My thoughts on Andersen leaving, Chryst's rumored arrival, Packers/Bills, etc.

I have not voiced my opinion too much about this, but it is about time I do. As most, if not all, now know, Gary Andersen is leaving a solid program in Wisconsin for one that is mediocre at best in Oregon State. First of all, I would like to say that I now have a bit of an idea why his team put forth such a pathetic performance last Saturday night. It is hard to concentrate with one foot already out the door. Don't try to convince me that he was not focused on another job. The team was not prepared.I have now gone to five Badgers games in my life and Wisconsin is 3-2 in those games. The two games they lost were by a combined 100. Ouch!

Anyway, his rumored rationale for leaving was because of academic standards. Seriously? I do not hear other programs complaining about that. Hell, I don't hear Bo Ryan do that. Bo just goes about his business and wins. People say Wisconsin will never be a national championship contender with that "restriction." If JJ Watt and Devin Harris stay their senior years, I would bet the Badgers would have won the championship in those years. The Badgers should not change this policy just to please a coach. He should have known this before he took the job. That's on him.

Did he want the Badgers to turn into North Carolina? These are STUDENT-athletes. Student always comes first. Unlike Cardale Jones, some athletes come to play school in addition to playing football. I think that was just a cop out by Andersen.

Now, I do believe him when he said he wanted to go back out West. He is from that part of the country, so I am not surprised he wanted to go back.

At first, I did not really care for the rumored hiring of Pittsburgh's Paul Chryst. His .500 record at Pitt was uninspiring, especially in the ACC, which is actually worse than the Big Ten. But now that I really think about it, I really like it. Chryst inherited a Pitt program that had three coaches in 14 months and stabilized it. Some Pitt fans think it was due for a breakout season next year.

I think this coaching job is Chryst's dream job. He is from Madison and played quarterback for the Badgers back in the late 1980s. He was the offensive coordinator at Wisconsin from 2005-11 and played a big role in the development of quarterbacks such as John Stocco and Scott Tolzien. I doubt he will have one eye on other job opportunities as Andersen did.

Chryst will also not change philosophies. He knows what Wisconsin can do and what it cannot do. The Badgers can get skill players from out of state from time to time, but the heart of the team is the offensive line and the running game. And since Chryst has left, the tight end has been a forgotten about weapon. Under his watch, the Badgers offense was one of the best in the nation and would be up there again.

If Chryst is indeed hired, there are only a few I really would like to stay in terms of coaches. I would like Dave Aranda to stay, but he has been with Andersen awhile. The most likely coach to stay (who I want to stay) is probably running backs coach Thomas Brown. He is still young and is turning into one hell of a recruiter. It is going to be interesting to see who Chryst wants on his staff. That is, if he actually is announced the head coach next week.

The Packers have a tough game this weekend on the road against Buffalo. Out of the remaining three games on the schedule for Green Bay, this is the toughest game for the Packers in my opinion. First of all, the Packers are on a short week, having played Atlanta on Monday. A road game on a short week can be a struggle. The Bills are coming in at 7-6, fighting for their playoff lives. This is the last home game for the Bills and would like to make week 17 count as they could be 9-6 going into the season finale at New England. As a Packers fan, this game worries me.

Buffalo comes in with a top five defense, allowing just 311.9 total yards per game. Aaron Rodgers needs to keep doing what he has been doing, and the defense needs to play well. Green Bay leads the league in turnover differential this year, which makes me compare them to the 2009 New Orleans Saints. That defense was not very good, but they feasted on turnovers along with having a high-powered offense.

Strike a pose

It has been too long since I have posted something. With this being Big Ten Championship week, this is a perfect time to resume.

There are a lot of great players in college football, but three are above the rest, in my opinion: Alabama wide receiver Amari Cooper, Wisconsin running back Melvin Gordon and the probable Heisman favorite, Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota.

Mariota and Cooper are great players, but you will not convince me they are above Gordon. Obviously I am biased, but what Gordon is doing is incredible. At a remarkable 2,260 yards, the Doak Walker Award favorite has a chance to break the single-season record of 2,628 yards by former Oklahoma State and Detroit Lions standout Barry Sanders. He has two games left to try to eclipse Sanders. He needs to average 184.5 yards in the last two games to break the record. He currently is fourth on the single-season list. His last two games will come against Ohio State this Saturday and then the bowl game. Yesterday, Gordon was named the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year and on Monday was named first-team all-Big Ten by both the media and coaches.

What makes this season that much more impressive is that Wisconsin has struggled to consistently pass the football. Out of 128 FBS teams, Wisconsin ranks 119th. The young, inexperienced wide receivers have struggled to get open and it has put more pressure on Gordon. With Mariota and Cooper, there is a ton of talent around them. In Cooper's case, he has a good quarterback in Blake Sims in addition to a very talented running back in T.J. Yeldon to help take some of the pressure off Cooper. Gordon has to do it all himself basically.

