Tossing batting practice…while finally over the bye ready to take on the crush of media scrutiny that is Pro bowl week…
It was somewhat evident back in November, but two months after the AI trade, the Pistons simply cannot cover Rajon Rondo anymore. Cleveland worries me greatly though. It does appear that Lebron isn’t quite getting every single call as of late.
So apparently Happy Gilmore was on Bravo the other night; however inside the Actors Studio with Carl Weathers did not follow the second funniest golf movie ever made. Apollo Creed, Chubs, and “the black guy from Predator” those three characters should be worthy of an hour of James Lipton’s time.
We can elect a black president, but I never thought I’d see the day a black chairman of the RNC was elected. I think the values and beliefs of many in my little corner of Jesusland have been turned upside down.
Our long national nightmare is over…the Mets have found a way to fill that gaping outfield hole, by signing World Series hero Bobby Kielty to a minor league deal.
This is the info you find on the MLB network while watching awkward announced highlights of the 1948 World Series.
Mercifully the Jason Varitek contract saga is over, however the “Fran-coma’s gotta pinch hit for Varitek with the bases loaded in the fourth inning of the back end of a doubleheader” saga should be starting up any day now. I look forward to the EEI yahoos now trying to sell the concept of Kevin Youkilis, late inning emergency catcher.
We all know Tito is loyal to his veterans who he’s gone to battle with, and I have no problem with that. We’ve seen it with the rotting corpse of Kevin Millar, and the human strikeout machine that was Mark Bellhorn. Eventually Tito pulled the plug on those guys late in their “difficult” seasons.
So Price is right style (meaning closest without going over) what’s the exact date we see Tito wave the white flag on Tek?
My early vote is July 20th but like the Tuna says, I reserve the right to change my mind once the season starts.
As many of you know my boss’ son was the Dodgers top draft pick last year, and earlier this week he was invited to big league training camp. Now more than ever I am praying for Manny to resign with them, just for the inside stories alone.
Hopefully he won’t end up with a full chapter in Joe Torre’s Dodger years sequel.
I can sort of understand and get used to "ya'll" being a prevalent term, but turning it into a plural ya'lls will never ever sound right under any circumstances. It's already a freakin plural for Christ sakes.
If you simply saw the score scroll down sometime Friday you’d have no doubt seen my
New college hoops obsession St. Mary’s drop a heartbreaker to Gonzaga. While it was on the road, keep in mind that the Gaels were up six when superstar African-Australian Patrick Mills went down with a sprained wrist. To that point Mills had 18 points in about 12 minutes of action, only to not return. He’ll likely be fine come tournament time, so be weary of the 10th seeded Gaels shocking some two-seed from the big east in the round of 32.
Now that enough time has passed and I can ignore the abomination of a 2005 season he had do you think its possible for Boston to begin construction on the Mark Bellhorn bronze statue, they could even put it in the spot previously earmarked for Dave Henderson that had to be scrapped thanks to the rest of his teammates.
***
Now for my long awaited Super Bowl pick…With the Over/Under set at three and a half, I will take the over….for number of e-trade baby commercials.
So I made a living in this postseason (not literally of course because gambling is illegal NCAA folks who may be monitoring this, and I have no tangible money to bet)
On taking the underdog, which led me to a 5-1 record the last two weekends. So while I despise the Steelers, and would love to see the Cards win, I have to go with Pittsburgh here, mainly because the Cards have become this trendy pick. This is what happens when you have two weeks to talk about a football game and you can talk yourself into any angle or possibility.
The surest bet of the night is Springsteen going over the allotted 12 minutes at halftime. And if you really like prop bets I think its +25,000 he gets hauled off the stage at the 17 minute mark with one of those 1920s vaudeville canes as he preaches to the world about stopping hunger, war, or republican domination.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Tossing batting practice...while wondering if Vegas allows prop bets as to whether Sam Casell is dressed in uniform on a given night...
When I’m in charge of basic human common sense, I will decree there to be a cap on what you order at a drive thru, Like the 12 items or less line. I sat in a drive thru today after a single person ordered $24 worth of food from McDonalds. I mean really, unless its 2am and you’ve got the munchies, go inside
This will go along with my Death Penalty for double parking platform I intend to run for Mayor of Boston on someday.
You heard it here first This year’s Davidson potential, in the NCAA tournament. St. Mary’s. They may not even win their conference tournament because of Gonzaga, which makes them even more underrated. They’re the highest rated mid-major on the board statistically (in the stats I believe in) and I’ve now watched them annihilate San Diego on its home floor, and blasted Fresno St.
Update: or you possibly heard this spiel from Seth Davis who’s apparently touting the Gaels (I didn’t even have to look that up, that’s how good or pathetic I am)
So in reading the ESPN headlines the other day I see that “Billionaire” Tom Rickets, is about to buy the Cubs.
