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The Penn State Nittany Lions had not officially won a game since November 22, 1997. On Saturday afternoon, those same Lions won a game against a woeful Navy team and the healing can finally begin.

Everyone reading this knows how I feel about Joe Paterno and the scandal. I wrote about it this past January and my feelings haven’t changed much – even with the Freeh Report. My feelings about the future remain the same, too. Penn State will serve out its sanctions issued by the NCAA and they’ll probably suffer on the field, but they are in great hands with Coach Bill O’Brien and Linebacker U will return.

Quarterback Matt McGloin controlled this game from start to finish. He ended up with 231 yards and four touchdowns on 13 for 21 passing. He threw three of those touchdowns and 136 of those yards to Allen Robinson.

The biggest story from the game was the Nittany Lions defense, though. We all sort of knew that McGloin was grasping this offense and would excel as the season progressed. I was not so sure about the defense. They proved me wrong. The numbers aren’t overly impressive – PSU allowed 255 rushing yards on 60 attempts. The impressive part is the four forced turnovers – three fumbled and an interception.

I know that this Penn State team is going to run through the Big Ten and make everyone wonder if they were the best team. I’m not stupid. We beat a bad Navy team and we still have issues all over the field and the Big Ten is not terrible this year.

I do know one thing, though. I know that Penn State can finally start playing football with everyone hovering and asking about the pressure to win. “I felt very good for this football team. It was a long time coming,” said O’Brien. Yes, Bill. It was. Nearly 15 years coming.

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The 2012 National Football League season is almost here! What better way to get back into writing than 3,000 words previewing the American Football Conference. Without further ado, take a look at what we’ve got.

AFC West: If it wasn’t for the AFC East, the AFC West would be the deepest division in football. With the exception of the Raiders, this is a deep division all over. This will be a lot of fun to watch. Here’s your preview!

Denver Broncos: I’m not completely sold on Peyton Manning being healthy. I don’t trust four neck surgeries very much. I also don’t know if I trust a 36 year old quarterback who, in his last season, had more attempts than ever before, a steadily dropping quarterback rating, and four neck surgeries!!!! Not to mention, this cat doesn’t play well outside…15 of his games are outside.

Don’t get me wrong – I like Denver’s defense more than anyone else in the division, but we all know that you can’t win a championship without a great offense. When you’re expecting Ronnie Hillman, a rookie third-round pick, to be a “big part of your offense,” we might have to talk. A few other issues? I think I can come up with them. Willis McGahee is the main running back. If that doesn’t make you worry, you must be a Broncos fan.

With all of that said, I think that the Broncos are real contenders to win the West and take another trip to the playoffs. As you’ll see in a little bit, there are aspects of this division that scream 9-7 to win the division. If Manning is healthy for 16 games, they’ll win nine of them. Probably.

Kansas City Chiefs: I would be lying to you if I said I didn’t love the Chiefs. As soon as you stop laughing, we can talk about this. Done? Good. This is a deep team. Dwayne Bowe had a full camp, Jon Baldwin showed flashes that he could be good, Steve Breaston isn’t bad (ok, you’re right. that’s funny.), Jamaal Charles is back from ACL surgery, and Peyton Hillis is good.

The most important part of this team, though, won’t be on offense. We all know that these guys can play. The biggest impact will have to come from defense. Safety Eric Berry tore his ACL in Week One last season and his presence was certainly missed. The Chiefs took Dontari Poe with the eleventh pick of the draft. He plays one of the hardest spots on the field at nose tackle, and I don’t think he’ll be Ndamukong Suh, but I think he’ll make an impact and improve the league’s 26^th-ranked rush defense from 2011.

If the Chiefs can get good production from Charles, Hillis, and Bowe while keeping their defense happy, they’ll stay in the West race all season. Mark it.

