Ya Gotta Believe

Thank You Evan. (h/t to SI's Vault)

It's Amazing. 9 games out in early September. After Game 162, they are one game ahead.

Definitely One.Wild.Night.

Blog Outsourcing - 9/26 edition

Hi and hello! It's the final Monday of September in 2011.

Summer just ended this past weekend, and it is already the start of autumn, where football is afoot and in-depth.

Olympic qualifying for the automatic spots just finished yesterday. China is the last amongst the FIBA regions to lock up an automatic spot with their win over Jordan by a point. They join Great Britain, Tunisia, Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Spain, France and the United States. The three remaining spots will be fought over in a wildcard tournament. 12 countries (Angola, Nigeria, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Jordan, South Korea, New Zealand, Russia, Macedona, Lithuania and Greece) get a shot at those slots.

Why am I discussing basketball? Well, the Motherland had a chance to seal its first berth in ages if they beat the Koreans, which they were not able to fulfill (again). It's their best finish though after 27 years, so it's a positive sign.

The other thing? My alma mater is one game away from clinching its fourth straight men's basketball championship.



Here forth are the links after the jump.

Nothing like racing under the lights. (c/o London Telegraph)

It's now official. The state of Texas now official has a SEC feel to it. (c/o I am the 12th Man)

Los Lobos needs a new head coach. (c/o Lost Lettermen)

Bayou Bengals geaux on top of the AP Top 25. (c/o National Football Post)

Red Sox overpaid to get their own Brett Gardner? (c/o FanGraphs)

Nittany Lions (c/o York Daily Record) and Sooners (c/o The Oklahoman) lose key cogs.

MMA Expert Steven Seagal breaks down UFC 135's main event. (c/o Around The Octagon)

Our thoughts are with Jerry Kill. (c/o Minneapolis Star-Tribune)

(Van) Chew on this, Toledo. (c/o Big East Coast Bias)

What does the new Big 12 Commish need to do? (c/o The News Tribune)

End of an era? (c/o Cagewriter)

He's done for the year. Is it enough for Cy Young recognition? (c/o True Blue LA)

Probably one of the most bizarre stories in baseball ever. (c/o SportsGrid)

Encapsulating why it's not happening in the Twin Cities. (c/o Big League Stew)

200k's worth of games. (c/o Sporting News)

Grantland puts out great stuff. Here's the latest. It's the sweet science.

Not much, because I am writing early to attend to some matters of my own later. But to part, here it is, which is appropriate as they end their run.

And here is the song i am currently humming as of late.

The Mat Project

We know that the government does not really have much financial clout to do much, and if they do, they need to allocate it to the proper parties. So, it is appropriate to do fundraisers of their own to achieve the needed money to get what they need. And, it is up to us to provide the means to help those who deserve it.

I am writing here about a certain cause being undertaken by a couple of professors (Eloi Hernandez and Grace Gregorio) at the University of the Philippines. These two individuals are also the mentors and guardians of the multi-awarded University of the Philippines Pep Squad. Yup, if you recall last weekend, they did a Madonna routine


The UP Pep Squad is something that not just the Iskolar ng Bayan would be proud of, but for all of us Filipinos. In fact, they will be representing our country in a competition later this year (the 6th Cheerleading World Championships), not unlike SMART-Gilas in Wuhan or our beloved Azkals, whose manager Dan Palami has already tweeted his appreciation for the school.

Of course, so that the Pep Squad can prepare for the competition, they'll need new equipment, specifically mats, about 300 of them. Now these mats cost 900 a piece, so it's a little pricey. Like what I said above, the school does not exactly have the finances to shell out, so let's do our role and chip in, if you can. Now as of the latest information, they have already secured enough for 264, so they need just a little more. If you want to make a pledge to help, you can donate here:

Account name: UP Varsity Pep Squad
Checking account no: 1078012117
Bank : BDO

Just make sure to email the details of your pledge to graciegregorio@gmail.com. You may email there for any questions and inquiries as well.

Thanks and Good luck to you.

UAAP Finals Poster (or Not)

Thanks to @carlo_pamintuan for the tweet containing this.

Just had to post this because it's cute. #GoAteneo

Kindly oblige me. It is my alma mater after all. The quest for four beckons.

Enter Sandman, Exit (to) Greatness

Hey you, 602. (Thanks to the New York Daily News)

The statistic that a journalist created in the 70s has said to be the most overrated one amongst all the different statistics being recorded in the national pastime. It changed the game from what it was back then, to what it is now with the specialization of the pitcher. Joe Posnanski of Sports Illustrated wrote about it.

