Casey Kasem Has Left The Building
posted by Scott Hood, 5/14/2008 01:23:00 AM
I loved the show except for those sappy long distance dedications, and listened to it religiously nearly every weekend during my formative years.
The show was successful because Americans love lists. They love to rank things, line ‘em up and see who’s Number 1.
Which explains why in 2008 we have self-described college football experts furnishing us in the middle of May with their pre-season rankings.
Tony Barnhart of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution – or should I call him by the title given him by his employer, “Mr. College Football?” – has put out his list for public consumption.
He has the usual suspects in the Top 10 – Southern Cal, Florida, Ohio State, Oklahoma. But he does have a few surprises, including putting Georgia No. 1.
Hey, not that he’s a homer or anything.
He also has our companions in the Upstate at No. 7, as well as Missouri No. 3, Illinois No. 8 and Auburn at No. 10.
As you scan down the list, something jumps out you - South Carolina is nowhere to be found.
Not in the Top 30. Not even in the “Ten Who Almost Made It.”
That’s right. Barnhart, okay “Mr. College Football,” doesn’t think USC is one of the 40 best college football teams in the country heading into the 2008 season.
Somewhere, Casey Kasem just fainted.
Here’s a sampling of the teams Barnhart believes will be better than the Gamecocks this season – Connecticut, Cincinnati, East Carolina, Kentucky, Mississippi State, North Carolina and Virginia.
I’m assuming that by ignoring USC, Barnhart believes all of those schools would beat USC on a neutral field.
Yeah, right.
What’s my response to all of this mid-spring foolishness??
Keep it coming.
In my opinion, being ignored in the rankings this time of the year is a good thing. It’s easier to enter a season with low expectations and move up than it is to start high in the polls and maintain that level.
In short, it’s far more desirable to be the hunter than the hunted.
Frankly, I hope Georgia arrives in Columbia on Sept. 13 ranked No. 1 in the country. If so, it will provide Spurrier and the Gamecocks with a golden opportunity to create a major splash nationally.
Nothing signals your program is healthy and on the rise more than by knocking off the No. 1 team in the country.
Mr. Stafford, meet Mr. Brinkley. Again.
Oh, by the way, Quincy Carter just threw another interception.
Can you imagine the headlines throughout the country on the following Sunday if somehow the Gamecocks beat the Bulldogs? Spurrier would become a human deity again.
USC may have to overcome the fact CBS will likely broadcast the game nationally to an eager audience. In case you haven’t been paying attention, USC’s record in games televised by CBS is, to be quite honest, horrendous.
Of course, ESPN’s very own in-house comedian Lee Corso went on national TV a few weeks ago and claimed the SEC East title would come down to the Nov. 15 game between USC and Florida in the Swamp.
So, Corso and Barnhart apparently disagree on USC’s standing in the college football universe with the start of the 2008 season set to kickoff on Aug. 28 at Williams-Brice Stadium.
Corso and Barnhart. Barnhart and Corso.
Clash of the Titans? No, more like the War of the Weeble Wobbles.
It’s not too difficult to figure out – hence, this Blog - why Barnhart has such a shockingly paltry opinion of the Gamecocks.
Like most national media types who don’t see the Gamecocks on an everyday basis, he probably had a heart attack when he saw the number 8 in the interceptions column upon reviewing the box score from USC’s April 19 spring game.
Immediately, he reached this inference: South Carolina’s quarterbacks must really suck.
It’s always dangerous to make judgments based on one game, especially the spring football game, which is quickly becoming one of the most overhyped and overanalyzed events on the American sports calendar.
It's slugging it out with the NFL Draft for the heavyweight title.
Will either Tommy Beecher or Chris Smelley make any pre-season All-SEC teams? No. But I believe both of them are serviceable quarterbacks that have the ability to lead USC to a bunch of wins.
Hey, Phil Petty did it in 2000 and 2001. I see no reason why Beecher or Smelley can’t do the same in2008.
Of course, they’ll have to avoid meltdowns like the one we saw against Vanderbilt last season.
After listening to Steve Spurrier night after night on the Gamecock Club tour, I’m convinced he feels either Beecher or Smelley can get the job done.
It doesn’t appear Barnhart has caught on yet to the fact USC should be much improved both defensively and on special teams.
By the time the USC-Georgia game is over, I’m sure he’ll get the message. All he had to do, though, was attend a few Gamecock Club meetings this spring. Spurrier talked up Ellis Johnson and Ray Rychleski for most of the tour.
For the most part, though, Spurrier is taking a low key approach to the upcoming season. He’s refusing to make any predictions about USC competing for the SEC East title.
That’s good.
As far as Barnhart and the other notable college football prognosticators are concerned, what they don’t know won’t hurt them.
