And I Thought SEC Fans Had Unreasonable Expectations...

Chris Ault, basically the architect for EVERYTHING NEVADA'S EVER DONE EVER, is on the hot seat! They were a divisions II team - a shitty one at that - when Ault began building them up and now they're a bowl fixture. This is ridicu - wait for it - lous!

On CMR

This is a solid write-up on Richt. Sometimes I think Chris Low is way off base, but this is a rational, reasonable treatment - warts and all - of the dean of SEC coaches. This was much needed on the heels of things like this. I've worried the last two seasons that instead of Richt being the first in a the new wave of top flight SEC coaches, he was the last of the mediocres; merely struggling along until he was fired after a string of losing seasons. But, this year's carousel has given me a dose of "dance with who brung ya" and CMR has a long way to drop before we should think about removing him. Fulmer and Tubs both notched losing seasons towards the ends of their big runs, something Richt has yet to do, terrible defensive staffing aside. Now, can he consistently beat Meyer and Saban? Probably not, but who can?
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UPDATE: Middle ground, with some good questions/points (bravesandbirds).
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Hey, it's just gonna be one of those link-dump, "look at what this other guy wrote" kind of weeks. I'm tooling up my early top-25 for 2010 and prepping for recruiting, so there's not much else to say till the weekend.

How High (Low?) Will Kiffin Be?

Check out Hey Jenny Slater's countdown of the 50 Most Loathsome People in College Football. Numbers 50-41 are up now and I gotta say I like Paul Johnson's inclusion. I just hope there's a special spot reserved near the top (bottom?) for Paul Finebaum.

Oregon - the New Thug U

LaGarrette Blount, pugilist, wordsmith, souljah.

Rob Beard, kicker, Back-haver, concussed.

Jeremiah Masoli, runner, passer, raconteur, thief.

That's just how it is on the cut throat streets of the Pacific northwest; mild rain, temperate climes, craft beer, liberal sensibilities - it's like Compton, man.

Christ, haven't you guys ever heard of driving on an expired license?

A Few More Early Thoughts on 2010

PAC-10 - Things are changing out on the left coast; Southland will no longer be the seat of power, as control is shifting north towards San Fran and Oregon. Stanford is about to pull in a top-20 class and the Ducks are ready to defend their '09 title. Throw in a rebuilding U-Dub and a scrappy Beavs squad in Corvallis, and the LA teams seem so last decade.

SEC - Business as usual.

In the west, 'Bama will hold court as long as Saban is around. With a national title, b-2-b undefeated regular seasons, and b-2-b top-5 recruiting hauls (with another on the way), there's no one in the division to take down the Tide. However, it is the SEC and stumbling blocks abound. Look for Arkansas and Auburn to hang around more than they should in a lot of games and one of them to actually beat Alabama.

In the East, Florida will hang on to its top spot. Meyer's sabatical lasted a day and a half and he's already said he's caoching spring ball. Mix that in with the nation's top class 2 years running and Brantley stepping in for Tebow and I don't see who's beating the Gators out of a trip to ATL. The Kiffin debacle has set UT back and the OBC has not lived up to expectations, leaving Georgia as the best team to topple the UF strangle hold...and we've all seen the record in that series from the last 20 years.

Coaches - Now that the carousel has settled down, let's look around and see who did well - and who got capital-F Fucked - in all the moving. First, the obvious, Tennessee. I think Dooley will eventually be competitive in the league and it could start on signing day if he saves that top-15 class. After that, he knows how to coach and he gets the traditions in Knoxville, as well as the league, and could be a solid coach at a program like Tennessee.* I think the Vols will be better off without Kiffin. He just didn't get it here and fits MUCH better back in SoCal. But, he'll have a heck of a time sorting through the fog of NCAA violations hanging over that program.