His legend continues to grow, and it looks like he is not finished yet writing his epitaph.

Congratulations, Mariano. It is as if he needs this record to validate his greatness. Nope. He already has it way before he came close to 602.

Blog Outsourcing - 9/19 edition

Welcome to today's edition of The Victory Formation.

Well, well, well. Floyd Mayweather reminded us all that we need to PROTECT YOURSELF AT ALL TIMES. He also reminded us all that he is such a punkass idiot. Seen here below.


I can't wait for the time Manny knocks him into submission, although that will be wishful thinking as of the moment.

Here forth are the links to make your morning, after the jump:
To make up for the idiocy above, here is a Samsung Stunner.


The "Cold War" mirrors itself in Rugby. (c/o Washington Post)

Twitter mess makes its way to the Rugby World Cup. (c/o Planet Rugby)

Luck of the Irish. (c/o Irish Independent)

He really is a World Champ Titleholder. (c/o USA Today)

WADA with a more determined stance to figure out solutions to doping. (c/o The Australian)

What's Happenin' in the Big Easy. (c/o Cage Potato)

I believe this must be the same house that was on Cribs. (c/o Philippine Daily Inquirer)


El Canelo defends his trinket. (c/o Doghouse Boxing)

2nd Mexican to win trinkets in four weight divisions. (c/o Eastside Boxing)


Hey look, the Davis Cup final is set. (c/o CBC)

How the mighty have fallen, eh. (c/o CBS Sports)

Look who got President's Cup berths. (c/o The West Australian)

The British Isles got one in over their continental neighbors. (c/o Leadership Golf)

What now for the non-football BEast peeps? (c/o New York Daily News)

UConn wants dibs on the ACC, too. (c/o Houston Chronicle)

All these news is in bad taste given what happened to Dave Gavitt. (c/o Forbes)

The PAC-16 is closer to becoming reality. (c/o Austin-American Statesman)

Spain nails Eurobasket. (c/o BallinEurope)

Bo McCalebb was the star of EuroBasket for Macedonia. (c/o New Orleans Times-Picayune) / (c/o New York Times' Off The Dribble)

It's Not Happening for Justin Morneau. (c/o The Republic)

Justin Verlander is very good. (c/o Motor City Bengals) 24 wins and 24 (times 10) K's

A Buffalo QB wearing 14 leading a comeback. Sounds familiar. (c/o Buffalo Rumblings)

Cam Newton is good, eh. (c/o NFL Mocks)

Romo survives a bad rib. (c/o Fort Worth Star-Telegram)

Here are some weird statlines. (c/o FIBA-Asia)

To part, here is the winning performance in the 2011 Samsung UAAP Cheerdance Competition.

Revisiting The UAAP Season 74 Preview

Taken from the Philippine Daily Inquirer

With the regular season ending, it's appropriate to look back at how I fared in trying to figure out the season.

I posted this in the middle of July. The breakdown after the jump.

Adamson: The Falcons can be likened to a mid-major team in the US NCAA, stocked with quality juniors and seniors who played heavy minutes throughout, with a heady and smart veteran tactician. As such with the US NCAA. they are always strong on backcourt play, and they have arguably the best point guard tandem in Lester Alvarez and Jerick Canada. Jan Colina is one the most underrated bigs in the UAAP, even though Greg Slaughter took him to school last Sunday. Austin Manyara and Eric Camson constitute the big men rotation. It's up to the shooters of the Soaring Falcons if they can finally get over the hump.

Well, it was really up to the shooters of the Soaring Falcons. Their offense relies now on their perimeter game and their penetration. I thought Lester was disappointing this season in that I expected more out of him, but he and Jerick have been a heady PG combo. Jan, though is probably one of the bigger disappointments of the season not wearing green.

Ateneo de Manila: The defending champs may have lost its Stag essence (Eric Salamat via graduation, Ryan Buenafe sitting out the season), but Ateneo in this new iteration never rebuilds. It merely reloads. Kiefer Ravena may have had a whimper of a start, but no one questions the potential. Greg Slaughter on the other hand, 23 points for his debut wearing the blue and white. Served notice to everyone. Still, the key cogs are all back, from Justin Chua to Nico Salva to Kirk Long and Eman Monfort. Best of all, you always bet on (Norman) Black. The school along Katipunan is unfazed, and so does its Sixth Man.

13-1, folks. 13-1. It took a A+++++ game from the Falcons to pull off that win.