Oakland Raiders: I’ve seen a lot of hype about the Oakland Raiders this season. I don’t get it. In a nutshell, I think they have two problems and one positive. Their first problem is the guy under center – Carson Palmer. I don’t think that Palmer still has whatever “it” is that makes a quarterback good. He lost velocity last year and just didn’t look good. I know that he had a full camp this year, but I don’t think that he’s going to be a difference maker.

The second problem is the guy lining up behind Palmer. Darren McFadden has to stay healthy because he is the wheel that moves the Raider’s offense forward. While he’s not as talented as Ray Rice, he’s tasked with the same load as Rice in Baltimore. McFadden has missed at least three games in his first four seasons. If he does that again, the Raiders will have a lot of work to do.

The obvious upside for the Raiders is their defense. They were good on that side of the ball last year and, for the first time since John Madden, they have a defensive coach leading the way.

Wait. There’s one more problem. This team isn’t nearly as deep as anyone else in the West and that’s going to end up being a problem.

San Diego Chargers: At the end of last season, I would have expected Norv Turner to get fired. He didn’t get fired, and now no one seems to care. I think Norv Turner is the reason this team hasn’t seen the playoffs in two years. I could be wrong, but we’re about to find out.

Antonio Gates is, allegedly, healthy and primed for a big season. If he’s really over the foot injuries, it will be interesting to watch him to see if he dominates again. In order for him to dominate, he’ll need someone to throw him the ball. That’s where Philip Rivers comes in to play. I’m not convinced that Rivers is actually a good quarterback and his numbers don’t exactly argue. This season will go a long way in solidifying my opinion about his ability. No one is going to scream about the Chargers defense, which is why they’ll need to be able to score a lot of points. That’s why the return of Ryan Mathews will be so important for him to have a big year.

The Chargers, Broncos, and Chiefs will be battling for the division crown until the end of the season here. With the deep AFC East, I’m not sure that two teams will get in to the playoffs. That makes the division games ever more important. The West is going to be fun to watch this year. Winner: San Diego Chargers.

AFC South: The South is, maybe, the worst division in football…ever. I’ll get a little more in depth as we go along, but I think the Texans could win eight games and still run away with this division by two games.

Houston Texans: Like I said in the paragraph above – the Texans should win this division easily, even if T.J. Yates has to play six or seven games. Before Matt Schaub went down with an injury last season, the Texans were widely regarded as the best team in the AFC. I have a few concerns with the Texans this season. The first one is Matt Schaub’s health behind a new offensive line. If Schaub is healthy, this is a good football team with a lot of weapons that can score a lot of points. The new offensive line also begs the question – can Arian Foster and Ben Tate produce like they did last year? If they can, this team should walk to ten wins.

The defense lost Mario Williams to the Buffalo Bills this offseason, and that had a lot of people talking about the drop-off that this defense is bound to take. I couldn’t disagree more. This might be the best defense in football and Wade Phillips (ugh, I hate complimenting this man) is a great coordinator that will have them more than ready to play.

A good quarterback, awesome run game, dominant defense – yeah. That’s enough for a Super Bowl run.

Indianapolis Colts: Andrew Luck is going to be a good quarterback. I have absolutely no doubt about that, and you shouldn’t either. That doesn’t mean the Colts will finish anywhere but fourth in the division. There will be a lot of changes, but it will be at least one more year before this team can make a run at eight wins.

The biggest change will come on defense, as new coach Chuck Pagano will run a 3-4 scheme after years of the Tampa 2 defense. With any new scheme comes turnover. The Colts will have to bring in the right players for the job and that takes time. Andrew Luck is the kind of quarterback that helps draw free agents, though, and it won’t be long until we’re talking about the Colts to win more games than they lose. Makes you sick, doesn’t it?

Jacksonville Jaguars: I know that Blaine Gabbert looked good during the preseason and he has some people excited. You’d play better too if you were threatened with Tim Tebow in the offseason. Most quarterbacks make vast improvement in their sophomore year, and  I think Gabbert will make strides too. The addition of Justin Blackmon and Laurent Robinson should also help his passing numbers.