Okay, I admit it. I‘m old enough to remember ‘American Top 40’ hosted by DJ Casey Kasem, a weekly radio show that counted down the 40 biggest music hits in the nation.
I loved the show except for those sappy long distance dedications, and listened to it religiously nearly every weekend during my formative years.
The show was successful because Americans love lists. They love to rank things, line ‘em up and see who’s Number 1.
Which explains why in 2008 we have self-described college football experts furnishing us in the middle of May with their pre-season rankings.
Tony Barnhart of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution – or should I call him by the title given him by his employer, “Mr. College Football?” – has put out his list for public consumption.
He has the usual suspects in the Top 10 – Southern Cal, Florida, Ohio State, Oklahoma. But he does have a few surprises, including putting Georgia No. 1.
Hey, not that he’s a homer or anything.
He also has our companions in the Upstate at No. 7, as well as Missouri No. 3, Illinois No. 8 and Auburn at No. 10.
As you scan down the list, something jumps out you - South Carolina is nowhere to be found.
Not in the Top 30. Not even in the “Ten Who Almost Made It.”
That’s right. Barnhart, okay “Mr. College Football,” doesn’t think USC is one of the 40 best college football teams in the country heading into the 2008 season.
Somewhere, Casey Kasem just fainted.
Here’s a sampling of the teams Barnhart believes will be better than the Gamecocks this season – Connecticut, Cincinnati, East Carolina, Kentucky, Mississippi State, North Carolina and Virginia.
I’m assuming that by ignoring USC, Barnhart believes all of those schools would beat USC on a neutral field.
Yeah, right.
What’s my response to all of this mid-spring foolishness??
Keep it coming.
In my opinion, being ignored in the rankings this time of the year is a good thing. It’s easier to enter a season with low expectations and move up than it is to start high in the polls and maintain that level.
In short, it’s far more desirable to be the hunter than the hunted.
Frankly, I hope Georgia arrives in Columbia on Sept. 13 ranked No. 1 in the country. If so, it will provide Spurrier and the Gamecocks with a golden opportunity to create a major splash nationally.
Nothing signals your program is healthy and on the rise more than by knocking off the No. 1 team in the country.
Mr. Stafford, meet Mr. Brinkley. Again.
Oh, by the way, Quincy Carter just threw another interception.
Can you imagine the headlines throughout the country on the following Sunday if somehow the Gamecocks beat the Bulldogs? Spurrier would become a human deity again.
USC may have to overcome the fact CBS will likely broadcast the game nationally to an eager audience. In case you haven’t been paying attention, USC’s record in games televised by CBS is, to be quite honest, horrendous.
Of course, ESPN’s very own in-house comedian Lee Corso went on national TV a few weeks ago and claimed the SEC East title would come down to the Nov. 15 game between USC and Florida in the Swamp.
So, Corso and Barnhart apparently disagree on USC’s standing in the college football universe with the start of the 2008 season set to kickoff on Aug. 28 at Williams-Brice Stadium.
Corso and Barnhart. Barnhart and Corso.
Clash of the Titans? No, more like the War of the Weeble Wobbles.
It’s not too difficult to figure out – hence, this Blog - why Barnhart has such a shockingly paltry opinion of the Gamecocks.
Like most national media types who don’t see the Gamecocks on an everyday basis, he probably had a heart attack when he saw the number 8 in the interceptions column upon reviewing the box score from USC’s April 19 spring game.
Immediately, he reached this inference: South Carolina’s quarterbacks must really suck.
It’s always dangerous to make judgments based on one game, especially the spring football game, which is quickly becoming one of the most overhyped and overanalyzed events on the American sports calendar.
It's slugging it out with the NFL Draft for the heavyweight title.
Will either Tommy Beecher or Chris Smelley make any pre-season All-SEC teams? No. But I believe both of them are serviceable quarterbacks that have the ability to lead USC to a bunch of wins.
Hey, Phil Petty did it in 2000 and 2001. I see no reason why Beecher or Smelley can’t do the same in2008.
Of course, they’ll have to avoid meltdowns like the one we saw against Vanderbilt last season.
After listening to Steve Spurrier night after night on the Gamecock Club tour, I’m convinced he feels either Beecher or Smelley can get the job done.
It doesn’t appear Barnhart has caught on yet to the fact USC should be much improved both defensively and on special teams.
By the time the USC-Georgia game is over, I’m sure he’ll get the message. All he had to do, though, was attend a few Gamecock Club meetings this spring. Spurrier talked up Ellis Johnson and Ray Rychleski for most of the tour.
For the most part, though, Spurrier is taking a low key approach to the upcoming season. He’s refusing to make any predictions about USC competing for the SEC East title.
That’s good.
As far as Barnhart and the other notable college football prognosticators are concerned, what they don’t know won’t hurt them.
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