De La Salle University: Quality depth all throughout the roster, with lots and lots of role players and glue guys, from the comebacking LA Revilla the Zobel alums Luigi Dela Paz and Joshua Webb, to the gaggle of bigs from Jovet Mendoza to Papot Paredes and Yutien Andrada. Relative youth still a major concern, so it's up to the veterans like Simon Atkins and Maui Villanueva to fill the leadership void.

The depth was there, but too many inconsistencies. The potential and disappointment can defintely be pointed at both the coaching staff and the players. Expect turmoil in Taft for the time being.

Far Eastern University: The losing finalists are aching to come back into the chase, with a returning MVP in tow. Bert Flores returns from his consultant duties after Glenn Capacio was let go. JR Cawaling and Aldrech Ramos are still there, but the key cogs remain it's small ball power of RR Garcia, Terence Romeo and Jens Knuttel providing change of pace. Not having Pipo Noundoo

It's actually Tolomia who got the minutes Jens was used to playing. If you follow TJ Manotoc on Twitter, Pipo is going to finally play in his final season, as they need to beat Adamson twice. Of course, the usual meltdown came, but it arrived in the middle part of the season. JR Cawaling has missed the entire second round with his knee issues, but is also said to play as well. It's still RR Garcia's team, and they lived and died with him.

National University: The Bulldogs hitched themselves onto one man to carry them back into the Final Four conversation. Bobby Ray Parks, Jr. He sputtered in his first collegiate game, but they were one miss away from winning against the Tigers last Thursday. Emmanuel Mbe also returns, but can Eric's recruits from the RP Youth program he devised lead to better things?

It's obvious the RP Youth guys were not ready for prime time.They had to ride the coattails of their prized recruit. Given that it is natural that he stuffs the stat sheet. So there. It did not help that the veterans were not really the major contributors. Once the pressure was off, though, they were able to pull out some amazing wins to close the season.

University of the East: The Red Warriors were gutted in the offseason losing key cogs, including Paul Lee, Ken Acibar, James Martinez. They also lost their coach, Lawrence Chongson, who is pretty much preoccupied with PEx as of now. New taskmaster Jerry Codinera asked for commitment, effort and hustle from his crack squad being led by Paul Zamar, JR Sumido and Roi Sumang, but it can only get you far...

Yup, it is all about the hustle. That's how they got their three wins, by outworking their opponents (NU, UP and La Salle).

University of the Philippines: A new regime begets a new era for UP, as it has been 25 years since the special Spirit of '86 squad. Ricky Dandan is banking on the Mike and Mike to greater heights. They already did by ending the 18-game losing streak last Sunday. Alinko Mbah provides the necessary size and anchor down low for the Diliman-squad.

Disappointing. In the sense that they could have gotten more than the two wins they secured this season. Considering though, two is two more than last year.

University of Santo Tomas: Pido Jarencio put some pressure on himself with the Final Four or bust mantra, but it sure helped that they won their first game. They still are a relatively small unit, but Karim Abdul is there to provide size, even if he looked relatively raw. Kevin Ferrer proved to be the goods against NU, and Jeric Fortuna went out with guns blazing after halftime.

At least Pido gets another year. Thanks to the Jerics, he gets to stay and produce more PIDOisms. Karim's play improved once his papers got settled.

Personal Preseason Awards:

UAAP PreSeason 1st Team: RR Garcia, Rayray Parks, Mike Silungan, Nico Salva, Greg Slaughter.

Revised 1st Team would be Ravena, Nuyles, Parks, Salva, Slaughter. Nico really benefited from having Kiefer and Greg get all the attention.

UAAP PreSeason 2nd Team: Kiefer Ravena, Joshua Webb, JR Cawaling, Jan Colina, Aldrech Ramos

Thinking Joshua Webb has to be the worst call I made this season, followed by Colina (as seen above). Cawaling got hurt and missed the whole second round, if I am correct. The revised 2nd team would be Fortuna, Garcia, Abdul, Ramos, Teng.

Defensive Player of the Year: Greg Slaughter - because he's going to rack up double-doubles and blocks.

Yup. Although not much on the double-doubles, since guys like Karim Abdul had better numbers. Still, his presence made a living hell out of anyone trying to drive in the lane or make their living down low.

Most Improved Player: Jeric Fortuna - freed from the PG-by-committee shackles by the academic ineligibility of Clark Bautista, this is the cue for him to rise up and take over.

Agreed. Eric Camson and Tonino Gonzaga would be a close second, here.

Freshman of the Year: Kiefer Ravena - Is there anyone else?

Next. Easiest thing to call, out of all the awards.

