a really competitive team, namely because of Mike Vick. Tech is yet to beat a top 5 team (maybe once, not sure) and yet they dupe everyone into thinking they have a great team every year. They have been in the right place at the right time and have played the right cupcake kinds of teams. You have to look at the entire picture about VT to get the proper perspective. 10 win seasons don’t really tell the story on them. You don’t have to look too far back to see how bad they really were last year when they played Clemson and were embarrassed twice. But don’t tell the Hokie fans about this, they still think they belong in the National Championship.
Genius, was the team that VT beat 38-0 last season one of those cupcakes? That’s pretty bad, seeing as the only year that VT had a really competitive team was 1999… you’re clueless.
I’ve been posting for years and have never had a problem with the captcha code. But I’ve read numerous hokies complain about it. Hokies what’s the problem? Can’t read? Can’t see? Can’t type? What is it?