Tribal Fever Dispatch Archives
With Leadership In Flux, the BCS Proves Its Worth to the Big East
Tribal Fever will never stop its defense of the greatest sport in our Footprint - college football. How a sport that has record ratings and revenue would ever be under scrutiny is beyond us, but we believe the heart of that line of criticism lies in its "limited" read more...
Duke Over Notre Dame: College Sports Are Still The King Down South
Since the SEC just wrapped up its meetings down in Destin, Tribal Fever thought it would be a good time to check in. College sports are the glory of The Footprint, and the rest of the nation is taking notice. The significance of yesterday's news that Notre Dame's AD read more...
Pro Sports Scandal Fatigue
While we at Swampland often write about College Football being the South’s number one passion, there’s no questioning the popularity of the NFL. We all love the ‘sport’ of professional football, but the ‘business’ of the game always seems to cause read more...
Conference USA Must Step Up to Avoid Potential College Football Upheaval
Last year, Tribal Fever presented a modest proposal about conference realignment for teams in the Swampland Footprint. The proposal came from our understanding of the love and passion of college football in read more...
South Dominates College Baseball
by Patrick Snow There is one more week of college baseball before the conference tournaments, and the teams in our Swampland footprint are looking very strong. I had the pleasure this past weekend to attend a great 3-game series between Vanderbilt and Georgia. The Bulldogs read more...
SEC Football Update, Memphis Style!
Ron Higgins was on fire over the weekend. He's one of the best writers about SEC football newspaper writers outside of Tony Barnhart. (For those of you just finding out about Ron, please
Why Swampland Sports Loves the BCS
Despite winning back to back national titles in football, the SEC susre seems to hate the BCS. Lately, this hatred has been reaching a new level. It all started when University of Georgia President Michael F. Adams announced a proposal for
SPF's NFL Draft First Round Log (Live All Day!!)
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Snowflakes: What Are SEC Football Critics Going To Do Now?
With spring football in full gear, it’s never too early to look ahead to the upcoming season. We at Swampland have focused many times on the ongoing theme of the SEC “arms race” in America’s toughest conference schedule to navigate. With Florida and LSU read more...
Snowflakes: Southern Sweet 16
Here a quick primer for our teams in this weekend’s NCAA Tournament. East – This is definitely the Heavyweight bracket for our Swampland region. With #1 overall seed North Carolina playing near home in Charlotte, the Tar Heels have to be read more...
Snowflakes: Tar Heels are the Tourney's Favorite
The best postseason in sports is upon us with the NCAA Tournament beginning. Brackets will soon be ruined as productivity takes a break for a couple of days in offices across the country. College football will seemingly always be king in our Swampland region (with a few exceptions read more...
Snowflakes: Big 12 Tourney as Expected, but Change on the Horizon
The least surprising of all conference tournaments this March has been the Big 12 Tourney in Kansas City. Both Texas and Kansas have been Top 10 teams for most of the season, and they have maneuvered their way to Sunday’s Championship game with a probable #1 seed on the line read more...
Video Clips: Tornado Hits Downtown Atlanta during SEC Tourney Game
Below is a clip of the game broadcast of Alabama vs. Mississippi State during the moment when a tornado hits the Georgia Dome and damages the roof.
Snowflakes: Why SEC Hoops is No Longer Just Kentucky
With Mississippi and Florida both dropping first round games in the conference tournament, the SEC contingent for the Big Dance seems to be set at five (TN, UK, VU, Ark., MSU). While there’s an outside chance the Rebels could get an at-large berth, the rest of the weekend will read more...
Snowflakes: Small Conference Hoops Does the Footprint Proud
It’s the most exciting time of the year for many of the smaller schools around our region. Their conferences tournaments have become an extension of the NCAA Tourney as winning the automatic bid fulfills their dream of having a shot at the big boys. Many pundits feel it would read more...
Snowflakes: Conference USA's Mediocrity is True Source of Calipari's Frustration
Memphis has their sights set on the Big Dance and the Final Four as they cruise through another C-USA Tournament at home. When the Tigers beat UAB, John Calipari became the only coach besides Adolph Rupp to win
Snowflakes: UNC vs. Duke defines ACC Hoops
* Is there any better theater in college basketball than North Carolina at Duke? It was another great scene at Cameron Indoor Stadium last Saturday night with former players like Christian Laettner, Jason Williams, and Chris Duhon in the house for Senior Night. Heck, new Duke read more...
Snowflakes: Big 12 Hoops
* The Big 12 is looking quite solid as the postseason approaches. There is a strong possibility that half of the league gets an invitation to the Big Dance, with both Kansas and Texas still having a shot at a #1 seed. If either the Longhorns or Jayhawks win the Big 12 Tournament, read more...
Snowflakes: SEC Hoops
* What a great night of hoops SEC fans witnessed on Wednesday night. We’ll start in Gainesville where Tennessee came from 16 back to beat the Gators 89-86, and wrapped up the SEC Title in the process. It’s the first outright conference title for the Vols in 41 years, and read more...