Is there a better word that could appear in front of your name on a headline, or on a scroll?
I know that the words, beleaguered, embattled and much maligned are the polar opposite of the spectrum and are three phrases I never want to see in front of my name in any circumstance.
At the only bar in town here in Gainesville there is in fact a framed Byron Dafoe Atlanta Thrashers jersey.
If I could find my Blaine Lacher autographed picture I got at the very brief height of his popularity I'd donate it.
When all you have for internet is a blackberry, I have to say coming across names like Lacher and Dafoe provide brief moments of entertainment courtesy of Wikipedia. Which was how I found out that Byron Dafoe played 35 games over two seasons with the Thrashers allowing 3.31 goals a game before retiring after the lockout.
As an aside there are no actual bars here in town, because a county ordinance states that a business must make more than 50% of its business from food in order to serve alcohol. I can’t believe the Puritans missed that one back home.
Reason # 4126 why Tom Brady is the quintesential American dream: the fact he traded up to a girlfriend who is worth more money than he is. He literally does everything right by the book.
So I visited the mall of Georgia the other day, which is allegedly the largest shopping center in the Southeast. It’s basically the South Shore Plaza if the town of Braintree annexed Holbrook and gave the land away to build acres upon acres of stores.
The only caveat was it was the empties mall I’ve ever seen. Perhaps it’s the economy, or the simple fact its so damn big it can’t help but look empty.
In the first sports store I saw was dedicated to all college stuff except for the display of a Sox jersey, Brady, and Favre replicas, see Carolina Panthers, that's what you call a nation.
Then I saw that apparently colleges down here print up tee-shirts dedicated to each and every game of the year. I found this to be absolutely hilarious, imagine if we did that for baseball or even NFL football? How many different catchy nicknames could enterprising entrepreneurs come up with for the Sox/Yanks rivalry? Would they get to 19?
But if you feel the need to commemorate that Labor Day weekend drubbing of Appalachian St. For just $12 you'll never forget it.
As I've gotten older I've struggled with the idea that the players I'm rooting for are my age and younger, I think its still ok to wear jerseys of your favorite player, provided they are in fact older than you, thus you'll never see me in a Papelbon or Ellsbury jersey.
Down here the obsession with college football throws a huge wrench into that, but I still firmly believe wearing a college players jersey anytime after you turn 18 makes you a huge dork...I'm looking across the bar at a guy in the Tim Tebow jersey trying to get it with a blonde way out of his league as proof of this theory.
Doesn't it basically say I'm unhappy with my life and aspire to be a 20 year old college quarterback?
I guess if you’re in your fifties and aspire to be young again, then I can understand. But if you’re 26 and rocking that jersey, then maybe just maybe you should give ITT Tech a call, or some other online university, at the very least get that GED, there’s still time to make something of yourself.
Now that I’ve got internet, and hopefully cable by tomorrow I’ll be able to comment more on sports again in addition to the occasional witty retort to life in the south.
When I’m in charge of basic human common sense, I will decree there to be a cap on what you order at a drive thru, Like the 12 items or less line. I sat in a drive thru today after a single person ordered $24 worth of food from McDonalds. I mean really, unless its 2am and you’ve got the munchies, go inside
This will go along with my Death Penalty for double parking platform I intend to run for Mayor of Boston on someday.
You heard it here first This year’s Davidson potential, in the NCAA tournament. St. Mary’s. They may not even win their conference tournament because of Gonzaga, which makes them even more underrated. They’re the highest rated mid-major on the board statistically (in the stats I believe in) and I’ve now watched them annihilate San Diego on its home floor, and blasted Fresno St.
Update: or you possibly heard this spiel from Seth Davis who’s apparently touting the Gaels (I didn’t even have to look that up, that’s how good or pathetic I am)
So in reading the ESPN headlines the other day I see that “Billionaire” Tom Rickets, is about to buy the Cubs.
Is there a better word that could appear in front of your name on a headline, or on a scroll?
I know that the words, beleaguered, embattled and much maligned are the polar opposite of the spectrum and are three phrases I never want to see in front of my name in any circumstance.
At the only bar in town here in Gainesville there is in fact a framed Byron Dafoe Atlanta Thrashers jersey.
If I could find my Blaine Lacher autographed picture I got at the very brief height of his popularity I'd donate it.
When all you have for internet is a blackberry, I have to say coming across names like Lacher and Dafoe provide brief moments of entertainment courtesy of Wikipedia. Which was how I found out that Byron Dafoe played 35 games over two seasons with the Thrashers allowing 3.31 goals a game before retiring after the lockout.
As an aside there are no actual bars here in town, because a county ordinance states that a business must make more than 50% of its business from food in order to serve alcohol. I can’t believe the Puritans missed that one back home.
Reason # 4126 why Tom Brady is the quintesential American dream: the fact he traded up to a girlfriend who is worth more money than he is. He literally does everything right by the book.