It's about time Tubs got back in the game, and if he drops the good ol' boy antics that doomed Auburn, Texas Tech should be OK, even if he did shit-can McNiel. But, Ruffin landed on his feet at ECU, which is a good fit, too. Skip Holtz is a good young coach coming up and should do SoFla proud, as Kelly's flight from Cincy has left the Big Least wide open. Speaking of, Kelly will do better at Notre Dame than Weis did, but he's also the litmus test to see if the program is past its prime.**

I'd also bet we'll see coaches playing a little closer to the rules this season after Mangino, Leach, and Leavitt all lost jobs to inappropriate treatment of players. And I'm glad, too. Saban's an asshole, a hard coach, and he never lets up on his players, but he doesn't hit them or lock them in sheds to prove points like a child. That's the difference between being an 8-win coach and a 12-win coach: management.

I know there's a ton of other coaching changes to address, but that's all I've got right now.

Keep an eye out for the Way-Too-Early Top-25 for 2010 later this week.
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* Plus, it's nice for UGA to know that if Dooley does really well, we can always lure him home in the wake of a Richt departure. Speaking of, how likely is CMR to stay here for 10 more years?

** Honestly, I hope not. I know I've railed against ND here before, but that was more because of the Weis hype/Willingham situation than the program itself. I actually hope the Domers come back, they're good for cfb. But. so is the Big Ten and things are looking bleak there, too.

Early Ideas for 2010

Alabama - The Tide will be a preseason favorite to not only win the SEC, but to repeat as national chamions. They keep Ingram and McElroy will continue to do just enough and keep the mistakes to a minumum. Cody and McClain are HUGE losses, but Saban defenses always reload - not rebuild. True, the '10 version of the D might be a touch softer, but it still might be enough to be the best in the land. My early predictions, though, call for at least 1 loss.

The Big-XII - Will Texas be the favorite to repeat in the Big-XII? I'm not sure, honestly. They lose Shipley and McCoy, but it's not like the rest of the league's that loaded. Much like past seasons - but unlike this year - the South will come down to UT and OU. The big Question is whether or not Nebraska will be serious in their role as North Champ. Suh's gone, but the D should recover enough to be dominant; it's the offense that will decide the Huskers fate. If it catches up, look for a North team to be the best in the Big-XII...and it's been a long time since we said that.

Boise State - I'm sorry, I know you had two good wins, but there's no way we can give a WAC team the nod over an undefeated SEC team who knocked off an unbeaten Big-XII team. Alabama is clearly the national champion and they will still be the favorite next season, despite the fact that Boise returns just as many key elements. See, the WAC isn't a proving ground and the Broncos non-conference slots just aren't enough to create a schedule good enough* to compete with teams who play in the bigs. You played -and beat - Oregon and TCU? Great. Who else did you play? Oh, LA Tech and Idaho. Sorry, we were looking for LSU and Florida. We would have also accepted Nebraska and Oklahoma. Hell, in a pinch, maybe even Miami and VA Tech. That's why, barring a bloody regular season that leaves all big-time champions with 2 losses**, Boise State, even undefeated, won't play for the title in 2010. Or - especially if they don't change leagues - ever.
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* I Know nobody will agree to play Boise State, but even if they played 4 of the best BCS teams in the nation in their non-conf. slots, they'd still be weighted down with WAC opponents in the other 8 games. It just doesn't cut it. Is it fair? No, especially when you factor in that the Big East is AQ and the MWC is almost in, too. But, I don't make the rules.

**And, if the conference champions all have 2 losses, it would be indicative of even more competition, not less talent at the top. Think of 2007. Should Hawaii have playe

What a lucky guy!

I know this is random, but I figured this is one topic that everyone on this blog could agree (or agree to disagree on). I was watching some Adam Sandler movies recently and decided that we needed a top 10 Adam Sandler leading ladies poll. Here's mine, feel free to add or comment. (BTW, they are in order of how hot they were in THAT movie, not how great of an actress they are, nor how good of a movie it was.)

