I'm Dreaming of a Winning Season

Santa ate all of my cookies, drank all of my milk, and only left me half of what I asked for...

The Ravens won in Dallas this past Saturday night in their best victory of the season, and I treated myself to a stylish 3-pack of plaid boxers from Target (also known as "Target" in some South American countries).

Then there's the part of my list that apparently didn't make it to the North Pole...

Mark Teixeira is a Yankee. Yes a Yankee. Disgusting, huh? "I would love to play for my hometown team." You're from Severna Park sir, not the Bronx. I hope you enjoy the shower of boos that is heating up for you right now. Every time you come to Charm City, your hometown, for the rest of your career you won't hear anything but that.

Also, as we develop our young players and improve to what I think will be a winning team within the next 4-5 years, I hope you, Marky T, enjoy being surrounded by a group of well paid players who are in it for themselves and their money, not the team. And yes, I know this is very optimistic talk with the current state of our baseball team...but it's Christmas. But at least our jerseys say "Baltimore" on them now.

And Michael Phelps wasn't up for an abs trade. Dang.

As we go into the weekend, Baltimore sports fans do have something to smile, and smile big about. In the light of seeing a potential superstar sign with one of our rivals in baseball, our football team is 10-5 and looking for a playoff berth with a win over the Jacksonville Jaguars this Sunday; a huge achievement for a team with a rookie coach, a rookie quarterback, and a plethora of 5 or 6 win predictions coming into the season. Purple Pain is going to be on full display this Sunday, and the stadium is going to be as loud as ever. Come on playoffs.

Also...I hope that we meet the Steelers again in the playoffs. We will not lose to them again, if we see them again.

Well Santa just landed on the roof so I am going to go have a word with him about this Teixeira thing. Merry Christmas to everyone. Me or BJ will check back later this week. God bless.


JF

Christmas Wish List

Christmas is in 5 days now, and as a die hard Baltimore sports fan I have compiled my Christmas list. Hopefully Santa treats me well this year.

Heres the list:

1. A Mark Teixeira O's Jersey

2. A Ravens win in Dallas

3. A straight up trade: Michael Phelps abs for my lack thereof

4. A 3-pack of Target Boxer Shorts


That is all. Merry Christmas everybody.



Josh Ferg

A GIANT LOSS?

The Raven Wrap-Up

Your purple and black birds fell to 6-4 on the season yesterday to the world defending champions, the New York Football Giants (9-1). 

Having been cured from DFS, "Displaced Fan Syndrome" - according to DirecTV - I was able to watch the game on the Sunday Ticket, which is the tightest source of technology since Atari. 

Some may say that the 30-10 loss to the world champs was deflating, others say that this loss proved, again, that the Purple & Black Attack can NOT beat a worthy opponent. I beg to differ...

-Back at summer camp in Westminster, if you would've told me that our boys would be sitting at 6-4 after week 11, and residing in the #6 seed in the AFC playoffs - I probably pee myself in laughter. Granted, I'm the biggest homer. Ahem, Josh and I are the BIGGEST homers. We both talked at camp how we saw this team being competitive and ending the year around 7-9 or 8-8. I'm ecstatic to be where we are BUT there is still a lot to cover to make this season special. "It's time to Hunt".

-Flacco, yet again, was "Joe Cool". Having out passed Baby Manning, #5 was poised in the pocket, and made passes most rooks couldn't complete. I love this kid. The dude is smart...using the veteran #85 as his security blanket, yet still spreading the wealth around to MClay and Heap, AND becoming more mature by checking down to his RBs McGahee, Rice, and McCain. 

-Home Sweet Home. The Ravens will be flying in their home nest four of the last six weeks, the two games away in Cincy (Week 13) and Dallas (Week 16 - Thursday night on NFL Net). Ray Ray echoed these thoughts during the post game interviews. The Ravens are 3-1 at M&T Bank this season, the one loss coming from the undefeated Titans, but I digress...