Newcomer of the Year: Rayray Parks - Unlike Greg, the pressure is with him more

When you look at the roster NU has, it's built around the former GaTech committ.

MVP: RR Garcia - He's going to rack up statistical points like crazy.

Right explanation. Wrong guy. That mini-slump FEU had to close the 1st round and the start of the 2nd round killed his chances.

PreSeason Final Four:  Ateneo, FEU, Adamson, NU (over La Salle and UST)

Got it close. 

Blog Outsourcing - 9/12 edition

Welcome to the latest edition of The Victory Formation.

Yesterday left an indelible mark on everyone. I hope you took the time to remember and reflect and appreciate what went on this day. I watched the different tributes and it was chillin' and stunning. I hope we all do not have to experience this ever again.

P.S. Wonder if someone can send this to SportsCenter.

Here forth are the links to welcome your morning after the jump.
The biggest event in rugby is taking place way down south. It'd be cool if there was this duel at the start of each football match. (c/o Rugby World Cup)

The French tank job is appalling. (c/o Sporting News and Sheridan Hoops)

Germany failed to advance. So do the Turks. (c/o Yahoo! Eurosport)

Finally, Argentina wins an Olympic qualifier. (c/o We're Bucked)

Calipari pulls off the best finish for Team DR. (c/o Coach Cal)

Nick Diaz gets demoted. (c/o Boston Herald)

Klitchko dominance continues. (c/o Boxing Scene)

This. Match. Needs. To. Happen. (c/o Queensberry Rules

Manny Pacquiao as the new Governator. (c/o ABS-CBN News)

Novak pulled it off. (c/o Wall Street Journal) Can he finish it against Rafa? (c/o Sports Illustrated)

Congrats to Sam, but Serena takes the headlines. (c/o Real Clear Sports)

Manchester still playing "Can You Top This" between its blue (Mirror Football) and red (c/o The Guardian) sections all at the expense of everyone else in the Premiership

This is definitely the biggest match in the Group Stages of the Champions' League. (c/o Goal)

Vettel is unstoppable. (c/o Speedlux) Giddy for the Grand Prix under the lights.

The Chase is set. (c/o Yahoo!'s From the Marbles)

The Americans bow to their colonial masters. (c/o Daily Mail)

You're never too old to play football. (c/o Lost Lettermen)

Drama in the Big 12 (c/o MVP Texas)

Gambler's headache involving college football. (c/o Orange County Register)

Baylor Hypocrisy. (c/o Ology) Must be the stress of the job, why he hightailed outta there. (c/o Daily Press)

ACC already hedging its bets. (c/o Gant Daily)

Is NBC to blame for the pressure on Brian Kelly? (c/o Washington Post)

Are the players wilting in the pressure for Mark Richt? (c/o Red and Black)

In the eyes of the NCAA, this game in Ann Arbor did not happen. Irish fans would rather have their game expunged instead. (c/o MLive)

The latest with Jerry Kill. (c/o St. Cloud Times)

Latest on the ill-fated plane in Russia. (c/o The Moscow Times)

At least he can say he has a ring, unlike some other people. (c/o BlogNBAsketball)

There might be hope in this. (c/o Sheridan Hoops)

Joe Torre made this announcement. (c/o New York Daily News)

Tampa might be able to pull this schtick off. (c/o Boston Herald)

Titans sputter. (c/o The Tennessean)

Browns slipped. (c/o NFL Gridiron Gab)

That stadium must have a home atmosphere for Cam. (c/o CBS Sports)

Explaining the 2011 UAAP Postseason

The final two playdates of the UAAP Season 74 are this weekend. The postseason cast is set. The only thing that needs to be settled is the format. If you don't know how, it's relatively simple.

Ateneo - 13-0
Adamson - 9-4
UST - 8-5
FEU - 8-5

Final games of the UAAP regular season:

UP vs UE
Adamson vs Ateneo

NU vs UST
La Salle vs FEU

The Soaring Falcons can formally book their 2nd place finish if they beat Ateneo, something they can do for the first time since the Fidel V. Ramos administration. If they fail to do so, Ateneo seals their regular season sweep, the third in the history of the UAAP since the Final Four format (UST in 1993, UE in 2007). That then would open the possibility for FEU and UST to grab said 2nd slot and force a playoff against Adamson with that on the line..

Here are the scenarios involving the Tamaraws and the Growling Tigers:

If both win: Triple tie, with FEU taking fourth due to their quotient, AdU and UST fight for 2nd.
If either win: Tied with Adamson, force playoff, loser faces FEU in knockout.
If neither win: no playoff necessary. UST vs FEU knockout, winner faces a twice-to-beat Adamson. Winner then faces a thrice-to-beat Ateneo.

