CFB Week 2 “Previews”

As we have already established, a favorite MegaBracket pastime is to “preview” upcoming events with a plethora of random information. The college football season is no different as the sheer number of games played each week allows us to pick games at random and learn a little more about the colleges, players, coaches, and towns involved. Several different MB members contribute throughout the season with previews of their own. Each week’s collation will be published in one easy-to-find post.

[Ed. Note: If you would like to add your own contribution, simply e-mail it in and we will include it in the appropriate week’s previews.]

Iowa Western @ Trinity Valley – Saturday, September 8 @ 3:00 pm CDT

Author: Ryan

Mascots

Iowa Western – Reivers.  According to the school website, the simple answer is that a Reiver is a River Pirate.  Apparently there used to be River Pirates on the Missouri River, and when some random student suggested the name it was voted on and became the official mascot.  Their logo and actual physical mascot is a pirate with an eye patch and earings, as even on the river losing an eye is a pirate staple.

Trinity Valley – Cardinals.  Not a lot of history on their site, so I’m going to assume someone just picked a bird at random and it stuck for their mascot.

Advantage – Reivers.  They had me at River Pirate.

Coaching Staff (Most Awesome Member)

Iowa Western – Tie between OL Coach Dane Uperesa and DL Coach Richard Glover Jr.  Uperesa is a former University of Hawaii star and member of both the Colts and Bengals practice squads.  Apparently his wife is in dental school at Creighton so he ended up in the Omaha area, which has to be fascinating for him.  Glover is the son of former Nebraska star Rich Glover, winner of the 1972 Outland and Lombardi awards.  He was selected as a starting DT in SI’s NCAA All-Century Team in 1999.  Lil’ Rich Jr. played college ball at New Mexico State and had a brief stint with Tampa Bay in the NFL.  Also, please check out Head Coach Scott Strohmeier’s Senior Photo – http://www.goreivers.com/sports/coaches.asp?sport=football.

Trinity Valley – J Pond.  J is a former Offensive Lineman at Texas A&M who according to T Valley still holds a number of lifting records at the school.  Also, his name is J.

Advantage – Iowa Western.  That was just too much for J to overcome.

Best Player Names

Iowa Western – Tie between Sophomore Punter Carr Terpstra and Freshman WR Geronimo Allison.  Sadly the Iowa Western site is very bad at player photos.

Trinity Valley – After finally finding a roster in the “In the News” section, I have to go with Fresham OL Danie Sweet, who just sounds adorable.

Advantage – Trinity Valley, because I don’t want to make Danie Sweet sad.

Locations

Iowa Western – Council Bluffs, IA.  Affectionately known as The ‘Tuck for its similarity to all things Kentucky, this lovely riverside village has been shunned by the rest of its state, as well as its neighbors across the river in Omaha.  Named for the 1804 meeting between the Lewis & Clark Expedition with the Otoe tribe, when The Council Bluffs became the name for the land on both sides of the Missouri River north of the mouth of the Platte River.  For a while the actual town was named Kanesville, named for benefactor Thomas L. Kane who helped negotiate for Mormons to use the land adjacent to the Missouri River as a winter encampment.  Eventually the Gold Rush happened and the majority of the Mormon community left to Utah.  After which, the town was renamed Council Bluffs.  As many of us know (although not that it had this name), CB is home to Casino Row, where drunk Nebraskans pour money into the Iowa economy.  The city’s mascot is the black squirrel.  A few notable residents include John McCain’s father, a former Navy Admiral, and David Yost, Billy the Blue Power Ranger.

Trinity Valley – TV actually has campuses in Athens, Kaufman, Palestine and Terrell, TX, but the athletic department address is in Athens, so that’s what we are going with.  I’m gonna go out on a limb and assume they were named for another famous Athens, maybe that one in Georgia?  Athens has a solid food history, with a claim to the creation of the first hamburger.  John Murchison created the sandwich, not named hamburger at the time, in the late 1880s at his lunch counter.  Other food notes, Bonnie and Clyde frequented a café next to the County Courthouse in Athens, and the Athens Dairy Queen was used as a design example for DQs across the country.  Athens is also called “The Black Eyed Pea Capital of the World”.

