Seattle Screw: The Aftermath

With the Packers holding on to a 12-7 lead late in Monday's eventual "loss" to Seattle, I texted a friend/co-worker, a Vikings fan who was enamored with the way Green Bay clawed back and took the lead.

Livid at two horrific calls against the Packers in a Seattle drive, and already practically foaming at the mouth after the shenanigans at the Metrodome Sunday*, I had seen enough.

(* - If you

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WCHA Preseason Media Poll: Nerd Factor

It's time to crunch a few numbers from this year's media poll.

The full poll results are here.

My votes are here.

We had 25 votes this year. Minnesota got all but one first-place vote, and Alaska-Anchorage got all but one last-place vote.

North Dakota was first on one ballot, then second on 19 others. UND was no lower than fourth, and a clear No. 2 in the poll.

Opinions really started to

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WCHA Preseason Media Poll

Here is the release sent to WCHA media and the league office regarding this year's preseason media poll, conducted through 94X -- the home of UMD hockey -- for a third straight year.

My votes can be found here.

A year after surprising many by winning the WCHA's MacNaughton Cup Championship, the Minnesota Golden Gophers are a nearly-unanimous pick of WCHA media to win the league. The annual 94X

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BlogPoll: Week 5 Ballot

Busy day today with WCHA poll work, but I did submit a ballot for the BlogPoll. Here goes:






The Ciskie Blog Ballot - Week 4

Rank Team Delta
1 Alabama Crimson Tide --
2 Florida St. Seminoles 2
3 LSU Tigers -1

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WCHA Preseason Poll: My Ballot

The annual WCHA Preseason Media Poll will be released Wednesday morning. Monday night is the voting deadline, but we do have 21 ballots returned. That's a quorum as far as I'm concerned, so I'm going to proceed with the poll.

I vote in the poll, and I invited two media representatives from each of the WCHA's teams to take part. No team is unrepresented when the list of returned ballots is looked

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Central Scouting Rankings Include Numerous UMD Recruits, Local Faces

The NHL is locked out, but the process of scouting players for the 2013 NHL Entry Draft is underway.

(Of course, if the NHL season is cancelled, we don't know when that draft will happen. Or who will pick first.)

(Then again, if they use the same lottery system they rigged so Pittsburgh could win used in 2005, Toronto will be practically a shoo-in to win. Which means someone else will. Maybe

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Karson Kuhlman Latest Local Hockey Star Headed to UMD

UMD has done quite well as of late when it comes to bringing in top local players. This year's crop of freshmen includes former Duluth East defenseman Andy Welinski, who could be the best rookie blue-liner in the WCHA. He joined UMD after two seasons with the USHL's Green Bay Gamblers, where he helped the team to a Clark Cup title.

Hibbing forward Adam Johnson committed to UMD during the 2010

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Random Rabble: September 17

Hockey is coming. UMD's season opens 25 days from now. It's inching closer. The WCHA Preseason Media Poll is due out on Sept. 26, and I'll have a full preview before that date that includes my predictions that are sure to be incorrect.

Meanwhile, the NFC North is all 1-1 after Sunday's action. Somehow, the Vikings managed to get virtually no pressure from their defensive line against a team

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BlogPoll: Week 3 Ballot

More movement this week. Thank you, Stanford and Pittsburgh.






The Ciskie Blog Ballot - Week 3

Rank Team Delta
1 Alabama Crimson Tide --
2 LSU Tigers 2
3 Oklahoma Sooners --
4

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BlogPoll: Week 2 Ballot, I Guess

Here is this week's BlogPoll ballot, as submitted by yours truly Monday morning.






The Ciskie Blog Ballot - Week 2

Rank Team Delta
1 Alabama Crimson Tide --
2 USC Trojans --
3 Oklahoma Sooners --

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2012 NFL Predictions Sure To Be Bad

I posted these on Twitter earlier in the week, but I figured I'd expand on it. I'm not big on making week-by-week predictions on the blog anymore, but you can follow me for the occasional pick and plenty of bad jokes and snark.

Here are my division picks, with some commentary.

NFC EAST
1. NY Giants
2. Philadelphia
3. Dallas
4. Washington

The Giants are still the best. The Eagles are not far

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Random Rabble: September 6

Football is front and center, and my NFL division predictions -- tweeted Wednesday -- will be published later.

In the meantime, other happenings this weekend include St. Scholastica taking on Eureka in the UMAC conference opener. The Saints won last year in Illinois 48-7, holding Eureka quarterback Sam Durley to a scant 169 yards passing.

That could be troublesome this time around. Durley set

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BlogPoll 2012: Week 1 Ballot

Here you go, after a so-so weekend of games.







The Ciskie Blog Ballot - Week 1

Rank Team Delta
1 Alabama Crimson Tide --
2 USC Trojans --
3 Oklahoma Sooners --
4 LSU Tigers

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