Realignment

With all this talk about the MLB possibly realigning and the NHL definitely realigning I thought it would be fun to realign all 4 sports for myself. Even though the NBA and NFL are fine the way it is, and the MLB is mostly fine with itself, I still wanted to mess around with it. So leggo!

NHL
The NHL is definitely realigning for the 2012-2013 season and it's mainly because of the new Winnipeg Jets which will move them to the West. The talk is that it might go to 4 divisions, Pacific, Midwest, South, and East. There is also talk that the Red Wings, Blue Jackets, and Predators all want to play in the East. If this happens the NHL would then go to 16-team East, with two 8-team divisions and a 14-team West, with two 7-team divisions. This is how I think it could look.

East (this is not a reflection of how I think the standings will be)
1. Boston Bruins
2. New Jersey Devils
3. New York Rangers
4. New York Islanders
5. Philadelphia Flyers
6. Pittsburgh Penguins
7. Toronto Maple Leafs
8. Montreal Canadiens
9. Washington Capitals
10. Carolina Hurricanes
11. Tampa Bay Lightning
12. Florida Panthers
13. Ottawa Senators
14. Buffalo Sabres
15. Columbus Blue Jackets
16. Detroit Red Wings

East Division
1. Boston Bruins
2. New York Islanders
3. New York Rangers
4. New Jersey Devils
5. Washington Capitals
6. Carolina Hurricanes
7. Tampa Bay Lightning
8. Florida Panthers

Midwest Division
1. Toronto Maple Leafs
2. Philadelphia Flyers
3. Pittsburgh Penguins
4. Ottawa Senators
5. Montreal Canadiens
6. Buffalo Sabres
7. Columbus Blue Jackets
8. Detroit Red Wings

West
1. Nashville Predators
2.Chicago Blackhawks
3. Minnesota Wild
4. Dallas Stars
5. Colorado Avalanche
6. St. Louis Blues
7. Phoenix Coyotes
8. San Jose Sharks
9. Los Angeles Kings
10. Anaheim Ducks
11. Vancouver Canucks
12. Calgary Flames
13. Edmonton Oilers
14. Winnipeg Jets

Central
1. Chicago Blackhawks
2. St. Louis Blues
3. Nashville Predators
4. Minnesota Wild
5. Dallas Stars
6. Colorado Avalanche
7. Winnipeg Jets

Pacific
1. Phoenix Coyotes
2. Anaheim Ducks
3. Los Angeles Coyotes
4. San Jose Sharks
5. Calgary Flames
6. Edmonton Oilers
7. Vancouver Canucks

MLB
The MLB has explored realignment but for now it's fine the way it is. I think the best way is just to take the Houston Astros to the American League West from the National League Central. It makes sense. NL Central  has six teams AL West has 4. Everyone other division has 5. This evens it up and gives the Astros a natural rivalry with the Texas Rangers. They were also exploring eliminating divisions and going with two leagues again but I also think this involves the Astros moving to the American League. Beyond that I really enjoy the way the divisions are and I think that all in all there isn't even a better way to try and explore it. But what if they MLB tried what the NHL is doing. 4 divisions and keep the Leagues the same, 14 in the AL and 16 in the NL. How would that look? I'll show you.

American League East
Baltimore
Boston
Cleveland
Detroit
New York
Tampa Bay
Toronto

American League West
Chicago
Kansas City
Los Angeles
Minnesota
Oakland
Seattle
Texas

National League East
Atlanta
Chicago
Cincinnati
Florida
New York
Philadelphia
Pittsburgh
Washington

National League West
Arizona
Colorado
Houston
Los Angeles
Milwaukee
St. Louis
San Diego
San Francisco


NBA
I have actually thought about a little division change since Seattle moved to Oklahoma City. I think this would give it a more regional feel. As a Thunder fan though, when it comes to winning I love the division they are in. Every division, except for the Pacific, would move one team and get another, those five teams would be, Milwaukee, Oklahoma City, Memphis, Washington, and Philadelphia. They would look like this.

Atlantic
Boston
New Jersey
New York
Toronto
Washington

Central
Chicago
Cleveland
Detroit
Indiana
Philadelphia

Southeast
Atlanta
Charlotte
Memphis
Miami
Orlando

Southwest
Dallas
Houston
New Orleans
Oklahoma City
San Antonio

Northwest
Denver
Milwaukee
Minnesota
Portland
Utah

NFL
The NFL is the only league where realignment never even crossed my mind. I think that the divisions are fine just the way they are and there is no need to change but I like to have fun and explore so I thought of new divisions. This may take away from rivalries but then again, it's never going to happen. This idea has to do with four 8-team divisions. It erases the AFC and NFC completely. Probably the worst idea ever , it simply combines the divisions of the east, north, south, and west. It would go like this.

