Hosak8

youre right. theyre only a top 20 team (even if they lose) and theyre going to open up next season as the number 1 team in the country No chance.

Losses don't matter. True. Only algorithms do.

I've sent some personal messages, but hadn't heard back yet, so I thought I'd try this route When Fukudome was signed, I put in an immediate waiver claim on him. It never processed, so I removed it and tried again on the 22nd. I put it in twice, with two different players. The waiver clim is still outstanding, and it reads: Will be processed Saturday, December 22. Any idea what is happening? I've added minor leaguers and even a major leaguer since the end of the year (there are no rules stating that it is illegal to do so), but the waiver wire is either messed up, or programmed not to run. Either commish have any suggestions for me. Thanks. Hosak 2008 NSB Fantasy Champion

You guys don't want DeBord. Youd be hard pressed to find any Michigan fan singing praises of this guy. He isnt very good without a whole lot of talent on the offense and its total vanilla. While he was HC at Central Mich. in his 3 years he had a win percentage of .260. After he left Brian Kelly turned things around in year 2 and 3 and now Butch Jones at least has the offense humming. UT can do much better than DeBoring. Hosak earlier brought up the name Scott Loeffler as a potential QB coach, now he on the otherhand is well respected by Michigan fans. If RRod doesnt rehire him like he should and if he went to UT he would be a good get. He was very instrumental in getting Chad Henne and Ryan Mallett. That's the sentiment in Knoxville, as well. No to DeBord, yes to Loeffler, though that would never happen. Frank Cignetti is gaining momentum, though I will still be surprised if it's anyone but Kippy right now.

Go zags. Go Vols. 12-1. This could be a 25 win team. You should get to 25 wins on SEC play alone. There's not really a team close to you guys. Perhaps. 13-3 in the SEC is doable, if a little difficult. 16 SEC games, and OOC against Ohio State and Memphis remain. Perhaps 27 wins should be the target.

Go zags. Go Vols. 12-1. This could be a 25 win team. 13 points, 11 boards, 6 assists, 1 steal, 1 block and no turnovers for Tyler. Ugh that's depressing. At least it gives me someone to root for in the tournament this year. Tyler has been a nice addition. It's funny, but Lofton went from being our best player to our 3rd best thanks to 2 transfers. Tyler obviously has been better than Lofton, but JP Prince has the entire program buzzing. It's nice to see Tennessee winning with Tennessee guys. (Jajuan Smith, Tyler Smith, JP Prince, and Wayne Chism are all Tennesseans.) Too bad Jamont Gordon, Thadd Young, and Brandan Wright all chose to go elsewhere, and Willie Kemp stayed in Memphis, only to surrender his position to a freshman. I cannot wait to play Memphis. We match up well with them, and Pearl simply outcoaches Cal head to head. Not saying that we will win, but we can, and nobody doubts that (even Tiger fans.)

Inferiority complex?

Go zags. Go Vols. 12-1. This could be a 25 win team.

I realize that this isn't a Big 10 post, and is probably illegal in this thread, but my Vols are playing good basketball in the Battle in Seattle. Up 12 with just over 10 to go.

It is almost official that Spence will remain at Clemson, and that only solidifies the belief that Kippy has accepted the OC job at Tennessee. We still need a RB coach, QB coach, and TE coach. One of those will likely be the recruiting coordinator. Joe Whitt, Jr's name keeps getting mentioned, though he has primarily been a DB coach. Not sure that he'll transition to the offensive side of the ball, and unless Slade is fired/quits, there is no room on defense. We shall see. Thanks for the update Hosak. I'm pretty happy with the idea of Kippy Brown - apparently he was a pretty good recruiter when he was on Tennessee's staff previously, do you know anything about his recruiting ability. Oh my. Martz will be fired by the Lions, and Kipy will become the new OC, according to the LA Times. The coach that Fulmer interviewed in Tampa last night is former Michigan OC MIke Debord. Stay tuned. This soap opera is just getting good.