So I visited the mall of Georgia the other day, which is allegedly the largest shopping center in the Southeast. It’s basically the South Shore Plaza if the town of Braintree annexed Holbrook and gave the land away to build acres upon acres of stores.
The only caveat was it was the empties mall I’ve ever seen. Perhaps it’s the economy, or the simple fact its so damn big it can’t help but look empty.
In the first sports store I saw was dedicated to all college stuff except for the display of a Sox jersey, Brady, and Favre replicas, see Carolina Panthers, that's what you call a nation.
Then I saw that apparently colleges down here print up tee-shirts dedicated to each and every game of the year. I found this to be absolutely hilarious, imagine if we did that for baseball or even NFL football? How many different catchy nicknames could enterprising entrepreneurs come up with for the Sox/Yanks rivalry? Would they get to 19?
But if you feel the need to commemorate that Labor Day weekend drubbing of Appalachian St. For just $12 you'll never forget it.
As I've gotten older I've struggled with the idea that the players I'm rooting for are my age and younger, I think its still ok to wear jerseys of your favorite player, provided they are in fact older than you, thus you'll never see me in a Papelbon or Ellsbury jersey.
Down here the obsession with college football throws a huge wrench into that, but I still firmly believe wearing a college players jersey anytime after you turn 18 makes you a huge dork...I'm looking across the bar at a guy in the Tim Tebow jersey trying to get it with a blonde way out of his league as proof of this theory.
Doesn't it basically say I'm unhappy with my life and aspire to be a 20 year old college quarterback?
I guess if you’re in your fifties and aspire to be young again, then I can understand. But if you’re 26 and rocking that jersey, then maybe just maybe you should give ITT Tech a call, or some other online university, at the very least get that GED, there’s still time to make something of yourself.
Now that I’ve got internet, and hopefully cable by tomorrow I’ll be able to comment more on sports again in addition to the occasional witty retort to life in the south.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Tossing batting practice while training to figure out the proper response to the cable guy telling me he can't make it this morning because he is snowed in...
Yeah there is barely an inch of snow on the ground, there may have been more this morning but I suspect it will always melt before the end of the day.
Well its championship Sunday and riding the heels of my perfect 4-0 weekend last weekend, I"m going to throw out this weekends version.
Since I've been without television or regular internet all week these will be without prejudice (or any form of actual game information)
ARIZONA 27 - Philly 20
I think McNabb is due for a stinker, he has managed to successfully sucker in all of the Philadelphia region and is due to absolutely destroy their souls, or at the very least render them to watching the Phillies WS dvd in and endless loop until pitchers and catchers report.
In a world where the Tampa Bay Rays can make the World Series, why can't the Cardinals make the Super Bowl?
If they get their run game on track early the Eagles won't be able to blitz without risking Larry Fitzgerald repeating last weeks perfromance.
BALTIMORE 11- PITTSBURGH 8
Nobody believes in Joe Flacco, and I don't either, I believe in three Stover field goals, a safety, two or three killer Roethlisberger interceptions and a Willie Parker fumble. All of this will happen early in the game so Steeler fans get nervous and have that "this isn't happening again" vibe they get from having lost four AFC title games at home in the last 15 years.
A Cardinals/Ravens Super Bowl the least watched or anticipated game in Super Bowl history, Next on NBC
Yeah there is barely an inch of snow on the ground, there may have been more this morning but I suspect it will always melt before the end of the day.
Well its championship Sunday and riding the heels of my perfect 4-0 weekend last weekend, I"m going to throw out this weekends version.
Since I've been without television or regular internet all week these will be without prejudice (or any form of actual game information)
ARIZONA 27 - Philly 20
I think McNabb is due for a stinker, he has managed to successfully sucker in all of the Philadelphia region and is due to absolutely destroy their souls, or at the very least render them to watching the Phillies WS dvd in and endless loop until pitchers and catchers report.
In a world where the Tampa Bay Rays can make the World Series, why can't the Cardinals make the Super Bowl?
If they get their run game on track early the Eagles won't be able to blitz without risking Larry Fitzgerald repeating last weeks perfromance.
BALTIMORE 11- PITTSBURGH 8
Nobody believes in Joe Flacco, and I don't either, I believe in three Stover field goals, a safety, two or three killer Roethlisberger interceptions and a Willie Parker fumble. All of this will happen early in the game so Steeler fans get nervous and have that "this isn't happening again" vibe they get from having lost four AFC title games at home in the last 15 years.
A Cardinals/Ravens Super Bowl the least watched or anticipated game in Super Bowl history, Next on NBC
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Tossing batting practice…while trying to understand how people can complain it's cold and then go out and have baseball practice; in shorts.
Congratulations to Jim Rice for the long overdue induction into the Hall of Fame. Rice was known as a bit of an ogre to the media and fans but I have nothing but fond memories of him taking the time to be young to a young child (me) many years ago.
