Wednesday
Wanderings is a weekly column written by Editor-in-Chief and creator of the
Sports Soup Network, Marshall Cherrington. He brings you all of his weekly
thoughts pertaining to Seattle sports, and anything else for that matter.
You know when your favorite school signs a five-star
recruit and everybody is just madly anticipating his first game? Yeah, that’s
my feeling with Percy Harvin. He was the huge offseason acquisition that every
fan of the Seahawks has wanted to see for months on end. Well this week, my
friends, we finally get the privilege to watch this man play the beautiful game
of football. I hope to see Percy lighting up the field and shooting through
gaps no other player on the Seahawks can fit through, except for maybe Golden
Tate. He’ll be on a limited snap count so that’s why I’ll be glued to my TV to
catch every one of those plays.
It was a rumor filled week in Seattle sports as the
Mariners have once again been linked to every outfield free agent bat out
there. Some rumors I simply did not understand and others, I wish we would sign
the guy already. The Sounders might be looking for a new head coach soon and I’ll
give my thoughts on that. The Huskies’ men’s basketball season started off with
a pop, but not in a good way as Jernard Jarreau tore his ACL just seconds into
the opening game against Seattle U. However, the Huskies’ football team put a
solid pounding on the Buffaloes as they head into a huge matchup with the UCLA
Bruins this Friday night. My thoughts on the week that was in Seattle sports
right here, right now.
When I woke up on Sunday morning and found that a staff
writer of the Seattle Times had picked the Falcons to beat the Seahawks that
day, it let a little doubt creep into my mind. Add in the fact that Softy was hammering
all week how Seahawks fans should be worried about this game, and you have a Seahawks
fan in a poor mental state. However, when the second quarter was over, there
was no doubt in my mind who was winning that game. Golden Tate was looking too
fast, Russell Wilson was looking too smart, and the Falcons were just looking
too bad for the Seahawks not to win.
Now as I bring up Golden Tate, I think it will be really
interesting to see what the Seahawks management does with him this offseason.
He will be an unrestricted free agent and is free to go anywhere he pleases.
Probably not back to Top Pot Donuts, but who knows. I think some teams out
there will be willing to give Tate a big pay day and if the Seahawks do indeed
win the Super Bowl this year, it will make it easier for Tate to taunt his way
out of Seattle. He would have already won a ring in his career and would
probably just be looking for some money now. That being said, I think the
Seahawks will give Tate a deal to think about. If the Seahawks do not win the
Super Bowl, I could definitely see Tate coming back and trying to capture that
Super Bowl ring for the team that was confident enough to spend an NFL draft pick
on him. I’m thinking maybe $7-million a year for Golden this offseason. Maybe a
little more. He hasn’t been the most consistent wide receiver, but when he’s on
and focused, boy is he good. Probably the biggest thing to watch this offseason
for the Seahawks in my opinion.
Could Golden Tate be waving bye to Seattle at the end of the season?
Getty Images
The Seahawks welcome another lowly foe to town in the
Minnesota Vikings this Sunday and even though the Buccaneers game was way
closer than all of us would have liked, I don’t think the Vikings will be
sneaking up on the Seahawks anytime soon. If the Seahawks contain Adrian
Peterson in this one, it won’t even be a game. However, if the Seahawks let
Peterson run loose, it still won’t even be a game. There is no way in the world
the Vikings will beat the Seahawks on Sunday, even if the beast is released
from inside Adrian Peterson’s chest. 38-13 Seahawks. 10-1. In control of the
entire NFC. The road to the Super Bowl comes through Seattle, baby.
The other football team in Seattle didn't have too tough
of a time with their foe either this past weekend as they strolled past the
sleeping Buffalo that is Colorado. Keith Price was probably the most mobile I
had ever seen him in Saturday and I think that could be something to watch as bowl
season approaches quickly. If he can keep up the quickness and smarts with his
legs, that adds a whole new element to this team. But let’s be real. Price is
no Russell Wilson and the biggest damage he would most likely do is run for a
few more first downs throughout the game, rather than a measly three or four
yard rush that we are all used to seeing. Who knows, it could mean the difference
between a win and a loss.
However, Price may be finding himself looking at the sky
this upcoming Friday as the Huskies take on the UCLA Bruins in an exciting
matchup. The Bruins are already back up to number 13 in the nation after it
seemed like just last week that they were ranked in the twenties. This
inconsistency in the rankings basically tells the story of what the team has
looked like on the field this year. At times, the Bruins have looked like a top
ten team in America, but at other times, it’s hard to see why they are even
ranked. Brett Hundley is one of the best quarterbacks in the Pac-12 and he can
kill you through the air, on a good day, but can destroy you on the ground
every day. He has great pocket presence and I've seen him get out of some holes
that Mariota can’t even see out of. The key will be to force Hundley to throw
the ball. Sure, he’ll probably end up throwing for over 250 yards if you force
him to do this, but it’s better he beat you through the air than on the ground
because he is way more inconsistent through the air. It’ll be a battle of the
two solid defenses in this one. I’ll have to go with Washington, 31-27, just
squeaking by UCLA in the end. This prediction will probably go wrong, since it’s
me who’s calling it, but hey, I predicted the Champions Classic perfectly last
night (Jabari Parker is a baller by the way).
The Huskies need to make UCLA QB Brett Hundley throw the football this Friday.
Getty Images
Continuing on the topic of college basketball, I think
the Huskies are severely underrated this year. Even though Jernard Jarreau tore
his ACL, I think the front court play will be fine with the emergence of Mike
Anderson. Shawn Kemp Jr., Gilles Dierickx, and Perris Blackwell should be able
to hold it down until Desmond Simmons recovers from his knee surgery. But
speaking of Mike Anderson, I think he was the most impressive guy out there on
Sunday night. He showed the ability to defend, handle the ball, rebound, and
score exceptionally well. It’s too bad the Huskies only have the guard for two
years because they could really use him for about another two go rounds. Darin
Johnson was also a guy who impressed me and if he finds his stroke just a
little more, I think he’ll become a deadly shooter as the season progresses.
This is a team to watch out for in the Pac-12. I guarantee you they will not
finish eighth in the Pac-12, like the media has projected them to.
If you like rumors, the Mariners are your favorite team.
I like rumors, and the Mariners are my favorite baseball team. It’s awesome
scrolling through my Twitter timeline and seeing all the national baseball
reporters with the hashtag “Mariners” in their Tweets. And for a good reason
too. The Mariners suck and need all the help they can get. But a few days ago
when I was scrolling through my timeline, I stopped and was puzzled by a Tweet.
The Mariners wanted to add Carlos Beltran to the fold. Really? Carlos Beltran?
A 36-year old outfielder who probably wants to play for a contender this late
in his career? That can’t be. But indeed, it was true. I’m really not surprised
by anything anymore when it comes to the Mariners. I’m really interested to see
what moves the team does make this offseason though. The team does have a lot
of money to spend and I can’t help but get giddy when I see that specific
hashtag linked with a big player. Who knows, the Mariners could be contenders
next year. No, I know. They won’t be.
Carlos Beltran? Really Jack Zduriencik?
MLBlogs.com
To wrap it up, I’ll briefly touch on the Sounders. Sigi
Schmid should be hosed by now. If you can’t win with that much talent on a
roster, that’s ridiculous. Find a coach who has proven that he can win with
talent, and hire him to be the next coach of the Sounders. Come on Hanauer. You
convinced Dempsey to enter his own nightmare with the Sounders, didn’t you? Now
find a coach to get Dempsey out of that nightmare.
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