A is for Arena League. Someone must be mistaken. Either the Big 12 South has figured out something about football other teams have missed for the past hundred years or so, or some kind of ban on defense has been declared in the Big 12.

Oklahoma has scored over 60 points four games in a row, and scored on eight straight possessions against Oklahoma State Saturday night in a devastating, game-clinching run that had the Cowboys defense openly weeping on the field. Texas modestly kept things to a 40-point margin of victory against A&M. Texas Tech, on the receiving end of OU’s blowtorch last week, has to console itself with a meager 44.6 points a game as the third banana in conference.

This presents a question for the upcoming bowl season: is defense merely optional in the Big 12, or is this just the byproduct of three or four (don’t forget Ok. State, which averages 41 a game) offenses all hitting their stride with optimal personnel at the same time?

If you do cast your virtual ballot for Texas, you have one convincing argument on your side: the only team that plays any defense in the Big 12 South is also the only one who dealt the Oklahoma Cloverfield monster a loss. As horrifying as they’ve looked over the past four games, they still lost to Texas, which sometimes likes to tackle the guy with the ball and prevent him from scoring.

B is for BEEEEEEEES. Just three yards and a cloud of dust. Geico football — so easy a caveman can do it. Will never work. Too simple. Too predictable. A blast from the past soon to return with a whimper. Cromag football not fit for this century.

The preceding statements? All grossly incorrect assessments of the beguiling flexbone of Paul Johnson. Georgia Tech completed one pass Saturday, allowed 42 points and a career day to Matt Stafford, and still took their missing link offense into Athens and walked out with snippets of the hedges in a 45-42 victory over Georgia. 409 yards rushing, 38 points of scoring offense, and a snapped losing streak to Georgia means Tech will happily get their caveman on any time you care to mock their punishing shell game of an offense.

They’ll also have the roast duck and mango salsa. Please send the bill to Willie Martinez at table four, please.

C is for Croom’d. Sylvester Croom made his living as the death cat of the SEC. A visit from him and a subsequent loss meant doom for Ron Zook, Mike Shula, and Ed Orgeron, all of whom were fired in seasons that included a loss to the Bulldogs.

Requisite kudos and eulogies will be made about Croom’s tenure. It was an historical one, since Croom was the first black head coach in the SEC. It was a sporadically successful stretch, too. Miss State recovered somewhat from the ravages of the Jackie Sherrill era to go to a bowl game last year, and played competitive football throughout Croom’s tenure. He also demonstrated a sterling track record with player discipline, ran his program "the right way," and once suited up and played on the line during practice as a motivational gambit for his players. Much good can be said of him.

Niceties aside, Croom should be remembered on the football field as an offensive coach whose offenses never scored. This year’s unit is 113th in the nation in total offense, and it never finished in the top 100 nationally. Croom’s departure may reduce the total number of black head coaches to a shameful total of three, but being truly colorblind means valuing quantifiable results over all else. Croom resigning — rather than being fired — is tacit acknowledgement of this.

D is for Decimated. The act of disciplining a Roman military unit by killing every tenth man. Any number of units suffered this fate, apparently playing one side of the ball with ten men (or at least appearing to.) Notre Dame’s offense, which gained their first first down at the end of the third quarter against USC; Georgia’s defense, whose safeties appeared to be playing with eyepatches; or Oregon State’s entire defense, which prepared for the Oregon game by coating their arms with generous helpings of slick, buttery cooking spray. (More on that ghastly effort later.)

E is for Encourageous. Mark Mangino used the purely invented word "gutty" to describe Todd Reesing’s game against Mizzou, and though it’s just gibberish, we’ll go with it in Reesing’s honor: 37-for-51 for 375 yards, 4 TDs, and a game played through repeated hammerings from the Tigers, including one blow so hard his coaches thought he was knocked out. All well worth a 40-37 comeback victory over Mizzou, and outlandacious guttiness from a mantastic quarterback. Reesing is our Mandom Award Winner for the week. Congratulatations, Todd. Gutty, indeed.