Advantage – I’m guessing Athens has a lot on CB, but hamburgers and DQ are enough to win this one. Trinity Valley.

Notable Alumni

Iowa Western – Not a lot to find for either team, other than former football players.  The team has only been around since 2009, but they have sent a couple guys to Iowa, Dan Heiar, Joe Audlehelm, Sean Skradis, Andrew Dawson, and Eric Simmons.  I’m not sure how much I can count Wegher as an alumni, but he was there for a time I guess.

Trinity Valley – With a much longer history, TV has put tons of guys in DI and many players in the NFL.  Some of the biggest names are Rock Cartwright, Ahtyba Rubin, Matt Bryant, and Hall of Famer John Randle.

Advantage – No competition here, Trinity Valley. Not enough time for Iowa Western to build up their football alumni base, and neither school has any other notable alumni listed.

Decision

Trinity with the big comeback late to take it 3-2.

SUNY Maritime @ Massachusetts Maritime Academy – Friday, September 7 @ 6:00 pm CDT

“Chowder Bowl”

Author: Bristol

Mascots

SUNY Maritime – Privateers.

Massachusetts Maritime Academy – Buccaneers.

Advantage – Buccaneers. Not surprisingly, both mascots are related to the sea. Sadly, I was unable to locate any pictures of costumed mascots. SUNY Maritime’s logo is an old, old wooden ship (named “Diversity” I believe) while MMA’s logo is of a bearded, burly pirate holding a sword and shaking his fist at some unseen enemy. Or perhaps at whoever applied all that mascara. Nevertheless, a slightly effeminate Blackbeard still beats a ship.

Coaching Staff (Most Awesome Member)

SUNY Maritime – Offensive Coordinator Ed Gardella. Coach Gardella begins his first season as offensive coordinator of the Privateers’ triple option offense. Gardella spent more than 30 years as a high school coach in the tri-state area, coaching future NFL players Ramon Guzman, Sam Garnes and Dequan Mobley. His future is so bright, he has to wear shades.

Massachusetts Maritime Academy Ed Borden. No biographical information on the MMA coaches page, just awkward-looking pictures of the coaches wearing shirts and ties. However, Coach Borden appears to be wearing a shirt that is too long, a tie that is too short and probably no pants.

Advantage – MMA. No pants always beats sunglasses.

Best Player Names

SUNY Maritime – Chrisrichard Jean-Baptiste. One first name and one last name are simply not enough. Honorable mention to Bill Cosby’s long lost grandson Andrew.

Massachusetts Maritime Academy – David Yerxa. Not a while to choose from here. The academies also shot a hole in my best hair category from last week.

Advantage – Jean-Baptiste. Very disappointing category this time around.

Locations

SUNY Maritime – Throggs Neck, NY. This is a narrow spit of land in the southeastern portion of the Bronx that demarcates the passage between the East River and Long Island Sound. The peninsula was named Vriedelandt, “Land of Peace” by the Dutch. The British attempted to land there in 1776 but were repealed by George Washington and his troops. The movies Awakenings and The Departed were filmed in Throggs Neck.

Massachusetts Maritime Academy – Buzzard’s Bay, MA. Buzzards Bay was settled by Europeans in 1621 and named for the birds that circled the area. The “buzzards” were likely either turkey vultures or ospreys. Buzzards Bay is home to the National Marine Life Center, a marine animal hospital, science, and education center dedicated to rehabilitating stranded sea turtles, seals, dolphins, porpoises, and small whales.

Advantage – Tie. I simply cannot choose between Throggs Neck and Buzzards Bay. I can’t and won’t.

Notable Alumni

SUNY Maritime –Astronaut Scott Kelly; Kevin Mannix, the commander of the Blue Angels; Joseph Hazelwood, master of the Exxon Valdez (not sure I would put that in the promotional materials); and Geraldo Rivera, who attended for 3 years but did not graduate

Massachusetts Maritime Academy – Naval Commander Emory Rice, who rammed and sank a German U-boat while in command of a freighter in World War I; Captain Shane Murphy, the Chief Mate of the Maersk Alabama during the attempted hijacking in April of 2009.

