Pike Regionals Recap

So I wrote this awhile ago but since it was on our team website, I forgot to post it here. If you have not read it, enjoy! pikeultimate.com

A journey that began in the early spring finally cultivated into Pike coming together in a thrilling and hard earned victory over Los in the 3^rd place game to earn the final bid from the Mid-Atlantic region to the UPA Club Championship in Sarasota Florida.

Coming off a compelling victory over sectionals rival Forge in the swamps of New Jersey, Pike looked to extend their momentum leading into the regional tournament on the battlegrounds in Fredericksburg Virginia.

Seeded 3^rd, Pike looked to validate themselves and prove that they belonged in that elite group of teams that would advance to nationals,

Pike started Day 1 against 14^th ranked Wilmington. Pike was slow out of the gate but as the game progressed, Pike proved to be the better team as they capitalized off the mistakes of Wilmington and put them away relatively easily 15-8.

In what would be the first of 3 epic match ups with regional rival Los, Pike looked to avenge an embarrassing loss to them in the 2008 regional tournament and prove that they were the better team. Pike jumped out to an early 1-0 lead with a quick break. Los responded quickly and began to get their D-Line going. The Los defense suffocated the Pike offense taking them out of their comfort zone forcing the Pike O-Line to make bad decisions with the disc. The Pike D-Line battled but had trouble stopping the deep game of Los. Going down 8-5 at half, Pike came out fired up as the offense began to gel. Tom Carroll and C.J. Kozarski were important cogs in the Pike offensive machine and played exceptionally well making big plays all game. With the score 13-11, the Pike D-Line forced multiple turns on a marathon point that took everything both teams had. In the end, Los grinded out the point to avoid the break and eventually went on to win 15-11.

Letdown and disappointed, Pike moved on to their next game knowing that they must win out the rest of the day to stay alive and gear up for the eventual challenges that they would face on Day 2.

Pike staggered into their next game against inner city rival Philly Love. Pike came out flat in the game with a severe lack of energy, clearly suffering from a post Los hangover playing down to Love with lackadaisical offense and lazy defense. Pike pulled it together with a second half run pulling away in a capped game 14-9.

In the final game on Saturday, Pike would face a familiar foe from Baltimore. Medicine Men came out hungry and took it to Pike with a couple nice hucks and surprisingly patient and effective offense. In a repeat of the Philly Love game, Pike played down to their opponent and struggled mightily barely taking half 8-7. Pike bore down in the second half and grinded out the necessary points to beat Medicine Men 15-10 and advance to Sunday. Pike regrouped after Saturday knowing that bigger challenges and a potential bid to nationals awaited them on Sunday.

Pike arrived at the fields on Sunday geared up to play X-Rates, a team they went winless against in 2008, and move one step closer to a trip to Florida. Pike got the bad news that D-Line veteran Raph Vangelista would be unable to play Sunday with a foot injury but reinforcements arrived in the form of O-Line cutter, Nick Malinowski.

After a lackluster warm-up, Pike tripped out of the gate and stumbled to a 5-2 deficit. The O-Line had trouble moving the disc while the D-Line could not get a D let alone a break. After a D-Line punched a goal in receiving the disc, the Pike D began to get their 1-3-3-zone going. Veteran leadership and grit from D-Liners Tous Careathers, Jon Fink, Tim Johnson, Ellis Kim and J Dono swarmed and overwhelmed X-Rates while young and up and coming rookies like Shaun Krieger and Jason Kunsa converted D’s into scores. Pike closed the half on a 6-1 run and looked to ride their wave of momentum. Pike came out of the half fired up as the offense worked off the energy from the D-Line and began to wear down the X-Rates defense. Handlers Ian McClellan, Alex Kinsey and Dusty Rhodes began to connect frequently with downfield cutters Art Shull and Kozarski who were making huge grabs in the end zone. The D-Line also continued to get D’s from their swarming zone and collected a couple more breaks in the second half to finally put away X-Rates 15-9.

In what was easily the best game of the weekend so far, Pike geared up for a rematch against Los for a chance to get revenge and advance to play the loser of the Ring vs. Truck final.