F is for Fakery Failed. The first funniest thing we saw this weekend:

G is for Grizzly/Grisly. As in the beards and accompanying results on both Tennessee QB Jonathan Crompton and the entire Oregon State team. One helped. Jonathan Crompton, sporting a beard I will dub "the Moonshiner’s Neckwarmer," threw for one TD, ran for another, and for the first time, obeyed the prime directive of quarterback play: "Do no harm." Oregon State’s beards seemed to grow into their eyes, as they blew a Pac-10 title shot by missing every Oregon runner on the field. (They were wearing neon yellow cleats. How can you miss that?)

H is Hate. From ESPN — not the paranoid minds of message boarders who insist the opposition holds mini-Mardi Gras whenever a member of their team is injured on the field — we have real, live nastiness from a fanbase to an injured player in the Florida/Florida State game.

The Seminoles fired up Tebow before last year’s game when linebacker Geno Hayes vowed to "take him down." This time, the FSU fans offered Tebow a little extra motivation.

Tebow carried Seminole defenders on his back for a four-yard touchdown a few plays later, and cited the cheering of an injury as motivation. Deplorable work by the Florida State crowd, though some did fine work in cheering the Seminoles on in non-offensive ways that were not dependent on someone else getting hurt.

The use of oil-based paint to prevent smearing in the rainy conditions of Tallahassee? That’s planning.

I is for Inquiry: Bill Stewart’s clock management with under two minutes left in the Pitt game brings up the issue of what to do when you are out of timeouts and on defense with under two minutes to go … a question that may be answered by letting Pitt score and getting the ball back.

Situation: At 1:54, Pitt has a 3rd and 1 on the WVU 1-yard line, and is down 15-13. Pitt can score a TD or kick a field goal to win, both extremely likely given the game conditions. The most important thing at this point in the game becomes possession and clock, not preventing the Pitt score. (Preventing it is a heroic but highly unlikely scenario.)

Out of timeouts, there is only one real way to stop the clock and get possession: allow Pitt to score. It is not without precedent — the extremely uncrazy Steve Mariucci pulled this exact move in the NFL when he was out of timeouts. Stewart opted to grind out the rest and hope for a stop and a FG block.

Pitt scored, missed the two-point conversion, and held a four-point lead and gave the ball back to WVU with 44 seconds on the clock. Had WVU let Pitt score uncontested, they could have had around a minute and a half to get a TD. It’s not an easy or conventional call, but it is one that in retrospect could have given the Mountaineers more time to pull out a comeback. (Armchair coaching! Catch the fever.)

J is for Jedi. Sam Bradford’s line: 30/44, 370 yards, 4 TDs, and no INTs. Numbers cheapen the way it looked, though. Bradford missed nothing. No space unexploited between linebackers, no ball underthrown … even his receivers’ drops went for TDs, as a tip off the hands of a wide receiver on a perfectly thrown ball went caroming into the air and into the hands of TE Jermaine Gresham for a TD.

He needs to work on his Jedi levitation skills, though.

K is Knowshon. As in Moreno, who along with Matthew Stafford is gone to the NFL most likely as a first-round pick. The best backfield Georgia ever had goes out with as bitter a 9-3 season as one can have. Now cue the pitchforks and torch crowd; your target is Georgia defensive coordinator Willie Martinez, and you have evidence aplenty to bring with you to the kangaroo court.

L is for Large. Boise State led Fresno State by a meager three points at the half, 13-10. Boise finished the game by scoring 48 points unanswered. The lesson? Lose early to them, and they may spare you a 48-point half. Boise will accomplish what only one national title contender at this point may claim: an untarnished, shiny, undefeated regular-season record for 2008.

M is for MACnificent. Ball State also finishes an undefeated season, and deserves congratulations not coming from David Letterman

N is for Ninety-Six. Or the total number of yards gained by Notre Dame against USC. Clausen’s line alone draws flies and scares the children: 11/22, 41 yards, 4 sacks, 2 INTs, 0 TDS.

O is for Outro. Cue the music for Dabo Swinney, whose audition as the head coach for Clemson proved to be a largely successful one even if he does not get an invitation to coach the team on a permanent basis. Clemson dominated a flummoxed Steve Spurrier’s Gamecocks in a game where the OBC seemed to be praying to be hit by a stray meteor on the sidelines.