Should the Ravens finish up at 10-6, it will definitely put them in good shape for any thoughts of football in January. We are in control of our own post season destiny, who'd a thunk it?! Fans in Charm City are the best. All we have to do is defend home turf (I mean, half turf, half grass) against Philthy, D.C., Stinksburgh, and the Jacksonville Fighting Mike Petersons.  

We're 6-4 and it's Week 11. Gobble Gobble Day is next week. Baltimore is back on the O's jerseys. The Terps are in the hunt for a title game in Tampa, and Gary and Co. tipped off the new season last week. It's a GREAT time to be Maryland sports fan. 

O's. Strohs. and Natty Bohs, HON! 

~bj

Byrd Blackout

The #22 Maryland Terrapins are blacking out Byrd Stadium this Saturday in their game against the Florida State Seminoles. Wear black if you are going to the game, and if you can't make it, be sure to tune into ESPN at 7:45 PM for the game. There are a few scenarios of how the Terps can win the Atlantic Division of the ACC and go to the ACC Championship against the Coastal Divsion winner (one of those scenarios results in the Terps locking up the Atlantic division this week under certain circumstances). I will talk about those scenarios in my UMD vs. FSU game preview/prediction on Thursday.



Ferg

This Week in Garyland

Believe it or not, the Terps basketball season has begun although it has been slightly overshadowed by the surprising performance of the now #22 in the AP Terrapins football team. Gary Williams' Terps have started out 1-0, winning on Friday night 81-52 against Buknell, and have a chance to start out 3-0 if they can beat two more mid-majors this upcoming week. On Tuesday night the Terps will face Youngstown State at home in an 8PM tip off, and will play at home again on Friday against Vermont at 8PM. That game will air on Comcast Sports Net.

After a big performance in the first game of the season by junior forward Landon Milbourne, look for him to continue to improve and help lead this team alongside Greivis Vasquez all season long. In what may be a rebuilding year for the Terps, look for these two to still generate big numbers individually and lead by example to the young team that the Terps will be fielding.

Newcomer Jin Soo Kim, a freshman forward from South Korea is a fan favorite already after dropping 20 points in a scrimmage against Northwood (FL), and adding 5 points against Bucknell on Friday night. Although he misses a lot of shots right now, he is a large body that the Terps can put on the floor after losing James Gist and Boom Osby; and if he can improve his defense and start taking better shots, he could potentially end up playing a big role for the Terps this year. The student section loves this kid.

If your at home on Friday night, tune in and watch Terps hoops take on Vermont. I may make it to the game; it depends on whether I've already started tailgating for the Saturday night football game against Florida State or not.

#22 Maryland vs. Florida State football preview and prediction to come later this week. Also, congratulations to the Maryland Men's Soccer team on their ACC Championship victory, and the UMD Field Hockey team on their Final Four berth and #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.


Josh Ferguson

"Terps hoops win against Bucknell - good weekend. Terps football win against UNC - GREAT weekend. . . a Ravens win in NY - would make an AMAZING weekend!"

-Justin Polun aka JustInHoops

Tar Whos?

First off: Does this ever get old? Not to me. Just wanted to put that out there. We miss you Kevin Barnes.

Second off: Great performance by the Terps today to win yet again against a ranked team, topping #16 North Carolina 17-15 in a wet, hard hitting thriller that came down to a game winning field goal by Obi Egekeze with under 2 mintues left. The Terps now have the most wins in the nation this season against ranked teams (4-0), and they are a school-record 6-0 in their last 6 games against ranked team dating back to last year. When it seemed like Chris Turner didn't know the difference between passing the ball to his recievers or the air above their heads, he made the biggest play of the game when he scrambled 9 yards on 4th and 5 to keep the Terps final drive alive, and eventually set up the game-winning field goal. It was an exciting evening of football in College Park, and the first time that I have ever seen a 20ish year old boy in a Carolina blue cowboy hat cry his eyes out.

