Saturday, September 30, 2006

From the barstool - College Picks

Here are some predictions for Saturday’s college games....

Ohio State @ Iowa (Buckeyes - 7.5) - a few months ago I called for this to be an upset....but I’ve changed my mind.....too many people are calling the upset - so that is when Jim Tressel fools you....Buckeyes win and cover - Ohio State 23-14

Alabama @ Florida (Gators - 14.5) - last year the Tide rolled Florida in Tuscaloosa....but Chris Leak is playing at a Heisman Trophy level....Gators are too powerful this year - Florida 31-13

Notre Dame @ Purdue (Fighting Irish - 14.5) - a legendary comeback last week for Weiss & Co.....but the comeback was on the arm of Brady Quinn....Irish still having problems running the ball (2.7 ypr).....Purdue will give the Irish a headache early, but Notre Dame wins in the end - Notre Dame 34-23

Michigan @ Minnesota (Wolverines -11) - the Gophers took the Little Brown Jug last season in Ann Arbor, then planted the flag on the Michigan 50.....Gophers have experience at qb.....but Michigan defense is too tough - Michigan 27-13

Oregon @ Arizona St. (Ducks - 1.5) - this is going to be a barnburner out west.....most east coast people don’t pay attention to the PAC-10.....2 good qbs in this game....Devils gave away the Cal game last week with 4 ints.....Arizona State is due for a big win - Arizona State 41-39

YSU @ Missouri St. (Penguins - 17.5) - the Penguins are coming off an impressive non-conference win over 16th ranked Cal-Davis.....YSU has owned Missouri St. - even back in the days when they were called S.W. Missouri St.....YSU will not lose conference opener - YSU 36-13

Thursday, September 28, 2006

Random Thoughts

After hearing all the explanations, there is no doubt that Terrell Owens did not try to kill himself....just a few weeks ago my aunt was in an auto accident and the doctor gave her pain medication.....because of all the stress and her taking her regular medication, the pain pill did not agree with her.....she had a reaction and her family thought she was having a stroke....I believe all T.O. had was a bad reaction – that’s it – end of story....

I must have missed the memo, but I don’t own a bulletproof vest....according to Maurice Clarett’s defense attorney, Michael Hoague, wearing a bulletproof vest is common in Youngstown.....

"If you travel in his neighborhood in Youngstown, you see a lot of people, for whatever reason, wearing their tank tops with their flak vests," Hoague said. "It’s a way of life with the people he grew up with."

I will write more about this entire situation at a later time.....all I know is that Hoague is a total asshole, just like his client.....I’m sick of people in the state capital who take pot shots at Youngstown.....sure, Youngstown has its problems, but this is not Dodge City...

I didn’t know what a "badonkadonk" was until the other day.....

It’s good to see 7/11 is not renewing their gasoline contract with Citgo after Venezuelan whack job Hugo Chavez personally attacked President Bush at the U.N. last week....Citgo is a subsidiary company that is run by the Venezuelan government......it is fine if we, as Americans, want to criticize our president....but it’s not cool when some third world banana republic screwball does it.....screw Citgo....

Do you think Bill Clinton needs to take some medication to control his temper?.....

One of the greatest quotes ever said was by former WWF wrestler The Rock.....his quote, "Know your role and shut your mouth" should be adhered to in the work world.....there are way too many people who are either new on the job or just a plain nobody who wants to act like a somebody....

Seattle running back Shaun Alexander broke his foot in Sunday’s game....he was reported to be out of action for at least a month.....now Alexander is claiming he could possibly play this week against Chicago because the power of prayer has healed his foot.....if he has that strong connection with God, then why doesn’t ask for something more worthwhile instead of healing his broken foot in order to play on Sunday......ask for the end of al-Quaeda or something like that....

I hear Marvin Lewis and Jim Tressel are going on a recruiting trip to find quality football players.....they are stopping at the Cuyahoga County jail on their way to visit the federal prison.....

Finally.....didn’t Paris Hilton look great in her little German beergirl getup?......she can sell me a beer anytime!!...

Tuesday, September 26, 2006

NFL Thoughts - Week 3

Here on some thoughts on this past week’s NFL games.....

There was no way in hell that the Atlanta Falcons were going to win last night in New Awwlins....the Saints would have beaten the '61 Packers.....

The Patriots fell out of my Baker’s Dozen because of their lackluster performance on Sunday night against Denver.....New England looked like they did not even want to play that game....they had no fight in them.....

After praising the Giants last week after their improbable come-from-behind victory over the Iggles, the G-Men totally fell apart.....falling behind 35-3 against Seattle???.....this team needs to check themselves before they break themselves....

The Jaguars are not ready for the big boys yet....sure they had more yardage than the Colts, but they still lack that moxie and confidence.....they had it first and goal inside the five and came away with no points.....and later in the game, I think coach Jack Del Rio choked when he decided to attempt a field goal instead of going for it on 4th and 1.....he needed to go for it and show confidence in his team.....

It seems to me that the Steelers miss Antwan Randle-El and his playmaking ability....

Whatever happened to Barry Foster?.....

I lost my bet....I said Kurt Warner would be pulled in week 6.....he’s getting pulled this week....I think it is time for Warner to accept the fact that his starting days are over....

Will someone please block for Charlie Frey?.....

What about Mark Brunell?.....completing his first 22 pass attempts!!!.....

The Miami Dolphins are 1-2 and will be fortunate to win five games this year....

What happened to the Auburn boys?.....last season Ronnie Brown and Cadillac Williams tore up the league....this season they can’t even rush for 75 yards....

Don’t look now, but the J - E - T - S.....Jets Jets Jets are 2-1.....

