the buzz log
Crazy For College Football
Due to the unpredictable nature of the college football season, fan discretion is advised. Your favorite squad sits near the top of the rankings, only to get bounced from the BCS after an untimely loss. With shocking upsets becoming commonplace, interest in the Bowl Championship Series and its machinations have sacked the Search box.
This past weekend, it was Ohio State's turn to tumble. The resulting scramble sent searches on "bcs standings" up 85% for the week. Related searches on "bcs bowl games" (+110%), "bcs ranking" (+95%), and "bcs poll" (+84%) are storming the field as fans attempt to make sense of the shifting standings.
Some fans still have questions about the BCS and how it works. Right now the most popular inquiry in Search is "when do the bcs standings come out." Well, it's Sunday afternoon when Fox is good and ready to release the information. But others are quizzical about "what does bcs stand for" and "how does the bcs work." For those folks, we recommend a remedial class with nutty professor Lou Holtz.
Where are the BCS searches coming from? No surprise that Baton Rouge (LSU), Oklahoma City (Univ. of Oklahoma), and Columbus (Ohio State) lead the way. But we see a metro not known for its gridiron prowess creeping up on the rail. Lovely Honolulu is home to the undefeated Rainbow Warriors of Hawaii and places fourth in BCS interest. Can the underdog team from the islands crack a big bowl? In this crazy college season, anything is possible...
Filed under: Sports, Football, College Football
Whiny Bryant Scores Big Buzz
The NBA season isn't even a week old and hoops buzz is off to a perfectly pouty start. Thanks to petulant superstar Kobe Bryant, searchers are curious about the soap opera surrounding the Los Angeles Lakers. Bryant's whole trade-me-no-wait-don't act has worn thin in SoCal, but hoop heads have sent searches on the mopey malcontent up 10%.
However, Kobe's buzz isn't measured by searches on his name alone. Related queries on "kobe trade rumors," "kobe bryant chicago bulls trade," and "kobe bryant trade" give a big assist to buzz on the talented ballhog. The Lakers star also contributed to a recent rebound in searches on "nba rumors" and "lakers rumors." So will the temperamental titan of the court be traded? Data offers us no real insight, but we can predict this ongoing saga will continue to slam the Search box...
Filed under: Sports, Basketball, NBA
Everyone Loves Ellsbury
Already a fast food folk hero, Red Sox outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury bashed the Buzz this weekend after helping his team win the World Series. It was Ellsbury's stolen base in Game 2 of the Series that earned every person in America a free taco, and his thievery led to big spikes for the cheesy chain. Searches on "taco bell," "taco bell locations," and "taco bell free taco" are still sizzling in Search thanks to Ellsbury's basepath derring-do.
In games three and four of the Series, the young Sox star busted out his bat and etched his name into postseason lore. The 24-year-old rookie played like a seasoned vet and scored with folks curious about his backstory. Searches on the speedy outfielder jumped 160% after the Red Sox clinched the crown. Female fans are curious about his love life. We weren't able to track down any hard evidence of a lady friend, but undaunted searchers looked for "jacoby ellsbury girlfriend."
Red Sox Nation's cult hero of 2007 also owns another unique claim to fame. He's the first person of Navajo descent to play in the majors, and his heritage led to queries on "jacoby ellsbury navajo" and "jacoby ellsbury bio."
And with searches on "jacoby ellsbury shirtless" and "jacoby ellsbury jersey" on the rise, we can tell that the man who earned tacos for a nation has also earned a permanent spot in the hearts of searchers.
Filed under: Sports, Baseball, MLB, Baseball Players
NFL's Sensational Six
This weekend's top search spikes from the NFL showcase a mix of offensive stars...
—Maurice Jones-Drew (+443%): Fantasy team owners were concerned with the injury status of the Jags RB. The pint-sized terror did play against the Bucs despite a sore knee, but only contributed 62 yards to the Jacksonville offense.
—Frank Gore (+257%): The Niners RB questioned the play-calling after last week's loss to the Giants. We wonder how he feels after the Saints limited him to 41 yards this week.
