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Vanderbilt
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Sat 09/04 | 6:30 PM CDT |
| Illinois St. | Sat 09/11 | 11:00 AM CDT |
| @ Rice | Sat 09/18 | 6:00 PM CDT |
| Central Michigan | Sat 09/25 | TBA |
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Minnesota
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Sat 10/02 | 11:00 AM CDT |
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Purdue
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Sat 10/09 | 6:30 PM CDT |
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Michigan St.
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Sat 10/23 | 11:00 AM CDT |
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Indiana
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Sat 10/30 | TBA |
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Penn St.
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Sat 11/06 | TBA |
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Iowa
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Sat 11/13 | TBA |
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Illinois
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Sat 11/20 | 2:30 PM CST |
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Wisconsin
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Sat 11/27 | TBA |
Wildcats Basketball Schedule
Last 5 Games
| @ Rhode Island | Wed 03/17 | L 64 - 76 |
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Purdue
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Fri 03/12 | L 61 - 69 |
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Indiana
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Thu 03/11 | W 73 - 58 |
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@
Indiana
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Sat 03/06 | L 80 - 88 |
| Chicago St. | Wed 03/03 | W 72 - 49 |
"Kick in the 'Dore Wavin the Four-Four" - The Notorious B.I.G.
by Rodger Sherman on Sep 3, 2010 9:40 AM CDT
in Northwestern Wildcats Football
0 comments
It's been a couple hundred days since there was last a football game involving Northwestern. That's all about to change, I think, so, time to do some predictin... AFTER THE JUMP! (Yeah, I've decided to get rid of even the pretense that there are interesting things before the jump.)
Sherrick McManis Memorial Picks, Week One
by Rodger Sherman on Sep 2, 2010 3:31 PM CDT
in Northwestern Wildcats Football
5 comments
Welcome to this year of the newly-renamed Sherrick McManis memorial picks - where I tell you who I think is going to win, so you can rip me off for our pick em league which I have every intention in the world of winning. (In the future I might consider asking whoever is currently winning to make the picks for the week - we'll see if people are down for that.)
For those of you who need a refresher, we have picks (not against the spread), mascot fights, and when the time calls for it, my wild guesses as to what the team name of the out-of-conference opponent is. Unfortunately, we don't need that this week - I'm 11-0 in my ability to know the name of the opposing school's mascot this week.
Picks.... after the jump! (and feel free to jump in and say whatever you feel like.)
NEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRDS: A Few Quick Questions for Anchor of Gold
by Rodger Sherman on Sep 2, 2010 1:20 PM CDT
in Northwestern Wildcats Football
1 comment
I like asking opposing bloggers questions. It is easier than writing posts myself. So I e-sat down with my SB Nation counterpart, KingJamesIV from Anchor of Gold.
What's a good season for Vanderbilt? And is a victory over Northwestern necessary to achieve that?
Our schedule is pretty brutal this season: Northwestern, LSU, @Ole Miss, @UConn, Eastern Michigan (YAY!), @Georgia, South Carolina, @Arkansas, Florida, @Kentucky, Tennessee, Wake Forest (Phil Steele ranked it as the 12th toughest overall). Considering we were a pathetic 2-10 last season (0-8 in conference), I think a reasonable goal would be to try not to finish last in the SEC East. Certainly the more wins the better and I think a win over Northwestern would have to be considered a quality one for VU. Let me put it this way: I think winning vs. Northwestern does more to help us have a great season than losing would to ensure we have a terrible season.
Say Warren Norman can't play, or can only play in a limited role, on Saturday. Tell me someone/something else Northwestern should be scared about on offense for Vanderbilt.
I'd say one of our RBs. Running Back has to be our deepest position. So, after Warren Norman we've got So. Zac Stacy (who had originally beaten out Norman last season for the starting assignment, only to have a nagging leg injury slow him down), Kennard Reeves and Wesley Tate (Golden Tate's younger brother).