While the offense was less than stellar, it was the defense that let Pike down in the rematch. With a mediocre at best effort, Pike could not respond to relentless pressure from Los and a constant huck game that had Pike D players chasing discs over their head. Without a single break, Pike broke down and looked overwhelmed by a Los team that wanted it more and played like a team ready to make dents at Nationals.

After watching Truck take out Ring on universe point to win the region, Pike had to pick their heads up quickly to keep their season alive and hope to salvage their goal of making Nationals with a rematch against X-Rates.

The O-Line put Pike on their shoulders and carried the team to a tight but convincing win over X-Rates 15-11. A scary moment occurred in the second half when defensive stud Leon Chou was hit in the head on a collision going for the disc. His constant pressure on handlers and speed on the D-Line would be tough for Pike to replace.

Pike moved on to face Los again for the third and final time with everything on the line. One game left, winner takes all in a battle for the third and final bid to the UPA Club Championship. Pike had already lost twice to Los but seemed ready to respond to the pressure of the game to go and to counter a Los game plan that had already beaten Pike twice.

The Pike offense stalled the first point and gave Los early momentum and a quick 1-0 lead. Knowing that they had to play better, the offense clicked with movement by the handlers and huge plays from the cutters. Justin Illuzi was getting open under all game while the big three of Shull, Malinowski and Kozarski were finishing off points with big plays downfield. On the D-Line, the intensity and fire that carried Pike all year was showing again. Defensive guru Jeff George called for the D-Line to force middle the entire game to take away the huck game of Los. Pike got an early break to put the game back on serve and with the score 6-5, Pike grinded out the point after Dave Baer connected for another assist to take a 7-5 lead.

To advance to Nationals, it would take Pike everything they had. Overcoming adversity and observers who knew nothing of the sport, Pike took half 8-7 with inspired and tenacious play.

The second half saw Los break the Pike O-line to take a 9-8 lead. With the score tied at 9, the Pike D-Line would stage a miraculous run for the ages that would propel them to the cusp of a Nationals birth. D-Line handlers like Ross Littauer, Nick Ongpauco, Aman Nalavade and Alex Grin kept the pressure on the Los handlers with the force middle allowing downfield defenders to make plays and cause turnovers. After a break to take a 10-9 lead, Krieger made possibly the play of the season with a Callahan to give Pike an 11-9 lead and completely took the wind out of Los. Pike would run off 3 more breaks in a row for a 14-9 lead. After a brief hiccup by the O-Line, the score was 14-11 when McClellan unleashed a ridiculous full field backhand that curved ever so beautifully down the home sideline into a sliding J Dono giving Pike an improbable and exhilarating victory over Los sending Pike to Nationals.

Pike has gone through many ups and downs throughout the season, very evident by their play in this tournament. While Pike may be considered a streaky team, the talent on the team is undeniable and a team first motto is the essence of a Pike team that always plays with heart and emotion. Pike came together when it mattered most, with everything on the line and answered the call while silencing the doubters. Pike fought for everything this weekend and every teammate picked each other up when it seemed that the season was spiraling downward.

With 16 newcomers to the Club Nationals scene and a group of savvy Veterans, Pike will be an exciting team to follow in Sarasota and the future bodes will for a team that will continue to get better as the youth of this team continues to thrive.

The Blog is Back

Ok so I have completely dropped the ball on this thing. Did that mean I was ending it....NO! After much time spent doing other things less productive, I need to focus on more important things, like this blog that is read by a group of loyal readers numbering close to double digits.

Ok so what to expect.

1. My Regionals recap post that I wrote a few weeks ago that is already on pikeultimate.com I mean I wrote it so it should go on the blog.

2. More frisbee stuff. I am thinking of doing a running diary of my first trip to Nationals, Bill Simmons style. I am excited for this one.

3. The finishing of the Wire Top 20. This is a must read as well. I mean for me.

4. Nate Grefe bringing you his top 5 maybe 10 War movies of all time

5. Something else.

Be excited!

Top 30 Characters from The Wire: Part 1 (30-21)

Yep it's about time. I mean I have had this stupid blog since the end of April and not one post about the greatest television drama ever. Bold statement but more or less true. What makes The Wire great besides everything is the characters. Anyway, I don't need to drag this intro longer than it needs to be. I will be counting down the top 30, characters, yep that's right, 30!