Look for the Lions to win the Mike Martz Bowl this week when they play at St. Louis....

Game of the week - Patriots at Bengals....sure the Seahawks/Bears game feature two 3-0 teams....but the Pats game is huge because New England has to show some fight in them after Sunday’s blase performance.....a loss here, and the Pats will be 2-2....and their two wins have not been impressive either....

The Baker’s Dozen (last week’s ranking in parenthesis)
1. Bears (3-0)
(1) - it was a typical win against a Norris Division foe....ugly and low scoring...
2. Bengals (3-0) (4) - a lesser team would not have went into Pittsburgh and won, especially with the Champs coming off a loss only 6 days earlier
3. Chargers (2-0) (2) - the bolts head east for the Ravens then get the Steelers at home....
4. Colts (3-0) (4a) - Manning and Company put down a red hot Jags team....
5. Seahawks (3-0) (8) - impressive win against the G-men....now can they keep it up with Shaun down because of a broken foot....
6. Saints (3-0) (11) - you gotta love this team this year....they got rid of whiners like Jim Haslett and Aaron Brooks....and what a difference that makes....
7. Ravens (3-0) (NR) - they won a tough one by the lake....Jamal Lewis is not running like he used to....he looks like he won’t make it thru week 8.....
8. Vikings (2-1) (6) - the Vikes let one slip away....a contender will step up this week and take care of bitness....
9. Eagles (2-1) (NR) - nice rebound after the catastrophic loss to the Giants last week....
10. Falcons (2-1) (10) - the Dirty Birds were going into a hornet’s nest on Monday night....
11. Steelers (1-2) (3) - the bye week came at a good time....they had the game in hand, but let it slip away – literally....
12. Jaguars (2-1) (7) - just when you thought they could run with the big boys, they choked....
13. Broncos (2-1) (NR) - the horses sneak in because of their D, not their O....

The Carp
30. Titans (0-3)
(NR) - it’s time to let Vince Young play a little more....
31. Raiders (0-2) (31) - after a bye week the Raiders take on the Browns....ohhhh boy!!....
32. Texans (0-2) (32) - the loss of Domanick Davis at running back hurt this team....

Monday, September 25, 2006

Talkin College Football

Here are some thoughts on this weekend’s college football games....

Reports of Notre Dame’s demise have been greatly exaggerated....

Sure Troy Smith’s scramble and touchdown toss was the highlight of Ohio State’s win over Penn State.....but that one pass still did not make up for the Smith’s sub-par game of only 115 yards passing and two interceptions.....this was against the same Penn State defense that Notre Dame’s Brady Quinn carved up just two weeks ago....

I love ESPN’s College Gameday with Lee, Kirk, and Chris....it’s the best pre-game show on television - and that includes all the NFL shows....

But I don’t like their format this season in choosing where their on-site pre-game show will be....basically it is always going to be where ever Herbstreit is doing the Saturday night game....that means ESPN will not be visiting any SEC games this year because the SEC is broadcast on CBS....

Herbstreit and Corso are great together on the pre-game, but if Herbstreit is going to be doing live games, ESPN may have to start looking for a replacement for him on the pre-game in order to do their show where ever the best game is on that day....

We will know this week if Iowa is a contender or a pretender.....head coach Kirk Ferentz is always being talked about for an NFL job....he has done a solid job with the Hawkeyes, but I just feel he hasn’t taken that next step to make Iowa a national contender year-in-year-out....this Saturday’s game is a watershed game for Ferentz.....

Bear Report - the Fighting Manginos of Kansas are 3-1 after Saturday’s 13-7 donnybrook against South Florida.....lock up the donuts this week because Bear will be doing a lot of studying for Saturday’s showdown in Lincoln against the Nebraska Cornhuskers....

How could Boston College lose to N.C. State win?.....

What a day for Alabama freshman kicker Leigh Tiffin.....Tiffin missed two field goals and an extra point in the Tide’s 24-23 loss to Arkansas on Saturday....Tiffin’s daddy, Van, is a legend in Alabama football because of his last second 52-yard field goal to beat Auburn in 1985.....

Sweet 16 + 1
1. Ohio State (4-0)
- have not been impressive since thumping Texas two weeks ago....
2. Auburn (4-0) - they beat Buffalo....remember though, they play in the SEC where there are rarely any breather games....
3. Southern Cal (3-0) - it seems like this team is on cruise control....
4. W. Virginia (4-0) - the Dec. 2nd game with Rutgers is becoming interesting....
5. Michigan (4-0) - Warren, Ohio native Prescott Burgess is playing like a man possessed on defense....
6. Florida (4-0) - Chris Leak is coming up fast in the Heisman race
7. LSU - (3-1) - their only loss is by a score of 7-3 to the 2nd ranked team....huge game with Florida on October 7th.....
8. Louisville (4-0) - they may have finished #1 if not for the injuries....
9. Georgia (4-0) - ugly win for the Dawgs....very ugly....but it was a win...
10. Texas (3-1) - where was this offense two weeks ago?....
11. Notre Dame (3-1) - the Irish survived last week....they may indeed go 10-1 into the USC game....
12. Oklahoma (3-1) - the big showdown with Texas looms in 2 weeks....
13. Tennessee (3-1) - the Vols are making strides....
14. Iowa (4-0) - we’ll know what the Hawkeyes are made of this Saturday night....
15. TCU (3-0) - the Horned Frogs are hopping to a BCS bowl....
16. Clemson (3-1) - they stubbed their toe against BC a few weeks back....but they will win the ACC
+1. Rutgers (4-0) - Greg Schiano is the best unknown coach in the country....remember the name....