We do have quite the unknown in our receiving corps this season. Last year we were woefully thin, thanks to the ineligibility of Terence Jeffers-Harris (who at one point was leading the CFL in receiving as a rookie). Losing TJH was a major blow last season. Without him, all it was going to take was an injury or two and we were going to be extremely reliant on the run. As has been the case with Vanderbilt football for the majority of the last 60 years, fate was not on our side. Justin Wheeler was lost for the season immediately thereafter and then nagging injuries effectively eliminated our downfield threat. This season we have a number of true freshman that specifically chose to come to Vanderbilt to take advantage of an immediate opportunity to play. 5-11 speedster Jonathan Krause, 6-3 Jordan Matthews (VU Hype alert: cousin of Jerry Rice!), and 6-4 Chris Boyd. I'm praying Earl Bennett 2.0 emerges from that set.
Just because I'm curious: Northwestern and Vanderbilt are both small, private schools dealing with bigger opponents - does Vandy have the same issues drawing football and basketball fans with Tennessee and other big SEC schools around?
In football, yes. We not only have UT and MTSU (the largest college in TN by enrollment) in Nashville, but like Chicago Nashville dwarfs the populations of the locations of the other SEC schools. With that population increase comes a lot of diversity - we've got lots of fans from all 12 SEC schools that live here. Also, I'm sure that VU and Northwestern are similar in that both draw in more students from out of state than in state, thanks to our academic reputations. As such, the vast majority of our alumni leave to return home or head to NYC, LA, Chicago (especially if they played VU football), DC, etc. Big State U really pulls in a majority of their students from in state and have the local fanbases to show for it. Also, what the hell else is there to do in a Starkville, MS or a Fayetteville, AR but go to a college football game? Vandy competes with the Titans and the Predators, not to mention the countless other events held in major cities weekend after weekend. Basketball is a different story for Vandy. It certainly isn't quite as good as it used to be, when Vanderbilt basketball was sold out and it was a packed house all season. They've come close to selling out of season tickets the last few years, though most non-conference games are a few thousand fans short of the 14,000+ capacity of Memorial Gym. Once the SEC slate starts, the gym is full. Memorial Gym is perhaps the most unique gym in college basketball thanks to it's design with the floor raised and the benches on the endline, almost beneath the goal, as opposed to the sideline. If you can get a ticket to a VU-UK, -UF, or -UT game at Memorial, do it just once.
We have similar fanbases and similar levels of historical success, which leads me to wonder: How do nerds celebrate a bowl win? Should we begin barricading the streets in Evanston in preparation?
I was fortunate enough to attend the Music City Bowl (that's what happens when you play a bowl game in your home town) in 2008 when Vanderbilt upset Boston College. There was a lot of excitement for sure, but it was extremely tame compared to what you see from time to time. That's not to say that I haven't seen the students celebrate a victory with a true gusto. There was the time when I was a student where we went on a ridiculously long, multi-season conference losing streak. When we finally beat someone (Kentucky, I think), the students rushed the field and ripped down the goal posts and paraded them through campus. The Vanderbilt administration were good sports about it and even had campus maintenance slice the posts into discs so that all the students could have a piece.
Bottom line: if you want overturned cars and lots of burning, it's probably going to have to be organized in advance.
Any predictions for Saturday? As I always tell opposing bloggers, anything you say can and will be jinxed against you.
I literally have no idea what to expect. Vanderbilt's biggest issue and probably always will be is depth (probably the same for Northwestern). Of late, we've typically started seasons very well (4-0 in 2005 only to finish 5-6 and 5-0 in 2008 to finish 7-6 after the bowl win) only to see the physical toll of football leave it's mark as the season progresses. Even last season, VU opened with Western Carolina (i know, i know) and then nearly won at #11 LSU, before losing our right offensive tackle to a broken ankle midway through the game. I think the Vanderbilt team that starts out this season is going to be significantly different than the one that finished 2009 2-10. Yesterday the line was around VU +5.5. I'd settle for beating the spread. Vanderbilt always seems to beat the spread as an underdog. I'd obviously love to pull off the upset, but there's no way I'm betting on it.
Picks post later - for those of you wondering, slicetheposts.blogspot.com is still available.
Playing Creighton and Other Me Returning From a Trip Sips
by Rodger Sherman on Sep 2, 2010 12:44 AM CDT
in Sips
8 comments
A lot of stuff went down while I was away. I'm going to be honest: I haven't caught up to any of the other Northwestern blogs, I've just scanned around, so, if I'm repeating something you've read elsewhere, sorry.