It is almost official that Spence will remain at Clemson, and that only solidifies the belief that Kippy has accepted the OC job at Tennessee. We still need a RB coach, QB coach, and TE coach. One of those will likely be the recruiting coordinator. Joe Whitt, Jr's name keeps getting mentioned, though he has primarily been a DB coach. Not sure that he'll transition to the offensive side of the ball, and unless Slade is fired/quits, there is no room on defense. We shall see. Thanks for the update Hosak. I'm pretty happy with the idea of Kippy Brown - apparently he was a pretty good recruiter when he was on Tennessee's staff previously, do you know anything about his recruiting ability. Mixed bag, though the general consensus is that he's a better coach than recruiter. He coached WR's during the WRU days, though there isn't much on record as to the role he's played in getting players to campus. Of course, Fulmer wants his coordinators to be coaches first, and will find recruiters for other positions. Not saying it will happen, but Frank Cignetti's name has emerged as a candidate. I still think it's Kippy's job to lose, but at least Fulmer is giving the appearance of a national search. But, for positional guys, I'm hearning names like Jay Graham, TD Woods, and even Randy Sanders, so Fulmer is apparently not going to recreate himself just yet. Long and short of it all: It's most likely Kippy, but nothing is settled. Rumor also has it that Fulmer secretly interviewed someone last night in Tampa. I'll let you know once I hear about that one in detail.

Will you guys win 6 in the SEC? I think so, but I'm not certain.

It is almost official that Spence will remain at Clemson, and that only solidifies the belief that Kippy has accepted the OC job at Tennessee. We still need a RB coach, QB coach, and TE coach. One of those will likely be the recruiting coordinator. Joe Whitt, Jr's name keeps getting mentioned, though he has primarily been a DB coach. Not sure that he'll transition to the offensive side of the ball, and unless Slade is fired/quits, there is no room on defense. We shall see.

1 year, 3.75 million. Once more, to lazy to post a link for such a worthless signing.

Saw it on ESPN's bottom line, but I'm way too lazy to post a link. Not sure that Erstad nor the Astros deserve one anyway.

I'm not as sold on our LB depth as you are. Karl is not expected to be much of a factor in the game, and it looks like Mayo is moving to WLB, while Ellix Wilson will start and get the bulk of the snaps at MLB. At the Sam, it looks like Dorian Davis and Adam Myers-White will play most of the game. I realize that Taylor was Ainge's big target for the bulk of the year, but Gerald Jones' emergence, as well as the return of Brad Cottam, seem to bode well for our passing game. I'm saying that it would be greeted with an enormous "meh". He has produced everywhere he's been, but he's just not the type of hire that gets a fan base (or recruits) excited. Moot point, however, as I hear from a pretty reliable source that Kippy Brown has essentially already taken the job. Same source says that UT fans will not be happy when they see the list of others who were barely considered for the job. Slade will be fired, from what I'm hearing. May or may not happen. Chief would leave on his own, though I'd put that possibility at less than 20%. Trooper has already cost us Lerentee McCray, and likely others. Cutcliffe has cost us Casey Kelly (moot point, as he should be a top 40 pick in the MLB draft) and any shot we had with Terelle Pryor. If Fulmer cannot find a great recruiter in his next hires (hence the reason I put Walton, Garner, and Porter on my wish list), then we'd better get used to these poor classes. The general sentiment is that Fulmer is stale, and that his practice of hiring from the UT family is hurting the program. He is being equated to Bobby Bowden, and in 2007, that is not a good thing. Cutcliffe is not exactly a hire for which Fulmer can take credit, as that one fell into his lap. (Seriously, who else could he have hired there?) Sanders was not a bad hire- just overmatched as an OC. Slade was not a good hire, Pat Washington was not a good hire, Roper and Luke were both ho-hum... notice the trend? Trooper Taylor was a very good hire (and the rumors are that Trooper is essentialy out because of staff jealousy- Chief and Troop fought often), but beyond him, Fulmer hasn't hired anyone that anyone else in the country is really after. Sure, Duke wanted Cut... but what is that saying? Again, you can take it with a grain of salt, but someone very close to Jerod seems to think that he is currently slated as a late 2nd to 3rd rounder, and that no matter the results of his senior year, his stock will not rise that much. I don't know why. He's very smart (graduated in 3.5 years), has great football instincts (learned the MLB position on the fly, and did a dang good job there), and is just a winner. Plus, it's not like he's a statue out there. He's no Al Wilson, but he's got Omar Gaither ability, imo. Volquest.com is the way to go. Better than NSBB, if you are looking to compare. There are idiot posters there, and there are some really good ones. Arian Foster's mom, Kevin Simon's dad, Chris Walker's mom, a couple of Austin Johnson's family and even Jon Crompton's mom and dad pst there from time to time, as well as Gerald Jones' high school OC and various other coaches from across the country. Plus, with a premiumticket, you have access to Rivals' main football, basketball, and recruiting boards. What sets it apart, though, is the professional writers who cover the Vols for Volquest. Very informed, very in touch with the Athletic Department, and they are not puppets for the university. Well worth the 9.95 a month I pay for it. Hope that's helpful.