I understand people have issues with his induction, and while some people say there isn't a definitive argument in favor of him getting in, I have yet to hear of a good one for keeping him out.
The fact his on base percentage wasn't high enough? Well, if OBP were the be all end all stat guys like Scott Hatteberg would be raking in the big bucks.
Look getting on base is important, but so is extra base hits, and driving in runs. That's what Rice was paid to do, it didn't always work out for him, but the game was different in his era.
And for the record, of the top 10 in walks in the 70s only three are in the HOF. Of the top 21 in on base percentage only 6 are in the HOF.
In the 80s the number is a little greater but still not much better. I don't expect the Hall to be opening it's doors to the likes of Ken Singleton, Sal Bando or Gene Tenace anytime soon.
The home road splits are a tough argument to me if people are going to apply modern logic of Sabermetrics then what about the fact that ballparks are so much smaller today? That might have changed the way Rice approached a certain at-bat, numbers can't quantify everything a hall of famer is, like Justice Potter once said, "I know it when I see it" and I will trust the players of that era, who definitively say he was as dangerous a hitter as there was in that era.
I hope everyone enjoyed their Boston Sports Christmas, also known as NY elimination day.
I know I couldn't wait to open my presents that were the NY Daily news and Post.
It's been an unprecedented third elimination day party in four months. Though in fairness the Yankees were like a daily execution for a month before they were officially eliminated.
So much for that immortality for Eli, and Teflon Tom Coughlin, hehehehe.
I'd say we're going to miss Josh McDaniels but since Bill hardly let's his assistants talk I don't really know much about him, then again he called a crap game in the Super Bowl so I say good riddens, I hope his Bronco teams struggle with pass protection in big games too.
The loss of Brad Seely might hurt on special teams, but as long as Dante Scarnechia is around, (which he probably will be until about two weeks after his death) I think the special teams will remain solid especially since Belichick keeps his hand involved in that phase.
I was watching the Wake Forest/UNC game Sunday night and while my first reaction was holy crap Wake is 4th in the country! But upon further review I see why, this Point guard they have in Jeff Teague was very impressive, good enough that despite never having heard of him before tonight, I had to check out if he's an NBA prospect, and he is in fact a lottery pick in 2010 mock draft, which I think is a mockery in and of itself.
The Tar Heels still suck defensively yet they're adjusted defensive ranking is 15th even more shocking is Duke is number one in that category.
I think both numbers are a reflection of who they played in nonconference play. I was surprised to see NC is among the national leaders in steals per game, but I'm not sure if that's a product of the tempo they play or the competition or both. When the final numbers come out just after the brackets do, I'll have a better idea and will make my picks accordingly.
Is Jake Delhomme the worst quarterback to almost win a super bowl?
Trent Dilfer, mark Rypien and Jeff Hostetler are considered be the three worst to ever actually win one, but Doug Williams has the lowest career QB rating of a champion.
In Super Bowls decided by seven points or less, Delhomme is clearly the leader in the clubhouse for worst to almost win one, but his career numbers would be better than Dilfer Rypien and Williams.
Whenever the NFL honors the punt pass and kick winners, those kids never ever look like they even play football, at best they look like future Salary Capologists. I mean even Scott Pioli played college football.
I guess if they're going to dedicate their lives to kicking then they might have a future.
Which reminds me, if somehow someway I ever manage to procreate which god willing (see I'm already getting religious down here) won't be for a long time, I will absolutely be steering my child towards throwing lefthanded and punting/placekicking.
Backup quarterback and Bullpen catcher are two of the best jobs in America, but there is a small timeframe in which you can do either of those. Kickers and situational left handed relievers can play into their forties, and 25 years at the league minimum can add up nicely.
It doesn't require much athleticism, see Mitch Berger, Morten Anderson or Jesse Orosco, which is a good thing since athleticism is not a trait possessed in my genetics.
If my child becomes one of those professions I would consider myself a successful parent, even if I have to be Earl Woods and tie his right hand back behind him, or make him kick balls off a tee until his foot bleeds.
Just to remind everyone, I was 4-0 in the wackiest divisional round in history, too bad I don't actually gamble, I'll be back to continue my best Carnak impression later this week.
Congratulations to Jim Rice for the long overdue induction into the Hall of Fame. Rice was known as a bit of an ogre to the media and fans but I have nothing but fond memories of him taking the time to be young to a young child (me) many years ago.
I understand people have issues with his induction, and while some people say there isn't a definitive argument in favor of him getting in, I have yet to hear of a good one for keeping him out.
The fact his on base percentage wasn't high enough? Well, if OBP were the be all end all stat guys like Scott Hatteberg would be raking in the big bucks.
Look getting on base is important, but so is extra base hits, and driving in runs. That's what Rice was paid to do, it didn't always work out for him, but the game was different in his era.
