As if there wasn’t already enough competition in college sports, we’ve got yet another national title up for grabs starting this season: the first ever Capital One Cup. I can hear you rolling your eyes and saying, “Oh great here’s another way to reward the big schools like Alabama and Ohio State.” This is a title with a twist: it incorporates and rewards a school’s athletic titles and accomplishments across multiple men’s and women’s sports. The Capital One Cup is not just about the success of the high profile basketball and football teams (Capital One Chief Marketing Officer Bill McDonald referred to these as “the Big Sexies”), but also women’s golf, men’s cross country, volleyball, lacrosse, wrestling and many other Division I sports. A total of 13 men’s and 13 women’s sports are represented.

Capital One Cup

The bottom line is an all-in total program performance award that looks at programs top to bottom and rewards them for overall athletic excellence across all sports. There will be one $200,000 prize each for the top men’s and women’s programs, to fund student-athlete graduate-level scholarships. Points toward the Capital One Cup are earned and tracked throughout the year based on final standings of NCAA Division I Championships and final official coaches’ polls. Winners will be announced at the annual ESPY awards (ESPN, CBS and Turner Sports are the three media partners of the Capital One Cup).

I could spend the rest of this post explaining the scoring structure (there are tiers and certain sports are weighted more than others, etc.), but that’s not very fun. For more details on the eligible sports and the tiered scoring structure, please see the Capital One Cup Official Website.

On hand at the Times Center this morning to announce the new award along with Capital One’s McDonald were the members of the Capital One Cup Advisory Board, esteemed former college student-athletes Brandi Chastain (Santa Clara), Doug Flutie (Boston College), Clark Kellogg (Ohio State), Lisa Leslie (University of Southern California) and Robin Ventura (Oklahoma State), with ESPN’s Rece Davis (Alabama) serving as master of ceremonies.

Presenting the Capital One Cup

Presentation Highlights

The presentation was well done and we had an opportunity to hear from McDonald about the details of the program and from the members of the Advisory Board about their involvement with the Cup and college athletics.

• McDonald emphasized that the goal of the program is to “change the way fans view college sports. It’s not just about the ‘Big Sexies’.”
• Doug Flutie talked about the Cup’s impact on “excellence, commitment, integrity and pride in your school.” He also thinks the new incentive will unify students on campus, getting them to rally around the smaller sports.
• Clark Kellogg discussed the importance of sports in his development and growth, learning “teamwork, discipline, working through adversity.”
• Lisa Leslie, a beneficiary of Title IX, looks forward to the Cup “shining the light on sports that don’t get all the attention.”
• Robin Ventura looks forward to the Cup adding additional ramifications to the College World Series, which is already a “hidden gem” of college sports in itself.
• Brandi Chastain said the Cup will “inspire young people out there to dream about being a champion” while also being leaders, finding a voice and learning about teamwork.

The program has been in development for over a year, and Capital One worked hard to create a program where hoops and football aren’t dominant. Of course, championships are the goal, but they can be from a variety of sports.

Fun fact: if the Capital One Cup had been in place last season, Duke would have won the men’s title and Stanford the women’s title. The two schools did receive the Capital One Best College Athletic Program Award at this year’s ESPYs. As McDonald quipped, “Imagine if Butler had sunk that shot.”

Asked about promotion, McDonald said all the SIDs are on board. He also expects the blogosphere to jump all over this program and is expecting the program to go viral as part of its promotion. He hopes the “cybermagicians” to go back and do the math to figure out who would have won the past ten Capital One Cups. Anybody up for that challenge?

Post-Presentation One-On-One Interviews

After the official presentation, I spoke one-on-one with Advisory Committee members Brandi Chastain, Rece Davis and Robin Ventura.

Brandi Chastain is pumped

Chastain, who is of course best known for this iconic moment in the 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup Final, was an All-American soccer player at Santa Clara University, where she currently serves as a volunteer assistant coach. She told me that when Capital One first approached her about the Capital One Cup, she immediately said yes. I wish I had taken video of the interview; you could honestly see her excitement about the program as she talked about it. She sees this as a great opportunity to get Santa Clara’s name out there and also to talk about the importance of women’s athletics. Chastain wants young women to not be demure and shy about being sports fans. “Why is it ok for the guy to wear his Michigan hat and sweatshirt but the woman can’t?” In her role as volunteer assistant coach for the Santa Clara women’s soccer team (her husband Jerry Smith is the head coach), she serves as mentor, cheerleader, role model, support system and water girl, all wrapped up in one. In her words, “it’s heaven.”

