FIFA RANKINGS
- This month, I will post 2 sets of rankings. That is because I did not realize that in December and January, they didn't post them the first weeks of the month, and on the last issue, I missed the December Rankings.
December 2012
1. Spain 2. Germany 3. Argentina 4. Italy 5. Colombia 6. England 7. Portugal 8. Netherlands 9. Russia 10. Croatia 11. Greece 12. Switzerland 13. Ecuador 14. Cote D'Ivoire 15. Mexico 16. Uruguay 17. France 18 Brazil 19. Algeria 20. Sweden 21. Belgium 22. Japan 23. Denmark 24. Norway 25. Mail (Note: The USA is ranked 28th)
December 2012 Bottom 10
1. (3 way tie) Bhutan, San Marino, Turks & Caicos Islands 4. Mauritania 5. Anguilla 6. Andorra 7. (tie) Djibouti, Mauritius 9. Cook Islands 10 (tie) Kyrgyzstan, South Sudan
January 2013
1. Spain 2. Germany 3. Argentina 4. Italy 5. Colombia 6. England 7. Portugal 8. Netherlands 9. Russia 10. Croatia 11. Greece 12. Ecuador 13. Switzerland 14. Cote D'Ivoire 15. Mexico 16. Uruguay 17. France 18. Brazi 19. Sweden 20. Belgium 21. Japan 22. Algeria 23. Denmark 24. Norway 25. Mali (Note: The USA is ranked 28th)
NCAA Basketball
Cross another team off the list of those that I needed to see live. For a birthday present, my awesome girlfriend and I went to Moraga, CA to see the local St. Mary's Gaels take on the Loyola Marymount Lions. The most impressive thing that I saw that day was nothing that the players on the Gaels nor the Lions did, but during a timeout, the promotions guy from St. Mary's had a contest for two kids who couldn't be older than 12. They had to do 10 push-ups and then shoot a basketball from three-point range. The first kid did the 10 push-ups, shot the ball and made it. Two seconds later the second kid completed his push-ups, shot the ball and made it. It is hard to imagine how impressive this feat really is until you have tried it. I have tried to shoot a basketball immediately after doing push-ups. The arms feel like noodles by the time the push-ups are finished. Needless to say, my shot was nowhere near the hoop. That is what impresses me more with the fact that these kids made it. By the way, St. Mary's won 74-61. At that time, it put them at 1-0 in WCC play and 12-3 overall (I wrote this paragraph on 1/24/13, they are currently 4-1 in WCC and 15-4 overall). Loyola Marymount was 0-2 in WCC and 7-8 overall (they are now 1-5 WCC, 8-11 overall).
NCAA FOOTBALL
-The Alabama Crimson Tide defeated the previously undefeated Notre Dame Fighting Irish 42-14 to win the BCS national championship. I would also like to congratulate the North Dakota State Bisons (Division I-FCS), Valdosta State Rams (Division II), and Mt. Union Purple Raiders (Division III) for winning the national championship in their respective divisions, since no one else will. They earned their championships just as much as Alabama did (if not more so). The only team to finish undefeated in Division I-FBS was Ohio State, but due to sanctions, they were ineligible to play in any bowl game.
COLLEGE SPORTS
-Within a month, both Boise State and San Diego State announced that they were going to decommit from the Big East in football and the Big West in all other sports to stay in the Mountain West conference. The original reason for their move to a conference nearly 3,000 miles away was so they could get an automatic berth to a BCS bowl game should they win their conference. With the new format in 2014, the Mountain West will have an equal footing with the Big East, making the move unnecessary. However, each team will have to pay a $5 million exit fee as part of the contract.
I am personally relieved to see both teams staying. I am saddened that division I college sports is ignoring geography just to get money. Of course, most of these moves are football-centric, but other sports suffer. Not only will these moves hurt those players who won't go pro (which is most of them), but it will hurt the minor programs that are on a shoestring budget that can barely afford to go to all the places they have to go as it is; but now they are going to have to go farther. For example, Hawai'i joined the Big West for all sports except for football. Prior to this season, the Big West consisted of only California teams. Those teams could just take a bus to all their opponents. Now those minor programs are going to have to find a way to go to Hawai'i. The islands would be great for a vacation, but having several teams in a program going to Hawai'i can cripple a budget. I think that is why Pacific will be going to the West Coast Conference next year (though I don't know that for sure.)
