Preseason Week 4
Bucs at Texans
Kickoff: 8 p.m.
TV: WFLA Ch. 8
Radio: Buccaneers Radio Network (in Tampa WFUS-FM, 103.5 and WDAE-AM, 620); Sirius Channel 161.
Weather:Because it will be played in a soulless dome, temperature will be 72 degrees throughout the game.
Odds: Per Bodog.com, Texans -3.
Outlook: Hey, we get to see a live game! Free of the shackles of a blackout, most Bucs fans will get to see the game free but Joe suspects only the hardcore, diehard will. With college football beginning tonight with real games, many football fans will be torn. Joe won’t be. In short, this is the game for the bubble players. One last shot to impress. This may be the last time Bucs fans see Michael Clayton in a Tampa Bay uniform. There are others. What of Ryan Sims, of Corey Lynch, of Elbert Mack, of Reggie Brown? Those players may also need to make a play or two. And, puh-leeze Kareem Huggins, do not get injured and you will make the Bucs.

Joe wanted to publish this because he’s read so many comments from readers here stating how every NFL team is struggling in this economy.

It seems the Texans, in a TV market nearly identical in size to Tampa Bay, are having great success and setting all kinds of new records.

As of Tuesday, the Texans had sold 64,355 season tickets, an increase from 2008 when they set a season high with 64,047. … The Texans increased ticket prices after last season, but they’ve still sold a record number. Now their preseason ratings for the first three games have increased significantly, too, by about 35 percent.

Joe’s not going to play amateur economist here and start comparing unemployment figures and spending habits in Tampa and Houston. But Joe is quite certain that an unquestionably promising football team in Tampa would cure all the Bucs attendance woes.

They’re among the ranks of injured Buccaneers.

Guard Davin Joseph (hip flexor), tight end Kellen Winslow (knee, precautionary), guard Keydrick Vincent (ankle), safety Sabby Piscitelli (concussion), and receiver Maurice Stovall (ankle).

Joe’s a bit troubled about new starting left guard Vincent getting his ankle tweeked, assuming it’s not something worse.

All the O-line experts Joe has listened to always talk about the importance of continuity and familiarty on the line. Vincent is the new guy in the unit, and he has spent limited preseason time with the first team.

Plus,the Bucs were stuffed running the ball with him in there at left guard for the first half on Saturday.

Of course, Joe could ramble on about how he thinks Jeremy Zuttah should be in there anyway, but that’s irrelevant now. Joe just hopes Vincent can recover quickly, not always easy for a 10-year veteran.

Yeah, the Bucs handing Kardashian-chasing running back Derrick Ward his walking papers this week seemed to surprise Woody Cummings and Anwar Richardson of the Tampa Tribune.

In this TBO.com Bucs vlog, Cummings and Richardson explain why they were surprised Ward was released, surprised when he was released, surprised that Bucs general manager had the “cajones” to issue the release and surprised Ward was involved with a Kardashian.

Monitor the video and tell Joe if you are surprised at their findings?

But what about opening day in just 10 days when/if the home opener is blacked out?

For those who can’t or won’t buy a ticket to the game, Joe’s got Paradise Worldwide Transportaion luxury buses going from St. Pete to Lee Roy Selmon’s in Fort Myers, where you can watch the Bucs-Browns game and be treated to a free draft beer and a free plate of wings. Everything is just $24.95 per person.

Learn all about it at BlackoutTour.com. Your tickets are 100 percent refundable if the game isn’t blacked out. Buy today!

But since the Bucs play the Lions this year and there was so much pre-draft hype about who was better for the Bucs, manbeasts Ndamukong Suh or Gerald McCoy, Joe’s going to link to this NFL Network video of Warren Sapp (another Bucs connection) breaking down Suh’s preseason performances and teaching some D-line fundamentals.

Interesting stuff.

Seems like Mr. Sapp has fallen in love with Mr. Suh.

Joe recommends you read the whole piece.

Stroud says Clayton’s $3.5 million salary for 2010 is guaranteed. And he offered an interesting quote from the Bucs’ head coach that might give Clayton real hope of making the roster.

 ”The (defensive backs) used to own the extra slots. But I’ve got some receivers on this team that are tough, that can tackle. I’ve got some receivers on this team that don’t mind blocking, that don’t mind mixing it up. They’re starting to show their skill level and development.”[Morris said.]

