Wednesday Grab Bag.....

A happy Cinco de Mayo to all. We're headed off to Kennesaw momentarily to pound down our fair share of tacos & tamales at the incomparable Tacqueria #2. That's Numero Dos to you. If you're interested in the naming rights drop me an email & I'll put you in touch....No better lunch in town & a fine way to pay tribute the the Monroe Doctrine, as Frank alluded to earlier. After that it's an afternoon of lucha libre. A beautiful holiday.....Some thoughts before we indulge in tacos & Jarritos:

• Doug Roberson got a chance to speak with AD Dan Radakovich concerning the "postponement" of the Alabama series. What did we learn? Not much. Radakovich confirmed that he did indeed ask for the postponement & that it was A) not related to any impending conference realignment, B) it has nothing to do with coach Johnson's dislike of the Chik-Fil-A Kickoff Classic, & C) that we ain't skeered of Alabama. According to Radakovich, we postponed the games because he was considering some "attractive alternatives that would help Tech's recruiting efforts, as well as balance their schedule" (Roberson's words, not Radakovich). WTF? Who can we possibly play that would help recruiting more than Bama? Big game, national TV, neighboring state school that recruits in Georgia; seems like that game would draw attention to the program & help recruiting?And we know that in even years, such as this one, our home schedule sucks (to put it nicely). Umm, I might be missing something but a home game in 2014 against the Tide would be pretty attractive as opposed to this year's epic tilts against South Carolina State & MTSU. So we're not quite sure what's up. What we do know is there's more than meets the eye here & we're interested to see how things unfold. The game is afoot.....
• Show a little love for the Ramblin' Reck & grab some great bumper stickers here. Fellow Tech bloggers From the Rumble Seat got the ball rolling & we hope to keep it going. Nice work, fellas, & all 8 of you that read the Barrel need to buy a bumper sticker....

• FedEx has dropped it's sponsorship of the Orange Bowl to "allocate those dollars to other sports properties & marketing iniatives". What they really mean to say is that Orange Bowl ratings suck & they are losing their ass in sponsoring the game. That combined with ESPN's desire to bundle the sponsorship with someone who does more advertising with them throughout the year spelled the end for the longest running BCS bowl sponsorship. We'll suggest The Pink Pony or various Russian billionaires as capable replacements for FedEx.
• Andy Staples of Sports' Illustrated & Mark "the Bark" Schlabach of ESPN each released their post-spring/early Top 25's this week. While a a foolish exercise this early in the (off) season, both "pundits" had Tech in the Top 25, Schlabach at #22 (not bad for a Dawg lover) & Staples at #15. Obviously we like Staples' assessment better but can't fault Schlabach for his ranking. Of note, both writers have VPISU as a top 10 team (#7 for Staples, #5 for Schlabach) while FSU (#22/#16), Miami (#12/#19), & UNC (#18/#21) all appear in both lists. Interesting to note that only loyalist Schlabach lists Georgia at # 20. We just don't see the Virginia Polly ranking but hey, we'll know more after they play Boise State on opening weekend.
• Speaking of ESPN, ACC blogger Heather Dinich is back from maternity leave just in time to offer her "post-spring power rankings". Post-spring rankings? Premature comes to mind..... It's just too tough to rank teams right now & there are too many variables. It's far more accurate to lump the teams into two groups: those that CAN win the ACC & those who have almost no chance. It pretty much is split evenly in our opinion with VPISU, FSU, Miami, Clemson, UNC, & GT all having a legitimate shot at the conference crown. I guess you could put BC in there but I'm not inclined to do so. Everyone else is on the outside looking in. So essentially we're in the same situation we have been in for the last couple years: strong at the top without a clear favorite with no "elite" team(s) separating themselves. Don't believe the hype, there's no "favorite" as of yet.....
• Much to the delight of North Carolina State fans & the chagrin of all other ACC coaches & fans Lee Fowler has left/been pushed out of the AD job at NC State. It was good for us while it lasted.....

Tacos, wrestling & Jarritos. That's a good day......