1.) First of all, it is a general consciousness that the individuals who usually fight for golf as a sport are in fact people who are either too old or to un-athletic to participate in a REAL sport, such as the big five (football, basketball, soccer, hockey, and baseball.) However due to the recent debate with friends (who although half of them were girls, still are athletic enough to play real sports) I have decided to further reach into the reasons why golf is not a sport, and not only that, but that golfers are not athletes.  Here’s why, in today’s day and age where sports such as the aforementioned big five are becoming more and more popular, Athletes have begun to step up their workload.  Players and trainers are now working together to reach new lengths that were thought to never be reached, and with the advancement of technology, this process will continue.  Modern day athletes now push themselves in the weight room harder then ever before, as they strive to be better and better.  Take someone like Dwight Howard for example, Howard is 6-11 and weighs 265 pounds, and yet is one of the best athletes in sports today. Why? Because Howard has made it his business to train multiple times a day and work as hard as humanly possible in his strive for perfection. This constant drive to be the best has payed off for Dwight, as he has seen improvements every year in both points per game, and rebounds per game. Howard is seen on the right jumping high enough to kiss the rim.

Now on the flip side of things, lets take a look at the “athletes” of golf.  Now it is true that some of them may be fairly athletic in their own right ( I am sure in some way shape or form, Tiger Woods is athletic) but as a rule, golfers do not work half as hard in an attempt to strive for physical perfection as real athletes do. Why? because golf is merely a game, like chess or darts. Do they require skill? of course they do, but that does not make it a sport. Golf is just like chess and darts in that it is a hobby, a leisure activity that requires an immense amount of skill.  This is still not enough to qualify golf as a sport though, as just about anyone who wants to play golf,  can in fact play golf.  Where as not everyone who wants to play hockey, can play hockey, some people just aren’t talented enough. Take PGA tours John Daly (pictured on the left) for example.  Daly is a 5-11, 240 pound man who couldn’t even complete a 40 yard dash let alone run one in a 4.5 range like many professional athletes are able to do.  This is just the tip of the iceberg as far as Daly is concerned.  Daly once turned down an invitation to the British Opens Championship Dinner because in his words, “You can’t get this fat boy into a suit.” and that is not all, Daly has also been recorded as saying that he does not exercise or lift weights because smoking is prohibited in gyms, and if he worked out without smoking he would get sick. Daly has also been involved in many legal issues with Alcoholism, and drugs. As far as i am concerned, John Daly is the shining example of why golf can NEVER be considered a real sport and also why golfers themselves are NOT athletes.

2.) It has been argued that do to the number of calories that golfing burns, that it MUST be considered a sport. This however is completely false for a couple of reasons.  Reason one, is that never in the history of sports has the number of calories burned been a deciding factor as to whether or not a game is considered a sport or not.  Sports are more about the difficulty both mentally and physically, and about putting so much hard work into the game that you become the best player you can possible be, and golf only involves half of the work.  Golf is a game that is very mentally involved.  To be a great player you need to be able to see the angles and how the ball moves and curves on the grass.  This is a difficult task, but not difficult enough to make bleeping idiots consider golf to be anything more than a game the people play once they are to old to play a real sport. Reason two is of the “short and sweet variety” scientific evidence shows that in a standard 18 hole game of golf, that the golfers body burns up approximetely 721 calories.  This however is only in the event that the golfer walks from hole to hole and carries his own golf clubs.  This is clearly not how it is done in professional levels of golf where the players have both caddies and golf carts. Once the walking and carrying are taken out of the equation it is proven that the amount of calories burned then drops from 721 calories burned to approximately 411 calories. Now, a male who stands at 6 ft. tall and weighs somewhere between 185-195 pounds burns around 700 calories if he walks on a treadmill at an incline for 45 minutes. Which correct me if i am wrong, but the 45 minute time is MUCH shorter than the length of a standard game of golf.  So by the logic of saying that golf is a sport because of how many calories are burned in the process, people are then also saying something along the lines of “Walking up hill is the next sport to be added to the Olympics”

It is official, Bleeping Idiots has spoken! and our official ruling is golf is NOT a sport, and that playing golf is like the same thing as playing pool but without the fun part.

