Then There Were 5

Before I begin, congrats to my alma mater. Northmont beat Troy 35-14, making the playoffs as the 6 seed in Region 4, which earns them a rematch with Centerville at Centerville next Saturday night. Good job Northmont, GWOC East Champs.

And I've heard Tom Cruise wants Katie Holmes to agree to a prenuptial agreement because Tom wants to "protect" her. This has Katie all upset. Katie, how could you not see this coming???? As much as it's seemed like a fairy tale, it's really not!!!! Tom got his summer hype, now he wants to make sure he doesn't lose too much in the process. This downgrades Katie in my mind a little bit, I thought she was smart. But first she converted to scientology, now she can't believe he wants a prenup, hello!!!!! Is anybody home?!?!?! I guess she forgot to learn common sense while attending private school.

I can't get enough of the Burger King commercials. My favorites have to be where he catches the lateral from Randy Moss and when he dunks the ball over the goalpost.

Ok, let's talk football:
Miami 41, Temple 14. The Redhawks took care of business in a very empty Lincoln Financial Field, scoring 24 unanswered points after Temple made it a 17-14 game in the 2nd quarter. Josh Betts threw for 369 yards and 3 TDs, and the defense forced 3 turnovers. Miami returns home for a meeting with Buffalo Saturday.

It was another crazy day in the MAC. Central Michigan assumed control of the MAC West with a home win over Toledo. Central still has to host Northern Illinois, but if they win out, Central will win the West. That looks highly likely as Northern has been decimated by injuries, which caused them to lose to lowly Ball St. Omar Jacobs didn't play for Bowling Green, and the Falcons couldn't overcome it, losing at home to Akron, who just lost last week to Army. Again, if Miami wins out, the Redhawks will have their 3-peat in the East.

Ohio St. 45, Minnesota 31. The offensive production Buckeye Fans have waited for has come to light the last 3 weeks. Troy Smith threw 3 TD passes, Antonio Pittman ran for 182 yards and 2 TDs, and Ted Ginn Jr. ran a kickoff back for a TD. Minnesota did tally 578 yards of offense, but the OSU D rose to the occasion when needed. The Buckeyes, Penn St., and Wisconsin all share the Big 10 lead with 1 loss; Penn St. hosts Wisconsin next week. Ohio St. is turning into a team you don't want to play right now, they're clicking in each facet of the game.

Florida 14, Georgia 10. The Dawgs didn't match the Gators' intensity in the 1st quarter, and fell behind 14-0. Florida looked like a different team, more relaxed and confident. I thought Georgia was a better defensive team and would win the kicking game, but they lost it. Florida's running game was more effective and Georgia's kicking game didn't get it done.

Here's the top 10:
1. USC. Took care of business in a big way at home vs. Wazzu. And when did Snoop become a SC fan??? Where was Nick Lachey???

2. Texas. Didn't show up in the 1st half tonight at Oklahoma St. Oklahoma St. came in averaging 17 points/game and scored 28 in the 1st half. Vince Young ran wild in the 2nd half to lead the Horns back, duplicating what happened last year when Oklahoma St. blew a big 1st half lead. The Horns have to be careful because they will be huge favorites in the rest of their games. If they don't play well, the human voters could drop them below Va. Tech. Next is a road trip to Baylor, who's been more competitive this year.

3. Virginia Tech. Thoroughly dominated Boston College Thursday night. Marcus Vick was sharp, and the Hokies were too fast and athletic for the Eagles, especially on defense. Big primetime showdown vs. The U Saturday night.

4. Alabama. Got a breather with Utah St. today, it's back on the road in the SEC next week. Starkville and Mississippi St. come before the last 2 games with LSU and Auburn.

5. UCLA. Down 24-3 at Stanford with 8 minutes left, I thought even the Bruins couldn't come back from this deficit. But I've learned my lesson, don't count Drew Olson and Maurice Drew out. UCLA came back to win and are still undefeated. They can't keep living on the edge like this.

6. LSU. North Texas tonight, easy win. Appalachian St. next week, easy win.

7. Notre Dame. Off this week, Tennessee comes to town next week. This will be the best defense Charlie Weis has had to go against this year, but he's had 2 weeks to prepare. Advantage: Irish.

8. Penn St. Although Purdue is terrible, especially defensively, I thought Penn St. played a solid offensive game without playmaker Derrick Williams. Michael Robinson still spread the ball around and ran for big yardage.

9. Miami. The U showed up in the 2nd half vs. North Carolina. The defense flew to the ball, the special teams were special, and Kyle Wright controlled the passing game, cutting down on turnovers. This is a good team, but I think they'll have to get a super game from Wright and Tyrone Moss to beat Va. Tech. Wright will have to step up as I'm sure the defense will key on Moss.

10. Georgia. Despite playing a dreadful 1st quarter, the Dawgs never quit, getting back in the game and fighting to the end. I think if DJ Shockley did play, the outcome would've been different. The Dawgs missed his leadership more than his skill today, though he tried his best to lead on the sideline.

Ok, I'm going to finish watching Lance Armstrong on SNL. It's mediocre at best. He's ok, everyone else's performances just remind me why I don't watch SNL anymore.

Hoops previews will most likely return Monday. Tomorrow, Da Bears vs. the Lions for 1st in the NFC North!!!

ACC Preview

So I called my old high school basketball coach to see if he could use any help this season as I look for a job. I want to get into coaching at some point, why not now, especially while I look for a job. It would give me something to look forward to everyday, and it's basketball, awww yeah. Well, it looks like I'll be helping out the Junior Varsity, where my old freshman and JV coaches are still coaching, so that will make it fun and a great learning experience. Plus, I always felt like I had some unfinished business in my high school gym. I played good ball at Miami, now I can go back to the "Thunderdome" and show how good I've become. I feel I can teach the kids a lot, and I feel I can be effective since I came up through the Northmont system.

Today I also got a check from Miami worth quite a bit of money. Why do you ask??? Well, I'm not sure, but I think it's some backpay from my assistantship. But hey, it's money, and I won't argue about money.

Before I get to the ACC, I'd like to acknowledge that my stats come from The Sporting News preview. I think they do the best job getting you ready for the season.

The Big East may have the better teams at the top, but top to bottom, no one beats the ACC. Any road win is a good win, and that includes Clemson. Even though the Big East has become really good, the ACC still has won 3 of the last 5 national championships. This year, all of the teams have suffered key losses, and for most of them, they will rely on freshmen playing vital roles to get them victories. There will be no bigger example of that than North Carolina, who may start as many as 3 freshmen after winning it all last year.

1. Duke. JJ Redick is a complete offensive player, Shelden Williams has developed into a big force at both ends, and they may have the best freshmen class in all the land. I can't wait to see Josh McRoberts, who will more than make up for the loss of Shavlik Randolph. Greg Paulus will push Sean Dockery at the point guard spot, and competition is always a good thing, especially with Dockery who needs to raise his level of play. DeMarcus Nelson is the defensive stopper and Lee Melchionni is the guy who you forget about, but he makes a lot of big shots. This will be a stellar defensive team without a doubt. The question is at the other end. Who will create their own shot and/or shots for the others??? Redick can get his own shot, but he needs help from Dockery or Paulus to slash to the goal every once in ahwile. This is a Final 4 team.

2. Maryland. I ragged on the Terps last year because they wasted a lot of talent. They beat Duke twice, yet lost to Clemson three times. Now that John Gilchrist is gone and everyone else is back, there are no excuses for this team not to go far. After losing a cancer like Gilchrist, usually a team is better for it (except this year's Minnesota Vikings). Nik Caner-Medley is a good offensive player on the wing, he needs to step up and be a star. Ekene Ibekwe can hurt you inside and outside, along with Travis Garrison. Chris McCray is money from 3, and DJ Strawberry can do it all off the bench. James Gist and Mike Jones add more scoring pop and Will Bowers has a lot of potential inside. The only question is at the point, where Sterling Ledbetter needs to be the leader on a team that had no leaders last year. Maryland may have the most depth of any team in the nation, they can go 10 deep. Can they make it all work and be a team???

3. Boston College. This will be the 1st year in the league for BC, and they could make a title run. There aren't many better forward duos than Craig Smith and Jared Dudley. Smith is listed at 6'7, which is generous, but he plays much bigger, proving himself to be unstoppable on the low block. Dudley is a perfect fit for BC's flex. He's shifty inside and can make the mid-range jumper. While small inside, BC is big outside with Sean Marshall and Louis Hinnant, who are capable scorers on the perimeter. If Sean Williams can stay healthy and play like he did the 1st half of last year, BC has a complete team. The negative: not much depth. They will need to get something out of their freshmen. The flex is hard to prepare for because you can do so much with it. That will give BC an early advantage against ACC teams who haven't played against it. If BC can get something from their bench, they could challenge for the title.

4. NC State. The loss of Julius Hodge hurts, but Herb Sendek returns a lot of guys from a team that finally made it over the hump in the postseason and made it to the Sweet 16. Tony Bethel is healthy, so he has a chance of putting up Hodge-like numbers. Engin Atsur complements him in the backcourt, along with versatile Cameron Bennerman who could explode. Ilian Evtimov is a rock at power forward, and Andrew Brackman should only continue to build off of his solid freshman year. Cedric Simmons gives the Pack some inside depth, Gavin Grant does the same on the outside. Bethel and Bennerman will be the go-to guys in the clutch because they have the most ability, can the produce in the clutch?? This team should have a lot of confidence after the way they finished last year.

5. Wake Forest. Wake lost a lot (Chris Paul, Jamaal Levy, Vytas Danelius, and Taron Downey). Justin Gray will have to play a lot of point guard, where he is not as effective as he is at shooting guard. Eric Williams does return at center, where he had a big year last year. Chris Ellis and Trent Strickland go from the bench to the starting lineup, where both significantly need to improve their offensive output. Freshman Kevin Swinton will probably start, he has a scorer's mentality. Kyle Visser provides experience off the bench inside, while freshman Shamaine Dukes will relieve Gray at the point. Wake may actually be better defensively, which shouldn't be hard because they couldn't guard anyone last year. Wake has athletes, but only two proven scorers. Dare I say, Wake may struggle offensively at first???

6. Miami. The Canes shared 6th in the ACC last year after being picked to finish dead last. They are led by their 3-guard attack: Guillermo Diaz, Anthony Harris, and Robert Hite. Harris runs the show, Diaz is the shooter, Hite is the entertainment. Inside is where the Canes need some help. Anthony King and Gary Hamilton are experienced, but didn't score a lot last year. The other Miami bigmen are all inexperienced underclassmen. Not good when you need a cheap basket to stop a run. The Canes won't be able to sneak up on oeople this year, can they live up to the heightened expectations???

