Larry Jordan wrote:
Why are they giving the middle finger to the rest of the U.S.? I bet they're not that angry.
Proud, happy, siked, pumped, probably.
This is NOT meant as a knock to the above comment but just a starting point for my thinking on it.
Unclear here what all the references are (who gave the finger and whose metaphor is it?). However, I read it as someone saying that their performance gave the finger, not that the team actually did. The context is that last year things went horribly wrong on race day and so the finger was being given to that situation.
I do agree that this last weekend told us some interesting bits and indicates that this is still a very interesting year despite some stellar performances by some of the players for the big guys. OSU and Stanford seem most dominant. Oregon and Wisconsin both answered some big questions and looked more solid (except is AJ in the top 3-4 and how much better does that make them?) without enough other players to provide context.
You cannot take Indiana lightly, as the one guy (Hubers) that ran a bit below where he might have at the addidas/Wisconsin Invite showed up big by being their number 1 finisher.
Some other mens teams showed up, including Oklahoma, although clearly they are not at the level of their in-state rival.
Other teams have left questions, either by finishing with mixed results or by not having people running and so the questions are can they run and at what level? NAU fits as the prototype here with missing stars and at least one injury to a major player.