The Jaguars play good defense, too. If they can get a consistent pass rush, it should cover up some deficiencies in the secondary.

Wait a minute. Am I really talking myself into the Jaguars being a decent football team? Do I think that this team might actually push the eight-win mark and surprise us? It can’t be. I have to stop talking about this.

Tennessee Titans: Matt Hasselbeck is not the starter this year and it’s time for a change in Tennessee. Jake Locker was the eight overall pick in the 2011 draft and he’ll get his first NFL start in Week One of this season. The defense will need to improve in Jerry Gray’s second season as defensive coordinator. The consensus around the game seems to be that they’ll open it up a lot this year and institute new blitz packages and increase their sack total from last year.

The big question mark, though, is obviously running back Chris Johnson. You all remember his 2,000 yard season in 2010 and his holdout and ensuing awful season of 2011. Most people, including myself, think that Johnson will end up somewhere in the middle of those two totals in 2012. The other thing that should help his total? Locker can run.

To wrap up the South, we have to talk about what I didn’t want to talk about. The Jacksonville Jaguars. Every season, the NFL holds a surprise for us. Two years ago it was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Last year it was the San Francisco 49ers. The Jaguars have some problem, but who doesn’t? If they make a run at a wild card, don’t say I didn’t tell you so. Winner: Houston Texans.

AFC North: The guard might be passing in the AFC North. The Cincinnati Bengals are young and exciting with a lot of good things happening. The Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers are getting older. The Cleveland Browns have made a lot of improvements and are going to start getting better. This might be the hardest division to predict. I’m gonna try anyway.

Baltimore Ravens: The thought around the league is that Joe Flacco is primed for a breakout year. I was surprised to see that he’s been such a model of consistency in his first four years in the league. Take a look at these numbers:

Year	Record	Cmp%	Yards	TD	INT
2008	11-5	60.0	2971	14	12
2009	9-7	63.1	3613	21	12
2010	12-4	62.6	3622	25	10
2011	12-4	57.6	3610	20	12

Flacco will be 27 years old this season, and he’ll be entering his “prime” age for that breakout season. If it doesn’t happen in 2012, I’m not sure he’s ever going to be better than what you see there.

A few things that concern me about the Ravens…First, Ray Rice is their only real offensive weapon. I know that some would argue for Torrey Smith, but he hasn’t done enough yet to show me that he can carry any sort of load. He’s a deep threat, but I don’t think that will be enough for Joe and Company. This division is a tight as they come, but like I’ve already mentioned, the Ravens are getting old. Most importantly, Ed Reed and Ray Lewis are 33 and 37 respectively. Terrell Suggs will be watching this season from home. I expect the defense to take a step back, and I don’t expect the offense to be stellar. Good, yes. Stellar, no.

Oh, and one more thing before we move on…The offensive line is old!

Cincinnati Bengals: From what I’m reading, the Bengals are a lock to finish third in this division behind Pittsburgh and Baltimore. I don’t see it. You might already know that, though.

Players, especially quarterbacks, usually make leaps in their second season in the league. For a team led by second-year men A.J. Green and Andy Dalton, that bodes well. They upgraded the running back spot with the law firm, BenJarvus Green-Ellis. Jermaine Gresham is a good tight end with the talent to move himself into the class right below Rob Gronkowski and Jimmy Graham.

You can’t forget about Cincinnati’s defense, either. This team finished seventh overall on defense last season and they should be better this season. They also get the advantage of playing a pretty terrible Cleveland team twice this season. Don’t be surprised if this team wins the AFC North this year.

Cleveland Browns: The Browns will, almost certainly, finish in last place next season. I won’t dispute that because there isn’t much to argue. If I tried to find something I liked about these guys, it would be Trent Richardson, but I’m not convinced that he’s going to be great. He’s never played a game in the NFL and he already has two knee surgeries under his belt.