Rece Davis, best known as the host of ESPN’s College Football Live and College GameDay, is also a graduate of the University of Alabama, and a big college football fan. He’s excited about the Capital One Cup. “College fans like to brag. My school is better than yours. This is another way.” I asked him about ESPN’s coverage of the Cup and he was very diplomatic, stating that ESPN is a media partner with Capital One and they are exploring various programming options, but nothing has been set. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a “Capital One Cup Update” on College GameDay. He also said that the goal is for this to be a multi-year program. I asked him how he felt about Mark Ingram’s knee injury. He said he is worried about it, not as an Alabama fan, but because he wants Ingram to succeed and do well in the NFL. “The shelf life of a running back is so short you want these kids to make their money while they can.”

Finally, I had a chance to speak with Robin Ventura, who was on hand representing college baseball. Before he was an All-Star third baseman (playing for the White Sox, Mets, Yankees and Dodgers over a 15 year career), Ventura was a three-time All American baseball player at Oklahoma State, where he won the Golden Spikes Award. Ventura currently is an anchor on ESPNU and has been an analyst for College World Series telecasts on ESPN and ESPN2 the last few years. He is excited for the Capital One Cup because it will help raise college baseball’s profile. He’s also optimistic about Oklahoma State’s prospects. “Oklahoma State has really good golf and wrestling so those will be huge.” I also talked with him about baseball and the new Yankee Stadium, since he made his first visit to the new ballpark this past Monday night. Sorry to be a blog tease, but I will write a separate blog post about this part of our talk.

Overall, I enjoyed the presentation and I find the concept behind the Capital One Cup to be quite interesting. Any program that helps give additional exposure to some of the smaller, less visible sports (both men’s and women’s) should be commended. Do I think students on college campuses across the country are going to be galvanized because the women’s cross country team’s victory could mean a chance at this title? I’m not sure. It will be interesting to watch and to see how ESPN incorporates the Capital One Cup into its programming. Of course I can’t wait for someone to go back and check the NCAA championship records to see which schools would have won the past 10 years.

Finally, a special thank you to Don Povia of Blogs With Balls for inviting me to attend today’s press conference.

It’s over. One of the great sports gatherings of the year has come to an end. The winter baseball meetings? No, that happened months ago. The NCAA tournament selection committee? That’s next week. The NFL Draft? Next month. The giant inflatable beavers of Vancouver? Excellent guess, but no. I’m talking about the 2010 MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference. What is this sports analytics conference of which I speak? If you don’t know, you don’t like sports, don’t work in sports, don’t care about sports or weren’t following me on Twitter.

Dorkapalooza 2010!

What Is this Analytics Conference?

The annual conference stems from a 2004 Sloan Business School sports analytics business class and evolved when Houston Rockets’ General Manager Daryl Morey and Jessica Gelman of The Kraft Sports Group founded the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference in the winter of 2006.

Now in its fourth year, the analytics conference, dubbed “Dorkapalooza” by ESPN’s Bill Simmons (he’s not just a columnist, he’s also a panelist!) has become one of the preeminent events on the sports conference circuit, whether you’re a data fiend or not. In short, this event was ginormous. Don’t believe me? Let’s look at the numbers: 12 hours. 16 panels. 70+ speakers. 1000+ attendees. Yup, the numbers don’t lie. That’s big.

Conference Recaps

I’m not going to even try and do a complete recap of this year’s conference. It was too big, too much and I couldn’t get to half of the panels. One of the biggest downsides of conferences like this is having to choose between equally excellent panels on interesting topics. So until cloning technology is perfected, I’ll have to rely on great recaps like this one from ESPN’s TrueHoop (update: check out this “key moments” post from TrueHoop) or the conference live blog by David Pinto of Baseball Musings.

I also can’t possibly write about all the great people I met or reconnected with throughout the course of the 12 hour day. And if you were there and we didn’t get a chance to say hello, I’m sorry we missed each other.