The Terps basically control their own destiny right now. They are in first in the ACC Atlantic Division and if they win out, they will play in the ACC Championship in Tampa Bay at Raymond James Stadium (You might know of another team from Maryland that played a sort of big game there?). The opposition in that game will likely be the Miami Hurricanes who currently lead the Coastal Division, and also control their own destiny. Next week is the black out game against Florida State who just lost at home to Boston College tonight, and then the Terps have BC on the road. These next few weeks are going to be very interesting, and very exciting for the Terps and their fans who are hoping to see an ACC Championship berth, an ACC Championship, and the much desired trip to the Orange Bowl in January.

And right...NOW...as I type, we are 12 hours exactly from kickoff of our Ravens' biggest game of the season so far. Hopefully Flacco has been in bed for quite a few hours, and has his Wheaties already out and ready to eat when he wakes up, because we are going to need for him to engineer the offense like he has been the past few weeks for us to have a chance to win (I hope however that he still has his milk in the refrigerator, because if he had that sitting out ready to put in his Wheaties, he might be a little bit sick come gametime). The defense also needs to continue stepping up, and continue stopping the run while forcing turnovers in the passing game. I am excited to watch this game, as it should be very entertaining, and should come down to the wire. I'll stick with my score predition from before, that being Ravens 27 Giants 23.

Go Ravens. Go Terps. Maryland now does football again...along with crabcakes.

Be safe. Have a good weekend. That is all.


Josh Ferguson

A Welcome Back Smorgasbord of Sports Nonsense

After almost a year, we're back, and we're hunks again. Under center. And other places too. Like that classy Joe Flacco.

I figured I'd start out this post by poking some fun at a baseball team that has had it worse than us O's fans in a way - The Chicago Cubs. Sure, they post winning record year after year and pretty much run their division, but at least we have seen a World Series victory in Charm City since 1908! (With that being said: Brian, Nick, Melvin, Jeremy, Orioles...lets put those SWEET new uniforms to some good use and bring home another, huh? Ok, sounds good. Thanks.) Who says that we can't be the Rays of 2009? O'Hawks anyone? I think Mark Teixeira and AJ Burnett would want in on that. Let's call them up and check.

Anyways, I had a big Astronomy exam bright and early this morning, and in my rush to put on some sloppy college guy clothes before the exam, I grabbed a Chicago Cubs hat that I got for Christmas a few years ago, because I didn't really feel like showering at this point in the day (I'd much rather burglarize a few sprays of my roomates cologne). It's a good looking hat; navy blue, classic 1914 logo. So I put the hat on, started to walk for the door, and then I stopped, and took the hat off and thought to myself, "It's been a really long time since anyone did anything good in Cubs hat. How could I almost make the mistake of taking an exam in a Cubs hat?! Take that, curse". I'm pretty sure I aced the bejeezes out of this exam, and I'm pretty sure it was all because I went to my closet and traded in my Cubs hat for an always fresh Natty Boh cap. Thank you Mr. Boh. You are my thinking cap, and a very fashionable addition to my occasional attire.

Anyways, onto the important stuff...like sports. Pretty much, both of the state of Maryland's beloved football teams are playing in some pretty important, and pretty exciting matchups this weekend.

Morgan State will take on South Carolina State in a game with high BCS implications, and Towson is traveling to Villanova where kickoff is set for 1PM, and everyone is meeting up at Pat's afterwards for Cheesesteaks and a Rocky movie marathon.

I kid, I kid. Mad props to Morgan State and Towson though. HUC loves you, and we will be rooting for you in your respective games this weekend. Fight on Towson Tigers.

In the actual big games this weekend for Maryland football teams, our Ravens are heading up to the Meadowlands to take on the reigning world champion New York Football Giants, and Chris Turner and the unpredictable but sometimes surprising Terps take on #16 North Carolina in an important ACC game in College Park this Saturday.

