In an impromptu conversation from last Friday, Owen and Andy discuss the Divisional round of the playoffs, who a sleeper team could be, and what real chances the Dodgers might have. Hours later, Owen was looking for a bridge to leap from, but in the mean time, here’s a glimmer of optimistic hope for the Dodgers getting to the world series for the first time in over 25 years.

As is often the case when I interview someone in an impromptu, over-the-phone setting, the sound quality leaves something to be desired. Hopefully it’s still listenable — I assure you it’s no more than 20 minutes — and I hope you enjoy it.

Matt SantaMaria even told the story of why his last name doesn’t have a space in it like it should. By Owen Main

Did you know Matt SantaMaria was living and working for a station in Joplin, Missouri when the tornado hit there in 2011? On this podcast, the KSBY Sports Director shared his thoughts are on the triple option (he grew up in Nebraska, for goodness sakes) and he shared the story of how he ended up on the Central Coast.

In the second segment, Andy and Owen discussed the Lakers’ demise. The team is 14-25 and there aren’t many signs of improvement. Could losing actually be the best move the Lakers can make to get better for the future?

Vince Moraga and co. started slow against Fresno on Saturday. By Owen Main

Cal Poly Football’s short roadie over the hill to face the Fresno State Bulldogs was something several local fans were looking forward to: not having to travel too far for a chance to see their Mustangs compete on the road.

A trip to the valley is only two hours away for fans in San Luis Obispo County. The excitement for Mustang followers was quickly met squarely in the face with Fresno State’s vastly superior talent, size and speed, as the Mustangs fell to the Bulldogs 41-25 Saturday night at Bulldog Stadium.

In the first half Cal Poly only had 10 more yards than Fresno State had points — 44-34 — and mustered only two first downs on offense. The Mustangs’ running attack and noticeably smaller offensive line was stymied by the physically superior defensive line and linebackers of the Bulldogs. It was clear that Cal Poly’s by-design, smaller and quicker offensive lineman that are featured in their option attack were a bad matchup against the FBS size and speed of Fresno State’s defensive front.

Throughout the first half, the Bulldogs were able to stuff the fullback on the inside, easily get to the pitch on the outside, and weren’t falling for the misdirection of the trap play. The Mustangs were unable to mix things up and get the Bulldogs out of their base defense, which allowed Fresno State to comfortably pin their ears back without the occasional mental hiccup to distract their physical superiority.

Derek Carr looked great on Saturday night. By Owen Main

Bulldogs quarterback Derek Carr looked every bit of the hype and attention he has received, which isn’t something easily lived up to. Carr went 17-24 in the first half for 147 yards, while connecting on two passing touchdowns. Fresno State’s air-attack was highlighted by quick wide receiver screens, as well as running their tight ends vertically down the middle. This countering combination gave the Mustang linebackers and secondary fits all game long. The fact that Cal Poly also wasn’t able to get any sort of pressure on Carr with their pass rush eminently became a recipe for mega-disaster on defense.

The real back-breakers for the Mustangs? The Bulldogs returned two punts for touchdowns and Cal Poly fullback Akaninyene Umoh lost a fumble inside his own 30 that lead to another quick Fresno State score. In a situation where you are up against an FBS team that is undoubtedly more talented, there are two things that can easily cause a game to get out of hand: ball security and special teams. Giving up two “gimme” scores and losing a fumble inside your own territory drastically shifts all sorts of momentum and will get any team beat, let alone one that is already physically outmatched.

Things looked beyond dismal at the half the Mustangs, who trailed 34-0.

It was obvious head coach Tim Walsh and his staff dulled out some “constructive criticism” in the locker room at halftime, as the Mustangs came out with a new sense of purpose in the second half. After Kristaan Ivory broke a 52-yard run down the home sideline, Bobby Zalud kicked a 43-yard field goal to get Cal Poly on the board, 34-3.

Derek Carr then stepped back onto the field and marched his offense North to South once again, as Fresno State scored their final points of the game halfway through the third quarter, leading now, 41-3.

