Back On Campus

Well, I was privileged to be among the 104,000+ at Ohio Stadium for the 1st Saturday of college football. And no one does it better than Ohio State I must say. Even rooting for the other team, you can't help but feel some chills when the OSU marching band marches down the ramp to begin the pre-game festivities. And to see 4 Script Ohios since it was Alumni Band Day, that was pretty neat today. I must say I was treated very well by OSU fans all day long, so I am appreciative of that.

As for the game, it was all Scarlet and Gray. As I pointed out, the key to the game would be the line of scrimmage, especially OSU's offensive line vs. Miami's defensive line. Well, OSU's offensive line convincingly won that battle, giving Justin Zwick time to throw the ball to anyone he wanted to (4 different OSU receivers had at least 5 catches). Meanwhile, Miami's offense struggled to sustain anything offensively, failing to contain the blitzing OSU linebackers. When he had time to throw, Josh Betts showed improved decision-making skills, except for one, which was the play of the game. Lucky to be down 13-0 just before halftime, Betts tried to throw one out in the right flat off his back foot, which usually spells trouble. Trouble was in the form of Donte Whitner, who returned it for a TD, putting OSU up 20-0, virtually putting the game out of reach.

The final was 34-14 OSU, thanks to 2 late Miami TDs against the 2nd and 3rd team OSU defense. So far (with Miami/Florida St. still to play), I would rank OSU #2 in the nation behind USC. Michigan and Tennessee were not nearly as impressive as the Bucks. OSU should beat Texas if they play like they did against Miami. Texas QB Vince Young, a great runner, still is an unproven passer. If OSU forces him to throw and Young isn't efficient, OSU will win by at least 2 touchdowns. OSU is a very good football team. I think Miami has a good team also, they just ran into a buzzsaw. When a team with as much talent as OSU plays a perfect game, there's not much you can do. The Hawks host Central Michigan next week, which should be competitive, but I see a Miami victory. I see Miami beating Cincinnati, making them 3-1 going to Northern Illinois.

Also, I'd be more disappointed if I were a Bowling Green supporter. How do you score 42 points and lose?!?!?! The BG defense, returning 9 starters, supposed to be much improved, gave up 56 points to Wisconsin, a team not known for scoring a lot of points, and isn't supposed to finish higher than 6th in the Big 10. If Wisconsin was able to score 56, how many will Boise St., Miami, and Toledo score on them???
Omar Jacobs threw for 458 yards and 5 TDs, but all for naught.

Another team I was impressed with I must say was Notre Dame. I felt like I was watching the New England Patriots offense, especially in the 1st half when the Irish scored 35. It's been awhile since the Irish scored 35 in a half. This will give them a lot of confidence going to Michigan next week. Charlie Weis is a great game-planner, Michigan better be ready for him.

Anyway, the first part of my Columbus trip was excellent. Thank you to the fine people of the Dealership for letting me stay the night. We went out in the Arena District, and a good time was had by all. It's been awhile since I've been out late, so I got a little tired. I hope I'm not that old. Anyway, I think I'd enjoy living in Columbus if I ever were offered a job there.

I must apologize to those who I tried to meet up with Friday/Saturday. The weekend took on a different identity every couple of hours and logistics got screwed up, so I'm sorry about that. Hopefully, next time things will go smoother.

One of the highlights from Friday was running into Danny Brywczynski. I played basketball with Danny in high school and hadn't seen him since. Danny helped turn around the Northmont bball program with his tenacious play and leadership. He was the leader of our team, a great ballhandler, and a clutch shooter. He went onto play at Wittenberg, a Division III powerhouse, though to his own admission Fri. night, fell a little short in the NCAA Tourney, losing in the 2nd round despite being ranked 2nd nationally. I have a lot of respect for Danny, he's a hard worker and he's merited all of the successes he's enjoyed. And he's also a good friend, so it was good to see him.

Labor Day weekend also brings the Round of 16 of the US Open. Notable matches from the weekend have been James Blake's upset of #2 Rafael Nadal and Venus beating Serena in straight sets. The other seeds have made it through basically, which should make for an exciting 2nd week.

What makes the US Open the most exciting of the 4 majors are: it has the best field of all 4 majors, it's played on the most competitive surface (medium-speed hard courts), and the night matches. Night tennis matches are similar to night football games. The crowd gets a chance to "prepare", making them more vocal, giving the players more energy to perform. Night matches are played at the Australian Open, but nighttime at Melbourne doesn't compare to nighttime in New York (no offense Melbourne). The raucous atmosphere brings emotions out of players you've never seen before. A good example was tonight's 5-set match between Paradorn Srichipan and Davide Sanguinetti. It only lasted 4 hours and 20 minutes, with Sanguinetti winning in the 5th set tiebreaker, the longest a match can go at the US Open. You know the action is good when both players acknowledge one another during the match and smile, knowing they are a part of something special. That brings the crowd to its feet, giving the players enough of an adrenaline boost to finish the match. That's what makes tennis so special. It's able to tap into that human element that makes the professionals real people, fighting the other person as well as themselves to get the most out of their body and talent.

Speaking of Venus and Serena, they have disappointed me once again. Just as I was coming around Venus and her rededication to the sport, she said something I couldn't believe. Venus didn't know about the Hurricane until Thursday because "She doesn't watch the news." You could have found out without watching the news. You have got to be kidding me?!?!?! This is just a prime example of how athletes and other famous people get caught up in their own little world and don't care about what's going on around them.

Then, Serena announced she would donate $100 for every ace she would hit during the US Open and for the rest of the year. At first, it seems like a nice gesture, but when you think about it, Serena doesn't hit many aces (I think she had between 10-15 for a donation of $1,000-$1,500), she's out of shape which makes it more unlikely she'll hit a bunch of aces, and she's showed to be more disinterested in tennis, which makes it possible she won't play in anymore tournaments the rest of the year!!!! Meanwhile, the Manning brothers took a day to fly down and help out in New Orleans, John McEnroe donated $25,000 of his own money, and Lance Armstrong donated $500,000. I donated $24, and I'm not making any money currently and don't have much to begin with. The Williams sisters just don't get it.

One alma mater did come up with a big win this weekend. Northmont took it to LaSalle in their house 42-7. LaSalle isn't on the same level as Elder, Moeller, and St. Xavier, but they're still a Top 10 team in Cincinnati. This should've been closer, so for the Bolts to win as big as they did is impressive. This sets up an early showdown with Centerville, who also got a big win in Cincinnati by beating Princeton. Northmont and Centerville are big rivals, but haven't played in football for a long time (I can't even tell you when right now). As of now, I will be there, as will many others. The crowd of 9,500 for the CJ game could be small compared to the number that will turn out this Friday.

Well, I've hope you've had a great weekend. Please don't drink and drive.