As we all know, quarterback is the most important position on the field. Well, Cleveland is starting 28-year old rookie Brandon Weeden at quarterback. Do I even need to talk about this? Okay…I will. Just for a minute, though. Weeden played well last year for Oklahoma State, but I don’t think he’s better than Colt McCoy. I’ll stick to my guns until Weeden shows me something else.

Pittsburgh Steelers: The Steelers finished last season with the top-ranked defense and they should be even better this year. They only had 35 sacks (tied 17^th) and 15 takeaways (last). A few other places that the Steelers are looking to improve are the offensive line and running back. The Steelers say they want to run the ball more this season, and I believe them. I’m just not sure who’s going to run it. Do you like Isaac Redman or Rashard Mendenhall? Me either.

While I like their defense and hate their running backs, I’m in love with this teams passing attack. Mike Wallace and Antonio Brown make up one of the best one-two combinations in the league. Wallace has great down-the-field speed and Brown understands his routes and field positioning better than most.

Oh. One more thing about the Steelers O-line: I’m sure that everyone remembers the hobbled Big Ben limping into the playoffs last year. He’s been sacked 168 times since 2008 – by far the most in the NFL – and he needs to stay upright this season if the Steelers want to win the division. Which, by the way, they will. Winner: Pittsburgh Steelers.

AFC East – The AFC East might house the best team in football this year – the New England Patriots. It might also be home to another playoff team – the Buffalo Bills. It is almost certainly home to the worst team in the NFL – the Miami Dolphins. And, it might be home to one of the other five-worst teams – the New York football Jets.

Buffalo Bills: There’s a team every year that has high expectations going in to the season – then they flop. The Bills fit that bill this year, but I don’t think they’ll be flopping. The addition of Mario Williams makes this defense a contender to finish in the top-five league-wide.

There are two question marks that could keep the Bills out of the playoffs. They’re both on the offensive side of the ball. The less important of the two, if there is such a thing, is the running back situation. Fred Jackson and C.J. Spiller aren’t exactly a common pair. Spiller was drafted out of college to be the main man in Buffalo. Jackson was not. Now, Jackson is the main man and Spiller isn’t. Chan Gailey needs to find a way to make these guys compliment each other so he can get the most out of his offense. The second problem is finding a clear-cut number two receiver. Steve Johnson is consistent, but there’s at least four guys who are contending for the second spot. Without consistent production from that spot, defenses can key in on Jackson, Jackson, and Spiller.

Miami Dolphins: The Miami Dolphins might be the worst team in the National Football League. My feelings about Matt Moore are well documented and I think he should be starting for the Dolphins in Week One. Ryan Tannehill is (supposed to be) the quarterback of the future, but I don’t see it. In addition to him being surrounded by almost no talent (I said almost – Reggie Bush), there is almost no defense.

I don’t really know what else to say about this team. They’re bad. Their defense is bad. Their offense might be worse. Sorry Dolphins fans.

New England Patriots: The Patriots were missing one piece last year that would have set them apart offensively in the AFC – a deep threat. The addition of Brandon Lloyd gives them that deep threat. Wes Welker, Lloyd, Gronkowski, and Hernandez should cover up the lack of a dominant running game. I wouldn’t be surprised if Tom Brady threw for 5,500 yards this year. He’s that good and it’s that much of a passing league.

The biggest question mark last year was obviously the Patriots defense. They allowed a lot of passing yards. You can blame that on the fact that they were almost always playing with the lead, which made teams pass against them. That accounts for some of it, but so do the injuries sustained in the secondary. They’re healthier in the secondary and they should be much better on defense.

New York Jets: Mark Sanchez has consistently improved while the weapons around him have gotten consistently worse. This season, I don’t think he’s going to be so lucky. The talent in New York is so minimal, that Tim Tebow might be the most physically talented person on the field. Too bad he’s the backup quarterback and shouldn’t see the field much. I’ve never seen the wildcat work, and I don’t think that it will work this time.