What can I do? A Tale of the Tweets of course! So without further ado, here are all my live tweets from the conference. If you want to see more (and there were a lot), search Twitter for #ssac. I’ve included a link to the description of each panel so you can read all the biographical details of each of the impressive speakers.

2010 Sloan Sports Analytics Conference: Tale of the Tweets

• Dorkapalooza time! #ssac (@ Boston Convention and Exhibition Center w/ 7 others) http://4sq.com/5s6Zl7
  

Developing the Athlete’s Brand

• Shocker: baseball analytics panel was completely SRO, so checking out Developing the Athlete’s Brand. #ssac
• Dawn Hudson: person’s brand is a product. They stand for something. Make sure personality and brand are consistent. #ssac

Next Generation Sports Management and Ownership

• Now at Next Gen Mgmt and Ownership panel. Matt Silverman, Brian Burke, Adam Silver, Steve Pagliuca, Randy Vataha. Bob Ryan moderator. #ssac
• Correction: @dmorey in for Bob Ryan at Next Gen Mgmt and Ownership panel. #ssac
• Awesome. RT @jonahkeri: Highlight of the conference: Matt Silverman just took #RedSox jersey behind him down. Go #Rays #ssac
• I am a little overwhelmed (but not surprised) by the disparity in men and women here. Probably 90/10. #ssac
• Adam Silver giving love to upcoming @30for30 “Winning Time” on Reggie Miller and the Knicks. #ssac
• Silverman: Rays need to convince fans of their permanence. In 13th season. Wow. Has it been that long? #ssac
• Vataha: data says in league with 30 teams you win a championship once/30 yrs. But you need to be competitive. #ssac
• Brian Burke averaging 3 laughs in crowd per statement. In a good way. Honest, funny, candid. Great panelist. #ssac
• Like the Cubs sell an experience, the NBA sells an experience since only one team will win a title. Adam Silver. #ssac
• Adam Silver is incredibly bullish on the sports industry. International growth and importance of digital media are keys. #ssac
• Pagliuca: working in sports is 24/7 commitment. Like being an investment banker. Hmm…sounds like Matt Silverman. #ssac
• Silverman: nobody in baseball wants total parity. Just want to increase the parity. #ssac
• Confirmed. RT @jonahkeri: Pagliuca: One #NBA go-getter broke in as Brian Scalabrine’s shooting coach. 500 people just cracked up. #ssac
• Silver on parity/large markets: this year’s Super Bowl had 2 of the smallest market teams yet huge ratings. #ssac
• Vegas has taken over/under on Yankees bashing remarks today off the board. #ssac

Break #1

• Line out the door for men’s room. No waiting for the ladies’ room. #ssac
• Dear @SloanSportsConf, please make sure all panels with “analytics” in the title are in the largest rooms. #ssac
• Talked Simpsons and Sports with @jonahkeri @jasoncfry @howardbecknyt. #ssac
• [Confession: I skipped the second morning session and opted to schmooze]

Lunch Presentation: Bloomberg Sports: Making Data Analytics User-Friendly

• Just humbled and honored to be sitting next to @jonahkeri at Bloomberg sports presentation at #ssac #bbgsports
• Everybody was drooling in Jan. RT @jasoncfry: Watching demo of Bloomberg baseball pro product. Like nerd Xmas. I think I’m drooling. #ssac

Psst…want to learn more about Bloomberg Sports? Check out my recap of the January 31 Bloomberg Sports Launch Event.