QB- Ben Roethlisberger, Matt Ryan

RB- Michael Turner, Brandon Jacobs, Thomas Jones, Laurence Maroney, Kevin Jones

WR- Roy Williams, Roddy White, Anquan Boldin, Eddie Royal, Bobby Engram

TE- Tony Gonzalez

K- Stephen Gotskowski

Defense- Patriots

Alright so that is my team so far, let me know what you think about this team. I think i have a pretty solid chance at winning it all this season!

1.) Tim Tebow- 1st of all is Tebow who played vs. Hawaii on Saturday and posted mediocre numbers completing 9-14 passes for 137 yards and 1 td and carrying the ball 9 times for a total of 37 yards. All in all not a bad day but nothing heisman worthy either.

2.) Chris Wells- vs. Youngstown St.- Wells started off the day looking as heisman worthy as we all thought he would as he amassed 111 yards on only 13 carries and 3 catches for 10 yards. Unfortunately for Wells, he went down in the 3rd quarter with a foot injury. The severity of the injury has not yet been given to us.

3.) Michael Crabtree- vs. Eastern Washington – Crabtree played well on saturday but still did not really put up superstar numbers.  He was however able to make it into the endzone as he fiished off the day with 9 catches for 73 yards and a score.

4.) Chase Daniel- vs. Illinois – Daniel opened up his season on saturday night against a tough Illinois team but they were not tough enough as Daniel was able to show us why he is one of the top Heisman contenders this season as he completed 26-45 passes for 323 yards 3 toughdowns and 1 pick.

5.) Pat White – vs. Villanova – Saturday was truly a great day for Pat White as he showed doubters that he able to drop back and pass the ball and that he feels he can play QB at the next level.  After watching the game i notice that he still has alot to work on as he was only playing vs. Villanova and not a top defense, but still his numbers are on White’s side as he threw 33 passes completing 25 of them for 208 yards 5 TD’s and 1 INT. White also showed his value as a runner as he was able to accumulate 63 yards on only 9 carries.

6.) Matthew Stafford- vs. Georgia Southern – This was a gimme game for Georgia which is something we all knew from the start and Stafford used this game to start himself off on the right foot in true Heisman form. Stafford went 13-21 for 275 yards with two TD’s and 0 picks. NOTE: he would have had higher number if they ahd played him the whole game

7.) Sam Bradford- vs. Chattanooga – Bradford fell into a similar situation as Stafford where as the team he played against was so awful that they only needed him for about 1 half of football.  Bradford was still able to make it count though as he went 17-22 for 183 yards and 2 scores with 0 ints.

8.) Knowshon Moreno- vs. Georgia Southern – Due to the fact that Georgia was beating on Georgia Southern, Moreno like Bradford and Stafford only played for about a half. He was able to find the endzone three times though as he rushes the ball 8 times for 59 yards and the three touchdowns.  He also added another 53 yards on 2 receptions.

9.) Hunter Cantwell- vs. Kentucky – Now starts my two sleeper picks for Heisman and unfortunately for both Cantwell and myself, things did not go as well as i had hoped. Cantwell Struggled to complete a majority of his passes as he never seemed to look truly comfortable  as he only completed 20-43 passes for 152 yards with 0 scores and 3 picks…Not looking very Heisman worthy so far but we will se if this talented QB can turn his season around

10.) Josh Freeman- vs. North Texas – I am happy to say, that my pick for Heisman winner put on a great show on Saturday vs North Texas. Freeman showed a combination of stellar pocket prescense and great mobility on his way to completing 18-24 passes for 252 yards and 3 TD’s. He also added 23 yards on 5 carries and 2 TD’s, so far he has looked the best but the season is still oyung and there is alot of fotball left to be played.