- First, and most importantly: you have until Saturday afternoon to join the Sippin on Purple pickem league. It's just for Big Ten games, and doesn't include tonight's games to give you some warmup time. By my count, we now have 30 entries, but competition breeds skill. As noted, the prizes are as follows: a free post on whatever topic you like, and a Sippin on Purple DIY Purple Drank kit, featuring a bottle of Sprite and a bag of Jolly Ranchers. (Illicit drugs not included, nor do we condone the usage of them.) So sign up! I won't feel good about winning unless I beat a lot of you.
- The two-deep for the Vandy game came out. key points:
- Arby Fields was supposedly NU's starting running back, but, well, now he's listed as a co-starter with Jacob Schmidt and Stephen Simmons. The running back situation is brutal - I'm not sure if this is meant to instill competition, but I'd be much more comfortable giving certain guys trials in a starting role than giving a whole host of guys a few downs a game. This whole situation is unseemly.
- Venric Mark cracking the two-deep at wide receiver! Yeah buddy!
- Bryce McNaul beat out Ben Johnson for the starting spot at weak-side linebacker, meaning Ben Johnson is apparently relegated to backing up Quentin Davie - not sure if this is just the upshot of the injury to Roderick Goodlow or something permanent.
- Justan Vaughn is officially a starting corner.
- With David Arnold injured, Mike Bolden is out of the running at cornerback - he'll be backing up at safety, with Jeravin Matthews now looking likely to be somewhere in the cornerback game.
- Punt return is listed as Hunter Bates or Venric Mark. I picture Venric doing it, considering he's everybody's favorite person. Stephen Simmons and Scott Concannon are listed as the kick return guys - I can live with that. Stephen's our best returner, and Concannon's going to be as good a blocker as Jacob Schmidt, plus he's a bit faster.
- THERE'S A POSITION BATTLE AT LONG SNAPPER! THERE'S AN "OR" BETWEEN THE STARTER AND THE BACKUP! LONG SNAPPER CONTROVERSY IN EVANSTON! ALERT SPORTSCENTER!
- So that's our depth chart.
- New uniforms! We saw a photo of them - they look great. Sadly, they weren't wearing shoulder pads so you can't really enjoy the Northwestern stripes - it looks all baggy. I'm sure they'll look great in person on Saturday. (I'm rubbing it in at this point.)
- Basketball news! @Zachaaryperry alerted me (while I was on vacation) to the fact that Northwestern will play Creighton at home this season. We now know of three out-of-conference games: Creighton, and two out of St. John's, Davidson, and a third school at Madison Square Garden. I suspect we'll hear more soon - not shaping up badly, though, doesn't look like RPI murder like last year. (Sadly, Creighton star P'Allen Stinnett will not be with the Bluejays when they come to Welsh-Ryan. Pity, as I'm quite a fan.
- Also, the team is in Italy. You can read all the player blogs and game recaps on the NU website - sounds really, really, cool, and good to see that John Shurna is womping on lower-level Italian competition. (7-7 from three-point range? Jesus.) JerShon Cobb is having a rough patch, but he's just starting, and brought down seven boards in one game, so there's that.
- The division chatter has fallen, and I can only think of one thing... this whole thing greatly increases our pipe dream probability of one day smelling roses. Think: is it harder to be the best out of 12 teams? Or to be the best out of six, and then win one more game? Bring it on, Michigan, Nebraska, Iowa, Michigan State, and Minnesota.
- Charlie Goro needs some help in the Name of the Week poll. This makes me sad.
- With football season two days away, we've updated Coach Fitz's intense-o-meter: he is an 8.2, signifying the movie "Volcano" starring Tommy Lee Jones, Anne Heche, and Don Cheadle.
Northwestern's Division, 2011/2012 Schedules Released
by Rodger Sherman on Sep 1, 2010 6:42 PM CDT
in Northwestern Wildcats Football
11 comments
So it's official: Northwestern will be in an as-of-yet unnamed division with Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Iowa, and Nebraska.
- In our first two years, we'll skip Ohio State - meaning the class of 2013 will graduate college without ever having seen the Buckeyes play the Wildcats, which is a real shame for kids who love seeing their team lose violently in football. I certainly won't miss them - as I'll always say, Ohio State is the one school whose name I see and it makes my bowels loosen a bit, in both basketball and football. I've seen too many terrifying things happen to Northwestern teams in too little time.