7. North Carolina. Yes, the defending national champs may not make the NCAA Tournament. That hasn't happened since 1987 when Louisville failed to make it to the Dance. But I have a feeling the Heels will make it in. There's too much talent, although young, and Roy Williams is too good of a coach not to go dancin. David Noel has proven in big games he's a reliable scorer, and Reyshawn Terry has made some big shots. The freshmen will play and they are good. Tyler Hansbrough is relentless inside, Bobby Frasor is a McDonald's All-American, and Danny Green is a versatile wing player. The key is the point guard, Quentin Thomas. As Ray Felton was the x-factor in UNC's title, UNC will go as far as Thomas's play takes them. When he started against Santa Clara last year when Felton was suspended, he struggled. Against Santa Clara. Thomas will have to grow up in a hurry.

8. Virginia Tech. The Hokies also made an impact in their first year in the league, beating Duke at home. 4 starters are back, led by Zabian Dowdell who is a fantastic all-around player. Jamon Gordon can drive and dish, and Deron Washington can play in/out. The Hokies have the talent in their starting lineup, if they get anything from their bench, they could finish in the top half of the league. Dowdell will have to replace the graduated Carlos Dixon as the main man.

9. Georgia Tech. The Jackets are another team that could surprise. They don't have a lot of proven parts, but they have a lot of ability. Anthony Morrow and Mario West have played significant minutes outside, and Ra'Sean Dickey has a nice low-post game. Paul Hewitt will play a lot of people, and you know they will guard people. Offensive consistency is something Tech will need to find as their returning leading scorer only averaged 6/game last year.

10. Clemson. The Tigers are coming. Oliver Purnell has the type of team that he wants, they just need to keep improving. His offense needs a low-post threat, which will have to be Akin Akingbala after Sharrod Ford graduated. Clemson has good guards in Shawan Robinson, Cliff Hammonds, and Vernon Hamilton. Hamilton needs to become more of a 3 point threat. The Tigers still don't have a lot of experience, but Purnell likes to play 8-9 people, so his young guys will grow up in a hurry. Next year they may be in a position to compete for an NCAA berth. An NIT berth would be a great accomplishment this year.

11. Virginia. The Cavs get their stalwart backcourt back, but lose their big fellas, Elton Brown and Devin Smith. Sean Singletary and JR Reynolds have a lot of game. Singletary is just a sophomore who has no problem with taking over a game. Gary Forbes gives the Cavs three threats outside. On the inside, the Cavs are inexpreienced and lean. They will get killed on the boards and will struggle, but they are young and will be back.

12. Florida St. Todd Galloway gives them stability at the point, and Al Thornton gives them a low-post threat. Alexander Johnson needs to keep improving inside, and Diego Romero needs to make good on the hype surrounding him. Coach Leonard Hamilton has changed the attitude of the program and got a solid recruiting class. The Noles don't have a lot of depth, but will continue to be tough to beat at Tallhassee.

Next up will be the Big 12.

Tomorrow night is the final Friday of regular season high school football. For Northmont, it's pretty simple. Win, and a trip to the playoffs, most likely a rematch with Wayne in Huber Heights. Lose, and it's a trip home for the 2nd straight year. There will be a lot of scoreboard watching tomorrow night.

In other news, Harriet Miers withdrew her name from consideration for the Supreme Court. Although part of President Bush's White House counsel, I wasn't a fan of her being nominated. From researching some about her, she has no judicial experience, and although she's participated in some high-profile cases, her involvement has been minimal at least. I think the President went too far in finding someone who didn't have much of a past to dig into.

And I think my Christmas list just expanded. I would like: a Chicago Bears football jersey with the name of a certain Coach Ditka on the back, the ESPN College Football encyclopedia, and my newest addition, the Fisher-Price ESPN Basketball game that has the voice of Dick Vitale.

Have a good night.

Big East Preview

Every night from here on out, I'm going to try and give you some college hoops previews. Baseball is winding down (hopefully tonight) so that means it's time to lace em up. It's going to be tough to top last year, especially last year's NCAA Tourney. The teams aren't as stocked with individual talent as they were last year, but it is as wide open as last year. Last year, the question was: Who would prove to be the best when it was all said and done? This year, the question is: Who's going to step up and lead their team to the promised land?

I'm starting with the Big East, arguably the toughest conference in the country now that Louisville, South Florida, Cincinnati, and DePaul have joined. Of the 16 teams, 10 have a legitimate chance to make the NCAAs. The top 12 will only be allowed to play in the Big East Tourney at Madison Square Garden. The Big East Tournament now will be a mini-NCAA, which I'm really excited about.

So, here are my Big East picks:
1. Villanova. I've come out and said the Wildcats are my pick to win the whole thing. Nova's chances have taken a huge blow with Curtis Sumpter reinjuring his knee. There is still no definitive word about the injury, but I think Nova can get it done without him. Nova will play 3 guards: Mike Nardi, Allen Ray, and Randy Foye. They can shoot it and they can take you to the rack. Kyle Lowry is instant offense off the bench, a slasher who fears no one. Up front, if Sumpter is limited, Jason Fraser becomes the go-to guy. A heralded recruit, Fraser has had two hand surgeries and five knee operations in the last 3 years. When healthy, he's shown to be a double-double guy. If he can give Nova 15 points, 10 rebounds, and 2 blocks a night, I like their chances. Will Sheridan and Marcus Austin provide additional depth inside. Austin should contribute more than he has in the past, Sheridan isn't flashy, but solid.

2. UConn. If AJ Price and Marcus Williams are allowed to play after stealing laptops, first I'll be shocked, then I'll put them in my Final 4. Williams makes the Huskies go, averaging 10 points, 8 assists, and 4 rebounds a night. Price is coming back from a near fatal brain hemmorrhage that sidelined him last year. He's quicker and a better shooter than Williams. But, if they do come back, one has to wonder how distracted they'll be after the offseason they had. Up front, sophomore sensation Rudy Gay is a jump shot away from being next year's #1 draft pick (no joke). He has the range, but has to become more consistent. He's got everything else, great quickness to complement his great size and his physical presence. Rashad Anderson and Denham Brown are solid on the wings, Josh Boone and Hilton Armstrong dominate the glass. Boone is gradually developing a post game, if he can become more of a scorer, this team is really dangerous.

3. Louisville. This team will play more like a 90s Kentucky-coached Rick Pitino team. The Cards are quick, big, and athletic at every position. Taquan Dean is the playmaker outside, with his long and mid-range game. He needs to average more than 2 assists/game. Juan Palacios could make a run at Player of the Year. The 6'8" forward has all of the tools, he must learn to play hard every night. And the Cards have depth, especially with Kansas transfer David Padgett and highly touted freshman Terrence Williams ready to make an impact. The Cards need another shooter to complement Dean, otherwise U of L will see a lot of zone.

4. West Virginia. Is West Virginia for real or are they a fluke? I think they're for real. John Beilein is still an underrated coach. His perimeter-oriented offense combined with his unique 1-3-1 defense gives opponents fits. Pick your poison with this team, who do you leave open??? Kevin Pittsnogle (43% from 3), Mike Gansey (35%), Johannes Herber (38%), JD Collins (35%), or Patrick Beilein (36%)??? They don't take possessions off and have impecable team chemistry. But, how much will they miss playmaker Tyrone Sally, who found the open man and could drive inside? Also, there will be no D'or Fischer inside, who did the dirty work.

5. Syracuse. Speaking of stepping up, it's time for Syracuse's junior class to do just that: Louie McCroskey, Demetris Nichols, Terrence Roberts, and Darryl Watkins. They have all of the potential in the world, it's time to do something for it. You know Gerry McNamara will be launching from everywhere, who will complement him??? This team will be tough to score against, especially when they settle in their zone, and with their length, I wouldn't be surprised if they hold teams to less than 60 points per game. If the Orange can make the open jump shot, and they will get plenty of open looks until they can make them, they will finish higher than 5th.

6. Georgetown. After faltering down the stretch, this should be the year the Hoyas return to the Dance. There aren't many better forward tandems in the country than Brandon Bowman and Jeff Green. Bowman can score inside and out, Green is a force on the block. All 5 starters return for a team, that if they can get consistent outside shooting, will be tough to beat.

7. Pittsburgh. Now we're getting into the bubble teams. Many see Pitt as a lower-half Big East team, but the way they play defense and rebound, that alone will win them some games they shouldn't. Carl Krauser plays with flair outside, but he needs another guard to step up so he can get more of his teammates involved. Ronald Ramon had a solid freshman year, look for him to be a double-digit scorer. Antonio Graves gives Pitt some additional experience out top. Inside is where Pitt will have problems. Levon Kendall and Aaron Gray have experience, but Kendall hasn't done much, and Gray is awkward. Freshmen Tyrell Biggs and Sam Young will see a lot of minutes, especially Young, who is a workaholic inside.

8. Cincinnati. The Bearcats are always physically imposing, but don't have much mental capacity. How much will they have this year after the Bob Huggins fiasco??? Jihad Muhammad is the definition of inconsistency, James White and Armein Kirkland play when they feel like it, and Eric Hicks, who plays hard inside, still thinks he has 3 point range. And those 4 will have to carry the team, along with Chadd Moore, who is back after missing some time with a bad back. Two players to look out for are junior college transfer Ivan Johnson and freshman guard Devan Downey, who averaged 37 points/game as a senior in high school. You never know with this team.

9. Notre Dame. With Chris Thomas gone after his 8 years there (it seemed like 8), the Irish really don't have a true point guard. Chris Quinn will start there, but he'd rather play off the ball. He and Colin Falls can shoot the 3, but have trouble creating shots for themselves. Torin Francis needs to have a big year for the Irish to play in March, he's the only inside threat the Irish have, unless Mr. Basketball Luke Zeller can step in and conribute.

10. Marquette. Now we're into the teams who would be happy with a winning season. Marquette will be well-coached, but they're a year away from competing for a postseason berth. Watch out for freshman Dominic James at point guard.

11. St. John's. Very young, but very talented. Also a year away. Daryll Hill is the best player you probably won't see. He's And 1 Streetball with some basketball IQ.

12. Providence. Donnie McGrath and Dwight Brewington give the Friars some backcourt firepower, but no one will be able to fill the shoes of Ryan Gomes.

13. Seton Hall. Kelly Whitney is a talented power forward, but the Hall has nothing in the backcourt, sorry to say.

14. Rutgers. Gary Waters has a young team, but he'll coach them up.

15. DePaul. It will be a tough first year for Jerry Wainwright, but the Blue Demons will be back.

16. South Florida. Personally, it will be tough for Da Bulls to compete in this conference. They don't have a basketball history and aren't a football power. And, Florida's basketball talent doesn't even compare to the quality of their football talent at the high school level.

Next will be the ACC. Hope you enjoy.

I Like Nibbles

Today, I had my first phone interview in over a month. I don't know what will come of it, but at least I'm still worth a nibble. Yesterday was pretty tough. I didn't catch up on rest from the weekend, and with the depressingly cold, rainy weather, I was an emotional wreck. It's been awhile since I've had a day like that. Obviously, today was a lot better. The harder you work, the luckier you get. I'm going to continue to work hard, maybe I'll get a break.