10 Fairuza Balk- The Waterboy
9 Leslie Mann- Funny People
8 Joey Lauren Adams- Big Daddy
7 Drew Barrymore- Wedding Singer & 50 First Dates
6 Winona Ryder- Mr. Deeds
5 Julie Brown- Happy Gilmore
4 Marissa Tomei- Anger Management
3 Bridgette Wilson- Billy Madison
2 Kate Beckinsale- Click
1.5 Jessica Biel- Chuck & Larry
1 Emmanuelle Chriqui- You dont mess with the Zohan

NOTE: I TOTALLY FORGOT ABOUT JESSICA BIEL! WHEN I WAS LOOKING AT THE SANDLER FILM LIST AND I SAW CHUCK & LARRY, I THOUGHT FAGS AND DIDNT WANT TO PUT KEVIN JAMES ON THE LIST. I COULDNT QUITE PUT HER #1, BUT SHE MAY HAVE HAD THE FILTHIEST SCENE OF ANY OF THE MOVIES.

A great article

This is for all of those people who like to tell me that baseball is boring and difficult to watch compared to football. As someone who enjoys both sports immensely, this article was right on target. Im not saying baseball is any better, just not any worse.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704281204575002852055561406.html

In His Own Words

Grantham on his scheme:

We'll be a 3-4 structure which basically means that in your base defense you'll have two outside backers, three d linemen, two inside backers and your secondary would be the same whether you're a 3-4 or a 4-3 with two safeties and two corners. But saying that, we're more of an aggressive style 3-4. We're going to play one-gap defense. We're going to attack block up front. We're going to rush the passer. Our outside backers are going to be what we call edge-setters. They're going to be aggressive. They're going to be coming. They're going to be solid setting the edge on the run but we're going to develop those guys as pass rushers. The inside backers, we're going to call them Mike and Moe, they'll be downhill guys to the ball. But in saying that, we're going to still be multiple and have the ability to match personnel, meaning that if someone adds a third wideout into the game, we can add an extra DB. We could end up playing multiple fronts out of that nickel package -- whether it be four down or three down and go that route.

Sounds good. Just make sure you review tackling, you know, just in case.

Finally. It's settled.

Yes, we will be changing to a 3-4, and no, grandpa, it won't be that drastic.

At least we think it'll be a 3-4. But, Smart would've brought in the same system, and everybody loved him. And, while it's not as prestigious as the defending national champion, I'm Ok with it.
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UPDATE: CHRIST, there are some haters on the message boards - most saying the 3-4 won't work here. Their main concern seems to be lack of size along the line, one even going so far as to say you need a Terrence Cody for it to work. Well, I'm calling BULLSHIT. Yes, size is important on the D-line and kids just aren't that big, but super-size is not a necessity. Having a Terrence Cody is a plus, but he'd be just as valuable to any base D as he is to a 3-4; he's a fuckin' behemoth. In reality you can work a successful 3-4 with non-mountain sized men, as long as the adjustments in the LB corp are successful, and that will be Grantham's biggest task. I doubt we see a lot of base, with OLB's on ends and ILB'd off the NT. No, I imagine we'll see more shifted LB's, with an OLB acting as anchor on the strong side and the ILB's playing gaps and the weak OLB playing out. Or, hopefully, aggressive schemes bringing noise from behind NT-DE loops and stunts. Now, I don't know what he's going to do for sure, I'm just saying it can work at Georgia. So, all you 4-3 lovers (which I am, too), calm down, take a step back, and breathe...
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UPDATE 2: BTW, I haven't watched a lot of Cowboy games, but I'd assume Grantham's been influenced by Wade Phillips (you know, the head fucking coach). Which means he's probably running the 'Phillips 3-4', which is a one-gap system. Which means you can stop fretting that we won't be big enough.

What's Next?

The last month has been the weirdest span of coach-related news I can remember - so, no, it wouldn't really surprise me if they did it. Hell, nothing will surprise me, now. Well, nothing, except for UGA settling their DC problem with a solid hire by tomorrow afternoon. That would be crazy...

