Time to Talk Some Sports!

Who would have thought a few weeks ago when OU lost its first game against the lowly Iowa State Cyclones that the Sooners might actually have a chance to beat every team on its schedule this year? With OU continuing to win against overmatched opponents and Iowa State continuing to win against teams that were ranked ahead of them going into the season, the Sooners could have a chance to play the Cyclones in the Big 12 title game.

What?

As it stands now, there is a four-way tie at the top of the conference standings with OU, OSU, Iowa State and TCU. Each of those teams has lost once in conference (only Iowa State hasn’t lost to the one of the top four conference teams) and they all have one conference loss. In looking at the remaining scheduling, some of the deadlock will work itself out. OU has road games against OSU and West Virginia as well as a home contest against TCU. OSU still has that home game against OU and a road challenge against the Cyclones. Iowa State already has wins against OU and TCU but does have that game against OSU as well as a game against West Virginia.

In terms of redemption, the same could actually happen for OSU and TCU. The Cowboys could go undefeated the remainder of the season and potentially play TCU in the conference title game. TCU could go undefeated the rest of the way and end up playing a rematch with Iowa State. A lot could happen between now and then, but it should all work itself out somehow. Hopefully.

The college football playoff rankings were announced for the first time this season and the Big 12 has three teams among the top 11 (and four in the Top 15 with the Cyclones making an appearance). Despite a not-so-lofty ranking in the weekly polls, OU comes in at fifth with a road game against OSU this weekend. TCU sits at eighth and OSU is at 11.

Georgia came in at the top spot while Alabama tumbled to number two. The Crimson Tide looks to be the better team to me but at least we will get to see the two compete against each other (barring a loss along the way to the SEC championship game). I’m definitely not sold on Notre Dame (best win is against a questionable NC State team), but I feel confident they will stumble at some point. I feel the same about Miami, and ironically the two play each other later this month. Clemson still looks good to me despite the Syracuse loss, and most of the other teams have some roadblocks in their way (Penn State, Ohio State) or just haven’t played anyone (Wisconsin, Central Florida).

The media spotlight hasn’t been just on college football lately as MLB has had some negative headlines, mostly stemming from Yuli Gurriel of the world champion Astros taunting Dodgers pitcher Yu Darvish with a “slanted eyes” gesture when circling the bases after a home run. Gurriel will be suspended five games next year but wasn’t punished during the championship series. It’s amazing what some people think they can get away with in a public setting.

Houston has a problem in another sport too. Also creating an embarrassing situation for himself was Houston Texans owner Bob McNair, who compared his players to inmates. Especially considering the social injustice conversations taking place throughout the nation and in the NFL specifically, McNair was either completely ignorant or just showing his true colors when he made the statement. After fallout from his players, many across the nation and the NFL itself, McNair backtracked and said he was talking about the owners and the NFL commissioner’s office. Nice try, Bob, but nobody is buying it.

We can't talk NFL without mentioning the lowly Cleveland Browns, who botched a trade for quarterback A.J. McCarron by failing to get in the proper paperwork to the NFL commissioner's office. I realize it looks incompetent, but hear me out on this. What if the Browns were actually willing to look bad just to do something to light a fire under their current crop of signal callers? I think most people would assume long-term DeShone Kizer is a better prospect than McCarron. So, what better way to get his attention than to convince him he was that close to being benched for good. Just a theory ...

The NBA season has been somewhat enjoyable thus far, especially after the Thunder put a whooping on the Bucks. Oklahoma City is starting to come into form sooner than expected while the Warriors and the Cavs are still in pre-season form. I don’t expect either team to continue playing down to a lesser level, but it is nice to know there is tape out there that shows how to beat the presumably two best teams in the league.

Enjoy your sports weekend – it is just starting to heat up!