I promised a Top 10, so here it is:
1. USC. The only way Reggie Bush doesn't win the Heisman is if he gets hurt. Should have an easy time at home vs. Washington St.

2. Texas. Texas Tech is overrated and the Horns proved it. Vince Young made a couple of mistakes, but he more than made up for them. Next is a trip to Oklahoma State.

3. Virginia Tech. Now we'll begin to find out more about the Hokies. Thursday night, Boston College comes to Blacksburg. Despite his below average performance at Maryland, Marcus Vick is the real deal.

4. Georgia. Uh oh, DJ Shockley is out. He is the X-factor for the Bulldogs. Now, it comes down to running and defending for UGA as they get ready for the Cocktail Party vs. Florida.

5. Alabama. 2 games without Tyrone Prothro, 19 points combined. If the Tide can't score more than that vs. Utah State, there's trouble. Alabama has the defense, but they need another playmaker to step up with Brodie Croyle and DJ Hall.

6. UCLA. The offense is rolling, scoring 51 vs. Oregon St., led by 6 Drew Olson TD passes. Opposing defense have to worry about him and Maurice Drew, which makes UCLA virtually unstoppable. But, the defense is very susceptible, and you can bet Walt Harris will have the Stanford offense ready to score and play ball control this week.

7. LSU. Auburn was game, but the Tigers were able to pull it out, a big win for Les Miles and his team. The defense allowed 218 rushing yards by Kenny Irons, so they'll need to get that fixed. An encouraging sign for LSU was that they didn't turn the ball over once. They should have an easy time with North Texas.

8. Florida St. The Noles got well with a win at Duke. Maryland comes to Doak Campbell this week. The FSU pass attack continues to improve, getting 376 yards and 4 TDs last week.

9. Notre Dame. To see if the Irish were really back, they needed to be impressive against BYU. Winning 49-23 behind 467 yards and 6 TDs by Brady Quinn validates them. The Irish get two weeks to prepare for Tennessee.

10. Penn St. Big bounce-back win at Illinois, and they did it in a big way. They can't overlook an underachieving Purdue team coming into State College, Michael Robinson needs to keep making big plays.

On the verge: Boston College (a win at Va. Tech would make them top-10 worthy), Ohio St. (the offense may be coming around), Miami (still waiting for them to play somebody), Oregon (only loss to USC, can they finish 2nd in the tough Pac-10)

In tonight's Amazing Race, the teams traveled to the Panama Canal. The arguing Paolos have taken the lead, winning the Fast Forward by bungee jumping. Team Cincinnati, the Linzes, are in 4th, the Gaghins and the kids 5th, with the Godlewskis hanging on in 6th, forced to give up their money and possessions for the next lag.

Remember Tonya Harding??? Well, she's at it again, this time throwing down her boyfriend and biting his finger after he had drank too much. The boyfriend was charged with assault and released after pleading not guilty. Originally, Harding said two masked men entered her house and attacked her. Tonya, GO AWAY, PLEASE!!!! Also, what does this say about the men she's with??? I mean, Tonya's tried boxing and has had mixed results, but she seems to beat up her boyfriends pretty badly. Also, don't these guys know what they're getting into??? Plus, Tonya isn't exactly attractive, I don't know.

Finally, if you go to Hollywood Boulevard, you will find dozens of cartoon characters and other famous people getting their pictures taken with their tourists. The catch is, they are impersonators out to make as much as possible in tips. Some have included Elmo, Mr. Incredible, Elvis, and Michael Jackson. It's been so bad, there have been 80 of these people arrested. And I thought I didn't have a life. Watch it when Elmo tries to tickle you, it may be an impostor.

Columbus West

There's a lot to talk about tonight, but I'll start with the road trip to Bloomington yesterday. With gametime set at 12:10, we left at 7:30 for our destination about 3 hours away. Traffic didn't allow us to get to Bloomington until 11, but we wouldn't enter the stadium until 12 for a number of reasons haha. First, about 1/3 mile from the parking lot, father had to go the restroom, badly. He couldn't wait, but we were stuck in traffic. I told him to go in his coffee mug, because it would take forever to get back in line for the parking lot. But there was a Subway just ahead, and since we weren't moving, dad jumped out of the car and started running, literally. Well, first he started walking/doing his gotta go dance, then he started running. Meanwhile, I'm at the wheel, figuring we hadn't moved in 5 minutes, it'll be another 5 before we move again. Right about then, we began to move. And we actually were moving pretty well, so well that we went by the Subway and then some. So I had to get out of line and pull into a McDonalds and wait for dad to find us.

And don't worry, there will be pics of this, and the whole trip coming in the near future.

Eventually we parked, in a grassy area across the street from Memorial Stadium and Assembly Hall (basketball arena). I'm a big fan of grassy areas near football stadiums. They provide a nice backdrop and are good tailgating areas. This didn't compare to the Michigan golf course, but it was still nice. Our seats were in the south end zone, and they weren't bad. We were in the midst of OSU fans, who despite only getting 15,000 tickets for the game (capacity 52,000), they still managed to outnumber the IU faithful or come close to it. They even did the O-H-I-O chant around the stadium as if it were the Horseshoe.

As for the game, IU managed to keep it close until the 3rd quarter despite the worst officiating call I've ever seen. In the 1st quarter, OSU was forced to punt after their first series and the IU punt returner fumbled the punt, despite an early whistle from one of the officials, thinking the play was over. Because the play wasn't actually dead, it was correctly ruled a fumble and OSU took over. At the beginning of the 2nd half, IU kicked off, there was an early whistle, OSU fumbled the kick and IU recovered. The same exact situation, so IU got the ball, right??? The officials ruled that because of the early whistle, the play didn't count and IU had to rekick??? It was as if MAC officials were at the game, how could you rule two different ways when given the same situation???

Anyway, it worked out in the end for IU because on that series, Ted Ginn was stripped and IU ran it back for a touchdown to make it 17-10 OSU with 10 minutes left in the 3rd. But that was as close as IU got. OSU took the ball and went down the field and scored to make it 24-10. A couple of minutes later, it was 31-10 after OSU picked off a Blake Powers pass and returned it for a TD. And in the 4th, Ted Ginn tacked on the exclamation point with a punt return for a TD. OSU won 41-10, holding the Hoosier offense to 131 yards. Ohio St., Penn St., Northwestern, and Wisconsin all share the Big 10 lead. IU still has a chance for a bowl game, but must win 2 of its last 4 (still must play Michigan, Michigan St., Minnesota, and Purdue) to become bowl eligible.

Some other thoughts:
For those of you from Miami and HawkHeads, you will recall "HotCop", the title we gave a couple of years ago to a very attractive female police officer that worked at football games. Well, IU has their very own HotCop, and I must say she was even more attractive than Miami's version. Sadly, she had a big fat ring on her left hand. Again, there will be pics forthcoming.

Another reason why I don't like OSU fans: complaining about the officiating when ahead by 3 touchdowns. The game was basically over, yet the fans were still crying about bad calls. You're winning the game, enjoy it, and shut up!!!!!

IU is coming as a football school. The students came out, despite the early start time (11:10am local time), and were into it until the 4th quarter. I only wish I was able to get my hands on one of the "Hep got me to come" t-shirt or something to that effect.

Meanwhile, on the way home we were able to listen to the wild game that was Miami/Eastern Michigan. Tied at 17 with 5 minutes left, Miami drove down and took the lead on a Josh Betts to Martin Nance pass. 1:10 left, a 24-17 lead, should be good enough, right?? Eastern went 67 yards in 6 plays and scored on a TD pass to make it 24-23 with 12 seconds left. But on the extra point, the snap was bad, and the kick hit the upright. Miami recovered the ensuing onside kick and held onto win the game. Josh Betts threw for 252 yards and 2 TDs (also 2 INTs), and Brandon Murphy rushed for 161. Miami is now 4-3 and back in control of their own destiny in the MAC East thanks to a 45-14 Western Michigan win at Bowling Green. So it appears, if everything holds until then, the Miami/BG game at Miami will decide the MAC East. First, Miami travels to Philadelphia to take on Temple this Saturday.

The Top 10 will appear tomorrow night. I'm gonna need something to write about, so I'll do it then.

In college hoops news, Villanova may have lost Curtis Sumpter for the year. Sumpter is a preseason candidate for National Player of the Year. Miami may have lost starting center Monty St. Clair for the year also. St. Clair would be a huge loss as he provides the beef up front and an additional potent outside shooter.

Who dey gonna beat them Bengals?!?!? Big Ben and the Steelers did. Despite 2 early scoring chances, the Bengals could only get 3 points, which wasn't a good sign. The Bengals couldn't stop the run, giving up 131 yards to Willie Parker, 200+ yards to the Steelers as a team. Roethlisberger did throw his 1st INT of the year, but for the most part was his efficient self, throwing 2 TD passes. The Bengals are a good team. They are 1 defensive tackle stud from becoming really good.

And a team known as Da Bears won their 2nd straight, 10-6 over the Ravens. Kyle Orton threw a TD pass, and Thomas Jones ran for 135 yards. Big showdown for 1st in the NFC North next week as Da Bears look to sweep the Lions in Detroit.

Friday night, Wayne won the big showdown with Northmont 40-15. The Bolts led 9-7 at halftime, but Wayne turned the game around after converting a 4th and 17 in the 3rd quarter. Wayne clinched a 1st round home game with the win, Northmont must win at Troy and get help next week to make the playoffs.

I saw two good commercials today. First, Burger King's King slam dunked the football over the crossbar, very funny. Then, Gatorade came out with one showing Michael Jordan missing the shot over Craig Ehlo, Dwight Clark not making "The Catch", and one other thing I can't remember now. I think it's the only time I've ever seen Craig Ehlo celebrating anything (and it didn't happen haha).

Finally, anyone else think it's interesting that two of the worst hurricanes ever, Katrina and Wilma, hit two places known for their social debauchery (New Orleans and Cancun respectively)???? I'm just saying......

Columbus West

There's a lot to talk about tonight, but I'll start with the road trip to Bloomington yesterday. With gametime set at 12:10, we left at 7:30 for our destination about 3 hours away. Traffic didn't allow us to get to Bloomington until 11, but we wouldn't enter the stadium until 12 for a number of reasons haha. First, about 1/3 mile from the parking lot, father had to go the restroom, badly. He couldn't wait, but we were stuck in traffic. I told him to go in his coffee mug, because it would take forever to get back in line for the parking lot. But there was a Subway just ahead, and since we weren't moving, dad jumped out of the car and started running, literally. Well, first he started walking/doing his gotta go dance, then he started running. Meanwhile, I'm at the wheel, figuring we hadn't moved in 5 minutes, it'll be another 5 before we move again. Right about then, we began to move. And we actually were moving pretty well, so well that we went by the Subway and then some. So I had to get out of line and pull into a McDonalds and wait for dad to find us.