On the subsequent Cal Poly possession, their season changed. Quarterback Vince Moraga went down with an apparent knee injury. Walsh described it as a probable ACL tear and Moraga will likely be out for the remainder of the season.

This is absolutely a devastating blow for Moraga and the team, but they must move on. Times like this are when the cliché ‘football is like war’ metaphors come into play, how the game is always a revolving battle of attrition. “Next man up” has most recently become the popular credo within the game that this idea echoes. While it is an unfortunate tragedy, as teammates and Vince alike are probably filled with a definite amount of disappointment, the campaign must go on. There is no time to feel sorry for yourselves and the purpose must move forward without him.

With Dano Graves also already on the shelf, the next man up was arguably the best raw talent on the quarterback depth chart, a true dual-threat, sophomore Chris Brown.

Brown stepped in, albeit against primarily Fresno State’s second team, and brought a definite lightning-rod quality that was lacking before. While Brown had a handful of egregious decision-making errors, his play-making ability with his feet and down-the-field throwing precision vastly outweighed those mistakes.

Twice in the second half Brown slung deep bombs behind the Bulldog back-end, once to Willie Tucker and another to Cole Stanford. Both big plays took the Mustangs from backed up in their own territory, to instantly threatening.

The intangible ‘make something out of nothing’ ability of Brown got Poly into the end zone on back to back possessions late in the third quarter and early in the fourth. Brown eluded pressure inside the pocket and would-be tacklers outside of it, juking and weaving his way to pay-dirt on multiple occasions.

As Cal Poly took back some momentum, there was a certain electricity that began to emanate from the Poly sideline and from the faithful in the stands that wasn’t formerly present. Halfway through the fourth quarter, Cal Poly only trailed 41-17.

Late in the fourth, Brown showed off his strength, breaking two tackles to get into the end zone with shades of Andre Broadous from one yard out. He also then ran in the 2-point conversion, bringing the tally to 41-25.

At this point, even if the tables hadn’t completely turned on the scoreboard, they had undeniably turned as far as the attitudes and climate on the field were concerned. The Mustangs were doing body high-fives and the Bulldogs were moping. This inexplicably caused Fresno State to put their star quarterback Derek Carr back into the game. Along with the emergence of Chris Brown, this was another small moral victory for Cal Poly.

Chris Brown showed what he can do with his legs and his arm on Saturday. By Owen Main

Some will contend that Brown’s success, again, was against the Bulldogs second team, one also has to consider that most of the backups on the Fresno State roster would start and may even star in Cal Poly’s Conference. This is something that should be considered when examining the outlook for the remainder of Poly’s season. Trying to find ways to discredit the great things Brown accomplished in the second half may seem realistic to some, intentionally pessimistic to others.

Regardless, there is no doubt that Brown now steps into the role and instantly becomes a dynamic threat to the opposing team’s defensive game plan week-in, week-out. This truly wasn’t the case before.

The coaching staff decided to go with the safest choice at quarterback at the season’s outset, which is understandable based on the option system that they run, instead of taking a chance on a huge payout.

Brown was my pick to be the starter all things equal at the outset of the season. I was of the opinion that if you didn’t have a standout guy at the position, you build your program around your youngest player with the most upside – the player that has the most time left to improve at the highest rate. That was Brown. Well, now he has the opportunity to prove myself and all like-minded thinkers right.

And even though the Mustangs took their licks in Fresno, ultimately falling to the Bulldogs 41-25, they can certainly take a ton away from the experience. The loss of one leader’s season may have inadvertently began the great career of another. It is inauspicious that it had to unfold this way, but I personally believe that when compared to all other quarterbacks on the roster, injured or otherwise, Brown has the highest number of the tools you look for from a signal caller in today’s game.

Yes, Mustang fans are going to have to get ready to take the good with the bad when it comes to Brown, but it will always be enthralling to watch, and trust me, once this kid gets the majority of the repetitions in practice and gets his feet completely underneath himself, the good will catapult the bad completely off the teeter totter.

