NCAA Tournament

Hello ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls from all over the world and welcome to another edition of 'Life of a Student Athlete.'  In today's edition we are going to talk about College Basketball.  It's March people and you know what that means.  March Madness.  And the tournament is a good one my friends.  For one, my two teams, Syracuse and Miami are still alive and both in the Sweet 16.  Syracuse has to go through Indiana now, the #1 seed in the East Region.  Indiana has been one of the top teams this year, and a lot of analysts have been riding high on the Hoosiers this year, but I’m not too sure.  The ‘Cuse is playing very well so far this tournament, and as a fan, and an ‘‘expert’’ I think the Orange will move on to the Elite 8 for the second straight year.  Miami played a very close game last night against Illinois; they did end up coming away with a 63-59 win though.  The Hurricanes will take on #3 seed Marquette in the East Region.  The Golden Eagles are a team who loves to grind it out in close games, and they have already had a last second layup to win the game.  Although Marquette is a tough team, too much spunk from the Canes will get them through to the next round, putting them in the Elite 8 for the first time in school history.  The biggest story of the tournament thus far though, the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles, #15 seed from the Atlantic Sun Conference.  They have advanced to the Sweet 16, marking the first time in the entire 74 years of the tournament; a 15-seed has advanced to the regional semifinal.  I’ve watched both games they have played, from start to finish, and this is no 15-seed people.  They play like a 1-seed.  They have absolutely dominated their first two opponents.  They beat Georgetown, a team who had high expectations, they beat them by 10.  And they were up by 19 at one point.  Last game they played San Diego State, and they beat them by 10.  At one point they went on a 17-0 run!  They have the swagger, they have the confidence, and I seriously believe they have a chance at this title.  They’re so fun to watch, it is insane.  I’ve fell in love with this team since I’ve laid eyes on them.  Now they take on Florida, the #3 seed in the South Region.  I have a feeling that this team will do something, and will make history.  It’s looking like they have the right foot size for that glass slipper this year. The tournament resumes tomorrow night as the West and East Regions will play their games, Friday night the Midwest and South Regions will play their games. In the West bracket, we saw another huge upset, as the Harvard Crimson upset the New Mexico Lobos. As if the Florida Gulf Coast University upset over Georgetown didn't do, this game was sure to mess up a whole lot of brackets, as New Mexico was projected to be one of the best teams in the entire tournament. Tomorrow we will also see Wichita State, a 9 seed take on La Salle, a 13 seed. Both of these teams have created their own Cinderella stories, as La Salle has beaten Kansas State and Ole Miss, and Wichita State upset Gonzaga (the 1 seed) in their second game. It would be very exciting to see either of these teams make an even deeper run, especially seeing that most brackets across the country do not have either of these teams doing any serious damage. The next game tomorrow night features Arizona, a 6 seed, and Ohio State, a 2 seed. Ohio State is led by Aaron Craft, who has only gained popularity since the tournament has begun. He has earned the reputation as one of (if not the best) defensive guards in the country. In their game on Sunday, Craft hit a 3 pointer with .4 seconds remaining to win the game. Now, with momentum, Ohio State is a team that will be a tough match up for any team, especially a 6 seed. Arizona, however, is not your average 6 seed. Throughout the year, the Sun Devils have lived and died by the 3 ball. The game is as simple as this; if the 3 point game is hot, the Sun Devils have a chance, but if the 3 ball is cold, the Buckeyes will blow the Devils out of the water (or fire, if you will). Another interesting topic is the Wooden Award, which goes to the MVP of the season, NOT the tournament. As they days go by, the standings for this award have changing faster than ever. In my opinion, both Kelly Olynyk from Gonzaga and Otto Porter from Georgetown have been falling off the map due to their teams early exits in the tournament.  Thank your for tuning in to today's episode.  Hopefully your brackets are as busted as mine, and hopefully you all have a very good rest of the tournament.  Oh and Happy Easter!  Goodbye folks!

How Bout Them Ravens?