NFL East
Buffalo
Dallas
Miami
New England
New York Giants
New York Jets
Philadelphia
Washington

NFL North
Baltimore
Chicago
Cincinnati
Cleveland
Detroit
Green Bay
Minnesota
Pittsburgh

NFL South
Atlanta
Carolina
Houston
Indianapolis
Jacksonville
New Orleans
Tampa Bay
Tennesee

NFL West
Arizona
Denver
Kansas City
Oakland
St. Louis
San Diego
San Francisco
Seattle

Cheers! Part 2

So this is a follow up to the post I made earlier today about how I cheer for sports teams. I've had multiple people ask if I have preference for college sports, including my good friend (and self) Jordan Landis. At first I wasn't really into doing college because I have just a few true loyalties but then I though of Bowl Games and possibly some NCAA Tournament games and I thought maybe I'll give it a try. This list includes all 120 Football Bowl Sub-Division teams (formerly known as Division 1-A). Hopefully it clears the air.

1. Ohio State Buckeyes
2. Cincinnati Bearcats
3. Kent State Golden Flashes
4. Oklahoma State Cowboys
5. Oklahoma Sooners
6. Kentucky Wildcats
7. Michigan State Spartans
8. Virginia Tech Hokies
9. Washington Huskies
10. North Carolina Tar Heels
11. South Carolina Gamecocks
12. Oregon State Beavers
13. Oregon Ducks
14. Stanford Cardinal
15. Baylor Bears
16. Northwestern Wildcats
17. Texas Longhorns
18. Auburn Tigers
19. Navy Midshipmen
20. Connecticut Huskies
21. Syracuse Orange
22. Ohio Bobcats
23. Akron Zips
24. Miami (OH) Redhawks
25. Toledo Rockets
26. Arkansas Razorbacks
27. Georgia Bulldogs
28. Kansas State Wildcats
29 Missouri Tigers
30. Nebraska Cornhuskers
31. Minnesota Golden Gophers
32. Mississippi Rebels
33. Arizona Wildcats
34. Arizona State Sun Devils
35. Louisville Cardinals
36. Rutgers Scarlet Knights
37. Clemson Tigers
38. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
39. Virginia Cavaliers
40. Indiana Hoosiers
41. Purdue Boilermakers
42. Illinois Fighting Illini
43. Mississippi State Bulldogs
44. Texas A&M Aggies
45. North Carolina State Wolfpack
46. Texas Tech Red Raiders
47. Colorado Buffaloes
48. Kansas Jayhawks
49. Utah Utes
50. California Golden Bears
51. Washington State Cougars
52. Wake Forest Demon Deacons
53. South Florida Bulls
54. Tennessee Volunteers
55. Maryland Terrapins
56. Vanderbilt Commodores
57. Boston College Eagles
58. West Virginia Mountaineers
59. UCLA Bruins
60. Pittsburgh Panthers
61. Iowa State Cyclones
62. Army Black Knights
63. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
64. TCU Horned Frogs
65. BYU Cougars
66. UTEP Minors
67. San Diego State Aztecs
68. Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
69. Fresno State Bulldogs
70. Hawaii Warriors
71. SMU Mustangs
72. Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders
73. Idaho Vandals
74. UNLV Rebels
75. Troy Trojans
76. Colorado State Rams
77. Air Force Falcons
78. Nevada Wolfpack
79. North Texas Mean Green
80. Florida Atlantic Owls
81. Louisiana Tech Bulldogs
82. Florida International Panthers
83. San Jose State Spartans
84. Arkansas State Red Wolves
85. New Mexico Lobos
86. Utah State Aggies
87. Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks
88. Wyoming Cowboys
89. New Mexico State Aggies
90. Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns
91. Houston Cougars
92. Tulsa Golden Hurricane\
93. Bowling Green State Falcons
94. Tulane Green Wave
95. Temple Owls
96. Memphis Tigers
97. Ball State Cardinals
98. Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles
99. Northern Illinois Huskies
100. Rice Owls
101. Buffalo Bulls
102. Eastern Carolina Pirates
103. Marshall Thundering Herd
104. UAB Blazers
105. Central Florida Knights
106. Iowa Hawkeyes
108. Penn State Nittany Lions
109. Alabama Crimson Tide
110. Florida State Seminoles
111. Duke Blue Devils
112. Miami (FL) Hurricanes
113. USC Trojans
114. LSU Tigers
115. Florida Gators
116. Central Michigan Chippewas
117. Western Michigan Broncos
118. Eastern Michigan Eagles
119. Wisconsin Badgers
120 Michigan Wolverines

Cheers!