Well, now. If the head coach is getting excited about keep more roster spots for receivers who can deliver punishing, iconic blocks and don’t mind mixing it up, then perhaps he’s referencing Clayton.

Now Joe knows ”money will never be in issue” in building the Bucs, so said Joel Glazer.

But, per Stroud’s calculations, it is less costly to keep Clayton and his guaranteed salary than to cut him and pay someone else. Perhaps money will factor in just this once, or twice if you count TJ Rives’ recent comments.

Joe suggests you click on the image below and look around. Topper Town is the only place you want to go for ARE products and many decades of experience. Plus, the good guys at Topper Town love their Buccaneers.

Don’t put it off any longer.

Straight from the stage where he performed with his former Bucs teammates Derrick Brooks and Warrick Dunn on that rotten Pros vs. Joes, former Bucs quarterback Jeff Garcia freely admits he’s still trying to get picked up by an NFL squad.

Now toiling for Omaha Nighthawks of the UFL, Garcia tells Elizabeth Merrill of BSPN that he hopes a stint in the UFL will propel him back into the NFL.

His wife, Carmella, is eight months pregnant and needs him; football, for much of his life, has given Garcia every indication that it doesn’t want him, at least as a long-term solution. Eight teams, three leagues and 40,000 passing yards, and everywhere Garcia goes, he isn’t expected to last.

If he makes it through November in Omaha, and has a chance to move on, the good people in the corn belt will no doubt applaud him. That will mean that Garcia has made it back to the place he believes he’s always belonged.

First, he’s got to get through summer. The buses roll into the Kroc Center, the workout digs for the newest team in the United Football League. Last weekend, the Nighthawks’ facility was used to hold a cat show. Today, it holds Garcia’s “locker,” which consists of a chair covered in workout clothes that sits in a 3×3 space in a gymnasium.

Does Joe believe Garcia will ever suit up for the Bucs again? Joe very much doubts it. But hey, if Josh Freeman is slow to heal, who would you rather have as your No. 3 quarterback, Rudy Carpenter or Garcia?

Just the chance that Carmella will grace the sidelines might be worth 500 tickets sold in this tough economy. Imagine the marketing possibilities?

Now that’s a great way to get kicked off the coaching tree.

As told to Roy Cummings of The Tampa Tribune, Morris says Chucky was too disconnected from the defense and Morris initially preferred a more unifying role as a head coach not bogged down by coordinator duties.

“Jon had an offensive coordinator but he pretty much did everything himself, and what I noticed was that Jon sort of lost a part of the team on the defensive side of the ball that way and I didn’t want that. I wanted to make sure I had the whole team’s attention right from the start here. I wanted my team to hear one voice that they knew controlled everything we do as a football team.”

Joe thinks it’s great that the Bucs’ defensive mastermind/head coach has it all straightened out now. He’s figured out that he can lead a team to success as a coordinator and a head coach. Just like the guy he threw under the bus.

Joe recognizes that many of his readers are yearning for the start of college football season tonight. It’s a glorious time of year. The time of year when you figure out how many games you can watch on a Saturday, and how many beers you’ll need to get you through the day.

So Joe has decided to have a little fun this year and publish weekly college football picks and analysis on these here pages.

Joe has turned to Matt Dolman to make the weekly calls.

Dolman has been heard as an analyst on sports radio, and he’s spent much of his life loving everything about the college game. Dolman also is the head man at Dolman Law Group, a personal injury firm with offices in Clearwater and Bradenton.

By MATT DOLMAN
JoeBucsFan.com analyst

Although the weekend’s college football landscape will be littered with the major powers squaring off against cupcake fodder, there surely are a few noteworthy games this opening week:

Purdue at Notre Dame

This game marks two significant debuts. Brain Kelly takes over the helm at Notre Dame from the departed Charlie Weiss. Kelly was Big East Conference Coach of the Year all three seasons spent as the head coach at the University of Cincinnati. He is coming off back to back BCS bowl appearances and led Cincinnati to a 12-0 regular season record last year. 