I disagree Hosak. Taylor and Cutcliffe will both coach in the bowl game and I assume the other two (Matt Luke and Kurt Roper? I haven't heard) will as well. The real losses are Bolden and McCoy, though I don't think the two of them are the difference in the game. Lucas Taylor being gone hurts more, in my opinion. By the way, have you heard anything on the coordinator front? Last I heard we were going to interview Rob Spence of Clemson. That was Friday I believe. Taylor will hurt, but not nearly as much as Bolden and McCoy. We have enough trouble against the run with those guys. Without them, Wisconsin may go for 300 on the ground. Meanwhile, on offense, if Cut would get his head out of his rear and get Foster 25 carries and Creer another 10, we'd be in good shape. Plus, the emergence of Gerald Jones, as well as Briscoe's play of late make Taylor hurt alot less. On the coaching front, I'm not sure what to think. I'm hearing "insiders" saying that Doug Marrone is the guy, and others saying Kippy Brown is the guy. Meanwhile, we've interviewed Rob Spence. If he gets hired, there needs to be a major suicide watch in Knoxville. There are also insiders (as well as players and their families) who are bemoaning the loss of Trooper Taylor. Roper and Luke are as good as gone, and there are at least whispers of Chavis and Slade being gone (Slade by firing, Chief of his own volition.) Personally, I think it's time for a major overhaul, but I have no confidence that Fulmer will make very good hires. Even if he does, with all that has gone on over the past 3 weeks, I do not see us competing on New Years Day. This team is distracted in a MAJOR way. If we can somehow win this game, and turn around and hire the following, I'd be thrilled: OC/WR: Kippy Brown QB: Scott Loeffler RB: Larry Porter TE/ST: Shane Beamer DB: Tim Walton It'll never happen, though. Just as we are on the verge of returning to our level of the mid 90's, everything falls apart. And, for the record, Mayo is as good as gone. That one will hurt.

The University of Tennessee lost this week. I know that we don't play until New Year's Day, but with the loss of 4 offensive coaches, plus our top DT and our best OLB to academics, I don't see how we beat Wisconsin.

Fixed.

Summit schedules this type of OOC gauntlet every year. She only recently dropped UConn, because of an extreme dislike of Auriemma, or else this schedule would be worse. It's why we win championships. The Tourney is just like the regular season.

See top post for new offer!

Tim or Clint... BJ Upton played n 2004, and lost his rookie status then. However, he did not play at all in 2005. He played in 2006, and then again in 2007. Am I right in thinking that 2007 was his 3rd season, and his points are exempt? Or, since his clock started in 2004, does 2005 count against him (even though he did not play in any MLB games) and do his points now count? Thanks for clarification...

Please post your non-exempt players, and their points. Hopefully this will create conversations about teams. Hosak: Austin Kearns- CF/RF (463.8) Ted Lilly- SP (426.8) Jake Westbrook- SP (302) Aaron Heilman- RP (191.5) I am looking for draft picks and non-exempt players. I need a SP, C, and a power bat in the OF. I also have several interesting exempt players I will deal.

Check out the pushpinned post League Rules. Those rules have been in place for 2 years, and in terms of keepers, they will likely remian unchanged. You may keep 1800 points. Anyone who has 3 or fewer years of service is points exempt. For example, Ian Kinsler's points do not count against him, because he only has 2 years of service. (To calculate YOS, find the year that a player lost his rookie status- 130 AB's or 50 IP. That is his first exempt year. Every year after that takes away an exemption. Once a player has used 3 exemptions, their points begin to count.) You may also keep up to 10 players who have not achieved rookie status yet. That is your minor league roster. Hope that helps!

That's the point, I think. There would be something to pay attention to, if people would pay attention. There are certainly deals to be made. We can all see the rules that have been in place for two years, and see what players we will have to release. We all should know where we are drafting, and now is a perfect time to deal for players who will likely be released, and for trading draft picks.