Advantage – MMA. MMA has two guys who fought and defeated enemies at sea. SUNY Maritime has a guy responsible for one of the worst disasters in the history of the world. And the captain of the Exxon Valdez.

Decision

MMA takes this one 3-1-1.

 

Portland State @ North Dakota – Saturday, September 8 @ 6:05 pm CDT

“Potato Bowl USA”

The Potato Bowl USA is a weeklong festival teaming the University of North Dakota and the Red River Valley potato growing industry and was created in 1865. The week kicked off with Hugo’s Hidden Medallion Contest on Monday. The person who found the medallion won $1,200 worth of groceries from Hugo’s and four free tickets to the football game. Tonight is the World’s Largest French Fry Feed and Fireworks at University Park & Memorial Stadium in Grand Forks, ND. Don’t miss tomorrow night’s Potato Bowl Bash at Big D’s Bar & Grill featuring 80’s and 90’s rock band S.O.L.

Author: Bristol

Mascots:

Portland State – Vikings. Pictures of Victor E. Viking can be found here, here and here.

North Dakota – Fighting Sioux. The NCAA has demanded UND drops the nickname, deeming it offensive. The school and the NCAA have been in a legal battle for several years. Some members of Sioux tribes support the nickname while others want it removed. In other words, some people like it, some people hate it, and the government is telling everyone what to do. Kind of like everything else in life.

Advantage – Portland State.  Unless Leif Erickson’s descendants start suing Portland State, Victor E. Viking wins this one in a landslide.

Coaching Staff (Most Awesome Member)

Portland State – Tie – Run game coordinator/offensive line coach Brad Davis was a starting offensive lineman for the University of Oklahoma’s 2002 National Championship team and has coached at Southern University, Wayne State College, Doane College, Texas A&M, North Carolina & Portland State. Linebackers coach/recruiting coordinator Lester Towns was a team captain and All-Pac-10 linebacker at the University of Washington before playing seven seasons in the NFL for Carolina, Arizona and Miami. T0wns set the Carolina rookie tackles record in 2000 and played in Super Bowl XXXVIII.

Fun historical coaching fact – The Run & Shoot offense was first installed at Portland State by Mouse Davis in the 1970s. His QBs at the time were Neil Lomax, who went on to a long NFL career, and June Jones, who is still coaching the Run & Shoot (and zero defense) at SMU.

North Dakota – Cornerbacks coach Wes Nurse was a three-year starter at safety for Boise State and was named first team All-WAC honors and the Broncos’ Defensive MVP in 2003 when he was also a team captain. He has coached at Capital High School in Boise, Boise State, The Citadel, Houston & UC Davis.

Advantage – Portland State. A national champion and an NFL player outweigh Boise State’s defensive MVP from 2003. (Extra demerits for UND’s head coach having played at Iowa State.)

Best Player Names

Portland State – Tie – Henry Organ and Joey Esposito. His dad’s name is Joe Esposito, but not that Joe Esposito. Joey has overcome two bouts with cancer to continue his football career. Random fact – RB D.J. Adams played 2 years at Maryland, setting a school freshman record with 11 rushing TD’s in 2010, including 4 in the Military Bowl against East Carolina.

North Dakota – Conrad Schwarzkopf. Honorable mention goes to R.J. McGill’s bowtie.

Advantage – Portland State. Even if your dad isn’t the Joe Esposito, if your name is Joey Esposito, You’re the Best.

Location

Portland State – Portland, OR. Rose City is one of the most environmentally friendly cities in the world. The city is also known for its large number of microbreweries and microdistilleries as well as its food carts and coffee enthusiasm. It’s 40 breweries are more than any other city in the world. Being such a large city, it is the home of many awesome things: Paul Revere & the Raiders, Matt Groening, Sam Elliott, Sally Struthers, Beverly Cleary and the drafting of Greg Oden.