Although Jimmy Clausen and Golden Tate have departed to the NFL, Kelly will still have plenty of weapons at his disposal. Michael Floyd (6′3 220) caught 44 balls last season for 795 yards and will now be the featured red-zone threat and primary receiver with Tate playing on Sundays. Armando Allen and Robert Hughes are two experienced senior tailbacks and are physical runners. However, Kelly loves to throw the ball and will be breaking in Dayne Crist at quarterback. Crist, a sophomore; was a much heralded high school signal caller and has spent two years learning Charlie Weiss’s pro-style offense that is similar but more risk adverse than Kelly’s offense at Cincinnati. Crist will have a top-flight tight end in Kyle Rudolph and two other much heralded receivers in Duval Kamara (6′4 220) and John Goodman (6′3 205). This is a large group of athletic receivers for Crist to work with in the red zone.

Notre Dame returns nine starters on defense. Kelly has never been known for having stout defenses at Cincinnati, which relied on winning shootouts. However, this is a very talented defense led by sophomore linebacker Manti Te’o who enjoyed a spectacular freshman campaign and is a potential All-American this year. The Irish return all three starters on their defensive line and three of four starters in their defensive backfield. 

Robert Marve will debut at quarterback for the Purdue Boilermakers. Marve enjoyed a record setting high school career at Plant High School in Tampa, capped by being named Florida’s Mr. Football.  Marve spent one season as the starting QB at Miami but consistently battled Jacory Harris for reps and inevitably lost his spot as the starter to Harris following spring practice in ‘08. Marve has a very strong arm and the athletic ability to escape the pocket and avoid pressure. Marve will have a potential All-American in Keith Smith to work with at receiver. Smith grabbed 91 balls for 1,100+ yards last season. Purdue’s defense will be its strength and is anchored by two defensive ends that will play on Sundays. Senior Ryan Kerrigan (6-4, 263) registered 13 sacks last season at RDE, and junior Gerald Gooden (6-3, 242) registered eight tackles for loss. Purdue also returns all three linebackers, and defensive coordinator Gary Emanuel will bring pressure all day with a myriad of looks that may serve to confuse Dayne Crist.

PREDICTION: Notre Dame 24, Purdue 20

Wisconsin at UNLV

Wisconsin is coming off a 10-3 season that was capped off by beating the University of Miami 20-14 at the Champs Sports Bowl. Wisconsin is led by junior RB John Clay (6-1, 248), a physical specimen who runs like a deer. He ran all over, through and around the ‘Canes defense in their victory last December. Clay may be the premier running back in the nation and will battle Alabama’s Mark Ingram for the Heisman. 

UNLV will be playing at home and feature senior quarterback Omar Clayton. However, they have an undersized defense that will be blown off the line all game long by Wisconsin’s physical offensive line, and Clay will probably post 150+ rushing yards.

Prediction: Wisconsin 38, UNLV 16

Connecticut at Michigan

UCONN features former Notre Dame QB Zach Frazer, who will be entering his second season as the gunslinger for the Huskies. Marcus Easley (caught 48 balls for 893 yards) is gone to the NFL (4th round pick of the Bills), but the cupboard is not bare. Jordan Todman returns at running back after gaining 1,237 yards en route to being named 2nd-team All Big East and will be running behind a line that returns four starters with an average weight of 316 pounds. Connecticut returns eight starters on defense and should be vastly improved on both sides of the ball. 

Michigan features a two-headed monster in Tate Forcier and Denard Robinson. Forcier showed promise as a true freshman and garnered a majority of the snaps.  However, Robinson was said to have vastly improved this spring and will share time with Forcier this fall, with Forcier starting for the time being. The offensive line is young but chock full of highly decorated prep linemen, and the running back and receiving corps are full of talented playmakers that have yet to accomplish a whole lot. The offense is full of promise, but will this be the year they finally grasp Rodriguez’s system?  The defense returns seven starters and overall depth is improving. 

I feel Michigan is on the cusp of turning the corner but believe Connecticut is going to have a very big year. Connecticut returns a senior quarterback, four returning starters on the offensive line and a second-team, All Big East running back.

Prediction: (upset special) Connecticut 28, Michigan 20

Can that feat be replicated this season? Find out in this Yahoo! Sports video featuring the lovely Charissa Thompson, she of the Big Ten Network and Fox Sports, Maoist Michael Silver and Bucs fans’ favorite Jason Cole.

Seems as though Cole has an interesting take on the Bucs. Let’s just say it surprised Joe.