____________

Cal Poly travels to Fort Collins this Saturday afternoon to take on the Colorado State Rams. Kickoff is at 12:30pm. Radio play-by-play can be heard on ESPN Radio 1280 The Ticket. Fansmanship.com will be there covering the game. Look for real-time game photos at halftime and after the game on fansmanship.com

It was Cami’s last day at the CJ Silas Show. Photo by Leighton Giannini

On Wednesday night, we were lucky enough to have the opportunity to guest-host the CJ Silas Show on ESPN Radio 1280 The Ticket.

CJ went on vacation and gave us the keys and we did our best not to wreck the car. We are pretty sure we got it back to her in one piece and are thankful for the opportunity.

We talked about why Mike Trout doesn’t get more attention, had JD Scroggin in to talk about Cal Poly football, and even argued about which young quarterback in the NFL will take a step forward or backward in their second season as a starter.

I wanted to also thank the CJ Silas Show Syndicate – Cami, Leighton, Bobby, and Alex – for helping make sure we got the show back to CJ in one piece.

Enjoy.

Our mics aren’t quite this old-timey, but you get the idea…

Radio host and Dodger fan extraordinaire CJ Silas joined Andy, Luke, and Owen this week. We talked the Dodgers and how fans need to look at loyalty to players on their teams differently in this day and age.

We didn’t just talk Dodgers though. We discussed working out, roller derby, and the joy of sharing microphones too. Enjoy!

You can find CJ’s website here: http://thecjsilasshow.com

And her podcast here: http://www.thecjsilasshow.libsyn.com/

Matt Jones was our 199th Facebook “like.” He also brought the heat on the podcast. Someday we’ll even talk to him about training for a marathon or distance race.

Happy 4th of July!

On this week’s episode, We called up our 199th Facebook “like,” and Luke got a chance to defend putting LeBron James so high on his list of top-20 NBA players of all-time.

Should Yasiel Puig be part of the All Star Game? Do the Angels matter in Los Angeles? Should the Lakers be begging Dwight Howard to come back?

Enjoy the podcast.

This is what Luke missed the podcast for? By Kyruiter at en.wikipedia, via Wikimedia Commons

In the latest Fansmanship Podcast, Andy and Owen sat down with two fansmanship writers from southern California — Matt Levine and Dianne Tanjuaquio. We talked NBA mostly, with some Dodgers and Warriors fansmanship as well. It was great to get to know Dianne and Matt a little better and you can expect to see them on future podcasts. In other news, Luke went to get a truck and got sufficiently chastised for it. Enjoy.

 In this week’s episode, the whole band is back together again as Owen, Andy, and Luke ponder the Angels’ slow start to the season, why the Warriors and Nuggets are fun to watch, and why Luke hates Nick Punto.

As I was editing this post, my hard drive literally crashed (and yes, I used literally correctly in that sentence… I think). It’s one day late, but better late than never. Hope you enjoy.

The Lost Podcast is found! Enjoy Episode 60!

Deer antler spray and gay-bashing are unfortunately the driving headlines leading into Super Bowl XLVII. This is the circus that the Super Bowl “media” ring has become.

Real reporters and analysts asking real questions have been pushed aside in favor of paparazzi and comedians – but I guess this is what Super Bowl media week has always been about – sideshow over substance.

Hearsay about what is realistically the equivalent of popping a few extra vitamins and opinions on social issues have officially engulfed the anticipation of the game itself.  The insignificant and unbelonging are being overvalued.  The news shouldn’t be what football players think about swirling gossip and civil rights.

The “media” sideshow around the Super Bowl has unfortunately taken center stage once again. By National Football League [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Maybe its just me. I suppose I’m only interested in the X’s and O’s, but I assume there are actually people out there that care about all the undercard nonsense? It wouldn’t be driving the media if that weren’t the case? I guess I’ll never come around to the TMZ factor – but then again, I never hope to.