Check back next week to see how our Heisman predictions fared against their week 2 opponents,

Now it is really starting to show as teams like East Carolina and Bowling Green Universities are stating to put themselves on the map in the college football world and today both teams took big steps towards establishing themselves as top competitors in todays league. Both teams played early on Saturday and both teams upset pre-season top 25 teams. East Carolina met Virginia Tech today and they showed up ready to play. Right from the get go ECU’s offense and defense played with explosion as they picked off Virginia Tech’s Sean Glennon for 2 early INT’s. They went on to win the game 27-22 after scoring on a blocked punt with 1:52 left on the game clock. Bowling Green upset the college football world by defeating number 25 Pittsburgh 27-17. These two teams are just two examples so far of how colleges top teams may be headed for more and more of a challenge as the years go on and how the chances of teams blowing through a season undefeated may be getting smaller and smaller.

College football is finally here!! and with it comes the all the Heisman hype and buzz over who will win college footballs most prestigious award. Will Tim Tebow be the first player since Archie Griffin to take the trophy twice or will it be someone like Ohio States powerhouse Running back Chris “Beanie” Wells? I personally think it will end up being someone very unexpected. Keep reading to find out who.

Below are the top ten payers (in no specific order) that i feel will make u run for the Heisman, Including two that you may find a bit surprising, and at the very bottom i will pick who i think will end up walking away with the Trophy.

1.) Tim Tebow- Now i am not a fan of Tim Tebow’s at all, largely due to the fact that he in my opinion is not a good enough passer to play QB in the NFL (I see him as more of the Eric Crouch type, great athlete who dominates the college level but not great pro potential….and yes i know that everyone who loves Florida will tell me to look at his passing stats and all that, but there is a huge difference between the college throws that Tebow makes and the NFL throws which involve hitting that small window and anticipating where your receiver is going to be during the play) That said, there is no denying the fact that Tebow dominates the college football level and because of this he is one of the front runners for the Heisman Trophy.

2.) Chris Wells- Beanie wells is a beast, pure and simple. His rare blend of size and speed combined with his quick feet make him a terror for apposing defense. But lets not forget his vision either, over his career Beanie has shown the ability to see the holes and know when to cut outside and when to pound it in the middle. Barring injury, Chris wells should hit the 1,800 mark for rushing yards this season, that and the fact that he is a scoring machine makes him a top canidate.

3.) Michael Crabtree- Crabtree bust onto the scene last year and put up stellar numbers against some of colleges elite secondaries. He pulled in a whopping 134 receptions for 1,962 yards and 22 td’s. The knock against him is that he is from the pass crazy Texas Tech university who is similar to hawaii in the fact that their systems allow for huge inflation in the WR and QB’s numbers. Don’t let this fool you however, as Michael Crabtree is the real deal, look for him to continue to make corners and safety’s cry as he burns past them.

4.) Chase Daniel- Daniel has been nothing but a consistent performer for Missouri, and now after having 2 full seasons of starting under his belt he is poised to lead a talented Tiger team to a top bowl game. He had a Heisman season last year as he passed for 4,306 yards and 33 TD’s with 11 int’s. That is a 3-1 ratio which is pretty impressive and he has only gotten better.

5.) Pat White- Unfortunately for Pat White, he has a long road ahead of him if he wants to play QB in the NFL, but while he is still in college there are few players with the athletic ability of Pat White. White has slowly but surely increased his passing numbers and has made fewer and fewer mistakes as he has grown. Last season white completed 66.7 percent of his passes for 1,724 yards with 14td’s and only 4 int’s, and that’s not all he did. White also added a whopping 1,335 yards rushing and another 14 scores. With numbers like that and his big play ability, look for Pat White’s name to be mentioned anytime someone is talking about Heisman trophy canidates.

