The Anniversary Edition, Randomness, and the NCAA Division 1 Big East College Football Preview from the Hokie Guru, Govloop’s Bureaucrat on Sports

Good morning, Govloopers!!!

It’s been a year since Govloop sent me this e-mail… he sent it on July 10, 2008:

So here’s what I’m thinking with GovLoop. You (studboy) write a once a week short blog/column.

Let me know what you think. And you can start brainstorming and maybe start in a week or two (or whenever you ready).

What are you talking about, Willis?

Hey, I called you studboy first, Govloop… don’t take my lines that I might trademark!! 🙂 But yes, it’s been a heck of a year… thousands of members on this great social networking site… thousands more to come… and we’ve rocked you like a hurricane. Govloop members trying to make government better… that’s what it’s all about.

And speaking of randomness… the Hokie Guru’s off to North Dakota for the 20th reunion in 10 days… he’s been assigned the task of filling the Ipod with songs from twenty years ago… here’s a sample of what’s in that great Apple device:

Winger – Madalaine

Motley Crue – Too Young To Fall in Love

Skid Row – 18 and Life

And a double shot… Skid Row – Youth Gone Wild

Great White – Rock Me

Hangover: The Movie

Govloopers, if you haven’t seen Hangover, you need to. It’s grossed over 200 million and spent several weeks in the Top 5 movies in America.

The Hokie Guru loved the movie.

And one of the Hokie Guru’s new favorite songs is actually from The Hangover Soundtrack is “Live Your Life” from TI Feat and featuring Rihanna:

See, the Hokie Guru can take it back up to the 2000’s!! 🙂

NCAA College Football – The Big East Least Preview!!

Just kidding, Govloop… I know you are a homer… big time… for the University of South Florida Bulls… so let’s get it started first with a little college football motivational video before the Hokie Guru’s show begins… here we go:

I couldn’t believe it when the bartender told me who you are… why are you taking to me man?

The Hokie Guru’s pulse is skyrocketing right now…

Let’s get to the Big East Preview and where the Hokie Guru thinks each team will finish up…

1.) South Florida – It’s now or never for the South Florida Bulls. The Bulls have mega talent. Matt Grothe is in a tie for the Hokie Guru’s #1 quaterback in the Big East. Bulls Running Back, Mike Ford, is the best shape of his life. And wide receiver, Jesse Hester, should be the #1 receiver in the Big East. 2009 is shaping up to be a banner year for the Bulls. Ford and Hester must step up this year… if it’s the Grothe running show, the Hokie Guru resereves the right to drop South Florida about 4 spots in this list. On defense, the Bulls return 7 starters, including the best defensive end in America, George Selvie. It seems like we play these games ever year with the Bulls… can they handle the expecations of a program ready to head to the big time? The schedule is favorable. The Bulls could be undefeated when Big East Conference play begins. Anyway, the schedule includes road games at Florida $tate Univer$ity (yes, the Hokie Guru’s making fun of F$U by using dollar signs… so what… if you don’t like it, rant in the comments below and the Seminoles are not the team they were several years go… and their season ticket sales have dropped 13.4%… bye bye Bobby Bowden at season’s end), Syrasuse, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, and Connecticut… Rutgers and Pitt will be tough games on the road… no doubt about that. The Bulls have Big East home games against Cincy, Louisville, and West Virginia… and Atlantic Coast Conference oppponent, Miami. We’ve been playing these games forever, Coach JimLeavitt. It’s time to step up and get to your first BCS Bowl game, perhaps the Orange Bowl in Miami.

2.) Rutgers – Phil Steele, who has the best college football preview magazine in the business, actually has Rutgers as his number one team in the Big East. Steele thinks that Rutgers can overcome the loss of its senior QB, Mike Teel, and one of the best wide receivers ever to play in the Big East, Kenny Britt, who was a NFL first round draft pick. Steele’s logic is that Rutgers has the best offensive line in America and they can just plug in the parts on offense and be successful. Even if Rutgers has a great defense (and Steele says they do), the Hokie Guru thinks that if you lose too many players at the skill positions of wide receiver and quarterback, teams can disguise their defensive schemes and play mind games with these new players. Rutgers will be good… but the Hokie Guru disagrees with expert Phil Steele for now… the Hokie Guru places more emphasis on leaders at these key skill positions. The main reason that Rutgers is so high on the Guru’s list here is because of their coach, Greg Schiano, who has brough Rutgers football back from the dead… he’s a great coach.

3.) Pittsburgh – Why is the Hokie Guru putting the Panthers this high? Pitt has 14 returning starters, a stout defense, and an incredible Larry Fitzgerald-type receiver in Jonathon Baldwin. But, as with any team, there are questions… for example, Dave Wannstedt still coaches this team lol. The Hokie Guru’s always had questions about Wanny. Pitt would have been at #2, but they have problems at QB and the Guru lacks confidence in Wanny.

4.) West Virginia – West Virginia no longer has Pat White, who won four consecutive bowl games in four years with the ‘Neers. He is clearly one of the top athletes ever to attend the burning couch masters and is a SUBSTANTIAL loss. West Virginia has a very capable starter in Jarrett Brown and the Hokie Guru’s #1 running back in the Big East in Noel Devine. The ‘Neers schedule is lookin’ friendly with road games at South Florida, Cincy, and Rutgers (which could have Big East Title implications)… West Virginia is the Hokie Guru’s darkhorse in the Big East.

5.) Cincinnati – Back to back 10 win seasons for the Bearcats… good times in Cincy. And, by now, I’m sure you are wondering who’s in a tie with Matt Grothe for best quarterback in the Big East… and it’s Tony Pike… he might be the best professional prospect of any quarterback in the Big East. Pike is 6’6″ tall and 225 pounds, has a great arm, can scramble, and can see the field well… he is a state of Ohio QB… and that has NFL written all over it. The Bearcats problem is that the defense is nearly depleted… they have to break in a brand new defensive line… but far not… if anyone can make a team good, it’s head coach, Brian Kelly. Brian Kelly is the Hokie Guru’s #1 head coach in the Big East.

6.) Connecticut – UConn lost 2000 yard rusher, Donald Brown, to the Indianpolis Colts. If UConn can go to a bowl game for a third year in a row, then the Hokie Guru thinks that Head Coach, Randy Edsall, will be hired at a big time program next year.

7.) Louisville – Can Rick Pitino coach football, too?

8.) Syracuse – Of note here is that Greg Paulus will play football for the ‘Cuse. This pretty cool… the Hokie Guru knows that football and basketball coaches both like guys that play point guard (as Paulus did at Duke) and then play quarterback and vice versa. Point guard and quarterback are the leadership positions in basketball and football. However, this will be a reconstruction project that might last for several years… the Orange might need some stimulus funds to bring their football program back to, oh, even .500.

To close this preview, the Hokie Guru needs to make a recommendation to Big East Commissioners… please add East Carolina University and Marshall University to your athletic conference. You will be happy you did. If you want to add two more teams, please also add Central Florida University and the University of Memphis. With 12 teams, you could have north and south divisions… plus, Memphis will make your basketball league even better than it is now. But East Carolina needs to be your priority for expansion.

Happy Anniversary, Govloop!!