On another tangent, the Mountain West will have two six-team divisions for football and have a championship game, according to ESPN. How the teams will be divided has not been mentioned. Since, it hasn't, let me make a suggestion:
West (in alphabetical order): Fresno State, Hawai'i, Nevada, San Diego State, San Jose State, UNLV
East: Air Force, Boise State, Colorado State, New Mexico, Utah State, Wyoming
HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS
-Last week, I wrote a blog on my complete thoughts on the potential realignment in the Sac-Joaquin Section. If this proposal is approved, the new MMC will be Atwater, Beyer, Buhach Colony, Davis, Downey, El Capitan, Johansen, and Oakdale. From what I have read, Oakdale coaches hate this move. Most of the reasoning has to do with tradition. Oakdale was one of the charter members of the Valley Oak League. The other charter member (Sonora) is set to leave to go to the MLL. I would like to ask all coaches who are traditionalists, if Sonora does leave, are you willing to schedule the Wildcats for a non-league game to keep the Oakdale-Sonora game alive?
I am normally a traditionalist and I hate change whether it would benefit me or not, but I am looking forward to this move; and I hope it happens. Let me rephrase that. I am saying that assuming Sonora is going to leave. If Sonora somehow stays in the VOL. I want Oakdale to stay in the VOL. In every publication I have read on the subject, I only see reasons to hate the Oakdale move to the MMC. I would like to take this opportunity to write reasons to love this move (some of which is also in my other blog.)
1.) Economic factors
I admit that this reasoning would be better if the current MMC were to stay intact and just add Oakdale, but trips to Modesto, instead of Manteca, Lathrop, and Stockton will save the district money in transportation costs, not just in football, but in all sports. Plus, two trips in the VOL take at least 45 minutes. In this MMC format, only one team has that distance (El Capitan). Plus, the Downey High School football field has similar turf to Oakdale, and most of the games against Modesto schools would be at Downey. Also, if Oakdale plays its cards right, there could be senarios where a Modesto school would need to rent the Corral (Oakdale's stadium) for a game or two, even though Gregori will have a stadium in a few years. Finally, Oakdale and Buhach Colony have been the top two ranked football teams in the area. If they were to move their game to a Saturday, they could not only get the gate fees from the Oakdale and Buhach fans, but fans and players of other teams wanting to see a great game. It is no Oakdale-Sonora in the perspective of gate receipts, but it could be close.
2) Better Teams (ok slightly)
Obviously, I mean in football, since conference changes in high school and college tend to be football-centric (though, the reasoning for Oakdale to go to the MMC is because of the record in most sports). If Oakdale is the best team in the area (as they have been rated), then Buhach is easily number two. Over time, the rivalry with the Thunder can top the one with the Buffaloes. The VOL is a two-tier league, and the MMC could suffer the same fate (Oakdale, Buhach Colony, Atwater, and Downey would be the top, while Beyer, Davis, Johansen, and El Capitan would be the bottom). Sonora is slipping in talent, so Downey would soon be able to provide more competition for the Mustangs than the Wildcats would. As a "fifth" team, Beyer, at times has the ability to crack the top-four, and give this MMC the potential to put 5 teams in the playoffs. I also think Davis is stronger than Lathrop or Weston Ranch. El Capitan is the wildcard. We probably won't know until 2015 or 2016 if the Gauchos are good. It takes tough competition to grow as a team and a program; and I think Oakdale has grown to what it is going to in the VOL. This MMC line-up would be perfect for the Mustangs. The skill level is slightly better, so Oakdale should be able to handle it. If it was put in a league that is too advanced, then it could end up being a detrement to the Mustangs. However, that would not be an issue in the MMC. Plus, if the Mustangs don't do well as expected, they could go back to the VOL in 2018.
3) Better Exposure to the Passing Game (Football)
In order to win a championship in football, teams will see a variety of systems en route to the title. Oakdale nearly got exposed for its lack of a good pass-defense when the Mustangs played both Benecia, who almost solely passes, and American Canyon, who has a great running-back to mix with the passing game. Both teams nearly controlled the tempo of the games against Oakdale, and could have defeated the Mustangs. The weakness of the current VOL is the passing game. Those teams who try do not have the talent to be a threat. There is one team in the proposed MMC that can test Oakdale's pass defense and better prepare the Mustangs for the play-offs. That team is the Downey Knights. According to maxpreps.com, quarterback, Aaron Zwahlen (who will be playing college football at Hawai'i, I believe) passed for 3,852 yards for the season and averaged 321 a game. The season total is nearly 1,400 yards more than anyone Oakdale has played prior to playoffs (2,458 total and 189.1 yards per game from the Oceanside quarterback) and more than 2,000 yards more than anyone Oakdale played in the VOL (1,626 from the Sierra-Manteca quarterback). Having Oakdale play a quarterback like Zwahlen in league play would have better prepared the Mustangs for the passing game they would face in the playoffs.