North Dakota – Grand Forks, ND. The Grand Cities include Grand Forks and its twin city, East Grand Forks, MN. The city lies in the flat region known as the Red River Valley and is prone to flooding with the extreme case being the devastating Red River Flood of 1997. The city was started in 1870 when Alexander Griggs’ steamboat froze in the Red River in late 1870. They spent the winter camping there and the community was incorporated within 11 years. Notable people from Grand Forks include the inventor of the block heater, Andrew Freeman, and Roger Maris.

Advantage – Portland State. This is getting to be a rout, but I’ve been to Portland and it’s gorgeous. Also, Sam Elliott’s mustache is from there.

Notable Alumni

Portland State – Jean M. Auel, author of The Clan of the Cave Bear; Carolyn Davidson, the creator of the swoosh; former NFL player Neil Lomax and Clint Didier; 2002 Miss America Katie Harman; Holly Madison from “The Girls Next Door”; Pitcher Jeff Lahti, a member of the 1982 World Series Champion Cardinals; late MLB player Steve Olin; and actress/singer Courtney Love, who attended but did not graduate.

North Dakota – Sally J. Smith, the current president and CEO of Buffalo Wild Wings (note to Sally – do something about the Moore restaurant, it’s average on it’s best day); essayist and journalist Chuck Klosterman; America’s Next Top Model winner Nicole Linkletter; former (and future?) NBA coach Phil Jackson; NFL player Jim Kleinsasser; and a slew of NHL players including Ed Belfour (btw, you can bid on an autographed Ed Belfour puck with proceeds benefiting the UND Athletic Department here – at $20 right now, it’s a steal!).

Advantage – North Dakota. A random collection of alumni, even by MegaBracket’s standards. However, 9-time NBA Champion coach Phil Jackson secures the win for North Dakota.

Decision

Phil Jackson avoids the shutout but Portland wins 4-1 in a romp.

 

Central Washington @ Simon Fraser  – Saturday, September 8 @ 4:00 pm CDT

Simon Fraser makes its home debut as the first international member of the NCAA.

Author: Bristol

Mascots

Central Washington – Wildcats, specifically Wellington P. Wildcat. Wellington has Facebook and Twitter. Well, sort of – he tweeted twice on October 6, 2009 and never since. Good work, Wellington! Also, Wellington hates the library.

Simon Fraser – Clan. This is not a racist-based nickname but rather a Scottish-based nickname. The physical mascot is a Scottish Terrier named McFogg the Dog. As you can see from his Facebook and Twitter pages, he is much more adept with social media than Wellington. He also had a great time at the SFU career fair in 2011.

Advantage – McFogg the Dog. Wellington is lucky I can’t award negative points.

Coaching Staff (Most Awesome Member)

Central Washington – Offensive line coach John Gariano. No biographical information is given, but no biographical information is needed.

Simon Fraser – Offensive Coordinator Jason Beck. Beck played QB at BYU, serving as the primary backup for John Beck (no relation) for 3 years. He has had coaching stops at BYU, LSU & Weber State before joining Simon Fraser. He also had an excellent picture while at BYU.

Advantage – Central Washington. Like many great pro wrestlers of the past, I bet Coach Gariano is from “parts unknown”. And if you can’t beat out John Beck you aren’t winning anything.

Best Player Names

Central Washington – Osayande Aikhionbare. Honorable mention to Josef Kistler‘s hair and happiness and Griffin Squires‘ disgusting goatee/beard/squirrel.

Simon Fraser – WR Keyon Slowly. Honorable mention to Bibake Uppal‘s beard and the fact that they have a QB from Finland on their roster.

Advantage – Central Washington. Whatever that thing is on Griffin Squires’ face terrifies me, so it wins.

Location

Central Washington – Ellensburg, WA. The county seat of Kittitas County is just east of the Cascade Range on Interstate 90. The city made a bid for the state capital in the late 19th century, losing out to Olympia. Ellenburg hosts the annual Winterhop Brewfest in January as well as Dachshunds on Parade. Current or former residents of Ellenburg include former NFL QB Drew Bledsoe, all four members of the grunge band Screaming Trees and actor Brian Thompson (Buffalo Bob from Joe Dirt).