Let's start out wit 'dem Ravens hon. What an exciting game last week, huh? It is fun to watch Ravens football again, and the team is only getting better as the season goes on. Joseph Vincent Flacco is turning out to be a solid quarterback who can run our offense exactly the way that we want it to be run, all backed by our huge pickup in the coaching staff, Cam Cameron. I'll put a quote here that I heard Trent Dilfer (ever heard of him?) say on ESPN a few days ago. He said, "Joe Flacco and Matt Ryan are the two best rookies that I have seen in my 15 years in the league". I like it Trent. I like it alot, and I can't wait to see what Flacco will do for us the rest of this season, and in the future as he becomes an experienced NFL quaretback. The offense looks to be loving life the way that they are playing, and the defense has been playing solid too, and this is equalling a lot of success. I'm starting to think if even my kids will ever see a 100-yard rusher against this D. I hope I haven't spoken too soon, because this weekend the Ravens will face Brandon Jacobs, who outweighs every Ravens starting linebacker, and has the speed to beat a cornerback or safety if he gets into the open field.

My keys to the game for the Ravens are as follows:

1. Continue to stop the run - The Giants boast the NFL's best rushing attack with three exceptional runnings backs in Brandon Jacobs, Derrick Ward, and Ahmad Bradshaw. The Ravens are #1 in the league in rush defense. What a matchup. The Ravens need to keep up the intensity, win the battle at the line of scrimmage, and stop Brandon Jacobs who will be looking to end the streak of games without a 100-yard rusher. A lot of non-Ravens fans (pretty much 96.3% of UMD and anyone in the national media) are saying that they think Jacobs can pass the century mark against Purple Pain this week. This matchup should be very interesting.

2. Get in Eli Manning's head - This may not be as easy as it used to, because he no doubt has gotten more confident after winning the Super Bowl last season and changing his status as the underachieving Manning; but it is possible to get under his skin. When Eli gets out of his comfort zone on the field, he is not the same quarterback. If the Ravens get at him, knock him down a few times and get in his head, this could work to their favor greatly because when Eli is on, Eli is ON; but when Eli is off, Eli is OFF.

3. Complement a vicious defensive attack with a safe but effective offense - The Giants can force turnovers on D. They wouldn't have won the Super Bowl if that wasn't the case. Flacco needs to be smart with the football, because even though the Giants are banged up, their defensive line will always bring the heat. The Ravens can't stop what they have been doing on offense and settle for trying to dink and dunk their way down the field. They have to come out like they have the past few games, with The "Suggs" Package, multiple attempts downfield, and a strong performance by the offensive line that helps Willis and Little Ray get into the open field and pick up chunks of yardage on the ground.

4. Shut down Plax - One missed coverage and he will make you pay. The Ravens secondary is going to need to step up big in order to win this game, and shut down Plaxico Burress.

I think that if the Ravens can do these four things, they will win this intense, hard hitting game. If they fail to do these things, they will lose the game. It's as simple as that. We're not in Houston anymore. These are the defending Super Bowl Champions.

With that being said, I'm going with our Ravens in this one. I think it will be a close one, with the Ravens coming from behind in the 4th Quarter to win by 4 over the champs. Lets see what Steve Young has to say about that.

RAVENS 27 GIANTS 23

Now for those up and down Maryland Terrapins:

My analysis for the Terps this weekend is simple, and just what I want to believe as a student at UMD. The Terps will win this game, for one reason: The ranking in front of North Carolina's name. Maryland can get shut out 31-0 by a lowly Virginia team, but they are 3-0 this season against ranked teams, and 5-0 in their last 5 against ranked teams, dating back to last year (big wins in the 2007 season against #10 Rutgers, and #8 Boston College). Look for Click Clack U to make that 4-0 this season when the #16 Tar Heels roll into town, and 5-0 next week when Florida State stops by. I don't see the Terps losing these next two games at home. They always find a way to play great football against ranked opponents in front of the home crowd, and although these two teams are playing better than the Terps right now, I think that they will win these next two weeks and take the ACC Atlantic Division (although the away game at Boston College on Nov. 29 scares me). Plus, no one comes into the snake pit known as Byrd Stadium and beats Maryland - they are 5-0 at home this season, and looking to make that 7-0 at home in the next two weeks.