Move to the matchup on the field. What immediately comes to mind when breaking it down?

The difference-maker is undoubtedly Colin Kaepernick.  What he has the ability to do is something no one else that will be taking the field is capable of:  turning something into nothing the majority of his team’s offensive snaps.

And why do I dance around the “something into nothing” factor with the caveat of “the majority of offensive snaps?”  Ray Rice doesn’t take the snap from Matt Birk.  Rice can absolutely put the same type of pressure on a defense that Kaepernick can, but the ball just has to travel further to find him.

Touches, touches, touches.  Rice needs more than 25 throughout the course of the game for the Ravens to be on schedule. Throughout the end of the regular season and into the playoffs, newly-appointed offensive coordinator Jim Caldwell, formerly the head coach of the Indianapolis Colts, has kept Baltimore on-time.

49ers defensive coordinator Vic Fangio is a creative mind that will be more than ready for what Baltimore has already shown they are capable of doing.  The key for Caldwell will be comprising twists and tweaks that haven’t been documented on tape.

Look for the Ravens to have gadgets ready on 1st-and-10 to 2nd-and-ahead situations in the middle of the field.  Don’t rule out a Rice-Flacco-Smith flea-flicker if the opportunity presents itself in an advantageous down and distance with room to work.

Ray Rice will have to be an explosive factor for the Ravens to emerge victorious. By U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Benjamin Hughes/Released [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Two brothers, two sons of a coach, going head to head for the game’s ultimate prize?  Some deeply conceived surprise is bound to unravel.

Now place your mind on the opening kick.

If San Francisco comes out and gets a lead with Kaepernick getting loose, the burden for Baltimore will quickly find its way to Joe Flacco.  Advantage: 49ers.

If Baltimore can control the clock in the 1st half, the groundwork will be laid and the rock will end up lying with Ray Rice in the end instead of Flacco.  Advantage: Ravens.

The other side of the coin?  “God is absolutely AMAZIN’!”

There isn’t a doubt Ray Lewis will have his defense pumped up for one last final pass through the gauntlet.  The motivating factor behind a single galvanizing player being able to inspire an entire team in the ultimate fashion can’t be understated.

That being said, what unfolds on the turf still ends up rising over words in the locker room.  Talent and opportunity fundamentally prevails more than motivational speeches – but I think it goes beyond that to a certain extent.

History and experience on big stages has a better shot of winning out in a game like this.  Top to bottom, the Ravens simply have been there more than the 49ers have.  And when you factor in a complete wildcard like Kaepernick, the potential for him to dominate doesn’t completely cancel out the potential for him to fold under the pressure.  His naivete could superceed his obliviousness in the end.

He might not have known where he was in all of his 10 NFL starts that fill his resume, but I think he will eventually find out where he actually is come crunchtime.  Asking what is essentially a rookie quarterback to finish on the grandest of main-event stages is as “all or nothing” of a bet as it gets.

I’m not really much for predictions.

Ravens 27 – 49ers 23.  Whoops.  Slip of the keyboard.

The Cal Poly men’s basketball team got back on track in a big way Thursday night at Mott Gym.  Their opponent, the Hawai’i Warriors ended up being more of a punching bag than an adversary in the 88-59 routing.  Riding a three-game losing streak, the Mustangs seemed to take out their frustration on the overmatched Warriors.

Chris Eversley lead the way by filling up the score sheet with 19 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists and 4 steals.  Reese Morgan was unconscious from distance, Brian Bennett scored and boarded with consistency inside (17 points, 9 rebounds), and Drake U’u’s career high 14 points and an 8 to 1 assist to turnover ratio also significantly contributed to the victory.

Chris Eversley executes a jump-hook in the lane, one of many moves in his entire arsenal. Photo by Owen Main

Poly’s big win came down to three main measurements:  a more-than 2 to 1 assist to turnover ratio, dead-eye 3 point shooting, and authoritative offensive rebounding.  The Mustangs also almost doubled-up the Warriors in total rebounding by a margin of 38-21.   Cal Poly improves to 4-0 in the Big West when they out rebound their opponent.

