Day 57: Albert Pujols, Warriors, Heisman choice and more

HEADLINES

1) Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols was the unanimous pick for the NL MVP award, winning his second straight  MVP and his third overall. Do you agree with this pick?

Ben: Is this a serious question? He was obviously the best choice in the National League. The guy is a great player, and, unless a freak injury occurs, will probably be an automatic MVP for the next 4-5 years. He is a great power hitter, a great hit for average guy, a RBI guy, a great defensive player, and a generally nice guy in the media. Pujols, while he plays for the hated Cardinals, is a player just about every team in the majors would want. That, should be the definition of an MVP - a player who would dominate on any team.

Boz: Absolutely. I didn't even know who else was in the running until I read the article today. Pujols was so far above and beyond, not only any other player in the National League, but in the entire Major League. As much as I had to admit it as a Cubs fan, the man is a machine and is the best hitter on the planet. The real question is where will Pujols rank among the best all-time hitters in the history of the game when he is done. He has already won three MVP awards and he is only 29-years old.

2) The Golden State Warriors defeated the Dallas Mavericks, 111-103, despite only playing six players in the game. Was this impressive by the Warriors or pathetic by the Mavericks?

Ben: Both. It is impressive that the Warriors were able to get through an entire game, much-less win the game, with only six players. It is pathetic that the Mavericks were so unenthusiastic about playing this game that they let 6 worn out guys beat them up and down the floor for 48 minutes. It wasn't even like the Warriors tried to play a different style game -- THEY SCORED 110 POINTS!

If I were Rick Carilse I'd be pretty upset with my team.

Boz: It's pathetic on the part of the Mavericks. You are playing at home against a team playing six guys, with three of them playing all 48 minutes. If you want to be considered as a legit title contender you cannot lose these games. I know they are NBA players, but playing all 48 minutes had to get those guys tired. And why wasn't the game plan to draw fouls and get them in foul trouble? It really has to be a demoralizing loss for the Mavs and I am sure Mark Cuban isn't too happy.

What is really pathetic is the two other guys that dressed for the Warriors but didn't play in the game. Are they that bad that they don't even get used when their are only six other active players?

3) With college football season winding down, who is your pick to win the Heismann trophy?

Ben: As much as it pains me to say this, Tim Tebow. I just think that with all the records he's broken this year, and with all the national attention that Flordia gets, he'll have a pretty reasonable shot this year to get that trophy back. Plus he gets a vote -- who do you think he's voting for.

Boz: I'm taking Stanford's running back Toby Gerhart. He has the second-highest running total in the nation with 1,531 yards and leads all running backs with 23 touchdowns. He has almost single-handedly turned the Cardinal around and almost got them into the Rose Bowl. Alabama's running back Mark Ingram is a close second, making it nice to see running backs back in the running after a couple years with nothing but quarterbacks up for the award.

4) With the Lions and Cowboys set the host the Thanksgiving games once again, should the NFL consider giving the Thanksgiving games to better teams or keep with tradition?

Ben: Keep with tradition. Look, I know I am a Lions fan, so you can paint me with the homer brush, but these two teams stepped up when no one else would. The Lions have hosted the Thanksgiving game since 1934. They missed two years since then, 1939, 1940. They also told the NFL when they wanted to sponsor a Thanksgiving game -- Detroit and Dallas were the first two teams to step up and take the responsibility. Ever noticed which car company has the most commercials during NFL games? Ford does. Do you know who the same person owns Ford Motor Company and the Detroit Lions? Find it a coincidence that the NFL has stuck it out with them through this stretch.

Look, I want to see good games on TV too -- but I do not think that just because the Lions happen to be bad they should have the game stripped. Nobody would talk about this if it were the Cowboys, Giants, Jets, Patriots, or Packers terrible.

Boz: Despite not being a fan of either team, I want the NFL to keep the tradition alive and continue to allow the Lions and Cowboys to keep hosting the Turkey Day games. I'm a big stickler for tradition and I would hate to see this one change. Even though the Lions are bad and the Cowboys are playing the Raiders, people will still tune in to watch the games because that's what you do on Thanksgiving. You watch football. If the NFL wants to make better games then don't schedule the Raiders. They knew when making the schedule that they were terrible! They got one game right at least, scheduling a division foe for the Lions with the Packers. Regardless, I'm looking forward to watching both games.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL PICK 'EM

Last week            Ben: 3-4                Boz: 3-4
Season                 Ben: 51-29            Boz: 44-36

1) Notre Dame at Stanford (Saturday, 7 p.m.)

Ben: STANFORD. Notre Dame doesn't beat anyone that is ranked.

Boz: STANFORD. It was a disappointing loss for the Cardinal last week, crushing their hopes for a Rose Bowl bid. They'll use the Irish as a good way to end the regular season on a high note.

2) Illinois at No. 5 Cincinnati (Friday, 11 a.m.)

Ben: Ill..........kidding...CINCINNATI. I can't pick Illinois here. But it would be a great upset.

