Bump N’ Run w/ KT: Jets Beats Giants, Rutgers Hires Ash And College Playoffs Set

The Jets Wins The Battle Of NY/NJ

I am not going to second guess the call that Tom Coughlin made to go for it on 4^th down late in the game. I think most of us would have made the same call and if you say otherwise you are full of it. The problem comes from the defense as they continue to underachieve and honestly it’s not the personnel on the field. For the most part, names like Craig Dahl, Cooper Taylor or Trevin Wade are special team players, not guys who should be playing significant snaps on defense weekly. This is where Antrel Rolle manning the safety position is sorely missed.

For the Jets, it was a great day for Ryan Fitzpatrick. There were many questions going into the season about whether he could be more than a game manager but he is proving that he is a good NFL quarterback and not just a placeholder. The relationship he has developed with Eric Decker and Brandon Marshall is something that has not been talked about enough this season and at this point, the Jets may have played their way into the playoffs.

For the Giants I don’t know what’s next. Four games remaining against the Dolphins, Panthers, Vikings and Eagles and it seems that the Giants may have to win out and get help from the Redskins to make the playoffs. Of those four games, only the Miami game is the one game that fans can feel confident about. Like every season, it’s going to come down to the final week most likely and honestly, I am going to die at an early age because of it.

Rutgers Hires New Head Coach

It appears that Rutgers have found their man for their head coaching position. Chris Ash, the defensive coordinator at Ohio State, has agreed to become the 27^th coach in Scarlet Knight football history. I mentioned last week that Rutgers’ defense is already in order but they still brought in a defensive minded coach.

It is a good hire due to Ash being a young coach and not a college coach retread but this is where a reunion of Rutgers and Greg Schiano could have been beneficial for both parties. Rutgers can go back to the man that brought the program to national prominence a few years ago and Schiano can try to scrub his NFL stint out of the minds of everyone. I am still interested to see who Ash gets to come in as offensive coordinator but it’s a good move overall by new athletic director Patrick Hobbs.

Hoboken Wins North 2, Group 1 Title

My day job is as a teacher at Hoboken High School and on Saturday, the Red Wings won the North 2, Group 1 title after beating Brearley 34-12 at Kean University. Going into the game, Brearley was undefeated at 11-0 and they were the odds on favorite going into the game by many pundits. The Red Wings showed flashes during the season and was helped by having a winning streak going into the state playoffs. An amazing effort by the Hoboken Red Wings for their first title since 2013….CONGRATULATIONS!

Around The Country

• The College Football Playoffs are set. We have (1) Clemson vs. (4) Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl and (2) Alabama vs. (3) Michigan State in the Cotton Bowl with the winners of those games meeting on January 11 in Arizona for the National Championship. The 1 vs. 4 match-up has the makings of an upset while Michigan State could beat Alabama ala Ohio State similar to last season. I will say this…I wanted more chaos in the end but these are good match-ups.

• Does anyone else feel like an eight-team playoff would be amazing? Check Double G Sports later this week for my proposal for an eight-team playoff.

• The Carolina Panthers continue to win as they moved to 12-0 with a come from behind victory over New Orleans on Sunday. I still say the offense is one dimensional and playing in the NFC South does help but they are a dangerous team come playoff time.

• I’m a Penn State fan but the TaxSlayer Bowl? Are we all agreed that there are too many damn bowl games?

• Finally a big shout-out to Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey who broke Barry Sanders all-purpose yards record and had 3 TD’s during the Pac-12 Championship Game (1 passing, 1 rushing and 1 receiving). He is my Heisman Trophy winner this season…even though I don’t have a vote.