Kingsbury Reputaion Growing

Mandel gave brief insight on up-and-coming coach Kliff Kingsbury. Kingsbury has led Texas Tech to a 7-0 start. After dismal years following the departure of Mike Leach, Kingsbury has seemingly turned the program around to what it was several years ago. Mandel gives us insight into Kingsbury’s life:

1. He’s only 34 years old
2. He was the Red Raiders QB from 2000-2002
3. Sets the music playlists at practice while taking all requests
4. Feels as though you “have to play to your audience” when asked about relating to players

Mandel once again wrote a brief column that would probably not satisfy most readers. I would have liked a more in depth column because I think that Kingsbury has done a remarkable job at Texas Tech. Other than that, the article was a solid piece. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/college-football/news/20131024/kliff-kingsbury-texas-tech/index.html

Stanford Rebounds

Stanford is known for their intelligence and experience on the field, but this year’s squad is proving to be a formidable opponent. Mandel gives an in depth review of Stanford’s week eight win vs. No. 9 UCLA.

This big win came after a terrible loss to a dismal Utah team. Stanford bounced back and put on an impressive performance, winning 24-10. With Texas A&M suffering their second loss to Auburn and LSU losing to Ole Miss, Stanford took a couple steps forward in keeping their name relevant in the BCS title hopes.

This is the first column that Mandel has wrote that was more than just a brief opinion/review/prediction. The content and style were both my favorite thus far from Mandel. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/college-football/news/20131019/stanford-cardinal-ucla-bruins/

Which Job is the Better Opportunity?

USC and Texas. Two historic schools that have seen better days. Mandel gives his own take on which school has a more promising head coach position. USC recently fired Lane Kiffin and Texas head coach Mack Brown is on the hot seat. Mandel compared the teams by looking at the positives:

• Both schools are in a prime recruiting market
• USC is more prominent nation wide
• Texas is viewed as the best football school in the state (which has more talent than it knows what to do with)

In a very short column that was really just an answer to a question, Mandel managed to put forth the bare minimum of information. I think it would have been much better if he went into more detail because this is the kind of topic that starts a great debate. But, it was basically just an answer to a random email so I guess I cannot knock him too much on not going more in depth. To see the full entry click here.

Top Ten Matchup and More

Mandel gave a rundown of this weekend’s games, including the big 2:

1. 9 Georgia vs. 6 LSU (Box Score)
2. 14 Oklahoma vs. 22 Notre Dame (Box Score)

Every rundown Mandel gave was short and to the point. The content was everything that it needed to be in the style that I believe he was trying to achieve. Once again, I saw both of these games so I appreciate the short rundown that only featured facts and a brief perspective from Mandel. I’m still waiting for something where Mandel goes more in depth on a story though. To see Mandel’s entire column and all of the recaps, click this link.

Stanford Makes a Statement

Does Stanford really have what it takes to be a title contender this season? After reading Mandel’s article I am not completely sold on them. There’s no denying they have a great team, but top 5 might be pushing it. Never mind considering them a title contender. Mandel mentioned the following:

• Stanford seemingly removed as to its top-five worthiness.
• They were up 29-0 at the half.
• The first half was a Stanford clinic.
• The defense allowed just seven rushing yards and fewer than 100 passing yards in the first half.

Yes, Stanford was impressive with their win this weekend and their defense can match up against just about any other offense. But it was only #23 Arizona State. Mandel, along with others, shouldn’t overreact to this win.

College Football

The column I read was written by Stewart Mandel about the Alabama vs. Texas A&M game this weekend. The blog was short and to the point, which I enjoyed because I watched the entire game and did not need a play-by-play type of column. However, this would not be the column that someone would want to read if they were looking for a more detailed account of the game. The column was able to touch on the important aspects of the game while still staying short and to the point. I thought Mandel’s writing was good, but not great. I thought it was good that he was able to incorporate several quotes in a short column, but I thought one of the quotes (the first one) did not go with the flow of the article. Aside from that, I thought the content was good and the column was well written. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/college-football/news/20130914/alabama-texas-am/index.html