903

Congrats to Duke and Coach Mike Krzyzewski  for his 903rd win. Coach K passes the great Bobby Knight (902 wins) for sole possesion of the NCAA Division 1 top spot in college basketball coaching wins. A true workhorse and great coach, Coach K was able to keep winning through a transition from the old days to the social networking and freshman studs to the NBA days of 2011.

Coach K has been at Duke since 1980 after starting his coaching career at Army (5 seasons). He's made the NCAA Tourney in all but 3 seasons at Duke, last winning it all in 2010. Duke has won 20 or more games each season since 1996-1997 and he's carried the Blue Devils to 4 NCAA Champions. A quiet and smart coach has climbed the coaching ranks to #1 ironically passing his former coach at West Point Bob Knight.

Coach K has coached NBA Players Shane Battier, Grant Hill, JJ Redick, Jason Williams, Elton Brand, Luol Deng, Carlos Boozer, Chris Duhon, Mike Dunleavy Jr., Nolan Smith, Kyrie Irving, Kyle Singler, Gerald Henderson, Corey Maggette, Dahntay Jones to name a few.

Coach Mike Krzyzewski has won the following awards:

• 1986, Basketball Times, CBS/Chevrolet, UPI National COY awards
• 1989, Naismith National COY
• 1991, United States Sports Academyy awarded Kryzewski the Amos Alonzo Stagg Coaching Award.
• 2001, Victor Award
• 1984, ACC COY
• 1986, ACC COY
• 1997, ACC COY
• 1999, ACC COY
• 2000, ACC COY
• 2010, Chris Phillips Award
• 2001, Inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall Of Fame.
• 2001, Time magazine and CNN named Krzyzewski "America's Best Coach"; the award was not limited to any particular sport.
• 2008, United States Sports Academy awarded Krzyzewski the Amos Alonzo Stagg Coaching Award.

Congrats Coach K, #6 Duke is now 3-0 in 2011-2012 season and with top recruit Austin Rivers in a Blue Devil uniform, Duke could win it all again.

When comparing Coach K to the late John Wooden, despite Wooden's edge in NCAA Titles, Coach K has more wins and has coached his team to greatness in a tougher more advanced time with Twitter, AAU coaches and iphones to get in the way. Coach K is the best NCAA Basketball Coach of All-Time.

Top 5 for Last Week

1. Demarco Murray- Career-high 253 rushing yards and a 91-yard TD run vs. the winless Rams as the OU rookie stepped in for the injured Felix Jones with a breakout game for the now 3-3 Cowboys.

2. Saints 62-7 win over Colts ?!?! Yes, the Colts miss Peyton Manning more then ever and Curtis Painter is garbage. Manning should win the MVP for not-playing this season. QB play in the NFL is huge to becoming a winner and the 0-7 Colts know what that's about.

3. Here's Carson!! Well, not exactly, the Chiefs rolled the Raiders 28-0, picked off Raiders QB's Carson Palmer and Kyle Boller a combined 6 times (3 each). The Raiders will need Palmer to shake off the rust because those 2 first round picks are long gone to the Bengals.

3a. Props to the Chiefs, they started 0-3 and looked like the worst team in the NFL, they've lost top players RB Jamaal Charles, S Eric Berry and TE Tony Moeaki all to ACL tears for the season and all of a sudden sit at 3-3, a game behind 4-2 SD and 1/2 game behind 4-3 Oakland. The Chiefs could be in first place by the end of next week as they host SD on Monday Night looking to make it four wins in a row (Oakland on bye). Former Houston Cougars RB Jackie Battle has stepped up for KC without Charles to anchor the run game.

4. Did the Jaguars really beat previously 4-1 Baltimore 12-7? Yeah another egg laid by Joe Flacco and the Ravens as they fall to 4-2. Josh Scobee (4/4 FG) and the Jags stop a 5-game skid to stun the Ravens. Baltimore struggled all game to get any offense going until a late TD catch by Anquan Boldin put them in striking distance ultimately falling short on a Flacco INT. Jags QB Blaine Gabbert now can say he beat Ed Reed, Ray Lewis, Terrell Suggs on MNF as his first career NFL victory as a starter.

5. Packers get to 7-0. Despite decent play from rookie QB Christian Ponder and another big game from AP, the Packers kept rolling to escape the Vikings on the road with a 33-27 win. GB heads on a bye as the only perfect team in the NFL. Vikings are now 1-6 and with McNabb on the bench to backup top pick Ponder.

Can Carson Palmer Save Raiders?