Marquee Event: What Geeks Don’t Get: The Limits of Moneyball

• Packed house awaits What Geeks Don’t Get panel w/@mcuban @dmorey @sportsguy33, Bill Polian, J. Kraft. Moderated by Michael Lewis. #ssac
• http://twitpic.com/16zhei – What Geeks Don’t Get panel @sloansportsconf #ssac
• Challenge is that formulas are getting more complicated. @sportsguy33 lasted 3 weeks in statistics in college. #ssac
• What bothers @mcuban? That @dmorey won’t share his secrets and formulas. NBA owner/gm humor at its finest. #ssac
• Polian congratulates Lewis for getting it right in Moneyball. Undervalued assets are key. Geekdom provides the tools. #ssac
• Polian: Stats guy who played football and was military officer would be the complete package in football. #ssac
• RT @jonahkeri: Michael Lewis to @dmorey “You’re large and manly. You could fool people into thinking you played something.” WIN #ssac
• Per @dmorey, if Mavs won NBA title, it’d bring down league office. Said @mcuban: “That would explain a lot of things.” #ssac
• Michael Lewis: “You can’t be too stupid to play baseball.” Ouch. #ssac
• On who has info and who doesn’t: “Some teams are cheap. I have season tickets to one of them.” @sportsguy33 #ssac
• “You can tell by what lineups they put out there” if a team has or doesn’t have data. @mcuban #ssac
• Polian: Here’s what geeks don’t get re: 4th & 2 call by Pats. If we get it back, we win the game. “100% the right call.” #ssac
• Watching back and forth of @mcuban and @dmorey is just fantastic. #ssac
• One thing you didn’t know about sports that you know now? “Referees” says @mcuban. Didn’t skip a beat. #ssac
• Great exchange with Simmons and Polian re: defensive pass interference rule changes. Kraft says no power to do that. #ssac
• ET @BothTeamsPlayed: Cuban: “You want to dump your morons on the other guy. So you try to play hide the morons.” #ssac
• RT @fb_outsiders: Mark Cuban is really, really impressive. Just an obviously really smart guy who knows his business inside and out #ssac
• RT @jonahkeri: Michael Lewis asks @dmorey about screening for clutch players. Morey swatted that weak stuff into the 3rd row. #ssac
• If you can predict injuries, you’ve got a job waiting for you with the Rockets. @dmorey #ssac
• Injury factor re: DeJuan Blair. FWIW, I loved Blair and was heartbroken he slipped to the Spurs b/c of his injury. #ssac
• Does playing the sport make you a better talent evaluator? Doesn’t it depend on the sport? asks Simmons. #ssac
• Polian: playing is not helpful when it comes to negotiating. Lawyers are better at that. Rare lawyer love. #ssac
• RT @jonahkeri: Bill Polian: “Branch Rickey was light-years ahead of his time.” Bill Polian have a hot dog with me. #ssac
• Vegas has now taken over/under on Simmons’ verbal attacks on Clippers off the board. #ssac
• Just chatted with Bill Simmons Sr. Pure awesome. #ssac

Social Media Marketing

• Social media marketing panel: @darrenrovell1 promotes via Twitter but cannot break news there. #ssac
• Lou DePaoli CMO of Pirates: he’s on twitter but mainly follows. Insert joke here. #ssac
• Pirates are focused on fan engagement first. Then move to marketing. #ssac
• Sports and social media should be a marketer’s dream. @jeffma #ssac
• Reminder for teams: Having a Twitter account and Facebook fan page is not a social media strategy. @jeffma #ssac
• RT @Ron_Wechsler: @darrenrovell1 says if his tweets are not RT’d, then tweet is a “failure”. Tweets should “further the conversation” #ssac
• Sitting next to guy in Red Sox cap. No fisticuffs have ensued. Yet. #justkidding #sortof #ssac
• Guy in red sox cap just left. Was it something I said? #ssac
• Attn @digitalroyalty: talking about random acts of Shaqness. #ssac
• Media consumption habits are changing. Marketers must embrace it. Be a part of the conversation. @jeffma #ssac
• RT @NHLdilo: @darrenrovell1 “marketers are patting themselves on the back for being on Twitter and being reactive. Have to be proactive.”
• RT @jasoncfry: @jeffma says cos that want to embrace social media have to take chances. Agree. Too much control guarantees boredom. #ssac
• P.S. If you didn’t already know, @jeffma is super smart and totally gets it. #thatisall #ssac
• Social media is not a fad. This is how people will communicate. @jeffma #ssac
• RT @jonahkeri: Q: “If the Pirates develop a great Twitterer, how will the Pirates prevent a big-market team from picking him off?” #ssac
• On the road, scoreboard watching is key. MLB At Bat Is greatest invention for this. @darrenrovell1. #ssac

