🚢 Tubz 🛀 Unfiltered - Volume 59
Overboard King; CFB + NFL Recap; Women's Volleyball On The Rise
Happy Monday, y’all!
Now is finally the time where it is socially acceptable to start decorating your dwelling for the Christmas season and listening to Mariah Carey’s and Michael Bublé’s Christmas hits. If you did so before Dec. 1, I am not the biggest fan of either of those actions but am certainly not going to judge you as if you are a convicted felon. Prior to Thanksgiving? Head straight to prison and do not collect $200 for passing Go.
🛁 EXTRA BUBBLES 🛁
Homeboy Had Fun On a Cruise Ship, Lucky to be Alive
The man is safe and alive. He is strong and resilient. All of those are great things to write. But, and I hate to put this out into the universe, the man appeared to be buzzin’ like a bee when he went overboard. When asked how many drinks he had, he said, “I couldn’t really say.” He may have been drunk, he may not have been drunk. Who knows, maybe he was sleep walking! I will let you be the judge.
I am not acknowledging all of that to minimize the horrible encounter he had or to be a wet blanket. No, ma’am. No, sir. I am acknowledging all of that because it is an incredible feat to tread water for 20 hours while *potentially* battling a hangover or the night terrors.
You are the definition of a trooper — and a champ — in college, or at any point thereafter I suppose, if you puke and rally. This fella may not have puked and rallied, but he stared death right in the eyes and rallied. Plus, he won an air guitar contest before going for a swim and said he would go on a cruise ship again because “I ain’t going to let (going overboard and almost dying) discourage me.” Legendary status for life.
🏆 SPORTZ 🏆
CFB RECAP
A big ole week, and weekend, of college football! Before we get into the playoff expansion news, let’s focus on this year’s playoff, which is the first edition that does not feature Alabama or Clemson. Sucks to suck for those programs.
Despite losing in the Big 12 title game, which was frustrating to watch because TCU had the ball on third-and-goal from the 1-yard line and also fourth-and-goal from the 1 in overtime and could not convert either time, the Horned Frogs stayed at No.3 and will face off in the Fiesta Bowl against Big Ten champion Michigan in the Fiesta Bowl (Dec. 31, 3pm CST). According to Action Network, the Wolverines are a 6.5-point favorite. TCU first half spread, Michigan game spread.
Ohio State assumes the No. 4 spot, thanks to USC getting throttled in the Pac 12 title game, and will take on Georgia in the Peach Bowl (Dec. 31, 7p CST), which will essentially be a home game for the Bulldogs. The reigning national champs are a 5.5-point favorite, per Action Network. Whatever the over is, take it.
While the Committee had a golden goose opportunity by having Michigan and Ohio State face off against each other in the Fiesta Bowl, Ohio State-Georgia has the potential to be much more entertaining and, more importantly, closer than Georgia-TCU. (Georgia would have spanked TCU with a belt.) Imagine, though, if Ohio State and Michigan meet in the National Championship 👀.
New Year’s Six bowls:
Rose Bowl: No.8 Utah vs No.11 Penn State (-1.5)
Cotton Bowl: No.10 USC (-4.5) vs. No.16 Tulane
Sugar Bowl: No.5 Alabama (-5.5) vs. No.9 Kansas State
Orange Bowl: No.6 Tennessee vs. No.7 Clemson (-2.5)
— — —
People have been chomping at the bit for an expanded playoff for a hot minute and are finally getting their wish. Starting in 2024, the College Football Playoff will expand to 12 teams. (Thus, we will have two more years — this year and next year — of the four-team format.) The 12-team field will be comprised of “the six highest-ranked conference champions and the next six highest-ranked teams.” The four highest-ranked conference champions will receive a first-round bye, and the first round will be hosted by the better/higher seed at their campus stadium or wherever they choose. (If they choose some place other than campus, I will label them dumb-dumbs for life.)
How will the New Year’s 6 bowl sites factor in?
2024: The Rose Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, Peach Bowl, and Sugar Bowl will be the site of the quarterfinal matchups. The Cotton Bowl and Orange Bowl will host the semifinals. The National Championship will be held in Atlanta.
2025: The Cotton Bowl, Orange Bowl, Rose Bowl, and Sugar Bowl will play host to the quarterfinal matchups, while the Fiesta Bowl and Peach Bowl will be the site of the semifinal matchups. The National Championship will be held in Miami.
If the 12-team playoff was in effect this year, here would be the matchups (per Sports Illustrated national CFB writer Ross Dellenger):
First round bye: (1) Georgia, (2) Michigan, (3) Clemson, (4) Utah
5 vs 12: TCU vs. Tulane
6 vs. 11: Ohio State vs. Penn State
7 vs 10: Alabama vs. USC
8 vs. 9: Tennessee vs. Kansas State
In sum, I am in favor of the expanded format. Will there be blowouts? Yes, but there are still blowouts under the current format. Notwithstanding that, it gives the Tier-2 and Tier-3 programs (read: non-blue bloods), such as Wisconsin, an opportunity to compete for a national title because the current format is like a uber wealthy, gated neighborhood. Plus, conference championship games may be a lot more important.