6.) Matthew Stafford- Matthew Stafford flashed some serious skills last year, but also showed that he was still a young player and that he had a little work to do. Well now I think he is poised to truly break out, after posting 19 Td’s to 10 int’s last season, the coaches really worked with Matt on his decision making and ability to make the right reads. He has put a lot of work into his game for this upcoming season and i look for it to payoff big as i am sure that he will put up big numbers this season. It also doesn’t hurt that he is playing with one of the leagues top RB’s in Knowshon Moreno.

7.) Sam Bradford- This one is a no-brainer seeing as how Bradford as a freshman was one of the leagues leading passers with an astonishing rating of 176.52 and a TD to interception ratio that would make any coach happy, and like i said he was only a freshman! This season i look for him to put up similar numbers, maybe slightly less than last year but not enough of a drop off to take him out of Heisman contention.

8.) Knowshon Moreno- Another player who burst on to the scene last year out of nowhere, and literally lit up the college football world. Coming out of high school there was no doubt that Moreno was going to be a stud running back, but NO ONE saw this guy (who had never had a career carry in the college level) running for 1,334 yards and 14 td’s. Now Moreno has officially made a name for himself and with that comes a little more attention from apposing defenses. That being said, i look for Moreno to improve on his stats and finish the season as one of the top 5 Heisman Trophy canidates.

Now i feel that these next two are going to be two names that many people will not necessarily agree with. However, these are my two sleeper picks for Heisman Trophy surprises and are two guys that i think will open a lot of eyes this season

9.) Hunter Cantwell- This guy has done everything right so far, he came into college and sat behind Brian Brohm on the depth chart, but he did not whine and complain or try and transfer, no instead he sat and learned and worked with the second string offense and when it was asked of him he would come into games and either play mop up duty or make a couple throws here and there until Louisville could get Brohm back onto the field. Well now Cantwell will show that all the work he put in is finally going to pay off as he takes over a young but talented Cardinal offense. I look to see big things out of Cantwell this season and don’t be surprised if you here his name listed amongst footballs elite when Heisman voting rolls around.

10.) Josh Freeman- If i had to build the ideal QB from scratch, Josh Freeman would be the result. This guy has everything you are looking for in a Quarter back, he has a monstrous frame at 6′6″ 250 pounds with a rocket for an arm, not to mention the fact that the guy has good mobility for his size. He also has something that you can’t teach, and that is his intangibles. He is a great leader on and off the feild and was actually the only starting true freshman in 2006 to lead his team to a bowl game. Last Season as a sophomore Freeman threw for 3,353 yards with 18 td’s and 11 picks. Look for his decision making to be much improved this season as he now has another season of maturity under his belt, and come Heisman time I guarantee this guy will be in the race

Honorable Mention- LeSean MCoy, Graham Harrell, Cullen Harper James Davis, and a couple others.

And the Winner is…..

Josh Freeman

Yes i realize that to many this may seems like a long shot, but just watch and see as Freeman takes everyone by surprise and takes home college football’s most prestigious award. Also don’t be surprised if this guy leaves early following this season and ends up being the first QB taken in the draft due to that fact that his size, arm strength and intangibles are off the charts (I expect him to be this seasons Jamarcus Russell)

Freeman opens up his 2008 Season against North Texas…now i know that it is only North Texas, but i am predicting 300 yards and at least 3 TD’s for Josh as he starts his season off in Heisman form.

Panthers stud Wide Receiver Steve Smith is now officially suspended for the first two games of the 2008-09 season for his involvement in an altercation that took place during training camp practice yesterday between Smith and corner back Ken Lucas. The fight took place during one of the rest periods of the practice, at this time both players had their helmets off, it was said that it is unclear what exactly started the outburst but the end result was Steve Smith punching teammate Lucas in the face. Lucas was carted off the field with a broken nose.