Who does Sanchez throw to if Santonio Holmes is covered? Who runs the ball? Shonne Green? Who’s going to stop defenses from slaughtering Sanchez? That offensive line is terrible. No only do I think the Jets are going to be bad, but I think they might be in the bottom five of the NFL.

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Round of 64

Outside Pressure’s official NCAA tournament prediction is here!

I fill out a bracket (or ten) every year. I’m not about to publicly humiliate myself by posting that on the Internet. Instead, I’ll provide a round-by-round breakdown. The first round is March 15-16, and predictions are right below this.

The Round of 32 predictions will be up after the last game on the 16^th.

The Sweet Sixteen predictions will be up after the last game on the 18^th.

The Elite Eight predictions will be up after the last game on the 23^rd.

The Final Four predictions will be up before after the last game on the 25^th.

The National Championship preview will be up after the last Final Four game.

Here we go!

South Bracket

(1) Kentucky vs. (16) Mississippi Valley State/Western Kentucky

No one seed has ever lost an opening round game. Ever. I don’t expect it to happen this year.

Winner: Kentucky

(2) Duke vs. (15) Lehigh

I won’t bore you here, either. Duke is one of the ten best teams in the country this year. Unless Duke absolutely implodes, forgets how to shoot, and leaves the court with ten minutes remaining, they’ll win.

Winner: Duke

(3) Baylor vs. (14) South Dakota State

Baylor is one of the best teams in the country, and I think the three-seed is too low for them. If they had to stay in this bracket, I think Duke should have been the three. Regardless, Baylor will win this game.

Winner: Baylor

(4) Indiana vs. (13) New Mexico State

Indiana was 145^th in the nation in rebounding this year. New Mexico State was 6^th in the nation. The only problem? New Mexico State did it in the WAC and Indiana did it in a very good Big Ten.

Indiana is led by Freshman Cody Zeller, who provides their only height that can compete with New Mexico’s big men. This game is going to be closer than people think, but I don’t think it will provide us with our first upset. I wouldn’t be surprised either way, though.

Winner: Indiana

(5) Wichita State vs. (12) VCU

Wichita State played good basketball all year, but I don’t know if I would have made these guys a five-seed. I guess that doesn’t matter, though. They are. Wichita makes 48.5% of their shots, good for 13^th in the country. It’s a good offensive team, but they lose games they should win. If there’s a 12-5 upset, this will be it. VCU isn’t as good, though, and they’ll have to catch fire to beat this team.

Winner: Wichita State

(6) UNLV vs. (11) Colorado

It’s starting to look like this bracket will work out just the way it’s supposed to. That happens, sometimes, and I don’t expect this to be any different. UNLV is the slightly more talented team here. Colorado won the Pac-12. Which is sort of like winning a contest full of untalented people. There is NBA-caliber talent on both sides of the ball, but UNLV has more of it and should be moving on to the Round of 32.

Winner: UNLV

(7) Notre Dame vs. (10) Xavier

These teams look to be pretty evenly matched. Notre Dame doesn’t shoot the three-pointer very well, which is good because Xavier defends it as good as anyone. Notre Dame is 7-5 against RPI Top 50 teams this year. Xavier is 3-4. Notre Dame is the better team, and they’ll need to keep Xavier’s backcourt from taking over the game, and they should win this one.

Winner: Notre Dame

(8) Iowa State vs. (9) UConn

UConn is the defending national champion. Iowa state surprised everyone this year by tying for third in the Big-12. First-year coach Fred Hoiberg has done a great job turning the program around. It’s too bad they have to run into the very talented UConn team. I think the nine-seed is a little low for UConn and I think they’ll win this game handily. Experience goes a long way – especially against a team that hasn’t been to the dance since 2005.

Winner: UConn

WEST BRACKET

(1)Michigan State vs. (16) LIU Brooklyn

Did I mention that no one seed has ever lost in the opening round?