The Big 12 Championship Game, as it turned out, meant nothing in terms of the CFB Playoff; TCU still made it and Kansas State was never within striking distance. Under the 12-team playoff, TCU, with the victory, would have had a first round bye, while Kansas State would be guaranteed a spot with the dub. The ACC title game had zero CFB Playoff implications this year, but Clemson would have secured a first-round bye under the 12-team playoff format. Is the new format perfect? It is not, but it is a better version of what we have now. Just like the four-team playoff is better than the BCS.
NFL RECAP
PACKERS 28 Bears 19: The Green Bay Packers now have the most victories in NFL history (787), passing Da Bears, and Aaron Rodgers remains Chicago’s father. QB1 improved to 24-5 against the Bears with the comeback victory, courtesy of strong performances by AJ Dillon (18 carries for 93 yards) and Christian Watson (two touchdowns). Also, is Watson the fastest wide receiver in the NFL this season? The analytics say he is tied for the title, as he topped out at 21.72 miles per hour on the jet sweep that he took to the house to seal the victory, a speed that tied Ravens wide receiver DeSean Jackson this season. Gosh almighty, I love watching Watson play football.
BENGALS 27 CHIEFS 24: Just like Rodgers is Chicago’s father, Joe Burrow is now Kansas City’s father, as he and Cincinnati have won three straight against the Chiefs. I do not make the rules. Burrow completed 25 of 31 passes for 286 yards and 2 touchdowns (126.6 passer rating), to go along with a rushing score, and got help from his defense when they forced a fumble on Travis Kelce in the fourth quarter, trailing 24-20. The Bengals scored a tuddy on the ensuing possession en route to their fourth-straight W.
49ERS 33 Dolphins 17: The 49ers’ defense held the explosive Dolphins’ offense in check, forcing Tua into 2 interceptions after allowing a 75-yard pass play to start the game. But despite the final score, the game was actually much closer.
On a fourth-and-two from San Francisco’s 36-yard line with six minutes left with Miami trailing 23-17, Tua appeared to connect with tight end Mike Gesicki near the sideline for a first down, but it was overturned after a challenge by the 49ers. If the Dolphins converted, the final score might have been a wee bit different. San Francisco ended up converting a field goal then Nick Bosa forced a fumble that the 49ers scooped and scored.
However, Jimmy G left the game early for the Niners and did not return. It was announced after the game that he broke his foot and is out for the season. Rookie gunslinger Brock Purdy did not look half bad in relief (25/37, 210 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT). Can the 49ers still contend for the NFC crown with Purdy under center?
VIKINGS 27 Jets 22: The Vikings may be frauds, but they keep on winning. They forced an incompletion in the end zone on fourth down late in the game then intercepted Mike White on the ensuing possession with the game on the line to improve to 10-2, including 9-0 in one-score games.
RAVENS 10 Broncos 9: QB Lamar Jackson exited the game for good early on, but backup QB Tyler Huntley stepped up on the final drive of the game for the Ravens, leading them on a 91-yard, game-winning touchdown drive. Per ESPN’s Mike Clay, Denver has “scored 0 or 1 offensive TDs in 10 of 12 games.” No bueno, what a disastrous first year for Russell Wilson and Nathaniel Hackett in the Mile High City. Feel like in order to turn things around, Hackett has to tell the press in his next press conference, “Hey, I go by Nate.” There has never been a successful NFL head coach that goes by Nathaniel, seems way too nerdy of a name.
🤓 BATH TIME READING 🤓
Wall Street Journal: The Golden Age of Volleyball Is Here
I do not know whether I would be a fan of college volleyball if the Badgers were not a powerhouse, but there is no sense living in candy land by pondering hypotheticals. So, here we are.
In all seriousness, I think one big reason why a lot of people watch college volleyball — last year’s national championship between Wisconsin and Nebraska had 1.19 million viewers on ESPN2, “more than double the title game’s audience from the year before the coronavirus pandemic,” and the Black Friday matchup between those two teams resulted in almost 600k viewers on BTN — is that it is a fast paced and easy to understand/follow, meaning there are not any complex rules, for the most part, that make you go, “Wait, what?”
It is also great to watch booming hits from the outside or middle that may potentially allow you to say, “IN THE FACE.” Oh, and by the way, the dive into the table by Houston volleyballer Kate Georgiades (shown below) this past week was so unreal, unfathomable, and gritty, it prompted UCLA head coach Mick Cronin to say: “it’s the best play I’ve ever seen in any sport.” The overall rally was bonkers, too.
About seven years ago, when Big Ten Network officials began closely examining national ratings, they were startled to see how well volleyball performed. Its audience was also different: more female, and the youngest of any sport they aired. In the pay-TV ecosystem, “the younger the demographic, the more valuable that is,” said Michael Calderon, BTN’s SVP of programming and digital media.
Since then, BTN has more than doubled the number of volleyball matches it shows each season. Network executives believe so strongly in the potential of volleyball that they’ve worked with conference leaders to schedule matches so they follow, and receive promotion during, the network’s crown-jewel football games.
The strategy worked. This year, TV audiences for volleyball matches with football game lead-ins were more than twice the size of those for stand-alone matches, Calderon said.
If you chuckled and/or enjoyed, make sure to forward to others and/or share on social. Any corrections, omissions, suggestions, etc., send 'em my way. Much love. -Tubz