Carousel to the Nth

Lane Kiffin to USC? What?!
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UPDATE: I was going to ask: If Junior goes to USC, will Monte be available? Nope.
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CONFIRMED.

Get to Know a DC Candidate: Todd Grantham

Grantham is currently the D-Line coach for the Dallas Cowboys and, since Kirby Smart's rejection of an offer, the new "front-runner" for Georgia's DC job. He began his career at his alma mater, VA Tech, working his way to D-Line coach, a position he's held at Michigan State and 4 pro teams. He knows how to develop a line, has been part of some very successful systems, and has a strong defensive pedigree. While his teams might not have done well statistically (Texans and Browns), he has gotten a great deal from his players, with several posting career highs while under his tutelage. There is no doubt he would be a good hire, though anyone will be perceived as a disappointment after the flirtation with Smart.
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UPDATE: It has been rumored that Grantham is now on a short list for a job with Pete Carroll in Seattle. Christ, can we get anyone? Now, I haven't seen this info anywhere reliable, only on boards. But, if it's true, Richt better go ahead and call the next guy on his list, just in case.

Smart Update - No Go

According to Saban, Kirby Smart is staying put in Tuscaloosa. So, if this is true, where does UGA look now?
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UPDATE: If the mad rush of twitter updates is any indicator, this news is true and Kirby Smart is staying at 'Bama. Oh well, who's next to turn down the Dawgs?

Why? The Coaching Question of the Weekend.

It seems the biggest questions surrounding the coaching chaos over the last week have all revolved around 'why'. Why would the SeaHawks want Pete Carroll, an already proven failure in the NFL. Why would Carroll want to leave SC, where he's the king of his city, his conference, and, arguably, all of cfb. Why would Tubs take a job that will be as uphill as the one ahead of him at Texas Tech? Why would Kirby Smart make a lateral move to UGA? Etc., etc., etc.

Well, let's take a look at these questions, shall we? In the order they were asked, my take on the answers is:

1. Why would the SeaHawks want Pete Carroll? He was 6-10 in his miserable tenure as head coach of the Jets. Sure he had charisma and youthful exuberance, but that doesn't equal X's and O's, discipline, or wins. His next stint, 3 seasons in New England, was promising, with a division title followed by a wild card, but he was winless in the playoffs and year 3 proved his undoing. He left the pro ranks for good with a 33-31 record. So, the question remains, why hire him?


Well, 2 words: Bill Belichik. Belichik compiled a less-than-stellar 36-44 record in Cleveland before resigning under duress, as the Browns were moving to Batlimore and looking for a new coach. Eventually, he was hired in New England (oddly enough replacing Carroll), where he went 5-11 in year one. Since then, well, do we really need to go into it? He has defined the word "dynasty." So, while Carroll has his doubters (me among them, kinda), it must be understood that his record ois nowhere near as bad as others who have been given second and third chances, and his style, while not good on the old-school east coast, might work back home on the Left Coast. Not only that, but Seattle needs something. And, Pete Carroll might just be the attitude adjustment the 'Hawks can take into the playoffs in years to come.

2. Why would Carroll want to leave SC? Sure he's king of the world in LA, despite a mediocre '09 run, but inside, he's always wanted more. Beating all the Pac-10 teams, Ohio State's, and Notre Dame's in the world doesn't help Pete Carroll sleep at night as far as personal challenges. He's seen as an NFL failure, and deep down, as a competitor, you know he wants another chance to address that. He wants to prove to his nay-say-ers, as well as himself, that he can do it.

Also, as LTDx so wisely pointed out, there's the problem of NCAA violations hanging over the program. They're circled like buzzards since Reggie Bush and the McKnight problems will only add roadkill to the pile. Throw in the Trojans' hardwood problems, handled heavily by the AD, and that easily spells "Get-the-Hell-out-of-Dodge."