And don't worry, there will be pics of this, and the whole trip coming in the near future.

Eventually we parked, in a grassy area across the street from Memorial Stadium and Assembly Hall (basketball arena). I'm a big fan of grassy areas near football stadiums. They provide a nice backdrop and are good tailgating areas. This didn't compare to the Michigan golf course, but it was still nice. Our seats were in the south end zone, and they weren't bad. We were in the midst of OSU fans, who despite only getting 15,000 tickets for the game (capacity 52,000), they still managed to outnumber the IU faithful or come close to it. They even did the O-H-I-O chant around the stadium as if it were the Horseshoe.

As for the game, IU managed to keep it close until the 3rd quarter despite the worst officiating call I've ever seen. In the 1st quarter, OSU was forced to punt after their first series and the IU punt returner fumbled the punt, despite an early whistle from one of the officials, thinking the play was over. Because the play wasn't actually dead, it was correctly ruled a fumble and OSU took over. At the beginning of the 2nd half, IU kicked off, there was an early whistle, OSU fumbled the kick and IU recovered. The same exact situation, so IU got the ball, right??? The officials ruled that because of the early whistle, the play didn't count and IU had to rekick??? It was as if MAC officials were at the game, how could you rule two different ways when given the same situation???

Anyway, it worked out in the end for IU because on that series, Ted Ginn was stripped and IU ran it back for a touchdown to make it 17-10 OSU with 10 minutes left in the 3rd. But that was as close as IU got. OSU took the ball and went down the field and scored to make it 24-10. A couple of minutes later, it was 31-10 after OSU picked off a Blake Powers pass and returned it for a TD. And in the 4th, Ted Ginn tacked on the exclamation point with a punt return for a TD. OSU won 41-10, holding the Hoosier offense to 131 yards. Ohio St., Penn St., Northwestern, and Wisconsin all share the Big 10 lead. IU still has a chance for a bowl game, but must win 2 of its last 4 (still must play Michigan, Michigan St., Minnesota, and Purdue) to become bowl eligible.

Some other thoughts:
For those of you from Miami and HawkHeads, you will recall "HotCop", the title we gave a couple of years ago to a very attractive female police officer that worked at football games. Well, IU has their very own HotCop, and I must say she was even more attractive than Miami's version. Sadly, she had a big fat ring on her left hand. Again, there will be pics forthcoming.

Another reason why I don't like OSU fans: complaining about the officiating when ahead by 3 touchdowns. The game was basically over, yet the fans were still crying about bad calls. You're winning the game, enjoy it, and shut up!!!!!

IU is coming as a football school. The students came out, despite the early start time (11:10am local time), and were into it until the 4th quarter. I only wish I was able to get my hands on one of the "Hep got me to come" t-shirt or something to that effect.

Meanwhile, on the way home we were able to listen to the wild game that was Miami/Eastern Michigan. Tied at 17 with 5 minutes left, Miami drove down and took the lead on a Josh Betts to Martin Nance pass. 1:10 left, a 24-17 lead, should be good enough, right?? Eastern went 67 yards in 6 plays and scored on a TD pass to make it 24-23 with 12 seconds left. But on the extra point, the snap was bad, and the kick hit the upright. Miami recovered the ensuing onside kick and held onto win the game. Josh Betts threw for 252 yards and 2 TDs (also 2 INTs), and Brandon Murphy rushed for 161. Miami is now 4-3 and back in control of their own destiny in the MAC East thanks to a 45-14 Western Michigan win at Bowling Green. So it appears, if everything holds until then, the Miami/BG game at Miami will decide the MAC East. First, Miami travels to Philadelphia to take on Temple this Saturday.

The Top 10 will appear tomorrow night. I'm gonna need something to write about, so I'll do it then.

In college hoops news, Villanova may have lost Curtis Sumpter for the year. Sumpter is a preseason candidate for National Player of the Year. Miami may have lost starting center Monty St. Clair for the year also. St. Clair would be a huge loss as he provides the beef up front and an additional potent outside shooter.

Who dey gonna beat them Bengals?!?!? Big Ben and the Steelers did. Despite 2 early scoring chances, the Bengals could only get 3 points, which wasn't a good sign. The Bengals couldn't stop the run, giving up 131 yards to Willie Parker, 200+ yards to the Steelers as a team. Roethlisberger did throw his 1st INT of the year, but for the most part was his efficient self, throwing 2 TD passes. The Bengals are a good team. They are 1 defensive tackle stud from becoming really good.

And a team known as Da Bears won their 2nd straight, 10-6 over the Ravens. Kyle Orton threw a TD pass, and Thomas Jones ran for 135 yards. Big showdown for 1st in the NFC North next week as Da Bears look to sweep the Lions in Detroit.

Friday night, Wayne won the big showdown with Northmont 40-15. The Bolts led 9-7 at halftime, but Wayne turned the game around after converting a 4th and 17 in the 3rd quarter. Wayne clinched a 1st round home game with the win, Northmont must win at Troy and get help next week to make the playoffs.

I saw two good commercials today. First, Burger King's King slam dunked the football over the crossbar, very funny. Then, Gatorade came out with one showing Michael Jordan missing the shot over Craig Ehlo, Dwight Clark not making "The Catch", and one other thing I can't remember now. I think it's the only time I've ever seen Craig Ehlo celebrating anything (and it didn't happen haha).

Finally, anyone else think it's interesting that two of the worst hurricanes ever, Katrina and Wilma, hit two places known for their social debauchery (New Orleans and Cancun respectively)???? I'm just saying......

200

Going into this year, I had three goals: finish my Master's, get a job, hit 200 lbs. Well I finished my Master's, am still looking for a job (been close), but this morning I hit 200 lbs. I want to say it's been at least 3 years since I've been at this level, so I was very excited when I saw 200 on the scale. Since coming home, I've fluctuated around 205, but the last 3 weeks, I've been averaging 5-6 workouts a week, alternating between tennis, biking, and running. In those last 3 weeks, I've dropped 5 pounds. We'll see how long I can stay at 200. I don't think it will last long with the cold weather coming in, making it tougher to do things outdoors. But I think I can keep it close enough to 200 where next year I can go under 200.

Let me explain why I work out:
1. The ladies. Whenever I move to my new location, it would be nice to find someone I could have a nice conversation with, which would hopefully lead to dating.And although I'm pretty intelligent and a nice guy to talk to, my physical presence wasn't really inviting (glasses, white guy = brainy, maybe too brainy). So, I figured I'd have to make myself more attractive to the average girl that goes out. 25 pounds later, it's made a whale of a difference, evidenced by my "Do you like sports?" happening at Mac N Joes way back in February. Only if she didn't smoke....

2. Health. My dad's side has had a history of cancer and heart disease. My dad has acknowledged that, so he watches his weight which has made me extra conscious about it. I see more and more people of my generation fall victim to the #1 alarming health cause of the last decade: obesity. I know if I become obese, I put myself in extra danger due to my family history.

3. Mental side. I firmly believe the better physical condition one is in, the better one's mental and emotional conditioning is also. I've noticed when I'm thinner, I get over things quicker and perform at a higher academic level. Some things would get me down for as long as a week, now it takes me less than 12 hours. Also, I retain more information and am quicker on my feet mentally when I'm in shape.

4. Why not? Why not try and be in the best physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual conditioning of your life? Simply dieting doesn't work, you must exercise and sweat!!!! Running, walking, tennis, aerobics, yoga, anything that gets your heart rate going. When I've put weight on, I feel like I'm a waste of space, literally and figuratively. Looking like a slob doesn't reflect well on who you are.

5. The ladies. Hey, it's a good thing when you're workin out and you run into a beautiful girl workin out also and get to say hello to her. She comes back with a gorgeous smile and a hello, and suddenly you run another 3 miles hoping to run into her again. That makes exercising worth it.

And you must watch what you eat. I'm a calorie counter, not meticulous about it, but I know what and how much is going into my body. I eat whatever I want, but only in serving sizes, and limit myself to one dessert and one other snack. I only have one can of pop a week (no joke), sticking to Sugar Free Kool-Aid (5 calories). You can eat all of the reduced fat food you want, but it still comes down to calories in vs. calories out.

And that's my health segment. In tonight's Apprentice, the guys (now minus Randal) won again, designing a better float for the new movie Zathura. The girls (plus Randal) are a mess. The blondes are doing nothing to get rid of the "dumb blonde" label, talking at the same time, not listening to each other. This got Kristi fired, even though beauty queen Jen M. was terrible in the presentation and made some glaring mistakes. But Kristi is just plain annoying, and I'm glad she's gone. Plus, Jen M. is good tv because she's good to look at. I'm glad the Donald realized that and decided to keep her.

Tomorrow night is the big battle at Northmont Stadium: 7-1 Wayne at 7-1 Northmont. The winner is guaranteed a playoff spot and remains alive for a home game in the 1st round. These two teams haven't played since 1989, when my dad still coached. I'll get to more on that in a second. These two teams like to throw the ball, but with rain in the forecast, it will come down to the trenches. Alex Early is a strong, mobile quarterback who makes Wayne go. He can do it with his arm and his legs. Northmont relies on spreading you out and relying on Clay Belton's arm or AJ Combest's running. With wet, miserable conditions in the forecast, whoever turns the ball over less will win.

It wasn't until the 3rd grade that I realized Northmont was my school district and not Wayne. My dad taught at Wayne, we went to Wayne football games, so I naturally thought I'd be going there. I was given a hard time about this in elementary school, but there was no way I was going to root against my dad. In the three Northmont/Wayne games I went to, Wayne won. Then, they stopped playing each other. But now the series is back on, and made more interesting by the fact the coaches know one another very well.

When my dad coached, here were some of the other staff members: Mike Schneider (head coach), Lance Schneider (assistant), Pat Wood (assistant), Mike Garringer (assistant), Mike Fisher (former player), Greg Shackleford (former player), Rosie Mukes (former player)

Now, here's some of Northmont's staff: Lance Schneider (head coach), Mike Schneider (assistant), Greg Shackleford (assistant)

And some of Wayne's: Pat Wood (assistant), Mike Garringer (assistant), Mike Fisher (assistant), Rosie Mukes (assistant)

And I know all of these guys since they coached with or played for my dad, that's the odd thing.

So this will be a good ol' reunion tomorrow night, which should be fun to watch. With family coming in for IU/OSU, we won't be there, but will be listening.

Bound for....1-7????

As I've said, I watch Bound for Glory, the story of Montour football with Hall of Famer Dick Butkus and NFL vet Ray Crockett joining the team as coaches.

