Miyagi-Do Karate

Honestly, today it didn’t look like any wizardry by JB or major adjustments. It looked like the addition of two better defenders for Two Worse ones, and guys just hustling and moving faster. I was just watching JB’s Presser and he basically said that he thought the press caused His D to just overall play with more energy and faster in the second half.

What a great victory! Buddy really saved the day. The press was terrific. And I really loved Braswell‘s minutes and Marek being the go-to guy down the stretch. That said, can I complain a little Bit about that first half? 1) Griffin pretty much epitomizes this Syracuse team. He does some things really well and some things horribly. When he is on, he is on. When he hustles on D, he can make LebRon like blocks. But then he is horrible at times on defense, takes a lot of terrible shots, never passes, and has stretches of just lazy play. You could just feel the team play with so much more energy when he is not out there. 2) this team cannot or does not want to pass. In the first half, what’s the point of running those pick and rolls if you don’t pass to the open roll guy? They just double the ball ball handler. then it’s Dribble, dribble, Dribble, tough shot. The offense thankfully ran smoother with Kadary out there in the second half, as his driving can at least open things up. 3) I have no idea what defense they play. Everyone at every position was wide open for ND. 3’s, high post, low post. ND could have whatever it wanted. I actually am not sure the defense improved much in the second half except they pressed a lot more, which caused ND to Play faster, and they generated a lot of nice turnovers. And not having Griffen out there probably helped.

It’s really tough to say. This decision will be based almost entirely on how far Davis Webb has come. He has never played an NFL Snap. Does the staff trust him? Is he ready? You cannot contend Without a legit backup QB who can step in and go .500. It’s way too risky.

Regarding Tropper being a 1-trick pony, totally agree. All his books blend together in my mind. A few times I would read one of his books and about 50 Pages in, I wasn’t sure if I had read that one before. They all mostly concern some middle-aged dude going through a crisis and sitting Shiva after someone died. this reminds me of a similar author— Richard Russo. I really liked his books, but they all concern similar characters in similar locations doing mostly similar things.

I hope you are right, but I know they have the cap space, Milano went to college there, and Milano is the sort of player that I think BB loves and could really utilize.

I hate to say this, but the obvious place Milano will land is New England.

I am/was a big Tropper fan, but don’t think he has written anything in a long time. Same with Nick Hornby, who I would compare Tropper too.

Re Grisham, I have read a handful of his books over the years, but my wife has read everyone. What I find interesting about Grisham is how he started off. He was a lawyer, but wanted to be a novelist, and I think he said, “I am committing to write at least 1 page per day.” That’s what he did and how he wrote his first novel, A Time to Kill. As someone who has tried to write novels and have never had the discipline to finish, I always thought that was a really great Approach. the other thing I like about Grisham is that he doesn’t take himself Too seriously. He knows he writes pretty formulaic legal books for beach reads etc, not high-brow literature. he knows what he is good at it and who is audience is, And I find that to be pretty refreshing.

I don't like Stephen King, but I did read his book on writing--aptly titled "On Writing"-- and it was great. Great insight into his process as a writer. As an English teacher, I am sure you would enjoy it. Here are a few recommendations-- both Fiction and Non-Fiction: 1) "Body & Soul" by Frank Conroy. My all-time favorite fiction book-- coming of age story of a piano prodigy. 2) I am a big fan of foreign-author fiction, and particularly like Ha Jin, and Jhumpa Lahiri. Everything by them is great, but "Waiting" is Ha Jin's classic, and probably "Interpreter of Maladies" is Lahiri's best work (I think she won a pulitzer for it). 3) In terms of non-fiction, I am a big fan of some of Johnathon Haidt's recent stuff, including "Coddling of the American Mind" and "Righteous Mind." Haidt is a liberal moral psych professor from UVA, but his work really resonates with liberals and conservatives. If you have kids in college or heading to college, Coddling is a must-read.

I am a big bball fan, but never took the time to understand the CBA and all these contracts and exemptions. If you don't understand that stuff, it makes the NBA trades to be totally mind boggling. I remember for years that Brendan Haywood was like the most valuable player in the NBA because everyone wanted his contract--it was pretty bizarre and funny.

He will do great there. Just need to hand the ball off and throw some play action.

whats funny about this is that the list pretty much began with 6 teams! 😁

Isn’t it amazing that the defining play of Devo’s career was the 3 that was waved off at the end of regulation in the 6-OT UConn game? Great shot though!

I wonder about the timing of this playing out. Does he sign really fast, or does he let it sit for a while like Clowney? I think he is better off signing quickly.

There is a market rate for solid kickers and not much mobility in free agency. Rian Lindell Made this point years ago. Guys just go to a team, and if they are good, they just stay. There are only 32 spots in the league.

6’4” as a sophomore too! Good chance to add an inch or two!

sounds awesome! but a peanut butter and jelly burger though... 🤔

Don’t get me wrong— I love old Big East ball. And I typically like the refs to let them play through body contact. But that game yesterday was just odd— for example, there was one play where Marek tried to pass and was raked across the arm. The ref actually waited until the ball was fumbled to the other team before blowing the whistle. It was almost a full 2-second delay. There were other times where that wasn’t called in that game, and it made the game pretty sloppy for stretches. Fast break; no call; other way; fast break; no call; other way... It’s one thing to let physical play and contact go— but even in the old big East, you can’t just rake guys on the arms as they are dribbling, shooting, or passing. it makes the game really hard to watch and is frustrating for the players, I am sure.

Nice win by Syracuse. was it just me, or did the refs just stop trying? Lot of really obvious hacks by both teams And they let them play on.

he obviously was released and immediately purchased a house sight unseen in Cleveland, before even speaking to the browns.

my nephew who is a browns fan texted me some Instagram Rumor that watt has bought a house in the Cleveland suburbs!

oh, wow— you just brought back some memories. We may be around the same age. I used to love building franchises and developing players in Madden 2004. Totally forgot about that. Alas, with marriage, kids, and a job— my career as a Madden GM/HC is long over!

Chris Jones wasn’t noticeable against Tampa because Brady threw 5-yard dump-offs all game. If you want to neutralize Chris Jones, you need to scheme against him (double him; quick passes, etc). We are not going to sign the best guard in the league; can’t have the best player at every position.

to be fair, Chris Jones is the #2 DT in the league at winning pass rush battles (per the PFF and ESPN pressure stats). Only Donald is better. I think the better measuring stick for Feliciano is how he has done over the course of the year.

Pittsburgh makes too much sense. I suspect he doesn’t even care about the money. Gets to play with both his brothers and on the no. 1 defense in the league.