3. Why would Tuberville take the Texas Tech job? Of all the questions out there, this one's the easiest to answer: Why wouldn't he take this job? Mike Leach, personal conduct aside, built a solid, competitive program in Lubbock. One that can be easily kept running in the same direction, and with the same velocity, with minimum adjustments. He can't bring his own staff, but would he even want to? The school wants to preserve the offense and the personnel is already place to do that; all Tubs could do is fuck that up if starts his buddy-system hiring again. Nope, it's an easy track for TT, as all he has to do is hire a DC and that's not too big a deal, as any program with Tubs at the helm will natural be good on D. It's the perfect place for him to get back into big-time coaching and begin a resurgence to relevancy again.

4. Why would Kirby Smart take the job at UGA? 3 reasons: It's a move back home, it's more money, and, goddamnit, I want him to. Seriously, though, the first two are complimentary answers. People like to go home again and you can justify it with a doubling in salary...and vice-versa. Now, I'm not saying it's the right choice, but it's definatelt not a "dumb" choice, either. That said, if 'Bama resorts to the rumored nuclear option of offering a "coach-in-waiting" deal to Smart, then I doubt Georgia could get him. Unless they upped their offer to a similar deal, similar to Muschamp at Texas, and then we're left with a whole new question to discuss: Is the Coach-in-Waiting option a good idea? And that, my friends, is a whole 'nother post.

Georgia Goes After Smart

UPDATE: According to FootballCoachScoop: "According to our sources, Head Coach Mark Richt
should be announcing Smart as the new Defensive Coordinator at Georgia very soon."

Reliability? Who knows; this same site was recently reporting that Martinez was rumored to be rejoining the staff in a lesser capacity - and I doubt that would ever happen. But, the Smart talk is certainly exciting.
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Georgia has offered Alabama DC Kirby Smart a multi-year deal that would make him the third-highest paid coordinator in all of cfb. If he stays at 'Bama, he'll no doubt receive a raise to put his income on par with that of UGA's offer and he'll be coordinating a great defense for the defending national champs. But, Smart grew up in Georgia and played DB for the Dawgs in the 90's, so maybe that - plus the money - will be enough to lure him home. And, just maybe, bringing a piece of this year's 'Bama formula could rub off on our program a bit...hopefully as soon as recruiting, so we can try and put a dent in the class Saban has put together.
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Saban was apparently alluding to Smart's decision at a press conference Friday. I'm not sure how the topic came up, or in what context, but Saban said:

“I’m always happy and interested for our coaches to be able to advance professionally, especially if it is a professional advancement in terms of a guy being a coordinator who can go be a head coach in a situation where he has a chance to be successful.

“I’m not pleased when guys make lateral moves because it’s a little bit human nature to think, like my dad used to say, the grass is always greener on top of the septic tank. You always think it’s better someplace else. You kind of let your ego get involved, and you make moves that you shouldn’t make and really aren’t in your best interests for a career standpoint. So I’m not happy when guys do that. But anybody on our staff who can move up, we would like to help them do that.”

Well, it's not a lateral move if UGA gets the money right, but I cannot see 'Bama hesitating to match any offer from another team. No, I'd imagine that, like Foster and Chavis, the only real outcome of this offer will be Georgia scratching another name of their list and Smart getting a hefty raise to stay in T-town.

Riverboat Raider

Sources are reporting that Tommy Tuberville will be the next head coach at Texas Tech. Apparently, one of the conditions was that he not insist on his own staff, I would guess so that Tech could keep their offense high-flying while Tubs concentrates on the D.
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UPDATE: Confirmed.

Final Top-25

Alabama's number one - period. I put Texas at no. 2 because they deserve it. McCoy didn't play in the title game and the 'Horns still kept it close - closer than Florida did. Speaking of, I gave UF the 3 spot because they're a one-loss team from the SEC who absolutely shellacked conference champ Cincy in the Sugar Bowl. Boise's at 4, but honestly, I could have them lower and be comfortable with it, except for that zero in the loss column. VA Tech is the highest rated ACC team and Oregon carries the weight for the PAC-10. TCU and Cincy fall to the 9-10 range, but there are teams below them that, judging by the bowls, could easily handle them; there's just no way to gloss over the records, though. After that is a hodge podge of 3 and 4 loss teams capped off by a 5-loss, yet bowl dominant, SEC team and an upstart Navy team. Stay tuned for a waaaaaay-too-early preview of 2010.