Just know that this was incredibly hard to do. How did I make this list? Sheeet I don't really know. My brother makes the point that the best characters are the ones that you never wanna miss a scene with them. This is true but it is not the only thing that goes into factoring the top 30. I looked at the character in their entirety. Their dialogue, what they stand for, their personality, story line, their legendary-ness, their interactions. Also their development as a character. While some characters are more or less the same throughout the season, other characters evolve, which is what I love about this show.

2 things to note

*There will be spoilers so read with caution. I will do my best but this is really for people who have seen the show.

*the use of the word "legendary" will be excessive

Enjoy!

30. Michael Lee- While Michael certainly doesn't grab you at first, in fact when we are first introduced to the 4 main kids, Michael was arguably the least interesting. But as Season 4 progresses, we see why Michael is a true legend. As Dookie said, Michael just grew up faster than everyone else. He immediately earns the respect of Bodie for his skills as a corner boy. He impresses Cutty with his talent as a boxer. Most important he impresses Chris and Marlo as a solider for the organization. He is one of the smarter characters in the show and also one of the more caring, demonstrated by the way he takes care of Bug and Dookie. He backed Randy when no one else did.

Some of my favorite Michael moments include

-Beating the shit out of Kenard

-Teaching Dookie how to shoot

-His aura of power after he sets up the murder of his father

-Robbing Vinson "Shit, you just a boy." "Yeah and that's just a knee"

29. The Greek- The head of his organization that provides that "good raw shit," as Prop Joe would say, in Season 2. His mysteriousness gives him that added quality that puts him on this list. One of the most powerful characters in the show, the Greek always provides great dialogue and I am always paying extra attention when he is in the scene. Also he has some of the best lines such as in the last episode of Season 2 "Port in a Storm", one of my favorite episodes in the show.

"Business, always business"

"And, of course, I'm not even Greek"

Also the last scene of episode 2 season 2 when he is talking to the Turkish guy who was responsible for the dead girls on the boat, legendary stuff and one of the most gruesome scenes in the series. He never gets caught by the authorities. Proof of his legendary status is when Nick points him out in that picture to Daniels that he is the boss man and Daniels looks at his team utterly clueless about who this guy is.

28. Butchie- True legend of Baltimore. Butchie is blind but is still a powerful figure in Baltimore. He is Omar's bank and his advisor and is known throughout Baltimore. One of the wisest characters, he has some classic lines that get him on this list.

Omar: What do you see, Butch?

Butchie: Too much. Too goddamn much.

David Simon calls the Wire a Greek Tragedy of sorts. Butchie plays the Tiresias of Baltimore. He seems to be all knowing of what is going on in the city. And like the great blind prophet, he is always right. "It's Baltimore...no one lives forever."

And you must give Butchie all the respect after being tortured by Chris and refusing to give up any information on Omar.

"Conscience do cost."

27. Tommy Carcetti- Would obviously be higher on this list if we just counted season 3 and most of season 4. As the up and coming great white hope of Baltimore, he is a magnetic character and a great counter to the despicable but funny Mayor Royce. From the time we are introduced to the guy up to his primary victory, Carcetti is one of my favorites. You really believe in this guy that he will fix Baltimore. But sadly like a lot of politicians, he is another hack who is looking for the next job on the ladder. His decision to not take the 50 million ends up decimating the city, leaving Baltimore in possibly worse shape when he leaves office. By season 5, I cant stand this guy which is why he is so low on this list. He also gets worked by Tony Gray on the racquetball court.

26. Spiros Vondas- The Greek: "You should have had a son". Spiros: "But then I would have had a wife. "

Vondas is the right hand man for the Greek and really does all the work. He is the one that deals with the Sobotka's and it is him that gets the attention from Daniels and the detail. Excellent work by Paul Ben-Victor with this character. I love the accent and the fact that he played Alan, head of the WB studio in Entourage. Always a legendary scene with him and Prop Joe involved. And when he slit the Turkish guys throat...wow legendary.