Alternative Storytelling: Future of Sports Journalism

• Future of Sports Journalism panel: Henry Abbott of @truehoop @danshanoff @rfking @jasoncfry @howardbeckNYT #ssac
• Twitter at the opening of NFL free agent period at 12:01 am was “bananas.” @rfking #ssac
• What’s absent at that moment on Twitter in real time is the editor. @rfking #ssac
• Instant reader reaction on Twitter is remarkable. @HowardBeckNYT #ssac
• “If the news is really important, it will find me” is a key concept to keep in mind. @jasoncfry #ssac
• Henry Abbott: Having a blog is like having an obnoxious coach yelling at you with criticism immediately during practice. #ssac
• Plug by @rfking for ESPN’s new Section 140, real time comments like a live game experience. How did I not know about this? #ssac
• It’s not about the 140 characters, it’s about the content and the level of authority. @rfking #ssac
• This is the greatest time ever for a sports fan who wants to read and get all sorts of info. @jasoncfry #ssac
• Where does analytics fit in? Lots of opportunities to build it into journalism whether writer, editor, blogger. #ssac
• By analytics, we’re talking about page views, SEO, google trends, etc. How to use that info? #ssac
• Athletes who tweet: tweets aren’t always really from the athletes. Don’t be naïve. @rfking #ssac
• People are always going to do stupid stuff. “Stef Marbury and Vaseline? What?” @rfking #ssac
• Big question: is the game story dead? Read @jasoncfry’s blog post on it at sportsjournalism.org. #ssac
• Pay wall: what is the value proposition for what’s behind the wall? Apple is very good at getting us to pay $1. @rfking #ssac
• RT @blazersedge: “The game story is not dead. The game story is evolving.” — @howardbecknyt #ssac
• Yes I just quoted Dumb and Dumber at the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference. Win! #ssac
• Link included. Thanks! RT @The_Real_LLC Is the game story dead? http://bit.ly/c7rUN8 from @jasoncfry #ssac
• RT @AmyKNelson Sloan sports conf extremely impressive. Understatement to say how many smart people thinking @ sports in diff ways. #ssac

This was a tough Super Bowl for me. Consider all the factors in play: I was rooting with all my heart for the Saints. I’m a Twitter addict. And I had friends over for my 9th annual Super Bowl Soiree. So, to tweet or not to tweet: that was the question.

At first I decided that I would not be active on Twitter during the game, since, you know, I had actual human beings at my apartment with whom I could talk. And during most of the first half of the game (which wasn’t that exciting), I managed to stay off of Twitter.

But as the game got really good in the second half, starting with the Greatest and Gutsiest Onside Kick Call Ever In the History of the Super Bowl and ending with The Pick that Broke Twitter, I realized I had to jump back into the Twitterverse. I mean, the Super Bowl is, well, like the Super Bowl. For Twitter!

The Pick That Broke Twitter (photo from US Presswire via Yahoo Sports)

Now that I’ve had almost a day to reflect on it, I stand by my initial reaction: “Seriously, what a win. What a game. What an ending. Who dat could have asked for anything more? Instant classic.” I’m still stunned that Peyton Manning – the Peyton Manning – threw a pick 6 to decide the game. One of my good Twitter friends, Dana Wagner, asked me (on Twitter) if the Saints’ pick of Peyton was better or worse than their pick of Favre two weeks ago in the NFC Championship game. I answered that with Favre, it was expected, almost comical, with Peyton, it was stunning.

Saints’ coach Sean Payton (it’s Payton, with an A people), called a fantastic game. When it was clear that the Colts wouldn’t allow Brees to go downfield, they switched to a dink/dunk/screen strategy, which worked beautifully. The Saints defense was solid and made the big plays when it needed to. And Garrett Hartley established himself as one of the top kickers in the league with his performance. Given the lackluster kicking performances we saw throughout the regular season and the playoffs, Hartley stood out because he wants the chance to kick in the big situations. You want that in your kicker.

But really, it was all about Peyton Manning leading the Colts down the field for what we all assumed would be a game-tying touchdown, when suddenly, out of nowhere, came the pick. The pick six to put the game out of reach. To send a city and its fans to heaven. To send me into near cardiac arrest.

What follows is my Tale of the Tweets from the game, with some other awesome tweets thrown in for good measure. I couldn’t possibly do a compilation of all the #SB44 tweets from the game. It was insanity. The Twitterpocalypse had arrived.

Super Bowl Tale of the Tweets

Who Dat until further notice.