Hello ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls from all over the world and welcome to another edition of 'Life of a Student Athlete.'  In today's edition we are going to talk about the NFL a little bit I'm thinking.  The NFL Free Agency period has begun and there have been a lot of big names floating around, as well as some teams tearing up their rosters.  Some are looking to rebuild after an awful 2012 season.  Some teams are looking for that missing piece to get their team to the next level, and take that next step towards a championship.  As most of you know, the Baltimore Ravens won the Super Bowl.  I don't think I ever gave my take on that game did I.  Well may as well now.  I think that I hate the Ravens, I cannot stand Joe Flacco, don't really know why. Hes probably my second most hated quarterback behind Tom Brady.  And I also think that the new contract he just received is absolutely absurd.  He is not that good.  It’s just that simple.  There is nothing you can say or do that will change my opinion of him.  And now that their team has just been torn up is hilarious.  They probably won’t even make the playoffs next year.  Wait they have Joe Flacco though.  You're funny guy.  Joe Flacco is a joke.  But he's got a Super Bowl ring.  So what big deal.  You know who else has a Super Bowl ring, Brad Johnson, is that guy elite?  I was watching NFL Live a week or two after the Super Bowl when Flacco got his contract, and Merrill Hoge was rating the top quarterbacks in the league.  He had Flacco at one.  Are you serious dude?  First of all this guy inst even elite let alone the best guy in the league.  Drew Brees and Eli Manning weren't even in the top 5.  Can someone explain that to me?  I know they both didn't make the playoffs, but Eli is one of the best in the league.  You wanna know why he was good this year?  His defense and Anquan Boldin.  And guess what Joe, your D and Anquan are both gone.  Anquan Boldin was recently traded this past week because the Ravens didn't want to give him the money he wanted/couldn't give him the money he wanted.  And get this; he was traded to the 49ers.....for a 6th round pick in the draft.  A 6th round pick in the draft.  I don't even understand how that even came about.  A 6th round pick.  Blows my mind.  But what do I know.  Let’s see who else they've had to get rid of because of no money.  And BTW all these moves are due to Joe Flacco's huge new contract, which made him the highest paid player in the game, which he isn't worth but okay.  Whatever floats the Ravens' boat.  So there goes their top receiver.  Here’s the defense that's gone: Starting MLB Ray Lewis due to retirement, okay not the Ravens fault, but the anchor of the defense the past 15 years.  Starting Defensive End Paul Kruger, who had like 12 sacks this year, among the league leader, probably their best pass rusher, he was released and has been picked up by the Browns.  Starting Safety Bernard Pollard, a very hard hitter and a lot of teams would love to have him.  He was released.  Starting Safety Ed Reed, he is not gone yet but there is a 95% chance he will be gone.  Hes meeting with teams today.  MLB Dannelle Ellerbe, he filled in for Lewis all year when he was hurt.  He did a great job and he’s released.  Starting corner back Cary Williams, he did a great job shutting down receivers all year.  And Matt Birk who was the starting center but he retired.  They pretty much have no defense right now.  I honestly hope Flacco feels good about himself, and I hope he enjoys his only championship hell ever get.  Because due to that paycheck he just received he has no team.  No class.  So selfish.  Idiot.  Even Tom Brady took a pay cut so that his team could stick together for the most part.  Now I hate Brady, but that's pretty impressive.  Sic years, 120.1 million dollars is his contract.  Over the next six years, Flacco will be making just over $168,000 a day when the regular season comes about.  How is that even possible?  I think it’s all so stupid.  Bold prediction for next season: Ravens will go 7-9 and finish third in their division.  You know what else I'm getting sick of, Jim Nantz and Phil Simms doing every Patriots, Steelers, or Ravens game.  Like it gets old, and they aren't even good announcers.  Like stop.

Heres an article by Jeffri Chadiha about the Ravens offseason.   This one wasn't even close. The Ravens had to trade Boldin to San Francisco because he wouldn't agree to a massive pay cut. They also watched Ellerbe and outside linebacker Paul Kruger -- who signed with Cleveland -- bolt for more lucrative offers elsewhere.
Those are big losses for a defense that already is moving on without Ray Lewis and may very well lose safety Ed Reed, as well. Baltimore knew it was in for a tough start to the offseason. That's exactly what it got.

This off season has been joke regarding the Ravens, but its about time.