Sports roundtable

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Look at this beautiful trophy! How could the NCAA possibly go away from the BCS?/Nikonmadness

Look at this beautiful trophy! How could the NCAA possibly go away from the BCS?/Nikonmadness

New year, same old contributors

Authors: kyle leitch, matt wincherauk, brady lang, michael chmielewski, john loeppky – Carillon sports aficionados

1. NCAA has done away with the BCS system, and finally put in a playoff system. Thoughts on which system provides the best game?

Leitch: I think a playoff system is more familiar to people, but the BCS system made the NCAA that much more different from the NFL. As for which system was “better?” I dunno. We’ll just say BCS because of reasons.

Wincherauk: I’ll say the playoff system, just because it has a slightly better chance of not completely screwing things up. We should get the “right” matchup, even if we might’ve wanted Alabama vs. Oregon in the first place. However, all you’ll hear from me is a resounding O-H-I-O!

Lang: They need to keep it this way. Don’t make it a whole playoff (8 teams); any more teams would just wreck the system of College Football.

Chmielewski: I’m firmly on the side of the BCS system. Just look at the results of the first round. I want the most entertaining and best game possible, and I’m not going to get that from a 3rd string quarterback on the Buckeyes, and maybe Oregon deserves to be in it, but I would have to avert my gaze after looking at those god awful Oregon jerseys. Call me crazy, but I like Nick Saban and Lane Kiffin, and those guys deserve to be in the championship game. Also, Jameis Winston. The wild storylines right themselves.

Loeppky: WE TALKIN’ ABOUT THE PLAYOFFS. Somewhere, Jim Mora is hopping up and down like a little rich kid on Christmas Day and practicing his sneering into the microphone. The only people disappointed by the change are those whose teams will not make the cut on their reputation alone. Also, GO DUCKS.

 

2. On the topic of playoffs, the NFL’s version just began! Who’s your pick to win Super Bowl 45?

Leitch: How the hell did Detroit make it this far? I’m going to go ahead and pick the Lions, again, because of reasons.

Wincherauk: I might be a homer, but I’m also incredibly superstitious, so the Patriots aren’t going to win. My pick is the Packers because Aaron Rodgers is the best QB in the game right now. Yes, even better than that mascot for the Broncos, Peyton Manning.

Lang: Green Bay over New England. Sorry Matt, it isn’t Tom’s year.

Chmielewski: I think it’ll be Broncos vs Packers, Broncos take it. But what I’d really love to see is Patriots kill the Cowboys. That would be the best. I hate the Cowboys (Eagles fan here).

Loeppky: I think that the Colts will hoist the trophy and then move to another city in the middle of the night. I hear Los Angeles is lovely and profitable at this time of year.

 

3. As we head into 2015, what’s the University of Regina sports team that you would recommend to follow closely?

Leitch: All the hockey for 2015.

Wincherauk: I’m going to go out on a limb and say that the football team is going to surprise. McCrystal was a very good coach, but I’d say a nice change of pace might light a fire under their asses.

Lang: The women’s hockey team. They’re fun to watch and pretty damn good. A lot better then their records would initially indicate.

Chmielewski: A lot of veterans are moving out of track and field. Usually, this is a bad thing, but I think of it as rebuilding, in a positive sense, a strong team for the next four years. They’ve been very successful lately, and I’d love to see them continue that.

Loeppky: The Softball team #YesJournalism. I hear their offseason training regimes are coming along excellently and hear they’re even training in a virtual simulator to get ready for next season.  All technology bullshit aside, I’m looking forward to watching all of the U of R’s teams compete, but only those who win will become important to me over the semester.

 

4. UFC announced they have signed former professional wrestler Phil “CM Punk” Brooks to a fighting contract. Can he survive in the world of mixed martial arts?

Leitch: “Look in my eyes! What do you see?!” Someone who is cautiously optimistic about Punk’s chances in the UFC. Brock Lesnar successfully jumped ship from WWE to the UFC a few years back, so there’s no reason Punk can’t do the same.

Wincherauk: I certainly hope so. What people don’t realize is that UFC is 75% selling your fight, and 25% actual fighting. Ask Chael Sonnen about the career he made making fun of Anderson Silva. So Brooks will last at least a couple fights, until a top-level competitor actually tears out the guy’s tongue.

Lang: Let’s be real here, he’s going to get his ass kicked. Stick to what you know CM Punk.

Chmielewski: Pretty ridiculous, but man, the UFC should start bringing in more people with little to no fighting experience to fight. Like, really gritty people that have no idea how to fight. Imagine, UFC 200, Norm Macdonald vs. Stephen Harper. Wouldn’t that be the fight of the century?

Loeppky: I think, no, I hope the guy gets one punched by a flyweight like a scene out of Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out fight. He may be able to sell a fight but he won’t be able to do much while concussed, and or bloodied, and or dead.

 

5. The Ravens and Steeler duked it out in the NFL playoffs, with another classic brutal match in their storied rivalry. What’s your favourite rivalry in sports?

Leitch: Muhammad Ali vs. Joe Frazier is easily among the top ones. Shawn Michaels vs. Bret “Hitman” Hart is another. If I had to pick a final one, I guess the Snake vs. Mongoose racing rivalry from the late ’60s – early ’70s was pretty sweet.

Wincherauk: Red Sox-Yankees, Bruins-Canadiens, Harvard-Yale, Floyd Mayweather vs. the English language, Edmonton Oiler and Cleveland Browns fans vs. mediocrity. I don’t have anything against the Oilers or Browns, the jokes just write themselves.

Lang: The Leafs and Habs are always entertaining to watch. The two biggest fan bases in the NHL never disappoint.

Chmielewski: Canucks and Flames, Eagles and Giants, Red Sox and Yankees. One boring rivalry is the Riders and Bombers. What’s with all the hype?

Loeppky: Riders vs. Bombers. Forgetting all of the animosity for a second (go green, fuck Winnipeg) the atmosphere at the Labour Day Classic is a Regina staple and one of the best experiences $82 bucks can buy.

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