I have come across a conundrum. I was watching a baseball game and neither of the teams playing were the Indians or Rockies so I wasn't really sure who to cheer for. I have come across this dilemma multiple times like in the NHL or NBA playoffs when say the Lakers were playing the Hornets. So what I did was I made a list, a hierarchy if you will, of each of the four major US sports, NBA, MLB, NFL, and NHL. The way it works is when the two teams are playing whichever team is higher on my list is the team I would cheer for. I thought this would help me out. I will list them out for you.

NBA Hierarchy

1. Cleveland Cavaliers

2. Oklahoma City Thunder

3. Chicago Bulls

4. Philadelphia 76ers

5. Portland Trailblazers

6. New York Knicks

7. Golden State Warriiors

8. Denver Nuggets

9. Memphis Grizzlies

10. New Orleans Hornets

11. Los Angeles Lakers

12. Los Angeles Clippers

13. Atlanta Hawks

14. Milwaukee Bucks

15. Indiana Pacers

16. Sacramento Kings

17. Minnesota Timberwolves

18. Houston Rockets

19. Toronto Raptors

20. New Jersey Nets

21. Charlotte Bobcats

22. Orlando Magic

23. Phoenix Suns

24. Utah Jazz

25. Washington Wizards

26. Detroit Pistons

27. San Antonio Spurs

28. Dallas Mavericks

29. Boston Celtics

30. Miami Heat

MLB Hierarchy

1. Cleveland Indians

2. Colorado Rockies

3. Florida Marlins

4. San Francisco Giants

5. Cincinnati Reds

6. Philadelphia Phillies

7. Milwaukee Brewers

8. New York Yankees

9. Chicago Cubs

10. Atlanta Braves

11. Seattle Mariners

12. Baltimore Orioles

13. Washington Nationals

14. Los Angeles Angels

15. Los Angeles Dodgers

16. Tampa Bay Rays

17. Arizona Diamondbacks

18. San Diego Padres

19. New York Mets

20. Texas Rangers

21. Houston Astros

22. Toronto Blue Jays

23. Oakland Athletics

24. St. Louis Cardinals

25. Kansas City Royals

26. Minnesota Twins

27. Detroit Tigers

28. Chicago White Sox

29. Pittsburgh Pirates

30. Boston Red Sox

NFL Hierarchy

1. Cleveland Browns

2. Atlanta Falcons

3. Philadelphia Eagles

4. Indianapolis Colts

5. Miami Dolphins

6. Baltimore Ravens

7. St. Louis Rams

8. Green Bay Packers

9. San Francisco Giants

10. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

11. New York Jets

12. Houston Texans

13. San Diego Chargers

14. Denver Broncos

15. Tennessee Titans

16. New York Giants

17. Minnesota Vikings

18. Chicago Bears

19. New Orleans Saints

20. Carolina Panthers

21. Arizona Cardinals

22. Seattle Seahawks

23. Kansas City Chiefs

24. Cincinnati Bengals

25. Detroit Lions

26.Buffalo Bills

27. Washington Redskins

28. Jacksonville Jaguars

29. Oakland Raiders

30. Dallas Cowboys

31. New England Patriots

32. Pittsburgh Steelers

NHL Hierarchy

1. Columbus Blue Jackets

2. Washington Capitals

3. Pittsburgh Penguins

4. Tampa Bay Lightning

5. Philadelphia Flyers

6. Anaheim Ducks

7. Chicago Blackhawks

8. Toronto Maple Leafs

9. Vancouver Canucks

10. Calgary Flames

11. San Jose Sharks

12. Edmonton Oilers

13. Atlanta Thrashers/Winnepeg (Jets)

14. Montreal Canadiens

15. Ottawa Senators

16. Nashville Predators

17. St. Louis Blues

18. New York Islanders

19. New York Rangers

20. Phoenix Coyotes

21. Colorado Avalanche

22. Carolina Hurricanes

23. Minnesota Wild

24. Los Angeles Kings

25. Florida Panthers

26. Bufffalo Sabres

27. Dallas Stars

28. New Jersey Devils

29. Boston Bruins

30. Detroit Red Wings

Ohio State

It's been almost 3 months since I've posted anything on here and I've been bombarded with questions about what's going on and how I feel. I am a devout Buckeye and I don't believe that this will change anything in the way that I feel towards the university. My reaction was basically the same as when I heard about Michael Vick or Plaxico Burress which is that people make mistakes that are going to require consequences. Michael Vick is one of my favorite players in the NFL and he messed up then he faced his consequences and came out of it. I'm just as human as that so who am I to judge him. He came back in the League and was arguably better than he was before. Has he learned from his choices? Only time will tell but I am not here to stand up and tell him he doesn't deserve the respect of everyone.

