To Understand All That Is Understandable

I've had so much to say. SO much. But I haven't had time to blog it. Because I'm spending every possible minute trying to learn everything I can. But my philosophy about learning is changing. It all goes back to studying college football.

I spent weeks this summer analyzing every last possible bit of information I could gather on every team in NCAA Division 1 Bowl Subdivision. It started off as an exercise in predicting teams' future seasons, then evolved into rectifying the facts with the pre-season poll, then evolved into a greater understanding of the mechanics of the sport. As I zoomed out on the picture, the corruption and collusion became clearer and clearer. And it doused my love for the sport.

But more importantly, I went from knowing to understanding. I could quote every statistic imaginable, but I was still under the illusion that it was a fair sport. Upon reaching awareness of the evil heart of college football, the importance of the details withered away. I had achieved enlightenment, in a way.

And so my quest to learn all that is learnable has changed. It is now to understand all that is understandable.

Can it only be acheived from learning all that is learnable though? I don't know. Perhaps not. We'll see. I'm trying to start my journey by grasping the history of civilization. From it's earliest beginnings, down through the years, across the continents, to here and now. Maybe I need to start with nature, but I feel confident so far in the lessons I've taken from it.

Namely, that the essence of life is to preserve life. Without that principle, the planet doesn't work. And while warring tribes and cultures are similar to rival packs of wild animals, a healthy equilibrium has not been reached. Why not? Something about civilization has gotten in our way. I don't know what yet. I intend to find out.

At any rate, my meta-understanding is evolving as well. I'm a visual learner, and I need to see differences and similarities quantified in order to grasp them. I need a complete and scaled timeline to understand the length of civilized history. So, I haven't been blogging because I've been attempting to compile one.

Also, I need an orrery that is at once massive yet easily comprehensible.

Why won't anybody listen to me?!

What the hell? I know what I'm talking about, so shut up and listen all ready. Did you know I called in to a radio talk show to totally pwn the hosts, but they didn't even get the point? No? Well, I did. They were saying that a Michigan judge should be fired because he claims he didn't know that a woman in his courtroom was wearing a headscarf for religious reasons when he asked her to remove it. Their claim was that the judge is either a racist or too stupid to realize that Muslims wear headscarves. I called in to tell them that not all Muslim women have to wear headscarves all the time, and so it's quite possible the judge was simply unsure in this case.

The freaking radio morons didn't even have a clue what I was saying. Their response was "Everybody has a different way of expressing their religion, and they should have the right to!" I tried to explain that they had failed to grasp my point, but they cut me off. Freaking worthless idiots.

And I've completely begun ignoring politics. What a mindrotting joke. For me, it was when Sarah Palin was claiming that Obama was organizing "Death Panels" to determine who gets to live and die that I finally said "Enough! I can't handle these intense levels of stupidity!" So, fine, America. Keep believing these fools. For God's sake, you deserve all the bad things they do to you. I know what's right, what's moral and just, what's wise and prudent. It's pretty darn easy to see. The answer has been there all along, and yet nobody has listened. Well, then screw you. I'm not going to listen to you any more.

Good god, to think that I considered myself open minded to consider the opinions of the right wing talk show hosts. What a fool I was. I listened in to some Michael Savage today, and the time away earned me a new perspective. It's all insidious lies. It's all half-baked logical arguments presented to push a hate-filled agenda. And when a caller wholly pwnt him on his own show, his weasely wimpiness really showed through. What an ass.

How amazing is it that people are fighting against health care reform? It's like, when you learn about the Loyalists in the American Revolution, and you think - jeez, how could anybody have supported the tyrant King? Well, duh. Here we are, with a chance to finally make some real positive change in this country, to help all those who truly need it, and we take to the streets with semi-literate racist picket signs. America's history is pock-marked with protests against fairness. No! Don't End Slavery! No! Don't Let Women Vote! No! Don't Let Races Mix! No! Don't Let Gays Marry!

Just die all ready, jerks. And how these people can consider themselves followers of Christ, I'll never understand. I don't recall Jesus preaching "God Hates Fags." Maybe I got some liberal commie version of the Bible. Because the Jesus I know and love seemed to be putting down a message more like "Do unto others as you would have done unto you." And other Socialist propaganda like that.

Even beyond the religious aspect, this is an unnatural way for humans to exist. In a state of war, fear, and hate? That's not how it's meant to be. The entire meaning of life is to ensure the continuation of your species. If life ever refused to do that, the whole thing would fall apart. All life on the planet relies on this one simple principle. Yet we take an "Every man for himself" philosophy. Are you kidding me? We never EVER would be where we are if the human race always felt that way. A lone human isn't fast enough to hunt with rudimentary weapons, or strong enough to operate a farm. A naked human would barely survive a year in most climates on the planet. Everything we have created for ourselves has come as a result of teamwork and cooperation. And we've become one of the most successful species in the history of the planet. It's something to be proud of. Not something to turn our back upon.

So why are we fighting to ensure that our tax dollars go more towards creating death than preserving life? Damned if I know. I think people are just goddamn stupid.