Get it? Got it? Good.

Enjoy postseason basketball in the UAAP. All heart. All out.

Chasing the One Spot

Season 87 of the NCAA will, in all likelihood, remain a two-horse race between San Sebastian and San Beda, with Letran trying to chase them down. As for the final spot, anybody can grab it from currently fourth place Mapua to last place Perpetual.

Like I tweeted, it's now all about the scheduling, so let's see where each team has.

6-7 Mapua - Baste, Beda, EAC, Arellano, JRU
5-7 Lyceum - Letran, Arellano, EAC, Beda, Baste, Benilde
5-7 Benilde - Baste, JRU, Beda, Letran, EAC, Lyceum
4-9 Arellano - JRU, Lyceum, Beda, Mapua, Perpetual
3-9 JRU - Arellano, Beda, Benilde, Perpetual, Mapua, EAC
3-9 EAC - Perpetual, Lyceum, Letran, Mapua, Benilde, JRU
3-10 Perpetual - EAC, Baste, JRU, Letran, Arellano

Both Lyceum and Benilde have to face the top three teams, whilst Mapua just finished one and will face the other two back-to-back. On the other hand, Arellano and JRU only has to face San Beda and EAC only has to face Letran.

So, let's factor in the SSC, SBC and Letran games as losses, because face it, do you really think they can beat those guys? I know anything can happen, but it feels very very unlikely...

Mapua - 6-9
Lyceum - 5-10
Benilde - 5-10
Arellano - 4-10
JRU - 3-10
EAC - 3-10
Perpetual - 3-12

That's 5 teams with 10 losses, which means the most wins you can get is 8.  That puts Perpetual virtually out of the running, unless they run the table AND Mapua ending their season on a 6 game losing skid.

The battle royale lies with those 5 teams potentially 10 losses on the docket. Those games are very very intriguing. 

Blog Outsourcing - September 5, 2011 edition

Greetings to everyone and welcome to the latest edition of The Victory Formation.

First off, Happy Labor Day. You know when this holiday comes, you can smell the sweetness of football. You already had your taste of Saturday football, based on the comments during the weekend. What more this week, when the big boys get to do their thing, kicking off on Thursday Night.

As for me, I am also giddy this weekend. My alma mater is one win away from sweeping the regular season after last Saturday. Click the link there and Lefty might find someone famillar.

Here forth are the links after the jump.
Nice way to end things in Daegu. A blaze of glory for Jamaica. (c/o Jamaica Gleaner)

Sebastian Coe explains the need for the false-start rule. (c/o Yonhap News)

Here is a take on the Blade Runner. (c/o The Tyee)

The Bison stampeding towards the yellow jersey. (c/o Bike World News)

MMA coming to your television, and it's not in pay-per-view. (c/o 411Mania)

No PacMan vs Floyd (yet), but this will do. (c/o The Philippine Star)

Speaking of Floyd... (c/o FightHype)

You know what, Ana Ivanovic is still alive in the US Open. (c/o New York Post)

Did not know this couple first met at a boxing match. (c/o Daily Mail)

Rafa cramped up. (c/o Daily Mirror)

Tuesday morning NASCAR for the rednecks all over the world. (c/o Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

Formula 1 is back in the US of A. (c/o Motortrend)

PGA Tour looks to be stable in what might be the post-Tiger era. (c/o Real Clear Sports)

Won't be surprised if he bolts after the scandal is done with. (c/o The Sporting News)

Notre Dame has once again laid an egg to start of their season. (c/o South Bend Tribune)

Life after Cam and Nick is gonna be a little bumpy for Chizik. (c/o Al.Com)

Mother Nature asserts its dominance in college football. (c/o Yahoo! Dr. Saturday)

Pac-12 making headlines off the field. (c/o The News Tribune) But not in Jerryworld. (c/o New Orleans Times-Picayune)

Thanks to kwsn for this link on the comments on one of the posts. Neat. (c/o Wall Street Journal)

Nice how one can circumvent the rules, Jim Calhoun. (c/o Huffington Post) Michael Bradley is the MVP.

Could Peyton's streak end? (c/o NFL Spin Zone)

In the eyes of TVF Commentariat, I might be terribly fit to write an obit for him.

If you are a Gunners fan, this was definitely hard to watch.

Of course, this is in memory of one of our fellow commentariat who is definitely not pleased with the Peyton news. Maybe this would calm the nerves a bit.