What is up with all the men without pants? #SB44

#SB44 RT @heathr: Is this many people rooting for the Saints making them play like the Vikings? #Superbowl (via @dwag29)

Dammit AT&T! Stop crapping out on me when I’m trying to live-tweet! #SB44 (via @dwag29)

Whoa. A Lance Moore sighting??? #SB44

I think I speak for everybody here when I say: “Effffffffffffffff.” #SB44 [after failed 4th and goal]

Inspired by #SB44 ads about pussy men, showed my friends the Sam Bee, “Attn: middle aged vagina men, sack the f*ck up” piece from TDS.

Who Dat gonna call an onside kick!!!!!! Woooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!! #SB44

Touchdowwwwwwwwn dance! #whodatsaydeygonnastopdemSAINTS #sb44 (via @dwag29)

RT @elsaul: Introducing… The Caldwell Face.

Abitas all around!!!!!!!!!!! #whodat #SB44

TY, Captain Obvious. RT @SportsCenter: Onside kick was gutsy but shifted the momentum towards Saints. Up to Manning to settle down & score. (via @dwag29)

Garrett Hartley is going to be making many babies tonight. #sb44 (via @dwag29)

Everybody agrees that Google ad wins the day so far. #brandbowl #SB44

My hex powers continue to work on opposing kickers!!!! #whodat #SB44

Mixed reaction in the room after Shockey TD. #bittergiantsfans #SB44

And 2 pt conversion! #whodat RT @elsaul: Touchdown! http://twitpic.com/11zxie

Interception Dance!!!!! #gameover #WHODAT (via @dwag29)

I think my heart just stopped. #omfg #picksix #SB44

And welcome back the Peyton Manning Face! #SB44

Twitter jinx!!!! RT @catelinp: There’s the Peyton Manning face!

Is this really happening? Laissez les bon temps roulez!!! #whodat #SB44

I wish I were in NOLA right now. #sb44 (via @dwag29)

Twitter died. Congrats Saints! #whodat #sb44

Post-game celebration Chez Rykoff #whodat http://flic.kr/p/7BuBD3

I’m going to watch the Peyton Manning pick six 753 times before I go to sleep tonight.

Congrats to Mark Brunell, Super Bowl Champion! #thingsineverthoughtidtype

MVT: Most Valuable Tweet

The greatest tweet of all came from ESPN’s Jorge Arangure, who posted this gem following Tracy Porter’s game-icing pick 6:

Hey I’m sure when Peyton Manning was growing up he always wanted to throw the TD pass that gave the Saints a Super Bowl win. Now he has.

Not much more I can say after that winner. Well, except maybe one last Who Dat!

This is a shot of the Saints taking the field at the Superdome on December 31, 2006. I was there. Sitting at the 50 yard line (yeah, I got lucky with great seats).

I love New Orleans. This April, I’m going to Jazz Fest, which will mark my 7th trip to the Big Easy. Two Final Fours. Three Jazz Fests. One wedding. One New Year’s/post-Katrina volunteering trip.

In other words, I cannot be objective about this game. I’m not going to break down the pros and cons, the game plans, the schemes. I’m rooting for the Saints. Pure and simple. If you really want a prediction, I say the Colts win the game. And it would not surprise me if it was a shoot-out in the 35-31 range.

But I’m not concerned about that. I’m cheering with all my heart for the Saints. For the city of New Orleans. For my friends who live there. For my friends who love the city. For everybody who wants this great story of rebirth to continue.

The game has already made the city a winner this weekend. Hotels are at capacity, bars are packed. People from all over have descended upon the city to watch the game. The mayor has already promised a parade for the team, win or lose. Isn’t that what this is about? I say yes. For once this isn’t just about the game on the field. It’s about the impact of a team off the field.

So, I’m going to enjoy this game and I hope you do too. Even if you’re rooting for the Colts. Who Dat!

POST GAME QUICK TAKE:

I’ve never been so happy to be wrong about a prediction. Which is why I didn’t want to make one. But I did say the Saints would score 31.

Seriously, what a win. What a game. What an ending. Who dat could have asked for anything more? Instant classic.

OCD Chick’s Conference Championship Breakdown and Picks

It’s here! Conference Championship weekend is here! And the Jets – the J-E-T-S Jets Jets Jets!!!! – are in the AFC Championship game. If you had told me that a month ago and given me 20-1 odds, I probably would have laughed and walked away. And lost that money at the blackjack table. Not that I gamble. Heavens no. Whatever gave you that idea?