First off let me just say how mad this whole situation made me. Steve Smith is a grown man and a proffessional football player and under NO circumstances should you punch a teammate in the face! Especially with all the reporters that were there reporting on Panthers training camp. Seems a little bad for team chemistry if you ask me.

First off let me apologize for the long wait between posts but I have been very busy lately, Now back to football, with training camp finally arriving, football season is officially in the air, but anyway here are my rankings for who i feel will be the top running backs of the 08-09 season. and of course I will add my “Stretch” pick which is the player i feel will come outta no-where and become a statistical monster.

1.) LaDainian Tomlinson- This one is pretty much as obvious as they come, for starters Tomlinson will continue his amazing career with another stellar season and I personally feel that he will hit the 1,800 yard mark this season and help lead the Chargers to a possible super bowl. Season Prediction 1800 yards 16 td’s

2.) Larry Johnson- Many people are gonna try and tell you that a guy like Steven Jackson belongs in this spot and that Larry has been a bum for 2 years in a row now. Well thats wrong because Larry Johnson is hungry for redemption, and that redemption comes by way of Dwayne Bowe. Yes I realize that at first this may make no sense, but what Bowe is gonna do is open up the passing game for whoever ends up starting for KC and by doing this, Johnson will not have to face as many 8 men in the box sets, this is going to enable Larry to hit the whole hard and then do what he does best (run people over)  Season Prediction – 1500 yards 12 td’s

3.) Stephen Jackson- The Rams are all over the place right now, but one thing that Jackson has going for him is that he should have a much better blocking this season due to the fact that he will hopefully be running behind a healthy O-line this season. Look for Jackson too have a solid year, not an incredible year but He earns top three because i feel that even if the run game slacks, he will make up for it in the pass game as he is a very solid weapon coming out of the backfield. Season Prediction – 1,200 yards 13 td’s

4.) Adrian Peterson- I have a bad feeling that an injury may be around the corner for AP which is the only reason that he is not ranked a little higher, Peterson has an unfortunate tendency to be injury prone and with his physical running style it is only a matter of time. My prediction is that it will only be a small injury keeping him out of maybe 4 games but the time that he does play, he will produce big. Another reason he gets knocked down a little is that now NFL teams know what to expect from him and from the vikings they will be able to better prepare to play him, also the fact that he is still “splitting” with Chester Taylor. Season Prediction -1,100 yards 11 td’s

5.) Kevin Smith- This is obviously my Stretch pick, but I have a strong feeling that it is also a good one. Smith did nothing but produce during his time at UCF and he did it against alot of tough competition. He runs like a man with something to prove, and that is what is gonna carry him into the endzone so many times. Smith is a big back (6-0 215) and is deceptively quick with 4.45 speed. I love the way this kid runs and I think it will definately transfer into the NFL. Look for the lions to slowly work him into their offense and then once they see what he can do, he will just run away with that starting position. Smith is also helped out alot by the fact that the lions already have a ton of weapons and they added an enormous lineman in Gosder Cherilus. Season Prediction – 1,200 yards 13 td’s

Honorable mention-

Willie Parker (left off cause of Mendenhall taking carries)

Frank Gore (Martz is pass crazy)

Rudy Johnson (Team is a little unorganized so they need to pull it together)

Jamaal Lewis (I am not a firm believer that he is back to old form)

Stay tuned for WR ranking coming soon.

Leagues Top five Quarterbacks…

Tom Brady.

now everybody knows this is basically as safe of a guess that one can possibly make, but after years of trying to convince myself that Tom Brady is not actually that good, i have finally given in and put him in his rightful spot. And although i must admit that Tom is among the leagues elite, don’t look for him to put up the same numbers he did last year. By no means will he have a bad season, but he will not have a repeat of last year. Season Predictions- 3,900 pass yards. 39 TD’s 11 Int’s