Winner: Michigan State

(2) Missouri vs. (15) Norfolk State

Missouri had some injuries at the beginning of the year caused some concern, then Missouri won 14 games in a row and showed they’d still be a good team. Norfolk State has one win against a Top 75 RPI team, Drexel, and they’ve never been to the March Dance before. This West Bracket belongs to Michigan State, Missouri, and Marquette – everyone else is going to be fighting for a distance fourth out of the West.

Winner: Missouri

(3) Marquette vs. (14) BYU/Iona

I mentioned that this bracket belongs to the top-three seeds. My opinion hasn’t changed in the last few minutes. Iona surprised some people when they got a bid, but I don’t think they’re as bad as you might think.

BYU will probably lose in their “Round of 68” game. If Marquette draws Iona, this one might be closer than it should be for the first half or so. However, Marquette is the better team, and the type of talent they’re bringing to the table wins in the early rounds.

Winner: Marquette

(4) Louisville vs. (13) Davidson

If Louisville had been an at-large bid, I would be willing to pick Davidson. This Louisville team is weak offensively and strong defensively (a lot like the Louisville team who lost to Morehead State in the first round last year), and Davidson plays good basketball.

What the hell! Davidson has the offensive talent to beat Louisville. And they will

Winner: Davidson

(5) New Mexico vs. (12) Long Beach State

The Lobos run a very deep rotation, with ten guys seeing around ten minutes a game. They can keep constant pressure on a team because they’re always rested. That pressure resulted in opponents averaging 58 points against them this year. Long Beach was 0-4 against Top 50 RPI teams this year and they don’t shoot the ball well at the charity stripe. The 49ers belong in the tourney, and their seniors will probably play an extraordinarily tough game, but I don’t think it will be enough.

Winner: New Mexico

(6) Murray State vs. (11) Colorado State

Murray State was the last undefeated team in the country this year. They shoot well from long range, and they lack size. They went 3-0 against Top 25 RPI teams this year. Colorado State shoots the ball well too, and they don’t have a ton of size. Unfortunately for them, Murray State plays the small game better and has a deeper rotation. Colorado State is a good team, but they pulled a bad draw in the first round.

Winner: Murray State

(7) Florida vs. (10) Virginia

Both of these teams are pretty bad against teams in the top 25 of RPI, only winning one game apiece against those squads. Florida lives and dies by the three-point shot, and it might prove to be their demise. They have a young center who doesn’t rebound as well as he should. Virginia is a great defensive team, only allowing 53 points a game. They defend the perimeter well. If they can keep Florida from getting hot from beyond the arc, they could pull this win out. I just don’t think they’ll be able to do it. Florida’s guard play is too good.

Winner: Florida

(8) Memphis vs. (9) Saint Louis

I’m not sure how Memphis fell to the world of the eight-seed. They are littered with NBA talent and should be able to score on just about anyone. Saint Louis plays great defense and was great down the stretch, winning 11 of their last 13 games. However, Memphis is the better team offensively and they should find a way to score more points than Saint Louis, which is really all that matters. The upset will come if Saint Louis can get hot from beyond the arc.

Winner: Memphis

EAST BRACKET

(1) Syracuse vs. (16) UNC-Asheville

Do I even need to say it?

Winner: Syracuse

(2) Ohio State vs. (15) Loyola (MD)

It’s not very often that we see a 15-seed upset a two-seed. It won’t happen here either. When we get deeper into the tournament, Jared Sullinger will have to play better than he did during the regular season for the Buckeyes to keep advancing. However, Sullinger should control the floor on both ends against Loyola. If he can’t do that, Ohio State has much better perimeter players than Loyola, and they can win the game that way.

Winner: Ohio State

(3) Florida State vs. (14) St. Bonaventure

If you asked me to pick a seed outside the one’s and two’s who could win the national championship, my pick would be Florida State. They are a stout defensive team with great experience and six seniors. Their offense won’t knock anyone’s socks off, but it’s good enough to compliment their defense. They’ve won big games all season, knocking off North Carolina and Duke twice each. St. Bonaventure won’t provide much a problem, as the Seminoles will roll to the round of 32.