James Davis got the ball 24 times and scored three TDs, proving if nothing else, Swinney is smarter than his predecessor, since he actually gave the best player on his team the ball when it mattered. If Bowden had done the same thing, you might not even know that an adult actually goes by the name "Dabo," much less that he was a college football coach capable of running a team.

P is for Premier League. Mike Sherman, you are hereby informed that points are not accumulated in league play for a collective score tallied at the end of the year.

Q is for Quaking. Further chaos awaits as the Big 12 will be decided by the BCS rankings. Mack Brown has appeared on the following shows to stump for Texas in the past 48 hours:

–ESPN SportsCenter
–ESPN College Football Live
–ESPN Gameday
–A very special episode of Dexter
–The Colbert Report
–Al-Jazeera (speaking fluent Arabic, weirdly enough)
–Univision’s Republica Deportivo
–The View

Mack Brown, please get off of my television. I am voting Texas above Oklahoma, and you can stop stumping like a city councilman on the make. (Though I’m still taking "charitable donations" for my vote, if you’re handing them out, Mack.)

R is for Redemption. As in Casey Dick collapsing, overcome after leading Arkansas back in a 31-30 win over LSU.

Ryan Mallett told him before the game he would finish his career by throwing a last minute touchdown pass to win the game. Mallett may have powers we don’t properly understand. Properly understood, though, is LSU’s collapse this year. Confusion and personnel losses on the defensive side of the ball, plus the trial-by-fire of new QBs, equalled misery in big games for the Tigers. Beware the instant top-ten slot for a returning national champion with offseason roster holes.

S is for Sympathy for the Devil. Mark May was … um … right about Lane Kiffin? Was I actually agreeing with Lance Smarmstrong when he said he didn’t like Tennessee’s hire? Did I drink out of a stagnant cattle pond earlier? Am I hallucinating? Do I need medical attention? Or is Mark May just saying something I agree with? Please advise, as I, too, think talking about "what a great staff" someone will hire is a bad, bad sign? (To wit: name one of Paul Johnson’s assistants. Who? Thank you.)

T is for Ten. The number of yards Oregon averaged per play against Oregon State. Listening to Versus’ announcers discuss LeGarrette Blount’s physique was almost as funny as watching Oregon State play rush defense. "His butt and legs are huge!" He’s sensitive, and prefers to be called "big-boned," thank you very much.

U is for Unsexy. As in Virginia Tech, ACC championship-bound despite lacking a quarterback or functional offense for two years running. They will face Boston College, a team that cobbled together a division champion out of baling wire, toothpicks, some old duct tape, and the constant tinkering of coach Jeff Jagodzinski. That guy’s a freaking genius.

V is for Vainglorious. Charlie Weis, 2007:

"They’re going to have to learn about us, OK? Let them try to stop a pro-style offense, which has multiple personnel groups and multiple formations. Let’s see how they are going to do. They’ve had their advantage because I’ve come into recruiting late. Well, now it’s X’s and O’s time. Let’s see who has the advantage now."

Answers: Pete Carroll, Paul Johnson, and Greg Robinson.

W is for Wanted: As in one offensive coordinator for major SEC football program in Alabama not named Alabama. Must have ability to mesh with new staff, accept any and all blame for failings of offensive subordinates, and should be fond of Golden Flake potato chips. One-year contract with likely payout following midseason dismissal to be negotiated; must run on first down.

X is for Xenogenous. Originating outside the organism or from a foreign substance introduced into the organism, or describing a coach introduced into a relatively new environment.

See coaches succeeding in year two for a positive example of a xenogenous presence, as year two is the new year three, and Alabama is the latest case in point. Jim Tressel, Bob Stoops, and Urban Meyer all took their teams to national titles in their second year as new head coaches, using the potent combination of extant talent and new philosophies to flip their respective houses for immense profits.

Nick Saban stands four quarters from getting a shot to do just that after erasing Auburn 36-0, and would be the fifth coach this decade to hit the national title game in year two of his tenure. (Larry Coker led Miami to the game in his first two years as Miami’s coach.)

Y is for Yowza. I watched most of this game, and I didn’t see Mark Sanchez throw a 2.75 mile long TD.