Something you need to know about me is that I'm all about second, third, fourth, fifth chances, and on to infinity. Forgive until you're dead. I'm laid back and can get over people wronging me in an instant (except for LeBron but no one likes him anyways!). I'm all about moving over and getting on with what the future holds. I've compiled a list of five main questions that I've been asked with the answers that I can provide.

1. What is your thought of Jim Tressel's career at Ohio State and how will you remember his legacy?
-I'm going to remember Jim Tressel as being one of the most successful coaches in Ohio State. His coaching skills were legendary and he knew how to handle a strong team. I'm going to remember Jim Tressel for bringing the first Championship to Ohio sports since 1970 when Woody Hayes did it. I'm going to remember Jim Tressel for 7 Big Ten Championships in 10 years. I'm going to remember Jim Tressel for making it to a record 8 BCS Bowls (5-3 record). I'm going to remember Jim Tressel for an outstanding 106 wins in 10 years (averaging 10.6 wins a year is pretty spectacular). But most importantly, being a Buckeye, I'm going to remember Jim Tressel for a 9-1 record against Michigan. A rivalry this great could go either way no matter how much better the one team is than the other. Michigan teams may have been pretty bad as of late but winning 7 in a row is more than amazing for Tressel. His exit is far from pretty and is going to have people thinking of what could have been for years but for me his legacy will stay and will always be on the field.

2. What are your thoughts on Terrelle Pryor?
-Pryor is different than Tressel. I was extremely excited when I was a junior in high school sitting in the school's library watching the press conference of him signing with us. It was one of the biggest signings in Ohio State history. Unlike Tressel, Pryor's legacy falls on the tattoos, rings, and cars instead of the field. He was a good quarterback and would have gotten better. For me I feel like he is running away from Ohio State. While he is getting ready to possibly play on Sundays, the rest of this team will be preparing for the season and taking the punishment and sanctions that the NCAA will undoubtedly be handing out. His actions have led to other, "innocent" people taking the consequences, as is the situation with Matt Barkley and USC. I think that he can be a successful quarterback in the NFL if someone is willing to take a chance on him and train him like someone is training Tim Tebow or Cam Newton. On the other side he may get early success from trying to become a receiver and polishing up that game. I wouldn't mind a 6'6" wildcat in my offense.

3. What does the future look like for Ohio State?
-I don't have a large opinion on this but I'm sure that the NCAA will be handing out sanctions but it is certainly still up in the air what they will be. I have a feeling that it will be 2 years of probation including no bowls but that may be more. With Reggie Bush, that was just one player at the school but this is multiple players that have already admitted to it so I feel that the punishment may be more grave than that. Then there is recruiting. This depends on what happens with the sanctions. The larger the sanctions the more that big name recruits will shy away from playing for the Buckeyes. Lastly there is the issue of coaching. Luke Fickell is 2011 but what about beyond that. A lot rides on what happens this season which will tell the story of Luke Fickell. A lot is shown of a person from watching the way the handle adversity and we'll get to see a lot of Luke's character this year. Here's the thing, if Urban Meyer makes himself available for 2012, or maybe even Bob or Mike Stoops make themselves available, then Fickell is certainly out. This would be a dream job for Urban Meyer and he would be a dream Head Coach for Ohio State. I really hope that he chooses to come and coach in Columbus but we'll have to wait and see.

4. How do you think the 2011 season will go?
-I may be crazy but I 100% believe they can win the Big Ten regardless of the suspensions or losing Pryor. Ohio State has always had a great program even when losing big players. Troy Smith leaves and they still make the National Championship the next season. In my opinion there will not be a team in the nation that works harder than the group of Buckeyes that are there now. Most of what I believe can be summed up by watching this 2011 Buckeye Football. It's time to shock the world!

5. What is your overall opinion of Ohio State?
-This answer can be summed up in three phrases: "THE Ohio State University." "I bleed Scarlet and Gray." "Buckeye till I die!"

I hope me answering these questions helps you to understand where I am coming from and what I see in this situation.