Winner: Florida State

(4) Wisconsin vs. (13) Montana

Wisconsin has the top-ranked defense in the country. Montana plays good defense, too. Montana has the luxury of a talented backcourt and a seven-footer inside. It’s too bad that Derek Selvig doesn’t rebound well, averaging only six per game. Wisconsin is going to be too much for Montana to handle here.

Winner: Wisconsin

(5) Vanderbilt vs. (12) Harvard

Vanderbilt has been upset in the first round by 12 and 13-seeds in the last two seasons. They didn’t exactly draw an easy matchup this year. Harvard won its first Ivy League championship in decades and they are playing with a chip on their shoulder. They were ranked in the top-25 earlier this season and they were 3-1 against top 75 RPI teams. The only think that makes me weary about picking Harvard is the fact that Vandy just beat Kentucky to take the SEC tournament championship. Vandy is obviously better than they were last season, and they should win this game.

But I don’t think they will.

Winner: Harvard

(6) Cincinnati vs. (11) Texas

Texas almost missed the tournament until they made a late season run at some ranked teams.             J’Covan Brown deserves much of the credit for keeping Texas in the mix for the tourney, but he probably won’t be enough to get them to a first round upset. The Bearcats are the better perimeter team and inside team. Cincy’s lack of depth could come back to haunt them in later rounds, but in this round they face a team with the same problem.

Winner: Cincinnati

(7) Gonzaga vs. (10) West Virginia

Kevin Pangos is a great first-year guard for Gonzaga and the have a great duo under the rim. As a team, they average seven more rebounds a game than their opponent and they were an impressive 6-3 against teams in the top 75 RPI. West Virginia seems to be everyone’s favorite upset pick, but I don’t see why. They don’t play great defense and Gonzaga is the better rebounding team. West Virginia’s stars, Kevin Jones and Darryl Bryant, will have to play their best games of the season to knock of the Zags. I don’t see it.

Winner: Gonzaga

(8) Kansas State vs. (9) Southern Miss

Southern Miss is a solid team with significant depth. They have some fatal flaws, though. They only average 11 assists per night and they shoot 41 percent from the field. That won’t be good enough to beat the very physical and aggressive rebounding/defense of Kansas State. This 8-9 matchup will probably be the “least close.”

Winner: Kansas State

MIDWEST BRACKET

(1)North Carolina vs. (16) Lamar/Vermont

I won’t say it.

Winner: North Carolina

(2) Kansas vs. (15) Detroit

If you’re still reading this, I applaud you. I won’t waste your time analyzing a game that won’t even be close.

Winner: Kansas

(3) Georgetown vs. (14) Belmont

Interesting matchup statistic number one: Belmont scores 81 points a night and Georgetown plays amazing defense, only allowing 27 percent shooting from three.

That means that something will have to give. Georgetown has put together another great team that has all the right pieces. They can score, rebound, play defense, and they have good depth. There is not a dominant offensive force for a team to focus on defensively. That’s what going to give. There’s too much talent for Belmont to handle, and they won’t be able to put up 81 points against G-Town.

Winner: Georgetown

(4) Michigan vs. (13) Ohio

Michigan has some of the best guards in the country. They lack a serious big man, evident by their inability to outrebound teams. Ohio finished third in the Mid-American Conference, and they won’t be much of a match for the Wolverines. They played Louisville well, and if they can come up with a blueprint similar to that one, they might give the Wolverines a run for their money – but I wouldn’t bet any of your money on it.

Winner: Michigan

(5) Temple vs. (12) California/South Florida

First, I expect Cal to beat South Florida in the play-in game. Temple is a good five-seed who can shoot the three pointer well. They don’t play very good defense, though. The Pac-12 gets very little respect nationally because it was terrible this year. I don’t expect the level of respect to change. If Cal can pull off the win against South Florida, they’ll have a shot to beat Temple because of their perimeter game. I’m sticking with Temple because they look like the better team on paper, but don’t be surprised if I’m wrong.