I think Heyward-Bey is going to have a big game recieving and look out for him on a reverse here and there. Also look for Da'Rel Scott to get big on the ground again, and freshmen Davin Meggett to run hard and pick up some clutch plays when we need him to. Also, Linebacker Alex Wujciak has been a stud on defense this season (93 Total Tackles). He is literally everywhere on the field. Look for him to rack up over 10 tackles, and possibly his much anticipated first sack of the season. While the defense may give up a lot of yards, and maybe some points, I think the Terps as a team will play well enough to beat #16 UNC this Saturday.

TERPS 31 North Carolina 21

Potential for ESPN College Gameday at Maryland on Nov. 22 for the deciding game in the ACC Atlantic Division? Most likely not, Texas Tech and Oklahoma are playing eachother on that day as well. I think Michael Crabtree of Texas Tech would be a good fit for the Ravens. We'll have to see what happens in the draft, there are going to be a lot of quality wide recievers avaliable.

That's all I have for today. I will check back again before the Maryland and Ravens games this weekend. If your in College Park this weekend, hit me up in Lot 11 before the game and Section 11 at the game. I'll be the one wearing red.

Josh Ferguson

WELCOME BACK

Happy "NO SHAVE" November!

The Hunks Under Center have returned. We have resurrected this blog like Lazarus and a lot has happened in the past year...heck, in the past week!

-Our beloved 'Birds put B-More back on their away uni's.

-The Ravens D is no longer their "O" - I used to use the restroom when the offense took the field, now I pinch it 'til commercial. 

-The "Suggs" package is something truly to behold.

-Rich Eisen, is correct, a name like Flacco is perfect for Baltimoreans to say der, hon!

-The University of Maryland football team is two ACC wins away - a la home games against UNC and FSU - from heading to Tampa (where I'm writing this now).

-The basketball team, however, is in preparation for the beginning of the season, where they will face Bucknell, Friday night.

FYI: I'm watching the Heat-Blazers game on ESPN while I write. I think it's incredibly sad to see a nice facility, carrying an entertaining product with way too many empty seats. This organization won a world title just a couple years ago, and after one miserable year - the arena attendance is dreadful to see (like Oriole Park in the fall). If the NBA dared to have teams in Oklahoma City, Charlotte, Portland, and Oakland, one would hope once the First Mariner Arena is ever renovated, that NBA Commish David Stern would look into the possibility of a team in Charm City.   

Speaking of the Miami 'faithful'...I recently moved from Bel Air to Palm Beach County, FL. The family and I bought tickets off stub hub for the 'Fins-Ravens game. A) The stadium was nowhere near full capacity. B) There was a sea of purple tailgating, walking to the stadium, and in the seats. Granted, the 'Fins are one of the biggest surprises this season, yet Dolph'fans are Pittsburgh-esque when it comes to throwing "their team" under the bus. 

One quick story...on our way back to the car, after the game, this Miami "fan" was crying out how he wished they drafted Quinn instead of Ted Ginn. I wish I was there last week after Ginn's huge game AND to hear his cries after watching Pennington manage an effective game plan the last few weeks. Seriously bro, Pennington, according to some TV experts, is having a better season than Rodgers and Favre! Personally, I am rooting for Miami to win the East...by default. Big Willy raised me to loathe any sports team from New York and Boston

I will say this - this town is incredibly faithful to their collegiate athletic allegiance; something I wished was evident back in the 410. The compassion seen each Saturday will knock your flip flops off.  

Time for the Last Call...

Derrick Mason is a beast. 85 is making a clear, strong statement to Flacco and the rest of the offense by telling the media he WILL play in this Sunday's game in the Meadowlands against the New York Football Giants. Mason knows that this team is peaking, and his role is crucial to the offense, now more than ever. 5 to 85 has been quite the security blanket for us (man, that has a sweet ring to it). Thankfully, MClay, Heap, and Yamon have all contributed significantly this season allowing Cam to spread it out and keep opponents guessing on defense. 

As for a prediction...don't hope for a cookie-cutter outcome like Super Bowl XXXV. I am confident with the purple and black. Stay tuned later in the week for a score. 

Be Real.

-bj