Now, if you wouldn't like to know what's going on in real life, skip the next paragraph:
Currently, Montour is 1-7, about the same as what they've done recently. The last 2-3 games have been blowouts. 2 weeks ago, Butkus and Crockett left as their contracts ran out. Now, of course there is the backlash, "Oh, they weren't helpful, they weren't good coaches, blah, blah, blah." Now, Butkus has never proven to be a great coach, but I fail to believe he wasn't the least big helpful. Just from watching, Montour isn't very good, and they believe they're better than they really are. I've been on teams like that, and we didn't do well. It will be interesting to see how the last 2 games are shown on TV without Butkus and Crockett.

Ok, you can resume reading now. In tonight's Amazing Race, the teams went from Huntsville, AL to New Orleans via Talledega Super Speedway. Going to Talladega was hard for the Weavers because they lost their dad to a racing crash. Going to Louisiana should've been an advantage for the Schroeders because they're from there. But as I've witnessed, the team going home got overconfident and made a mistake. The Schroeders got lost, which got them eliminated. The Bransens lead (3 gorgeous girls I might add), team Cincinnati (Linz) is 3rd, and the little kids are still alive, the Gaghins are bringing up the rear. Mrs. Weaver had the dumb line of the show, "This is Lake Ponchartrain, one of the Great Lakes." Oh boy.....

The screenplay for Rocky VI is being written. Rocky, surprise surprise, makes another comeback. Sly, STOP MAKING ROCKYS!!!! Rocky V wasn't that good, how are we supposed to think Rocky VI will be any better??? What else can you do Rocky? You lost the fight you should've won, then you won it, then you remade yourself and won, then you won the Cold War, I mean what else is left?

And don't look now, Hurricane Wilma, the 21st named storm of the season which ties the all-time record, is quickly becoming a major storm in the southern Caribbean. It is likely going to turn toward Florida and hit this weekend.

It seems like I'm forgetting something, but I guess not. Catch ya later.

Garlic Bread

Garlic bread is my kryptonite. I have no problem watching what I eat, except when it comes to garlic bread. I don't know what it is, but I looove it. I didn't eat all of it tonight, but I ate most of it, which still isn't good. I did get a workout in, but I still ate too much.

Today at church of all places, I was reminded of Miami. All of the songs sung today were sung regularly at mass in Oxford. The Alleluja was exactly the same. When the choir introduced it, I couldn't help but smile. The people around me probably thought I was nuts, but once again, the little things. The little things mean the most.

The principal at Kellenberg Memorial High School on Long Island has cancelled prom due to the wild after-prom parties that take place. Last spring, 46 seniors put a $10,000 down payment on a $20,000 rental in the Hamptons. And if you're not familiar with the Hamptons, they're like the East Coast's version of the OC. So to try and put a stop to this, there will be no prom. Will that stop the partying? I don't think so. Trying to recreate Footloose in the 20th century is not a good idea.

In the world of pro football, Da Bears took care of the Vikings 28-3. The Vikings did more scoring on their boat venture last weekend than they did today, badabing! Despite 3 turnovers and only 192 yards of offense, Da Bears made the big plays. They forced 2 turnovers themselves and blocked a field goal, Thomas Jones put the game away with a 24 yard TD run, and Kyle Orton was steady throwing 2 TD passes. Da Bears host Baltimore next week. I think it'll be a low scoring game, just a hunch.

The Bengals are 5-1 after beating Tennessee, setting themselves up for their 1st date with Pittsburgh in the Jungle next week. Despite their strong start, Cincy still hasn't beaten a team with a winning record and still can't stop the run. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh and the rest of the NFL realized how vital Ben Roethlisberger is to the Steelers. Jacksonville shut down the run game, forcing Tommy Maddox to make some plays. He did, but for the Jags, fumbling once and throwing 3 INTs. The fumble cost Pittsburgh a chance to win in overtime, and his 3rd INT was returned for the game winning TD. It looked like the early version of Tommy Maddox out there today, just wingin it around.

I realized after giving my Sweet 16, I included no "mid-majors". Coming from a "mid-major" school, I didn't intend to do this, so to make up for it, here are some "mid-majors" that could make a run at the Sweet 16:

Bucknell. Remember these guys. They beat Holy Cross on their home floor to win the Patriot League Tournament. Then, they knocked off Kansas in Oklahoma City in the 1st round of the NCAAs. Well, guess what. Everyone, and I mean everyone is back for the Bison. They won't be able to sneak up on people, but they're talented enough to overcome that.

Cal St. Fullerton. Last year, these young guns went 21-11 and made it to the 2nd round of the NIT. Now, with Utah St. leaving the Big West for the WAC and Pacific down, this school known more for its baseball has a chance to make a big splash in basketball.

Old Dominion. Colonial champs from a year ago, the Monarchs return 4 starters, including Conference Player of the Year Alex Loughton. The Colonial is quickly becoming one of the better "mid-major" leagues with Virginia Commonwealth, Hofstra, Drexel, and newly added Northeastern all looking to be strong this year.

Northern Iowa. UNI is only one of nine "mid-majors" to make the NCAAs 2 straight years (although Miami should've taken their spot last year, but that's another story). UNI has all 5 starters back, making them preseason favorites to win The Valley, one of the strongest "mid-major" conferences. What makes UNI tough is their efficiency. They like to grind it out offensively (73 points, 48% shooting) and defensively (tough half-court man defense). And when the game gets into clutch time, they have a clutch player in Ben Jacobson, who plays big in big games.

Missouri State. No longer Southwest Missouri St. or SMS, the Bears are next to win The Valley if UNI falters. The Bears return 8 of their top 10 players from a team that, although 5th in the league, played everyone tough. They have quickness and guys who can shoot on the perimeter, and they can play physical inside. They like a game in the high 60s/low 70s, not too fast, but not too slow. Whoever wins The Valley is a legit Sweet 16 threat.

Wisconsin-Milwaukee. The Panthers return 7 of their top 9 scorers from a team that beat Alabama and Boston College, before tiring against Illinois in last year's NCAAs. Leading scorer Ed McCants graduated, but Joah Tucker leads a group of players that believe they're as good as anybody. The one question mark is new head coach Rob Jeter. A former Bo Ryan assistant, he'll look to play more in the half-court, which could take some time for his players to adjust. But the players and the confidence are there for another Sweet 16 run.

Ohio. Oh, how it pains me to say Ohio and not Miami, but the Bobcats are good, very good in fact. They return their top 4 and 7 of their top 9 scorers from a team that came from behind in all of March, winning the MAC Tourney, then almost doing it again vs. Florida in the NCAAs. Leon Williams is a double-double guy inside, Jeremy Fears is a playmaker outside, Sonny Troutman is solid at both ends, and Mychal Green can fill it up. Sometimes, MAC preseason favorites have trouble living up to the hype because of the strength of the conference, and OU is still young enough where they might let it go to their head. But the talent is there for the Bobcats to make a run.

Finally tonight, in The Contender rematch, first up was Alfonso Gomez against some nobody from Mexico, Luciano Perez. Perez didn't belong in the same ring as Gomez, Gomez won by TKO in the 4th round.

Next up was the rematch between Jesse Brinkley and #1 Dad Anthony Bonsante. If you remember, Bonsante and Brinkley fought in the season's quarterfinals, where Bonsante dominated until Brinkley knocked him out in the last round. After being friends during the show, the 2 no longer talk. It appeared to everyone that Bonsante controlled the rematch last night, with Brinkley doing nothing. But as can be the case in boxing, Brinkley won a unaminous decision that left the crowd disgusted.

Finally, was the rematch between Sergio Mora and Peter Manfredo Jr. This bout went 8 rounds, where as the previous two only went 5. Manfredo looked leaner and quicker than he did in the first bout, while Mora was his usual sleek self. Getting some added corner help, Manfredo did a better job boxing Mora, winning the first 4 rounds easily. But Mora came alive in the 2nd half of the bout, landing more punches and with more authority than Manfredo. Still, it appeared he hadn't done enough to win the fight. But, this is boxing, and Mora won a split decision. The last 2 decisions made no sense to me, but then again, I don't watch a lot of boxing. I can't wait for the new season starting in the spring.

Hope you had a good weekend, catch ya later.

Another Great Saturday

I'll get to the football, but let me update you with some other stuff first.

I finally heard back from Key yesterday. Key, if you remember, was the other place where I interviewed in-person this summer. They said, "We thought you interviewed really well and were impressed with your credentials. We were so impressed we thought you were qualified for the position, but overqualified. We thought you would get bored with the position you originally interviewed for, so we forwarded your resume to other departments to see if we could use you. We'd love to have you, but for now, we don't have a place for you."

So basically I didn't get the job haha. I'm not really counting on getting a job in another Key department (it would be great if I did, I liked Key a lot and still do, they're good people). What can ya do??? I had a great interview, they like me, but I'm overqualified. Maybe I shouldn't try so hard next time haha.

Despite this, I have been able to take advantage of a couple of opportunities, and I may (may being the key word) have an inside track to a well-paying part-time job. There is another opportunity I've been able to take advantage of, in regards to having my resume looked at by a favorable firm. If anything substantial comes of it, I'll of course update you.

Of course I'm disappointed. When you get rejected from anything, it hurts. I haven't been rejected this much since Junior Homecoming (0 for 3, but I killed em on the dance floor). But I've moved on. I wasn't expecting much from Key, I had already shifted my focus to things I've applied for recently, seeing if they work out. I'm guess I due for a little rough patch. From the end of March through the beginning of September, I was on a huge roll. Hopefully, momentum comes back onto my side and I can get my roll on again.

Yesterday, my parents had the day off and my bro was back home (fall break at Miami), so we went to lunch in Lebanon, which is about halfway between Dayton and Cincinnati. We ate at the Golden Lamb, an old restaurant/inn that has been around for a long time. Multiple Presidents have visited this historic landmark, including President George W. Bush. If you go there for lunch, I recommend the open-faced beef sandwich, it is delicious. After doing some shopping, the bro and I headed up to Piqua for the Northmont/Piqua game and to do some brotherly bonding. It's always good to have some alone time with him and to see how he's doing.

As for the game, Northmont jumped out to a 21-3 lead, hurting Piqua with its spread passing attack. But turnovers and penalties kept the Bolts from running away with the game, allowing Piqua to come back in the 2nd half. But Northmont held on for a 27-25 win, setting up a huge game with Wayne, who knocked off Centerville 38-0. A Northmont win and they are assured of a spot in the playoffs and a chance of hosting their 1st round playoff game.

Alright, to today and what a day it was:
Miami 51, Akron 23. It didn't look good early for the Redhawks, as the Zips scored 17 points on their first 3 possessions, leading 17-7. And they took the early lead by running the football, something they're normally not good at. But the Miami attack got rolling, coming back to lead 23-17 at the half. Then, the 2nd half was all Miami, scoring 3 TDs in 25 seconds to turn it into a rout. Josh Betts threw for 332 yards and 3 TDs, Brandon Murphy ran for 184 yards and 2 scores, and Martin Nance and Ryne Robinson both had 100+ yard receiving games. But the defense was the difference maker, only giving up 120 yards in the 2nd half, forcing 6 turnovers in the game. Miami plays at Eastern Michigan next week. If Miami wins the rest of their MAC games and Bowling Green loses to Toledo, Miami wins the East.