And for the record, of the top 10 in walks in the 70s only three are in the HOF. Of the top 21 in on base percentage only 6 are in the HOF.
In the 80s the number is a little greater but still not much better. I don't expect the Hall to be opening it's doors to the likes of Ken Singleton, Sal Bando or Gene Tenace anytime soon.
The home road splits are a tough argument to me if people are going to apply modern logic of Sabermetrics then what about the fact that ballparks are so much smaller today? That might have changed the way Rice approached a certain at-bat, numbers can't quantify everything a hall of famer is, like Justice Potter once said, "I know it when I see it" and I will trust the players of that era, who definitively say he was as dangerous a hitter as there was in that era.
I hope everyone enjoyed their Boston Sports Christmas, also known as NY elimination day.
I know I couldn't wait to open my presents that were the NY Daily news and Post.
It's been an unprecedented third elimination day party in four months. Though in fairness the Yankees were like a daily execution for a month before they were officially eliminated.
So much for that immortality for Eli, and Teflon Tom Coughlin, hehehehe.
I'd say we're going to miss Josh McDaniels but since Bill hardly let's his assistants talk I don't really know much about him, then again he called a crap game in the Super Bowl so I say good riddens, I hope his Bronco teams struggle with pass protection in big games too.
The loss of Brad Seely might hurt on special teams, but as long as Dante Scarnechia is around, (which he probably will be until about two weeks after his death) I think the special teams will remain solid especially since Belichick keeps his hand involved in that phase.
I was watching the Wake Forest/UNC game Sunday night and while my first reaction was holy crap Wake is 4th in the country! But upon further review I see why, this Point guard they have in Jeff Teague was very impressive, good enough that despite never having heard of him before tonight, I had to check out if he's an NBA prospect, and he is in fact a lottery pick in 2010 mock draft, which I think is a mockery in and of itself.
The Tar Heels still suck defensively yet they're adjusted defensive ranking is 15th even more shocking is Duke is number one in that category.
I think both numbers are a reflection of who they played in nonconference play. I was surprised to see NC is among the national leaders in steals per game, but I'm not sure if that's a product of the tempo they play or the competition or both. When the final numbers come out just after the brackets do, I'll have a better idea and will make my picks accordingly.
Is Jake Delhomme the worst quarterback to almost win a super bowl?
Trent Dilfer, mark Rypien and Jeff Hostetler are considered be the three worst to ever actually win one, but Doug Williams has the lowest career QB rating of a champion.
In Super Bowls decided by seven points or less, Delhomme is clearly the leader in the clubhouse for worst to almost win one, but his career numbers would be better than Dilfer Rypien and Williams.
Whenever the NFL honors the punt pass and kick winners, those kids never ever look like they even play football, at best they look like future Salary Capologists. I mean even Scott Pioli played college football.
I guess if they're going to dedicate their lives to kicking then they might have a future.
Which reminds me, if somehow someway I ever manage to procreate which god willing (see I'm already getting religious down here) won't be for a long time, I will absolutely be steering my child towards throwing lefthanded and punting/placekicking.
Backup quarterback and Bullpen catcher are two of the best jobs in America, but there is a small timeframe in which you can do either of those. Kickers and situational left handed relievers can play into their forties, and 25 years at the league minimum can add up nicely.
It doesn't require much athleticism, see Mitch Berger, Morten Anderson or Jesse Orosco, which is a good thing since athleticism is not a trait possessed in my genetics.
If my child becomes one of those professions I would consider myself a successful parent, even if I have to be Earl Woods and tie his right hand back behind him, or make him kick balls off a tee until his foot bleeds.
Just to remind everyone, I was 4-0 in the wackiest divisional round in history, too bad I don't actually gamble, I'll be back to continue my best Carnak impression later this week.
Friday, January 09, 2009
Tossing Batting Practice….because I only have about three weeks until Spring football starts to dominate Southern life again down here…
So mercifully the College football season is over, and while I have despised Florida for so many years, I have to say I like Urban Meyer. Any friend of Belichick’s is a friend of mine.
Now somehow we have to find a way to get Major White into a Patriots uniform next season, that man hits like a young Lawyer Milloy.
Give props to Oklahoma’s defense for staying in it, but their offense just couldn’t come through when it mattered most. I thought they were a little too run heavy in short yardage situations.
I hope the crazies in Oklahoma who disparage Bob Stoops for not winning BCS games don’t come out in full force.
I think the argument is a little unjust, twice he's played teams with nothing to lose that wanted to prove themselves and their conference, while for Oklahoma any bowl that’s not the BCS title game is a disappointment. One of those games they lost on a freak play.
The other bowl loss was to maybe the greatest team of all time, or at least one that’s in the discussion, so I'm giving him a pass and think he's one of the three best coaches in the country.
I’m sorry I said it before but I’ll say it again, Florida lost a home game in the regular season, that should have precluded them from consideration for this game.