It has been a crazy few weeks for Bay Area fans in Oakland as their pride and joy, the Oakland Raiders lost long time owner and NFL personality Al Davis. One of the most vocal and famous owners in sports alongside the likes of Mark Cuban and Dan Snyder, Davis wasn't afraid to make a tough decision or speak his mind. In the two weeks since his passing, the Raiders are 2-0 with the Chiefs and a bye week in the near future.

Not all has been well for Raiders fans as they also lost starting QB Jason Campbell to a broken collarbone this past Sunday in a 7-point home win vs the Browns. An awkward game for Raiders fans as 2 TD's were scored by kickoff return and fake FG TD pass. Back to Campell for a moment, he goes down with a potential season ending collarbone injury (Campebll's a free agent to be) anf the team sitting at 4-2 feels they can win now. So with or without their longtime owner Al Davis they make a move for the ages. I've heard on some radio shows that this may have been the best trade ever- for the Cincinatti Bengals (not the Raiders). Wait a second- not for the Raiders? Nope, Cincy may have struck gold.

The Bengals at 4-2 sent outcasted and forgotten one-time Pro Bowl QB Carson Palmer (USC former Heisman Trophy winning QB) to the Raiders for a 2012 first round draft pick and either a first or second round draft pick in 2013 depending if the 2011 Raiders get to the AFC Title Game this season (unlikely). Wow that's a huge trade for the Bengals to get possibly 2 first round picks for a player who is not even on the 53-man roster. The Bengals have faith in rookie QB Andy Dalton from TCU and with him playing as well as he has, the Bengals will only get better. They'll likely have 4 First round picks in the next 2 years- Amazing. With Cedric Benson on a 1-year deal look for the Bengals to draft RB Trent Richardson in 2012.

Did Oakland give up too much? What's wrong with backup QB Kyle Boller? How about former Ohio State QB Terelle Pryor? Well apparently they aren't the answer to replace Campbell. The Raiders will likely start Carson Palmer this weekend and will need him to pickup this offense fast. Don't get me wrong he's easily the better Qb option over Boller and Pryor, but for 2 first round picks? For a guy who hasn't played football all season, missed training camp and preseason, and is 6-years removed from a 32 TD campaign? We will see...I hope Al Davis isn't rolling over in his grave on this trade, but someone needs to become a playmaker next to RUN DMC (aka Darren McFadden).

I like the trade for both teams, the Bengals need to compete in a tough division run by Baltimore and Pittsburgh and the Raiders are in weak division (went 6-0 last season) and have the talent to win that division this season. Raiders are ready to win and the Chargers (4-1) are not a scary 4-1 team at all with Rivers playing mediocre QB all season and Antonio Gates injured.

Tigers at Yankees Game 5

In what should be a battle of Aces tonight in Justin Verlander and C.C. Sabathia will not happen due to a rain out and suspended Game 1 that pushed these starters to a Game 3 duel that went Verlander's way (8 IP, 11Ks, and the Win). Instead we will have the midseason trade acquisition from Seattle Doug Fister facing off against the rookie Ivan Nova. Nova outpitched Fister in Game 1's continuation from a 1-1 score on Friday night. What can we expect from tonight?

I have to say after the series headed to Detroit 1-1 and All-Star Closer Jose Valverde guaranteed the series would be won by his Tigers 3-1 in Detroit. As a teammate of Valverde, don't you hate guarantees? All the pressure to win two games in a row against Derek Jeter and the NY Yankees...not happening. Led by AJ Burnett, yes Burnett of all people pitched a stellar Game 4 (in Burnett's eyes he pitched a no-hitter) to propel his Yankees to a 10-1 game 4 win and a trip back to the Bronx for a pivotal Game 5 tonight.

Tonight's Game 5 will see every available player have hs spikes on and be ready, except Verlander. 120 pitches in a Game 3 win will make the 24-5 AL CY Young winner (not official yet) unavailable to pitch, which could be huge in a game in where your season is on the line.

The lineup edge goes to the Yankees, Nova is better right now then Fister, Soriano-Robertson-Rivera in the NYY bullpen is simply better the Coke, Alburquerque, Benoit, Schlereth, Valverde as you saw in Game 4. The game is in NYY and it's up to Fister? Last time I checked it's not Verlander, the Tigers have to jump on Nova early to have a chance to get NYY Manager Joe Girardi to use his bullpen early and often.

Prediction- NYY wins series 3-2, Game 5 score: 7-4, but I'd like to see the Tigers win.

Bills and Lions, are you drinking the kool-aid?

The laughing stocks of the NFL, the past decade have been the Buffalo Bills and Detroit Lions. Both teams were virtual locks for last place in their division and easy games on the NFL schedule. Now things have changed as both teams are an undefeated 3-0 with quality wins on the schedule.

