I think a few years ago, someone asked if USC could beat the then-shittiest team in the NFL (might've been the Browns or the Radiers, can't recall)


The general consensus was an emphatic "NO."



Now this question begs itself be posed:


Could either Florida or Oklahoma beat this year's Detroit Lions?




Go.

12/28/2008 11:38:06 AM

emphatic "NO"

12/28/2008 11:39:49 AM

you sure? have you seen the Lions this year?




*stokes the fire*

12/28/2008 11:43:46 AM

no

12/28/2008 11:48:27 AM

people will be proven right and wrong in this thread

12/28/2008 11:50:26 AM

is EVERY member of the florida gators going pro?

because every member of the detroit lions plays/trains at a pro level
even if they're the worst pro - they're all still pros

12/28/2008 12:22:41 PM

One could make the argument that they don't play or train at the pro level


considering how they're about to go 0-16.

12/28/2008 12:26:53 PM

Quote :

"even if they're the worst pro - they're all still pros"

12/28/2008 12:28:50 PM

it could happen in basketball, but not football.

12/28/2008 12:29:26 PM

give Florida's O-Line to NC State and we'd beat the Lions

12/28/2008 12:37:57 PM

^^are you kidding?

the all-rookie team gets a cookie when it beats the all-second year team at the all star break

you think a team that has AT MOST 2 future NBA players is going to be a squad of mostly veteran pro players?

SOME OF YOU PEOPLE DON'T GRASP THE TRUE DIFFERENCE HERE

[Edited on December 28, 2008 at 12:40 PM. Reason : and i'll even let the game be 2 20 minute halfs]

12/28/2008 12:38:53 PM

i remember the 92 duke team gave the dream team a good game. i also have no doubt that the dream team could have destroyed them if they so chose.

but there is something to be said for a team that can play together vs. a dysfunctional pro team.

12/28/2008 12:42:00 PM

off topic, but I think UNC could beat the Thunder

12/28/2008 12:43:04 PM

no, I'm not saying I think it WOULD happen in basketball, but it's a lot more likely than in football. On your best college bball teams, you have a decent shot at all of your starters being in the pros w/i the next year. They could shoot the lights out one night and play against the Thunder when Durant has an off night and it could be close.

Again, i'm not saying it would be likely, but I could see that happening WAAAAAAY before it could even be within 20 points in football.

12/28/2008 12:43:38 PM

yeah. definitely.

nba vs college ball isn't as big of a physical difference as nfl vs college.

12/28/2008 12:45:01 PM

ah

i still don't think its as close as you're suggesting

but you're absolutely right that it is miles closer than football

and i think the figure for even the top programs is a little high if you're talking about players who will get nba playing time, rather than just players who will get drafted and spend their career on the bench or in europe

12/28/2008 12:46:08 PM

also, i think there's a bigger difference between the worst ncaa bball team and the likes of unc or duke, than the difference between unc/duke/etc and the worst of the nba.

12/28/2008 12:48:16 PM

Quote :

"On your best college bball teams, you have a decent shot at all of your starters being in the pros w/i the next year."

Except, this hardly ever happens. I think UConn in '06 was the last team to have 5 players drafted and only 3 of those have stuck in the league. Duke '99 before that was probably the last team and only two of 3 of those have stuck.

UNC of this year would get DESTROYED by any NBA team. They are a great college team, but they don't even have a sure fire starter on their roster. Lawson is the best chance, but only he and Hansbrough are even first rounders right now... Ellington and Green would be second round picks who have a CHANCE at making a roster... Perhaps in the future Deon Thompson and Ed Davis will be first rounders.

[Edited on December 28, 2008 at 12:50 PM. Reason : did KU have 5 last year?]

12/28/2008 12:50:17 PM

Wayne won't be a first rounder?

12/28/2008 12:55:50 PM

You have to factor in more than just the talent of the players

The schemes, the chemistry, the will

In most years I'd say the worst NFL teams would easily beat the best college team

But this year, Detroit is so bad, I'm not so sure they wouldn't be 0-17

12/28/2008 1:08:18 PM

detroit would win by double digits against any college team you pit them against

12/28/2008 1:10:46 PM

the lions would destroy florida or oklahoma

the only sport where a lower level team could beat a bad pro team is baseball, if a pitcher was on fire

[Edited on December 28, 2008 at 1:34 PM. Reason : .]

12/28/2008 1:32:45 PM

Wow this thread and anyone who thinks a college team can beat a pro team in ANY sport is dumb.

12/28/2008 1:46:01 PM

NO U R

12/28/2008 6:53:48 PM

If you took the best players from Florida AND Oklahoma you'd have a good shot at beating the Lions.

Dunno that you'd be able to do it in a one-shot game.

Either team could probably beat the lions 1 or 2 out of 10 times.

12/28/2008 7:02:38 PM

Tebow would get paralyzed

12/28/2008 7:04:27 PM

Maybe, but he'd just use his Christ-like powers to heal himself through a miraculous circumcision.

12/28/2008 7:06:57 PM

Quote :

"detroit would win by double digits against any college team you pit them against"

I think the score would depend on the rules being used and the adjustments you'd allow them to make with their playbook. The change in the hash marks and catching rules might make the pro offense not work as well and keep the game within a single digit margin.