Maybe Texas should have been here, possibly Utah. But the closest argument is USC, and they lost a road game, in a traditionally hostile environment to an Oregon St. team that finished tied for first with them in the Pac-10.
I will not understand the fascination with College Football down here until a National Champion can be crowned legit.
Florida is just the winner of the BCS Bowl. That is all.
The goal in the NFL is to win your last game…well in College the Gators are one of 34 teams who was able to lay that claim.
I loathe Ohio State but Terelle Pryor is fun to watch, and his career spectrum can run the gamut from future disgraced quarterback serving time in Federal Prison, to former National Champion with an awkward throwing motion losing his starting spot to a Kerry Collins equivalent in 6 years, for fun let's say its Matt Cassel, who proves he's not as good without the best receivers and coaches in the game, while ruining another team's salary cap down the road.
(If Cassel stays with us, then let's name that quarterback, I’m guessing it’s from a pupu platter of either Kyle Orton, Kellen Clemens, Matt Leinart, Brady Quinn, or by that point Scott Mitchell, or Erik Kramer might have a kid quarterbacking the Lions)
BC's loss to Harvard (thank god for spell check because I actually spelled Harvard without the R originally) the other night was God's way of reminding the folks at the Heights just who they are.
Sure BC is a destination school if you're a marginal coach who can put your team in the national spotlight on occasion and otherwise stay afloat with trips to the NCAAs and one or two big wins a season.
It is not a destination school if you're a big time head coach in the making, or already are one. Open your eyes BC, as the Tuna says, "you are what your record says you are"
And your record over the last 50 years says you're a steppingstone school....
(all of the above does not apply to hockey)
It’s nice of the Celtics to take on so many qualities of the old 80s C’s but the sleepwalking through the middle of the winter isn’t really a quality the newest incarnation should copy of the boss’ former teammates. Somehow I don’t think this was ever part of Danny’s “Vision”
The good news is they did this last year, and it’s the right time to expose some flaws that can be fixed before the trade deadline.
Hopefully my shady movers will finally show up this weekend, so I can actually unpack and get out of the Bates Motel, thus leaving me less time to blog. So here’s my NFL picks.
Baltimore 4 – Tennessee 2 Both offenses suck, and I see this going to extra innings, with the Ravens pushing two across with the help of the international tie breaker in the 10th
Arizona 31- Carolina 27 – No real rationalization behind this pick other than I liked the way the Cards handled the run last week against Atlanta if they do that again they’re moving on, besides they cant be any worse this time around on the East Coast (47-7)
Philadelphia 16 –NY Expletives 13 --- As long as a Manning isn’t in the Super Bowl then I’ll be happy and can celebrate Martin Luther King Day properly. Though I’m afraid America can’t handle a world where Philadelphia is the standard for professional sports.
Then again this decade has brought six titles to Boston, and America is plunged into the worst economic depression in 70 years, take that for what its worth I guess.
Pittsburgh 18 Chargers 10 ---Now the Steelers defense gets awarded the Touchdown that cost me six fantasy points earlier this season.
In all seriousness though for the second straight week the Chargers are involved in proverbial “game I hope nobody can win” because I detest both teams, so logic says Pittsburgh at home, but if Roethlisberger (unlike most unintelligent Pitt fans who call him Ben because they either think they know him, or can’t pronounce or spell his last name I will use proper AP style) has his brain still scrambled its anyone’s bet how this goes.
So mercifully the College football season is over, and while I have despised Florida for so many years, I have to say I like Urban Meyer. Any friend of Belichick’s is a friend of mine.
Now somehow we have to find a way to get Major White into a Patriots uniform next season, that man hits like a young Lawyer Milloy.
Give props to Oklahoma’s defense for staying in it, but their offense just couldn’t come through when it mattered most. I thought they were a little too run heavy in short yardage situations.
I hope the crazies in Oklahoma who disparage Bob Stoops for not winning BCS games don’t come out in full force.
I think the argument is a little unjust, twice he's played teams with nothing to lose that wanted to prove themselves and their conference, while for Oklahoma any bowl that’s not the BCS title game is a disappointment. One of those games they lost on a freak play.
The other bowl loss was to maybe the greatest team of all time, or at least one that’s in the discussion, so I'm giving him a pass and think he's one of the three best coaches in the country.
I’m sorry I said it before but I’ll say it again, Florida lost a home game in the regular season, that should have precluded them from consideration for this game.
Maybe Texas should have been here, possibly Utah. But the closest argument is USC, and they lost a road game, in a traditionally hostile environment to an Oregon St. team that finished tied for first with them in the Pac-10.
I will not understand the fascination with College Football down here until a National Champion can be crowned legit.
Florida is just the winner of the BCS Bowl. That is all.
The goal in the NFL is to win your last game…well in College the Gators are one of 34 teams who was able to lay that claim.