1. Alabama
2. Texas
3. Florida
4. Boise State
5. Ohio State
6. Iowa
7. Virginia Tech
8. Penn State
9. TCU
10. Cincinnati
11. Pitt
12. Oregon
13. Wisconsin
14. Nebraska
15. LSU
16. BYU
17. Georgia Tech
18. Ole Miss
19. Utah
20. USC
21. Miami
22. Oklahoma
23. Oklahoma State
24. Georgia
25. Navy

Pete Carroll to SeaHawks?

Why go back to the NFL, Pete? You blew it last time and, despite your relatively dissapointing season this year, you're still the king of LA.
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COMPLETELY UNRELATED UPDATE: This is a great song for a hangover.

Leach'd: Leavitt out at South Florida

Jim Leavitt has been fired as head coach of the South Florida Bulls for player mistreatment and lying during the course of the investigation. The Leavitt allegations actually surfaced before Mike Leach's dismissal at Texas Tech, but they weren't really paid any serious attention until the wake of the Lubbock disaster. After the investigation conducted by the school found "unacceptable" conduct, Leavitt was removed and AC Carl Franks was promoted as interim head coach. The school has begun a search for a new head man to replace Leavitt, the only coach the program has ever had. Talk about big shoes to fill. But, let it be a lesson: it's time for coaches to straighten up and fly right; schools expect the same from coaches as coaches do from players and it's time that we started to ensure this happens - even if it pisses off the fan base. Which, let's be honest, is made up of every-day, average, American-Joe sports fans...in other words, angry idiots with elementary school vocabularies and even more childish sensibilities. Hey, that kinda describes Jim Leavitt, too, when you think about it...

It's Over

I know we complain about things like the GMAC Bowl, but at least it was football. Now? Nothing. It's over. There will be some title game recapping and final rankings up later today, as well as some season-ending stuff going up this weekend. At least there's NFL playoffs coming up...

How can Fox...

...be so good at covering the NFL but SO TERRIBLE at covering college football? Bring on 2011, when ESPN finally takes complete control of the BCS Bowls.

From All Over: Bowl Games and Such

1. Here's a great Rose Bowl recap from Wayne, the Commandant of Uz-BUCK-istan. Read and laugh, children.
My favorite line:

"Terrelle Pryor looked like one of those blue cat-warriors from Avatar, but without the pussy-ass bow and arrows. No, he had a big blue dick cannon that fired jizzbullets of victory instead of his arm."

Ah, Orson Swindle, a hero for our time.

2. I thought Georgia won the Indy Bowl by, like, three or so scores, right? Apparently not.

3. I really hate the drawn out bowl season. I love that it starts in mid-December, but it should be wrapped up by NYD. I know they get the ratings with the current format; I'm not doubting the reasoning. I'm just stating a personal preference that I wish I had been able to watch the Fiesta Bowl, Orange Bowl and BCS Title Game before heading back to a regular work schedule. And, I hate that shit like the International Bowl can sneak into Jan. 2 and coaches can get "January Bowl Bonuses" for things like the Papajohns.com Bowl, but not the Chick-Fil-A or Holiday Bowl.

4. The Falcons ended their "worst in professional sports" streak of years without back-to-back winning seasons Sunday, defeating the Bucs 20-10 to finish up the season at 9-7. Great job, guys! That's honestly all I wanted this year, despite the playoff hype or haters hatin', 9-7 was all I wanted and I got it. Now, with that monkey off our back, we can try and move forward as a franchise.