Ohio St. 35, Michigan St. 24. The Buckeyes can thank the Michigan St. coaching staff for this one. It was all Sparty until they tried to kick a field goal in the waning seconds of the 1st half without spiking the ball to stop the clock. MSU didn't have enough players in, the field goal was blocked, OSU returned it for a TD, and instead of it being 20-7 at the half, it was 17-14. In the 2nd half, OSU got big plays, or missed tackles by the MSU secondary, that led to TDs from Ted Ginn and Santonio Holmes. Michigan St. dominated the game statistically, but lost. OSU is still in the hunt for the Big 10 title.

USC 34, Notre Dame 31. I'm trying to think of a better college game that I've seen, and right now I can't think of one. The Miami/OSU national championship game was good, so was last year's Texas/Michigan Rose Bowl, but they weren't better than this game. A buddy of mine compared this to the Duke/Kentucky basketball game, and I think it's a fair of comparison. Just like Duke, USC showed their true grit by finding a way to win the game when it looked like ND had pulled it off. As lucky as those green jerseys have been for the Irish, it was some bad luck that hurt them in the end. If the ND cornerback turns around a half-second earlier on the 4th down pass, he knocks it away and the game is over. If Matt Leinart doesn't fumble the ball, he gets tackled in-bounds, the clock runs out and the game is over. If the ball gets knocked out and goes through the end zone, it's a touchback and the game is over. Finally, it appeared Reggie Bush helped Leinart into the end zone. That's a 15 yard penalty in college football, so at the worst, the game would've gone into overtime. But credit to USC. Reggie Bush was electrifying, Matt Leinart made a great audible on the 4th down play, Dwayne Jarrett made a great catch, and USC has won 28 in a row.

Now for the Top 10:
1. USC. The Trojans should be encouraged that they were able to win despite LenDale White being held in check. He's usually the x-factor offensively for SC. The Trojans should get a break with Washington next week.

2. Texas. In their 42-17 win over Colorado, Vince Young was 25/29, 336 yards and 2 TDs. He also rushed for 3 TDs. Next up is pass-happy Texas Tech and gunslinger Cody Hodges. Hodges threw for over 600 yards vs. Kansas St. today. The Red Raiders are coming in also undefeated, but haven't been seriously tested. Texas should win big; I don't see the Tech defense stopping Vince Young. Tech may let Texas score so the Tech offense can get the ball back and try and score with them.

3. Virginia Tech. Dangerous Thursday night game at Maryland this week. Maryland usually gets better as the season wears on. They'll also have last year's meeting on their mind when they gave up in Blacksburg and got steamrolled.

4. Georgia. DJ Shockley threw for 298 yards and 3 scores in their 34-17 win over Vandy. The Dawgs are still sneaking around, undefeated, as they host Arkansas next weekend.

5. Alabama. The Tide were lucky to escape with a win. Both teams were dreadful in the Red Zone, especially Mississippi. But Brodie Croyle made the plays when needed to and the Tide survived, which is what you try and do at this point in the season. Next up is Tennessee in Alabama.

6. UCLA. They might be overrated here, but 6-10 is a tossup. UCLA has a great offense. Drew Olson came up big tonight in their 2nd straight 4th quarter comeback win tonight. He has big targets to throw to, and it doesn't hurt when you can hand the ball off to Maurice Drew, my Heisman favorite. UCLA is suspect defensively, especially in the secondary. But they make the plays when needed. Credit to coach Karl Dorrell for putting the Bruins back on the map.

7. Florida St. The Noles didn't bring their A game to Charlottesville vs. Virginia, and they're no longer talented enough to get away with it. Drew Weatherford threw for 373 yards, but 3 INTs were part of his 58 attempts. What happened to the vaunted FSU running game? And the FSU defense let Marques Hagans go nuts, throwing for a career-high 298 yards, spreading the ball to 11 different receivers. Booker and Washington must reappear in the FSU offense for them to win.

8. LSU. Hey, they're one botched field goal try from being undefeated most likely. They somehow survived 5 turnovers to beat the Gators. The LSU running game was in high gear, and the defense was superb, holding the Gator spread to 206 yards.

9. Miami. The Canes' starters played the 1st quarter at Temple, went up 27-0, then sat the rest of the afternoon. They might get to play the whole game this week vs. Georgia Tech. Still don't know how much they've improved since the opener.

10. Notre Dame. Hey, they're 2 plays from being undefeated and #1. Notre Dame did what they wanted to offensively, and they hung in defensively, making plays when needed. The Irish should win out, with their lone remaining test being Tennessee in South Bend. If they go 9-2, they'll make the BCS.

On the verge: Texas Tech (first real test at Texas this week), Penn St. (the busted coverage on the last play showed their youth), and Boston College (great comeback, only loss to Florida St., but overrated here possibly)

Alright, I promised my Final 4 and Sweet 16, so first are my Sweet 16 (then my Final 4):
Louisville. Taquan Dean and Larry O'Bannon will light it up from deep and look for Juan Palacios to have a breakout year.

Kentucky. Rajon Rondo will have a big year. I was really impressed with him in Indy at the NCAAs last year. UK has plenty of backcourt firepower, but they're lean inside. When Randolph Morris comes back, it will help inside, but he needs to live up to the hype.

Memphis. If Darius Washington makes some free throws, Memphis might've made a Sweet 16 run last year. This year, he and Rodney Carney are back, and John Calipari seems to have gotten rid of all the distractions.

Maryland. The inconsistent play of John Gilchrist is gone, and DJ Strawberry is back from a knee injury. Travis Garrison needs to have a big year.

Syracuse. The Orange will go as far as their junior class takes them. They can defend, but can they make anything other than layups.

UCLA. Ben Howland has turned the program around, and his hard-nosed style is in place. They aren't very deep inside, but getting guard Cedric Bozeman back from a knee injury gives the Bruins a multi-dimensional threat on the outside.

Indiana. If Mike Davis doesn't get it done this year, he's gone. They've got the depth inside, and have the shooters outside. Can they live up to the pressure of having to produce?

Nevada. Nick Fazekas is back, along with basically everyone else from a team that made it to the 2nd round last year. Ramon Sessions really impressed me in Indy last year. Look for the sophomore guard to have a good year.

NC State. Julius Hodge is the only key loss from this team. A 100% Tony Bethel will help offset that loss. I like the way Andrew Brackman plays inside.

Iowa. They're not physically impressive, but they play you tough, which is Steve Alford's style. If Jeff Horner can stay healthy, they'll be tough in March.

Arizona. Mustafa Shakur and Hassan Adams are good enough on the inside to carry this team. Isaiah Fox can be a force on the inside.

Boston College. Everyone returns to run the flex offense. It will be interesting to see how other teams play the Eagles and their stars, Dudley and Smith.

And the Final 4:
Texas. Daniel Gibson is my preseason Player of the Year, PJ Tucker is back, LaMarcus Aldridge is healthy, and Brad Buckman continues to improve. If Gibson can get some scoring help in the backcourt, this team has the inside depth to win it all.

Villanova. If I had to pick a team to win it all, I'd pick Villanova. Mike Nardi is the leader at the point, Allen Ray and Randy Foye fill it up on the wings, Jason Fraser provides the inside presence on the boards, and Curtis Sumpter is a lottery pick with his inside-outside play. In addition, Kyle Lowry provides instant offense off the bench. It's all there for the Cats to make a run.

Michigan St. I think not being as deep will help because guys won't have to worry about playing time. Drew Neitzel did a great job running the point last year, he should only get better this year. Shannon Brown and Maurice Ager can shoot and/or take you off the dribble, and Paul Davis is ready for a big senior year. Sparty will need some of their young guys to produce, but the experience is there to go deep.

Duke. JJ Redick and Shelden Williams are back, along with the best freshmen recruiting class in the nation. Duke will play most, if not all of their freshmen, giving them more depth, allowing them to run and play more pressure D. Duke's only concern is at point guard, where they need Sean Dockery to step up. If he doesn't, Greg Paulus, freshman, will take over.

I'll have the recap of The Contender Rematch tomorrow. There will be a second season, starting next spring on ESPN, which I'm psyched about.

Mix and Match

No one central theme tonight, just a bunch of everything.

In this week's Amazing Race, the teams went from Washington Dulles Airport to Charleston, SC, then took a bus to Huntsville, AL where they ended up at Space Camp. The Aiello family came in last, unable to overcome their struggle at the mudpit racing course, where it took them 14 times to complete the mudfield without stopping. The Gaghins, the last family with little kids, are still alive in 7th. They're fun to watch because they don't complain and actually contribute a lot.

And in tonight's Apprentice, the men triumphed again, creating the better Dairy Queen Blizzard mascot. The women, led by Felisha, created some Zip thing that was terrible. Felisha and her other blonde bombshells didn't put any DQ insignia on Zip and didn't create a mascot that appealed to teenagers. Despite those two critical errors, Toral didn't survive another week after failing to wear the Zip costume. She refused to wear it because of personal, then it was "personal and cultural reasons", then she changed her story again and said, "personal, culutral, and religion". Even Rebecca, who stood up for her last week, said she should be fired.

If you're a football fan, there are some good high school football games in the Dayton area to get you ready for Saturday and Sunday. Up north, Coldwater, #1 ranked in Division IV, travels to Versailles, #1 ranked in Division V. Both teams are undefeated. Also, in the battle for Dayton Division I supremacy, Centerville travels to Wayne, where there will be a standing room only crowd. Northmont travels to Piqua in a game vital for both teams' playoff hopes. My bro is back in town since it is fall break at Miami and we may head to that one for some brother bonding if we're up for it.

Another movie that didn't originally make my list is Breaking Away. This classic 1979 film that has a young Daniel Stern and Dennis Quaid among its cast takes place in Bloomington, IN. It's your classic coming-of-age story about 4 townies trying to make it in a college town. Great storyline and funny, I definitely recommend it. Having a bike race helps also.

The NFL should adopt college football's way of instant replay. Instant replay in college doesn't take nearly as long as it does in the NFL. A couple of looks, and that's it. In a pro game, we see it over and over and over and over, and it takes 3 minutes. It takes about half that time in college.

And I don't know why I keep forgetting to mention this, but The Contender rematch is Saturday night. So after a great day of football, it'll be time to watch the guys one more time. I don't know what they're fighting for to be honest for you, but since the show got cancelled (booooo), this will be as good as it gets. But, hopefully Sylvester Stallone forgets to show up.

Tomorrow, college basketball practice begins. I'll have my Preseason Final 4 and if you're lucky my Sweet 16.