While Spiros is a powerful figure in the Greeks organization, he demonstrates compassion and takes a real liking to Nick. Nick was the son that Vondas always wanted and I like the fact that he sticks up for the Sobotka's until the last possible moment. He takes care of Nick and Frank and he tries to do what is right.

25. Frank Sobotka- Head of the stevedores at the docks. Frank is played by Chris Bauer, a fine actor who does some of his best work in The Wire. I have a lot of respect for Frank. He knows his union and the docks of Baltimore are dying and he does everything possible to save them and the jobs of many. He gets into bed with the Greeks but is outraged over the can full of dead girls. He tries to do what he thinks is best but as D'Angelo said, if you cant get real with the story, shit will catch up with you. Sobotka meets his fate after he agrees to come clean about everything. You gotta respect the way he went out, fighting for his life, not going out like a bitch.

I love his scenes with his Brother, some of the Wire's underrated stuff. Sobotka was one of the most respected characters in the Wire, evident by being re-elected as treasurer even after his death, leading to the death of the union office.

"You know what the problem is, Brucie? We used to make shit in this country… build shit. Now we just put our hand in the next guy’s pockets."

"I knew I was wrong, you know. But in my head, I thought I was wrong for the right reasons."

24. Deacon- A couple things that make The Deacon legendary. The first is that he is played by Melvin Williams, a former heroin trafficker in Baltimore in the 1970s. He was arrested by Ed Burns and David Simon wrote about it while working at the Baltimore Sun. Second is that he is friends with two of the most legendary characters in the show, Bunny Colvin and Cutty. Deacon is a true legend of the show and is very wise in his advice to Bunny and Cutty. Provides some of the best quotes in the show. I love when Bunny sees him playing pool and asks him, "Hustling?"
Deacon: "Educating"

"A good church man is always up in everybody’s shit. It’s how we do.”

23. D'Angelo Barksdale- I am already questioning this ranking. He should probably be a lot higher but D finds himself at 23. Some of the best acting in the show done by Larry Gilliard Jr., who is one of the more established actors in the series. Arguably the main character in season 1, D'Angelo is one of the most interesting and complex characters in the show. His main reason for being this low is as Avon said "D was just weak."

In reality, D was one of the smartest characters in the Wire, he understood certain parts of the game better than others, understanding that the game is rigged. D is apart of some of the greatest and deepest scenes in the series. Starting with the chess scene which is easily a top 5 scene in the show. (Notice that all 3 characters involved in this scene become victims of the game)

The Great Gatsby Scene in the prison is one of my favorites. His showdown with Stringer in Prison. "Where's Wallace!" The Mcnugget scene. Many more.

D'Angelo did get squeezed between the sides. He never belonged in the game and it was unfortunate for him that he was Avon's nephew. He schooled Poot and Wallace and while Bodie saw his weakness, he still had a certain amount of respect for him.

He demonstrated understanding and was against the violence that is apart of the drug game. Which makes me question him killing someone in the beginning of the show. I could go on for hours about D. But if I had to write an essay on one character, it would easily be D'Angelo. Once again, props to Larry Gilliard Jr.

"Now you think Ronald McDonald gonna go down to the basement and say, "Hey Mr. Nugget - you the bomb. We sellin' chicken faster than you can tear the bone out. So I'm gonna write my clowney ass name on this fat-ass check for you." Shit. Man, the nigga who invented them things? Still working in the basement for regular wage, thinking of some shit to make the fries taste better or some shit like that. Believe.

"Gatsby, he was who he was, and he did what he did. And cuz he wasn't willing to get real with the story, that shit caught up to him. That's what I think, anyway. "

And of course from D "The king stay the king."

22. Brother Mouzone- Where to begin! He definitely fits the bill of being a character that has his scenes be classified as must watch. He could be higher on the list but he has a rather short amount of screen time to justify putting him in the top 20. His exchange with Cheese is priceless but nothing beats the opening scene of episode 11 of season 3 with Mouzone and Omar. Truly a legendary scene in The Wire. His vocabulary is unconventional for his line of work and his character is unlike anything you will every see. The glasses and the bow tie just add to the aura of Mouzone. His methods are unmatched and when he teams up with Omar, lets just say I would not want to be the one they are after.