If they'd listen to me, they'd know better. But it's not going to happen. I don't know why. I was even trying to explain the whole "Why the Utes suddenly look worse" thing to some Utah fans today, and they didn't grasp the concept. Maybe I was talking too fast, and it was a lot of information to get out. I don't know. At any rate, I failed to enlighten them. If only I was able to communicate better. To connect. To put my ideas into their brains.

I guess that's a motivator for me. That must be why I blog and write music and stories and dream of being a teacher. I must have some sort of innate desire to help bring people to my level of understanding. Weird. Well, anyways, it's getting late, so I'm going to end here. More to come next time I have time to write.

Why the Utes suddenly look worse.

Alot has been made of how the Utes struggled to put away Utah State and San Jose State. Well, first of all, it's frustrating that Ute fans have such short and mediocre memories. The team that blew out Alabama did not play like the same team that squeaked by New Mexico. And Michigan, Oregon State, and TCU were lucky wins. But last year's team, like this year's, had the most important thing going for it - they knew how to pull out a win.

I'm getting fed up with people saying that Utah has looked more average against these WAC opponents. It's like they're not even seeing the same games I am. The biggest difference, the reason why the Utes suddenly look worse, is simply this: Potential Points.

It's a concept that occurred to me a few weeks ago. I figured the Utes had to have led the league in "Missed Field Goals Against" last year, seeing as how many times they lucked out. I never did the research to see how they stacked up against other teams, but I did catalog every missed opportunity that the Utes' opponents had over the course of the season. The results are enlightening.

Last year, the Utes won three games entirely due to opponents leaving points on the field. By that I mean, they were in scoring position and either missed a field goal or a PAT or something along those lines. Oregon State missed one field goal, one PAT, and two 2-pt conversions. That's a total of 8 potential points that the Beavers failed to convert. The Utes only won by 3 points. Likewise, TCU missed two short field goals, 6 potential points, and only lost by 3 again. And how about New Mexico? The Utes blocked one field goal, and ended up winning by 3 points. Potential Points were the difference.

One more example, but a more complicated scenario: Michigan. The Wolverines failed a 2 pt conversion that would have tied the game, but also blocked a Utah PAT (the only kick of any kind Sakoda had blocked last year), so the difference in Potential Points is only 1, and the Utes won by 2.

Out of all the other examples of points left on the field, none of them were significant to the final win margin. But interestingly, if you take into account all missed FGs, PATs, 2 pt conversions, and Turnover-on-Downs in the red zone, Utah opponents let a grand total of 40 Potential Points slip away.

The Utes: 16

A margin of 24 points? That's pretty good. Or pretty lucky. Either way, it means that the Utes were finding ways to win games that they probably shouldn't have.

Now, here's where we come to this year. As of this writing the Utes have played two games. All ready, they have failed to capitalize on 23 Potential Points! In two games! Two turnovers-on-downs at the goal line and three missed field goals have really added up quickly. And on the other side, only 3 points were left on the field when USU missed a Field Goal. So, their margin is at -20 heading in to week three. Is it any wonder they look worse than last year? If Asiata hadn't overthrown Cain in the end zone (yes, you read that right, the RB threw to the QB), and Vroman hadn't gone 0-for-3 on Field Goals, the Utah - San Jose State final score would have been 40-14. Not so bad, eh?

What does it all mean? Well, personally I just don't believe the Utes' luck will hold like it did last year. Like I said, they won a couple of games they shouldn't have. And that's ok. A respectable winning season, hopefully capped off with another bowl win to keep the streak alive, should be enough to keep the fan base happy and the recruits signing on. When will they stumble? I don't know. Hopefully not this week against Oregon. Since conference pride is the latest fad, it would hurt the Utes' reputation more to lose out of conference than in it. I feel confident - unfortunately - that the Utes are bound to drop one game, if not more, this season.

But the point I'm trying to make is that this is still a good team. Still our team that we know and love. So far they've continued the tradition of winning any way possible, even if it's ugly. That's pretty respectable. Don't be impatient, Ute fans. Don't have unattainable expectations. We still have a team to be proud of.

One more pre-season prediction...

The Utes offense will be no worse this year than last. I certainly understand the expectations of a drop off with the QB and all the WRs gone. But all that will be offset by the fact that Andy Ludwig will no longer be hampering them. Seriously; that guy's crazy schemes slowed Utah down more than any defense they ever faced. I don't feel that I'm exaggerating. His trick plays were ridiculous. He had Johnson trying to wait way too long in the backfield for the receivers to complete their complex routes, and he always tried to move the ball back and forth behind the line of scrimmage before ever going forward. However, when the Utes broke free of his playcalling - the final drives against Oregon State and TCU, and the first three drives of the Sugar Bowl - the results were staggering. Now, part of that had to do with the fact that the sudden change in offensive philosophy took defenses WAY off guard. But most of it had to do with the fact that there was a lot of talent, and they were just moving the ball forward.

So, this year, I think the lack of experience on the offense will hurt, but the better playcalling will help just as much.

On the other hand, I'm very interested to see what Ludwig does to Cal. Heh heh heh. Jahvid Best for Heisman? Probably not. Pac 10 defenses are stocked with quicker players than most MWC teams, and the trickery that had only marginal success for Utah will fail Cal.