Blue-White Roundtable

Time for the traditional Wednesday Blue-White Roundtable. Run Up The Score has the questions this week. Go check him out along with The Nittany Line to see what they have to say. No wait. Read this first then go check them out. Or go read theirs, then come back here. Or...well...whatever.

Ed DeChellis' men's basketball team is 1-11 with four conference games remaining.  Is there any reason to hope they might get a win before getting flushed out of the Big Ten tournament?

I don't think so. All the teams we have left to play are in the top half of the Big Ten standings. Our best chances are against Illinois and Iowa at home, but I'm not optimistic.

We just don't have the depth to play in the Big Ten right now. We have Cornley and Claxton and that's it. Below average guard play, poor interior defense, and no spark off the bench will lose you a lot of games and that's the situation we're in right now. But beyond that, this team has just given up on the season. The players don't care anymore, and that is the fault of the coaches.

Outside of alcohol, what is your must-have tailgate food item?

Oh man. We don't have one thing that shows up every week. Once a year PSUncle1981 smokes us a turkey. Last year we shared it with a gang of six Michigan guys who came to Happy Valley in a rental car. Their tailgate party consisted of a case of Naty Light, a bottle of Jim Beam and a bag of Doritos. By 4 PM they were starving and we felt sorry for them. Other than that our buddy Kling likes to cook up some spam and egg breakfast sandwiches for the early games. Goes well with Captain and Coke.

Reports are that redshirt quarterback Brent Brackett has officially been moved to tight end?  Is this the beginning of a dedicated 2-TE system for Penn State, similar to what the Colts employ?

I don't think so, although you may see more of it. I think he will play a TE/WR hybrid. He introduced himself at THON as a wide receiver. Really I think this is just a case of roster management rather than switching to a new offensive scheme. Things were crowded at quarterback with six on the roster. It's no secret the coaches have coveted a big wide receiver that can outphysical (Shout out, JB!) their opponent ever since Joe realized those freakishly big receivers Michigan always gets weren't actually magnified by his coke bottle glasses. Brackett's size (6'6" 235 lbs) will make him a big target down field. It's going to be scary seeing him and Quarless on the field at the same time. Well, scary if you're a 5'11" 210 lb safety that is.

Which Big Ten teams will survive the bubble and work their way into the NCAA tournament?

Wisconsin, Ohio State, and Indiana are definitely in. Illinois should end up with 21 wins and make it ok. Michigan State will have to play their way in yet. They are at 19 wins with four games to go. Two of those games are against Wisconsin and one is against Indiana. Win two out of four and I think they are in. Beat Wisconsin once and lose the other three and I think they still get in.

I think Iowa, Michigan, and Purdue are all NIT bound this year.

The New Rules are here!  They obviously listened to my kickoff request.  Does this fix everything, or is there still room for improvement?

It's a good move, but there is more they can do. I don't like limiting the review to two minutes. What if there are technical problems? What if he wants to take another look? I would prefer they take their time and get the call right. Can you imagine the outcry if they blow a call, go to review and still blow it because the two minutes are up? Are they going to halt the game and still get it wrong? I think a better solution is to limit the number of reviews. How many plays did they review in the Outback Bowl? Seemed like half a dozen or so. I would prefer they go to the NFL style where each coach gets one challenge per half. If they get it right they get another one. Get it wrong you lose a timeout. I think that has worked really well for the NFL.

Here's another idea. Cut the number of commercials. Unfortunately, I don't see this happen. In fact, I think we'll see more Home Depot signs in the corner of the screen and superimposed on the playing field than ever before this year. Thanks a bunch, CBS.

Lightning Round

Charles Barkley outran 67 year old NBA official Dick Bavetta during All-Star Saturday. If Joe Paterno was 10 years younger, does he beat both of them?

Ten years ago before the knee injury Paterno kills them. If they raced today Paterno would have to stop half way through for a scotch and a nap.

Big Ten tournament winner in men's hoops?

Wisconsin. They are more consistent and play better team ball than Ohio State.

Sneaky pick for a March Madness champion?

Ah hell, I don't know. The Washington Generals. No? How about North Carolina.