Gordon has rushed for at least 120 yards in every contest this year against an FBS team, including a then-FBS record 408-yard performance against Nebraska Nov. 15. He has broken the 200-yard mark five times on the season. It has been perhaps the best season a running back has had since Sanders' incredible 1988 campaign. In 2011, Montee Ball came close to eclipsing Sanders' single-season touchdown record, but had to settle for a tie at 39. Ball was invited to New York as a Heisman finalist, and Gordon will most certainly land there as well.

Mariota is the favorite. but Gordon is right up there. With another big game on a national stage against No. 5 Ohio State. Gordon could win himself the Heisman Trophy. He has earned it with this once-in-a-lifetime season he has put together.

My thoughts on the Kevin Love saga

I have not written one in awhile, so I thought it would be best to start back up again and what better way to jump back into blogging than to talk about the biggest story in the NBA at the moment. With Minnesota Timberwolves all-star forward Kevin Love refusing to re-sign with the team, the Wolves are almost forced to deal him. The three teams in the mix for the all-star are the Golden State Warriors, Chicago Bulls and the front runner Cleveland Cavaliers.

Two weeks ago, Cleveland was not in the mix for Love as he refused sign with the Cavaliers. Well, that all changed with LeBron James returning home and signing with his hometown Cavs. James has reached out to Love and Love has agreed to re-sign with the Cavs because of LeBron. Cleveland has the upper hand for one reason and one reason only: Andrew Wiggins. The top overall draft pick in last month's NBA Draft is the prize Minnesota is after. Wiggins averaged 17.1 points per game in his only season with Kansas.

But to match contracts, a third team will most likely be included. With their rumored interest in guard Dion Waiters and Minnesota's rumored interest in forward Thaddeus Young, the Philadelphia 76ers seem to be the perfect fit. One holdup is Minnesota wanting to include guards J.J. Barea and Kevin Martin in the deal. With Barea having just one year left on his contract, he could go to Philadelphia. Even with his bad contract, Martin could replace Waiters in Cleveland. He would bring much-needed outside shooting to the Cavs.

Golden State has never offered guard Klay Thompson, but it is clear that if Golden State wants Love, Thompson would have to be in the deal. Even if Thompson was to offer Thompson and forwards Harrison Barnes and David Lee, Cleveland's offer was still superior. 

Chicago today offered first round pick Doug McDermott, forward Taj Gibson and recently signed big man Nikola Mirotic. While not a bad offer, I do not see the star potential in that deal like I do in the Cleveland deal. As a fallback offer, it would not be terrible, though. 

With LeBron telling Love he wants him on Cleveland, it seems like the Cavaliers need to make a deal for Love. As it is right now, Cleveland is not a championship team because of its big men. A duo of Tristan Thompson and Anderson Varejao is decent, but hardly championship worthy. A trade where the Wolves were to acquire Wiggins, Young, forward Anthony Bennett and a first, that would be quite a haul for Love, Martin and Barea. If Cleveland were to get Love and Martin for Bennett, Wiggins, Waiters and two firsts, LeBron would be happy and Cleveland would be a championship championship contender. Acquiring Waiters, Barea and a first for Young would be nice for a rebuilding Philadelphia team.

Wiggins has not signed a contract with the Cavs yet, which means if he were to be involved in a trade right now, his salary would be $0. He is rumored to sign a contract with the Cavs as early as tomorrow. That would mean two things. First off, the trade would not be able to be official for 30 days. The teams could agree to a deal, but it would not be official for 30 days per NBA rules. Secondly, it would be easier to make a deal because of the salary Minnesota would have to take back since Love's and Martin's contract would total more than $20 million.

Even though I am a Wolves fan, I have never been a huge fan of Love's. Maybe it is his demeanor on the court and all of his whining. I am not positive what it is, but I have never been a big fan. I also am a huge fan of Bill Self and the Kansas Jayhawks, so this deal would make me ecstatic. I see the Wolves making a deal with Cleveland eventually. There is no timetable, but I would expect a trade to be completed fairly soon.

Minnesota is getting younger and more athletic if it makes a deal like this. In the short term, the Wolves will not be very good. I am just being honest. If Love and Martin are traded, Minnesota will not be great at scoring, especially when Nikola Pekovic has his usual injury and misses a third of the season. That in addition to the youth and inexperience will result in about 30 wins. However, if Wiggins turns out to be a star and Anthony Bennett turns into a solid big man, the Wolves could make a turnaround. The Wolves need Wiggins to re-energize the fanbase  He would be a terrific fit for the Wolves and Minnesota needs his services.