I loathe Ohio State but Terelle Pryor is fun to watch, and his career spectrum can run the gamut from future disgraced quarterback serving time in Federal Prison, to former National Champion with an awkward throwing motion losing his starting spot to a Kerry Collins equivalent in 6 years, for fun let's say its Matt Cassel, who proves he's not as good without the best receivers and coaches in the game, while ruining another team's salary cap down the road.
(If Cassel stays with us, then let's name that quarterback, I’m guessing it’s from a pupu platter of either Kyle Orton, Kellen Clemens, Matt Leinart, Brady Quinn, or by that point Scott Mitchell, or Erik Kramer might have a kid quarterbacking the Lions)
BC's loss to Harvard (thank god for spell check because I actually spelled Harvard without the R originally) the other night was God's way of reminding the folks at the Heights just who they are.
Sure BC is a destination school if you're a marginal coach who can put your team in the national spotlight on occasion and otherwise stay afloat with trips to the NCAAs and one or two big wins a season.
It is not a destination school if you're a big time head coach in the making, or already are one. Open your eyes BC, as the Tuna says, "you are what your record says you are"
And your record over the last 50 years says you're a steppingstone school....
(all of the above does not apply to hockey)
It’s nice of the Celtics to take on so many qualities of the old 80s C’s but the sleepwalking through the middle of the winter isn’t really a quality the newest incarnation should copy of the boss’ former teammates. Somehow I don’t think this was ever part of Danny’s “Vision”
The good news is they did this last year, and it’s the right time to expose some flaws that can be fixed before the trade deadline.
Hopefully my shady movers will finally show up this weekend, so I can actually unpack and get out of the Bates Motel, thus leaving me less time to blog. So here’s my NFL picks.
Baltimore 4 – Tennessee 2 Both offenses suck, and I see this going to extra innings, with the Ravens pushing two across with the help of the international tie breaker in the 10th
Arizona 31- Carolina 27 – No real rationalization behind this pick other than I liked the way the Cards handled the run last week against Atlanta if they do that again they’re moving on, besides they cant be any worse this time around on the East Coast (47-7)
Philadelphia 16 –NY Expletives 13 --- As long as a Manning isn’t in the Super Bowl then I’ll be happy and can celebrate Martin Luther King Day properly. Though I’m afraid America can’t handle a world where Philadelphia is the standard for professional sports.
Then again this decade has brought six titles to Boston, and America is plunged into the worst economic depression in 70 years, take that for what its worth I guess.
Pittsburgh 18 Chargers 10 ---Now the Steelers defense gets awarded the Touchdown that cost me six fantasy points earlier this season.
In all seriousness though for the second straight week the Chargers are involved in proverbial “game I hope nobody can win” because I detest both teams, so logic says Pittsburgh at home, but if Roethlisberger (unlike most unintelligent Pitt fans who call him Ben because they either think they know him, or can’t pronounce or spell his last name I will use proper AP style) has his brain still scrambled its anyone’s bet how this goes.
Monday, January 05, 2009
Tossing batting practice while contemplating a career in Nascar after getting to New Jersey in three hours from the Bing last week...
Greetings from Georgia, where it's rained for five days straight and hasn't dipped below 50 degrees/ As long as its not snow, I'll build a freaking Ark if need be. I made it down here relatively safely with the help of Grandpa, we only had a half dozen near death experiences, but was an interesting ride nonetheless. Here are the intial thoughts of life on the way to, and in the south.
All minivans should be banned from the fast lane, punishable by imprisonment and public flogging. We need a crime that can bring back public flogging as a punishment, and I think this could be it.
Anyone who tries to clean their windshield on the highway deserves a lesson in physics and then the death penalty.
All people from Connecticut are idiots, a-holes or both (I’m looking at you JT).
Some guy decided that despite it being 4 degrees, and him not possessing washer fluid it would be a good idea to drive 70 mph while leaning out his window to pour water in the windshield. Of course most of it wound up on my windshield, immediately froze and I almost hit a guardrail because I couldn't see.
I hope he drives off the Housatonic River bridge
NBCs David Gregory apparently trolls Maryland rest areas wearing a blue Dodgers jacket with his last name written on the back of the jacket, presumably for when people like me see him and can't remember why he seems familiar, or because he has a huge ego, but probably a combination of both.
One thing we're missing out on in the Northeast is more black sports radio hosts.
(A side note Microsoft suggests I say blacker sports radio hosts, instead of more black, a Microsoft employee hasn’t been this wrong since Bill gates fired his stock managers)
Anyways, Michael Holley is tremendous but his best usually doesn't come out unless he's got Vince Wilfork or Richard Seymour on, and his pop culture references and slang aren’t going over the head of a middle aged white man with teenage children.
Down here so far I've heard at least four lengthy soliloquies that sound like the Miller High life guy, and boy do these guys like to call people out in a more colorful and humorous fashion than anyone on Weei.
