There are so many of those "Rate My ..." sites on the Internet these days I thought it would be a fun thing here in the holidays to rate our local teams and other sports efforts. So, from one to 10, from bad to good, here we go:
9 - Holiday Bowl. They live right, there's little else that can be said. Arizona-Nebraska is a great matchup that sold out within hours of the teams being announced. The game never fails to entertain. Next year, they sink in the pecking order, but that's a problem to be dealt with later. For now, enjoy one of the premier bowl events in the nation.
8 - Chargers. There's not much more to prove for the Bolts, annual division titlists and Super Bowl contenders. They have just have to get to the final game and win one. Unlike 1994, making it will not be an upset and they'd have a chance to win. Yes, the lines still need improvement, a deficiency that might be costly next month, but everything else seems to work.
7 - San Diego State men's basketball. They're kind of like the Chargers although the Aztecs are somewhat flying under the local radar. No question there's work ahead for Coach Steve Fisher, who needs a reliable point guard and a regular with a consistent outside shot. But you can't knock annual 20-win seasons and tournament appearances. To get to an 8 like the Bolts, they have to win an NCAA Tournament game.
7 - USD baseball. The Little Team That Could is ranked again in the preseason, all you need to know about a program mired in mediocrity when Coach Rich Hill took over. The Toreros have been regular-season wonders in beating top programs like Texas, but have performed poorly in the NCAA Regionals. Hoping last season was but a hiccup.
6 - San Diego State women's basketball. I would have been tempted to place the Lady Aztecs a notch or two higher before the season, but there is something wrong internally with Coach Beth Burns' team. G Jerica Williams quitting is a sign to me that there were some personality clashes early in the season, leading to a couple surprising blowout losses. Let's hope that this week's romp over Loyola-Marymount is a sign that Burns has put things back together.
6 - Poinsettia Bowl. That sixth draw out of the Pac-10 is turning into a bit of a dud, especially when you figure such a team has to face the second- or third-place team from the suddenly powerful Mountain West Conference. As predicted on this blog on bowl announcement day, the game would be a rout in favor of the Utes, and it was. Attendance is a problem, with both schools this year only selling half their allotments and local fans saving their money for the Holiday Bowl. On the other hand, the last two games, TCU-Boise State and Utah-Navy, have been stellar.
6 - USD men's basketball. Coach Bill Grier maximizes his talent, enough to get the occasional win over a name school like Oklahoma. Trouble is, there's not enough talent on this squad and while he's been able to attract recruits, none are exciting. The Toreros are no longer the consistent program they were under Brad Holland and if the West Coast Conference season doesn't go well, they'll be at a crossroads.
5 - USD football. Never would have rated the Toreros this low back in the high-flying Jim Harbaugh days, but they're coming off a 4-7 season, 3-5 in the Pioneer Football League. Coach Ron Caragher had two great years following Harbaugh, but the trend is now heading in the wrong direction. Chalk up part of the problem to injuries. But another losing season next year will put Caragher on the hot seat.
5 - San Diego State baseball. Okay, now that Strasburg is gone, show us what you've got. The college baseball Player of the Year carried the Aztecs to their first regional in a ridiculous 19 years, obscuring the fact that they only finished fourth in the Mountain West Conference, which is not the power it has become in football and basketball. Can Addison Reed do a Strasburg impersonation? We'll see.
4 - San Diego State football. The Aztecs came a long way in Coach Brady Hoke's first year, and a strong recruiting class is being put together. This coaching staff knows what it is doing, and the results will show in time. It still amazes how low this program sank under Hoke's predecessors. To think how close they came to a bowl game in 2009 is stunning.
4 - USD women's basketball. The Lady Toreros are coming off two strong runs in the WCC Tournament, one which got them to the NCAAs, and have compiled two straight 19-13 records. Yet, Coach Cindy Fisher hasn't seemed able to build on her success, with the Toreros only 6-6 heading into Christmas. Just like the men, they seem capable of more, and the low rating expresses my desire for them to step up their game a notch.
3 - Padres. New General Manager Jed Hoyer has his work cut out for him. As said before, I like the foundation of young players, but it's only a base, not a finished product. Right now, they're only capable of challenging for .500 next year, which is not good enough considering the high cost of attending games and inconvenient stadium location. I'm willing to watch Hoyer build this franchise up, but mostly from in front of my television.
3 - Golf. The Century Club lost Buick as a sponsor and now goes into next month's event at Torrey Pines without scandal-plagued Tiger Woods. Good luck with that. On the other hand, we did finally get the LPGA back with a September tournament.
0 - As in no professional tennis tournaments.
Arrows Up: Chargers, SDSU men's hoops, SDSU football.
Arrows Down: SDSU women's basketball, USD football, USD women's basketball.
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Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to my readers!
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