If you made the Lions play Oklahoma or Florida with NFL rules, I think you'd see the Lions put up 70 points or more. Tim Tebow would have multiple concussions, and Sam Bradford would be shocked at what a real defense looks like.

12/28/2008 7:10:30 PM

Detroit could name the score. These discussions are dumb

12/28/2008 7:23:32 PM

Quote :

"the only sport where a lower level team could beat a bad pro team is baseball, if a pitcher was on fire"

12/28/2008 7:26:34 PM

or golf

12/28/2008 7:27:56 PM

i was about to say that but it really isnt a team

12/28/2008 7:28:50 PM

the better discussion is what the spread would be. Lions -63

[Edited on December 28, 2008 at 7:30 PM. Reason : make that 63]

12/28/2008 7:29:05 PM

emphatic "NO"

12/28/2008 7:34:44 PM

Quote :

"Detroit could name the score. These discussions are dumb"

Quote :

"Now this question begs itself be posed:"

no it doesn't.

12/28/2008 7:48:51 PM

Quote :

"Wow this thread and anyone who thinks a college team can beat a pro team in ANY sport is dumb."

12/28/2008 8:13:37 PM

average HS boys team VS WNBA team???

12/28/2008 8:22:51 PM

boys would regulate

12/28/2008 11:01:55 PM

back in the day the Super Bowl Champs played the BCS Champs (or whatever they called them back then) and the BCS Champs beat them a bunch of times. My dad remembers watching the game way back when.

12/28/2008 11:09:13 PM

even baseball is nuts

mlb players are going to get on base against college teams even if the pitcher is on fire, if for no other reason than that college fielders are nowhere near the level of MLB fielders.

bb and fball is just stupd

Quote :

"On your best college bball teams, you have a decent shot at all of your starters being in the pros w/i the next year. They could shoot the lights out one night and play against the Thunder when Durant has an off night and it could be close."

lets look at the wolves, who are currently ranked last in power rankings. they have 5 or 6 players who were top 10 players in college plus a big man that would be unstoppable against college players, especially with nba rules.

[Edited on December 28, 2008 at 11:24 PM. Reason : ^you have any proof of that or did you just want to say things and expect us to take you on faith?]

12/28/2008 11:23:27 PM

come on now, his dad remembers watching it. isn't that proof enough

12/28/2008 11:26:18 PM

I am sure if you type it in a search engine you will find stuff about it. This was probably 30-40 years ago. My dad has talked about those games many times in the past...especially when it is mentioned the NFL is the best of the best....if so, they should of never lost....



[Edited on December 28, 2008 at 11:32 PM. Reason : w]

12/28/2008 11:30:01 PM

to be fair re: baseball, college teams do often beat mlb teams in spring training, although it's clear that actually winning the game is of no consequence to the mlb teams.

12/28/2008 11:30:18 PM

From 1934-73 and 1975-76, the NFL participated in the annual Chicago College All-Star Game. The charitable contest, played during the preseason in either July or August, pitted the defending NFL champion against a group of standout collegiate players. An NFL players strike cancelled the '74 matchup.
Soldier Field, even when the Bears were playing at Wrigley Field, served as the event's stage for all but two years. Dyche Stadium in Evanston, Ill., hosted the game in 1943 and '44.
Nearly every prominent Packers player, whether as a collegian, as a pro, or both, played in the game.
The Packers actually lost their first contest, in 1937, when Slingin' Sammy Baugh and the collegians shut out Green Bay, 6-0. Legend suggests the Packers chalked up the embarrassing loss to shiny new uniforms, ordered by Curly Lambeau, which didn't "breathe" in the August humidity.

[Edited on December 28, 2008 at 11:34 PM. Reason : w]

12/28/2008 11:32:50 PM

[Edited on December 28, 2008 at 11:34 PM. Reason : .]

12/28/2008 11:34:10 PM

I think if Florida was a having a GOOD day and the lions had their typical mediocre day then it could be possible. Though i think FL would have some injuries

12/28/2008 11:36:33 PM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/College_All-Star_Game

[Edited on December 28, 2008 at 11:39 PM. Reason : y]

12/28/2008 11:37:29 PM

standout college players =/= "BCS Champs (or whatever they called them back then)"

and a lot of the things that make it so much of a spread today weren't in place 40 years ago

to quote deep impact, "Frank Gifford was a good football player in his time, but if he played now, he's get his ass busted!"

12/28/2008 11:40:22 PM

I almost wish the Lions would play the BCS winner just to prove to you guys that you are idiots.

The Timberwolves are a great example. They suck ass as a NBA team.

But do you really think Al Jefferson, Kevin Love, Randy Foye, Mike Miller, and Rashad McCants would lose to Hansbrough, Thompson, Ellington, Green/Ginyard, and Lawson???

Ryan Gomes doesn't even start and is better than anyone UNC has in terms of NBA talent.

12/29/2008 1:47:46 AM

what if okalahoma or florida could have a 12th man versus 11 man pro team?

12/29/2008 1:49:53 AM