Episode 45 - Know Your Mid-Majors: American Athletic

Question: Is the conference formerly known as the Big East considered a mid-major?

Answer: Some would argue no, but for our purposes, yes, it is because they lose preferred ("BCS") status this summer.

The American Athletic Conference is the result of the non-football schools of the old Big East Conference (the so-called "Catholic 7") splitting from the older conference and buying the Big East name.  Don't worry, Big East fans, we'll get to you eventually.

The schools of the American Athletic in 2013-14 are:

• Central Florida (UCF)
• Cincinnati
• Connecticut (UConn)
• Houston
• Louisville (heading for the ACC this summer)
• Memphis
• Rutgers (heading for the Big Ten this summer)
• South Florida
• Southern Methodist (SMU)
• Temple

In summer 2014, three schools join this conference as full members, all from Conference USA: East Carolina, Tulane and Tulsa.

This episode contains clips from a 2008 segment of Hardball on MSNBC for illustrative purposes.

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Episode 44 - Where Are They Now? 4

Tim gives us another edition of "Where Are They Now?"

Today's athletes of discussion:

• Brian Bosworth
• Fernando Valenzuela
• Rudy Tomjanovich
• Mike Eruzione

Tim also provided for us a photo signed by Eruzione and other members of the 1980 US Olympic hockey team.  He also informed us of a sports collectibles show he had attended and met for members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame: Marcus Allen, Len Dawson, Jerry Rice and Emmitt Smith.

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Episode 43 - Hockey Discussion

Mike and Ray talks all things hockey - from the NHL standings as of the Olympic break to Olympic hockey and even some college hockey.

Meanwhile, Tim is on Four Words as his punishment for picking Denver to win the Super Bowl.

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Episode 42 - Gay Athletes

In light of NFL prospect and Missouri grad Michael Sam coming out of the closet, our discussion today focused on gay athletes and how professional sports teams would react to their presence.

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Episode 41 - Super Bowl Review and Batsu Game

We review the Super Bowl and dole out Tim's batsu game for picking Denver to win the big game.

Tim's batsu game is Four Words: Mount, Fuji, Jet, and Pack.

Speaking of batsu game, here's Mike making good on his most recent batsu game and wearing Tim's Chicago Bears #54 Brian Urlacher jersey:

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Episode 40 - Know Your Mid-Majors: West Coast

Today's Know Your Mid-Majors focuses on the West Coast Conference, a conference consisting entirely of religious colleges.

The schools of the West Coast Conference are:

• Brigham Young (BYU)
• Gonzaga
• Loyola Marymount
• Pacific
• Pepperdine
• Portland
• Saint Mary's
• San Diego (their mascot is the Torero - another word for bull fighter)
• San Francisco
• Santa Clara

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Episode 39 - Know Your Mid-Majors: Ohio Valley

Our next installment of Know Your Mid-Majors is the Ohio Valley Conference.

Despite the name, none of these schools are in the state of Ohio.  This is mostly a Southern conference centered around Kentucky and Tennessee.

The Ohio Valley is home to the following schools:

• Austin Peay
• Belmont
• Eastern Illinois
• Eastern Kentucky
• Jacksonville State (this school's in Alabama)
• Morehead State
• Murray State (former home of the National Scouting Museum)
• Southeast Missouri State (alma mater of a certain "Comedian")
• SIU-Edwardsville (alma mater of a certain sports writer who ate something weird in China)
• Tennessee State (an HBCU)
• Tennessee Tech
• Tennessee-Martin

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Brief Super Bowl Review

Final Score of Super Bowl 48:

Seattle 43
Denver 8

It is a very somber day indeed for us at the WSC.

For one thing, Mike - a diehard St. Louis Rams fan - isn't happy with the thought of a division rival walking away with the biggest prize in professional football.

Also, in both sets of his picks (original and adjusted), Tim picked Denver to win the Super Bowl.

Tim, batsu game.

Episode 38 - Friday Night Tykes

Tim talks about a new television show highlighting youth football camps in Texas.  Do they go too far?  When is the right age to start playing football?



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