Winner: Temple

(6) San Diego State vs. (11) NC State

San Diego State won its first ever tournament game last season and look to make it two years in a row with a victory. North Carolina State was well on their way to the NIT when they decided to win four of their last five games and nearly beat North Carolina in the ACC tournament. If C.J. Leslie can have a big game in the paint, San Diego could be in trouble. Could be. San Diego is a terrible three-point team and they’ll have to find a way to score under the rim. If NC State had a little more depth, I’d pick them to upset the Aztecs, but they don’t, and they won’t.

Winner: San Diego State

(7) Saint Mary’s vs. (10) Purdue

Saint Mary’s is led by a six-foot-six, 240 pound monster named Rob Jones. He rebounds as good as anyone in the field and scored 14 points a night. If Saint Mary’s can find a way to keep Jones active in the paint and play a fast-paced game, they’ll come out on top. Purdue slows down the game and plays good basketball – most of the time. They lost 65-45 to Penn State earlier in the year, and they’ve had some similarly bad games since. They don’t have enough speed or talent to keep up with Saint Mary’s, and they’ll be tired from the Big Ten beating all season.

Winner: Saint Mary’s

(8) Creighton vs. (9) Alabama

This is the hardest game to pick in the first round. Creighton doesn’t try to beat teams with defense, and they make no secret about it. They shoot 50 percent from the field and 42 percent from beyond the arc. Alabama plays great defense (yes, I’m talking about their basketball team, football season is over), but their mediocre on the offensive side of the ball. If Creighton hits a dry spell, Alabama might be able to pull away; however, I don’t think Alabama can keep pace in this game.

Winner: Creighton

For those of you keeping score at home, I listed my “move on” teams below. I’ll keep track of how many I can get right throughout the tournament for your enjoyment. We’ll set the over/under at 33 out of a possible 63. For the record, I like this field to be relatively upset-free. I don’t see any potential VCU-Cinderally types this year….but I’ve been wrong before.

After the first round, I’ll throw my Round of 32 Preview together. Look for it!

Moving on in the South Bracket: (1) Kentucky, (2) Duke, (3) Baylor, (4) Indiana, (5) Wichita State, (6) UNLV, (7) Notre Dame, (9) UConn

Moving on in the West Bracket: (1) Michigan State, (2) Missouri, (3) Marquette, (5) New Mexico,  (6) Murray State, (7) Florida, (8) Memphis, (13) Davidson

Moving on in the East Bracket: (1) Syracuse, (2) Ohio State, (3) Florida State, (4) Wisconsin, (6), Cincinnati, (7) Gonzaga, (8) Kansas State, (12) Harvard

Moving on in the Midwest Bracket: (1) North Carolina, (2) Kansas, (3) Georgetown, (4) Michigan, (5) Temple, (6) San Diego State, (7) Saint Mary’s, (8) Creighton

Ladies and Gentlemen,

First, let me apologize for leaving you. I have no excuse – only that life won out and I had to step away from Outside Pressure to ensure other obligations were met on time. We are back.

Starting tonight, I will get back to what I love. Writing about sports. As you may notice below, I write about baseball and football a lot. Well, baseball season is over. Football is just getting juicy, and you can expect a lot of football.

We’ll see you soon.

Spread the word.

–Andrew

Welcome to Outside Pressure. The intent of this blog is to analyze, dissect, and discuss everything related to sports. You’ll notice a tendency towards discussions in baseball and football, along with the occasional sprinkling of basketball and other sports.

I warn you in advance, I am a huge fan of the  Philadelphia Phillies and Philadelphia Eagles. Expect bias. Along with that bias, you can expect nothing short of amazing analysis and insight that is different from the things you can read everywhere else.

Have a question or topic you want me to write about? You can email them to me at outsidepressureblog@gmail.com or leave a comment below.

And remember – tell all your friends.