Simon Fraser – Burnaby, BC. We already spotlighted the city of Burnaby when we learned about the Western Lacrosse Association. The biggest thing to recall is that Burnaby was where actor Michael J. Fox. grew up and attended high school.

Advantage – Simon Fraser. Drew Bledsoe, Buffalo Bob and lots of dachshunds cannot beat Michael J. Fox. Not now, not ever.

Notable Alumni

Central Washington – NFL QB John Kitna; basketball coach Dean Nicholson, who combined with his father Leo to win 1,114 games at CWU, the most by a father-son duo in college basketball history; Stephen L. Nelson, author of “Quicken for Dummies” and 150 other books in the series; Roland “Sandy” Wheeler, the inventor of the Bowflex; and actor Craig T. Nelson

Simon Fraser – Former Toronto Raptors head coach Jay Triano; Pakalitha Mosisili, the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Lesotho; professional lacrosse player Curtis Hodgson; and Francesco Aquilini, owner of the Vancouver Canucks

Advantage – Coach.

Decision

Michael J. Fox tied it at 2, but Craig T. Nelson unties it for a 3-2 Central Washington victory. That’s what superstars do, especially those with middle initials.

 


Getting to Know…IBL Playoffs

With the IBL Playoffs beginning on Thursday, it’s time to dole out some random (and completed unrelated to the games themselves) information with another installation of our (imaginary) award-winning Getting to Know series.

#1 Seed – Bellingham Slam

Location: Bellingham, WA (population: 80,885 as of 2010 census)

Nickname: City of Subdued Excitement. This might be the best motto ever – “We enjoy our city just fine, although it does not drive us to outward displays of excitement or joy. One time a guy tipped his hat to Bellingham, but we quickly drove him off to live somewhere where that kind of stuff is acceptable, like Walla Walla or Humptulips.” In case you are wondering (and I know you are), Humptulips is derived from a local Native American language and means either “hard to pole” or “chilly region”. Also, and I quote, “The name is seen as humorous for its sexual innuendos, as in the case of Lake Titicaca and Fucking, Austria.” In your endo.

Incorporated: 1904

Fun Fact #1: The first settlers arrived in 1854, but the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush of 1858 caused thousands of people to flood to area in search of riches. Additionally, coal was mined in the area for around 100 years until the Bellingham Bay Coal Company closed in 1955.

Fun Fact #2: The bay was named Bellingham Bay by George Vancouver (yes, that Vancouver) in the late-1790s, but there was no city of the same name until 1904. The cities of Whatcom and Fairhaven were merging, but could not agree on using either of the old names. Bellingham was proposed as the new name and won in a landslide vote.

Fun Fact #3: Bellingham is home to the Western Washington University Vikings, whose women’s rowing team claimed 7 consecutive Division II national titles from 2005 to 2011. Humboldt State ended the Vikings reign in 2012.

Fun Fact #4: The Bellingham area hosts an annual Ski to Sea race, a team relay race made up of seven legs: cross country skiing, downhill skiing (or snowboarding), running, road biking, canoeing (2 person – aka the Ryan & Doug portion of the race), mountain biking, and kayaking

Notable Bellinghamsters: (I want to move there so I can be a Bellinghamster, but I fear I will not be able to subdue my excitement if I do.) Actor and comedian Ryan Stiles (Whose Line is it Anyway?, Drew Carey Show); NFL QB Jake Locker; former NFL QB Doug Pederson; actress Hillary Swank; radio/television host Glenn Beck; the Hillside strangler Kenneth Bianchi; the Beltway snipers Lee Boyd Malvo and John Allen Muhammad. (I’m honestly not sure which of those last 3 are the worse. Probably Glenn Beck.)

