Talent disparity

Basketball has a way of allowing differing skills to cancel each other out.  If you are smaller and quicker you can take your opponents outside and drive around them or get an open shot.  If you’re bigger you can simply camp inside and rebound and make easy buckets.  We saw on Big Monday what happens when players are bigger and stronger and still quicker.  KU not only had few to several inches at every position on the floor but also had more athleticism than the Tigers.  A lot of people will spend the next few days talking about how bad the Tigers are.  I’m not sure they are that bad….Kansas is just that good.

Collins quiet

One person who did not enjoy an easy game was pre-season All American Sherron Collins.  6 points on 2-11 shooting (including 0-4 from three), 4 turnovers and just 2 assists is not the line you’d expect in an easy Jayhawk victory.  He appeared at times to be the only KU player that didn’t understand what the team was trying to do against the Tigers.

Rock Chalk Chant

One of the best traditions in college basketball is the Rock Chalk Chant.  One question…why didn’t the students start it when the second half started?  Talk about rubbing it in to your rival…20 solid minutes of rock chalk.

A Snapshot

Brett Favre’s last pass as a Packer was an interception a few years ago in an NFC Championship Game loss to the Giants.  Many wondered if that would be his last pass ever. He flirted with retirement twice and ended up back in the NFC Championship with the Vikings.  His last pass in that game?  Another interception.  We will have to wait and see if Favre will take the hint this time.  If Sunday was his final game it will be the perfect summation of his career.  Favre showed his durability and toughness in the game, set a few records and made some incredible throws but also ended up trying to make a play when it wasn’t there and may have cost his team a Super Bowl appearance.  The good and ugly of Favre.

Numbing Consistency

In the other conference championship game Peyton Manning did what he always does.  He excels in a boring way.  Manning doesn’t scramble around like Favre or sling one off his back foot 40 yards downfield.  He simply dissects his opponent.  At one point in the first half I thought to myself that Peyton wasn’t playing very well.  He was missing receivers, nearly got picked off a few times and was trailing at the half.  Oh yeah.  He ended up 26-39 for 377 yards and 3 TDs.  Those passes that missed his receivers also missed the Jets and by not turning the ball over Manning game himself and his team time to figure out the Jets defense and dominate a second half.  A Super Bowl win in a few weeks makes it easier to argue that he’s the best ever.