The Bills rolled the Chiefs Week 1, and had 2 comeback wins Week 2 and 3 to beat the Raiders (2-1) and the arch nemesis Patriots (2-1). Buffalo hadn't beat New England and Brady in the last 15 meetings dating back to a time when Facebook was "The Facebook" and in the works. The Bills have Chan Gailey as the new head coach and QB Ryan Fitzpatrick might be Mark Zuckerburg with his Harvard education playing at a high level in the NFL. Stevie Johnson is a stud WR and not a bda rapper while Fred Jackson is the unsung hero thats has been all across the world trying to play football.

After 3 weeks I'd say the Bills are for real and I'll take a glass of that kool-aid. To beat Tom Brady after trailing 21-0 and intercept him four times is an accomplishment I don't care if you are the Bills or not.

In the NFC the Lions are 3-0. Yes it may be more impressive then the Bills, let's not forget in 2008 the Lions went 0-16, yes they won 0 games. Now with Stafford, Best, HC Jim Schwarz, Pettigrew, Suh and Fairley added on since, the Lions are on the prowl. They trailed 20-0 to the Vikings and won 26-23 in OT yesterday and beat up on KC and Tampa Bay (10-6 last season). Both the Lions and Bills have beaten an 0-3 Chiefs team that looks terrible and last year's 10-6 playoff appearance may have been a fluke as the Ravens routed them anyway.

The Bills and Lions in the Super Bowl? Hold on just minute I'm not drinking that kool aid just yet

Justin Verlander

Go ahead make the exception, because he is just that good. Tigers ace Justin Verlander improved to 24-5, yes a freakish 24-5 record this season with his 12th straight win on the mound locking him up the AL CY Young and you should go ahead and give him the AL MVP as well. With all sue respect to Curtis Granderson, Jacoby Ellsbury, Jose Bautista and others the award is for Most Valuable Player to his team, not the best player.

It's simple, the AL Central runaway champion Tigers are no where without Verlander being an absolute monster on the mound this season. Verlander even has a no-hitter this season to his resume and has the Tigers as a strong playoff contender as October looms and playoff baseball begins.

I have to give you Verlander stats because I'm a stat guy and his numbers are too good to pass up, like a $10 steak night or buy one get one free Doritos.

Verlander- 24-5 (12 consec. wins), 244 strikeouts, 2.29 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, 244 IP (K per inning), 4 CG, 2 SH, 1 no-hitter, BAA .190= Simply Sensational

Let's not mention the Tigers caught the Indians in the division and have been dominant behind Verlander's charge the last 2 months. Detroit has rattled off a 16-3 record in its past 19 games and will be a scary team with Verlander pitching twice in a playoff series.

He's been a fantasy baseball hero for me (I drafted him in the 4th rd, what a steal) and he gives me a shot in the finals of my league and that right there makes him the best pitcher in the MLB this 2011 season.

Historic streaks- done

In the past year, two Hall of Fame NFL QBs Brett Favre and Peyton Manning who were 1 and 2 on the consecutive starts list stumbled over some injuries, which caused these streaks to end. Favre's streak formerly #1, now done at 297 straight starts towards the end of the 2010 and Manning could not catch him with neck surgeries all offseason falling victim to the injury bug and not playing Week 1 at Houston to kickoff the 2011 season. Kerry Collins started for the Colts who were smashed by a hungry Texans team 34-7 (led 34-0). Favre's streak began in 1992 and since then 238 QBs have started in the NFL and 17 of them once were Favre's backups themselves (Aaron Rodgers, Matt Hasselbeck). Joe Webb was the first QB to start in favor of Favre when he went down with injury last season.

Manning's streak ended at 208 games (227 games including playoffs), he started every game for the Colts since 1998 and the last QB until the streak recently ended to start in Indy was current 49ers Head Coach Jim Harbaugh. The torch has been passed Favre to Manning and Manning couldn't hold it very long as now it seems it falls in the hands of....

Eli Manning. Peyton's little brother keeps the Manning family atop the list with a active streak of 104 consecutive starts. Currently the longest active streak and the 6th longest streak in NFL history. The second longest streak resides in San Diego as Phillip Rivers is now up to 81 consecutive starts, tied for 13th all time with Trent Green.

By the end of the 2011 season if both players stay healthy Eli will be at 119 consecutivve starts and Rivers will be at 96 moving into the 3rd longest starts streak ever and Rivers will move into 7th just ahead of former Eagles legend Ron Jaworski (116).

Rivers would have to play 13 seasons more as a starting QB to catch Favre and Eli will need about 11.5 seasons to catch Favre. With all that said lets realize that the NFL without Favre and Peyton Manning isn't quite the same.