- We'll also miss Purdue - the first time we'll have a season without them since they became our "permanent rival" - and Wisconsin, who were a pretty decent opponent to have if you ask me.
- The Illinois game appears to be protected, and will close the 2012 season.
- Northwestern's game against Rice next year, currently scheduled for November 26th, will have to be moved, most likely to November 12th - you'd have to assume NU will want the game in the middle of the cold winter Rice won't particularly be used to. No other non-con games will be affected.
- We'll travel to Nebraska in 2011 - they'll visit us in 2012.
- Northwestern will have two straight years with bye weeks in November, which is good for enemies of the cold.
The divisions are still as-of-yet unnamed - obviously, suggestions are welcome. (That's what the comments are for.)
AHHHHHHHHHHH BIG TEN DIVISIONS
by Rodger Sherman on Sep 1, 2010 4:00 PM CDT
in Northwestern Wildcats Football
17 comments
I leave town for a week and get back and this happens. Great.
Anyway, looks like we got Michigan, Nebraska, Michigan State, Iowa, and Minnesota, with Illinois our likely cross-rival.
First thought: everything works out pretty nicely: it's stupid that we're not in the same division as Illinois, but we still play them every year, and can't complain about the competitive balance in the division.
GO CRAZY.
Update, 4:53 PM: Be sure to check the SBNation pages on the topic: here's the storystream from the homesite, and here's a link that will be updated with all the stories from around the network. Not to toot our own collective horn, but with the fantastic Along the Olentangy now onboard, we have all 11 conference blogs, plus one for Nebraska, as well as Off-Tackle Empire for the whole conference. So there will be lots of discussion on those... 13 sites. Damn.
Consider this your open thread for the revelation show. THE DECISION.
Name of the Week: Vanderbilt Edition
by Rodger Sherman on Sep 1, 2010 8:00 AM CDT
in Name of the Week
11 comments
IT'S BACK MOFOS! YES YES YES YES YES YES YES NAMES NAMES NAMES NAMES NAMES.
(As always, apologies to the Name of the Year blog. This isn't meant to be different or funnier than what they do, or even original - it's merely a way to tolerate the boredom of there being four days left until the next game - and giving us people to watch for on the opposing teams.)
We've waited through most of winter. Spring came, with its flowers and showers. Summer scorched our cities, from Ryan Field's brownish grass to my home in New York. Fall is dawning. And here we sit, a day before football season, three before Northwestern's first game. No sport, nothing on this green earth of ours brings the names better than American football. Each week brings us about 100 candidates, and I narrow them down to the best five, and you, the readers, find the best one.
Vanderbilt is a squad with some tremendous last names, but not much in the way of dramatic/poetic given names - a lot of smart dudes with families who knew how to spell things will do that. It's not the deepest name pool, but it'll get us started. First, let's look at who didn't make the cut: wide receiver Andre Hal (double first names always work,), quarterback Jared Funk (if only his first name was more interesting than "Jared" this could've been a competitor), defensive end Theron Kadri, linebacker Fitz Lassing (very, very tempting to put a guy named "Fitz" in the field - couldn't do it) and linebacker Tristan Strong are this weeks runners up.
Now, onto the nominees:
#82, Jameson Sackey: Naming your child after the alcohol you were consuming when they were conceived is a long, storied tradition. And nothing makes a better name than Jameson Irish Whiskey. Furthermore, if you change the "whisk" to "sack", Jameson Irish Whiskey is called Jameson Irish Sackey, which is a great thing. If Sackey was a defensive end primarily involved with tackling the QB behind the line of scrimmage, otherwise known as "sacks", we'd have a winner here, but unfortunately, he's not. I would've appreciated a capitalized "O" a la former Chicago Bull JamesOn Curry, in which case his name might have been pronounced either "Jameson" or "James On". Also, sack is a funny word when said in a non-football contest.
Sackey is a junior walk-on wide receiver who hasn't yet played for Vandy - that likely won't change against Northwestern.
#4, Udom Umoh: Anybody whose initials are "UU" is an automatic shoe-in for a nomination. Also, his first name is very nearly a type of noodle. Umoh was born in Nigeria, which makes his appearance on a college football roster rather impressive.
Udom is a starting wide receiver, one of Vandy's best. He caught 20 passes for 267 yards last year, nabbing a touchdown for the Dores' only points against Ole Miss. He'll be in his starting role on Saturday.