Z is for Zapped. As in Washington State by Hawaii, which endured the final loss in a season stocked with them, 24-10. The bad news: you lost to Hawaii. The good news: you’re in Hawaii, and the season’s over. To those Cougars of legal age, the drinks are on us. Just bill to Sporting News and order as many as you like, gentlemen. You need to forget most of what happened in 2008.

We are less than 48 hours from determining what the full slate of national World Cup of Poker V teams will look like.

Sunday, November 20, marks the last chance for people around the world to secure their spot on their country’s team for poker’s World Cup. All day tomorrow, national finals from Argentina to Taiwan will play out.

In advance of tomorrow’s national finals, PokerStars is still determining who will be fighting it out in the national competition. Round 1 qualifier for the national finals have been running over the past few days.If you’re still looking for a chance to play for your country, check out the schedule of national qualifiers on this schedule..

Sunday’s national finals are the last of the preliminary action. A week from tomorrow, we will find out which of the world’s teams will make to the nine-team live finals in the Bahamas during the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure.

Check out the EVENTS -> WCP -> NATIONAL FINALS tabs in your PokerStars lobby to watch tomorrow’s action, or check back here Sunday night for a recap of the day.

For a full explanation of how the next week will play out, see the PokerStars World Cup of Poker V page.

A reminder that we’re trying to get our situation with reloading the front page straightened out - due to the holiday I’m waiting to hear from our tech guru.  So we’ll keep loading the picks through the blog.  No A plays this week… B rated picks are 4% of bankroll.

COLLEGE:

Texas Tech - The blow-out pick of the week.  Tech is in their home finale, and still has a shot at the Big 12 title.  Baylor defense can be had, and we don’t see them letting up here.  Red Raiders by 35.

UCF - The Golden Knights are sound on the defensive side of the ball, they’re in their final home game, and should come to play.  UAB has struggled this year, this is their 3rd of 4 on the road, and we get the feeling the Blazers just want it to end.  UCF by 14.

Also Likes: Oklahoma, Boston College, Cincinnati

NFL:

Indianapolis - The Colts are back, while the Browns are wondering if the coach and GM will be.  The Colts should be able to move the ball over the top all day.  Indy by 10.

New Orleans (+): This should be a great game to watch.  The Saints actually have a decent run defense, their vulnerability is over the top, but that’s not Tampa’s strength.  Look for this one to be decided by a FG either way.

Also Likes: Atlanta (+),  Jax/Houston OVER

Need some extra money for the holidays?

Been thinking about making your first deposit on PokerStars?

Now’s your chance to do both.

PokerStars has just announced a series of first depositor freeroll tournaments. Over the next few weeks, PokerStars will be giving away $75,000 in prize money to people who make their first deposit.

Starting December 8, players will see five $500 first depositor freerolls per day until December 27. Anyone who makes the money in one of those events will be get a ticket to one of the five $5,000 freerolls at the end of the month on December 28.

For full details on the bonus code and a schedule of the first depositor freerolls, check out the first depositor freeroll page at PokerStars.com.

by Adam “STUDstood” Roberts

This week, I would like to cover the concept of game persona, both on and off the table.

When at the poker table, your game persona refers to how the other players feel about you, both personally and with regard to your playing ability. While this may include an assessment of your skills, many times it will also be affected by the aura you are giving off, intentionally or not. Some people, both in life and in poker, give off a certain type of energy which makes others form an immediate opinion about them. It’s important to be aware of your opponents and the persona they give off, and it’s equally important to be aware of the persona you are giving off to your opponents. To some extent, you can control your own persona, and how your opponents react to you.

This may work in your favor, or not. Poker is often a game of perception vs. reality, so you can find ways to make your persona work to your advantage. In my opinion, it is always prudent to make it look like you are “live,” always willing to give action, even if you play poker very well. That way, you get more action.

When I say “play poker very well”, I do not necessarily mean “very tight.” Tight play may limit your losses and make you an overall winning player, but it is the players who know how to play the most hands, with the highest skill, who are the biggest winners and the most dangerous players. These are the players who are
most able to take their opponents out of their “comfort zone.”