—Tom Brady (+239%): Tom Terrific prepped for his big game against the Colts by dismantling the Redskins 52-7. He's on a record pace for TD passes and the Pats show signs of taking their foot off the gas.
—Jamal Lewis (+194%): Fantasy players were curious about the foot injury of the Browns punishing RB. He played, but he wasn't a big factor in the win over the Rams.
—Randy Moss (+109%): Tom Brady's favorite deep threat only caught three passes against the Redskins, but one of them was for a score. Will he be able to break the single-season record for TD catches?
—Travis Henry (+96%): Broncos star RB is supposed to play tonight if he can manage to run despite injured ribs. It's a game-time decision for the prolific runner.
NFL: This Week's Terrific Twelve
This weekend's gridiron action spurred fans to search. Here are the top 12 players surging in Buzz from week 7 of the NFL...
—Ronnie Brown (+360%): Dolphins star RB out for the season with a torn ACL. Will Fins finish 0-16?
—Wes Welker (+249%): Thanks to Randy Moss drawing double teams, this Patriots WR is going off. He snagged two more touchdowns this weekend to torment his former team. Sorry, Miami.
—Vinny Testaverde (+244%): Ageless QB had the week off thanks to Panthers bye. Will the 43-year-old be under center against the Colts in Week 8?
—Marion Barber (+241%): Cowboys RB scored his fifth TD of the season against the Vikes. He's averaging an astonishing 5.7 yards per carry.
—Rudi Johnson (+237%): Bengals RB sat out game with Jets due to a groin strain. Backup Kenny Watson ran for three scores. A message to you, Rudi?
—Ben Roethlisberger (+223%): Steelers QB committed three turnovers in the mile high air of Denver. Steelers couldn't overcome the mistakes and missed a chance to go 5-1.
—Tony Romo (+205%): The darling of Dallas hurt his hamstring against the Vikings, but still managed to complete 80% of his throws. He'll have a week off to recuperate.
—Jeff Garcia (+204%): Feisty Tampa Bay QB passed for over 300 yards, but his two costly fumbles doomed the Bucs.
—Tom Brady (+191%): What else can you say? Six touchdown passes with a 84% completion rate. Plus Gisele. Will terrific Tom be stopped this season?
—Troy Polamalu (+166%): The only player on defense to make our list, the Steelers safety with the Samson-like locks wasn't able to help stop the Denver offense.
—Kurt Warner (+148%): Cardinals QB started despite torn elbow ligament in his non-throwing arm. But still! He almost led the Cardinals to an upset of the Redskins.
—Vince Young (+130%): The Madden cover boy missed his vengeance game against the Texans with a bum quadricep. Well-traveled backup Kerry Collins led the Titans to victory in Vince's stead.
top movers
| Rank | Subject | 1-Day Move |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lin Chi Ling | Breakout! |
| 2 | Gloria Diaz | Breakout! |
| 3 | Freida Pinto | 27459% |
| 4 | Gloria Estefan | 9975% |
| 5 | Gloria Velez | 6463% |
| 6 | Gloria Trevi | 3878% |
| 7 | Faith Hill | 2081% |
| 8 | 60 Minutes | 1114% |
| 9 | Alexis Denisof | 994% |
| 10 | Lee Ann Womack | 987% |
top leaders
| Rank | Subject | Move | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NFL | +464 | 575 |
| 2 | Britney Spears | +194 | 316 |
| 3 | Hi-5 | -11 | 244 |
| 4 | Black Friday | +23 | 212 |
| 5 | Freida Pinto | +198 | 199 |
| 6 | UFC | -24 | 194 |
| 7 | Club Penguin | -30 | 161 |
| 8 | Gloria Estefan | +149 | 150 |
what's the buzz?
A subject's buzz score is the percentage of Yahoo! users searching for that subject on a given day, multiplied by a constant to make the number easier to read. Weekly leaders are the subjects with the greatest average buzz score for a given week.
For more detailed information, visit our FAQ.