Living in the Past

Right now, I'm watching Sportscenter and the umpires of Game 2 of the ALCS at the post-game press conference. There was a controversial call that ended up helping the White Sox win the game. But, in what other sport do the officials take part in the post-game press conference. Correct me if I'm wrong, but this doesn't take place in football, basketball, or hockey. Another reason why I don't like baseball. Last time I checked, a baseball game lasted 9 innings, so there are many chances to win/lose a game. It was a judgement call, he made it, he stands by it, his supervisor supports it, and that's it. To the Angels: tough cookies, score more runs the next time.

Living in the past is an activity I don't take part in, but others do. Now sure, I remember great moments. I like looking back at old photo albums, watching old movies and basketball games, and reminiscing with friends, but in a nostalgic sort of way.

These are examples of not being nostalgic, but needing to move on with your life:
Watching ESPN's Bound for Glory, the story about Montour, PA football, there is a bar in Montour where former Montour players hang out, recalling the glory days. I'm sure they're also the ones that watch every practice, every scrimmage, and every game. They live off of their glory days, letting that run their life. The same goes on message boards dedicated to high school sports. I don't post, but I read one every now and then, seeing if there's a big scoop. Instead, you primarily find people talking trash about their alma mater, many I'm sure are far removed from their high school days. Yes, I like to see Northmont do well, but you won't find me spending all day on a message board talking trash about high school football. (Surprise, surprise, many of them are from the Cincinnati area)

Another example, and many of you I've told you this, was when one of my ex-girlfriends's mom kept talking to me on IM after I broke up with her daughter. She thought we would get back together after that particular school year, but I told her, "I'm sorry, but there's no way I'll get back with your daughter." So the conversations ended, but I still found them stalking me at the neighborhood Kroger where I worked during the summer. I was going to try and make up with them, see if we could be friendly, but they would have none of it. I like seeing how people are doing, checking up on them, but I don't (I hope) my behavior isn't stalkerish.

I think I mentioned this in an earlier post, but when I went to a Northmont game and saw Northmont alums wearing their old marching band t-shirts at the game, then going down to the field and being among the current band, as if they were still in the band.

I asked a good friend about this, especially now that I'm at home, surrounded by memories. I think she put it well when she said, "It's ok to let your mind drift back to those special memories, just don't let your life revolve around them because then you won't allow yourself to create new memories." I totally agree with that.

Finally, it appears Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski will become head coach of USA basketball for the 2006 Worlds and the 2008 Olympics. I think you can guess my feelings about this choice: it's a great one. No matter who's on Team USA, they will play the right way and be ready to compete. They won't be all athletes, there will be athletes, shooters, leaders, and role players. People think Coach K has it easy because he's at Duke, and everyone wants to play there. But more often than not, he can only go 7-8 players deep because he keeps a fair number of walk-on, non-scholarship players. Especially in the last 3-4 years, he's done more with less than any other coach other than Bob Knight at Texas Tech. When Duke won the 2001 Title, he totally changed Duke's style of play when Carlos Boozer got hurt. Left with no low-post threat, Duke went to a run and gun, perimeter-oriented style of play, relying on their speed and quickness. It worked to perfection. So Coach K can be very flexible, which he'll need to be. Hopefully, he'll be able to pick some college players for this team, but one thing's for sure, JJ Redick will be on the team.

It's good to be talking basketball. I love it.

Happy Columbus Day?

Today was the observance of Columbus Day, the official holiday is Wednesday. This is the holiday I don't get. Think about it. Christopher Columbus was trying to find India. Well, I think it's fair to say he didn't find India. He probably thought, "Oh, I didn't find India, but I found...the West Indies, that's right." So we're giving credit to a guy who made one of the biggest mistakes in history??? We're also giving credit to a guy who discovered something THAT HAD ALREADY BEEN DISCOVERED!!!! A guy by the name of Leif Erickson (maybe you've heard of him), discovered America about 500 years earlier. So it should be Leif Erickson Day instead of Columbus Day. Do we celebrate Neville Chamberlain's Munich Peace Accord that was another mistake? Nope. Do we celebrate the captain of the Titanic (John Smith?) for ordering the boat to go too fast through an iceberg-filled ocean. Nope. So, I say we make this day Leif Erickson day and give the guy his due.

Tonight in Monday Night Football, those 4 magic words were said for the first time. Ben Roethlisberger, Miami University. Each starter gets to say his name and what school he went to. Big Ben had a big game: 17/26, 225 yards, 1 TD, and a rushing TD as well. He went 6/6 in the 4th quarter, leading the Steelers from behind to win. But, he left the game in the final minute after suffering a blow to his left knee. He left the field on a cart, which isn't good. As vaunted as the Steeler running game is, it wasn't there tonight. Big Ben was the main reason why Pittsburgh won tonight. I still have to remind myself I watched this guy for 3 years live and in living color. Even in his first game at the Big House, he was making plays with his mobility, firing the ball all over the place. I'm just hoping his injury isn't too serious.

4 days until Midnight Madness and the official beginning of the college basketball season. Don't worry, there will be previews to get you ready for the season.

I got a glimpse of Keira Knightley on Leno. Two words: whoa baby. She was looking good, trust me.

Who Dey Fever

2 years ago, the novelty was the Chicago Cubs, seemingly on their way to the World Series. Everywhere I looked, I saw Cubs hats, Cubs t-shirts, and every other imaginable kind of Cubs gear. Last year, it was the Red Sox, breaking the curse of 1918 and Babe Ruth. The item of the year was a Red Sox hat, new or worn. If you didn't have one, you weren't in (I guess I wasn't in because I didn't buy a Red Sox hat). This year, it's the Cincinnati Bengals, off to their best start since 1988, the last time they went to the Super Bowl. The Bengals had been the Clippers of the NFL. They drafted the wrong people (David Klingler, Kijana Carter, and Akili Smith just to name a few), had the wrong mindset as an organization (wanted to make money instead of win games), and just looked bad. But under Marvin Lewis, the franchise has been turned around, and the Bengals are on the up and up. They were 4-0 coming into tonight, and all you hear about are the Bengals. I didn't know this many people cared about the Bengals. The bandwagon seems to be approaching the size of the Red Sox's from last year. The catch phrase of the year is, of course, WHO DEY!!!

Of course, most of these people, including the majority of the national sports media, assumes that 4-0 equals a great team. Now the Bengals may end up being a great team, but the jury is still out on them. Look at who they've played up to this point: Cleveland (2-2), Minnesota (1-3), Da Bears (1-3), and Houston (0-4). Not exactly a tough schedule. Tonight's game at Jacksonville was by far the Bengals' toughest test of the year so far. And just like Penn St. showed last night, the Bengals have shown they're improved and pretty good. Among the elite, not quite, but they're coming. One thing the Bengals still struggle with is stopping the run. Fred Taylor ran wild on the Bengals tonight, taking advantage of the overeager pursuit of the Bengal defense. So the hype may quiet down and the bandwagon may lose a few tonight (that's the way bandwagon fans are, any loss and they quickly forget because they don't want to look foolish), but the Bengals are on their way. Are they still a year and a player or two away?

Da Bears are still an offense away from being a good team. Even though they should've beaten the Browns today (in control until the last 5 minutes), you can't expect to win games with one of the worst offenses (except for Thomas Jones, who is a stud) in organized football (at any level). Yes, they're starting a rookie quarterback, but Da Bears offense hasn't been good since the days of McMahon, Sweetness, and Willie Gault. And even then, it wasn't great, but it got the job done. I enjoy watching Da Bear defense more than the offense, they have more big play and scoring capability. Da Bears are 1-3, only a game out of 1st in the pathetic NFC North.

I still don't understand how some prefer the NFL over college football. Yes, the athletes are superior in the NFL, but the desire is superior in college. Saturday, Northwestern/Wisconsin (3 point upset win); Minnesota/Michigan (3 point upset win); Georgia/Tennessee (13 point win, close until the waning minutes); Ohio St./Penn St. (7 point upset win by the home team in front of 105,000); Texas Tech/Nebraska (4 point win in the last minute); Cal/UCLA (7 point upset win, back and forth shootout). Except for Patriots/Falcons, Bucs/Jets and Bengals/Jaguars, the drama was nonexistent.

Another movie that should've made the list was Bad News Bears. I didn't watch the Billy Bob Thornton remake because I thought it would ruin the original. The music that accompanies the comedy of errors and Walter Matthau make this a pleasant viewing experience.

Another thing I miss about Miami is Wednesday Nacho Night at Shriver. Wednesday would be HawkHead meeting day, and my good buddy Brad and I would arrive early to have nachos. Well, we had nachos tonight for dinner and I instantly thought of nacho night (Tuesday Fried Chicken night was good, but not as good as Wednesday nacho night).

Tomorrow is the observation of Columbus Day. Columbus Day, in my opinion, is the DUMBEST holiday of the year. I'll tell you why tomorrow.

Tomorrow also begins Part 2 of my assault on the job market. I've made some connections the past few days so cross your fingers, things may be happening in the near future.

Showdown Saturday

Best day of football so far this year. Every game I watched was decided in the waning moments.

Northwestern 51, Wisconsin 48. It's always entertaining when Northwestern is playing, especially at Northwestern. Brett Basanez threw for 361 yards and Tyrell Sutton rushed for 244, including a 62 yard run that seemed to put the game out of reach. NW led 51-34 with 4:22 left, but that's an eternity especially when NW plays zero defense. The Badgers scored two quick TDs and got the ball back with more than a minute left, but John Stocco was picked off and finally, the Wildcats had it won. The two teams combined for 1189 yards of offense, about 2/3 of a mile. Sutton is a true freshman who was Mr. Ohio (MVP) of Ohio high school football. Ohio St. missed out on him. Congrats to former Miami coach Randy Walker on the win.

Minnesota 23, Michigan 20. For the first time since 1986, the Gophers own the Little Brown Jug. I didn't think this was possible after Michigan found a way to win at East Lansing and the big fat egg Minnesota laid at Penn St. last week. Laurence Moroney and Gary Russell combined for 257 yards rushing while Michigan only had 249 yards of total offense. Michigan is 3-3 and may not be playing on New Year's Day. They don't have the standout defensive player and their offense, even with Mike Hart, lacks imagination.

Georgia 27, Tennessee 14. The Dawgs showed they are Top 5 worthy, making plays on defense and special teams. In addition, DJ Shockley showed he is a capable passing quarterback, leading the Georgia offense when the running game broke down. The defense shut down Gerald Riggs, forcing Rick Claussen to be the man. Although he threw for 309 yards, Tennessee is extremely ineffective when they're forced to be one-dimensional on offense. It's tough to decide between Georgia and Alabama who has the best defense in the SEC.