Prop Joe said it best about Mouzone, "Nigga has more bodies on him than a Chinese cemetery."

21. Jay Landsmen- Near the top of the list of funniest characters on The Wire. He is in charge of the Homicide Division under Rawls. Always up in McNulty's shit which pleases me. He is always eating in his office or looking at some porno magazine and ripping into the detectives. While he rips into them, he does respect them and the viewer can see this. His Eulogy to Jimmy at the end of the show is priceless and there are honestly too many quotes to write here. True legend of the show and easily one of the funniest characters. The only person on the police command that I like. (Rawls is a hack and Burrell is an ultimate dick)

"From everything we've given you, fire should be shooting out your ass. But no, there you sit like a genital wart."

Stay Tuned for the next installment. Feel free to hate

TV on the Radio in Prospect Park

On August 11th, 3 friends and I traveled to Brooklyn after work to see the much anticipated TV on the Radio concert in Prospect Park. A little history first. This would be my second time at Prospect Park and my second time seeing TV on the Radio. It was in October of last year when I first saw them at the Electric Factory in Philadelphia where they put on a fantastic show. And it was in the summer of 2008 when I first took part in the concert experience at Prospect Park seeing Spoon for the third time.

I had high hopes for this concert for multiple reasons. First and foremost, TV on the Radio is fucking awesome. They are one of the most unique bands out there today and they have released 3 kick ass albums and a couple legendary EP's. They also hail from Brooklyn so anytime you have a band playing in their hometown, you expect the show to be special. Think like No Doubt's "Live in the Tragic Kingdom" performance in their hometown of Anaheim. The concert should have a little extra juice. And finally there was my friend Jeff who had seen TV on the Radio play at Prospect Park in 2006 and described it as possibly one of the best shows he has seen (maybe only topped by Radiohead at All Points West last year.)

So now it is 2009 and the city is sweltering. Arriving at the venue, there were three things very noticeable. The amount of Brooklyn hipsters, the unbelievably shitty sound of the band playing before TV on the Radio (think like Animal Collective but worse), and the practically unbearable weather. We got pretty close to the stage and only had to wait about 30 minutes before they came out. But god it was hot. It was dark by the time the show started (8:50 pm) it was in the 80s with high humidity and no wind. So I will say the heat definitely drained me, but it didn't seem to stop TV on the Radio.

In what would be a performance dominated by their newish album "Dear Science" (2008), they opened with "Shout Me Out", which when I saw in Philly, stood out as one of their better songs in the concert. While this was their opener, it was a great start to the show and the jump off point for a performance full of unkempt energy and vigour. Definitely a good warm up.

They next moved backward to "The Wrong Way", their opener on their 2004 debut album Desperate Youth Blood Thirsty Babes. Funny story about this album. Our school radio station had a poster of this album and for a year it nagged at me. Finally toward the end of the year, I decided that I had to be in possession of this and took it down from the wall, walking away like nothing was wrong. I am a better person because of this.

Anyway the show moved on. I was never really a fan of the song but you could tell the show was about to get serious. They came back hard with three in a row off their new album. Starting with the epic "Halfway Home" which is one of their most powerful sounding songs. Lead singer Tunde Adebimpe puts it all together in this one and the song climaxes at the end with Tunde bobbing around and chanting with guitars blazing. They just hit their stride.

They followed this with "Golden Age", which might of been the best song in the show. The horn section in the concert really added to their sound and it definitely became noticeable in this funky number. Tunde probably sounded his best in this song as his vocals seemed to tire as the concert was winding down. "Crying" was next and I was very impressed with the horn section in this song which carried the song. One of the better songs of Dear Science, this was the first time I saw them perform the song live. They did not disappoint. Props to the sax guy for beasting the end of the song.

Now it was time for the big guns. No matter how many times I have heard it, "Wolf Like Me" might be the best song of the decade. Woah woah woah Ms. Lippy! Yea that's a serious claim but I could defend it. Plus you really cant say that about any song, but it truly is an ultimate legendary banger. I feel like they always play this song in the early parts of their shows because it must suck all the energy out of them to perform. The one thing about the show that was such a contrast from the Green Day concert was the lack of energy from the crowd. Now I understand that it was literally a sauna outside, but the only thing missing from this song is the crowd jumping around going completely nuts.

