Wahoo Wire

Monday November 2

MLB World Series, Game 5: New York Yankees at Philadelphia Phillies

If Jimmy Rollins were a Yankee, his prediction about winning the World Series in five games would come true. Instead, Rollins will be wishing he hadn’t said anything at all. Though tonight the Yankees Achilles heel (A.J. Burnett) is pitching and the Phillies ace Cliff Lee is pitching, it is my most sincere belief that the Yankees will only be going home to a ticker tape parade, not a game six. Although the clutch A-Rod of the first two series has been quieted in the World Series, he looms as a constant threat to change the game with one swing. Not to be continually saying the same thing, but the Yankees lineup, even without injured Melky Cabrera, remains poised to rough up any pitcher including Lee. If you are a history buff you might also be aware that the Yankees have gone up 3-1 in a World Series nine times, winning eight of them and about to win the ninth. The Phillies are better on the road. The crowd has clearly not been an advantage (the Phillies sole win was in New York) and I doubt it will magically be a factor in this game. Expect an exciting game that ends with Philadelphia fans yet again having something to cry about and for all of New York fans to celebrate and then the next day expect championships from their other major sports teams.

NFL: Atlanta Falcons at New Orleans Saints

Easily the best NFL game this week, this NFC South division rivalry will pit the explosive pass offense of the Saints against the well balanced in defense and offense Falcons. After this past weekend saw the Denver Broncos lose making the undefeated club have only two members (the Saints and the Colts), Reggie Bush’s ridiculous prediction of an undefeated season stands to be tested tonight. One thing is for sure, win or lose Bush will have little to no impact whatsoever on the game. Though the game is in the Superdome, the Falcons also play their home games in a dome (the Georgia Dome) and will not be affected by the not so loud Saints home crowd. Expect a close that could go either way.

Thursday November 5

#3 UVA Women’s Field Hockey: versus #14 Duke in the ACC Tournament Quarterfinals

UVA will play host to the ACC Tournament for Field Hockey this weekend with the quarterfinals being played Thursday, the semifinals being played Friday and the finals being played Sunday. In the ACC there are only six field hockey teams. As of the last rankings for field hockey on October 27, Maryland was ranked first, North Carolina was ranked second, Virginia was ranked third, Wake Forest was ranked sixth, Boston College was ranked ninth and Duke was ranked fourteenth. Yes, you read that correctly; every team in the ACC is ranked in the top 14 in field hockey. With that in mind the ACC tournament this year is almost more impressive to win than the NCAA tournament. Because there are six teams, the top two teams get byes. As Maryland and UNC both beat UVA, they both get byes. The #3 Lady Cavaliers (16-2, 4-2) will play #14 Duke, who they beat this past Saturday 2-1, on Thursday in the quarterfinals with the winner taking on #2 UNC while #6 Wake Forest plays #9 Boston College with the winner taking on #1 Maryland. The UVA Women’s Field Hockey team needs your support so go out and support them this Thursday, Friday and (hopefully) Sunday!

Friday November 6

NBA: Cleveland Cavaliers at New York Knicks

No, this is not the best game of the week in the NBA. It is not even close to it. There are way too many basketball games and it is way too early to decide who exactly will be in the playoff picture but it won’t raise any eyebrows to assert that the Cavaliers will be a top three East team and the Knicks will be in the lottery. The reason this game is on this list because I want everyone to take note of how LeBron James plays at Madison Square Garden. He plays so well there. There will be a warm New York welcome for him and as always he will make the press salivate over the possibility he may be wearing a Knicks uniform in less than 8 months. I can assure you Editor in Chief Ben Faust will deny it, but LBJ is coming. It’s one thing to live in the greatest city in the world, but to be the king there, that’s an offer nobody could refuse. Expect King James to drop over 30 and the Cavs to crush the Knicks.

Saturday November 7

College Football: #9 LSU at #3 Alabama

In the chaotic series of upsets that is college football, somehow the seemingly weak LSU tigers have managed to sneak their way up to 9^th in the nation. After barely beating miserable Washington, mediocre Mississippi State and Georgia, and losing by ten at home to #1 Florida, they hit the easiest part of their schedule leading to easy wins over Auburn and Tulane. With their shaky road performances and the first real challenge in a month, I can’t see the Tigers giving the Crimson Tide much of a challenge. Alabama on the other hand is playing for respect and to show both the human and computer rankings that they are deserving of a top 2 spot. After almost getting upset versus Tennessee and having a bye week the reinvigorated Alabama will come out strong and not let LSU get in the game. You can bet that Nick Saban will enjoy locking up the SEC West title against his former team. The question now will be if Alabama has enough to beat Florida. Expect an Alabama blow out.

#10 UVA Men’s Soccer: versus #13 NC State

This is the last game of the season before the ACC Tournament in Cary, NC and then the NCAA tournament. The UVA men’s soccer team has hit its stride, pushing their unbeaten streak to six games this past weekend with a crucial 0-0 tie with #6 Maryland at College Park. The shutout makes UVA’s record 10-3-2 (3-3-1) and was UVA Goalkeeper Diego Restrepo’s eighth of the season. With unranked (as of October 27) American 9-4-2 playing in Charlottesville on Tuesday night, the Cavaliers should continue their streak and at least walk away with a tie. Though American has beaten Virginia Tech at tech and George Washington, between the homefield advantage and the strikeforce, the Cavaliers should be fine. NC State (11-4-1, 2-4-1) will be a bigger challenge and the question will be which Wolfpack team will show up; the one that beat Duke at Duke and tied Maryland or the team that lost to Clemson at home and lost to Virginia Tech? Given their poor recent performance against good competition, I am going to predict a Cavalier win. A Cavalier win guarantees no lower than a sixth place finish in the ACC. A Cavalier win and Wake Forest loss, Duke loss and Boston College loss or tie could launch UVA to 3^rd in a best case scenario. Much like the Field Hockey team, the men’s soccer team needs your support, so go sit in section five and help create a real homefield advantage.

Sunday November 8

Premiership: Manchester United at Chelsea

Whenever there is a clash between two “top 4″ sides in the Premiership it is bound to be a game worth watching. This game is even more crucial as these two sides sit atop the league with 25 points and 27 points respectively through eleven games. If the match ends in a draw both sides will remain one (Chelsea) and two (Manchester United). If Manchester United is to lose and Arsenal to win, Arsenal will slip into second on goal differential. If United is to win, they will go top of the league and Arsenal will remain third regardless of their result this weekend. Two weeks ago I thought United would crush Liverpool especially after their poor recent form; they didn’t so this week I have quite a different prediction. Chelsea has been scoring an unreasonably high amount since losing to Aston Villa in mid-October and Stamford Bridge is as rowdy of a place as any. Manchester United has not been as dominant recently as I have expected them to be. With this in mind expect a high quality, hard fought match but for the Blues to remain top the league.