Penn St. 17, Ohio St. 10. Penn St.'s freshmen didn't wilt under pressure, and the defense showed they might be better than Ohio St.'s. Penn St.'s front 4 were the difference in the game, putting constant pressure on Troy Smith. This allowed Penn St. to drop 7 into pass coverage, giving Smith nowhere to throw or run. Ohio St. came out flat after their week off, as the linebackers weren't very sharp in the 1st half. This is how I would describe Ohio St.'s offense: vanilla. Penn St. is good, but I'm still not convinced they're top 10 material.

UCLA 47, California 40. Gotta love Pac-10 football. If I had a vote for the Heisman, it would go to UCLA tailback Maurice Drew. Tonight: 15 carries, 64 yards, 3 TDs; 2 catches, 53 yards, 1 TD; 1 kickoff return, 20 yards; 2 punt returns, 149 yards, 1 TD. California's 547 yards of total offense, which included 2 100-yard rushers, wasn't enough. Both of these teams will threaten USC with their offensive capabilities.

Time for the Top 10:
1. USC. The Trojans are beginning to worry more about how they look instead of how they play. Arizona isn't very good, so for the Wildcats to hang in for 3 quarters isn't a good sign for the Trojans. They won't be able to just turn it on next week at Notre Dame.

2. Texas. The monkey is finally off Mack Brown's back. 45-12 is how this game should've ended up. Oklahoma isn't very good. Texas hosts Colorado next week in a game that won't be easy. The Buffs took it to a good Texas A&M team tonight.

3. Virginia Tech. After sleepwalking through the 1st half vs. Marshall, the Hokies played good Beamer ball in the 2nd. The Hokies get 12 days to prepare for a Thursday night roadtrip to Maryland.

4. Georgia. Ok, I was impressed by Georgia's win today. Tennessee seemed to have it all together, but the Dawgs were the better team. DJ Shockley was 16/27 for 207 yards in his first big road game start. One has to be impressed with that. Next is a road trip to Vandy.

5. Florida St. Wake Forest should've been blown away, but the FSU offense continues to improve. Drew Weatherford threw for 351 yards and 3 scores, and the running back tandem of Washington and Booker averaged 8 yards per carry. The Noles travel to Virginia to play a hungry Cavalier team that has been reeling. Charlottesville has been a tough place to play in the past for FSU.

6. Alabama. Bye. Travel to Ole Miss next week, which should be a gimme.

7. Miami. Duke had 8 yards passing against the Canes today. 8?!?!?! Tough game at Temple next week. The Canes shouldn't lose before their meeting with Va. Tech November 5th. We'll see then how the Cane offense has come along.

8. Notre Dame. Charlie Weis is divising as we speak. Notre Dame will score against USC, but can they stop the Trojans' air attack. Will they be able to sustain the pounding of White and Bush??? I'd love to be at the Friday pep rally. Maybe Digger will show up for this one. And, will we see the green jerseys????

9. LSU. They are one bad possession from being a Top 3 team. Vanderbilt gave a great effort for 3 quarters, but LSU's depth was too much for them. The Gators come calling to Baton Rouge this week.

10. Penn St. I don't know if they should be here, but they got it done this week. If it's possible, their defense is quicker to the ball than Ohio St.'s, which I didn't think was possible. The freshmen, though relatively quiet tonight, didn't make any mistakes which says somethng about the poise they have. We'll find out more next week in Ann Arbor.

Knocking on the door: Texas Tech (only because they're unbeaten, which won't be for long), UCLA (great offense, no defense), Tennessee, Florida, and Ohio St. (top 10 talent, but lack top 10 results)

Tomorrow, Da 1st place Bears go to Cleveland to play the Browns. In the evening, Who Dey goes to Jacksonville to play on ESPN Primetime. Also, John Daly leads the American Express Championships by 1 over Monty, Tiger is 2 behind.

Finally, my prayers go out to those affected by the earthquake that occurred in Pakistan. It registered a 7.6, causing major damage and loss of life.

Potpourri

Yup, this is going to go a lot of places, so I hope you can keep up.

Even though Fall officially began more than 2 weeks ago, today it made its first appearance. Temperatures never got higher than the mid-50s, with the wind making it feel like it was in the 40s. Usually, I can run in a t-shirt and shorts in 55 degree weather, but not today. With cooler weather on its way, I hope that we have a mild winter. I know everyone loves seeing snow for a little while, but I'm hoping for no snow. Why may you ask? Well, although the price of oil seems to have steadied, the price of natural gas continues to increase. The hurricanes have added to the price increases by damaging natural gas pipelines in the Gulf of Mexico, disrupting production. A major component of one's gas heating bill is the adjustment for price fluctuations in natural gas during the billing period. So if natural gas prices continue to rise, so will heating bills, slowing down the economy.

In hurricane-related news, the Mayor of New Orleans doesn't want to wait 3-5 years for New Orleans to get back on its feet. He wants to establish parts of downtown New Orleans as gaming zones, which would allow casinos to come in and open up shop. Yes, this is a short-term solution that would probably bring in a lot of money. But, I don't know if New Orleans is the type of city that can support this in the long-run. Yes, Las Vegas works, but Las Vegas was built with new, 20th century money. Its history is gambling. New Orleans is a lot more than that, which unfortunately includes the 25% of its population that lives in poverty. I think gambling and New Orleans are a bad mix, which could include an increase in crime. When trying to achieve long-term economic prosperity, the key word is: long-term. Short-term fixes usually backfire in the long-term.

Northmont defeated Miamisburg 28-14 to go to 6-1, which should keep them in the Region Top 8. Next is a road trip to Piqua.

Tomorrow, I'll be watching:
Georgia vs. Tennessee. Is Georgia for real and can Tennessee play a complete game on both sides of the ball?

Ohio St. vs. Penn St. How good are Penn St.'s freshmen and how will Ohio St. respond to their first road game?

And every other game that is on tv.

I would include Texas vs. Oklahoma in this list, but it won't be on locally. Thanks to ABC regional coverage, I'll be forced to watch Michigan defeat Minnesota for the 22nd time.

Surprise, surprise, Serena Williams won't be playing tennis the rest of the year. One would hope she will get healthy and get back into playing shape, but something tells me that's not going to happen. I would also like to think she'll donate more money to the hurricane relief fund, but I don't think that's gonna happen either. Someone should make sure that Venus knows a second hurricane hit the area since she doesn't watch the news.

That's all I've got, kinda tired tonight.

Four Minutes

Tonight was the premiere of ESPN's latest movie, "Four Minutes", the story of Roger Bannister's quest to run the first sub 4-minute mile. The movie was written by reknowned sportswriter Frank DeFord, and it was brilliant. Running a mile in less than 4 minutes was thought to be physiologically impossible. Doctors believed there was no way the body could produce enough oxygen to sustain such an effort. In fact, when Bannister ran his 3:59.4 on May 6th, 1954, there were doctors available just in case Bannister severely bonked. I know a lot of things about sports, so it's great to learn something about sports I hadn't previously known before. For example, as early as 1949, Bannister ran a 4:11 in a college meet at Princeton. He competed in the 1952 Helsinki Summer Olympics around great media hype. But Bannister could only finish 4th, which subjected him to public ridicule for his disappointing performance, after which he was going to retire. I'm sure this will be replayed many times over the next few days, so if you get a chance, watch this movie. The sub 4-minute mile is equivalent to running the 100 meters in less than 10 seconds or shooting a 59 in golf and OJ Simpson's 2,000 yard season in 1973. Bannister is still alive and he's living history. Oh yeah, he went to Oxford College and became a Doctor.

In tonight's Apprentice, the object was to create a user-friendly technology expo for senior citizens. Surprisingly, at least to me, the men nailed it led by Randal. The men were hands-on, made the room presentable and really connected with the seniors. Even Markus did a good job. Meanwhile, the women led by Kristin and her broken leg fell short. Jen W., the event planner, planned poorly. No banners, a boring room, and a cake that said "Tethno Expo". Toral had trouble with the hi-def TV, but wasn't brought into the boardroom by Kristin as Toral had accompanied Kristin to the clinic. Kristin survived her gutsy move with her inner confidence and strength she exuded as Jen W. crumbled, looking as if she would cry as Carolyn ripped her planning.

Tomorrow, Northmont hosts Miamisburg as the drive for the playoffs continues. Playoffs?!?! Miamisburg is only 1-5 and have lost 4 straight, but in those 4 losses, they've all been by 7 points or less. Northmont could be looking past the Vikings with the tough finish of at Piqua, Wayne, and at Troy looming. The Bolts must continue to win as they stand 7th in Region 4 of Division 1. Again, the top 8 in each region make it to the postseason.

To finish up, I'd like to hear what name Tom and Katie should give their new baby. So let me hear ya. Yes, I'm talking to you!!!!

Too Small

Miami dropped to 2-3 tonight with a 38-27 loss at Northern Illinois. Things looked good early for the Redhawks when the defense intercepted a pass which led to a Brandon Murphy touchdown, 7-0 Miami. Then, my worst fears were realized. Northern's big offensive line dominated Miami's undersized defensive line, creating big holes for NIU's talented running back Garret Wolfe. The Huskies led 28-7 at the half, with the Miami offense having stalled. Northern's defense had been giving up 415 yards per game; Miami only had 99 yards at halftime.

The Hawks fought back in the 2nd half, getting as close as 35-27 with 9 minutes left in the game, but Wolfe and Co. marched down the field, milking the clock, putting the game away with a field goal. Northern had been giving up 270 yards passing per game, Miami only had 132. Why???? Murphy did have 130+ yards rushing in another great game for the sophomore from Strongsville, OH.

Miami's defensive line is too small. When your two defensive tackles are 5'11" 278 and 6'2" 250, you're in trouble. Sometimes, a good secondary can overcome an undersized defensive line, but Miami's secondary is mediocre at best. They are below mediocre at tackling. Miami now needs a lot of help to have a chance at their 3rd straight MAC East title, plus they must still play Akron and Bowling Green who have great offenses. If Miami isn't careful, the string of 11 straight winning seasons could be in jeopardy.

In last night's Amazing Race, the teams finished up in Middleburg, VA, an hour or so outside of Washington DC. Despite their constant bickering, the Paolo family survived. The Rogers were eliminated when Mr. Rogers made a crucial navigating error when his family were actually at the front of the pack. A good comeback was made by the Linz family, going from last to 3rd. It's entertaining watching them in their Bengals gear.

A movie that didn't make it onto my list was Napoleon Dynamite. I didn't know what to expect when I bought it, but it is now definitely one of my all-time favorites.

"Back in '82, I could throw the football a quarter of a mile!"

Finally, Tom and Katie have been busy. In 6 months, they met, started dating, went all over the world proclaiming their love for each other, got engaged, set a wedding date, and are now PREGNANT!!!! Those Catholic school girls, once they're released into the wild, you can't stop em you can only hope to contain em.

Tough loss for the Hawks, the season could go anywhere.

College Hoops starts in 9 days!!!!!!