So here we are with some extremely compelling story lines for the weekend’s match-ups:

In the AFC, we have the upstart upset-minded Jets with the rookie quarterback and rookie coach against the Colts, the team with the MVP, but that lay down in Week 16, thus paving the way for the Jets’ improbable playoff run. Me thinks the football gods are smiling here. Oh, and they also have a rookie coach, but nobody seems to really be talking about Joe, I mean, John, I mean, Jack, oh what’s his name, Jim, that’s right, Caldwell.

In the NFC, we have the New Orleans Saints, one of five NFL franchises who have never been to the Super Bowl, led by QB Drew Brees, who really defies description at this point. They also have a breakout guy named Reggie Bush, who seemingly came out of nowhere last week for the game of his life last week. Wonder where they found him. The Saints are hosting the first NFC championship game in Super Dome history against the Minnesota Vikings, led by He Who Shall Not Be Named.  Fox is absolutely salivating at this game.

Let’s get to the breakdown and picks, shall we?

AFC Championship: New York Jets at Indianapolis Colts

J-E-T-S Jets Jets Jets!

• Yes, the Colts are coming off a shellacking of the Ravens. Yes, the Colts are at home. Yes, the Colts are everybody’s favorite to go to the Super Bowl.
• But I’m sticking with the recipe of great defense and great rushing. The Jets have both. The Colts do not. Period. End of story. I said last week (and the week before) that great rushing and defense wins playoff games on the road. I’ll say it again.
• Is Peyton Manning better than Mark Sanchez? Of course he is. That's not the point. And that's not the right question. The Jets' schemes will contain and frustrate Peyton Manning. And the Colts' rushing game is mediocre at best.
• I still don’t like the Colts’ lying down the last two weeks (including one against the Jets) and the football gods will punish them. I keep waiting for the football gods to exact their revenge. This week seems pretty good to me.
• Also we know that Indy’s home field advantage is diminished since they moved to the new dome.
• Revis contains Wayne. I am worried about Dallas Clark. If the Colts win, Clark will have a huge day.
• For entertainment purposes only: With the Colts favored by a way-too-high 8.5 points, I do like the Jets to cover even if they don’t win outright.
• I'm not even going to touch the whole 1969 rematch thing. That's being covered elsewhere.
• Hint: this analysis was pretty much exactly the same as last week's against the Chargers. Just replace "Chargers" with "Colts" "Jackson" with "Wayne" and "Antonio Gates" with "Dallas Clark."

OCD Chick's Pick:  Jets over Colts

NFC Championship: Minnesota Vikings at New Orleans Saints

• It's really hard for me to be objective here. I love New Orleans. In fact, you could say that I'm sort of obsessed. It's my favorite city in the U.S. I'm going to Jazz Fest for the third straight year and it will mark my 7th trip there. I've seen two Final Fours at the Super Dome and an actual Saints game. I've been to two Hornets playoff games. I volunteered in 2005 after Katrina. In other words, I'm THISCLOSE to getting a tattoo of "Who Dat".
  

  Who Dat!

• And my thoughts on He Who Shall Not Be Named are pretty well known at this point.
• But I believe this game will come down to home field advantage. Both teams have big-play capability, but the Saints are at home, and the crowd's insanity will be a real factor.
• It will be so loud there that Favre will be rattled. I'm predicting at least 4 false starts for the Vikings and a number of busted plays. Favre will make mistakes, and he'll throw at least one really bad interception (would a pick six to former Packer and Viking Darren Sharper be too much to ask?)
• Minnesota's defense had a fantastic day against Tony Romo and the Cowboys last week, and they are a solid unit. But I believe the same advantage the Minnesota D had last week will be enjoyed by the Saints' D this week: crowd noise.
• I issued this warning last week: takeaways can disappear. Saints had 26 takeaways this season, 3rd in NFL. But I think they force a few turnovers against the Vikings.
• Minnesota actually has a better chance of winning if they take the ball out of Favre's hands and give it to Adrian Peterson. But this is Favre's team now, for good or ill.
• BTW, if the Vikings win, I may not be able to watch any sports coverage until the day of the Super Bowl.
• I'll leave you with one final thought: Who Dat!!!!

OCD Chick's Pick: Saints over Vikings

Enjoy the games!  See you in two weeks for the Super Bowl.

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