They came down from this uber high with "Red Dress." A song of the new album, I never really listened too much but was impressed with live. Then another knockout blow came. My friend Jeff and I agree that "Young Liars" is "not their best song but it really it." However you wanna interpret that, i dont really know but this one was mesmerizing. The song in itself is flawless. The slow and building intro, all the instruments coming together, Tunde softly howling into the mic. The sound just swells and comes together. The song possess some of TV on the Radio's best lyrics and the flow is awesome. Another highlight of the concert.

Now I am not completly sure about what followed but my guess is that "Staring at the Sun" was next which is probabaly one of their most well known songs. While it wasnt as memorable as the time they performed it in Philly, it was still the shit. Tunde put a little extra into this one, dancing all over the stage.

After a brief pause where some of the band members talked to the audience, "Blues From Down Here" was played. I don't really like this song and by this time, the heat was getting to me. They had been on for less then an hour but I was exahusted. I assumed that TV on the Radio wasnt gonna be on for too much longer. They dont usually play for very long and I could only imagine how hot they were on stage.

I did enjoy the end of the set where they played two bangers off of Dear Science. "Dancing Choose" was first which is just a really fun song. They followed with "DLZ" which was awesome. Probably my favorite song off the new album. Just a really cool song and even better live.

After about a 5 minute break and the crowd stupidly chanting one more song (Fuck you guys, they will definitely play more than one, don't settle! Concert rooks!), they came back on. The encore started with "Family Tree", a lackluster song from their new album. They made up for that waste of a song with "A Method" which my friend Eddie would say was the best of the concert. They brought out like 20 people, including kids to help them with the percussion in the song. Just a really cool scene for a cool song.

The concert closed with the classic banger "Satellite" which I was very happy they played. Tunde and the band revved it up one more time for this one.

So after about an hour and twenty minutes they were done. The last time I saw them I was kinda upset they didnt play for that long, but it was ok this time. They play with such high energy plus the heat was brutal. Overall a great concert minus a couple of things. I wasnt crazy about some of the songs they played. The last time I saw them, the set list was a lot stronger. There were a couple songs that they didnt play that I was really pissed about but what can you do. I think the count was 8 of 11 songs off the new album

Another thing I was a little picky about was the sound. Maybe the mics werent loud enough or all the other instruments were too loud but it seemed that Tunde's vocals were being swallowed by the sound. I'm not totally sure but his vocals werent as crisp or tight as I would of hoped.

Overall a great show. It doesn't top Green Day but I dont really know what can.

Top of the head TV on the Radio Lists:

Best Albums: 1. Return to Cookie Mountain 2. Desperate Youth Blood Thirsty Babes 3. Dear Science

Best Songs at the Concert: 1. Young Liars 2. Golden Age 3. DLZ

Songs I Wish They Played: 1. Province 2. Dreams 3. Love Dog

Fellow concert friend and Blog contributer Jeff Feldman contributes his lists as well

Best Albums: 1. Return to Cookie Mountain 2. Desperate Youth Blood Thirsty Babes 3. Dear Science

Best Songs at the Concert: 1. Golden Age 2. Young Liars 3. Satellite

Songs I Wish They Played: 1. New Health Rock 2. Tonight 3. Province

It's the Weekend!

(Props to Brooklyn Vegan for the Pics)

Rutgers Football Preview

*The following article was written by Dan Breslauer. Breslauer or D Bres/Bresnuts is the voice of Rutgers sports and can spit out any stat about Rutgers sports on command. He also bleeds scarlet. Bres will be going into his senior year at RU where he will be controlling all things WRSU. Bres is known for his Amir Vahedi like demeanor at the poker table, David Eckstein-esque defense at second base and his unhealthy consumption of tic tac's. He is also the MC of the HP Allstarz Fantasy Baseball Draft.*

Enjoy!