 

(Likely) #2 Seed – Edmonton Energy

Location: Edmonton, Alberta (population: 812,201 as of 2011 census)

Nicknames: The Big E, The Chuck, Festival City

Motto: Industry, Integrity, Progress

Established: Fort Edmonton was established in 1795 as a major trading post for the Hudson’s Bay Company. The fort was named for Edmonton, London, an area in the east London borough on Enfield.

Fun Fact #1: The arrivals of the Canadian Pacific Railway and then Canadian Northern Railway accelerated growth in the area, with Edmonton earning city status in 1904.

Fun Fact #2: Blatchford Field in Edmonton became Canada’s first licensed airfield in 1929. The airfield is now known as Edmonton City Centre Airport and is still open, although the city is in the process of the closing it as all passenger services for more than 10 passengers now fly out of Edmonton International Airport.

Fun Fact #3: Edmonton is also home to largest mall in North America (What? Get your shit together, Mall of America!), West Edmonton Mall, which was the world’s largest mall from 1981 to 2004. In addition, Fort Edmonton Park is Canada’s largest living history museum. For a reference point, Mall of America has an area of 4.2 million square feet, while West Edmonton Mall is well over 6 million square feet.

Fun Fact #4: The University of Alberta, located in Edmonton, has one of the creepiest and most awesome mascots found anywhere.

Notable Edmontonians: Russ Bannock, Canada’s second-highest scoring ace of World War II; actor Tommy Chong; actress Rae Dawn Chong; actor Nathan Fillion (Two Guys, a Girl, and a Pizza Place); actor Michael J. Fox; singer and actor Robert Goulet; actor Leslie Nielsen; singer k. d. Lang; author W.P. Kinsella, who wrote Shoeless Joe, which became Field of Dreams; professional wrestler Chris Benoit; and lots of hockey players

 

(Likely) #3 Seed – Portland Chinooks

Location: Portland, OR (population: 583,776 as of 2010 census)

Nicknames: Rose City, Stumptown

Unofficial Nickname: Beervana, owing to the fact Portland has the most brewpubs per capita in the United States. Road trip!

Fun Fact #1: Portland is hailed as one of the most environmentally friendly cities in the world.

Fun Fact #2: In 1845, Asa Lovejoy of Boston and Francis Pettygrove of Portland, Maine, each owned half of the original 640 acres on which the city started. They each wanted to name the new town after their eastern hometown. The dispute was settled via a best-of-3 series of coin tosses, which Pettygrove (obviously) won. The coin used for the decision, now known as the Portland penny, is on display in the headquarters of the Oregon Historical Society.

Fun Fact #3: Portland is one of only three cities in the 48 contiguous states of the U.S. that has extinct volcanoes within its boundaries – Jackson, MS and Bend, OR are the others.

Fun Fact #4: Portland is home to both the largest wilderness park within city limits in the U.S. (Forest Park, more than 5,000 acres) and the world’s smallest park (Mill Ends Park, a two-foot diameter circle).

Fun Fact #5: Major beer and brewing festivals held in Portland each year include the Oregon Brewers Festival in July (the largest outdoor craft beer festival in North America), the Spring Beer and Wine Festival in April, the North American Organic Brewers Festival in June, the Portland International Beerfest in July, and the Holiday Ale Festival in December. In related news, Portland is awesome.

Notable Residents: Mel Blanc, the voice of Bugs Bunny; Jean M. Auel, author of Clan of the Cave Bear; children’s author Beverly Cleary; actor Sam Elliott; high jumper and inventor of the Fosbury flop, Dick Fosbury; actor Clark Gable; creator of the Simpsons Matt Groening; figure skater Tonya Harding; co-founder of Nike Phil Knight; professional wrestler Rowdy Roddy Piper; actress Anne Schedeen (ALF); actress Sally Struthers; and Detroit Lions defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh.

 

The notable people is always one of my favorite parts. In this case, I’m picturing a three-way tag-team WWE match between Jake Locker and Glenn Beck from Bellingham, Chris Benoit and Robert Goulet from Edmonton, and Rowdy Roddy Piper and Sally Struthers from Portland. Advantage Portland.