PS: I hope that after a long fruitful career with 5 more Super Bowl titles Wilfork, Seymour and Ty Warren are plying their radio trade like Brentson Buckner does down in Charlotte, he's basically black Fred Smerlas only smarter and infinitely more hilarious.
Or maybe he’s everything Smerlas isn’t but you get the idea.
In Charlotte I have heard the term "Panther Nation" thrown about repeatedly. I mean really? They are a nation? Show me a Panther fan with a mailing address outside the Carolinas and then we can revisit the concept.
Say what you want southerners about Massachusetts being a liberal and immoral state that allows gays to marry, while you folks are so religious and pious, but you won't find any highway billboards advertising sex shops and strip clubs where we live.
(the Heathens in Connecticut might though)
It didn't actually hit me that I lived in the south until I stopped at the burger king over the Georgia border. It was just different all the way around and very uncomfortable.
The only difference between me and Reggie Hammond (Eddie Murphy) walking into the redneck bar in 48 hrs was my skin color.
Apparently the UGA football team went through 5 offensive tackles this year, if they grow their young boys like they did the two female burger king attendants, I think the Dawgs could safely go through 5,000 tackles without much drop off.
Those two were clearly vying for the title of ugliest woman in the county, with the consumption of each burger.
They’ve probably been married twice, and have seven kids between them.
So I've decided that anytime anyone asks me to say "park the car" I'm simply going to reply with, "ok but only if you say 'life is like a box of chocolates'..."
Back later this week with more Dueling Banjos, and football nonsense.
Greetings from Georgia, where it's rained for five days straight and hasn't dipped below 50 degrees/ As long as its not snow, I'll build a freaking Ark if need be. I made it down here relatively safely with the help of Grandpa, we only had a half dozen near death experiences, but was an interesting ride nonetheless. Here are the intial thoughts of life on the way to, and in the south.
All minivans should be banned from the fast lane, punishable by imprisonment and public flogging. We need a crime that can bring back public flogging as a punishment, and I think this could be it.
Anyone who tries to clean their windshield on the highway deserves a lesson in physics and then the death penalty.
All people from Connecticut are idiots, a-holes or both (I’m looking at you JT).
Some guy decided that despite it being 4 degrees, and him not possessing washer fluid it would be a good idea to drive 70 mph while leaning out his window to pour water in the windshield. Of course most of it wound up on my windshield, immediately froze and I almost hit a guardrail because I couldn't see.
I hope he drives off the Housatonic River bridge
NBCs David Gregory apparently trolls Maryland rest areas wearing a blue Dodgers jacket with his last name written on the back of the jacket, presumably for when people like me see him and can't remember why he seems familiar, or because he has a huge ego, but probably a combination of both.
One thing we're missing out on in the Northeast is more black sports radio hosts.
(A side note Microsoft suggests I say blacker sports radio hosts, instead of more black, a Microsoft employee hasn’t been this wrong since Bill gates fired his stock managers)
Anyways, Michael Holley is tremendous but his best usually doesn't come out unless he's got Vince Wilfork or Richard Seymour on, and his pop culture references and slang aren’t going over the head of a middle aged white man with teenage children.
Down here so far I've heard at least four lengthy soliloquies that sound like the Miller High life guy, and boy do these guys like to call people out in a more colorful and humorous fashion than anyone on Weei.
PS: I hope that after a long fruitful career with 5 more Super Bowl titles Wilfork, Seymour and Ty Warren are plying their radio trade like Brentson Buckner does down in Charlotte, he's basically black Fred Smerlas only smarter and infinitely more hilarious.
Or maybe he’s everything Smerlas isn’t but you get the idea.
In Charlotte I have heard the term "Panther Nation" thrown about repeatedly. I mean really? They are a nation? Show me a Panther fan with a mailing address outside the Carolinas and then we can revisit the concept.
Say what you want southerners about Massachusetts being a liberal and immoral state that allows gays to marry, while you folks are so religious and pious, but you won't find any highway billboards advertising sex shops and strip clubs where we live.
(the Heathens in Connecticut might though)
It didn't actually hit me that I lived in the south until I stopped at the burger king over the Georgia border. It was just different all the way around and very uncomfortable.
The only difference between me and Reggie Hammond (Eddie Murphy) walking into the redneck bar in 48 hrs was my skin color.
Apparently the UGA football team went through 5 offensive tackles this year, if they grow their young boys like they did the two female burger king attendants, I think the Dawgs could safely go through 5,000 tackles without much drop off.
Those two were clearly vying for the title of ugliest woman in the county, with the consumption of each burger.
They’ve probably been married twice, and have seven kids between them.
So I've decided that anytime anyone asks me to say "park the car" I'm simply going to reply with, "ok but only if you say 'life is like a box of chocolates'..."
Back later this week with more Dueling Banjos, and football nonsense.