Sometimes they intentionally play this way in a certain situation, in order to confuse their opponents, but not always. Sometimes it is just their overall table persona. If you are able to pull this off, to give off a persona of an action player while playing solid, it can be extremely profitable.

This play can best be done by knowing the math and probability of each hand (which include real odds, pot odds, and implied odds), as well as being able to read your opponents’ cards and style, to anticipate what he/she will do either on his/her own or based on what your move is.

Over the years, I have seen many players (usually younger ones) attempt this style of play without actually understanding all the factors — probability, statistics, and human concepts — which must enter this equation. These players will inevitably fail. Sure, they might have had some short term success, which looks spectacular, but in the end, the math must catch up with them. Even if you do everything else correctly, on and off the table (i.e., bankroll and life management, which we’ve covered in previous blogs), if you do not play your cards optimally enough, often enough, eventually you must lose.

The biggest talents in poker are the players who understand all of these concepts but make their opponents feel that they don’t. They make their foes want to play against them because they look “live.” Some players are able to project the opposite image, of a powerful opponent, and make their opponents want to try and beat them, to say they beat “the best.” Many World Champions report that their opponents will take shots at them; they play badly in order to try to win a pot and have a story to tell. Tough opponents can also cause opponents to play poorly simply out of fear.

I have had the good fortune of having some great teachers during my poker career, especially when I was just getting started. One of them was a man named Danny Robison. For many years, Danny was considered the best Stud poker player in the world, and he revolutionized the wild style of play. Although it looked like he made a lot of “mistakes” , Danny’s play was head and shoulders above other excellent players.
Danny used a seemingly reckless style of play to earn a lot of money playing Stud, but he added an additional tool to his arsenal – “the gift of gab,” both during and between hands. He had an innate gift. Because of it, Danny could have been the consummate salesman or even CEO of a big corporation, had he not gotten into poker. But Danny used his gifts to help increase his poker earn, by getting his opponents to act in ways that increased his profit.

Danny could say things that would elicit a hug, whereas I could utter the same exact words and get punched in the face! He made his opponents happy to lose their money. This is a talent that cannot be learned; it’s a gift. I have seen people try it… and get punched in the face.

What I am getting at is that in addition to understanding and studying actual mathematics, statistics, and probability, there are other aspects to table behavior and demeanor which may enable you to help increase your poker earn. But you should also understand that attempting some of this behavior, if you don’t have the right skill set, may be costly to you in many different ways.

First, there is the money. Your swings will be larger playing a “fast and loose” style. Your decisions have to be “right” much more frequently when you play this way. Plus, when you are wrong in a decision, you tend to look bad, which emboldens your opponents. That may work against you, compounding your losses when you are “running bad.” It may also embarrass you. Can you handle that?

When I give private lessons, sometimes I have taught students some more “advanced” concepts, which they loved and wanted to apply them immediately. Knowing these concepts is good, but applying them correctly is very difficult. Inevitably, they try them in the wrong situations. Or even when they recognize the right situations, they do not have the “heart” to incorporate them into their arsenal.

I remember when I proudly told Danny that I was ready to “play like him.” He put his arm on my shoulder and said “Son, I am sorry to hear that.” When I asked him why, he replied that the only two people who ever told him that either committed suicide or were in a mental institution. I did my research and found that to be true!

Luckily, neither has happened to me… yet.

What I am getting at here is that there are many different ways to be successful, both in life and poker. I have seen equally great players use different styles in certain hands, and make them all work. You need to find what works for you. Don’t try to be someone you are not. Study the math, probability, and statistics. Study your opponents. Pay attention to everything around you in the poker room, on and off the table. Try things out, carefully, and build up your skills and courage. Find the “game persona” that works for you, maximizing your earn. Keep your opponents guessing.

Next week we will continue on this subject, and delve into concepts such as game preparation, avoiding distractions on and off the poker table, etc.

In the meantime, you can find me in the $10/$20 and $30/$60 limit games in our Stud section, as well as in our weekly $215 buy-in tournaments. Please check the starting times of each of those events for your geographic area under Tourney > Special in the PokerStars lobby.

Feel free to contact me with any questions, suggestions or thoughts at adamr@pokerstars.com. See you at the tables!