The Warriors opened play on a 4-0 run that was halted by Poly’s first points, a 3-pointer from Dylan Royer, and after a Brian Bennett left-handed hook, the Mustangs led 5-4 at the under 16:00 timeout.

Drake U’u’s 3-pointer out of the timeout, inside scoring from Bennett and two free throws from U’u helped Poly go on a 14-0 run, opening the game up to a 14-4 Mustang lead at the 14:00 mark.  The hustle of Chris Eversley allowed the Mustangs to win the early turnover battle, a tendancy that would continue throughout the entire game.

After a Reese Morgan bomb from long distance, Coach Joe Callero snapped off a quit timeout, and with 10:18 left in the first half, Poly held a 19-10 advantage.  Morgan dialed long distance again out of the timeout to bring the score to 22-12 Mustangs with 7:41 to go in the half.

Eversley showed great leadership and outstanding hustle as the conversion of two garbage buckets ballooned the Poly lead to 16 points with 4:23 left. Four of Eversley’s five rebounds in the first half were on the offensive glass.

The 1st half closed with the Mustangs winding the clock down after yet another offensive rebound, and Morgan hit a clutch 20-footer with 4.3 seconds left.

Then, you guessed it — more clock issues.  The longest 4.3 seconds in the history of mankind allowed Hawai’i to hit a long 3-pointer at the buzzer, closing the Cal Poly lead to 38-26 at the break.

The Mustangs completely owned the offensive glass in the first half, as half of their 16 rebounds were of the offensive variety.

The second half opened with Morgan back doing what he does, as he buried two more 3-pointers.  Eversley then joined the party as he hit one of his own, and the Mustangs extended the lead to 47-28.  At this point Hawai’i was forced to take a timeout before the under 16:00 stoppage in an attempt to cool off Poly’s raging inferno from beyond the arc.

The route was on.

Joel Awich and Kyle Odister then finally got the Poly bench in the mix and pushed the Mustang lead to 55-33 with 13:30 left in regulation.

An acrobatic attempt by U’u as he was fouled gave the crowd one of their last audible gasps of the game.  U’u converted both attempts from the charity stripe, bringing him to a perfect 6-6 from the line at that point, as the scoreboard read 59-36 at the under 12:00 timeout.

An Odister 3-pointer and a Bennet inside bucket gave the Mustangs a 28-point lead with 9:30 remaining.  Poly then extended their lead to 31 after another make from long distance, this time from Eversley, as they opened up a 69-38 margin.

With the score reading 77-46 and 4:20 left, Coach Callero took Eversley and Bennett out of the game to a well-deserved standing ovation from those who remained at a thinning Mott Gym.

As the final seconds ticked down,  Joel Awich joined the 3-point party in what could be considered beyond garbage time.  It was landfill time at this point.

“This was by far in my opinion the best 40 minutes we have played all year, both sides of the ball,” remarked Mustang Coach Joe Callero after the game.

“They (Hawai’i) may have been fatigued from a long road trip, but we squeezed the life out of them.  We need to strive for perfection and that killer instinct,” continued Callero.

Cal Poly (8-9 overall, 4-3 Big West) will host Northridge Saturday at 7:00pm.  Hawai’i (10-9 overall, 4-4 Big West) will now hop on a charter bus and head to Santa Barbara for a Saturday night meeting at 7:00pm.

After opening Big West play with three consecutive wins, and then dropping three consecutive games, will this Mustang drubbing of Hawai’i propel them to another impressive performance on Saturday night?  Or will the up and down, roller coaster trend of late continue?

There are lots of potential reasons to speculate in either direction make a lot of sense, but I do know one thing for certain:  if the Mustangs play with the level of overall intensity and execution that they displayed on this night, the sky is the limit.