#70, Justin Cabbagestalk: I'm genuinely surprised that "Cabbagestalk" is a real last name for a person and not like a troll or something. First of all, cabbages have stalks? Aren't they just like lettuce? Don't they just kinda grow out of the ground and just be there? Do cabbages really have stalks? Can you climb up them and reach a magical land inhabited by huge giants? The world will never know. Actually, I'm pretty sure many farmers do know, but I for one don't care. Anyway, Cabbagestalk is a pretty sweet compound word to have as your name, unless you don't like when bloggers mention that your name that sounds like a mythical, magical woodland creature from a Harry Potter book. If only his first name was something else magical, like Udom. Udom Cabbagestalk would be a winner.
Cabbagestalk is a backup redshirt freshman center who's never played - he'll probably do most of his stalking on the sidelines.
#59, Adam Smotherman: THE SMOTHERMAN. HE IS A MAN THAT SMOTHERS PEOPLE. AND HE PLAYS DEFENSIVE TACKLE. JESUS.. Another case if a nearly perfect last name that just needed a more awesome first name, like "SUFFOCATEGUY" or "MURDERBOY", because quite frankly, Adam doesn't work. Those would go well with a last name like Smotherman, as does playing defensive tackle, the most smothery position on the field.
Adam is a senior defensive tackle, measuring 6-foot-4 and 295 pounds. (Smother. Man.) He started 11 games as a junior and every game last year, notching 31 tackles - by all rights, he'll be starting up front on Saturday, attempting to smother Northwestern's running backs.
And Vanderbilt had a Secretary named Northwestern...
by Rodger Sherman on Aug 31, 2010 1:00 PM CDT
in Northwestern Wildcats Football
4 comments
You know that old wives tale list of coincidences between Kennedy and Lincoln? Well, Vanderbilt sports and Northwestern sports are eerily similar. Good thing we have to play them every year for the next four years in football. (Every year for the next four years? Jesus.)
Northwestern: Ranked No. 12 by the US News and World Report.
Vanderbilt: Ranked No. 17 by the US News and World Report.
Conclusion: We're both smart! NERD FIGHT! What weapon would you use first in a nerd fight? Calculator? Heavy book? I'd smash a graduated cylinder against a table like a beer bottle and come at my opponent threateningly, hoping he shatters his ultra-thick glasses backing off.
Northwestern: The only private school in the Big Ten.
Vanderbilt: The only private school in the SEC.
Conclusion: We're not just nerds, but rich nerds. Crap.
Northwestern: Has only 8,000 students, 12,000 less than the next smallest school in the conference.
Vanderbilt: Has only 6,000 students, 13,000 less than the next smallest school in the conference.
Conclusion: Numbers! Scary!
Northwestern: Has a 49,000 seat stadium - the smallest in the conference - but still never sells it out.
Vanderbilt: Has a 39,000 seat stadium - the smallest in the conference - but still never sells it out.
Conclusion: You see? Not that bad, Ryan Field.
Northwestern: Never won the Big Ten basketball title.
Vanderbilt: Never won the SEC football title.
Conclusion: We both really suck! I'd probably cut off a finger to be the one who was good at basketball and not the one who was occasionally good at football, though.
Northwestern: Currently mired in a 62-year-long bowl drought.
Vanderbilt: Ended a 53-year bowl drought after winning the 2008 Music City Bowl.
Conclusion: CRAP. I HATE THEM AND I HOPE BAD THINGS HAPPEN TO THEM.
Northwestern: If you ask somebody on the street in Chicago, they just might be a bigger fan of an orange-wearing state school than Northwestern.
Vanderbilt: If you ask somebody on the street in Nashville, they just might be a bigger fan of an orange-wearing state school than Northwestern.
Conclusion: Orange is a really ugly color.
Northwestern: The basketball coach at that orange-wearing state school is named Bruce.
Vanderbilt: The basketball coach at that orange-wearing state school is named Bruce.
Conclusion: I just threw this in even though it means absolutely nothing. You might find this fact intriguing if you just smoked up, but, why are you reading Northwestern sports blogs when you're high anyway?
So, I think I've made it pretty clear: THERE IS A CONSPIRACY THEORY AND THEY'RE OUT TO GET US. And we probably should play our creepily similar southern counterparts more often.
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