Well, the month of August is officially in full swing, so that must mean it’s time for a D-Bres prediction segment with the Rutgers football season about a month away from kickoff.
The Scarlet Knights program has made unheard of progress by a perception standpoint, since the days of 10-loss seasons and 50-point losses a little over seven years ago. Coach Greg Schiano has now taken RU to four straight bowl games, winning three of them and placing players in the NFL each of those years.
The graduation of Rutgers’ all-time leading passer, Mike Teel, and the early departure of all-world wide receiver Kenny Britt certainly temper expectations for a 2009 Scarlet Knights team looking to build on the 8-5 season of last year.
The Big East media isn’t convinced, ranking RU 5th out of eight teams in their yearly poll last week. However, No. 1 and No. 5 were separated by mere points, proving that there are two clear tiers in the conference this season.
Without further ado, we’ll break down RU’s season game-by-game, giving you nuggets about the schemes and players along the way. This is your Rutgers football fix…

Game 1: Rutgers vs. Cincinnati (Labor Day; Mon. Sept. 7, 4:00pm ESPN)

I said this last year, but there has never been a more anticipated opener in Rutgers football history. Not only is it on national television with only one other football game being played that day, but a few other factors make this an absurd opening day atmosphere.
Cincinnati has beaten Rutgers in three straight seasons, including snapping RU’s 9-0 start in 2006 and keeping them out of the Orange Bowl last season. The Bearcats are the defending Big East champs and the Scarlet Knights will be unveiling their new 52,000-seat stadium to the public on Labor Day.
The Bearcats graduate ten players from one of the best defenses in the country. They lose 13 of their top 15 tacklers, including the best six. Rutgers loses a four-year quarterback, two great receivers (Britt and Tiquan Underwood) and a few pieces on defense including safety Courtney Greene.
However, Rutgers returns all five guys on an offensive line that has ranked in the top ten in the nation in sacks allowed a few times in the last five years. Left tackle Anthony Davis is a top 20 draft pick in the 2010 draft if he leaves early and the running game for RU will be versatile with Joe Martinek, Jourdan Brooks and a hobbled Kordell Young.
The bottom line in this game is coaching—two-time Big East Coach of the Year Brian Kelly versus 2006 National Coach of the Year, Greg Schiano.
We will probably see fifth-year senior quarterback Domenic Natale start this game for RU unless freshman Tom Savage wins the job in camp, which I will be attending this week.
Emotion will play a huge part in this game. Cinci’s offense is explosive with quarterback Tony Pike and wide-out Mardy Gilyard. Rutgers counters with the best linebacker core in the conference with Ryan D’Imperio leading the way at the “mike” spot. It will be a sloppy game as all openers are, with defense winning it.

Bres’ prediction: Rutgers 20 Cincinnati 17

Game 2: Rutgers vs. Howard (Sept. 12)

I’m not going to spend as much time on these useless games, but I’ll add some thoughts in here. I wouldn’t be shocked to see packages for QB Jabu Lovelace in some of these early games with options and draws. Howard has a good band, but a bad football team.

Bres’ prediction: Rutgers 40 Howard 7

Game 3: Rutgers vs. FIU (Sept. 19)

A game on Rosh Hashana, which means no Bres in attendance, which stinks because the return of former RU assistant Mario Cristobal would have been fun to watch. FIU is terrible though, in the bottom 10 every year.

Bres’ prediction: Rutgers 37 FIU 3

Game 4: Rutgers @ Maryland (Sept. 26)

There is a big revenge factor in this game. Darius Heyward-Bey and Keon Lattimore led the Terps into Piscataway in 2007 and beat Rutgers up. Those two are gone now and Byrd Stadium will be rocking in late September.

This is going to be a tough test for RU—as a young secondary will certainly be thrown into the fire. Hopefully, CBs Logan Ryan and Darrell Givens (if he qualifies) are ready to play significant amounts of series by then because RU is going to need it.

Historically, ACC offensive lines have given RU fits and the Scarlet Knights have a slight out-of-conference letdown here.

Bres’ prediction: Maryland 24 Rutgers 21

Game 5: Rutgers vs. Texas Southern (Oct. 10)

If Tim Brown doesn’t catch four touchdowns in this game, yeah… they’re that bad. They lost to Arkansas State by 70 last year.