Snowflakes: Small Conference Hoops
* It will be quite a battle this weekend in the Big South for the coveted automatic berth to the Big Dance. North Carolina-Asheville and Winthrop both finished at 10-4 in the Big
Snowflakes: C-USA/Big East Hoops
* West Virginia has won 3 of their last 4 and really seems to be coming together at the right time. One of the main reasons for their solid play of late is that post man Joe Campbell has averaged 25.5 points a game in the last 4 contests, including 32 in the Mountaineers’ huge read more...
Snowflakes: ACC Hoops
* Mike Krzyzewski got his 800th career win Saturday in a game that Duke trailed most of the way. The obvious question becomes: Can he get to 902-the record number of victories set by his read more...
Snowflakes: Big 12 Hoops
* Texas’ stellar play throughout the season has put them into great position for a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Winners of read more...
Snowflakes: SEC Hoops
* I’ve written all season about the banner year for basketball in the state of Tennessee. The two best teams in the league appear to be from the Volunteer State in Tennessee and Vanderbilt (although detractors would qualify the Commodores inclusion as long as they are playing read more...
Snowflakes: Small Conference Hoops
* We still have a great two-horse race in the Sun Belt Conference as both South Alabama and Western Kentucky try to prove they are Big Dance worthy. Many bracket
Snowflakes: C-USA/Big East Hoops
* Well, it finally happened. The 47-game home winning streak and the perfect record on the season ended for Memphis last Saturday when Tennessee defeated them, 66-62, in the raucous FedEx Forum. Surprisingly, the Tigers were outhustled and outrebounded by the smaller Vols who made read more...
Snowflakes: ACC Hoops
* Miami seems to have played themselves back in to the NCAA Tournament picture. Just two weeks ago, the Hurricanes were 2-6 in ACC play and seemed to be drifting off to another subpar season. However, Frank Haith’s club has righted the ship by winning four in a row including read more...
Snowflakes: #1 vs #2
With all due respect.to the other games this weekend, there’s only one mammoth matchup read more...
Snowflakes: ACC Hoops
* What a great win for Wake Forest Sunday night. The Demon Deacons topped #2 Duke 86-73 to provide the fans in Winston-Salem and first-year coach Dino Gaudio with their best moment of the season. Of course, last summer turned tragic for the entire Wake family after the untimely read more...
Snowflakes: Big 12 Hoops
* What a great game Monday night between Texas and Kansas. In my opinion, it was ‘highest quality’ contest I have seen all year. While some other games had crazier finishes, KU-Texas looked like a Final 4 matchup with two heavyweights slugging it out. Although the read more...
Snowflakes: SEC Hoops
* After attending the Vanderbilt-Kentucky game Tuesday night in Nashville, all I can say is ‘Wow’. The Commodores are always tough at home (15-0 this season), and they handed the Wildcats the worst loss in their SEC history, 93-52. Vandy scorched the nets at over 55% for read more...
Snowflakes: Small Conference Hoops
We often focus on teams that reach the dream of an NCAA tournament or special players who make the NBA, but sometimes it’s just about playing for the love of the game. That thought takes us to tiny Presbyterian College in Clinton, South Carolina. The Blue Hose
Snowflakes: Big East Hoops
Louisville got a monster win last Saturday night when they knocked off first place Georgetown. The Cardinals are playing much better ball of late, having won 5 of 6, and looking solid for a good run in the postseason. However, I’ve got to give at least an assist to Rick read more...
Snowflakes: ACC Hoops
* What a game in Chapel Hill on Sunday. Still without star point guard Ty Lawson, North Carolina rallied from a double-digit deficit in the second half and finally put away Clemson in double overtime, 103-93. Tyler Hansbrough may have wrapped up the National Player of the Year in read more...
Snowflakes: Big 12 Hoops (Bobby Knight Retires)
There are many good stories in the conference, but one of those stands out this week and that is the resignation of Bobby Knight from Texas Tech. One of the most polarizing figures in the history of sports, Knight said he was tired and that it seemed like the right time to hand over read more...
Snowflakes: SEC Hoops
* The Kentucky Wildcats finally look to be playing the kind of winning ball that Big Blue fans expect. It took a while to adjust to new coach Billy Gillispie (and his gameday practices), but now the ‘Cats are sitting only one game behind SEC East leader Tennessee. In a recent read more...
Snowflakes: Smaller Conference Hoops
One mid-major club that higher seeded teams will not want to see in the Big Dance is Davidson from the Southern Conference. The Wildcats are perfect 13-0 in league play
Snowflakes: Big East/C-USA Hoops
* With the league’s RPI being 11th in the nation, it’s a distinct possibility that Conference USA could be a one-bid league this season. Even though John Calipari has tried to talk up C-USA, the conference is just not performing up to the “right below the BCS read more...
Snowflakes: ACC Hoops
* The best rivalry in college hoops takes place Wednesday night when #2 ranked Duke invades Chapel Hill to battle #3 North Carolina. This game is always a barnburner on Tobacco Road, and the winner will have sole possession of first place in the conference. The biggest story read more...
