random thoughts

• Ok, we lost to State, it sucks but we hopefully will still be 8-4. I dont think (like some other's do) that we will be invited to the Champs Sports Bowl (slotted for the 4th best ACC team). If everything works out the way it should Saturday (which it won't) there will be 1 9-3 team (BC) and a log jam of 8-4 teams (VT, GT, UNC, Miami, and FSU) with VT and BC playing a boring ACC Championship contest. If VT wins (and they will), they get Orange and my money is on FSU and GT getting Peach and Gator (or vice versa) because noone wants BC. That leaves Miami, UNC and BC in the running for the 4th best bowl and I bet that they go with Miami because they are closest to Orlando. Which leaves UNC for the Care Care Bowl. Look, i guess since its the 2nd season of Davis I'll take it, but its just a downer that this season has really turned into a "what could have been."
• The Tom O'Brien "We are the best program in the State" quote is getting alot of people up in arms. I dont know why. I guess him using the word 'program' is different then if he had used 'team'. NCSU proved they are the best team in NC this year by flat out winning every game against NC opponents. Like Butch says, its way to early to determine which school has the better football program. O'Brien knows that he is getting outrecruited by Davis, and this is why he said this, oh and to feed the egos of NCSU's inferiority-complex driven fans.
• The UNC- NCSU rivalry amoung fans is really hard to describe totally. Most rivalries can just be summed up by using the word "hate". But i reserve that word for the school in Durham. But the NCSU/UNC fans have much more familiarity with eachother than UNC-Duke ever can. I went to high school with alot of NCSU alums and we are all freinds. We are more or less the same demographic, unlike UNC/Duke fans. We are mostly all from NC, and we can get along and relate to eachother much more easily than most UNC/Duke combinations. Its a rivalry amoung brothers rather than a rivalry amoung people who dont know you and who you dont really know either.
• The Maui Invitational is without a doubt the best preseason tourney year in year out. Not just in the teams participating, but in the overall feel. Having been to one in 2001 and watched everyone since i can remember it is just an awesome event in person and on TV. The Lahuna (sp?) Civic Center is awesome, compare it to watching games from the cavernous-looking MSG like every other preseason tourney and there is no debate. BTW: What the hell ever happened to the Great Alaska Shootout?
• Speaking of: What the hell ever happened to Bobby Frasor's jump shot?
• Im very happy Michigan knocked off UCLA. I was like everyone who was looking forward to a UCLA-Duke game and possibly Duke's first loss. But then i watched with horror by how green UCLA looked and by the time it was over im very glad Michigan won. Why? Because if that UCLA had won they would have been completely dominated by Duke and there would have been the typical media hype-up of Duke by a bunch of people who dont really watch games and take preseason rankings as gospel. UCLA was in no way a top-10 team, and they would have made Duke look like a jugernaut. Which the media in turn would make them look like demi-gods. You know, like what they have made UNC out to look like.
• Were the fans at UCSB chanting "Fuck you Tyler"? Classy
• Tyler needs to come back soon if he is gonna break J.J's scoring record this year. I know, that is definitely not as important as chamionships in March but you know how good you would feel if he did break that record. It would be one of those things you would always remember and smile about, both out of your love for Tyler and your hatred of J.J.
• This could be the year UNC passes Kentucky on the all-time win list. Either this year or early next year (if trends continue). How awesome would that be if the two teams were tied for their game next year? I also think that the team that has the all time record should have a traveling banner for it. Really only three teams could contend for it on a night in night out basis (UNC, UK and KU). I just think it would be cool.