5. Tennessee and South Carolina got straight owned in their bowls, Auburn and Arkansas went to OT with mediocre teams, and Kentucky got edged out by Clemson. Don't look now, homers, but we're getting more and more like the top-heavy PAC-10 of '02-'08: A powerhouse or two, great mid-level competitiveness and lots of 4-5 loss teams, all followed up with crapping the bowl bed. Of course, our get out of "overrated-ness" free card is still out there, as long as 'Bama rolls the Horns Thursday night. A 4th consecutive title will fend off the hoards for another season or so...
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UD: 6. Oh, and I totally forgot: Say goodbye to Rich Brooks. He's stepping down at Kentucky and passing the reins to the coach-in-waiting since '07, Joker Phillips. Brooks has done a great job UK, making the Wildcats relevant in the SEC - a thing even the great (sarcasm) Hal Mumme couldn't do. And, in the end, 'relevant' is probably the best the bluegrassers can expect, as I doubt we'll ever see a dynasty coming out of that region of the country again any time soon - on the gridiron, anyway. It's too cold and resource poor compared to the recruiting hotspots of Florida, Texas and Cali, too far away for the 4-star drop-offs from those states, an doesn't have a consistent base of home-growns like GA or LA. Working with what he had, Brooks did a more than commendable job, capping his run with 4-straight bowl seasons. I'd kinda like to see the Joker keep it up, even if it means putting Georgia on upset alert every other year.

A Chomp Romp - Tebow Says Goodbye

I don't know what's really left to say about the Sugar Bowl that Tim Tebow didn't say on the field (funny recap here). His career - arguably the greatest of all time - is over now, finishing in record-setting fashion. Tebow finished last night with 4 TD's and 533 all-purpose yards, a BCS bowl record. The Gators finish 13-1 after destroying Cincinnati in a game that wasn't anywhere near as close as the final score indicates and you know what? I'm a little sad about it. I couldn't figure out why at first, but reading this piece by Clay Travis helped me out: He was a great player, a great person, and he was fun to watch.

Best of 00's...Movies

1. City of God
2. The Lord of the Rings
3. The Dark Knight
4. Avatar
5. WALL-E
6. The 40-Year-Old Virgin 
7. Shaun of the Dead
8. Ocean’s 11
9. Requiem for a Dream
10. Once

Movie Star of the Decade: George Clooney

 

Filmmakers of the Decade

1. Peter Jackson (The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, and The Return of the King, King Kong, The Lovely Bones): 3 Academy Awards, 8 Academy Award nominations, $1,250,000,000
2. Steven Soderbergh (Erin Brockovich, Traffic, Ocean’s Eleven, Full Frontal, Solaris, Ocean’s Twelve, Bubble, The Good German, Ocean’s Thirteen, Che, The Girlfriend Experience, The Informant!): 1 Academy Award, 2 Academy Award nominations, $728,000,000
3. Christopher Nolan (Memento, Insomnia, Batman Begins, The Prestige, The Dark Knight): 1 Academy Award nomination, $883,988,000 
4. Clint Eastwood (Space Cowboys, Blood Work, Mystic River, Million Dollar Baby, Flags of Our Fathers, Letters from Iwo Jima, Changeling, Gran Torino, Invictus): 2 Academy Awards, 7 Academy Award nominations, $538,000,000 
5. Pixar’s stable--Brad Bird, John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton, etc. (Monsters, Inc., Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Cars, Ratatouille, WALL-E, Up): 6 Academy Awards, 25 Academy Award nominations, $1,820,000,000

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Best of 00's...TV

I would argue this has been the best decade television has ever had (and it doesn't include The Shield, because I never watched it). The 90s were good (Buffy, Seinfeld, Friends), but the 00's kicked the previous decade's ass.

1. The Sopranos
2. Battlestar Galactica
3. The Office (British)
4. Arrested Development
5. Friday Night Lights
6. Lost
7. The Wire
8. American Idol
9. Deadwood
10. Six Feet Under 

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