Snowflakes: Big 12 Hoops
by Patrick Snow * The best storyline in the conference this season has easily been the Baylor Bears. At 16-3 overall and 4-1 in league play, Scott Drew’s team has a legitimate chance to be in the Big Dance. His team has five scorers averaging in double figures, and read more...
Snowflakes: SEC Hoops
by Patrick Snow * Someone forgot to tell 2-time National Champion Florida that they were supposed to struggle this season. After winning their second NCAA title in a row, the Gators lost the top six players off their depth chart and lost their coach for a day or two. read more...
Snowflakes: Small Conference Hoops
by Patrick Snow The regular season seems to get a little overlooked in many of the smaller or “1-bid” leagues in our Swampland footprint, but there are some great races happening as these teams position themselves for the postseason run. We’ll try each week read more...
Snowflakes: C-USA/Big East Hoops
by Patrick Snow * Could this week finally bring the contest where #1 Memphis actually loses a conference game? The last time that happened was at UAB on March 2nd, 2006. On Wednesday night, the undefeated Tigers travel to Houston to battle the 15-3 Cougars. After read more...
Snowflakes: ACC Hoops
by Patrick Snow * As Duke put the finishing touches on their 93-84 victory at Maryland Sunday night, it became increasingly clear that the ACC will be a two-horse race this season. Duke and North Carolina are definitely the class of the league and are probably the only two read more...
In defense of Bobby Petrino (and Arkansas)
Tribal Fever prides itself about being on the pulse of college sports in the Footprint. We aren't here to sugarcoat it in any way. College football is king down here. Everything else runs a distant second. In that light, we want to set the record read more...
TF Conference Championship Preview
Today is the day we find out whether it will be an all-Swampland matchup in the BCS Championship Game. If all goes according to plan it should be Missouri vs. West Virginia. Still, there are a few other game worth watching. It has been a great year for college read more...
TF Rivalry Week Preview
Rivalry games define college football. More than bowl games or even conference championships, a win against your rival means bragging rights for a year. That is why this weekend's game can often be the hardest to call. A team with a losing record can suddenly make read more...
TF Saturday Preview: The Year of Transition Nears An End
The wild year continues. In many ways this was just a sign of the transition college football around the Footprint has experienced. In some ways, it shouldn't be as surprising as it has been. Nick Saban's arrival lit a fire under everyone. The ante was read more...
TF Saturday Preview: Everything's Still To Be Decided
Patrick Snow has it right. This year's season of college football has shown that it is one of the most compelling sports to follow as a fan, especially in the Footprint.
Tribal Fever's Weekend Observations
1. That enormous exhale coming from the Oxford, Mississippi area would be the sigh of relief of Ole Miss Coach Ed Orgeron. His Rebels had to hold on for dear life to beat Northwestern State 38-31 on Saturday. The non-Division 1 Demons went into the game with a 2-3 record in the read more...
Tiger Rag
In the spring a young man’s fancy may turn to baseball, but in the fall in the South everyone’s fancy turns to football, and in Alabama there is only Auburn and
TF Saturday Preview: Pole, er.. Bowl Position
If you aren't a Florida or Georgia fan, this weekend might be a good one to spend with the kids. This is a pretty thin weekend for good games in the Footprint. That's why Athlon's college football preview spends most of its time previewing games outside our read more...
TF's Saturday Preview: Act Like You've Been There Before!
It's the old saying when a player celebrates a little too much - act like you've been there before. This rules seems to also hold true to some of our Footprint's winning neophytes. When programs are new to winning, they don't know how to handle themselves. That's read more...
TF's Saturday Preview: The History Behind SEC Dominance
Tribal Fever would like to start this weekend's festivities by directing everyone to a fantastic series on ESPN.com about the SEC. Which leads us to this week's focus - the historical read more...
Tribal Fever's Weekend Slate (10/6/2007)
Let's start with this week's College Football Preview from Athlon. Swampland's own Patrick Snow hosts each week. (Read Patrick's new column on the state of baseball in read more...
Otis Redding Film Premier October 8
Dreams To Remember Premier October 8 10/1/07 The new Otis Redding documentary, Dreams To Remember: The Legacy of Otis read more...
Upset Saturday, or not?
Patrick Snow mentioned in his last column that he was looking ahead to next week's games. Based on yesterday's game result, so were too many top 25 teams in the Footprint. TF Upsets read more...
Swampland welcomes Tribal Fever!
It was only a matter of time before Swampland Sports starting covering the colleges in earnest. Today marks the start of Tribal Fever, Swampland.com's dispatch dedicated to college sports in the South. We have new features up including Patrick Snow's latest read more...
Autumnal Traditions and Emotional Rescue in Tuscaloosa
Autumnal Traditions and Emotional Rescue in Tuscaloosa 9/23/07 As Georgia's kicker lined up to miss the kick, sending the Georgia-Alabama game read more...