Peyton Manning- This was a tough one for me because although i feel that Manning belongs at the top, i just could not justify putting him above Brady, That being said, I do feel that Manning is gonna come to play this year and will regain his top spot as the leagues top QB. After all, he still has a good combo of Reggie Wayne and Marvin Harrison as well as a young talent in Anthony Gonzalez who looks to be a future star in this league. also lets not forget the fact that Manning has Joseph Addai ande on of the NFL’s top coaching crews. Season Predictions- 4,100 yards, 34 TD’s 9 Int’s

Matt Hasselbeck-

Now for all the Tony Romo fans out there who feel that this spot belong to Romo, relax, he is next on the list. The reason Hasselbeck comes in above Romo in my oppinion is that every full season he plays, Hasselbeck Seems to get better and better and this season will be no different. This season has all the looks of a stellar season for Matt. One of the major reasons he is poised for such a breakout season, is that last year he put up huge number, and did this with one of the NFL’s worst running games backing him. This means that he couldn’t get the playaction passes he wanted in order to get the defense to bite. Also he was not facing an eight man front meaning that he had more DB’s or Drop back linebackers to throw into, and even with all of that he produce. This year he gets something he sorely needed, a Running back. Julius Jones should provide Hasselbeck with the solid running game he needs to complete his game. Look for the seahawks to pound the ball and then let Hasselbeck run some play action and really open the offense up. Season Predictions- 3,800 yards 33 TD’s 12 Int’s

Tony Romo- Ok the first thing i have to say here is why does everyone look at the fact that he dates Jessica Simpson as a negative thing (ARE THESE PEOPLE NUTS?!?!) basically 99 percent of all men would date her if they could so i think we should cut this guy some slack as far as that one goes. Now back to football, Romo is a young player and yet he keeps on producing and putting up stellar numbers. One thing i don’t like about him though is decision making, he throws into double coverage too much and he turns it over to much (which is the reason that Drew Brees is not making the top five, now i know what you’re thinking, “Brees threw less INT’s than Romo” that is true but Brees had overall more turnovers last season, plus i think Romo will use last year’s experience to grow and cut back on the Int’s.)He returns this year with Marion Barber pounding the ball as well as a stud rookie in Felix Jones. These two backs will have the defence on it’s heels and really tire them out. Doing this will let Romo do what he does best, drop back set his feet and release (to T.O. of course who will then take the 5 yard pass for 70 yards and a touchdown) but seriously, look for Romo to put up big number this year, he has in my opinion a a better offense surrounding him than last year as well as another year of experience under his belt. Season Predictions-3,900 yards 32 TD’s 14 INT’s

and now for my suprise pick…landing himself in the top five by finishing the post season in top form and looking to build on those numbers….

Phillip Rivers- (and no i am not on drugs, this is a real prediction)

Yes this pick seems a little crazy, but when you take into consideration how he played in the playoffs and what he has to work with, this is a very realistic pick. Rivers really stepped up in the playoffs and if it were not for his injury, the Chargers may have made it to the bowl. Rivers is looking to build off of a sub par season last year, but lucky for him, he has everything he needs to do so. Rivers returns this season with LaDainian Tomlinson who is the easily the top Back in the NFL but that is not the only weapon that Rivers has, he has a young and extremely talented WR who really stepped up in the playoffs in Vincent Jackson, Jackson will continue to get better and better and will provide Rivers with a big target who can take it the distance. After getting that akward first season with a new team thing out of the way, look for Chris Chambers to also step up and haul in alot more passes. As if that was not impressive enough, Rivers also has the leagues top TE in Antonio Gates (Gonzalez and Winslow are close seconds) and he has a young player yet to emerge in wide receiver Craig “Buster” Davis. All in all i look for Rivers to make the biggest turn around of any player this season and really step his game up. Season Predictions- 3,800 yards 31 TD’s 13 INT’s

Honorable Mention- Drew Brees (too many Turnovers) Carson Palmer (Receivers are a mess) Derek Anderson (one year wonder?)

Stay tuned next week for the top five Running backs of the 08-09 Season