4) Sports That Enrollment Does Not Determine Divisions For Playoffs Will Be Promoted to Division II
Some of the Oakdale faithful see this as a bad thing, but I see it as a good thing. Baseball and softball have won multiple championships in division IV where in some cases, Oakdale plays teams half its size. Currently, the VOL is a division IV league. Therefore, the sports which enrollment is not a deciding factor for divisions, the Mustangs play in the division IV playoffs. In this move, the MMC would become a division II league (currently the MMC is in division I). Under this proposal, Oakdale would play teams similar in size, and some teams that are larger. That generally means better competition, and more entertaining games for fans.
5) Oakdale Would Still Play Division III For Sports in Which Enrollment Determines the Divisions for Playoffs
Currently, football, basketball, soccer, and volleyball use enrollment numbers to determine its divisions for playoffs (I believe basketball will go to the league assignment system next year). Oakdale, with 1,613 students, would fall in division III for those playoff spots. The Mustangs would play in the same division as they currently do now in football; and with a better league assignment, they would be better prepared for a section title, and a state title. Also, for the Oakdale fans, imagine playing old rivals Manteca and Sierra in the first round of the playoffs. Oakdale can still play the better teams of the VOL, and do not have to bother with those schools that are not strong in football.
6) Oakdale Football Would Finally Get a Chance to Play Davis and Atwater
When I was in high school, the football players wanted to play Davis and Atwater, and the fans wanted to see those game. The reason why is because those two teams were the best in the old CCC, and we all thought Oakdale was better than both those teams, despite the fact those two got more publicity. Thirteen years after my graduating date, Modesto gained two more schools that depleted the talent in the city, and Atwater built Buhach Colony, which got the better football talent. Davis is still struggling through their losses and now is a medium-sized school and not a large. Atwater suffered through a few bad years and is now back to a good team, and working on being a great one again. The Davis-Oakdale game was a dream match-up when I was a student, and the game would be fifteen years too late when the first game would be played. The Atwater-Oakdale game can be a classic and a nice preview for Buhach Colony.
7) Boys Basketball Will Have a Chance at the Playoffs
The one sport Oakdale continues to struggle with is basketball. The VOL is one of the better leagues in the area, and the playoffs are dominated by Weston Ranch, Sierra, East Union, and Manteca. Oakdale has the ability to beat the Modesto schools in basketball. The boys team defeated Davis for third place in the Oakdale Rotary Tournament. If Oakdale can beat at least one of the Atwater schools and El Capitan, then it could earn a trip to the playoffs for the first time since 2004.
8) Water Polo Benefits From More League Competition
Currently, only three of the VOL schools have a water polo team (Oakdale, Sonora, and Kimball). The VOL water polo team is just a four-team league (Ripon is in the VOL for water polo only, as it is the only TVL team that has water polo). I do not know if El Capitan is going to have water polo, but all the other teams in this proposed MMC do. The Mustangs can play more league games, and be better prepared for playoffs. Plus, they won't have to desperately find other teams and tournaments to play just to fill a schedule. In addition, the Mustangs have already proven that the water polo team can thrive in the MMC. When Oakdale started the water polo program, they had to play in the MMC, because Sonora and Oakdale were the only two VOL teams with the sport at the time (Sonora played in the TCAL if anyone cares). The second year of the programs existence, both the boys and girls teams advanced to the playoffs, with the boys winning the league the third year. The Mustangs showed they had what it takes to play with the big boys of the MMC, and they can do it again.
9) The Possibility for More College Scouts to See the Mustangs
The reality is that college scouts will spend more time going to games featuring big schools than small schools (yes, I know there are exceptions). Oakdale currently has two players in NCAA division I-FBS schools (Devin Combs at Nevada and Justin Martin at Wyoming). The last time a Mustangs played at that high level was in 2000 (Zach Quaccia-Stanford). Not many play at division I schools period. The number is low for a program that wins year in and year out. I believe some of the Mustang players could have had a few offers if the scouts wanted to see Zwahlen (see reason number 3) and they just happened to see the Mustangs perform well. Being in a league with larger schools could mean a better chance to be discovered.
10) Sometimes a Change is for the Best
Over the summer, I read that Sonora asked the Sac-Joaquin Section to be moved to the Mother Lode League (MLL). Once I read that the section would likely approve the move, I saw Oakdale's move to the MMC coming. Sonora's enrollment is currently at 1,108 and is projected to drop to 1,050. Plus, with Oakdale being the closest league-rival at 36 miles, it may be time for Sonora to play in a similar area to its opponents (or perhaps move to the WAC or TVL whose schools have similar enrollment numbers). Since Sonora is likely leaving, maybe it is just time for Oakdale to also leave and see better opportunities that are present. Tradition is valuable and it is nice, but going back to reason number 2, if a program is to grow, it has got to go out and play not only better competition, but different competition.
11) My own Selfish Reason
I live near Downey High School now, and I would be able to see a few Oakdale games without having to leave my neighborhood.
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