Boz: CINCINNATI. This won't even be close unless the Bearcats are overlooking this game and are focusing on Pittsburgh next week. I just don't see it happening.

3) Arkansas at No. 15 LSU (Saturday, 6 p.m.)

Ben: LSU. The Tigers have lost a surprising number of games that were within their grasp this year. This will not be one of them.

Boz: LSU. The Tigers need to bounce back after dropping last week's game against Ole' Miss. If they want to keep a premeir bowl game then they need to beat Arkansas. They'll get it done in Baton Rouge.

4) No. 3 Texas at Texas A&M (Thursday, 7 p.m.)

Ben: TEXAS. Colt McCoy will get the Horn's through this one, and on to bigger and better things. Mike Sherman hasn't gotten things going in College Station yet.

Boz: TEXAS. I said a long time ago that Texas A&M could be trouble for the Longhorns. I'm taking Texas but I just wanted you to know I actually said that incase it happens.

5) No. 2 Alabama at Auburn (Friday, 1:30 p.m.)

Ben: ALABAMA. No way the Tide slip up here. Saban's defense is always strong and Auburn has been real quite since starting the season strong.

Boz: AUBURN. This a big trap game for Alabama and it's a even bigger rivalry game. The Tigers are going to be playing like they have nothing to lose...because they don't.

6) No. 17 Miami at South Florida (Saturday, 2:30 p.m.)

Ben: MIAMI. I'm going to take the 'Canes even though I don't think they are that good of a team. I'll take them to win this one, but they'll fall in the ACC championship game.

Boz: SOUTH FLORIDA. The Bulls want to be the second best team in the state of Florida and they need to win this game to prove that they are. The Hurricanes drop this game to continue the down fall of a once promising season.

7) No. 9 Pittsburgh at West Virginia (Friday, 6 p.m.)

Ben: PITTSBURGH. Pitt is way to good, and West Virginia still doesn't have a consistent team. Although, the Backyard Brawl has a way of turning contenders into spectators.

Boz: PITTSBURGH. This is a trap game for the Panthers also but I don't see them slipping up against West Virginia. They want the Big East championship and a BCS bowl game.

NFL PICK 'EM

Last week              Ben: 7-0                 Boz: 6-1
Season                   Ben: 38-26             Boz: 36-28

1) Green Bay (6-4) at Detroit (2-8)

Ben: DETROIT. I can't stop believing after last weeks win.

Boz: GREEN BAY. If Stafford was playing in this game then I would give the Lions a chance on Thanksgiving, but I don't think he is going to play. Plus, I need to pick up a game here.

2) Oakland (3-7) at Dallas (7-3)

Ben: DALLAS. How does Oakland ever win football games?

Boz: DALLAS. They are playing the Raiders. Yes they surprise the world once in a while, but not this week.

3) New York Giants (6-4) at Denver (6-4)

Ben: GIANTS. I think Denver has fallen and they can't get up. The season is spiraling out of control for them

Boz: NEW YORK GIANTS. Kyle Orton is going to be playing with a bum ankle and the Giants pass rush is going to really be getting after him. The Giants need to win two straight after losing those four straight games.

4) Indianapolis (10-0) at Houston (5-5)

Ben: INDIANAPOLIS. I don't bet against Mannings and Peyton is playing LIGHTS OUT football right now.

Boz: INDIANAPOLIS. I would have given the Texans a small shot at this if I didn't see all of the wind come out of the sails after last week's loss to the Titans.

5) Chicago (4-6) at Minnesota (9-1)

Ben: MINNESOTA. I hate to admit it, but the Vikings are really, really good. That and I'll need to get a game back because I took the Lions earlier.

Boz: CHICAGO. I'm only taking the Bears here because I have forced Ben to take the Lions week in and week out.

6) Pittsburgh (6-4) at Baltimore (5-5)

Ben: PITTSBURGH. I have faith in the Steelers and I think they'll pull of this win. The Ravens haven't played consistent Baltimore football all year, and I think that'll come back to bite them this week.

Boz: BALTIMORE. The Ravens need this win...BAD. Whether or not Big Ben plays in this one, the Ravens still get the win. The defense will really step up this week.

7) New England (7-3) at New Orleans (10-0)

Ben: NEW ORLEANS. At the Superdome. Loud. Drew Brees. Those are my reasons.

Boz: NEW ENGLAND. The Patriots already blew a chance to knock off one undefeated team, they won't let it happen again.

HAPPY HOUR

Ben: Happy 46th Birthday Bernie Kosar. The former Hurricane and Cleveland Brown has had some trouble post-professional career -- but has been rumored to be a potential candidate as GM of the Browns. I like Kosar and always thought he caught bad breaks during his career. So, this time, I'll give him a good break and give him a shout out on the blog.

Boz: Happy 28th Birthday to Jared Jeffries. The former Hoosier took Indiana to the 2002 NCAA title game before losing to Maryland. I hated Jeffries when he was in the Big Ten and I think I got my revenge because now Jeffries is on the lowly Knicks.