Bres’ prediction: Rutgers 45 TSU 7

Game 6: Rutgers vs. Pittsburgh (Fri, Oct. 16)

Wow, well a Friday niter in October against the preseason pick to win the Big East, Mr. Stache’s Pittsburgh Panthers.

LeSean McCoy is gone and so is LaRod Stephens-Howling. If RU is 1-0 in conference, the place will be absolutely nutty.

Watch for guys up front like George Johnson and Blair Bines to get to the quarterback regularly here and for Pitt cornerback Aaron Berry to get abused by Mohammed Sanu.

Bres’ prediction: Rutgers 31 Pittsburgh 17

Game 7: Rutgers @ Army (Fri. Oct. 23)

A trip to West Point in October is always beautiful. The Friday aspect takes a little away from it, but that’s fine.

Army is overmatched here and I expect some converted guys like Mason Robinson to have a big game here.

No more losses to service academies.

Bres’ prediction: Rutgers 30 Army 10

Game 8: Rutgers @ Connecticut (Oct. 31)

Halloween in East Hartford could be downright dangerous. The “Rent” is torturous and they hate Rutgers. HATE.

No more Donald Brown but this is a monstrous trap game that I’ve said could pose a problem since the schedule came out.

The Huskies get revenge as quarterback inconsistency shows for RU.

Bres’ prediction: Connecticut 21 Rutgers 20

Game 9: Rutgers vs. USF (Thurs. Nov. 12)

Ok, plain and simple… Rutgers doesn’t lose on Thursday night in Piscataway.

Matt Grothe has this date circled. He hasn’t beaten Rutgers in his career. When this game kicks off, it will be almost 25 months since a No. 2 USF team came into NJ and lost due to an insane performance from Ray Rice.

Here’s a dark horse for you in this one. Expect to see LB Damaso Munoz go crazy in this game. Going against some of his home state friends will fuel the fire that is inside this kid. He is ready to have a big year.

Grothe remains flustered against RU and Mike Ford still hasn’t lived up to the hype. Let’s hope Jim Leavitt chills with the Red Bull.

Bres’ prediction: Rutgers 30 USF 20

Game 10: Rutgers @ Syracuse (Nov. 21)

The Orange is the laughingstock of the Big East. How times have changed from the late 90’s.

Greg Paulus at QB won’t work and Joe Lefeged will let Doug Marrone know why Greg Robinson called him a headhunter.

Bres’ prediction: Rutgers 35 Syracuse 17

Game 11: Rutgers @ Louisville (Fri. Nov. 27)

The Cardinals are still very down. This is not the same program that came into Piscataway as the No. 3 team in the land on Nov. 9, 2006. And the rest is history at the birthplace of college football.

Without Hunter Cantwell at QB, the Cardinals are limited. Let’s not forget that RU put up 63 on them in 2008.

Bres’ prediction: Rutgers 30 Louisville 17

Game 12: Rutgers vs. West Virginia (Dec. 5)

The way it should be. Rutgers and West Virginia on a Saturday night in December in NJ tussling for the Big East title. RU has not defeated the Mountaineers since September of 1994 in the second game of the season.

While I don’t think the trend will change this year and Rutgers will fall just short of a BCS birth, this atmosphere would be beyond belief. I can only imagine the media coverage and hype leading up to this game on conference title weekend.

Noel Devine and Jarrett Brown are explosive as a duo. Brown has defeated RU twice in his career—in 3 OTs in 2006 and last season—both in Morgantown (filling in for an injured Pat White in each year).

At this point, you have to figure that either Natale or Savage will be experienced by some definition of the word. But no regular season snaps can prepare you for what Dec. 5 would be like if a conference championship is on the line.

RU falls short…

Bres’ prediction: WVU 27 Rutgers 20

Final Rutgers record: (9-3; 5-2 in Big East play)

Projected bowl game—Champs Sports Bowl OR Meineke Car Care Bowl:

Let’s hope for a packed house in P-way on Labor Day… the newly-expanded stadium deserves a proper welcome On the Banks. I think most Rutgers fans would be just fine with a 9-3 season… only time will tell what 2009 has in store for the Scarlet Knights. I never would have believed that Rutgers could ever go to five straight bowl games…